Improving soil and crop productivity through resource conservation technologies in drought prone area

Resource conserving technologies (RCTs) enhance input use efficiency and provide immediate identifiable and demonstrate economic benefits such as reduction of production costs, savings in water, fuel and labor requirements and timely establishment of crops resulting in improve yields. Rice is transplanted in flat fields that are typically ponded for long periods that negatively affect soil properties for the non-puddled crop (Kumar et al. 2000). Wheat is then planted in structurally disturbed soils, often after many tillage operations to prepare the seedbed. Growing crops on the raised beds offers more effective control of irrigation water and drainage management. Permanent raised beds might offer significant advantages for crop yields and be further increased by using residue retention (Sayre et al. 2005). Yields of rice and wheat in heat and water-stressed environments can be raised significantly by adopting RCTs, which minimize unfavorable environmental impacts, especially in small and medium-scale farms. Inclusion of grain legumes in rice-wheat cropping system may be another option for increasing cropping intensity, soil fertility and productivity. Limon-Ortega et al. (2000) observed that permanent beds with straw retention had the highest wheat grain yields with positive implications for soil health. Thus, crop residue management along raised bed strategies, are likely to be key components of increase crop productivity and soil fertility in rice-wheat system

Growth and yield of recently release wheat varieties under raised bed system in drought prone areas

In Bangladesh, the cereal, pulse and other crops have traditionally been planted after 3-4 ploughing operations followed by laddering which is slow, laborious, time consuming and also costly (Singh et al. 2003 and Timsina et al. 2001). Added to this is the increasing labor shortage especially in the peak period. Raised bed planting reduce production cost, save labor and water increases input efficiency, increases yields (Witt et al.2000). This experiment was undertaken to select the best genotypes bed planting and to determine their growth characteristics under this system

Adoption of raised bed technologies with heat & drought tolerant wheat varieties in drought prone areas: A miracle success in Bangladesh

Tillage practices contribute greatly to the labor cost in any crop production system (Limon et al. 2006). Intensive tillage systems result in increased soil compaction and decreased soil organic matter (Singh et al. 2003) and biodiversity (RWC-CIMMYTet al. 2003). Reduced tillage practices, such as bed planting, can offset the production cost and other constraints associated with environment and socio-economic conditions. Raised bed planting of different crops helps achieve good plant establishment, save water, seed, production cost and increases input efficiency, and increases yields in rice-wheat systems (Sayre et al. 2000). The present study examined adoption of raised beds should be needed for farmer’s income and livelihood in drought prone areas

Increasing crop productivity while reducing greenhouse gas emissions through resource conservation technologies in rice-wheat-mungbean cropping system

Resource conserving technologies (RCTs) enhance input use efficiency and provide immediate identifiable economic benefits like reduced production costs, savings in water, fuel and labor requirements and timely establishment of crops resulting in improved productivity. They can also reduce GHG emissions with less global warming impact (Aggarwal et.al. 2002). The CO2 mitigation strategy for intensive rice-wheat-mungbean cropping systems has not been well studied. Crop residue management, tillage type and N fertilization strategies are likely factors to increase crop productivity and alter fuel consumption. The objective of this trial is to assess the potential productivity and reduction in GHG emissions by using RCT in rice-wheat system

A novel nano-iron supplement to safely combat iron deficiency and anaemia in young children: The IHAT-GUT double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial protocol.

Background: Iron deficiency and its associated anaemia (IDA) are the leading forms of micronutrient malnutrition worldwide. Here we describe the rationale and design of the first clinical trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of an innovative nano iron supplement, iron hydroxide adipate tartrate (IHAT), for the treatment of IDA in young children (IHAT-GUT trial). Oral iron is often ineffective due to poor absorption and/or gastrointestinal adverse effects. IHAT is novel since it is effectively absorbed whilst remaining nanoparticulate in the gut, therefore should enable supplementation with fewer symptoms. Methods: IHAT-GUT is a three-arm, double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled phase II trial conducted in Gambian children 6-35 months of age. The intervention consists of a 12-week supplementation with either IHAT, ferrous sulphate (both at doses bioequivalent to 12.5 mg Fe/day) or placebo. The trial aims to include 705 children with IDA who will be randomly assigned (1:1:1) to each arm. The primary objectives are to test non-inferiority of IHAT in relation to ferrous sulphate at treating IDA, and to test superiority of IHAT in relation to ferrous sulphate and non-inferiority in relation to placebo in terms of diarrhoea incidence and prevalence. Secondary objectives are mechanistic assessments, to test whether IHAT reduces the burden of enteric pathogens, morbidity, and intestinal inflammation, and that it does not cause detrimental changes to the gut microbiome, particularly in relation to Lactobacillaceae, Bifidobacteriaceae and Enterobacteriaceae. Discussion: This trial will test the hypothesis that supplementation with IHAT eliminates iron deficiency and improves haemoglobin levels without inducing gastrointestinal adverse effects. If shown to be the case, this would open the possibility for further testing and use of IHAT as a novel iron source for micronutrient intervention strategies in resource-poor countries, with the ultimate aim to help reduce the IDA global burden. Registration: This trial is registered at clinicaltrials.gov ( NCT02941081)

Hawking Radiation of Schwarzschild-de Sitter Black Hole by Hamilton-Jacobi method

We investigate the Hawking radiation of Schwarzschild-de Sitter (SdS) black hole by massive particles tunneling method. We consider the spacetime background to be dynamical, incorporate the self-gravitation effect of the emitted particles and show that the tunneling rate is related to the change of Bekenstein-Hawking entropy and the derived emission spectrum deviates from the pure thermal spectrum when energy and angular momentum are conserved. Our result is also in accordance with Parikh and Wilczek\rq s opinion and gives a correction to the Hawking radiation of SdS black hole.Comment: 9 page. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1205.139

Impact of routine vaccination against Haemophilus influenzae type b in The Gambia: 20 years after its introduction.

BACKGROUND: In 1997, The Gambia introduced three primary doses of Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) conjugate vaccine without a booster in its infant immunisation programme along with establishment of a population-based surveillance on Hib meningitis in the West Coast Region (WCR). This surveillance was stopped in 2002 with reported elimination of Hib disease. This was re-established in 2008 but stopped again in 2010. We aimed to re-establish the surveillance in WCR and to continue surveillance in Basse Health and Demographic Surveillance System (BHDSS) in the east of the country to assess any shifts in the epidemiology of Hib disease in The Gambia. METHODS: In WCR, population-based surveillance for Hib meningitis was re-established in children aged under-10 years from 24 December 2014 to 31 March 2017, using conventional microbiology and Real Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR). In BHDSS, population-based surveillance for Hib disease was conducted in children aged 2-59 months from 12 May 2008 to 31 December 2017 using conventional microbiology only. Hib carriage survey was carried out in pre-school and school children from July 2015 to November 2016. RESULTS: In WCR, five Hib meningitis cases were detected using conventional microbiology while another 14 were detected by RT-PCR. Of the 19 cases, two (11%) were too young to be protected by vaccination while seven (37%) were unvaccinated. Using conventional microbiology, the incidence of Hib meningitis per 100?000-child-year (CY) in children aged 1-59 months was 0.7 in 2015 (95% confidence interval (CI)?=?0.0-3.7) and 2.7 (95% CI?=?0.7-7.0) in 2016. In BHDSS, 25 Hib cases were reported. Nine (36%) were too young to be protected by vaccination and five (20%) were under-vaccinated for age. Disease incidence peaked in 2012-2013 at 15 per 100?000 CY and fell to 5-8 per 100?000 CY over the subsequent four years. The prevalence of Hib carriage was 0.12% in WCR and 0.38% in BHDSS. CONCLUSIONS: After 20 years of using three primary doses of Hib vaccine without a booster Hib transmission continues in The Gambia, albeit at low rates. Improved coverage and timeliness of vaccination are of high priority for Hib disease in settings like Gambia, and there are currently no clear indications of a need for a booster dose

Serogroup W135 meningococcal disease, The Gambia, 2012.

In 2012, an outbreak of Neisseria meningitidis serogroup W135 occurred in The Gambia. The attack rate was highest among young children. The associated risk factors were male sex, contact with meningitis patients, and difficult breathing. Enhanced surveillance facilitates early epidemic detection, and multiserogroup conjugate vaccine could reduce meningococcal epidemics in The Gambia