Food insecurity among people with severe mental disorder in a rural Ethiopian setting: a comparative, population-based study

Aim. In low-income African countries, ensuring food security for all segments of the population is a high priority. Mental illness is associated consistently with poverty, but there is little evidence regarding the association with food insecurity. The aim of this study was to compare the levels of food insecurity in people with severe mental disorders (SMD) with the general population in a rural African setting with a high burden of food insecurity. Method. Households of 292 community-ascertained people with a specialist-confirmed diagnosis of SMD (including schizophrenia and bipolar disorder) were compared with 284 households without a person with SMD in a rural district in south Ethiopia. At the time of the study, no mental health services were available within the district. Food insecurity was measured using a validated version of the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale. Disability was measured using the World Health Organisation Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0. Result. Severe household food insecurity was reported by 32.5% of people with SMD and 15.9% of respondents from comparison households: adjusted odds ratio 2.82 (95% confidence interval 1.62 to 4.91). Higher annual income was associated independently with lower odds of severe food insecurity. When total disability scores were added into the model, the association between SMD and food insecurity became non-significant, indicating a possible mediating role of disability. Conclusion. Efforts to alleviate food insecurity need to target people with SMD as a vulnerable group. Addressing the disabling effects of SMD would also be expected to reduce food insecurity. Access to mental health care integrated into primary care is being expanded in this district as part of the Programme for Improving Mental health carE (PRIME). The impact of treatment on disability and food insecurity will be evaluated

Study of growth and physiological characters in stay-green QTL introgression Sorghum bicolor (L.) lines under post-flowering drought stress

This experiment was carried out to evaluate the growth, physiological and yield traits of stay-green (Stg) QTL introgression sorghum lines, which were developed by the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research in collaboration with ICRISAT between 2006 and 2008, under induced post-flowering drought stress. It involved a total of 12 genotypes including seven Stg QTL introgression lines, two Stg donor parents and three senescent recurrent parents. It was organized in a split plot design with three replications under well-watered and induced drought stress growing conditions at Melka Werer, Ethiopia during the post-rainy season of 2014. Analysis of variance revealed that the effect of moisture regimes on all measured traits was significant (P > 0.05). Differences among the genotypes and genotypeby- water regime interaction were also significant (P > 0.05) for all the traits considered. Postflowering drought stress was observed to significantly reduce most of the growth, physiological and yield related traits. The Stg introgression lines Meko/B35-selection 120, Teshale/B35-selection 2 and Teshale/E36-1 showed better drought stress tolerance properties than the rest of the genotypes based on the measured growth and physiological traits. These introgression lines also showed better grain yield than their recurrent parents under post-flowering drought stress and can be used as new versions of the existing varieties (served as recurrent parents) and for future breeding programs. Furthermore, leaf chlorophyll content, assimilation rate, transpiration rate, water use efficiency, root length and root dry weight were found to have strong correlation and can be used to screen genotypes for post-flowering drought tolerance

Genetic diversity and population structure among sorghum (Sorghum bicolor, L.) germplasm collections from Western Ethiopia

The Western Ethiopian region harbors a unique set of sorghum germplasm adapted to conditions not conventional to sorghums grown in other parts of the world. Accessions from the region possess unique resistance to multiple leaf and grain diseases. This study is aimed at exploring the extent of genetic variation and population structure among accessions of this region. A total of 123 accessions comprising 111 from Western Ethiopia (62 from Asosa and 49 from Pawe) and 12 U.S. adapted lines were genotyped using 30 sorghum simple sequence repeat markers (SSR). Genetic diversity and population structure were analyzed using PowerMarker and STRUCTURE software, respectively, based on 23 polymorphic SSR markers. Principal component analysis (PCA) was performed to view the variability in multi-dimensional space. Population structure analysis revealed considerable admixtures between Pawe and Asosa accessions, while the PowerMarker analysis grouped the accessions into three distinct clusters largely based on collection regions. The PCA did not clearly differentiate Asosa and Pawe accessions, but U.S. adapted lines were clearly separated from the rest. The study indicated the presence of marked genetic variability among accessions from Western Ethiopia and also provided clues on shared genetic events among accessions adapted to the two areas in Western Ethiopia.Keywords: Sorghum, genetic diversity, population structure, SSR, Ethiopi

Impact of integrated district level mental health care on clinical and social outcomes of people with severe mental illness in rural Ethiopia: an intervention cohort study

There is limited evidence of the safety and impact of task-shared care for people with severe mental illnesses (SMI; psychotic disorders and bipolar disorder) in low-income countries. The aim of this study was to evaluate the safety and impact of a district-level plan for task-shared mental health care on 6 and 12-month clinical and social outcomes of people with SMI in rural southern Ethiopia

Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology functional impairment among people with severe and enduring mental disorder in rural Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study

Purpose: Evidence regarding functional impairment in people with severe mental disorders (SMD) is sparse in low and middle-income countries. The aim of this study was to identify factors associated with functional impairment in people with enduring SMD in a rural African setting. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at the baseline of a health service intervention trial. A total of 324 participants were recruited from an existing communityascertained cohort of people with SMD (n= 218), and attendees at the Butajira General Hospital psychiatric clinic (n= 106). Inclusion criteria defined people with SMD who had ongoing need for care: those who were on psychotropic medication, currently symptomatic or had a relapse in the preceding two years. The World Health Organization Disability Assessment schedule (WHODAS-2.0) and the Butajira Functioning Scale (BFS), were used to assess functional impairment. Multivariable negative binomial regression models were fitted to investigate the association between demographic, socio-economic and clinical characteristics, and functional impairment. Results: Increasing age, being unmarried, rural residence, poorer socio-economic status, symptom severity, continuous course of illness, medication side effects and internalized stigma were associated with functional impairment across self reported and caregiver responses for both the WHODAS and the BFS. Diagnosis per se was not associated consistently with functional impairment. Conclusion: To optimize functioning in people with chronic SMD in this setting, services need to target residual symptoms, poverty, medication side effects and internalized stigma. Testing the impact of community interventions to promote recovery will be useful. Advocacy for more tolerable treatment options is warranted

Integrating modelling and phenotyping approaches to identify and screen complex traits : transpiration efficiency in cereals

Following advances in genetics, genomics, and phenotyping, trait selection in breeding is limited by our ability to understand interactions within the plants and with their environments, and to target traits of most relevance for the target population of environments. We propose an integrated approach that combines insights from crop modelling, physiology, genetics, and breeding to identify traits valuable for yield gain in the target population of environments, develop relevant high-throughput phenotyping platforms, and identify genetic controls and their values in production environments. This paper uses transpiration efficiency (biomass produced per unit of water used) as an example of a complex trait of interest to illustrate how the approach can guide modelling, phenotyping, and selection in a breeding program. We believe that this approach, by integrating insights from diverse disciplines, can increase the resource use efficiency of breeding programs for improving yield gains in target populations of environments

Landscape and Micronutrient Fertilizer Effect on Agro-Fortified Wheat and Teff Grain Nutrient Concentration in Western Amhara

Agronomic biofortification, encompassing the use of mineral and organic nutrient resources which improve micronutrient concentrations in staple crops is a potential strategy to promote the production of and access to micronutrient-dense foods at the farm level. However, the heterogeneity of smallholder farming landscapes presents challenges on implementing agronomic biofortification. Here, we test the effects of zinc (Zn)- and selenium (Se)-containing fertilizer on micronutrient concentrations of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and teff (Eragrostis tef (Zucc.) Trotter) grown under different landscape positions and with different micronutrient fertilizer application methods in the western Amhara region of Ethiopia. Field experiments were established in three landscape positions at three sites, with five treatments falling into three broad categories: (1) nitrogen (N) fertilizer rate; (2) micronutrient fertilizer application method; (3) sole or co-application of Zn and Se fertilizer. Treatments were replicated across five farms per landscape position and over two cropping seasons (2018 and 2019). Grain Zn concentration ranged from 26.6 to 36.4 mg kg−1 in wheat and 28.5–31.2 mg kg−1 in teff. Grain Se concentration ranged from 0.02 to 0.59 mg kg−1 in wheat while larger concentrations of between 1.01 and 1.55 mg kg−1 were attained in teff. Larger concentrations of Zn and Se were consistently attained when a foliar fertilizer was applied. Application of ⅓ nitrogen (N) yielded significantly larger grain Se concentration in wheat compared to a recommended N application rate. A moderate landscape effect on grain Zn concentration was observed in wheat but not in teff. In contrast, strong evidence of a landscape effect was observed for wheat and teff grain Se concentration. There was no evidence for any interaction of the treatment contrasts with landscape position except in teff, where an interaction effect between landscape position and Se application was observed. Our findings indicate an effect of Zn, Se, N, landscape position, and its interaction effect with Se on grain micronutrient concentrations. Agronomic biofortification of wheat and teff with micronutrient fertilizers is influenced by landscape position, the micronutrient fertilizer application method and N fertilizer management. The complexity of smallholder environmental settings and different farmer socio-economic opportunities calls for the optimization of nutritional agronomy landscape trials. Targeted application of micronutrient fertilizers across a landscape gradient is therefore required in ongoing agronomic biofortification interventions, in addition to the micronutrient fertilizer application method and the N fertilizer management strategy