Evaluation of host-specificity of Zygogramma bicolorata Pallister (Coleoptra: Chrysomelidae) for the biological control of Parthenium hysterophorus L. (Asteraceae: Heliantheae) in Nepal

Host-specificity test of Zygogramma bicolorata Pallister (Coleoptra: Chrysomelidae) was conducted in the field and laboratory of National Entomology Research Center, Khumaltar, Lalitpur, Nepal during April to September, 2017. Multiple-choice and no-choice tests were conducted on Agerataum houstoniamum Mill., Bidens pilosa L., Chrysanthemum indicum L., Dahlia pinnata Cav, Guizotia abyssinica L., Helianthus annuus L., Lactuca sativa L., Parthenium hysterophorus L., Perilla frutescence L., Xanthium strumarium L., Zinnia elegans Jacq. and Jasminum officinale L. Among tested plant species, P. hysterophorus was only a preferred host of Z. bicolorata on which both larvae and adults fed. Ovipostion, larval development, pupation and adult emergence of Z. bicolorata occurred successfully on P. hysterophorus completing its life cycle. Larvae consumed H. anuus but could not pupate, and adults fed on it when starved for 5 days in no-choice test.   Both adults and larvae of Z. bicolorata consumed X. strumarium and completed larval and pupal developments, but adults did not oviposit. Adult longevity was significantly reduced after feeding on H. annus (19.00 days) and X. strumarium (29.33 days) compared to P. hysterophorus (83.33 days)

Outcome of gastrointestinal surgery during COVID-19 lockdown in a tertiary care hospital, Nepal

Introduction: Perioperative strategies have been changing due to the COVID-19 pandemic to prevent the risk of postoperative complications and transmission of infection. This study was aimed to assess the outcome of gastrointestinal surgery and the risk of transmission by implementing COVID-19 testing criteria and surgical strategy. Method: This was a retrospective descriptive study conducted at the department of surgery at Patan Hospital, Nepal, during COVID-19 lock-down from 24 march to 15 June 2020. All patients who underwent gastrointestinal (GI) surgery were included. High-risk patients (as defined by the Hospital Incident Command System, HICS) were tested for COVID-19 preoperatively. Surgery was performed in COVID operating room with full protective gear. Low-risk patients were not tested for COVID-19 preoperatively and performed surgery in non-COVID OR. Data from patient’s case-sheets were analyzed descriptively for age, gender, comorbidities, hospital stay, RT-PCR results, surgeries, and postoperative complications. Result: There were total 44 GI surgeries performed; 31(70.5%) were emergency, 5(11.3%) semi-emergency and 8(18.2%) oncology. There were 11(25%) patients tested for COVID-19 preoperatively and were negative. Nine HCWs tested for COVID-19 randomly were negative. Severe postoperative complications developed in 3 patients, with one mortality. Conclusion: Among GI surgeries, there was no increase in postoperative complications and transmission of COVID-19 to the patients or HCWs following the implementation of standard testing criteria and surgical strategy

Agrobiodiversity and Its Conservation in Nepal

Nepal is a part of the world\u27s biodiversity hotspot and ranks the 49th in the world for biodiversity. Agrobiodiversity and its conservation status were studied through literature review, field survey, key informant survey and focus group discussion. Results of field implementation of some good practices and action research were also documented. Among 24,300 total species in the country, 28% are agricultural genetic resources (AGRs), termed as agrobiodiversity. Agrobiodiversity has six components (crops, forages, livestock, aquatic, insects and microorganisms) and four sub-components (domesticated, semi-domesticated, wild relatives and wild edible) in Nepal. Agrobiodiversity on each component exists at agroecosystem, species, variety/breed/biotype/race/strain, genotype and allele levels, within an altitude range from 60 to 5,000 masl. There are 12 agroecosystems supporting 1026 species under crop component, 510 under forage, 35 under livestock, 250 under the aquatic animal, 17 under aquatic plant, 3,500 under insect and 800 under microorganism. An estimated loss of agrobiodiversity is 40%, however, farmers have reported up to 100% loss of AGRs in some areas for a particular species. Conservation of agrobiodiversity has been initiated since 1986. Four strategies namely ex-situ, on-farm, in-situ and breeding have been adopted for conservation and sustainable utilization of AGRs. Eighty good practices including process, methods and actions for managing agrobiodiversity have been in practice and these practices come under five conservation components (sensitization, method and approach, accelerator, value and enabling environment). Within the country, 18,765 accessions of AGRs have been conserved in different kinds of banks. A total of 24,683 accessions of Nepalese crops, forages and microbes have been conserved in different International and foreign genebanks. Some collections are conserved as safety duplication and safety backup in different CGIARs\u27 banks and World Seed Vault, Korea. Two global databases (GENESYS and EURISCO) have maintained 19,200 Nepalese accessions. Geographical Information System, Climate Analog Tool and biotechnological tools have been applied for better managing AGRs. Many stakeholders need to further concentrate on the conservation and utilization of AGRs. Global marketing of some native AGRs is necessary for sustaining agriculture and attracting young generations as well as conserving them through use

Poor Thermal Care Practices among Home Births in Nepal: Further Analysis of Nepal Demographic and Health Survey 2011

Introduction - Hypothermia is a major factor associated with neonatal mortality in low and middle income countries. Thermal care protection of newborn through a series of measures taken at birth and during the initial days of life is recommended to reduce the hypothermia and associated neonatal mortality. This study aimed to identify the prevalence of and the factors associated with receiving ‘optimum thermal care’ among home born newborns of Nepal. Methods - Data from the Nepal Demographic and Health Surveys (NDHS) 2011 were used for this study. Women who reported a home birth for their most recent childbirth was included in the study. Factors associated with optimum thermal care were examined using Chi-square test followed by logistic regression. Results - A total of 2464 newborns were included in the study. A total of 57.6 % were dried before the placenta was delivered; 60.3% were wrapped; 24.5% had not bathing during the first 24 hours, and 63.9% were breastfed within one hour of birth. Overall, only 248 (10.7%; 95% CI (8.8 %, 12.9%)) newborns received optimum thermal care. Newborns whose mothers had achieved higher education (OR 2.810; 95% CI (1.132, 6.976)), attended four or more antenatal care visits (OR 2.563; 95% CI (1.309, 5.017)), and those whose birth were attended by skilled attendants (OR 2.178; 95% CI (1.428, 3.323)) were likely to receive optimum thermal care. Conclusion - The current study showed that only one in ten newborns in Nepal received optimum thermal care. Future newborn survival programs should focus on those mothers who are uneducated; who do not attend the recommended four or more attend antenatal care visits; and those who deliver without the assistance of skilled birth attendants to reduce the risk of neonatal hypothermia in Nepal

Comparison between Supraclavicular and Infraclavicular Approach in Subclavian Vein Catheterization in a Tertiaray Center in Nepal

Introduction: Central vein catheterization can be introduced in subclavian (SCV), interjugular or femoral vein for volume resuscitation and invasive monitoring technique. Due to anatomical advantage and lesser risk of infection subclavian vein is preferred. Either supraclavicular (SC) or infraclavicualr (IC) approach could be used for subclavian vein catheterization. The aim of the study was to compare SC and IC approach in ease of catheterization of SCV and record the complications present if any. Methods and materials: This was a hospital based comparative, interventional study conducted from November 2016 to October 2017. In this study, 70 patients for elective surgical cases meeting the inclusion criteria were randomly enrolled. Then samples were equally divided by lottery into either supraclavicular or infraclavicular approach group. Access time, success rate of cannulation, number of attempts to cannulate vein, ease of guide wire and catheter insertion, length of catheter inserted and associated complications in both group were recorded. Results: The mean access time in group SC for SCV catheterization was 2.12 ± 0.81 min compared to 2.83 ± 0.99 min in group IC (p-value= 0.002). The overall success rate in catheterization of the right SCV using SC approach (34 out of 35) was better as compared with group IC (33 out of 35) using IC approach. First attempt success in the SC group was 74.28% as compared with 57.14% in the IC group. Conclusion: The SC approach of SCV catheterization can be considered alternative to IC approach in terms of landmarks accessibility, success rate and rate of complications

Landslide susceptibility mapping using support vector machine and GIS at the Golestan province, Iran

The main goal of this study is to produce landslide susceptibility map using GIS-based support vector machine (SVM) at Kalaleh Township area of the Golestan province, Iran. In this paper, six different types of kernel classifiers such as linear, polynomial degree of 2, polynomial degree of 3, polynomial degree of 4, radial basis function (RBF) and sigmoid were used for landslide susceptibility mapping. At the first stage of the study, landslide locations were identified by aerial photographs and field surveys, and a total of 82 landslide locations were extracted from various sources. Of this, 75% of the landslides (61 landslide locations) are used as training dataset and the rest was used as (21 landslide locations) the validation dataset. Fourteen input data layers were employed as landslide conditioning factors in the landslide susceptibility modelling. These factors are slope degree, slope aspect, altitude, plan curvature, profile curvature, tangential curvature, surface area ratio (SAR), lithology, land use, distance from faults, distance from rivers, distance from roads, topographic wetness index (TWI) and stream power index (SPI). Using these conditioning factors, landslide susceptibility indices were calculated using support vector machine by employing six types of kernel function classifiers. Subsequently, the results were plotted in ArcGIS and six landslide susceptibility maps were produced. Then, using the success rate and the prediction rate methods, the validation process was performed by comparing the existing landslide data with the six landslide susceptibility maps. The validation results showed that success rates for six types of kernel models varied from 79% to 87%. Similarly, results of prediction rates showed that RBF (85%) and polynomial degree of 3 (83%) models performed slightly better than other types of kernel (polynomial degree of 2 = 78%, sigmoid = 78%, polynomial degree of 4 = 78%, and linear = 77%) models. Based on our results, the differences in the rates (success and prediction) of the six models are not really significant. So, the produced susceptibility maps will be useful for general land-use planning

Modelling urban growth evolution and land-use changes using GIS based cellular automata and SLEUTH models: the case of Sana'a metropolitan city, Yemen.

An effective and efficient planning of an urban growth and land use changes and its impact on the environment requires information about growth trends and patterns amongst other important information. Over the years, many urban growth models have been developed and used in the developed countries for forecasting growth patterns. In the developing countries however, there exist a very few studies showing the application of these models and their performances. In this study two models such as cellular automata (CA) and the SLEUTH models are applied in a geographical information system (GIS) to simulate and predict the urban growth and land use change for the City of Sana’a (Yemen) for the period 2004–2020. GIS based maps were generated for the urban growth pattern of the city which was further analyzed using geo-statistical techniques. During the models calibration process, a total of 35 years of time series dataset such as historical topographical maps, aerial photographs and satellite imageries was used to identify the parameters that influenced the urban growth. The validation result showed an overall accuracy of 99.6 %; with the producer’s accuracy of 83.3 % and the user’s accuracy 83.6 %. The SLEUTH model used the best fit growth rule parameters during the calibration to forecasting future urban growth pattern and generated various probability maps in which the individual grid cells are urbanized assuming unique “urban growth signatures”. The models generated future urban growth pattern and land use changes from the period 2004–2020. Both models proved effective in forecasting growth pattern that will be useful in planning and decision making. In comparison, the CA model growth pattern showed high density development, in which growth edges were filled and clusters were merged together to form a compact built-up area wherein less agricultural lands were included. On the contrary, the SLEUTH model growth pattern showed more urban sprawl and low-density development that included substantial areas of agricultural lands

BCAA catabolism in brown fat controls energy homeostasis through SLC25A44.

Branched-chain amino acid (BCAA; valine, leucine and isoleucine) supplementation is often beneficial to energy expenditure; however, increased circulating levels of BCAA are linked to obesity and diabetes. The mechanisms of this paradox remain unclear. Here we report that, on cold exposure, brown adipose tissue (BAT) actively utilizes BCAA in the mitochondria for thermogenesis and promotes systemic BCAA clearance in mice and humans. In turn, a BAT-specific defect in BCAA catabolism attenuates systemic BCAA clearance, BAT fuel oxidation and thermogenesis, leading to diet-induced obesity and glucose intolerance. Mechanistically, active BCAA catabolism in BAT is mediated by SLC25A44, which transports BCAAs into mitochondria. Our results suggest that BAT serves as a key metabolic filter that controls BCAA clearance via SLC25A44, thereby contributing to the improvement of metabolic health

Factors associated with the utilisation of postnatal care services among the mothers of Nepal: analysis of Nepal Demographic and Health Survey 2011

Background: Postnatal care is essential to save the life of the mother and newborn. Knowledge on the determinants of postnatal care assists the policy makers to design, justify and implement appropriate interventions. The current study aimed to analyse the factors associated with utilisation of postnatal care services by mothers in Nepal based on the data from Nepal Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) 2011. Methods: This study utilised the data from NDHS 2011. The association between utilisation of at least one postnatal care visit (within 6 weeks of delivery) and immediate postnatal care (within 24 hours of delivery) with selected factors was examined by using Chi-square test (?2), followed by multiple logistic regression.Result: Of the 4079 mothers, 43.2% reported attending postnatal care within the first six weeks of birth, while 40.9% reported attending immediate postnatal care. Mothers who were from urban areas, from rich families, who were educated, whose partners were educated, who delivered in a health facility, who had attended a four or more antenatal visits, and whose delivery was attended by a skilled attendant were more likely to report attending at least one postnatal care visit. On the other hand, mothers who reported agricultural occupation, and whose partners performed agricultural occupation were less likely to have attended at least one postnatal care visit. Similarly, mothers who were from the urban areas, from rich families, who were educated, whose partners were educated, who had attended four or more antenatal visits, who delivered in a health facility and had delivered in the presence of a skilled birth attendant were more likely to report attending immediate postnatal care. Mothers who reported agricultural occupation, and whose partners performed agricultural occupation were less likely to attend immediate postnatal care. Conclusion: The majority of postnatal mothers in Nepal did not seek postnatal care. Increasing utilisation of the recommended four or more antenatal visits, delivery at health facility and increasing awareness and access to services through community-based programs especially for the rural, poor, and less educated mothers may increase postnatal care attendance in Nepal

Nascentome Analysis Uncovers Futile Protein Synthesis in Escherichia coli

Although co-translational biological processes attract much attention, no general and easy method has been available to detect cellular nascent polypeptide chains, which we propose to call collectively a “nascentome.” We developed a method to selectively detect polypeptide portions of cellular polypeptidyl-tRNAs and used it to study the generality of the quality control reactions that rescue dead-end translation complexes. To detect nascent polypeptides, having their growing ends covalently attached to a tRNA, cellular extracts are separated by SDS-PAGE in two dimensions, first with the peptidyl-tRNA ester bonds preserved and subsequently after their in-gel cleavage. Pulse-labeled nascent polypeptides of Escherichia coli form a characteristic line below the main diagonal line, because each of them had contained a tRNA of nearly uniform size in the first-dimension electrophoresis but not in the second-dimension. The detection of nascent polypeptides, separately from any translation-completed polypeptides or degradation products thereof, allows us to follow their fates to gain deeper insights into protein biogenesis and quality control pathways. It was revealed that polypeptidyl-tRNAs were significantly stabilized in E. coli upon dysfunction of the tmRNA-ArfA ribosome-rescuing system, whose function had only been studied previously using model constructs. Our results suggest that E. coli cells are intrinsically producing aberrant translation products, which are normally eliminated by the ribosome-rescuing mechanisms