The Importance of Goats in the World

It is a challenge to transform the mindset of subsistence farmers to consider goats as a productive asset. Goat health, breeding, housing and nutrition are the main challenges in a smallholder production system. The development of the goat market sector is informal and underdeveloped. As a result, goats have not been identified as a significant contributor to the national gross domestic product. Many development organizations consider goats a preferred livestock commodity for poverty alleviation. Therefore, it is desirable to have a systematic approach to optimize goat production for smallholders. A smallholder goat value chain works well with a focus on improved goat production, increasing business and entrepreneur skills and organizing communities for strong social capital. Heifer International has large-scale goat value chain programs for smallholders in many countries. Partnership and collaborative efforts among academic/scientific, public/private sectors, producers and civil societies are critical for sustainable smallholder goat development

Ameliorative Effects of Dimetylthiourea and N-Acetylcysteine on Nanoparticles Induced Cyto-Genotoxicity in Human Lung Cancer Cells-A549

We study the ameliorative potential of dimetylthiourea (DMTU), an OH• radical trapper and N-acetylcysteine (NAC), a glutathione precursor/H2O2 scavenger against titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2-NPs) and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) induced cyto-genotoxicity in cultured human lung cancer cells-A549. Cytogenotoxicity was induced by exposing the cells to selected concentrations (10 and 50 µg/ml) of either of TiO2-NPs or MWCNTs for 24 h. Anti-cytogenotoxicity effects of DMTU and NAC were studied in two groups, i.e., treatment of 30 minutes prior to toxic insult (short term exposure), while the other group received DMTU and NAC treatment during nanoparticles exposure, i.e., 24 h (long term exposure). Investigations were carried out for cell viability, generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), micronuclei (MN), and expression of markers of oxidative stress (HSP27, CYP2E1), genotoxicity (P53) and CYP2E1 dependent n- nitrosodimethylamine-demethylase (NDMA-d) activity. In general, the treatment of both DMTU and NAC was found to be effective significantly against TiO2-NPs and MWCNTs induced cytogenotoxicity in A549 cells. Long-term treatment of DMTU and NAC during toxic insults has shown better prevention than short-term pretreatment. Although, cells responded significantly to both DMTU and NAC, but responses were chemical specific. In part, TiO2-NPs induced toxic responses were mediated through OH• radicals generation and reduction in the antioxidant defense system. While in the case of MWCNTs, adverse effects were primarily due to altering/hampering the enzymatic antioxidant system. Data indicate the applicability of human lung cancer cells-A549 as a pre-screening tool to identify the target specific prophylactic and therapeutic potential of drugs candidate molecules against nanoparticles induced cellular damages

The Importance of Goats in the World

It is a challenge to transform the mindset of subsistence farmers to consider goats as a productive asset. Goat health, breeding, housing and nutrition are the main challenges in a smallholder production system. The development of the goat market sector is informal and underdeveloped. As a result, goats have not been identified as a significant contributor to the national gross domestic product. Many development organizations consider goats a preferred livestock commodity for poverty alleviation. Therefore, it is desirable to have a systematic approach to optimize goat production for smallholders. A smallholder goat value chain works well with a focus on improved goat production, increasing business and entrepreneur skills and organizing communities for strong social capital. Heifer International has large-scale goat value chain programs for smallholders in many countries. Partnership and collaborative efforts among academic/scientific, public/private sectors, producers and civil societies are critical for sustainable smallholder goat development

Dairy Animal Ownership and Household Milk Production Associated with Better Child and Family Diet in Rural Nepal during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The economic and health crises related to the COVID-19 pandemic raised considerable concern about child and family diet, especially among small-holder farming households in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). In rural Nepal, 309 families (including 368 children aged 6–66 months) were enrolled pre-COVID-19 in a prospective study of a nutrition education intervention and family milk consumption. The intervention could not be implemented due to COVID-19; however, child and family diet was assessed in three household surveys (one before and two during the pandemic). Over time, after adjusting for child and household factors, child and family diet quality declined (reduced diet diversity, consumption of milk and animal-source-foods (ASF)). However, in dairy-animal-owning (vs. non-dairy-animal-owning) households, both children and family were more likely to consume milk (aOR respectively 2.88× (p < 0.05), 5.81× (p < 0.001)). Similarly, in households producing >3.5 L/d milk (vs. ≤3.5 L/d), children and family members were more likely to consume milk (respectively 7.45× and 11.88× (both p < 0.001)). Thus, the overall decline in child and family diet quality, especially related to milk consumption, was buffered independently by household ownership of ≥1 dairy animals (cow or buffalo) and by milk production >3.5 L/day. A better understanding of these protective factors might facilitate the development of interventions to promote resilience in future crises

Longitudinal analysis of the intrahousehold distribution of foods in rural Nepal: Effectiveness of a community-level development intervention

Inadequate child dietary quality is a problem of public health significance in rural Nepal. This study explores whether and how dietary patterns within households changed over a four-year time period with the introduction of a randomized community development intervention in rural Nepal. Individual-level dietary data within households is rarely observed over extended periods of time, which limits our understanding of within-household food distribution dynamics, especially in the context of impact evaluations. Six rural communities of Nepal with predominantly agricultural livelihoods were selected to participate in the phased implementation of a long-term community-level development intervention. Households (N=414 at baseline) and children (N=951 at baseline) in each community were surveyed at baseline; and the 116-item follow-up surveys were implemented at 6 months, 12 months, 18 months, 24 months, and 48 months. Detailed data on food consumption were collected at the household-level and for individual children older than 6 months of age using a 24 hour recall for 17 foods and food groups; parents responded for children. Child-level dietary diversity and consumption of animal sourced foods were the outcomes of interest. Fixed-effects analysis of the resulting panel data indicates that there are disparities in the responsiveness of child dietary quality with respect to household dietary quality, as measured by elasticities. Results indicate that there are no differences in the responsiveness of child dietary quality to household dietary quality between girl and boy children, but there are measurable disparities in dietary quality responsiveness across age groups of children and across regions of Nepal. As the length of time of exposure to the community development intervention increased, so did the responsiveness of child dietary quality to household dietary quality, as measured by elasticities. This pattern holds during both times of household stress and times of household prosperity, as indicated by the household-level dietary diversity differenced from the mean across all six time periods. The long-term, community-level development of rural women’s groups may have increased women’s status in the study sites and resulted in the improved diets for children, but measurement of women’s status over time is necessary to test that hypothesis. These results stress the importance of measuring and addressing intrahousehold dynamics – in particular across age cohorts – during community development projects, and caution against assuming the presence of sex bias in the distribution of foods within households

Women’s education level amplifies the effects of a livelihoods-based intervention on household wealth, child diet, and child growth in rural Nepal

Abstract Background Many organizations seek to alleviate poverty in the developing world, often focusing their interventions on women. The role, status, and education of women are fundamentally important facets of development. Thus, understanding the interaction of women’s educational level and the response to interventions is important. Therefore, we examined the impact of educational level of household adults on responses to a livestock-based community intervention. Methods Six pair-matched communities in 3 districts of Nepal (Chitwan/Nawalparasi/Nuwakot), were randomly assigned to receive community development activities via women’s self-help groups at baseline or 1 year later. At 6 intervals over 48 months, a 125- item questionnaire addressing family demographics and child health/nutrition was completed in each household, plus child growth monitoring. Results were analyzed in relation to the highest education attained by any woman in the household, the child’s mother, men, or any other adult in the household. Results Outcomes (wealth, water/toilet availability, child diet diversity and growth) all significantly related to adult education. However, notable differences were found comparing the impact of men’s and women’s education. Percent change in wealth score was significant only in households where women had primary or secondary education (respectively, p = .0009 and p < .0001). Increased soap use related only to women’s education (p < .0001). When adjusted for group assignment, baseline income, wealth, and animal scores, higher women’s education was significantly associated with increased household wealth (p < .0001), better child height-for-age z scores (HAZ, p = .005), and improved child diet diversity (p = .01). Higher mother’s education predicted better child HAZ (primary, p = .01, secondary, p = .03) and diet diversity (primary, p = .05, secondary, p < .0001). Higher men’s education was significantly associated with household wealth (p = .02) and child diet diversity (p = .04), but not HAZ; higher education of any household member was associated only with household wealth (p < .0001). Moreover, households where the mother’s education was better than the best-educated man also were significantly more likely to have children with better HAZ and dietary diversity (p = .03, p < .0001). Thus, the educational level of women and mothers had the broadest impact on child outcome variables. Conclusions Household characteristics vary among participants in most community development projects. Of these, adult education likely mediates response to the inputs provided by the intervention. Particularly in interventions directed towards women, better education may enhance the ability of households to put interventions into practice, thus improving wealth, hygiene, and child diet and growth indices

Maternal depression is associated with less dietary diversity among rural Nepali children.

Maternal depression has been associated with adverse child growth and development; less is known about its relation to children's diet. In a cross-sectional study embedded at endline of a longitudinal community development intervention, mothers of 629 children (age 23-66 months) in rural Nepal responded to household and children's diet questionnaires and were screened for depression. Child anthropometry and development (Ages and Stages Questionnaire) were assessed. Regression models examined children's diet, growth and development, adjusting for household, child and maternal characteristics. The prevalence of maternal depression was 21%. Maternal depression was associated with 11% lower likelihood that the child consumed one additional food group [Poisson regression, adjusted relative risk (aRR) 0.89, 95% confidence intervals (95% CI 0.81, 0.99), p = 0.024] and 13% lower likelihood that the child consumed one additional animal source food (ASF) [aRR 0.87, (95% CI 0.76, 1.01), p = 0.061] compared with children of nondepressed mothers. However, maternal depression was not associated with either child anthropometry or development: these outcomes were strongly associated with better home child-rearing quality. Stunting also related to child age and intervention group; child development related to mother's education and household wealth. This study suggests a correlation between maternal depression and child dietary diversity. This association could be due to unmeasured confounders, and therefore, further research is warranted. Understanding the relationship of depression to child outcomes-and the role of other potentially compensatory household factors-could help address some of the earliest, modifiable influences in a child's life and contribute to innovative approaches to improve child well-being

TiO₂-NPs and MWCNTs (50 µg/ml) induced translational changes (HSP27, CYP2E1 and P⁵³) in the absences or presence of DMTU (10 mM)/ NAC (2 mM).

<p><b>a (I)</b> Assessment of altered expressions of proteins involved in the induction of oxidative stress (HSP27 and CYP2E1) and genotoxicity (P⁵³) in A549 cells exposed to TiO₂-NPs (50 µg/ml) for 24 h. GAPDH was used as internal control to normalize the data. Lane (1) unexposed control (2) 50.0 µg/ml TiO₂-NPs (3) 50.0 µg/ml TiO₂-NPs + DMTU (10 mM) (4) 50.0μg/ml TiO₂-NPs + NAC (2 mM). <b>(II)</b> Relative quantification (fold change) of proteins involved in the induction of oxidative stress (HSP27 and CYP2E1) and genotoxicity (P⁵³) in A549 cells exposed to TiO₂-NPs for 24h. GAPDH was used as internal control to normalize the data. Quantification was done in Gel Documentation System (Alpha Innotech, USA) with the help of AlphaEase^TM FC StandAlone V.4.0 software. All values are mean ± S.E. of 3 experiments. ^**P<0.01 (unexposed control Vs TiO₂-NPs exposure). ##P<0.01 (TiO₂-NPs exposure Vs DMTU/NAC treatment). <b>b (I)</b> Assessment of altered expressions of proteins involved in the induction of oxidative stress (HSP27 and CYP2E1) and genotoxicity (P⁵³) in A549 cells exposed to MWCNTs (50 µg/ml) for 24 h. GAPDH was used as internal control to normalize the data. Lane (1) unexposed control (2) 50.0 µg/ml MWCNTs (3) 50.0 µg/ml MWCNTs + DMTU (10 mM) (4) 50.0μg/ml MWCNTs + NAC (2 mM). <b>(III)</b> Relative quantification (fold change) of proteins involved in the induction of oxidative stress (HSP27 and CYP2E1) and genotoxicity (P⁵³) in A549 cells exposed to MWCNTs for 24h. GAPDH was used as internal control to normalize the data. Quantification was done in Gel Documentation System (Alpha Innotech, USA) with the help of AlphaEase^TM FC StandAlone V.4.0 software. All values are mean ± S.E. of 3 experiments. ^**P<0.01 (unexposed control Vs MWCNTs exposure). ##P<0.01 (MWCNTs exposure Vs DMTU/NAC treatment).</p

Cell viability restoration by DMTU and NAC in human lung cancer cells-A549 receiving the exposure of TiO₂-NPs or MWCNTs.

<p>(<b>a</b>) In short term group, cells were pre-treated with either of DMTU or NAC for 30 minutes followed by exposure of TiO₂-NPs (10 & 50 µg/ml) for 24 h. In long term group, cells were receiving a co-exposure (24 h) of DMTU/NAC and TiO₂-NPs (10 & 50 µg/ml). Cells were then analyzed for DMTU/NAC mediated restoration in the cell viability reduced due to TiO₂-NPs exposure. All values are mean±S.E. of 3 experiments. ^**P<0.01 (unexposed control Vs TiO₂-NPs exposure). ##P<0.01 (TiO₂-NPs exposure Vs DMTU/NAC treatment). (<b>b</b>) In short term group, cells were pre-treated with either of DMTU or NAC for 30 minutes followed by exposure of MWCNTs (10 & 50 µg/ml) for 24 h. In long term group, cells were receiving a co-exposure (24 h) of DMTU/NAC and MWCNTs (10 & 50 µg/ml). Cells were then analyzed for DMTU/NAC mediated restoration in the cell viability reduced due to MWCNTs exposure. All values are mean ± S.E. of 3 experiments. ^**P<0.01 (unexposed control Vs MWCNTs exposure). ##P<0.01 (MWCNTs exposure Vs DMTU/NAC treatment).</p