Introduction of White Clover in Native Grasslands of Bhutan-Impact, Potential, and Problems

Important genera of native grass species common to the grasslands of Bhutan include: Schizachyrium, Arundinella, Agropyron, Agrostis, Bromus, and Helictorichon. White clover was first introduced to the country in 1970. White clover introduction and application of P increased dry matter production of native grasslands from \u3c2 t ha-1 to \u3e10 t ha-1. In the elevation range ,2000-3500 m white clover is the best fodder species for improving existing grassland. Fast expansion of the species through adoption by farmers spreading by grazing animals has caused some panic and demands for a reassessment of its potential

Salix Babylonica, A Traditional Fodder with Promising Potential

In Bhutan, tree fodders are important for ruminant nutrition, especially during the dry winter season. Salix babylonica is the preferred species for temperate regions. Farmers above 2000 m plant it widely for fodder, fuel, and fencing. Lack of fodder availability during the dry season, and competition with other crops are its main disadvantages. Crude protein content of S. babylonica leaves declined from 25% in May to 11% in October. Voluntary intake was 78 and 85 g dry matter/W0.75 and live weight gain 330 and 64 g day-1 for growing bulls and sheep, respectively. Dry matter disappearance after 48 hours of rumen incubation was 85, 65, and 53% for S. babylonica, Robinia pseudoacacia and Litsea polyantha leaves, respectively

What’s past is prologue: history, current status and future prospects of library development in Bhutan

Purpose This paper aims to outline the history of libraries in Bhutan, to describe the current state of library development and to recommend priority areas for library enhancement. Design/methodology/approach The authors have worked extensively as library professionals in Bhutan and share factual details derived from their personal experience. They review the published literature, particularly the fieldwork of two scholars who studied Bhutan’s libraries and library workers. The authors use their own experience to interpret those findings and make suggestions for future development. Findings The paper briefly traces the evolution of print culture and the history of libraries, exploring monastic, school, college, public and national libraries. The paper examines government policies regarding education and libraries and discusses the acknowledgment of the value of libraries and the lack of actual support. Originality/value There is limited study of the history of reading culture or libraries in Bhutan. The authors document their first-hand experiences and efforts to implement systems for library resource sharing and professional development. The authors hope that this record will serve to illuminate past effort, to describe the unique information environment in Bhutan and to guide future decision-making. The authors recommend many future avenues for study, including reading habits, information-seeking behavior and attitudes toward libraries and librarians

The COVID-19 vaccination campaign in Bhutan: strategy and enablers

Bhutan has reported a total of 2596 COVID-19 cases and three deaths as of September 15, 2021. With support from India, the United States, Denmark, the People’s Republic of China, Croatia and other countries, Bhutan was able to conduct two rounds of nationwide vaccination campaign. While many countries struggle to overcome vaccine refusal or hesitancy due to complacency, a lack of trust, inconvenience and fear, escalated in some countries by anti-vaccine groups, Bhutan managed to inoculate more than 95% of its eligible populations in two rounds of vaccination campaign. Enabling factors of this successful vaccination campaign were strong national leadership, a well-coordinated national preparedness plan, and high acceptability of vaccine due to effective mass communication and social engagement led by religious figures, volunteers and local leaders. In this short report, we described the national strategic plan and enabling factors that led to the success of this historical vaccination campaign

Spatio-temporal patterns of malaria infection in Bhutan: a country embarking on malaria elimination

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>At the verge of elimination of malaria in Bhutan, this study was carried out to analyse the trend of malaria in the endemic districts of Bhutan and to identify malaria clusters at the sub-districts. The findings would aid in implementing the control activities. Poisson regression was performed to study the trend of malaria incidences at district level from 1994 to 2008. Spatial Empirical Bayesian smoothing was deployed to identify clusters of malaria at the sub-district level from 2004 to 2008.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Trend of the overall districts and most of the endemic districts have decreased except Pemagatshel, which has an increase in the trend. Spatial cluster-outlier analysis showed that malaria clusters were mostly concentrated in the central and eastern Bhutan in three districts of Dagana, Samdrup Jongkhar and Sarpang. The disease clusters were reported throughout the year. Clusters extended to the non-transmission areas in the eastern Bhutan.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>There is significant decrease in the trend of malaria with the elimination at the sight. The decrease in the trend can be attributed to the success of the control and preventive measures. In order to realize the target of elimination of malaria, the control measure needs to be prioritized in these high-risk clusters of malaria.</p

COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy and Determinants of Acceptance among Healthcare Workers, Academics and Tertiary Students in Nigeria

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in millions of human deaths, prompting the rapid development and regulatory approval of several vaccines. Although Nigeria implemented a COVID-19 vaccination program on 15 March 2021, low vaccine acceptance remains a major chal-lenge. To provide insight on factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy (VH), we conducted a national survey among healthcare workers, academics, and tertiary students, between 1 September 2021 and 31 December 2021. We fitted a logistic regression model to the data and exam-ined factors associated with VH to support targeted health awareness campaigns to address public

Identification of Collaborative Cross Mouse Strains Permissive to Salmonella Enterica Serovar Typhi Infection

Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi is the causative agent of typhoid fever restricted to humans and does not replicate in commonly used inbred mice. Genetic variation in humans is far greater and more complex than that in a single inbred strain of mice. The Collaborative Cross (CC) is a large panel of recombinant inbred strains which has a wider range of genetic diversity than laboratory inbred mouse strains. We found that the CC003/Unc and CC053/Unc strains are permissive to intraperitoneal but not oral route of S. Typhi infection and show histopathological changes characteristic of human typhoid. These CC strains are immunocompetent, and immunization induces antigen-specific responses that can kill S. Typhi in vitro and control S. Typhi in vivo. Our results indicate that CC003/Unc and CC053/Unc strains can help identify the genetic basis for typhoid susceptibility, S. Typhi virulence mechanism(s) in vivo, and serve as a preclinical mammalian model system to identify effective vaccines and therapeutics strategies

Anemia prevalence in women of reproductive age in low- and middle-income countries between 2000 and 2018

Anemia is a globally widespread condition in women and is associated with reduced economic productivity and increased mortality worldwide. Here we map annual 2000–2018 geospatial estimates of anemia prevalence in women of reproductive age (15–49 years) across 82 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), stratify anemia by severity and aggregate results to policy-relevant administrative and national levels. Additionally, we provide subnational disparity analyses to provide a comprehensive overview of anemia prevalence inequalities within these countries and predict progress toward the World Health Organization’s Global Nutrition Target (WHO GNT) to reduce anemia by half by 2030. Our results demonstrate widespread moderate improvements in overall anemia prevalence but identify only three LMICs with a high probability of achieving the WHO GNT by 2030 at a national scale, and no LMIC is expected to achieve the target in all their subnational administrative units. Our maps show where large within-country disparities occur, as well as areas likely to fall short of the WHO GNT, offering precision public health tools so that adequate resource allocation and subsequent interventions can be targeted to the most vulnerable populations