5 research outputs found
The Effect of Land Cover Change on Soil Properties around Kibale National Park in South Western Uganda
The change from natural forest cover to tea and Eucalyptus is rampant in protected areas of western Uganda. The objectives were; to examine the trend in land-use /cover change and determine the effect of these changes on the physico-chemical properties of soils around Kibale National Park. The trend in land use/cover change was assessed by analyzing a series of landsat images. Focused group discussions and key informant interviews were used for land-use/cover reconstruction. Three major land uses were included; woodlot (Eucalyptus grandis; 5âyears old) ), tea (57 years old) and natural forest used as a control. Each of these land-uses were selected at two different North facing landscape positions and were replicated three times. A total of 36 composite soil samples were taken at 0â15 and 15â30âcm depth from natural forest, Tea plantation and eucalyptus on three ridges. Results showed that small scale farming, tea and eucalyptus plantation and built up area have increased over time, to the expense of woodlot and forest cover. Tea and Eucalyptus have induced changes in: exchangeable Mg and Ca, available P, SOM, pH, and bulk density of sub soil (P<.05). Landscape positions within land use also significantly influenced most soil properties (P<.05). Similar findings were observed by Wang et al. (2006) in commercial tea plantations in China that received nitrogen fertilizers
Reproductive performance of single and double artificial insemination protocol in swine
The aim of the research was to contribute towards improved pig reproductive performance in Uganda, through determining community boar stud semen quality as affected by boar traits and comparing the performance of single and double insemination. Semen ejaculates (n=36) from mature boars (3Large white, 3 Camborough) were studied for quality in relation to breed, boar age and individual boar. In addition, single and double inseminations were carried out during in vivo fertility trials (n = 84). The data was analyzed for correlation using Spearman rank-order correlations and variance of means by Mann-Whitney test of SPSS version 20. There was a significant positive correlation between boar age and semen volume (rs = 0.849, p<0.05), semen density (rs (36) = 0.709, p<0.05), total sperms (rs (36) = 0.798, p< 0.05), motility (rs (36) = 0.571, p<0.05), membrane integrity (rs (36) = 0.713, p<0.05) and sperm viability (rs(36) = 0.875, p<0.05). The semen quality significantly varied (p<0.001) between individual boars. The sperm motility of the Camborough was significantly higher than LargeWhite (p<0.05). The conception rate in double insemination (94.4%) was not significantly different (p>0.05) from single insemination (89.6%). The mean litter size for single insemination was 8.16 ± 0.34, (range 2-13 piglets) while for double, it was 9.00±0.39, (range 4-16 piglets). There was a positive relationship between semen quality and boar age. The performance of single dose in terms of piglets per insemination was higher than in double dose. Thus, a single AI dose is as good as a double dose and should be promoted among smallholder farmers who need access to low cost but high gain from breeding services. The single dose protocol seem to reduce breeding costs, however, an investigation of cost benefit analysis is needed to establish its cost effectiveness in commercial artificial insemination.Key words: Boar traits, insemination protocol, semen fertility (in vitro & in vivo)  Performance reproductive du protocole dâinsemination artificielle simple et double chez les porcsLe but de la recherche Ă©tait de contribuer Ă lâamĂ©lioration de la performance reproductive des porcs en Ouganda, en dĂ©terminant la qualitĂ© du sperme de verrats communautaires tel quâaffectĂ©e par les traits des verrats et en comparant les performances des insĂ©minations simple et double. Les Ă©jaculats (n = 36) de verrats matures (3Grand blanc, 3 Camborough) ont Ă©tĂ© Ă©tudiĂ©s pour dĂ©terminer leur qualitĂ© sur base de la race, de lâĂąge du verrat et du verrat individuel. De plus, des insĂ©minations simples et doubles ont Ă©tĂ© rĂ©alisĂ©es lors dâessais de fertilitĂ© in vivo (n = 84). Les donnĂ©es ont Ă©tĂ© analysĂ©es pour dĂ©terminer la corrĂ©lation en utilisant les corrĂ©lations de rang-ordre de Spearman et la variance des moyennes par test de Mann-Whitney de SPSS version 20. On a notĂ© une corrĂ©lation positive significative entre lâĂąge du verrat et le volume du sperme (rs = 0.849, p <0.05), la densitĂ© du sperme (rs (36) = 0,709, p <0,05), le nombre total de spermatozoĂŻdes (rs (36) = 0,798, p <0,05), la motilitĂ© (rs (36) = 0,571, p <0,05), lâintĂ©gritĂ© de la membrane (rs (36) = 0,713, p <0,05) et la viabilitĂ© des spermatozoĂŻdes (rs (36) = 0,875, p <0,05). On a notĂ© une variabilitĂ© significative (p <0,001) de la qualitĂ© du sperme entre verrats individuels. La motilitĂ© des spermatozoĂŻdes du Camborough Ă©tait significativement plus Ă©levĂ©e que celle de LargeWhite (p <0,05). Le taux de conception en double insĂ©mination (94,4%) nâĂ©tait pas significativement diffĂ©rent (p> 0,05) de celui de lâinsĂ©mination unique (89,6%). La taille moyenne des portĂ©es pour une insĂ©mination unique Ă©tait de 8,16 ± 0,34 (fourchette de 2 Ă 13 porcelets) alors que pour la double insĂ©mination elle Ă©tait de 9,00 ± 0,39 (fourchette de 4 Ă 16 porcelets). On a relevĂ© une relation positive entre la qualitĂ© du sperme et lâĂąge du everrat. La performance dâune dose unique en termes de porcelets par insĂ©mination Ă©tait plus Ă©levĂ©e quâen double dose. Ainsi, une seule dose dâIA est aussi bonne quâune double dose et devrait ĂȘtre encouragĂ©e chez les petits exploitants qui ont besoin dâaccĂšs Ă un coĂ»t faible mais Ă un gain Ă©levĂ© des services de sĂ©lection. Le protocole de dose unique semble rĂ©duire les coĂ»ts de reproduction, cependant, une Ă©tude de lâanalyse coĂ»ts-avantages est nĂ©cessaire pour Ă©tablir son rapport coĂ»t-efficacitĂ© dans lâinsĂ©mination artificielle commerciale.Mots-clĂ©s : traits du verrat, protocole dâinsĂ©mination, fertilitĂ© du sperme (in vitro & in vivo
The Effectiveness of Raw and Dried Artocarpus Heterophyllus (Jackfruit) Seed as Natural Coagulant in Water Treatment
Factors Associated with 30-Day in-Hospital Mortality Among Patients Admitted with Severe Covid-19 in Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital
Andrew Mutekanga,1,* Edwin Nuwagira,1,* Elias Kumbakumba,2 Victoria Nyaiteera,3 Stephen Asiimwe,4 Medal Gasumuni,5 Nelson Wandera,5 Robert Natumanya,5 Denis Akena,5 Siraje Senoga,1 Joseph Kyobe Kiwanuka,6 George Kateregga,6 Emmanuel Munyarugero,6 Fardous Charles Abeya,1 Paul Stephen Obwoya,1 Stephen Ttendo,6 Rose Muhindo1,* 1Department of Medicine, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, Uganda; 2Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, Uganda; 3Department of ENT, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, Uganda; 4Global Health Collaborative, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; 5Department of Medicine, Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital, Mbarara, Uganda; 6Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, Uganda*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Rose Muhindo, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, P.O. Box 1410, Mbarara, Uganda, Tel +256772406337, Email [email protected]: COVID-19 has created a burden on the healthcare system globally. Severe COVID-19 is linked with high hospital mortality. Data regarding 30-day in-hospital mortality and its factors has not been explored in southwestern Uganda.Methods: We carried out a retrospective, single-center cohort study, and included all in-patients with laboratory-confirmed, radiological, or clinical severe COVID-19 admitted between April 2020 and September 2021 at Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital (MRRH). Demographic, laboratory, treatment, and clinical outcome data were extracted from patientsâ files. These data were described comparing survivors and non-survivors. We used logistic regression to explore the factors associated with 30-day in-hospital mortality.Results: Of the 283 patients with severe COVID-19 admitted at MRRH COVID-19 unit, 58.1% were male. The mean age ± standard deviation (SD) was 61± 17.4 years; there were no differences in mean age between survivors and non-survivors (59 ± 17.2 versus 64.4 ± 17.3, respectively, p=0.24) The median length of hospital stay was 7 (IQR 3â 10) days (non-survivors had a shorter median length of stay 5 (IQR 2â 9) days compared to the survivors; 8 (IQR 5â 11) days, p< 0.001. The most frequent comorbidities were hypertension (30.5%) and diabetes mellitus (30%). The overall 30-day in-hospital mortality was 134 of 279 (48%) mortality rate of 47,350Ă 105 with a standard error of 2.99%. The factors associated with 30-day in-hospital mortality were age: 65 years and above (aOR, 3.88; 95% CI, 1.24â 11.70; P =0.020) a neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio above 5 (aOR, 4.83; 95% CI, 1.53â 15.28; P =0.007) and oxygen requirement â„ 15L/min (aOR, 15.80; 95% CI, 5.17â 48.25; P < 0.001).Conclusion: We found a high 30-day in-hospital mortality among patients with severe forms of COVID-19. The identified factors could help clinicians to identify patients with poor prognosis at an early stage of admission.Keywords: severe, COVID-19, 30-day in hospital mortalit