Bioaccumulation of arsenic(As) and phosphorous by transplanting Aman rice in arsenic-contaminated clay soils.

Arsenic pollution in soil and water has aroused a considerable attention. Inorganic species of arsenic are associated with various internal cancers and create other health problems. An experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of soil arsenic (As) concentration on arsenic and phosphorous accumulation in root, straw, husk and grain of rice (Oryza sativa). BRRI dhan 33 and BR 11 rice varieties were planted on six levels of As contaminated growth media (T1=3.2, T2=11.6, T3=18.7, T4=38.6, T5=57.8 and T6=80.3 ppm As) in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with six replications (Completely Randomized Design). Arsenic concentrations in root, straw, husk and grain were increased significantly with increasing soil As concentration. It was observed that As was highly concentrated in the roots, whereas, phosphorous was high in the grain. Among the treatments, T6 showed highest As accumulation. Arsenic contents in grain and husk of BR 11 were found higher than those of grain and husk of BRRI dhan 33. The straw and root of BRRI dhan 33 showed higher concentration of As than straw and root of BR 11. Phosphorous concentrations in straw, husk and grain were also increased with increase of soil As concentrations. Oryza sativa showed high bioconcentration factor (BCF) and low translocation factor (TF). Therefore, As content in grains did not exceed the maximum permissible limit of 1 mg As kg-1, but straw As is highly risky for animal health as well as human food-chain. It could be concluded that BRRI dhan 33 can be cultivated instead of BR11 in As contaminated soil

Multitraits evaluation of Pakistani ecotypes of berseem clover (Trifolium alexandrinum L.) under full-irrigation and water restriction conditions

Berseem clover (Trifolium alexandrinum L.) is an important forage crop in Pakistan and many ecotypes are grown across the country. Its yield is however frequently affected by insufficient irrigation due to unavailability of water. In the present study, twenty Pakistani ecotypes of berseem clover have been evaluated in lysimeters under full irrigation and water restriction conditions. In the full irrigation treatment soil humidity was maintained at field capacity, while in the water restriction treatment water was only supplied after severe wilting and to maintain humidity in the deep profile of the soil. Assessed traits included forage yield, calculated as the sum of the biomass harvested at 70 and 110 DA days after emergence, and morpho-physiological traits. Significant effects of water restriction were noted on yield, leaf gas exchange parameters, canopy temperature and osmotic adjustment. Most morpho-physiological traits had higher broad sense heritability than forage yield, both under full irrigation and water restriction conditions. Water restriction increased genetic and phenotypic variability and heritability of most traits under study. Under these conditions forage yield was positively associated to leaf temperature and recovery rate index and, under full irrigation, to net photosynthetic rate, canopy depression temperature and leaf area. The possible use of these traits as indirect selection criteria in berseem clover breeding programs is discussed. Some ecotypes with favorable traits such as high forage yield potential, good adaptation to water restriction and aptitude to multiple harvesting have also been identified

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Elliptic flow of identified hadrons in Pb-Pb collisions at 1asNN = 2.76 TeV

The elliptic flow coefficient (v2) of identified particles in Pb-Pb collisions at 1asNN = 2.76 TeV was measured with the ALICE detector at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). The results were obtained with the Scalar Product method, a two-particle corre- lation technique, using a pseudo-rapidity gap of | 06\u3b7| > 0.9 between the identified hadron under study and the reference particles. The v2 is reported for \u3c0\ub1, K\ub1, K0S, p+p, \u3c6, \u39b+\u39b, \u39e 12+\u39e+ and \u3a9 12+\u3a9+ in several collision centralities. In the low transverse momentum (pT) region, pT 3 GeV/c

Quality improvement cycles that reduced waiting times at Tshwane District Hospital Emergency Department

BACKGROUND: Tshwane District Hospital is a level-one hospital, delivering services in the centre of Pretoria since February 2006. It is unique in location, being only 100m away from the tertiary hospital, Pretoria Academic Hospital. In South Africa, public sector emergency units are under enormous pressure with large patient numbers, understaffing and poor resources. TDH Emergency Department (ED) is a typical example. An average of 3900 patients per month visited this ED in 2006. Recurrent complaints and dissatisfaction shown by the patients, about prolonged waiting times before consulting the medical practitioners in the ED was one of the initial challenges faced by the newly established hospital. It was decided to undertake a quality improvement study to analyse and improve the situation, using waiting time as a measure of improvement. METHODS: A quality improvement team was chosen. A total of 150 waiting times of stable and unstable patients were evaluated. There were 50 waiting times for each month; May, September and December 2006. Waiting time was defined as the time from arrival of the patient in the unit until the start of the consultation by the medical practitioner. Surveys were done in May and September to analyse the problems causing prolonged waiting times. The plan of action included instituting a functional triage system, improving the process of up- and down-referrals to and from the tertiary hospital, easy access to stock, reorganisation of doctors’ duty roster, re-organisation of the academic programme, announcement to patients of waiting time, nurses carrying out minor procedures, improvements in the registration, enhancing laboratory delays and availability of protocols. RESULSTS: The median waiting times for stable patients were; May 2006: 545 minutes, September 2006: 230 minutes and in December 2006: 89 minutes. There was a significant difference among these waiting times for May, September and December 2006 (p < 0.000; Kruskal-Wallis test).The median waiting times for unstable patients were; May 2006: zero minutes, September 2006: zero minutes and in December 2006: 0.5 minutes. There was no difference among the waiting times of unstable patients for May, September and December 2006 (p=0.906; Kruskal-Wallis test). CONCLUSION: This quality improvement exercise identified and rectified problems causing prolonged waiting time for stable patients in the Emergency Department. This was done without compromising the time taken to see unstable patients. Similar strategies might be used in other hospitals to reduce the waiting time