Integrated Nutrient Management for Natural Grasslands of Mid-Hills of Himalayas

Livestock rearing is an important pursuit in mountain farming in India and plays a crucial role throughout the country. The preponderance of marginal and small landholdings (about 82%) in hilly regions does not allow the farmers to allocate even a small part of their land exclusively for forage production. In Himachal Pradesh state of India about 1.16 m ha (20% of the total area) is under permanent pastures and other grazing lands and none of the natural grasslands are fertilised in any form. Existing grasslands have deteriorated to such an extent that their carrying capacity is only 1.05 ACU (Adult Cattle Unit, with an average body weight of 350 kg)/ha (Vashist et al., 2000). Biofertiliser-based technologies could be appropriate and cost effective approaches that are easy to adopt and eco-friendly. Response may arise from increased populations of phosphate solubilisers in the rhizosphere in P- deficient soils resulting in mobilisation of insoluble phosphorus (Raghu & Mac Rac, 1967). The study was undertaken with the main objectives of assessing the effects of biofertilisers on productivity and quality of natural grassland and the level of N and P substitution by biofertilisers

Technique for Immobilization of Lipase Within Membrane Pores as Nanoreactor

The objective of this study was to design of nanoscale biocatalyst system by utilizing the membrane as nanoporous media. The nanostructure was modified by two step methods: simple adsorption and continue with pressure driven filtration. Two types of polymeric membranes Mixed Cellulose Ester (MCE) and Polyethersulfone (PES) were used asmatrices for immobilization of lipase from Pseudomonas fluorescens. The lipase solution was allowed to permeate through the membrane and lipase molecule adsorbed on the inner wall of pores. The porosity and membrane matrices influenced the enzyme loading. The best result for enzyme loading inmembrane matric is 3.75 g.m-2 using PES membrane with incubation time of 18 hours. PES membrane was selected for further continuous transesterification studies. We evaluated the transesterification activity by converting triolein and methanol to methyl oleate and glycerol. The reaction was carried out in situ within the pores of membrane matric, so that its pores act kind of nanoreactor during formation of product material. The degree of triolein conversion using this kind of nanoreactor was about 80% with 30 minutes of residence time. The productivity of immobilized lipase within the pores were 40 fold higher than that of native free lipase

Correlation of Serum Uric Acid with Cognition, Severity, and Stage of Disease in Patients with Idiopathic Parkinson’s Disease and Vascular Parkinsonism: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: Uric acid (UA) being a potent antioxidant may reduce the oxidative stress and progression of Parkinson’s disease. However, the role of UA is not yet established in people with Idiopathic Parkinson’s disease (IPD) and Vascular Parkinsonism (VP). Objectives: We aimed i) to compare the serum UA levels in IPD, VP, and healthy adults and ii) to find a relation between UA levels with disease severity, disease stage, and cognitive function in people with IPD and VP. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among people with IPD (n=70), VP (n=70), and healthy adults (n=70). Demographics details, body mass index, duration of illness, levodopa usage, comorbidities, MDS-UPDRS scores, modified H&Y scale, MMSE, and serum UA levels were collected from participants. Pearson’s correlation coefficient was used to find the correlation between UA levels, MDS-UPDRS, H & Y, and MMSE scores. Results: The age of the participants ranged from 59 to 80 years. Results showed that serum UA level in healthy control (5.41±0.99; p=0.001) and VP groups (5.27 ± 0.99; p=0.001) were significantly higher compared to IPD group (4.34 ±1.03). We found a significant negative correlation between UA and MDS-UPDRS (r=-0.68, p<0.01) and H & Y scores (r =-0.61, p<0.01) and a significant positive correlation of UA with MMSE (r=0.55, p<0.01) in the IPD group. UA levels in the VP group were not correlated with any of the outcome measures. Conclusion: In people with IPD, serum UA level was negatively correlated with severity and progression of the disease but positively correlated with cognitive ability

TEKNIK AMOBILISASI LIPASE DIDALAM PORI-PORI MEMBRAN POLIMER SEBAGAI NANOREAKTOR

TEKNIK AMOBILISASI LIPASE DIDALAM PORI-PORI MEMBRAN POLIMER SEBAGAI NANOREAKTOR. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk merancang sistem nanoreaktor dengan memanfaatkan membran sebagai media nanopori. Struktur nano tersebut dikembangkan dengan metode dua tahap: adsorpsi sederhana dan dilanjutkan dengan filtrasi bertekanan. Dua tipe membran polimer yaitu Mixed Cellulose Ester(MCE) dan Polyethersulfone (PES) digunakan sebagai matriks untuk amobilisasi lipase dari Pseudomonas fluorescens. Larutan lipase mengalir melalui membran dan molekul lipase teradsorpsi pada dinding pori. Porositas dan matriks membran berpengaruh terhadap nilai enzyme loading. Penggunaan membran PES dengan waktu inkubasi 18 jam menghasilkan nilai enzyme loading paling besar yaitu 3,75 g/m2. Selanjutnya membran PES dipilih untuk studi transesterifikasi kontinyu. Dievaluasi aktifitas transesterifikasi dengan mengkonversi triolein dan metanol menjadi metil oleat dan gliserol. Reaksi dilakukan secara in situ di dalam pori-pori membran yang berperan sebagai reaktor. Nilai derajat konversi triolein dengan menggunakan nanoreaktor ini sekitar 80 % dengan waktu tinggal 30 menit. Produktifitas lipase amobil di dalam pori 40 kali lipat lebih tinggi dibandingkan lipase free

Natural resource enhancement through silvipastoral establishment in western Himalayan region

Livestock rearing is an integral part of rural livelihood in the Himalayan region. In spite of abundance of pasture resources, total biomass is insufficient to meet the forage demand. Indiscriminate grazing has caused an alarming decline in the carrying capacity of grazing lands and has caused severe land degradation. This study was carried out with the objective of increasing biomass potential, improving livestock productivity and to arrest environmental degradation. The study was conducted at Ghanetta and Dagoh (Kangra) and Jogindernagar (Mandi) districts in Himachal Pradesh through silvipastoral intervention in conjunction with soil and water conservation measures. Grasslands of the study area were of alluvial–loamy soil with shallow depths. Soil organic matter was 0.72 (Ghanetta), 0.76 (Dagoh) and 0.80% (Jogindernagar). Organic carbon content in the subsurface (15–45 cm) layer was only 30 to 39% of the surface layer (0–15 cm). Chrysopogon (20%) was found the most dominant species, followed by Heteropogon (13%). Average herbage production was 5.613 DM tonne/ha (Ghanetta), 5.458 DM tonne/ha (Dagoh) and 5.233 DM tonne/ha (Jogindernagar). Leaf biomass of different fodder trees ranged from 0.23–0.60 DM tonne/ha (Ghanetta), 0.16–0.51 DM tonne/ha (Dagoh) and 0.21–0.59 DM tonne/ha (Jogindernagar). Maximum biomass of 9.17 DM tonne/ha was obtained at Ghanetta followed by 8.26 DM tonne/ha and 8.23 DM tonne/ha at Dagoh and Jogindernagar, respectively, showing substantial improvement in total biomass potential with silvipastoral intervention in conjunction with soil and water conservation measures

Impact of participatory silvipastoral intervention and soil conservation measures for forage resource enhancement in western Himalaya

Livestock rearing is an important component of rural economy in mid-hills of Himalaya. Inspite of abundant available feed resources, total available biomass is insufficient to sustain the livestock population. Fodder trees particularly in hill ecosystem play an important role in supplementing the fodder requirement especially during the lean period. Information gathered and analysis concludes that Grewia optiva is the most important fodder tree in terms of dominance, palatability and increase in milk yield followed by Artocarpus chaplasha, Morus alba, Bauhinia variegata, Albizia lebbeck and Terminalia alata in Kangra and Mandi districts of Himachal Pradesh. The crude protein content was found highest in Grewia optiva (19.38%) followed by Albizia lebbeck (18.85%), Dendrocalamus hamiltonii (18.01%) and minimum in case of Quercus incana (9.27%). During scarcity of fodder Ficus religiosa is the only fodder tree fed throughout the year. The established silvipasture produced leaf biomass of 2.77 to 6.77 DM kg/tree (Ghanetta), 2.12 to 5.96 DM kg/tree (Jogindernagar) and 2.25 to 6.93 DM kg/tree (Dagoh). Fodder trees planted under silvipastoral system produced average biomass of 1.83 DM tonnes/ha (Ghanetta), 1.49 DM tonnes/ha (Jogindernagar) and 1.66 DM tonnes/ha (Dagoh). Rainfall events of more than 50 mm, though quite less in number (25/165, 24/192 and 17/149), contributed 47.7, 82.3 and 81.7% to the total runoff at Ghanetta, Jogindernagar and Dagoh, respectively. Among the resource conservation measures trenching in combination with vegetative barrier allowed only 8.2% of rain as runoff compared to 41.5% under control (no measure). The silvipasture systems coupled with contour staggered trenches and / or vegetative barrier can effectively arrest the environmental degradation

Coping strategies of women with postpartum depression symptoms in rural Ethiopia: a cross-sectional community study

Background: Most women with postpartum depression (PPD) in low- and middle-income countries remain undiagnosed and untreated, despite evidence for adverse effects on the woman and her child. The aim of this study was to identify the coping strategies used by women with PPD symptoms in rural Ethiopia to inform the development of socio-culturally appropriate interventions. Methods: A population-based, cross-sectional study was conducted in a predominantly rural district in southern Ethiopia. All women with live infants between one and 12 months post-partum (n = 3147) were screened for depression symptoms using the validated Patient Health Questionnaire, 9 item version (PHQ-9). Those scoring five or more, ‘high PPD symptoms’, (n = 385) were included in this study. The Brief Coping with Problems Experienced (COPE-28) scale was used to assess coping strategies. Construct validity of the brief COPE was evaluated using confirmatory factor analysis. Results: Confirmatory factor analysis of the brief COPE scale supported the previously hypothesized three dimensions of coping (problem-focused, emotion-focused, and dysfunctional). Emotion-focused coping was the most commonly employed coping strategy by women with PPD symptoms. Urban residence was associated positively with all three dimensions of coping. Women who had attended formal education and who attributed their symptoms to a physical cause were more likely to use both problem-focused and emotion-focused coping strategies. Women with better subjective wealth and those who perceived that their husband drank too much alcohol were more likely to use emotion-focused coping. Dysfunctional coping strategies were reported by women who had a poor relationship with their husbands. Conclusions: As in high-income countries, women with PPD symptoms were most likely to use emotion-focused and dysfunctional coping strategies. Poverty and the low level of awareness of depression as an illness may additionally impede problem-solving attempts to cope. Prospective studies are needed to understand the prognostic significance of coping styles in this setting and to inform psychosocial intervention development

The Consensus from the Mycobacterium avium ssp. paratuberculosis (MAP) Conference 2017.

On March 24 and 25, 2017 researchers and clinicians from around the world met at Temple University in Philadelphia to discuss the current knowledge of Mycobacterium avium ssp. paratuberculosis (MAP) and its relationship to human disease. The conference was held because of shared concern that MAP is a zoonotic bacterium that poses a threat not only to animal health but also human health. In order to further study this problem, the conferees discussed ways to improve MAP diagnostic tests and discussed potential future anti-MAP clinical trials. The conference proceedings may be viewed on the www.Humanpara.org website. A summary of the salient work in this field is followed by recommendations from a majority of the conferees