Efficacy of some synthetic insecticides for control of cotton bollworms in northern Ghana

Lepidopteran bollworms are a major constraint to increased and sustainable production of cotton in the savanna ecology of Ghana. Studies were conducted at the Experimental Farms of the University for Development Studies, Nyankpala in northern Ghana, during the 2009 cropping season to evaluate the effects of three commonly used insecticide formulations, namely, Betsulfan and Endosulfan (each at 3.2, 3.5 and 3.9 l ha-1), and Thionex (at 2.3, 2.5 and 2.8 l ha-1), on the population density and damage incidence of the bollworm complex, and their effects on the yield of cotton. The incidence and abundance of bollworms were significantly (P < 0.05) affected by the different insecticide treatments. Bollworm infestation in all treated plots was significantly reduced. Among the insecticide treatments, Thionex at 2.8 l ha-1 was the most effective. This was followed by that of Betsulfan at 3.9 l ha-1, Betsulfan or Endosulfan (each at 3.2 l ha-1) recorded the highest infestation. Lint seed yield of cotton also increased significantly with increased concentrations of the insecticides, Thionex at 2.8 l ha-1 and Betsulfan at 3.2 l ha-1 recorded the highest and lowest yields, respectively. For effective control of cotton bollworms for maximum yield in the ecology, Thionex applied at 2.8 l ha-1 is recommended.Les chenilles constituent une contrainte majeur \ue0 l\u2019augmentation et \ue0 la production durable du coton dans l\u2019\ue9cologie de la savane du Ghana. Des \ue9tudes \ue9taient men\ue9es en Fermes Exp\ue9rimentales de l\u2019Universit\ue9 pour Etudes D\ue9veloppementales, Nyankpala au Nord du Ghana, durant la saison pluvieuse 2009, pour \ue9valuer les effets de trois formulations d\u2019 insecticides commun\ue9ment utilis\ue9es, \ue0 savoir, Betsulfan et Endosulfan (chacun \ue0 3.2, 3.5 et 3.9 l ha-1), ainsi que Thionex (\ue0 2.3, 2.5 et 2.8 l ha-1) sur la densit\ue9 de populationon et l\u2019incidence de dommage du complexe de chenille, et leurs effets sur le rendement du coton. L\u2019incidence et l\u2019abondance des chenilles \ue9taient significativement (P<0.05) affect\ue9es par les diff\ue9rents traitements d\u2019ins\ue9cticides. L\u2019infestation de la chenille dans toutes les parcelles trait\ue9es avec insecticides \ue9tait significativement r\ue9duite. Parmi les traitements d\u2019insecticides, Thionex \ue0 2.8 l ha-1 \ue9tait le plus efficace. suivi par les traitements de Betsulfan (3.9 l ha-1), Betsulfan ou Endosulfan (chacun \ue0 3.2 l ha-1) avec une infestation la plus \ue9lev\ue9e. Le rendement en fibre du coton a aussi augment\ue9 significativement avec l\u2019augmentation des concentrations des insecticides. Le Thionex (2.8 l ha-1) avait induit des rendements les plus \ue9lev\ue9s pendant que les parcelles avec Betsulfan (3.2 l ha-1) avient produit des rendements les plus basses. Afin de mieux contr\uf4ler les chenilles du coton pour un rendement maximum dans l\ue9cologie, le Thionex appliqu\ue9 \ue0 2.8l ha-1 est le plus recommend\ue9

Exploring genetic variability, heritability, and trait correlations in gari and eba quality from diverse cassava varieties in Nigeria.

Open Access ArticleBACKGROUND Gari (especially in Nigeria) is an important West African food product made from cassava. It is an affordable, precooked, dry, easy to prepare and store food product. Eba is a stiff dough produced by reconstituting gari in hot water. Gari and eba quality is an important driver of varietal acceptance by farmers, processors, and consumers. RESULTS This study characterized the genetic variability, heritability, and correlations among quality-related traits of fresh roots, gari, and eba. Thirty-three diverse genotypes, including landraces and released and advanced breeding genotypes, were used in this study. In total, 40 traits categorized into fresh root quality, colour, functional, and texture properties trait groups were assessed. We observed broad phenotypic variability among the genotypes used in this study. Dry matter content had a positive (P < 0.05) correlation with gari%, bulk density and a negative correlation with eba hardness and gumminess. Broad-sense heritability across all environments varied considerably among the different trait groups: 62% to 79% for fresh root quality, 0% to 96% for colour, 0% to 79% for functional and 0% to 57% for texture properties. CONCLUSIONS The stable broad-sense heritability found for gari%, gari and eba colour, bulk density, swelling index, and hardness measured using instrumental texture profile analysis coupled with sufficient variability in the population indicate good potential for genetic improvement of these traits through recurrent selection. Also, it is possible to genetically improve gari%, bulk density, and swelling power by simultaneously improving the dry matter content of fresh roots

Human Health Risk Assessment For Arsenic: A Critical Review

Millions of people are exposed to arsenic resulting in a range of health implications.This paper provides an up-to-date review of the different sources of arsenic (water, soil and food), indicators of human exposure (biomarker assessment of hair, nail, urine and blood), epidemiological and toxicological studies on carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic health outcomes, and risk assessment approaches. The review demonstrates a need for more work evaluating the risks of different arsenic species such as; arsenate, arsenite monomethylarsonic acid, monomethylarsonous acid, dimethylarsinic acid and dimethylarsinous acid as well as a need to better integrate the different exposure sources in risk assessments

Track E Implementation Science, Health Systems and Economics

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/138412/1/jia218443.pd

A local human Vδ1 T cell population is associated with survival in nonsmall-cell lung cancer

Murine tissues harbor signature γδ T cell compartments with profound yet differential impacts on carcinogenesis. Conversely, human tissue-resident γδ cells are less well defined. In the present study, we show that human lung tissues harbor a resident Vδ1 γδ T cell population. Moreover, we demonstrate that Vδ1 T cells with resident memory and effector memory phenotypes were enriched in lung tumors compared with nontumor lung tissues. Intratumoral Vδ1 T cells possessed stem-like features and were skewed toward cytolysis and helper T cell type 1 function, akin to intratumoral natural killer and CD8+ T cells considered beneficial to the patient. Indeed, ongoing remission post-surgery was significantly associated with the numbers of CD45RA−CD27− effector memory Vδ1 T cells in tumors and, most strikingly, with the numbers of CD103+ tissue-resident Vδ1 T cells in nonmalignant lung tissues. Our findings offer basic insights into human body surface immunology that collectively support integrating Vδ1 T cell biology into immunotherapeutic strategies for nonsmall cell lung cancer

Mapping local patterns of childhood overweight and wasting in low- and middle-income countries between 2000 and 2017

A double burden of malnutrition occurs when individuals, household members or communities experience both undernutrition and overweight. Here, we show geospatial estimates of overweight and wasting prevalence among children under 5 years of age in 105 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) from 2000 to 2017 and aggregate these to policy-relevant administrative units. Wasting decreased overall across LMICs between 2000 and 2017, from 8.4 (62.3 (55.1�70.8) million) to 6.4 (58.3 (47.6�70.7) million), but is predicted to remain above the World Health Organization�s Global Nutrition Target of <5 in over half of LMICs by 2025. Prevalence of overweight increased from 5.2 (30 (22.8�38.5) million) in 2000 to 6.0 (55.5 (44.8�67.9) million) children aged under 5 years in 2017. Areas most affected by double burden of malnutrition were located in Indonesia, Thailand, southeastern China, Botswana, Cameroon and central Nigeria. Our estimates provide a new perspective to researchers, policy makers and public health agencies in their efforts to address this global childhood syndemic. © 2020, The Author(s)

Author Correction: Mapping local patterns of childhood overweight and wasting in low- and middle-income countries between 2000 and 2017 (Nature Medicine, (2020), 26, 5, (750-759), 10.1038/s41591-020-0807-6)

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper. © 2020, The Author(s)

Author Correction: Mapping local patterns of childhood overweight and wasting in low- and middle-income countries between 2000 and 2017 (Nature Medicine, (2020), 26, 5, (750-759), 10.1038/s41591-020-0807-6)

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper. © 2020, The Author(s)