CGIAR launches Digital Agriculture diploma to transform agri-food systems and rural communities in Latin America and the Caribbean

The CGIAR Research Initiatives on Digital Innovation and AgriLAC Resiliente have collaborated with stakeholders to develop digital agriculture professionals in critical locations along the Central American Dry Corridor. A total of 26 agricultural professionals completed a new Digital Agriculture university diploma course, created to strengthen regional technical capacity in digital agriculture to enable better informed, data-driven decisions in agri-food systems

Bahaba: A disaster management route generator for mobile systems

Natural disasters frequently occur around the world, especially in the recent years. A process called Disaster Management was introduced and implemented to cope with the coming, the occurrence and the aftermath of disasters more effectively. It makes use of a cycle to illustrate its operations and has 6 phases separated into 2 categories (Miththapala, 2008). There are already several software that are designed to implement Disaster Management, such as My-Disaster Droid, USHAHIDI and Sahana which use the current Internet and mobile technologies to provide the implementation on stationary and portable devices. However, disaster management in mobile systems lack feedback from the system to the user. Also, the software mentioned do not consider the current condition of the community. Damage paths were not considered because their main function is to provide an optimized route. This research aims to create a route generation system for mobile systems via SMS with the target community, Lian, Batangas. The generated routes shall consider the current conditions of the roads whether it is passable or not. The system focuses on the Response and Mitigation phases by responding to the SMS requests with another SMS containing instructions on the shortest path, generated with the A* algorithm, to the nearest safe place in the community. The SMS requests and response are handled with the Globe SMS/MMS API and must follow the proper SMS format in order for it to be processed. The system is able to generate a route that is the shortest path to safe places and send this to users with some delay, which averages to a minute

Preparation of carboxymethyl cellulose-based hydrogels reinforced with cellulose nanocrystals from Moringa oleifera (Malunggay) stalks for drug delivery

An effective drug delivery system (DDS) is desirable nowadays since it will have a higher bioavailability and one of the most promising drug delivery system is hydrogels. Carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC)-based reinforced with varying amoung of cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) from Moringa oleifera (Malanggay) stalks were synthesized using Fe3+ as crosslinker and was utilized in developing drug delivery system, with crystal violet (CV) as the model drug. FT-IR analysis showed the blending of CNC in the hydrogel matrix as indicated by the broadening of -OH stretch at around 3400 cm -1. In addition, the beads were determined to have a diameter, d = 4.4794 mm ± 0.3067. Different concentrations (0%, 5%, 10% and 15% w/w) of CNC were used to determine its effect in the mechanical properties of the beads as well as its swelling behavior. SEM showed that the surface morphology of neat hydrogels is smooth attributing to the stiffness of its structure, while CNC-CMC lend beads exhibited a unique undulation pattern. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) identified the water loss in neat CMC at 155.76°C, and its partial degradtion at 174.25°C. On the other hand, swelling behavior of the hydrogels showed an excellent pH sensitivity. Maximum swelling was noted at pH 13 in 15% CNC-CMC blend hydrogels with a percent swelling ration, %SR=2519± 191. Furthermore, maximum drug loading activity was also observed with 15% CNC, CNC-CMC blend hydrogel showed the highest percent drug release at pH 7.4 (8.75% (±0.16) after 24 hours, while at pH 2, hydrogels with 5% CNC had the second highest release activity next to neat hydrogels with a values of 4.96%, making the 5% CNC-CMC blend hydrogels the best candidate for controlled drug delivery systems. The produced hydrogels can be a possible drug carrier for CV-like drug molecules

Perceptions of patients in the carative behavior of staff nurses at selected hospitals in Dasmariñas, Cavite

The descriptive and non-experimental type of method was used. The respondents were 100 patients confined in the medical-surgical ward at De La Salle University Medical Center and Jose P. Rizal Hospital and National Medical Research Center selected through convenience and purposive sampling technique. The instrument used in data collection was the checklist form of questionnaire composed of 17 statements, which was constructed in English and Filipino languages. Data was analyzed through frequency distribution, mean, t-test and ANOVA or f-test. The study concluded that most respondents of the study consisted of patients who belong to 21-40 years old group or the young adults, female, married, attained high school level, admitted for 3-5 days and have a family income of P10,000.00 and below. The perceptions of patients in the carative behavior of staff nurses are not affected when respondents were grouped according to age, sex, civil status, educational attainment, length of hospitalization and monthly family income. The carative behaviors of staff nurses were present most of the time

Perception of Endurance Athletes on the Effects of High-Carb and Vegan Diet on their Performance: A Case Study

Endurance athletes require strict training and nutrition to prepare their bodies for tournaments or competitions. Much literature has stated the benefits of diets focusing primarily on carbohydrates. Although there are studies that back up the effects of the diets in a physical aspect, the researchers have yet to see an abundance of studies about the perception of the athletes. Therefore, this study intends to focus on the perception of endurance athletes on the effects of a high-carb and vegan diet on their performance. Using a case study approach, the researchers conducted semi-structured interviews with endurance athletes. The objectives of the research are to determine and encapture the experiences, effect indicators, and expectations of the athletes. The expectations of endurance athletes that affect their choice of a high-carb and vegan diet are more dependent on the athlete\u27s preferences and capabilities. The experiences of the endurance athletes are dissimilar, seeing as the majority of those who participated in a vegan diet described their experiences to be aggravating and exhausting, while those who participated in a high-carb diet did not describe their experience to be as stressful. The effects of a high-carb and vegan diet on the performance of endurance athletes are more dependent on the endurance athlete\u27s focus and goal. Therefore, endurance athletes’ choice of a high-carb and vegan diet depends on their prior knowledge, objectives, and experiences

Influence of aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase complex-interacting multifunctional protein 1 on epithelial differentiation and organization during lung development

Proper development of the respiratory bronchiole and alveolar epithelium proceeds through coordinated cross talk between the interface of epithelium and neighboring mesenchyme. Signals that facilitate and coordinate the cross talk as the bronchial forming canalicular stage transitions to construction of air-exchanging capillary-alveoli niche in the alveolar stage are poorly understood. Expressed within this decisive region, levels of aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase complex-interacting multifunctional protein 1 (AIMP1) inversely correlate with the maturation of the lung. The present study addresses the role of AIMP1 in lung development through the generation and characterization of Aimp1−/− mutant mice. Mating of Aimp1+/− produced offspring in expected Mendelian ratios throughout embryonic development. However, newborn Aimp1−/− pups exhibited neonatal lethality with mild cyanosis. Imaging both structure and ultrastructure of Aimp1−/− lungs showed disorganized bronchial epithelium, decreased type I but not type II cell differentiation, increased distal vessels, and disruption of E-cadherin deposition in cell-cell junctions. Supporting the in vivo findings of disrupted epithelial cell-cell junctions, in vitro biochemical experiments show that a portion of AIMP1 binds to phosphoinositides, the lipid anchor of proteins that have a fundamental role in both cellular membrane and actin cytoskeleton organization; a dramatic disruption in F-actin cytoskeleton was observed in Aimp1−/− mouse embryonic fibroblasts. Such observed structural defects may lead to disrupted cell-cell boundaries. Together, these results suggest a requirement of AIMP1 in epithelial cell differentiation in proper lung development

Quality of patient services rendered by Radiology Department in selected hospitals in Cavite

The demographic variables included age, gender, civil status, educational attainment, and monthly family income. The study employed the descriptive research method. The respondents were limited to 370 patients who underwent x-ray examination from selected hospitals in Cavite. Simple random sampling was used to indentify the respondents. The data gathered was treated using the following statistical tools: frequency, percentage, means, standard deviation, t-test for independent means and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). Based from the findings, the following conclusions were drawn: 1) majority of the respondents of the study are aged 18 to 45 years old, married, attained tertiary education, and have monthly family income of Php10,000 and below; 2) the quality of patients services rendered by the radiology department was high in terms of tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, and empathy, and very high in terms of assurance; 3) there are no significant differences in the quality of patients services rendered by the radiology department when grouped according to age, gender, civil status, educational attainment and monthly family income