Research on WASH sector, environment and water resources in the Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia

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Farmers’ perceived constraints to groundnut production, their variety choice and preferred traits in eastern Ethiopia: implications for drought-tolerance breeding

Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) is an important food and cash crop globally. The eastern region of Ethiopia is known for its groundnut production despite the low productivity attributable to diverse biotic and abiotic stresses and socioeconomic constraints. The objective of this study was to assess farmers’ perceivedproductionconstraints,varietychoice,andpreferredtraits of groundnut in eastern Ethiopia to guide future groundnut variety development and release. Participatory rural appraisal studies were conducted in two major groundnut-producing districts (Babile and Fedis) in eastern Ethiopia. Data were collected through a semi-structured questionnaire, transect walks, and focusgroupdiscussions.Allrespondentfarmerswidelycultivated localorobsolete,introducedvarietiesbecauseofalackofseedof modern groundnut cultivars. Ninety percent of respondents reported drought stress, mainly occurring during the flowering stage, as the leading constraint to groundnut production. Other groundnut production constraints included poor soil fertility (reported by 88% of respondents), lack of access to improved seed (67%), pre-harvest diseases (59.5%), use of low yielding varieties (52.5%), inadequate access to extension services (41.5%), limited access to credit (21.5%), and limited availability ofimprovedvarieties(18.5).Farmer-preferredtraitsincludedhigh shelled yield (reported by 27.67% of respondents), early maturity (16.84%), tolerance to drought stress (13.67%), market value (11.17%), good seed quality (10%), adaptability to local growing conditions (5.8%), and resistance to diseases (5.17%). Therefore, theaforementionedproduction constraintsandfarmer-preferred traits are key drivers that need to be integrated into groundnut breeding and variety release programs in eastern Ethiopia

A bilobed Gallbladder (Vesica Fellea Divisa) in Cattle Slaughtered at Jimma Municipal Abattoir, West Oromiya, Ethiopia

Gallbladder abnormalities occur rarely. The recognized abnormalities recorded so far comprised duplication, septation, abnormal position and total absence of the gallbladder. The bilobed gallbladder of the cross bred oxen slaughtered at Jimma municipality abattoir constituted two lobes separated by a deep cleft. However, the two lobes were joined at the neck and drained by one duct. Both the lobes were of equal size and filled with bile.Key words: Bilobed, Cattle, gallbladder, Jimma, Muncipal abattoi

Evaluation of static and dynamic land use data for watershed hydrologic process simulation: A case study in Gummara watershed, Ethiopia

Land Use Land Cover (LULC) change significantly affects hydrological processes. Several studies attempted to understand the effect of LULC change on biophysical processes; however, limited studies accounted dynamic nature of land use change. In this study, Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT 2012) hydrological model and statistical analysis were applied to assess the impacts of land use change on hydrological responses such as surface runoff, evapotranspiration, and peak flow in Gummara watershed, Ethiopia. Moreover, the effects of static and dynamic land use data application on the SWAT model performance were evaluated. Two model setups, Static Land Use (SLU) and Dynamic Land Use (DLU), were studied to investigate the effects of accounting dynamic land use on hydrological responses. Both SLU and DLU model setups used the same meteorological, soil, and DEM data, but different land use. The SLU setup used the 1985 land use layer, whereas the DLU setup used 1985, 1995, 2005, and 2015 land use data. The calibration (validation) results showed that the model satisfactorily predicts temporal variation and peak streamflow with Nash Sutcliffe Efficiency (NSE) of 0.75 (0.71) and 0.73 (0.71) in the DLU and SLU setups, respectively. However, the DLU model setup simulated the detailed biophysical processes better during the calibration period. Both model setups equally predicted daily streamflow during the validation period. Better performance was obtained while applying the DLU model setup because of improved representation of the dynamic watershed characteristics such as curve number (CN2), overland Manning's (OV_N), and canopy storage (CANMX). Expansion of agricultural land use by 11.1% and the reduction of forest cover by 2.3% during the period from 1985 to 2015 increased the average annual surface runoff and peak flow by 11.6 mm and 2.4 m3/s, respectively and decreased the evapotranspiration by 5.3 mm. On the other hand, expansion of shrubland by 1% decreased the surface runoff by 1.2 mm and increased the evapotranspiration by 1.1 mm. The results showed that accounting DLU into the SWAT model simulation leads to a more realistic representation of temporal land use changes, thereby improving the accuracy of temporal and spatial hydrological processes estimation

Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) improvement in sub-Saharan Africa: a review

Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) is a multi-purpose legume crop widely cultivated in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). However, yield levels of the crop has remained relatively low in SSA owing to a range of biotic, abiotic and socio-economic constraints. A dedicated groundnut improvement programme integrating new tools and methodologies to breed varieties suitable for current and emerging agro-ecologies and market needs is essential for enhanced and sustainable groundnut production in SSA. The objective of this review is to highlight breeding progress, opportunities and challenges on groundnut improvement with regard to cultivar development and deployment in SSA in order to guide future improvement of the crop. The review analysed the role of new tools in breeding such as, high-throughput and automated phenotyping techniques, rapid generation advancement, single seed descent approach, marker-assisted selection, genomic selection, next-generation sequencing, genetic engineering and genome editing for accelerated breeding and cultivar development of groundnut

Appraisal of the Sesame production opportunities and constraints, and farmer-preferred varieties and traits, in eastern and southwestern Ethiopia

Open access article; Published online: 11 Oct 2021Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) is an important oilseed crop with well-developed value chains. It is Ethiopia’s most valuable export commodity after coffee (Coffea arabica L.), contributing to socioeconomic development. The productivity of the crop is low and stagnant in Ethiopia and other major sesame growing regions in sub-Saharan Africa (<0.6 t/ha) due to a multitude of production constraints. The objective of this study was to document sesame production opportunities and constraints, as well as farmer- and market-preferred varieties and traits, in eastern and southwestern Ethiopia as a guide for large-scale production and breeding. A participatory rural appraisal (PRA) study was conducted in two selected sesame growing regions and four districts in Ethiopia. Data were collected from 160 and 46 sesame farmers through semistructured questionnaires and focus group discussions. Sesame is grown by all respondent farmers in the study areas for food and as a source of cash. Most respondent farmers (56%) reported cultivating sesame using seeds of unknown varieties often sourced from the informal seed sector. About 83% of the respondents reported lack of access to improved seeds as the most important production constraint, followed by low yield gains from cultivating the existing varieties (reported by 73.8% of respondents), diseases (69.4%), and low market price (68.8%). Other production constraints included insect pests (59.4%), lack of market information (55%), and high cost of seed (50%). The above constraints were attributed to the absence of a dedicated breeding programme, lack of a formal seed sector, poor extension services, and underdeveloped pre- and postharvest infrastructures. The most important market-preferred traits of sesame included true-to-type seed (reported by 36.3% of respondents), white seed colour (28.8%), and high seed oil content (23.8%). The vital farmer-preferred attributes included reasonable market price (reported by 11.3% of respondents), resistance to crop diseases (10.9%), drought tolerance (10.3%), resistance to crop insect pests (9.2%), higher seed yield (8.9%), higher thousand-seed weight (7.2%), higher oil content (6.3%), white seed colour (6.1%), early maturity (6.1%), and good oil qualities such as aroma and taste (5.7%). Therefore, there is a need for a dedicated sesame genetic improvement programme by integrating the above key production constraints and market- and farmer-preferred traits to develop and deploy new generation varieties to enhance the production, productivity, and adoption of sesame cultivars in Ethiopia

Assessment of the genetic diversity of groundnut ( Arachis hypogaea L.) genotypes for kernel yield, oil and fodder quantity and quality under drought conditions

The objective of this study was to determine drought tolerance, kernel (KY) and fodder yield and quality amongst diverse groundnut genotypes for direct production or breeding. Hundred genotypes were evaluated at ICRISAT, India during 2018–2019 and 2019–2020 under drought-stressed (DS) and non stressed (NS) conditions. Data were collected on KY; oil content (OC); oil yield (OY); protein content; palmitic, stearic, oleic, and linoleic acid contents; haulm yield (HY); and fodder quality parameters such as the contents of dry matter, ash, nitrogen (NC), neutral detergent fiber (NDFDM), acid detergent fiber (ADFDM), acid detergent lignin (ADLDM), in vitro digestibility, and metabolizable energy. Data were subjected to parametric and nonparametric statistical analyses. Combined analysis of variance revealed significant (P < .05) genotype differences for all assessed traits. Genotype × water regime interaction effects were significant for KY, OC, ash, NC, NDFDM, and ADLDM. Kernel yield positively and significantly (P < .05) correlated with OY (r = .99), LAC (r = .13), ash (r = .32), and NDFDM (r = .54) under DS condition. Haulm yield was positively and significantly (P < .05) correlated with OC (r = .24),NDFDM(r = .19), ADFDM (r = .18), and ADLDM (r = .17) under DS condition. The study identified four genotypes with high kernel and haulm yields, and six genotypes with high oleic acid content. Further, 10 genotypes were selected with relatively better drought tolerance. The selected genotypes are recommended for further breeding and variety release adapted to drought conditions

Adult plant resistance of selected Kenyan wheat cultivars to leaf rust and stem rust diseases

Phenotypic and genotypic evaluation of wheat genetic resources and development of segregating populations are pre-requisites for identifying rust resistance genes. The objectives of this study were to assess adult plant resistance (APR) of selected wheat genotypes to leaf rust and stem rust and to develop segregating populations for resistance breeding. Eight selected Kenyan cultivars with known resistance to stem rust, together with local checks were evaluated for leaf rust and stem rust resistance at seedling stage and also across several environments. Selected diagnostic markers were used to determine the presence of known genes. All eight cultivars were crossed with local checks using a bi-parental mating design. Seedling tests revealed that parents exhibited differential infection types against wheat rust races. Cultivars Paka and Popo consistently showed resistant infection types at seedling stage, while Gem, Romany, Pasa, Fahari, Kudu, Ngiri and Kariega varied for resistant and susceptible infection types depending on the pathogen race used. The control cultivars Morocco and McNair consistently showed susceptible infection types as expected. In the field, all cultivars except for Morocco showed moderate to high levels of resistance, indicating the presence of effective resistance genes. Using diagnostic markers, presence of Lr34 was confirmed in Gem, Fahari, Kudu, Ngiri and Kariega, while Sr2 was present in Gem, Romany, Paka and Kudu. Seedling resistance gene, Sr35, was only detected in cultivar Popo. Overall, the study developed 909 F6:8 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) as part of the nested mating design and are useful genetic resources for further studies and for mapping wheat rust resistance genes

Exome sequencing identifies FANCM as a susceptibility gene for triple-negative breast cancer

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Prevalence of Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) among visitors of Shashemene General Hospital voluntary counseling and testing center

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is significant health problem, as it can lead to chronic hepatitis, liver cirrhosis, and hepatic carcinoma. Due to shared routes of transmission, HBV and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) co-infection is common and is an emerging concern in the clinical management of patients because of increased mortality, accelerated hepatic disease progression, and the frequent hepatotoxicity caused by anti-retroviral therapy. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and its risk factors, among individuals visiting Shashemene General Hospital VCT center.</p> <p>Findings</p> <p>Institution based cross-sectional study was performed from November 3, 2008 to December 29, 2008 and 384 voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) clients were investigated. Data on socio demographic and HBV risk factors was collected using structured questionnaires. Blood samples were collected and screened for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and HIV by commercially available rapid test kits. The prevalence of HBsAg in this study group was 5.7%. Fourteen percent of HIV positive subjects (8/57) and 4.3% (14/327) of HIV negative subjects were positive for HBsAg. Significantly high prevalence of HBsAg was observed among individuals who had history of invasive procedures, like tooth extraction, abortion and ear piercing; history of hospital admission, history of unsafe inject and HIV positives.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Although HBsAg prevalence is much higher among subjects who are HIV positive (14.0% versus 4.3%), the prevalence of HBsAg in HIV negative subjects is high enough to warrant a recommendation to screen all clients at VCT centers irrespective of HIV status.</p