Ex Ante Economic Impact of Genetically Modified (GM) Cowpea in Benin

The net impact of pest-resistant GM crops on the welfare of both producers and consumers in developing countries is currently unknown and subject to speculation. This study uses choice-based conjoint protocol to estimate the net impact of pest-resistant Genetically Modified (GM) cowpea on net social welfare in Benin given price and income risks. Results imply that Bt cowpea will increase expected net social welfare by about $US 50 million per year in Benin given no inefficiencies in the seed sector. If inefficiencies in the seed sector are such that cowpea growers can access Bt cowpea seeds only 50$US 11 million per year.Crop Production/Industries,

Comparative tolerance of Oryza sativa and O. glaberrima rice cultivars for iron toxicity in West Africa

Iron toxicity is a widespread nutrient disorder that affects wetland rice growing in the humid tropical regions of Asia and Africa. It has been estimated that 30– 40% of the inland swamps in the humid forest and savanna zones in West Africa are affected by varying degrees of iron toxicity stress. The disorder is caused by the accumulation of excessive amounts of iron in rice plants growing under rainfed and irrigated lowland conditions. In West Africa, iron toxicity causes rice yield losses varying from 12% to 100%, depending on the intensity of the stress and the iron tolerance of the variety (Sahrawat et al 1996)..........

Epidemiologic Findings and Management Response During a Bighorn Sheep Die-Off in the Elkhorn Mountains of West-Central Montana

Bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) were introduced into the Elkhorn Mountains of west-central Montana in the mid 1990s. The population increased in number to approximately 250 animals until the winter of 2007-2008 when about 84 percent of the population died from a pneumonia related epizootic. Management actions during the die-off were geared toward removing as many sick animals as possible in efforts to reduce overall mortality. Due to the stage of the epizootic removal of sick sheep was not effective in interrupting the die-off. Samples were collected from bighorn sheep, domestic sheep, mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus), elk (Cervus elaphus) and domestic goats utilizing the same winter range. Pasteurella spp, Moraxella ovis and Mycoplasma ovipneumonia were isolated from lung tissue of dead bighorns and pharyngeal swabs collected from domestic sheep occupying similar range during the epizootic. Both the bighorn sheep and domestic sheep also shared similar gastro-intestinal parasites including Nematodirus spp and Eimeria spp. Testing tissues and fecal samples from sympatric mule deer suggested no shared bacterial pathogens and limited shared gastrointestinal parasites. Evaluation of fecal samples from domestic goats and elk also occupying bighorn sheep range identified few shared parasites that may have contributed to the epizootic

Long-Term Phosphorus Fertilizer Effects on Phosphorus Uptake, Efficiency, and Recovery by Upland Rice on an Ultisol

Phosphorus (P) deficiency is a major constraint to upland rice production on highly weathered, low activity clay soils in the humid zone of West Africa. There is a paucity of information on the long-term fertilizer P effects on rice on these soils. A field experiment was conducted for six years (1993–1998) to determine the response of four upland rice cultivars to fertilizer P applied at 0, 45, 90, 135, and 180 kg P ha−1 only once in 1993, and to residual P in 1994, 1995, 1996, and 1998. The experimental site was located on an Ultisol, low in available P, in the humid forest zone of Côte d'Ivoire, West Africa. This paper discusses long-term P effects on P uptake and efficiency of upland rice cultivars. The cultivars evaluated differed in cumulative agronomic and physiological P efficiencies, and the efficiencies were higher at lower P rates for the P-efficient cultivars. The P uptake response and P harvest index were affected by P rate and its residual effect, which decreased with time after P was applied. The mean cumulative recovery of applied P in five crops of four rice cultivars varied from 5.5 to 9.4%. The results suggest that the variation in P efficiency of the cultivars is due to differences in the efficiency of utilization of P for grain production

Phosphorus response of Oryza sativa, O. glaberrima, and hybrid rice cultivars on an ultisol

Phosphorus (P) deficiency is a major constraint to upland rice production on Ultisols in the humid zone of West Africa. Integrated use of P-efficient cultivars and P nutrition is needed for enhanced sustainable productivity on these soils. This article reports on the P responsiveness of interspecific rice hybrids (crosses from Oryza sativa and O. glaberrima) along with O. sativa and O. glaberrima cultivars grown on an acidic Ultisol, low in available P. The cultivars differed in yield and P-uptake response to fresh and residual P. Two interspecific cultivars gave a linear response to P and produced the greatest grain yield under direct and residual P. The O. glaberrima cultivar CG 14 did not respond to the applied P, whereas the O. sativa cultivar was moderate in its performance. Our results show that the interspecific rice cultivars have the potential to adapt and perform well on acidic upland soil

Identifying factors which enhance the self-management of type 2 diabetes: A systematic review with thematic analysis

YesBackground: Individuals with type 2 diabetes play a pivotal role in their health. Enhancing the self-management of diabetes can improve blood glucose control, and quality of life, and reduce diabetes-related complications. We have identified factors influencing the self-management of type 2 diabetes to inform strategies that may be applied in the long-term management of blood glucose control. Methods: We conducted a systematic literature review of recent studies published between January 2010 to December 2020 to identify the available evidence on effective self-management strategies for type 2 diabetes. The databases used for the searchers were Scopus, PubMed, Science Direct, CINAHL, and Google Scholar. We assessed English language publications only. The screening of titles was duplicated by two researchers. We then conducted a thematic analysis of the key findings from eligible publications to identify reoccurring messages that may augment or abate self-management strategies. Results: We identified 49 relevant publications involving 90,857 participants. Four key themes were identified from these publications: Individual drive, social capital, Knowledge base, and Insufficient health care. High motivation and self-efficacy enabled greater self-management. The importance of family, friends, and the health care professional was salient, as were the negative effects of stigma and labelling. Enablers to good self-management were the level of support provided and its affordability. Finally, the accessibility and adequacy of the health care services emerged as fundamental to permit diabetes self-management. Conclusions: Self-management of type 2 diabetes is an essential strategy given its global presence and impact, and the current resource constraints in health care. Individuals with type 2 diabetes should be empowered and supported to self-manage. This includes awareness raising on their role in self-health, engaging broader support networks, and the pivotal role of health care professionals to inform and support. Further research is needed into the capacity assessment of healthcare systems in diabetes medicine, targeted low-cost resources for self-management, and the financial requirements that enable self-management advice to be enacted.While this research did not receive any specific project funding, KRB is funded by a University of Otago Pacific Ph.D. Scholarship. ANR is funded as a Research Fellow by the National Heart Foundation

The Effects of Supplementing Maternal and Infant Diets with Lipid-based Nutrient Supplements on Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour at Preschool Age in Ghana

Evidence on whether nutritional supplementation affects physical activity (PA) during early childhood is limited. We examined the long-term effects of lipid-based nutrient supplements (LNS) on total PA, moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) and sedentary behaviour (SB) of children at 4–6 years using an accelerometer for 1 week. Their mothers were enrolled in the International Lipid-based Nutrient Supplement-DYAD randomised controlled trial in Ghana, assigned to daily LNS or multiple micronutrients (MMN) during pregnancy through 6 months postpartum or Fe and folic acid (IFA) during pregnancy and placebo for 6 months postpartum. From 6 to 18 months, children in the LNS group received LNS; the other two groups received no supplements. Analysis was done with intention to treat comparing two groups: LNS v. non-LNS (MMN+ IFA). Of the sub-sample of 375 children fitted with accelerometers, 353 provided sufficient data. Median vector magnitude (VM) count was 1374 (interquartile range (IQR) 309), and percentages of time in MVPA and SB were 4·8 (IQR 2) and 31 (IQR 8) %, respectively. The LNS group (n 129) had lower VM (difference in mean −73 (95 % CI −20, −126), P = 0·007) and spent more time in SB (LNS v. non-LNS: 32·3 v. 30·5 %, P = 0·020) than the non-LNS group (n224) but did not differ in MVPA (4·4 v. 4·7 %, P = 0·198). Contrary to expectations, provision of LNS in early life slightly reduced the total PA and increased the time in SB but did not affect time in MVPA. Given reduced social-emotional difficulties in the LNS group previously reported, including hyperactivity, one possible explanation is less restless movement in the LNS group

Prenatal and postnatal lipid-based nutrient supplementation and cognitive, social-emotional, and motor function in preschool-aged children in Ghana: a follow-up of a randomized controlled trial

Background: Adequate nutrition is necessary for brain development during pregnancy and infancy. Few randomized controlled trials of supplementation during these periods have measured later developmental outcomes. Objective: Our objective was to investigate the effects of provision of prenatal and postnatal lipid-based nutrient supplements (LNS) on child development at preschool age. Methods: We conducted a follow-up study of 966 children aged 4–6 y in 2016, born to women who participated in the International Lipid-Based Nutrient Supplements-DYAD trial conducted in Ghana in 2009–2014, representing 79% of eligible children. Women ≤20 weeks of gestation were randomized to daily LNS or multiple micronutrient (MMN) capsules during pregnancy through 6 mo postpartum or iron and folic acid (IFA) capsules during pregnancy and calcium placebo capsules during 6 mo postpartum. Children in the LNS group received LNS from 6 to 18 mo. Primary outcomes of this follow-up study were (1) a cognitive factor score based on a test battery adapted from several standard tests, 2) fine motor score (9-hole pegboard test), and (3) social-emotional difficulties (Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire; SDQ). Eight secondary outcomes were calculated in specific domains (e.g., language, SDQ prosocial). Analysis was by a complete case intention to treat in a 2-group comparison: LNS compared with non-LNS (MMN + IFA). Results: Children in the LNS group had significantly lower social-emotional difficulties z-scores than children in the non-LNS group (adjusted for child age β = −0.12, 95% CI: −0.25, 0.02, P = 0.087; fully adjusted β = −0.16, 95% CI: −0.29, −0.03, P = 0.013). The effect of LNS on social-emotional difficulties score was larger among children living in households with lower home environment scores (P-interaction = 0.081). No other outcomes differed between the 2 intervention groups. Conclusions: Provision of LNS during the first 1000 d of development improved behavioral function, particularly for children from low nurturing and stimulation households, but did not affect cognition at preschool age in this setting. Trial Registration: clinicaltrials.gov, Identifier NCT00970866

Impact of a nutritional supplement during gestation and early childhood on child salivary cortisol, hair cortisol, and telomere length at 4–6 years of age: a follow-up of a randomized controlled trial

Dysregulation of the stress response can occur early in life and may be affected by nutrition. Our objective was to evaluate the long-term effect of nutritional supplementation during gestation and early childhood on child cortisol and buccal telomere length (a marker of cellular aging) at 4–6 years of age. We conducted a follow-up study of children born to women who participated in a nutritional supplementation trial in Ghana. In one group, a lipid-based nutrient supplement (LNS) was provided to women during gestation and the first 6 months postpartum and to their infants from age 6 to 18 months. The control groups received either iron and folic acid (IFA) during gestation or multiple micronutrients during gestation and the first 6 months postpartum, with no infant supplementation. At age 4–6 years, we measured hair cortisol, buccal telomere length, and salivary cortisol before and after a stressor. Salivary cortisol was available for 364 children across all three trial arms and hair cortisol and telomere length were available for a subset of children (n = 275 and 278, respectively) from the LNS and IFA groups. Telomere length, salivary cortisol, and hair cortisol did not differ by supplementation group. Overall, these findings suggest that nutritional supplementation given during gestation and early childhood does not have an effect on child stress response or chronic stress in children at 4–6 years

The Association of Early Linear Growth and Haemoglobin Concentration with Later Cognitive, Motor, and Social–Emotional Development at Preschool Age in Ghana

It is important to identify the periods during childhood when exposure to environmental risk factors results in long‐term neurodevelopmental deficits. Stunting and anaemia may be sensitive indicators of exposure to such risks. In a prospective cohort enrolled before birth, we investigated the association of developmental scores at 4–6 years with (a) birth length and linear growth during three postnatal periods and (2) haemoglobin (Hb) concentration at three time points. Children were participants in a follow‐up study of a randomized controlled trial of nutritional supplementation in Ghana. At 4–6 years, cognitive, motor, and social–emotional developments were assessed using standard tests adapted for this population. We estimated the associations of length‐for‐age z‐score (LAZ) at birth and postnatal linear growth (n = 710) and Hb (n = 617) with developmental scores in regression models, using multistage least squares analysis to calculate uncorrelated residuals for postnatal growth. Cognitive development at 4–6 years was significantly associated with LAZ at birth (β = 0.12, 95% CI = 0.05, 0.19), ΔLAZ from 6 to 18 months (β = 0.16, 95% CI = 0.04, 0.28), and Hb at 18 months (β = 0.13, 95% CI = 0.06, 0.20), but not with ΔLAZ during 0–6 months, ΔLAZ from 18 months to 4–6 years, Hb at 6 months, or Hb at 4–6 years. No evidence of associations with motor or social–emotional development were found. These results suggest that in similar contexts, the earlier periods prior to birth and up to 18 months are more sensitive to risk factors for long‐term cognitive development associated with LAZ and Hb compared with later childhood. This may inform the optimal timing of interventions targeting improved cognitive development