A review on the integrated agro-technology of papaya fruit

The aim of this review was first to explore the effect of different pre-harvest factors affecting the quality of papaya including genetic factors, climatic conditions, cultural practices on post-harvest quality of the papaya fruit. Post-harvest physiology of papaya in terms of its respiration, ethylene production and sensitivity and transpiration was reviewed. Post-harvest handling and factors affecting quality of papaya were also examined. Post-harvest biochemistry of papaya including enzyme activity, carbohydrates, organic acids, pigments and volatiles in papaya fruit were assessed. A review on post-harvest handling of papaya fruit including packaging and storage environments (temperature and relative humidity) were presented. On the other hand, the post-harvest microbiology of papaya was reviewed. Papaya supply chain is much limited to local destinations with quite few exceptions mainly due to lack of integrated post-harvest handling technologies. Pre- and post-harvest treatments were found to have a significant effect on post-harvest quality of papaya and the fruit storage stability under dry and hot climatic conditions of Africa. An integrated agro-technology research and development approach aimed at improved yield and quality at harvest as well as the maintenance of qualities of papaya fruit in order to encourage farmers to produce and for marketing of the papaya fruit under African local supply chain conditions and for export market is recommended.Key words: Papaya fruit, post-harvest, agro-technology, pre-harvest

Vascular risk factors and diabetic neuropathy

Background: Other than glycemic control, there are no treatments for diabetic neuropathy. Thus, identifying potentially modifiable risk factors for neuropathy is crucial. We studied risk factors for the development of distal symmetric neuropathy in 1172 patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus from 31 centers participating in the European Diabetes (EURODIAB) Prospective Complications Study. Methods: Neuropathy was assessed at baseline (1989 to 1991) and at follow-up (1997 to 1999), with a mean (±SD) follow-up of 7.3±0.6 years. A standardized protocol included clinical evaluation, quantitative sensory testing, and autonomic-function tests. Serum lipids and lipoproteins, glycosylated hemoglobin, and the urinary albumin excretion rate were measured in a central laboratory. Results: At follow-up, neuropathy had developed in 276 of 1172 patients without neuropathy at baseline (23.5 percent). The cumulative incidence of neuropathy was related to the glycosylated hemoglobin value and the duration of diabetes. After adjustment for these factors, we found that higher levels of total and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglycerides, a higher body-mass index, higher von Willebrand factor levels and urinary albumin excretion rate, hypertension, and smoking were all significantly associated with the cumulative incidence of neuropathy. After adjustment for other risk factors and diabetic complications, we found that duration of diabetes, current glycosylated hemoglobin value, change in glycosylated hemoglobin value during the follow-up period, body-mass index, and smoking remained independently associated with the incidence of neuropathy. Cardiovascular disease at baseline was associated with double the risk of neuropathy, independent of cardiovascular risk factors. Conclusions: This prospective study indicates that, apart from glycemic control, the incidence of neuropathy is associated with potentially modifiable cardiovascular risk factors, including a raised triglyceride level, body-mass index, smoking, and hypertension

Acute loss of vision in a young woman: A case report on psychogenic blindness

Background: Acute loss of vision needs urgent attention and treatment. We report on a young Ethiopian woman who experienced acute bilateral blindness. In the presence of normal ophthalmological findings psychogenic blindness has to be considered.Case Details: A 21 years old woman was admitted to the psychiatry clinic at Jimma University specialized Hospital, Jimma, South West Ethiopia. She had not been able to see for a few days. Ophthalmological and neurological examinations showed normal findings. No severe psychopathology was found. Stressful life events had preceded the appearance of the symptoms. An attitude of accepting the perspective of the patient of a seemingly organic disease is a precondition for a successful intervention. Treatment aimed at a gradual return to normal functioning. The patient regained her sight and fully recovered. The final psychiatric diagnosis was psychogenic blindness.Conclusion: The psychosocial intervention was successful and encouraging for the patient and clinicians.Keywords: acute loss of vision, psychosocial intervention, conversion disorder, low-income country, international cooperation

Application of Visible to Near-Infrared Spectroscopy for Non-Destructive Assessment of Quality Parameters of Fruit

The accuracy and robustness of prediction models are very important to the successful commercial application of visible to near-infrared spectroscopy (Vis-NIRS) on fruit. The difference in physiological characteristics of fruit is very wide, which necessitates variance in the type of spectrometers applied to collect spectral data, pre-processing of the collected data and chemometric techniques used to develop robust models. Relevant practices of data collection, processing and the development of models are a challenge because of the required knowledge of fruit physiology in addition to the Vis-NIRS expertise of a researcher. This chapter deals with the application of Vis-NIRS on fruit by discussing commonly used spectrometers, data chemometric treatment and common models developed for assessing quality of specific types of fruit. The chapter intends to create an overview of commonly used techniques for guiding general users of these techniques. Current status, gaps and future perspectives of the application of Vis-NIRS on fruit are also discussed for challenging researchers who are experts in this research field

Medication Non-Adherence among Adult Psychiatric Out-patients in Jimma University Specialized Hospital, Southwest Ethiopia

Background: Information on adherence of adult psychiatric patients to biological modes of treatment is scarce in Ethiopia. Knowledge on adherence is essential in terms of future prognosis, quality of life and functionality of such patients. This study was conducted to assess the magnitude and associated factors of non-adherence to medication.Methods: A hospital based cross-sectional study was conducted in November 2011 at the psychiatry facility of Jimma University Specialized Hospital, which provides service to more than 10 mill people. A sample of 422 adults with psychiatric illness in the follow-up outpatients was selected consecutively. Data was collected using a pre-tested questionnaire by face-to-face interview and from patient medical records. The four-item Morisky scale was used to assess degree of medication adherence. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 16 and descriptive, chi-square test and logistic regression statistical methods were used. P-Value of less than 0.05 was considered as statistically significant in the final model.Results: Out of the 422 patients, 40.3% were females and 59.7% males. The prevalence rate for nonadherence was 41.2%, non-affective psychoses diagnosis contributing the highest rate (44.5%). From the total non-adherent respondents, 78.2% attributed their non-adherence to forgetting. Irregular follow-up, poor social support and complex drug regimen were independently associated variables with nonadherence.Concluction: The result of the study showed that non-adherence among psychiatric patients in Southwest Ethiopia is high and revealed possible associated factors. Adherence needs integrated efforts in creating a mechanism in enhancing regular follow-up, informal social support system and ongoing awareness creation among professionals.Keywords: mental illness, non-adherence, Jimma University Specialized Hospital, Ethiopi

Implementation and Status of Biogas Technology in Ethiopia- Case of Tigray Region

In Ethiopia, like most developing countries, the majority of households depend on wood and charcoal as their cooking energy resources. This energy has a direct impact on the forest coverage and its emissions have significant health issues. Biogas technology has introduced to address these problems and reduce energy poverty in developing countries. However, the success of this technology depends on many factors such as technology appropriateness, available skill, proper introduction, and government support to create favorable financial incentives. The objective of this paper is to make an overview assessment of biogas development programs in Ethiopia, identify development barriers and provide suggestions to mitigate these barriers. The national and regional biogas program of Ethiopia has implemented to give energy for cooking and to some extent for lighting. However, it has shown limited success over the years. The National Biogas Programme of Ethiopia has shown an overall 50% achievement while the Tigray region registered 55% achievement. In addition, the owner of the biogas facility in Tigray reported a 57% functionality rate but the lowest satisfaction level of 15%.  Generally, the region has shown relatively better performance in terms of dissemination and functionality but a low satisfaction rate due to technical limitation, unsteady input, and financial factors.       &nbsp

Phasor Measurement Units Optimal Placement and Performance Limits for Fault Localization

In this paper, the performance limits of faults localization are investigated using synchrophasor data. The focus is on a non-trivial operating regime where the number of Phasor Measurement Unit (PMU) sensors available is insufficient to have full observability of the grid state. Proposed analysis uses the Kullback Leibler (KL) divergence between the distributions corresponding to different fault location hypotheses associated with the observation model. This analysis shows that the most likely locations are concentrated in clusters of buses more tightly connected to the actual fault site akin to graph communities. Consequently, a PMU placement strategy is derived that achieves a near-optimal resolution for localizing faults for a given number of sensors. The problem is also analyzed from the perspective of sampling a graph signal, and how the placement of the PMUs i.e. the spatial sampling pattern and the topological characteristic of the grid affect the ability to successfully localize faults. To highlight the superior performance of presented fault localization and placement algorithms, the proposed strategy is applied to a modified IEEE 34, IEEE-123 bus test cases and to data from a real distribution grid. Additionally, the detection of cyber-physical attacks is also examined where PMU data and relevant Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) network traffic information are compared to determine if a network breach has affected the integrity of the system information and/or operations