Understanding Farmer and Government Measure in Rat Pests Control in Rice Fields

This paper discusses the control of rat pets through highlighting its population growth, ecosystem, types and possible mechanism to use. During extended periods of fallow, rice field rats tend to congregate in escape places (refuge regions) such as bushes, yards, or rice warehouses. Rice plants suffered damage equivalent to five times their feeding requirements when rats were present. Rats damage plants from the tiller stage to the maximal tiller stages by devouring the growth point and the soft base of the stem while leaving the other portions of the plant unharmed. Without intensive control efforts (since the start of MT1), the rat population density on MT2 is confirmed to be higher and poses a serious threat to the success of MT2 harvesting. In one rice growing season, there is one population peak so in the rice-paddy-fallow cropping pattern there are two (2) population peaks

Effekt av legemidler på metyleringsmønsteret til Karboksylesterase- genet

Sammendrag Innledning: Karboksylesterase er en type mammalske enzymer som finnes utbredt i store deler av kroppen, hvor de er med på å hydrolysere en rekke endogene og eksogene substanser, inkludert en rekke viktige legemidler. Det er vist at genetisk variasjon i CES1 og CES2- genene kan være assosiert med ulik legemiddelrespons og bidra til enten dårligere legemiddeleffekt eller bivirkninger hos pasienter. Irinotecan er et cytostatikum som blir brukt til behandlingen av blant annet avansert kolorektal-kreft, hvor det gjennom CES1 og CES2 blir omdannet til dens aktive metabolitt SN-38. Det er tidligere vist at bruk av legemidler kan påvirke metyleringmønsteret hos ulike gener. I denne oppgaven ønsket vi derfor å undersøke Irinotecans effekt på promotor- metyleringen og mRNA transkripsjonen til CES1, CES2 og UGT1A1 ved hjelp av in vitro- studier av levercellekulturer (HepG2). Vi ønsket å finne ut om Irinotecan i seg selv kan føre til redusert legemidelrespons (resistens) ved å forandre metyleringsmønsteret og ekspresjonen til disse genene. Metode: HepG2- cellelinjer ble sådd ut i medie og stimulert med Irinotecan, hvor det ble brukt fire ulike konsentrasjoner (0 μM, 0.3 μM, 3 μM og 30 μM). Førti-åtte timer etter celle-stimulering ble cellene studert i mikroskop hvor cellemorfologi og celledødelighet ble studert og tolket. Videre ble DNA og RNA isolert ut hver for seg. DNA ble brukt til pyrosekvensering for å studere promotor- metyleringen til de ulike genene. Før selve pyrosekvenseringen ble prøvene bisulfitt behandlet, og PCR- amplifisert med CES/UGT- spesifikke primere. Metoden revers transkripsjon kvantitativ PCR (RT- qPCR) ble brukt på RNA for å studere genekspresjonen til de ulike genene. ddCq- verdiene ble utregnet (normalisert med ulike referansegener) og signifikante forandringer i genekspresjon mellom prøvene ble bestemt. Resultater: Pyrosekvensering viste ingen signifikante endringer i metylerings-mønsteret hos noen av de studerte genene. CES1 og CES2 viste lav grad av metylering, mens UGT1A1 viste seg å være nesten fullstendig metylert i HepG2- celler. RT- qPCR viste signifikant økt genekspresjonen hos CES2 ved alle de tre ulike konsentrasjonene i forhold til nullprøven. Hos CES1 og UGT1A1 ble det observert mindre signifikante endringer, kun en moderat økning. Diskusjon og konklusjon: Legemiddelstimulering med Irinotecan hos HepG2- celler gav en økt gentranskripsjon av CES1, CES2 og UGT1A1. Endringen var størst hos CES2 og litt mindre omfattende hos CES1 og UGT1A1. Ingen forandring ble funnet i metyleringsmønsteret hos de ulike genene etter legemiddelstimulering, og det var heller ingen assosiasjon mellom endring i metyleringsmønster og gentranskripsjonsnivå i disse genene. Irinotecan har en negativ effekt på HepG2- celler hvor stimulering med dette legemidlet gav en endring i cellemorfologi og økt celledødelighet. Flere studier er nødvendig for å få en bedre forståelse på metyleringsmønsteret hos CES- og UGT1A1- genene

Drought stress - related functional characterization of transcription factor GmNAC085 in soybean

Studies on soybean GmNAC085 transcription factor revealed that the gene expression in plants was induced by water shortage treatments and its overexpression in the model plant Arabidopsis displayed improved plant tolerance characteristics towards drought stress. In this study, we continued analyzing the biological functions of GmNAC085 using transgenic soybean system overexpressing GmNAC085 gene, by targeting at a number of plant physiological features and biochemical activities in response to limited water growing condition. Compared to the wild-type, the transgenic line demonstrated that it possessed stress tolerance characters, including enhanced elongation of taproot, minimized reduction of shoot growth, lower intracellular H2O2 content and stronger peroxidase enzyme activity under drought condition. The results of this study therefore suggest the transgenic plants had better drought tolerance and the GmNAC085 plays important role in aiding plants to cope with water deficit condition, probably via regulating the growth of roots and shoots, and activities of reactive-oxygen-species- scavenging enzymes

Risk-based approach to food safety research: Application to pork value chains in Vietnam

Introduction: Food-borne disease is a major public health issue in Vietnam. The contamination of popular foods can occur all along the food value chains. It is important to understand how and where food safety issues arise in order to mitigate and prevent food-borne diseases. Risk-based approach is a tool for managing food safety, however in Vietnam it is rarely applied and the capacity for application is still lacking. This paper describes how food safety risk assessment research has been applied for the pork value chain in Vietnam. Methods: We have conducted a risk assessment research to assess health risks related to pork consumption in the context of pig smallholder value chains and pork traded in informal markets. We collected 216 samples from 72 pig farms (floor swab, drinking and waste water), 545 samples from 49 slaughterhouses (carcass swab, lymph node, rectal feces, floor swab and washing water) and 514 samples from 220 pork retailed shops at informal markets (pork cuts, ground pork and cutting board swab) in Hung Yen and Nghe An provinces in the north and central of Vietnam. These 1275 samples were analyzed to detect qualitatively and quantitatively for Salmonella and E. coli. Chemical hazards (antibiotic, growth promoters, and heavy metal residues) in 190 pork samples from informal markets were also analyzed. Pork consumption behavior and cross-contamination modalities during pork preparation were assessed. Findings and interpretations: Overall prevalence of Salmonella combined from all types of above mentioned samples at pig farms, slaughterhouses and pork shops were 35%, 30% and 37%, respectively. Salmonella contamination in the final product (pork at market) was 45% and an average concentration of 9 MPN/g was recorded. E. coli average loads along different points of the chain were 5.3±1.4 (farm floor swabs), 2.9±0.9 (carcass swabs), 3.1±1.0 (slaughterhouse floor swabs), and 3.3±1.1 (market shop cutting board swabs) logCFU/cm2 , whereas pork from market had 3.4±0.9 logCFU/g. Demonstrated high levels of Salmonella in the final product (pork at market) induces the potential health risks for the consumers. High values for E. coli indicates general poor hygiene along the chain. 50% and 16.7% pooled samples were positive with sulfamethazine and chloramphenicol, with average residue levels of 156 µg/kg and 0.54 µg/kg, respectively. A quantitative risk model is being developed and integrates information on contamination along the pork value chain to characterize the health risk caused by Salmonella. Appropriate hygiene practices and management are required to achieve better pork quality and reduce the risk for the consumers

Determination of the Administration Routes, Doses and Appropriate Age to Vaccinate With Ornitin Triple Vaccine For Cross-breed Colored Broilers in Vietnam

The study was to determine the appropriate dose and administration route of Ornitin Triple vaccine in cross-breed coloured broilers in Vietnam by evaluating the antibody titer against Ornithobacterium rhinotracheale (ORT) and local reactions at injection sites on chickens after vaccination. The study was divided into 2 trials. Both trials were designed with 3 vaccine dose groups: 0.0ml (control group), 0.25ml and 0.5ml and 2 different administration routes: subcutaneous at neck (SC) and intramuscular at breast (IM) injection. The result showed that, no statistically significant difference was found between antibody titer of two administration routes as well as 2 vaccine doses until 13-week-old. Local reactions at the injection sites of IM route was less severe than SC at neck and in higher dose would produce a more severe swelling reaction. Daily weight gain was found to have a slight decrease in the vaccinated groups within 2 weeks after vaccination, however, no statistically significant difference was found in later stage (P > 0.05). In conclusion, Ornitin Triple can be used to vaccinate by IM with the dose of 0.25ml for coloured broilers at early age (3-week-old), or 0.5ml for older birds and should be careful for some reactions at the injection sites

Modelling 3D crack propagation in ageing graphite bricks of Advanced Gas-cooled Reactor power plant

In this paper, crack propagation in Advanced Gas-cooled Reactor (AGR) graphite bricks withageing properties is studied using the eXtended Finite Element Method (X-FEM). A parametric study for crackpropagation, including the influence of different initial crack shapes and propagation criteria, is conducted. Theresults obtained in the benchmark study show that the crack paths from X-FEM are similar to the experimentalones. The accuracy of the strain energy release rate computation in a heterogeneous material is also evaluatedusing a finite difference approach. Planar and non-planar 3D crack growth simulations are presented todemonstrate the robustness and the versatility of the method utilized. Finally, this work contributes to the better understanding of crack propagation behaviour in AGR graphite bricks and so contributes to the extension of the AGR plants’ lifetimes in the UK by reducing uncertainties

Burden of diarrheal diseases from biogas wastewater exposure among smallholder farmers in Ha Nam province, Vietnam

Livestock production has developed rapidly in Vietnam in recent years, particularly at the small-scale which account for 65% of the total livestock production. Biogas systems are commonly used to treat livestock waste, however, the health risks from biogas wastewater exposure at smallholder farms are not yet well understood. A quantitative microbial risk assessment approach was applied to estimate the burden of diarrheal diseases from biogas wastewater exposure among 451 smallholder farmers using biogas systems in Ha Nam province. A total of 150 biogas wastewater samples were collected and analysed for E. coli, Giardia, and Cryptosporidium. The study showed that farmers faced diarrheal disease risks due to exposure to biogas wastewater at different exposure scenarios. The calculated annual risk of diarrheal disease by E. coli ranked from 0.15 to 0.21; by Giardia ranked from 0.022 to 0.095; and by Cryptosporidium ranked from 0.006 to 0.015. The estimated diarrheal diseases burden from pathogens in all exposure scenarios largely exceeded the reference level of health outcome target of 10-6DALYs loss per person per year recommended by WHO. The results suggest the importance in reducing concentrations of pathogens in biogas wastewater before use in the fields as a means for mitigating public health impacts