Integrated termite management for improved rainwater management: A synthesis of selected African experiences

In eastern Africa, termites are perceived by farmers, livestock keepers, and many development agencies as serious agricultural pests that destroy pasture, crops and wooden infrastructure. Commonly use control measures have proven to be ineffective. When the CGIAR Challenge Program on Water and Food (CPWF) undertook research aimed at increasing agricultural water productivity in eastern Africa, termites destroyed early experiments designed to rehabilitate degraded land and increase water productivity. Building on indigenous knowledge from termite affected regions of Ethiopia, the CPWF and Uganda partners initiated research on integrated termite management. Results were promising. This literature review was commissioned to capture the state-of-knowledge about termite taxonomy, and diversity, farmers’ ethno-ecological knowledge of subterranean termites and termite management practices and control measures used in African crop and rangeland production systems. The paper offers some general lessons and guidelines for future agricultural research and development programs where termite damage is problematic. In brief, we conclude that ITM offers greater prospects for enabling termites to play important positive roles in agro-ecosystem functioning while reducing the damage they inflict on crop and livestock production

Environmental Assessment of Climate Smart Agricultural Interventions in Smallholder Crop-livestock Production Systems

Abstract The study evaluated the environmental effects of various climate s mart agricultural interventions (CSAI) in the smallholder production systems of Uganda. Soil fert ility management interventions improved soil pH, soil nitrogen, organic matter, earthworm density and microbial bio mass by 8, 55, 94, 130 and 44.2% respectively. Installation of roof-top water harvesting tanks ensured availability of good quality water whose total coliform concentration was 529, 967 and 1400% lower than in spring wells, ponds and run-off water harvesting tanks respectively. Also, fecal coliform concentration in roof-top water harvesting tanks was 17 and 28 times lower than in spring wells and ponds respectively. The methane-milk ratio fo r feed package A was 54 and 97% higher than the ratios for feed packages B and C. The results of the study implied that in the face of climate change and variability, CSAI have the potential to sustain high productivity of crop livestock through enhancing soil fert ility, water availability and feed utilisation of animals. The study called for fu rther research to establish appropriate manure applicat ion rates for different crops and manure types as well as to improve the quality of water collected in run-off water harvesting tanks

Opportunities for feeding forages to pigs in Uganda

Pigs can play an important role in risk diversification and livelihood security of many smallholder and poor households in Uganda. Women and youth/children provide most of the pigproduction labour, especially for forage collection, feeding and watering; and they are responsible for about 90% of pigs produced in Uganda. In the smallholder production systems practised both in rural and peri-urban areas, a variety of forage species are traditionally used for pig feeding, the majority of them being gathered for several hours every day. Overall, there is an overreliance on feeding crop residues, ‘weeds’ and forages both through collection and scavenging/ tethering, usually not meeting the nutritional requirements of pigs, which results in slow growth rates. Data on feeding pigs in Uganda were collected during focus group discussions and key informant interviews in three districts, Masaka, Mukono and Kamuli, during the years 2013–2014. In Uganda, there has been generally limited research on pigs and pig systems, while forage research has traditionally focused on feeding ruminants. A comprehensive literature review on feeding forages to pigs in the tropics revealed that it is mainly animal nutritionists who concern themselves with nutritional effects of forages on the animals and their suitability as pig feeds; aspects of integrating cultivated forages into crop-livestock production systems, labour requirements, gender issues, and economic returns are essentially not considered. Despite the widely recognised constraint of insufficient animal feeds, especially during dry seasons, adoption of cultivated forages in the tropics has been generally slow, and hindering factors have not been fully understood. Some cultivated forages show nutritional attributes suitable for pigs, technically making them an option to supplement pigs with farm-grown forages instead of purchased concentrates. A paradox of feeding forages to pigs in Uganda has been identified, though, that suggests a decreasing use potential of forages along a gradient from extensive (mostly rural) to intensive (more urban) smallholder systems, whereas CIAT’s Tropical Forages Program presumes an increasing forage adoption potential along a gradient from subsistence- to marketoriented smallholder systems. Investigating this paradox carefully may help better understand reasons and conditions of smallholders under which cultivated forages may be adopted or not

The Impact of Intensive Versus Standard Anthelminthic Treatment on Allergy-related Outcomes, Helminth Infection Intensity, and Helminth-related Morbidity in Lake Victoria Fishing Communities, Uganda: Results From the LaVIISWA Cluster-randomized Trial.

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of allergy-related diseases is increasing in low-income countries. Parasitic helminths, common in these settings, may be protective. We hypothesized that intensive, community-wide, anthelminthic mass drug administration (MDA) would increase allergy-related diseases, while reducing helminth-related morbidity. METHODS: In an open, cluster-randomized trial (ISRCTN47196031), we randomized 26 high-schistosomiasis-transmission fishing villages in Lake Victoria, Uganda, in a 1:1 ratio to receive community-wide intensive (quarterly single-dose praziquantel plus albendazole daily for 3 days) or standard (annual praziquantel plus 6 monthly single-dose albendazole) MDA. Primary outcomes were recent wheezing, skin prick test positivity (SPT), and allergen-specific immunoglobulin E (asIgE) after 3 years of intervention. Secondary outcomes included helminths, haemoglobin, and hepatosplenomegaly. RESULTS: The outcome survey comprised 3350 individuals. Intensive MDA had no effect on wheezing (risk ratio [RR] 1.11, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.64-1.93), SPT (RR 1.10, 95% CI 0.85-1.42), or asIgE (RR 0.96, 95% CI 0.82-1.12). Intensive MDA reduced Schistosoma mansoni infection intensity: the prevalence from Kato Katz examinations of single stool samples from each patient was 23% versus 39% (RR 0.70, 95% CI 0.55-0.88), but the urine circulating cathodic antigen test remained positive in 85% participants in both trial arms. Hookworm prevalence was 8% versus 11% (RR 0.55, 95% CI 0.31-1.00). There were no differences in anemia or hepatospenomegaly between trial arms. CONCLUSIONS: Despite reductions in S. mansoni intensity and hookworm prevalence, intensive MDA had no effect on atopy, allergy-related diseases, or helminth-related pathology. This could be due to sustained low-intensity infections; thus, a causal link between helminths and allergy outcomes cannot be discounted. Intensive community-based MDA has a limited impact in high-schistosomiasis-transmission fishing communities, in the absence of other interventions. CLINICAL TRIALS REGISTRATION: ISRCTN47196031

The Effect of Helminth Infections and Their Treatment on Metabolic Outcomes: Results of a Cluster-Randomized Trial.

BACKGROUND: Helminths may protect against cardiometabolic risk through effects on inflammation and metabolism; their treatment may be detrimental to metabolic outcomes. METHODS: In a cluster-randomized trial in 26 Ugandan fishing communities we investigated effects of community-wide intensive (quarterly single-dose praziquantel, triple-dose albendazole) vs standard (annual single-dose praziquantel, biannual single-dose albendazole) anthelminthic treatment on metabolic outcomes, and observational associations between helminths and metabolic outcomes. The primary outcome, homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), and secondary outcomes (including blood pressure, fasting blood glucose, lipids) were assessed after 4 years' intervention among individuals aged ≥10 years. RESULTS: We analyzed 1898 participants. Intensive treatment had no effect on HOMA-IR (adjusted geometric mean ratio, 0.96 [95% confidence interval {CI}, .86-1.07]; P = .42) but resulted in higher mean low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c) (2.86 vs 2.60 mmol/L; adjusted mean difference, 0.26 [95% CI, -.03 to .56]; P = .08). Lower LDL-c levels were associated with Schistosoma mansoni (2.37 vs 2.80 mmol/L; -0.25 [95% CI, -.49 to -.02]; P = .04) or Strongyloides (2.34 vs 2.69 mmol/L; -0.32 [95% CI, -.53 to -.12]; P = .003) infection. Schistosoma mansoni was associated with lower total cholesterol (4.24 vs 4.64 mmol/L; -0.25 [95% CI, -.44 to -.07]; P = .01) and moderate to heavy S. mansoni infection with lower triglycerides, LDL-c, and diastolic blood pressure. CONCLUSIONS: Helminth infections improve lipid profiles and may lower blood pressure. Studies to confirm causality and investigate mechanisms may contribute to understanding the epidemiological transition and suggest new approaches to prevent cardiometabolic disease. CLINICAL TRIALS REGISTRATION: ISRCTN47196031

Do helminth infections underpin urban-rural differences in risk factors for allergy-related outcomes?

BACKGROUND: It is proposed that helminth exposure protects against allergy-related disease, by mechanisms that include disconnecting risk factors (such as atopy) from effector responses. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to assess how helminth exposure influences rural-urban differences in risk factors for allergy-related outcomes in tropical low- and middle-income countries. METHODS: In cross-sectional surveys in Ugandan rural Schistosoma mansoni (Sm)-endemic islands, and in nearby mainland urban communities with lower helminth exposure, we assessed risk factors for atopy (allergen-specific skin prick test [SPT] reactivity and IgE [asIgE] sensitization) and clinical allergy-related outcomes (wheeze, urticaria, rhinitis and visible flexural dermatitis), and effect modification by Sm exposure. RESULTS: Dermatitis and SPT reactivity were more prevalent among urban participants, urticaria and asIgE sensitization among rural participants. Pairwise associations between clinical outcomes, and between atopy and clinical outcomes, were stronger in the urban survey. In the rural survey, SPT positivity was inversely associated with bathing in lakewater, Schistosoma-specific IgG4 and Sm infection. In the urban survey, SPT positivity was positively associated with age, non-Ugandan maternal tribe, being born in a city/town, BCG scar and light Sm infection. Setting (rural vs urban) was an effect modifier for risk factors including Sm- and Schistosoma-specific IgG4. In both surveys, the dominant risk factors for asIgE sensitization were Schistosoma-specific antibody levels and helminth infections. Handwashing and recent malaria treatment reduced odds of asIgE sensitization among rural but not urban participants. Risk factors for clinical outcomes also differed by setting. Despite suggestive trends, we did not find sufficient evidence to conclude that helminth (Sm) exposure explained rural-urban differences in risk factors. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Risk factors for allergy-related outcomes differ between rural and urban communities in Uganda but helminth exposure is unlikely to be the sole mechanism of the observed effect modification between the two settings. Other environmental exposures may contribute significantly

Effect of intensive treatment for schistosomiasis on immune responses to vaccines among rural Ugandan island adolescents: randomised controlled trial protocol A for the 'POPulation differences in VACcine responses' (POPVAC) programme.

INTRODUCTION: Several licensed and investigational vaccines have lower efficacy, and induce impaired immune responses, in low-income versus high-income countries and in rural, versus urban, settings. Understanding these population differences is essential to optimising vaccine effectiveness in the tropics. We suggest that repeated exposure to and immunomodulation by chronic helminth infections partly explains population differences in vaccine response. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: We have designed an individually randomised, parallel group trial of intensive versus standard praziquantel (PZQ) intervention against schistosomiasis, to determine effects on vaccine response outcomes among school-going adolescents (9-17 years) from rural Schistosoma mansoni-endemic Ugandan islands. Vaccines to be studied comprise BCG on day 'zero'; yellow fever, oral typhoid and human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccines at week 4; and HPV and tetanus/diphtheria booster vaccine at week 28. The intensive arm will receive PZQ doses three times, each 2 weeks apart, before BCG immunisation, followed by a dose at week 8 and quarterly thereafter. The standard arm will receive PZQ at week 8 and 52. We expect to enrol 480 participants, with 80% infected with S. mansoni at the outset.Primary outcomes are BCG-specific interferon-γ ELISpot responses 8 weeks after BCG immunisation and for other vaccines, antibody responses to key vaccine antigens at 4 weeks after immunisation. Secondary analyses will determine the effects of intensive anthelminthic treatment on correlates of protective immunity, on waning of vaccine response, on priming versus boosting immunisations and on S. mansoni infection status and intensity. Exploratory immunology assays using archived samples will enable assessment of mechanistic links between helminths and vaccine responses. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethics approval has been obtained from relevant ethics committes of Uganda and UK. Results will be shared with Uganda Ministry of Health, relevant district councils, community leaders and study participants. Further dissemination will be done through conference proceedings and publications. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ISRCTN60517191

Effect of upper catchment management and water cover plants on quantity and quality of water in reservoirs and their implications on livestock water productivity

Seasonal water fluctuations both in quality and quantity negatively affect livestock production and subsequently reduce livestock-water productivity (LWP) in rainfed pastoral production systems. The major contributing factors to this phenomenon are poor upper catchment and water resource management which result in contamination, sedimentation/silting, eutrophication due to nutrient enrichment, and excessive discharge of runoff into water reserviors. This study investigated the effect of upper catchment management (un-vegetated and vegetated catchment, un-vegetated and vegetated gullies); and water cover plants on water quality and quantity in surface water reservoirs, and their impacts on livestock water productivity (LWP) in rainfed pastoral production systems of Uganda. Water quality and quantity in sixteen reserviors were monitored on a monthly basis in Nakasongola and Kiruhura districts for a period of one year covering two dry and two rain seasons. Sedimentation studies showed that about 250 m3 of silt from un-vegetated catchment entered a reservoir, reducing the storage capacity by 18% in a period of one year. The silt that entered the reservoir was responsible for degradedation of about 47 m3 of water. Un-vegetated upper catchments therefore had detrimental impacts on water reservoirs. Total coliform (TC), feacal coliform (FC), ammonium-nitrogen (NH4–N) and total phosphorus (TP) levels were significantly higher (p < 0.001) in reservoirs receiving water from open gullies while reservoirs with un-vegetated catchments had significantly higher concentrations (p < 0.001) of nitrite-nitrogen (NO2–N), nitrate-nitrogen (NO3–N), total nitrogen (TN), total dissolved solids (TDS), total suspended solids (TSS) and turbidity. TC and FC concentrations were significantly high (p < 0.001 and p < 0.05, respectively) in the dry season, with highest concentrations recorded in reservoirs receiving water from open gullies. NO2–N and NO3–N were significantly high (p < 0.001) in the rain season. There were significant interactions between season and treatment effects on the concentration of NO2–N, NO3–N, TSS and turbidity (p < 0.001). Reservoirs receiving water from un-vegetated catchments had high NO2–N, TSS and turbidity in the rain season while those with vegetated gullies had high NO3–N in the rain season. Four plant species (Pistia, Azolla, Lemna and Nymphaea spp.) were identified as the common plant species covering water reserviors in the study area. The results showed that reservoirs covered by Lemna sp had significantly lower (p < 0.001) TC, FC, NO2–N, NO3–N, TN, TSS, and turbidity than reservoirs covered by other cover plants in the study, indicating its potential application in water quality improvement for livestock production systems. Nymphaea spp had significantly higher (p < 0.001) concentrations of nitrite, total nitrogen, TDS, TSS and turbidity while Azolla spp had significantly high (p < 0.001) TC concentrations compared to other water cover plants. This indicated that Nymphaea spp is an undesirable water cover plants species and hence should be eliminated. Improvement of upper catchment and water resource management greatly increased livestock water productivity (LWP) by 353%, 518% and 280% in the settled, semi-settled and non-settled pastoral communities. In addition, un-vegetated catchments and gullies were shown to have detrimental impacts on the reservoir water quality. Therefore, a great potential exists for improving livestock water productivity in the pastoral communities of Uganda through use of vegetated catchments and gullies. Although the amount of rainfall in the pastoral communities of Uganda greatly contributes to the quantity of water available in reservoirs to sustain livestock and human needs through dry seasons, other factors such as evaporation, sedimentation and degradation of water quality may critically reduce the availability of water in pastoral communities. Therefore, increasing water supply through creation of more surface water resources without proper upper catchment and water management practices would only provide a temporal solution to problems of livestock water scarcity in dry seasons within the rangeland pastoral communities of Uganda due to high evaporation and reservoir sedimentation rates experienced in these communities