Unsuccessful Cassava Brown Streak Disease (CBSD) evaluation attempts in western Democratic Republic of Congo and implications with cassava root necrosis disease (CRND) etiology

Open Access ArticleCassava brown streak disease (CBSD) is the second most important virus disease after Cassava mosaic disease (CMD), infecting cassava (ManihotesculetaCrantz) in Africa. The disease is caused by two distinct viruses, Cassava brown streak virus [2, 3] and Ugandan Cassava brown streak virus (family, Potyviridae: genus, Ipomovirus). Transmission of CBSV from one plant to another is reported to occur through grafting CBSV-free with infected cuttings and subsequent dissemination by infected cuttings. The basic approach to control of CBSD is selecting planting material from symptomless mother plants. Graft inoculation is the most efficient and effective of the techniques for CBSD virus transmission and consequently cuttings are the most effective way of the disease spreading. In early 2000s, cassava root necrosis similar to those of CBSD were reported in western provinces of Democratic Republic of Congo (RDC) (Kinshasa and Kongo Central) and up to date PCR diagnoses did not detect any causal agent related to the observed symptoms and the disease which was still referred as ‘CBSD-like disease’. Due to lack of molecular data and the similarity of root symptoms with CBSD, the existence of a virus has always been suspected to be the cause of CBSD-like propagation. Thus, 2 field experiments were proposed in order to verify the existence of a systematic transmission of a possible CBSD related virus, knowing that CBSD viruses are transmitted efficiently by cuttings. The first trial focused on the field evaluation of CBSD – like infected and apparently uninfected planting materials, while the second trial involved the importation of tanzanian CBSD resistant genotypes for evaluation in INERA Mvuazi research center under CBSD-like infection conditions. Results of the first trial did not show a systemic transmission of any CBSD-like pathogen while CBSD-resistant parents involved in the second trial all succumbed to CBSD-like disease

Perlindungan Hukum terhadap Independensi Kurator dalam Mengurus dan Membereskan Harta Pailit

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk: (1) mengetahui dan mengkaji permasalahanindependensi Kurator dalam melaksanakan tugas membereskan harta pailit terhadapmunculnya gugatan dari debitor pailit, (2) mengetahui dan mengkaji tolok ukur menentukanindependensi Kurator dalam melaksanakan tugasnya membereskan dan mengurus hartapailit serta, dan (3) perlidungan hukum terhadap Kurator dalam melaksanakan tugasnya.Penelitian ini merupakan penelitian hukum normatif empiris. Data yang digunakan dalampenelitian ini berasal dari data primer dan data sekunder. Data primer diperoleh melaluiwawancara dengan alat pedoman wawancara, sedangkan data sekunder diperoleh melaluimetode dokumentasi dengan alat studi dokumentasi dan analisis data dilakukan secarakualitatif. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan, bahwa gugatan terhadap Kurator yang dilakukanoleh debitor maupun kreditor pada dasarnya dari beberapa kasus yang dialami Kurator,hanya bertujuan untuk menghambat proses pemberesan harta pailit, akibatnya biayakepailitan membengkak, terutama dalam hal biaya pengamanan aset yang harus ditanggungKurator dan waktu untuk membereskan menjadi lebih lama, kemudian tidak ada ketentuanmengenai tolok ukur/parameter independensi Kurator, sehingga sulit mengidentifikasiKurator independen atau tidak dalam melaksanakan tugasnya, dan Undang Undang Nomor37 Tahun 2004 tentang Kepailitan dan Penundaan Kewajiban Pembayaran Utang tidakmemberikan secara tertulis mengenai perlidungan hukum terhadap profesi Kurator dalammelaksanakan tugasnya. Kesimpulan penelitian adalah: (1) independensi Kurator bukanpenyebab utama munculnya gugatan oleh debitor maupun kreditor, (2) independensi Kuratorsulit diindentifikasi, dan (3) perlindungan hukum terhadap Kurator telah diatur dalam UUD1945 dan kode etik AKPI sebagai salah satu organisasi Kurator. Berdasarkan kesimpulantersebut, maka disarankan: (1) perlu diatur ketentuan mengenai sanksi dari munculnyagugatan yang dilakukan oleh debitor maupun kreditor terhadap Kurator yang bertujuanmenghambat proses pemberesan; (2) perlu diatur ketentuan mengenai tolok ukur/parameterindependensi Kurator; dan (3) tidak perlu dibuatkan aturan khusus mengenai perlidunganhukum terhadap profesi Kurator

Third generation sfermions decays into Z and W gauge bosons: full one-loop analysis

The complete one-loop radiative corrections to third generation scalar fermions into gauge bosons Z and W^\pm is considered. We focus on \wt{f}_2 \to Z \wt{f}_1 and \wt{f}_i \to W^\pm \wt{f'}_j (f,f'=t,b). We include both SUSY-QCD, QED and full electroweak corrections. It is found that the electroweak corrections can be of the same order as the SUSY-QCD corrections. The two sets of corrections interfere destructively in some region of parameter space. The full one loop correction can reach 10% in some SUGRA scenario, while in model independent analysis like general MSSM, the one loop correction can reach 20% for large \tan\beta and large trilinear soft breaking terms A_b.Comment: Latex file, 18 pages, 8 figures, version to appear in PR

Remedies and the Supreme Court\u27s October 2007 Term

For this third annual review of Supreme Court decisions, I have identified three cases from very different areas all of which involve the remedies available for violations of federal law. These cases deal with the following issues: (a) federal remedies for state violations of federal labor policy (Chamber of Commerce); (b) state remedies for violations of the federal Bill of Rights (Danforth) and (c) federal common law standards for awarding punitive damages (Exxon Shipping)

A Predictive Explicit Guidance Scheme for Ballistic Missiles

A new approach to the design of ballistic missile guidance is presented in this paper. The proposed method uses the missile model to predict the likely impact point at every guidance cycle and apply course corrections based on the predicted impact point (PIP) deviations. The algorithm also estimates the in-flight thrust variation from nominal and accordingly updates the model to reduce the uncertainty in the prediction of the impact point. The performance of the algorithm is tested through 6-DOF simulation. The simulation results show excellent performance of the proposed guidance scheme in nominal & off nominal cases.Defence Science Journal, 2013, 63(5), pp.456-461, DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.14429/dsj.63.257

Effect of Selected Agrochemicals on Protozoans and Algae Isolated from Mosquito Larval Habitats in Bamenda

The present study establishes the in-vitro effect of some selected agrochemicals(Glycot, Lamida and Pencozeb) on protozoans and some algae isolated from mosquito larval habitats in Bamenda urban zone, Cameroon. A convenience sampling technique was used in which water samples were randomly collected from 125 mosquito larval habitats from Bamenda urban zone. Out of the 123 samples tested, 41(33.33%) samples were found to be positive. Dinoflagellates predorminated with a frequency of 20(16.26%). One genera of protozoa(chillodenella) pathogenic to mosquito larvae was seen. Hook worm, Faciola, Paramecium and Trichomonas were found to be of medical importance while Euglena, Diatoms and Dinoflagellates were found to be of agricultural importance. All the protozoans and algae tested were susceptible to Lamida and Penncozeb, but resistant to glycot at all concentrations tested. Conclusively, the susceptibility of Chillodenella spp to Lamida and Penncozeb suggest their interference with natural biological control for mosquito population and also distortion of the ecosystem. Keywords: Agrochemicals, protozoans and algae , mosquito larval habitat

Radiative Neutralino Decay in Supersymmetric Models

The radiative decay Z2-> Z1 gamma proceeds at the one-loop level in the MSSM. It can be the dominant decay mode for the second lightest neutralino Z2 in certain regions of parameter space of supersymmetric models, where either a dynamical and/or kinematic enhancement of the branching fraction occurs. We perform an updated numerical study of this decay mode in both the minimal supergravity model (mSUGRA) and in the more general MSSM framework. In mSUGRA, the largest rates are found in the ``focus point'' region, where the mu parameter becomes small, and the lightest neutralinos become higgsino-like; in this case, radiative branching fraction can reach the 1% level. Our MSSM analysis includes a scan over independent positive and negative gaugino masses. We show branching fractions can reach the 10-100% level even for large values of the parameter tan(beta). These regions of parameter space are realized in supergravity models with non-universal gaugino masses. Measurement of the radiative neutralino branching fraction may help pin down underlying parameters of the fundamental supersymmetric model.Comment: 19 page JHEP file with 8 PS figures; previous version contained figure misplacemen

Optimal experimental design for mathematical models of haematopoiesis.

The haematopoietic system has a highly regulated and complex structure in which cells are organized to successfully create and maintain new blood cells. It is known that feedback regulation is crucial to tightly control this system, but the specific mechanisms by which control is exerted are not completely understood. In this work, we aim to uncover the underlying mechanisms in haematopoiesis by conducting perturbation experiments, where animal subjects are exposed to an external agent in order to observe the system response and evolution. We have developed a novel Bayesian hierarchical framework for optimal design of perturbation experiments and proper analysis of the data collected. We use a deterministic model that accounts for feedback and feedforward regulation on cell division rates and self-renewal probabilities. A significant obstacle is that the experimental data are not longitudinal, rather each data point corresponds to a different animal. We overcome this difficulty by modelling the unobserved cellular levels as latent variables. We then use principles of Bayesian experimental design to optimally distribute time points at which the haematopoietic cells are quantified. We evaluate our approach using synthetic and real experimental data and show that an optimal design can lead to better estimates of model parameters

A comparison of United Kingdom primary care data with other national data sources for monitoring the prevalence of smoking during pregnancy

Background: We aimed to assess the potential usefulness of primary care data for estimating smoking prevalence in pregnancy by comparing the primary care data estimates with those obtained from other data sources. Methods: In The Health Improvement Network (THIN) primary care database we identified pregnant smokers using smoking information recorded during pregnancy. Where this information was missing, we used smoking information recorded prior to pregnancy. We compared annual smoking prevalence from 2000 to 2012 in THIN with measures from the Infant Feeding Survey (IFS), Smoking At Time of Delivery (SATOD), Child Health Systems Programme (CHSP) and Scottish Morbidity Record (SMR). Results: Smoking estimates from THIN data converged with estimates from other sources after 2004, though still do not agree completely. For example, in 2012 smoking prevalence at booking was 11.6% in THIN using data recorded only during pregnancy, compared to 19.6% in SMR data. However, the use of smoking data recorded up to 27 months before conception increased the THIN prevalence to 20.3%, improving the agreement. Conclusion: Under-recording of smoking status during pregnancy results in unreliable prevalence estimates from primary care data and needs improvement. However, the inclusion of pre-conception smoking records may increase the utility of primary care data

Attempts to identify Cassava Brown Streak Virus in western Democratic Republic of Congo

Open Access ArticleRoot necrosis similar to those of the cassava brown streak disease (CBSD) were observed on cassava in western provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR.Congo) in the early 2000’s. However molecular laboratory diagnosis were not able to detect any causative agent responsible for the attacks, hence, the disease related to these symptoms was named CBSD-like disease. In order to assess the distribution and the incidence of the CBSD-like disease, surveys were carried out in four western provinces, comprising, Kwango and Kwilu, Sud Ubangi, Kinshasa and Kongo Central. CBSD-like disease was observed in all surveyed provinces on the basis of root symptoms because foliar symptoms were different to those of the documented cases of CBSD in other parts of east Africa. CBSD-like disease incidence was high in Kongo Central and Sud Ubangi, exceeding an average of 50 %, but low in Kwango and Kwilu (32.8%) and in Kinshasa (19.1%). During the surveys, cassava leaf samples were collected for lab identification of the causal agent. PCR diagnosis was done on these samples using primers specific for the two known CBSVs. All samples tested negative with no amplification of DNA fragments of the correct size. Thus, further analysis on the causative organism is needed using Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) approaches. NGS approaches will help also to identify the causative organism in other Central Africa countries (Angola, Congo-Brazzaville and Gabon) where such cassava root necrosis have been reported or are suspected