Transmission dynamics of lumpy skin disease in Ethiopia

Lumpy skin disease (LSD) is a severe disease of cattle caused by a Capripoxvirus and often caused epidemics in Ethiopia and many other countries. This study was undertaken to quantify the transmission between animals and to estimate the infection reproduction ratio in a predominantly mixed crop–livestock system and in intensive commercial herd types. The transmission parameters were based on a susceptible-infectious-recovered (SIR) epidemic model with environmental transmission and estimated using generalized linear models. The transmission parameters were estimated using a survival rate of infectious virus in the environment equal to 0·325 per day, a value based on the best-fitting statistical model. The transmission rate parameter between animals was 0·072 (95% CI 0·068–0·076) per day in the crop–livestock production system, whereas this transmission rate in intensive production system was 0·076 (95% CI 0·068–0·085) per day. The reproduction ratio (R) of LSD between animals in the crop–livestock production system was 1·07, whereas it was 1·09 between animals in the intensive production system. The calculated R provides a baseline against which various control options can be assessed for efficacy

Assessment of Risk Factors for Advanced Open Angle Glaucoma Presentation among Patients Visiting Jimma University Medical Center, Jimma, Ethiopia

Background: Glaucoma is the predominant cause of irreversible blindness, particularly the late presentation. The purpose of this study is to identify  the risk factors associated with late presentation in Jimma University Medical Center Methods: A case-control study was done among patients newly diagnosed to have open angle glaucoma (of any type) at Jimma University Medical  Center from July 2014 – January 2019. Cases were patients/eyes diagnosed to have any type of open angle glaucoma with advanced glaucomatous  disc features, whereas controls were patients diagnosed with early and moderate stages of glaucoma. Results: There were 205 (116 cases and 89 controls) participants. The mean age of the participants at the time of diagnosis was 58.3±13.4yrs. Family  history of blindness, presenting IOP, type of glaucoma and age were independently associated with late presentation. Patients with family  history of blindness had late advanced glaucoma five times higher than those with no family history of blindness. The presence of late glaucoma  among patients with presenting intra ocular pressure < 30mmHg is lower than those having ≥30mmHg (Adjusted Odds Ratio= 0.136). Primary open-  angle glaucoma patients were less likely to present with advanced glaucoma than pseudoexfoliative glaucoma patients (Adjusted Odds  Ratio=0.39). The chance of presenting with late glaucoma was increased by 3.4% for every one year increment of age. Conclusions: Presence of family history of blindness, high presenting intraocular pressure, pseudoexfoliative glaucoma and old age are risk factors  for late presentation of glaucoma.&nbsp

Identification of an SCPL gene controlling anthocyanin acylation in carrot (Daucus carota L.) root

Anthocyanins are natural health promoting pigments that can be produced in large quantities in some purple carrot cultivars. Decoration patterns of anthocyanins, such as acylation, can greatly influence their stability and biological properties and use in the food industry as nutraceuticals and natural colorants. Despite recent advances made toward understanding the genetic control of anthocyanin accumulation in purple carrot, the genetic mechanism controlling acylation of anthocyanin in carrot root have not been studied yet. In the present study, we performed fine mapping combined with gene expression analyses (RNA-Seq and RT-qPCR) to identify the genetic factor conditioning the accumulation of non-acylated (Cy3XGG) versus acylated (Cy3XFGG and Cy3XSGG) cyanidin derivatives, in three carrot populations. Segregation and mapping analysis pointed to a single gene with dominant effect controlling anthocyanin acylation in the root, located in a 576kb region containing 29 predicted genes. Orthologous and phylogenetic analyses enabled the identification of a cluster of three SCPL-acyltransferases coding genes within this region. Comparative transcriptome analysis indicated that only one of these three genes, DcSCPL1, was always expressed in association with anthocyanin pigmentation in the root and was co-expressed with DcMYB7, a gene known to activate anthocyanin biosynthetic genes in carrot. DcSCPL1 sequence analysis, in root tissue containing a low level of acylated anthocyanins, demonstrated the presence of an insertion causing an abnormal splicing of the 3rd exon during mRNA editing, likely resulting in the production of a non-functional acyltransferase and explaining the reduced acylation phenotype. This study provides strong linkage-mapping and functional evidences for the candidacy of DcSCPL1 as a primary regulator of anthocyanin acylation in carrot storage root.Fil: Curaba, Julien. North Carolina State University. Department Of Food, Bioprocessing And Nutrition Sciences. Plants For Human Health Institute.; Estados UnidosFil: Bostan, Hamed. North Carolina State University. Department Of Food, Bioprocessing And Nutrition Sciences. Plants For Human Health Institute.; Estados UnidosFil: Cavagnaro, Pablo Federico. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro Regional Mendoza-San Juan. Estación Experimental Agropecuaria La Consulta; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Departamento de Producción Agropecuaria. Cátedra de Horticultura y Floricultura; ArgentinaFil: Senalik, Douglas A.. United States Department of Agriculture. Agricultural Research Service; ArgentinaFil: Mengist, Molla Fentie. North Carolina State University. Department Of Food, Bioprocessing And Nutrition Sciences. Plants For Human Health Institute.; Estados UnidosFil: Zhao, Yunyang. North Carolina State University. Department Of Food, Bioprocessing And Nutrition Sciences. Plants For Human Health Institute.; Estados UnidosFil: Simon, Philipp W.. United States Department of Agriculture. Agricultural Research Service; ArgentinaFil: Iorizzo, Massimo. North Carolina State University. Department Of Food, Bioprocessing And Nutrition Sciences. Plants For Human Health Institute.; Estados Unido

Sintered alumina with low dielectric loss

Published versio

GIS-Based multi-criteria land suitability mapping for scaling faba bean varieties in Ethiopia.

Successful scaling of agricultural technology requires a spatial explicit framework for targeting the right variety at the right place. This entails a multi-criteria evaluation (MCE) approach, using a set of determining factors to delineate the scaling domains for faba bean ( Vicia faba L.) varieties in and identify potentially suitable land area in a specific region, and zone in Ethiopia. Meeting this challenge will require a solid spatial framework. Land suitability analysis is an evaluation and spatial decision making, involving several determining factors. The factors considered in this analysis include key biophysical parameters such as climate, topography, soil types and properties. The analysis was also focused on improved faba bean varieties viz., Dagm, Dosha, Gabelcho, Gora, Hachalu, Moti and Walki. The environmental factors\u2019 layers of a specific crop pixel values were classified and given a weight, and then compared among themselves for further ranking to account for their relative importance to delineate variety specific extrapolation domains. The geo-statistical analysis was carried out to estimate the extent of the scalable areas. The classification showed that, it was highly suitable for varieties 0.02 million hectares for Dosha; 0.19 for Gabelcho; 0.11 for Gora; 0.33 for Moti; 0.05 for Dagm; 0.14 for Hachalu; and 0.26 million hectares for Walki. Moderately suitable areas for these varieties covered 5.0, 9.4, 7.2, 15.3, 4.6, 8.8, and 7.5 million hectares, respectively across the country. The largest proportion for all varieties was moderately suitable; while the share of slightly suitable was very low, although there was quite variability within each of the faba bean variety in terms of its agro-ecology adaptation to the target environments. Such biophysical spatial frameworks become essential entry points for introducing variety specific product profiles and this can be further enhanced by incorporating socio-economic attributes accounting for return of the investment in targeting the technology.La mise \ue0 l\u2019\ue9chelle r\ue9ussie de la technologie agricole n\ue9cessite un cadre d\u2018 explicite spatial pour se concentrer sur la bonne vari\ue9t\ue9 au bon endroit. Cela implique une approche d\u2019\ue9valuation multicrit\ue8re (ECM), utilisant un ensemble de facteurs d\ue9terminants pour d\ue9limiter les domaines de mesurage pour les vari\ue9t\ue9s de f\ue9verole ( Vicia faba L.) et identifier les terres potentiellement appropri\ue9es dans une r\ue9gion et une zone sp\ue9cifiques en \uc9thiopie. Relever ce d\ue9fi exigera un cadre spatial certain. L\u2019analyse de l\u2019aptitude des terres est une \ue9valuation et une prise de d\ue9cision spatiale impliquant plusieurs facteurs d\ue9terminants. Les facteurs pris en compte dans cette analyse incluent des param\ue8tres biophysiques cl\ue9s tels que le climat, la topographie, les types de sol et leurs propri\ue9t\ue9s. L\u2019analyse a \ue9galement port\ue9 sur les vari\ue9t\ue9s am\ue9lior\ue9es de f\ue9verole, \ue0 savoir Dagm, Dosha, Gabelcho, Gora, Hachalu, Moti et Walki. Les couches de facteurs environnementaux d\u2019une valeur de pixel de plante sp\ue9cifique ont \ue9t\ue9 classifi\ue9es et pond\ue9r\ue9es, puis compar\ue9es entre elles pour un classement ult\ue9rieur tenant compte de leur importance relative dans la d\ue9limitation de domaines d\u2019extrapolation sp\ue9cifiques \ue0 une vari\ue9t\ue9. L\u2019analyse g\ue9o-statistique a \ue9t\ue9 r\ue9alis\ue9e pour estimer l\u2019\ue9tendue des zones \ue9volutives. La classification a montr\ue9 qu\u2019elle convenait parfaitement aux vari\ue9t\ue9s 0,02 million d\u2019hectares pour Dosha; 0,19 pour Gabelcho; 0,11 pour Gora; 0,33 pour Moti; 0,05 pour Dagm; 0,14 pour Hachalu; et 0,26 million d\u2019hectares pour Walki. Les zones moyennement adapt\ue9es \ue0 ces vari\ue9t\ue9s couvraient respectivement 5,0; 9,4; 7,2; 15,3; 4,6; 8,8 et 7,5 millions d\u2019hectares dans l\u2019ensemble du pays. La plus grande proportion de toutes les vari\ue9t\ue9s \ue9tait mod\ue9r\ue9ment appropri\ue9e; alors que la proportion de produits l\ue9g\ue8rement appropri\ue9s \ue9tait tr\ue8s faible, bien qu\u2019il y ait une assez grande variabilit\ue9 au sein de chaque vari\ue9t\ue9 de f\ue9verole en ce qui concerne son adaptation agro\ue9cologique aux environnements cibles. De tels cadres spatiaux biophysiques deviennent des points d\u2019entr\ue9e essentiels pour l\u2019introduction de profils de produits sp\ue9cifiques \ue0 une vari\ue9t\ue9, ce qui peut \ueatre encore am\ue9lior\ue9 en incorporant des attributs socio-\ue9conomiques permettant de rentabiliser l\u2019investissement dans la focalisation de la technologie

Modeling the radial abundance distribution of the transition galaxy ngc 1313

NGC 1313 is the most massive disk galaxy showing a flat radial abundance distribution in its interstellar gas, a behavior generally observed in magellanic and irregular galaxies. We have attempted to reproduce this flat abundance distribution using a multiphase chemical evolution model, which has been previously used sucessfully to depict other spiral galaxies along the Hubble morphological sequence. We found that it is not possible to reproduce the flat radial abundance distribution in NGC 1313, and at the same time, be consistent with observed radial distributions of other key parameters such the surface gas density and star formation profiles. We conclude that a more complicated galactic evolution model including radial flows, and possibly mass loss due to supernova explosions and winds, is necessary to explain the apparent chemical uniformity of the disk of NGC 1313Comment: 14 paginas, 4 figures, to be published in ApJ, apri

Risk factors for brucellosis and knowledge-attitude practice among pastoralists in Afar and Somali regions of Ethiopia

BACKGROUND: Brucellosis is a neglected bacterial zoonotic disease with substantial economic impact on households. Pastoral communities are a potential risk group due to their way of life being closely interlinked with their large livestock herds. METHODOLOGY: A semi-structured questionnaire survey was conducted in households in the pastoral Afar and Somali (SRS) regions. All households had people and animals serologically tested for brucellosis. Questions were related to husbandry, consumption habits, and knowledge-attitude-practice towards the disease and zoonoses. Descriptive statistics and logistic analysis were performed to assess potential risk factors for having households with positive humans and/or animals. RESULT: 647 households were included in the survey. Herd brucellosis prevalence was 40.3 % (15.9-86.3 % in Afar; 4-72.2 % in SRS). Over half (56.3 %) of the households in Afar and 41.8 % in SRS had at least one human reactor. Nearly a quarter of the households (22.8 %), recalled abortions in goats in the last 12 months, whereas 52.5 % and 50.3 % recalled stillborn in all species and membrane retentions respectively. All respondents drank raw milk and discarded animal afterbirths in the direct surroundings with minimal protection. Risk factors for animal reactors were goat herd size, and goat abortion. There was no identified risk factor for having human reactors in households. None of the households knew about brucellosis. CONCLUSION: Although being endemic in Afar and SRS, Brucellosis is not known by the pastoralists. Brucellosis control programs will have to be tailored to the pastoral context, accounting for their mobility, large, multi-species herds and habits

Mapping and modelling the geographical distribution and environmental limits of podoconiosis in Ethiopia

BACKGROUND Ethiopia is assumed to have the highest burden of podoconiosis globally, but the geographical distribution and environmental limits and correlates are yet to be fully investigated. In this paper we use data from a nationwide survey to address these issues. METHODOLOGY Our analyses are based on data arising from the integrated mapping of podoconiosis and lymphatic filariasis (LF) conducted in 2013, supplemented by data from an earlier mapping of LF in western Ethiopia in 2008-2010. The integrated mapping used woreda (district) health offices' reports of podoconiosis and LF to guide selection of survey sites. A suite of environmental and climatic data and boosted regression tree (BRT) modelling was used to investigate environmental limits and predict the probability of podoconiosis occurrence. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Data were available for 141,238 individuals from 1,442 communities in 775 districts from all nine regional states and two city administrations of Ethiopia. In 41.9% of surveyed districts no cases of podoconiosis were identified, with all districts in Affar, Dire Dawa, Somali and Gambella regional states lacking the disease. The disease was most common, with lymphoedema positivity rate exceeding 5%, in the central highlands of Ethiopia, in Amhara, Oromia and Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples regional states. BRT modelling indicated that the probability of podoconiosis occurrence increased with increasing altitude, precipitation and silt fraction of soil and decreased with population density and clay content. Based on the BRT model, we estimate that in 2010, 34.9 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 20.2-51.7) million people (i.e. 43.8%; 95% CI: 25.3-64.8% of Ethiopia's national population) lived in areas environmentally suitable for the occurrence of podoconiosis. CONCLUSIONS Podoconiosis is more widespread in Ethiopia than previously estimated, but occurs in distinct geographical regions that are tied to identifiable environmental factors. The resultant maps can be used to guide programme planning and implementation and estimate disease burden in Ethiopia. This work provides a framework with which the geographical limits of podoconiosis could be delineated at a continental scale