The Effect of Canopy Architecture and Seasonal Variations on Several Seed Quality Attributes in Soybean (Glycine Max L. Merr.)

Producing high quality soybean seed in the hot humid tropics is no easy task. During seed production, several environmental factors and plant morphological characteristics can exert their influences on seed quality. A study was undertaken at Universiti Putra Malaysia to study the effect of canopy architecture and seasonal variations on several seed quality attributes in soybean (GZycine max L. Merr.). Four soybean cultivars namely, Palmetto, AGS190, Deing and Cikurai were grown in the field for four seasons during 2003 and 2004. Four levels of defoliation treatments [0% defoliation (*170.89pmol m'2s" light intensity), 25% defoliation (*324.33pmol m'2s-' light intensity), 50% defoliation (*473.01pmol m-2s-' light intensity) and 75% defoliation (+642.84pmol m'2s" light intensity], were iniposed at the pod initiation stage (R3). Weather factors such as light intensity, canopy, air and soil temperatures, canopy and air relative humidity, soil moisture and leaf area index were recorded at seven-day intervals starting from the imposition of defoliation until plants reached physiological maturity (R7). Seeds harvested at harvest maturity (R8) were used to determine seed yield, viability, vigour, 1 00-seed weight and for Phomopsis bioassay. Phomopsis sp. seed infection was predicted using weather factors and leaf area index. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to study the progression and colonization of Phomopsis sp. on the stem, pod and seed starting from R3 until R8. Defoliation treatments were found to have inconsistent effects on seed yield (kg ha-') and pods per plant for AGS190, Deing and Palmetto. Pod number of Palmetto was affected during season Ill only whereas the pod number for Cikurai was significantly affected for all seasons. However, defoliation treatments affected 100-seed weight for all cultivars except for AGS 190 (season I), Deing (season IV) and Cikurai (season 111). From the combined analysis of data over the four seasons, defoliation improved percent seed germination from 6.8 to 13.2%. Increasing the level of defoliation resulted in increasing percent germination and 3-day seedling height and reduced Phomopsis incidence for all cultivars. The highest germination was recorded during season I1 which coincided with the least level of Phomopsis sp. seed infection. Moreover, this disease was influenced by seasonal variations. The disease incidence was high during seasons Ill (51.3%) and IV (49.5%) characterized by high rainfall during seed development and maturation as compared to seasons I and 11 which encountered low rainfall situations (33.3% and 32.5%, respectively). AGSl90, a large seeded cultivar, was severely affected by the seed-borne disease (51.5% infection) whereas Deing, a small seeded cultivar, was the least affected (34.7%). Defoliation treatments increased light intensity within the plant canopy for all cultivars studied. Light intensity and canopy temperature revealed negative correlation with percentage Phomopsis incidence indicating that high light intensity and temperature inside plant canopy reduced Phomopsis sp. seed infection. On the contrary, positive relationship was observed between canopy and air relative humidity, soil moisture and leaf area index with percentage Phomopsis incidence. From the stepwise multiple regression analysis, Phomopsis sp. seed infection can be predicted by leaf area index, soil moisture and canopy relative humidity; while its reduction can be predicted by increased light intensity and canopy temperature during seed development and maturation. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that hngi progression and colonization started at different growth stages for different plant parts. Stems were infected during the early reproductive stage (R3) whereas pods became noticeably infected during the full seed stage (R6) and seeds were the last to be infected. The hngi were internally- borne within the infected seeds. Fungal hyphae were observed externally on the surface of the plant parts studied and internally both in the pod and in all the three layers of the seed coat: palisade cell, hourglass cell and parenchyma cell layers. Fungi colonization was highest at the late plant growth stages of R7 and R8. A progressive increase in pod and seed infection was detected during subsequent growth stages between R6 and R8. From the pod, the pathogen can infect and colonize the seed. The SEM results suggested that the reproductive growth period of R6 to R7 was more critical with respect to Phomopsis sp. seed infection than earlier reproductive growth periods, since more severe colonization of pods and seeds took place at the later stages of plant growth. SEM revealed that stem infection allowed buildup of inoculum for subsequent infection of the pod, whereas pod infection was necessary for further infection of seeds. Since pod infection is the prerequisite for seed infection, this study suggests that fbngicide would be best applied between R4 and R5 before the seed-borne fungi reach the seed during R6 and the subsequent growth stages. Prediction model based on four seasons' data accurately described the relationship between the environmental conditions and leaf area index during seed development and maturation and the levels of seed infection by Phomopsis sp. Moreover, the model fitted well with the field and laboratory data collected. However, this model needs to be tested at multilocational trials for validity. The results of the present study have shown that plant canopy modification through defoliation appears to improve quality of seeds produced under wet and warm tropical environments. In addition, the study also suggested that growing of soybean cultivars with open canopies and having low leaf area index, coupled with rain-free harvesting seasons can result in the production of high quality seeds. Although the prediction model so developed in this study needs to be tested for validity at different locations and variable environments, it has the potential to be used as a practical tool in plant disease forecasting programs

Studies of the root development of tef (Eragrostis tef) under drought

筑波大学University of Tsukuba博士（生物資源工学）Doctor of Philosophy in Bioresource Engineering2008【要旨】thesi

Incidence of Opportunistic Infections Among Adult HIV Positive People Receiving Co-trimoxazole Prophylaxis

In Ethiopia, Co-trimoxazole prophylaxis therapy (CPT) used to prevent opportunistic infections among people living with HIV is the standard of practice; however incidence of opportunistic infection and their predictors are rarely documented in the country. This was a retrospective follow up study to describe the incidence and predictors of opportunistic infections among 244 adults receiving CPT. Participants were followed for a median time of 72 weeks. During a study period a total of 53opportunistic infections were recorded; making the overall incidence rate 23.9/100 person-years. High incidence of opportunistic infections is likely to occur if: the clients were married (adjusted hazard ratio (AHR) 1.965;(95% CI: 1.109, 3.451), had history of tuberculosis treatment (AHR: 2.34(95% CI:1.05, 5.24)), patients who are indicated for CPT because of both clinical and WHO clinical staging criteria(AHR 2.418 (95% CI:1.02, 5.72 ),and had poor adherence to CPT (AHR, 2.11 (95% CI: 1.19-3.72)). Eventhough adherence is non-substitutable strategy to prevent opportunistic infection, the cohort of HIV patients failed to adhere to CPT, which in turn resulthigh incidence of opportunistic infections among them, therefore improving adherence as guideline should be a priority to prevent OIs among people living with HIV in the study region

Hadamard transform based Equal-average Equal-variance Equal-norm nearest neighbor codeword search algorithm

New York, US

Sperm DNA impairment in the bull: causes, influences on reproduction and evaluations

Conventional semen examination involving sperm motility, viability and morphology remains the backbone of assessing the fertility status of a sire. However, there remains instances where these semen parameters appear normal but cases of low conception rates or failure of pregnancy occur. This review highlights the causes of sperm DNA damage and the effectiveness of techniques designed to evaluate the contribution of sperm DNA damage to lowered fertility in bulls. Among the many causes of sperm DNA impairment are imperfect spermatogenesis, faulty apoptosis, reactive oxygen species, in-vitro handling, impact of environment, radiography and the stress of cryopreservation processes. Furthermore, DNA impairment impairs fertilisation, interferes with embryonic development and implantation and blocks blastocyst formation. The most frequently used tests to determine DNA damage are the acridine orange test (AOT) using acridine orange stain with examination under a fluorescence microscope and the sperm chromatin structure assay (SCSA) using the same stain but examined with flow cytometry

Metabolic and physiological responses of shiraz and cabernet sauvignon (Vitis vinifera L.) to near optimal temperatures of 25 and 35 \ub0C

Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon (Cs) grapevines were grown at near optimal temperatures (25 or 35 \ub0C). Gas exchange, fluorescence, metabolic profiling and correlation based network analysis were used to characterize leaf physiology. When grown at 25 \ub0C, the growth rate and photosynthesis of both cultivars were similar. At 35 \ub0C Shiraz showed increased respiration, non-photochemical quenching and reductions of photosynthesis and growth. In contrast, Cs maintained relatively stable photosynthetic activity and growth regardless of the condition. In both cultivars, growth at 35 \ub0C resulted in accumulations of secondary sugars (raffinose, fucose and ribulose) and reduction of primary sugars concentration (glucose, fructose and sucrose), more noticeably in Shiraz than Cs. In spite of similar patterns of metabolic changes in response to growth at 35 \ub0C, significant differences in important leaf antioxidants and antioxidant precursors (DHA/ascorbate, quinates, cathechins) characterized the cultivar response. Correlation analysis reinforced Shiraz sensitivity to the 35 \ub0C, showing higher number of newly formed edges at 35 \ub0C and higher modularity in Shiraz as compared to Cs. The results suggest that the optimal growth temperatures of grapevines are cultivar dependent, and allow a first insight into the variability of the metabolic responses of grapevines under varied temperatures

Satisfaction of Clients by the Service Provision by Burayu City Land Administration and Use Office, Ethiopia

Urban land administration is one of the major services the local government should provide to the people who have interest upon construction of their residential or for other investment purpose. Burayu city is located in Ethiopia, Oromia National Regional State just adjacent to Addis Ababa which is the capital city of the country. Since Burayu city is very proximate to Addis Abeba (than any other urban center in the country) and the suitable feature of the city to live and work in, demand of land for different purpose in the city is very high. The main objective of this study is to recognize the overall satisfaction level of household customers and to identify the major factors determining their satisfaction. This is important as the study is expected to provide a big picture about the satisfaction of households who are customers of the Office of Burayu City Land Administration and Use. It is also expected that the findings of the research will contribute to the expansion of knowledge of service providers and help them to better deal with their members and strive to correct the problems and deliver high quality customer services which in turn can make customers build trust in the office. A random sampling technique was used in drawing the representative samples of the research. The overall satisfaction of customers can be concluded as below the average (3.27) out of 7 which means 46.71%. The mean highest score is registered for tangibility (4,89) followed by 3.38 for assurance, 3.14 for reliability, 3.10 for awareness, 2.59 for responsiveness and the least score is 2.52 for empathy. For this low satisfaction level, the major factors are identified as empathy related factors like the extent to which employees understand the specific needs of customers, understanding and having the best interest of customers at heart, personal attention of employees to customers, and having of  convenient operating hours to all its customers. Keywords: Satisfaction, Land Administration, Burayu City, Households DOI: 10.7176/JRDM/67-03 Publication date:July 31st 202

Edible birds' nest (EBN) hydrolysate for bovine sperm cryopreservation

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of supplementing different concentrations of EBN into Tris (Tr) and Bioxcell (Bx) extenders on bull sperm cryopreservation. A total of 12 semen samples were collected from mature bulls by electro ejaculation. The semen samples were evaluated both freshly and after cryopreservation for quality based on % sperm general and progressive motility (under a microscope), viability and abnormal morphology (using eosin-nigrosin stain). The fresh samples were then diluted and extended using the two extenders containing 0% (control), 0.03%, 0.06%, and 0.12% of EBN. Chilled at 4°C for 3 hours before packaged into 0.25 mL straws and frozen into liquid nitrogen (-196°C) for 48 hours. Results for both extenders revealed insignificant differences (P > 0.05) in all parameters between the different EBN treatment groups and control. Although not significant, 0.12% EBN in both extenders showed the lowest % abnormality, close to the fresh sample reading. In conclusion, EBN concentrations used in this study do not significantly improve sperm quality after freezing. However, the improvement in sperm morphology observed at 0.12% EBN (highest concentration) might imply importance of further increase in dosage for significant effect in future studies

Factors Affecting the Survival of Giraffe in Ethiopia

Giraffe is a social animal and a none- territorial and tend to live in a small group. In Ethiopia there are two species of giraffe; the Nubian giraffe (Giraffa Camelopardlis) and Retuculatied  giraffe ( Giraffa reticulated ) occur in southern low lands in east of Omo river including the Mago national park, Borena and Ogden  area. Giraffe populations in Ethiopia diminished over the past century in diversity, density and distribution as a result of illegal hunting, habitat degradation, civil war and unrest, Absence of a compressive land use plan, lack of comprehensive research, the impact of skin disease in giraffe population and land degradation due to overgrazing. This review discusses the different physical and biological factors that leads to the declining of giraffe population in Ethiopia. Key words: Biological factors, Ethiopia, Giraffe, Physical factor

Supplementation of antioxidant BHT to different bull semen extenders enhances semen quality after chilling

The effects of adding various concentrations of antioxidant, butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) on chilled bull semen for 72 h at 4°C in Bioxcell® (BX), Tris egg-yolk- (TEY) and citrate egg-yolk- (CEY) based semen extenders were studied. Twenty-two ejaculates collected from three bulls, each extended using three extenders with BHT at 0 (control), 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0 and 3.0 mM/mL, were evaluated for sperm quality parameters. Extended semen was packaged into 0.25 mL straws containing 20 x 106 spermatozoa and chilled for 72 h. Four random straws each from the control and treatment groups were warmed at 37°C, pooled and evaluated using a computer-assisted semen analyser (IVOS Hamilton Thorne Biosciences) for general and progressive motilities, and for morphology, viability and acrosome damage using eosin-nigrosin stain under phase-contrast microscope. Results showed that sperm morphology, viability and protection of acrosome damage were significantly improved (p<0.05) at BHT concentrations of 0.5 in BX and 1.0 mM/mL in TEY and CEY compared to the controls. The BHT also showed a potential positive effect on progressive motility at 0.5 mM/mL in BX and 1.0 mM/mL in TEY and CEY. High concentrations of BHT (2.0 and 3.0 mM/mL), however, produced deteriorative effects on the sperm parameters in all the extenders. In conclusion, BHT when added at 0.5 mM/mL in BX and 1.0 mM/mL concentration to TEY and CEY extenders improved the quality parameters of bull chilled semen