Medium Duration Research Articles

Weekday-to-weekend sleep duration patterns among young adults and outcomes related to health and academic performance

BackgroundTo examine whether weekday-to-weekend sleep duration (WWD) difference and specific WWD patterns are associated with mental and somatic health and academic performance in a student population.MethodsThis study utilized cross-sectional data from the SHoT-2018 survey which includes responses from 50,054 full-time university/college students in Norway. Participants completed online questionnaires and reported sleep duration separately for weekdays and weekends. Medium sleep duration was defined as 7 to 9 h, short sleep duration as < 7 h and long sleep duration as > 9 h. Regression analyses were used to examine whether the degree and patterns of WWD was associated with health-related outcomes and academic performance.ResultsThe mean age of the sample was 23.2 years and comprised of 68.8% women. Most students (81.7%) slept longer on weekends compared to weekdays and 30.0% of the students reported a mean sleep duration shorter than 7 h. WWD difference was positively associated with higher odds of overweight/obesity, dissatisfaction with life, psychological distress, somatic burden and failed study exam. Concerning WWD patterns, the odds of students reporting unfavorably on the outcomes were particularly high for those who slept short on both weekdays and weekends, while those who slept short on weekdays seemed to benefit from sleeping longer (“catching up”) on weekends.ConclusionsOverall, WWD was associated with adverse health outcomes for students. Short sleep duration both on weekday and weekend was associated with the most detrimental outcomes in terms of health and academic performance, while sleeping in on weekends may alleviate some of the detriments.

Improved Mung Bean (Vigna radiate L.) Technology Demonstration and Promotion Under North-West Ethiopia

North-West Ethiopia, particularly metekel area, was conducive for the production of lowland pulses including mung beans. However, because of some known and unknown factors the productivity of mung beans was not that much improved regardless of the study area’s potential. Due to this, a two season field experiment was conducted to demonstrate and promote improved mung bean varieties under pawe district for 2021 and 2022 consecutive cropping seasons. During 2021 and 2022 main seasons, demonstration and promotion of improved mung bean varieties with the direct involvement of stakeholders (farmers, agricultural experts, government officials, researchers) field day event was carried out. The improved mung bean varieties demonstrated and promoted were NVL-1, N-26 (Rasa), Shoarobit (as a check) and MH-97-6 (Borda). Small scale farmers and agricultural experts even district government officials were purposely selected from the nearby district (pawe) followed that theoretical trainings about the production of mung bean, were given during the event. Each event participants have set their own variety selection parameters; with this majority of the participants selected and promoted N-26 (Rasa), NVL-1 mung bean varieties based on high grain yield, more number of pods per plant, larger grain size, uniformity and earliness, the rest of the participants preferred Shoarobit (as a check) based on high biomass and grain yield whereas MH-97-6 (Borda) was selected and promoted based on medium duration and high yield. The author suggested that, those selected and promoted mung bean varieties (mainly N-26 (Rasa), NVL-1 and MH-97-6 (Borda) have been recommended for production under the study area and similar agro-ecologies to satisfy the seed demand raised by small scale farmers and other agents.

Evaluating Panicle Architecture and Yield Characteristics in Medium Duration Rice Genotypes through Correlation and Principal Component Analysis

Panicle architecture is a crucial factor that significantly improves economic grain yield. The panicle exhibits considerable variation in its structure, including the number of branches, the length and weight of the panicle, and arrangement of the grains. These traits are not only vital for the plants reproductive efficiency but also for optimizing yield potential. This study focuses on assessing variation in panicle architecture among 31 different medium duration rice genotypes by employing principal component analysis and correlation analysis. This study aimed to dissect the complex relationship between different panicle characteristics. The findings revealed that the first three principal components together explained 60.3% of the total variability. In the first principal component (PC1), the traits SF, PBL, YPH, and HI had the highest positive eigenvalues, indicating their significant impact on overall genotype variations. The second principal component (PC2) was mainly influenced by TSP and SBN, while the third principal component (PC3) was driven by PW and SBL. These results suggest that grain yield is significantly affected by the traits SF, PBL, YPH, HI, TSP, SBN, PW, and SBL. The correlation analysis revealed that the number of secondary branches showed a positive association with unfilled spikelet. Spikelet fertility exhibited a strong positive correlation with yield hectare-1 and harvest index, highlighting its significance in overall yield improvement. Therefore, these components are crucial for differentiating rice genotypes with higher grain yield potential. By evaluating correlation and principal component analysis, we aimed to identify traits that can be targeted for crop improvement initiatives. The findings will contribute to the development of rice varieties that are better suited to specific growing conditions and have enhanced yield potential. This approach will enable the identification of key panicle architecture and yield and yield traits that optimize resource allocation and improve grain filling efficiency, ultimately leading to rice varieties with higher productivity and adaptability.

ENHANCED SULFATED EXOPOLYSACCHARIDE PRODUCTION IN PORPHYRIDIUM PURPUREUM FROM INDONESIA: IMPACT OF CULTURE MEDIUM AND DURATION

Objective: This study investigates the influence of culture medium (Walne and F/2) and culture duration (14 ds and 28 ds) on sulfated Exopolysaccharide (EPS) production in Porphyridium purpureum from Indonesia. EPS sulfate has significant biotechnological potential due to its versatile applications, including in nanotechnological applications and optimizing cultivation conditions is essential to maximize yields. Methods: Cultures of P. purpureum were subjected to two distinct culture media, Walne and F/2, and maintained for two different durations, 14 ds and 28 ds. The microalgal biomass was harvested, and sulfated EPS was extracted using established methods. Statistical analysis was employed to assess the significance of differences between the cultural conditions. The novelty of this study lies in the comprehensive examination of the interactive effects of culture medium composition and duration on sulfated EPS production in P. purpureum. The findings contribute to our understanding of the dynamic responses of P. purpureum to different culture environments. Results: The results of this research reveal a significant increase in sulfated EPS production in the 28 d culture compared to the 14 d culture. Conclusion: This outcome underscores the importance of prolonged culture durations for achieving higher yields of sulfated EPS in P. purpureum.

Evaluation of CO 52 Rice Variety for Enhanced Productivity in Cuddalore District of Tamil Nadu, India

Selection of high yielding variety is an important factor in rice cultivation for a particular location/ environment. Cultivation of newly released rice variety has potential to increase the productivity and needs to be promoted and popularized. In this regard, the present investigation was carried out at farmer’s field to improve the rice productivity in Cuddalore district by introducing newrice variety CO 52. The CO 52 blast resistant medium duration high yielding rice variety was released by Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) during 2018. A total of seventeen demonstrations with blast resistant newly released high yielding rice variety Co 52 were conducted at farmer’s field organized by Vegetable Research Station (TNAU), Palur, Cuddalore District during samba season of 2019-20. An average yield of 6,501 kg ha-1 was recorded in Co 52 demonstration trials with 10.51 per cent increased from the farmers cultivating variety BPT 5204 (5,886.75 kgsha-1). The farmers additional revenue of Rs. 9000- Rs. 10,400/ha was obtained from Co 52 demonstration plots. In this regard one field day and training on improved production technologies were organized at farmer’s field to increase the productivity of rice through demonstrations of new rice variety Co 52 with improved production technologies.

Performance of Medium Duration Rice Cultivars on Growth, Productivity and Profitability under South Andaman Condition of India

A field experiment was carried out during both July to November 2019 and 2020 on the farmers’ fields in the Guptapara village of South Andaman, India, to determine the growth and yield performance of a medium-duration rice cultivar and its suitability. The treatments included five medium-duration rice cultivars consist of Jaya, ADT 45, CARI dhan 3, CARI dhan–6, and CARI dhan-7 laid out in Randomised Complete Block Design with four replications. The results showed that medium-duration rice cultivars exhibited significant variations in growth and yield attributing characteristics, such as leaf area index, root length, root dry weight, the number of productive tillers m-2, panicle length, filled grains panicle-1, and test weight. The growth attributes of rice were significantly influenced by medium-duration rice cultivars, except plant height. Regardless of the duration of the rice cultivars, CARI dhan 7 exhibited significantly greater root length and dry weight, measuring 33.2 cm and 6.37 g hill-1, respectively. CARI dhan 7 had substantially higher productive tillers (357 m-2), filled grains panicle-1 (121.6), grain (4790 kg ha-1), and straw yield (7390 kg ha-1), which was statistically comparable to CARI dhan-6. CARI dhan 7 had the highest gross return of ` 71595 ha-1, a net return of ` 36946 ha-1, and a benefit-cost ratio of 2.07. The medium-duration rice cultivar CARI dhan 7 performed better and more suitable in low-lying areas of South Andaman.

Multiple ultradian rhythms of metabolism, body temperature and activity in Djungarian hamsters

Djungarian hamsters (Phodopus sungorus) living at constant 15 °C Ta in short photoperiod (8:16 h L:D) showed pronounced ultradian rhythms (URs) of metabolic rate (MR), body temperature (Tb) and locomotor activity. The ultradian patterns differed between individuals and varied over time. The period length of URs for MR, Tb and activity was similar although not identical. Wavelet analysis showed that three different URs are existing in parallel, URs of small amplitude and short duration (URsmall), URs of medium amplitude and medium duration (URmedium) and URs of large amplitude (URlarge), superimposed on each other. URlarge were accompanied by an increase in locomotor activity, whereas URsmall and URmedium were of metabolic origin with lacking or delayed responses of activity. An energetic challenge to cold which raised total energy requirements by about 50% did not accelerate the period length of URs, but extended the amplitude of URsmall and URmedium. URlarge corresponds with the URs of activity, feeding and drinking, sleep and arousal as described in previous studies, which are related to midbrain dopaminergic signalling and hypothalamic ultradian signalling. The cause and control of URmedium and URsmall is unknown. Their periods are similar to periods of central and peripheral endocrine ultradian signalling, suggesting a link with URs of metabolism.

Genetic progress in cowpea [Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.] stemming from breeding modernization efforts at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture.

Genetic gain has been proposed as a quantifiable key performance indicator that can be used to monitor breeding programs' effectiveness. The cowpea breeding program at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) has developed and released improved varieties in 70 countries globally. To quantify the genetic changes to grain yield and related traits, we exploited IITA cowpea historical multi-environment trials (METs) advanced yield trial (AYT) data from 2010 to 2022. The genetic gain assessment targeted short duration (SD), medium duration (MD), and late duration (LD) breeding pipelines. A linear mixed model was used to calculate the best linear unbiased estimates (BLUE). Regressed BLUE of grain yield by year of genotype origin depicted realized genetic gain of 22.75 kg/ha/year (2.65%), 7.91 kg/ha/year (0.85%), and 22.82 kg/ha/year (2.51%) for SD, MD, and LD, respectively. No significant gain was realized in 100-seed weight (Hsdwt). We predicted, based on 2022 MET data, that recycling the best genotypes at AYT stage would result in grain yield gain of 37.28 kg/ha/year (SD), 28.00 kg/ha/year (MD), and 34.85 kg/ha/year (LD), and Hsdwt gain of 0.48g/year (SD), 0.68g/year (MD), and 0.55g/year (LD). These results demonstrated a positive genetic gain trend for cowpea, indicating that a yield plateau has not yet been reached and that accelerated gain is expected with the recent integration of genomics in the breeding program. Advances in genomics include the development of the reference genome, genotyping platforms, quantitative trait loci mapping of key traits, and active implementation of molecular breeding.

Effects of rainfall patterns, vegetation cover types and antecedent soil moisture on run‐off and soil loss of typical Luvisol in southern China

AbstractIdentifying the effect of precipitation, vegetation cover and underlying surface conditions on run‐off and soil loss is essential for understanding the mechanism of water erosion. The study site is located in the Shiqiaopu watershed of Hubei Province, China. The long‐term (2017–2021) monitoring data for this study included rainfall characteristics, antecedent soil moisture, run‐off and soil loss in four run‐off plots with four vegetation cover types (tea garden, soybean and rape, peanut and rape, and vetiver zizanioides). K‐means clustering and discriminant analysis were used to classify rainfall patterns. The improved redundancy analysis was used to quantitatively explore the relative importance of rainfall characteristics, vegetation cover and antecedent soil moisture to run‐off and soil loss. The results showed that the rainfall patterns were mainly divided into three categories: A (medium duration, small rainfall, medium rain intensity, high frequency), B (long duration, large rainfall, light rain intensity, low frequency) and C (short duration, medium rainfall, heavy rain intensity, medium frequency). The average run‐off coefficient, run‐off depth of different rainfall patterns were C &gt; B &gt; A, and the cumulative run‐off depth and soil loss under the A rainfall pattern were the largest. For the run‐off plots with four vegetation cover types, vetiver zizanioides had the best effect on run‐off and sediment reduction, while peanut and rape had the worst effect. The driving factor that contributed the most to the run‐off depth was vegetation cover (19.36%), and rainfall characteristics explained the most to the soil loss (11.65%). We also found that although antecedent soil moisture had a small explanation rate for soil loss, it was significantly correlated with the run‐off depth under the vegetation cover of the tea garden. Therefore, regional soil erosion should be combined with the importance of driving factors to take comprehensive control measures.

Maternal intake of paracetamol during pregnancy and biomarkers of male fecundity in young adult sons

Paracetamol is suggested to have endocrine disrupting properties possibly affecting fetal programming of reproductive health that might lead to impaired semen quality and changes in reproductive hormones. In this longitudinal study, we included 1058 young adult men born 1998–2000 into the Danish National Birth Cohort with follow-up at 18–21 years of age. The exposure, maternal intake of paracetamol, was modelled in three ways: dichotomized, trimester-specific, and as duration of exposure categorized into: short (1–2 weeks), medium (3–9 weeks) or long duration (>9 weeks) vs. no intake. Outcomes included semen characteristics, self-measured testis volume, and reproductive hormone levels. We used negative binominal regression to estimate the percentage difference and 95% confidence interval (CI) for each outcome. In total, 547 (48%) sons were prenatally exposed to paracetamol due to maternal intake at least once. Maternal intake of paracetamol during pregnancy was not associated with any of the biomarkers in the dichotomized or trimester-specific exposure models. For duration of exposure, sons of mothers with long duration of maternal intake of paracetamol showed tendencies towards lower semen concentration (-14% [95% CI: -31%; 8%]), a higher proportion of nonprogressive and immotile spermatozoa (8% [95% CI: -4%; 21%]) and higher DNA Fragmentation Index (16% [95% CI: -1%; 36%]) compared to son of mothers with no intake. Maternal intake of paracetamol during pregnancy was not clearly associated with biomarkers of male fecundity in adult sons. However, it cannot be ruled out that long duration of maternal intake of paracetamol might be associated with impaired semen characteristics.

A Comprehensive Molecular, Biochemical, Histochemical, and Spectroscopic Characterization of Early and Medium Duration Rice Genotypes Investigating Dry Matter Accumulation Efficiencies.

Investigation on accumulation of cell wall components over critical growth stages will surely provide a new insight into dry matter accumulation studies in rice. An elevated biomass production provides an alternative strategy of yield improvement, which in turn maneuvers the species concerned as potential dual-purpose crop. On that note, present study was carried on 33 early and 39 medium duration rice genotypes. The average cellulose accumulation was 6.51% and 8.17% in early and medium duration genotypes, respectively, at flowering stage, which later on dipped to 1.43% and 3.46%, respectively, at physiological maturity. The gene specific marker MDgsp-5.a exhibited highest estimate of polymorphic information content (PIC), i.e., 0.685, closely followed by MDgsp-6.a with polymorphic information content (PIC) of 0.683. The control genotypes, i.e., Pratap and Mandakini, are grouped under the same cluster, i.e., Cluster-I.A, indicating their inherent genetic divergence from that of potential accumulators pertaining to cellulose accumulation. Pratap and Mandakini failed to produce peaks of conspicuous form at 3342cm-1 and 1635cm-1, bearing out by their low performance pertaining to cellulose and lignin accumulation at the later stages of development, respectively. From histochemistry studies, it was observed that the cell walls of sclerenchyma, peripheral vascular bundles, and parenchyma of the culm transections in control genotypes stained lightly than that of prolific accumulator cell walls, thus corroborating the findings of compositional analysis. The variation in cell wall thickening is primarily accounted due to altered carbohydrate accumulation across the growth stages as explored under scanning electron micrograph.

Increasing Farmers Income through Demonstration of Climate Resilient Technology

The project TDC-NICRA (National Innovations on Climate Resilient Agriculture) was initiated in KVK, Dhemaji from 2021-22 in Magurmari village of Simen-Chapori Block under the District Dhemaji. The village was affected by flood every year leaving the villagers in a state of destitute. Majority of the farmers of Magurmari village were marginal farmer. Flood, irrigation, water conservation, diseases infestation on plant and occupational migration were the major problem of the village due to which crop failure occurs which leads low income of the farmers. To establish climate resilient agriculture in Magurmari village Demonstration on submergence tolerant rice variety ‘Ranjit sub-1’, medium duration rice variety Numoli, Cultivation of megha turmeric through organic mulching, cultivation of rabi vegetables using paddy straw as organic mulch and Low cost raised bed vermicompost production interventions were taken up in magurmari village. The study revealed that these climate resililient technology weer provd to be boom in magurmari village which help the farmers to increase the farm production and their income to a great extent.

Effect of Integrated Weed Management Practices on Weed Dynamics, Growth Performance and Yield of Direct Sown Finger Millet (Eleusine coracana L.)

Background: Finger millet is an important dryland crops since they can tolerate unfavorable weather and are frequently planted in soils with low nutrient and poor water holding capacity in soils. The main cause for yield loss is weed infestation which occurs in finger millet. Several integrated weed management techniques were carried out to control them particularly and to increase yield which benefits farmers. Methods: In this context a field experiment was conducted in Karunya Institute of Technology and Sciences, Coimbatore, during Rabi season of 2022-23 in direct sown finger millet under irrigated condition. The experiment was laid out in RCBD with ten treatments and three replications viz., PE pendimethalin @ 0.75 kg ha-1 8 DAS + Hand weeding @ 35 DAS, PoE 2,4-D @ 2 kg ha-1 40 DAS + Hand weeding @ 35 DAS, PE pretilachlor @ 0.75 kg ha-1 8 DAS + Hand weeding @ 35 DAS, PoE 2,4-D @ 2 kg ha-1 40 DAS + Twin wheel hoe @ 30 DAS, PE pendimethalin @ 0.75 kg ha-1 8 DAS + Twin wheel hoe @ 30 DAS, PE pretilachlor @ 0.75 kg ha-1 8 DAS + Twin wheel hoe @ 30 DAS, Hand weeding @ 25 and 40 DAS, Twin wheel hoe @ 25 and 40 DAS, Hand weeding @ 25 DAS + Twin wheel hoe @ 40 DAS and Unweeded control. The CO 14 finger millet was used a test variety with 110 days medium duration. Result: The result showed that pre-emergence pretilachlor @ 0.75 kg ha-1 8 DAS + Twin wheel hoe weeding @ 30 DAS significantly decreased weed density, importance value index and summed dominance ratio of weeds with higher weed control. The same treatment combination recorded higher plant height (115.8 cm) and grain yield (2368 kg ha-1) at harvest.

Morpho-physiological Evaluation of Finger Millet (Eleusine coracana L. Gaertn.) Genotypes for Drought Tolerance

Finger millet (Eleusine coracana L. Gaertn.) is a nutritious and climate-resilient crop with a C4 type carbon fixation pathway. The present study was aimed to assess the drought tolerance capacities of twenty short medium-late duration finger millet genotypes under water stress (WS) for 15 days during reproductive stage to identify the traits and genotypes for drought tolerance using statistical analysis. The shoot length (16.74 %), leaf area (28.21 %), shoot dry weight (30.20 %), relative water content (32.70 %), membrane stability index (37.53 %), test weight (14.64 %), grain yield (36.48 %) and straw yield (31.34 %) were decreased and found sensitive to water stress, but the root length (by 13.45 %), root to shoot ratio by length (36.15 %) and proline (146.96 %) were increased. From the present investigation, among the 20 genotypes tested, KMR-204 and GPU-45 in short duration, ML-365, PR-202 and GPU-28 in medium duration, KMR-301 and L-5 in long duration showed identical performance for maximum number of traits under consideration. Hence, our results provide inputs to the breeders to select genotypes as parents and to design effective strategies in crop improvement programs.

Western North American Cruise Shipping Network: Space Structure and System

Regionalization is the basic feature of cruise shipping network organization. We insist that the cruise networks of Alaska, Hawaii, etc., have developed into a whole with the scaling up of cruise tourism. To prove it, we used complex network analysis methods to explore the port connections and the spatial structure of the cruise shipping network in these regions. We found that Alaska, Hawaii, and the west coast of Mexico all belong to seasonal cruise market areas. Cruise itineraries in these areas are categorized into one‐way and round‐trip itineraries, and more than 70% of the itineraries are short duration and medium duration. These areas build cruise shipping networks used in Vancouver, Los Angeles, Anchorage, San Francisco, Honolulu, and other cruise ports, which can be subdivided into nine single‐core cruise shipping network systems and two dual‐core cruise shipping network systems. The interconnection of different systems forms a T‐shaped cruise shipping network in geographical space.

Optimizing transplanting window for higher productivity of short and medium duration rice cultivars in Punjab, India using CERES-Rice model

Optimizing transplanting window for higher productivity of short and medium duration rice cultivars in Punjab, India using CERES-Rice model

Multi-environment testing for G×E interactions and identification of high-yielding, stable, medium-duration pigeonpea genotypes employing AMMI, GGE biplot, and YREM analyses.

Pigeonpea [Cajanus cajan (L.) Millspaugh] is a widely grown pulse with high seed protein content that contributes to food and nutritional security in the Indian subcontinent. The majority of pigeonpea varieties cultivated in India are of medium duration (<180 days to maturity), which makes it essential for breeders to focus on the development of stable high-yielding varieties. The diverse agroecological regime in the Indian subcontinent necessitates an efficient multi-environment study by taking into consideration genotype (G) × environment (E) interaction (GEI) that has a significant impact on traits like grain yield (GY) in developing high-yielding and widely adaptable varieties. In the present study, 37 pigeonpea genotypes were evaluated during the 2021 rainy season at ARS Badnapur, ARS Tandur, BAU Ranchi, GKVK Bengaluru, and ICRISAT Patancheru. The GEI was significant on the grain yield (p < 0.01), and hence, genotype + genotype × environment (GGE) and additive main effects and multiplicative interaction (AMMI) biplots along with AMMI stability value (ASV) and yield relative to environmental maximum (YREM) statistics were used to identify stable high-yielding genotypes. The interaction principal component analysis 1 and 2 (IPC1 and IPC2) explained 40.6% and 23.3% variations, respectively. Based on the rankings of genotypes, G37 (ICPL 20205), G35 (ICPL 20203), G8 (ICPL 19404), G17 (ICPL 19415), and G9 (ICPL 19405) were identified as ideal genotypes. Discriminativeness vs. representativeness identified GKVK Bengaluru as an ideal environment for comprehensive evaluation of test genotypes. However, ICPL 19405 was identified as the potentially stable high-yielding genotype for further testing and release across the test environments based on its mean grain yield (1,469.30 kg/ha), least ASV (3.82), and low yield stability index (YSI) of 13.

Frequency and determinants of phytotherapy use in patients with type 2 diabetes in the Dschang Health District, Cameroon: a cross-sectional study.

phytotherapy is widely used in Africa for the management of many diseases. Data on the use of phytotherapy in people with type 2 diabetes are scarce. We aimed to determine the frequency and factors associated with the consumption/use of phytotherapy products among patients with type 2 diabetes in the Dschang Health District. we conducted a cross-sectional study from January to May 2022, including community-dwelling or hospitalized patients with type 2 diabetes who had lived in the Dschang Health District for at least one year. Informed consent was obtained from all patients. Data were collected using a pre-designed questionnaire. Variables collected included socio-demographic characteristics, diabetes knowledge and practices, and perceptions of care. we included 403 (249 women) patients with type 2 diabetes with a mean (SD) age of 63 (± 14.86) years). Among them, 240 (59.55%) used phytotherapy, either in combination with conventional treatment (168 (41.69%) participants) or not (72 (17.86%) participants), to treat diabetes. The most common reasons for using phytotherapy were easy accessibility and belief in its efficacy. Most patients used both treatments because they thought the combination was more effective. In univariable analysis, we observed a statistically significant association between level of education (p=0.003), socioeconomic level (p<0.001), place of residence (p=0.003), duration of diabetes (p=0.007), and use of phytotherapy. In multivariable analysis, only age between 51 and 60 years (OR: 0.50, 95% CI 0.298 - 0.8521; p=0.01) was associated with the use of phytotherapy. people living with T2D in the Dschang Health District frequently use phytotherapy as an antidiabetic remedy, especially those aged between 51 and 60 years, those with low education level, low socioeconomic level and medium duration of diabetes. There is a need to evaluate its effectiveness in treating diabetes and its adverse effects.

Patient Experiences of Brachytherapy for Locally Advanced Cervical Cancer: Hearing the Patient Voice Through Qualitative Interviews

BackgroundBrachytherapy for gynaecological cancer is reported to cause pain, anxiety and distress with no clear guidance for optimising patient experiences. The aim of this study was to explore patient experiences of brachytherapy and views on improvements. Materials and MethodsSemi-structured interviews were undertaken with patients who had received brachytherapy for locally advanced cervical cancer. Two cohorts were recruited: cohort one had recently had brachytherapy, cohort two were a year post brachytherapy. Four recruitment sites were selected, where brachytherapy is given in different ways, some with short day case procedures and others having one or two overnight stays with applicators in place. Consecutive patients were invited to interview. Participants were asked to retell their brachytherapy story, with views on their care and ideas for improvement. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed and data analysed following Braun and Clarke's method for reflexive thematic analysis.16 ResultsThirty five interviews were conducted (20 in cohort one and 15 in cohort two). Participant's ages ranged from 28 to 87 years. The interview duration ranged from 22 to 78 minutes. Difficult and traumatic experiences were reported, including periods of severe pain and perceptions of poor care. However, some participants described positive experiences and what went well.Three themes were developed: 1) How I got through it 2) Unpleasantness, discomfort and the aftermath 3) Emotional consequences and traumaSome aspects of medium and long duration brachytherapy were found to be more problematic compared with short duration brachytherapy. Exploring experiences at one year post brachytherapy has provided insights into the long-lasting impact of brachytherapy experiences. ConclusionHearing the patient voice has demonstrated that further work is needed to improve patient care in modern brachytherapy techniques using different regimes and durations, to minimise difficult and traumatic patient experiences. Study insights will inform future work to develop clinical care recommendations.

Testing of New Strains of VT-1, VT-2, VT-3, VT-4, MVT-1, MVT-2, MVT-3, MVT-4, MVT-5. NCVT, SVT1, SVT-2, Selection and Early Generation Testing in Cotton Genotypes in Crop Year 2022-2023

lant Breeding &amp; Genetics Section develops new cotton varieties or lines with desirable fibre traits equipped with inbuilt resistance/tolerance against insect-pest and diseases by utilizing purposeful breeding (crossing) of closely or distantly related genotypes. Plants are cross-bred to introduce traits/genes from one variety or line into a new genetic background. The promising hybrids, Bt. and non-Bt.. strains (in coded form) of all the cotton breeders of the country were evaluated under National Coordinated Variety Testing (NCVT) Program of Pakistan Central Cotton Committee. The prominent commercial varieties (Bt. and non-Bt..) were also tested for their performance under the local agro-climatic conditions of Multan zone in standard varietal trials. The breeding materials in different filial generations were screened out for selection into next generation. Major emphasis was laid on the selection of material having resistance/tolerance against biotic (Cotton Leaf Curl Virus (CLCuV),Pink boll worm etc) and abiotic factors (tolerance against heat-drought and Glyphosate etc) with excellent fibre characteristics. The genetic stock of World Cotton collections comprising of 6243 cultivars of four species of Gossypium from 41 countries of the World are being preserved for short (25 years), medium (50 years) and long (100 years) duration as well as for utilization in breeding program by cotton breeders in the country and abroad. Promising lines i.e. Bt.CIM-990 and Bt.CIM-909 developed by utilizing USDA and local cotton germplasm material were tested for second and first years respectively in NCVT. Trainings were also imparted to small farmers, progressive growers from core and non-core zones of the cotton belts along with technical staffs of different seed companies. Students from different universities were also trained thorough internship training program. Summary of above mentioned activities are given below.