North Of Province Research Articles

POLISSIAN CATTLE BREED

POLISSIAN CATTLE BREED

DNA Barcode of Red Junglefowl Gallus gallus L, 1958 (Aves: Phasianidae) of Sumatra Based on Mitochondrial COI DNA Gene

Genetic data of red junglefowl (Gallus gallus) from southern Sumatra is valuable for conservation efforts in Indonesia. A mitochondrial COI DNA gene sequencing was performed to elucidate its genetic character, single nucleotide polymorphism, genetic distance, and phylogeny. Blood samples (±0.5 ml) from 20 individuals of Gallus gallus were taken from the living collections of the people of Bengkulu Province (Central Bengkulu Regency and Seluma Regency) and South Sumatra Province (North Musi Rawas Regency) from May to November 2021. Total DNA isolation followed the procedure of The Spin-Column Protocol Kit uses the Dneasy® Blood and Tissue Kit, Qiagen. DNA replication using the Polymerase Chain Reaction technique with primers (COIGG_F and COIGG_R) using MEGA 10.0 software and Bioedit for data analysis. The results revealed716 conserved sites, 16 variable sites, 9 parsimony sites, and 6 singleton sites from the 732 bp nucleotide sequence. Six specific sites (SNPs) as barcodes for Sumatran Junglefowl were found at sequences 51, 273, 327, 721, 729, and 732. The mean genetic distance between individuals was 0.1%, between populations was 0.8%, between species was 7.4%, and between genera was 15.5%. The red junglefowlof South Sumatra Province and Bengkulu Province are closely related with 98% bootstrapping and separated from other Gallus in the same group (ingroup) with 100% bootstrap. The Gallus-gallus group is quite far apart from the outgroup species in the Phasianidae family with 47-100% bootstrap. Red junglefowl from southern Sumatra has genetic differences from other chickens in the world and these differences can be used as a species barcode and as origin identification the widely traded red jungle fowl.

Risk of eutrophication in the seawater of the coastal Red River aquaculture zone (Thai Binh province, Vietnam)

Coastal aquaculture represents an important economic activity in many countries. Nutrient (N, P and Si) concentrations and phytoplankton diversity and abundance in the coastal aquaculture zone, Tien Hai district, Thai Binh province (North Vietnam) were investigated during 2019–2020. Nutrient concentrations in five types of wastewater were also determined. The mean Eutrophication Index value of surface seawater at the 9 studied sites varied from 0.27 to 0.52, ranking as oligotrophic to mesotrophic. Five phytoplankton groups were observed (Bacillariophyceae (62% relative abundance), Dinophyceae (16%), Chlorophyceae (11%), Cyanobacteria (7%), and Euglenophyceae (4%)). The temporal and spatial distribution of phytoplankton diversity and abundance was governed by water temperature, pH, TSS, and TP and reflected the strong interactions between seawater and riverine water in the area. The presence of certain potentially toxic algal species combined with increasing inorganic nitrogen concentrations and N:P ratios further underlined the risk for harmful algal blooms. The investigation of different nutrient sources in this area revealed that while nitrate and total phosphorus concentrations are related to diffuse sources, point sources may be important in providing ammonium and dissolved phosphate concentrations to coastal seawater in this aquaculture zone. These results provide a scientific basis upon which better management strategies can be constructed in order to assure the sustainable development of aquaculture in the Red River coastal area, in particular, and in the coast of Vietnam, in general.

Landslide susceptibility mapping by integrating analytical hierarchy process, frequency ratio, and fuzzy gamma operator models, case study: North of Lorestan Province, Iran.

Identifying landslide-prone areas is an essential step in assessing landslide risk and reducing landslide damage. In this paper, GIS-based spatial analysis has been used to prepare the landslide susceptibility (LS) map in the north of Lorestan province in western Iran. For this purpose, three main criteria and their sub-criteria were identified as causative factors including geology and topography (i.e., distance from the fault, lithology, slope, aspect, and elevation), climate (i.e., rainfall and distance from the river), and environmental parameters (i.e., distance from the road, land-cover, NDVI). One hundred thirty-six known landslides were randomly divided into training ([Formula: see text] 70%) and validation ([Formula: see text] 30%) datasets. This study is based on the integration of popular analytic hierarchy process (AHP), frequency ratio (FR), and the fuzzy gamma operator (FGO) techniques. AHP was utilized to prioritize causal factors and fuzzy technique was applied in two stages of factor map fuzzification and calculation of sub-criteria maps and then overlap of fuzzified map layers. The fuzzy membership (FM) values were determined based on the FR method, which was normalized between the ranges of 0 and 1. Finally, LS zoning maps were estimated in five susceptibility classes (very low, low, moderate, high, and very high). Validation processes by comparing the three output maps with the layer of validation landslides in the study area and area under receiver operating characteristic curve confirm that the gamma value of 0.9 (AUC = 0.88) offers a more accurate LS map compared to other gamma values. The results of this study will be reliable for landslide risk reduction strategies.

Molecular Detection and Genotyping of Enterocytozoon bieneusi in Pigs in Shanxi Province, North China.

Enterocytozoon bieneusi is a common opportunistic intestinal pathogen that can cause acute diarrhea in immunosuppressed humans and animals. Though E. bieneusi has been widely detected in pigs around the world, little is known of its prevalence and genotype distribution in pigs in Shanxi province, north China. In this study, a total of 362 fecal samples were collected from pigs in three representative counties in north, south, and central Shanxi province, China. The prevalence and genotypes of E. bieneusi were investigated by nested PCR amplification of the ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of the ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene. Overall, the prevalence of E. bieneusi in pigs in Shanxi province was 54.70% (198/362). Statistical analysis showed the difference in prevalence was statistically significant between regions (χ2 = 41.94, df = 2, P < 0.001) and ages (χ2 = 80.37, df = 1, P < 0.001). In addition, 16 genotypes of E. bieneusi were identified in this study by sequence analysis of the ITS region, including 15 known genotypes (EbpC, EbpA, EbpB, pigEb4, PigEBITS5, I, Henan-I, G, WildBoar 7, SH10, EbpD, CHC5, PigSpEb1, PigSpEb2, and CHG19) and one novel genotype (designated as PigSX-1). Phylogenetic analysis revealed that 14 known genotypes and the novel genotype were clustered into Group 1, whereas genotype I belonged to Group 2. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the prevalence and genotypes of E. bieneusi in pigs in Shanxi province. These findings enrich the genetic diversity of E. bieneusi and provide the baseline data for the prevention and control of E. bieneusi in pigs in the study regions.

Analysis of PM2.5 Transmission Characteristics in Main Cities of Jinzhong Basin in Winter

In this study, we analyzed the hourly concentration data of PM10 and PM2.5 in major cities in Jinzhong basin from 2017 to 2019. The main distribution characteristics of aerosols in Jinzhong and Taiyuan were determined, and PM2.5 hourly concentration data and HYSPLIT in Jinzhong basin in winter were discussed. The results showed that the overall level of particulate matter concentration in Taiyuan was higher than that in Jinzhong, and the monthly and seasonal variation characteristics were similar. All showed high concentrations in winter and low concentrations in summer, and the highest concentration value appeared in January. The aerosol pollution caused by the static and stable weather in Jinzhong was more common than that caused by the sand and dust weather in Taiyuan. The distribution of particulate matter showed the characteristics of more intermediate values in Jinzhong and more high and fewer low values in Taiyuan, and winter was the highest incidence season of PM2.5 pollution in Jinzhong basin. PM2.5 transmission passageways in the main cities of Jinzhong basin in winter could be divided into four categories:class 1 was transmitted along the transverse valley of Taihang Mountain, and class 2 was the southeast transmission channel. Class 1 and class 2 were the short-range transmission passageways; air masses carried more moisture, and PM2.5 transmitted along such passageways allowed moisture to be absorbed more easily, increasing levels and aggravating local pollution. Class 3 was the northwest passageway, corresponding to the most serious pollution period of PM2.5 in Jinzhong basin before the arrival of cold air, which also corresponded to the dust transmission passageway. Class 4 was the Fenwei Plain passageway, corresponding to high-concentration PM2.5 pollution. Areas with dense pollution tracks (more than 100 pollution tracks) and areas with slow air flow movement (RTA pollution track end points greater than 50) easily became potential source areas of target cities (PSCF contribution greater than 0.7). The main potential source areas of PM2.5 in winter in Jinzhong (PSCF contributing more than 0.7) were mainly distributed in Linfen, Jincheng, and other places in Shanxi province, as well as in the north of Henan province, the south of Hebei province, and central and south Shaanxi province. The distribution range of main potential source areas of PM2.5 in Taiyuan in winter was wider than that in Jinzhong, including the south of Lvliang, Yangquan, Linfen, and Yuncheng and the south of Jinzhong in Shanxi, as well as most areas in southern Shaanxi, northern Henan province, and southern Hebei province. In addition, the PSCF distribution of high-value centers above 0.9 was wider than that of Jinzhong. When pollution occurs in cities that PSCF contributed more than 0.9, special attention should be paid to the influence of mutual transmission between them and cities in Jinzhong basin. Jinzhong and Taiyuan showed different distribution characteristics corresponding to the surface wind direction when light and higher pollution occur, when the wind direction near the ground in Jinzhong was E, the frequency of light and higher pollution was 8.1%; it was the highest in all wind directions. When the wind direction near the ground in Taiyuan was SSW, the frequency of light to higher polluted weather was the highest in all wind directions (5.1%). In the case of calm wind, the frequency of light to higher pollution in Taiyuan (3.4%) was higher than that in Jinzhong (0.5%).

Литологические и геохимические особенности нижнетриасовых резервуаров на севере вала Сорокина (Тимано-Печорская нефтегазоносная провинция)

The paper describes lithological and geochemical features of the Lower Triassic sandstones from the far north of Timan-Pechora oil and gas-bearing province. These sandstones chemically coincide to typical graywackes.&#x0D; We discuss how sedimentation environments and diagenesis control the local heterogeneity of cementation, variability of void space and the potential oil content. &#x0D; Tectonic conditions are one of the provenance factors, the figurative points of the composition of sandstones on the diagrams fall into the field of the passive continental margin. The position of sandstone points on the diagrams and low values of the hydrolyzate module indicate the formation of deposits in an arid climate, which does not contradict to geological data.

Studies on the improvement of modelled solar radiation and the attenuation effect of aerosol using the WRF-Solar model with satellite-based AOD data over north China

Photovoltaic (PV) power generation will become one of the main energy sources to achieve goals of carbon peak and carbon-neutral in China in the future. However, serious haze events have occurred frequently due to massive anthropogenic emissions in autumn and winter in China and resulted in a significant reduction of solar radiation reaching the Earth's surface. In this study, we conducted modifications to modelled solar radiation with the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF)-Solar model by implementing the satellite-based aerosol optical depth (AOD) data into the model. The satellite-based AOD data have a higher spatial resolution and better accuracy. The studies were performed during the heavy haze period in the winter of 2016/2017 over North China (NC). Comparison with observations shows that the temporal-spatial variations of satellite-based AOD are consistent with those of AERONET and surface PM2.5 concentration, and satellite-based AOD at different sites or some months is slightly underestimated. Satellite-based AOD and surface PM2.5 concentrations in most of the southern areas of NC are significantly larger than in the northern parts. Simulated errors of Global horizontal irradiance (GHI) are reduced remarkably compared with those excluding the AOD data, especially in regions of the BTH (Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei province), west of Shandong province, and north of Henan province. All RMSE and MAE of simulated GHI under three types of weather conditions declined by more than 20%, and 37%, respectively. Modelled errors of GHI on all-sky and cloudy-sky days are larger than those on clear-sky days due to the complicated aerosol-cloud-radiation interaction and simulated bias of cloud. Reductions of GHI caused by aerosols fall in between -140～-20 W m−2, and the spatial distribution is more refined and perform well compared to observations. Our results show that direct application of the satellite-based AOD data into the WRF-Solar model is very effective for improving the simulation of solar radiation and investigating the attenuation effect of solar radiation caused by aerosol in winter.

Platyceps karelini a nonvenomous snake (Ophidia: Colubridae) from Kashan county (Isfahan–Iran)

Objective: Snakes are among the predators of any ecosystem and have been seen in different parts of Iran. The report on their distribution in Isfahan province was taken into consideration because of the importance of regional knowledge of these animals. Case report: During this survey, a sample of snakes was collected from north of Isfahan province, Kashan city, the University site of Medical Sciences and the sample was studied. The snake was identified by morphological and habitat characteristics and compared to other photos and data. The specimen belonged to the Colubridae family and non-venomous snakes. This species is distributed in the tropical climatic zone of the province. The species of the tropical region of Kashan city was identified as Platyceps karelini. or spotted snake Conclusion: We identified the habitat of this animal in Kashan city in Isfahan province. By identifying the species of Spotted Desert Racer from the Colubridae family, the number of non-venomous snakes in Kashan reached eight species.

Simplified antibiotic regimens for young infants with possible serious bacterial infection when the referral is not feasible in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Neonates with serious bacterial infections should be treated with injectable antibiotics after hospitalization, which may not be feasible in many low resource settings. In 2015, the World Health Organization (WHO) launched a guideline for the management of young infants (0-59 days old) with possible serious bacterial infection (PSBI) when referral for hospital treatment is not feasible. We evaluated the feasibility of the WHO guideline implementation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to achieve high coverage of PSBI treatment. From April 2016 to March 2017, in a longitudinal, descriptive, mixed methods implementation research study, we implemented WHO PSBI guideline for sick young infants (0-59 dyas of age) in the public health programme setting in five health areas of North and South Ubangi Provinces with an overall population of about 60,000. We conducted policy dialogue with national and sub-national level government planners, decision-makers, academics and other stakeholders. We established a Technical Support Unit to provide implementation support. We built the capacity of health workers and managers and ensured the availability of necessary medicines and commodities. We followed infants with PSBI signs up to 14 days. The research team systematically collected data on adherence to treatment and outcomes. We identified 3050 live births and 285 (9.3%) young infants with signs of PSBI in the study area, of whom 256 were treated. Published data have reported 10% PSBI incidence rate in young infants. Therefore, the estimated coverage of treatment was 83.9% (256/305). Another 426 from outside the study catchment area were also identified with PSBI signs by the nurses of a health centre within the study area. Thus, a total of 711 young infants with PSBI were identified, 285 (40%) 7-59 days old infants had fast breathing (pneumonia), 141 (20%) 0-6 days old had fast breathing (severe pneumonia), 233 (33%) had signs of clinical severe infection (CSI), and 52 (7%) had signs of critical illness. Referral to a hospital was advised to 426 (60%) infants with CSI, critical illness or severe pneumonia. The referral was refused by 282 families who accepted simplified antibiotic treatment on an outpatient basis at the health centres. Treatment failure among those who received outpatient treatment occurred in 10/128 (8%) with severe pneumonia, 25/147 (17%) with CSI, including one death, and 2/7 (29%) young infants with a critical illness. Among 285 infants with pneumonia, 257 (90%) received oral amoxicillin treatment, and 8 (3%) failed treatment. Adherence to outpatient treatment was 98% to 100% for various PSBI sub-categories. Among 144 infants treated in a hospital, 8% (1/13) with severe pneumonia, 23% (20/86) with CSI and 40% (18/45) with critical illness died. Implementation of the WHO PSBI guideline when a referral was not possible was feasible in our context with high coverage. Without financial and technical input to strengthen the health system at all levels, including the community and the referral level, it may not be possible to achieve and sustain the same high treatment coverage.

First Occurrence of Eudiplozoon Kamegaii Nishira &amp; Urabe, 2020 (Monogenea: Diplozoidae) in Iraq from Gills of Common Carp Cyprinus Carpio

In this study, the monogenean Eudiplozoon kamegaii Nishihira &amp; Urabe, 2020 which is the second species of the genus Eudiplozoon Khotenovsky, 1985 described in the world, was recorded for the first time in Iraq from the gills of the common carp Cyprinus carpio Linnaeus, 1758 which were collected from the Tigris river in the Al-Rashidiya region north of Baghdad province from August 2021 until May 2022. The description and measurements of this parasite, as well as its illustrations, were given. Keywords: Eudiplozoon kamegaii, Cyprinus carpio, Monogenea , Tigris river, Iraq.

Vanishing Schistosomiasis Endemicity in North of Khuzestan Province, Iran: A Twenty-Five-Year Assessment

Background: Schistosomiasis, after malaria, is the second most important parasitic disease in the world in terms of morbidity and mortality and is one of the 14 neglected tropical diseases. In 2016, about 206.4 million people needed preventive treatment for the disease. Objectives: This study evaluated schistosomiasis’s incidence rate and spatial-temporal cluster distribution in the north of Khuzestan province, Iran. Methods: This cross-sectional study collected data from January 1977 to December 2001. The data of 1,390 definitive patients with Schistosoma haematobium in the north of Khuzestan province, Iran, were analyzed for the disease incidence in rural districts over five-year periods. Also, the changes in median age and sex were examined. Spatial scan statistics were used to diagnose and evaluate the spatial clusters of S. haematobium cases. The pure retrospective temporal analysis and retrospective spatial-temporal analysis were carried out to identify the temporal clusters and spatial-temporal clusters of schistosomiasis with high rates, respectively, using the discrete Poisson model. Results: The schistosomiasis incidence decreased over the years, with the last case reported in 2001. Using Kulldorff’s spatial scan method, spatial clustering showed nine high-risk areas in the north of Khuzestan province from 1977 to 2001. Besides, S. haematobium was not randomly distributed in this area. Spatial-temporal clusters identified three high-risk areas during the study period. Temporal clusters decreased from 17 months and five days to one day, and they mainly occurred in the winter and summer. Conclusions: The study indicated a zero incidence and vanishing S. haematobium endemicity in the northern region of Khuzestan province of Iran in 2002. Due to snail vectors of the disease resident in this region, the disease surveillance still needs continuation.

First Report of Rhizome Rot Caused by Pectobacterium brasiliense on Ginger in China.

In August 2020, ginger (Zingiber officinale) rhizomes (cv. Mianjiang) showing soft rot symptoms were observed in a field in Tayang Village, Fengrun District, Tangshan, Hebei Province (North China). The disease incidence in that field (15 ha in size) was more than 20%. Symptomatic rhizomes (brown and water-soaked) were surface-sterilized in 75% ethanol for 60 sec and then three successive rinses with sterile distilled water. Rhizomes were cut into pieces ca. 0.5 cm in length, and then were soaked in 500 µl 0.9% saline for 20 min. Aliquots (20 μl) of three tenfold dilutions of the tissue specimen soaking solution were plated onto the lysogeny broth (LB) medium. And LB plates were incubated at 28°C for 24 h. Five single colonies were picked from each LB plate and restreaked three times for purity. Endophytic bacteria were also isolated from asymptomatic rhizomes as control. The bacterial gDNA was extracted using the EasyPure Bacteria Genomic DNA Kit (TransGen Biotech, Beijing, China). The 16S rDNA region was amplified by PCR using the universal primer pair 27F/1492R (Weisburg et al. 1991) and sequenced. The results of BLASTN against NCBI nr of the 16S rDNA amplicons suggested that the most isolates (8/10) obtained from the rotten rhizomes belonged to the genus Pectobacterium, and few isolates (2/10) were Enterobacter spp.. Only Enterobacter spp. were isolated from asymptomatic rhizomes. Since all Pectobacterium isolates showed identical 16S rDNA sequence, thus, only two isolates were selected for further analysis. Pectobacterium isolates TS20HJ1 and TS20HJ2 (MZ853520, MZ853521) represent isolates from two plant individuals. To determine the species of the rhizome rot Pectobacterium isolates, multi-locus sequence analysis (MLSA) was performed with five housekeeping genes acnA, icdA, mdh, proA and rpoS (MZ994717-MZ994726) (Ma et al. 2007; Waleron et al. 2008), and a phylogenetic tree was reconstructed using RAxML v8.2.12 (github.com/stamatak/standard-RAxML). No sequence variation was observed at any MLSA locus between the two isolates. The result of phylogenetic analysis showed that the ginger rhizome isolates clustered with P. brasiliense type strain IBSBF1692T (Duarte et al. 2004; Nabhan et al. 2012). Ginger seedlings (cv. Mianjiang) were inoculated with the isolate TS20HJ1 by injecting 10 µl of bacterial suspensions (108 CFU·mL-1) into the rhizomes, or injected with 10 µl of 0.9% saline solution as control. The seedlings were grown at 28°C and 50% relative humidity. Ten days after inoculation, only the bacteria-inoculated rhizomes showed diseased symptoms resembling to those observed in the field. Bacterial colonies were obtained from the infected rhizomes and were identified with MLSA gene sequencing, fulfilling Koch's postulates. P. brasiliense causes soft rot of a wide range of economically important crops (Oulghazi et al. 2021). To our knowledge, this is the first report of P. brasiliense causing rhizome rot of ginger in China. The rhizome rot caused 20-25% yield loss on average in Tangshan region in 2020, which poses a significant threat to the local ginger farming. Further research on epidemiology and disease management options is needed.

Unbalanced PM2.5 emission and happiness effect through cross-regional trade in China

Cross-regional trade and environmental impact are intricately linked. While the PM2.5 emissions embodied in trade has been discussed previously, an integrated analysis of how cross-regional trade reallocate PM2.5 emission flows and further impact residents' happiness has, to date, rarely been explored. Based on emission inventory and multiregional input-output model, the production-, consumption-, and income-based PM2.5 emissions were estimated, combined with PM2.5 Gini coefficient the regional PM2.5 emissions inequalities as well as the happiness effect were investigated. The results show that 49.6% and 28.1% of the PM2.5 emissions were driven by final demands and primary inputs of other provinces, which would displace local residents' happiness effect from the final consumers. The PM2.5 Gini coefficient for consumption-based emission was lower than that for production- and income-based emission, indicating the inequality of regional distribution of PM2.5 emissions in China has been exacerbated by production- and income-based accounting. We found that for every one-unit increase in the consumption-based PM2.5 emission was associated with a 0.037 and 0.072 decrease in happiness and depression index, respectively. The higher-income north provinces with high levels of PM2.5 footprint had a significant negative impact on both happiness and depression sentiment due to much higher resource intensities. Those results were partly attributed to the variation of economic structure and further highlight the critical role of consumption-based measurement in evaluating unbalanced PM2.5 emissions and sentiment impacts, promoting final consumers share environmental responsibility by tracing their transferred air pollution.

Molecular Assessment of Established Clonal Propagated Mulberry (Morus nigra L.)

Mulberry (Morus Sp.) is one of the economically important trees cultivated for the tasteful fruits, its several pharmaceutically important chemicals potential, timber, cosmetic and in silk industry for its foliage, also in various molecular breeding applications. The origins of most cultivated mulberry varieties are believed to be in the area of China-Japan and in the Himalaya foothills. and it now has a very wide distribution range in Asia-Europe (from Korea to Spain, including China, India, Central Asia, and Near East); in Africa (North and East Africa) and in America (from the U.S.A. to Argentina, including Mexico, Central America, Colombia and Brazil). In Saudi Arabia, Mulberry grown well and spread in different places such as Taif Province (El Shafa region), Eastern region; Al-Ehsaa Province and some southern areas. Nodal explants of Morus nigra were clonally propagated in vitro for plant regeneration. Auxiliary shoot buds have been promoted in Murashige and Scoog (MS) media in a variety of cultural contexts. The largest number of shoots (13.00 ± 0.47) with an average length of 2.00 ± 0.47 cm was initially obtained from a medium containing 2.0 mg / L N6-benzyladin (BA) and 3% sucrose. Recurrent subcultures provided the highest number of seedlings (approximately 29.30) for excavation after the fourth passage. Seedlings were rooted in 1/2 MS medium supplemented with 1.0 mg / 1 indole-3-butyric acid (IBA). Successfully, about 90% of the plantlets acclimatized. Along with the determination of the genetic variations between three mulberry genotypes including two cultivated accessions (Morus alba) and one wild genotype (M. nigra) utilizing inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR) markers. Genetic variation and phylogenetic relationship of mulberry germplasm collection have been studied. All ISSR markers used in this study revealed higher genetic diversity in the wild species comparing with cultivated species. ISSR matrices reported that the mean genetic similarity coefficient was 0.7677 for all mulberry genotypes. Although some differences have been observed, much similarity has been obtained in dendrogram topology. Cluster analysis of the ISSR using UPGMA software revealed that wild species were genetically distinct. The correlation coefficients of similarity for the ISSR used are statistically important. The Principal Coordinate Analysis (PCA) for ISSR data also supports its UPGMA clustering. The average number of genetic variations recorded in mulberry genotypes was 0.287±0.096. Dendrogram (Unweighted peer group method analysis) classifies mulberry accessions into two main groups; Admissions collected from the western area of Taif, and the other comprised two sub-clusters including one isolate, i.e., M nigra, a collection from Al shafa. Contains access to another sub-cluster southwest regions of Taif, which belong to Morus nigra wild growing. These accessions of mulberry were found to be genetically similar to north and southwest Taif Province. These results have significant implications for improving the mulberry germ plasma characterization, conservation and investigates of the genetic diversity among the mulberry species grown in Taif governorate and to establish a micro-propagation system as germplasm conservation to preserve the assets of local mulberry and thus develops an easy and effective method to identify native genotypes in a limited space and time frame.

Impact of Foreign Direct Investment on Economic Growth in the North Provinces of Vietnam in the Quality of Institutions Government

The impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) on economic growth has long been of interest to researchers and policy makers. However, the results of this effect are still controversial; some studies suggest that FDI has the ability to promote economic growth. Some other studies suggest that FDI has a negative effect on economic growth. In this study, the authors examine the impact of FDI on economic growth in the Northern provinces of Vietnam in terms of the quality of institutional governance in these provinces in the period 2011-2020. By the two-step SGMM estimation method, the research results show that FDI has a positive impact on economic growth. At the same time, institutional quality is one of the causes affecting the relationship between FDI and economic growth. On the basis of research results, the author provides policy implications for the Northern provinces of Vietnam.

Challenges Of Peacebuilding In Matebeleland North And South ProvincesZimbabwe (1980-2010)

This paper is entitled “The Challenges of Peacebuilding in Matebeleland North and South Provinces. Zimbabwe (1980-2010).” The main objectives of this study include to establish the major factors contributing to failure of peace-building in the Matabeleland North and South Provinces. One of the research questions was what are the major reasons for the failure of peacebuilding and reconciliation processes in these Provinces? The design of the study was qualitative because the topic dealt with emotions and feelings of the people who were involved in the conflict. The research used purposive sampling technique in selecting the majority of respondents. Data was gathered through interviews, questionnaires and focus group discussions. The major findings do indicate that the government has not been sincere in peacebuilding efforts and reconciliation was not properly implemented and that the communities in Matabeleland Provinces remain divided. The study concludes that the government has not made any apology for all the killings which were done by government forces. This paper recommends that government should make full acknowledgement of all the killings and compensate the regions affected. In addition, there is need to establish Truth and Reconciliation Commission to handle all the cases of violence.

Values and preferences of the general population in Indonesia in relation to rapid COVID-19 antigen self-tests: A cross-sectional survey.

ObjectivesHome diagnostics are essential to assist members of the general population become active agents of case detection. In Indonesia, a country with an over‐burdened healthcare system, individuals could use rapid SARS‐CoV‐2 antigen tests to self‐detect COVID‐19. To assess the general population's values and attitudes towards SARS‐CoV‐2 self‐testing, a survey was conducted in mid‐2021 in Jakarta and the provinces of Banten and North Sulawesi.MethodsThis was a quantitative survey that approached respondents in >600 randomly selected street‐points in the three study geographies in July–August 2021. A 35‐item questionnaire was used to collect data on key variables, such as likelihood to use a SARS‐CoV‐2 self‐test, willingness to pay for a self‐test device, and likely actions following a positive self‐test result. Bivariate and multivariate regression analyses were performed.ResultsOf 630 respondents (318 were female), 15.53% knew about COVID‐19 self‐testing, while 62.70% agreed with the idea of people being able to self‐test at home, unassisted, for COVID‐19. If self‐tests were available in Indonesia, >60% of respondents would use them if they felt it necessary and would undertake regular self‐testing for example weekly if recommended. Upon receiving a positive self‐test result, most respondents would communicate it (86.03%), request post‐test counselling (80.79%), self‐isolate (97.46%), and/or warn their close contacts (90.48%).ConclusionsThe use of rapid SARS‐CoV‐2 antigen detection tests for self‐testing appears acceptable to a majority of the Indonesian public, to learn whether they have COVID‐19. Self‐testing should be prioritised to complement to an over‐burdened healthcare system by helping the public, asymptomatic individuals included, become agents of change in epidemiological surveillance of SARS‐CoV‐2 in their communities.

First Report of Stalk Rot of Celery Caused by Erwinia rhapontici in China.

Species belonging to the genus Erwinia cause diseases in many economically important plants (Mansfield et al. 2012). In May 2021, celery plants (Apium graveolens var. dulce) showing soft rot symptoms were observed in greenhouses (cv. Queen of France) in Boye County, Baoding, Hebei Province (North China). Disease symptoms began with pinkish water-soaked lesions on the midrib of celery stalks, but at the same time the leaves and root did not show symptoms. The infected celery plants rapidly developed brownish rotten stalks and leaves turned dry and yellow, but root remained asymptomatic. The disease incidence in two greenhouses (0.15 ha in size) was more than 50%. Affected celery stalk tissues were cut into 0.5 cm pieces, followed by surface sterilization using 75% ethanol for 60 sec and then three successive rinses with sterile distilled water. Then, the tissues were immersed in 200 µl 0.9% saline for 15 min. Aliquots of two tenfold dilutions of the tissue specimen soaking solution were plated onto Luria-Bertani (LB) agar plates and incubated at 28°C for 24 h. Single colonies were picked and restreaked onto LB agar three times for purity. The bacterial gDNA was extracted using the EasyPure Bacteria Genomic DNA Kit (TransGen Biotech). The 16S rDNA region was amplified by PCR using the universal primers 27F/1492R and sequenced. Result of blastn analysis of the 16S rDNA amplicons (MZ489246-MZ489247) indicated that the bacterial isolates (BY21311 and BY21312) belonged to the genus Erwinia. Biolog analysis (GEN III Microplate) identified the two isolates BY21311 (SIM=0.668) and BY21312 (SIM=0.638) as E. rhapontici. Housekeeping genes including acnA, gapA, icdA, mdh and rpoS were also amplified using a set of PCR primers (Ma et al. 2007; Waleron et al. 2008) followed by sequencing (MZ463029-MZ463038). To determine the species of the Erwinia isolates BY21311 and BY21312, multi-locus sequence analysis (MLSA) was performed with five housekeeping genes, and phylogenetic tree was reconstructed using RAxML v8.2.12 (Stamatakis et al. 2005). No sequence variation was observed at any MLSA locus between BY21311 and BY21312. The result of phylogenetic analysis showed that the celery stalk rot isolates BY21311 and BY21312 were clustered with E. rhapontici isolates. These celery isolates are closely related to the cabbage (Brassica rapa) isolate MAFF311153 (AP024329.1) in Japan. When celery plants have eight to nine true leaves, plants (cv. Queen of France) were inoculated with the isolate BY21311 by injecting 20 µl of bacterial suspensions (106 CFU·mL-1) into the celery stalks, or injected with 20 µl of 0.9% saline as control. The seedlings were grown at 25 °C and 50% relative humidity. Three days after inoculation, only infected seedling showed disease symptoms resembled to those observed in greenhouses. Bacterial colonies were obtained from the infected stalks and were identified using the same PCR primers of housekeeping genes as described above, fulfill Koch's postulates. E. rhapontici has been reported to cause pink seed, crown and stem rot, soft rot or leaf spot on many plant hosts including pea (Pisum sativum), chickpea (Cicer arietinum), lentil (Lens culinaris), common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris), lucerne (Medicago sativa), wheat (Triticum aestivum), hyacinth (Hyacinthus orientalis), onion (Allium cepa), kiwifruit (Actinidia chinensis) and peach (Prunus persica) (Huang et al. 2003; Wang et al. 2017; Zhang et al. 2018; Kovács et al. 2020). To our knowledge, this is the first report of E. rhapontici causing stalk rot in celery. Stalk rot of celery has increased in prevalence over recent years in the Baoding region, it can cause significant yield loss and no cultivar has been found to be resistant to this disease so far. The stalk rot poses significant threat to local celery production, and further research on epidemiology and disease management options is needed.

Discovering a Project for the Development of Geotourism in Rural Areas: The Paleontological and Archaeological Interpretation Centre of Tamajón (CIPAT, Guadalajara, Spain)

The important paleontological and archaeological discoveries made in Tamajón in recent years have enriched the exceptional natural and cultural heritage of this town in the north of the Guadalajara province (central Spain). The extraordinary educational and outreach value of these findings led the PaleoIbérica Research Group to develop a project for the design and creation of the Paleontological and Archaeological Interpretation Centre of Tamajón (CIPAT, acronym in Spanish). In this new space, students and the general public have access to knowledge of the past of the region through three exhibition and didactic areas and the support of a rigorous and engaging infographic. The Paleontological Area allows visitors to explore, through fossils, replicas, models (real and virtual) and dioramas, the diversity of coastal and marine life that inhabited the region during the Late Cretaceous Age. Moreover, the area highlights crocodylomorphs, dinosaurs and fishes (identified through their fossilized tracks), and the remains of plants and invertebrates. The Archaeological Area shows the origin and uses of the building material known as Tamajón Stone by means of rough or carved samples, tools traditionally used in its extraction and carving, and historical photographs. Furthermore, in the Didactic Area, innovative specific educational activities are carried out, facilitating the knowledge and appreciation of the rich natural and cultural heritage of Tamajón. After its recent inauguration (August 2021), the CIPAT is a valuable tool to encourage the practice of positive attitudes toward geoconservation and to promote the sustainable and socioeconomic development of the region through geotourism.