bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Comparative study between automated blood culture and conventional blood culture in neonatal septicaemia cases isolated in a tertiary care hospital in Odisha
Authors: Sarangi Kausik Kumar , Pattnaik Dipti , Mishra Surya Narayan , Nayak Manas Kumar , Jena Jagadananda
Published: October 2020

Background: Neonatal sepsis is the third leading cause of neonatal mortality and a major public health problem, especially in developing countries.  In developing countries sepsis being cause of neonatal mortality is responsible for 30-50% of the 5 million of total neonatal deaths each year. The detection of microorganisms in a patient's blood has a great diagnostic and prognostic significance. Blood cultures provide essential information for the evaluation of a variety of diseases like endocarditis, pneumonia, and pyrexia of unknown origin particularly in patients with suspected sepsis.  In our study we have done blood cultures from patients on a neonatal intensive care unit by both automated and conventional system simultaneously and have done comparative analysis between the two systems.Methods: The aim of this study was to compare the results of blood culture employing the conventional and BacT/Alert and VITEK-2 methods for detection of neonatal septicaemia cases. A prospective study was carried out in the Department of Microbiology in association with Department of Paediatrics and NICU, of Kalinga Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhubaneswar. 250 neonates with clinically suspected septicaemia were included in the study group. Three (3) ml of venous blood was collected aseptically of which 2ml was cultured by automated BacT/Alert and VITEK-2 method for rapid isolation and sensitivity test and rest 1 ml of blood for conventional culture.Results: Isolation of bacterial pathogens by culture using the automated system showed greater positivity (32.8%) as compared to 18% by conventional blood culture system.Conclusions: This study shows that automated blood culture system is superior to conventional blood culture system in terms of rapid and specific isolation of organism.
An observational study of incidence and severity of coronary artery disease in peripheral artery disease patients in South India
Authors: Chowdekar Vijay Sai , Peddi Naveen
Published: October 2020

Background: There are many studies that have evaluated peripheral artery disease (PAD) using ankle brachial index. However, there is very little epidemiological data on angiographically diagnosed PAD and its association with definite coronary artery disease (CAD) in Indians. The aim of this study is to evaluate the relationship between PAD and CAD in South Indian patients.  Methods: This was an observational, descriptive, single-arm, single-centre, retrospective clinical study. The study included 111 patients with known PAD who were admitted to a tertiary care hospital in South India. Patients with PAD by history, clinical examination, and those who underwent peripheral as well as coronary angiography were included in the study. Student t test, chi-square/fisher exact test have been used to find the significance of study parameters.Results: Out of total 111 patients with PAD included in the study, 98 patients were male. 61.1% of patients had co-existing significant CAD and significant PAD. Diabetes was a strong predictor of CAD (p=0.003) and smoking was strongly related to PAD (p=0.028). Elderly patients were associated with occurrence of significant CAD as well as PAD.  Conclusions: It can be concluded that there is a definite and significant correlation between PAD and CAD. The elderly population and those at increased risk for atherosclerotic vascular disease have higher liability of PAD; however, PAD is the condition that is mostly under diagnosed and under treated. The awareness about the co-existence of CAD and PAD, and implementation of co-diagnosis in general clinical practice has been poor.
A comparative study on the wound healing effectiveness of with normal saline and ionized nano-crystalline silver dressing among chronic diabetic foot ulcer patients
Authors: Aravindakshan V. N. , Arun V. A. , Roshni T. S. , Anjali V. A.
Published: October 2020

Background: Leg ulcers are debilitating and painful which greatly reducing diabetic patient’s quality of life. A prospective cohort study was done to evaluate the effectiveness of wound healing of ionized nano-crystalline silver and normal saline was assessed.Methods: Diabetic patients presented with foot/leg ulcer were divided into 2 groups of 28 in each group. In group 1 patients, sterile cotton gauze impregnated with normal saline was used. Group 2 patients were dressed with sterile cotton gauze impregnated with ionized nano-crystalline silver. Patients were observed for three weeks or until discharge. The rate of wound healing was assessed in three weeks with serial photographs and measurement of ulcers.Results: Total 60 patients were included in the study. In the group 1, thirty-three patients whose ulcer was dressed with normal saline, the healing rate was 1.2 mm/day with an average value of 0.4 mm/day. The granulation tissue developed was dull red and unhealthy. While twenty-seven patients in group 2, whose ulcer dressed with nano-crystalline silver healing rate was found maximum of 1.5 mm/day with an average value of 0.6 mm/day. The granulation tissue developed was bright red and healthy. The area reduction of wound was significantly different between the groups and maximum was found on 15th day (p=0.001).Conclusions: Wound dressing with ionized nano-crystalline silver was better than normal saline. This suggest the potential use of nano- silver based dressing in diabetic leg and foot ulcer patients.
Study of parameters associated with severity of acute pancreatitis
Authors: Aipe Arun K. , Jananardhanan Rajan , Babu R. Dayananda , Paul Deepak
Published: October 2020

Background: Acute pancreatitis is a condition associated with a lot of morbidity. There are several scoring systems that predict the severity of acute pancreatitis, but none are perfect. The aim of this study is to study the various predictors of severity know the association of the parameters with severity of disease.Methods: Our study is a prospective observational study conducted on 80 consecutive patients who presented with features of acute pancreatitis between 20-80 years age group, attending the department of General Surgery, Sree Gokulam Medical College and research foundation, Venjaramoodu, Trivandrum during the period of November 2012 to May 2014. The obtained data was uploaded in Microsoft excel sheet and analysed. Finally, all these variables were correlated with the severity of the disease to find out the association and significance using appropriate statistical methods like Pearson Chi-square test, ANOVA and Kruskal Wallis test.Results: In our study 59 (74%) were males and mean age was 45.78. Pulse rate, total count C-reactive protein, serum amylase, lipase, Low density lipoprotein (LDH), pH, calcium, lowering of haematocrit, Computerized tomography severity index (CTSI) and Ranson’s score had significant association with severity of pancreatitis.Conclusions: One should not wait for any single scoring system to get scored for effective treatment. A diagnosis of pancreatitis should be made using clinical, laboratory and radiological means and treatment in the form of aggressive crystalloid resuscitation should be started with intensive care monitoring at the earliest.
A clinico-epidemiological study of psoriasis patients with moderate to severe plaque type in tertiary care centre in South India
Authors: Sekar Suganya , Daniel Samuel J.
Published: October 2020

Background: Psoriasis is a chronic disorder with the most common manifestation being the plaque-type. Nearly 20% of the plaque type suffer from a disease of moderate to severe intensity with immense effect on the quality of life. Aim was to study the clinical, socio-economic and demographic characteristics of patients with moderate to severe plaque type of psoriasis.

Methods: This was an observational study conducted in about fourty patients diagnosed with moderate to severe plaque type of psoriasis based upon the clinical history, morphology of the lesions and assessed using psoriasis area and severity index (PASI), dermatology life quality index (DLQI) scoring and for comorbidities. Data was compiled and analyzed with statistical package for social science (SPSS) Version 20.0.

Results: Mean age was 37.43±10.1 years. 22 were males (55%) and 18 were females (45%). The mean duration was 8.93 years and 15% had family history. The mean age of onset was earlier in the females (20.23 years) with a positive family history, as compared to males (25.36 years). About 62.5% had moderate psoriasis and 37.5% had severe psoriasis. At the baseline the PASI score was 31.98±6.08 and DLQI score was 36. About 67.5% had nail changes and 10% had psoriatic arthritis. Almost in half (47.5%) the duration of the disease was 1 to 5 years and scalp (32.5%) the most common initial site of involvement. Various comorbidities were documented, 72% in moderate psoriasis and 73.33% in severe psoriasis with dyslipidemia (67.5%) being commonest.

Conclusions: Patients with moderate to severe psoriasis mostly have a low quality of life with multiple significant co-morbidities that increases the risk for morbidity and mortality.  
SEKÜLERLEŞME KAVRAMINI TÜRKİYE ÜZERİNDEN SORGULAMAK
Authors: CENGİZ Fatih Çağatay
Published: October 2020

Bu makale, sekülerleşme kavramına eleştirel bir değerlendirme getirmeyi amaçladığı gibi, kavramı Batı dışı modernleşmenin uğrağı olan Türkiye üzerinden de incelemeyi hedeflemektedir. Makale ilk olarak, klasik kuramcıların din olgusuna nasıl yaklaştıklarını ele almakta ve bu kuramcıların dinsellik ile toplumsallık arasındaki bağı modernleşme düşüncesi üzerinden kurduklarını iddia etmektedir. Klasik kuramcıların çağdaş kuramcılara bıraktığı bu miras, modernleşmenin zorunlu olarak sekülerleşmeye yol açtığını öne sürmektedir. Ancak, bu makalenin iddia ettiği gibi sekülerleşme, doğrusal ve evrensel bir süreç olmayıp, Batı Avrupa’da devlet ve Kilise arasındaki iktidar mücadelesinin ve Aydınlanma geleneğinin bir sonucu olarak ortaya çıkmıştır. Kavramın içinde doğduğu sosyo-politik formasyonun göz ardı edilmesi, sekülerleşme kavramını apolitikleştirmekte ve modernleşen her toplumda “olması gereken” bir süreç olarak imlemektedir. Türkiye özelinde bakıldığında ise, “zorunlu sekülerleşmenin” ekonomi, siyaset ve eğitim gibi alt sistemlerdeki “yeniden kutsallaşma” momentlerini görmediği iddia edilebilir. Bu makale, sekülerleşme kavramının Türkiye özelinde doğrusal bir süreç izlemediğini, modernleşme krizlerinin birçok alt sistemde deseküler bir yapı ortaya çıkardığını göstermektedir.
HEALTHISM (SAĞLIKÇILIK) İDEOLOJİSİ VE SAĞLIK HAREKETİNİN DÖNÜŞÜMÜ: SAĞLIKLI OLMAK VE SAĞLIK ARAYIŞININ DEĞİŞEN SOSYOKÜLTÜREL DİNAMİKLERİ
Authors: DELİBAŞ Kayhan , KANKURDAN Şeyda
Published: October 2020

Son dönemlerde sağlık alanındaki yaygın tartışmaların çoğunlukla sağlıkta neoliberal dönüşüm, ilaç endüstrisi, zararlı gıdalar, bozulan hasta-hekim ilişkisi vb. eksenli yaşandığı görülmektedir. Bu tartışmalar belli ölçülerde yararlı ve gerekli olmakla birlikte, toplumsal ve kültürel alana ilişkin değerlendirmelerin ise ihmal edildiği söylenebilir. Son on yılda gerek medya organlarında gerekse de sosyal bilimsel literatürdeki tartışmalarda sağlık-hastalık, beden-benlik, gençlik-yaşlılık, hayat ve ölüm hakkındaki algıların, anlamların, beklentiler ve değer sistemlerinin önemli ölçüde dönüşmüş olduğunu belirtmemiz gerekir. 80’lerin sonlarında ABD’de ortaya çıkan Healthism (Sağlıkçılık) ideolojisine de sağlığı her şeyin üzerinde bir değer noktasına yükselterek aslında paradoksal olarak ulaşılması imkânsız bir hedef oluşturmuştu. Dahası, sağlığın öncelikli olarak bireyin bir sorumluluğu olarak tanımlanması, artan bireyselleşme, uzmanlara ve sistemlere duyulan güvenin aşınması, gibi faktörlerin de mevcut tartışmalarda hiç hesaba katılmadığı görülmektedir. Bu makalenin temel amacı Healthism ideolojisinin de ötesine geçen risk toplumu yani reflexive modernite koşullarında sağlık-hastalık, sağlıklı olmak, iyi olmak durumlarının ne olduğu ve ne olması gerektiğine ilişkin değişen anlamlandırmalar, algılar, beklentiler ve yaygın korkuların sosyokültürel temellerinin ortaya konulmasıdır.
DOĞU KARADENİZ’DE BİR KOLEKTİF DAYANIŞMA ÇABASI: HOPA ÇAY KOOPERATİFİ
Authors: YILDIRIM ŞAHİN Emek
Published: October 2020

Ağırlıklı olarak Doğu Karadeniz Bölgesi’nde yetiştirilen ve Türkiye’de ciddi bir tüketim ürünü olan çayın bu bölgeye gelişi ile bölgenin önemli bir sosyo-ekonomik dönüşüm geçirdiği açıktır. Çaydan önce ekonomik faaliyet alanı daha otarşik, daha hane üretimi-tüketimi odaklı iken, çay sonrasında çayın aynı zamanda hem zirai hem de sınai bir ürünü olması nedeniyle bölgenin ekonomik faaliyet alanları da farklılaşmış ve ağırlıklı olarak piyasaya yönelik mal üretimine dönmüştür. Bunun yanında, çayın sınai bir ürün olması nedeniyle fabrikalarla, fabrikaların sahibi devletle ve merkezi hükümetle bir bağımlılık ilişkisi de ortaya çıkmıştır. Bu bağımlılık ilişkisi ise bölgenin sosyo-politik ve sosyo-kültürel yapısında önemli bir tesire sahip olmuştur. Kısacası, Doğu Karadeniz’de çay sadece tarımsal bir faaliyet değildir ve göründüğünden daha derinlikli bir etki alanına haizdir. Bu nedenle, çayın ve çaya ait faaliyetlerin irdelenmesi ekonomik, toplumsal ve siyasal olarak Doğu Karadeniz’i anlamaya ışık tutacak niteliğe sahiptir. Bu sebepten ötürü, bu çalışma ile, Doğu Karadeniz’in en ucunda yer alan Artvin’in Hopa ilçesinde faaliyet gösteren Hopa Çay Kooperatifi’nin varolma sürecinin ele alınması üzerinden hem çayın bölgedeki öneminin hem de bölge genelinden farklı bir ekonomik model işleterek bir kolektif dayanışma çabasının irdelenmesi amaçlanmaktadır.
The Prevalence of Dermatophytosis and its Etiologic Agents in Clients of Mycology Laboratory of Yazd Central Laboratory in 2013-2018
Authors: Sadeghi Tafti Hossein , Rashidian Sara , Jafari Abbas-ali , Ayoubi Yazdi Zeinab
Published: October 2020

Introduction: Dermatophytosis is one of the health problems that may spread from contaminated soil, pets, livestock, and infected humans. Although Tinea capitis is more prevalent in deprived areas, other forms of this disease were also reported in both urban and rural regions. In order to design appropriate strategies to control and treat diseases, the disease prevalence and its effective factors should be investigated.  The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence rate of dermatophytosis and its etiologic agents in patients who referred to the mycology laboratory of Yazd Central Laboratory during 2013-2018.
Methods: In this cross-sectional descriptive study, samples were collected from  suspected dermatophytic lesions of patients who referred to the mycology section of Yazd Central Medical Laboratory during 2013-2018. After completing the demographic information questionnaire, samples were collected from the lesions and examined by direct microscopic culture examination. Moreover, additional tests were performed to determine the genus and species of the etiologic agents.
Results: From 900 patients, 112 cases (12.5%) were positive regarding both direct smear and culture. The highest rate of infection was observed in the age group less than 10 years. The most common clinical forms were tinea corporis, capitis, cruris, manuum, pedis, and ungium, respectively. The most commonly isolated etiologic agents were Trichophyton mentagrophytes, Microsporum canis, Trichophyton rubrum, and Trichophyton verrucosum.
Conclusion: Due to the lack of information about the current status of this disease in Yazd, periodical studies are recommended on dermatophytosis, their sources, and etiologic agents in order to take effective measures to control and prevent the disease.
Is hospitalization necessary in isolated traumatic sternal fractures?
Authors: YOLGÖSTEREN Atif , YÜKSEL Ahmet , KAN İris İrem , DURAK Vahide Aslıhan
Published: October 2020

Objectives: Clinical characteristics, follow-up and treatment outcomes of patients with isolated traumatic sternal fracture were presented and our clinical experiences on these patients were shared. Methods: Between January 2010 and December 2017, a total of 87 patients with isolated traumatic sternal fracture who were admitted to the emergency department and were hospitalized, were included in this observational cohort study. Medical data of these patients were collected from hospital records and then were retrospectively reviewed. Results: There were 65 (74.7%) male and 22 (25.3%) female patients. Mean age was 42.4 ± 13.7 years (range: 17-83). The most common etiological reason was traffic accident in vehicle. Sternal fractures were localized at corpus in 64 (73.6%) patients and at manubrium in 23 (26.4%) patients. The most common concomitant pathology was rib fracture with a ratio of 23% (20 patients). Mean length of hospital stay of patients was 3.1 ± 0.8 days. During the hospitalization period, no evidence of cardiac injury was observed in any patient. Conclusions: In view of rising healthcare costs and increasing demand for acute hospital and intensive care beds, it is crucial to determine hospitalization criteria for cases with traumatic sternal fracture. We believe that the hospitalization is not necessary in isolated traumatic sternal fractures where there is no other major injury.
Change in soy and nutrition knowledge and perceptions of smallholder South African farmers after attending a single one day soy nutrition training workshop: A pilot study
Authors:   Texas Tech University, Lubbock, 79409, Texas, United States of America, Oldewage-Theron W ,   University of Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa, Morales S ,   NCBA CLUSA, Tegucigalpa,M.D.C. 11101, Honduras C.A., Egal Abdulkadir ,   Vaal University of Technology, Vanderbijlpark, 1900, South Africa
Published: October 2020

The main aim of this pilot study was to assess smallholder soy farmers’ knowledge and perceptions of soy immediately before and after participating in a one-day soy nutrition training workshop. A pre-post study design was used among a convenience sample of 78 soy smallholder farmers from Kwa Zulu-Natal, South Africa(SA). A total of 78 men and five women participated in the training, but because only five women attended,gender comparison analysis was not carried out.A soy nutrition training workshop, including soy cooking demonstrations, tasting, recipe development, that is based on the Social Cognitive Theory, was implemented for eight consecutive hours with one break of 30 minutes. Pre- and post-quantitative data measuring,soy knowledge and perceptions were collected using a modified version of a survey, tested for face and content validity and reliability,and used previously in other research study projects by the same authors among low-resource communities in SA. The data from the pre and post questionnaires indicated that only 41% of the soy smallholder farmers used soy in the household and mainly in meat dishes. The rest of the harvested soy was either sold or used for animal feed. The mean±standard deviation (SD)score of taste preference changed significantly (p=0.002) from 4.60±0.84 before,to 4.93±0.13 after the training (p=0.002)and the majority of the participants perceived it was easy to prepare soy foods;82.1% and 88.5% before and after the training,respectively (p=0.013). Participants’ soy knowledge improved significantly (p<0.001)from a mean±(SD)score of 26.33±4.06 before to 32.00±9.46 after the intervention, indicating a significant improvement of 5.67±9.11 [13.83%] in the total score.The results from this study indicate that there is a need for nutrition education programs for smallholder farmers. Thus, improvement in both soy knowledge and preference should result in more soy being consumed first for household nutritional needs before giving it to either animals or sell it on the market.Since smallholder farmers’ nutrition education can impact both food insecurity and nutritional status improvement in one setting, more interventions of this kind are needed to further advance the frontier of this niche area of research.
Household food consumption and nutritional status of children aged 6 to 59 months in Zinder, Niger Republic
Authors:   Département Productions Végétales/Facultéd’Agronomie de Niamey (Niger), Oumarou Diadie Halima , Issaka HA ,   Laboratoire de Recherche enHygiène et Sciences alimentaires et nutritionnelles/Facultéd’Agronomie de Niamey (Niger), Balla A ,   CRESA/ Facultéd’Agronomie de Niamey (Niger)
Published: October 2020

Malnutrition exists in both urban and rural areas in Niger. An analysis of food and nutrition situation was carried out in the urban municipality of Zinder in order to contribute to a better understanding of the situation.This work was done from February to March 2018, at the household level,sampled by probabilistic method.The study involved 168 children from 6 to 59 months selected from 150 households in 15neighborhoods in the urban municipalities of Zinder. An analysis of the Food Consumption Score and Household Food Diversity Score showed acceptable food consumption and high food diversity respectively in58.7% and 67.3% of households.Furthermore, the results showed that the socio-economic characteristics that determined Score of food consumption were the main activities of heads of households and their wives. Food diversity was generally acceptable, although 2.7 %of households still had low dietary diversity in the study area.Also,food diversity remained low overall for nearly 8.9% of children with a rate of 6.0% for households headed by a woman.Nevertheless, the latter female-headed households had an estimated 13.7% of children with average individual food diversity. The prevalence of acute global malnutrition is 13.1% with the severe form at3%. It should be noted that girls were much more affected by this severe form (3.4%) compared to 2.5% for boys.However, stunting was more prevalent in males than in females with 57.5% and 46.6%,respectively. Moderate form accounting for 28.4% in females compared to 17.5% in males.This nutritional status reflects the relatively acceptable food situation in which these children lived. Furthermore, the appreciation of different foods and modes of consumption have shown on the one hand that the diet remains monotonous. On the other hand, this analysis revealed that cereal-based dishes accompanied by vegetable/leafy sauces predominated in these households in the study area.This situation exposes the members of these households and especially young children to the risk of malnutrition.
Farmers’ production constraints, perceptions and preferences of cowpeas in Buhera district, Zimbabwe
Authors:   Central University of Technology Free State, P Bag X 20539 Bloemfontein 9300, South Africa, Nkomo Gabriel Vusanimuzi ,   Agriculture Research Council Grain Crops, P Bag X 1251 Potchefstroom, South Africa, Sedibe MM ,   Central University of Technology Free State,Private Bag X 20539,Bloemfontein, 9300, South Africa, Mofokeng' MA ,   Agriculture Research Council Grain Crops, P Bag X 1251 Potchefstroom, South Africa
Published: October 2020

Many smallholder farmers face crop production constraints, especially under rapidly changing climatic conditions. A survey was carried out to assess farmers’ production constraints, traits, and preferred cowpea varieties. A semi-structured questionnaire was used in a survey of Buhera District, Zimbabwe, in March and April of 2018. Women farmers dominated the survey as they were 52% of the surveyed population, while men occupied 48% of the total population. Eighty-three percent of farmers cited the shortage, unavailability, and cost of fertiliser. Sixteen per cent of farmers acknowledged that they do not have access to quality seeds, and 1% cited labour as the major constraint in cowpea production. Cowpea yield varied from 100 to 500 kg/ha. However, 48% of farmers harvested 200 kg/ha.As for abiotic factors, farmers ranked heat (86%), drought (10%), and soil fertility (4%) as the most important abiotic factors.Ninety-one percent of farmers ranked rust as the most destructive disease, while 2% ranked storage rot, 1% ranked anthracnose, and 1% ranked downy mildew. Eighty-one percent of farmers cited aphids as the main pests, while 3% ranked thrips, 3% ranked legume borers, and 2% ranked pod borers as other pests.Fifty-two percent of farmers preferred varieties that are resistant to diseases such as rust, whereas 48% were not concerned about diseases.As for qualitative traits, 50% of farmers had no specific colour preference, 32% preferred white colour, 14% preferred brown colour, 3% preferred red colour, and 1% preferred tan colour. For quantitative traits, such as grain size, pod size, plant height, and head size, the preferences of farmers varied. Ninety-nine percent of the farmers interviewed preferred cowpea varieties that are bred for drought tolerance, as Buhera District is frequented by intermittent droughts. Farmers’ experience in growing cowpeas ranged from 5 to 30 years. The top ranked accessions were CBC1, IT 18, and Chibundi Chitsvuku,while the least ranked was Kangorongondo. Identified constraints to cowpea farming included lack of education,insect pests, diseases, drought, weeds, harvesting difficulties and a lack of agriculture extension advice. The survey showed that there is a need to breed for biotic factors such as pests and diseases and abiotic factors such as drought and moisture stress.
An alternative health crop for South Africa: Purple potato mini tuber production as affected by water and nutrient stress
Authors:   Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Bellville 7535, South Africa, Witbooi Hildegard , Kambizi L ,   Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Bellville 7535, South Africa, Oguntibeju O ,   Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Bellville, South Africa
Published: October 2020

Food security in South Africa ranks as one of the top ten priorities in the country. Potato is a fundamental staple food crop in South Africa, providing essential nutrition. While there are several cultivars currently in production for the potato market, there is a need to explore cultivars that are available, but not utilised within the country. Pigmented potatoes are not regarded as high value on the South African market;however,yield prospects as well as health-promoting benefits could have a positive contribution on the South African Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and on the population’s health. Potato cultivar (cv.) Salad blue(SB)seems to be a drought-tolerant crop with the ability to produce reasonable yields under severe environmental conditions. In order to promote cv. SB as a possible food security option for South Africa, there is a critical need for empirical information, describing some basic horticultural as well as biochemical information and vitamin C presence. This study investigated the potential of pigmented potato SB tubers as an alternative to high yielding white potato for the South African market.Tubers of Solanum tuberosum cv. BP1 and SB, were used for this research.The high amounts in phenolic compounds in SB can be considered to be health-promoting phytochemicals. Anticarcinogenic, antibacterial, antiviral properties have been reported. A greenhouse, bag trial with virus-free plantlets of BP1 and SB cultivars was conducted using three water and nutrient levels and favourable root zone temperature(100% without heat, 100% heated, 50% heated, 25% heated) all grown in coco peat. Cultivar SB showed nearly two-fold yield compared to the control BP1. Methanol extracts of the tubers were assessed for their total polyphenolic, flavanol, and flavonol contents as well as 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging ability, ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), Trolox equivalence antioxidant capacity (TEAC),anthocyanin and L-ascorbic acid assays.The aqueous extract of the SB tubers was found to contain higher level of total polyphenols (320 mg GAE/g), and flavonol (85 mg QE/g) than the extract of the BP1 tubers with values of173 mg GAE/g (total polyphenol), and67 mg QE/g (flavonol). Similarly, the methanol extract of the tuber skins also exhibited higher DPPH (818,86 IC50mg/mL), FRAP (18,19μmol AAE/g), and TEAC (911,12μmol TE/g)than the extract of the BP1with DPPH (595,99 IC50mg/mL), FRAP (10,86 μmol AAE/g) and TEAC (435,44 μmol TE/g). The present study provides useful information for farmers and health professionals in respect to increased yield and health-promoting benefits of an underutilized potato variety.
Food security policy choices: A review of the usefulness of public policy taxonomies
Authors:   University of Pretoria, PBag X 20, Hatfield, Pretoria, 0028, South Africa, Fossi Filippo , Hendriks Sheryl L ,   University of Pretoria, PBag X 20, Hatfield, Pretoria, 0028, South Africa
Published: October 2020

This paper addresses the "dependent variable"problem in food security policies, namely the difficulty in classifying food security policies that limits comparative policy studies. Policy comparisons require criteria that are general enough for broad application but sensitive to the context. A rigorous and objective basis for comparisons would allow for studying how policies, and food security policies in particular, emerge. This is important in Africa as, in the past, food security and nutrition crises have been attributed to the failure of government policies. This paper reviews the main key available public policy classifications based on their predictability, mutual-exclusivity and relevance. These include Lowi's and Wilson's typologies, the agricultural policies' classification by Norton and the FAO-FAPDA classification. The review found that available typologies do not accommodate multi-sectoral actions and are not entirely applicable to food security public policy classification. The domain shift from food policy to food security,and more recently to food systems demands that all elements in the food system to be taken into consideration in the policy process. This limits the use of policies as "dependent variables"and hence the study of how they emerge, particularly in Africa. A critique of available policy classes shows that these cannot be treated as "dependent variables". It is argued that a potential solution to the "dependent variable" problem of food security policies lies in the development of a taxonomy, simplifying their complexity with analytical shortcuts. Having reviewed Candel and Daugbjergs’ recent taxonomy, refinements are proposed to be applied in the African context. The proposed taxonomy represents an alternative to classify food security policies in Africa along four core dimensions. This classification offers prospects for researchers to study what factors drives policy-classes in one direction or the other, along the four dimensions. Although the scales and calibration of the four dimensions will need to be developed and tested, the proposed typology offers a way to treat the dimensions as “dependent variables”.
Exposure of school children to aflatoxins and fumonisins through maize-based diets in school meals programme in Salima district, Malawi
Authors:   University of Nairobi, P.O.Box 29053-00625, Kangemi, Nairobi, Kenya, Jere Gibson Mapopa , Abong’ GO ,   University of Nairobi, P.O.Box 29053-00625, Kangemi, Nairobi, Kenya, Njue LG ,   University of Nairobi, P.O.Box 29053-00625, Kangemi, Nairobi, Kenya, Masamba K ,   Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Bunda College Campus, P.O.Box 219, Lilongwe, Omayio DG ,   University of Nairobi, P.O.Box 29053-00625, Kangemi, Nairobi, Kenya
Published: October 2020

Exposure to aflatoxins and fumonisins contaminated food poses threats to human health,including causation of cancer, immunosuppression, impaired growth, respiratory problems, diarrhea, among others.This study was carried out to evaluate the levels of aflatoxins and fumonisins in maize-based porridge and the estimated intake levels of the contaminants among school going children in selected primary schools in Salima District,Malawi.A total of 496 children and 124 food handlers from 31 primary schools within three Extension Planning Areas(EPAs) under the School Meals Programmes were involved. Consumption and meal preparation data were collected from the respondents using pre-tested questionnaires. Reveal Q+ Kits were used to quantify aflatoxins and fumonisins in sampled meals. Monte Carlo risk simulation using @RiskPalisade software(UK)was used to generate exposure data.All porridge samples had varying detectable levels of mycotoxins. However,there were no significant (P<0.05) differences in the aflatoxins and fumonisins levels for samples from different EPAs indicating the endemic presence of mycotoxins within the district. Over 95% of the schools used maize as the main ingredient in preparing the porridge with relatively high quantities consumed 610 grams/child/day equivalent to 0.019 kg/kg body weight/day regardless of the gender (χ2 = 5.624, P = 0.286)or the age (r = 0.033, P = 0.459)of the respondents. The levels of aflatoxins and fumonisins in the samples ranged from 2.13 to 33.37 μg/kg and <0.3to1.0 ng/kg, respectively.The mean and the 95thpercentile intake levels for aflatoxins ranged from0.2 -0.60ng/kg body weight/dayand6 –9.2 μg/kg body weight/day for fumonisins,which exceeded the recommended safety levels for children according to standards of European Food Safety Authority (2007) and Joint Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health Organization Committee on Food Additives (2008), respectively.The consumption of maize-based porridge was found to expose school-going children to unacceptable levels of mycotoxins whose effects on their health, education and well-being remain unknown. There is a need to educate food handlers on mycotoxins intoxication and proper postharvest handling practices of maize-based foods to prevent exposure.Furthermore, diversification to reduce over reliance on maize-based diets should be promoted.
A análise da comercialização institucional da agricultura familiar via Pnae no Território Rural Médio Araguaia, Goiás: possibilidades e limites da abordagem da nova economia institucional
Authors: Da Silva Fernanda Chaveiro , Verano Thiago de Carvalho , Da Cunha Cleyzer Adrian , Wander Alcido Eleonor
Published: October 2020

Sob o enfoque das teorias da Nova Economia Institucional (NEI), o presente trabalho tem por objetivo verificar a inserção comercial da agricultura familiar no Programa Nacional de Alimentação Escolar (Pnae), no Território Rural Médio Araguaia, Goiás (GO), com a finalidade de se compreender até que ponto a NEI é útil para se entender as questões e peculiaridades que envolvem os agricultores familiares. Por meio do método dialético, da pesquisa bibliográfica e dos dados obtidos a partir da porcentagem de aquisição da agricultura familiar via Pnae dos 21 (vinte e um) municípios do Território Médio Araguaia, GO, através das sedes das subsecretarias estaduais de educação nos municípios de Iporá, Piranhas e Jussara, nos anos de 2014 e 2015, foi possível verificar o comportamento dos agentes e dos agricultores envolvidos no Pnae, demonstrando como a racionalidade limitada e o oportunismo dos agentes, a assimetria de informação entre e dentro das organizações, os custos de transação, a especificidade dos ativos, os contratos e a estrutura de governança podem ajudar a compreender e explicar os processos econômicos dos agricultores familiares. Assim, verificou-se que as políticas públicas de assessoria às organizações da agricultura familiar, como o Núcleo de Extensão em Desenvolvimento Territorial (Nedet), são importantes para a efetivação da inclusão produtiva dos agricultores familiares, podendo ainda problematizar as transações com uma maior precisão ao analisá-las com foco na teoria sustentada pela NEI, embora a lógica produtiva dos agricultores familiares não se concentre apenas no viés econômico.
Agricultura familiar campesina y cadenas cortas agroalimentarias: la Feria Municipal de Yuty – Caazapá (Paraguay)
Authors: Carreras Rios Francisca Danaides , Wesz Junior Valdemar João
Published: October 2020

Las cadenas cortas se consolidaron como uno de los principales mercados para la agricultura familiar campesina, con destaque a las ferias de productores. El objetivo de este estudio es describir y analizar las características generales de la Feria Municipal de Yuty y comprender la importancia de ese espacio para los agricultores y consumidores. Esta investigación empezó con una revisión bibliográfica, análisis de datos secundarios y una investigación previa a cuatro personas que en ese momento estaban ligadas a la feria. Luego, en la siguiente visita a la feria, se aplicó una encuesta a nueve productores (la totalidad de feriantes que estaban en el día) y once consumidores presentes en la feria. Los resultados encontrados indican que la Feria Municipal Yuty tiene una gran importancia entre los productores que comercializan en este espacio, sobretodo porque venden a un precio satisfactorio todos los productos que llevan. Además, la feria es muy relevante para el ingreso de las familias de productores y para el fomento del mercado local. Ya los consumidores van a la feria porque encuentran productos frescos, exclusivos y con precio atractivo, al mismo tiempo que tienen una buena relación con el feriante. En este sentido, la feria de Yuty es una forma de acceso al mercado que beneficia a productores y consumidores, generando procesos más inclusivos de desarrollo y contribuyendo con la seguridad alimentaria y nutricional.
Neoliberalismo y políticas públicas fragmentarias en el Centro-Oeste de Formosa, Nordeste Argentino
Authors: Giuliano Ernesto Fabián
Published: October 2020

El presente trabajo tiene como objetivo analizar el proceso de plegamiento fragmentario de las políticas públicas productivistas, en el espacio territorial del Centro-Oeste de la provincia de Formosa (Nordeste Argentino), entre los años 1990 y 2015. La metodología que se sigue se apoya en distintas fuentes documentales, que dan cuenta de dicho proceso. A través de este análisis, se observa cómo la dinámica de plegamiento fragmentario de las políticas públicas productivistas estructura un patrón regulativo escalar neoliberal, generador de relaciones asimétricas de poder, en lo político, económico, y social. De modo que el territorio en estudio se transforma con la continuidad de desigualdades persistentes.
An inquiry of the nature and causes of price variation in vegetable marketing system of Bangladesh
Authors: Islam Md.Mainul
Published: October 2020

The study was conducted to examine the nature of vegetable price variation from farmers to different traders through different marketing channels and identified some factors that were causes for vegetable price variation. On the basis of vegetable trader, five marketing channels identified which responsible for transporting vegetables from farmer to consumer. This study pointed out that the maximum price variation chain is Farmer ? Wholesaler ? Agent ? Retailer ? Consumer. This study also explored that price variation has a positive relationship with the increase of trader’s number and several times price variation executed in retailers’ level. Sometimes new trader arrivals in retail level which depends on the nature of vegetable deterioration. The majority farmers and traders remarked that price variation is occurred due to high input cost, high transportation cost, and traditional marketing system
The macroeconomic determinants of cross-country efficiency in wealth maximization
Authors: Rosid Md Harun Or , Xuefeng Zhao , Paul Sujan Chandra , Sultanuzzaman Md Reza
Published: October 2020

In the arena of economic analysis, the wealth of a nation is getting more and more attention to be a better indicator to evaluate the status of an economy. This paper had studied the aggregate household wealth of different nations of the world, 106 countries, for the year 2009-2018. During these years, only two countries of the world, China and the USA have managed to increase their wealth tremendously over the last decade while others experienced a slow pace in the growth of wealth. To satisfy the query of how efficient these countries were in maximizing their wealth, a stochastic frontier approach (SFA) has been used to predict the technical efficiency dependent variable and then generalized methods of moments (GMM) and other models have been used to find out the determinants of this efficiency. The study had come up with the result that land, labor, and capital mainly contributed to the output of wealth maximization while past year level of efficiency, export, and import played the main roles in determining the wealth maximizing efficiency status of a nation. It is found that there is a negative relationship between past-year efficiency with current years and the more a country imports, the less efficient the country is while the more it exports, the more efficient the country is in maximizing wealth.
The characteristic of Leader-member Exchange (LMX) relationship between leader and follower
Authors: Soeprapto Dedy Dewanto
Published: October 2020

The objective of this research is to understand the characteristic of the LMX relationship between leader and follower in the construction industry (in the context of a project-based organization) with followers as the provider of ideas and knowledge. This research is conducted in a construction state-own enterprise (SOE) in Indonesia, selected due to tight competition and the consequential need for innovation within short timescales. This study involves all 121 projects that existed at the time of data collection, and the unit of analysis is a dyadic relationship between general managers (as leader) and project managers (as a follower). Of these dyads, only 118 dyads can be analyzed (97.52 percent participation rate) and the analysis method used in this study is descriptive statistical analysis. The findings indicate the presence of statistic similarity between leaders and followers in case: the man’s gender 98,3%, regional origin match 42,4%, similarity level of education 39,8%, the similarity of ownership of construction certification 71,2%, the duration of the current working relationship with the leader for 13 to 24 months (49,2%), the duration of knowing current leader in the company for above 5 years (60%). Therefore, the demographic similarity is an important characteristic of high-quality LMX.
Global pandemic and business performance
Authors: Damilola Omodara , Deborah Ikhile , Oyedele Ogundana , Kehinde Akin-Akinyosoye
Published: October 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic is anticipated to continue to the year 2022 and could lead to several business failures if entrepreneurs do not respond adequately. Thus, the purpose of this study is to introduce a framework that captures the impacts and potential responses to the ongoing pandemic. To do that, we conducted telephone interviews with ten entrepreneurs who operate enterprises within Nigeria. Data collected for analysis were transcribed, chronologically arranged, coded, and thematically analyzed using NVivo. Our findings revealed that, during the pandemic, businesses experienced limited opening hours, a decline in their clients' patronage, lower turnover, and employee demotivation. In response, business owners should consider re-strategizing their business activities, maintaining connections with clients, and exploiting available support measures. Our findings have profound theoretical and practical implications. For entrepreneurs and policymakers, they offer insights into the form of challenges confronting businesses during a pandemic. It also provides response activities that entrepreneurs could adopt to mitigate the impact of an epidemic on their enterprises’ performance. For the field of entrepreneurship, it advances the need to integrate public health (health-related issues) into entrepreneurship study and consider its multiple levels of influence on the performance of businesses.
The nine year basic education policy and secondary school internal efficiency
Authors: Dufitumukiza Abel , Ntakirutimana Edouard , Niyibizi Emmanuel , Mukanziza Jacqueline
Published: October 2020

This study examined the effect of implementing Nine Year Basic Education (9YBE) policy on secondary school internal efficiency. The study followed descriptive design. Data on students’ enrolments and repetitions for consecutive school years, cohort 2014/15 and 2017/18, were collected from all five lower secondary schools in Ngoma and Tumba Sectors using survey questionnaire. Besides, focus group discussions (FGDs) were used to collect views of head-teachers on the study variables. The reconstructed cohort flow analysis technique was used to determine indicators of internal efficiency. Summary statistics are presented in tables. Qualitative data from FGDs were analysed through thematic content analysis with consideration of similarities and differences. The findings revealed (i) a positive change in students' promotion and repetition rates, (ii) students’ survival rate to the last grade increased to 69.39% for the cohort 2017/18 from 50.72% for the cohort 2014/15 and (iii) wastage ratio declined from 1.62 for cohort 2014/15 to 1.33 for cohort 2017/18. Thus, school efficiency rose to 75.19% in 2017/18. Head-teachers attributed the positive change in internal efficiency indicators to the combination of 9YBE interventions including removal of school fees, school feeding, and flexibility in student progression and increasing day secondary school in proximity of home. However, persistent high dropout rates indicated that the implementation of 9YBE policy had not alleviated all disruptive forces against students’ participation rates. It was therefore suggested to relook at policy interventions to address individual students’ challenges at school and household levels and the management of older children in the school system.
The effect of environmental performance and CSR on financial performance of manufacturing companies in Indonesia
Authors: Putri Harwidhea Dewantari , Miqdad Muhammad , Sulistiyo Agung Budi
Published: October 2020

This study aims to analyze the effect of environmental performance and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) on financial performance and its impact on market reactions in manufacturing companies listed on Proper 2014-2018. The research method uses path analysis with the SPSS 22 as many as 39 companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange in 2014-2018 with Purposive Sampling. The results showed that environmental performance had no significant effect on financial performance. CSR has no significant effect on financial performance. environmental performance has no significant effect on market reaction. CSR has no significant effect on market reactions. financial performance has a significant effect on market reaction
Investigating the relationship between consumer mindfulness and sustainable consumption behavior
Authors: Kaytaz Yigit Melis
Published: October 2020

Mindfulness which is based on one’s acceptance of the current situation and state without judging has recently manifested itself in various field studies of marketing.  Similarly, in today’s changing conditions, the importance of ecological balance has made consumers and businesses more sensitive to sustainable product production and consumption. In this context, the aim of the study is to explore the relationship between consumer mindfulness and sustainable consumption behavior. In order to test relationships, 200 usable questionnaires were collected and tested through linear regression analysis. Findings indicated that consumers’ mindfulness has a significantly positive effect on consumers’ sustainable consumption behavior.