Effect of Citrate Concentration on the Extraction Efficiency of Selected Micronutrients from Soil

This study was carried out with the objective of evaluating the effect of citrate concentration on the extraction efficiency of some micronutrients from soil. Composite surface soil samples (0–20 cm) were collected from Eastern Harage Zone (Babile and Haramaya Districts), Wolaita Zone (Damot Sore, Boloso Bombe, Damot Pulasa and Humbo Districts) and Dire Dawa Administrative Council in purposive sampling. The treatments were arranged in completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications. A greenhouse pot experiment with soybean plant was conducted to determine the correlation between soil test methods and the selected micronutrients, such as iron (Fe), copper (Cu), manganese (Mn) and zinc (Zn) in the leaves of the plant. The results showed that, among the different citrate concentrations with strontium chloride (SrCl₂) tested for the determination of available Fe, Mn and Zn, the highest correlation coefficients (r = 0.82, p < 0.05), (r = 0.96, p < 0.001) and (r = 0.98, p < 0.001) were found between the diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid (DTPA) method and 0.02 M strontium chloride (SrCl₂)-0.025 M citric acid extractant, respectively. Therefore, 0.02 M SrCl₂-0.025 M citric acid extractant is considered to be the most effective for the determination of Fe, Mn and Zn in soils of the studied areas. Similarly, high correlation coefficients (r = 0.97, p < 0.001) were found between DTPA and 0.02 M SrCl₂-0.05 M citric acid and (r = 0.88, p < 0.01) between DTPA and 0.02 M SrCl₂-0.025 M citric acid extractants for the determination of available Cu from soils. Hence, the 0.02 M SrCl₂-0.05 M citric acid extractant was shown to be the best for the determination of Cu in soils of the studied areas. However, considering the use of universal extractant, the 0.02 M SrCl₂-0.025 M citric acid extractant could easily be adopted as a procedure for the determination of Fe, Cu, Mn and Zn for both agricultural and environmental purposes. The greenhouse experiment confirmed the result.     

Genetic Diversity of Ethiopian Tef [(Eragrostis tef (Zucc.) Trotter] Released and Selected Farmers’ Varieties along with Two Wild Relatives as Revealed by Microsatellite Markers

Journal of Crop Science and Biotechnology - Knowledge on the extent and pattern of diversity in crop species is a precondition for any crop improvement as it helps breeders in determining apt...     

Cross-sectional study on Contagious Caprine Pleuro Pneumonia in selected districts of sedentary and pastoral production systems in Southern Ethiopia

A study to estimate the seroprevalence of Contagious Caprine Pluropneumonia (CCPP) in southern Ethiopia was conducted from November 2005 to June 2006. Two districts from sedentary (Arbaminch and Boreda) and pastoral (Hammar and Bena-Tsemay) production systems were included in the study. Sera samples were collected from 913 goats (234 from sedentary and 679 from pastoral) to check for CCPP serostatus. The animals were sampled from 155 flocks (44 pastoral and 111 sedentary). Five clinically suspected CCPP cases were also sacrificed and attempt was made to isolate Mycoplasma capricolum capripneumoniae (MccP) from lung tissue, nasal swab and plural exudates. Sera samples were tested for the presence of CCPP antibodies using CFT. The overall seroprevalence recorded in the study was 18.61%. The corresponding seroprevalences for sedentary and pastoral production systems were 27.78% and 15.46% respectively. Regarding districts, the prevalence in Hammar was 15.63% while that of Bena-Tsemay 15.29%. In Arbaminch and Boreda the percent of seroreactors were 23.01 and 32.23% respectively. Out of 44 pastoral and 111 sedentary flocks, 50.45% of pastoral and 65.91% of sedentary flocks had at least one seroreactor goat per flock respectively. Both in the univariable and multivariable logistic regression analysis, seropositivity was found to have strong association with sedentary production system (P < 0.05, OR = 2.24) and adult age (P < 0.05, OR = 1.77). In microbiological study, two broth cultures from thoracic fluid and two broth cultures from lung tissue samples were found to be positive for Mycoplasma capricolum capripneumoniae (MccP). In conclusion, both the serological study and bacteriological isolation confirmed the disease CCPP being an important disease that demands serious attention in both production systems.     

Reference architecture design for farm management information systems: a multi-case study approach

Precision Agriculture - One of the key elements of precision agriculture is the farm management information system (FMIS) that is responsible for data management, analytics and subsequent decision...     

Analyses of genetic diversity and population structure of anchote (Coccinia abyssinica (Lam.) Cogn.) using newly developed EST-SSR markers

Anchote (Coccinia abyssinica (Lam.) Cogn.) is a perennial root crop belonging to Cucurbitaceae family. It is endemic to Ethiopia and distributed over wide range of agro-ecologies. For further improvement and efficient conservation of this crop, characterization of its genetic diversity and its pattern of distribution is a vitally important step. Expressed sequence tags-simple sequence repeats (EST-SSRs) markers were developed from publicly available watermelon [Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai] ESTs in the GenBank database. Among those novel markers, eight were polymorphic and subsequently used for genetic diversity and population structure analyses of 30 anchote accessions collected from western Ethiopia. A total of 24 alleles were obtained across the eight polymorphic loci and 30 accessions that revealed moderate level of genetic diversity in this minor crop. Among the eight loci, locus CA_06 was the most informative with six alleles and polymorphic information content (PIC) of 0.76. The accessions showed about threefold variation in terms of genetic diversity, with expected heterozygosity (He) ranging from 0.15 (accession An) to 0.44 (accession Dg). Other accessions with higher genetic diversity include Ar and Gu (He?=?0.43 and 0.41, respectively). Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) revealed that the variation within accessions and among accessions accounted for 84.7% and 15.3% of the total variation, respectively. The study revealed low but significant population differentiation in this crop with no clear pattern of population structure. The EST-SSR markers developed in this study are the first of their kind for anchote and can be used for characterization of its wider genetic resources for conservation and breeding purposes.

     

Anthelmintic resistance of nematode parasites of small ruminants in eastern Ethiopia: exploitation of refugia to restore anthelmintic efficacy

Faecal egg count reduction tests (FECRT) were conducted in May 2003 to determine the efficacy of anthelmintics used for treatment against nematode parasites in separately managed sheep and goat flocks at Alemaya University in eastern Ethiopia. These tests revealed high levels of anthelmintic resistance to albendazole, tetramisole, the combination of these two drugs, and to ivermectin in the goat flock (predominantly infected by Haemonchus contortus and Trichostrongylus spp.), whereas all drugs were highly efficacious in the sheep flock. A second FECRT confirmed these observations. Following this, a new management system was implemented on the goat flock for a period of 9 months (January-September 2004) in an attempt to restore the anthelmintic efficacy. This involved a combination of measures: eliminating the existing parasite infections in the goats, exclusion from the traditional goat pastures, and introducing communal grazing of the goats with the university sheep flock and livestock owned by neighbouring small-holder farmers. A second series of FECRTs (Tests 3 and 4) conducted 7 months after this change in management, showed high levels of efficacy to all three drugs (albendazole, tetramisole and ivermectin) in the goat flock. This is the first field study to demonstrate that anthelmintic efficacy in the control of nematode parasites of small ruminants can be restored by exploiting refugia.     

The Effect of Providing Feed Supplementation and Anthelmintic to Donkeys during Late Pregnancy and Lactation on Live Weight and Survival of Dams and Their Foals in Central Ethiopia

Anthelmintic treatment (A), feed supplementation (F), anthelmintic and feed supplementation (A + F) or traditional management (Control) was given to 166 pregnant female donkeys in three localities (Holetta, Debre Zeit and Adami Tulu) in Ethiopia during an on-farm study. Treatments started during the last trimester of pregnancy and continued until 6 months after parturition when the foals were weaned. The same treatments were administered to foals once they reached 1 month of age. Live weights of adults and foals were measured throughout the study along with work output of adult donkeys and survival to weaning of the foals. Faecal worm egg counts (FEC) and blood packed cell volumes (PCV) were recorded monthly. When applied alone, anthelmintic treatment (A) or feed supplementation (F) had no significant effect on live weight gain or foal survival. However, when combined, anthelmintic and feed supplementation (A + F) significantly (p < 0.05) improved both live weight gain in adults and foals and foal survival. Workout was not affected by any of the treatments. Treatments A and A+F resulted in a highly significant (p<0.001) reduction in FEC in all three localities during the course of study and for at least 6 months after the last dose of anthelmintic in one of the study areas (Holetta). None of the treatments had any significant effect on PCV. Donkey owners in Ethiopia should be encouraged to adopt both anthelmintic treatment and feed supplementation if they expect tangible benefits in animal performance.     

Neospora caninum versus Brucella spp. exposure among dairy cattle in Ethiopia: A case control study

This case-control study aimed at assessing the relative association of Neospora caninum and Brucella species exposure with reproductive disorders. The study was carried out between October 2011 and June 2012 on 731 dairy cows sampled from 150 dairy farms in selected 17 conurbations of Ethiopia. Two hundred sixty-six of the cows were categorized as cases based on their history of abortion or stillbirth while the remaining 465 were controls. The presence of antibody to N. caninum was screened using indirect ELISA, while Brucella spp. exposure was assayed serially using Rose Bengal Plate Test and Complement Fixation Test. Exposure to N. caninum was more frequently observed among cases (23.8 %) than controls (12.7 %), while no significant difference (p?>?0.05) was noted for Brucella exposure between the two groups. Moreover, the proportion of cows with disorders like retention of fetal membrane, endometritis and increased inter-calving period were significantly higher (p?<?0.05) among Neospora seropositive cows. In conclusion, the finding discloses the strong association of N. caninum with reproductive disorders compared to Brucella spp. exposure. However, neither N. caninum nor Brucella spp. could explain the majority (73.2 %) of the reported abortions and stillbirths in cattle. Hence, this observation underscores the need for more intensive investigation on the identification of causes of the aforementioned disorders in dairy cattle of Ethiopia.     

Evaluation of untreated and urea molasses–treated finger millet (Eleusine coracana) straw and lowland bamboo (Oxytenanthera abyssinica) leaf hay on nutritive values and the performance of Gumuz sheep in Ethiopia

Tropical Animal Health and Production - The experiment was conducted to evaluate effects of untreated and urea molasses–treated finger millet straw and lowland bamboo leaf hay feeding on...     

Extraction of light hydrocarbons from soil

The recovery of light hydrocarbon constituents from three soils using three kinds of extraction methods, conducted in duplicates, was evaluated. Higher molecular weight compounds were recovered at greater than 80% whereas the recoveries of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene were generally less than 50%. Using the most efficient extraction procedure, the average recovery of light hydrocarbon from a soil, was 78%. Increased soil moisture content decreased the extent of recovery. Methanol and 2-propanol showed similar extracting potential for light hydrocarbon from soil. The rate of hydrocarbon removal was faster when methanol was used as a solvent, but its efficiency was similar to 2-propanol. The batch and column extraction methods gave very similar results for both solvents. However, column extraction offered an advantage over the soxhlet and batch procedures by reaching equilibrium faster.