Mortality of the cotton boll weevil in drip and sprinkler irrigated cotton crops

The cotton boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis grandis Boheman (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), is a key cotton crop pest in Brazil. Adverse climatic factors, such as high temperatures and low soil moisture, dehydrate oviposited cotton squares (bud flowers) on the ground and cause high mortality of its offspring within these plant structures. The objective of this research was to evaluate the mortality of the cotton boll weevil in drip and sprinkler irrigated cotton crops. The experimental design was in randomized blocks with two treatments: drip (T1) and sprinkler (T2, control) irrigated cotton crops with sixteen replications. Each parcel had one emergence cage, installed between two cotton rows per irrigation system, with 37 cotton squares with opened oviposition punctures and yellowish bracts, to capture adult cotton boll weevils. The average number of boll weevils that emerged from the cotton squares and the causes of mortality at different development stages were determined per treatment. Third-generation life tables of the boll weevil were prepared using the natural mortality data in drip and sprinkler irrigation treatments and plus actual, apparent and indispensable mortality rates and the lethality of each mortality cause. We conclude that the application of water directly to the root zone of the plants in a targeted manner, using the drip irrigation system, can cause high mortality of the cotton boll weevil immature stages inside cotton squares fallen on the ground. This is because the cotton squares fallen on the drier and hotter soil between the rows of drip-irrigated cotton dehydrates causing the boll weevils to die. This is important because it can reduce its population density of the pest and, consequently, the number of applications of chemical insecticides for its control. Thus, contributing to increase the viability of cotton production, mainly in areas of the Brazilian semiarid region where the cotton is cultivated in organic system.

Four New Horsemen of an Apocalypse? Solar Flares, Super-volcanoes, Pandemics, and Artificial Intelligence

If economists have largely failed to predict or prevent the Global Financial Crisis in 2008, and the more disastrous economic collapse associated with the pandemic of 2020, what else is the profession missing? This is the question that motivates this survey. Specifically, we want to highlight four catastrophic risks – i.e., risks that can potentially result in global catastrophes of a much larger magnitude than either of the 2008 or 2020 events. The four risks we examine here are: Space weather and solar flares, super-volcanic eruptions, high-mortality pandemics, and misaligned artificial intelligence. All four have a non-trivial probability of occurring and all four can lead to a catastrophe, possibly not very different from human extinction. Inevitably, and fortunately, these catastrophic events have not yet occurred, so the literature investigating them is by necessity more speculative and less grounded in empirical observations. Nevertheless, that does not make these risks any less real. This survey is motivated by the belief that economists can and should be thinking about these risks more systematically, so that we can devise the appropriate ways to prevent them or ameliorate their potential impacts.

A Peptide from Budding Yeast GAPDH Serves as a Promising Antifungal against Cryptococcus neoformans

Cryptococcus neoformans and Cryptococcus gattii can cause cryptococcosis, which has a high mortality rate. To treat the disease, amphotericin B and fluconazole are often used in clinic.

BACTERIAL AND SENSITIVITY PATTERN OF PATHOGENS CAUSING VENTILATOR-ASSOCIATED PNEUMONIA IN INTENSIVE CARE UNIT

Highlight:1. Antimicrobial resistance bacteria isolated from VAP patients are often associated with high mortality and length of hospital stay. 2. Mortality in VAP patients was 33.3% and the VAP group had a longer hospital stay compared to the non-VAP group. 3. The three most predominant bacteria that were found were A. baumannii, P. aeruginosa, K. pneumoniae. Cefoperazone-sulbactam, meropenem and amikacin were more than 70% sensitive against these bacteria.Abstract:Background: Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia (VAP) is the most common nosocomial infection in Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Antimicrobial resistant bacteria isolated from VAP patients are often associated with high mortality and length of hospital stay. Objective: This study aimed to analyze the pattern and sensitivity among pathogens that caused VAP in ICU. Materials and Methods: The study was conducted retrospectively by extracting the data of bacterial isolates from sputum specimens in the Laboratory of Clinical Microbiology, Dr. Soetomo General Academic Hospital, Surabaya, Indonesia and confirming the clinical data on patients suffering from VAP in ICU ward. The study started from January until December 2017. Results: The total 148 pathogens were isolated, 18 of them were diagnosed as VAP, and 130 were not VAP. The most predominant isolates in the VAP group were Acinetobacter baumannii as many as 38 (9%) followed by Pseudomonas aeruginosa 22 (2%), E. coli 16 (7%), and Klebsiella pneumoniae 11 (1%). The pathogens showed a sensitivity rate above 70% to cefoperazone-sulbactam (SCF), meropenem (MEM) and amikacin (AK). Mortality in VAP patients was 33.3% and the VAP group had a longer hospital stay compared to non-VAP group. Conclusion: The three most predominant bacteria that were found were A. baumannii, P. aeruginosa, K. pneumoniae. The pathogens had sensitivity rate above 70% to cefoperazone-sulbactam, meropenem, and amikacin.

Generation of Distinct Differentially Culturable Forms of Burkholderia following Starvation at Low Temperature

Bacterial pathogens exhibit physiologically distinct forms that enable their survival in an infected host, the environment and following exposure to antimicrobial agents. B. pseudomallei causes the disease melioidosis, which has a high mortality rate and is difficult to treat with antibiotics. The bacterium is endemic to several countries and detected in high abundance in the environment.

Low Incidence of hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome/veno-occlusive disease in adults undergoing allogenic stem cell transplantation with prophylactic ursodiol and low-dose heparin

Hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome (SOS)/veno-occlusive disease (VOD) is a complication after allogenic hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) with high mortality. The purpose of this study was to assess the incidence and outcome of SOS in patients after allo-HSCT with the impact of ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) and low-dose heparin as SOS prophylaxis. Out of 1016 patients, 23 developed SOS, with a cumulative incidence of 2.3% (95% CI 1.3–3.3) 6 months after HSCT. Approximately one quarter of these patients (26.1%) had late-onset SOS. A high proportion were very severe SOS cases (74%), and 83% of the patients were treated with defibrotide (DF). In multivariate analysis, advanced disease (p = 0.003), previous HSCT (p = 0.025) and graft versus host disease (GvHD) prophylaxis by post-transplant cyclophosphamide (PTCy) (p = 0.055) were associated with the development of SOS. The 1-year overall survival (OS) was significantly lower in the SOS group compared to patients without SOS (13% versus 70%, p = 0.0001). In conclusion, we found a low incidence of SOS in patients receiving low-dose heparin and UDCA prophylactically, but among SOS patients, a high mortality. Low-dose heparin and UDCA might be a prophylactic approach for SOS.

Nanotherapeutic macrophage-based immunotherapy for peritoneal carcinomatosis of lung cancer

Lung cancer is the top cause of cancer mortality in the world. Distant metastasis leads to high mortality. Abdominal metastasis of lung cancer is characterized by a very poor prognosis...

Business Incubation Initiatives Impact on Entrepreneurs and SMEs

Business incubation (BI) is a strategic tool that helps a country to grow its entrepreneurial base and reduce the high mortality rate of SMEs. Kingdom of Eswatini adopted the business incubation initiatives to promote entrepreneurship and SME development. To date, no data exist on the impact made by business incubation initiatives. Adopting methodological triangulation of both quantitative and qualitative data collected through questionnaires and interviews where the participants consisted of SME owners, BI managers, and BI trainers, this exploratory study aims to investigate business incubation initiatives' impact on entrepreneurs and SMEs. Findings reflect that BIs measure their impact by seeing an increase in revenue, increase in the number of people employed, and SME survival post the incubation period. Though SMEs agreed that the BI effects positively, the study also revealed that some SMEs remained in the incubation for more than 10 years. Policy implications emerging are the need to introduce graduation policy and proper determination of requirements for incubation.