Optimizing zinc fertilization technology in wheat for its sustainable production and improved human nutrition

Zinc (Zn) deficiency in soil is a serious constraint affecting the yield and nutritional quality of wheat and, in turn, human health. Zn fertilization for enhancing its density in grains is a prominent technological solution for the problem. Accordingly, the present study (pot experiment) was undertaken to (i) assess the impacts of different Zn fertilization technologies on yield, concentrations of Zn, phytic acid (PA), iron (Fe) and also the bioavailability of Zn in grains and (ii) determine the optimised Zn fertilization technology that balances all the above attributes. To achieve this, six Zn fertilization technologies, namely, soil fertilization alone, combined soil and foliar fertilization at maximum tillering, jointing, flowering, dough stages and also foliar fertilization alone were tested and compared with control (no Zn) in forty different soil series representing two distinct soil orders, Inceptisols and Alfisols. Results showed that relative effectiveness of different Zn fertilization technologies varied for the crop attributes studied. Soil + foliar fertilization was superior in increasing grain yield (10-13% over the control). Moreover, for an optimum balance among all the tested attributes including bioavailability of Zn to human, foliar Zn fertilization at later crop growth stage (i.e. dough) combined with soil fertilization was the best. It was found that biofortified wheat grains obtained through Zn fertilization, on an average, could supply about 1.5 times more bioavailable Zn than the normal grains. Therefore, the outcomes of this study can provide a guideline for sustainable and quality wheat production, which will help address the malnutrition challenge.

Women's cardiovascular health - the cardio-oncologic jigsaw

Improvements in cancer care have led to an exponential increase in cancer survival. This is particularly the case for breast cancer, where 5-year survival in Australia exceeds 90%. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) has emerged as one of the competing causes of morbidity and mortality among cancer survivors, both as a complication of cancer therapies and because the risk factors for cancer are shared with those for CVD. In this review we cover the key aspects of cardiovascular care for women throughout their cancer journey: the need for baseline cardiovascular risk assessment and management, a crucial component of the cardiovascular care; the importance of long-term surveillance for ongoing maintenance of cardiovascular health; and strong evidence for the beneficial effects of physical exercise to improve both cancer and cardiovascular outcomes. There is general disparity in cardiovascular outcomes for women, which is further exacerbated when both CVD and cancer co-exist. Collaboration between oncology and cardiac services, with an emergence of the whole field of cardio-oncology, allows for expedited investigation and treatment for these patients. This collaboration as well as a holistic approach to patient care and key role of patients' general practitioners are essential to ensure long-term health of people living with, during and beyond cancer.

Commercial suitability and characterization of newly developed Erucastrum canariense (Can) sterile cytoplasm based cytoplasmic male sterile (CMS) lines in Indian cauliflower

The study presents the first to characterize novel Erucastrum canarianse Webb and Berthel (or Can) sterile cytoplasm-based CMS lines in Indian cauliflower (Brassica oleracea var. botrytis L.) and investigating their commercial suitability. Eleven Can-based CMS lines were examined for 12 agro-morphological and yield traits,18 floral traits, four seed yield traits together with three each of the Ogura (source: wild Japanese Radish) and Tour (Source: Brassica tournefortii) cytoplasms. All of the recorded floral and seed traits showed significant (P > 0.05) differences between the CMS lines of each group. Agro-morphological and yield traits in CMS lines and their maintainers, however, were non-significantly different. All the Can- and Ogura-based CMS lines showed flowering and appropriate seed formation by natural cross-pollination. Only two Tour cytoplasm-based CMS lines, Tour (DC-41-5) and Tour (DC-67), produced the smallest malformed flowers and stigma. The highest seed yield per plant in CMS lines was in Ogu (DC-98-4) and the lowest in Tour (DC-67). P14 and P15, two polymorphic mtDNA markers, were discovered for the Can CMS system for early detection. Five primers (ITS5a-ITS4, atpF-atpH, P16, rbeL and trnL), along with their maintainers, were sequenced and aligned to detect nucleotide changes including as additions and or deletions at different positions. The newly introduced E. canariense sterile cytoplasm-based CMS system in cauliflower is the subject of the first comprehensive report, which emphasises their potential as a further stable and reliable genetic mechanism for hybrid breeding.

Historical shifting in grain mineral density of landmark rice and wheat cultivars released over the past 50 years in India

The 'Green Revolution (GR)' has been successful in meeting food sufficiency in India, but compromising its nutritional security. In a first, we report altered grain nutrients profile of modern-bred rice and wheat cultivars diminishing their mineral dietary significance to the Indian population. To substantiate, we evaluated grain nutrients profile of historical landmark high-yielding cultivars of rice and wheat released in succeeding decades since the GR and its impacts on mineral diet quality and human health, with a prediction for decades ahead. Analysis of grain nutrients profile shows a downward trend in concentrations of essential and beneficial elements, but an upward in toxic elements in past 50 y in both rice and wheat. For example, zinc (Zn) and iron (Fe) concentration in grains of rice decreased by ~ 33.0 (P < 0.001) and 27.0% (P < 0.0001); while for wheat it decreased by ~ 30.0 (P < 0.0001) and 19.0% (P < 0.0001) in past more than 50 y, respectively. A proposed mineral-diet quality index (M-DQI) significantly (P < 0.0001) decreased ~ 57.0 and 36.0% in the reported time span (1960-2010) in rice and wheat, respectively. The impoverished M-DQI could impose hostile effects on non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like iron-deficiency anemia, respiratory, cardiovascular, and musculoskeletal among the Indian population by 2040. Our research calls for an urgency of grain nutrients profiling before releasing a cultivar of staples like rice and wheat in the future.

Evaluation of prognostic risk models for postoperative pulmonary complications in adult patients undergoing major abdominal surgery: a systematic review and international external validation cohort study

BACKGROUND

Stratifying risk of postoperative pulmonary complications after major abdominal surgery allows clinicians to modify risk through targeted interventions and enhanced monitoring. In this study, we aimed to identify and validate prognostic models against a new consensus definition of postoperative pulmonary complications.

METHODS

We did a systematic review and international external validation cohort study. The systematic review was done in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. We searched MEDLINE and Embase on March 1, 2020, for articles published in English that reported on risk prediction models for postoperative pulmonary complications following abdominal surgery. External validation of existing models was done within a prospective international cohort study of adult patients (≥18 years) undergoing major abdominal surgery. Data were collected between Jan 1, 2019, and April 30, 2019, in the UK, Ireland, and Australia. Discriminative ability and prognostic accuracy summary statistics were compared between models for the 30-day postoperative pulmonary complication rate as defined by the Standardised Endpoints in Perioperative Medicine Core Outcome Measures in Perioperative and Anaesthetic Care (StEP-COMPAC). Model performance was compared using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROCC).

FINDINGS

In total, we identified 2903 records from our literature search; of which, 2514 (86·6%) unique records were screened, 121 (4·8%) of 2514 full texts were assessed for eligibility, and 29 unique prognostic models were identified. Nine (31·0%) of 29 models had score development reported only, 19 (65·5%) had undergone internal validation, and only four (13·8%) had been externally validated. Data to validate six eligible models were collected in the international external validation cohort study. Data from 11 591 patients were available, with an overall postoperative pulmonary complication rate of 7·8% (n=903). None of the six models showed good discrimination (defined as AUROCC ≥0·70) for identifying postoperative pulmonary complications, with the Assess Respiratory Risk in Surgical Patients in Catalonia score showing the best discrimination (AUROCC 0·700 [95% CI 0·683-0·717]).

INTERPRETATION

In the pre-COVID-19 pandemic data, variability in the risk of pulmonary complications (StEP-COMPAC definition) following major abdominal surgery was poorly described by existing prognostication tools. To improve surgical safety during the COVID-19 pandemic recovery and beyond, novel risk stratification tools are required.

FUNDING

British Journal of Surgery Society.

Assessment of soil health parameters and application of the sustainability index to fields under conservation agriculture for 3, 6, and 9 years in India

The effect of duration of conservation agriculture adoption on soil carbon dynamics and system sustainability was evaluated on farms of 30 villages in the Nilokheri block of Karnal district, Haryana, India. Sustainability was evaluated, in which a number of soil physical, chemical, and biological parameters were measured and a Sustainability Index (SI) was applied. Soil samples were collected from existing conservation agriculture (CA) and conventional tillage (CT) farms. Villages under CA practices were subdivided as CA3, CA6, and CA9 based on the number of years of CA practice adoption. Results showed that bulk density (BD) of 0-15 cm soil depth was 7% greater in CA3 plots, whereas in CA6 and CA9 plots BD values were only 2% and 3% higher than CT. Soil organic carbon (SOC) in 0-15 cm soil depth was found to be greater by 16.32% in CA3 than CT plots, whereas SOC was higher by 38.77% and 61.22% in CA6 and CA9. In CA, for the 0-15 and 15-30 cm soil depths, labile pools were 36% and 22% greater than CT, respectively. For both the soil depths in CA, the recalcitrant pool was 12% and 9% more than CT, respectively. Microbial biomass carbon (MBC) values of the 0-15 cm soil depth were increased over CT by 18.57%, 47.08%, and 71.5% for CA3, CA6, and CA9 respectively. In CA plots, the SI of 0-15 cm soil depth ranged between cumulative ratings (CR) of 18-21, which indicates that CA practice is "sustainable" for both soil depths. For CT, CR ranged from 25 to 30 for both soil depths resulting in a SI of "sustainability with high input". Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) scores showed that SOC had the maximum weight (0.96) towards sustainability, giving it a rank of 1. Effective rooting depth (ERD), BD, texture, and wilting point (WP) ranked 2, 3, 4 and 5, respectively, indicating their corresponding weight of contribution towards the SI. Farmers in the Karnal district should be encouraged to adopt CA practices as they can increase SOC and move the systems from "sustainable with high input" to "sustainable".

Protein and gene integration analysis through proteome and transcriptome brings new insight into salt stress tolerance in pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan L.)

Salt stress is a major constrain to the productivity of nutritionally rich pigeonpea, an important legume of SE Asia and other parts of the world. The present study provides a comprehensive insight on integrated proteomic and transcriptomic analysis of root and shoot tissues of contrasting pigeonpea varieties (ICP1071- salt-sensitive; ICP7- salt-tolerant) to unravel salt stress induced pathways. Proteome analysis revealed 82 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) with ≥±1.5 fold expression on 2-Dimensional (2D) gel. Of these, 25 DEPs identified through MALDI-TOF/TOF were classified using Uniprot software into functional categories. Pathways analyses using KAAS server showed the highest abundance of functional genes regulating metabolisms of carbohydrate followed by protein folding/degradation, amino acids and lipids. Expression studies on six genes (triosephosphate isomerase, oxygen evolving enhancer protein 1, phosphoribulokinase, cysteine synthase, oxygen evolving enhancer protein 2 and early nodulin like protein 2) with ≥±3 fold change were performed, and five of these showed consistency in transcript and protein expressions. Transcript analysis of root and shoot led to positive identification of 25 differentially expressed salt-responsive genes, with seven genes having ≥±5 fold change have diverse biological functions. Our combinatorial analysis suggests important role of these genes/proteins in providing salt tolerance in pigeonpea.

SpikeSegNet-a deep learning approach utilizing encoder-decoder network with hourglass for spike segmentation and counting in wheat plant from visual imaging

BACKGROUND

High throughput non-destructive phenotyping is emerging as a significant approach for phenotyping germplasm and breeding populations for the identification of superior donors, elite lines, and QTLs. Detection and counting of spikes, the grain bearing organs of wheat, is critical for phenomics of a large set of germplasm and breeding lines in controlled and field conditions. It is also required for precision agriculture where the application of nitrogen, water, and other inputs at this critical stage is necessary. Further, counting of spikes is an important measure to determine yield. Digital image analysis and machine learning techniques play an essential role in non-destructive plant phenotyping analysis.

RESULTS

In this study, an approach based on computer vision, particularly object detection, to recognize and count the number of spikes of the wheat plant from the digital images is proposed. For spike identification, a novel deep-learning network, SpikeSegNet, has been developed by combining two proposed feature networks: Local Patch extraction Network (LPNet) and Global Mask refinement Network (GMRNet). In LPNet, the contextual and spatial features are learned at the local patch level. The output of LPNet is a segmented mask image, which is further refined at the global level using GMRNet. Visual (RGB) images of 200 wheat plants were captured using LemnaTec imaging system installed at Nanaji Deshmukh Plant Phenomics Centre, ICAR-IARI, New Delhi. The precision, accuracy, and robustness (F₁ score) of the proposed approach for spike segmentation are found to be 99.93%, 99.91%, and 99.91%, respectively. For counting the number of spikes, "analyse particles"-function of imageJ was applied on the output image of the proposed SpikeSegNet model. For spike counting, the average precision, accuracy, and robustness are 99%, 95%, and 97%, respectively. SpikeSegNet approach is tested for robustness with illuminated image dataset, and no significant difference is observed in the segmentation performance.

CONCLUSION

In this study, a new approach called as SpikeSegNet has been proposed based on combined digital image analysis and deep learning techniques. A dedicated deep learning approach has been developed to identify and count spikes in the wheat plants. The performance of the approach demonstrates that SpikeSegNet is an effective and robust approach for spike detection and counting. As detection and counting of wheat spikes are closely related to the crop yield, and the proposed approach is also non-destructive, it is a significant step forward in the area of non-destructive and high-throughput phenotyping of wheat.

In their own words: investigating the preparedness of final year dental students in the UK for independent general dental practice

Introduction

There is relatively little data on the preparedness of UK dental graduates for independent general dental practice. Two recent studies have indicated that graduates appear well prepared, but although quantifying the level of preparedness, they provide limited understanding of the underlying factors contributing to preparedness. This study aims to more deeply understand the contributing factors leading to assertions of graduate preparedness using focus groups of final year dental students, and semi-structured interviews of senior faculty members.

Materials and methods

Three UK dental schools were visited in order to conduct both study elements. Focus groups and semi-structured interviews were audio recorded and fully transcribed. Thematic analysis of the transcripts resulted in the production of a thematic matrix.

Results

The major categories of the thematic matrix were classified as extrinsic; including the role of educators and features of the course, and intrinsic; relating to fear of the unknown, the development of adult learning abilities and less easily identifiable attributes in the development of competence, which became known as 'bricks and mortar'.

Discussion

Students felt that the most important factor affecting their preparation was clinical exposure. Outreach placements were felt to be particularly useful, the simulation of general dental practice being highly valued by final year students. The interaction with educators was also felt to be a key influence on preparedness, with the involvement of general practitioners in dental school teaching felt to be helpful, perhaps giving students an extended exposure to general practice.

Conclusion

It is hoped that the rich data derived from this study may allow an invaluable insight into factors contributing to preparedness of new dental graduates, which may then be considered in the light of any proposed changes in the curricula or syllabi.

Bifidobacteria and its rice fermented products on diet induced obese mice: analysis of physical status, serum profile and gene expressions

Obesity is highly correlated with the dysbiosis of intestinal microbiota, and bifidobacteria are one of the soft targets of this metabolic syndrome. The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of Bifidobacterium sp. MKK4 and rice-based fermented foods on physical, haematological, gut microbiota and lypogenic-lypolytic marker genes in diet-induced obese mice. Adult male mice (21±0.7 g) were randomly divided into four groups (n=10) according to the type of diet: normal diet (ND), high fat diet (HFD), HFD supplemented with Bifidobacterium sp. MKK4 and HFD supplemented with MKK4 associated rice-fermented food. 8 weeks of bacterial therapy in the obese mice resulted in significant reduction of body and organ weights, improved serum levels of glucose, triglyceride and cholesterol, the histological structure of the liver (steatosis), and re-establishment of gut Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium and Bacteroides species. The bacterial therapy led to up-regulation of lipolytic transcription factors, such as peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)-α, PPAR-δ, and their regulated gene products in fatty acid metabolism and glucose uptake, such as acyl-CoA oxidase, carnitine palmitoyl-transferase-1, uncoupling protein-3 and glucose transporter-4. Concomitantly, both adipocytogenesis and fatty acid synthesis were arrested as reflected by the down-regulation of sterol regulatory element binding protein-1c, acetyl-CoA carboxylase, fatty acid synthase and tumour necrosis factor alpha genes. The effectiveness of the fermented product was more profound than the single bacterium. These data provide experimental support with regard to the use of Bifidobacterium sp. MKK4 as a natural therapeutic agent to control obesity.

Audit on Prescribing Practice of Depot Antipsychotic Injections in the Adult Community Mental Health Service

Introduction

There are a number of good standard practices available for prescribing long acting antipsychotics. Adherence to these guidelines will minimise any harm to the service users.

Aims

To compare depot antipsychotic prescribing practice with good standard practice guidelines of BNF, Trust and Maudsley guidelines.

Objectives

To compare practice with standards in the areas of:

– licensed indication;

– dose/frequency range;

– avoiding poly-pharmacy;

– regular review of clinical and side effects.

Methods

Case notes of a randomly selected sample of 30 patients from the depot clinic at the City East Adult Community Mental Health Team Leicester, UK were retrospectively investigated. The data collected was analysed and the results were produced. Compliance with the best practice guidelines was calculated and recommendations made based on the findings.

Results

One hundred percent compliance was noticed in licensed indications and dose/frequency within BNF range. However, 14% patients received poly-pharmacotherapy, 86% had regular outpatient review, but only 46% had review of side effects.

Conclusions

Better quality of documentations by the clinicians, improvised technology to elicit automatic review reminders, introduction of checklist for clinics to include review of all clinically important information, wider dissemination of the findings of this investigation, and re-auditing practice to explore impact of this investigation was recommended.

Disclosure of interest

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.