International Journal of Applied Sciences and Biotechnology

54-59

Authors: Shreesha Uprety

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) test hundreds of thousands of genetic variants across many genomes to find those statistically associated with a specific trait or disease. A Comprehensive review of studies on biotic resistance, abiotic tolerance, yield-associated characteristics, and metabolic composition is provided. Genome-wide SNP maps have characterized population structure concerning the geographic origin and morphological type and identified patterns of ancient crop diffusion to diverse agroclimatic regions. To better understand the genomic patterns of crop diversification, nucleotide diversity variation, linkage disequilibrium, and recombination rates across the genome are quantified. Results from GWAS can be used for a range of applications. The GWAS approach has proven highly suitable for identifying common SNP-based variants with moderate to significant effects on phenotype. However, the genetic factors underlying some of these associations have been characterized. The vast majority remain unexplained. The development of next-generation sequencing and bioinformatics tools has dramatically improved and is currently being implemented to decipher the genetic diversity of targeted traits. The significant drawbacks are the need for large population size, the cost of preparing DNA samples, and less knowledge about the risk of the quality. To overcome this drawback, researchers have upgraded the statistical approaches, proper imputation of genotypes, and advanced approaches such as nested association mapping and candidate gene association mapping. The primary benefit is one-time genotyping and repeated phenotyping in different environmental conditions.

66-77

Authors: Sharmila Sigdel, Aruna Khanal, Subhash Kumar Thakur

The clinical impact of β-lactamase has become a public health problem around the world in terms of increased morbidity and mortality, especially in the child population. This study was aimed at determining the bacteriological profile and detection of β-lactamase producing bacteria isolated from the blood samples of neonates. For this study, a total of 1335 blood samples of neonates admitted in NICU, SCBU, and sepsis-suspected neonates visiting Paropakar Maternity and Women’s Hospital, Thapathali, Kathmandu, Nepal were collected and processed. Blood culture was performed and the identification of bacteria was done by following standard microbiological methods. Antibiotic susceptibility testing was done by using the Kirby Bauer Disk Diffusion method and confirmation of ESBL, MBL, and KPC-producing bacteria was done by Combined Disk Test. The prevalence rate of neonatal sepsis was found to be 17%. K. pneumoniae 116 (50.2%) was the predominant Gram-negative bacteria followed by K. oxytoca 31 (13.4%) whereas S. aureus 39 (16.9%) was the predominant Gram-positive bacteria causing neonatal sepsis. Among 182 Gram-negative bacterial isolates, 69 (37.9%), 22 (12.1%), and 14(31.1%) were found to be ESBL, MBL, and KPC producers respectively. K. oxytoca (54.8%), Enterobacter spp. (25%) and Citrobacter spp. (14.3%) were the predominant ESBL, MBL, and KPC producers respectively. The co-production of ESBL, MBL, and KPC was also found among the 5 Gram-negative bacteria. Colistin, Meropenem, and Imipenem seem to be the choice of the drug against Gram-negative bacteria, whereas Vancomycin and Cefoxitin seem to be the choice of the drug against Gram-positive bacteria. Therefore, to lessen the burden of antibiotic resistance, it is essential to conduct regular antimicrobial susceptibility surveillance, periodic reviews of hospital settings, and early detection of beta-lactamase-producing bacteria.

85-98

Authors: Garima Lo Tamang, Bijaya Adhikari, Mahesh Shrestha, Achut Ram Pradhananga, Bindra Devi Shakya, Dipesh Raj Pant, Ramesh Kaji Shakya, Jasana Maharjan, Sudarshana Shakya, Pawan Raj Shakya

In this study, concentrations of Cd, Cr, Mn, Pb, and Zn were determined by flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer (FAAS) in edible muscle tissues of a total of 25 fish samples belonging to five fish species viz., Hypophthalmichthys nobilis (Bighead), Wallago attu (Buhari), Catla catla (Catla), Clarias batrachus (Mugree), and Labeo rohita (Rohu) marketed in Kathmandu, Nepal and evaluated potential health risks for adults using USEPA deterministic approaches. The average metal accumulation in all fish species followed the order of Zn (27.89) > Mn (5.36) > Pb (2.37) > Cr (1.12) > Cd (0.44) mg/kg, exceeding the FAO/WHO guidelines except for Zn. Likewise, the sum of average metal concentrations (∑5HM) followed the descending order of C. catla (49.61) > C. batrachus (44.49) > W. attu (34.51)> H. nobilis (32.10) > L. rohita (25.18) mg/kg. The correlation matrix showed significant correlations among some HMs indicating their common sources of origin in the examined fish species. The estimated daily intakes (EDIs) of HMs were lower than the maximum tolerable daily intake (MTDI). The target hazard quotients (THQs) of a single element in all fish species were less than 1.0 while the total target hazard quotients (TTHQs) in C. batrachus, C. catla, and H. nobilis exceeded the safe limit of 1.0 suggesting a potential non-carcinogenic risk. Moreover, the target cancer risks (TRs) of Cd and Cr were higher than the acceptable risk limit (10−4) in all fish species suggesting that their consumption might pose a lifetime cancer risk for adults. Therefore, the study recommends regular monitoring of HMs in commercial fish to ensure the safety of consumer health.

106-115

Authors: Shishir Dahal, Bijaya Dangi, Raman Kumar Dangi, Prakash Bista, Ashmita Sharma Upadhyaya, Sunita Bharati, Sunil Dulal

Mandarin (Citrus reticulata) is the major sub-tropical fruit popularly grown in slopy terraces of mid-hills which has high domestic and foreign market potentialities. Scientific studies are hardly carried out to assess the socio-economic aspects of mandarin production in this area. So, this research was aimed to assess the production and profitability of mandarin production in Salyan district. For this, 61 respondents of Baghchaur municipality and 59 of Chhatreshwari rural municipality were selected using random sampling procedure which makes altogether 120 respondents in the study area. Pretested semi structured questionnaire were asked with farm decision makers for primary data collection. Collected data were encoded in MS excel version 2021, and required inferences on socio-economic and demographic characteristics, BC ratio, cobb-douglas production function and problem ranking were made by using SPSS version 26. Independent t test was used to compare the means between two municipalities. The results revealed that the annual mandarin production was 3560.58 Kgs per household with productivity of 14.60 tons per hectare. Average annual variable cost of production and revenue were NRs 227309.41 and NRs 988963.52 per hectare respectively. BC ratio was 5.07 indicating it as profitable business with the benefit of NRs 4.07 per rupee invested. Among the various determinants, cost of organic manure, human labor and plant protection materials had significantly increased while cost of irrigation had decreased the returns from the enterprise at different significance levels. The return of scale was 0.936 indicating decreasing rate of return of mandarin production.