Sylhet Agricultural University

Urban consumers’ concerns have focused attention on whether a food traceability system should be implemented in Bangladesh to minimize the production and distribution of unsafe and poor-quality food products. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 220 consumers in two main cities Dhaka and Mymensingh of Bangladesh to examine the traceability system in the vegetable supply chain from an ex-ante perspective. The objective is to identify the preferences and willingness to pay (WTP) for the traceability attributes and examine the factors influencing their WTP for traceable vegetables. The results show that over 90% of the consumers put their emphasis on traceability attributes associated with: pesticides and last date of spraying information, fertilizer information, and harvest date. On the other hand, over 85% of consumers showed interest in GM information of vegetables. The mean WTP is found to be 5.84 Tk. (US$0.068) and 5.90 Tk. (US$0.069) per kg respectively for brinjal and tomatoes. This reflects a 19.5% and 19.7% additional monetary payment over and above the purchase price for conventional brinjal and tomatoes respectively. The empirical findings indicate that income and quality perception scores have positive and significant effects on consumer WTP for traceable brinjal and tomatoes.

The objective of this study was to figure out the prevalence and probable causes of repeat breeding (RB) in dairy cows. Hence, a cross-sectional study was conducted on randomly selected 265 dairy farms in Sirajganj, Bogura, Rangpur, Satkhira, and Munshiganj districts of Bangladesh from December 2018 to February 2019. Data were collected through a direct interview method using a survey questionnaire. The reproductive organs of repeat breeder cows were examined for pathological, infectious, and functional reasons, and genital tract abnormalities. Additionally, the influence of nutrition, season, and age on the frequency of RB was recorded. The prevalence of RB was 28% among the 3824 cows investigated. Among the total repeat breeder cases, 72.54% of RB cases were found in Holstein–Friesian crossbred, 23.90% in Jersey crossbred, 1.50% in Sahiwal crossbred, and 2.06% in indigenous cows. The prevalence of RB was significantly highest (P < 0.01) in Satkhira (44.35%) and lowest in the Munshiganj district (15.87%). Data indicated that a major proportion of cows significantly (P < 0.05) faced RB problems due to functional causes (34.18%), followed by pathological causes (28.01%), genital tract abnormalities (21.32%), and infectious causes (16.49%). Furthermore, the cows were remarkably (P < 0.001) affected in RB during the summer season and nutritional deficient diseases like milk fever (70%). Age (3–7 years) had a significant (P < 0.001) effect on the RB occurrence (90%) in crossbred cows. However, particular focus should be given to systematic breeding, balanced nutrition, artificial inseminator efficiency, and hygienic inseminating tools to reduce RB incidence in high-yielding crossbred cows.

Black solider fly (BSF) (Hermetia illucens L) is one of the potential organic protein sources which is utilised as feed for fish and poultry industries. Effective mass rearing of BSF is inevitable for future sustainable feed industries in Bangladesh. Therefore, this research was aimed at developing the sustainable mass rearing techniques for this insect’s larvae on different available food waste materials in the Bangladesh context. The study was conducted using different household waste, i.e. Rice-Fruit-Meat; Rice-Fruit-Fish; Rice-Vegetable-Meat; Rice-Vegetable-Fish; Rice-Fruit-Vegetable-Meat; and Rice-Fruit-Vegetable-Fish. Larvae reared on Rice-Fruit-Vegetable-Fish diet showed the best results among the treatments in terms of larval growth, i.e. length 23.3±0.1 mm and width 6.2±0.1 mm. The Rice-Fruit-Fish diet showed the minimum larval length (19.5±0.1 mm) and Rice-Fruit-Meat diet showed the minimum larval width (5.6±0.1 mm) compared to the other diets. Among these diets, Rice-Fruit-Vegetable-Fish diet gave the highest larval fresh weight (2.6±0.1 mg) compared to other treatments. In addition, the Rice-Fruit-Vegetable-Fish diet took less time (45.6±0.7 days) to complete its total life span, while the Rice-Fruit-Fish diet took more time (51.3±1.3 days). The absence of Fruit-Vegetable combination in diets could greatly affect the larval growth and development. It can be concluded that the diet combination of Rice-Fruit-Vegetable-Fish can be utilised for better mass production of BSF for sustainable feed production in Bangladesh.

Maize is a major consumable cereal crop and a resource of a range of economic products worldwide. Approximately, 55%, 20%, and 12% of maize are utilized for feed, nonfood products, and food purposes, respectively. Consumption of maize is expected to increase in many Asian and African countries, where yield is estimated to be double by 2030. Biotechnology contributes largely to the maize improvement to meet the growing demand. Molecular marker technologies have facilitated rapid improvements in maize breeding by characterizing germplasm, verifying pedigree records, classifying inbred on the basis of heterosis, figuring out what causes heterosis and how to predict it, finding and localizing genes, and using marker-assisted selection. The advent of sequencing and genomic technologies, bioengineering techniques such as genetic transformation and CRISPR-Cas genome editing, and the establishment of advanced molecular breeding methodologies using genomic information have a large influence on maize breeding. The advancement of informatics and biotechnology has led to the development of several bioinformatic tools that are extensively been utilized by maize researchers for successful molecular breeding. Furthermore, modern biotechnology offers a revolutionary platform like nanobiotechnology for increasing maize genetic gain by delivering a specific gene or QTL (quantitative trait locus) to develop plants having novel traits. This chapter provides an overview and discusses current biotechnological advancement in maize research that may bring potential opportunities for the improvement of this crop in the changing climate.

Due to the sustainability aspects, the shift toward plant‐based foods has largely increased the global awareness of the potential role of legumes and pulses in nutritional diet over the past years. In favor of the versatile use of nutritionally rich lablab bean (Lablab purpureus L) seeds in food manufacturing industries, this study detailed the insights into the development of protein rich biscuits formulated with lablab bean seed powder linking with the drying kinetics of lablab bean seed. Results showed the higher drying rate for uncoated lablab bean seeds paste than the coated samples. Four samples of biscuit containing 0%, 5%, 10%, and 15% lablab bean seeds powder were formulated. The protein, crude fiber, and ash content of biscuits increased significantly (p<0.05) up to 9.92 ± 0.12%, 1.84 ± 0.05%, and 1.39 ± 0.07% respectively with the addition of lablab bean seed powder. The spread ratio of biscuit decreased with the increase of bean seed powder concentration (%). Organoleptic analysis revealed that control and 5% bean seed powder added biscuit ranked similarly. The texture, color, and flavor of formulated biscuits changed marginally after five months of storage. The standard plate count and total fungal count were also within the acceptable limit for the storage period of up to 5 months.

Background Wild fish stocks continuously decline in Bangladeshi rivers and oxbow lakes. Small indigenous fish species management solely depends on their population status and conservation. This study aimed to determine the population status of Hyporhamphus limbatus, in Southwestern Bangladesh using conventional and truss morphological characteristics. Results A total of 174 fish samples were procured from monsoon season i.e., May to August 2018 the Bhairab River, BR; Kopotakkho River, KR; and Baluhar Baor, BB in Bangladesh. Five meristics, six conventional and twelve truss-based morphometric characters, were considered for stock identification. The Kruskal–Wallis test helped to analyze the meristic characters, while ANOVA, principal component analysis (PCA), discriminant function analysis (DFA), correct classification analysis using DFA, and a UPGMA dendrogram formation were used to investigate the conventional and truss measurements. By the Kruskal–Wallis test, no meristic characters showed significant differences across different populations. Eleven of the 18 morphometric measurements showed significant differences among three populations through the univariate ANOVA. PCA specified the population structure variations and explained 67.438% of the total variance. The first and second discrimination functions accounted for 78.3% and 21.7%, representing 100% of the group variability. Similarly, 85.6% of the grouped cases and 77.6% of cross-validated grouped cases were initially effectively represented by their correct number of individuals. A dendrogram based on morphometric (conventional and truss) displayed three stocks grouped into two clusters, with BR forming a distinct cluster, while KR and BB creating a shared cluster. Conclusion In conclusion, such morphological differences are most likely due to their distinctive ancestral origins. This study presents novel reports on the stock assessment of H. limbatus in their natural ecosystem. Furthermore, molecular research and an evaluation of the environmental impact on H. limbatus populations in Bangladesh are strongly recommended.

Background: Brucellosis is an emerging disease that causes a significant impact on productive and reproductive performance in dairy cattle. Though Brucella is a pivotal microorganism for dairy cattle, the scenario of brucellosis in Sylhet District is unknown. Objectives: A cross-sectional study was carried out to assess the prevalence and determinants associated with brucellosis in dairy cattle of Sylhet District. Methods: A total of 386 sera and data on determinants from 63 dairy herds were collected from 12 sub-districts using simple random sampling. The sera were tested with Rose Bengal Brucella antigen test, Brucella abortus plate agglutination test and serum agglutination test to find out the sero-positivity. Results: Overall, 17.09% (95% CI: 13.67-21.18) prevalence in cows were calculated. Relatively higher prevalence (56.08%; 95% CI: 42.23-70.32) was recorded in cows having parity ≥4 and were at higher risk (OR = 7.28) than the other cows with parity 0-3. Prevalence was significantly higher in cows with history of abortion 90.63% (95% CI: 75.79-96.76), repeat breeding 79.17% (95% CI: 65.74-88.27) and reproductive abnormalities 48.54% (95% CI: 39.12-58.07). Farm-level prevalence was high in farms with the previous history of abortion 95.45% (95% CI: 78.20-99.19) and repeat breeding 90.00% (95% CI: 74.38-96.54). Conclusions: The prevalence was high in Sylhet district, which might be a public health concern. Therefore, this study would represent the baseline information for guiding brucellosis control and prevention.

Abstract Background Atherosclerosis is arteries’ thickening and stiffening condition manifested due to plaque formation by oxidized-LDL of abundant and deranged lipid metabolism. Traditionally, Melastoma malabathricum Linn (MM) leaves are used for anti-diabetics, abdominal problems, and high blood pressure. The current experiment unveils the potency of ethanol, acetone, and water MM extracts as antibacterial agents and alternative medicine during hyperlipidemic conditions. Methods A high cholesterol diet (HCD-2500 mg/kg) was provided with regular feeds for 3 weeks to induce hyperlipidemic mice. Afterward, comparing weight with Group-A (normal control), the hyperlipidemic mice were classified into five groups: Group-B (hyperlipidemic control), Group-C (MFA-500 mg/kg), Group-D (MSE-250 mg/kg), Group-E (MSE-500 mg/kg), and Group-F (ATOVAT-20 mg/kg). And the dosages were given orally for 28 days according to their body weight. Fasting blood was collected at the end of treatment, and serum was taken to test lipid profiling and liver enzymes. Results The body mass had waxed significantly (P

Interspecific hybridization creates new genetic variants. Embryo formation and subsequently fertile seed development are the indicators of successful interspecific hybridization. Often interspecific hybridization is limited due to variations in genome and ploidy levels. The technique of embryo rescue is commonly used in interspecific hybridization to facilitate the survival of embryos from abortion. The effectiveness of an embryo rescue program in the Brassica species depends on embryo age, embryo development stage and media composition. Embryo rescue protocol could be effectively utilized to solve some major problems of the oilseed Brassica growers including blackleg, clubroot and Alternaria disease resistance, salinity, and drought tolerance etc. This review article discusses the prospects of developing novel Brassica hybrid genotypes with desirable traits through embryo rescue.

This study investigates the effects of COVID‐19 on fish consumption and nutrition intake based on a random survey of 247 fish consumers in Bangladesh. The Propensity Score Matching technique is used to compare fish consumption and fish‐sourced nutrition intake between two groups of consumers before and during COVID‐19. The result shows that 38% overall reduction in fish consumption for the low‐income group compared to lower‐middle, upper‐middle‐ and high‐income groups. Furthermore, per capita consumption of culture and capture fish species decreased significantly for low‐income, lower‐middle‐income, and upper‐middle‐income groups of consumers. It indicates that nutrition and mineral intake have reduced sharply as well Higher energy and K reduction are observed for Pangasius hypophthalmus among different culture fish species while energy and Ca reduction were higher for Wallago attu and Mystus vittatus respectively. Therefore, the government might place a greater emphasis on excluding the food supply chain from lockdown restrictions during a COVID‐19‐like pandemic.

Defensins are small cationic cysteine-rich and amphipathic peptides that form of three-dimensional β-strand structure connected by disulfide bonds. Defensins form key elements of the innate immune system of multicellular organisms. They not only possess broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity but also have diverse roles, including cell signaling, ion channel agitation, toxic functions, and enzyme inhibitor activities in various animals. Although the role of β-defensins in immune responses against infectious agents and reproduction could be significant, inadequate genomic information is available to explain the whole β-defensin repertoire in cattle. No domain or motif-based functional analyses have been previously reported. In addition, how do defensins possess this magnitude of functions in the immune system is still not clear. Our present study, therefore, investigated the sequence divergence and evolutionary relations of bovine defensin proteins with those of humans. Our domain-based evolutionary analysis revealed four major clusters with significant domain variation while reserving a main antimicrobial activity. Our study revealed the β-defensin domain as the ancestor domain, and it is preserved in the first group of defensin protein with no α-helix in its structure. Due to natural selection, some domains have evolved independently within clusters II and III, while some proteins have lost their domain characteristics. Cluster IV contains the most recently evolved domains. Some proteins of all but cluster I might have adopted the functional characteristics of α-defensins which is largely absent in cattle. The proteins show different patterns of disulfide bridges and multiple signature patterns which might render them specialized functions in different tissue to combat against various pathogens.

Subclinical mastitis (SCM) in water buffalo is responsible for reduced milk yield and quality. This cross-sectional study was carried out to a) estimate the prevalence of SCM, b) identify risk factors associated with SCM, and c) identify farm-level risk factors associated with bulk milk somatic cell count (BMSCC). The buffalo farms included in this study represented five rearing systems: free-range, semi-free-range, household, semi-intensive, and intensive, providing a total of 3491 functional quarters of 880 lactating buffalo on 248 farms. The California mastitis test score was used to identify SCM. Bulk milk samples (n = 242) were used for farm-level BMSCC. Quarter and buffalo-level risk factors for SCM were measured using questionnaires and observations. The overall SCM prevalence was high at 27.9% at the quarter-level (25th and 75th percentiles: 8.3% and 41.7%) and 51.5% at buffalo-level (25th and 75th percentiles: 33.3% and 66.7%). The geometric mean BMSCC was 217,000 cells/mL of milk (ranging from 36,000-1,213,000 cells/mL), which is low on average, but some farms could improve substantially. The buffalo rearing system, udder location (left versus right), teat shape, udder asymmetry, number of milkers, and having a quarantine facility were associated with buffalo udder health. Our findings suggest that mainly using free-range rearing systems may help decrease the prevalence of SCM primarily by employing buffalo breeding and better farm biosecurity, and udder health control strategies can be designed based on our findings.

Cyclospora cayetanensis infections, also known as cyclosporiasis, persist to be the prevalent emerging protozoan parasite and an opportunist that causes digestive illness in immunocompromised individuals. In contrast, this causal agent can affect people of all ages, with children and foreigners being the most susceptible populations. For most immunocompetent patients, the disease is self-limiting; in extreme circumstances, this illness can manifest as severe or persistent diarrhea as well as colonize on secondary digestive organs leading to death. According to recent reports, worldwide 3.55% of people are infected by this pathogen, with Asia and Africa being more prevalent. For the treatment, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole is the only licensed drug and does not appear to work as well in some patient populations. Therefore, the much more effective strategy to avoid this illness is immunization through the vaccine. This present study uses immunoinformatics for identifying a computational multi-epitope-based peptide vaccine candidate for Cyclospora cayetanensis. Following the review of the literature, a highly efficient, secure, and vaccine complex based on multi-epitopes was designed by utilizing the identified proteins. These selected proteins were then used to predict non-toxic and antigenic HTL-epitopes, B-cell-epitopes, and CTL-epitopes. Ultimately, both a few linkers and an adjuvant were combined to create a vaccine candidate with superior immunological epitopes. Then, to establish the vaccine-TLR complex binding constancy, the TLR receptor and vaccine candidates were placed into the FireDock, PatchDock, and ClusPro servers for molecular docking and iMODS server for molecular-dynamic simulation. Finally, this selected vaccine construct was cloned into Escherichia coli strain-K12; thus, the constructed vaccines against Cyclospora cayetanensiscould improve the host immune response and can be produced experimentally.

Globalization has resulted in an increasing worldwide movement of humans and animals as well as changes in the external environment, temperature, and social interactions, resulting in the accelerated emergence of new diseases in humans and dogs, such as Onchocerca lupi-caused ocular onchocerciasis. Presently, zoonotic onchocerciasis affects 15.5 million people globally; however, the lack of effective anthelmintics and vaccinations highlighted the disease as a global public health concern. Therefore, the current study offers computational methods for anticipating and creating a multi-epitope subunit vaccine targeting Onchocerca lupi by utilizing suitable linkers and adjuvants to combine CTL, HTL, and BCL epitopes. Three different vaccines (V1, V2, and V3) were designed using three distinct adjuvants and then the vaccine constructs antigenicity, solubility, and non-allergenicity were determined. Then, the physicochemical characteristics of the constructed vaccine candidates were analyzed, and also the tertiary structure of the vaccines was anticipated, which was later verified and refined. Molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulation results showed that the V1 vaccine constructs expected affinity and binding free energy for the dimeric state of human Toll-like receptor-4 (hTLR-4) were promising. These results indicate that the suggested vaccine candidate could probably enhance the immune response to Onchocerca lupi infection. The results should be confirmed in experimental studies.

Homestead agroforestry is one of the recognized agroforestry practices in Bangladesh. While the monoculture cropping system is enormously intensified, homestead agroforestry has added dimension to rapid economic growth. But despite having significance, homestead agroforestry is not gaining concern in further development. The study was done to bring this topic into focus by compiling the prospects of homestead agroforestry in Bangladesh by highlighting the significance and necessity. A secondary analysis was done by reviewing the findings to do this research. To collect paper keywords, “Bangladesh homestead agroforestry”, “Homestead agroforestry practices”, “Homestead agroforestry status”, “Homestead biodiversity’', “Homestead and SDGs,” “Dominant species,” and “Home garden agroforestry system” were entered. Following the PRISMA framework, 337 papers were collected, among which 113 met the inclusion or eligibility criteria. The interrelated publications of homestead agroforestry with SDGs were assessed from the 113 shortlisted articles. The interrelated publications assessment on homestead agroforestry in the context of Sustainable Development Goals figured out that major research output was oriented towards no poverty (44%), decent work and economic growth (27%), zero hunger (20%), indicating its link to achieve SDGs from Bangladesh perspectives. The shortlisted articles were reviewed in the context of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), food security, livelihood improvement, environmental resources conservation, and dominant species coverage. Consequently, the dominant species were tabulated along with their respective coverages according to their uses. The study identified that in all localities of Bangladesh, Mango, Areca, Coconut, and Mahogany are the highly preferred dominant species, while Jackfruit, Acacia, and Banana also prevailed. Hence, the study concluded that homestead agroforestry has significant prospects in food security, livelihood improvement, and environmental resources conservation, and its contribution to achieving Sustainable Development Goals cannot be ignored. But homestead agroforestry system is exposed to vulnerability due to constraints. The systematic elimination of prevailing constraints can help in successfully executing sustainable development goals, and fruitful consequences can be derived by imposing potential concerns on this sector.

An efficient seed marketing system is very crucial for boosting vegetable production in Bangladesh. This study evaluated the vegetable seed marketing channels in Bangladesh including profit margins of various traders and different problems faced by them. Primary data from 45 vegetable farmers and 30 seed traders in Rajshahi district were collected by face-to-face interview. Descriptive and profitability analysis were employed, while problem confrontation index (PCI) was used to rank the problems. The findings revealed that vegetable seeds were traded through six major marketing channels. Private agents supply the majority of seeds where dealers, wholesalers, retailers and farmers were the key actors in the channels. However, rural market traders had the highest marketing margin and terminal market traders had the lowest. BCR for terminal market traders was 1.53 that is highest among the traders’ categories where BCR for rural market traders was lowest (1.36). Lack of bank loan facilities, inadequate capital, lack of separate market place, and lack of technical know-how were the major ranked problems faced by traders. The study recommends providing credit facilities to the traders, arranging a separated market place and proper training to increase technical knowledge.

Worldwide, environmental sustainability is a hot topic, particularly in industrialized countries due to their higher emission intensity. Environmental conservation and equitable economic growth have been prioritized in economic debate and policy development. Over the past three decades, the USA’s emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2e) have risen exponentially, as trade policy uncertainty (TPU). In this circumstance, this paper aims to contribute to the existing literature by exploring the effect of TPU on environmental quality by controlling the energy consumption, economic growth, and population in the USA over the period 1985M1 to 2022M3 employing the augmented ARDL and NARDL procedures in the presence of structural breaks. From our analysis, the results revealed that TPU affects negatively CO2e in the residential sector, and negative changes in TPU positively affect CO2e in the commercial sector both in the long and short run. On the other side, the outcomes show that energy consumption is a crucial key determinant factor in environmental degradation at the aggregate level and in all sectors. Furthermore, our findings clarify that economic growth upsurges the CO2e at the aggregate level precisely in the industrial and residential sectors. Juxtaposing, in the long run, the results indicate that population growth could make additional pressure on environmental quality at the aggregate level, especially in commercial, power generation, and residential sectors. Accordingly, it is clear from our results that the regulations put in place to encourage Americans to buy locally created goods instead of those imported, especially in light of the high levels of TPU, maybe the best option to decrease the long-term impact of international trade on the environment to achieve sustainable development goals (SDGs).