This study was conducted to determine the effect of zinc on the productive performances, carcass yield and blood profiles of broilers. Experiment was done for a period of 35 days with a number of 60, day old broiler chicks. Birds were divided into four dietary treatment groups with 3 replications each having 5 birds per replication. The dietary treatment groups were; T0 (basal diet; no zinc), T1 (basal diet + 50 mg zinc/kg feed), T2 (basal diet + 100 mg zinc/kg feed), T3 (basal diet + 150 mg zinc/kg feed). Results revealed that body weight and body weight gain were significantly increased in the zinc supplemented group compared to the control group. Higher feed intake and better FE were also observed in the zinc supplemented group than the control group and the best performance was observed in the group fed 150mg zinc/kg feed (T3). Carcass yield was significantly higher in the groups fed dietary zinc. Net profit was slightly higher in the T3 group but not significantly (P.0.05) differed with the control group. However, T1 and T2 showed less profit even than the control group. Blood profile of the experimental birds including Hb, PCV, and ESR did not significantly differ among the groups. The results indicate that the addition of zinc in the broiler diet improves productive performances, carcass yield and increases net profit without affecting the health status of broiler. So, zinc can be used as an effective and useful micronutrient to improve the performances of broiler.

In the present study, the seaweeds belong to Phaeophyaceae (Cystoseira elegans Sauvageau 1912, Cystoseira amentacea (C.Agardh) Bory 1832, Padina crassa Yamada 1931) and Florideophyceae (Corallina elongata J.Ellis & Solander 1786) collected from nearby Iskenderun-Turkey of Mediterranean Sea were detected for their antimicrobial activities against seven bacterial strains (Escherichia coli ATCC 35218, Bacillus cereus NRRL B-371, Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853, Klebsiella pneumoniae ATCC 13883, Salmonella typhimurium ATCC 14028, Proteus vulgaris RSKK 96029). The antimicrobial activities were expressed as minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) and minimum bactericidal concentrations (MBCs). According to the results obtained from MICs and MBCs values of the extracts on pathogenic microorganisms were between 0.78 to 50 mg/mL. The lowest MICs and MBCs values were recorded for C. elegans extract against B. cereus with a MIC value of 0.78 mg/mL. These results suggest that secondary metabolites of brown and red algae are important sources that could be used as broad spectrum of biological and pharmaceutical activities.

Direct Seeded Rice (DSR) is an alternative cultivation technique to the conventional Transplanted Rice (TPR). In this method, seeds are directly sown to the field without the necessity of nursery raising and transplanting. DSR can generally be divided into dry-DSR (sowing dry seeds in dry soil), wet-DSR (sowing pre-germinated seeds in moist soil) and water-seeding (sowing dry or pre-germinated seeds in standing water). This helps in saving water alongside the labour and results in early harvest due to quick crop establishment. DSR is proved to be sustainable and eco-friendly since it emits less methane than in TPR. However, there are few constraints associated with DSR such as weed infestation, crop lodging and nutrient loss. If these major issues are fixed, DSR can result in greater economic returns as compared to TPR. In absence of puddling, the soil structure can be maintained which leads to greater yields of succeeding crops. This technique has been successfully practiced in many countries like Srilanka, Malaysia and USA. In developing nations like Nepal, irrigation and labour constraints can be tackled by adopting direct-seeding for rice cultivation.

The objective of this study was to develop mathematical functions to predict deflection for radial and bias tires. In order to develop the models, the data were obtained from the tire manufacturing companies and organized in Excel first and then transferred to Minitab® for stepwise regression analysis. The variables considered in the study were inflation pressure, load and tire width and overall diameter. Tire width (w) and overall diameter (d) was considered in a multiplication form. The tire deflection models in two different form (linear and non-linear) were developed for both, radial and bias tires. The model selection was achieved by three different criteria and % differences between the measured and predicted data. Based on the results of applying model selection criteria, the models for radial and bias tire in non-linear form were found to be adequate for predicting the tire deflection. The results from the stepwise analysis indicated that the load on tire was the predominant variable in the models and made the highest contribution to the prediction functions. The developed models were verified against to published literature data and found a good agreement.

Listeria monocytogenes is a foodborne pathogen frequently isolated from food that causes different public health problems. In recent years, antibiotic resistance of pathogens has become an important problem affecting human health. For this reason, it is crucial to develop an alternative to antibiotics. Thus, the antibacterial effects of herbal extracts and essential oils are frequently investigated. In this article, the antibacterial activity of extracts obtained from 16 different herbs using ethanol, chloroform, acetone, and distilled water was evaluated against L. monocytogenes strains. The extract showing the highest antibacterial effect against L. monocytogenes was St. John’s Wort extracted in ethanol (31.72 ±0.52 mm). In addition, Myrtus leaf extracted in ethanol (27.2 ±0.52 mm) and St. John’s Wort extracted in acetone (25.6 ±0.52 mm) showed a high antibacterial effect against L. monocytogenes compared to other extracts. In the study, the solvent ethanol in which St. John’s Wort and Myrtus leaf were extracted showed the highest antibacterial activity. In contrast, the solvent that rosemary extract showed the highest antibacterial effect was acetone. However, the most antibacterial herb extracted in distilled water was peppermint (7.03 ±0.52 mm). The extracts of marjoram and yarrow did not show any antibacterial effect in any solvent used in the study. In conclusion, more studies are needed to determine the antibacterial effects of herbal extracts against pathogens in foods and their use.

Bovine and caprine mastitis is a dreadful bacterial disease that drastically lowers milk production, and presently it is spreading as an endemic pathogen throughout the world, including Bangladesh. Moreover, mastitis is the main impediment to Bangladesh’s tremendously rising milk-related industry and general livestock economy. Therefore, the aim of this study is to demonstrate the overall prevalence of clinical and sub-clinical mastitis in both dairy cows and goats. It is the foremost meta-analysis study regarding mastitis prevalence in Bangladesh and the study gathered the articles from the electronic database on the topic bovine and caprine mastitis published between January 2005 and November 2020. Finally, 33 articles were selected for estimating the overall prevalence rate of mastitis in ruminant (cow and goat) via random effect model estimation. Analyzing the result, the study found 43.0% (95% Cl: 37.0 - 50.0%) and 31.0% (95% Cl: 15.0 - 47.0%) prevalence rate in dairy cattle and goat. Statistically, the occurrence rate in Bangladesh is significantly higher than other countries. Although many studies showed the seroprevalence across different districts, this study demonstrates the aggregate incidence rates across Bangladesh as a whole. This paper may also serve as a reference point for the implementation of any control strategy of mastitis in Bangladesh.

In the study, it was aimed to reveal the morphological, morphometric and histological characteristics of sinus interdigitalis found in the fore and hind feet of Konya merino sheep. For this purpose, the fore and hind feet of 10 Konya merino sheep, weighing between 44-79 kg, were used. Sinus interdigitalis were dissected out from the feet, and after morphometric measurements were made, morphological examinations were performed and photographed. The shape of the sinus interdigitalis, present in all the forefeet and hind feet, resembled a pipe consisting of neck and body. It was determined that the neck part was longer than the body at all feet. The inner surface of the gland was covered with hair, and there was more hair on the neck than on the body. The weight of the gland, body length and diameter, flexura, canal length and diameter were measured morphometrically. In the measurements made, it was determined that all the values of the forefeet were higher than the hind feet. In histological examination, it was found that the wall of the sinus interdigitalis consists of three layers: epidermis, dermis and fibrous capsule, and in the dermis, hair follicles, sebaceous glands, m. arrector pili and sweat glands were found.

Faba bean is the most important legume grown in Ethiopia. But, insect pests have been causing its substantial loss under farmers’ storages. A survey to assess the farmers’ pest protection practices of stored faba bean was conducted in its selected major growing peasant associations of the Farta District from 4 January 2019 – 15 May 2020. Semi-structured questionnaires and farmers’ participatory discussion were used to conduct the study. Accordingly, the majority of farmers (66.7%) harvested their grain in usual time (in December) fearing insect pests infestation. A substantial proportion of the farmers (25%) used a combination of cultural and botanical methods, followed by botanicals (20.83%) for grains protection. Eucalyptus globlus, Croton macrostachyus and Otostegia tomentosa were the three most commonly used botanicals and suggested to be potent. Threshing was done most commonly by livestock (66.7%), followed by beating with sticks (25%) both of which are not recommended as they might lead to grain losses. The insect infestation level was high in threshed and un-threshed forms of faba beans after 3 and 7 months storage periods, respectively. Consequently, the farmers’ traditional practices were ineffectual for storing beans for longer periods. Therefore, planning pest management strategies of stored beans are desirable.

Heavy metal toxicity can either be acute or chronic effects. Long-term exposure of the body to heavy metal can progressively lead to muscular, physical and neurological degenerative process. In this research, a total of 30 representative chocolate samples were collected from local shops and markets in Lahore. All the samples were analysed to assess the levels of Lead (Pb), Nickel (Ni), Chromium (Cr) and Cadmium (Cd) by using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer in Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (PCSIR), Lahore. It was observed that the majority of chocolate samples contain heavy metals levels higher than the permissible limits as recommended by Punjab Food Rules (PFR) 2011. The levels of Pb ranged between 0.375 and 3.4 mg/kg with 90% samples having concentrations exceeding PFR allowable limit (0.5 mg/kg). Whereas, Ni concentrations varied from 0.005 to 0.28 mg/kg and 80% samples were above the PFR limit (0.025 mg/kg). Further, Cr levels analysed between 0.005 to 0.28 mg/kg and 53% samples had Cr concentrations higher than PFR limit (0.02 mg/kg). Similarly, Cd levels were observed between 0.50-3.25 mg/kg with 53% samples having Cd concentrations exceeding the PFR limit (1.0 mg/kg). Investigation indicates that the quality of available chocolates is not recommendable for eating because of the higher concentrations of toxic heavy metals.