A.A.M. Mohammad Mustakim¹, Md. Al Amin Khan², Khandoker Khalid Ahmed³, Asma Anwari⁴, Md. Toufiqur Rashid⁵, Md. Anarul Islam⁴, Rumana Akter⁶

¹Plant Physiology Division, ²Plant Breeding, Regional Spices Research Center, ³Adaptive Research Division, ⁴Pomology Division, Horticulture Research Center, ⁵Floriculture Division, Horticulture Research Center, ⁶Plant Pathology Division, Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI), Gazipur

High  yield  potential  genotypes  are  required  to  increase  the  cultivation  and  production  of wheat  in  Bangladesh.  With  a  view  to  identify  such  genotypes,  this  study  was  conducted consisting 170  wheat  (Triticum aestivum  L.)  genotypes.  Seventeen quantitative variables were included in the descriptive analysis of which eight were considered in the multivariate analysis i.e. cluster analysis, discriminant function analysis (DFA). A wide range of variation was found for all most all the quantitative plant characters studied. According to the correlation study between plant characters showed that plants tend to emerge earlier in the phonological cycle become earlier in producing flowers and seed yield is higher in early emergence plants. Seed yield of wheat is the product of effective tiller plant^-1, 1000 seed weight and harvest index. The genotypes were grouped into seven clusters using K-mean clustering.  Maximum number of genotypes (52) was concentrated in cluster 6 followed by cluster 4 (29), 1 (23), 7(23), 2 (19), 5 (17) and 3 (7). The clustering pattern of the genotypes revealed that  genotypes under cluster 6 and cluster 7 were  early flowering,  early days  to  50%  flowering  and  early  maturing  with  higher  number  of  tiller  plant^-1. They also possess highest seed yield compared to other clusters. Classification matrix showed that 98.2% of the genotypes were correctly assigned to clusters. The genotype no 142 (2344) in group 1, the genotype no 94 (2080) in group 2, the genotype no 68 (1990) in group 3, the genotype no 46 (1688) in group 4, the genotype no 81 (2027) in group 5, the genotype no 165 (2481) in group 6 and the genotype no 53 (1751) in group 7 might be considered as more representative of their respective groups. The result clearly showed that the genotypes under group 6 and group 7 were early emergence, early flowering and produced higher seed yield. From the result it was observed that harvest index was placed at the top of the list of discriminatory variables with correlation coefficient of 0.943 under function 1. It indicates that harvest index played the most dominant role out of 8 variables in explaining the maximum variance in 170 genotypes by stepwise DFA.

Keywords: Phenological diversity, Wheat genotype, Discriminant function analysis.

Corresponding author.
E-mail address:mmm007.bari@gmail.com (AAMM Mustakim)

How to cite this article:  Mustakim AAMM, Khan MAA, Ahmed KK, Anwari A, Rashid MT, Islam MA and Akter R (2024). Study of phenological diversity of wheat genotype by discriminant function analysis. International Journal of Natural and Social Sciences, 11(1): 01-11. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.12662429.

Mst Arzina Khatun, Mst Monowara Begum, Sharnolata Roy, Afrin Jahan, Hafiza Sultana 

Department of Health Education, National Institute of Preventive and Social Medicine (NIPSOM), Mohakhali, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus. The ability to limit the transmission of COVID-19 in the healthcare setting requires infection prevention and control measures, of which Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is a fundamental element. The objective of the study was to assess the level of knowledge and practices on PPE among nurses during COVID-19 pandemic in tertiary level hospital. This cross-sectional study was conducted among 185 nurses working in M Abdur Rahim Medical College Hospital, Dinajpur from 1st January to 31^st December, 2020. Purposive sampling was adopted and semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect data from the respondents. The mean age of nurses was 30.60 (±5.53) years where 167 (90.3%) were female. Most of the nurses 179 (96.8%) had no training on PPE use. In the hospital, 149 (80.5%) nurses always had easy access of PPE while 36 (19.5%) sometimes had easy access of PPE. The study found that 113 (61.1%) nurses had good knowledge on PPE while 72 (38.9%) had poor knowledge on PPE. Among the nurses, 146 (78.9%) worn gown properly, 134 (72.4%) worn mask properly, 174 (94.1%) worn gloves properly. However, 106 (57.3%) nurses worn surgical cap or hood properly, 111 (60.0%) worn shoe cover properly. Out of 185 nurses, 56.6% had good practice on PPE and 45.4% had poor practice on PPE. Level of knowledge was significantly associated with availability of PPE (p=0.004) and working department (p<0.001). Level of practice was significantly associated with work experience (p=0.008), availability of PPE (p<0.001), working department (p<0.001) and level of knowledge (p<0.001). The nurses caring for patients with COVID-19 had good level of knowledge and practice on PPE. Training sessions regarding the use of PPE, along with adequate supply of PPE, should be implemented to ensure maintenance of appropriate practices during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Keywords: Coronavirus disease, COVID-19, Knowledge, Practices, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).

Corresponding author.
E-mail address: mstarzinakhatun497@gmail.com (Mst Arzina Khatun)

How to cite this article: Khatun MA, Begum MM, Roy S, Jahan A and Sultana H (2024). Knowledge and practices on personal protective equipment among nurses working in selected tertiary level hospital during COVID-19 pandemic. International Journal of Natural and Social Sciences, 11(1): 12-20. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.11601897.

Md. Delwar Hossen¹, Suman Kumer Paul², Dilruba Parvin¹, Md. Shahadat Hossain¹, Sharmin Shahid Labony¹, Anisuzzaman¹, Ausraful Islam^1,3 

¹Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Science, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh-2202, Bangladesh
²Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Veterinary Science, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh-2202, Bangladesh
³Program Officer, Mennonite Central Committee, Bangladesh (MCC,B)

In Bangladesh, rabbit is not only reared as pets but also rabbit farming is expanding to supplement the animal protein. Rabbits are reared in semi-intensive manner where they have limited access to the yards and allowed to graze, which acts as source of helminth infection. Here, we report gastrointestinal helminth (GITH) infection in domesticated rabbits along with anthelmintic efficacy at Modhupur in Tangail district, Bangladesh. Through coprological examination, we identified ova of three helminths such as Graphidium sp., Trichostrongylus sp., and Strongyloides sp. We evaluated three commercially available anthelmintics such as ivermectin (IVM), piperazine (PPZ) citrate, and fenbendazole (FBZ) in three groups of naturally infected rabbits, each consisting of five animals. An untreated infected group of animals served as a control. Our study revealed that IVM was 100% effective against all nematodes and provided protection up to 30 days. Piperazine showed 100% efficacy against Trichostrongylus sp. and Strongyloides sp. but FBZ was 100% effective against all helminths up to 15 days. Rabbits treated with IVM, PPZ, and FBZ were free from Trichostrongylus sp. and Strongyloides sp. up to more than 75 days on average. The rabbits treated with FBZ were free from any helminths for the longest duration, up to 72 days. The rabbits treated with IVM or PPZ were free from helminths up to 67 days and 64 days, respectively. In conclusion, these three drugs can be used against common nematode infections in rabbits at two months interval.

Keywords: Rabbit, anthelmintics, helminths, parasites, efficacy.

Corresponding author.
E-mail address: rajibdvmpara@gmail.com (Ausraful Islam)

How to cite this article: Hossen MD, Paul SK, Parvin D, Hossain MS, Labony SS, Anisuzzaman and Islam A (2024). Efficacy of anthelmintics against naturally infected helminths in rabbits. International Journal of Natural and Social Sciences, 11(1): 21-26. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.11553649

Tanwne Sarker¹, Sabina Yeasmin²

¹Department of Sociology and Rural Development, Khulna Agricultural University, Khulna, 9100, Bangladesh
²Open School, Bangladesh Open University, Gazipur 1705, Bangladesh

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus. The ability to limit the transmission of COVID-19 in the healthcare setting requires infection prevention and control measures, of which Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is a fundamental element. The objective of the study was to assess the level of knowledge and practices on PPE among nurses during COVID-19 pandemic in tertiary level hospital. This cross-sectional study was conducted among 185 nurses working in M Abdur Rahim Medical College Hospital, Dinajpur from 1st January to 31^st December, 2020. Purposive sampling was adopted and semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect data from the respondents. The mean age of nurses was 30.60 (±5.53) years where 167 (90.3%) were female. Most of the nurses 179 (96.8%) had no training on PPE use. In the hospital, 149 (80.5%) nurses always had easy access of PPE while 36 (19.5%) sometimes had easy access of PPE. The study found that 113 (61.1%) nurses had good knowledge on PPE while 72 (38.9%) had poor knowledge on PPE. Among the nurses, 146 (78.9%) worn gown properly, 134 (72.4%) worn mask properly, 174 (94.1%) worn gloves properly. However, 106 (57.3%) nurses worn surgical cap or hood properly, 111 (60.0%) worn shoe cover properly. Out of 185 nurses, 56.6% had good practice on PPE and 45.4% had poor practice on PPE. Level of knowledge was significantly associated with availability of PPE (p=0.004) and working department (p<0.001). Level of practice was significantly associated with work experience (p=0.008), availability of PPE (p<0.001), working department (p<0.001) and level of knowledge (p<0.001). The nurses caring for patients with COVID-19 had good level of knowledge and practice on PPE. Training sessions regarding the use of PPE, along with adequate supply of PPE, should be implemented to ensure maintenance of appropriate practices during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Keywords: Social capital, women’s entrepreneurship, poverty alleviation, rural Bangladesh.

Corresponding author.
E-mail address: tanwnesarker@kau.ac.bd (Tanwne Sarker)

How to cite this article: Sarker T and Yeasmin S (2024). Impact of social capital and innovation on women’s entrepreneurship and poverty alleviation in rural Bangladesh. International Journal of Natural and Social Sciences, 11(1): 27-38. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.12593137

Nusrat Jahan, Faria Haque Antora, Mst. Moriom Akhter Mim, Mm. Kamrul Hassan Tuhin, Md. Nazmul Hasan Siddiqi, Morsheda Nasrin

Department of Anatomy and Histology, Faculty of Veterinary Science, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh-2202

This study aimed to assess the status of quail production, its problems, and prospects in Jhenaidah Sadar Upazila. The present study was conducted at 10 randomly selected quail farms under Jhenaidah Sadar Upazila, Jhenaidah from 20 November 2019 to 20 May 2020. Data were gathered using a structured questionnaire through face-to-face interviews and observation and analyzed using Microsoft Excel 2019. The results showed that 80% of the quail farmers were male and 20% were female. In this study, 80% of the quail farmers used quail farming as their primary source of income generation who belonged to the age group between 20-40 years old. The purpose/pattern of quail farming was categorized as Layer and hatching, Meat production, and Mixed of both. Around 30% of the farmers reared quail for egg production and hatching, 10% of farmers reared for meat, and others (70%) raised it for both purposes.60% of farmers were medium-scale producers with a flock size of 500-1000 birds. The rearing system was floor type (100%) and the feed was crumble type (80%).This study found that most of the farmers kept male and female quails together in the same pen at an average male-to-female ratio of 1:3 for producing fertilized eggs. Mainly two marketing channels (wholesalers/retailers and both types) were available for quail farming in Jhenaidah Sadar Upazila. The study also showed that 60 % of farmers cleaned their farms and 40% had maintained vaccination schedules regularly. The causes of mortality of quails were recorded due to diseases (35%) and poor management (65%). All observed farm owners reared Japanese quail for their better production and adaptability. By taking soft loans from Govt. and various NGOs in Jhenaidah Sadar, most of the people are running their quail farms. But the quail industry was not yet popular like the chicken industry and the following problems were identified: poor marketing channels, subsistence farming, lack of specialized feed, lack of available day-old chicks, high chick mortality, etc. Scientific feeding, training the farmers about their management, and creating an organized marketing channel will be the probable solution for vitalizing this species in Bangladesh.

Keywords: Quail farming, Problems, Prospects, Marketing channel.

Corresponding author.
E-mail address: morsheda.vah@bau.edu.bd (Morsheda Nasrin)

How to cite this article: Jahan N, Antora FH, Mim MMA, Tuhin MKH, Siddiqi MNH and Nasrin M (2024). Prospects and problems of quail farming at Jhenaidah Sadar Upazila, Bangladesh. International Journal of Natural and Social Sciences, 11(1): 39-48. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.12689587