Geospatial technology in agroforestry: status, prospects, and constraints.

Agroforestry has an indispensable role in food and livelihood security in addition to its capacity to combat the detrimental effects of climate change. However, agroforestry has not been properly promoted and exploited due to lack of precise extent, geographical distribution, and carbon sequestration (CS) assessment. The recent advent of geospatial technologies, as well as free availability of spatial data and software, can provide new insights into agroforestry resources assessment, decision-making, and policy development despite agroforestry's small spatial extent, isolated nature, and higher structural and functional complexity of agroforestry. In this review, the existing application of geospatial technologies together with its constraints and limitations as well as the potential future application for agroforestry has been discussed. The review reveals that the application of optical remote sensing in agroforestry includes spatial extent mapping, production of tree species spectral signature, CS assessment, and suitability mapping. Simultaneously, the recent surge in the use of synthetic aperture radar in conjunction with algorithms based on vegetation photosynthesis and optical data enables a more accurate estimation of gross primary productivity at different scales. However, unmanned aerial vehicles equipped with sensors, such as multispectral, LiDAR, hyperspectral, and thermal, offer a considerably higher potential and accuracy than satellite-based datasets. In the future, the health monitoring of agroforestry systems can be a key concern that may be addressed by utilizing hyperspectral and thermal datasets to analyze plant biochemistry, chlorophyll fluorescence, and water stress. Additionally, current (GEDI, ECOSTRESS) and future space agency missions (BIOMASS, FLEX, NISAR, TRISHNA) have enormous potential to shed fresh light on agroforestry systems.

Implementation of the Use of Ethnomedicinal Plants for Curing Diseases in the Indian Himalayas and Its Role in Sustainability of Livelihoods and Socioeconomic Development.

In recent times, the use of traditional herbal medicines in healthcare has declined, particularly amongst the rural population. This implies a risk of losing vital information from previous generations regarding plants and their use in traditional medicine. The objective of this study is to catalog the ways employed by inhabitants of the Garhwal Himalayas as part of their traditional approaches to healthcare. Information was gathered through snowball sampling using a questionnaire combined with informal interviews. This was supplemented by discussions with peers and practitioners prominent in this healing technique. The homogeneity within ethnomedicinal knowledge of these rural residents was tested using the informant consensus factor (Fic). The calculation of the fidelity value (FL) and the cultural importance index (CI) were made regarding the population's dependency on plants. A total of 88 plant species from 44 families and 80 genera were identified as medicines for various complaints. Leaves were the most frequently used plant part followed by fruits, seeds, roots, bark, and flowers/buds. The largest number of taxa (15 species) were used for treatment of skin ailments (with Fic score of 0.85) followed by wounds, coughs, and digestive problems. There was a significant relationship observed between the medicinal plants used and distance (time of access) and family income. The present study will provide baseline information to be established for future research. The available information could help to discover new drugs for the pharmaceutical industry. Thus, the study revealed that the plants that have high scores of FL and CI can be used to discover new drug extraction in the future for further studies.

Floristic composition and utilization of ethnomedicinal plant species in home gardens of the Eastern Himalaya.

BACKGROUND: Home gardens are popular micro land-use system and are socioeconomically linked with people for their livelihood. In the foothill region of Eastern Himalaya, very less documentations are available on species richness of the home gardens, particularly on the ethnomedicinal plants. We assumed that the home garden owners of the study site are domesticating ethnomedicinal plants which are not easily accessible to them in the wild due to distant forest. This study was planned to explore and document the diversity and population status of ethnomedicinal plants in the home gardens along with its ethnomedicinal use. METHODS: The present study was conducted in the home gardens of Cooch Behar district of West Bengal from May 2017 to May 2018. A multidisciplinary approach like collection of plant specimen, interview with structured questionnaire for documenting the utilization pattern, and quadrat methods for population study was applied. We selected 150 study sites randomly in the village cluster. The owners of the gardens were the respondents for the household survey. The study documented diversity, population size, and medicinal uses of ethnomedicinal plant species identified by the garden owners growing or being grown in their gardens. RESULTS: A total of 260 plant species were reported, of which, 53 were utilized for different ethnomedicinal applications. These 53 species were represented by 35 families and 45 genera. Most of these ethnomedicinal species were woody perennials (37.73%). Cocus nucifera dominated the list with highest number of use followed by Hibiscus rosa-sinensis. The use value of the species varied from 0.006 to 0.53, while the fidelity value (%) ranged from 2.29 to 93.75%. The leaves of the plants were mostly used for ethnomedicinal applications (19 species) followed by fruits (12 species) and bark (9 species), and the least was the root (7 species). We documented 20 different ailments/diseases cured by using these plants. In some cases, more than one species are used to cure a disease or ailment. As many as 10 species were used to cure only stomach-related problems. Some more diseases like cough and cold and jaundice were treated using six and four species, respectively. CONCLUSION: This documented list of 260 plant species including 53 ethnomedicinal ones from the home gardens of the study area indicates that these gardens are key in maintaining diversity and source of healthcare system in agricultural dominant landscape. Documenting such ecological status and traditional applications becomes a prerequisite for developing conservation and management strategies of home gardens to be included in the mainstream conservation processes.

Indigenous uses of ethnomedicinal plants among forest-dependent communities of Northern Bengal, India.

BACKGROUND: Traditional knowledge on ethnomedicinal plant is slowly eroding. The exploration, identification and documentation on utilization of ethnobotanic resources are essential for restoration and preservation of ethnomedicinal knowledge about the plants and conservation of these species for greater interest of human society. METHODS: The study was conducted at fringe areas of Chilapatta Reserve Forest in the foothills of the eastern sub-Himalayan mountain belts of West Bengal, India, from December 2014 to May 2016. Purposive sampling method was used for selection of area. From this area which is inhabited by aboriginal community of Indo-Mongoloid origin, 400 respondents including traditional medicinal practitioners were selected randomly for personal interview schedule through open-ended questionnaire. The questionnaire covered aspects like plant species used as ethnomedicines, plant parts used, procedure for dosage and therapy. RESULTS: A total number of 140 ethnomedicinal species was documented, in which the tree species (55) dominated the lists followed by herbs (39) and shrubs (30). Among these total planted species used for ethnomedicinal purposes, 52 species were planted, 62 species growing wild or collected from the forest for use and 26 species were both wild and planted. The present study documented 61 more planted species as compared to 17 planted species documented in an ethnomedicinal study a decade ago. The documented species were used to treat 58 human diseases/ailments including nine species used to eight diseases/ailments of domestic animals. Stomach-related problems were treated by maximum number of plants (40 species) followed by cuts and wounds with 27 plant species and least with one species each for 17 diseases or ailments. Maximum number of 12 diseases/ailments was cured by Melia azedarach followed by Centella asiatica and Rauvolfia serpentina which were used to cure 11 diseases/ailments each. CONCLUSIONS: The list of 140 plant species indicates that the Chilapatta Reserve Forest and its fringe areas are rich in biodiversity of ethnobotanical plant species. Rauvolfia serpentina were the most valuable species in terms of its maximal use with higher use value. The documentation of 78 species maintained in the home gardens indicates the community consciousness on the conservation values of these ethnobotanical species. The communities should be encouraged with improved cultivation techniques of commercially viable ethnobotanical species through capacity building, timely policy intervention along with strong market linkage. This will ensure income generation and livelihood improvement and ultimate conservation of these species.

TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE OF MEDICINAL PLANTS IN TRIBES OF TRIPURA IN NORTHEAST, INDIA.

BACKGROUND: The present study was carried out in Mandwi area and its outskirts of Tripura district of tribal areas Autonomous district council to document the available ethno-medicinal plants and their traditional application among Mandwi tribes. METHODOLOGY: Field explorations were carried out during the months of March-June 2013. The ethno-medicinal survey was conducted particularly with Tripuri tribe in Mandai area, with the help of local medicine men, locally known as bhoidho (Tripuri). Data were collected through structure questionnaires and observations during the field visits. RESULTS: In the present study the local population used a total of 51 plant species belonging to 32 families to cure a variety of diseases. Of the 51 plants, 21 were herbs, followed by trees (17) and shrubs (8). Climbers and ferns had reported 2 species for each one grass species was found. Fabaceae was the dominant family with the highest number of species (6) followed by Asteracae (4 species) and Lamiaceae (5 species). Seven other families had 2 species each and 22 families were represented by a single species. In case single diseases, the highest number of plants (7 species) was used for dysentery, followed by body pain (6 species), cough (6 species) and toothache (6 species). CONCLUSION: The present study concluded that, the Tripuri tribes of the study area possess rich knowledge on the medicinal plants and their utilization. Thus the present study focuses on the documentation of the traditional knowledge of these valuable plants, which could enhance the potential of these medicinal plants to other communities as well and by understanding the importance, other communities can also be helpful for conservation of these resources for further use.

Variation of biomass and carbon pool with NDVI and altitude in sub-tropical forests of northwestern Himalaya.

In the present study, forests at three altitudes, viz., A1 (600-900 m), A2 (900-1200 m) and A3 (1200-1500 m) above mean sea level having normalised differential vegetation index (NDVI) values of N1 (0.0-0.1), N2 (0.1-0.2), N3 (0.2-0.3), N4 (0.3-0.4) and N5 (0.4-0.5) were selected for studying their relationship with the biomass and carbon pool in the state of Himachal Pradesh, India. The study reported maximum stem density of (928 trees ha-1) at the A2 altitude and minimum in the A3 and A1 with 600 trees ha-1 each. The stem densities in relation to NDVIs were observed in the order N5 > N3 > N4 > N1 > N2 and did not show any definite trend with increasing altitude. Highest stem volume (295.7 m3 ha-1) was observed in N1 NDVI and minimum (194.1 m3 ha-1) in N3 index. The trend observed for stem biomass at different altitudes was A3 > A1 > A2 and for NDVIs, it was N5 > N1 > N4 > N2 > N3. Maximum aboveground biomass (265.83 t ha-1) was recorded in the 0.0-0.1 NDVI and minimum (169.05 t ha-1) in 0.2-0.3 NDVI index. Significantly, maximum total soil carbon density (90.82 t C ha-1) was observed in 0.4-0.5 NDVI followed by 0.3-0.4 NDVI (77.12 t C ha-1). The relationship between soil carbon and other studied parameters was derived through different functions simultaneously. Cubic function showed highest r 2 in most cases, followed by power, inverse and exponential function. The relationship with NDVI showed highest r 2 (0.62) through cubic functions. In relationship between ecosystem carbon with other parameters of different altitudinal gradient and NDVI, only one positively significant relation was formed with total density (0.579) through cubic function. The present study thus reveals that soil carbon density was directly related to altitude and NDVIs, but the vegetation carbon density did not bear any significant relation with altitude and NDVI.

Metabolic abnormalities in patients with prolactinoma: response to treatment with cabergoline.

BACKGROUND: Hyperprolactinemia has been associated with changes in body composition and metabolic abnormalities. Normalization of prolactin (PRL) with dopamine agonists has been found to reverse these abnormalities. This study was designed to assess the anthropometric and metabolic alterations associated with prolactinoma and response of these abnormalities to cabergoline treatment. METHODS: In a non-randomised matched prospective design, 19 consecutive patients with prolactinoma (median PRL 118.6 (105.3) µg/L) and 20 controls were studied. The controls were age, gender and body mass index (BMI) matched. Anthropometric data and metabolic variables were studied at baseline, 3 and 6 months after cabergoline treatment. RESULTS: Patients with prolactinoma had increased level of fasting plasma glucose (P < .001), LDL-cholesterol (P = .001) and triglycerides (TG) (P = .009) as compared to age, gender and BMI matched healthy controls. There was a significant decrease of body weight at 3 months (P = .029), with a further decline at 6 months (P < .001) of cabergoline therapy. In addition, there was a significant decrement of BMI (P < .001), waist circumference (P = .003), waist-hip ratio (P = .03) and total body fat (P = .003) at 6 months of cabergoline treatment. A significant decline in plasma glucose (P < .001), total cholesterol (P = .009), LDL-cholesterol (P < .001) and TG (P < .001) was seen after 6 months of cabergoline treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with prolactinoma have adverse metabolic profile compared with matched controls. Normalization of PRL with cabergoline corrects all the metabolic abnormalities.

Vacuum-assisted closure versus conventional dressings in the management of diabetic foot ulcers: a prospective case-control study.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the effectiveness of vacuum-assisted closure (VAC) versus conventional dressings in the healing of diabetic foot ulcerations (DFUs) in terms of healing rate (time to prepare the wound for closure either spontaneously or by surgery), safety, and patient satisfaction. METHODS: Randomized case-control study enrolling 56 patients, divided into two groups. Group A (patients treated with VAC) and Group B (patients treated with conventional dressings), with an equal number of patients in each group. DFUs were treated until wound closure, either spontaneously, surgically, or until completion of the 8-week period. RESULTS: Granulation tissue appeared in 26 (92.85%) patients by the end of Week 2 in Group A, while it appeared in 15 (53.57%) patients by that time in Group B. 100% granulation was achieved in 21 (77.78%) patients by the end of Week 5 in Group A as compared to only 10 (40%) patients by that time in Group B. Patients in Group A had fewer number of positive blood cultures, secondary amputations and were satisfied with treatment as compared to Group B. CONCLUSION: VAC appears to be more effective, safe, and patient satisfactory compared to conventional dressings for the treatment of DFUs.

Sagittal sinus thrombosis due to L-asparaginase.

Cerebral Sinovenous Thrombosis (CSVT) is a serious complication of L-asparaginase chemotherapy for leukemia in children. Clinical features of headache, altered consciousness, focal neurological deficit, and seizures developing during or immediately after treatment with L-asparaginase should alert the treating physician to the possibility of CSVT. Immediate imaging of the brain should be done using CT and MRI and the veins should be visualized noninvasively by CT and MR venography. We report two children on induction therapy for acute leukemia who presented with seizures, headache, and altered consciousness. Venous infarcts with and without hemorrhage were seen on CT in one patient and the empty delta sign was seen after contrast injection; however, the early changes were missed by CT. MRI detected dural sinus thrombosis relatively earlier in another patient, while the CT findings were equivocal; in this patient, contrast-enhanced MRI showed the empty delta sign and MR venography confirmed absent flow in the superior sagittal sinus, which was diagnostic of sinus thrombosis. Rapid anticoagulation was started with heparin and maintained with warfarin. The child with a unilateral small nonhemorrhagic infarct made a complete recovery while the other, with bilateral hemorrhagic infarcts, did not survive. We stress the importance of early diagnosis of CSVT using CT and MRI in children with leukemia being treated with L-asparaginase; this will permit timely treatment.