Drought stress is one of the most limiting factors, mainly in Mediterranean and arid or semi-arid environments worldwide. This situation is not an exception in central Chile, where a decline in rainfall of approximately 25% to 45% has been recorded over the past few decades, affecting mostly family farm agriculture. The main objective of the present study was to assess the intercropping of legume and cucurbits with maize, as a starting point to determine the best combinations. The experiment was conducted under greenhouse conditions in a bifactorial arrangement based on a completely randomized design with three replications. The treatments included 13 cropping systems: (T1-maize, T2-common bean, T3-chickpea, T4-pumpkin and T5-cucumber, as sole crops; T6-maize and common bean, T7-maize and chickpea, T8-maize and pumpkin, T9-maize and cucumber, T10-maize, common bean and pumpkin, T11-maize, common bean and cucumber, T12-maize, chickpea and pumpkin, and T13-maize, chickpea and cucumber); and two irrigation levels (40% and 100% of water holding capacity (WHC) of substrate, named as R100 and R40, respectively). The results showed that intercropping system and irrigation level altered morphological and physiological parameters. The water deprivation decreased significantly root and shoot biomass, height and relative growth rate of all the crops. Moreover, the results showed that intercropping enhanced land use productivity, with a land equivalent ratio (LER) with a median of 1.30. Overall, the results of the current study indicated that intercropping of maize, common beans and pumpkin could aid smallholder farmers to cope with water shortage, particularly in Mediterranean and other arid and semi-arid environments.

We examined the chemical contents of Cyperusalternifolius growing in surface flow constructed wetlands (SFCW) used in the treatment of partially treated wastewater. The (SFCW) wetland is composed of three cells in series of which two are open water surfaces and one is a channel bed planted with Cyperusalternifolius was designed and constructed. Four different mixtures of treated wastewater TWW effluent and the primary TWW effluent were used under different hydraulic retention times (HRT) of 3, 6, 9, and 12 days within the (SFCW) wetland. Higher accumulation of nitrogen N was detected in the plants parts in an order magnitude of leaves>stem>rhizome>root. Pronounced increase in potassium K concentration at the rhizome and stem was detected, while high amount of manganese Mn was accumulated in leaves. Roots and rhizomes were the main sinks for zinc Zn and phosphorus P.

The Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Corona Virus 2019 (SARS-CoV-2), a member of the Coronaviridae family, produced a worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, which world health organization (WHO) declared a state of emergency. Albumin, a key serum protein, has a variety of activities. A number of recent studies have linked low blood albumin levels in COVID-19 patients to long-term hospitalization and a high death rate. Hypoalbuminemia is a clinical feature of COVID-19 and is caused by a multitude of processes in COVID-19, including acute liver damage (ALI), oxidative burst, viral-albumin binding, dysregulated immunological responses, and viral genome interference in the host cell, all of which lead to organ failure and patient mortality. We used a mechanistic approach to discuss many potential molecular processes that cause hypoalbuminemia, as well as some effective treatment methods, in this study. Because it employs molecular approaches to characterize hypoalbuminemia, this work might be useful in future studies.

COVID-19, which is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, is the current global pandemic. As it spreads at an exponential and precipitous rate, it causes significant organ damage, which can potentially lead to death. Although there appears to be no specific cure or resistance to this outbreak, the use and administration of Vitamin D (VD) supplements is still a viable option, as evidenced by numerous clinical trials, studies, and observations. The results of the previous investigation have revealed that people with COVID-19 had reduced levels of VD, especially those with severe and critical diseases. The arrangement of receptors such as the angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE-II) is altered by VD. As a result, it plays an important role in immune system responses to cytokine storms and interleukins. This review aims to uncover and explain how VD might help in combating COVID-19 and possibly hold the key to minimizing its hazard in the light of currently available therapeutic strategies. Finally, we compare and contrast other people's approaches to VD and COVID-19.

Salt stress is one of the most important environmental stress that affects agricultural lands and causes the product loss. Today, the application of various natural or synthetic molecules exogenously to plants and efforts to increase plant tolerance against environmental stresses as a result of these applications have been widely used by scientists. In this study, a shiff base molecule, which has shown in vitro antioxidant properties, was applied to barley seeds under salt stress for the first time and the changes were investigated with extensive morphological, physiological and biochemical analyses. The obtained results showed that the antioxidant property of this molecule was also preserved in plants under stress, but it was also determined that the molecule had negative effects, especially on cell division. This is the first study in which a shiff base molecule is applied to a plant under stress and if necessary modifications can be made to the molecule, the negative effects of the molecule on cell division can be eliminated and this molecule, which is very easy and cheap to obtain, may be widely used to increase the tolerance of plants against the environmental stress.

Pakistan and GCC region share a common religion and cultural characteristics, increasing their importance to Pakistan regarding trade policy. To promote economic, cultural, and technical cooperation with GCC members, Pakistan is committed to signing a free trade arrangement with GCC. This paper aims to examine Pakistan's trade opportunities, competitiveness, and trade potential in the GCC region during 2003-2025. The result shows that Pakistan has the maximum comparative and competitive advantage with Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and UAE amongst GCC countries. PPML shows that the main trade indicators responsible for Pakistan’s bilateral trade enhancement are GDP in both countries and partner country trade openness. Amongst the GCC countries, Pakistan has the highest trade potential with Bahrain, Kuwait, and Qatar. In contrast, with UAE and Saudi Arabia, Pakistan has a lower trade potential than the rest of the countries. Therefore, Pakistan needs to sign FTA with GCC before boosting their mutual trade and cooperation.

The increased demand for broiler meat is a challenging pressure for poultry companies to increase their productivity. Producers rely mainly on genetics and management to improve bird productivity. Genetic improvement has not been applied to ameliorate the quantity of the nutrients in the fertile eggs which is not adequate to meet the requirements content of developing embryos. Shortage in carbohydrate reduces available energy for embryo at the onset of incubation, and affects availability of proteins. Decrease in amino acids affects gluconeogenesis, immune organs, digestive tract, muscles growth, and post hatch performance of chickens. The high metabolic rate in the embryo elevates the level of free radicals which affect the health of the embryo. In ovo feeding of glucose reduces gluconeogenesis and increases availability of proteins and fat and enhances embryo development. Administration of amino acids upgrades immunity and improves growth of digestive tract and body muscles. In ovo feeding of vitamins and minerals minimizes free radicals and enhances immunity of the newly-hatched chicks. Introducing a pre/pro-biotics to embryo via in ovo injection (IOI) creates the desired environment in the intestine with good bacterial colonization that helps chicks to digest feed and enhance its utilization. Injection site and time of all these nutrients differ according to the type of the nutrients. Carbohydrates and proteins are injected at day 18 of incubation in the amnion sac, whilst minerals and vitamins are injected between day 17 and 18 in the yolk and amnion sack. Pre/pro-biotics are administrated at day 12 in the air cell. In ovo feeding is a procedure that is recommended to improve poultry performance through enhancing immunity and growth of the newly-hatch birds.