Aims and Scope

Courses on GMOs in Agricultural Faculties are included in the curriculum of the departments under different names. It was aimed to determine the knowledge level of 273 agricultural engineering students from Faculty of Agriculture studying at Kırsehir Ahi Evran University, Turkiye in this study. The questionnaire consisted of a test on Personal Information Scale to measure their knowledge about GMO Foods. The data obtained showed that the students in the Department of Agricultural Biotechnology had the highest level of awareness about GMOs and GMO based foods. It was concluded that awareness and knowledge of the students was related to their subject of the study, grade and gender. It was understood that male students had a higher GMO awareness compared to the female students. The results of the study revealed that it was appropriate and necessary to include more detailed courses about GMOs in the curricula of the departments in faculties of agriculture. The findings obtained from this study can be used as a source to prepare or rearrange curricula of the departments in agricultural faculties. Keywords: Agricultural faculties, knowledge, transgenic organisms, GMOs, Turkiye.

The primary aim of this study was to undergo exploratory research, using a systematic mapping of literature to ascertain the current knowledge level on agripreneurship concepts, agripreneurial opportunities, behaviors, performance, and challenges affecting agripreneurial development in developing countries. A systematic mapping technique was used involving PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis) methodology. A comprehensive search of Google Scholar and Science Direct that produced a total sample of 47 research articles from 2010 to 2020. The literature review identified an array of definitions of agripreneurship, implying that there is still no unified definition of agripreneurship. The exploratory study also found input supply, production, agro-processing, marketing, transportation, and services viable business opportunities for potential youth agripreneurs. Moreover, the study identified a host of factors influencing agripreneurship behavior. Personality traits, psychological, and contextual factors such as perceived government support and social networking were highlighted as essential determinants driving agripreneurial ventures. In most research revealed that agripreneurial orientation, skill, personality traits, and perceived government and family and friends support significantly impact business performance. However, the review highlight several challenges affecting agripreneurship development in developing countries, such as lack of government support, discouragement from family and friends, poor infrastructure, imperfect market institutions, lack of agripreneurial skills, and inadequate credit facilities for agripreneurial ventures. Keywords: Agro-processing, business performance, developing countries, agripreneurial skills, agripreneurial PRISMA.

Salinity stress is the most notorious among all abiotic stresses. It hampers the growth and productivity of crops via ionic imbalance, disturbance in the metabolic process and specific ions toxicity. The necessity of time is to introduce better organic amendment rates for its mitigation in cereal crops, especially maize. Therefore, a pot experiment was performed in the warehouse of the Saline Agriculture Research Centre (SARC), University of Agriculture, Faisalabad to evaluate the effect of farmyard manure and compost application rates in saline soil. A hybrid maize variety (Monsanto DK-6789) was sown and recommended doses of NPK were applied. Organic amendments (FYM and Compost) with their rates (recommended, 25% increased dose of recommended and 50% increased dose of recommended) were applied to assess the growth of hybrid maize with salinity levels (Control < 2dS m-1, moderate salinity_5dS m-1, High salinity_10dS m-1). Seven treatments each with three replicates were carried out by using Complete Randomized Design (CRD). The results of the study indicated that T4 (50% increased farmyard manure) and T7 (50% increased compost) were significantly varied in controlling the shoot and root length, shoot and root fresh weight and dry weight of maize over control at

To examine the growth and radiation use efficiency (RUE) of different sugarcane cultivars (HSF 240, CP 77-400 & CPF 249) under two planting methods (2.5 feet apart single row, a farmers’ practice, and 4 feet apart dual rows deep trench plantings, a recommended practice) at Research Farm of Sugarcane Research Institute (SRI), Ayub Agricultural Research Institute (AARI), Faisalabad during 2019-20. The experiment was carried out in randomized complete block design with split-plot arrangement in three repeats. The results showed maximum dry matter (3348.24 g m-2), CGR (21.49 g m-2 day-1), mean CGR (12.78 g m-2 day-1), LAI (7.81), leaf area duration (1290.32 days), along with radiation use efficiency for total dry matter (2.16 g MJ-1) and cane yield (6.32 g MJ-1) in 4 feet apart dual rows trench planting in comparison to 2.5 feet apart single row trench planting, 2.08 g MJ-1 and 5.70 g MJ-1, respectively. On the other hand, higher dry matter (3451.42 g m-2), CGR (21.54 g m-2 day-1), mean CGR (13.16 g m-2 day-1), LAI (8.01), LAD (1324.58 days), RUE for dry matter production (2.20 g MJ-1) and cane yield (6.53 g MJ-1) was recorded in variety CP 77-400, a direct introduction to SRI, as compared with local material, HSF 240 and CPF 249 and occupying large area in whole Punjab-Pakistan. Keyword: Sugarcane, planting methods, cultivars, sugarcane physiology.

A hernia is an abnormal protrusion of a tissue or a complete organ through the wall of the cavity in which it is normally present. Surgically, hernias can be repaired using two techniques which is herniorrhaphy and hernioplasty. In herniorrhaphy, hernial ring is closed only by suturing ring, while in hernioplasty hernial ring is closed by some external aid. Different types of synthetic mesh materials are being used in hernioplasty which exceed the cost of treatment and burden on low-income farmers. To overcome this set back present study was planned with the objective to evaluate potential use of mosquito net as an alternative to mesh material in hernia repair. To achieve this, 20 rabbits were included in the study. After preparing the animals for aseptic surgery and anaesthesia, a wall defect (11x4cm) was created in ventral abdomen. Afterwards the animals were divided into two equal groups. For the wall defect of group 1 commercially available mesh was used while mosquito net was used for same purpose in rabbits of group 2. The efficacy of both the materials was compared using macroscopy parameters, ultrasonographic evaluation and histopathological examination of healed tissue. The data generated was subjected to statistical analysis using chi-square technique. The findings showed that the strength, type and extent of adhesions were non-significant (p>0.05) in both groups on day 15 as well as on day 30th. There were no recurrences, and the mesh was well-integrated into the host tissue in both the groups. Nylon mosquito net used in the current study to repair hernia defect gave almost similar results as that with commercially available mesh and the statistical results were also insignificant. Considering the findings of the study it is concluded that as mosquito net used for repair of induced abdominal wall defect resulted into comparatively equal results to commercially available mesh with minimal to no tissue reaction, almost similar tissue healing histopathologically and no difference on ultrasonographic (USG) examination makes mosquito net a suitable and economical replacement for commercial mesh. Keywords: Hernioplasty, economic treatment of hernia, mesh replacement, adhesions.

Both cattle and buffalo are rich genetic resource, raised for dairy, meat and draft purposes and possess great economic significance globally. Genomic characterization is imperative to explore inherent potential of animal species for targeted improvement in performance traits. This study aimed to perform comparative genomic characterization and sequence analysis of casein genes family (CSN1S1, CSN1S2, CSN2 and CSN3) in Bos taurus and Bubalus bubalis. Phylogenetic, motif, conserved domain and gene structure analyses discovered evolutionarily conserved nature of these genes in cattle and buffalo. Results indicated that casein proteins were thermostable and hydrophilic, although αs1, β, and κ caseins showed acidic behavior except for αs2-casein that was somewhat basic. The present study revealed lower distribution of transcription binding (TFB) sites particularly CAP, GATA, HSF2 and LMO2COM in Bubalus bubalis as compared to Bos taurus which might have potential effects on the transcription and translational efficiencies of casein genes in Bos taurus. However, functional studies are required to evaluate the effects of these TFB sites on regulation of casein genes expression in Bos taurus and Bubalus bubalis. Keywords: Amino acids, sequence analysis, genomic identification, mutation, TFB sites.

Food security is a big challenge for low- and middle-income countries like Pakistan due to climate change, lack of sustainable agricultural practices, and post-harvest losses. Post-harvest losses (20–50%) are the most significant economic barrier for Pakistan s small and marginal farmers with limited financial resources. Highly perishable commodities such as tomatoes are more vulnerable to spoilage and deterioration, especially during the food supply chain. As a result, they require immediate cooling after harvesting to slow down the ripening process and maintain sensory quality to facilitate supply to the market. Considering the issues above, the current study aimed to develop cooling chambers that require no energy to operate, allowing small farmers to store perishable goods for a shorter time. Zero Energy Cooling Chambers (ZECCs) was built with inexpensive raw materials, such as bricks, sand, and bamboo. ZECCs were successful in maintaining a lower temperature and higher RH compared to the harsh ambient environment. To investigate the dimensional effects of ZECC on tomatoes, four chambers of varying dimensions (selected at random) were built. Nutritional profiles of tomatoes were assessed by storing them inside and outside ZECC; based on this profiling, it was observed that the tomatoes stored in ZECC showed better keeping quality and higher shelf life than those held at ambient temperature. Keywords: Food Safety, sustainable agriculture system, food supply chain, cost-effective, on-farm storage, fruits, and vegetables.

This study was designed to investigate feasibility of canine ovariectomy using laparoscopy under local conditions of Pakistan, in comparison with conventional open surgery method. Twelve adult, clinically healthy bitches were randomly divided into equal groups. Animals of group A were subjected to laparoscopic ovariectomy, using three portal technique, while dogs of group B were ovariectomized through open surgery, using ventral midline approach. Operative time and amount of blood loss in dogs of both groups were recorded immediately after completion of operation, while scar length was measured at day 7 after operation, Moreover, cardinal and hematological variables were recorded for dogs of each group before surgery and then at day 1, 3 and 7 after operation. Results showed that operative time in bitches of group A was significantly higher (P