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The study aimed at examining the relationship between contraceptive use and fertility in Western region, Uganda, using a sample of 1993 women from the Uganda Demographic Health Survey of 2000-2001. Uganda Demographic Health Survey (UDHS) 2000-2001 is the third survey conducted by the Ugandan Ministry of Health. Chi-square, Logistic regression and multiple regression were used to test and determine factors contributing to the high fertility levels and low contraceptive usage in the region. Results show that the region has a total fertility rate of 6.4, and childbearing is not evenly distributed among age groups. Fertility peaks at ages 20-29, and reduces sharply with women in their late reproduction span. Contraception and fertility are inversely correlated. Though knowledge on contraception is universal, contraceptive prevalence remains low (95% and 16% respectively) among women of reproductive age. Family planning approval is inversely related with contraceptive use. Findings reveal that contraceptive prevalence plays minor role in explaining fertility levels as compared to some socioeconomic factors. Education is significantly and inversely related with fertility, but positively correlated with contraceptive use. The government should revisit the population policy to actively promote family planning activities by promoting and facilitating debates about family size, and the means to achieve. Women education needs to be emphasized in order to promote innovative reproductive behavior. More research to explore whether women are using contraception for spacing rather than limiting is required.

This document only includes an excerpt of the corresponding thesis or dissertation. To request a digital scan of the full text, please contact the Ruth Lilly Medical Library's Interlibrary Loan Department (rlmlill@iu.edu).

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) that is grown in the U.S. is predominantly grown in the mid-south. Current Mississippi State University recommendations for nitrogen (N) fertilization of rice suggest a single application of 168 kg N ha-1 on soils with CEC ¡Ü 20 and 202 kg N ha-1 on soils with CEC > 20. The primary objective was to identify alternative N management strategies that may potentially be used to reduce costs associated with aerial application of N fertilizer to rice. Research was established at the Delta Research and Extension Center, at Stoneville, MS, on two soil textures during 2015 and 2016. The combination of application timings and N sources resulted in a total of eight N management strategies. Data from all siteyears were pooled together for analysis to evaluate differences among N management strategy. Urea + [N-(n-butyl)thiophosphoric triamide] (NBPT) applied in a single application 7 days before flood (DBF), two-way split application, and PCU-2 LF produced statistically similar and greatest mean rice grain yield. These data suggests that N fertilizer can be applied early (2 to 3 leaf growth stage) from a ground based fertilizer spreader prior to the levee construction. Single optimum and two-way split N management strategies produced more total dry matter (TDM) at heading (HDG) and more N uptake at HDG. Urea + NBPT applied in a single application 7 DBF should be the N management strategy of choice in mid-southern U.S. rice production.

In the field of mammalian reproduction, the success rate of fertilization largely relies on spermatozoa fertility potential. Total proteins change to a large degree during gametogenesis to activate gametes. There are some techniques that are most popular for proteomic studies of fertilization, including SDS-PAGE, 2D-DIGE, Western Blotting and Immunocytochemistry, as well as Mass Spectrometry. Proteins and their cofactors play important roles at different stages of gametogenesis, fertilization and embryo development. However, insufficiencies in the construction mode of fertility hinder the techniques in determination the sperm fertility. This study focused on identifying and tracking crucial proteins for fertility based on comparison between high- and lowertility sperms by means of 2D-DIGE and immunoblotting. We identified 18 proteins that varied significantly, including Outer dense fiber 2 (ODF2) of sperm tails and Manganous superoxide dismutase (MnSOD). Differences in these proteins suggest that posttranslational modification and deoxydation of sperm proteins might be associated with fertility.

Pathogenic and non-pathogenic bacteria that are commonly associated with Poultry include: Salmonella, E. coli, Campylobacter, Clostridium, Lactobacillus, and Bifidobacterium. These bacteria are often transmitted to the bird from the environment and sometimes to the offspring which may affect bird performance and health. Therefore, the objective of our first experiment was to determine if rooster semen exposed to these bacteria had an effect on sperm motility. Our results indicated that all 6 bacteria lowered sperm motility but the 2 non-pathogenic bacteria, eliminated sperm motility immediately after exposure. These results led to the second experiment which was to determine if semen exposed to different concentrations of Lactobacillus (non-pathogenic bacteria) affected overall hen fertility. The results of the second experiment indicated that hens inseminated with semen exposed to a high dose of Lactobacillus produced infertile eggs. In conclusion, pathogenic and non-pathogenic bacteria affect male fertility and overall fertility leading to reduced bird performance.

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Infertility and spontaneous abortion (SAB) affect up to one-third of couples planning a family.1–3 While common, there are few known risk factors. Medication use may play a role but the extent is unknown because, for most agents, use during reproduction has been understudied. The objective of this dissertation was to examine the associations between use of common pharmacologic agents and reproductive outcomes in three interrelated prospective cohort studies of pregnancy planners in Denmark, the United States, and Canada. In study 1, we examined fecundability, the average per-cycle probability of conception and a measure of time-to-pregnancy (TTP), in relation to past contraceptive use. Exposures of interest included oral contraceptives, IUDs (hormonal, copper), rings, implants, patches, injectables, natural methods, and barrier methods. Among 9,350 female pregnancy planners, we first examined TTP by the last method of contraception used before pregnancy attempt. We then examined the association between total lifetime duration of use of hormonal contraceptive methods and TTP. On average, injectable users had the longest delay in the return of fertility (8 cycles), followed by OC, ring, implant and patch (3 cycles), hormonal IUD (2 cycles), and copper IUD users (1 cycle). We did not find any evidence that long-term use of these methods was detrimental to fecundability. Study 2 examined the association between male use of pain medications and fecundability among 1,065 couples planning pregnancy in North America. Medications examined include ibuprofen, acetaminophen, naproxen, and aspirin. We examined fecundability in relation to any use and cumulative monthly dose of each of these medications. Our study showed little evidence of a deleterious effect of male preconception use of common pain medications on fecundability. In study 3, we examined use of pain medications between pregnancy conception and 12 gestational weeks and risk of SAB. Medications examined include ibuprofen, acetaminophen, naproxen, aspirin, and opioids. In the three cohorts of women recruited before conception, we observed 9,196 pregnancies and 1,597 SABs (17.4%). We found that low-dose use of ibuprofen, naproxen, or opioids before 12 weeks of gestation was associated with slightly increased risk of SAB. Overall, low-dose use of acetaminophen or aspirin did not appreciably increase risk of SAB.

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