Search results for: mixotrophic growth

Authors: María Graciela Aguayo, Laura Reyes, Claudia Oviedo, José Navarrete, Liset Gómez, Hugo Torres

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Most wood species used in construction deteriorate when exposed to environmental conditions that favor wood-degrading organisms’ growth. Therefore, chemical protection by impregnation allows more efficient use of forest resources extending the wood useful life. A wood protection treatment which has attracted considerable interest in the scientific community during the last decade is wood impregnation with nano compounds. Radiata pine is the main wood species used in the Chilean construction industry, with total availability of 8 million m³ sawn timber. According to the requirements of the American Wood Protection Association (AWPA) and the Chilean Standards (NCh) radiata pine timber used in construction must be protected due to its low natural durability. In this work, the impregnation with copper nanoparticles (CuNP) was studied in terms of penetration and its protective effect against wood rot fungi. Two concentrations: 1 and 3 g/L of NPCu were applied by impregnation on radiata pine sapwood. Test penetration under AWPA A3-91 standard was carried out, and wood decay tests were performed according to EN 113, with slight modifications. The results of penetration for 1 g/L CuNP showed an irregular total penetration, and the samples impregnated with 3 g/L showed a total penetration with uniform concentration (blue color in all cross sections). The impregnation wood mass losses due to fungal exposure were significantly reduced, regardless of the concentration of the solution or the fungus. In impregnated wood samples, exposure to G. trabeum resulted ML values of 2.70% and 1.19% for 1 g/L and 3 g/L CuNP, respectively, and exposure to P. placenta resulted in 4.02% and 0.70%-ML values for 1 g/L and 3 g/L CuNP, respectively. In this study, the penetration analysis confirmed a uniform distribution inside the wood, and both concentrations were effective against the tested fungi, giving mass loss values lower than 5%. Therefore, future research in wood preservatives should focus on new nanomaterials that are more efficient and environmentally friendly. Acknowledgments: CONICYT FONDEF IDeA I+D 2019, grant number ID19I10122.

Keywords: copper nanoparticles, fungal degradation, radiata pine wood, wood preservation

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Authors: Hanaa Sameen Ameen Bajilan

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Human rights should be protected and promoted without regard to race, ethnicity, religion, political philosophy, or sexual orientation, following our firm convictions. Thus, any infringement of these rights or disdain for; any use of violence against women undermines the principles and human values of equality and endangers the entire society, including its potential to live in peace and to make growth and development. This paper represents the condition of the new Iraqi women regarding issues such as the gender wage gap, education, health, and violence against women. The study aims to determine the impact of traditions and customs on the legal position of Iraqi women. First, it seeks to assess the effects of culture as a historical agency on the legal status of Iraqi women. Second, the influence of cultural developments in the later part of the twentieth century on Iraqi women's legal standing, and third, the importance of cultural variety as a progressive cultural component in women's legal position. Finally, the study highlights the representation of women in Iraq: Gender wage Gap, Women's liberation between culture and law, and the role of women within Iraqi society based on an Iraqi novel named (Orange Light) in Arabic: برتقالو ضو. in her book, the Iraqi writer Nadia Al-Abru succeeds in portraying the post-war society's devotion to the sexual, emotional and mental marginalization of women in terms of the value of attendance. Since the study of Iraqi women's literature in Arabic-English translation is a new avenue of research that contributes to all three areas, this investigation aims to establish critical lines of engagement between contemporary Iraqi women's literature in English translation and feminist translation conceptual frameworks, and this is accomplished by first focusing on why analyzing Iraqi women writers' novels in Arabic-English translation is a timeline of inquiry that contributes to existing and emerging knowledge fields concerning Iraqi women writers' contemporary critical contexts and scholarship on Arab women's literature in Arabic-English translation.

Keywords: women in İraq, equality, violence, gender wage gap, Nadia Al-Abru, (orange light), women's liberation, İraqi women's literature,

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Authors: Rajendra Kumar Pandey

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Forest genetic resources not only represent regional biodiversity but also have immense value as the wealth for securing livelihood of poor people. These are vulnerable to ecological due to depletion/deforestation and /or impact of climate change. These resources of various plant categories are vulnerable on the floor of natural tropical forests, and leading to the threat on the growth and development of future forests. More than 170 species, including NTFPs, are in critical condition for their survival in natural tropical forests of Central India. Forest degradation, commensurate with biodiversity loss, is now pervasive, disproportionately affecting the rural poor who directly depend on forests for their subsistence. Looking ahead the interaction between forest and water, soil, precipitation, climate change, etc. and its impact on biodiversity of tropical forests, it is inevitable to develop co-operation policies and programmes to address new emerging realities. Forests ecosystem also known as the 'wealth of poor' providing goods and ecosystem services on a sustainable basis, are now recognized as a stepping stone to move poor people beyond subsistence. Poverty alleviation is the prime objective of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). However, environmental sustainability including other MDGs, is essential to ensure successful elimination of poverty and well being of human society. Loss and degradation of ecosystem are the most serious threats to achieving development goals worldwide. Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MEA, 2005) was an attempt to identify provisioning and regulating cultural and supporting ecosystem services to provide livelihood security of human beings. Climate change may have a substantial impact on ecological structure and function of forests, provisioning, regulations and management of resources which can affect sustainable flow of ecosystem services. To overcome these limitations, policy guidelines with respect to planning and consistent research strategy need to be framed for conservation and sustainable development of forest genetic resources.

Keywords: climate change, forest ecosystem services, sustainable forest management, biodiversity conservation

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Authors: Cesar Augusto Hoil Rosas, José Luis Vázquez Burgos, José Juan Carbajal Hernandez

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White fish (Chirostoma estor estor) is an endemic species that habits in the Patzcuaro Lake, located in Michoacan, Mexico; being an important source of gastronomic and cultural wealth of the area. Actually, it have undergone an immense depopulation of individuals, due to the high fishing, contamination and eutrophication of the lake water, resulting in the possible extinction of this important species. This work proposes a new computational model for monitoring and assessment of critical environmental parameters of the white fish ecosystem. According to an Analytical Hierarchy Process, a mathematical model is built assigning weights to each environmental parameter depending on their water quality importance on the ecosystem. Then, a development of an advanced system for the monitoring, analysis and control of water quality is built using the virtual environment of LabVIEW. As results, we have obtained a global score that indicates the condition level of the water quality in the Chirostoma estor ecosystem (excellent, good, regular and poor), allowing to provide an effective decision making about the environmental parameters that affect the proper culture of the white fish such as temperature, pH and dissolved oxygen. In situ evaluations show regular conditions for a success reproduction and growth rates of this species where the water quality tends to have regular levels. This system emerges as a suitable tool for the water management, where future laws for white fish fishery regulations will result in the reduction of the mortality rate in the early stages of development of the species, which represent the most critical phase. This can guarantees better population sizes than those currently obtained in the aquiculture crop. The main benefit will be seen as a contribution to maintain the cultural and gastronomic wealth of the area and for its inhabitants, since white fish is an important food and economical income of the region, but the species is endangered.

Keywords: Chirostoma estor estor, computational system, lab view, white fish

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Authors: Irena Maus, Katharina Gabriella Cibis, Andreas Bremges, Yvonne Stolze, Geizecler Tomazetto, Daniel Wibberg, Helmut König, Alfred Pühler, Andreas Schlüter

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Within the agricultural sector, the production of biogas from organic substrates represents an economically attractive technology to generate bioenergy. Complex consortia of microorganisms are responsible for biomass decomposition and biogas production. Recently, species belonging to the phylum Thermotogae were detected in thermophilic biogas-production plants utilizing renewable primary products for biomethanation. To analyze adaptive genome features of representative Thermotogae strains, Defluviitoga tunisiensis L3 was isolated from a rural thermophilic biogas plant (54°C) and completely sequenced on an Illumina MiSeq system. Sequencing and assembly of the D. tunisiensis L3 genome yielded a circular chromosome with a size of 2,053,097 bp and a mean GC content of 31.38%. Functional annotation of the complete genome sequence revealed that the thermophilic strain L3 encodes several genes predicted to facilitate growth of this microorganism on arabinose, galactose, maltose, mannose, fructose, raffinose, ribose, cellobiose, lactose, xylose, xylan, lactate and mannitol. Acetate, hydrogen (H2) and carbon dioxide (CO2) are supposed to be end products of the fermentation process. The latter gene products are metabolites for methanogenic archaea, the key players in the final step of the anaerobic digestion process. To determine the degree of relatedness of dominant biogas community members within selected digester systems to D. tunisiensis L3, metagenome sequences from corresponding communities were mapped on the L3 genome. These fragment recruitments revealed that metagenome reads originating from a thermophilic biogas plant covered 95% of D. tunisiensis L3 genome sequence. In conclusion, availability of the D. tunisiensis L3 genome sequence and insights into its metabolic capabilities provide the basis for biotechnological exploitation of genome features involved in thermophilic fermentation processes utilizing renewable primary products.

Keywords: genome sequence, thermophilic biogas plant, Thermotogae, Defluviitoga tunisiensis

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Authors: Seher Arslankaya, Bahar Uludağ

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Meeting the needs and demands of customers and pleasing the customers are important requirements for companies in food sectors where the growth of competition is significantly unpredictable. Customer satisfaction is also one of the key concepts which is mainly driven by wide range of customer preference and expectation upon products and services introduced and delivered to them. In order to meet the customer demands, the companies that engage in food sectors are expected to have a well-managed set of Total Quality Management (TQM), which sets out to improve quality of products and services; to reduce costs and to increase customer satisfaction by restructuring traditional management practices. It aims to increase customer satisfaction by meeting (their) customer expectations and requirements. The achievement would be determined with the help of customer satisfaction surveys, which is done to obtain immediate feedback and to provide quick responses. In addition, the surveys would also assist the making of strategic planning which helps to anticipate customer future needs and expectations. Meanwhile, periodic measurement of customer satisfaction would be a must because with the better understanding of customers perceptions from the surveys (done by questioners), the companies would have a clear idea to identify their own strengths and weaknesses that help the companies keep their loyal customers; to stand in comparison toward their competitors and map out their future progress and improvement. In this study, we propose a survey based on customer satisfaction measurement method and its statistical analysis for sales and logistic activities of food firms. Customer satisfaction would be discussed in details. Furthermore, after analysing the data derived from the questionnaire that applied to customers by using the SPSS software, various results obtained from the application would be presented. By also applying ANOVA test, the study would analysis the existence of meaningful differences between customer demographic proportion and their perceptions. The purpose of this study is also to find out requirements which help to remove the effects that decrease customer satisfaction and produce loyal customers in food industry. For this purpose, the customer complaints are collected. Additionally, comments and suggestions are done according to the obtained results of surveys, which would be useful for the making-process of strategic planning in food industry.

Keywords: customer satisfaction measurement and analysis, food industry, SPSS, TQM

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Authors: K. Appasamy, P. Paul

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Mauritius, a developing small-island-state, is facing a recession which is having a considerable economic impact particularly on its construction sector. Further, the presence of foreign entities, both as companies and workers, within this sector is creating a very competitive environment for local firms. This study investigates the key drivers that allow foreign firms to participate in this sector, in particular looking at the international and local tender processes, and the capacity of local industry to participate. This study also looks at how the current set up may hinder the latter’s involvement. The methodology used included qualitative semi-structured interviews conducted with established foreign companies, local companies, and public bodies. Study findings indicate: there is an adequate availability of professional skills and expertise within the Mauritian construction industry but a lack of skilled labour especially at the operative level; projects awarded to foreign firms are either due to their uniqueness and hence lack of local knowledge, or due to foreign firms having lower tender bids; tendering systems and processes are weak, including monitoring and enforcement, which encourages corruption and favouritism; a high level of ignorance of this sector’s characteristics and opportunities exists amongst the local population; local entities are very profit oriented and have short term strategies that discourage long term investment in workforce training and development; but most importantly, stakeholders do not grasp the importance of encouraging youngsters to join this sector, they have no long term vision, and there is a lack of mutual involvement and collaboration between them. Although local industry is highly competent, qualified and experienced, the tendering and procurement systems in Mauritius are not conducive enough to allow for effective strategic planning and an equitable allocation of projects during an economic downturn so that the broadest spread of stakeholders’ benefit. It is of utmost importance that all sector and government entities collaborate to formulate strategies and reforms on tender processes and capacity building to ensure fairness and continuous growth of this sector in Mauritius.

Keywords: construction industry, tender process, international firms, local capacity, Mauritius

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Authors: Ahilya Singh, Brad Carte, Ramesh Subramani, William Aalbersberg

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A total of 37 actinomycete strains were purified from 25 Solomon Islands marine sediments using four different types of isolation media. Among them, 54% of the strains had obligate requirement of seawater for growth. The ethyl acetate extract of 100 ml fermentation product of each strain was screened for antimicrobial activity against multidrug resistant human pathogens and cytotoxic activity against brine shrimps. A total of 67% of the ethyl acetate extracts showed antimicrobial and/or cytotoxic activities. A strain F-1915 was selected for isolation and evaluation of bioactive compound(s) based on its bioactive properties and chemical profile analysis using the LC-MS. The strain F-1915 was identified to have 96% sequence similarity to Streptomyces violaceusniger on the basis of 16S rDNA sequences using BLAST analysis. The 16S rDNA revealed that the strain F-1915 is a new member of MAR4 clade of actinomycetes. The MAR4 clade is an interesting clade of actinomycetes known for the production of pharmaceutically important hybrid isoprenoid compounds. The ethyl acetate extract of the fermentation product of this strain was purified by silica gel column chromatography and afforded the isolation of one bioactive pure compound. Based on the 1D and 2D NMR spectral data of compound 1 it was identified as a new mono-brominated phenazinone, Marinophenazimycin A, a structure which has already been studied by external collaborators at Scripps Institution of Oceanography but is yet to be published. Compound 1 displayed significant antimicrobial activity against drug resistant human pathogens. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of compound 1 was against Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was about 1.9 μg/ml and MIC recorded against Amphotericin Resistant Candida albicans (ARCA) was about 0.24 μg/ml. The bioactivity of compound 1 against ARCA was found to be better than the standard antifungal agent amphotericin B. Compound 1 however did not show any cytotoxic activity against brine shrimps.

Keywords: actinomycetes, antimicrobial activity, brominated phenazine, MAR4 clade, marine natural products, multidrug resistent, 1D and 2D NMR

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Authors: Sohini Manna, Jong Woo Kim, Oleg Shpyrko, Eric E. Fullerton

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CVD techniques have emerged as a promising approach in the formation of a broad range of nanostructured materials. The realization of many practical applications will require efficient and economical synthesis techniques that preferably avoid the need for templates or costly single-crystal substrates and also afford process adaptability. Towards this end, we have developed a single-step route for the reduction-type synthesis of nanostructured Ni materials using a thermal CVD method. By tuning the CVD growth parameters, we can synthesize morphologically dissimilar nanostructures including single-crystal cubes and Au nanostructures which form atop untreated amorphous SiO2||Si substrates. An understanding of the new properties that emerge in these nanostructures materials and their relationship to function will lead to for a broad range of magnetostrictive devices as well as other catalysis, fuel cell, sensor, and battery applications based on high-surface-area transition-metal nanostructures. We use coherent X-ray diffraction imaging technique to obtain 3-D image and strain maps of individual nanocrystals. Coherent x-ray diffractive imaging (CXDI) is a technique that provides the overall shape of a nanostructure and the lattice distortion based on the combination of highly brilliant coherent x-ray sources and phase retrieval algorithm. We observe a fine interplay of reduction of surface energy vs internal stress, which plays an important role in the morphology of nano-crystals. The strain distribution is influenced by the metal-substrate interface and metal-air interface, which arise due to differences in their thermal expansion. We find the lattice strain at the surface of the octahedral gold nanocrystal agrees well with the predictions of the Young-Laplace equation quantitatively, but exhibits a discrepancy near the nanocrystal-substrate interface resulting from the interface. The strain in the bottom side of the Ni nanocube, which is contacted on the substrate surface is compressive. This is caused by dissimilar thermal expansion coefficients between Ni nanocube and Si substrate. Research at UCSD support by NSF DMR Award # 1411335.

Keywords: CVD, nanostructures, strain, CXRD

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Authors: Abdul Umaro Tholley

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The preservation and packaging of cucumbers are essential to maintain their shelf life and quality. Cucumbers are a perishable food item that is highly susceptible to spoilage due to their high-water content and delicate nature. Therefore, proper preservation and packaging techniques are crucial to extend their shelf life and prevent economic loss. There are several methods of preserving cucumbers, including refrigeration, canning, pickling, and dehydration. Refrigeration is the most used preservation method, as it slows down the rate of deterioration and maintains the freshness and quality of the cucumbers. Canning and pickling are also popular preservation methods that use heat treatment and acidic solutions, respectively, to prevent microbial growth and increase shelf life. Dehydration involves removing the water content from cucumbers to increase their shelf life, but it may affect their texture and taste. Packaging also plays a vital role in preserving cucumbers. The packaging materials should be selected based on their ability to maintain the quality and freshness of the cucumbers. The most used packaging materials for cucumbers are polyethylene bags, which prevent moisture loss and protect the cucumbers from physical damage. Other packaging materials, such as corrugated boxes and wooden crates, may also be used, but they offer less protection against moisture loss and damage. The quality of cucumbers is affected by several factors, including storage temperature, humidity, and exposure to light. Cucumbers should be stored at temperatures between 7 and 10 °C, with a relative humidity of 90-95%, to maintain their freshness and quality. Exposure to light should also be minimized to prevent the formation of yellowing and decay. In conclusion, the preservation and packaging of cucumbers are essential to maintain their quality and extend their shelf life. Refrigeration, canning, pickling, and dehydration are common preservation methods that can be used to preserve cucumbers. The packaging materials used should be carefully selected to prevent moisture loss and physical damage. Proper storage conditions, such as temperature, humidity, and light exposure, should also be maintained to ensure the quality and freshness of cucumbers. Overall, proper preservation and packaging techniques can help reduce economic loss and provide consumers with high-quality cucumbers.

Keywords: cucumbers, preservation, packaging, shelf life

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Authors: Mokgophana Ramasobana

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Background: At the core of the demand to utilize evidence-based approaches in the policy-making cycle, prioritization of limited financial resources and results driven initiatives is the urgency to develop a cohort of competent Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) practitioners and public servants. The ongoing strides in the evaluation capacity building (ECB) initiatives are a direct response to produce the highly-sought after M&E skills. Notwithstanding the rapid growth of M&E short courses, participants perceived value and expectation of M&E short courses as a panacea for ECB have not been empirically quantified or measured. The objective of this article is to explicitly illustrate the importance of measuring ECB interventions and understanding what works in ECB and why it works. Objectives: This article illustrates the importance of establishing empirical ECB measurement tools to evaluate ECB interventions in order to ascertain its contribution to the broader evaluation practice. Method: The study was primarily a desktop review of existing literature, juxtaposed by a survey of the participants across the African continent based on the 43 M&E short courses hosted by the Centre for Learning on Evaluation and Results Anglophone Africa (CLEAR-AA) in collaboration with the Department of Planning Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME) Results: The article established that participants perceive short course training as a panacea to improve their M&E practical skill critical to executing their organizational duties. In tandem, participants are likely to demand customized training as opposed to general topics in Evaluation. However, the organizational environments constrain the application of the newly acquired skills. Conclusion: This article aims to contribute to the 'how to' measure ECB interventions discourse and contribute towards the improvement to evaluate ECB interventions. The study finds that participants prefer training courses with longer duration to cover more topics. At the same time, whilst organizations call for customization of programmes, the study found that individual participants demand knowledge of generic and popular evaluation topics.

Keywords: evaluation capacity building, effectiveness and training, monitoring and evaluation (M&E) short course training, perceptions and expectations

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Authors: Ali Kharazi, Hassanali Aghajani, Hesami Azizi

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Tourism entrepreneurship is a growing field that has the potential to create new opportunities for sustainable development. The purpose of this study is to identify and classify the entrepreneurial opportunities in the blind tourism industry in Khuzestan Province of Iran that can be created through the operation of blinds’ tours. This study used a mixed methods approach. The qualitative data was collected through semi-structured interviews with 15 tourist guides and tourism activists, while the quantitative data was collected through a questionnaire survey of 40 blind people who had participated in blinds’ tours. The findings of this study suggest that there are a number of entrepreneurial opportunities in the blind tourism industry in Khuzestan Province, including (1) developing and providing accessible tourism services, such as tours, accommodations, restaurants, and transportation, (2) creating and marketing blind-friendly tourism products and experiences (3) training and educating tourism professionals on how to provide accessible and inclusive tourism services. This study contributes to the theoretical understanding of tourism entrepreneurship by providing insights into the entrepreneurial opportunities in the blind tourism industry. The findings of this study can be used to develop policies and programs that support the development of the blind tourism industry. The qualitative data were analyzed using content analysis. The quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. This study examines the entrepreneurial opportunities within the blind tourism industry in Khuzestan Province, Iran. In addition, Khuzestan province has made relatively good development in the field of blinds’ tourism. Blind tourists have become loyal customers of blinds’ tours, which has increased their self-confidence and social participation. Tourist guides and centers of tourism services are interested in participating in blinds’ tours more than before, and even other parts outside the tourism field have encouraged sponsorship. Education had a great impact on the quality of tourism services, especially for the blind. It has played a significant role in improving the quality of tourism services for the blind. However, the quality and quantity of infrastructure should be increased in different sectors of tourism services to foster future growth. These opportunities can be used to create new businesses and jobs and to promote sustainable development in the region.

Keywords: entrepreneurship, tourism, blind, sustainable development, Khuzestan

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Authors: Farhana Arzu, Roslan Hashim

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Renewable energy is the only alternative sources of energy to meet the current energy demand, healthy environment and future growth which is considered essential for essential sustainable development. Marine renewable energy is one of the major means to meet this demand. Turbines (both horizontal and vertical) play a vital role for extraction of tidal energy. The influence of swept area on the performance improvement of tidal turbine is a vital factor to study for the reduction of relatively high power generation cost in marine industry. This study concentrates on performance investigation of variable length blade tidal turbine concept that has already been proved as an efficient way to improve energy extraction in the wind industry. The concept of variable blade length utilizes the idea of increasing swept area through the turbine blade extension when the tidal stream velocity falls below the rated condition to maximize energy capture while blade retracts above rated condition. A three bladed horizontal axis variable length blade horizontal axis tidal turbine was modelled by modifying a standard fixed length blade turbine. Classical blade element momentum theory based numerical investigation has been carried out using QBlade software to predict performance. The results obtained from QBlade were compared with the available published results and found very good agreement. Three major performance parameters (i.e., thrust, moment, and power coefficients) and power output for different blade extensions were studied and compared with a standard fixed bladed baseline turbine at certain operational conditions. Substantial improvement in performance coefficient is observed with the increase in swept area of the turbine rotor. Power generation is found to increase in great extent when operating at below rated tidal stream velocity reducing the associated cost per unit electric power generation.

Keywords: variable length blade, performance, tidal turbine, power generation

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Authors: Ferran Paulí Pla, Pere Palacín Farré, Albert Fornells Herrera, Pol Toldrà Fernández

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Poor image acquisition is limiting the promising growth of industrial vision in food control. In recent years, the food industry has witnessed a significant increase in the implementation of automation in quality control through artificial vision, a trend that continues to grow. During the packaging process, some defects may appear, compromising the proper sealing of the products and diminishing their shelf life, sanitary conditions and overall properties. While failure to detect a defective product leads to major losses, food producers also aim to minimize over-rejection to avoid unnecessary waste. Thus, accuracy in the evaluation of the products is crucial, and, given the large production volumes, even small improvements have a significant impact. Recently, efforts have been focused on maximizing the performance of classification neural networks; nevertheless, their performance is limited by the quality of the input data. Monochrome linear backlight systems are most commonly used for online inspections of food packaging thermo-sealing zones. These simple acquisition systems fit the high cadence of the production lines imposed by the market demand. Nevertheless, they provide a limited amount of data, which negatively impacts classification algorithm training. A desired situation would be one where data quality is maximized in terms of obtaining the key information to detect defects while maintaining a fast working pace. This work presents a backlight hyperspectral imaging system designed and implemented replicating an industrial environment to better understand the relationship between visual data quality and spectral illumination range for a variety of packed food products. Furthermore, results led to the identification of advantageous spectral bands that significantly enhance image quality, providing clearer detection of defects.

Keywords: artificial vision, food packaging, hyperspectral imaging, image acquisition, quality control

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Authors: O. Phewnil, S. Khowhit, W. Inkapatanakul, A. Boutson, K. Chunkao, O. Chueawong, T. Pattamapitoon, N. Chanwong, C. Nimpee

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The King’s Royally Initiated Laem Phak Bia Environmental Research and Development Project (“the Royal LERD Project”) is located in Laem Phak Bia Sub-District, Ban Laem District, Phetchaburi Province, Thailand. Phetchaburi municipal wastewater was treated with a simple technology by using aquatic plants, constructed wetland, oxidation ponds through a nature-by-nature process. The effluent from the Royal LERD Project was discharged into Laem Phak Bia muddy beach. The soil sediment samples were collected from two zones (200 and 600 meters from the coast of the beach), and tested for cation-exchange capacity (CEC), pH and organic matter and soil particles content. The marine water samples were also collected from the beach in wet and dry seasons and analyzed for its quality and compositions, including but not limited to, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), dissolved oxygen (DO), suspended solids (SS), nutrients, heavy metals (As, Cd, Cr, Hg, and Pb), and phytoplankton at high and low tides. The soil texture was sandy loam with high concentration of calcium and magnesium which showed a property of base (pH 8). The marine water was qualified with the standard limits of coastal water quality. A dominant species was Coscinodiscus sp. It was found approximately 70.46% of total phytoplankton species in Meretrix casta gastrointestinal tract. The concentration of the heavy metals (As, Cd, Cr, Hg, Ni and Pb) in the tissues and water content of two species of hard clams indicated that heavy metals in Meretrix casta were higher than those in Meretrix meretrix. However, the heavy metals in both species were under the standard limits and safe for consumption. It can be concluded that nutrients in effluent from the wastewater treatment systems play important role in promoting the growth of phytoplankton and generating abundance of hard clams on muddy beach.

Keywords: wastewater, phytoplankton, hard clam (Meretrix spp.), muddy beach

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Authors: Layal Mansour

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The aim of this paper is to identify whether oil price volatility or geopolitical risks can predict future financial stress periods or economic recessions in Kuwait. We construct the first Financial Stress Index for Kuwait (FSIK) that includes informative vulnerable indicators of the main financial sectors: the banking sector, the equities market, and the foreign exchange market. The study covers the period from 2000 to 2020, so it includes the two recent most devastating world economic crises with oil price fluctuation: the Covid-19 pandemic crisis and Ukraine-Russia War. All data are taken by the central bank of Kuwait, the World Bank, IMF, DataStream, and from Federal Reserve System St Louis. The variables are computed as the percentage growth rate, then standardized and aggregated into one index using the variance equal weights method, the most frequently used in the literature. The graphical FSIK analysis provides detailed information (by dates) to policymakers on how internal financial stability depends on internal policy and events such as government elections or resignation. It also shows how monetary authorities or internal policymakers’ decisions to relieve personal loans or increase/decrease the public budget trigger internal financial instability. The empirical analysis under vector autoregression (VAR) models shows the dynamic causal relationship between the oil price fluctuation and the Kuwaiti economy, which relies heavily on the oil price. Similarly, using vector autoregression (VAR) models to assess the impact of the global geopolitical risks on Kuwaiti financial stability, results reveal whether Kuwait is confronted with or sheltered from geopolitical risks. The Financial Stress Index serves as a guide for macroprudential regulators in order to understand the weakness of the overall Kuwaiti financial market and economy regardless of the Kuwaiti dinar strength and exchange rate stability. It helps policymakers predict future stress periods and, thus, address alternative cushions to confront future possible financial threats.

Keywords: Kuwait, financial stress index, causality test, VAR, oil price, geopolitical risks

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Authors: Abdelghani Qadem

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Urbanization in Morocco has ushered in profound shifts in hydrological dynamics, presenting a spectrum of challenges and avenues for sustainable water management. This abstract delves into the nuances of urban hydrology in Morocco, spotlighting the ramifications of rapid urban expansion, the imprint of climate change, and the imperative for cohesive water management strategies. The swift urban sprawl across Morocco has engendered a surge in impermeable surfaces, reshaping the natural hydrological cycle and amplifying quandaries such as urban inundations and water scarcity. Moreover, the specter of climate change looms large, heralding alterations in precipitation regimes and a heightened frequency of extreme meteorological events, thus compounding the hydrological conundrum. However, amidst these challenges, urban hydrology in Morocco also unfolds vistas of innovation and sustainability. The integration of green infrastructure, encompassing solutions like permeable pavements and vegetated roofs, emerges as a linchpin in ameliorating the hydrological imbalances wrought by urbanization, fostering infiltration, and curbing surface runoff. Additionally, embracing the tenets of water-sensitive urban design promises to fortify water efficiency and resilience in urban landscapes. Effectively navigating urban hydrology in Morocco mandates a cross-disciplinary approach that interweaves urban planning, water resource governance, and climate resilience strategies. A collaborative ethos, bridging governmental entities, academic institutions, and grassroots communities, assumes paramount importance in crafting and executing comprehensive solutions that grapple with the intricate interplay of urbanization, hydrology, and climate dynamics. In summation, confronting the labyrinthine challenges of urban hydrology in Morocco necessitates proactive strides toward fostering sustainable urban growth and bolstering resilience to climate vagaries. By embracing cutting-edge technologies and embracing an ethos of integrated water management, Morocco can forge a path toward a more water-secure and resilient urban future.

Keywords: urban hydrology, Morocco, urbanization, climate change, water management, green infrastructure, sustainable development

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Authors: Saad Bin Ismail, Muhammad Ateeq Qureshi, Rao Muhammad Zahid Khalil

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In the last few decades, urbanization worldwide has been sprawled manifold, which is denunciated in the growth of urban infrastructure and transportation. Urban Heat Island (UHI) can induce deterioration of the living environment, disabilities, and rises in energy usages. In this study, the prevalence/presence of Surface Urban Heat Island (SUHI) effect in major cities of Pakistan, including Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Karachi, Quetta, and Peshawar has been investigated. Landsat and SPOT satellite images were acquired for the assessment of urban sprawl. MODIS Land Surface Temperature product MOD11A2 was acquired between 1000-1200 hours (local time) for assessment of urban heat island. The results of urban sprawl informed that the extent of Islamabad and Rawalpindi urban area increased from 240 km2 to 624 km2 between 2000 and 2016, accounted 24 km2 per year, Lahore 29 km2, accounted 1.6 km2 per year, Karachi 261 km2, accounted for 16 km2/ per year, Peshawar 63 km2, accounted 4 km2/per year, and Quetta 76 km2/per year, accounted 5 km2/per year approximately. The average Surface Urban Heat Island (SUHI) magnitude is observed at a scale of 0.63 ᵒC for Islamabad and Rawalpindi, 1.25 ᵒC for Lahore, and 1.16 ᵒC for Karachi, which is 0.89 ᵒC for Quetta, and 1.08 ᵒC for Peshawar from 2000 to 2016. The pixel-based maximum SUHI intensity reaches up to about 11.40 ᵒC for Islamabad and Rawalpindi, 15.66 ᵒC for Lahore, 11.20 ᵒC for Karachi, 14.61 ᵒC for Quetta, and 15.22 ᵒC for Peshawar from the baseline of zero degrees Centigrade (ᵒC). The overall trend of SUHI in planned cities (e.g., Islamabad) is not found to increase significantly. Spatial and temporal patterns of SUHI for selected cities reveal heterogeneity and a unique pattern for each city. It is well recognized that SUHI intensity is modulated by land use/land cover patterns (due to their different surface properties and cooling rates), meteorological conditions, and anthropogenic activities. The study concluded that the selected cities (Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Karachi, Quetta, and Peshawar) are examples where dense urban pockets observed about 15 ᵒC warmer than a nearby rural area.

Keywords: urban heat island , surface urban heat island , urbanization, anthropogenic source

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Authors: Zilungile Sosibo

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Constructivism in teacher education is growing tremendously in both the developed and developing world. Proponents of constructivism emphasize active engagement of students in the teaching and learning process. In an effort to keep students engaged while they learn to learn, teachers use a variety of methods to incorporate constructivism in the teaching-learning situations. One area that has a potential for realizing constructivism in the classroom is self-assessment. Sadly, students are rarely involved in the assessment of their work. Instead, the most knowing teacher dominates this process. Student involvement in self-assessments has a potential to teach student teachers to become objective assessors of their students’ work by the time they become credentialed. This is important, as objectivity in assessments is a much-needed skill in the classroom contexts within which teachers deal with students from diverse backgrounds and in which biased assessments should be avoided at all cost. The purpose of the study presented in this paper was to investigate whether student teachers acquired the skills of administering self-assessments objectively after they had been immersed in a formal training program and participated in four sets of self-assessments. The objectives were to determine the extent to which they had mastered the skills of objective self-assessments, their growth and development in this area, and the challenges they encountered in administering self-assessments objectively. The research question was: To what extent did student teachers acquire objectivity in self-assessments after their theoretical and practical engagement in this activity? Data were collected from student teachers through participant observation and semi-structured interviews. The design was a qualitative case study. The sample consisted of 39 final-year student teachers enrolled in a Bachelor of Education teacher education program at a university in South Africa. Results revealed that the formal training program and participation in self-assessments had a minimal effect on students’ acquisition of objectivity in self-assessments, due to the factors associated with self-aggrandizement and hegemony, the latter resulting from gender, religious and racial differences. These results have serious implications for the need to incorporate self-assessments in the teacher-education curriculum, as well as for extended formal training programs for student teachers on assessment in general.

Keywords: objectivity, self-assessment, student teachers, teacher education curriculum

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Authors: Hongtao Zhu, Dezhi Sun

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Nitrogen and phosphorus are essential nutrients for biomass growth. But excessive nitrogen and phosphorus can contribute to accelerated eutrophication of lakes and rivers. Constructed wetland is an efficient and eco-friendly wastewater treatment technology with low operating cost and low-energy consumption. Because of high affinity with ammonium ion, zeolite, as a common substrate, is applied in constructed wetlands worldwide. Another substrate seen commonly for constructed wetlands is steel slag, which has high contents of Ca, Al, or Fe, and possesses a strong affinity with phosphate. Due to the excellent ammonium removal ability of zeolite and phosphate removal ability of steel slag, they were considered to be combined in the substrate bed of a constructed wetland in order to enhance the simultaneous removal efficiencies of nitrogen and phosphorus. In our early tests, zeolite and steel slag were combined with each other in order to simultaneously achieve a high removal efficiency of ammonium-nitrogen and phosphate-phosphorus. However, compared with the results when only zeolite was used, the removal efficiency of ammonia was sharply decreased when zeolite and steel slag were used together. The main objective of this study was to establish an overview of the interaction of steel slag and zeolite on ammonium nitrogen removal. The CaO dissolution from slag, as well as the effects of influencing parameters (i.e. pH and Ca2+ concentration) on the ammonium adsorption onto zeolite, was systematically studied. Modeling results of Ca2+ and OH- release from slag indicated that pseudo-second order reaction had a better fitness than pseudo-first order reaction. Changing pH value from 7 to 12 would result in a drastic reduction of the ammonium adsorption capacity on zeolite, from the peak at pH7. High Ca2+ concentration in solution could also inhibit the adsorption of ammonium onto zeolite. The mechanism for steel slag inhibiting the ammonium adsorption capacity of zeolite includes: on one hand, OH- released from steel slag can react with ammonium ions to produce molecular form ammonia (NH3∙H2O), which would cause the dissociation of NH4+ from zeolite. On the other hand, Ca2+ could replace the NH4+ ions to adhere onto the surface of zeolite. An innovative substrate filling configuration that zeolite and steel slag are placed sequentially was proposed to eliminate the disadvantageous effects of steel slag. Experimental results showed that the novel filling configuration was superior to the other two contrast filling configurations in terms of ammonium removal.

Keywords: ammonium nitrogen, constructed wetlands, steel slag, zeolite

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Authors: Raquel Vianna Duarte Cardoso, Eduarda Lobato Faria, José Jorge Boueri

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Rapid urbanization has transformed the global landscape, presenting significant challenges to public health. This article delves into the impact of urbanization on the spread of infectious diseases in cities and identifies crucial strategies to enhance urban community resilience. Massive urbanization over recent decades has created conducive environments for the rapid spread of diseases due to population density, mobility, and unequal living conditions. Urbanization has been observed to increase exposure to pathogens and foster conditions conducive to disease outbreaks, including seasonal flu, vector-borne diseases, and respiratory infections. In order to tackle these issues, a range of cross-disciplinary approaches are suggested. These encompass the enhancement of urban healthcare infrastructure, emphasizing the need for robust investments in hospitals, clinics, and healthcare systems to keep pace with the burgeoning healthcare requirements in urban environments. Moreover, the establishment of disease monitoring and surveillance mechanisms is indispensable, as it allows for the timely detection of outbreaks, enabling swift responses. Additionally, community engagement and education play a pivotal role in advocating for personal hygiene, vaccination, and preventive measures, thus playing a pivotal role in diminishing disease transmission. Lastly, the promotion of sustainable urban planning, which includes the creation of cities with green spaces, access to clean water, and proper sanitation, can significantly mitigate the risks associated with waterborne and vector-borne diseases. The article is based on a review of scientific literature, and it offers a comprehensive insight into the complexities of the relationship between urbanization and health. It places a strong emphasis on the urgent need for integrated approaches to improve urban resilience in the face of health challenges.

Keywords: infectious diseases dissemination, public health, urbanization impacts, urban resilience

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Authors: Gul Rahim Rahimi

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The IoT-based soil moisture monitoring system for indoor plants is designed to address the challenges of maintaining optimal moisture levels in soil for plant growth and health. The system utilizes sensor technology to collect real-time data on soil moisture levels, which is then processed and analyzed using machine learning algorithms. This allows for accurate and timely monitoring of soil moisture levels, ensuring plants receive the appropriate amount of water to thrive. The main objectives of the system are twofold: to keep plants fresh and healthy by preventing water deficiency and to provide users with comprehensive insights into the water content of the soil on a daily and hourly basis. By monitoring soil moisture levels, users can identify patterns and trends in water consumption, allowing for more informed decision-making regarding watering schedules and plant care. The scope of the system extends to the agriculture industry, where it can be utilized to minimize the efforts required by farmers to monitor soil moisture levels manually. By automating the process of soil moisture monitoring, farmers can optimize water usage, improve crop yields, and reduce the risk of plant diseases associated with over or under-watering. Key technologies employed in the system include the Capacitive Soil Moisture Sensor V1.2 for accurate soil moisture measurement, the Node MCU ESP8266-12E Board for data transmission and communication, and the Arduino framework for programming and development. Additionally, machine learning algorithms are utilized to analyze the collected data and provide actionable insights. Cloud storage is utilized to store and manage the data collected from multiple sensors, allowing for easy access and retrieval of information. Overall, the IoT-based soil moisture monitoring system offers a scalable and efficient solution for indoor plant care, with potential applications in agriculture and beyond. By harnessing the power of IoT and machine learning, the system empowers users to make informed decisions about plant watering, leading to healthier and more vibrant indoor environments.

Keywords: IoT-based, soil moisture monitoring, indoor plants, water management

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Authors: Chunyue Liu, Hongxing Jiang

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Traditional water depth survey of wetland habitats used by waterbirds needs intensive labor, time and money. The optical remote sensing image relies on passive multispectral scanner data has been widely employed to study estimate water depth. This paper presents an innovative method for developing the water depth model based on the characteristics of visible and thermal infrared spectra of Landsat ETM+ image, combing with 441 field water depth data at Etoupao shallow wetland. The wetland is located at Momoge National Nature Reserve of Northeast China, where the largest stopover habitat along the eastern flyway of globally, critically-endangered Siberian Cranes are. The cranes mainly feed on the tubers of emergent aquatic plants such as Scirpus planiculmis and S. nipponicus. The effective water control is a critical step for maintaining the production of tubers and food availability for this crane. The model employing multi-band approach can effectively simulate water depth for this shallow wetland. The model parameters of NDVI and GREEN indicated the vegetation growth and coverage affecting the reflectance from water column change are uneven. Combining with the field-observed water level at the same date of image acquisition, the digital elevation model (DEM) for the underwater terrain was generated. The wetland area and water volume of different water levels were then calculated from the DEM using the function of Area and Volume Statistics under the 3D Analyst of ArcGIS 10.0. The findings provide good references to effectively monitor changes in water level and water demand, develop practical plan for water level regulation and water management, and to create best foraging habitats for the cranes. The methods here can be adopted for the bottom topography simulation and water management in waterbirds’ habitats, especially in the shallow wetlands.

Keywords: remote sensing, water depth reversion, shallow wetland habitat management, siberian crane

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Authors: Komal Vig, Syamala Soumyakrishnan, Yadav Baral

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Bypass surgery, using the autologous vein has been one of the most effective treatments for cardiovascular diseases (CVD). More recently tissue engineering including engineered vascular grafts to synthesize blood vessels is gaining usage. Dacron and ePTFE has been employed for vascular grafts, however, these does not work well for small diameter grafts (<6 mm) due to intimal hyperplasia and thrombosis. In the present study PTFE was treated with LTP to improve the endothelialization of intimal surface of graft. Scaffolds were also modified with polyvinylpyrrolidone coated silver nanoparticles (Ag-PVP) and the antimicrobial peptides, p753 and p359. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) were plated on the developed scaffolds and cell proliferation was determined by the MTT assay. Cells attachment on scaffolds was visualized by microscopy. mRNA expressions levels of different cell markers were investigated using quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR). X ray photoelectron spectroscopic confirmed the introduction of oxygenated functionalities from LTP air plasma. Microscopic and MTT assays indicated increase in cell viability in LTP treated scaffolds. Gene expression studies shows enhanced expression of cell adhesion marker Integrin- α 5 gene after LTP treatment. The KB test displayed a zone of inhibition for Ag-PVP, p753 and p359 of 19mm, 14mm, and 12mm respectively. To determine toxicity of antimicrobial agents to cells, MTT Assay was performed using HEK293 cells. MTT Assay exhibited that Ag-PVP and the peptides were non-toxic to cells at 100μg/mL and 50μg/mL, respectively. Live/dead analysis and plate count of treated bacteria exhibited bacterial inhibition on develop scaffold compared to non-treated scaffold. SEM was performed to analyze the structural changes of bacteria after treatment with antimicrobial agents. Gene expression studies were conducted on RNA from bacteria treated with Ag-PVP and peptides using qRT-PCR. Based on our initial results, more scaffolds alternatives will be developed and investigated for cell growth and vascularization studies.

Keywords: low temperature plasma, vascular graft, HUVEC cells, antimicrobial

Procedia PDF Downloads 244

Authors: Marvin Eslava

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The over-arching aim of this research is to determine the potential contribution of local food resources to the tourism growth of Nueva Vizcaya. It reviews some of the underpinning concepts and to provide a set of considerations for stakeholders to maximize the opportunity of local food can offer to businesses and the wider community. The basis of the study is to develop a sustainable food tourism model for Nueva Vizcaya. For the purpose of this research, there were 60 total numbers of respondents classified as samples from a six municipality. The respondents of the study were stakeholder consisting of government official, local producers, businessman and Non-government organizations in the selected municipalities of Nueva Vizcaya. Stratified purposive sampling was the appropriate technique that was used to the local government officials and employees, NGOs including the businessmen who are associated with local food resources and local producers. The documentary study, focus group discussion and survey questionnaire was used in order to meet the objectives of the study. Kruskall Wallis test was used to test the variances the ratings of the participants. This was used in the computation of hypothesis. The study concluded that the province of Nueva Vizcaya is blessed for its rich farmlands and fertile mountain soil boasts to produce high quality agricultural products. It is a home of various different indigenous groups creating a wide range of local cuisine. The province has substantial local food development evidence by the various food tourism related resources, increase in facilities and celebrating food tourism related events. The local food resources provide extensive potential economic empowerment and help in building the identity of the province. In addition, the local food resources extensively enhance the agriculture sector and other attractions in the province. Finally, it helps to preserve the authenticity of the food culture and generated pride among all stakeholders extensively. All stakeholders have the same perception on the potential contribution of local food resources to the development of the province of Nueva Vizcaya. The public and private sectors are cognizant on their roles to support the production of local food resources in Nueva Vizcaya. Major challenges and barriers in the development of sustainable food tourism in Nueva Vizcaya include production or supply and marketing.

Keywords: local food resources, contribution, food tourism, benefits

Procedia PDF Downloads 261

Authors: Rosa Tiziana Bruno

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The connection between education and sustainability has been posited to have benefit for realizing a social development compatible with environmental protection. However, an educational paradigm based on the passage of information or on the fear of a catastrophe might not favor the acquisition of eco-identity. To build a sustainable world, it is necessary to "become people" in harmony with other human beings, being aware of belonging to the same human community that is part of the natural world. This can only be achieved within an authentic educating community and the most effective tools for building educating communities are reading literacy and storytelling. This paper is the report of a research-action carried out in this direction, in agreement with the sociology department of the University of Salerno, which involved four hundred children and their teachers in a path based on the combination of reading literacy, storytelling, autobiographical writing and outdoor education. The goal of the research was to create an authentic educational community within the school, capable to encourage the acquisition of an eco-identity by the pupils, that is, personal and relational growth in the full realization of the Self, in harmony with the social and natural environment, with a view to an authentic education for sustainability. To ensure reasonable validity and reliability of findings, the inquiry started with participant observation and a process of triangulation has been used including: semi-structured interview, socio-semiotic analysis of the conversation and time budget. Basically, a multiple independent sources of data was used to answer the questions. Observing the phenomenon through multiple "windows" helped to comparing data through a variety of lenses. All teachers had the experience of implementing a socio-didactic strategy called "Fiabadiario" and they had the possibility to use it with approaches that fit their students. The data being collected come from the very students and teachers who are engaged with this strategy. The educational path tested during the research has produced sustainable relationships and conflict resolution within the school system and between school and families, creating an authentic and sustainable learning community.

Keywords: educating community, education for sustainability, literature in education, social relations

Procedia PDF Downloads 122

Authors: U. Gunal, H. I. Turgut, H. Gurler, S. Kaya

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There are many ever-increasing and newly emerging problems with rapid population growth in the world. With the increase in people's quality of life in our daily life, acoustic comfort has become an important feature in the textile industry. In order to meet all these expectations in people's comfort areas and survive in challenging competitive conditions in the market without compromising the customer product quality expectations of textile manufacturers, it has become a necessity to bring functionality to the products. It is inevitable to research and develop materials and processes that will bring these functionalities to textile products. The noise we encounter almost everywhere in our daily life, in the street, at home and work, is one of the problems which textile industry is working on. It brings with it many health problems, both mentally and physically. Therefore, noise control studies become more of an issue. Besides, materials used in noise control are not sufficient to reduce the effect of the noise level. The fabrics used in acoustic studies in the textile industry do not show sufficient performance according to their weight and high cost. Thus, acoustic textile products can not be used in daily life. In the thesis study, the attributions used in the noise control and building acoustics studies in the literature were analyzed, and the product with the highest damping value that a textile material will have was designed, manufactured, and tested. Optimum values were obtained by using different material samples that may affect the performance of the acoustic material. Acoustic measurement methods should be applied to verify the acoustic performances shown by the parameters and the designed three-dimensional structure at different values. In the measurements made in the study, the device designed for determining the acoustic performance of the material for both the impedance tube according to the relevant standards and the different noise types in the study was used. In addition, sound records of noise types encountered in daily life are taken and applied to the acoustic absorbent fabric with the aid of the device, and the feasibility of the results and the commercial ability of the product are examined. MATLAB numerical computing programming language and libraries were used in the frequency and sound power analyses made in the study.

Keywords: acoustic, egg crate, fabric, textile

Procedia PDF Downloads 108

Authors: Shreya Sara Ittycheria, K. C. Sivakumar, Shijulal Nelson Sathi, Priya Srinivas

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hCG, a heterodimer composed of α and β subunits, is a peptide hormone having numerous biological functions. Although hCG is expressed by placenta during pregnancy, ectopic β-hCG secretion is observed in many non-trophoblastic tumors including that of breast. In-vitro and in-vivo studies done in the lab, have proved that BRCA1 defective cancers express β-hCG and when β-hCG is expressed or supplemented, it promotes tumor progression and exhibits resistance to carboplatin and ABT888, in such cancers but not in BRCA1 wild type cancers. In cancer cells, instead of binding to its regular receptor, LH-CGR, β-hCG binds with Transforming Growth Factor Receptor 2 (TGFβRII) and phosphorylates it resulting in faster tumor progression through the Smad signaling pathway. Targeting β-hCG could be a potential therapeutic strategy for managing BRCA1 defective cancers. Here, molecular docking and dynamic simulation studies were done to identify potential small molecule inhibitors against β-hCG as there are currently no such inhibitors reported. The binding sites of TGFβRII on β-hCG were identified from the top 10 predicted complexes from Z Dock. Virtual screening of selected commercially available small molecules from various libraries such as ZINC, NCI and Life Chemicals amounting to a total of 50,025 molecules were done. Four potential small molecule inhibitors were identified, RgcbPs-1, RgcbPs-2, RgcbPs-3 and RgcbPs-4 with binding affinities -60.778 kcal/mol, -45.447 kcal/mol, -65.2268 kcal/mol and -82.040 kcal/mol respectively. Further, 100ns Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulation showed that these molecules form stable complexes with β-hCG. RgcbPs-1 maintains hydrogen bonds with Q54, L52, Q46, C100, G36, C57, C38 residues, RgcbPs-2 maintains hydrogen bonds with A83 residue, RgcbPs-3 maintains hydrogen bonds with C57, Y58, R94, G101 residues and RgcbPs-4 maintains hydrogen bonds with G36, C38, T40, C57, D99, C100, G101 and L104 residues of β-hCG all of which coincide with the TGFβRII binding site on β-hCG. These results show that these two inhibitors could be used either singly or in combination for inhibiting β-hCG from binding to TGFβRII and thereby directly inhibiting the tumorigenesis pathway.

Keywords: β-hCG, breast cancer, dynamic simulations, molecular docking, small molecule inhibitors, virtual screening.

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Authors: Grace Iember Anweh, Er Shipp

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Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) has been a contending issue across the globe. The menace of child sexual violence cuts across all continents. From 0 - 13 years, children have been sexually abused – some to the extent that their reproductive organs have been permanently damaged. The research in view is timely, as it will contribute data on CSA and media role to the communication parlance. This study believes that the adverse effects of this menace can hinder children who are potential leaders of tomorrow from harnessing their potentials to contribute to the growth and development of societies due to the psychological, health, and social effects of sex abuse. Where government policies, the law, cultural beliefs, and bottle necks surrounding processes of fighting child sexual abuse have failed, this study assumes that adequate coverage by the mass media, especially the newspapers known for their in-depth coverage and reporting, can help to eradicate or reduce to its barest minimum, the menace of CSA. Therefore, this study aims at assessing the coverage of newspapers – their policies and content towards preventive strategies, and how the public access and receive the messages to the extent they take action to forestall the persistence of sexual violation of children in Nigeria. Methodologically, the study has adopted qualitative and quantitative methods to answer the problem. The study used in-depth interview method to find out from journalists and editors of newspapers the policies that define the production of news content on sexual gender-based violence. In addition, selected National Daily newspapers are content - analysed to determine the focus of media coverage and whether the contents are preventive-based or case-based. In addition, caregivers of the reproductive ages from 16 years and above, ranging from parents, guardians, and school management, will form the study population through a survey using the questionnaire. The aim is to determine their views regarding mass media coverage of sexual violence against children and the effectiveness of the content, to the extent of prompting them to keep the child safe from sexual molesters. Findings from the content analysis so far show that newspapers in Nigeria are not engaged in preventive content of CSA. Their contents are rather case-based.

Keywords: newspaper, coverage, prevention, child, sexual abuse

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Authors: Moksha Singh

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The proponents of deinstitutionalization, including Goffman and others, in their works, have regarded institutions (orphanages to be specific) as regulated social arrangements that negatively impinge upon a resident’s development. They, therefore, propose alternative forms of care. However, even after five decades of this critique institutionalization remains the only hope for children with social, physical and mental disabilities in larger parts of the developing world such as the conflict affected state of Jammu and Kashmir in India. This paper is based on the experiences of children who lost their parents to insurgency and counter-insurgency operations and the rehabilitation process. This study is qualitative in nature and adopts descriptive-cum-exploratory research design. Using theoretical sampling, six orphanages and thirty one child residents who lost their parent(s) in the course of the armed conflict in the state of Jammu and Kashmir in India were studied in the year 2009-2010. It included interviews, observation, life histories and introspective accounts of the orphans and the management. The results were drawn through the qualitative examination, understanding, and interpretation of the primary and secondary data. The findings suggested that rehabilitation of these conflict-affected children is taking place mainly through residential child care facilities run by non-governmental bodies. Alternative forms of rehabilitation are not functional in the state because of various geopolitical and socio-cultural complexities. Even after five years of arriving at these conclusions and more, the state of Jammu and Kashmir still lacks a comprehensive rehabilitation plan for these children. This has further encouraged a mushroomed growth of legal and illegal institutions. Some of these institutions compromise the standard norms of functioning and yet remain the only hope for thousands rendered orphan. These institutions, therefore, are there to stay as other alternative forms of care are not available in the state. A comprehensive intervention policy is needed based on the cultural specifics of the state and incorporation of views of institutions offering aid, the state and the children. The paper introduces Small Group Residential Care Model through which it is expected that the restoration process can be made smooth and effective.

Keywords: armed conflict, children's rights, institutionalization, orphanages, rehabilitation

Procedia PDF Downloads 250