Search results for: food science

Authors: Gheorghiţa Mitran, Adriana Urdă, Mihaela Florea, Octavian Dumitru Pavel, Florentina Neaţu

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Oxidative dehydrogenation and hydrogenation reactions of L-malic acid are interesting ways for its transformation into valuable products, including oxaloacetic, pyruvic and malonic acids but also 1,4-butanediol and 1,2,4-butanetriol. Keto acids have a range of applicationsin many chemical syntheses as pharmaceuticals, food additives and cosmetics. 3-Hydroxybutyrolactone and 1,2,4-butanetriol are used for the synthesis of chiral pharmaceuticals and other fine chemicals, while 1,4-butanediol can be used for organic syntheses, such as polybutylene succinate (PBS), polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), and for production of tetrahydrofuran (THF). L-malic acid is a non-toxic and natural organic acid present in fruits, and it is the main component of wine alongside tartaric acid representing about 90% of the wine total acidity. Iron oxides dopped with cobalt (CoxFe3-xO4; x= 0; 0.05; 0.1; 0.15) were studied as catalysts in these reactions. There is no mention in the literature of non-noble transition metal catalysts for these reactions. The method used for catalysts preparation was coprecipitation, whileBET XRD, XPS, FTIR and UV-VIS spectroscopy were used for the physicochemical properties evaluation.TheXRD patterns revealed the presence of α-Fe2O3 rhombohedral hematite structure, with cobalt atoms well dispersed and embedded in this structure. The studied samples are highly crystalline, with a crystallite size ranged from 58 to 65 nm. The optical absorption properties were investigated using UV-Vis spectroscopy, emphasizing the presence of bands that correspond with the reported hematite nanoparticle. Likewise, the presence of bands corresponding to lattice vibration of hexagonal hematite structurehas been evidenced in DRIFT spectra. Oxidative dehydrogenation of malic acid was studied using as solvents for malic acid ethanol or water(2, 5 and 10% malic acid in 5 mL solvent)at room temperature, while the hydrogenation reaction was evaluated in water as solvent (5%), in the presence of 1% catalyst. The oxidation of malic acid into oxaloacetic acid is the first step, after that, oxaloacetic acid is rapidly decarboxylated to malonic acid or pyruvic acid, depending on the active site. The concentration of malic acid in solution, it, in turn, has an influence on conversionthis decreases when the concentration of malic acid in the solution is high. The spent catalysts after the oxidative dehydrogenation of malic acid in ethanol were characterized by DRIFT spectroscopy and the presence of oxaloacetic, pyruvic and malonicacids, along with unreacted malic acidwere observed on the surface. The increase of the ratio of Co/Fe on the surface has an influence on the malic acid conversion and on the pyruvic acid yield, while the yield of malonic acid is influenced by the percentage of iron on the surface (determined from XPS). Oxaloacetic acid yield reaches a maximumat one hour of reaction, being higher when ethanol is used as a solvent, after which it suddenly decreases. The hydrogenation of malic acid occurs by consecutive reactions with the production of 3-hydroxy-butyrolactone, 1,2,4-butanetriol and 1,4-butanediol. Malic acid conversion increases with cobalt loading increasing up to Co/Fe ratio of 0.1, after which it has a slight decrease, while the yield in 1,4-butanediol is directly proportional to the cobalt content.

Keywords: malic acid, oxidative dehydrogenation, hydrogenation, oxaloacetic acid

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Authors: Monika Patel, Kazuaki Matsumura

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Synthetic hydrogels, with their unique properties such as porosity, strength, and swelling in aqueous environment, are being used in many fields from food additives to regenerative medicines, from diagnostic and pharmaceuticals to drug delivery systems (DDS). But, hydrogels also have some limitations in terms of homogeneity of drug distribution and quantity of loaded drugs. As an alternate, polymeric micelles are extensively used as DDS. With the ease of self-assembly, and distinct stability they remarkably improve the solubility of hydrophobic drugs. However, presently, combinational therapy is the need of time and so are systems which are capable of releasing more than one drug. And it is one of the major challenges towards DDS to control the release of each drug independently, which simple DDS cannot meet. In this work, we present an amphiphilic polypeptide based micelle hydrogel composite to study the dual drug release for wound healing purposes using Amphotericin B (AmpB) and Curcumin as model drugs. Firstly, two differently charged amphiphilic polypeptide chains were prepared namely, poly L-Lysine-b-poly phenyl alanine (PLL-PPA) and poly Glutamic acid-b-poly phenyl alanine (PGA-PPA) through ring opening polymerization of amino acid N-carboxyanhydride. These polymers readily self-assemble to form micelles with hydrophobic PPA block as core and hydrophilic PLL/PGA as shell with an average diameter of about 280nm. The thus formed micelles were loaded with the model drugs. The PLL-PPA micelle was loaded with curcumin and PGA-PPA was loaded with AmpB by dialysis method. Drug loaded micelles showed a slight increase in the mean diameter and were fairly stable in solution and lyophilized forms. For forming the micelles hydrogel composite, the drug loaded micelles were dissolved and were cross linked using genipin. Genipin uses the free –NH2 groups in the PLL-PPA micelles to form a hydrogel network with free PGA-PPA micelles trapped in between the 3D scaffold formed. Different composites were tested by changing the weight ratios of the both micelles and were seen to alter its resulting surface charge from positive to negative with increase in PGA-PPA ratio. The composites with high surface charge showed a burst release of drug in initial phase, were as the composites with relatively low net charge showed a sustained release. Thus the resultant surface charge of the composite can be tuned to tune its drug release profile. Also, while studying the degree of cross linking among the PLL-PPA particles for effect on dual drug release, it was seen that as the degree of crosslinking increases, an increase in the tendency to burst release the drug (AmpB) is seen in PGA-PPA particle, were as on the contrary the PLL-PPA particles showed a slower release of Curcumin with increasing the cross linking density. Thus, two different pharmacokinetic profile of drugs were seen by changing the cross linking degree. In conclusion, a unique charged amphiphilic polypeptide based micelle hydrogel composite for dual drug delivery. This composite can be finely tuned on the basis of need of drug release profiles by changing simple parameters such as composition, cross linking and pH.

Keywords: amphiphilic polypeptide, dual drug release, micelle hydrogel composite, tunable DDS

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Authors: Ribeiro A., Vilarinho C., Luisa A., Carvalho J

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The pig meat industry generates large volumes of by- and co-products like blood, bones, skin, trimmings, organs, viscera, and skulls, among others, during slaughtering and meat processing and must be treated and disposed of ecologically. The yield of these by-products has been reported to account for about 10% to 15% of the value of the live animal in developed countries, although animal by-products account for about two-thirds of the animal after slaughter. It was selected for further valorization of the principal wastes produced throughout the value chain of pig meat production: Pig Manure, Pig Bones, Fats, Skins, Pig Hair, Wastewater, Wastewater sludges, and other animal subproducts type III. According to the potential valorization options, these wastes will be converted into Biomethane, Fertilizers (phosphorus and digestate), Hydroxyapatite, and protein hydrolysates (Keratin and Collagen). This work includes comprehensive technical and economic analyses (TEA) for each valorization route or applied technology. Metrics such as Net Present Value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return (IRR), and payback periods were used to evaluate economic feasibility. From this analysis, it can be concluded that, for Biogas Production, the scenarios using pig manure, wastewater sludges and mixed grass and leguminous wastes presented a remarkably high economic feasibility. Scenarios showed high economic feasibility with a positive payback period, NPV, and IRR. The optimal scenario combining pig manure with mixed grass and leguminous wastes had a payback period of 1.2 years and produced 427,6269 m³ of biomethane annually. Regarding the Chemical Extraction of Phosphorous and Nitrogen, results proved that the process is economically unviable due to negative cash flows despite high recovery rates. The TEA of Hydrolysis and Extraction of Keratin Hydrolysates indicate that a unit processing and valorizing 10 tons of pig hair per year for the production of keratin hydrolysate has an NPV of 907,940 €, an IRR of 13.07%, and a Payback period of 5.41 years. All of these indicators suggest a highly potential project to explore in the future. On the opposite, the results of Hydrolysis and Extraction of Collagen Hydrolysates showed a process economically unviable with negative cash flows in all scenarios due to the high-fat content in raw materials. In fact, the results from the valorization of 10 tons of pig skin had a negative cash flow of 453 743,88 €. TEA results of Extraction and purification of Hydroxyapatite from Pig Bones with Pyrolysis indicate that unit processing and valorizing 10 tons of pig bones per year for the production of hydroxyapatite has an NPV of 1 274 819,00 €, an IRR of 65.43%, and a Payback period of 1,5 years over a timeline of 10 years with a discount rate of 10%. These valorization routes, circular economy and bio-refinery approach offer significant contributions to sustainable bio-based operations within the agri-food industry. This approach transforms waste into valuable resources, enhancing both environmental and economic outcomes and contributing to a more sustainable and circular bioeconomy.

Keywords: techno-economic analysis (TEA), pig meat processing wastes, circular economy, bio-refinery

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Authors: Khairani Omar, Shalinawati Ramli, Nurul Azmawati Mohamed, Zarini Ismail, Nur Syahrina Rahim, Nurul Hayati Chamhuri

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Choosing a career which matches a student’s personality traits is one of the key factors for future work satisfaction. This is because career satisfaction is at the highest when it is in line with one’s personality strength, values and attitudes. Personality traits play a major role in determining the success of a student in the medical course. In the pre-clinical years, medical theories are being emphasized, thus, conscientious students would perform better than those with lower level of this trait. As the emphasis changes in the clinical years during which patient interaction is important, personality traits which involved interpersonal values become more essential for success. The aim of this study was to determine the personality traits of students who had chosen medicine as their career. It was a cross-sectional study conducted at the Islamic Science University of Malaysia. The respondents consisted of 81 students whose age ranged between 20-21 years old. A set of personality assessment inventory index which has been validated for the local context was used to determine the students’ personality traits. The instrument assessed 15 personality traits namely: aggressive, analytical, autonomy, creativity, extrovert, intellectual, motivation, diversity, resiliency, self-criticism, control, helpful, support, structured and achievement. The scores ranged between 1-100%, and they were categorized into low (1-30%), moderate (40-60%) and high scores (70-100%). The respondents were Year 3 pre-clinical medical students and there were more female students (69%) compared to male students (31%). Majority of them were from middle-income families. Approximately 70% of both parents of the respondents had tertiary education. Majority of the students had high scores in autonomy, creativity, diversity, helpful, structured and achievement. In other words, more than 50% of them scored high (70-100%) in these traits. Scoring high in these traits was beneficial for the medical course. For aggressive trait, 54% of them had moderate scores which is compatible for medicine as this indicated an inclination to being assertive. In the analytical and intellectual components, only 40% and 25% had high scores respectively. These results contradicted the usual expectation of medical students whereby they are expected to be highly analytical and intellectual. It would be an added value if the students had high scores in being extrovert as this reflects on good interpersonal values, however, the students had approximately similar scores in all categories of this trait. Being resilient in the medical school is important as the course is difficult and demanding. The students had good scores in this component in which 46% had high scores while 39% had moderate scores. In conclusion, by understanding their personality traits, strengths and weaknesses, the students will have an opportunity to improve themselves in the areas they lack. This will help them to become better doctors in future.

Keywords: career, medical students, medicine, personality traits

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Authors: Claudio Di Benedetto, Irene Bengo

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The objective of the paper is to study how large European companies develop social business (SB) at the base of the economic pyramid (BoP). BoP markets are defined as the four billions people living with an annual income below $3,260 in local purchasing power. Despite they are heterogeneous in terms of geographic range they present some common characteristics: the presence of significant unmet (social) needs, high level of informal economy and the so-called ‘poverty penalty’. As a result, most people living at BoP are excluded from the value created by the global market economy. But it is worth noting, that BoP population with an aggregate purchasing power of around $5 trillion a year, represent a huge opportunity for companies that want to enhance their long-term profitability perspective. We suggest that in this context, the development of SB is, for companies, an innovative and promising way to satisfy unmet social needs and to experience new forms of value creation. Indeed, SB can be considered a strategic model to develop CSR programs that fully integrate the social dimension into the business to create economic and social value simultaneously. Despite in literature many studies have been conducted on social business, only few have explicitly analyzed such phenomenon from a company perspective and their role in the development of such initiatives remains understudied with fragmented results. To fill this gap the paper analyzes the key characteristics of the social business initiatives developed by European companies at BoP. The study was performed analyzing 1475 European companies participating in the United Nation Global Compact, the world’s leading corporate social responsibility program. Through the analysis of the corporate websites the study identifies companies that actually do SB at BoP. For SB initiatives identified, information were collected according to a framework adapted from the SB model developed by preliminary results show that more than one hundred European companies have already implemented social businesses at BoP accounting for the 6,5% of the total. This percentage increases to 15% if the focus is on companies with more than 10.440 employees. In terms of geographic distribution 80% of companies doing SB at BoP are located in western and southern Europe. The companies more active in promoting SB belong to financial sector (20%), energy sector (17%) and food and beverage sector (12%). In terms of social needs addressed almost 30% of the companies develop SB to provide access to energy and WASH, 25% of companies develop SB to reduce local unemployment or to promote local entrepreneurship and 21% of companies develop SB to promote financial inclusion of poor. In developing SB companies implement different social business configurations ranging from forms of outsourcing to internal development models. The study identifies seven main configurations through which company develops social business and each configuration present distinguishing characteristics respect to the involvement of the company in the management, the resources provided and the benefits achieved. By performing different analysis on data collected the paper provides detailed insights on how European companies develop SB at BoP.

Keywords: base of the economic pyramid, corporate social responsibility, social business, social enterprise

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Authors: Hye-Hyun Lee, Hyo-Kon Chun, Kyung-Hee Kim Kim, Mi-Hee Kim, Saet-Byul Chu, Sang-Jong Lee, Seung-Hyeop Lee, Seung-Won Yi

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Some chemicals such as malachite green, methylene blue, and copper sulfate had been used frequently as disinfectants controlling fungal infection in aquaculture. However, their carcinogenicity, mutagenicity and teratogenicity were reported in mammals. After their accumulation in food fish and its consumers was confirmed, concerns about public health has resulted in enhanced monitoring and increased demand for eco-friendly treatments. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate safety to fish and efficacy of sulfur solution processed by effective microorganisms (EM-PSS) against Saprolegnia parasitica, for use of a potential aquatic fungicidal disinfectant. The natural sulfur purchased from Kawah Ijen volcano, East Java, Indonesia was processed by the liquid mixture consisting of following twelve effective microorganisms (Rapha-el®; Lbiotech, Jeonnam, Korea), Lactobacillus parafarraginis, L. paracasei, L. harbinensis, L. buchneri, L. perolens, L. rhamnosus, L. vaccinostercus, Acetobacter lovaniensis, A. peroxydans, Pichia fermentans, Candida ethanolica, Saccharomycopsis schoenii isolated from fermentation process of oriental medicinal herbs including green tea, privet, and puer tea. The material was applied to in vitro antifungal activity test for Saprolegnia parasitica using agar dilution method. In addition, an acute toxicity test was performed on carp (Cyprinus carpio), eel (Anguilla japonica), and mud fish (Misgurnus mizolepis) for 96 hours. After three species of fish (n=15) were accustomed to experimental water environment for three days, the EM-PSS was added to each tank as final concentrations to be 0 to 500 ppm. The fish were taken into necropsy, and the histological sections of the gill, liver, and spleen were counter-stained with hematoxylin and eosin (H-E). And hence, no observed effect concentration (NOEC) of the solution was used for taking a medicinal bath for mudfish infected by Saprolegnia parasitica in practice. The result of in vitro antifungal activity test showed the growth inhibition of the fungus at 100 ppm, which and the lower concentrations occurred no fatal case in any fish species tested until the end of the examination. The 125 ppm of the solution, however, resulted in 13.3 %, 13.3 %, and 6.3 % of mortality in carp, eel, and mudfish, respectively. But both 250 and 500 ppm of the solution leaded lethality to all population of each fish species within 24 hours. Besides, H-E staining also showed no specific evidence for toxicity in fish at lesser than 100 ppm of EM-PSS. On the other hand, as a result of field application of the solution, no growth of fungal mycelium was found in fish bodies from gross observation 5 days post treatment. In conclusion, 100ppm of EM-PSS resulted in inhibition and treatment of Saprolegnia parasitica infection. In addition, the use of EM-PSS lower than 100 ppm is safe for fish. Therefore, EM-PSS could be used as aquatic fungicide, and also may be possible to be a potential eco-friendly disinfectant in aquaculture.

Keywords: antifungal activity, effective microorganism, toxicity, saprolegnia, processed sulfur solution

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Authors: Domenico Carmelo Mongelli

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The context of this research is that of the Italian reality, which, in order to adapt to the EU Directives that prohibit the production of internal combustion engines in favor of electric mobility from 2035, is extremely concerned about the significant loss of jobs resulting from the difficulty of the automotive industry in converting in such a short time and due to the reticence of potential buyers in the face of such an epochal change. The aim of the research is to evaluate for Italy the potential of the most valid alternative to this transition to electric: leaving the current production of diesel engines unchanged, no longer powered by gasoil, imported and responsible for greenhouse gas emissions, but powered entirely by a nationally produced and eco-sustainable fuel such as biodiesel. Today in Italy, the percentage of biodiesel mixed with gasoil for diesel engines is too low (around 10%); for this reason, this research aims to evaluate the functioning of current diesel engines powered 100% by biodiesel and the ability of the Italian production system to cope to this hypothesis. The research geographically identifies those abandoned lands in Italy, now out of the food market, which is best suited to an energy crop for the final production of biodiesel. The cultivation of oilseeds is identified, which for the Italian agro-industrial reality allows maximizing the agricultural and industrial yields of the transformation of the agricultural product into a final energy product and minimizing the production costs of the entire agro-industrial chain. To achieve this objective, specific databases are used, and energy and economic balances are prepared for the different agricultural product alternatives. Solutions are proposed and tested that allow the optimization of all production phases in both the agronomic and industrial phases. The biodiesel obtained from the most feasible of the alternatives examined is analyzed, and its compatibility with current diesel engines is identified, and from the evaluation of its thermo-fluid-dynamic properties, the engineering measures that allow the perfect functioning of current internal combustion engines are examined. The results deriving from experimental tests on the engine bench are evaluated to evaluate the performance of different engines fueled with biodiesel alone in terms of power, torque, specific consumption and useful thermal efficiency and compared with the performance of engines fueled with the current mixture of fuel on the market. The results deriving from experimental tests on the engine bench are evaluated to evaluate the polluting emissions of engines powered only by biodiesel and compared with current emissions. At this point, we proceed with the simulation of the total replacement of gasoil with biodiesel as a fuel for the current fleet of diesel vehicles in Italy, drawing the necessary conclusions in technological, energy, economic, and environmental terms and in terms of social and employment implications. The results allow us to evaluate the potential advantage of a total replacement of diesel fuel with biodiesel for powering road vehicles with diesel cycle internal combustion engines without significant changes to the current vehicle fleet and without requiring future changes to the automotive industry.

Keywords: biodiesel, economy, engines, environment

Procedia PDF Downloads 75

Authors: M. L. W. P. De Silva, R. A. C. Rabel, N. Smith, L. McIntyre, T. J Parkinson, K. A. N. Wijayawardhane

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Curricular integration is an important concept in medical education for developing students’ ability to create connections between different medical disciplines. Problem-Based Learning (PBL) is one of the vehicles through which such integration can be achieved. During the recent review of the veterinary curriculum at the University of Peradeniya, a series of courses in Integrative Veterinary Science (IVS) were introduced, in which PBL was the primary teaching methodology. The objectives of this study were to evaluate students’ opinions on PBL as a teaching method: it should be noted that, within the context of secondary and tertiary education in Sri Lanka, this would be an entirely novel learning experience for the students. Opinions were sought at the conclusion of IVS sessions where students of semesters 2, 4, 6, and 7 (of an 8-semester program) were exposed to a two, 2-hour PBL-based case scenario. The PBL-based case scenario in semesters 2, 4, and 7 were delivered using material previously developed by an experienced PBL practitioner, whilst material for semester 6 was prepared de novo by a less experienced practitioner. Each student (semesters 2: n=38, 4: n=37, 6: n=55, and 7: n=40) completed a questionnaire which asked whether: (i) the course had improved their critical thinking skills; (ii) the learning environment was sufficiently comfortable to express/share student’s opinion; (iii) there was sufficient facilitator guidance; (iv) the online study environment enhanced learning; and (v) the students were overall satisfied with the PBL approach and IVS concept. Responses were given on a 5-point Likert-scale (strongly agree (SA), agree (A), neutral (N), disagree (D), and strongly disagree (SD)). SA and A responses were summed to provide an overall ‘satisfactory’ response. Results were subjected to frequency-distribution statistical analysis. A total of 88.5% of students gave SA+A scores to their overall satisfaction. The proportion of SA+A scores differed between different semesters, such that 95% of semester 2, 4, and 7 students gave SA+A scores, whereas only 69% of semester 6 students did so for their respective sessions. Overall, 96% of the students gave SA+A scores to the question relating to the improvement of critical thinking skills: semester 6 students’ scores were marginally, but not significantly, lower (91% SA+A) than those in other semesters. The difference of scores between semester 6 and the other semesters may be attributed to the different PBL-material used and/or the different experience levels of the practitioners that developed the study material. The use of PBL as a means of teaching IVS curriculum-integration courses was well-received by the students in terms of their overall satisfaction and their perceptions of improved critical thinking skills. Importantly, this was achieved in the face of a methodology that was entirely novel to the students. Finally, the delivery of the PBL medium was readily mastered by the practitioner to whom it was also a novel methodology.

Keywords: critical thinking skills, integration, problem based learning, veterinary education

Procedia PDF Downloads 133

Authors: Mohamed Dakki, Genevieve Robin, Marie Suet, Abdeljebbar Qninba, Mohamed A. El Agbani, Asmâa Ouassou, Rhimou El Hamoumi, Hichem Azafzaf, Sami Rebah, Claudia Feltrup-Azafzaf, Nafouel Hamouda, Wed a.L. Ibrahim, Hosni H. Asran, Amr A. Elhady, Haitham Ibrahim, Khaled Etayeb, Essam Bouras, Almokhtar Saied, Ashrof Glidan, Bakar M. Habib, Mohamed S. Sayoud, Nadjiba Bendjedda, Laura Dami, Clemence Deschamps, Elie Gaget, Jean-Yves Mondain-Monval, Pierre Defos Du Rau

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In biodiversity monitoring, large datasets are becoming more and more widely available and are increasingly used globally to estimate species trends and con- servation status. These large-scale datasets challenge existing statistical analysis methods, many of which are not adapted to their size, incompleteness and heterogeneity. The development of scalable methods to impute missing data in incomplete large-scale monitoring datasets is crucial to balance sampling in time or space and thus better inform conservation policies. We developed a new method based on penalized Poisson models to impute and analyse incomplete monitoring data in a large-scale framework. The method al- lows parameterization of (a) space and time factors, (b) the main effects of predic- tor covariates, as well as (c) space–time interactions. It also benefits from robust statistical and computational capability in large-scale settings. The method was tested extensively on both simulated and real-life waterbird data, with the findings revealing that it outperforms six existing methods in terms of missing data imputation errors. Applying the method to 16 waterbird species, we estimated their long-term trends for the first time at the entire North African scale, a region where monitoring data suffer from many gaps in space and time series. This new approach opens promising perspectives to increase the accuracy of species-abundance trend estimations. We made it freely available in the r package ‘lori’ (https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=lori) and recommend its use for large- scale count data, particularly in citizen science monitoring programmes.

Keywords: biodiversity monitoring, high-dimensional statistics, incomplete count data, missing data imputation, waterbird trends in North-Africa

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Authors: Mari A. Virtanen, Elina Haavisto, Eeva Liikanen, Maria Kääriäinen

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Rapid technological development and digitalization has affected also on higher education. During last twenty years multiple of electronic and mobile learning (e-learning, m-learning) platforms have been developed and have become prevalent in many universities and in the all fields of education. Ubiquitous learning (u-learning) is not that widely known or used. Ubiquitous learning environments (ULE) are the new era of computer-assisted learning. They are based on ubiquitous technology and computing that fuses the learner seamlessly into learning process by using sensing technology as tags, badges or barcodes and smart devices like smartphones and tablets. ULE combines real-life learning situations into virtual aspects and can be flexible used in anytime and anyplace. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of ubiquitous 360 o learning environment on higher education students’ clinical histotechnology competence. A quasi-experimental study design was used. 57 students in biomedical laboratory science degree program was assigned voluntarily to experiment (n=29) and to control group (n=28). Experimental group studied via ubiquitous 360o learning environment and control group via traditional web-based learning environment (WLE) in a 8-week educational intervention. Ubiquitous 360o learning environment (ULE) combined authentic learning environment (histotechnology laboratory), digital environment (virtual laboratory), virtual microscope, multimedia learning content, interactive communication tools, electronic library and quick response barcodes placed into authentic laboratory. Web-based learning environment contained equal content and components with the exception of the use of mobile device, interactive communication tools and quick response barcodes. Competence of clinical histotechnology was assessed by using knowledge test and self-report developed for this study. Data was collected electronically before and after clinical histotechnology course and analysed by using descriptive statistics. Differences among groups were identified by using Wilcoxon test and differences between groups by using Mann-Whitney U-test. Statistically significant differences among groups were identified in both groups (p<0.001). Competence scores in post-test were higher in both groups, than in pre-test. Differences between groups were very small and not statistically significant. In this study the learning environment have developed based on 360o technology and successfully implemented into higher education context. And students’ competence increases when ubiquitous learning environment were used. In the future, ULE can be used as a learning management system for any learning situation in health sciences. More studies are needed to show differences between ULE and WLE.

Keywords: competence, higher education, histotechnology, ubiquitous learning, u-learning, 360o

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Authors: Edison Bicudo

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Cell and gene therapies (CGTs) result from the intense manipulation of cells or the use of techniques such as gene editing. They have been increasingly used to tackle rare diseases or conditions of genetic origin, such as cancer. One might expect such a complex scientific field to be dominated by scientific findings and evidence-based explanations. However, people engaged in scientific argumentation also mobilize a range of cognitive operations of which they are not fully aware, in addition to drawing on widely available oral traditions. This paper analyses how experts discussing the potentialities and challenges of CGTs have recourse to a particular kind of prototypical myth. This sociology study, conducted at the University of Sussex (UK), involved interviews with scientists, regulators, and entrepreneurs involved in the development or governance of CGTs. It was observed that these professionals, when voicing their views, sometimes have recourse to narratives where CGTs appear as promising tools for alleviating or curing diseases. This is said to involve much personal, scientific, and financial sacrifice. In his study of traditional narratives, Hogan identified three prototypes: the romantic narrative, moved by the ideal of romantic union; the heroic narrative, moved by the desire for political power; and the sacrificial narrative, where the ideal is plenty, well-being, and health. It is argued here that discourses around CGTs often involve some narratives – or myths – that have a sacrificial nature. In this sense, the development of innovative therapies is depicted as a huge sacrificial endeavor involving biomedical scientists, biotech and pharma companies, and decision-makers. These sacrificial accounts draw on oral traditions and benefit from an emotional intensification that can be easily achieved in stories of serious diseases and physical suffering. Furthermore, these accounts draw on metaphorical understandings where diseases and vectors of diseases are considered enemies or invaders while therapies are framed as shields or protections. In this way, this paper aims to unravel the cognitive underpinnings of contemporary science – and, more specifically, biomedicine – revealing how myths, prototypes, and metaphors are highly operative even when complex reasoning is at stake. At the same time, this paper demonstrates how such hidden cognitive operations underpin the construction of powerful ideological discourses aimed at defending certain ways of developing, disseminating, and governing technologies and therapies.

Keywords: cell and gene therapies, myths, prototypes, metaphors

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Authors: Bello Gonzalez T. D. J., Setten Van M., Essen Van A., Brouwer M., Veldman K. T.

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Resistance to fluoroquinolones (FQ) has evolved increasingly over the years, posing a significant challenge for the treatment of human infections, particularly gastrointestinal tract infections caused by zoonotic bacteria transmitted through the food chain and environment. In broiler chickens, a relatively high proportion of FQ resistance has been observed in Escherichia coli indicator, Salmonella and Campylobacter isolates. We hypothesize that flumequine (Flu), used as a secondary choice for the treatment of poultry infections, could potentially be associated with a high proportion of FQ resistance. To evaluate this hypothesis, we used an in vitro fermentation chicken caeca model. Two continuous single-stage fermenters were used to simulate in real time the physiological conditions of the chicken caeca microbial content (temperature, pH, caecal content mixing, and anoxic environment). A pool of chicken caecal content containing FQ-resistant E. coli obtained from chickens at slaughter age was used as inoculum along with a spiked FQ-susceptible Campylobacter jejuni strain isolated from broilers. Flu was added to one of the fermenters (Flu-fermenter) every 24 hours for two days to evaluate the selection and maintenance of FQ resistance over time, while the other served as a control (C-Fermenter). The experiment duration was 5 days. Samples were collected at three different time points: before, during and after Flu administration. Serial dilutions were plated on Butzler culture media with and without Flu (8mg/L) and enrofloxacin (4mg/L) and on MacConkey culture media with and without Flu (4mg/L) and enrofloxacin (1mg/L) to determine the proportion of resistant strains over time. Positive cultures were identified by mass spectrometry and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI). A subset of the obtained isolates were used for Whole Genome Sequencing analysis. Over time, E. coli exhibited positive growth in both fermenters, while C. jejuni growth was detected up to day 3. The proportion of Flu-resistant E. coli strains recovered remained consistent over time after antibiotic selective pressure, while in the C-fermenter, a decrease was observed at day 5; a similar pattern was observed in the enrofloxacin-resistant E. coli strains. This suggests that Flu might play a role in the selection and persistence of enrofloxacin resistance, compared to C-fermenter, where enrofloxacin-resistant E. coli strains appear at a later time. Furthermore, positive growth was detected from both fermenters only on Butzler plates without antibiotics. A subset of C. jejuni strains from the Flu-fermenter revealed that those strains were susceptible to ciprofloxacin (MIC < 0.12 μg/mL). A selection of E. coli strains from both fermenters revealed the presence of plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance (PMQR) (qnr-B19) in only one strain from the C-fermenter belonging to sequence type (ST) 48, and in all from Flu-fermenter belonged to ST189. Our results showed that Flu selective impact on PMQR-positive E. coli strains, while no effect was observed in C. jejuni. Maintenance of Flu-resistance was correlated with antibiotic selective pressure. Further studies into antibiotic resistance gene transfer among commensal and zoonotic bacteria in the chicken caeca content may help to elucidate the resistance spread mechanisms.

Keywords: fluoroquinolone-resistance, escherichia coli, campylobacter jejuni, in vitro model

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Authors: Santos Maza, Enzo Aldoradin, Carlos Pariona, Eliud Arpi, Maria Rosales

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The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of flaying then bleeding anchovy (Engraulis ringens) immersed within a sodium citrate solution. Anchovy is a pelagic fish that readily deteriorates due to its high content of polyunsaturated fatty acids. As such, within the Peruvian food industry, the shelf life of frozen anchovy is explicitly 6 months, this short duration imparts a barrier to use for direct consumption human. Thus, almost all capture of anchovy by the fishing industry is eventually used in the production of fishmeal. We offer this an alternative to its typical production process in order to increase shelf life. In the present study, 100 kg of anchovies were captured and immediately mixed with ice on ship, maintaining a high quality sensory metric (e.g., with color blue in back) while still arriving for processing less than 2 h after capture. Anchovies with fat content of 3% were immediately flayed (i.e., reducing subcutaneous fat), beheaded, gutted and bled (i.e., removing hemoglobin) by immersion in water (Control) or in a solution of 2.5% sodium citrate (treatment), then subsequently frozen at -30 °C for 8 h in 2 kg batches. Subsequent glazing and storage at -25 °C for 14 months completed the experiments parameters. The peroxide value (PV), acidity (A), fatty acid profile (FAP), thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), heme iron (HI), pH and sensory attributes of the samples were evaluated monthly. The results of the PV, TBARS, A, pH and sensory analyses displayed significant differences (p<0.05) between treatment and control sample; where the sodium citrate treated samples showed increased preservation features. Specifically, at the beginning of the study, flayed, beheaded, gutted and bled anchovies displayed low content of fat (1.5%) with moderate amount of PV, A and TBARS, and were not rejected by sensory analysis. HI values and FAP displayed varying behavior, however, results of HI did not reveal a decreasing trend. This result is indicative of the fact that levels of iron were maintained as HI and did not convert into no heme iron, which is known to be the primary catalyst of lipid oxidation in fish. According to the FAP results, the major quantity of fatty acid was of polyunsaturated fatty acid (PFA) followed by saturated fatty acid (SFA) and then monounsaturated fatty acid (MFA). According to sensory analysis, the shelf life of flayed, beheaded and gutted anchovy (control and treatment) was 14 months. This shelf life was reached at laboratory level because high quality anchovies were used and immediately flayed, beheaded, gutted, bled and frozen. Therefore, it is possible to maintain the shelf life of anchovies for a long time. Overall, this method displayed a large increase in shelf life relative to that commonly seen for anchovies in this industry. However, these results should be extrapolated at industrial scales to propose better processing conditions and improve the quality of anchovy for direct human consumption.

Keywords: citrate sodium solution, heme iron, polyunsaturated fatty acids, shelf life of frozen anchovy

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Authors: Josephine R. Migalbin

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Halal is an Arabic word meaning "lawful" or "permitted". When it comes to food and consumables, Halal is the dietary standard of Muslims. The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) has a comparative advantage when it comes to Halal Industry because it is the only Muslim region in the Philippines and the natural starting point for the establishment of a halal industry in the country. The region has identified goat production not only for domestic consumption but for export market. Goat production is one of its strengths due to cultural compatibility. There is a high demand for goats during Ramadhan and Eid ul-Adha. The study aimed to provide an overview of the ARMM Halal Goat Industry; to map out the specific supply chain of halal goat, and to analyze the performance of the halal goat supply chain in terms of efficiency, flexibility, and overall responsiveness. It also aimed to identify areas for improvement in the supply chain such as behavioural, institutional, and process to provide recommendations for improvement in the supply chain towards efficient and effective production and marketing of halal goats, subsequently improving the plight of the actors in the supply chain. Generally, the raising of goats is characterized by backyard production (92.02%). There are four interrelated factors affecting significantly the production of goats which are breeding prolificacy, prevalence of diseases, feed abundance and pre-weaning mortality rate. The institutional buyers are mostly traders, restaurants/eateries, supermarkets, and meat shops, among others. The municipalities of Midsayap and Pikit in another region and Parang are the major goat sources and the municipalities in ARMM among others. In addition to the major supply centers, Siquijor, an island province in the Visayas is becoming a key source of goats. Goats are usually gathered by traders/middlemen and brought to the public markets. Meat vendors purchase them directly from raisers, slaughtered and sold fresh in wet markets. It was observed that there is increased demand at 2%/year and that supply is not enough to meet the demand. Farm gate price is 2.04 USD to 2.11 USD/kg liveweight. Industry information is shared by three key participants - raisers, traders and buyers. All respondents reported that information is through personal built-upon past experiences and that there is no full disclosure of information among the key participants in the chain. The information flow in the industry is fragmented in nature such that no total industry picture exists. In the last five years, numerous local and foreign agencies had undertaken several initiatives for the development of the halal goat industry in ARMM. The major issues include productivity which is the greatest challenge, difficulties in accessing technical support channels and lack of market linkage and consolidation. To address the various issues and concerns of the various industry players, there is a need to intensify appropriate technology transfer through extension activities, improve marketing channels by grouping producers, strengthen veterinary services and provide capital windows to improve facilities and reduce logistics and transaction costs in the entire supply chain.

Keywords: autonomous region in Muslim Mindanao, halal, halal goat industry, supply chain improvement

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Authors: Geisa Lima Mesquita Zambrosi, Maisa Ciampi Guillardi, Flávia Rodrigues Patrício, Oliveiro Guerreiro Filho

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Certified agricultural products are important components of the food industry. However, certifiers have been expanding the list of restricted or prohibited pesticides, limiting the options of products for phytosanitary control of plant diseases, but without offering alternatives to the farmers. Soybean and coffee leaf rust, brown eye spots, and Phoma leaf spots are the main fungal diseases that pose a serious threat to soybean and coffee cultivation worldwide. In conventional farming systems, these diseases are controlled by using synthetic fungicides, which, in addition to intensifying the occurrence of fungal resistance, are highly toxic to the environment, farmers, and consumers. In organic, agroecological, or regenerative farming systems, product options for plant protection are limited, being available only copper-based compounds, and biodefensivesornon-standard homemade products. Therefore, there is a growing demand for effective bioprotectors with low environmental impact for adoption in more sustainable agricultural systems. Then, to contribute to covering such a gap, we have developed a compound based on plant extracts and metallic elements for foliar application. This product has both biostimulant and bioprotective action, which promotes sustainable disease control, increases productivity as well as reduces damage to the environment. The product's components have complementary mechanisms that promote protection against the disease by directly acting on the pathogens and activating the plant's natural defense system. The protective ability of the product against three coffee diseases (coffee leaf rust, brown eye spot, and Phoma leaf spot) and against soybean rust disease was evaluated, in addition to its ability to promote plant growth. Our goal is to offer an effective alternative to control the main coffee fungal diseases and soybean fungal diseases, with a biostimulant effect and low toxicity. The proposed product can also be part of the integrated management of coffee and soybean diseases in conventional farming associated with chemical and biological pesticides, offering the market a sustainable coffee and soybean with high added value and low residue content. Experiments were carried out under controlled conditions to evaluate the effectiveness of the product in controlling rust, phoma, and cercosporiosis in comparison to control-inoculated plants that did not receive the product. The in vitro and in vivo effects of the product on the pathogen were evaluated using light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy, respectively. The fungistatic action of the product was demonstrated by a reduction of 85% and 95% in spore germination and disease symptoms severity on the leaves of coffee plants, respectively. The formulation had both a protective effect, acting to prevent infection by coffee leaf rust, and a curative effect, reducing the rust symptoms after its establishment.

Keywords: plant disease, natural fungicide, plant health, sustainability, alternative disease management

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Authors: Z. Yousefniayejahr, S. Bolognini, A. Bonini, C. Campobasso, N. Poma, F. Vivaldi, M. Di Luca, A. Tavanti, F. Di Francesco

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Pathogenic bacteria represent a threat to healthcare systems and the food industry because their rapid detection remains challenging. Electrochemical biosensors are gaining prominence as a novel technology for the detection of pathogens due to intrinsic features such as low cost, rapid response time, and portability, which make them a valuable alternative to traditional methodologies. These sensors use biorecognition elements that are crucial for the identification of specific bacteria. In this context, bacteriophages are promising tools for their inherent high selectivity towards bacterial hosts, which is of fundamental importance when detecting bacterial pathogens in complex biological samples. In this study, we present the development of a low-cost and portable sensor based on the Zeno phage for the rapid detection of Staphylococcus aureus. Screen-printed gold electrodes functionalized with the Zeno phage were used, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy was applied to evaluate the change of the charge transfer resistance (Rct) as a result of the interaction with S. aureus MRSA ATCC 43300. The phage-based biosensor showed a linear range from 101 to 104 CFU/mL with a 20-minute response time and a limit of detection (LOD) of 1.2 CFU/mL under physiological conditions. The biosensor’s ability to recognize various strains of staphylococci was also successfully demonstrated in the presence of clinical isolates collected from different geographic areas. Assays using S. epidermidis were also carried out to verify the species-specificity of the phage sensor. We only observed a remarkable change of the Rct in the presence of the target S. aureus bacteria, while no substantial binding to S. epidermidis occurred. This confirmed that the Zeno phage sensor only targets S. aureus species within the genus Staphylococcus. In addition, the biosensor's specificity with respect to other bacterial species, including gram-positive bacteria like Enterococcus faecium and the gram-negative bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa, was evaluated, and a non-significant impedimetric signal was observed. Notably, the biosensor successfully identified S. aureus bacterial cells in a complex matrix such as a nasal swab, opening the possibility of its use in a real-case scenario. We diluted different concentrations of S. aureus from 108 to 100 CFU/mL with a ratio of 1:10 in the nasal swap matrices collected from healthy donors. Three different sensors were applied to measure various concentrations of bacteria. Our sensor indicated high selectivity to detect S. aureus in biological matrices compared to time-consuming traditional methods, such as enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and radioimmunoassay (RIA), etc. With the aim to study the possibility to use this biosensor to address the challenge associated to pathogen detection, ongoing research is focused on the assessment of the biosensor’s analytical performances in different biological samples and the discovery of new phage bioreceptors.

Keywords: electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, bacteriophage, biosensor, Staphylococcus aureus

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Authors: Luisa Müting, Wisnu Harto Adiwijoyo

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Agroforestry systems transform the agricultural landscapes in the Sahel region of Africa, providing food and farming products consumed for subsistence or sold for income. In the incrementally dry climate of the Sahel region, the spreading of agroforestry practices is integral for policymaker efforts to counteract land degradation and provide soil restoration in the region. Several measures on agroforestry practices have been implemented in the region by governmental and non-governmental institutions in recent years. However, despite the efforts, past research shows that awareness of how policies and interventions are being consumed and perceived by the public remains low. Therefore, interpreting public policy dilemmas by analyzing the public perception regarding agroforestry concepts and practices is necessary. Public perceptions and discourses can be an essential driver or constraint for the adoption of agroforestry practices in the region. Thus, understanding the public discourse behavior of crucial stakeholders could assist policymakers in developing inclusive and contextual policies that are relevant to the context of agroforestry adoption in Sahel region. To answer how information about agroforestry spreads and is perceived by the public. As internet usage increased drastically over the past decade, reaching a share of 33 percent of the population being connected to the internet, this research is based on online conversation data. Social media data from Facebook are gathered daily between April 2021 and April 2022 in Djibouti, Senegal, Mali, and Nigeria based on their share of active internet users compared to other countries in the Sahel region. A systematic methodology was applied to the extracted social media using discourse network analysis (DNA). This study then clustered the data by the types of agroforestry practices, sentiments, and country. Additionally, this research extracted the text data from online news media during the same period to pinpoint events related to the topic of agroforestry. The preliminary result indicates that tree management, crops, and livestock integration, diversifying species and genetic resources, and focusing on interactions and productivity across the agricultural system; are the most notable keywords in agroforestry-related conversations within the four countries in the Sahel region. Additionally, approximately 84 percent of the discussions were still dominated by big actors, such as NGO or government actors. Furthermore, as a subject of communication within agroforestry discourse, the Great Green Wall initiative generates almost 60 percent positive sentiment within the captured social media data, effectively having a more significant outreach than general agroforestry topics. This study provides an understanding for scholars and policymakers with a springboard for further research or policy design on agroforestry in the four countries of the Sahel region with systematically uncaptured novel data from the internet.

Keywords: sahel, djibouti, senegal, mali, nigeria, social networks analysis, public discourse analysis, sentiment analysis, content analysis, social media, online news, agroforestry, land restoration

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Authors: Cetin Balanuye

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The present study aims to accomplish two tasks: First, it critically reinterprets the actual relationship between democracy and the modern state in order to show that it is responsible for most of our current political problems and dilemmas. Second, it is argued that this relationship can be reimagined for better, and Spinozistic notions such as ‘conatus’, ‘power’ and ‘virtue’ are crucial in this pursuit. The significance of the present study lies in several interrelated observations: The world has never been a more heterogeneous place than today. People from different religious, cultural and historical backgrounds do equally have 'good reasons' to hold that their world views are the best ones. We have almost no authority to be respected equally by all these different world views. We no longer have gods at once we had in our ancient times. We have three big monotheistic religions, yet the God of which is significantly different from each other. The worse is that the believers of these religions do not seem eager to perform a duet, but rather tend to fight a duel with each other. Thanks to post-modernism, neither reason nor science is any longer seen as universally value-neutral guide to be employed in our search for a common ground. In sum, the question 'how should I live?' has never generated this much diversity before in terms of answers and the answers have never been this much away from a fairly objective evaluation. Our so-called liberal democracies are supposed to perform against this heterogenous, antagonistic and self-sustained web of discursive background. It is argued that our conception of 'State' with a weak emphasis on democracy is not a solution, if not itself the source of this topsy-turvy. Weak emphasis on democracy should be understood here as a kind of liberal democracy which operates in a partisan State, one which takes sides among rivals either for this or against that world view. This conception of State rests on a misleading understanding of the concept of power, and it is argued that it can only be corrected by means of a Spinoza-informed ontology of politics. The role of State in such an ontology is no longer a partisanship of any kind, nor is it representative of all-encompassing authority to favor any world view. State in this Spinozistic ontology equally encourages world views and their discursive practices to let them increase the power of acting and have more power to affect rules and regulations. World views can enhance every medium -in the sense of nonviolence ethology- to increase their power of acting. The more active a world view is, the more powerful and the more virtuous it is in terms of its effective power on the State. Though Spinoza has provided us with a limited guideline to understand what kind of democracy, he actually had in his mind, his ontology developed in Ethics is rich enough to imagine and inspire a better democratic practice to help us sustain the modern State in our extremely pluralistic contemporary societies.

Keywords: democracy, Islam, power, Spinoza

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Authors: Doaa H. Elgohary, Tamer F. Khalifa, Mona M. Salem, M. A. Saad, Ehab Haider Sherazy

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Textiles have conquered new areas over the past three decades, including agriculture, transportation, filtration, military, and medicine. The use of textiles in the medical field has increased significantly in recent years and covers almost everything. Medical textiles represent a huge market as they are widely used not only in hospitals, hygiene, and healthcare but also in hotels and other environments where hygiene is required. However, not all fibers are suitable for the manufacture of medical textile products. Some special properties are required for the manufactured materials, e.g. Strength, elasticity, spinnability, etc. In addition to the usual properties of medical fibers, non-toxicity, sterilizability, biocompatibility, biodegradability, good absorbability, softness, and freedom from additives, etc., desirable properties include impurities. Stitching is one of the most common practices in the medical field. as it is a biomaterial device, either natural or synthetic, used to connect blood vessels and connect tissues. In addition to being very strong, suture material should easily dissolve in bodily fluids and lose strength as the tissue gains strength. In this work, a study to select the most used materials for sutures, it was found that silk, VICRYL and polypropylene were the most used materials in varying numbers. The research involved the analysis of 36 samples from three different materials (mostly commonly used), the tests were carried out on 36 imported samples for four different companies. Each company supplied three different materials (silk, VICRYL and polypropylene) with three different gauges (4, 3.5 and 3 metric). The results of the study were tabulated, presented, and discussed. Practical statistical science serves to support the practical analysis of experimental work products and the various relationships between variables to achieve the best sampling performance with the functional purpose generated for it. Analysis of the imported sutures shows that VICRYL sutures had the highest tensile strength, toughness, knot tensile strength and knot toughness, followed by polypropylene and silk. As yarn counts, weight and diameter increase, its tensile strength and toughness increase while its elongation and knot tension decrease. The multifilament yarn construction (silk and VICRYL) scores higher compared to the monofilament construction (polypropylene), resulting in increases in tenacity, toughness, knot tensile strength and knot toughness.

Keywords: biodegradable yarns, braided sutures, irritation, knot tying, medical textiles, surgical sutures, wound healing

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Authors: Margareta Simina Stanc, Aurel Mototolea, Tiberiu Potarniche

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Sacidava archeological site is located in Dobrudja region, Romania, on a hill on the right bank of the Danube - the Musait point, located at about 5 km north-east from Dunareni village. The place-name documents the fact that, prior to the Roman conquest, in the area, there was a Getic settlement. The location of the Sacidava was made possible by corroborating the data provided by the ancient sources with the epigraphic documents (the milial pillar during the time of Emperor Decius). The tegular findings attest that an infantry unit, cohors I Cilicum milliaria equitata, as well as detachments from Legio V Macedonica and Legio XI Claudia, were confined to Sacidava. During the period of the Dominion, the garrison of the fortification is the host of a cavalry unit: cuneus equitum scutariorum. In the immediate vicinity to the Roman fortress, to the east, were identified two other fortifications: a Getic settlement (4th-1st century B.C.) and an Early Medieval settlement (9th-10th century A.C.). The archaeological material recovered during the research is represented by ceramic forms such as amphoras, jugs, pots, cups, plates, to which are added oil lamps, some of them typologically new at the time of discovery. Local ceramic shapes were also founded, worked by hand or by wheel, considered un-Romanized or in the course of Romanization. During the time of the Principality, Sacidava it represented an important military outpost serving mainly the city of Tropaeum Traiani, controlling also the supply and transport on the Danube limes in the Moesic sector. This role will determine the development of the fortress and the appearance of extramuros civil structures, thus becoming an important landmark during the 5th-6th centuries A.C., becoming a representation of power of the Roman empire in an area of continuous conflict. During recent archaeological researches, faunal remains were recovered, and their analysis allowed to estimate the animal resources and subsistence practices (animal husbandry, hunting, fishing) in the settlement. The methodology was specific to archaeozoology, mainly consisting of anatomical, taxonomical, and taphonomical identifications, recording, and quantification of the data. The remains of domestic mammals have the highest proportion indicating the importance of animal husbandry; the predominant species are Bos taurus, Ovis aries/Capra hircus, and Sus domesticus. Fishing and hunting were of secondary importance in the subsistence economy of the community. Wild boar and the red deer were the most frequently hunted species. Just a few fish bones were recovered. Thus, the ancient city of Sacidava is proving to be an important element of cultural heritage of the south-eastern part of Romania, for whose conservation and enhancement efforts must be made, especially by landscape reconstruction.

Keywords: archaeozoology, landscape reconstruction, limes, military outpost

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Authors: Chalachew Kassaw, Henok Ababu, Bethelhem Sileshy, Lulu Abebe, Birhanie Mekuriaw

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Background: Psychological discomfort is a state of emotional distress caused by everyday stressors and obligations that are difficult to manage. Orthopedic trauma has a wide range of effects on survivors' physical health, as well as a variety of mental health concerns that impede recovery. Psychiatric and behavioral conditions are 3-5 times more common in people who have undergone physical trauma, and they are a predictor of poor outcomes. Despite the above facts, there is a shortage of research done on the subject. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the magnitude of psychological distress and associated factor among patients attending orthopedic treatment at Gedeo zone, South Ethiopia 2022. Methods: A cross-sectional study was undertaken at Dilla University Referral Hospital from October –November 2022. The data was collected via a face-to-face interview, and the Kessler psychological distress scale (K-10) was used to assess psychological distress. A total of 386 patients receiving outpatient and inpatient services at the orthopedic unit were chosen using a simple random selection technique. A Statistical Package for the Social Science version 21 (SPSS-21) was used to enter and evaluate the data. To find related factors, bivariate, and multivariate logistic regressions were used. Variables having a p-value of less than 0.05 were deemed statistically significant. Result: A total of 386 participants with a response rate of 94.8% were included in the study. Out of all respondents, 114 (31.4%) of the individuals have experienced psychological distress. Independent variables such as Females [Adjusted odds ratio (AOR)=5.8, 95%CI=(4.6-15.6)], Average monthly income of <3500 birrs [Adjusted odds ratio (AOR) =4.8, 95% CI=(2.4-9.8) ], Current history of substance use [Adjusted odds ratio (AOR) =2.6, 95% CI=(1.66-4.7)], Strong social support [Adjusted odds ratio (AOR)=0.4, 95% CI= 0.4(0.2-0.8)], and Poor sleep quality (PSQI score>5) [Adjusted odds ratio (AOR)=2.0, 95%CI= 2.0(1.2-2.8)] were significantly associated with psychological distress. Conclusion: The prevalence of psychological distress was high. Being female, having poor social support, and having a high PSQI score were significantly associated factors with psychological distress. It is good if clinicians emphasize orthopedic patients, especially females and those having poor social support and low sleep quality symptoms.

Keywords: psychological distress, orthopedic unit, Dilla University hospital, Dilla Town, Southern Ethiopia

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Authors: Bhupendra G. Prajapati, Alpesh R. Patel

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The aim of this research work is to develop sustained release multi-particulates dosage form of Dexketoprofen trometamol, which is the pharmacologically active isomer of ketoprofen. The objective is to utilization of active enantiomer with minimal dose and administration frequency, extended release multi-particulates dosage form development for better patience compliance was explored. Drug loaded and sustained release coated pellets were prepared by fluidized bed coating principle by wurster coater. Microcrystalline cellulose as core pellets, povidone as binder and talc as anti-tacking agents were selected during drug loading while Kollicoat SR 30D as sustained release polymer, triethyl citrate as plasticizer and micronized talc as an anti-adherent were used in sustained release coating. Binder optimization trial in drug loading showed that there was increase in process efficiency with increase in the binder concentration. 5 and 7.5%w/w concentration of Povidone K30 with respect to drug amount gave more than 90% process efficiency while higher amount of rejects (agglomerates) were observed for drug layering trial batch taken with 7.5% binder. So for drug loading, optimum Povidone concentration was selected as 5% of drug substance quantity since this trial had good process feasibility and good adhesion of the drug onto the MCC pellets. 2% w/w concentration of talc with respect to total drug layering solid mass shows better anti-tacking property to remove unnecessary static charge as well as agglomeration generation during spraying process. Optimized drug loaded pellets were coated for sustained release coating from 16 to 28% w/w coating to get desired drug release profile and results suggested that 22% w/w coating weight gain is necessary to get the required drug release profile. Three critical process parameters of Wurster coating for sustained release were further statistically optimized for desired quality target product profile attributes like agglomerates formation, process efficiency, and drug release profile using central composite design (CCD) by Minitab software. Results show that derived design space consisting 1.0 to 1.2 bar atomization air pressure, 7.8 to 10.0 gm/min spray rate and 29-34°C product bed temperature gave pre-defined drug product quality attributes. Scanning Image microscopy study results were also dictate that optimized batch pellets had very narrow particle size distribution and smooth surface which were ideal properties for reproducible drug release profile. The study also focused on optimized dexketoprofen trometamol pellets formulation retain its quality attributes while administering with common vehicle, a liquid (water) or semisolid food (apple sauce). Conclusion: Sustained release multi-particulates were successfully developed for dexketoprofen trometamol which may be useful to improve acceptability and palatability of a dosage form for better patient compliance.

Keywords: dexketoprofen trometamol, pellets, fluid bed technology, central composite design

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Authors: Gideon Nyuimbe Gasu

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Sub Saharan Africa is at a critical point, experiencing rapid population growth, particularly in urban areas and young growing force. At the same time, the growing risk of catastrophic global climate change threatens to weaken food production system, increase intensity and frequency of drought, flood, and fires and undermine gains on development and poverty reduction. Although the region has the lowest per capital greenhouse gas emission level in the world, it will need to join global efforts to address climate change, including action to avoid significant increases and to encourage a green economy. Thus, there is a need for the concept of 'greening the economy' as was prescribed at Rio Summit of 1992. Renewable energy is one of the criterions to achieve this laudable goal of maintaining a green economy. There is need to address climate change while facilitating continued economic growth and social progress as energy today is critical to economic growth. Fossil fuels remain the major contributor of greenhouse gas emission. Thus, cleaner technologies such as carbon capture storage, renewable energy have emerged to be commercially competitive. This paper sets out to examine how to achieve a low carbon economy with minimal emission of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases which is one of the outcomes of implementing a green economy. Also, the paper examines the different renewable energy sources such as nuclear, wind, hydro, biofuel, and solar voltaic as a panacea to the looming climate change menace. Finally, the paper assesses the different renewable energy and energy efficiency as a propeller to generating new sources of income and jobs and in turn reduces carbon emission. The research shall engage qualitative, evaluative and comparative methods. The research will employ both primary and secondary sources of information. The primary sources of information shall be drawn from the sub Saharan African region and the global environmental organizations, energy legislation, policies and related industries and the judicial processes. The secondary sources will be made up of some books, journal articles, commentaries, discussions, observations, explanations, expositions, suggestions, prescriptions and other material sourced from the internet on renewable energy as a panacea to climate change. All information obtained from these sources will be subject to content analysis. The research result will show that the entire planet is warming as a result of the activities of mankind which is clear evidence that the current development is fundamentally unsustainable. Equally, the study will reveal that a low carbon development pathway in the sub Saharan African region should be embraced to minimize emission of greenhouse gases such as using renewable energy rather than coal, oil, and gas. The study concludes that until adequate strategies are devised towards the use of renewable energy the region will continue to add and worsen the current climate change menace and other adverse environmental conditions.

Keywords: carbon dioxide, climate change, legislation/law, renewable energy

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Authors: Mayuva Youngsabanant, Chanikarn Srinark, Supanyika Sengsai, Soratorn Kerdkriangkrai, Nongnuch Gumlungpat, Mayuree Pumipaiboon

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The follicular fluid proteins of healthy medium size follicles (4-6 mm in diameters) and large size follicles (7-8 mm in diameter) of large white pig ovaries were collected by using sterile technique. They were used for testing the effect on primary in vitro cell culture growth of porcine oviductal epithelial cells (pOEC). Porcine oviductal epithelial cells of luteal phase was culture in M199 and added with 10% fetal calf serum 2.2 mg/mL, NaHCO₃, 0.25 mM pyruvate, 15 µg/mL and 50 µg/mL, gentamycin sulfate at high humidified atmosphere with 5% CO₂ in 95% air atmosphere at 37°C for 96 h before testing. The optimized concentration of pFF of two follicle sizes (at concentration of 2, 4, 20, 40, 200, 400, 500, and 600 µg proteins) in culture medium was observed for 24 h using MTT assay. Results were analyzed with a one-way ANOVA in SPSS statistic. Moreover, pOEC was also studied in morphological characteristic on long-term culture. The results of long-term study revealed that pOEC showed 70-80 percentage of healthy morphology on epithelial-like character and contained 30 percentage of an elongated shape (fibroblast-like morphology) at 4 weeks of culture time. MTT assay reviewed an increase in the percentage of viability of pOEC in 2 treated of follicular fluid groups. Two treatment concentration groups were higher than control group (p < 0.05) but not in positive control group. Interestingly, at 200 µg protein of 2 treated follicular fluid groups were reached the highest cell viability which is higher than a positive control and it is significantly different form control group (P < 0.05). These cells are developed and had fibroblast elongate shape which is longer than the cells in control group and positive control group. This report implies that pFF of medium follicle size at 200 µg proteins and large follicle size at 200 and 500 µg proteins could be optimized concentration for using as a supplement in culture medium to promote cell growth and development instead of growth hormone from fetal calf serum. It could be applied in cell biotechnology researches. Acknowledgements: The project was funded by a grant from Silpakorn University Research and Development Institute (SURDI) and Faculty of Science, Silpakorn University, Thailand.

Keywords: in vitro, porcine follicular fluid protein (pFF), porcine oviductal epithelial cells (pOEC), MTT

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Authors: Azza A. Ali, Asmaa Abdelaty, Mona G. Khalil, Mona M. Kamal, Karema Abu-Elfotuh

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Background: Aluminium (Al) is known as a neurotoxin environmental pollutant that can cause certain diseases as Dementia, Alzheimer's disease, and Parkinsonism. It is widely used in antacid drugs as well as in food additives and toothpaste. Stresses have been linked to cognitive impairment; Social isolation (SI) may exacerbate memory deficits while protein malnutrition (PM) increases oxidative damage in cortex, hippocampus and cerebellum. The risk of cognitive decline may be lower by maintaining social connections. Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) is the most abundant catechin in green tea and has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-atherogenic effects as well as health-promoting effects in CNS. Objective: To study the influence of different stressful conditions as social isolation, electric shock (EC) and inadequate Nutritional condition as PM on neurotoxicity induced by Al in rats as well as to investigate the possible protective effect of EGCG in these stressful and PM conditions. Methods: Rats were divided into two major groups; protected group which was daily treated during three weeks of the experiment by EGCG (10 mg/kg, IP) or non-treated. Protected and non-protected groups included five subgroups as following: One normal control received saline and four Al toxicity groups injected daily for three weeks by ALCl3 (70 mg/kg, IP). One of them served as Al toxicity model, two groups subjected to different stresses either by isolation as mild stressful condition (SI-associated Al toxicity model) or by electric shock as high stressful condition (EC- associated Al toxicity model). The last was maintained on 10% casein diet (PM -associated Al toxicity model). Isolated rats were housed individually in cages covered with black plastic. Biochemical changes in the brain as acetyl cholinesterase (ACHE), Aβ, brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), inflammatory mediators (TNF-α, IL-1β), oxidative parameters (MDA, SOD, TAC) were estimated for all groups. Histopathological changes in different brain regions were also evaluated. Results: Rats exposed to Al for three weeks showed brain neurotoxicity and neuronal degenerations. Both mild (SI) and high (EC) stressful conditions as well as inadequate nutrition (PM) enhanced Al-induced neurotoxicity and brain neuronal degenerations; the enhancement induced by stresses especially in its higher conditions (ES) was more pronounced than that of inadequate nutritional conditions (PM) as indicated by the significant increase in Aβ, ACHE, MDA, TNF-α, IL-1β together with the significant decrease in SOD, TAC, BDNF. On the other hand, EGCG showed more pronounced protection against hazards of Al in both stressful conditions (SI and EC) rather than in PM .The protective effects of EGCG were indicated by the significant decrease in Aβ, ACHE, MDA, TNF-α, IL-1β together with the increase in SOD, TAC, BDNF and confirmed by brain histopathological examinations. Conclusion: Neurotoxicity and brain neuronal degenerations induced by Al were more severe with stresses than with PM. EGCG can protect against Al-induced brain neuronal degenerations in all conditions. Consequently, administration of EGCG together with socialization as well as adequate protein nutrition is advised especially on excessive Al-exposure to avoid the severity of its neuronal toxicity.

Keywords: environmental pollution, aluminum, social isolation, protein malnutrition, neuronal degeneration, epigallocatechin-3-gallate, rats

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Authors: Fiona Mwaniki

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Climate change is considered a serious threat to sustainable development globally and as one of the greatest ecological, economic and social challenges of our time. The global demand for food is projected to increase by 60% by 2050. Small holder farmers who are vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change are expected to contribute to this projected demand. Effective climate change education and communication is therefore required for smallholder and subsistence farmers’ in order to build communities that are more climate change aware, prepared and resilient. In Kenya radio is the most important and dominant mass communication tool for agricultural extension. This study investigated the potential role of radio in influencing farmers’ understanding and use of climate change information. The broad aims of this study were three-fold. Firstly, to identify Kenyan farmers’ perceptions and responses to the impacts of climate change. Secondly, to develop radio programs that communicate climate change information to Kenyan farmers and thirdly, to evaluate the impact of information disseminated through radio on farmers’ understanding and responses to climate change mitigation and adaptation. This study was conducted within the farming community of Kilifi County, located along the Kenyan coast. Education and communication about climate change was undertaken using radio to make available information understandable to different social and cultural groups. A mixed methods pre-and post-intervention design that provided the opportunity for triangulating results from both quantitative and qualitative data was used. Quantitative and qualitative data was collected simultaneously, where quantitative data was collected through semi structured surveys with 421 farmers’ and qualitative data was derived from 11 focus group interviews, six interviews with key informants and nine climate change experts. The climate change knowledge gaps identified in the initial quantitative and qualitative data were used in developing radio programs. Final quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis enabled an assessment of the impact of climate change messages aired through radio on the farming community in Kilifi County. Results of this study indicate that 32% of the farmers’ listened to the radio programs and 26% implemented technologies aired on the programs that would help them adapt to climate change. The most adopted technologies were planting drought tolerant crops including indigenous crop varieties, planting trees, water harvesting and use of manure. The proportion of farmers who indicated they knew “a fair amount” about climate change increased significantly (Z= -5.1977, p < 0.001) from 33% (at the pre intervention phase of this study) to 64% (post intervention). However, 68% of the farmers felt they needed “a lot more” information on agriculture interventions (43%), access to financial resources (21%) and the effects of climate change (15%). The challenges farmers’ faced when adopting the interventions included lack of access to financial resources (18%), high cost of adaptation measures (17%), and poor access to water (10%). This study concludes that radio effectively complements other agricultural extension methods and has the potential to engage farmers’ on climate change issues and motivate them to take action.

Keywords: climate change, climate change intervention, farmers, radio

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Authors: Martin Cai, Khadijah B. Hashim, Leng Leo, Edmund F. Tian

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Analysis of traditional Chinese medicinal (TCM) supplements has always been a laborious task, particularly in the case of multi‐ingredient formulations. Traditionally, herbal extracts are analysed using one or few markers compounds. In the recent years, however, pharmaceutical companies are introducing health supplements of TCM active ingredients to cater to the needs of consumers in the fast-paced society in this age. As such, new problems arise in the aspects of composition identification as well as quality analysis. In most cases of products or supplements formulated with multiple TCM herbs, the chemical composition, and nature of each raw material differs greatly from the others in the formulation. This results in a requirement for individual analytical processes in order to identify the marker compounds in the various botanicals. Thin-layer Chromatography (TLC) is a simple, cost effective, yet well-regarded method for the analysis of natural products, both as a Pharmacopeia-approved method for identification and authentication of herbs, and a great analytical tool for the discovery of chemical compositions in herbal extracts. Recent technical advances introduced High-Performance TLC (HPTLC) where, with the help of automated equipment and improvements on the chromatographic materials, both the quality and reproducibility are greatly improved, allowing for highly standardised analysis with greater details. Here we report an industrial consultancy project with ONI Global Pte Ltd for the analysis of LAC Liver Protector, a TCM formulation aimed at improving liver health. The aim of this study was to identify 4 key components of the supplement using HPTLC, following protocols derived from Chinese Pharmacopeia standards. By comparing the TLC profiles of the supplement to the extracts of the herbs reported in the label, this project proposes a simple and cost-effective analysis of the presence of the 4 marker compounds in the multi‐ingredient formulation by using 4 different HPTLC methods. With the increasing trend of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) bringing natural products and health supplements into the market, it is crucial that the qualities of both raw materials and end products be well-assured for the protection of consumers. With the technology of HPTLC, science can be incorporated to help SMEs with their quality control, thereby ensuring product quality.

Keywords: traditional Chinese medicine supplement, high performance thin layer chromatography, active ingredients, product quality

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Authors: Diaa Ahmed Mohamed Ahmedien

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Nowadays, it cannot be denied that the most important interactive arts trends have appeared as a result of significant scientific mutations in the modern sciences, and holographic art is not an exception, where it is considered as a one of the most important major contemporary interactive arts trends in visual arts. Holographic technique had been evoked through the modern physics application in late 1940s, for the improvement of the quality of electron microscope images by Denis Gabor, until it had arrived to Margaret Benyon’s art exhibitions, and then it passed through a lot of procedures to enhance its quality and artistic applications technically and visually more over 70 years in visual arts. As a modest extension to these great efforts, this research aimed to invoke extraordinary attempt to enroll sample of normal people in Egyptian community in holographic recording program to record their appreciated objects or antiques, therefore examine their abilities to interact with modern techniques in visual communication arts. So this research tried to answer to main three questions: 'can we use the analog holographic techniques to unleash new theoretical and practical knowledge in interactive arts for public in Egyptian community?', 'to what extent holographic art can be familiar with public and make them able to produce interactive artistic samples?', 'are there possibilities to build holographic interactive program for normal people which lead them to enhance their understanding to visual communication in public and, be aware of interactive arts trends?' This research was depending in its first part on experimental methods, where it conducted in Laser lab at Cairo University, using Nd: Yag Laser 532 nm, and holographic optical layout, with selected samples of Egyptian people that they have been asked to record their appreciated object, after they had already learned recording methods, and in its second part on a lot of discussion panel had conducted to discuss the result and how participants felt towards their holographic artistic products through survey, questionnaires, take notes and critiquing holographic artworks. Our practical experiments and final discussions have already lead us to say that this experimental research was able to make most of participants pass through paradigm shift in their visual and conceptual experiences towards more interaction with contemporary visual arts trends, as an attempt to emphasize to the role of mature relationship between the art, science and technology, to spread interactive arts out in our community through the latest scientific and artistic mutations around the world and the role of this relationship in our societies particularly with those who have never been enrolled in practical arts programs before.

Keywords: Egyptian community, holographic art, laser art, visual art

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Authors: Cristina Diaz, Lucia Perez, Simone Visigalli, Giuseppe Di Florio, Gonzalo Fuentes, Roberto Canziani, Paolo Gronchi

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During the last 50 years, the selection of materials is one of the main decisions in machine design for different industrial applications. It is due to numerous physical, chemical, mechanical and technological factors to consider in it. Corrosion effects are related with all of these factors and impact in the life cycle, machine incidences and the costs for the life of the machine. Corrosion affects the deterioration or destruction of metals due to the reaction with the environment, generally wet. In food industry, dewatering industry, concrete industry, paper industry, etc. corrosion is an unsolved problem and it might introduce some alterations of some characteristics in the final product. Nowadays, depending on the selected metal, its surface and its environment of work, corrosion prevention might be a change of metal, use a coating, cathodic protection, use of corrosion inhibitors, etc. In the vast majority of the situations, use of a corrosion resistant material or in its defect, a corrosion protection coating is the solution. Stainless steels are widely used in machine design, because of their strength, easily cleaned capacity, corrosion resistance and appearance. Typical used are AISI 304 and AISI 316. However, their benefits don’t fit every application, and some coatings are required against corrosion such as some paintings, galvanizing, chrome plating, SiO₂, TiO₂ or ZrO₂ coatings, etc. In this work, some coatings based in a bilayer made of Titanium-Tantalum, Titanium-Niobium, Titanium-Hafnium or Titanium-Zirconium, have been developed used magnetron sputtering configuration by PVD (Physical Vapor Deposition) technology, for trying to reduce corrosion effects on AISI 304, AISI 316 and comparing it with Titanium alloy substrates. Ti alloy display exceptional corrosion resistance to chlorides, sour and oxidising acidic media and seawater. In this study, Ti alloy (99%) has been included for comparison with coated AISI 304 and AISI 316 stainless steel. Corrosion tests were conducted by a Gamry Instrument under ASTM G5-94 standard, using different electrolytes such as tomato salsa, wine, olive oil, wet compost, a mix of sand and concrete with water and NaCl for testing corrosion in different industrial environments. In general, in all tested environments, the results showed an improvement of corrosion resistance of all coated AISI 304 and AISI 316 stainless steel substrates when they were compared to uncoated stainless steel substrates. After that, comparing these results with corrosion studies on uncoated Ti alloy substrate, it was observed that in some cases, coated stainless steel substrates, reached similar current density that uncoated Ti alloy. Moreover, Titanium-Zirconium and Titanium-Tantalum coatings showed for all substrates in study including coated Ti alloy substrates, a reduction in current density more than two order in magnitude. As conclusion, Ti-Ta, Ti-Zr, Ti-Nb and Ti-Hf coatings have been developed for improving corrosion resistance of AISI 304 and AISI 316 materials. After corrosion tests in several industry environments, substrates have shown improvements on corrosion resistance. Similar processes have been carried out in Ti alloy (99%) substrates. Coated AISI 304 and AISI 316 stainless steel, might reach similar corrosion protection on the surface than uncoated Ti alloy (99%). Moreover, coated Ti Alloy (99%) might increase its corrosion resistance using these coatings.

Keywords: coatings, corrosion, PVD, stainless steel

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Authors: Anthony Coogan

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Born’s probability interpretation of wave functions would have led to nearly identical results had he chosen a frequency interpretation instead. Logically, Born may have assumed that only one electron was under consideration, making it nonsensical to propose a frequency wave. Author’s suggestion: the actual experimental results were not of a single electron; rather, they were groups of reflected x-ray photons. The vertical waveform used by Scrhödinger in his Particle in the Box Theory makes sense if it was intended to represent a quantum leap. The author extended the single vertical panel to form a bar chart: separate panels would represent different energy levels. The proposed bar chart would be populated by reflected photons. Expansion of basic ideas: Part of Scrhödinger’s ‘Particle in the Box’ theory may be valid despite negative criticism. The waveform used in the diagram is vertical, which may seem absurd because real waves decay at a measurable rate, rather than instantaneously. However, there may be one notable exception. Supposedly, following from the theory, the Uncertainty Principle was derived – may a Quantum Leap not be represented as an instantaneous waveform? The great Scrhödinger must have had some reason to suggest a vertical waveform if the prevalent belief was that they did not exist. Complex wave forms representing a particle are usually assumed to be continuous. The actual observations made were x-ray photons, some of which had struck an electron, been reflected, and then moved toward a detector. From Born’s perspective, doing similar work the years in question 1926-7, he would also have considered a single electron – leading him to choose a probability distribution. Probability Distributions appear very similar to Frequency Distributions, but the former are considered to represent the likelihood of future events. Born’s interpretation of the results of quantum experiments led (or perhaps misled) many researchers into claiming that humans can influence events just by looking at them, e.g. collapsing complex wave functions by 'looking at the electron to see which slit it emerged from', while in reality light reflected from the electron moved in the observer’s direction after the electron had moved away. Astronomers may say that they 'look out into the universe' but are actually using logic opposed to the views of Newton and Hooke and many observers such as Romer, in that light carries information from a source or reflector to an observer, rather the reverse. Conclusion: Due to the controversial nature of these ideas, especially its implications about the nature of complex numbers used in applications in science and engineering, some time may pass before any consensus is reached.

Keywords: complex wave functions not necessary, frequency distributions instead of wave functions, information carried by light, sketch graph of uncertainty principle

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