Search results for: statistical evaluation
Commenced in January 2007
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Edition: International
Paper Count: 10073

Search results for: statistical evaluation

2963 Tillage and Intercropping Effects on Growth and Yield of Groundnut in Maize/Groundnut Cropping System

Authors: Oyewole Charles Iledun, Shuaib Harira, Ezeogueri-Oyewole Anne Nnenna

Abstract:

Due to high population pressure/human activities competing for agricultural land, the need to maximize the productivity of available land has become necessary; this has not been achievable in the tropics with monoculture systems where a single harvest per season is the practice. Thus, this study evaluates intercropping combination and tillage practice on yield and yield components of groundnut in a mixture with maize. The trial was conducted in the rainy seasons of 2020 and 2021 at the Kogi State University Students’ Research and Demonstration Farm, Latitude 70 301 and Longitude 70 091 E in the Southern Guinea Savannah agro-ecological zone of Nigeria. Treatment consisted of three tillage practices [as main plot factor] and five intercropping combinations [subplot factor] assigned to a 3 x 5 Factorial experiment replicated four times. Data were collected for growth, development, yield components, and yield of groundnut. Data collected were subjected to Statistical Analysis in line with Factorial Experiments. Means found to be statistically significant at 5 % probability were separated using the LSD method. Regarding yield components and yield related parameters in groundnuts, better performance was observed in cole cropped groundnut plots compared to the intercropped plots. However, intercropping groundnut with maize was generally advantageous, with LER greater than unity. Among the intercrops, the highest LERs were observed when one row of maize was cropped with one row of groundnut, with the least LER recorded in intercropping two rows of maize with one row of groundnut. For the tillage operations, zero tillage gave the highest LERs in both seasons, while the least LERs were recorded when the groundnut was planted on ridges. Since the highest LERs were observed when one row of maize was intercropped with one row of groundnut, this level of crop combination is recommended for the study area, while ridging may not be necessary to get good groundnut yield, particularly under similar soil conditions as obtained in the experimental area, and with similar rainfall observed during the experimental period.

Keywords: canopy height, leaf number, haulm yield / ha, pod yield / ha, harvest index and shelling percentage

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2962 Comparative Evaluation of Vanishing Interfacial Tension Approach for Minimum Miscibility Pressure Determination

Authors: Waqar Ahmad Butt, Gholamreza Vakili Nezhaad, Ali Soud Al Bemani, Yahya Al Wahaibi

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Minimum miscibility pressure (MMP) plays a great role in determining the displacement efficiency of different gas injection processes. Experimental techniques for MMP determination include industrially recommended slim tube, vanishing interfacial tension (VIT) and rising bubble apparatus (RBA). In this paper, MMP measurement study using slim tube and VIT experimental techniques for two different crude oil samples (M and N) both in live and stock tank oil forms is being presented. VIT measured MMP values for both 'M' and 'N' live crude oils were close to slim tube determined MMP values with 6.4 and 5 % deviation respectively. Whereas for both oil samples in stock tank oil form, VIT measured MMP showed a higher unacceptable deviation from slim tube determined MMP. This higher difference appears to be related to high stabilized crude oil heavier fraction and lack of multiple contacts miscibility. None of the different nine deployed crude oil and CO2 MMP computing correlations could result in reliable MMP, close to slim tube determined MMP. Since VIT determined MMP values for both considered live crude oils are in close match with slim tube determined MMP values, it confirms reliable, reproducible, rapid and cheap alternative for live crude oil MMP determination. Whereas VIT MMP determination for stock tank oil case needed further investigation about stabilization / destabilization mechanism of oil heavier ends and multiple contacts miscibility development issues.

Keywords: minimum miscibility pressure, interfacial tension, multiple contacts miscibility, heavier ends

Procedia PDF Downloads 272
2961 Evaluation of Virtual Reality for the Rehabilitation of Athlete Lower Limb Musculoskeletal Injury: A Method for Obtaining Practitioner’s Viewpoints through Observation and Interview

Authors: Hannah K. M. Tang, Muhammad Ateeq, Mark J. Lake, Badr Abdullah, Frederic A. Bezombes

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Based on a theoretical assessment of current literature, virtual reality (VR) could help to treat sporting injuries in a number of ways. However, it is important to obtain rehabilitation specialists’ perspectives in order to design, develop and validate suitable content for a VR application focused on treatment. Subsequently, a one-day observation and interview study focused on the use of VR for the treatment of lower limb musculoskeletal conditions in athletes was conducted at St George’s Park England National Football Centre with rehabilitation specialists. The current paper established the methods suitable for obtaining practitioner’s viewpoints through observation and interview in this context. Particular detail was provided regarding the method of qualitatively processing interview results using the qualitative data analysis software tool NVivo, in order to produce a narrative of overarching themes. The observations and overarching themes identified could be used as a framework and success criteria of a VR application developed in future research. In conclusion, this work explained the methods deemed suitable for obtaining practitioner’s viewpoints through observation and interview. This was required in order to highlight characteristics and features of a VR application designed to treat lower limb musculoskeletal injury of athletes and could be built upon to direct future work.

Keywords: athletes, lower-limb musculoskeletal injury, rehabilitation, return-to-sport, virtual reality

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2960 Formulation and in vitro Evaluation of Transdermal Delivery of Articaine

Authors: Dinakaran Venkatachalam, Paul Chambers, Kavitha Kongara, Preet Singh

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The objective of this study is to formulate different topical preparations containing articaine and to investigate their permeation through goat skin. Initially, articaine and its hydrochloride salt were compared for in vitro permeation using Franz cell model. Goat skin samples were collected after euthanizing male goat kids purchased from the dairy goat farmers. Subcutaneous fat was removed and the skin was mounted on the donor chamber (orifice area 1.00 cm²) and drugs were applied onto the epidermis. Phosphate buffer saline (pH 7.4) was used to maintain sink condition in the receptor chamber (8 ml) of the Franz cell. Samples (0.4 ml) were collected at various intervals over 24 hours after each sampling equal volume of PBS was replaced in the receptor chamber. Articaine in the collected samples were quantified using LC/MS. The results suggested that articaine free base permeates better than its hydrochloride salt through goat skin. This study results support the fact that local anesthetics in its base form are lipophilic and thus penetrates faster through cell membranes than their salts. Later, articaine free base was formulated either using ethanol and octyl salicylate or dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) as penetration enhancers and was compared for in vitro permeation. The transdermal flux of articaine in the formulation containing DMSO was approximately 3.8 times higher than that of the formulation containing ethanol and octyl salicylate. Further studies to evaluate the local anesthetic efficacy of the topical formulation containing articaine for dermal anesthesia in animals have been planned.

Keywords: articaine, dermal anesthesia, local anesthetic, transdermal

Procedia PDF Downloads 241
2959 Outcome Analysis of Surgical and Nonsurgical Treatment on Indicated Operative Chronic Subdural Hematoma: Serial Case in Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital Indonesia

Authors: Novie Nuraini, Sari Hanifa, Yetty Ramli

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Chronic subdural hematoma (cSDH) is a common condition after head trauma. Although the size of the thickness of cSDH has an important role in the decision to perform surgery, but the size limit of the thickness is not absolute. In this serial case report, we evaluate three case report of cSDH that indicated to get the surgical procedure because of deficit neurologic and neuroimaging finding with subfalcine herniation more than 0.5 cm and hematoma thickness more than one cm. On the first case, the patient got evacuation hematoma procedure, but the second and third case, we did nonsurgical treatment because the patient and family refused to do the operation. We did the conservative treatment with bed rest and mannitol. Serial radiologic evaluation is done when we found worsening condition. We also reevaluated radiologic examination two weeks after the treatment. The results in this serial case report, the first and second case have a good outcome. On the third case, there was a worsening condition, which in this patient there was a comorbid with type two diabetic mellitus, pneumonie and chronic kidney disease. Some conservative treatment such as bed rest, corticosteroid, mannitol or the other hyperosmolar has a good outcome in patient without neurologic deficits, small hematoma, and or patient without comorbid disease. Evacuate hematome is the best choice in cSDH treatment with deficit neurologic finding. Afterall, there is some condition that we can not do the surgical procedure. Serial radiologic examination needed after two weeks to evaluate the treatment or if there is any worsening condition.

Keywords: chronic subdural hematoma, traumatic brain injury, surgical treatment, nonsurgical treatment, outcome

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2958 Evaluation of the Biological Activities of Chrysin as an Important Perspective in the Treatment of Infectious and Cancer Diseases

Authors: Sajjad Jafari, Reza Akbari

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Background and Aim: Chrysin, a flavonoid compound found in medicinal plants, honey, and propolis, has potential biological activities that make it an important perspective in the treatment of infectious and cancer diseases. The aim of this review study is to evaluate the biological activities of chrysin in the treatment of infectious and cancer diseases. Material and Methods: The present study is a review study that searched reputable scientific databases such as PubMed, Google Scholar, Scopus, and Web of Science from 2000 to 2023 using keywords such as antimicrobial, antifungal, chrysin, anticancer, antioxidants, and infectious diseases. The researchers examined 25 articles to determine the biological activities of chrysin. Results: Chrysin has high inhibitory or lethal activities on gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, including Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillus subtilis, and Enterococcus faeces. It also has anti-biofilm effects and antifungal effects on strains such as Aspergillus niger and Candida albicans. Chrysin also has anticancer effects on various cancers, including colorectal cancer, pancreatic cancer, breast cancer, and MCF-7 cancer, which have been confirmed in vitro and in vivo. Conclusion: Chrysin has the potential as an important therapeutic option in the treatment of infectious and cancer diseases. Its high antimicrobial and anticancer activities, combined with its low toxicity in nanoparticle form, make it a promising candidate for further clinical trials. The production of anti-microbial and anti-cancer drugs from natural substances, such as chrysin, is a valuable contribution to the field of medicine.

Keywords: chrysin, antimicrobial, anticancer, infectious diseases

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2957 An ANOVA-based Sequential Forward Channel Selection Framework for Brain-Computer Interface Application based on EEG Signals Driven by Motor Imagery

Authors: Forouzan Salehi Fergeni

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Converting the movement intents of a person into commands for action employing brain signals like electroencephalogram signals is a brain-computer interface (BCI) system. When left or right-hand motions are imagined, different patterns of brain activity appear, which can be employed as BCI signals for control. To make better the brain-computer interface (BCI) structures, effective and accurate techniques for increasing the classifying precision of motor imagery (MI) based on electroencephalography (EEG) are greatly needed. Subject dependency and non-stationary are two features of EEG signals. So, EEG signals must be effectively processed before being used in BCI applications. In the present study, after applying an 8 to 30 band-pass filter, a car spatial filter is rendered for the purpose of denoising, and then, a method of analysis of variance is used to select more appropriate and informative channels from a category of a large number of different channels. After ordering channels based on their efficiencies, a sequential forward channel selection is employed to choose just a few reliable ones. Features from two domains of time and wavelet are extracted and shortlisted with the help of a statistical technique, namely the t-test. Finally, the selected features are classified with different machine learning and neural network classifiers being k-nearest neighbor, Probabilistic neural network, support-vector-machine, Extreme learning machine, decision tree, Multi-layer perceptron, and linear discriminant analysis with the purpose of comparing their performance in this application. Utilizing a ten-fold cross-validation approach, tests are performed on a motor imagery dataset found in the BCI competition III. Outcomes demonstrated that the SVM classifier got the greatest classification precision of 97% when compared to the other available approaches. The entire investigative findings confirm that the suggested framework is reliable and computationally effective for the construction of BCI systems and surpasses the existing methods.

Keywords: brain-computer interface, channel selection, motor imagery, support-vector-machine

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2956 Performance Evaluation of Filtration System for Groundwater Recharging Well in the Presence of Medium Sand-Mixed Storm Water

Authors: Krishna Kumar Singh, Praveen Jain

Abstract:

The collection of storm water runoff and forcing it into the groundwater is the need of the hour to sustain the ground water table. However, the runoff entraps various types of sediments and other floating objects whose removal are essential to avoid pollution of ground water and blocking of pores of aquifer. However, it requires regular cleaning and maintenance due to the problem of clogging. To evaluate the performance of filter system consisting of coarse sand (CS), gravel (G) and pebble (P) layers, a laboratory experiment was conducted in a rectangular column. The effect of variable thickness of CS, G and P layers of the filtration unit of the recharge shaft on the recharge rate and the sediment concentration of effluent water were evaluated. Medium sand (MS) of three particle sizes, viz. 0.150–0.300 mm (T1), 0.300–0.425 mm (T2) and 0.425–0.600 mm of thickness 25 cm, 30 cm, and 35 cm respectively in the top layer of the filter system and having seven influent sediment concentrations of 250–3,000 mg/l were used for the experimental study. The performance was evaluated in terms of recharge rates and clogging time. The results indicated that 100 % suspended solids were entrapped in the upper 10 cm layer of MS, the recharge rates declined sharply for influent concentrations of more than 1,000 mg/l. All treatments with a higher thickness of MS media indicated recharge rate slightly more than that of all treatment with a lower thickness of MS media respectively. The performance of storm water infiltration systems was highly dependent on the formation of a clogging layer at the filter. An empirical relationship has been derived between recharge rates, inflow sediment load, size of MS and thickness of MS with using MLR.

Keywords: groundwater, medium sand-mixed storm water filter, inflow sediment load

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2955 Evaluation of Produced Water Treatment Using Advanced Oxidation Processes and Sodium Ferrate(VI)

Authors: Erica T. R. Mendonça, Caroline M. B. de Araujo, Filho, Osvaldo Chiavone, Sobrinho, Maurício A. da Motta

Abstract:

Oil and gas exploration is an essential activity for modern society, although the supply of its global demand has caused enough damage to the environment, mainly due to produced water generation, which is an effluent associated with the oil and gas produced during oil extraction. It is the aim of this study to evaluate the treatment of produced water, in order to reduce its oils and greases content (OG), by using flotation as a pre-treatment, combined with oxidation for the remaining organic load degradation. Thus, there has been tested Advanced Oxidation Process (AOP) using both Fenton and photo-Fenton reactions, as well as a chemical oxidation treatment using sodium ferrate(VI), Na2[FeO4], as a strong oxidant. All the studies were carried out using real samples of produced water from petroleum industry. The oxidation process using ferrate(VI) ion was studied based on factorial experimental designs. The factorial design was used in order to study how the variables pH, temperature and concentration of Na2[FeO4] influences the O&G levels. For the treatment using ferrate(VI) ion, the results showed that the best operating point is obtained when the temperature is 28 °C, pH 3, and a 2000 mg.L-1 solution of Na2[FeO4] is used. This experiment has achieved a final O&G level of 4.7 mg.L-1, which means 94% percentage removal efficiency of oils and greases. Comparing Fenton and photo-Fenton processes, it was observed that the Fenton reaction did not provide good reduction of O&G (around 20% only). On the other hand, a degradation of approximately 80.5% of oil and grease was obtained after a period of seven hours of treatment using photo-Fenton process, which indicates that the best process combination has occurred between the flotation and the photo-Fenton reaction using solar radiation, with an overall removal efficiency of O&G of approximately 89%.

Keywords: advanced oxidation process, ferrate (VI) ion, oils and greases removal, produced water treatment

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2954 Rethink Urban Resilience: An Introductory Study Towards Resilient Spatial Structure of Refugees Neighborhoods

Authors: Salwa Mohammad Alawneh

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The ongoing humanitarian crises spur rapid and unpredicted refugee influxes resulting in demographic changes in cities. Regarding different urban systems are vulnerable in refugee neighborhoods. With the consequent social, economic, and spatial challenges, cities must respond with a more durable and sustainable approach based on urban resilience. The paper systematically approaches urban resilience to contribute to refugee spaces by reflecting on the overall urban systems of their neighborhoods. The research will review the urban resilience literature to develop an evaluation framework. The developed framework applies urban resilience more holistically in refugee neighborhoods and expands to the urban systems of social, economic, and spatial. However, the main highlight of this paper is the resilient spatial structure in refugee neighborhoods to face the internal and complex stress of refugee waves and their demographic changes. Finding a set of resilient spatial measurements and focusing on urban forms at a neighborhood scale provide vulnerability reduction and enhance adaptation capacity. As a model example, the paper applies these measurements and facilitates geospatial technologies to one of the refugee neighborhoods in Amman, Jordan, namely Al-Jubilee. The application in Al-Jubilee helps to demonstrate a road map towards a developmental pattern in design and planning by different decision-makers of inter-governmental and humanitarian organizations. In this regard, urban resilience improves the humanitarian assistantship of refugee settings beyond providing the essential needs. In conclusion, urban resilience responds to the different challenges of refugee neighborhoods by supporting urban stability, improving livability, and maintaining both urban functions and security.

Keywords: urban resilience of refugee, resilient urban form, refugee neighborhoods, humanitarian assistantship, refugee in Jordan

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2953 Implementing Service Learning in the Health Education Curriculum

Authors: Karen Butler

Abstract:

Johnson C. Smith University, one of the nation’s oldest Historically Black Colleges and Universities, has a strong history of service learning and community service. We first integrated service learning and peer education into health education courses in the spring of 2000. Students enrolled in the classes served as peer educators for the semester. Since then, the program has evolved and expanded but remains an integral part of several courses. The purpose of this session is to describe our program in terms of development, successes, and obstacles, and feedback received. A detailed description of the service learning component in HED 235: Drugs and Drug Education and HED 337: Environmental Health will be provided. These classes are required of our Community Health majors but are also popular electives for students in other disciplines. Three sources of student feedback were used to evaluate and continually modify the component: the SIR II course evaluation, service learning reflection papers, and focus group interviews. Student feedback has been largely positive. When criticism was given, it was thoughtful and constructive – given in the spirit of making it better for the next group. Students consistently agreed that the service learning program increased their awareness of pertinent health issues; that both the service providers and service recipients benefited from the project; and that the goals/issues targeted by the service learning component fit the objectives of the course. Also, evidence of curriculum and learning enhancement was found in the reflection papers and focus group sessions. Service learning sets up a win-win situation. It provides a way to respond to campus and community health needs while enhancing the curriculum, as students learn more by doing things that benefit the health and wellness of others. Service learning is suitable for any health education course and any target audience would welcome the effort.

Keywords: black colleges, community health, health education, service learning

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2952 Estimation of Constant Coefficients of Bourgoyne and Young Drilling Rate Model for Drill Bit Wear Prediction

Authors: Ahmed Z. Mazen, Nejat Rahmanian, Iqbal Mujtaba, Ali Hassanpour

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In oil and gas well drilling, the drill bit is an important part of the Bottom Hole Assembly (BHA), which is installed and designed to drill and produce a hole by several mechanisms. The efficiency of the bit depends on many drilling parameters such as weight on bit, rotary speed, and mud properties. When the bit is pulled out of the hole, the evaluation of the bit damage must be recorded very carefully to guide engineers in order to select the bits for further planned wells. Having a worn bit for hole drilling may cause severe damage to bit leading to cutter or cone losses in the bottom of hole, where a fishing job will have to take place, and all of these will increase the operating cost. The main factor to reduce the cost of drilling operation is to maximize the rate of penetration by analyzing real-time data to predict the drill bit wear while drilling. There are numerous models in the literature for prediction of the rate of penetration based on drilling parameters, mostly based on empirical approaches. One of the most commonly used approaches is Bourgoyne and Young model, where the rate of penetration can be estimated by the drilling parameters as well as a wear index using an empirical correlation, provided all the constants and coefficients are accurately determined. This paper introduces a new methodology to estimate the eight coefficients for Bourgoyne and Young model using the gPROMS parameters estimation GPE (Version 4.2.0). Real data collected form similar formations (12 ¼’ sections) in two different fields in Libya are used to estimate the coefficients. The estimated coefficients are then used in the equations and applied to nearby wells in the same field to predict the bit wear.

Keywords: Bourgoyne and Young model, bit wear, gPROMS, rate of penetration

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2951 The Teacher’s Role in Generating and Maintaining the Motivation of Adult Learners of English: A Mixed Methods Study in Hungarian Corporate Contexts

Authors: Csaba Kalman

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In spite of the existence of numerous second language (L2) motivation theories, the teacher’s role in motivating learners has remained an under-researched niche to this day. If we narrow down our focus on the teacher’s role on motivating adult learners of English in an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) context in corporate environments, empirical research is practically non-existent. This study fills the above research niche by exploring the most motivating aspects of the teacher’s personality, behaviour, and teaching practices that affect adult learners’ L2 motivation in corporate contexts in Hungary. The study was conducted in a wide range of industries in 18 organisations that employ over 250 people in Hungary. In order to triangulate the research, 21 human resources managers, 18 language teachers, and 466 adult learners of English were involved in the investigation by participating in interview studies, and quantitative questionnaire studies that measured ten scales related to the teacher’s role, as well as two criterion measure scales of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. The qualitative data were analysed using a template organising style, while descriptive, inferential statistics, as well as multivariate statistical techniques, such as correlation and regression analyses, were used for analysing the quantitative data. The results showed that certain aspects of the teacher’s personality (thoroughness, enthusiasm, credibility, and flexibility), as well as preparedness, incorporating English for Specific Purposes (ESP) in the syllabus, and focusing on the present, proved to be the most salient aspects of the teacher’s motivating influence. The regression analyses conducted with the criterion measure scales revealed that 22% of the variance in learners’ intrinsic motivation could be explained by the teacher’s preparedness and appearance, and 23% of the variance in learners’ extrinsic motivation could be attributed to the teacher’s personal branding and incorporating ESP in the syllabus. The findings confirm the pivotal role teachers play in motivating L2 learners independent of the context they teach in; and, at the same time, call for further research so that we can better conceptualise the motivating influence of L2 teachers.

Keywords: adult learners, corporate contexts, motivation, teacher’s role

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2950 Pattern of Biopsy Proven Renal Disease and Association between the Clinical Findings with Renal Pathology in Eastern Nepal

Authors: Manish Subedi, Bijay Bartaula, Ashok R. Pant, Purbesh Adhikari, Sanjib K. Sharma

Abstract:

Background: The pattern of glomerular disease varies worldwide. In absence of kidney disease/Kidney biopsy registry in Nepal, the exact etiology of different forms of glomerular disease is primarily unknown in our country. Method: We retrospectively analyzed 175 cases of renal biopsies performed from dated September 2014 to August 2016 at B. P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, Dharan, Nepal. Results: The commonest indication for renal biopsy was nephrotic syndrome (34.9%), followed by Systemic lupus erythematosus with suspected renal involvement (22.3%). Majority of patients were in the 30-60 year bracket (57.2%), with the mean age of the patients being 35.37 years. The average number of glomeruli per core was 13, with inadequate sampling in 5.1%. IgA nephropathy (17%) was found to be the most common primary glomerular disease, followed by membranous nephropathy (14.6%) and FSGS (14.6%). The commonest secondary glomerular disease was lupus nephritis. Complications associated with renal biopsy were pain at biopsy site in 18% of cases, hematuria in 6% and perinephric hematoma in 4% cases. Conclusion: The commonest primary and secondary glomerular disease was IgA nephropathy and lupus nephritis respectively. The high prevalence of Systemic lupus erythematosus with lupus nephritis among Nepalese in comparison with other developing countries warrants further evaluation. As an initial attempt towards documentation of glomerular diseases in the national context, this study should serve as a stepping stone towards the eventual establishment of a full-fledged national registry of glomerular diseases in Nepal.

Keywords: glomerular, Nepal, renal biopsy, systemic lupus erythematoses

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2949 Immunohistochemical Evaluation of Moringa oleifera Seed Oil in Cadmium Induced Frontal Cortex Damage in Wistar Rats

Authors: Olusegun D. Omotoso

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The use of Moringa oleifera seed oil in the prevention and cure of many ailments particularly, neurodegenerative diseases have been on increasing trend in Nigeria. The study was aimed at investigating the ameliorative or reversal effects by the intervention of Moringa oleifera seed oil on the damage to frontal cortex of Wistar rats by cadmium. Twenty-eight Wistar rats of both sexes weighed between 73g-151g were used. The animals were acclimatized and were fed on rat chow and water ad libitum. The rats were randomly divided into four groups A, B, C and D of 7 rats each. Group A served as control which received 2.5mg/kgbw phosphate buffer intra-peritoneally, while group D served as Moringa-treated control and received oral administration of 2.0 mg/kgbw Moringa oleifera oil. Groups B and C were injected intra-peritoneally with 3.5mg/kgbw CdSO₄.8H₂O single dose. Group C received orally administration of 2.0mg/kgbw Moringa oleifera oil. The intervention lasted for four weeks after which the animals were sacrificed by cervical dislocation and the tissues processed histologically. The immuno-histoarchitecture of the frontal cortex was characterized by pyknosis of nuclei as well as activation of astrocytes which was evidence in group B rats, while those animals in group C showed ameliorative effect that were evidence in reduction in the number of pyknotic nuclei and reduction of activated astrocytes as compared with control group A and Moringa-treated group D. It can be deduced that Moringa oleifera seed oil has natural antioxidant constituents that might have ameliorated the immuno-histoarchitectural damage caused by cadmium.

Keywords: cadmium, immuno-histoarchitecture, Moringa oleifera, pyknotic nuclei

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2948 An Assessment of Impact of Financial Statement Fraud on Profit Performance of Manufacturing Firms in Nigeria: A Study of Food and Beverage Firms in Nigeria

Authors: Wale Agbaje

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The aim of this research study is to assess the impact of financial statement fraud on profitability of some selected Nigerian manufacturing firms covering (2002-2016). The specific objectives focused on to ascertain the effect of incorrect asset valuation on return on assets (ROA) and to ascertain the relationship between improper expense recognition and return on assets (ROA). To achieve these objectives, descriptive research design was used for the study while secondary data were collected from the financial reports of the selected firms and website of security and exchange commission. The analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used and STATA II econometric method was used in the analysis of the data. Altman model and operating expenses ratio was adopted in the analysis of the financial reports to create a dummy variable for the selected firms from 2002-2016 and validation of the parameters were ascertained using various statistical techniques such as t-test, co-efficient of determination (R2), F-statistics and Wald chi-square. Two hypotheses were formulated and tested using the t-statistics at 5% level of significance. The findings of the analysis revealed that there is a significant relationship between financial statement fraud and profitability in Nigerian manufacturing industry. It was revealed that incorrect assets valuation has a significant positive relationship and so also is the improper expense recognition on return on assets (ROA) which serves as a proxy for profitability. The implication of this is that distortion of asset valuation and expense recognition leads to decreasing profit in the long run in the manufacturing industry. The study therefore recommended that pragmatic policy options need to be taken in the manufacturing industry to effectively manage incorrect asset valuation and improper expense recognition in order to enhance manufacturing industry performance in the country and also stemming of financial statement fraud should be adequately inculcated into the internal control system of manufacturing firms for the effective running of the manufacturing industry in Nigeria.

Keywords: Althman's Model, improper expense recognition, incorrect asset valuation, return on assets

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2947 Combining Multiscale Patterns of Weather and Sea States into a Machine Learning Classifier for Mid-Term Prediction of Extreme Rainfall in North-Western Mediterranean Sea

Authors: Pinel Sebastien, Bourrin François, De Madron Du Rieu Xavier, Ludwig Wolfgang, Arnau Pedro

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Heavy precipitation constitutes a major meteorological threat in the western Mediterranean. Research has investigated the relationship between the states of the Mediterranean Sea and the atmosphere with the precipitation for short temporal windows. However, at a larger temporal scale, the precursor signals of heavy rainfall in the sea and atmosphere have drawn little attention. Moreover, despite ongoing improvements in numerical weather prediction, the medium-term forecasting of rainfall events remains a difficult task. Here, we aim to investigate the influence of early-spring environmental parameters on the following autumnal heavy precipitations. Hence, we develop a machine learning model to predict extreme autumnal rainfall with a 6-month lead time over the Spanish Catalan coastal area, based on i) the sea pattern (main current-LPC and Sea Surface Temperature-SST) at the mesoscale scale, ii) 4 European weather teleconnection patterns (NAO, WeMo, SCAND, MO) at synoptic scale, and iii) the hydrological regime of the main local river (Rhône River). The accuracy of the developed model classifier is evaluated via statistical analysis based on classification accuracy, logarithmic and confusion matrix by comparing with rainfall estimates from rain gauges and satellite observations (CHIRPS-2.0). Sensitivity tests are carried out by changing the model configuration, such as sea SST, sea LPC, river regime, and synoptic atmosphere configuration. The sensitivity analysis suggests a negligible influence from the hydrological regime, unlike SST, LPC, and specific teleconnection weather patterns. At last, this study illustrates how public datasets can be integrated into a machine learning model for heavy rainfall prediction and can interest local policies for management purposes.

Keywords: extreme hazards, sensitivity analysis, heavy rainfall, machine learning, sea-atmosphere modeling, precipitation forecasting

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2946 Similar Correlation of Meat and Sugar to Global Obesity Prevalence

Authors: Wenpeng You, Maciej Henneberg

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Background: Sugar consumption has been overwhelmingly advocated as a major dietary offender to obesity prevalence. Meat intake has been hypothesized as an obesity contributor in previous publications, but a moderate amount of meat to be included in our daily diet still has been suggested in many dietary guidelines. Comparable sugar and meat exposure data were obtained to assess the difference in relationships between the two major food groups and obesity prevalence at population level. Methods: Population level estimates of obesity and overweight rates, per capita per day exposure of major food groups (meat, sugar, starch crops, fibers, fats and fruits) and total calories, per capita per year GDP, urbanization and physical inactivity prevalence rate were extracted and matched for statistical analysis. Correlation coefficient (Pearson and partial) comparisons with Fisher’s r-to-z transformation and β range (β ± 2 SE) and overlapping in multiple linear regression (Enter and Stepwise) were used to examine potential differences in the relationships between obesity prevalence and sugar exposure and meat exposure respectively. Results: Pearson and partial correlations (controlled for total calories, physical inactivity prevalence, GDP and urbanization) analyses revealed that sugar and meat exposures correlated to obesity and overweight prevalence significantly. Fisher's r-to-z transformation did not show statistically significant difference in Pearson correlation coefficients (z=-0.53, p=0.5961) or partial correlation coefficients (z=-0.04, p=0.9681) between obesity prevalence and both sugar exposure and meat exposure. Both Enter and Stepwise models in multiple linear regression analysis showed that sugar and meat exposure were most significant predictors of obesity prevalence. Great β range overlapping in the Enter (0.289-0.573) and Stepwise (0.294-0.582) models indicated statistically sugar and meat exposure correlated to obesity without significant difference. Conclusion: Worldwide sugar and meat exposure correlated to obesity prevalence at the same extent. Like sugar, minimal meat exposure should also be suggested in the dietary guidelines.

Keywords: meat, sugar, obesity, energy surplus, meat protein, fats, insulin resistance

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2945 Moving from Practice to Theory

Authors: Maria Lina Garrido

Abstract:

This paper aims to reflect upon instruction in English classes with the specific purpose of reading comprehension development, having as its paradigm the considerations presented by William Grabe, in his book Reading in a Second Language: Moving from theory to practice. His concerns regarding the connection between research findings and instructional practices have stimulated the present author to re-evaluate both her long practice as an English reading teacher and as the author of two reading textbooks for graduate students. Elements of the reading process such as linguistic issues, prior knowledge, reading strategies, critical evaluation, and motivation are the main foci of this analysis as far as the activities developed in the classroom are concerned. The experience with university candidates on postgraduate courses with different levels of English knowledge in Bahia, Brazil, has definitely demanded certain adjustments to this author`s classroom setting. Word recognition based on cognates, for example, has been emphasized given the fact that academic texts use many Latin words which have the same roots as the Brazilian Portuguese lexicon. Concerning syntactic parsing, the tenses/verbal aspects, modality and linking words are included in the curriculum, but not with the same depth as the general English curricula. Reading strategies, another essential predictor for developing reading skills, have been largely stimulated in L2 classes in order to compensate for a lack of the appropriate knowledge of the foreign language. This paper presents results that demonstrate that this author`s teaching practice is compatible with the implications and instruction concerning the reading process outlined by Grabe, however, it admits that each class demands specific instructions to meet the needs of that particular group.

Keywords: classroom practice, instructional activities, reading comprehension, reading skills

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2944 Evaluation of Pile Performance in Different Layers of Soil

Authors: Orod Zarrin, Mohesn Ramezan Shirazi, Hassan Moniri

Abstract:

The use of pile foundations technique is developed to support structures and buildings on soft soil. The most important dynamic load that can affect the pile structure is earthquake vibrations. Pile foundations during earthquake excitation indicate that piles are subject to damage by affecting the superstructure integrity and serviceability. During an earthquake, two types of stresses can damage the pile head, inertial load that is caused by superstructure and deformation which caused by the surrounding soil. Soil deformation and inertial load are associated with the acceleration developed in an earthquake. The acceleration amplitude at the ground surface depends on the magnitude of earthquakes, soil properties and seismic source distance. According to the investigation, the damage is between the liquefiable and non-liquefiable layers and also soft and stiff layers. This damage crushes the pile head by increasing the inertial load which is applied by the superstructure. On the other hand, the cracks on the piles due to the surrounding soil are directly related to the soil profile and causes cracks from small to large. However, the large cracks reason have been listed such as liquefaction, lateral spreading, and inertial load. In the field of designing, elastic response of piles is always a challenge for designer in liquefaction soil, by allowing deflection at top of piles. Moreover, absence of plastic hinges in piles should be insured, because the damage in the piles is not observed directly. In this study, the performance and behavior of pile foundations during liquefaction and lateral spreading are investigated. In addition, emphasize on the soil behavior in the liquefiable and non-liquefiable layers by different aspect of piles damage such as ranking, location and degree of damage are going to discuss.

Keywords: pile, earthquake, liquefaction, non-liquefiable, damage

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2943 A Quantitative Study Investigating Whether the Internalisation of Adolescent Femininity Ideologies Predicts Depression and Anxiety in Female Adolescents

Authors: Tondani Mudau, Sherine B. Van Wyk, Zuhayr Kafaar, Janan Dietrich

Abstract:

Female adolescents residing in a patriarchal society such as South Africa are more inclined to embrace feminine ideologies. Internalizing these ideologies may expose female adolescents to mental health challenges such as depression and anxiety. This study explored whether the internalisation of adolescent femininity ideologies namely, objectified relationship with own body (ORB) and inauthentic self in relationships (ISR) predicted anxiety and depression in late female adolescents at Stellenbosch University. The sample of the study consisted of 1451 (18-24) female undergraduate and postgraduate students enrolled at Stellenbosch University. The mean age of the participants was 20 (SD=1.46), and most participants (39.7%) were first-year students. The study employed a cross-sectional quantitative research design. Data was collected through an online self-completion survey, the survey consisted of three sections, the first section asked biographical questions regarding age, gender, race and family background. The second section measured the internalisation of feminine ideologies by using the adolescent femininity ideology scale which has two subscales namely inauthentic self in relationship with others (ISR) and objectified relationship with one’s own body (ORB). The ISR scale had the Cronbach Alpha of 0.76, and the ORB scale had the Cronbach Alpha of 0.83. The third section measured mental health (depression and anxiety) by using the Hopkins Symptoms 25-checklist which had the Cronbach Alpha of 0.93. Data were analysed through multiple linear regression from IBM SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences Version 24). The overall results of the multiple linear regression showed that The AFIS combination accounted for 14% for anxiety as measured by the Hopkins Symptoms Checklist R² = .142, F (2, 682) = 56.431, p < .001. The combination also accounted for 24% for depression as measured by the Hopkins Symptoms Checklist R² = .239, F (2, 682) = 106.971, p < .0. The findings in this study affirm the objectification and feminist theory contentions that internalising femininity ideologies (ISR and ORB) predict negative mental health in female adolescents.

Keywords: adolescents, anxiety, depression, feminine ideologies, inauthentic self, mental health, self-objectification, South Africa

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2942 Biocompatible Beta Titanium Alloy Ti36Nb6Ta as a Suitable Material for Bone Regeneration

Authors: Vera Lukasova, Eva Filova, Jana Dankova, Vera Sovkova, Matej Daniel, Michala Rampichova

Abstract:

Proper bone implants should promote fast adhesion of cells, stimulate cell differentiation and support the formation of bone tissue. Nowadays titanium is used as a biocompatible material capable of bone tissue integration. This study was focused on comparison of bioactive properties of two titanium alloys - beta titanium alloy Ti36Nb6Ta and standard medical titanium alloy Ti6A14V. The advantage of beta titanium alloy Ti36Nb6Ta is mainly that this material does not contain adverse elements like vanadium or aluminium. Titanium alloys were sterilized in ethanol, placed into 48 well plates and seeded with porcine mesenchymal stem cells. Cells were cultivated for 14 days in standard growth cultivation media with osteogenic supplements. Cell metabolic activity was quantified using MTS assay (Promega). Cell adhesion on day 1 and cell proliferation on further days were verified immunohistochemically using beta-actin monoclonal antibody and secondary antibody conjugated with AlexaFluor®488. Differentiation of cells was evaluated using alkaline phosphatase assay. Additionally, gene expression of collagen I was measured by qRT-PCR. Porcine mesenchymal stem cells adhered and spread well on beta titanium alloy Ti36Nb6Ta on day 1. During the 14 days’ time period the cells were spread confluently on the surface of the beta titanium alloy Ti36Nb6Ta. The metabolic activity of cells increased during the whole cultivation period. In comparison to standard medical titanium alloy Ti6A14V, we did not observe any differences. Moreover, the expression of collagen I gene revealed no statistical differences between both titanium alloys. Therefore, a beta titanium alloy Ti36Nb6Ta promotes cell adhesion, metabolic activity, proliferation and collagen I expression equally to standard medical titanium alloy Ti6A14V. Thus, beta titanium is a suitable material that provides sufficient biocompatible properties. This project was supported by the Czech Science Foundation: grant No. 16-14758S.

Keywords: beta titanium alloy, biocompatibility, differentiation, mesenchymal stem cells

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2941 Drivers of Liking: Probiotic Petit Suisse Cheese

Authors: Helena Bolini, Erick Esmerino, Adriano Cruz, Juliana Paixao

Abstract:

The currently concern for health has increased demand for low-calorie ingredients and functional foods as probiotics. Understand the reasons that infer on food choice, besides a challenging task, it is important step for development and/or reformulation of existing food products. The use of appropriate multivariate statistical techniques, such as External Preference Map (PrefMap), associated with regression by Partial Least Squares (PLS) can help in determining those factors. Thus, this study aimed to determine, through PLS regression analysis, the sensory attributes considered drivers of liking in probiotic petit suisse cheeses, strawberry flavor, sweetened with different sweeteners. Five samples in same equivalent sweetness: PROB1 (Sucralose 0.0243%), PROB2 (Stevia 0.1520%), PROB3 (Aspartame 0.0877%), PROB4 (Neotame 0.0025%) and PROB5 (Sucrose 15.2%) determined by just-about-right and magnitude estimation methods, and three commercial samples COM1, COM2 and COM3, were studied. Analysis was done over data coming from QDA, performed by 12 expert (highly trained assessors) on 20 descriptor terms, correlated with data from assessment of overall liking in acceptance test, carried out by 125 consumers, on all samples. Sequentially, results were submitted to PLS regression using XLSTAT software from Byossistemes. As shown in results, it was possible determine, that three sensory descriptor terms might be considered drivers of liking of probiotic petit suisse cheese samples added with sweeteners (p<0.05). The milk flavor was noticed as a sensory characteristic with positive impact on acceptance, while descriptors bitter taste and sweet aftertaste were perceived as descriptor terms with negative impact on acceptance of petit suisse probiotic cheeses. It was possible conclude that PLS regression analysis is a practical and useful tool in determining drivers of liking of probiotic petit suisse cheeses sweetened with artificial and natural sweeteners, allowing food industry to understand and improve their formulations maximizing the acceptability of their products.

Keywords: acceptance, consumer, quantitative descriptive analysis, sweetener

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2940 Extraction of Cellulose Nanofibrils from Pulp Using Enzymatic Pretreatment and Evaluation of Their Papermaking Potential

Authors: Ajay Kumar Singh, Arvind Kumar, S. P. Singh

Abstract:

Cellulose nanofibrils (CNF) have shown potential of their extensive use in various fields, including papermaking, due to their unique characteristics. In this study, CNF’s were prepared by fibrillating the pulp obtained from raw materials e.g. bagasse, hardwood and softwood using enzymatic pretreatment followed by mechanical refining. These nanofibrils, when examined under FE-SEM, show that partial fibrillation on fiber surface has resulted in production of nanofibers. Mixing these nanofibers with the unrefined and normally refined fibers show their reinforcing effect. This effect is manifested in observing the improvement in the physical and mechanical properties e.g. tensile index and burst index of paper. Tear index, however, was observed to decrease on blending with nanofibers. The optical properties of paper sheets made from blended fibers showed no significant change in comparison to those made from only mechanically refined pulp. Mixing of normal pulp fibers with nanofibers show increase in ºSR and consequent decrease in drainage rate. These changes observed in mechanical, optical and other physical properties of the paper sheets made from nanofibrils blended pulp have been tried to explain considering the distribution of the nanofibrils alongside microfibrils in the fibrous network. Since usually, paper/boards with higher strength are observed to have diminished optical properties which is a drawback in their quality, the present work has the potential for developing paper/boards having improved strength alongwith undiminished optical properties utilising the concepts of nanoscience and nanotechnology.

Keywords: enzymatic pretreatment, mechanical refining, nanofibrils, paper properties

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2939 Microgrid: An Alternative of Electricity Supply to an Island in Thailand

Authors: Pawitchaya Srijaiwong, Surin Khomfoi

Abstract:

There are several solutions to supply electricity to an island in Thailand such as diesel generation, submarine power cable, and renewable energy power generation. However, each alternative has its own limitation like fuel and pollution of diesel generation, submarine power cable length resulting in loss of cable and cost of investment, and potential of renewable energy in the local area. This paper shows microgrid system which is a new alternative for power supply to an island. It integrates local power plant from renewable energy, energy storage system, and microgrid controller. The suitable renewable energy power generation on an island is selected from geographic location and potential evaluation. Thus, photovoltaic system and hydro power plant are taken into account. The capacity of energy storage system is also estimated by transient stability study in order to supply electricity demand sufficiently under normal condition. Microgrid controller plays an important role in conducting, communicating and operating for both sources and loads on an island so that its functions are discussed in this study. The conceptual design of microgrid operation is investigated in order to analyze the reliability and power quality. The result of this study shows that microgrid is able to operate in parallel with the main grid and in case of islanding. It is applicable for electricity supply to an island and a remote area. The advantages of operating microgrid on an island include the technical aspect like improving reliability and quality of power system and social aspects like outage cost saving and CO₂ reduction.

Keywords: energy storage, islanding, microgrid, renewable energy

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2938 Quality of Life Assessment across the Cancer Continuum: Understanding the Role of an Exercise Rehabilitation Programme

Authors: Bernat-Carles Serdà Ferrer, Arantza Del Valle Gómez

Abstract:

The Quality of Life (QoL) paradigm is multidimensional, dynamic and modular and its definition differs across the cancer continuum. The challenge in the interpretation of QoL data in clinical research is that QoL is influenced by psychological phenomena such as adaptation to illness. This research aims to obtain a valid and sensitive assessment of QoL change over the continuum disease, and to evaluate a rehabilitation programme aimed at inverting the observed decrease in QoL when patients return to daily living activities. The sample comprised 66 men. Patients were first assessed to establish a baseline (P1-diagnosis). This was followed by a post-test (P2-discharge) and a then-test measurement (P3-retrospective evaluation) and after returning home patients were randomized in experimental and control groups. The experimental group attended a rehabilitation programme over 24 weeks (P4). Results show that from baseline to post-test, QoL decreased significantly. The recalibration then-test confirmed a low QoL in all periods evaluated. Significant differences between the experimental and control groups prove the positive effect of the Exercise Rehabilitation Programme (ERP) on QoL. Understanding the real dynamic of QoL over time would help to adapt rehabilitation programmes by improving sensitivity and efficacy and provide professionals with a more accurate perception of the impact of treatment and side effects on patients’ QoL. Our results underline the importance of changing the approach adopted by health professionals towards one of watchful waiting on patients’ QoL until their complete recovery in daily life.

Keywords: exercise, prostate cancer, quality of life, rehabilitation programme, response shift

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2937 Combining Corpus Linguistics and Critical Discourse Analysis to Study Power Relations in Hindi Newspapers

Authors: Vandana Mishra, Niladri Sekhar Dash, Jayshree Charkraborty

Abstract:

This present paper focuses on the application of corpus linguistics techniques for critical discourse analysis (CDA) of Hindi newspapers. While Corpus linguistics is the study of language as expressed in corpora (samples) of 'real world' text, CDA is an interdisciplinary approach to the study of discourse that views language as a form of social practice. CDA has mainly been studied from a qualitative perspective. However, we can say that recent studies have begun combining corpus linguistics with CDA in analyzing large volumes of text for the study of existing power relations in society. The corpus under our study is also of a sizable amount (1 million words of Hindi newspaper texts) and its analysis requires an alternative analytical procedure. So, we have combined both the quantitative approach i.e. the use of corpus techniques with CDA’s traditional qualitative analysis. In this context, we have focused on the Keyword Analysis Sorting Concordance Lines of the selected Keywords and calculating collocates of the keywords. We have made use of the Wordsmith Tool for all these analysis. The analysis starts with identifying the keywords in the political news corpus when compared with the main news corpus. The keywords are extracted from the corpus based on their keyness calculated through statistical tests like chi-squared test and log-likelihood test on the frequent words of the corpus. Some of the top occurring keywords are मोदी (Modi), भाजपा (BJP), कांग्रेस (Congress), सरकार (Government) and पार्टी (Political party). This is followed by the concordance analysis of these keywords which generates thousands of lines but we have to select few lines and examine them based on our objective. We have also calculated the collocates of the keywords based on their Mutual Information (MI) score. Both concordance and collocation help to identify lexical patterns in the political texts. Finally, all these quantitative results derived from the corpus techniques will be subjectively interpreted in accordance to the CDA’s theory to examine the ways in which political news discourse produces social and political inequality, power abuse or domination.

Keywords: critical discourse analysis, corpus linguistics, Hindi newspapers, power relations

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2936 A Comparative Study of Environment Risk Assessment Guidelines of Developing and Developed Countries Including Bangladesh

Authors: Syeda Fahria Hoque Mimmi, Aparna Islam

Abstract:

Genetically engineered (GE) plants are the need of time for increased demand for food. A complete set of regulations need to be followed from the development of a GE plant to its release into the environment. The whole regulation system is categorized into separate stages for maintaining the proper biosafety. Environmental risk assessment (ERA) is one of such crucial stages in the whole process. ERA identifies potential risks and their impacts through science-based evaluation where it is done in a case-by-case study. All the countries which deal with GE plants follow specific guidelines to conduct a successful ERA. In this study, ERA guidelines of 4 developing and 4 developed countries, including Bangladesh, were compared. ERA guidelines of countries such as India, Canada, Australia, the European Union, Argentina, Brazil, and the US were considered as a model to conduct the comparison study with Bangladesh. Initially, ten parameters were detected to compare the required data and information among all the guidelines. Surprisingly, an adequate amount of data and information requirements (e.g., if the intended modification/new traits of interest has been achieved or not, the growth habit of GE plants, consequences of any potential gene flow upon the cultivation of GE plants to sexually compatible plant species, potential adverse effects on the human health, etc.) matched between all the countries. However, a few differences in data requirement (e.g., agronomic conventions of non-transformed plants, applicants should clearly describe experimental procedures followed, etc.) were also observed in the study. Moreover, it was found that only a few countries provide instructions on the quality of the data used for ERA. If these similarities are recognized in a more framed manner, then the approval pathway of GE plants can be shared.

Keywords: GE plants, ERA, harmonization, ERA guidelines, Information and data requirements

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2935 Induction of Cytotoxicity and Apoptosis in Ovarian Cancer Cell Line (CAOV-3) by an Isoquinoline Alkaloid Isolated from Enicosanthellum pulchrum (King) Heusden

Authors: Noraziah Nordin, Najihah Mohd Hashim, Nazia Abdul Majid, Mashitoh Abdul Rahman, Hamed Karimian, Hapipah Mohd Ali

Abstract:

Enicosanthellum pulchrum belongs to family Annonaceae is also known as family of 'mempisang' in Malaysia. Liriodenine was isolated by prep-HPLC method. This method was first technique used for the isolation of this compound. The structure of the liriodenine was elucidated by 1D and 2D spectroscopy techniques. Liriodenine was tested on ovarian cancer cells line (CAOV-3) for MTT, AO/PI and cytotoxicity 3 assays. The MTT assay was performed to determine the cytotoxicity effect of lirodenine on CAOV-3 cells. The morphological changes on CAOV-3 cells were observed by AO/PI assay for the early and late stage of apoptosis, as well as necrosis. Meanwhile, the measurement of cell loss, nuclear morphology, DNA content, cell membrane permeability, mitochondrial membrane potential changes and cytochrome c release from mitochondria were detected through cytotoxicity 3 assay. The IC50 results showed liriodenine inhibits the growth of CAOV-3 cells after 24 h of treatment at 10.25 ± 1.06 µg/mL. After 48 and 72 h of treatments, the IC50 values were decreased to 7.65 ± 0:07 and 6.35 ± 1.62 µg/mL, respectively. The morphology changes can be seen on CAOV-3 with a production of cell membrane blebbing, cromatin condensation and apoptotic bodies with increasing time of treatment from 24 to 72 h. Evaluation of cytotoxicity 3 on CAOV-3 cells after treated with liriodenine, resulting loss of mitochondrial membrane potential and release of cytochrome c from mitochondria. The results demonstrated the capability of liriodenine as a promising anticancer agent, particularly on human ovarian cancer.

Keywords: Enicosanthellum pulchrum, ovarian cancer, apoptosis, cytotoxicity

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2934 Use of Telephone Counselling in Employee Assistance Program

Authors: Andy S.K. Cheng, Samuel Leung, Cindy Kwok, Hector Tsang

Abstract:

Background: Telephone counselling is one of the essential interventions that can be found in most of the Employee Assistance Programs (EAP). The purposes of this study were to (1) explore the trend of the telephone counselling from 2003-2016 in Hong Kong; (2) explore which EAP issue requires more follow-up; and 3) examine the relationship between the EAP issues and demographic data such as gender and job ranking. Method: Date of EAP services usage was collected from EAP providers in Hong Kong during 2003-2016. EAP issues were categorized into two domains, namely workplace issues and personal issues. Each domain has 12 sub-categories. Two hypotheses were formulated in this study (1) there was a gender difference in EAP issues and the follow-up hours; and (2) there was a significant difference between job ranking, EAP issues and follow-up hours. Results: A total of eight hundred and ninety-three valid cases were identified for analysis. Of them, three hundred and forty-three cases sought for follow-up. The duration of follow-up by hours was calculated for each of the follow-up cases. The results of the study shows that the top three workplace issues that required the longest duration of follow-up were (1) workload, (2) supervisor-subordinate relationship; and (3) team member’s relationship. On the other hand, the top three personal issues that required the longest duration of follow-up were (1) parenting/parent-child relationship, (2) family care, and (3) marital relationship. Two-way ANOVA was performed to compare the total follow-up hours (excluding first intake) between gender and EAP issues. There was no statistical significance for gender (p =.891), but a statistically significant main effect for EAP issues (p <.001) was found. Post-hoc analysis (Tukey’s test) showed that total follow-up hour in personal issues was statistically significant higher than that in handling workplace issues (p <.001). However, there was no statistically significant interaction effect between gender and EAP issues (p=.879) and between job ranking and EAP issues (p=.843). Conclusion: Telephone counselling is a very common intervention in addressing EAP issues arising from workplace and personal level in Hong Kong. It was frequently used to handle interpersonal relationships and the service usage was independent of gender and job ranking.

Keywords: employee assistance program, follow-up time, interpersonal relationships, telephone counselling

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