Search results for: new literacy studies

Authors: Lakmali Anthony, Madeline Gillies

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Purpose: Long-term survivorship in colorectal cancer (CRC) is increasing as mortality decreases, leading to increased focus on patient-reported outcomes such as quality of life (QoL). CRC patients often have decreased QoL even after treatment is complete. This systematic review of the literature aims to identify psychosocial factors associated with decreased QoL in post-treatment CRC patients. Methodology: This systematic review was performed in accordance with the 2020 Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses recommendations. The search was conducted in MEDLINE, EMBASE, and PsychINFO using MeSH headings. The two authors screened studies for relevance and extracted data. Results: Seventeen studies were identified, including 6,272 total participants (mean = 392, 58% male) with a mean age of 60.6 years. The European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer QLQ-C30 was the most common measure of QoL (n=14, 82.3%). Most studies (n=15, 88.2%) found that emotional distress correlated with poor global QoL. This was most commonly measured with the Hospital Anxiety & Depression Scale (n=11, 64.7%). Other psychosocial factors associated with QoL were lack of social support, body image, and financial difficulties. Clinicopathologic determinants included presence of stoma and metastasis. Conclusion: This systematic review provides a summary of the psychosocial determinants of poor QoL in post-treatment CRC patients, as well as the most commonly reported measures of these. An understanding of these potentially modifiable determinants of poor outcome is pivotal to the provision of quality, patient-centred care in surgical oncology.

Keywords: colorectal cancer, cancer surgery, quality of life, oncology, social determinants

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Authors: Ould Ali Rl, Bensadok S, Mrabet S, Beghdadi C, Ahmed Fouatih N

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Introduction: In recent years, aligner therapies have invaded the orthodontic market due to aggressive marketing strategies adopted by the industry. However, while the thermoformed materials used in this type of treatment promise to be aesthetically higher than conventional treatments, their systemic effects remain largely uncertain. Matériel et method: A manual research was carried out in March 2024 in the database (Pubmed) and in the international journal of orthodontics and dentofacial orthopaedics (Angle orthodontist) using the following keywords: ‘cytotoxicity’, ‘aligners’ and ‘orthodontic’. Résultats : Among the articles and studies consulted, 7 were selected, including 4 systematic reviews and 3 in-vitro studies. All of them focused mainly on the biological effects of orthodontic aligners, and one of them looked at the impact of adding nanoparticulate Chitosan to thermoformed materials. Conclusion: The data reported in the current literature is controversial, but the general consensus is that further research is needed in this area, particularly because of the possible implications for the fertility of young patients.

Keywords: orthodontics, aligners, cytotoxicity, young patients

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Authors: Diogo Pereira, Maria Moura, Joana Campos, João Nunes

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As the Ukraine war highlights the European Economic Area’s vulnerability and external dependence on feed and food, agriculture gains significant importance. Transformative change is necessary to reach a sustainable and resilient agricultural sector. Agriculture is an important drive for bioeconomy and the equilibrium and survival of society and rural fires resilience. The pressure of (1) water stress, (2) nutrient cycle, and (3) social demographic evolution towards 70% of the population in Urban systems and the aging of the rural population, combined with climate change, exacerbates the problem and paradigm of rural and wildfires, especially in Portugal. The Portuguese territory is characterized by (1) 28% of marginal land, (2) the soil quality of 70% of the territory not being appropriate for agricultural activity, (3) a micro smallholding, with less than 1 ha per proprietor, with mainly familiar and traditional agriculture in the North and Centre regions, and (4) having the most vulnerable areas for rural fires in these same regions. The most important difference between the South, North and Centre of Portugal, referring to rural and wildfires, is the agricultural activity, which has a higher level in the South. In Portugal, rural and wildfires represent an average annual economic loss of around 800 to 1000 million euros. The WinBio model is an agrienvironmental metabolism design, with the capacity to create a new agri-food metabolism through Agricultural Organized Areas, a privatepublic partnership. This partnership seeks to grow agricultural activity in regions with (1) abandoned territory, (2) micro smallholding, (3) water and nutrient management necessities, and (4) low agri-food literacy. It also aims to support planning and monitoring of resource use efficiency and sustainability of territories, using agriculture as a barrier for rural and wildfires in order to protect rural population.

Keywords: agricultural organized areas, residues, climate change, drought, nutrients, rural and wild fires

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Authors: Austin Ikechukwu Gbasouzor, Sam Nna Omenyi, Sabuj Malli

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This study is an extension of the previous work done with ARS-680 Environmental Chamber. Drying is a complex operation that demands much energy and time. Drying is essentially important for preservation of ginger rhizome. Drying of ginger was modeled, and then the effective diffusion coefficient and activation energy where determined. For this purpose, the experiments were done at six levels of varied temperature ranging from (10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60°C). The average effective diffusion coefficient for their studies samples for temperature range of 40°C to 70°C was 4.48 x10-10m²/s, 4.96 x10-10m²/s, and 5.31 x10-10m²/s for 0.8, 1.5 and 3m/s drying air velocity respectively. These values closely agreed with the values of effective diffusion coefficients obtained in these studies for the variously treated ginger rhizomes and test conducted.

Keywords: activation energy, diffusion coefficients, drying model, drying time, ginger rhizomes, moisture ratio, thin layer

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Authors: Evridiki Zachopoulou, Vasilis Grammatikopoulos, Michail Vitoulis, Athanasios Gregoriadis

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In the last ten years, the recent economic crisis in Greece has decreased the financial ability and strength of several families when it comes to supporting their children’s studies. As a result, the number of students who are significantly delaying or even dropping out of their university studies is constantly increasing. The students who are at greater risk for academic failure are those who are facing various problems and social disadvantages, like health problems, special needs, family poverty or unemployment, single-parent students, immigrant students, etc. The ‘Umbrella’ project is a volunteer-based initiative to tackle this problem at International Hellenic University. The main purpose of the project is to provide support to disadvantaged students at a socio-emotional, academic, and practical level in order to help them complete their undergraduate studies. More specifically, the ‘Umbrella’ project has the following goals: (a) to develop a consulting-supporting network based on volunteering senior students, called ‘i-mentors’. (b) to train the volunteering i-mentors and create a systematic and consistent support procedure for students at-risk, (c), to develop a service that, parallel to the i-mentor network will be ensuring opportunities for at-risk students to find a job, (d) to support students who are coping with accessibility difficulties, (e) to secure the sustainability of the ‘Umbrella’ project after the completion of the funding of the project. The innovation of the Umbrella project is in its holistic-person-centered approach that will be providing individualized support -via the i-mentors network- to any disadvantaged student that will come ‘under the Umbrella.’

Keywords: peer mentoring, student support, socially disadvantaged students, volunteerism in higher education

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Authors: Husham Bayazed

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Immune responses following surgical trauma play a pivotal role in predicting postoperative outcomes from healing and recovery to postoperative complications. Postoperative complications, including infections and protracted recovery, occur in a significant number of about 300 million surgeries performed annually worldwide. Complications cause personal suffering along with a significant economic burden on the healthcare system in any community. The accurate prediction of postoperative complications and patient-targeted interventions for their prevention remain major clinical provocations. Recent Findings: Recent studies are focusing on immune dysregulation mechanisms that occur in response to surgical trauma as a key determinant of postoperative complications. Antecedent studies mainly were plunging into the detection of inflammatory plasma markers, which facilitate in providing important clues regarding their pathogenesis. However, recent Single-cell technologies, such as mass cytometry or single-cell RNA sequencing, have markedly enhanced our ability to understand the immunological basis of postoperative immunological trauma complications and to identify their prognostic biological signatures. Summary: The advent of proteomic technologies has significantly advanced our ability to predict the risk of postoperative complications. Multiomic modeling of patients' immune states holds promise for the discovery of preoperative predictive biomarkers and providing patients and surgeons with information to improve surgical outcomes. However, more studies are required to accurately predict the risk of postoperative complications in individual patients.

Keywords: immune dysregulation, postoperative complications, surgical trauma, flow cytometry

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Authors: Anna Strąkowska, Marian Zaborski

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The studies were focused on POSS application with methylvinylsilicone rubber (MVQ). The obtained results indicate that they can be successfully incorporated into silica-filled rubbers as modifying agents since they enhance cross-link density and improve most properties of the resulting network. It is also worth noting that the incorporation of POSS molecules resulted in stabilizing effect against adverse changes induced by the climatic, ozone or UV ageing of the rubbers. Furthermore, we obtained interesting results of rubbers surface modification using POSS functionalised with halogen groups (Cl, F, and Br). As the results, surface energy of the elastomeric composites and their hydrophobicity increased, barrier properties improved and thermal stability increased as well. Additionally, the studies with silicone rubber and POSS containing acidic and alkaline groups revealed composites with self-healing properties. The observed effects strictly depend on a kind and quantity of functional groups present in angles of POSS cages.

Keywords: elastomeric composites, POSS, properties modyfication, silicone rubber

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Authors: Abdelhammid Chibane

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This study summarizes state-of-the-art knowledge in the seismic response of vertically irregular building frames. Criteria defining vertical irregularity as per the current building codes have been discussed. A review of studies on the seismic behaviour of vertically irregular structures along with their findings has been presented. It is observed that building codes provide criteria to classify the vertically irregular structures and suggest dynamic analysis to arrive at design lateral forces. Most of the studies agree on the increase in drift demand in the tower portion of set-back structures and on the increase in seismic demand for buildings with discontinuous distributions in mass, stiffness, and strength. The largest seismic demand is found for the combined-stiffness-and-strength irregularity.

Keywords: mass irregularity, set-back structure, stiffness irregularity, strength irregularity, vertical irregularity

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Authors: Najmeh Dehghanitafti

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Paradise Lost, John Milton's epic poem of theology and cosmology, gained substantial critical attention in the twentieth century. Milton's illustration of Satan and Eve and his allusions to the Bible can be an interesting source of criticism for the scholars who try to analyze Milton's works in terms of religious studies. Therefore, various studies of Paradise Lost try to investigate this epic in terms of religions beyond Christianity. Paradise Lost's comparison with religious books such as the Qur’an in Islam in terms of character illustration created multiple translations of this epic into Arabic. Accordingly, this paper aims to compare Miltonic Satan versus Quranic Iblis based on Inani’s translation of Paradise Lost into Arabic. This study also tries to investigate Miltonic and Quranic view of Eve to find out the similarities and differences between Christianity and Islam in terms of feminism.

Keywords: Eve, feminism, Iblis, Paradise Lost, Satan, The Quran

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Authors: Caspar S. Carson, Gabriel W. Prather, Nicholas E. Wong, Jeffery R. Anton, William H. McCoy

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Cutibacterium acnes is a commensal bacterium found on human skin that has been linked to acne. C. acnes can also be an opportunistic pathogen when it infiltrates the body during surgery. This pathogen can cause dangerous infections of medical implants, such as shoulder replacements, leading to life-threatening blood infections. Compounding this issue, C. acnes resistance to many antibiotics has become an increasing problem worldwide, creating a need for special forms of treatment. C. acnes expresses the protein RoxP, and it requires this protein to colonize human skin. Though this protein is required for C. acnes skin colonization, its function is not yet understood. Inhibition of RoxP function might be an effective treatment for C. acnes infections. To develop such reagents, the McCoy Laboratory generated four unique anti-RoxP antibodies. Preliminary studies in the McCoy Lab have established that each antibody binds a distinct site on RoxP. To assess the potential of these antibodies as therapeutics, it is necessary to specifically characterize these antibody epitopes and evaluate them in assays that assess their ability to inhibit RoxP-dependent C. acnes growth. To provide material for these studies, an antibody expression construct, Fv-clasp(v2), was adapted to encode anti-RoxP antibody sequences. The author hypothesizes that this expression strategy can produce sufficient amounts of >95% pure antibody fragments for further characterization of these antibodies. Four anti-RoxP Fv-clasp(v2) expression constructs (pET vector-based) were transformed into E. coli BL21-Gold(DE3) cells and a small-scale expression and purification trial was performed for each construct to evaluate anti-RoxP Fv-clasp(v2) yield and purity. Successful expression and purification of these antibody constructs will allow for their use in structural studies, such as protein crystallography and cryogenic electron microscopy. Such studies would help to define the antibody binding sites on RoxP, which could then be leveraged in the development of certain methods to treat C. acnes infection through RoxP inhibition.

Keywords: structural biology, protein expression, infectious disease, antibody, therapeutics, E. coli

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Authors: Smriti Pahwa, Karishma Vats, Aditi Macwan, Jija Dutt, Sumukhi Vaid

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Age approporiate complementary feeding has been stressed upon for sound young child nutrition and appropriate growth. National Infant and Young Child Feeding guidelines, policies and programs indicate cognizance of the issue taken by the country’s government, policy makers and technical experts. However, it is important that ordinary people, the caregivers of young children too understand the importance of appropriate feeding. For this, an interface might be required where ordinary people could participate in assessing the gaps in IYCF as a first step to take subsequent action. In this context an attempt was made to extrapolate a citizen led learning level survey that has been involving around 25000 ordinary citizens to reach out to 600,000 children annually for over a decade in India. Based on this philosophy of involving ordinary people in simple assessments to produce understandable actionable evidence, a rapid diet assessment tool was developed and collected from caregivers of 90 < 3year children from two urban clusters in Ahmedabad and Baroda, Gujarat. Target sample for pilot was selected after cluster census. Around half the mothers reported that they had not yet introduced water or other fluids to their < 6 month babies. However, about a third were already feeding them food other than mother’s milk. Although complementary feeding was initiated in almost all (95%) children more than 6 months old, frequency was suboptimal in 60%; in 80% cases no measure was taken to either improve energy or nutrient density; only 33% were fed protective foods; Green Leafy Vegetables consumption was negligible (1.4%). Anganwadi food was not consumed. By engaging ordinary people to generate evidence and understand the gaps, such assessments have the potential to be used to generate useful evidence for action at scale as well as locally.

Keywords: citizen led, grass root engagement, IYCF (Infant and Young Child Feeding), rapid diet assessment, under nutrition

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Authors: Badis Kahouadji, Lakhdar Guerbous, Lyes Lamiri

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For many years, the luminescent materials were investigated principally in the infrared and visible areas, because the ultraviolet (UV) and especially in vacuum Ultraviolet (VUV) are technically more difficult to explore, especially absence of applications requiring of materials suitable to short wavelengths.Recent necessary, related to the development of certain technologies, encouraged research in these spectra domains. It is in this context that the 4Fn-4Fn-1 5d transitions of rare earth in insulating materials, lying in the UV and VUV, are the aim of large number of studies. These studies relate in particular to search for new scintillator materials used for spectroscopy and X-ray, ɤ, as well as medical imaging. The 4Fn- 4Fn-15d transitions of the rare earth dependent to the host-matrix, several matrices ions were used to study these transitions, in this work we are suggeting to study on a very specific class of inorganic scintillators that are orthophosphate doped with rare earth ions, this study focused on the Pr3+ concentration on the structural and optical properties of Pr3+ doped YPO4 (yttriumorthophosphate) with powder form prepared by the Sol Gel method.

Keywords: rare earth, scintillator, YPO4:Pr3+ nanophosphors, sol gel, 4Fn-4Fn-15d transitions

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Authors: Ghazala Anjum, Farooq Hussain Bhat, Ravi Kumar

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Multiferroic materials are vital for new application and memory devices, not only because of the presence of multiple types of domains but also as a result of cross correlation between coexisting forms of magnetic and electrical orders. In spite of wide studies done on multiferroic bulk ceramic materials their realization in thin film form is yet limited due to some crucial problems. During the last few years, special attention has been devoted to synthesis of thin films like of BiFeO₃. As they allow direct integration of the material into the device technology. Therefore owing to the process of exploration of new multiferroic thin films, preparation, and characterization of La₀.₈Bi₀.₂Fe₀.₇Mn₀.₃O₃ (LBFMO3) thin film on LaAlO₃ (LAO) substrate with LaNiO₃ (LNO) being the buffer layer has been done. The fact that all the electrical and magnetic properties are closely related to the electronic structure makes it inevitable to study the electronic structure of system under study. Without the knowledge of this, one may never be sure about the mechanism responsible for different properties exhibited by the thin film. Literature review reveals that studies on change in atomic and the hybridization state in multiferroic samples are still insufficient except few. The technique of x-ray absorption (XAS) has made great strides towards the goal of providing such information. It turns out to be a unique signature to a given material. In this milieu, it is time honoured to have the electronic structure study of the elements present in the LBFMO₃ multiferroic thin film on LAO substrate with buffer layer of LNO synthesized by RF sputtering technique. We report the electronic structure studies of well characterized LBFMO3 multiferroic thin film on LAO substrate with LNO as buffer layer using near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS). Present exploration has been performed to find out the valence state and crystal field symmetry of ions present in the system. NEXAFS data of O K- edge spectra reveals a slight shift in peak position along with growth in intensities of low energy feature. Studies of Mn L₃,₂- edge spectra indicates the presence of Mn³⁺/Mn⁴⁺ network apart from very small contribution from Mn²⁺ ions in the system that substantiates the magnetic properties exhibited by the thin film. Fe L₃,₂- edge spectra along with spectra of reference compound reveals that Fe ions are present in +3 state. Electronic structure and valence state are found to be in accordance with the magnetic properties exhibited by LBFMO/LNO/LAO thin film.

Keywords: magnetic, multiferroic, NEXAFS, x-ray absorption fine structure, XMCD, x-ray magnetic circular dichroism

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Authors: J. Cadby, K. Miyazawa

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Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has been widely adopted into the agricultural landscape with advancements of mobile connectivity and data accessibility. In developed nations, mobile-technology is well integrated into marketing transactions, and also plays a crucial role in making data-driven decisions on-farm. In developing nations, mobile banking and access to agricultural extension services allow for informed decision-making and smoother transactions. In addition, the availability of updated and readily available market and climate data provides a negotiation platform, reducing economic risks for farmers worldwide. The total usage of mobile technology has risen over the past 20 years, and almost three-quarters of the world’s population subscribes to mobile technology. This study reviewed mobile technology integration into agricultural systems in developing and developed nations. Data from secondary sources were collected and investigated. The objectives of the study include a review of the success of mobile banking transactions in developing nations, and a review of application and SMS based services for direct marketing in both developed and developing nations. Rural farmers in developing countries with access to diverse m-banking options experienced increased access to farm investment resources with the use of mobile banking technology. Rural farmers involved in perishable crop production were also more likely to benefit from mobile platform sales participation. ICT programs reached through mobile application and SMS increased access to agricultural extension materials and marketing tools for demographics that faced literacy-challenges and isolated markets. As mobile technology becomes more ubiquitous in the global agricultural system, training and market opportunities to facilitate mobile usage in developing agricultural systems are necessary. Digital skills training programs are necessary in order to improve equal global adoption of ICT in agriculture.

Keywords: market participation, mobile banking, mobile technology, rural farming

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Authors: Sampo Tukiainen, Jukka Mattila, Niina Erkama, Erkki Ormala

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During the past decade, calls for more holistic and integrative organizational innovation research have been increasingly voiced. On the one hand, from the theoretical perspective, the reason for this has been the tendency in contemporary innovation studies to focus on disciplinary subfields, often leading to challenges in integrating theories in meaningful ways. For example, we find that during the past three decades the innovation research has evolved into an academic field consisting of several independent research streams, such as studies on organizational learning, project management, and top management teams, to name but a few. The innovation research has also proliferated according to different dimensions of innovation, such as sources, drivers, forms, and the nature of innovation. On the other hand, from the practical perspective the rationale has been the need to develop understanding of the solving of complex, interdisciplinary issues and problems in contemporary and future societies and organizations. Therefore, for advancing theorizing, as well as the practical applicability of organizational innovation research, we acknowledge the need for more integrative and holistic perspectives and approaches. We contribute to addressing this challenge by developing a ‘box transcendent’ perspective to examine interlinkages in and across four key dimensions of organizational innovation processes, which traditionally have been studied in separate research streams. Building on an in-depth, qualitative analysis of 123 interviews of CTOs (or equivalent) and CEOs in top innovative Finnish companies as well as three in-depth case studies, both as part of an EU-level interview study of more than 700 companies, we specify interlinkages in and between i) strategic management, ii) innovation management, iii) implementation and organization, and iv) commercialization, in innovation processes. We contribute to the existing innovation research in multiple ways. Firstly, we develop a cross-dimensional, ‘box transcendent’ conceptual model at the level of organizational innovation process. Secondly, this modeling enables us to extend existing theorizing by allowing us to distinguish specific cross-dimensional innovation ‘profiles’ in two different company categories: large multinational corporations and SMEs. Finally, from the more practical perspective, we consider the implications of such innovation ‘profiles’ for the societal and institutional, policy-making development.

Keywords: holistic research, innovation management, innovation studies, organizational innovation

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Authors: Veeresham Mokali

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Recrystallization microstructure and grain growth studies of Ta₀.₅Nb₀.₅Hf₀.₅ZrTi₁.₅ refractory high entropy alloy have been explored in the present work. The as-cast Ta₀.₅Nb₀.₅Hf₀.₅ZrTi₁.₅ alloy was cold-rolled to 90% in several passes at room temperature and further subjected to annealing treatment for recrystallization at 800°C, 1000°C, 1250°C, and 1400°C temperatures for one hour. However, the characterization of heavily cold-rolled and annealed condition specimens was done using scanning electron microscopy (SEM-EBSD). The cold-rolled specimens showed the development of an inhomogeneous microstructure. Upon annealing, recrystallized microstructures were achieved; in addition to that, the coarsening of microstructure with raising annealing temperature noticed in the range of 800°C – 1400°C annealed temperatures.

Keywords: refractory high entropy alloys, cold-rolling, recrystallization, microstructure

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Authors: M. Shahina, K. Fakruddin, C. M. Subhan, S. Rangappa

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In this work, two mixtures with equal concentrations of 1) 4ꞌ-(6-(4-(pentylamino) methyl)-3-hydroxyphenoxy) hexyloxy) biphenyl-4-carbonitrile+-4-((4-(hexyloxy) benzylidene) amino) phenyl 4-butoxy benzoate and 2) 4ꞌ - (6-(4-(hexylamino) methyl)-3-hydroxyphenoxy) hexyloxy) biphenyl-4-carbonitrile+-4-((4-(octyloxy) benzylidene) amino) phenyl 4-butoxy benzoate, have been prepared. The transition temperature and optical texture are observed by using thermal microscopy. Density and birefringence studies are carried out on the above liquid crystalline mixtures. Using density and refractive indices data, the molecular polarizabilities are evaluated by using well-known Vuks and Neugebauer models. The molecular polarizability is also evaluated theoretically by Lippincott δ function model. The results reveal that the polarizability values are same in both experimental and theoretical methods.

Keywords: liquid crystals, optical textures, transition temperature, birefringence, polarizability

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Authors: Bokolombe Pitchou Ngoy, John Mack, Tebello Nyokong

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Synthesis and photochemical studies of BODIPY dyes have been investigated in this work in order to have a broad benchmark of this functionalized photosensitizer for biological applications such as photodynamic therapy or antimicrobial activity. The common acid catalyzed synthetic method was used, and BODIPY dyes were obtained in quite a good yield (25 %) followed by bromination and Knoevenagel condensation to afford the BODIPY dyes conjugated with maximum absorbance in the near-infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum. The fluorescence lifetimes, fluorescence quantum yield, and Singlet oxygen quantum yield of the conjugated BODIPY dyes were determined in different solvents by using Time Correlation Single Photon Counting (TCSPC), fluorimeter, and Laser Flash Photolysis respectively. It was clearly shown that the singlet oxygen quantum yield was higher in THF followed by DMSO compared to another solvent. The same trend was observed for the fluorescence lifetimes.

Keywords: BODIPY, photodynamic therapy, photosensitizer, singlet oxygen

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Authors: Ahmed Makhoukh

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Quality assurance (QA) has recently become a common practice, which is endorsed by most Higher Education (HE) institutions worldwide, due to the pressure of internal and external forces. One of the aims of this quality movement is to make the contribution of university education to socio-economic development highly significant. This entails that graduates are currently required have a high-quality profile, i.e., to be competent and master the 21st-century skills needed in the labor market. This wave of change, mostly imposed by globalization, has the effect that university education should be learner-centered in order to satisfy the different needs of students and meet the expectations of other stakeholders. Such a shift of focus on the student learning outcomes has led HE institutions to reconsider their strategic planning, their mission, the curriculum, the pedagogical competence of the academic staff, among other elements. To ensure that the overall institutional performance is on the right way, a QA system should be established to assume this task of checking regularly the extent to which the set of standards of evaluation are strictly respected as expected. This operation of QA has the advantage of proving the accountability of the institution, gaining the trust of the public with transparency and enjoying an international recognition. This is the case of Doha Institute (DI) for Graduate Studies, in Qatar, the object of the present study. The significance of this contribution is to show that the conception of quality has changed in this digital age, and the need to integrate a department responsible for QA in every HE institution to ensure educational quality, enhance learners and achieve academic leadership. Thus, to undertake the issue of QA in DI for Graduate Studies, an elite university (in the academic sense) that focuses on a small and selected number of students, a qualitative method will be adopted in the description and analysis of the data (document analysis). In an attempt to investigate the extent to which QA is achieved in Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, three broad indicators will be evaluated (input, process and learning outcomes). This investigation will be carried out in line with the UK Quality Code for Higher Education represented by Quality Assurance Agency (QAA).

Keywords: accreditation, higher education, quality, quality assurance, standards

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Authors: Robin Ferguson

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The context which this paper explores is the provision of Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) of southern African workers at sea on local and foreign vessels using a blended learning approach. The pedagogical challenge of providing quality education in this context is that multiple African and foreign languages and cultural norms are found amongst the all-male crew; and there are widely differing levels of education, low levels of digital literacy and limited connectivity. The methodology used is a nested case study. The study describes the mechanisms used to provide ongoing, real-time workplace TVET on two foreign vessels. Some training was done in person when the vessels came into port, however, the majority of the TVET was achieved from shore to ship using a combination of commonly available Google and Microsoft Apps and WhatsApp. Voice, video and text in multiple languages were used to accommodate different learning styles. The learning was supported by the development of learning networks using social media. This paper also reflects on the shore-based organisational change processes required to support sea learning. The conceptual framework used is the Theory of Practice Architectures (TPA) as is provides a site-ontological perspective of the sayings/thinkings, doings and relatings of this workplace training which is multiplanar as it plays out at sea and ashore, in-person and on-line. Using TPA, the overarching practice architectures and supporting structures which confound or enable these learning practices are revealed. The contribution which this paper makes is an insight into an innovative vocational pedagogy which promotes ICT-mediated learning amongst workers who suffer from low levels of literacies and limited ICT-access and who work and live in remote places. It is a pedagogy of possibility which crosses the digital divide.

Keywords: theory of practice architecture, microsoft, google, whatsapp, vocational pedagogy, mariners, distributed workplaces

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Authors: Chelly Souhir, Harizi Chahida, Hachaichi Aicha, Aissaoui Sihem, Chahed Mohamed Kouni

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Introduction: In Tunisia, few studies have attempted to describe the demand for primary care in a standardized and systematic way. The purpose of this study is to describe the main reasons for demand for care in primary health care, through a survey of the Ariana Governorate PHC and to identify their evolutionary trend compared to last 30 years, reported by studies of the same type. Materials and methods: This is a cross-sectional descriptive study which concerns the study of consultants in the first line of the governorate of Ariana and their use of care recorded during 2 days in the same week during the month of May 2016, in each of these PHC. The same data collection sheet was used in all CSBs. The coding of the information was done according to the International Classification of Primary Care (ICPC). The data was entered and analyzed by the EPI Info 7 software. Results: Our study found that the most common ICPC chapters are respiratory (42%) and digestive (13.2%). In 1996 were the respiratory (43.5%) and circulatory (7.8%). In 2000, we found also the respiratory (39,6%) and circulatory (10,9%). In 2002, respiratory (43%) and digestive (10.1%) motives were the most frequent. According to the ICPC, the pathologies in our study were acute angina (19%), acute bronchitis and bronchiolitis (8%). In 1996, it was tonsillitis ( 21.6%) and acute bronchitis (7.2%). For Ben Abdelaziz in 2000, tonsillitis (14.5%) follow by acute bronchitis (8.3%). In 2002, acute angina (15.7%), acute bronchitis and bronchiolitis (11.2%) were the most common. Conclusion: Acute angina and tonsillitis are the most common in all studies conducted in Tunisia.

Keywords: acute angina, classification of primary care, primary health care, tonsillitis, Tunisia

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Authors: Martin Böhmer, Agatha Dabrowski, Boris Otto

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The trend of digitization significantly changes the role of data for enterprises. Data turn from an enabler to an intangible organizational asset that requires management and qualifies as a tradeable good. The idea of a networked economy has gained momentum in the data domain as collaborative approaches for data management emerge. Traditional organizational knowledge consequently needs to be extended by comprehensive knowledge about data. The knowledge about data is vital for organizations to ensure that data quality requirements are met and data can be effectively utilized and sovereignly governed. As this specific knowledge has been paid little attention to so far by academics, the aim of the research presented in this paper is to conceptualize it by proposing a “data knowledge model”. Relevant model entities have been identified based on a design science research (DSR) approach that iteratively integrates insights of various industry case studies and literature research.

Keywords: data management, digitization, industry 4.0, knowledge engineering, metamodel

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Authors: Ademola Ajibade

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Previous studies have explored several rationales for hedging strategies, but the evidence provided by these studies remains ambiguous. Using a hand-collected dataset of 2460 observations of non-financial firms in eight African countries covering 2013-2022, this paper investigates the determinants and extent of corporate hedge use. In particular, this paper focuses on the link between country-specific conditions and the corporate hedging behaviour of firms. To our knowledge, this represents the first African studies investigating the association between country-specific factors and corporate hedging policy. The evidence based on both univariate and multivariate reveal that country-level corruption and government quality are important indicators of the decisions and extent of hedge use among African firms. However, the connection between country-specific factors as a rationale for corporate hedge use is stronger for firms located in highly corrupt countries. This suggest that firms located in corrupt countries are more motivated to hedge due to the large exposure they face. In addition, we test the risk management theories and observe that CEOs educational qualification and experience shape corporate hedge behaviour. We implement a lagged variables in a panel data setting to address endogeneity concern and implement an interaction term between governance indices and firm-specific variables to test for robustness. Generally, our findings reveal that institutional factors shape risk management decisions and have a predictive power in explaining corporate hedging strategy.

Keywords: corporate hedging, governance quality, corruption, derivatives

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Authors: Adriana C. Panayi, Riaz A. Agha, Brady A. Sieber, Dennis P. Orgill

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Background: Increased rates of both breast cancer and obesity have resulted in more women seeking breast reconstruction. These women may be at increased risk for perioperative complications. A systematic review was conducted to assess the outcomes in obese women who have undergone breast reconstruction following mastectomy. Methods: Cochrane, PUBMED and EMBASE electronic databases were screened and data was extracted from included studies. The clinical outcomes assessed were surgical complications, medical complications, length of postoperative hospital stay, reoperation rate and patient satisfaction. Results: 33 studies met the inclusion criteria for the review and 29 provided enough data to be included in the meta-analysis (71368 patients, 20061 of which were obese). Obese women were 2.3 times more likely to experience surgical complications (95 percent CI 2.19 to 2.39; P < 0.00001), 2.8 times more likely to have medical complications (95 percent CI 2.41 to 3.26; P < 0.00001) and had a 1.9 times higher risk of reoperation (95 percent CI 1.75 to 2.07; P < 0.00001). The most common complication, wound dehiscence, was 2.5 times more likely in obese women (95 percent CI 1.80 to 3.52; P < 0.00001). Sensitivity analysis confirmed that obese women were more likely to experience surgical complications (RR 2.36, 95% CI 2.22–2.52; P < 0.00001). Conclusions: This study provides evidence that obesity increases the risk of complications in both implant and autologous reconstruction. Additional prospective and observational studies are needed to determine if weight reduction prior to reconstruction reduces the perioperative risks associated with obesity.

Keywords: autologous reconstruction, breast cancer, breast reconstruction, literature review, obesity, oncology, prosthetic reconstruction

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Authors: Hung-Chun Lin, Tzu-Yuan Chao

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As the population aging has become an inevitable trend globally, issues of improving the well-being of elderly people in urban areas have been a challenging task for urban planners. Recent studies of ageing trend have also expended to explore the relationship between the built environment and mental condition of elderly people. These studies have proved that even though the built environment may not necessarily play the decisive role in affecting mental health, it can have positive impacts on individual mental health by promoting social linkages and social networks among older adults. There has been a great amount of relevant research examined the impact of the built environment attributes on depression in the elderly; however, most were conducted in the Western countries. Little attention has been paid in Asian cities with contrarily high density and mix-use urban contexts such as Taiwan regarding how the built environment attributes related to depression in elderly people. Hence, more empirical cross-principle studies are needed to explore the possible impacts of Asia urban characteristics on older residents’ mental condition. This paper intends to focus on Tainan city, the fourth biggest metropolis in Taiwan. We first analyze with data from National Health Insurance Research Database to pinpoint the empirical study area where residing most elderly patients, aged over 65, with depressive disorders. Secondly, we explore the relationship between specific attributes of the built environment collected from previous studies and elderly individuals who suffer from depression, under different socio-cultural and networking circumstances. To achieve the results, the research methods adopted in this study include questionnaire and database analysis, and the results will be proceeded by correlation analysis. In addition, through literature review, by generalizing the built environment factors that have been used in Western research to evaluate the relationship between built environment and older individuals with depressive disorders, a set of local evaluative indicators of the built environment for future studies will be proposed as well. In order to move closer to develop age-friendly cities and improve the well-being for the elderly in Taiwan, the findings of this paper can provide empirical results to grab planners’ attention for how built environment makes the elderly feel and to reconsider the relationship between them. Furthermore, with an interdisciplinary topic, the research results are expected to make suggestions for amending the procedures of drawing up an urban plan or a city plan from a different point of view.

Keywords: built environment, depression, elderly, Tainan

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Authors: Hasibe Caballero-Gomez, Richard Pepino

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Childhood lead poisoning is an issue that continues to plague major U.S. cities. Lead poisoning has been linked to decreases in academic achievement and IQ at levels as low as 5 ug/dL. Despite efforts from the Philadelphia Health Department to curtail systemic childhood lead poisoning, children continue to be identified with elevated blood lead levels (EBLLs) above the CDC reference level for diagnosis. This problem disproportionately affects low-income Black communities. At the moment, remediation is costly, and with the current policies in place, comprehensive remediation seems unrealistic. This research investigates community engagement policy and the ways pre-exisiting resources in target communities can be adjusted to decrease childhood lead poisoning. The study was done with two methods: content analysis and case studies. The content analysis includes 12 interviews from stakeholders and five published policy recommendations. The case studies focus on Baltimore, Chicago, Rochester, and St. Louis, four cities with significant childhood lead poisoning. Target communities were identified by mapping five factors that indicate a higher risk for lead poisoning. Seven priority zipcodes were identified for the model developed in this study. For these urban centers, 28 policy solutions and suggestions were identified, with three being identified at least four times in the content analysis and case studies. These three solutions create an interdependent model that offers increased community awareness and engagement with the issue that could potentially improve health and social outcomes for at-risk children.

Keywords: at-risk populations, community engagement, environmental justice, policy translation

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Authors: Mesbah Khaled, Bouraoui Ouissal, Benkiniouar Rachid, Belkhiri Lotfi

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Alstonia, which are tropical plants with a wide geographical distribution, have been divided into different sections by different authors based on previous studies of several species within the genus. Monachino divides Alstonia into 5 sections, while Pichon divides it into 3 sections. Several plants belonging to this genus, such as Alstonia brassii, have been used in traditional folk medicine to treat ailments such as fever, malaria and dysentery]. Previous studies focusing on the chemical composition of these plants have successfully identified indol alkaloids with cytotoxic, anti-diabetic and anti-inflammatory properties. The newly discovered monomers are structurally similar to the backbones of picralin, affinisin and macrolin. On the other hand, all recently isolated dimeric compounds have a macrolin moiety. In this study, a computational analysis was performed on a series of novel molecules, including both monomeric and dimeric compounds with different structural frameworks. This investigation represents the first computational study of these molecules using an in silico approach incorporating 2D-QSAR data. The analysis involved various computational techniques, including 2D-QSAR modelling, molecular docking studies and subsequent validation by molecular dynamics simulation and assessment of ADMET properties. The chemical composition was identified by 1D and 2D NMR. Eight new alkaloids were isolated, 5 monomers and 3 dimers. In this section, we focus on the biological activity of 4 new alkaloids belonging to two different skeletons, the affinisine skeleton.

Keywords: affinisine, talcarpine, macroline, cytotoxicity, alkaloids

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Authors: Sheraz Gul

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The requirements for progressing a compound to clinical trials is well established and relies on the results from in-vitro and in-vivo animal tests to indicate that it is likely to be safe and efficacious when testing in humans. The typical data package required will include demonstrating compound safety, toxicity, bioavailability, pharmacodynamics (potential effects of the compound on body systems) and pharmacokinetics (how the compound is potentially absorbed, distributed, metabolised and eliminated after dosing in humans). If the desired criteria are met and the compound meets the clinical Candidate criteria and is deemed worthy of further development, a submission to regulatory bodies such as the US Food & Drug Administration for an exploratory Investigational New Drug Study can be made. The purpose of this study is to collect data to establish that the compound will not expose humans to unreasonable risks when used in limited, early-stage clinical studies in patients or normal volunteer subjects (Phase I). These studies are also designed to determine the metabolism and pharmacologic actions of the drug in humans, the side effects associated with increasing doses, and, if possible, to gain early evidence on their effectiveness. In order to reach the above goals, we have developed a pre-clinical high throughput Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism and Excretion–Toxicity (ADME–Toxicity) panel of assays to identify compounds that are likely to meet the Lead and Candidate compound acceptance criteria. This panel includes solubility studies in a range of biological fluids, cell viability studies in cancer and primary cell-lines, mitochondrial toxicity, off-target effects (across the kinase, protease, histone deacetylase, phosphodiesterase and GPCR protein families), CYP450 inhibition (5 different CYP450 enzymes), CYP450 induction, cardio-toxicity (hERG) and gene-toxicity. This panel of assays has been applied to multiple compound series developed in a number of projects delivering Lead and clinical Candidates and examples from these will be presented.

Keywords: absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion–toxicity , drug discovery, food and drug administration , pharmacodynamics

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Authors: Rachel Williams, Shiqi Yang

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Our research explores the influence nationalism has had on media coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic as it relates to China in the United States through an inclusive qualitative analysis of two US news networks, Fox News and CNN. In total, the transcripts of sixteen videos uploaded on YouTube, each with more than 100,000 views, were gathered for data processing. Co-occurrence networks generated by KH Coder illuminate the themes and narratives underpinning the reports from Fox News and CNN. The results of in-depth content analysis with keywords suggest that the pandemic has been framed in an ethnopopulist nationalist manner, although to varying degrees between networks. Specifically, the authors found that Fox News is more likely to report hypotheses or statements as a fact; on the contrary, CNN is more likely to quote data and statements from official institutions. Future research into how nationalist narratives have developed in China and in other US news coverage with a more systematic and quantitative method can be conducted to expand on these findings.

Keywords: nationalism, media studies, us and china, COVID-19, social media, communication studies

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Authors: Gedefaye Nibret Mihretie

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Background: Transactional sex is casual sex between two people to receive material incentives in exchange for sexual favors. Transactional sex is associated with negative consequences, which increase the risk of sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS, unintended pregnancy, unsafe abortion, and physiological trauma. Many primary studies in Sub-Saharan Africa have been conducted to assess the prevalence and associated factors of transactional sex among women. These studies had great discrepancies and inconsistent results. Hence, this systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to synthesize the pooled prevalence of the practice of transactional sex among women and its associated factors in Sub-Saharan Africa. Method: Cross-sectional studies were systematically searched from March 6, 2022, to April 24, 2022, using PubMed, Google Scholar, HINARI, Cochrane Library, and grey literature. The pooled prevalence of transactional sex and associated factors was estimated using DerSemonial-Laird Random Effect Model. Stata (version 16.0) was used to analyze the data. The I-squared statistic was used to assess the studies' heterogeneity. A funnel plot and Egger's test were used to check for publication bias. A subgroup analysis was performed to minimize the underline heterogeneity depending on the study years, source of data, sample sizes and geographical location. Results: Four thousand one hundred thirty articles were extracted from various databases. The final thirty-two studies were included in this systematic review, including 108,075 participants. The pooled prevalence of transactional sex among women in Sub-Saharan Africa was 12.55%, with a confidence interval of 9.59% to 15.52%. Educational status (OR = .48, 95%CI, 0.27, 0.69) was the protective factors of transactional sex whereas, alcohol use (OR = 1.85, 95% CI: 1.19, 2.52), early sex debut (OR = 2.57, 95%CI, 1.17, 3.98), substance abuse (OR = 4.21, 95% CI: 2.05, 6.37), having history of sexual experience abuse (OR = 4.08, 95% CI: 1.38, 6.78), physical violence abuse (OR = 6.59, 95% CI: 1.17, 12.02), and sexual violence abuse (OR = 3.56, 95% CI: 1.15, 8.27) were the risk factors of transactional sex. Conclusion: The prevalence of transactional sex among women in Sub-Saharan Africa was high. Educational status, alcohol use, substance abuse, early sex debut, having a history of sexual experiences, physical violence, and sexual violence were predictors of transaction sex. Governmental and other stakeholders are designed to reduce alcohol utilization, provide health information about the negative consequences of early sex debut, substance abuse, and reduce sexual violence, ensuring gender equality through mass media, which should be included in state policy.

Keywords: women’s health, child health, reproductive health, midwifery

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