Search results for: water seepage energy

Authors: Nabeeha Hassan Abdel Jalil, Lulwa Saeed Al Badi, Mouza Ghafan Alkhyeli, Khaja Mohteshamuddin, Ahmad Al Aiyan, Mohamed Elfatih Hamad, Robert Barigye

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The present study was done to elucidate the prevalence of enzootic bovine leucosis (EBL) in the UAE, the seroprevalence rates of EBL in dairy herds from the Al Ain area, Abu Dhabi (AD) and indigenous cattle at the Al Ain livestock market (AALM) were assessed. Of the 949 sera tested by ELISA, 657 were from adult Holstein-Friesians from three farms and 292 from indigenous cattle at the AALM. The level of significance between the proportions of seropositive cattle were analyzed by the Marascuilo procedure and questionnaire data on husbandry and biosecurity practices evaluated. Overall, the aggregated farm and AALM data demonstrated a seroprevalence of 25.9%, compared to 37.0% for the study farms, and 1.0% for the indigenous cattle. Additionally, the seroprevalence rates at farms #1, #2 and #3 were 54.7%, 0.0%, and 26.3% respectively. Except for farm #2 and the AALM, statistically significant differences were noted between the proportions of seropositive cattle for farms #1 and #2 (Critical Range or CR=0.0803), farms #1 and #3 (p=0.1069), and farms #2 and #3 (CR=0.0707), farm #1 and the AALM (CR=0.0819), and farm #3 and the AALM (CR=0.0726). Also, the proportions of seropositive animals on farm #1 were 9.8%, 59.8%, 29.3%, and 1.2% in the 12-36, 37-72, 73-108, and 109-144-mo-old age groups respectively compared to 21.5%, 60.8%, 15.2%, and 2.5% in the respective age groups for farm #2. On both farms and the AALM, the 37-72-mo-old age group showed the highest EBL seroprevalence rate while all the 57 cattle on farm #2 were seronegative. Additionally, farms #1 and #3 had 3,130 and 2,828 intensively managed Holstein-Friesian cattle respectively, and all animals were routinely immunized against several diseases except EBL. On both farms #1 and #3, artificial breeding was practiced using semen sourced from the USA, and USA and Canada respectively, all farms routinely quarantined new stock, and farm #1 previously imported dairy cattle from an unspecified country, and farm #3 from the Netherlands, Australia and South Africa. While farm #1 provided no information on animal nutrition, farm #3 cited using hay, concentrates, and ad lib water. To the authors’ best knowledge, this is the first serological evidence of EBL in the UAE and as previously reported, the seroprevalence rates are comparatively higher in the intensively managed dairy herds than in indigenous cattle. As two of the study farms previously sourced cattle and semen from overseas, biosecurity protocols need to be revisited to avoid inadvertent EBL incursion and the possibility of regional transboundary disease spread also needs to be assessed. After the proposed molecular studies have adduced additional data, the relevant UAE animal health authorities may need to develop evidence-based EBL control policies and programs.

Keywords: cattle, enzootic bovine leukosis, seroprevalence, UAE

Procedia PDF Downloads 143

Authors: Yasser O. Abualnaja1, Alexandra Pavlidou2, Taha Boksmati3, Ahmad Alharbi3, Hammad Alsulmi3, Saleh Omar Maghrabi3, Hassan Mowalad3, Rayan Mutwalli3, James H. Churchill4, Afroditi Androni2, Dionysios Ballas2, Ioannis Hatzianestis2, Harilaos Kontoyiannis2, Angeliki Konstantinopoulou2, Georgios Krokkos1, 5, Georgios Pappas2, Vassilis P. Papadopoulos2, Konstantinos Parinos2, Elvira Plakidi2, Eleni Rousselaki2, Dimitris Velaoras2, Panagiota Zachioti2, Theodore Zoulias2, Ibrahim Hoteit5.

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The coastal areas along the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on both the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf have been witnessing in the past decades an unprecedented economic growth and a rapid increase in anthropogenic activities. Therefore, the Saudi Arabian government has decided to frame a strategy for sustainable development of the coastal and marine environments, which comes in the context of the Vision 2030, aimed at providing the first comprehensive ‘Status Quo Assessment’ of the Kingdom’s coastal and marine environments. This strategy will serve as a baseline assessment for future monitoring activities; this baseline is relied on scientific evidence of the drivers, pressures, and their impact on the environments of the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf. A key element of the assessment was the cumulative pressures of the hotspots analysis, which was developed following the principles of the Driver-Pressure-State-Impact-Response (DPSIR) framework and using the cumulative pressure and impact assessment methodology. Ten hotspot sites were identified, eight in the Red Sea and two in the Arabian Gulf. Thus, multidisciplinary research cruises were conducted throughout the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf coastal and marine environments in June/July 2021 and September 2021, respectively, in order to understand the relative impact of hydrography and the various pressures on the quality of seawater and sediments. The main objective was to record the physical and biogeochemical parameters along the coastal waters of the Kingdom, tracing the dispersion of contaminants related to specific pressures. The assessment revealed the effect of hydrography on the trophic status of the southern marine coastal areas of the Red Sea. Jeddah Lagoon system seems to face significant eutrophication and pollution challenges, whereas sediments are enriched in some heavy metals in many areas of the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf. This multidisciplinary research in the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf coastal waters will pave the way for future detailed environmental monitoring strategies for the Saudi Arabian marine environment.

Keywords: arabian gulf, contaminants, hotspot, red sea

Procedia PDF Downloads 113

Authors: N. Hadhoum, B. Guerfi, T. M. Sider, Z. Yassa, T. Djerboua, M. Boursouti, M. Mamou, F. Z. Hadjadj Aoul, L. R. Mekacher

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Introduction and objectives: Chlorobutanol is a raw material, mainly used as an antiseptic and antimicrobial preservative in injectable and ophthalmic preparations. The main objective of our study was the synthesis and evaluation of the antimicrobial activity of chlorobutanol hemihydrates. Material and methods: Chlorobutanol was synthesized according to the nucleophilic addition reaction of chloroform to acetone, identified by an infrared absorption using Spectrum One FTIR spectrometer, melting point, Scanning electron microscopy and colorimetric reactions. The dosage of carvedilol active substance was carried out by assaying the degradation products of chlorobutanol in a basic solution. The chlorobutanol obtained was subjected to bacteriological tests in order to study its antimicrobial activity. The antibacterial activity was evaluated against strains such as Escherichia coli (ATCC 25 922), Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25 923) and Pseudomonas aeroginosa (ATCC = American type culture collection). The antifungal activity was evaluated against human pathogenic fungal strains, such as Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger provided by the parasitology laboratory of the Hospital of Tizi-Ouzou, Algeria. Results and discussion: Chlorobutanol was obtained in an acceptable yield. The characterization tests of the product obtained showed a white and crystalline appearance (confirmed by scanning electron microscopy), solubilities (in water, ethanol and glycerol), and a melting temperature in accordance with the requirements of the European pharmacopoeia. The colorimetric reactions were directed towards the presence of a trihalogenated carbon and an alcohol function. The spectral identification (IR) showed the presence of characteristic chlorobutanol peaks and confirmed the structure of the latter. The microbiological study revealed an antimicrobial effect on all strains tested (Sataphylococcus aureus (MIC = 1250 µg/ml), E. coli (MIC = 1250 µg/ml), Pseudomonas aeroginosa (MIC = 1250 µg/ml), Candida albicans (MIC =2500 µg/ml), Aspergillus niger (MIC =2500 µg/ml)) with MIC values close to literature data. Conclusion: Thus, on the whole, the synthesized chlorobutanol satisfied the requirements of the European Pharmacopoeia, and possesses antibacterial and antifungal activity; nevertheless, it is necessary to insist on the purification step of the product in order to eliminate the maximum impurities.

Keywords: antimicrobial agent, bacterial and fungal strains, chlorobutanol, MIC, minimum inhibitory concentration

Procedia PDF Downloads 168

Authors: M. J. Gibbons, A. J. Robinson

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Increasing expectations on small form factor electronics to be more compact while increasing performance has driven conventional cooling technologies to a thermal management threshold. An emerging solution to this problem is electrospray (ES) cooling. ES cooling enables two phase cooling by utilising Coulomb forces for energy efficient fluid atomization. Generated charged droplets are accelerated to the grounded target surface by the applied electric field and surrounding gravitational force. While in transit the like charged droplets enable plume dispersion and inhibit droplet coalescence. If the electric field is increased in the cone-jet regime, a subsequent increase in the plume spray angle has been shown. Droplet segregation in the spray plume has been observed, with primary droplets in the plume core and satellite droplets positioned on the periphery of the plume. This segregation is facilitated by inertial and electrostatic effects. This result has been corroborated by numerous authors. These satellite droplets are usually more densely charged and move at a lower relative velocity to that of the spray core due to the radial decay of the electric field. Previous experimental research by Gomez and Tang has shown that the number of droplets deposited on the periphery can be up to twice that of the spray core. This result has been substantiated by a numerical models derived by Wilhelm et al., Oh et al. and Yang et al. Yang et al. showed from their numerical model, that by varying the extractor potential the dispersion radius of the plume also varies proportionally. This research aims to investigate this dispersion density and the role it plays in the local heat transfer coefficient profile (h) of ES cooling. This will be carried out for different extractor – target separation heights (H2), working fluid flow rates (Q), and extractor applied potential (V2). The plume dispersion will be recorded by spraying a 25 µm thick, joule heated steel foil and by recording the thermal footprint of the ES plume using a Flir A-40 thermal imaging camera. The recorded results will then be analysed by in-house developed MATLAB code.

Keywords: electronic cooling, electrospray, electrospray plume dispersion, spray cooling

Procedia PDF Downloads 397

Authors: Thabo M. Bafitlhile, Adewole Oladele

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Botswana has been affected by floods since long ago and is still experiencing this tragic event. Flooding occurs mostly in the North-West, North-East, and parts of Central district due to heavy rainfalls experienced in these areas. The torrential rains destroyed homes, roads, flooded dams, fields and destroyed livestock and livelihoods. Palapye is one area in the central district that has been experiencing floods ever since 1995 when its greatest flood on record occurred. Heavy storms result in floods and inundation; this has been exacerbated by poor and absence of drainage structures. Since floods are a part of nature, they have existed and will to continue to exist, hence more destruction. Furthermore floods and highway plays major role in erosion and destruction of roads structures. Already today, many culverts, trenches, and other drainage facilities lack the capacity to deal with current frequency for extreme flows. Future changes in the pattern of hydro climatic events will have implications for the design and maintenance costs of roads. Increase in rainfall and severe weather events can affect the demand for emergent responses. Therefore flood forecasting and warning is a prerequisite for successful mitigation of flood damage. In flood prone areas like Palapye, preventive measures should be taken to reduce possible adverse effects of floods on the environment including road structures. Therefore this paper attempts to estimate return periods associated with huge storms of different magnitude from recorded historical rainfall depth using statistical method. The method of annual maxima was used to select data sets for the rainfall analysis. In the statistical method, the Type 1 extreme value (Gumbel), Log Normal, Log Pearson 3 distributions were all applied to the annual maximum series for Palapye area to produce IDF curves. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and Chi Squared were used to confirm the appropriateness of fitted distributions for the location and the data do fit the distributions used to predict expected frequencies. This will be a beneficial tool for urgent flood forecasting and water resource administration as proper drainage design will be design based on the estimated flood events and will help to reclaim and protect the road structures from adverse impacts of flood.

Keywords: drainage, estimate, evaluation, floods, flood forecasting

Procedia PDF Downloads 371

Authors: M.Sivaramakrishnaiah, D. S .Nasan, P. V. Subhanjeneyulu, J. A. Sandeep Kumar, N. Sreenivasulu, B. V. Amarnath Reddy, B. Veeralingam

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Design, numerical simulation, fabrication, and physical experimentation of the Tesla’s Bladeless centripetal turbine for generating electrical power are presented in this research paper. 29 Pressurized air combined with water via a nozzle system is made to pass tangentially through a set of parallel smooth discs surfaces, which impart rotational motion to the discs fastened common shaft for the power generation. The power generated depends upon the fluid speed parameter leaving the nozzle inlet. Physically due to laminar boundary layer phenomena at smooth disc surface, the high speed fluid layers away from the plate moving against the low speed fluid layers nearer to the plate develop a tangential drag from the viscous shear forces. This compels the nearer layers to drag along with the high layers causing the disc to spin. Solid Works design software and fluid mechanics and machine elements design theories was used to compute mechanical design specifications of turbine parts like 48 mm diameter discs, common shaft, central exhaust, plenum chamber, swappable nozzle inlets, etc. Also, ANSYS CFX 2018 was used for the numerical 2 simulation of the physical phenomena encountered in the turbine working. When various numerical simulation and physical experimental results were verified, there is good agreement between them 6, both quantitatively and qualitatively. The sources of input and size of the blades may affect the power generated and turbine efficiency, respectively. The results may change if there is a change in the fluid flowing between the discs. The inlet fluid pressure versus turbine efficiency and the number of discs versus turbine power studies based on both results were carried out to develop the 8 relationships between the inlet and outlet parameters of the turbine. The present research work obtained the turbine efficiency in the range of 7-10%, and for this range; the electrical power output generated was 50-60 W.

Keywords: tesla turbine, cohesion type bladeless turbine, boundary layer theory, cohesion type bladeless turbine, tangential fluid flow, viscous and adhesive forces, plenum chamber, pico hydro systems

Procedia PDF Downloads 87

Authors: Nafsi K. Ashraf, C. V. Vipin, V. Anantha Subramanian

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This paper reports the design of a waterjet propulsion system for an amphibious vehicle based on circulation distribution over the camber line for the sections of the impeller and stator. In contrast with the conventional waterjet design, the inlet duct is straight for water entry parallel and in line with the nozzle exit. The extended nozzle after the stator bowl makes the flow more axial further improving thrust delivery. Waterjet works on the principle of volume flow rate through the system and unlike the propeller, it is an internal flow system. The major difference between the propeller and the waterjet occurs at the flow passing the actuator. Though a ducted propeller could constitute the equivalent of waterjet propulsion, in a realistic situation, the nozzle area for the Waterjet would be proportionately larger to the inlet area and propeller disc area. Moreover, the flow rate through impeller disk is controlled by nozzle area. For these reasons the waterjet design is based on pump systems rather than propellers and therefore it is important to bring out the characteristics of the flow from this point of view. The analysis is carried out using computational fluid dynamics. Design of waterjet propulsion is carried out adapting the axial flow pump design and performance analysis was done with three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code. With the varying environmental conditions as well as with the necessity of high discharge and low head along with the space confinement for the given amphibious vehicle, an axial pump design is suitable. The major problem of inlet velocity distribution is the large variation of velocity in the circumferential direction which gives rise to heavy blade loading that varies with time. The cavitation criteria have also been taken into account as per the hydrodynamic pump design. Generally, waterjet propulsion system can be parted into the inlet, the pump, the nozzle and the steering device. The pump further comprises an impeller and a stator. Analytical and numerical approaches such as RANSE solver has been undertaken to understand the performance of designed waterjet propulsion system. Unlike in case of propellers the analysis was based on head flow curve with efficiency and power curves. The modeling of the impeller is performed using rigid body motion approach. The realizable k-ϵ model has been used for turbulence modeling. The appropriate boundary conditions are applied for the domain, domain size and grid dependence studies are carried out.

Keywords: amphibious vehicle, CFD, impeller design, waterjet propulsion

Procedia PDF Downloads 228

Authors: Ahlyum Mun, Ji-Young Moon, Moon-Seok Yoon, Dong-Jin Baek, Doo-Seok Seo, Oun-Kyong Moon

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There is a growing public concern over the standards of farm animal welfare, with higher standards of food safety. In addition, the recent low incidence of Avian Influenza in laying hens among certificated farms is receiving attention. In this study, we introduce animal welfare systems covering the rearing, transport and slaughter of farm animals in South Korea. The concepts of animal welfare farm certification are based on ensuring the five freedoms of animal. The animal welfare is also achieved by observing the condition of environment including shelter and resting area, feeding and water and the care for the animal health. The certification of farm animal welfare is handled by the Animal Protection & Welfare Division of Animal and Plant Quarantine Agency (APQA). Following the full amendment of Animal Protection Law in 2011, animal welfare farm certification program has been implemented since 2012. The certification system has expanded to cover laying hen, swine, broiler, beef cattle and dairy cow, goat and duck farms. Livestock farmers who want to be certified must apply for certification at the APQA. Upon receipt of the application, the APQA notifies the applicant of the detailed schedule of the on-site examination after reviewing the document and conducts the on-site inspection according to the evaluation criteria of the welfare standard. If the on-site audit results meet the certification criteria, APQA issues a certificate. The production process of certified farms is inspected at least once a year for follow-up management. As of 2017, a total of 145 farms have been certified (95 laying hen farms, 12 swine farms, 30 broiler farms and 8 dairy cow farms). In addition, animal welfare transportation vehicles and slaughterhouses have been designated since 2013 and currently 6 slaughterhouses have been certified. Animal Protection Law has been amended so that animal welfare certification marks can be affixed only to livestock products produced by animal welfare farms, transported through animal welfare vehicles and slaughtered at animal welfare slaughterhouses. The whole process including rearing–transportation- slaughtering completes the farm animal welfare system. APQA established its second 5-year animal welfare plan (2014-2019) that includes setting a minimum standard of animal welfare applicable to all livestock farms, transportation vehicles and slaughterhouses. In accordance with this plan, we will promote the farm animal welfare policy in order to truly advance the Korean livestock industry.

Keywords: animal welfare, farm animal, certification system, South Korea

Procedia PDF Downloads 399

Authors: Felipe J. Costa, João F. A. Martos, Ronaldo L. Cardoso, Israel S. Rêgo, Marco A. S. Minucci, Antonio C. Oliveira, Paulo G. P. Toro

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The Prof. Henry T. Nagamatsu Laboratory of Aerothermodynamics and Hypersonics, at the Institute for Advanced Studies designed the Brazilian 14-X Hypersonic Aerospace Vehicle, which is a technological demonstrator endowed with two innovative technologies: waverider technology, to obtain lift from conical shockwave during the hypersonic flight; and uses hypersonic airbreathing propulsion system called scramjet that is based on supersonic combustion, to perform flights on Earth's atmosphere at 30 km altitude at Mach numbers 7 and 10. The scramjet is an aeronautical engine without moving parts that promote compression and deceleration of freestream atmospheric air at the inlet through the conical/oblique shockwaves generated during the hypersonic flight. During high speed flight, the shock waves and the viscous forces yield the phenomenon called aerodynamic heating, where this physical meaning is the friction between the fluid filaments and the body or compression at the stagnation regions of the leading edge that converts the kinetic energy into heat within a thin layer of air which blankets the body. The temperature of this layer increases with the square of the speed. This high temperature is concentrated in the boundary-layer, where heat will flow readily from the boundary-layer to the hypersonic aerospace vehicle structure. Fay and Riddell and Eckert methods are applied to the stagnation point and to the flat plate segments in order to calculate the aerodynamic heating. On the understanding of the aerodynamic heating it is important to analyze the heat conduction transfer to the 14-X waverider internal structure. ANSYS Workbench software provides the Thermal Numerical Analysis, using Finite Element Method of the 14-X waverider unpowered scramjet at 30 km altitude at Mach number 7 and 10 in terms of temperature and heat flux. Finally, it is possible to verify if the internal temperature complies with the requirements for embedded systems, and, if is necessary to do modifications on the structure in terms of wall thickness and materials.

Keywords: aerodynamic heating, hypersonic, scramjet, thermal analysis

Procedia PDF Downloads 452

Authors: Wararut Buncharoen, Kanokporn Saenphet, Supap Saenphet

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Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is a reproductive problem, affecting elderly men worldwide. Several factors particularly free radical reaction and oxidative damage have been contributed to be key factors leading to the development of BPH. A number of medicinal plants with high antioxidant properties are extensively constituted in Thai herbal pharmacopoeia for treating BPH. These plants may prevent or delay the progression of BPH through an antioxidant mechanism. Thus, this study was to prove the antioxidant and anti-lipid peroxidation potential of medicinal plants traditionally used for the treatment of BPH such as Artabotrys harmandii Finet & Gagnep. Miq., Uvaria rufa Blume, Anomianthus dulcis (Dunal) J. Sinclair and Caesalpinia sappan Linn. Antioxidant parameters including free radical (2, 2-azino-bis-(3-ethyl-benzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS•+), 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH•) and superoxide) scavenging, ferric reducing power and anti-lipid peroxidation activity were determined in different crude extracts from the stem of these four plants. Total phenolic and ascorbic contents were also investigated. The highest total phenolic content was shown in ethyl acetate crude extract of A. dulcis (510 ± 26.927 µg GAE/g extract) while the highest ascorbic content was found in ethanolic extract of U. rufa (234.727 ± 30.356 µg AAE/g extract). The strongest scavenging activity of ABTS•+ and DPPH• was found in ethyl acetate extract of C. sappan with the IC50 values of 0.469 and 0.255 mg/ml, respectively. The petroleum ether extracts of C. sappan and U. rufa at concentration of 1 mg/ml exhibited high scavenging activity toward superoxide radicals with the inhibition of 37.264 ± 8.672 and 34.434 ± 6.377 %, respectively. Ethyl acetate crude extract of C. sappan displayed the greatest reducing power. The IC50 value of water extract of A. dulcis was 1.326 mg/ml which indicated the strongest activity in the inhibition of lipid-peroxidation among all plant extracts whereas the IC50 value of the standard, butyl hydroxyl toluene was 1.472 µg/ml. Regarding all the obtained results, it can be concluded that the stem of A. dulcis, U. rufa and C. sappan are the potential natural antioxidants and could have an importance as therapeutic agents in the preventing free radicals and oxidative damage related diseases including BPH.

Keywords: anti-lipid peroxidation, antioxidant, benign prostatic hyperplasia, Thai medicinal plants

Procedia PDF Downloads 480

Authors: Kishor Prasad Bhatta, Suman Ghimire, Durga Prasad Joshi

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Invasive Alien Species (IAS) are considered waste forest resources in Nepal. The rapid expansion of IAS is one of the nine main drivers of forest degradation, though the extent and distribution of this species are not well known. Further, the knowledge of the impact of IAS removal on forest plant diversity is hardly known, and the possibilities of income generation from them at the grass-root communities are rarely documented. Systematic sampling of 1% with nested circular plots of 500 square meters was performed in IAS removed and non-removed area, each of 30 hectares in Udayapur Community Forest User Group (CFUG), Chitwan, central Nepal to observe whether the removal of IAS contributed to an increase in plant diversity. In addition, ten entrepreneurs of Udaypur CFUG, involved in the charcoal production, briquette making and marketing were interviewed and interacted as well as their record keeping booklets were reviewed to understand if the charcoal production contributed to their income and employment. The average annual precipitation and temperature of the study area is 2100 mm and 34 degree Celsius respectively with Shorea robusta as main tree species and Eupatorium odoratum as dominant IAS. All the interviewed households were from the ̔below-poverty-line’ category as per Community Forestry Guidelines. A higher Shannon-Weiner plant diversity index at regeneration level was observed in IAS removed areas (2.43) than in control site (1.95). Furthermore, the number of tree seedlings and saplings in the IAS harvested blocks were significantly higher (p < 0.005) compared to the unharvested one. The sale of charcoal produced through the pyrolysis of IAS in ̔ Bio-energy kilns’ contributed for an average increased income of 30.95 % (Nepalese rupees 31,000) of the involved households. Despite above factors, some operational policy hurdles related to charcoal transport and taxation existed at field level. This study suggests that plant diversity could be increased through the removal of IAS, and considerable economic benefits could be achieved if charcoal is substantially produced and utilized.

Keywords: briquette, economic benefits, pyrolysis, regeneration

Procedia PDF Downloads 279

Authors: G. Krishnamoorthy, S. Anandhakumar

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The effect of D-Lysine (D-Lys) on collagen with 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl) carbodiimide(EDC)/N-hydroxysuccinimide(NHS) initiated cross linking using experimental and modelling tools are evaluated. The results of the Coll-D-Lys-EDC/NHS scaffold also indicate an increase in the tensile strength (TS), percentage of elongation (% E), denaturation temperature (Td), and decrease the decomposition rate compared to L-Lys-EDC/NHS. Scanning electron microscopic (SEM) and atomic force microscopic (AFM) analyses revealed a well ordered with properly oriented and well-aligned structure of scaffold. The D-Lys stabilizes the scaffold against degradation by collagenase than L-Lys. The cell assay showed more than 98% fibroblast viability (NIH3T3) and improved cell adhesions, protein adsorption after 72h of culture when compared with native scaffold. Cell attachment after 74h was robust, with cytoskeletal analysis showing that the attached cells were aligned along the fibers assuming a spindle-shape appearance, despite, gene expression analyses revealed no apparent alterations in mRNA levels, although cell proliferation was not adversely affected. D-Lysine (D-Lys) plays a pivotal role in the self-assembly and conformation of collagen fibrils. The D-Lys assisted EDC/NHS initiated cross-linking induces the formation of an carboxamide by the activation of the side chain -COOH group, followed by aminolysis of the O-iso acylurea intermediates by the -NH2 groups are directly joined via an isopeptides bond. This leads to the formation of intra- and inter-helical cross links. Modeling studies indicated that D-Lys bind with collagen-like peptide (CLP) through multiple H-bonding and hydrophobic interactions. Orientational changes in collagenase on CLP-D-Lys are observed which may decrease its accessibility to degradation and stabilize CLP against the action of the former. D-Lys has lowest binding energy and improved fibrillar-assembly and staggered alignment without the undesired structural stiffness and aggregations. The proteolytic machinery is not well equipped to deal with Coll-D-Lys than Coll-L-Lys scaffold. The information derived from the present study could help in designing collagenolytically stable heterochiral collagen based scaffold for biomedical applications.

Keywords: collagen, collagenase, collagen like peptide, D-lysine, heterochiral collagen scaffold

Procedia PDF Downloads 392

Authors: Sarayu Vanga, Jorge Galeano-Cabral, Kaya Wei

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Cerebral hypoxia refers to a condition in which there is a decrease in oxygen supply to the brain. Patients suffering from this condition experience a decrease in their body temperature. While there isn't any cure to treat cerebral hypoxia as of date, certain procedures are utilized to help aid in the treatment of the condition. Regulating the body temperature is an example of one of those procedures. Hypoxia is well known to reduce the body temperature of mammals, although the neural origins of this response remain uncertain. In order to speed recovery from this condition, it is necessary to maintain a stable body temperature. In this study, we present an approach to regulating body temperature for patients who suffer from cerebral hypoxia or other similar conditions. After a thorough literature study, we propose the use of thermoelectric blankets, which are temperature-controlled thermal blankets based on thermoelectric devices. These blankets are capable of heating up and cooling down the patient to stabilize body temperature. This feature is possible through the reversible effect that thermoelectric devices offer while behaving as a thermal sensor, and it is an effective way to stabilize temperature. Thermoelectricity is the direct conversion of thermal to electrical energy and vice versa. This effect is now known as the Seebeck effect, and it is characterized by the Seebeck coefficient. In such a configuration, the device has cooling and heating sides with temperatures that can be interchanged by simply switching the direction of the current input in the system. This design integrates various aspects, including a humidifier, ventilation machine, IV-administered medication, air conditioning, circulation device, and a body temperature regulation system. The proposed design includes thermocouples that will trigger the blanket to increase or decrease a set temperature through a medical temperature sensor. Additionally, the proposed design allows an efficient way to control fluctuations in body temperature while being cost-friendly, with an expected cost of 150 dollars. We are currently working on developing a prototype of the design to collect thermal and electrical data under different conditions and also intend to perform an optimization analysis to improve the design even further. While this proposal was developed for treating cerebral hypoxia, it can also aid in the treatment of other related conditions, as fluctuations in body temperature appear to be a common symptom that patients have for many illnesses.

Keywords: body temperature regulation, cerebral hypoxia, thermoelectric, blanket design

Procedia PDF Downloads 160

Authors: Hamid Fallah

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Undoubtedly, flood is known as a natural disaster, and in practice, flood is considered the most terrible natural disaster in the world both in terms of loss of life and financial losses. From 1988 to 1997, about 390,000 people were killed by natural disasters in the world, 58% of which were related to floods, 26% due to earthquakes, and 16% due to storms and other disasters. The total damages in these 10 years were about 700 billion dollars, which were 33, 29, 28% related to floods, storms and earthquakes, respectively. In this regard, the worrisome point has been the increasing trend of flood deaths and damages in the world in recent decades. The increase in population and assets in flood plains, changes in hydro systems and the destructive effects of human activities have been the main reasons for this increase. During rain and snow, some of the water is absorbed by the soil and plants. A percentage evaporates and the rest flows and is called runoff. Floods occur when the soil and plants cannot absorb the rainfall, and as a result, the natural river channel does not have the capacity to pass the generated runoff. On average, almost 30% of precipitation is converted into runoff, which increases with snow melting. Floods that occur differently create an area called flood plain around the river. River floods are often caused by heavy rains, which in some cases are accompanied by snow melt. A flood that flows in a river without warning or with little warning is called a flash flood. The casualties of these rapid floods that occur in small watersheds are generally more than the casualties of large river floods. Coastal areas are also subject to flooding caused by waves caused by strong storms on the surface of the oceans or waves caused by underground earthquakes. Floods not only cause damage to property and endanger the lives of humans and animals, but also leave other effects. Runoff caused by heavy rains causes soil erosion in the upstream and sedimentation problems in the downstream. The habitats of fish and other animals are often destroyed by floods. The high speed of the current increases the damage. Long-term floods stop traffic and prevent drainage and economic use of land. The supports of bridges, river banks, sewage outlets and other structures are damaged, and there is a disruption in shipping and hydropower generation. The economic losses of floods in the world are estimated at tens of billions of dollars annually.

Keywords: flood, hydrological engineering, gis, dam, small hydropower, suitablity

Procedia PDF Downloads 67

Authors: Zh. Saffari, A. Naeimi, M. S. Ekrami-Kakhki, Kh. Khandan-Barani

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The textile industries are becoming a major source of environmental contamination because an alarming amount of dye pollutants are generated during the dyeing processes. Organic dyes are one of the largest pollutants released into wastewater from textile and other industrial processes, which have shown severe impacts on human physiology. Nano-structure compounds have gained importance in this category due their anticipated high surface area and improved reactive sites. In recent years several novel adsorbents have been reported to possess great adsorption potential due to their enhanced adsorptive capacity. Nano-MnO2 has great potential applications in environment protection field and has gained importance in this category because it has a wide variety of structure with large surface area. The diverse structures, chemical properties of manganese oxides are taken advantage of in potential applications such as adsorbents, sensor catalysis and it is also used for wide catalytic applications, such as degradation of dyes. In this study, adsorption of Methyl Violet (MV) dye from aqueous solutions onto MnO2 nanoparticles (MNP) has been investigated. The surface characterization of these nano particles was examined by Particle size analysis, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and X-Ray Diffraction (XRD). The effects of process parameters such as initial concentration, pH, temperature and contact duration on the adsorption capacities have been evaluated, in which pH has been found to be most effective parameter among all. The data were analyzed using the Langmuir and Freundlich for explaining the equilibrium characteristics of adsorption. And kinetic models like pseudo first- order, second-order model and Elovich equation were utilized to describe the kinetic data. The experimental data were well fitted with Langmuir adsorption isotherm model and pseudo second order kinetic model. The thermodynamic parameters, such as Free energy of adsorption (ΔG°), enthalpy change (ΔH°) and entropy change (ΔS°) were also determined and evaluated.

Keywords: MnO2 nanoparticles, adsorption, methyl violet, isotherm models, kinetic models, surface chemistry

Procedia PDF Downloads 258

Authors: Vivek Rangarajan, Kim G. Clarke

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Bacillus lipopeptides are biosurfactants with wide ranging applications in the medical, food, agricultural, environmental and cosmetic industries. They are produced as a mix of three families, surfactin, iturin and fengycin, each comprising a large number of homologues of varying functionalities. Consequently, the method and degree of purification of the lipopeptide cocktail becomes particularly important if the functionality of the lipopeptide end-product is to be maximized for the specific application. However, downstream processing of Bacillus lipopeptides is particularly challenging due to the subtle variations observed in the different lipopeptide homologues and isoforms. To date, the most frequently used lipopeptide purification operations have been acid precipitation, solvent extraction, membrane ultrafiltration, adsorption and size exclusion. RP-HPLC (reverse phase high pressure liquid chromatography) also has potential for fractionation of the lipopeptide homologues. In the studies presented here, membrane ultrafiltration and RP-HPLC were evaluated for lipopeptide purification to different degrees of purities for maximum functionality. Batch membrane ultrafiltration using 50 kDa polyether sulphone (PES) membranes resulted in lipopeptide recovery of about 68% for surfactin and 82 % for fengycin. The recovery was further improved to 95% by using size-conditioned lipopeptide micelles. The conditioning of lipopeptides with Ca2+ ions resulted in uniformly sized micelles with average size of 96.4 nm and a polydispersity index of 0.18. The size conditioning also facilitated removal of impurities (molecular weight ranging between 2335-3500 Da) through operation of the system under dia-filtration mode, in a way similar to salt removal from protein by dialysis. The resultant purified lipopeptide was devoid of macromolecular impurities and could ideally suit applications in the cosmetic and food industries. Enhanced purification using RP-HPLC was carried out in an analytical C18 column, with the aim to fractionate lipopeptides into their constituent homologues. The column was eluted with mobile phase comprising acetonitrile and water over an acetonitrile gradient, 35% - 80%, over 70 minutes. The gradient elution program resulted in as many as 41 fractions of individual lipopeptide homologues. The efficacy test of these fractions against fungal phytopathogens showed that first 21 fractions, identified to be homologues of iturins and fengycins, displayed maximum antifungal activities, suitable for biocontrol in the agricultural industry. Thus, in the current study, the downstream processing of lipopeptides leading to tailor-made products for selective applications was demonstrated using two major downstream unit operations.

Keywords: bacillus lipopeptides, membrane ultrafiltration, purification, RP-HPLC

Procedia PDF Downloads 205

Authors: Nizar Chaira

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Dates, main products of the oases, due to their therapeutic interests, are considered highly nutritious fruit. Several studies on the valuation biotechnology and technology of dates are made, and several products are already prepared. Isolation of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, naturally presents in a scrap of date, optimization of growth in the medium based on date syrup and production biomass can potentially expand the range of secondary products of dates. To this end, this paper tries to study the suitability for processing dates technology and biotechnology to use the date pulp as a carbon source for biological transformation. Two strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae isolated from date syrup (S1, S2) and a commercial strain have used for this study. After optimization of culture conditions, production in a fermenter on two different media (date syrup and beet molasses) was performed. This is followed by studying the kinetics of growth, protein production and consumption of sugars in crops strain 1, 2 and the commercial strain and on both media. The results obtained showed that a concentration of 2% sugar, 2.5 g/l yeast extract, pH 4.5 and a temperature between 25 and 35°C are the optimal conditions for cultivation in a bioreactor. The exponential phase of the specific growth rate of a strain on both media showed that it is about 0.3625 h-1 for the production of a medium based on date syrup and 0.3521 h-1 on beet molasses with a generation time equal to 1.912 h and on the medium based on date syrup, yeast consumes preferentially the reducing sugars. For the production of protein, we showed that this latter presents an exponential phase when the medium starts to run out of reducing sugars. For strain 2, the specific growth rate is about 0.261h-1 for the production on a medium based on date syrup and 0207 h-1 on beet molasses and the base medium syrup date of the yeast consumes preferentially reducing sugars. For the invertase and other metabolits, these increases rapidly after exhaustion of reducing sugars. The comparison of productivity between the three strains on the medium based on date syrup showed that the maximum value is obtained with the second strain: p = 1072 g/l/h as it is about of 0923 g/l/h for strain 1 and 0644 g/l/h for the commercial strain. Thus, isolates of date syrup are more competitive than the commercial strain and can give the same performance in a shorter time with energy gain.

Keywords: date palm, fermentation, molasses, Saccharomyces, syrup

Procedia PDF Downloads 321

Authors: Betül Ersoy, Deniz Özalp Kizilay, Gül Gümüşer, Fatma Taneli

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Introduction: Peak bone mass is reached in late adolescence in females. Age at menarche influences estrogen exposure, which plays a vital role in bone metabolism. The relationship between age at menarche and bone mineral density (BMD) is still controversial. In this study, we investigated the relationship between age at menarche, BMD, socioeconomic status (SES) and body composition in female university student. Participant and methods: A total of 138 healthy girls at late adolescence period (mean age 20.13±0.93 years, range 18-22) were included in this university school-based cross-sectional study in the urban area western region of Turkey. Participants have been randomly selected to reflect the university students studying in all faculties. We asked relevant questions about socioeconomic status and age at menarche to female university students. Students were grouped into three SES as lower, middle and higher according to the educational and occupational levels of their parents using Hollingshead index. Height and weight were measured. Body Mass Index (BMI) (kg/m2 ) was calculated. Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) was performed using the Lunar DPX series, and BMD and body composition were evaluated. Results: The mean age of menarche of female university student included in the study was 13.09.±1.3 years. There was no significant difference between the three socioeconomic groups in terms of height, body weight, age at menarche, BMD [BMD (gr/cm2 ) (L2-L4) and BMD (gr/cm2 ) (total body)], and body composition (lean tissue, fat tissue, total fat, and body fat) (p>0.05). While no correlation was found between the age at menarche and any parameter (p>0.05), a positive significant correlation was found between lean tissue and BMD L2-L4 (r=0.286, p=0.01). When the relationships were evaluated separately according to socioeconomic status, there was a significant correlation between BMDL2-L4 (r: 0.431, p=0.005) and lean tissue in females with low SES, while this relationship disappeared in females with middle and high SES. Conclusion: Age at menarche did not change according to socioeconomic status, nor did BMD and body composition in female at late adolescents. No relationship was found between age at menarche and BMD and body composition determined by DEXA in female university student who were close to reaching peak bone mass. The results suggested that especially BMDL2-L4 might increase as lean tissue increases.

Keywords: bone, osteoposis, menarche, dexa

Procedia PDF Downloads 75

Authors: Mashad Maramaei, Behrooz Chogan, Reza Ahmadi

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Human health and the health of his watershed are inseparable. This is because a watershed is an interconnected system of "land", "water", "air" and "life". Nowadays, most of the world's watersheds show symptoms of unhealthiness and require a prompt solution. It is believed that suitable solution is a participatory and Integrated Watershed Management (IWM). In recent decades the Hyrcanian forests in the north of Iran, which belongs to the end of the third geological era, are suffering from many environmental challenges such as land degradation, increasing trends of flood, drought and accelerated soil erosion. These challenges in the main forested area of the country impose many tangible and intangible damages and human losses. This is despite the fact that in the past decades, forestry programs, watershed management and other activities in the region have been implemented in a parallel and uncoordinated manner. Therefore, recently; the Natural Resources and Watershed Management Organization has resorted to the concept of IWM planning the Hyrcanian watersheds. The Chelchai watershed as mostly degraded watershed in the eastern part of the Hyrcanian forests has been selected as a pilot watershed for implementation of the IWM. It has a drainage area of 25680 hectares and receives an average annual precipitation of 650 mm. In this mountainous region, the average temperature is 17.3 degrees Celsius. About 34% of the watershed is under cultivation, 64% under forest cover, 2% under built up areas and etc. In this research, the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of the IWM model implementation of the Natural Resources and Watershed Management Organization has been evaluated based on questionnaire method and field studies. The results indicated that IWM activities in the study area should be reconsidered and revived. Based on this research and the lessons learned during five years' experience in the Chelchai watershed; authors believe that seven important tasks are necessary for socially acceptable and successful implementation of IWM projects. These are: 1) Establishment of Local Coordination Committee (LCC) at the watershed level 2) working for development of a IWM law among government organizations to organize watershed management and eliminate parallel and contradictory activities 3) More investment on education of local communities, especially women and children 4) Development of trust builder and pattern projects that showing best agricultural and livestock management activities at each of 26 villages 5) Assigning forest protection to local communities. 6) Capacity building of government stakeholders. 7) Helping in the marketing of watershed products.

Keywords: integrated watershed management, Chelchai, Hyrcanian forests, Iran

Procedia PDF Downloads 22

Authors: Deepak Jugran

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Purpose: The purpose of this study is to identify how past Pandemics shaped social evolution and cities. Methodology: A historical and comparative analysis of major historical pandemics in human history their origin, transmission route, biological response and the aftereffects. A Comprehensive pre & post pandemic scenario and focuses selectively on major issues and pandemics that have deepest & lasting impact on society with available secondary data. Results: Past pandemics shaped the behavior of human societies and their cities and made them more resilient biologically, intellectually & socially endorsing the theory of “Survival of the fittest” by Sir Charles Darwin. Pandemics & Infectious diseases are here to stay and as a human society, we need to strengthen our collective response & preparedness besides evolving mechanisms for strict controls on inter-continental movements of people, & especially animals who become carriers for these viruses. Conclusion: Pandemics always resulted in great mortality, but they also improved the overall individual human immunology & collective social response; at the same time, they also improved the public health system of cities, health delivery systems, water, sewage distribution system, institutionalized various welfare reforms and overall collective social response by the societies. It made human beings more resilient biologically, intellectually, and socially hence endorsing the theory of “AGIL” by Prof Talcott Parsons. Pandemics & infectious diseases are here to stay and as humans, we need to strengthen our city response & preparedness besides evolving mechanisms for strict controls on inter-continental movements of people, especially animals who always acted as carriers for these novel viruses. Pandemics over the years acted like natural storms, mitigated the prevailing social imbalances and laid the foundation for scientific discoveries. We understand that post-Covid-19, institutionalized city, state and national mechanisms will get strengthened and the recommendations issued by the various expert groups which were ignored earlier will now be implemented for reliable anticipation, better preparedness & help to minimize the impact of Pandemics. Our analysis does not intend to present chronological findings of pandemics but rather focuses selectively on major pandemics in history, their causes and how they wiped out an entire city’s population and influenced the societies, their behavior and facilitated social evolution.

Keywords: pandemics, Covid-19, social evolution, cities

Procedia PDF Downloads 112

Authors: Valencia Fernandes, Dharmendra Kumar Khatri, Shashi Bala Singh

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Background and Aim: Epigenetics are the inaudible signatures of several pathological processes in the brain. This study understands the influence of DNA methylation, a major epigenetic modification, in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus of the diabetic brain and its notable effect on the cellular chaperones and synaptic proteins. Method: Chronic high fat diet and STZ-induced diabetic mice were studied for cognitive dysfunction, and global DNA methylation, as well as DNA methyltransferase (DNMT) activity, were assessed. Further, the cellular chaperones and synaptic proteins were examined using DNMT inhibitor, 5-aza-2′-deoxycytidine (5-aza-dC)-via intracerebroventricular injection. Moreover, % methylation of these synaptic proteins were also studied so as to correlate its epigenetic involvement. Computationally, its interaction with the DNMT enzyme were also studied using bioinformatic tools. Histological studies for morphological alterations and neuronal degeneration were also studied. Neurogenesis, a characteristic marker for new learning and memory formation, was also assessed via the BrdU staining. Finally, the most important behavioral studies, including the Morris water maze, Y maze, passive avoidance, and Novel object recognition test, were performed to study its cognitive functions. Results: Altered global DNA methylation and increased levels of DNMTs within the nucleus were confirmed in the cortex and hippocampus of the diseased mice, suggesting hypermethylation at a genetic level. Treatment with AzadC, a global DNA demethylating agent, ameliorated the protein and gene expression of the cellular chaperones and synaptic fidelity. Furthermore, the methylation analysis profile showed hypermethylation of the hsf1 protein, a master regulator for chaperones and thus, confirmed the epigenetic involvement in the diseased brain. Morphological improvements and decreased neurodegeneration, along with enhanced neurogenesis in the treatment group, suggest that epigenetic modulations do participate in learning and memory. This is supported by the improved behavioral test battery seen in the treatment group. Conclusion: DNA methylation could possibly accord in dysregulating the memory-associated proteins at chronic stages in type 2 diabetes. This could suggest a substantial contribution to the underlying pathophysiology of several metabolic syndromes like insulin resistance, obesity and also participate in transitioning this damage centrally, such as cognitive dysfunction.

Keywords: epigenetics, cognition, chaperones, DNA methylation

Procedia PDF Downloads 204

Authors: Antoinette Maarawi, Zoe Anxionnaz-Minvielle, Pierre Coste, Nathalie Di Miceli Raimondi, Michel Cabassud

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Milli-structured heat exchanger/reactors have been recently widely used, especially in the chemical industry, due to their enhanced performances in heat and mass transfer compared to conventional apparatuses. In our work, the ‘DeanHex’ heat exchanger/reactor with a 2D-meandering channel is investigated both experimentally and numerically. The square cross-sectioned channel has a hydraulic diameter of 2mm. The aim of our study is to model local physico-chemical phenomena (heat and mass transfer, axial dispersion, etc.) for a liquid-liquid two-phase flow in our lab-scale meandering channel, which represents the central part of the heat exchanger/reactor design. The numerical approach of the reactor is based on a 1D model for the flow channel encapsulated in a 3D model for the surrounding solid, using COMSOL Multiphysics V5.5. The use of the 1D approach to model the milli-channel reduces significantly the calculation time compared to 3D approaches, which are generally focused on local effects. Our 1D/3D approach intends to bridge the gap between the simulation at a small scale and the simulation at the reactor scale at a reasonable CPU cost. The heat transfer process between the 1D milli-channel and its 3D surrounding is modeled. The feasibility of this 1D/3D coupling was verified by comparing simulation results to experimental ones originated from two previous works. Temperature profiles along the channel axis obtained by simulation fit the experimental profiles for both cases. The next step is to integrate the liquid-liquid mass transfer model and to validate it with our experimental results. The hydrodynamics of the liquid-liquid two-phase system is modeled using the ‘mixture model approach’. The mass transfer behavior is represented by an overall volumetric mass transfer coefficient ‘kLa’ correlation obtained from our experimental results in the millimetric size meandering channel. The present work is a first step towards the scale-up of our ‘DeanHex’ expecting future industrialization of such equipment. Therefore, a generalized scaled-up model of the reactor comprising all the transfer processes will be built in order to predict the performance of the reactor in terms of conversion rate and energy efficiency at an industrial scale.

Keywords: liquid-liquid mass transfer, milli-structured reactor, 1D/3D model, process intensification

Procedia PDF Downloads 130

Authors: Susanne Gustafsson

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Life-history research is an extraordinarily fruitful method to use for social analysis and gendered health analysis in particular. Its potential is illustrated through a case study drawn from a Swedish project. It reveals an old type of masculinity that faces difficulties when carrying out two sets of demands simultaneously, as a worker/manager and as a father/husband. The paper illuminates the historical transformation of masculinity and the consequences of this for health. We draw on the idea of the “changing faces of masculinity” to explore the dynamism and complexity of gendered health. An empirical case is used for its illustrative abilities. Jan, a middle-level manager and father employed in the energy sector in urban Sweden is the subject of this paper. Jan’s story is one of 32 semi-structured interviews included in an extended study focusing on well-being at work. The results reveal a face of masculinity conceived of in middle-level management as tacitly linked to the neoliberal doctrine. Over a couple of decades, the idea of “flexibility” was turned into a valuable characteristic that everyone was supposed to strive for. This resulted in increased workloads. Quite a few employees, and managers, in particular, find themselves working both day and night. This may explain why not having enough time to spend with children and family members is a recurring theme in the data. Can this way of doing be linked to masculinity and health? The first author’s research has revealed that the use of gender in health science is not sufficiently or critically questioned. This lack of critical questioning is a serious problem, especially since ways of doing gender affect health. We suggest that gender reproduction and gender transformation are interconnected, regardless of how they affect health. They are recognized as two sides of the same phenomenon, and minor movements in one direction or the other become crucial for understanding its relation to health. More or less, at the same time, as Jan’s masculinity was reproduced in response to workplace practices, Jan’s family position was transformed—not totally but by a degree or two, and these degrees became significant for the family’s health and well-being. By moving back and forth between varied events in Jan’s biographical history and his sociohistorical life span, it becomes possible to show that in a time of gender transformations, power relations can be renegotiated, leading to consequences for health.

Keywords: changing faces of masculinity, gendered health, life-history research method, subverter

Procedia PDF Downloads 113

Authors: Francesco Lubrano, Fabrizio Bertone, Federico Stirano

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Modern societies strongly depend on Critical Infrastructures (CI). Hospitals, power supplies, water supplies, telecommunications are just few examples of CIs that provide vital functions to societies. CIs like hospitals are very complex environments, characterized by a huge number of cyber and physical systems that are becoming increasingly integrated. Ensuring a high level of security within such critical infrastructure requires a deep knowledge of vulnerabilities, threats, and potential attacks that may occur, as well as defence and prevention or mitigation strategies. The possibility to remotely monitor and control almost everything is pushing the adoption of network-connected devices. This implicitly introduces new threats and potential vulnerabilities, posing a risk, especially to those devices connected to the Internet. Modern medical devices used in hospitals are not an exception and are more and more being connected to enhance their functionalities and easing the management. Moreover, hospitals are environments with high flows of people, that are difficult to monitor and can somehow easily have access to the same places used by the staff, potentially creating damages. It is therefore clear that physical and cyber threats should be considered, analysed, and treated together as cyber-physical threats. This means that an integrated approach is required. SAFECARE, an integrated cyber-physical security solution, tries to respond to the presented issues within healthcare infrastructures. The challenge is to bring together the most advanced technologies from the physical and cyber security spheres, to achieve a global optimum for systemic security and for the management of combined cyber and physical threats and incidents and their interconnections. Moreover, potential impacts and cascading effects are evaluated through impact propagation models that rely on modular ontologies and a rule-based engine. Indeed, SAFECARE architecture foresees i) a macroblock related to cyber security field, where innovative tools are deployed to monitor network traffic, systems and medical devices; ii) a physical security macroblock, where video management systems are coupled with access control management, building management systems and innovative AI algorithms to detect behavior anomalies; iii) an integration system that collects all the incoming incidents, simulating their potential cascading effects, providing alerts and updated information regarding assets availability.

Keywords: cyber security, defence strategies, impact propagation, integrated security, physical security

Procedia PDF Downloads 165

Authors: Qiushi Ning

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The nitrogen (N) is an important limiting factor of various ecosystems, and the N deposition rate is increasing unprecedentedly due to anthropogenic activities. The N deposition altered the microbial growth and activity, and microbial mediated N cycling through changing soil pH, the availability of N and carbon (C). The CO2, CH4 and N2O are important greenhouse gas which threaten the sustainability and function of the ecosystem. With the prolonged and increasing N enrichment, the soil acidification and C limitation will be aggravated, and the microbial biomass will be further declined. The soil acidification and lack of C induced by N addition are argued as two important factors regulating the microbial activity and growth, and the studies combined soil acidification with lack of C on microbial community are scarce. In order to restore the ecosystem affected by chronic N loading, we determined the responses of microbial activity and GHG emssions to lime and glucose (control, 1‰ lime, 2‰ lime, glucose, 1‰ lime×glucose and 2‰ lime×glucose) addition which was used to alleviate the soil acidification and supply C resource into soils with N addition rates 0-50 g N m–2yr–1. The results showed no significant responses of soil respiration and microbial biomass (MBC and MBN) to lime addition, however, the glucose substantially improved the soil respiration and microbial biomass (MBC and MBN); the cumulative CO2 emission and microbial biomass of lime×glucose treatments were not significantly higher than those of only glucose treatment. The glucose and lime×glucose treatments reduced the net mineralization and nitrification rate, due to inspired microbial growth via C supply incorporating more inorganic N to the biomass, and mineralization of organic N was relatively reduced. The glucose addition also increased the CH4 and N2O emissions, CH4 emissions was regulated mainly by C resource as a substrate for methanogen. However, the N2O emissions were regulated by both C resources and soil pH, the C was important energy and the increased soil pH could benefit the nitrifiers and denitrifiers which were primary producers of N2O. The soil respiration and N2O emissions increased with increasing N addition rates in all glucose treatments, as the external C resource improved microbial N utilization. Compared with alleviated soil acidification, the improved availability of C substantially increased microbial activity, therefore, the C should be the main limiting factor in long-term N loading soils. The most important, when we use the organic C fertilization to improve the production of the ecosystems, the GHG emissions and consequent warming potentials should be carefully considered.

Keywords: acidification and C limitation, greenhouse gas emission, microbial activity, N deposition

Procedia PDF Downloads 305

Authors: M. M. Essa, S. Subash, M. Akbar, S. Al-Adawi, A. Al-Asmi, G. J. Guillemein

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Transgenic (tg) mice which contain an amyloid precursor protein (APP) gene mutation, develop extracellular amyloid beta (Aβ) deposition in the brain, and severe memory and behavioral deficits with age. These mice serve as an important animal model for testing the efficacy of novel drug candidates for the treatment and management of symptoms of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Several reports have suggested that oxidative stress is the underlying cause of Aβ neurotoxicity in AD. Date palm fruits contain very high levels of antioxidants and several medicinal properties that may be useful for improving the quality of life in AD patients. In this study, we investigated the effect of dietary supplementation of Omani date palm fruits on the memory, anxiety and learning skills along with inflammation in an AD mouse model containing the double Swedish APP mutation (APPsw/Tg2576). The experimental groups of APP-transgenic mice from the age of 4 months were fed custom-mix diets (pellets) containing 2% and 4% Date palm fruits. We assessed spatial memory and learning ability, psychomotor coordination, and anxiety-related behavior in Tg and wild-type mice at the age of 4-5 months and 18-19 months using the Morris water maze test, rota rod test, elevated plus maze test, and open field test. Further, inflammatory parameters also analyzed. APPsw/Tg2576 mice that were fed a standard chow diet without dates showed significant memory deficits, increased anxiety-related behavior, and severe impairment in spatial learning ability, position discrimination learning ability and motor coordination along with increased inflammation compared to the wild type mice on the same diet, at the age of 18-19 months In contrast, PPsw/Tg2576 mice that were fed a diet containing 2% and 4% dates showed a significant improvements in memory, learning, locomotor function, and anxiety with reduced inflammatory markers compared to APPsw/Tg2576 mice fed the standard chow diet. Our results suggest that dietary supplementation with dates may slow the progression of cognitive and behavioral impairments in AD. The exact mechanism is still unclear and further extensive research needed.

Keywords: Alzheimer's disease, date palm fruits, Oman, cognitive decline, memory loss, anxiety, inflammation

Procedia PDF Downloads 423

Authors: Eugene Y. J. Aw, J. W. Koh, S. H. Chew, K. E. Chua, Lionel L. J. Ang, Algernon C. S. Hong, Danette S. E. Tan, Grace H. B. Foo, K. Q. Hong, L. M. Cheng, M. L. Leong

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This paper presents a novel rapid soil classification technique that combines computer vision with four-probe soil electrical resistivity method and cone penetration test (CPT), to improve the accuracy and productivity of on-site classification of excavated soil. In Singapore, excavated soils from local construction projects are transported to Staging Grounds (SGs) to be reused as fill material for land reclamation. Excavated soils are mainly categorized into two groups (“Good Earth” and “Soft Clay”) based on particle size distribution (PSD) and water content (w) from soil investigation reports and on-site visual survey, such that proper treatment and usage can be exercised. However, this process is time-consuming and labour-intensive. Thus, a rapid classification method is needed at the SGs. Computer vision, four-probe soil electrical resistivity and CPT were combined into an innovative non-destructive and instantaneous classification method for this purpose. The computer vision technique comprises soil image acquisition using industrial grade camera; image processing and analysis via calculation of Grey Level Co-occurrence Matrix (GLCM) textural parameters; and decision-making using an Artificial Neural Network (ANN). Complementing the computer vision technique, the apparent electrical resistivity of soil (ρ) is measured using a set of four probes arranged in Wenner’s array. It was found from the previous study that the ANN model coupled with ρ can classify soils into “Good Earth” and “Soft Clay” in less than a minute, with an accuracy of 85% based on selected representative soil images. To further improve the technique, the soil strength is measured using a modified mini cone penetrometer, and w is measured using a set of time-domain reflectometry (TDR) probes. Laboratory proof-of-concept was conducted through a series of seven tests with three types of soils – “Good Earth”, “Soft Clay” and an even mix of the two. Validation was performed against the PSD and w of each soil type obtained from conventional laboratory tests. The results show that ρ, w and CPT measurements can be collectively analyzed to classify soils into “Good Earth” or “Soft Clay”. It is also found that these parameters can be integrated with the computer vision technique on-site to complete the rapid soil classification in less than three minutes.

Keywords: Computer vision technique, cone penetration test, electrical resistivity, rapid and non-destructive, soil classification

Procedia PDF Downloads 218

Authors: Emmanuel Ophel Gilbert, Williams Speret

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The control for fluid flow behaviours of viscous fluids and heat transfer occurrences within heated mini-channel is considered. Heat transfer and flow characteristics of different viscous liquids, such as engine oil, automatic transmission fluid, one-half ethylene glycol, and deionized water were numerically analyzed. Some mathematical applications such as Fourier series and Laplace Z-Transforms were employed to ascertain the behaviour-wave like structure of these each viscous fluids. The steady, laminar flow and heat transfer equations are reckoned by the aid of numerical simulation technique. Further, this numerical simulation technique is endorsed by using the accessible practical values in comparison with the anticipated local thermal resistances. However, the roughness of this mini-channel that is one of the physical limitations was also predicted in this study. This affects the frictional factor. When an additive such as tetracycline was introduced in the fluid, the heat input was lowered, and this caused pro rata effect on the minor and major frictional losses, mostly at a very minute Reynolds number circa 60-80. At this ascertained lower value of Reynolds numbers, there exists decrease in the viscosity and minute frictional losses as a result of the temperature of these viscous liquids been increased. It is inferred that the three equations and models are identified which supported the numerical simulation via interpolation and integration of the variables extended to the walls of the mini-channel, yields the utmost reliance for engineering and technology calculations for turbulence impacting jets in the near imminent age. Out of reasoning with a true equation that could support this control for the fluid flow, Navier-stokes equations were found to tangential to this finding. Though, other physical factors with respect to these Navier-stokes equations are required to be checkmated to avoid uncertain turbulence of the fluid flow. This paradox is resolved within the framework of continuum mechanics using the classical slip condition and an iteration scheme via numerical simulation method that takes into account certain terms in the full Navier-Stokes equations. However, this resulted in dropping out in the approximation of certain assumptions. Concrete questions raised in the main body of the work are sightseen further in the appendices.

Keywords: frictional losses, heat transfer, laminar flow, mini-channel, number simulation, Reynolds number, turbulence, viscous fluids

Procedia PDF Downloads 176

Authors: Janneth Gonzalez, Andrés Pinzon Velasco, Maria Angarita

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Astrocytes play an important role in various processes in the brain, including pathological conditions such as neurodegenerative diseases. Recent studies have shown that the increase in saturated fatty acids such as palmitic acid (PA) triggers pro-inflammatorypathways in the brain. The use of synthetic neurosteroids such as tibolone has demonstrated neuro-protective mechanisms. However, broad studies with a systemic point of view on the neurodegenerative role of PA and the neuro-protective mechanisms of tibolone are lacking. In this study, we performed the integration of multi-omic data (transcriptome and proteome) into a human astrocyte genomic scale metabolic model to study the astrocytic response during palmitate treatment. We evaluated metabolic fluxes in three scenarios (healthy, induced inflammation by PA, and tibolone treatment under PA inflammation). We also applied a control theory approach to identify those reactions that exert more control in the astrocytic system. Our results suggest that PA generates a modulation of central and secondary metabolism, showing a switch in energy source use through inhibition of folate cycle and fatty acid β‐oxidation and upregulation of ketone bodies formation. We found 25 metabolic switches under PA‐mediated cellular regulation, 9 of which were critical only in the inflammatory scenario but not in the protective tibolone one. Within these reactions, inhibitory, total, and directional coupling profiles were key findings, playing a fundamental role in the (de)regulation of metabolic pathways that may increase neurotoxicity and represent potential treatment targets. Finally, the overall framework of our approach facilitates the understanding of complex metabolic regulation, and it can be used for in silico exploration of the mechanisms of astrocytic cell regulation, directing a more complex future experimental work in neurodegenerative diseases.

Keywords: astrocytes, data integration, palmitic acid, computational model, multi-omics

Procedia PDF Downloads 97

Authors: J. H. Bang, H. J. Baek, K. I. Kim, B. J. Lee, H. J. Jung, H. J. Jang, S. K. Jung

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Asthma is a chronic inflammatory lung disease characterized by airway hyper responsiveness (AHR), airway obstruction and airway wall remodeling responsible for significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. Genetic and environment factors may result in asthma, but there are no the exact causes of asthma. Chungpye-tang (CPT) has been prescribed as a representative aerosol agent for patients with dyspnea, cough and phlegm in the respiratory clinic at Kyung Hee Korean Medicine Hospital. This Korean herbal medicines have the effect of dispelling external pathogen and dampness pattern. CPT is composed of 4 species of herbal medicines. The 4 species of herbal medicines are Ephedrae herba, Pogostemonis(Agatachis) herba, Caryophylli flos and Zingiberis rhizoma crudus. CPT suppresses neutrophil infiltration and the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced acute lung injury (ALI) mouse model. Moreover, the anti-inflammatory effects of CPT on a mouse model of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) was proved. Activation of the NF-κB has been proven that it plays an important role in inflammation via inducing transcription of pro-inflammatory genes. Over-expression of NF-κB has been believed be related to many inflammatory diseases such as arthritis, gastritis, asthma and COPD. So we firstly hypothesize whether CPT has an anti-inflammatory effect on asthmatic human airway epithelial tissue via inhibiting NF-κB pathway. In this study, CPT was extracted with distilled water for 3 hours at 100°C. After process of filtration and evaporation, it was freeze dried. And asthmatic human lung tissues were provided by MatTek Corp. We investigated the precise mechanism of the anti-inflammatory effect of CPT by western blotting analysis. We observed whether the decoction extracts could reduce NF-κB activation, COX-2 protein expression and NF-κB-mediated pro-inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-α, eotaxin, IL-4, IL-9 and IL-13 in asthmatic human lung tissue. As results of this study, there was a trend toward decreased NF-κB expression in asthmatic human airway epithelial tissue. We found that the inhibition effects of CPT on COX-2 expression was not determined. IL-9 and IL-13 secretion was significantly reduced in the asthmatic human lung tissue treated with CPT. Overall, our results indicate that CPT has an anti-inflammatory effect through blocking the signaling pathway of NF-κB, thereby CPT may be a potential remedial agent for allergic asthma.

Keywords: Chungpye-tang, allergic asthma, asthmatic human airway epithelial tissue, nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) pathway, COX-2

Procedia PDF Downloads 335