Search results for: marine fish species

Authors: Anne R. Fernandez, Mohammad Akmal Adnan, Tanes Prasat, Indu Bala Jaganath, Brian Kirby, Kamalan Jeevaratnam

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Introduction: Plants from the Phyllantus genus have been used indigenously for the treatment of a variety of ailments for generations. A cocktail of phytonutrients prepared from a plant of the genus Phyllanthus has demonstrated the potential to alleviate ailments which include cardiovascular disorders. In this study, we investigated the cholesterol modulating properties of a highly purified proprietary extract of a Phyllanthus species in hypercholesteraemic mice. Methods: Hypercholesteraemia was induced in ICR mice by ad-libitum feeding of high fat diet daily for six weeks. The mice were then divided into 3 groups and force fed with 10mg/kg of atorvastatin, 200mg/kg of the proprietary Phyllanthus extract and water respectively. Blood samples were taken at the end of fourth week of treatment by a tail prick. At the end of the eighth week of treatment, mice were sacrificed and serum levels of total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and triglycerides were measured. Results: The mean cholesterol levels in the mice fed with high fat diet were 44% (p < 0.05) higher than the mice on normal diet thus validating the model developed. The plasma HDL was significantly elevated in mice treated with the formulation (p ˂ 0.05) in comparison to the statin-treated and control mice. The total cholesterol levels in the mice treated with the proprietary extract were reduced significantly (p < 0.05) at the end of 4 weeks of treatment in comparison to the mice treated with atorvastatin. By the end of 8 weeks of treatment, there was no significant difference in the cholesterol levels of the mice in all groups. Conclusion: These results demonstrate that this proprietary extract from Phyllanthus species has the beneficial effect of reducing total cholesterol level more rapidly than atorvastatin and increasing HDL levels. Since an increase in the HDL cholesterol can reduce the risk of heart disease, this proprietary extract is a useful and safe therapeutic option compared to atorvastatin.

Keywords: high-density lipoprotein, hypercholesteraemic mice model, ICR mice, Phyllanthus spp.

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Authors: Antti Lanki, Justiina Halonen, Juuso Punnonen, Emmi Rantavuo

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Marine oil spill response operation requires extensive vessel maneuvering and navigation skills. At-sea oil containment and recovery include both single vessel and multi-vessel operations. Towing long oil containment booms that are several hundreds of meters in length, is a challenge in itself. Boom deployment and towing in multi-vessel configurations is an added challenge that requires precise coordination and control of the vessels. Efficient communication, as a prerequisite for shared situational awareness, is needed in order to execute the response task effectively. To gain and maintain adequate maritime skills, practical training is needed. Field exercises are the most effective way of learning, but especially the related vessel operations are resource-intensive and costly. Field exercises may also be affected by environmental limitations such as high sea-state or other adverse weather conditions. In Finland, the seasonal ice-coverage also limits the training period to summer seasons only. In addition, environmental sensitiveness of the sea area restricts the use of real oil or other target substances. This paper examines, whether maritime simulator training can offer a complementary method to overcome the training challenges related to field exercises. The objective is to assess the efficiency and the learning impact of simulator training, and the specific skills that can be trained most effectively in simulators. This paper provides an overview of learning results from two oil spill response pilot courses, in which maritime navigational bridge simulators were used to train the oil spill response authorities. The simulators were equipped with an oil spill functionality module. The courses were targeted at coastal Fire and Rescue Services responsible for near shore oil spill response in Finland. The competence levels of the participants were surveyed before and after the course in order to measure potential shifts in competencies due to the simulator training. In addition to the quantitative analysis, the efficiency of the simulator training is evaluated qualitatively through feedback from the participants. The results indicate that simulator training is a valid and effective method for developing marine oil spill response competencies that complement traditional field exercises. Simulator training provides a safe environment for assessing various oil containment and recovery tactics. One of the main benefits of the simulator training was found to be the immediate feedback the spill modelling software provides on the oil spill behaviour as a reaction to response measures.

Keywords: maritime training, oil spill response, simulation, vessel manoeuvring

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Authors: Toshiyuki Miyazaki, Fumihiro Takahashi, Takashi Hosokawa

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Fishing nets and floating buoys used in fishing can be washed away by typhoons and storms. The spilled fishing nets become marine debris and hinder the navigation of ships. In this study, we report a method of attaching a retroreflective structure to afloat in order to discover fishing nets using SAR satellites. We prototyped an omnidirectional (all-around) corner reflector as a retroreflective structure that can be mounted on a float and analyzed its reflection characteristics. As a result, it was clarified that the reflection could be sufficiently larger than the backscattering of the sea surface. In order to further improve the performance, we worked on the design and trial production of the Luneberg lens.

Keywords: retroreflective structure, spherical corner reflector, Luneberg lens, SAR satellite, maritime floating buoy

Procedia PDF Downloads 160

Authors: Claudio Lamilla, Andrés Santos, Vicente Llanquinao, Jocelyn Hermosilla, Leticia Barrientos

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The industry in general is very interested in improving and optimizing industrial processes in order to reduce the costs involved in obtaining raw materials and production. Thus, an interesting and cost-effective alternative is the incorporation of bioactive metabolites in such processes, being an example of this enzymes which catalyze efficiently a large number of enzymatic reactions of industrial and biotechnological interest. In the search for new sources of these active metabolites, Antarctica is one of the least explored places on our planet where the most drastic cold conditions, salinity, UVA-UVB and liquid water available are present, features that have shaped all life in this very harsh environment, especially bacteria that live in different Antarctic ecosystems, which have had to develop different strategies to adapt to these conditions, producing unique biochemical strategies. In this work the production of cellulolytic enzymes of seven bacterial strains isolated from marine sediments at different sites in the Antarctic was evaluated. Isolation of the strains was performed using serial dilutions in the culture medium at M115°C. The identification of the strains was performed using universal primers (27F and 1492R). The enzyme activity assays were performed on R2A medium, carboxy methyl cellulose (CMC)was added as substrate. Degradation of the substrate was revealed by adding Lugol. The results show that four of the tested strains produce enzymes which degrade CMC substrate. The molecular identifications, showed that these bacteria belong to the genus Streptomyces and Pseudoalteromonas, being Streptomyces strain who showed the highest activity. Only some bacteria in marine sediments have the ability to produce these enzymes, perhaps due to their greater adaptability to degrade at temperatures bordering zero degrees Celsius, some algae that are abundant in this environment and have cellulose as the main structure. The discovery of new enzymes adapted to cold is of great industrial interest, especially for paper, textiles, detergents, biofuels, food and agriculture. These enzymes represent 8% of industrial demand worldwide and is expected to increase their demand in the coming years. Mainly in the paper and food industry are required in extraction processes starch, protein and juices, as well as the animal feed industry where treating vegetables and grains helps improve the nutritional value of the food, all this clearly puts Antarctic microorganisms and their enzymes specifically as a potential contribution to industry and the novel biotechnological applications.

Keywords: antarctic, bacteria, biotechnological, cellulolytic enzymes

Procedia PDF Downloads 297

Authors: Tamal Roy, Anuradha Bhat

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Cognitive abilities aid fishes in foraging, avoiding predators & locating mates. Factors like predation pressure & habitat complexity govern learning & memory in fishes. This study aims to compare spatial learning & memory across four natural populations of zebrafish. Zebrafish, a small cyprinid inhabits a diverse range of freshwater habitats & this makes it amenable to studies investigating role of native environment in spatial cognitive abilities. Four populations were collected across India from waterbodies with contrasting ecological conditions. Habitat complexity of the water-bodies was evaluated as a combination of channel substrate diversity and diversity of vegetation. Experiments were conducted on populations under controlled laboratory conditions. A square shaped spatial testing arena (maze) was constructed for testing the performance of adult zebrafish. The square tank consisted of an inner square shaped layer with the edges connected to the diagonal ends of the tank-walls by connections thereby forming four separate chambers. Each of the four chambers had a main door in the centre. Each chamber had three sections separated by two windows. A removable coloured window-pane (red, yellow, green or blue) identified each main door. A food reward associated with an artificial plant was always placed inside the left-hand section of the red-door chamber. The position of food-reward and plant within the red-door chamber was fixed. A test fish would have to explore the maze by taking turns and locate the food inside the right-side section of the red-door chamber. Fishes were sorted from each population stock and kept individually in separate containers for identification. At a time, a test fish was released into the arena and allowed 20 minutes to explore in order to find the food-reward. In this way, individual fishes were trained through the maze to locate the food reward for eight consecutive days. The position of red door, with the plant and the reward, was shuffled every day. Following training, an intermission of four days was given during which the fishes were not subjected to trials. Post-intermission, the fishes were re-tested on the 13th day following the same protocol for their ability to remember the learnt task. Exploratory tendencies and latency of individuals to explore on 1st day of training, performance time across trials, and number of mistakes made each day were recorded. Additionally, mechanism used by individuals to solve the maze each day was analyzed across populations. Fishes could be expected to use algorithm (sequence of turns) or associative cues in locating the food reward. Individuals of populations did not differ significantly in latencies and tendencies to explore. No relationship was found between exploration and learning across populations. High habitat-complexity populations had higher rates of learning & stronger memory while low habitat-complexity populations had lower rates of learning and much reduced abilities to remember. High habitat-complexity populations used associative cues more than algorithm for learning and remembering while low habitat-complexity populations used both equally. The study, therefore, helped understand the role of natural ecology in explaining variations in spatial learning abilities across populations.

Keywords: algorithm, associative cue, habitat complexity, population, spatial learning

Procedia PDF Downloads 288

Authors: R. M. López-Gutiérrez, J. A. Michel-Macarty, H. Cervantes-De Avila, J. I. Nieto-Hipólito, C. Cruz-Hernández, L. Cardoza-Avendaño, S. Cortiant-Velez

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It is well know that mankind benefits from the application of robot control by virtual handlers in industrial environments. In recent years, great interest has emerged in the control of multiple robots in order to carry out collective tasks. One main trend is to copy the natural organization that some organisms have, such as, ants, bees, school of fish, birds’ migration, etc. Surely, this collaborative work, results in better outcomes than those obtain in an isolated or individual effort. This topic has a great drive because collaboration between several robots has the potential capability of carrying out more complicated tasks, doing so, with better efficiency, resiliency and fault tolerance, in cases such as: coordinate navigation towards a target, terrain exploration, and search-rescue operations. In this work, synchronization of multiple autonomous robots is shown over a variety of coupling topologies: star, ring, chain, and global. In all cases, collective synchronous behavior is achieved, in the complex networks formed with mobile robots. Nodes of these networks are modeled by a mass using Matlab to simulate them.

Keywords: robots, synchronization, bidirectional, coordinate navigation

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Authors: Girish M. Bhatia

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Most of the important structures in refinery complex are RCC Structures for which in-depth structural monitoring and inspection is required for incessant service. Reinforced concrete structures can be under threat from a combination of insidious challenges due to environmental conditions, including temperature and humidity that lead to accelerated deterioration mechanisms like carbonation, as well as marine exposure, above and below ground structures can experience ingress from aggressive ground waters carrying chlorides and sulphates leading to unexpected deterioration that threaten the integrity of a vital structural asset. By application of health monitoring techniques like corrosion monitoring with help of sensor probes, visual inspection of high rise structures with help of drones, it is possible to establish an early warning at the onset of these destructive processes.

Keywords: concrete structures, corrosion sensors, drones, health monitoring

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Authors: Marine Shavlakadze

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From the raw material base existed in Georgia (manganese ores, manganese containing mud), particularly, within the point of view of production availability, especial interest is paid to micro- fertilizers containing manganese. As a result of conducted investigation, there was established receiving of such manganese containing materials on the basis of manganese raw-material base (ore, mud) existed in Georgia, which shall be able to maximally provide assimilation ability of manganese, as microelement, in the desired period of time. And also, determinant of effectiveness and competitiveness of received materials with new composition shall become high content (more than 30%) of microelements in them (in comparison with existed similar products), when the total sum of useful components presented in them (active i.e. assimilated) is more than 50-70%, i.e. received materials belong to the materials having low-ballast and functionally revealed possibilities.

Keywords: manganese, fertilizers, non-ballast, micro- fertilizers

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Authors: Ana C. Ramos Valdivia, Ileana Vera-Reyes, Ariana A. Huerta-Heredia

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The conditions of biotic and abiotic stress in plants can lead to the generation of high amounts of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which leads through a signaling cascade and second messengers to different antioxidant defense responses including the production of secondary metabolites. A limited number of species of plants like Uncaria tomentosa (cat claw) typical of the Amazon region produce monoterpenoid oxindole alkaloids (MOA) such as isopteropodine, mitraphylline, rhynchophylline and its isomers. Moreover, in cultivated roots, the glucoindole alkaloid 3α-dihydrocadambine (DHC) is also accumulated. Several studies have demonstrated that MAO has antioxidant properties and possess important pharmacological activities such as antitumor and immunostimulant while DHC, has hypotensive and hypolipidemic effects. In order the study the regulatory concerns operating in MAO production, the links between oxidative stress and antioxidant alkaloid production in U. tomentosa root cultures were examined. Different amount of hydrogen peroxide between 0.2 -1.0 mM was added to 12 days old roots cultures showing that, this substance had a differential effect on the production of DHC and MOA whereas the viability remained in 80% after six days. Addition of 0.2 mM hydrogen peroxide increased approximately 65% MAO and DHC production (0,540 ± 0.018 and 0.618 ± 0.029 mg per g dry weight, respectively) relative to the control. On contrast, after the addition of 0.6 mM and 1 mM hydrogen peroxide, DHC accumulation into the roots gradually decreased to 53% and 93% respectively, without changes in MAO concentration, which was in relation to a twice increase of the intracellular hydrogen peroxide content. On the other hand, concentrations of DHC (0.1, 0.5 and 1.0 mM in methanol) demonstrated free-radical scavenging activity against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical. The calculated IC50 for all tested concentrations was 0.180 mg per ml (0.33 mM) while the calculated TE50 was 276 minutes. Our results suggest that U. tomentosa root cultures both MAO and DHC have antioxidant capacities and respond to oxidative stress with a stimulation of their production; however, in presence of a higher concentration of ROS into the roots, DHC could be oxidized.

Keywords: monoterpenoid indole alkaloid, oxidative stress, root cultures, uncaria tomentosa

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Authors: Yan Li, Qingxiang Meng, Bo Zhou, Zhenming Zhou

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The objective of this study was to compare the effects of ensiled mulberry leaves (EML), and sun-dried mulberry fruit pomace (SMFP) on fecal bacterial communities in Simmental crossbred finishing steers fed the following 3 diets: a standard TMR diet, standard diet containing EML and standard diet containing SMFP, and the diets had similar protein and energy levels. Bacterial communities in the fecal content were analyzed using Illumina Miseq sequencing of the V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene amplification. Quantitative real-time PCR was used to detect the selected bacterial species in the feces. Most of the sequences were assigned to phyla Firmicutes (56.67%) and Bacteroidetes(35.90%), followed by Proteobacteria(1.86%), Verrucomicrobia(1.80%) and Tenericutes(1.37%). And the predominant genera included the 5-7N15 (5.91%), CF231 (2.49%), Oscillospira (2.33%), Paludibacter (1.23%) and Akkermansia(1.11%). As for the treatments, no significant differences were observed in Firmicutes (p = 0.28), Bacteroidetes (p = 0.63), Proteobacteria (p = 0.46), Verrucomicrobia (p = 0.17) and Tenericutes (p = 0.75). On the genus level, classified genera with high abundance (more than 0.1%) mainly came from two phyla: Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes. Also no differences were observed in most genera level, 5-7N15 (p = 0.21), CF231 (p = 0.62), Oscillospira (p = 0.9), Paludibacter (p = 0.33) and Akkermansia (p = 0.37), except that rc4-4 were lower in the CON and SMFP groups compared to the EML animals (p = 0.02). Additionally, there were no differences in richness estimate and diversity indices (p > 0.16), and treatments had no significant effect on most selected bacterial species in the fecal (p > 0.06), except that Ruminococcus albus were higher in the EML group (p < 0.01) and Streptococcus bovis were lower in the CON group (p < 0.01). In conclusion, diets supplemented with EML and SMFP have little influence on fecal bacterial community composition in finishing steers.

Keywords: fecal bacteria community composition, sequencing, ensiled mulberry leaves (EML), sun-dried mulberry fruit pomace (SMFP)

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Authors: B. Makoudi, R. Ghanimi, A. Bargaz, M. Mouradi, M. Farissi, A. Kabbaj, J. J. Drevon, C. Ghoulam

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Legume species are able to establish a nitrogen fixing symbiosis with soil rhizobia that allows them, when it operates normally, to ensure their necessary nitrogen nutrition. This biological process needs high phosphorus (P) supply and consequently it is limited under low phosphorus availability. To overcome this constraint, legume-rhizobia symbiosis develops many mechanisms to increase P availability in the rhizosphere and also the efficiency of P fertilizers. The objectives of our research works are to understand the physiological and biochemical mechanisms implemented by legume-rhizobia symbiosis to increase its P use efficiency (PUE) in order to select legume genotypes-rhizobia strains combination more performing for BNF under P deficiency. Our studies were carried out on two grain legume species, common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) and faba bean (Vicia faba) tested in farmers’ fields and in experimental station fewer than two soil phosphorus levels. Under field conditions, the P deficiency caused a significant decrease of Plant and nodule biomasses in all of the tested varieties with a difference between them. This P limitation increased the contents of available P in the rhizospheric soils that was positively correlated with the increase of phosphatases activities in the nodules and the rhizospheric soil. Some legume genotypes showed a significant increase of their P use efficiency under P deficiency. The P solubilization test showed that some rhizobia strains isolated from Haouz region presented an important capacity to grow on solid and liquid media with tricalcium phosphate as the only P source and their P solubilizing activity was confirmed by the assay of the released P in the liquid medium. Also, this P solubilizing activity was correlated with medium acidification and the excretion of acid phosphatases and phytases in the medium. Thus, we concluded that medium acidification and excretion of phosphatases in the rhizosphere are the prominent reactions for legume-rhizobia symbiosis to improve its P nutrition.

Keywords: legume, phosphorus deficiency, rhizobia, rhizospheric soil

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Authors: Wilailak Siripornadulsil, Siriyanapat Tasaku, Jutamas Buahorm, Surasak Siripornadulsil

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The objectives of this study were to isolate LAB from various sources, dietary supplement, Thai traditional fermented food, and freshwater fish and to characterize their potential as probiotic cultures. Out of 1,558 isolates, 730 were identified as LAB based on isolation on MRS agar supplemented with a bromocresol purple indicator and CaCO3 and gram-positive, catalase and oxidase negative characteristics. Eight isolates showed the potential probiotic properties including tolerance to acid, bile salt and heat, proteolytic, amylolytic and lipolytic activities and oxalate-degrading capability. They all showed the antimicrobial activity against some Gram-negative and Gram-positive pathogenic bacteria. Based on 16S rDNA sequence analysis, they were identified as Enterococcus faecalis BT2 and MG30, Leconostoc mesenteroides SW64 and Pediococcus pentosaceous BD33, CF32, NP6, PS34 and SW5. The health beneficial effects and food safety will be further investigated and developed as a probiotic or protective culture used in Nile tilapia belly flap meat fermentation.

Keywords: probiotic, lactic acid bacteria, pathogen, protective culture

Procedia PDF Downloads 382

Authors: Jamilah Syafawati Yaacob, Muhammad Aiman Ramli

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Cili padi or Capsicum frutescens is one of capsicum species from nightshade family, Solanaceae. It is famous in Malaysia and is widely used as a food ingredient. Capsicum frutescens also possess vast medicinal properties. The objectives of this study are to determine the most optimum 2,4-D hormone concentration for callus induction from stem explants C. frutescens and the effects of different 2,4-D concentrations on expression of compounds from C. frutescens. Seeds were cultured on MS media without hormones (MS basal media) to yield aseptic seedlings of this species, which were then used to supply explant source for subsequent tissue culture experiments. Stem explants were excised from aseptic seedlings and cultured on MS media supplemented with various concentrations (0.1, 0.3 and 0.5 mg/L) of 2,4-D to induce formation of callus. Fresh weight, dry weight and callus growth percentage in all samples were recorded. The highest mean of dry weight was observed in MS media supplemented with 0.5 mg/L 2,4-D, where 0.4499 ± 0.106 g of callus was produced. The highest percentage of callus growth (16.4%) was also observed in cultures supplemented with 0.5 mg/L 2,4-D. The callus samples were also subjected to HPLC-MS to evaluate the effect of hormone concentration on expression of bio active compounds in different samples. Results showed that caffeoylferuloylquinic acids were present in all samples, but was most abundant in callus cells supplemented with 0.3 & 0.5 mg/L 2,4-D. Interestingly, there was an unknown compound observed to be highly expressed in callus cells supplemented with 0.1 mg/L 2,4-D, but its presence was less significant in callus cells supplemented with 0.3 and 0.5 mg/L 2,4-D. Furthermore, there was also a compound identified as octadecadienoic acid, which was uniquely expressed in callus supplemented with 0.5 mg/L 2,4-D, but absent in callus cells supplemented with 0.1 and 0.3 mg/L 2,4-D. The results obtained in this study indicated that plant growth regulators played a role in expression of secondary metabolites in plants. The increase or decrease of these growth regulators may have triggered a change in the secondary metabolite biosynthesis pathways, thus causing differential expression of compounds in this plant.

Keywords: callus, in vitro, secondary metabolite, 2, 4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid

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Authors: Andrea Giacomelli, Luciano Massetti, Elena Maggi, Antonio Raschi

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The presentation will report the activities managed during the Summer of 2017 by a team composed by staff from a University Department, a National Research Council Institute, and an outreach NGO, collecting measurements of night sky brightness and other information on artificial lighting, in order to characterize light pollution issues on portions of the Tuscan coast, in Central Italy. These activities combine measurements collected by the principal scientists, citizen science observations led by students, and outreach events targeting a broad audience. This campaign aggregates the efforts of three actors: the BuioMetria Partecipativa project, which started collecting light pollution data on a national scale in 2008 with an environmental engineering and free/open source GIS core team; the Institute of Biometeorology from the National Research Council, with ongoing studies on light and urban vegetation and a consolidated track record in environmental education and citizen science; the Department of Biology from the University of Pisa, which started experiments to assess the impact of light pollution in coastal environments in 2015. While the core of the activities concerns in situ data, the campaign will account also for remote sensing data, thus considering heterogeneous data sources. The aim of the campaign is twofold: (1) To test actions of citizen and student engagement in monitoring sky brightness (2) To collect night sky brightness data and test a protocol for applications to studies on the ecological impact of light pollution, with a special focus on marine coastal ecosystems. The collaboration of an interdisciplinary team in the study of artificial lighting issues is not a common case in Italy, and the possibility of undertaking the campaign in Tuscany has the added value of operating in one of the territories where it is possible to observe both sites with extremely high lighting levels, and areas with extremely low light pollution, especially in the Southern part of the region. Combining environmental monitoring and communication actions in the context of the campaign, this effort will contribute to the promotion of night skies with a good quality as an important asset for the sustainability of coastal ecosystems, as well as to increase citizen awareness through star gazing, night photography and actively participating in field campaign measurements.

Keywords: citizen science, light pollution, marine coastal biodiversity, environmental education

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Authors: Lynn C. Jonas

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The African continent is rich in coastal history, heritage, and culture, presenting immense potential for the development of maritime tourism. Shipping and its related components are generally associated with the maritime industry, and tourism’s link is to the various forms of nautical tourism. Activities may include cruising, yachting, visits to lighthouses, ports, harbors, and excursions to related sites of cultural, historical, or ecological significance. There have been hundreds of years of explorers leaving a string of shipwrecks along the various coastal areas on the continent in their pursuit of establishing trade routes between Europe, Africa, and the Far East. These shipwrecks present diving opportunities in artificial reefs and marine heritage to be explored in various ways in the maritime cultural zones. Along the South African coast, for example, six Portuguese shipwrecks highlight the Bartolomeu Dias legacy of exploration, and there are a number of warships in Tanzanian waters. Furthermore, decades of African countries being under colonized rule have left the continent with an intricate cultural heritage that is enmeshed in European language architecture interlinked with, in many instances, hard-fought independent littoral states. There is potential for coastal trails to be developed to follow these historical events as, at one point in history, France had colonized 35 African states, and subsequently, 32 African states were colonized by Britain. Countries such as Cameroon still have the legacy of Francophone versus Anglophone as a result of this shift in colonizers. Further to the colonized history of the African continent, there is an uncomfortable heritage of the slave trade history. To a certain extent, these coastal slave trade posts are being considered attractive to a niche tourism audience; however, there is potential for education and interpretive measures to grow this as a tourism product. Notwithstanding these potential opportunities, there are numerous challenges to consider, such as poor maritime infrastructure, maritime security concerns with issues such as piracy, transnational crimes including weapons and migrant smuggling, drug, and human trafficking. These and related maritime issues contribute to the concerns over the porous nature of African ocean gateways, adding to the security concerns for tourists. This theoretical paper will consider these trends and how they may contribute to the growth and development of maritime tourism on the African continent. African considerations of the growth potential of tourism in coastal and marine spaces are needed, particularly with a focus on embracing the continent's tumultuous past as part of its heritage. This has the potential to contribute to the creation of a sense of ownership of opportunities.

Keywords: coastal trade routes, maritime tourism, shipwrecks, slave trade routes

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Authors: Keltoum Bouherine, Olivier Leroy

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The present work is dedicated to study a three–dimensional (3D) self-consistent fluid simulation of microwave discharges of argon plasma in PECVD reactor. The model solves the Maxwell’s equations, continuity equations for charged species and the electron energy balance equation, coupled with Poisson’s equation, and Navier-Stokes equations by finite element method, using COMSOL Multiphysics software. In this study, the simulations yield the profiles of plasma components as well as the charge densities and electron temperature, the electric field, the gas velocity, and gas temperature. The results show that the microwave plasma reactor is outside of local thermodynamic equilibrium.The present work is dedicated to study a three–dimensional (3D) self-consistent fluid simulation of microwave discharges of argon plasma in PECVD reactor. The model solves the Maxwell’s equations, continuity equations for charged species and the electron energy balance equation, coupled with Poisson’s equation, and Navier-Stokes equations by finite element method, using COMSOL Multiphysics software. In this study, the simulations yield the profiles of plasma components as well as the charge densities and electron temperature, the electric field, the gas velocity, and gas temperature. The results show that the microwave plasma reactor is outside of local thermodynamic equilibrium.

Keywords: electron density, electric field, microwave plasma reactor, gas velocity, non-equilibrium plasma

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Authors: G. Nampa, M. Ndlovu

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Mutualistic relationships amongst organisms drive diversity in terrestrial ecosystems. Yet, few mutual associations have been documented in the semi-arid savannas of Africa. The levels and benefits of association between Carissa bispinosa, a medium-sized evergreen thorny shrub, and Trinervitermes trinervoides, an ecosystem engineer termite species, were studied at a semi-arid savanna setting in Nylsvley nature reserve, South Africa. It was hypothesized that there would be a close plant-insect association since termite mounds provide nutrients for plant growth and, in return, the thorny shrubs protect mounds from predation and also provide a temperature buffer. Comparative plant and mounds measurements were taken from associated and isolated occurrences seasonally. Soil particle size, macro- and micronutrients were also evaluated from mounds and the adjacent topsoil matrix General Additive Mixed Models were used to assess internal mound temperatures in relation to prevailing ambient and plant shade temperatures. Findings revealed that plants growing on mounds were significantly taller with a wider canopy and remained greener in the dry season with more fruits. On the other hand, termite mounds under plants were less prone to be damaged by aardvarks and pangolins and had a significantly wider diameter than exposed mounds. All soil macronutrients except for calcium and phosphorous were enriched in mounds relative to the matrix. Only Manganese was enriched in mounds while the other micronutrients (Cu, Fe, Zn and B) were not. Termite mounds under plants maintained a better constant and higher mean internal temperature during winter compared to exposed mounds. To our best knowledge, the study has revealed a previously undocumented survival mechanism that termites use to escape extreme temperatures and predation in semi-arid savannas.

Keywords: mound, mutualism, soil nutrients, termites, thermoregulation

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Authors: Kiran Nawaz, Waheed Anwar, Sehrish Iftikhar, Muhammad Nasir Subhani, Ahmad Ali Shahid

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Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) have been extensively studied and applied for the biocontrol of many soilborne diseases. These rhizobacteria are very efficient against root rot and many other foliar diseases associated with solanaceous plants. These bacteria may inhibit the growth of various pathogens through direct inhibition of target pathogens or indirectly by the initiation of systemic resistance (ISR) which is active all over the complete plant. In the present study, 20 different rhizobacterial isolates were recovered from the root zone of healthy chili plants. All soil samples were collected from various chili-growing areas in Punjab. All isolated rhizobacteria species were evaluated in vitro and in vivo against Phytophthora capsici. Different species of Bacillus and Pseudomonas were tested for the antifungal activity against P. capsici the causal organism of Root rot disease in different crops together with chili. Dual culture and distance culture bioassay were carried out to study the antifungal potential of volatile and diffusible metabolites secreted from rhizobacteria. After seven days of incubation at 22°C, growth inhibition rate was recorded. Growth inhibition rate depended greatly on the tested bacteria and screening methods used. For diffusible metabolites, inhibition rate was 35-62% and 20-45% for volatile metabolites. The screening assay for plant growth promoting and disease inhibition potential of chili associated PGPR indicated 42-100% reduction in disease severity and considerable enhancement in roots fresh weight by 55-87%, aerial parts fresh weight by 35-65% and plant height by 65-76% as compared to untreated control and pathogen-inoculated plants. Pseudomonas flourescene, B. thuringiensis, and B. subtilis were found to be the most efficient isolates in inhibiting P. capsici radial growth, increase plant growth and suppress disease severity.

Keywords: rhizobacteria, chili, phytophthora, root rot

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Authors: Suttijit Sriwatcharakul

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The bioactivity studies from the weed ethanolic crude extracts from leaf, stem, pod and root of wild spider flower; Cleoma viscosa Linn. were analyzed for the growth inhibition of 6 bacterial species; Salmonella typhimurium TISTR 5562, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853, Staphylococcus aureus TISTR 1466, Streptococcus epidermidis ATCC 1228, Escherichia coli DMST 4212 and Bacillus subtilis ATCC 6633 with initial concentration crude extract of 50 mg/ml. The agar well diffusion results found that the extracts inhibit only gram positive bacteria species; S. aureus, S. epidermidis and B. subtilis. The minimum inhibition concentration study with gram positive strains revealed that leaf crude extract give the best result of the lowest concentration compared with other plant parts to inhibit the growth of S. aureus, S. epidermidis and B. subtilis at 0.78, 0.39 and lower than 0.39 mg/ml, respectively. The determination of total phenolic compounds in the crude extracts exhibited the highest phenolic content was 10.41 mg GAE/g dry weight in leaf crude extract. Analyzed the efficacy of free radical scavenging by using DPPH radical scavenging assay with all crude extracts showed value of IC50 of leaf, stem, pod and root crude extracts were 8.32, 12.26, 21.62 and 35.99 mg/ml, respectively. Studied cytotoxicity of crude extracts on human breast adenocarcinoma cell line by MTT assay found that pod extract had the most cytotoxicity CC50 value, 32.41 µg/ml. Antioxidant activity and cytotoxicity of crude extracts exhibited that the more increase of extract concentration, the more activities indicated. According to the bioactivities results, the leaf crude extract of Cleoma viscosa Linn. is the most interesting plant part for further work to search the beneficial of this weed.

Keywords: antimicrobial, antioxidant activity, Cleoma viscosa Linn., cytotoxicity test, total phenolic compound

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Authors: Naglaa A. Abd Elkader, Haithem A. Farghali

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The present study carried out on fifteen clinical cases of different species of dogs which admitted to surgical clinic of veterinary medicine with different symptoms (Acute vomiting, hematemesis and anorexia). There was diagnostic march which including plain radiograph and endoscopic examination. Treatment was including surgical interference and endoscopic retrieval followed by medicinal treatment. This study was aimed the detection of different foreign bodies by the most suitable method according to the type of the foreign bodies.

Keywords: stomach, endoscopy, foreign bodies, dogs

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Authors: Mitsuhiro Hirai, Satoshi Ajito, Nobutaka Shimizu, Noriyuki Igarashi, Hiroki Iwase, Shinichi Takata

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Sugars and polyols are known to be bioprotectants preventing such as protein denaturation and enzyme deactivation and widely used as a nontoxic additive in various industrial and medical products. The mechanism of their protective actions has been explained by specific bindings between biological components and additives, changes in solvent viscosities, and surface tension and free energy changes upon transfer of those components into additive solutions. On the other hand, some organisms having tolerances against extreme environment produce stress proteins and/or accumulate sugars in cells, which is called cryptobiosis. In particular, trehalose has been drawing attention relevant to cryptobiosis under external stress such as high or low temperature, drying, osmotic pressure, and so on. The function of cryptobiosis by trehalose has been explained relevant to the restriction of the intra-and/or-inter-molecular movement by vitrification or from the replacement of water molecule by trehalose. Previous results suggest that the structure and interaction between sugar and water are a key determinant for understanding cryptobiosis. Recently, we have shown direct evidence that the protein hydration (solvation) and structural stability against chemical and thermal denaturation significantly depend on sugar species and glycerol. Sugar and glycerol molecules tend to be preferentially or weakly excluded from the protein surface and preserved the native protein hydration shell. Due to the protective action of the protein hydration shell by those molecules, the protein structure is stabilized against chemical (guanidinium chloride) and thermal denaturation. The protective action depends on sugar species. To understand the above trend and difference in detail, it is essentially important to clarify the characteristics of solutions containing those additives. In this study, by using wide-angle X-ray scattering technique covering a wide spatial region (~3-120 Å), we have clarified structures of sugar solutions with the concentration from 5% w/w to 65% w/w. The sugars measured in the present study were monosaccharides (glucose, fructose, mannose) and disaccharides (sucrose, trehalose, maltose). Due to observed scattering data with a wide spatial resolution, we have succeeded in obtaining information on the internal structure of individual sugar molecules and on the correlation between them. Every sugar gradually shortened the average inter-molecular distance as the concentration increased. The inter-molecular interaction between sugar molecules was essentially showed an exclusive tendency for every sugar, which appeared as the presence of a repulsive correlation hole. This trend was more weakly seen for trehalose compared to other sugars. The intermolecular distance and spread of individual molecule clearly showed the dependence of sugar species. We will discuss the relation between the characteristic of sugar solution and its protective action of biological materials.

Keywords: hydration, protein, sugar, X-ray scattering

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Authors: Manar Makhoul, Buthainah Alsalamah, Salam Lawand, Hassan Azzam

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The major storage proteins in endosperm of 33 cultivated and wild barley genotypes (H.vulgare, H. spontaneum, H. bulbosum, H. murinum, H. marinum) were analyzed to demonstrate the variation in the hordein polypeptides encoded by multigene families in grains. The SDS-PAGE revealed 13 and 17 alleles at the Hor1 and the Hor2 loci respectively, with frequencies from 0.83 to 14 and 0.56 to 13.41% respectively, while seven alleles at the Hor3 locus with frequencies from 3.63 to 30.91% were recognized. The phylogenetic analysis indicated to relevance of the polymorphism in hordein patterns as successful tool in identifying the individual genotypes and discriminating the species according to genome type. We also reported in this research complete nucleotide sequence B-hordein genes of seven wild and cultivated barley genotypes. A 152bp upstream sequence of B-hordein promoter contained a TATA box, CATC box, AAAG motif, N-motif and E-motif. In silico analysis of B-Hordein sequences demonstrated that the coding regions were not interrupted by any intron, and included the complete ORF which varied between 882 and 906 bp, and encoded mature proteins with 293-301 residues characterized by high contents of glutamine (29%), and proline (18%). Comparison of the predicted polypeptide sequences with the published ones suggested that all S-rich prolamins genes are descended from common ancestor. The sequence started at N-terminal with a signal peptide, and then followed directly by two domains; a repetitive one based on the repetition of the repeat unit PQQPFPQQ and C-terminal domain. Also, it was found that positions of the eight cysteine residues were highly conserved in all the B-hordein sequences, but Hordeum bulbosum had additional unpaired one. The phylogenetic tree of B-hordein polypeptide separated the genotypes in distinct seven subgroups. In general, the high homology between B-hordeins and LMW glutenin subunits suggests similar bread-making influences for these B-hordeins.

Keywords: hordeum, phylogenetic tree, sequencing, storage protein

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Authors: D. Díaz Fernández, I. Csízi, K. Pető, G. Nagy

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An outstanding part of the animal products are based on the grasslands, due to the fact that the grassland ecosystems can be found all over the globe. In places where economical and successful crop production cannot be managed, the grassland based animal husbandry can be an efficient way of food production. In addition, these ecosystems have an important role in carbon sequestration, and with their rich flora – and fauna connected to it – in conservation of biodiversity. The protection of nature, and the sustainable agriculture is getting more and more attention in the European Union, but, looking at the consumers’ needs, the production of healthy food cannot be neglected either. Because of these facts, the effects of two specific composts - which are officially authorized in organic farming, in Agri-environment Schemes and Natura 2000 programs – on grass yields and sward compositions were investigated in a field trial. The investigation took place in Hungary, on a natural grassland based on solonetz soil. Three rates of compost (10 t/ha, 20 t/ha, 30 t/ha) were tested on 3 m X 10 m experimental plots. Every treatment had four replications and both type of compost had four-four control plots too, this way 32 experimental plots were included in the investigations. The yield of the pasture was harvested two-times (in May and in September) and before cutting the plots, measurements on botanical compositions were made. Samples for laboratory analysis were also taken. Dry matter yield of pasture showed positive responses to the rates of composts. The increase in dry matter yield was partly due to some positive changes in sward composition. It means that the proportions of grass species with higher yield potential increased in ground cover of the sward without depressing out valuable native species of diverse natural grasslands. The research results indicate that the use of organic compost can be an efficient way to increase grass yields in a sustainable way.

Keywords: compost application, dry matter yield, native grassland, sward composition

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Authors: Mohammad Moonesun

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One of the most important future technologies is related to solar Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs). In this technical paper, some aspects of solar winged AUV design are mentioned. The case study is for Arya project. The submarine movement cyclograms, weight quotas for internal equipment, hydrodynamic test results are mentioned, and some other technical notes are discussed here. The main body is the SUBOFF type and has two hydroplanes on the both sides of the body with the NACA0015 cross section. On these two hydroplanes, two 50-W photovoltaic panel will be mounted. Four small hydroplanes with the same cross section of the NACA0015 are arranged at the stern of the body at a 90° angle to each other. This test is performed in National Iranian Marine Laboratory with the length of 402 m.

Keywords: AUV, solar, model test, hydrodynamic resistance

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Authors: A. Baaloudj, F. Samraoui, B. Samraoui

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We have been studied the reproductive ecology and dispersal of Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis for three years 2009-2011. The study of the breeding ecology of the species was undertaken at the Srigina Island (Skikda). The mean clutch size was 2.64±0.62, 2.49±0.72 and 2.37±0.77eggsin the three study years 2009-2011 respectively. Hatching success was similar for the first two years of study (53% in 2009and 54% in 2010) but significantly lower in the third year (27% in 2011). The same trend was found for the fledging success, it was 33% and 32% in 2009and 2010respectivelyandonly 14% in 2011. Cannibalism and predation by cats were the two likely causes of low reproductive success in the third year. Regarding the species dispersal, we started a banding program of the yellow-legged gulls Larus michahellis michahellis in 2009, the first scheme of its kind in North Africa. Banding of chicks was initiated at Skikda and extended, a year later, to four other colonies located along the Algerian coast. Preliminary analysis of ringed yellow-legged gulls from Algerian colonies indicates that juveniles dispersed in a north-westerly direction to the Balearic Sea, the Bay of Biscay, the Alboran Sea and the western Atlantic coast from the Bay of Cadiz to the Galician shores. Preliminary data suggested two distinct routes: gulls from the eastern North African colonies moved N/NW to eastern Spain and overland to the Bay of Biscay, a pattern of dispersal previously reported for birds from Spanish and French western Mediterranean colonies. Juveniles from western colonies seemed also to move N/NW to the Alboran Sea and the Bay of Cadiz. In Spain, where most of the dispersal took place, data suggested that Algerian gulls occupied coastal areas which are used as aestivating refuges before returning to North Africa in late autumn and winter.

Keywords: breeding ecology, population dynamic, dispersal, yellow-legged gull larus michahellis, sea bird, banding scheme, Srigina, Algeria

Procedia PDF Downloads 203

Authors: Mahmoud Huleihel, George Abu-Aqil, Manal Suleiman, Klaris Riesenberg, Itshak Lapidot, Ahmad Salman

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Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are considered to be the most common bacterial infections worldwide, which are caused mainly by Escherichia (E.) coli (about 80%). Klebsiella pneumoniae (about 10%) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (about 6%). Although antibiotics are considered as the most effective treatment for bacterial infectious diseases, unfortunately, most of the bacteria already have developed resistance to the majority of the commonly available antibiotics. Therefore, it is crucial to identify the infecting bacteria and to determine its susceptibility to antibiotics for prescribing effective treatment. Classical methods are time consuming, require ~48 hours for determining bacterial susceptibility. Thus, it is highly urgent to develop a new method that can significantly reduce the time required for determining both infecting bacterium at the species level and diagnose its susceptibility to antibiotics. Fourier-Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy is well known as a sensitive and rapid method, which can detect minor molecular changes in bacterial genome associated with the development of resistance to antibiotics. The main goal of this study is to examine the potential of FTIR spectroscopy, in tandem with machine learning algorithms, to identify the infected bacteria at the species level and to determine E. coli susceptibility to different antibiotics directly from patients' urine in about 30minutes. For this goal, 1600 different E. coli isolates were isolated for different patients' urine sample, measured by FTIR, and analyzed using different machine learning algorithm like Random Forest, XGBoost, and CNN. We achieved 98% success in isolate level identification and 89% accuracy in susceptibility determination.

Keywords: urinary tract infections (UTIs), E. coli, Klebsiella pneumonia, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, bacterial, susceptibility to antibiotics, infrared microscopy, machine learning

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Authors: Funmilayo Sarah Eguakun, Peter Oluremi Adesoye

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One of the major problems being faced by human society is that the global temperature is believed to be rising due to human activity that releases carbon IV oxide (CO2) to the atmosphere. Carbon IV oxide is the most important greenhouse gas influencing global warming and possible climate change. With climate change becoming alarming, reducing CO2 in our atmosphere has become a primary goal of international efforts. Forest landsare major sink and could absorb large quantities of carbon if the trees are judiciously managed. The study aims at estimating the carbon sequestration capacity of Pinus caribaea (pine)and Tectona grandis (Teak) under the prevailing environmental conditions and exploring tree growth variables that influencesthe carbon sequestration capacity in Omo Forest Reserve, Ogun State, Nigeria. Improving forest management by manipulating growth characteristics that influences carbon sequestration could be an adaptive strategy of forestry to climate change. Random sampling was used to select Temporary Sample Plots (TSPs) in the study area from where complete enumeration of growth variables was carried out within the plots. The data collected were subjected to descriptive and correlational analyses. The results showed that average carbon stored by Pine and Teak are 994.4±188.3 Kg and 1350.7±180.6 Kg respectively. The difference in carbon stored in the species is significant enough to consider choice of species relevant in climate change adaptation strategy. Tree growth variables influence the capacity of the tree to sequester carbon. Height, diameter, volume, wood density and age are positively correlated to carbon sequestration. These tree growth variables could be manipulated by the forest manager as an adaptive strategy for climate change while plantations of high wood density speciescould be relevant for management strategy to increase carbon storage.

Keywords: adaptation, carbon sequestration, climate change, growth variables, wood density

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Authors: Ramatu I. Sha’aba, Mathias A. Chia, Abdullahi B. Alhassan, Yisa A. Gana, Ibrahim M. Gadzama

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Globally, Diclofenac (DLC) and Ibuprofen (IBU) are the most prescribed drugs due to their antipyretic and analgesic properties. They are, however, highly toxic at elevated doses, with the involvement of an already described oxidative stress pathway. As a result, there is rising concern about the ecological fate of analgesics on non-target organisms such as Daphnia magna and Phytoplankton species. Phytoplankton is a crucial component of the aquatic ecosystem that serves as the primary producer at the base of the food chain. However, the increasing presence and levels of micropollutants such as these analgesics can disrupt their community structure, dynamics, and ecosystem functions. This study presents a comprehensive series of the physiology, antioxidant response, immobilization, and risk assessment of Diclofenac and Ibuprofen’s effects on Daphnia magna and the Phytoplankton community using a laboratory approach. The effect of DLC and IBU at 27.16 µg/L and 20.89 µg/L, respectively, for a single exposure and 22.39 µg/L for combined exposure of DLC and IBU for the experimental setup. The antioxidant response increased with increasing levels of stress. The highest stressor to the organism was 1000 µg/L of DLC and 10,000 µg/L of IBU. Peroxidase and glutathione -S-transferase activity was higher for Diclofenac + Ibuprofen. The study showed 60% and 70% immobilization of the organism at 1000 g L-1 of DLC and IBU. The two drugs and their combinations adversely impacted Phytoplankton biomass with increased exposure time. However, combining the drugs resulted in more significant adverse effects on physiological and pigment content parameters. The risk assessment calculation for the risk quotient and toxic unit of the analgesic reveals from this study was RQ Diclofenac = 8.41, TU Diclofenac = 3.68, and RQ Ibuprofen = 718.05 and TU Ibuprofen = 487.70. Hence, these findings demonstrate that the current exposure concentrations of Diclofenac and Ibuprofen can immobilize D. magna. This study shows the dangers of multiple drugs in the aquatic environment because their combinations could have additive effects on the structure and functions of Phytoplankton and are capable of immobilizing D. magna.

Keywords: algae, analgesic drug, daphnia magna, toxicity

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Authors: Osamu Komori, Shinto Eguchi, Hiroshi Okamura, Momoko Ichinokawa

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The long time-series data on population assessments are essential for global ecosystem assessment because the temporal change of biomass in such a database reflects the status of global ecosystem properly. However, the available assessment data usually have limited sample sizes and the ratio of populations with low abundance of biomass (collapsed) to those with high abundance (non-collapsed) is highly imbalanced. To allow for the imbalance and uncertainty involved in the ecological data, we propose a binary regression model with mixed effects for inferring ecosystem status through an asymmetric logistic model. In the estimation equation, we observe that the weights for the non-collapsed populations are relatively reduced, which in turn puts more importance on the small number of observations of collapsed populations. Moreover, we extend the asymmetric logistic regression model using propensity score to allow for the sample biases observed in the labeled and unlabeled datasets. It robustified the estimation procedure and improved the model fitting.

Keywords: double robust estimation, ecological binary data, mixed effect logistic regression model, propensity score

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Authors: Ouassila Bekkal Brikci Benhabib, Zahia Boucherit Otmani, Kebir Boucherit, A. Seghir

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The establishment of intravenous catheters in hospitalized patient is an act common in many clinical situations. These therapeutic tools, from their insertion in the body, represent gateways including fungal germs prone. The latter can generate the growth of biofilms, which can be the cause of fungal infection. Faced with this problem, we conducted a study at the University Hospital of Tlemcen in the neurosurgery unit and aims to isolate and identify Candida yeasts from intravenous catheters. Then test their ability to form biofilms. Materials and methods: 256 patient hospitalized in surgery of the hospital in west Algeria were submitted to this study. All samples were taken from peripheral venous catheters implanted for 72 hours or more days. A total of 31 isolates of Candida species were isolated. MIC and SMIC are determined at 80% inhibition by the test XTT tetrazolium measured at 490 nm. The final concentrations of antifungal agent being between 0.03 and 16 mg / ml for amphotericin B and from 0.015 to 8 mg / mL caspofungin. Results: 31 Candida species isolates from catheters including 14 Candida albicans and 17 Candida non albicans . 21 strains of all the isolates were able to form biofilms. In their form of Planktonic cells, all isolates are 100% susceptible to antifungal agents tested. However, in their state of biofilms, more isolates have become tolerant to the tested antifungals. Conclusion: Candida yeasts isolated from intravascular catheters are considered an important virulence factor in the pathogenesis of infections. Their involvement in catheter-related infections can be disastrous for their potential to generate biofilms. They survive high concentrations of antifungal where treatment failure. Pending the development of a therapeutic approach antibiofilm related to catheters, their mastery is going through: -The risk of infection prevention based on the training and awareness of medical staff, -Strict hygiene and maximum asepsis, and -The choice of material limiting microbial colonization.

Keywords: candida, biofilm, hospital, infection, amphotericin B, caspofungin

Procedia PDF Downloads 323