Search results for: substance use disorder recovery

Authors: Walter Rafael Ramos Villanueva

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The overwhelming majority of scholarship on David Chariandy’s novel Soucouyant focuses on how Adele’s dementia represents the preservation of “cultural memory” and the perniciousness of “historical trauma.” However, by metaphorizing Adele’s mental condition, these critics risk treating her dementia as mostly figurative, and they thus elide a more detailed discussion of the literal ramifications of her dementia diagnosis. To move beyond these readings, then, my paper will approach Adele’s disorder as a literal medical condition and explore how her caregiving needs affect not only her but also those around her. Soucouyant subverts traditional caregiving narratives by depicting the difficult and typically invisible labour of informal caregiving that is undertaken by the families and friends of those who are ill or otherwise disabled. Because Adele’s family is unable to access proper public healthcare resources within the community, the burden of care falls upon the protagonist and his brother, who become “parentified children.” Parentified children, according to Nancy D. Chase, are “parents to their parents, and fulfill this role at the expense of their own developmentally appropriate needs and pursuits.” The novel provides a depiction of informal caregiving that is multi-faceted and asks us to question why is it exactly that we place the burden of care on those who are not equipped to handle such pressures instead of putting the onus on the government and the public healthcare system to take care of its most vulnerable members. Ageing Studies scholar Larry Polvika notes that although policymakers often offer “pious expressions of appreciation” and acknowledge that informal caregiving is “the backbone of our long-term care system,” governmental support for these caregivers remains inadequate. It is my belief that, by showcasing the struggles of informal caregivers, Chariandy’s text combats this dangerous and empty political rhetoric.

Keywords: caregiving, dementia, literature, parentified children

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Authors: Elena Carcano, James Ball

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This work details the strategies adopted by the Italian Water Utilities during the distribution of water in emergency conditions which glide from earthquakes and droughts to floods and fires. Several water bureaus located over the national territory have been interviewed, and the collected information has been used in a database of potential interventions to be taken. The work discusses the actions adopted by water utilities. These are generally prioritized in order to minimize the social, temporal, and economic burden that the damaged and nearby areas need to support. Actions are defined relying on the Bayesian Network Approach, which constitutes the hard core of any decision support system. The Bayesian Networks give answers to interventions to real and most likely risky cases. The added value of this research consists in supplying the National Bureau, namely Protezione Civile, in charge of managing havoc and catastrophic situations with a univocal plot outline so as to be able to handle actions uniformly at the expense of different local laws or contradictory customs which squander any recovery conditions, proper technical service, and economic aids. The paper is organized as follows: in section 1, the introduction is stated; section 2 provides a brief discussion of BNNs (Bayesian Networks), section 3 introduces the adopted methodology; and in the last sections, results are presented, and conclusions are drawn.

Keywords: hierarchical process, strategic plan, water emergency conditions, water supply

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Authors: Leonardo Parra, Daniel Martínez, Jorge Pizarro, Fernando Ortega, Manuel Chacón-Fuentes, Andrés Quiroz

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Control of Dalaca pallens or blackworms, one of the most important hypogeous pest in grassland in southern Chile, is based on the use of broad-spectrum insecticides such as organophosphates and pyrethroids. However, the rapid development of insecticide resistance in field populations of this insect and public concern over the environmental impact of these insecticides has resulted in the search for other control methods. Specifically, the use of endophyte fungi for controlling pest has emerged as an interesting and promising strategy. Endophytes from ryegrass (Lolium perenne), establish a biotrophic relationship with the host, defined as mutualistic symbiosis. The plant-fungi association produces alkaloids where peramine is the main toxic substance against Listronotus bonariensis, the most important epigean pest of ryegrass. Nevertheless, the effect of peramina on others pest insects, such as D. pallens, to our knowledge has not been studied, and also its possible metabolization in the body of the larvae. Therefore, we addressed the following research question: Do larvae of D. pallens store peramine after consumption of ryegrass endophyte infected (E+)? For this, specimens of blackworms were fed with ryegrass plant of seven experimental lines and one commercial cultivar endophyte free (E-) sown at the Instituto de Investigaciones Agropecuarias Carillanca (Vilcún, Chile). Once the feeding period was over, ten larvae of each treatment were examined. Individuals were dissected, and their gut was removed to exclude any influence of remaining material. The rest of the larva's body was dried at 60°C by 24-48 h and ground into a fine powder using a mortar. 25 mg of dry powder was transferred to a microcentrifuge tube and extracted in 1 mL of a mixture of methanol:water:formic acid. Then, the samples were centrifuged at 16,000 rpm for 3 min, and the supernatant was colected and injected in the liquid chromatography of high resolution (HPLC). The results confirmed the presence of peramine in the larva's body of D. pallens. The insects that fed the experimental lines LQE-2 and LQE-6 were those where peramine was present in high proportion (0.205 and 0.199 ppm, respectively); while LQE-7 and LQE-3 obtained the lowest concentrations of the alkaloid (0.047 and 0.053 ppm, respectively). Peramine was not detected in the insects when the control cultivar Jumbo (E-) was tested. These results evidenced the storage and metabolism of peramine during consumption of the larvae. However, the effect of this alkaloid present in 'future ryegrass cultivars' (LQE-2 and LQE-6) on the performance and survival of blackworms must be studied and confirmed experimentally.

Keywords: blackworms, HPLC, alkaloid, pest

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Authors: Siti Nur Muhamad, Mohamad Abu Ubaidah Amir, Adenen Shuhada Abdul Aziz, Siti Sarah Mohd Isnan, Ainul Husna Abdul Rahman, Nur Afiqah Rosly, Roshamida Abd Jamil

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The International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments (BWM Convention) will commencing on 8 September 2017 after ratified by 51 States in September 2016. However, there is no value recovered for the treated ballast water as it simply discharged during de-ballasting. In order to evaluate value creation of treated ballast water, three seawater applications which are seawater toilet flushing, cooling tower and desalination was studied and compared with treated ballast seawater. An exploratory study was conducted in Singapore as a case study as this country is facing water scarcity issues and a busy port in the world which received more than 28 billion m3 of ballast water in 2015. Surprisingly the treatment technology between seawater toilet flushing and ballast water management has similarity as both applications use screening and disinfection process and quality standard and analysis between treated ballast water with seawater applications found that seawater toilet flushing have the same quality parameter with treated ballast water. Thus, the treated ballast water can replace the raw seawater for seawater desalination. As such, with reduction of cost for screen unit, desalination water can exceed water production by NEWater in Singapore as the cost can recover the energy needed for desalination. It can conclude that treated ballast water has high recovery value and can be reused in seawater application.

Keywords: ballast water treatment, desalination, BWM convention, ballast water management

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Authors: Bruno Di Pace, Roxanne H. Padley

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Aims: The recent increase in remote video interaction has increased the number of requests for teleconsultations with plastic surgeons in private practice (70% in the UK and 64% in the USA). This study investigated the motivations for such an increase and the underlying psychological impact on patients. Method: An anonymous web-based poll of 8 questions was designed and distributed to patients seeking cosmetic surgery through social networks in both Italy and the UK. The questions gathered responses regarding 1. Reasons for pursuing cosmetic surgery; 2. The effects of delays caused by the SARS-COV-2 pandemic; 3. The effects on mood; 4. The influence of video conferencing on body-image perception. Results: 85 respondents completed the online poll. Overall, 68% of respondents stated that seeing themselves more frequently online had influenced their decision to seek cosmetic surgery. The types of surgeries indicated were predominantly to the upper body and face (82%). Delays and access to surgeons during the pandemic were perceived as negatively impacting patients' moods (95%). Body-image perception and self-esteem were lower than in the pre-pandemic, particularly during lockdown (72%). Patients were more inclined to undergo cosmetic surgery during the pandemic, both due to the wish to improve their “lockdown face” for video conferencing (77%) and also due to the benefits of home recovery while in smart working (58%). Conclusions: Overall, findings suggest that video conferencing has led to a significant increase in requests for cosmetic surgery and the so-called “Zoom Boom” effect.

Keywords: cosmetic surgery, remote communication, telehealth, zoom boom

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Authors: Bruno Gontijo Batista

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This paper analyzes how the Socially Aware Design (SAwD) and the Value-oriented and Culturally Informed Approach (VCIA) design model can be used to develop an edutainment game for children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The SAwD approach seeks a design that considers new dimensions in human-computer interaction, such as culture, aesthetics, emotional and social aspects of the user's everyday experience. From this perspective, the game development was VCIA model-based, including the users in the design process through participatory methodologies, considering their behavioral patterns, culture, and values. This is because values, beliefs, and behavioral patterns influence how technology is understood and used and the way it impacts people's lives. This model can be applied at different stages of design, which goes from explaining the problem and organizing the requirements to the evaluation of the prototype and the final solution. Thus, this paper aims to understand how this model can be used in the development of an edutainment game for children with ADHD. In the area of education and learning, children with ADHD have difficulties both in behavior and in school performance, as they are easily distracted, which is reflected both in classes and on tests. Therefore, they must perform tasks that are exciting or interesting for them, once the pleasure center in the brain is activated, it reinforces the center of attention, leaving the child more relaxed and focused. In this context, serious games have been used as part of the treatment of ADHD in children aiming to improve focus and attention, stimulate concentration, as well as be a tool for improving learning in areas such as math and reading, combining education and entertainment (edutainment). Thereby, as a result of the research, it was developed, in a participatory way, applying the VCIA model, an edutainment game prototype, for a mobile platform, for children between 8 and 12 years old.

Keywords: ADHD, edutainment, SAwD, VCIA

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Authors: Huixia Shi, Can Hu, Jun Zhu, Hongling Guo, Haiyan Li, Hongyan Du

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The identification of human body fluids during forensic investigations is a critical step to determine key details, and present strong evidence to testify criminal in a case. With the popularity of DNA and improved detection technology, the potential question must be revolved that whether the suspect’s DNA derived from saliva or semen, menstrual or peripheral blood, how to identify the red substance or aged blood traces on the spot is blood; How to determine who contribute the right one in mixed stains. In recent years, molecular approaches have been developing increasingly on mRNA, miRNA, DNA methylation and microbial markers, but appear expensive, time-consuming, and destructive disadvantages. Physicochemical methods are utilized frequently such us scanning electron microscopy/energy spectroscopy and X-ray fluorescence and so on, but results only showing one or two characteristics of body fluid itself and that out of working in unknown or mixed body fluid stains. This paper focuses on using chemistry methods Raman spectroscopy and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry to discriminate species of peripheral blood, menstrual blood, semen, saliva, vaginal secretions, urine or sweat. Firstly, non-destructive, confirmatory, convenient and fast Raman spectroscopy method combined with more accurate matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry method can totally distinguish one from other body fluids. Secondly, 11 spectral signatures and specific metabolic molecules have been obtained by analysis results after 70 samples detected. Thirdly, Raman results showed peripheral and menstrual blood, saliva and vaginal have highly similar spectroscopic features. Advanced statistical analysis of the multiple Raman spectra must be requested to classify one to another. On the other hand, it seems that the lactic acid can differentiate peripheral and menstrual blood detected by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry, but that is not a specific metabolic molecule, more sensitivity ones will be analyzed in a forward study. These results demonstrate the great potential of the developed chemistry methods for forensic applications, although more work is needed for method validation.

Keywords: body fluids, identification, Raman spectroscopy, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry

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Authors: Olumuyiwa Ayoola Kokapi, Olugbenga Solomon Bello

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Dyes are organic compounds with complex aromatic molecular structure that resulted in fast colour on a substance. Dye effluent found in wastewater generated from the dyeing industries is one of the greatest contributors to water pollution. Groundnut hull (GH) is an agricultural material that constitutes waste in the environment. Environmental contamination by hazardous organic chemicals is an urgent problem, which is partially solved through adsorption technologies. The choice of groundnut hull was promised on the understanding that some materials of agricultural origin have shown potentials to act as Adsorbate for hazardous organic chemicals. The aim of this research is to evaluate the potential of groundnut hull to adsorb Crystal violet dye through kinetic, isotherm and thermodynamic studies. The prepared groundnut hulls was characterized using Brunauer, Emmett and Teller (BET), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Operational parameters such as contact time, initial dye concentration, pH, and effect of temperature were studied. Equilibrium time for the adsorption process was attained in 80 minutes. Adsorption isotherms used to test the adsorption data were Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms model. Thermodynamic parameters such as ∆G°, ∆H°, and ∆S° of the adsorption processes were determined. The results showed that the uptake of dye by groundnut hulls occurred at a faster rate, corresponding to an increase in adsorption capacity at equilibrium time of 80 min from 0.78 to 4.45 mg/g and 0.77 to 4.45mg/g with an increase in the initial dye concentration from 10 to 50 mg/L for pH 3.0 and 8.0 respectively. High regression values obtained for pseudo-second-order kinetic model, sum of square error (SSE%) values along with strong agreement between experimental and calculated values of qe proved that pseudo second-order kinetic model fitted more than pseudo first-order kinetic model. The result of Langmuir and Freundlich model showed that the adsorption data fit the Langmuir model more than the Freundlich model. Thermodynamic study demonstrated the feasibility, spontaneous and endothermic nature of the adsorption process due to negative values of free energy change (∆G) at all temperatures and positive value of enthalpy change (∆H) respectively. The positive values of ∆S showed that there was increased disorderliness and randomness at the solid/solution interface of crystal violet dye and groundnut hulls. The present investigation showed that, groundnut hulls (GH) is a good low-cost alternative adsorbent for the removal of Crystal Violet (CV) dye from aqueous solution.

Keywords: adsorption, crystal violet dye, groundnut halls, kinetics

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Authors: Qian Zhao

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With global increasing demand for phosphorus and intensively depleting reserves, it is urgent need to explore innovative approaches towards capturing phosphate from sewage, which is also an effective way to reduce phosphate contamination and avoid eutrophication of water bodies. In the present article, the superparamagnetic nano-sorbents containing Fe₃O₄ core and hafnium-modified MgAl/MgFe layered double hydroxides shell (abbreviated as MgAlHf-NP and MgFeHf-NP) was developed using a simple and low-cost synthesis protocol. The obtained Hf-coated nano-materials showed well-defined crystal structure and sufficient saturation magnetization and exhibited higher adsorption capacity for phosphate. Meanwhile, high selectivity was also confirmed since coexisting foreign anions and biomacromolecules showed little competitive effect on phosphate adsorption. The enhancement via doping with Hf should be explained by the stronger ligand complexation built by the pair of hard acid Hf ion and hard base phosphate that matched up the bonding preferences. Sufficient OH⁻ concentration and clear pH shift during the desorption/regeneration allowed for regeneration rate of higher than 90% after 5 cycles of adsorption desorption. This article attempts to provide a competitive candidate for phosphate-capture, which is highly effective, easily separable and repeatedly usable.

Keywords: phosphate recovery, nanoparticles, superparamagnetic, adsorption, reusability

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Authors: Solomon Ngoako Mabapa, Selekane Ananias Motadi, Nteseng Mailula, Hlekani Vanessa Mbhatsani, Lindelani Fhumudzani Mushaphi

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Background: South Africa has indeed made good progress towards IDD elimination, as far as implementation of salt iodization and coverage of iodized salt are concerned, the education and promotion aspects of the iodized salt intervention are seriously lacking. Objective: To determine the iodine nutritional knowledge of food handlers at primary schools under the National School Nutrition Programme in Capricorn and Waterberg district. Design: This study included 300 food handlers recruited from 95 primary schools in Capricorn district and 105 primary schools in Waterberg district, Limpopo Province, South Africa. Primary schools and study participants where conveniently selected. The data was collected by means of a structured questionnaire. Information obtained was on the socio-demographic characteristics of the participants, general knowledge on salt fortification and knowledge test. Results: The iodine knowledge for the food handlers in two districts was poor with the entire population’s iodine nutritional knowledge of 12% on the Lickert scale. The mean score on the Lickert scale for Capricorn and Waterberg districts was 17% and 8.6% respectively indicated poor iodine nutritional knowledge. Conclusion: The two districts had poor iodine nutritional knowledge. Giving nutrition education to the public on the importance of iodine and the consequences of iodine deficiency disorder (IDD) and continue advocacy on mass media on the iodine fortification as an intervention strategy to combat the escalating problem of micronutrient malnutrition control.

Keywords: food handlers, nutritional knowledge, iodine, National School Nutrition Programme

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Authors: Umedov Mekhroz, Griaznova Svetlana

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In connection with the growth of oncological diseases, the design of centers for diagnostics and the production of radiopharmaceuticals is the most relevant area of healthcare facilities. The design of new nuclear medicine centers should be carried out from the standpoint of solving the following tasks: the availability of medical care, functionality, environmental friendliness, sustainable development, improving the safety of drugs, the use of which requires special care, reducing the rate of environmental pollution, ensuring comfortable conditions for the internal microclimate, adaptability. The purpose of this article is to substantiate architectural and planning solutions, formulate recommendations and principles for the design of nuclear medicine centers and determine the connections between the production and medical functions of a building. The advantages of combining the production of radiopharmaceuticals and the department of medical care: less radiation activity is accumulated, the cost of the final product is lower, and there is no need to hire a transport company with a special license for transportation. A medical imaging department is a structural unit of a medical institution in which diagnostic procedures are carried out in order to gain an idea of the internal structure of various organs of the body for clinical analysis. Depending on the needs of a particular institution, the department may include various rooms that provide medical imaging using radiography, ultrasound diagnostics, and the phenomenon of nuclear magnetic resonance. The production of radiopharmaceuticals is an object intended for the production of a pharmaceutical substance containing a radionuclide and intended for introduction into the human body or laboratory animal for the purpose of diagnosis, evaluation of the effectiveness of treatment, or for biomedical research. The research methodology includes the following subjects: study and generalization of international experience in scientific research, literature, standards, teaching aids, and design materials on the topic of research; An integrated approach to the study of existing international experience of PET / CT scan centers and the production of radiopharmaceuticals; Elaboration of graphical analysis and diagrams based on the system analysis of the processed information; Identification of methods and principles of functional zoning of nuclear medicine centers. The result of the research is the identification of the design principles of nuclear medicine centers with the functions of the production of radiopharmaceuticals and the department of medical imaging. This research will be applied to the design and construction of healthcare facilities in the field of nuclear medicine.

Keywords: architectural planning solutions, functional zoning, nuclear medicine, PET/CT scan, production of radiopharmaceuticals, radiotherapy

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Authors: Kate Parkinson

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A Family Group Conference (FGC) is a family-led decision-making process through which a family/kinship group, rather than the professionals involved, is asked to develop a plan for the care or the protection of children in the family. In England and Wales, FGCs are used in 76% of local authorities and in recent years, have tended to be used in cases where the local authority are considering the court process to remove children from their immediate family, to explore kinship alternatives to local authority care. Some local authorities offer the service much earlier, when families first come to the attention of children's social care, in line with research that suggests the earlier an FGC is held, the more likely they are to be successful. Family plans that result from FGCs are different from professional plans in that they are unique to a family and, as a result, reflect the diversity of families. Despite the fact that FGCs are arguable the most researched area of social work globally, there is a dearth of research that examines the nature of family plans and their substance. This paper presents the findings of a documentary analysis of 42 Early Help FGC plans from local authorities in England, with the aim of exploring the level and type of support that family members offer at a FGC. A thematic analysis identified 5 broad areas of support: Practical Support, Building Relationships, Child-care Support, Emotional Support and Social Support. In the majority of cases, family members did not want or ask for any formal support from the local authority or other agencies. Rather, the families came together to agree a plan of support, which was within the parameters of the resources that they as a family could provide. Perhaps then the role of the Early Help professional should be one of a facilitating and enabling role, to support families to develop plans that address their own specific difficulties, rather than the current default option, which is to either close the case because the family do not meet service thresholds or refer to formal support if they do, which may offer very specific support, have rigid referral criteria, long waiting lists and may not reflect the diverse and unique nature of families. FGCs are argued to be culturally appropriate social work practices in that they are appropriate for families from a range of cultural backgrounds and can be adapted to meet particular cultural needs. Furthermore, research on the efficacy of FGCs at an Early Help Level has demonstrated that Early Help FGCs have the potential to address difficulties in family life and prevent the need for formal support services, which are potentially stigmatising and do not reflect the uniqueness and diversity of families. The paper concludes with a recommendation for the use of FGCs across Early Help Services in England and Wales.

Keywords: family group conferences, family led decision making, early help, prevention

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Authors: Candra Irawan, David Yudianto, Ahsanu Nadiyya, Dewi Anna Br Sitepu, Hanafi, Erna Styani

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Jelly drink was produced from a combination of both natural and synthetic materials, such as acesulfame potassium (acesulfame-K) as synthetic sweetener material. Acesulfame-K content in jelly drink could be determined by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC), but this method needed validation due to having a change on the reagent addition step which skips the carrez addition and comparison of mix mobile phase (potassium dihydrogen phosphate and acetonitrile) with ratio from 75:25 to 90:10 to be more efficient and cheap. This study was conducted to evaluate the performance of determination method for acesulfame-K content in the jelly drink by HPLC. The method referred to Deutsches Institut fur Normung European Standard International Organization for Standardization (DIN EN ISO):12856 (1999) about Foodstuffs, Determination of acesulfame-K, aspartame and saccharin. The result of the correlation coefficient value (r) on the linearity test was 0.9987 at concentration range 5-100 mg/L. Detection limit value was 0.9153 ppm, while the quantitation limit value was 1.1932 ppm. The recovery (%) value on accuracy test for sample concentration by spiking 100 mg/L was 102-105%. Relative Standard Deviation (RSD) value for precision and homogenization tests were 2.815% and 4.978%, respectively. Meanwhile, the comparative and stability tests were tstat (0.136) < ttable (2.101) and |µ1-µ2| (1.502) ≤ 0.3×CV Horwitz. Obstinacy test value was tstat < ttable. It can be concluded that the HPLC  method for the determination of acesulfame-K in jelly drink product by HPLC has been valid and can be used for analysis with good performance.

Keywords: acesulfame-K, jelly drink, HPLC, validation

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Authors: Atsuko Okazaki, Jurg Ott

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Some genetic diseases (‘digenic traits’) are due to the interaction between two DNA variants. For example, certain forms of Retinitis Pigmentosa (a genetic form of blindness) occur in the presence of two mutant variants, one in the ROM1 gene and one in the RDS gene, while the occurrence of only one of these mutant variants leads to a completely normal phenotype. Detecting such digenic traits by genetic methods is difficult. A common approach to finding disease-causing variants is to compare 100,000s of variants between individuals with a trait (cases) and those without the trait (controls). Such genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have been very successful but hinge on genetic effects of single variants, that is, there should be a difference in allele or genotype frequencies between cases and controls at a disease-causing variant. Frequent pattern mining (FPM) methods offer an avenue at detecting digenic traits even in the absence of single-variant effects. The idea is to enumerate pairs of genotypes (genotype patterns) with each of the two genotypes originating from different variants that may be located at very different genomic positions. What is needed is for genotype patterns to be significantly more common in cases than in controls. Let Y = 2 refer to cases and Y = 1 to controls, with X denoting a specific genotype pattern. We are seeking association rules, ‘X → Y’, with high confidence, P(Y = 2|X), significantly higher than the proportion of cases, P(Y = 2) in the study. Clearly, generally available FPM methods are very suitable for detecting disease-associated genotype patterns. We use fpgrowth as the basic FPM algorithm and built a framework around it to enumerate high-frequency digenic genotype patterns and to evaluate their statistical significance by permutation analysis. Application to a published dataset on opioid dependence furnished results that could not be found with classical GWAS methodology. There were 143 cases and 153 healthy controls, each genotyped for 82 variants in eight genes of the opioid system. The aim was to find out whether any of these variants were disease-associated. The single-variant analysis did not lead to significant results. Application of our FPM implementation resulted in one significant (p < 0.01) genotype pattern with both genotypes in the pattern being heterozygous and originating from two variants on different chromosomes. This pattern occurred in 14 cases and none of the controls. Thus, the pattern seems quite specific to this form of substance abuse and is also rather predictive of disease. An algorithm called Multifactor Dimension Reduction (MDR) was developed some 20 years ago and has been in use in human genetics ever since. This and our algorithms share some similar properties, but they are also very different in other respects. The main difference seems to be that our algorithm focuses on patterns of genotypes while the main object of inference in MDR is the 3 × 3 table of genotypes at two variants.

Keywords: digenic traits, DNA variants, epistasis, statistical genetics

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Authors: Shuang Qiu, Lingfeng Wang, Zhipeng Chen, Shijian Ge

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Macroalgae are considered a promising approach for wastewater treatment as well as an alternative animal feed in addition to a biofuel feedstock. Their large size and/or tendency to grow as dense floating mats or substrate-attached turfs lead to lower separation and drying costs than microalgae. In this study, the macroalgae species Ulva lactuca (U. lactuca) were used to investigate their capacity for treating municipal wastewaters, and the feasibility of using the harvested biomass as an alternative food source for the fruitfly Drosophila melanogaster, an animal model for biological research. Results suggested that U. lactuca could successfully grow on three types of wastewaters studied with biomass productivities of 8.12-64.3 g DW (dry weight)/(m²∙d). The secondary wastewater (SW) was demonstrated as the most effective wastewater medium for U. lactuca growth. However, both high nitrogen (92.5-98.9%) and phosphorus (64.5-88.6%) removal efficiencies were observed in all wastewaters, particularly in primary wastewater (PW) and SW, however, in central wastewater (CW), the highest removal rates were obtained (N 24.7 ± 0.97 and P 0.69 ± 0.01 mg/(g DW·d)). Additionally, the inclusion of 20% washed U. lactuca with 80% standard fruitfly food (w/w) resulted in a longer lifespan and more stable body weights in flies. On the other hand, similar results were not obtained for the food treatment with the addition of 20 % unwashed U. lactuca. This study suggests a promising method for the macroalgae-based treatment of municipal wastewater and the biomass for animal feed.

Keywords: animal feed, flies, macroalgae, nutrient recovery, Ulva lactuca, wastewater

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Authors: Faisal Alsaaq

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Hydrographic surveys have traditionally relied on the availability of tide information for the reduction of sounding observations to a common datum. In most cases, tide information is obtained from tide gauge observations and/or tide predictions over space and time using local, regional or global tide models. While the latter often provides a rather crude approximation, the former relies on tide gauge stations that are spatially restricted, and often have sparse and limited distribution. A more recent method that is increasingly being used is Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) positioning which can be utilised to monitor height variations of a vessel or buoy, thus providing information on sea level variations during the time of a hydrographic survey. However, GNSS heights obtained under the dynamic environment of a survey vessel are affected by “non-tidal” processes such as wave activity and the attitude of the vessel (roll, pitch, heave and dynamic draft). This research seeks to examine techniques that separate the tide signal from other non-tidal signals that may be contained in GNSS heights. This requires an investigation of the processes involved and their temporal, spectral and stochastic properties in order to apply suitable recovery techniques of tide information. In addition, different post-mission and near real-time GNSS positioning techniques will be investigated with focus on estimation of height at ocean. Furthermore, the study will investigate the possibility to transfer the chart datums at the location of tide gauges.

Keywords: hydrography, GNSS, datum, tide gauge

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Authors: Juan C. Torrado, Javier Gomez, Guadalupe Montero, German Montoro, M. Dolores Villalba

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One of the most challenging aspects of the executive dysfunction of people with Autism Spectrum Disorders is the behavior control. This is related to a deficit in their ability to regulate, recognize and manage their own emotions. Some researchers have developed applications for tablets and smartphones to practice strategies of relaxation and emotion recognition. However, they cannot be applied to the very moment of temper outbursts, anger episodes or anxiety, since they require to carry the device, start the application and be helped by caretakers. Also, some of these systems are developed for either obsolete technologies (old versions of tablet devices, PDAs, outdated operative systems of smartphones) or specific devices (self-developed or proprietary ones) that create differentiation between the users and the rest of the individuals in their context. For this project we selected smartwatches. Focusing on emergent technologies ensures a wide lifespan of the developed products, because the derived products are intended to be available in the same moment the very technology gets popularized, not later. We also focused our research in commercial versions of smartwatches, since this way differentiation is easily avoided, so the users’ abandonment rate lowers. We have developed a smartwatch system along with a smartphone authoring tool to display self-regulation strategies. These micro-prompting strategies are conformed of pictograms, animations and temporizers, and they are designed by means of the authoring tool: When both devices synchronize their data, the smartwatch holds the self-regulation strategies, which are triggered when the smartwatch sensors detect a remarkable rise of heart rate and movement. The system is being currently tested in an educational center of people with ASD of Madrid, Spain.

Keywords: assistive technologies, emotion regulation, human-computer interaction, smartwatches

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Authors: Kyungae Jo, Eun Young Kim, Byungsoo Shin, Kwang Soon Shin, Hyung Joo Suh

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Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) are amino acids of digested nutrients or food ingredients and these can possibly be utilized as non-pharmacologic treatment for sleep disorder. We previously investigated the GABA/5-HTP mixture is the principal concept of sleep-promoting and activity-repressing management in nervous system of D. melanogaster. Two experiments in this study were designed to evaluate sleep-promoting effect of GABA/5-HTP mixture, to clarify the possible ratio of sleep-promoting action in the Drosophila invertebrate model system. Behavioral assays were applied to investigate distance traveled, velocity, movement, mobility, turn angle, angular velocity and meander of two amino acids and GABA/5-HTP mixture with caffeine treated flies. In addition, differentially expressed gene (DEG) analyses from next generation sequencing (NGS) were applied to investigate the signaling pathway and functional interaction network of GABA/5-HTP mixture administration. GABA/5-HTP mixture resulted in significant differences between groups related to behavior (p < 0.01) and significantly induced locomotor activity in the awake model (p < 0.05). As a result of the sequencing, the molecular function of various genes has relationship with motor activity and biological regulation. These results showed that GABA/5-HTP mixture administration significantly involved the inhibition of motor behavior. In this regard, we successfully demonstrated that using a GABA/5-HTP mixture modulates locomotor activity to a greater extent than single administration of each amino acid, and that this modulation occurs via the neuronal system, neurotransmitter release cycle and transmission across chemical synapses.

Keywords: sleep, γ-aminobutyric acid, 5-hydroxytryptophan, Drosophila melanogaster

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Authors: Maria Margoudi, Zacharoula Smyraniou

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The current paper presents the results of a conducted case study, which was part of the author’s master thesis. During the past few years the number of children diagnosed with Learning Difficulties has drastically augmented and especially the cases of ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). One of the core characteristics of ADHD is a deficit in working memory functions. The review of the literature indicates a plethora of educational software that aim at training and enhancing the working memory. Nevertheless, in the current paper, the possibility of using for the same purpose free, online games will be explored. Another issue of interest is the potential effect of the working memory training to the core symptoms of ADHD. In order to explore the abovementioned research questions, three digital tests are employed, all of which are developed on the E-slate platform by the author, in order to check the level of ADHD’s symptoms and to be used as diagnostic tools, both in the beginning and in the end of the case study. The tools used during the main intervention of the research are free online games for the training of working memory. The research and the data analysis focus on the following axes: a) the presence and the possible change in two of the core symptoms of ADHD, attention and impulsivity and b) a possible change in the general cognitive abilities of the individual. The case study was conducted with the participation of a thirteen year-old, female student, diagnosed with ADHD, during after-school hours. The results of the study indicate positive changes both in the levels of attention and impulsivity. Therefore we conclude that the training of working memory through the use of free, online games has a positive impact on the characteristics of ADHD. Finally, concerning the second research question, the change in general cognitive abilities, no significant changes were noted.

Keywords: ADHD, attention, impulsivity, online games

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Authors: Junwen Chen, Celina Feleppa, Tingyue Sun, Satoko Sasagawa, Michael Smithson

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School refusal behaviours refer to behaviours to avoid school attendance, chronic lateness in arriving at school, or regular early dismissal. Poor attendance in schools is highly correlated with anxiety, depression, suicide attempts, delinquency, violence, and substance use and abuse. Poor attendance is also a strong indicator of lower achievement in school, as well as problematic social-emotional development. Long-term consequences of school refusal behaviours include fewer opportunities for higher education, employment, and social difficulties, and high risks of later psychiatric illness. Given its negative impacts on youth educational outcomes and well-being, a thorough understanding of factors that are involved in the development of this phenomenon is warranted for developing effective management approaches. This study investigated parental and adolescent factors that may contribute to school refusal behaviours by specifically focusing on the role of parental and adolescents’ anxiety and depression, emotion dysregulation, and parental rearing style. Findings are expected to inform the identification of both parental and adolescents’ factors that may contribute to school refusal behaviours. This knowledge will enable novel and effective approaches that incorporate these factors to managing school refusal behaviours in adolescents, which in turn improve their school and daily functioning. Results are important for an integrative understanding of school refusal behaviours. Furthermore, findings will also provide information for policymakers to weigh the benefits of interventions targeting school refusal behaviours in adolescents. One-hundred-and-six adolescents aged 12-18 years (mean age = 14.79 years old, SD = 1.78, males = 44) and their parents (mean age = 47.49 years old, SD = 5.61, males = 27) completed an online questionnaire measuring both parental and adolescents’ anxiety, depression, emotion dysregulation, parental rearing styles, and adolescents’ school refusal behaviours. Adolescents with school refusal behaviours reported greater anxiety and depression, with their parents showing greater emotion dysregulation. Parental emotion dysregulation and adolescents’ anxiety and depression predicted school refusal behaviours independently. To date, only limited studies have investigated the interplay between parental and youth factors in relation to youth school refusal behaviours. Although parental emotion dysregulation has been investigated in relation to youth emotion dysregulation, little is known about its role in the context of school refusal. This study is one of the very few that investigated both parental and adolescent factors in relation to school refusal behaviours in adolescents. The findings support the theoretical models that emphasise the role of youth and parental psychopathology in school refusal behaviours. Future management of school refusal behaviours should target adolescents’ anxiety and depression while incorporating training for parental emotion regulation skills.

Keywords: adolescents, school refusal behaviors, parental factors, anxiety and depression, emotion dysregulation

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Authors: Ami Okabe, Daisuke Gondo, Akira Ogawa, Yasuhisa Hasegawa, Koichi Sato, Sadao Araki, Hideki Yamamoto

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Membrane separation draws attention as the energy-saving technology. Pervaporation (PV) uses hydrophobic ceramic membranes to separate organic compounds from industrial wastewaters. PV makes it possible to separate organic compounds from azeotropic mixtures and from aqueous solutions. For the PV separation of low concentrations of organics from aqueous solutions, hydrophobic ceramic membranes are expected to have high separation performance compared with that of conventional hydrophilic membranes. Membrane separation performance is evaluated based on the pervaporation separation index (PSI), which depends on both the separation factor and the permeate flux. Ingenuity is required to increase the PSI such that the permeate flux increases without reducing the separation factor or to increase the separation factor without reducing the flux. A thin separation layer without defects and pinholes is required. In addition, it is known that the flux can be increased without reducing the separation factor by reducing the diffusion resistance of the membrane support. In a previous study, we prepared hydrophobic silica membranes by a molecular templating sol−gel method using cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) to form pores suitable for permitting the passage of organic compounds through the membrane. We separated low-concentration organics from aqueous solutions by PV using these membranes. In the present study, hydrophobic silica membranes were prepared on a porous alumina hollow fiber support that is thinner than the previously used alumina support. Ethyl acetate (EA) is used in large industrial quantities, so it was selected as the organic substance to be separated. Hydrophobic silica membranes were prepared by dip-coating porous alumina supports with a -alumina interlayer into a silica sol containing CTAB and vinyltrimethoxysilane (VTMS) as the silica precursor. Membrane thickness increases with the lifting speed of the sol in the dip-coating process. Different thicknesses of the γ-alumina layer were prepared by dip-coating the support into a boehmite sol at different lifting speeds (0.5, 1, 3, and 5 mm s-1). Silica layers were subsequently formed by dip-coating using an immersion time of 60 s and lifting speed of 1 mm s-1. PV measurements of the EA (5 wt.%)/water system were carried out using VTMS hydrophobic silica membranes prepared on -alumina layers of different thicknesses. Water and EA flux showed substantially constant value despite of the change of the lifting speed to form the γ-alumina interlayer. All prepared hydrophobic silica membranes showed the higher PSI compared with the hydrophobic membranes using the previous alumina support of hollow fiber.

Keywords: membrane separation, pervaporation, hydrophobic, silica

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Authors: Donna L. Roberts

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2019 marked 23 years since Purdue Pharma launched its flagship drug, OxyContin, that unleashed an unprecedented epidemic touching both celebrities and common citizens, metropolitan, suburbia and rural areas and all levels of socioeconomic status. From rural Appalachia to East LA individuals, families and communities have been devastated by a trajectory of addiction that often began with the legitimate prescription of a pain killer for anything from a tooth extraction to a sports injury to recovery from surgery or chronic arthritis. Far from being a serendipitous progression of events, the proliferation of this new breed of 'miracle drug' was instead a carefully crafted marketing program aimed at both the medical community and common citizens. This research represents and in-depth investigation of the evolution of the marketing, distribution and promotion of prescription opioids by pharmaceutical companies and its relationship to the propagation of the opioid crisis. Specifically, key components of Purdue Pharma’s aggressive marketing campaign, including its bonus system and sales incentives, were analyzed in the context of the sociopolitical environment that essential created the proverbial 'perfect storm' for the changing manner in which pain is treated in the U.S. The analyses of these series of events clearly indicate their role in first, the increase in prescription of opioids for non-terminal pain relief and subsequently, the incidence of related addiction, overdose, and death. Through this examination of the conditions that facilitated and maintained this drug crisis, perhaps we can begin to chart a course toward its resolution.

Keywords: addiction, opioid, opioid crisis, Purdue Pharma

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Authors: Mohammadreza Khanmohammadi, Noureddin Nakhostin Ansari, Soofia Naghdi

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Purpose: Our study aimed to validate single item presenteeism question (SIPQ) into the Persian language for patients with low back pain. Background information: low back pain is a common health problem, and it is one of the most prevalent disorder in working people. There are the different subjective way to evaluate the effect of back pain on work productivity that one of them is by implementing single item presenteeism question. This question has not been validated into the Persian language. Method: Patients were asked to answer SIPQ and pain from 0 to 10 according to numerical rating scale (NRS). The functional rating index was administrated to evaluate construct validity. For test-retest reliability, almost 50 patients re-completed the Persian SIPQ. The construct validity of SIPQ was assessed by analyzing Spearman rank correlation between this question and the Persian version of Functional rating index questionnaire. To analyze test-retest reliability, we assessed intraclass correlation coefficient (agreement) (ICC agreement) (two-way random effects model, single measure). Results: The SIPQ score of two groups of patients (84 males, 16 females, mean age ±SD: 33.85±11.16 years, range: 19-67 years) and healthy subjects (48 male, 2 female ones, mean age ±SD: 24.24 ±8.07 years) was statistically significant. (Mann-Whitney U =198.00, P<.001). The Spearman correlation of data showed that there is a significant correlation between Persian SIPQ score and Persian FRI band (r= .559, P<.001). The ICC was .62. So, the analysis indicated good, test-retest reliability. Conclusion: This study showed that Persian version of SIPQ is reliable and valid when applied to back pain patients.

Keywords: cross cultural adaptation, economic burden, low back pain, Persian language, translation

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Authors: Jignasha Derasari, Patel Krishna M, Modi Jignasa G.

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Chemical stability of pharmaceutical molecules is a matter of great concern as it affects the safety and efficacy of the drug product.Stability testing data provides the basis to understand how the quality of a drug substance and drug product changes with time under the influence of various environmental factors. Besides this, it also helps in selecting proper formulation and package as well as providing proper storage conditions and shelf life, which is essential for regulatory documentation. The ICH guideline states that stress testing is intended to identify the likely degradation products which further help in determination of the intrinsic stability of the molecule and establishing degradation pathways, and to validate the stability indicating procedures. A simple, accurate and precise stability indicating RP- HPLC method was developed and validated for simultaneous estimation of Amiloride Hydrochloride and Furosemide in tablet dosage form. Separation was achieved on an Phenomenexluna ODS C18 (250 mm × 4.6 mm i.d., 5 µm particle size) by using a mobile phase consisting of Ortho phosphoric acid: Acetonitrile (50:50 %v/v) at a flow rate of 1.0 ml/min (pH 3.5 adjusted with 0.1 % TEA in Water) isocratic pump mode, Injection volume 20 µl and wavelength of detection was kept at 283 nm. Retention time for Amiloride Hydrochloride and Furosemide was 1.810 min and 4.269 min respectively. Linearity of the proposed method was obtained in the range of 40-60 µg/ml and 320-480 µg/ml and Correlation coefficient was 0.999 and 0.998 for Amiloride hydrochloride and Furosemide, respectively. Forced degradation study was carried out on combined dosage form with various stress conditions like hydrolysis (acid and base hydrolysis), oxidative and thermal conditions as per ICH guideline Q2 (R1). The RP- HPLC method has shown an adequate separation for Amiloride hydrochloride and Furosemide from its degradation products. Proposed method was validated as per ICH guidelines for specificity, linearity, accuracy; precision and robustness for estimation of Amiloride hydrochloride and Furosemide in commercially available tablet dosage form and results were found to be satisfactory and significant. The developed and validated stability indicating RP-HPLC method can be used successfully for marketed formulations. Forced degradation studies help in generating degradants in much shorter span of time, mostly a few weeks can be used to develop the stability indicating method which can be applied later for the analysis of samples generated from accelerated and long term stability studies. Further, kinetic study was also performed for different forced degradation parameters of the same combination, which help in determining order of reaction.

Keywords: amiloride hydrochloride, furosemide, kinetic study, stability indicating RP-HPLC method validation

Procedia PDF Downloads 447

Authors: Yi-Ting Chen, Yu-Fang Huang, Pei-Wei Wang, Hai-Wei Liang, Chun-Hao Lai, Mei-Lien Chen

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Background: Bisphenol A (BPA) is commonly used in consumer products, such as inner coatings of cans and polycarbonated bottles. BPA is considered to be an endocrine disrupting substance (EDs) that affects normal human hormones and may cause adverse effects on human health. Pregnant women and fetuses are susceptible groups of endocrine disrupting substances. Prenatal exposure to BPA has been shown to affect the fetus through the placenta. Therefore, it is important to evaluate the potential health risk of fetal exposure to BPA during pregnancy. The aims of this study were (1) to determine the urinary concentration of BPA in pregnant women, and (2) to investigate the association between BPA exposure during pregnancy and birth outcomes. Methods: This study recruited 117 pregnant women and their fetuses from 2012 to 2014 from the Taiwan Maternal- Infant Cohort Study (TMICS). Maternal urine samples were collected in the third trimester and questionnaires were used to collect socio-demographic characteristics, eating habits and medical conditions of the participants. Information about birth outcomes of the fetus was obtained from medical records. As for chemicals analysis, BPA concentrations in urine were determined by off-line solid-phase extraction-ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with a Q-Tof mass spectrometer. The urinary concentrations were adjusted with creatinine. The association between maternal concentrations of BPA and birth outcomes was estimated using the logistic regression model. Results: The detection rate of BPA is 99%; the concentration ranges (μg/g) from 0.16 to 46.90. The mean (SD) BPA levels are 5.37(6.42) μg/g creatinine. The mean ±SD of the body weight, body length, head circumference, chest circumference and gestational age at birth are 3105.18 ± 339.53 g, 49.33 ± 1.90 cm, 34.16 ± 1.06 cm, 32.34 ± 1.37 cm and 38.58 ± 1.37 weeks, respectively. After stratifying the exposure levels into two groups by median, pregnant women in higher exposure group would have an increased risk of lower body weight (OR=0.57, 95%CI=0.271-1.193), smaller chest circumference (OR=0.70, 95%CI=0.335-1.47) and shorter gestational age at birth newborn (OR=0.46, 95%CI=0.191-1.114). However, there are no associations between BPA concentration and birth outcomes reach a significant level (p < 0.05) in statistics. Conclusions: This study presents prenatal BPA profiles and infants in northern Taiwan. Women who have higher BPA concentrations tend to give birth to lower body weight, smaller chest circumference or shorter gestational age at birth newborn. More data will be included to verify the results. This report will also present the predictors of BPA concentrations for pregnant women.

Keywords: bisphenol A, birth outcomes, biomonitoring, prenatal exposure

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Authors: Debabrata Das, Preeti Mishra

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A two-phase anaerobic process combining biohydrogen followed by biomethane (biohythane technology) serves as an environment-friendly and economically sustainable approach for the improved valorization of organic wastes. Suitability of the pure cultures like Klebsiela pneumonia, C. freundii, B. coagulan, etc. and mixed acidogenic cultures for the biohydrogen production was already studied. The characteristics of organic wastes play a critical role in biohydrogen production. The choice of an appropriate combination of complementary organic wastes can vastly improve the bioenergy generation besides achieving the significant cost reduction. Suitability and economic viability of using the groundnut deoiled cake (GDOC), mustard deoiled cake (MDOC), distillers’ dried grain with soluble (DDGS) and algal biomass (AB) as a co-substrate were studied for a biohythane production. Results show that maximum gaseous energy of 20.7, 9.3, 16.7 and 15.6 % was recovered using GDOC, MDOC, DDGS and AB in the two stage biohythane production, respectively. Both GDOC and DDGS were found to be better co-substrates as compared to MDOC and AB in terms of hythane production, respectively. The maximum cumulative hydrogen and methane production of 150 and 64 mmol/L were achieved using GDOC. Further, 98 % reduction in substrate input cost (SIC) was achieved using the co-supplementation procedure.

Keywords: Biohythane, algal biomass, distillers’ dried grain with soluble (DDGS), groundnut deoiled cake (GDOC), mustard deoiled cake (MDOC)

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Authors: Sara Gardideh, Mansoor Barati

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The mineral carbonation approach for reducing global warming has garnered interest on a worldwide scale. Due to the benefits of permanent storage and abundant mineral resources, mineral carbonation (MC) is one of the most effective strategies for sequestering CO₂. The combination of mineral processing for primary metal recovery and mineral carbonation for carbon sequestration is an emerging field of study with the potential to minimize capital costs. A detailed study of low-pressures–solid carbonation of ultramafic tailings in a dry environment has been accomplished. In order to track the changing structure of serpentine minerals and their reactivity as a function of temperature (300-900 ᵒC), CO₂ partial pressure (25-90 mol %), and thermal preconditioning, thermogravimetry has been utilized. The incongruent CO₂ van der Waals molecular diameters with the octahedral-tetrahedral lattice constants of serpentine were used to explain the mild carbonation reactivity. Serpentine requires additional thermal-treatment to remove hydroxyl groups, resulting in the chemical transformation to pseudo-forsterite, which is a mineral composed of isolated SiO₄ tetrahedra linked by octahedrally coordinated magnesium ions. The heating treatment above 850 ᵒC is adequate to remove chemically bound water from the lattice. Particles with a diameter < 34 (μm) are desirable, and thermally treated serpentine at 850 ᵒC for 2.30 hours reached 65% CO₂ storage capacity. The decrease in particle size, increase in temperature, and magnetic separation can dramatically enhance carbonation.

Keywords: particle size, thermogravimetry, thermal-treatment, serpentine

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Authors: S. Colclough, V. Costanzo, K. Fabbri, S. Piraccini, P. Griffiths

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The near Zero Energy Building (nZEB) standard is required for all buildings from 2020. The Passive House (PH) standard is a well-established low-energy building standard, having been designed over 25 years ago, and could potentially be used to achieve the nZEB standard in combination with renewables. By comparing measured performance with design predictions, this paper considers if there is a performance gap for a number of monitored properties and assesses if the nZEB standard can be achieved by following the well-established PH scheme. Analysis is carried out based on monitoring results from real buildings located in Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and Italy respectively, with particular focus on the indoor air quality including the assumed and measured indoor temperature and heating periods for both standards as recorded during a full annual cycle. An analysis is carried out also on the energy performance certificates of each of the dwellings to determine if they meet the near Zero Energy Buildings primary energy consumption targets set in the respective jurisdictions. Each of the dwellings is certified as complying with the passive house standard, and accordingly have very good insulation levels, heat recovery and ventilation systems of greater than 75% efficiency and an airtightness of less than 0.6 air changes per hour at 50 Pa. It is found that indoor temperature and relative humidity were within the comfort boundaries set in the design stage, while carbon dioxide concentrations are sometimes higher than the values suggested by EN 15251 Standard for comfort class I especially in bedrooms.

Keywords: monitoring campaign, nZEB (near zero energy buildings), Passivhaus, performance gap

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Authors: Saida Haider, Syeda Madiha

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Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a common neurological disorder characterized by motor deficits and loss of dopaminergic neurons. Oxidative stress is said to play a pivotal role in the pathophysiology of the disease. In the present study, PD was induced by injection of rotenone (1.5 mg/kg/day, s.c.) for eight days. Pistachio (800 mg/kg/day, p.o.) was given for two weeks. At the end of treatment brains were dissected out and striatum was isolated for biochemical and neurochemical analysis. Morris water maze (MWM) test and novel object recognition (NOR) task was used to test the memory function while motor behavior was determined by open field test (OFT), Kondziela inverted screen test (KIST), pole test (PT), beam walking test (BWT), inclined plane test (IPT) and footprint (FP) test. Several dietary components have been evaluated as potential therapeutic compounds in many neurodegenerative diseases. Increasing evidence shows that nuts have protective effects against various diseases by improving the oxidative status and reducing lipid peroxidation. Pistachio is the only nut that contains anthocyanin, a potent antioxidant having neuroprotective properties. Results showed that pistachio supplementation significantly restored the rotenone-induced motor deficits and improved the memory performance. Moreover, rats treated with pistachio also exhibited enhanced oxidative status and increased dopamine (DA) and 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) concentration in striatum. In conclusion, to our best knowledge, we have for the first time shown that pistachio nut possesses neuroprotective effects against rotenone-induced motor and cognitive deficits. These beneficial effects of pistachio may be attributed to its high content of natural antioxidant and phenolic compounds. Hence, consumption of pistachio regularly as part of a daily diet can be beneficial in the prevention and treatment of PD.

Keywords: rotenone, pistachio, oxidative stress, Parkinson’s disease

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Authors: Indu Chandran, Shubham Sharma, Rohan Mehta, Vipin Kizheppatt

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Unmanned aerial vehicles are increasingly being explored as the most promising solution to disaster monitoring, assessment, and recovery. Current relief operations heavily rely on intelligent robot swarms to capture the damage caused, provide timely rescue, and create road maps for the victims. To perform these time-critical missions, efficient path planning that ensures quick coverage of the area is vital. This study aims to develop a technically balanced approach to provide maximum coverage of the affected area in a minimum time using the optimal number of UAVs. A coverage trajectory is designed through area decomposition and task assignment. To perform efficient and autonomous coverage mission, solution to a TSP-based optimization problem using meta-heuristic approaches is designed to allocate waypoints to the UAVs of different flight capacities. The study exploits multi-agent simulations like PX4-SITL and QGroundcontrol through the ROS framework and visualizes the dynamics of UAV deployment to different search paths in a 3D Gazebo environment. Through detailed theoretical analysis and simulation tests, we illustrate the optimality and efficiency of the proposed methodologies.

Keywords: area coverage, coverage path planning, heuristic algorithm, mission monitoring, optimization, task assignment, unmanned aerial vehicles

Procedia PDF Downloads 188