Search results for: onset of action

Authors: Manita Ale, Ganesh P. Shivakoti, Ram C. Bastakoti

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Irrigation system, a system for enhancing agricultural productivity, requires regular maintenance in order to avoid irregular allocation of water. For maintenance of the system in long run, farmers’ participation plays a key role increasing the performance of system. The performance of any irrigation system mainly relies on various factors which affect collective action plus decision making, as well as their shared impacts. The paper consists of system level information that were collected from 12 Irrigation Systems (IS) from three-sampled districts of Nepal and the household information that were collected from 160 irrigation water users. The results reveal that, out of 12 sampled irrigation systems, only 4 systems shows high performance levels. The high performance level of those systems was characterized on the basis of adequate availability of water, good maintenance of system infrastructure, and conformance to existing rules followed. In addition, the paper compares different irrigation systems based on trust, reciprocity, cropping intensity, command area and yield as tools to indicate the importance of collective action in performance of irrigation system.

Keywords: collective action, decision-making, farmers’ participation, performance

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Authors: Sanjay Singh, Karunanithi Priyanka, Ramoji Kosuru, Raju Prasad Sharma

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Herbal drugs are well known for their mixed pharmacological activities with the benefit of no harmful side effects. The use of herbal drugs is limited because of their higher dose requirement, frequent drug administration, poor bioavailability of phytochemicals and delayed onset of action. Ficus religiosa, a potent anti-oxidant plant useful in the treatment of diabetes and cancer was selected for the study. Solid lipid nanoparticles (SLN) of Ficus religiosa extract was developed for the enhancement in oral bioavailability of stigmasterol and β-sitosterol-d-glucoside, principal components present in the extract. Hot homogenization followed by ultrasonication method was used to develop extract loaded SLN. Developed extract loaded SLN were characterized for particle size, PDI, zeta potential, entrapment efficiency, in vitro drug release and kinetics, fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, powder X-ray diffractrometry and stability studies. Entrapment efficiency of optimized extract loaded SLN was found to be 68.46 % (56.13 % of stigmasterol and 12.33 % of β-sitosteryl-d-glucoside, respectively). RP HPLC method development was done for simultaneous estimation of stigmasterol and β-sitosterol-d-glucoside in Ficus religiosa extract in rat plasma. Bioavailability studies were carried out for extract in suspension form and optimized extract loaded SLN. AUC of stigmasterol and β-sitosterol-d-glucoside were increased by 6.7-folds by 9.2-folds, respectively in rats treated with extract loaded SLN compared to extract suspension. Also, Cmax of stigmasterol and β-sitosterol-d-glucoside were increased by 4.3-folds by 3.9-folds, respectively in rats treated with extract loaded SLN compared to extract suspension. Mean residence times (MRT) for stigmasterol were found to be 12.3 ± 0.67 hours from extract and 7.4 ± 2.1 hours from SLN and for β-sitosterol-d-glucoside, 10.49 ± 2.9 hours from extract and 6.4 ± 0.3 hours from SLN. Hence, it was concluded that SLN enhanced the bioavailability and reduced the MRT of stigmasterol and β-sitosterol-d-glucoside in Ficus religiosa extract which in turn may lead to reduction in dose of Ficus religiosa extract, prolonged duration of action and also enhanced therapeutic efficacy.

Keywords: Ficus religiosa, phytosterolins, bioavailability, solid lipid nanoparticles, stigmasterol and β-sitosteryl-d-glucoside

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Authors: Douglas W. Scott

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The Allemande from J. S. Bach's Partita for solo flute (BWV 1013) presents many unique challenges for any flautist, especially in terms of segmentation analysis required to select breathing places in the first half. Without claiming to identify a 'correct' solution to this problem, this paper analyzes the section in terms of a set of techniques based around a statistical property commonly (if not ubiquitously) found in music, namely Zipf’s law. Specifically, the paper considers violations of this expected profile at various levels of analysis, an approach which has yielded interesting insights in previous studies. The investigation is then grounded by considering four actual solutions to the problem found in recordings made by different flautists, which opens up the possibility of expanding Zipfian analysis to include a consideration of inter-onset-intervals (IOIs). It is found that significant deviations from the expected Zipfian distributions can reveal and highlight stylistic choices made by different performers.

Keywords: inter-onset-interval, Partita for solo flute, BWV 1013, segmentation analysis, Zipf’s law

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Authors: Helen Huang, Francisco Javier Quesada Ocet, Blanca Quesada Oce, Javier Jimenez Bello, Victor Palanca Gil, Alba Cervero Rubio, Ana Paya Chaume, Alejandro Herreros-Pomares, Fernando Vidal-Vanaclocha, Rafael Paya Serrano, Aurelio Quesada Dorador, Monica Soliman

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Background: Cancer favors both the pro-inflammatory state and autonomic dysfunction, two important mechanisms in the genesis of AF. Atrial remodeling might be caused as a result of paraneoplastic conditions or the result of direct expression of neoplasia. Here, we hypothesize that cancer, through inflammatory mediators, may favor the appearance of AF and patients with the first episode of AF could have a higher risk of developing cancer. Method: Data was collected from patients who attended the emergency department of our hospital for the first episode of AF, diagnosed electrocardiographically, between 2010-2015 (n = 712). The minimum follow-up was 2 years, recording the appearance of cancer, total mortality, recurrences of AF and other events. Patients who developed cancer and those who did not during the 2 years after the onset of AF were compared, as well as with the incidence of cancer in Spain in 2012. Results: After 2 years, 35 patients (4.91%) were diagnosed with cancer, with an annual incidence of 2.45%. Hematological neoplasms were the most frequent (34.28%). The cancer group was older (76.68 +/-12.75 years vs 74.16 +/-12.71; p <0.05) and had fewer typical symptoms (palpitations) (33.38% vs 14.28% , p <0.05). The incidence of cancer in Spain during 2012 was 0.46%, much lower than our sample. When comparing the incidence by age, these differences were maintained both in those over 65 years of age and in those under 65 years of age (2.17% vs. 0.28%; 0.28% vs. 0.18% respectively). Discussion: Therefore, a high incidence of cancer in patients with the first episode of AF was observed (the annual incidence of 2.45% after the onset of AF is 6.1 times that of the general population). After the evaluation of patients with AF in their first detected episode, surveillance of the appearance of cancer should be considered in clinical practice.

Keywords: cancer, cardiovascular outcomes, atrial fibrillation, inflammation

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Authors: Karla Lebedoff, Susan Walsh, Michelle Bain

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Eczema is a chronic atopy condition requiring long-term daily management in children. Written action plans for other chronic atopic conditions, such as asthma and food allergies, are widely recommended and distributed to pediatric patients' parents and caregivers, seeking to improve clinical outcomes and become empowered to manage the patient's ever-changing symptoms. Written action plans for eczema, referred to as "asthma of the skin," are not routinely used in practice. Parents of children suffering from eczema rarely receive a written action plan to follow, and commendations supporting eczema action plans are inconsistent. Pediatric patients between birth and 18 years old who were followed for eczema at an urban Midwest community hospital were eligible to participate in this quality improvement project. At the initial visit, parents received instructions on individualized eczema action plans for their child and completed two validated surveys: Health Confidence Score (HCS) and Patient-Oriented Eczema Measure (POEM). Pre- and post-survey responses were collected, and clinical symptom presentation at follow-up were outcome determinants. Project implementation was guided by Institute for Healthcare Improvement's Step-up Framework and the Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle. This project measured clinical outcomes and parent confidence in self-management of their child's eczema symptoms with the responses from 26 participant surveys. Pre-survey responses were collected from 36 participants, though ten were lost to follow-up. Average POEM scores improved by 53%, while average HCS scores remained unchanged. Of seven completed in-person follow-up visits, six clinical progress notes documented improvement. Individualized eczema action plans can be seamlessly incorporated into primary and specialty care visits for pediatric patients suffering from eczema. Following a patient-specific eczema action plan may lessen the daily physical and mental burdens of uncontrolled eczema for children and parents, managing symptoms that chronically flare and recede. Furthermore, incorporating eczema action plans into practice potentially reduces the likely underestimated $5.3 billion economic disease burden of eczema on the U.S. healthcare system.

Keywords: atopic dermatitis, eczema action plan, eczema symptom management, pediatric eczema

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Authors: Eva Nwokah, Casey Taliancich-Klinger, Lauren Luna, Sarah Rodriguez

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Story-retelling is a technique frequently used to assess children’s language skills and support their development of narratives. Fourteen preschool children listened to one of two stories from the wordless, illustrated Frog book series and then retold the story using the pictures. A comparison of three verb types (action, mental and other) in the original story model, and children's verb use in their retold stories revealed the salience of action events. The children's stories contained a similar proportion of verb types to the original story. However, the action verbs they used were rarely those they had heard in the original. The implications for the process of lexical encoding and narrative recall are discussed, as well as suggestions for the use of wordless picture books and the language teaching of new verbs.

Keywords: story re-telling, verb use, preschool language, wordless picture books

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Authors: Lee Rui, Rajeev Ramachandran

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The approach to recurrent fevers in the paediatric or adolescent age group is not a straightforward one. Causes range from infectious diseases to rheumatological conditions to endocrinopathies, and are usually accompanied by weight loss rather than weight gain. We present an interesting case of a 16-year-old girl brought by her mother to the General Pediatrics Clinic for concerns of recurrent fever paired with significant weight gain over 1.5 years, with no identifiable cause found despite extensive work-up by specialists ranging from Rheumatologists to Oncologists. This case provides a learning opportunity on the approach to weight gain paired with persistent fevers in a paediatric population, one which is not commonly encountered and prompts further evaluation and consideration of less common diagnoses. In a span of 2 years, the girl’s weight had increased from 55 kg at 13 years old (75th centile) to 73.9 kg at 16 years old (>97th centile). About 1 year into her rapid weight gain, she started developing recurrent fevers of documented temperatures > 37.5 – 38.6 every 2-3 days, resulting in school absenteeism when she was sent home after temperature-taking in school found her to be febrile. The rapid onset of weight gain paired with unexplained fevers prompted the treating physician to consider the diagnosis of ROHHAD syndrome. Rapid onset obesity with hypoventilation, hypothalamic dysfunction and autonomic dysregulation (ROHHAD) syndrome is a rare disorder first described in 2007. It is characterized by dysfunction of the autonomic and endocrine system, characterized by hyperphagia and rapid-onset weight gain. This rapid weight gain is classically followed by hypothalamic manifestations with neuroendocrine deficiencies, hypo-ventilatory breathing abnormalities, and autonomic dysregulation. ROHHAD is challenging to diagnose with and diagnosis is made based mostly on clinical judgement. However if truly diagnosed, the condition is characterized by high morbidity and mortality rates. Early recognition of sleep disorders breathing and targeted therapeutic interventions helps limit morbidity and mortality associated with ROHHAD syndrome. This case poses an interesting diagnostic challenge and a diagnosis of ROHHAD has to be considered, given the serious complications that can come with disease progression while conditions such as Munchausen’s or drug fever remain as diagnoses of exclusion until we have exhausted all other possible conditions.

Keywords: pediatrics, endocrine, weight gain, recurrent fever, adolescent

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Authors: Murat Emre, Zeynep Tufekcioglu

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Objective: We describe a patient with late onset phenylketonuria which presented with rapidly progressive dementia and parkinsonism that were reversible after management. Background: Phenylketonuria is an autosomal recessive disorder due to mutations in the phenylalanine hydroxlase gene. It normally presents in childhood, in rare cases, however, it may have its onset in adulthood and may mimic other neurological disorders. Case description: A previously normal functioning, 59 year old man was admitted for blurred vision, cognitive impairment and gait difficulty which emerged over the past eight months. In neurological examination he had brisk reflexes, slow gait and left-dominant parkinsonism. Mini-mental state examination score was 25/30, neuropsychological testing revealed a dysexecutive syndrome with constructional apraxia and simultanagnosia. In cranial MRI there were bilateral diffuse hyper-intense lesions in parietal and occipital white matter with no significant atrophy. Electroencephalography showed diffuse slowing with predominance of teta waves. In cerebrospinal fluid examination protein level was slightly elevated (61mg/dL), oligoclonal bands were negative. Electromyography was normal. Routine laboratory examinations for rapidly progressive dementia and parkinsonism were also normal. Serum amino acid levels were determined to explore metabolic leukodystrophies and phenylalanine level was found to be highly elevated (1075 µmol/L) with normal tyrosine (61,20 µmol/L). His cognitive impairment and parkinsonian symptoms improved following three months of phenylalanine restricted diet. Conclusions: Late onset phenylketonuria is a rare, potentially reversible cause of rapidly progressive parkinsonism with dementia. It should be considered in the differential diagnosis of patients with suspicious features.

Keywords: dementia, neurology, Phenylketonuria, rapidly progressive parkinsonism

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Authors: Norazuwin Najihah Mat Tahir, Fuziyah Ishak, Seripah Awang Kechil

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The onset of the convective instability in the horizontal through flow of a power-law nanofluid saturated by porous layer heated from below under the influences of magnetic field are investigated in this study. The linear stability theory is used for the transformation of the partial differential equations to system of ordinary differential equations through infinitesimal perturbations, scaling, linearization and method of normal modes with two-dimensional periodic waves. The system is solved analytically for the closed form solution of the Rayleigh number by using the Galerkin-type weighted residuals method to investigate the onset of both traveling wave and oscillatory convection. The effects of the power-law index, Lewis number and Peclet number on the stability of the system were investigated. The Lewis number stabilizes while the power-law index and Peclet number destabilize the nanofluid system. The system in the presence of magnetic field is more stable than the system in the absence of magnetic field.

Keywords: convection, instability, magnetic field, nanofluid, power-law

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Authors: Kourosh Modarresi

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The abundance of media channels and devices has given users a variety of options to extract, discover, and explore information in the digital world. Since, often, there is a long and complicated path that a typical user may venture before taking any (significant) action (such as purchasing goods and services), it is critical to know how each node (media channel) in the path of user has contributed to the final action. In this work, the significance of each media channel is computed using statistical analysis and machine learning techniques. More specifically, “Regularized Singular Value Decomposition”, and “Sparse Principal Component” has been used to compute the significance of each channel toward the final action. The results of this work are a considerable improvement compared to the present approaches.

Keywords: multimedia attribution, sparse principal component, regularization, singular value decomposition, feature significance, machine learning, linear systems, variable shrinkage

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Authors: Sudheer Dhume, T. Prasad

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There are distinct signs of Business Education losing its sheen. It is more so in developing countries. One of the reasons is the value addition at the end of 2 year MBA program is not matching with the requirements of present times and expectations of the students. In this backdrop, Pedagogy Innovation has become prerequisite for making our MBA programs relevant and useful. This paper is the description and analysis of innovative Action Learning pedagogical approach adopted by a group of faculty members at NITIE Mumbai. It not only promotes multidisciplinary research but also enhances integration of the functional areas skillsets in the students. The paper discusses the theoretical bases of this pedagogy and evaluates the effectiveness of it vis-à-vis conventional pedagogical tools. The evaluation research using Bloom’s taxonomy framework showed that this blended method of Business Education is much superior as compared to conventional pedagogy.

Keywords: action learning, blooms taxonomy, business education, innovation, pedagogy

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Authors: Soumia Hammadi, Imane Nouacer, Lamine Hamida, Younes A. Hammadi, Rachid Chaibi

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Aims and objective: In the present work, we investigate the impact of both acute and chronic diabetes mellitus induced by streptozotocin (STZ) on the hypothalamus of the small gerbil (Gerbillus gerbillus). In this purpose, we aimed to study the histologic structure of the gerbil’s hypothalamic supraoptic (NSO) and paraventricular nucleus (NPV) at two distinct time points: two days and 30 days after diabetes onset. Methods: We conducted our investigation using 19 adult male gerbils weighing 25 to 28 g, divided into three groups as follow: Group I: Control gerbils (n=6) received an intraperitoneal injection of citrate buffer. Group II: STZ-diabetic gerbils (n=8) received a single intraperitoneal injection of STZ at a dose of 165 mg/kg of body weight. Diabetes onset (D0) is considered with the first hyperglycemia level exceeding 2,5 g/L. This group was further divided into two subgroups: Group II-1: Experimental Gerbils, at acute state of diabetes (n=8) sacrificed after 02 days of diabetes onset, Group II-2: Experimental Gerbils at chronic state of diabetes (n=7) sacrificed after 30 days of diabetes onset. Two and 30 days after diabetes onset, gerbils had blood drawn from the retro-orbital sinus into EDTA tubes. After centrifugation at -4°C, plasma was frozen at -80°C for later measurement of Cortisol, ACTH, and insulin. Afterward, animals were decapitated; their brain was removed, weighed, fixed in aqueous bouin, and processed and stained with Toluidine Bleu stain for histo-stereological analysis. A comparison was done with control gerbils treated with citrate buffer. Results: Compared to control gerbils, at 02 Days post diabetes onset, the neuronal somata of the paraventricular (NPV) and supraoptic nuclei (NSO) expressed numerous vacuoles of various sizes, we distinct also a neuronal juxtaposition and several unidentifiable vacuolated profiles were also seen in the neuropile. At the same time, we revealed the presence of à shrunken and condensed nuclei, which seem to touch the parvocellular neurons ( NPV); this leads us to suggest the presence of an apoptotic process in the early stage of diabetes. At 30 days of diabetes mellitus, the NPV manifests a few neurons with a distant appearance, in addition the magnocellular neurons in both NPV and NSO were hypertrophied with a rich euchromatin nucleus, a well-defined nucleolus, and a granular cytoplasm. Despite the neuronal degeneration at this stage, unexpectedly, ACTH registers a continuous significant high level compared to the early stage of diabetes mellitus and to control gerbils. Conclusion: The results suggest that the induction of diabetes mellitus using STZ in the small gerbils lead to alterations in the structure and morphology of the hypothalamus and hyper-secretion of ACTH and cortisol, possibly indicating hyperactivity of the hypothalamo-pituitary adrenal axis (HPA) during both the early and later stages of the disease. The subsequent quantitative evaluation of CRH, immunehistochemical evaluation of apoptosis, and oxidative stress assessment could corroborate our results.

Keywords: diabetes type 1., streptozotocin., small gerbil., hypothalamus., paraventricular nucleus., supraoptic nucleus.

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Authors: Chloe Shu-Hua Yeh

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Effects of videogame play on players cognitive abilities is a growing research field in the recent decades, however, little is known about how ‘out-of-school’ use of videogame influences creativity. This interdisciplinary research explores the cognitive and emotional effects of two different types of online videogames (an action videogame and a non-action videogame) on subsequent creativity performances using a within-participant design study with 36 participants. Results showed that after playing the action game participants performed higher originality, elaboration and flexibility than after playing the causal game. The results explored effects of emotional states elicited during playing the games suggesting that arousal may be a significant emotional factor which influence subsequent creativity performance. The cognitive and emotional effects of videogame were discussed followed with implications for emotion-creativity-videogame play research, game designers, educational practitioners and parents.

Keywords: attentional breadth, creativity, emotion, videogame play

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Authors: Y. Khulief, S. Bashmal, S. Said, D. Al-Otaibi, K. Mansour

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The prediction of flow rates at which the vibration-induced instability takes place in tubular heat exchangers due to cross-flow is of major importance to the performance and service life of such equipment. In this paper, the semi-analytical model for square tube arrays was extended and utilized to study the triangular tube patterns. A laboratory test rig with instrumented test section is used to measure the fluidelastic coefficients to be used for tuning the mathematical model. The test section can be made of any bundle pattern. In this study, two test sections were constructed for both the normal triangular and the rotated triangular tube arrays. The developed scheme is utilized in predicting the onset of flow-induced instability in the two triangular tube arrays. The results are compared to those obtained for two other bundle configurations. The results of the four different tube patterns are viewed in the light of TEMA predictions. The comparison demonstrated that TEMA guidelines are more conservative in all configurations considered

Keywords: fluid-structure interaction, cross-flow, heat exchangers,

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Authors: Bindu I. Somarajan, Viney Gupta, Gagandeep Kaur Walia, Jasbir Kaur, Sunil Kumar, Shikha Gupta, Abadh K. Chaurasia, Dinesh Gupa, Abhinav Kaushik, Aditi Mehta, Vipin Gupta, Arundhati Sharma

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Background: Juvenile onset primary open angle glaucoma (JOAG), affects individuals under the age of 40 years. Studies on a few families of JOAG, that led to the discovery of the Myocilin gene, reported the disease to have an autosomal dominant pattern of inheritance. However, sporadic forms of JOAG been seen to be more common in some populations. Most pathological homozygous mutations in the CYP1B1 gene associated with JOAG have been seen among sporadic cases. Given the higher prevalence of sporadic JOAG cases in our population, we aimed to look for common mutations E229K and R368H, the two most common variants in the CYP1B1 gene associated with glaucoma. Objective: To determine the frequency and evaluate genotype phenotype correlation of CYP1B1 E229K and R368H mutations in a cohort of 120 sporadic Juvenile open angle glaucoma patients.Methods: Unrelated JOAG patients whose first degree relatives had been examined and found to be unaffected were included in the study. The patients and their parents were screened for E229K and R368H mutations. The phenotypic characteristics were compared between probands with and with out these mutations by SPSS v16. Results: Out of 120 JOAG patients included in the study, the E229K mutation was seen in 9 probands (7.5%) and R368H in 7 (5.8%). The average age of onset of the disease (p=0.3) and the highest untreated IOP (p=0.4) among those carrying mutations was not significantly different from those who did not have these mutations. The proportion of probands with angle dysgenesis among those with E229K and R368H mutations was 70% (11 out of 16) in comparison to 65% (67 out of 104) of those who did not harbour these mutations (p=0.56). Similarly the probands with moderate to high myopia among those with E229K and R368H mutations was 20% (3 out of 16) in comparison to 18% (18 out of 104) of those who did not harbour these mutations(p=0.59). Conclusion: The frequency of E229K and R368H mutations of the CYP1B1 gene is low even among sporadic JOAG patients. Moreover there is no clinical correlation between the presence of these mutations and disease severity

Keywords: CYP1B1, gene, IOP, JOAG, mutation

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Authors: Suneet Kathuria, Shikha Gupta, Kapil Dev, Sunil Katyal

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Chronic use of opioids in opium abusers can cause poor pain control and increased analgaesic requirement. We compared the duration of spinal anaesthesia in chronic opium abusers and non-abusers. This prospective randomised study included 60 American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Grade I or II adults undergoing surgery under spinal anaesthesia with 10 mg bupivacaine, and 25 μg fentanyl in non-opium abusers (Group A); and chronic opium abusers (Group B), and 40 μg fentanyl in chronic opium abusers (Group C). Patients were assessed for onset and duration of sensory and motor blockade and duration of effective analgesia. Mean time to onset of adequate analgesia in opium abusers was significantly longer in chronic opium abusers than in opium-naive patients. The duration of sensory block and motor block was significantly less in chronic opium abusers than in non-opium abusers. Duration of effective analgesia in groups A, B and C was 255.55 ± 26.84, 217.85 ± 15.15, and 268.20 ± 18.25 minutes, respectively; this difference was statistically significant. In chronic opium abusers, the duration of spinal anaesthesia is significantly shorter than that in opium nonabusers. The duration of spinal anaesthesia with bupivacaine and fentanyl in chronic opium abusers can be improved by increasing the intrathecal fentanyl dose from 25 μg to 40 μg.

Keywords: bupivacaine, chronic opium abusers, fentanyl, intrathecal

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Authors: Reka Zsuzsanna Mathe

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The globalization and the Europeanization have significantly contributed to a change in the role of the nation-states. The global economic crisis, the climate changes, and the recent refugee crisis, are just a few among many challenges that cannot be effectively addressed by the traditional role of the nation-states. One of the main roles of the states is to solve collective action problems, however due to their changing roles; apparently this is getting more and more difficult. Depending on political culture, collective action problems are solved either through cooperation or conflict. The political culture of Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries is marked by low civic participation and by a weak civil society. In this type of culture collective action problems are likely to be induced through conflict, rather than the democratic process of dialogue and any type of social change is probably to be introduced by social movements. Several studies have been conducted on the social movements of the CEE countries, yet, it is still not clear if the most significant social movements of the region tend to choose rather the cooperative or the conflictual way as action strategy. This study differentiates between a national and a European action field, having different social orders. The actors of the two fields are the broadly understood civil society members, conceptualized as social movements. This research tries to answer the following questions: a) What are the norms that best characterize the CEE countries’ social order? b) What type of actors would prefer a change and in which areas? c) Is there a significant difference between the main actors active in the national versus the European field? The main hypotheses are that there are conflicting norms defining the national and the European action field, and there is a significant difference between the action strategies adopted by social movements acting in the two different fields. In mapping the social order, the study uses data provided by the European Social Survey. Big data of the Global Data on Events, Location and Tone (GDELT) database offers information regarding the main social movements and their preferred type of action. The unit of the analysis is the so called ‘Visegrad 4’ countries: Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary and the research uses data starting from 2005 (after the European accession of these four countries) until May, 2017. According to the data, the main hypotheses were confirmed.

Keywords: big data, Central and Eastern Europe, civil society, GDELT, social movements

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Authors: Lisa Wilderink, Ingrid Bakker, Albertine J. Schuit, Jacob C. Seidell, Carry M. Renders

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To ensure that health behavior interventions for children living in low socioeconomic position (SEP) neighborhoods are in line with children’s wishes and needs, participation of the children in the development, implementation, and evaluation is crucial. In this paper, we show how children living in three low-SEP neighborhoods in the Netherlands can be involved in Participatory Action Research (PAR) and what influences this participation process. The Photovoice method was used and provided comprehensive information from the children’s perspectives. With the help of the community workers, the children identified feasible actions. This paper shows that it is possible to involve children from low SEP neighborhoods in a meaningful way. We found that it is important to constantly discuss the process with participants, start with a concrete question or problem and adapt the project to the local context and skills of participants

Keywords: children, healthy behavior, participatory action research, socioeconomic health inequalities

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Authors: Deon de Jager, Yahya Zweiri, Dimitrios Makris

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The three most important components in the cognitive architecture for cognitive robotics is memory representation, memory recall, and action-selection performed by the executive. In this paper, action selection, performed by the executive, is defined as a memory quantification and optimization process. The methodology describes the real-time construction of episodic memory through semantic memory optimization. The optimization is performed by set-based particle swarm optimization, using an adaptive entropy memory quantification approach for fitness evaluation. The performance of the approach is experimentally evaluated by simulation, where a UAV is tasked with the collection and delivery of a medical package. The experiments show that the UAV dynamically uses the episodic memory to autonomously control its velocity, while successfully completing its mission.

Keywords: cognitive robotics, semantic memory, episodic memory, maximum entropy principle, particle swarm optimization

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Authors: Alldila Hendy, Agi Satria

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Background: A colostomy procedure is an important part in the management of surgical procedures in some diseases involving the gastrointestinal tract. So it is necessary to find the factors that influence the occurrence of complications. Methods: This is a retrospective cross-sectional analytic study in Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital noting medical records of patients after the colostomy from January 2012 to December 2014 at the Division of Digestive Surgery. Results: In 136 cases of post-colostomy, 66 cases have complications, 14 is early-onset, and 52 is late-onset. 70 is without complications. Most complications are dermatitis, which is 31 (22.8%), cases of infection/abscess/fistula and intestinal obstruction are 13 (9.6%) and 5 patients (4.4%). A rare complication is colostomy retraction by 2 patients (1.5%), colostomy prolapse and necrosis/gangrene, which is only 3 patients (2.2%). A colostomy procedure in emergency surgery is riskier than elective surgery for complications after colostomy (p < 0.007, OR 2.85), Based on the operator who performs a colostomy procedure, the consultant had a lower risk of complications than fellow or resident (p < 0.0001). Based on the age factor, where the age of about 50 years has a risk of complications after colostomy (p < 0.018). Conclusion: The timing of operation (emergency or elective), age, and operator who perform a colostomy procedure have a significant relationship with an increased prevalence of complications after colostomy in RSCM.

Keywords: colostomy, complications, factors, procedure

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Authors: Farzaneh Badinlou, Reza Kormi-Nouri, Monika Knopf, Kamal Kharazi

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Research into long-term memory has demonstrated that the richness of the knowledge base cues in memory tasks improves retrieval process, which in turn influences learning and memory performance. The present research investigated the idea that adding cues connected to knowledge can affect memory performance in the context of action memory in children. In action memory studies, participants are instructed to learn a series of verb–object phrases as verbal learning and experience-based learning (learning by doing and learning by observation). It is well established that executing action phrases is a more memorable way to learn than verbally repeating the phrases, a finding called enactment effect. In the present study, a total of 410 students from four grade groups—2nd, 4th, 6th, and 8th—participated in this study. During the study, participants listened to verbal action phrases (VTs), performed the phrases (SPTs: subject-performed tasks), and observed the experimenter perform the phrases (EPTs: experimenter-performed tasks). During the test phase, cued recall test was administered. Semantic relational cues (i.e., well-integrated vs. poorly integrated items) were manipulated in the present study. In that, the participants were presented two lists of action phrases with high semantic integration between verb and noun, e.g., “write with the pen” and with low semantic integration between verb and noun, e.g., “pick up the glass”. Results revealed that experience-based learning had a better results than verbal learning for both well-integrated and poorly integrated items, though manipulations of semantic relational cues can moderate the enactment effect. In addition, children of different grade groups outperformed for well- than poorly integrated items, in flavour of older children. The results were discussed in relation to the effect of knowledge-based information in facilitating retrieval process in children.

Keywords: action memory, enactment effect, knowledge-based cues, school-aged children, semantic relational cues

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Authors: Ghazala Yaqub, Zubi Sadiq, Almas Hamid, Saira Iqbal

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This paper is the very first report of three dual action hybrids synthesized by covalent linkage of carbazole based novel antibacterial compounds with efflux pump inhibitors i.e., indole acetic acid/gallic acid. Novel carbazole based antibacterial compounds were prepared first and then these were covalently linked with efflux pump inhibitors which leads to the successful formation of hybrids. All prepared compounds were evaluated for their bacterial cell killing capability against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pasteurella multocida and Bacillus subtilis. Compound were effective against all tested bacterial strains at different concentrations. But when these compounds were linked with efflux pump inhibitors they showed dramatic enhancement in their bacterial cell killing potential and minimum inhibitory concentration of all hybrids ranges from 7.250 µg/mL to 0.0283 µg/mL.

Keywords: antimicrobial assay, carbazole, dual action hybrids, efflux pump inhibitors

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Authors: Saleh Alkarri, Melinda Frame, Dimple Sharma, John Cairney, Lee Maddan, Jin H. Kim, Jonathan O. Rayner, Teresa M. Bergholz, Muhammad Rabnawaz

Abstract:

Reported herein is an investigation of anti-bacterial and anti-virus properties, mode of action of Mg(OH)₂ and copper-infused Mg(OH)₂ nanoplatelets (NPs) on melt-compounded and thermally embossed polypropylene (PP) surfaces. The anti-viral activity for the NPs was studied in aqueous liquid suspensions against SARS-CoV-2, and the mode of action was investigated on neat NPs and PP samples that were thermally embossed with NPs. Anti-bacterial studies for melt-compounded NPs in PP confirmed approximately 1 log reduction of E. coli populations in 24 h, while for thermally embossed NPs, an 8 log reduction of E. coli populations was observed. In addition, the NPs exhibit anti-viral activity against SARS-CoV-2. Fluorescence microscopy revealed that reactive oxygen species (ROS) is the main mode of action through which Mg(OH)₂ and Cu-Infused Mg(OH)₂act against microbes. Plastics with anti-microbial surfaces from where biocides are non-leachable are highly desirable. This work provides a general fabrication strategy for developing anti-microbial plastic surfaces.

Keywords: anti-microbial activity, E. coli K-12 MG1655, anti-viral activity, SARS-CoV-2, copper-infused magnesium hydroxide, non-leachable, ROS, compounding, surface embossing, dyes

Procedia PDF Downloads 42

Authors: Selvamuthukumaran Thirunavukkarasu, Arivudainambi Sundararajan

Abstract:

The plant active molecules with their known mode of action are important leads to the development of newer insecticides. Lactone glycoside was identified earlier as the active principle in Cleistanthus collinus (Roxb.) Benth. (Fam: Euphorbiaceae). It possessed feeding deterrent, insecticidal and insect growth regulatory actions at varying concentrations. Deducing its mode of action opens a possibility of its further development. A no-choice leaf disc bioassay was carried out with lactone glycoside at different doses for different instars and Deterrence Indices were worked out. Using regression analysis concentrations imparting 10, 30 and 50 per cent deterrence (DI10, DI30 & DI50) were worked out. At these doses, effect on nutritional indices like Relative Consumption and Growth Rates (RCR & RGR), Efficiencies of Conversion of Ingested and Digested food (ECI & ECD) and Approximate Digestibility (AD) were worked out. The Relative Consumption and Growth Rate of control and lactone glycoside larva were compared by regression analysis. Regression analysis of deterrence indices revealed that the concentrations needed for imparting 50 per cent deterrence was 60.66, 68.47 and 71.10 ppm for third, fourth and fifth instars respectively. Relative consumption rate (RCR) and relative growth rate (RGR) were reduced. This confirmed the antifeedant action of the fraction. Approximate digestibility (AD) was found greater in treatments indicating reduced faeces because of poor digestibility and retention of food in the gut. Efficiency of conversion of both ingested and digested (ECI and ECD) food was also found to be greatly reduced. This indicated presence of toxic action. This was proved by comparing growth efficiencies of control and lactone glycoside treated larvae. Lactone glycoside was found to possess both feeding deterrent and toxic modes of action. Studies on molecular targets based on this preliminary site of action lead to new insecticide development.

Keywords: Spodoptera litura Fabricius, Cleistanthus collinus (Roxb.) Benth, feeding deterrence, mode of action

Procedia PDF Downloads 124

Authors: Y. Boudjadja, A. Amira, A. Saoudel, A. Varilci, S. P. Altintas, C. Terzioglu

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In this work, we report the effect of Y3+ doping on structural, mechanical and electrical properties of Bi-2202 phase. Samples of Bi2Sr1.9Ca0.1-xYxCu2O7+δ with x = 0, 0.025, 0.05, 0.075 and 0.1 are elaborated in air by conventional solid state reaction and characterized by X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electronic Microscopy (SEM) combined with EDS spectroscopy, density, Vickers micro-hardness and resistivity measurements. A good correlation between the variations of the bulk density and the Vickers micro-hardness with doping is obtained. The SEM photograph shows that the samples are composed of grains with a flat shape that characterizes the Bi-based cuprates. Quantitative EDS analysis confirms the reduction of Ca content and the increase of Y content when x is increased. The variation of resistivity with temperature shows that only samples with x = 0, 0.025 and 0.05 present an onset transition to the superconducting state. The higher onset transition temperature is obtained for x = 0.025 and is about 93.62 K. The transition is wide and is realized in two steps confirming then the presence of the low Tc Bi-2201 phase in the samples. For x = 0.075 and 0.1, a transition to a semiconducting state is seen at low temperatures. Some physical parameters are extracted from these curves and discussed.

Keywords: Bi-2202 phase, doping, structure, mechanical and electrical properties

Procedia PDF Downloads 296

Authors: M. P. Casiraghi, C. M. Quintella, P. Almeida

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Paraffinic oils were submitted to microbial action. The microorganisms consisted of bacteria of the genera Pseudomonas sp and Bacillus lincheniforms. The alterations in interfacial tension were determined using a tensometer and applying the hanging drop technique at room temperature (299 K ±275 K). The alteration in the constitution of the paraffins was evaluated by means of gas chromatography. The microbial activity was observed to reduce interfacial tension by 54 to 78%, as well as consuming the paraffins C19 to C29 and producing paraffins C36 to C44. The LIFirr technique made it possible to determine the microbial action quickly.

Keywords: paraffins, biosurfactants, LIFirr, microbial activity

Procedia PDF Downloads 479

Authors: Sanchita B. Sarma, M. P. Nath

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Adequate analgesia following caesarean section decreases morbidity, hastens ambulation, improves patient outcome and facilitates care of the newborn. Intrathecal magnesium, an NMDA antagonist, has been shown to prolong analgesia without significant side effects in healthy parturients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the onset and duration of sensory and motor block, hemodynamic effect, postoperative analgesia, and adverse effects of magnesium or fentanyl given intrathecally with hyperbaric 0.5% bupivacaine in patients with mild preeclampsia undergoing caesarean section. Sixty women with mild preeclampsia undergoing elective caesarean section were included in a prospective, double blind, controlled trial. Patients were randomly assigned to receive spinal anesthesia with 2 mL 0.5% hyperbaric bupivacaine with 12.5 µg fentanyl (group F) or 0.1 ml of 50% magnesium sulphate (50 mg) (group M) with 0.15ml preservative free distilled water. Onset, duration and recovery of sensory and motor block, time to maximum sensory block, duration of spinal anaesthesia and postoperative analgesic requirements were studied. Statistical comparison was carried out using the Chi-square or Fisher’s exact tests and Independent Student’s t-test where appropriate. The onset of both sensory and motor block was slower in the magnesium group. The duration of spinal anaesthesia (246 vs. 284) and motor block (186.3 vs. 210) were significantly longer in the magnesium group. Total analgesic top up requirement was less in group M. Hemodynamic parameters were similar in both the groups. Intrathecal magnesium caused minimal side effects. Since Fentanyl and other opioid congeners are not available throughout the country easily, magnesium with its easy availability and less side effect profile can be a cost effective alternative to fentanyl in managing pregnancy induced hypertension (PIH) patients given along with Bupivacaine intrathecally in caesarean section.

Keywords: analgesia, magnesium, pre eclampsia, spinal anaesthesia

Procedia PDF Downloads 297

Authors: Prince Dacosta Aboagye, Ayyoob Sharifi

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Cities respond to climate concerns mainly through their climate action plans (CAPs). A comprehensive content analysis of the dynamics in existing urban CAPs is not well represented in the literature. This literature void presents a difficulty in appreciating the strengths and weaknesses of urban CAPs. Here, we perform a qualitative content analysis (QCA) on CAPs from 278 cities worldwide and use text-mining tools to map and visualize the relevant data. Our analysis showed a decline in the number of CAPs developed and published following the global COVID-19 lockdown period. Evidently, megacities are leading the deep decarbonisation agenda. We also observed a transition from developing mainly mitigation-focused CAPs pre-COP21 to both mitigation and adaptation CAPs. A lack of inclusiveness in local climate planning was common among European and North American cities. The evidence is a catalyst for understanding the trends in existing urban CAPs to shape future urban climate planning.

Keywords: urban, climate action plans, strengths, weaknesses

Procedia PDF Downloads 64

Authors: Yinsheng Zhang

Abstract:

Changes in the extent and amount of snow cover in Eurasia are of great interest because of their vital impacts on the global climate system and regional water resource management. This study investigated the spatial and temporal variability of the snow cover extent (SCE) and snow water equivalent (SWE) of continental Eurasia using the Northern Hemisphere Equal-Area Scalable Earth Grid (EASE-Grid) Weekly SCE data for 1972–2006 and the Global Monthly EASE-Grid SWE data for 1979–2004. The results indicated that, in general, the spatial extent of snow cover significantly decreased during spring and summer, but varied little during autumn and winter over Eurasia in the study period. The date at which snow cover began to disappear in spring has significantly advanced, whereas the timing of snow cover onset in autumn did not vary significantly during 1972–2006. The snow cover persistence period declined significantly in the western Tibetan Plateau as well as the partial area of Central Asia and northwestern Russia but varied little in other parts of Eurasia. ‘Snow-free breaks’ (SFBs) with intermittent snow cover in the cold season were mainly observed in the Tibetan Plateau and Central Asia, causing a low sensitivity of snow cover persistence period to the timings of snow cover onset and disappearance over the areas with shallow snow. The averaged SFBs were 1–14 weeks in the Tibetan Plateau during 1972–2006 and the maximum intermittence could reach 25 weeks in some extreme years. At a seasonal scale, the SWE usually peaked in February or March but fell gradually since April across Eurasia. Both annual mean and annual maximum SWE decreased significantly during 1979–2004 in most parts of Eurasia except for eastern Siberia as well as northwestern and northeastern China.

Keywords: Eurasia, snow cover extent, snow cover persistence period, snow-free breaks, onset and disappearance timings, snow water equivalent

Procedia PDF Downloads 119

Authors: Mohamed A. Etman, Mona G. Abd-Elnasser, Mohamed A. Shams-Eldin, Aly H. Nada

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Orally disintegrating tablets (ODTs) are gaining importance as new drug delivery systems and emerged as one of the popular and widely accepted dosage forms, especially for the pediatric and geriatric patients. Their advantages such as administration without water, anywhere, anytime lead to their suitability to geriatric and pediatric patients. They are also suitable for the mentally ill, the bed-ridden and patients who do not have easy access to water. The benefits, in terms of patient compliance, rapid onset of action, increased bioavailability, and good stability make these tablets popular as a dosage form of choice in the current market. These dosage forms dissolve or disintegrate in the oral cavity within a matter of seconds without the need of water or chewing. Desloratadine is a tricyclic antihistaminic, which has a selective and peripheral H1-antagonist action. It is an antagonist at histamine H1 receptors, and an antagonist at all subtypes of the muscarinic acetylcholine receptor. Desloratadine is the major metabolite of loratadine. Twelve different placebos ODT were prepared (F1-F12) using different functional excipients. They were evaluated for their compressibility, hardness and disintegration time. All formulations were non sticky except four formulations; namely (F8, F9, F10, F11). All formulations were compressible with the exception of (F2). Variable disintegration times were found ranging between 20 and 120 seconds. It was found that (F12) showed the least disintegration time (20 secs) without showing any sticking which could be due to the use of high percentage of superdisintegrants. Desloratadine showed bitter taste when formulated as ODT without any treatment. Therefore, different techniques were tried in order to mask its bitter taste. Using Eudragit EPO resulted in complete masking of the bitter taste of the drug and increased the acceptability to volunteers. The compressible non sticky formulations (F1, F3, F4, F5, F6, F7 and F12) were subjected to further evaluation tests after addition of coated desloratadine, including weight uniformity, wetting time, and friability testing.. Fairly good weight uniformity values were observed in all the tested formulations. F12 exhibiting the shortest wetting time (14.7 seconds) and consequently the lowest (20 seconds) disintegration time. Dissolution profile showed that 100% desloratadine release was attained after only 2.5 minutes from the prepared ODT (F12) with dissolution efficiency of 95%.

Keywords: Desloratadine, orally disintegrating tablets (ODTs), formulations, taste masking

Procedia PDF Downloads 422