Knowledge and perception of postmenopausal women towards menopause

Background: Aim of the research was to study the knowledge and perception of postmenopausal women towards menopause.Methods: It was a cross sectional study which was carried at outpatient department of psychiatry, Government medical college, Srinagar over a period of 3 months. Participants who fulfilled the inclusion criteria of the study were evaluated on a semi-structured proforma for demographic variables, knowledge and attitude towards menopause.Results: A total of 120 postmenopausal women were included in our study. Mean age of study population was s 54.5±8.6 years. Majority of women belonged to rural background (80.0%) in the age group of 51-60 years (58.3%), married (78.3%), having 1-3 issues (53.3%) and had received no formal education (67.5%). Menopause was natural in (80.8%) of women and (19.2%) had surgical menopause. 85% of study population had heard about menopause at the time their periods stopped mostly from family elders and friends. 45% had knowledge about the age of the menopause, while as only (20.8%) were aware about the symptoms of menopause. 56.6% of study population were having positive perception about the menopause.Conclusions: Majority of our women were unaware of menopausal symptoms. Most of them considered it as a natural process of aging and thus were having a positive perception about the menopause

Identification of a novel mutation in the CLN6 gene (CLN6) in South Hampshire sheep affected with Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis

Neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses (NCL/Batten disease) are a group of fatal inherited neurodegenerative diseases that occur in many species including humans, sheep, dogs and cattle. Typical NCL symptoms include progressive loss of vision, regression of mental and motor development, epileptic seizures and premature death. Currently there is no effective treatment or cure for NCL, with the underlying disease mechanisms still poorly understood. Advances in molecular genetics in recent years have allowed the characterisation of hundreds of causative mutations and polymorphisms in at least 17 disease-causing genes across all species. For some species, research colonies have been established for studies relevant to the corresponding human NCL variants. Best characterised of all animal models for NCL is the New Zealand South Hampshire (SH) sheep which is a model for the human variant late-infantile form of NCL (vLINCL). Past studies have revealed the ovine CLN6 gene (CLN6) as a strong candidate gene for this disease in South Hampshire sheep however no disease-causing mutation was identified. The main objective of the present thesis is the identification and characterisation of the mutation responsible for NCL in the South Hampshire sheep. It was proposed that the mutation lies in the non-coding regions within or flanking the gene and that this mutation affects gene regulation. Bioinformatic tools were initially used to identify conserved non-coding sequences (CNCS) which are deemed potential regions of interest for regulatory mutations. Due to the limited ovine genome resource available when the study was commenced in 2006, CLN6 orthologous sequences from other species were initially used for identification of highly conserved regions. Of the five identified CNCS (5’ UTR, 3’UTR and introns 1, 2 and 6) the region upstream of CLN6 and intron 1 were considered priorities for sequencing. Given that the Sanger sequencing method was laborious and time-consuming, and that there was rapid development of technology; the Sanger sequencing approach was abandoned and Next-generation sequencing (NGS) methods utilised for the following studies. The 454 Pyrosequencing NGS technology was used to sequence the complete ovine Bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) to generate an ovine reference sequence for mutation screening approaches. The first mutation screening approach, sequence capture and targeted sequencing approach failed; however, the second approach involving sequencing of long-range PCR (LR-PCR) products successfully identified the disease-causing mutation. LR-PCR amplification of 14 regions within the ovine genome region spanning the CLN6 and flanking sequences followed by SOLID sequencing-by-ligation NGS method identified the disease-associated mutation as a 402bp deletion and 1bp insertion in ovine CLN6, namely g.-251_+150del and g.+150_151insC. The mutation is predicted to lead to the deletion of the whole of exon 1 and the ATG start codon as well as flanking non-coding sequence. Identifying the disease-causing mutation for NCL in SH sheep provides the long-awaited confirmatory evidence that ovine CLN6 is the causative gene for NCL in SH sheep. Future research in this large animal model will allow for more effective strategies for developing therapeutic approaches for NCL in humans and further strengthens the invaluable role of this animal model for NCL studies

An analysis of the discursive representations of women’s sexual agency in online fatwas : a case study of askimam.org

Master of Art in Gender and Religion. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg 2015.Combining a feminist post-structural methodology with a legal interpretive framework located in classical texts, this study analysed six fatwas on South Africanbased Mufti Ebrahim Desai’s online fatwa platform, askimam.org, to provide insights into the discursive representations of women’s sexual agency. By virtue of their potential to provide data on lived experiences of sex and intimacy in modern contexts, and the legal interpretive reasoning they prompt, the analysis of these fatwas revealed competing and complementary discourses on women’s sexual agency. Petitioners grapple with the dissonance created by their pietistic loyalty to the legal tradition of marriage, and expectations of mutuality within contemporary marriage. They rely on varying dimensions of health to argue for women’s choices in the sexual arena. In their responses, some muftis accommodate women’s sexual refusals and desires using an ethical framework, and they support mutuality using strategies of sexual communication and benevolent masculinity. Unlike other facets of health, which are managed in the juristic space as spiritual concerns, physical health concerns related to sex are managed within a biomedical ethical paradigm, thus linking sexual rights to physical health. The study shows the potential for muftis to link sexual rights to psychological and emotional facets of health and the possibilities to adopt an ethical paradigm that includes other medical and allied therapies. Amongst the fatwas produced by Desai and his students, Desai’s own fatwa, in the context of reform inclinations on his website, suggests this possibility. Although the online fatwas of askimam.org do not diverge substantially from the legal logic of Muslim marriage, they provide a glimpse into how Deoband muftis are thinking about the model of marriage, through an emphasis on mutuality and health and well-being, in order to preserve the marriage and maintain the stability of the contemporary Muslim family. The study proceeds to analyse how foundational sources, Qur’an and hadith, are utilised in this regard, and concludes with an analysis of how the online space is gradually reformulating traditional concepts and norms, thus facilitating new prospects for reconfiguring gender relations

Deterministic and stochastic model for the effect of Chondroitin Sulfate (CS) in cancer cell

Modern medical study show that the new therapeutic strategies known as targeted therapy can help in cancer prognoses. Chondroitin Sulfate (CS) an anticancer drug in targeted therapy has been proved able to reduce cell viability by promoting the activation of the Caspase3 (Casp3) in apoptosis pathway without causing toxicity. To better understand the effect of CS on the cancer cells, deterministic and stochastic model are proposed. The result shows the decreasing trend of the cancer cell in the presence of CS in both models

Preparation and characterisation of protein concentrates from defatted kenaf seed.

Two kenaf varieties QP3 and V36 were used to obtain protein concentrates. Proximate analysis, foaming, water and oil absorption properties were studied. Significant (P<0.05) differences were observed among the two varieties only in their content in oil and carbohydrates. The protein concentrate yield was 13.04% and 10.56%, respectively. The two varieties showed significantly different (P<0.05) water and oil absorption capacities. QP3 showed higher foaming capacity than did V38, and it was increased with increasing salt and sugar concentration. Albumin was the main fraction representing 59.6% and 66.1% in QP3 and V36 varieties, respectively, followed by globulin, which represented 22.6% and 19.1%, respectively. The ratios of albumin, globulin, glutelin and prolamin were significantly different. Based on the data obtained from sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, the main kenaf seed proteins present in the concentrates were five proteins with molecular weights ranging from 10 to 66. kDa. From differential scanning calorimetry data, QP3 and V36 protein concentrates had similar denaturation temperatures (82.6 and 81.8°C, respectively)

Characterization of defect induced multilayer graphene

A study of oxygen plasma on multilayer graphene is done with different flow rates. This is to allow a controlled amount of defect fabricated on the graphene. Results from the study showed that the intensity ratio of defect between D peak and G peak was strongly depended on the amount of oxygen flow rate thus affected the 2D band of the spectra. The inter-defect distance LD ≥ 15 nm of each sample indicated that low-defect density was fabricated. The surface roughness of the multilayer graphene also increased and reduced the conductivity of the multilayer graphene

Students' Perception of the Use of Technology in Education

The changes that happen in technology recently have brought about significant changes in the field of education where it can improve the quality of knowledge with the invention of technology is creative, unique, and of course, it is beneficial to us especially among students. There is a growing number of interests in how these technological platforms are perceived by the users (students) and the effectiveness of these platforms. For this reason, it is essential to investigate the easiness and usefulness of such technology being currently used by students. To further understand the issue, the role of students' perception plays an essential role in the use of technology in education. Therefore, this study focuses on the students' understanding of the use of technology in learning among students at the University Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) by applying the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). Besides, this is an exploratory study on the impact of TAM on students' perception. An online questionnaire has been distributed, and a total of 113 respondents were collected, which aims to gather insight on the use of technology in the learning system at UNIMAS. Moreover, this study has used various analysis methods such as descriptive analysis, reliability test, factor analysis, and Pearson correlation coefficient and Partial Least Square- Structural Equation Model (PLS-SEM) to investigate the role of perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness in determining the usage of technology in the higher learning institution. The findings in this study revealed that there is a positive relationship from perceived ease of use towards the use of technology among students. The outcome of the study identifies that there is a satisfactory level of technology usage among the respondents. The results also suggest that policymakers should ensure the innovation of technology to consider the ease of use and usefulness of technology (via training and providing mobile-friendly applications) to assist students' learning in the higher learning institution. The limitations of this study are that the sample is collected at the undergraduate level. It is recommended for future research to include respondents from postgraduate levels to see any difference in their perception of technology. Keywords: Technology acceptance model; perception of technology eISSN: 2398-4287© 2020. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA cE-Bs by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open access article under the CC BYNC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning &amp; Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia. DOI: https://doi.org/10.21834/ebpj.v5i15.2374

Introduction to customized occupational safety and health website and its effectiveness in improving psychosocial safety climate (PSC) among police officers

Introduction: The prevalence of stress among Malaysian police is high in which 38.8% polices have severe stress related to work resources and workplace environment. Psychosocial safety climate is one of the indicators that can be used to avoid psychosocial health problems. Objective: This study was conducted to determine the risk factors of psychosocial safety climate and to measure the effectiveness of a customised safety website in improving the safety climate. Methodology: This study involved 105 police officers who were randomly selected from nine different departments in PDRM Bukit Aman. A survey adapted from previous study was used to determine the psychosocial safety climate levels among respondents. Then, occupational safety website was introduced to the respondents and being used for two weeks. Lastly, post survey was done to see the difference of psychosocial safety climate before and after the use of the website. Results and Discussion: Findings showed that team psychological safety (r=0.381, p=<0.001) and physical safety climate (r=0.657, p=<0.001) were significantly associated with psychosocial safety climate level. The means before (36.095 ± 5.6202) and after (37.742 ± 4.7069) the introduction of occupational safety website was good. Still, there was a significant improvement of psychosocial safety climate level after the introduction of occupational safety website. Conclusion: This study showed that psychosocial safety climate level in an organization can be improved by introducing an informative website specific for police

Black Tea Assisted Exfoliation Using a Kitchen Mixer Allowing One-Step Production of Graphene

A kitchen mixer is one of the possible tools for the exfoliation of graphene. While organic solvents such as NMP or DMF are suitable for the exfoliation of graphite, the majority are toxic and dangerously harmful when exposed to humans and the environment. Therefore, an alternative solvent must be proposed for green and sustainable production of graphene. In this initial work, we have developed a new synthesis method for graphene through the direct exfoliation of graphite in commercial black tea. We found that our maximum yield concentration of graphene is Y  =  0.032 mg ml−l after 15 min of mixing. From the data of Raman, the level of defects in our produced graphene is suggested as being very minor (I D/I G  =  0.17), despite possible graphene functionalization by oxygen groups in tea. Incorporation of our graphene into PMMA results in shifting the onset temperature from 300 °C to 326 °C, which impressively validates the potential of the produced graphene as a thermal reinforcement material for polymer composites

Determination of Water Resources in Tube Well Using Hydrofacies for Riverbank Filtration

The reliability of water in riverbank filtration application is hard to be determined since the source of water and what happen at below ground cannot be see. These difficulties give effect for application of riverbank filtration since it is important in determination of its water quality and quantity. Due to that, this method was suggested to be used to determine the source of water in pumping well (PW) at Lubok Buntar, Kedah. The soil and water samples were taken from the PW and river water to determine the soil type and major ion (anion and cations). The results show that most of PW soil type is sandy loam (52%). Based on the piper diagram of the hydrofacies showed that the RW and PW were connected for a certain period of time. The most predominant cation in the PW was Na2+-CI-, consequently, the tube well water mostly came from groundwater rather than from river water. Therefore, this location is suitable for riverbank filtration applications as it has two reliable water sources. Due to that, for riverbank filtration water treatment, the river and groundwater water quality and quantity is important in order to make sure the system is reliable and sustainable