Assessment of Student Program Outcomes through a Comprehensive Exit Strategy

AbstractChoosing methods to assess student program outcomes is a matter of balancing best practices against the constraints imposed by the respective education authorities mainly the Engineering Accreditation Council (EAC) for engineering degrees offered by institutions of higher education in Malaysia. Methods that directly measure student learning and yield the most rigorous results are usually the most time consuming and may require the expertise of educational researchers or outside consultants. Currently, the Department of Electrical, Electronics and Systems Engineering at UKM use their classroom and existing grading practices to collect data that will contribute to assess student learning directly, but this requires extra time and effort. In addition, mechanisms to adequately report the findings need to be properly implemented. Another mechanism that could be used to assess student program outcomes is through a thoroughly designed student exit strategy. The exit strategy implemented this academic year involves two parts; exit survey and exit test. This is a Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) effort done since the past two academic years that enables the department to assess student program outcomes directly and indirectly in one approach. The exit strategy has proven successful as a valid measurement of student program outcomes. The exit strategy which combines both direct and indirect assessment forms a comprehensive and robust tool to effectively measure student program outcomes

Chemical composition and physicochemical properties of red seaweed (Kappaphycus alvarezii) and brown seaweed (Sargassum polycystum) from Sabah, Malaysia

The proximate composition, amino acid composition and some physico-chemical properties of two type of seaweeds Kappaphycus alvarezii and Sargassum polycystum which widely cultivated in Sabah, Malaysia were investigated. S. polycystum showed the highest level of protein and crude fibre with 11.69% and 39.863% dry weight, respectively. Minor component was fat 0.12-0.13% in both seaweeds. As for the physicochemical properties of the seaweeds, their swelling capacity (SWC) ranged from 13.33 to 35.83 mL/g while water retention capacity (WRC), and oil retention capacity (ORC) ranged from 8.18 to10.59 g/g dry weight and 2.68 to 3.32 g/g dry weight, respectively. SWC and ORC of K. alvarezzi was higher than S. polycystum (p<0.05). Both seaweeds contained high amounts of minerals and balanced amino acid profiles. This study suggested that K. alvarezzi has high nutritional value which could be potentially used as ingredients in human food application

Nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 nuclear translocation induces myofibroblastic dedifferentiation in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

AIMS: Oxidants have been implicated in the pathophysiology of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), especially in myofibroblastic differentiation. We aimed at testing the hypothesis that nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), the main regulator of endogenous antioxidant enzymes, is involved in fibrogenesis via myofibroblastic differentiation. Fibroblasts were cultured from the lungs of eight controls and eight IPF patients. Oxidants-antioxidants balance, nuclear Nrf2 expression, and fibroblast phenotype (α-smooth muscle actin and collagen I expression, proliferation, migration, and contraction) were studied under basal conditions and after Nrf2 knockdown or activation by Nrf2 or Keap1 siRNA transfection. The effects of sulforaphane (SFN), an Nrf2 activator, on the fibroblast phenotype were tested under basal and pro-fibrosis conditions (transforming growth factor β [TGF-β]). RESULTS: Decreased Nrf2 expression was associated with a myofibroblast phenotype in IPF compared with control fibroblasts. Nrf2 knockdown induced oxidative stress and myofibroblastic differentiation in control fibroblasts. Conversely, Nrf2 activation increased antioxidant defences and myofibroblastic dedifferentation in IPF fibroblasts. SFN treatment decreased oxidants, and induced Nrf2 expression, antioxidants, and myofibroblastic dedifferentiation in IPF fibroblasts. SFN inhibited TGF-β profibrotic deleterious effects in IPF and control fibroblasts and restored antioxidant defences. Nrf2 knockdown abolished SFN antifibrosis effects, suggesting that they were Nrf2 mediated. INNOVATION AND CONCLUSION: Our findings confirm that decreased nuclear Nrf2 plays a role in myofibroblastic differentiation and that SFN induces human pulmonary fibroblast dedifferentiation in vitro via Nrf2 activation. Thus, Nrf2 could be a novel therapeutic target in IPF

Effect of grinding on physicochemical properties of dietary fibre powder from pink guava by-products

This study was aimed to evaluate the effect of grinding on physicochemical properties of dietary fibre powder (DFP) from pink guava by-products for potential applications in foods. The DFP were divided into three groups of by-product which are refiner waste (RW), siever waste (SW) and decanter waste (DW). The studied samples were analysed for its particle size distribution, bulk density, water-retention capacity, oil-retention capacity, swelling capacity, and particle structures. For particle size distribution, the largest amount of DFP were retained on the 425 μm and 250 μm screen sizes except for RW where 66% of the particle size was more than 600 μm. For bulk density, all large-size particles of DFP showed lower density than small-size ones as smaller particles size would have a higher packing density due to the increase in porosity. The reduction in particle size resulted in increased hydration properties for SW and DW. On the other hand, a decrease in particle size of RW had decreased the ability of hydration properties. A similar trend of oil-retention capacity (ORC) of DFP was evident. ORC was found to increase with smaller particle size for SW and DW and no significant difference (p>0.05) for RW. The study of microstructures revealed that the grinding process resulted in the rupture of the hollow physical structure of fibre matrix and in a scale type structure, thereby providing increased surface area for water and oil absorption. As a result, DFP pink guava could be used not only for dietary fibre enrichment, but also as functional ingredients in many food products