ROLE OF THE Na,K-ATPase IN POLYCYSTIC KIDNEY DISEASE

Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) is the most common monogenic disease, and is characterized by multiple fluid-filled cysts that impair the organ, ultimately leading to renal failure. Formation and enlargement of the cysts require abnormal proliferation and cell death, as well as changes in the transport properties of the renal tubule epithelial cells. Because of its primary role in the vectorial movement of salt and water in the kidney, the Na,K-ATPase has been the focus of investigation to understand the pathophysiology of ADPKD. However, the precise role of the transporter has not been identified. In this dissertation, we describe studies designed to characterize the Na,K-ATPase in ADPKD, and examine the mechanisms underlying its role in the disease. The transport properties of the Na,K-ATPase is regulated by the hormone ouabain, which inhibits its movement of the cations. In addition, ouabain binding to the Na,K-ATPase has been been found to activate a cascade of phosphorylating events, leading to cell growth. Interestingly, we have found a population of the Na,K-ATPase in human cystic epithelial cells to have a higher affinity for ouabain, at concentrations consistent with circulating levels of the hormone. Thus, nanomolar concentrations of ouabain that do not normally affect the activity of the Na,K-ATPase in the kidney partially inhibit the enzyme of cystic tissue and cells. The Na,K-ATPase has been found to interact with polycystin-1, and we have found this to association to increase the sensitivity of the enzyme to ouabain. Our hypothesis is that due to their increased sensitivity to the hormone in ADPKD, the cystic renal epithelium is more susceptible to the effects of endogenous ouabain. We found ouabain to stimulate both proliferation and apoptotic death of the ADPKD cells, causing a disbalance that favors increased cell growth. While the mitogenic effect of ouabain is mediated by activation of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), Src kinase and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway, its apoptotic effect was found to be through activation of the intrinsic pathway of apoptotic cell death. We also found ouabain to exacerbate the development and growth of cysts, both in cultured human ADPKD cells and metanephric organ cultures from Pkd1m1Bei mice, a well characterized model of ADPKD. Collectively, these results demonstrate ouabain, acting through the Na,K-ATPase, is a novel agent that can adversely affect the progression of ADPKD

Effects of Teacher’ Feedback on Learners: Perspectives of English Majors at a Private University

Feedback is claimed to be a great contributor to learners’ academic achievements. However, in real-life classrooms, teachers’ feedback-giving practices do not always match learners’ expectations, resulting in adverse effects on learners. This study investigates the frequency, the timing, the manners that the teachers of English majors at Nguyen Tat Thanh University (EFL teachers at NTTU henceforth) delivered feedback on their students’ oral performance, their feedback contents and the influence of their feedback-giving practices on the students’ learning motivation and language achievements. The study adopted a mixed methods research design. The quantitative data were collected from the observation with 10 classes delivered by 10 EFL teachers at NTTU and from the interviews with 30 students attending the 10 classes observed with 3 students per class. The interviews also provided targeted qualitative data. The findings show that not all the teachers recognized the importance of feedback. Some ignored or gave insufficient feedback during teacher-student interactions. In some cases, the teachers’ feedback was too general to help students make any improvements in their performance. Some even provided feedback in a way that negatively influenced the students’ psychology and learning motivation. The findings also reveal the students’ expectations for frequent, timely, constructive feedback given in encouraging manners. The study finally makes some recommendations regarding feedback giving for NTTU teachers

Innovations in Water Management for Sustainable Development of Higher Education Institutions: Experience from Ton Duc Thang University, Vietnam

Ton Duc Thang University (TDTU), which was established in 1997, is a fully autonomous public university in Vietnam. After over 22 years of development, TDTU is now the number one university in Vietnam for all aspects. In 2019, TDTU was ranked the 1st in Vietnam and ranked 165th in the world on sustainable development by UI GreenMetric World University Rankings (UI GreenMetric). Among six categories of UI GreenMetric, including: setting and infrastructure, energy and climate change, waste, water, transport, and education, the water category of TDTU achieved 725 points out of 1000 maximum points (72.50%). This paper presents water management of TDTU, focusing on water conservation, water recycling, the use of water efficient appliances and piped water consumption. Specifically, the paper highlights innovations in water management that TDTU has implemented during the past few years. The paper concludes that sustainable water management makes great contribution to sustainable development of a higher education institutio

Using learning games for fourth-grade students to teach Vietnamese lessons and teachers' perspectives on learning games

Students can learn   in   a   meaningful way through the use of educational games. When students apply their skills and information in order to progress through a game, a huge degree of engagement is generated among them in the classroom as a result both their capabilities and their learning   increase. 153 children from primary schools in Vietnam participated in this research. The children were split into two groups: an experimental and a control group. Both groups participated in two sessions of word and sentence practice as well as spelling instruction. According to the findings of the study, the educational outcomes of the students are greatly improved when games are used in their classrooms. In addition, research has shown that some teachers are against the use of games in the classroom since it makes it more difficult to prepare educational materials. Some educators believe that playing educational games is a more effective method of instruction as it allows for greater flexibility during the learning process. This makes a contribution to the theoretical framework that is necessary to guide educators and instructors in the process of improving learning game programs for children in primary schools and other learners

Human exposure to radon radiation geohazard in Rong Cave, Dong Van Karst Plateau Geopark, Vietnam

Rong Cave is one of the more important caves in northern Vietnam’s Dong Van Karst Plateau Geopark (part of the Global Geoparks Network), because its subterranean lake provides agricultural and domestic water for neighboring communities. Maintenance and utilization of Rong Cave’s water reservoir, as well as touristic cave use, require frequent human access to Rong Cave. Depending on the availability of seasonal drip water and the water level of the lake, the abundant clay-rich sediment in the back portion of Rong Cave and possible seepage of gas from deeper strata along geologic faults provide seasonally elevated concentrations of radon in cave air. Based on repeated measurements over 10 months in 2015 and 2016 of the concentrations of radon isotopes (222Rn and 220Rn, also called thoron) with a portable SARAD® RTM 2200 instrument (SARAD® GmbH, Germany), the human total annual inhalation dose was estimated according to the UNSCEAR (2000) algorithm. The result indicates that the radon-related radiation exposure is insignificant for short-term visitors but may reach ~1.8 mSv a-1 for tour guides and ~25 mSv a-1 for cave utility workers. The latter values exceed the IAEA-recommended safety threshold of 1 mSv a-1 (IAEA, 1996). We recommend radiation monitoring for cave utility workers and tour guides.  Prolonged human presence in Rong Cave should be avoided during periods of seasonally elevated radon concentrations.References Cigna A.A., 2005. Radon in caves. Interna-tional Journal of Speleology 34(1-2), 1-18. Ha Giang Statistics Office (GSO), 2016. Statistical Yearbook of Ha Giang 2015, 404 pages, Ha Giang (in Vietnamese). Dumitru O.A., Onac B.P., Fornós J.J., Cosma C., Ginés A., Ginés J., Merino A., 2015. Radon survey in caves from Mallorca Island, Spain. Science of The Total Environment, 526, 196-203. Etiope G., Martinelli G., 2002. Migration of carrier and trace gases in the geosphere: An overview. Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors, 129(3-4), 185-204. Global Geoparks Network (GGN), 2010. Dong Van Karst Plateau Geopark. http://www.globalgeopark.org/aboutggn/list/vietnam/6509.htm Gregorič A., Vaupotič J., Šebela S., 2013. The role of cave ventilation in governing cave air temperature and radon levels (Postojna Cave, Slovenia). International Journal of Climatology 34, 1488-1500. Gunn J., 2003. Radon in caves. In Gunn J (Ed.): Encyclopedia of Caves and Karst Science. Fitzroy Dearborn (Taylor Francis Books, Inc.), London, UK, 617-619. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), 1996. Quality assurance for safety in nuclear power plants and other nuclear installations. Safety standards and guides, In: Safety series Q1-Q14. A publication within the Nuss programme. International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP), 2003. Database of Dose Coefficients: Workers and Members of the Public, Version 2.0.1 (CD- ROM), Elsevier Science, Amsterdam. International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP), 2010. Lung cancer risk from radon and progeny and Statement of radon. ICPR Pub. 115. Ann. ICPR 40(1). Markkanen M., Arvela H., 1992. Radon emanation from soils. Radiation Protection Dosimetry, 45(1-4), 269-272. Meisenberg O., Mishra R., Joshi M., Gierl S., Rout R., Guo L., Agaarwwal T., Kanse S., Irlinger J., Sapra B.K., Tschiersch J., 2017. Radon and thoron inhalation doses in dwellings with earthen architecture: Comparison of measurement methods. Science of The Total Environment, 579, 1855-1862. Morawska L., Phillips C.R., 1993. Depend-ence of the radon emanation coefficient on radium distribution and internal structure of the material, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 57(8), 1783-1797. Nguyen Thuy Duong, Nguyen Van Huong, Arndt Schimmelmann, Nguyen Thi Anh Nguyet, Dang Thi Phuong Thao, Ta Hoa Phuong, 2016. Radon concentrations in karst caves in Dong Van karst plat-eau. VNU Journal of Science - Earth and Environmental Sciences, 32(2S), 187-197 (in Vietnamese). Nguyen Thuy Duong, Arndt Schimmelmann, Nguyen Van Huong, Agnieszka Drobniak, Jay T. Lennon, Ta Hoa Phuong, Nguyen Thi Anh Nguyet, 2017. Subterranean microbial oxidation of atmospheric methane in cavernous tropical karst. Chemical Ge-ology, 466, 229-238. Nguyen Van Huong, Nguyen Thuy Duong, Nguyen Thi Anh Nguyet, Pham Nu Quynh Nhi, Dang Thi Phuong Thao, Tran Van Phong, Nguyen Ngoc Anh, 2016. Cenozoic tectonics in Dong Van karst plateau recorded in karst cave system. VNU Journal of Science - Earth and Environmental Sciences, 32(2S), 45-58 (in Vietnamese). Nguyen Anh Nguyet, Nguyen Thuy Dương, Arndt Schimmelmann, Nguyen Van Hu-ong, Ta Hoa Phuong, Dang Phuong Thao, Ma Ngoc Giang, 2016. Radon concentration in Rong cave in Dong Van Karst Plateau Geopark. Proceeding of International Symposium Hanoi Geoengineering 2016, 248-253. The United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR), 1993. Report to the General Assembly, with scientific annexes. United Nations sales publication E.94.IX.2. United Nations, New York. The United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR), 2000. UNSCEAR 2000 Report. In: Sources, vol. I. United Nations, New York. The United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR), 2008. UNSCEAR 2000 Report. In: Sources, vol. I. United Nations, New York. Vietnamese Standards (TCVN 7889:2008), 2008. Natural Radon activity in buildings-Levels and general requirements of measuring methods, Ministry of Science and Technology and Ministry of Construction (Viet Nam) (in Vietnamese). Tong-Dzuy Thanh, Vu Khuc (Eds), 2011. Stratigraphic units of Vietnam. Vietnam National University Publisher, 553p. Walia V., Lin S.J., Fu C.C., Yang T.F., Hong W.L., Wen K.L., Chen C.H., 2010. Soil-gas monitoring: A tool for fault delineation studies along Hsinhua Fault (Tainan), Southern Taiwan. Applied Geochemistry, 25(4), 602-607. Wang J., Meisenberg O., Chen Y., Karg E., Tschiersch J., 2011. Mitigation of radon and thoron decay products by filtration. Science of The Total Environment, 409(19), 3613-3619. World Health Organization (WHO), 2000. Air Quality Guidelines for Europe, (2nd edition). WHO Regional Publications, European Series, 91, Chapter 8.3 - Radon

IMPROVEMENT OF CO2 PURIFYING SYSTEM BY PHOTOCATALYST FOR APPLICATION IN MICROALGAE CULTURE TECHNOLOGY

By reactive grinding method Vanadium-doped rutile TiO2 nanoparticle material was obtained with an average particle size of 20‐40nm, the Brunauer–Emmet–Teller (BET) specific surface area about 20 m2g−1 and it absorbed strongly in the UV region and increased at the visible wavelength of 430 – 570 nm. This study focused on the improvement of exhaust gas treatment from coal-fired flue gas of the traditional adsorption-catalysis system (Modular System for Treating Flue Gas - MSTFG) by using the V2O5/TiO2 Rutile as photocatalyst. The results showed that integrating both catalytic systems mentioned above increased the gas treatment efficiency: CO from 77 % to over 98 %, NOx from 50 % to 93 %, SO2 was absent as opposed to the input gas component. Also it showed that V2O5/TiO2 Rutile integrated with MSTFG has got high efficiency of CO treatment, also secured the high obtained CO2 concentration as a valuable carbon source for microagal mass culture as well as saving energy and simplifying devices

PHÁT TRIỂN HỢP TÁC XÃ NÔNG NGHIỆP KIỂU MỚI THEO LUẬT HỢP TÁC XÃ NĂM 2012 TẠI HỢP TÁC XÃ PHÚ HỒ, HUYỆN PHÚ VANG, TỈNH THỪA THIÊN HUẾ

The research aims to investigate the new type of agricultural cooperative after operating under the Law on Cooperatives (Cooperatives) in 2012. Statistical analysis method was used to describe and clarify research data and use the technology. Venn diagram tool to analyze the relationships between cooperatives and the roles of participating parties. The results show that Phu Ho Cooperative is the first unit in the district to operate under the Cooperative Law in 2012 and has made improvements in production management, contributing to the development of the Phu Ho rice brand. The study also shows that stakeholders participating in cooperatives all play important roles but at different levels. According to tasks and management functions, the district Department of Agriculture and Rural Development plays the most important role in orienting and promoting cooperatives with good development strategies. In the future, linking businesses will play a long-term strategic role for the cooperative. Local authorities, especially the Commune People's Committee, need to prioritize policies to support cooperatives, focusing on approaching the digital transformation of agricultural cooperatives by market trends according to Directive No. 19/CT-TTg in 2023 to towards a smart, modern, and commercialized agricultural cooperative model.Nghiên cứu được thực hiện nhằm đánh giá mô hình hợp tác xã nông nghiệp kiểu mới theo luật hợp tác xã (HTX) năm 2012. Phương pháp phân tích thống kê được sử dụng để mô tả dữ liệu nghiên cứu và dùng sơ đồ Venn để phân tích mối quan hệ giữa HTX và vai trò các bên tham gia. Kết quả cho thấy, HTX Phú Hồ là đơn vị đầu tiên của huyện vận hành theo luật HTX năm 2012 và đã có những bước cải tiến trong quản lý sản xuất giúp phát triển thương hiệu gạo Phú Hồ. Kết quả cũng cho thấy các bên liên quan tham gia vào sự phát triển của HTX đều đóng vai trò quan trọng nhưng ở các mức độ khác nhau. Theo nhiệm vụ và chức năng quản lý, phòng Nông nghiệp và Phát triển Nông thôn huyện đóng vai trò quan trọng nhất, giúp HTX trong việc định hướng và thúc đẩy HTX có những chiến lược phát triển tốt. Trong tương lai việc liên kết các doanh nghiệp sẽ đóng vai trò chiến lược lâu dài đối với HTX. Chính quyền địa phương, đặc biệt Uỷ ban nhân dân xã cần ưu tiên chính sách hỗ trợ HTX, tập trung hướng đến tiếp cận chuyển đổi số HTXNN phù hợp với xu thế thị trường theo chỉ thị số 19/CT-TTg năm 2023 nhằm xây dựng mô hình HTXNN thông minh, hiện đại và thương mại hoá

The influence of brand equity on consumer responses toward Cho Gao dragon fruits brand

This thesis study wants to implement a model test for better understandings of brand equity and consumer responses toward Cho Gao Dragon Fruit brand. With the rapid growth of agriculture, including domestic consumption and export of the dragon fruits, it is crucial to differentiate the Cho Gao Dragon Fruits to other competitors in both domestic and foreign markets. Using Structural equation modeling (SEM) to analyze the data of 274 questionnaires to investigate the effects of brand equity and its dimensions on consumer responses. The results show that brand equity dimensions such as brand awareness, brand association, perceived quality are interrelated and those dimensions have a direct and significant effect on brand equity, except brand awareness. The results support the assumption that brand equity has a positive relationship with consumer responses. The findings shed light on the current issues of the market for dragon fruits, which enables us to provide some suggestions for the Government to facilitate farmers and traders in building brand names, marketers for doing marketing activities, and students to know about brand equity of agricultural product such as dragon fruits