Determining Potassium (K+) Release, Crop Availability and Uptake from Three Red Algal (Rhodophyta) Species.

Ph.D. Thesis. University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa 2017

Randomized crossover comparison between the i-gel and the LMA-Unique in anaesthetized, paralysed adults

<b>Background</b>: The i-gel differs from other supraglottic airway devices, in that it has a softer, non-inflatable cuff. This study was designed to compare the performance of the i-gel and the LMA-Unique (LMA-U) when used during anaesthesia in paralysed patients. <b>Methods</b>: Both devices were studied in 39 anaesthetized, paralysed patients in a randomized crossover trial. The primary outcome was airway leak pressure. Secondary outcomes included time to insertion, the number of insertion and reposition attempts, leak volumes, and leak fractions. <b>Results</b>: There was no significant difference between the airway leak pressures of the two devices [median (IQR) leak pressures 25 (22–30) vs 22 (20–28) cm H2O for the i-gel and LMA-U, respectively; P=0.083, 95% CI of the mean difference –0.32 to 4.88 cm H2O]. The median (IQR) insertion time for the i-gel was significantly less than for the LMA-U [12.2 (9.7–14.3) vs 15.2 (13.2–17.3) s; P=0.007]. All the LMA-U devices and 38 of 39 i-gel airways were inserted at the first attempt. The number of manipulations required after insertion to achieve a clear airway was the same in both the groups (four in each). There were no statistically significant differences in leak volumes or leak fractions during controlled ventilation. <b>Conclusions</b>: We found no difference in leak pressures and success rate of first-time insertion between the i-gel and the LMA-U. Time to successful insertion was significantly shorter for the i-gel. We conclude that the i-gel provides a reasonable alternative to the LMA-U for controlled ventilation during anaesthesia

Studies on phase and morphological evolution of silver vanadium oxides as a function of pH: Evaluation of electrochemical behavior towards quantification of Pb2+ and Cd2+ ions

The effect of pH on morphological and phase evolution of silver vanadium oxide nanostructures are investigated under hydrothermal process. The results of powder x-ray diffraction (PXRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) disclosed that the morphological evolution of nanobelts into nanoring structures occurs at pH in between 4 and 5 with Ag2V4O11 phase and nanobelt morphologies at pH from 6 to 7 with β-AgVO3 phase. The prepared Ag2V4O11 and β-AgVO3 have been evaluated for the simultaneous quantification of Pb2+ and Cd2+ ions in aqueous solution using differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry. The results reveal that Ag2V4O11 shows better quantification result compared to β-AgVO3. © 2017 IOP Publishing Ltd

Draft Whole-Genome Sequence of Haemophilus ducreyi Strain AUSPNG1, Isolated from a Cutaneous Ulcer of a Child from Papua New Guinea.

Haemophilus ducreyi has recently emerged as a leading cause of cutaneous ulcers in the yaws-endemic areas of Papua New Guinea and other South Pacific islands. Here, we report the draft genome sequence of the H. ducreyi strain AUSPNG1, isolated from a cutaneous ulcer of a child from Papua New Guinea

Highly tapered pentagonal bipyramidal Au microcrystals with high index faceted corrugation: synthesis and optical properties

Focusing light at sub-wavelength region opens up interesting applications in optical sensing and imaging beyond the diffraction limit. In the past, tapered Au wires with carved gratings have been employed to achieve nanofocusing. The fabrication process however, is expensive and the obtained wires are polycrystalline with high surface roughness. A chemical synthetic method overcoming these hurdles should be an attractive alternative. Here, we report a method to chemically synthesize Au microcrystals (∼10 μm) bearing pentagonal bipyramidal morphology with surface corrugations assignable to high index planes. The method is a single step solid state synthesis at a temperature amenable to common substrates. The microcrystals are tapered at both ends forming sharp tips (∼55 nm). Individual microcrystals have been used as pick and probe SERS substrates for a dye embedded in a polymer matrix. The unique geometry of the microcrystal also enables light propagation across its length

Cultivation and Marketing Knowledge level of Areca nut Farmers in Andaman & Nicobar Islands

Areca nut (Areca catechu L) also known as betel nut or supari is the second most important plantation crop of Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI) after coconut It has been observed that wide differences in productivity of areca nut exist among the farmers with in a village due to socio-economic status. A survey based study was conducted to understand the knowledge level of areca nut growers and link to productivity vis-a-vis socio-economic status. For this purpose, 120 areca nut farmers from four villages of Harinagar Panchayat were randomly selected. Data collected were analysed following standard statistical procedures. The results showed that 52.5% of areca nut growers had poor knowledge of cultivation and marketing. The study also revealed that about 45% growers had poor knowledge about selection of suitable site, soil and spacing requirement for plants. The analysis of socio-economic factors with knowledge level of farmers revealed that knowledge of respondents increased with the increase in their education and land holdings whereas it was negatively correlated with age and annual income. Further, the study also suggests that, educating the farmers through mass media, capacity building and demonstration will help them in learning/ adopting new technologies, which in turn help them to increase their productivity level and farming income on sustainable basis

One-pot synthesis of Mn3O4/graphitic carbon nanoparticles for simultaneous nanomolar detection of Pb(II), Cd(II) and Hg(II)

In this paper, a facile one-step sucrose–nitrate decomposition method has been proposed to synthesis Mn3O4 nanoparticles (Mns)/graphitic carbon. The prepared material has been characterized by X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectrometer, surface area analysis and transmission electron microscopy. The prepared Mns/graphitic carbon is drop-casted on glassy carbon electrode to allow the fabrication of electrochemical sensors for the simultaneous detection of Pb(II), Cd(II) and Hg(II) at nanomolar (nM) levels in aqueous solutions via differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry. The proposed Mns/graphitic carbon sensors exhibit a wide linear range from 20 to 680 nM towards the simultaneous sensing of Cd(II), Pb(II) and Hg(II), and the corresponding limits of detection were found to be 0.48 × 10−11, 9.66 × 10−11 and 0.51 × 10−11 M, respectively. The practical application of the proposed sensor is evaluated within a real battery, industrial and chrome plating effluents

Both MisR (CpxR) and MisS (CpxA) Are Required for Neisseria gonorrhoeae Infection in a Murine Model of Lower Genital Tract Infection

During infection, Neisseria gonorrhoeae senses and responds to stress; such responses may be modulated by MisRS (NGO0177 and NGO0176), a two-component system that is a homolog of CpxRA. In Escherichia coli, CpxRA senses and responds to envelope stress; CpxA is a sensor kinase/phosphatase for CpxR, a response regulator. When a cpxA mutant is grown in medium containing glucose, CpxR is phosphorylated by acetyl phosphate but cannot be dephosphorylated, resulting in constitutive activation. Kandler and coworkers (J. L. Kandler, C. L. Holley, J. L. Reimche, V. Dhulipala, J. T. Balthazar, A. Muszyński, R. W. Carlson, and W. M. Shafer, Antimicrob Agents Chemother 60:4690-4700, 2016, https://doi.org/10.1128/AAC.00823-16) showed that MisR (CpxR) is required for the maintenance of membrane integrity and resistance to antimicrobial peptides, suggesting a role in gonococcal survival in vivo Here, we evaluated the contributions of MisR and MisS (CpxA) to gonococcal infection in a murine model of cervicovaginal colonization and identified MisR-regulated genes using RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq). The deletion of misR or misS severely reduced the capacity of N. gonorrhoeae to colonize mice or maintain infection over a 7-day period and reduced microbial fitness after exposure to heat shock. Compared to the wild type (WT), the inactivation of misR identified 157 differentially regulated genes, most of which encoded putative envelope proteins. The inactivation of misS identified 17 differentially regulated genes compared to the WT and 139 differentially regulated genes compared to the misR mutant, 111 of which overlapped those differentially expressed in the comparison of the WT versus the misR mutant. These data indicate that an intact MisRS system is required for gonococcal infection of mice. Provided the MisR is constitutively phosphorylated in the misS mutant, the data suggest that controlled but not constitutive activation is required for gonococcal infection in mice