Effect of pH and heat treatment on physicochemical and functional properties of spray-dried whey protein concentrate powder

Effects of pH and heating on deamidation of whey protein concentrate (WPC) solution and functional properties of resultant spray-dried WPC powder were investigated. Temperature and heating time affected deamidation rates with the highest reactivities for WPC solutions heated at 120 °C for 15 min and 145 °C for 120 s. Deamidation sites were pH dependent: pH 3 induced more glutamine deamidation; pH 10 induced more asparagine deamidation. The functional properties of spray-dried WPC powders were also pH dependent. WPC solution adjusted to pH 3 and heated at 145 °C for 120 s (prior to spray drying) exhibited a reduction in solubility and foamability, but markedly improved foam stability of the resultant powders; meanwhile, the properties of powders were not significantly impacted by pH adjustment to 10.0 and heating at 145 °C for 120 s. However, pH 3 and 10 with and without heating significantly improved emulsifying properties of spray-dried WPC.Peer reviewe

Development and evaluation of personalized risk assessments for osteoporotic patients

University of Technology Sydney. Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology.Osteoporosis is a skeletal disease characterized by reduced bone strength and deterioration in bone microstructure, leading to increased risk of fragility fracture. Bone strength is mainly determined by bone mineral density (BMD). The variation in BMD is partly determined by genetic factors. An individual's risk of fracture is determined by the individual's genetic structure and environmental exposures. While several genetic variants associated with BMD have been identified, the contribution of these variants to fracture risk prediction has not been well-documented. In this thesis, I sought to (i) construct an osteogenomic profile from BMD-associated genetic variants; (ii) assess the association between the profile and fracture risk and bone loss; (iii) determine the clinical utility of the osteogenomic profile in terms of fracture risk assessment; and (iv) improve the accuracy of hip fracture prediction in postmenopausal women by using artificial neural network approach. The work in this thesis was based on the Dubbo Epidemiology Osteoporosis Study, which is designed as a population-based longitudinal prospective cohort investigation that involved more than 4000 men and women aged 60+years. The individuals had been followed up to 27 years. The incidence of fracture was ascertained during the follow-up period. A unique osteogenomic profile was constructed for each individual from 68 BMD-associated genetic variants. The osteogenomic profile was significantly associated with BMD, fracture risk, and BMD changes. Incorporating the osteogenomic profile into existing prognostic model improved the prognostic performance over and above of traditional clinical risk factors models (age, gender, prior fracture, and history of fall). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for model with the osteogenomic profile was 71.1%, an increase of 0.5% compared with the model without the profile. More importantly, reclassification analysis showed that compared with the clinical risk factor (CRF) model, adding GRS resulted in 16% of individuals moving correctly from one risk category to another. In decision curve analysis, I found that for risk threshold greater than 15%, the osteogenomic profile could help reduce the number of unnecessary treatments. I also demonstrated that the predictive accuracy of fracture prediction using artificial neural network model was improved to 87% (AUC 0.94), which was significantly higher than that for the Cox's proportional hazards model (Accuracy 82%, AUC 0.85) or the Garvan model (Accuracy 83%, AUC 0.86). In conclusion, this thesis shows that an osteogenomic profile constructed from multiple BMD associated genetic variants is associated with fracture risk, and that the incorporation of osteogenomic profile could enhance the accuracy of fracture risk assessment for an individual men and women

An Extended RFM Model for Customer Behaviour and Demographic Analysis in Retail Industry

Background: Customer segmentation has become one of the most innovative ways which help businesses adopt appropriate marketing campaigns and reach targeted customers. The RFM model and machine learning combination have been widely applied in various areas. Motivations: With the rapid increase of transactional data, the RFM model can accurately segment customers and provide deeper insights into customers’ purchasing behaviour. However, the traditional RFM model is limited to 3 variables, Recency, Frequency and Monetary, without revealing segments based on demographic features. Meanwhile, the contribution of demographic characteristics to marketing strategies is extremely important. Methods/Approach: The article proposed an extended RFMD model (D-Demographic) with a combination of behavioural and demographic variables. Customer segmentation can be performed effectively using the RFMD model, K-Means, and K-Prototype algorithms. Results: The extended model is applied to the retail dataset, and the experimental result shows 5 clusters with different features. The effectiveness of the new model is measured by the Adjusted Rand Index and Adjusted Mutual Information. Furthermore, we use Cohort analysis to analyse customer retention rates and recommend marketing strategies for each segment. Conclusions: According to the evaluation, the proposed RMFD model was deployed with stable results created by two clustering algorithms. Businesses can apply this model to deeply understand customer behaviour with their demographics and launch efficient campaigns

A new record of congrid eel, Bathycongrus bleekeri (Congridae) from Vietnam

Three specimens of Bathycongrus bleekeri were collected during the survey in 2015 and 2017. The newly recorded species is described herein, a small, moderately elongate species of Bathycongrus with head and body compressed; vertical fins without black mark; tail slender, attenuated, but not filiform; trunk length 1.2 times greater than head length; teeth small, conical, in about three-four rows on jaws, in a small triangular patch on vomer; 28–29 preanal vertebrae, total of 111–113 vertebrae; 26–28 preanal lateral-line pores. Additional data on the morphology and distribution of the species increases the total number of known species in the family Congridae in Vietnamese waters to twelve

Generative AI and the value changes and conflicts in its integration in Japanese educational system

This paper critically examines Japan's approach toward the adoption of Generative AI such as ChatGPT in education via studying media discourse and guidelines at both the national as well as local levels. It highlights the lack of consideration for socio-cultural characteristics inherent in the Japanese educational systems, such as the notion of self, teachers’ work ethics, community-centric activities for the successful adoption of the technology. We reveal ChatGPT’s infusion is likely to further accelerate the shift away from traditional notion of self, which has been ongoing during past educational reforms, towards active and self-directed learning. The current discourse on Generative AI’s infusion in education is driven by neoliberal agendas aimed at increasing employability and individualism. Moreover, the introduction of ChatGPT in the context of Japan's educator culture offers potential solutions to address issues of overwork but also necessitates considerations regarding increased responsibilities for teachers and the preservation of their central role in student education. Finally, the irreplicable social growth fostered by community-centric activities in the Japanese educational system highlights the limitations of ChatGPT in replicating dynamic social interactions, emphasizing the importance of holistic approaches to education beyond technological integration

The Impact of Social Media Marketing on Brand Awareness and Purchase Intention: Case Study of Vietnam's domestic fashion brands

The study aimed to examine the impact of social media marketing on brand awareness and purchase intention for Vietnamese domestic fashion brands. Quantitative research was conducted on 302 Vietnamese people of Generation Z. The questionnaire designed on Google forms was sent to research samples who were willing to participate. Research results determined the role and benefits of social media marketing in 2 aspects: (1) information about the brand of social media marketing on social networks and (2) brand engagement on social networks. Social media marketing has a positive impact on brand awareness and purchase intention of Vietnamese domestic fashion brands. In particular, brand information when communicating on social networks has a direct and positive impact on brand awareness and purchase intention. Brand engagement on social networks has a positive direct impact on brand awareness and a positive indirect impact on purchase intention through brand awareness. The research results show that Vietnamese domestic fashion brands do quite well in social media marketing, and are highly appreciated by the online community of generation Z in Vietnam. In the future, in order to improve brand awareness and purchase intention, Vietnamese domestic fashion brands need to pay attention to the brand information properties of social media marketing programs and need to invest more in brand engagement characteristics of social networks. Keywords: social media marketing, brand awareness, purchase intentio

NEW RECORDS OF DOPASIA GRACILIS (SQUAMATA: ANGUIDAE) IN BACH MA NATIONAL PARK, THUA THIEN-HUE PROVINCE

This article describes the morphological characteristics of Dopasia gracilis (Gray, 1845) from Bach Ma National Park, Thua Thien-Hue province. The number of specimens in Bach Ma is bigger compared to description of Smith in 1935, and also Nguyen et al. in 2011. In Vietnam, D. gracilis has been reported from the following provinces: Cao Bang, Yen Bai, Ha Giang, Quang Binh, Quang Ngai and Gia Lai. So, in Bach Ma National Park it is the first record of this species distribution.NOI ÎNREGISTRĂRI ALE DOPASIA GRACILIS (SQUAMATA: ANGUIDAE) ÎN PARCUL NAȚIONAL BACH MA, PROVINCIA THUA THIEN-HUEÎn articol sunt descrise caracteristicile morfologice ale speciei Dopasia gracilis (Gray, 1845) din Parcul Național Bach Ma, provincia Thua Thien-Hue. Numărul specimenelor din Bach Ma este cu mult mai mare în comparație cu descrierea elaborată de Smith în 1935 şi de Nguyen et al. în 2011. În Vietnam, D. gracilis a fost raportat în următoarele provincii: Cao Bang, Yen Bai, Ha Giang, Quang Binh, Quang Ngai și Gia Lai. Deci, în Parcul Naţional Bach Ma distribuția acestei specii este înregistrată pentru prima dată.</p

Epidemiological transition to mortality and refracture following an initial fracture

This study sought to redefine the concept of fracture risk that includes refracture and mortality, and to transform the risk into "skeletal age". We analysed data obtained from 3521 women and men aged 60 years and older, whose fracture incidence, mortality, and bone mineral density (BMD) have been monitored since 1989. During the 20-year follow-up period, among 632 women and 184 men with a first incident fracture, the risk of sustaining a second fracture was higher in women (36%) than in men (22%), but mortality risk was higher in men (41%) than in women (25%). The increased risk of mortality was not only present with an initial fracture, but was accelerated with refractures. Key predictors of post-fracture mortality were male gender (hazard ratio [HR] 2.4; 95% CI, 1.79–3.21), advancing age (HR 1.67; 1.53–1.83), and lower femoral neck BMD (HR 1.16; 1.01–1.33). A 70-year-old man with a fracture is predicted to have a skeletal age of 75. These results were incorporated into a prediction model to aid patient-doctor discussion about fracture vulnerability and treatment decisions