Investigating conference feedback in Cambodian EFL class: students’ writing accuracy improvement and their views of the feedback

Research of conference feedback on EFL students' writing accuracy is a vital issue; however, it has never been conducted in Cambodia. This study was carried out to fill this void by investigating conference feedback to improve students' writing accuracy in four categories: semantic, grammatical, mechanic, and lexical features. It also explored the students' perceptions of the feedback in the context of EFL writing class. One class, with twelve students, from 18 to 25 years of age, with a ratio of 8:4 women: men, was purposively chosen for the study which was designed in two cycles, each with eight steps. Data were collected from the writing tests, writing assignments, students' self-evaluation survey, and focus-group discussions. Findings revealed that conference feedback had improved students' writing skills by allowing them to use correct grammar and expressions. The feedback has also developed students' engagement in the writing process. It also proposed a pedagogical implication that effective feedback through a conference approach depends to a great extent on the knowledge and experience of the teacher, classroom resources, and interactions between the teacher and the student

CAMBODIAN EFL STUDENTS’ INVESTMENT IN LEARNING ENGLISH: PERSPECTIVES AND PRACTICES

This article reports on a case study that explored the perspectives and practices of Cambodian EFL students regarding their investment in learning English at the University of Battambang (UBB), Cambodia. The study specifically investigated how the students perceived the role that learning English played in their lives. The study also examined community practices surrounding the learning of English amongst these Cambodian university students. A mixed method approach was employed to collect data in two stages. First, a survey was administered to a random selection of 80 university students. Then, four intensive group interviews were undertaken with a total of 20 students purposively selected through a theoretical sampling. Quan- titative data from the survey was computerized and analyzed using SPSS while the qualitative data obtained from the intensive interviews was coded and interpreted to compare its similarities and differences with statistical data for generating theory. Findings of the study indicate that English has empowered Cambodian learners’ perspectives to invest in EFL study as a means for improving their quality of life, gaining better positions, and advancing their salary and social status, which may, in turn, affect their identities and capital

Protective Effect of Proanthocyanidin against Diabetic Oxidative Stress

We investigated the antidiabetic potential of proanthocyanidin and its oligomeric form in STZ-induced diabetic model rats and db/db type 2 diabetic mice. Proanthocyanidin ameliorated the diabetic condition by significant decreases of serum glucose, glycosylated protein, and serum urea nitrogen as well as decreases of urinary protein and renal-AGE in STZ-induced diabetic rats and decrease of serum glucose as well as significant decrease of glycosylated protein in db/db type 2 diabetic mice. The suppression of ROS generation and elevation of the GSH/GSSG ratio were also observed in the groups administered proanthocyanidin. Moreover, proanthocyanidin, especially its oligomeric form, affected the inflammatory process with the regulation of related protein expression, iNOS, COX-2 and upstream regulators, NF-κB, and the IκB-α. In addition, it had a marked effect on hyperlipidemia through lowering significant levels of triglycerides, total cholesterol, and NEFA. Moreover, expressions in the liver of SREBP-1 and SREBP-2 were downregulated by the administration of proanthocyanidins. The protective effect against hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemia in type 1 and 2 diabetic models was significantly strong in the groups administered the oligomeric rather than polymeric form. This suggests that oligomers act as a regulator in inflammatory reactions caused by oxidative stress in diabetes

Protective Effects of Corni Fructus against Advanced Glycation Endproducts and Radical Scavenging

We investigated the inhibition of advanced glycation endproduct (AGE) activity using the fluorescence characteristics of fractions and compounds from Corni Fructus. Corni Fructus extract and its iridoid glycoside components showed low inhibitory activities as well as the AGE inhibitor aminoguanidine. However, a low molecular weight polyphenol, 7-O-galloyl-D-sedoheptulose, and an antioxidant, trolox, showed high inhibitory activities compared with aminoguanidine under reactive conditions. The AGE-inhibiting activity of polyphenolic fractions of Corni Fructus ranged from a level comparable to Corni Fructus extract to the higher level of 7-O-galloyl-D-sedoheptulose. As well as the results of AGE-inhibiting activity, Corni Fructus extract and iridoid components showed low or no 1,1-diphenyl-2-pycrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical-scavenging activities, whereas 7-O-galloyl-D-sedoheptulose showed a level comparable to trolox. Polyphenolic fractions of Corni Fructus quenched DPPH radicals in a concentration-dependent manner. Some fractions exerted a higher DPPH radical-scavenging activity compared with trolox and 7-O-galloyl-D-sedoheptulose. The DPPH radical-scavenging activity was significantly correlated with the AGE-inhibiting activity. These results suggest that polyphenolic fractions of Corni Fructus inhibited AGE formation by antioxidant activity including free radical scavenging. The strong DPPH radical-scavenging and AGE-inhibiting fractions included ellagitannins and polymeric proanthocyanidins

One-pot Enzymatic Synthesis of Deoxy-thymidine-diphosphate (TDP)-2-deoxy-∝-d-glucose Using Phosphomannomutase

Production of deoxy-thymidine-diphosphate (TDP)-sugars as substrates of glycosyltransferases, has been one of main hurdles for combinatorial antibiotic biosynthesis, which combines sugar moiety with aglycon of various antibiotics. Here, we report the one-pot enzymatic synthesis of TDP-2-deoxy-glucose employing high efficient TMP kinase (TMK; E.C. 2.7.2.12), acetate kinase (ACK; E.C. 2.7.1.21), and TDP-glucose synthase (TGS; E.C. 2.7.7.24) with phosphomannomutase (PMM; E.C. 5.4.2.8). In this study, replacing phosphoglucomutase (PGM; E.C. 5.4.2) by PMM from Escherichia coli gave four times higher specific activity on 2-deoxy-6-phosphate glucose, suggesting that the activity on 2-deoxy-glucose-6-phosphate was mainly affected by PMM activity, not PGM activity. Using an in vitro system starting from TMP and 2-deoxy-glucose-6-phosphate glucose, TDP-2-deoxy-glucose (63% yield) was successfully synthesized. Considering low productivity of NDP-sugars from cheap starting materials, this paper showed how production of NDP-sugars could be enhanced by controlling mutase activity

Beneficial Effect of 7- O

Traditional medicines are being focused on as possible treatments for diabetes and its complications because of their negligible toxic and/or side effects. In line with this, our group has reported that Corni Fructus, a traditional medicine considered exhibiting beneficial effects on liver and kidney functions, possessed an antidiabetic effect via ameliorating glucose-mediated metabolic disorders. To add to these findings, we screened the iridoid glycoside fraction containing morroniside and loganin, and low molecular weight polyphenol fraction containing 7-O-galloyl-d-sedoheptulose (GS) from Corni Fructus. To our knowledge, GS is a compound only detected in Corni Fructus, and its biological activity has been poorly understood until now. For these reasons, we examined whether GS has an ameliorative effect on diabetic changes using type 2 diabetic db/db mice. Our findings suggest that GS has a beneficial effect on the pathological state of the serum, kidney, and adipose tissue related to diabetic damage

Intervensi kesihatan di tempat kerja bagi aktiviti fizikal dan atau nutrisi di negara-negara berpendapatan rendah dan sederhana: satu ulasan sistematik

Sebuah ulasan sistematik telah dibuat dengan tujuan untuk merumuskan program intervensi kesihatan di tempat kerja bagi aktiviti fizikal dan atau nutrisi bagi negara-negara berpendapatan rendah dan sederhana bermula Januari 2008 hingga Disember 2019. Objektif kajian ini adalah untuk mengenalpasti jenis-jenis intervensi kesihatan dan mengkaji kesan intervensi kesihatan bagi peningkatan aktiviti fizikal dan atau nutrisi di tempat kerja bagi negara berpendapatan rendah dan sederhana. Pencarian secara sistematik dilakukan dengan menggunakan pengkalan data Scopus, PubMed dan Web of Science. Kajian ini telah dilaporkan dalam Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta Analyses (PRISMA). Penilaian kritikal menggunakan kaedah McMaster yang telah diubahsuai bagi kajian kuantitatif untuk mendapatkan kualiti metodologi kajian. Oleh sebab keheterogenan data ini, sintesis secara deskriptif dilakukan. Daripada 6940 data kajian yang didapati, 36 kajian menepati semua kriteria inklusi yang merangkumi pendidikan kesihatan, perubahan persekitaran dan perubahan tingkah laku melalui amalan gaya hidup sihat. Rumusan hasil dapatan menunjukkan bahawa intervensi kesihatan di tempat kerja boleh memberi kesan positif terhadap kesihatan dan tingkah laku pekerja. Walaupun hasil dapatan menunjukkan kesan yang positif, namun dapatan kajian adalah kurang seragam dan kurang jelas dari segi parameter intervensi dan pengukuran hasil, maka ini telah mengehadkan perkembangan aplikasi hasil ini. Kesimpulannya, intervensi kesihatan di tempat kerja menunjukkan potensi untuk meningkatkan aktiviti fizikal dan menambahbaik nutrisi di kalangan pekerja. Walaupun saranan tentang keberkesanan intervensi tidak dapat dibuat, namun diharap, hasil dapatan ulasan sistematik ini dapat menjadi panduan bagi tujuan amalan dan polisi bagi promosi kesihatan di tempat kerja, pada masa akan datang