Conductometric, spectrophotometric and thermodynamic studies of nickel sulfate in aqueous polyvinyl alcohol + methanol systems at different temperatures

The electrical conductance of nickel sulfate (NiSO4.6H2O) solutions in aqueous, aqueous polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH; 0.1, 0.5 and 0.9 g/dL), aqueous methanol (CH3OH) system (30%, v:v) and aqueous PVOH+CH3OH systems were measured in the concentration ranges 0.4×10-2 to 10×10-2 mol/L, at different temperatures (298, 303, 308, 313 and 318 K). Ionic interactions of nickel sulfate in aqueous and mixed solvent systems were measured by conductometric analysis. Different relations were used to evaluate conductometric data, for the calculation of molar conductance, molar conductance at infinite dilution (Ʌ°m), degree of dissociation (a), dissociation constant (Kd) and Walden product. The increased in Ʌ°mvalues with the increase in percent composition of aqueous PVOH, show that PVOH interaction with solvents (water and methanol) was higher as compare to PVOH interaction with NiSO4. Solvent effect was also studied by spectrophotometric analysis of NiSO4 in aqueous, aqueous PVOH and aqueous PVOH + CH3OH system. Thermodynamic parameters for dissociation process such as energy of activation (Ea#), free energy change of activation (ΔGd#), enthalpy change of activation (ΔHd#), and entropy change of activation (ΔSd#) were also calculated as a function of temperature and solvent composition

Repurposing factories with robotics in the face of COVID-19

Can collaborative robots ramp-up the production of medical ventilators

A collaboration–resilience framework for disaster management supply networks: a case study of the Philippines

PurposeThe increasing risk of natural disasters is challenging humanitarian actors to create resilient disaster management systems. However, the role of the private sector in disaster management operations (DMOs) is not as prominent as the role played by (inter)governmental agencies. This article aims to investigate the relationship of collaboration and resilience in disaster management supply networks (DMSNs).Design/methodology/approachSupply network resilience criteria were defined as robustness, flexibility, velocity and visibility based on the literature review. DMSN capabilities were identified characterising each resilience criterion through the development of the Collaboration–Resilience (COLRES) Analysis Framework for DMSNs. This theoretical model was then applied to an empirical case study in the Philippines using semi-structured interviews for data gathering.FindingsA total of 46 cross-sector collaboration activities were identified across four disaster management phases and linked to the resilience criteria. A causal analysis of each collaboration activity and its outcome was conducted to identify relationships between collaboration types and resilience constructs. Based on these results, patterns were identified, and dependencies between collaboration and resilience were defined. Collective DMSN resilience (DMSNRES) enabled by existing cross-sector collaboration activities was evaluated against a future disaster scenario to identify resilience gaps. These gaps were used to recognise new cross-sector collaboration opportunities, thereby illustrating the continuous process of resilience building.Research limitations/implicationsThis research provides new insights on how private sector is involved within a DMOs through collaboration with the government and other NGOs. It augments existing literature on private sector involvement in DMOs where common perception is that the sector is only involved in short-term response and recovery activities. This study finds that the private sector can be operationally involved not just in post-disaster activities, but also in mitigation and preparation phases as well. This then sets a new baseline for further research on private sector involvement within DMOs. As this study provided a novel framework to analyse collaboration activities and its impact to DMSN resilience, future work could be done by applying the model to further cases such as other countries'. DMSNs, or to more specific contexts such as inter-organisational collaborations rather than big sectors. A more detailed assessment method against a future disaster will prove relevance for the model in providing practical insights on how resilience can be built in DMSNs.Practical implicationsThis research proposed a novel DMSN collaboration-resilience (COLRES) model (Figure 11) to analyse existing processes in preparation for specific disasters. Practitioners may be able to use this model with the goal of identifying resilience gaps to fill and continuously improve their processes. The model also provides practitioners the lens to improve processes with the perspective on collaboration to complement government and NGO efforts and expertise with those of the private sector. For the private sector perspective, this research provides new insights on how they can be more involved with the community to provide more sustainable and long-term contributions to the society.Social implicationsWith disasters becoming more complex and frequent by the day and as humanitarian actors focus on improving their expertise, the need for every piece of the society to contribute to disaster risk reduction is continuously intensified. This research shows that each sector of the society can take part in disaster management operations to reduce unpredictability, lives impacted and increase speed of response and recovery. Each sector of the society can be of great contribution not only during post-disaster response and recovery but also during pre-disaster mitigation and preparedness phase. As such, this research echoes the call for everyone to be involved in disaster risk reduction and mitigation as a way of life.Originality/valueThis research ultimately finds that cross-sector collaboration builds resilience in DMSNs through capacity building, redundancy sourcing, information reliability and logistics responsiveness. This study shows that the private sector is able to go beyond existing short-term partnerships by participating in the 46 collaboration activities identified across four disaster management phases in order to build resilience in DMSNs.EPSR

Intimate partner violence among ever-married Afghan women: patterns, associations and attitudinal acceptance

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is one of the most prevalent forms of violence that women suffer globally. Women in Afghanistan have been exposed to high levels of IPV which coincided with high levels of conflict during more than four decades. We cross-sectionally examined the Afghanistan Demographic and Health Survey responses of 21,234 ever-married Afghan women. We first performed the frequency distribution analysis to determine the prevalence of IPV and the basic socio-demographic characteristics of the participants. Subsequently we examined the relationship between the independent and dependent variables followed by the bivariate and survey versions of logistic regression analyses. We report odds ratios in order to depict the strength and direction of the associations between the IPV and selected independent variables. P-values less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant. The analyses showed that 55.54% of Afghan women experienced some form of physical, emotional, or sexual violence by their intimate partners during the recall period partners. The most common form of IPV found was physical violence (50.52%). Factors such as being exposed to inter-parental violence (respondent woman's father physically abused her mother) (adjusted OR= 3.69, CI= 3.31-4.10) and respondent's acceptance of IPV (aOR= 1.85, 1.51-2.26) were associated with increased exposure to IPV. Having a spouse with at least a primary education (aOR= 0.76, CI= 0.64-0.91) or a respondent with at least a primary education (aOR= 0.82, CI= 0.68-0.98) was associated with lower exposure to reported IPV. The lifetime experience of IPV occurs to a high extent among Afghan women, and several socio-demographic factors have predisposing attributes. IPV policy formulation and strategizing may benefit from considering these factors

1-(5a,5b,8,8,11a,13b-Hexamethyl­eicosa­hydro-1H-cyclo­penta­[a]chrysen-3-yl)-1-ethanone

The title compound, C29H48O, is a triterpenoid isolated from Adiantum incisum forssk. In the crystal structure, the asymmetric unit contains two independent mol­ecules which are not significantly different. Each mol­ecule contains four six-membered rings, all adopting chair conformations, and a five-membered ring in an envelope conformation. In the mol­ecular structure, non-classical intra­molecular C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds are observed

Rapid purification of serine proteinases from Bothrops alternatus and Bothrops moojeni venoms

AbstractEnvenomation by Bothrops species results, among other symptoms, in hemostatic disturbances. These changes can be ascribed to the presence of enzymes, primarily serine proteinases some of which are structurally similar to thrombin and specifically cleave fibrinogen releasing fibrinopeptides. A rapid, three-step, chromatographic procedure was developed to routinely purify serine proteinases from the venoms of Bothrops alternatus and Bothrops moojeni. The serine proteinase from B. alternatus displays an apparent molecular mass of ∼32 kDa whereas the two closely related serine proteinases from B. moojeni display apparent molecular masses of ∼32 kDa and ∼35 kDa in SDS–PAGE gels. The partial sequences indicated that these enzymes share high identity with serine proteinases from the venoms of other Bothrops species. These proteins coagulate plasma and possess fibrinogenolytic activity but lack fibrinolytic activity

Methyl 3-oxo-2,3-dihydro-1,2-benzothia­zole-2-acetate 1,1-dioxide

The title mol­ecule, C10H9NO5S, is composed of two essentially planar units with a dihedral angle of 89.16 (6)° between them. In the crystal structure, there are weak inter­molecular C—H⋯O inter­actions resulting in dimeric pairs of mol­ecules about inversion centres and chains of mol­ecules extended along the a and c axes, thus stabilizing the structure. In addition, benzothia­zole rings lying parallel to each other with centroid–centroid distances of 3.679 (2) and 3.999 (2) Å indicate the existence of π–π stacking inter­actions

Production, characterization and structural analysis of proteins from Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis and snake venoms

Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis (C. pseudotuberculosis) is the etiological agent of Caseous Lymphadenitis (CLA), a disease that affects different groups of animals worldwide, specifically sheep and goat production areas, which result a significant economic losses. These bacteria even infect humans; to date 25 different cases of infections in humans are reported in the literature. Currently, no efficient treatment for this disease is available neither a crystallographic structure of any protein from C. pseudotuberculosis that could assist in better understanding of the mechanism of action of this pathogen. In the present study, we have expressed and purified key proteins that play a major role in the metabolism of this pathogen. Plasmids of three different proteins from C. pseudotuberculosis were designed. Triose phosphate isomerase (TIM) is an active enzyme of glycolytic pathway, which is one of the main energy supplier enzymes for the organisms. This enzyme was expressed, purified and crystallized, the crystal structure was determined at 2.5 Å. Thioredoxin reductase (TrxR), and Thioredoxin (Trx) are the part of thioredoxin (redox) system, in which the thioredoxin act as a substrate for the TrxR. These enzymes have a diverse function in organisms. These enzymes were expressed, purified and characterized. Snake venom proteins were also investigated in this study; five different proteins from genus Bothrops were purified and crystallized. The crystal structure of Atroxlysin-I was determined at 1.8 Å resolutions and compared with different metalloproteinases-I, deposited to PDBCorynebacterium pseudotuberculosis (C. pseudotuberculosis) é o agente etiológico da linfadenite caseosa (CLA), uma doença que afeta diferentes grupos de animais em todo o mundo, especificamente áreas de produção de ovinos e caprinos, que causam perdas econômicas significativas. Estas bactérias podem infectar humanos, e 25 casos de infecções em humanos foram relatados na literatura. Atualmente, não há nenhum tratamento eficiente para esta doença e também não existem estruturas cristalográficas de proteínas de C. pseudotuberculosis que possam ajudar a compreender melhor o mecanismo de ação desse patógeno. No presente estudo, foram expressas e purificadas proteínas-chave que desempenham papéis importantes no metabolismo deste patógeno. Três proteínas de C. pseudotuberculosis foram expressas e purificadas. Triose fosfato isomerase (TIM) é uma enzima ativa da via glicolítica, sendo uma das principais enzimas envolvidas no fornecimento de energia para o organismo. Esta enzima foi expressa purificada e cristalizada. Tiorredoxina redutase (TrxR) e Tioredoxina (Trx) participam do sistema tioredoxina (redox), em que o Trx atua como um substrato para o TrxR. Estas enzimas têm diversas funções nos organismos. Estas enzimas foram expressas, purificadas e caracterizadas. A estrutura cristalográfica da TIM foi determinada a 2,5 Å. Proteínas de veneno de serpente, também foram investigados neste estudo, e cinco proteínas diferentes do gênero Bothrops foram purificados e cristalizadas. A estrutura cristalina da Atroxlysin-I foi determinada a 1,8 Å de resolução e foi comparada com diferentes metaloproteinases-I que foram depositados no PDBCoordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES