CO2 capture on NiO supported imidazolium-based ionic liquid

CO2 capture on NiO supported imidazolium-based ionic liquid, NiO/[emim][HSO4]/SiO2 as an adsorbent was investigated using gas adsorption analyzer and physicochemical properties of the adsorbent were characterized using X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), surface area analyzer (BET method) and temperature-program-desorption analysis (TPD). Immobilization of ionic liquid on silica, [emim][HSO4]/SiO2 slightly decreased the surface area compared to bare silica from 266 to 256 m2/g due to the pore blocking by the confinement of IL in SiO2 pore. Interestingly, introduction of NiO on supported ionic liquid, NiO/[emim][HSO4]/SiO2 was increased the surface area as well as pore volume from 256 to 356 m2/g and 0.14 to 0.38 cm3/g, respectively. The enhancement of surface area and pore volume was significantly increased the CO2 adsorption performance with capacity of 48.8 mg CO2/g adsorbent compared to [emim][HSO4]/SiO2 27.3 mg CO2/g adsorbent)

The influence of calcination temperature on iron oxide (α-Fe2O3) towards CO2 adsorption prepared by simple mixing method = Kesan suhu pengkalsinan ferum oksida (α-Fe2O3) disediakan melalui kaedah campuran ringkas terhadap penjerapan CO2

Synthesized iron oxide, α-Fe2O3 used for CO2 capturing was prepared by a simple mixing method and calcined at temperatures in a range of 350 – 850 °C. CO2 adsorption isotherms at 25 °C and 1 atm found that the sample namely s450 that calcined at 450 °C gave the highest CO2 adsorption activity with the adsorption capacity of 17.0 mgCO2/gadsorbent. Monodentate carbonate, bidentate carbonate and bicarbonates formation were observed on s450 through the IR spectra. The basicity of s450 was identified by chemisorption of CO-TPD which contains weak, medium and strong basic sites with CO total adsorbed amount of 1.99 cm3/g. It was found that s450 calcined at 450 °C has certain crystallite peaks that abruptly increased through the XRD diffractogram. The texture properties of s450 generated high porosity and more uniform sphere shape particle size with high surface area (50.5 m2/g). Furthermore, it is composed of trimodal distribution for pore size distribution curve desirable for CO2 adsorption. Penjerapan CO2 terhadap ferum oksida, α-Fe2O3 yang disintesis melalui kaedah campuran ringkas dan dikalsin pada suhu 350- 850 °C. Penjerapan isoterma CO2 pada suhu bilik, 25 °C and 1 atm mendapati sampel s450 yang dikalsin pada suhu 450 °C menunjukkan aktiviti penjerapan CO2 paling tinggi dengan keupayaan penjerapan sebanyak 17.0 mgCO2/gpenjerap. Spektrum IR telah membuktikan pembentukan spesis monodentat karbonat, bidentat karbonat dan bikarbonat pada s450. Sifat bes s450 yang dikenalpasti menggunakan jerapan kimia CO-TPD dimana jumlah CO yang dijerap oleh tapak bes lemah, sederhana dan kuat adalah 1.99 cm3 /g. Difraktogram XRD pula menunjukkan terdapat beberapa puncak kekisi yang meningkat. Tekstur s450 pula mempunyai keporosan yang tinggi dan bentuk sfera yang lebih sekata serta luas permukaan yang tinggi (50.5 m2 /g). Tambahan lagi, graf taburan saiz liang s450 juga terdiri daripada taburan jenis trimodal yang menjadi salah satu faktor penting dalam penjerapan CO

Chemical Reduction Behavior of Zirconia Doped to Nickel at Different Temperature in Carbon Monoxide Atmosphere

The reduction behavior of nickel oxide (NiO) and zirconia (Zr) doped NiO (Zr/NiO) was investigated using temperature programmed reduction (TPR) using carbon monoxide (CO) as a reductant and then characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), nitrogen absorption isotherm using BET technique and FESEM-EDX. The reduction characteristics of NiO to Ni were examined up to temperature 700 °C and continued with isothermal reduction by 40 vol. % CO in nitrogen. The studies show that the TPR profile of doped NiO slightly shifts to a higher temperature as compared to the undoped NiO which begins at 387 °C and maximum at 461 °C. The interaction between ZrO2 with Ni leads to this slightly increase by 21 to 56 °C of the reduction temperature. Analysis using XRD confirmed, the increasing percentage of Zr from 5 to 15% speed up the reducibility of NiO to Ni at temperature 550 °C. At this temperature, undoped NiO and 5% Zr/NiO still show some crystallinity present of NiO, but 15% Zr/NiO shows no NiO in crystalline form. Based on the results of physical properties, the surface area for 5% Zr/NiO and 15% Zr/NiO was slightly increased from 6.6 to 16.7 m2/g compared to undoped NiO and for FESEM-EDX, the particles size also increased after doped with Zr on to NiO where 5% Zr/NiO particles were 110 ± 5 nm and 15% Zr/NiO 140 ± 2 nm. This confirmed that the addition of Zr to NiO has a remarkable chemical effect on complete reduction NiO to Ni at low reduction temperature (550 °C). This might be due to the formation of intermetallic between Zr/NiO which have new chemical and physical properties

Use of a Novel Enzyme Immunoassay Based on Detection of Circulating Antigen in Serum for Diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori Infection

Recently, noninvasive diagnostic tests for Helicobacter pylori infection have gained in significance. We have developed a sensitive and specific noninvasive immunoassay based on the detection of an H. pylori circulating antigen (HpCA) in sera from H. pylori-infected individuals. Monospecific antibody and Western blot analyses were used to demonstrate the presence of the target antigen in H. pylori cell lysate and serum samples. A novel enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed for the detection of HpCA in serum. Endoscopic biopsy specimens from the gastric antra of 221 individuals (143 males and 78 females) with dyspeptic symptoms were evaluated for H. pylori infection, with culture used as a “gold standard” for diagnosis. The target H. pylori antigen was identified at 58 kDa. HpCA has been detected by ELISA with high degrees of sensitivity, specificity, and efficiency (>90%), and ELISA results show no significant difference (P > 0.05) from results of H. pylori culture of gastric biopsy specimens. The test's positive and negative predictive values were also high (95 and 86%, respectively). In conclusion, a sensitive and specific immunoassay was developed for the detection of HpCA in human serum. This test can be applied for noninvasive laboratory and field diagnoses of H. pylori infection

Relationship of Atrial Fibrillation to Outcomes in Patients Hospitalized for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Exacerbation

INTRODUCTION: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a major cause of hospitalization and is associated with an increased incidence of atrial fibrillation (AF). The impact of AF on in-hospital outcomes, including mortality, in patients hospitalized for COPD exacerbation is not well elucidated. METHODS: We used the National Inpatient Sample database to examine discharges with the primary diagnosis of COPD exacerbation and compared mortality, length of stay and costs in patients with AF compared to those without AF. The study adjusted the outcomes for known cardiovascular risk factors and confounders using logistic regression and propensity score matching analysis. RESULTS: Among 1,377,795 discharges with COPD exacerbation, 16.6% had AF. Patients with AF were older and had more comorbidities. Mortality was higher (2.4%) in the AF group than in the no AF group (1%), p \u3c 0.001. After adjustment to age, sex and confounders, AF remained an independent predictor for mortality, OR:1.44 (95% CI 133 - 1.56, p \u3c 0.001), prolonged length of stay, OR:1.63 (95% CI 1.57 - 1.69, p \u3c 0.001) and increased cost, OR: 1.45 (95% CI: 1.40 - 1.49, p \u3c 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: among patients with COPD exacerbation, AF was associated with increased mortality and higher resource utilization

Impact of isolation method on doubling time and the quality of chondrocyte and osteoblast differentiated from murine dental pulp stem cells

Background Stem cells are normally isolated from dental pulps using the enzymatic digestion or the outgrowth method. However, the effects of the isolation method on the quality of the isolated stem cells are not studied in detail in murine models. The aim of this study was to compare the matrices secreted by osteoblast and chondrocytes differentiated from dental pulp stem cells isolated through different means. Method DPSC from murine incisors were isolated through either the outgrowth (DPSC-OG) or the enzymatic digestion (DPSC-ED) method. Cells at passage 4 were used in this study. The cells were characterized through morphology and expression of cell surface markers. The cells’ doubling time when cultured using different seeding densities was calculated and analyzed using one-way ANOVA and Tukey’s multiple comparison post-test. The ability of cells to differentiate to chondrocyte and osteoblast was evaluated through staining and analysis on the matrices secreted. Results Gene expression analysis showed that DPSC-OG and DPSC-ED expressed dental pulp mesenchymal stem cell markers, but not hematopoietic stem cell markers. The least number of cells that could have been used to culture DPSC-OG and DPSC-ED with the shortest doubling time was 5 × 102 cells/cm2 (11.49 ± 2.16 h) and 1 × 102 cells/cm2 (10.55 h ± 0.50), respectively. Chondrocytes differentiated from DPSC-ED produced  2 times more proteoglycan and at a faster rate than DPSC-OG. FTIR revealed that DPSC-ED differentiated into osteoblast also secreted matrix, which more resembled a calvaria. Discussion Isolation approaches might have influenced the cell populations obtained. This, in turn, resulted in cells with different proliferation and differentiation capability. While both DPSC-OG and DPSC-ED expressed mesenchymal stem cell markers, the percentage of cells carrying each marker might have differed between the two methods. Regardless, enzymatic digestion clearly yielded cells with better characteristics than outgrowth

Targeted primary and secondary preventive strategies for depression among Malaysian pharmacy students

Global depression burden remains a challenge in pre- and post-pandemic era. The pandemic effect spiraling the mental disorders among young people who will be the next generation of leaders. This study aims to identify university students’ sociodemographic, psychosocial and academic backgrounds and performance associated with depression symptoms for development of primary and secondary preventive strategies for mental health. A cross-sectional study was conducted using online questionnaire distributed to 19 institutions in Malaysia offering Bachelor of Pharmacy degree programme. Self-rated Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-42) was used to assess depression symptoms. Pearson Chi-Square test and Fisher Exact test were used to assess the investigated variables with depression symptoms. Independent T-test and one-way ANOVA were used to compare means of depression score across variables. Binary logistic regression was employed to examine relationship between the investigated variables with depression symptoms. A total of 610 pharmacy students participated where 47% (n=289/610) were having depression symptoms. Students who smoke nicotine, have separated parents, family history of mental illness, and poor academic performance were associated with depression symptoms (p<0.05). Differences in geographical areas, races and religions also showed significant association with depression symptoms. Parental marital status, poor academic performance, history of mental illness and those with comorbidities were statistically predicting depression symptoms (p<0.05). Primary preventive strategies harnessing at healthy coping skills for stress, nicotine-free campaigns and holistic curriculum are warranted. Secondary measures on mindfulness and compassion skills’ activities to benefit students who experienced early life crisis are highly recommended. Enforcing these targeted strategies in collaboration with health and social sectors should be the primary agenda of universities to ensure its uptake

Risk Assessment and Air Quality Study during Different Phases of COVID-19 Lockdown in an Urban Area of Klang Valley, Malaysia

Globally, the COVID-19 pandemic has had both positive and negative impacts on humans and the environment. In general, a positive impact can be seen on the environment, especially in regard to air quality. This positive impact on air quality around the world is a result of movement control orders (MCO) or lockdowns, which were carried out to reduce the cases of COVID-19 around the world. Nevertheless, data on the effects on air quality both during and post lockdown at local scales are still sparse. Here, we investigate changes in air quality during normal days, the MCOs (MCO 1, 2 and 3) and post MCOs, namely the Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO) and the Recovery Movement Control Order (RMCO) in the Klang Valley region. In this study, we used the air sensor network AiRBOXSense that measures carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2) and particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10) at Petaling Jaya South (PJS), Kelana Jaya (KJ) and Kota Damansara (KD). The results showed that the daily average concentrations of CO and NO2 mostly decreased in the order of normal days &gt; MCO (MCO 1, 2 and 3) &gt; CMCO &gt; RMCO. PM10, PM2.5, SO2 and O3 showed a decrease from the MCO to RMCO. PJS showed that air pollutant concentrations decreased from normal days to the lockdown phases. This clearly shows the effects of ‘work from home’ orders at all places in the PJS city. The greatest percentage reductions in air pollutants were observed during the change from normal days to MCO 1 (24% to 64%), while during MCO 1 to MCO 2, the concentrations were slightly increased during the changes of the lockdown phase, except for SO2 and NO2 over PJS. In KJ, most of the air pollutants decreased from MCO 1 to MCO 3 except for CO. However, the percentage reduction and increments of the gas pollutants were not consistent during the different phases of lockdown, and this effect was due to the sensor location—only 20 m from the main highway (vehicle emissions). The patterns of air pollutant concentrations over the KD site were similar to the PJS site; however, the percentage reduction and increases of PM2.5, O3, SO2 and CO were not consistent. We believe that local burning was the main contribution to these unstable patterns during the lockdown period. The cause of these different changes in concentrations may be due to the relaxation phases during the lockdown at each station, where most of the common activities, such as commuting and industrial activities changed in frequency from the MCO, CMCO and RMCO. Wind direction also affected the concentrations, for example, during the CMCO and RMCO, most of the pollutants were blowing in from the Southeast region, which mostly consists of a city center and industrial areas. There was a weak correlation between air pollutants and the temperature and relative humidity at all stations. Health risk assessment analysis showed that non-carcinogenic risk health quotient (HQ) values for the pollutants at all stations were less than 1, suggesting unlikely non-carcinogenic effects, except for SO2 (HQ &gt; 1) in KJ. The air quality information showed that reductions in air pollutants can be achieved if traffic and industry emissions are strictly controlled

Global economic burden of unmet surgical need for appendicitis

Background There is a substantial gap in provision of adequate surgical care in many low- and middle-income countries. This study aimed to identify the economic burden of unmet surgical need for the common condition of appendicitis. Methods Data on the incidence of appendicitis from 170 countries and two different approaches were used to estimate numbers of patients who do not receive surgery: as a fixed proportion of the total unmet surgical need per country (approach 1); and based on country income status (approach 2). Indirect costs with current levels of access and local quality, and those if quality were at the standards of high-income countries, were estimated. A human capital approach was applied, focusing on the economic burden resulting from premature death and absenteeism. Results Excess mortality was 4185 per 100 000 cases of appendicitis using approach 1 and 3448 per 100 000 using approach 2. The economic burden of continuing current levels of access and local quality was US $92 492 million using approach 1 and$73 141 million using approach 2. The economic burden of not providing surgical care to the standards of high-income countries was $95 004 million using approach 1 and$75 666 million using approach 2. The largest share of these costs resulted from premature death (97.7 per cent) and lack of access (97.0 per cent) in contrast to lack of quality. Conclusion For a comparatively non-complex emergency condition such as appendicitis, increasing access to care should be prioritized. Although improving quality of care should not be neglected, increasing provision of care at current standards could reduce societal costs substantially