MEDIA OPTIMIZATION FOR BIOPROTEINS PRODUCTION FROM CHEAPER CARBON SOURCE

There are high demands for animal and human food supply especially protein, which is an important dietary component. Agricultural wastes, cheap carbon sources- which are rich and have high energy, can be used for producing the value added bioprotein. A lab scale study was carried out to optimize the media composition for bioprotein production from a cheaper carbon source - wheat flour using potential strain, which was selected earlier by screening different microorganisms. The performance of the selected strain was enhanced by media optimization with varied substrate concentration, nitrogen sources and nutrient supplementation according to the central composite design from STATISTICA software. Statistical optimization was carried out to evaluate the polynomial regression model through effect of linear, quadratic and interaction of the factors. The maximum biomass produced was 21.89 g/L with optimum fermentation conditions of wheat flour (4 g/L), nitrogen concentration (0.5 g/L), nutrient concentration (0.1 g/L), and four days of fermentation

Persuasive technology as an intervention programs for Health care in Malaysia: a review

The statistics regarding health problem in Malaysia shows more than 50% of Malaysian adults have at least one of Non-Communicable Disease. Thus, effort to create awareness as well as promoting mind-set change with regards to health habit is paramount. Researches prove that ICT played significant role in influencing the way of thinking, behaviour and decision making. Intervention programs through computer application should be used to persuade and support health awareness, treatment and prevention. This paper investigate and review studies using persuasive technology in health intervention program in Malaysia. It presents the main objective, the technology persuasive principles and final findings of each study. In conclusion, the application of persuasive technology brings positive impact to awareness creation, aiding prevention and support to change as well as influencing people for a better healthy living.Keywords: persuasive technology; health intervention programs; health care; Malaysia

3D model for indoor spaces using depth sensor

In recent years, 3D model for indoor spaces have become highly demanded in the development of technology. Many approaches to 3D visualisation and modelling especially for indoor environment was developed such as laser scanner, photogrammetry, computer vision, image and many more. However, most of the technique relies on the experience of the operator to get the best result. Besides that, the equipment is quite expensive and time-consuming in terms of processing. This paper focuses on the data acquisition and visualisation of a 3D model for an indoor space by using a depth sensor. In this study, EyesMap3D Pro by Ecapture is used to collect 3D data of the indoor spaces. The EyesMap3D Pro depth sensor is able to generate 3D point clouds in high speed and high mobility due to the portability and light weight of the device. However, more attention must be paid on data acquisition, data processing, visualizing, and evaluation of the depth sensor data. Hence, this paper will discuss the data processing from extracting features from 3D point clouds to 3D indoor models. Afterwards, the evaluation on the 3D models is made to ensure the suitability in indoor model and indoor mapping application. In this study, the 3D model was exported to 3D GIS-ready format for displaying and storing more information of the indoor spaces

Towards 3D smart campus via 3D city modelling

The smart city concept may aid in improving the city management, enhance the efficiency and thus increase the effectiveness of the city, where it is mainly focused on both information and technologies. This concept appears to be applicable for a smaller area such as university campus. Based on this idea, this research tries to implement the 3D smart campus for Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM). This is an initial research towards a real implementation of 3D smart campus and conceivably 3D smart cities. This research focuses on the development of UTM smart campus by using 3D city modelling. The QGIS software was used to develop the 3D models. Then, the 3D model is viewed in a web browser for better 3D visualization and navigation. Furthermore, the results show that the 3D developed models for UTM smart campus can be a reliable platform to manage the spatial query and viewing the attributes of UTM campus buildings and facilities. This can be seen beneficial to the physical future development of the UTM campus area

Total phenolic content, antioxidative and antidiabetic properties of coconut (Cocos Nucifera L.) testa and selected bean seed coats

Natural alternatives tor the treatment of diabetes mellitus have been the interest of many researchers. In this study, the brown testas of mature coconuts were compared to beans seed coats of four varieties in terms of antioxidative and anti-hyperglycaemic properties. The total phenolic and flavonoid contents, the antioxidant potentials and the a-amvlase and a-glucosidase inhibitorv activities of the crude extracts were studied in vitro. The results showed that extracts of coconut testa and red kidney bean seed coat displayed higher a-glucosidase inhibition (IC50=19.90±5.67 and 4.84±1.43 μg/mL) and α-amylase inhibition (IC50=120.5±15.4 and 532.8±68.0 μg/mL) than the other extracts. These two extracts showed higher antioxidant capacities owing to their high phenolic and flavonoid contents. These results suggest that red kidney bean seed coat and tender coconut testa would have higher potential as nutraceuticals and could serve as natural alternative sources of anti-diabetic remedy

An indicator-based approach for micro-scale assessment of physical flood vulnerability of individual buildings

The current trends of floods event in many countries are alarming. Hence, managing flood and the associated risk are crucial in order to reduce the loss and to be well prepared for the combined impact of urbanization and climate changes. The best approach to manage flood activities is a risk-based approach, where the vulnerability of elements at risk is reduced to a minimum. There is a significant number of studies that use an indicator-based approach for flood vulnerability assessment with focus on the macro-scale. However, this paper assesses physical flood vulnerability of buildings at micro-scale using an indicator-based method in Kota Bharu, Malaysia. The region is one of the most flood affected regions in Malaysia. Micro-scale vulnerability assessment considers damages for individual buildings at risk, rather than in aggraded manner. In this study, the methodology adopted involve the use of 1D-2D SOBEK flood modelling, the selection and weightage of indicators, development of spatial based building index and, production of building vulnerability maps. The findings demonstrate the physical pattern of flood vulnerability of buildings at a micro-scale. The approach can assist in flood management planning and risk mitigation at a local scale

The Risk of Recurrence in Breast Cancer Patients Treated with Tamoxifen: Polymorphisms of CYP2D6 and ABCB1

CYP2D6 plays a major role in the metabolism of tamoxifen, and polymorphism of Pglycoprotein has been associated with resistance of many drug therapies. This study investigates the clinical impact of genetic variants of CYP2D6 and ABCB1 in breast cancer patients treated with tamoxifen. Blood samples from 95 breast cancer patients treated with tamoxifen were collected and genotyped for CYP2D6 and ABCB1 variants using allele-specific PCR method. Recurrence risks were calculated using Kaplan–Meier analysis and compared using the log-rank test. Patients carrying CYP2D6*10/*10 and heterozygous null allele (IM) showed higher risks of developing recurrence and metastasis (OR 13.14; 95% CI 1.57–109.94; P=0.004) than patients with CYP2D6*1/*1 and *1/*10 genotypes. Patients with homozygous CC genotypes of ABCB1 C3435T showed a shorter time to recurrence. Patients who were CYP2D6 IM and homozygous CC genotype of C3435T have statistically significant higher risks of recurrence (P=0.002). Similarly, median time to recurrence in these patients was only 12 months (95% CI=0.79–23.2) compared to those without this combination which was 48 months (95% CI=14.7–81.2). Patients with CYP2D6 IM and homozygous CC genotype of ABCB1 C3435T have shorter times to recurrence. The results confirmed the findings of previous studies and support FDA recommendation to perform pre-genotyping in patients before the choice of therapy is determined in breast cancer patients

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

Laparoscopy in management of appendicitis in high-, middle-, and low-income countries: a multicenter, prospective, cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Appendicitis is the most common abdominal surgical emergency worldwide. Differences between high- and low-income settings in the availability of laparoscopic appendectomy, alternative management choices, and outcomes are poorly described. The aim was to identify variation in surgical management and outcomes of appendicitis within low-, middle-, and high-Human Development Index (HDI) countries worldwide. METHODS: This is a multicenter, international prospective cohort study. Consecutive sampling of patients undergoing emergency appendectomy over 6 months was conducted. Follow-up lasted 30 days. RESULTS: 4546 patients from 52 countries underwent appendectomy (2499 high-, 1540 middle-, and 507 low-HDI groups). Surgical site infection (SSI) rates were higher in low-HDI (OR 2.57, 95% CI 1.33-4.99, p = 0.005) but not middle-HDI countries (OR 1.38, 95% CI 0.76-2.52, p = 0.291), compared with high-HDI countries after adjustment. A laparoscopic approach was common in high-HDI countries (1693/2499, 67.7%), but infrequent in low-HDI (41/507, 8.1%) and middle-HDI (132/1540, 8.6%) groups. After accounting for case-mix, laparoscopy was still associated with fewer overall complications (OR 0.55, 95% CI 0.42-0.71, p < 0.001) and SSIs (OR 0.22, 95% CI 0.14-0.33, p < 0.001). In propensity-score matched groups within low-/middle-HDI countries, laparoscopy was still associated with fewer overall complications (OR 0.23 95% CI 0.11-0.44) and SSI (OR 0.21 95% CI 0.09-0.45). CONCLUSION: A laparoscopic approach is associated with better outcomes and availability appears to differ by country HDI. Despite the profound clinical, operational, and financial barriers to its widespread introduction, laparoscopy could significantly improve outcomes for patients in low-resource environments. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT02179112