Study of Using Cassava Pulp to Produce Livestock Feed Pellet

In Vietnam, the cassava production capacity is about 10 million tons annually. Indeed, it eliminates approximate 4 million tons of cassava pulp from the cassava starch factories. This amount of cassava is usually dried to feed cattle or fertilizer. However, drying of cassava pulp has its disadvantages such as air pollution, difficult storage and transportation. This study has proposed and successfully tested a line of equipment used to produce pellets from the utilization of fresh cassava pulp bringing from cassava starch processing plants. The processing includes a mixing of fresh cassava pulp with dried cassava starch, pressing and drying of pellets. The experiment results show that when the mixing ratio between cassava starch and cassava residue is 1:10 – 1:5, the cassava pulp pellets after drying achieved the required technical specifications. Hence, it has high volume density, the dried specific weight of the pellets is about 700 kg / m3, the breaking strength of the pellets is greater than 2 kG, the tanning time of the pellets is greater than 116 minutes in water, the moisture content of the pellets is remained in 13% after drying in 5-5.5 hours

Classification of cow’s behaviors based on 3-DoF accelerations from cow’s movements

Cow’s behavior classification helps people to monitor cow activities, thus the health and physiological periods of cows can be well tracked. To classify the behavior of cows, the data from the 3-axis acceleration sensor mounted on their neck is often used. Data acquisition and preprocessing of sensor data is required in this device. We acquire data from the 3-axis acceleration sensor mounted on the cows’neck and send to the microcontrollter. At the microcontroller, a proposed decision tree is applied in real-time manner to classify four important activities of the cows (standing, lying, feeding, and walking). Finally, the results can be sent to the server through the wireless transmission module. The test results confirm the reliability of the proposed device

INFLUENCE OF POLYETHYLENE OXIDE CONTENT ON SOME CHARACTERISTICS OF PLA/CS FILMS LOADING NIFEDIPINE

This work mentions the effect of polyethylene oxide (PEO) content on some characteristics and properties of polylactic acid (PLA)/chitosan (CS) films loading nifedipine (NIF). The water contact angle, droplet size values and Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM) images  of the films are used to investigate their morphology and hydrophobicity. The obtained results show that the hydrophobic property of the PLA/CS/NIF films is improved by the presence of PEO. Besides, the PLA/CS/NIF films containing PEO have tighter structure and water absorbed ability less than those of the PLA/CS/NIF film

A Multi-Center Randomised Controlled Trial of Gatifloxacin versus Azithromycin for the Treatment of Uncomplicated Typhoid Fever in Children and Adults in Vietnam

BACKGROUND: Drug resistant typhoid fever is a major clinical problem globally. Many of the first line antibiotics, including the older generation fluoroquinolones, ciprofloxacin and ofloxacin, are failing. OBJECTIVES: We performed a randomised controlled trial to compare the efficacy and safety of gatifloxacin (10 mg/kg/day) versus azithromycin (20 mg/kg/day) as a once daily oral dose for 7 days for the treatment of uncomplicated typhoid fever in children and adults in Vietnam. METHODS: An open-label multi-centre randomised trial with pre-specified per protocol analysis and intention to treat analysis was conducted. The primary outcome was fever clearance time, the secondary outcome was overall treatment failure (clinical or microbiological failure, development of typhoid fever-related complications, relapse or faecal carriage of S. typhi). PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We enrolled 358 children and adults with suspected typhoid fever. There was no death in the study. 287 patients had blood culture confirmed typhoid fever, 145 patients received gatifloxacin and 142 patients received azithromycin. The median FCT was 106 hours in both treatment arms (95% Confidence Interval [CI]; 94-118 hours for gatifloxacin versus 88-112 hours for azithromycin), (logrank test p = 0.984, HR [95% CI] = 1.0 [0.80-1.26]). Overall treatment failure occurred in 13/145 (9%) patients in the gatifloxacin group and 13/140 (9.3%) patients in the azithromycin group, (logrank test p = 0.854, HR [95% CI] = 0.93 [0.43-2.0]). 96% (254/263) of the Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi isolates were resistant to nalidixic acid and 58% (153/263) were multidrug resistant. CONCLUSIONS: Both antibiotics showed an excellent efficacy and safety profile. Both gatifloxacin and azithromycin can be recommended for the treatment of typhoid fever particularly in regions with high rates of multidrug and nalidixic acid resistance. The cost of a 7-day treatment course of gatifloxacin is approximately one third of the cost of azithromycin in Vietnam. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Controlled-Trials.com ISRCTN67946944

Fatal outcome of human influenza A (H5N1) is associated with high viral load and hypercytokinemia

Avian influenza A (H5N1) viruses cause severe disease in humans, but the basis for their virulence remains unclear. In vitro and animal studies indicate that high and disseminated viral replication is important for disease pathogenesis. Laboratory experiments suggest that virus-induced cytokine dysregulation may contribute to disease severity. To assess the relevance of these findings for human disease, we performed virological and immunological studies in 18 individuals with H5N1 and 8 individuals infected with human influenza virus subtypes. Influenza H5N1 infection in humans is characterized by high pharyngeal virus loads and frequent detection of viral RNA in rectum and blood. Viral RNA in blood was present only in fatal H5N1 cases and was associated with higher pharyngeal viral loads. We observed low peripheral blood T-lymphocyte counts and high chemokine and cytokine levels in H5N1-infected individuals, particularly in those who died, and these correlated with pharyngeal viral loads. Genetic characterization of H5N1 viruses revealed mutations in the viral polymerase complex associated with mammalian adaptation and virulence. Our observations indicate that high viral load, and the resulting intense inflammatory responses, are central to influenza H5N1 pathogenesis. The focus of clinical management should be on preventing this intense cytokine response, by early diagnosis and effective antiviral treatmen

Factors related to intracerebral haematoma in patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage in Vietnam: a multicentre prospective cohort study

Objectives To investigate the impact of intracerebral haematoma (ICH) on the outcomes and the factors related to an ICH in patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage (aSAH) in a low- and middle-income country.Design A multicentre prospective cohort study.Setting Three central hospitals in Hanoi, Vietnam.Participants This study included all patients (≥18 years) presenting with aSAH to the three central hospitals within 4 days of ictus, from August 2019 to June 2021, and excluded patients for whom the admission Glasgow Coma Scale was unable to be scored or patients who became lost at 90 days of follow-up during the study.Outcome measures The primary outcome was ICH after aneurysm rupture, defined as ICH detected on an admission head CT scan. The secondary outcomes were 90-day poor outcomes and 90-day death.Results Of 415 patients, 217 (52.3%) were females, and the median age was 57.0 years (IQR: 48.0–67.0). ICH was present in 20.5% (85/415) of patients with aSAH. There was a significant difference in the 90-day poor outcomes (43.5% (37/85) and 29.1% (96/330); p=0.011) and 90-day mortality (36.5% (31/85) and 20.0% (66/330); p=0.001) between patients who had ICH and patients who did not have ICH. The multivariable regression analysis showed that systolic blood pressure (SBP) ≥140 mm Hg (adjusted odds ratio (AOR): 2.674; 95% CI: 1.372 to 5.214; p=0.004), World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies (WFNS) grades II (AOR: 3.683; 95% CI: 1.250 to 10.858; p=0.018) to V (AOR: 6.912; 95% CI: 2.553 to 18.709; p<0.001) and a ruptured middle cerebral artery (MCA) aneurysm (AOR: 3.717; 95% CI: 1.848 to 7.477; p<0.001) were independently associated with ICH on admission.Conclusions In this study, ICH was present in a substantial proportion of patients with aSAH and contributed significantly to a high rate of poor outcomes and death. Higher SBP, worse WFNS grades and ruptured MCA aneurysms were independently associated with ICH on admission