Effect of Piper betle and Brucea javanica on the Differential Expression of Hyphal Wall Protein (HWP1) in Non-Candida albicans Candida (NCAC) Species

The study aimed to identify the HWP1 gene in non-Candida albicans Candida species and the differential expression of HWP1 following treatment with Piper betle and Brucea javanica aqueous extracts. All candidal suspensions were standardized to 1 x 10(6) cells/mL. The suspension was incubated overnight at 37 degrees C (C. parapsilosis, 35 degrees C). Candidal cells were treated with each respective extract at 1, 3, and 6 mg/mL for 24 h. The total RNA was extracted and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction was carried out with a specific primer of HWP1. HWP1 mRNAs were only detected in C. albicans, C. parapsilosis, and C. tropicalis. Exposing the cells to the aqueous extracts has affected the expression of HWP1 transcripts. C. albicans, C. parapsilosis, and C. tropicalis have demonstrated different intensity of mRNA. Compared to P. betle, B. javanica demonstrated a higher suppression on the transcript levels of HWP1 in all samples. HWP1 was not detected in C. albicans following the treatment of B. javanica at 1 mg/mL. In contrast, C. parapsilosis and C. tropicalis were shown to have HWP1 regulation. However, the expression levels were reduced upon the addition of higher concentration of B. javanica extract. P. betle and B. javanica have potential to be developed as oral health product.Article Link : http://www.hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2013/397268

Exploring the Roles of Social Participation in Mobile Social Media Learning: A Social Network Analysis

Social media is increasingly becoming an essential platform for social connectivity in our daily lives. The availability of mobile technology has further fueled its importance – making it a ubiquitous tool for social interaction. However, limited studies have been conducted to investigate roles of social participation in this field. Thus, the study investigates roles of social participation in mobile social media learning using the “ladder of participation and mastering.” Participants were students taking an educational technology course in a local university. The study was conducted in a four-month period. Data was collected from discussions while learning among the students a social media platform, Facebook groups, on mobile devices. The data was analyzed using a social network analysis tool, NodeXL. Data was analyzed based on egocentric networks, betweeness centrality, and closeness centrality. The findings revealed that there are four roles of social participation in mobile social media, which are: (i) lurkers; (ii) gradually mastering members/passive members; (iii) recognized members; and (iv) coaches. The findings also indicated that over the course of four months, learners can inter-change roles of social participation – becoming more central or less central in learning discussions. As a result, a roles of social participation continuum for mobile social media learning is proposed. Future research could be conducted in other fields to investigate whether the continuum produced could be used to understand the relationship between mobile social media learning and social participation roles

The room temperature phosphine-free synthesis of near-infrared emitting HgSe quantum dots

Luminescent mercury selenide (HgSe) quantum dots have been synthesised by a phosphine-free method using oleic acid as a capping agent. The modification of experimental conditions such as temperature resulted in particles of various sizes (15–100 nm) and morphologies not previously seen in HgSe, with emission tuneable between 1000 nm and 1350 nm

Sizing and economic analysis of stand alone photovoltaic system with hydrogen storage

This paper proposes a design steps in sizing of standalone photovoltaic system with hydrogen storage using intuitive method. The main advantage of this method is it uses a direct mathematical approach to find system's size based on daily load consumption and average irradiation data. The keys of system design are to satisfy a pre-determined load requirement and maintain hydrogen storage's state of charge during low solar irradiation period. To test the effectiveness of the proposed method, a case study is conducted using Kuala Lumpur's generated meteorological data and rural area's typical daily load profile of 2.215 kWh. In addition, an economic analysis is performed to appraise the proposed system feasibility. The finding shows that the levelized cost of energy for proposed system is RM 1.98 kWh. However, based on sizing results obtained using a published method with AGM battery as back-up supply, the system cost is lower and more economically viable. The feasibility of PV system with hydrogen storage can be improved if the efficiency of hydrogen storage technologies significantly increases in the future. Hence, a sensitivity analysis is performed to verify the effect of electrolyzer and fuel cell efficiencies towards levelized cost of energy. Efficiencies of electrolyzer and fuel cell available in current market are validated using laboratory's experimental data. This finding is needed to envisage the applicability of photovoltaic system with hydrogen storage as a future power supply source in Malaysia

Analysis on Wearable Antenna Performance on Different Radiating Elements for GPS Application

This paper presents a study on the performance of self-manufactured electro-textile (SME-T) antenna that was designed at 1.575 GHz based on the allocated spectrum for Global Positioning System (GPS) application. However, due to its known low-conductivity characteristic, the ability of the newly developed material to perform as a good antenna shall be verified. Therefore, the performance of the antennas are compared and studied with respect to established materials such as adhesive copper tape and commercial conductive fabric named SHIELDITTM as the radiating elements. Here, four e-textile antennas having approximately the same size are fabricated and tested. The performance of all antennas, in terms of return loss, radiation pattern, gain, and efficiency; manufactured by using different radiating elements, such as copper, SHIELDITTM and SME-T fabricated on polyester fabric as the substrate are analyzed. The measured return loss and radiation pattern of SME-T antenna has proven that the antenna is well suited for wearable application. The measured antenna gain and efficiency of 0.61 dB and 25.95% are obtained and it is proven that the fabricated SME-T antenna can act as a receiving antenna designed for GPS applications which requires low gain antenna for passive monitoring

Mixed-matrix membranes

Article In Press title was: New directions for mixed-matrix membranes. Also published in German in Angewandte Chemie, 2017; 129(32):9420-9439.Research into extended porous materials such as metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and porous organic frameworks (POFs), and their molecular analogues, metal-organic polyhedra (MOPs) and porous organic cages (POCs), has blossomed over the last decade. Given their chemical and structural mutability and notable porosity, MOFs have been proposed as novel adsorbents for industrial gas separations. In this context they have also been identified as promising filler components for high-performance mixed matrix membranes (MMMs). Research in this area has focused on enhancing the chemical compatibility between the MOF and polymer phase by judiciously functionalising the organic linkers of the MOF, modifying the MOF surface chemistry and, more recently, exploring how particle size, morphology and distribution enhance separation performance. Other filler materials, including POFs, MOPs and POCs, are also being explored as additives for MMMs and have shown, unexpectedly, remarkable anti-aging performance and excellent chemical compatibility for commercially available polymers. This review briefly outlines the state-of-the-art in MOF-MMM fabrication, and the more recent use of porous organic frameworks and molecular additives for MMMs.Janina Dechnik, Jorge Gascon, Christian J. Doonan, Christoph Janiak and Christopher J. Sumb

Intelligent glove for suppression of resting tremor in Parkinson’s disease

One of the significant symptoms in Parkinson’s disease is resting tremor. Resting tremor occurs when the muscle is relaxed, causing the limb to shake. Rhythmic muscle movement of the patients commonly happens within the range of 4 Hz to 6 Hz. Thus, reducing this type of tremor will help improve patients’ quality of life. In this paper, to suppress resting tremors, an intelligent glove was designed utilizing the concepts of vibrations and gyro effect. A rotating brass disc attached to the glove creates a gyroscopic effect of the smart glove. Therefore, the disc will do their utmost to stay upright and counter any input forces instantaneously by providing the counterforce. A reduction of more than 50 % with the intelligent glove is also shown

Optimised combinatorial control strategy for active anti-roll bar system for ground vehicle

The objective of this paper is to optimise the proposed control strategy for an active anti-roll bar system using non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) tuning method. By using an active anti-roll control strategy, the controller can adapt to current road conditions and manoeuvres unlike a passive anti-roll bar. The optimisation solution offers a rather noticeable improvement results compared to the manually-tuned method. From the application point of view, both tuning process can be used. However, using optimisation method gives a multiple choice of solutions and provides the optimal parameters compared to manual tuning method

Influence of citronella and chlorpyrifos on Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius) and Chrysomya rufifacies (Macquart) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) infesting rabbit carcasses

Influence of citronella and chlorpyrifos on oviposition and duration for completing life cycles for Chrysomya megacephala and Chrysomya rufifacies infesting decomposing rabbit carcasses was studied. Male rabbit carcasses (n = 12) were equally divided into control, citronella-and chlorpyrifos–treated groups, and left to decompose for 14 consecutive days. C. megacephala was the first necrophagous fly oviposited in all control and citronella-treated carcasses followed by C. rufifacies. Although initial oviposition of C. megacephala was delayed (4-6 hours) in citronella-treated carcasses (P < 0.05), prolongation in completing its life cycle was not observed. Neither delayed initial oviposition nor prolonged life cycle for C. rufifacies in citronella-treated carcasses was observed. Oviposition was delayed for chlorpyrifos-treated carcasses (0.42 g/L), and eclosion of eggs remained unsuccessful. The findings deserve consideration because these chemicals are easily accessible and can be used by cunning criminals to confuse forensic entomologists while estimating minimum postmortem interval