Identification of Continuing Professional Development Needs of Primary School English Teachers of Kuala Terenganu District

The study was carried out mainly to identify the perceived needs for continuing professional development of primary school English teachers of Kuala Terengganu District. It also sought to find out the relationship between selected variables and the perceived needs for continuing professional development. The data was collected using a questionnaire from 82 primary school English teachers of Kuala Terengganu district. The findings of the study indicated that majority of the respondents have high perceived needs for continuing professional development. The study also revealed that the respondents have perceived needs in all the six categories identified in the questionnaire which were (A) Knowledge, (B) Teaching Strategies, (C) Classroom-Based Skills, (D) Pastoral Care, (E) Student Management Skills and (F) Personal Development. It was found that there was a significant correlation between age and perceived needs for continuing professional development but it was low in nature. The study recommended that provision of professional development activities for primary school English teachers of Kuala Terengganu District should be based on a needs assessment and teachers should be allowed to choose in-service courses based on their own needs. The study has also suggested that further research should be conducted to obtain a more in-depth view of the perception of professional needs of English teachers through other research designs

Isolation and characterization of a biosurfactant-producing heavy metal resistant Rahnella sp. RM isolated from chromium-contaminated soil

Objective of the study was to isolate heavy metal resistant bacteria from chromium-contaminated subsurface soil and investigate biosurfactant production and heavy metal bioremediation. Based on 16S rRNA gene sequence and phylogenetic analysis, the isolate was identified as Rahnella sp. RM. The biosurfactant production by heavy metal resistant Rahnella sp. RM was optimized using Box- Behnken design (BBD). The maximum emulsification activity was obtained 66% at 6% soybean meal in pH 7.0 and 33.5°C. The biosurfactant was characterized using Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and matrix assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF). The highest metal removal rates using the biosurfactant were found 74.3, 72.5, and 70.1%, respectively, at the 100 mg/L amended flasks at 48 h. This study indicated the biosurfactant from heavy metal resistant Rahnella sp. RM could be used as a potential tool to remediate the metals in contaminated environments

Cross sectional, qualitative thematic analysis of patient perspectives of disease impact in juvenile idiopathic arthritis-associated uveitis

BACKGROUND: Chronic health conditions in children can have a significant impact on their quality of life. The aim of this study was to explore the subjective experience of children and young people being treated for chronic, non-infectious uveitis associated with a systemic disease such as juvenile idiopathic arthritis. METHODS: A semi-structured interview was conducted with 10 children and young people aged between 6 and 18 years of age and their parents. RESULTS: Preliminary thematic analysis indicated that both the treatment and complications of the disorder have a significant impact on the quality of life and emotional well-being of patients, not only in terms of the discomfort experienced but also in perceptions of social isolation, anxiety and sense of injustice. CONCLUSION: This study shows that themes including "impact on school", "social factors" and "emotional reactions" are important domains influencing health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in children with chronic uveitis. Inclusion of questions relating to these domains should be considered in future uveitis-specific tools examining HRQoL in these patients

Salinity changes in the estuary and the coastal sea adjacent to the portmouth at Cochin

The article deals with the details of salinity changes in the Cochin estuary and its influence and interrelations with the Vembanad lake

Nuclear microenvironments modulate transcription from low-affinity enhancers

Transcription factors bind low-affinity DNA sequences for only short durations. It is not clear how brief, low-affinity interactions can drive efficient transcription. Here, we report that the transcription factor Ultrabithorax (Ubx) utilizes low-affinity binding sites in the Drosophila melanogaster shavenbaby (svb) locus and related enhancers in nuclear microenvironments of high Ubx concentrations. Related enhancers colocalize to the same microenvironments independently of their chromosomal location, suggesting that microenvironments are highly differentiated transcription domains. Manipulating the affinity of svb enhancers revealed an inverse relationship between enhancer affinity and Ubx concentration required for transcriptional activation. The Ubx cofactor, Homothorax (Hth), was co-enriched with Ubx near enhancers that require Hth, even though Ubx and Hth did not co-localize throughout the nucleus. Thus, microenvironments of high local transcription factor and cofactor concentrations could help low-affinity sites overcome their kinetic inefficiency. Mechanisms that generate these microenvironments could be a general feature of eukaryotic transcriptional regulation

Distribution of finfish resources along southeast coast of India in relation to certain environmental parameters

This paper embodies the distribution pattern of major finfish resources along the southeast coast of India as observed during the cruises operated by FORV Sagar Sampada. A total of 16 cruises (1985-90) operated along latitude 7° 15'- 15°00' N and longitude 75°50'- 82°3r E hauled a total catch 37.5 tonnes with a catch rate of 537 kg/hr. The catch was constituted mainly by threadfin breams (43%), perches (14%), barracudas (9.72%), carangids (8.56%) and elasmobranchs (4.81%). Seasonally higher catch rates were obtained during July- September period. Depth range of 60 - 80 m had denser population of finfish resources. Water temperature and salinity appeared to influence the distribution of major finfishes more than dissolved oxygen. Groups such as threadfin breams were found preferring cooler waters of Wadge Bank area, while barracudas appear to occupy warmer waters of Gulf of Mannar

The Intrinsic Structure of Nuclear Chemistry: A Scientometric Study

: In the last two decades, the research in nuclear chemistry has experienced a regular as well as voluminous structural changes and has grown notably with interaction from other fields in terms of theory building, methodology, and applications. This study focus a quantitative assessment of the scientific literature for mapping the intellectual structure of nuclear chemistry research and its scientific development over a 11-year period from 2008 till 2018. A total of 109281 publications were subjected to examination in order to draw statistics and depict dynamic changes to shed new light upon the growth, dispersion and structure of the studied domain. In general this work characterizes the papers, in terms of growth, institution, document type, prominent authors and institutions, and geographical distributio