Determination of Phenolic and Flavonoid Contents, Antioxidant Activities and GC-MS Analysis of Clinacanthus Nutans (Acanthaceae) in Different Locations

Clinacanthus nutans is an essential medicinal plant that had been used in various local remedies to treat many illnesses. A study had been conducted to determine the phenolic, flavonoid, antioxidant activities and phytochemical compounds of C. nutans in different locations. C. nutans were harvested from eight locations and the leaves were extracted with 80 % methanol by maceration process. Then, the phytochemical screening using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS), 2,2 diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl hydrate (DPPH) assay method, total phenolic content by Folin Ciocalteu\u27s assay method and total flavonoid content by aluminium chloride (AlCl3) were carried out. The C. nutans extracts showed higher antioxidant activities than phenolic and flavonoid content. The neutral pH sandy clay soil from location KKK (Kuala Ketil, Kedah, Malaysia) had higher antioxidant activities (58.0 %), phenolic (44.1 mg GA.100 g-1) and flavonoid content (30.8 mg QE.100 g-1) compared to other locations. The GC-MS analysis showed the presence of phytochemicals constituents of 20 compounds. The results revealed that environmental factors (light intensity, temperature and soil characteristics) of eight locations were responsible for variations of phenolic, flavonoids, antioxidants and GC-MS analysis in C. nutans. The findings of this study will provide baseline data for future breeding programs for commercial cultivation

Structure prediction on large protein using the combination of knowledge based and physics based approaches method validation on cholesterol esterase

The objective of this study was to predict the structure of a large protein using a combined approach of knowledge-based comparative modeling and physics-based Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulation applied to the enzyme cholesterol esterase. The core region of the enzyme was modelled using information from homologous known protein structures whereby leaving the end-terminal regions (the nonhomologous regions) to fold via MD simulation. Currently, there is yet a reported study where one begins with a knowledge-based model of the core region of a protein and allowing the remaining end terminal regions to fold via MD simulation. The method was categorized into three parts; ~ the development of the core region of the protein, the development of the complete protein structure and the MD refinement simulation. Three models were tested, CECRL-87, CETHG-45 and CEn~M-14, with each originating from different core regions developed at three different cutoff values of sequence identity; more than 70% (%id > 70%), less than 60% but more than 30% (30% < %id < 60%) and less than 20% (%id < 20%), respectively. The remaining residues were later added using MD simulation which then followed by 20 ns of MD refinement. It was shown that the use of different starting core regions did not significantly contribute towards correct structure predictions of large proteins. Furthermore, the use of restraint of the core region would only deteriorate the model as observed in CETHG-45

The effects of gas phase on the protein conformation a molecular dynamics study on Eotaxin-3 Cytokine

In the current work, the structure of the enzyme CC chemokine eotaxin-3 (IG2S) was chosen as a case study to investigate the effects of gas phase on the protein conformation using molecular dynamics simulation. Generally, simulating proteins in the gas phase tend to suffer from various drawbacks, among which excessive numbers of proteinprotein hydrogen bonds. However, current results showed that the effects of gas phase simulation on IG2S did not amplify the protein-protein hydrogen bonds. It was also found that some of the hydrogen bonds which were crucial in maintaining the secondary structural elements were disrupted

Identifying the needs of agricultural students in the field of professional competencies based on the Borich's model and the relationship with the social structure of education

Background and Objective:The historical experience of the development process in the industrialized countries shows that agriculture has played a key role in the national development of these countries. Agriculture has complex social, political, economic, ecological, aesthetic and moral aspects. Optimal confrontation with complexities, lack of uncertainty and norms, and conflicting values ​​and tendencies require fundamental changes in agricultural work and as a result, fundamental changes in the competencies are required by agricultural students and rural development. The goal of education should be to nurture talents, grow and develop abilities and competencies, not to define the future for students. Agricultural graduates must not only be equipped with technical and specialized skills, but also have skills to facilitate development processes, including proficiency in project management, communication and negotiation. The main objective of this research was to identify the needs of agricultural students on professional competencies and its relationship with the social structure of education based on the Borich's model. Methods: The statistical population of this study consisted both senior undergraduate and postgraduate students on different agricultural fields at both Bu Ali Sina University of Hamedan and Razi University of Kermanshah (N = 850). Of those, 385 students were selected as samples by using Cochran's formula and a simple random sampling method. The main tool for data gathering in this research was a questionnaire whose questions were designed in three sections: professional competencies, social structure of education, academic motivation. The validity of the questionnaire was calculated using a panel of experts and its reliability was calculated by Cronbach's alpha test and it was 0.88. Findings:The results of the research showed that from the viewpoint of the agricultural students about professional competencies, 8 items need to be learned by the students and integrated into students' curriculum. These were: 1. Practical skills, 2. English skills, 3. Agricultural experience, 4. Ability to implement various agricultural projects, 5. Ability to implement research project; 6. Agricultural and environmental technical knowledge; 7. Information and communication technology skills; and 8. Creativity and innovation. The results of structural equation analysis also showed the direct effect of professional competencies on two variables of academic motivation (0.78) and social structure of education (0.63), and they were significant at the level of 0.001. The results also showed that academic motivation had a direct effect on the social structure of education with a path coefficient (0.82). Conclusion: Different approaches can be used to formulate competencies and having a competency framework in a specific area. In this context, according to the functional areas and the level and nature of the expected behaviors, competencies can be divided into technical competence, methodological competence, social competence and individual competence, the ratio of which can vary from job to job. Combining different types of competencies together creates a type of competency that can be described as professional competence in practice. In recent years, one of the emerging issues is that competencies and their roles are a contributing factor to the organizations that deal with the changing environment. In this regard, the competency-oriented approach focuses on individuals and highlights the importance of human resources to achieve organizational goals.   ===================================================================================== COPYRIGHTS  ©2019 The author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, as long as the original authors and source are cited. No permission is required from the authors or the publishers.  ====================================================================================

Non‐touch detection of rhodamine B concentration in distilled water using fiber coupler based on displacement sensor

Non-touch detection of rhodamine B concentration in distilld water using fiber coupler and concave mirror(CM) successfully demonstrated. Based on displacement sensor, the concentration of rhodamine B is detected through the peak voltage value which is resulted from the displacement profile. Using the He-Ne (543 nm) laser as the source, the fiber coupler as the sensor probe and CM with the curvature radius of 12 mm as the reflector as well as the sample container, the rhodamine B concentration can be detected in the range 0-20 ppm and the resolution of 0.26 pp