Microwave Dielectric and Reflection Characterization on Silver Grunter (Pomadasys hasta) and Tilapia (Oreochromisniloticus) Fish Scale for Potential Use as Scaffold

Hydroxyapatite from fish scale was studied and reported of its potential in bone scaffold or regenerative material. Fish scale as a source of collagen and valuable matrix proteins in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries is overwhelmingly studied among researchers. In this work, dielectric and reflection measurement was conducted on fish scale from Silver Grunter (Pomadasys hasta) and Tilapia (Oreochromisniloticus) fish ranging from 200 MHz to 20 GHz using Agilent E8362B PNA Network Analyzer in conjunction with an Agilent 85070E High Temperature Probe. The fish scale was prepared as sample under test prior to measurements. Dielectric constant, and loss factor increase with frequency. Meanwhile, the measured magnitude and phase of reflection coefficient that acquired through reflection measurement decrease when frequency increases. On the other hand, both fish scales were characterized as crystalline structure via X-ray diffraction analysis. It is important in analyzing dielectric mechanism occurs in fish scale

Substantial and sustained reduction in under-5 mortality, diarrhea, and pneumonia in Oshikhandass, Pakistan : Evidence from two longitudinal cohort studies 15 years apart

Funding Information: Study 1 was funded through the Applied Diarrheal Disease Research Program at Harvard Institute for International Development with a grant from USAID (Project 936–5952, Cooperative Agreement # DPE-5952-A-00-5073-00), and the Aga Khan Health Service, Northern Areas and Chitral, Pakistan. Study 2 was funded by the Pakistan US S&T Cooperative Agreement between the Pakistan Higher Education Commission (HEC) (No.4–421/PAK-US/HEC/2010/955, grant to the Karakoram International University) and US National Academies of Science (Grant Number PGA-P211012 from NAS to the Fogarty International Center). The funding bodies had no role in the design of the study, data collection, analysis, interpretation, or writing of the manuscript. Publisher Copyright: © 2020 The Author(s).Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Unlocking adaptive fitness traits in rice (O. sativa L.) through induced mutation

Mutants were induced in variety MR219 using gamma rays at 300 Gr to generate superior genotypes for minimal water requirement. The mutants were screened for water stress under simulated non-flooded water regime both under glasshouse and field conditions. After several series of selection and fixation, 12 potential lines with the required adaptive traits were recovered at M4 generation. However, only two potential lines designated as MR219-4 and MR219-9 were selected. The lines were evaluated under replicated yield trial in KETARA under normal flooded conditions.. In KETARA, the yield of MR219-4 and MR219-9 were 4.8 t/ha and 5.5 t/ha, respectively as compared to the 5.8 t/ha of the original variety MR219. The lines were also evaluated in MADA under saturated soil and flooded conditions. The yield of MR219-4 was 5.9 t/ha under saturated soil condition and 7.2 t/ha under flooded condition. For MR219-9, the yield was 6.8 t/ha and 6.1 t/ha under saturated and flooded condition, respectively. The lines also performed satisfactorily when grown under aerobic soil condition in MARDI Seberang Perai. Grain yield as high as 6.3 t/ha for MR219-4 and 3.4 t/ha for MR219-9 were achieved under aerobic condition. In another development, submergence screening was done to the same two lines and a new adaptive trait was discovered where both MR219-4 and MR219-9 were found to be tolerant to submergence. These findings indicated that these two mutant lines are unique because they possess “dual” adaptations ie. flooded and water stress regimes. The results of submergence tolerance studies indicated that tolerance to submergence was observed until 8 days after submergence for MR219-4 and FR13A cultivars, and much better in MR219-9 where it can tolerate until 12 days submergence

Public Awareness and Practices Towards Self-Medication with Antibiotics Among Malaysian Population: Questionnaire Development and Pilot Testing

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