Optimization of protease production by Bacillus licheniformis in Sugarcane bagasse using statistical experimental design

Sugarcane bagasse, the residue obtained after extracting the sugar juice from sugarcane was tested for the production of protease under solid-state fermentation (SSF) using Bacillus licheniformis. The fermentation variables were selected in accordance with Plackett-Burman design and were further optimized via response surface methodological approach. Four significant variables (K2HPO4, Beef extract, NaNO3 and Glycine) were selected for the optimization studies. The optimum values for the selected variables were; K2HPO4 -0.3464g/gds, Beef extract- 0.1039g/gds, NaNO3- 0.0334g/gds and Glycine- 0.1027g/gds. A second-order model equation was suggested and then validated experimentally.The model adequacy was very satisfactory as the coefficient of determination was 0.95. The maximum protease production was 146.28U/gd

Weaving ‘figured - face flip face - fabric’ using orthogonal weft tapestry weave

The aim of this study is to evolve new compound weave structures by modifying and permuting the existing structures. Basic principles of orthogonal structure and weft tapestry structure have been studied. New ‘Orthogonal Weft Tapestry (OWT)’ weaves are evolved by combining these two weaves and the concepts involved in deriving the new weave have also been developed. The structure of ‘Two in one’ figured fabric available in the field has been analyzed. This fabric is renamed as ‘Figured - Face Flip Face - Fabric (FFFFF)’. Suitability of OWT weave to produce diversified FFFFF has been interpreted. Superimposing the guide graphs for the preparation of weave graph has been worked out using MS Paint to weave this fabric using electronic jacquard. Methodology of making double punching graph for mechanical jacquard weaving is also explored. The feasibilities of weaving these structures are explored using heald-treadle and jacquard shedding devices either separately or in combination. Fabric samples have been developed using mechanical jacquard in handloom. The techno - ergonomics of weaving methods are compared and recorded. It is observed that FFFFF produced with OWT weave has got features like uniqueness in appearance, fascinating utility value, and possibilities of producing exclusive product range

Weaving twill damask fabric using ‘section- scale- stitch’ harnessing

The possibility of weaving figured twill damask using the combination of ‘sectional-scaled- stitched’ (SSS) harnessing systems has been explored. Setting of sectional, pressure harness systems used in jacquard have been studied. The arrangements of weave marks of twill damask using the warp face and weft face twills of 4 threads have been analyzed. The different characteristics of the weave have been identified. The methodology of setting the jacquard harness along with healds has been derived corresponding to the weave analysis. It involves in making the harness / ends in two sections; one section is to increase the figuring capacity by scaling the harness and combining it with other section of simple stitching harnessing of ends. Hence, the new harness methodology has been named as ‘section-scale-stitch’ harnessing. The advantages of new SSS harnessing to weave figured twill damask have been recorded. It is observed that the new harnessing methodology has got the advantages like increased figuring capacity with the given jacquard, less strain on the ends and versatility to produce all range of products of twill damask. It is also found that the new harnessing is suitable to weave figured double cloth using interchanging double equal plain cloth, extra warp and extra weft weaving

Changing Climate over Chad: Is the Rainfall over the Major Cities Recovering?

Chad is the largest country of the Sahel region with different climatic zones, varying from arid in the north to tropical in the south. These climatic zones respond differently to climate change signals. Therefore, their detection over major cities, which are scattered within different climatic zones, is of utmost importance. The changes in hydroclimatic fields such as rainfall and temperature were examined over the major cities in various regions for the period 1950 to 2014. Rainfall shows a significant decreasing trend especially over cities close to Lake Chad (Lere, Mondou, Mongo and Sarh), whereas no significant trend is observed for cities farther from the Lake. However, a consistently increasing trend in temperature is found across all cities. The cities in the north (Faya, Abeche, and Ati) receive far less rainfall than those located in southern Chad. All cities (except Faya and Lere) received higher rainfall during 1950 – 1965 (wet period), entering a dry regime between 1966 – 1990 (dry period) and subsequently recovering rainfall totals, toward previous levels, between 1991 – 2014 (recovery phase). A substantial rise in air temperature is observed after 1980 – 1985, reflecting the gradual rise of temperature in recent times. In summary, rainfall is recovering from a dry regime and temperature is rising over all the major cities of Chad. More researches in this region is needed to develop local scale mitigation strategies and adaptation technology

Fostering resilience among children: a life skills intervention

The promotion of Child Mental Health can lead to prevention of mental illness. 'Life Skills Education is a proven method for promoting mental health. This indicates that life skills education is required by young people for their holistic development and hence it should be imparted. Well designed, tested and delivered life skills programmes can achieve much in helping children and adolescents become more responsible, healthy and resilient both during childhood and as adults. The concept of resilience emerged in the psychiatric literature in the 1980's, in an attempt to understand individual differences in their responses to stress and adversity, which has a direct linkage with wellbeing. Resilience and Life Skills Training are topics of interests to school psychologists, yet little is known about the relationships among the two. It was hypothesized that resilience would mediate the relationship with Life Skills. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of Life Skills Training for fostering Resilience. The training was conducted over a period of 30 days for 60 min per day. A total of 15 students participated in the training programe. Wagnild and Young's Resilience Scale was utilized for assessing the resilience before and after the training programme. The result of the training indicates a positive effect on life skills training for fostering resilience. The statistical analysis also indicates that there is an improvement in the level of resilience on the experimental group

Occupational burnout in a sample of geriatric social care professionals in Malaysia

This study examined the relationship between occupational burnout and various socio-demographic variables, workload and job clarity in a sample of geriatric social care workers in Malaysia. Maslach’s Burnout Inventory was used to categorise occupational burnout into three categories: state of emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation and reduced personal accomplishment.The results showed significant gender and marital status differences in depersonalisation. In addition, the results showed that participants with poor job clarity and those who perceived they had a heavy workload were more emotionally exhausted. These results are discussed in terms of the job stresses faced by welfare workers in Malaysia

Early electroencephalography in patients with Emergency Room diagnoses of suspected new-onset seizures: Diagnostic yield and impact on clinical decision-making

AbstractPurposeTo assess the utility of acute electroencephalography (EEG) performed in the emergency room (ER) and its impact on subsequent management of patients with new-onset seizures. Adults who recover fully in the ER following suspected isolated new-onset seizures are usually discharged to the neurology clinic for further review. An EEG at that stage may be normal. We sought to assess the feasibility and yield of early EEG in the ER setting, its impact on management.MethodsA prospective study from January 2008 to January 2011 of patients diagnosed by ER physicians with uncomplicated suspected first episodes of unprovoked convulsive seizures. All patients underwent routine 30-min EEG in the ER prior to discharge and specialist review was arranged in the epilepsy clinic within 2 weeks of presentation. Management decisions were at the discretion of the treating neurologist. Seizure recurrence was assessed during a follow up period between 9 months and 3 years.Results136 patients were included in the study (92 males). Mean age was 32 years (range 16–73). Forty had abnormal EEGs: 16 focal epileptiform discharges, 12 focal slowing, 10 generalized spike-wave discharges and 2 generalized slowing. Using multivariate analysis, those with abnormal EEG (51% vs 11%, p=0.003) and abnormal MRI (53% vs 28%, p<0.001) were more likely to be commenced on anticonvulsant therapy. Abnormal MRI (p=0.001) was independently associated with a higher risk of recurrence.ConclusionsFollowing an ER diagnosis of new-onset uncomplicated seizure, early EEG had a high diagnostic yield. Abnormal EEG and abnormal MRI significantly contributed to decision-making regarding treatment at specialist review. Abnormal MRI was associated with significantly higher risks of subsequent seizures

Cytokine expression profile of dengue patients at different phases of illness

Background: Dengue is an important medical problem, with symptoms ranging from mild dengue fever to severe forms of the disease, where vascular leakage leads to hypovolemic shock. Cytokines have been implicated to play a role in the progression of severe dengue disease; however, their profile in dengue patients and the synergy that leads to continued plasma leakage is not clearly understood. Herein, we investigated the cytokine kinetics and profiles of dengue patients at different phases of illness to further understand the role of cytokines in dengue disease. Methods and Findings: Circulating levels of 29 different types of cytokines were assessed by bead-based ELISA method in dengue patients at the 3 different phases of illness. The association between significant changes in the levels of cytokines and clinical parameters were analyzed. At the febrile phase, IP-10 was significant in dengue patients with and without warning signs. However, MIP-1 beta was found to be significant in only patients with warning signs at this phase. IP-10 was also significant in both with and without warning signs patients during defervescence. At this phase, MIP-1b beta and G-CSF were significant in patients without warning signs, whereas MCP-1 was noted to be elevated significantly in patients with warning signs. Significant correlations between the levels of VEGF, RANTES, IL-7, IL-12, PDGF and IL-5 with platelets; VEGF with lymphocytes and neutrophils; G-CSF and IP-10 with atypical lymphocytes and various other cytokines with the liver enzymes were observed in this study. Conclusions: The cytokine profile patterns discovered between the different phases of illness indicate an essential role in dengue pathogenesis and with further studies may serve as predictive markers for progression to dengue with warning signs

Optimization of production, biochemical characterization and In Vitro evaluation of the therapeutic potential of fibrinolytic enzymes from a new Bacillus Amyloliquefaciens

The capacity of fibrinolytic enzymes to degrade blood clots makes them of high relevance in medicine and in the pharmaceutical industry. In this work, forty-three microorganisms of the genus Bacillus were evaluated for their potential to produce fibrinolytic proteases. Thirty bacteria were confirmed as producers of fibrinolytic enzymes, the best results obtained for the strain Bacillus amyloliquefaciens UFPEDA 485. The optimization of the enzyme production conditions was done by a central composite design (CCD) star 23 that allowed to define the optimal conditions for soybean flour and glucose concentrations and agitation rate. The highest fibrinolytic activity (FA) of 813 U mL-1 and a degradation of blood clot in vitro of 62% were obtained in a medium with 2% (w/v) of soybean flour and 1% (w/v) glucose at 200 rpm after 48 h of cultivation, at pH 7.2 and 37 °C. The obtained fibrinolytic enzyme was characterized biochemically. Fibrinolytic activity was inhibited by PMSF (fluoride methylphenylsulfonyl - C7H7FO2S) 91.52% and EDTA (ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid - C10H16N2O8) 89.4%, confirming to be a serine- metallo protease. The optimum pH and temperature were 7.0 and 37 oC, respectively, and the enzyme was stable for 12 h. The fibrinolytic activity at physiological conditions of this enzyme produced by Bacillus amyloliquefaciens UFPEDA 485, as well as its long term stability, demonstrate that it has suitable characteristics for human and veterinary applications, and promises to be a powerful drug for the treatment of vascular diseases.We express our thanks to Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Level Education Personnel (CAPES) - Doctoral Sandwich Program (PDSE) Nº 0259/ 12-8 and National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) - Nº 202026/2011-6 for the financial support