Development of Artificial Lipids for Metal Ion-Responsive Liposomes and Related Medicinal Applications

Liposomes are synthetic vesicles made of phospholipids that are effective for wide-ranging applications in drug delivery and studying biological membranes. Understanding and controlling membrane properties such as fluidity and permeability is crucial for designing liposomes for specific biomedical applications. Pathological changes in these properties can also help us gain insights into disease mechanisms and develop effective treatments. In this dissertation, we describe the design, synthesis, and study of several lipid analogs for a range of applications including liposome triggered cargo release and therapeutic treatment related to lipids. In Chapters 2-3, we developed smart liposome platforms that can respond to changes in metal ion concentrations and thereby drive cargo release which can be harnessed for drug delivery applications. In Chapter 2, we designed and synthesized an artificial lipid switch that can undergo a programmed conformational change upon zinc binding, leading to perturbations in membrane packing that drive release of encapsulated cargo. In Chapter 3, we employed a slightly different strategy and reported triggered content release brought about by copper chelation to an artificial lipid containing a picolinamide headgroup, wherein the copper-headgroup chelation was sufficient to modulate liposome properties. In both Chapters, we evaluated release efficiency upon zinc/copper treatment through fluorescence-based dye leakage assays and assessed morphological changes in liposome assemblies after metabolite (zinc and copper) treatment. In Chapters 4-6, we used different strategies for chemical biology and medicinal applications related lipid biological activities. In Chapter 4, we designed and synthesized probes for artificial signal transduction that can respond to metal ions and phosphorylated metabolites as primary messengers to mimic cellular signaling processes. In Chapter 5, we took a different route and developed camptothecin and doxorubicin prodrugs that can respond to reactive oxygen species (ROS). These prodrugs have the potential to be used in their free form as well as after incorporation into liposomes to achieve triggered drug delivery reducing off-target effects. In Chapter 6, we designed a bis-pyrene phospholipid probe for fluorometric detection of disease-associated phospholipase enzyme inhibition. Incorporation of the pyrene probe into liposomes can provide insights into dependence of enzyme activity on membrane lipid composition

Hubungan Penyesuaian dengan Pencapaian Akademik Pelajar di Institusi Pengajian Tinggi

Kajian ini bertujuan (1) meninjau bentuk pola penyesuaian di kalangan pelajar institusi pengajian tinggi; (2) mengkaji hubungan penyesuaian dan perapatan di kalangan pelajar institusi pengajian tinggi; (3) mengkaji hubungan ppnyesuaian, perapatan, dan pencapaian akademik. Penyesuaian diukur dengan menggunakan Inventori Adaptasi Pelajar di Universiti. Perapatan diukur dengan menggunakan Inventori Perapatan Ibu Bapa dan Rakan. Seramai 223 (n = 223) orang pelajar tahun pertama pengajian melibatkan diri sebagai responden kajian. Soal selidik isi sendiri yang menggunakan skala Likert telah digunakan dalam kajian ini. Data yang diperolehi dianalisa dengan menggunakan statistik diskriptif, korelasi dan analisis regresi. Dapatan kajian menunjukkan bahawa pelajar lelaki mempunyai penyesuaian keseluruhan, penyesuaian sosial, penyesuaian personalemosional dan penyesuaian komitmen-matlamat yang lebih baik berbanding dengan pelajar perempuan. Tidak wujud perbezaan anmra pelajar lelaki dengan pelajar perempuan pad a penyesuaian akademik. Analisis regresi menunjukkan subskala penyesuaian iaitu penyesuaian akademik, penyesuaian komilmen-matlamat dan penyesuaian personalemosional menyumbang sebanyak 16 peratus varian kepada pencapaian akademik. Wujud perhubungan anmra penyesuaian dan perapatan di kalangan pelajar. Analisis regresi juga menunjukkan penyesuaian keseluruhan menyumbangkan sebanyak 6 peratus varian kepada pencapaian akademik pelajar. Proses penyesuaian berbeza di kalangan pelajar. Penyesuaian juga menyumbang terhadap pencapaian akademik pelajar. Oleh itu, pelajar perlu dibantu dalam proses penyesuaian unluk membolehkan mereka berjaya di universiti

Upaya Meningkatkan Kemampuan Bersikap Toleransi Melalui Metode Bermain Peran Di Kelompok B Tk Batik Magersari Mojo Tahun Ajaran 2012/2013 (Ptk Kelompok B Tk Batik Magersari)

Kemampuan sosial emosi anak perlu ditingkatkan, terutama adalah sikap toleransi anak. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk meningkatkan kemampuan bersikap toleransi melalui metode Bermain Peran. Jenis penelitian pada penelitian ini adalah penelitian tindakan kelas disebut juga Classroom Action Research ( CAR ). Subyek penelitian ini adalah anak didik kelompok B Taman Kanak-kanak Batik Magersari, Mojo, Andong, Boyolali tahun ajaran 2012 /2013, dan obyek penelitian ini adalah kemampuan bersikap toleransi. Metode pengumpulan data dilakukan melalui observasi, wawancara, dokumentasi dan catatan lapangan.Teknik analisis data dilakukan dengan teknik diskriptif komparatif. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukkan adanya peningkatan kemampuan bersikap toleransi. Penelitian menunjukkan bahwa rata-rata hasil kemampuan bersikap toleransi anak sebelum tindakan adalah 40,86%. Setelah dilakukan tindakan pembelajaran dengan menggunakan metode bermain peran pada siklus I hasil kemampuan bersikap toleansi anak meningkat menjadi 50,25% pada siklus II hasil kemampuan bersikap toleransi anak meningkat menjadi 70% dan pada siklus III meningkat menjadi 83,25%. Secara keseluruhan dengan penerapan metode bermain peran mampu meningkatkan kemampuan bersikap toleransi anak didik di kelompok B Taman Kanak-kanak Batik Magersari, Mojo, kecamatan Andong, kabupaten Boyolali tahun ajaran 2012 / 201

A Study of investor behavior in purchasing financial assets

This study investigated whether the process of purchasing financial assets follows a rational decision-making process using Engel-Blackwell-Miniard (EBM) model. The method of investigation was a questionnaire survey of Malaysian individual investors. The sample consisted of 223 responses collected through convenience sampling and online survey. The data was analyzed using factor analysis, reliability analysis, path analysis, and multivariate analysis of variance. The results show that investors' decision-making process of purchasing financial assets is in line with a rational decision-making process in EBM Model. However, the tendency for irrational investment behaviors also exists at the same time. The findings imply that irrational investment behaviors may still occur even though the decision-making process is rational. We also found significant differences in the tendencies for herding, disposition effect and over-confidence based on gender and age

Self-Efficacy Whilst Performing Counselling Practicum Promotes Counsellor Trainees Development: Malaysian Perspective

AbstractCounsellor trainee self-efficacy explains the capability of performing the role of counsellor. Being able to practice their role as well as to apply counselling skills whilst performing counselling practicum promotes trainee perceived self-efficacy. The counselling practicum provides opportunities for trainees to practice their knowledge and skills with the real clients as well as to gain experience for future work. Despite this, the counselling practicum involves fulfilling the required tasks. Being able to fulfil the required task may contribute to their self-efficacy and promote their development as a counsellor. The aim of this article is to explore self-efficacy experienced by counsellor trainees, and in what ways those experiences promote development. Qualitative methods involving a series of semi-structured interviews, journal writing, observation and review of related documents were employed with ten participants during the counselling practicum. The findings of the study reveal that self-efficacy among counsellor trainees develops during their counselling practicum. The stories of the trainees indicate that development of efficacy among counsellor trainees involves acceptance of the tasks and roles, openness to new experiences as well as realistic perceptions of the situation. Whilst development of the counsellor trainees during the counselling practicum is not a smooth process, their perceived self-efficacy is increased continuously. Performing the role of counsellor and engaging in the counselling practicum creates opportunities to test and be tested in their ability as a counsellor, which promotes their perceived self-efficacy and impacts their development as a counsellor

Cross-Border Mergers And Acquisitions (Cbmas): A Review On Top Six Asean Country Cbma Players

Cross-Border Mergers and Acquisitions (CBMAs) are one of the vehicles for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and remain a popular external growth strategies by firms worldwide. However, World Investment Report 2015 (UNCTAD, 2015) reports a slight decrease of 16% in global FDI for year 2014. Nevertheless, FDI inflow to emerging economies especially the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member countries increase by 5%. With the intensity of CBMAs in ASEAN member countries, this paper reviews the six ASEAN member countries which actively involved in CBMAs from January 2002 to December 2014. Discussion is also centered on how the main research stream on CBMAs (antecedents, impact of CBMA and determinants of firm performance) relates to CBMA trends by ASEAN member countries. Corporate governance spillover hypothesis is anticipated to explain the CBMA motivations of the ASEAN firms and also the variation in ASEAN firms' performance following CBMAs

The Effect Of Investor Sentiment On Stock Returns: Insight From Emerging Asian Markets

This paper investigates the link between investor sentiment and stock returns in emerging Asian markets. Two dimensions of sentiment are examined: stock specific sentiment and market wide sentiment. Using panel regression with firm fixed effects, we show that stock specific sentiment strongly and positively affects stock returns after controlling for firm characteristics. Overall, there is a positive relationship between market wide sentiment and returns but the relationship does not hold at the country level. For individual countries, we detect substantial country-to-country variations in the influence of market wide sentiment on returns. The evidence also suggests that stock specific sentiment may have a greater influence on returns than market specific sentiment. Furthermore, the effect of investor sentiment on stock returns in emerging Asian markets generally persists after accounting for macroeconomic factors

Do Jornalismo à Curadoria de Dados: Desafios, riscos e oportunidades

O jornalismo tem passado por transformações perceptíveis para quem acompanha a profissão. Como a tecnologia está em constante evolução, acredita-se que essas mudanças da atividade jornalística tenham relação com os avanços tecnológicos emergentes no meio social. Diante disso, questiona-se: como foi a transição do jornalismo tradicional para o jornalismo de dados no Brasil e em Portugal? É importante considerar que a transição do jornalismo tradicional para o jornalismo de dados ilustra exatamente as transformações percebidas, e pode ser resumida em “processo de transição do jornalismo”. Já o interesse por Brasil e Portugal se sustenta, entre outras coisas, no fato de os dois países terem a mesma língua, a língua portuguesa. A partir dessas explicações, definiu-se três objetivos - identificar a posição do jornalismo e o contexto da profissão antes, durante e depois da transição; caracterizar esse processo nas realidades de Brasil e Portugal, e reconhecer a importância da curadoria de dados para a prática jornalística - a fim de responder a tal questão e métodos como a Revisão Tradicional de Literatura e Revisão Sistemática da Literatura, que contribuíram com a orientação da pesquisa. O resultado, nesse caso, é que o processo de transição do jornalismo começou quando a profissão se uniu à internet, consolidando mais tarde o ciberjornalismo, e ocorre até os dias de hoje, com a evidência do jornalismo de dados, pois a atividade jornalística está em contínua adaptação, reinvenção e acompanhamento das inovações. Diversas ideias e conceitos representam essas mudanças, sobretudo se considerado o contexto do Brasil e de Portugal, e reforçam que o jornalismo seguiu esse mesmo caminho nos dois países. Por fim, vale ressaltar a curadoria de dados como parte da prática do jornalismo de dados, e como elemento fundamental para a garantia de informação e conhecimento para a sociedade por meio da atividade jornalística.Journalism has undergone noticeable changes for those who follow the profession. As technology is in constant evolution, it is believed that these changes in journalistic activity are related to technological advances emerging in the social environment. Therefore, the question is: how was the transition from traditional journalism to data journalism in Brazil and Portugal? It is important to consider that the transition from traditional journalism to data journalism illustrates exactly the perceived transformations, and can be summarized as “journalism transition process”. The interest in Brazil and Portugal is based, among other things, on the fact that the two countries have the same language, the Portuguese language. Based on these explanations, three objectives were defined - to identify the position of journalism and the context of the profession before, during and after the transition; characterize this process in the realities of Brazil and Portugal, and recognize the importance of data curation for journalistic practice - in order to answer this question and methods such as the Traditional Literature Review and Systematic Literature Review, which contributed to the orientation of the search. The result, in this case, is that the journalism transition process began when the profession joined the internet, later consolidating cyberjournalism, and it continues to this day, with the evidence of data journalism, as the journalistic activity is in continuous adaptation, reinvention and monitoring of innovations. Several ideas and concepts represent these changes, especially considering the context of Brazil and Portugal, and reinforce that journalism has followed the same path in both countries. Finally, it is worth emphasizing data curation as part of the practice of data journalism, and as a fundamental element to guarantee information and knowledge for society through journalistic activity