Total parenteral nutrition and carnitine supplementation practices in preterm neonates - results of a national survey

Thesis (M.A.)--Boston UniversityBackground: The goal of postnatal total parenteral nutrition (TPN) in premature neonates (PT) is to mimic the intrauterine environment of the fetus. Micronutrients are essential for optimal development. Although carnitine is present in human breast milk and is supplemented in infant formula, very preterm infants primarily receive parenteral nutrition, often devoid of carnitine, shortly after birth. Carnitine plays a critical role in cellular and mitochondrial metabolism. Preterm infants are deficient in carnitine as it is transferred from the placenta to the fetus during late pregnancy. Previously, our group surveyed US neonatologists in 2001 regarding carnitine supplementation practices and found that the majority were not fully familiar with the implications of carnitine deficiency and only 28% of preterm neonates on TPN were receiving carnitine. Since this study, recent research has emphasized the impact of carnitine on early weight gain and its neuroprotective effects. Objective: To determine current TPN carnitine supplementation practices in fasting preterm neonates (< 32 wks and < 1,500g) by conducting a national survey of board- certified neonatologists. [TRUNCATED

Communism as Eudaimonia

Karl Marx states in Capital that “man, if not as Aristotle thought a political animal, is at all events a social animal” (Marx, 1992, 444). That Marx draws from Aristotle’s work has been long-recognized, but one could argue that Marx’s very conception of man—what he calls “species-being”—is a derivative of Aristotle’s theory of the good life. This article explores the Aristotelian underpinnings of Marx’s political philosophy and argues that Marx’s theory of species-being and human emancipation supervenes upon Aristotle’s theory of eudaimonia. The consequence of such a rethinking suggests that the Aristotelian good life itself is possible only in the communist society of Marx’s imaginings and, as such, is a state that must be realized—whether by nature or revolution—for human flourishing. Inspired by Aristotle’s assertion that “friendship exists to the extent that what is just exists” (Aristotle, 1991a, 527), this article draws from several of Aristotle’s and Marx’s texts to situate man as an inherently social being, whose need of other men serves both to edify and realize a common end toward which the state is oriented: the life of virtuous activity performed by and in an association of equals

Work Organisation and Innovation - Case Study: Elica, Italy

[Excerpt] The case chosen is an example of an Italian manufacturing company which has adopted a strategy of innovation through employee participation. Interviews were conducted with a range of managers from production, HR and sales/marketing roles as well as line managers and front line workers in supervisory roles. The Italian company Elica has manufactured cooker hoods since the 1970s. Elica use art, design and innovation to produce some of the most visually striking cooker hoods on the market. The company claims it is redefining the traditional kitchen appliance as a technologically sophisticated object with a unique design that improves quality of life

Determinants of Economic Growth in Pakistan: A Time Series Analysis

This research evaluates the determinants of economic growth for Pakistan. The research tries to analyze the nature of causality between economic growth (GDP), foreign direct This research aims to calculate the simultaneous impact of foreign direct investment (FDI), Agriculture Rate (AGRI), energy consumption (EC) and trade openness (TO) on economic growth of Pakistan (GDP), for the period of 1976-2015. The study tries to analyze the nature of causality among economic growth (GDP), foreign direct investment (FDI), Agriculture Rate (AGRI), energy consumption (EC) and trade openness (TO). The ADF unit root test is used to determine the order of integration of variables. While Johansen (1988) and Johansen and Juselius (1990) maximum likelihood estimation approach is applied to check the co-integration and finally VECM is used to check the short run correlations. Diagnostic test, impulse response function, variance decomposition and granger causality are also used to check autocorrelation and causality among those variables. The result shows that there is affirmative impact of agriculture, energy consumption, trade liberalization and FDI on GDP. Moreover, in short run TO, AGRI and EC have positive impact on economic growth, but FDI has negative impact on GDP. Though, the block of exogeneity tests shows that the granger causality runs from GDP, TO, FDI, EC and AGRI growth rate. Only Agriculture growth rate (AGRI) and energy consumption (EC) are significant

Eco efficiency assessment of domestic wastewater treatment system in Malaysian urban areas

The main purpose of wastewater treatment is to protect humans against waterborne diseases and safeguard aquatic bio-resources like fish. However, there are environmental costs associated with attaining the required level of water quality such as greenhouse gas emissions due to energy production and eco-toxicity from sludge applications on land. The goal of this study is to assess the eco-efficiency of large-scale sewage treatment plants (STPs) in urban areas, focusing specifically on variations in treatment technologies. Life cycle assessment (LCA) and cost benefit-analysis (CBA) were the analytical tools used to evaluate environmental and economic impacts, respectively. For the purpose of this assessment, three STPs in the major Malaysian cities of Kuala Lumpur, Penang, and Johor Bahru were chosen. These STPs employed different treatment technologies. The Jelutong STP in Penang used a sequence batch reactor to treat domestic wastewater. The Bunus STP in Kuala Lumpur as well as the Medini STP in Johor Bahru employed Aerobic activated sludge. Based on the STP data, Bunus STP had the highest performance in terms of wastewater pollutant removal through 96% biological oxygen demand, 90% chemical oxygen demand, and 68% phosphorus. Based on the LCA for 1m3 treated wastewater, STP Bunus Kuala Lumpur had the highest global warming potential(GWP) and acidification potential (AP) at 2.69E-01 kg CO2-eq and 2.11E-03 kg SO2, respectively. Jelutong STP had the highest eutrophication potential (EP) and human toxicity potential (HTP) at 1.47E-02 kg PO4-3 and 5.63E-02 kg DCB-eq, respectively. Medini STP had the highest terrestrial toxicity (TETP) at 2.0E-02 kg DCB-qq. From CBA analysis, Medini STP had the highest operating cost for 1m3 domestic wastewater treatment with RM 0.635 per day and RM232 per year, followed by Bunus STP with RM 0.311 per day and RM 111.6 per year as well as SBR Jelutong Penang with RM 0.157 per day and RM 57.4 per year. In terms of electricity consumption for 1m3 domestic wastewater treatment, aerobic activated sludge Medini STP consumed the highest amount of energy at RM1.02 per day. This is followed by Bunus STP at RM 0.27 per day and Jelutong with RM 0.19 per day. The LCA and CBA framework developed for Bunus plant 1 m3 domestic wastewater flow rate (as a hypothetical example) minimized the environmental impact of GWP by 25%, EP by 3%, AP by 26%, TETP by 3%, and HTP by 3%. In addition, the suggested scenario maximized the benefit of 1m3 domestic wastewater by RM 2.17 per day. The study revealed very different impacts for the three plants, drawing attention to the importance of treatment process choice. The integration of LCA and CBA using the developed framework improve the sustainability of domestic wastewater treatment system in Malaysian urban areas

Physical Cartographies—The Harbinger of Mental Cartographies in Kamila Shamsie’s Burnt Shadows

This research paper explores the elements of territorialization which are defining the mental cartography of man along with his physical cartography in Kamila Shamsie’s novel, Burnt Shadows. The research will analyze the particular ‘fixtures’ which have created vague and ambivalent territories across a common man whether he is an (ex)colonizer or (ex)colonized. These fixtures are compelling him to act according to the already defined territories. Therefore, the research is focusing the theoretical paradigm of Deleuze and Guattari’s collaborated work for the notion of territorialization. The research focuses the factors which are contributing to create the hegemonic, static cartography in the novel. The purpose of this research is to highlight the elements of physical and mental territorialization of man. It will enable him to give a return gaze, to revamp the hegemonic cartographic discourse

What Gets Measured Gets Treated? A composite Measure of Child Malnutrition and its Determinants

Micronutrient deficiencies in children are a major health problem at a global level. There are various avenues for solving this multidimensional problem, but all require an accurate assessment of the level of the deficiency. In this study, we assessed the prevalence of four essential micronutrients deficiencies using defined cutoff values and determine an aggregate burden of malnutrition named as the Composite Index of Micronutrient Deficiencies (CIMND). We used the National Nutrient Survey 2011 from Pakistan (n = 7,173) to develop this new index. We also built a multinomial logistic regression model to express the probability of an infant falling into a particular category of CIMND as a function of various covariates. Concomitant deficiencies of three micronutrients have the highest percentage (38.6%) among all other levels of malnutrition. Children of rural households are less malnourished.Food security did not prove to be a strong predictor of child malnutrition while demographic and economic dependency showed negative associations with undernourishment.&nbsp;&nbsp; Keywords: micronutrient deficiency; operationalization; stunting; wasting; underweight

Bismuth Ferrites/Graphene Nanoplatelets Nanohybrids for Efficient Organic Dye Removal

The doped bismuth ferrites have got tremendous attraction owing to its ideal properties for photocatalysis application. We have fabricated the novel lanthanum and manganese co-doped BiFeO3 (namely BLFMO)/graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) nanohybrid for photocatalysis with easy and effective synthesis routes namely the co-precipitation (C-hybrid) and hydrothermal (H-hybrid) processes. The H-hybrid showed crystalline structure with lower band-gap than the C-hybrid samples. However, C-hybrid showed higher dye degradation (92%) due its higher surface area (55 m2/g) and the fine incorporation of BLFMO nanoparticles into the GNPs which enhanced the surface adsorption. This is verified from more degradation in dark conditions for these samples. The proposed nanohybrids are novel for photocatalytic application fabricated through the low cost routes which show higher efficiency for practical applications