Capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin determination in chili pepper genotypes using ultra-fast liquid chromatography

Research was carried out to estimate the levels of capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin that may be found in some heat tolerant chili pepper genotypes and to determine the degree of pungency as well as percentage capsaicin content of each of the analyzed peppers. A sensitive, precise, and specific ultra fast liquid chromatographic (UFLC) system was used for the separation, identification and quantitation of the capsaicinoids and the extraction solvent was acetonitrile. The method validation parameters, including linearity, precision, accuracy and recovery, yielded good results. Thus, the limit of detection was 0.045 µg/kg and 0.151 µg/kg for capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin, respectively, whereas the limit of quantitation was 0.11 µg/kg and 0.368 µg/kg for capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin. The calibration graph was linear from 0.05 to 0.50 µg/g for UFLC analysis. The inter- and intra-day precisions (relative standard deviation) were <5.0% for capsaicin and <9.9% for dihydrocapsaicin while the average recoveries obtained were quantitative (89.4%–90.1% for capsaicin, 92.4%–95.2% for dihydrocapsaicin), indicating good accuracy of the UFLC method. AVPP0705, AVPP0506, AVPP0104, AVPP0002, C05573 and AVPP0805 showed the highest concentration of capsaicin (12,776, 5,828, 4,393, 4,760, 3,764 and 4,120 µg/kg) and the highest pungency level, whereas AVPP9703, AVPP0512, AVPP0307, AVPP0803 and AVPP0102 recorded no detection of capsaicin and hence were non-pungent. All chili peppers studied except AVPP9703, AVPP0512, AVPP0307, AVPP0803 and AVPP0102 could serve as potential sources of capsaicin. On the other hand, only genotypes AVPP0506, AVPP0104, AVPP0002, C05573 and AVPP0805 gave a % capsaicin content that falls within the pungency limit that could make them recommendable as potential sources of capsaicin for the pharmaceutical industry

Role Conflict and Coping Behaviour of Married Working Women

ABSTRAK Penyelidikan ini mengkaji konflik di antara peranan keija dan keluarga bagi wanita yang telah berkahwin, serta strategi pengurusan konflik tersebut. Data dari 82 wanita profesional dari enam institut penyelidikan menunjukkan wanita-wanita ini mengalami konflik di antara peranan keija dan keluarga dengan intensiti yang berbeza, dalam usaha untuk memenuhi tuntutan setiap peranan. Mereka mengurangkan konflik dengan mengguna strategi reaktif serta mengubah sikap dan persepsi diri terhadap tuntutan peranan. Kedua-dua strategi ini lebih selalu digunakan berbanding dengan strategi pendefinisian semula peranan secara struktur yang melibatkan pengubahan harapan ahli-ahli dalam set peranan seperti ahli keluarga, rakan-rakan dan ketua di tempat keija, dan masyarakat. Implikasi hasil kajian terhadap wanita yang berkeija serta cadangan penyelidikan selanjutnya dibincangkan. ABSTRACT This study examined the conflict that married women experienced between work and family roles, and analysed the coping behaviour. Data from 82 professional women from six research institutes revealed that married women experienced work-family conflict with varying intensities in trying to meet the expectations of work and family roles. In managing the work-family conflict, the women tended to cope through reactive role behaviour, and personal role redefinition by changing their own attitudes and perceptions of role expectations. These two strategies were more frequently adopted than structural role redefinition, which entails changing the expectation of members in the role set such as family members, colleagues and leaders at the work place, and society. Implications of these findings for working women and suggestions for further research are discussed. IN T R O D U C T IO N M arried working w om en are faced with problem s in perform ing different roles, such as the wife, m other, hom em aker an d em ployee roles. T he m ajor role problem a wom an faces is the conflict arising from m ultiple roles. A ccording to Katz and Khan (1978), the fact th at m ultiple roles operate at the same tim e should lead to greater role conflict. T he expectations su rro u n d in g any o f these roles can g en erate in te rro le conflict w hen they involve pressures to d o m in ate the tim e o f the focal person an d in terfere with fulfilling the expectations associated with the o th e r roles. Tim e utilisation studies have shown that m arried wom en spend substantial am ounts o f their time perform ing m ultiple roles (H ing 1984; Airmy et a l 1991; A m inah and N arim ah 1992; Van Der Lippe et a l 1992). Also, the role theory postulates that multiple roles can lead to interrole conflict and, in turn to symptoms of strain (Katz and Khan 1978). W om en in m ultiple role situations hence n eed to reduce the am ount o f conflict they experience by using coping strategies. Many researchers have studied role conflict (H olahan and G ilbert 1979; Pleck et a l 1980; Beutell &amp; G reenhaus 1983; K oppelm an et a l 1983; Cook and Rousseau 1984; G ood et al 1990; Duxbury a n d Higgins, 1991; G utek et a l 1991; Higgins and Duxbury 1992), and coping behaviour (Hall 1972; Beutell and G reenhaus 1983; Gray 1983; A lpert and C ubertson 1987; Long 1989; Skinner and M cCubbin 1991), especially focusing on w om en in W estern cultures. Am inah Ahm ad In Malaysia, with th e in crease in th e percentage of women entering the work force, from 36.3% in 1970 to 46.8% in 1990 (Siti R o h a n i 1 9 9 3 ), a n d th e ir a tta c h m e n t to em ploym ent becom ing m uch m ore perm anent, it is p e r tin e n t th a t th e d iv e rs ifie d ro le expectations and coping strategies u n d ertak en by women be explored empirically. A study of role conflict am ong m arried w orking w om en in Malaysia by Fatim ah (1985) suggested the need for fu rth er studies on work-family conflict an d coping behaviour o f m arried w orking women. Work-family conflict, as defined by Kahn et a l (1964), is a form of interrole conflict in which the role pressures from the work and family dom ains are mutually incom patible in some respects. Each role within the family and work environm ent imposes dem ands requiring time, energy and com m itm ent. Hall (1972) has id en tified th re e types o f copin g b eh av io u r fo r d ealin g with in te rro le conflict. T he th re e types o f c o p in g b eh av io u r w ere lo g ic a lly d e riv e d fro m th r e e ro le co m p o n e n ts by Levinson (1 9 5 9 )-stu ctu rally im posed dem an d s, p erso n al role c o n c e p tio n an d role b ehaviour. Type I co p in g (stru ctu ral role re d e fin itio n ) innvolves an active a tte m p t to deal directly with role sen d ers a n d lessen the conflict by m u tu al a g re e m e n t on a new set o f ex p ectatio n s. O n e way o f ch an g in g stru ctu ral d em an d s w ould be to relo cate an d share o n e &apos;s role tasks (clean in g , w ashing, an d child care, for ex am p le). Type II coping (personal role redefinition) involves ch an g in g o n e &apos;s p ersonal c o n cep t o f role d em ands received from o thers. It entails c h an g in g th e e x p e c ta tio n s them selves. An exam ple is setting priorities am o n g an d w ithin roles, b eing sure th at certain dem an d s are always m et (for exam ple, the needs o f sick c h ild re n ), while o th ers have lower priority (such as d usting fu rn itu re ). Type III coping (reactive role behaviour) entails attem pting to improve the quality o f role perform ance with no attem pt to change the structural or personal definition o f o n e &apos;s roles. Implicit in coping through role behaviour is the assu m p tio n th a t o n e &apos;s ro le d e m a n d s a re unchangeable and that the p erso n &apos;s main task is to find ways to m eet them; this coping strategy involves a passive or reactive orientation toward o n e &apos;s roles. Recognising that the dem ands of m ultiple roles result in role conflict and, in turn, strain, and the need to adopt certain coping strategies to m anage the conflict, this study investigated the intensity of work-family conflict experienced by m arried working women and analysed their coping behaviour using H all&apos;s (1972) m odel of coping with role conflict. M ETHOD Subjects and Procedure Subjects in this study were women who (a) were m arried and living with their husbands; (b) had at least on e child; an d (c) w ere full-tim e researchers by occupation or officers responsible for research an d are em ployed in research institutions. These criteria were established to ensure that the women in the sam ple had quite similar responsibilities in perform ing family and w ork ro le s. O n e h u n d r e d a n d sixty-five professional women m eeting these criteria from six selected research institutions were m ailed questionnaires to com plete and return envelopes. O f the 165 m ailed q u estio n n aires 82 were retu rn ed within a period of nine weeks. T he women in the sam ple averaged 38.8 years o f age (SD = 5.50). T here was an average o f 2.9 (SD = 1.46) children in the family and an average of 2.7 (SD -1.38) children living at h o m e . S e v en ty -n in e o f th e w o m en w ere researchers by occupation while th ree were m edical officers who were also engaged in research work. T he majority of the w om en had M aster&apos;s (59.3%) and Ph.D. and M.D./M.B.B.S (24.7% ) degrees; only 16.0% o f th em had Bachelor&apos;s degree. They earn ed an average gross incom e of RM3241.00 p er m onth. Those who had children below four years old constituted 46.4%. Fifty seven percent of the women reported that they had dom estic helpers. A m ong those who had dom estic helpers, a m ajority (85.1%) had full-time helpers. W om en who sent their children to child-care centres constituted 24.1%. Instruments C onflict intensity was m easured using the interrole conflict scale by Pleck et a l 1980. This scale consists of eight items based on the three most prevalent aspects of work-family conflict, namely excessive work time, schedule conflicts, and fatigue or irritability. T he response options for the questions o r items were five-point scales ranging from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5). T he reliability coefficient (alpha) for this work-family conflict scale was 0.90. Coping was assessed using an adapted version of role-coping inventory by Hall and Hall (1979). This inventory has 22 coping strategies o r items fo r th re e types o f c o p in g -s tr u c tu r a l ro le redefinition (Type I), personal role redefinition (Type II) and reactive role behaviour (Type III). T he response options for the items were fivepoint scales ranging from never (1) to nearly all the tim e (5). O ne o f the items for Type II coping was deleted since it was in ap p ro p riate to the subjects based on co n te n t validation. T he item deleted was &quot;Elim inate certain roles (e.g., deciding to stop w orking)&quot;. A nother item was deleted from the Type III coping scale because of lack o f variance and low item-total correlation b a se d o n th e re lia b ility te st via in te r n a l consistency. T he item d eleted was &quot;Do n o t attem pt to cope with role dem ands and conflicts. Let role conflicts take care o f themselves&quot;. T he inventory for this presen t study consisted o f 20 items, 12 items for Type I, six item s for Type II and two items for Type III coping. T he reliability coefficient (alpha) for Type I coping scale was 0.69, Type II 0.77 an d Type III 0.78. W ithin the Type II coping (personal role redefinition), the women tended to rep o rt most frequently the use of the strategy &quot;Establish priorities am ong your different roles, so that you are sure the most im portant activities are d o n e &quot; (M = 4.1; SD = 0.74) ( T he women reported frequent use o f both the strategies for Type III coping (reactive role beh av io u r) a lth o u g h &quot;Plan, sc h e d u le , an d organise carefully&quot; (M = 4.0; SD = 0.85) was m ore frequently used than &quot;W ork hard to m eet all role dem ands. Devote m ore tim e and energy so you can do everything expected o f you&quot; (M = 3.8; SD = 0.9) ( In m anaging the work-family conflict, overall, the Type III coping (reactive role behaviour) with a m ean o f 3.9 (SD = 0.78) was m ost frequently used by the women whereas the least frequently used strategy was the Type I coping (structural role redefinition) with a m ean o f 2.5 (SD = 0.45) ( DISCUSSION Role theory pred icts th a t th e e x p ec tatio n s surrounding each of the different roles a person perform s can generate interrole conflict when 1978) since each of these roles imposes dem ands requiring time, energy, and com m itm ent. The fact that women in this study experienced work-family conflict with varying intensities as they perform ed different roles as a wife, m other, hom em aker and employee are supportive of the role theory and findings of studies by B eutell a n d G re e n h a u s (1983), A lthough Type III coping is th o u g h t to be less effective (Hall 1972) and less successful (Beutell and G reenhouse 1983), the attem pt to be a &quot;superm o th er&quot; appears to be a com m on strategy am ong m arried women with relatively m o re tr a d itio n a l a ttitu d e s (B e u te ll a n d G reenhaus 1983). Elman and G ilbert (1984) reported that reactive role behaviour, which involved working m ore efficiently and planning their time m ore carefully with the idea o f trying to fit everything in, was the most highly endorsed coping strategy by the professional women in their study. The second most frequently adopted coping type was Type III c o p in g (p e rs o n a l ro le redefinition). Type II coping involves changing the p e rso n &apos;s perceptions o f his or h e r role dem ands rath er than attem pting to change the environm ent. In o th e r words, the wom en in this study tended not to redefine the expectations held by other people and tended not to negotiate a new set of expectations from their role senders as would be the case with Type I coping. Instead, the women tried to change the perceived role by seeing their own behaviour or the external expectations in a different light. By doing so, they attem pted to reduce the am ount o f conflict actually experienced. Specific exam ples o f Type II coping strategies commonly used by the women in this study included establishing priorities, p artitio n in g a n d sep aratin g roles, re d u c in g standards o r choosing n o t to m eet certain role dem ands, changing attitudes tow ard certain roles and ro tating atten tio n from one role to an o th er. C om prom ising as a way o f red u cin g strain and m aking the lifestyle m anageable is a com m on behavioural response (S kinner and M cC ubbin 1991). D o m estic o v e rlo a d , fo r instance, may be m anaged th ro u g h com prom ise by deliberately lowering standards. An individual com prom ises h o u sehold standards because o f the constraints o f tim e and energy to achieve them (H olm strom 1973). Type I coping (structural role redefinition) was the least frequently adopted coping type am ong the women. It involves redefining the expectations held by o th er people so th at fewer conflicting dem ands are placed up o n the person and a new set o f role behaviours is expected from that person by m em bers of the role set. Such coping requires com m unicating with o n e &apos;s role senders an d n eg o tiatin g a new set o f expectations which will be mutually agreed upon. This m eans ch an g in g the received role as opposed to changing the perceived role alone, as would be the case with Type II coping. The lack of help obtained from family m em bers in red u cin g work loads an d resolving conflict suggests that the redistribution o f roles within the family to m atch increased role responsibilities outside the hom e has not been widely practised. T he less freq u en t use o f Type I coping could, to a certain extent, be due to the notion that Type I coping seems m ore directly related to long-term conflict reduction and satisfaction th a n Type II o r T ype III c o p in g . Acknowledging that m arried working women experience work-family conflict, it it p e rtin e n t that employers an d policy m akers pay special attention to improve the welfare of em ployees through im proved facilities and su p p o rt services such as day-care on site, flex-time an d 90-day m aternity leave, to help them cope with th eir m ultiple roles. Besides em ployers, policy makers, extension p lan n ers a n d family d ev elo p m en t practitioners an d educators, husbands also have a role to play since spousal su p p o rt is a crucial variable for the reduction o f interrole conflict for working w om en (H olahan and G ilbert 1979). It is im portant that researchers concerned with the problem s o f m arried career women avoid seeing the problem o f work in isolation from the total life space o f women. A nother stream o f research th a t w arrants c o n tin u e d investigation is that of role conflict experienced by o th er groups of working wom en and their coping behaviour, and how organisations can facilitate the developm ent o f individual coping strategies through hum an resource developm ent program m es. F u rther research concerning workfamily conflict needs to address the m anipulation o f organisational policies to reduce the strain p roduced by dual roles o f the hom e and work environm ents. Researchers need to investigate adjustm ents m ade by organisadons which actually reduce the stresses arising from the m utual dem ands of the work and family dom ains. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Physicochemical characteristics of gummy added with sutchi catfish (Pangasius hypophthalmus) gelatin

Abstract Gelatin from sutchi catfish (Pangasius hypophthalmus) skin was extracted and applied in the preparation of gummy in order to determine the suitability of sutchi catfish gelatin in gummy production. The skin was subjected to pre-treatment in the following sequence; 0.8M NaCl, 0.19 N NaOH followed by 0.12 N acetic acid prior to 12 hours extraction in distilled water at 50ºC. The physicochemical characteristics of sutchi catfish gelatin was analysed and compared with the commercial bovine gelatin. Gummy added with sutchi catfish gelatin was also compared with gummy added with commercial gelatin. Analysis comprises of yield, gel strength, setting point and setting time, amino acid composition, texture profile analysis and sensory evaluation. The extraction resulted in 14.47% yield of gelatin. Sutchi catfish gelatin showed higher gel strength value (360.86 g) compared to the commercial gelatin (217.37 g) which is in accordance with proline content. Texture profile analysis showed that gummies prepared using sutchi catfish gelatin had significantly higher (p&lt;0.05) gumminess value while amino acid compositions such as proline, glycine and lysine were also higher. Sensory analysis indicated that both gummies were equally acceptable. Therefore, sutchi catfish gelatin can be successfully used as a future gelling agent in food

RETROSPECTIVE STUDY OF PREDICTORS FOR FOOT ULCERATION AMONG DIABETIC PATIENTS ATTENDING KUALA LANGAT HEALTH CENTRE FROM 1999 TO 2008

ABSTRACT Background : Foot ulcers and its complications are an important cause of morbidity and mortality in diabetes. The aim of this retrospective study is to determine the ulcer-free survival in diabetic foot and its relevant predictors in a cohort of diabetic patients in the primary health care setting. Methods : Data of newly diagnosed diabetics (n=1121) who received treatment in five health centers in the district of Kuala Langat, Selangor between 1 st January 1999 until the 30 th June 2008 were studied. Information was gathered by reviewing patient&apos;s medical records. All patients were followed until 31 st December 2008. The duration of ulcer-free survival was measured from the date of being diagnosed as diabetic until the development of the ulcer. Results : The total incidence of diabetic foot ulcer was 9.9% (n=111), with an average annual incidence of 1%. The total incidence of amputation was 1.2%. Conclusion : In conclusion, about 1% of primary care health center-based diabetic patients developed new ulcers each year. Renal profile and lipid profile can be used as a predictor to ulcer-free survival for diabetic foot ulcer in the primary health care setting. All patients must be given the appropriate duration of follow-up which should not exceed more than six months with emphasis on defaulter tracing to increase the number of patients free from diabetic foot ulcer

Chemical and Mineralogical Characteristics of an Organic Soil (Troposaprist) from Sg

ABSTRA

Effects of Temperature and Cooling Modes on Yield, Purity and Particle Size Distribution of Dihydroxystearic Acid Crystals

Abstract An investigation into the effects of temperature and two different cooling modes (i.e. controlled and natural) on the solvent crystallization of dihydroxystearic acid (DHSA) was carried out. The effects of operating temperature and the time on the crystal size distribution (CSD), purity and yield of crystallized DHSA were studied. The crystal purity and average crystal particle size increased with temperature, but the crystal yield decreased as the temperature increased. The controlled cooling crystallization process initially resulted in better crystal properties compared to natural cooling crystallization. However, towards the end of the crystallization process, only marginal differences in terms of crystal properties were observed. Effects of Temperature and Cooling Modes on Yield, Purity and Particle Size Distribution of Dihydroxystearic Acid Crystals 47

Perceived Performance Appraisal Effectiveness, Career Commitment and Turnover Intention of Knowledge Workers

Abstrac

Obstacles in Implementing Green Building Projects in Malaysia

Abstract: Widespread concern about energy conservation, global warming and depletion of the planet&apos;s non-renewable resources has given birth to the green building movement, with its idea of sustainable architecture that seems to be mushrooming across the world. Simply put, green buildings represent design and construction that are sensitive to the environment now and in the future. Green building is not a common practice in Malaysia because of the unique challenges these programs face. This research was conducted to identify the main obstacles to the advancements of green buildings developments in the country and how to include more involvement from the parties in the construction industry to adopt this approach. The opinions and views of related parties in building industry were obtained from structured interviews and case studies which have been identified to give a clearer picture of the current situation of the green building developments in Malaysia. Suggestions on how to gain more exposure for green buildings were also acquired. Based on the findings, it was concluded that the main hurdles are lack of awareness, education and information on the benefits of the construction of green buildings. It is important for us Malaysians to get a paradigm shift and start looking at greener options which are more environmentally friendly and reduces energy consumption. Creating awareness also is the first and biggest step to ensure that green buildings are here to stay

Combined Laparoscopic and Thoracoscopic Repair of A Large Traumatic Diaphragmatic Hernia: A Case Report

SUMMARY Traumatic diaphragmatic hernia is a well known complication of blunt trauma to the abdomen and thorax. In the acute setting, laparotomy is mandatory. In this current era, this condition can be managed with minimally invasive surgery. We hereby report a case of delayed large left diaphragmatic hernia that was repaired with a combination of laparoscopic and thoracoscopic approach. KEY WORDS: Diaphragmatic hernia, laparoscopic, thoracoscopic, trauma INTRODUCTION Mechanisms of traumatic diaphragmatic hernia have been well described after blunt injury to the chest and abdominal cavity. Diaphragmatic ruptures can occur from 0.8% to 7.0% of blunt abdominal trauma, with left hemi diaphragm involvement the commonest; a ratio of 9:1. 1, 2 Conventionally, laparotomy is indicated in all patients with other associated injuries in the acute setting. However, when the diagnosis is missed during early post trauma period, thoracotomy and repair were recommended. In this present era of minimally invasive surgery, laparoscopy is a useful means to treat diaphragmatic rupture even during the acute phase. 1, 2 Here, we report a case with a delayed large left diaphragmatic hernia that was repaired with a combination of laparoscopy and thoracoscopic approach. CASE REPORT A 30 year old gentleman presented to the emergency department with sudden onset breathlessness on exertion. He had a history of left rib fracture due to motor vehicle accident four years ago, but otherwise asymptomatic prior to current complaint. On examination, the left chest had reduced breath sounds and his abdomen was scaphoid but non tender. Plain chest x-ray showed loops of bowel in the left thorax. Computerized tomography of the thorax and abdomen revealed large left diaphragmatic hernia with bowel occupying almost all the left thorax (figure 1). Elective laparoscopic and thoracoscopic repair of incarcerated diaphragmatic hernia with mesh was performed. He was put in supine position with slightly left sided up. Five trocars were placed; 1x12mm (camera port at infra umbilicus) and 4x5mm (two ports at right upper quadrant, one port at left 4th intercostal space anterior axillary line and another port at the lateral aspect of left upper quadrant). The omentum, small bowel and transverse colon were found densely adhered into the left hemithorax through the left anterolateral diaphragmatic hernia that measured 10x5 cm (figure 2). A combination of blunt and sharp dissection was used to reduce the hernia content to the abdominal cavity. Thoracoscopic approach was used to release the dense adhesion at the upper lobe of the lung to the left lateral thoracic wall. Upon reduction, the hernia defect was then closed with ethibon 2/0. Before placing the mesh, the anaesthetist increased the tidal volume to expand the collapsed left lower lobe of the lung and a chest drain size 28F was placed in the left pleural space. Composite mesh 10x15cm was reinforced with secure strap tackers. Portex drain size 27F was placed at left sub diaphragmatic space. The patient was then transferred to the intensive care unit (ICU) postoperatively. He was extubated on day one in ICU and on postoperative day two, he was transferred out to the general ward. Chest x-ray immediate post-operative showed expansion of the left lung with minimal pleural effusion. He was discharged on post-operative day six. He recovered well and during clinic follow up to six months, there was no evidence of recurrence or infection. DISCUSSION Chronic traumatic diaphragmatic hernia is conventionally repaired using the thoracotomy approach, reduction of intraabdominal content and closure of the defect primarily. Where else in acute cases, a laparotomy is performed to reduce and repair the diaphragmatic hernia defect. In 1976, thoracoscopy was used to evaluate diaphragmatic injuries. Laparoscopy was used in a case series of suspected diaphragmatic injury in 1984