Comments on the Session 2

Session statement 2: We and the Other in Cultural Interfaces: Peranakan,Indigenous Taiwanese, and Yunnanese Muslim Migrant

PVC-LOT-008-J-038

Laser-based powder-bed fusion additive manufacturing or three-dimensional printing technology has gained tremendous attention due to its controllable, digital, and automated manufacturing process, which can afford a refined microstructure and superior strength. However, it is a major challenge to additively manufacture metal parts with satisfactory ductility and toughness. Here we report a novel selective laser melting process to simultaneously enhance the strength and ductility of stainless steel 316L by in-process engineering its microstructure into a crystallographic texture. We find that the tensile strength and ductility of SLM-built stainless steel 316L samples could be enhanced by ~16% and ~40% respectively, with the engineered textured microstructure compared to the common textured microstructure. This is because the favorable nano-twinning mechanism was significantly more activated in the textured stainless steel 316L samples during plastic deformation. In addition, kinetic simulations were performed to unveil the relationship between the melt pool geometry and crystallographic texture. The new additive manufacturing strategy of engineering the crystallographic texture can be applied to other metals and alloys with twinning-induced plasticity. This work paves the way to additively manufacture metal parts with high strength and high ductility.NRF (Natl Research Foundation, S’pore)Published versio

Enhancement of the yield of long helical structure of recombinant nucleocapsid protein of Newcastle disease virus

A deletion mutant of the nucleocapsid protein (NPΔc375) of Newcastle disease virus self-assembles into a long helical structure when expressed in Escherichia coli. However, the NPΔc375 subjects to proteolytic activity of host cell endogenous proteases during the protein recovery process. Image analysis of Western blots using the Quantity One software was performed to identify the size of the degraded bands and hence the potential proteases cleavage sites were predicted. The data obtained from this image analysis were compared to those identified with the PeptideCutter program; the potential proteases that degrade the NPΔc375 were identified to be mainly the metallo and serine proteases. Combination of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid and phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride at their optimal concentration gave a synergistic effect and increased the NPΔc375 yield by 2.1-fold. The antigenicity and self-assembled long helical structure long helical structure of NPΔc375 were preserved after treatment with the protease inhibitors

Purification of long helical capsid of Newcastle disease virus from Escherichia coli using anion exchange chromatography

NPΔc375 is a truncated version of the nucleocapsid protein of Newcastle disease virus (NDV) which self-assembles into a long helical structure. A packed bed anion exchange chromatography (PB-AEC), SepFastTM Supor Q pre-packed column, was used to purify NPΔc375 from clarified feedstock. This PB-AEC column adsorbed 76.2% of NPΔc375 from the clarified feedstock. About 67.5% of the adsorbed NPΔc375 was successfully eluted from the column by applying 50 mM Tris-HCl elution buffer supplemented with 0.5 M NaCl at pH 7. Thus, a recovery yield of 51.4% with a purity of 76.7% which corresponds to a purification factor of 6.5 was achieved in this PB-AEC operation. Electron microscopic analysis revealed that the helical structure of the NPΔc375 purified by SepFastTM Supor Q pre-packed column was as long as 490 nm and 22–24 nm in diameter. The antigenicity of the purified NPΔc375 was confirmed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay

Comparing quality of life and treatment satisfaction between patients on warfarin and direct oral anticoagulants : a cross-sectional study

Introduction and aim: Patient quality of life (QOL) while on long-term oral anticoagulant therapy has been receiving greater attention in recent years due to the increase in life expectancy brought about by advances in medical care. This study aimed to compare the QOL, treatment satisfaction, hospitalization and bleeding rate in patients on long-term warfarin versus direct oral anticoagulants (DOAC). Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) or venous thromboembolism (VTE) on long-term anticoagulant therapy attending the cardiology clinic and anticoagulation clinic of the University Malaya Medical Centre from July 1, 2016, to June 30, 2018. Patient QOL was assessed by using the Short Form 12 Health Survey (SF12), while treatment satisfaction was assessed by using the Perception of Anticoagulation Treatment Questionnaire 2 (PACT-Q2). Results: A total of 208 patients were recruited; 52.4% received warfarin and 47.6% received DOAC. There was no significant difference in QOL between warfarin and DOAC based on SF12 (physical QOL, P=0.083; mental QOL, P=0.665). Nevertheless, patients in the DOAC group were significantly more satisfied with their treatment compared to the warfarin group based on PACT-Q2 (P=0.004). The hospitalisation rate was significantly higher in the warfarin group than the DOAC group (15.6% versus 3.0%, P=0.002). Clinically relevant minor bleeds and severe bleeding events were non-significantly higher in the warfarin group than the DOAC group (66.7% versus 40.0%, P=0.069). Conclusion: Compared to warfarin, treatment of NVAF and VTE with DOAC showed comparable QOL, higher treatment satisfaction, lesser hospitalization, and a non-significant trend toward fewer bleeding episodes

New insights on degumming and bleaching process parameters on the formation of 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol esters and glycidyl esters in refined, bleached, deodorized palm oil

This paper examines the interactions of degumming and bleaching processes as well as their influences on the formation of 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol esters (3-MCPDE) and glycidyl esters in refined, bleached and deodorized palm oil by using D-optimal design. Water degumming effectively reduced the 3-MCPDE content up to 50%. Acid activated bleaching earth had a greater effect on 3-MCPDE reduction compared to natural bleaching earth and acid activated bleaching earth with neutral pH, indicating that performance and adsorption capacities of bleaching earth are the predominant factors in the removal of esters, rather than its acidity profile. The combination of high dosage phosphoric acid during degumming with the use of acid activated bleaching earth eliminated almost all glycidyl esters during refining. Besides, the effects of crude palm oil quality was assessed and it was found that the quality of crude palm oil determines the level of formation of 3-MCPDE and glycidyl esters in palm oil during the high temperature deodorization step of physical refining process. Poor quality crude palm oil has strong impact towards 3-MCPDE and glycidyl esters formation due to the intrinsic components present within. The findings are useful to palm oil refining industry in choosing raw materials as an input during the refining process

Eye-tank: monitoring and predicting water and pH level in smart farming

Water is the most critical resource in agriculture. However, concerns are raised about low-purity water, which contributes adverse effects to the soil and plant. It causes significant losses to farmers. Hence, this study proposed a project using sensors to identify and predict water and pH levels. Once triggered (water or pH level exceeds or dropped below standard requirement), the sensor can activate the alarm system and notify the target user via email and SMS. In addition, this project includes predicting pH levels by using the data collected from the pH sensor. Raspberry Pi 3 serves as the central processing unit – implementing and powers up the system and enabling sensors to read and display data. This project utilized rapid prototyping, which comprised several phases, which consist of building, testing, and revising until an acceptable prototype is created. Besides, the system is accessed via remot3.it platform, which connects the device to the system. The system interface is displayed through Virtual Network Computing (VNC) viewer. Overall, this study presents the details in developing a gadget capable of displaying water readings and communicating with the target user. Also, the monthly report will be generated and notify the user via email and SMS

Copd assessment test (cat) score of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease based on clinical phenotypes

Background and Aims: Spanish chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) guideline classifies COPD into 4 clinical phenotypes: nonexacerbator (A), asthma-COPD overlap (B), exacerbator with emphysema (C) and exacerbator with bronchitis (D). Methods: A cross-sectional observational study of quality of life (QOL) of COPD patients utilizing COPD Assessment Test (CAT), conducted in University of Malaya Medical Center from 1 June 2017 – 31 May 2018. Results: Of 220 patients traeted for COPD, 189 patients with post bronchodilator Force Expiratory Volume in 1 second (FEV1)/Force Vital Capacity (FVC) of <0.70 were recruited. Patients’ demographic, clinical characteristics and CAT score are as shown in Table 1. Patients with COPD phenotype C and D had poorer modified medical research center (MMRC) functional status and global initiative of COPD (GOLD) class based on their FEV1. Patients with phenotype D had significantly higher total CAT score than patients with other clinical phenotypes. Other than sleep quality, patients with phenotype D had significantly higher score in every other components, notably cough severity, phlegm volume, chest tightness, breathlessness upon walking uphill, activity limitation at home, ability toleave home and energy. There was no different in terms of total and components CAT score of patients with phenotype A, B and C. Conclusion: Patients with phenotype D had significant higher CAT score, thus poorer quality of life and higher tendency of execebration. This group of patients need better medical treatment and closer monitoring

Height and Mental Health and Health Utility Among Ethnic Chinese in a Polyclinic Sample in Singapore

Abstract Introduction: Whether fi nal height is associated with quality of life and mental health is a matter of epidemiological and medical concern. Both social and biological explanations have been previously proposed. This study aims to assess the associations in ethnic Chinese in Singapore. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study of 4414 respondents aged at least 21 years seen at a major polyclinic was performed. Socioeconomic and behavioural features of the sample and the Singapore population of similar ages were comparable. Height was measured by clinic nurses using an ultrasonic height senor. Participants were interviewed for socioeconomic, behavioural, health and quality of life information. Clinical morbidity data was collected from the participants&apos; treating physicians. The SF-6D utility index and its Mental Health domain were the main endpoints. Linear and ordinal logistic regression models were used to analyse the utility index and the Mental Health scores, respectively. Results: Having adjusted for age and gender, the Mental Health domain (P &lt;0.01) was associated with height but the utility index was not. Further adjustment for health, socioeconomic and behavioural covariates made little difference. Analyses based on height categories showed similar trends. Conclusion: Adult height has a positive association with mental health as measured by the SF-6D among ethnic Chinese in Singapore. Socioeconomic status and known physical health problems do not explain this association. Adult height had no association with SF-6D utility index scores

Clinical phenotypes of COPD and health-related quality of life: a cross-sectional study

The Spanish COPD guideline (GesEPOC) classifies COPD into four clinical phenotypes based on the exacerbation frequency and dominant clinical manifestations. In this study, we compared the disease-specific health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of patients with different clinical phenotypes