A study was conducted to understand the relative abundance and growth of male and female Nemipterus furcosus population in the Pahang coastal water, Malaysia. The sampling was done monthly for a period of one year. A total of 1446 fish specimens were studied in this research. The results showed that male N. furcosus population was significantly more than female (p<0.01) N. furcosus population. The growth coefficient (b value) varied between 2.6808 and 3.2396 for male and 2.0926 and 3.2838 for female N. furcosus. The growth co-efficients of male N. furcosus were significantly different than the growth co-efficients of female N. furcosus in all months (p<0.05). They showed negative allometric growths in February- June and September. Female N. furcosus showed positive allometric growths in November-January and August. Isometric growths of female were observed only in October and July. As for male N. furcosus, negative allometric growths were observed in March-June, November and January. Male N. furcosus showed positive allometric growths in August, September, October, December and February. Male N. furcosus showed isometric growth only in July. The overall mean condition factor of male and female was statistically similar (p>0.05). The condition factor (K) ranged from 1.2559 to 1.3917 for male while 1.2503 to 1.3926 for female N. furcosus. Overall, higher mean condition factor was observed in smaller fish of both sexes. This study is useful for policy makers and fishery biologists for sustainable fishery management in the Pahang coastal water, Malaysia.
The aimed of the present study was to evaluate the liposomal formulation regarding its hydrophobicity. The evaluation studies were done based on the amphiphilic nature of the phospholipid liposomes. This paper highlights the importance of such type of lipid based carriers by encapsulation hydrophobic and hydrophilic drug models. Crystal violet and Nile red were used to represent hydrophilic and hydrophobic moieties before moving to pharmaceutical implications. The formulated liposomes were compared for their hydrophobicity using percent encapsulation efficiencies. The purpose of this formulation was to mimic the red blood cells. The average particle size of 120±25.1 and zeta potential of -10.2±1.4 were in good agreement with reported characteristics of the red blood cells. Per cent encapsulation efficiency for crystal violet was more obvious with a value of 68.1 as compared to 36.5% for Nile red. The prepared liposomes were quite stable for a period of one month. Our findings reflect the fate of our system more suitable for hydrophilic drugs under the given set of formulation parameters.
Indoor air quality assessment in residential areas of Al-Hofuf city/Eastern region of Saudi Arabia is investigated through a multi-week multiple sites sampling survey. Critical air pollution indicators, including nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2) and total volatile organic compounds (TVOC) as well as temperatures were measured and analyzed during the study period from January to May 2014. Three site-types - roadside, urban and rural - were selected and within each site type, six locations were selected to study the varying indoor/outdoor air quality. The results indicated that NO2 and CO concentrations increased at the starting hours of the day. SO2 concentrations were relatively low and constant. In addition, a strong association between outdoor and indoor air quality was found. Measurements showed that indoor/outdoor ratio for TVOC ranged from 0.8 to 0.99. For CO2, NO2 and SO2, this was 0.92-1.15, 0.5-0.7 and 0.52-0.9, respectively. Finally, the effects of activated carbon (AC) were investigated to assess the extent of the improvement in the indoor air quality. The analysis of data obtained indicated that using locally prepared AC from date stones was an effective way to reduce the indoor air pollution with an overall efficiency of 85.5, while the use of industrial granular AC reduced the air pollutants with an efficiency of less than 0.6. In addition, AC was exposed to an exhaust gas flow to evaluate its elimination potential for high concentrated pollutants. The obtained results demonstrated that AC was also functioning as an efficient absorbent with an overall removal efficiency of 77.8%, even when it was exposed to high concentrations.
MeSH terms: Air Pollutants; Air Pollution; Vehicle Emissions; Carbon; Carbon Dioxide; Carbon Monoxide; Cities; Housing; Nitrogen Dioxide; Surveys and Questionnaires; Saudi Arabia; Sulfur Dioxide; Temperature; Air Pollution, Indoor; Volatile Organic Compounds
Hosoya and Merrifield-Simmons index were the two valuable topological indices in chemical graph theory. The Hosoya and Merrifield-Simmons index of the class of unicyclic graphs G(k) were investigated, according to the distance between u and v on Cm, their orderings with respect to these two topological indices were obtained.
The relationship between heavy metal and trophic properties in polymictic lake at Sembrong Lake, Peninsular Malaysia was assessed. Sixteen parameters, including heavy metals and trophic parameters were monitored. pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen and heavy metals level changes significantly influenced by the dynamic of polymictic mixing pattern. The mean concentrations of heavy metals in the reservoir decreased in the following order: Fe > Mn > Zn > Cu > As > Pb. The result showed that this polymictic lake is being threatened by cultural eutrophication with TSI value range from 72.40 to 80.41 and classified as a hypereutrophic lake. The levels of heavy metal pollution in the reservoir range from slightly polluted to polluted. Factor analysis was performed to determine the relationship between heavy metals and trophic parameters. Five factors were responsible for data structure and explained the 83% of total variance. These factors differentiate each group of parameters according to their common characteristics. Photosynthesis, respiration and redox processes were main factors contributing to the variability of both properties.
The sewage irrigation area in Tianjin reached 6 billion m2 in 2003 which accounts for 22% of the irrigated areas. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) contamination caused by sewage irrigation on agricultural land has attracted considerable attention because of their toxic and hazardous risks to human beings. In order to evaluate the health risk of PAHs to farmers in four age groups, a multimedia/multipathway exposure model was applied. The results showed that the chronic daily intake (CDI) of children, adolescents, adults and the aged to the 16 PAH compounds exposure were 2.83, 2.34, 1.44, 1.05 μg·kg-1·d-1, respectively. The non-cancer risk of life long exposure in sewage irrigation was 2.75×10-3 and the cancer risk was 2.49×10-5. From the long-term safety point of view, the health risks caused by PAHs were at a relatively high level. Hence, we suggest that crops of sewage irrigated areas and their distribution channels should be re-concerned by the government in the future city planning.
In this study, the effect of hydrolysis on electrospinnability of chitosan/PVA blend solution has been investigated. Since crude chitosan (Mw=8.96105 g/mole, DD=40%) could not be dissolved even in concentrated acetic acid, it was hydrolyzed with 33.5 wt. % of NaOH at 90°C for 24 and 42 h. Hydrolyzed chitosan with two different time duration was analyzed using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR). Morphology of the product nanofiber was investigated by field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM.). FTIR results showed that the hydrolysis did not destroy the molecular backbone of chitosan but increased the degree of deacetylation from 40 to 84% and 92% for 24 and 42 h hydrolysis time, respectively. FESEM image analysis was carried out and histogram was drawn to study on the distribution of fiber diameter. It showed that though the composition of chitosan/PVA remained the same, but mean fiber diameter, standard deviation and required applied voltage for electrospinning was smaller for the solution containing maximum time hydrolyzed chitosan. It indicated that longer hydrolysis time resulted in finer nanofiber which mostly attributed to lower required voltage for electrospinning. Threshold composition for defect free fiber is 50:50 and 60:40 of chitosan/PVA for 24 and 42 h hydrolysis, respectively. It meant that 42 h hydrolysis ensured the presence of more chitosan in the chitosan/PVA polymer blend because of smaller presence of amino group in chitosan molecule.
Forecasting of groundwater level variations is a significantly needed in groundwater resource management. Precise water level prediction assists in practical and optimal usage of water resources. The main objective of using an artificial neural network (ANN) was to investigate the feasibility of feed-forward, Elman and Cascade forward neural networks with different algorithms to estimate groundwater levels in the Langat Basin from 2007 to 2013. In order to examine the accuracy of monthly water level forecasts, effectiveness of the steepness coefficient in the sigmoid function of a developed ANN model was evaluated in this research. The performance of the models was evaluated using the mean squared error (MSE) and the correlation coefficient (R). The results indicated that the ANN technique was well suited for forecasting groundwater levels. All models developed had shown acceptable results. Based on the observation, the feed-forward neural network model optimized with the Levenberg-Marquardt algorithms showed the most beneficial results with the minimum MSE value of (0.048) and maximum R value of (0.839), obtained for simulation of groundwater levels. The present research conclusively showed the capability of ANNs to provide excellent estimation accuracy and valuable sensitivity analyses.
The origin of formation water salinity variation in Chang 9 stratum, Jiyuan oilfield, Ordos basin is studied here. 91 formation water samples show that water salinity is characterized by a wide range and a complex plane distribution. In order to find out the main cause of such distribution complexity and reveal the relationship between formation water and evolution of reservoir traps, core data, chemical analysis result of formation water and log data are analyzed from perspectives of diagenesis and tectonism. And then, their characteristics are presented as the followings. In high salinity area, tuffaceous mudstone interlayer is found growing. Besides, the condition of Na++K+ is opposite to that of Ca2+, for its rate of concentration increase slows down with total salinity accumulating. In low salinity area, while, with fracture and faults developing, some formation water of CaCl2 type turns into MgCl2, NaHCO3 or Na2SO4 type. The cause is thus proposed to be composed of two aspects. One covers tuff alteration and later diagenesis for the high salinity. To be specific, montmorillonite, developed from tuff alteration, absorbs cation selectively and then ions migrate, during which more Na++K+ get lost, while more Ca2+ reserved. Afterwards, those reserved Ca2+ get released with montmorillonite transforming to illite, which results in a loss of Na++K+ and accumulation of Ca2+. Lots of ions are released into formation water during that process and later diagenetic process, which leads to the high water salinity. The other aspect is the development of faults and fractures, through which, the upper low salinity formation water gets connected. And that is the main cause of low salinity. At last, geological significance is discussed from two angles. Firstly, tuff alteration and later diagenesis are pivotal to reservoir reconstruction; and secondly, faults and fractures play an important role in oil transportation and storage.
Ariid catfishes, belong to family Ariidae is considered as one of the taxonomically problematic groups, which is still under review by fish taxonomist globally. Species level identification of some ariids often resulted in species misidentification because of their complex characters and very similar morphological characters within genera. A vigilant and detail observation is very important during the species level identification of ariid species. In these contexts, this study was carried out in order to determine the morphological variations of one of the ariid genera, Plicofollis, which have been giving misleading taxonomic information in the south-east Asian countries. A Truss network technique was used throughout the study period. The study was conducted based on 20 truss measurements using 22 to 23 specimens per species, namely P. argyropleuron, P. nella and P. tenuispinis found in Peninsular Malaysian waters. Morphological variations were determined using a multivariate technique of discriminant function analysis (DFA). The results obtained in this study showed that discriminant analysis using truss network measurements has produced very clear separations of all the species in Plicofollis group. Several important morphological characters have been identified, which represent body depth and caudal regions of the fish. The documentary evidences of these variables could be considered as the constructive functional features, which could enable us to assess more accurately to distinguish the species within this complex Ariidae family.
This present study was conducted to produce defatted oil palm shell (OPS) nanoparticles. Wherein, the OPS nanoparticles
were defatted by solvent extraction method. Several analytical methods including transmission electron microscope (TEM),
X-ray diffraction (XRD), particle size analyzer, scanning electron microscope (SEM), SEM energy dispersive X-ray (SEM-EDX)
and thermal gravimetric analyzer (TGA) were used to characterize the untreated and defatted OPS nanoparticles. It was
found that 75.3% OPS particles were converted into nanoparticles during ball milling. The obtained OPS nanoparticles had
smaller surface area with angular, irregular and crushed shapes under SEM view. The defatted OPS nanoparticles did not
show any agglomeration during TEM observation. However, the untreated OPS nanoparticles had higher decomposition
temperature as compared to the defatted OPS nanoparticles. Based on the characterization results of the OPS nanoparticles,
it is evident that the defatted OPS nanoparticles has the potentiality to be used as filler in biocomposites
The exploitation of mixed moieties of conjugated acetylide and thiourea system as molecular wire candidates surprisingly
unexplored in this distinctive area although the well-known rigid π-systems enhance the electronic field at some extend.
Therefore, in the present research, interest has been focused on the design, synthesis, fabrication and evaluation of the
performance of a new acetylide-thiourea, N-([4-(aminophenylethynyl)toluene]-N’-(cinnamoyl)thiourea (AECT) based on
Donor (D)-π-Acceptor (A) system as an active layer in conductive film. The compounds were successfully characterized
via infrared spectroscopy (IR), UV-visible absorption spectroscopy (UV-Vis), CHNS elemental analysis, 1
H and 13C nuclear
magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) as well as cyclic voltammetry (CV) analysis. The
investigation of its potential as dopant system in conductive film was fabricated on ITO substrate prior to the evaluation
of its conductivity properties which was carried out by Four Point Probe. The findings from the conductivity analysis
showed that the prepared film, AECT/ITO performed better and exhibited increasing conductivity up to 0.2044 Scm-1 under
maximum light intensity of 150 Wm-2. This proposed molecular framework gives an ideal indication to act as conductive
film and has opened wide potential for application in organic electronic devices.
Large numbers of glycerol-consuming bacteria are present in nature; hence bioconversion of glycerol into biofuel which
is bioethanol is one of the interests. The effective screening procedure is needed to screen and isolate broad ranges
of bacteria from environment. The screening method was modified based on enzymatic oxidation of ethanol, which is
correlated to reduction of 2,6-dichlorophenol-indophenol dye that resulted in the formation of yellow zone. Approximately
300 colonies were able to grow on minimal media using glycerol as sole carbon. Only about 70 isolates showed positive
result when using the modified ethanol production assay after pre-screening stage. The formation of decolourized zone
was apparent using modified assay containing 5 mL/L of 0.05M 2,6-dichlorophenol-indophenol, 10 mL of reaction
mixture and 500 µl/L of enzyme, respectively. The ethanol production capability of the isolates was further proven by
anaerobic fermentation as a quantitative method. This modified method is applicable in screening for ethanol producer
from glycerol as carbon source allows rapid and more bacteria can be screened.
The big challenge for the detection of pharmaceutical residues in water samples is the type of ionization mode in
terms of positive or negative ionization which plays an important role to identify and quantify the analytes using liquid
chromatography/mass spectrometry. An analytical method was applied to analysis of gliclazide (diabetic drug) in surface
water and wastewater from sewage treatment plants and hospitals. The proposed analytical method allows simultaneous
isolation and concentration procedure using solid phase extraction (Oasis HLB) prior to separation using high-performance
liquid chromatography. The detection and confirmation was achieved by applying time-of-flight analyzer. The limits of
quantification were as low as 1.4 ng/L (deionized water), 4 ng/L (surface water), 27 ng/L (hospital influent), 10 ng/L
(hospital effluent), 6 ng/L (sewage treatment plant effluent) and 21 ng/L (sewage treatment plant influent), respectively. On
average, good recoveries of higher than 87% were obtained for gliclazide in the studied samples. The proposed method
successfully determined and quantified gliclazide in surface water and wastewater. The results showed that gliclazide
is a persistent compound in sewage treatment effluents as well as in the recipient rivers. Gliclazide was detected in all
samples and the highest concentration was 130 ng/L in influent of sewage treatment plant.
Boesenbergia rotunda is a medicinal ginger that has been found to contain several bioactive compounds such as
boesenbergin A, panduratin A, cardamonin, pinostrobin and pinocembrin. These compounds are useful in treating various
ailments, such as oral diseases, inflammation and have also been used as an aphrodisiac. In this study, an efficient
protocol for developing and isolating protoplast cultures for B. rotunda has been established. Rhizome buds of B. rotunda
were used as explants to initiate callus growth and the established cell suspension cultures were used to optimize their
growth conditions. Our results indicated that embryogenic suspension cultures in liquid Murashige and Skoog (MS)
medium supplemented with 3% (w/v) sucrose produced the highest growth rate (µ = 0.1125), whereas no promotive effect
was seen in the presence of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid and those that underwent sonication treatment. Amount of
protoplasts isolated ranging from 1-5 × 105
protoplast per mL were isolated using 0.25% (w/v) macerozyme and 1%
(w/v) cellulase for 24 h under continuous agitation (50 rpm) in dark condition. Of the isolated protoplasts, 54.93% were
viable according to fluorescein diacetate staining test. Micro-colonies were recovered in liquid MS medium containing
9 g/L mannitol, 2 mg/L 1-naphthaleneacetic acid and 0.5 mg/L benzylaminopurine (BAP) for 4 weeks and subsequently
transferred to solid MS medium supplemented with 0.5 mg/L BAP for callus initiation. The protoplast system established
in this study would be useful for genetic manipulation and modern breeding program of B. rotund
The use of cell lines such as Madin-Darby Canine Kidney (MDCK) and African Green Monkey Kidney (Vero) cells in
influenza vaccine production is much advocated presently as a safer alternative to chicken embryonated eggs. It is
thus essential to understand the influenza virus replication patterns in these cell lines prior to utilizing them in vaccine
production. The infectivity of avian influenza A virus (A/Chicken/Malaysia/5858/2004) H5N1 in MDCK and Vero cell
lines was first assessed by comparing the cytopathic effect (CPE) caused by the virus infection. The viral loads in both
of the infected media and cells were also compared. The results showed that both of the MDCK and Vero cells began to
exhibit significant CPE (p<0.05) after 48 h post-infection (h p.i). The MDCK cell line was more susceptible to the virus
infection compared to Vero cell line throughout the incubation period. A higher viral load was also detected in the host
cells compared to their respective culturing media. Interestingly, after reaching its maximum titer at 48 h p.i, the viral
load in MDCK cells declined meanwhile the viral load in Vero cells increased gradually and peaked at 120 h p.i. Overall,
both cell lines support efficient H5N1 virus replication. While the peak viral loads measured in the two cell lines did
not differ much, a more rapid replication was observed in the infected MDCK samples. The finding showed that MDCK
cell line might serve as a more time-saving and cost-effective cell culture-based system compared to Vero cell line for
influenza vaccine production.
Dengue is a major issue in Malaysia as the dramatic emerge of infection. Yet an effective vaccine or medicine is not
yet available, although many attempts are undergoing. Dengue vector control is still considered the most effective way
for controlling and preventing the transmission of dengue virus. Nonetheless, as the conventional approaches are less
successful in managing the dengue transmission, it is time to review the current applied and other available approaches.
Current dengue vector relied greatly on the chemical approach as space treatment either thermal or ULV fogging, however,
the approach seem like under the expectation. Beside space treatment, new control methods for example biological
control (bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis, predatory mosquito Toxorhynchites) and attractive trap were carried out
at certain location of Malaysia. Moreover, new emerged approaches such as mass release of genetic modification or
artificially Wolbachia infected male dengue vector for the objective of generating sterile offspring when mate with
wild population is urge to be tested in Malaysia, although concerns have to be taken before the actual mass release. In
conclusion, control of dengue vector shall not consist exclusively for a single approach, neither genetic modification
of artificially Wolbachia infected technique, nor the conventional insecticidal treatment. It should, however, comprise
of the environment management as the fundamental approach, a well-planned integrated control program and a good
cooperation among the organization.
The objective of the present preliminary study was to investigate the effect of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) treatment
alongside rehabilitation programme compared with rehabilitation programme alone on antioxidant enzymes’ (superoxide
dismutase, SOD; catalase, CAT) activity and time to return to play (RTP) following hamstring injury among Malaysian
athletes. Participants diagnosed with grade-2 acute hamstring injury (n=10) were randomised into 2 groups of PRP
treatment and rehabilitation programme (PRP-T) and rehabilitation programme alone (CON). Blood samples were collected
at baseline and 2 fortnightly (week-2, W2; week-4, W4) for the biochemical assessments. Participants were certified to
have recovered upon fulfilling RTP criteria. PRP-T group showed a significantly lower CAT activity compared to CON group
(47.55% lower at W2, 37% lower at W4, p<0.05), while there was no significant difference in SOD activity between the
groups. Although PRP-T group benefited from an earlier (~15 days) time to RTP compared to the CON group, no statistically
significant difference was noted; however, the effect size was large (Cohen’s d=0.9). These findings suggested that PRP
treatment alongside rehabilitation potentially reduces the degree of secondary tissue damage and facilitates muscle
recovery through regulation of antioxidant enzymes, which subsequently hastens time to RTP. Athletes and coaches could
consider PRP as viable treatment for hamstring injury.
The prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) have increased and become one of the major public health concerns
worldwide including Malaysia. Previous studies on CKD generally focused on patients who were already undergoing
dialysis treatment; however, studies investigating the stresses experienced by pre-dialysis CKD patients were limited. This
study aimed to examine the prevalence of psychological distress and their association with the Health Related Quality
of Life (HRQoL) during the different stages of CKD. This cross-sectional study involved 200 pre-dialysis patients from
stages 3 to 5, who were recruited from the Nephrology Clinic at the National University of Malaysia Medical Centre
(UKMMC). The instruments used in this study were the Short Form 36 (measuring HRQoL) and Hospital Anxiety and
Depression Scale (HADS) to measure the psychological distress. The results showed that the prevalence of depression
and anxiety increased proportionally with the CKD stages. The HRQoL sub-component scores declined as the CKD stages
increased except for social functioning. An impaired HRQoL was associated with depression and anxiety in the CKD
patients. The results suggested that it is very important to manage kidney disease at an early stage and that a healthier
lifestyle is adopted.
The aim of the present study was to estimate the epidemic situation of mites, in rabbit dermatologic disease in and around
Qena province, in the southern region of Egypt. Two hundred cases of dermatologic disease from the formentioned province
were investigated by conducting deep skin scraping between May 2011 and October 2012. The overall prevalence was
25%. Sarcoptic scabiei uniculi (22.5%) was the most frequent mite, followed by Notoedres cati cuniculi (2.5%). To the
best of our knowledge this is the first report of Notoedres cati cuniculi among studied rabbits in the study region. Study
on different breeds, English represents highest prevalence of mites 30%. Moreover, there was no significant difference
in the prevalence of mange mite infection between male and female rabbits (p > 0.05). Similarly, the prevalence was not
significant among the age groups and rabbit breeds (p > 0.05). In conclusion, the present prevalence of mange mites
was still high enough to cause significant economic losses in the study area. Therefore, strengthening the control effort
was suggested.