Interest in the use of intelligent packaging systems for food products has increased in recent years. Intelligent packaging
systems are those that monitor the condition of packaged foods to give information regarding the quality of the packaged
food during transport and storage. The potential of HEC/PANI film as pH indicator and pH sensor were evaluated. HEC/
PANI film was prepared by solution blending and casting method. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy showed
that there was no chemical interaction between HEC and PANI. The film properties were retained chemically. The electrical
conductivity increment from 1.14×105 to 2.2 ×105
S/cm was observed when PANI was incorporated into the HEC film matrix.
Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) showed that the electrical conductance network of PANI was formed
in HEC/PANI film. The electrical sensitivity of the film has been studied with I-V characterization. The changes in color and
current of HEC/PANI film on interaction to pH buffer 1-14 shows its suitability as pH indicator and pH sensor for food.
The aims of this work were to investigate the characteristics of nanoscale zero valent irons (nZVI) coupled with mesoporous
materials (RH-MCM-41) adsorbent and to study the removal mechanisms of Pb (II) from synthetical solutions using full
pictorial design batch experiments. Synthetic nZVI coupled with RH MCM-41 as Pb (II) adsorbent were characterized
by XRD, TEM, BET and XANES. The results of XANES analyses confirmed the ability of RH-MCM-41 to prevent oxidations of
Fe0
to Fe2+ and Fe3+. XANES results also verified the oxidation states of Pb (II). The solution pH was the most significant
positive effect in controlling Pb (II) adsorption. The equilibrium and kinetic adsorption isotherms well fitted with the
Langmuir isotherm. The pseudo-second order kinetic adsorption indicated that the adsorption process is the rate limiting
step for Pb (II) removal. Furthermore, Langmuir-Hinshelwood confirmed the obvious Pb (II) adsorption at the active
site of adsorbents. The reduction rate constant (kr
= 5,000 mg/L.min) was higher than the adsorption rate constant (Kad
= 0.0002 L/mg). Regarding the research results, four pathways including: reduction process, adsorption on FeOOH,
adsorption on RH-MCM-41 and complex reaction between Fe and Pb ions were suggested for Pb (II) removal by nZVI
coupled with RH-MCM-41.
Hydroxy-ether-POo
was synthesised via alcoholysis reaction of epoxidized palm olein (EPOo
). The experimental design
was conducted using response surface methodology (RSM) based on 3 factors; reaction time, reaction temperature and
catalyst loading. Responses such as percentage of conversion and percentage of yield were determined using statistical
software ‘Design Expert 9’. Hydroxy-ether-POo
showed the presence of proton peak attached to the carbon of ether
(3.2, 3.5 ppm) and proton of the hydroxyl (4.8 ppm). The presence of carbon peak bonded to hydroxyl was detected at
chemical shift 75 ppm and carbonyl carbon of ether at 72 ppm.
Timber scaffold boards have been widely utilised in the offshore construction industry. However, technical specifications
and inspection procedure for the application of scaffold boards from a wood material were inadequate. In the development
of the standard requirements, evaluation of actual engineering practices could indicate the level of workplace safety. A
study was conducted to identify risk and safety measures concerning the use of timber scaffold boards in construction.
This article discusses on the occupational risks and ergonomics issues of the scaffolding application based on the physical
and mechanical conditions of tropical timber scaffold boards extracted from offshore oil and gas rigs. The boards were
exposed to a seasonal climate of East Coast monsoon of South China Sea between November and February. The scaffolding
application extended up to 20 m directly above the ocean surface and some boards were completely immersed below
the ocean surface particularly during elevated tidal waves. Some of the boards were installed as the on-deck platforms.
Forty scaffold boards fabricated from tropical timber species were evaluated. Physical characteristics of the boards
were described by natural and man-made factors. A three-point bending test was conducted to determine the maximum
load capacity of each board and the mode of fracture was evaluated. Timber identification test was conducted to identify
the groups of the timber being used. The microscopic observation confirmed the presence of hyphae which indicated the
biological deterioration has happened in some of the boards. Occupational risks were summarised based on the results
of the physical and mechanical assessments
MeSH terms: China; Climate; Engineering; Oceans and Seas; Physical Examination; Seasons; Wood; Workplace; Hyphae; Tidal Waves; Construction Industry
UKMR-1, a local variant of mutant Roselle strain (Hibiscus sabdariffa) is enriched with free radical scavenging polyphenols
such as anthocyanin, vitamin C and hydroxycitric acid. However, pharmacological actions of UKMR-1 are not fully known.
This study was conducted to determine whether supplementation of aqueous UKMR-1 calyx extract was able to protect
against nicotine-induced cardiac injury in rats. In this experimental study, healthy male albino rats were randomly
allotted into three groups (n=7 per group): control, nicotine and UKMR-1+Nicotine groups. Nicotine (0.6 mg/kg, i.p.)
was administered to both nicotine and UKMR-1+Nicotine groups for 28 consecutive days. UKMR-1+Nicotine group also
received 100 mg/kg UKMR-1 extract orally via gavage 30 min prior to nicotine injection, daily. UKMR-1+Nicotine group
had significantly (p<0.05) higher lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity, as well as lower malondialdehyde content in
heart tissue homogenate than nicotine group, suggesting its cardio protective activity by inhibition of lipid peroxidation.
UKMR-1 also lowered (p<0.05) the blood pressure in nicotine-administered rats. In addition, UKMR-1 significantly (p<0.05)
restored activities of cytosolic superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase and glutathione-S-transferase as well as
redox balance ratio (GSH:GSSG). In conclusion, UKMR-1 was a
Lung atelectasis caused by shallow breathing patterns is common after cardiac, thoracic and upper abdominal surgeries.
A common method used to address this problem is to encourage patients to perform breathing exercises using incentive
spirometers in the postoperative period. However, to be effective, this procedure must be repeated regularly so that
adequate lung volumes can be maintained to prevent atelectasis. Current models of single-use, low-cost incentive
spirometers do not have features that can track and store data on breathing exercises. This makes it difficult to monitor
patients’ breathing exercises effectively. We present here a device designed to be interfaced with the Spiro-ball incentive
spirometer and programmed to monitor the incentive spirometry performance. Laboratory based validation performed
indicate that there were no significant differences between the value obtained from the device and manual reading;
p-value > 0.05 and root-mean-square error (RMSE) is 3.882. The device was able to retrieve and display pertinent data
on incentive spirometry performance. It was also able to correctly track and register random sets of inspiration data
through different dates and timelines. Being a separate entity which is reusable, it does not add to the cost of the singleuse
incentive spirometer
Cofactor-independent phosphoglycerate mutase has been proposed as a therapeutic target for the treatment of
trypanosomatid diseases. In this paper, we report the identification of compounds that could potentially be developed as
selective inhibitors of cofactor-independent phosphoglycerate mutase from Leishmania mexicana (LmiPGAM). Virtual
screening was used in this search, as well as compounds identified by high-throughput screening. A ligand-based virtual
screen programme, ultra fast shape recognition with atom types (UFSRAT), was used to screen for compounds resembling
the substrate/product, before a structure-based approach was applied using AutoDock 4 and AutoDock Vina in a consensus
docking scheme. In this way eight selected compounds were identified. In addition, three compounds from the Library of
Pharmacologically Active Compounds (LOPAC) were selected from the published results of high-throughput screening of
this library. The inhibitory effects of these compounds were tested at a fixed concentration of 1 mM. The results showed
that seven compounds inhibited LmiPGAM activity and of these, two compounds (one each from high-throughput and
virtual screening) showed substantial inhibition (i.e. 14% and 49% remaining activity, respectively). Taken together, the
findings from this study indicate that these compounds have potential as novel inhibitors that specifically target LmiPGAM.
In order to examine differences of meat quality traits depending on pH values post-mortem, the pH range was classified
according to initial pH (pH45min) and ultimate pH (pH24hr) post-mortem. The differences of meat quality traits depending
on sex were not changed by a number of amount, except for backfat thickness and fat content. The value of pH45min was
positively correlated with pHdif, whereas pH24hr was negatively associated with lightness (CIE L*) and protein content. At
pH45min post-slaughter, collagen content, fat content, shear force, water holding capacity and yellowness (CIE b*) showed
lower values at the higher pH range of pH>6.7 than those of other ranges, but CIE L* and redness (CIE a*) presented
the lowest value at the intermediate pH range of pH6.3~6.7. Conversely, at pH24hr post-slaughter, fat and moisture
contents maintained the highest average values at the higher pH range of pH>6.1, but protein content showed higher
value at the lower pH range of pH<5.7. Higher pH24hr appeared significantly lower shear force, but higher water holding
capacity. CIE L*, a*, and b* values showed significantly higher values at the lowest region of pH24hr. Since meat quality
characteristics seemed to be favored by consumers in rather than at the range of pH5.7~6.1, which showed significant
differences of meat color, appearance, and meat juiciness, it is suggested that production of pork meat to appropriate
pH value is performed by pig breeders and control measures taken during pre- and post-slaughters.
MeSH terms: Red Meat; Animals; Collagen; Color; Meat; Swine; Water; Sus scrofa
Family Scolopacidae includes the sandpipers, shanks, snipes, godwits and curlews. Systematic classifications of shorebirds
at the higher level have been successfully resolved. Nevertheless, the phylogeny of shorebirds in the familial level is still
poorly understood. Thus, this phylogenetic study on Scolopacidae was conducted upon the framework provided by the first
sequence-based species-level phylogeny within the shorebirds to determine the phylogenetic relationships among family
members of Scolopacidae in West Borneo, Sarawak using combined gene markers, mtDNA Cytochrome Oxidise I (COI)
and nucDNA Recombinant Activating Gene 1 (RAG1). A total of 1,342 base pair (bp) were inferred from both COI and RAG1
gene from 45 sequences constituted of 15 species Scolopacidae sampled from Sarawak namely Xenus cinereus, Actitis
hypoleucos, Tringa totanus, Tringa glareola, Tringa stagnatilis, Heteroscelus brevipes, Calidris alba, Calidris ruficollis,
Calidris ferruginea, Calidris tenuirostris, Calidris alpina, Gallinago stenura, Gallinago megala, Numenius arquata, and
Numenius phaeopus. The phylogenetic tree was constructed with Charadrius mongulus derived as an outgroup. The
Bayesian Inference (BI) tree constructed supported grouping of species into several lineages of Numeniinae, Calidrinae,
Scolopacinae and Tringinae. The groupings of species into several lineages correlate with morphological features that
contribute to their adaptation and ability of the species to fit to their ecosystems.
MeSH terms: Animals; Base Sequence; Bayes Theorem; Borneo; Cytochromes; DNA, Mitochondrial; Malaysia; Phylogeny; Genes, RAG-1; Ecosystem; Base Pairing; Charadriiformes
Burkholderia cenocepacia and Serratia marcescens are Gram-negative proteobacteria commonly found in the natural
environment and are also opportunistic pathogens that caused a number of human diseases. The fermentation culture of
Burkholderia cenocepacia yielded three compounds, 4-(2-hydroxyethoxy)-phenol (1), Maculosin (2) and methyl myristate
(3). Compound 2 was also isolated together with cyclo(L-Leu-L-Pro) (4) from Serratia marcescens. Compound 1 was
isolated from a natural source for the first time and the first isolation of compounds 2-4 was also reported from both
Burkholderia cenocepacia and Serratia marcescens.
Endophytic fungi provide protection to their host plant and the fungi often produce antimicrobial compounds to aid the host
fighting off pathogens. These bioactive compounds were secondary metabolites which were often produced as waste- or
by-products. In the present study, endophytic fungi isolated from mangrove plants and soils were characterized and their
antimicrobial production and bioremediation potential of heavy metals copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) were assessed. Twelve
(12) isolated and identified endophytic fungi belonged to seven species; Penicillium, Curvularia, Diaporthe, Aspergillus,
Guignardia, Neusartorya and Eupenicillium. Antimicrobial activities of these 12 fungal endophytes were tested against
Gram negative bacteria; Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Gram positive bacteria; Escherichia coli and fungi;
Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger among others. Two isolates (related to Guignardia sp. and Neusartoya sp.) showed
strong antimicrobial (and antifungal) activity whereas the rest showed no activity. Compounds were isolated from both
isolates and screened using HPLC. Both isolates displayed chemically very interesting chromatograms as they possessed a
high diversity of basic chemical structures and peaks over a wide range of polarities, with structures similar to Trimeric
catechin and Helenalin among others. For bioremediation assessment, the results showed maximum biosorption capacity
for two isolates related to Curvularia sp. and Neusartorya sp., with the former removing 25 mg Cu/g biomass and the
latter removing 24 mg Zn/g biomass. Our results indicated the potential of mangrove endophytic fungi in producing
bioactive compounds and also highlighted their potential for the treatment of heavy metal-contaminated wastewater.
The glutathione S-Transferase (GST) enzyme plays an important role in cellular detoxification. This multifunctional enzyme
is involved in Phase II detoxification pathways that protect cellular macromolecules from being attacked by harmful
compound. The study is an attempt to isolate glutathione transferase-expressing bacteria from the rhizospheric soil of
selected herbal plants. Screening showed nine positive isolates out of twelve bacterial samples from a large microbial
population in our soil collection. Crude extract from strain E1 which was isolated from Piper sarmentosum (Kadok)
showed the highest specific activity against 1-chloro-2, 4-dinitrobenzene substrates (5.78 × 10-06 µmol/min/mg). Based
on the carbon utilization of E1 assessed using Biolog system, the strain was identified as Comamonas testosterone E1.
Glutathione S-transferase purification using GST trap yielded two distinct subunits with molecular weights of 23 and 24
kDa as visualized on 1D SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The purified GST showed reactivity towards 1-chloro-2,
4-dinitrobenzene, 1, 2-dichloro-4-nitrobenzene and ethacrynic acid with specific activity of 0.264 ± 0.038 nmol/min/
mg and 0.056 ± 0.002 nmol/min/mg and 10.500 ± 3.130 nmol/min/mg, respectively. However, no activity was detected
against p-Nitrobenzyl chloride, Sulfobromophthalein, trans-4-phenyl-3-butene-2-one, hexa-2, 4- dienal, trans-hepta-2,
4-dienal and trans-oct-2-enal in the study.
A Lactobacillus plantarum strain G1 was previously isolated from chicken crop and it was found to show interesting
probiotic properties. In this study, several microencapsulation combined materials were used to test their ability to protect
cells from gastrointestinal harsh conditions. The results on kinetics of cell release after exposition to acidic pH (2.0)
indicated that the efficiency of cell entrapment of the gels was as follows starting from the highest capacity to the lowest
one: sodium alginate, alginate-agar (AA), alginate-starch (AS) and κ-carrageenan. In addition, effect of bile salts on
cell release was also tested; the results showed that the efficiency of entrapment of the gels was different and as follows
starting from the highest capacity to the lowest one: AA, sodium alginate, κ-carrageenan, and AS. Moreover, viability of
free and alginate-microencapsulated Lactobacillus plantarum after exposure to acid, bile and pancreatic enzymes was
investigated; the results showed that microencapsulation was capable of protecting cells against the harsh conditions of
the gastrointestinal tract. In addition, microencapsulation enhanced the viability of Lb. plantarum during cold storage
for 2 weeks and during a range of heat treatments.
Litter decomposition is vital for carbon and nutrient turnover in terrestrial ecosystems, and this process has now
been thoroughly demonstrated to be regulated by various mechanisms. The total environment has been continuously
changing in recent decades, especially in high-latitude regions; these alterations, however, profoundly contribute to the
decomposition process, but a comprehensive recognition has not available. Here we reviewed the empirical observations
and current knowledge regarding how hydrological leaching and freeze-thaw events modulate early decomposition of
plant litter. Leaching contributes a considerable percentage of mass loss and carbon and nutrient release in early stage of
decomposition, but the magnitudes are different between species levels depending on the chemical traits. Frequent freezing
and thawing events could positively influence decomposition rate in cold biomes but also hamper soil decomposer and
there is no general and predictable pattern has been emerged. Further experiments should be manipulated to estimate
how the altered freezing and thawing effect on carbon and nutrient release from plant litter to better understanding the
changing environment on litter decomposition.
Interaction between the Red Palm Weevil (RPW) and coconuts will stimulate the plants’ early response by producing the
reactive oxygen species (ROS) which causes lipid peroxidation and membrane damage of the host plants. Thus, a multiple
defense lines, including both scavenging enzymes and molecular antioxidants have been evolved to promptly inactivate
these radicals. This study investigated the responses of catalase (CAT), peroxidase (POD), ascorbate peroxidase (APX),
α-tocopherol, ascorbic acid and carotenoids contents of three coconut cultivars which were PANDAN, MAWA and MATAG
against the RPW infestation. The infested PANDAN and MAWA exhibited higher CAT, POD and APX specific activities of 2.60
± 0.11, 5.0 ± 0.72 and 1.58 ± 0.20 units/mg protein for PANDAN whereas 1.13 ± 0.04, 39.38 ± 2.29 and 1.15 ± 0.16 units/
mg, protein for MAWA) compared with controls. However, MATAG cultivar showed no significant difference (p<0.05) in the
production of both enzymes except for POD specific activities. RPW infestations only managed to trigger the α-tocopherol
concentrations in the MAWA cultivar compared with the others. Infested MAWA and MATAG increased the ascorbic acid
concentrations, however, a contrast results was observed in infested PANDAN. All coconut cultivars exhibited higher
carotenoids content (2771.20 ± 263.90, 3043.20 ± 526.35 and 921.20 ± 281.10 µg/g.fwt of PANDAN, MAWA and MATAG,
respectively) compared with their respective controls (455.20 ± 135.10, 1408.40 ± 103.02 and 248.80 ± 110.39 µg/g.
fwt). The above results indicated that the oxidative stress induced by the RPW infestation would stimulate the activities of
enzymes and molecular antioxidants studied especially in infested MAWA. Thus, it may be suggested that MAWA cultivar
was more tolerance towards RPW infestation compared to MATAG and PANDAN. It is hoped that this finding will provide
clues on how plant respond toward stress during infestation, thus further action can be activated as soon as possible to
control the spread of R. ferrugineus.
The growth of residential and commercial areas threatens vegetation and ecosystems. Thus, an urgent urban management
issue involves determining the state and the quantity of urban tree species to protect the environment, as well as controlling
their growth and decline. This study focused on the detection of urban tree species by considering three types of tree
species, namely, Mesua ferrea L., Samanea saman, and Casuarina sumatrana. New rule sets were developed to detect these
three species. In this regard, two pixel-based classification methods were applied and compared; namely, the method of
maximum likelihood classification and support vector machines. These methods were then compared with object-based
image analysis (OBIA) classification. OBIA was used to develop rule sets by extracting spatial, spectral, textural and color
attributes, among others. Finally, the new rule sets were implemented into WorldView-2 imagery. The results indicated
that the OBIA based on the rule sets displayed a significant potential to detect different tree species with high accuracy.
Meiobenthos in Bidong Archipelago in coastal water of the South China Sea is hypothesised to have a certain trend of
distribution particularly in the island ecosystem where it is usually having different type of sea bottom. Nonetheless, since
it is located in a tropical area, the trend at the sub-tidal could be less obvious due to absent of clear season. Meiobenthic
sampling was carried out in Karah Island, an island in Bidong Archipelago, from the intertidal, towards the sub-tidal
zone covering the coral and non-coral area to see the trend in the density and composition. A transparent hand core
was used to collect benthos samples. Nematoda and harpacticoid copepods dominated the intertidal and sub-tidal zone
respectively. Harpacticoid copepods were higher in density in the non-coral sediment than the coral area. This could be
due to the high content of silt and clay in the coral area (2.98% of silt and clay). The 2-dimension MDS analysis on the
density data indicated the highest degree of scattering and an over-lapping condition for those intertidal and sub-tidal
samples respectively. ANOSIM result showed that the degree of similarity was lower at the intertidal (70%) than the subtidal
(reaching 90%) in the first sampling before both became no significant different in the second sampling. It could
indicate the stable condition in the subtidal than the intertidal ecosystem. The comparatively low density of meiobenthos
could indicate their response towards the environmental condition in the area which will only be confirmed by long term
ecological study.
Allelopathy is a process in which one plant species may usefully or adversely affect the growth of other plant species
through the production of allelochemicals. During the present investigation, mulch effect of Jatropha curcas leaves was
evaluated on seed germination and seedling growth of maize varieties viz. Pioneer (V1), Azam (V2) and Jalal (V3). Mulch
was applied at 1 and 2 tons/hectare. Phenolic compounds were detected in Jatropha curcas leaf (131.15 mg gallic acid
eq./gm extract). Mulch applied at 2 tons/hectare significantly reduced seed germination (%), germination index, relative
water content, root width and seedling dry weight. From the findings of the present investigation, it was inferred that
Jatropha curcas leaves exhibited phytotoxic effects on maize at high concentrations.
In this article, a fourth order quintic spline method has been developed to obtain numerical solutions for second order
boundary value problems with Dirichlet boundary conditions. The developments of the quintic spline method and
convergence analysis were presented. Three test problems have been considered for comparison purposes. The numerical
results showed that the quintic spline method is more accurate compared to existing cubic spline method when solving
nonlinear second order boundary value problems but vice versa when solving linear second order boundary value
problems.
The aim of this article was to validate an instrument of quality management practices (QMPs) and performance
measurement for the manufacturing industry in Malaysia. QMPs and performance were measured using the following
six value indicators: Management commitment, training, process management, quality tools, continuous improvement
and organisational performance. A total of 480 questionnaires were distributed and 210 questionnaires were valid for
analysis. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) approach was employed using analysis of moment structures (AMOS)
software. The results for the hypothesised CFA model showed the following fit statistics: Comparative fit index (CFI) =
0.924, Tucker Lewis index (TLI) = 0.913 and root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.061. The values of
CFI and TLI ≥ 0.9 and at the same time the value of RMSEA ≤ 0.08 showed that CFA model fits the data very well. Hence,
the results of the study can be used by managers in manufacturing companies to consider and adapt their QMPs and
performance assessments toward increasing competitiveness