Carotenoids are bioactive compounds with remarkably special properties produced by plants in response to internal and external stresses. In this review paper, we focus on the subject of carotenoid biosynthesis and several factors that have been reported to significantly enhance or reduce carotenoid accumulation in studied plant species. These factors include varietal aspects, location, growing season, and type of stress experienced by a plant. In addition, we propose that there are three stress resistance mechanisms in plants: avoidance, tolerance, and acclimation. Better understanding of the environmental factors affecting carotenoid biosynthesis will help researchers to develop methods for enhancing the production of carotenoids and other pigments to desired concentrations in plant crops.
Immune cell-based therapies using natural killer (NK) cells and cytotoxic T cells are under constant scrutiny, with the aim to design an effective and reduced-toxicity therapy, which will benefit patients via improved quality of life and improved prognosis. Four patients with stage IV colon cancer were administered 1, 3, 5 and 6 effector cell intravenous infusions, respectively. Peripheral blood was collected from the patients and the ex vivo activation and expansion of NK and T cells was performed in Good Manufacturing Practice-certified clean rooms for ~12-15 days. Immunophenotypic analysis of the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and expanded NK and T cells was conducted using flow cytometry and the patients were followed up. On average, 4.8×107 initial PBMCs and 2.7×109 total expanded cells were obtained. The intravenous infusions of the expanded cells were not accompanied by adverse reactions. Improved prognosis, reflected by a considerable decrease in the cancer markers, accompanied by an improved quality of life in the patients were observed. In conclusion, potential strategies are currently under development for the large-scale production of effectors cells; therefore, autologous immune enhancement therapy (AIET) may be considered as a viable approach to cancer treatment.
Thermal structure and water quality in a large and shallow lake in Malaysia were studied between January 2012 and June 2013 in order to understand variations in relation to water level fluctuations and in-stream mining activities. Environmental variables, namely temperature, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, pH, electrical conductivity, chlorophyll-A and transparency, were measured using a multi-parameter probe and a Secchi disk. Measurements of environmental variables were performed at 0.1 m intervals from the surface to the bottom of the lake during the dry and wet seasons. High water level and strong solar radiation increased temperature stratification. River discharges during the wet season, and unsustainable sand mining activities led to an increased turbidity exceeding 100 NTU, and reduced transparency, which changed the temperature variation and subsequently altered the water quality pattern.
In this study the environmental impact of consolidated rice farms (CF) - farms which have been integrated to increase the mechanization index - and traditional farms (TF) - small farms with lower mechanization index - in Guilan Province, Iran, were evaluated and compared using Life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology and adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS). Foreground data were collected from farmers using face-to-face questionnaires and background information about production process and inventory data was taken from the EcoInvent®2.0 database. The system boundary was confined to within the farm gate (cradle to farm gate) and two functional units (land and mass based) were chosen. The study also included a comparison of the input-output energy flows of the farms. The results revealed that the average amount of energy consumed by the CFs was 57 GJ compared to 74.2 GJ for the TFs. The energy ratios for CFs and TFs were 1.6 and 0.9, respectively. The LCA results indicated that CFs produced fewer environmental burdens per ton of produced rice. When compared according to the land-based FU the same results were obtained. This indicates that the differences between the two types of farms were not caused by a difference in their production level, but rather by improved management on the CFs. The analysis also showed that electricity accounted for the greatest share of the impact for both types of farms, followed by P-based and N-based chemical fertilizers. These findings suggest that the CFs had superior overall environmental performance compared to the TFs in the study area. The performance metrics of the model based on ANFIS show that it can be used to predict the environmental burdens of rice production with high accuracy and minimal error.
An assemblage of beetle specimens from family Carabidae (ground beetles) was carried out at Kenyir water catchment as an indicator to measure disturbance. The samplings were conducted from 30th July to 1st August 2007 at limestone forest of Teluk Bewah and the dipterocarp forest of Sungai Cicir. 28 individuals from 13 species were collected from Teluk Bewah whereas 54 individuals from ten species was sampled from Sungai Cicir. The carabids were more specious (Simpson Diversity index: 0.97) and more abundant (Margalef index: 5.35) at Teluk Bewah compared to Sungai Cicir (Simpson Diversity index, 0.72: Margalefindex, 2.22). Light trapping was most efficient assembling 97.56% of ground beetles compared to Malaise trap, pitfall and net sweeping. This is the first record of beetle assemblage at Kenyir water catchment, Malaysia. New records for Kenyir, Terengganu, Malaysia are Abacetus sp. 1, Abacetus sp. 2, Acupalpus rectifrotis, Aephnidius adelioides, Dischissus notulatus, Dolichoctis sp., Dolichoctis sp. 2, Dolichoctis straitus, Ophinoea bimaculata, Perigona sp., Pheropsophus piciccollis, Pheropsophus occipitalis, Stenolophus quinquepustulatus, Stenolophus smaragdulus, Stenolophus sp., Tachys coracinus, Casnoidea sp., Orthogonius sp. Seven species coded as Cara C, Cara J, Cara M, Cara N, Cara O, Cara R and Cara S were unidentified and are probably new species to be described in another report. There is moderately high diversity (Simpson Diversity index: 0.846) of Carabidae indicating that ecotourism does not affect diversity of ground beetle at Kenyir Lake.
Water scarcity and pollution rank equal to climate change as the most urgent environmental issue for the 21st century. To date, the percolation landfill leachate into the groundwater tables and aquifer systems which poses a potential risk and potential hazards towards the public health and ecosystems, remains an aesthetic concern and consideration abroad the nations. Arising from the steep enrichment of globalization and metropolitan growth, numerous mitigating approaches and imperative technologies have currently drastically been addressed and confronted. Confirming the assertion, this paper presents a state of art review of leachate treatment technologies, its fundamental background studies, and environmental implications. Moreover, the key advance of activated carbons adsorption, its major challenges together with the future expectation are summarized and discussed. Conclusively, the expanding of activated carbons adsorption represents a potentially viable and powerful tool, leading to the superior improvement of environmental conservation.
Contribution and role of a pyramid/square box on the wound healing suppressant effect of dexamethasone was studied in rats of either sex using excision wound model to record the wound contraction rate and epithelization period. The results showed enhanced wound contraction rate and decreased epithelization period in the pyramid-exposed rats as compared to controls. Thus, it appears that pyramid environment facilitates the process of wound healing. Also, the wound healing suppressant effects of dexamethasone were significantly reduced.
Shewanella spp is a facultatively anaerobic, motile, gramnegative bacillus and can be found throughout the world mainly in marine environments and soil. It is a rare pathogen in human and infection by it is usually associated with underlying severe morbidities. We report a case of a 69- years old woman who presented with Shewanella putrefaciens dysentery and who was subsequently found to have underlying malignancy.
It is accepted that occupants who are more satisfied with their workplace's building internal environment are more productive. The main objective of the study was to measure the occupants' level of satisfaction and the perceived importance of the design or refurbishment on office conditions. The study also attempted to determine the factors affecting the occupants' satisfaction with their building or office conditions. Post-occupancy evaluations were conducted using a structured questionnaire developed by the Built Environment Research Group at the University of Manchester, UK. Our questionnaires incorporate 22 factors relating to the internal environment and rate these in terms of "user satisfaction" and "degree of importance." The questions were modified to reflect the specific setting of the study and take into consideration the local conditions and climate in Malaysia. The overall mean satisfaction of the occupants toward their office environment was 5.35. The results were measured by a single item of overall liking of office conditions in general. Occupants were more satisfied with their state of health in the workplace, but they were extremely dissatisfied with the distance away from a window. The factor analysis divided the variables into three groups, namely intrusion, air quality, and office appearance. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was then used to determine which factor had the most significant influence on occupants' satisfaction: appearance. The findings from the study suggest that continuous improvement in aspects of the building's appearance needs to be supported with effective and comprehensive maintenance to sustain the occupants' satisfaction.
The basic aim of this work is (1) to review and present practically operational requirements for a sustainability assessment of marine environment, such as describing the monitoring process, research approaches, objectives, guidelines, and indicators and (2) to illustrate how physico-chemical and biological indicators can be practically applied, to assess water and sediment quality in marine and coastal environment. These indicators should meet defined criteria for practical usefulness, e.g. they should be simple to understand and apply to managers and scientists with different educational backgrounds. This review aimed to encapsulate that variability, recognizing that meaningful guidance should be flexible enough to accommodate the widely differing characteristics of marine ecosystems.
The term "co-benefits" refers to positive outcomes accruing from a policy beyond the intended outcome, often or usually in other sectors. In the urban context, policies implemented in particular sectors (such as transport, energy or waste) often generate multiple co-benefits in other areas. Such benefits may be related to the reduction of local or global environmental impacts and also extend into the area of public health. A key to identifying and realising co-benefits is the adoption of systems approaches to understand inter-sectoral linkages and, in particular, the translation of this understanding to improved sector-specific and city governance. This paper reviews a range of policies which can yield health and climate co-benefits across different urban sectors and illustrates, through a series of cases, how taking a systems approach can lead to innovations in urban governance which aid the development of healthy and sustainable cities.
The present study examines the mediating effect of psychological factors in the structural relationships between social and physical environmental factors and the amount of physical activity among undergraduate students at Universiti Sains Malaysia. The sample consisted of 422 students with a mean age of 20.2 years (SD = 1.27). The majority of the students were female (69.7%) and Malay (81.3%). Standardized scales were used to measure the total amount of physical activity and all the study variables. The final SEM had a good fit to the data: CFI = 0.968, TLI = 0.948, SRMR = 0.036, RMSEA (90%CI) = 0.046 (0.025, 0.065), RMSEA p-value = 0.609 with 11 paths relationships. Family support had a significant effect on perceived benefits and perceived barriers. The effect of friend support on physical activity was significantly mediated by perceived benefits, self-efficacy, and psychological needs satisfaction. The effect of the availability of exercise facilities on physical activity was significantly mediated by perceived benefits and psychological needs satisfaction. Furthermore, psychological needs satisfaction mediated the effect of perceived benefits, perceived barriers, and self-efficacy on physical activity. The study findings illustrated that the application of the social-ecological model and psychological factors is important in order to understand and promote positive physical activity behaviour.
Background: Highlighting the individual, host-vector interactions, and environmental risk factors for knowlesi malaria were consequential toward more focused and effective prevention and control strategies. This study aims to identify the individual, host-vector interactions, and environmental risk factors for Plasmodium knowlesi malaria among at-risk communities in Peninsular Malaysia. Materials and Methods: A case-control study was conducted involving laboratory-confirmed cases of P. knowlesi malaria, while a locality-matched individual with no history of fever and tested negative for malaria was taken as control. Univariate and multiple logistic regression were applied to evaluate the potential risk factors among respondents using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 26.0. Results: Results showed higher cases among males as compared to females (76.1% vs. 23.9%). Multiple logistic regression analysis showed being male is 3.51 higher risk (p < 0.001) to become a case. Respondents whose place of work or study is near the forest edge have 44.0% lower risk (p = 0.030), while those living in the Orang Asli village were 56.0% lower risk as compared to the organized village to become a case (p = 0.035). Conclusion: These findings demonstrated that gender emerges as an independent individual risk factor while residing near a forest edge, in an Orang Asli village, or occupying workers' longhouses situated in hilly areas lowered the environmental risk among respondents. These findings attested that alternative directions must be considered in addressing the known risk factors associated with this type of malaria and the design of prevention and control programs should be tailored to the unique characteristics of each population.
A growing body of evidence suggests that exposure to natural environments is associated with more positive body image, but such work has invariably centred the experiences of neurotypical adults and bodies. To rectify this oversight, we examined whether direct and indirect (i.e., mediational) pathways between nature exposure and an index of positive body image (i.e., body appreciation) are significant in autistic adults. A total of 303 autistic adults (age M = 36.69, range 18-75 years) from the United Kingdom completed an online survey that included measures of nature exposure, body appreciation, self-compassion, and nature connectedness, as well as sociodemographic variables. Structural equation modeling was used to test a hypothesised parallel mediation model in which self-compassion and connectedness to nature, respectively, mediated the association between nature exposure and body appreciation. Results showed that connectedness to nature, but not self-compassion, mediated the relationship between nature exposure and body appreciation. This finding was robust to sensitivity analyses and consistent across participants who identified as women and men. These results suggest that nature exposure is associated with more positive body image in autistic adults, which practitioners may find useful in designing population-specific nature-based interventions.
In the era of economic globalization, China attracts significant foreign direct investment (FDI) to accelerate economic prosperity. FDI inflows could have ramifications on environmental degradation (ED) despite the enactment of different environmental regulations (ERs) such as market-incentive, command-and-control as well as informal regulations. Though some studies have shown that FDI and ED have significant relationship, the moderating roles of different ERs on the environmental impact of FDI has not been empirically unraveled. This study fills this research gap by analyzing the direct impact of FDI on ED (i.e., carbon dioxide emissions, ecological footprint) using the provincial panel data. Second, it unravels the moderating roles of different ERs on the environmental impact of FDI in the provinces and regions. The results indicate that FDI directly mitigates ED, verifying the pollution halo hypothesis while ERs directly alleviate ED in China. However, the interaction between FDI and ERs do not alleviate ED in China albeit regional heterogeneity exist. The economic implication is that FDI is not a channel through which ERs enhance environmental sustainability in China. This study recommends some policy options arising from the findings.
Recently, economic environmental degradation is being considered a leading chellenge in forefront of policy analysts. Thus, the present study introduces core environmental determinants such as infrastructure development, finacail inclusion, gross domestic product, population, and renewable energy consumption. Financial inclusion (FI) is crucial for attaining a environment. The present study selects the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) over period of 2004-2022. The results show that financial inclusin, infrastructure development(ID), and renewable energy (RE) play a vital influence in decreasing carbon emissions. The OECD nations should surge their investment in renewable energy and infrastructure development. Furthermore, to ensure long-term environmental sustainability, it is imperative to broaden the scope of FI. Thus, the inclusion of green infrastructure is essential in order to shift from the utilization of fossil fuels to RE sources. Similarly, policymakers should incorporate FI into climate actions at the local, national, and regional levels. However, it is crucial to promote the economic shift towards RE sources in order to mitigate the environmental impact from humn and economic activities. This study is conducive to the execution of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).
Newly affluent developing world cities increasingly adopt the same unfortunate low-density suburban paradigm that shaped cities in the industrialized world. Identified by a World Bank report as a "mini-Los Angeles," Kuala Lumpur is a sentinel example of the results of unrestrained sprawl in the developing world. Factors driving sprawl included government policies favoring foreign investment, "mega-projects," and domestic automobile production; fragmented governance structures allowing federal and state government influence on local planning; increasing middle-class affluence; an oligopoly of local developers; and haphazard municipal zoning and transport planning. The city's present form contributes to Malaysia's dual burden of disease, with inner-city shantytown dwellers facing communicable disease and malnutrition while suburban citizens experience increasing chronic disease, injury, and mental health issues. Despite growing awareness in city plans targeted toward higher density development, Kuala Lumpur presents a warning to other emerging economies of the financial, societal, and population health costs imposed by quickly-built suburban sprawl.
Publication year: 2013-2014
Existing studies on resource and environmental carrying capacity (RECC) have primarily focused on comprehensive evaluation and linear identification. But the quantification of driving effect on RECC have not been fully explored, especially the interaction and nonlinear effects. Therefore, this paper constructs an explainable machine learning framework, to comprehensively assess the RECC index of 31 provincial regions in China and to reveal nonlinear and interaction mechanisms of influence factors. Firstly, the XGBoost model is utilized to surrogate the evaluation results, which demonstrates outstanding predictive performance (R2 = 0.95, RMSE = 0.08) and stability. The results shows that the average RECC index in China dropping from 1.18 to 0.39, marking a transition from a high-risk state to a safe and sustainable state. Then, the SHAP model quantifies the nonlinear and threshold effects of key influence factors. The results indicate that the total emissions of pollutants in wastewater (X2) and industrial sulfur dioxide emissions (X3) are the two most critical factors, with a cumulative contribution rate of 49%. 50000 tons is a threshold for X2, beyond which the RECC index significantly increases with the increase of X2. 10 billion cubic meters is the marginal contribution of X3, with the greatest impact on RECC index. The interaction effect indicates a significant positive synergistic effect between X2 and X3, with the maximum increase in SHAP value reaching 0.1. There is a significant antagonistic effect between resource availability and environmental pressure. This study offering new directions for understanding the underlying mechanisms of complex environmental systems.
We analyse molecular and phenotypic evolution in a group of taxonomically problematic Indomalayan pitvipers, the Trimeresurus sumatranus group. Mitochondrial DNA sequencing provides a well-resolved phylogeny, with each species representing a distinct lineage. Multivariate morphological analysis reveals a high level of phenotypic differentiation, which is congruent between the sexes but does not reflect phylogenetic history. An adaptive explanation for the observed pattern of differentiation is supported by independent contrasts analysis, which shows significant correlations between current ecology and the characters that most account for the variation between taxa, including those that are presently used to identify the species. Reduced precipitation and altitude, and increased temperature, are correlated with higher numbers of scales on the head, body and tail. It is hypothesized that scale number plays an important role in heat and water exchange by influencing the area of exposed of interstitial skin, and that colour pattern variation reflects selection pressures involving camouflage and thermoregulation. Ecological convergence in traits used for classification is found to have important implications for species identification where taxa are distributed over varying environments.