Artikel ini memerihalkan pembelajaran tingkah laku usahawanan di Malaysia dalam konteks kognitif sosial untuk transformasi negara bagi memungkinkan kesejahteraan psikologi, meningkatkan kualiti hidup dan menjayakan pembangunan negara yang mampan. Dengan demikian, sorotan literatur ini, menggambarkan kesesuaian kognisi sosial untuk membekalkan satu kerangka konsep bagi memupuk individu ke arah menjadi usahawanan yang berkemampuan. Selain itu, cabaran yang dihadapi dalam mendidik usahawanan dan saranan berkaitan juga dibincangkan dalam konteks kognitif sosial .
Kajian yang dijalankan ini bertujuan untuk melihat impak pengenalan instrumen derivatif ke atas kemeruapan pulangan saham di pasaran semerta. Kajian ini juga mengambil kira kesemua instrumen derivatif yang telah diperkenalkan di pasaran tempatan. Data harian bagi indeks komposit dan sebilangan indeks-indeks untuk setiap sektor akan digunakan di dalam kajian ini bagi mengkaji kesan secara keseluruhan dan mengikut sektor. Dengan menggunakan model GARCH terubahsuai iaitu dengan mengambil kira kesan perubahan struktur. Kajian ini mendapati wujudnya kesan yang bercampur-campur. Secara umumnya, pengenalan instrumen derivative mampu untuk mengurangkan tahap kemeruapan pulangan dan secara langsung menstabilkan pasaran saham. Tambahan pula, ia turut mempertingkatkan lagi kadar dan kualiti aliran maklumat ke dalam pasaran dan dengan demikian menjadikan pasaran saham bertambah efisien.
Satu penyelidikan telah dijalankan untuk mengesan struktur halus organ deria-elektro (Ampullae of Lorenzini) pada Carcharhinus melanopterus, C. limbatus dan Chiloscyllium griseum. Organ ini amat peka terhadap beberapa bentuk rangsangan terutamanya untuk mengesan kedudukan mangsa, penentuan arah dan mengawan. Di dalam makmal, suatu bahagian organ deria ini dipisahkan daripada lapisan dermis kepala ikan yu. Pemerhatian dan pengambilan imej struktur organ deria telah dibuat menggunakan mikroskop elektron imbasan (SEM). Imej-imej yang diperoleh jelas menunjukkan organ deria pada Carcharhinus melanopterus, C. limbatus dan Chiloscyllium griseum berbentuk ampulari terkumpul di dalam kluster. Saluran-saluran deria yang menghubungkan ampula dengan pori didapati mempunyai orientasi panjang dan susunan yang berbeza-beza pada spesies yang berlainan.
Six groups of adult male Sprague Dawley rats, each consisting of six animals were used throughout the experiment. The gastroprotective effects of aqueous plant extract alone, honey alone or honey in combination with ethanolic or aqueous extracts of A. conyzoides and cimetidine were investigated in rats against ethanol-HCl induced gastric ulcer. Efficacy was assessed by determination of ulcer index and inhibition percentage. Oral administration of ethanol-HCl (5 ml kg-1 body weight) to fasted rats produced extensive lesions of gastric mucosa (Group 1). Pre-treatment with honey (2.5 g kg-1 body weight) alone (Group 2), aqueous plant extract alone (10% w/v 5 ml kg-1) (Group 3), or honey in combination with each of alcoholic extract (10% w/w 5 ml kg-1) (Group 4), aqueous extract (10% w/w 5 ml kg-1) (Group 5) or cimetidine (10 mg/ml honey 5 ml kg-1) (Group 6) orally 30 minutes before administration of absolute ethanol-HCl significantly (p < 0.05) protected gastric lesions by 46.74%, 61.50%, 76.68%, 78.39% and 56.55% respectively. Although the mechanism of gastric protection is unknown, honey in combination with each plant extract appears to increase the resistance of gastric mucosal cells to the necrotizing effect of strong irritants in the absolute ethanol-HCl mixture. The results suggest that honey in combination with each plant extract might be beneficial in the treatment of a variety of diseases in which gastric mucosal injury is present.
Batuan Formasi Singa yang terdiri daripada batu lumpur dominan, berselang lapis dengan batu lodak, batu pasir dan
juga sedikit unit konglomerat tertabur secara meluas di kepulauan Langkawi. Formasi Singa boleh dibahagikan kepada
sepuluh fasies sedimen dan empat sekutuan fasies. Keputusan kajian menunjukkan Formasi Singa telah terendap di
lautan cetek, iaitu di sub-sekitaran luar pesisir, transisi, muka pesisir serta dalam alur. Lautan cetek Lembangan Singa
dipengaruhi oleh iklim sejuk kerana terdapat sedimen asalan glasier, iaitu fasies batu lumpur berpebel. Kertas kerja ini
akan menjelas dan membincangkan segala aspek sedimentologi formasi batuan ini.
Fosil radiolaria berusia Perm Awal telah ditemui daripada batuan silika-rijang di Pos Blau, baratdaya Kelantan,
Semenanjung Malaysia. Sebanyak empat puluh spesies radiolaria tergolong dalam lima belas genera dan tujuh famili
telah dikenal pasti. Fauna radiolaria yang diperoleh termasuklah spesies penunjuk usia seperti Pseudoalbaillella
lomentaria, Ps. sakmarensis, Ps. scalprata scalprata, Ps. scalprata postscalprata dan Ps. scalprata rhombothoracata.
Kesemua radiolaria ini mewakili usia Perm awal merujuk kepada Zon Himpunan Pseudoalbaillella lomentaria
(Sakmarian Awal) dan Zon Himpunan Pseudoalbaillella scalprata m. rhombothoracata (Sakmarian Akhir). Keputusan
ini dapat menambah baik maklumat biostratigrafi radiolaria dan usia batuan bersilika-rijang di kawasan Pos Blau
dan di dalam Zon Sutura Bentong-Raub.
Pengecilan saiz antarahubung dalam papan litar bercetak (PCB) membawa kepada migrasi elektrokimia (ECM) dan
kemudiannya menyebabkan litar pintas. ECM merupakan salah satu jenis kakisan yang ketara menjejaskan kebolehtahanan
kakisan kepada peralatan elektronik. Migrasi ini ialah fenomena ion logam bergerak dari satu kawasan ke kawasan yang
lain di dalam medium logam, menyebabkan endapan berlaku di bahagian katod logam ataupun aloi. Justeru, kajian ini
dijalankan untuk menentukan kelakuan kakisan melalui ujian titisan air (WDT) pateri bebas plumbum Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu
(SAC305) di dalam larutan natrium hidroksida (NaOH) yang berbeza kepekatan iaitu 0.05M, 0.1M, 0.5M dan 1.0M.
Purata masa-ke-kegagalan (MTTF) pateri SAC305 berkurangan apabila didedahkan kepada medium larutan NaOH
yang semakin tinggi kepekatannya. Pembentukan dendrit dikesan selepas kakisan pateri SAC305 akibat proses ECM dan
menyebabkan litar pintas. Hasil kakisan Cu(OH)2
dan SnO2 juga didapati terbentuk selepas pateri terkakis. Bopeng
kecil kelihatan terbentuk terutamanya pada kepekatan yang tinggi adalah disebabkan oleh perlarutan pada anod Sn.
Females of the East Asian velvet-ant genus Andreimyrme Lelej, 1995 are reviewed. The genus definition is extended to accommodate A. borkenti (Williams, 2019), comb. nov. (from Smicromyrme Thomson, 1870), and nine new species: A. auricoma Okayasu, sp. nov. (Malaysia), A. laminatihumeralis Okayasu, sp. nov. (Indonesia, Malaysia), A. matsumotoi Okayasu, sp. nov. (Vietnam), A. naturalis Williams, sp. nov. (Indonesia), A. rong Williams, sp. nov. (Thailand, Vietnam), A. silvorientalis Okayasu, sp. nov. (Indonesia), A. takensis Okayasu, sp. nov. (Thailand), A. ursasolaris Williams, sp. nov. (Indonesia), and A. yotoi Okayasu, sp. nov. (Laos, Vietnam). Diagnoses, distributional records, and illustrations are provided for these and four previously recognized species, A. neaera (Mickel, 1935), A. paniya Terine, Lelej Girish Kumar, 2021, A. sarawakensis Lelej, 1996, and A. substriolata (Chen, 1957). Andreimyrme borkenti is newly recorded from Vietnam. A key to species known from females is provided. Habitat preference of this genus is discussed based on collecting records.
Large vertebrates are extremely sensitive to anthropogenic pressure, and their populations are declining fast. The white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) is a paradigmatic case: this African megaherbivore has suffered a remarkable decline in the last 150 years due to human activities. Its subspecies, the northern (NWR) and the southern white rhinoceros (SWR), however, underwent opposite fates: the NWR vanished quickly, while the SWR recovered after the severe decline. Such demographic events are predicted to have an erosive effect at the genomic level, linked to the extirpation of diversity, and increased genetic drift and inbreeding. However, there is little empirical data available to directly reconstruct the subtleties of such processes in light of distinct demographic histories. Therefore, we generated a whole-genome, temporal data set consisting of 52 resequenced white rhinoceros genomes, representing both subspecies at two time windows: before and during/after the bottleneck. Our data reveal previously unknown population structure within both subspecies, as well as quantifiable genomic erosion. Genome-wide heterozygosity decreased significantly by 10% in the NWR and 36% in the SWR, and inbreeding coefficients rose significantly by 11% and 39%, respectively. Despite the remarkable loss of genomic diversity and recent inbreeding it suffered, the only surviving subspecies, the SWR, does not show a significant accumulation of genetic load compared to its historical counterpart. Our data provide empirical support for predictions about the genomic consequences of shrinking populations, and our findings have the potential to inform the conservation efforts of the remaining white rhinoceroses.
Allergic asthma is a chronic inflammatory disorder of the pulmonary airways. Gelam honey has been proven to possess anti-inflammatory property with great potential to treat an inflammatory condition. However, the effect of ingestion of Gelam honey on allergic asthma has never been studied. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of Gelam honey on the histopathological changes in the lungs of a mice model of allergic asthma. Forty-two Balb/c mice were divided into seven groups: control, I, II, III, IV, V and VI group. All groups except the control were sensitized and challenged with ovalbumin. Mice in groups I, II, III, IV, and V were given honey at a dose of 10% (v/v), 40% (v/v) and 80% (v/v), dexamethasone 3 mg/kg, and phosphate buffered saline (vehicle) respectively, orally once a day for 5 days of the challenged period. Mice were sacrificed 24 h after the last OVA challenged and the lungs were evaluated for histopathological changes by light microscopy. All histopathological parameters such as epithelium thickness, the number of mast cell and mucus expression in Group III significantly improved when compared to Group VI except for subepithelial smooth muscle thickness (p
The Neotropical longhorned beetle tribe Hemilophini has been reviewed by Martins & Galileo (2014a, b) and currently contains 542 species (Monné 2017). Some of the most conspicuous longhorned beetle taxa are found in this tribe, for example species with a pair of cephalic horns (Phoebe Audinet-Serville, 1835), or others that strongly resemble to noxious Lycidae (Coleoptera) (e.g. Apeba Martins & Galileo, 1991, Calocosmus Chevrolat, 1862, or Lycidola Thomson, 1864) (see Lingafelter 2013; Martins & Galileo 2014a, b).
Water pollution due to plasticizers is one of the most severe environmental problems worldwide. Phthalate plasticizers can act as endocrine disruptors in vertebrates. In this study, we investigated whether the non-phthalate bis(2-ethylhexyl) sebacate (DEHS) plasticizer can act as an endocrine disruptor by evaluating changes in the expression levels of thyroid hormone-related, reproduction-related, and estrogen-responsive genes of Japanese medaka (Oryzias latipes) exposed to the plasticizer. Following the exposure, the gene expression levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone subunit beta (tshβ), deiodinase 1 (dio1), and thyroid hormone receptor alpha (trα) did not change. Meanwhile, DEHS suppressed dio2 expression, did not induce swim bladder inflation, and eventually reduced the swimming performance of Japanese medaka. These findings indicate that DEHS can potentially disrupt the thyroid hormone-related gene expression and metabolism of these fish. However, exposure to DEHS did not induce changes in the gene expression levels of kisspeptin 1 (kiss1), gonadotropin-releasing hormone (gnrh), follicle-stimulating hormone beta (fshβ), luteinizing hormone beta (lhβ), choriogenin H (chgH), and vitellogenin (vtg) in a dose-dependent manner. This is the first report providing evidence that DEHS can disrupt thyroid hormone-related metabolism in fish.
The dinoflagellates Gambierdiscus and Fukuyoa can produce Ciguatoxins (CTXs) and Maitotoxins (MTXs) that lead to ciguatera poisoning (CP). The CP hotspots, however, do not directly relate to the occurrence of the ciguatoxic Gambierdiscus and Fukuyoa. Species-wide investigations often showed no association between CTX level and the molecular identity of the dinoflagellates. In the Pacific region, Kiribati is known as a CP hotspot, while Malaysia has only three CP outbreaks reported thus far. Although ciguatoxic strains of Gambierdiscus were isolated from both Kiribati and Malaysia, no solid evidence on the contribution of ciguatoxic strains to the incidence of CP outbreak was recorded. The present study aims to investigate the regional differences in CP risks through region-specific toxicological assessment of Gambierdiscus and Fukuyoa. A total of 19 strains of Gambierdiscus and a strain of Fukuyoa were analyzed by cytotoxicity assay of the neuro-2a cell line, hemolytic assay of fish erythrocytes, and high-resolution mass spectrometry. Gambierdiscus from both Kiribati and Malaysia showed detectable ciguatoxicity; however, the Kiribati strains were more hemolytic. Putative 44-methylgambierone was identified as part of the contributors to the hemolytic activity, and other unknown hydrophilic toxins produced can be potentially linked to higher CP incidence in Kiribati.