Resistant starch is the non-digestible portion of starch that reaches the colon and act as a prebiotic to stimulate the activity and growth of beneficial gut microbiota. In the present study, resistant starch content of native (lemantak), commercialized and retrograded sago and starch was analysed, and the in vitro fermentability with known probiotics were investigated. Retrograded starch was produced through two cycles of autoclaving and cooling steps. The resistant starch content of each modified starch were measured based on the method approved by AOAC 2002.02. The in vitro batch fermentation was carried out with inoculation of Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium animalis at 37°C for 24 hours in anaerobic condition. Total bacteria was enumerated at 0, 6, 12 and 24 hours. Highest resistant starch content was shown in lemantak (native sago starch) at 62.61%. Lemantak was also shown to be the most preferred fermentation substrate with the highest number of total bacterial count at all sampling hours. These findings suggest the potential of lemantak as a prebiotic.
Crowdsourcing has changed the way people conduct business. It provides access to work, and employers can source for the best talent, at the best price, with the shortest turnaround time. Research so far has focussed on crowdsourcing implementation. Hence, there is a need to conduct research that can contribute towards crowdsourcing sustainability. Thus, the objectives of this paper are to identify current practices of crowdsourcing in Malaysia and the challenges that face it. A conceptual model for crowdsourcing sustainability ecosystem is then proposed. This study adopted the case-study approach. Two crowdsourcing platforms were examined in the case study. Two techniques were used to obtain the data: observation and interview. Observation was carried out to observe how the crowdsourcing platforms worked. The interviews helped to uncover current practices, challenges in using crowdsourcing and identification of sustainability factors. It is hoped that the proposed conceptual model will facilitate better planning of the ecosystem supporting crowdsourcing and ensure sustainable growth for crowdsourcing. Future research into crowdsourcing can test the proposed conceptual model to validate its components.