Laterite soils are occasionally associated with geotechnical problems such as road deformation, erosion, settlement, dam seepage, slope instability, leachate permeation through hydraulic barriers, etc. Numerous soil improvement techniques were being applied to overcome these problems, including mixing the laterite soil with cements, limes, bitumen, chemicals, pozzolanas, etc. These additives may not be locally available and cheap, and could significantly increase the cost of construction. Likewise, in many cases, these stabilizing agents are not environmentally friendly. Different percentages of fines, sand and gravel in laterite soils exhibit different engineering characteristics and behaviour, making it difficult to obtain suitable and appropriate gradation for specific construction purposes. Thus, the essence of this review is to determine the fundamental engineering properties of laterite soil as a standalone material at different gradations to harness its potentiality for various construction purposes. It proposes step-by-step procedures on how to achieve a better soil by varying its gradation and moisture content. Laboratory testing in accordance with BS1377:1990 and ASTM D698 are adopted to examine the engineering characteristics with respect to hydraulic conductivity, shear strength, and volumetric shrinkage. In this experimental technique where molding water content and compaction energy are carefully controlled at different laterite gradations, the engineering design is anticipated to provide greater accuracy, safety, and sustainability.
The Pharmacy value-added services (PVAS) has been implemented in Malaysian public hospitals to facilitate the collection of follow-up medications. In specific, PVAS include Integrated Drug Dispensing System, Medicine by Post, Drive-Through Pharmacy, and many more. While past studies examined the satisfaction towards PVAS and its impact on patients’ waiting time, little explored the awareness and the experience of patients towards each type of PVAS. This study aims to explore the patient’s awareness on PVAS, adoption of PVAS, their satisfaction towards PVAS, and willingness to adopt PVAS. This was a cross-sectional study conducted in January 2020. We invited the eligible patients or their family members to participate in the study. Respondents recruited at the Outpatient Pharmacy Department of Miri Hospital using convenient sampling. A questionnaire in the Malay language was developed and content validated to gather information on the demographic data, awareness on PVAS, adoption of PVAS, satisfaction towards PVAS, and willingness to adopt PVAS. A list of PVAS was included for the respondents to select the types they were aware of and used before. Results were presented as frequencies, percentages, mean and standard deviation. A total of 398 respondents participated in the study. Majority of the respondents (70.1%) were aware that PVAS offered in Miri Hospital. However, about a third of the respondents (31.4%) had experience using PVAS. The most commonly used PVAS was Appointment Card Dispensing System (49.6%) and that with the least usage was Local Partial Medication Supply Service (2.4%). The Drive-Through Pharmacy has the greatest satisfaction score, 4.40 (SD=0.70), whereas Call-and-Collect Service was the least satisfied, 3.88 (SD=0.91). Majority of the respondents (86.2%), specifically 95.8% of the experienced PVAS user and 90.1% of inexperienced group, were willing to adopt PVAS to collect their follow-up medications. The Drive-thru Pharmacy, which has the greatest awareness and satisfaction yet low usage, should be further promoted for greater adoption. Besides, such PVAS should be expanded to other healthcare facilities.
Both sexes of Brachiella malayensis n. sp. are described on the basis of specimens found in the nostrils of narrow-barred Spanish mackerel Scomberomorus commerson (Lacepède) collected off Besut, Malaysia. The female of this species closely resembles those of B. magna Kabata, 1968 and B. cybii Pillai, Prabha et Balaraman, 1982 but is distinguishable mainly by the body size and the proportions of the cephalosome, posterior processes and caudal rami. While examining the male, we noticed a systematic inconsistency in some lernaeopodid genera. The genus Brachiella Cuvier, 1830, represented by its type-species Brachiella thynni Cuvier, 1830, and two monotypic genera Charopinopsis Yamaguti, 1963 and Eobrachiella Ho et Do, 1984, represented by Charopinopsis quaternia (Wilson, 1935) and Eobrachiella elegans (Richiardi, 1880), respectively, share distinct synapomorphies in the embracing (vs. pinching) elongate male maxilliped and the female trunk with a pair of long, cylindrical ventroposterior processes (in addition to a pair of modified caudal rami), both of which are involved in their unique reproductive strategy. The latter two genera are herewith relegated to junior synonyms of Brachiella.
Edwardsiellosis caused by Edwardsiella tarda resulted in significant economic losses in aquaculture operations worldwide. This disease could infect a wide range of hosts, including freshwater, brackish water, and marine aquatic animals. Currently, antibiotics and vaccines are being used as prophylactic agents to overcome Edwardsiellosis in aquaculture. However, application of antibiotics has led to antibiotic resistance among pathogenic bacteria, and the antibiotic residues pose a threat to public health. Meanwhile, the use of vaccines to combat Edwardsiellosis requires intensive labor work and high costs. Thus, phytobiotics were attempted to be used as antimicrobial agents to minimize the impact of Edwardsiellosis in aquaculture. These phytobiotics may also provide farmers with new options to manage aquaculture species' health. The impact of Edwardsiellosis in aquaculture worldwide was elaborated on and highlighted in this review study, as well as the recent application of phytobiotics in aquaculture and the status of vaccines to combat Edwardsiellosis. This review also focuses on the potential of phytobiotics in improving aquatic animal growth performance, enhancing immune system function, and stimulating disease resistance.