19672 research outputs found
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Comparing the effect of heat on tropomyosin isoforms patterns from water buffalo and wild boar meat by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis
No full textTropomyosin is one of the most abundant proteins in meat; however, very little is known about it due to the lack of scientific literature. In this study, the spot volume of tropomyosin (TPM) isoforms, TPM2 and TPM1, in meat from water buffalo and wild boar subjected to various cook treatments were compared. We hypothesized that primary structures of the tropomyosin isoforms from both species would remain stable despite the application of heat. Proteins extracted from the treated meats were analyzed using two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and mass spectrometry. A Kruskal-Wallis test showed that there were no significant differences in protein spot volumes for all treatments; however, a significant difference was observed between species. Changes in the amino acid sequence of TPM1 were observed between the two species, indicating that the isoforms could be used as thermostable proteins or peptide markers for species identification because of their resistance to high temperatures. © 2019 Malaysian Applied Biology. All rights reserved
The use of fermented soybean meal and squid by-product blend as a substitute for fish meal in practical diets for climbing perch, Anabas testudienus (Bloch, 1792), pond culture: Growth performance and economics analysis
No full textA feeding trial was conducted to evaluate the effects of different ratios of fish meal (FM) to a fermented blend (FB: fermented soybean meal and squid by-product blend) on growth and economic performance of climbing perch, Anabas testudineus (Bloch, 1792), in earthen ponds. Five diets were prepared where FB was substituted for 0 (D1), 25 (D2), 50 (D3), 75 (D4), or 100% FM protein (D5), while a commercial diet (D6) was used for comparison. Triplicate groups of fish (1.03 ± 0.07 g) were fed twice daily up to satiation for 70 days in earthen ponds. No significant (P > 0.05) differences were found in growth performance of fish fed D1, D2, D3, and D6 diets, while fish growth decreased significantly (P < 0.05) in D4 and D5 groups. Feed intake decreased (P < 0.05) with the increasing levels of FB with no significant difference in the feed conversion ratio, which ranged from 1.98 to 2.08. The fish survival decreased significantly in D5 alone. While considering the overall production, the total yield and economic return were found to be highest in D2 (64176.7 TK ha−1) and lowest in D5 (14418.3 Tk. ha−1). Based on the present experimental condition, it is concluded that FB can economically be included in aquafeed as a substitute for up to 50% of FM protein from the diets of climbing perch. © 2018, © 2018 Taylor & Francis
Perception of Climate Change and the Adaptation Strategies and Capacities of the Rice Farmers in Kedah, Malaysia
No full textThis article attempts to understand the perception of the rice-growing farmers on the issue of climate change (CC) and identify their adaptive capacity (AC). A survey was conducted through structured questionnaires to understand farmers’ perception and adaptation strategies in response to changing climate and variability. The findings indicate that farmers are moderately adaptive to CC in the study area. The result also revealed that the main barriers are lack of funds and government support available information to CC. Farmers with higher AC can produce greater amount of rice. Rice producers should be enabled through improved extension services, government aid, such as grants, training for better level of adaptability, to help them achieve higher rice production. © 2019 National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA)
Discussion on the potential of soul according to Ibn Sina and Al-Ghazali (Perbahasan potensi jiwa menurut Ibn Sina dan Al-Ghazali)
No full textThe concepts of psychology and soul receive a heated debate among early Muslim philosophers. Al-Kindi, al-Fārābi, Ibn Sinā, al-Ghazāli and al-Rāzi were among the scholars that were engaged in the debate. Besides their discussion on the nature and inclination of the soul from the physical and spiritual view, the potential of the soul is also emphasized by them. From Islamic perspective, every human being needs to know the potential that exists in their soul so that they can utilize and take responsibility as a caliph in this world. Thus, this article highlights discussion on the potential of soul according to Ibn Sinā and al-Ghazāli based on their works. Among the issue highlighted on the potential of soul are the potential of plants, life and human. © 2019, University of Malaya. All rights reserved
Investigation of structural and optoelectronic properties of n-MoS2/p-Si sandwiched heterojunction photodetector
No full textMolybdenum disulphide (MoS2), a member of the transition metal dichalcogenides family has shown excellent optoelectronic properties with direct or indirect bandgaps in visible range as well as good absorption in its 2-dimensional (2D) form. In this work, a polycrystalline MoS2 thin film is fabricated by radio frequency magnetron sputtering. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis of the fabricated sample reveals two hexagonal structured peaks along the (100) and (110) planes, while energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy confirms a non-stoichiometric MoS2 film with a thickness of 300 nm. Raman shifts are observed at the E1 2g and A1g phonon modes, located at 374.37 cm−1 and 407.75 cm−1 respectively. A sandwiched heterojunction photodetector with a SLG/n-MoS2/p-Si structure is fabricated and illuminated with violet light at 441 nm. The device exhibits significant optoelectronic properties at various laser powers at a 10 V bias voltage. The maximum value of the photocurrent is calculated as 0.79 μA, with the responsivity as 10.4 mAW−1 and detectivity of 6.74 × 109 Jones at an intensity of 0.004 mW/cm2. These results highlight the adaptability of the current technique that will help realize large-scale production as well as allow for the development of advanced optoelectronic devices. © 2019 Elsevier Gmb
1.8 µm passively Q-switched thulium-doped fiber laser
No full textThis work demonstrates a simple and reliable passively Q-switched thulium-doped fiber laser capable of generating an output with a peak wavelength at 1.8 µm. Lasing is realized from the shorter wavelength region of a thulium-doped silica fiber gain medium by suppressing lasing at longer wavelengths in combination with a tunable bandpass filter. The laser is modulated by a single-walled carbon nanotube film saturable absorber. The generated Q-switched laser is capable of achieving a high repetition rate of 67.9 kHz and a narrow pulse width of 1.2 µs. As most work on the 1.6–1.8 µm waveband focuses on continuous-wave and mode-locked lasers, to the best of the author's knowledge, this is the first demonstration of a passively Q-switched thulium-doped fiber laser operating at 1.8 µm with an all-silica fiber setup. The demonstrated laser has potential for various applications including biomedical surgery and polymer-based welding applications. © 201
All-fiber optical polarization modulation system using MoS2 as modulator
No full textIn this work, an MoS2 thin film is used as a modulator in an all-optic polarization modulation system. Polarization modulation is achieved using the thermo-optic effect to modify the refractive index of the MoS2 thin film, changing the polarization state of the incident signal light. A high intensity laser signal is pumped into the MoS2 thin film to generate heat, and due to the thermo-optic effect the refractive index of the MoS2 thin film is modified, causing the polarization state to be modulated accordingly. The azimuth degree is rotated almost linearly with the increase of the pump power and a 70.81° azimuth shift is achieved within the available pump power range. A polarization modulation of 0.1304°/mW with a hysteresis difference of 3.22% is reported in this work. The proposed system has significant potential for use in optical fiber communication systems, optical frequency domain imaging, pulsed lasers and optical signal encoding. © 2019 Elsevier B.V
Tungsten disulfide-chitosan film as optical pulse and amplitude modulator in C-band region
No full textA tungsten disulfide (WS2)-Chitosan film based optical modulator for operation in the C-band region is demonstrated. The integration of the WS2-Chitosan film into an erbium doped fiber laser cavity reveals high optical pulse and amplitude modulation efficiency due to the substantial nonlinear absorption properties of the WS2-Chitosan film. The strong thermo-optic effect exhibited by the WS2-Chitosan film enables optical amplitude modulation, with modulation efficiencies of 0.10 dB mW-1 over a pump power ranging from 0.01 mW to 130.10 mW. The proposed WS2-Chitosan based optical modulator has significant potential for integration and application into a multitude of optoelectronic systems. © 2019 Astro Ltd
Impact of a Strained Periodic Multilayer on the Surface and Crystal Quality of a Semipolar (11–22) GaN Template
No full textEfficient reduction of defects and dislocations in a semipolar (11-22) GaN epilayer with the use of an AlN/GaN strained periodic multilayer is demonstrated. On- A nd off-axis X-ray rocking curve analyses have shown significant improvement in the crystalline qualities with remarkable narrowing in their respective full width at half-maximum upon utilization of increased AlN/GaN pairs. X-ray reciprocal space mapping revealed a prominent increment in the degree of relaxation state, with notable shrinkage in the diffuse scattering streak. Structural evaluation via transmission electron microscopey illuminates the interruption of defect and dislocation propagation due to the strained periodic multilayers. It was observed that the first 20th pairs exhibited a three-dimensional growth mode owning to numerous defects originating from the AlN/sapphire interface. Such a phenomenon was found to have a positive impact toward accumulating the propagation of defects. The surface morphology analysis elucidates the reduced stripe-like undulations, whereby the terrace-like features in the lower scales endured an enhanced rearrangement favoring the reduced defect density. © 2019 American Chemical Society
Design and synthesis of sulfur-containing butylated hydroxytoluene: antioxidant potency and selective anticancer agent
No full textAbstract: In the present study, a series of multipotent antioxidants (MPAOs), namely sulfur-containing BHT (S-BHT), derivatives were rationally designed and synthesized, and their inhibitory activities against free radicals and human cancer cell lines, HT29 (colon cancer) and MCF7 (breast cancer) were further evaluated. The experimental results showed that the Six out-of-eight S-BHT compounds had excellent antioxidant activity against DPPH radical with major enhancement compared to BHT. Among them, compounds 2b, 2a and 3b attained over 45% lower IC50 values than BHT. In vitro cytotoxicity, MTT assay was carried out using two human cancer cell lines, HT29 (colon cancer) and MCF7 (breast cancer) in addition to their non-tumorigenic counterparts to explore selectivity. In line with antioxidant activity, compounds 2a and 2b displayed the highest cytotoxicity effect on both cancer types. Interestingly, 2b not only exhibited superior cancer inhibition but also scored high selectivity index (SI = 5.2, 12.5) in colon and breast tissues, respectively, exceeding that of the standard chemotherapeutic drugs used 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) and Tamoxifen (Tmx), with lower IC50 values. The results indicated that the symmetric S-BHT derivatives were significantly enhanced by the antioxidant potency and their ability as useful and promising selective anticancer agents. Graphic abstract: A series of sulfur-containing phenols (S-BHT) as multipotent antioxidants structure have been rationally designed and synthesized by the combination of the antiradical activity of the most well-known phenol moiety, butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT, primary antioxidant) with the antiperoxide (secondary antioxidant) and anti-proliferative fragments, sulfur-containing groups into one structure aiming to enhance scavenging ability and antiproliferative activity of the radicals. Accordingly, the bioactivity of S-BHT was analysed by antioxidant and anticancer in vitro studies and demonstrated remarkable cancer inhibition rates along with significant cytotoxicity and selectivity against HT29 and MCF7 cancer cell lines. This work efficiently sets the ground for eminent sulfur-containing phenols developed based on a well-known standard antioxidant BHT, with features superior to common drawbacks faced in cancer therapeutic approaches, in addition to the great potential holding as selective and biocompatible agent for cancer applications.[Figure not available: see fulltext.] © 2019, Indian Academy of Sciences