Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Venom immunotherapy: A real-life experience in a tertiary referral center in Turkey

Aim: Venom allergy is an important health problem because of life-threatening reactions and impaired quality of life. The only treatment that can prevent the risk of a subsequent systemic sting reaction is venom immunotherapy. Additionally, there has been limited report about Hymenoptera venom immunotherapy practice from Turkey. In our clinic, which is an important allergy center in Turkey, we aim to share the clinical characteristics of venom immunotherapy patients and to raise awareness by sharing our experience about venom immunotherapy. Materials and Methods: Between December 2012 and February 2019, adult patients who underwent venom immunotherapy in Uludag University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Immunology and Allergic Diseases outpatient clinic were evaluated. The sociodemographic characteristics of the patients, re-stings and reaction type during venom immunotherapy were recorded. Results: A total of 52 patients (44.2% female, 55.8% men; mean age= 48.4 ± 12.9 years) were included. From a total of 52 patients, 41 (78.8%) received VIT with honey bee, 8 (15.4%) with wasp and 3 (5.8%) with honey bee and wasp. Only 4 (7.7%) patients developed systemic reactions due to venom immunotherapy. During the venom immunotherapy period, 19 (36.5%) patients were re-stung by the culprit bee and none of them had any systemic allergic reactions. Conclusions: Our data is consistent with previous literature regarding safety and effectivenes of venom immunotherapy. We believe that any effort increasing knowledge of venom allergy is important.
Effect of idol immersion on marine and fresh water-bodies

Pollution of water-bodies is a major concern in today’s era. Idol immersion activities during certain festive occasions are adding to the pollution load of the water- bodies. Non-biodegradable materials and synthetic paints used for making these idols are posing serious threat to aquatic life and environment. Water quality assessment is an important exercise to evaluate the nature and extent of pollution in order to take appropriate control measures. The present work is concern about the Water quality assessment to evaluate the nature and the extent of pollution in water body. Two major idol-immersion sites Shivaji Park, Mumbai and Masunda lake, Thane were selected for taking marine water sample and fresh water sample respectively in present study. Pre-immersion, immersion and post-immersion samples were collected from three sites stations and analyzed for various water quality parameters such as pH, Total suspended solids (TSS), Total dissolve solids (TDS), Total Solids (TS), turbidity, conductivity, hardness, Dissolved oxygen (OD) and COD. The variations in the values of these parameters were more prominent in fresh water samples than marine samples. It was observed that the values of these parameters significantly increased during the immersion period and then declined in the post-immersion period. However the general trend observed was : immersion > post-immersion > pre-immersion values. pH declined slightly during immersion period whereas DO showed only slight variations in the pre-immersion, immersion and post-immersion samples.
Effect of Capital Structure on Financial Performance of Deposit Taking Microfinance Institutions in Mombasa County, Kenya

ix CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION . 1 1.1 Background of the Study . 1 1.1.1 Capital Structure . 2 1.1.2 Financial Performance . 3 1.1.3 Capital Structure and Financial Performance . 4 1.1.4 Deposit Taking Microfinance Institutions in Mombasa County . 5 1.2 Research Problem . 5 1.3 Research Objective . 7 1.4 Value of the Study . 7 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW . 8 2.
In vivo cloning of plasmids in E. coli is a simpler and faster method for cloning

DNA assembly sequences into plasmids is one of the most important basic technologies for bioscience research and metabolic engineering. There are many of molecular cloning techniques have been developed and these techniques that need specialized expensive reagents or laborious experimental procedure. For that reason, a significant amount of effort has been dedicated to developing better DNA assembly methods with higher efficiency and fidelity as well as simpler and faster protocols. Here, we compared between conventional, in vivo and in vitro DNA assembly methods and their recent applications, we also highlight the optimum protocol for in vivo cloning of DNA assembly methods. The present study concluded that vector construction can be carried out simply by simply placing a DNA fragment having a homologous sequence and directly transformed into E. coli and this method gives great help in improving efficiency of molecular biological research.
for leachate generation

Practical waste and flow parameter values were determined to predict accurate leachate breakthrough times and flow rates for landfill leachate. The experimental design, measurement and analytical procedures of a 22 factorial experiment with a total of eight cells are developed to validate channeled flow and characterize flow patterns, measure key waste and flow parameters, and determine the effects of infiltration rate and waste density on the flow parameters and leachate discharge. The measured waste and flow parameter values consist of a practical field capacity of 0.12, a pore size distribution index λ of 0.67, an ultimate moisture content of 1.5 times the practical field capacity, and apparent hydraulic conductivities of ≤7.3 10−3 cm/s. These values differ from the HELP water balance model default values. The leachate generation results from the eight pilot waste cells are compared with the HELP predictions. The leachate breakthrough times and discharge volumes compare closely with the measured values if the modified parameters are used in the HELP model. Further research is suggested to construct an appropriate model to predict the channeled and matrix flows. In the mean time, the results in this article provide more accurate waste and flow parameter values for leachate discharge predictions.
Storage characteristics, nutritive value, and fermentation characteristics of large, round bales of alfalfa–mixed grass forage wrapped with different layers of stretch film

ABSTRACT Baled silage has become a popular form of forage conservation; however, many practical management questions have not been investigated thoroughly. Our objectives were to evaluate the number of polyethylene wrapping layers and the presence (OB) or absence (SUN) of an O 2 -limiting barrier within the wrap on the storage characteristics, nutritive value, and silage fermentation characteristics of alfalfa–mixed grass round-bale silages. Thirty-six 1.2 × 1.2-m large, round bales of a mixed sward composed predominantly of alfalfa ( Medicago sativa L.; 82 ± 3.8% alfalfa, DM basis) were packaged at 59.8 ± 3.2% DM and wrapped the same day with 4, 5, or 6 layers of the 2 polyethylene films (OB or SUN). Bales were sampled after 127 d at 0 to 0.15-m (SURFACE) and 0.15 to 0.61-m (CORE) depths. Generally, plastic type and number of wrapping layers had minimal effect on nutritive value and silage fermentation characteristics. However, greater concentrations of total fermentation acids, lactic acid, and NH 3 -N were found within the SURFACE compared with CORE layer ( P ≤ 0.03), but the titratable acidity (mean = 15.4 mEq/kg of DM; P = 0.27) and final pH (mean = 5.70; P = 0.23) did not differ. Although yeast and mold counts at the SURFACE layer often were nondetectable ( 10 cfu/g), elevated counts were most frequently associated with SUN. An O 2 -limiting barrier may improve anaerobic integrity at the surface layer of baled silages, but the potential to reduce polyethylene usage may be limited by the risk of internal physical puncture by coarse alfalfa stems.
The validation of human decomposition fluid as a cadaver-detection dog training aid

x LIST OF TABLES . xi LIST OF FIGURES. xii RELATED PUBLICATIONS . xvii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION . 1 1.1 Cadaver detection Dogs. 2 1.1.1 Detection of Decomposition Odour.3 1.1.2 Effectiveness and Limitations.6 1.1.3 Training and Training Aids . 7 1.2 Cadaver Decomposition. 9 1.3 The Chemistry of Decomposition . 13 1.3. 1 Protein Degradation.13 1.3. 2 Lipid Degradation.15 1.3. 3 Carbohydrate Degradation.17 1.3. 4 Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) Produced by Decomposition.19 1.4 Collection and Analysis of Decomposition VOCs . 20 1.4. 1 Sorbent Tubes.21 1.4. 2 Solid Phase Micro Extraction (SPME). 22 1.4. 3 Gas Chromatography — Mass Spectrometry (GC MS). 24 vi 1.5 Comprehensive Two Dimensional Gas Chromatography — Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry (GC×GC TOFMS). 26 1.6 Research Aims and Objectives.30 CHAPTER 2: METHOD OPTIMISATION . 32 2.
Simplex Lattice Approach to Optimize Yields of Light Oil Products from Catalytic Cracking of Bio-Oil with Mixed Catalysts

Bio-oil is a potential product from the fast pyrolysis of biomass. However, it should be upgraded before being used in subsequent applications and corrosion prevention. In this work, crude bio-oil from fast pyrolysis of Jatropha curcas residues, which has many long-chain compounds, and a high content of carboxylic acid, was catalytically upgraded over mechanically mixed catalysts (normal ZSM-5 and Y-Re-16) in a fixed-bed reactor. The effects of the key parameters on the yields of light oil products were analyzed, including cracking temperature (350–500°C), reaction time (15–60 min), catalyst loading (10–25%), and mixture ratio between Y-Re-16 and ZSM-5 (10–70%). Experimental test cases were based on a simplex lattice design. The gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer (GC-MS) analysis showed that the catalytic cracking of crude bio-oil using mixed catalysts resulted in the successful formation of short-chain acid methyls. The employed analytical fit of the experimental data gave R2 and the adjusted R2 of 0.902 and 0.843, respectively. The optimized operation conditions to produce aliphatic hydrocarbons from mechanically mixed catalysts were found to be at 400°C, 15 min of reaction time, 15% of catalyst loading, and a mixture ratio of about 1:5.
Effect of Freezing and Thawing Methods on Duck Meat Characteristics

This work was carried out to investigate effects of the freezing/thawing method on duck meat kept in a freezer for a month. The meats used were breast muscle collected from Korean native ducks (KND) that were fed for 8 weeks (2.8 kg of live weight). Forty-five samples were used after being frozen in storage for one month and were then divided into 5 treatments (3 replications/treatment, 3 samples/replication). Five treatments (CON, FFFT, FFST, SFFT and SFST) were control groups (CON) and four were experimental groups, using 2×2 complex factors with two freezing methods (fast freezing, FF, — 50 ℃ in a deep freezer; slow freezing, SF, — 20 ℃ in a common freezer) and two thawing methods (fast thawing, FT, 5 h 12 ℃ with flow water; slow thawing, ST, 24 h 5 ℃ in a refrigerator). Lightness of KND meat in FF and FT groups was lower than that of control ( P <0.05). Yellowness of KND meat of the ST group was higher than that of control ( P <0.05). Cooking loss (CL) and water holding capacity (WHC) of KND meat in the control were lower than those of the freezing and thawing groups ( P <0.01, P <0.05), but shear force (SF) of the control was higher than that of other groups ( P <0.01). Moisture content of the ST group was higher than that of the FT group ( P <0.05), and protein content of the FF group was higher than that of control ( P <0.05). Stearic acid (C18:0) of the SF group was higher than that of the FF group ( P <0.05). Arachidonic acid (C20:4n6) of control was higher than that of the SF and ST groups ( P <0.01, P <0.05). Alanine, aspartic acid, glutamic acid, serine, and tyrosine content of the control were lower than that of the freezing and thawing groups ( P <0.05). These results show that freezing and thawing methods affect meat color, shear force, cooking loss, and WHC-related water content.
Shrinkage and Density Change of De-Boned Chicken Breast during Deep-Fat Frying

The effects of frying oil temperature (FOT) and time on densities and shrinkage in chicken breast meat during deep-fat frying were investigated. De-boned Chicken breast samples were diced and fried at different FOT (170℃, 180℃, and 190℃) in an industrial fryer for periods varying from 5 to 900 s. Bulk and apparent densities were determined with a fluid displacement pycnometer, and fat analysis was conducted using soxhlet extraction with petroleum ether solvent. The physical structure of chicken meat changed significantly with the frying time and FOT (P 3 in the raw product and decreased to 0.98, 0.95, and 0.93 g/cm3 after 900 s of deep-frying at 170℃, 180℃ and 190℃, respectively. Similarly, apparent density changed from 1.13 to 1.25, 1.24 and 1.22 g/cm3 and moisture loss was linearly correlated with both densities. Volumetric shrinkage was significantly (P < 0.05) affected by the process variables and hence a linear correlation also existed with moisture loss. The rates of shrinkage were 0.013, 0.001, and 0.008/s and occurred rapidly during the first 90s of FOT (170℃, 180℃, and 190℃), respectively and decreased as frying time increased.
Fabrication of poly (m-Tolyloxy-co-4-pyridinoxy phosphazene) based proton exchange membranes for fuel cell applications

Nafion® is the most commonly used commercial proton-exchange membrane for polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) due to its excellent thermo-mechanical properties. The main drawbacks of Nafion® membranes are their temperature dependent conductivity, degradation at temperatures greater than 80 oC and relative humidity less than 100% and also high cost, hence it is necessary to find the alternative membranes for PEMFC. Polyphosphazenes are a potential candidate owing to their ability to incorporate unlimited side-groups and their good thermal and chemical stability. In this work, three poly (m-tolyloxy-co-4-pyridinoxy phosphazene)s with varying heteroatom containing and not containing aryl side chains in varying ratios were studied. Through sulfonation the sulfonic acid group which promotes proton conduction was incorporated. Different parameters such as effect of temperature, time and varying amounts of each side groups of the polymers on the sulfonation process were investigated and the results reported. After sulfonation membranes with thicknesses in the range of 80-120 μm were obtained through solution casting and later on characterized. Structural characterizations by use of NMR (1H, 13C and 31P) and FTIR were carried out before and after sulfonation in order to check the post process changes. FTIR revealed extra peaks at 1300 cm-1 that belonged to the sulfonic acid groups. DSC and TGA were used to check the membranes’ thermal properties while the mechanical stabilities was investigated using the DMA. The resultant membranes were then evaluated for the basic PEMFC relevant properties such as IEC, water uptake and proton conductivity and the results compared to those of Nafion® 115. In this work, we reported IEC values of as high as 1.07 meq/g which was comparable to that of Nafion® 115 (0.91 meq/g) in the literature. Conductivity of the membranes varied depending on the sulfonation parameters and values obtained were comparable to the membranes in the literature and Nafion® 115 as well.
Tightly bound water in smectites

Abstract Smectites are able to retain molecular tightly bound water (TBW) at temperatures above 100 °C, even after prolonged drying. The presence of TBW affects the stable isotope ratios, the dehydroxylation behavior of smectites and smectite-rich samples and also has implications in measuring various properties of clay-rich rocks. Five reference smectites, in Mg-, Ca-, Na-, and Cs-exchanged forms were subjected to different drying protocols followed by the determination of TBW contents using precise thermogravimetric (TG) analysis. Activation energies (Ea) of the removal of different water fractions at temperatures up to 1000 °C were determined in non-isothermal TG experiments using model-independent methods. Additionally, 4A and 13X zeolites were examined in both cases as apparent OH-free references. After drying at 110 °C, all smectites still contained up to 3 water molecules per interlayer cation. The TBW contents in smectites were found to be primarily dependent on the isothermal drying temperature. For a given temperature, TBW contents decreased with respect to the type of interlayer cation in the following order: Mg > Ca > Na > Cs. The influence of the time of drying and the smectite layer charge were found to be negligible. The Ea of dehydration below 100 °C, as determined by the Friedman method, was quite constant within the 45–60 kJ/mol range. The Ea of TBW removal increased along with the degree of reaction from 90 to 180 kJ/mol, while the Ea of dehydroxylation was found in the 159–249 kJ/mol range, highly depending on the sample’s octahedral sheet structure and the interlayer cation. The Mg2+ cation can hold H2O molecules even beyond 550 °C, making it available during dehydroxylation or—for geologic-scale reactions—pass H2O to metamorphic conditions. High similarities between the TBW contents and the Ea of dehydration for smectites and cationic (low Si/Al-) zeolites lead to the conclusion that TBW in smectites is remarkably similar to zeolitic water in terms of cation bonding and diffusion characteristics. The optimal drying protocol for smectites is to substitute interlayer cations with cations of a low-hydration enthalpy, such as Cs, and to dry a sample at 300 °C, provided that the sample is Fe-poor. Fe-rich smectites should be dried at 200 °C to avoid dehydroxylation that occurs below 300 °C.
Quantification of Volatile Terpenoids in Chinese Medicinal Liquor Using Headspace-Solid Phase Microextraction Coupled with Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry

An HS-SPME coupled with GC-MS method was developed and applied for the quantification of volatile terpenoids in Chinese medicinal liquor.The effects of SPME fiber type,percentage of ethanol,extraction temperature,and adsorption time on the extraction of volatile terpenoids were evaluated.The optimal SPME extraction parameters were determined as follows: samples were diluted to an alcoholicity of 10% and extracted with 50/30 μm DVB/CAR/PDMS fiber for 45 min at 60 ℃. The proposed method exhibited good linearity.An excellent correlation coefficient was observed for 41 analytes,no less than 0.9921. The limits of detection were in the range of 0.01 to 3.62 μg/L and the limits of quantification varied from 0.03 to 12.05 μg/L.Both the repeatability and precision RSD values were below 15%. The spike recoveries of 41 volatile terpenoids were in the range of 81.01 % to 118.94 %. A total of 41 volatile terpenoids were quantified by this method in base and fished samples of Chinese medicinal liquor "Dongjiu". Total terpenoid content was higher in Daqu base liquor compared to Xiaoqu base liquor.Seventeen terpenoids including D-camphor were found in Daqu base liquor rather than Xiaoqu base liquor.Regardless of the affecting factors coming from distillation such as acid and heat,the 17 terpenoids were speculated to be mainly derived from Daqu fermented grains,while calamine was found only in Xiaoqu base liquor,suggesting that it is derived from Xiaoqu fermented grains.This study indicates that the HS-SPME coupled with GC-MS method is suitable for the quantitative analysis of terpenoids in Chinese medicinal liquor.
Effect of NiMo catalysts preparation on the deoxygenation of palm oil to green diesel.

Deoxygenation of triglyceride content in palm oil was performed in a fixed-bed reactor over commercial and prepared Nickel-Molybdenum catalysts (NiMo) at reaction temperature between the interval of 573 K to 613 K, pressure of 500 psi, palm oil flow rate of 0.02 mL/min and under the presence of H2 flow rate of 200 mL/min. The prepared NiMo catalysts were characterized by N2 sorption, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. An increase in calcination temperature used after impregnation of Ni metal was found to reduce the surface area of the catalyst, which caused the production of total desire hydrocarbons (C15C18) to decrease. SEM and EDX analysis of the catalyst surface showed an improvement of the dispersion of Mo metals after the amount of Ni metals used was increased in relation to Mo metals from 2:8 to 3:7. Better metal dispersion has also been shown to increase the performance of the catalyst regarding the production of total desire hydrocarbons. X-ray diffraction patterns revealed if the calcination temperature is as high as 1023 K, then Nickel metal in any form will not be detected on the surface of the catalyst.
Photo-Induced Ignition of Different Gaseous Fuels Using Carbon Nanotubes Mixed with Metal Nanoparticles as Ignitor Agents

ABSTRACT This article describes the photo-induced ignition process of multi-walled carbon nano-tubes (MWCNTs)/ferrocene mixtures by pulsed Xe lamps using programmable driving boards with adjustable parameters, such as variable flash rate and pulse’s energy/intensity. Varying the energy of incident light pulse, minimum ignition energy values were found as a function of mixture weight ratio, observing that a higher MWCNT amount with respect to metal nano-particles leads to lower ignition energy. The photo-induced ignition of CNTs mixed with nano-particles was then used in a properly realized experimental setup for triggering the combustion of CNT-enriched fuel mixtures. Different types of gaseous fuels mixed with air (CH4, liquid propane, and H2) were tested. The combustion process triggered by MWCNTs/ferrocene photo-ignition shows better performances, for all used gaseous fuels and for all tested air/fuel ratios, compared with those obtained by using a traditional spark plug. In particular, CNT-based photo-induced combustion evolves more rapidly with shorter ignition delays, higher peak pressure values, and a higher fuel burning rate as observed by reported experimental tests.
Evaluation of physicochemical, microbiological and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon content of top soils from Oka Market Waste Collection Site, Benin City, Nigeria

The aim of this study was to evaluate the physicochemical, microbiological and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon composition of top soil samples from Oka market waste collection site. Standard analytical and microbiological procedures were adopted. pH and electrical conductivity ranged from 6.45 to 7.39 and 230 to 940 μS/cm respectively. The highest content of organic carbon was observed in sample 2 (5.91 %), while that of sodium and potassium were 2.44 meq/ 100g (soil 2) and 0.23 meq/ 100g (soil 3) respectively. Calcium and magnesium content in the soil ranged from 2.60 to 7.72 meq/ 100g and 0.69 to 1.38 meq/ 100g respectively. The total hydrocarbon content ranged from 2.4 to 15.9mg/kg. The results of particle soil analysis revealed high content of sandy soil (88.2 to 90.7). Iron had the highest concentration among studied heavy metals, ranging from 193 to 649.2 mg/kg. Total heterotrophic bacterial and fungal counts were in the magnitude of 104, ranging from 3.6 to 17.4 cfu/g and 2.3 to 6.9 cfu/g. Tentative bacterial isolates were Bacillus sp. , Micrococcus sp. , Staphylococcus spp. and Enterobacter sp. , while fungal isolates were Aspergillus sp. Candida sp. and Penicillium spp. The highest concentration of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon was 16.5 mg/kg, with its components ranging from 0.08 mg/kg (Dibenzo(a,h) anthracene) to 2.1 mg/kg (Benzo(k) fluoranthene). The quality of soil is as a result of all the processes that act on it, therefore, informing the public of the dangers inherent in improper management of soil environment should be considered as an important aspect of scientific research. Keywords: market, physicochemical, microbial, PAHs, waste, heavy metals