bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Value of hemophagocytosis in the diagnosis of hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis in critically ill patients
Authors: Nyvlt Peter , Schuster Friederike S. , Ihlow Jana , Heeren Patrick , Spies Claudia , Hiesgen Josephine , Schenk Thomas , von Brünneck Ann‐Christin , Westermann Jörg , Brunkhorst Frank M. , La Rosée Paul , Janka Gritta , Lachmann Cornelia , Lachmann Gunnar
Published: February 2024

Background

Ferritin is an established biomarker in the diagnosis of secondary hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH), which is diagnosed by the HLH‐2004 criteria. Among these criteria, detection of hemophagocytosis through invasive procedures may delay early life saving treatment. Our aim was to investigate the value of hemophagocytosis in diagnosing HLH in critically ill patients.

Methods

In this secondary analysis of a retrospective observational study, we included all patients aged ≥18 years and admitted to any adult ICU at Charité—Universitätsmedizin Berlin between January 2006 and August 2018, who had hyperferritinemia (≥500 μg/L) and underwent bone marrow biopsy during their ICU course.

Results

Two hundred fifty‐two patients were included, of whom 31 (12.3%) showed hemophagocytosis. In multivariable logistic regression analysis, maximum ferritin was independently associated with hemophagocytosis. By removing hemophagocytosis from HLH‐2004 criteria and HScore, prediction accuracy for HLH diagnosis was only marginally decreased compared to the original scores.

Conclusions

Our results strengthen the diagnostic value of ferritin and underline the importance of considering HLH diagnosis in patients with high ferritin but only four fulfilled HLH‐2004 criteria, when hemophagocytosis was not assessed or not detectable. Proof of hemophagocytosis is not required for a reliable HLH diagnosis.
Embracing the other: Revisiting the epistemological foundations of family systems therapy
Authors: Wetzel Norbert A.
Published: February 2024

Family systems therapy originated in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s through the work of innovative thinkers and clinicians. However, despite the creative contributions of the mentioned colleagues and of later innovations in family therapy theory and practice, it seems as though the dominant culture of establishment psychiatry in the United States (and in most Western countries) to this day has not seriously incorporated relationships, social context, or community connectedness into the treatment of individuals with psychiatric diagnoses. For the “psychiatric” patients diagnosed according to the DSM‐5, the dominant underlying epistemological perspective is the medical “scientific” paradigm. Within this approach there is a dearth of reflections about the truthfulness of so‐called “empirical facts” and a lack of skepticism about the techniques of “measurement” of the psychiatric illness. The alternative, relationship‐oriented, context‐sensitive, and community‐connected thinking paradigm is highlighted here in contrast to the “psychiatric” foundation. This paradigm consists of (a) the awareness that all human Subjects (including “psychiatric” clients) are constituted as such by their relational connection to others; (b) the awareness of our sensitivity to and embeddedness in a socio‐economic, cultural, and racial context; and (c) the awareness of our involvement in and connectedness with many kinds of communities.
New product family demand planning: AddressingSKU‐level spread bias
Authors: Saunders Lance W. , Merrick Jason R. W. , Autry Chad W. , Holcomb Mary C.
Published: February 2024

New product supply chain planning is challenging, primarily due to the lack of historical demand data. Rarely, however, do the academic literature or companies differentiate the demand forecasting process for new products from existing ones, despite their increased reliance on judgmental estimates. This research focuses on how judgmental errors lead to an under‐estimation of the difference between the highest‐ and lowest‐demand stock‐keeping units (SKUs), and consequently negatively impact supply chain planning for new product family introductions. A generalized empirical model and accompanying discrete event simulation are developed and applied to data from a major consumer packaged goods (CPG) firm during the launch of a new cosmetics product family. This application allows us to identify a focal type of judgmental error (identified as the SKU‐level spread bias) inherent to new product forecasting and to provide a new theoretical understanding of how this type of bias harms supply chain performance. Via an empirically driven theory‐building approach that iterates between the simulation outcomes and existing literature, SKU‐level spread bias is demonstrated to harm demand forecasts and, thereby, supply chain plans. Our unique theory‐building approach advances theory by identifying planner SKU‐level spread bias as a new source of bias that firms should seek to mitigate when introducing new product families.
Suicide prevention: Introducing the Lothian Safekeeping Plan© for parents as a clinical innovation for use alongside safety plans for children and young people
Authors: Abbott‐Smith Susan , Dougall Nadine , Ring Nicola
Published: February 2024

Topic

Internationally, preventing suicide in children and young people is a priority and there are a range of preventative approaches available for health professionals to use, including brief interventions. Safety planning is one such brief intervention. Safety plans have long been recommended for use with young people who are suicidal but, these were initially developed for adults. A recent scoping review revealed safety plans need to be tailored to children and young people. This review also identified an important practice gap, that parents also require plans supporting them to keep their child safe.

Purpose

This paper highlights how a Scottish clinical child and adolescent mental health setting in the UK's National Health Service developed and implemented evidence‐based safety plans for suicidality–the Lothian Safety Plan for young people and the Lothian Safekeeping Plan for parents. This paper outlines both plans and gives recommendations for their use by healthcare professionals. The parental Lothian Safekeeping Plan is discussed in more depth as this is a novel intervention.

Conclusion

The Lothian Safekeeping Plan is a clinically led evidence‐based practice innovation. It is a specific suicide prevention plan for use by parents as an additional, complementary, and enhanced resource to the Lothian Safety Plan for young people. It is recommended that healthcare professionals also use a parental safety plan when supporting young people presenting with suicidal crisis. Further research is needed to evaluate the impact of these plans.
Disease: An ill‐founded concept at odds with the principle of patient‐centred medicine
Authors: Arandjelović Ognjen
Published: February 2024

Background

Despite the at least decades long record of philosophical recognition and interest, the intricacy of the deceptively familiar appearing concepts of ‘disease’, ‘disorder’, ‘disability’, and so forth, has only recently begun showing itself with clarity in the popular discourse wherein its newly emerging prominence stems from the liberties and restrictions contingent upon it. Whether a person is deemed to be afflicted by a disease or a disorder governs their ability to access health care, be it free at the point of use or provided by an insurer; it also influences the treatment of individuals by the judicial system and employers; it even affects one's own perception of self.

Aims

All existing philosophical definitions of disease struggle with coherency, causing much confusion and strife, and leading to inconsistencies in real‐world practice. Hence, there is a real need for an alternative.

Materials and Methods

In the present article I analyse the variety of contemporary views of disease, showing them all to be inadequate and lacking in firm philosophical foundations, and failing to meet the desideratum of patient‐driven care.

Results

Illuminated by the insights emanating from the said analysis, I introduce a novel approach with firm ethical foundations, which foundations are rooted in sentience, that is the subjective experience of sentient beings.

Discussion

I argue that the notion of disease is at best superfluous, and likely even harmful in the provision of compassionate and patient‐centred care.

Conclusion

Using a series of presently contentious cases illustrate the power of the proposed framework which is capable of providing actionable and humane solutions to problems that leave the current theories confounded.
Emotions of endometriosis in clinical encounters: An analysis of women's experiences of health care
Authors: Abraham Julia M. , V. Rajasekaran
Published: February 2024

Background

A large number of illnesses that lack physical visibility are characterised by troubled clinical encounters. Endometriosis is one such condition with very real and often debilitating symptoms that remain invisible to the clinician's eye, but are experienced and lived by the patient.

Method

This paper probes into two first person accounts of endometriosis to find out how endometriosis patients experience health care. The Tiger and the Cage: A Memoir of a Body in Crisis (2022) by Emma Bolden and Vagina Problems: Endometriosis, Painful Sex, and Other Taboo Topics (2020) by Lara Parker are both memoirs that details on the trivialisation and delegitimization of the women's accounts of their own lived reality by a health care system that often privileges medical evidence over lived experiences of the patients. After giving a brief introduction on the condition, the paper goes on to detail on the method and conceptual frameworks chosen for analysis. This is followed by an in‐depth analysis into the two texts using thematic analysis proposed by Virginia Braun and Victoria Clarke to identify shared patterns of meanings in the texts.

Discussion

The identified themes take the form of emotions repeatedly narrated by the women. The findings indicate instances of disrespect, epistemic invalidation and compromised autonomy, due to which six shared categories of negative emotions are experienced by the patients: self‐doubt, shame, fear, powerlessness, self‐blame and anger.

Conclusion

The paper concludes by indicating the urgency of improved medical training, that better educates and facilitates health care professionals in dealing with conditions with complicated aetiology, difficult diagnosis and no cure.
Development and validation of a food frequency questionnaire to assess habitual iodine intake among women of childbearing age
Authors: Kelliher Lisa , Kiely Mairead E. , Hennessy Áine
Published: February 2024

Background

Adequate iodine status is critical for thyroid hormone synthesis, which is essential for foetal brain development. Suboptimal iodine status has been reported in young women across Europe. Although urinary iodine concentration (UIC) is a good indicator of recent exposure, it does not reflect habitual iodine intake. This study aimed to develop and validate an iodine‐specific food frequency questionnaire (I‐FFQ) to assess habitual intake in Irish women aged 18−50 years.

Methods

A 47‐item interviewer‐administered I‐FFQ, informed by national food consumption data on Irish women aged 18–35 years, was developed and validated in a study of 100 nonpregnant women using a 4‐day weighed food diary (FD) and UIC as the reference methods. Correlation, cross‐classification and Bland–Altman analyses were used to assess agreement and bias between the I‐FFQ and FD. Validity coefficients were calculated using the method of triads.

Results

Median (interquartile range [IQR]) UIC was 82 (49, 139) µg/L. Median (IQR) intakes were 161 (106, 217) and 133 (98, 182) µg/day for the I‐FFQ and FD, respectively (p = 0.001). Estimates were moderately correlated (r = 0.434), and the I‐FFQ classified 89% of participants into the same or adjacent tertile of intake as the FD. Validity coefficients for the I‐FFQ, FD and UIC were 0.542, 0.800 and 0.228, respectively. Though repeatability analyses 10 weeks later (n = 69) showed slight differences in estimates of intake (I‐FFQ1: 164 (104, 210) µg/day; I‐FFQ2: 132 (67, 237) µg/day), intakes were highly correlated between administrations (r = 0.627, p = 0.001).

Conclusions

The I‐FFQ provides a reasonable estimate of habitual iodine intake in young women.
Prepregnancy weight loss and maternal metabolic and inflammatory biomarkers during pregnancy: An analysis of National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey
Authors: Yu Yang , Ma Qianheng , Groth Susan
Published: February 2024

Aim

Women with overweight or obesity are recommended to lose weight before conception to optimize pregnancy outcomes. However, the obstetrical implications of prepregnancy weight loss have been minimally examined. The objective of this study was to investigate the association between prepregnancy weight loss and maternal metabolic and inflammatory profiles during a subsequent pregnancy.

Methods

This study was a retrospective analysis of National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data (2003–2018). Participants were women who were pregnant at the time of assessment. Prepregnancy weight loss was described as percent weight change based on self‐reported baseline (1 year before pregnancy) and prepregnancy weight. Metabolic (e.g., blood pressure [BP]) and inflammatory biomarkers (i.e., high‐sensitivity C‐reactive protein [hs‐CRP]) were determined by standard medical tests. Statistical analyses included linear regressions with appropriate imputation, weighting, and variance estimation techniques.

Results

Participants (N = 236) reported a mean percent weight loss of 4.6% (standard error [SE] = 0.3%) during the year before pregnancy. Regression models showed that prepregnancy weight loss was inversely associated with levels of total cholesterol (β = −1.24, p = 0.01), low‐density lipoprotein‐cholesterol (β = −0.79, p < 0.01), and high‐density lipoprotein‐cholesterol (β = −0.18, p < 0.01). The effect of prepregnancy weight loss on BP, insulin sensitivity, and hs‐CRP was not significant, although there was a trend toward higher levels of diastolic BP (β = 0.24, p = 0.07) and hs‐CRP (β = 0.10, p = 0.08).

Conclusions

This study found favorable changes in lipid profiles following prepregnancy weight loss. Due to limitations such as a relatively small sample size, self‐reported weight measures, and missing data on several outcome variables, future studies are needed to confirm study findings.
Ameloblastic carcinoma: A systematic review
Authors: Robinson Liam , Abreu Lucas Guimarães , Fonseca Felipe Paiva , Hunter Keith D. , Ambele Melvin A. , van Heerden Willie F. P.
Published: February 2024

Background

Ameloblastic carcinoma (AC) is the most common odontogenic malignancy, constituting approximately 30% of cases in this category. Literature is sparse on malignant odontogenic neoplasms, with a large proportion of current knowledge derived from case reports or small case series.

Methods

A systematic review of case series/case reports of AC was conducted following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐analyses (PRISMA) Statement guidelines. Demographic and clinical information, including duration of the lesion, location, clinical presentation and radiologic features, were analysed. Additionally, the origin of the lesion (primary/secondary), Ki‐67 proliferation index, treatment performed, metastasis, tumour recurrence and prognosis were collected for analysis.

Results

A total of 126 studies, including 285 individual cases of AC, were included in this review. Patients presented with a near‐equal distribution of painless and painful swellings. ACs presented at a median age of 45 years, with a male‐to‐female ratio of 1:2. The mandible was most frequently involved, with rare cases extending to involve more than one region, including crossing the midline. Although most lesions presented with poorly‐demarcated borders (52.6%), unilocular lesions with well‐demarcated borders (47.4%) comprised a substantial number in the sample. The proliferation index was only reported in 27 cases, with a mean score of 42% and a wide range. The probability of tumour recurrence increased, and the survival probability decreased with prolonged follow‐up duration.

Conclusion

This study provides more comprehensive, up‐to‐date descriptive data on these rare odontogenic malignancies, aiding clinicians and Pathologists with the diagnosis and surgeons in their management of cases.
Perceptions of caring behaviors: Experiences of nurses in Ethiopia
Authors: Ferede Abebaw Jember , Gezie Lemma Derseh , Geda Biftu , Erlandsson Kerstin , Wettergren Lena
Published: February 2024

Caring is a universal phenomenon that influences nurse–patient interactions and feelings, forming the foundation of the nursing profession. How nurses perceive and experience caring in low‐income settings is not well understood. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore Ethiopian nurses' perceptions and experiences of caring using a qualitative descriptive design. Individual semi‐structured interviews were conducted with 13 nurses aged 28–57. Interviews were analyzed inductively using reflexive thematic analysis guided by the recommendations of Braun and Clarke. The analysis resulted in three themes: caring is the heartbeat of patient care, constraints to the provision of care, and ways to overcome constraints. The results revealed that nurses were committed to fulfilling their professional obligations and meeting patients' needs despite experiencing multiple constraints. The findings provide a comprehensive perspective in understanding nurses' experiences of caring. Their narratives demonstrate that they face constraints in their clinical practice, which limit the quality of care, including rotation and lack of resources. Cooperation between health policymakers and nurse authorities is essential for shifting the clinical environment from the prevailing traditional task‐oriented approach to patient‐centered care.
Online health information searching and health literacy among middle‐aged and older adults: A cross‐sectional study
Authors: Ishizuki Shiho , Hirano Michiyo
Published: February 2024

Given the rapid increase in health information available, health literacy is now more important than ever when searching for health information online. Furthermore, health literacy and online health information searching are reported to be associated with support from others. In this study, we examined the associations of health literacy and social support with online health information searching among individuals in their 50s and 60s. Between March and May 2022, an anonymous self‐administered questionnaire was administered among 750 middle‐aged and older adults (age 50–69) living in northern Japan. The questionnaire items included personal characteristics, frequency of online health information searching, health literacy domains, and social support. A total of 237 respondents answered all the items (response rate: 31.6%). Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that communicative health literacy was significantly associated with searching for information about illnesses and health promotion, while critical health literacy was significantly associated with searching for information about medical institutions. Controlling for personal characteristics, health literacy, was associated with online health information searching, suggesting that improving health literacy is important in a digital and information society.
Open science perspectives on machine learning for the identification of careless responding: A new hope or phantom menace?
Authors: Alfons Andreas , Welz Max
Published: February 2024

Powerful methods for identifying careless respondents in survey data are not just important to ensure the validity of subsequent data analyses, they are also instrumental for studying the psychological processes that drive humans to respond carelessly. Conversely, a deeper understanding of the phenomenon of careless responding enables the development of improved methods for the identification of careless respondents. While machine learning has gained substantial attention and popularity in many scientific fields, it is largely unexplored for the detection of careless responding. On the one hand, machine learning algorithms can be highly powerful tools due to their flexibility. On the other hand, science based on machine learning has been criticized in the literature for a lack of reproducibility. We assess the potential and the pitfalls of machine learning approaches for identifying careless respondents from an open science perspective. In particular, we discuss possible sources of reproducibility issues when applying machine learning in the context of careless responding, and we give practical guidelines on how to avoid them. Furthermore, we illustrate the high potential of an unsupervised machine learning method for the identification of careless respondents in a proof‐of‐concept simulation experiment. Finally, we stress the necessity of building an open data repository with labeled benchmark data sets, which would enable the evaluation of methods in a more realistic setting and make it possible to train supervised learning methods. Without such a data repository, the true potential of machine learning for the identification of careless responding may fail to be unlocked.
ACIDIC-ENZYMATIC CO-TREATMENT OF FOOD WASTE FOR HIGH SUGAR RECOVERY AND BIOGAS PRODUCTION
Authors: Al-Daas Aseel , Alam Md Zahangir , Azmi Azlin Suhaida
Published: February 2024

Food-waste (FW) has a high content of fermentable sugar which can be exploited to generate an alternative source of fuel that could replace fossil fuels. Anaerobic digestion (AD) is an approach to convert organic-waste into high-value products like biomethane and hydrogen. However, hydrolysis is deemed to be a rate-limiting process in the AD process, limiting biogas production. This study seeks to improve the hydrolysis process through pre-treating FW with chemical and biological treatments. We show that the enzymatic treatment substantially improved the hydrolyzation and solubilization of food waste, resulting in a three folds increase in biogas production compared to untreated food waste. A co-treatment of biological and enzymatic treatments significantly improved the hydrolysis process, solids reduction, and solubilization of the substrate. The soluble chemical oxygen demand (SCOD) and reducing sugar were increased by 50% and 25% respectively, compared to enzymatically treated only. However, the inhibitory effect of accumulated salts from the treatment has limited the application of anaerobic digestion. Our results reveal that using enzymatic and acidic pre-treatment can significantly enhance hydrolysis of FW to increase biogas production, highlighting the potential of AD.
TOWARDS IMPROVED DISEASE IDENTIFICATION WITH PRETRAINED CONVOLUTIONAL NEURAL NETWORKS AS FEATURE EXTRACTORS FOR CHILI LEAF IMAGES
Authors: Aminuddin Nuramin Fitri , Abdul Kadir Herdawatie , Md Tomari Mohd Razali , Joret Ariffuddin , Tukiran Zarina
Published: February 2024

Chili is a popular crop that is widely grown due to its flavorful and spicy fruit that is nutritionally beneficial. For the benefit of economic growth, it is important to precisely assess the chili health. With the advancement of computer vision-based applications, methods such as feature descriptors have been utilized to assist farm owners in identifying chili diseases via chili leaf images. However, these feature descriptors still require the manual extraction of disease features in order to accurately identify chili diseases. In this research, pretrained Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) are proposed as feature extractors to identify healthy and diseased chili leaf images. Three pretrained CNN models, DenseNet-201, EfficientNet-b0, and NasNet-Mobile, are utilized for their ability to identify healthy and diseased chili leaf using five indexes: accuracy, recall, specificity, precision, and F1-score. These indexes are validated through a five-fold cross-validation method during the experiments. The experimental results show that the EfficientNet-b0 model achieved the highest identification performance, with indexes of accuracy, recall, specificity, precision, and F1-score of 97.05%, 0.97, 0.92, 0.92, and 0.94, respectively. Therefore, the use of pretrained CNNs as feature extractors has the capability to enhance the efficiency and accuracy of chili disease identification in agricultural settings.
DEVELOPMENT OF ECOFRIENDLY PLASTIC BAGS FROM BIOTHERMOPLASTIC COMPOSITE OF MODIFIED CASSAVA STARCH–GLUCOMANNAN-POLYVINYL ALCOHOL-POLYCAPROLACTONE
Authors: Harsojuwono Bambang Admadi , Arnata I Wayan , Hartiati Amna , Gunam Ida Bagus Wayan , Setiyo Yohanes
Published: February 2024

The purpose of the study was to determine the type of molding material and the sealing temperature in the formation of ecofriendly plastic bags made from a Modified Starch – Glucomannan – Polyvinyl Alcohol – Polycaprolactone (MSGPVAPCL) biothermoplastic composites. The study used a factorial randomized block design experiment. Factor 1: the type of molding material consists of Teflon and acrylic while factoring 2: the sealing temperature with levels of 90, 95, 100, 105, and 110 °C. Mechanical, physical, biological and chemical characteristics were observed. The research results show that the type of teflon molding material and the sealing temperature of 105°C gave the best characteristics of ecofriendly plastic bags with a tensile strength value of 28.62 MPa, elongation at break of 8.68%, Young's modulus 449.44 MPa, a heat seal tensile strength on the bag handle of 6.10 N, a heat seal tensile strength on the bag bottom of  4.10 N, tear strength direction longitudinally of 3.61 N, transverse tear strength of 1.78 N, WVTR of 91.23 g/m2/day, swelling of 5.31% and biodegradation time of 7.00 days, the maximum evaporation temperature of 72.43 °C, degradation temperature of 220.97 °C and a weight loss of 30.07%, a crystalline degree of 20.71% and an amorphous degree of 79.29%, a smooth longitudinal surface profile with slight waves and a transverse surface profile showing the presence of waves and fine fibers, containing functional groups O-H alcohol, C=O, C=C, C-O and (CH2)n and no heavy metals were detected.
DETERMINATION OF THE ANTIHYPERTENSIVE DRUGS CAPTOPRIL, ATENOLOL, AND METOPROLOL IN DOSAGE FORMS
Authors: H. Ibrahim Wallada , Sh. Mahmood Hana
Published: February 2024

Three antihypertensive drugs Captopril (CPL), Atenolol (ATL), and Metoprolol (MTL) have been estimated sensitively and selectively by a single spectrophotometric method using neutral red dye NLR. The method is based on oxidation of the drugs by known excess of N-bromosuccinamide (NBS) in the first reaction step followed by the oxidation of NLR dye with the exceed ed amount of NBS, as the concentration of the drug compounds increase, the color of the dye increase, the dye exhibits absorbance peak at 523 nm. The linearity range was from 1 to 10 µg/ml for the three drugs, the molar absorptivity values were 2.1164 × 105, 1.9202× 104, and 57.934× 104 l.mol-1.cm-1 for CPL, ATL, and MTL respectively, the sensitivity index of Sand’ll were 0.0102, 0.0138, and 0.01182 µg/cm2 for CPL, ATL, and MTL respectively. LOD values for the three drugs ranged from 0.00405 to 0.00547 and LOQ values were ranged from 0.0135 to 0.0182 respectively, the method exhibits good applicability to the dosage forms and high confidence as compared with standard method and standard addition method.
FUSION SPARSE AND SHAPING REWARD FUNCTION IN SOFT ACTOR-CRITIC DEEP REINFORCEMENT LEARNING FOR MOBILE ROBOT NAVIGATION
Authors: Abu Bakar Mohamad Hafiz , Shamsudin Abu Ubaidah , Soomro Zubair Adil , Tadokoro Satoshi , Salaan C. J.
Published: February 2024

Nowadays, the advancement in autonomous robots is the latest influenced by the development of a world surrounded by new technologies. Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) allows systems to operate automatically, so the robot will learn the next movement based on the interaction with the environment. Moreover, since robots require continuous action, Soft Actor Critic Deep Reinforcement Learning (SAC DRL) is considered the latest DRL approach solution. SAC is used because its ability to control continuous action to produce more accurate movements. SAC fundamental is robust against unpredictability, but some weaknesses have been identified, particularly in the exploration process for accuracy learning with faster maturity. To address this issue, the study identified a solution using a reward function appropriate for the system to guide in the learning process. This research proposes several types of reward functions based on sparse and shaping reward in SAC method to investigate the effectiveness of mobile robot learning. Finally, the experiment shows that using fusion sparse and shaping rewards in the SAC DRL successfully navigates to the target position and can also increase accuracy based on the average error result of 4.99%.
GAS SOURCE LOCALIZATION THROUGH DEEP LEARNING METHOD BASED ON GAS DISTRIBUTION MAP DATABASE
Authors: Mohd Juffry Zaffry Hadi , Kamarudin Kamarulzaman , Adom Abdul Hamid , Miskon Muhammad Fahmi , Ali Yeon Ahmad Shakaff , Abdullah Abdulnasser Nabil
Published: February 2024

The incident of harmful gas leakage can cause severe damage to the environment and several casualties to human beings while the gas localization system plays a major role in mitigating those causalities. With the advances in artificial intelligence technology, deep learning is able to enhance the accuracy of the gas localization system to locate the gas source. This paper proposes a gas localization system that utilizes three different deep learning models namely DNN, 1DCNN, and 2DCNN to locate the gas source within the gas map. The proposed method involves generating the gas distribution map through the large gas sensor array platform in real-world indoor scenarios. Those models are then trained using the collected database which allows for accurate prediction of the gas source location. The performance of each proposed deep learning model was compared to find the best model demonstrating the highest effectiveness in identifying gas leaks. The study has shown that the 1DCNN has the highest effectiveness in predicting the gas source in the range between 0.0 m to 0.3 m with 90.3% compared to the DNN and 2DCNN models.
FERRIHYDRITE-CHITOSAN NANOCOMPOSITE AS A RECYCLABLE FLOCCULANT FOR PALM OIL MILL EFFLUENT
Authors: Jumadi Juliana , Kamari Azlan , Abdul Rahim Nurulsaidah , Yusof Norjan , Sutapa I. Wayan , Sunardi Sunardi
Published: February 2024

In the present study, ferrihydrite-chitosan nanocomposite (FCN) was successfully produced by co-precipitation method and used for the first time as a recyclable flocculant for pre-treatment of palm oil mill effluent (POME). The physicochemical properties of FCN were studied using Raman spectrometer, Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and Thermogravimetric Analyser (TGA). The feasibility of FCN to remove total suspended solids (TSS), turbidity, chemical oxygen demand (COD), and, oil and grease (O&G) from POME was investigated using a jar test method. The optimum conditions for contaminant removal from POME were determined by varying the experimental parameters such as flocculant dosage, solution pH and settling time. The results obtained showed that FCN, at a dosage of 1.5 g/L, a contact time of 60 min and pH of 5.0 gave a highest reduction of turbidity, TSS, COD and O&G levels by 72.38%, 77.32%, 71.60% and 53.40%, respectively. Besides that, FCN exhibited a better flocculation performance as compared to alum and chitosan. After three cycles of flocculation/deflocculation process, FCN retained satisfying flocculation efficiency and flocculants recovery in the range of 80-83% and 43.2-78.6%, respectively. Combination of charge neutralisation and polymer bridging was the main key mechanism of interaction between FCN and POME contaminants. The synergy effect between iron oxide/oxyhydroxide nanoparticle and chitosan has increased the physicochemical properties and flocculation performance of the FCN nanocomposite. Overall, FCN nanocomposite can be used an alternative flocculant for POME treatment.
GELLAN GUM- AND PECTIN-MAGNETIC GRAPHENE OXIDE NANOCARRIERS LOADED WITH CINNAMALDEHYDE FOR MOSQUITO LARVAE CONTROL
Authors: Wong Siew Tin Susana , Kamari Azlan , Mohd Yusoff Siti Najiah , Hussein Mohd Zobir , Othman Hidayatulfathi , Mustafar Suzaliza , Sukkaew Adulsman , Fatimah Is
Published: February 2024

Magnetic nanoparticles have evolved over the last few decades as nanocarriers in drug delivery systems for hydrophobic drugs. Here, novel gellan gum magnetic graphene oxide (GG-GO-Fe3O4) and pectin magnetic graphene oxide (PEC-GO-Fe3O4) nanocomposites were prepared to carry cinnamaldehyde to control Aedes aegypti larvae. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) were employed to investigate the physicochemical characteristics of the nanocomposites. Entrapment efficiencies and loading capacities of nanocomposites on cinnamaldehyde were examined using ultraviolet-visible analysis. The successful cinnamaldehyde loading was confirmed by C-C and C-O stretches in the FTIR spectra. Results of in vitro release study showed the capabilities of GG-GO-Fe3O4 as a drug carrier system, extending the cinnamaldehyde release period for 36 h, and the release profiles for both nanocomposites fit the Korsmeyer-Peppas kinetic model with correlation coefficient (R2) values of over 0.9809. The cinnamaldehyde-loaded GG-GO-Fe3O4 nanocomposites induced 68% mortality after 72 h of exposure, with LC50 values ranging from 2.0488 and 15.9121 mg/L. The conjugation of GO-Fe3O4 with biopolymers improved the water solubility of cinnamaldehyde by 36.41 to 62.83 times vs. free cinnamaldehyde in water (1.42 mg/mL). Overall, these results are beneficial for researchers dealing with mosquito control and prevention.
ASSESSING TROPHIC STATE AND WATER QUALITY OF SMALL LAKES AND PONDS IN PERAK
Authors: Sharip Zati , Zulkifli Mohd Hafiz , Abd Wahab Mohd Nur Farhan , Johar Zubaidi , Mat Amin Mohd Zaki
Published: February 2024

Nowadays, the advancement in autonomous robots is the latest influenced by the development of a world surrounded by new technologies. Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) allows systems to operate automatically, so the robot will learn the next movement based on the interaction with the environment. Moreover, since robots require continuous action, Soft Actor Critic Deep Reinforcement Learning (SAC DRL) is considered the latest DRL approach solution. SAC is used because its ability to control continuous action to produce more accurate movements. SAC fundamental is robust against unpredictability, but some weaknesses have been identified, particularly in the exploration process for accuracy learning with faster maturity. To address this issue, the study identified a solution using a reward function appropriate for the system to guide in the learning process. This research proposes several types of reward functions based on sparse and shaping reward in SAC method to investigate the effectiveness of mobile robot learning. Finally, the experiment shows that using fusion sparse and shaping rewards in the SAC DRL successfully navigates to the target position and can also increase accuracy based on the average error result of 4.99%.
SEISMIC BEHAVIOR OF MULTI-STORIED RC BUILDING WITH RE-ENTRANT CORNER
Authors: Hassan Md. Nazmul , Chowdhury Sharmin Reza , Shuvo Raisul Islam
Published: February 2024

Nowadays, buildings often feature irregular floor plans for functional, aesthetic, or economic reasons. Constructing earthquake-resistant structures in seismic areas, especially with irregular shapes like re-entrant corners, poses challenges. Such corners are common when maximizing limited space is a priority. In earthquakes, re-entrant corners in structures pose major vulnerabilities, causing stress concentration and torsion problems. The main aim of this paper is to develop finite element structural analysis models of 10, 12, and 15-storied L-shaped RC buildings with a re-entrant corner under different seismic zones using equivalent static analysis (ESA) and response spectrum analysis (RSA). This research also focuses on the overall behavior of analysis results (story drift, overturning moment, base shear, etc.) with the influence of re-entrant corner. It also investigates the performance of columns and beams near re-entrant corners as the number of stories increases in different seismic zones. For the current study, ETABS V19 is used. Models consider seismic, dead, and live loads. The Bangladesh National Building Code (BNBC) 2020 is used to examine the equivalent static analysis (ESA) and the response spectrum analysis (RSA) methods. It has been concluded from the study that re-entrant corner beams consistently exhibit the highest bending moments and torsion levels across all seismic zones. Similarly, re-entrant corner columns consistently demand the most axial force and rebar when compared to similar column types. Furthermore, the study identifies maximum stress levels in re-entrant corner slabs across all seismic zones.
COMPARISON OF FLEXURAL PROPERTIES OF PINEWOOD WITH FEA SIMULATION FOR MARINE APPLICATION
Authors: Salleh Z. , Zullastri M. A. A.
Published: February 2024

Pine wood sourced from pellet packaging, being abundant, holds potential for utilization in creating bio composites, particularly as activated carbon for laminated coatings in structural applications. However, there is a current lack of research identifying its specific properties as a coating material for Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) composites. Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) composites provide a highly adaptable solution for reinforcing and revitalizing existing structures in challenging marine conditions. This study delves into investigating the flexural characteristics of FRP pine wood composites, comparing the findings with Finite Element Analysis (FEA) results. Furthermore, the activated carbon derived from pine wood exhibits potential for resisting barnacle attachment when immersed in saltwater. For the flexural analysis, samples were produced using a silicone rubber mold, incorporating varying weight percentages (wt.%) of activated FRP pine wood, ranging from 2 wt.% to 10 wt.%. The outcomes of the study reveal that the introduction of activated carbon from pine wood leads to an enhancement in ultimate strength, reaching a maximum of 2700 MPa. Nonetheless, the results also indicate a reduction in material strength as the proportion of activated carbon pine wood is increased.
INFLUENCE OF MACHINING PARAMETERS AND TOOL GEOMETRY ON TOOL WEAR DURING COBALT CHROMIUM-MOLYBDENUM MICRO DRILLING
Authors: Abdul Patar Mohd Affifudin , Suhaimi Mohd Azlan , Sharif Safian , S Mohruni Amrifan , Hisam Muhammad Juzaili , Shaharum Mohd Sallehuddin
Published: February 2024

Cobalt chromium (CoCr) alloys find extensive use in medical applications due to their unique mechanical properties, such as high strength and low thermal conductivity. However, machining these alloys poses challenges as they are classified as hard-to-cut materials, leading to issues like short tool life, poor surface quality, and low productivity. Rapid tool wear is a significant problem when machining hard alloys, with cutting parameters, drill bit geometry, and types of cutting fluids being the main factors influencing tool wear. In this study, a series of experiments was conducted to investigate the influence of different cutting speeds and tool geometry on tool wear during micro drilling of CoCrMo. A flood cooling system was employed throughout the study, with a constant machining feed rate of 0.1 mm/rev. Three cutting tools with different point angles (118°, 130°, and 140°) and a diameter of 0.2 mm were utilized. The cutting speeds of 50 m/min, 65 m/min, and 80 m/min were varied. A total of 11 runs were performed, with each run consisting of drilling 30 holes. Forces, torques, and tool wear were measured after every subsequent 10 holes drilled. The results indicate that the combination of a 140° point angle and an 80 m/min cutting speed yielded the best performance, exhibiting the lowest force, torque, and tool wear values..
ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITY OF DR. RIDZ ANTI-ACNE NANOSERUM® AGAINST SKIN BACTERIA THAT CAUSE ACNE VULGARIS
Authors: Ridzuan P.M. , Noraziah Z. M. , A. Sukri , N. S. Fadzil
Published: February 2024

Cutibacterium acnes, Staphylococcus epidermidis, and Staphylococcus aureus are commonly associated with the pathogenesis of acne vulgaris.  Skincare products that contain natural ingredients have become a trend to treat acne. Dr.Ridz Anti-Acne Nanoserum® product was formulated with the extract of Cassia alata leaf and Piper betle. The aim of this study was to determine the antibacterial activity of this formulated product against against C. acnes, S. epidermidis, and S. aureus. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) value and the minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) were determined using a broth microdilution and a streak plate method, respectively. The rate of killing by this product was tested using time-kill assay (TKA) at 0.5x MIC, 1x MIC, and 2x MIC with incubation periods of 2, 4, 6, 8 10, 12, and 24 hours. The MIC values showed that this product inhibited S. epidermidis and S. aureus better than C. acnes. From the calculation of the MBC/MIC ratio, this product showed bactericidal effects against all tested bacteria. The time-kill studies showed that the killing effect of this product was concentration-dependent, and the highest antibacterial activity was observed at the concentration of 2x MIC against all tested bacteria. In conclusion, Dr.Ridz Anti-Acne Nanoserum® exhibits the best antibacterial activities against S. epidermidis and showed a bactericidal effect towards all tested bacteria.

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PROTEIN INTERACTION STUDIES OF CROSS-LINKED ENDOLEVANASE AGGREGATES FROM BACILLUS LEHENSIS G1
Authors: Makki Hotaf Hassan , Jaafar Nardiah Rizwana , A. Rahman Roshanida , Rahmat Zaidah , Tri Puspaningsih Ni Nyoman , Md. Illias Rosli
Published: February 2024

The efficiency of cross-linked enzyme aggregates (CLEAs) is mainly affected by the strength and binding site of the formed linkages between the enzyme and cross-linker. Therefore, this study investigated the impact of different macromolecular cross-linkers on various functional groups, their binding energy, and intermolecular interaction in generating CLEAs of endolevanase from Bacillus lehensis G1 (rlevblg1), through the combination of computational and experimental analysis. Due to the distanced bonding of dextran from the active site, rlevblg1 cross-linked with dextran (rlevblg1-dex-CLEAs) exhibited the highest binding affinity (− 7.1 kcal/mol) and activity recovery compared to six other cross-linkers. Thus, the role of computational cross-linker screening is confirmed as a crucial step to predict strong attachment and construct efficient CLEAs.
MODELLING AND INTEGRATING OF EXPERIMENTAL ANALYSIS FOR PREDICTING THE PARAMETERS OF KENAF FIBRE-REINFORCED CONCRETE BEAM-COLUMN JOINT
Authors: Ayeni Ige Samuel , Jamaludin Yatim Mohamad , Abdul Shukor Lim Nor Hasanah
Published: February 2024

To lessen the environmental impact of infrastructure projects, the construction sector has recently demonstrated a growing interest in sustainable materials. Kenaf fibre-reinforced concrete (KFRC), which has improved mechanical qualities and biodegradability, has emerged as a possible eco-friendly substitute. The intricate interactions between material composition, geometrical factors, and load-bearing capacities make it difficult to optimise the design of structural parameters of KFRC beam-column joints. The beam-column joints used in this study were designed based on ACI 318-19 shear criteria. This study suggests a novel method for precisely predicting the parameters of kenaf fibre-reinforced concrete beam-column (KFRC-BC) joints by combining machine learning modelling and experimental investigation. Experimental data are carefully documented to establish the reality, including load-displacement responses and beam-column joint parameters such as shear, stiffness, ductility, crack load, energy absorption, and ultimate load. These data were used in the modelling through GeneXproTools 5.0 (GEP) and an empirical relationship with mathematical expressions has been proposed for each joint parameter. R2 statistical analysis is used to evaluate the model’s efficacy. In addition, it has been demonstrated by varying intensity and correlation that deep learning may be used to determine the precise concrete structure parameters in civil engineering without the need for experimental research. The shear spacing could be increased by 25% to 50%. Concrete strength influences all these characteristics.
PEMBANGUNAN PENYIMPANAN TENAGA HIJAU DARIPADA SELULOSA BAKTERIA, SELULOSA METIL DAN KANJI KENTANG
Authors: Hamsan M. . , Halim N. A. , Sa’aya N. S. N. , Nazri N. S. , Mohd Salleh N. F. A. , Demon S. Z. N. , Shamsuri N. A. , Kadir M. F. Z. , Shukur M. F. , Keng L. K. , Jafry N. H. A. , Rahim A. A.
Published: February 2024

A natural polymer known as bacterial cellulose (BC), derived from a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY), is utilized as the electrodes for the electrochemical double-layer capacitors (EDLC). Bacterial cellulose which can be easily obtained from the local market, possesses an exceptional structure that allows for the elimination of non-biodegradable binders and the use of current collectors in the EDLC electrodes. A green polymer electrolyte system consisting of methylcellulose, potato starch and lithium bromide. This electrolyte demonstrates a conductivity of (1.38 ± 0.54) × 10-4 S/cm, electrochemical stability of 1.3 V, and an ionic transference number of 0.98. The optimized electrolyte is used in the EDLC. Cyclic voltammetry analysis reveals that he fabricated EDLC has a capacitive behavior without any peaks indicating redox reactions. The EDLC undergo charging and discharging for up to 5000 cycles, with specific capacitances of 26 F/g. The EDLC shows a maximum power density of 1730 W/kg, with energy density of 3.6 Wh/kg.
REFORMULATED STRAIN GRADIENT (RSG) ELASTICITY THEORY FOR FREE VIBRATION OF THERMAL BI-DIRECTIONAL FG MICROBEAM
Authors: Majeed Safa Hameed , Elaikh Talib Ehraize , Ugla Adnan Abdul-hussien
Published: February 2024

This research examines the vibrational response of a micro-scale Euler beam made from two-directional functionally graded (2D-FG) materials and subjected to thermal effects. By employing a reformulated strain gradient elasticity (RSGE) approach, the equations of motion using Hamilton’s principle for clamped -clamped and clamped-simply boundary conditions are derived and solved them using Galerkin's approach. The investigation explores the impact of temperature, gradient index, and parameters length scale materials on the bidirectional graded microbeam's dynamic characteristics. Furthermore, the normalized frequency, as based on the current reformulated strain gradient elasticity microbeam model, consistently emerges as higher than that derived from the classical model.