Controlled Study

A series of experiments were conducted to investigate the effect of activation temperature on pore development of activated carbon produced from palm shell. Activation of the samples was carried out at 800, 850 and 900°C for different durations ranging from 10 to 180min. The samples were characterized using N2 adsorption for evaluation of micropores and the mercury intrusion technique for mesopore and macropore analysis. Within the range of activation temperatures studied, high burn-off products derived from high activation temperatures tend to have larger micropore development. However, an increase in the activation temperature has no remarkable effect on mesopore and macropore development. © 2002 Society of Chemical Industry.

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/store/10.1002/jctb.712/asset/712_ftp.pdf?v=1&t=hytj8q2o&s=714078f9999ade816b5eb3df8f7774e5c13db2b5

The solar energy potential of underutilized urban rooftops in Peru was analyzed. • A model was elaborated for mediumsized Peruvian cities with GIS. • Life Cycle Assessment was used to compute environmental impacts. • Results demonstrate that self-sufficiency in electricity production is attainable. • Substantial climate change mitigation could be accomplished with this layout.

Nimesulide is a poorly soluble drug, the rate of its oral absorption is often controlled by the dissolution rate in the gastrointestinal tract. There are several techniques to enhance the dissolution of poorly soluble drugs. Among them the technique of liquisolid compacts which is a promising one. The liquisolid compacts were prepared using 20 mg nimesulide, Avicel PH102 as a carrier, and Aerosil 200 as a coating material in a ratio of 20:1, as well as AC-DI-SOL as a disintegrant in a concentration of 5% from the total weight of the compact. The liquids used include PEG400, PG, and a mixture of these solvents with Tween 80. From the results obtained it is concluded that the suitable loading factor (L f) is 0.2 which gave good flowability and compressibility. Friability, hardness, disintegration time and the dissolution rate were carried out. All the liquisolid compacts showed higher dissolution rate than the conventional tablets. The liquisolid compacts containing the PEG400 showed the highest dissolution rate than the other preparations. The effect of different concentrations of drug on the dissolution rate was studied, and it was observed that 20% of drug gave the maximum dissolution rate, and no significant increase of the dissolution rate with increasing the drug concentration. Conventional tablets and liquisolid compacts containing PG and PEG400 were tested for their antiinflammatory effects using paw oedema test. liquisolid compacts exhibited a pronounced inhibition of swelling than that of conventional tablets. In conclusion liquisolid compact of nimesulide can be used as a technique to improve the dissolution rate and the antiinflammatory effect of nimesulide.

Postural stability is crucial in maintaining body balance during quiet standing, locomotion, and any activities that require a high degree of balance performance, such as participating in sports and dancing. Research has shown that there is a relationship between stability and body mass. The aims of this study were to examine the impact that two variables had on static postural control: body mass index (BMI) and gender. Eighty healthy young adults (age¼ 21.7 7 1.8 yr; height ¼ 1.65 7 0.09 m; mass ¼67.5 719.0 kg) participated in the study and the static postural control was assessed using the Biodex Balance System, with a 20 Hz sampling rate in the bipedic stance (BLS) and unipedic stance (ULS) for 30 s. Five test evaluations were performed for each balance test. Postural control was found to be negatively correlated with increased adiposity, as the obese BMI group performed significantly poorer than the underweight, normal weight and overweight groups during BLS and ULS tests. The underweight, normal weight and overweight groups exhibited greater anterior-posterior stability in postural control during quiet stance. In addition, female displayed a trend of having a greater postural sway than male young adults, although it was evidenced in only some BMI groups. This study revealed that BMI do have an impact on postural control during both BLS and ULS. As such, BMI and genderspecific effects should be taken into consideration when selecting individuals for different types of sporting activities, especially those that require quiet standing.

Carbide sludge (10.4-11.5 tonnes day -1) is generated from the reaction of calcium carbide (900 kg) and water (6,000 L) in the production of acetylene (2400 m 3), in three selected acetylene manufacturing plants. The sludge (of pH 12.2 and containing Cu, Ph, Fe, Mn, Ni and Zn ions whose concentrations exceed the Department of Environment limits for industrial wastewater) was treated by vacuum filtration as a substitute for the ponding system, which is environmentally less acceptable. A similar system by flocculation was also developed. The filtration system represents an improvement over the ponding method, as shown by a pH of 7 for the clear filtrate; the solid cake, which contains 98% of the metals, can be conveniently disposed at an integrated scheduled waste treatment centre.

http://wmr.sagepub.com/content/20/6/536.short

A technique known as thermo-pneumatic (TP) pumping is used to pump fluids on a microfluidic compact disc (CD) back towards the CD center against the centrifugal force that pushes liquids from the center to the perimeter of the disc. Trapped air expands in a TP air chamber during heating, and this creates positive pressure on liquids located in chambers connected to that chamber. While the TP air chamber and connecting channels are easy to fabricate in a one-level CD manufacturing technique, this approach provides only one way pumping between two chambers, is real-estate hungry and leads to unnecessary heating of liquids in close proximity to the TP chamber. In this paper, we present a novel TP push and pull pumping method which allows for pumping of liquid in any direction between two connected liquid chambers. To ensure that implementation of TP push and pull pumping also addresses the issue of space and heating challenges, a multi-level 3D CD design is developed, and localized forced convection heating, rather than infra-red (IR) is applied. On a multi-level 3D CD, the TP features are placed on a top level separate from the rest of the microfluidic processes that are implemented on a lower separate level. This approach allows for heat shielding of the microfluidic process level, and efficient usage of space on the CD for centrifugal handling of liquids. The use of localized forced convection heating, rather than infra-red (IR) or laser heating in earlier implementations allows not only for TP pumping of liquids while the CD is spinning but also makes heat insulation for TP pumping and other fluidic functions easier. To aid in future implementations of TP push and pull pumping on a multi-level 3D CD, study on CD surface heating is also presented. In this contribution, we also demonstrate an advanced application of pull pumping through the implementation of valve-less switch pumping. © 2013 The Royal Society of Chemistry.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23774994
http://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2013/lc/c3lc00004d/unauth#!divAbstract

This study aimed to evaluate the potential of a novel glycoside non-ionic surfactant synthesized and characterized in our laboratory for increased oral bioavailability of Cefixime. The surfactant was synthesized by simple etherification of bergenin with bromoundecane and characterized by 1 H NMR and mass spectroscopy (MS). Biocompatibility of the surfactant (BRM-BG) was assessed by in-vitro cytotoxicity against NIH/3T3 cells and human blood hemolysis. In-vivo acute toxicity was evaluated in mices. Cefixime loaded BRM-BG niosomes were investigated for drug entrapment efficiency using HPLC and surface morphology and vesicle size by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and dynamic light scattering (DLS). The in-vivo oral bioavailability and pharmacokinetics studies were carried out using rabbits. Cefixime loaded BRM-BG vesicles were spherical in the size range of 178.66 AE 8.17 nm with a polydipersity index (PDI) of 0.20 AE 0.01, offering an entrapment efficiency as high as 78.4 AE 0.83%. When the surfactant was applied on NIH 3T3 tissue culture, as high as 90.77 AE 3.15% and 86.86 AE 3.02%, cell viability at 1000 mg/mL concentration after 24 and 48 h respectively were observed. The surfactant also caused 5.49 AE 1.62% haemolysis and was found to be safe at a dose up to 2000 mg/kg. In-vivo drug plasma concentration (C max) was found to be 9.69 AE 1.22 mg/mL, much higher than that resulting from the intake of commercial suspension and capsules. BRM-BG demonstrated to be safe and effective as carrier of Cefixime following oral dosing in rabbits. The BRM-BG surfactant delivery nano-system is relatively safe and in animal models it is an appropriate carrier for Cefixime, offering enhanced bioavailability compared to commercially available formulations of the drug. 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Knee injury is one of the major problems in sports medicine, and the use of prophylactic knee braces is an attempt to reduce the occurrence and/or severity of injuries to the knee joint ligament(s) without inhibiting knee mobility. The aim of the present study was to examine the effect of one recently designed prophylactic knee brace and two neoprene knee sleeves upon performance of healthy athletes. Thirty-one healthy male athletes (age = 21.261.5) volunteered as participants to examine the effect of prophylactic knee brace/sleeves on performance using isokinetic and functional tests. All subjects were tested in four conditions in a random order: 1. nonbraced (control) 2. using a neoprene knee sleeve 3. using a knee sleeve with four bilateral metal supports and 4. using a prophylactic knee brace. The study design was a crossover, randomized, controlled trial. Subjects completed single leg vertical jump, cross-over hop, and the isokinetic knee flexion and extension (at 60, 180, 300u/sec). Data were collected from the above tests and analyzed for jump height, cross-over hop distance, peak torque to body weight ratio and average power, respectively. Comparisons of these variables in the four testing conditions revealed no statistically significant difference (p.0.05). The selected prophylactic brace/sleeves did not significantly inhibit athletic performance which might verify that their structure and design have caused no complication in the normal function of the knee joint. Moreover, it could be speculated that, if the brace or the sleeves had any limiting effect, our young healthy athletic subjects were well able to generate a mean peak torque large enough to overcome this possible restriction. Further studies are suggested to investigate the long term effect of these prophylactic knee brace and sleeves as well as their possible effect on the adjacent joints to the knee.

With this study, we aimed to compare the effects of single- and dual-task training on gait and cognition among healthy older individuals, which can be adjusted weekly according to the individual’s functional performance. According to the results of the study, the dual-task training group was better compared to the single-task training group in gait speed, cadence, and many cognitive variables. Individual progressive dual-task training is an effective and useful method that improves gait performance and cognitive skills among older individuals. It is proposed to implement to maintain normal gait and cognitive function, and prevent possible gait and cognitive disabilities for healthy older individuals. Dual-task training has beneficial effects on older individuals for gait and cognition. This study was aimed to make a comparison between the effects of individual progressive single- and dual-task training on gait and cognition among healthy older individuals. A total of 32 participants...

Analysis of de novo CNVs (dnCNVs) from the full Simons Simplex Collection (SSC) (N = 2,591 families) replicates prior findings of strong association with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) and confirms six risk loci (1q21.1, 3q29, 7q11.23, 16p11.2, 15q11.2-13, and 22q11.2). The addition of published CNV data from the Autism Genome Project (AGP) and exome sequencing data from the SSC and the Autism Sequencing Consortium (ASC) shows that genes within small de novo deletions, but not within large dnCNVs, significantly overlap the high-effect risk genes identified by sequencing. Alternatively, large dnCNVs are found likely to contain multiple modest-effect risk genes. Overall, we find strong evidence that de novo mutations are associated with ASD apart from the risk for intellectual disability. Extending the transmission and de novo association test (TADA) to include small de novo deletions reveals 71 ASD risk loci, including 6 CNV regions (noted above) and 65 risk genes (FDR ≤ 0.1).

Background: The interface pressure between the residual limb and prosthetic socket has a significant effect on an amputee's satisfaction and comfort. Liners provide a comfortable interface by adding a soft cushion between the residual limb and the socket. The Dermo and the Seal-In X5 liner are two new interface systems and, due to their relative infancy, very little are known about their effect on patient satisfaction. The aim of this study was to compare the interface pressure with these two liners and their effect on patient satisfaction. Methods: Nine unilateral transtibial amputees participated in the study. Two prostheses were fabricated for each amputee, one with the Seal-In liner and one with the Dermo liner. Interface pressure was measured at the anterior, posterior, medial and lateral regions during walking on the level ground. Each subject filled in a Prosthetic Evaluation Questionnaire (PEQ) regarding the satisfaction with the two liners. Findings The mean peak pressures with the Seal-In liner was 34.0% higher at the anterior, 24.0% higher at the posterior and 7.0% higher at the medial regions of the socket (P = 0.008, P = 0.046, P = 0.025) than it was with the Dermo Liner. There were no significant differences in the mean peak pressures between the two liners at the lateral regions. In addition, significant difference was found between the two liners both for satisfaction and problems (P < 0.05). Interpretation There was less interface pressure between the socket and the residual limb with the Dermo liner. The results indicated that the Dermo liner provides more comfort in the socket than the Seal-In liner. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

http://ac.els-cdn.com/S0268003312001295/1-s2.0-S0268003312001295-main.pdf?_tid=b535ef6a-a017-11e3-954c-00000aab0f6b&acdnat=1393551123_b190186c0466705bdfb3ca10943a04f1 
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22795863 
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0268003312001295

Nimesulide is a poorly soluble drug, the rate of its oral absorption is often controlled by the dissolution rate in the gastrointestinal tract. There are several techniques to enhance the dissolution of poorly soluble drugs. Among them the technique of liquisolid compacts which is a promising one. The liquisolid compacts were prepared using 20 mg nimesulide, Avicel PH102 as a carrier, and Aerosil 200 as a coating material in a ratio of 20:1, as well as AC-DI-SOL as a disintegrant in a concentration of 5% from the total weight of the compact. The liquids used include PEG400, PG, and a mixture of these solvents with Tween 80. From the results obtained it is concluded that the suitable loading factor (L f) is 0.2 which gave good flowability and compressibility. Friability, hardness, disintegration time and the dissolution rate were carried out. All the liquisolid compacts showed higher dissolution rate than the conventional tablets. The liquisolid compacts containing the PEG400 showed the highest dissolution rate than the other preparations. The effect of different concentrations of drug on the dissolution rate was studied, and it was observed that 20% of drug gave the maximum dissolution rate, and no significant increase of the dissolution rate with increasing the drug concentration. Conventional tablets and liquisolid compacts containing PG and PEG400 were tested for their anti-inflammatory effects using paw oedema test. liquisolid compacts exhibited a pronounced inhibition of swelling than that of conventional tablets. In conclusion liquisolid compact of nimesulide can be used as a technique to improve the dissolution rate and the antiinflammatory effect of nimesulide.

http://repository.ksu.edu.sa/jspui/handle/123456789/18694

OBJECTIVE To explore the potential utility of head acceleration event (HAE) measurements to augment identification of players for further concussion screening in non-helmeted contact sport. DESIGN Prospective observational pilot study. PARTICIPANTS 210 (118 female) professional Australian football players in 2017 season. METHODS Players wore the X-Patch® accelerometer for one match each with data collected across 14 matches. Players with HAEs above thresholds associated with concussion, 95 g (males) or 85.5 g (females), were compared to players identified to have suspected concussion by club personnel during the inspected matches. Video review of matches was undertaken by a physician blinded to HAEs to identify players with concussive signs. RESULTS Among 26 players (50% female) with HAEs above threshold, two players were screened for concussion. Of the remaining 24 players, nine were not visible on video at the HAE time, six sustained verifiable head impacts, and nine sustained verifiable body impacts with no head impacts. Among 184 players with HAEs below threshold, five players were screened. CONCLUSION Players were identified to have head impacts and suspected concussion in the absence of HAEs above threshold. Use of X-Patch® was not sufficiently reliable for identifying players for further concussion screening in professional Australian football. Video review of head impacts remains essential in concussion screening.

Urease (EC 3.5.1.5) was covalently attached through glutaraldehyde to partially hydrolysed nylon 6/6 tubes. The highest activity of immobilized enzyme was obtained at 65°C and pH 6.5, while the optimum temperature for free urease was found to be 25°C. Immobilized urease showed an improved thermal stability in comparison to free urease. It retained 76% of the original activity after 60 days when stored at 4°C and 78% of the activity after 5 repeated uses.

http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s004490050381

This paper introduces novel vacuum/compression valves (VCVs) utilizing paraffin wax. A VCV is implemented by sealing the venting channel/hole with wax plugs (for normally-closed valve), or to be sealed by wax (for normally-open valve), and is activated by localized heating on the CD surface. We demonstrate that the VCV provides the advantages of avoiding unnecessary heating of the sample/reagents in the diagnostic process, allowing for vacuum sealing of the CD, and clear separation of the paraffin wax from the sample/reagents in the microfluidic process. As a proof of concept, the microfluidic processes of liquid flow switching and liquid metering is demonstrated with the VCV. Results show that the VCV lowers the required spinning frequency to perform the microfluidic processes with high accuracy and ease of control.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23505528
dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0058523

Highlights d TG2 interacts with GRP75 in mitochondria-associated membranes (MAMs) d TG2 influences the number of ER-mitochondria contact sites d TG2 regulates the interaction between IP3R3 and GRP75 d TG2 controls ER-mitochondrial Ca 2+ flux and protein expression in MAMs

Objetivo. Determinar la influencia del consumo de tres variedades de quinua sobre parámetros bioquímicos e histomorfometría intestinal en ratas obesas. Materiales y Métodos. Se utilizaron 42 ratas obesas Holtzman dispuestas en siete tratamientos de seis animales cada uno, que fueron alimentados durante 23 días con una de las siete dietas: una obesogénica de control y las otras conteniendo además 20% de quinua Altiplano, Pasankalla y Negra Collana procesadas por cocción o tostado. Al finalizar el periodo de alimentación se tomaron muestras de sangre para la determinación de niveles de glucosa, triglicéridos y C-HDL; posteriormente los animales fueron sacrificados y el hígado, intestino delgado (ID) y riñones fueron pesados; muestras de ID fueron extraídas para histomorfometría intestinal. Los datos se sometieron a ANOVA utilizando el GLM bajo diseño completamente aleatorizado con arreglo factorial 3x2 más control y comparación de medias mediante prueba de Fisher. Resultados. Los niveles de glucosa, triglicéridos y C-HDL no presentaron diferencias en comparación al grupo control; además, el peso de los riñones no fue afectado por las dietas experimentales. Sin embargo, el ID presentó mayor peso en el grupo control en comparación a los que contenían quinua procesada. La histomorfometría del ID no fue afectada significativamente por las dietas experimentales. Conclusiones. La alimentación de ratas obesas con dietas que contienen variedades de quinua procesada no modifica los parámetros bioquímicos y no afecta la histomorfometría intestinal; sin embargo, disminuye el peso del intestino delgado en ratas obesas.

Urease (EC 3.5.1.5) of high activity was obtained when the enzyme was immobilized on vermiculite cross-linked with 2.5% glutaraldehyde in chilled EDTA-phosphate buffer (pH 5.5). The highest activity of the immobilized enzyme was at 65°C and pH 6.5 while the optimum temperature for free urease was found to be 25°C. The thermal stability of immobilized urease was observed to be much better than that of the free urease. When stored at 4°C, urease immobilized on vermiculite retained 69 to 81% of its activity after 60 days and 61 to 75% of its original activity was retained after 4 repeated uses.

http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s004490050338

Semi-flexible pavement surfacing is a composite pavement that utilizes the porous pavement structure of the flexible bituminous pavement, which is subsequently grouted with appropriate cementitious materials. This study aims to investigate the compressive strength, flexural strength, and workability performance of cementitious grout. The grout mixtures are designed to achieve high strength and maintain flow properties in order to allow the cement slurries to infiltrate easily through unfilled compacted skeletons. A paired-sample t-test was carried out to find out whether water/cement ratio, SP percentages, and use of silica fume influence the cementitious grout performance. The findings showed that the replacement of 5% silica fume with an adequate amount of superplasticizer and water/cement ratio was beneficial in improving the properties of the cementitious grout. © 2014 Suhana Koting et al.

http://www.hindawi.com/journals/tswj/2014/596364/abs/

Background: The poor response to chemotherapy and the brief response to vemurafenib in metastatic melanoma patients, make the identification of new therapeutic approaches an urgent need. Interestingly the increased expression and activity of the Aurora kinase B during melanoma progression suggests it as a promising therapeutic target. Methods: The efficacy of the Aurora B kinase inhibitor barasertib-HQPA was evaluated in BRAF mutated cells, sensitive and made resistant to vemurafenib after chronic exposure to the drug, and in BRAF wild type cells. The drug effectiveness has been evaluated as cell growth inhibition, cell cycle progression and cell migration. In addition, cellular effectors of drug resistance and response were investigated. Results: The characterization of the effectors responsible for the resistance to vemurafenib evidenced the increased expression of MITF or the activation of Erk1/2 and p-38 kinases in the newly established cell lines with a phenotype resistant to vemurafenib. The sensitivity of cells to barasertib-HQPA was irrespective of BRAF mutational status. Barasertib-HQPA induced the mitotic catastrophe, ultimately causing apoptosis and necrosis of cells, inhibited cell migration and strongly affected the glycolytic metabolism of cells inducing the release of lactate. In association i) with vemurafenib the gain in effectiveness was found only in BRAF(V600K) cells while ii) with nab-paclitaxel, the combination was more effective than each drug alone in all cells. Conclusions: These findings suggest barasertib as a new therapeutic agent and as enhancer of chemotherapy in metastatic melanoma treatment.

BACKGROUND Observational studies have suggested that accelerated surgery is associated with improved outcomes in patients with a hip fracture. The HIP ATTACK trial assessed whether accelerated surgery could reduce mortality and major complications. METHODS HIP ATTACK was an international, randomised, controlled trial done at 69 hospitals in 17 countries. Patients with a hip fracture that required surgery and were aged 45 years or older were eligible. Research personnel randomly assigned patients (1:1) through a central computerised randomisation system using randomly varying block sizes to either accelerated surgery (goal of surgery within 6 h of diagnosis) or standard care. The coprimary outcomes were mortality and a composite of major complications (ie, mortality and non-fatal myocardial infarction, stroke, venous thromboembolism, sepsis, pneumonia, life-threatening bleeding, and major bleeding) at 90 days after randomisation. Patients, health-care providers, and study staff were aware of treatment assignment, but outcome adjudicators were masked to treatment allocation. Patients were analysed according to the intention-to-treat principle. This study is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT02027896). FINDINGS Between March 14, 2014, and May 24, 2019, 27 701 patients were screened, of whom 7780 were eligible. 2970 of these were enrolled and randomly assigned to receive accelerated surgery (n=1487) or standard care (n=1483). The median time from hip fracture diagnosis to surgery was 6 h (IQR 4-9) in the accelerated-surgery group and 24 h (10-42) in the standard-care group (p&lt;0·0001). 140 (9%) patients assigned to accelerated surgery and 154 (10%) assigned to standard care died, with a hazard ratio (HR) of 0·91 (95% CI 0·72 to 1·14) and absolute risk reduction (ARR) of 1% (-1 to 3; p=0·40). Major complications occurred in 321 (22%) patients assigned to accelerated surgery and 331 (22%) assigned to standard care, with an HR of 0·97 (0·83 to 1·13) and an ARR of 1% (-2 to 4; p=0·71). INTERPRETATION Among patients with a hip fracture, accelerated surgery did not significantly lower the risk of mortality or a composite of major complications compared with standard care. FUNDING Canadian Institutes of Health Research.

We investigated the eect of the GSTM1 and GSTT1 null genotypes, and GSTP1 313 A/G polymorphism on bladder cancer susceptibility in a case control study of 121 bladder cancer patients, and 121 age-and sex-matched controls of the Turkish population. The adjusted odds ratio for age, sex, and smoking status is 1.94 [95% con®dence intervals (CI) 1.15±3.26] for the GSTM1 null genotype, and 1.75 (95% CI 1.03±2.99) for the GSTP1 313 A/G or G/G genotypes. GSTT1 was shown not to be associated with bladder cancer. Combination of the two high-risk genotypes, GSTM1 null and GSTP1 313 A/G or G/G, revealed that the risk increases to 3.91-fold (95% CI 1.88±8.13) compared with the combination of the low-risk genotypes of these loci. In individuals with the combined risk factors of cigarette smoking and the GSTM1 null genotype, the risk of bladder cancer is 2.81 times (95% CI 1.23±6.35) that of persons who both carry the GSTM1-present genotype and do not smoke. Similarly, the risk is 2.38-fold (95% CI 1.12±4.95) for the combined GSTP1 313 A/G and G/ G genotypes and smoking. These ®ndings support the role for the GSTM1 null and the GSTP1 313 AG or GG genotypes in the development of bladder cancer. Furthermore, gene-gene (GSTM1-GSTP1) and gene-environment (GSTM1-smoking, GSTP1-smoking) interactions increase this risk substantially.

The aim of this study was to investigate the pulmonary administration of antibiotics as dry powder to patients with cystic fibrosis (CF), as an alternative for nebulization. This part of the study describes the development of a powder formulation with colistin sulfate as model substance. The aim of the new dosage form was to increase pulmonary deposition, therapeutic efficiency and, by that, compliance by the CF patients. A physical powder mixture of colistin and a size fraction of lactose (106-150 mm) was prepared and the mixture was optimized with respect to colistin content (83.3%) for use in a special test inhaler. A laser diffraction apparatus with special inhaler adapter was applied for analysis of the size distribution of the aerosol cloud from the inhaler. The size distributions of the aerosol clouds from the test inhaler at flow rates between 30 and 60 l/min for the optimized formulation showed nearly the same median diameter as that for the primary drug particles. But the X 100-value was much lower, because of an effective large particle separation from the inspiratory air by an air classifier in the test inhaler. The results suggest that dry powder inhalation might be a suitable and highly efficient alternative for nebulization of antibiotic drugs in CF therapy.

We investigated the variability of the climate-growth relationship of Aleppo pine across its distribution range in the Mediterranean Basin. We constructed a network of tree-ring index chronologies from 63 sites across the region. Correlation function analysis identified the relationships of tree-ring index to climate factors for each site. We also estimated the dominant climatic gradients of the region using principal component analysis of monthly, seasonal, and annual mean temperature and total precipitation from 1,068 climatic gridpoints. Variation in ring width index was primarily related to precipitation and secondarily to temperature. However, we found that the dendroclimatic relationship depended on the position of the site along the climatic gradient. In the southern part of the distribution range, where temperature was generally higher and precipitation lower than the regional average, reduced growth was also associated with warm and dry conditions. In the northern part, where the average temperature was lower and the precipitation more abundant than the regional average, reduced growth was associated with cool conditions. Thus, our study highlights the substantial plasticity of Aleppo pine in response to different climatic conditions. These results do not resolve the source of response variability as being due to either genetic variation in provenance, to phenotypic plasticity, or a combination of factors. However, as current growth responses to inter-annual climate variability vary spatially across existing climate gradients, future climategrowth relationships will also likely be determined by differential adaptation and/or acclimation responses to spatial climatic variation. The contribution of local adaptation and/or phenotypic plasticity across populations to the persistence of species under global warming could be decisive for prediction of climate change impacts across populations. In this sense, a more complex forest dynamics modeling approach that includes the contribution of genetic variation and phenotypic plasticity can improve the reliability of the ecological inferences derived from the climate-growth relationships.

Cyber-physical systems (CPSs) have sophisticated control mechanisms that help achieve optimal system operations and services. These mechanisms, imply considering multiple signal inputs in parallel, to timely respond to varying working conditions. Despite the advantages that control mechanisms convey, they bring new challenges in terms of failure prevention. The compensatory action the control exerts cause a fault masking effect, hampering fault diagnosis. Likewise, the multiple information inputs CPSs have to process can affect the timely system response to faults. This article proposes a failure prognosis method, which combines time series-based forecasting methods with statistically based classification techniques in order to investigate system degradation and failure forming on system levels. This method utilizes a new approach based on the concept of the system operation mode (SOM) that offers a novel perspective for health management that allows monitoring the system behavior, ...

The authors undertook a case control study to determine whether hospitalized patients with pneumonia had reflex points in the anterior chest wall as described by Frank Chapman, DO, specifically those classified as relating to the lung. Sixty-nine hospitalized patients were enrolled in the study. Patients with an admitting diagnosis of pneumonia were compared to those without pneumonia as their admitting diagnosis. All patients were examined to determine if Chapman reflex points for the lungs were present. The study controlled for potential confounding diagnoses by excluding patients with lung pathology other than pneumonia. Results demonstrated a statistically significant relationship between the presence of Chapman reflex points and pneumonia in hospitalized patients.

A technique known as thermo-pneumatic (TP) pumping is used to pump fluids on a microfluidic compact disc (CD) back towards the CD center against the centrifugal force that pushes liquids from the center to the perimeter of the disc. Trapped air expands in a TP air chamber during heating, and this creates positive pressure on liquids located in chambers connected to that chamber. While the TP air chamber and connecting channels are easy to fabricate in a one-level CD manufacturing technique, this approach provides only one way pumping between two chambers, is real-estate hungry and leads to unnecessary heating of liquids in close proximity to the TP chamber. In this paper, we present a novel TP push and pull pumping method which allows for pumping of liquid in any direction between two connected liquid chambers. To ensure that implementation of TP push and pull pumping also addresses the issue of space and heating challenges, a multi-level 3D CD design is developed, and localized forced convection heating, rather than infra-red (IR) is applied. On a multi-level 3D CD, the TP features are placed on a top level separate from the rest of the microfluidic processes that are implemented on a lower separate level. This approach allows for heat shielding of the microfluidic process level, and efficient usage of space on the CD for centrifugal handling of liquids. The use of localized forced convection heating, rather than infra-red (IR) or laser heating in earlier implementations allows not only for TP pumping of liquids while the CD is spinning but also makes heat insulation for TP pumping and other fluidic functions easier. To aid in future implementations of TP push and pull pumping on a multi-level 3D CD, study on CD surface heating is also presented. In this contribution, we also demonstrate an advanced application of pull pumping through the implementation of valve-less switch pumping.

Transtibial amputation patients need prosthetic devices after amputation surgery in order to regain their functional mobility and appearance (Wolf et al., 2009). The socket design plays a significant role in determining the quality of the fit and provides an interface between the prosthesis and the residual limb (Jia et al., 2004). Appropriate socket fitting in prosthetic devices can have a significant effect on the patient's comfort, mobility and level of satisfaction with their prosthesis. Skin problems are common in prosthetic users and these can appear in the formof rashes, ulcers, irritation and allergies. Their presence is commonly attributed to one of several reasons: the inadaptability of the skin, due to the intolerance of pressure by the prosthetic socket on the residual limb; bacterial proliferation as a result of a snugly-fitted socket that causes entrapment of perspiration in a closed environment; skin irritation or allergic reaction due to the materials used in the prosthetic socket and liners (Dudek et al., 2005; Dudek et al., 2006). Lower limb amputees commonly experienced residual limb skin problems with the use of the prostheses (Laing et al., 2011). Amputees often need to stop using the prosthesis entirely for a period of time as a result of the pain and discomfort caused by such skin problems. This condition can badly effect thementalwellbeing of a patient and will ultimately impact their satisfaction with a device .

Some biologic indices characterizing the state of 50 patients with homozygous β-thalassaemia treated in 3 University Hospitals in our country are studied. In the study not only routine methods for investigation of haematologic and haemoglobin indices but also methods for statistical processing are used, including variational analyses with t-test for comparison of mean quantities, correlational and regressional analyses. The results show difference between blood-group belonging of patients with thalassaemia and healthy population. Still some patients do not receive optimal transfusion regimen. Chelating therapy is also insuficient in a part of the patients. Desferioxamine is still the main chelating medicine. Medical knowledge about the essence of illness and methods for treatment are insuficient in patients and their parents. Combined efforts are necessary - from medical staff, patients and their parents for overcoming of established disadvantages in the treatment of patients with homozygous β- thalassaemia.

The major hurdle associated with water recycling in water-based paint manufacturing processes is microbial contamination and related deterioration of product quality and shelf life. The common problems associated with microbial degradation are change in viscosity, pH, colour and loss of surface adhesion properties. Owing to these reasons, water recycling is not widely practised in water-based paint manufacturing processes. The present study focuses on tertiary treatment of effluent by chemical coagulation and cross-flow microfiltration (0.2 μm pore size) to produce water of sufficient quality for reuse in various stages of water-based paint manufacturing. The coagulation and flocculation were carried out in a 'jar test' rig at a controlled pH, and coagulant dosage was optimised by turbidity and zeta potential measurements. The filtrate was subjected to cross-flow microfiltration and permeate was tested for necessary quality attributes. Screening of aerobic microbes and fungi were conducted by streaking the samples on nutrient agar and malt extract agar, respectively. Iron sulfide agar tubes were used for screening anaerobic microbes or the sulfate reducing bacteria. The tests showed that permeate was free from microorganisms. The process was implemented in a paint manufacturing plant in Malaysia, which resulted in 55% reduction in water consumption. © 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

http://ac.els-cdn.com/S1093019102001223/1-s2.0-S1093019102001223-main.pdf?_tid=eab4807e-0ca1-11e4-905d-00000aab0f27&acdnat=1405485209_68484998010e31f0a4f9516f5d8603b1 
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1093019102001223

The present study aims to evaluate the serum level of copper (Cu) in lambs suffering from subclinical forms of white muscle disease (WMD) and its relationship with cardiac troponin I (cTn-I) as a novel biomarker of cardiovascular disorders. Ten milliliters of jugular blood were taken from 200 lambs less than one year old to measure serum concentrations of Cu, selenium (Se), and cTn-I. The subjects were divided into 2 groups, namely, the deficient group which included 36 lambs, and the control group which included 164 lambs according to the reference serum Se concentration (50 ng/mL). Serum Se levels in the deficient group were lower than 50 ng/mL. By contrast, the control group showed Se levels higher than 50 ng/mL. Differences among the serum Cu and cTn-I levels were determined in both groups. The mean ±SD and median of serum Cu and cTn-I levels in the deficient group were lower and higher than those in the control group, respectively. A significant positive correlation was observed between serum Cu and Se levels, and also serum Cu and Se levels showed a negative correlation with serum cTn-I concentrations. Stepwise linear regression analysis showed that serum Cu levels were correlated positively with serum Se levels (p<0.05). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis indicated that the area under curve (AUC) of Cu was significantly higher than that of cTn-I based on the reference diagonal line. It is important to keep in mind that the value of AUC for the ROC curve is between 0.5 and 1.00, in which the lowest accuracy is related to the reference diagonal line with AUC of 0.5. A cut-off was determined to indicate which Cu level can discriminate between affected and healthy lambs. The cut-off level, sensitivity, and specificity of Cu in this study were 144.5 ng/mL, 74%, and 61%, respectively. © 2013 Ataollahi et al.

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dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0056163.g002

Use of functional knee braces has been suggested to provide protection and to improve kinetic performance of the knee in Anterior cruciate ligament(ACL)-injured patients. However, many athletes might refrain from wearing the braces because of the fear of performance hindrance in the playing field. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of three functional knee brace/sleeves upon the isokinetic and functional performance of ACL-deficient and healthy subjects. Six anterior cruciate ligament deficient (29.0±5.3 yrs., 175.2±5.4 cm, and 73.0±10.0 kg) and six healthy male subjects (27.2±3.7 yrs., 176.4±6.4 cm, and 70.3±6.9 kg) were selected. The effect of a custom-made functional knee brace, and two neoprene knee sleeves, one with four metal supports and one without support were examined via the use of isokinetic and functional tests in four sets (non-braced,wearing functional knee brace,and wearing the sleeves). Cross-over hop and single leg vertical jump test were performed and jump height, and hop distance were recorded. Peak torque to body weight ratio and average power in two isokinetic velocities(60°.s-1,180°.s-1) were recorded and the brace/sleeves effect was calculated as the changes in peak torque measured in the brace/sleeves conditions, expressed as a percentage of peak torque measured in non-braced condition. Frequency content of the isokinetic torque-time curves was also analyzed. Wilcoxon signed rank test was used to compare the measured values in four test conditions within each control and ACL-deficient group,and Mann-Whitney U test was used for the comparison between the two groups. No significant differences in peak torque, average power, torque-time curve frequency content, vertical-jump and hop measurements were found within the experimental and the non-braced conditions (p&gt;0.05). Although the examined functional knee brace/sleeves had no significant effect on the knee muscle performance, there have been some enhancement regarding the extension peak torques and power generating capacity of the ACL-deficient subjects that could be helpful in reducing the bilateral asymmetry in these patients. © 2013 Mortaza et al.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23717593 
http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0064308

Environmental stresses caused by either abiotic or biotic factors greatly affect agriculture. As for soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merril], one of the most important crop species in the world, the situation is not different. In order to deal with these stresses, plants have evolved a variety of sophisticated molecular mechanisms, to which the transcriptional regulation of target-genes by transcription factors is crucial. Even though the involvement of several transcription factor families has been widely reported in stress response, there still is a lot to be uncovered, especially in soybean. Therefore, the objective of this study was to investigate the role of bHLH and trihelix-GT transcription factors in soybean responses to environmental stresses. Gene annotation, data mining for stress response, and phylogenetic analysis of members from both families are presented herein. At least 45 bHLH (from subgroup 25) and 63 trihelix-GT putative genes reside in the soybean genome. Among them, at least 14 bHLH and 11 trihelix-GT seem to be involved in responses to abiotic/biotic stresses. Phylogenetic analysis successfully clustered these with members from other plant species. Nevertheless, bHLH and trihelix-GT genes encompass almost three times more members in soybean than in Arabidopsis or rice, with many of these grouping into new clades with no apparent near orthologs in the other analyzed species. Our results represent an important step towards unraveling the functional roles of plant bHLH and trihelix-GT transcription factors in response to environmental cues.

The ability of health researchers to unearth previously unsuspected health risks, trends and commonalities at a population level through matching information across different datasets is well attested. However, as more of this type of research is conducted, the spotlight is being shone on the barriers to accessing these data. Less well known are the complexities experienced by researchers working with datasets in an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health context. We present the insights of a number of researchers, clinicians and public sector representatives who have extensive experience of data linkage in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health sector, on key issues and practical and ethical implications of utilising big datasets. Obstacles are further highlighted in the experiences of a national multicentre cancer cervical screening study. While researchers must at all times respect the individuals whose information is contained within these datasets, and abide by t...

In this paper a World Wide Web (WWW)-based medical system, called MI-TIS, is designed and developed for the management and processing of obstetrical, gynecological and radiological medical data. The system records all the necessary medical information in terms of patient data, examinations, and operations and provides the user-expert with advanced image processing tools for the manipulation, processing and storage of ultrasound and mammographic images. The system can be installed in a hospital's Local Area Network (LAN) where it can access picture archival and communication systems (PACS) servers (if available), or any other server within the radiology department, for image archiving and retrieval, based on the digital imaging and communication in medicine (DICOM) 3.0 protocol, over TCP/IP and also it is accessible to external physicians via the hospital's Internet connection. MITIS is composed as a set of independent WWW modules (ISAPI server extension dlls) and a Win32 application (COM+ server) for mammography image processing and evaluation.

Nisin production in continuous cultures of bioengineered Lactococcus lactis strains that incorporate additional immunity and regulation genes was studied. Highest nisin activities were observed at 0.2 h(-1) dilution rate and 12.5 g l(-1) fructose concentration for all strains. Recombinant strains were able to produce greater amounts of nisin at dilution rates below 0.3 h(-1) compared to the control strain. However, this significant difference disappeared at dilution rates of 0.4 and 0.5 h(-1). For the strains LL27, LAC338, LAC339, and LAC340, optimum conditions for nisin production were determined to be at 0.29, 0.26, 0.27, and 0.27 h(-1) dilution rates and 11.95, 12.01, 11.63, and 12.50 g l(-1) fructose concentrations, respectively. The highest nisin productivity, 496 IU ml(-1) h(-1), was achieved with LAC339. The results of this study suggest that low dilution rates stabilize the high specific nisin productivity of the bioengineered strains in continuous fermentation. Moreover, response surface methodology analysis showed that regulation genes yielded high nisin productivity at wide ranges of dilution rates and fructose concentrations.

In the northern coastal and jungle areas of Peru, cocoa beans are dried using artisan methods, such as direct exposure to sunlight. This traditional process is time intensive, leading to a reduction in productivity and, therefore, delays in delivery times. The present study was intended to numerically characterise the thermal behaviour of three configurations of solar air heating collectors in order to determine which demonstrated the best thermal performance under several controlled operating conditions. For this purpose, a computational fluid dynamics model was developed to describe the simultaneous convective and radiative heat transfer phenomena under several operation conditions. The constructed computational fluid dynamics model was firstly validated through comparison with the data measurements of a one-step solar air heating collector. We then simulated two further three-step solar air heating collectors in order to identify which demonstrated the best thermal performance in...

Neurodegenerative diseases affecting the macula constitute a major cause of incurable vision loss and exhibit considerable clinical and genetic heterogeneity, from early-onset monogenic disease to multifactorial lateonset age-related macular degeneration (AMD). As part of our continued efforts to define genetic causes of macular degeneration, we performed whole exome sequencing in four individuals of a two-generation family with autosomal dominant maculopathy and identified a rare variant p.Glu1144Lys in Fibrillin 2 (FBN2), a glycoprotein of the elastin-rich extracellular matrix (ECM). Sanger sequencing validated the segregation of this variant in the complete pedigree, including two additional affected and one unaffected individual. Sequencing of 192 maculopathy patients revealed additional rare variants, predicted to disrupt FBN2 function. We then undertook additional studies to explore the relationship of FBN2 to macular disease. We show that FBN2 localizes to Bruch ′ s membrane and its expression appears to be reduced in aging and AMD eyes, prompting us to examine its relationship with AMD. We detect suggestive association of a common FBN2 non-synonymous variant, rs154001 (p.Val965Ile) with AMD in 10 337 cases and 11 174 controls (OR 5 1.10; P-value 5 3.79 3 10 25). Thus, it appears that rare and common variants in a single gene-FBN2-can contribute to Mendelian and complex forms of macular degeneration. Our studies provide genetic evidence for a key role of elastin microfibers and Bruch ′ s membrane in maintaining blood-retina homeostasis and establish the importance of studying orphan diseases for understanding more common clinical phenotypes.

In the northern coastal and jungle areas of Peru, cocoa beans are dried using artisan methods, such as direct exposure to sunlight. This traditional process is time intensive, leading to a reduction in productivity and, therefore, delays in delivery times. The present study was intended to numerically characterise the thermal behaviour of three configurations of solar air heating collectors in order to determine which demonstrated the best thermal performance under several controlled operating conditions. For this purpose, a computational fluid dynamics model was developed to describe the simultaneous convective and radiative heat transfer phenomena under several operation conditions. The constructed computational fluid dynamics model was firstly validated through comparison with the data measurements of a one-step solar air heating collector. We then simulated two further three-step solar air heating collectors in order to identify which demonstrated the best thermal performance in...

Mesoporous noble metals are an emerging class of cutting-edge nanostructured catalysts due to their abundant exposed active sites and highly accessible surfaces. Although various noble metal (e.g. Pt, Pd and Au) structures have been synthesized by hard- and soft-templating methods, mesoporous rhodium (Rh) nanoparticles have never been generated via chemical reduction, in part due to the relatively high surface energy of rhodium (Rh) metal. Here we describe a simple, scalable route to generate mesoporous Rh by chemical reduction on polymeric micelle templates [poly(ethylene oxide)-b-poly(methyl methacrylate) (PEO-b-PMMA)]. The mesoporous Rh nanoparticles exhibited a ∼2.6 times enhancement for the electrocatalytic oxidation of methanol compared to commercially available Rh catalyst. Surprisingly, the high surface area mesoporous structure of the Rh catalyst was thermally stable up to 400 °C. The combination of high surface area and thermal stability also enables superior catalytic act...

This paper introduces novel vacuum/compression valves (VCVs) utilizing paraffin wax. A VCV is implemented by sealing the venting channel/hole with wax plugs (for normally-closed valve), or to be sealed by wax (for normally-open valve), and is activated by localized heating on the CD surface. We demonstrate that the VCV provides the advantages of avoiding unnecessary heating of the sample/reagents in the diagnostic process, allowing for vacuum sealing of the CD, and clear separation of the paraffin wax from the sample/reagents in the microfluidic process. As a proof of concept, the microfluidic processes of liquid flow switching and liquid metering is demonstrated with the VCV. Results show that the VCV lowers the required spinning frequency to perform the microfluidic processes with high accuracy and ease of control.

The composting of oil palm empty-fruit-bunches and of oil palm empty-fruit-bunches in supplementation with either goat dung, cow dung or chicken manure differed in the resulting C:N ratios. The initial C:N ratios (52:1, 35:1, 48:1, 47:1) for the four compost heaps were significantly reduced to 24:1, 14:1, 18:1 and 12:1, respectively, after 60 days of composting, resulting in the production of a stable humus that is suitable for crop production. A temperature of 70°C was maintained for 3 days at the onset of composting. Both mesophilic and thermophilic bacteria showed consistent activity throughout the process, whereas fungal activity was completely suppressed during the peak heating phase. The rate of utilization of cellulosic material showed a positive correlation with the increase in the nitrogen content of the compost.

http://ac.els-cdn.com/0960852495000083/1-s2.0-0960852495000083-main.pdf?_tid=e55a9366-0ca1-11e4-b32d-00000aab0f01&acdnat=1405485200_dfb8fa4836117d31a67e91dcd5a7d450 
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0960852495000083

Postural stability is crucial in maintaining body balance during quiet standing, locomotion, and any activities that require a high degree of balance performance, such as participating in sports and dancing. Research has shown that there is a relationship between stability and body mass. The aims of this study were to examine the impact that two variables had on static postural control: body mass index (BMI) and gender. Eighty healthy young adults (age=21.7±1.8. yr; height=1.65±0.09. m; mass=67.5±19.0. kg) participated in the study and the static postural control was assessed using the Biodex Balance System, with a 20. Hz sampling rate in the bipedic stance (BLS) and unipedic stance (ULS) for 30. s. Five test evaluations were performed for each balance test. Postural control was found to be negatively correlated with increased adiposity, as the obese BMI group performed significantly poorer than the underweight, normal weight and overweight groups during BLS and ULS tests. The underweight, normal weight and overweight groups exhibited greater anterior-posterior stability in postural control during quiet stance. In addition, female displayed a trend of having a greater postural sway than male young adults, although it was evidenced in only some BMI groups. This study revealed that BMI do have an impact on postural control during both BLS and ULS. As such, BMI and gender-specific effects should be taken into consideration when selecting individuals for different types of sporting activities, especially those that require quiet standing. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22507349 
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0021929012002047

This paper presents a new non-invasive approach to predict the status of high total cholesterol (TC) level in blood using bioimpedance and the artificial neural network (ANN) techniques. The input parameters for the ANN model are acquired from a non-invasive bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) measurement technique. The measurement data were obtained from 260 volunteered participants. A total of 190 subject's data were used for the ANN training purpose and the remaining 70 subject's data were used for model testing. Six parameters from the BIA parameters were found to be significant predictors for TC level in blood using logistic regression analysis. The six input predictors for the ANN modeling are age, body mass index (BMI), body capacitance, basal metabolic rate, extracellular mass and lean body mass. Four ANN techniques such as the gradient descent with momentum, the resilient, the scaled conjugate gradient and the Levenberg-Marquardt were used and compared for predicting the high TC level in the blood. The finding showed that the resilient method was the best model with prediction accuracy, sensitivity, specificity and area under the curve value obtained from the test data were 82.9%, 85.4%, 79.3% and 0.83%, respectively. © 2013 National Taiwan University.

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Knee injury is one of the major problems in sports medicine, and the use of prophylactic knee braces is an attempt to reduce the occurrence and/or severity of injuries to the knee joint ligament(s) without inhibiting knee mobility. The aim of the present study was to examine the effect of one recently designed prophylactic knee brace and two neoprene knee sleeves upon performance of healthy athletes. Thirty-one healthy male athletes (age = 21.2±1.5) volunteered as participants to examine the effect of prophylactic knee brace/sleeves on performance using isokinetic and functional tests. All subjects were tested in four conditions in a random order: 1. nonbraced (control) 2. using a neoprene knee sleeve 3. using a knee sleeve with four bilateral metal supports and 4. using a prophylactic knee brace. The study design was a crossover, randomized, controlled trial. Subjects completed single leg vertical jump, cross-over hop, and the isokinetic knee flexion and extension (at 60, 180, 300°/sec). Data were collected from the above tests and analyzed for jump height, cross-over hop distance, peak torque to body weight ratio and average power, respectively. Comparisons of these variables in the four testing conditions revealed no statistically significant difference (p>0.05). The selected prophylactic brace/sleeves did not significantly inhibit athletic performance which might verify that their structure and design have caused no complication in the normal function of the knee joint. Moreover, it could be speculated that, if the brace or the sleeves had any limiting effect, our young healthy athletic subjects were well able to generate a mean peak torque large enough to overcome this possible restriction. Further studies are suggested to investigate the long term effect of these prophylactic knee brace and sleeves as well as their possible effect on the adjacent joints to the knee. © 2012 Mortaza et al.

http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0050110

Purpose: HIV/AIDS poses a serious threat to young people, both in Malaysia and throughout the world. A nationwide cross-sectional survey was conducted to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs about HIV/ AIDS among the Malaysian public. This article reports the findings of knowledge about HIV/AIDS among young adults. Methods: A total of 1075 young adult respondents aged 15-24 years participated in this survey. The response rate was 82.2%. Results: The data indicated that HIV/AIDS knowledge among the respondents was moderate, with a mean knowledge score of 20.1 out of 32 points. The great majority had adequate knowledge of the major routes of HIV transmission, but fewer were aware of other modes of transmission, such as tattooing and piercing, sharing personal items, and breast-feeding from an infected mother. The great majority knew that HIV is not transmitted by mosquito bites, sharing meals, casual contact, and using public swimming pools and toilets. Conclusions: Misconceptions about HIV/AIDS exist although generally knowledge on HIV/AIDS transmission and prevention was accurate. Education and intervention programs are needed to increase the level of knowledge and awareness of HIV/AIDS. The findings have important implications for the development of primary HIV/AIDS prevention programs for young adults in Malaysia. © 2008 Medscape.