A study was carried out to observe the fermentation process for noni (Morinda citrifolia L.) extract by Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The experiment was based on a central composite rotatable design (CCRD) employing 5 center points with augmented axial and factorial points resulting in 30 runs. The M. citrifolia extract was fermented with different combination of substrate concentration (40, 50, 60, 70 and 80%) (w/v), inoculum size (0, 1.5, 3, 4.5 and 6%) (v/v), temperature (30, 33.5, 37, 40.5 and 44oC) and fermentation time (0, 1.5, 3, 4.5 and 6 days). Five physico-chemical characteristics which include pH, titratable acidity, turbidity, total soluble solids and total polyphenol content were measured. Results showed that all the responses could be well represented using statistical models. For pH, only fermentation time was found to be not significant, while for titratable acidity and total polyphenol content, the effects of substrate concentration and fermentation time were significant. The effects of inoculum size and temperature level were found to be significant for turbidity. For total soluble solids, only the effect of substrate concentration and inoculum size were found to be significant.
The needs of family members of patients have often been neglected. Many investigations have presented that meeting the needs of families and helping them cope with the period of hospitalization will improve the well-being of relatives of patients admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). The aim of this study was to identify the needs of family members of patients admitted to the ICU at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah. This cross-sectional study recruited 60 family members, and a validated Critical Care Family Needs Inventory in Bahasa Malaysia was used to verify the needs of these families. The outcomes disclosed that family members ranked “assurance” as their utmost need. “support” was ranked the least important. The differences in mean values of gender, education level, history of admission and types of relationships among the family members were trivial. The results of this research will help us prepare guidelines to educate ICU healthcare providers, as well as information pamphlets for the relatives of admitted patients.