This study has been carried out to evaluate the clinical and radiographic CTZ (Chloramphenicol-Tetracycline-Zinc
Eugenol Oxide) antibiotic paste in pulpotomies of primary molars. A Quasi-experimental study in 43 primary molars
of children aged 3 to 7 years. Pulpotomies were performed on the selected patients with the CTZ antibiotic paste. Teeth
were restored with glass ionomer and preformed steel metal crowns. Clinical and radiographic evaluation was performed
at 6 and 12 months. SPSS V-19 program for data analysis and chi-square test was used up to 5%. Success rates were
observed during the evaluation periods of time. 93% (x2
= 0.446, p>0.05) and 88.4% (x2
= 0.431, p>0.05) of the clinical form;
97.7% (x2
= 0.534, p>0.05) and 93% (x2
= 0.553, p>0.05) were radiographic, at 6 and 12 months, respectively. The CTZ antibiotic
paste is an alternative in the treatment of pulpotomy of molars. It provides an antimicrobial effect, decreased operative time, without
causing trauma to the pediatric patient.
The presence of abundant oil palm residues in Malaysia prompted the need to utilize this waste to avoid environmental
pollution. This waste was abundant at the oil palm mill and accounted for almost 50% of production. The study was
conducted to determine the morphological effect of Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME) sludge on the maize growth performance
and gas exchange. Physicochemical, growth morphology and gas exchange was measured after treated with POME sludge
from different treatment pond systems: Mixing, anaerobic, facultative, algae and dumping. The results indicated the
pH, C, and CEC of mixing the < anaerobic < facultative < algae < dumping ponds. There was a significant presence of
macronutrient (N, Mg, Ca, Fe, S) in the treated POME sludge, contrary to the presence of heavy metal (Cd, Cu, Ni and
Pb) elements which were not significantly different in all the treatments and lower than WHO/FAO standard. Root Shoot
Ratio (RSR) and Specific Leaf Area (SLA) indicated significant difference in biomass accumulation and yield compared to
the control. The gas exchange variable was a significant difference on stomata conductivity (Gs) and transpiration rate
(E). However, the POME sludge from the facultative, algae and dumping ponds showed positive correlations between net
photosynthesis, stomata conductivity and transpiration rate. Indeed, the increased transpiration rate (E) was correlated
with stomata conductance (Gs) after treatment with anaerobic, facultative, algae and dumping ponds. In conclusion, the
POME sludge amendment was able to increase the maize biomass and yield.
Sifat fizik dan mekanik sambungan pateri pada papan litar bercetak (PCB) sangat bergantung kepada bahan pateri
dan permukaan penglogaman PCB. Kemajuan penyelidikan dan pembangunan bahan pateri bebas plumbum membuka
peluang untuk menghasilkan sambungan pateri yang mempunyai kebolehtahanan yang tinggi. PCB/Cu merupakan PCB
tanpa kemasan digunakan sebagai sampel kawalan manakala dua PCB yang lain iaitu PCB/ImSn (immersion tin) dan
PCB/ENiG (electroless nickel immersion gold) dipilih untuk mengkaji kestabilan sambungan pateri. Sambungan pateri
pada kemasan permukaan yang berbeza didedahkan kepada penyimpanan suhu tinggi (HTS) pada suhu 175°C selama
1000 jam untuk mengkaji perubahan sifat mikromekanik. Ujian pelekukan nano memberikan sifat mikromekanik yang
bersifat setempat. Perubahan kekerasan antarasambungan SAC 0307 selepas HTS ialah 66 MPa bagi PCB/Cu, 107
MPa bagi PCB/ImSn dan 45 MPa bagi PCB/ENiG. Analisis terhadap sifat mikromekanik mendapati bahawa PCB/ENiG
menunjukkan perubahan nilai yang minimum berbanding dengan PCB/Cu dan PCB/ImSn. Ini menunjukkan PCB/ENiG
memberikan kestabilan sifat mikromekanik yang tinggi selepas didedahkan pada HTS pada suhu 175°C selama 1000 jam.
This research reports the annual effective dose of dwellers based on the finding of natural radioactivity concentrations in
Malaysian tiles. A total of 30 tiles samples obtained from the manufacturer or bought directly from local hardware store.
Natural radioactivity was analyzed using gamma spectrometry system for 12 h counting times. The activity concentration
of 226Ra, 232Th, and 40K in the analyzed samples ranged from 37.50 – 158.05 Bq kg-1, 42.22 – 80.19 Bq kg-1 and 349.46 –
750.18 Bq kg-1, respectively. The determined radium equivalent activity was below than the recommended limit of 370
Bq kg-1. The external dose received by dwellers due to natural radionuclides in tiles were projected for 1, 5, 10, 20 and
50 years through six exposure pathways using Resrad-build computer code. The results showed that the annual effective
dose received by dwellers increased for the investigated timelines but still lower than the annual recommended limit of
1500 µSv. The simulation result also indicates that radon gas was the primary radiation exposure which contributes
80-94 % from the total radiation exposure to dwellers.
The purpose of this study was to prepare macroporous glass ceramic scaffold by sol-gel glass synthesis and powder
sintering method. Sodium nitrate was added during sol-gel process to obtain glass ceramic with mol composition of
42.11% SiO2
- 18.42% CaO - 29.82% Na2
O - 9.65% P2
O5
. The glass particles were found to be thermally stable above
900°C as indicated by TGA/DTA analysis. The dried glass particles obtained from sol-gel process were compacted and
sintered at 1000°C for 3 h soaking time. Sintering crystallized the glass by 71.5% of crystallinity with tetracalcium catenahexaphosphate
(V) (Ca4
(P6
O19) as the main crystalline phase as revealed by XRD analysis. Although glass crystallized
during sintering, it showed a good in vitro bioactivity as apatite-like layer were deposited on the glass ceramic surface
when immersed in simulated body fluid (SBF) for 14 days. SEM analysis proved the macroporous structure formation with
pore size ranges between 30 and 350 µm due to foaming effect which occurred during sintering. Besides that, the glass
ceramic surface formed into vitrified-like due to fluxing effect during sintering thus affected the porosity and densification
measurement done by Archimedes test. In conclusion, the presence of sodium oxide in sol-gel glass ceramic composition
by 29.82 mol % with sintering temperature at 1000°C is able to produce bioactive and macroporous glass ceramic that
potentially be used as medical scaffold material.
Malaysia has a long coastline stretching over 4,809 km where more than 1,300 km of beaches are experiencing erosion.
Coastal erosion is recognised as the permanent loss of land and habitats along the shoreline resulting in the changes
of the coast. Thus, it is important to detect and monitor shoreline changes especially in Pahang coast by identifying the
rate of shoreline erosion and accretion. This study used temporal data and high spatial resolution imagery (SPOT 5) using
remote sensing and GIS techniques to monitor shoreline changes along 10 study locations, which is from Cherating to
Pekan of the Pahang coast. The total length of shoreline changes is about 14 km (14035.10 m) where all these areas are
very likely to experience erosion ranging from 0.1 to 94.7 ha. On the other hand, these coastal areas found a minimal
accretion with increased sediment from 0.1 to 2.8 ha. Overall, the coastal areas are exposed to higher erosion process
than accretion with a very high vulnerability of erosion rate from 1.8 to 20.9 meter per year. The findings on monitoring
shoreline changes and identifying vulnerable erosion areas might be useful in the policy and decision making for
sustainable coastal management.
Pewarnaan pes pateri membuka suatu ruang kepada keperluan dalam teknologi untuk proses pengenalpastian, penandaan,
piawaian, pengujian dan penilaian terhadap antarasambungan pes pateri. Dua jenis pigmen pewarna iaitu hijau (G)
dan bercahaya dalam gelap (GD) digunakan untuk mengkaji kesan pewarnaan sambungan pateri ke atas kestabilan
antarasambungan pateri Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu (SAC 305). Pes pateri tanpa warna digunakan sebagai sampel kawalan untuk
membandingkan keputusan kajian. Uji kaji penuaan sesuhu digunakan untuk melihat perubahan pertumbuhan sebatian
antara logam (IMC). Pigmen pewarna GD dengan peratusan sebanyak 5% telah menunjukkan kestabilan pertumbuhan
IMC dengan perubahan pertumbuhan yang paling rendah iaitu sebanyak 5.6 µm bagi sambungan pateri yang berwarna
berbanding dengan peratusan pigmen pewarna yang lebih tinggi dengan perubahan pertumbuhan IMC sehingga 9 µm
selepas didedahkan kepada penuaan sesuhu pada 150°C selama 1000 jam. Walau bagaimanapun, kestabilan pertumbuhan
IMC dengan penggunaan pes pateri berwarna adalah lebih rendah berbanding dengan pes pateri tidak berwarna.
Maka penambahan pigmen pewarna hendaklah dipertimbangkan dengan mengambil kira kestabilan mikrostruktur dan
pertumbuhan lapisan IMC supaya tidak menjejaskan kualiti dan kebolehharapan sesuatu sambungan pateri.
Artikel ini menganalisis biosensor resonans plasmon permukaan (SPR) dengan lapisan grafin yang meningkatkan
kecekapan biosensor urea kerana penerapannya yang tinggi. Tatasusunan Kretschmann merupakan teknik yang paling
berkesan digunakan untuk pengujaan plasmon. Dalam kajian ini, kami menganalisis kesan ekalapisan MoS2 dengan
lapisan grafin yang didepositkan pada bahan plasmon, iaitu logam emas (Au), di dalam tatasusunan ini. Simulasi untuk
menganalisis tatasusunan ini adalah berdasarkan kepada kaedah perbezaan terhingga domain masa (FDTD). Prestasi
biosensor SPR dapat dipantau dengan menganalisis kepekaan dan lebar penuh pada separuh maksimum (FWHM) spektrum
SPR. Pengukuran diperhatikan pada panjang gelombang 670 nm dan 785 nm untuk pengesanan urea. Indeks molar dan
indeks biasan berbeza (RI) daripada 1.335 sehingga 1.342 untuk lapisan penderiaan. Keputusan menunjukkan peratus
peningkatan kepekaan biosensor Au/MoS2
/grafin berbanding biosensor Au konvensional adalah 98% dan 202% masingmasing
pada panjang gelombang 670 nm dan 785 nm. Ini menunjukkan bahawa cadangan biosensor SPR yang novel ini
adalah lebih sensitif untuk pengesanan urea.
Kajian mengenai grafin kini semakin meluas disebabkan sifat kebolehaliran terma yang mampu meningkatkan potensi
bahan komposit. Penambahan grafin dalam matriks kuprum dikaji dengan menggunakan gabungan bahan pengikat
iaitu polietilena glikol (PEG), polimetil metakrilat (PMMA) dan asid stearik. Penggunaan grafin sebagai bahan pengisi
dalam matriks kuprum merupakan pendekatan baru yang bertujuan untuk meningkatkan kebolehaliran terma produk
yang dihasilkan. Namun, penambahan grafin dalam matriks kuprum boleh menyebabkan ketidaksamarataan zarah
komposit kerana penggumpalan zarah-zarah grafin. Oleh itu, kaedah sonikasi dan pengacauan magnetik semasa proses
pra-campuran digunakan bagi menghasilkan bahan suapan yang sebati dan penyerakan grafin yang lebih baik tanpa
penggumpalan. Suhu proses sonikasi telah ditetapkan pada 55˚C dengan masa sonikasi yang berbeza iaitu 30 minit, 60
minit dan 90 minit. Bagi proses pengacauan magnetik, parameter yang digunakan adalah 55˚C, selama 21 jam pada
kelajuan yang berbeza iaitu 300, 350 dan 400 rpm. Analisis imej Pancaran Medan Mikroskopi Elektron Pengimbasan
(FESEM) dan Pemetaan EDX telah dijalankan bagi mengkaji penyerakan grafin dalam komposit kuprum grafin. Keputusan
menunjukkan hasil yang lebih baik diperoleh selepas proses sonikasi dan pengacauan magnetik dijalankan. Penyerakan
terbaik yang lebih seragam dan sebati diperoleh pada masa sonikasi 60 min dan pengacauan magnetik pada kelajuan
sederhana iaitu 350 rpm. Zarah grafin didapati kurang bertumpu pada satu tempat dan penggumpalan semula juga
tidak berlaku. Penyerakan sebati ini menjadikan hubungan antara muka zarah-zarah grafin dan kuprum menjadi lebih
baik seterusnya mampu mengurangkan keliangan bagi penghasilan jasad akhir.
The effects of salinity on the gastric emptying time (GET) and absorption of nutrient along the alimentary tract of tiger
grouper (TG) × giant grouper (GG) (Epinephelus fuscoguttatus × E. lanceolatus) hybrid were studied. Juveniles TG×GG
hybrid grouper (10.0 ± 0.5 cm total length; 50.5 ± 2.0 g) were reared in different salinities (10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 parts per
thousand (ppt)) and fed with commercial pellet diet during the 60-day experimental period. The fish were then slaughtered
sequentially at different time intervals after initial feeding to obtain GET. Our results showed that low salinity (10-20 ppt)
lead to a shorter GET in the hybrid grouper. The shortest and longest GETs were observed in 15 ppt (12 h) and 30 ppt (18
h) treatments, respectively. Apparent digestibility coefficient (ADC) using ash contents was measured to determine the
absorption of nutrient in each treatment. The absorption of macronutrient in TG×GG hybrid grouper was increased as
the salinity decreased. The highest absorption occurred in 15 ppt (72% protein, 75% lipid, 68% carbohydrate and 74%
energy) while the lowest absorption occurred in 30 ppt (59% protein, 64% lipid, 34% carbohydrate and 55% energy).
The findings of this study suggested that 15 ppt salinity facilitates faster digestion and maximize the nutrient absorption
of TG×GG hybrid and may enhance the growth rate of this newly developed grouper species.
Oxidation of p-Cresol was investigated by using ozonation process. The aim of this research is to assess the effectiveness
of ozonation on oxidation of micropollutant such as p-Cresol. Ozonation performance was evaluated based on p-Cresol
concentration reduction and chemical oxidation demand (COD) reduction. It was found ozonation at pH11 achieved
the highest p-Cresol degradation, with 95.8% of p-Cresol reduced and 96.0% of COD reduced, for an initial 50 mgL-1
of p-Cresol. The degradation of p-Cresol could be expressed by second-order of kinetic model. The second-order rate
constant k increases as the initial pH increased, but decreases with the increasing of initial p-Cresol concentrations.
Besides, the absorption spectra of p-Cresol over ozonation time were analyzed by spectrophotometry. The evolution of
absorption spectra of p-Cresol degradation suggests that the oxidation of p-Cresol follows three stages mechanisms
with cycloaddition as the first step to produce aromatic intermediates followed by ring-opening reactions, degradation
of the intermediates, and subsequently achieved mineralization.
Cellulose nanomaterial with rod-like structure and highly crystalline order, usually formed by elimination of the amorphous region from cellulose during acid hydrolysis. Cellulose nanomaterial with the property of biocompatibility and nontoxicity can be used for enzyme immobilization. In this work, urease enzyme was used as a model enzyme to study the surface modification of cellulose nanomaterial and its potential for biosensor application. The cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) surface was modified using 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyl radical (TEMPO)-mediated oxidation to introduce the carboxyl group at C6 primary alcohol. The success of enzyme immobilization and surface modification was confirmed using chemical tests and measured using UV-Visible spectrophotometer. The immobilization strategy was then applied for biosensor application for urea detection. Cyclic voltammetry (CV) and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) techniques were used for electroanalytical characterization of the urea biosensor.
Consumer consciousness on the concept of natural-based ingredients triggers the natural cosmetics market to grow. The
active compounds in natural ingredients offer valuable bioactivities such as antioxidant, photoprotection, anti-aging
and anti-inflammatory actions that useful for skincare, hair care and dental care. This review presents an overview on
natural ingredient, especially plant-derived, used in cosmetic products and the examples of Malaysian plants used for
cosmetic purposes.
Air heating by solar collectors is renewable technology providing hot air for different purposes. The present research
emphasizes on analysis of energy, exergy and efficiency of a flat plate solar air heater. The analysis model was tested
on five different air mass flow rates of 0.5 (Natural), 1.31, 2.11, 2.72 and 3.03 kgs-1 under three different tilt angles of
25, 35 (Recommended) and 50o
. The data was replicated three times making a total of 45 treatments. A two factorial
completely randomized design was used to find if there is any significant difference among the treatments. The results
showed that the solar collector gave better performance at air mass flow of 3.03 kgs-1 under tilt of 35o
. At maximum
air mass flow rate of 3.03 kgs-1and optimum tilt angle of 35o
the maximum energetic efficiency of 51%, while minimum
exergetic efficiency of 24% and maximum overall efficiency of 71% were recorded. It was concluded that to get maximum
thermal efficiencies of 71% from flat plate solar collector used as an air heater must be operated at high air mass flow
rates of 3.03 kgs-1under 35o
tilt angle at Peshawar, Pakistan.
This study offers the numerical solutions for the problem of mixed convection stagnation-point flow along a permeable
vertical flat plate in an Oldroyd-B fluid. The present investigation considers the effects of thermal radiation and heat
generation/absorption in the fluid flow. The similarity transformation simplifies the complex model and the bvp4c function
generates the numerical solutions according to the variations in the governing parameters. A higher degree of shrinking
hastens flow separations. The dual solutions are visible in the range of buoyancy opposing flow. The results from this study
may be useful for the scientist to understand the behaviour of the dilute polymer solutions in the industrial applications,
for example, the drag reduction in pipe flows.
PR-10 is a member of pathogenesis-related (PR) genes elicited by the plant’s defense mechanism during pathogen attack.
Elevated expression of PR-10 upon different pathogen invasions has been observed in many plant species suggesting
its role as an anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal gene. However, the effect of PR-10 in mitigating the infection of
Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense (Foc), the causal agent of Fusarium wilt in banana has not been reported. In this
study, the coding sequences of PR-10 gene isolated from Foc resistant Musa acuminata ssp. malaccensis (MaPR-10)
were integrated into a local Foc susceptible commercial banana cultivar, Berangan via co-cultivation of embryogenic
cell suspension and Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Out of 17 putative transgenic lines established, 11 of them positively
harbored MaPR-10. Among these, Line-19 plantlets showed the most rapid in-vitro propagation and successfully overexpressed the transgene. Following a nursery challenge experiment with a virulent Foc race 4 (CI HIR) isolate, about 30%
of Line-19 plants showed a one-week delay in disease progression when compared to the untransformed controls. From
the final evaluation performed in the 5th week-post-inoculation, the leaf symptoms index (LSI) and rhizome discoloration
index (RDI) of Line-19 was 3.4 and 6.1, respectively, indicating the disease had progressed. The findings of this study
enrich the current existing knowledge on the roles of PR-10 in combating fungal disease in plants.
This study was carried out to determine the effects of hydroxy propyl methyl cellulose (HPMC) on the flavour compounds
(eugenol and limonene), moisture and oil content in chicken nuggets during frying. Chicken nugget added with 500
ppm eugenol and limonene were coated with HPMC solution (0, 0.75 and 1.5%) and then with a commercial coating
(ADABI, Malaysia). Chicken nuggets were fried at 180o
C for 4 min. Quantity of eugenol and limonene in the substrate
(chicken meat) and coating were measured alongwith the moisture and oil content. The results showed that 0.75 and
1.5% HPMC were not able to retain either eugenol or limonene in both substrate and coating portion of the nuggets
when compared to control except for eugenol in the substrate portion when using 1.5% HPMC. Application of HPMC
also resulted in reduced moisture loss and oil absorption. The reduced moisture loss and oil absorption in the coating
and substrate of the chicken nuggets showed that HPMC was able to form a barrier that restricted the migration of
moisture from the nuggets and absorption of oil into the nuggets. However, only the 1.5% HPMC barrier formed was
able to reduce the loss of eugenol in the nugget substrate. Both 0.75 and 1.5% HPMC was not able to significantly
reduce the loss of limonene during frying.
Engineering the CO2
-fixing enzyme ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) to improve photosynthesis
has long been sought. Rubisco large subunits (RbcL) are highly-conserved but because of certain undefined sequence
differences, plant Rubisco research cannot fully utilise the robust heterologous Escherichia coli expression system and its
GroEL folding machinery. Previously, a series of chimeric cyanobacteria Synechococcus elongatus Rubisco, incorporated
with sequences from the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, were expressed in E. coli; differences in RbcL sections
essential for holoenzyme formation were pinpointed. In this study, the remaining sections, presumably not crucial for
holoenzyme formation and also the small subunit (RbcS), are substituted to further ascertain the possible destabilising
effects of multiple section mutations. To that end, combinations of Synechococcus RbcL Sections 1 (residues 1-47), 2
(residues 48-97), 5 (residues 198-247) and 10 (residues 448-472), and RbcS, were swapped with collinear Chlamydomonas
sections and expressed in E. coli. Interestingly, only the chimera with Sections 1 and 2 together produces holoenzyme and
an interaction network of complementing amino acid changes is delineated by crystal structure analysis. Furthermore,
sequence-based analysis also highlighted possible GroEL binding site differences between the two RbcLs.
A new dipeptide, (-)-glaciantarcin (1) and three known compounds, cyclo(-Pro-Gly) (2), 1-(2-deoxypentofuranosyl)-5-
methyl-2,4(1H,3H)-pyrimidinedione (3) and vidarabine (Ara-A) (4), were isolated from Glaciozyma antarctica PI12,
a cold-adapted yeast. The chemical structures were elucidated by FT-IR, NMR and mass spectrometry. The cytotoxicity
and antioxidant activities of compounds 1-4 were evaluated by using the MTT bioassay on MCF-7 (human breast cancer
cell line), PC-3 (human prostate cancer cell line) and HEK-293 (normal human embryonic kidney cell line) and DPPH
free radical scavenging activity, respectively. At concentration of 400 µM, all compounds showed the highest activity
on MCF-7, with compound 1 at 65%, compound 2 (70%), compound 3 (66%) and compound 4 (58%) cell viability. All
compounds exhibited weak antioxidant properties. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of compounds
1-4 from Glaciozyma antactica.
It is of great importance to know about the genetic diversity, conservation and classification for further utilization of
tomato germplasm resources. Therefore, 40 tomato accessions were evaluated on the basic of agro-morphological traits
for genetic diversity in 2014. The experiment was conducted at Agricultural Research Farm, University of Haripur and
farmer field in Swabi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Principal component analysis showed that five out of 27 principal
components with an eigenvalue above 1.0 were considered for 74.10% of the total variance. The major contributing traits
in variations were days to flowering (DFL), days to fruiting (DFR), fruit size (FS), fruit weight plant-1 (FW), yield plot-1 (YPP),
yield hectare-1 (YPH), leaf length (LL), predominant fruit shape (PDFS), fruit length (FL), fruit width (FWidth), clusters
plant-1 (CPP), fruits plant-1
(FPP) and plant height (PH). The scattered plot of the PC’s revealed that the accessions were
scattered in all the quarters, which is also a representative that high level of genetic variability was present. FW and FL
were positively correlated with YPH. However, the remaining yield components indirectly contributed YPH. Cluster analysis
divided 40 accessions into four main clusters (I, II, III and IV), each of which having 12, 11, 07 and 10 accessions. The
accessions in clusters I and II were statistically similar and performed better in terms of yield and yield related traits.
Grouping into different clusters was associated with their agro-morphological differences. These results could be serving
as a useful resource for further characterization, preservation and breeding programs.