Showing papers by "Rural Development Administration published in 2022"

Photocatalytic degradation of organic synthetic dyes and textile dyeing waste water by Al and F co-doped TiO2 nanoparticles

Abstract: Textile wastewater threatens people health by alluring diseases and revealing public existing close to the waste to the dangerous products within. Because waste causes a risk to the environment and people, waste management making is the main challenge of the municipal world. Environmental process such as toxic dye degradation can be stepped up through photochemical process such as visible light induced catalytic degradation. Here, the successful synthesis of co-doping of Al and F into TiO2 nanoparticles (Al-F∕TiO2 NPs) by solid state reaction method comprising different proportions of co-dopants is evaluated for the applications of degrading organic synthetic dyes and textile dyeing waste water. Influence of co-dopants was studied in their optical, structural, compositional, morphological and vibrational properties. The average crystallite size of Al-F∕TiO2 NPs was found as 15 nm.FTIR and UV-vis spectrum confirmed F and Al atoms were incorporated into the TiO2 lattice.The absorption edges slightly moved to shorter wavelength by increasing level of dopants and this specifies the control of optical absorption of TiO2 by the incorporation of F and Al3+ ions.The EDS spectrum indicates the purity of the samples. The highest zone of inhibition for the prepared nanoparticles over Staphylococcus aureus reached to 22 mm. The rate constant (kapp) value of MB, MO and textile waste water is 0.0138/min, 0.0174/min and 0.0139/min for the prepared nanoparticles respectively. The study of photocatalytic degradation of visible light assisted MB, MO and real textile waste water by Al-F∕TiO2 NPs revealed that the prepared nanoparticles act as ideal catalyst by tuning the concentration of co-dopants in TiO2.

Evaluation of Zero-Energy Building and Use of Renewable Energy in Renovated Buildings: A Case Study in Japan

Abstract: Following the Paris Agreement in 2015, the worldwide focus on global warming countermeasures has intensified. The Japanese government has declared its aim at achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. The concept of zero-energy buildings (ZEBs) is based on measures to reduce energy consumption in buildings, the prospects of which are gradually increasing. This study investigated the annual primary energy consumption; as well as evaluated, renewed, and renovated buildings that had a solar power generation system, and utilized solar and geothermal heat. It further examines the prospects of hydrogen production from on-site surplus electricity and the use of hydrogen fuel cells. A considerable difference was observed between the actual energy consumption (213 MJ/m2), and the energy consumption estimated using an energy simulation program (386 MJ/m2). Considerable savings of energy were achieved when evaluated based on the actual annual primary energy consumption of a building. The building attained a near net zero-energy consumption considering the power generated from the photovoltaic system. The study showed potential energy savings in the building by producing hydrogen, using surplus electricity from on-site power generation, and introducing hydrogen fuel cells. It is projected that a building’s energy consumption will be lowered by employing the electricity generated by the hydrogen fuel cell for standby power, water heating, and regenerating heat from the desiccant system.

Diversity Characterization of Soybean Germplasm Seeds Using Image Analysis

Abstract: Soybean (Glycine max) is a native field crop in Northeast Asia. The National Agrobiodiversity Center (NAC) in Korea has conserved approximately 26,000 soybean germplasm and distributed them to researchers and growers. The phenotype traits of soybean were investigated during periodic multiplication. However, it is time-consuming to collect sufficient data, especially on the width and height of seeds. During the last decade, the development of phenomics efficiently assisted the analysis of high-throughput phenotyping seed morphology. This study collected and analyzed seed morphological traits of 589 germplasm (53,909 seeds) from diverse origins using a digital camera and a computer-based seed phenotyping program. Measured traits included size and shape, 100-seed weight, height, width, perimeter, area, aspect ratio (AR), solidity, circularity, and roundness. The diversity of soybean germplasm seeds was analyzed based on 8-seed morphological traits and 100-seed weight, as determined by image phenotyping and direct weighting, respectively. The data obtained from 589 soybean germplasm were divided into five clusters by k-means clustering. Orthogonal projections to latent structures discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) were performed to compare clusters. The major differences between clusters were in the order of area, perimeter, 100-seed weight, width, and height. Based on cultivar origins, the seed size of US origin was the largest, followed by Korea and China. We classified size, shape, and color according to the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) guidelines. In particular, we postulated that shape could be distinguished based on the AR and roundness values as secondary parameters. High-throughput phenotyping could make a decisive contribution to resolving the phenotyping bottleneck. In addition, rapid and accurate analysis of a large number of seed phenotypes will assist breeders and enhance agricultural competitiveness.

Growth evaluation of Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella typhimurium, and Listeria monocytogenes in fresh fruit and vegetable juices via predictive modeling

Abstract: Fresh juices are often exposed to microbial contamination due to their minimal processing, which can lead to foodborne disease. Therefore, in this study, in order to understand the behavior of foodborne pathogens (Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella typhimurium, and Listeria monocytogenes) contained in fresh juice, the growth of the foodborne pathogens was predicted using the modified Gompertz model in six vegetable juices (beet, carrot, kale, celery, cabbage, and red cabbage) and two fruit juices (lemon and grapefruit) stored at 10 °C. Except for those of S. typhimurium in kale juice (maximum growth rate [GR], 0.05; lag time [LT], 118.30), the GR and LT of the foodborne pathogens were predicted to range from 0.04 to 0.08 and 6.37 to 35.48, respectively, in the vegetable juices. The performance of modified Gompertz modeling was confirmed to be in the range of 0.91–1.14 in terms of the bias factor (Bf) and 1.05 to 1.62 in terms of the accuracy factor (Af). The predictive modeling results from this study showed that vegetable juice supported the growth of foodborne pathogens.

Recognition of symptoms, mitigating mechanisms and self-care experiences of type 2 diabetes patients receiving insulin treatment in North-East Ethiopia

Abstract: Background: Compliance of patients with self-care practices is the mainstay of measures to manage diabetes. This study explored self-care practices of type 2 diabetes patients receiving insulin treatment in North-East Ethiopia. Methods: The study employed an interpretive phenomenological approach using purposive sampling. The data were collected from 24 (11 males and 13 females) participants (July 2019 to January 2020) using in-depth interviews till theoretical saturation. The data were analyzed thematically and organized using QDA Miner Lite v2.0.8. Results: The findings were categorized into: labeling diabetes, self-care maintenance experiences, recognition of symptoms, and mitigating mechanisms. The self-care maintenance practice of patients was linked with diet input preferences and the effectiveness level of insulin. What guides the self-care behavior was the patients’ preferentiality of strictly adhering to their preferred dietary inputs. Barley and wheat were the most common preferential and non-preferential inputs, respectively. The patients strictly adhered to insulin treatment because they found it effective. The most common hyperglycemia symptoms to be managed by taking an additional dose of insulin, were frequent urination, increased thirst, and their consequence (dehydration). Excessive sweating (initial), shivering (middle), and falling (final), respectively in severity, were the most common symptoms of hypoglycemia which were perceived to be treated with sweet snacks. Originality: To our knowledge, this is the first research in Ethiopia to investigate the self-care experiences of type 2 diabetes patients receiving insulin using an interpretive phenomenological approach.

Taxol: Occurrence, chemistry, and understanding its molecular mechanisms

Abstract: Taxol (paclitaxel), a complex diterpenoid is the most potent, and widely used chemotherapeutic drug for treating different types of cancers, such as breast, ovarian, lung cancers, in addition to Kaposi's sarcoma. Taxol was firstly, recovered from Taxus brevifolia tree. It is one of the highly valued natural compounds, approved by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration), USA for treating several cancer types. However, increased global demand was fulfilled from its major plant source, T. brevifolia. Further, the over exploitation of this tree species from nature, in addition to its lower yield of taxol led to exploration of other alternative resources, including other Taxus species and semi-synthetic approaches. Further, endophytic microbes capable of producing taxol were also discovered from known taxol and non-taxol producing plants. The cell fermentation techniques were optimized to improve the yield of taxol with limited accomplishments. Taxol affects cancer cells by various mechanisms of action, such as Bcl-2 phosphorylation, modulating microtubules polymerization, mitochondrial calcium ion concentrations influx or efflux, the regulation of miRNAs expression cascades, etc. Moreover, studies have suggested the possibilities of taxol directly impacting on the immune systems during carcinogenesis. This chapter provides comprehensive information about the occurrence, discovery, chemistry, and molecular mechanisms of action of taxol.

Association Between Work Status and the Use of Healthcare Services Among Women in the Republic of Korea

Abstract: Previous studies on occupational health focussed predominately on the occurrence of occupational diseases. Relatively few studies have measured how employment is associated with the use of healthcare services. This study investigates the association between employment and the extent and range of healthcare use, such as medical expenditures, of women in South Korea.We analyze data of the Korean Health Panel, an ongoing longitudinal national representative survey, from 2008 to 2017, to identify the status of economic activity of women by year and age group. We estimate the association between female employment status and medical expenditures by using random effect panel Tobit models. Furthermore, we investigate the association between employment status and the range of healthcare services in biomedicine and traditional Korean medicine (KM) by conducting conditional fixed-effects logistic regression analyses.For women aged between 25 and 65 in 2017, the majority of them were employed or self-employed. (The proportion of employment of self-employment equals 64.80%). In addition, working women spent 11.6% less on healthcare than nonworking women, and self-employment lowered the healthcare expenditure by 13.1%. Neither work nor the type of work is related to the types and range of healthcare service use. Being employed or self-employed is negatively associated with women's expenditure on healthcare.The findings show that employment is associated with less spending on healthcare. They imply that employment has a positive impact on women's health.

Inverse Lansing Effect: Maternal Age and Provisioning Affecting Daughters’ Longevity and Male Offspring Production

Abstract: AbstractMaternal age effects on offspring life history are known in a variety of organisms, with offspring of older mothers typically having lower life expectancy (the Lansing effect). However, there is no consensus on the generality and mechanisms of this pattern. We tested predictions of the Lansing effect in several Daphnia magna clones and observed clone-specific magnitude and direction of the maternal age effect on offspring longevity. We also report ambidirectional, genotype-specific effects of maternal age on the propensity of daughters to produce male offspring. Focusing on two clones with contrasting life histories, we demonstrate that maternal age effects can be explained by lipid provisioning of embryos by mothers of different ages. Individuals from a single-generation maternal age reversal treatment showed intermediate life span and intermediate lipid content at birth. In the clone characterized by the "inverse Lansing effect," neonates produced by older mothers showed higher mitochondrial membrane potential in neural tissues than their counterparts born to younger mothers. We conclude that an inverse Lansing effect is possible and hypothesize that it may be caused by age-specific maternal lipid provisioning creating a calorically restricted environment during embryonic development, which in turn reduces fecundity and increases life span in offspring.

Community sentiment influences community participation: evidence from Ethiopia

Abstract: ommunity sentiment is an essential component of community development and can influence residents’ propensity to participate in their community. However, few studies have investigated the effect of community sentiment on community participation in the sub-Saharan region. This study aimed to examine social connectedness, community attachment and community satisfaction as factors influencing community participation among rural residents in Ethiopia. We collected data through a cross-sectional survey from 360 residents of 12 communities located within Yirgachefe district of Ethiopia, using a simple random sampling technique for selection. Descriptive statistics and hierarchical regression techniques were used to analyze the data. The results revealed that community participation was influenced not only by respondents’ demographic and socioeconomic characteristics but also by their community sentiment. Respondents’ age, level of education, annual income, social connectedness, community attachment and community satisfaction all positively influenced community participation. It was noted that respondents who were more socially connected, who have higher levels of attachment to their community and more satisfied with their community are more likely to participate. We suggest community networking mechanisms and social events to augment community participation.

Enhancing Antioxidant Activities and Anti-Aging Effect of Rice Stem Cell Extracts by Plasma Treatment

Abstract: Plant-derived substances exhibit antioxidant and antibacterial activities and have been proven to have beneficial effects in wound healing and skin regeneration. Plant stem cells have recently received much attention as research materials in cosmetic development because they promote regeneration after damage. In this paper, we demonstrate for the first time that the plasma treatment of stem cells obtained from rice-seed embryos can be effective in enhancing antioxidant activity and in regenerating human skin. We investigated this potential utilizing micro-DBD (Dielectric Barrier Discharge) plasma as a pretreatment technique to enhance the vitality and functional activity of rice stem cells. The results of the cell culture experiments show that plasma-treated rice stem cell extracts (RSCE) have promising antioxidant and anti-skin aging activities. The results of quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) for major antioxidant enzymes and anti-aging genes confirm that the plasma technique used in the pretreatment of RSCE was able to enhance cell activities in skin regeneration, including cell survival, proliferation, and collagen enhancement for Human Fibroblast (HFB) degraded by oxidative stress. These results show that the relatively low energy of less than 300 W and an amount of NOx-based reactive nitrogen species (RNS) from plasma discharge of about 3 μL/L were the key factors and that RSCE, of which the antioxidant activity was enhanced by plasma treatment, appeared to be a major contributor to the protective effect of HFB against oxidative stress. Plasma-treated RSCE induced excellent anti-aging properties by stimulating HFB to promote collagen synthesis, thereby promoting skin regeneration. These properties can protect the skin from various oxidative stresses. This study demonstrates that plasma-treated extracts of stem cells derived from rice-seed embryos have an excellent regenerative effect on aging-treated HFB. Our results demonstrate the potential utility of plasma-treated RSCE as a skin anti-aging agent in cosmeceutical formulations for the first time.

Light Induces Carotenoid Biosynthesis-Related Gene Expression, Accumulation of Pigment Content, and Expression of the Small Heat Shock Protein in Apple Fruit

Abstract: The coloration of the apple fruit (Malus × domestica Borkh.) depends on pigment content. Light stimulus activates a broad range of photosynthesis-related genes, including carotenoids. The effect of light on two red commercial apple cultivars, 'Summer Prince' and 'Arisoo' at the juvenile stage were examined. Apple fruits were either bagged to reduce light irradiation or were exposed to direct, enhanced sunlight (reflected). The pigment content and the expression of carotenoid metabolism genes in the peel and flesh of apple fruits were significantly different between the shaded and the reflected parts. These parameters were also different in the two cultivars, highlighting the contribution of the genetic background. Further, a combination of light and transient overexpression of carotenogenic genes increased fruit coloration and pigment content in the variety 'RubyS'. Western blot analysis showed the expression of small heat shock proteins (smHSP) in lysates extracted from the reflected part of the fruits but not in the bagged fruits, indicating the activation of smHSP in response to heat generated by the reflected light. Therefore, the synergy between the genes and the environment dictates the color of apple fruits.

Evaluation of the Different Low-Tech Protective Cultivation Approaches to Improve Yield and Phytochemical Accumulation of Papaya (Carica papaya L.) in Bangladesh

Abstract: The production of horticultural crops in the outdoor environment facing various environmental factors, such as cyclones, droughts, heavy rain, and hailstorms, significantly affects the papaya production in the sub-tropical regions, especially in Bangladesh. Protected cultivation of horticultural crops is a common practice in developed countries. However, it is rarely observed in the developing countries, particularly for papaya production. Therefore, this study was carried out to find a protective approach to papaya cultivation to mitigate the environmental factors to obtain a quality yield. This production system consists of three treatments, including net house, poly shed house, UV poly shed house, and open field conditions (control). The results revealed that plants grown in the net house had significantly higher leaf number (30), fruit number (68), and fruit yield (56.28 kg/plant) than the control grown plant. Papaya cultured in the net house also showed significantly higher accumulation of chlorophyll, ascorbic acid, total phenol, reducing sugar, and β-carotene than those grown in other environments. In terms of peel color, papaya grown in the net house had the highest a* value (redness), whereas that grown in the open field had the lowest. Thus, the study demonstrated that papaya can be cultivated successfully in a net house with increased yield and phytochemical content. The findings provide a fundamental production strategy for quality papaya production in Bangladesh.

Analyzing Machine Learning Models for Credit Scoring with Explainable AI and Optimizing Investment Decisions

Abstract: This paper examines two different yet related questions related to explainable AI (XAI) practices. Machine learning (ML) is increasingly important in financial services, such as pre-approval, credit underwriting, investments, and various front-end and back-end activities. Machine Learning can automatically detect non-linearities and interactions in training data, facilitating faster and more accurate credit decisions. However, machine learning models are opaque and hard to explain, which are critical elements needed for establishing a reliable technology. The study compares various machine learning models, including single classifiers (logistic regression, decision trees, LDA, QDA), heterogeneous ensembles (AdaBoost, Random Forest), and sequential neural networks. The results indicate that ensemble classifiers and neural networks outperform. In addition, two advanced post-hoc model agnostic explainability techniques - LIME and SHAP are utilized to assess ML-based credit scoring models using the open-access datasets offered by US-based P2P Lending Platform, Lending Club. For this study, we are also using machine learning algorithms to develop new investment models and explore portfolio strategies that can maximize profitability while minimizing risk.

Three-Dimensional Changes in the Mandibular Proximal Segment After Using a Surgery-First Approach in Patients With Class III Malocclusion and Facial Asymmetry

Abstract: This study was performed to evaluate condylar position and angulation after asymmetric mandibular setback between a conventional (CA) and surgery-first approach (SFA) using three-dimensional analysis. The condylar positions of 30 patients with skeletal Class III malocclusion and facial asymmetry who underwent 1-jaw (sagittal split ramus osteotomy) or 2-jaw orthognathic surgery (Le Fort I osteotomy and sagittal split ramus osteotomy) with CA (n = 18) or SFA (n = 12) from 2 university hospitals were studied. The three-dimensional assessment of condylar changes was performed using computed tomography images at the initial time point (T0) and at least 6 months after surgery (T1). Segmentation of condyles and cranial base assessment from cone-beam computed tomography images were performed using ITK-SNAP software (version 3.4.0). Condylar position and angulation changes were calculated using 3D Slicer software (version 4.10.2), and statistical analysis was performed. No significant translational or rotational condylar changes were observed between the deviated and non-deviated sides in each group or between the CA and SFA groups except yaw ( p = 0.014). Linear mixed-model analysis and multi-variate analysis showed no significant difference between the CA and SFA groups. Surgery-first approach might not be associated with more harmful effects on the condylar position and angulation changes as compared with CA.

Financial Education, and Gender Equity

Abstract: This study investigates how to promote gender equity in finance through early financial education using the survey responses gathered in Singapore. The empirical tests for the effect of financial education on financial literacy suggest that women who receive early financial education better understand the compounding effect of interest rates on loans, portfolio diversification, and mortgage payments. The impact of early financial education on financial behavior is also evident in women's increased participation in the stock market, insurance activities, and savings habits. The implications can be used to guide policymakers charged with promoting gender equity through early financial education.