University of Peradeniya

About: University of Peradeniya is a education organization based out in Kandy, Sri Lanka. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Poison control. The organization has 5970 authors who have published 7388 publications receiving 197002 citations.

Sorption characteristics of peat of Brunei Darussalam IV: equilibrium, thermodynamics and kinetics of adsorption of methylene blue and malachite green dyes from aqueous solution

Abstract: Peat of Brunei Darussalam shows a great potential for the removal of methylene blue (MB) and malachite green (MG) dyes from aqueous solution. Carefully controlled batch experiments performed by changing one parameter at a time indicate that the optimum time periods of agitation and settling required for maximum removal of MB are 2.0 and 1.0 h, respectively, while these values for MG are 4.0 and 1.0 h, respectively. The optimum pH is determined to be the ambient value, and under the optimum conditions, 90 % removal of both dyes was determined under laboratory conditions. The equilibrium adsorption data analyzed for various isotherm models suggest that the Sips and Redlich–Peterson (R–P) models are valid for MB and MG, respectively. Further, thermodynamic studies show that the adsorption of both dyes on peat is spontaneous and endothermic. The adsorption capacities (q max) of MB and MG dyes on peat are 0.45 and 0.31 mmol g−1, respectively. Characterization of the surfaces of peat before and after treatment of dyes by SEM and FTIR provides conclusive evidence of adsorption of both dyes. Kinetics studies indicate that the adsorption of both MB and MG dyes is favored toward the pseudo-second-order model, with a little contribution of MG to the pseudo-first-order model. These results suggest that peat is a potential low-cost adsorbent for the removal of MB and MG dyes.

Changing epidemiologic patterns of deliberate self poisoning in a rural district of Sri Lanka

Abstract: Acute poisoning is a major public health issue in many parts of the world. The epidemiology and the mortality rate is higher in low and middle income countries, including Sri Lanka. The aim of this study was to provide details about the epidemiology of acute poisoning in a rural Sri Lankan district and to identify the changing patterns and epidemiology of poisoning. A prospective study was conducted from September 2008 to January 2010 in all hospitals with inpatient facilities in Anuradhapura district of North Central Province of Sri Lanka. Acute poisoning data was extracted from patient charts. Selected data were compared to the data collected from a 2005 study in 28 hospitals. There were 3813 poisoned patients admitted to the hospitals in the Anuradhapura district over 17 months. The annual population incidence was 447 poisoning cases per 100,000 population. The total number of male and female patients was approximately similar, but the age distribution differed by gender. There was a very high incidence of poisoning in females aged 15–19, with an estimated cumulative incidence of 6% over these five years. Although, pesticides are still the most common type of poison, medicinal drug poisonings are now 21% of the total and have increased 1.6 fold since 2005. Acute poisoning remains a major public health problem in rural Sri Lanka and pesticide poisoning remains the most important poison. However, cases of medicinal drug poisoning have recently dramatically increased. Youth in these rural communities remain very vulnerable to acute poisoning and the problem is so common that school-based primary prevention programs may be worthwhile. Lalith Senarathna, Shaluka F Jayamanna, Patrick J Kelly, Nick A Buckley,michael J Dibley, Andrew H Dawson. These authors contributed equally to this work.

Malaria Transmission by Anopheles subpictus (Diptera: Culicidae) in a New Irrigation Project in Sri Lanka

Abstract: Indoor resting Anopheles subpictus in a new irrigation scheme in Sri Lanka were investigated during 1989-1990 for malaria infection by dissection and ELISA, and human feeding rates by ELISA analysis of blood meals. Indoor resting abundance was 22.3 females per house per 15-min catch in April-June 1989, 2.2 in November-December 1989, and 7.5 in April-June 1990. ELISA-based malaria infection rates (Plasmodium vivax and P. falciparum combined) were 1.4% during April-June and 3.2% during November-December 1989, and 12.5% during April-June 1990. Dissection and ELISA confirmed the presence of oocysts and sporozoites of P. falciparum in 1990. Human blood was detected in 4.3, 0.8, and 5.2% of analyzed meals, respectively, during the three sampling periods. Estimates of the entomological inoculation rate (EIR) ranged from 0.00006 to 0.005 in different samples and vectorial capacity (VC) was 0.0005 for the 1990 sample. Thus, An. subpictus is incriminated as a vector of human malaria in Sri Lanka.

COVID-19 vaccination intention and vaccine characteristics influencing vaccination acceptance: a global survey of 17 countries.

Abstract: The availability of various types of COVID-19 vaccines and diverse characteristics of the vaccines present a dilemma in vaccination choices, which may result in individuals refusing a particular COVID-19 vaccine offered, hence presenting a threat to immunisation coverage and reaching herd immunity. The study aimed to assess global COVID-19 vaccination intention, vaccine characteristics influencing vaccination acceptance and desirable vaccine characteristics influencing the choice of vaccines. An anonymous cross-sectional survey was conducted between 4 January and 5 March 2021 in 17 countries worldwide. Proportions and the corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance and vaccine characteristics influencing vaccination acceptance were generated and compared across countries and regions. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to determine the factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. Of the 19,714 responses received, 90.4% (95% CI 81.8–95.3) reported likely or extremely likely to receive COVID-19 vaccine. A high proportion of likely or extremely likely to receive the COVID-19 vaccine was reported in Australia (96.4%), China (95.3%) and Norway (95.3%), while a high proportion reported being unlikely or extremely unlikely to receive the vaccine in Japan (34.6%), the U.S. (29.4%) and Iran (27.9%). Males, those with a lower educational level and those of older age expressed a higher level of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. Less than two-thirds (59.7%; 95% CI 58.4–61.0) reported only being willing to accept a vaccine with an effectiveness of more than 90%, and 74.5% (95% CI 73.4–75.5) said they would accept a COVID-19 vaccine with minor adverse reactions. A total of 21.0% (95% CI 20.0–22.0) reported not accepting an mRNA vaccine and 51.8% (95% CI 50.3–53.1) reported that they would only accept a COVID-19 vaccine from a specific country‐of‐origin. Countries from the Southeast Asia region reported the highest proportion of not accepting mRNA technology. The highest proportion from Europe and the Americas would only accept a vaccine produced by certain countries. The foremost important vaccine characteristic influencing vaccine choice is adverse reactions (40.6%; 95% CI 39.3–41.9) of a vaccine and effectiveness threshold (35.1%; 95% CI 33.9–36.4). The inter-regional and individual country disparities in COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy highlight the importance of designing an efficient plan for the delivery of interventions dynamically tailored to the local population.