University Research Unit Research Articles

Doyens of Wielkopolska University Orthodontics, Professors Tadeusz Ziółkiewicz, Barbara Perzyna and Danuta Kazmierczak

The history of the development of medical and dental sciences, is inextricably linked to outstanding, distinguished figures. In orthodontics, which is largely directed at improving facial aesthetics, the main figures were the late Professors, heads of orthodontic university research and teaching units: Tadeusz Ziółkiewicz, Barbara Perzyna and Danuta Kazmierczak. Each of these Professors has made a golden record both in the university community and in the medical community of the Wielkopolska region of our country.

Physiology education and research in the European Higher Education System — a case study from Portugal

The “Future of Physiology” has become a recurring theme worldwide in discussions amongst Physiology organizations. The Bologna Process fostered a proper higher education environment within Europe, comparable with the USA and UK. This paper presents a current view of Physiology teaching within Portugal, an EU member state and part of the European High Education Area (EHEA). Data was sourced from the governmental agency DGES (from September to November 2022) to identify institutions and curricula featuring disciplines (CU/D) aligned with human Physiology. The teaching modalities, hours, and credits for Human Physiology disciplines were obtained from the institutions’ websites, yielding a database with 365 courses/degrees and 764 distinct Physiology CU/D. In the second stage, a bibliometric analysis of the lecturers’ scientific production from 2017-2022 was conducted using the VOSviewer v 1.6.19 to construct and visualize the key word co-occurrence networks and clusters. A thematic analysis of words in each cluster was then performed to identify common themes. Important divergences appeared, particularly between universities and technical colleges. In technical colleges, Physiology is prevalent in the first year, while in universities, Physiology-related CU/Ds are sequentially present from the first year until late in the course, indicating a progression in advanced knowledge and its application. These differences might be related to the different structural organization of these institutions and likely reflect the differences between facilities, available teaching-learning instruments, and staff preparation. The bibliometric analysis revealed considerable asymmetries in the scientific profile of the teaching staff. revealed Significant differences between university and technical colleges’ scientific production are clear: staff with relevant production were affliated with reference university centers or research units. A pronounced concentration of research interests in two primary domains, classified in the thematic analysis as Medical Physiology and Lifestyle Physiology, was found, with researchers' preferences focusing on biomedical research and innovation, cardiovascular function, sport performance, and well-being. These findings might be common within the EHEA, and do not raise any immediate concerns regarding Physiology as a discipline at present. On the contrary, they suggest that Physiology is clearly recognized as important in health education. Physiology teaching and learning must not lose sight of its primary role as an an integrated science of life required to shape the approach and rationale applied to problems requiring our understanding of health and disease, Physiology teaching and learning continue to be critical in human health education and research. This work is financed by national funds through FCT - Foundation for Science and Technology, I.P., under the UIDB/04567/2020 and UIDP/ 04567/2020 projects. João Gregório is funded by Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) Scientific Employment Stimulus contract with the reference number CEEC/CBIOS/EPH/2018. This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2024 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.

He Rourou Whai Painga, an Aotearoa New Zealand Dietary Pattern for Metabolic Health and Whānau Wellbeing: Protocol for a randomised controlled trial

Cardiometabolic diseases are highly prevalent in Aotearoa New Zealand(1). Dietary intake is a modifiable risk factor for such diseases and certain dietary patterns, specifically the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet), are associated with improved metabolic health(2). This study aims to test whether an intervention of a Mediterranean dietary pattern incorporating high quality New Zealand foods (NZMedDiet pattern) using behaviour change science can improve the metabolic health of participants and their household/whānau. This is a multi-centre, three-stage trial, with two randomised controlled trials (RCTs), both parallel groups, superiority trials, and a longitudinal cohort study. The first RCT (RCT1) is a comparison of the NZMedDiet pattern implemented using behaviour science compared to usual diet for 12 weeks, and the second (RCT2) is a behaviour-change intervention compared to no intervention for 12 weeks, administered after participants have been exposed to the intervention in RCT1. The third stage is a longitudinal cohort study where all participants are followed for up to a year. The primary outcome measure for each stage is the metabolic syndrome severity score (MetSSS). Two hundred index participants and their household/whānau have been recruited and randomised into the trial. Participants are from four centres, two of which are University research units (University of Auckland (n = 57) and University of Otago, Christchurch (n = 60)), one a community-based traditional meeting place (Tu¯ Kotahi Māori Asthma and Research Trust at Ko¯kiri Marae in Lower Hutt, Wellington (n = 19)), and the other based at a hospital-based research unit (the Centre for Endocrine Diabetes and Obesity Research (CEDOR) in Wellington (n = 64). The trial will test whether the NZMedDiet pattern and behaviour change support improves the cardiometabolic health of people in New Zealand.

28th International Nuclear Physics Conference (INPC2022)

The 28th International Nuclear Physics Conference (INPC2022) was successfully held in Cape Town, South Africa from 11 to 16 September 2022, marking the first time the conference was held on the African continent. This event, overseen by the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP), coincided with three major scientific events: The International Year of Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development (IYBSSD), the centenaries of the Nobel Prize awarded to Niels Bohr and the establishment of IUPAP.The conference program spanned a wide range of topics across the breadth of Nuclear Physics, from hadrons to nuclei, from fundamental science to applications, covering topics such as Hadron Structure and Spectroscopy and QCD Partonic Phenomena, Hot and Dense Nuclear Matter, Nuclear Structure and Nuclear Reactions, Nuclear Astrophysics, Applications and Societal Impact, Neutrinos and Nuclei, Fundamental Interactions and Symmetries, New Facilities and Instrumentation, Outreach and Science Education, and Quantum Computing, Machine Learning, and Artificial Intelligence in Nuclear Physics.The in-person conference was the largest to bring our scientific community together since the COVID-19 pandemic, and provided an excellent opportunity for the 468 delegates to explore the latest progress in the field and reconnect with colleagues. The INPC2022 was a great success, providing an excellent platform for the delegates to share their latest research work, techniques, experiences, challenges, and innovative solutions with colleagues from around the world and provided an opportunity for over 40 African students to be exposed to the field. The conference coincided with the completion of many projects that constitute the pillars of the 2017-2022 Long-Range Plan of iThemba LABS. The delegates had the opportunity to visit the facility and appreciate the advancement and completion of many of these pillars.The INPC2022 was sponsored and supported by the South African National Convention Bureau, Department of Science and Innovation, National Research Foundation, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, University of the Witwatersrand, University of the Western Cape, University of Cape Town, Metrological and Applied Sciences University Research Unit, IUPAP, NuPECC, ACF Metals, XIA and IBA.List of Local Organizing Committee, International Advisory Committee, Session Conveners are available in this pdf.

Impact of Cooperation Established Between Physicians and Nurses Working at Surgical Clinics on The Tendency of Nurses to Make Medical Errors

The aim of this study is to determine the effect of cooperation between physicians and nurses working in ‎surgical clinics on the tendency of nurses to make medical errors. The research was carried out in a ‎descriptive manner at Yozgat Bozok University Research and Application Center surgical units between April-‎May 2021. 130 surgical nurses and 40 surgeons were included in the study. In the evaluation of the data, ‎independent two-sample t-test, Mann-Whitney U test, one-way analysis of variance, Duncan test, Kruskal ‎Wallis test, Pearson correlation coefficient, and regression analysis were used. When the Jefferson Physician ‎and Nurse Professional Collaboration Scale mean scores of physicians and nurses were examined; the mean ‎score of nurses was 52.2±5.8, and the mean score of physicians was 50.7±4.6. Nurses' Malpractice Tendency ‎Scale mean score was determined as 236.1±16.5. It was determined that when the Jefferson Physician and ‎Nurse Professional Collaboration Scale score of the nurses increased by one unit, the Malpractice Tendency ‎Scale score increased by 1.247. Statistically, it was determined that there was a weak positive relationship ‎‎(p<0.05). The existence of a healthy and effective cooperation system between physicians and nurses in ‎surgical units is important in preventing medical errors. In our study, it was determined that the physician-‎nurse relationship in surgical units had an effect on the medical error tendency of nurses. In line with the data ‎obtained, it is recommended to measure the reflections of the trainings on the cooperation in order to ‎increase the effective trainings in changing the professional communication within the team on doctor-nurse ‎cooperation in a positive way and to strengthen the concrete data.

Potensi Produksi dan Mutu Benih serta Produksi Biomassa Sorghum bicolor Varietas Samurai 2 pada Umur Panen Berbeda sebagai Bahan Pakan

Sorghum bicolor var. Samurai 2 can be used as raw material in silage production for ruminant feed. The problem encountered is the difficulty of obtaining certified seeds for commercial sorghum production. So that is necessary to do this research to investigate potential sorghum seed production and its quality of Sorghum bicolor var. Samurai 2. The study was conducted at University Research Station-Jonggol Animal Education and Research Unit, Bogor Agricultural University. The experimental design used was a randomized block design with 4 treatments and 5 replicates. Five individual plants were taken to measure the variables at each treatment set. The treatments consisted of different harvesting times, namely P95 (harvested 95 days after planting), P100, P105 and P110. The variables observed were dry weight of shelled seeds, seed weight per panicle, weight of panicle stalk, panicle weight, seed production per ha, seed moisture content, seed viability test, and shoot biomass production per ha. The results showed that seed production per ha, panicle dry matter weight, fresh seed moisture content, panicle stalk dry weight was not significantly different. Dry weight of shelled seeds, dry weight of seeds per panicle, panicle dry weight, seed viability, weight of biomass per ha were significantly different (p<0.05). The potential for the production of shelled seeds, dry matter of seeds per panicle was the best in the P105 and P110, the viability of the seeds in the P105 and shoot biomass production per ha in the P105. The potential for shelled seed production (4038 kg ha-1), seed dry weight per panicle (54.87 g panicle-1), seed viability (92.8%) and the best biomass production (55.88 tons ha-1) were in treatment P105.
 Key words: seed production, shoot biomass, Sorghum bicolor, viability

Prevalence and Associated Factors of Postnatal Care Utilization Among Women Attending Immunization Clinic in Health Centers in Hawassa City , Southern Ethiopia,. 2019

Introduction: Postnatal care is a care provided to women and their babies within 42 days after deliveryA large proportion of maternal and neonatal deaths occur during the first 48 hours after delivery, and these first two days following delivery are critical for monitoring complications arising from the delivery World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that after an uncomplicated vaginal birth in a health facility, healthy mothers newborns should receive care in the facility for at least 24 hours after birth. If birth is at home, the first postnatal contact should be as early as possible within 24 hours of birth. Objective: To assess prevalence and associated factors of postnatal care utilization among women attending immunization clinics in health centers, Hawassa city, southern Ethiopia, 2019. Methodology: Institution based cross sectional study design was done. Study was conducted in all health centers .The total sample sizes were 306 women attending immunization clinic at health centers A random sampling technique was employed to select the study subjects. Data collection was conducted from study subjects using pretest questioners. The questioner was developed in English. Ethical clearance was obtained from the research unit of Rift Valley University. Data was entered and analyzed using SPSS version 20 for windows. Frequency distribution table and statically graph were used to describe the variables of interest. The associated factors of postnatal care utilization were identified using bivariate and multivariate analysis. Result: Multi parous women who had PNC experience were three times more likely to utilize PNC service for the current delivery than those primi Para women[ AOR=2.8, 95% CI (1.36-5.8)]. On the other hand, those multi parous women who hadn’t PNC experience were almost 50% less likely to utilize PNC for the current delivery than those primi Para women[AOR=0.43, 95% CI (0.20-0.92)]. Finally, those women who were discharged from the institution after delivery at less than 6 hrs of stay were almost 80% less likely to utilize PNC than those women who stayed more than 24hrs [AOR= 0.22, 95% CI (0.06-0.83)]. Conclusion: The overall prevalence of PNC service utilization in this study was relatively good as compared to the HSDP IV report for Hawassa city in the 2006 EFY. PNC counseling and provision of appointment, counseling on danger sign, past experience of PNC utilization, and less than 6 hours stay at health institution before discharge were found to statistically significant for the current PNC service Utilization

Frequency of HR-HPV Types in Patients with High Grade Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia (CIN)

Background & ObjectiveCervical cancer is the second most common cancer and the fourth leading cause of death in women. Among the risk factors for cervical cancer, human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most important one.Materials & Methods In this cross-sectional and retrospective study conducted from 2016 to 2020, 261 women with cervical intra-epithelial neoplasia (CIN) grade two and three referred to one of the gynecological oncology clinics of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, who were eligible to enter the study and were evaluated by the research unit of the relevant university after receiving an ethics code. During the study, patients whose cervical cancer was confirmed by colposcopic diagnostic method, HPV screening was performed by COBAS method and lesions were sampled to determine the type of HPV.ResultsEvaluation of the frequency distribution of colposcopic results compared to HPV, indicated that HPV-16 is the most common type of HPV in high grade CIN lesions. After HPV-16, other types of HPV are next in terms of frequency indicating the importance of other types of HPV. HPV-18 was also observed in people with CIN.ConclusionPerforming a similar study with a larger number of samples at the national level is suggested. If the results of a larger study are consistent with this study, it would be for the best to highlight the role of other types of HPV in cervical cancer screening in women.

Impacts of sunspot number and Geomagnetic aa-index on climate of Wet Zone West Africa during solar cycles 22\u201324

Using the facilities at Heliophysics Science Division of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA, we attempted to investigate the impact of solar magnetic activities on the climate of Wet Zone West Africa. The solar activity data namely, Sunspot Number (SSN) was obtained from the Royal Observatory of Belgium, Brussels; and Geomagnetic aa-index was obtained from World Data Center, Kyoto, Japan. Surface Air Temperature (SAT) and Rainfall data [for Port Harcourt in Nigeria and Abidjan in Cote D’Ivoire] were obtained from the HadCRUT-4 project of Climate Research Unit of University of East Anglia, United Kingdom. Firstly, we carried out Time Series Analysis of SSN and Geomagnetic aa-index spanning from 1950 to 2016. Secondly, we performed Regression Analysis on both solar activity data and climate variables to estimate the impact of solar magnetic activity on the Wet Zone West African climate. The Time Series Analysis showed that SSN variation was in-phase with Geomagnetic aa-index in all the solar cycles studied. Thus, Geomagnetic aa-index can be used as a proxy for studying solar magnetic activities. Performance of Regression Analysis showed that SSN regressed on SAT and Rainfall amounted to an average of 0.49 and 0.02% respectively throughout Solar Cycles 22–24. Furthermore, a regression of Geomagnetic aa-index on SAT and Rainfall yielded an average of 0.145 and 0.125% respectively. Our models showed that the variability of SAT and Rainfall in Wet Zone West Africa during Solar Cycles 22–24 are far less than 1%. Hence, the influence of SSN and Geomagnetic aa-index on SAT and Rainfall is less than 1%; and could cause ‘very small’ effect. These weak impacts are proofs that the variability of SAT and Rainfall were most probably not effected by SSN and Geomagnetic aa-index. Consequently, the variability of SAT and Rainfall in Wet Zone West Africa could not be attributed to SSN and Geomagnetic aa-index. We therefore, attempt to conclude that climate variability in Wet Zone West Africa is most probably not driven by solar magnetic activity, but could be attributed to anthropogenic activities.

Assessment of environmental variability on malaria transmission in a malaria-endemic rural dry zone locality of Sri Lanka: The wavelet approach.

Malaria is a global public health concern and its dynamic transmission is still a complex process. Malaria transmission largely depends on various factors, including demography, geography, vector dynamics, parasite reservoir, and climate. The dynamic behaviour of malaria transmission has been explained using various statistical and mathematical methods. Of them, wavelet analysis is a powerful mathematical technique used in analysing rapidly changing time-series to understand disease processes in a more holistic way. The current study is aimed at identifying the pattern of malaria transmission and its variability with environmental factors in Kataragama, a malaria-endemic dry zone locality of Sri Lanka, using a wavelet approach. Monthly environmental data including total rainfall and mean water flow of the "Menik Ganga" river; mean temperature, mean minimum and maximum temperatures and mean relative humidity; and malaria cases in the Kataragama Medical Officer of Health (MOH) area were obtained from the Department of Irrigation, Department of Meteorology and Malaria Research Unit (MRU) of University of Colombo, respectively, for the period 1990 to 2005. Wavelet theory was applied to analyze these monthly time series data. There were two significant periodicities in malaria cases during the period of 1992-1995 and 1999-2000. The cross-wavelet power spectrums revealed an anti-phase correlation of malaria cases with mean temperature, minimum temperature, and water flow of "Menik Ganga" river during the period 1991-1995, while the in-phase correlation with rainfall is noticeable only during 1991-1992. Relative humidity was similarly associated with malaria cases between 1991-1992. It appears that environmental variables have contributed to a higher incidence of malaria cases in Kataragama in different time periods between 1990 and 2005.

Diet Oriented Safety of Pakistani Biryani with reference to Glycemic Response in Healthy Human Subjects

Introduction: Traditional Pakistani Biryani is popular food particularly among Asian population. The objective of this study was to evaluate glycemic response of compound test food in conjunction with Food Oriented Diet Safety in healthy human subjects. Material and methods: This Quasi-Interventional Study was conducted in research unit of Baqai medical university. This study was conducted in period of two days and twenty healthy volunteers were enrolled. On day 1; fasting blood sugars were checked. Subsequently on day 2 participants were instructed to report with 12 hr. fasting, Later Compound test food was offered according to Health Body Mass Index (BMI) and Calories Calculator. Sequential plasma glycemic response was recorded on 0, 30, 60, 90 and 120 minutes. Results: Day 1, Glycemic response of study subjects showed mean glycemic value of 104 mg/dl. Day 2, glycemic response of 0, 30, 60, 90 and 120 minutes showed of 118,130, 121,109, 106 mg/dl respectively. This study highlights desirable incremental and decremented glycemic response after 30 & 120 mins respectively. Conclusion: This study concludes; that consumption of tested compound food according to BMI expected to have physiological mean peak glycemic response. Therefore this study identifies that consumption of beef biryani is safe; as study population never showed abnormal mean glycemic peak.

Spatio-Temporal Assessment of Climate in Response to Solar Radiation Changes over Nigeria Using Satellite Data

Spatiotemporal assessment of climate elements in response to solar radiation changes is vital for understanding the interaction between solar energy budget and climate over Nigeria. In this work, the spatio-temporal assessment of climate changes in response to solar radiation budget was done using regression and correlation analysis on satellite remote sensing and gridded observation data. The satellite data sets include; the Top Net Solar radiation data, obtained from European Medium Range Weather Forecast Reanalysis version 5 data set (ERA5) and Extended Reconstructed Sea Surface (ERSST) data set. The gridded observation climate data sets were obtained from Climate Research Unit (CRU) of University of East Anglia. The 250 x 250 m Digital Elevation data sets were obtained from Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission (SRTM). Results showed the Top net solar radiation (J/m²), precipitation and temperature indicated trends (R-square values) of 8643.9 (0.08), -0.287 (0.06) and 0.019 (0.26) per year respectively. The correlation between Top net radiation and temperature shows, 7, 2 and 91% pixels to be negatively, zero and positively correlated while the correlation between Top net radiation and precipitation shows, 71, 8 and 21% pixels respectively to be negatively, zero and positively correlated. Results shows that there was no direct relationship between Elnino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) but arguably, temperature showed indirect relationship with Top net solar radiation. Also, residual analysis was applied to delineate areas that have no direct relationship between radiation and climate parameters.

A New 60-Year 1940/1999 Monthly-Gridded Rainfall Data Set for Africa

The African continent has a very low density of rain gauge stations, and long time-series for recent years are often limited and poorly available. In the context of global change, it is very important to be able to characterize the spatio-temporal variability of past rainfall, on the basis of datasets issued from observations, to correctly validate simulations. The quality of the rainfall data is for instance of very high importance to improve the efficiency of the hydrological modeling, through calibration/validation experiments. The HydroSciences Montpellier Laboratory (HSM) has a long experience in collecting and managing hydro-climatological data. Thus, HSM had initiated a program to elaborate a reference dataset, in order to build monthly rainfall grids over the African continent, over a period of 60 years (1940/1999). The large quantity of data collected (about 7000 measurement points were used in this project) allowed for interpolation using only observed data, with no statistical use of a reference period. Compared to other databases that are used to build the grids of the Global Historical Climatology Network (GHCN) or the Climatic Research Unit of University of East Anglia, UK (CRU), the number of available observational stations was significantly much higher, including the end of the century when the number of measurement stations dropped dramatically, everywhere. Inverse distance weighed (IDW) was the chosen method to build the 720 monthly grids and a mean annual grid, from rain gauges. The mean annual grid was compared to the CRU grid. The grids were significantly different in many places, especially in North Africa, Sahel, the horn of Africa, and the South Western coast of Africa, with HSM_SIEREM data (database HydroSciences Montpellier_Système d’Information Environnementales pour les Ressources en Eau et leur Modélisation) being closer to the observed rain gauge values. The quality of the grids computed was checked, following two approaches—cross-validation of the two interpolation methods, ordinary kriging and inverse distance weighting, which gave a comparable reliability, with regards to the observed data, long time-series analysis, and analysis of long-term signals over the continent, compared to previous studies. The statistical tests, computed on the observed and gridded data, detected a rupture in the rainfall regime around 1979/1980, on the scale of the whole continent; this was congruent with the results in the literature. At the monthly time-scale, the most widely observed signal over the period of 1940/1999, was a significant decrease of the austral rainy season between March and May, which has not earlier been well-documented. Thus, this would lead to a further detailed climatological study from this HSM_SIEREM database.

To What Extent Do Successive Cohorts Adopt Different Publication Patterns? Peer Review, Language Use, and Publication Types in the Social Sciences and Humanities

This article presents a cohort analysis to study changes in the publication patterns of scholars working at a social sciences and humanities (SSH) university department or research unit in Flanders, Belgium. Starting from a comprehensive bibliographic database, we analyze the peer review status, publication language, publication type (journal article, book publication, or proceedings), and coverage in Web of Science (WoS) for publications produced between 2000 and 2014. Through a cohort analysis of the authors, a distinction can be made between effects that reflect changes in the characteristics of how researchers of comparable seniority publish (intracohort change) and effects that are due to the disappearance of researchers and/or introduction of new researchers (cohort succession). Our findings indicate that there is a trend across all five cohorts and in both the social sciences and humanities towards peer review, use of English, and publishing in WoS-indexed journals. While we witness clear intracohort changes, cohort succession effects are shown to be much weaker. The oldest cohort appears to maintain a traditional SSH profile, with lower shares of peer-reviewed publications, publications in English, journal articles, and publications indexed in WoS. As for publication types, all cohorts exhibit a slightly declining share of journal articles over time in favor of book publications, particularly in the humanities. The study shows that cohort analysis is a useful instrument to gain better insight into the evolution of publication patterns.

Urban Multilingualism and the Civic University: A Dynamic, Non-Linear Model of Participatory Research

Drawing on the example of Multilingual Manchester, we show how a university research unit can support work toward a more inclusive society by raising awareness of language diversity and thereby helping to facilitate access to services, raise confidence among disadvantaged groups, sensitise young people to the challenges of diversity, and remove barriers. The setting (Manchester, UK) is one in which globalisation and increased mobility have created a diverse civic community; where austerity measures in the wake of the financial crisis a decade ago continue to put pressure on public services affecting the most vulnerable population sectors; and where higher education is embracing a neo-liberal agenda with growing emphasis on the economisation of research, commodification of teaching, and a need to demonstrate a ‘return on investment’ to clients and sponsors. Unexpectedly, perhaps, this environment creates favourable conditions for a model of participatory research that involves co-production with students and local stakeholders and seeks to shape public discourses around language diversity as a way of promoting values and strategies of inclusion.

Mitigation of sperm tail abnormalities using demembranation approach in the clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa).

Clouded leopards (Neofelis nebulosa) produced high proportion of abnormal spermatozoa (mainly tail defects) that can limit sperm movement and conception. The study aimed to better identify the origin of those defects using a demembranation approach. Ejaculates (1-2 ejaculations/male; n=9) were allocated to simple washing (control; resulting in 11.7%±1.9% coiled tails) and processed through colloid centrifugation to reduce the number of sperm with tail defects (treatment, resulting in 5.9%±0.9% coiled tails). Aliquots of semen were incubated in hypo-osmotic solution (HOS, 60 mOsm fructose solution) containing 5mM dithiothreitol (DTT) (a reducing agent) to prevent oxidation of sperm membrane. Thereafter, 20% Triton X-100 (TX) (a detergent) was added to the HOS/DTT-treated samples. After HOS/DTT incubation, the control samples and sperm-selected samples presented 73.4%±3.1% and 73.9%±2.5% swollen sperm (bent and coiled) indicating membrane intact, respectively. Most of the coiled tail in the raw ejaculates could not be opened by TX indicating that the cause of coiled sperm tails may be from testicular origin. The proportion of sperm with tightly coiled tail tended to be lower in the sperm-selected group than control group (18.8%±3.8% and 26.5%±3.4%; p=.1), whereas the sperm opened up by TX tended to be higher in the sperm-selected group (53.6%±10.4% and 21.1%±7.9%; p=.06). The results indicated TX was able to uncoil half of the tightly coiled sperm in the semen undergone preparation. In conclusion, the coiled sperm in the clouded leopard semen were likely not a defect of sperm volume regulation during post-ejaculate (osmotic swelling) but pre-ejaculate origin. Semen preparation demonstrated its ability to lessen the primary sperm defects and selected spermatozoa that were prone to be mitigated after demembranation.

Singular value decomposition analysis for examining the impact of Siberian High on winter precipitation variability over South Asia

The relationship and linkage of Siberian High (SH) with winter climate over central Asia, East Asia, and Eurasia have been focused in the available literature. The effect of Siberian High over the South Asian region has received little attention. Thus, this article examines the possible teleconnection of SH pressure on winter precipitation variability over the region of South Asia. Moreover, the recent research studies focused on large-scale circulation phenomena: El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), and regarded them as responsible for variability of winter rainfall. This paper gives the evidence that the winter rainfall variability is strongly influenced by Siberian High pressure. The effect of Siberian High pressure on winter precipitation over the South Asian region (65–76° E, 33–40° N) has been investigated using singular value decomposition analysis (SVDA) that is performed on gridded datasets of NCEP-NCAR Reanalysis and Climate Research Unit (CRU) of University of East Anglia, UK. SVDA isolates the leading pairs of the coupled signals that mainly explain the relationship between the coupled fields. By employing SVDA, it is found that the Siberian High has dominant impact on precipitation variability during winter season over Northern areas of South Asia.

STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING SCHOLARLY CONTENT AT UNIVERSITIES IN KENYA

This study investigated strategies employed by universities in Kenya for managing scholarly content. The study was underpinned by the Conversation Theory and the Knowledge Management Process Model and was based on the post-positivist paradigm. A survey was conducted within a multiple case study design. The population of the study consisted of academic staff, postgraduate students, university librarians and representatives of university research units from six universities in Kenya. Self-administered questionnaires were used to collect data from academic staff and postgraduate students while key informants were interviewed. The results revealed that while the respondents generated theses, journal articles and conference papers, the majority did not participate in knowledge generation in the period from 2010 to 2014. The results further revealed that most respondents documented research procedures, backed up information, and used printouts to preserve scholarly content; however, they hardly used digital archives and university servers. The results suggested heavy reliance on modern technology-enabled communication techniques and face-to-face interactions for communication amongst scholars, whereas institutional repositories (IRs) were hardly used. The results revealed inadequate institutional support for research and scholarly communication including funding, material and physical infrastructure, mentorship, and information and communications technology (ICT) facilities. The study concluded that strategies for managing scholarly content at universities in Kenya are weak, impacting negatively on the quality, quantity and visibility of scholarly content; and that a policy framework encompassing the different facets of managing scholarly content is necessary. The study recommended developing specific strategies and policies to enhance scholarly content management; institutionalising mentorship programmes; increasing funding to strengthen universities’ research capacity; and strengthening research niches.

Fat-free mass is not lower 24 months postbariatric surgery than nonoperated matched controls

ObjectiveConcerns about an excessive loss of fat-free mass (FFM) after bariatric surgery prompted this comparison of operated versus matched nonoperated controls regarding FFM. SettingUniversity Hospital and University Research Unit in an urban medical center. MethodsBody composition with bioelectric impedance (Tanita 310, Tanita Corp, Arlington Heights, IL) was measured approximately 2 years after bariatric surgery in weight stable patients and nonoperated weight stable controls matched for body mass index (BMI), gender, and age. t tests provided comparisons. Analysis of variance was used to compare FFM changes for 4 procedures. Levene’s test evaluated variance. ResultsPatients (n = 252; 24.7±15 mo after surgery) and nonoperated controls (n = 252) were matched for gender (71.8% female), age (44.5±11.0 yr), and BMI (32.8±7.0 kg/m2). Patients had different surgical procedures: 107 gastric bypasses (RYGBs), 62 biliopancreatic diversions with duodenal switch (BPD/DSs), 40 adjustable gastric bands (AGBs), and 43 sleeve gastrectomies (LSGs). FFM percentage was significantly higher in the operated patients than controls, 66% versus 62%, P<.0001. For 3 procedures, the FFM was significantly higher; however, AGBs changed only 7.3 BMI units and FFM was not significantly different from their matched controls, 59.8% versus 58.2%. Across surgical groups, FFM percentage differed, P<.0001 (RYGB 66.5±9.2%, BPD/DS 74.0±9.3%, AGB 59.8±7.0%, LSG 59.6±9.3%). Variance was not different (P = .17). ConclusionWeight-reduced bariatric surgery patients have greater FFM compared with nonoperated matched controls. These findings support surgically assisted weight loss as a physiologic process and in general patients do not suffer from excessive FFM depletion after bariatric procedures.

Evaluation of Cut-Foliage Plants for Eastern Ghats

A maiden attempt was made at Horticultural Research Station (HRS), a constituent research unit of Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, located at Yercaud, Salem District, Tamil Nadu, India during 2012-2013 to assess the suitability of various ornamental foliage plant species under Shevroys /Eastern Ghats conditions. Considerable variation was found in quantitative and qualitative parameters among the foliage species. The study recommends Nephrolepis cordifolia and Asparagus sprengeri as suitable liners, while, large-leaved species like Cordyline fruticosa and Philodendron xanadu as background materials in larger arrangements, and the smaller-leaved Dracaena reflexa var. angustifolia for smaller arrangements.