Optimizing bioconversion processes of rice husk into value-added products: D-psicose, bioethanol, and lactic acid.

Rice husk, rich carbon content, is an agricultural waste produced globally at an amount of 120 million tons annually, and it has high potential as a biorefinery feedstock. Herein, we investigated the feasibility of producing various products as D-psicose, bioethanol and lactic acid from rice husk (RH) through a biorefinery process. Alkali-hydrogen peroxide-acetic acid pretreatment of RH effectively removed lignin and silica, resulting in enzymatic hydrolysis yield of approximately 86.

Converting textile waste into value-added chemicals: An integrated bio-refinery process.

The rate of textile waste generation worldwide has increased dramatically due to a rise in clothing consumption and production. Here, conversion of cotton-based, colored cotton-based, and blended cotton-polyethylene terephthalate (PET) textile waste materials into value-added chemicals (bioethanol, sorbitol, lactic acid, terephthalic acid (TPA), and ethylene glycol (EG)) via enzymatic hydrolysis and fermentation was investigated. In order to enhance the efficiency of enzymatic saccharification, effective pretreatment methods for each type of textile waste were developed, respectively.

Utilization of bamboo as biorefinery feedstock: Co-production of xylo-oligosaccharide with succinic acid and lactic acid.

Herein, we investigated the possibility of co-producing xylo-oligosaccharides (XOSs) from bamboo, as value-added products, along with succinic and lactic acids, as platform chemicals. Xylan was extracted from bamboo using the alkali method under mild conditions. From xylan, XOSs were produced by partial enzymatic hydrolysis at a conversion rate of 83.

Financial Behaviors, Government Assistance, and Financial Satisfaction.

Using data from the 2018 National Financial Capability Study (NFCS), this study examined the relationships between poor financial behaviors, receiving government assistance, and financial satisfaction while accounting for adverse financial experiences. The logistic regression results showed that both poor financial behaviors and adverse financial experiences increased the likelihood of receiving government assistance. The OLS results indicated that receiving government assistance significantly increased levels of financial satisfaction, whereas poor financial behaviors significantly decreased levels of financial satisfaction.

Financial hardship and change in emotional well-being before to during COVID-19 pandemic among middle-aged and older Americans: Moderating effects of internal coping resources.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate associations between financial hardship and change in emotional well-being-positive and negative affect-before to during the COVID-19 pandemic among middle-aged and older Americans and to examine the extent to which associations were moderated by internal coping resources-dispositional mastery and optimism.

Method: Data derived from the Leave-Behind Questionnaire in the 2016 and 2020 waves of the Health and Retirement Study, a nationally representative longitudinal survey of U.S.

Non-adjustable surgery for acute acquired comitant esotropia under general anesthesia.

Purpose: To investigate the surgical results of the non-adjustable suture technique under general anesthesia for the correction of acute acquired comitant esotropia.

Study Design: Retrospective case study.

Methods: Patients with acute acquired comitant esotropia who underwent corrective surgery from September 2008 to June 2018 were included.

A High-Yield Process for Production of Biosugars and Hesperidin from Mandarin Peel Wastes.

In this research, novel biorefinery processes for obtaining value-added chemicals such as biosugar and hesperidin from mandarin peel waste (MPW) are described. Herein, three different treatment methods were comparatively evaluated to obtain high yields of biosugar and hesperidin from MPW. Each method was determined by changes in the order of three processing steps, i.

The Effect of Cash Flow Problems and Resource Intermingling on Small Business Recovery and Resilience After a Natural Disaster.

This study investigated the implications that cash flow problems and resource intermingling between the family and the business had on small business recovery and resilience after a natural disaster. This study contributed to the literature by studying the impact of cash flow problems and resource intermingling on small businesses in two separate periods: right after the natural disaster (period 1) and eight years after the disaster (period 2). Period 1 determined whether the business was in operation directly following Hurricane Katrina.

Enhanced Biomass Yield of and Saccharification in Transgenic Tobacco Over-Expressing β-Glucosidase.

Here, we report an increase in biomass yield and saccharification in transgenic tobacco plants (.) overexpressing thermostable β-glucosidase from , , targeted to the chloroplasts and vacuoles. The transgenic tobacco plants showed phenotypic characteristics that were significantly different from those of the wild-type plants.

Bioconversion of biomass waste into high value chemicals.

Dwindling petroleum resources and increasing environmental concerns have stimulated the production of platform chemicals via biochemical processes through the use of renewable carbon sources. Various types of biomass wastes, which are biodegradable and vastly underutilized, are generated worldwide in huge quantities. They contain diverse chemical constituents, which may serve as starting points for the manufacture of a wide range of valuable bio-derived platform chemicals, intermediates, or end products via different conversion pathways.

Financial Strain, Employment, and Role Captivity and Overload Over Time Among Dementia Family Caregivers.

Background And Objectives: This study examined how financial strain and changes in employment status affect subjective stressors over 12 months in 184 family caregivers of individuals with dementia.

Research Design And Methods: Subjective stressors of role overload and role captivity, and employment status were measured at baseline, 6-, and 12-months. Self-reports on financial strain were measured at baseline only.

G-Protein-Coupled Receptor 120 Mediates DHA-Induced Apoptosis by Regulating IP3R, ROS and, ER Stress Levels in Cisplatin-Resistant Cancer Cells.

The omega-3 fatty acid docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is known to induce apoptosis and cell cycle arrest via the induction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in many types of cancers. However, the roles of DHA in drug-resistant cancer cells have not been elucidated. In this study, we investigated the effects of DHA in cisplatin-resistant gastric cancer SNU-601/cis2 cells.

Theoretical study of photonic bands of one-dimensional photonic crystals containing epsilon-near-zero metamaterials.

The photonic bands of a one-dimensional photonic crystal containing epsilon-near-zero metamaterials are investigated both theoretically and numerically. A theoretical expression of the edge frequencies of the photonic bands derived from the dispersion relation of the photonic crystal is in excellent agreement with the edge frequencies of the photonic bands calculated using the plane wave expansion method. These results are also confirmed using the transmittance obtained from the transfer matrix method.

Nakai Has Synergetic Effects on Doxorubicin-Induced Apoptosis.

Natural products are valuable sources for drug discovery because they have a wide variety of useful chemical components and biological properties. A quick reevaluation of the potential therapeutic properties of established natural products was made possible by the recent development of the methodology and improvement in the accuracy of an automated high-throughput screening system. In this study, we screened natural product libraries to detect compounds with anticancer effects using HeLa cells.

Apoptotic and Anti-Inflammatory Effects of Thunb. in Rheumatoid Arthritis Fibroblast-Like Synoviocytes.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune inflammatory disease characterized by synovitis, hyperplasia, and the destruction of bone and cartilage. A variety of immunosuppressive biological agents have been developed because the pathogenesis of RA is related predominantly to the inflammatory response. However, rheumatoid arthritis fibroblast-like synovial cells (RAFLS), which are known to play an important role in RA progression, exhibit resistance to immunosuppressants through cancer-like properties.

Efficacy and Safety of Low-to-Moderate Dose Oral Corticosteroid Treatment in Ocular Myasthenia Gravis.

Purpose: To evaluate the response to corticosteroid therapy as a primary treatment for ocular myasthenia gravis.

Methods: Patients diagnosed as having ocular myasthenia gravis by an acetylcholine receptor binding antibody test between January 2011 and September 2015 were included in the study and started receiving treatment with a corticosteroid. Patients with a blowout fracture, hyperthyroidism, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, or history of strabismus surgery were excluded.

Heterologous expression of endo-1,4-β-xylanase A from Schizophyllum commune in Pichia pastoris and functional characterization of the recombinant enzyme.

Endo-1,4-β-xylanase A (XynA) from Schizophyllum commune was cloned into pPCZαA and expressed in Pichia pastoris GS115. The open reading frame of the xynA gene is composed of 684 bp, encoding 278 amino acids with a molecular weight of 26 kDa. Based on sequence similarity, XynA belongs to the CAZy glycoside hydrolase family 11.

Zn tolerance of novel Colocasia esculenta metallothionein and its domains in Escherichia coli and tobacco.

Contrary to extensive researches on the roles of metallothioneins (MTs) in metal tolerance of animals, the roles of plant MTs in metal tolerance are largely under investigation. In this study, we evaluated the functional role of type 2 MT from Colocasia esculenta (CeMT2b) in Zn tolerance of tobacco and E. coli cells.

Characteristics of bifunctional acidic endoglucanase (Cel5B) from Gloeophyllum trabeum.

The endoglucanase (Cel5B) from the filamentous fungus Gloeophyllum trabeum was cloned and expressed without a signal peptide, and alanine residue 22 converted to glutamine in Pichia pastoris GS115. The DNA sequence of Cel5B had an open reading frame of 1,077 bp, encoding a protein of 359 amino acid residues with a molecular weight of 47 kDa. On the basis of sequence similarity, Cel5B displayed active site residues at Glu-175 and Glu-287.

Co-immobilization of three cellulases on Au-doped magnetic silica nanoparticles for the degradation of cellulose.

Three cystein-tagged cellulases co-immobilized on AuNP and Au-MSNP for the hydrolytic degradation of cellulose. The biochemical properties, stabilities, activities and reusability of these co-immobilized systems were compared to those of mixtures of free cellulases.

Enhanced enzymatic hydrolysis of rapeseed straw by popping pretreatment for bioethanol production.

The objective of this study was to find a pretreatment process that enhances enzymatic conversion of biomass to sugars. Rapeseed straw was pretreated by two processes: a wet process involving wet milling plus a popping treatment, and a dry process involving popping plus dry milling. The effects of the pretreatments were studied both in terms of structural and compositional changes and change in susceptibility to enzymatic hydrolysis.

Purification and properties of a chitinase from Penicillium sp. LYG 0704.

The chitinase producing Penicillium sp. LYG 0704 was procured from soil of the Chonnam National University crop field. The chitinase activity was detected after the first day which increased gradually and reached its maximum after 3 days of cultivation.

Older Workers: Who are the working poor in the U.S.?

With data from the 2000 Health and Retirement Study (HRS), the purpose of this study was to provide a profile of older workers who live poverty, and to compare the demographic, financial, employment, and health attributes of such individuals to similar persons not living in poverty. This study found that 3.5% of employed individuals between the ages of 51 and 61 belonged to the class of working poor.