Spasmolytic Activity of the Ethanol Extract of Sideritis raeseri spp. raeseri Boiss. & Heldr. on the Isolated Rat Ileum Contractions

Suzana Brankovic,Dusanka Kitic,Mirjana Radenkovic,Slavimir Veljkovic,Teodora Jankovic,Katarina Savikin,Gordana Zdunic 한국식품영양과학회 2011 Journal of medicinal food Vol.14 No.5

Sideritis raeseri spp. raeseri Boiss. & Heldr., known as “mountain tea,” has been widely used in the Mediterranean region as a spice and in folk medicine as a very popular decoction because of its anti-inflammatory, carminative, analgesic, antitussive, stomachic, and antimicrobial properties. The study was aimed to investigate the effects of an ethanol extract of S. raeseri on intestinal activity. Air-dried and powdered aerial parts were extracted with 96% ethanol. The rat ileum preparations were incubated in Tyrode's solution gassed (95% O_2/5% CO_2) at 37°C. The ethanol extract of S. raeseri (0.03–0.3 mg/mL) relaxed spontaneous contractions in isolated rat ileum, similar to that produced by papaverine. The plant extract in a concentration-dependent manner (0.015–0.15 mg/mL) significantly inhibited the contractile response to acetylcholine (P<.01). Atropine inhibited the response to acetylcholine. A similar relaxation-inducing effect of the S. raeseri extract was observed on the precontracted ileum by histamine and barium chloride. Plant extract (0.03–0.3 mg/mL) significantly shifted the histamine concentration–response curve to the right and down (P<.01). The S. raeseri extract (0.03–0.3 mg/mL) significantly inhibited the contractions induced by barium chloride (P<.01). The results show that the ethanol extract of S. raeseri can produce inhibition of the the spontaneous rat ileum contractions and contractions induced by different spasmogens. These data indicate that S. raeseri acts as a spasmolytic on intestinal smooth muscle, which justifies its use in gastrointestinal disorders.

Quality of Fresh-Cut Strawberry during Storage

Suzana C. Leme,Elizangela Nunes,Andrea Xisto,Maristela Vilas Boas,Marisa C. Botelho,Adimilson B. Shitarra 한국원예학회 2006 한국원예학회 기타간행물 Vol.- No.-

Financial Abuse and its Legal Implications

Suzana Muhamad Said,Nazura Abdul Manap,Aini Aman 아주대학교 법학연구소 2019 아주법학 Vol.13 No.3

This paper is an initial exploration on the issue of financial abuse and its legal implications. Studies have shown how financial abuse as a sinister form of emotional abuse, but was sometimes not recognized as such by targeted individuals, mostly women. Financial abuse is an unauthorised and improper use of funds, property or any resources belonging to another individual and includes theft, fraud and exploitation, pressure in connection with wills, property, inheritance or financial transactions, misuse or misappropriation of property, assets, possessions, savings, capital or benefits. Financial abuse may affect psychological and physical health through the stress associated with poverty and facing an uncertain financial future. Financial abuse is common but rarely talked about and the same applies in Malaysia. The objective of this paper is to explore the legal risks if financial abuse happens. Among the legal risks include falling into insolvency and foreclosure of property. Such legal implications of financial abuse should be controlled and managed to minimise the risks it impacted. The methodology used for this paper is a library based-research on journal articles, published reports from the authorities, legislations and legal historical records via the library, internet and the relevant materials. This paper will suggest that awareness programmes and early detection could progressively help to understand the consequence of financial abuse.

Genetic Variability and Frequencies of ABO Blood Types among Different Samples of Patients from Serbia

Suzana Cvjeticanin,Dragoslav Marinkovic 한국유전학회 2005 Genes & Genomics Vol.27 No.1

Evaluation of the Composition and Morphology of a WTi/Si System Processed by a Picosecond Laser

Suzana Petrovic,D. Peruško,I. Radovi-Bogdanovic,G. Brankovic,M. Cˇekada,B. Gakovic,M. Jakšic,M. Trtica,Milosavljevic 대한금속·재료학회 2012 METALS AND MATERIALS International Vol.18 No.3

In this work we studied the influence of laser radiation on the composition, structure and morphology of WTi thin films deposited on n-type (100) silicon wafers. The films were deposited by d.c. sputtering from a 70:30 at% W-Ti target, using Ar ions, to a thickness of ~190 nm. Irradiation was performed with a pulsed Nd:YAG laser operating at 1064 nm, whereas the pulse duration was 150 ps. Laser fluences of 3.2and 5.9 J/cm2were found to be sufficient for modification of the WTi/silicon target system. The results show: (i) ablation of WTi thin film and a Si substrate in the central zone of spots, (ii) appearance of hydrodynamic features like resolidified material, (iii) partial ablation of the WTi thin film at the periphery and (iv) appearance of thin film cracks at the far periphery. On the non-ablated areas, the laser modifica-tion induced changes in composition, such as inter-mixing of components at the WTi/Si interface with for-mation of silicides in both metals. Surface oxidation was the dominant process in the ablated areas, which is demonstrated by the presence of a SiO2 phase.

Parametric Model Variability of the Proximal Femoral Sculptural Shape

Suzana Petrovic Savic,Branko Ristic,Zoran Jovanovic,Aleksandar Matic,Nikola Prodanovic,Nabil Anwer,Lihong Qiao,Goran Devedzic 한국정밀공학회 2018 International Journal of Precision Engineering and Vol.19 No.7

In this paper, a method of parameterisation of a proximal femur model is presented. The created model retains all the anatomical and morphological features of a realistic model. The parametric model of the femur, the so-called master model, is defined by establishing a relation between appropriate femoral regions which extend along the parametrically described axis of the femur. An initial 3D model of the femur is segmented from the CT image and further parameterized to a master model with the potential for customization, i.e. for adaptation to patient-specific values using X-ray images, still maintaining precise anatomical consistency. The first step towards the femur customization is the contour extraction of different types of tissues represented in X-ray images. As medical images can be blurry, image processing was carried out and a Canny edge detector operator was applied. The numerical values of the parameters were determined by manual measuring of defined regions on an X-ray image. The variability testing was performed on 12 femurs. The proposed model can greatly contribute to preoperative planning, implant selection, as well as to the overall shortening of intervention time.

Genetic Variability and Frequencies of ABO Blood Types among Different Samples of Patients from Serbia

Cvjeticanin, Suzana,Marinkovic, Dragoslav 한국유전학회 2005 Genes & Genomics Vol.27 No.1

Our study of genetic homozygosity degree includes an analysis of the presence, distribution and individual combination of 20 to 30 selected genetically controlled morpho-physiological traits in the four samples of patients from Belgrade affected with different diseases (OLD-congenital hip dislocation N = 93, DM-diabetes mellitus N = 95, TBC-tuberculosis N = 79, BC-bronchogen carcinoma N = 109). Taking into consideration our experience, as well as the experience of numerous scientists studying the nature of the inheritance of mono- and oligo-genetically controlled qualitative traits, we applied this methodology to estimate the proportion of such homozygously recessive characteristics (HRC-test). This population-genetic study did not only show statistically significant difference in the middle value of genetic homozygosity (CHD - 7.1±0.1, control - 5.2±0.1 ; DM - 6.3±0.3, control - 4.4±0.2 ; TBC - 6.1±0.3, BC - 5.9±0.3, control - 4.9±0.3), but also in the differences in the distribution type, as well as the differences in the presence of certain individual combinations of such traits. Further applications of HRC-testing may have practical use in genetic counselling, since homozygosity seems to be correlated with an individual's susceptibility to different diseases. The frequency of ABO blood types in the samples of patients with CUD, DM and BC were quite similar to the percentage of blood groups in the Serbian population. In the sample of TBC-affected patients, O blood group is almost significantly on the decrease, while the other blood groups are slightly on the increase, according to the average value of those blood groups in Serbian popoulation.

Identification of viridans streptococci With Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption & Ionization Time-of-flight Mass Spectrometry by an In-house Method and a Commercially Available System

Catalina-Suzana Stingu,Klaus Eschrich,Juliane Thiel,Toralf Borgmann,Reiner Schaumann,Arne C. Rodloff 대한진단검사의학회 2017 Annals of Laboratory Medicine Vol.37 No.5

Two matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS)-based methods were compared for their ability to identify viridans streptococci. One approach employed a reference database and software developed in-house. All in-house measurements were performed using an Autoflex II Instrument (Bruker Daltonics GmbH, Germany). The other system, a VITEK-MS (BioMérieux, France) was operated on the commercially available V2.0 Knowledge Base for Clinical Use database. Clinical isolates of viridans streptococci (n=184) were examined. Discrepant results were resolved by 16S rDNA sequencing. Species-level identification percentages were compared by a chi-square test. The in-house method correctly identified 179 (97%) and 175 (95%) isolates to the group and species level respectively. In comparison, the VITEK-MS system correctly identified 145 (79%) isolates to the group and species level. The difference between the two methods was statistically significant at both group and species levels. Using the Autoflex II instrument combined with an extraction method instead of whole cell analysis resulted in more reliable viridans streptococci identification. Our results suggest that combining extraction with powerful analysis software and the careful choice of well-identified strains included into the database was useful for identifying viridans streptococci species.

Application of Information Technologies to Improve the Quality of Services Provided to the Tourism Industry Under the COVID-19 Restrictions

Iudina, Elena Vladimirovna,Balova, Suzana L.,Maksimov, Dmitrij Vasilievich,Skoromets, Elena Klimentinovna,Ponyaeva, Tatyana Anatolyevna,Ksenofontova, Ekaterina Andreevna International Journal of Computer ScienceNetwork S 2022 International journal of computer science and netw Vol.22 No.6

The modern stage of society's development is characterized by the rapid penetration of information technologies into all spheres of life. Their use contributes to improving the quality of tourism services, as well as the competitiveness of tourism industry enterprises. The role of information technology in tourism is growing more and more every year, which determines the relevance of the study of modern trends in the use of information technology in the tourism sector. The purpose of the study is to determine the possibilities of using information technologies to improve the quality of services provided to the tourism industry under the COVID-19 restrictions. The article systematizes the main approaches to the "cluster" category and provides an original definition of the "regional tourist cluster" concept. Based on an expert survey, the main trends in the introduction of information technologies in the tourism industry under the COVID-19 restrictions have been identified, which include virtual reality and augmented reality, speech recognition technologies, photo, video, audio (contactless control technologies), mobile IT applications and Big Data technologies. It has been concluded that the vast majority of improvements in the organization of tourism services under restrictions will be based on the organization of virtual solutions and online activities. The types of tourism services will also change, and information technology will help their development and dissemination.

Validation of Electrical Impedance Tomography Qualitative and Quantitative Values and Comparison of the Numeric Pain Distress Score against Mammography

Juliana, Norsham,Shahar, Suzana,Chelliah, Kanaga Kumari,Ghazali, Ahmad Rohi,Osman, Fazilah,Sahar, Mohd Azmani Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention 2014 Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention Vol.15 No.14

Electrical impedance tomography (EIT) is a potential supplement for mammogram screening. This study aimed to evaluate and feasibility of EIT as opposed to mammography and to determine pain perception with both imaging methods. Women undergoing screening mammography at the Radiology Department of National University of Malaysia Medical Centre were randomly selected for EIT imaging. All women were requested to give a pain score after each imaging session. Two independent raters were chosen to define the image findings of EIT. A total of 164 women in the age range from 40 to 65-year-old participated and were divided into two groups; normal and abnormal. EIT sensitivity and specificity for rater 1 were 69.4% and 63.3, whereas for rater 2 they were 55.3% and 57.0% respectively. The reliability for each rater ranged between good to very good (p<0.05). Quantitative values of EIT showed there were significant differences in all values between groups (ANCOVA, p<0.05). Interestingly, EIT scored a median pain score of $1.51{\pm}0.75$ whereas mammography scored $4.15{\pm}0.87$ (Mann Whitney U test, p<0.05). From these quantitative values, EIT has the potential as a health discriminating index. Its ability to replace image findings from mammography needs further investigation.