A Technology-Dependent Information Literacy Model within the Confines of a Limited Resources Environment

The purpose of this paper is to investigate information literacy as an increasingly evolving trend in computer education. A quantitative research design was implemented, and a longitudinal case study methodology was conducted to measure tendencies in information literacy skill development and to develop a practical information literacy model. It was found that both students and educators believe that the combination of information literacy with a learning management system is more effective in increasing information literacy and research skills where information resources are limited. Based on the quantitative study, a practical, technology-dependent information literacy model was developed and tested in a case study, resulting in fostering the information literacy skills of students who majored in information systems. These results are especially important in smaller universities with libraries having limited technology capabilities, located in developing countries.

Metabolomics in the Cloud: Scaling Computational Tools to Big Data

Background: Metabolomics datasets are becoming increasingly large and complex, with multiple types of algorithms and workflows needed to process and analyse the data. A cloud infrastructure with portable software tools can provide much needed resources enabling faster processing of much larger datasets than would be possible at any individual lab. The PhenoMeNal project has developed such an infrastructure, allowing users to run analyses on local or commercial cloud platforms. We have examined the computational scaling behaviour of the PhenoMeNal platform using four different implementations across 1-1000 virtual CPUs using two common metabolomics tools. Results: Our results show that data which takes up to 4 days to process on a standard desktop computer can be processed in just 10 min on the largest cluster. Improved runtimes come at the cost of decreased efficiency, with all platforms falling below 80% efficiency above approximately 1/3 of the maximum number of vCPUs. An economic analysis revealed that running on large scale cloud platforms is cost effective compared to traditional desktop systems. Conclusions: Overall, cloud implementations of PhenoMeNal show excellent scalability for standard metabolomics computing tasks on a range of platforms, making them a compelling choice for research computing in metabolomics.

Molecular dynamics simulation (MDS) analysis of Vibrio cholerae ToxT virulence factor complexed with docked potential inhibitors

The ToxT transcription factor mediates the transcription of the two major virulence factors in Vibrio cholerae. It has a DNA binding domain made of α4, α5, α6, α7, α8, α9 and α10 helices that is responsible for the transcription of virulence genes. Therefore, it is of interest to screen ToxT against the ZINC ligand database containing data for a million compounds. The QSAR model identified 40 top hits for ToxT. Two target protein complexes with ligands Lig N1 and Lig N2 with high score were selected for molecular dynamics simulation. Simulation data shows that ligands are stable in the DNA binding domain of ToxT. Moreover, Lig N1 and Lig N2 passed pharmacological as well as ADME filters along with g-mmpbsa analysis with binding affinity of -199.831 kJ/mol for Lig N1 and - 286.951 kJ/mol for Lig N2. Moreover, no Lipinski and PhysChem violations were identified. It is further observed that these compounds were not inhibitors of P-glycoprotein, CYP450 and renal organic cation transporters. The LD50 of 2.5804 mol/kg for Lig N1 and 2.7788 mol/kg for Lig N2 was noted with acceptable toxicity index.

Genomic amplification of chromosome 7 in the Doxorubicin resistant K562 cell line

Acquisition of multi-drug resistance (MDR) is a major hindrance towards the successful treatment of cancers. Over expression of a range of ATP-dependent efflux pumps, particularly ABCB1 is a widely reported mechanism of cancer cell MDR. Approximately 30% acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients demonstrate ABCB1 over expression. Several mechanisms for up regulation of ABCB1 have been proposed. Our aim was to investigate the role of genomic amplification of the chromosome 7 region with regard to its influence on ABCB1 over expression in AML cell line. For this, we developed Doxorubicin (Dox) resistant leukemic cell line from K562 cells, demonstrating MDR phenotype. The chromosomal changes associated with the acquisition of MDR were characterized by array- based comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH) with the parental K562 cell line as the reference genome. Significant genomic gains in the chromosomal region corresponding to 7q11.21-7q22.1 were observed in Dox selected cell line. Moreover, the amplicon contains the ABCB1 gene locus at 7q21.1 with a copy number gain of >4. ABCB1 mRNA was found to be up-regulated by54-fold. Our results demonstrate that the development of MDR in K562/Dox is underlined by a genomic amplification of the chromosome 7 region harboring the ABCB1 gene.

Evaluation of systemic inflammation in patients being weaned from mechanical ventilation

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate systemic inflammatory factors and their relation to success or failure in a spontaneous ventilation test. METHODS: This cross-sectional study included a sample of 54 adult patients. Demographic data and clinical parameters were collected, and blood samples were collected in the first minute of the spontaneous ventilation test to evaluate interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, IL-8, and IL-10, tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) and C-reactive protein. RESULTS: Patients who experienced extubation failure presented a lower rapid shallow breathing index than those who passed, and these patients also showed a significant increase in C-reactive protein 48 hours after extubation. We observed, moreover, that each unit increase in inflammatory factors led to a higher risk of spontaneous ventilation test failure, with a risk of 2.27 (1.001 – 4.60, p =0.049) for TNFα, 2.23 (1.06 – 6.54, p =0.037) for IL-6, 2.66 (1.06 – 6.70, p =0.037) for IL-8 and 2.08 (1.01 – 4.31, p =0.04) for IL-10, and the rapid shallow breathing index was correlated with IL-1 (r=-0.51, p =0.04). CONCLUSIONS: C-reactive protein is increased in patients who fail the spontaneous ventilation test, and increased ILs are associated with a greater prevalence of failure in this process; the rapid shallow breathing index may not be effective in patients who present systemic inflammation.

DETERMINANTS OF YOUTH EMIGRATION IN SOMALIA

ROLE OF WOMEN EMPOWERMENT IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF SOMALIA. A CASE STUDY OF MOGADISHU-BANADIR REGION SOMALIA

INFLUENCE OF PECKING ORDER HIERARCHY ON PERFORMANCE OF REAL ESTATE SECTOR IN NAIROBI COUNTY, KENYA

ECONOMIC FACTORS AND FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF THE PETROLEUM FIRMS IN KENYA

Approach to Identify Factors that Enhance Patient Satisfaction in Public Hospital, a Case Study