Search Results (39)

Grounded in motivation theory, this study examines the direct relationship between a supportive workplace environment (SWE) and employee performance (EP). The SWE has been identified into three dimensions, i.e., work recognition (WR), work motivation (WM), and career development (CD). Moreover, we focused on the mediating effect of employee engagement (EE) on the relationship between SWE and EP. A quantitative research method was used, and data were collected through a questionnaire survey. Data were collected from 349 respondents. The target population were the senior managers, middle managers, and administrative staff working in the semi-government organizations based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The data were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) software version 4.0. The results indicate that in the direct relationship, workplace recognition, workplace motivation, and career development are positively connected with EP. Similarly, the findings show that employee engagement positively mediates between an SWE (work recognition, work motivation, and career development) and EP. This study suggests that managers can establish practices acknowledging and appreciating employee contributions, leading to increased motivation and improved performance. Creating a work environment that fosters work motivation by addressing employees’ physical and safety, social, and egoistic needs can further enhance employee engagement and performance. The study highlights the significant role of work recognition, work motivation, career development, and employee engagement in influencing employee performance. This study also recommends some practical implications for the semi-governmental organizations. First, it was suggested that organizations create a workplace environment in which employees feel appreciated, valued, and happy. Second, the organizations introduce the employee engagement culture at the department level as well as at the organizational level. Third, the organizations also introduce flexible work schedules for middle-level and administrative staff. Finally, Saudi organizations recognize the output of their employees and provide them with monetary incentives. Full article

In smart homes, heavy reliance on appliance automation has increased, along with the energy demand in developing urban areas, making efficient energy management an important factor. To address the scheduling of appliances under Demand-Side Management, this article explores the use of heuristic-based optimization techniques (HOTs) in smart homes (SHs) equipped with renewable and sustainable energy resources (RSERs) and energy storage systems (ESSs). The optimal model for minimization of the peak-to-average ratio (PAR), considering user comfort constraints, is validated by using different techniques, such as the Genetic Algorithm (GA), Binary Particle Swarm Optimization (BPSO), Wind-Driven Optimization (WDO), Bacterial Foraging Optimization (BFO) and the Genetic Modified Particle Swarm Optimization (GmPSO) algorithm, to minimize electricity costs, the PAR, carbon emissions and delay discomfort. This research investigates the energy optimization results of three real-world scenarios. The three scenarios demonstrate the benefits of gradually assembling RSERs and ESSs and integrating them into SHs employing HOTs. The simulation results show substantial outcomes, as in the scenario of Condition 1, GmPSO decreased carbon emissions from 300 kg to 69.23 kg, reducing emissions by 76.9%; bill prices were also cut from an unplanned value of 400.00 cents to 150 cents, a 62.5% reduction. The PAR was decreased from an unscheduled value of 4.5 to 2.2 with the GmPSO algorithm, which reduced the value by 51.1%. The scenario of Condition 2 showed that GmPSO reduced the PAR from 0.5 (unscheduled) to 0.2, a 60% reduction; the costs were reduced from 500.00 cents to 200.00 cents, a 60% reduction; and carbon emissions were reduced from 250.00 kg to 150 kg, a 60% reduction by GmPSO. In the scenario of Condition 3, where batteries and RSERs were integrated, the GmPSO algorithm reduced the carbon emission value to 158.3 kg from an unscheduled value of 208.3 kg, a reduction of 24%. The energy cost was decreased from an unplanned value of 500 cents to 300 cents with GmPSO, decreasing the overall cost by 40%. The GmPSO algorithm achieved a 57.1% reduction in the PAR value from an unscheduled value of 2.8 to 1.2. Full article

In the current study, matrices of losartan potassium were formulated with two different polymers (Ethocel 10 premium and Ethocel 10FP premium), along with a filler and a lubricant, at different drug-to-polymer w/w ratios (10:3, 10:4, and 10:5). The matrices were tested by the direct compression method, and their hardness, diameter, thickness, friability, weight variation, content uniformity, and in vitro dissolution tests were assessed to determine 24-h drug release rates. The matrices with Ethocel 10 FP at a 10:4 ratio exhibited pseudo-zero-order kinetics (n-value of 0.986), while the dissolution data of the test matrices and reference tablets did not match. The new test-optimized matrices were also tested in rabbits, and their pharmacokinetic parameters were investigated: half-life (11.78 ± 0.018 h), Tmax (2.105 ± 1.131 h), C_max (205.98 ± 0.321 μg/mL), AUC_o (5931.10 ± 1.232 μg·h/mL), AUC_o-inf (7348.46 ± 0.234 μg·h/mL), MRT_o-48h (17.34 ± 0.184 h), and Cl (0.002 ± 0.134 mL/min). A correlation value of 0.985 between the in vitro and in vivo results observed for the test-optimized matrices was observed, indicating a level-A correlation between the percentage of the drug released in vitro and the percentage of the drug absorbed in vivo. The matrices might improve patient compliance with once-a-day dosing and therapeutic outcomes. Full article

Vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) have become an essential part of the intelligent transportation system because they provide secure communication among vehicles, enhance vehicle safety, and improve the driving experience. However, due to the openness and vulnerability of wireless networks, the participating vehicles in a VANET system are prone to a variety of cyberattacks. To secure the privacy of vehicles and assure the authenticity, integrity, and nonrepudiation of messages, numerous signature schemes have been employed in the literature on VANETs. The majority of these solutions, however, are either not fully secured or entail high computational costs. To address the above issues and to enable secure communication between the vehicle and the roadside unit (RSU), we propose a certificateless aggregate signature (CLAS) scheme based on hyperelliptic curve cryptography (HECC). This scheme enables participating vehicles to share their identities with trusted authorities via an open wireless channel without revealing their identities to unauthorized participants. Another advantage of this approach is its capacity to release the partial private key to participating devices via an open wireless channel while keeping its identity secret from any other third parties. A provable security analysis through the random oracle model (ROM), which relies on the hyperelliptic curve discrete logarithm problem, is performed, and we have proven that the proposed scheme is unforgeable against Type 1 ($FG{R}_1$) and Type 2 ($FG{R}_2$) forgers. The proposed scheme is compared with relevant schemes in terms of computational cost and communication overhead, and the results demonstrate that the proposed scheme is more efficient than the existing schemes in maintaining high-security levels. Full article

A basic urea technique was successfully used to synthesize Mg/Al-Layered double hydroxides (Mg/Al LDHs), which were then calcined at 400 °C to form Mg/Al-Layered double oxides (Mg/Al LDOs). To reconstruct LDHs, Mg/Al LDOs were fabricated with different feeding ratios of Ni by the co-precipitation method. After synthesis, the Ni/Mg/Al-layered double hydroxides (NMA-LDHs) with 20% and 30% Ni (S1 and S2) were roasted at 400 °C and transformed into corresponding Ni/Mg/Al-layered double oxides (NMA-LDOs) (S1a and S2b, respectively). The physiochemical properties of synthesized samples were also evaluated by various characterization techniques, such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), and Brunauer, Emmett, and Teller (BET). The adsorption behavior of methyl orange (MO) onto the synthesized samples was evaluated in batch adsorption mode under varying conditions of contact time, adsorbent quantity, and solution pH. As the dosage amount increased from 0.01–0.04 g, the removal percentage of MO dye also increased from 83% to 90% for S1, 84% to 92% for S1a, 77% to 87% for S2, and 93% to 98% for S2b, respectively. For all of the samples, the adsorption kinetics were well described by the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The equilibrium adsorption data were well fitted to both Langmuir and Freundlich models for methyl orange (MO). Finally, three adsorption-desorption cycles show that NMA-LDHs and NMA-LDOs have greater adsorption and reusability performance for MO dye, signifying that the design and fabrication strategy can facilitate the application of the natural hydrotalcite material in water remediation. Full article

Fault detection continues to be a relevant and ongoing topic in multiterminal High Voltage Direct Current (MT-HVDC) grid protection. In MT-HVDC grids, however, high DC-fault currents result from a failure of a complex protective threshold in traditional protection schemes, making Voltage Source Converter (VSC) vulnerable to such potent transient currents. In this innovative single-ended DC protection scheme, multiple time window segments are used to consider the effects of the transient period across limiting inductors at each end of the link. Multiple segments of 0–0.8, 0.8–1.5, and 1.5–3.0 ms reduce relay failure and improve the sensitivity to high fault impedance while requiring minimal computational effort. It employs feature extraction tools such as Stationary Wavelet Transform and Random Search (RS)-based Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) for detecting transmission line faults within DC networks. Its goal is to improve the accuracy and reliability of protective relays as a result of various fault events. Simulations showed that the proposed algorithms could effectively identify any input data segment and detect DC transmission faults up to 500 ohms. Accuracy for the first segment is 100% for fault impedance up to 200 ohms, whereas the second and third segments show 100% accuracy for high impedance faults up to 400 ohms. In addition, they maintain 100% stability even under external disturbances. Full article

Sustainable chemistry is a relatively new field that aims to achieve both economic and environmental goals simultaneously. This paper discusses a cleaner and more sustainable method for dyeing cotton fabric using Direct Violet 09 and Reactive Violet 05 dye. It has been noticed that good color characteristics were obtained when cotton fabric was dyed with 35 mL of microwave-treated Reactive Violet 05 dye solution of 7 pH and 2 g Aluminum sulfate for 30 min at 60 °C. When dyeing cotton fabric with Direct Violet 09 dye, it has been observed that cotton fabric, when microwave treated for 6 min and dyed at 80 °C for 50 min using 35 mL of non-treated dye solution of 7 pH with 2 g Potassium sulfate, produces good results. The colorfastness of the dyed fabrics using ISO standards was also evaluated. Overall, it was found that the use of microwave radiation improves the sustainability of the dyeing process. Full article

Natural products have gained worldwide favor due to their sustainable and ayurvedic nature. In this study, rose containing anthocyanin was explored as a source of yellowish–pink natural colorant for wool dyeing using various solvents (aqueous, alkaline, acidic, and basified methanol). Dyeing of wool was performed by optimizing the following parameters: pH, temperature, time, and salt concentration. It was observed that aqueous extract with a pH of 3 employed at 80 °C for 35 min with the addition of 4 g/100 mL salt, acidic extract with a pH of 2 employed at 40 °C for 35 min with the addition of 2 g/100 mL salt, alkaline extract with a pH of 1 employed at 80 °C for 45 min with the addition of 3 g/100 mL salt, and methanolic extract with a pH of 2 employed at 80 °C for 45 min with the addition of 4 g/100 mL salt resulted in high tint (K/S) values. To improve the colorfastness properties, salts of iron (Fe⁺²), aluminum (Al⁺³), and tannic acid (Tn) were used as chemical mordant, whereas turmeric and pomegranate were used as biomordants. Iron (Fe⁺²) and pomegranate resulted in shades with good colorfastness characteristics. The plant extract and dyed fabrics were also evaluated against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli, respectively, to observe their antibacterial potential. The results indicate that wool fabric dyed with naturally sourced rose petals can be used as valuable antibacterial fabric due to the presence of various bioactive compounds by dissipating the effect of allergy-causing synthetic dyed fabrics. Full article

The current study aims to examine the reverse association between circular economy innovation (CEI) and digital sustainability (DS), as well as the dual mediation of government incentives (GI) among firms. Data was collected through a structured-questionnaire-based survey among financial institutions (banks, insurance, and financial companies) in Pakistan, Malaysia, and China. The study collected data via structured questionnaires in an online survey and analysed the data using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM), to find results. The results revealed that CEI has a two-way relationship with the DS among firms in the defined context. Furthermore, the results confirmed the dual mediating role of GI between CEI and DS among firms. The outcomes can guide the policy makers to focus on the practices of CEI in the settings of the relevant state support schemes, to enhance the practices of DS among firms in emerging markets. The implications of the study are presented at the end of this study. Full article

Introduction: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNAs that play a key role in post-transcriptional modulation of individual genes’ expression. Several miRNA variants from different populations are known to be associated with an increased risk of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Aim: This study was undertaken with the aim to investigate the association of single nucleotide variants; namely, rs2292832, rs3746444, rs11614913, rs1044165, and rs767649 of MIR149, MIR499, MIR196, MIR223, and MIR155, respectively, with RA in the Pakistani population. Methods: A case-control study was performed by recruiting and genotyping a total of 600 individuals (300 cases and 300 controls) for these five variants using a TaqMan single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotyping assay. The resultant genotypic data was statistically analyzed through a chi-squared test for its association with RA under different inheritance models. Results: We found a significant association of rs2292832 with RA at genotypic (co-dominant (p < 0.0001), dominant (CC vs. TT + CT: OR 2.063 (1.437–2.962); p = 0.0001), recessive (TT vs. CT + CC: OR 0.376 (0.259–0.548); p < 0.0001)), and allelic (allele C) levels ((OR 0.506 (0.402–0637); p < 0.0001)). Similarly, the rs3746444 showed a significant association with RA under co-dominant (p = 0.0001), dominant (GG vs. AA + AG: OR 5.246 (3.414–8.061); p < 0.0001), recessive (AA vs. GG + AG: OR 0.653 (0.466–0.916); p = 0.014), and additive models (G vs. A; OR 0.779 (0.620–0.978); p = 0.03). However, we did not observe any significant association of rs11614913, rs1044165, or rs767649 with RA in our subjects. Conclusion: To our knowledge, this was the first study that investigated and found an association between functional polymorphisms in miRNAs and RA in the Pakistani population. Full article

The coloring behavior of santalin, a natural reddish-brown dye derived from sandalwood, has been investigated in this work for the dyeing of silk fabrics while being heated in MW radiation. Microwave (MW) radiation up to 5 min has been employed to isolate colorant (Santalin) from red sandalwood (Ptrecarpus santalinus) in selected medium, and bio-mordants in competing with salts as chemical-mordants have been included. Statistical analysis was made and dyeing variables were selected for getting dark shades though mordants. MW treatment for 3 min. to both extract and fabric was selected and mild dyeing conditions were optimized statistically to get dark shades. On applying chemical mordants, selected amount of salts of Al⁺³, Fe⁺² and T.A. before and after dyeing, has given good results. Comparatively, selected extracts of plant based sources have shown colorfast shades of high strength. The MW radiation has excellent potential to extract dye form plants using optimum medium through less time and energy, and the application of plant extracts along with sustainable salts have developed colorfast shades. Full article

Green products such as plant pigments are gaining fame globally due to their excellent ayurvedic and biological characteristics. In this study, microwave (M.W.) has been employed to isolate colourant from black pepper (Piper nigrum L.), and bio-mordants have been included to obtain colourfast shades. Central Composite design (CCD) was formulated under response surface methodology (RSM) to optimize dyeing variables statistically. The results obtained after a series of experiments show that using 35 mL of irradiated acidic extract (RE = 6 min) of (pH4) in the presence of 1 g/100 mL of table salt as an exhausting agent at 65 °C for 55 min has demonstrated excellent colour depth (K/S) onto microwave-treated silk fabric (RS = 6 min). By applying bio-mordants, it has been found that walnut extract (1.5%), pinenut hull extract (1%), and orange peel extract (1.5%) are there before dyeing. In contrast, walnut extract (1.5%), pinenut hull extract (1.5%), and orange peel extracts (1.5%) after dyeing have shown colourfast shades of high strength. Comparatively, salts of Al⁺³ (1.5%), salts of Fe⁺² (1.5%), and T.A. (tannic acid = 1.5%) before dyeing, while salts of Al⁺³ (0.5%) and salts of Fe⁺² (2%) and T.A. (Tannic acid = 1%) after dyeing, have given good results. It has been observed that the use of M.W. radiation has not only improved the yield of dyes extracted from leaves when applied to silk fabric but also the inclusion of the optimum amount of bio and chemical mordants have resulted in moderate to good and excellent colour fastness ratings. Full article

Background and Objectives: Lamellar ichthyosis is a rare skin disease characterized by large, dark brown plate-like scales on the entire body surface with minimum or no erythema. This phenotype is frequently associated with a mutation in the TGM1 gene, encoding the enzyme transglutaminase 1 which plays a catalytic role in the formation of the cornified cell envelop. The present study aimed to carry out clinical and genetic characterization of the autosomal recessive lamellar ichthyosis family from Balochistan. Materials and Methods: A consanguineous family with lamellar ichthyosis was enrolled from Balochistan, Pakistan. PCR amplification of all the exons and splice site junctions of the TGM1 gene followed by Sanger sequencing was performed on the genomic DNA. The identified variant was checked by In silico prediction tools to evaluate the effect of the variant on protein. Results: Sanger sequencing identified a homozygous nonsense variant c.131G >A (p.Trp44*) in the TGM1 gene that segregated in the autosomal recessive mode of inheritance in the family. The identified variant results in premature termination of transcribed mRNA and is predicted to cause a truncated or absent translation product transglutaminase-1 (TGase-1) accompanied by loss of catalytic activity, causing a severe clinical phenotype of lamellar ichthyosis in the patients. Conclusions: Here, we report a consanguineous lamellar ichthyosis family with a homozygous nonsense variant in the TGM1 gene. The variant is predicted as pathogenic by different In silico prediction tools. Full article

In this study, cobalt oxide (Co₃O₄), Mn-doped Co₃O₄ (MDCO), and Mn-doped Co₃O₄-functionalized carbon nanotube (MDCO-CNTs) were synthesized via the co-precipitation method using cobalt nitrate and manganese nitrate as a cobalt and manganese precursor, respectively. Synthesized materials were assessed using different characterization techniques like scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and UV-visible spectroscopy. Congo red in an aqueous solution was adopted as the model dye to estimate the adsorption-assisted photocatalytic efficiency of the synthesized materials. The samples studied for adsorpsstion-assisted photocatalysis were found to be highly effective and among all the samples, the best removal performance (80%) was obtained by treating the MDCO-CNTs composite for 50 min at 50 °C. Mathematical modeling shows that all of the samples followed a pseudo-second-order kinetic model and data best fitted to a Langmuir isotherm, implying that the process involved in the removal of Congo red dye is chemisorption. Full article

Bergenia ciliata (B. ciliate) leaf extract was used as a capping and stabilizing agent to synthesize copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs). The selection of B. ciliate is purely based on its rich phytochemical composition and less utilization in green chemistry. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis showed that the CuO NPs were found to be highly crystalline, while the irregular morphology and other structural properties were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and the average particle size was found to be 50.05 nm. Energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy was used to determine the percentage composition and purity, whereas Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy was utilized to examine the surface functional groups. CuO NPs were tested for their antibacterial properties against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, and the activity was found to increase with an increasing concentration of CuO NPs in the wells. The dose-dependent antioxidant potential is slightly higher than ascorbic acid. Full article