{"title":"Phytochemical characterization of chloroform seed extract from Schinus molle collected in the Kingdom of Lesotho","authors":"M. Pillai, K. S. Matela, M. George, D. Young","doi":"10.46537/SCIBRU.V17I2.76","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.46537/SCIBRU.V17I2.76","url":null,"abstract":"Chloroform seed extract from Schinus molle was analyzed for its phytochemical compositions by GC-MS. A total of 38 compounds were identified. S. molle has therapeutic applications in traditional medicine. Essential oils obtained from various parts of this plant are reported to have promising biological and pharmacological activity.","PeriodicalId":332684,"journal":{"name":"Scientia Bruneiana","volume":"17 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-04-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"129390031","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A fast and sensitive real-time PCR assay to detect Legionella pneumophila with the ZEN™ double-quenched probe","authors":"N. Salihah, M. Hossain, M. Ahmed","doi":"10.46537/SCIBRU.V17I1.69","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.46537/SCIBRU.V17I1.69","url":null,"abstract":"Legionella pneumophila is a waterborne pathogen that causes respiratory ailments including Pontiac fever and Legionnaires’ disease. A culture-free, fast and sensitive detection technique is very important for detection of the pathogen. The present study describes the implementation of rapid cycle real-time PCR in the detection of Legionella pneumophila in water through design and development of a real-time qPCR assay based on the ZENTM probe chemistry. The assay targeted the mip gene for the fast and specific detection of Legionella pneumophila. The novel assay was very specific and fast as the amplification was obtained within 30 minutes. Sensitivity of the assay as evaluated in terms of its limit of detection (LoD) was as low as 100 cells/reaction with the quantification range between 1x103 and 1x107 cells/reaction. The assay has been confirmed for repeatability and reproducibility with approximately less than 1% mean intra- and inter-assay variations (CV%). Therefore, the assay reported can be used for a fast, sensitive and specific culture-free detection and quantification of Legionella pneumophila in water.","PeriodicalId":332684,"journal":{"name":"Scientia Bruneiana","volume":"1 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-10-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"116050170","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Checklist of Seedplant holdings of the UBD Herbarium (UBDH), with 234 new plant records for Brunei Darussalam","authors":"Azim Zamri, J. Slik","doi":"10.46537/SCIBRU.V17I1.68","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.46537/SCIBRU.V17I1.68","url":null,"abstract":"Here we provide a checklist of all seed plant collections (Angiosperms and Gymnosperms) present in the UBD Herbarium (UBDH). The plants are arranged in alphabetical order by family, genus and species, using the latest taxonomic classifications. UBDH contained a total of 5271 databased seed plant collections (1060 fertile, and 4211 sterile), consisting of 1386 species from 130 families. The collections covered only a limited part of Brunei Darussalam, being concentrated near the easily accessible coastal zones of Muara, Tutong and Belait, as well as near the Kuala Belalong Field Study Centre in Temburong. Because the majority of collections in UBDH came from permanent forest plots, the collections are dominated by tree families, with Dipterocarpaceae both the most collected and species rich family. We found 234 species in UBDH that were not listed in the Brunei checklist and are potentially new records for Brunei Darussalam. This would increase the known number of seed plants in Brunei by ca. 5%. The high number of new species records suggests that the Brunei seed plant flora is still incompletely known.","PeriodicalId":332684,"journal":{"name":"Scientia Bruneiana","volume":"8 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-10-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"126342769","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Linking Geostatistical Methods: Co-Kriging – Principal Component Analysis (PCA); with Integrated Well Data and Seismic Cross Sections for Improved Hydrocarbon Prospecting (Case Study: Field X)","authors":"R. Andika, H. Dewi","doi":"10.46537/SCIBRU.V17I1.71","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.46537/SCIBRU.V17I1.71","url":null,"abstract":"In this era of globalization, the demand for energy is rising in tandem with social and economic development throughout the world. Current hydrocarbon demand is much greater than domestic crude oil and natural gas production. In order to bridge the gap between energy supply and demand, it is imperative to accelerate exploration activities and develop new effective and efficient techniques for discovering hydrocarbons. Therefore, this study presents a new method for integrating seismic inversion data and well data using geostatistical principles that allow for the high level of processing and interpretation expected nowadays. The main part of this paper will concern the preparation and processing of the input data, with the aim of constructing a map of hydrocarbon-potency distribution in a certain horizon. It will make use of principal component analysis (PCA) and the co-kriging method. In the case study of Field X, we analyze a single new dataset by applying PCA to every existing well that contains multivariate rock-physics data. The interpretation that can be extracted from the output gives us information about the hydrocarbon presence in a particular depth range. We use that output as our primary dataset from which our research map is constructed by applying the co-kriging method. We also rely on an acoustic impedance dataset that is available for a certain horizon to fulfill the co-kriging interpolation requirement. All of the acoustic impedance data and output data that result from the application of PCA in a particular horizon give strong correlation factors. Our resulting final map is also validated with information from proven hydrocarbon discoveries. It is demonstrated that the map gives accurate information suggesting the location of hydrocarbon potency, which will need some detailed follow-up work to enhance the distribution probabilities. This method can be considered for hydrocarbon prediction in any area of sparse well control.","PeriodicalId":332684,"journal":{"name":"Scientia Bruneiana","volume":"6 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-10-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"126763367","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Lowland rainforest bat communities of Ulu Temburong National Park with two new records for Brunei Darussalam","authors":"T. Murrell, P. Bishop, R. A. Wahab, T. Grafe","doi":"10.46537/SCIBRU.V17I1.67","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.46537/SCIBRU.V17I1.67","url":null,"abstract":"Tropical rainforest ecosystems have high levels of both animal and plant biodiversity with many aspects of their ecology understudied. In particular, extensive research is still required to gather accurate estimates of distribution and abundance of forest-interior bat species in Borneo. Accurate abundance data and further knowledge of individual species’ ecology is vital for implementing effective conservation. Bats were captured using a harp trap, set up along established trails and around buildings, at Kuala Belalong Field Studies Centre, Ulu Temburong National Park, Brunei Darussalam between 14th-19th January 2018. Ulu Temburong National Park is comprised of pristine primary mixed dipterocarp lowland rainforest that has not been exposed to logging or fragmentation. A total of nine bat species were recorded, with two new records for Brunei, Miniopterus australis (Lesser bent-winged bat, N = 1) and Myotis horsfieldii (Horsfield’s myotis, N = 5). Furthermore, a coincidental sighting of a colony of Megaderma spasma roosting on the mangrove island Selirong, in Temburong District is reported here. The bat species captured and encountered in this small-scale study expand our understanding of bat communities in Temburong as well as indicate that current records for the area are far from complete. This affirms the need for further work in building up accurate abundance and diversity estimates, both for Ulu Temburong National Park and Brunei Darussalam.","PeriodicalId":332684,"journal":{"name":"Scientia Bruneiana","volume":"39 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-10-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"131986179","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Adsorption of brilliant green dye on Nephelium mutabile (Pulasan) leaves","authors":"Nur Afiqah Hazirah Mohamad Zaidi, L. Jing, L. Lim","doi":"10.46537/SCIBRU.V17I1.70","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.46537/SCIBRU.V17I1.70","url":null,"abstract":"The main objective of this study is to investigate the ability of Nephelium mutabile (Pulasan) leaves (PL) in removing toxic brilliant green (BG) dye using the adsorption method. Batch experiments were conducted on the adsorption of BG dye using PL with a contact time of 3.5 h. Adsorption isotherm studies were analysed using six isotherm models, namely Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin, Dubinin-Radushkevich (D-R), Redlich-Peterson (R-P) and Sips, and the results showed that Sips is the model that best fits the experimental data, with a maximum adsorption capacity (amax) of 130.3 mg g-1. The point of zero charge (pHPZC) of PL was found to be at pH 5.29. Regeneration studies showed that PL can be recovered and reused, especially after treatment with NaOH. This study demonstrates that PL can be considered as a reasonably good and cost-effective biosorbent for BG under our experimental conditions.","PeriodicalId":332684,"journal":{"name":"Scientia Bruneiana","volume":"15 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-10-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"115120269","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
D. Marshall, Azmi Aminuddin, Pg Saimon Pg Hj Ahmad
{"title":"Gastropod diversity at Pulau Punyit and the nearby shoreline – a reflection of Brunei’s vulnerable rocky intertidal communities","authors":"D. Marshall, Azmi Aminuddin, Pg Saimon Pg Hj Ahmad","doi":"10.46537/SCIBRU.V16I2.63","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.46537/SCIBRU.V16I2.63","url":null,"abstract":"Pulau Punyit (PPUN), a small islet on the South China Sea coastline of Brunei Darussalam, represents a significant portion of the country’s natural rocky-shore ecosystem. We carried out a rapid survey of the intertidal gastropod species richness at PPUN, and compared this with species richness at other nearby natural and artificial rocky shores [Tungku Punyit (TPUN), Pantai Jerudong (PJER), Jerudong Park Medical Centre (JPMC) and Pantai Tungku (TUNK)]. A total of thirty two (32) species were collected from all of the shores. Species richness was greatest at the two natural shores studied (numbering 21 and 22 species at PPUN and TPUN, respectively), while the artificial shores were relatively depauperate. The natural shores however differed in species composition, abundance and body size of gastropods. These attributes varied with shore height, and appeared to relate to height-specific differences in abiotic stresses at the shores - at PPUN the high-shore is more exposed to the wind and sun, whereas at TPUN the mid-shore experiences greater sedimentation and mainland acidic seepage. Faunistic differences between the artificial and natural shores (Bray-Curtis similarity analysis) seemingly associate more closely with degree of habitat availability and abiotic stress than with shore proximity. We conclude that the country’s rocky intertidal biodiversity, as reflected by the gastropod diversity, is mainly constituted by the natural rocky shore system. Because this is spatially constrained and vulnerable to locality-specific environmental stresses, this diversity is threatened and deserving of greater protection status.","PeriodicalId":332684,"journal":{"name":"Scientia Bruneiana","volume":"79 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-09-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"126930759","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Removal of acid blue 25 from aqueous solution by using common salts and seawater to induce the salting out effect","authors":"M. R. R. Kooh, M. K. Dahri, L. Lim, L. L. Hoon","doi":"10.46537/scibru.v16i2.61","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.46537/scibru.v16i2.61","url":null,"abstract":"This study used common salts (monovalent and divalent salts) and seawater to cause aggregation of an acid dye, AB25 to a particle size large enough to be removed by simple filtration using a filter paper. All the common salts (CaCl2, Mg(NO3)2, KNO3, KCl, NaCl) were able to produce high removal efficiencies of AB25 (100 mg/L, unadjusted pH) at 99.4%, 90.3%, 98.4%, 99.3% and 99.3%, respectively, while a 2.5x dilution of seawater was successful in removing up to 93.8% of AB25. These findings proved the effectiveness of this method which is a much simpler and direct approach to dye wastewater remediation.","PeriodicalId":332684,"journal":{"name":"Scientia Bruneiana","volume":"136 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-09-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"127355021","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Large-scale and uniform fabrication of anodic TiO2 nanotubes at the inner surface of high-aspect-ratio Ti tubes","authors":"Chengjie Xiang, Lidong Sun","doi":"10.46537/scibru.v16i2.59","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.46537/scibru.v16i2.59","url":null,"abstract":"Letter to Editor","PeriodicalId":332684,"journal":{"name":"Scientia Bruneiana","volume":"280 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-09-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"133632410","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Molecular dynamics study of diffusion of xenon in water at different temperatures","authors":"N. Kumar, N. Adhikari","doi":"10.46537/SCIBRU.V16I2.60","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.46537/SCIBRU.V16I2.60","url":null,"abstract":"Molecular Dynamics simulation was performed using 2 xenon atoms as solute and 300 water molecules as solvent. We have studied the structural properties as well as transport property. As structural properties, we have determined the radial distribution function (RDF) of xenon-xenon, xenon-water, and water-water interactions. Study of RDF of xenon-xenon and oxygen-oxygen interactions of water shows that there is hydrophobic behavior of xenon in the presence of water. We have studied the self diffusion coefficient of xenon, water, and mutual diffusion coefficients of xenon in water. The self diffusion coefficient of xenon was estimated using both mean-squared displacement (MSD) and velocity autocorrelation function (VACF), while only MSD was used for water. The temperature dependence of the diffusion coefficient of xenon and water were found to follow the Arrhenius behavior. The activation energies obtained are 12.156 KJ/mole with MSD and 14.617 KJ/mole with VACF in the temperature range taken in this study.","PeriodicalId":332684,"journal":{"name":"Scientia Bruneiana","volume":"25 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-09-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"132203589","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}