International Research Conference of UWU-2021

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Adult-Recruit Spatial Association of Shorea Species Determined by Topographic Variation in a Mixed-Dipterocarp Tropical Rainforest, Sri Lanka
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Jayasinghe, G.J.M.S.R.; Wijekoon, P.; Wiegand, T.; Ediriweera, E.P.S.K.
The spatial distribution of recruits around conspecific adults of woody species conveys detailed insights on the mechanisms governing species co-existence in tropical rainforests. Hence, we studied adult-recruit association of eight Shorea species (Shorea affinis, S. congestiflora, S. cordifolia, S. disticha, S. megistophylla, S. trapezifolia, S. stipularis, S. worthingtonii) in the Sinahraja Forest Dynamic Plot, using spatial point pattern analysis. The adult-recruit spatial patterns were extracted from four censuses in 1996, 2001, 2006 and 2011 conducted at the plot. We used slope, elevation, aspect, curvature, topographic wetness index and seventeen soil nutrients as habitat variables. To assess the adult-recruit spatial relationship, we used two null models created by the pattern reconstruction method. The null model of independence distributed recruits independently on conspecific adults without considering habitat association, but maintained their observed aggregation. In contrast, the Heterogeneous Poisson Process considered additionally the effect of topographic variations. Departures from the null models were assessed by simulation envelopes and goodness-of- fit tests using the bivariate distribution function of nearest neighbor distances and the bivariate pair correlation function. S. trapezifolia and S. stipularis indicated independent placement of recruits around adults for all distance intervals of 1-120m while other species showed significant positive association, for all distance intervals of 1-50m. Thus, the majority of recruits of Shorea species showed positive associations with conspecifics adults at medium spatial scale which implies high interference of individuals of Shore species with conspecifics. Based on the fitted intensity functions of recruits, slope, elevation and soil nutrients were identified as the main environmental factors influencing the bivariate adult-recruit spatial distributions of Shorea species. Further, for S. stipularis, the fitted Heterogeneous Poisson Process described the observed pattern well (goodness-of-fit test‟s p-value = 0.15), which suggests that the adult-recruit pattern was mainly driven by habitat heterogeneity. However, departures from the null hypothesis of habitat heterogeneity were shown for all other Shorea species (goodness-of-fit tests‟ p-values < 0.05). We conclude that the heterogeneous environment alone is insufficient to explain the observed patterns of recruits around conspecific adults of Shorea species. Consequently, the impact of other mechanisms on conspecific adult-recruit association should also be studied. Keywords: Adult-recruit association; Intraspecific; Habitat heterogeneity; Heterogeneous Poisson Process; Tropical rainforest
Analysis of Allelic Diversity of Drought Responsive ERF Genes in Sri Lankan Rice Germplasm
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Wehalle, W.G.A.D.N.; Gimhani, D.R.; Abhayawickrama, B.P.
Ethylene response factor (ERF), is a prominent transcription factor gene family that governs numerous abiotic stress-related physiological activities in plants. Drought is the foremost yield- limiting factor of the second-largest staple crop of the globe. Bioinformatics tools provide a robust platform to investigate the genetic characteristics towards rice plant drought responses. The present study aimed to analyze the allelic variations of OsEBP89, OsERF101, OsERF71, OsERF48, OsERF12 and OsLG3; drought-responsive ERF genes in silico within the Sri Lankan rice pool. Genes were selected from the Rice Annotation Project (RAP) database concerning Oryza sativa sp. japonica cv. „Nipponbare‟ as the reference genome. Selected gene sequences of 47 Sri Lankan rice varieties were retrieved from the Rice SNP-Seek database and allelic variation was assessed concerning the corresponding gene sequences of Nipponbare using MEGA 7- Clustal W method. Present Results revealed several InDels and SNPs: 6 SNPs in OsEBP89 (A/G at 15nt, G/T at 380nt, C/T at 381nt, T/A at 555nt, C/T at 709nt and G/T at 951nt), 1 InDel and 3 SNPs in OsERF101 (C/A at 87nt, A/G at 687nt and C/T at 725nt), 8 SNPs in OsERF71 (C/A at 118nt, G/A at 360nt, C/T at 623nt, G/A at 742nt, G/T at 849nt, C/T at 867nt, T/C at 939nt and G/A at 981nt), 1 InDel and 5 SNPs in OsERF48 (C/G at 655nt, G/Tat 768nt, C/G at 812nt, C/T at 1112nt and G/C at 1162nt), 1 InDel and 5 SNPs in OsERF12 (G/T at 41nt, C/T at 150nt, G/A at 336nt, C/G at 365nt and C/T at 957nt) and 3 SNPs in OsLG3 (C/T at 293nt, C/T at 487nt and A/G at 810nt).The MEGA 7 assisted phylogenetic analysis unveil apparent allelic variation within the Sri Lankan rice germplasm. The encoded proteins of OsERF101, OsERF48 and OsERF12 genes were subjected to secondary structure prediction and physicochemical analysis. The Physicochemical properties varied among structures of corresponding proteins. However, major differences in folding patterns were not observed. Functional characterization and phenotypic validations are essential to investigate the potential of these genes in drought-tolerant rice improvement programs. Keywords: Allelic variation; Drought stress; Ethylene Response Factor; Rice
Analysis of Consumption Patterns of Probiotic Incorporated Fermented Dairy Products in Sri Lanka
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Hanouf, M.H.M.; Rathnayaka, S.D.; Abesinghe, A.M.N.L.
Probiotic dairy foods are considered as one of the major functional food substances in the world. Consumers have been more health conscious in recent years, and as a result, they are seeking more information on how to live a healthy life consuming good food. Probiotic and probiotic products are having the possibility to attract those health-conscious consumers because of their health promoting effects and lower cost. To our knowledge there are no studies that analyze the consumer demand for probiotic fermented dairy products in Sri Lanka. This study focused on analyzing the consumer knowledge, attitudes, socio-demographic and economic factors that affect the consumption pattern of probiotic fermented dairy products in Sri Lanka. A total of 405 households from all nine provinces in Sri Lanka were surveyed with an online questionnaire. According to the results, 46% of the respondents have awareness of probiotics. Probiotic consumption was categorized into 4 levels as not at all, low, medium, and high based on the probiotic consumption per week. The study showed that 53% of the respondents belongs to low-level consumption category, 27% have medium level consumption, 9% are in high-level consumption category and 11% of the responders never consumed probiotic incorporated dairy products. An ordered logistic regression model was employed to analyze the relationships between probiotic consumption level and the number of demographics, socio- economic characteristics of consumers such as gender, age, marital status, household size, presence of children, household income, locality, education level, attitudes on health and nutrition aspects, attitude on sensory aspects, advertisement aspects and poor availability of probiotic dairy products. The results reveal that probiotic consumption level is significantly and positively influenced by gender, marital status, household income, advertisements, and consumer‟s attitude on health and negatively influenced by household size and poor availability. Findings of this study give useful information to producers for their production and marketing strategies which are most suitable to fit with the demand characteristics and consumer expectations. Keywords: Probiotic; Dairy Products; Consumption Patterns; Ordered Logistic Regression; Sri Lanka
Analysis of Household Determinants of Demand for Food Away-from-Home (FAFH) in the Urban Sector of Sri Lanka
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Induruwage, N.D.; Rathnayaka, S.D.
Food consumption in Asia has undergone significant changes over the past two decades. This change in consumption patterns can be attributed to the rapid economic and income growth, urbanization, modernization of marketing infrastructures, the emergence of processed food companies, the spreading of multinational fast food service providers, increased female labour force participation. One of the biggest changes in food consumption patterns in Sri Lanka is the increased consumption of food away from home (FAFH). Nutritionists, economists, public health officials, and policymakers are concerned that consumption of more FAFH, relative to food at home (FAH) likely to contribute to food-related chronic diseases in humans. This study aims to investigate the demand characteristics of FAFH consumption in Sri Lanka with special reference to the urban sector. Data were collected from the Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES) 2016, conducted by the Department of Census and Statistics (DCS) in Sri Lanka. The theoretical model of this study is derived from Becker‟s Household Production Theory. Factors influencing households‟ decisions to consume food away from home and how much to spend on these food items were analyzed using Cragg's double hurdle model. According to the results, income, household size, all adult members engaging in a job, being single have positive and significant effects on the household‟s expenditure on FAFH. However, household head‟s age, and education level have significant negative effects on away from home food consumption expenditure. Further, estimations of the first hurdle model reveal that the household head‟s age, family size, and household head‟s education level negatively and significantly affect the FAFH consumption decisions. Accordingly, younger households, less educated households, and all working households have a greater preference for convenience than other households as illustrated in their expenditure patterns on food away from home. Getting richer will also lead to a higher level of FAFH expenditure. Educating consumers about healthful FAFH choices could have a significant payoff, especially if self-control is impaired when eating away from home. Keywords: Urbanization; Income growth; Health; Consumption; Food away from home; Double Hurdle Model
An Analysis of Impact of Rural Tourism Development on Local Communities in Sri Lanka (With Special Reference to Haputale Area)
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Dissanayaka, D.M.M.S.; Idroos, A.A.
Tourism is one of the important industries that help the development of local areas. Tourism results in more benefits to the local communities including improvements in their livelihood. However, active participation of local communities and proper coordination among all stakeholders are more important in gaining benefits from tourism activities, otherwise, it can be disturbed the activities of the local communities by tourism development. This research mainly aimed at identifying expected benefits of tourism, to identify the levels of impact and the problems and issues of local tourism development in the Haputale area. The study utilized a qualitative research approach with 30 samples in the community members in Haputale division. The researcher adopts the focus groups and structured interviews to gather primary data. Collected data were transcribed and analyzed manually using thematic analysis. According to the findings of the study, there were more economic benefits than the other social and cultural benefits and environmental benefits from tourism. The study found that tourism provides many employment opportunities for the residents in the area. Nevertheless, there were some problems and issues faced by the community and expectations such as the need for awareness programs, development of infrastructure facilities, agricultural facilities and economic resources and deforestation issues while developing rural tourism areas. Finally, there are some recommendations such as Regional development planning, Maximize the awareness about the importance of education, Provide public transport facilities where necessary to enhance accessibility, Government involvement of making policy framework to improve community participation in tourism benefit gaining in Sri Lanka. Keywords: Rural tourism; Tourism benefits; Local community; Problems and issue
An Analysis of Medium Voltage Feeder Tripping in Ceylon Electricity Board Distribution Network – A Case Study of Western Province South 1 Network
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Chathuranga, B.L.P.G.; Dhanapala, W.C.H.; Wickramasinghe, W.M.S.M.
Providing a reliable power supply with minimum breakdowns is one of the main objectives of any electricity supply company. Frequent breakdowns in the power system occur due to various faults. To improve network reliability, it is more essential to have a proper analysis of these faults and incorporate them into the network development plans. The main objective of this research is to do an analysis of the feeder tripping details in a selected area of the Ceylon Electricity Board Medium Voltage distribution network. The area of Ratmalana, Kalutara, Mathugama, and Dehiwala which operates under Western Province South 1, Ceylon Electricity Board were considered for the present study and feeder tripping data were collected from relevant grid substations for the year 2019. First, an analysis was done to identify the feeder lines with frequent failures. The Auto type feeder tripping details of the selected feeders were then further analysed and it was observed 75.02%, 14.48% and 6.15% of faults were due to Earth Faults, Over-Current and simultaneous occurrence of Earth Faults and Over-Current respectively. The rest were due to the Under Frequency relay operations and 132 kV incoming failures. Auto type feeder tripping occurs repetitively in the network and minimizing them leads to building up a healthy network. These repetitive failures can be minimized by addressing solutions for individual feeder lines, where frequent failures occur. Hence a comprehensive analysis to identify the reasons for auto type feeder trippings is extremely important. Utilities can incorporate these research findings in their network development plans. They will consequently be able to eliminate many repetitive breakdowns on the Medium Voltage Network, and thereby improve the network quality while maintaining reliability indices at an optimal level and increase their financial revenue. Keywords: Auto type Feeder tripping; Ceylon Electricity Board; Earth Faults; Medium voltage distribution network; Over-Current Faults
An Analysis of Supply Chain of Small-Scale Fisheries in Loggal Oya Reservoir in Badulla, Sri Lank
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Dissanayake, D.M.W.C.J.; Wikramaratne, I.U.; Deyshappriya, N.P.R.; Jayasinghe, A.K.G.R.M.M.Y.
Loggal Oya Reservoir is one of the minor perennial tank located in Badulla District, which has higher production rate compared to other minor perennial tanks in the area. However, the supply chain performance, fisheries activities and livelihood condition are not up to the standard level. The current study attempts to recognize the present condition of the fisheries supply chain along with its main stakeholders and their selected socio-economic characteristics. Moreover, the study also focuses on recognizing the constrains and opportunities related to small scale inland fishery supply chain in Loggal oya reservoir. Primary data were collected using a questionnaire from 59 individuals and while qualitative data was collected through Key Informat Interviews (KIIs) and Focus Group Discussions (FGDs). Additionally, secondary data from various source have also been used and mainly descriptive analysis was employed to accomplish the objectives of the study. Specifically, BCG Matrix, SWOT analysis and Fishbone analysis were used to analyze the supply chain while the Warwick – Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale were used to examine the Wellbeing of the stakeholders. The study reveals that the Loggal Oya fishery supply chain consists of four main stakeholder groups such as fishermen, wholesalers, retailers, and consumers. It is observed that 64% fishermen sell their catch to wholesalers, whereas 34% directly sell their catch to consumers and 2% of the fishermen sell their catch to small scale value added producers. In contrast, the study reveals that 60% wholesalers sell their fish to retailers, while 40% sell and transport their fish catch to local markets located in Badulla and Mahiyangana.100% retailers directly sell their fish to consumers. The majority of the stakeholders had a moderate wellbeing in the study area. The analysis further highlighted constrains such as depletion of fish stock, lack of financial availability, lack of training, knowledge and new technologies, and lack of infrastructure facilities in the fisheries supply chain in Loggal oya reservoir. The study emphasizes the requirement of providing appropriate trainings, credit facilities and funds, infrastructure facilities and inputs, improve market facilities, enhance security around the lake and awareness programs as remedies to the recognized constrains. Moreover, the study also recommends promoting value- added production based on fish in order to improve the supply chain and livelihood condition of the stakeholder. Keywords: Supply chain analysis; Small-scale fisheries; Inland fishery; Wellbeing
Analysis of Traffic Sign Detection and Recognition Techniques
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Shanmugam, S.; Tharmaratnam, B.; Sandradeva, T.; Mehendran, Y.
Automated Traffic Sign Detection and Recognition (ATSDR) is a trending research field in this current decade. It is a very important part of the intelligent transportation system as traffic signs assist the drivers to drive more carefully. This paper provides a review of three major steps in the ATSDR system; video segmentation, detection, and recognition. There are many techniques used for the detection and recognition process. However, those techniques are affected by different internal and external conditions like camera quality(fps), lighting conditions, time periods, etc. The main objectives are; to identify the different traffic sign detection and recognition techniques, develop the ATSDR system by using those selected technologies and analyze the performance of those techniques in different lighting conditions and time periods in Sri Lanka. Real time video sequences of traffic signs were collected and partitioned into single frames using video segmentation. The traffic signs were detected using shape-based and color-based features along with learning-based methods (Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN)). Subsequently, the signs were recognized using selected techniques such as Random forest method, CNN, and Support Vector Machine (SVM). Selected techniques were applied to the 10 varieties of traffic signs in Sri Lanka in different conditions, each having 1000 samples. Experimental results show that the approach obtained the desired results effectively. CNN method obtained 74.16% overall accuracy, SVM method obtained 63.5% overall accuracy and Random forest method obtained 58.6% overall accuracy. In the future, accuracy can be improved by testing the technologies in different internal factors like different camera quality (fps) and different computing power, as well as high-resolution images and a large number of training images should be used for the analysis. The experimental results showed that CNN is the most suitable technology to detect and recognize traffic signs based on the Sri Lankan traffic signs database Keywords: Traffic sign detection and recognition; Convolutional Neural Network; Support Vector Machine; Shape based methods; Color based methods; Random forest
Analyzing Infant Crying Patterns: Classification of Hunger and Discomfort
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Fernando, M.M.T.; Laksiri, P.H.P.N.
Infant crying is the crying of infants as a response to an internal or external stimulus. Infants cry as a form of basic instinctive communication. An infant's cry contains a lot of information about the baby such as hunger, pain, discomfort, sleepiness, burp, anger, etc. Parents‟ or guardian's inability to recognize and timely address the reason for the infant's cry prompts dissatisfaction for the infant and a feeling of helplessness for the parents. Therefore, an accurate, efficient automatic method for analyzing infant cry patterns and notifying the cause of cry is a very useful tool for parents. This study aims at the detection of baby cry patterns and identification of uniqueness of the hunger and discomfort crying patterns of the infants. This is achieved through analyzing the different patterns of the sound waves of the infants crying by converting the crying signal to an equivalent frequency waveform. This novel model can fill the gaps in the current models by achieving higher accuracy. Thus, this research is beneficial in various ways such as reducing parental dissatisfaction and helplessness when infant crying, minimizing child abuse and helping parents to better understand their child‟s needs and psychosis by analyzing crying patterns. The proposed model detects sound frequency, draws the waveform of the signal, and uses a Convolutional Neural Networks methodology to identify and distinguish the crying patterns of the infants. The dataset was collected, and the crying patterns were labeled by getting assistance from the domain experts. The model was trained and tested against the labeled data and it gained an accuracy of 91%. The proposed model will be further enhanced to identify more feelings of the infants and will be further developed to assists to recognize selected medical conditions by analyzing the crying patterns of the infants. Keywords: Cry signal; Discomfort; Hunger; Infant crying patterns
Anti-inflammatory and Free Radical Scavenging Activities of Aqueous Extracts of Coriander Seeds Roasted at Different Temperatures
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Herath, H.N.M.N.; Illeperuma, D.C.K.; Gunathilake, K.D.P.; Jayasinghe, C.V.L.
In traditional medicine, roasted coriander (Coriandrum sativum vulgare Alef) seeds are boiled with water and commonly used as a beverage to fight viral infections and flu. As roasting enhances therapeutic properties, effect of roasting of coriander seeds at 120, 140 and 160 oC for 15 min on colour of seeds and free radical scavenging and anti-inflammatory activities of aqueous extracts were studied and physical properties of the seeds were determined. Moisture contents of unroasted seeds and those roasted at 120, 140 and 160 oC were 6.5 ± 0.6, 2.3 ± 0.1, 1.5 ± 0.1 and 1.2 ± 0.1% respectively. Geometric mean diameter of 4.31 ± 0.19 mm, surface area of 58.61 ± 5.05 mm2, sphericity index of 91.2 ± 4.7 and aspect ratio of 89.86 ± 7.41 were evident for seeds having a length of 4.74 ± 0.34 mm, width of 4.25 ± 0.26 mm and thickness 4.0 ± 0.3 mm of 100 seeds, measured using a vernier caliper. Thousand kernel weight and bulk density were 19.77 ± 0.38 g and 236 ± 2 kg m-3 respectively. Colour of unroasted and roasted coriander seeds was analyzed using a Chromameter and expressed as L*, a* and b* values. The lowest L* value of 30.73 ± 0.58 and the highest a* and b* values of 17.9 ± 0.2 and 29.75 ± 0.42 respectively, were evident in seeds roasted at 160 oC. Decoctions were prepared by heating the powdered samples at 60 ± 5 oC in clay pots for 150 min while maintaining a solid to water ratio of 6:100 (g mL-1). Decoctions of coriander seeds roasted at 140 oC had the highest DPPH radical scavenging activity (87.48 ± 2.35% inhibition) among those from unroasted and roasted at 120 and 160 oC. Inhibition percentage of haemolysis ranged from 50.16 ± 3.30 to 58.10 ± 0.41%. Decoctions prepared from the seeds roasted at 140 oC for 15 min showed the highest inhibition percentage of haemolysis. Therefore, roasting of coriander seeds at 140 oC for 15 min can be recommended for preparing decoctions and or any other industrial applications. Keywords: Coriander; Inflammation; Free radical scavenging activity; Roasting
Anti-Oxidant Activity and Tyrosinase Inhibitory Activity of Ceylon Black Tea Extracts: Water Extract of Ceylon Black Tea Regulate Anti-Melanogenic Activity by Suppressing Tyrosinase, TRP-1, TRP-2 and MITF in B16F10 Melanoma Cells
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Rathnayake, A.U.; Byun, Hee-Guk
With the growing popularity of skincare products around the world, cosmetic applications of plant extracts are gaining continuous attention in cosmeceutical industries. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the anti-melanogenic effect of Ceylon black tea extracts. In this study five different black tea extracts were prepared with distilled water (extraction by autoclave, extraction at 80°C for 2 h) and organic solvents (ethanol, methanol, acetone). Each extract of black tea was tested for total phenol content, total flavonoid content, DPPH radical scavenging activity and tyrosinase inhibitory activity. Finally, different concentrations of tea extract were tested in B16F10 melanoma cells for cytotoxicity and protein suppression levels. According to the results of this study, the highest yield of 42.93% was obtained from the ethanol extraction followed by 40.19% from acetone extraction. Highest total polyphenol contents were obtained from ethanol and acetone extractions with 240.30±1.40 μg/g and 240.20±4.70 μg/g concentrations. The highest total flavonoid content was obtained from acetone extraction with the concentration of 57.49±4.70 μg/g. Distilled water extract of Ceylon black tea exhibited the highest inhibitory activity on tyrosinase with an IC50 value of 0.016±0.001 mg/ml whereas ethanol extract exhibited the highest DPPH radical scavenging activity with an EC50 value of 0.009±0.000 mg/ml. Treated concentrations of 10 to 50 μg/ml were not cytotoxic to B16F10 cells and exhibited more than 80% cell viability at all treated concentration. Further, western blot results revealed the suppression of tyrosinase, TRP-1, TRP-2 and MITF protein expression levels in dose dependent manner. Therefore, we suggest the applicability of distilled water extract of black tea as a novel melanogenesis inhibitor and skin-whitening agent in Sri Lanka cosmeceutical industries. Keywords: Cosmeceuticals; Black tea; Anti-melanogenic; Green extraction; Tyrosinase
Antibacterial activity of entomopathogenic fungi isolated from a beetle (Harmonia sp.) in Sri Lanka
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Patabedi, S.W.P.N.H.; Ratnaweera, P.B.
Majority of human pathogenic bacteria has become resistant to the exsisting antibiotics causing a human health crisis in the world. Thus discovering novel antibacterial drug leads has become an urgent concern. Entomopathogenic fungi (EPF) infect insects and kill or disable them. Previous research have shown entomopathogenic fungi exhibit various bioactivities. Thus, the objective of the current study was to isolate entomopathogenic fungi from a beetle, a Harmonia sp. in Sri Lanka and evaluvate their potential of producing antibacterial compounds. EPF were isolated from surface sterilized insect cadavers collected from Balangoda area in Sri Lanka. Isolated fungi were grown in potato dextrose agar and broth media, incubated close to sporulation, harvested and extracted into ethyl aceate. The obtained weights of the crude extracts of solid and liquid cultures were compared using ANOVA. Antibacterial activity of the crude extracts were evaluated using agar disc diffusion bioassays at 400 μg/disc, against two Gram-positive bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923), Bacillus cereus (ATTC 11778) and two Gram-negative, Escherichia coli (ATCC 35218) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 9027). The positive control used was Gentamycin and the negative control was methanol. Seven morphologically different EPF were isolated from Harmonia sp. The crude weights of the solid cultures were significantly higher than the crude weights of the liquid cultures (ANOVA, p < 0.05). This result showed fungi have preferred to synthesize more metabolites under solid culture conditions than liquid. Six out of the seven fungi showed antibacterial acitivities against at least one bacterium tested. EPF cultures BET 06, 08 and 10 showed high inhibition zones against the S. aureus and B. cereus. According to ANOVA there was a significant difference between the antibacterial activities of the crude extracts (p < 0.05). None of the fungal extracts showed activity against P. aeruginosa while BET 05, 06 and 08 showed mild activity against E. coli. According to the microscopic characteristics the fungi were tentatively identified as belong to Penicillium and Aspergillus species. A bioautography study reveled the presence of several bioactive compounds in BET 05, 06, 08 and 10 extracts. The results of this study showed that entomopathogenic fungi are potential sources for isolating antibacterial compounds. Keywords: Antibacterial; Entomopathogenic fungi; Harmonia sp.; Penicillium; Aspergillus
Applicability of Brown Seaweed Species (Sargassum crassifolium) for Treating Lobster Farm Wastewater
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Pirashanthy, K.; Rajapaksha, R.M.G.N.; Bambaranda, B.V.A.S.M.; Nirooparaj, B.; Chirapart, A.
Wastewater generation in aquaculture farms, including all lobster culture practices is a serious issue in the industry. The present study was carried out at lobster farm located at Northern Province in Sri Lanka. Approximately 756,000 L of wastewater is generated on this farm annually and discharges wastewater without proper treatment to the natural environment. The wastewater discharged from lobster farm consists of organic and inorganic chemical components that can be caused potential environmental problems. Present study focused to investigate applicability of Brown seaweed Sargassum crassifolium biomass to efficient removal of nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorous) from the lobster farm wastewater. The Sargassum crassifolium is an abundant species in Northern Province, Sri Lanka. Seaweed biomass optimization was performed using three different seaweed biomasses, viz 20 g, 30 g and 40 g and 20 g (1 g L-1) identified as the efficient seaweed biomass. Wastewater initial physicochemical parameters pH (7.9 ± 0.02), Temperature (29 ± 0.04 ⁰ C), Salinity (36 ± 0.03 ppt), Dissolved Oxygen (3.58 ± 0.02 mg L-1), Biological Oxygen Demand (115 ± 0.05 mg L-1), Ammonia (1.37 ± 0.01mg L-1), Nitrite (0.143 ± 0.00 mgL-1), Nitrate (0.243 ± 0.01 mg L-1) and Phosphate (4.760 ± 0.02 mg L-1) were analyzed using the standard methods. Then wastewaters were collected from the farm and transferred to six glass tanks of 50 L capacity each. The seaweed was used at 1 g L-1 density in each tank except in the control tank. Complete randomized design was used to the experiment. Three replicates were used. Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate and Phosphate were analyzed once in three days from beginning to the end of the treatment period (28 days) to investigate the initial wastewater qualities and quality changes after Phycoremidiation. After phycoremidiation physiochemical parameters pH (7.4 ± 0.06), Temperature (29 ± 0.03 ⁰ C), Salinity (36 ± 0.05 ppt), Dissolved Oxygen (5.74 ± 0.04 mg L- 1), Biological Oxygen Demand (95 ± 0.03 mg L-1) were analyzed in wastewater. Sargassum crassifolium removed 1.19 ± 0.34 mg L-1 of Ammonia, 0.12 ± 0.03 mg L-1 of Nitrite, 0.14 ± 0.04 mg L-1 of Nitrate and 2.40 ± 0.72 mg L-1 of Phosphate. Nutrient removal amounts were significantly differed (P<0.05) between control and treatment tank. The weight gains Sargassum crassifolium during the study period was of 8.7 g thus, the seaweed has been utilized the nutrients present in the discharged waste waters. The results of the study concluded that the nitrogen and phosphorus in the lobster farm waste waters, can be effectively removed through Sargassum crassifolium. Keywords: Lobster, Sargassum crassifolium, Seaweed, Phycoremidiation
Application of Thermally Reduced Graphene Oxide-based Counter Electrode for Dye- sensitized Solar Cells: A Comparative Study on Sintering Temperature
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Kumari, J.M.K.W.; Dissanayake, M.A.K.L.; Senadeera, G.K.R.
A counter electrode (CE) fabricated with thermally reduced graphene oxide synthesized from Sri Lankan graphite is proposed for promising Platinum-free dye sensitized solar cells (DSSC). As it is well known, Sri Lankan natural graphite has become more attractive and demanding in the world due to its high purity and high crystallinity. In a DSSC, a thin film of Platinum (Pt) is generally used as the catalytic material on the CE due to its high conductivity and superior electro-catalytic activity. However, there is a considerable attention to replace Pt based CEs due to their high cost and limited supply. Recently, extensive research has been performed on using carbon materials for the CEs due to their low cost, high conductivity and good catalytic activity. In this study, reduced graphene oxide (RGO) was synthesized and deposited on FTO conducting glass substrate by spray method. To investigate the effect of sintering temperature of the CE on the performance of DSSCs, a series of RGO based CEs were prepared with different sintering temperatures from 100 oC to 300 oC by increasing the temperature by 50 oC intervals. Results confirmed that the DSSCs prepared with sintered CEs exhibit a better photovoltaic performance compared to the DSSCs made with un- sintered CEs essentially due to the enhanced adhesion to the FTO glass substrate in the sintered composite material. DSSCs with CEs sintered at 250 oC have exhibited the highest efficiency of 4.52 % compared to the DSSC with un-sintered CEs (efficiency=1.35 %). This low cost RGO CE exhibits good stability and acceptable efficiency compared to Pt CE (7.82 %) in DSSCs operating under similar conditions. Synthsized RGO sheets were characterized using scanning electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. The electro-catalytic activity of RGO CE was determined by cyclic voltammetry. Results suggested that this CE can be one of the alternatives to the Pt CEs in DSSCs with further modifications. Keywords: Dye sensitized solar cells; Counter electrode; Reduced graphene oxide; Sintering temperature
Are We Ready to Hit?; The Preparedness of Hotel Sector to Grab the New Normal Market Bloom – Evidence from Major Chain Hotels in Sri Lanka
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Wijesinghe, B.G.L.T.; Karunarathne, A.C.I.D.; Ranaweera, R.A.A.K.
The COVID -19 pandemic has made the global tourism industry more vulnerable. Many developing economies mainly relying on tourism are strongly challenged in industry resources and operational procedures hence demands a paradigm change. Consequently, the Sri Lankan hospitality industry is also tremendously affected from this pandemic. Currently, the hotels are seeking to reopen accepting the new normal condition, while adhering to the social restrictions and strict health regulations and emphasizing the importance of assessing the preparedness for the new normal pandemic situation. Hence, the current study was extended in order to investigate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the Sri Lankan hotel sector, to investigate the preparedness of the Sri Lankan hotel sector for the operations during the new normal condition of COVID-19 pandemic, and to examine the challenges ahead for the operations of hotel industry in preparing for the new normal condition of COVID-19 pandemic. Qualitative research approach was adapted to provide a more comprehensive overview of the context. A representative sample of ten management level employees representing three major hotel chains in Sri Lanka were employed in data collection process selected through purposive sampling. In order to understand the context more deeply and elaboratively, the structured interviews were occupied to gather primary data in this study. The key findings indicated that hotels have been affected severely by the pandemic in terms of financial and operational aspects. Hotels have assessed their departments and established safety protocols to ensure a seamless hotel operation prioritizing the adherence to SLTDA operational guidelines introduced recently. It also revealed that lack of travel motivation of the public, high switching costs, various travel restrictions, challenge of ensuring safety of the guest and staff, human resource management practices, continuity of service quality, and competitiveness as key challenges faced by hotels due to the pandemic. Moreover, focusing more on the domestic segment, additional and redesigned training to employees, contactless services, promoting ayurvedic treatments and immunity boosting foods, are recommended for the Sri Lankan hotel industry. In conclusion, the study revealed that the Sri Lankan hotel sector is well prepared to operate under the new normal condition of COVID-19 pandemic. Keywords: Hotel Sector; COVID-19 Pandemic; Preparedness; Impact and Challenges; New Normal Condition; Sri Lanka
Assessment of Compost Quality Produced with Municipal Solid Waste and Dewatered Fecal Sludge: A Case Study
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Fernando, B.H.R.; Nadheesha, M.K.F.; Nirukshan, G.S.; Aratchige, N.S.; Ranasinghe, C.S.
Application of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) and Dewatered Fecal Sludge (DFS) compost for agriculture is promoted in many countries as a waste management strategy. The quality of any compost type and its suitability for agricultural application is mainly determined by its physical and chemical properties and the absence of risk factors such as heavy metals and pathogens. In this study, MSW and DFS compost samples collected from the Kuliyapitiya Municipal Council of the North Western Province of Sri Lanka were subjected to quality testing using standard methods. The results were compared with the standards specified under SLS 1635: 2019 for MSW compost and with the reported information for the other locally available organic manure types. The acidic pH of DFS compost reported in this study indicates the risk of its direct use as a soil amendment while the MSW compost showed a satisfactory pH, suitable for soil application. The macro nutrient contents (Phosphorus, Potassium, and Magnesium) of both compost types were very low except for Nitrogen and Calcium. Micro nutrient levels in both compost types were satisfactory where DFS compost was rich in Iron, Zinc and Copper indicating its potential to be used as a micro nutrient source with further development. High sand percentage in MSW compost and the presence of weed seeds in DFS compost reduces the overall quality of both compost types. The organic carbon (OC) content in MSW compost was at a satisfactory level but the DFS compost had a low OC content. Pathogens were not detected in both compost types. MSW compost showed lower levels of heavy metals than the permissible standard limit defined for MSW compost. However, DFS compost showed higher level of Mercury than the permissible standard limit for MSW compost which highlights the risk of its use as an agricultural soil amendment. In contrast, with its satisfactory OC content and the pH and the absence of pathogens and viable seeds, MSW compost has the potential to be used as a soil conditioner for soil quality improvement, but not as a nutrient source, as it has a low macro nutrient content. Keywords: Dewatered Fecal Sludge Compost; Heavy metal content; Municipal Solid Waste Compost; Macro and micro nutrient contents
Assessment of the Association between Selected Socio-demographic Characteristics with Food Safety Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices of School Children in Colombo, Sri Lanka
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Wanniarachchi, P.C.; Abeysundara, P.D.A.; Peiris, K.G.H.S.
Having felicitous knowledge and positive attitude on food safety with proper execution of safe food handling practices since childhood make school children more confident in facing food safety risks as adults in future. This work was conducted to assess and analyse the relationship between some selected socio-demographic factors on the food safety knowledge, attitude and practices among school children in Colombo Education Zone, Sri Lanka. Data were collected using a self- administered questionnaire which contained 44 close ended questions on four basic areas; students‟ experiences with food preparation, students‟ attitude on food safety, students‟ food safety knowledge and their self-reported practices. Three hundred and eighty volunteer students (14-16 years old) from government schools of Colombo Education Zone were participated in the study. Three Scores were given to evaluate food safety knowledge, attitude and practices of students separately. The mean food safety knowledge, attitude and practice scores of students were 59.94 ± 0.83, 84.33 ± 0.44, 79.59 ± 0.61 respectively. Mann-Whitney u test indicated gender wise significant differences in food safety knowledge score (p = 0.035) and food safety practice score (0.000). Positive correlations were found (p < 0.05) between food safety knowledge score and parents‟ education background, student‟s academic ranking, Science marks. Significant positive correlations were shown between food safety practice score and student‟s academic ranking, Science marks. Similarly positive correlation- coefficients were recorded between food safety attitude score and parents‟ education background and students‟ Science marks. Results from the regression model indicated that food safety knowledge score significantly decreased if education level of parents, academic rank and Science marks of students (p < 0.05) are decreased. Although food safety knowledge score of males is higher than females, poor food safety practices were common among males and students with lower Science marks (p < 0.05). In conclusion, gender, parents‟ education background, students‟ academic ranking and Science marks can be effectively used as parameters to further improve food safety knowledge, attitude and practices among school children. Keywords: Food safety; Knowledge; Practices; Attitude; Socio-demographic factors; School children
Assessment of the Omega-3 Fatty Acids Composition and Heavy Metals Content in Fish Oils in Sri Lankan Marine Fishes
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Jayakody, J.A.K.S.; Senevirathne, S.A.; Senarathna, L.; Edirisinghe, E.M.R.K.B.
The consumption of fish oil provides numerous speculated health benefits due to the presence of long chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA). These health benefits may be challenged by the presence of heavy metals in fish oil. The objective of the present study was to compare the health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids and assess the risk of some heavy metals in fish oil extracted from marine fish. Sixteen species of fish were collected (n=3) from the Trincomalee fish market and fish oils were extracted using standard Bligh and Dyer method. Fatty acid composition of extracted fish oils were quantitatively determined by Gas Chromatography - Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS). The Arsenic (As), Cadmium (Cd) and Lead (Pb) contents were determined by using Inductively Coupled Plasma - Mass Spectrophotometer (ICP-MS). The amount of fat present in fish varieties was varied over a wide range of 0.619% (Acanthocybium commersoni) to 8.626% (Carangoides fulvoguttatus). Among these species, the omega-3 content ranged from 7.814% - 31.818% of total fatty acids and the highest of omega-3 content was showed in Hemiramphus sp. (9.20 mg/100 g) and lowest level was reported in Auxis thazard (0.036 mg/100 g). In all species studied, Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) are the major omega-3 fatty acids and amounts of EPA and DHA have been exceeded 70% of the total omega-3 PUFAs. The content of As in extracted fish oils were ranged from 2.4353-18.3975 mg/kg in Nemapteryx caelata and Elagatis bipinnulata while Cd content were varied from 0.0262 - 1.2305 mg/kg in Scomberomorus commersoni and Nemapteryx caelata respectively. Platax sp. reported the lowest Pb content (0.467 mg/kg) while Acanthocybium commersoni reported the highest (2.282 mg/kg). Some of the fish oil samples had exceeded recommended human daily intake values of heavy metals, thus benefite of omega-3 fatty acids is challenged. Keywords: Fish oil; Omega-3 fatty acids; Heavy metals; GC-MS; ICP-MS
Association between Body Weight and Gait Score of Broiler Meat Chicken
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Sonali Marasinghe, M.A.; De Silva, P.G.J.C.; Kurukulasuriya, M.S.
The global demand for chicken meat is increasing and new poultry strains have been developed by genetic improvement targeting production traits to fulfill the higher demand. Since, genetic improvements have not focused on improving skeletal confirmation in parallel to production traits; birds can get leg deformities disturbing their walking pattern which can manifest as higher gait score (GS). Study focused to identify the association between body weight (BW) and GS in broiler chicken. A total of 100, day-old Cobb chicks (76-female; 24-male) were randomly selected and managed conditions. GS with 0(zero) to 5(severe) levels and BW of the birds were recorded separately at the age day-14, day-21, day-28 and day-35. Spearman correlation was calculated between BW and GS at each sampling day using MINITAB-17 and mean BWs difference of birds in each GS category was obtained by repeated measures of ANOVA (RMANOVA) using SAS-9.2. Frequency of birds in each GS category was obtained. Significant weak positive correlation between BW and GS is reported only at day-35 (Spearman-Rho=0.289; P<0.05). When consider the sex, similar significant weak positive correlation is observed in females (Spearman-Rho=0.364; P<0.05) at day-35 reflecting correlations observed in whole flock at day-35, may have mainly contributed from females. RMANOVA revealed a significant effect of time and GS×time interaction on BW (P<0.05). Significantly higher BW (P<0.05) has observed in birds belonging to the higher GS categories at day-35 (GS0=1660.83±59.13; GS2=1796.49±38.65; GS3=1913.39±30.16; GS4=1803.00±111.18) indicating BW of birds has directly affected on their walking pattern. Frequency of birds belonging to GS-0 is continuously declining from 99% at day-14 to 15.2% at day- 35. Further, more than 50% of birds showed GS-3 (48.5%) and GS-4 (3%) at day-35 reflecting without external visible changes in the skeletal confirmation; birds are suffering from pain in walking which is an important animal welfare issue. None of the birds reported GS-5 throughout the experiment. It can be concluded that increase BW leads to chronic pain which reflects as higher GS. At slaughtering age, birds are suffering from pain in walking without changes in external skeletal confirmation. Future research can be focus on genetic improvement of skeletal confirmation of birds to tolerate increased BW. Keywords: Body weight; Broilers; Chicken; Gait score
Automated Farming Robot
(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Fazil, N.M.; Hiroshaan, V.
Robotics is a fascinating field of engineering that provides many opportunities for research. In addition, the evolution of technology in recent years has led to intelligent mobile robots. As farms grow in size, together with the size of the equipment used on them, there is a need for ways to automate processes, previously performed by the farmer himself, such as handling the equipments himself to perform the task. The control of these robots, however, is a difficult task that involves knowledge in different areas such as robotics, automation, programming, electronics, etc. The objective of this research is to technically develop the new agricultural technologies to savings in terms of both cost and time, to optimize production efficiency, declining availability of manpower, minimize production-associated risks. Hence automation is the ideal solution to overcome all the shortcomings by creating machines that perform the operations and automating it to increase yield on a large scale. In this the robots are developed to concentrate in an efficient manner and also it is expected to perform the operations autonomously such as Drilling (for plantations of seeds), seed dispensing and watering. For manual control the robot uses the Bluetooth pairing app as control device and helps in the navigation of the robot outside the field Keywords: Farming Robot; Bluetooth module; Arduino;Agriculture; Water pump

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