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Some factors hastening up retting process which are- retting water, retting in already used water, harvesting time, climate conditions like high temperatures, deep water (too deep water will delay retting, addition of chemicals, materials used as weights on Jak, method of retting, variety of jute, method of fiber extraction, stage of harvesting, period of retting, etc. There are few methods of retting available which are- conventional method of whole plant retting, chemical retting, microbial retting, mechano-microbial retting and In-situ retting with microbial consortium. There are three sequential stages in retting (based on the morphological modification, dynamics of pH and various enzymes related to them during the entire jute retting process): Stage 1 (Initial retting stage); Stage 2 (Middle retting stage) and Stage 3 (Final retting stage).

The aim of the work was to find out suitable method of dyeing so that costly reactive dye bath can be reused without draining them. Because of the hydrolysis of residual reactive dyes due to the fixation conditions and because of relatively large amounts of dyes and salts left in the effluent, reusing hydrolyzed reactive dyes is a challenge to dyers. Two reactive dyes were examined (reactive red, reactive yellow and two fabrics: nylon, silk as well as silk fiber and nylon yarn). When using suitable dyeing conditions by controlling pH and temperature, hydrolyzed reactive dye baths for silk and nylon dyeing showed very good wash and moderate colorfastness.

It’s been a problem over the years that auto cone produces more imperfection and co-efficient of variation (CV) percentage than ring yarn. It was found that lowering the gauge from the running setting results for better quality yarn (less CV% and imperfection) without affecting any other parameters related with production. Thus, it can clearly be stated that less yarn clearer gauge results for better quality yarn.

The object of this study is the application of basic dyes on jute fabrics at different temperature and fastness analyses of dyed jute fabric. Hessian jute fabric is collected from jute weaving mill then jute fabric is undergone pretreatment process. Pretreated jute fabric is dyed with basic dyes at various shade percentage such as- 5%, 2%, 4%,5% shade variation at different temperature. Then fastness property is analyses by color fastness to wash, color fastness to rubbing, color fastness to light. It showed that at 65oC temperature and 4% shade variation basic dyes gives good color fastness on hessian jute fabrics.

The study emphasis on development of jute-cotton blended products and its sustainability. The jute cotton blends products not only reduces the excessive demand of cotton but also jute cotton blends products are eco-friendly which helps to reduce dependency of synthetic products that’s are harmful for environment. In this study jute cotton blended yarn is collected from jute product diversified center from BJRI then jute cotton blended yarn is transferred to weaving and knitting department to turn this yarn to woven and knit jute cotton blend fabrics. After that different physical property was measured to analysis the sustainability of these jute cotton blended products. It’s identified that jute cotton blend fabric has great impact to replace the excessive demand of cotton and the products quality of jute cotton blend fabrics is so good to make impact on market.

The present research demonstrated that different fiber intimate blends allow the broader use of pineapple leaf fiber for the textile and clothing industries. This fiber is obtained from the leaves of pineapple plants by extraction, carried out to separate the cambium and fiber using a decorticator Machine. The physic-mechanical properties such as bundle strength, whiteness, lustre, linear density, breaking load, breaking extension tenacity, textile modulus were determined as per standard method using different testing machine. There is correlation between length, width and thickness where, if the length is higher than width and thickness also higher. Pineapple (PALF) has tremendous mechanical properties and can be applied in making eco-friendly textile goods. Density of PALF is similar to other natural fibers while Textile modulus is very high, and tensile strength is highest among the related natural fibers. These properties are suitable for its application so this pineapple fibers by blending and mixing with other natural fibers and can be produce various types of cloths.

In this experiment, tea liquor has been prepared by 10% dried tea leaves and boiling time was 5, 10 and 15 minutes. For the determination of antibacterial activity, Salmonella typhi were inoculated on nutrient agar media by spread plate method and tea liquor was poured in the middle of the bacterial inoculated plate. Antibacterial activity was observed where boiling time has affected antibacterial activity. Antibacterial activity of different extracts of jute leaves were evaluated by agar well diffusion method against different pathogenic bacteria viz., Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillus cereus etc. Antibacterial activity was found increasing with increased by longer time prepared tea liquor and the highest antibacterial activity of the aqueous extract of jute leaf was observed against E. coli (ZOI=17.0±1.0 mm) followed by Salmonella typhi. Therefore, these results clearly support the traditional use of jute leaf as a broad-spectrum antimicrobial agent against a wide range of microbes.

The experiment was conducted to study the response of summer onion to N2and Naphthalene Acetic Acid (NAA). The experiment consisted of two factors. Factor A: 4 levels of Nitrogen viz. N0-0kg (control), N1-90kg ha-1, N2-110kg ha-1and N3-130kg ha-1and Factor B: 4 levels of NAA viz. H0-0ppm, H1- 50ppm, H2-100ppm and H3-150ppm. The experiment was laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design with three replications. Results revealed that in terms of nitrogen, the highest bulb diameter (4.90cm), bulb weight plant-1(51.48g) and bulb yield ha-1(17.78t) were found from N2(110kg N ha-1). In case of application of NAA, the highest bulb length (3.22cm), bulb diameter (4.38cm), bulb weight plant-1(45.18g) and bulb yield ha-1(15.49t) were recorded from H2(100ppm NAA). Regarding combined effect of nitrogen and NAA the highest bulb length (3.76cm), highest bulb diameter (5.26cm), highest bulb weight plant-1(55.50g) and highest bulb yield ha-1(19.60t) were recorded from the treatment combination of N2H2. Considering economic analysis, the highest BCR (2.39) was also obtained from N2H2(110kg N ha-1with 100ppm NAA) treatment combination.

Due to new market entrants, marketing of raw jute and jute products is currently under intense competitive pressure. In Bangladesh, the production of diverse jute products has also picked up speed. This study tries to identify new markets for goods made of jute in Bangladesh. Fifteen target markets of five different continents are examined in this regard. To get a full idea about the market different factors, consumer behavior of some markets, supply chain analysis including industry analysis is done. Traders and product demand of those countries have also identified in this paper. After analysis this research gives us the idea that Bangladesh earns more by exporting value added products than raw jute. Also, it suggests some marketing strategies for the exporter and will give a easy way to commercialize their produced products to the International market. Keywords: Brightness level, FTIR, Shrinkage test, Diversified jute.

Jute knitted fabric was produced in knitting lab and was treated with natural and synthetic dust resistance compounds of perchloroethylene, wax, and mixers of vinegar and olive oil at different temperatures with contact of dust to develop anti-dust characteristics on jute knitted fabrics. It was found that at 80oC temperature, perchloro ethylene developed dust resistant property on jute knitted fabric whereas at 60oC, wax treatment improved a dust resistant property and in natural treatment at room temperature, spray of vinegar+olive oil improved dust resistant property as well

In this analysis jute cotton blend denims performance at enzyme wash to 35 times respective laundering, in friction and roughness properties where 5 times laundered sample showed smoother surface in both inner and outer surface. In bending properties, 5 times laundered sample was found second lowest Bending Average Rigidity (BAR) and Bending Work (BW). In compression, highest Compression Average Rigidity (CAR), Recovery Average Rigidity(RAR) and less energy requirement Compression work (CW) to compress in both inner and outer surface was found in 5 times laundered sample. In Sensorial Comfort Aspect (SCA), 5 times laundered sample was found smoother surface property, quite higher bending property and higher compression average rigidity. Therefore, 5 times laundered sample was good sensorial comfort among all the samples. In Maximum Thermal Flux (MTF), 20 times laundered sample gives most warm feeling at inner surface because it provides minimum heat flux which ensure warmness in skin-garment micro environment. For thermo physiological comfort aspect, only 20 times repetitive laundered sample found maximum thermo physiological comfort among all samples. Thus, Jute-Cotton blend denims performance at enzyme wash to 35 times repetitive laundering up to 20 times repetitive laundering sample reported good results and the protruding fibre of jute was visible excessively on the surface.

This study was aimed at developing a novel platform for tetravalent conjugation of 4-arm polyethylene glycol (PEG) with an antisense oligonucleotide (ASO). The ASO technology has several limitations, such as low cellular uptake, poor nuclease stability, and short half-life. PEG-conjugated ASOs may result in an improvement in the pharmacokinetic behavior of the drug. Moreover, PEGylation can reduce enzymatic degradation and renal excretion of the conjugates, thereby, increasing its blood stability and retention time. In this study, we successfully synthesized PEG-ASO conjugate consisting of 4-arm-PEG and four molecules of ASO (4-arm-PEG-tetra ASO). Its hybridization ability with complementary RNA, enzymatic stability, and in vitro gene silencing ability were evaluated. No significant difference in hybridization ability was observed between 4-arm-PEG-tetra ASO and the parent ASO. In addition, gene silencing activity of the 4-arm-PEG-tetra ASO was observed in vitro. However, the in vitro activity of the 4-arm-PEG-tetra ASO was slightly reduced as that of the parent ASO. Moreover, the 4-arm-PEG-tetra ASO showed appreciable stability in cellular extract, suggesting that it hybridizes with mRNA in its intact form, without being cleaved in the cell, and exhibits ASO activity.

This study surveys 622 Bangladeshi civil servants of all administrative jurisdictions and elicits their preference for health insurance schemes. The latter vary in the amount of sum assured as well as in terms of premium sharing rules with the government. The paper also explores the financial burden that the premium subsidy may impose on the exchequer and the state’s fiscal capacity to shoulder it. We discover a very high willingness to join the scheme. Though all three premium-sharing options posit flat rates common for all employment ranks, respondents appear to prefer premiums proportional to their basic salary.

The study was designed to apply and evaluate the colour fastness of natural dyes on cotton knitted fabric with references to four criteria, including colour fastness to washing, colour fastness to sweat, colour fastness to light, and colour fastness to rubbing. Test was carried out for 30min at 60o C and grading was done for color staining and color change by the respective grey scale.However, the rating of colour change was quite subpar; turmeric received the lowest score, and tea and henna together received a grade of 1. The sample cloth's rubbing resistance and degree of staining are assessed using a grey scale for both wet and dry rubbing. The Xenon Arc was used to conduct tests on colour fastness to light. Wet rub grade was 4, whereas Dry rub grade was 5. Rubbing fastness properties of these natural dyes were comparatively poor and the results of the grading for light fastness were very poor. &nbsp

Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid is essential nutrients that cannot produce in human body and meet up through diet. Jute leaves contain L-ascorbic acid. The amount of L-ascorbic is unknown in different varieties developed by Bangladesh Jute Research Institute. L-ascorbic acid content is affected by cooking or processing and preservation. Therefore, the experiment was conducted to investigate the content of vitamin C in the fresh jute leaves as well as the effect of cooking and preservation methods on L-ascorbic acid content in jute leaves. Fresh jute leaves of different varieties contain different amount of L-ascorbic acid 0.39g/10g to 0.64g/10g inCorchorus olitoriusand 0.64g/10g to 0.92g/10g inCorchorus capsularis.C. capsulariscontain more amount of L-ascorbic acid than theC. olitorius. Jute leaves ofC. olitoriusretain 95% L-ascorbic acid andC. capsularisretain 62% L-ascorbic acid after 15 min of boiling. Vinegar soaking leaves release more L- ascorbic acid by 5 min than the fresh leaves and then the L-ascorbic acid content was reduced by 15 min in both the species. Spraying vinegar treatment releases more L-ascorbic acid and increasing up-to 30 min treatment. Both oven dried and cold dried leaves retain small amount of L-ascorbic acid. L-ascorbic acid content was reduced in preserved jute leaf tea and soup powder also in both species. Usually, leafy vegetables are cooked before consumption and sometimes preserved vegetables are consumed when fresh vegetables may not available. So, this study may be useful to know the actual intake of L-ascorbic acid from the processed or preserved jute leaves.

The objective of present study was to observe biological activities and comparison of the isolated ayurvedic and unani medicine. All of the ayurvedic medicines were more effective antimicrobial agents than unani medicine against all of the tested organisms in in vitro culture condition. Mustakarista showed highest zone of inhibition against Staphylococcus sp. in concentration at neat and 1:2. Highest MIC was found in Amritarista against Mycobacterium sp. and highest MBC were observed against Staphylococcus sp.; in Mustakarishta, highest MIC against Klebsiella sp. and highest MBC was observed against Mycobacterium sp.; in Ashokarista, highest MIC against Vibrio cholera and highest MBC was observed against Staphylococcus sp.; in Amalaki Rasayan, highest MIC against Salmonella sp. and highest MBC were observed against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus sp. and Bacillus subtilis. Combined effect of test product against selected microbes showed satisfactory results against all the selected microbes. All ayurvedic medicines have nearly twice the antimicrobial activity of unani medicine, whereas most commercial antibiotics have only a minor response against all tested organisms.

In herbal medicine, crude plant extracts in the form of herbal extracts are used by the population for the treatment of diseases, including infectious diseases. Several hundred genera of plants are used as vital sources for potent and powerful drugs. The objective of present study were to determine the antimicrobial effect of some natural products of herbal and spice extracts; and compare the antimicrobial activity these aqueous and ethanolic extract test products with reference to MIC and MBC. The current study was carried out on five selected fresh samples from various conditions. Using the agar well and disc diffusion methods, the antimicrobial effects of Tripfala, Java plum, Cinnamon, Henna, and Cumin against both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria were investigated. The zone of inhibition or antimicrobial activity of aqueous extracts of selected sample extracts was greater than that of ethanolic extracts. Among the five selected microbes, Klebsiella sp. had the lowest sensitivities to Tripfala and Java plum extracts, whereas these aqueous and ethanolic extracts had strong antimicrobial activity against four other microbes. The MIC values for all of the natural products ranged from 12.5-25.0 ug/ml, while the MBC values ranged from 25- 100.0ug/ml. During the four-month preservation of prepared discs of these natural plant products, no change in antimicrobial activity was observed. This research suggests that Tripfala and Java Plum have the potential to be used as a source of new broad-spectrum oral antibiotics.

Background Ensuring financial risk protection in health care and achieving universal health coverage (UHC) by 2030 is one of the crucial Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targets for many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), including Bangladesh. We examined the critical trajectory of financial risk protection against out-of-pocket (OOP) health expenditure in Bangladesh. Methods Using Bangladesh Household Income and Expenditure Survey data from 2005, 2010, and 2016, we examined the levels and distributions of catastrophic health expenditure (CHE) and impoverishment incidences. We used the normative food, housing, and utilities method, refining it by categorizing households with zero OOP expenses by reasons. Results OOP expenditure doubled between 2005 and 2016 (USD 115.6 in 2005, USD 162.1 in 2010, USD 242.9 in 2016), accompanied by rising CHE (11.5% in 2005, 11.9% in 2010, 16.6% in 2016) and impoverishment incidence (1.5% in 2005, 1.6% in 2010, 2.3% in 2016). While further impoverishment of the poor households due to OOP expenditure (3.6% in 2005, 4.1% in 2010, 3.9% in 2016) was a more severe problem than impoverishment of the non-poor, around 5.5% of non-poor households were always at risk of impoverishment. The poorest households were the least financially protected throughout the study period (lowest vs. highest quintile CHE: 29.5% vs. 7.6%, 33.2% vs. 7.2%, and 37.6% vs. 13.0% in 2005, 2010, and 2016, respectively). The disparity in CHE among households with and without chronic illness was also remarkable in 2016 (25.0% vs. 9.1%). Conclusion Financial risk protection in Bangladesh exhibits a deteriorated trajectory from 2005 to 2016, posing a significant challenge to achieving UHC and, thus, the SDGs by 2030. The poorest and chronically ill households disproportionately lacked financial protection. Reversing the worsening trends of CHE and impoverishment and addressing the inequities in their distributions calls for implementing UHC and thus providing financial protection against illness.

Faced with an exponentially growing world population, what is required is a population stabilisation policy to control the global fertility rates. This has implications for the working-age population in the future, and lead to a serious economic crisis. It is envisaged that by the year 2050 the work-age population will have seriously declined, but is still expected to look after an increasing dependent population. This paper argues that to maintain sustainable economic growth, and to support the associated technological advances in the future there will be demand for a larger labour force. It notes that the industrialised countries are now managing with migrant populations drawn mostly from high fertility but low-income countries. In the global context this is only a zero-sum game without increasing the stock of the world's actual total labour force. Therefore, the world population needs to increase to meet the growing demand for a larger labour force in order to achieve economic sustainability. Since the earth's population carrying capacity largely depends on advanced technology functioning well, to support society's lifestyle expectations, the world should not defer planned population growth. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Humanity is at the cross-roads of secular (atheistic) and sacred (religious) approaches to civilization. Modern education is structured based on secular ethics of material well being following ‘hungry man is an angry man’ type of philosophy where education is viewed not really as an intellectual exercise but primarily as a project of development of skills and technology for material advancement. As a result, it has largely failed to produce capable individual with ‘efficiency combining morality’ required for serving the purpose of life – establishing world peace and prosperity and successes here and the hereafter. This study aims to meaningfully integrate religiosity and morality into modern education for making it more effective. It is a library research analysing the contents of related literature on the subject for meaningfully integrating revealed and rational sources of knowledge for developing a desired conceptual model of goals of education with the linkage that where science ends the philosophy begins, and where philosophy ends religion begins; and where no prejudice to any revealed religion exists. It has developed a conceptual model on the ideal goals of education and argued for the necessary moralization of the modern education system by incorporating religious moralities and values centering the purpose of life. Its findings have implications for education policy makers, academic institutions, educators, scholars, clerics, social thinkers, and civil societies for use as guides for necessary moralization of modern education.

To demonstrate how methodologies for assessing reading comprehension can grow out of views of the construct suggested in the reading research literature, we constructed tasks and carried out psychometric analyses that were framed in accordance with 2 leading reading models. In estimating item difficulty and subsequently, examinee proficiency, an item response theory (IRT) model called the linear logistic test model was extended to incorporate reader as well as task attributes as covariates. A novel aspect of this modeling was reader effects—interest and prior knowledge—specific to text passages that the examinees read in the assessment. In the demonstration, the theory-motivated task and reader attributes were found to be significantly related to item difficulty. In particular, examinees' comprehension proficiency estimates positively affected within-person effects concerning the reader's familiarity and interest in a passage. This study suggests that it is both feasible and informative to incorporate variables for various comprehension components into the psychometric analysis.

Nanocellulose has been in numerous applications and can be obtained from bioresources. This work demonstrates the derivation of nanocellulose from an alternative option i.e. rice husk. The processed rice husk was refined by chemical and mechanical treatments. Nanocellulose was subsequently derived from the refined rice husk through acid hydrolysis followed by centrifugation, dialysis and ultrasonic treatment. Scanning Electron Microscopy ensured the nanoscale diameter while Fourier Transformed InfraRed Spectroscopy confirmed the removal of noncellulosic materials. It is therefore proposed that the native rice husk can also be utilized for manufacturing nanocellulose reducing its adverse environmental impacts.Chemical Engineering Research Bulletin 20(2018) 19-22

Drosophila Subito is a kinesin 6 family member and ortholog of mitotic kinesin-like protein (MKLP2) in mammalian cells. Based on the previously established requirement for Subito in meiotic spindle formation and for MKLP2 in cytokinesis, we investigated the function of Subito in mitosis. During metaphase, Subito localized to microtubules at the center of the mitotic spindle, probably interpolar microtubules that originate at the poles and overlap in antiparallel orientation. Consistent with this localization pattern, subito mutants improperly assembled microtubules at metaphase, causing activation of the spindle assembly checkpoint and lagging chromosomes at anaphase. These results are the first demonstration of a kinesin 6 family member with a function in mitotic spindle assembly, possibly involving the interpolar microtubules. However, the role of Subito during mitotic anaphase resembles other kinesin 6 family members. Subito localizes to the spindle midzone at anaphase and is required for the localization of Polo, Incenp and Aurora B. Genetic evidence suggested that the effects of subito mutants are attenuated as a result of redundant mechanisms for spindle assembly and cytokinesis. For example, subito double mutants with ncd, polo, Aurora B or Incenp mutations were synthetic lethal with severe defects in microtubule organization.

Our autism research has focused on the homeobox transcription factor, ENGRAILED 2 (EN2). Prior to the advent of genome wide association and re-sequencing analysis, we selected EN2 as a candidate gene due to neuroanatomical similarities observed between individuals with autism and mouse En2 mutants. Animal studies have demonstrated that En2 is expressed throughout CNS development and regulates numerous cell biological processes implicated in ASD including connectivity, excitatory/inhibitory (E/I) circuit balance, and neurotransmitter development. The relevance of these functions to ASD etiology is discussed. Human genetic analysis by us determined that two intronic SNPs, rs1861972 and rs1861973, are significantly associated with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). We observed the common haplotype (rs1861972-rs1861973 A-C) is over-transmitted to affected individuals while the rs1816972-rs1861973 G-T haplotype is over-represented in unaffected siblings. Significant results were observed in 3 datasets (518 families, 2336 individuals, P=.00000035). 6 other groups have also reported association of EN2 with ASD, suggesting that EN2 is an ASD susceptibility gene. These results are discussed. However if EN2 contributes to ASD risk, we would expect the ASD-associated A-C haplotype to segregate with a polymorphism that is functional and affects either the regulation or activity of EN2. Linkage disequilibrium mapping, re-sequencing and additional association analysis was performed, and identified the A-C haplotype as the best candidate for functional analysis. Luciferase assays conducted in primary mouse neuronal cultures demonstrated that the A-C haplotype functions as a transcriptional activator and specifically binds a protein complex. Transgenic mouse studies have demonstrated that the A-C haplotype is also functional, increasing gene expression in vivo. Finally, human post-mortem studies indicate EN2 levels are also increased in individuals with autism. Thus, the ASD-associated A-C haplotype is functional and increased EN2 levels are consistently correlated with ASD. Six significant CpG islands also flank human EN2. Preliminary studies indicate hypomethylation of these CpGs can also result in increased EN2 levels, suggesting

The vacuolated lens ( vl ) mouse mutant causes congenital cataracts and neural tube defects (NTDs), with the NTDs being caused by abnormal neural fold apposition and fusion. Our positional cloning of vl indicates these phenotypes result from a deletion mutation in an uncharacterized orphan G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR), Gpr161. Gpr161 displays restricted expression to the lateral neural folds, developing lens, retina, limb, and CNS. Characterization of the vl mutation indicates that C-terminal tail of Gpr161 is truncated, leading to multiple effects on the protein, including reduced receptor-mediated endocytosis. We have also mapped three modifier quantitative trait loci (QTL) that affect the incidence of either the vl cataract or NTD phenotypes. Bioinformatic, sequence, genetic, and functional data have determined that Foxe3 , a key regulator of lens development, is a gene responsible for the vl cataract-modifying phenotype. These studies have extended our understanding of the vl locus in three significant ways. One, the cloning of the vl locus has identified a previously uncharacterized GPCR-ligand pathway necessary for neural fold fusion and lens development, providing insight into the molecular regulation of these developmental processes. Two, our QTL analysis has established vl as a mouse model for studying the multigenic basis of NTDs and cataracts. Three, we have identified Foxe3 as a genetic modifier that interacts with Gpr161 to regulate lens development.

Bipolar spindles assemble in the absence of centrosomes in the oocytes of many species. In Drosophila melanogaster oocytes, the chromosomes have been proposed to initiate spindle assembly by nucleating or capturing microtubules, although the mechanism is not understood. An important contributor to this process is Subito, which is a kinesin-6 protein that is required for bundling interpolar microtubules located within the central spindle at metaphase I. We have characterized the domains of Subito that regulate its activity and its specificity for antiparallel microtubules. This analysis has revealed that the C-terminal domain may interact independently with microtubules while the motor domain is required for maintaining the interaction with the antiparallel microtubules. Surprisingly, deletion of the N-terminal domain resulted in a Subito protein capable of promoting the assembly of bipolar spindles that do not include centrosomes or chromosomes. Bipolar acentrosomal spindle formation during meiosis in oocytes may be driven by the bundling of antiparallel microtubules. Furthermore, these experiments have revealed evidence of a nuclear- or chromosome-based signal that acts at a distance to activate Subito. Instead of the chromosomes directly capturing microtubules, signals released upon nuclear envelope breakdown may activate proteins like Subito, which in turn bundles together microtubules.

A fabrication process used by SJSU was altered in order to lower the threshold voltage, VT. This was done to allow the fabrication process to be used for analog integrated circuit design for future EE classes. Wafers fabricated from previous semesters using the same process recipe were measured to have about a 4-5 V threshold voltage on average. The Athena process simulator was used to observe VT for different times and temperatures of the substrate diffusion step of boron. After simulations, the times for substrate diffusion used to carry out the fabrication process were chosen to be 180, 240 (unchanged), and 300 minutes while the temperature remained unchanged. For the 180, 240, and 300 minute diffusion times, Athena measured VT to be 1.21, 1.16, and 1.12 V respectively. The fabrication process was then carried out for the three different diffusion times in SJSU's IC fabrication lab. Once fabrication was completed, the wafers were measured for their alignment, gate oxide thickness, transconductance, channel length modulation, body effect, effective length, and threshold voltage. From the fabricated wafers the average VT measured for each diffusion time was 3.54, 3.08, and 2.15 V for 180, 240, and 300 minute diffusion times, respectively. When extracting Vt, the oxide interface charge, Qi, may have been assumed to be too high for the simulations (5times1011 cm-3). These results show that the EE/MatE 129 recipe may need to use a dopant with a smaller boron concentration or the boron diffusion step before the growth of the field oxide may need to be removed in order to reduce the substrate concentration.

In the oocytes of many species, bipolar spindles form in the absence of centrosomes. Drosophila melanogaster oocyte chromosomes have a major role in nucleating microtubules, which precedes the bundling and assembly of these microtubules into a bipolar spindle. Here we present evidence that a region similar to the anaphase central spindle functions to organize acentrosomal spindles. Subito mutants are characterized by the formation of tripolar or monopolar spindles and nondisjunction of homologous chromosomes at meiosis I. Subito encodes a kinesinlike protein and associates with the meiotic central spindle, consistent with its classification in the Kinesin 6/MKLP1 family. This class of proteins is known to be required for cytokinesis, but our results suggest a new function in spindle formation. The meiotic central spindle appears during prometaphase and includes passenger complex proteins such as AurB and Incenp. Unlike mitotic cells, the passenger proteins do not associate with centromeres before anaphase. In the absence of Subito, central spindle formation is defective and AurB and Incenp fail to properly localize. We propose that Subito is required for establishing and/or maintaining the central spindle in Drosophila oocytes, and this substitutes for the role of centrosomes in organizing the bipolar spindle.