BRAC University Institutional Repository
Preserving Knowledge, Advancing Research, Sharing Scholarship
A digital platform for collecting, preserving, and sharing BRAC University’s scholarly, academic, and institutional outputs.
Contribute to the Repository
Faculty members and students are invited to submit their research publications, theses, dissertations, and scholarly works to increase visibility, access, and long-term preservation.
Recent Submissions
Further extension of the generalized and improved (G'/G)-expansion method for nonlinear evolution equation
(University of Bahrain, 2016-02-01) Naher, Hasibun; Abdullah F.A.; Department of Mathematics and Natural Sciences
In this article, the generalized and improved (G0/G)-expansion method has been pro-posed for further extension to generate many new travelling wave solutions. In addition, nonlinearordinary differential equation is implemented as auxiliary equation including many parametersinstead of linear ordinary differential equation. Moreover, the presentation of the travelling wavesolutions is quiet new. The effectiveness and reliability of the method are shown by its applicationto the Zakharov–Kuznetsov–Benjamin–Bona–Mahony (ZKBBM) equation. Some of our generatedsolutions turned into some known solutions, when parameters consider specific values and othersare new.
Exploring intranasal delivery of peptide and protein nanoparticles by a thermoresponsive hydrogel
(Editions de Sante, 2025-08-01) Khan, Tanisha Tabassum Sayka; Sheikh, Zara; Fathi A.; Maleknia S.; Oveissi F.; Abrams T.; Knox W.; Casettari L.; Tiboni M.; Suman J.; Ong H.X.; Traini D.; School of Pharmacy
Effective delivery of peptide or protein-based drugs (PPDs) remains a challenge as parenteral routes are invasive and PPDs are subjected to enzymatic degradation via the oral route. As such, intranasal (IN) route is an effective, non-invasive approach for delivering PPDs locally, systemically, and to the central nervous system (CNS), while maintaining the stability of the drugs. The study investigates the potential of a novel thermoresponsive polymer (PNPHO), as a carrier to facilitate IN delivery of peptides/proteins. Two types of nanoparticle formulations (Low-F and High-F) using a low and a high PNPHO concentration (20 mg/mL and 35 mg/mL) were prepared with bovine serum albumin (BSA) incorporated in it. Both formulations exhibited good physicochemical properties in terms of particle size (Low-F: 29 nm; High-F: 39 nm), polydispersity index (PDI) (<0.3) and zeta (ζ) potential (−3 to −6 mV) with a high encapsulation efficiency (EE) (86 %–96 %) maintained at 4 °C during a 4-week stability study. High-F formulation demonstrated a significantly greater aerosol drug deposition in the entire nasal cavity and in the olfactory region in vitro compared to free BSA at 45° spray angle. Both formulations were found to be non-toxic when tested on nasal epithelial cell lines. Importantly, a significant increase in transepithelial resistance was observed for the nasal epithelial cells post 4 h treatment with High-F along with a significant reduction in BSA transport across the cells compared to free drug, indicating tightening of cellular junctions and prolonged drug residence time owing to its mucoadhesive property. Altogether, the findings suggest that PNPHO polymer is a potential carrier for targeted delivery of peptide/protein using the IN route.
Transforming agriculture with vermicompost: 7-year empirical evidence from drought-prone and salinization-affected regions of Bangladesh
(Elsevier Ltd, 2025-05-25) Hossain M.L.; Shapna K.J.; Li J.; Kabir M.H.; Siddika, Farzana; Khandker S.; Beierkuhnlein C.; Department of Mathematics and Natural Science
Global agricultural production has been affected by the increased frequency of climate extremes (e.g., droughts) in dry regions and heightened soil and water salinity in coastal regions. Exploration of sustainable agricultural practices is central to addressing the impacts of climate-induced shocks, restore soil fertility, and ensure food security. While there is growing evidence of crop losses due to increased drought and soil salinity, empirical evidence on nature-based solutions for increasing crop production through soil fertility recovery remains limited and poorly understood. Investigating the soil nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium) and salinity from the 37 field experiments (22 treatments and 15 control plots in 11 villages) over 2017–2023, this study examined the effects of vermicompost on soil nutrients and salinity (electrical conductivity [EC]) in drought-prone and salinization-affected regions of Bangladesh. Results reveal that the application of vermicompost reduced soil salinity in salinization-affected region and enhanced soil nutrient contents in both regions over 7 years. In vermicompost-utilized experiments in the salinization-affected region, soil salinity (EC1:5) levels decreased from 5.56–7.65 dS m−1 in 2017 to 4.93–5.89 dS m−1 in 2023. Soil salinity and nutrient contents showed significant differences among the vermicompost-applied experiments, while no detectable changes in salinity and nutrient contents were found in the controlled experiments. None of the cropping patterns in salinization-affected region (brinjal-watermelon and potato-watermelon) and drought-prone region (brinjal-pointed gourd and brinjal-sesame) had significant effects on the observed changes in soil salinity and nutrient contents. These findings suggest that regardless of the crop combinations, vermicompost is a sustainable and versatile soil amendment, which can be effectively used in diverse agricultural systems and environments. The study provides empirical evidence to support policy decisions aimed at promoting sustainable agricultural practices and enhancing soil health using vermicompost. The findings inform strategies for reducing soil salinity and enhancing sustainable agriculture in comparable regions worldwide.
Quantile-frequency connectedness among climate change stocks: The roles of climate change attention and global uncertainties
(Elsevier Ltd, 2024-10-15) Hoque, Mohammad Enamul; Mahi, Masnun Al; Tee L.T.; Bilgili F.; Kew S.R.; Billah M.; BRAC Business School
Concerns regarding climate change and the environment have heightened interest in climate-conscious investing, necessitating a deeper understanding of climate-friendly financial products. This study investigates climate change stock market connectedness and spillover effects, focusing on quantile-frequency dependency. The study utilizes a novel quantile-frequency connectedness with seven MSCI climate change market indices and daily data from January 2014 to December 2022. The empirical analysis reveals that climate change stocks are highly interconnected across various market conditions, including bearish and bullish periods. Spillover effects have amplified during increased stock market turbulence, regardless of market directions. Short-term spillover effects have a stronger impact than long-term effects, regardless of market conditions. Climate change stock markets in Japan and the Asia Pacific consistently experience net shocks, while the United States, Europe, Emerging Markets (EM), North America, and the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) exhibit variations based on market conditions and timeframes. The study identifies events including the 2015 Paris Agreement, the 2016 US withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 US rejoining of the Paris Agreement, and the 2022 Russian-Ukraine War that have influenced the dynamic connectedness and spillover of climate change markets. The analysis also reveals that increased investor attention to climate change leads to higher interconnectedness among climate change stock markets across various market scenarios. Moreover, global financial stress, economic policy uncertainty, geopolitical risk, global carbon emission futures, oil market uncertainty, and stock market uncertainty significantly impact the interdependence of climate change markets. The findings have implications for portfolio managers, emphasizing the need for hedging techniques to mitigate risks in climate change market
An intelligent road traffic management system using NVIDIA GPU
(Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc., 2017-02-21) Alam, Tahmid Tanzi; Chowdhury, Ahmad Naquib; Rahman, Mohammad Zahidur; Department of Computer Science and Engineering
Road traffic congestion remains a global phenomenon that causes great problems in the cities of the world; especially developing countries, resulting in massive delay, unpredictable travel times, increased fuel consumption, manhour and monetary loss. In order to get a better solution, one of the proposition is to divert traffic to less congested route. One of the solution of collecting road traffic condition is crowd sourcing. We proposed that the crowd sourcing information will change road network graph of the city according to sourcing result. Based on this updated graph, the driver in jam needs information that which path is suitable for him based on current updated position of vehicle to intended destination almost in real time. To get a near real time performance for large graph, we try to investigate the use of parallel point to point graph search algorithm. For this purpose we use CUDA enable GPU for parallel implementation of Dijsktra's algorithm. We tested our modified algorithm for New York, Rome and Dhaka city (partial). It is found that parallel implementation gives a better result for all pair search.