Nutritional values of Prosopis flour compared with plain white wheat flour.
\\n\\n
More than half of the publishers listed alongside IntechOpen (18 out of 30) are Social Science and Humanities publishers. IntechOpen is an exception to this as a leader in not only Open Access content but Open Access content across all scientific disciplines, including Physical Sciences, Engineering and Technology, Health Sciences, Life Science, and Social Sciences and Humanities.
\\n\\nOur breakdown of titles published demonstrates this with 47% PET, 31% HS, 18% LS, and 4% SSH books published.
\\n\\n“Even though ItechOpen has shown the potential of sci-tech books using an OA approach,” other publishers “have shown little interest in OA books.”
\\n\\nAdditionally, each book published by IntechOpen contains original content and research findings.
\\n\\nWe are honored to be among such prestigious publishers and we hope to continue to spearhead that growth in our quest to promote Open Access as a true pioneer in OA book publishing.
\\n\\n\\n\\n
\\n"}]',published:!0,mainMedia:null},components:[{type:"htmlEditorComponent",content:'
Simba Information has released its Open Access Book Publishing 2020 - 2024 report and has again identified IntechOpen as the world’s largest Open Access book publisher by title count.
\n\nSimba Information is a leading provider for market intelligence and forecasts in the media and publishing industry. The report, published every year, provides an overview and financial outlook for the global professional e-book publishing market.
\n\nIntechOpen, De Gruyter, and Frontiers are the largest OA book publishers by title count, with IntechOpen coming in at first place with 5,101 OA books published, a good 1,782 titles ahead of the nearest competitor.
\n\nSince the first Open Access Book Publishing report published in 2016, IntechOpen has held the top stop each year.
\n\n\n\nMore than half of the publishers listed alongside IntechOpen (18 out of 30) are Social Science and Humanities publishers. IntechOpen is an exception to this as a leader in not only Open Access content but Open Access content across all scientific disciplines, including Physical Sciences, Engineering and Technology, Health Sciences, Life Science, and Social Sciences and Humanities.
\n\nOur breakdown of titles published demonstrates this with 47% PET, 31% HS, 18% LS, and 4% SSH books published.
\n\n“Even though ItechOpen has shown the potential of sci-tech books using an OA approach,” other publishers “have shown little interest in OA books.”
\n\nAdditionally, each book published by IntechOpen contains original content and research findings.
\n\nWe are honored to be among such prestigious publishers and we hope to continue to spearhead that growth in our quest to promote Open Access as a true pioneer in OA book publishing.
\n\n\n\n
\n'}],latestNews:[{slug:"intechopen-authors-included-in-the-highly-cited-researchers-list-for-2020-20210121",title:"IntechOpen Authors Included in the Highly Cited Researchers List for 2020"},{slug:"intechopen-maintains-position-as-the-world-s-largest-oa-book-publisher-20201218",title:"IntechOpen Maintains Position as the World’s Largest OA Book Publisher"},{slug:"all-intechopen-books-available-on-perlego-20201215",title:"All IntechOpen Books Available on Perlego"},{slug:"oiv-awards-recognizes-intechopen-s-editors-20201127",title:"OIV Awards Recognizes IntechOpen's Editors"},{slug:"intechopen-joins-crossref-s-initiative-for-open-abstracts-i4oa-to-boost-the-discovery-of-research-20201005",title:"IntechOpen joins Crossref's Initiative for Open Abstracts (I4OA) to Boost the Discovery of Research"},{slug:"intechopen-hits-milestone-5-000-open-access-books-published-20200908",title:"IntechOpen hits milestone: 5,000 Open Access books published!"},{slug:"intechopen-books-hosted-on-the-mathworks-book-program-20200819",title:"IntechOpen Books Hosted on the MathWorks Book Program"},{slug:"intechopen-s-chapter-awarded-the-guenther-von-pannewitz-preis-2020-20200715",title:"IntechOpen's Chapter Awarded the Günther-von-Pannewitz-Preis 2020"}]},book:{item:{type:"book",id:"4722",leadTitle:null,fullTitle:"Quantum Dots - Theory and Applications",title:"Quantum Dots",subtitle:"Theory and Applications",reviewType:"peer-reviewed",abstract:"The book Quantum Dots - Theory and Applications collects some new research results in the area of fundamental excitations, decoherence, charge states, epitaxial techniques and photoluminescence experiments related to devices made with quantum dots. This book is divided in two sections. First section includes the fundamental theories on excitons, trions, phase decoherence, and charge states, and the second section includes several applications of quantum dots.",isbn:null,printIsbn:"978-953-51-2155-8",pdfIsbn:"978-953-51-5766-3",doi:"10.5772/59735",price:119,priceEur:129,priceUsd:155,slug:"quantum-dots-theory-and-applications",numberOfPages:190,isOpenForSubmission:!1,isInWos:1,hash:"459966a20183c34738c03bd25831af22",bookSignature:"Vasilios N. Stavrou",publishedDate:"September 17th 2015",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/4722.jpg",numberOfDownloads:7419,numberOfWosCitations:3,numberOfCrossrefCitations:4,numberOfDimensionsCitations:8,hasAltmetrics:1,numberOfTotalCitations:15,isAvailableForWebshopOrdering:!0,dateEndFirstStepPublish:"November 4th 2014",dateEndSecondStepPublish:"November 25th 2014",dateEndThirdStepPublish:"March 1st 2015",dateEndFourthStepPublish:"May 30th 2015",dateEndFifthStepPublish:"June 29th 2015",currentStepOfPublishingProcess:5,indexedIn:"1,2,3,4,5,6,7",editedByType:"Edited by",kuFlag:!1,editors:[{id:"99725",title:"Dr.",name:"Vasilios N.",middleName:null,surname:"Stavrou",slug:"vasilios-n.-stavrou",fullName:"Vasilios N. Stavrou",profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/no_image.jpg",biography:"Dr. V. N. Stavrou is currently an Adjunct Member at the Hellenic Naval Academy, Piraeus, Greece. He received a MSc and a PhD in Theoretical Solid State Physics from the University of Essex in England, in 1995 and in 1999 respectively. He has held postdoctoral positions at the following research institutions: a) Deutsche Forschungsanstalt fuer Luft und Raumfahrt e.V (German Aerospace Research Center) in Germany, b) Helsinki University of Technology, c) State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo, USA and d) University of Iowa, USA. He is specifically interested in searching the electronic, optical and lattice properties of semiconducting low dimensional structures (quantum dots and quantum wells among others). These properties are of special importance for the quantum computing architecture and laser technology. He has published his research work in reputable journals related, among others, to quantum computing, spintronics, decoherence in quantum dots, diluted magnetic semiconductors and phonon models in low dimensional structures.",institutionString:"Hellenic Naval Academy",position:null,outsideEditionCount:0,totalCites:0,totalAuthoredChapters:"1",totalChapterViews:"0",totalEditedBooks:"5",institution:{name:"Hellenic Naval Academy",institutionURL:null,country:{name:"Greece"}}}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,coeditorOne:null,coeditorTwo:null,coeditorThree:null,coeditorFour:null,coeditorFive:null,topics:[{id:"1168",title:"Condensed Matter Physics",slug:"nanotechnology-and-nanomaterials-engineering-physics-condensed-matter-physics"}],chapters:[{id:"48653",title:"Theory of Excitons and Excitonic Quasimolecules Formed from Spatially Separated Electrons and Holes in Quasi-Zero- Dimensional Nanostructures",doi:"10.5772/60591",slug:"theory-of-excitons-and-excitonic-quasimolecules-formed-from-spatially-separated-electrons-and-holes-",totalDownloads:1199,totalCrossrefCites:1,totalDimensionsCites:3,signatures:"Sergey I. Pokutnyi and Włodzimierz Salejda",downloadPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-download/48653",previewPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-preview/48653",authors:[{id:"100593",title:"Prof.",name:"Sergey",surname:"Ivanovich Pokutnyi",slug:"sergey-ivanovich-pokutnyi",fullName:"Sergey Ivanovich Pokutnyi"}],corrections:null},{id:"49025",title:"Excitons and Trions in Semiconductor Quantum Dots",doi:"10.5772/61177",slug:"excitons-and-trions-in-semiconductor-quantum-dots",totalDownloads:1274,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:0,signatures:"S. A. Safwan and N. El–Meshed",downloadPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-download/49025",previewPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-preview/49025",authors:[{id:"174523",title:"Dr.",name:"Safwan",surname:"S.A",slug:"safwan-s.a",fullName:"Safwan S.A"}],corrections:null},{id:"48621",title:"On the ’Three-Orders Time-Limit’ for Phase Decoherence in Quantum Dots",doi:"10.5772/60685",slug:"on-the-three-orders-time-limit-for-phase-decoherence-in-quantum-dots",totalDownloads:851,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:0,signatures:"Witold Aleksander Jacak",downloadPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-download/48621",previewPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-preview/48621",authors:[{id:"174529",title:"Dr.",name:"Witold",surname:"Jacak",slug:"witold-jacak",fullName:"Witold Jacak"}],corrections:null},{id:"48544",title:"Charge States in Andreev Quantum Dots",doi:"10.5772/60482",slug:"charge-states-in-andreev-quantum-dots",totalDownloads:1093,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:0,signatures:"Ivan A. Sadovskyy, Gordey B. Lesovik and Valerii M. Vinokur",downloadPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-download/48544",previewPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-preview/48544",authors:[{id:"174586",title:"Dr.",name:"Ivan",surname:"Sadovskyy",slug:"ivan-sadovskyy",fullName:"Ivan Sadovskyy"},{id:"175646",title:"Prof.",name:"Gordey",surname:"Lesovik",slug:"gordey-lesovik",fullName:"Gordey Lesovik"},{id:"175647",title:"Dr.",name:"Valerii",surname:"Vinokur",slug:"valerii-vinokur",fullName:"Valerii Vinokur"}],corrections:null},{id:"48775",title:"Quantum Dots Prepared by Droplet Epitaxial Method",doi:"10.5772/60823",slug:"quantum-dots-prepared-by-droplet-epitaxial-method",totalDownloads:1551,totalCrossrefCites:3,totalDimensionsCites:4,signatures:"Akos Nemcsics",downloadPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-download/48775",previewPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-preview/48775",authors:[{id:"107673",title:"Dr",name:"Akos",surname:"Nemcsics",slug:"akos-nemcsics",fullName:"Akos Nemcsics"}],corrections:null},{id:"48756",title:"Physical Reasons of Emission Varying in CdSe/ZnS and CdSeTe/ZnS Quantum Dots at Bioconjugation to Antibodies",doi:"10.5772/60821",slug:"physical-reasons-of-emission-varying-in-cdse-zns-and-cdsete-zns-quantum-dots-at-bioconjugation-to-an",totalDownloads:1451,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:1,signatures:"Tetyana V. Torchynska",downloadPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-download/48756",previewPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-preview/48756",authors:[{id:"39831",title:"Prof.",name:"Tetyana",surname:"Torchynska",slug:"tetyana-torchynska",fullName:"Tetyana Torchynska"}],corrections:null}],productType:{id:"1",title:"Edited Volume",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},relatedBooks:[{type:"book",id:"7275",title:"Phonons in Low Dimensional Structures",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"44dcc59564ae4c4a8884353195112a95",slug:"phonons-in-low-dimensional-structures",bookSignature:"Vasilios N. Stavrou",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7275.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"99725",title:"Dr.",name:"Vasilios N.",surname:"Stavrou",slug:"vasilios-n.-stavrou",fullName:"Vasilios N. Stavrou"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"5389",title:"Quantum Cascade Lasers",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"220b81ff5b943083a64756e19bf1fab7",slug:"quantum-cascade-lasers",bookSignature:"Vasilios N. Stavrou",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/5389.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"99725",title:"Dr.",name:"Vasilios N.",surname:"Stavrou",slug:"vasilios-n.-stavrou",fullName:"Vasilios N. Stavrou"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"6100",title:"Nonmagnetic and Magnetic Quantum Dots",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"78673eed1e24eaecb8331eb0efcae2de",slug:"nonmagnetic-and-magnetic-quantum-dots",bookSignature:"Vasilios N. Stavrou",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/6100.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"99725",title:"Dr.",name:"Vasilios N.",surname:"Stavrou",slug:"vasilios-n.-stavrou",fullName:"Vasilios N. Stavrou"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"6524",title:"Heterojunctions and Nanostructures",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"fefc5b353d60c5125f1783fc4208194b",slug:"heterojunctions-and-nanostructures",bookSignature:"Vasilios N. Stavrou",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/6524.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"99725",title:"Dr.",name:"Vasilios N.",surname:"Stavrou",slug:"vasilios-n.-stavrou",fullName:"Vasilios N. Stavrou"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"3828",title:"Application of Nanotechnology in Drug Delivery",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"51a27e7adbfafcfedb6e9683f209cba4",slug:"application-of-nanotechnology-in-drug-delivery",bookSignature:"Ali Demir Sezer",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/3828.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"62389",title:"PhD.",name:"Ali Demir",surname:"Sezer",slug:"ali-demir-sezer",fullName:"Ali Demir Sezer"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"2094",title:"Macro To Nano Spectroscopy",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"9b4ab1da8af4d1105f8eaa755b5ee33b",slug:"macro-to-nano-spectroscopy",bookSignature:"Jamal Uddin",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/2094.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"126741",title:"Dr.",name:"Jamal",surname:"Uddin",slug:"jamal-uddin",fullName:"Jamal Uddin"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"334",title:"Recent Advances in Nanofabrication Techniques and Applications",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"2a5d8d54b0af2f820664a57d2a763b5c",slug:"recent-advances-in-nanofabrication-techniques-and-applications",bookSignature:"Bo Cui",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/334.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"49496",title:"Prof.",name:"Bo",surname:"Cui",slug:"bo-cui",fullName:"Bo Cui"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"1501",title:"Smart Nanoparticles Technology",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"9360fdc75621662ac2971d7472f1f164",slug:"smart-nanoparticles-technology",bookSignature:"Abbass Hashim",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/1501.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"6700",title:"Dr.",name:"Abbass A.",surname:"Hashim",slug:"abbass-a.-hashim",fullName:"Abbass A. Hashim"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"3859",title:"Modern Electrochemical Methods in Nano, Surface and Corrosion Science",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"8d16a35ef79fcec1ea47f0174cca555c",slug:"modern-electrochemical-methods-in-nano-surface-and-corrosion-science",bookSignature:"Mahmood Aliofkhazraei",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/3859.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"155413",title:"Dr.",name:"Mahmood",surname:"Aliofkhazraei",slug:"mahmood-aliofkhazraei",fullName:"Mahmood Aliofkhazraei"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"3071",title:"Updates in Advanced Lithography",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"c30b9539af2e12af0a8227b0fdb8ccb3",slug:"updates-in-advanced-lithography",bookSignature:"Sumio Hosaka",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/3071.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"5524",title:"Prof.",name:"Sumio",surname:"Hosaka",slug:"sumio-hosaka",fullName:"Sumio Hosaka"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}}],ofsBooks:[]},correction:{item:{id:"65668",slug:"corrigendum-to-clinical-applications-of-mesenchymal-stromal-cells-mscs-in-orthopedic-diseases",title:"Corrigendum to: Clinical Applications of Mesenchymal Stromal Cells (MSCs) in Orthopedic Diseases",doi:null,correctionPDFUrl:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/pdfs/65668.pdf",downloadPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-download/65668",previewPdfUrl:"/chapter/pdf-preview/65668",totalDownloads:null,totalCrossrefCites:null,bibtexUrl:"/chapter/bibtex/65668",risUrl:"/chapter/ris/65668",chapter:{id:"61187",slug:"clinical-applications-of-mesenchymal-stromal-cells-mscs-in-orthopedic-diseases",signatures:"Jiazhao Yang, Shiyuan Fang, Lei Xu, Li Li, Kai Xie, Jinsen Lu, Hao\nWang, Xujin Wang and Lixin Kan",dateSubmitted:"December 5th 2017",dateReviewed:"March 29th 2018",datePrePublished:"November 5th 2018",datePublished:"January 23rd 2019",book:{id:"6658",title:"Stromal Cells",subtitle:"Structure, Function, and Therapeutic Implications",fullTitle:"Stromal Cells - Structure, Function, and Therapeutic Implications",slug:"stromal-cells-structure-function-and-therapeutic-implications",publishedDate:"January 23rd 2019",bookSignature:"Mani T. Valarmathi",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/6658.jpg",licenceType:"CC BY 3.0",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"69697",title:"Dr.",name:"Mani T.",middleName:null,surname:"Valarmathi",slug:"mani-t.-valarmathi",fullName:"Mani T. Valarmathi"}],productType:{id:"1",title:"Edited Volume",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},authors:null}},chapter:{id:"61187",slug:"clinical-applications-of-mesenchymal-stromal-cells-mscs-in-orthopedic-diseases",signatures:"Jiazhao Yang, Shiyuan Fang, Lei Xu, Li Li, Kai Xie, Jinsen Lu, Hao\nWang, Xujin Wang and Lixin Kan",dateSubmitted:"December 5th 2017",dateReviewed:"March 29th 2018",datePrePublished:"November 5th 2018",datePublished:"January 23rd 2019",book:{id:"6658",title:"Stromal Cells",subtitle:"Structure, Function, and Therapeutic Implications",fullTitle:"Stromal Cells - Structure, Function, and Therapeutic Implications",slug:"stromal-cells-structure-function-and-therapeutic-implications",publishedDate:"January 23rd 2019",bookSignature:"Mani T. Valarmathi",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/6658.jpg",licenceType:"CC BY 3.0",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"69697",title:"Dr.",name:"Mani T.",middleName:null,surname:"Valarmathi",slug:"mani-t.-valarmathi",fullName:"Mani T. Valarmathi"}],productType:{id:"1",title:"Edited Volume",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},authors:null},book:{id:"6658",title:"Stromal Cells",subtitle:"Structure, Function, and Therapeutic Implications",fullTitle:"Stromal Cells - Structure, Function, and Therapeutic Implications",slug:"stromal-cells-structure-function-and-therapeutic-implications",publishedDate:"January 23rd 2019",bookSignature:"Mani T. Valarmathi",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/6658.jpg",licenceType:"CC BY 3.0",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"69697",title:"Dr.",name:"Mani T.",middleName:null,surname:"Valarmathi",slug:"mani-t.-valarmathi",fullName:"Mani T. Valarmathi"}],productType:{id:"1",title:"Edited Volume",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}}},ofsBook:{item:{type:"book",id:"6395",leadTitle:null,title:"Bridge Engineering",subtitle:null,reviewType:"peer-reviewed",abstract:"A bridge is a structure built to span the physical obstacles without closing the way underneath, such as a body of water, valley, or road, for the purpose of providing the passage over the obstacle. Bridge engineering is an engineering discipline branching from civil engineering that involves the planning, design, construction, operation, and maintenance of bridges to ensure safe and effective transportation of vehicles, people and goods. This book Bridge Engineering includes the main topics and the basic principles of bridge engineering and provides the full scope of current information necessary for effective and cost-conscious contemporary bridge. It reflects new engineering and building developments, the most current design methods, and the latest industry standards and policies. It provides a comprehensive overview of the significant characteristics for bridge engineering. It highlights the recent advancements, requirements, improvements, and details of the latest techniques in the global market. It contains a collection of the latest research developments on the bridge engineering. It comprehensively covers the basic theory and practice in sufficient depth to provide a solid grounding to bridge engineers. It helps readers to maximize effectiveness in all facets of bridge engineering. This professional book as a credible source and a valuable reference can be very applicable and useful for all professors, researchers, engineers, practicing professionals, trainee practitioners, students and others who are interested in the bridge projects.",isbn:"978-1-78923-105-2",printIsbn:"978-1-78923-104-5",pdfIsbn:"978-1-83881-451-9",doi:"10.5772/intechopen.70024",price:119,priceEur:129,priceUsd:155,slug:"bridge-engineering",numberOfPages:150,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"1d5fcf0ef5708024ef95eb8b3d7310be",bookSignature:"Hamid Yaghoubi",publishedDate:"May 23rd 2018",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/6395.jpg",keywords:null,numberOfDownloads:14036,numberOfWosCitations:0,numberOfCrossrefCitations:2,numberOfDimensionsCitations:2,numberOfTotalCitations:4,isAvailableForWebshopOrdering:!0,dateEndFirstStepPublish:"June 8th 2017",dateEndSecondStepPublish:"June 29th 2017",dateEndThirdStepPublish:"September 25th 2017",dateEndFourthStepPublish:"December 24th 2017",dateEndFifthStepPublish:"February 22nd 2018",remainingDaysToSecondStep:"4 years",secondStepPassed:!0,currentStepOfPublishingProcess:5,editedByType:"Edited by",kuFlag:!1,biosketch:null,coeditorOneBiosketch:null,coeditorTwoBiosketch:null,coeditorThreeBiosketch:null,coeditorFourBiosketch:null,coeditorFiveBiosketch:null,editors:[{id:"103965",title:"Dr.",name:"Hamid",middleName:null,surname:"Yaghoubi",slug:"hamid-yaghoubi",fullName:"Hamid Yaghoubi",profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/103965/images/system/103965.jpeg",biography:"Dr. Hamid Yaghoubi is the director of Iran Maglev Technology (IMT). He became the Iran top researcher in 2010. In this regard, he was awarded by the Iranian president; the Iranian Minister of Science, Research and Technology; and the Iranian Minister of Information and Communication Technology. He became the 2011 and 2012 Outstanding Reviewer for the Journal of Transportation Engineering (JTE), American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), USA. One of his journal papers became the 2011 Top Download Paper for JTE. He received the ICCTP2011 Award for the 11th International Conference of Chinese Transportation Professionals (ICCTP2011), ASCE. He is an assistant chief editor and an editorial board member for some journals. He has been a reviewer for the majority of journals, books and conferences. He has also been an editor for some books. He has cooperated with hundreds of international conferences as a chairman, a keynote speaker, a chair of session, a publication chair, and a member of committees, including scientific, organizing, steering, advisory, technical program, and so on. He is also a member of several international committees.",institutionString:"Iran Maglev Technology (IMT)",position:null,outsideEditionCount:0,totalCites:0,totalAuthoredChapters:"3",totalChapterViews:"0",totalEditedBooks:"4",institution:{name:"Iran University of Science and Technology",institutionURL:null,country:{name:"Iran"}}}],coeditorOne:null,coeditorTwo:null,coeditorThree:null,coeditorFour:null,coeditorFive:null,topics:[{id:"705",title:"Construction Engineering",slug:"construction-engineering"}],chapters:[{id:"59387",title:"Introductory Chapter: Modern Bridges",slug:"introductory-chapter-modern-bridges",totalDownloads:569,totalCrossrefCites:0,authors:[{id:"103965",title:"Dr.",name:"Hamid",surname:"Yaghoubi",slug:"hamid-yaghoubi",fullName:"Hamid Yaghoubi"}]},{id:"60236",title:"The Feasibility of Constructing Super-Long-Span Bridges with New Materials in 2050",slug:"the-feasibility-of-constructing-super-long-span-bridges-with-new-materials-in-2050",totalDownloads:1008,totalCrossrefCites:1,authors:[{id:"211659",title:"Dr.",name:"Faham",surname:"Tahmasebinia",slug:"faham-tahmasebinia",fullName:"Faham Tahmasebinia"},{id:"221172",title:"Dr.",name:"Samad M.E.",surname:"Sepasgozar",slug:"samad-m.e.-sepasgozar",fullName:"Samad M.E. Sepasgozar"}]},{id:"57609",title:"Developing a Bridge Condition Rating Model Based on Limited Number of Data Sets",slug:"developing-a-bridge-condition-rating-model-based-on-limited-number-of-data-sets",totalDownloads:530,totalCrossrefCites:1,authors:[{id:"180233",title:"Associate Prof.",name:"Roszilah",surname:"Hamid",slug:"roszilah-hamid",fullName:"Roszilah Hamid"},{id:"216888",title:"Dr.",name:"Khairullah",surname:"Yusof",slug:"khairullah-yusof",fullName:"Khairullah Yusof"}]},{id:"57516",title:"Structural Identification (St-Id) Concept for Performance Prediction of Long-Span Bridges",slug:"structural-identification-st-id-concept-for-performance-prediction-of-long-span-bridges",totalDownloads:660,totalCrossrefCites:0,authors:[{id:"213939",title:"Dr.",name:"Selcuk",surname:"Bas",slug:"selcuk-bas",fullName:"Selcuk Bas"}]},{id:"58008",title:"Recent Advances in the Serviceability Assessment of Footbridges Under Pedestrian-Induced Vibrations",slug:"recent-advances-in-the-serviceability-assessment-of-footbridges-under-pedestrian-induced-vibrations",totalDownloads:578,totalCrossrefCites:0,authors:[{id:"215797",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Javier Fernando",surname:"Jiménez-Alonso",slug:"javier-fernando-jimenez-alonso",fullName:"Javier Fernando Jiménez-Alonso"},{id:"215798",title:"Prof.",name:"Andres",surname:"Saez",slug:"andres-saez",fullName:"Andres Saez"}]},{id:"58853",title:"Wind Action Phenomena Associated with Large-Span Bridges",slug:"wind-action-phenomena-associated-with-large-span-bridges",totalDownloads:9452,totalCrossrefCites:0,authors:[{id:"60072",title:"Prof.",name:"Raquel",surname:"Almeida",slug:"raquel-almeida",fullName:"Raquel Almeida"},{id:"216824",title:"Prof.",name:"Daniel",surname:"Vaz",slug:"daniel-vaz",fullName:"Daniel Vaz"},{id:"216827",title:"Prof.",name:"A.R.",surname:"Janeiro Borges",slug:"a.r.-janeiro-borges",fullName:"A.R. Janeiro Borges"}]},{id:"59297",title:"Bridges Subjected to Dynamic Loading",slug:"bridges-subjected-to-dynamic-loading",totalDownloads:1239,totalCrossrefCites:0,authors:[{id:"216765",title:"Prof.",name:"Ján",surname:"Benčat",slug:"jan-bencat",fullName:"Ján Benčat"},{id:"235614",title:"Associate Prof.",name:"Robert",surname:"Kohar",slug:"robert-kohar",fullName:"Robert Kohar"}]}],productType:{id:"1",title:"Edited Volume",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"},personalPublishingAssistant:{id:"185543",firstName:"Maja",lastName:"Bozicevic",middleName:null,title:"Ms.",imageUrl:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/185543/images/4748_n.jpeg",email:"maja.b@intechopen.com",biography:"As an Author Service Manager my responsibilities include monitoring and facilitating all publishing activities for authors and editors. From chapter submission and review, to approval and revision, copyediting and design, until final publication, I work closely with authors and editors to ensure a simple and easy publishing process. I maintain constant and effective communication with authors, editors and reviewers, which allows for a level of personal support that enables contributors to fully commit and concentrate on the chapters they are writing, editing, or reviewing. I assist authors in the preparation of their full chapter submissions and track important deadlines and ensure they are met. I help to coordinate internal processes such as linguistic review, and monitor the technical aspects of the process. As an ASM I am also involved in the acquisition of editors. Whether that be identifying an exceptional author and proposing an editorship collaboration, or contacting researchers who would like the opportunity to work with IntechOpen, I establish and help manage author and editor acquisition and contact."}},relatedBooks:[{type:"book",id:"5423",title:"Urban Transport Systems",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"222b5d90a7014dbff7e33f3dcde6bc1d",slug:"urban-transport-systems",bookSignature:"Hamid Yaghoubi",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/5423.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"103965",title:"Dr.",name:"Hamid",surname:"Yaghoubi",slug:"hamid-yaghoubi",fullName:"Hamid Yaghoubi"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"6103",title:"Highway Engineering",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"9c66d18cec90a84fdfd9a64451dc421a",slug:"highway-engineering",bookSignature:"Hamid Yaghoubi",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/6103.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"103965",title:"Dr.",name:"Hamid",surname:"Yaghoubi",slug:"hamid-yaghoubi",fullName:"Hamid Yaghoubi"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"7524",title:"High-Speed Rail",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"0e248745ed8a460687701d02462cb874",slug:"high-speed-rail",bookSignature:"Hamid Yaghoubi",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7524.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"103965",title:"Dr.",name:"Hamid",surname:"Yaghoubi",slug:"hamid-yaghoubi",fullName:"Hamid Yaghoubi"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"3631",title:"Smart Home Systems",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:null,slug:"smart-home-systems",bookSignature:"Mahmoud A. Al-Qutayri",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/3631.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"7571",title:"Dr.",name:"Mahmoud",surname:"Al-Qutayri",slug:"mahmoud-al-qutayri",fullName:"Mahmoud Al-Qutayri"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"2005",title:"Effective Thermal Insulation",subtitle:"The Operative Factor of a Passive Building Model",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"c7c6c5a9dfad00a32efaa72b9f163e71",slug:"effective-thermal-insulation-the-operative-factor-of-a-passive-building-model",bookSignature:"Amjad Almusaed",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/2005.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"110471",title:"Dr.",name:"Amjad",surname:"Almusaed",slug:"amjad-almusaed",fullName:"Amjad Almusaed"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"7205",title:"Housing",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"efb431be41bf8bf41facd7b4a183225e",slug:"housing",bookSignature:"Amjad Almusaed and Asaad Almssad",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7205.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"110471",title:"Dr.",name:"Amjad",surname:"Almusaed",slug:"amjad-almusaed",fullName:"Amjad Almusaed"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"5422",title:"Risk Management Treatise for Engineering Practitioners",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"4d70d3197f1b4dea5285a83550a79ade",slug:"risk-management-treatise-for-engineering-practitioners",bookSignature:"Chike F Oduoza",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/5422.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"5932",title:"Dr.",name:"Chike",surname:"Oduoza",slug:"chike-oduoza",fullName:"Chike Oduoza"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"8299",title:"Timber Buildings and Sustainability",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"bccf2891cec38ed041724131aa34c25a",slug:"timber-buildings-and-sustainability",bookSignature:"Giovanna Concu",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8299.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"108709",title:"Dr.",name:"Giovanna",surname:"Concu",slug:"giovanna-concu",fullName:"Giovanna Concu"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"8808",title:"Risk Management in Construction Projects",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"f8f1673caa5c51349ef131c89d02f873",slug:"risk-management-in-construction-projects",bookSignature:"Nthatisi Khatleli",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8808.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"247856",title:"Dr.",name:"Nthatisi",surname:"Khatleli",slug:"nthatisi-khatleli",fullName:"Nthatisi Khatleli"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"7473",title:"Indoor Environmental Quality",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"fb35168f3d84a1a6ee93cb3797ecda97",slug:"indoor-environmental-quality",bookSignature:"Muhammad Abdul Mujeebu",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7473.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"289697",title:"Dr.",name:"Muhammad Abdul",surname:"Mujeebu",slug:"muhammad-abdul-mujeebu",fullName:"Muhammad Abdul Mujeebu"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}}]},chapter:{item:{type:"chapter",id:"72923",title:"Use of Falun Gong to Address Traumatic Stress among Marginalized Clients",doi:"10.5772/intechopen.93301",slug:"use-of-falun-gong-to-address-traumatic-stress-among-marginalized-clients",body:'
Scholars have most recently begun to investigate the impact of pervasive micro aggressions and other forms of systemic oppression on individuals from culturally and socially marginalized groups. Researchers have suggested that trauma affected clients report emotional and psychological impairment, such as depression and anxiety [1]. Other investigators have found that problems interpersonal conflicts and substance abuse problems are evident. Educational researchers have also explored traumatic stress and academic achievement and assert that severe persistent stress due to environmental factors, such as racism, can negatively impact children’s academic performance [2, 3]. The authors use traumatic stress theory as a framework for exploring effective interventions to decrease symptomology due to systemic oppression.
The purpose of this paper is to outline the benefits of Falun Gong, an ancient Chinese mind-body and spiritual discipline, as a mindfulness intervention when working with culturally marginalized clients. The authors provide an overview of the clinical issues associated with historical trauma and then present Falun Gong as an alternative solution for ameliorating the effects of social marginalization. The authors suggest that Falun Gong is beneficial in addressing the psychological, physical, academic, and financial needs of these particular types of clients. Recommendations for practice include expanded training on Falun Gong as a clinical intervention and an enhancement of the curriculum in various mental health-training programs to include more emphasis on mindfulness and, more particularly, Falun Gong. Suggestions for future research focus on developing a national study exploring the impact of Falun Gong practices on traumatic stress symptoms for culturally marginalized clients.
How individuals cope with trauma is dependent upon their social positioning prior to the onset of traumatic experiences. Some groups of people, such as poor people, the elderly, culturally diverse, and mentally/physically impaired, are disproportionately affected by traumatic events and experiences based upon institutionalized and historical biases in society. Lack of access to institutional resources and lack of power to control those institutions creates a cycle of socio-cultural abuse that threatens the psyche of culturally diverse individuals.
Yet, mental health professionals have been slow to acknowledge clinical issues related to pervasive trauma & chronic stress due to cultural hegemony [4]. For culturally diverse clients, for example, this has meant diagnoses based upon models of normalcy for middle-class Whites. Research has shown that systemic oppression has deleterious physical and mental health effects. Traumatic stress and psychological distress have been shown to be evident in several studies. Some of the outcomes of systemic oppression are noted in physical/psychological health [1, 2, 3] and education disparities [2, 5].
For the most part, traditional perspectives in the behavioral sciences have focused on the client as a poorly functioning individual. An ecological approach considers the possibility of a malfunctioning system and its impact on the client [6]. In analyzing some hypotheses to explain why clinicians have been slow to incorporate systemic interventions into their roles and responsibilities, one study suggests that clinicians may “underestimate the power of resources other than their values, skills, and personalities” ([7], p. 33).
An eco-systemic perspective in examining trauma aids in understanding and conceptualizing the needs of culturally diverse communities. Concentrating on the African American experience, researchers have begun investigating the correlates between historical trauma and oppression [1, 8, 9, 10]. Additional work in this area by Seaton [11] revealed that, in particular, due to racism, African Americans experience more stressful events than European Americans. In summarizing the Differential Exposure Hypothesis (DEH), Seaton suggested that racism, bias, and discrimination are detrimental to African Americans because they are disproportionately placed at higher risk for psychological disorders. Eco-systemic interventions incorporate an understanding of those external influences that impact an individual’s functioning [6].
Over the past two decades, mental health practitioners across all disciplines have become increasingly aware of the need for clinicians to involve themselves in the role of advocate for their clients [12, 13, 14]. Clinicians need to consider their clients within the context of their families and communities, as well as their social, cultural, and religious systems [15]. Additionally, assessment and treatment models are needed to intervene with clients who have been impacted by systemic oppression. Clinicians can explore relevant themes to address the context of systemic oppression and the related traumatic experiences. Intervening for trauma due to systemic oppression is necessary for recovery. Through their expanded awareness of sociocultural oppression, clinicians can become healers as well as advocates for their clients [14].
Chronic stress/pervasive trauma, related to systemic oppression, is transgenerational in nature: this is contextualized by historical and systemic oppression resulting in discriminatory legislation and racism in the U.S. Current effects of systemic oppression and trauma may be additive to the historical trauma experienced by previous generations [3]. Many of the problems reported by individual trauma survivors also are reported by their partners, including individual stress symptoms, isolation, poor relationship quality, and reduced intimacy. The available literature suggests that trauma and trauma symptoms affect not only the individual but also the people with whom traumatized persons have a significant relationship (e.g., spouses, partners, and children). However, this literature on the systemic effects of trauma is predominantly clinical in nature [16].
Trauma is experienced intergenerationally despite the absence of direct exposure to a traditional traumatic stimulus as evidenced from the study of Jewish Holocaust survivor’s children [17]. This study was also extended to the family members of veterans from World War II and the Vietnam War, indigenous peoples, individuals and groups living under repressive regimes, those experiencing domestic violence and crime, and those living with infection and life-threatening diseases. Symptoms may include depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation and behavior, substance abuse, and violence.
Effective interventions with culturally diverse clients: (a) build on existing knowledge within the client’s worldviews, (b) maintain client empowerment and agency, (c) demonstrate reciprocity in the transformation process, and (d) honor the historical and contextual forms of healing within the client’s familial and community networks. Some examples of these types of interventions include the use of story circle and other forms of narrative storytelling. More recently, clinical research has explored the benefits of meditation and mindfulness is assisting trauma-affected clients. Both of these types of interventions can be useful in working with culturally diverse clients.
Story circle is a tool to build equal partnerships that foster better understanding and communication among participants with like interests, thereby creating a stronger sense of community [18]. The story circle is oral and affective in nature. Stories tell individuals about their whole selves. Clients have the opportunity to share their feelings, thoughts and emotions with other people. They free their spirit in a way that is incomprehensible to outsiders. The term outsiders, refers to either observers of the story circle, or other cultures that may not be familiar with storytelling traditions in their society. The story circle tends to create a comfortable environment that encompasses warmth and trust. The facilitator’s job is to make sure each person connects the themes and patterns that the stories have created. All stories should connect in some way or another. It is also appropriate for members of the story circle to challenge one another after the storytelling has taken place. When it is time to process, members should discuss where they felt connected and focus on feelings and thought processes. The facilitator should also let everyone share responsibility for keeping track of time because it can last a while. Also, a follow-up activity should be conducted for the group as well.
There is plentiful evidence to show that Eastern meditation and mindfulness techniques have beneficial effects on our personal and work life [19, 20, 21, 22]. One study showed that participants reported significant reduction in anxiety, depression, and stress levels after a 10-week mindfulness meditation program [20]. Other studies indicated that meditation could alter brain function and even change the physical structure of the human brain, impacting the concept of lifelong neuroplasticity [23, 24, 25, 26]. Weaver [22] noted some of these studies showed that even novice or inexperienced meditators can rewire their brains and reap the benefits of meditative practices. These modified Eastern meditative and mindfulness techniques have shown to be beneficial effects.
As more people are seeking peace, inner balance, and wellbeing through meditation and mindfulness practices, there is a mushrooming of interest from those in the helping profession to integrate these ancient practices into their work [27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32]. A survey by the Psychotherapy Networker revealed 41.4% of about 2600 therapists reported integrating certain mindfulness techniques into their professional practice [29]. An online survey by Counseling Today, a publication of the American Counseling Association (ACA), indicated that 87% of counselors reported adopting an integrated practice with mindfulness approaches into their professional work with clients [28]. Writers, like Meyers [28], regard meditation as a form of mindfulness based technique.
Today, Falun Gong is one of the fastest emergent Chinese spiritual and meditative movement practices that is spreading throughout the world [31, 32, 33]. Large scale studies conducted in mainland China showed the tremendous health and wellness effects of Falun Gong [32, 34, 35, 36]. Likewise, various studies outside of mainland China and around the world indicated Falun Gong’s beneficial effects [33, 37, 38, 39]. There were two studies outside of China that stood out. The first was the Australian survey completed by the first author under the auspices of The University of South Australia for partial fulfillment of the Doctor of counseling degree examined the health and wellness effects of Falun Gong from the self-reports of Falun Gong practitioners [38]. It was the first empirical study with a diverse sample outside of mainland China [33, 38]. The second one, completed for the partial fulfillment of the Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology at the University of California, Los Angeles, demonstrated that practicing Falun Gong has a beneficial effect and that long-term practice may lead to hemispheric changes in the brain [40, 41].
Falun Gong has not been a subject for much research. Besides these two studies conducted under the auspices of an Australian and a US university respectively, a team of medical doctors and researchers in the United States had undertaken a pilot study to examine the effects of Falun Gong on gene expression and the role of neutrophils in Falun Gong practitioners [42]. Findings from their pilot study revealed superior gene expression, enhanced immunity, and longer lifespan of neutrophils in Falun Gong respondents [42]. The researchers’ endeavor provided the first evidence to suggest that practicing Falun Gong could influence immunity, metabolic rate, and cell regeneration. Then there were several publications documented many individuals experiencing health and wellness healing effects after they started practicing Falun Gong [43, 44, 45].
Also known as Falun Dafa, Falun Gong is a high-level Chinese self-cultivation practice for overall mind, body, and spiritual improvement [33, 46, 47]. It originated from Northeast China. Over the past two decades since its teacher and founder, Master Li Hongzhi first introduced Falun Gong to the public in 1992, there are numerous terms used to describe Falun Gong [33, 38]. Most non-Falun Gong writers concurred that Falun Gong is a form of qigong [46, 48, 49, 50, 51] or a Buddhist qigong system [52]. Other expressions used to describe Falun include traditional Chinese religious practice, or revival of traditional Chinese spiritual practice [49, 53, 54, 55, 56], or as a new religious movement [57, 58, 59, 60]. Gale and Gorman-Yao [61] described Falun Gong as a cultural movement, while Ackerman [62] referred to the practice as a New Age spiritual movement.
Despite the myriad of descriptive terms and expressions, there is a mutual understanding that Falun Gong is a form of qigong, a comprehensive spiritual meditation discipline, a quasi-religious practice, or a new Chinese religious movement. Human Rights Watch Senior Advisor Spiegel [51] offered a comprehensive definition, describing Falun Gong as a synthesis of qualities:
“A form of qigong, an ancient Chinese deep-breathing exercise system sometimes combined with meditation that enthusiasts claim promotes physical, mental, and spiritual well-being by enhancing the flow of vital energy through a person’s body. It also includes elements of popular Buddhism and Daoism” (Spiegel, 2002, p. 8).
Among practitioners, Falun Gong, an ancient Chinese spiritual discipline, is better known as Falun Dafa. The Chinese word “Fa” ([63], p. 390) refers to law or principles in the Buddha School teachings but this is not the same as the Buddhism taught by Buddha Shakyamuni or Siddhārtha Gautama. Penny states in his book, The Religion of Falun Gong, that the “falun” in the name Falun Gong “has a different meaning from that in Buddhism” ([64], p. 5). He describes Falun Gong as “the practice of the Wheel of the Law” (p. 5), and that Falun Dafa refers to “the Great Method of the Wheel of the Law” ([64], p. 5).
In Zhuan Falun, the complete teachings of Falun Gong, “Dafa,” which is pronounced as “Dah-fah” simply means the “Great Law” or the “Great Way” ([63], p. 2). While Falun Dafa is more befitting and widely used in Falun Gong literature, for the purpose of this article that comprises the White Paper, many writers have consistently alluded to this Chinese spiritual discipline as Falun Gong. This is partly because Falun Gong has remained more popular and widely used across different media, popular search engines, and literature by non-Falun Gong people [33, 38].
Most Falun Gong literature describes the practice as an ancient Chinese spiritual discipline in the Buddha tradition [31, 33, 38, 47, 65, 66]. Falun Gong, pronounced “Fah-loon Gong,” is a high-level, mind-body spiritual system with its roots in both ancient Buddhist and Taoist traditions [63, 67]. The gong in Falun Gong and qigong connotes exercise or practice but Falun Gong is not one at the same as practicing qigong. The gong in Falun Gong actually pertains to a “high-energy substance that manifests in the form of light, and its particles are fine and its density is high” ([63], p. 5). In Falun Gong, it is the cultivation of this gong that facilitates genuine healing, mind-body, and spiritual transformation [63] that many individuals experience. Simply put, Falun Gong, with its moral teachings and fivea meditative exercises, is a popular, tranquil cultivation practice for overall mind-body and spiritual improvement.
At the heart of the practice, Falun Gong teaches three universal principles—Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance—or Zhen, Shan, Ren in Chinese ([63], pp. 13-17). While some people in the West describe Falun Gong as a “Chinese yoga” ([47], p. 40), Falun Gong exercises are a lot simpler than yoga and do not imitate animal movements, like Indian yoga does. Falun Gong has only four standing exercises and one sitting meditation [67]. First introduced to the public in mainland China in 1992, the founder of the practice explains that Falun Gong is an advanced spiritual cultivation discipline and hence a high level form of qigong [63]. Within 7 years—from 1992 to 1999—Falun Gong rose from anonymity to become one of the fastest growing spiritual practices. On July 20, 1999, Falun Gong was illegally banned in mainland China and followers of the practice received the most horrendous persecution [33]. At the time, about 100 million people in China were practicing Falun Gong, which means that about one out of 13 Chinese people in mainland China was practicing Falun Gong [68], as a result of the practice’s healing benefits.
A unique characteristic of Falun Gong lies in its focus on heart and mind cultivation and on becoming a morally upright person. Falun Gong is based on the ancient tradition of self-cultivation, transcending ordinary existence toward a higher state of being, and liberating one from the illusions of this material world. Thus, cultivation calls for letting go of desires, being virtuous and uprightness, as well as using special practices techniques to refine both the mind and body [33, 63].
Falun Gong comprises two distinctive aspects—cultivation and practice. Cultivation or self-cultivation is an Eastern concept for mind, body, and spiritual improvement [69] that is a crucial and vital aspect of traditional Chinese culture. Falun Gong underlines xinxing cultivation, which is, cultivating the heart and mind [63, 67]. Cultivating the heart denotes improving one’s moral character—guided by the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance [63].
It must be noted that improving one’s mind and heart, or moral character, requires a strong main consciousness. In Falun Gong cultivation, it is important that “the mind must be right” ([63], p. 245). According to the teachings of Falun Gong, when one’s heart and mind or xinxing improves, one’s body, mind, and spirit will naturally transform [63] and one will thereby reach optimum health and wellness. So, Falun Gong is more than just a meditation practice; it is a spiritual cultivation discipline for overall body, mind, and spiritual advancement. Of the two—cultivation versus practice—it must be noted that cultivation is far more important than the exercise practice. The latter is merely to strengthen the mechanisms in the body [67].
The practice component of Falun Gong involves a sitting meditation and four standing exercises. Each exercise has specific health-related aims and benefits [67]. Simple, yet beneficial is its health-wellness impact on millions of individuals who turn to Falun Gong for solace. From the integrative counseling perspective, Falun Gong is a mind-body approach embodying the art of self-care as well as serving as an intervention strategy [37]. Hence, there is potential for its integration into the helping profession [32, 33, 37, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74], in particular for addressing traumatic stress among marginalized clients.
Practicing Falun Gong has numerous benefits. Many individuals can attest to it that Falun Gong can help to ease anxiety, stress, and traumatic stress; enhance energy and vitality; and improves the mind and body [43, 44]. Falun Gong has offered inner joy, peace, and serenity, leading to spiritual growth and enlightenment for many individuals. At the 2018 International Conference on Spirituality and Psychology, the first author, who was invited to speak about the viability of Falun Gong integration, presented three case examples on how Falun Gong was able to help individuals to overcome anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder [71, 72].
Case story examples illustrate the healing benefits of Falun Gong and its integration feasibility with counseling in helping clients toward self-healing and realizing their varied purpose in life. The ancient art of storytelling helps to provide insight into the healing effects of Falun Gong, allowing individuals who have benefitted from the practice to express their inner world and to create meaning by describing in their own words how Falun Gong has impacted and transformed their lives. For example, voice actor and author Rich Crankshaw is one such individual who has benefited tremendously from the practice. His healing from traumatic stress arising from child hood abuse was empowering: “After three days, my anxiety was lower, my stress level was lower, my depression was not as dominant, and all of a sudden, I understood that I just didn’t need to smoke weed or drink beer anymore” ([75], p. 197) . Falun Gong “has been a major part of my ongoing healing and recovery” ([75], p. 198), stated Crankshaw who has an English-Mohawk indigenous ancestry.
Academic research exploring the therapeutic effects of Falun Gong is still lacking. The prevailing body of Falun Gong literature exploring its beneficial effects can be classified into two groups. The first wave of enquiry was in mainland China before the persecution of Falun Gong began on July 20, 1999, while the second movement of scholarly enquiry into the beneficial effects of practicing Falun Gong took place outside of China after 1999. This section revisits some of the studies from both categories. Before 1999, a team of researchers in mainland China completed an extensive survey with a sample size of 12,731 participants from five districts in Beijing [34]. Findings from this massive survey indicated Falun Gong’s effectiveness was over 99%, with a 59% cure rate. For physical and mental health, the improvement rate was over 80 and 97%, respectively [34].
After the onset of the persecution in 1999, some practitioners in Canada and the United States conducted the North American survey [39]. Findings from this survey supported and reinforced the results from the large-scale Beijing surveys [34]. In 2000, a single-case study for partial fulfillment of a master’s degree in social science in counseling showed the beneficial use of Falun Gong in relieving burnout and posttraumatic stress [37]. Additionally, there are two reports worth citing. The first is an independent study conducted in Taiwan, which found that people who practice Falun Gong are physically and mentally healthier than the general Taiwanese population [76]. Respondents reported that practicing Falun Gong helped to eliminate unhealthy and addictive lifestyle habits, such as gambling, cigarette smoking, alcohol addiction, and chewing betel nuts that is a common habit in Asian countries [76]. Lio et al.’s study also highlighted Falun Gong’s medical cost-saving potential, showing a 50% decrease in the use of medical health insurance for Falun Gong respondents [76, 77]. In another study, a group of researchers in Russia reported a 73% improvement rate in the respondents’ health and wellness [78].
Researchers from Switzerland, Taiwan, UK, and the US did a meta-analysis based on the self-reports from Chinese cancer patients between 2000 and 2015 and found that practicing Falun Gong could significantly improve survival rate for cancer patients [79]. About 97 percent (n = 147, 96.7%) indicated full symptom recovery, with 60 cases confirmed by their doctors [79].
Falun Gong can be a useful alternative to existing interventions for traumatic stress because of its ability to alleviate anxiety and bring about innerpeace [33, 73]. Contemporary research that explores traumatic stress as it relates to racial bias suggests that individuals often report unhealthy and addictive lifestyles as a means of coping with the daily microaggressions. Falun Gong could help these clients to become more congruent in their perspectives on mind body connection. Falun Gong is likely to target the psychological and physical issues associated with traumatic stress and provide clients with less cognitive distress leading toward better decision-making and help clear negative thought patterns. Falun Gong can also provide clients with a cost-effective intervention that makes it accessible to clients across the socio-economic spectrum.
Moreover, Falun Gong is an intervention that can be conducted within systems, such as family, work, and organization, in much the same way mindfulness and meditation have been introduced into various workplace [21, 80, 81, 82, 83]. The use of Falun Gong within the family system is likely to impact interpersonal conflicts that may result from ongoing stressors within the social environment. Parent-child, sibling, and couple interactions can be improved when family members engage in Falun Gong practices and activities together. In this manner, families can share in countering the effects of institutional racism and Falun Gong can serve as a coping mechanism for reducing the associated stress.
Using the mindful practice of Falun Gong in the workplace, employees can become much more productive when they are able to reduce the stress related to workloads and any differential treatment that some members from within the working environment may experience. This would allow for opportunities to clearly think through forms of advocacy for themselves and for others who may be victims of microaggressions in the workplace. On the organizational level, Falun Gong can support members in finding harmony, improving collaboration efforts, and thinking clearly about strategic goals and initiatives for the organization. Rather than becoming riddled with interpersonal conflicts due to competing demands, issues of power and control among various factions, or challenges caused by lack of member engagement or financial concerns, organizational leaders are able to stay focused on how to work toward a unified goal.
Although Falun Gong, as a mindfulness and meditative practice, is still new to the mental health professions, it is promising as an effective intervention, particularly when working with marginalized clients who experience traumatic stress in a diverse and multiple settings. In fact, various studies have shown that practicing mindfulness and meditation may be beneficial for both the therapists and their clients. For instance, in Germany, a team of researchers found that therapists’ personal training in meditation could have favorable impact on clients [84]. The randomized double blind controlled study conducted by Grepmair et al. [84] revealed that it did not matter whether or not the clients themselves practice meditation or know that their therapist practices meditation. Their findings revealed that the outcome was still favorable for the clients.
In another study, Schure et al. [85] emphasized the relevance of preparing counseling students with mindfulness techniques as self-care skills and intervention strategies that students could later incorporate into their professional work. In an earlier study, Gale and Gorman-Yao [61] discussed the health-wellness potential and cultural implications of integrating Falun Gong into nursing for a “culturally appropriate and sensitive nursing care to all clients” (p. 124), a concept that counseling educators and professionals could consider and implement in teaching programs.
Suggestions for improving clinical practice include the inclusion of traumatic stress theory and techniques in pre-service training as well as professional development training for practitioners. Additionally, it is recommended that clinical faculty enhance their knowledge about traumatic stress so that it can be integrated into the various curricula in mental health training programs. Pre-service and practitioner training could focus on integrating Falun Gong in to working with clients assessed with historical trauma. For faculty, web-based training would enhance their knowledge about traumatic stress, historical trauma, and associated interventions for clients from marginalized communities, as well as learning about Falun Gong.
The need for proper training in the mindful practice of Falun Gong via counseling programs in tertiary institutions is crucial. It is hoped an integrated approach with Falun Gong will be part of a training program. While other types of mindfulness techniques are widely taught, there are hardly any institutions that currently offer the mindful practice of Falun Gong as part of their curriculum.
The authors offer a recommendation for future research to focus on studies that explore and document the use of Falun Gong to work with clients who have been assessed with traumatic stress. There is a dire need for these studies to provide solid evidence of the positive link between practicing Falun Gong and traumatic stress mainstream and minority communities. For Falun Gong’s integration viability, there is thus a need for pioneers in the field to shoulder greater responsibilities, emphasize on-going research, evaluations, and implement proper documentation on the health and wellness effects of Falun Gong, its auxiliary and integrative potential for the health and wellbeing of counseling and health professionals, clients, and the community at large.
The authors wish to thank counseling students from the Xavier University of Louisiana who participated in the mindfulness practice of Falun Gong training sessions. Special thanks to Dr. Cirecie West-Olatunji, Professor and Director of the Center for Traumatic Stress Research Center for organizing the double training sessions.
This paper and its topic were initially presented at the 2019 International Conference on Spirituality and Psychology in Bangkok, Thailand, by the co-authors. The first author has included more information about Falun Gong from the original White Paper that focuses on integration and the use of Falun Gong to address traumatic stress among marginalized clients.
For citation purposes in this book chapter, the authors have used the Fair Winds Press publication of Zhuan Falun. However, it is recommended that readers refer to the 2014 hardcover edition of Zhuan Falun for references: [86].
The continuous world population growth, inadequate protein sources, exorbitant cost of animal protein are considered the main reasons for malnutrition and undernourishment among people living in many developing countries around the world. To meet the increasing demand of protein, alternative strategies and unconventional sources of protein for human and animal nutrition have been considered recently.
Trees of Prosopis genus, which belongs to the Leguminosae family, are one of the most important source of proteins in arid and semi-arid regions. Its capability to stand heat and tolerate drought, salt, and alkalinity make Prosopis cultivated and distributed in many areas around the world especially India, America, GCC, and MENA [1]. According to the recent studies, the species Prosopis cineraria has significant contribution in the farm economy and rural area development. Undoubtedly, it shares with other Prosopis species numerous characteristics, uses and effects, i.e., chemical composition, types of phytochemical components, and health effects. Prosopis cineraria has been valued by different communities and cultures for the versatility of all its parts and named as “the Wonder Tree” or “King of Desert” [2] or “the Golden Tree of Indian deserts” [3]. The tree parts including leaves, pods, seeds and barks has been used in many ways as food, i.e., flour, drink, vegetable, and gum. Leaves and pods are used for ruminant and animal feed. Prosopis cineraria extensively used in traditional medicine to cure many diseases such as ailments like leprosy, dysentery, asthma, leucoderma, dyspepsia and earache [4, 5, 6]. Barks are used for non-nutritional purposes, i.e., wood, tanning, fuel, firewood and charcoal. The Prosopis cineraria has many chemical constituents as alkaloid, steroids, alcohol and alkane.
Despite its fabulous importance in local culture, there is minimal aware by the developed communities about P. cineraria as unconventional legumes. Therefore, authors present a comprehensive chapter about this important tree from all aspects including traditional uses, biological and phytochemical investigation.
The genus Prosopis L. belongs to Leguminosae family, subfamily Mimosoideae and accommodates 44 species of which 40 are native to North and South Americas, three originate in Asia, and one comes from Africa [7, 8, 9]. Trees of Prosopis L. are widespread in Western Asia, Africa and arid and semi-arid regions in the Americas and Australia.
The species P. cineraria is native to dry and arid regions of Arabia and India [10]. Its main population is center on the Thar Desert of India and Pakistan, with less dense populations occur in the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, and Afghanistan [11]. It is considered the national tree of the United Arab Emirates [12]. P. cineraria is known as Ghaf in Arabic, Khejri in Indian, and Jand in Pakistan.
P. cineraria is an evergreen, thorny tree, 10–25 m in high. The stem is commonly straight, un-branched for several meters with a gray roughish, exfoliated bark (Figure 1). The branches are slender, drooped giving the canopy a rounded appearance with short triangular spines (3–6 mm long) between leaves nodes. At the time of no grazing the lower branches can reach to the ground. Leaves are gray-green, alternate usually divided into two pinnae, each pinna has 7–14 pairs of oblong, oblique, apex leaflets. The mid-rib nearer the upper edge, is sessile.
The tree of Prosopis cineraria, flower, leave and pods.
Flowers are small, yellow or creamy white, nearly sessile in slender pedunculated axillary spikes 5–13 cm long. Pods are yellow to reddish brown with cylindrical shape and slightly curved; 10–20 cm long and 0.5–0.8 cm thick. Seeds 10–25, oblong or rhomboidal, brown, smooth, with a moderately hard taste [13, 14]. The tap root of P. cineraria penetrates vertically up to 20 m but can reach water at an extraordinary depth of 53 m or more [15]. Flowering and fruiting period is varied between locations and weather condition and generally from February to May after the new flush of leaves. The pods are mature almost after 2 months.
P. cineraria is a xerophytic plant that is well adapted to dry and arid environment. Under the conditions of drought, the tree produces more flowers and fruits [16]. In areas of its natural distribution, the annual rainfall ranges between 100 up to 500 mm annually, whereas the optimum density is confined to areas receiving 350–400 mm [17]. The climate is characterized by extremes summer temperature varies from about 40–48°C [18]. It can tolerate frost and withstand low temperature less than 10°C in the winter season.
The tree grows on a variety of soils. It is seen at its best on alluvial soils consisting of various mixtures of sand and clay [19]. In arid areas, the growth is better in dune lows than in sandy plains. Good drainage is very essential. P. cineraria can grow under highly saline and alkaline soils. However, it relatively salt tolerant at seed germination whereas seedling emergence was found to be reduced to 50% in soil with a salinity of 7.6 dS m−1 and a further increase in salt concentration was detrimental to seed germination [20].
P. cineraria is a multipurpose tree that holds an important role in the rural economy in many arid regions, particularly in the Arabian Gulf and the northwest arid region of Indian sub-continent. Historically, the Bedouin and Indian uses all its part in their traditional lifestyle [21, 22, 23]. It is used as a folk remedy for various diseases and conditions [24].
The unripe pods are used for making curry and pickle. The green pods are consumed as vegetables. The flour of mature pods is used for cookies preparation and other local dishes. The leaves and dry pods are annually harvested for cattle and sheep feed, where an adult tree produce 2–5 kg/year dry pods. A resin occurring naturally on the tree, known as mesquite gum, is also occasionally eaten by people [25].
P. cineraria as a leguminous tree has importance in improving soil fertility through fixing atmospheric nitrogen. Litter fall production for P. cineraria and decomposition rate are considered the highest comparing with other arid trees, and that build up soil organic matter contents under its canopy, increase soluble calcium and available phosphorus and decrease soil pH [26, 27]. Therefore, farmers tend to grow field crops under its canopy to boost the growth and productivity of their crops.
The rounded shape crown provides the shade and shelter for animals and wildlife during hot season. It is widely used for sand dune stabilization program because of it is deep mass root system which enable plant not to compete with others for moisture and nutrients [28]. It provides good quality resources of wood for basic construction and fuel for people in the desert regions.
P. cineraria is one of major bee foraging plant in the Arabian Gulf [29], it supports honey bees with long and abundant flowering and honey produced is of a good quality.
Numerous people around the world, especially in Africa and Asia, are suffering from protein deficiency due to lack of protein-rich food. P. cineraria have 16.5–18.25% protein content compared with 25.47% in Acacia nilotica and 38.89% in Acacia senegal [30]. On other hand, legumes contain 18–35% protein [31], and cereals contain 10–15% protein [32]. Therefore, Prosopis seeds are considered a potential and cheap source of protein for industrial use, especially in developing Afro−Asian countries and can be an alternate protein source for solving the protein-energy-malnutrition problem. The protein content, P. cineraria contains reasonable amount of ash (5.34%), and fiber (20.93%) [33, 34, 35]. Chemical composition of pods is varied between individual trees that it influenced by a wide range of environmental factors. The P. cineraria pods have low moisture content (8.55%) that may be advantageous in increasing of the pods shelf-life, 18% protein, 1.89% oil, 5.34% ash and 20.93% fiber [34]. The P. cineraria seed contains 10.6% oil, 28.6% of the oil are saturated fatty esters, 68.3% are unsaturated fatty esters, and 3.1% are methyl hydroxy fatty ester. Moreover, the seed oil is rich in oleic acid (31.3%) along with linoleic acid (32.1%). Oil and seeds of P. cineraria show an absence of keto, cyclopropenoid, and epoxy fatty acids or any evidence for the presence of trans-unsaturation or the presence of conjugation. In addition, the tree leaves have a good source of macro minerals as calcium (2.43%), phosphorus (0.16%) and potassium (0.41%). So, it can be used as good food during the mineral deficient periods [36].
Besides the ecological value of P. cineraria tree, there are significant utilizations centered on its use for human food, animal feeds, medical purposes and many other applications. The multipurpose and added value usages of P. cineraria tree; barks, pods, and leaves; will be discussed with regards to its health benefits and nutraceutical effects as follow:
P. cineraria tree are extensively used as human food in many area especially arid land region and semi-desert as Arizona, India, California, South America and northwestern Mexico. There are diverse uses of the P. cineraria tree parts; dried and undried pods, green and dry leaves, and seeds; in human food. It is interesting to note that studies did not refer to the presence of cyanogenic or toxic compounds in Prosopis parts as seeds or pods till now [37, 38, 39]. The P. cineraria food applications include:
Leguminous Prosopis trees play a great role in feeding human in dry area to prevent protein and mineral deficiency especially during famine period. In these area, people used to eat unripe green pods of P. cineraria that selling in their market as vegetables and children eat its ripe fruits [2, 33, 40, 41]. In addition, green and unripe pods are also used in the preparation of pickles and curries [3].
The Prosopis pods consist of three parts, mesocarp (56% of the pod) that grind to produce flour, endocarp (35%) that discard as waste alongside seeds (9%). People used the flour to make bread, cake, chapatti by mixing with wheat flour and sweets [40]. The Prosopis flour contains a high level of proteins (62%), dietary fiber (25%) and low content of total carbohydrate and fat in addition to dominant amounts of free polyphenol and carotenoids compounds as shown in Table 1 [42]. Prosopis flour is gluten-free, and a premium source of calcium, potassium, magnesium, zinc, and iron, in addition to amino acids such as lysine that is low in other cereals [11, 43]. Prosopis flour has a unique combination taste that has been variously described as; sweet or slightly nutty, with a sweet chocolate or coffee flavor, with a pleasant hint of caramel or molasses, with a hint of cinnamon as it contains many volatile components, i.e., γ-nonalactone, 5,6-dihydro-6-propyl-2H-pyran-2-one, 2,6-dimethylpyrazine, and methyl salicylate [44]. Therefore, only 10 to 25% flour is generally used in combination with other flours because above than 25%, the taste becomes too strong for most palate. While, the desirable degree of browning for different bakery products was obtained using different adding concentration, i.e., biscuits (5%), breads (10%), pancakes (15%) and chapatti (50%).
Compounds | Prosopis flour | Plain white wheat flour |
---|---|---|
Energy (kcal/100 g) | 361 | 338 |
Carbohydrate (g/100 g) | 69.2 | 72.2 |
Total sugars (g/100 g) | 13.0 | 1.5 |
Fiber (g/100 g) | 47.8 | 3.2 |
Protein (g/100 g) | 16.2 | 9.4 |
Fat content (g/100 g) | 2.12 | 1.3 |
Saturated fatty acids (g/100 g) | 0.6 | 0.2 |
Nutritional values of Prosopis flour compared with plain white wheat flour.
The dried pods are used to make flour after collecting pods directly from the tree or from pods that have recently fallen to the ground. Sometimes they store the dried pods to provide food year round. The flour particle size is varied depending on the grinding processing, e.g., pounded using pestle and mortar produces coarse powder, while using stone grinding produces a fine powder.
The Prosopis flour assist the diabetic patient through helping maintain a healthy insulin system in those people not affected by blood sugar troubles because of two reasons: firstly, the Prosopis flour requires a longer time to be digested compared with other grains, i.e., it needs 4 to 6 hours compared to 1 to 2 hours needs for wheat flour to be digest. This help to sustains constant blood sugar over time and prevents hunger. Secondly, the pods contain fructose, which the body can process without insulin [45].
In many places, the Prosopis species are used to make fermented, non-fermented beverages, and syrup [46, 47, 48, 49, 50]. Nutritious syrup is produced by boiling the clean green pods in water after breaking them into small pieces. Beans should be simmered for 2 hours with continuous adding a small amount of water to avoid burning. Followed by mashing the pods to release more of the sweet pulp with simmering for further few minutes. The juice then sieved through strain and kept in clean containers to be used directly as a drink. Or more sugar can be added to the juice and boil to produce unique flavor syrup [51].
In addition to the previous uses, amber colored gum is produced from the P. cineraria tree. This gum has similar properties to the gum produced from acacia tree [40]. Its exudate gum is liquid, water soluble and slowly hardening. Moreover, this genus is not the only source of gum. A galactomannan types interesting gum that called vinal gum is produced from P. ruscifolia [52].
P. cineraria is an important feed species under traditional livestock production systems in the arid regions. Leaves and pods are highly palatable, nutritious and eaten readily by camels, cattle, sheep and goats.
The leaves contained 12.1% crude protein, 20.1% crude fiber, 3.2% ether extract and 12.2% ash [53]. The ripened pods contained 91% dry matter, 13.5% crude protein, 14.3% crude fiber, 1.3% ether extract and 5.2% ash [54]. Feeding P. cineraria to sheep did not cause overt health problems such as diarrhea or impaction. Though, it is not advisable to use leaves as a sole feed for animal as it contain 8–10% tannins [55]. Increasing Prosopis tannin in the diet reduce animal intake, digestibility of nutrients and body weight gain in sheep [54, 56] and goats [57]. In general goat showed superior efficiency in utilizing P. cineraria leaves than that in sheep [58]. However, feeding Prosopis tannin at 23 and 45 g/kg dry matter in the ration of lambs and kids can achieve maximum microbial protein synthesis under intensive feeding system. Beyond this level, Prosopis tannins will have anti-nutritional effects [59].
Despite the economic importance of Prosopis spp. as food, plants have been used in traditional medicine to treat various human ailments since ancient history. Prosopis spp. is one of these plants that possess many medicinal properties and used to cure many diseases. Studies showed that leaves and seeds were largely used to treat many diseases such as diarrhea, inflammation, measles, diabetes and prostate disorders [4, 5].
The pods of P. cineraria contain alkaloids (good anesthetic and spasmolytic activity), Saponin (boost immunity system of the body, lowering the cholesterol level in the body and reducing the risk of intestinal cancer), and tannins (produce anthelmintic activity). In addition to the mineral content as zinc (relevant to the nutritional aspect as zinc supplementation in diabetes mellitus have antioxidant effect), magnesium (important for proper functioning of every organ like heart, muscle, and kidney), iron (used in anemia, tuberculosis and growth disorder), calcium and phosphorous (useful for the bone, teeth, and ligament related disorder) [17, 60].
Moreover, studies show that the alkaloid mixture of P. cineraria in a dose of 1 mg/kg decreased the blood pressure and immediate mortality of dogs. In contrast, extensive damage to the liver, spleen, kidney, lung, and heart was observed on histological examination of mice given the same alkaloid mixture [61].
Studies show that the methanolic extract of Prosopis pods has antimicrobial activity against Candida albicans [62]. And the aqueous and methanolic extracts of stem bark have moderate antibacterial activity at a dose of 250 μg/ml. In addition to the previous effects, the methanolic extract shows significant action on all pathogens. This antibacterial activity of Prosopis spp. is due to the presence of flavonoids and tannins [63].
Many researchers illustrated that the bark extract of the P. cineraria have abundant activity in lowering blood sugar level by 27.3%, in addition, to significant decrease in body weight (29.6%) in diabetic rats when a dose of 300 mg/Kg mice body weight are given orally in daily base for 45 days [6, 64] explained the effect of the Prosopis extracts is due to activate the surviving of the β cells of the islets of langerhans and producing an insulinogenic effect.
The 70% hydroalcoholic bark extract dose of 500 mg/Kg BW of albino male New Zealand white rabbits reduced significantly the serum total cholesterol by 88%, LDL-C by 95%, triglyceride by 59%, VLDL-C by 60% and ischemic indices compared to hypercholesterolemic control [64, 65, 66].
A study on P. cineraria illustrated that a dose of 200 and 400 mg/Kg BW of hydroalcoholic extract of leaves and bark have a significant antitumor activity against Ehrlich ascites carcinoma tumor model. In addition, the methanolic extract of the P. cineraria leaves shows significant radical scavenging activity. This effect is due to the inhibition of cell proliferation even through inducing the cell death and/or extending the time for cell proliferation [67].
Studies show that aqueous extract of the P. cineraria leaves have a significant antidepressant effect on mice and a similar effect of the antidepressant drugs. This is due to the presence of some phytochemicals as saponins, flavonoids, glycosides, alkaloids, and phenolic compounds in these extracts [5].
Toxicity effect of 50% Hydroalcoholic extracts of Prosopis (at dose ranged between 50 and 2000 mg/Kg BW) through oral route of rats did not show any significant effects in breathing, behavior, sensory nervous system responses, cutaneous effects or had any mortality recorded within 24 h after treatments [6]. Further studies are required to determine the toxicity effects of the Prosopis extracts that might show adverse effects when consumed because it contains piperidine alkaloids [68].
These are not the only uses of the P. cineraria tree. The good bark considered a good source of woods that can be used to make tool handles, boat frames, posts, and houses. While the poor or bad quality bark can be used as timber [40]. In India; especially in the Punjab region; the purplish brown bark used as fuel, firewood and used to produce high-quality charcoal. Leaf galls of P. cineraria tree can be used also for tanning. While, leaves can be used as a source of compost on the agricultural field and flowers are considered a good source for honey bee forage. The produced honey is light yellow with pleasant taste and slight aroma and generally of good quality [69].
There are few studies on the chemistry and bioactive compounds of Prosopis species have been published recently. Studies referred to the secondary metabolites compounds in plants that are considered bioactive compounds and has diverse antinutritional and nutraceutical features. Therefore, it can be potential as a source of bioactive products and used in functional products. Refs. [61, 84, 85, 86] mentioned that Prosopis spp. tree generally contains various phytochemical compounds as tannins, 5-hydroxytryptamine, isorhamnetin-3-diglucoside, L-arabinose, quercetin, apigenin, and tryptamine. Studies conducted on phytochemical compounds of P. cineraria showed that each part of the plant contains different types of these compounds (Tables 2 and 3).
Plant part | Chemical constituent present | Medicinal effect |
---|---|---|
Flowers | Patuletin glycoside patulitrin, luteolin and rutin sitosterol, and spicigerine. Flavone derivatives Prosogerin A and Prosogerin B | -Flowers are known as an anti-diabetic agent. -Flowers can be mixed with sugar when administered orally prevent miscarriage. -It contains Patulitrin3, 5, 6, 3, 4-pentamethoxy-7-hydroxy flavone which has significant activity against Lewis lung carcinoma in vivo. References: [70, 71] |
Leaves | -Alkaloid: spicigerine -Steroids: campesterol, cholesterol, sitosterol, stigmasterol, actacosanol -Alcohol: octacosanal, triacontane-1-ol, Tricosan-1-ol, -Alkane: hentriacontane, Diisopropyl-10,11-dihydroxyicosane-1,20-dioate References: [6, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76] | -Leaf paste of P. cineraria is applied on boils and blisters, including mouth ulcers in livestock and leaf infusion on open sores on the skin -Smoke of the leaves is considered good for eye troubles and infections. References: [72, 77, 78, 79, 80] |
Seeds | Prosogerin C, Prosogerin D, Prosogerin E, gallic acid, patuletin, patulitrin, luteolin, and rutin | |
Pods | 3-benzyl-2-hydroxy-urs-12-en-28-oic acid, maslinic acid-3 glucoside, linoleic acid, prosophylline, 5,5′-oxybis-1,3-benzenediol, 3,4,5-trihydroxycinnamic acid 2-hydroxyethyl ester and 5,3′,4’trihydroxyflavanone 7-glycoside | -Dry pods help in preventing protein calorie malnutrition and iron calcium deficiency in blood. References: [3, 64] |
Barks | Hexacosan-25-on-l-ol, a new keto alcohol along with ombuin and a triterpenoid glycoside.vitamin K1, n-octacosyl acetate, the long-chain aliphatic acid. Presence of glucose, rhamnose, sucrose and starch | -Bark used in the treatment of asthma, bronchitis, dysentery, leucoderma, leprosy, muscle tremors and piles. -Different extracts of stem bark possessed a weak antibacterial activity. References: [81, 82, 83] |
Phytochemical constituents of the Prosopis cineraria.
Phytochemicals | Plant parts | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Flower | Leaf | Pod | Seed | Stem | ||||||
Aqueous | Ethanol | Aqueous | Ethanol | Aqueous | Ethanol | Aqueous | Ethanol | Aqueous | Ethanol | |
Carbohydrates | + | + | — | — | +++ | +++ | + | + | — | — |
Proteins | — | — | + | + | ++ | ++ | + | + | — | — |
Tannin | — | — | + | + | + | + | + | + | — | — |
Flavonoids | ++ | +++ | + | + | + | ++ | ++ | ++ | + | — |
Cardia glycoside | — | — | — | — | + | + | — | — | — | — |
Alkaloids | ++ | ++ | ++ | ++ | ++ | ++ | ++ | + | — | — |
Terpenes | — | — | + | + | + | + | + | ++ | + | + |
Steroids | + | + | +++ | +++ | — | — | + | ++ | — | — |
Concentration of phytochemicals of different parts of Prosopis cineraria among different solvents (water and ethanol extracts) [87].
+; low concentration, ++; moderate concentration, +++; high concentration, −; absent.
P. cineraria is a naturalized constituent of many natural and cultivated ecosystems in the world. Its value, however, lies not only in its ability to thrive under adverse conditions, but also it provide wide range of useful product. In this unifying review, it was shown the morphological trait, ecological and economical importance in addition to the nutritional value and health benefits.
The authors tried to drag the attention toward this significant tree as alternative type for the traditional legumes and possibility to use it as a source of protein in free-gluten products and functional foods which can be added value in food product development.
Future efforts are required to be focus on integrated management of P. cineraria in their natural ecosystem and implement environmental conservation strategies for achieving sustainable uses and maintain its benefits to livelihood and coming generation.
Authors would like to thank Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority, UAE.
The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this chapter.
IntechOpen's Authorship Policy is based on ICMJE criteria for authorship. An Author, one must:
',metaTitle:"Authorship Policy",metaDescription:"IN TECH's Authorship Policy is based on ICMJE criteria for authorship. In order to be identified as an Author, one must:",metaKeywords:null,canonicalURL:"/page/authorship-policy",contentRaw:'[{"type":"htmlEditorComponent","content":"All contributors who meet these criteria are listed as Authors. Their exact contributions should be described in the manuscript at the time of submission.
\\n\\nConversely, all contributors who do not meet these criteria should be listed in the Acknowledgments section of the manuscript, along with a short description of their specific contributions.
\\n\\nCHANGES IN AUTHORSHIP
\\n\\nIf it is felt necessary to make changes to the list of Authors after a manuscript has been submitted or published, it is the responsibility of the Author concerned to provide a valid reason to amend the published list. Additionally, all listed Authors must verify and approve the proposed changes in order for any amendments to be made.
\\n\\nAFFILIATION
\\n\\nAuthors are responsible for ensuring all addresses and emails provided are correct. Under affiliation(s) all Authors should indicate where the research was conducted. Please note that no changes to the affiliation(s) can be made after the chapter has been published.
\\n\\nPolicy last updated: 2017-05-29
\\n"}]'},components:[{type:"htmlEditorComponent",content:"All contributors who meet these criteria are listed as Authors. Their exact contributions should be described in the manuscript at the time of submission.
\n\nConversely, all contributors who do not meet these criteria should be listed in the Acknowledgments section of the manuscript, along with a short description of their specific contributions.
\n\nCHANGES IN AUTHORSHIP
\n\nIf it is felt necessary to make changes to the list of Authors after a manuscript has been submitted or published, it is the responsibility of the Author concerned to provide a valid reason to amend the published list. Additionally, all listed Authors must verify and approve the proposed changes in order for any amendments to be made.
\n\nAFFILIATION
\n\nAuthors are responsible for ensuring all addresses and emails provided are correct. Under affiliation(s) all Authors should indicate where the research was conducted. Please note that no changes to the affiliation(s) can be made after the chapter has been published.
\n\nPolicy last updated: 2017-05-29
\n"}]},successStories:{items:[]},authorsAndEditors:{filterParams:{sort:"featured,name"},profiles:[{id:"6700",title:"Dr.",name:"Abbass A.",middleName:null,surname:"Hashim",slug:"abbass-a.-hashim",fullName:"Abbass A. Hashim",position:null,profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/6700/images/1864_n.jpg",biography:"Currently I am carrying out research in several areas of interest, mainly covering work on chemical and bio-sensors, semiconductor thin film device fabrication and characterisation.\nAt the moment I have very strong interest in radiation environmental pollution and bacteriology treatment. The teams of researchers are working very hard to bring novel results in this field. I am also a member of the team in charge for the supervision of Ph.D. students in the fields of development of silicon based planar waveguide sensor devices, study of inelastic electron tunnelling in planar tunnelling nanostructures for sensing applications and development of organotellurium(IV) compounds for semiconductor applications. I am a specialist in data analysis techniques and nanosurface structure. I have served as the editor for many books, been a member of the editorial board in science journals, have published many papers and hold many patents.",institutionString:null,institution:{name:"Sheffield Hallam University",country:{name:"United Kingdom"}}},{id:"54525",title:"Prof.",name:"Abdul Latif",middleName:null,surname:"Ahmad",slug:"abdul-latif-ahmad",fullName:"Abdul Latif Ahmad",position:null,profilePictureURL:"//cdnintech.com/web/frontend/www/assets/author.svg",biography:null,institutionString:null,institution:null},{id:"20567",title:"Prof.",name:"Ado",middleName:null,surname:"Jorio",slug:"ado-jorio",fullName:"Ado Jorio",position:null,profilePictureURL:"//cdnintech.com/web/frontend/www/assets/author.svg",biography:null,institutionString:null,institution:{name:"Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais",country:{name:"Brazil"}}},{id:"47940",title:"Dr.",name:"Alberto",middleName:null,surname:"Mantovani",slug:"alberto-mantovani",fullName:"Alberto Mantovani",position:null,profilePictureURL:"//cdnintech.com/web/frontend/www/assets/author.svg",biography:null,institutionString:null,institution:null},{id:"12392",title:"Mr.",name:"Alex",middleName:null,surname:"Lazinica",slug:"alex-lazinica",fullName:"Alex Lazinica",position:null,profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/12392/images/7282_n.png",biography:"Alex Lazinica is the founder and CEO of IntechOpen. After obtaining a Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering, he continued his PhD studies in Robotics at the Vienna University of Technology. Here he worked as a robotic researcher with the university's Intelligent Manufacturing Systems Group as well as a guest researcher at various European universities, including the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL). During this time he published more than 20 scientific papers, gave presentations, served as a reviewer for major robotic journals and conferences and most importantly he co-founded and built the International Journal of Advanced Robotic Systems- world's first Open Access journal in the field of robotics. Starting this journal was a pivotal point in his career, since it was a pathway to founding IntechOpen - Open Access publisher focused on addressing academic researchers needs. Alex is a personification of IntechOpen key values being trusted, open and entrepreneurial. Today his focus is on defining the growth and development strategy for the company.",institutionString:null,institution:{name:"TU Wien",country:{name:"Austria"}}},{id:"19816",title:"Prof.",name:"Alexander",middleName:null,surname:"Kokorin",slug:"alexander-kokorin",fullName:"Alexander Kokorin",position:null,profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/19816/images/1607_n.jpg",biography:"Alexander I. Kokorin: born: 1947, Moscow; DSc., PhD; Principal Research Fellow (Research Professor) of Department of Kinetics and Catalysis, N. Semenov Institute of Chemical Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow.\r\nArea of research interests: physical chemistry of complex-organized molecular and nanosized systems, including polymer-metal complexes; the surface of doped oxide semiconductors. He is an expert in structural, absorptive, catalytic and photocatalytic properties, in structural organization and dynamic features of ionic liquids, in magnetic interactions between paramagnetic centers. The author or co-author of 3 books, over 200 articles and reviews in scientific journals and books. He is an actual member of the International EPR/ESR Society, European Society on Quantum Solar Energy Conversion, Moscow House of Scientists, of the Board of Moscow Physical Society.",institutionString:null,institution:{name:"Semenov Institute of Chemical Physics",country:{name:"Russia"}}},{id:"62389",title:"PhD.",name:"Ali Demir",middleName:null,surname:"Sezer",slug:"ali-demir-sezer",fullName:"Ali Demir Sezer",position:null,profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/62389/images/3413_n.jpg",biography:"Dr. Ali Demir Sezer has a Ph.D. from Pharmaceutical Biotechnology at the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Marmara (Turkey). He is the member of many Pharmaceutical Associations and acts as a reviewer of scientific journals and European projects under different research areas such as: drug delivery systems, nanotechnology and pharmaceutical biotechnology. Dr. Sezer is the author of many scientific publications in peer-reviewed journals and poster communications. Focus of his research activity is drug delivery, physico-chemical characterization and biological evaluation of biopolymers micro and nanoparticles as modified drug delivery system, and colloidal drug carriers (liposomes, nanoparticles etc.).",institutionString:null,institution:{name:"Marmara University",country:{name:"Turkey"}}},{id:"61051",title:"Prof.",name:"Andrea",middleName:null,surname:"Natale",slug:"andrea-natale",fullName:"Andrea Natale",position:null,profilePictureURL:"//cdnintech.com/web/frontend/www/assets/author.svg",biography:null,institutionString:null,institution:null},{id:"100762",title:"Prof.",name:"Andrea",middleName:null,surname:"Natale",slug:"andrea-natale",fullName:"Andrea Natale",position:null,profilePictureURL:"//cdnintech.com/web/frontend/www/assets/author.svg",biography:null,institutionString:null,institution:{name:"St David's Medical Center",country:{name:"United States of America"}}},{id:"107416",title:"Dr.",name:"Andrea",middleName:null,surname:"Natale",slug:"andrea-natale",fullName:"Andrea Natale",position:null,profilePictureURL:"//cdnintech.com/web/frontend/www/assets/author.svg",biography:null,institutionString:null,institution:{name:"Texas Cardiac Arrhythmia",country:{name:"United States of America"}}},{id:"64434",title:"Dr.",name:"Angkoon",middleName:null,surname:"Phinyomark",slug:"angkoon-phinyomark",fullName:"Angkoon Phinyomark",position:null,profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/64434/images/2619_n.jpg",biography:"My name is Angkoon Phinyomark. I received a B.Eng. degree in Computer Engineering with First Class Honors in 2008 from Prince of Songkla University, Songkhla, Thailand, where I received a Ph.D. degree in Electrical Engineering. My research interests are primarily in the area of biomedical signal processing and classification notably EMG (electromyography signal), EOG (electrooculography signal), and EEG (electroencephalography signal), image analysis notably breast cancer analysis and optical coherence tomography, and rehabilitation engineering. I became a student member of IEEE in 2008. During October 2011-March 2012, I had worked at School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering, University of Essex, Colchester, Essex, United Kingdom. In addition, during a B.Eng. I had been a visiting research student at Faculty of Computer Science, University of Murcia, Murcia, Spain for three months.\n\nI have published over 40 papers during 5 years in refereed journals, books, and conference proceedings in the areas of electro-physiological signals processing and classification, notably EMG and EOG signals, fractal analysis, wavelet analysis, texture analysis, feature extraction and machine learning algorithms, and assistive and rehabilitative devices. I have several computer programming language certificates, i.e. Sun Certified Programmer for the Java 2 Platform 1.4 (SCJP), Microsoft Certified Professional Developer, Web Developer (MCPD), Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist, .NET Framework 2.0 Web (MCTS). I am a Reviewer for several refereed journals and international conferences, such as IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics, Optic Letters, Measurement Science Review, and also a member of the International Advisory Committee for 2012 IEEE Business Engineering and Industrial Applications and 2012 IEEE Symposium on Business, Engineering and Industrial Applications.",institutionString:null,institution:{name:"Joseph Fourier University",country:{name:"France"}}},{id:"55578",title:"Dr.",name:"Antonio",middleName:null,surname:"Jurado-Navas",slug:"antonio-jurado-navas",fullName:"Antonio Jurado-Navas",position:null,profilePictureURL:"https://mts.intechopen.com/storage/users/55578/images/4574_n.png",biography:"Antonio Jurado-Navas received the M.S. degree (2002) and the Ph.D. degree (2009) in Telecommunication Engineering, both from the University of Málaga (Spain). He first worked as a consultant at Vodafone-Spain. From 2004 to 2011, he was a Research Assistant with the Communications Engineering Department at the University of Málaga. In 2011, he became an Assistant Professor in the same department. From 2012 to 2015, he was with Ericsson Spain, where he was working on geo-location\ntools for third generation mobile networks. Since 2015, he is a Marie-Curie fellow at the Denmark Technical University. His current research interests include the areas of mobile communication systems and channel modeling in addition to atmospheric optical communications, adaptive optics and statistics",institutionString:null,institution:{name:"University of Malaga",country:{name:"Spain"}}}],filtersByRegion:[{group:"region",caption:"North America",value:1,count:5698},{group:"region",caption:"Middle and South America",value:2,count:5172},{group:"region",caption:"Africa",value:3,count:1689},{group:"region",caption:"Asia",value:4,count:10243},{group:"region",caption:"Australia and Oceania",value:5,count:888},{group:"region",caption:"Europe",value:6,count:15647}],offset:12,limit:12,total:117315},chapterEmbeded:{data:{}},editorApplication:{success:null,errors:{}},ofsBooks:{filterParams:{hasNoEditors:"0",sort:"dateEndThirdStepPublish",topicId:"19"},books:[{type:"book",id:"10578",title:"Pharmacogenetics",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!0,hash:"ca2bc2ff6e15a7b735d662d9664086b1",slug:null,bookSignature:"Dr. Islam Khalil",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/10578.jpg",editedByType:null,editors:[{id:"226598",title:"Dr.",name:"Islam",surname:"Khalil",slug:"islam-khalil",fullName:"Islam Khalil"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"10531",title:"Advances in Nanoparticle Research for Biomedical Applications",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!0,hash:"1e9e08e7275f2b928af7911b523252f1",slug:null,bookSignature:"Dr. Maria Carmo Pereira, MSc. Maria João Ramalho and Dr. Joana A. Loureiro",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/10531.jpg",editedByType:null,editors:[{id:"82791",title:"Dr.",name:"Maria Carmo",surname:"Pereira",slug:"maria-carmo-pereira",fullName:"Maria Carmo Pereira"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"10356",title:"Pharmacognosy - Medicinal Plants",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!0,hash:"943e56ccaaf19ff696d25aa638ae37d6",slug:null,bookSignature:"Prof. Hany El-Shemy",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/10356.jpg",editedByType:null,editors:[{id:"54719",title:"Prof.",name:"Hany",surname:"El-Shemy",slug:"hany-el-shemy",fullName:"Hany El-Shemy"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"10357",title:"Drug Metabolism",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!0,hash:"3bd3ae5041cab45020555b49152b1ddc",slug:null,bookSignature:"Dr. Katherine Dunnington",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/10357.jpg",editedByType:null,editors:[{id:"232694",title:"Dr.",name:"Katherine",surname:"Dunnington",slug:"katherine-dunnington",fullName:"Katherine Dunnington"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"9829",title:"Biosimilars",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!0,hash:"c72171c1d1cf6df5aad989cb07cc8e4e",slug:null,bookSignature:"Dr. Valderilio Feijó Feijó Azevedo and Dr. Robert Moots",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9829.jpg",editedByType:null,editors:[{id:"69875",title:"Dr.",name:"Valderilio",surname:"Feijó Azevedo",slug:"valderilio-feijo-azevedo",fullName:"Valderilio Feijó Azevedo"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"10234",title:"High-Throughput Screening for Drug Discovery",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!0,hash:"37e6f5b6dd0567efb63dca4b2c73495f",slug:null,bookSignature:"Prof. Shailendra K. Saxena",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/10234.jpg",editedByType:null,editors:[{id:"158026",title:"Prof.",name:"Shailendra K.",surname:"Saxena",slug:"shailendra-k.-saxena",fullName:"Shailendra K. Saxena"}],productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}}],filtersByTopic:[{group:"topic",caption:"Agricultural and Biological Sciences",value:5,count:9},{group:"topic",caption:"Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology",value:6,count:18},{group:"topic",caption:"Business, Management and Economics",value:7,count:2},{group:"topic",caption:"Chemistry",value:8,count:7},{group:"topic",caption:"Computer and Information Science",value:9,count:11},{group:"topic",caption:"Earth and Planetary Sciences",value:10,count:5},{group:"topic",caption:"Engineering",value:11,count:15},{group:"topic",caption:"Environmental Sciences",value:12,count:2},{group:"topic",caption:"Immunology and Microbiology",value:13,count:5},{group:"topic",caption:"Materials Science",value:14,count:4},{group:"topic",caption:"Mathematics",value:15,count:1},{group:"topic",caption:"Medicine",value:16,count:62},{group:"topic",caption:"Nanotechnology and Nanomaterials",value:17,count:1},{group:"topic",caption:"Neuroscience",value:18,count:1},{group:"topic",caption:"Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutical Science",value:19,count:6},{group:"topic",caption:"Physics",value:20,count:2},{group:"topic",caption:"Psychology",value:21,count:3},{group:"topic",caption:"Robotics",value:22,count:1},{group:"topic",caption:"Social Sciences",value:23,count:3},{group:"topic",caption:"Technology",value:24,count:1},{group:"topic",caption:"Veterinary Medicine and Science",value:25,count:2}],offset:12,limit:12,total:6},popularBooks:{featuredBooks:[{type:"book",id:"7802",title:"Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"587a0b7fb765f31cc98de33c6c07c2e0",slug:"modern-slavery-and-human-trafficking",bookSignature:"Jane Reeves",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7802.jpg",editors:[{id:"211328",title:"Prof.",name:"Jane",middleName:null,surname:"Reeves",slug:"jane-reeves",fullName:"Jane Reeves"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"8545",title:"Animal Reproduction in Veterinary Medicine",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"13aaddf5fdbbc78387e77a7da2388bf6",slug:"animal-reproduction-in-veterinary-medicine",bookSignature:"Faruk Aral, Rita Payan-Carreira and Miguel Quaresma",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8545.jpg",editors:[{id:"25600",title:"Prof.",name:"Faruk",middleName:null,surname:"Aral",slug:"faruk-aral",fullName:"Faruk Aral"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9961",title:"Data Mining",subtitle:"Methods, Applications and Systems",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"ed79fb6364f2caf464079f94a0387146",slug:"data-mining-methods-applications-and-systems",bookSignature:"Derya Birant",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9961.jpg",editors:[{id:"15609",title:"Dr.",name:"Derya",middleName:null,surname:"Birant",slug:"derya-birant",fullName:"Derya Birant"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9157",title:"Neurodegenerative Diseases",subtitle:"Molecular Mechanisms and Current Therapeutic Approaches",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"bc8be577966ef88735677d7e1e92ed28",slug:"neurodegenerative-diseases-molecular-mechanisms-and-current-therapeutic-approaches",bookSignature:"Nagehan Ersoy Tunalı",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9157.jpg",editors:[{id:"82778",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Nagehan",middleName:null,surname:"Ersoy Tunalı",slug:"nagehan-ersoy-tunali",fullName:"Nagehan Ersoy Tunalı"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"8686",title:"Direct Torque Control Strategies of Electrical Machines",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"b6ad22b14db2b8450228545d3d4f6b1a",slug:"direct-torque-control-strategies-of-electrical-machines",bookSignature:"Fatma Ben Salem",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8686.jpg",editors:[{id:"295623",title:"Associate Prof.",name:"Fatma",middleName:null,surname:"Ben Salem",slug:"fatma-ben-salem",fullName:"Fatma Ben Salem"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"7434",title:"Molecular Biotechnology",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"eceede809920e1ec7ecadd4691ede2ec",slug:"molecular-biotechnology",bookSignature:"Sergey Sedykh",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7434.jpg",editors:[{id:"178316",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Sergey",middleName:null,surname:"Sedykh",slug:"sergey-sedykh",fullName:"Sergey Sedykh"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9839",title:"Outdoor Recreation",subtitle:"Physiological and Psychological Effects on Health",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"5f5a0d64267e32567daffa5b0c6a6972",slug:"outdoor-recreation-physiological-and-psychological-effects-on-health",bookSignature:"Hilde G. Nielsen",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9839.jpg",editors:[{id:"158692",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Hilde G.",middleName:null,surname:"Nielsen",slug:"hilde-g.-nielsen",fullName:"Hilde G. Nielsen"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9208",title:"Welding",subtitle:"Modern Topics",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"7d6be076ccf3a3f8bd2ca52d86d4506b",slug:"welding-modern-topics",bookSignature:"Sadek Crisóstomo Absi Alfaro, Wojciech Borek and Błażej Tomiczek",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9208.jpg",editors:[{id:"65292",title:"Prof.",name:"Sadek Crisostomo Absi",middleName:"C. Absi",surname:"Alfaro",slug:"sadek-crisostomo-absi-alfaro",fullName:"Sadek Crisostomo Absi Alfaro"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9139",title:"Topics in Primary Care Medicine",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"ea774a4d4c1179da92a782e0ae9cde92",slug:"topics-in-primary-care-medicine",bookSignature:"Thomas F. Heston",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9139.jpg",editors:[{id:"217926",title:"Dr.",name:"Thomas F.",middleName:null,surname:"Heston",slug:"thomas-f.-heston",fullName:"Thomas F. Heston"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9343",title:"Trace Metals in the Environment",subtitle:"New Approaches and Recent Advances",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"ae07e345bc2ce1ebbda9f70c5cd12141",slug:"trace-metals-in-the-environment-new-approaches-and-recent-advances",bookSignature:"Mario Alfonso Murillo-Tovar, Hugo Saldarriaga-Noreña and Agnieszka Saeid",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9343.jpg",editors:[{id:"255959",title:"Dr.",name:"Mario Alfonso",middleName:null,surname:"Murillo-Tovar",slug:"mario-alfonso-murillo-tovar",fullName:"Mario Alfonso Murillo-Tovar"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"8697",title:"Virtual Reality and Its Application in Education",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"ee01b5e387ba0062c6b0d1e9227bda05",slug:"virtual-reality-and-its-application-in-education",bookSignature:"Dragan Cvetković",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8697.jpg",editors:[{id:"101330",title:"Dr.",name:"Dragan",middleName:"Mladen",surname:"Cvetković",slug:"dragan-cvetkovic",fullName:"Dragan Cvetković"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"7831",title:"Sustainability in Urban Planning and Design",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"c924420492c8c2c9751e178d025f4066",slug:"sustainability-in-urban-planning-and-design",bookSignature:"Amjad Almusaed, Asaad Almssad and Linh Truong - Hong",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7831.jpg",editors:[{id:"110471",title:"Dr.",name:"Amjad",middleName:"Zaki",surname:"Almusaed",slug:"amjad-almusaed",fullName:"Amjad Almusaed"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}}],offset:12,limit:12,total:5141},hotBookTopics:{hotBooks:[],offset:0,limit:12,total:null},publish:{},publishingProposal:{success:null,errors:{}},books:{featuredBooks:[{type:"book",id:"9208",title:"Welding",subtitle:"Modern Topics",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"7d6be076ccf3a3f8bd2ca52d86d4506b",slug:"welding-modern-topics",bookSignature:"Sadek Crisóstomo Absi Alfaro, Wojciech Borek and Błażej Tomiczek",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9208.jpg",editors:[{id:"65292",title:"Prof.",name:"Sadek Crisostomo Absi",middleName:"C. Absi",surname:"Alfaro",slug:"sadek-crisostomo-absi-alfaro",fullName:"Sadek Crisostomo Absi Alfaro"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9139",title:"Topics in Primary Care Medicine",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"ea774a4d4c1179da92a782e0ae9cde92",slug:"topics-in-primary-care-medicine",bookSignature:"Thomas F. Heston",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9139.jpg",editors:[{id:"217926",title:"Dr.",name:"Thomas F.",middleName:null,surname:"Heston",slug:"thomas-f.-heston",fullName:"Thomas F. Heston"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"8697",title:"Virtual Reality and Its Application in Education",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"ee01b5e387ba0062c6b0d1e9227bda05",slug:"virtual-reality-and-its-application-in-education",bookSignature:"Dragan Cvetković",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8697.jpg",editors:[{id:"101330",title:"Dr.",name:"Dragan",middleName:"Mladen",surname:"Cvetković",slug:"dragan-cvetkovic",fullName:"Dragan Cvetković"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9343",title:"Trace Metals in the Environment",subtitle:"New Approaches and Recent Advances",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"ae07e345bc2ce1ebbda9f70c5cd12141",slug:"trace-metals-in-the-environment-new-approaches-and-recent-advances",bookSignature:"Mario Alfonso Murillo-Tovar, Hugo Saldarriaga-Noreña and Agnieszka Saeid",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9343.jpg",editors:[{id:"255959",title:"Dr.",name:"Mario Alfonso",middleName:null,surname:"Murillo-Tovar",slug:"mario-alfonso-murillo-tovar",fullName:"Mario Alfonso Murillo-Tovar"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9785",title:"Endometriosis",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"f457ca61f29cf7e8bc191732c50bb0ce",slug:"endometriosis",bookSignature:"Courtney Marsh",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9785.jpg",editors:[{id:"255491",title:"Dr.",name:"Courtney",middleName:null,surname:"Marsh",slug:"courtney-marsh",fullName:"Courtney Marsh"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"7831",title:"Sustainability in Urban Planning and Design",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"c924420492c8c2c9751e178d025f4066",slug:"sustainability-in-urban-planning-and-design",bookSignature:"Amjad Almusaed, Asaad Almssad and Linh Truong - Hong",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7831.jpg",editors:[{id:"110471",title:"Dr.",name:"Amjad",middleName:"Zaki",surname:"Almusaed",slug:"amjad-almusaed",fullName:"Amjad Almusaed"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9376",title:"Contemporary Developments and Perspectives in International Health Security",subtitle:"Volume 1",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"b9a00b84cd04aae458fb1d6c65795601",slug:"contemporary-developments-and-perspectives-in-international-health-security-volume-1",bookSignature:"Stanislaw P. Stawicki, Michael S. Firstenberg, Sagar C. Galwankar, Ricardo Izurieta and Thomas Papadimos",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9376.jpg",editors:[{id:"181694",title:"Dr.",name:"Stanislaw P.",middleName:null,surname:"Stawicki",slug:"stanislaw-p.-stawicki",fullName:"Stanislaw P. Stawicki"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"7769",title:"Medical Isotopes",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"f8d3c5a6c9a42398e56b4e82264753f7",slug:"medical-isotopes",bookSignature:"Syed Ali Raza Naqvi and Muhammad Babar Imrani",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7769.jpg",editors:[{id:"259190",title:"Dr.",name:"Syed Ali Raza",middleName:null,surname:"Naqvi",slug:"syed-ali-raza-naqvi",fullName:"Syed Ali Raza Naqvi"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"9279",title:"Concepts, Applications and Emerging Opportunities in Industrial Engineering",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"9bfa87f9b627a5468b7c1e30b0eea07a",slug:"concepts-applications-and-emerging-opportunities-in-industrial-engineering",bookSignature:"Gary Moynihan",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9279.jpg",editors:[{id:"16974",title:"Dr.",name:"Gary",middleName:null,surname:"Moynihan",slug:"gary-moynihan",fullName:"Gary Moynihan"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}},{type:"book",id:"7807",title:"A Closer Look at Organizational Culture in Action",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"05c608b9271cc2bc711f4b28748b247b",slug:"a-closer-look-at-organizational-culture-in-action",bookSignature:"Süleyman Davut Göker",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7807.jpg",editors:[{id:"190035",title:"Associate Prof.",name:"Süleyman Davut",middleName:null,surname:"Göker",slug:"suleyman-davut-goker",fullName:"Süleyman Davut Göker"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}}],latestBooks:[{type:"book",id:"7434",title:"Molecular Biotechnology",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"eceede809920e1ec7ecadd4691ede2ec",slug:"molecular-biotechnology",bookSignature:"Sergey Sedykh",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7434.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"178316",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Sergey",middleName:null,surname:"Sedykh",slug:"sergey-sedykh",fullName:"Sergey Sedykh"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"8545",title:"Animal Reproduction in Veterinary Medicine",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"13aaddf5fdbbc78387e77a7da2388bf6",slug:"animal-reproduction-in-veterinary-medicine",bookSignature:"Faruk Aral, Rita Payan-Carreira and Miguel Quaresma",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8545.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"25600",title:"Prof.",name:"Faruk",middleName:null,surname:"Aral",slug:"faruk-aral",fullName:"Faruk Aral"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"9569",title:"Methods in Molecular Medicine",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"691d3f3c4ac25a8093414e9b270d2843",slug:"methods-in-molecular-medicine",bookSignature:"Yusuf Tutar",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9569.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"158492",title:"Prof.",name:"Yusuf",middleName:null,surname:"Tutar",slug:"yusuf-tutar",fullName:"Yusuf Tutar"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"9839",title:"Outdoor Recreation",subtitle:"Physiological and Psychological Effects on Health",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"5f5a0d64267e32567daffa5b0c6a6972",slug:"outdoor-recreation-physiological-and-psychological-effects-on-health",bookSignature:"Hilde G. Nielsen",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9839.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"158692",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Hilde G.",middleName:null,surname:"Nielsen",slug:"hilde-g.-nielsen",fullName:"Hilde G. Nielsen"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"7802",title:"Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"587a0b7fb765f31cc98de33c6c07c2e0",slug:"modern-slavery-and-human-trafficking",bookSignature:"Jane Reeves",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7802.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"211328",title:"Prof.",name:"Jane",middleName:null,surname:"Reeves",slug:"jane-reeves",fullName:"Jane Reeves"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"8063",title:"Food Security in Africa",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"8cbf3d662b104d19db2efc9d59249efc",slug:"food-security-in-africa",bookSignature:"Barakat Mahmoud",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8063.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"92016",title:"Dr.",name:"Barakat",middleName:null,surname:"Mahmoud",slug:"barakat-mahmoud",fullName:"Barakat Mahmoud"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"10118",title:"Plant Stress Physiology",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"c68b09d2d2634fc719ae3b9a64a27839",slug:"plant-stress-physiology",bookSignature:"Akbar Hossain",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/10118.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"280755",title:"Dr.",name:"Akbar",middleName:null,surname:"Hossain",slug:"akbar-hossain",fullName:"Akbar Hossain"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"9157",title:"Neurodegenerative Diseases",subtitle:"Molecular Mechanisms and Current Therapeutic Approaches",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"bc8be577966ef88735677d7e1e92ed28",slug:"neurodegenerative-diseases-molecular-mechanisms-and-current-therapeutic-approaches",bookSignature:"Nagehan Ersoy Tunalı",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9157.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"82778",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Nagehan",middleName:null,surname:"Ersoy Tunalı",slug:"nagehan-ersoy-tunali",fullName:"Nagehan Ersoy Tunalı"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"9961",title:"Data Mining",subtitle:"Methods, Applications and Systems",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"ed79fb6364f2caf464079f94a0387146",slug:"data-mining-methods-applications-and-systems",bookSignature:"Derya Birant",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/9961.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"15609",title:"Dr.",name:"Derya",middleName:null,surname:"Birant",slug:"derya-birant",fullName:"Derya Birant"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"8686",title:"Direct Torque Control Strategies of Electrical Machines",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"b6ad22b14db2b8450228545d3d4f6b1a",slug:"direct-torque-control-strategies-of-electrical-machines",bookSignature:"Fatma Ben Salem",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8686.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"295623",title:"Associate Prof.",name:"Fatma",middleName:null,surname:"Ben Salem",slug:"fatma-ben-salem",fullName:"Fatma Ben Salem"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}}]},subject:{topic:{id:"160",title:"Surface Science",slug:"surface-science",parent:{title:"Materials Science",slug:"materials-science"},numberOfBooks:16,numberOfAuthorsAndEditors:329,numberOfWosCitations:227,numberOfCrossrefCitations:162,numberOfDimensionsCitations:405,videoUrl:null,fallbackUrl:null,description:null},booksByTopicFilter:{topicSlug:"surface-science",sort:"-publishedDate",limit:12,offset:0},booksByTopicCollection:[{type:"book",id:"10061",title:"21st Century Surface Science",subtitle:"a Handbook",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"69253b3c7ba801a5fcd9c47827345f93",slug:"21st-century-surface-science-a-handbook",bookSignature:"Phuong Pham, Pratibha Goel, Samir Kumar and Kavita Yadav",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/10061.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"236073",title:"Dr.",name:"Phuong",middleName:"Viet",surname:"Pham",slug:"phuong-pham",fullName:"Phuong Pham"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"10050",title:"Corrosion",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"cf66006063d4d72349fb33cc056095c1",slug:"corrosion",bookSignature:"Ambrish Singh",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/10050.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"215348",title:"Dr.",name:"Ambrish",middleName:null,surname:"Singh",slug:"ambrish-singh",fullName:"Ambrish Singh"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"7343",title:"Superhydrophobic Surfaces",subtitle:"Fabrications to Practical Applications",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"017db4d856b5d454aead24128743ba3e",slug:"superhydrophobic-surfaces-fabrications-to-practical-applications",bookSignature:"Mehdi Khodaei, Xiuyong Chen and Hua Li",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7343.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"19478",title:"Dr.",name:"Mehdi",middleName:null,surname:"Khodaei",slug:"mehdi-khodaei",fullName:"Mehdi Khodaei"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"8242",title:"Applied Surface Science",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"b2515a9d613325af2ddf6d8ef2b53f4d",slug:"applied-surface-science",bookSignature:"Gurrappa Injeti",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/8242.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"12369",title:"Dr.",name:"Gurrappa",middleName:null,surname:"Injeti",slug:"gurrappa-injeti",fullName:"Gurrappa Injeti"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"7550",title:"Corrosion Inhibitors",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"4d09bcd91e393d15a578f1b632f118e7",slug:"corrosion-inhibitors",bookSignature:"Ambrish Singh",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7550.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"215348",title:"Dr.",name:"Ambrish",middleName:null,surname:"Singh",slug:"ambrish-singh",fullName:"Ambrish Singh"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"6671",title:"Paint and Coatings Industry",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"1dc37c2c972a253d544da9849049222f",slug:"paint-and-coatings-industry",bookSignature:"Faris Yilmaz",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/6671.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"36900",title:"Dr.",name:"Faris",middleName:"Sad",surname:"Yılmaz",slug:"faris-yilmaz",fullName:"Faris Yılmaz"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"7253",title:"Coatings and Thin-Film Technologies",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"98b8dfac28575877f1846a661c9150bc",slug:"coatings-and-thin-film-technologies",bookSignature:"Jaime Andres Perez-Taborda and Alba G. Avila Bernal",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7253.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"193020",title:"Dr.",name:"Jaime Andres",middleName:null,surname:"Perez Taborda",slug:"jaime-andres-perez-taborda",fullName:"Jaime Andres Perez Taborda"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"7385",title:"Cavitation",subtitle:"Selected Issues",isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"075ee4bb432760777ffcba092d0cffae",slug:"cavitation-selected-issues",bookSignature:"Wojciech Borek, Tomasz Tański and Mariusz Król",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7385.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"186373",title:"Dr.",name:"Wojciech",middleName:null,surname:"Borek",slug:"wojciech-borek",fullName:"Wojciech Borek"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"7471",title:"Advanced Surface Engineering Research",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"4c1a23accacc46fd18b49f2e5c6d303e",slug:"advanced-surface-engineering-research",bookSignature:"Mohammad Asaduzzaman Chowdhury",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7471.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"185329",title:"Prof.",name:"Mohammad Asaduzzaman",middleName:null,surname:"Chowdhury",slug:"mohammad-asaduzzaman-chowdhury",fullName:"Mohammad Asaduzzaman Chowdhury"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"7352",title:"Granularity in Materials Science",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"a451ff13b9bc3b08989979518577594a",slug:"granularity-in-materials-science",bookSignature:"George Kyzas and Athanasios C. Mitropoulos",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/7352.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"152296",title:"Dr.",name:"George",middleName:"Z.",surname:"Kyzas",slug:"george-kyzas",fullName:"George Kyzas"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"6702",title:"Polymer Rheology",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"c24234818cd4b2ce3ed569c2b29f714c",slug:"polymer-rheology",bookSignature:"Jose Luis Rivera-Armenta and Beatriz Adriana Salazar Cruz",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/6702.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"107855",title:"Dr.",name:"Jose Luis",middleName:null,surname:"Rivera Armenta",slug:"jose-luis-rivera-armenta",fullName:"Jose Luis Rivera Armenta"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}},{type:"book",id:"6512",title:"Superfluids and Superconductors",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!1,hash:"24385ec1d5de9c6597896900c80ee279",slug:"superfluids-and-superconductors",bookSignature:"Roberto Zivieri",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/6512.jpg",editedByType:"Edited by",editors:[{id:"181334",title:"Prof.",name:"Roberto",middleName:null,surname:"Zivieri",slug:"roberto-zivieri",fullName:"Roberto Zivieri"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter",authoredCaption:"Edited by"}}],booksByTopicTotal:16,mostCitedChapters:[{id:"30968",doi:"10.5772/36975",title:"Polymer Gel Rheology and Adhesion",slug:"rheology-and-adhesion-of-polymer-gels",totalDownloads:15106,totalCrossrefCites:8,totalDimensionsCites:56,book:{slug:"rheology",title:"Rheology",fullTitle:"Rheology"},signatures:"Anne M. Grillet, Nicholas B. Wyatt and Lindsey M. Gloe",authors:[{id:"110676",title:"Dr.",name:"Anne",middleName:null,surname:"Grillet",slug:"anne-grillet",fullName:"Anne Grillet"},{id:"138225",title:"Dr.",name:"Nicholas",middleName:null,surname:"Wyatt",slug:"nicholas-wyatt",fullName:"Nicholas Wyatt"},{id:"138226",title:"Ms.",name:"Lindsey",middleName:null,surname:"Gloe",slug:"lindsey-gloe",fullName:"Lindsey Gloe"}]},{id:"48822",doi:"10.5772/60808",title:"Wettability of Nanostructured Surfaces",slug:"wettability-of-nanostructured-surfaces",totalDownloads:2386,totalCrossrefCites:7,totalDimensionsCites:22,book:{slug:"wetting-and-wettability",title:"Wetting and Wettability",fullTitle:"Wetting and Wettability"},signatures:"L. Duta, A.C. Popescu, I. Zgura, N. Preda and I.N. Mihailescu",authors:[{id:"17636",title:"Dr.",name:"Ion",middleName:"N.",surname:"Mihailescu",slug:"ion-mihailescu",fullName:"Ion Mihailescu"},{id:"23532",title:"Dr.",name:"Andrei",middleName:null,surname:"Popescu",slug:"andrei-popescu",fullName:"Andrei Popescu"},{id:"174343",title:"Dr.",name:"Liviu",middleName:null,surname:"Duta",slug:"liviu-duta",fullName:"Liviu Duta"},{id:"174344",title:"Dr.",name:"Irina",middleName:null,surname:"Zgura",slug:"irina-zgura",fullName:"Irina Zgura"},{id:"174345",title:"Dr.",name:"Ligia",middleName:null,surname:"Frunza",slug:"ligia-frunza",fullName:"Ligia Frunza"}]},{id:"30975",doi:"10.5772/36619",title:"Solution Properties of κ-Carrageenan and Its Interaction with Other Polysaccharides in Aqueous Media",slug:"solution-properties-of-k-carrageenan-and-its-interaction-with-other-polysaccharides-in-aqueous-media",totalDownloads:7122,totalCrossrefCites:2,totalDimensionsCites:20,book:{slug:"rheology",title:"Rheology",fullTitle:"Rheology"},signatures:"Alberto Tecante and María del Carmen Núñez Santiago",authors:[{id:"109087",title:"Prof.",name:"Alberto",middleName:null,surname:"Tecante",slug:"alberto-tecante",fullName:"Alberto Tecante"},{id:"109098",title:"Dr.",name:"Maria Del Carmen",middleName:null,surname:"Nunez-Santiago",slug:"maria-del-carmen-nunez-santiago",fullName:"Maria Del Carmen Nunez-Santiago"}]}],mostDownloadedChaptersLast30Days:[{id:"67748",title:"Formation of Anticorrosive Structures and Thin Films on Metal Surfaces by Applying EDM",slug:"formation-of-anticorrosive-structures-and-thin-films-on-metal-surfaces-by-applying-edm",totalDownloads:618,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:1,book:{slug:"corrosion-inhibitors",title:"Corrosion Inhibitors",fullTitle:"Corrosion Inhibitors"},signatures:"Pavel Topala, Alexandr Ojegov and Vitalie Besliu",authors:[{id:"254355",title:"Prof.",name:"Pavel",middleName:null,surname:"Topala",slug:"pavel-topala",fullName:"Pavel Topala"},{id:"254366",title:"Dr.",name:"Alexandr",middleName:null,surname:"Ojegov",slug:"alexandr-ojegov",fullName:"Alexandr Ojegov"},{id:"254368",title:"Dr.",name:"Besliu",middleName:null,surname:"Vitalie",slug:"besliu-vitalie",fullName:"Besliu Vitalie"}]},{id:"67077",title:"Electrochemical Techniques for Corrosion and Tribocorrosion Monitoring: Fundamentals of Electrolytic Corrosion",slug:"electrochemical-techniques-for-corrosion-and-tribocorrosion-monitoring-fundamentals-of-electrolytic-",totalDownloads:856,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:1,book:{slug:"corrosion-inhibitors",title:"Corrosion Inhibitors",fullTitle:"Corrosion Inhibitors"},signatures:"Abdenacer Berradja",authors:[{id:"238628",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Abdenacer",middleName:null,surname:"Berradja",slug:"abdenacer-berradja",fullName:"Abdenacer Berradja"}]},{id:"64392",title:"Corrosion Inhibitors",slug:"corrosion-inhibitors",totalDownloads:1769,totalCrossrefCites:4,totalDimensionsCites:5,book:{slug:"corrosion-inhibitors",title:"Corrosion Inhibitors",fullTitle:"Corrosion Inhibitors"},signatures:"Geethamani Palanisamy",authors:[{id:"253697",title:"Dr.",name:"Geethamani",middleName:null,surname:"P",slug:"geethamani-p",fullName:"Geethamani P"}]},{id:"48818",title:"Modification of Surface Energy and Wetting of Textile Fibers",slug:"modification-of-surface-energy-and-wetting-of-textile-fibers",totalDownloads:2345,totalCrossrefCites:5,totalDimensionsCites:10,book:{slug:"wetting-and-wettability",title:"Wetting and Wettability",fullTitle:"Wetting and Wettability"},signatures:"Franco Ferrero and Monica Periolatto",authors:[{id:"173940",title:"Prof.",name:"Franco",middleName:null,surname:"Ferrero",slug:"franco-ferrero",fullName:"Franco Ferrero"},{id:"174224",title:"Ph.D.",name:"Monica",middleName:null,surname:"Periolatto",slug:"monica-periolatto",fullName:"Monica Periolatto"}]},{id:"72939",title:"Carbon Nanotubes: Synthesis, Properties and Applications",slug:"carbon-nanotubes-synthesis-properties-and-applications",totalDownloads:200,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:0,book:{slug:"21st-century-surface-science-a-handbook",title:"21st Century Surface Science",fullTitle:"21st Century Surface Science - a Handbook"},signatures:"Aravind Kumar Jagadeesan, Krithiga Thangavelu and Venkatesan Dhananjeyan",authors:[{id:"319215",title:"Dr.",name:"Aravind",middleName:null,surname:"Kumar",slug:"aravind-kumar",fullName:"Aravind Kumar"},{id:"321759",title:"Dr.",name:"Krithiga",middleName:null,surname:"Thangavelu",slug:"krithiga-thangavelu",fullName:"Krithiga Thangavelu"},{id:"321760",title:"Mr.",name:"Venkatesan",middleName:null,surname:"Dhanancheyan",slug:"venkatesan-dhanancheyan",fullName:"Venkatesan Dhanancheyan"}]},{id:"62882",title:"Inside the Phenomenological Aspects of Wet Granulation: Role of Process Parameters",slug:"inside-the-phenomenological-aspects-of-wet-granulation-role-of-process-parameters",totalDownloads:659,totalCrossrefCites:1,totalDimensionsCites:1,book:{slug:"granularity-in-materials-science",title:"Granularity in Materials Science",fullTitle:"Granularity in Materials Science"},signatures:"Veronica De Simone, Diego Caccavo, Annalisa Dalmoro, Gaetano\nLamberti, Matteo d’Amore and Anna Angela Barba",authors:[{id:"140173",title:"Prof.",name:"Anna Angela",middleName:null,surname:"Barba",slug:"anna-angela-barba",fullName:"Anna Angela Barba"},{id:"143947",title:"Prof.",name:"Matteo",middleName:null,surname:"D'Amore",slug:"matteo-d'amore",fullName:"Matteo D'Amore"},{id:"176104",title:"Prof.",name:"Gaetano",middleName:null,surname:"Lamberti",slug:"gaetano-lamberti",fullName:"Gaetano Lamberti"},{id:"176239",title:"MSc.",name:"Diego",middleName:null,surname:"Caccavo",slug:"diego-caccavo",fullName:"Diego Caccavo"},{id:"181500",title:"Dr.",name:"Annalisa",middleName:null,surname:"Dalmoro",slug:"annalisa-dalmoro",fullName:"Annalisa Dalmoro"},{id:"260822",title:"MSc.",name:"Veronica",middleName:null,surname:"De Simone",slug:"veronica-de-simone",fullName:"Veronica De Simone"}]},{id:"40738",title:"Viscoelastic Properties of Biological Materials",slug:"viscoelastic-properties-of-biological-materials",totalDownloads:4861,totalCrossrefCites:6,totalDimensionsCites:17,book:{slug:"viscoelasticity-from-theory-to-biological-applications",title:"Viscoelasticity",fullTitle:"Viscoelasticity - From Theory to Biological Applications"},signatures:"Naoki Sasaki",authors:[{id:"140935",title:"Prof.",name:"Naoki",middleName:null,surname:"Sasaki",slug:"naoki-sasaki",fullName:"Naoki Sasaki"}]},{id:"40740",title:"Viscoelasticity in Biological Systems: A Special Focus on Microbes",slug:"viscoelasticity-in-biological-systems-a-special-focus-on-microbes",totalDownloads:3578,totalCrossrefCites:6,totalDimensionsCites:10,book:{slug:"viscoelasticity-from-theory-to-biological-applications",title:"Viscoelasticity",fullTitle:"Viscoelasticity - From Theory to Biological Applications"},signatures:"Supriya Bhat, Dong Jun, Biplab C. Paul and Tanya E. S Dahms",authors:[{id:"144710",title:"Dr",name:"Tanya",middleName:null,surname:"Dahms",slug:"tanya-dahms",fullName:"Tanya Dahms"},{id:"144719",title:"MSc.",name:"Biplab",middleName:null,surname:"Paul",slug:"biplab-paul",fullName:"Biplab Paul"},{id:"144721",title:"MSc.",name:"Dong",middleName:null,surname:"Jun",slug:"dong-jun",fullName:"Dong Jun"},{id:"167022",title:"M.Sc.",name:"Supriya",middleName:"Venkatesh",surname:"Bhat",slug:"supriya-bhat",fullName:"Supriya Bhat"}]},{id:"62670",title:"Organometal Halide Perovskites Thin Film and Their Impact on the Efficiency of Perovskite Solar Cells",slug:"organometal-halide-perovskites-thin-film-and-their-impact-on-the-efficiency-of-perovskite-solar-cell",totalDownloads:907,totalCrossrefCites:0,totalDimensionsCites:1,book:{slug:"coatings-and-thin-film-technologies",title:"Coatings and Thin-Film Technologies",fullTitle:"Coatings and Thin-Film Technologies"},signatures:"Ahmed Mourtada Elseman",authors:[{id:"221890",title:"Dr.",name:"Ahmed Mourtada",middleName:null,surname:"Elseman",slug:"ahmed-mourtada-elseman",fullName:"Ahmed Mourtada Elseman"}]},{id:"30968",title:"Polymer Gel Rheology and Adhesion",slug:"rheology-and-adhesion-of-polymer-gels",totalDownloads:15106,totalCrossrefCites:8,totalDimensionsCites:56,book:{slug:"rheology",title:"Rheology",fullTitle:"Rheology"},signatures:"Anne M. Grillet, Nicholas B. Wyatt and Lindsey M. Gloe",authors:[{id:"110676",title:"Dr.",name:"Anne",middleName:null,surname:"Grillet",slug:"anne-grillet",fullName:"Anne Grillet"},{id:"138225",title:"Dr.",name:"Nicholas",middleName:null,surname:"Wyatt",slug:"nicholas-wyatt",fullName:"Nicholas Wyatt"},{id:"138226",title:"Ms.",name:"Lindsey",middleName:null,surname:"Gloe",slug:"lindsey-gloe",fullName:"Lindsey Gloe"}]}],onlineFirstChaptersFilter:{topicSlug:"surface-science",limit:3,offset:0},onlineFirstChaptersCollection:[],onlineFirstChaptersTotal:0},preDownload:{success:null,errors:{}},aboutIntechopen:{},privacyPolicy:{},peerReviewing:{},howOpenAccessPublishingWithIntechopenWorks:{},sponsorshipBooks:{sponsorshipBooks:[{type:"book",id:"10176",title:"Microgrids and Local Energy Systems",subtitle:null,isOpenForSubmission:!0,hash:"c32b4a5351a88f263074b0d0ca813a9c",slug:null,bookSignature:"Prof. Nick Jenkins",coverURL:"https://cdn.intechopen.com/books/images_new/10176.jpg",editedByType:null,editors:[{id:"55219",title:"Prof.",name:"Nick",middleName:null,surname:"Jenkins",slug:"nick-jenkins",fullName:"Nick Jenkins"}],equalEditorOne:null,equalEditorTwo:null,equalEditorThree:null,productType:{id:"1",chapterContentType:"chapter"}}],offset:8,limit:8,total:1},route:{name:"profile.detail",path:"/profiles/139052/hugo-saldanha",hash:"",query:{},params:{id:"139052",slug:"hugo-saldanha"},fullPath:"/profiles/139052/hugo-saldanha",meta:{},from:{name:null,path:"/",hash:"",query:{},params:{},fullPath:"/",meta:{}}}},function(){var e;(e=document.currentScript||document.scripts[document.scripts.length-1]).parentNode.removeChild(e)}()