The yeast two-hybrid system has been used to identify domains of the Newcastle disease virus (NDV) phosphoprotein (P) involved in self-association and interaction with the nucleocapsid protein (NP). Deletion analysis was used to map the domain(s) of the P protein involved in P:P and P:NP interactions. The C-terminal 45 amino acids (residues 247-291) were shown to play a major role in both of the interactions. Comparison of these findings with other reports suggests that paramyxoviruses are different with respect to interaction domain(s) between these two essential viral proteins involved in genome replication.
MeSH terms: Newcastle disease virus/metabolism*; Phosphoproteins/metabolism*; Protein Binding; Viral Proteins/metabolism*; Protein Structure, Tertiary; Nucleocapsid Proteins/metabolism*; Two-Hybrid System Techniques
We present two siblings from a consanguineous Malaysian family with multiple skeletal abnormalities, anterior segment anomalies of the eye and early lethality. These features are consistent with a syndrome first described by Al-Gazali and we provide further delineation of the syndrome.
MeSH terms: Adult; Anterior Eye Segment/abnormalities*; Bone and Bones/abnormalities*; Consanguinity; Female; Humans; Infant, Newborn; Malaysia; Male; Syndrome; Siblings
Filamentous phage random peptide libraries were used to identify the epitopes of Burkholderia pseudomallei protease by panning against IgG polyclonal sera that exhibited protease neutralizing properties. The isolated fusion peptides presented a consensus peptide sequence, TKSMALSG, which closely resembles part of the active site sequence, 435GTSMATPHVAG445, of B. pseudomallei serine metalloprotease. By comparing the consensus sequence, TKSMALSG, with the predicted three-dimensional molecular model of B. pseudomallei serine metalloprotease, it appears that the potential antibody binding epitope was buried within the molecule. This active site was conformational whereby one continuous sub-region (SMA) was located between two discontinuous sub-regions, supplied by the flanking residues in the same polypeptide. All phages selected from the biopanning with IgG polyclonal sera showed good binding towards the polyclonal antibodies when compared to the negative control. In addition, these peptide-bearing phages showed competitive inhibition of B. pseudomallei serine metalloprotease binding to the polyclonal IgG.
Ethnic differences have been reported for colorectal polyps and large bowel cancer; although the supporting data is weak and insufficient to draw firm conclusions.
To study the effect of ritodrine tocolysis on the success of external cephalic version (ECV) and to assess the role of ECV in breech presentation at our centre.
Epipremnum pinnatum (L.) Engl. hexane extract produced a significant growth inhibition against T-47D breast carcinoma cells and analysis of cell death mechanisms indicated that the extract elicited a non-apoptotic programmed cell death. T-47D cells exposed to the extract at EC(50) concentration (72 h) for 24 h failed to demonstrate typical DNA fragmentation associated with apoptosis, as carried out using a modified TUNEL assay. In addition, acute exposure to the extract produced an insignificant regulation of caspase-3 and p53 mRNA expression but increased in the c-myc mRNA expression. Ultrastructural analysis using transmission electron microscope demonstrated distinct vacuolated cells, which strongly indicated a Type II non-apoptotic cell death although the changes in chromatin were also detected. The presence of non-apoptotic programmed cell death was then reconfirmed with annexin-V and propidium iodide staining. These findings suggested that up-regulation of c-myc mRNA expression may have contributed to the growth arrest and Type II non-apoptotic programmed cell death in the Epipremnum pinnatum (L.) Engl. hexane extract-treated T-47D cells.
We used factor analysis to define and compare the manner in which the various features of the metabolic syndrome are linked or clustered in Chinese, Malays and Asian Indians. One thousand nine hundred and fifty seven men (1324 Chinese, 391 Malays and 261 Asian Indians) and 2308 women (1622 Chinese, 391 Malays and 296 Asian Indians) were examined. Anthropometry, blood pressure, serum glucose, lipid concentrations, and serum insulin were measured for all subjects. These data were then subjected to factor analysis which reduced the variables examined to three factors in all ethnic groups and both genders. The first (dyslipidemia) factor was positively loaded for obesity, insulin resistance (IR), fasting triglyceride and negatively loaded for HDL-cholesterol. The second (hyperglycemia) factor was positively loaded for IR and blood glucose. The third (hypertension) factor was positively loaded for obesity and blood pressure. IR was positively loaded in the hypertension factor in Malay women but not in others. Rather than a single entity causally associated with insulin resistance (IR), our findings support a concept in which the metabolic syndrome represents several distinct entities (dyslipidemia, hypertension and hyperglycemia). It appears that Malay females may be more prone to develop hypertension in association with IR.
The role of bioregeneration process in renewing the adsorbent surface for further adsorption of organics during simultaneous adsorption and biodegradation processes has been well recognized. The extent of bioregeneration of powdered activated carbon (PAC) as an adsorbent loaded with phenol, p-methylphenol, p-ethylphenol and p-isopropylphenol, respectively, in the simultaneous adsorption and biodegradation processes were quantitatively determined using oxygen uptake as a measure of substrate consumption. Bioregeneration phenomenon was also evaluated in the simultaneous adsorption and biodegradation processes under sequencing batch reactor (SBR) operation to treat synthetic wastewater containing 1200 mg l(-1) phenol and p-methylphenol, respectively. The SBR systems were operated with FILL, REACT, SETTLE, DRAW and IDLE periods in the ratio of 4:6:1:0.75:0.25 for a cycle time of 12 h. The results show that the percentage of desorption from loaded PAC decreased in the order phenol>p-methylphenol>p-ethylphenol>p-isopropylphenol. For the treatment of phenol and p-methylphenol in the SBR reactors, respectively, the simultaneous adsorption and biodegradation processes were able to produce a consistent effluent quality of COD < or = 100 mg l(-1) when the applied PAC dosage was 0.115 and 0.143 g PAC per cycle, respectively. When no further PAC was added, the treatment performance deteriorated to that of the case without PAC addition after 68 and 48 cycles of SBR operation, respectively, for phenol and p-methylphenol. This observation is consistent with the greater extent of bioregeneration for phenol-loaded PAC as compared to p-methylphenol-loaded PAC.
MeSH terms: Adsorption; Biodegradation, Environmental; Charcoal/chemistry*; Oxygen/metabolism; Phenols/isolation & purification*; Phenols/metabolism; Time Factors; Water Microbiology; Water Purification/methods*; Bioreactors*
The surfaces of NaY zeolite particles were modified by the alkylsilylation of n-octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS). Two kinds of modified NaY zeolites were prepared; one with its external surface partially and the other fully covered with alkylsilyl groups. Since the size of OTS is bigger than the pore diameter of NaY, it is attached on the external surface, leaving the internal pore accessible to adsorbate molecules. As a result of alkylsilylation, the adsorption properties of these sorbents were improved. The adsorption properties of these materials were tested by their reaction in a mixture of paraquat and blue dye. The results demonstrate that the alkysilylated NaY materials are capable of simultaneous adsorption of paraquat and blue dye. Paraquat was selectively adsorbed into the internal pore of the zeolite whereas the dye on the externally attached alkylsilyl groups of the sorbent; displaying the unique bimodal amphiphilic character of the alkylsilylated NaY zeolites.
Recently, the abuse of ketum, an indigenous psychoactive plant, has received a lot of attention in Malaysia. To help national law enforcement agencies control its abuse, the laboratory of the Forensic Division has developed a procedure for its positive identification. Botanical identification may not be practical or conclusive, owing to the wide range of ketum materials available on the market, including dry macerated leaves, powdered leaves and drinks. In order to confirm that a substance is, in fact, ketum or that a preparation is derived from ketum, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry is used to definitively identify the presence of the psychoactive principle mnitragynine.
MeSH terms: Drug and Narcotic Control/legislation & jurisprudence*; Flame Ionization/methods; Humans; Malaysia; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry/methods; Substance Abuse Detection/legislation & jurisprudence*; Substance-Related Disorders/diagnosis*; Mitragyna/chemistry*
OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of cases and episodes of needlestick injury among three groups of health care workers in the past one-year, the level of knowledge on blood-borne diseases and universal precautions and the practice of universal precautions. Other factors associated with the occurrence of needlestick injuries and the reporting of needlestick injuries were also analysed.
METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in May 2003 to study the needlestick injuries among 285 health care workers (doctors, nurses, medical students) in a public teaching hospital in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia.
RESULTS: The prevalence of needlestick injuries among the respondents was 24.6% involving 71 cases i.e. 48.0% among doctors, 22.4% among medical students, and 18.7% among nurses and the difference was statistically significant (p<0.001). There were a total of 174 episodes of needlestick injury. Prevalence of episode of needlestick injuries was highest among doctors (146%), followed by nurses (50.7%) and medical students (29.4%). Cases of needlestick injuries attained lower scores on practice of universal precautions compared to non-cases (p<0.001). About 59% of cases of needlestick injury did not report their injuries.
CONCLUSIONS: The study showed that needlestick injuries pose a high risk to health care workers and it is underreported most of the time. Many needlestick injuries can be prevented by strictly following the practice of universal precautions.
A method for species identification from pork and lard samples using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis of a conserved region in the mitochondrial (mt) cytochrome b (cyt b) gene has been developed. Genomic DNA of pork and lard were extracted using Qiagen DNeasy(®) Tissue Kits and subjected to PCR amplification targeting the mt cyt b gene. The genomic DNA from lard was found to be of good quality and produced clear PCR products on the amplification of the mt cyt b gene of approximately 360 base pairs. To distinguish between species, the amplified PCR products were cut with restriction enzyme BsaJI resulting in porcine-specific restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLP). The cyt b PCR-RFLP species identification assay yielded excellent results for identification of pig species. It is a potentially reliable technique for detection of pig meat and fat from other animals for Halal authentication.
MeSH terms: Red Meat; Animals; Dietary Fats; DNA; DNA Restriction Enzymes; Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length; Swine; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Base Pairing; Genomics; Cytochromes b
The first aim of cancer treatment is to acheive a cure, and when cure is not possible, a good palliation (life prolongation and relief of sufferings) is warranted. This article highlights the aim of cancer treatment and also attempts to assess the issues of quality of life experienced as a result of the disease and its treatment. Palliative therapy should be less intensive than radical treatment and should cause less morbidity than disease itself. It must be effective, completed in a short time and should be tolerable. It is also essential for a physician to give a clear explanation of illness to the patient and realistic advice regarding the likely outcome of therapy and the long and short term morbidities which may occur. The patient may opt for a palliative treatment with a reduced chance of cure but a better quality of life than accepting a radical treatment with a potentially higher degree of morbidity. Quality of life in oncology practice should be seen as a process and as a part of this process it seems sensible to pursue several different lines of questionnaire development rather than constructing one 'perfect" quality of life instrument.
Phytochemical studies on rhizome of Etlingera elatior have resulted in the isolation of 1,7-bis(4-hydroxyphenyl)-2,4,6-heptatrienone (1), demethoxycurcumin (2), 1,7-bis(4-hydroxyphenyl)-1,4,6-heptatrien-3-one (3), 16-hydroxylabda-8(17),11,13-trien-16,15-olide (4), stigmast-4-en-3-one (5), stigmast-4-ene-3,6-dione (6), stigmast-4-en-6b-ol-3-one (7), 5α,8α-epidioxyergosta-6,22-dien-3β-ol (8). 1 and 4 were new compounds. Compounds 5 and 7 displayed high antitumour-promoting activity. Ethyl acetate extract showed a very significant cytotoxic activity against CEM-SS and MCF-7 cell lines (4 μg/ml and 6.25 μg/ml respectively). The antitumour-promoting activity was determined by EBV-EA assay and cytotoxic activity was determined by MTT assay.
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) has been the number one cause of death since the last three decades in Malaysia and diabetes mellitus and hypertension are considered as major risk factors. A study to reduce risk factors for cardiovascular diseases in the community (PIKOM) through education and lifestyle changes was undertaken. The study population was from four different areas in Peninsular Malaysia - Kota Bharu and Bachok in Kelantan ; Raub in Pahang; Gunung Besout in Perak and Felda Palong in Negri Sembilan. The subjects invited to participate in this study ware aged between 30 - 65 years, did not have any debilitating illnesses and no known history of diabetes mellitus, hypertension or cardiovascular disease. Subjects were asked to come to the local clinic in a fasting state and after physical examination, blood was taken for plasma glucose and lipids. Oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) was then performed. A total of 4,121 subjects participated in the study. The proportion of subjects with diabetes mellitus was highest in Felda Palong area (20.3%) and lowest in Raub area (7.1%). The proportion of subjects with hypertension was also highest in Felda Palong area (38.6%) and lowest in Raub area (29.1%). This could be attributable to the subjects in Felda Palong having the highest mean Body Mass Index (BMI) and Waist-to-Hip Ratio (WHR). There were significant associations between diabetes and hypertension with age and obesity. Subjects with diabetes mellitus and hypertension also had the highest mean age, BMI, WHR and plasma cholesterol.In conclusion, the proportion of patients with risk factors for CVD was high and intervention studies through education and lifestyle changes were being carried out to see their effectiveness.
MeSH terms: Blood Glucose; Cardiovascular Diseases; Cause of Death; Cholesterol; Diabetes Mellitus; Fasting; Glucose Tolerance Test; Humans; Hypertension; Life Style; Lipids; Malaysia; Obesity; Risk Factors; Body Mass Index; Waist-Hip Ratio
Lecture handouts are widely used instructional tools. Handouts supplement rather than substitute students' regular reading. It is now a common practice to supply PowerPoint handouts and publish lecture handouts on the web for students' access. A study was conducted among the first year medical students (n=142) of School of Medical Sciences (SMS), Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) in order to determine their perceptions and expectations with regards to lecture handouts provided to them. The majority of the students reported that they read the lecture handouts as a reference and found them useful as a guide for future learning. More than half (68%) of the students expressed dissatisfaction with the overall presentation format of the handouts which is mainly technology-related i.e. PowerPoint and photocopying. This study indicated that students' expectations and experiences were positive towards the use of handouts. They used handouts as a means of supplementing rather than substituting their learning. Much care is needed when educators supply computer-based handouts, as this study shows a number of limitations when students use them. Medical schools should consider publishing web-based handouts with online and other facilities to make it interesting and effective.
Perceived breathlessness played an important role in guiding treatment in asthma. We developed a simple, user-friendly method of scoring perception of dyspnoea (POD) using an incentive spirometer, Triflo II (Tyco Healthcare, Mansfield, USA) by means of repetitive inspiratory efforts achieved within three minutes in 175 normal healthy subjects and 158 asthmatic patients of mild (n=26), moderate (n=78) and severe (n=54). Severity was stratified according to GINA guideline. The mean POD index in normal subjects, and asthmatic patients of mild, moderate and severe severity were: 6 (4-7) 16 (9-23), 25 (14-37), and 57 (14-100) respectively (p<0.001 One-Way ANOVA). Based on 17 asthmatic and 20 normal healthy subjects, intraclass correlation coefficients for POD index within subjects were high. In 14 asthmatic patients randomized to receiving nebulised b(2)-agonist or saline in a crossover, double-blind study, % FEV(1) change correlated with % changes in POD index [r(s) -0.46, p=0.012]. Finally, when compared with 6-minutes walking test (6MWT) in an open label study, respiratory POD index correlated with walking POD index in 21 asthmatic patients [r(s)= 0.58 (0.17 to 0.81) (p=0.007] and 26 normal subjects [0.50 (0.13 to 0.75) (p=0.008)]. We concluded that this test is discriminative between asthmatic patients of varying severity and from normal subjects, is reproducible, responsive to bronchodilator effect, and comparable with 6MWT. Taken together, it has the potential to score disability and POD in asthma effectively and simply.
Even though extensive studies have been conducted on the effect of noise exposure on hearing apparatus / auditory system, information on the effect of noise on the other body functions is sparse. The present study examined the effect of exposure of albino rats to acute and chronic noise stress on two important interlaced endocrine levels. In acute experiments the animals were exposed to 120 dB noise for a duration of 1, 2, 3 hrs. In chronic experiments the animals were exposed to noise for one hour daily for 30, 60 and 90 days. Plasma corticosterone and leptin levels were measured in these animals. There was significant elevation in the levels of corticosterone and leptin after exposure to noise stress. The elevation in corticosterone level after noise stress is in agreement with earlier reports. So noise acts like a stressor and elevates the secretion of the corticosterone, the stress hormone and leptin, the product of the ob gene there is an elevation in leptin levels after noise stress.
Stress tends to worsen the prognosis of patients with coronary heart disease. The aim of the study is to determine the relationship between stress related psychosocial factors like anxiety, depression and life events and temporally cardiac events specified as acute myocardial infarction and unstable angina 65 subjects with confirmed myocardial infarction or unstable angina were interviewed using 2 sets of questionnaire, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and Life Changes Stress Test, a segment of the Rahe's Stress and Coping Inventory first at time of occurrence of their cardiac event and the second time was 6 months later. Anxiety, depression and life events scores were calculated for both and recurrence of cardiac event for the 6 month duration was also recorded. Patients who had significant levels of depression and or life events were ten times more likely to have recurrence of cardiac events as compared to those without risk for either of these psychological symptoms. Anxiety, depression and stress levels are significantly increased after the onset of ischemic heart disease and could be contributing or predisposing factors for the recurrence of cardiac events for these patients.