The chemicals of the defense secretions of Malaysian Bulbitermes, B. singaporensis, B. germanus, B. sarawakensis, and Bulbitermes sp. B, show that B. singaporensis is distinct from the other species, which are themselves closely related; the genetic distance between B. singaporensis and B. germanus is 0.71. B. singaporensis contains tetracyclic kempane, and B. germanus and B. sarawakensis contain tricyclic trinervitene; Bulbitermes sp. B contains a mixture of kempane and trinervitene. The mono- and diterpenoid compositions are species-specific.
Bactrocera carambolae and B. papayae are major fruit fly pests and sympatric sibling species of the B. dorsalis complex. They possess distinct differences in male pheromonal components. In the 1990's, wild Bactrocera fruit flies with morphological traits intermediate between those of B. carambolae and B. papayae were often captured in traps baited with methyl eugenol (ME). Chemical analyses of rectal glands of ME-fed males revealed that the laboratory Fl, F2, and backcross hybrids possessed ME-derived sex pheromonal components ranging from that typical of B. papayae to that of B. carambolae without any specific trend, which included a combination of pheromonal components from both parental species within an individual hybrid. ME-fed hybrids without any ME-derived pheromonal components were also detected. Further chemical analysis of rectal glands from wild Bactrocera males, after ME feeding in the laboratory, showed a combination of pheromonal components similar to that found in the ME-fed, laboratory-bred hybrids. These findings present circumstantial evidence for the occurrence of a natural hybrid of the two Bactrocera species.
MeSH terms: Animals; Eugenol/analogs & derivatives; Eugenol/pharmacology; Hybridization, Genetic; Male; Pest Control, Biological; Pheromones/analysis*; Salt Gland/secretion*; Salt Gland/chemistry; Sexual Behavior, Animal/physiology*; Tephritidae/genetics; Tephritidae/chemistry*
A retrospective review of patients with focal non-typhoidal Salmonella (NTS) infection was performed to determine its features and outcome. All patients with focal NTS infection admitted to the University of Malaya Medical Center, Malaysia, from 1993 to 2002 were studied. More than half (58%) of the 35 cases (54% male, median age 39 years, range 1.5 months to 79 years) were immunocompromized or had chronic medical conditions. One-third of the patients (34%) had superficial infections (lymphadenitis or subcutaneous tissue infection) and all recovered with antimicrobial therapy alone. Deep infections (66%) noted were: meningitis (9%), osteomyelitis or arthritis (26%), abscesses of the gastrointestinal tract or adjacent organs (20%), and others (11%). Deep infections were more likely to occur in the extremes of age (<6 months or >60 years, p< 0.04), associated with adverse outcomes with an overall mortality rate of 9%, or required major surgery (15%).
In this retrospective study, we investigated 263 foreign patients who were diagnosed as having tuberculosis at the National Tuberculosis Center (NTBC) from January 2001 to December 2002. The age range was 14-72 years, with a mean of 33.3 +/- 9.95 years. The study subjects were predominantly males (60%) and females comprised 40%, where the greater impact of tuberculosis was observed in the young and active ones (up to 34 years of age), than middle-age (up to 54). A significantly higher percentage of these patients were from the Southeast Asian countries (87%) and particularly occurred in single male (47.5%) and married female (71.4%) patients (p<0.05). We also found that tuberculosis was significantly higher in female (50.5%) and male (64%) with smoking laborers (p<0.05). Fever (70%), cough (90.5%) and BCG vaccination status showed a significantly higher percentage in male patients (p<0.05), whereas lymphadenopathy (22%) was found in a significantly higher percentage in females (p<0.05). Overall, pulmonary disease (94.3%) occurred more commonly in males and the pleura (3.2%) was the most common site of disseminated tuberculosis. By contrast, the lymph node (11.4%) and miliary (4.8%) forms were the more common extrapulmonary tuberculosis in females. More males had higher percentage of treatment completed at > or = 6 (38%) and > or = 9 (13.3%) months in pulmonary tuberculosis, whilst, more females showed higher percentage of treatment completed (8.7%) in extrapulmonary tuberculosis. Surprisingly, more women showed non-compliance to the anti-tubercular therapy than their counterpart in this study.
MeSH terms: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Antitubercular Agents/therapeutic use; Cough; Emigration and Immigration*; Female; Fever; Humans; Malaysia/epidemiology; Male; Middle Aged; Patient Compliance; Registries; Risk Factors; Smoking/epidemiology; Sputum/microbiology; Tuberculosis, Pulmonary/diagnosis; Tuberculosis, Pulmonary/drug therapy; Tuberculosis, Pulmonary/ethnology*; Treatment Outcome; Age Distribution; Sex Distribution
We present an interesting and rare case of a diabetic patient who developed extensive unilateral emphysematous pyelonephritis (EPN) which was caused by fungal infection. The diagnosis was confirmed on computed tomography (CT) scan of the abdomen. Repeated urine cultures grew Candida albicans but no other organisms were isolated. The patient remained febrile and unwell despite parenteral broad spectrum antibiotics and antifungal treatment. She underwent nephrectomy and then made a good clinical recovery.
Frequent loss of heterozygosity (LOH) and mutations of the tumor suppressor gene PTEN (phosphatase and tensin homologue deleted from chromosome 10) have been found in sporadic gliomas. The most documented regions of allelic losses include 9p21, 10q23-25 and 17p1 3 whereas PTEN aberrations are preferentially found in glioblastoma multiformes. This research aimed to detect the incidence of allelic losses on chromosomes 10q, 9p, 17p and 13q and mutations on exons 5, 6 and 8 of PTEN in malignant gliomas. Malignant glioma specimens obtained were classified histopathologically according to the WHO criteria. Each tumor was then subjected to polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-LOH analysis using microsatellite markers and single-stranded conformational polymorphism (SSCP) analysis. Twelve of 23 (52%) malignant glioma cases showed allelic losses whereas 7 of 23 (30%) samples showed aberrant band patterns and mutations of PTEN. Four of these cases showed LOH in 10q23 and mutations of PTEN. The data on LOH indicated the involvement of different genes in the genesis of glioma whereas mutations of PTEN indicated the role of PTEN tumor suppressor gene in the progression of glioma in Malay population.
MeSH terms: Adolescent; Adult; Alleles; Child; Child, Preschool; Chromosomes, Human, 6-12 and X/genetics*; Female; Glioma/genetics*; Glioma/epidemiology; Humans; Malaysia/epidemiology; Male; Middle Aged; Mutation/genetics; Incidence; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Genes, Tumor Suppressor; Age Distribution; Sex Distribution; Loss of Heterozygosity/genetics*; PTEN Phosphohydrolase/genetics*
We describe a patient with Evans syndrome (autoimmune hemolytic anemia and autoimmune thrombocytopenia) who was refractory to steroids and intravenous immunoglobulin. She responded to splenectomy and has remained in clinical remission for 3 years. In the majority of cases, splenectomy rarely induces a durable remission but it may be beneficial in a small group of patients, hence should be considered as alternative therapy in the management of these patients.
To determine the involvement of nitric oxide/cyclic guanosine monophosphate (NO/cGMP) pathway in aqueous supernatant of haruan (Channa striatus) fillet (ASH) antinociception using the acetic acid-induced abdominal constriction test.
A vascularized outer-table calvarial bone graft was used for repairing a Posnick type 2 traumatic orbito-frontal bone defect supported by the use of a calcium-based putty (Allomatrix) in a 7-year-old girl. Gaps between the donor and recipient sites were filled with Allomatrix containing demineralized bone matrix particles. Four years later there was a good cosmetic result using an artificial left eye.
MeSH terms: Bone Matrix/transplantation*; Child; Esthetics; Eye, Artificial; Fascia/blood supply; Fascia/transplantation*; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Frontal Bone/injuries*; Humans; Orbital Fractures/surgery*; Skull Fractures/surgery*; Surgical Flaps; Temporal Arteries/transplantation; Bone Transplantation/methods*; Treatment Outcome; Bone Substitutes/therapeutic use*; Skull Base/injuries
Postocclusive reactive hyperemia in forearm skin is a commonly used model for studying microvascular reactivity function, particularly in the assessment of vascular effect of topically applied pharmacological substances. In this study, we investigated the reproducibility of several different laser-Doppler-derived parameters in the measurement of postocclusive reactive hyperemia at forearm skin in healthy subjects.
MeSH terms: Adult; Brachial Artery/injuries; Brachial Artery/physiopathology; Data Interpretation, Statistical; Forearm/blood supply; Forearm/physiopathology*; Humans; Hyperemia/etiology; Hyperemia/physiopathology*; Male; Skin/blood supply; Skin/physiopathology*; Time Factors; Reproducibility of Results; Laser-Doppler Flowmetry/adverse effects; Laser-Doppler Flowmetry/methods*
Recent reports have divided diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) into germinal centre B cell-like and activated B cell-like subgroups with implicated differences in prognosis.
Bacterial proteases are an important group of enzymes that have very diverse biochemical and cellular functions. Proteases from prokaryotic sources also have a wide range of uses, either in medicine as pathogenic factors or in industry and therapeutics. ProLysED (Prokaryotic Lysis Enzymes Database), our meta-server integrated database of bacterial proteases, is a useful, albeit very niche, resource. The features include protease classification browsing and searching, organism-specific protease browsing, molecular information and visualisation of protease structures from the Protein Data Bank (PDB) as well as predicted protease structures.
MeSH terms: Amino Acid Sequence; Bacterial Proteins/classification; Bacterial Proteins/chemistry*; Computer Graphics; Database Management Systems*; Molecular Sequence Data; Peptide Hydrolases/classification; Peptide Hydrolases/chemistry*; Protein Conformation; User-Computer Interface*; Information Storage and Retrieval/methods*; Systems Integration; Internet*; Databases, Protein*
The aim of this study was to assess (by direct determination) the fluoride (F) exposure from ingested toothpaste among 4-5-year-old Malaysian children.
This is a case report of an extremely rare condition of atlanto-axial subluxation secondary to gouty arthritis, which mimicked rheumatoid arthritis at presentation. Gouty arthritis involving the spine is a rare condition. We highlight a case of gouty arthritis involving the atlanto-axial joint resulting in joint instability, subluxation, and neurological deficit. A 66-year-old obese woman who had a polyarticular disease for the previous 3 years presented with neck pain and progressive neurology. A 2-stage procedure was performed: posterior decompression and occipitocervical fusion followed by further anterior trans-oral decompression. However, after an initial neurological improvement, she succumbed to aspirational pneumonia and septicaemia. Atlanto-axial subluxation caused by gouty arthritis can present in the same way as rheumatoid arthritis. Therefore, the possibility of this as a differential diagnosis should be kept in mind.
This study determined the concentrations of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins/dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), organochlorine (OC) pesticides, and tris(4-chlorophenyl) methane (TCPMe) in human breast milk samples collected in 2003 from primipara mothers living in Penang, Malaysia. OCs were detected in all the samples analyzed with DDTs, hexachlorocyclohexane isomers (HCHs), and PCBs as the major contaminants followed by chlordane compounds (CHLs), hexachlorobenzene (HCB), and TCPMe. The residue levels of DDTs, HCHs, and CHLs were comparable to or higher than those in general populations of other countries, whereas PCBs and HCB were relatively low. In addition, dioxins and related compounds were also detected with a range of dioxin equivalent concentrations from 3.4 to 24 pg-TEQs/g lipid wt. Levels of toxic equivalents (TEQs) were slightly higher than those in other developing countries but still much lower than those of industrialized nations. One donor mother contained a high TEQs level, equal to the mean value in human breast milk from Japan, implying that some of the residents in Malaysia may be exposed to specific pollution sources of dioxins and related compounds. No association was observed between OCs concentrations and maternal characteristics, which might be related to a limited number of samples, narrow range of age of the donor mothers, and/or other external factors. The recently identified endocrine disrupter, TCPMe, was also detected in all human breast milk samples of this study. A significant positive correlation was observed between TCPMe and DDTs, suggesting that technical DDT might be a source of TCPMe in Malaysia. The present study provides a useful baseline for future studies on the accumulations of OCs in the general population of Malaysia.
A series of preliminary studies was carried out to evaluate the antinociceptive (pain relief) activity of the aqueous extract of Corchorus olitorius L. leaves (COAE) and to determine the influence of temperature and opioid receptors on COAE activity using the abdominal constriction and hot plate tests in mice. COAE, at concentrations of 10, 25, 50, 75, and 100%, showed both peripheral and central antinociception that are non-concentration- and concentration-dependent respectively. The peripheral activity was clearly observed at a concentration of 25% and diminished at a concentration of 100%, while the central activity was observed at all the concentrations of COAE used. Furthermore, the insignificant results obtained indicated that this peripheral activity (at concentrations of 25 and 50%) was comparable to that of morphine (0.8 mg/kg). Pre-heating COAE at a temperature of 80 degrees C and 100 degrees C, or 60 degrees C and 80 degrees C was found to enhance its peripheral and central antinociception respectively. Pre-treatment with naloxone (10 mg/kg), a general opioid receptor antagonist, for 5 min, followed by COAE, was found to completely block its peripheral, but not central, antinociceptive activity. Based on this observation, we conclude that the antinociceptive activity exhibited by C. olitorius is enhanced by the increase in temperature and may be mediated peripherally, but not centrally, at least in part, via an opioid receptor.
MeSH terms: Academies and Institutes/economics; Academies and Institutes/trends; Classification; Ecology; Financing, Organized/economics; Malaysia/ethnology; Neurosciences/trends; Personnel Selection*; Prejudice; Research Personnel/economics; Research Personnel/education; Research Personnel/supply & distribution*; Salaries and Fringe Benefits/economics; Federal Government; Internationality
Tacit knowledge of health-care experts is an important source of experiential know-how, yet due to various operational and technical reasons, such health-care knowledge is not entirely harnessed and put into professional practice. Emerging knowledge-management (KM) solutions suggest strategies to acquire the seemingly intractable and nonarticulated tacit knowledge of health-care experts. This paper presents a KM methodology, together with its computational implementation, to 1) acquire the tacit knowledge possessed by health-care experts; 2) represent the acquired tacit health-care knowledge in a computational formalism--i.e., clinical scenarios--that allows the reuse of stored knowledge to acquire tacit knowledge; and 3) crystallize the acquired tacit knowledge so that it is validated for health-care decision-support and medical education systems.
MeSH terms: Artificial Intelligence*; Delivery of Health Care/organization & administration*; Malaysia; Information Management*