Browse publications by year: 2013

  1. Salem SA, Hwie AN, Saim A, Chee Kong CH, Sagap I, Singh R, et al.
    Malays J Med Sci, 2013 Jul;20(4):80-7.
    PMID: 24044001 MyJurnal
    Adipose tissue provides an abundant source of multipotent cells, which represent a source of cell-based regeneration strategies for urinary bladder smooth muscle repair. Our objective was to confirm that adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) can be differentiated into smooth muscle cells.
    MeSH terms: Adipose Tissue; Urinary Bladder; Cell Differentiation; Muscle, Smooth; Regeneration; Adipocytes; Myocytes, Smooth Muscle; Multipotent Stem Cells
  2. Sriram PR
    Malays J Med Sci, 2013 Jul;20(4):91-4.
    PMID: 24044003 MyJurnal
    Chordoid meningioma, classified as atypical meningioma according to the World Health Organisation (WHO) classification, is a rare subtype, which represents only 0.5% of all meningiomas and is associated with a high incidence of recurrence. Multiple intracranial meningiomas are rare in non-neurofibromatosis patients. We present a female patient with both of these rare types of meningioma. The patient presented with two concurrent intracranial meningiomas, with one a meningotheliomatous subtype and the other a chordoid meningioma. Given the wide array of histological differential diagnoses in chordoid meningioma, immunohistochemistry has a significant role to play in differentiating them. Recurrence in chordoid meningioma can be generally predicted based on the extent of resection, the percentage of chordoid element, and proliferation indices.
    MeSH terms: Adult; Diagnosis, Differential; Female; Humans; Immunohistochemistry; Meningeal Neoplasms; Meningioma; Mitotic Index; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; World Health Organization; Incidence; Cell Proliferation
  3. Song CH, Chai FY, Saukani MF, Singh H, Jiffre D
    Malays J Med Sci, 2013 Jul;20(4):95-7.
    PMID: 24044004 MyJurnal
    Paratesticular liposarcoma is a rare entity. Compared to other genitourinary sarcoma, it is usually detected earlier and is easily resectable, resulting in an excellent prognosis. The recurrence of well-differentiated paratesticular liposarcoma after complete resection is extremely rare. Optimal management of the tumour recurrence includes complete re-excision and radiotherapy to the area of recurrence. Here, we describe a 48-year-old man with a recurrent left paratesticular well-differentiated liposarcoma, six years after its complete excision. Our discussion focused on the therapeutic strategy to prevent tumour recurrence. It is hoped that this case discussion can increase the awareness of this condition and assist in its management.
    MeSH terms: Humans; Liposarcoma; Male; Middle Aged; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; Prognosis; Sarcoma; Neoplasms, Adipose Tissue
  4. Ismail AF, Daud A, Ismail Z, Abdullah B
    Oman Med J, 2013 Sep;28(5):331-6.
    PMID: 24044059 DOI: 10.5001/omj.2013.96
    Noise is known to be one of the environmental and occupational hazards listed in the Factory and Machinery Act 1967. Quarries with loud deafening sounds from trucks and machineries pose the risk of noise-induced hearing loss to workers. This study was designed to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice towards noise-induced hearing loss and to determine the prevalence of noise-induced hearing loss and its associated factors among quarry workers in a north-eastern state of Malaysia.
    MeSH terms: Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced; Humans; Malaysia; Noise, Occupational; Sound; Prevalence; Motor Vehicles
  5. Rothan HA, Mohamed Z, Suhaeb AM, Rahman NA, Yusof R
    OMICS, 2013 Nov;17(11):560-7.
    PMID: 24044366 DOI: 10.1089/omi.2013.0056
    Dengue virus infects millions of people worldwide, and there is no vaccine or anti-dengue therapeutic available. Antimicrobial peptides have been shown to possess effective antiviral activity against various viruses. One of the main limitations of developing these peptides as potent antiviral drugs is the high cost of production. In this study, high yield production of biologically active plectasin peptide was inexpensively achieved by producing tandem plectasin peptides as inclusion bodies in E. coli. Antiviral activity of the recombinant peptide towards dengue serotype-2 NS2B-NS3 protease (DENV2 NS2B-NS3pro) was assessed as a target to inhibit dengue virus replication in Vero cells. Single units of recombinant plectasin were collected after applying consecutive steps of refolding, cleaving by Factor Xa, and nickel column purification to obtain recombinant proteins of high purity. The maximal nontoxic dose (MNTD) of the recombinant peptide against Vero cells was 20 μM (100 μg/mL). The reaction velocity of DENV2 NS2B-NS3pro decreased significantly after increasing concentrations of recombinant plectasin were applied to the reaction mixture. Plectasin peptide noncompetitively inhibited DENV2 NS2B-NS3pro at Ki value of 5.03 ± 0.98 μM. The percentage of viral inhibition was more than 80% at the MNTD value of plectasin. In this study, biologically active recombinant plectasin which was able to inhibit dengue protease and viral replication in Vero cells was successfully produced in E. coli in a time- and cost- effective method. These findings are potentially important in the development of potent therapeutics against dengue infection.
    MeSH terms: Amino Acid Sequence; Animals; Antiviral Agents/isolation & purification; Antiviral Agents/metabolism; Antiviral Agents/pharmacology*; Cell Survival/drug effects; Inclusion Bodies/genetics; Inclusion Bodies/metabolism; Inclusion Bodies/chemistry; Cercopithecus aethiops; Dengue Virus/drug effects*; Dengue Virus/enzymology; Dengue Virus/growth & development; Escherichia coli/genetics; Escherichia coli/metabolism; Kinetics; Molecular Sequence Data; Peptides/genetics; Peptides/isolation & purification; Peptides/metabolism; Peptides/pharmacology*; Recombinant Fusion Proteins/biosynthesis; Recombinant Fusion Proteins/genetics; Recombinant Fusion Proteins/isolation & purification; Recombinant Fusion Proteins/pharmacology*; Serine Endopeptidases/metabolism; Staphylococcus aureus/drug effects; Staphylococcus aureus/growth & development; Vero Cells; Virus Replication/drug effects; Factor Xa/chemistry; Viral Nonstructural Proteins/antagonists & inhibitors; Viral Nonstructural Proteins/metabolism; Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides/biosynthesis; Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides/genetics; Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides/isolation & purification; Antimicrobial Cationic Peptides/pharmacology*
  6. Teng NI, Shahar S, Rajab NF, Manaf ZA, Johari MH, Ngah WZ
    Aging Male, 2013 Dec;16(4):177-83.
    PMID: 24044618 DOI: 10.3109/13685538.2013.832191
    Calorie restriction and intermittent fasting are two dietary interventions that can improve aging. Religious fasting also suggested having similar benefit; however, such studies are still scarce. Thus, this study aimed to determine the effect of fasting calorie restriction (FCR) on metabolic parameters and DNA damage among healthy older adult men.
    MeSH terms: Aged; Aging/physiology*; Blood Pressure; Body Composition/physiology; DNA Damage; Fasting/metabolism*; Humans; Lipoproteins, HDL/blood*; Malaysia; Male; Malondialdehyde/blood*; Middle Aged; Body Mass Index; Treatment Outcome; Oxidative Stress; Caloric Restriction/methods*; Lipid Metabolism
  7. Salari N, Shohaimi S, Najafi F, Nallappan M, Karishnarajah I
    Theor Biol Med Model, 2013 Sep 18;10:57.
    PMID: 24044669 DOI: 10.1186/1742-4682-10-57
    OBJECTIVE: The classification of Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS), using artificial intelligence (AI), has recently drawn the attention of the medical researchers. Using this approach, patients with myocardial infarction can be differentiated from those with unstable angina. The present study aims to develop an integrated model, based on the feature selection and classification, for the automatic classification of ACS.

    METHODS: A dataset containing medical records of 809 patients suspected to suffer from ACS was used. For each subject, 266 clinical factors were collected. At first, a feature selection was performed based on interviews with 20 cardiologists; thereby 40 seminal features for classifying ACS were selected. Next, a feature selection algorithm was also applied to detect a subset of the features with the best classification accuracy. As a result, the feature numbers considerably reduced to only seven. Lastly, based on the seven selected features, eight various common pattern recognition tools for classification of ACS were used.

    RESULTS: The performance of the aforementioned classifiers was compared based on their accuracy computed from their confusion matrices. Among these methods, the multi-layer perceptron showed the best performance with the 83.2% accuracy.

    CONCLUSION: The results reveal that an integrated AI-based feature selection and classification approach is an effective method for the early and accurate classification of ACS and ultimately a timely diagnosis and treatment of this disease.

    MeSH terms: Algorithms; Electrocardiography; Female; Humans; Male; Models, Cardiovascular*; Pattern Recognition, Automated/methods*; Probability; Troponin/metabolism; Linear Models; Acute Coronary Syndrome/classification*
  8. Singh S, Pai DR, Sinha NK, Kaur A, Soe HH, Barua A
    BMC Med Educ, 2013;13:128.
    PMID: 24044727 DOI: 10.1186/1472-6920-13-128
    Effective teaching in medicine is essential to produce good quality doctors. A number of studies have attempted to identify the characteristics of an effective teacher. However, most of literature regarding an effective medical teacher includes student ratings or expert opinions. Furthermore, interdisciplinary studies for the same are even fewer. We did a cross-sectional study of the characteristics of effective teachers from their own perspective across medicine and dentistry disciplines.
    MeSH terms: Adult; Aged; Cross-Sectional Studies; Education, Dental/standards; Education, Medical/standards; Faculty, Dental/standards; Faculty, Dental/statistics & numerical data; Faculty, Medical/standards*; Faculty, Medical/statistics & numerical data; Female; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Surveys and Questionnaires; Teaching/standards*
  9. Khanam Z, Singh O, Singh R, Bhat IU
    J Ethnopharmacol, 2013 Nov 25;150(2):421-41.
    PMID: 24045177 DOI: 10.1016/j.jep.2013.08.064
    Safed musli (Chlorophytum borivilianum) is an eminent medicinal plant of India and considered as a 'white gold' or 'divya aushad' in Indian systems of medicine. In Ayurveda, Chlorophytum borivilianum belongs to the group of "Vajikaran Rasayana" corroborated to its rejuvenating, aphrodisiac, natural sex tonic properties and effective in alleviating sexual disorders. It is largely used as ethnic medicine by local healers of indigenous communities of India.
    MeSH terms: Animals; Conservation of Natural Resources; Humans; India; Medicine, Traditional; Plant Extracts/pharmacology; Plant Extracts/therapeutic use; Ethnobotany; Ethnopharmacology; Phytochemicals/analysis
  10. Yasin SM, Retneswari M, Moy FM, Taib KM, Ismail N
    Ann Acad Med Singap, 2013 Aug;42(8):401-7.
    PMID: 24045376
    INTRODUCTION: This study aims to identify the predictors of a 6-month quitting success among employees involved in workplace smoking cessation with low-intensity smoke-free policy.

    MATERIALS AND METHODS: A multicentre prospective cohort study was conducted among employees from 2 different public universities in Malaysia. Interventions include at least 2 sessions of behavioural therapy combined with free nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) for 8 weeks. Participants were followed up for 6 months. Independent variables assessed were on sociodemographic and environmental tobacco smoke. Their quit status were determined at 1 week, 3 months and 6 months.

    RESULTS: One hundred and eighty- five smokers volunteered to participate. Among the participants, 15% and 13% sustained quit at 3 months and 6 months respectively. Multivariate analysis revealed that at 6 months, attending all 3 behavioural sessions predicted success. None of the environmental tobacco exposure variables were predictive of sustained cessation.

    CONCLUSION: Individual predictors of success in intra-workplace smoking cessation programmes do not differ from the conventional clinic-based smoking cessation. Furthermore, environmental tobacco exposure in low intensity smoke-free workplaces has limited influence on smokers who succeeded in maintaining 6 months quitting.

    MeSH terms: Adolescent; Adult; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Prognosis; Prospective Studies; Smoking/therapy*; Time Factors; Smoking Cessation*; Workplace*; Young Adult; Smoke-Free Policy*
  11. Mohamad I, Nik Hassan NF
    Ann Acad Med Singap, 2013 Aug;42(8):422-3.
    PMID: 24045382
    MeSH terms: Carotid Body Tumor/complications; Carotid Body Tumor/diagnosis*; Diagnosis, Differential; Edema/etiology; Female; Humans; Neck; Young Adult
  12. Alfizah H, Noraziah MZ, Chao MY, Rahman MM, Ramelah M
    Clin Ter, 2013;164(4):301-5.
    PMID: 24045512 DOI: 10.7417/CT.2013.1577
    Helicobacter pylori strains secrete a vacuolating cytotoxin (VacA), plays an important role for the development of peptic ulcer disease and gastro-duodenal diseases. vacA gene is responsible to regulate the activity of the vacuolating cytotoxin. The objective of this study was molecular detection of vacA gene and observes the vacuolating activity on human gastric adenocarcinoma (AGS) cells.
    MeSH terms: Adenocarcinoma/complications*; Adenocarcinoma/microbiology*; Bacterial Proteins/analysis; Bacterial Proteins/genetics*; Humans; Stomach Neoplasms/complications*; Stomach Neoplasms/microbiology*; Tumor Cells, Cultured; Vacuoles; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Helicobacter pylori/genetics*; Helicobacter Infections/complications*
  13. Rashid Jusoh A, Das S, Kamsiah J, Qodriyah HM, Faizah O
    Clin Ter, 2013;164(4):307-13.
    PMID: 24045513 DOI: 10.7417/CT.2013.1578
    Consumption of repeatedly heated soy oil has been linked with incidence of atherosclerosis particularly in oestrogen deficient states. In the present study, effect of curcumin extract on the prevention of atherosclerosis was evaluated.
    MeSH terms: Animals; Aorta/drug effects*; Aorta/ultrastructure*; Curcumin/pharmacology*; Diet*; Female; Hot Temperature; Microscopy, Electron; Ovariectomy; Soybean Oil/administration & dosage; Soybean Oil/adverse effects*; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Atherosclerosis/etiology; Atherosclerosis/prevention & control*; Rats
  14. Tan C C K Ho GH, Bahadzor B, Praveen S, Goh EH, Syahril AS, Zulkifli MZ
    Clin Ter, 2013;164(4):319-21.
    PMID: 24045515 DOI: 10.7417/CT.2013.1580
    Gas-forming infection of the kidneys can affect either the parenchyma or the collecting system. They are known as emphysematous pyelonephritis (EPN) and emphysematous pyelitis (EP) respectively. Bilateral EPN is a fairly established entity and numerous articles about this condition have been published. However, much less is known about bilateral EP. We report a rare case of bilateral EP and a literature review of this disease. A 66-year-old woman with long-standing bilateral staghorn calculi presented with bilateral EP and severe sepsis. She was treated with antibiotics and bilateral double-J stents to drain the upper urinary tracts. She recovered after 1 month of intensive care and medical therapy. Percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) had been scheduled to treat her staghorn calculi. A literature search on MEDLINE and Google Scholar with the terms "bilateral emphysematous pyelitis" only found 1 case report in English and another 2 reports in the Korean language that discussed bilateral EP. The collective experience of these few cases, including the present case, suggests that bilateral EP runs a more benign course than bilateral EPN. It should be diagnosed as soon as possible with computed tomography (CT) scans of the renal system. Current evidence shows that can be treated successfully with timely antibiotics. Drainage of the collecting system either percutaneously or with placement of double-J stents might facilitate recovery.
    MeSH terms: Aged; Female; Humans; Urology
  15. Centeno A, Ahmed B, Reehal H, Xie F
    Nanotechnology, 2013 Oct 18;24(41):415402.
    PMID: 24045859 DOI: 10.1088/0957-4484/24/41/415402
    There has been much recent interest in the application of plasmonics to improve the efficiency of silicon solar cells. In this paper we use finite difference time domain calculations to investigate the placement of hemispherical gold nanoparticles on the rear surface of a silicon solar cell. The results indicate that nanoparticles protruding into the silicon, rather than into air, have a larger scattering efficiency and diffuse scattering into the semiconductor. This finding could lead to improved light trapping within a thin silicon solar cell device.
  16. Onichandran S, Kumar T, Lim YA, Sawangjaroen N, Andiappan H, Salibay CC, et al.
    Parasitol Res, 2013 Dec;112(12):4185-91.
    PMID: 24046263 DOI: 10.1007/s00436-013-3610-1
    The objective of this study was to assess the physico-chemical parameters and waterborne parasites in selected recreational lakes from Malaysia. Samples were collected from seven stations of Recreational Lake A (RL-A) and six stations of Recreational Lake B (RL-B). The samples were processed to detect the presence of Giardia spp. and Cryptosporidium spp. using immunomagnetic separation kit, helminth eggs or ova by bright field microscopy and Acanthamoeba spp. by cultivation in non-nutrient agar. Chemical parameters such as ammonia, chlorine, fluoride, nitrate and nitrite and physical parameters such as dissolved oxygen, electrical conductivity, pH, salinity, temperature and total dissolved solid were also measured. Both lakes were freshwater with salinity ranging from 0.05 to 0.09 ppt. Most stations of these lakes were contaminated with Cryptosporidium spp., Giardia spp., Ascaris spp. and hookworm. Schistosoma spp. was found in RL-B only, while Acanthamoeba spp. was found in all stations. Of all sampling sites, station 5 of RL-B is the most contaminated. Linear regression and correlation analysis revealed that Giardia spp. and Schistosoma spp. showed a significant negative correlation with turbidity (p 
    MeSH terms: Acanthamoeba/isolation & purification; Animals; Ascaris/isolation & purification; Cryptosporidium/isolation & purification; Fresh Water/parasitology*; Fresh Water/chemistry*; Giardia/isolation & purification; Malaysia; Parasites/isolation & purification*; Lakes/parasitology*; Lakes/chemistry*; Water Quality
  17. Yeong KY, Ali MA, Choon TS, Rosli MM, Razak IA
    PMID: 24046597 DOI: 10.1107/S1600536813014177
    In the title compound, C28H27FN4O3·H2O, the benzimidazole ring system is essentially planar with a maximum deviation of 0.028 (1) Å. It makes dihedral angles of 47.59 (5) and 60.31 (5)°, respectively, with the pyridine and benzene rings, which make a dihedral angle of 22.58 (6)° with each other. The pyrrolidine ring shows an envelope conformation with one of the methyl-ene C atoms as the flap. In the crystal, the components are connected into a tape along the b-axis direction through O-H⋯O and O-H⋯N hydrogen bonds and a π-π inter-action between the pyridine and benzene rings [centroid-centroid distance of 3.685 (8) Å]. The tapes are further linked into layers parallel to the ab plane by C-H⋯O and C-H⋯F inter-actions.
  18. Yusof MS, Razali NR, Arshad S, Rahman AA, Razak IA
    PMID: 24046599 DOI: 10.1107/S1600536813014268
    In the title mol-ecule, C23H22N2OS, the di-phenyl-acetyl and ethyl-benzene groups adopt a trans-cis conformation, respectively, with respect to the S atom across the (S=)C-N bonds. This conformation is stabilized by an intra-molecular N-H⋯O hydrogen bond and a weak C-H⋯S hydrogen bond. The ethyl-substituted benzene ring forms dihedral angles of 87.53 (15) and 73.94 (15)° with the phenyl rings. In the crystal, N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds link mol-ecules into chains along [100]. A weak C-H⋯π inter-action is also observed.
  19. Pichika MR, Kang YB, Ng SW
    PMID: 24046651 DOI: 10.1107/S1600536813015791
    In the title compound, C17H16O3, the benzene rings are twisted by 63.54 (5)°. The twist is similar to that found in the unsubstituted compound, phenyl benzoate. The crystal packing features C-H⋯O hydrogen bonds.
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