Browse publications by year: 2014

  1. Fulltext Basics and recent advances of two dimensional- polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis
    Magdeldin S, Enany S, Yoshida Y, Xu B, Zhang Y, Zureena Z, et al.
    Clin Proteomics, 2014;11(1):16.
    PMID: 24735559 DOI: 10.1186/1559-0275-11-16
    Gel- based proteomics is one of the most versatile methods for fractionating protein complexes. Among these methods, two dimensional- polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2-DE) represents a mainstay orthogonal approach, which is popularly used to simultaneously fractionate, identify, and quantify proteins when coupled with mass spectrometric identification or other immunological tests. Although 2-DE was first introduced more than three decades ago, several challenges and limitations to its utility still exist. This review discusses the principles of 2-DE as well as both recent methodological advances and new applications.
  2. Histological and histometrical study of the protective role of α-tocopherol against sodium arsenite toxicity in rat ovaries
    Dezfouli MG, Eissazadeh S, Zade SM
    Microsc Microanal, 2014 Aug;20(4):1167-79.
    PMID: 24735566 DOI: 10.1017/S1431927614000701
    This study examines histometrical changes induced by sodium arsenite (SA), as an environmental pollutant, and investigates the protective effect of α-tocopherol on ovaries of SA-treated rats during the prenatal stage until sexual maturity. Rats were classified into groups: control, SA (8 ppm/day), α-tocopherol (100 ppm/day), and SA+α-tocopherol. Treatment was performed from pregnancy until maturation when the rats and ovaries were weighed. The Cavalieri method was used to estimate volume of the ovaries, cortex, medulla, and corpus luteum. The mean diameter of oocytes, granulosa cells, and nuclei were measured and volume was estimated using the Nucleator method. The number of oocytes and thickness of the zona pellucida (ZP) were determined using an optical dissector and orthogonal intercept method, respectively. SA reduced the body and ovary weight, the number of secondary, antral and Graafian oocytes, volume of the ovaries, cortex, medulla and corpus luteum, mean diameter and volume of oocytes in primordial and primary follicles, mean diameter and volume of oocyte nuclei in all types of follicles, and mean thickness of the ZP in secondary and antral follicles. Also, the mean diameter and volume of granulosa cells and their nuclei in antral and Graafian follicles decreased significantly. Vacuolization and vascular congestion in the corpus luteum and an increase in the number of atretic oocytes were seen in the SA group. Most of these parameters were unchanged from the control level in the SA+α-tocopherol group. It was concluded that α-tocopherol supplementation reduced the toxic effects of SA exposure on ovarian tissue in rats.
    MeSH terms: Animals; Antidotes/administration & dosage; Antidotes/pharmacology*; Biometry; Environmental Pollutants/antagonists & inhibitors; Environmental Pollutants/toxicity; Female; Histocytochemistry; Ovary/drug effects*; Ovary/pathology*; Sodium Compounds/antagonists & inhibitors*; Sodium Compounds/toxicity*; Arsenites/antagonists & inhibitors*; Arsenites/toxicity*; Tocopherols/administration & dosage; Tocopherols/pharmacology*; Rats
  3. Fulltext Spatial distribution of malaria in Peninsular Malaysia from 2000 to 2009
    Alias H, Surin J, Mahmud R, Shafie A, Mohd Zin J, Mohamad Nor M, et al.
    Parasit Vectors, 2014;7:186.
    PMID: 24735583 DOI: 10.1186/1756-3305-7-186
    Malaria is still an endemic disease of public health importance in Malaysia. Populations at risk of contracting malaria includes indigenous people, traditional villagers, mobile ethnic groups and land scheme settlers, immigrants from malaria endemic countries as well as jungle workers and loggers. The predominant species are Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax. An increasing number of P. knowlesi infections have also been encountered. The principal vectors in Peninsular Malaysia are Anopheles maculatus and An. cracens. This study aims to determine the changes in spatial distribution of malaria in Peninsular Malaysia from year 2000-2009.
    MeSH terms: Humans; Malaria/epidemiology*; Malaria/parasitology; Malaysia/epidemiology; Plasmodium/classification
  4. Is metal nanofluid reliable as heat carrier?
    Nine MJ, Chung H, Tanshen MR, Osman NA, Jeong H
    J Hazard Mater, 2014 May 30;273:183-91.
    PMID: 24735805 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2014.03.055
    A pre- and post experimental analysis of copper-water and silver-water nanofluids are conducted to investigate minimal changes in quality of nanofluids before and after an effective heat transfer. A single loop oscillating heat pipe (OHP) having inner diameter of 2.4mm is charged with aforementioned nanofluids at 60% filling ratio for end to end heat transfer. Post experimental analysis of both nanofluids raises questions to the physical, chemical and thermal stability of such suspension for hazardless uses in the field of heat transfer. The color, deposition, dispersibility, propensity to be oxidized, disintegration, agglomeration and thermal conductivity of metal nanofluids are found to be strictly affected by heat transfer process and vice versa. Such degradation in quality of basic properties of metal nanofluids implies its challenges in practical application even for short-term heat transfer operations at oxidative environment as nano-sized metal particles are chemically more unstable than its bulk material. The use of the solid/liquid suspension containing metal nanoparticles in any heat exchanger as heat carrier might be detrimental to the whole system.
    MeSH terms: Copper*; Hot Temperature; Particle Size; Silver*; Suspensions; Thermal Conductivity*; Water; Metal Nanoparticles*
  5. A computational simulation study on the acoustic pressure generated by a dental endosonic file: effects of intensity, file shape and volume
    Tiong TJ, Price GJ, Kanagasingam S
    Ultrason Sonochem, 2014 Sep;21(5):1858-65.
    PMID: 24735986 DOI: 10.1016/j.ultsonch.2014.03.024
    One of the uses of ultrasound in dentistry is in the field of endodontics (i.e. root canal treatment) in order to enhance cleaning efficiency during the treatment. The acoustic pressures generated by the oscillation of files in narrow channels has been calculated using the COMSOL simulation package. Acoustic pressures in excess of the cavitation threshold can be generated and higher values were found in narrower channels. This parallels experimental observations of sonochemiluminescence. The effect of varying the channel width and length and the dimensions and shape of the file are reported. As well as explaining experimental observations, the work provides a basis for the further development and optimisation of the design of endosonic files.
    MeSH terms: Algorithms; Animals; Computer Simulation; Dental Instruments*; Dental Pulp Cavity/anatomy & histology; Dogs; Endodontics/instrumentation*; Equipment Design; Models, Anatomic; Pressure; Ultrasonics/instrumentation*; Root Canal Preparation
  6. Ultrasonography-diagnosed non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is not associated with prevalent ischemic heart disease among diabetics in a multiracial Asian hospital clinic population
    Chan WK, Tan AT, Vethakkan SR, Tah PC, Vijayananthan A, Goh KL
    Clin Res Hepatol Gastroenterol, 2014 Jun;38(3):284-91.
    PMID: 24736032 DOI: 10.1016/j.clinre.2014.02.009
    BACKGROUND: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and cardiovascular diseases are both common among patients with diabetes mellitus.
    OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to determine if ultrasonography-diagnosed NAFLD is associated with prevalent ischemic heart disease (IHD) among patients with diabetes mellitus.
    METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study on consecutive patients seen at the Diabetic Clinic, University of Malaya Medical Centre. The medical record for each patient was reviewed for documented IHD. Patients without documented IHD but had symptoms and/or electrocardiographic changes suggestive of IHD were referred for cardiac evaluation.
    RESULTS: Data for 399 patients were analyzed. Mean age was 62.8±10.5 years with 43.1% male. NAFLD and IHD were present in 49.6 and 26.6%, respectively. The prevalence of IHD among patients with and without NAFLD was 24.7 and 28.4%, respectively (P=0.414). The prevalence of IHD was highest among the Indians (34.1%) followed by the Malays (29.2%) and the Chinese (20.1%). No association was found between NAFLD and IHD when analyzed according to ethnicity. On multivariate analysis, independent factors associated with IHD were older age, lower levels of physical activity, greater waist circumference and higher serum glycated hemoglobin level.
    CONCLUSIONS: Ultrasonography-diagnosed NAFLD was not associated with prevalent IHD among patients with diabetes mellitus in a multiracial Asian hospital clinic population.

    Study site: Diabetic clinc, University Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC)
    MeSH terms: Age Factors; Coronary Artery Disease/epidemiology*; Cross-Sectional Studies; Diabetes Mellitus/epidemiology*; Female; Hemoglobin A, Glycosylated/analysis; Hospitals, University; Humans; Malaysia/epidemiology; Male; Middle Aged; Outpatient Clinics, Hospital; Multivariate Analysis; Continental Population Groups/statistics & numerical data; Acute Coronary Syndrome/epidemiology*; Waist Circumference; Sedentary Lifestyle; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease/epidemiology; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease/ultrasonography*
  7. Fulltext Quorum sensing activity of Hafnia alvei isolated from packed food
    Tan JY, Yin WF, Chan KG
    Sensors (Basel), 2014 Apr 14;14(4):6788-96.
    PMID: 24736131 DOI: 10.3390/s140406788
    Quorum sensing (QS) is a mechanism adopted by bacteria to regulate expression of genes according to population density. N-acylhomoserine lactones (AHLs) are a type of QS signalling molecules commonly found in Gram-negative bacteria which have been reported to play a role in microbial spoilage of foods and pathogenesis. In this study, we isolated an AHL-producing Hafnia alvei strain (FB1) from spherical fish pastes. Analysis via high resolution triple quadrupole liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS) on extracts from the spent supernatant of H. alvei FB1 revealed the existence of two short chain AHLs: N-(3-oxohexanoyl) homoserine lactone (3-oxo-C6-HSL) and N-(3-oxo- octanoyl) homoserine lactone (3-oxo-C8-HSL). To our knowledge, this is the first report of the production of AHLs, especially 3-oxo-C8-HSL, by H. alvei.
    MeSH terms: Animals; Chromatography, Liquid; Chromatography, Thin Layer; DNA, Ribosomal/genetics; Fishes; Phylogeny; Reference Standards; Mass Spectrometry; Food Packaging*; Hafnia alvei/isolation & purification*; Hafnia alvei/physiology*; Quorum Sensing*; Acyl-Butyrolactones/metabolism
  8. Breast cancer detection from MR images through an auto-probing discrete Fourier transform system
    Sim KS, Chia FK, Nia ME, Tso CP, Chong AK, Abbas SF, et al.
    Comput Biol Med, 2014 Jun;49:46-59.
    PMID: 24736203 DOI: 10.1016/j.compbiomed.2014.03.003
    A computer-aided detection auto-probing (CADAP) system is presented for detecting breast lesions using dynamic contrast enhanced magnetic resonance imaging, through a spatial-based discrete Fourier transform. The stand-alone CADAP system reduces noise, refines region of interest (ROI) automatically, and detects the breast lesion with minimal false positive detection. The lesions are then classified and colourised according to their characteristics, whether benign, suspicious or malignant. To enhance the visualisation, the entire analysed ROI is constructed into a 3-D image, so that the user can diagnose based on multiple views on the ROI. The proposed method has been applied to 101 sets of digital images, and the results compared with the biopsy results done by radiologists. The proposed scheme is able to identify breast cancer regions accurately and efficiently.
    MeSH terms: Adult; Aged; Breast/pathology; Breast Neoplasms/diagnosis*; Breast Neoplasms/pathology; Female; Fourier Analysis*; Humans; Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted/methods*; Magnetic Resonance Imaging/methods*; Middle Aged; Imaging, Three-Dimensional/methods
  9. Enhancing growth and lipid production of marine microalgae for biodiesel production via the use of different LED wavelengths
    Teo CL, Atta M, Bukhari A, Taisir M, Yusuf AM, Idris A
    Bioresour Technol, 2014 Jun;162:38-44.
    PMID: 24736210 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2014.03.113
    Wavelength of light is a crucial factor which renders microalgae as the potential biodiesel. In this study, Tetraselmis sp. and Nannochloropsis sp. as famous targets were selected. The effect of different light wavelengths on growth rate and lipid production was studied. Microalgae were cultivated for 14 days as under blue, red, red-blue LED and white fluorescent light. The growth rate of microalgae was analyzed by spectrophotometer and cell counting while oil production under improved Nile red method. Optical density result showed the microalgae exhibited better growth curve under blue wavelength. Besides, Tetraselmis sp. and Nannochloropsis sp. under blue wavelength showed the higher growth rate (1.47 and 1.64 day(-1)) and oil production (102.954 and 702.366 a.u.). Gas chromatography analysis also showed that palmitic acid and stearic acid which were compulsory components for biodiesel contribute around 49-51% of total FAME from Nannochloropsis sp. and 81-83% of total FAME from Tetraselmis sp.
    MeSH terms: Esters/metabolism; Fluorescence; Light*; Lipids/biosynthesis*; Oxazines/metabolism; Seawater/microbiology*; Optics and Photonics*; Biofuels/microbiology*; Microalgae/cytology; Microalgae/growth & development*; Microalgae/metabolism*; Microalgae/radiation effects
  10. Fulltext Spectrum of very early breast cancer in a setting without organised screening
    Bhoo-Pathy N, Subramaniam S, Taib NA, Hartman M, Alias Z, Tan GH, et al.
    Br J Cancer, 2014 Apr 29;110(9):2187-94.
    PMID: 24736587 DOI: 10.1038/bjc.2014.183
    BACKGROUND: Within a setting without organised breast cancer screening, the characteristics and survival of very early breast cancer were determined.

    METHODS: All 4930 women diagnosed with breast cancer in University Malaya Medical Center, Malaysia from 1993 to 2011 were included. Factors associated with very early presentation (stage I) at diagnosis were identified. Tumour characteristics, management patterns, and survival of very early breast cancer were described, and where appropriate, compared with other settings.

    RESULTS: Proportion of women presenting with stage I breast cancer significantly increased from 15.2% to 25.2% over two decades. Factors associated with very early presentation were Chinese ethnicity, positive family history of breast cancer, and recent period of diagnosis. Within stage I breast cancers, median tumour size at presentation was 1.5 cm. A majority of stage I breast cancer patients received mastectomy, which was associated with older age, Chinese ethnicity, postmenopausal status, and larger tumours. Chemotherapy was administered in 36% of patients. Five-year age-adjusted relative survival for women with stage I breast cancer was 99.1% (95% CI: 97.6-99.6%).

    CONCLUSIONS: The proportion of women presenting with very early breast cancer in this setting without organised screening is increasing. These women seem to survive just as well as their counterparts from affluent settings.

    MeSH terms: Aged; Breast Neoplasms/diagnosis*; Breast Neoplasms/mortality*; Breast Neoplasms/pathology; Female; Humans; Malaysia; Mastectomy; Middle Aged; Neoplasm Staging; Early Detection of Cancer*
  11. Fulltext Influence of physical activity on bone strength in children and adolescents: a systematic review and narrative synthesis
    Tan VP, Macdonald HM, Kim S, Nettlefold L, Gabel L, Ashe MC, et al.
    J. Bone Miner. Res., 2014 Oct;29(10):2161-81.
    PMID: 24737388 DOI: 10.1002/jbmr.2254
    A preponderance of evidence from systematic reviews supports the effectiveness of weight-bearing exercises on bone mass accrual, especially during the growing years. However, only one systematic review (limited to randomized controlled trials) examined the role of physical activity (PA) on bone strength. Thus, our systematic review extended the scope of the previous review by including all PA intervention and observational studies, including organized sports participation studies, with child or adolescent bone strength as the main outcome. We also sought to discern the skeletal elements (eg, mass, structure, density) that accompanied significant bone strength changes. Our electronic-database, forward, and reference searches yielded 14 intervention and 23 observational studies that met our inclusion criteria. We used the Effective Public Health Practice Project (EPHPP) tool to assess the quality of studies. Due to heterogeneity across studies, we adopted a narrative synthesis for our analysis and found that bone strength adaptations to PA were related to maturity level, sex, and study quality. Three (of five) weight-bearing PA intervention studies with a strong rating reported significantly greater gains in bone strength for the intervention group (3% to 4%) compared with only three significant (of nine) moderate intervention studies. Changes in bone structure (eg, bone cross-sectional area, cortical thickness, alone or in combination) rather than bone mass most often accompanied significant bone strength outcomes. Prepuberty and peripuberty may be the most opportune time for boys and girls to enhance bone strength through PA, although this finding is tempered by the few available studies in more mature groups. Despite the central role that muscle plays in bones' response to loading, few studies discerned the specific contribution of muscle function (or surrogates) to bone strength. Although not the focus of the current review, this seems an important consideration for future studies.
    MeSH terms: Adolescent; Biomechanical Phenomena; Bone and Bones/physiology*; Child; Female; Humans; Male; Motor Activity/physiology*; Organ Size/physiology; Sports; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; Observational Studies as Topic
  12. Fulltext Investigation of a PAX6 gene mutation in a Malaysian family with congenital aniridia
    Lee PC, Lam HH, Ghani SA, Subrayan V, Chua KH
    Genet. Mol. Res., 2014;13(2):3553-9.
    PMID: 24737507 DOI: 10.4238/2014.March.24.15
    Mutations in the PAX6 gene that cause aniridia have been identified in various ethnicities but not in the Malaysian population. Therefore, the objective of this study was to investigate the PAX6 mutation in a Malaysian family with congenital aniridia. In this study, a complete ophthalmic examination was performed on a Dusun ethnic family with aniridia. Genomic DNA was extracted from the peripheral blood of the subjects and screened for the PAX6 gene mutation using polymerase chain reaction amplification high-resolution melting curve analysis (PCR-HRM) followed by confirmation via direct DNA sequencing. A heterozygous G deletion (c.857delG) in exon 7 causing a frame shift in PAX6 was identified in all affected family members. Genotype-phenotype correlation analysis revealed congenital cataract and all affected family members showed a similar spectrum of aniridia with no phenotypic variability but with differences in severity that were age-dependent. In summary, by using a PCR-HRM approach, this study is the first to report a PAX6 mutation in a Malaysian family. This mutation is the cause of the aniridia spectra observed in this family and of congenital cataract.
    MeSH terms: Eye Proteins/genetics*; Female; Humans; Malaysia; Male; Mutation; Nucleic Acid Denaturation; Pedigree; Repressor Proteins/genetics*; Aniridia/genetics*; Aniridia/pathology; Homeodomain Proteins/genetics*; Polymorphism, Single-Stranded Conformational/genetics*; Asian Continental Ancestry Group/genetics; Paired Box Transcription Factors/genetics*; Genetic Association Studies; High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing*
  13. Fulltext Condition assessment of PC tendon duct filling by elastic wave velocity mapping
    Liu KF, Chai HK, Mehrabi N, Yoshikazu K, Shiotani T
    ScientificWorldJournal, 2014;2014:194295.
    PMID: 24737961 DOI: 10.1155/2014/194295
    Imaging techniques are high in demand for modern nondestructive evaluation of large-scale concrete structures. The travel-time tomography (TTT) technique, which is based on the principle of mapping the change of propagation velocity of transient elastic waves in a measured object, has found increasing application for assessing in situ concrete structures. The primary aim of this technique is to detect defects that exist in a structure. The TTT technique can offer an effective means for assessing tendon duct filling of prestressed concrete (PC) elements. This study is aimed at clarifying some of the issues pertaining to the reliability of the technique for this purpose, such as sensor arrangement, model, meshing, type of tendon sheath, thickness of sheath, and material type as well as the scale of inhomogeneity. The work involved 2D simulations of wave motions, signal processing to extract travel time of waves, and tomography reconstruction computation for velocity mapping of defect in tendon duct.
    MeSH terms: Algorithms*; Construction Materials/analysis*; Materials Testing/methods*; Scattering, Radiation; Sound; Elasticity Imaging Techniques/methods*
  14. Fulltext In vitro sustained release study of gallic acid coated with magnetite-PEG and magnetite-PVA for drug delivery system
    Dorniani D, Kura AU, Hussein-Al-Ali SH, Bin Hussein MZ, Fakurazi S, Shaari AH, et al.
    ScientificWorldJournal, 2014;2014:416354.
    PMID: 24737969 DOI: 10.1155/2014/416354
    The efficacy of two nanocarriers polyethylene glycol and polyvinyl alcohol magnetic nanoparticles coated with gallic acid (GA) was accomplished via X-ray diffraction, infrared spectroscopy, magnetic measurements, thermal analysis, and TEM. X-ray diffraction and TEM results showed that Fe3O4 nanoparticles were pure iron oxide having spherical shape with the average diameter of 9 nm, compared with 31 nm and 35 nm after coating with polyethylene glycol-GA (FPEGG) and polyvinyl alcohol-GA (FPVAG), respectively. Thermogravimetric analyses proved that after coating the thermal stability was markedly enhanced. Magnetic measurements and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) revealed that superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles could be successfully coated with two polymers (PEG and PVA) and gallic acid as an active drug. Release behavior of gallic acid from two nanocomposites showed that FPEGG and FPVAG nanocomposites were found to be sustained and governed by pseudo-second-order kinetics. Anticancer activity of the two nanocomposites shows that the FPEGG demonstrated higher anticancer effect on the breast cancer cell lines in almost all concentrations tested compared to FPVAG.
    MeSH terms: Adsorption; Cell Line; Cell Survival/drug effects; Delayed-Action Preparations/toxicity; Delayed-Action Preparations/chemistry*; Diffusion; Gallic Acid/analysis; Gallic Acid/toxicity; Gallic Acid/chemistry*; Humans; Materials Testing; Polyethylene Glycols/toxicity; Polyethylene Glycols/chemistry*; Polyvinyl Alcohol/toxicity; Polyvinyl Alcohol/chemistry*; Coated Materials, Biocompatible/toxicity; Nanocapsules/administration & dosage; Nanocapsules/toxicity; Nanocapsules/chemistry*; Magnetite Nanoparticles/administration & dosage; Magnetite Nanoparticles/toxicity; Magnetite Nanoparticles/chemistry*; In Vitro Techniques
  15. Fulltext Effect of multipath laser shock processing on microhardness, surface roughness, and wear resistance of 2024-T3 Al alloy
    Kadhim A, Salim ET, Fayadh SM, Al-Amiery AA, Kadhum AA, Mohamad AB
    ScientificWorldJournal, 2014;2014:490951.
    PMID: 24737973 DOI: 10.1155/2014/490951
    Laser shock processing (LSP) is an innovative surface treatment technique with high peak power, short pulse, and cold hardening for strengthening metal materials. LSP is based on the application of a high intensity pulsed laser beam (I > 1 GW/cm(2); t < 50 ns) at the interface between the metallic target and the surrounding medium (a transparent confining material, normally water) forcing a sudden vaporization of the metallic surface into a high temperature and density plasma that immediately develops inducing a shock wave propagating into the material. The shock wave induces plastic deformation and a residual stress distribution in the target material. In this paper we study the increase of microhardness and surface roughness with the increase of laser pulse energy in 2024-T3 Al alloy. The influence of the thickness of the confining layer (water) on microhardness and surface roughness is also studied. In addition, the effect of LSP treatment with best conditions on wear behaviors of the alloy was investigated.
    MeSH terms: Alloys/radiation effects*; Alloys/chemistry*; Aluminum/radiation effects*; Aluminum/chemistry*; Corrosion; Hardness/radiation effects; Lasers*; Materials Testing; Radiation Dosage; Surface Properties/radiation effects
  16. Fulltext Minimal solution of singular LR fuzzy linear systems
    Nikuie M, Ahmad MZ
    ScientificWorldJournal, 2014;2014:517218.
    PMID: 24737977 DOI: 10.1155/2014/517218
    In this paper, the singular LR fuzzy linear system is introduced. Such systems are divided into two parts: singular consistent LR fuzzy linear systems and singular inconsistent LR fuzzy linear systems. The capability of the generalized inverses such as Drazin inverse, pseudoinverse, and {1}-inverse in finding minimal solution of singular consistent LR fuzzy linear systems is investigated.
    MeSH terms: Algorithms; Computer Simulation; Fuzzy Logic*
  17. Fulltext A Schiff base-derived copper (II) complex is a potent inducer of apoptosis in colon cancer cells by activating the intrinsic pathway
    Hajrezaie M, Paydar M, Moghadamtousi SZ, Hassandarvish P, Gwaram NS, Zahedifard M, et al.
    ScientificWorldJournal, 2014;2014:540463.
    PMID: 24737979 DOI: 10.1155/2014/540463
    Metal-based drugs with extensive clinical applications hold great promise for the development of cancer chemotherapeutic agents. In the last few decades, Schiff bases and their complexes have become well known for their extensive biological potential. In the present study, we examined the antiproliferative effect of a copper (II) complex on HT-29 colon cancer cells. The Cu(BrHAP)2 Schiff base compound demonstrated a potent antiproliferative effect in HT-29 cells, with an IC50 value of 2.87  μg/ml after 72 h of treatment. HT-29 cells treated with Cu (II) complexes underwent apoptosis death, as exhibited by a progressive elevation in the proportion of the G1 cell population. At a concentration of 6.25  μg/ml, the Cu(BrHAP)2 compound caused significant elevation in ROS production following perturbation of mitochondrial membrane potential and cytochrome c release, as assessed by the measurement of fluorescence intensity in stained cells. Furthermore, the activation of caspases 3/7 and 9 was part of the Cu (II) complex-induced apoptosis, which confirmed the involvement of mitochondrial-mediated apoptosis. Meanwhile, there was no significant activation of caspase-8. Taken together, these results imply that the Cu(BrHAP)2 compound is a potential candidate for further in vivo and clinical colon cancer studies to develop novel chemotherapeutic agents derived from metal-based agents.
    MeSH terms: Colonic Neoplasms/metabolism*; Copper/chemistry*; Humans; Organometallic Compounds/pharmacology; Signal Transduction/drug effects; Apoptosis/drug effects; Reactive Oxygen Species/metabolism; HT29 Cells; Inhibitory Concentration 50; Cytochromes c/metabolism; Cell Proliferation/drug effects; Membrane Potential, Mitochondrial/drug effects; Caspase 3/metabolism; Caspase 7/metabolism; Caspase 9/metabolism
  18. Fulltext Combining ability of pod yield and related traits of groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) under salinity stress
    Azad MA, Shah-E-Alam M, Hamid MA, Rafii MY, Malek MA
    ScientificWorldJournal, 2014;2014:589586.
    PMID: 24737982 DOI: 10.1155/2014/589586
    A study was performed using 6 × 6 F1 diallel population without reciprocals to assess the mode of inheritance of pod yield and related traits in groundnut with imposed salinity stress. Heterosis was found for pod number and yield. Data on general and specific combining ability (gca and sca) indicated additive and nonadditive gene actions. The gca: sca ratios were much less than unity suggesting predominant role of nonadditive gene effects. Cultivars "Binachinabadam-2" and "Dacca-1" and mutant M6/25/64-82 had the highest, second highest, and third highest pod number, as well as gca values, respectively. These two cultivars and another mutant M6/15/70-19 also had the highest, second highest, and third highest pod yield, as well as gca values, respectively. Therefore, "Dacca-1", "Binachinabadam-2", M6/25/64-82, and M6/15/70-19 could be used as source of salinity tolerance. Cross combinations showing high sca effects arising from parents with high and low gca values for any trait indicate the influence of nonadditive genes on their expression. Parents of these crosses can be used for biparental mating or reciprocal recurrent selection for developing high yielding varieties. Crosses with high sca effects having both parents with good gca effects could be exploited by pedigree breeding to get transgressive segregants.
    MeSH terms: Crosses, Genetic; Arachis/physiology*; Salinity*
  19. Influence of education level on design-induced N170 and P300 components of event related potentials in the human brain
    Begum T, Reza F, Ahmed I, Abdullah JM
    J Integr Neurosci, 2014 Mar;13(1):71-88.
    PMID: 24738540 DOI: 10.1142/S0219635214500058
    Simple geometric and organic shapes and their arrangement are being used in different neuropsychology tests for the assessment of cognitive function, special memory and also for the therapy purpose in different patient groups. Until now there is no electrophysiological evidence of cognitive function determination for simple geometric, organic shapes and their arrangement. Then the main objective of this study is to know the cortical processing and amplitude, latency of visual induced N170 and P300 event related potential components on different geometric, organic shapes and their arrangement and different educational influence on it, which is worthwhile to know for the early and better treatment for those patient groups. While education influenced on cognitive function by using auditory oddball task, little is known about the influence of education on cognitive function induced by visual attention task in case of the choice of geometric, organic shapes and their arrangements. Using a 128-electrode sensor net, we studied the responses of the choice of the different geometric and organic shapes randomly in experiment 1 and their arrangements in experiment 2 in the high, medium and low education groups. In both experiments, subjects push the button "1" or "2" if like or dislike, respectively. Total 45 healthy subjects (15 in each group) were recruited. ERPs were measured from 11 electrode sites and analyzed to see the evoked N170/N240 and P300 ERP components. There were no differences between like and dislike in amplitudes even in latencies in every stimulus in both experiments. We fixed geometric shapes and organic shapes stimuli only, not like and dislike. Upon the stimulus types, N170 ERP component was found instead of N240, in occipito-temporal (T5, T6, O1 and O2) locations where the amplitude is the highest at O2 location and P300 was distributed in the central (Cz and Pz) locations in both experiments in all groups. In experiment 1, significant low amplitude and non-significant larger latency of the N170 component are found out at O1 location for both stimuli in low education group comparing medium education groups, but in experiment 2, there is no significant difference between stimuli among groups in amplitude and latency. In both experiments, P300 component was found in Cz and Pz locations though the amplitudes are higher at Cz than Pz areas. In experiment 1, medium education group evoked significantly (geometric shape stimuli, P = 0.05; organic shape stimuli, P = 0.02) higher amplitude of P300 component comparing low education group at Cz location. Whereas, there is no significant difference of amplitudes among groups across stimuli in Cz and Pz locations in experiment 2. Latencies have no significant differences in both experiments among groups also, but longer latency are found in low education group at Cz location comparing medium education group, though not significant. We conclude that simple geometric shapes, organic shapes and their arrangements evoked visual N170 component at temporo-occipital areas with right lateralization and P300 ERP component at centro-parietal areas. Significant low amplitude of N170 and P300 ERP components and longer latencies during different shape stimuli in low education group prove that, low education significantly influence on visual cognitive functions in low education group.
    MeSH terms: Adult; Brain Mapping*; Cerebral Cortex/physiology*; Educational Status*; Electroencephalography; Evoked Potentials/physiology*; Female; Humans; Male; Pattern Recognition, Visual/physiology*; Photic Stimulation; Reaction Time/physiology; Young Adult
  20. Emotion classification in Parkinson's disease by higher-order spectra and power spectrum features using EEG signals: a comparative study
    Yuvaraj R, Murugappan M, Ibrahim NM, Omar MI, Sundaraj K, Mohamad K, et al.
    J Integr Neurosci, 2014 Mar;13(1):89-120.
    PMID: 24738541 DOI: 10.1142/S021963521450006X
    Deficits in the ability to process emotions characterize several neuropsychiatric disorders and are traits of Parkinson's disease (PD), and there is need for a method of quantifying emotion, which is currently performed by clinical diagnosis. Electroencephalogram (EEG) signals, being an activity of central nervous system (CNS), can reflect the underlying true emotional state of a person. This study applied machine-learning algorithms to categorize EEG emotional states in PD patients that would classify six basic emotions (happiness and sadness, fear, anger, surprise and disgust) in comparison with healthy controls (HC). Emotional EEG data were recorded from 20 PD patients and 20 healthy age-, education level- and sex-matched controls using multimodal (audio-visual) stimuli. The use of nonlinear features motivated by the higher-order spectra (HOS) has been reported to be a promising approach to classify the emotional states. In this work, we made the comparative study of the performance of k-nearest neighbor (kNN) and support vector machine (SVM) classifiers using the features derived from HOS and from the power spectrum. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that power spectrum and HOS based features were statistically significant among the six emotional states (p < 0.0001). Classification results shows that using the selected HOS based features instead of power spectrum based features provided comparatively better accuracy for all the six classes with an overall accuracy of 70.10% ± 2.83% and 77.29% ± 1.73% for PD patients and HC in beta (13-30 Hz) band using SVM classifier. Besides, PD patients achieved less accuracy in the processing of negative emotions (sadness, fear, anger and disgust) than in processing of positive emotions (happiness, surprise) compared with HC. These results demonstrate the effectiveness of applying machine learning techniques to the classification of emotional states in PD patients in a user independent manner using EEG signals. The accuracy of the system can be improved by investigating the other HOS based features. This study might lead to a practical system for noninvasive assessment of the emotional impairments associated with neurological disorders.
    MeSH terms: Acoustic Stimulation; Adult; Aged; Algorithms; Brain Mapping; Cerebral Cortex/physiopathology*; Electroencephalography; Emotions/classification*; Emotions/physiology; Evoked Potentials/physiology*; Female; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Parkinson Disease/pathology; Parkinson Disease/physiopathology*; Photic Stimulation; Spectrum Analysis*; Support Vector Machine
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