Browse publications by year: 2016

Fulltext Glucose uptake and lipid metabolism are impaired in epicardial adipose tissue from heart failure patients with or without diabetes

Burgeiro A, Fuhrmann A, Cherian S, Espinoza D, Jarak I, Carvalho RA, et al.

Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab, 2016 Apr 01;310(7):E550-64.
PMID: 26814014 DOI: 10.1152/ajpendo.00384.2015

Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a complex metabolic disease, and cardiovascular disease is a leading complication of diabetes. Epicardial adipose tissue surrounding the heart displays biochemical, thermogenic, and cardioprotective properties. However, the metabolic cross-talk between epicardial fat and the myocardium is largely unknown. This study sought to understand epicardial adipose tissue metabolism from heart failure patients with or without diabetes. We aimed to unravel possible differences in glucose and lipid metabolism between human epicardial and subcutaneous adipocytes and elucidate the potential underlying mechanisms involved in heart failure. Insulin-stimulated [(14)C]glucose uptake and isoproterenol-stimulated lipolysis were measured in isolated epicardial and subcutaneous adipocytes. The expression of genes involved in glucose and lipid metabolism was analyzed by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction in adipocytes. In addition, epicardial and subcutaneous fatty acid composition was analyzed by high-resolution proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The difference between basal and insulin conditions in glucose uptake was significantly decreased (P= 0.006) in epicardial compared with subcutaneous adipocytes. Moreover, a significant (P< 0.001) decrease in the isoproterenol-stimulated lipolysis was also observed when the two fat depots were compared, and it was strongly correlated with lipolysis, lipid storage, and inflammation-related gene expression. Moreover, the fatty acid composition of these tissues was significantly altered by diabetes. These results emphasize potential metabolic differences between both fat depots in the presence of heart failure and highlight epicardial fat as a possible therapeutic target in situ in the cardiac microenvironment.

MeSH terms: Adipose Tissue/drug effects; Adipose Tissue/metabolism*; Adrenergic beta-Agonists/pharmacology; Aged; Blood Glucose/drug effects; Blood Glucose/metabolism*; Carbon Radioisotopes; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/complications; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/metabolism*; Fatty Acids/metabolism*; Female; Glucose/metabolism; Heart Failure/complications; Heart Failure/metabolism*; Humans; Hypoglycemic Agents/pharmacology; Insulin/pharmacology; Isoproterenol/pharmacology; Lipolysis/drug effects; Lipolysis/physiology*; Male; Middle Aged; Pericardium/metabolism*; Case-Control Studies; Adipocytes/drug effects; Adipocytes/metabolism*; Lipid Metabolism/drug effects; Lipid Metabolism/physiology*
Fulltext Towards 5G: A Photonic Based Millimeter Wave Signal Generation for Applying in 5G Access Fronthaul

Alavi SE, Soltanian MR, Amiri IS, Khalily M, Supa'at AS, Ahmad H

Sci Rep, 2016 Jan 27;6:19891.
PMID: 26814621 DOI: 10.1038/srep19891

5G communications require a multi Gb/s data transmission in its small cells. For this purpose millimeter wave (mm-wave) RF signals are the best solutions to be utilized for high speed data transmission. Generation of these high frequency RF signals is challenging in electrical domain therefore photonic generation of these signals is more studied. In this work, a photonic based simple and robust method for generating millimeter waves applicable in 5G access fronthaul is presented. Besides generating of the mm-wave signal in the 60 GHz frequency band the radio over fiber (RoF) system for transmission of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) with 5 GHz bandwidth is presented. For the purpose of wireless transmission for 5G application the required antenna is designed and developed. The total system performance in one small cell was studied and the error vector magnitude (EVM) of the system was evaluated.

MeSH terms: Dietary Fiber; Electricity; Photons
Fulltext A Consistent Orally-Infected Hamster Model for Enterovirus A71 Encephalomyelitis Demonstrates Squamous Lesions in the Paws, Skin and Oral Cavity Reminiscent of Hand-Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Phyu WK, Ong KC, Wong KT

PLoS One, 2016;11(1):e0147463.
PMID: 26815859 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0147463

Enterovirus A71 (EV-A71) causes self-limiting, hand-foot-and-mouth disease (HFMD) that may rarely be complicated by encephalomyelitis. Person-to-person transmission is usually by fecal-oral or oral-oral routes. To study viral replication sites in the oral cavity and other tissues, and to gain further insights into virus shedding and neuropathogenesis, we developed a consistent, orally-infected, 2-week-old hamster model of HFMD and EV-A71 encephalomyelitis. Tissues from orally-infected, 2-week-old hamsters were studied by light microscopy, immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization to detect viral antigens and RNA, respectively, and by virus titration. Hamsters developed the disease and died after 4-8 days post infection; LD50 was 25 CCID50. Macroscopic cutaneous lesions around the oral cavity and paws were observed. Squamous epithelium in the lip, oral cavity, paw, skin, and esophagus, showed multiple small inflammatory foci around squamous cells that demonstrated viral antigens/RNA. Neurons (brainstem, spinal cord, sensory ganglia), acinar cells (salivary gland, lacrimal gland), lymphoid cells (lymph node, spleen), and muscle fibres (skeletal, cardiac and smooth muscles), liver and gastric epithelium also showed varying amounts of viral antigens/RNA. Intestinal epithelium, Peyer's patches, thymus, pancreas, lung and kidney were negative. Virus was isolated from oral washes, feces, brain, spinal cord, skeletal muscle, serum, and other tissues. Our animal model should be useful to study squamous epitheliotropism, neuropathogenesis, oral/fecal shedding in EV-A71 infection, person-to-person transmission, and to test anti-viral drugs and vaccines.

MeSH terms: Animals; Disease Models, Animal; Cricetinae; Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease/pathology*; Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease/virology; Mouth/pathology*; Mouth/virology; Mouth Mucosa/pathology; Mouth Mucosa/virology; Skin/pathology*; Skin/virology; Enterovirus A, Human*
Prospects of Graphene as a Potential Carrier-Transport Material in Third-Generation Solar Cells

Chowdhury TH, Islam A, Mahmud Hasan AK, Terdi MA, Arunakumari M, Prakash Singh S, et al.

Chem Rec, 2016 Apr;16(2):614-32.
PMID: 26816190 DOI: 10.1002/tcr.201500206

Third-generation solar cells are understood to be the pathway to overcoming the issues and drawbacks of the existing solar cell technologies. Since the introduction of graphene in solar cells, it has been providing attractive properties for the next generation of solar cells. Currently, there are more theoretical predictions rather than practical recognitions in third-generation solar cells. Some of the potential of graphene has been explored in organic photovoltaics (OPVs) and dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), but it has yet to be fully comprehended in the recent third-generation inorganic-organic hybrid perovskite solar cells. In this review, the diverse role of graphene in third-generation OPVs and DSSCs will be deliberated to provide an insight on the prospects and challenges of graphene in inorganic-organic hybrid perovskite solar cells.
Immunomodulation in Middle-Aged Humans Via the Ingestion of Physta® Standardized Root Water Extract of Eurycoma longifolia Jack--A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Parallel Study

George A, Suzuki N, Abas AB, Mohri K, Utsuyama M, Hirokawa K, et al.

Phytother Res, 2016 Apr;30(4):627-35.
PMID: 26816234 DOI: 10.1002/ptr.5571

This study was aimed to investigate the capacity of a standardized root water extract of Eurycoma longifolia (Tongkat Ali, TA), Physta® to modulate human immunity in a middle-aged Japanese population. This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel study was conducted for 4 weeks. Eighty-four of 126 subjects had relatively lower scores according to Scoring of Immunological Vigor (SIV) screening. Subjects were instructed to ingest either 200 mg/day of TA or rice powder as a placebo for 4 weeks [TA and Placebo (P) groups] and to visit a clinic in Tokyo twice (weeks 0 and 4). SIV, immunological grade, immunological age, and other immune parameters were measured. Eighty-three subjects completed the study; 40 in the TA group and 41 in the P group were statistically analyzed, whereas two were excluded from the analyses. At week 4, the SIV and immunological grade were significantly higher in the TA group than those in P group (p

MeSH terms: Adult; Double-Blind Method; Female; Humans; Immune System/drug effects*; Male; Middle Aged; Plant Extracts/therapeutic use*; T-Lymphocytes/drug effects; Water/chemistry; Plant Roots/chemistry; Eurycoma/chemistry*; Immunomodulation*
Fulltext Surgical Management of Bulky Mediastinal Metastases in Follicular Thyroid Carcinoma

Adwin Z, Nur A, Suhaimi S, Rahman R

Oman Med J, 2016 Jan;31(1):69-72.
PMID: 26816570 DOI: 10.5001/omj.2016.13

Follicular thyroid adenoma and carcinoma are very common. Benign and malignant lesions are usually indistinguishable from cytology alone and often require confirmatory resection. The spread of follicular carcinoma is usually hematogenous and is treated with surgery and adjuvant radioactive iodine. Very rarely, metastases occur in the mediastinum. Patients usually present with severe compressive symptoms. With proper treatment and follow-up, the prognosis for these type of thyroid malignancies is excellent. In the case presented here, our patient presented to the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Center with a progressively enlarging anterior neck swelling. The swelling had started 10 years before his presentation. We diagnosed him with an advanced thyroid malignancy with bulky mediastinal metastases. After extensive investigations and counseling, we chose to treat the patient with tumor excision and mediastinal metastases resection. Typically, mediastinal resection involves the removal of the sternum and use of an acrylic implant to recreate the sternum. In this case, the sternum and ribs were removed with subsequent myocutaneous flap coverage for the wound defect. Our experience represents an alternative treatment option in cases where implant use is unsuitable.

MeSH terms: Carcinoma; Counseling; Follow-Up Studies; Humans; Iodine; Malaysia; Male; Mediastinum; Prognosis; Ribs; Sternum; Thyroid Neoplasms; Adenocarcinoma, Follicular; Myocutaneous Flap
Preparation, characterization, and in vitro release studies of insulin-loaded double-walled poly(lactide-co-glycolide) microspheres

Ansary RH, Rahman MM, Awang MB, Katas H, Hadi H, Doolaanea AA

Drug Deliv Transl Res, 2016 06;6(3):308-18.
PMID: 26817478 DOI: 10.1007/s13346-016-0278-y

The purpose of this study was to fabricate insulin-loaded double-walled and single-polymer poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) microspheres using a fast degrading glucose core, hydroxyl-terminated poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (Glu-PLGA), and a moderate degrading carboxyl-terminated PLGA polymers. A modified water-in-oil-in-oil-in-water (w/o/o/w) emulsion solvent evaporation technique was employed to prepare double-walled microspheres, whereas single-polymer microspheres were fabricated by a conventional water-in-oil-in-water (w/o/w) emulsion solvent evaporation method. The effect of fabrication techniques and polymer characteristics on microspheres size, morphology, encapsulation efficiency, in vitro release, and insulin stability was evaluated. The prepared double-walled microspheres were essentially non-porous, smooth surfaced, and spherical in shape, whereas single-polymer microspheres were highly porous. Double-walled microspheres exhibited a significantly reduced initial burst followed by sustained and almost complete release of insulin compared to single-polymer microspheres. Initial burst release was further suppressed from double-walled microspheres when the mass ratio of the component polymers was increased. In conclusion, double-walled microspheres made of Glu-PLGA and PLGA can be a potential delivery system of therapeutic insulin.

MeSH terms: Drug Stability; Emulsions; Glucose/chemistry; Insulin/pharmacokinetics*; Insulin/chemistry; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; Microspheres*; Particle Size; Polyglactin 910/chemistry*; Technology, Pharmaceutical/methods; Drug Delivery Systems/methods; Drug Liberation
Fulltext Cytotoxic and apoptotic effects of heat killed Mycobacterium indicus pranii (MIP) on various human cancer cell lines

Subramaniam M, In LL, Kumar A, Ahmed N, Nagoor NH

Sci Rep, 2016;6:19833.
PMID: 26817684 DOI: 10.1038/srep19833

Mycobacterium indicus pranii (MIP) is a non-pathogenic mycobacterium, which has been tested on several cancer types like lung and bladder where tumour regression and complete recovery was observed. In discovering the potential cytotoxic elements, a preliminary test was carried out using four different fractions consisting of live bacteria, culture supernatant, heat killed bacteria and heat killed culture supernatant of MIP against two human cancer cells A549 and CaSki by 3-(4,5-dimethyl thiazol)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Apoptosis was investigated in MCF-7 and ORL-115 cancer cells by poly-(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) and DNA fragmentation assays. Among four MIP fractions, only heat killed MIP fraction (HKB) showed significant cytotoxicity in various cancer cells with inhibitory concentration, IC50 in the range 5.6-35.0 μl/(1.0 × 10(6) MIP cells/ml), while cytotoxicity effects were not observed in the remaining fractions. HKB did not show cytotoxic effects on non-cancerous cells contrary to cancerous cells, suggesting its safe usage and ability to differentially recognize between these cells. Evaluation on PARP assay further suggested that cytotoxicity in cancer cells were potentially induced via caspase-mediated apoptosis. The cytotoxic and apoptotic effects of MIP HKB have indicated that this fraction can be a good candidate to further identify effective anti-cancer agents.

MeSH terms: Poly(ADP-ribose) Polymerase Inhibitors; Biphenyl Compounds; Urinary Bladder; Bromides; Hot Temperature; Humans; Mycobacterium; Poly(ADP-ribose) Polymerases; Apoptosis; Inhibitory Concentration 50; Caspases; DNA Fragmentation; MCF-7 Cells; Poly (ADP-Ribose) Polymerase-1
Fulltext Microbiome and Biocatalytic Bacteria in Monkey Cup (Nepenthes Pitcher) Digestive Fluid

Chan XY, Hong KW, Yin WF, Chan KG

Sci Rep, 2016 Jan 28;6:20016.
PMID: 26817720 DOI: 10.1038/srep20016

Tropical carnivorous plant, Nepenthes, locally known as "monkey cup", utilises its pitcher as a passive trap to capture insects. It then secretes enzymes into the pitcher fluid to digest the insects for nutrients acquisition. However, little is known about the microbiota and their activity in its pitcher fluid. Eighteen bacteria phyla were detected from the metagenome study in the Nepenthes pitcher fluid. Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes and Actinobacteria are the dominant phyla in the Nepenthes pitcher fluid. We also performed culturomics approach by isolating 18 bacteria from the Nepenthes pitcher fluid. Most of the bacterial isolates possess chitinolytic, proteolytic, amylolytic, and cellulolytic and xylanolytic activities. Fifteen putative chitinase genes were identified from the whole genome analysis on the genomes of the 18 bacteria isolated from Nepenthes pitcher fluid and expressed for chitinase assay. Of these, six clones possessed chitinase activity. In conclusion, our metagenome result shows that the Nepenthes pitcher fluid contains vast bacterial diversity and the culturomic studies confirmed the presence of biocatalytic bacteria within the Nepenthes pitcher juice which may act in symbiosis for the turn over of insects trapped in the Nepenthes pitcher fluid.

MeSH terms: Bacteria/classification; Bacteria/genetics; Bacteria/metabolism; Phylogeny; Genome, Bacterial; Metagenome; Biocatalysis; Metagenomics; Tracheobionta/microbiology*; Microbiota*
Fulltext Mechanisms of sex determination and transmission ratio distortion in Aedes aegypti

Hoang KP, Teo TM, Ho TX, Le VS

Parasit Vectors, 2016 Jan 28;9:49.
PMID: 26818000 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-016-1331-x

BACKGROUND: More effective mosquito control strategies are urgently required due to the increasing prevalence of insecticide resistance. The sterile insect technique (SIT) and the release of insects carrying a dominant lethal allele (RIDL) are two proposed methods for environmentally-friendly, species-targeted population control. These methods may be more suitable for developing countries if producers reduce the cost of rearing insects. The cost of control programs could be reduced by producing all-male mosquito populations to circumvent the isolation of females before release without reducing male mating competitiveness caused by transgenes.
RESULTS: An RNAi construct targeting the RNA recognition motif of the Aedes aegypti transformer-2 (tra-2) gene does not trigger female-to-male sex conversion as commonly observed among dipterous insects. Instead, homozygous insects show greater mortality among m-chromosome-bearing sperm and mm zygotes, yielding up to 100% males in the subsequent generations. The performance of transgenic males was not significantly different to wild-type males in narrow-cage competitive mating experiments.
CONCLUSION: Our data provide preliminary evidence that the knockdown of Ae. aegypti tra-2 gene expression causes segregation distortion acting at the level of gametic function, which is reinforced by sex-specific zygotic lethality. This finding could promote the development of new synthetic sex distorter systems for the production of genetic sexing mosquito strains.

MeSH terms: Aedes/genetics; Aedes/physiology*; Animals; Female; Genes, Dominant/genetics; Genes, Lethal/genetics; Infertility/genetics; Male; Mosquito Control/methods*; Pest Control, Biological; Reproduction; Sexual Behavior, Animal; Sex Ratio; Sex Determination Processes; Animals, Genetically Modified; RNA Interference; Gene Knockdown Techniques
Preparation, characterization and in vitro release study of BSA-loaded double-walled glucose-poly(lactide-co-glycolide) microspheres

Ansary RH, Rahman MM, Awang MB, Katas H, Hadi H, Mohamed F, et al.

Arch Pharm Res, 2016 Sep;39(9):1242-56.
PMID: 26818028 DOI: 10.1007/s12272-016-0710-3

The aim of this study was to prepare a model protein, bovine serum albumin (BSA) loaded double-walled microspheres using a fast degrading glucose core, hydroxyl-terminated poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (Glu-PLGA) and a moderate-degrading carboxyl-terminated PLGA polymers to reduce the initial burst release and to eliminate the lag phase from the release profile of PLGA microspheres. The double-walled microspheres were prepared using a modified water-in-oil-in-oil-in-water (w/o/o/w) method and single-polymer microspheres were prepared using a conventional water-in-oil-in-water (w/o/w) emulsion solvent evaporation method. The particle size, morphology, encapsulation efficiency, thermal properties, in vitro drug release and structural integrity of BSA were evaluated in this study. Double-walled microspheres prepared with Glu-PLGA and PLGA polymers with a mass ratio of 1:1 were non-porous, smooth-surfaced, and spherical in shape. A significant reduction of initial burst release was achieved for the double-walled microspheres compared to single-polymer microspheres. In addition, microspheres prepared using Glu-PLGA and PLGA polymers in a mass ratio of 1:1 exhibited continuous BSA release after the small initial burst without any lag phase. It can be concluded that the double-walled microspheres made of Glu-PLGA and PLGA polymers in a mass ratio of 1:1 can be a potential delivery system for pharmaceutical proteins.

MeSH terms: Animals; Cattle; Glucose/chemical synthesis*; Glucose/metabolism; Microspheres*; Particle Size; Polyglycolic Acid/chemical synthesis*; Polyglycolic Acid/metabolism; Serum Albumin, Bovine/chemical synthesis*; Serum Albumin, Bovine/metabolism; Lactic Acid/chemical synthesis*; Lactic Acid/metabolism; Drug Liberation*
Fulltext Marker assisted pyramiding of drought yield QTLs into a popular Malaysian rice cultivar, MR219

Shamsudin NA, Swamy BP, Ratnam W, Sta Cruz MT, Raman A, Kumar A

BMC Genet, 2016;17:30.
PMID: 26818269 DOI: 10.1186/s12863-016-0334-0

Three drought yield QTLs, qDTY 2.2, qDTY 3.1, and qDTY 12.1 with consistent effect on grain yield under reproductive stage drought stress were pyramided through marker assisted breeding with the objective of improving the grain yield of the elite Malaysian rice cultivar MR219 under reproductive stage drought stress. Foreground selection using QTL specific markers, recombinant selection using flanking markers, and background selection were performed. BC1F3-derived lines with different combinations of qDTY 2.2 , qDTY 3.1, and qDTY 12.1 were evaluated under both reproductive stage drought stress and non-stress during the dry seasons of 2013 and 2014 at IRRI.

MeSH terms: Breeding; Edible Grain; Oryza; Seasons; Quantitative Trait Loci; Droughts
Renewables: Solar energy needs focus

Munir AB, Muhammad-Sukki F, Bani NA

Nature, 2016 Jan 28;529(7587):466.
PMID: 26819032 DOI: 10.1038/529466e
Tropical stormwater nutrient degradation using nano-TiO2 in photocatalytic reactor detention pond

Rad S, Shamsudin S, Taha MR, Shahid S

Water Sci Technol, 2016;73(2):405-13.
PMID: 26819397 DOI: 10.2166/wst.2015.465

The photo-degradation of nutrients in stormwater in photocatalytic reactor wet detention pond using nano titanium dioxide (TiO2) in concrete was investigated in a scale model as a new stormwater treatment method. Degradation of phosphate and nitrate in the presence of nano-TiO2 under natural ultra violet (UV) from tropical sunlight was monitored for 3 weeks compared with normal ponds. Two types of cement, including ordinary Portland and white cement mixed with TiO2 nano powder, were used as a thin cover to surround the body of the pond. Experiments with and without the catalyst were carried out for comparison and control. Average Anatase diameter of 25 nm and Rutile 100 nm nano particles were applied at three different mixtures of 3, 10 and 30% weight. The amounts of algae available orthophosphate and nitrate, which cause eutrophication in the ponds, were measured during the tests. Results revealed that the utilization of 3% up to 30% weight nano-TiO2 can improve stormwater outflow quality by up to 25% after 48 h and 57% after 3 weeks compared with the control sample in normal conditions with average nutrient (phosphate and nitrate) removal of 4% after 48 h and 10% after 3 weeks.

MeSH terms: Catalysis; Construction Materials; Drainage, Sanitary*; Nitrates/chemistry*; Phosphates/chemistry*; Photolysis*; Sunlight; Titanium/chemistry*; Nanoparticles; Ponds
Fulltext A Biogeography-Based Optimization Algorithm Hybridized with Tabu Search for the Quadratic Assignment Problem

Lim WL, Wibowo A, Desa MI, Haron H

Comput Intell Neurosci, 2016;2016:5803893.
PMID: 26819585 DOI: 10.1155/2016/5803893

The quadratic assignment problem (QAP) is an NP-hard combinatorial optimization problem with a wide variety of applications. Biogeography-based optimization (BBO), a relatively new optimization technique based on the biogeography concept, uses the idea of migration strategy of species to derive algorithm for solving optimization problems. It has been shown that BBO provides performance on a par with other optimization methods. A classical BBO algorithm employs the mutation operator as its diversification strategy. However, this process will often ruin the quality of solutions in QAP. In this paper, we propose a hybrid technique to overcome the weakness of classical BBO algorithm to solve QAP, by replacing the mutation operator with a tabu search procedure. Our experiments using the benchmark instances from QAPLIB show that the proposed hybrid method is able to find good solutions for them within reasonable computational times. Out of 61 benchmark instances tested, the proposed method is able to obtain the best known solutions for 57 of them.

MeSH terms: Algorithms*; Animals; Artificial Intelligence*; Computer Simulation*; Humans; Models, Biological*; Human Migration
Fulltext A System for True and False Memory Prediction Based on 2D and 3D Educational Contents and EEG Brain Signals

Bamatraf S, Hussain M, Aboalsamh H, Qazi EU, Malik AS, Amin HU, et al.

Comput Intell Neurosci, 2016;2016:8491046.
PMID: 26819593 DOI: 10.1155/2016/8491046

We studied the impact of 2D and 3D educational contents on learning and memory recall using electroencephalography (EEG) brain signals. For this purpose, we adopted a classification approach that predicts true and false memories in case of both short term memory (STM) and long term memory (LTM) and helps to decide whether there is a difference between the impact of 2D and 3D educational contents. In this approach, EEG brain signals are converted into topomaps and then discriminative features are extracted from them and finally support vector machine (SVM) which is employed to predict brain states. For data collection, half of sixty-eight healthy individuals watched the learning material in 2D format whereas the rest watched the same material in 3D format. After learning task, memory recall tasks were performed after 30 minutes (STM) and two months (LTM), and EEG signals were recorded. In case of STM, 97.5% prediction accuracy was achieved for 3D and 96.6% for 2D and, in case of LTM, it was 100% for both 2D and 3D. The statistical analysis of the results suggested that for learning and memory recall both 2D and 3D materials do not have much difference in case of STM and LTM.

MeSH terms: Adolescent; Adult; Brain/physiology*; Brain Mapping; Electroencephalography; Female; Humans; Learning*; Male; Memory, Short-Term/physiology; Pattern Recognition, Visual/physiology*; Mental Recall/physiology*; Repression, Psychology*; ROC Curve; Young Adult; Brain Waves/physiology*; Support Vector Machine
Fulltext Unravelling the potential of nitric acid as a surface modifier for improving the hemocompatibility of metallocene polyethylene for blood contacting devices

Vellayappan MV, Jaganathan SK, Muhamad II

PeerJ, 2016;4:e1388.
PMID: 26819837 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.1388

Design of blood compatible surfaces is obligatory to minimize platelet surface interactions and improve the thromboresistance of foreign surfaces when they are utilized as biomaterials particularly for blood contacting devices. Pure metallocene polyethylene (mPE) and nitric acid (HNO3) treated mPE antithrombogenicity and hydrophilicity were investigated. The contact angle of the mPE treated with HNO3 decreased. Surface of mPE and HNO3 treated mPE investigated with FTIR revealed no major changes in its functional groups. 3D Hirox digital microscopy, SEM and AFM images show increased porosity and surface roughness. Blood coagulation assays prothrombin time (PT) and activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) were delayed significantly (P < 0.05) for HNO3 treated mPE. Hemolysis assay and platelet adhesion of the treated surface resulted in the lysis of red blood cells and platelet adherence, respectively indicating improved hemocompatibility of HNO3 treated mPE. To determine that HNO3 does not deteriorate elastic modulus of mPE, the elastic modulus of mPE and HNO3 treated mPE was compared and the result shows no significant difference. Hence, the overall observation suggests that the novel HNO3 treated mPE may hold great promises to be exploited for blood contacting devices like grafts, catheters, and etc.
Fulltext Sexual Dysfunction in Heroin Dependents: A Comparison between Methadone and Buprenorphine Maintenance Treatment

Yee A, Danaee M, Loh HS, Sulaiman AH, Ng CG

PLoS One, 2016;11(1):e0147852.
PMID: 26820154 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0147852

INTRODUCTION: Methadone has long been regarded as an effective treatment for opioid dependence. However, many patients discontinue maintenance therapy because of its side effects, with one of the most common being sexual dysfunction. Buprenorphine is a proven alternative to methadone. This study aimed to investigate sexual dysfunction in opioid-dependent men on buprenorphine maintenance treatment (BMT) and methadone maintenance treatment (MMT). The secondary aim was to investigate the correlation between sexual dysfunction and the quality of life in these patients.
METHODS: Two hundred thirty-eight men participated in this cross-sectional study. Four questionnaires were used, the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview, Opiate Treatment Index, Malay version of the International Index of Erectile Function 15 (Mal-IIEF-15), and World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF Scale. Multivariate analysis of covariance was used to examine the relationship between MMT and BMT and the Mal-IIEF 15 scores while controlling for all the possible confounders.
RESULTS: The study population consisted of 171 patients (71.8%) on MMT and 67 (28.2%) on BMT. Patients in the MMT group who had a sexual partner scored significantly lower in the sexual desire domain (p < 0.012) and overall satisfaction (p = 0.043) domain compared with their counterparts in the BMT group. Similarly, patients in the MMT group without a sexual partner scored significantly lower in the orgasmic function domain (p = 0.008) compared with those in the BMT group without a partner. Intercourse satisfaction (p = 0.026) and overall satisfaction (p = 0.039) were significantly associated with the social relationships domain after adjusting for significantly correlated sociodemographic variables.
CONCLUSIONS: Sexual functioning is critical for improving the quality of life in patients in an opioid rehabilitation program. Our study showed that buprenorphine causes less sexual dysfunction than methadone. Thus, clinicians may consider the former when treating heroin dependents who have concerns about sexual function.

MeSH terms: Adult; Buprenorphine/adverse effects*; Buprenorphine/therapeutic use; Cross-Sectional Studies; Heroin Dependence/drug therapy*; Humans; Erectile Dysfunction/chemically induced*; Male; Methadone/adverse effects*; Methadone/therapeutic use; Middle Aged; Quality of Life; Opiate Substitution Treatment/adverse effects*; Maintenance Chemotherapy/adverse effects
Distribution of cytokine gene polymorphisms in six Orang Asli subgroups in Peninsular Malaysia

Norhalifah HK, Syafawati WU, Che Mat NF, Chambers GK, Edinur HA

Hum Immunol, 2016 Apr;77(4):338-9.
PMID: 26820937 DOI: 10.1016/j.humimm.2016.01.015

Cytokines are involved in immune responses and the pathogenesis of various diseases. Allelic variations within the genes coding for various ∼30kDa cytokine protein/glycoproteins have been reported for many populations and have been the subjects of many ancestry and health analyses. In this study, we typed 22 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 13 cytokine genes of 165 Orang Asli individuals by using sequence specific primer-polymerase chain reaction (SSP-PCR) assay. The volunteers came from all across the Peninsular of Malaysia and belong to six Orang Asli subgroups; Batek, Kensiu, Lanoh, Che Wong, Semai and Orang Kanaq. Here we report our general findings and original genotype data and their associated analyses (Hardy-Weinberg proportions, estimation of allele and haplotype frequencies) can be found in the supplementary files and will be held at Allele Frequency Net Database (AFND).

MeSH terms: Alleles; Gene Frequency; Genotype; Glycoproteins; Haplotypes; Humans; Malaysia; Volunteers; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Cytokines; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; Population Groups
Generation and characterization of human cardiac resident and non-resident mesenchymal stem cell

Subramani B, Subbannagounder S, Palanivel S, Ramanathanpullai C, Sivalingam S, Yakub A, et al.

Cytotechnology, 2016 Oct;68(5):2061-73.
PMID: 26820972 DOI: 10.1007/s10616-016-9946-5

Despite the surgical and other insertional interventions, the complete recuperation of myocardial disorders is still elusive due to the insufficiency of functioning myocardiocytes. Thus, the use of stem cells to regenerate the affected region of heart becomes a prime important. In line with this human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hUC-MSCs) have gained considerable interest due to their potential use for mesodermal cell based replacement therapy and tissue engineering. Since MSCs are harvested from various organs and anatomical locations of same organism, thus the cardiac regenerative potential of human cardiac-derived MSCs (hC-MSCs) and human umbilical cord Wharton's Jelly derived MSC (hUC-MSCs) were tested concurrently. At in vitro culture, both hUC-MSCs and hC-MSCs assumed spindle shape morphology with expression of typical MSC markers namely CD105, CD73, CD90 and CD44. Although, hUC-MSCs and hC-MSCs are identical in term of morphology and immunophenotype, yet hUC-MSCs harbored a higher cell growth as compared to the hC-MSCs. The inherent cardiac regenerative potential of both cells were further investigated with mRNA expression of ion channels. The RT-PCR results demonstrated that both MSCs were expressing a notable level of delayed rectifier-like K(+) current (I KDR ) ion channel, yet the relative expression level was considerably varied between hUC-MSCs and hC-MSCs that Kv1.1(39 ± 0.6 vs 31 ± 0.8), Kv2.1 (6 ± 0.2 vs 21 ± 0.12), Kv1.5 (7.4 ± 0.1 vs 6.8 ± 0.06) and Kv7.3 (27 ± 0.8 vs 13.8 ± 0.6). Similarly, the Ca2(+)-activated K(+) current (I KCa ) channel encoding gene, transient outward K(+) current (I to ) and TTX-sensitive transient inward sodium current (I Na.TTX ) encoding gene (Kv4.2, Kv4.3 and hNE-Na) expressions were detected in both groups as well. Despite the morphological and phenotypical similarity, the present study also confirms the existence of multiple functional ion channel currents IKDR, IKCa, Ito, and INa.TTX in undifferentiated hUC-MSCs as of hC-MSCs. Thus, the hUC-MSCs can be exploited as a potential candidate for future cardiac regeneration.

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