Browse publications by year: 2016

  1. Othman N, Pan L, Mejin M, Voong JC, Chai HB, Pannell CM, et al.
    J Nat Prod, 2016 Apr 22;79(4):784-91.
    PMID: 26974604 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jnatprod.5b00810
    Four new 2,3-secodammarane triterpenoids, stellatonins A-D (3-6), together with a new 3,4-secodammarane triterpenoid, stellatonin E (7), and the known silvestrol (1), 5‴-episilvestrol (2), and β-sitosterol, were isolated from a methanol extract of the stems of Aglaia stellatopilosa through bioassay-guided fractionation. The structures of the new compounds were elucidated using spectroscopic and chemical methods. The compounds were evaluated for their cytotoxic activity against three human cancer cell lines and for their antimicrobial activity using a microtiter plate assay against a panel of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria and fungi.
    MeSH terms: Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic/isolation & purification*; Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic/pharmacology; Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic/chemistry; Benzofurans/isolation & purification*; Benzofurans/chemistry; Drug Screening Assays, Antitumor; Female; Gram-Negative Bacteria/drug effects; Gram-Positive Bacteria/drug effects; Humans; Malaysia; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Saccharomyces cerevisiae/drug effects; Sitosterols; Triterpenes/isolation & purification*; Triterpenes/pharmacology; Triterpenes/chemistry; Molecular Structure; Plant Stems/chemistry*; HT29 Cells; Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, Biomolecular; Aglaia/chemistry*
  2. Idris K, Mohamed Shaffril HA, Md Yassin S, Abu Samah A, Hamzah A, Abu Samah B
    PLoS One, 2016;11(3):e0150741.
    PMID: 26974837 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0150741
    The main aim of this study is to identify the quality of life (QoL) among communities residing near the Tembeling, Pahang and Muar Rivers in Malaysia. This quantitative study used a constructed questionnaire as main tool to collect data on the QoL of river communities. A total of 240 villagers were selected as respondents. The results indicated that the dimensions of settlement, safety, involvement and social relationships, as well as education scored highest, while dimensions of physical environment, financial and job security yielded moderate scores. Dimensions of infrastructure facilities yielded a low mean score. Recommendations are provided, in the hope that our results may be useful for strategies that could enhance QoL of these river communities.
    MeSH terms: Adolescent; Adult; Female; Humans; Malaysia; Male; Quality of Life*; Rural Population*; Socioeconomic Factors; Rivers*
  3. Mohajerani A, Kadir AA, Larobina L
    Waste Manag, 2016 Jun;52:228-44.
    PMID: 26975623 DOI: 10.1016/j.wasman.2016.03.012
    The disposal and littering of cigarette butts (CBs) is a serious environmental problem. Trillions of cigarettes are produced every year worldwide, resulting in millions of tonnes of toxic waste being dumped into the environment in the form of cigarette butts. As CBs have poor biodegradability, it can take many years for them to break down. This paper reviews and presents some of the results of a study on the recycling of CBs into fired clay bricks. Bricks with 2.5%, 5%, 7.5%, and 10% CB content by weight were manufactured and tested, and then compared against control clay bricks with 0% CB content. The results showed that the dry density decreased by up to 30% and the compressive strength decreased by 88% in bricks with 10% CBs. The calculated compressive strength of bricks with 1% CBs was determined to be 19.53Mpa. To investigate the effect of mixing time, bricks with 7.5% CB content were manufactured with different mixing times of 5, 10, and 15min. To test the effect of heating time on the properties of CB bricks, the heating rate used during manufacturing was changed to 0.7, 2, 5, and 10°Cmin(-1). Bricks with 0% and 5% CB content were fired with these heating rates. Leachate tests were carried out for bricks with 0%, 2.5%, 5%, and 10% CB content. The emissions released during firing were tested for bricks with 0% and 5% CB content using heating rates of 0.7, 2, 5, and 10°Cmin(-1). The gases tested were carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2), chlorine (Cl2), nitrogen oxide (NO), and hydrogen cyanide (HCN). Finally, estimations were made for the energy that could be saved by firing bricks incorporating CBs. Calculations showed that up to 58% of the firing energy could potentially be saved. Bricks were shown to be a viable solution for the disposal of CBs. They can reduce contamination caused by cigarette butts and provide a masonry construction material that can be either loadbearing or non-loadbearing, depending on the quantity of CBs incorporated. This paper proposes the use of bricks with 1% CB content throughout the brick-manufacturing industry. If bricks contained as little as 1% CB content, they would still provide a solution for the issue of CB recycling while maintaining properties very similar to those of a non-CB brick. Our calculations show that, theoretically, only 2.5% of the world's annual brick production is necessary to completely offset the worldwide, annual cigarette production.
    MeSH terms: Construction Materials*; Materials Testing; Compressive Strength; Recycling/methods*; Tobacco Products*
  4. Chai KP, Othman NF, Teh AH, Ho KL, Chan KG, Shamsir MS, et al.
    Sci Rep, 2016 Mar 15;6:23126.
    PMID: 26975884 DOI: 10.1038/srep23126
    A new subfamily of glycosyl hydrolase family GH13 was recently proposed for α-amylases from Anoxybacillus species (ASKA and ADTA), Geobacillus thermoleovorans (GTA, Pizzo, and GtamyII), Bacillus aquimaris (BaqA), and 95 other putative protein homologues. To understand this new GH13 subfamily, we report crystal structures of truncated ASKA (TASKA). ASKA is a thermostable enzyme capable of producing high levels of maltose. Unlike GTA, biochemical analysis showed that Ca(2+) ion supplementation enhances the catalytic activities of ASKA and TASKA. The crystal structures reveal the presence of four Ca(2+) ion binding sites, with three of these binding sites are highly conserved among Anoxybacillus α-amylases. This work provides structural insights into this new GH13 subfamily both in the apo form and in complex with maltose. Furthermore, structural comparison of TASKA and GTA provides an overview of the conformational changes accompanying maltose binding at each subsite.
    MeSH terms: alpha-Amylases/chemistry*; Apoproteins/chemistry; Bacterial Proteins/chemistry*; Binding Sites; Calcium/chemistry; Crystallization; Maltose/chemistry*; Models, Molecular; Protein Conformation; Crystallography, X-Ray; Anoxybacillus/enzymology*
  5. Mallhi TH, Khan AH, Sarriff A, Adnan AS, Khan YH
    J Coll Physicians Surg Pak, 2016 Mar;26(3):238-9.
    PMID: 26975963 DOI: 03.2016/JCPSP.238239
    MeSH terms: Dengue*
  6. Mahmood MI, Daud F, Ismail A
    Public Health, 2016 Jun;135:56-65.
    PMID: 26976488 DOI: 10.1016/j.puhe.2015.07.043
    OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of glycaemic control and factors associated with poor glycaemic control [glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c) ≥6.5%] among patients with type 2 diabetes treated in public health clinics in Johor, Malaysia.

    STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional study.

    METHODS: A review of all patients aged over 18 years and with a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes for >1 year. The National Diabetic Registry was used as the database for attendees at public health clinics in Johor Bahru between January and December 2013. A required sample of 660 was calculated, and a random sampling method was applied to acquire patient information across the 13 public health clinics in Johor Bahru. All relevant information (e.g. HbA1c, type of treatment and other parameters for glycaemic control) were abstracted from the registry.

    RESULTS: Sixty-eight percent of 706 patients had HbA1c >6.5%, and mean HbA1c was 7.8%. Younger patients (72.3%) had poorer glycaemic control than older patients (63.0%), and most patients with poor glycaemic control were obese (79.2%). Approximately 31.7% of patients did not achieve the target blood pressure <130/80 mmHg, and 58.5% did not achieve the target lipid profile. Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that age (<60 years), sex (male), duration of diabetes (>5 years), body mass index (obese), type of treatment (diet therapy vs combination therapy) and abnormal lipid profile were significantly associated with increased odds of HbA1C >6.5%.

    CONCLUSIONS: More than half (68%) of the patients with diabetes had HbA1c >6.5%. This highlights the importance of providing organized care to manage patients with diabetes in the primary care setting, such as weight reduction programmes, proper prescribing treatment, and age- and gender-specific groups to ensure good glycaemic control.
    MeSH terms: Adult; Aged; Ambulatory Care Facilities; Blood Glucose/metabolism*; Cross-Sectional Studies; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/blood*; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/epidemiology; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/therapy; Female; Health Facilities; Hemoglobin A, Glycosylated/metabolism*; Humans; Hyperlipidemias/epidemiology; Hypertension/epidemiology; Malaysia/epidemiology; Male; Middle Aged; Obesity/epidemiology; Public Health; Registries; Risk Factors; Age Distribution; Sex Distribution; Young Adult
  7. Hasniah AL, Tan YP, Nur Buhairah MA, Chan TW, Muhammad Nabil TI, Syed Zulkifli SZ
    Public Health, 2016 08;137:182-4.
    PMID: 26976490 DOI: 10.1016/j.puhe.2015.10.028
    MeSH terms: Adolescent; Child; Child, Preschool; Cross-Sectional Studies; Environmental Exposure/adverse effects*; Female; Humans; Infant; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice*; Malaysia/epidemiology; Male; Parents/psychology*; Prospective Studies; Respiratory Tract Diseases/epidemiology*; Tobacco Smoke Pollution/adverse effects*
  8. Haghani A, Mehrbod P, Safi N, Aminuddin NA, Bahadoran A, Omar AR, et al.
    J Ethnopharmacol, 2016 Jun 5;185:327-40.
    PMID: 26976767 DOI: 10.1016/j.jep.2016.03.020
    For centuries, Edible Bird Nest (EBN) has been used in treatment of variety of respiratory diseases such as flu and cough as a Chinese natural medicine.
    MeSH terms: Birds; Cough; Medicine, East Asian Traditional; Respiration Disorders
  9. Sepantafar M, Maheronnaghsh R, Mohammadi H, Rajabi-Zeleti S, Annabi N, Aghdami N, et al.
    Biotechnol Adv, 2016 Jul-Aug;34(4):362-379.
    PMID: 26976812 DOI: 10.1016/j.biotechadv.2016.03.003
    One of the major problems in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases is the inability of myocardium to self-regenerate. Current therapies are unable to restore the heart's function after myocardial infarction. Myocardial tissue engineering is potentially a key approach to regenerate damaged heart muscle. Myocardial patches are applied surgically, whereas injectable hydrogels provide effective minimally invasive approaches to recover functional myocardium. These hydrogels are easily administered and can be either cell free or loaded with bioactive agents and/or cardiac stem cells, which may apply paracrine effects. The aim of this review is to investigate the advantages and disadvantages of injectable stem cell-laden hydrogels and highlight their potential applications for myocardium repair.
    MeSH terms: Animals; Heart/physiology; Humans; Myocardial Infarction/therapy*; Regeneration; Tissue Engineering*; Stem Cell Transplantation*; Mice
  10. Kharaeva ZF, Zhanimova LR, Mustafaev MSh, De Luca C, Mayer W, Chung Sheun Thai J, et al.
    Mediators Inflamm, 2016;2016:9379840.
    PMID: 26977121 DOI: 10.1155/2016/9379840
    The clinical efficacy of topical administration of standardised fermented papaya gel (SFPG), known to have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, versus conventional therapy was evaluated in a group of 84 patients with moderate-to-severe periodontitis, randomly assigned to control group (n = 45) undergoing traditional pharmacologic/surgical protocols or to experimental group (n = 39), additionally treated with intragingival pocket SFPG (7 g) applications (15 min daily for 10 days). Patients undergoing SFPG treatment showed significant (P < 0.05), durable improvement of three major clinical indices of disease severity: reduced bleeding (day 7), plaque and gingival conditions (day 14), and consistent gingival pocket depth reduction (day 45). Proinflammatory nitric oxide metabolites reached normal values in plasma (day 14) and gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) at day 45 with SFPG applications compared to controls that did not reach normalisation. Levels of highly increased proinflammatory (IL-1B, IL-6) and suppressed anti-inflammatory (IL-10) cytokines normalised in the SFPG group by days 14 (plasma) and 45 (GCF), but never in the control group. Although not acting directly as antibiotic, SFPG acted in synergy with human granulocytes blocking adaptive catalase induction in S. aureus in response to granulocyte-derived oxidative stress, thus enhancing intracellular bacterial killing.
    MeSH terms: Administration, Topical; Anti-Inflammatory Agents; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Antioxidants; Catalase; Gingival Crevicular Fluid; Gingival Pocket; Granulocytes; Homicide; Humans; Nitric Oxide; Periodontitis; Plasma; Reference Values; Severity of Illness Index; Staphylococcus aureus; Interleukin-6; Cytokines; Interleukin-10; Treatment Outcome; Oxidative Stress; Carica; Control Groups; Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus
  11. Thuraisingham C, Sinniah D
    J Fam Pract, 2016 Feb;65(2):121-4.
    PMID: 26977463
    The appearance of the skin on this woman's face, hands, and feet helped us to recognize an advanced case of an autoimmune disease.
    MeSH terms: Adult; Female; Humans; Malaysia; Scleroderma, Systemic*; Continental Population Groups
  12. Wong MC, Ching JY, Chiu HM, Wu KC, Rerknimitr R, Li J, et al.
    Am J Gastroenterol, 2016 11;111(11):1621-1629.
    PMID: 26977757 DOI: 10.1038/ajg.2016.52
    OBJECTIVES: We tested the hypothesis that the risk of colorectal cancer (CRC), advanced colorectal neoplasia (ACN), and colorectal adenoma among screening participants with different first-degree relatives (FDRs) affected by CRC was similar.

    METHODS: A multi-center, prospective colonoscopy study involving 16 Asia-Pacific regions was performed from 2008 to 2015. Consecutive self-referred CRC screening participants aged 40-70 years were recruited, and each subject received one direct optical colonoscopy. The prevalence of CRC, ACN, and colorectal adenoma was compared among subjects with different FDRs affected using Pearson's χ2 tests. Binary logistic regression analyses were performed to evaluate the risk of these lesions, controlling for recognized risk factors including age, gender, smoking habits, alcohol drinking, body mass index, and the presence of diabetes mellitus.

    RESULTS: Among 11,797 asymptomatic subjects, the prevalence of CRC was 0.6% (none: 0.6%; siblings: 1.1%; mother: 0.5%; father: 1.2%; ≥2 members: 3.1%, P<0.001), that of ACN was 6.5% (none: 6.1%; siblings: 8.3%; mother: 7.7%; father: 8.7%; ≥2 members: 9.3%, P<0.001), and that of colorectal adenoma was 29.3% (none: 28.6%; siblings: 33.5%; mother: 31.8%; father: 31.1%; ≥2 members: 38.1%, P<0.001). In multivariate regression analyses, subjects with at least one FDR affected were significantly more likely to have CRC (adjusted odds ratio (AOR)=2.02-7.89), ACN (AOR=1.55-2.06), and colorectal adenoma (AOR=1.31-1.92) than those without a family history. The risk of CRC (AOR=0.90, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.34-2.35, P=0.830), ACN (AOR=1.07, 95% CI 0.75-1.52, P=0.714), and colorectal adenoma (AOR=0.96, 95% CI 0.78-1.19, P=0.718) in subjects with either parent affected was similar to that of subjects with their siblings affected.

    CONCLUSIONS: The risk of colorectal neoplasia was similar among subjects with different FDRs affected. These findings do not support the need to discriminate proband identity in screening participants with affected FDRs when their risks of colorectal neoplasia were estimated.

    MeSH terms: Adenoma/diagnosis; Adenoma/epidemiology*; Adult; Aged; Alcohol Drinking/epidemiology; Asia/epidemiology; Carcinoma/diagnosis; Carcinoma/epidemiology*; Colonoscopy; Female; Humans; Male; Medical History Taking*; Middle Aged; Parents*; Prospective Studies; Risk; Smoking/epidemiology; Colorectal Neoplasms/diagnosis; Colorectal Neoplasms/epidemiology*; Prevalence; Multivariate Analysis; Logistic Models; Odds Ratio; Siblings*; Early Detection of Cancer; Self Report
  13. Qidwai A, Khan S, Md S, Fazil M, Baboota S, Narang JK, et al.
    Drug Deliv, 2016 May;23(4):1476-85.
    PMID: 26978275 DOI: 10.3109/10717544.2016.1165310
    Topical photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a promising alternative for malignant skin diseases such as basal-cell carcinoma (BCC), due to its simplicity, enhanced patient compliance, and localization of the residual photosensitivity to the site of application. However, insufficient photosensitizer penetration into the skin is the major issue of concern with topical PDT. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to enable penetration of photosensitizer to the different strata of the skin using a lipid nanocarrier system. We have attempted to develop a nanostructured lipid carrier (NLC) for the topical delivery of second-generation photosensitizer, 5-amino levulinic acid (5-ALA), whose hydrophilicity and charge characteristic limit its percutaneous absorption. The microemulsion technique was used for preparing 5-ALA-loaded NLC. The mean particle size, polydispersity index, and entrapment efficiency of the optimized NLC of 5-ALA were found to be 185.2 ± 1.20, 0.156 ± 0.02, and 76.8 ± 2.58%, respectively. The results of in vitro release and in vitro skin permeation studies showed controlled drug release and enhanced penetration into the skin, respectively. Confocal laser scanning microscopy and cell line studies respectively demonstrated that encapsulation of 5-ALA in NLC enhanced its ability to reach deeper skin layers and consequently, increased cytotoxicity.
    MeSH terms: Administration, Cutaneous; Carcinoma, Basal Cell/drug therapy*; Carcinoma, Basal Cell/pathology; Delayed-Action Preparations; Drug Carriers/metabolism; Drug Carriers/chemistry*; Humans; Levulinic Acids/metabolism; Levulinic Acids/pharmacology*; Levulinic Acids/chemistry; Lipids/administration & dosage; Lipids/chemistry*; Photochemotherapy; Skin Neoplasms/drug therapy*; Skin Neoplasms/pathology; Photosensitizing Agents/administration & dosage*; Photosensitizing Agents/metabolism; Photosensitizing Agents/chemistry; Cell Line, Tumor; Nanostructures/chemistry*
  14. Rehman SU, Choe K, Yoo HH
    Molecules, 2016 Mar 10;21(3):331.
    PMID: 26978330 DOI: 10.3390/molecules21030331
    Eurycoma longifolia Jack (known as tongkat ali), a popular traditional herbal medicine, is a flowering plant of the family Simaroubaceae, native to Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and also Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos and Thailand. E. longifolia, is one of the well-known folk medicines for aphrodisiac effects as well as intermittent fever (malaria) in Asia. Decoctions of E. longifolia leaves are used for washing itches, while its fruits are used in curing dysentery. Its bark is mostly used as a vermifuge, while the taproots are used to treat high blood pressure, and the root bark is used for the treatment of diarrhea and fever. Mostly, the roots extract of E. longifolia are used as folk medicine for sexual dysfunction, aging, malaria, cancer, diabetes, anxiety, aches, constipation, exercise recovery, fever, increased energy, increased strength, leukemia, osteoporosis, stress, syphilis and glandular swelling. The roots are also used as an aphrodisiac, antibiotic, appetite stimulant and health supplement. The plant is reported to be rich in various classes of bioactive compounds such as quassinoids, canthin-6-one alkaloids, β-carboline alkaloids, triterpene tirucallane type, squalene derivatives and biphenyl neolignan, eurycolactone, laurycolactone, and eurycomalactone, and bioactive steroids. Among these phytoconstituents, quassinoids account for a major portion of the E. longifolia root phytochemicals. An acute toxicity study has found that the oral Lethal Dose 50 (LD50) of the alcoholic extract of E. longifolia in mice is between 1500-2000 mg/kg, while the oral LD50 of the aqueous extract form is more than 3000 mg/kg. Liver and renal function tests showed no adverse changes at normal daily dose and chronic use of E. longifolia. Based on established literature on health benefits of E. longifolia, it is important to focus attention on its more active constituents and the constituents' identification, determination, further development and most importantly, the standardization. Besides the available data, more evidence is required regarding its therapeutic efficacy and safety, so it can be considered a rich herbal source of new drug candidates. It is very important to conserve this valuable medicinal plant for the health benefit of future generations.
    MeSH terms: Animals; Humans; Medicine, Traditional*; Plant Extracts/pharmacology*; Plant Extracts/chemistry*; Herbal Medicine*; Eurycoma/classification; Eurycoma/chemistry*; Metabolomics/methods
  15. Kanagesan S, Aziz SB, Hashim M, Ismail I, Tamilselvan S, Alitheen NB, et al.
    Molecules, 2016 Mar 11;21(3):312.
    PMID: 26978339 DOI: 10.3390/molecules21030312
    Manganese ferrite (MnFe2O4) magnetic nanoparticles were successfully prepared by a sol-gel self-combustion technique using iron nitrate and manganese nitrate, followed by calcination at 150 °C for 24 h. Calcined sample was systematically characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and vibrational sample magnetometry (VSM) in order to identify the crystalline phase, functional group, morphology, particle size, shape and magnetic behavior. It was observed that the resultant spinal ferrites obtained at low temperature exhibit single phase, nanoparticle size and good magnetic behavior. The study results have revealed the existence of a potent dose dependent cytotoxic effect of MnFe2O4 nanoparticles against 4T1 cell lines at varying concentrations with IC50 values of 210, 198 and 171 μg/mL after 24 h, 48 h and 72 h of incubation, respectively. Cells exposed to higher concentrations of nanoparticles showed a progressive increase of apoptotic and necrotic activity. Below 125 μg/mL concentration the nanoparticles were biocompatible with 4T1 cells.
    MeSH terms: Animals; Biocompatible Materials/therapeutic use; Biocompatible Materials/chemistry; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Female; Ferric Compounds/administration & dosage; Ferric Compounds/therapeutic use*; Ferric Compounds/chemistry*; Mammary Neoplasms, Experimental/drug therapy*; Mammary Neoplasms, Experimental/pathology; Materials Testing; X-Ray Diffraction; Apoptosis/drug effects; Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared; Manganese Compounds/administration & dosage; Manganese Compounds/therapeutic use*; Manganese Compounds/chemistry*; Cell Line, Tumor; Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; Mice; Magnetite Nanoparticles/therapeutic use*; Magnetite Nanoparticles/ultrastructure; Magnetite Nanoparticles/chemistry*
  16. Ee R, Madhaiyan M, Ji L, Lim YL, Nor NM, Tee KK, et al.
    Int J Syst Evol Microbiol, 2016 Jun;66(6):2297-2304.
    PMID: 26978486 DOI: 10.1099/ijsem.0.001025
    Phylogenetic and taxonomic characterization was performed for bacterium RB-25T, which was isolated from a soil sample collected in a former municipal landfill site in Puchong, Malaysia. Growth occurred at 20-37 °C at pH 5-8 but not in the presence of 9 % (w/v) NaCl or higher. The principal fatty acids were C16:0, C18:1ω7c and summed feature 3 (C16:1ω7c and/or iso-C15:0 2-OH). Ubiquinone-8 was the only isoprenoid quinone detected. Polar lipid analysis revealed the presence of phospholipid, phosphoaminolipid, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol and one unidentified aminolipid. DNA G+C content was 50.9 mol% phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequence showed that strain RB-25T formed a distinct lineage within the family Enterobacteriaceae of the class Gammaproteobacteria. It exhibited a low level of 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity with its phylogenetic neighbours Pantoea rwandensis LMG 26275T (96.6 %), Rahnella aquatilis CIP 78.65T (96.5 %), Pectobacterium betavasculorum ATCC 43762T (96.4 %), Pantoea rodasii LMG 26273T (96.3 %), Gibbsiella dentisursi NUM 1720T (96.3 %) and Serratia glossinae C1T (96.2 %). Multilocus sequence analyses based on fusA, pyrG, rplB, rpoB and sucA sequences showed a clear distinction of strain RB-25T from the most closely related genera. Isolate RB-25T could also be distinguished from members of these genera by a combination of the DNA G+C content, respiratory quinone system, fatty acid profile, polar lipid composition and other phenotypic features. Strain RB-25T represents a novel species of a new genus, for which the name Chaniamultitudinisentens gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is RB-25T (=DSM 28811T=LMG 28304T).
    MeSH terms: Base Composition; DNA, Bacterial/genetics; Enterobacteriaceae/classification*; Enterobacteriaceae/genetics; Enterobacteriaceae/isolation & purification; Fatty Acids/chemistry; Genes, Bacterial; Homoserine/biosynthesis*; Lactones/metabolism*; Malaysia; Phospholipids/chemistry; Phylogeny*; RNA, Ribosomal, 16S/genetics; Soil Microbiology*; Ubiquinone/chemistry; Bacterial Typing Techniques; Sequence Analysis, DNA; Multilocus Sequence Typing; Waste Disposal Facilities
  17. Karim A, Salleh R, Khan MK
    PLoS One, 2016;11(3):e0150077.
    PMID: 26978523 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0150077
    Botnet phenomenon in smartphones is evolving with the proliferation in mobile phone technologies after leaving imperative impact on personal computers. It refers to the network of computers, laptops, mobile devices or tablets which is remotely controlled by the cybercriminals to initiate various distributed coordinated attacks including spam emails, ad-click fraud, Bitcoin mining, Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS), disseminating other malwares and much more. Likewise traditional PC based botnet, Mobile botnets have the same operational impact except the target audience is particular to smartphone users. Therefore, it is import to uncover this security issue prior to its widespread adaptation. We propose SMARTbot, a novel dynamic analysis framework augmented with machine learning techniques to automatically detect botnet binaries from malicious corpus. SMARTbot is a component based off-device behavioral analysis framework which can generate mobile botnet learning model by inducing Artificial Neural Networks' back-propagation method. Moreover, this framework can detect mobile botnet binaries with remarkable accuracy even in case of obfuscated program code. The results conclude that, a classifier model based on simple logistic regression outperform other machine learning classifier for botnet apps' detection, i.e 99.49% accuracy is achieved. Further, from manual inspection of botnet dataset we have extracted interesting trends in those applications. As an outcome of this research, a mobile botnet dataset is devised which will become the benchmark for future studies.
    MeSH terms: Smartphone; Machine Learning; Computers; Fraud; Microcomputers; Tablets; Logistic Models; Benchmarking; Electronic Mail; Cell Proliferation
  18. Mohammadi H, Sepantafar M
    Iran Biomed J, 2016 Sep;20(4):189-200.
    PMID: 26979401
    Titanium and its alloy are known as important load-bearing biomaterials. The major drawbacks of these metals are fibrous formation and low corrosion rate after implantation. The surface modification of biomedical implants through various methods such as plasma spray improves their osseointegration and clinical lifetime. Different materials have been already used as coatings on biomedical implant, including calcium phosphates and bioglass. However, these materials have been reported to have limited clinical success. The excellent bioactivity of calcium silicate (Ca-Si) has been also regarded as coating material. However, their high degradation rate and low mechanical strength limit their further coating application. Trace element modification of (Ca-Si) bioceramics is a promising method, which improves their mechanical strength and chemical stability. In this review, the potential of trace element-modified silicate coatings on better bone formation of titanium implant is investigated.
    MeSH terms: Biocompatible Materials/pharmacology*; Biocompatible Materials/chemistry; Calcium Phosphates/pharmacology; Calcium Phosphates/chemistry; Ceramics/pharmacology*; Ceramics/chemistry; Osteogenesis/physiology*; Surface Properties; Titanium/pharmacology*; Titanium/chemistry; Trace Elements/pharmacology; Trace Elements/chemistry; Osseointegration/physiology*; Calcium Compounds/pharmacology; Calcium Compounds/chemistry; Silicates/pharmacology; Silicates/chemistry; Arthroplasty, Replacement/instrumentation*; Arthroplasty, Replacement/methods; Prostheses and Implants*
  19. Amalberti R, Nicklin W, Braithwaite J
    Int J Qual Health Care, 2016 Jun;28(3):412-4.
    PMID: 26980115 DOI: 10.1093/intqhc/mzw021
    Healthcare systems across the world are experiencing increased financial, organizational and social pressures attributable to a range of critical issues including the challenge of ageing populations. Health systems need to adapt, in order to sustainably provide quality care to the widest range of patients, particularly those with chronic and complex diseases, and especially those in vulnerable and low-income groups. We report on a workshop designed to tackle such issues under the auspices of ISQua, with representatives from Argentina, Australia, Canada, Columbia, Denmark, Emirates, France, Ireland, Jordan, Qatar, Malaysia, Norway, Oman, UK, South Africa and Switzerland. We discuss some of the challenges facing healthcare systems in countries ageing rapidly, to those less so, and touch on current and future reform options.
  20. Tan SY, Acquah C, Sidhu A, Ongkudon CM, Yon LS, Danquah MK
    Crit Rev Anal Chem, 2016 Nov;46(6):521-37.
    PMID: 26980177 DOI: 10.1080/10408347.2016.1157014
    The quest to improve the detection of biomolecules and cells in health and life sciences has led to the discovery and characterization of various affinity bioprobes. Libraries of synthetic oligonucleotides (ssDNA/ssRNA) with randomized sequences are employed during Systematic Evolution of Ligands by Exponential Enrichment (SELEX) to select highly specific affinity probes called aptamers. With much focus on the generation of aptamers for a variety of target molecules, conventional SELEX protocols have been modified to develop new and improved SELEX protocols yielding highly specific and stable aptamers. Various techniques have been used to analyze the binding interactions between aptamers and their cognate molecules with associated merits and limitations. This article comprehensively reviews research advancements in the generation of aptamers, analyses physicochemical conditions affecting their binding characteristics to cellular and biomolecular targets, and discusses various field applications of aptameric binding. Biophysical techniques employed in the characterization of the molecular and binding features of aptamers to their cognate targets are also discussed.
    MeSH terms: Binding Sites; Ligands; SELEX Aptamer Technique/methods*; Aptamers, Nucleotide/chemistry*
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