Browse publications by year: 2019

  1. Ibrahim MIJ, Sapuan SM, Zainudin ES, Zuhri MYM
    Int J Biol Macromol, 2019 Oct 15;139:596-604.
    PMID: 31381916 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2019.08.015
    In this study, biodegradable composite films were prepared by using thermoplastic cornstarch matrix and corn husk fiber as a reinforcing filler. The composite films were manufactured via a casting technique using different concentrations of husk fiber (0-8%), and fructose as a plasticizer at a fixed amount of 25% for starch weight. The Physical, thermal, morphological, and tensile characteristics of composite films were investigated. The findings indicated that the incorporation of husk fiber, in general, enhanced the performance of the composite films. There was a noticeable reduction in the density and moisture content of the films, and soil burial assessment showed less resistance to biodegradation. The morphological images presented a consistent structure and excellent compatibility between matrix and reinforcement, which reflected on the improved tensile strength and young modulus as well as the crystallinity index. The thermal stability of composite films has also been enhanced, as evidenced by the increased onset decomposition temperature of the reinforced films compared to neat film. Fourier transform infrared analysis revealed increasing in intermolecular hydrogen bonding following fiber loading. The composite materials prepared using corn husk residues as reinforcement responded to community demand for agricultural and polymeric waste disposal and added more value to waste management.
    MeSH terms: Biocompatible Materials/chemistry*; Biodegradation, Environmental*; Cellulose/chemistry; Zea mays*; Crystallization; Materials Testing; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; Polymers/chemistry*; Refuse Disposal; Soil; Solubility; Starch/chemistry; Temperature; Tensile Strength; Thermogravimetry; Water/chemistry; X-Ray Diffraction; Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared
  2. Strobl C, Churchill Cihlar J, Lagacé R, Wootton S, Roth C, Huber N, et al.
    Forensic Sci Int Genet, 2019 09;42:244-251.
    PMID: 31382159 DOI: 10.1016/j.fsigen.2019.07.013
    The emergence of Massively Parallel Sequencing technologies enabled the analysis of full mitochondrial (mt)DNA sequences from forensically relevant samples that have, so far, only been typed in the control region or its hypervariable segments. In this study, we evaluated the performance of a commercially available multiplex-PCR-based assay, the Precision ID mtDNA Whole Genome Panel (Thermo Fisher Scientific), for the amplification and sequencing of the entire mitochondrial genome (mitogenome) from even degraded forensic specimens. For this purpose, more than 500 samples from 24 different populations were selected to cover the vast majority of established superhaplogroups. These are known to harbor different signature sequence motifs corresponding to their phylogenetic background that could have an effect on primer binding and, thus, could limit a broad application of this molecular genetic tool. The selected samples derived from various forensically relevant tissue sources and were DNA extracted using different methods. We evaluated sequence concordance and heteroplasmy detection and compared the findings to conventional Sanger sequencing as well as an orthogonal MPS platform. We discuss advantages and limitations of this approach with respect to forensic genetic workflow and analytical requirements.
    MeSH terms: DNA, Mitochondrial/genetics*; Haplotypes; Humans; Phylogeny; Sequence Analysis, DNA; Forensic Genetics/methods; Genome, Mitochondrial*; High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing*; Multiplex Polymerase Chain Reaction*
  3. Albury C, Hall A, Syed A, Ziebland S, Stokoe E, Roberts N, et al.
    BMC Fam Pract, 2019 08 03;20(1):111.
    PMID: 31376830 DOI: 10.1186/s12875-019-0992-x
    BACKGROUND: Clinical guidelines exhort clinicians to encourage patients to improve their health behaviours. However, most offer little support on how to have these conversations in practice. Clinicians fear that health behaviour change talk will create interactional difficulties and discomfort for both clinician and patient. This review aims to identify how healthcare professionals can best communicate with patients about health behaviour change (HBC).

    METHODS: We included studies which used conversation analysis or discourse analysis to study recorded interactions between healthcare professionals and patients. We followed an aggregative thematic synthesis approach. This involved line-by-line coding of the results and discussion sections of included studies, and the inductive development and hierarchical grouping of descriptive themes. Top-level themes were organised to reflect their conversational positioning.

    RESULTS: Of the 17,562 studies identified through systematic searching, ten papers were included. Analysis resulted in 10 top-level descriptive themes grouped into three domains: initiating; carrying out; and closing health behaviour change talk. Of three methods of initiation, two facilitated further discussion, and one was associated with outright resistance. Of two methods of conducting behaviour change talk, one was associated with only minimal patient responses. One way of closing was identified, and patients did not seem to respond to this positively. Results demonstrated a series of specific conversational practices which clinicians use when talking about HBC, and how patients respond to these. Our results largely complemented clinical guidelines, providing further detail on how they can best be delivered in practice. However, one recommended practice - linking a patient's health concerns and their health behaviours - was shown to receive variable responses and to often generate resistance displays.

    CONCLUSIONS: Health behaviour change talk is smoothly initiated, conducted, and terminated by clinicians and this rarely causes interactional difficulty. However, initiating conversations by linking a person's current health concern with their health behaviour can lead to resistance to advice, while other strategies such as capitalising on patient initiated discussions, or collaborating through question-answer sequences, may be well received.

    MeSH terms: Health Promotion*; Humans; Patient Education as Topic; Physician-Patient Relations*; Primary Health Care*; Health Behavior*
  4. Iberahim N, Sethupathi S, Goh CL, Bashir MJK, Ahmad W
    J Environ Manage, 2019 Oct 15;248:109302.
    PMID: 31377539 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2019.109302
    Palm oil sludge (POS) is an organic waste generated from the palm oil industry. POS causes environmental pollution if it is improperly disposed. In this study, the potential of activated POS biochar, as an adsorbent for the removal of SO2 gas was tested. POS biochar was physically activated using CO2 gas. The effects of activation preparation variables i.e. activation temperature (300-700 °C), activation time (30-150 min) and CO2 flow rate (100-500 ml/min) were investigated using design expert version 8.0.7.1 software. Central Composite Design (CCD) was used to develop a quadratic model to correlate the operating variables with the activated biochar adsorption capacity. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to identify the significant factors on the experimental design response. The optimum preparation conditions of activated POS biochar were found to be at activation temperature of 442 °C, activation time of 63 min and CO2 flow rate of 397 ml/min. The maximum adsorption capacity at the optimum conditions was recorded as 16.65 mg/g. The adsorption capacity increased significantly after the activation process. Characteristics of the activated POS biochar proposed that SO2 was physically adsorbed. Furthermore, it was found that the adsorption capacity can be further enhanced by increasing the reaction temperature to 100 °C or with 15% of relative humidity in the inlet gas. The prepared adsorbents can be regenerated by thermal treatment.
    MeSH terms: Adsorption; Charcoal; Sewage*; Sulfur Dioxide*
  5. Bakshi HA, Mishra V, Satija S, Mehta M, Hakkim FL, Kesharwani P, et al.
    Inflammation, 2019 Dec;42(6):2032-2036.
    PMID: 31377947 DOI: 10.1007/s10753-019-01065-3
    Hypoxia inducible factor (HIF)-prolyl hydroxylase (PHD) inhibitors are shown to be protective in several models of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). However, these non-selective inhibitors are known to inhibit all the three isoforms of PHD, i.e. PHD-1, PHD-2 and PHD-3. In the present report, we investigated the associated changes in levels of PHDs during the development and recovery of chemically induced colitis in mice. The results indicated that in the experimental model of murine colitis, levels of both, PHD-1 and PHD-2 were found to be increased with the progression of the disease; however, the level of PHD-3 remained the same in group of healthy controls and mice with colitis. Thus, the findings advocated that inhibitors, which inhibited all three isoforms of PHD could not be ideal therapeutics for IBD since PHD-3 is required for normal gut function. Hence, this necessitates the development of new compounds capable of selectively inhibiting PHD-1 and PHD-2 for effective treatment of IBD.
    MeSH terms: Animals; Colitis/drug therapy*; Colitis/enzymology; Colitis/pathology; Inflammatory Bowel Diseases/drug therapy; Disease Progression*; Protein Isoforms; Mice; Hypoxia-Inducible Factor-Proline Dioxygenases; Prolyl-Hydroxylase Inhibitors/therapeutic use*; Prolyl Hydroxylases/metabolism*
  6. Ebadi M, Buskaran K, Saifullah B, Fakurazi S, Hussein MZ
    Int J Mol Sci, 2019 Aug 01;20(15).
    PMID: 31374834 DOI: 10.3390/ijms20153764
    One of the current developments in drug research is the controlled release formulation of drugs, which can be released in a controlled manner at a specific target in the body. Due to the diverse physical and chemical properties of various drugs, a smart drug delivery system is highly sought after. The present study aimed to develop a novel drug delivery system using magnetite nanoparticles as the core and coated with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), a drug 5-fluorouracil (5FU) and Mg-Al-layered double hydroxide (MLDH) for the formation of FPVA-FU-MLDH nanoparticles. The existence of the coated nanoparticles was supported by various physico-chemical analyses. In addition, the drug content, kinetics, and mechanism of drug release also were studied. 5-fluorouracil (5FU) was found to be released in a controlled manner from the nanoparticles at pH = 4.8 (representing the cancerous cellular environment) and pH = 7.4 (representing the blood environment), governed by pseudo-second-order kinetics. The cytotoxicity study revealed that the anticancer delivery system of FPVA-FU-MLDH nanoparticles showed much better anticancer activity than the free drug, 5FU, against liver cancer and HepG2 cells, and at the same time, it was found to be less toxic to the normal fibroblast 3T3 cells.
    MeSH terms: Aluminum Hydroxide/chemistry*; Animals; Antimetabolites, Antineoplastic/administration & dosage*; Antimetabolites, Antineoplastic/pharmacology; Delayed-Action Preparations/chemistry*; Drug Combinations; Fluorouracil/administration & dosage*; Fluorouracil/pharmacology; Humans; Magnesium Hydroxide/chemistry*; Neoplasms/drug therapy; Polyvinyl Alcohol/chemistry*; 3T3 Cells; Drug Delivery Systems; Mice; Hep G2 Cells; Magnetite Nanoparticles/chemistry*
  7. Nadarajah K, Kumar IS
    Int J Mol Sci, 2019 Aug 01;20(15).
    PMID: 31374851 DOI: 10.3390/ijms20153766
    As a semi-aquatic plant, rice requires water for proper growth, development, and orientation of physiological processes. Stress is induced at the cellular and molecular level when rice is exposed to drought or periods of low water availability. Plants have existing defense mechanisms in planta that respond to stress. In this review we examine the role played by miRNAs in the regulation and control of drought stress in rice through a summary of molecular studies conducted on miRNAs with emphasis on their contribution to drought regulatory networks in comparison to other plant systems. The interaction between miRNAs, target genes, transcription factors and their respective roles in drought-induced stresses is elaborated. The cross talk involved in controlling drought stress responses through the up and down regulation of targets encoding regulatory and functional proteins is highlighted. The information contained herein can further be explored to identify targets for crop improvement in the future.
    MeSH terms: Plant Proteins/genetics; Oryza/genetics*; Oryza/physiology; Stress, Physiological; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant*; MicroRNAs/genetics*; Gene Regulatory Networks; Droughts; Osmoregulation
  8. Field AP, Gill N, Macadam P, Plews D
    Sports (Basel), 2019 Aug 01;7(8).
    PMID: 31375020 DOI: 10.3390/sports7080187
    The aim of this study was to determine the acute metabolic effects of different magnitudes of wearable resistance (WR) attached to the thigh during submaximal running. Twenty endurance-trained runners (40.8 ± 8.2 years, 1.77 ± 0.7 m, 75.4 ± 9.2 kg) completed six submaximal eight-minute running trials unloaded and with WRs of 1%, 2%, 3%, 4% and 5% body mass (BM), in a random order. The use of a WR resulted in a 1.6 ± 0.6% increase in oxygen consumption (VO2) for every 1% BM of additional load. Inferential based analysis found that the loading of ≥3% BM was needed to elicit any substantial responses in VO2, with an increase that was likely to be moderate in scale (effect size (ES) ± 90% confidential interval (CI): 0.24 ± 0.07). Using heart rate data, a training load score was extrapolated to quantify the amount of internal stress. For every 1% BM of WR, there is an extra 0.17 ± 0.06 estimated increase in training load. A WR ≥3% of BM was needed to elicit substantial responses in lactate production, with an increase which was very likely to be large in scale (ES ± 90% CI: 0.41 ± 0.18). A thigh-positioned WR provides a running-specific overload with loads ≥3% BM, resulting in substantial changes in metabolic responses.
    MeSH terms: Heart Rate; Oxygen Consumption; Running; Thigh; Lactic Acid
  9. Borges JLC, Sousa da Silva M, Ward RJ, Diemer KM, Yeap SS, Lewiecki EM
    J Clin Densitom, 2019 07 10;22(4):484-488.
    PMID: 31375350 DOI: 10.1016/j.jocd.2019.07.005
    Vertebral fracture (VF) is the most common type of osteoporotic fracture. VFs are associated with a decline in quality of life and high morbidity and mortality. The presence of a VF is a significant risk factor for developing another fracture; however, most VFs are not clinically recognized and diagnosed. Vertebral fracture assessment by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry is a low cost, low radiation, convenient, and reliable method to identify VFs. The finding of a previously unrecognized VF may change the assessment of fracture risk, diagnostic classification, and treatment strategies. Vertebral fracture assessment or radiographic lateral spine imaging should be repeated in patients with continued high risk for fracture (e.g., historical height loss >4 cm [>1.5 inches], self-reported but undocumented vertebral fracture, or glucocorticoid therapy equivalent to ≥5 mg of prednisone or equivalent per day for greater than or equal to 3 months).
    MeSH terms: Consensus Development Conferences as Topic*; Humans; Recurrence; Absorptiometry, Photon/standards*; Spinal Fractures/diagnosis*; Osteoporotic Fractures/diagnosis*
  10. Sun Y, Wu G, Cheng KS, Chen A, Neoh KH, Chen S, et al.
    EBioMedicine, 2019 Aug;46:133-149.
    PMID: 31375425 DOI: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2019.07.044
    BACKGROUND: The evaluation for surgical resectability of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) patients is not only imaging-based but highly subjective. An objective method is urgently needed. We report on the clinical value of a phenotypic circulating tumor cell (CTC)-based blood test for a preoperative prognostic assessment of tumor metastasis and overall survival (OS) of PDAC patients.

    METHODS: Venous blood samples from 46 pathologically confirmed PDAC patients were collected prospectively before surgery and immunoassayed using a specially designed TU-chip™. Captured CTCs were differentiated into epithelial (E), mesenchymal and hybrid (H) phenotypes. A further 45 non-neoplastic healthy donors provided blood for cell line validation study and CTC false positive quantification.

    FINDINGS: A validated multivariable model consisting of disjunctively combined CTC phenotypes: "H-CTC≥15.0 CTCs/2ml OR E-CTC≥11.0 CTCs/2ml" generated an optimal prediction of metastasis with a sensitivity of 1.000 (95% CI 0.889-1.000) and specificity of 0.886 (95% CI 0.765-0.972). The adjusted Kaplan-Meier median OS constructed using Cox proportional-hazard models and stratified for E-CTC 

    MeSH terms: Female; Humans; Male; Neoplastic Cells, Circulating/metabolism*; Neoplastic Cells, Circulating/pathology; Neoplasm Metastasis; Neoplasm Staging; Pancreatic Neoplasms/diagnosis*; Pancreatic Neoplasms/mortality*; Phenotype; Prognosis; Biomarkers, Tumor*; Reproducibility of Results; Proportional Hazards Models; Immunophenotyping*; Carcinoma, Pancreatic Ductal/diagnosis*; Carcinoma, Pancreatic Ductal/mortality*; Cell Line, Tumor; Kaplan-Meier Estimate
  11. Johari MI, Yusoff K, Haron J, Nadarajan C, Ibrahim KN, Wong MS, et al.
    Sci Rep, 2019 08 02;9(1):11232.
    PMID: 31375753 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-47763-8
    Currently, there is no effective therapy for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), although intensive calorie restriction is typically recommended but dietary adherence is an issue. The current study aimed to determine the effectiveness and adherence of eight weeks of modified alternate-day calorie restriction (MACR) in the control of NAFLD activity. This was a randomized controlled trial with MACR as the intervention and normal habitual diet as control. The outcome measures were body mass index (BMI), blood lipids, fasting blood sugar (FBS), liver enzymes (ALT and AST), and ultrasonographic measurements of liver steatosis and shear wave elastography (SWE). Per-protocol (PP) and intention-to-treat (ITT) analysis were performed within and between-groups with P  0.22). Both liver steatosis grades and fibrosis (SWE) scores were reduced in between-group analyses of MACR vs. controls (PP and ITT, all P 
    MeSH terms: Adolescent; Adult; Diet; Fatty Liver/diet therapy; Female; Humans; Liver Cirrhosis/diet therapy; Male; Middle Aged; Patient Compliance; Body Mass Index; Treatment Outcome; Caloric Restriction/methods*; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease/diet therapy*
  12. Gopalsamy B, Sambasevam Y, Zulazmi NA, Chia JSM, Omar Farouk AA, Sulaiman MR, et al.
    Neurochem Res, 2019 Sep;44(9):2123-2138.
    PMID: 31376053 DOI: 10.1007/s11064-019-02850-0
    Number of ligations made in the chronic constriction injury (CCI) neuropathic pain model has raised serious concerns. We compared behavioural responses, nerve morphology and expression of pain marker, c-fos among CCI models developed with one, two, three and four ligations. The numbers of ligation(s) on sciatic nerve shows no significant difference in displaying mechanical and cold allodynia, and mechanical and thermal hyperalgesia throughout 84 days. All groups underwent similar levels of nerve degeneration post-surgery. Similar c-fos level in brain cingulate cortex, parafascicular nuclei and amygdala were observed in all CCI models compared to sham-operated group. Therefore, number of ligations does not impact intensity of pain symptoms, pathogenesis and neuronal activation. A single ligation is sufficient to develop neuropathic pain, in contrast to the established model of four ligations. This study dissects and characterises the CCI model, ascertaining a more uniform animal model to surrogate actual neuropathic pain condition.
    MeSH terms: Amygdala/metabolism; Amygdala/pathology; Amygdala/physiopathology; Animals; Constriction, Pathologic/complications; Disease Models, Animal*; Gyrus Cinguli/metabolism; Gyrus Cinguli/pathology; Hyperalgesia/metabolism; Hyperalgesia/physiopathology; Ligation; Male; Mice, Inbred ICR*; Pain Measurement; Sciatic Nerve/injuries; Sciatic Nerve/pathology; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos/metabolism; Sciatic Neuropathy/etiology; Sciatic Neuropathy/metabolism; Sciatic Neuropathy/pathology; Sciatic Neuropathy/physiopathology; Intralaminar Thalamic Nuclei/metabolism; Intralaminar Thalamic Nuclei/pathology
  13. Altowayti WAH, Allozy HGA, Shahir S, Goh PS, Yunus MAM
    Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2019 Oct;26(28):28737-28748.
    PMID: 31376124 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-019-06059-0
    Several parts of the world have been facing the problem of nitrite and nitrate contamination in ground and surface water. The acute toxicity of nitrite has been shown to be 10-fold higher than that of nitrate. In the present study, aminated silica carbon nanotube (ASCNT) was synthesised and tested for nitrite removal. The synergistic effects rendered by both amine and silica in ASCNT have significantly improved the nitrite removal efficiency. The IEP increased from 2.91 for pristine carbon nanotube (CNT) to 8.15 for ASCNT, and the surface area also increased from 178.86 to 548.21 m2 g-1. These properties have promoted ASCNT a novel adsorbent to remove nitrite. At optimum conditions of 700 ppm of nitrite concentration at pH 7 and 5 h of contact with 15 mg of adsorbent, the ASCNT achieved the maximal loading capacity of 396 mg/g (85% nitrite removal). The removal data of nitrite onto ASCNT fitted the Langmuir isotherm model better than the Freundlich isotherm model with the highest regression value of 0.98415, and also, the nonlinear analysis of kinetics data showed that the removal of nitrite followed pseudo-second-order kinetic. The positive values of both ΔS° and ΔH° suggested an endothermic reaction and an increase in randomness at the solid-liquid interface. The negative ΔG° values indicated a spontaneous adsorption process. The ASCNT was characterised using FESEM-EDX and FTIR, and the results obtained confirmed the removal of nitrite. Based on the findings, ASCNT can be considered as a novel and promising candidate for the removal of nitrite ions from wastewater.
    MeSH terms: Adsorption; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; Kinetics; Nitrites/analysis; Nitrites/chemistry*; Silicon Dioxide; Thermodynamics; Water/chemistry; Water Pollutants, Chemical/analysis; Water Pollutants, Chemical/chemistry*; Water Purification/methods; Nanotubes, Carbon/chemistry*; Nanocomposites/chemistry; Waste Water/analysis
  14. Kc B, Khan TM, Xuan WY, Alrasheedy AA, Mohamed Ibrahim MI, Leggat PA
    Travel Med Infect Dis, 2019 07 31;33:101463.
    PMID: 31376464 DOI: 10.1016/j.tmaid.2019.07.019
    BACKGROUND: Millions of tourists visit Malaysia annually while a large number of Malaysians travel overseas. Taking care of travellers' healthcare needs is important aspect of the healthcare system. Community pharmacies are ideally positioned to provide travel health-related services. However, studies are lacking in this area. Therefore, this study aims to explore the nature and type of travel health-related services provided by Malaysian community pharmacies.

    METHODS: A survey was carried out at 135 community pharmacies in nine districts of Selangor, Malaysia, from November 2017 to February 2018, using a self-administered standardized questionnaire.

    RESULTS: The majority (n = 95, 85%) of community pharmacies reported to have provided services to both international travellers and outbound Malaysian travellers. The common healthcare services provided to international travellers were monitoring of chronic diseases including hypertension and diabetes, and advice on minor ailments, supplements and medical devices. The key health services provided to outbound Malaysian travellers were advice on vaccination requirements, better management of chronic diseases and necessary medications to manage illness during travel. Most of the respondents supported the provision of travel health-related services through the community pharmacies.

    CONCLUSION: The study findings showed that Malaysian community pharmacies provided several travel health-related services to both international and Malaysian outbound travellers. Pharmacists in Malaysia are ideally positioned to have an increased role in travel medicine. They have the training to advise on complex medication issues especially with regard to interactions and polypharmacy. However, further training and courses should be provided that are tailored specifically for the needs of this professional group.

    MeSH terms: Attitude of Health Personnel; Community Pharmacy Services/statistics & numerical data*; Cross-Sectional Studies; Humans; Malaysia; Pharmacists/psychology; Surveys and Questionnaires; Travel; Professional Role; Travel Medicine/methods*; Travel Medicine/statistics & numerical data*
  15. Liew KJ, Ngooi CY, Shamsir MS, Sani RK, Chong CS, Goh KM
    Protein Expr Purif, 2019 12;164:105464.
    PMID: 31376486 DOI: 10.1016/j.pep.2019.105464
    Xylanases (EC 3.2.1.8) are essential enzymes due to their applications in various industries such as textile, animal feed, paper and pulp, and biofuel industries. Halo-thermophilic Rhodothermaceae bacterium RA was previously isolated from a hot spring in Malaysia. Genomic analysis revealed that this bacterium is likely to be a new genus of the family Rhodothermaceae. In this study, a xylanase gene (1140 bp) that encoded 379 amino acids from the bacterium was cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli BL21(DE3). Based on InterProScan, this enzyme XynRA1 contained a GH10 domain and a signal peptide sequence. XynRA1 shared low similarity with the currently known xylanases (the closest is 57.2-65.4% to Gemmatimonadetes spp.). The purified XynRA1 achieved maximum activity at pH 8 and 60 °C. The protein molecular weight was 43.1 kDa XynRA1 exhibited an activity half-life (t1/2) of 1 h at 60 °C and remained stable at 50 °C throughout the experiment. However, it was NaCl intolerant, and various types of salt reduced the activity. This enzyme effectively hydrolyzed xylan (beechwood, oat spelt, and Palmaria palmata) and xylodextrin (xylotriose, xylotetraose, xylopentaose, and xylohexaose) to produce predominantly xylobiose. This xylanase is the first functionally characterized enzyme from the bacterium, and this work broadens the knowledge of GH10 xylanases.
    MeSH terms: Amino Acid Sequence; Bacterial Proteins/genetics*; Bacterial Proteins/isolation & purification; Bacterial Proteins/metabolism; Bacterial Proteins/chemistry; Escherichia coli/genetics; Genetic Vectors/genetics; Phylogeny; Recombinant Proteins/genetics; Recombinant Proteins/isolation & purification; Recombinant Proteins/metabolism; Recombinant Proteins/chemistry; Substrate Specificity; Gene Expression; Sequence Alignment; Endo-1,4-beta Xylanases/genetics*; Endo-1,4-beta Xylanases/isolation & purification; Endo-1,4-beta Xylanases/metabolism; Endo-1,4-beta Xylanases/chemistry; Rhodothermus/genetics*; Rhodothermus/isolation & purification; Rhodothermus/metabolism; Rhodothermus/chemistry
  16. How SW, Chua ASM, Ngoh GC, Nittami T, Curtis TP
    Sci Total Environ, 2019 Nov 25;693:133526.
    PMID: 31376760 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.07.332
    Many wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) operating in biological nitrogen removal activated sludge process in the tropics are facing the pressure of increasingly stringent effluent standards while seeking solutions to reduce the plants' energy consumption and operating cost. This study investigated the feasibility of applying low-dissolved oxygen (low-DO) nitrification and utilizing slowly-biodegradable chemical oxygen demand (sbCOD) for denitrification, which helps to reduce energy usage and operating cost in treating low soluble COD-to-nitrogen tropical wastewater. The tropical wastewater was first characterized using wastewater fractionation and respirometry batch tests. Then, a lab-scale sequencing batch reactor (SBR) was operated to evaluate the long-term stability of low-DO nitrification and utilizing sbCOD for denitrification in an anoxic-oxic (AO) process treating tropical wastewater. The wastewater fractionation experiment revealed that particulate settleable solids (PSS) in the wastewater provided slowly-biodegradable COD (sbCOD), which made up the major part (51 ± 10%) of the total COD. The PSS hydrolysis rate constant at tropical temperature (30 °C) was 2.5 times higher than that at 20 °C, suggesting that sbCOD may be utilized for denitrification. During the SBR operation, high nitrification efficiency (93 ± 6%) was attained at low-DO condition (0.9 ± 0.1 mg O2/L). Utilizing sbCOD for post-anoxic denitrification in the SBR reduced the effluent nitrate concentration. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction, 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing and fluorescence in-situ hybridization revealed that the genus Nitrospira was a dominant nitrifier. 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing result suggested that 50% of the Nitrospira-related operational taxonomic units were affiliated with comammox, which may imply that the low-DO condition and the warm wastewater promoted their growth. The nitrogen removal in a tropical AO process was enhanced by incorporating low-DO nitrification and utilizing sbCOD for post-anoxic denitrification, which contributes to an improved energy sustainability of WWTPs.
    MeSH terms: Nitrogen/metabolism*; Oxygen; Waste Disposal, Fluid/methods*; Biological Oxygen Demand Analysis; Denitrification; Nitrification; Waste Water/chemistry
  17. Shaoli SS, Islam S, Haque S, Islam A
    Asian J Psychiatr, 2019 Aug;44:143-149.
    PMID: 31376798 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajp.2019.07.044
    BACKGROUND: The Preschool version of the Dimensions of Mastery Questionnaire (DMQ-18) is a popular instrument to assess children's ability to master the environment through action or activity to explore, influence, or control the physical atmosphere. Although this instrument was originally developed in English, it has now been translated and validated in five other languages: Hungarian, Turkish, Chinese, Spanish, and Persian. As we notice a growing interest in research on the mastery motivation among Bangladeshi preschoolers, we have taken this effort to translate and validate the DMQ-18 and explore the factor structure of the Bangla version of this questionnaire.

    METHOD: After translating all 39 items of the questionnaire into Bangla, it was administered on 206 children, aged 3 to 6 years, recruited randomly from ten preschools in Dhaka. The schools were selected randomly from the official list of preschools prepared by the Dhaka City Corporation. Class teachers of the respective children completed the questionnaire with the assistant of research assistants.

    RESULTS: The Bangla version of the questionnaire retained all 39 items, with seven factors as they were in the English version. The Bangla version shows sufficient reliability (Cronbach's alpha = 0.87; test-retest reliability = 0.89 for whole questionnaire and .79-.89 for sub-scales; inter-rater reliability = 0.88 for whole questionnaire and .79-.88 for sub-scales), and validity (correlated positively with the English version; r = 0.85).

    CONCLUSION: Due to its robust psychometric properties, the Bangla DMQ-18 is suggested to be used for Bangladeshi preschool children to assess their mastery motivation.

    MeSH terms: Bangladesh; Child; Child Behavior/physiology*; Child Development/physiology*; Child, Preschool; Female; Humans; Male; Motivation/physiology*; Psychometrics/instrumentation; Psychometrics/methods; Psychometrics/standards*; Reproducibility of Results
  18. Arab A, Sktani ZDI, Zhou Q, Ahmad ZA, Chen P
    Materials (Basel), 2019 Jul 31;12(15).
    PMID: 31370216 DOI: 10.3390/ma12152440
    Zirconia toughened alumina (ZTA) is a promising advanced ceramic material for a wide range of applications that are subjected to dynamic loading. Therefore, the investigation of dynamic compressive strength, fracture toughness and hardness is essential for ZTA ceramics. However, the relationship between these mechanical properties in ZTA has not yet been established. An example of this relationship is demonstrated using ZTA samples added with MgO prepared through conventional sintering. The microstructure and mechanical properties of ZTA composites were characterized. The hardness of ZTA composites increased for ≤0.7 wt.% MgO due to the pinning effect of MgO and decrease of the porosity in the microstructure. Oppositely, the fracture toughness of ZTA composites continuously decreased due to the size reduction of Al2O3 grains. This is the main reason of deteriorate of dynamic compressive strength more than 0.2 wt.% of MgO addition. Therefore, the SHPB test shows the improvement of the dynamic compressive strength only up to a tiny amount (0.2 wt.% of MgO addition) into ZTA ceramics.
    MeSH terms: Aluminum Oxide; Ceramics; Hardness; Zirconium; Porosity; Compressive Strength
  19. Samad AFA, Rahnamaie-Tajadod R, Sajad M, Jani J, Murad AMA, Noor NM, et al.
    BMC Genomics, 2019 08 01;20(1):627.
    PMID: 31370802 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-019-5994-5
    Following publication of the original article [1], the authors reported a number of errors, which are listed in this Correction article. The corrections are marked in bold.
  20. Perumal K, Huin WK, Yap NY, Ong TA, Gobe GC, Rajandram R
    Med Hypotheses, 2019 Aug;129:109239.
    PMID: 31371068 DOI: 10.1016/j.mehy.2019.109239
    Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the commonest from of renal neoplasm. Although surgery is a successful curative treatment for localized RCC, most patients are diagnosed with advanced or metastatic RCC, which has poor prognosis. RCC is classified by stage and grade using tissue samples. Whilst these provide good prognostic information, they are not very useful for early detection. Proteins that are dysregulated in patient's serum can be a valuable alternative and less invasive biomarker for early detection of the disease. For this reason, a hypothesis was formed that leptin is a possible biomarker for early detection and prognostication of RCC. The literature has disparate results on the usefulness of leptin as a biomarker for the early detection of RCC. Hence, a systematic review and a meta-analysis was carried out to investigate whether serum leptin could be a reliable diagnostic and prognostic factor in RCC patients. Literature on the available cohort and case-control studies on serum leptin in RCC was searched in electronic databases and included to evaluate this adipokine in the progression of RCC. The relevant studies were evaluated for the diagnostic and prognostic value of leptin in RCC patients. Overall, only 6 original research studies matched selection criteria and were included for meta-analysis. This study was hypothesised that; leptin might be a useful biomarker for early detection and prognostication of RCC. However, the data were presented in this study did not support our hypothesis. Serum leptin levels in RCC patients do not strongly associate with the development or progression of RCC, thus cannot act as a biomarker for early detection in RCC in patients. Extending our hypothesis further to include levels of obesity and RCC development may be worthwhile, but studies are currently limited.
    MeSH terms: Carcinoma, Renal Cell; Humans; Kidney Neoplasms; Obesity; Prognosis; Cohort Studies; Biomarkers; Case-Control Studies; Patient Selection; Leptin; Adipokines; Early Detection of Cancer
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