Browse publications by year: 2021

  1. The Exponential Rise of Teledentistry and Patient-Oriented Protective Measures in Southeast Asian Dental Clinics: Concerns, Benefits, and Challenges
    Marya A, Venugopal A, Karobari MI, Messina P, Scardina GA, Subramanian AK
    Int J Dent, 2021;2021:9963329.
    PMID: 34630566 DOI: 10.1155/2021/9963329
    In the Southeast Asian region, various policies have been advocated by health regulatory bodies that entail protective measures such as face masks, gloves, maintaining distance in public areas, and more. These protective measures are aimed at helping reverse the growth rate of the coronavirus. Dentists in this region have incorporated several changes to their practices to help minimize risks of person-to-person transmission inside dental offices. This narrative review aimed to provide an in-depth overview of the current situation in the Southeast Asian region regarding the use of teledentistry during the pandemic. Teledentistry involves the transfer of patient information across remote distances for online consultation and treatment planning. A few years back, it used to be a lesser-known entity but has seen an exponential rise in its incorporation into dental practices all around the Association of Southeast Nations (ASEAN) region. Many clinics in the Southeast Asian region have started using online consultations to ensure that patients can be diagnosed or followed up during their treatment. Teledentistry is the clear answer in the coming months as it will help reduce the risk of virus transmission and help patients get access to oral healthcare and dentists to see their patients. This article reviews the current pandemic situation in the ASEAN region, the recent evidence, and the scope of teledentistry. It also provides recommendations for the future and sheds light on the different types of teledentistry and how it can be incorporated into practices by regulatory authorities in this region.
  2. Prevalence of Opisthorchis viverrini and Its Associated Risk Factors in the Phon Sawan District of Nakhon Phanom Province, Thailand
    Srithai C, Chuangchaiya S, Jaichuang S, Idris ZM
    Iran J Parasitol, 2021 10 12;16(3):474-482.
    PMID: 34630593 DOI: 10.18502/ijpa.v16i3.7101
    Background: Opisthorchis viverrini is one of the endemic helminths in Thailand. Nonetheless, O. viverrini still exist and raise concerns regarding public health. This study aimed to evaluate the current prevalence of O. viverrini infections and underlying risk factors among rural communities in Northeast Thailand.

    Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted between Sep and Dec 2019 in Phon Sawan district in Nakhon Phanom Province, Thailand. The participants were selected using a voluntary sampling method after the proportional allocation of the total sample size. Demographic data were collected using a standardized questionnaire. One stool sample was collected from each participant and the presence of O. viverrini and other intestinal parasite infections were determined using the modified Kato-Katz technique.

    Results: Overall, 250 participants aged 21 yr or older were enrolled. Overall, the prevalence of O. viverrini and Strongyloides stercoralis was 24% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 18.8-29.8) and 1.2% (95% CI: 0.2-3.5), respectively. Of the positive O. viverrini cases, the parasite rate significantly differed between gender, age group and in those who had a history of eating raw fish and taking the anti-helminthic drug (all P<0.05). Nevertheless, multivariate regression analysis among O. viverrini cases revealed that only being male (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.9 [95% CI: 1.1 - 3.6], P = 0.033) and aged ≥61 yr (aOR 6.7 [95% CI: 1.4 - 32.5], P=0.018) were positively associated with a higher risk of O. viverrini infection.

    Conclusion: Opisthorchiasis and strongyloidiasis are still endemic in this area and there is a need for projects to eliminate these parasites.

  3. Reactivation of Latent Toxoplasmosis in a Schizophrenia Patient: A Case Report
    Wahid W, Zahariluddin ASM, Kadir ZS, Sharip S, Idris ZM, Osman E
    Iran J Parasitol, 2021 10 12;16(3):512-517.
    PMID: 34630598 DOI: 10.18502/ijpa.v16i3.7106
    Schizophrenia is a serious mental disorder characterized by chronic relapsing episodes of psychosis. The disease is multifactorial, where infections, genetic vulnerability and environmental factors are involved in the development of the illness. Toxoplasma gondii is one of the parasites that has long been known associated with schizophrenia in many studies. To date, there is growing evidence of association between T. gondii infections and schizophrenia. Herein we report a rare case of reactivated toxoplasmosis in a schizophrenia individual. This patient was incidentally diagnosed with reactivated T. gondii infection. He denied any symptoms of toxoplasmosis but experienced a mild psychiatric auditory hallucination. Serology test for T. gondii immunoglobulin antibodies measured a high positive IgG titer (135.9 IU/ml) and negative for IgM. Interestingly, nested PCR exhibited a positive result for the type I strain of T. gondii dense granular (GRA) 7 gene (GRA7). This case highlights the detection of probable reactivation of toxoplasmosis in an immunocompetent schizophrenic patient without psychiatric treatment-resistant and remains asymptomatic for toxoplasmosis. Both serology and molecular tools have been a helpful aid in establishing the diagnosis. Nonetheless, early detection as in this case may aid the patient management in the future.
  4. Influence of cultural practices on breast cancer risks, stage at presentation and outcome in a multi-ethnic developing country
    Abdullah N, Mohamed N
    Oncol Lett, 2021 Nov;22(5):806.
    PMID: 34630713 DOI: 10.3892/ol.2021.13067
    Malaysia is a developing country made up of three main ethnicities: Malay, Chinese and Indian. There are significant ethnic differences with regard to the type of daily food and cooking methods, contraception, breast-feeding preferences, confinement period and care, postmenopausal intake and influence of the traditional healer. Breast cancer is the most common cancer among Malaysian women across all three ethnicities. However, the National Cancer Registry and local medical centres have documented ethnic differences in breast cancer risk (Chinese, 40.7 per 100,000; Indian, 38.1 per 100,000; Malay, 31.5 per 100,000), peak age (youngest in the Malays), stage at presentation (largest percentage at advanced stage among the Malays) and survival (poorest survival rate among the Malays). The Malays have several practices that are protective against breast cancer compared with the Chinese. However, the Malays have strong beliefs in the traditional healer, which contribute to the delay in getting treatment, causing a poor outcome and a low survival rate. The highest BRCA1 and 2 genetic mutation incidence is amongst the Chinese, but the Malays have the largest triple-negative breast cancer rates. These factors may also contribute to the statistical breast cancer data.
  5. Fulltext A CNN based Handwritten Numeral Recognition Model for Four Arithmetic Operations
    ShanWei C, LiWang S, Foo NT, Ramli DA
    Procedia Comput Sci, 2021;192:4416-4424.
    PMID: 34630761 DOI: 10.1016/j.procs.2021.09.218
    The pandemic of Covid-19 has caused a shift of paradigm of education, from face-to-face to e-learning. E-learning leads to an escalation in digitalization of handwritten documents because it requires submission of homework and assignments through online. To help teachers in checking digitalized handwritten homework, this paper proposes an automatic checking system based on a convolutional neural network (CNN) for handwritten numeral recognition. The CNN is used to recognize four arithmetic operations in mathematical questions consisting of addition, deduction, multiplication and division. The performance CNN in handwritten numeral recognition have been optimized in terms of activation function and gradient descent algorithm. The proposed CNN is also trained and tested with the MNIST handwritten data set. The experimental results show that the recognition accuracy the improved CNN improves to a certain extent as compared to before optimization.
  6. Fulltext Skeletal manifestations of congenital syphilis: Rare but clinically relevant
    Pg Mohammad Hussein PMN, Kew ST, Nang KM, Kadir F, Teh YG
    Radiol Case Rep, 2021 Dec;16(12):3635-3637.
    PMID: 34630789 DOI: 10.1016/j.radcr.2021.09.004
    Congenital syphilis occurs as a result of maternal transmission of treponema pallidum in utero. This condition is mainly diagnosed by treponemal and non-treponemal serologic tests. However, both maternal nontreponemal and treponemal IgG antibodies can be transferred through the placenta to the fetus, thus complicating its interpretation soon after birth. We report a case of a neonate with congenital syphilis whose mother became infected after the first trimester of pregnancy. We report how skeletal radiographs expedite the clinical decision-making process and direct further management of neonates. This case also highlights the need for repeated syphilis screening in the latter part of pregnancy.
  7. Fulltext Photocatalytic and Antibacterial Properties of a 3D Flower-Like TiO2 Nanostructure Photocatalyst
    Zhang Y, Liu X, Yusoff M, Razali MH
    Scanning, 2021;2021:3839235.
    PMID: 34630820 DOI: 10.1155/2021/3839235
    Flower-like titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanostructures are successfully synthesized using a hybrid sol-gel and a simple hydrothermal method. The sample was characterized using various techniques to study their physicochemical properties and was tested as a photocatalyst for methyl orange degradation and as an antibacterial material. Raman spectrum and X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern show that the phase structure of the synthesized TiO2 is anatase with 80-100 nm in diameter and 150-200 nm in length of flower-like nanostructures as proved by field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM). The energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) analysis of flower-like anatase TiO2 nanostructure found that only titanium and oxygen elements are present in the sample. The anatase phase was confirmed further by a high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM) and selected area electron diffraction (SAED) pattern analysis. The Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) result shows that the sample had a large surface area (108.24 m2/g) and large band gap energy (3.26 eV) due to their nanosize. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis revealed the formation of Ti4+ and Ti3+ species which could prevent the recombination of the photogenerated electron, thus increased the electron transportation and photocatalytic activity of flower-like anatase TiO2 nanostructure to degrade the methyl orange (83.03%) in a short time (60 minutes). These properties also support the good performance of flower-like titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanostructure as an antibacterial material which is comparable with penicillin which is 13.00 ± 0.02 mm inhibition zone against Staphylococcus aureus.
    MeSH terms: Anti-Bacterial Agents/pharmacology; Catalysis; Nanostructures*
  8. Fulltext Review of the management of sight-threatening diabetic retinopathy during pregnancy
    Choo PP, Md Din N, Azmi N, Bastion MC
    World J Diabetes, 2021 Sep 15;12(9):1386-1400.
    PMID: 34630896 DOI: 10.4239/wjd.v12.i9.1386
    Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a noncommunicable disease reaching epidemic proportions around the world. It affects younger individuals, including women of childbearing age. Diabetes can cause diabetic retinopathy (DR), which is potentially sight threatening when severe nonproliferative DR (NPDR), proliferative DR (PDR), or sight-threatening diabetic macular oedema (STDME) develops. Pregnancy is an independent risk factor for the progression of DR. Baseline DR at the onset of pregnancy is an important indicator of progression, with up to 10% of women with baseline NPDR progressing to PDR. Progression to sight-threatening DR (STDR) during pregnancy causes distress to the patient and often necessitates ocular treatment, which may have a systemic effect. Management includes prepregnancy counselling and, when possible, conventional treatment prior to pregnancy. During pregnancy, closer follow-up is required for those with a long duration of DM, poor baseline control of blood sugar and blood pressure, and worse DR, as these are risk factors for progression to STDR. Conventional treatment with anti-vascular endothelial growth factor agents for STDME can potentially lead to foetal loss. Treatment with laser photocoagulation may be preferred, and surgery under general anaesthesia should be avoided. This review provides a management plan for STDR from the perspective of practising ophthalmologists. A review of strategies for maintaining the eyesight of diabetic women with STDR with emphasis on prepregnancy counselling and planning, monitoring and safe treatment during pregnancy, and management of complications is presented.
  9. Salivary resistin level and its association with insulin resistance in obese individuals
    Abdalla MMI
    World J Diabetes, 2021 Sep 15;12(9):1507-1517.
    PMID: 34630903 DOI: 10.4239/wjd.v12.i9.1507
    The escalating global burden of type 2 diabetes mellitus necessitates the implementation of strategies that are both more reliable and faster in order to improve the early identification of insulin resistance (IR) in high-risk groups, including overweight and obese individuals. The use of salivary biomarkers offers a promising alternative to serum collection because it is safer, more comfortable, and less painful to obtain saliva samples. As obesity is the foremost contributory factor in IR development, the adipocytokines such as leptin, adiponectin, resistin, and visfatin secreted from the adipose tissue have been studied as potential reliable biomarkers for IR. Measurement of salivary adipokines as predictors for IR has attracted widespread attention because of the strong correlation between their blood and salivary concentrations. One of the adipokines that is closely related to IR is resistin. However, there are conflicting findings on resistin's potential role as an etiological link between obesity and IR and the reliability of measuring salivary resistin as a biomarker for IR. Hence this study reviewed the available evidence on the potential use of salivary resistin as a biomarker for IR in order to attempt to gain a better understanding of the role of resistin in the development of IR in obese individuals.
  10. Machine Learning Based Diabetes Classification and Prediction for Healthcare Applications
    Butt UM, Letchmunan S, Ali M, Hassan FH, Baqir A, Sherazi HHR
    J Healthc Eng, 2021;2021:9930985.
    PMID: 34631003 DOI: 10.1155/2021/9930985
    The remarkable advancements in biotechnology and public healthcare infrastructures have led to a momentous production of critical and sensitive healthcare data. By applying intelligent data analysis techniques, many interesting patterns are identified for the early and onset detection and prevention of several fatal diseases. Diabetes mellitus is an extremely life-threatening disease because it contributes to other lethal diseases, i.e., heart, kidney, and nerve damage. In this paper, a machine learning based approach has been proposed for the classification, early-stage identification, and prediction of diabetes. Furthermore, it also presents an IoT-based hypothetical diabetes monitoring system for a healthy and affected person to monitor his blood glucose (BG) level. For diabetes classification, three different classifiers have been employed, i.e., random forest (RF), multilayer perceptron (MLP), and logistic regression (LR). For predictive analysis, we have employed long short-term memory (LSTM), moving averages (MA), and linear regression (LR). For experimental evaluation, a benchmark PIMA Indian Diabetes dataset is used. During the analysis, it is observed that MLP outperforms other classifiers with 86.08% of accuracy and LSTM improves the significant prediction with 87.26% accuracy of diabetes. Moreover, a comparative analysis of the proposed approach is also performed with existing state-of-the-art techniques, demonstrating the adaptability of the proposed approach in many public healthcare applications.
  11. Colo-appendico-duodenal fistula: Rare presentation of extrapulmonary tuberculosis
    Gan DEY, Sibin R, Payus AO, Hayati F
    Clin Case Rep, 2021 Oct;9(10):e04797.
    PMID: 34631061 DOI: 10.1002/ccr3.4797
    A colo-appendico-duodenal fistula is a rare occurrence that results from extrapulmonary tuberculosis (TB) complications, especially in the endemic region.
  12. Lung adenocarcinoma with mixed solid and crazy-paving appearances
    Abdul Kadir RF, Hanafiah M, Johari B, Zainudin LD
    Clin Case Rep, 2021 Oct;9(10):e04847.
    PMID: 34631066 DOI: 10.1002/ccr3.4847
    "Crazy paving" on CT images refers to the superimposition of ground-glass opacity and linear pattern resembling irregularly shaped paving stones. Initially, "crazy paving" was described as a pathognomonic sign of alveolar proteinosis. Subsequently, this pattern has been reported in a variety of disorders of the lung. We demonstrated CT images of lung adenocarcinoma demonstrating both solid and crazy-paving appearances.
  13. Fulltext Efficacy of 4% articaine vs 2% lidocaine in mandibular and maxillary block and infiltration anaesthesia in patients with irreversible pulpitis: a systematic review and meta-analysis
    Miglani S, Ansari I, Patro S, Mohanty A, Mansoori S, Ahuja B, et al.
    PeerJ, 2021;9:e12214.
    PMID: 34631321 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.12214
    OBJECTIVE: The goal of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to determine the performance of 4% Articaine vs. 2% Lidocaine for mandibular and maxillary block and infiltration anaesthesia in patients with irreversible pulpitis (IP).

    METHODS: PubMed/MEDLINE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and Open Gray were used to conduct a thorough literature search. A manual search of the reference lists of the publications found was also carried out. Two reviewers critically evaluated the papers for inclusion and exclusion criteria, and data extraction was done on the selected publications. The Cochrane Collaboration Tool and the Minors checklist were used to assess the quality of the selected studies for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and non-randomised studies, respectively. The RevMan software was used to perform a meta-analysis of the pooled data and subgroups according to the technique of anaesthetic solution delivery, as well as a sensitivity analysis (P 

  14. Fulltext Green Biosynthesis, Antioxidant, Antibacterial, and Anticancer Activities of Silver Nanoparticles of Luffa acutangula Leaf Extract
    Nallappan D, Fauzi AN, Krishna BS, Kumar BP, Reddy AVK, Syed T, et al.
    Biomed Res Int, 2021;2021:5125681.
    PMID: 34631882 DOI: 10.1155/2021/5125681
    Studies on green biosynthesis of newly engineered nanoparticles for their prominent medicinal applications are being the torch-bearing concerns of the state-of-the-art research strategies. In this concern, we have engineered the biosynthesized Luffa acutangula silver nanoparticles of flavonoid O-glycosides in the anisotropic form isolated from aqueous leave extracts of Luffa acutangula, a popular traditional and ayurvedic plant in south-east Asian countries. These were structurally confirmed by Ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy accessed with attenuated total reflection (FTIR-ATR) spectral analyses followed by the scanning electron microscopic (SEM) and the X-ray diffraction (XRD) crystallographic studies and found them with the face-centered cubic (fcc) structure. Medicinally, we have explored their significant antioxidant (DPPH and ABTS assays), antibacterial (disc diffusion assay on E. coli, S. aureus, B. subtilis, S. fecilis, and S. boydii), and anticancer (MTT assay on MCF-7, MDA-MB-231, U87, and DBTRG cell lines) potentialities which augmented the present investigation. The molecular docking analysis of title compounds against 3NM8 (DPPH) and 1DNU (ABTS) proteins for antioxidant activity; 5FGK (Gram-Positive Bacteria) and 1AB4 (Gram-Negative Bacteria) proteins for antibacterial activity; and 4GBD (MCF-7), 5FI2 (MDA-MB-231), 1D5R (U87), and 5TIJ (DBTRG) proteins for anticancer activity has affirmed the promising ligand-protein binding interactions among the hydroxy groups of the title compounds and aspartic acid of the concerned enzymatic proteins. The binding energy varying from -9.1645 to -7.7955 for Cosmosioside (1, Apigenin-7-glucoside) and from -9.2690 to -7.8306 for Cynaroside (2, Luteolin-7-glucoside) implies the isolated compounds as potential bioactive compounds. In addition, the performed studies like QSAR, ADMET, bioactivity properties, drug scores, and toxicity risks confirmed them as potential drug candidates and aspartic acid receptor antagonists. This research auxiliary augmented the existing array of phytological nanomedicines with new drug candidates that are credible with multiple bioactivities.
    MeSH terms: Anti-Bacterial Agents/pharmacology*; Antineoplastic Agents/pharmacology*; Antioxidants/pharmacology*; Bacteria/drug effects; Biphenyl Compounds/chemistry; Color; Humans; Ligands; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Picrates/chemistry; Plant Extracts/pharmacology*; Plant Extracts/chemistry; Silver/pharmacology*; Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet; Sulfonic Acids/chemistry; X-Ray Diffraction; Cell Death/drug effects; Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared; Plant Leaves/chemistry; Toxicity Tests; Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationship; Luffa/chemistry*; Cell Line, Tumor; Benzothiazoles/chemistry; Metal Nanoparticles/ultrastructure; Metal Nanoparticles/chemistry*; Green Chemistry Technology*; Molecular Docking Simulation
  15. Data on RNA-seq analysis of Drosophila melanogaster during ageing
    Bajgiran M, Azlan A, Shamsuddin S, Azzam G, Halim MA
    Data Brief, 2021 Oct;38:107413.
    PMID: 34632013 DOI: 10.1016/j.dib.2021.107413
    Ageing is defined as gradual decline of physiological, cellular and molecular state of an organism with time. The age-associated cell dysfunctions usually cause chronic diseases such as diabetes, cancers and other age-related diseases. Many of the genes and pathways involved in ageing are conserved in different species. These genes and pathways have been categorised into nine cellular and molecular hallmarks, namely, genomic instability, telomere attrition, loss of proteostasis, mitochondrial dysfunction, epigenetic alterations, deregulated nutrient sensing, stem cell exhaustion, cellular senescence and altered intercellular communication. Despite countless studies on ageing, the molecular mechanism of ageing is poorly understood. Here, we performed genome wide transcriptome mapping of ageing process in D. melanogaster. In which, transcriptomic analysis conducted on the 1 day and 60 days flies. Illumina Hiseq platform were used to generate raw data. Afterwards, further analysis including differential expression analysis, GO classification and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis were performed. The raw data were uploaded to SRA database and the BioProject ID is PRJNA718442. These data provide the basis for future research in order to discover the genes and pathways involved in ageing.
  16. Moderating effects of personal innovativeness and driving experience on factors influencing adoption of BEVs in Malaysia: An integrated SEM-BSEM approach
    Khazaei H, Tareq MA
    Heliyon, 2021 Sep;7(9):e08072.
    PMID: 34632141 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e08072
    Electric cars are relatively in the early stage of acceptance in Malaysia, the purpose of the current research was to determine the factors affecting the adoption of battery electric vehicles in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. This research utilized a quantitative method to gather and analyze the data and proposed a novel theoretical framework to explain the acceptance of battery electric vehicles. 500 surveys were distributed and 322 were gathered. Respondents of the study were University lecturers, postgraduate students, and employees in private companies. The results of SEM analysis indicated that the developed model provides a good fit for constructs used for this research. The result showed that social influence, facilitating conditions, environmental concern, and perceived enjoyment have positive effects on the adoption of BEVs. However, respondents indicated anxiety about the battery range. In conclusion, this study has contributed additional variables such as range anxiety and driving experience to the electric vehicle's acceptance literature. The findings are significant to electric car producers and policy makers who have environmental concerns to understand consumer prospective in this field.
  17. Urinary metabolites of type 2 diabetes rats fed with palm oil-enriched high fat diet
    Sim XY, Ibrahim B, Gam LH
    Heliyon, 2021 Sep;7(9):e08075.
    PMID: 34632142 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e08075
    High fat diet (HFD) is one of the risk factors of obesity and diabetes. Recommended diet regimen for diabetes is difficult to abide by especially for HFD as it adds flavour to the taste buds. In this study, palm oil-enriched HFD and normal diet were fed to nicotinamide-induced type 2 diabetes rats, respectively for six weeks. Additionally, metformin, a common drug used to treat diabetes was given to rats under treatment groups. We evaluated the change of urinary metabolites of diabetes rats fed with palm oil-enriched HFD, and also after metformin treatment. Rats were divided into six-groups with different feeding diets, disease condition and with or without metformin treatment. Rats' urine were collected at the end of six weeks feeding program and subjected to 1H-NMR and multivariate data analysis to evaluate their metabolite profiles. At the early phase of diabetes, metabolites changes in diabetic rats were associated with the disease itself. Our data showed that continuous consumption of HFD altered various metabolic pathways of diabetic rats and caused detrimental effects to the rats. On the other hand, metformin treatment combined with normal diet lessened the physiological impacts caused by diabetes condition.
  18. Two-Dimensional Infrared Correlation Spectroscopy, Conductor-like Screening Model for Real Solvents, and Density Functional Theory Study on the Adsorption Mechanism of Polyvinylpolypyrrolidone for Effective Phenol Removal in an Aqueous Medium
    Mohammad Alwi MA, Normaya E, Ismail H, Iqbal A, Mat Piah B, Abu Samah MA, et al.
    ACS Omega, 2021 Oct 05;6(39):25179-25192.
    PMID: 34632177 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.1c02699
    The discharge of industrial effluents, such as phenol, into aquatic and soil environments is a global problem due to its serious negative impacts on human health and aquatic ecosystems. In this study, the ability of polyvinylpolypyrrolidone (PVPP) to remove phenol from an aqueous medium was investigated. The results showed that a significant proportion of phenol (up to 74.91%) was removed using PVPP at pH 6.5. Isotherm adsorption experiments of phenol on PVPP indicated that the best-fit adsorption was obtained using Langmuir models. The response peaks of the hydroxyl groups of phenol (OH) and the carboxyl groups (i.e., C=O) of PVPP were altered, indicating the formation of a hydrogen bond between the PVPP and phenol during phenol removal, as characterized using 1D and 2D IR spectroscopy. The resulting complexes were successfully characterized based on their thermodynamic properties, Mulliken charge, and electronic transition using the DFT approach. To clarify the types of interactions taking place in the complex systems, quantum theory of atoms in molecules (QTAIM) analysis, reduced density gradient noncovalent interaction (RDG-NCI) approach, and conductor-like screening model for real solvents (COSMO-RS) approach were also successfully calculated. The results showed that the interactions that occurred in the process of removing phenol by PVPP were through hydrogen bonding (based on RDG-NCI and COSMO-RS), which was identified as an intermediate type (∇2ρ(r) > 0 and H < 0, QTAIM). To gain a deeper understanding of how these interactions occurred, further characterization was performed based on adsorption mechanisms using molecular electrostatic potential, global reactivity, and local reactivity descriptors. The results showed that during hydrogen bond formation, PVPP acts as a nucleophile, whereas phenol acts as an electrophile and the O9 atom (i.e., donor electron) reacts with the H22 atom (i.e., acceptor electron).
  19. Non-solvent Flux Augmentation of an LDPE-Coated Polytetrafluoroethylene Hollow Fiber Membrane for Direct Contact Membrane Distillation
    Mohd Ramli MR, Ahmad AL, Oluwasola EI, Leo CP
    ACS Omega, 2021 Oct 05;6(39):25201-25210.
    PMID: 34632179 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.1c02887
    Membrane distillation (MD) is a thermal technology for the desalination process that requires a hydrophobic microporous membrane to ensure that the membrane can maintain the liquid-vapor interface. This work aims to enhance the water permeation flux of the previously coated membrane by modifying the surface of the polytetrafluoroethylene hollow fiber (PTFE HF) membrane with a selected non-solvent such as acetone, cyclohexanone, and ethanol in low-density polyethylene as a polymeric coating solution. However, the modification using acetone and cyclohexanone solvents was unsuccessful because a reduction in membrane hydrophobicity was observed. The modified PTFE HF membrane with ethanol content exhibits high wetting resistance with a high water contact angle, which can withstand pore wetting during the direct contact MD process. Since MD operates under a lower operating temperature range (50-90 °C) compared to the conventional distillation, we herein demonstrated that higher flux could be obtained at 7.26 L m-2 h-1. Thus, the process is economically feasible because of lower energy consumption. Performance evaluation of the modified PTFE HF membrane showed a high rejection of 99.69% for sodium chloride (NaCl), indicating that the coated membrane preferentially allowed only water vapor to pass through.
  20. Helmet continuous positive airway pressure vs. high flow nasal cannula oxygen in acute cardiogenic pulmonary oedema: a randomized controlled trial
    Osman A, Via G, Sallehuddin RM, Ahmad AH, Fei SK, Azil A, et al.
    Eur Heart J Acute Cardiovasc Care, 2021 Dec 18;10(10):1103-1111.
    PMID: 34632507 DOI: 10.1093/ehjacc/zuab078
    AIMS : Non-invasive ventilation represents an established treatment for acute cardiogenic pulmonary oedema (ACPO) although no data regarding the best ventilatory strategy are available. We aimed to compare the effectiveness of helmet CPAP (hCPAP) and high flow nasal cannula (HFNC) in the early treatment of ACPO.

    METHODS AND RESULTS : Single-centre randomized controlled trial of patients admitted to the emergency department due to ACPO with hypoxemia and dyspnoea on face mask oxygen therapy. Patients were randomly assigned with a 1:1 ratio to receive hCPAP or HFNC and FiO2 set to achieve an arterial oxygen saturation >94%. The primary outcome was a reduction in respiratory rate; secondary outcomes included changes in heart rate, PaO2/FiO2 ratio, Heart rate, Acidosis, Consciousness, Oxygenation, and Respiratory rate (HACOR) score, Dyspnoea Scale, and intubation rate. Data were collected before hCPAP/HFNC placement and after 1 h of treatment. Amongst 188 patients randomized, hCPAP was more effective than HFNC in reducing respiratory rate [-12 (95% CI; 11-13) vs. -9 (95% CI; 8-10), P 

    MeSH terms: Humans; Oxygen; Continuous Positive Airway Pressure; Cannula*
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