Browse publications by year: 2021

  1. Fulltext Drought Vulnerability Assessment Using Geospatial Techniques in Southern Queensland, Australia
    Hoque M, Pradhan B, Ahmed N, Alamri A
    Sensors (Basel), 2021 Oct 18;21(20).
    PMID: 34696109 DOI: 10.3390/s21206896
    In Australia, droughts are recurring events that tremendously affect environmental, agricultural and socio-economic activities. Southern Queensland is one of the most drought-prone regions in Australia. Consequently, a comprehensive drought vulnerability mapping is essential to generate a drought vulnerability map that can help develop and implement drought mitigation strategies. The study aimed to prepare a comprehensive drought vulnerability map that combines drought categories using geospatial techniques and to assess the spatial extent of the vulnerability of droughts in southern Queensland. A total of 14 drought-influencing criteria were selected for three drought categories, specifically, meteorological, hydrological and agricultural. The specific criteria spatial layers were prepared and weighted using the fuzzy analytical hierarchy process. Individual categories of drought vulnerability maps were prepared from their specific indices. Finally, the overall drought vulnerability map was generated by combining the indices using spatial analysis. Results revealed that approximately 79.60% of the southern Queensland region is moderately to extremely vulnerable to drought. The findings of this study were validated successfully through the receiver operating characteristics curve (ROC) and the area under the curve (AUC) approach using previous historical drought records. Results can be helpful for decision makers to develop and apply proactive drought mitigation strategies.
    MeSH terms: Agriculture*; Australia; Queensland; Droughts*; Hydrology
  2. Fulltext 5G and IoT Based Reporting and Accident Detection (RAD) System to Deliver First Aid Box Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
    Alkinani MH, Almazroi AA, Jhanjhi NZ, Khan NA
    Sensors (Basel), 2021 Oct 18;21(20).
    PMID: 34696118 DOI: 10.3390/s21206905
    Internet of Things (IoT) and 5G are enabling intelligent transportation systems (ITSs). ITSs promise to improve road safety in smart cities. Therefore, ITSs are gaining earnest devotion in the industry as well as in academics. Due to the rapid increase in population, vehicle numbers are increasing, resulting in a large number of road accidents. The majority of the time, casualties are not appropriately discovered and reported to hospitals and relatives. This lack of rapid care and first aid might result in life loss in a matter of minutes. To address all of these challenges, an intelligent system is necessary. Although several information communication technologies (ICT)-based solutions for accident detection and rescue operations have been proposed, these solutions are not compatible with all vehicles and are also costly. Therefore, we proposed a reporting and accident detection system (RAD) for a smart city that is compatible with any vehicle and less expensive. Our strategy aims to improve the transportation system at a low cost. In this context, we developed an android application that collects data related to sound, gravitational force, pressure, speed, and location of the accident from the smartphone. The value of speed helps to improve the accident detection accuracy. The collected information is further processed for accident identification. Additionally, a navigation system is designed to inform the relatives, police station, and the nearest hospital. The hospital dispatches UAV (i.e., drone with first aid box) and ambulance to the accident spot. The actual dataset from the Road Safety Open Repository is used for results generation through simulation. The proposed scheme shows promising results in terms of accuracy and response time as compared to existing techniques.
    MeSH terms: Accidents; Computer Simulation; First Aid; Transportation
  3. Fulltext Multi-Agent Systems in Fog-Cloud Computing for Critical Healthcare Task Management Model (CHTM) Used for ECG Monitoring
    Mutlag AA, Ghani MKA, Mohammed MA, Lakhan A, Mohd O, Abdulkareem KH, et al.
    Sensors (Basel), 2021 Oct 19;21(20).
    PMID: 34696135 DOI: 10.3390/s21206923
    In the last decade, the developments in healthcare technologies have been increasing progressively in practice. Healthcare applications such as ECG monitoring, heartbeat analysis, and blood pressure control connect with external servers in a manner called cloud computing. The emerging cloud paradigm offers different models, such as fog computing and edge computing, to enhance the performances of healthcare applications with minimum end-to-end delay in the network. However, many research challenges exist in the fog-cloud enabled network for healthcare applications. Therefore, in this paper, a Critical Healthcare Task Management (CHTM) model is proposed and implemented using an ECG dataset. We design a resource scheduling model among fog nodes at the fog level. A multi-agent system is proposed to provide the complete management of the network from the edge to the cloud. The proposed model overcomes the limitations of providing interoperability, resource sharing, scheduling, and dynamic task allocation to manage critical tasks significantly. The simulation results show that our model, in comparison with the cloud, significantly reduces the network usage by 79%, the response time by 90%, the network delay by 65%, the energy consumption by 81%, and the instance cost by 80%.
    MeSH terms: Cloud Computing*; Computer Simulation; Delivery of Health Care; Electrocardiography*; Models, Theoretical
  4. Fulltext HSV-1 ICP22 Is a Selective Viral Repressor of Cellular RNA Polymerase II-Mediated Transcription Elongation
    Isa NF, Bensaude O, Aziz NC, Murphy S
    Vaccines (Basel), 2021 Sep 22;9(10).
    PMID: 34696162 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines9101054
    The Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV-1) immediate-early protein ICP22 interacts with cellular proteins to inhibit host cell gene expression and promote viral gene expression. ICP22 inhibits phosphorylation of Ser2 of the RNA polymerase II (pol II) carboxyl-terminal domain (CTD) and productive elongation of pol II. Here we show that ICP22 affects elongation of pol II through both the early-elongation checkpoint and the poly(A)-associated elongation checkpoint of a protein-coding gene model. Coimmunoprecipitation assays using tagged ICP22 expressed in human cells and pulldown assays with recombinant ICP22 in vitro coupled with mass spectrometry identify transcription elongation factors, including P-TEFb, additional CTD kinases and the FACT complex as interacting cellular factors. Using a photoreactive amino acid incorporated into ICP22, we found that L191, Y230 and C225 crosslink to both subunits of the FACT complex in cells. Our findings indicate that ICP22 interacts with critical elongation regulators to inhibit transcription elongation of cellular genes, which may be vital for HSV-1 pathogenesis. We also show that the HSV viral activator, VP16, has a region of structural similarity to the ICP22 region that interacts with elongation factors, suggesting a model where VP16 competes with ICP22 to deliver elongation factors to viral genes.
  5. Fulltext Potential Adjuvant Therapeutic Effect of Lactobacillus plantarum Probio-88 Postbiotics against SARS-COV-2
    Rather IA, Choi SB, Kamli MR, Hakeem KR, Sabir JSM, Park YH, et al.
    Vaccines (Basel), 2021 Sep 24;9(10).
    PMID: 34696175 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines9101067
    In response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the global effort to develop high efficacy countermeasures to control the infection are being conducted at full swing. While the efficacy of vaccines and coronavirus drugs are being tested, the microbiome approach represents an alternative pathophysiology-based approach to prevent the severity of the infection. In the current study, we evaluated the action of a novel probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum Probio-88 against SARS-COV-2 replication and immune regulation using an in vitro and in silico study. The results showed that extract from this strain (P88-CFS) significantly inhibited the replication of SARS-COV-2 and the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels. Furthermore, compared with infected cells, P88-CFS treated cells showed a significant reduction in inflammatory markers such as IFN-α, IFN-β, and IL-6. Using an in silico molecular docking approach, it was postulated that the antiviral activity of L. plantarum Probio-88 was derived from plantaricin E (PlnE) and F (PlnF). The high binding affinity and formation of hydrogen bonding indicated that the association of PlnE and PlnF on SARS-COV-2 helicase might serve as a blocker by preventing the binding of ss-RNA during the replication of the virus. In conclusion, our study substantiated that P88-CFS could be used as an integrative therapeutic approach along with vaccine to contain the spread of the highly infectious pathogen and possibly its variants.
  6. Fulltext COVID-19 Vaccination Attitudes, Perceptions, and Side Effect Experiences in Malaysia: Do Age, Gender, and Vaccine Type Matter?
    Elnaem MH, Mohd Taufek NH, Ab Rahman NS, Mohd Nazar NI, Zin CS, Nuffer W, et al.
    Vaccines (Basel), 2021 Oct 09;9(10).
    PMID: 34696264 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines9101156
    This study aimed to investigate the attitudes, perceptions, and experiences of side effects with the COVID-19 vaccines in Malaysia among participants in the National Vaccination Program. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among a sample of vaccine-eligible and vaccinated individuals in Malaysia between May and July 2021. A total of 428 respondents completed the survey. A vast majority (98.6%) of the respondents had registered to be vaccinated. Twenty participants (4.7%) expressed concerns about either registering or receiving the COVID-19 vaccination, mainly due to their uncertainty of vaccine safety. Approximately 77.5% received their vaccinations. Of them, 76.8% had experienced vaccine-related side effects. About 40% of the side effects occurred more with the second dose, particularly those who received the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine (p < 0.001). Pain at the injection site (61.1%) and tiredness (48.8%) were the most reported side effects. Compared to those aged ≥60 years, all age groups were more likely to exhibit vaccine-related side effects; meanwhile, males (OR: 0.51, 95% CI: 0.27-0.93) were less likely to experience side effects than females. Those who received the Sinovac vaccine were at lower risk of experiencing side effects (OR: 0.08, 95% CI: 0.03-0.22) and were more likely to report fewer side effects than Pfizer-BioNTech (p = 0.012) and Oxford-AstraZeneca groups (p= 0.001). The overall attitudes toward the COVID-19 vaccination program were positive. Several differences in the experiences of vaccine-related side effects, in terms of prevalence and numbers, were attributed to age, gender, and received vaccine type.
  7. Postdefecation Cleansing in the Asian Population and the Spread of COVID-19
    Sivamuni SS, Ngeow WC, Wong RCW
    Asia Pac J Public Health, 2021 Oct 25.
    PMID: 34696621 DOI: 10.1177/10105395211052181
  8. Fulltext Optimal virtual water flows for improved food security in water-scarce countries
    Maroufpoor S, Bozorg-Haddad O, Maroufpoor E, Gerbens-Leenes PW, Loáiciga HA, Savic D, et al.
    Sci Rep, 2021 10 25;11(1):21027.
    PMID: 34697363 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-00500-6
    The worsening water scarcity has imposed a significant stress on food production in many parts of the world. This stress becomes more critical when countries seek self-sufficiency. A literature review shows that food self-sufficiency has not been assessed as the main factor in determining the optimal cultivation patterns. However, food self-sufficiency is one of the main policies of these countries and requires the most attention and concentration. Previous works have focused on the virtual water trade to meet regional food demand and to calculate trade flows. The potential of the trade network can be exploited to improve the cropping pattern to ensure food and water security. To this end, and based on the research gaps mentioned, this study develops a method to link intra-country trade networks, food security, and total water footprints (WFs) to improve food security. The method is applied in Iran, a water-scarce country. The study shows that 781 × 106 m3 of water could be saved by creating a trade network. Results of the balanced trade network are input to a multi-objective optimization model to improve cropping patterns based on the objectives of achieving food security and preventing water crises. The method provides 400 management scenarios to improve cropping patterns considering 51 main crops in Iran. Results show a range of improvements in food security (19-45%) and a decrease in WFs (2-3%). The selected scenario for Iran would reduce the blue water footprint by 1207 × 106 m3, and reduce the cropland area by 19 × 103 ha. This methodology allows decision makers to develop policies that achieve food security under limited water resources in arid and semi-arid regions.
    MeSH terms: Agriculture; Algorithms; Conservation of Natural Resources; Food Supply*; Geography; Iran; Models, Theoretical; Water Supply*; Crops, Agricultural; Water Resources*
  9. Fulltext Untargeted serum metabolites profiling in high-fat diet mice supplemented with enhanced palm tocotrienol-rich fraction using UHPLC-MS
    Goon DE, Ab-Rahim S, Mohd Sakri AH, Mazlan M, Tan JK, Abdul Aziz M, et al.
    Sci Rep, 2021 Oct 25;11(1):21001.
    PMID: 34697380 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-00454-9
    Excessive high fat dietary intake promotes risk of developing non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and predisposed with oxidative stress. Palm based tocotrienol-rich fraction (TRF) has been reported able to ameliorate oxidative stress but exhibited poor bioavailability. Thus, we investigated whether an enhanced formulation of TRF in combination with palm kernel oil (medium-chain triglycerides) (ETRF) could ameliorate the effect of high-fat diet (HFD) on leptin-deficient male mice. All the animals were divided into HFD only (HFD group), HFD supplemented with ETRF (ETRF group) and HFD supplemented with TRF (TRF group) and HFD supplemented with PKO (PKO group). After 6 weeks, sera were collected for untargeted metabolite profiling using UHPLC-Orbitrap MS. Univariate analysis unveiled alternation in metabolites for bile acids, amino acids, fatty acids, sphingolipids, and alkaloids. Bile acids, lysine, arachidonic acid, and sphingolipids were downregulated while xanthine and hypoxanthine were upregulated in TRF and ETRF group. The regulation of these metabolites suggests that ETRF may promote better fatty acid oxidation, reduce oxidative stress and pro-inflammatory metabolites and acts as anti-inflammatory in fatty liver compared to TRF. Metabolites regulated by ETRF also provide insight of its role in fatty liver. However, further investigation is warranted to identify the mechanisms involved.
    MeSH terms: Animals; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Disease Models, Animal; Immunohistochemistry; Liver/drug effects; Liver/metabolism; Liver/pathology; Male; Mass Spectrometry; Biomarkers/blood*; Dietary Supplements; Tocotrienols/analysis*; Arecaceae/chemistry*; Mice; Metabolome*; Diet, High-Fat*; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease/etiology; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease/metabolism; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease/pathology
  10. Fulltext Macroalgae in biomonitoring of metal pollution in the Bay of Bengal coastal waters of Cox's Bazar and surrounding areas
    Rakib MRJ, Jolly YN, Dioses-Salinas DC, Pizarro-Ortega CI, De-la-Torre GE, Khandaker MU, et al.
    Sci Rep, 2021 10 25;11(1):20999.
    PMID: 34697391 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-99750-7
    Although coastal water marine algae have been popularly used by others as indicators of heavy metal pollution, data within the Bay of Bengal for the estuarine Cox's Bazar region and Saint Martin's Island has remained scarce. Using marine algae, the study herein forms an effort in biomonitoring of metal contamination in the aforementioned Bangladesh areas. A total of 10 seaweed species were collected, including edible varieties, analyzed for metal levels through the use of the technique of EDXRF. From greatest to least, measured mean metal concentrations in descending order have been found to be K > Fe > Zr > Br > Sr > Zn > Mn > Rb > Cu > As > Pb > Cr > Co. Potential toxic heavy metals such as Pb, As, and Cr appear at lower concentration values compared to that found for essential mineral elements. However, the presence of Pb in Sargassum oligocystum species has been observed to exceed the maximum international guidance level. Given that some of the algae species are cultivated for human consumption, the non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic indices were calculated, shown to be slightly lower than the maxima recommended by the international organizations. Overall, the present results are consistent with literature data suggesting that heavy metal macroalgae biomonitoring may be species-specific. To the best of our knowledge, this study represents the first comprehensive macroalgae biomonitoring study of metal contamination from the coastal waters of Cox's Bazar and beyond.
    MeSH terms: Algorithms; Analysis of Variance; Environmental Monitoring/methods*; Environmental Pollution/analysis*; Geography; Humans; Models, Theoretical; Seaweed*; Water Pollutants, Chemical/analysis*; Metals, Heavy/analysis*; Bays
  11. Correction to: Do we need different predictive equations for the acute and late phases of critical illness? A prospective observational study with repeated indirect calorimetry measurements
    Tah PC, Poh BK, Kee CC, Lee ZY, Hakumat-Rai VR, Mat Nor MB, et al.
    Eur J Clin Nutr, 2021 Oct 25.
    PMID: 34697418 DOI: 10.1038/s41430-021-01011-3
  12. Fulltext Applied Artificial Intelligence and user satisfaction: Smartwatch usage for healthcare in Bangladesh during COVID-19
    Uzir MUH, Al Halbusi H, Lim R, Jerin I, Abdul Hamid AB, Ramayah T, et al.
    Technol Soc, 2021 Nov;67:101780.
    PMID: 34697510 DOI: 10.1016/j.techsoc.2021.101780
    The evolution of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has revolutionized many aspects of human life, including healthcare. Amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, AI-enabled smartwatches are being used to help users to self-monitor and self-manage their health. Using a framework based on Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) theory, this present study aimed to explore the use of AI-enabled smartwatches for health purposes, in particular the effects of product quality, service quality, perceived convenience, and perceived ease of use on user experience, trust and user satisfaction. Based on a purposive survey sample of 486 smartphone users in Bangladesh, data collected was analyzed using SPSS software for elementary analyses and PLS-SEM for hypotheses testing. The findings showed that the predictors, namely product quality, service quality, perceived convenience, and perceived ease of use, significantly affected user experience and trust. Similarly, user experience and trust were influential on user satisfaction and played partial mediating roles between predictors and user satisfaction. Besides, gender and age moderate the relationships of experience and trust with customer satisfaction. These findings support the S-O-R theoretical framework and have practical implications for brand and marketing managers of smartwatches in developing product features and understanding users' attitudes and behaviours.
  13. The energy consumption: the global contributions from financial development and institutions
    Nguyen CP, Schinckus C, Su TD, Chong FHL
    Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2021 Oct 25.
    PMID: 34697709 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-021-17134-w
    In a context of climate change and global warming, the literature paid more and more attention to the determinants of energy consumption. This article aims at examining the influences of the financial development and the institutional quality on the energy consumption in a global sample of 112 countries between 2002 and 2014. Our analysis is based on dynamic two-step system GMM estimations for three different energy consumption indicators-our findings are interesting. First, the financial development induces a higher energy consumption per capita; a higher energy consumption per output, and a lower renewable energy consumption. Second, the institutions have an insignificant positive influence on the energy use per capita and the energy use per output. Third, and this is our major contribution, the institutional quality can actually reverse the effect of the financial development. In other words, the effect of financial development on the energy use per capita is positive in weak institutional environment but it is negative when the latter is well developed. This article discusses these finding and their implications.
  14. Andrographolide Induces Apoptosis in Gastric Cancer Cells through Reactivation of p53 and Inhibition of Mdm-2
    Gao H, Li H, Liu W, Mishra SK, Li C
    Dokl Biochem Biophys, 2021 Sep;500(1):393-401.
    PMID: 34697748 DOI: 10.1134/S1607672921050070
    Andrographolide is a labdane diterpenoid isolated from Andrographis paniculata. The plant extract and andrographolide has long been used in traditional medicine practices mainly for gastrointestinal diseases and improving liver function. Andrographolide has shown various pharmacological properties including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and anticancer activity. This study evaluated the effect of andrographolide on proliferation of human gastric carcinoma cells in relevance to p53 and Mdm-2 pathways. Andrographolide inhibited the proliferation of SGC7901 and AGS cells in a dose-dependent manner with estimated IC50 values 38 and 44 μM respectively. Effect of andrographolide on p53 activity was ascertained by using a p53 activator (RITA) which showed synergistic inhibition of cell proliferation. While andrographolide when used in combination with a p53 inhibitor (pifithrin-α) showed potent restriction over its response. Andrographolide caused decrease in mitochondrial membrane potential as an indicator of apoptotic activity. Andrographolide activated the expression of p53 protein and gene and downregulated the levels of Mdm-2 (negative regulator of p53). Andrographolide inhibited the colony formation abilities in SGC7901 in a p53-dependent manner followed by induction of mitochondrial intrinsic apoptosis through activation of caspases-9 and -3, cleavage of PARP, and inhibition of pro-apoptotic Bcl-2. Andrographolide induced p53 mediated apoptosis in gastric carcinoma cells which adds to a novel approach in anticancer therapies.
    MeSH terms: Humans; Cell Line, Tumor; Cell Proliferation/drug effects; Membrane Potential, Mitochondrial/drug effects
  15. Fulltext Development of a Polysaccharide-Based Hydrogel Drug Delivery System (DDS): An Update
    Pushpamalar J, Meganathan P, Tan HL, Dahlan NA, Ooi LT, Neerooa BNHM, et al.
    Gels, 2021 Sep 27;7(4).
    PMID: 34698125 DOI: 10.3390/gels7040153
    Delivering a drug to the target site with minimal-to-no off-target cytotoxicity is the major determinant for the success of disease therapy. While the therapeutic efficacy and cytotoxicity of the drug play the main roles, the use of a suitable drug delivery system (DDS) is important to protect the drug along the administration route and release it at the desired target site. Polysaccharides have been extensively studied as a biomaterial for DDS development due to their high biocompatibility. More usefully, polysaccharides can be crosslinked with various molecules such as micro/nanoparticles and hydrogels to form a modified DDS. According to IUPAC, hydrogel is defined as the structure and processing of sols, gels, networks and inorganic-organic hybrids. This 3D network which often consists of a hydrophilic polymer can drastically improve the physical and chemical properties of DDS to increase the biodegradability and bioavailability of the carrier drugs. The advancement of nanotechnology also allows the construction of hydrogel DDS with enhanced functionalities such as stimuli-responsiveness, target specificity, sustained drug release, and therapeutic efficacy. This review provides a current update on the use of hydrogel DDS derived from polysaccharide-based materials in delivering various therapeutic molecules and drugs. We also highlighted the factors that affect the efficacy of these DDS and the current challenges of developing them for clinical use.
  16. Fulltext Application of "Magnetic Anchors" to Align Collagen Fibres for Axonal Guidance
    Sirkkunan DS, Muhamad F, Pingguan-Murphy B
    Gels, 2021 Sep 27;7(4).
    PMID: 34698174 DOI: 10.3390/gels7040154
    The use of neural scaffolds with a highly defined microarchitecture, fabricated with standard techniques such as electrospinning and microfluidic spinning, requires surgery for their application to the site of injury. To circumvent the risk associated with aciurgy, new strategies for treatment are sought. This has led to an increase in the quantity of research into injectable hydrogels in recent years. However, little research has been conducted into controlling the building blocks within these injectable hydrogels to produce similar scaffolds with a highly defined microarchitecture. "Magnetic particle string" and biomimetic amphiphile self-assembly are some of the methods currently available to achieve this purpose. Here, we developed a "magnetic anchor" method to improve the orientation of collagen fibres within injectable 3D scaffolds. This procedure uses GMNP (gold magnetic nanoparticle) "anchors" capped with CMPs (collagen mimetic peptides) that "chain" them to collagen fibres. Through the application of a magnetic field during the gelling process, these collagen fibres are aligned accordingly. It was shown in this study that the application of CMP functionalised GMNPs in a magnetic field significantly improves the alignment of the collagen fibres, which, in turn, improves the orientation of PC12 neurites. The growth of these neurite extensions, which were shown to be significantly longer, was also improved. The PC12 cells grown in collagen scaffolds fabricated using the "magnetic anchor" method shows comparable cellular viability to that of the untreated collagen scaffolds. This capability of remote control of the alignment of fibres within injectable collagen scaffolds opens up new strategic avenues in the research for treating debilitating neural tissue pathologies.
  17. Fulltext Pharmacists' Interventions on Electronic Prescriptions from Various Specialty Wards in a Malaysian Public Hospital: A Cross-Sectional Study
    Ooi PL, Zainal H, Lean QY, Ming LC, Ibrahim B
    Pharmacy (Basel), 2021 Oct 01;9(4).
    PMID: 34698254 DOI: 10.3390/pharmacy9040161
    Background: The emergence of new technologies in the area of health information and communication helps pharmacists to check the safety of medications used via electronic prescribing. Objectives: The study aimed to identify the rate and types of problems with electronic prescriptions (e-prescriptions) that required pharmacist intervention at an inpatient pharmacy, and to evaluate prescribers' acceptance of these interventions. Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study on the interventions of e-prescriptions documented by pharmacists was conducted in a public hospital inpatient pharmacy. Data were collected for descriptive analysis using a collection form, including the e-prescription interventions, types of wards, drugs involved, and acceptance of intervention by prescribers. A chi-square test was used to evaluate the association between ward pharmacist availability and the rate of interventions. Results: A total number of 11,922 (3.3%) pharmacist interventions were proposed for 357,760 e-prescriptions ordered in the 12 month study period. Of the total number of proposed interventions, 11,381 (95.5%) were accepted by prescribers. The interventions on e-prescriptions were from surgical wards (11.7%) followed by intensive care (5.6%), paediatric (3.5%) and medical specialty wards (2.9%). Anti-infective agents (33.8%) and cardiovascular medicines (27.0%) were among the drugs with the highest rate of interventions. The most common type of intervention was revising the drug regimen (58.4%), especially with anti-infective agents (33.8%). Prescribers in surgical wards showed the highest level of acceptance of pharmacist interventions, which was 97.37%. The presence of ward pharmacists showed a higher number of interventions (6.2 vs. 1.0%, p < 0.001) than wards without pharmacists, as well as a higher percentage of acceptance (96.4 vs. 91.1%, p < 0.001) towards e-prescription intervention. Conclusion: In e-prescribing, errors can be prevented by pharmacists' interventions on e-prescriptions. This helps to prevent medication errors and thus optimise rational pharmacotherapy in patients. The role of ward pharmacists in pharmaceutical care is highly accepted by prescribers.
  18. Tailored rigidity of W/O Pickering emulsions using diacylglycerol-based surface-active solid lipid nanoparticles
    Li G, Lee WJ, Tan CP, Lai OM, Wang Y, Qiu C
    Food Funct, 2021 Nov 29;12(23):11732-11746.
    PMID: 34698749 DOI: 10.1039/d1fo01883c
    Pickering water-in-oil (W/O) emulsions were fabricated by using medium-long chain diacylglycerol (MLCD)-based solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) and the connection between the characteristics of the SLNs and the colloidal stability of the emulsions was established. Via melt-emulsification and ultrasonication, MLCD-based SLNs with particle sizes of 120-300 nm were obtained with or without other surfactants. The particle size of the SLNs was influenced by the chemical properties of the surfactants, and surfactants decreased the contact angle of SLNs at the oil-water interface. Gelation was observed in SLNs modified by sodium stearoyl lactylate and lecithin, whereas the addition of Tween 20 resulted in a homogeneous SLN solution. The adsorption of surfactants onto SLN surfaces caused the production of higher amounts of α crystals accompanied by delayed crystallization onset which contributed to the reduction of particle size, interfacial tension and oil wetting ability. The W/O emulsions with higher rigidity and physical stability can be obtained by varying surfactant types and by increasing SLN mass ratios to 60%, whereby more SLNs are adsorbed at the droplet surface as a Pickering stabilizer. This study provides useful insights for the development of diacylglycerol-based SLNs and Pickering W/O emulsions which have great potential for food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical applications.
    MeSH terms: Adsorption; Diglycerides/chemistry*; Emulsions/chemistry*; Liposomes/chemistry*; Sonication; Surface-Active Agents/chemistry*; Water/chemistry; Nanoparticles/chemistry*
  19. Ethyl caffeate ameliorated amyloid-beta42 protein-associated toxicity in PC12 cells and Drosophila melanogaster
    Tan FHP, Hadri NAB, Najimudin N, Watanabe N, Azzam G
    Geriatr Gerontol Int, 2021 Dec;21(12):1125-1130.
    PMID: 34699118 DOI: 10.1111/ggi.14296
    AIM: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most pervasive neurodegenerative disorder in societies globally. Till now, the mechanism behind this disease is still equivocal. Amyloid-beta42 protein (Aβ42), the most toxic and aggressive Aβ species, is the main focus of this study. The naturally occurring ethyl caffeate (EC) is associated with various medicinal properties. Here, EC was tested for its protective properties against Aβ42's toxic effects.

    METHODS: As treatment of Aβ42 has been shown to cause neuronal cell death, EC was first screened with Aβ42-incubated PC12 neuronal cells. Next, the compound was tested on the Drosophila melanogaster AD model using the rough eye phenotype assay, lifespan assay and negative geotaxis assay.

    RESULTS: EC ameliorated PC12 cells from cell death linked to Aβ42 exposure. Using Drosophila expressing human Aβ42, feeding of EC was able to partially rescue the rough eye phenotype, lengthen the lifespan of AD Drosophila and enhanced the mobility of middle-aged AD Drosophila.

    CONCLUSION: Overall, the results of this study showed that EC might possess therapeutic properties for AD. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2021; 21: 1125-1130.

  20. Productive engagement of older adults in China: A multilevel analysis
    Sia BK, Tey NP, Goh KL, Ng ST
    Geriatr Gerontol Int, 2021 Dec;21(12):1138-1146.
    PMID: 34700364 DOI: 10.1111/ggi.14299
    AIM: This study investigates how the personal characteristics and behavior, and health status of older adults in China influenced their productive engagement in paid and unpaid jobs.

    METHODS: Data for this analysis came from 2002, 2005, 2008 and 2011 waves of the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS). We used a random intercept multilevel multinomial logit model to analyze data from 3208 older adults aged 65 from the 2002 wave, which decreased to 1385 in 2011. The main study variable is older adults' engagement in paid jobs and unpaid work (including housework, care-taking, poultry farming, and planting vegetables that have an economic value).

    RESULTS: There was a strong association between older adults' productive engagement and their functional limitations to daily living activities, health and healthy behavior. Older adults with inadequate finance were more likely to be working to support themselves. Those who exercised less and living in the provinces with higher GDP were less likely to work post-retirement. Chronic diseases, advances in age, no education and rural residence did not deter older adults from doing unpaid work.

    CONCLUSION: Older adults in China were actively engaged in paid and unpaid activities. Efforts to support the active engagement of older adults require all stakeholders to promote healthy living, facilitate social engagements and provide an age-friendly work environment. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2021; 21: 1138-1146.

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