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  1. Anderson CS, Rodgers A, de Silva HA, Martins SO, Klijn CJ, Senanayake B, et al.
    Int J Stroke, 2022 Dec;17(10):1156-1162.
    PMID: 34994269 DOI: 10.1177/17474930211068671
    BACKGROUND: Patients who suffer intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) are at very high risk of recurrent ICH and other serious cardiovascular events. A single-pill combination (SPC) of blood pressure (BP) lowering drugs offers a potentially powerful but simple strategy to optimize secondary prevention.

    OBJECTIVES: The Triple Therapy Prevention of Recurrent Intracerebral Disease Events Trial (TRIDENT) aims to determine the effects of a novel SPC "Triple Pill," three generic antihypertensive drugs with demonstrated efficacy and complementary mechanisms of action at half standard dose (telmisartan 20 mg, amlodipine 2.5 mg, and indapamide 1.25 mg), with placebo for the prevention of recurrent stroke, cardiovascular events, and cognitive impairment after ICH.

    DESIGN: An international, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial in adults with ICH and mild-moderate hypertension (systolic BP: 130-160 mmHg), who are not taking any Triple Pill component drug at greater than half-dose. A total of 1500 randomized patients provide 90% power to detect a hazard ratio of 0.5, over an average follow-up of 3 years, according to a total primary event rate (any stroke) of 12% in the control arm and other assumptions. Secondary outcomes include recurrent ICH, cardiovascular events, and safety.

    RESULTS: Recruitment started 28 September 2017. Up to 31 October 2021, 821 patients were randomized at 54 active sites in 10 countries. Triple Pill adherence after 30 months is 86%. The required sample size should be achieved by 2024.

    CONCLUSION: Low-dose Triple Pill BP lowering could improve long-term outcome from ICH.

  2. Tam CL, Foo YC, Lee TH
    East Asian Arch Psychiatry, 2011 Jun;21(2):73-8.
    PMID: 21838210
    Objectives: To examine gender differences in mental health and perceived social support, relationship between parents’ income and mental health, and differences in mental health across education levels.
    Methods: A total of 303 students aged 16 to 26 years were recruited from Selangor, Malaysia. The Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support and General Health Questionnaire were used to measure the level of perceived social support and the mental health status. Demographic data, including education level and parents’ income, were also obtained.
    Results: Females perceived significantly higher levels f overall social support than males (t = –2.7; p < 0.05). However, there were no significant differences in mental health status between males and females (t = –1.8; p > 0.05), as well as mental health status among different parental income groups (χ2 = 5.0; p > 0.05) and the education levels of the subjects (χ2 = 0.7; p > 0.05). A more favourable mental health status of the subjects was associated with higher parental incomes (r = –0.1; p < 0.05).
    Conclusions: There were gender differences for perceived social support, but not for mental health status in older adolescents and young adults. There was also a relationship between parental income and an individual’s mental health status, but mental health was not related to their education level.
    Key words: Mental health; Social class; Social support
  3. Recto MT, Gabriel MT, Kulthanan K, Tantilipikorn P, Aw DC, Lee TH, et al.
    Clin Mol Allergy, 2017;15:19.
    PMID: 29118675 DOI: 10.1186/s12948-017-0074-3
    Background: Allergic diseases are on the rise in many parts of the world, including the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. Second-generation antihistamines are the first-line treatment option in the management of allergic rhinitis and urticaria. International guidelines describe the management of these conditions; however, clinicians perceive the additional need to tailor treatment according to patient profiles. This study serves as a consensus of experts from several countries in APAC (Hong Kong, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam), which aims to describe the unmet needs, practical considerations, challenges, and key decision factors when determining optimal second-generation antihistamines for patients with allergic rhinitis and/or urticaria.

    Methods: Specialists from allergology, dermatology, and otorhinolaryngology were surveyed on practical considerations and key decision points when treating patients with allergic rhinitis and/or urticaria.

    Results: Clinicians felt the need for additional tools for diagnosis of these diseases and a single drug with all preferred features of an antihistamine. Challenges in treatment include lack of clinician and patient awareness and compliance, financial constraints, and treatment for special patient populations such as those with concomitant disease. Selection of optimal second-generation antihistamines depends on many factors, particularly drug safety and efficacy, impact on psychomotor abilities, and sedation. Country-specific considerations include drug availability and cost-effectiveness. Survey results reveal bilastine as a preferred choice due to its high efficacy and safety, suitability for special patient populations, and the lack of sedative effects.

    Conclusions: Compliance to the international guidelines is present among allergists, dermatologists and otorhinolaryngologists; however, this is lower amongst general practitioners (GPs). To increase awareness, allergy education programs targeted at GPs and patients may be beneficial. Updates to the existing international guidelines are suggested in APAC to reflect appropriate management for different patient profiles and varying symptoms of allergic rhinitis and urticaria.

  4. Lee TH, Wani WA, Koay YS, Kavita S, Tan ETT, Shreaz S
    Food Res Int, 2017 10;100(Pt 1):14-27.
    PMID: 28873672 DOI: 10.1016/j.foodres.2017.07.036
    Edible bird's nest (EBN) is an expensive animal bioproduct due to its reputation as a food and delicacy with diverse medicinal properties. One kilogram of EBN costs ~$6000 in China. EBN and its products are consumed in mostly Asian countries such as China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand, making up almost 1/3 of world population. The rapid growth in EBN consumption has led to a big rise in the trade scale of its global market. Presently, various fake materials such as tremella fungus, pork skin, karaya gum, fish swimming bladder, jelly, agar, monosodium glutamate and egg white are used to adulterate EBNs for earning extra profits. Adulterated or fake EBN may be hazardous to the consumers. Thus, it is necessary to identify of the adulterants. Several sophisticated techniques based on genetics, immunochemistry, spectroscopy, chromatography and gel electrophoresis have been used for the detection of various types of adulterants in EBN. This article describes the recent advances in the authentication methods for EBN. Different genetic, immunochemical, spectroscopic and analytical methods such as genetics (DNA) based techniques, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, Fourier transform infrared and Raman spectroscopic techniques, and chromatographic and gel electrophoretic methods have been discussed. Besides, significance of the reported methods that might pertain them to applications in EBN industry has been described. Finally, efforts have been made to discuss the challenges and future perspectives of the authentication methods for EBN.
  5. Cheng J, Wang Y, Hou J, Luo D, Xie Q, Ning Q, et al.
    J Clin Virol, 2014 Dec;61(4):509-16.
    PMID: 25200354 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcv.2014.08.008
    In mainland China, peginterferon (PEG-IFN) alfa-2b 1.0μg/kg/wk for 24 weeks is the approved treatment for HBeAg-positive chronic hepatitis B.
  6. Wong SL, Nyakuma BB, Wong KY, Lee CT, Lee TH, Lee CH
    Mar Pollut Bull, 2020 Sep;158:111432.
    PMID: 32753215 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111432
    This paper presents the research landscape on microplastics and nanoplastics (M/NPs) in global food webs based on a bibliometric analysis of 330 publications published in 2009-2019 extracted from Web of Science. The publications increased tremendously since 2013. Marine Pollution Bulletin is one of the top productive journals for this topic. The publication landscape related to M/NPs in global food webs, as interdisciplinary research, is highly dependent on the funding availability. The high productivities of England, China, USA and European countries are attributed to the funding from the agencies at regional or national levels. Keyword analysis reveals the shift of research hotspots from investigations on M/NPs absorbed by various organisms in the ecosystems to studies on the trophic transfer of M/NPs and sorbed contaminants in the food webs and their associated adverse impacts. Funding agencies play important roles in leading the future development of this topic.
  7. Rusli SM, Choo JM, Lee TH, Piozzi GN, Cuellar-Gomez H, Baek SJ, et al.
    Colorectal Dis, 2023 Mar;25(3):431-442.
    PMID: 36281503 DOI: 10.1111/codi.16387
    AIM: The applicability of laparoscopic D3 oncological resection for splenic flexure cancer (SFC) surgery has not been fully explored due to technical difficulties and variations in surgical procedure. The aim of this work is to describe the feasibility of performing laparoscopic D3 resection in SFC and its impact on long-term survival.

    METHOD: A retrospective study on 47 out of 52 consecutive patients who underwent elective laparoscopic colectomy for SFC from December 2006 until December 2019 at Korea University Anam Hospital was performed. Data on patients' demographic and clinical features, surgical procedures, intraoperative and postoperative complications, pathological features and follow-up were collected. Categorical data are expressed as frequencies (n) and percentages (%). Continuous data are expressed as mean ± standard deviation and median (range). The Kaplan-Meier test was used to determine the overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS) and disease-free survival (DFS).

    RESULTS: The median age of patients was 67.0 years (range 27-87 years) and 72.3% were men. Ten (21.3%) patients presented with an obstructing tumour and underwent an elective laparoscopic colectomy, while 68.1% of patients presented with Stage II and III disease. The conversion rate was 4.3% and the morbidity rate was 31.9%. There was one postoperative death secondary to splenic infarction and anastomotic leak leading to multi-organ failure. Four deaths occurred due to disease progression during a median follow-up of 63.8 months. The rate of recurrence was 20%, the 5-year OS was 89.6% and the 5-year PFS was 72.9%. After R0 resection, the 5-year OS was 91.5% and the 5-year DFS was 74.5%.

    CONCLUSION: Laparoscopic D3 colectomy for SFC is feasible, with an acceptable morbidity and long-term oncological outcome when performed by highly skilled laparoscopic colorectal surgeons with knowledge of the complex anatomy around the splenic flexure. Further randomized trials should be performed to determine the advantage of laparoscopic D3 colectomy over conventional colectomy for SFC.

  8. Chua LS, Amin NA, Neo JC, Lee TH, Lee CT, Sarmidi MR, et al.
    J Chromatogr B Analyt Technol Biomed Life Sci, 2011 Dec 15;879(32):3909-19.
    PMID: 22119436 DOI: 10.1016/j.jchromb.2011.11.002
    A number of three LC-MS/MS hybrid systems (QTof, TripleTof and QTrap) has been used to profile small metabolites (m/z 100-1000) and to detect the targeted metabolites such as quassinoids, alkaloids, triterpene and biphenylneolignans from the aqueous extracts of Eurycoma longifolia. The metabolite profiles of small molecules showed four significant clusters in the principle component analysis for the aqueous extracts of E. longifolia, which had been collected from different geographical terrains (Perak and Pahang) and processed at different extraction temperatures (35°C and 100°C). A small peptide of leucine (m/z 679) and a new hydroxyl methyl β-carboline propionic acid have been identified to differentiate E. longifolia extracts that prepared at 35°C and 100°C, respectively. From the targeted metabolites identification, it was found that 3,4ɛ-dihydroeurycomanone (quassinoids) and eurylene (squalene-type triterpene) could only be detected in the Pahang extract, whereas canthin-6-one-3N-oxide could only be detected in the Perak extract. Overall, quassinoids were present in the highest concentration, particularly eurycomanone and its derivatives compared to the other groups of metabolites. However, the concentration of canthin-6-one and β-carboline alkaloids was significantly increased when the roots of the plant samples were extracted at 100°C.
  9. Pan DS, Huang JH, Lee MH, Yu Y, Chen MI, Goh EH, et al.
    BMC Fam Pract, 2016 11 03;17(1):148.
    PMID: 27809770 DOI: 10.1186/s12875-016-0547-3
    BACKGROUND: Patients' expectations can influence antibiotic prescription by primary healthcare physicians. We assessed knowledge, attitude and practices towards antibiotic use for upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs), and whether knowledge is associated with increased expectations for antibiotics among patients visiting primary healthcare services in Singapore.

    METHODS: Data was collected through a cross-sectional interviewer-assisted survey of patients aged ≥21 years waiting to see primary healthcare practitioners for one or more symptoms suggestive of URTI (cough, sore throat, runny nose or blocked nose) for 7 days or less, covering the demographics, presenting symptoms, knowledge, attitudes, beliefs and practices of URTI and associated antibiotic use. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression was used to assess independent factors associated with patients' expectations for antibiotics.

    RESULTS: Nine hundred fourteen out of 987 eligible patients consulting 35 doctors were recruited from 24 private sector primary care clinics in Singapore. A third (307/907) expected antibiotics, of which a substantial proportion would ask the doctor for antibiotics (121/304, 40 %) and/or see another doctor (31/304, 10 %) if antibiotics were not prescribed. The majority agreed "antibiotics are effective against viruses" (715/914, 78 %) and that "antibiotics cure URTI faster" (594/912, 65 %). Inappropriate antibiotic practices include "keeping antibiotics stock at home" (125/913, 12 %), "taking leftover antibiotics" (114/913, 14 %) and giving antibiotics to family members (62/913, 7 %). On multivariate regression, the following factors were independently associated with wanting antibiotics (odds ratio; 95 % confidence interval): Malay ethnicity (1.67; 1.00-2.79), living in private housing (1.69; 1.13-2.51), presence of sore throat (1.50; 1.07-2.10) or fever (1.46; 1.01-2.12), perception that illness is serious (1.70; 1.27-2.27), belief that antibiotics cure URTI faster (5.35; 3.76-7.62) and not knowing URTI resolves on its own (2.18; 1.08-2.06), while post-secondary education (0.67; 0.48-0.94) was inversely associated. Those with lower educational levels were significantly more likely to have multiple misconceptions about antibiotics.

    CONCLUSION: Majority of patients seeking primary health care in Singapore are misinformed about the role of antibiotics in URTI. Agreeing with the statement that antibiotics cure URTI faster was most strongly associated with wanting antibiotics. Those with higher educational levels were less likely to want antibiotics, while those with lower educational levels more likely to have incorrect knowledge.
  10. Mudway IS, Dundas I, Wood HE, Marlin N, Jamaludin JB, Bremner SA, et al.
    Lancet Public Health, 2019 Jan;4(1):e28-e40.
    PMID: 30448150 DOI: 10.1016/S2468-2667(18)30202-0
    BACKGROUND: Low emission zones (LEZ) are an increasingly common, but unevaluated, intervention aimed at improving urban air quality and public health. We investigated the impact of London's LEZ on air quality and children's respiratory health.

    METHODS: We did a sequential annual cross-sectional study of 2164 children aged 8-9 years attending primary schools between 2009-10 and 2013-14 in central London, UK, following the introduction of London's LEZ in February, 2008. We examined the association between modelled pollutant exposures of nitrogen oxides (including nitrogen dioxide [NO2]) and particulate matter with a diameter of less than 2·5 μm (PM2·5) and less than 10 μm (PM10) and lung function: postbronchodilator forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1, primary outcome), forced vital capacity (FVC), and respiratory or allergic symptoms. We assigned annual exposures by each child's home and school address, as well as spatially resolved estimates for the 3 h (0600-0900 h), 24 h, and 7 days before each child's assessment, to isolate long-term from short-term effects.

    FINDINGS: The percentage of children living at addresses exceeding the EU limit value for annual NO2 (40 μg/m3) fell from 99% (444/450) in 2009 to 34% (150/441) in 2013. Over this period, we identified a reduction in NO2 at both roadside (median -1·35 μg/m3 per year; 95% CI -2·09 to -0·61; p=0·0004) and background locations (-0·97; -1·56 to -0·38; p=0·0013), but not for PM10. The effect on PM2·5 was equivocal. We found no association between postbronchodilator FEV1 and annual residential pollutant attributions. By contrast, FVC was inversely correlated with annual NO2 (-0·0023 L/μg per m3; -0·0044 to -0·0002; p=0·033) and PM10 (-0·0090 L/μg per m3; -0·0175 to -0·0005; p=0·038).

    INTERPRETATION: Within London's LEZ, a smaller lung volume in children was associated with higher annual air pollutant exposures. We found no evidence of a reduction in the proportion of children with small lungs over this period, despite small improvements in air quality in highly polluted urban areas during the implementation of London's LEZ. Interventions that deliver larger reductions in emissions might yield improvements in children's health.

    FUNDING: National Institute for Health Research Biomedical Research Centre at Guy's and St Thomas' National Health Service (NHS) Foundation Trust and King's College London, NHS Hackney, Lee Him donation, and Felicity Wilde Charitable Trust.

  11. Ekker MS, Jacob MA, van Dongen MME, Aarnio K, Annamalai AK, Arauz A, et al.
    BMJ Open, 2019 11 14;9(11):e031144.
    PMID: 31727655 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2019-031144
    INTRODUCTION: Worldwide, 2 million patients aged 18-50 years suffer a stroke each year, and this number is increasing. Knowledge about global distribution of risk factors and aetiologies, and information about prognosis and optimal secondary prevention in young stroke patients are limited. This limits evidence-based treatment and hampers the provision of appropriate information regarding the causes of stroke, risk factors and prognosis of young stroke patients.

    METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The Global Outcome Assessment Life-long after stroke in young adults (GOAL) initiative aims to perform a global individual patient data meta-analysis with existing data from young stroke cohorts worldwide. All patients aged 18-50 years with ischaemic stroke or intracerebral haemorrhage will be included. Outcomes will be the distribution of stroke aetiology and (vascular) risk factors, functional outcome after stroke, risk of recurrent vascular events and death and finally the use of secondary prevention. Subgroup analyses will be made based on age, gender, aetiology, ethnicity and climate of residence.

    ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval for the GOAL study has already been obtained from the Medical Review Ethics Committee region Arnhem-Nijmegen. Additionally and when necessary, approval will also be obtained from national or local institutional review boards in the participating centres. When needed, a standardised data transfer agreement will be provided for participating centres. We plan dissemination of our results in peer-reviewed international scientific journals and through conference presentations. We expect that the results of this unique study will lead to better understanding of worldwide differences in risk factors, causes and outcome of young stroke patients.

  12. Jacob MA, Ekker MS, Allach Y, Cai M, Aarnio K, Arauz A, et al.
    Neurology, 2022 Feb 08;98(6):e573-e588.
    PMID: 34906974 DOI: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000013195
    BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: There is a worldwide increase in the incidence of stroke in young adults, with major regional and ethnic differences. Advancing knowledge of ethnic and regional variation in causes and outcomes will be beneficial in implementation of regional health care services. We studied the global distribution of risk factors, causes, and 3-month mortality of young patients with ischemic stroke, by performing a patient data meta-analysis from different cohorts worldwide.

    METHODS: We performed a pooled analysis of individual patient data from cohort studies that included consecutive patients with ischemic stroke aged 18-50 years. We studied differences in prevalence of risk factors and causes of ischemic stroke between different ethnic and racial groups, geographic regions, and countries with different income levels. We investigated differences in 3-month mortality by mixed-effects multivariable logistic regression.

    RESULTS: We included 17,663 patients from 32 cohorts in 29 countries. Hypertension and diabetes were most prevalent in Black (hypertension, 52.1%; diabetes, 20.7%) and Asian patients (hypertension 46.1%, diabetes, 20.9%). Large vessel atherosclerosis and small vessel disease were more often the cause of stroke in high-income countries (HICs; both p < 0.001), whereas "other determined stroke" and "undetermined stroke" were higher in low and middle-income countries (LMICs; both p < 0.001). Patients in LMICs were younger, had less vascular risk factors, and despite this, more often died within 3 months than those from HICs (odds ratio 2.49; 95% confidence interval 1.42-4.36).

    DISCUSSION: Ethnoracial and regional differences in risk factors and causes of stroke at young age provide an understanding of ethnic and racial and regional differences in incidence of ischemic stroke. Our results also highlight the dissimilarities in outcome after stroke in young adults that exist between LMICs and HICs, which should serve as call to action to improve health care facilities in LMICs.

  13. Tong SR, Lee TH, Cheong SK, Lim YM
    Front Nutr, 2021;8:658634.
    PMID: 34262923 DOI: 10.3389/fnut.2021.658634
    Background: Edible Bird's Nest (EBN) is famously consumed as a food tonic for its high nutritional values with numerous recuperative and therapeutic properties. EBN is majority exploited from swiftlet houses but the differences in terms of metabolite distribution between the production site of house EBN is not yet fully understood. Therefore, this study was designed to identify the metabolite distribution and to determine the relationship pattern for the metabolite distribution of house EBNs from different locations in Malaysia. Methods: The differences of metabolite distribution in house EBN were studied by collecting the samples from 13 states in Malaysia. An extraction method of eHMG was acquired to extract the metabolites of EBN and was subjected to non-targeted metabolite profiling via liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Unsupervised multivariate analysis and Venn diagram were used to explore the relationship pattern among the house EBNs in Malaysia. The geographical distribution surrounded the swiftlet house was investigated to understand its influences on the metabolite distribution. Results: The hierarchical clustering analysis (HCA) combined with correlation coefficient revealed the differences between the house EBNs in Malaysia with four main clusters formation. The metabolites distribution among these clusters was unique with their varied combination of geographical distribution. Cluster 1 grouped EBNs from Selangor, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Terengganu which geographically distributed with major oil palm field in township; Cluster 2 included Perak and Sarawak with high distribution of oil palm in higher altitude; Cluster 3 included Perlis, Kelantan, Kedah, Penang from lowland of paddy field in village mostly and Cluster 4 grouped Sabah, Pahang, Johor which are majorly distributed with undeveloped hills. The metabolites which drove each cluster formation have happened in a group instead of individual key metabolite. The major metabolites that characterised Cluster 1 were fatty acids, while the rest of the clusters were peptides and secondary metabolites. Conclusion: The metabolite profiling conducted in this study was able to discriminate the Malaysian house EBNs based on metabolites distribution. The factor that most inferences the differences of house EBNs were the geographical distribution, in which geographical distribution affects the distribution of insect and the diet of swiftlet.
  14. Wong S, Mah AXY, Nordin AH, Nyakuma BB, Ngadi N, Mat R, et al.
    Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2020 Mar;27(8):7757-7784.
    PMID: 32020458 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-020-07933-y
    The rapidly increasing generation of municipal solid waste (MSW) threatens the environmental integrity and well-being of humans at a global level. Incineration is regarded as a technically sound technology for the management of MSW. However, the effective management of the municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) ashes remains a challenge. This article presents the global dynamics of MSWI ashes research from 1994 to 2018 based on a bibliometric analysis of 1810 publications (research articles and conference proceedings) extracted from the Web of Science database, followed by a comprehensive summary on the research developments in the field. The results indicate the rapid growth of annual publications on MSWI ashes research, with China observed as the most productive country within the study period. Waste Management, Journal of Hazardous Materials, Chemosphere and Waste Management & Research, which accounted for 35.42% of documents on MSWI research, are the most prominent journals in the field. The most critical thematic areas on this topic are MSWI ashes characterisation, dioxin emissions from fly ash, valorisation of bottom ash and heavy metal removal. The evolution of MSWI ashes treatment technologies is also discussed, together with the challenges and future research directions. This is the first bibliometric analysis on global MSWI ashes research based on a sufficiently large dataset, which could provide new insights for researchers to initiate further research with leading institutions/authors and ultimately advance this research field.
  15. Chua KH, Lee TH, Nagandran K, Md Yahaya NH, Lee CT, Tjih ET, et al.
    PMID: 23339380 DOI: 10.1186/1472-6882-13-19
    Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative joint disease that results in the destruction of cartilage. Edible Bird's Nest (EBN) extract contains important components, which can reduce the progression of osteoarthritis and helps in the regeneration of the cartilage. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of EBN extract on the catabolic and anabolic activities of the human articular chondrocytes (HACs) isolated from the knee joint of patients with OA.
  16. Lee TH, Wani WA, Lee CH, Cheng KK, Shreaz S, Wong S, et al.
    Front Pharmacol, 2021;12:626233.
    PMID: 33953670 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2021.626233
    Edible Bird's Nest (EBN) is the most prized health delicacy among the Chinese population in the world. Although some scientific characterization and its bioactivities have been studied and researched, no lights have been shed on its actual composition or mechanism. The aim of this review paper is to address the advances of EBN as a therapeutic animal bioproduct, challenges and future perspectives of research involving EBN. The methodology of this review primarily involved a thorough search from the literature undertaken on Web of Science (WoS) using the keyword "edible bird nest". Other information were obtained from the field/market in Malaysia, one of the largest EBN-producing countries. This article collects and describes the publications related to EBN and its therapeutic with diverse functional values. EBN extracts display anti-aging effects, inhibition of influenza virus infection, alternative traditional medicine in athletes and cancer patients, corneal wound healing effects, stimulation of proliferation of human adipose-derived stem cells, potentiate of mitogenic response, epidermal growth factor-like activities, enhancement of bone strength and dermal thickness, eye care, neuroprotective and antioxidant effects. In-depth literature study based on scientific findings were carried out on EBN and its properties. More importantly, the future direction of EBN in research and development as health-promoting ingredients in food and the potential treatment of certain diseases have been outlined.
  17. Shim SH, Lee TH, Yang SJ, Noor NBM, Kim JH
    Materials (Basel), 2021 Aug 19;14(16).
    PMID: 34443190 DOI: 10.3390/ma14164663
    The major cement composition ratios of alite, belite, aluminate, and ferrite have been calculated with the Bogue models until now. However, a recent comprehensive analysis based on various experimental data has revealed that the chemical composition of alite, belite, aluminate, and ferrite implemented by the Bogue models are slightly different than the experimental data, where small amounts of Al2O3 and Fe2O3 existing in alite and belite can change the prediction of cement composition. Since the amounts of cement compound are very important factors in determining the properties of concrete, improvement in the calculation would give more precise prediction for application usages such as climate change adaptable cement and high durable concrete manufacturing. For this purpose, 20 new models are proposed by modifying chemical compositions of the cement compounds and verified with the 50 experimental data sets. From the verification, the most accurate models are identified. The calculation using new models exhibit an accuracy improvement of approximately 5% compared to the Bogue models. Their applicable range is also presented. The study results are discussed in detail in the paper.
  18. Choi SJ, Lee TH, Noor NM, Kim JJ
    Sci Rep, 2022 Dec 16;12(1):21736.
    PMID: 36526720 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-26062-9
    The degree of structural damage is significantly more severe when a blast occurs inside than outside of a structure. However, existing designs for RC structures such as reinforced concrete containment vessels (RCCV) do not include design features to protect the structure for internal blast. Therefore, the internal blast resistance capacity of RC structures is evaluated by performing internal blast tests on RC tubular structures. The main objective of the study was to observe and document the basic structural behavior data obtained from internal detonation tests. ANFO explosive charge weights of 15.88, 20.41, 22.68 and 24.95 kg were selected for a charge detonating at a cross section center of the mid-span of the specimen, giving a standoff distance to the inner wall surface of 1000 mm. The data acquisitions include blast pressure, deflection, strain, and crack pattern. When the explosive charge weight increased from 15.88 to 24.95 kg, the peak incident pressure and time duration increased from 0.1718 to 0.3394 MPa and from 5.856 to 5.981 ms, respectively. Then, the test data were used to predict the internal charge weight required to fail a real scale RCCV using simple assumptions and the test data. The results of the study are discussed in detail in the paper.
  19. Weralupitiya C, Wanigatunge R, Joseph S, Athapattu BCL, Lee TH, Kumar Biswas J, et al.
    Bioresour Technol, 2021 Apr 28;334:125240.
    PMID: 33964811 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2021.125240
    The discovery of anammox process has provided eco-friendly and low-cost means of treating ammonia rich wastewater with remarkable efficiency. Furthermore, recent studies have shown that the possibility of operating the anammox process under low temperatures and high organic matter contents broadening the application of the anammox process. However, short doubling time and extensive levels of sensitivity towards nutrients and environmental alterations such as salinity and temperature are the limitations in practical applications of the anammox process. This review article provides the recent yet comprehensive viewpoint on anammox bacteria and the key perspectives in applying them as an efficient strategy for wastewater treatment.
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