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Fulltext Acute myocardial infarction as Eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (formerly Churg Strauss syndrome) initial presentation. [Infarto agudo do miocárdio como apresentação inicial de granulomatose eosinofílica com poliangiite (anteriormente, síndrome de Churg Strauss)]

Sulaiman W, Ong PS, Mohd Noor S

Rev Bras Reumatol Engl Ed, 2014 Sep-Oct;54(5):393-6.
PMID: 25627304 DOI: 10.1016/j.rbr.2013.03.002

Eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis is a rare primary vasculitic disease characterized by hypereosinophilia, late onset asthma and extravascular eosinophil granulomas. We report a case presented initially with acute myocardial infarction which later only proceed with asthma, skin manifestations and peripheral neuropathy. Laboratory parameters showed hypereosinohpilia with negative perinuclear pattern of antineutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibodies (p-ANCA). Skin biopsy showed leucocytoclastic vasculitis with eosinophilic infiltration while coronary angiography was normal. The patient's symptoms improved with IV methylprednisolone, pulse cyclophosphamide and azathioprine.
Fulltext Blood supply management during the Covid-19 pandemic: Experience in a tertiary referral hospital in Malaysia

Tan PP, Chang CT, Mohd Noor S

Transfus Apher Sci, 2021 Feb;60(1):102982.
PMID: 33191080 DOI: 10.1016/j.transci.2020.102982
Fulltext Development and Validation of a Malaysian Blood Donor's Satisfaction Questionnaire

Tan PP, Chang CT, Abdul Rahman J, Mohd Noor S

Malays J Med Sci, 2021 Jun;28(3):86-96.
PMID: 34285647 DOI: 10.21315/mjms2021.28.3.8

Objective: To develop and validate a questionnaire which evaluates the blood donors' satisfaction.
Background: In Malaysia, blood procurement relies mainly on voluntary non-remunerated donors. Hence, it is important to ensure the satisfaction of the blood donors in order to increase retention.
Methods: This study was conducted among blood donors who attended blood donation and understood the Malay language. Non-Malaysian and illiterate donors were excluded. The questionnaire was developed by the transfusion medicine team. Content validity was established by content reviewers, while face validity was examined in the cognitive debriefing stage. For the 18-item questionnaire, 90 respondents were required based on the 1:5 ratio. A retest was performed in two weeks' time.
Results: One hundred and thirty-seven participants responded in the first phase, while 103 responded after two weeks. The five domains were: technical, interpersonal, accessibility/ convenience, physical experience and overall satisfaction. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) value was 0.896, with significant Bartlett's Test of Sphericity (P < 0.001). The factor loadings ranged from 0.729 to 0.953. The Cronbach alpha values of the five domains ranged from 0.814 to 0.955 and the intraclass correlation coefficient ranged from 0.663 to 0.847.
Conclusion: The Malaysian blood donor's satisfaction (M-BDS) questionnaire is a reliable and valid tool suitable for the assessment of blood donor's satisfaction in blood donation centres.
The Potential of β Carbolin Alkaloids to Hinder Growth and Reverse Chloroquine Resistance in Plasmodium falciparum

Ibraheem ZO, Abdul Majid R, Mohd Noor S, Mohd Sidek H, Basir R

Iran J Parasitol, 2015 Oct-Dec;10(4):577-83.
PMID: 26811724

Nowadays, scourge of malaria as a fatalistic disease has increased due to emergence of drug resistance and tolerance among different strains of Plasmodium falciparum. Emergence of chloroquine (CQ) resistance has worsened the calamity as CQ is still considered the most efficient, safe and cost effective drug among other antimalarials. This urged the scientists to search for other alternatives or sensitizers that may be able to augment CQ action and reverse its resistance.
High sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP): Its relationship with metabolic syndrome and Framingham Risk Score

Zahari Sham SY, Hanif E, Thambiah SC, Samsudin IN, Mohd Noor S, Osman M, et al.

Malays J Pathol, 2021 04;43(1):33-40.
PMID: 33903303

INTRODUCTION: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the leading cause of death in Malaysia. Identification of asymptomatic at-risk individuals is often achieved by means of a risk prediction algorithm. Traditional CVD risk factors and their associated algorithms are, however, limited by residual CVD risk. High sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) has emerged as a novel CVD risk factor. This study aimed to evaluate hsCRP as an adjunct CVD risk marker among the adult Malaysian population by determining its correlation with the Framingham Risk Score (FRS). Comparison analyses were done according to sociodemographic, clinical and laboratory factors and between subjects with and without Metabolic Syndrome (MetS).
METHOD: This cross-sectional study involved eighty-three (n=83) adults attending a health screening program at Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM). Demographic data, anthropometric measurements and blood samples for fasting blood glucose (FBG), fasting lipid profile (FSL), glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) and hsCRP were taken. Respondents were grouped according to FRS and the Joint Interim Statement into 10-year CVD risk categories (low, intermediate and high) and MetS, respectively.
RESULTS: hsCRP was significantly increased in patients with high body mass index (BMI) (p=0.001), at-risk waist circumference (WC) (p=0.001) and MetS (p=0.009). Spearman's correlation coefficient showed a significant positive correlation between hsCRP level and total FRS score (r=0.26, p<0.05) and HDL-C score (r=0.22, p<0.05).
CONCLUSION: The significant difference of hsCRP levels across obesity levels and MetS with its modest correlation with FRS scores supported the adjunctive role of hsCRP in CVD risk prediction, most likely capturing the inflammatory pathological aspect and thus partly accounting for the residual CVD risk.
Residual efficacy of deltamethrin applied to foliage against Malaysian Aedes aegypti (L.) and Aedes albopictus (Skuse)

Mohd-Noor SN, Nur-Rasyidah I, Muhammad-Iqbal MN, Nguyen TBD, Lee HL, Nurulhusna AH

Trop Biomed, 2021 Jun 01;38(2):165-170.
PMID: 34172706 DOI: 10.47665/tb.38.2.053

The spraying of insecticide on foliage to provide an insecticidal barrier may serve as part of the vector control measures to combat the increasing threat of Aedes-borne diseases. The effectiveness of insecticide barrier spraying was evaluated by assessing the residual efficacy of deltamethrin sprayed on foliage against Malaysian Ae. aegypti (L.) and Ae. albopictus (Skuse). In this semi-field study, landscape plants grown within the vicinity of the Institute for Medical Research (IMR), Malaysia, were treated with deltamethrin suspension concentrate (SC) with the dosage of 30 mg/m2 and 50 mg/m2 in three rounds of spraying. Deltamethrin residual activity on treated and untreated leaves was investigated using standard WHO cone bioassays. Wild Aedes populations at both deltamethrin-treated and untreated plant clusters were monitored by ovitrap surveillance. Ovitrap monitoring revealed that the mean number of Ae. albopictus larvae at deltamethrin-treated were significantly lower than the mean number of larvae of the same species at the untreated plant cluster. Cone bioassay results showed that the insecticide remained effective for up to 4 weeks (> 80% mortality), but the insecticide residual activity was affected by rainfall. These results suggest that insecticide barrier spraying is a promising tool and may be used along with other mosquito control tools such as indoor residual spray and space spraying to reduce the dengue burden.
Fulltext Implementation of maximum surgical blood ordering schedule in a tertiary hospital in Malaysia during COVID-19 pandemic

Tan PP, Abdul Rahman J, Mat Noh S, Mohd Yasin I, Mohd Noor S

Transfus Apher Sci, 2021 Dec;60(6):103280.
PMID: 34593332 DOI: 10.1016/j.transci.2021.103280
Fulltext Fatal influenza A (H3N2) and Campylobacter jejuni coinfection

Kahar-Bador M, Nathan AM, Soo MH, Mohd Noor S, AbuBakar S, Lum LC, et al.

Singapore Med J, 2009 Mar;50(3):e112-3.
PMID: 19352555

The rapid diagnosis and subtyping of influenza is particularly important in areas where avian influenza (H5N1) is present. The ability to recognise both typical and atypical presentations of influenza is also critical in such settings. A six-month-old male child who visited a H5N1-affected area subsequently died from a severe febrile diarrhoeal illness with minimal respiratory symptoms, and was initially diagnosed with influenza A of an unknown subtype. The final microbiological results showed a highly unusual combination of influenza A (H3N2) and Campylobacter jejuni infection.
Fulltext Song for Blood Donor's Recruitment and Promotion during COVID-19 Pandemic

Tan PP, Abdul Rahman J, Sarah MN, Mohamad Azlin SAA, Zambree N, Mohd Noor S

Malays J Med Sci, 2022 Dec;29(6):170-172.
PMID: 36818896 DOI: 10.21315/mjms2022.29.6.17

Songs are commonly used in educational public health programmes to facilitate the understanding of health messages. During the COVID-19 pandemic, national blood banks witnessed a pronounced reduction in blood donors. Thus, we created a song with the title 'Keep the World Beating' to raise awareness of the need for blood and to promote blood donation. To maximise participation, we carried out a live broadcast of the donation process and the music video on social media, increasing visibility and accessibility to the event. The number of donations increased in the month after the song was released. Songs can be used to strengthen current entertainment-education strategies promoting blood donation and to increase the level of awareness among the local population, thus motivating people to donate blood in a time of need.
Fulltext Radioprotective Effects of Kelulut Honey in Zebrafish Model

Adenan MNH, Yazan LS, Christianus A, Md Hashim NF, Mohd Noor S, Shamsudin S, et al.

Molecules, 2021 Mar 12;26(6).
PMID: 33809054 DOI: 10.3390/molecules26061557

Large doses of ionizing radiation can damage human tissues. Therefore, there is a need to investigate the radiation effects as well as identify effective and non-toxic radioprotectors. This study evaluated the radioprotective effects of Kelulut honey (KH) from stingless bee (Trigona sp.) on zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryos. Viable zebrafish embryos at 24 hpf were dechorionated and divided into four groups, namely untreated and non-irradiated, untreated and irradiated, KH pre-treatment and amifostine pre-treatment. The embryos were first treated with KH (8 mg/mL) or amifostine (4 mM) before irradiation at doses of 11 Gy to 20 Gy using gamma ray source, caesium-137 (137Cs). Lethality and abnormality analysis were performed on all of the embryos in the study. Immunohistochemistry assay was also performed using selected proteins, namely γ-H2AX and caspase-3, to investigate DNA damages and incidences of apoptosis. KH was found to reduce coagulation effects at up to 20 Gy in the lethality analysis. The embryos developed combinations of abnormality, namely microphthalmia (M), body curvature and microphthalmia (BM), body curvature with microphthalmia and microcephaly (BMC), microphthalmia and pericardial oedema (MO), pericardial oedema (O), microphthalmia with microcephaly and pericardial oedema (MCO) and all of the abnormalities (AA). There were more abnormalities developed from 24 to 72 h (h) post-irradiation in all groups. At 96 h post-irradiation, KH was identified to reduce body curvature effect in the irradiated embryos (up to 16 Gy). γ-H2AX and caspase-3 intensities in the embryos pre-treated with KH were also found to be lower than the untreated group at gamma irradiation doses of 11 Gy to 20 Gy and 11 Gy to 19 Gy, respectively. KH was proven to increase the survival rate of zebrafish embryos and exhibited protection against organ-specific abnormality. KH was also found to possess cellular protective mechanism by reducing DNA damage and apoptosis proteins expression.
Fulltext The Gastroprotective Effect of Vitex pubescens Leaf Extract against Ethanol-Provoked Gastric Mucosal Damage in Sprague-Dawley Rats

Saeed Al-Wajeeh N, Halabi MF, Hajrezaie M, M Dhiyaaldeen S, Abdulaziz Bardi D, M Salama S, et al.

PLoS One, 2016;11(9):e0157431.
PMID: 27689880 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0157431

Vitex pubescens is a Malaysian therapeutic plant employed in traditional drug to remedy a variety of disorders. The purpose of this research is to assess the gastroprotective efficiency of V. pubescens leaves against ethanol-induced gastric hemorrhagic laceration in rats. Animals were randomly allocated into seven groups and pre-treated, separately, with 10% Tween 20 (normal and ulcer control groups), 20 mg/kg omeprazole (reference group), and 62.5, 125, 250, and 500 mg/kg of V. pubescens extract (experimental groups). All animals were sacrificed after another hour. Histological evaluation of the ulcer control group revealed significant injury to the gastric mucosa with edema and leucocyte infiltration of the submucosal layer. PAS staining, showed remarkably intense magenta color, remarkable increase of HSP70 and decrease of Bax proteins in rats pre-treated with plant extracts compared to the ulcer control group. Gastric homogenates revealed a remarkable increase in endogenous antioxidant enzyme activities (CAT, SOD, GSH) and a decrease in the lipid peroxidation level (MDA) in animals pre-treated with V. pubescens extract compared with the ulcer control group. The gastroprotective activity of this plant might be related to increased antioxidant enzymes and decrease lipid peroxidation upsurge of HSP70 and reduced expression of Bax proteins.
Fulltext Renal targeting potential of a polymeric drug carrier, poly-l-glutamic acid, in normal and diabetic rats

Chai HJ, Kiew LV, Chin Y, Norazit A, Mohd Noor S, Lo YL, et al.

Int J Nanomedicine, 2017;12:577-591.
PMID: 28144140 DOI: 10.2147/IJN.S111284

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Poly-l-glutamic acid (PG) has been used widely as a carrier to deliver anticancer chemotherapeutics. This study evaluates PG as a selective renal drug carrier.
EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH: 3H-deoxycytidine-labeled PGs (17 or 41 kDa) and 3H-deoxycytidine were administered intravenously to normal rats and streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. The biodistribution of these compounds was determined over 24 h. Accumulation of PG in normal kidneys was also tracked using 5-(aminoacetamido) fluorescein (fluoresceinyl glycine amide)-labeled PG (PG-AF). To evaluate the potential of PGs in ferrying renal protective anti-oxidative stress compounds, the model drug 4-(2-aminoethyl)benzenesulfonyl fluoride hydrochloride (AEBSF) was conjugated to 41 kDa PG to form PG-AEBSF. PG-AEBSF was then characterized and evaluated for intracellular anti-oxidative stress efficacy (relative to free AEBSF).
RESULTS: In the normal rat kidneys, 17 kDa radiolabeled PG (PG-Tr) presents a 7-fold higher, while 41 kDa PG-Tr shows a 15-fold higher renal accumulation than the free radiolabel after 24 h post injection. The accumulation of PG-AF was primarily found in the renal tubular tissues at 2 and 6 h after an intravenous administration. In the diabetic (oxidative stress-induced) kidneys, 41 kDa PG-Tr showed the greatest renal accumulation of 8-fold higher than the free compound 24 h post dose. Meanwhile, the synthesized PG-AEBSF was found to inhibit intracellular nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase (a reactive oxygen species generator) at an efficiency that is comparable to that of free AEBSF. This indicates the preservation of the anti-oxidative stress properties of AEBSF in the conjugated state.
CONCLUSION/IMPLICATIONS: The favorable accumulation property of 41 kDa PG in normal and oxidative stress-induced kidneys, along with its capabilities in conserving the pharmacological properties of the conjugated renal protective drugs, supports its role as a potential renal targeting drug carrier.