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Fulltext Improvement of engineering properties of peat with Palm Oil Clinker

Rahman, M. E., Leblouba, M., Pakrashi, V.

Pertanika Journal of Science & Technology, 2014;22(2):627-636.
MyJurnal

The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of Palm Oil Clinker (POC) added as a stabilizer for improving the strength of peat. Cement and POC are added into peat up to 50% of the maximum dry unit weight. Treated peat achieved higher dry unit weight, almost 2.5 times as compared to untreated peat. Unconfined compressive strength (UCS) of treated peat is also investigated for soaked and unsoaked conditions. The results show that curing time improved the unconfined compressive strength of treated sample and increased by a factor of 20 and 11 for unsoaked and soaked conditions after 28 days of curing, respectively. The treated samples added with POC can be related to an increase in unconfined compressive strength for long time curing.
Roselle: a new crop in Malaysia

Mohamad, O., Mohd. Nazir, B., Abdul Rahman, M., Herman, S.

Buletin Persatuan Genetik Malaysia, 2002;8(1):0-0.
MyJurnal

Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) from Malvaceae family is an annual crop with potential for use by many industries including food, animal feed, neutraceutical, cosmeticeutical and pharmaceutical industries. Its origin is not fully known but it is believed to be from West Africa, although the plant is found native from India to Southeast Asia. The calyxes, stems and leaves are acid in flavour. The juice is produced from the calyces, and it is claimed to be a prohealth drink due to its high contents of ascorbic acid, anthocyanins and other antioxidants.
Fulltext Students’ perceptions on tobacco free school: an analytic cross sectional study

Rahman, M., Ahmad, S.A., Karim, J., Azhar, A., Rafidah, D.

Malaysian Journal of Public Health Medicine, 2012;12(2):45-51.
MyJurnal

Participation and adherence to the law and cultivation of anti-tobacco culture became the important issues for reducing the tobacco use prevalence in the community. Measuring the perception of tobacco policy indirectly measures the acceptability of the law. This study aims to determine the perception of students on anti-tobacco policy in terms of tobacco free school environment and factors that support or deter them. A two-stage cluster samplingtechnique was used for selection of schools with probability proportional to enrolment size followed by stratified random sampling of government and private schools. Data were collected from 6563 secondary school students using
structured questionnaire. Analysis showed that 66.2% of the female students and 33.8% of the male student have strong supportive attitude towards tobacco free school environment. Logistic regression analysis revealed that class grade IX and above, father’s occupation as service, family size less than 6, higher economic status, non smoker, non exposure to second hand smoking in the house and discussion of dangers of smoking appeared to have important influencing factors for tobacco free school environment (p
Fulltext All elevated creatine kinase is not neuroleptic malignant syndrome

Maniam T, Rahman MA

Med J Malaysia, 1994 Sep;49(3):252-4.
PMID: 7845275

Creatine kinase (CK) is an enzyme that is found widely in muscle tissues. Raised levels would occur when there is muscle damage. Raised levels are used as one of the diagnostic criteria for Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome (NMS). This study looks at CK levels in 30 psychotic inpatients without NMS and compares them with 10 patients with NMS. It was found that 67% of the patients without NMS had raised CK levels, 20% of whom had levels in excess of 1000 IU/L. The rest had a two to five-fold increase over normal limits. Raised levels were associated with the use of intramuscular injections and physical restraints, situations which are well known to result in muscle injury. All the NMS patients had raised CK levels but 40% had levels below 1000 IU/L. Our findings support the idea that CK levels, though helpful, should be interpreted with care as raised levels are nonspecific.
Fulltext How important is distractor efficiency for grading Best Answer Questions?

Puthiaparampil T, Rahman M

BMC Med Educ, 2021 Jan 07;21(1):29.
PMID: 33413332 DOI: 10.1186/s12909-020-02463-0

BACKGROUND: Distractor efficiency and the optimum number of functional distractors per item in One Best Answer Questions have been debated. The prevalence of non-functional distractors has led to a reduction in the number of distractors per item with the advantage of adding more items in the test. The existing literature eludes a definite answer to the question of what distractor efficiency best matches excellent psychometric indices. We examined the relationship between distractor efficiency and the psychometric indices of One Best Answer Questions in search of an answer.
METHODS: We analysed 350 items used in 7 professional examinations and determined their distractor efficiency and the number of functional distractors per item. The items were sorted into five groups - excellent, good, fair, remediable and discarded based on their discrimination index. We studied how the distractor efficiency and functional distractors per item correlated with these five groups.
RESULTS: Correlation of distractor efficiency with psychometric indices was significant but far from perfect. The excellent group topped in distractor efficiency in 3 tests, the good group in one test, the remediable group equalled excellent group in one test, and the discarded group topped in 2 tests.
CONCLUSIONS: The distractor efficiency did not correlate in a consistent pattern with the discrimination index. Fifty per cent or higher distractor efficiency, not hundred percent, was found to be the optimum.
An evaluation of the Beckman glucose analyser 2

Lim HH, Zaini-Rahman M

Med J Malaysia, 1979 Jun;33(4):317-20.
PMID: 522742
Fulltext Gamma-tocotrienol Alters Protein Expression of HepG2 Cell Line

Farahani, A.S.R., Zakiah, J., Abdul Rahman, M., Karsani, S.A., Wan, Ngah Wz

Medicine & Health, 2008;3(2):256-262.
MyJurnal

Gamma-tocotrienol (GTT) has been shown to exhibit significant antitumor activity in a variety of tumor cells. Previous findings have demonstrated that GTT had antiprolifera-tive effects on a liver cancer cell line (HepG2) with an IC50 value of 170μM. In this study, two dimensional gel electrophoresis (2DE) was used to determine changes in protein expression in HepG2 cell line following treatment with GTT. The ultimate aim is to identify the possible molecular mechanisms involved in GTT antitumor activity. This study is focused on obtaining a 2DE protein profile for HepG2 cell line with and without
GTT treatment. In the preliminary analysis of the resulting 2DE profiles, 18 protein spots were found to be differentially expressed in cells treated with GTT. This observa-tion is confirmed by extending the analysis to a larger sample size. By studying the effects of GTT treatment on differential protein expression in HepG2 cells the underly-ing mechanisms involved in the antitumor activity of GTT may be elucidated.
Fulltext Isolation of steroids from n-hexane extract of the leaves of Saurauia roxburghii

Ahmed, Y., Rahman, S., Akhtar, P., Islam, F., Rahman, M., Yaakob, Z.

International Food Research Journal, 2013;20(5):2939-2943.
MyJurnal

General phytochemical screening of the leaves of Saurauia roxburghii (Actinidiaceae) revealed the presence of alkaloids, flavonoids, glycosides, O-glycosides, terpenoids, carbohydrates, steroids, reducing sugar, tannins, phlobatannins and saponin are present in this plant whereas cardiac glycosides are absent. Two steroid compounds were isolated from the n-hexane extract of the leaves from S. roxburghii. Based on the spectral evidence IR, 1H-NMR and 13C-NMR, structures were determined to be stigmasterol (1) and β-sitosterol (2) This is the first report so far of occurrence and details spectroscopic description of these compounds from S. roxburghii.
Fulltext Drying effect on the properties of traditionally processed sago starch

Mustafa Kamal, M., Baini, R., Lim, S. F., Rahman, M. R., Mohamaddan, S., Hussain, H.

International Food Research Journal, 2019;26(6):1861-1869.
MyJurnal

Local people in Sarawak, Malaysia produce sago starch, commonly referred as lemantak, using traditional method for authentic meals and delicacies. The quality of lemantak degrades with time due to its high moisture content limiting the potential for a wider market, and hence affecting the socio-economy of those whose livelihood depends on sago starch production. The objective of the present work was to evaluate the changes in the properties of traditionally processed dried Sarawak sago starch. In order to achieve this, sago starch was extracted using a well-established traditional process and was dried at 40°C to produce sago starch with moisture contents of 40%, 30%, 20% and 10% wet basis. The effect of moisture content on the physical properties was studied through colour analysis, microscopic analysis, and particle size distribution. Analysis on resistant starch content was also performed. Changes on the hydration and functional properties was monitored by measuring the water absorption index (WAI), water solubility index (WSI), swelling capacity (SC), and gelatinisation behaviour. Lastly, Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) was applied to observe the changes in amorphous and crystalline areas. The physical properties analysis showed changes in starch colour and granule surface; but the change on granule size varied. Dried starch with lower moisture content exhibited higher resistant starch, absorption index, and peak temperature, but lower solubility index, swelling capacity, peak viscosity, crystalline index, and amorphous index. It is suggested that moisture content affected the changes in traditionally processed sago starch properties which was influenced by few components namely polyphenol, lipid, amylose-lipid complex, and inter-molecular hydrogen bond.
Fulltext Primer on Reproducible Research in R: Enhancing Transparency and Scientific Rigor

Siraji MA, Rahman M

Clocks Sleep, 2023 Dec 20;6(1):1-10.
PMID: 38534796 DOI: 10.3390/clockssleep6010001

Achieving research reproducibility is a precarious aspect of scientific practice. However, many studies across disciplines fail to be fully reproduced due to inadequate dissemination methods. Traditional publication practices often fail to provide a comprehensive description of the research context and procedures, hindering reproducibility. To address these challenges, this article presents a tutorial on reproducible research using the R programming language. The tutorial aims to equip researchers, including those with limited coding knowledge, with the necessary skills to enhance reproducibility in their work. It covers three essential components: version control using Git, dynamic document creation using rmarkdown, and managing R package dependencies with renv. The tutorial also provides insights into sharing reproducible research and offers specific considerations for the field of sleep and chronobiology research. By following the tutorial, researchers can adopt practices that enhance the transparency, rigor, and replicability of their work, contributing to a culture of reproducible research and advancing scientific knowledge.
Fulltext Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) Dosage Based on Body Weight Enhances Ovulatory Responses and Subsequent Embryo Production in Goats

Rahman MR, Rahman MM, Wan Khadijah WE, Abdullah RB

Asian-Australas J Anim Sci, 2014 Sep;27(9):1270-4.
PMID: 25178370 DOI: 10.5713/ajas.2013.13786

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of porcine follicle stimulating hormone (pFSH) dosage based on body weight (BW) on ovarian responses of crossbred does. Thirty donor does were divided into 3 groups getting pFSH dosages of 3, 5, and 8 mg pFSH per kg BW, respectively, and were named as pFSH-3, pFSH-5 and pFSH-8, respectively. Estrus was synchronized by inserting a controlled internal drug release (CIDR) device and a single injection of prostaglandin F2α (PGF2α). The pFSH treatments were administered twice a day through 6 decreasing dosages (25, 25, 15, 15, 10, and 10% of total pFSH amount; decreasing daily). Ovarian responses were evaluated on Day 7 after CIDR removal. After CIDR removal, estrus was observed 3 times in a day and pFSH treatments were initiated at 2 days before the CIDR removal. All does in pFSH-5 and pFSH-8 showed estrus signs while half of the does in pFSH-3 showed estrus signs. No differences (p>0.05) were observed on the corpus luteum and total ovarian stimulation among the treatment groups, while total and transferable embryos were higher (p<0.05) in pFSH-5 (7.00 and 6.71) than pFSH-3 (3.00 and 2.80) and pFSH-8 (2.00 and 1.50), respectively. In conclusion, 5 mg pFSH per kg BW dosage gave a higher number of embryos than 3 and 8 mg pFSH per kg BW dosages. The results indicated that the dosage of pFSH based on BW is an important consideration for superovulation in goats.
Assessment of carbon footprint emissions and environmental concerns of solid waste treatment and disposal techniques; case study of Malaysia

Malakahmad A, Abualqumboz MS, Kutty SRM, Abunama TJ

Waste Manag, 2017 Dec;70:282-292.
PMID: 28935377 DOI: 10.1016/j.wasman.2017.08.044

Malaysian authorities has planned to minimize and stop when applicable unsanitary dumping of waste as it puts human health and the environment at elevated risk. Cost, energy and revenue are mostly adopted to draw the blueprint of upgrading municipal solid waste management system, while the carbon footprint emissions criterion rarely acts asa crucial factor. This study aims to alert Malaysian stakeholders on the uneven danger of carbon footprint emissions of waste technologies. Hence, three scenarios have been proposed and assessed mainly on the carbon footprint emissions using the 2006 IPCC methodology. The first scenario is waste dumping in sanitary landfills equipped with gas recovery system, while the second scenario includes anaerobic digestion of organics and recycling of recyclable wastes such as plastic, glass and textile wastes. The third scenario is waste incineration. Besides the carbon footprint emissions criterion, other environmental concerns were also examined. The results showed that the second scenario recorded the lowest carbon footprint emissions of 0.251t CO2 eq./t MSW while the third scenario had the highest emissions of 0.646t CO2 eq./t MSW. Additionally, the integration between anaerobic digestion and recycling techniques caused the highest avoided CO2 eq. emissions of 0.74t CO2 eq./t MSW. The net CO2 eq. emissions of the second scenario equaled -0.489t CO2 eq./t MSW due to energy recovery from the biogas and because of recycled plastic, glass and textile wastes that could replace usage of raw material. The outcomes also showed that the first scenario generates huge amount of leachate and hazardous air constituents. The study estimated that a ton of dumped waste inside the landfills generates approximately 0.88m3 of trace risky compounds and 0.188m3 of leachate. As for energy production, the results showed that the third scenario is capable of generating 639kWh/t MSW followed by the second scenario with 387.59kWh/t MSW. The first scenario produced 296.79kWh/t MSW. In conclusion, the outcomes of this study recommend an integrated scenario of anaerobic digestion and recycling techniques to be employed in Malaysia.
Release of offensive odorants from the combustion of barbecue charcoals

Mahmudur Rahman M, Kim KH

J Hazard Mater, 2012 May 15;215-216:233-42.
PMID: 22424818 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2012.02.055

A number of offensive odorants including volatile organic compounds (VOCs), reduced sulfur compounds (RSCs), carbonyls, and ammonia were measured along with several reference pollutants (like benzene (B), CS(2), SO(2), CO, and total hydrocarbon (THC)) from combusted fumes of barbecue charcoals produced from five different countries (Korea, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the US). Although the emission concentrations of most odorants were generally below the reference guideline set by the malodor prevention law in Korea, the mean concentration of some aldehydes (acetaldehyde, propionaldehyde, and isovaleraldehyde) and ammonia exceeded those guidelines. As such, aldehydes were the most dominant odorant released from charcoal combustion followed by VOC and ammonia. If odorant levels of charcoal products are compared, there are great distinctions between the products of different countries. If comparison is made using the concept of the sum of odor intensity (SOI), the magnitude of SOI for the charcoal products from the five different countries varied in the order of 4.30 (Korea), 3.10 (Indonesia), 2.97 (China), 2.76 (Malaysia), and 2.76 (the US).
Fulltext Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteremia secondary to acute right leg cellulitis: case of community-acquired infection

Wahab AA, Rahman MM

EXCLI J, 2013;12:997-1000.
PMID: 27034639

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a gram-negative bacillus that causes wide spectrum clinical infections. However, it is most frequently associated with hospital-acquired infection. In this case a 58-year-old male with underlying hypertension and dyslipidaemia was admitted for acute right leg cellulitis. Pseudomonas aeruginosa was identified from the case, though it was not a usual suspected organism. It might be due to community-acquired infection.
Genetical and immunological analysis of recent Asian type A and O foot-and-mouth disease virus isolates

Freiberg B, Rahman MM, Marquardt O

Virus Genes, 1999;19(3):167-82.
PMID: 10595408

This report extends the knowledge on the epizootical situation of foot-and-mouth disease in Asia. RNA from six samples of type A and five of type O virus, isolated between 1987 and 1997 in Bangladesh, Iran, Malaysia and Turkey, was subjected to reverse transcription-dependent polymerase chain reactions that amplify large parts of the capsid protein VP1 encoding genome region. The amplification products were sequenced, and the sequences aligned to each other and to published sequences. This showed the type O isolates of 1987-1997 from Bangladesh to be of same genotype and closely related to isolates of 1988 and later from Saudi Arabia, 1990 from India, 1996 from Greece and Bulgaria, and 1997 from Iran. Among the analyzed type A isolates, those of 1992 and 1996 from Turkey were of same genotype and related to previously described isolates of 1987 from Iran and of 1992 from Saudi Arabia. The isolate of 1997 from Malaysia was found to be related to isolates from Thailand of 1993 and 1996. The isolates of 1987 from Bangladesh and 1997 from Iran, however, represent different so far not described genotypes. Monoclonal antibodies, raised against the vaccine production strains A22 Iraq, Asial Shamir, O1 Kaufbeuren and O1 Manisa, and the recent type A field isolates Saudi Arabia/92 and Albania/96, were used in an ELISA to compare the reaction patterns of many of the field isolates. The monoclonal antibodies were further characterized for virus-neutralizing activity and binding to trypsinized homologous virus. The failure of neutralizing antibodies in binding to trypsinized homologous as well as to heterologous virus suggested the epitopes to reside at the major antigenic component of the virus, which is the capsid protein VP1. Two non-neutralizing antibodies that bind to trypsin-sensitive epitopes cross-reacted, however, with heterologous virus. This indicates the existence of a trypsin-sensitive antigenic site outside of VP1. In summary, the results obtained by ELISA confirm the observed sequence differences, but indicate further sequence differences at minor antigenic sites that do not reside on VP1.
Disability in schizophrenia and mood disorders in a developing country

Rahman MB, Indran SK

Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol, 1997 Oct;32(7):387-90.
PMID: 9383969

The aim of this study was to investigate how the prevalence and severity of psychiatric disabilities in patients with chronic schizophrenia compares with that in patients with chronic mood disorders. A total of 128 patients, 80 with chronic schizophrenia and 48 with chronic mood disorders as confirmed by DSM-III-R, were examined using the World Health Organization Psychiatric Disability Assessment Schedule (WHO/ DAS). There were no significant differences in the prevalence and severity of disabilities between the two disorders. Two-thirds of the patients with chronic schizophrenia and over half the patients with chronic mood disorders had dysfunctional behaviour and experienced significant disabilities. The prevalence of disabilities among these Malaysian patients was not markedly different from that seen in developed countries, suggesting that the prognosis in developing countries may not be as favourable as previously thought.
Correlation between subjective and objective voice analysis pre- and post-shift among teleoperators in a tertiary hospital

Rahman M, Saniasiaya J, Abu Bakar MZ

J Laryngol Otol, 2023 Jul;137(7):789-793.
PMID: 36444560 DOI: 10.1017/S0022215122002493

OBJECTIVE: Teachers and singers have been extensively studied and are shown to have a greater tendency to voice disorders. This study aimed to investigate the correlation between subjective and objective voice analysis pre- and post-shift among teleoperators in a tertiary hospital.
METHODS: This was a prospective cohort study. Each patient underwent pre- and post-shift voice analysis.
RESULTS: Among 42 teleoperators, 28 patients (66.7 per cent) completed all the tests. Female predominance (62 per cent) was noted, with a mean age of 40 years. Voice changes during working were reported by 48.1 per cent. Pre- and post-shift maximum phonation time (p < 0.018) and Voice Handicap Index-10 (p < 0.011) showed significant results with no correlation noted between subjective and objective assessment.
CONCLUSION: Maximum phonation time and Voice Handicap Index-10 are good voice assessment tools. The quality of evidence is inadequate to recommend 'gold standard' voice assessment until a better-quality study has been completed.
Effects of deep frying on proximate composition and micronutrient of Indian mackerel (Rastrelliger kanagurta), eel (Monopterus albus) and cockle (Anadara granosa)

Rahman MM, Zamri M, Fadilla N

Pak J Biol Sci, 2012 Jun 15;15(12):589-94.
PMID: 24191621

This study was conducted to determine the proximate composition and four micronutrients (Cd, Cu, Mn and Zn) of Indian Mackerel (Rastrelliger kanagurta), Eel (Monopterus albus) and Cockle (Anadara granosa). All fish and shellfish were purchased from local fish market in Kuantan city. All samples of each species were mixed and divided into two groups based on random selection. Each group were again divided into 3 sub-groups which were considered as replications. The first group were kept uncooked. The second group were fried in a beaker of 400 mL palm cooking oil capacity at a temperature approximately of 180 degrees C for a 15 min period. Both raw and fried samples were analysed following standard methods to determine protein, lipid, ash, moisture, carbohydrate, Cd, Cu, Mn and Zn contents. Results showed that protein content was higher in Indian mackerel and eel than cockle while overall Cd, Cu, Mn and Zn contents were higher in cockle than Indian mackerel and eel. Therefore, fish is better than shellfish in the nutritional point of view. Fried fish and shellfish had very high fat content. Therefore, frying cannot be recommended to prepare a healthy diet. More research is needed including all cooking methods of fish to know the nutritional changes by each cooking method. Fish contains many important fatty acids and amino acids which might be lost during frying. Therefore, future study should include the effects of different cooking methods on amino acids and fatty acids compositions of fish and shellfish.
Fulltext Comparative efficacy sensitivity and specificity of the tests used for the diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori

Suhaila N, Hussin S, Rahman MM

Pak J Biol Sci, 2010 Nov 01;13(21):1057-61.
PMID: 21313878

Abstract: A total number of 157 samples were examined by 4 different tests-In-house rapid urease (iRUT), Culture, Histopathology and Immunochromatography (Immuno CardSTAT) for the detection of Helicobacter pylori from the patients reported to Hospital Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia during 2007 to 2008. Out of the samples examined 47 (29.9%) were positive for H. pylori by the tests used in the laboratory. Efficacy of detection of the bacteria by the tests- In-house rapid urease, Culture, Histopathology and Immuno CardSTAT were 31.8, 13.9, 30.3 and 32.8%, respectively. However, sensitivity and specificity of the iRUT were 91.5 and 93.6%, respectively and the Positive Predictive Value (PPV) was 86% and the Negative Predictive Value (NPV) was 96.3%. The sensitivity for Immuno CardSTAT rapid test was 100% and the specificity was 79.3%. The PPV was 50% and the NPV was 100%. Convenient methods to the authors were 'In house rapid urease test and Immunochromatography though variability of specificities were observed.
Fulltext Influenza and Respiratory Syncytial viral infections in Malaysia: Demographic and Clinical perspective

Rahman MM, Wong KK, Hanafiah A, Isahak I

Pak J Med Sci, 2014 Jan;30(1):161-5.
PMID: 24639853 DOI: 10.12669/pjms.301.4272

Respiratory infections represent a major public health problem worldwide. The study aimed to determine the prevalence of respiratory syncytial and influenza virus infections and analyzed in respect to demography and clinical perspective. Methods : The specimens were processed by cell culture and immunofluorescent assay (IFA) and real-time reverse transcriptase-PCR (rRT-PCR) for detection of respiratory viruses. Results : Out of 505 specimens 189 (37.8%) were positive, in which RSV was positive in 124(24.8%) cases and influenza A was positive in 65(13%) cases. Positive cases for influenza virus A and RSV were analyzed based on demography: age, gender, ethnicity and clinical symptoms. There were no significant differences among gender, ethnicity and clinical symptoms in both RSV and influenza A virus infections. It was observed that children below 3 years of ages were more prone to RSV infections. On the contrary, influenza virus A infected all age groups of humans.

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