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Pathological vicissitudes and oxidative stress enzyme responses in mice experimentally infected with reptarenavirus (isolate UPM/MY01)

Abba Y, Hassim H, Hamzah H, Ibrahim OE, Mohd Lila MA, Noordin MM

Microb Pathog, 2017 Mar;104:17-27.
PMID: 28062291 DOI: 10.1016/j.micpath.2017.01.003

Boid inclusion body disease (BIBD) is a viral disease of boid snakes believed to be caused by reptarenavirus belonging to the family Arenaviridae. Unlike most mammalian arenaviruses, the reservoir host for reptarenavirus is still unknown. In this study, the pathological responses were evaluated in a mouse model for a period of 28 days. Blood and tissue samples (lung, liver, spleen, heart, kidney and brain) were collected for evaluation of hematology, biochemistry, histopathology and oxidative enzyme levels at six time points (1, 3, 7, 14, 21 and 28 days), after viral infection (2.0 × 10(6) pfu/mL) in the infected and normal saline in the control groups. An initial increase (p lungs were mainly associated with degeneration, necrosis and infiltration of lymphocytes. Viral counts were low on days 7 and 14 but surged in both the liver and spleen on day 21 and 28. This study has shown that reptarenavirus replicates in mammalian host and induces oxidative stress. Furthermore, the resultant hematobiochemical and histopathological changes observed in infected mice were similar to what has been reported in mammarenavirus infections. This suggests that rodents may serve as potential reservoir hosts for reptarenavirus.

Matched MeSH terms: Lung/pathology; Lung/virology
Fulltext COVIDiag: a clinical CAD system to diagnose COVID-19 pneumonia based on CT findings

Abbasian Ardakani A, Acharya UR, Habibollahi S, Mohammadi A

Eur Radiol, 2021 Jan;31(1):121-130.
PMID: 32740817 DOI: 10.1007/s00330-020-07087-y

OBJECTIVES: CT findings of COVID-19 look similar to other atypical and viral (non-COVID-19) pneumonia diseases. This study proposes a clinical computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) system using CT features to automatically discriminate COVID-19 from non-COVID-19 pneumonia patients.
METHODS: Overall, 612 patients (306 COVID-19 and 306 non-COVID-19 pneumonia) were recruited. Twenty radiological features were extracted from CT images to evaluate the pattern, location, and distribution of lesions of patients in both groups. All significant CT features were fed in five classifiers namely decision tree, K-nearest neighbor, naïve Bayes, support vector machine, and ensemble to evaluate the best performing CAD system in classifying COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 cases.
RESULTS: Location and distribution pattern of involvement, number of the lesion, ground-glass opacity (GGO) and crazy-paving, consolidation, reticular, bronchial wall thickening, nodule, air bronchogram, cavity, pleural effusion, pleural thickening, and lymphadenopathy are the significant features to classify COVID-19 from non-COVID-19 groups. Our proposed CAD system obtained the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of 0.965, 93.54%, 90.32%, and 91.94%, respectively, using ensemble (COVIDiag) classifier.
CONCLUSIONS: This study proposed a COVIDiag model obtained promising results using CT radiological routine features. It can be considered an adjunct tool by the radiologists during the current COVID-19 pandemic to make an accurate diagnosis.
KEY POINTS: • Location and distribution of involvement, number of lesions, GGO and crazy-paving, consolidation, reticular, bronchial wall thickening, nodule, air bronchogram, cavity, pleural effusion, pleural thickening, and lymphadenopathy are the significant features between COVID-19 from non-COVID-19 groups. • The proposed CAD system, COVIDiag, could diagnose COVID-19 pneumonia cases with an AUC of 0.965 (sensitivity = 93.54%; specificity = 90.32%; and accuracy = 91.94%). • The AUC, sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy obtained by radiologist diagnosis are 0.879, 87.10%, 88.71%, and 87.90%, respectively.

Matched MeSH terms: Lung/pathology
Lung abscess rather than pneumatocele following kerosene ingestion

Abd Aziz A, Abdullah AF, Mahmud A

Br J Hosp Med (Lond), 2007 Nov;68(11):616-7.
PMID: 18087856 DOI: 10.12968/hmed.2007.68.11.27686
Matched MeSH terms: Lung/radiography; Lung Abscess/chemically induced*; Lung Abscess/drug therapy; Lung Abscess/radiography
Fulltext Empyema thoracis presented as giant back abscess

Abd Karim SH, Wan Zain WZ, Mohd Hashim MN, Zakaria AD, Hayati F, Ng CY

Radiol Case Rep, 2021 May;16(5):1061-1064.
PMID: 33680277 DOI: 10.1016/j.radcr.2021.02.030

Empyema thoracis (ET) is defined as pus in the pleural space, either localized or involving the entire pleural cavity, due to diverse etiologies. In severe form, it may infiltrate the extrapulmonary region. Clinical guideline describes 3 stages of parapneumonic effusion before developing into an ET, namely the exudative stage, the fibrinopurulent stage, and the organizing/late stage. We highlight a 59-year-old gentleman who presented a back swelling masquerading as a deep-seated abscess, in which the diagnosis of ET had not been established early. The principles of treatment are treating the underlying condition such as pneumonia, pleural drainage and debridement, full re-expansion of the collapsed lung by performing chest physiotherapy, and improving nutrition. ET is a condition with a dynamic process due to diverse etiologies, either localized or involving the entire pleural cavity. The gold standard in diagnosing ET is the pleural aspiration of fluid from the pleural space, whereas the management of ET may include non-surgical and/or surgical treatments based on the basic principles of ET treatment.

Matched MeSH terms: Lung
Fulltext Multiple cavitating pulmonary nodules secondary to Hodgkin's lymphoma

Abdul Azih, M.N., Hin, H.S., Kori, A.N., Rahman, A.A., Chunn, K.Y.

International Medical Journal Malaysia, 2017;16(2):129-131.
MyJurnal

We report a 26-year old lady who presented with chronic cough and breathlessness associated with subtle
TB symptoms for 1 year. Her CT thorax showed multiple cavitating pulmonary nodules with mediastinal and
cervical lymphadenopathy. Cervical lymph node biopsy and CT-guided pulmonary biopsy at our centre
confirmed the diagnosis of Hodgkin’s lymphoma with pulmonary infiltrations. She was successfully treated
with ABVD regime but later developed life-threatening bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis. Sadly, she
succumbed to respiratory failure due to severe pneumonia with possibility of bleomycin-induced pulmonary
fibrosis. Multiple cavitating pulmonary nodules secondary to lymphoma is rare and in TB endemic area, it
may result in delayed diagnosis and treatment.

Matched MeSH terms: Lung
Fulltext Association between lung function impairment with urinary heavy metals in a community in Klang Valley, Malaysia

Abdul Haddi AA, Ja'afar MH, Ismail H

PeerJ, 2022;10:e13845.
PMID: 35966922 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.13845

Lung function status can be directly or indirectly affected by exposure to pollutants in the environment. Urinary heavy metals may be an indirect indicator of lung function impairment that leads to various diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This study aimed to explore the prevalence of lung function impairment as well as its association with urinary heavy metal levels and other influencing factors among the community in Klang Valley, Malaysia. Urinary sampling was done during various community events in the housing areas of Klang Valley between March and October 2019. Only respondents who consented would undergo a lung function test. Urine samples were obtained and sent for Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) analysis for heavy metal cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) concentration. Of the 200 recruited respondents, 52% were male and their ages ranged from 18 years old to 74 years old with a mean age of 38.4 ± 14.05 years. Urinary samples show high urinary Cd level in 12% of the respondents (n = 24) whereas none recorded a high urinary Pb level. There was a positive correlation between the levels of urinary Cd and urinary Pb (r = 0.303; p = 0.001). Furthermore, a negative correlation was detected between urinary Cd level and forced vital capacity (FVC) (r = - 0.202, p = 0.004), force expiratory volume at the first second (FEV1) (r = - 0.225, p = 0.001), and also force expiratory flow between 25-75% of FVC (FEF 25-75%) (r = - 0.187, p = 0.008). However, urinary Pb did not show any correlation with lung function parameters. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that urinary Cd had a significant negative effect on FVC (p = 0.025) and FEV1 (p = 0.004) based on the predicted value. Additionally, other factors such as education level (p = 0.013) also influenced lung function. However, no interaction was detected between heavy metals or other factors. In short, there was a significant negative linear relationship between urinary Cd and lung function, whereas urinary Pb was not associated with lung function. Beside acting as a biomarker for cadmium exposure level, urinary Cd may also be applied as indirect biomarker for asymptomatic chronic lung function deterioration among the healthy population.

Matched MeSH terms: Lung/chemistry
Post mortem computed tomography (PMCT) guided lung biopsy: A preliminary case report

Abdul Hadi D, Mansharan Kaur CS, Effat O, Siew SF

Trop Biomed, 2019 Dec 01;36(4):850-854.
PMID: 33597457

Tuberculosis (TB) is a highly infectious disease on the rise caused by the organism Mycobacterium tuberculosis and health care workers working in emergency departments, medical wards and autopsy rooms are in danger of contacting this disease. We present a case of a 42 year old man found dead under a pedestrian bridge with no medical history available. Post mortem computed tomography showed multiple cavities involving upper lobes of both lungs and areas of consolidation in both lung fields raising the suspicion of pulmonary tuberculosis. This was followed by a computed tomography guided lung biopsy and a limited conventional autopsy done in situ in a special high risk autopsy suite with appropriate ventilation. This case highlights the importance of cross sectional imaging which can be coupled with image guided biopsy in cases of infectious disease to reduce the risk of transmission to health care workers.

Matched MeSH terms: Lung; Lung Diseases/diagnosis*; Lung Diseases/pathology
Fulltext Tocotrienol-adjuvanted dendritic cells inhibit tumor growth and metastasis: a murine model of breast cancer

Abdul Hafid SR, Chakravarthi S, Nesaretnam K, Radhakrishnan AK

PLoS One, 2013;8(9):e74753.
PMID: 24069344 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0074753

Tocotrienol-rich fraction (TRF) from palm oil is reported to possess anti-cancer and immune-enhancing effects. In this study, TRF supplementation was used as an adjuvant to enhance the anti-cancer effects of dendritic cells (DC)-based cancer vaccine in a syngeneic mouse model of breast cancer. Female BALB/c mice were inoculated with 4T1 cells in mammary pad to induce tumor. When the tumor was palpable, the mice in the experimental groups were injected subcutaneously with DC-pulsed with tumor lysate (TL) from 4T1 cells (DC+TL) once a week for three weeks and fed daily with 1 mg TRF or vehicle. Control mice received unpulsed DC and were fed with vehicle. The combined therapy of using DC+TL injections and TRF supplementation (DC+TL+TRF) inhibited (p<0.05) tumor growth and metastasis. Splenocytes from the DC+TL+TRF group cultured with mitomycin-C (MMC)-treated 4T1 cells produced higher (p<0.05) levels of IFN-γ and IL-12. The cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) assay also showed enhanced tumor-specific killing (p<0.05) by CD8(+) T-lymphocytes isolated from mice in the DC+TL+TRF group. This study shows that TRF has the potential to be used as an adjuvant to enhance effectiveness of DC-based vaccines.

Matched MeSH terms: Lung Neoplasms/pathology; Lung Neoplasms/secondary
Pedunculated parietal pleural lesion: a rare presentation of bronchogenic cyst

Abdul Rahman MR, Yaman MN, Dimon MZ, Zabir AF, Min JO, Hamid HA

Ann Thorac Surg, 2011 Aug;92(2):714-5.
PMID: 21801925 DOI: 10.1016/j.athoracsur.2011.02.028

We present a 35-year-old man with a preoperative diagnosis of a right lower lobe cystic mass. Misled by a radiological suggestion of an intraparenchymal lesion, he had a thoracotomy and right lower lobectomy. An intraoperative finding of a pedunculated cyst arising from the parietal pleural with subsequent histopathology confirmation of a benign bronchogenic cyst, however, would have made a less invasive surgical excision more appropriate.

Matched MeSH terms: Lung Diseases/diagnosis*; Lung Diseases/pathology; Lung Diseases/surgery
Pocket-sized Heimlich valve (Pneumostat) after bullae resection: a 5-year review

Abdul Rahman MR, Min Joanna OS, Fikri AM, Adeeb SM, Zamrin DM

Ann Thorac Surg, 2009 Sep;88(3):979-81.
PMID: 19699932 DOI: 10.1016/j.athoracsur.2009.03.065

This study was conducted to evaluate the practicability, effectiveness, and potential complications of a newly improvised pocket-sized Heimlich valve named the Pneumostat (Atrium Medical Corp, Hudson, NH).

Matched MeSH terms: Lung Diseases/surgery*
Fulltext Synergistic Roles of Curcumin in Sensitising the Cisplatin Effect on a Cancer Stem Cell-Like Population Derived from Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Cell Lines

Abdul Satar N, Ismail MN, Yahaya BH

Molecules, 2021 Feb 18;26(4).
PMID: 33670440 DOI: 10.3390/molecules26041056

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) represent a small subpopulation within a tumour. These cells possess stem cell-like properties but also initiate resistance to cytotoxic agents, which contributes to cancer relapse. Natural compounds such as curcumin that contain high amounts of polyphenols can have a chemosensitivity effect that sensitises CSCs to cytotoxic agents such as cisplatin. This study was designed to investigate the efficacy of curcumin as a chemo-sensitiser in CSCs subpopulation of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) using the lung cancer adenocarcinoma human alveolar basal epithelial cells A549 and H2170. The ability of curcumin to sensitise lung CSCs to cisplatin was determined by evaluating stemness characteristics, including proliferation activity, colony formation, and spheroid formation of cells treated with curcumin alone, cisplatin alone, or the combination of both at 24, 48, and 72 h. The mRNA level of genes involved in stemness was analysed using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry was used to evaluate the effect of curcumin on the CSC niche. A combined treatment of A549 subpopulations with curcumin reduced cellular proliferation activity at all time points. Curcumin significantly (p < 0.001) suppressed colonies formation by 50% and shrank the spheroids in CSC subpopulations, indicating inhibition of their self-renewal capability. This effect also was manifested by the down-regulation of SOX2, NANOG, and KLF4. Curcumin also regulated the niche of CSCs by inhibiting chemoresistance proteins, aldehyde dehydrogenase, metastasis, angiogenesis, and proliferation of cancer-related proteins. These results show the potential of using curcumin as a therapeutic approach for targeting CSC subpopulations in non-small cell lung cancer.

Matched MeSH terms: Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung/drug therapy; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung/genetics; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung/pathology*; Lung Neoplasms/drug therapy; Lung Neoplasms/genetics; Lung Neoplasms/pathology*
Fulltext Cluster Analysis Evaluating PM2.5, Occupation Risk and Mode of Transportation as Surrogates for Air-pollution and the Impact on Lung Cancer Diagnosis and 1-Year Mortality

Abdul Wahab S, Hassan A, Latif MT, Vadiveel Y, Jeyabalan T, Soo CI, et al.

Asian Pac J Cancer Prev, 2019 07 01;20(7):1959-1965.
PMID: 31350951 DOI: 10.31557/APJCP.2019.20.7.1959

Objective: Epidemiological studies have reported the close relationship between risk for lung cancers and air pollution
in particular, for non-smoking related lung cancers. However, most studies used residential address as proxies which may
not estimate accurately an individual’s air pollution exposure. Therefore, the aim of this study was to identify risk factors
such as occupation and mode of transportation associated with lung cancer diagnosis and death. Methods: Subjects
with lung cancer (n=514) were evaluated both by chart reviews for clinical data and interviews to determine residential
address for ten years, main occupation and main mode of transportation. Annual particulate matter with diameter size
less than 2.5 micrometre (PM2.5) concentration were calculated based on particulate matter with diameter size less than
10 micrometre (PM10) data recorded by Malaysian Department of Environment. Logistic regression analysis, cluster
analysis and the Cox regression analysis were performed to the studied variables. Results: This study concurred with
previous studies that lung adenocarcinoma were diagnosed in predominantly younger, female non-smokers compared
to the other types of lung cancers. Lung adenocarcinoma subjects had annual PM2.5 that was almost twice higher than
squamous cell carcinoma, small cell carcinoma and other histological subtypes (p=0.024). Independent of smoking,
the κ -means cluster analysis revealed two clusters in which the high risk cluster involves occupation risk with air
pollution of more than four hours per day, main transportation involving motorcycle and trucks and mean annual PM2.5
concentration of more than 30 based on residential address for more than ten years. The increased risk for the high-risk
cluster was more than five times for the diagnosis of lung adenocarcinoma (OR=5.69, 95% CI=3.14-7.21, p<0.001).
The hazard ratio for the high-risk cluster was 3.89 (95% CI=2.12-4.56, p=0.02) for lung adenocarcinoma mortality at
1 year. Conclusion: High-risk cluster including PM2.5, occupation risk and mode of transportation as surrogates for
air-pollution exposure was identified and highly associated with lung adenocarcinoma diagnosis and 1-year mortality.

Matched MeSH terms: Lung Neoplasms/diagnosis; Lung Neoplasms/etiology; Lung Neoplasms/mortality*
Off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting in a high-risk dextrocardia patient: a case report

Abdullah F, Mazalan SL

Heart Surg Forum, 2004;7(3):E186-8.
PMID: 15262598

We present an interesting but high-risk case of an obese male patient aged 56 years with dextrocardia and a left diaphragmatic hernia. Anterior myocardial infarction was diagnosed in 1994, and the patient later presented with a history of unstable angina. The diagnosis for this chronic smoker was triple-vessel disease, impaired left ventricular function, chronic renal failure, chronic bronchitis, impaired lung function, pulmonary hypertension, hypertension, diabetes, and chronic active gastritis (EuroSCORE of 10). The patient underwent successful off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting with 3 saphenous vein grafts to the left anterior descending, obtuse marginal, and right posterior descending arteries. He was discharged home 8 days later.

Matched MeSH terms: Lung Diseases/complications*
Gefitinib as first line therapy in Malaysian patients with EGFR mutation-positive non-small-cell lung cancer: A single-center retrospective study

Abdullah MM, Bhat A, Mohamed AK, Ching FY, Ahmed N, Gantotti S

Oncol Lett, 2016 Apr;11(4):2757-2762.
PMID: 27073548

The present retrospective, single-center study evaluated the objective response rate (ORR) and progression-free survival (PFS) of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation-positive Malaysian patients with advanced lung adenocarcinoma treated with gefitinib. During May 2008 to July 2013, 33 patients with Stage IV, EGFR mutation-positive non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) were identified and received gefitinib (250 mg) as first line treatment. The primary and secondary end points were ORR, PFS and safety, respectively. A total of 18 (54.5%) and 2 (6.1%) patients achieved partial response (PR) and complete response (CR) to gefitinib therapy, respectively, yielding an ORR of 60.6% (95% CI, 42.1-77.1%). Patients with exon 20 or 21 mutations (n=6, 66.7%) tended to have better ORR compared with exon 19 (n=22, 59.1%). The median PFS was 8.9 months in Malaysian patients with EGFR mutation-positive NSCLC, treated with gefitinib. The majority of treatment-related toxicity was mild in nature. The most frequently reported adverse events included dry skin (39.4%), skin rash (27.2%), and dermatitis acneiform (15.2%). In conclusion, Malaysian patients with locally advanced and metastatic EGFR mutation-positive NSCLC responded favorably to gefitinib therapy in terms of ORR, median PFS, and tolerability, the results of which were consistent with those of the IPASS study conducted in an Asian population. Considering the efficacy and safety profile of gefitinib, it is a favorable option for the first-line treatment of Malaysian patients with EGFR mutation-positive NSCLC. However, future long-term studies in a larger population of Malaysian patients are required to support whether the prolonged PFS conferred by gefitinib will translate into prolonged overall survival.

Matched MeSH terms: Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung; Lung Neoplasms
Fulltext Radon concentration in workplace indoor air

Abdullah Mohd Noh, Nordin Ayoub, Siti Zurina Mat Noor, Norhafizah Zahari, Mardhiyati Mohd Yunus

Journal of Occupational Safety and Health, 2019;16(1):19-25.
MyJurnal

Radon exists naturally in the air. It can accumulate inside the buildings which may affect the indoor air quality. Radon is a radioactive gas that produces alpha particles during decay time. The alpha particles might cause harm to the human lungs and stomach. Inhalation of radon is one of the causes of lung cancer disease. Samples of inhaled radon in different rooms at the workplace were taken hourly through a passive diffusion chamber. The detection method was done using Alpha Spectrometry. The short term measurement was applied in the study to monitor the average weekly radon reading in different rooms in the Medical Imaging Laboratory of the University of Selangor (UNISEL). All tested rooms showed the existence of radon gas with different concentrations. Some of them showed the maximum reading of radon concentration which was higher than the radon action level of 148Bq/m3 or 4pCi/l. Their weekly average of radon concentration is contributing almost 50% of the accumulated radon concentration in the laboratory. It is highly recommended that monitoring the concentration of radon in indoor air is performed to ensure it is at a safe and healthy level.

Matched MeSH terms: Lung Neoplasms
Global Lung Initiative 2012 spirometry reference values in a large Asian cohort of Malay, Chinese and Indian ancestry

Abdullah N, Borhanuddin B, Shah SA, Hassan T, Jamal R

Respirology, 2018 12;23(12):1173-1179.
PMID: 29790229 DOI: 10.1111/resp.13330

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Although the multi-ethnic European Respiratory Society/Global Lung Initiative (ERS/GLI) 2012 reference values have been developed, the Taskforce has called for further validation specifically on subpopulations that were under represented such as the Malays, Chinese and Indians, in which the two latter ethnic groups represent about one-third of the world population. Thus, the aims of this study were to evaluate the appropriateness of the ERS/GLI 2012 reference values in a healthy adult Malaysian population and to construct a local lung function reference for the Malaysia population specific to the three major ethnic groups.

METHODS: Acceptable spirometry data were obtained from 30 281 healthy subjects aged 35-70 years comprising Malays, Chinese and Indians from the Malaysian Cohort. Local reference values were calculated using regression analysis and evaluated using ERS/GLI reference values to obtain GLI Z-scores.

RESULTS: The mean (SD) of the forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1 ) for males were 2.67 (0.46), 2.89 (0.48) and 2.60 (0.46) and females were 1.91 (0.36), 2.13 (0.37) and 1.86 (0.35) for Malays, Chinese and Indians, respectively. For forced vital capacity (FVC), the mean (SD) for males were 3.03 (0.53), 3.28 (0.58) and 2.92 (0.53) and females were 2.15 (0.40), 2.38 (0.43) and 2.07 (0.41) for Malays, Chinese and Indians, respectively. The mean GLI Z-scores were less than -0.5 for FEV1 and FVC and more than 0.5 for FEV1 /FVC. A large percentage of subjects in all the three ethnic groups were defined lower than the lower limit of normal.

CONCLUSION: This present and large multi-ethnic Asian-based study demonstrates clinically significant deviation from ERS/GLI 2012 equations for spirometry. It highlights the importance of validating predicted equations for spirometry in local populations.

Matched MeSH terms: Lung/physiology*
Fulltext Gene transfer into the lung by nanoparticle dextran-spermine/plasmid DNA complexes

Abdullah S, Wendy-Yeo WY, Hosseinkhani H, Hosseinkhani M, Masrawa E, Ramasamy R, et al.

J Biomed Biotechnol, 2010;2010:284840.
PMID: 20617146 DOI: 10.1155/2010/284840

A novel cationic polymer, dextran-spermine (D-SPM), has been found to mediate gene expression in a wide variety of cell lines and in vivo through systemic delivery. Here, we extended the observations by determining the optimal conditions for gene expression of D-SPM/plasmid DNA (D-SPM/pDNA) in cell lines and in the lungs of BALB/c mice via instillation delivery. In vitro studies showed that D-SPM could partially protect pDNA from degradation by nuclease and exhibited optimal gene transfer efficiency at D-SPM to pDNA weight-mixing ratio of 12. In the lungs of mice, the levels of gene expression generated by D-SPM/pDNA are highly dependent on the weight-mixing ratio of D-SPM to pDNA, amount of pDNA in the complex, and the assay time postdelivery. Readministration of the complex at day 1 following the first dosing showed no significant effect on the retention and duration of gene expression. The study also showed that there was a clear trend of increasing size of the complexes as the amount of pDNA was increased, where the sizes of the D-SPM/pDNA complexes were within the nanometer range.

Matched MeSH terms: Lung/metabolism*
Fulltext The Effects of Lentivirus-Mediated Gene Silencing of RARβ on the Stemness Capability of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Abu Halim NH, Zakaria N, Theva Das K, Lin J, Lim MN, Fakiruddin KS, et al.

J Cancer, 2021;12(12):3468-3485.
PMID: 33995625 DOI: 10.7150/jca.50793

Retinoic acid receptor beta is a nuclear receptor protein that binds to retinoic acid (RA) to mediate cellular signalling in embryogenic morphogenesis, cell growth, and differentiation. However, the function of RARβ in cancer stem cells (CSCs) has yet to be determined. This study aimed to understand the role of RARβ in regulating cell growth and differentiation of lung cancer stem cells. Based on the clonogenic assay, spheroid assay, mRNA levels of stem cell transcription factors, and cell cycle being arrested at the G0/G1 phase, the suppression of RARβ resulted in significant inhibition of A549 parental cell growth. This finding was contradictory to the results seen in CSCs, where RARβ inhibition enhanced the cell growth of putative and non-putative CSCs. These results suggest that RARβ suppression may act as an essential regulator in A549 parental cells, but not in the CSCs population. The findings in this study demonstrated that the loss of RARβ promotes tumorigenicity in CSCs. Microarray analysis revealed that various cancer pathways were significantly activated following the suppression of RARβ. The changes seen might compensate for the loss of RARβ function, CSCs population's aggressiveness, which led to the CSCs population's aggressiveness. Thus, understanding the role of RARβ in regulating the stemness of CSCs may lead to targeted therapy for lung CSCs.

Matched MeSH terms: Lung
Fulltext Does the duration of smoking cessation have an impact on hospital admission and health-related quality of life amongst COPD patients?

Abu Hassan H, Abd Aziz N, Hassan Y, Hassan F

Int J Chron Obstruct Pulmon Dis, 2014;9:493-8.
PMID: 24868154 DOI: 10.2147/COPD.S56637

BACKGROUND: Lack of awareness among ex-smokers on the benefits of sustaining smoking cessation may be the main cause of their smoking relapse. This study explored health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and hospital admission amongst chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients according to the duration of smoking cessation.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study recruited COPD patients from a chest clinic who agreed to participate in a medication therapy-adherence program from January to June 2013. They were interviewed during their visits to obtain information regarding their smoking history and HRQoL. They were divided into three groups according to smoking status (sustained quitters, quit ≥5 years; quitters, quit <5 years; and smokers, smoking at least one cigarette/day). The effects of the duration of cessation on HRQoL and hospital admission were analyzed using a multinomial logistic model.
RESULTS: A total of 117 participants with moderate COPD met the inclusion criteria, who were comprised of 41 sustained quitters, 40 quitters, and 36 smokers. Several features were similar across the groups. Most of them were married elderly men (aged >64 years) with low-to-middle level of education, who smoked more than 33 cigarettes per day and had high levels of adherence to the medication regimen. The results showed that sustained quitters were less likely to have respiratory symptoms (cough, phlegm and dyspnea) than smokers (odds ratio 0.02, confidence interval 0-0.12; P<0.001). The hospital admission rate per year was increased in quitters compared to smokers (odds ratio 4.5, confidence interval 1.91-10.59; P<0.005).
CONCLUSION: A longer duration of quitting smoking will increase the benefits to COPD patients, even if they experience increased episodic respiratory symptoms in the early period of the cessation. Thus, the findings of this study show the benefits of early smoking cessation.
KEYWORDS: HRQoL; chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD); hospital admission and hospital stay
Study site: Chest Clinic, Hospital Melaka, Malaysia

Matched MeSH terms: Lung/physiopathology*
Fulltext Synergistic Apoptotic Effects of Tocotrienol Isomers and Acalypha wilkesiana on A549 and U87MG Cancer Cells

Abubakar IB, Lim SW, Loh HS

Trop Life Sci Res, 2018 Mar;29(1):229-238.
PMID: 29644026 MyJurnal DOI: 10.21315/tlsr2018.29.1.15

Recent studies suggested that combined treatment approaches can be used to improve anticancer potency and circumvent the limitations of high-dose tocotrienols administration. Acalypha wilkesiana is a medicinal plant that has been used as an adjunct treatment for cancers in traditional medicine. Herein, the effects of single and combined treatments of β-, γ- and δ-tocotrienols and ethyl acetate extract (9EA) of Acalypha wilkesiana on lung (A549) and brain (U87MG) cancer cells were investigated. γ- and δ-tocotrienols exhibited higher potent antiproliferative effects against A549 (12.1 μg/ml and 13.6 μg/ml) and U87MG cells (3.3 μg/ml and 5.2 μg/ml) compared to β-tocotrienols (9.4 μg/ml and 92.4 μg/ml), respectively. Whereas, 9EA induced potent antiproliferative effects against U87MG cells only (2.0 μg/ml). Combined treatments of tocotrienols and 9EA induced a synergistic growth inhibition with up to 8.4-fold reduction in potent doses of β-, γ- and δ-tocotrienols on A549 cells. Apoptotic features were also evidenced on A549 cells receiving single and combined treatments. The synergism may greatly improve the therapeutic outcome for lung cancer.

Matched MeSH terms: Lung Neoplasms

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