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Messages from the Malaysian Diabetes Registries on Diabetes Care in Malaysian public healthcare facilities

Chew BH, Lee PY, Cheong AT, Ismail M, Shariff-Ghazali S, Goh PP

Prim Care Diabetes, 2016 10;10(5):383-6.
PMID: 27459893 DOI: 10.1016/j.pcd.2016.07.003

A persistent and increasing prevalence of diagnosed and undiagnosed diabetes mellitus has recently been reported in the National Health and Morbidity Survey 2015. This commentary recapitulates the relevant and valuable lessons in the Malaysian national diabetes registries to inform the healthcare stakeholders and policy makers on potential areas of clinical practice improvement and future researches. Under performance of the process measures and sub-optimal control of HbA1c, blood pressure and lipids profile were prevalent (<40% achieved treatment targets). Although these had improved slightly from 2009 to 2012, diabetes co-morbidities (hypertension and dyslipidaemia) and complications had also increased. Prevalence of insulin use had doubled, and lipid lowering agent use had increased about 50% in 2012 compared to 2009. We identified six clinical areas for urgent attention and improvement, and three potential areas for future research.
Feed-based vaccination regime against streptococcosis in red tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus x Oreochromis mossambicus

Ismail MS, Siti-Zahrah A, Syafiq MR, Amal MN, Firdaus-Nawi M, Zamri-Saad M

BMC Vet Res, 2016;12(1):194.
PMID: 27608936 DOI: 10.1186/s12917-016-0834-1

Streptococcosis is an important disease of tilapia throughout the world. In Malaysia, streptococcosis outbreak was commonly reported during the 3-month period of high water temperature between April and July. This study describes the duration of protection following single and double booster dose regimes against streptococcosis in tilapia using a feed-based vaccine containing formalin-killed Streptococcus agalactiae. A total of 510 tilapias of 120 ± 10 g were selected and divided into 3 groups. Fish of Group 1 were vaccinated at weeks 0 and 2 (single booster group) while fish of Group 2 were vaccinated at weeks 0, 2 and 6 (double booster group) with a feed-based vaccine against streptococcosis. Fish of Group 3 was not vaccinated. Serum samples were collected weekly to determine the antibody level while samples of eye, brain and kidney were collected for bacterial isolation. At week 10, all fish were challenged with live S. agalactiae and the survival rate was determined.
Fulltext A revised version of Diabetes Quality of Life Instrument maintaining domains for satisfaction, impact, and worry

Bujang MA, Adnan TH, Mohd Hatta NKB, Ismail M, Lim CJ

J Diabetes Res, 2018;2018:5804687.
PMID: 30327784 DOI: 10.1155/2018/5804687

Background: Diabetes quality of life (DQoL) instrument has been widely used to measure quality of life among diabetes patients. This study aimed to develop a revised version of DQoL instrument that incorporated issues of redundancies in the items and strengthen the basis of validity of the instrument.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional study where diabetes patients were recruited from December 1, 2014, until end of March 2015 at a public health clinic in Peninsular Malaysia. A questionnaire that included patients' information and DQoL instrument was distributed to patients. Item selection of DQoL instrument was conducted to screen and finalize the items based on issues of missing values and redundancy. Validity testing was conducted for the revised DQoL instrument based on exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and Rasch analysis.

Results: The pattern structure matrix yielded three domains similar to the original version with 18 items. The minimum factor loading from the structure matrix was 0.358. The item's and person's reliability was excellent with 0.92 and 0.84 for "satisfaction" domain, 0.98 and 0.60 for "impact" domain, and 0.99 and 0.57 for "worry" domain, respectively. Confirmatory factor analysis has dropped 5 items and the revised version of DQoL contained 13 items. Composite reliability of the revised version was computed for "satisfaction" domain (0.922; 95% CI: 0.909-0.936), "impact" domain (0.781; 95% CI: 0.745-0.818), and "worry" domain (0.794; 95% CI: 0.755-0.832).

Conclusion: A revised version of DQoL that maintains the conceptualization of "satisfaction," "impact," and "worry" with 13 items was successfully developed.
Fulltext Power Reduction with Sleep/Wake on Redundant Data (SWORD) in a Wireless Sensor Network for Energy-Efficient Precision Agriculture

Jawad HM, Nordin R, Gharghan SK, Jawad AM, Ismail M, Abu-AlShaeer MJ

Sensors (Basel), 2018 Oct 13;18(10).
PMID: 30322176 DOI: 10.3390/s18103450

The use of wireless sensor networks (WSNs) in modern precision agriculture to monitor climate conditions and to provide agriculturalists with a considerable amount of useful information is currently being widely considered. However, WSNs exhibit several limitations when deployed in real-world applications. One of the challenges faced by WSNs is prolonging the life of sensor nodes. This challenge is the primary motivation for this work, in which we aim to further minimize the energy consumption of a wireless agriculture system (WAS), which includes air temperature, air humidity, and soil moisture. Two power reduction schemes are proposed to decrease the power consumption of the sensor and router nodes. First, a sleep/wake scheme based on duty cycling is presented. Second, the sleep/wake scheme is merged with redundant data about soil moisture, thereby resulting in a new algorithm called sleep/wake on redundant data (SWORD). SWORD can minimize the power consumption and data communication of the sensor node. A 12 V/5 W solar cell is embedded into the WAS to sustain its operation. Results show that the power consumption of the sensor and router nodes is minimized and power savings are improved by the sleep/wake scheme. The power consumption of the sensor and router nodes is improved by 99.48% relative to that in traditional operation when the SWORD algorithm is applied. In addition, data communication in the SWORD algorithm is minimized by 86.45% relative to that in the sleep/wake scheme. The comparison results indicate that the proposed algorithms outperform power reduction techniques proposed in other studies. The average current consumptions of the sensor nodes in the sleep/wake scheme and the SWORD algorithm are 0.731 mA and 0.1 mA, respectively.
Internal carotid artery injury during endonasal sinus surgery: our experience and review of the literature

Lum SG, Gendeh BS, Husain S, Gendeh HS, Ismail MR, Toh CJ, et al.

Acta Otorhinolaryngol Ital, 2019 Apr;39(2):130-136.
PMID: 30745587 DOI: 10.14639/0392-100X-1312
Fulltext The Role of Green Building Materials in Reducing Environmental and Human Health Impacts

Khoshnava SM, Rostami R, Mohamad Zin R, Štreimikienė D, Mardani A, Ismail M

Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2020 04 10;17(7).
PMID: 32290074 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17072589

Conventional building materials (CBMs) made from non-renewable resources are the main source of indoor air contaminants, whose impact can extend from indoors to outdoors. Given their sustainable development (SD) prospect, green building materials (GBMs) with non-toxic, natural, and organic compounds have the potential to reduce their overall impacts on environmental and human health. In this regard, biocomposites as GBMs are environmentally friendly, safe, and recyclable materials and their replacement of CBMs reduces environmental impacts and human health concerns. This study aims to develop a model of fully hybrid bio-based biocomposite as non-structural GBMs and compare it with fully petroleum-based composite in terms of volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions and human health impacts. Using a small chamber test (American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM)-D5116) for VOC investigation and SimaPro software modeling with the ReCiPe method for evaluating human health impacts. Life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology is used, and the results indicate that switching the fully hybrid bio-based biocomposite with the fully petroleum-based composite could reduce more than 50% impacts on human health in terms of indoor and outdoor. Our results indicate that the usage of biocomposite as GBMs can be an environmentally friendly solution for reducing the total indoor and outdoor impacts on human health.
Fulltext The effectiveness of an emotion-focused educational programme in reducing diabetes distress in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus at 12-month follow-up: a cluster randomized controlled trial

Chew BH, Vos RC, Fernandez A, Shariff Ghazali S, Shamsuddin NH, Ismail M, et al.

Ther Adv Endocrinol Metab, 2019;10:2042018819853761.
PMID: 31210922 DOI: 10.1177/2042018819853761

Background: Diabetes distress (DD) is an increasingly important part of clinical medicine, diabetes self-management and research topic in people with diabetes mellitus. The present study evaluated the effectiveness of a value-based emotion-focused educational program in Malay adults with type 2 diabetes (VEMOFIT) at 12-month follow-up compared with a program with systematic attention to participants' emotions (attention-control).
Methods: VEMOFIT consisted of four biweekly group sessions and a booster session after 3 months; the attention-control program consisted of three sessions over the same period. Intention-to-treat analysis with multilevel mixed modelling was done to estimate the intervention effect.
Results: Participants (n = 124) randomized to VEMOFIT (n = 53) or attention-control (n = 71). Mean (SD) age 55.7 (9.7) years, median diabetes duration 7.0 (8.0) years and mean HbA1c level 9.7% (82 mmol/mol). The mean DD (DDS-17 scale) level decreased in both groups (from 3.4 to 3.3 versus 3.1-2.5, respectively), significantly more in the attention-control group [adjusted difference -0.6, 95% confidence interval (CI) -1.1, -0.2]. The VEMOFIT group had a significant improvement in self-efficacy (DMSES, range 0-200; adjusted difference 16.4, 99.4% CI 1.9, 30.9). Other outcomes did not differ.
Conclusions: Because the attention-control program resulted in a decreased DD 1 year later, its implementation on a larger scale seems justified.
Trial registration: NCT02730078; NMRR-15-1144-24803.
Fulltext Data on Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) in kindergartens with different surrounding activities

Abdullah S, Abd Hamid FF, Ismail M, Ahmed AN, Wan Mansor WN

Data Brief, 2019 Aug;25:103969.
PMID: 31198825 DOI: 10.1016/j.dib.2019.103969

The aim of the measurement of this data is to evaluate the Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) in terms of chemical and physical parameters. Data were collected at three different kindergartens having different surrounding activities (industrial, institutional, residential area). The chemical parameters measured were respirable suspended particulates of PM10, PM2.5, PM1, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide, and the concentrations are within the acceptable limit. Physical parameters of wind speed are within the standard, while temperature and relative humidity exceeded the acceptable limit. A strong correlation was found between the chemical IAQ parameters with thermal comfort parameters (temperature and relative humidity). The concentration of IAQ pollutants is higher in order of residential > institutional > industrial.
Fulltext Optimization of Washing Processes in Solvothermal Synthesis of Nickel-Based MOF-74

Kamal K, Bustam MA, Ismail M, Grekov D, Mohd Shariff A, Pré P

Materials (Basel), 2020 Jun 17;13(12).
PMID: 32560394 DOI: 10.3390/ma13122741

Solvothermal synthesis is the most preferable preparation technique of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) that consists of reactants mixing, ultrasonication, solvothermal reaction, product washing, and solvent evacuation. Owing to fast reaction kinetics in solvothermal reaction, this technique allows for production of uniform MOF particles with high crystallinity, high phase purity, and small particle sizes. However, it exhibits some difficulties of washing processes that may involve the blockage of pores due to incomplete removal of reactive medium from MOF products. The present study proposes an improvement of washing processes by introducing centrifugal separations with optimized parameters at two different stages: after reaction and after product washing. Nickel‑based MOF‑74 was synthesized as the experimental material for this purpose. The quality of the produced sample was evaluated by gas adsorption performance using CO2 at 1 bar and 25 °C. The final sample of the optimized synthesis routes was able to adsorb 5.80 mmol/g of CO2 uptake, which was competitive with literature data and significantly higher than the sample of the basic synthesis. Fourier‑transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and powder X‑ray diffraction (PXRD) analysis revealed that the sample displayed much higher crystallinity structure and was clean from impurities after centrifugations. The outcome indicated the success of separation between MOF products and reactive medium during washing processes, leading to the effective pore activation of MOFs.
Predictive factors of follow-up non-attendance and mortality among adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus- an analysis of the Malaysian diabetes registry 2009

Chew BH, Lee PY, Shariff-Ghazali S, Cheong AT, Ismail M, Taher SW

Curr Diabetes Rev, 2015;11(2):122-31.
PMID: 25619541 DOI: 10.2174/1573399811666150115105206

This study examined the factors associated with follow-up non-attendance (FUNA) and mortality among the adult patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Data on 57780 T2DM patients from the 2009 diabetes registry were analyzed using multinomial logistic mixed model. Out of 57780 patients, 3140 (5.4%) were lost to follow-up and 203 (0.4%) patients had died. Compared with patients who were under active follow-up, men (OR 1.37), neither on insulin (OR 1.72), nor on antiplatelet agents (OR 1.47), having higher HbA1c (OR 1.15), higher LDL-C (OR 1.18) and complications (OR 1.33) were associated with FUNA. Older age (OR 1.09) and higher LDL-C (OR 2.27) have higher mortality. Across the four different health facilities, medication use (insulin and anti-platelet agents) to achieve better disease control in the younger age when diabetes complication is absent would not cause FUNA and might reduce mortality.
Stimulation of the bronchus-associated lymphoid tissue of goats and its effect on in vitro colonization by Pasteurella haemolytica

Effendy AW, Zamri-Saad M, Maswati MA, Ismail MS, Jamil SM

Vet Res Commun, 1998 Apr;22(3):147-53.
PMID: 9618886

Twenty goats of about 7 months of age were divided into five groups. The goats in groups 1 and 2 were exposed once, using an intranasal spray to 2 ml of an inoculum containing 10(6) colony-forming units/ml of living or dead Pasteurella haemolytica A2, respectively. The goats in groups 3 and 4 were similarly exposed twice at a 2-week interval. Group 5 was the untreated control. The number and size of the bronchus-associated lymphoid tissue (BALT) in goats exposed twice to either living or dead organisms were significantly (p < 0.05) increased compared with those exposed once and with the unexposed control. In vitro colonization by living P. haemolytica A2 onto the lung tissue in which the BALT had been stimulated by two exposures of either living or dead organisms was significantly (p < 0.05) reduced. The study indicates that stimulation of the respiratory mucosal immunity may prevent P. haemolytica A2 infection.
Factors associated with severe envenomation of snakebite cases at emergency department, Hospital Sultan Abdul Halim, Kedah, Malaysia

Mhd Nizar MNF, Rahman A, Baharuddin KA, Ahmad MZ, Mohamed Ismail M

Med J Malaysia, 2022 Jan;77(1):20-25.
PMID: 35086990

INTRODUCTION: Snakebite envenomation is a medical emergency and cases continue to be encountered in Malaysian hospitals. This study aims to determine the prevalence of snakebite presentations and the associated factors with severe envenomation of snakebite in Sungai Petani, Kedah, Malaysia.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a retrospective, crosssectional study involving snakebite patients presented at the Emergency Department (ED), Hospital Sultan Abdul Halim (HSAH), Kedah from 1 July 2015 to 30 June 2019. The cases were extracted from the computerized system and the case records of patients were retrieved from the Medical Record Unit. Patients that met the study criteria were included and their sociodemographic features, clinical presentations including use of anti-venom were collected. Logistic regression analysis was performed to determine the factors associated with severe envenomation.
RESULTS: A total of 220 snakebite cases with the mean age of patients was 39.66 (SD±21.79) years old. Majority of them were Malay and males. 41.4% of snakebite cases occurred in late evenings and the mean time-lapsed to arrive at HSAH was 108.6 minutes. 81.4% of snakebite cases occurred while engaging in outdoor activities and 43.6% of the snakebite cases involved work-related incidents. 58.2% of the patients were bitten in the lower limb. 78.6% of patients were bitten by the identified snake species, predominantly from Viperidae family. The prevalence of severe envenomation was 50.9%. Malay ethnicity (adj. OR =2.549, 95% CI =1.277,5.089), bite to the upper limb (adj. OR =2.125, 95% CI =1.192, 3.790), and bite by snakes from Viperidae family (adj. OR =3.017, 95% CI =1.613, 5.642) were found to have significant associations with severe envenomation of snakebite.
CONCLUSION: The prevalence of severe envenomation was more than 50% of snakebite cases. Malay ethnicity, upper limb snake bites, and snakebite from a Viperidae family had a higher chance of severe envenomation.
Hybridization of hierarchical clustering with persistent homology in assessing haze episodes between air quality monitoring stations

Zulkepli NFS, Noorani MSM, Razak FA, Ismail M, Alias MA

J Environ Manage, 2022 Mar 15;306:114434.
PMID: 35065362 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.114434

Haze has been a major issue afflicting Southeast Asian countries, including Malaysia, for the past few decades. Hierarchical agglomerative cluster analysis (HACA) is commonly used to evaluate the spatial behavior between areas in which pollutants interact. Typically, using HACA, the Euclidean distance acts as the dissimilarity measure and air quality monitoring stations are grouped according to this measure, thus revealing the most polluted areas. In this study, a framework for the hybridization of the HACA technique is proposed by considering the topological similarity (Wasserstein distance) between stations to evaluate the spatial patterns of the affected areas by haze episodes. For this, a tool in the topological data analysis (TDA), namely, persistent homology, is used to extract essential topological features hidden in the dataset. The performance of the proposed method is compared with that of traditional HACA and evaluated based on its ability to categorize areas according to the exceedance level of the particulate matter (PM10). Results show that additional topological features have yielded better accuracy compared to without the case that does not consider topological features. The cluster validity indices are computed to verify the results, and the proposed method outperforms the traditional method, suggesting a practical alternative approach for assessing the similarity in air pollution behaviors based on topological characterizations.
Thymoquinone-rich fraction nanoemulsion (TQRFNE) decreases Aβ40 and Aβ42 levels by modulating APP processing, up-regulating IDE and LRP1, and down-regulating BACE1 and RAGE in response to high fat/cholesterol diet-induced rats

Ismail N, Ismail M, Azmi NH, Bakar MFA, Yida Z, Abdullah MA, et al.

Biomed Pharmacother, 2017 Nov;95:780-788.
PMID: 28892789 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2017.08.074

Though the causes of Alzheimer's disease (AD) are yet to be understood, much evidence has suggested that excessive amyloid-β (Aβ) accumulation due to abnormal amyloid-β precursor protein (APP) processing and Aβ metabolism are crucial processes towards AD pathogenesis. Hence, approaches aiming at APP processing and Aβ metabolism are currently being actively pursued for the management of AD. Studies suggest that high cholesterol and a high fat diet have harmful effects on cognitive function and may instigate the commencement of AD pathogenesis. Despite the neuropharmacological attributes of black cumin seed (Nigella sativa) extracts and its main active compound, thymoquinone (TQ), limited records are available in relation to AD research. Nanoemulsion (NE) is exploited as drug delivery systems due to their capacity of solubilising non-polar active compounds and is widely examined for brain targeting. Herewith, the effects of thymoquinone-rich fraction nanoemulsion (TQRFNE), thymoquinone nanoemulsion (TQNE) and their counterparts' conventional emulsion in response to high fat/cholesterol diet (HFCD)-induced rats were investigated. Particularly, the Aβ generation; APP processing, β-secretase 1 (BACE1), γ-secretases of presenilin 1 (PSEN1) and presenilin 2 (PSEN2), Aβ degradation; insulin degrading enzyme (IDE), Aβ transportation; low density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1 (LRP1) and receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE) were measured in brain tissues. TQRFNE reduced the brain Aβ fragment length 1-40 and 1-42 (Aβ40 and Aβ42) levels, which would attenuate the AD pathogenesis. This reduction could be due to the modulation of β- and γ-secretase enzyme activity, and the Aβ degradation and transportation in/out of the brain. The findings show the mechanistic actions of TQRFNE in response to high fat and high cholesterol diet associated to Aβ generation, degradation and transportation in the rat's brain tissue.
Fulltext Effects of temperature, time, and solvent ratio on the extraction of phenolic compounds and the anti-radical activity of Clinacanthus nutans Lindau leaves by response surface methodology

Che Sulaiman IS, Basri M, Fard Masoumi HR, Chee WJ, Ashari SE, Ismail M

Chem Cent J, 2017 Jun 14;11(1):54.
PMID: 29086900 DOI: 10.1186/s13065-017-0285-1

BACKGROUND: Clinacanthus nutans Lindau is a well-known plant, native to tropical Asian countries. Reports on this plant that is rich in phenolic compounds have focused on its therapeutic anti-inflammatory, anti-herpes simplex, antioxidant, and anti-cancer characteristics. In this paper, the influence of the extraction parameters-temperatures (60-80 °C), times (80-120 min), and solvent ratios (70:30-90:10) of water:ethanol were investigated using response surface methodology in order to determine the optimum extraction conditions that could produce maximum extraction yields of the phenolic compounds and the highest anti-radical activity of the C. nutans extract.
RESULTS: The optimum conditions suggested by the predicted model were: an extraction temperature of 60 °C, an extraction time of 120 min and a water:ethanol solvent ratio of 90:10 v/v%. The residual standard error of 0.2% indicated that there was no significant difference between the actual and predicted values and it proved that the models were adequate to predict the relevant responses. All the independent variables had a significant effect (p
Fulltext Edible Bird's Nest Prevents Menopause-Related Memory and Cognitive Decline in Rats via Increased Hippocampal Sirtuin-1 Expression

Hou Z, He P, Imam MU, Qi J, Tang S, Song C, et al.

Oxid Med Cell Longev, 2017;2017:7205082.
PMID: 29104731 DOI: 10.1155/2017/7205082

Menopause causes cognitive and memory dysfunction due to impaired neuronal plasticity in the hippocampus. Sirtuin-1 (SIRT1) downregulation in the hippocampus is implicated in the underlying molecular mechanism. Edible bird's nest (EBN) is traditionally used to improve general wellbeing, and in this study, we evaluated its effects on SIRT1 expression in the hippocampus and implications on ovariectomy-induced memory and cognitive decline in rats. Ovariectomized female Sprague-Dawley rats were fed with normal pellet alone or normal pellet + EBN (6, 3, or 1.5%), compared with estrogen therapy (0.2 mg/kg/day). After 12 weeks of intervention, Morris water maze (four-day trial and one probe trial) was conducted, and serum estrogen levels, toxicity markers (alanine transaminase, alkaline phosphatase, urea, and creatinine), and hippocampal SIRT1 immunohistochemistry were estimated after sacrifice. The results indicated that EBN and estrogen enhanced spatial learning and memory and increased serum estrogen and hippocampal SIRT1 expression. In addition, the EBN groups did not show as much toxicity to the liver as the estrogen group. The data suggested that EBN treatment for 12 weeks could improve cognition and memory in ovariectomized female rats and may be an effective alternative to estrogen therapy for menopause-induced aging-related memory loss.
Fulltext Polyphenol-rich ethyl acetate fraction isolated from Molineria latifolia ameliorates insulin resistance in experimental diabetic rats via IRS1/AKT activation

Ooi J, Adamu HA, Imam MU, Ithnin H, Ismail M

Biomed Pharmacother, 2018 Feb;98:125-133.
PMID: 29248832 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2017.12.002

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of ethyl acetate fraction (EAF) isolated from Molineria latifolia rhizome as dietary interventions for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and its underlying molecular mechanisms in vivo. Experimental rats were induced by high fat diet feeding coupled with combined exposure to streptozotocin and nicotinamide. Treatment with EAF improved glucose tolerance and lipid profiles, but the insulin secretion was unaltered. Gene expression analyses on insulin/adipocytokine signalling-related genes demonstrated tissue-specific transcriptional responses. In skeletal muscle and liver tissues, Socs1, Tnf and Mapk8 showed consistent transcript regulation. Furthermore, hepatic translational analyses revealed sensitization on proximal insulin signalling, with reduced expression of IRS1 serine phosphorylation, increased IRS1 tyrosine phosphorylation and increased phospho-AKT (Ser473). The present findings suggested that EAF exerted its effect by modulating insulin signalling, potentially via IRS1/AKT activation. The pharmacological attributes of EAF may implicate its potential therapeutic applications for diabetes management.
Dietary supplementation of defatted kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.) seed meal and its phenolics-saponins rich extract effectively attenuates diet-induced hypercholesterolemia in rats

Chan KW, Ismail M, Mohd Esa N, Imam MU, Ooi J, Khong NMH

Food Funct, 2018 Feb 21;9(2):925-936.
PMID: 29313544 DOI: 10.1039/c7fo01109a

Kenaf is one of the important commercial fiber crops worldwide and defatted kenaf seed meal (DKSM) is a secondary by-product from the kenaf industry. Thus, efforts to turn this low-cost agricultural waste into value-added functional food ingredients will definitely bring advantageous impacts to the community health, environment and economy. The present study was aimed to investigate the cardioprotective properties of DKSM and its phenolics-saponins rich extract (PSRE) in diet-induced hypercholesterolemic rat model. Hypercholesterolemia was induced in Sprague-Dawley rats via atherogenic diet feeding and dietary interventions were conducted by incorporating DKSM (15% and 30%) and equivalent levels of PSRE (2.3% and 4.6%, respectively, equivalent to the total content of phenolics and saponins in DKSM groups) into the atherogenic diets. After 10 weeks of DKSM and PSRE supplementation, the hepatosomatic index, hepatosteatosis, serum lipid profile, Castelli risk indexes as well as hepatic and renal functions of hypercholesterolemic rats were significantly improved (p < 0.05). Besides, the levels of hepatic Hmgcr and serum Pcsk9 were lowered, along with transcriptional upregulations of hepatic Cyp7a1, Abca1, Lcat, ApoA2 and ApoE (p < 0.05). The gene expression of hepatic Ldlr was marginally enhanced by DKSM supplementation (p > 0.05), but superiorly upregulated by PSRE (p < 0.05). The combined results showed that hypercholesterolemia and the atherogenic risk in rats were effectively attenuated by DKSM and PSRE supplementation, possibly via modulations of multiple vital processes in hepatic cholesterol metabolism. Furthermore, phenolics and saponins may be the bioactives conferring DKSM and PSRE with their anti-hypercholesterolemic properties. In conclusion, DKSM and PSRE are prospective cardioprotective functional food ingredients for hypercholesterolemic individuals.
Fulltext In utero exposure to germinated brown rice and its oryzanol-rich extract attenuated high fat diet-induced insulin resistance in F1 generation of rats

Adamu HA, Imam MU, Ooi DJ, Esa NM, Rosli R, Ismail M

BMC Complement Altern Med, 2017 Jan 21;17(1):67.
PMID: 28109299 DOI: 10.1186/s12906-017-1571-0

The development of insulin resistance is multifactorial, with maternal pre- and postnatal nutrition having significant influences. In this regard, high fat diet (HFD) feeding in pregnancy has been shown to increase risks of metabolic diseases. Thus, we investigated the effects of supplementation of HFD with germinated brown rice (GBR) and GBR-derived gamma oryzanol-rich extract (OE) on insulin resistance and its epigenetic implications in pregnant rats and their offsprings.
Fulltext Improved Dehydrogenation Properties of LiAlH4 by Addition of Nanosized CoTiO3

Ali NA, Ahmad MAN, Yahya MS, Sazelee N, Ismail M

Nanomaterials (Basel), 2022 Nov 07;12(21).
PMID: 36364697 DOI: 10.3390/nano12213921

Despite the application of lithium aluminium hydride (LiAlH4) being hindered by its sluggish desorption kinetics and unfavourable reversibility, LiAlH4 has received special attention as a promising solid-state hydrogen storage material due to its hydrogen storage capacity (10.5 wt.%). In this work, investigated for the first time was the effect of the nanosized cobalt titanate (CoTiO3) which was synthesised via a solid-state method on the desorption behaviour of LiAlH4. Superior desorption behaviour of LiAlH4 was attained with the presence of a CoTiO3 additive. By means of the addition of 5, 10, 15 and 20 wt.% of CoTiO3, the initial desorption temperature of LiAlH4 for the first stage was reduced to around 115−120 °C and the second desorption stage was reduced to around 144−150 °C, much lower than for undoped LiAlH4. The LiAlH4-CoTiO3 sample also presents outstanding desorption kinetics behaviour, desorbing hydrogen 30−35 times faster than undoped LiAlH4. The LiAlH4-CoTiO3 sample could desorb 3.0−3.5 wt.% H2 in 30 min, while the commercial and milled LiAlH4 desorbs <0.1 wt.% H2. The apparent activation energy of the LiAlH4-CoTiO3 sample based on the Kissinger analysis was decreased to 75.2 and 91.8 kJ/mol for the first and second desorption stage, respectively, lower by 28.0 and 24.9 kJ/mol than undoped LiAlH4. The LiAlH4-CoTiO3 sample presents uniform and smaller particle size distribution compared to undoped LiAlH4, which is irregular in shape with some agglomerations. The experimental results suggest that the CoTiO3 additive promoted notable advancements in the desorption performance of LiAlH4 through the in situ-formed AlTi and amorphous Co or Co-containing active species that were generated during the desorption process.

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