Introduction: Breast cancer is ranked first among other cancers in women. Ineffectiveness of current treatments and adverse effects such as multiple organ failure and nephrotoxicity are the common problems faced in cancer therapy. Therefore, alternatives to treat breast cancer metastasis with fewer toxic effects are actively sought-after. Dillenia suffruticosa (DS) commonly known as ‘Simpoh air’ has been a traditional remedy for cancer growth. Therefore, this study investigated the metastasis inhibiting properties of DS root dichloromethane extract (DCMDS) in tumour bearing female BALB/c mice and sub-acute multiple dose oral toxicity upon treatment with this extract. Methods: Forty-eight tumour bearing mice were given either oral treatment of DCMDS (50, 100 and 200 mg/kg) or doxorubicin (2 mg/kg) for 28 days and the degree of metastasis was analysed in each group. Thirty other female BALB/c mice were treated with DCMDS (50, 100 and 200 mg/kg) and the general behaviours, biochemical, haematological and histo- pathological changes were observed. Data were analysed with One-way ANOVA and Dunnet’s test where p
Soil is the unconsolidated material in which plants are rooted. Soil texture is determined by the amount of sand, silt and clay in the soil. Understanding soil properties can help to better management and minimize soil disturbance. These soils were collected for soil properties and bulk density along the 55.2km of Sg. Lebir. Soil on Earth commonly contains of various particles such as sand, silt and clay. These particles commonly classes by refer to soil textural triangle. 40g of air-dried sample diluted into 1000ml of deionised water were left until the percentage of sand, silt and clay observed then calculated as percentage. As calculated, the mean percentage of sand contained is 66%, clay 17% and silt 17%. Besides that, it was concluded that most of the soils texture along 55.2km of Sg. Lebir had a sandy loam soil with pH slightly acidic (6.08) with densities the mean is 0.24 gcm-3.
Health awareness promotion among farming communities are important for a sustainable agriculture activities. A cross-sectional study was conducted to assess health status among farming communities in Cameron Highlands, Pahang (n = 61) and Bachok and Pasir Puteh, Kelantan (n = 143). Mobile Health Screening Programme composed of assessment of blood glucose, blood cholesterol, haemoglobin, blood pressure, pterygium, lung function and nerve conductive velocity was utilized. Our results indicate that the percentage of Cameron Highland’s farmers with hyperglycaemia, systolic hypertension, diastolic hypertension and anaemia were 8.2%, 14.8%, 11.5% and 8.2%, respectively. However, higher percentage of farmers in Bachok and Pasir Puteh, Kelantan with hyperglycaemia (32.8%), hypercholesterolaemia (83%), anaemia (24.2%) and systolic hypertension (41.9%) were observed. Pterygium was positive for 88.6% of farmers in Cameron Highlands and 94.4% in Bachok and Pasir Puteh. Lung function test shows that 61.7% and 11.4% of farmers in Cameron Highlands had restrictive and obstructive lung, respectively. In Bachok and Pasir Puteh, a total of 19.8%, 55.5% and 23.9% of farmers were found to have obstructive, restrictive and combined obstructive and restrictive lung, respectively. Current Perception Threshold (CPT) value which indicate nerve conductive velocity were significantly increased (p < 0.05) among Cameron Highland’s farmers for both median and peroneal nerve at all frequencies (5 Hz, 250 Hz and 2000 Hz). In Bachok and Pasir Puteh, the values of the CPT for median nerve was significantly increased (p < 0.05) for all frequencies (5, 250 and 2000 Hz). Meanwhile, a signifi cant increased (p < 0.05) was observed for the CPT values for peroneal nerve at the frequencies of 250 and 2000 Hz as compared to control groups. In conclusion, analysis revealed different health problem among the studied farming communities which could be influenced by the differences in farming practices. Thus, employed Mobile Health Screening Programme offers a monitoring approach that could highlight the need for suitable health services and awareness programmes for different farming communities.
Background: Gastrointestinal illnesses and respiratory-related illnesses are common among
young children in Malaysia, especially those who are attending day care. During administration of
probiotic, the occurences of gastrointestinal and respiratory-related illnesses can be reduced. These
were observed by evaluation through a single questionnaire. However, currently no single tool exists
to simultaneously evaluate the domains of gastrointestinal and respiratory-related illnesses among
these young children. The current study aimed to develop a source questionnaire in English, translate
and validate into the Malay. Methods: Relevant domains of gastrointestinal and respiratory-related
illnesses were identified to generate items and formed a screening tool through literature reviews,
focus groups and opinions of experts. Results: The developed Basic Demographic and Lifestyle
Questionnaire (BDLQ) and Monthly Healthy Questionnaires (MHQ) showed item-level content
validity index (I-CVI) of 0.99 and 0.97, respectively, while the translated Malay versions showed I-CVI
of 1.00 and 0.99, respectively. Item-level face validity index (I-FVI) of 1.00 for both questionnaires
were obtained from 30 respondents showing that the items were clear and comprehensible.
Conclusion: This study showed good level of I-CVI and I-FVI in both developed questionnaires and
their Malay translated versions. These tools in English and Malay were valid and thus reliable to be
used for assessing gastrointestinal and respiratory-related illnesses in young children.
Muhammad Adil Khattak, Muhammad Khairy Harmaini Shaharuddin, Muhammad Saiful Islam Haris, Muhammad Zuhaili Mohammad Aminuddin, Nik Mohamad Amirul Nik Azhar, Nik Muhammad Hakimi Nik Ahmad
It is essential to ensure the nuclear power plant system are not compromise and avoid
failure that can result in significant economic loss and physical damage to the public.
However, a very little attention was given to software and cybersecurity hazard. This
review paper discusses about the cybersecurity in nuclear power plant, history of
accident, implementation and future plan on cybersecurity deeply. About 51 published
studies (2006-2017) are reviewed in this paper. It is marked from the literature survey
articles that it is important for the cybersecurity of a nuclear power plant to be at par
with the evolution of hardware and software and to counter the increasing risk on
cyber vulnerabilities. Moreover, it should be addressed as a concern and major priority
for researches and policy-makers.
This study aimed to translate Oldenburg Burnout Inventory (OLBI) into Malay language, and test its
response process (face validity) and internal structure (factor structure and internal consistency). To
the author’s knowledge, OLBI is not yet validated in Malay language, thus this study aimed to produce
a validated Malay version of OLBI (OLBI-M) in order to measure burnout among the healthcare
learner population in Malaysia. OLBI has great potentials mainly due to its accessibility and free of
any cost to use it, thus might promote more researchers to conduct burnout research in Malaysia. The
forward-backward translation was performed as per standard guideline. The OLBI-M was distributed
to 32 medical students to assess face validity and later to 452 medical students to assess construct
validity. Data analysis was performed by Microsoft Excel, Statistical Package for the Social Sciences
(SPSS), and Analysis of Moment Structures (AMOS). The face validity index of OLBI-M was more
than 0.70. The two factors of CBI-M achieved good level of goodness of fit indices (Cmin/df = 3.585,
RMSEA = 0.076, GFI = 0.958, CFI = 0.934, NFI = 0.912, TLI = 0.905) after removal of several
items. The composite reliability values of the two factors ranged from 0.71 to 0.73. The Cronbach’s
alpha values of the three factors ranged from 0.70 to 0.74. This study shows OLBI-M is a reliable
and valid tool to measure burnout in medical students. Future burnout studies in Malaysia are highly
recommended to utilise OLBI-M. However, it is crucial for further validity to be carried out to verify
the credential of OLBI-M.
Lecturers are expected to teach effectively and evaluating their teaching effectiveness are essential to
ensure students get the best learning experience. A systematic evaluation of teaching behaviours with a
proper feedback mechanism will help to improve their teaching effectiveness. Improvement of teaching
effectiveness will result in better students’ learning experience, and thus attaining the intended
educational outcomes. This study aimed to evaluate teaching effectiveness among lecturers by
assessing their teaching behaviours during lectures. A cross-sectional study was conducted on lecturers
in a Malaysian public medical school. Their teaching behaviours were rated by 30 trained pre-clinical
medical students using Teacher Behaviour Inventory (TBI) on seven aspects – organisation, speechpacing,
clarity, enthusiasm, interaction, rapport, and disclosure. A total of 55 lecturers were rated
by the medical students. The organisation and speech-pacing aspects were highly rated as the mean
scores were 4.02 and 4.15, respectively. The clarity, enthusiasm, interaction, and rapport aspects
attained satisfactory level as the mean scores ranged from 3.10 to 3.59. The disclosure aspect was
poorly rated as the mean score was 2.20. Eventhough all lecturers in this school are considered expert
in their area, findings from this study suggest that some teaching behaviour need some improvement.
Findings from this study also provide useful data for the medical school to chart direction of faculty
development activities to improve their lecturers’ teaching effectiveness during lectures.
Objectives: The objectives of our study were to determine the mean age of onset of thelarche and menarche,
to determine the ages of each stage of puberty and to investigate if there are any ethnic differences in these
ages amongst female adolescents in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Methods: This was a cross-sectional study involving three secondary schools in Cheras, Kuala Lumpur. A total of
730 students were recruited via stratified random sampling. Self-administered survey forms on menstruation
and puberty were used.
Results: Out of 730 recruited respondents, 385 (52.74%) completed the survey and informed consents were
obtained from their parents/legal guardians. Our respondents’ ages ranged between 13 to 17 years old with
the median (IQR) age of 14.00(2.00) years. With regards to ethnicity, 329 (85.50%) were Malay, 46 (11.90%)
were Chinese, 9 (2.30%) were Indian and 1(0.30%) was a Bajau. The mean age for breast development
(thelarche) and menarche were 11.72 ±1.10 and 11.97±1.11 years respectively. The majority, 363 (94.30%),
out of 385 respondents had attained menarche. There appeared to be a later onset of puberty amongst
Malays comparatively.
Conclusion: The mean ages of pubertal onset and menarche amongst female adolescents in the Cheras area
are similar to those reported worldwide.
Non-destructive test which refers to electrical resistivity method is recently popular in engineering, environmental, archaeological and mining studies. Based on the previous studies, the results on electrical resistivity interpretation were often debated due to lack of clarification and evidences in quantitative perspective. Traditionally, most of the previous result interpretations were depending on qualitative point of view which is risky to produce unreliable outcomes. In order to minimise those problems, this study has performed a laboratory experiment on soil box electrical resistivity test which was supported by an additional basic physical properties of soil test like particle size distribution test (d), moisture content test (w), density test (ρbulk) and Atterberg limit test (LL, PL and PI). The test was performed to establish a series of electrical resistivity value (ERV) with different quantity of water content for clayey silt and silty sand in loose and dense condition. Apparently, the soil resistivity value was different under loose (L) and dense (C) conditions with moisture content and density variations (silty SAND = ERVLoose: 600 - 7300 Ωm & ERVDense: 490 - 7900 Ωm while Clayey SILT = ERVLoose: 13 - 7700 Ωm & ERVDense: 14 - 8400 Ωm) due to several factors. Moreover, correlation of moisture content (w) and density (ρbulk) due to the ERV was established as follows; Silty SAND: w(L) = 638.8ρ-0.418, w(D) = 1397.1ρ-0.574, ρBulk(L) = 2.6188e-6E-05ρ, ρBulk(D) = 4.099ρ-0.07 while Clayey SILT: w(L) = 109.98ρ-0.268, w(D) = 121.88ρ-0.363, ρBulk(L) = -0.111ln(ρ) + 1.7605, ρBulk(D) = 2.5991ρ-0.037 with determination coefficients, R2 that varied from 0.5643 – 0.8927. This study was successfully demonstrated that the consistency of ERV was greatly influenced by the variation of soil basic physical properties (d, w, ρBulk, LL, PL and PI). Finally, the reliability of the ERV result interpretation can be enhanced due to its ability to produce a meaningful outcome based on supported data from basic geotechnical properties.
A 50Hz glow discharge He/CH4
plasma was generated and applied for the glass surface modification to reduce the powder
adhesion on wall of spray dryer. The hydrophobicity of the samples determined by the water droplet contact angle and
adhesion weight on glass, dependent on the CH4 flow rate and plasma exposure time. The presence of CH3
groups and
higher surface roughness of the plasma treated glass were the factors for its hydrophobicity development. Response
surface methodology (RSM) results using central composite rotatable design (CCRD) showed that optimal responses
were obtained by the combination of parameters, CH4
gas flow rate = 3 sccm and exposure time = 10 min. In optimum
conditions, the contact angle increased by 47% and the weight of the adhesion reduced by 38% (w/w). The plasma
treatment could enhance the value of the contact angle and thus reduced the adhesion on the spray dryer glass surface.
Polylactic acid (PLA) nanocomposites reinforced with hybrid montmorillonite/cellulose nanowhiskers [MMT/CNW(SO4)] were prepared by solution casting. The CNW(SO4) nanofiller was first isolated from microcrystalline cellulose using acid hydrolysis treatment. PLA/MMT/CNW(SO4) hybrid nanocomposites were prepared by the addition of various amounts of CNW(SO4) [1-9 parts per hundred parts of polymer (phr)] into PLA/MMT nanocomposite at 5 phr MMT content, based on highest tensile strength values as reported previously. The biodegradability, thermal, tensile, morphological, water absorption and transparency properties of PLA/MMT/CNW(SO4) hybrid nanocomposites were investigated. The Biodegradability, thermal stability and crystallinity of hybrid nanocomposites increased compared to PLA/MMT nanocomposite and neat PLA. The highest tensile strength of hybrid nanocomposites was obtained by incorporating 1 phr CNW(SO4) [∼ 36 MPa]. Interestingly, the ductility of hybrid nanocomposites increased significantly by 87% at this formulation. The Young's modulus increased linearly with increasing CNW(SO4) content. This is due to the relatively good dispersion of nanofillers in the hybrid nanocomposites, as revealed by transmission electron microscopy. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy indicated the formation of some polar interactions. In addition, water resistance of the hybrid nanocomposites improved and the visual transparency of neat PLA film did not affect by addition of CNW(SO4).
The stem bark extracts of Knema laurina inhibited the hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)- and aggregated amyloid β-peptide 1-42 length (Aβ(1-42))-induced cell death in differentiated SH-SY5Y cells. Exposure of 250 μM H2O2 or 20 μM Aβ(1-42) to the cells for 24 h reduced 50% of cell viability. Pretreatment of cells with ethyl acetate extract (EAE) or n-butanol extract (BE) at 300 μg/mL and then exposure to H2O2 protected the cells against the neurotoxic effects of H2O2. Besides, methanolic extract (ME) at 1 and 10 μg/mL exerted neuroprotective effect on Aβ(1-42)-induced toxicity to the cells. These results showed that EAE, BE and ME exhibited neuroprotective activities against H2O2- and Aβ(1-42)-induced cell death. Flavonoids (3-6) and β-sitosterol glucoside (8) were isolated from the EAE. Compound 1 was isolated from hexane extract, and compounds 2 and 7 were isolated from dichloromethane extract. All these observations provide the possible evidence for contribution in the neuroprotective effects.
28 new pyrrolidine types of compounds as analogues for natural polyhydroxy alkaloids of codonopsinine were evaluated for their anti-MRSA activity using MIC and MBC value determination assay against a panel of S. aureus isolates. One pyrrolidine compound, MFM 501, exhibited good inhibitory activity with MIC value of 15.6 to 31.3 μg/mL against 55 S. aureus isolates (43 MRSA and 12 MSSA isolates). The active compound also displayed MBC values between 250 and 500 μg/mL against 58 S. aureus isolates (45 MRSA and 13 MSSA isolates) implying that MFM 501 has a bacteriostatic rather than bactericidal effect against both MRSA and MSSA isolates. In addition, MFM 501 showed no apparent cytotoxicity activity towards three normal cell lines (WRL-68, Vero, and 3T3) with IC50 values of >625 µg/mL. Selectivity index (SI) of MFM 501 gave a value of >10 suggesting that MFM 501 is significant and suitable for further in vivo investigations. These results suggested that synthetically derived intermediate compounds based on natural products may play an important role in the discovery of new anti-infective agents against MRSA.
In our previous studies conducted on Ardisia crispa roots, it was shown that Ardisia crispa root inhibited inflammation-induced angiogenesis in vivo. The present study was conducted to identify whether the anti-angiogenic properties of Ardisia crispa roots was partly due to either cyclooxygenase (COX) or/and lipoxygenase (LOX) activity inhibition in separate in vitro studies.
In recent years, the utilization of certain medicinal plants as therapeutic agents has drastically increased. Phaleria macrocarpa (Scheff.) Boerl is frequently used in traditional medicine. The present investigation was undertaken with the purpose of developing pharmacopoeial standards for this species. Nutritional values such as ash, fiber, protein, fat, and carbohydrate contents were investigated, and phytochemical screenings with different reagents showed the presence of flavonoids, glycosides, saponin glycosides, phenolic compounds, steroids, tannins, and terpenoids. Our results also revealed that the water fraction had the highest antioxidant activity compared to the methanol extract and other fractions. The methanol and the fractionated extracts (hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, and water) of P. macrocarpa seeds were also investigated for their cytotoxic effects on selected human cancer cells lines (MCF-7, HT-29, MDA-MB231, Ca Ski, and SKOV-3) and a normal human fibroblast lung cell line (MRC-5). Information from this study can be applied for future pharmacological and therapeutic evaluations of the species, and may assist in the standardization for quality, purity, and sample identification. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the phytochemical screening and cytotoxic effect of the crude and fractionated extracts of P. macrocarpa seeds on selected cells lines.
A limiting factor in performing proteomics analysis on cancerous cells is the difficulty in obtaining sufficient amounts of starting material. Cell lines can be used as a simplified model system for studying changes that accompany tumorigenesis. This study used two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2DE) to compare the whole cell proteome of oral cancer cell lines vs normal cells in an attempt to identify cancer associated proteins.
The present research was designed to evaluate the anticancer properties of Dillenia suffruticosa extract. Our focus was on the mode of cell death and cell cycle arrest induced in breast cancer cells by the active fractions (designated as D/F4, D/F5 and EA/P2) derived from chromatographic fractionation of D. suffruticosa extracts. The results showed that the active fractions are more cytotoxic towards MCF-7 (estrogen positive breast cancer cells) and MDA-MB-231 (estrogen negative breast cancer cells) as compared to other selected cancer cell lines that included HeLa, A459 and CaOV3. The induction of cell death through apoptosis by the active fractions on the breast cancer cells was confirmed by Annexin V-FITC and PI staining. Cell cycle analysis revealed that D/F4 and EA/P2 induced G2/M phase cell cycle arrest in MCF-7 cells. On the other hand, MDA-MB-231 cells treated with D/F4 and D/F5 accumulated in the sub-G1 phase without cell cycle arrest, suggesting the induction of cell death through apoptosis. The data suggest that the active fractions of D. suffruticosa extract eliminated breast cancer cells through induction of apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. The reason why MCF-7 was more sensitive towards the treatment than MDA-MB-231 remains unclear. This warrants further work, especially on the role of hormones in response towards cytotoxic agents. In addition, more studies on the mechanisms underlying the induction of apoptosis and cell cycle arrest by the plant extract also need to be carried out.
CONTEXT: There is considerable evidence that emotional intelligence, previous academic achievement (i.e. cumulative grade point average (GPA)) and personality are associated with success in various occupational settings. This study evaluated the relationships of these variables with psychological health of first year medical students during stressful periods.
METHODS: A 1-year prospective study was done with students accepted into the School of Medical Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia. Information on emotional intelligence, GPA and personality traits were obtained prior to admission. The validated Universiti Sains Malaysia Emotional Quotient Inventory and Universiti Sains Malaysia Personality Inventory were used to measure emotional intelligence and personality traits, respectively. Stress, anxiety and depression were measured by the 21-item Depression Anxiety Stress Scale during the end-of-course (time 1) and final (time 2) examinations.
RESULTS: At the less stressful period (time 1), stress level was associated with agreeableness and the final GPA, anxiety level was associated with emotional control and emotional conscientiousness and depression level was associated with the final GPA and extraversion. At the more stressful period (time 2), neuroticism associated with stress level, anxiety level was associated with neuroticism and emotional expression, and depression level was associated with neuroticism.
CONCLUSIONS: This study found that neuroticism was the strongest associated factor of psychological health of medical students during their most stressful testing period. Various personality traits, emotional intelligence and previous academic performance were associated factors of psychological health during a less stressful period. These data suggest that early identification of medical students who are vulnerable to the stressful environment of medical schools might help them maintain psychological well-being during medical training.
This study aims to identify cancer-associated proteins in the secretome of oral cancer cell lines. We have successfully established four primary cell cultures of normal cells with a limited lifespan without human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) immortalization. The secretome of these primary cell cultures were compared with that of oral cancer cell lines using 2DE. Thirty five protein spots were found to have changed in abundance. Unambiguous identification of these proteins was achieved by MALDI TOF/TOF. In silico analysis predicted that 24 of these proteins were secreted via classical or nonclassical mechanisms. The mRNA expression of six genes was found to correlate with the corresponding protein abundance. Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA) core analysis revealed that the identified proteins were relevant in, and related to, cancer development with likely involvements in tumor growth, metastasis, hyperproliferation, tumorigenesis, neoplasia, hyperplasia, and cell transformation. In conclusion, we have demonstrated that a comparative study of the secretome of cancer versus normal cell lines can be used to identify cancer-associated proteins.
Replicative senescence and stress-induced premature senescence (SIPS) cells are known to share certain traits. However, whether these cells are different at the protein level is unclear. Thus, this study has utilized proteomics to identify differences in the proteomes of replicative senescence and SIPS cells compared to normal cells. Replicative senescence was induced by serial passage of normal cells in culture. SIPS was established by exposure to H2 O2 at a subcytotoxic concentration of 20 μM for two weeks. Following 2DE, protein profiles were compared and protein spots that changed in abundance were identified by MALDI-TOF MS. Quantitative real-time RT-PCR was then performed to evaluate the transcript expression of selected altered proteins. A total of 24 and 10 proteins were found to have changed in abundance in replicative senescence and SIPS cells, respectively, when compared to young cells. Quantitative RT-PCR revealed that nine genes showed the same direction of change as observed in the proteomics analysis. Very little overlap was observed between proteins that changed in replicative senescence and SIPS cells, suggesting that although both SIPS and replicative senescence cells share hallmarks of cellular senescence, they were different in terms of proteins that changed in abundance.