MyMedR

Displaying publications 361 - 380 of 1094 in total

Abstract:

Sort:

Fulltext Alcohol, Aggression, and Violence: From Public Health to Neuroscience

Sontate KV, Rahim Kamaluddin M, Naina Mohamed I, Mohamed RMP, Shaikh MF, Kamal H, et al.

Front Psychol, 2021;12:699726.
PMID: 35002823 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.699726

Alcohol has been associated with violent crimes and domestic violence across many nations. Various etiological factors were linked to chronic alcohol use and violence including psychiatric comorbidities of perpetrators such as personality disorders, mood disorders, and intermittent explosive disorders. Aggression is the precursor of violence and individuals prone to aggressive behaviors are more likely to commit impulsive violent crimes, especially under the influence of alcohol. Findings from brain studies indicate long-term alcohol consumption induced morphological changes in brain regions involved in self-control, decision-making, and emotional processing. In line with this, the inherent dopaminergic and serotonergic anomalies seen in aggressive individuals increase their susceptibility to commit violent crimes when alcohol present in their system. In relation to this, this article intends to investigate the influence of alcohol on aggression with sociopsychological and neuroscientific perspectives by looking into comorbidity of personality or mood disorders, state of the mind during alcohol consumption, types of beverages, environmental trigger, neurochemical changes, and gender differences that influence individual responses to alcohol intake and susceptibility to intoxicated aggression.
Functional Neuroproteomics: An Imperative Approach for Unravelling Protein Implicated Complexities of Brain

Husain I, Ahmad W, Ali A, Anwar L, Nuruddin SM, Ashraf K, et al.

CNS Neurol Disord Drug Targets, 2021;20(7):613-624.
PMID: 33530918 DOI: 10.2174/1871527320666210202121624

A proteome is defined as a comprehensive protein set either of an organ or an organism at a given time and under specific physiological conditions. Accordingly, the study of the nervous system's proteomes is called neuroproteomics. In the neuroproteomics process, various pieces of the nervous system are "fragmented" to understand the dynamics of each given sub-proteome in a much better way. Functional proteomics addresses the organisation of proteins into complexes and the formation of organelles from these multiprotein complexes that control various physiological processes. Current functional studies of neuroproteomics mainly talk about the synapse structure and its organisation, the major building site of the neuronal communication channel. The proteomes of synaptic vesicle, presynaptic terminal, and postsynaptic density, have been examined by various proteomics techniques. The objectives of functional neuroproteomics are: to solve the proteome of single neurons or astrocytes grown in cell cultures or from the primary brain cells isolated from tissues under various conditions, to identify the set of proteins that characterize specific pathogenesis, or to determine the group of proteins making up postsynaptic or presynaptic densities. It is usual to solve a particular sub-proteome like the heat-shock response proteome or the proteome responding to inflammation. Post-translational protein modifications alter their functions and interactions. The techniques to detect synapse phosphoproteome are available. However, techniques for the analysis of ubiquitination and sumoylation are under development.
Novel approaches for the development of direct KRAS inhibitors: structural insights and drug design

Haider K, Sharma A, Yar MS, Yakkala PA, Shafi S, Kamal A

Expert Opin Drug Discov, 2022 Jan 27.
PMID: 35084268 DOI: 10.1080/17460441.2022.2029842

INTRODUCTION: Hyperactivated RAS signaling is reported in 13% of all human cancers, in which ~80% resulted due to KRAS mutations alone. Direct inhibition of KRAS is an important aspect in treating KRAS-related tumors. Despite the efforts of more than four decades, not many KRAS inhibitors have been successful in obtaining clinical approval, except the very recent FDA approval for sotorasib. In recent years, the understanding of structural insights and allosteric pocket identification at catalytic sites of KRAS are likely to provide an excellent opportunity for the development of much more effective clinical candidates.
AREA COVERED: The presented review article mainly summarizes the developments of small molecule KRAS inhibitors as drug candidates and rational approaches that are being utilized for the selective targeting of KRAS signaling in the mutant cancer cells.
EXPERT OPINION: After the initial success in targeting the mutant KRAS G12C variants, the search has been shifted to address the challenges concerning the resistance and efficacy of small molecule KRAS inhibitors. However, the contribution of other KRAS mutations at G12V, G13C, and G13D variants causing cancers is much higher than the mutations at G12C. In view of this aspect, specific attention is required to target all other mutations as well. Accordingly, for the development of KRAS targeted therapies, the design of small molecule inhibitors that can inhibit KRAS signaling and as well as target inhibition of other signaling pathways like RAS-SOS and RAS-PI3K has to be explored extensively.
Effect of hydrothermal treatment on organic matter degradation, phytotoxicity, and microbial communities in model food waste composting

Zainul Kamal S, Ngoc Minh Tran Q, Koyama M, Mimoto H, Asada C, Nakamura Y, et al.

J Biosci Bioeng, 2022 Jan 31.
PMID: 35115228 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiosc.2022.01.004

Hydrothermal treatment (HTT) as a pretreatment method for compost raw material has multiple benefits such as enhanced solubility of organic material, improved bioaugmentation, and reduced biohazard by killing harmful microorganisms. In this study, we pretreated food waste via HTT at 180 °C for 30 min to investigate its effect on food waste composting. HTT generated 8.98 mg/g-dry solid (g-ds) of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural and 4.32 mg/g-ds furfural. These furan compounds were completely decomposed in the early stage of composting, subsequently the organic matter in the food waste started to be degraded. The HTT-pretreated experiment demonstrated less organic matter degradation during composting as well as lower compost phytotoxicity compared to the non-HTT-pretreated experiment, where the conversion of carbon was 25.2% and the germination index value was 55%. HTT probably denatured part of the organic matter and making it more difficult to decompose, thereby preventing the rapid release of high concentrations of phytotoxic compounds such as organic acids and ammonium ions during composting. High-throughput microbial community analysis revealed that only Firmicutes appeared in the HTT-pretreated experiment, however, other bacterial groups also appeared in the non-HTT-pretreated experiment. This was possibly influenced by furan compounds and the changes of easily degradable organic matter to hardly degradable. Bacillus and Lysinibacillus were dominant in both composting experiments during vigorous organic matter degradation, suggesting that these bacterial groups were the main contributors to food waste composting. This study suggests that HTT is advantageous for the pretreatment of easily degradable food waste, as compost with less phytotoxicity was produced.
Fulltext Potential Health Benefits of Curcumin on Female Reproductive Disorders: A Review

Kamal DAM, Salamt N, Yusuf ANM, Kashim MIAM, Mokhtar MH

Nutrients, 2021 Sep 07;13(9).
PMID: 34579002 DOI: 10.3390/nu13093126

Curcumin is one of the main polyphenolic compounds in the turmeric rhizome. It possesses antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, anti-arthritis, anti-asthmatic, anti-microbial, anti-viral and anti-fungal properties. This review aims to provide an overview of the potential health benefits of curcumin to treat female reproductive disorders, including polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), ovarian failure and endometriosis. Comprehensive information on curcumin was retrieved from electronic databases, which were MEDLINE via EBSCOhost, Scopus and Google Scholar. The available evidence showed that curcumin reduced the high level of androgen in PCOS. Studies in rodents suggest that curcumin resulted in the disappearance of cysts and the appearance of healthy follicles and corpora lutea. Furthermore, animal studies showed curcumin improved the overall function of the ovary in ovarian diseases and reversed the disturbance in oxidative stress parameters. Meanwhile, in vitro and in vivo studies reported the positive effects of curcumin in alleviating endometriosis through anti-inflammatory, anti-proliferative, anti-angiogenic and pro-apoptotic mechanisms. Thus, curcumin possesses various effects on PCOS, ovarian diseases and endometriosis. Some studies found considerable therapeutic effects, whereas others found no effect. However, none of the investigations found curcumin to be harmful. Curcumin clinical trials in endometriosis and ovarian illness are still scarce; thus, future studies need to be conducted to confirm the safety and efficacy of curcumin before it could be offered as a complementary therapy agent.
Recent Advances in Drug Delivery of Polymeric Nano-Micelles

Aziz ZABA, Ahmad A, Mohd-Setapar SH, Hassan H, Lokhat D, Kamal MA, et al.

Curr Drug Metab, 2017;18(1):16-29.
PMID: 27654898 DOI: 10.2174/1389200217666160921143616

In clinical studies, drugs with hydrophobic characteristic usually reflect low bioavailability, poor drug absorption, and inability to achieve the therapeutic concentration in blood. The production of poor solubility drugs, in abundance, by pharmaceutical industries calls for an urgent need to find the alternatives for resolving the above mentioned shortcomings. Poor water solubility drugs loaded with polymeric micelle seem to be the best alternative to enhance drugs solubility and bioavailability. Polymeric micelle, formed by self-assembled of amphiphilic block copolymers in aqueous environment, functioned as solubilizing agent for hydrophobic drug. This review discusses the fundamentals of polymeric micelle as drug carrier through representative literature, and demonstrates some applications in various clinical trials. The structure, characteristic, and formation of polymeric micelle have been discussed firstly. Next, this manuscript focuses on the potential of polymeric micelles as drug vehicle in oral, transdermal routes, and anti-cancer agent. Several results from previous studies have been reproduced in this review in order to prove the efficacy of the micelles in delivering hydrophobic drugs. Lastly, future strategies to broaden the application of polymeric micelles in pharmaceutical industries have been highlighted.
Fulltext Presence of anticardiolipin antibodies in patients with dementia: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Islam MA, Alam F, Kamal MA, Gan SH, Sasongko TH, Wong KK

Front Aging Neurosci, 2017;9:250.
PMID: 28824414 DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2017.00250

Growing evidences are supporting towards the involvement of antiphospholipid antibodies [aPLs e.g., lupus anticoagulant (LA), anticardiolipin (aCL) and anti-β2-glycoprotein I (anti-β2-GPI) antibodies] in various neurological manifestations including migraine, epilepsy and dementia in the presence or absence of autoimmune diseases such as antiphospholipid syndrome or systemic lupus erythematosus. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to assess the presence of aPLs in dementia patients without a diagnosis of any autoimmune disease. Electronic databases (e.g., PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, ScienceDirect and Google Scholar) were searched without any year or language restrictions and based on the inclusion criteria, nine prospective case-control studies assessing only aCL were included involving 372 dementia patients and 337 healthy controls. No studies were found to assess the presence of both LA or anti-β2-GPI. The study-specific odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using random-effects model. We observed the prevalence of aCL in dementia was higher (32.80%) than that of controls (9.50%) e.g., 3.45 times higher risk of presenting with dementia than the controls, and significant presence of aCL antibodies was detected in dementia patients compared to controls (OR: 4.94, 95% CI: 2.66 - 9.16, p < 0.00001; I2 = 32%, p = 0.16). Publication bias was not observed from Egger's (p = 0.081) and Begg's tests (p = 0.180). Based on the study quality assessment using modified Newcastle-Ottawa Scale for case-control studies, seven of nine studies were of high methodological quality scoring ≥ 7 (median value). In summary, aCL antibodies were significantly present in dementia patients suggesting that aCL antibodies are generated due to the autoimmune-derived effects of dementia or there might be a potential causative role of this autoantibody in dementia pathogenesis.
Fulltext Erratum to: Isolation, Purification, and Characterization of Five Active Diketopiperazine Derivatives from Endophytic Streptomyces SUK 25 with Antimicrobial and Cytotoxic Activities

Alshaibani MM, Mohamad Zin N, Jalil J, Sidik NM, Ahmad SJ, Kamal N, et al.

J Microbiol Biotechnol, 2017 11 28;27(11):2074.
PMID: 29169008 DOI: 10.4014/jmb.2017.2711.2074

This erratum is being published to correct the 2nd author's name of above manuscript by Alshaibani et al. that was published in Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology (2017, 27: 1249-1256). The 2nd author name(Noraziah MohamadZin) should appear as 'Noraziah Mohamad Zin'.
Fulltext Subcritical Water Technology for Extraction of Phenolic Compounds from Chlorella sp. Microalgae and Assessment on Its Antioxidant Activity

Zakaria SM, Kamal SMM, Harun MR, Omar R, Siajam SI

Molecules, 2017 Jul 03;22(7).
PMID: 28671617 DOI: 10.3390/molecules22071105

Chlorella sp. microalgae is a potential source of antioxidants and natural bioactive compounds used in the food and pharmaceutical industries. In this study, a subcritical water (SW) technology was applied to determine the phenolic content and antioxidant activity of Chlorella sp. This study focused on maximizing the recovery of Chlorella sp. phenolic content and antioxidant activity measured by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay as a function of extraction temperature (100-250 °C), time (5-20 min) and microalgae concentration (5-20 wt. %) using response surface methodology. The optimal operating conditions for the extraction process were found to be 5 min at 163 °C with 20 wt. % microalgae concentration, which resulted in products with 58.73 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/g phenolic content and 68.5% inhibition of the DPPH radical. Under optimized conditions, the experimental values were in close agreement with values predicted by the model. The phenolic content was highly correlated (R² = 0.935) with the antioxidant capacity. Results indicated that extraction by SW technology was effective and that Chlorella sp. could be a useful source of natural antioxidants.
Genetic risk factors in thrombotic primary antiphospholipid syndrome: A systematic review with bioinformatic analyses

Islam MA, Khandker SS, Alam F, Kamal MA, Gan SH

Autoimmun Rev, 2018 Mar;17(3):226-243.
PMID: 29355608 DOI: 10.1016/j.autrev.2017.10.014

BACKGROUND: Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) is an autoimmune multifactorial disorder. Genetics is believed to play a contributory role in the pathogenesis of APS, especially in thrombosis development and pregnancy morbidity. In the last 20 years, extensive research on genetic contribution on APS indicates that APS is a polygenic disorder, where a number of genes are involved in the development of its clinical manifestations.

AIMS: The aim of this systematic review is to evaluate the genetic risk factors in thrombotic primary APS. Additionally, to assess the common molecular functions, biological processes, pathways, interrelations with the gene encoded proteins and RNA-Seq-derived expression patterns over different organs of the associated genes via bioinformatic analyses.

METHODS: Without restricting the year, a systematic search of English articles was conducted (up to 4th September 2017) using Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, ScienceDirect and Google Scholar databases. Eligible studies were selected based on the inclusion criteria. Two researchers independently extracted the data from the included studies. Quality assessment of the included studies was carried out using a modified New-Castle Ottawa scale (NOS).

RESULTS: From an initial search result of 2673 articles, 22 studies were included (1268 primary APS patients and 1649 healthy controls). Twenty-two genes were identified in which 16 were significantly associated with thrombosis in primary APS whereas six genes showed no significant association with thrombosis. Based on the NOS, 14 studies were of high quality while 6 were low quality studies. From the bioinformatic analyses, thrombin-activated receptor activity (q = 6.77 × 10-7), blood coagulation (q = 2.63 × 10-15), formation of fibrin clot (q = 9.76 × 10-10) were the top hit for molecular function, biological process and pathway categories, respectively. With the highest confidence interaction score of 0.900, all of the thrombosis-associated gene encoded proteins of APS were found to be interconnected except for two. Based on the pathway analysis, cumulatively all the genes affect haemostasis [false discovery rate (FDR) = 1.01 × 10-8] and the immune system [FDR = 9.93 × 10-2]. Gene expression analysis from RNA-Seq data revealed that almost all the genes were expressed in 32 different tissues in the human body.

CONCLUSION: According to our systematic review, 16 genes contribute significantly in patients with thrombotic primary APS when compared with controls. Bioinformatic analyses of these genes revealed their molecular interconnectivity in protein levels largely by affecting blood coagulation and immune system. These genes are expressed in 32 different organs and may pose higher risk of developing thrombosis anywhere in the body of primary APS patients.
Fulltext The Role of microRNAs in Alzheimer's Disease and Their Therapeutic Potentials

Miya Shaik M, Tamargo IA, Abubakar MB, Kamal MA, Greig NH, Gan SH

Genes (Basel), 2018 Mar 21;9(4).
PMID: 29561798 DOI: 10.3390/genes9040174

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short, endogenous, non-coding RNAs that post-transcriptionally regulate gene expression by base pairing with mRNA targets. Altered miRNA expression profiles have been observed in several diseases, including neurodegeneration. Multiple studies have reported altered expressions of miRNAs in the brains of individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD) as compared to those of healthy elderly adults. Some of the miRNAs found to be dysregulated in AD have been reported to correlate with neuropathological changes, including plaque and tangle accumulation, as well as altered expressions of species that are known to be involved in AD pathology. To examine the potentially pathogenic functions of several dysregulated miRNAs in AD, we review the current literature with a focus on the activities of ten miRNAs in biological pathways involved in AD pathogenesis. Comprehensive understandings of the expression profiles and activities of these miRNAs will illuminate their roles as potential therapeutic targets in AD brain and may lead to the discovery of breakthrough treatment strategies for AD.
Fulltext Compact Wideband Four-Port MIMO Antenna for Sub-6 GHz and Internet of Things Applications

Sheriff N, Kamal S, Tariq Chattha H, Kim Geok T, Khawaja BA

Micromachines (Basel), 2022 Dec 12;13(12).
PMID: 36557501 DOI: 10.3390/mi13122202

A compact four-port multi-input, multi-output (MIMO) antenna with good isolation is proposed for sub-6 GHz and Internet of Things (IoT) applications. Four similar L-shaped antennae are placed orthogonally at 7.6 mm distance from the corner of the FR4 substrate. The wideband characteristics and the required frequency band are achieved through the L-shaped structure and with proper placement of the slots on the substrate. To obtain good isolation between the ports, rectangular slots are etched in the bottom layer and are interconnected. The proposed antenna has total dimensions of 40 mm × 40 mm × 1.6 mm. The interconnected ground plane provides good isolation of less than -17 dB between the ports, and the impedance bandwidth obtained by the proposed four-port antenna is about 54% between the frequency range of 3.2 GHz to 5.6 GHz, thus providing a wideband antenna characteristic covering sub-6 GHz 5G bands (from 3.4 to 3.6 GHz and 4.8 to 5 GHz) and the WLAN band (5.2 GHz). The proposed design antenna is fabricated and tested. Good experimental results are achieved when compared with the simulation results. As the proposed design is compact and low profile, this antenna could be a suitable candidate for 5G and IoT devices.
Multiple vehicle cooperation and collision avoidance in automated vehicles: survey and an AI-enabled conceptual framework

Muzahid AJM, Kamarulzaman SF, Rahman MA, Murad SA, Kamal MAS, Alenezi AH

Sci Rep, 2023 Jan 12;13(1):603.
PMID: 36635336 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-27026-9

Prospective customers are becoming more concerned about safety and comfort as the automobile industry swings toward automated vehicles (AVs). A comprehensive evaluation of recent AVs collision data indicates that modern automated driving systems are prone to rear-end collisions, usually leading to multiple-vehicle collisions. Moreover, most investigations into severe traffic conditions are confined to single-vehicle collisions. This work reviewed diverse techniques of existing literature to provide planning procedures for multiple vehicle cooperation and collision avoidance (MVCCA) strategies in AVs while also considering their performance and social impact viewpoints. Firstly, we investigate and tabulate the existing MVCCA techniques associated with single-vehicle collision avoidance perspectives. Then, current achievements are extensively evaluated, challenges and flows are identified, and remedies are intelligently formed to exploit a taxonomy. This paper also aims to give readers an AI-enabled conceptual framework and a decision-making model with a concrete structure of the training network settings to bridge the gaps between current investigations. These findings are intended to shed insight into the benefits of the greater efficiency of AVs set-up for academics and policymakers. Lastly, the open research issues discussed in this survey will pave the way for the actual implementation of driverless automated traffic systems.
Lignocellulosic biomass supported metal nanoparticles for the catalytic reduction of organic pollutants

Akhtar K, Ali F, Sohni S, Kamal T, Asiri AM, Bakhsh EM, et al.

Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2020 Jan;27(1):823-836.
PMID: 31811610 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-019-06908-y

Lignocellulosic biomass waste is a cheap, eco-friendly, and sustainable raw material for a wide array of applications. In the present study, an easy, fast, and economically feasible route has been proposed for the preparation of different zero-valent metal nanoparticles (ZV-MNPs) based on Cu, Co, Ag, and Ni NPs using empty fruit bunch (EFB) biomass residue as support material. The catalytic efficiency of ZV-MNPs/EFB catalyst was investigated against five model pollutants, such as methyl orange (MO), congo red (CR), methylene blue (MB), acridine orange (AO), and 4-nitrophenol (4-NP) using NaBH4 as a source of hydrogen and electron. Comparative study revealed that among as-prepared ZV-MNPs/EFB catalysts, Cu-NPs immobilized onto EFB (Cu/EFB) exhibited maximum catalytic efficiency towards pollutant abasement. Degradation reactions were highly efficient, and were completed within a short time (4 min) in case of MO, CR, and MB, whilst AO and 4-NP were reduced in less than 15 min. Kinetic investigation revealed that the degradation rate of model pollutants accorded with pseudo-first order model. Furthermore, supported catalysts were easily recovered after the completion of experiment by simply pulling the catalyst from reaction system. Recyclability tests performed on Cu/EFB revealed that more than 97% of the reduction was achieved in case of MO dye for four successive cycles of reuse. The as-prepared heterostructure showed multifunctional properties, such as enhanced uptake of contaminants, high catalytic efficiency, and easy recovery, hence, offers great prospects in wastewater purification.
Research trends in biodiversity loss: a bibliometric analysis

Tan YL, Yiew TH, Habibullah MS, Chen JE, Mat Kamal SN, Saud NA

Environ Sci Pollut Res Int, 2023 Jan;30(2):2754-2770.
PMID: 35941500 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-022-22211-9

Although increased attempts to preserve biodiversity ecosystems have been widely publicized, bibliometric research of biodiversity loss remains limited. Using VOSviewer, we hope to provide a bibliometric assessment of global research trends on biodiversity loss from 1990 to 2021. Document type, language, publication trend, countries, institutions, Author Keywords, and Keywords Plus were all examined. This study recorded a total of 6599 publications from the Web of Science Core Collection database. According to the findings, biodiversity loss research is expected to rise dramatically in the near future. However, the role of social sciences and economics in biodiversity loss studies has received little attention. The USA made the most significant contribution in this field. Biological Conservation was the most productive journal, and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America was the most influential journal in biodiversity loss literature. Eisenhauer, N was the most prolific author, and Collen, B was the most referenced. Biodiversity, biodiversity loss mechanisms, biodiversity loss drivers, conservation, and climate change have been the topic of previous research. Possible future research hotspots may include species diversity and many elements of biodiversity. Lastly, the outcomes of this study suggest that existing socio-economic concerns can be integrated into decision-making processes to improve biodiversity conservation.
Fulltext Understanding the role of ACE-2 receptor in pathogenesis of COVID-19 disease: a potential approach for therapeutic intervention

Shirbhate E, Pandey J, Patel VK, Kamal M, Jawaid T, Gorain B, et al.

Pharmacol Rep, 2021 Dec;73(6):1539-1550.
PMID: 34176080 DOI: 10.1007/s43440-021-00303-6

Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) and its homologue, ACE2, are commonly allied with hypertension, renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system pathway, and other cardiovascular system disorders. The recent pandemic of COVID-19 has attracted the attention of numerous researchers on ACE2 receptors, where the causative viral particle, SARS-CoV-2, is established to exploit these receptors for permitting their entry into the human cells. Therefore, studies on the molecular origin and pathophysiology of the cell response in correlation to the role of ACE2 receptors to these viruses are bringing novel theories. The varying level of manifestation and importance of ACE proteins, underlying irregularities and disorders, intake of specific medications, and persistence of assured genomic variants at the ACE genes are potential questions raising nowadays while observing the marked alteration in response to the SARS-CoV-2-infected patients. Therefore, the present review has focused on several raised opinions associated with the role of the ACE2 receptor and its impact on COVID-19 pathogenesis.
Fulltext Estimation of soil erodibility in Peninsular Malaysia: A case study using multiple linear regression and artificial neural networks

Rehman MA, Abd Rahman N, Ibrahim ANH, Kamal NA, Ahmad A

Heliyon, 2024 Apr 15;10(7):e28854.
PMID: 38576554 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e28854

Soil erodibility (K) is an essential component in estimating soil loss indicating the soil's susceptibility to detach and transport. Data Computing and processing methods, such as artificial neural networks (ANNs) and multiple linear regression (MLR), have proven to be helpful in the development of predictive models for natural hazards. The present case study aims to assess the efficiency of MLR and ANN models to forecast soil erodibility in Peninsular Malaysia. A total of 103 samples were collected from various sites and K values were calculated using the Tew equation developed for Malaysian soil. From several extracted parameters, the outcomes of correlation and principal component analysis (PCA) revealed the influencing factors to be used in the development of ANN and MLR models. Based on the correlation and PCA results, two sets of influencing factors were employed to develop predictive models. Two MLR (MLR-1 and MLR-2) models and four neural networks (NN-1, NN-2, NN-3, and NN-4) optimized using Levenberg-Marquardt (LM) and scaled conjugate gradient (SCG) were developed and evaluated. The model performance validation was conducted using the coefficient of determination (R2), mean squared error (MSE), root mean squared error (RMSE), and Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency coefficient (NSE). The analysis showed that ANN models outperformed MLR models. The R2 values of 0.446 (MLR-1), 0.430 (MLR-2), 0.894 (NN-1), 0.855 (NN-2), 0.940 (NN-3), and 0.826 (NN-4); MSE values of 0.0000306 (MLR-1), 0.0000315 (MLR-2), 0.0000158 (NN-1), 0.0000261 (NN-2), 0.0000318 (NN-3), and 0.0000216 (NN-4) suggested the higher accuracy and lower modelling error of ANN models as compared with MLR. This study could provide an empirical basis and methodological support for K factor estimation in the region.
Bibliometric Review of Optimization and Image Processing of Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Imaging System between 1981-2022

Murat H, Awang Kechik MM, Chew MT, Kamal I, Abdul Karim MK

Curr Med Imaging, 2024 Apr 09.
PMID: 38616750 DOI: 10.2174/0115734056282004240403042345

BACKGROUND: PET scan stands as a valuable diagnostic tool in nuclear medicine, enabling the observation of metabolic and physiological changes at a molecular level. However, PET scans have a number of drawbacks, such as poor spatial resolution, noisy images, scattered radiation, artifacts, and radiation exposure. These challenges demonstrate the need for optimization in image processing techniques.
OBJECTIVES: Our objective is to identify the evolving trends and impacts of publication in this field, as well as the most productive and influential countries, institutions, authors, themes, and articles.
METHODS: A bibliometric study was conducted using a comprehensive query string such as "positron emission tomography" AND "image processing" AND optimization to retrieve 1,783 publications from 1981 to 2022 found in the Scopus database related to this field of study.
RESULTS: The findings revealed that the most influential country, institution, and authors are from the USA, and the most prevalent theme is TOF PET image reconstruction.
CONCLUSION: The increasing trend in publication in the field of optimization of image processing in PET scans would address the challenges in PET scan by reducing radiation exposure, faster scanning speed, as well as enhancing lesion identification.
Synthesis, characterization and bioactivity of new pyridine-2(H)-one, nicotinonitrile, and furo[2,3-b]pyridine derivatives

Ibrahim MM, Azmi MN, Alhawarri MB, Kamal NNSNM, AbuMahmoud H

Mol Divers, 2024 Jul 16.
PMID: 39009909 DOI: 10.1007/s11030-024-10934-5

Pyridone heterocycles, such as furo[2,3-b]pyridines, have emerged as prominent scaffolds in medicinal chemistry due to their versatile pharmacological properties, including significant anticancer activity. In this study, we successfully synthesized new pyridine-2(H)-one, nicotinonitrile, and furo[2,3-b]pyridine derivatives from chalcones bearing 4-(benzyloxy)phenyl and dichlorothiophenyl subunits to explore their therapeutic potential against breast cancer. By employing a synthetic strategy involving Claisen-Schmidt condensation followed by sequential cyclizations and functional modifications, we synthesized and characterized four compounds (MI-S0, MI-S1, MI-S2, and MI-S3) using various spectroscopic methods, including FT-IR, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, DEPT, H,H- and C,H-COSY, and HRMS. The in vitro cytotoxic activity of these compounds was evaluated against two breast cancer cell lines, MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231, and compared with a noncancerous breast cell line, MCF-10A. All compounds exhibited potent cytotoxic activities with minimal selectivity toward normal cells. Molecular docking studies targeting the serine/threonine kinase AKT1, estrogen receptor alpha (ERα), and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) revealed strong binding affinities, suggesting a mechanism involving the disruption of key cellular signaling pathways. These findings underscore the potential of furo[2,3-b]pyridine derivatives as promising candidates for further development into anticancer agents, laying the groundwork for future investigations into their selective therapeutic efficacy and molecular mechanisms of action.
Fulltext Efficacy and Safety of Pioglitazone Monotherapy in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomised Controlled Trials

Alam F, Islam MA, Mohamed M, Ahmad I, Kamal MA, Donnelly R, et al.

Sci Rep, 2019 Mar 29;9(1):5389.
PMID: 30926892 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-41854-2

Pioglitazone, the only thiazolidinedione drug in clinical practice is under scrutiny due to reported adverse effects, it's unique insulin sensitising action provides rationale to remain as a therapeutic option for managing type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis comparing pioglitazone monotherapy with monotherapies of other oral antidiabetic drugs for assessing its efficacy and safety in T2DM patients. Mean changes in glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c), and mean changes in fasting blood sugar (FBS) level, body weight (BW) and homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) were primary and secondary outcomes, respectively. Safety outcomes were changes in lipid parameters, blood pressure and incidences of adverse events. Metafor package of R software and RevMan software based on random-effects model were used for analyses. We included 16 randomised controlled trials. Pioglitazone monotherapy showed equivalent efficacy as comparators in reducing HbA1c by 0.05% (95% CI: -0.21 to 0.11) and greater efficacy in reducing FBS level by 0.24 mmol/l (95% CI: -0.48 to -0.01). Pioglitazone showed similar efficacy as comparators in reducing HOMA-IR (WMD: 0.05, 95% CI: -0.49 to 0.59) and increasing high-density lipoprotein level (WMD: 0.02 mmol/l, 95% CI: -0.06 to 0.10). Improved blood pressure (WMD: -1.05 mmHg, 95% CI: -4.29 to 2.19) and triglycerides level (WMD: -0.71 mmol/l, 95% CI: -1.70 to 0.28) were also observed with pioglitazone monotherapy. There was a significant association of pioglitazone with increased BW (WMD: 2.06 kg, 95% CI: 1.11 to 3.01) and risk of oedema (RR: 2.21, 95% CI: 1.48 to 3.31), though the risk of hypoglycaemia was absolutely lower (RR: 0.51, 95% CI: 0.33 to 0.80). Meta-analysis supported pioglitazone as an effective treatment option for T2DM patients to ameliorate hyperglycaemia, adverse lipid metabolism and blood pressure. Pioglitazone is suggested to prescribe following individual patient's needs. It can be a choice of drug for insulin resistant T2DM patients having dyslipidaemia, hypertension or history of cardiovascular disease.

Filters

Please provide feedback to Administrator (afdal@afpm.org.my)

External Links