Methods: E. faecalis and E. faecium strains were isolated from the oral, rectal and fecal samples of 140 pigs; nasal, urine and fecal samples of 34 farmers working in the farms and 42 environmental samples collected from seven swine farms located in Peninsular Malaysia. Antibiotic susceptibility test was performed using the disk diffusion method, and the antibiotic resistance and virulence genes were detected by Polymerase Chain Reaction. Repetitive Extragenic Palindromic-Polymerase Chain Reaction and Pulsed-Field Gel Electrophoresis were performed to determine the clonality of the strains. Crosstab/Chi-square test and DistLM statistical analyses methods were used to determine the correlations between the genotypes, virulence factors, antibiotic resistance, and the environmental factors.
Results: A total of 211 E. faecalis and 42 E. faecium were recovered from 140 pigs, 34 farmers and 42 environmental samples collected from seven swine farms in Peninsular Malaysia. Ninety-eight percent of the strains were multidrug-resistant (resistant to chloramphenicol, tetracycline, ciprofloxacin and erythromycin). Fifty-two percent of the strains formed biofilms. Virulence genes efa, asaI, gelE, esp, cyl and ace genes were detected. Virulence genes efa and asaI were most prevalent in E. faecalis (90%) and E. faecium (43%), respectively. Cluster analyses based on REP-PCR and PFGE showed the strains were genetically diverse. Overall, the strains isolated from pigs and farmers were distinct, except for three highly similar strains found in pigs and farmers. The strains were regional- and host-specific.
Discussion: This study revealed alarming high frequencies of multidrug-resistant enterococci in pigs and swine farmers. The presence of resistance and virulence genes and the ability to form biofilm further enhance the persistence and pathogenicity of the strains. Although the overall clonality of the strains were regionals and host-specific, strains with high similarity were found in different hosts. This study reiterates a need of a more stringent regulation to ensure the proper use of antibiotics in swine husbandry to reduce the wide spread of multidrug-resistant strains.
METHOD: This study is aimed to identify differentiating features of EPR between physiological and pathological population.
RESULTS: A total of 43 patients with pyramidal lesions and 113 normal controls were recruited for this study. The pathological EPRs were more reproducible, with 89.4% having at least two positive Babinski responses and 91.5% having two positive Chaddock responses (vs. 14.3% and 4.8% in controls, P < 0.001). The pathological EPR was more sensitive to stimulation, in which 89.1% were elicited when the stimulation reached mid-lateral sole (vs. 11.9% in controls, P < 0.001). Most (93.6%) pathological cases had sustained big toe extension throughout stimulation (vs. 73.8% in controls, P < 0.001). As compared to those with brain lesion, the plantar responses in those with spinal lesion are less likely to have ankle dorsiflexion (5.3% vs. 25%, P < 0.05) more likely to have sustained extensor response with Babinski (94.7% vs. 71.4%, P < 0.05), Chaddock (89.5% vs. 64.3%, P < 0.05), and Schaefer (26.3% vs. 3.6%, P < 0.05) methods. A scoring system was computed using four variables, i.e., two consecutive positive Babinski or Chaddock responses, extensor response at mid-lateral sole, and sustained extension throughout stimulation. A score ≥3 is predictive of pathological origin, with sensitivity and specificity of 78.7% and 95.2%, respectively.
CONCLUSION: The pathological EPR is more reproducible, sensitive to stimulation, and sustainable compared to physiological extensor response.
METHODS AND RESULTS: The library of 16S rDNA V3-V4 hypervariable regions of gut microbiota was amplified and sequenced using Illumina MiSeq. The sequencing data were analyzed using Quantitative Insights into Microbial Ecology (QIIME) pipeline and Phylogenetic Investigation of Communities by Reconstruction of Unobserved States (PICRUSt). The most abundant bacterial phyla in both wild and captive T. tambroides were Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, Fusobacteria and Bacteroidetes. Cetobacterium spp., Peptostreptococcaceae family, Bacteroides spp., Phosphate solubilizing bacteria PSB-M-3, and Vibrio spp. were five most abundant OTU in wild T. tambroides as compared to Cetobacterium spp., Citrobacter spp., Aeromonadaceae family, Peptostreptococcaceae family and Turicibacter spp. in captive T. tambroides.
CONCLUSION: In this study, the specimens of the wild T. tambroides contain more diverse gut microbiota than of the captive ones. The results suggested that Cetobacterium spp. is one of the core microbiota in guts of T. tambroides. Besides, high abundant Bacteroides spp., Citrobacter spp., Turicibacter spp., and Bacillus spp. may provide important functions in T. tambroides guts.
SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: The results of this study provide significant information of T. tambroides gut microbiota for further understanding of their physiological functions including growth and disease resistance.
METHODOLOGY: A total of 89 patients with gouty arthritis and 100 normal subjects who consented and were recruited in this study. The serum urate and creatinine were measured. The SNP genotyping was performed using PCR-RFLP method for rs3733591 and BST 1236 was used as a restriction enzyme to cut the targeted amplicons.
RESULT: SLC2A9 variant was associated with gout, p-value of 0.007, OR=4.713 [95%CI 1.530-14.513], however this association was not significant after adjustment for age and gender with p=0.465 (OR=1.950; 95%CI[0.325-11.718]).
CONCLUSION: Our data suggest that the genetic variant of SLC2A9 may contribute to the susceptibility of gout among Malays in Malaysia.
OBJECTIVES: To describe clinical and epidemiological aspects of canine and feline screw-worm myiasis.
ANIMALS: Naturally infested dogs and cats, presented to five veterinary clinics in four Malaysian states from September 2017 to February 2018.
METHODS AND MATERIALS: Cutaneous screw-worm myiasis was diagnosed based on clinical signs and visual examination of burrowing larvae within lesion. Age, breed, gender, anatomical site of infestation and suspected underlying predisposing causes were investigated.
RESULTS: A total of 55 dogs and 21 cats were included in the study. Intact male mixed breed dogs (mean age 58 months) and intact male domestic short hair cats (mean age 24 months) with suspected fight-related wounds were most commonly presented with exudative and ulcerative lesions associated with screw-worm myiasis. The most common anatomical sites of infestation in the dogs were the external ear canals, followed by the perineum and medial canthus. For the cats, the most commonly affected areas were paws and tail. Five cats with screw-worm myiasis were concurrently infected with sporotrichosis.
CONCLUSION AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Aggression between unneutered animals is a likely underlying cause for cutaneous screw-worm myiasis in both cats and dogs. Sporotrichosis was also a potential predisposing cause for screw-worm myiasis in cats.
METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study using a self-administered questionnaire carried out from September to October 2013. Survey respondents were recruited from 4 divisions in Sarawak: Kuching, Sibu, Miri, and Bintulu.
RESULTS: A total of 433 completed questionnaires were obtained at the end of the study period. All respondents had access to common mass media such as television (89.8%, 389/433), radio (68.6%, 297/433), and the Internet (66.1%, 286/433). Among all respondents, television (71.4%, 309/433) was noted as the most preferred media for drug-related information. Compared with rural respondents, urban respondents were significantly more likely to have access to and prefer the Internet to obtain drug-related information. On the other hand, rural respondents were more likely to have access to and prefer radio for such information compared to their urban counterparts.
CONCLUSIONS: Television can be an important and attractive choice of mass media in a quality use of medicines (QUM) campaign. The Internet can be used to disseminate drug-related information in urban areas, whereas radio can be used in a QUM campaign targeting the rural public.
METHODS: In the present studies, the consequence of PPARβ/δ inhibition either by global genetic deletion or by a specific PPARβ/δ antagonist, 10h, on malignant transformation of melanoma cells and melanoma metastasis was examined using both in vitro and in vivo models.
RESULTS: Our study showed that 10h promotes epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), migration, adhesion, invasion and trans-endothelial migration of mouse melanoma B16/F10 cells. We further demonstrated an increased tumour cell extravasation in the lungs of wild-type mice subjected to 10h treatment and in Pparβ/δ-/- mice in an experimental mouse model of blood-borne pulmonary metastasis by tail vein injection. This observation was further supported by an increased tumour burden in the lungs of Pparβ/δ-/- mice as demonstrated in the same animal model.
CONCLUSION: These results indicated a protective role of PPARβ/δ in melanoma progression and metastasis.
Methods: The present review was based on the Science Direct database search for those related to the TCM and the development of antihypertensive TCM herbal combination using orthogonal stimulus-response compatibility group studies approach.
Results: Recent studies have demonstrated that the orthogonal stimulus-response compatibility group study approach was most frequently used to formulate TCM herbal combination based on the TCM principles upon the selection of herbs, and the resulting formulated TCM formula exhibited desired outcomes in treating one of global concerned complex multi-syndromic diseases, the hypertension. These promising therapeutic effects were claimed to have been attributed by the holistic signaling mechanism pathways employed by the crude combination of herbs.
Conclusion: The present review could serve as a guide and prove the feasibility of TCM principles to be used for future pharmacological drug research development.
DESIGN: An analysis of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA) cohort.
SETTING: United Kingdom community-based.
PARTICIPANTS: 5197 community-dwelling older adults recruited to a prospective longitudinal cohort study.
MEASUREMENTS: Data on the occurrence of falls and number of falls, which occurred during a 12-month follow-up period, were assessed against the specific cognitive domains of memory, numeracy skills, and executive function. Binomial logistic regression was performed to evaluate the association between each cognitive domain and the dichotomous outcome of falls in the preceding 12 months using unadjusted and adjusted models.
RESULTS: Of the 5197 participants included in the analysis, 1308 (25%) reported a fall in the preceding 12 months. There was no significant association between the occurrence of a fall and specific forms of cognitive dysfunction after adjusting for self-reported hearing, self-reported eyesight, and functional performance. After adjustment, only orientation (odds ratio [OR]: 0.80; 95% confidence intervals [CI]: 0.65-0.98, p = 0.03) and verbal fluency (adjusted OR: 0.98; 95% CI: 0.96-1.00; p = 0.05) remained significant for predicting recurrent falls.
CONCLUSIONS: The cognitive phenotype rather than cognitive impairment per se may predict future falls in those presenting with more than one fall.