Displaying publications 21 - 40 of 52 in total

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  1. Human telomerase reverse transcriptase expression in oral carcinogenesis--a preliminary report
    Kumar SK, Zain RB, Ismail SM, Cheong SC
    J Exp Clin Cancer Res, 2005 Dec;24(4):639-46.
    PMID: 16471328
    Human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT), the catalytic subunit of telomerase, is strongly associated with telomerase activity implicated in cellular immortalization and tumorigenesis. In situ detection of hTERT will aid in determining the localization of telomerase positive cells. The aim of this study was to detect hTERT protein expression in multistep oral carcinogenesis using paraffin embedded tissue samples, and to study the relationship of hTERT expression with different histological stages in oral carcinogenesis. Normal (n = 4), hyperplastic (n = 4), dysplastic (n = 4) and neoplastic (n = 10) oral epithelia representing different histological stages in oral carcinogenesis were included in the study. hTERT protein detection was done by immunohistochemistry (IHC) technique. Nuclear staining intensities were noted and the hTERT-labelling index was determined. Dysplastic and neoplastic oral epithelia showed an increased percentage of hTERT positive cells (Grade 4: > 50% positive staining nuclei) with intense staining in the basal, parabasal and superficial layers of the epithelia, unlike normal oral mucosa which showed intense staining only in the basal and parabasal cell layers, which are the normal proliferative progenitor compartments. hTERT protein expression was elevated with the corresponding advancement of the histological stages of oral carcinogenesis, from normal to hyperplasia to dysplasia to carcinoma. There seems to be an upregulation of hTERT protein expression during the progression of oral cancer, therefore, this may indicate the feasibility of IHC detection of hTERT protein in oral carcinogenesis as a potential diagnostic or prognostic marker.
  2. Clinicopathologic study of odontogenic keratocysts in Singapore and Malaysia
    Ngeow WC, Zain RB, Yeo JF, Chai WL
    J Oral Sci, 2000 Mar;42(1):9-14.
    PMID: 10808269
    This was a retrospective study of odontogenic keratocysts in people from the Singapore-Malaysian region. The purpose of this study was to present the clinicopathologic features of odontogenic keratocysts in the Oriental population and to compare these data with those from other reported studies. Biopsy records from 1981 to 1992 of 61 cases of odontogenic keratocysts from patients in Malaysia and Singapore showed that 42.6% of patients were female and 57.4% of patients were male. Among patients with cysts, 75.4% were Chinese, 6.6% were Malays, 9.8% were Indians and 8.2% were other ethnic groups. The mean age of these patients was 26.98 +/- 15.38 years with a peak incidence occurring in the second to fourth decades. The location of the lesions was more often in the mandible (65.5%) than the maxilla (31.0%). There was a marked predilection for lesions to occur in the posterior mandible. Histologically, 90.2% of the cysts were lined with a para-keratinized stratified squamous epithelium while only 3.3% of the cysts were lined with orthokeratinized stratified squamous epithelium. Mixed para-keratinized and orthokeratinized epithelial linings were observed in 4 cases (6.5%). The cyst linings were mainly uninflamed (95.1%). Inflammation of the cyst wall was found in 42 cases (68.8%). Twelve (19.7%) cases contained keratin in the lumen. A satellite cyst was observed in only 6 cases (9.8%). In conclusion, most clinical and histological features seen in this study were similar to those found for Caucasians. The only clinical feature that was different was the peak age incidence, that ranged from the second to fourth decades, with an absence of a second peak. Odontogenic keratocysts presenting at the site of the dentigerous cyst were observed in 7 cases (11.5%).
  3. Prevalence of oral precancerous and cancerous lesions in elderly Malaysians
    Ali TB, Jalalluddin RL, Abdul Razak I, Zain RB
    Asia Pac J Public Health, 1996;9:24-7.
    PMID: 10050195
    A house to house survey on elderly subjects aged 60 years old and above was undertaken in a large district in Malaysia. A total of 486 subjects in randomly selected Enumeration Blocks were interviewed and examined. The prevalence of oral precancerous lesions was recorded at 3.3%, of which leukoplakia was the most common. When the ethnic distribution of these oral precancerous and cancerous (OPC) lesions was compared, 72% of those inflicted were Indians. Oral cancer was detected in two subjects (0.4%), both of whom were of Indian origin. Among subjects with OPC lesions, 4.2% were smokers, 12.7% were betelquid chewers, 11.8% had indulged in both habits, whilst one subject had not practised any of the oral habits of interest (0.4%). The findings suggest the occurrence of OPC lesions to be related to betelquid chewing.
    Publication year=1996-1997
  4. Fulltext Periodontal disease as the initial oral manifestation of langerhans cell histiocytosis - a case report
    Ahmad AR, Ismail SM, Zain RB, Mohamad Zaini Z
    Ann Dent, 2009;16(1):31-36.
    MyJurnal
    Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis (LCH) refers to a group of lesions presenting with a spectrum of clinical. features but sharing similar histology. These lesions are rare and treatment has been quite variable with current treatment protocol recommended being dependent on whether it is a unifocal or multi focal bone disease or a multi focal multisystem disease. However, the clinical presentations of LCH are variable and the decision to place into the appropriate clinical types may sometimes be masked by the non-discovery of all the lesions. In the oral maxillofacial area, the clinical features of these lesions may further pose a problem by nondescript manifestations as dental/periodontal/oral mucosal disorders. These oral findings may sometimes lead to inappropriate choice of treatment and delay in the diagnosis of all the lesions involved. This paper describes one such case where LCH manifest itself as a periodontal disease thus leading to delay in identifying all the sites involved and consequently a delay in id~ntifying the appropriate clinical type.
  5. Fulltext S gene mutants occurrence among hepatitis B carriers in malaysia
    Suppiah J, Mohd Zain R, Bahari N, Haji Nawi S, Saat Z
    Hepat Mon, 2014 Dec;14(12):e22565.
    PMID: 25737728 DOI: 10.5812/hepatmon.22565
    The S gene region of the hepatitis B virus (HBV) codes for surface antigen (HBs Ag) and is responsible for classification of HBV strains.
  6. Fulltext Drug-resistance associated mutations in polymerase (p) gene of hepatitis B virus isolated from malaysian HBV carriers
    Suppiah J, Mohd Zain R, Haji Nawi S, Bahari N, Saat Z
    Hepat Mon, 2014 Jan;14(1):e13173.
    PMID: 24497877 DOI: 10.5812/hepatmon.13173
    Mutations in the polymerase (P) gene of hepatitis B virus are often associated with drug resistance. The pattern of mutations varies geographically, thus giving rise to genotypes diversity.
  7. Fulltext GSTM1, GSTT1 and CYP1A1 polymorphisms and risk of oral cancer: a case-control study in Jakarta, Indonesia
    Amtha R, Ching CS, Zain R, Razak IA, Basuki B, Roeslan BO, et al.
    Asian Pac J Cancer Prev, 2009 Jan-Mar;10(1):21-6.
    PMID: 19469619
    PURPOSE: to investigate genetic polymorphisms in GSTM1, GSTT1 and CYP1A1 and the association with the risk of oral cancer in the Jakarta population.
    METHOD: A total of 81 cases and 162 controls matched for age and sex were selected from 5 hospitals in Jakarta. Sociodemographic data using questionnaires were obtained and peripheral blood samples were collected with informed consent for PCR-RFLP assay. Conditional logistic regression analysis was performed to obtain the association between the risk of oral cancer and GSTM1, GSTT1 and CYP1A1 polymorphisms.
    RESULTS: GSTM1 and GSTT1 null were slightly overrepresented among cases (60.5% and 45.7% respectively) compared to controls (55.6% and 41.4% respectively), but no statistically significant differences were observed. In contrast, the distribution of CYP1A1 polymorphism was higher among controls compared to cases (52.5 % versus 42.4 %). The odds ratio of null GSTM1 and GSTT1 genotypes was slightly higher compared to wild type genotypes (OR 1.19, 95% CI 0.70-2.02 and OR 1.19, 95% CI 0.72-2.05 respectively). Furthermore, the presence of CYP1A1 polymorphism did not increase the risk of oral cancer (OR 0.70, 95% 0.39-1.25).
    CONCLUSION: Genetic polymorphisms of GSTM1, GSTT1 and CYP1A1 may not be risk factors for oral cancer in the Jakarta population.
  8. Fulltext G1896A Precore Mutation and Association With HBeAg Status, Genotype and Clinical Status in Patients With Chronic Hepatitis B
    Suppiah J, Mohd Zain R, Bahari N, Haji Nawi S, Saat Z
    Hepat Mon, 2015 Oct;15(10):e31490.
    PMID: 26587040 DOI: 10.5812/hepatmon.31490
    Precore stop codon (G1896A) mutation is one of the commonest mutations found in patients with chronic hepatitis B. However, over the years, this mutation was not reported much in Malaysia.
  9. Long-term effect on foot and ankle donor site following vascularized fibular graft resection in children
    Sulaiman AR, Wan Z, Awang S, Che Ahmad A, Halim AS, Ahmad Mohd Zain R
    J Pediatr Orthop B, 2015 Sep;24(5):450-5.
    PMID: 26049965 DOI: 10.1097/BPB.0000000000000197
    This study was carried out to evaluate the long-term effect on the donor side of the foot and ankle following vascularized fibular graft resection in children. Eight patients underwent resection of the fibula for the purpose of a vascularized fibular graft by a surgical team who practiced leaving at least 6 cm residual distal fibula. The age of these children at the time of surgery was between 3 and 12 years. They were reviewed between 3 and 12 years after surgery. Two patients who underwent resection of the middle shaft of the fibula at 3 and 5 years of age developed abnormal growth of the distal tibia, leading to ankle valgus. They were treated with growth modulation of the distal tibial physis and supramalleolar osteotomy with tibiofibular synostosis. Another patient who underwent the entire proximal fibula resection at the age of 6 years had developed hindfoot valgus because of weakness of the tibialis posterior muscle. He required talonavicular fusion and flexor hallucis to tibialis posterior muscle transfer. Patients operated at the age of older than 8 years neither had ankle nor hindfoot deformity. We concluded that resection of the middle shaft of the fibula for the purpose of a vascularized fibula graft, leaving a 6 cm distal fibular stump in children younger than 6 years old, may give rise to abnormal growth of the distal tibial physis, leading to valgus ankle. The entire proximal fibular resection for the similar purpose in a 6-year-old child may give rise to weakness of tibialis posterior and hindfoot valgus.
  10. Oral mucosal lesions associated with betel quid, areca nut and tobacco chewing habits: consensus from a workshop held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, November 25-27, 1996
    Zain RB, Ikeda N, Gupta PC, Warnakulasuriya S, van Wyk CW, Shrestha P, et al.
    J Oral Pathol Med, 1999 Jan;28(1):1-4.
    PMID: 9890449
    A variety of betel/areca nut/tobacco habits have been reviewed and categorized because of their possible causal association with oral cancer and various oral precancerous lesions and conditions, and on account of their widespread occurrence in different parts of the world. At a recent workshop in Kuala Lumpur it was recommended that "quid" be defined as "a substance, or mixture of substances, placed in the mouth or chewed and remaining in contact with the mucosa, usually containing one or both of the two basic ingredients, tobacco and/or areca nut, in raw or any manufactured or processed form." Clear delineations on contents of the quid (areca nut quid, tobacco quid, and tobacco and areca nut quid) are recommended as absolute criteria with finer subdivisions to be added if necessary. The betel quid refers to any quid wrapped in betel leaf and is therefore a specific variety of quid. The workshop proposed that quid-related lesions should be categorized conceptually into two categories: first, those that are diffusely outlined and second, those localized at the site where a quid is regularly placed. Additional or expanded criteria and guidelines were proposed to define, describe or identify lesions such as chewer's mucosa, areca nut chewer's lesion, oral submucous fibrosis and other quid-related lesions. A new clinical entity, betel-quid lichenoid lesion, was also proposed to describe an oral lichen planus-like lesion associated with the betel quid habit.
  11. A national epidemiological survey of oral mucosal lesions in Malaysia
    Zain RB, Ikeda N, Razak IA, Axéll T, Majid ZA, Gupta PC, et al.
    Community Dent Oral Epidemiol, 1997 Oct;25(5):377-83.
    PMID: 9355776
    The prevalence of oral mucosal lesions in Malaysia was determined by examining a representative sample of 11,707 subjects aged 25 years and above throughout the 14 states over a period of 5 months during 1993/1994. A two-stage stratified random sampling was undertaken. A predetermined number of enumeration blocks, the smallest population unit in the census publication, was selected from each state. With the selected enumeration block, a systematic sample of living quarters was chosen with a random start. The survey instrument included a questionnaire on sociodemographic characteristics and a clinical examination. The clinical examination was carried out by 16 specially trained dental public health officers and the diagnosis calibrated with a final concordance rate of 92%. The age in the sample ranged from 25 to 115 years with a mean of 44.5+/-14.0. The sample comprised 40.2% males and 59.8% females; 55.8% were Malays, 29.4% Chinese, 10.0% Indians and 1.2% other ethnic groups. Oral mucosal lesions were detected in 1131 (9.7%) subjects, 5 (0.04%) had oral cancer, 165 (1.4%) had lesions or conditions that may be precancerous (leukoplakia, erythroplakia, submucous fibrosis and lichen planus) and 187 (1.6%) had betel chewer's mucosa. The prevalence of oral precancer was highest amongst Indians (4.0%) and other Bumiputras (the indigenous people of Sabah and Sarawak) (2.5%) while the lowest prevalence was amongst the Chinese (0.5%).
  12. An epidemiological survey of oral mucosal lesions among elderly Malaysians
    Taiyeb Ali TB, Razak IA, Raja Latifah RJ, Zain RB
    Gerodontology, 1995 Jul;12(1):37-40.
    PMID: 8626179
    A house to house random survey on elderly subjects was undertaken in the District of Klang in Malaysia. The objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence of oral mucosal lesions (OML) among the elderly in this area. The primary units in the sampling frame were the Enumeration Blocks (EBs) as defined under the population census. All households of the selected EBs were considered as sampling units and members aged 60 and above were considered as respondents. There was a slight preponderance of females, with the Malays comprising the majority of the subjects. Of the 486 respondents, mean aged 69.1 +/- 7.3 yr, 111 had at least one oral mucosal lesion, a prevalence of 22.8%. A total of 145 lesions were detected. The prevalence of OML was highest among Indians and least among the Chinese. The most common finding was tongue lesions, recording a prevalence of 10.7%, followed by oral pigmentation (4.9%) and white lesions (4.3%). Denture related lesions were comparatively low at 2.5%. Two cases of oral cancer if representative would give a relatively high prevalence of 0.4%.
  13. Trigeminal neuralgia. A retrospective survey of a sample of patients in Singapore and Malaysia
    Loh HS, Ling SY, Shanmuhasuntharam P, Zain R, Yeo JF, Khoo SP
    Aust Dent J, 1998 Jun;43(3):188-91.
    PMID: 9707784
    This survey was undertaken to study the clinical features of trigeminal neuralgia in an Asian population. Demographic data of 44 patients treated at the Dental Faculty of the National University of Singapore and at the University of Malaya were reviewed. The results of the survey were analysed and comparisons made with those of Caucasian patients as reported in other studies where there was a general similarity in the clinical findings. Trigeminal neuralgia presented predominantly in females. Right-sided involvement occurred at a greater frequency, and the peak age at onset was between the sixth and seventh decades of life. The only significant variant in the present sample was the greater involvement of the mandibular branch of the trigeminal nerve rather than the maxillary division. In addition, there was a much greater representation from Chinese patients over Malays as compared with their ratios in the general population.
  14. Changes in health-related quality of life of oral cancer patients treated with curative intent: experience of a developing country
    Doss JG, Ghani WMN, Razak IA, Yang YH, Rogers SN, Zain RB
    Int J Oral Maxillofac Surg, 2017 Jun;46(6):687-698.
    PMID: 28318871 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijom.2017.02.1269
    This study aimed to assess changes in oral cancer patients' health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and the impact of disease stage on HRQOL scores. HRQOL data were collected from seven hospital-based centres using the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Head and Neck (FACT-H&N) version 4.0 instrument. The independent samples t-test, χ(2) test, and paired samples t-test were used to analyse the data. A total of 300 patients were recruited. The most common oral cancer sub-site was tongue and floor of mouth (42.6%). Surgical intervention (41.1%) was the most common treatment modality. Significant differences in ethnicity and treatment modality were observed between early and late stage patients. Pre-treatment HRQOL scores were significantly lower for late than early stage patients. At 1 month post-treatment, the functional and head and neck domains and the FACT-H&N (TOI) summary scores showed significant deterioration in both early and late stage patients. In contrast, the emotional domain showed a significant improvement for early and late stage patients at 1, 3, and 6 months post-treatment. Although HRQOL deterioration was still observed among early and late stage patients at 6 months post-treatment, this was not statistically significant. In conclusion, advanced disease is associated with poorer HRQOL. Although ethnic differences were observed across different disease stages, the influence of ethnicity on patient HRQOL was not evident in this study.
  15. Fulltext Expression of Ki-67, Cornulin and ISG15 in non-involved mucosal surgical margins as predictive markers for relapse in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC)
    Govindaraj PK, Kallarakkal TG, Mohd Zain R, Tilakaratne WM, Lew HL
    PLoS One, 2021;16(12):e0261575.
    PMID: 34941961 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0261575
    BACKGROUND: Local relapse of oral squamous cell carcinoma in non-involved mucosal surgical margins indicated possibility of field alteration in the margins, which could be predicted with certain biomarkers. The objectives were to evaluate the expression of Ki-67, Cornulin and ISG15 in non-involved mucosal surgical margins and the association of clinicopathological prognosticators with local relapse in oral squamous cell carcinoma.

    METHODS: Surgical margins from the study (relapse) group (n = 23), control (non-relapse) group (n = 32) and normal oral mucosa (n = 5) were immunohistochemically stained using Ki-67, Cornulin and ISG15 antibodies. Association between expression of markers and clinicopathological prognosticators with local relapse in oral squamous cell carcinoma was analyzed statistically.

    RESULTS: The study group surgical margins demonstrated significantly decreased Cornulin expression (p = 0.032). Low Cornulin expression was significantly associated with local relapse (p = 0.004) and non-tongue primary tumor (p = 0.013). Although not significantly associated with local relapse, expression of Ki-67 was significantly reduced in female patients (p = 0.041). Age above 57.5 years, Chinese & Indian ethnicity, alcohol consumption, epithelial dysplasia in surgical margins, and type III and IV patterns of invasion of tumor were also significantly related to local relapse. Regression analysis showed low expression of Cornulin (p = 0.018), and increased patient's age (p = 0.008) were predictors of local relapse in oral squamous cell carcinoma, with 34-fold risk and 18-fold risk, respectively. Expression of Ki-67 and ISG15 did not show significant association with local relapse in oral squamous cell carcinoma.

    CONCLUSION: Low expression of Cornulin is an independent predictor of relapse in oral squamous cell carcinoma.

  16. Prospective Roles of Tumor Necrosis Factor-Alpha (TNF-α) in COVID-19: Prognosis, Therapeutic and Management
    Mohd Zawawi Z, Kalyanasundram J, Mohd Zain R, Thayan R, Basri DF, Yap WB
    Int J Mol Sci, 2023 Mar 24;24(7).
    PMID: 37047115 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24076142
    The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) became a worldwide concern at the beginning of 2020 and has affected millions. Several previous studies revealed the impact of the imbalanced innate immune response on the progression of COVID-19 and its disease outcomes. High levels of proinflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and interleukins are produced readily by innate immune cells to fight Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections. Nonetheless, cytokine-mediated inflammatory events are also linked to detrimental lung injury and respiratory failure, which can result in deaths among COVID-19 patients. TNF-α is amongst the early cytokines produced to mediate proinflammatory responses and enhance immune cell infiltration in response to SARS-CoV-2 infections. In COVID-19, TNF-α-mediated inflammation can cause detrimental tissue damage and gradually promotes lung fibrosis, which later results in pneumonia, pulmonary edema, and acute respiratory distress syndrome. This review, therefore, aims to deliberate the immunomodulatory roles of TNF-α in promoting inflammation and its relation with COVID-19 morbidity and mortality. In addition, this review also proposes the potential of TNF-α as a biomarker for the prognosis of severe COVID-19 and its related complications and as a molecular target for anti-TNF-α therapy.
  17. Transcriptional profiling of oral squamous cell carcinoma using formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded samples
    Saleh A, Zain RB, Hussaini H, Ng F, Tanavde V, Hamid S, et al.
    Oral Oncol, 2010 May;46(5):379-86.
    PMID: 20371203 DOI: 10.1016/j.oraloncology.2010.02.022
    Despite the advances in cancer treatment, the 5-year survival rate for oral cancer has not changed significantly for the past 40 years and still remains among the worst of all anatomic sites. Gene expression microarrays have been used successfully in the identification of genetic alterations in cancer development, however, these have hitherto been limited by the need for specimens with good quality intact RNA. Here, we demonstrated the use of formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissues in microarray experiments to identify genes differentially expressed between cancerous and normal oral tissues. Forty-three tissue samples were macrodissected and gene expression analyses were conducted using the Illumina DASL assay. We report RNA yield of 2.4 and 0.8 microg/mm(3) from tumour and normal tissues, respectively and this correlated directly with the tissue volume used for RNA extraction. Using unsupervised hierarchical clustering, distinct gene expression profiles for tumour and normal samples could be generated, and differentially expressed genes could be identified. The majority of these genes were involved in regulation of apoptosis and cell cycle, metastasis and cell adhesion including BCL2A1, BIRC5, MMP1, MMP9 and ITGB4. Representative genes were further validated in independent samples suggesting that these genes may be directly associated with oral cancer development. The ability to conduct microarrays on formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded specimens represents a significant advancement that could open up avenues for finding genes that could be used as prognostication and predictive tools for cancer.
  18. Gene expression in human oral squamous cell carcinoma is influenced by risk factor exposure
    Cheong SC, Chandramouli GV, Saleh A, Zain RB, Lau SH, Sivakumaren S, et al.
    Oral Oncol, 2009 Aug;45(8):712-9.
    PMID: 19147396 DOI: 10.1016/j.oraloncology.2008.11.002
    Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a world health problem and is associated with exposure to different risk factors. In the west, smoking and alcohol consumption are considered to be the main risk factors whilst in India and southeast Asia, betel quid (BQ) chewing is predominant. In this study, we compared the gene expression patterns of oral cancers associated with BQ chewing to those caused by smoking using Affymetrix microarrays. We found that 281 genes were differentially expressed between OSCC and normal oral mucosa regardless of aetiological factors including MMP1, PLAU, MAGE-D4, GNA12, IFITM3 and NMU. Further, we identified 168 genes that were differentially expressed between the BQ and smoking groups including CXCL-9, TMPRSS2, CA12 and RNF24. The expression of these genes was validated using qPCR using independent tissue samples. The results demonstrate that whilst common genes/pathways contribute to the development of oral cancer, there are also other gene expression changes that are specific to certain risk factors. The findings suggest that different carcinogens activate or inhibit specific pathways during cancer development and progression. These unique gene expression profiles should be taken into consideration when developing biomarkers for future use in prognostic or therapeutic applications.
  19. Find the Missing Millions: Malaysia's experience with nationwide hepatitis C screening campaign in the general population
    Md Said R, Mohd Zain R, Chan HK, Soelar SA, Rusli N, Nasir NH, et al.
    J Viral Hepat, 2020 06;27(6):638-643.
    PMID: 31997563 DOI: 10.1111/jvh.13267
    Approximately 2.5% of the Malaysian population is currently living with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Yet, the public awareness of the disease is limited and under-screening remains a major challenge. With the support of international non-for-profit organizations, the Ministry of Health in Malaysia recently launched a one-week nationwide hepatitis C screening campaign in conjunction with the World Hepatitis Day. For the first time, the rapid diagnostic test (RDT) for HCV screening was introduced in public health institutions. This campaign involved 49 hospitals and 38 health clinics across the country, targeting the adult general population with unknown HCV infection status. Of the 11 382 participants undergoing the RDT, 1.9% were found to be positive for hepatitis C antibody (anti-HCV) and were referred to on-site medical departments or nearby hospitals for confirmatory testing and treatment. Men, the Malay ethnic group, intranasal and injection drug users and ex-prisoners were shown to have higher odds of being positive for anti-HCV. In addition to serving as a model to educate the general population about the disease, this campaign demonstrates the feasibility of decentralizing HCV screening, particularly by promoting the use of RDT, and linking the HCV-infected patients to care in Malaysia.
  20. Environmental surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 in municipal wastewater to monitor COVID-19 status in urban clusters in Malaysia
    Aziz MA, Norman S, Mohamed Zaid S, Simarani K, Sulaiman R, Mohd Aris A, et al.
    Arch Microbiol, 2023 Jan 28;205(2):76.
    PMID: 36708390 DOI: 10.1007/s00203-023-03417-y
    Wastewater monitoring for SARS-CoV-2 has attracted considerable attention worldwide to complement the existing clinical-based surveillance system. In this study, we report our first successful attempt to prove the circulation of SARS-CoV-2 genes in Malaysian urban wastewater. A total of 18 wastewater samples were obtained from a regional sewage treatment plant that received municipal sewage between February 2021 and May 2021. Using the quantitative PCR assay targeting the E and RdRp genes of SARS-CoV-2, we confirmed that both genes were detected in the raw sewage, while no viral RNA was found in the treated sewage. We were also able to show that the trend of COVID-19 cases in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor was related to the changes in SARS-CoV-2 RNA levels in the wastewater samples. Overall, our study highlights that monitoring wastewater for SARS-CoV-2 should help local health professionals to obtain additional information on the rapid and silent circulation of infectious agents in communities at the regional level.
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