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  1. Association between vitamin A, vitamin E and apolipoprotein E status with mild cognitive impairment among elderly people in low-cost residential areas
    Shahar S, Lee LK, Rajab N, Lim CL, Harun NA, Noh MF, et al.
    Nutr Neurosci, 2013 Jan;16(1):6-12.
    PMID: 23321337 DOI: 10.1179/1476830512Y.0000000013
    The influence of nutritional parameters and genetic susceptibility on poor cognitive impairment has been documented; however, the association between lipid-soluble vitamins with genetic susceptibility on mild cognitive impairment (MCI) has not yet been studied extensively.
  2. Fulltext Demographic and Socioeconomic Factors Influencing Public Attitudes Toward a Presumed Consent System for Organ Donation Without and With a Priority Allocation Scheme
    Tumin M, Tafran K, Mutalib MA, Satar NM, Said SM, Adnan WA, et al.
    Medicine (Baltimore), 2015 Oct;94(42):e1713.
    PMID: 26496282 DOI: 10.1097/MD.0000000000001713
    The influence of demographic and socioeconomic factors on the public's attitude towards a presumed consent system (PCS) of organ donation was estimated in 2 scenarios: without and with a priority allocation scheme (PAS). Self-administered questionnaires were completed by 775 respondents. Using multiple logistic regressions, respondents' objections to donating organs in both scenarios were estimated. In total, 63.9% of respondents would object to donating under a PCS, whereas 54.6% would object under a PCS with a PAS. Respondents with pretertiary education were more likely to object than were respondents with tertiary education, in both the first (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.615) and second (AOR = 1.728) scenarios. Young respondents were less likely to object than were middle-aged respondents, in both the first (AOR = 0.648) and second (AOR = 0.572) scenarios. Respondents with mid-ranged personal monthly income were more likely to object than were respondents with low income, in both the first (AOR = 1.994) and second (AOR = 1.519) scenarios. It does not seem that Malaysia is ready to implement a PCS. The educational level, age, and income of the broader public should be considered if a PCS, without or with a PAS, is planned for implementation in Malaysia.
  3. Measurement Invariance of the Internet Addiction Test Among Hong Kong, Japanese, and Malaysian Adolescents
    Lai CM, Mak KK, Cheng C, Watanabe H, Nomachi S, Bahar N, et al.
    Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Netw, 2015 Oct;18(10):609-17.
    PMID: 26468915 DOI: 10.1089/cyber.2015.0069
    There has been increased research examining the psychometric properties on the Internet Addiction Test (IAT) in different populations. This population-based study examined the psychometric properties and measurement invariance of the IAT in adolescents from three Asian countries. In the Asian Adolescent Risk Behavior Survey (AARBS), 2,535 secondary school students (55.9% girls) aged 12-18 years from Hong Kong (n=844), Japan (n=744), and Malaysia (n=947) completed a survey in 2012-2013 school year. A nested hierarchy of hypotheses concerning the IAT cross-country invariance was tested using multigroup confirmatory factor analyses. Replicating past findings in Hong Kong adolescents, the construct of the IAT is best represented by a second-order three-factor structure in Malaysian and Japanese adolescents. Configural, metric, scalar, and partial strict factorial invariance was established across the three samples. No cross-country differences on Internet addiction were detected at the latent mean level. This study provided empirical support for the IAT as a reliable and factorially stable instrument, and valid to be used across Asian adolescent populations.
  4. Recent Advances in the Application of Inorganic Salt Pretreatment for Transforming Lignocellulosic Biomass into Reducing Sugars
    Loow YL, Wu TY, Tan KA, Lim YS, Siow LF, Jahim JM, et al.
    J Agric Food Chem, 2015 Sep 30;63(38):8349-63.
    PMID: 26325225 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.5b01813
    Currently, the transformation of lignocellulosic biomass into value-added products such as reducing sugars is garnering attention worldwide. However, efficient hydrolysis is usually hindered by the recalcitrant structure of the biomass. Many pretreatment technologies have been developed to overcome the recalcitrance of lignocellulose such that the components can be reutilized more effectively to enhance sugar recovery. Among all of the utilized pretreatment methods, inorganic salt pretreatment represents a more novel method and offers comparable sugar recovery with the potential for reducing costs. The use of inorganic salt also shows improved performance when it is integrated with other pretreatment technologies. Hence, this paper is aimed to provide a detailed overview of the current situation for lignocellulosic biomass and its physicochemical characteristics. Furthermore, this review discusses some recent studies using inorganic salt for pretreating biomass and the mechanisms involved during the process. Finally, some prospects and challenges using inorganic salt are highlighted.
  5. Fulltext Development and mining of a volatile organic compound database
    Abdullah AA, Altaf-Ul-Amin M, Ono N, Sato T, Sugiura T, Morita AH, et al.
    Biomed Res Int, 2015;2015:139254.
    PMID: 26495281 DOI: 10.1155/2015/139254
    Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are small molecules that exhibit high vapor pressure under ambient conditions and have low boiling points. Although VOCs contribute only a small proportion of the total metabolites produced by living organisms, they play an important role in chemical ecology specifically in the biological interactions between organisms and ecosystems. VOCs are also important in the health care field as they are presently used as a biomarker to detect various human diseases. Information on VOCs is scattered in the literature until now; however, there is still no available database describing VOCs and their biological activities. To attain this purpose, we have developed KNApSAcK Metabolite Ecology Database, which contains the information on the relationships between VOCs and their emitting organisms. The KNApSAcK Metabolite Ecology is also linked with the KNApSAcK Core and KNApSAcK Metabolite Activity Database to provide further information on the metabolites and their biological activities. The VOC database can be accessed online.
  6. Prescribing patterns for upper respiratory tract infections: a prescription-review of primary care practice in Kedah, Malaysia, and the implications
    Rezal RS, Hassali MA, Alrasheedy AA, Saleem F, Yusof FA, Kamal M, et al.
    Expert Rev Anti Infect Ther, 2015;13(12):1547-56.
    PMID: 26358203 DOI: 10.1586/14787210.2015.1085303
    INTRODUCTION AND AIMS: It is necessary to ascertain current prescribing of antibiotics for upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) to address potential overuse. A retrospective analysis was conducted of all prescriptions for URTIs among 10 public primary healthcare centers in Kedah, Malaysia, from 1 January to 31 March 2014.
    RESULTS: A total of 123,524 prescriptions were screened and analyzed. Of these, 7129 prescriptions were for URTI, with 31.8% (n = 2269) containing antibiotics. Macrolides were the most commonly prescribed antibiotic, constituting 61% (n = 1403) of total antibiotics prescribed. There was a statistically significant association between different prescribers and diagnoses (p = 0.001) and a weak positive trend suggesting family medicine specialists are more competent in antibiotic prescribing, followed by medical officers and assistant medical officers (τ = 0.122).
    CONCLUSIONS: Prescribing practices of some prescribers were inconsistent with current guidelines encouraging resistance development. National antimicrobial stewardship programs and further educational initiatives are ongoing in Malaysia to improve antibiotic use.
    KEYWORDS: Malaysia; antibiotics stewardship programs; guidelines; inappropriate use of antibiotics; primary healthcare centres; upper respiratory tract infections
    Study site: Klinik kesihatan, Kedah, Malaysia
  7. Baseline distribution and sources of linear alkyl benzenes (LABs) in surface sediments from Brunei Bay, Brunei
    Alkhadher SAA, Zakaria MP, Yusoff FM, Kannan N, Suratman S, Keshavarzifard M, et al.
    Mar Pollut Bull, 2015 Dec 15;101(1):397-403.
    PMID: 26478457 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2015.10.011
    Sewage pollution is one of major concerns of coastal and shoreline settlements in Southeast Asia, especially Brunei. The distribution and sources of LABs as sewage molecular markers were evaluated in surface sediments collected from Brunei Bay. The samples were extracted, fractionated and analyzed using gas chromatography- mass spectrometry (GC-MS). LABs concentrations ranged from 7.1 to 41.3 ng g(-1) dry weight (dw) in surficial sediments from Brunei Bay. The study results showed LABs concentrations variably due to the LABs intensity and anthropogenic influence along Brunei Bay in recent years. The ratio of Internal to External isomers (I/E ratio) of LABs in sediment samples from Brunei Bay ranged from 0.56 to 2.17 along Brunei Bay stations, indicating that the study areas were receiving primary and secondary effluents. This is the first study carried out to assess the distribution and sources of LABs in surface sediments from Brunei Bay, Brunei.
  8. Effects of changes in chemical and structural characteristic of ammonia fibre expansion (AFEX) pretreated oil palm empty fruit bunch fibre on enzymatic saccharification and fermentability for biohydrogen
    Abdul PM, Jahim JM, Harun S, Markom M, Lutpi NA, Hassan O, et al.
    Bioresour Technol, 2016 Jul;211:200-8.
    PMID: 27017130 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2016.02.135
    Oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) fibre is widely available in Southeast Asian countries and found to have 60% (w/w) sugar components. OPEFB was pretreated using the ammonia fibre expansion (AFEX) method and characterised physically by the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. The results show that there were significant structural changes in OPEFB after the pretreatment step, and the sugar yield after enzymatic hydrolysis using a cocktail of Cellic Ctec2® and Cellic Htec2® increased from 0.15gg(-1) of OPEFB in the raw untreated OPEFB sample to 0.53gg(-1) of OPEFB in AFEX-pretreated OPEFB (i.e. almost a fourfold increase in sugar conversion), which enhances the economic value of OPEFB. A biohydrogen fermentability test of this hydrolysate was carried out using a locally isolated bacterium, Enterobacter sp. KBH6958. The biohydrogen yield after 72h of fermentation was 1.68mol H2 per mol sugar. Butyrate, ethanol, and acetate were the major metabolites.
  9. Fulltext The use of paclitaxel coated balloon (PCB) in acute coronary syndrome of small vessel de novo lesions: an analysis of a prospective 'real world' registry
    Mahmood Zuhdi AS, Zeymer U, Waliszewski M, Spiecker M, Ismail MD, Boxberger M, et al.
    Springerplus, 2016;5:373.
    PMID: 27066381 DOI: 10.1186/s40064-016-2014-y
    Paclitaxel-coated balloon (PCB) angioplasty in small vessel de novo lesions has favourable outcome and appears to be an alternative to stent implantation. However there is limitted data on its use specifically in small vessel acute coronary syndrome (ACS).
  10. Spatial assessment and source identification of heavy metals pollution in surface water using several chemometric techniques
    Ismail A, Toriman ME, Juahir H, Zain SM, Habir NL, Retnam A, et al.
    Mar Pollut Bull, 2016 May 15;106(1-2):292-300.
    PMID: 27001716 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2015.10.019
    This study presents the determination of the spatial variation and source identification of heavy metal pollution in surface water along the Straits of Malacca using several chemometric techniques. Clustering and discrimination of heavy metal compounds in surface water into two groups (northern and southern regions) are observed according to level of concentrations via the application of chemometric techniques. Principal component analysis (PCA) demonstrates that Cu and Cr dominate the source apportionment in northern region with a total variance of 57.62% and is identified with mining and shipping activities. These are the major contamination contributors in the Straits. Land-based pollution originating from vehicular emission with a total variance of 59.43% is attributed to the high level of Pb concentration in the southern region. The results revealed that one state representing each cluster (northern and southern regions) is significant as the main location for investigating heavy metal concentration in the Straits of Malacca which would save monitoring cost and time.

    CAPSULE: The monitoring of spatial variation and source of heavy metals pollution at the northern and southern regions of the Straits of Malacca, Malaysia, using chemometric analysis.

  11. Immunomodulatory Effect of Cytokines in the Differentiation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells: A Review
    Zahari W, Hashim SN, Yusof MF, Osman ZF, Kannan TP, Mokhtar KI, et al.
    Curr Stem Cell Res Ther, 2017;12(3):197-206.
    PMID: 27306400 DOI: 10.2174/1574888X11666160614103404
    Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are stromal origin cells with multilineage differentiation capacity. The immunoregulatory properties of MSCs can be interfered effectively by cytokines. Cytokines, produced by a broad range of cells, act at the systemic level to influence biological phenomena such as inflammation, wound healing, organogenesis and oncogenesis. Cytokines also play vital roles in the differentiation of MSCs into several cell lineages. This review summarizes on how cytokines can affect MSCs differentiation and their relative signaling pathways, which may serve to understand the possible underlying mechanisms. Also, this review reveals the potential clinical use of MSCs as promising therapeutic agents due to their special characteristics such as multipotent differentiation, immunomodulatory properties, and selfrestoration.
  12. Fulltext Identification of Cryptosporidium from Dairy Cattle in Pahang, Malaysia
    Hisamuddin NH, Hashim N, Soffian SN, Amin MH, Wahab RA, Mohammad M, et al.
    Korean J Parasitol, 2016 Apr;54(2):197-200.
    PMID: 27180579 DOI: 10.3347/kjp.2016.54.2.197
    Cryptosporidium, a protozoan parasite, can cause cryptosporidiosis which is a gastrointestinal disease that can infect humans and livestock. Cattle are the most common livestock that can be infected with this protozoan. This study was carried out to determine the prevalence of Cryptosporidium infection in cattle in Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia and to find out the association between the occurrence of infection and 3 different ages of cattle (calves less than 1 year, yearling, and adult cattle). The samples were processed by using formol-ether concentration technique and stained by modified Ziehl Neelsen. The results showed that 15.9% (24/151) of cattle were positive for Cryptosporidium oocysts. The occurrence of Cryptosporidium in calves less than 1 year was the highest with the percentage of 20.0% (11/55) followed by yearling and adult cattle, with the percentage occurrence of 15.6 % (7/45) and 11.8% (6/51), respectively. There was no significant association between the occurrence and age of cattle and presence of diarrhea. Good management practices and proper hygiene management must be taken in order to reduce the infection. It is highly important to control the infection since infected cattle may serve as potential reservoirs of the infection to other animals and humans, especially animal handlers.
  13. Production of an oligosaccharide-specific cellobiohydrolase from the thermophilic fungus Thielavia terrestris
    Woon JS, Mackeen MM, Sudin AH, Mahadi NM, Illias RM, Murad AM, et al.
    Biotechnol Lett, 2016 May;38(5):825-32.
    PMID: 26830095 DOI: 10.1007/s10529-016-2045-z
    To express and determine the hydrolytic activity of a cellobiohydrolase (TTCBH6B) from the thermophilic fungus Thielavia terrestris in Pichia pastoris.
  14. Removal Rate of Organic Matter Using Natural Cellulose via Adsorption Isotherm and Kinetic Studies
    Din MF, Ponraj M, Low WP, Fulazzaky MA, Iwao K, Songip AR, et al.
    Water Environ Res, 2016 Feb;88(2):118-30.
    PMID: 26803100 DOI: 10.2175/106143015X14362865227913
    In this study, the removal of natural organic matter (NOM) using coconut fiber (CF) and palm oil fiber (POF) was investigated. Preliminary analysis was performed using a jar test for the selection of optimal medium before the fabricated column model experiment. The equilibrium studies on isotherms and kinetic models for NOM adsorption were analyzed using linearized correlation coefficient. Results showed that the equilibrium data were fitted to Langmuir isotherm model for both CF and POF. The most suitable adsorption model was the pseudo-first-order kinetic model for POF and pseudo-second-order kinetic model for CF. The adsorption capacities achieved by the CF and POF were 15.67 and 30.8 mg/g respectively. Based on this investigation, it can be concluded that the POF is the most suitable material for the removal of NOM in semi polluted river water.
  15. Exploring the effect of cellulose nanowhiskers isolated from oil palm biomass on polylactic acid properties
    Haafiz MK, Hassan A, Khalil HP, Fazita MR, Islam MS, Inuwa IM, et al.
    Int J Biol Macromol, 2016 Apr;85:370-8.
    PMID: 26772914 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2016.01.004
    In this work, polylactic acid (PLA) reinforced cellulose nanowhiskers (CNW) were prepared through solution casting technique. The CNW was first isolated from oil palm empty fruit bunch microcrystalline cellulose (OPEFB-MCC) by using 64% H2SO4 and was designated as CNW-S. The optical microscopy revealed that the large particle of OPEFB-MCC has been broken down by the hydrolysis treatment. The atomic force microscopy confirmed that the CNW-S obtained is in nanoscale dimension and appeared in individual rod-like character. The produced CNW-S was then incorporated with PLA at 1, 3, and 5 parts per hundred (phr) resins for the PLA-CNW-S nanocomposite production. The synthesized nanocomposites were then characterized by a mean of tensile properties and thermal stability. Interestingly to note that incorporating of 3 phr/CNW-S in PLA improved the tensile strength by 61%. Also, CNW-S loading showed a positive impact on the Young's modulus of PLA. The elongation at break (Eb) of nanocomposites, however, decreased with the addition of CNW-S. Field emission scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy revealed that the CNW-S dispersed well in PLA at lower filler loading before it started to agglomerate at higher CNW-S loading (5phr). The DSC analysis of the nanocomposites obtained showed that Tg,Tcc and Tm values of PLA were improved with CNW-S loading. The TGA analysis however, revealed that incopreated CNW-S in PLA effect the thermal stability (T10,T50 and Tmax) of nanocomposite, where it decrease linearly with CNW-S loading.
  16. Erratum to: Production of an oligosaccharide-specific cellobiohydrolase from the thermophilic fungus Thielavia terrestris
    Woon JS, Mackeen MM, Sudin AH, Mahadi NM, Illias RM, Murad AM, et al.
    Biotechnol Lett, 2016 May;38(5):833.
    PMID: 26914687
  17. Fulltext Association of nuclear and mitochondrial genes with audiological examinations in Iranian patients with nonaminoglycoside antibiotics-induced hearing loss
    Balali M, Kamalidehghan B, Farhadi M, Ahmadipour F, Ashkezari MD, Hemami MR, et al.
    Ther Clin Risk Manag, 2016;12:117-28.
    PMID: 26889084 DOI: 10.2147/TCRM.S90581
    Mitochondrial DNA mutations play an important role in causing sensorineural hearing loss. The purpose of this study was to determine the association of the mitochondrial genes RNR1, MT-TL1, and ND1 as well as the nuclear genes GJB2 and GJB6 with audiological examinations in nonfamilial Iranians with cochlear implants, using polymerase chain reaction, DNA sequencing, and RNA secondary structure analysis. We found that there were no novel mutations in the mitochondrial gene 12S rRNA (MT-RNR1) in patients with and without GJB2 mutation (GJB2(+) and GJB2(-), respectively), but a total of six polymorphisms were found. No mutations were observed in tRNA(Leu) (() (UUR) ()) (MT-TL1). Furthermore, eight polymorphisms were found in the mitochondrial ND1 gene. Additionally, no mutations were observed in the nuclear GJB6 gene in patients in the GJB2(-) and GJB2(+) groups. The speech intelligibility rating and category of auditory perception tests were statistically assessed in patients in the GJB2(-) and GJB2(+) groups. The results indicated that there was a significant difference (P<0.05) between the categories of auditory perception score in the GJB2(-) group compared to that in the GJB2(+) group. Successful cochlear implantation was observed among individuals with GJB2 mutations (GJB2(+)) and mitochondrial polymorphisms compared to those without GJB2 mutations (GJB2(-)). In conclusion, the outcome of this study suggests that variation in the mitochondrial and nuclear genes may influence the penetrance of deafness. Therefore, further genetic and functional studies are required to help patients in making the best choice for cochlear implants.
  18. Enhanced Photovoltaic Performances of Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells by Co-Sensitization of Benzothiadiazole and Squaraine-Based Dyes
    Islam A, Akhtaruzzaman M, Chowdhury TH, Qin C, Han L, Bedja IM, et al.
    ACS Appl Mater Interfaces, 2016 Feb;8(7):4616-23.
    PMID: 26812212 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.5b11134
    Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) based on a donor-acceptor-donor oligothienylene dye containing benzothiadiazole (T4BTD-A) were cosensitized with dyes containing cis-configured squaraine rings (HSQ3 and HSQ4). The cosensitized dyes showed incident monochromatic photon-to-current conversion efficiency (IPCE) greater than 70% in the 300-850 nm wavelength region. The individual overall conversion efficiencies of the sensitizers T4BTD-A, HSQ3, and HSQ4 were 6.4%, 4.8%, and 5.8%, respectively. Improved power conversion efficiencies of 7.0% and 7.7% were observed when T4BTD-A was cosensitized with HSQ3 and HSQ4, respectively, thanks to a significant increase in current density (JSC) for the cosensitized DSSCs. Intensity-modulated photovoltage spectroscopy results showed a longer lifetime for cosensitized T4BTD-A+HSQ3 and T4BTD-A+HSQ4 compared to that of HSQ3 and HSQ4, respectively.
  19. Fulltext A nationwide postal survey on the perception of Malaysian public healthcare providers on family medicine specialists' (PERMFAMS) clinical performance, professional attitudes and research visibility
    Chew BH, Yasin MM, Cheong AT, Rashid MR, Hamzah Z, Ismail M, et al.
    Springerplus, 2015;4:213.
    PMID: 25992310 DOI: 10.1186/s40064-015-1004-9
    Perception of healthcare providers who worked with family medicine specialists (FMSs) could translate into the effectiveness of primary healthcare delivery in daily practices. This study examined perceptions of public healthcare providers/professionals (PHCPs) on FMSs at public health clinics throughout Malaysia. This was a cross-sectional study in 2012-2013 using postal method targeting PHCPs from three categories of health facilities, namely health clinics, health offices and hospitals. A structured questionnaire was developed to assess PHCP's perception of FMS's clinical competency, safety practice, ethical and professional values, and research involvement. It consists of 37 items with Likert scale of strongly disagree (a score of 1) to strongly agree (a score of 5). Interaction and independent effect of the independent variables were tested and adjusted means score were reported. The participants' response rate was 58.0% (780/1345) with almost equal proportion from each of the three public healthcare facilities. There were more positive perceptions than negative among the PHCPs. FMSs were perceived to provide effective and safe treatment to their patients equally disregards of patient's social background. However, there were some concerns of FMSs not doing home visits, not seeing walk-in patients, had long appointment time, not active in scientific research, writing and publication. There were significant differences in perception based on a respondent's health care facility (p 
  20. Fulltext Synthesis of Radiation Curable Palm Oil-Based Epoxy Acrylate: NMR and FTIR Spectroscopic Investigations
    Salih AM, Ahmad MB, Ibrahim NA, Dahlan KZ, Tajau R, Mahmood MH, et al.
    Molecules, 2015;20(8):14191-211.
    PMID: 26248072 DOI: 10.3390/molecules200814191
    Over the past few decades, there has been an increasing demand for bio-based polymers and resins in industrial applications, due to their potential lower cost and environmental impact compared with petroleum-based counterparts. The present research concerns the synthesis of epoxidized palm oil acrylate (EPOLA) from an epoxidized palm oil product (EPOP) as environmentally friendly material. EPOP was acrylated by acrylic acid via a ring opening reaction. The kinetics of the acrylation reaction were monitored throughout the reaction course and the acid value of the reaction mixture reached 10 mg KOH/g after 16 h, indicating the consumption of the acrylic acid. The obtained epoxy acrylate was investigated intensively by means of FTIR and NMR spectroscopy, and the results revealed that the ring opening reaction was completed successfully with an acrylation yield about 82%. The UV free radical polymerization of EPOLA was carried out using two types of photoinitiators. The radiation curing behavior was determined by following the conversion of the acrylate groups. The cross-linking density and the hardness of the cured EPOLA films were measured to evaluate the effect of the photoinitiator on the solid film characteristics, besides, the thermal and mechanical properties were also evaluated.
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