Dragonflies of the genus Orthetrum are members of the suborder Anisoptera, family Libellulidae. There are species pairs whose members are not easily separated from each other by morphological characters. In the present study, the DNA nucleotide sequences of mitochondrial and nuclear genes were employed to elucidate the phylogeny and systematics of Orthetrum dragonflies. Phylogenetic analyses could not resolve the various subfamilies of the family Libellulidae unequivocally. The nuclear 28S rRNA gene is highly conserved and could not resolve congeneric species of Orthetrum. Individual mitochondrial genes (COI, COII, and 16S rRNA) and combination of these genes as well as the nuclear ITS1&2 genes clearly differentiate morphologically similar species, such as the reddish species pairs O. chrysis and O. testaceum, and the bluish-coloured species O. glaucum and O. luzonicum. This study also reveals distinct genetic lineages between O. pruinosum schneideri (occurring in Malaysia) and O. pruinosum neglectum (occurring north of Peninsular Malaysia from India to Japan), indicating these taxa are cryptic species.
Food manufacturers are interested in developing emulsion-based products into nutritional foods by using beneficial oils, such as fish oil and virgin coconut oil (VCO). In this study, the physicochemical properties of a VCO oil-in-water emulsion was investigated and compared to other commercial oil-in-water emulsion products (C1, C2, C3, and C4). C3 exhibited the smallest droplet size of 3.25 µm. The pH for the emulsion samples ranged from 2.52 to 4.38 and thus were categorised as acidic. In a texture analysis, C2 was described as the most firm, very adhesive and cohesive, as well as having high compressibility properties. From a rheological viewpoint, all the emulsion samples exhibited non-Newtonian behaviour, which manifested as a shear-thinning property. The G'G'' crossover illustrated by the VCO emulsion in the amplitude sweep graph but not the other commercial samples illustrated that the VCO emulsion had a better mouthfeel. In this context, the VCO emulsion yielded the highest zeta potential (64.86 mV), which was attributed to its strong repulsive forces, leading to a good dispersion system. C2 comprised the highest percentage of fat among all emulsion samples, followed by the VCO emulsion, with 18.44% and 6.59%, respectively.
Microbial-catalyzed biotransformations have considerable potential for the generation of an enormous variety of structurally diversified organic compounds, especially natural products with complex structures like triterpenoids. They offer efficient and economical ways to produce semi-synthetic analogues and novel lead molecules. Microorganisms such as bacteria and fungi could catalyze chemo-, regio- and stereospecific hydroxylations of diverse triterpenoid substrates that are extremely difficult to produce by chemical routes. During recent years, considerable research has been performed on the microbial transformation of bioactive triterpenoids, in order to obtain biologically active molecules with diverse structures features. This article reviews the microbial modifications of tetranortriterpenoids, tetracyclic triterpenoids and pentacyclic triterpenoids.
Anode biofilm is a crucial component in microbial fuel cells (MFCs) for electrogenesis. Better knowledge about the biofilm development process on electrode surface is believed to improve MFC performance. In this study, double-chamber microbial fuel cell was operated with diluted POME (initial COD = 1,000 mg L(-1)) and polyacrylonitrile carbon felt was used as electrode. The maximum power density, COD removal efficiency and Coulombic efficiency were found as 22 mW m(-2), 70 and 24 %, respectively. FTIR and TGA analysis confirmed the formation of biofilm on the electrode surface during MFC operation. The impact of anode biofilm on anodic polarization resistance was investigated using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and microbial community changes during MFC operation using denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE). The EIS-simulated results showed the reduction of charge transfer resistance (R ct) by 16.9 % after 14 days of operation of the cell, which confirms that the development of the microbial biofilm on the anode decreases the R ct and therefore improves power generation. DGGE analysis showed the variation in the biofilm composition during the biofilm growth until it forms an initial stable microbial community, thereafter the change in the diversity would be less. The power density showed was directly dependent on the biofilm development and increased significantly during the initial biofilm development period. Furthermore, DGGE patterns obtained from 7th and 14th day suggest the presence of less diversity and probable functional redundancy within the anodic communities possibly responsible for the stable MFC performance in changing environmental conditions.
Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is common among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and increases the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and all-cause mortality. The objective of this study was to investigate the association between the components of MetS and the prevalence of CVD among patients with T2DM. We studied 313 patients aged > or = 30 years diagnosed with T2DM at two tertiary care hospitals. Patients were recruited by systematic random sampling. Clinical data was obtained using an interviewer-administered structured questionnaire and from a review of their medical records. MetS was diagnosed using NCEP ATP III, WHO, IDF and the new Harmonized definitions. Specific MetS components such as BMI, waist circumference, waist-to-hip ratio, hypertension, HDL-C and triglyceride levels were evaluated to determine if they had an association with CVD. Thirty-six point one percent of the subjects had CVD. The mean age of the subjects was 55.7 +/- 9.2 years and the mean duration of having diabetes was 10.1 +/- 8.1 years. The overall prevalences of MetS (> or = 3 of 5 components) (95% CI) were 96.1% (94.0-98.3), 95.8% (93.6-98.1), 84.8% (80.8-88.9) and 97.7% (96.1-99.4) using NCEP ATP III, WHO, IDF and Harmonized definitions, respectively. Patients with MetS had a higher prevalence of CVD using NCEP ATP III (98.2% vs 93.5%), WHO (98.2% vs 93.0%), IDF (87.6% vs 82.0%) and Harmonized criteria (98.2% vs 96.0%). The greater the number of MetS components, the greater the chance of having CVD using three definitions for diagnosing MetS: WHO, IDF and Harmonized (p < 0.05). MetS and the combination of the individual components of MetS were significantly associated with CVD among type 2 diabetic patients in Malaysia. Aggressive treatment of MetS components is required to reduce cardiovascular risk in T2DM.
This study was conducted to investigate the effect of main emulsion components namely, modified starch, propylene glycol alginate (PGA), sucrose laurate and sucrose stearate on creaming index, cloudiness, average droplet size and conductivity of soursop beverage emulsions. Generally, the use of different emulsifiers or a mixture of emulsifiers has a significant (p < 0.05) effect on the response variables studied. The addition of PGA had a significant (p < 0.05) effect on the creaming index at 55 °C, while PGA-stabilized (PGA1) emulsions showed low creaming stability at both 25 °C and 55 °C. Conversely, the utilization of PGA either as a mixture or sole emulsifier, showed significantly (p < 0.05) higher cloudiness, as larger average droplet size will affect the refractive index of the oil and aqueous phases. Additionally, the cloudiness was directly proportional to the mean droplet size of the dispersed phase. The inclusion of PGA into the formulation could have disrupted the properties of the interfacial film, thus resulting in larger droplet size. While unadsorbed ionized PGA could have contributed to higher conductivity of emulsions prepared at low pH. Generally, emulsions prepared using sucrose monoesters or as a mixture with modified starch emulsions have significantly (p < 0.05) lower creaming index and conductivity values, but higher cloudiness and average droplet size.
The complete mitochondrial genome of the invasive house crow (Corvus splendens) was sequenced (GenBank accession number: KJ766304) using the MiSeq Personal Sequencer (Illumina, San Diego, CA). The mitochondrial genome is 16,962 bp in length, comprising 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA genes, 2 ribosomal subunit genes and a non-coding control region. The mitogenome structural organization is identical to that of the other Corvus species and related genera. The overall base composition of C. splendens is 30.65% for A, 29.71% for C, 14.84% for G and 24.80% for T, with an AT content of 55.45%. We propose to use full mitochondrial genome to address taxonomic issues and to study the population genetics of crows.
When recombineering bacterial artificial chromosomes (BACs), it is common practice to design the ends of the donor molecule with 50 bp of homology specifying its insertion site. We demonstrate that desired recombinants can be produced using intermolecular homologies as short as 15 bp. Although the use of shorter donor end regions decreases total recombinants by several fold, the frequency of recombinants with correctly inserted donor molecules was high enough for easy detection by simple polymerase chain reaction (PCR) screening. This observation may have important implications for the design of oligonucleotides for recombineering, including significant cost savings, especially for high-throughput projects that use large quantities of primers.
Condensed tannins (CTs) form insoluble complexes with proteins and are able to protect them from degradation, which could lead to rumen bypass proteins. Depending on their degrees of polymerization (DP) and molecular weights, CT fractions vary in their capability to bind proteins. In this study, purified condensed tannins (CTs) from a Leucaena leucocephala hybrid were fractionated into five different molecular weight fractions. The structures of the CT fractions were investigated using 13C-NMR. The DP of the CT fractions were determined using a modified vanillin assay and their molecular weights were determined using Q-TOF LC-MS. The protein-binding affinities of the respective CT fractions were determined using a protein precipitation assay. The DP of the five CT fractions (fractions F1-F5) measured by the vanillin assay in acetic acid ranged from 4.86 to 1.56. The 13C-NMR results showed that the CT fractions possessed monomer unit structural heterogeneity. The number-average molecular weights (Mn) of the different fractions were 1265.8, 1028.6, 652.2, 562.2, and 469.6 for fractions F1, F2, F3, F4, and F5, respectively. The b values representing the CT quantities needed to bind half of the maximum precipitable bovine serum albumin increased with decreasing molecular weight--from fraction F1 to fraction F5 with values of 0.216, 0.295, 0.359, 0.425, and 0.460, respectively. This indicated that higher molecular weight fractions of CTs from L. leucocephala have higher protein-binding affinities than those with lower molecular weights.
Hyperpigmentation in human skin and enzymatic browning in fruits, which are caused by tyrosinase enzyme, are not desirable. Investigations in the discovery of tyrosinase enzyme inhibitors and search for improved cytotoxic agents continue to be an important line in drug discovery and development. In present work, a new series of 30 compounds bearing α,β-unsaturated carbonyl moiety was designed and synthesized following curcumin as model. All compounds were evaluated for their effects on human cancer cell lines and mushroom tyrosinase enzyme. Moreover, the structure-activity relationships of these compounds are also explained. Molecular modeling studies of these new compounds were carried out to explore interactions with tyrosinase enzyme. Synthetic curcumin-like compounds (2a-b) were identified as potent anticancer agents with 81-82% cytotoxicity. Five of these newly synthesized compounds (1a, 8a-b, 10a-b) emerged to be the potent inhibitors of mushroom tyrosinase, providing further insight into designing compounds useful in fields of food, health, and agriculture.
Three new species and one new variety of bioluminescent Mycena collected from Peninsular Malaysia are described herein. All new species belong to Mycena sect. Calodontes in what is known as the Mycena pura complex. Comprehensive descriptions, photographs, illustrations and comparisons with phenetically similar species are provided. Molecular sequences data from the nuclear internal transcribed spacers (ITS-1 and ITS-2, including the 5.8S rRNA) were used to infer relationships within sect. Calodontes. Axenic cultures were obtained to provide data on culture morphology. This is the first published photographic documentation of bioluminescent basidiomes of members of Mycena sect. Calodontes. Also, this addition brings the total known bioluminescent fungi to 77 species.
A young man was admitted with sudden onset of right-sided weakness. He was assessed in the emergency department, and an immediate computed tomography (CT) perfusion study of the brain was arranged, which showed a left middle cerebral artery territory infarct with occlusion of the M1 segment. There was a significant penumbra measuring approximately 50% of the arterial territory. By the time his assessment was completed, it was 5.5 hours from the onset of symptoms. He was nonetheless administered intravenous recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rtPA) based on the significant penumbra. He was discharged from the hospital after one week with significant residual deficit. At 2 months clinic follow-up, he showed almost complete recovery with a Modified Rankin Score of 1. We hope to demonstrate that a significant penumbra is an important determinant for good neurological recovery and outcome following stroke thrombolysis, even when patients present outside the 4.5 hours onset-to-treatment time window.
The mitogenome of the black yabby, Geocharax gracilis, was sequenced using the MiSeq Personal Sequencer. It has 15,924 base pairs consisting of 13 protein-coding genes, 2 ribosomal subunit genes, 23 transfer RNAs, and a non-coding AT-rich region. The base composition of G. gracilis mitogenome is 32.18% for T, 22.32% for C, 34.83% for A, and 10.68% for G, with an AT bias of 67.01%. The mitogenome gene order is typical for that of parastacid crayfish with the exception of some minor rearrangements involving tRNA genes.
BACKGROUND: The interesting preponderance of Chinese with colorectal carcinoma (CRC) amongst the three major ethnic groups in Malaysia prompted a study to determine DNA mismatch repair (MMR) status in our CRC and attempt correlation with patient age, gender and ethnicity as well as location, grade, histological type and stage of tumour. Histologically re-confirmed CRC, diagnosed between 1st January 2005 and 31st December 2007 at the Department of Pathology, University of Malaya Medical Centre, were immunohistochemically stained with monoclonal antibodies to MMR proteins, MLH1, MSH2, MSH6 and PMS2 on the Ventana Benchmark XT autostainer. Of the 142 CRC cases entered into the study, there were 82 males and 60 females (M:F=1.4:1). Ethnically, 81 (57.0%) were Chinese, 32 (22.5%) Malays and 29 (20.4%) Indians. The patient ages ranged between 15-87 years (mean=62.4 years) with 21 cases <50-years and 121 ≥50-years of age. 14 (9.9%) CRC showed deficient MMR (dMMR). Concurrent loss of MLH1 and PMS2 occurred in 10, MSH2 and MSH6 in 2 with isolated loss of MSH6 in 1 and PMS2 in 1. dMMR was noted less frequently amongst the Chinese (6.2%) in comparison with their combined Malay and Indian counterparts (14.8%), and was associated with right sided and poorly differentiated tumours (p<0.05). 3 of the 5 (60.0%) dMMR CRC cases amongst the Chinese and 1 of 9 cases (11.1%) amongst the combined Malay and Indian group were <50-years of age. No significant association of dMMR was noted with patient age and gender, tumour stage or mucinous type.
Stem cells with enhanced resistance to oxidative stress after in vitro expansion have been shown to have improved engraftment and regenerative capacities. Such cells can be generated by preconditioning them with exposure to an antioxidant. In this study we evaluated the effects of Tualang honey (TH), an antioxidant-containing honey, on human corneal epithelial progenitor (HCEP) cells in culture. Cytotoxicity, gene expression, migration, and cellular resistance to oxidative stress were evaluated. Immunofluorescence staining revealed that HCEP cells were holoclonal and expressed epithelial stem cell marker p63 without corneal cytokeratin 3. Cell viability remained unchanged after cells were cultured with 0.004, 0.04, and 0.4% TH in the medium, but it was significantly reduced when the concentration was increased to 3.33%. Cell migration, tested using scratch migration assay, was significantly enhanced when cells were cultured with TH at 0.04% and 0.4%. We also found that TH has hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) scavenging ability, although a trace level of H2O2 was detected in the honey in its native form. Preconditioning HCEP cells with 0.4% TH for 48 h showed better survival following H2O2-induced oxidative stress at 50 µM than untreated group, with a significantly lower number of dead cells (15.3 ± 0.4%) were observed compared to the untreated population (20.5 ± 0.9%, p<0.01). Both TH and ascorbic acid improved HCEP viability following induction of 100 µM H2O2, but the benefit was greater with TH treatment than with ascorbic acid. However, no significant advantage was demonstrated using 5-hydroxymethyl-2-furancarboxaldehyde, a compound that was found abundant in TH using GC/MS analysis. This suggests that the cellular anti-oxidative capacity in HCEP cells was augmented by native TH and was attributed to its antioxidant properties. In conclusion, TH possesses antioxidant properties and can improve cell migration and cellular resistance to oxidative stress in HCEP cells in vitro.
To present a 5-year comparison of the functional outcomes of combined anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and posterolateral corner (PLC) reconstruction with those of isolated ACL reconstruction.
In the title compound, C8H3N3O2 (systematic name: 4-nitro-benzene-1,2-dicarbo-nitrile), the nitro group is twisted out of the plane of the benzene ring to which it is attached [O-N-Cring-Cring torsion angle = 9.80 (13)°]. In the crystal packing, supra-molecular layers with a zigzag topology in the ac plane are sustained by C-H⋯N inter-actions.
In the title compound, C8H7N3O4 (systematic name: 4-nitro-benzene-1,2-dicarboxamide), each of the substituents is twisted out of the plane of the benzene ring to which it is attached [dihedral angles of 11.36 (2)° for the nitro group, and 60.89 (6) and 34.39 (6)° for the amide groups]. The amide groups are orientated to either side of the least-squares plane through the benzene ring with the amine groups being directed furthest apart. In the crystal, a three-dimensional architecture is established by a network of N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds.
In the title compound, C19H17N5S, the dihedral angles between the purine ring system (r.m.s. deviation = 0.009 Å) and the S-bound and methyl-ene-bound phenyl rings are 74.67 (8) and 71.28 (7)°, respectively. In the crystal, inversion dimers linked by pairs of N-H⋯N hydrogen bonds generate R 2 (2)(8) loops. C-H⋯N inter-actions link the dimers into (100) sheets.