Displaying publications 41 - 60 of 98 in total

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  1. Fulltext A rare case of anti-jk3 antibody detected on pre-transfusion investigation
    Yousuf R, Abdul Aziz S, Yusof N, Leong CF
    Indian J Hematol Blood Transfus, 2014 Sep;30(3):208-10.
    PMID: 25114411 DOI: 10.1007/s12288-012-0211-6
    We report a 47-year-old Malay lady, para 4 + 1, with known medical history of hypertension whom presented at Emergency Department with severe anaemia, most likely secondary to menorrhagia caused by uterine fibroids. Her haemoglobin was 5.5 g/dl and she was transfused with three units of packed cell without any adverse reaction, her haemoglobin level increased to 9.8 g/dl. She was then planned for total abdominal hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy later. Four months later when she came for the elective surgery, her pre transfusion investigations showed blood group as B Rh D positive, with a probable R1R1 phenotype. Her antibody screening was positive in all the three panel cells. Further testings showed a negative Direct Coomb's test and negative autocontrol, antibody identification showed pan-agglutination reaction on all 11 panel cells with enzyme enhancement. Patient's red cell phenotype was Jk(a-b-). Anti-Jk3 was suspected and further confirmed in the reference laboratory by phenotyping as well as negative urea lysis test. This case report highlights an extremely rare but clinically significant anti-JK3 antibody detected during pretransfusion testing. This phenotype is rare in the white population, more commonly seen in various polynesians. Increased awareness among the blood bank personnel regarding the variability of the blood group phenotype and the capricious nature of the Kidd antibodies may contribute to the better management of these patients.
  2. A Prospective Multicenter Randomized Controlled Trial to Evaluate the Efficacy of Chitosan Hydrogel Paste in Comparison to Commercial Hydroactive Gel as a Wound Bed Preparation
    Nasir NAM, Saad AZM, Bachok NS, Rashid AHA, Ujang Z, Noorsal K, et al.
    Indian J Plast Surg, 2023 Feb;56(1):44-52.
    PMID: 36998939 DOI: 10.1055/s-0042-1759503
    Background  This clinical trial aimed to evaluate the clinical efficacy of chitosan derivative hydrogel paste (CDHP) as a wound bed preparation for wounds with cavities. Methods  This study enrolled 287 patients, with 143 patients randomized into the CDHP group (treatment) and 144 patients randomized into the commercial hydroactive gel (CHG) group (control). The granulation tissue, necrotic tissue, patient comfort, clinical signs, symptoms, and patient convenience during the application and removal of the dressing were assessed. Results  The study was completed by 111 and 105 patients from the treatment and control groups, respectively. Both groups showed an increasing mean percentage of wound granulation over time when the initial wound size and comorbidity were adjusted (F(10,198) = 4.61; p  
  3. Fulltext Microbiological and physical properties of pennywort (Centella asiatica) leaves using pulsed light technology
    Siti Zaharah, R., Noranizan, M., Son, R., Roselina, K., Yusof, N. L., Koh, P. C., et al.
    International Food Research Journal, 2020;27(1):16-27.
    MyJurnal
    Pennywort (Centella asiatica) is a herbaceous vegetable commonly consumed raw as ‘ulam’ or salad. Consumption of raw leafy green vegetables is one of the pathogenic mechanisms that could cause foodborne outbreaks. The aim of the present work was therefore to investigate the effect of pulsed light (PL) treatment at fluences of 1.5, 4.2, 6.9, 9.6, and 12.3 J/cm² on the microbiological and physical quality of pennywort stored at 4 ± 1°C. Escherichia coli (E. coli) were inoculated onto the pennywort leaves before being exposed to PL and viewed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). PL fluences of 6.9, 9.6, and 12.3 J/cm² significantly reduced the microbial count; however, the highest inactivation was obtained by using fluences of 9.6 and 12.3 J/cm². The color of pennywort was not significantly affected by PL treatment applied at lower fluences of 1.5, 4.2, and 6.9 J/cm²; however, at higher fluence, 9.6 and 12.3 J/cm², the color was affected. PL at 1.5, 4.2, 6.9, and 9.6 J/cm² was able to retain the texture appearance of the leaves. To conclude, PL at 6.9 J/cm² showed the best fluence to reduce total aerobic mesophilic count while retaining the physical properties of pennywort leaves and extend the shelf life to about four days. The inactivation of E. coli population was significantly higher at PL fluence of 6.9 J/cm². It was observed that PL caused the destruction to the surface of E. coli’s cell membrane. The reductions of samples inoculated with E. coli were better than those achieved in native microbiota. Furthermore, the present work also demonstrated that PL treatment was able to reduce the microbial count on pennywort leaves.
  4. Fulltext Novel method for gelatin extraction of various local fish using High Pressure Processing (HPP)
    Jamal, P., Jaswir, I., Yusof, N., Jami, M.S.
    International Food Research Journal, 2017;24(101):533-539.
    MyJurnal
    Gelatin from fish skin is known to be an alternative source for mammalian gelatin. However, it has weaker properties compared to bovine and porcine gelatin, which limits its use in the industry. The conventional method for fish gelatin extraction requires long production time and could cause serious water pollution and chemical treatments are often being used to enhance the yield of fish gelatin and its properties but it may affect the amino acid content of the gelatin. In this regard, High-Pressure Processing (HPP) is a novel method suggested for fish gelatin extraction. The HPP method is classified as green technology as it requires low electricity throughout the process. This study will discuss the impact of HPP the technique gelatin extracted from fish skin. Skins from four types of fish, namely red tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), black tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus), grouper (Epinephelus areolatus) and threadfin bream (Nemipterus tambuloides), were used. High pressure was applied at either pretreatment in citric acid solution or during thermal extraction; and the pressure was maintained at 250 MPa with pressure holding time of 10 minutes and 18 hours of water extraction. Gelatin extract from traditional acid-base method was prepared as a standard for comparison. The study found that there was an increment in the yield of gelatin and the concentration of gelatin extract, and the pre-treatment time was also reduced.
  5. Fulltext Optimization of process condition for extraction of gelatin from red tilapia skin (Oreochromis niloticus) by High Pressure Processing (HPP)
    Yusof, N., Jaswir, I., Jamal, P., Jami, M.S., Octavianti, F.
    International Food Research Journal, 2017;24(101):0-0.
    MyJurnal
    Extraction of gelatin using traditional acid-base pretreatment method has several limitations
    such as time consuming and causes serious water pollution. Chemical treatment often being used
    as an alternative process to overcome the weaknesses of the conventional method. However,
    excessive chemical elements would damage the structure of the gelatin due to its high sensitivity
    to the acid content. High Pressure Processing (HPP) is a novel and environmental friendly
    method that has been suggested to assist gelatin extraction. Pressurization during pretreatment
    could reduce the extraction time and amount of acid used. It also has a potential in enhancing the
    properties of the gelatin extract and increasing the gelatin yield. In this research, One-Factor-
    at-Time (OFAT) and optimization study were done to determine the optimum parameters for
    extraction of gelatin assisted by HPP from red tilapia skin. Four parameters; applied pressure,
    pressure holding time, ratio of acid to skin and extraction time have been selected for the OFAT
    design and concentration of the gelatin extract and percentage of yield gelatin were evaluated.
    From OFAT, optimum technical parameters for response surface optimization design were 250
    MPa pressure, 7.5 ml of acid to 1 g of skin and 12 hours extraction time. Pressure holding
    time was fixed for 10 min. FCCCD has been used for optimization study. Results from the
    data shows that the optimum conditions for gelatin extraction from red tilapia skin were 250
    MPa for pressure, 10 min of pressure holding time, 7.5 ml of acid for 1 g of skin and 12 hours
    of extraction time while the maximum concentration and yield were 19.51 mg/ml and 32.04%
    (320.4 mg/g), respectively. These findings proved that HPP could increase the concentration
    and the yield of the gelatin while reducing the chemical waste and shortening the extraction
    process.
  6. One-step synthesis of chitosan-polyethyleneimine with calcium chloride as effective adsorbent for Acid Red 88 removal
    Yusof NH, Foo KY, Hameed BH, Hussin MH, Lee HK, Sabar S
    Int J Biol Macromol, 2020 Aug 15;157:648-658.
    PMID: 31790734 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2019.11.218
    Chitosan-polyethyleneimine with calcium chloride as ionic cross-linker (CsPC) was synthesized as a new kind of adsorbent using a simple, green and cost-effective technique. The adsorption properties of the adsorbent for Acid Red 88 (AR88) dye, as a model analyte, were investigated in a batch system as the function of solution pH (pH 3-12), initial AR88 concentration (50-500 mg L-1), contact time (0-24 h), and temperature (30-50 °C). Results showed that the adsorption process obeyed the pseudo-first order kinetic model and the adsorption rate was governed by both intra-particle and liquid-film mechanism. Equilibrium data were well correlated with the Freundlich isotherm model, with the calculated maximum adsorption capacity (qm) of 1000 mg g-1 at 30 °C. The findings underlined CsPC to be an effective and efficient adsorbent, which can be easily synthesized via one-step process with promising prospects for the removal of AR88 or any other similar dyes from the aqueous solutions.
  7. Comparative efficacy of perindopril and enalapril once daily using 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring
    Yusoff K, Razak TA, Yusof N, Rafee NM
    Int J Clin Pract, 1999 Jun;53(4):277-80.
    PMID: 10563072
    ACE inhibitors are important therapeutic agents in controlling hypertension, correcting some of its pathophysiological derangement and improving its prognosis. While there are many such agents, there may be some important differences between them. This placebo run-in, double blind, crossover study, using 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, compares the efficacy of perindopril 4-8 mg and enalapril 10-20 mg as once daily antihypertensive agents on 32 patients. For diastolic blood pressure (DBP), perindopril had a placebo-corrected peak (P) reduction of blood pressure (BP) of -6.4 +/- 1.3 mmHg vs its placebo-corrected trough (T) of -5.2 +/- 1.7 mmHg. Enalapril had a reduction in DBP of -8.5 +/- 1.3 mmHg (P) and -5.7 +/- 1.7 mmHg (T). For systolic blood pressure (SBP), perindopril had a reduction of -7.5 +/- 1.6 mmHg (P) vs -7.3 +/- 2.2 mmHg (T) compared to enalapril with -10.8 +/- 1.6 mmHg (P) vs -8.3 +/- 2.3 mmHg (T). Placebo-corrected trough-to-peak ratio (SBP/DBP) for perindopril was 0.97/0.81 vs 0.77/0.67 for enalapril. There was no difference noted in 24-hour mean BP, area under the curve or post-dose casual BP measurements. Both perindopril and enalapril were well tolerated and the two treatment groups had similar safety profiles. Perindopril thus had a predictable and sustained blood pressure effect giving a 24-hour cover for the patient without excessive peak effect or poor trough effect.
  8. Fulltext Emotional Intelligence, Depression, Stress and Anxiety Amongst Undergraduate Dental Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic
    Dasor MM, Jafridin AA, Azhar AA, Asma AAA, Manivannan PC, Bilal S, et al.
    Int J Public Health, 2023;68:1604383.
    PMID: 36846156 DOI: 10.3389/ijph.2023.1604383
    Objectives: This study aimed to measure depression, anxiety and stress (DAS) among undergraduate dental students during the COVID-19 pandemic, identify key contributing factors of stress and explore the association of emotional intelligence to DAS. Methods: A multi-centre, cross-sectional study was conducted across four universities in Malaysia. The study administered a questionnaire consisting of the validated Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS), Dental Environment Stress (DES), Emotional Intelligence Scale (EI) and 10 statements assessing COVID-19 specific potential stressor factors. Results: Participants included 791 students across four universities. Abnormal levels of DAS were identified in 60.6%, 66.8% and 42.6% of the study participants, respectively. "Pressure of performance," "Faculty administration" and "Self-efficacy belief" were the highest rated stressors. On-time graduation was the main COVID-19 specific stressor factor. EI was negatively correlated with DAS scores (p < 0.001). Conclusion: The levels of DAS during COVID-19 pandemic in this population is high. However, participants with higher EI presented with lower DAS suggesting that EI may be a form of coping resource and should be enhanced in this population.
  9. Fulltext Online News Coverage of the Sugar-Sweetened Beverages Tax in Malaysia: Content Analysis
    Mohd Hanim MF, Md Sabri BA, Yusof N
    JMIR Public Health Surveill, 2021 08 18;7(8):e24523.
    PMID: 34406125 DOI: 10.2196/24523
    BACKGROUND: In Malaysia, the Sugar-Sweetened Beverages (SSBs) tax was announced during the parliament's 2019 Budget Speech. The tax was slated to be enforced by April 2019 but was later postponed to July 2019. The announcement has since generated significant media coverage and public feedback.

    OBJECTIVE: This study presents a qualitative and quantitative cross-sectional study using netnography to examine how Malaysian online news articles responded to the SSBs tax after the announcement and postimplementation.

    METHODS: Online news articles published on popular online news platforms from November 2018 to August 2019 were downloaded using NCapture and imported into NVivo for analysis using the inductive approach and thematic content analysis following the initial SSBs implementation announcement.

    RESULTS: A total of 62 news articles were analyzed. Most of the articles positively portrayed the SSBs tax (46.8%) and highlighted its health impacts (76%). There were 7 key framing arguments identified in the articles. The positive arguments revolved around incentivizing manufacturers to introduce healthier products voluntarily, positive health consequences, the tax's impact on government revenue, and the use of the generated revenue toward beneficial social programs. The opposing arguments included increased operating costs to the manufacturer, the increased retail price of drinks, and how the SSBs tax is not a robust solution to obesity. The top priority sector considered in introducing the tax was the health perspective, followed by economic purposes and creating policies such as regulating the food and drinks industry.

    CONCLUSIONS: The majority of online news articles positively reported the implementation of the SSBs tax in Malaysia. This suggests media played a role in garnering support for the health policy. As such, relevant bodies can use negative findings to anticipate and reframe counteracting arguments opposing the SSBs tax.

  10. Fulltext Establishing freeze drying process for cortical and cancellous bone allograft cubes
    Ariffin, A.A., Chan, H.H., Yusof, N., Mohd, S., Ng, W.M., Mansor A.
    JUMMEC, 2019;22(1):66-71.
    MyJurnal
    Freeze drying is a dehydration method to dry bone under freezing environment, enabling removal of water
    with no or minimial effects on bone strength and durability. Larger size bones obviously require longer freeze
    drying time to reduce water content to the required level for long term storage at room temperature. For small
    size bone cubes or chips, it is a normal practice to pool cortical and cancellous bones for freeze drying. The
    study was aimed at determining if different type of bones of the same size influence the drying time. Human
    bone cubes of 10 mm x 10 mm x 10 mm were prepared from cortical bone of tibiae and cancellous bone from
    femoral heads. The bone cubes were freeze dried to reduce water content to less than 6%. Moisture content
    was monitored using gravimetric method.Weight and density of cortical bone were significantly higher than
    cancellous bone despite of having similar small size (p
  11. Within-family discussion on harmful effects of smoking and intention to initiate smoking among European adolescents
    Masood M, Masood Y, Md Sabri BA, Younis LT, Yusof N, Reidpath D, et al.
    J Addict Med, 2015 Jul-Aug;9(4):261-5.
    PMID: 26241085 DOI: 10.1097/ADM.0000000000000127
    OBJECTIVE: The main objective of this study was to determine the impact of discussion within family about the harmful effects of smoking on intention to initiate smoking in the long term among nonsmoking adolescents.
    METHODS: Data from Global Youth Tobacco Survey for 25 European countries were used. The outcomes of interest were, therefore, the intention to initiate smoking 1 and 5 years after the survey. Discussion within family about harmful effect of smoking was the main predictor with age, sex, and smoking status of parents, friends, and classmates as covariates. The association between predictors and outcomes was assessed through multiple regression analysis.
    RESULTS: A total of 118,703 nonsmoking adolescents were included. Within-family discussion significantly reduced the odds of intention to initiate smoking 1 and 5 years later. Intention to initiate smoking also was significantly associated with the smoking status of friends, classmates, and parents, except for father's smoking status, which was not associated with intention to initiate 1 year later.
    CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated that within-family discussion about the harmful effects of smoking may contribute to reduce the intention to start smoking among adolescents in the long term. Such a discussion was associated with reduced intention to smoke even when adjusting for parent/friend and classmate smoking.
  12. Chitosan-Based Agronanofungicides as a Sustainable Alternative in the Basal Stem Rot Disease Management
    Maluin FN, Hussein MZ, Azah Yusof N, Fakurazi S, Idris AS, Zainol Hilmi NH, et al.
    J Agric Food Chem, 2020 Apr 15;68(15):4305-4314.
    PMID: 32227887 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.9b08060
    The rise of environmental and health concerns due to the excessive use of the conventional fungicide urges the search for sustainable alternatives of agronanofungicides where the latter is aimed to enhance plant uptake and minimize the volatilization, leaching, and runoff of fungicides. With this in mind, fungicides of hexaconazole and/or dazomet were encapsulated into chitosan nanoparticles for the formulation of chitosan-based agronanofungicides. In the present study, chitosan nanoparticles (2 nm), chitosan-hexaconazole nanoparticles (18 and 168 nm), chitosan-dazomet nanoparticles (7 and 32 nm), and chitosan-hexaconazole-dazomet nanoparticles (5 and 58 nm) were synthesized and used as potent antifungal agents in combating the basal stem rot (BSR) disease caused by Ganoderma boninense in which they were evaluated via an artificial inoculation of oil palm seedlings with the rubber woodblock, which was fully colonized with the fungal Ganoderma boninense mycelium. The results revealed that chitosan nanoparticles could act as dual modes of action, which are themselves as a biocide or as a nanocarrier for the existing fungicides. In addition, the particle size of the chitosan-based agronanofungicides plays a crucial role in suppressing and controlling the disease. The synergistic effect of the double-fungicide system of 5 nm chitosan-hexaconazole-dazomet nanoparticles can be observed as the system showed the highest disease reduction with 74.5%, compared to the untreated infected seedlings.
  13. Sea cucumber (Stichopus hermanii) based hydrogel to treat burn wounds in rats
    Zohdi RM, Zakaria ZA, Yusof N, Mustapha NM, Abdullah MN
    J Biomed Mater Res B Appl Biomater, 2011 Jul;98(1):30-7.
    PMID: 21504052 DOI: 10.1002/jbm.b.31828
    Malaysian sea cucumber was incorporated into hydrogel formulation by using electron beam irradiation technique and was introduced as novel cross-linked Gamat Hydrogel dressing. This study investigated whether Gamat Hydrogel enhanced repair of deep partial skin thickness burn wound in rats and its possible mechanism. Wounds were treated with either Gamat Hydrogel, control hydrogel, OpSite® film dressing or left untreated. Skin samples were taken at 7, 14, 21, and 28 days post burn for histological and molecular evaluations. Gamat Hydrogel markedly enhanced wound contraction and improved histological reorganization of the regenerating tissue. Furthermore, the dressing modulated the inflammatory responses, stimulated the activation and proliferation of fibroblasts, and enhanced rapid production of collagen fiber network with a consequently shorter healing time. The level of proinflammatory cytokines; IL-1α, IL-1β, and IL-6, were significantly reduced in Gamat Hydrogel treated wounds compared with other groups as assessed by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). In summary, our results showed that Gamat Hydrogel promoted burn wound repair via a complex mechanism involving stimulation of tissue regeneration and regulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines. The resultant wound healing effects were attributed to the synergistic effect of the hydrogel matrix and incorporated sea cucumber.
  14. Superwetting materials for hydrophilic-oleophobic membrane in oily wastewater treatment
    Wan Ikhsan SN, Yusof N, Aziz F, Ismail AF, Jaafar J, Wan Salleh WN, et al.
    J Environ Manage, 2021 Jul 15;290:112565.
    PMID: 33873023 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112565
    The vast amount of oily wastewater released to the environment through industrialization has worsened the water quality in recent years, posing adverse impacts on general human health. Oil emulsified in water is one of the most difficult mixtures to be treated, making it imperative for new technology to be explored to address this issue. The use of conventional water treatment such as flotation, coagulation, precipitation, adsorption, and chemical treatment have low separation efficiencies and high energy costs, and are not applicable to the separation of oil/water emulsions. Therefore, there is a demand for more efficient methods and materials for the separations of immiscible oil/water mixtures and emulsions. Superwetting materials that can repel oil, while letting water pass through have been widely explored to fit into this concern. These materials usually make use of simultaneous hydrophilic/oleophobic mechanisms to allow a solid surface to separate oily emulsion with little to no use of energy. Also, by integrating specific wettability concepts with appropriate pore scale, solid surfaces may achieve separation of multifarious oil/water mixtures namely immiscible oil/water blends and consolidated emulsions. In this review, materials used to impart superwetting in solid surfaces by focusing on superhydrophilic/superoleophobic wetting properties of the materials categorized into fluorinated and non-fluorinated surface modification are summarized. In each material, its background, mechanism, fabricating processes, and their effects on solid surface's wetting capability are elaborated in detail. The materials reviewed in this paper are mainly organic and green, suggesting the alternative material to replace the fluorine group that is widely used to achieve oleophobicity in oily wastewater treatment.
  15. Fulltext Hemolytic disease of the fetus and newborn caused by anti-D and anti-S alloantibodies: a case report
    Yousuf R, Abdul Aziz S, Yusof N, Leong CF
    J Med Case Rep, 2012;6:71.
    PMID: 22348809 DOI: 10.1186/1752-1947-6-71
    Hemolytic disease of the fetus and newborn is most commonly caused by anti-D alloantibody. It is usually seen in Rhesus D (RhD)-negative mothers that have been previously sensitized. We report here a case of hemolytic disease of the fetus and newborn in a newborn baby caused by anti-D and anti-S alloantibodies, born to a mother who was RhD negative, but with no previous serological evidence of RhD alloimmunization.
  16. Performance of cooling materials and their composites in maintaining freezing temperature during irradiation and transportation of bone allografts
    Ramalingam S, Samsuddin SM, Yusof N, Mohd S, Hanafi NN, Min NW, et al.
    J Orthop Surg (Hong Kong), 2018 4 27;26(2):2309499018770906.
    PMID: 29695196 DOI: 10.1177/2309499018770906
    PURPOSE: Bone allografts supplied by University Malaya Medical Centre Bone Bank are sterilized by gamma radiation at 25 kGy in dry ice (DI) to minimize radiation effects. Use of cheaper and easily available cooling materials, gel ice (GI) and ice pack (IP), was explored. Composites of DI and GI were also studied for the use in routine transportations and radiation process.

    METHODS: (a) Five dummy bones were packed with DI, GI, or IP in a polystyrene box. The bone temperatures were monitored while the boxes were placed at room temperature over 96 h. Durations for each cooling material maintaining freezing temperatures below -40°C, -20°C, and 0°C were obtained from the bone temperature over time profiles. (b) Composites of DI (20, 15, 10, 5, and 0 kg) and GI were used to pack five dummy bones in a polystyrene box. The durations maintaining varying levels of freezing temperature were compared.

    RESULTS: DI (20 kg) maintained temperature below -40°C for 76.4 h as compared to 6.3 h in GI (20 bags) and 4.0 h in IP (15 packs). Composites of 15DI (15 kg DI and 9 GI bags) and 10DI (10 kg DI and 17 GI bags) maintained the temperature below -40°C for 61 and 35.5 h, respectively.

    CONCLUSION: Composites of DI and GI can be used to maintain bones in deep frozen state during irradiation, thus avoiding radiation effects on biomechanical properties. Sterile frozen bone allograft with preserved functional properties is required in clinical applications.

  17. Assessing sequence heterogeneity in Chlorellaceae DNA barcode markers for phylogenetic inference
    Wong EB, Kamaruddin N, Mokhtar M, Yusof N, Khairuddin RFR
    J Genet Eng Biotechnol, 2023 Oct 18;21(1):104.
    PMID: 37851281 DOI: 10.1186/s43141-023-00550-5
    Phylogenetic inference is an important approach that allows the recovery of the evolutionary history and the origin of the Chlorellaceae species. Despite the species' potential for biofuel feedstock production, their high phenotypic plasticity and similar morphological structures among the species have muddled the taxonomy and identification of the Chlorellaceae species. This study aimed to decipher Chlorellaceae DNA barcode marker heterogeneity by examining the sequence divergence and genomic properties of 18S rRNA, ITS (ITS1-5.8S rRNA-ITS2-28S rRNA), and rbcL from 655 orthologous sequences of 64 species across 31 genera in the Chlorellaceae family. The study assessed the distinct evolutionary properties of the DNA markers that may have caused the discordance between individual trees in the phylogenetic inference using the Robinson-Foulds distance and the Shimodaira-Hasegawa test. Our findings suggest that using the supermatrix approach improves the congruency between trees by reducing stochastic error and increasing the confidence of the inferred Chlorellaceae phylogenetic tree. This study also found that the phylogenies inferred through the supermatrix approach might not always be well supported by all markers. The study highlights that assessing sequence heterogeneity prior to the phylogenetic inference could allow the approach to accommodate sequence evolutionary properties and support species identification from the most congruent phylogeny, which can better represent the evolution of Chlorellaceae species.
  18. Fulltext Mutations of pvdhfr and pvdhps genes in vivax endemic-malaria areas in Kota Marudu and Kalabakan, Sabah
    Sastu UR, Abdullah NR, Norahmad NA, Saat MN, Muniandy PK, Jelip J, et al.
    Malar J, 2016;15:63.
    PMID: 26850038 DOI: 10.1186/s12936-016-1109-9
    Malaria cases persist in some remote areas in Sabah and Sarawak despite the ongoing and largely successful malaria control programme conducted by the Vector Borne Disease Control Programme, Ministry Of Health, Malaysia. Point mutations in the genes that encode the two enzymes involved in the folate biosynthesis pathway, dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) and dihydropteroate synthase (DHPS) enzymes confer resistance to pyrimethamine and sulfadoxine respectively, in both Plasmodium falciparum and P. vivax. The aim of the current study was to determine the mutation on both pvdhfr at codon 13, 33, 57, 58, 61, 117, and 173 and pvdhps genes at codon 383 and 553, which are potentially associated with resistance to pyrimethamine and sulfadoxine in P. vivax samples in Sabah.
  19. Fulltext Confocal laser scanning microscope analysis on post-biofilm assessment of biofilmproducing osteomyelitic Staphylococcus aureus treated with new Gentamicin-Nigella sativa fusion emulsion (GNFE)
    Yaakob, K.I., Mohd Shafri, M.A., Mohd Yusof, N., Mohamed, F.
    Malaysian Journal of Microscopy, 2015;11(1):68-73.
    MyJurnal
    Biofilm complicates osteomyelitis as there is antibiotic resistance and toxicity involved. In order to overcome the challenges of current treatment, gentamicin, the current antibiotic of choice for osteomyelitis, is fused with Nigella sativa oil to form an emulsion. Its efficacy as anti-biofilm agent is assessed using confocal laser scanning microscope (CLSM) against different strains of biofilm-producing Staphylococcus aureus. These strains of S.aureus were first allowed to express biofilm before being exposed for 24 hours to the emulsion with (0.1% (w/v) gentamicin; 40.2% (v/v) N.sativa. Later, the emulsion was removed and the biofilm was stained with fluorescence staining. The slides were viewed under CLSM at 100 times resolution. 3D images of biofilm were reconstructed, using Image J software, to measure the thickness of biofilm and viability of bacteria cells. Results revealed that the emulsion significantly reduced biofilm thickness compared to gentamicin and N.sativa alone in all strains of S.aureus (Tukey’s test p < 0.05). The emulsion was also able to produce more than 80% and 15% surface percentage (%) of non-viable (dead) bacteria in the sensitive and resistant strain, respectively, at a significant level when compared to gentamicin and N.sativa (Tukey’s test p < 0.05). As a conclusion, this new fusion of gentamicin-N.sativa may be effective towards the biofilm of S.aureus, and can be developed further as a new promising anti-biofilm agent in osteomyelitis.
  20. Fulltext Perforators in the Leg: Why It Is Important for Orthopaedic Surgeons to Know
    Mohd-Yusof N, Ahmad-Alwi AA
    Malays Orthop J, 2017 Mar;11(1):85-87.
    PMID: 28435585 DOI: 10.5704/MOJ.1703.014
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