Displaying publications 41 - 60 of 2346 in total

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  1. Yang B, Wang Q, Li Y, Li L, Zhang Y, Leong Bin Abdullah MFI, et al.
    PLoS One, 2023;18(4):e0282488.
    PMID: 37099528 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0282488
    OBJECTIVE: The present study opted for the adrenal phaeochromocytoma (PC12) cell line to frame a neuronal injury model induced by alcohol exposure in vitro, aiming to probe whether TAp73 and miR-96-5p are involved in the neuronal injury process induced by alcohol and elucidate the regulatory relationship between miR-96-5p and TAp73.

    METHODS: Immunofluorescence staining was used to observe the structural features of PC12 cells after culturing in medium with nerve growth factor (NGF). After different doses and different durations of alcohol treatment, CCK-8 assay was performed to detect the viability of PC12 cells, flow cytometry assay was carried out to detect the apoptosis rate of PC12 cells, dual-luciferase reporter assay was used to definitude the regulatory relationship between miR-96-5p and Tp73, and western blot was used to detect the protein expression of TAp73.

    RESULTS: The result of immunofluorescence staining demonstrated that PC12 cells abundantly expressed Map2, CCK-8 assay illustrated alcohol exposure significantly downregulated the cell viability of PC12 cells, Treatment with miR-96-5p inhibitor induced apoptosis and upregulated the expression of TAp73 in PC12 cells. Contrastingly, miR-96-5p mimic reversed the above effects and downregulation of TAp73 inhibited the apoptosis of PC12 cells.

    CONCLUSION: The present study demonstrated that miR-96-5p participates in alcohol-induced apoptosis in PC12 cells via negatively regulating TAp73.

  2. Xin Y, Hao S, Lu J, Wang Q, Zhang L
    PLoS One, 2014;9(4):e95966.
    PMID: 24763305 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0095966
    To comprehensively evaluate the association of ERCC1 C8092A and ERCC2 Lys751Gln polymorphisms with the risk of glioma.
  3. Elhag AA, Mohamad R, Aziz MW, Zeshan F
    PLoS One, 2015;10(4):e0123086.
    PMID: 25928358 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0123086
    The composite service design modeling is an essential process of the service-oriented software development life cycle, where the candidate services, composite services, operations and their dependencies are required to be identified and specified before their design. However, a systematic service-oriented design modeling method for composite services is still in its infancy as most of the existing approaches provide the modeling of atomic services only. For these reasons, a new method (ComSDM) is proposed in this work for modeling the concept of service-oriented design to increase the reusability and decrease the complexity of system while keeping the service composition considerations in mind. Furthermore, the ComSDM method provides the mathematical representation of the components of service-oriented design using the graph-based theoryto facilitate the design quality measurement. To demonstrate that the ComSDM method is also suitable for composite service design modeling of distributed embedded real-time systems along with enterprise software development, it is implemented in the case study of a smart home. The results of the case study not only check the applicability of ComSDM, but can also be used to validate the complexity and reusability of ComSDM. This also guides the future research towards the design quality measurement such as using the ComSDM method to measure the quality of composite service design in service-oriented software system.
  4. Rehman FU, Ismail H, Al Ghazali BM, Asad MM, Shahbaz MS, Zeb A
    PLoS One, 2021;16(12):e0261573.
    PMID: 34937055 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0261573
    Drucker's knowledge-worker productivity theory and knowledge-based view of the firm theory are widely employed in many disciplines but there is little application of these theories in knowledge-based innovation among academic researchers. Therefore, this study intends to evaluate the effects of the knowledge management process on knowledge-based innovation alongside with mediating role of Malaysian academic researchers' productivity during the Pandemic of COVID-19. Using a random sampling technique, data was collected from 382 academic researchers. Questionnaires were self-administered and data was analyzed via Smart PLS-SEM. Knowledge management process and knowledge workers' productivity have a positive and significant relationship with the knowledge-based innovation among academic researchers during the Pandemic of COVID-19. In addition, knowledge workers' productivity mediates the relationship between the knowledge management process (knowledge creation, knowledge acquisition, knowledge sharing, and knowledge utilization) and knowledge-based innovation during the Pandemic of COVID-19. Results have also directed knowledge sharing as the key factor in knowledge-based innovation and a stimulating task for management discipline around the world during the Pandemic of COVID-19. This study provides interesting insights on Malaysian academic researchers' productivity by evaluating the effects of knowledge creation, acquisition, sharing, and application on the knowledge-based innovation among academic researchers during the Pandemic of COVID-19. These useful insights would enable policymakers to develop more influential educational strategies. By assimilating the literature of defined variables, the main contribution of this study is the evaluation of knowledge creation, acquisition, sharing, and utilization into knowledge-based innovation alongside the mediating role of knowledge workers productivity in the higher education sector of Malaysia during the Pandemic of COVID-19.
  5. Alefishat E, Abu Farha R, Zawiah M
    PLoS One, 2021;16(8):e0256031.
    PMID: 34388191 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0256031
    PURPOSE: The credibility and the reliability of Internet webpages to seek medication-related information is questionable. The main objective of the current study was to evaluate perception and experience of pharmacists with the use of Internet-based medication information by their patients.

    METHODS: This is a cross-sectional descriptive study that was conducted to evaluate perception and experience of pharmacists with the use of Internet-based medication information by their patients. During the study period, 200 pharmacists were approached to participate in the study using a paper-based survey to assess their perceptions and current experience with the use of Internet-based medication information by their patients. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (mean/standard deviation for continuous variables, and frequency/percentages for qualitative variables). Also, simple linear regression was utilized to screen factors affecting pharmacists' perception scores of the use of Internet-based medication information.

    RESULTS: Among 161 recruited pharmacists, the majority (n = 129, 80.1%) reported receiving inquiries from patients about Internet-based medication information within the last year. Among them, only 22.6% (n = 29) of pharmacists believed that Internet-based medication information is somewhat or very accurate. Unfortunately, only 24.2% (n = 31) of them stated that they always had enough time for their patient to discuss their Internet-based medication information. Regarding pharmacists' perception of the use of Internet-based medication information by their patients, more than half of the pharmacists (>50%) believe that Internet-based medication information could increase the patient's role in taking responsibility. On the other hand, 54.7% (n = 88) of the pharmacists believed that Internet-based medication information would contribute to rising the healthcare cost by obtaining unnecessary medications by patients. Finally, pharmacists' educational level was found to significantly affect their perception scores toward patient use of Internet-based medication information where those with higher educational level showed lower perception score (r = -0.200, P-value = 0.011).

    CONCLUSION: Although pharmacists felt that usage of Internet-based data by patients is beneficial, they also have believed that it has a negative impact in terms of rising the healthcare cost, and it promotes unnecessary fear or concern about medications. We suggest that pharmacists be trained on principles of critical appraisal to become professional in retrieval information on the Internet that might improve their delivery of healthcare information and their recommendations to patients.

  6. Ahmed BS, Sahib MA, Gambardella LM, Afzal W, Zamli KZ
    PLoS One, 2016;11(11):e0166150.
    PMID: 27829025 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0166150
    Combinatorial test design is a plan of test that aims to reduce the amount of test cases systematically by choosing a subset of the test cases based on the combination of input variables. The subset covers all possible combinations of a given strength and hence tries to match the effectiveness of the exhaustive set. This mechanism of reduction has been used successfully in software testing research with t-way testing (where t indicates the interaction strength of combinations). Potentially, other systems may exhibit many similarities with this approach. Hence, it could form an emerging application in different areas of research due to its usefulness. To this end, more recently it has been applied in a few research areas successfully. In this paper, we explore the applicability of combinatorial test design technique for Fractional Order (FO), Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) parameter design controller, named as FOPID, for an automatic voltage regulator (AVR) system. Throughout the paper, we justify this new application theoretically and practically through simulations. In addition, we report on first experiments indicating its practical use in this field. We design different algorithms and adapted other strategies to cover all the combinations with an optimum and effective test set. Our findings indicate that combinatorial test design can find the combinations that lead to optimum design. Besides this, we also found that by increasing the strength of combination, we can approach to the optimum design in a way that with only 4-way combinatorial set, we can get the effectiveness of an exhaustive test set. This significantly reduced the number of tests needed and thus leads to an approach that optimizes design of parameters quickly.
  7. Ranak MSAN, Azad S, Nor NNHBM, Zamli KZ
    PLoS One, 2017;12(10):e0186940.
    PMID: 29084262 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0186940
    Due to recent advancements and appealing applications, the purchase rate of smart devices is increasing at a higher rate. Parallely, the security related threats and attacks are also increasing at a greater ratio on these devices. As a result, a considerable number of attacks have been noted in the recent past. To resist these attacks, many password-based authentication schemes are proposed. However, most of these schemes are not screen size independent; whereas, smart devices come in different sizes. Specifically, they are not suitable for miniature smart devices due to the small screen size and/or lack of full sized keyboards. In this paper, we propose a new screen size independent password-based authentication scheme, which also offers an affordable defense against shoulder surfing, brute force, and smudge attacks. In the proposed scheme, the Press Touch (PT)-a.k.a., Force Touch in Apple's MacBook, Apple Watch, ZTE's Axon 7 phone; 3D Touch in iPhone 6 and 7; and so on-is transformed into a new type of code, named Press Touch Code (PTC). We design and implement three variants of it, namely mono-PTC, multi-PTC, and multi-PTC with Grid, on the Android Operating System. An in-lab experiment and a comprehensive survey have been conducted on 105 participants to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed scheme.
  8. Ruslan SA, Muharam FM, Zulkafli Z, Omar D, Zambri MP
    PLoS One, 2019;14(10):e0223968.
    PMID: 31626637 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0223968
    Metisa plana (Walker) is a leaf defoliating pest that is able to cause staggering economical losses to oil palm cultivation. Considering the economic devastation that the pest could bring, an early warning system to predict its outbreak is crucial. The state of art of satellite technologies are now able to derive environmental factors such as relative humidity (RH) that may influence pest population's fluctuations in rapid, harmless, and cost-effective manners. This study examined the relationship between the presence of Metisa plana at different time lags and remote sensing (RS) derived RH by using statistical and machine learning approaches. Metisa plana census data of cumulated larvae instar 1, 2, 3, and 4 were collected biweekly in 2014 and 2015 in an oil palm plantation in Muadzam Shah, Pahang, Malaysia. Relative humidity values derived from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite images were apportioned to 6 time lags; 1 week (T1), 2 weeks (T2), 3 week (T3), 4 weeks (T4), 5 week (T5) and 6 weeks (T6) and paired with the respective census data. Pearson's correlation was carried out to analyse the relationship between Metisa plana and RH at different time lags. Regression analyses and artificial neural network (ANN) were also conducted to develop the best prediction model of Metisa plana's outbreak. The results showed relatively high correlations, positively or negatively, between the presences of Metisa plana with RH ranging from 0.46 to 0.99. ANN was found to be superior to regression models with the adjusted coefficient of determination (R2) between the actual and predicted Metisa plana values ranging from 0.06 to 0.57 versus 0.00 to 0.05. The analysis on the best time lags illustrated that the multiple time lags were more influential on the Metisa plana population than the individual time lags. The best Metisa plana prediction model was derived from T1, T2 and T3 multiple time lags modelled using the ANN algorithm with R2 value of 0.57, errors below 1.14 and accuracies above 93%. Based on the result of this study, the elucidation of Metisa plana's landscape ecology was possible with the utilization of RH as the predictor variable in consideration of the time lag effects of RH on the pest's population.
  9. Ramasamy S, Abdul Wahab N, Zainal Abidin N, Manickam S, Zakaria Z
    PLoS One, 2012;7(4):e34793.
    PMID: 22536331 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0034793
    Phyllanthus watsonii Airy Shaw is an endemic plant found in Peninsular Malaysia. Although there are numerous reports on the anti cancer properties of other Phyllanthus species, published information on the cytotoxicity of P. watsonii are very limited. The present study was carried out with bioassay-guided fractionation approach to evaluate the cytotoxicity and apoptosis induction capability of the P. watsonii extracts and fractions on human gynecologic (SKOV-3 and Ca Ski) and colon (HT-29) cancer cells. P. watsonii extracts exhibited strong cytotoxicity on all the cancer cells studied with IC(50) values of ≤ 20.0 µg/mL. Hexane extract of P. watsonii was further subjected to bioassay-guided fractionation and yielded 10 fractions (PW-1→PW-10). PW-4→PW-8 portrayed stronger cytotoxic activity and was further subjected to bioassay-guided fractionation and resulted with 8 sub-fractions (PPWH-1→PPWH-8). PPWH-7 possessed greatest cytotoxicity (IC(50) values ranged from 0.66-0.83 µg/mL) and was selective on the cancer cells studied. LC-MS/MS analysis of PPWH-7 revealed the presence of ellagic acid, geranic acid, glochidone, betulin, phyllanthin and sterol glucoside. Marked morphological changes, ladder-like appearance of DNA and increment in caspase-3 activity indicating apoptosis were clearly observed in both human gynecologic and colon cancer cells treated with P. watsonii especially with PPWH-7. The study also indicated that P. watsonii extracts arrested cell cycle at different growth phases in SKOV-3, Ca Ski and HT-29 cells. Cytotoxic and apoptotic potential of the endemic P. watsonii was investigated for the first time by bioassay-guided approach. These results demonstrated that P. watsonii selectively inhibits the growth of SKOV-3, Ca Ski and HT-29 cells through apoptosis induction and cell cycle modulation. Hence, P. watsonii has the potential to be further exploited for the discovery and development of new anti cancer drugs.
  10. Goudarzi S, Haslina Hassan W, Abdalla Hashim AH, Soleymani SA, Anisi MH, Zakaria OM
    PLoS One, 2016;11(7):e0151355.
    PMID: 27438600 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0151355
    This study aims to design a vertical handover prediction method to minimize unnecessary handovers for a mobile node (MN) during the vertical handover process. This relies on a novel method for the prediction of a received signal strength indicator (RSSI) referred to as IRBF-FFA, which is designed by utilizing the imperialist competition algorithm (ICA) to train the radial basis function (RBF), and by hybridizing with the firefly algorithm (FFA) to predict the optimal solution. The prediction accuracy of the proposed IRBF-FFA model was validated by comparing it to support vector machines (SVMs) and multilayer perceptron (MLP) models. In order to assess the model's performance, we measured the coefficient of determination (R2), correlation coefficient (r), root mean square error (RMSE) and mean absolute percentage error (MAPE). The achieved results indicate that the IRBF-FFA model provides more precise predictions compared to different ANNs, namely, support vector machines (SVMs) and multilayer perceptron (MLP). The performance of the proposed model is analyzed through simulated and real-time RSSI measurements. The results also suggest that the IRBF-FFA model can be applied as an efficient technique for the accurate prediction of vertical handover.
  11. Usama M, Zakaria N
    PLoS One, 2017;12(1):e0168207.
    PMID: 28072850 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0168207
    Data compression and encryption are key components of commonly deployed platforms such as Hadoop. Numerous data compression and encryption tools are presently available on such platforms and the tools are characteristically applied in sequence, i.e., compression followed by encryption or encryption followed by compression. This paper focuses on the open-source Hadoop framework and proposes a data storage method that efficiently couples data compression with encryption. A simultaneous compression and encryption scheme is introduced that addresses an important implementation issue of source coding based on Tent Map and Piece-wise Linear Chaotic Map (PWLM), which is the infinite precision of real numbers that result from their long products. The approach proposed here solves the implementation issue by removing fractional components that are generated by the long products of real numbers. Moreover, it incorporates a stealth key that performs a cyclic shift in PWLM without compromising compression capabilities. In addition, the proposed approach implements a masking pseudorandom keystream that enhances encryption quality. The proposed algorithm demonstrated a congruent fit within the Hadoop framework, providing robust encryption security and compression.
  12. Yuanita P, Zulnaidi H, Zakaria E
    PLoS One, 2018;13(9):e0204847.
    PMID: 30261056 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0204847
    This study aims to identify the role of mathematical representation as a mediator between mathematical belief and problem solving. A quasi-experimental design was developed that included 426 Form 1 secondary school students. Respondents comprised 209 and 217 students in the treatment and control groups, respectively. SPSS 23.0, ANATES 4 and Amos 18 were used for data analysis. Findings indicated that mathematical representation plays a significant role as mediator between mathematical belief and arithmetic problem solving. The Realistic Mathematics Education (RME) approach successfully increased the arithmetic problem-solving ability of students.
  13. Chan Phooi M'ng J, Zainudin R
    PLoS One, 2016;11(8):e0160931.
    PMID: 27574972 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0160931
    The objective of this research is to examine the trends in the exchange rate markets of the ASEAN-5 countries (Indonesia (IDR), Malaysia (MYR), the Philippines (PHP), Singapore (SGD), and Thailand (THB)) through the application of dynamic moving average trading systems. This research offers evidence of the usefulness of the time-varying volatility technical analysis indicator, Adjustable Moving Average (AMA') in deciphering trends in these ASEAN-5 exchange rate markets. This time-varying volatility factor, referred to as the Efficacy Ratio in this paper, is embedded in AMA'. The Efficacy Ratio adjusts the AMA' to the prevailing market conditions by avoiding whipsaws (losses due, in part, to acting on wrong trading signals, which generally occur when there is no general direction in the market) in range trading and by entering early into new trends in trend trading. The efficacy of AMA' is assessed against other popular moving-average rules. Based on the January 2005 to December 2014 dataset, our findings show that the moving averages and AMA' are superior to the passive buy-and-hold strategy. Specifically, AMA' outperforms the other models for the United States Dollar against PHP (USD/PHP) and USD/THB currency pairs. The results show that different length moving averages perform better in different periods for the five currencies. This is consistent with our hypothesis that a dynamic adjustable technical indicator is needed to cater for different periods in different markets.
  14. Yang Q, Hayat N, Al Mamun A, Makhbul ZKM, Zainol NR
    PLoS One, 2022;17(3):e0264899.
    PMID: 35245323 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0264899
    Social media has changed the marketing phenomenon, as firms use social media to inform, impress, and retain the existing consumers. Social media marketing empowers business firms to generate perceived brand equity activities and build the notion among consumers to continue using the firms' products and services. The current exploratory study aimed to examine the effects of social media marketing activities on brand equity (brand awareness and brand image) and repurchase intention of high-tech products among Chinese consumers. The study used a cross-sectional design, and the final analysis was performed on 477 valid responses that were collected through an online survey. Partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) and artificial neural network (ANN) analysis were performed. The obtained results revealed positive and significant effects of trendiness, interaction, and word of mouth on brand awareness. Customisation, trendiness, interaction, and word of mouth were found to positively affect brand image. Brand awareness and brand image were found to affect repurchase intention. The results of multilayer ANN analysis suggested trendiness as the most notable factor in developing brand awareness and brand image. Brand awareness was found to be an influential factor that nurtures repurchase intention. The study's results confirmed the relevance of social media marketing activities in predicting brand equity and brand loyalty by repurchase intention. Marketing professionals need to concentrate on entertainment and customisation aspects of social media marketing that can help to achieve brand awareness and image. The limitations of study and future research opportunities are presented at the end of this article.
  15. Abd Majid M, Zainol Ariffin KA
    PLoS One, 2021;16(11):e0260157.
    PMID: 34797896 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0260157
    Cyberattacks have changed dramatically and have become highly advanced. This latest phenomenon has a massive negative impact on organizations, such as financial losses and shutting-down of operations. Therefore, developing and implementing the Cyber Security Operations Centre (SOC) is imperative and timely. Based on previous research, there are no international guidelines and standards used by organizations that can contribute to the successful implementation and development of SOC. In this regard, this study focuses on highlighting the significant factors that will impact and contribute to the success of SOC. Simultaneously, it will further design a model for the successful development and implementation of SOC for the organization. The study was conducted quantitatively and involved 63 respondents from 25 ministries and agencies in Malaysia. The results of this study will enable the retrieval of ten success factors for SOC, and it specifically focuses on humans, processes, and technology. The descriptive analysis shows that the top management support factor is the most influential factor in the success of the development and implementation of SOC. The study also contributes to the empirical finding that technology and process factors are more significant in the success of SOCs. Based on the regression test, the technology factor has major impact on determining the success of SOC, followed by the process and human factors. Relevant organizations or agencies can use the proposed model to develop and implement SOCs, formulate policies and guidelines, strengthen human models, and enhance cyber security.
  16. Nasir MSM, Ab-Kadir MZA, Radzi MAM, Izadi M, Ahmad NI, Zaini NH
    PLoS One, 2019;14(7):e0219326.
    PMID: 31295278 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0219326
    The Sustainable Energy Development Authority of Malaysia (SEDA) regularly receives complaints about damaged components and distribution boards of PV systems due to lightning strikes. Permanent and momentary interruptions of distribution circuits may also occur from the disturbance. In this paper, a solar PV Rooftop system (3.91 kWp) provided by SEDA was modelled in the PSCAD/EMTDC. The Heidler function was used as a lightning current waveform model to analyse the transient current and voltage at two different points susceptible to the influence of lightning events such as different lightning current wave shape, standard lightning current and non-standard lightning current. This study examines the effect on the system components when lightning directly strikes at two different points of the installation. The two points lie between the inverter and the solar PV array and between inverter and grid. Exceptionally high current and voltage due to the direct lightning strike on a certain point of a PV Rooftop system was also studied. The result of this case study is observed with and without the inclusion of surge protective devices (SPDs). The parameters used were 31 kA of peak current, 10 metres cable length and lightning impulse current wave shape of 8/20μs. The high current and voltage at P1 striking point were 31 kA and 2397 kV, respectively. As for the AC part, the current and voltage values were found to be 5.97 kA and 5392 kV, respectively.Therefore, SPDs with suitable rating provided by SEDA were deployed. Results showed that high transient current voltage is expected to clamp sharply at the values of 1.915 kV and 0 A at the P1 striking point. As for the AC part, the current and voltage values were found to be 0 kA and 0.751 V, respectively. Varying lightning impulse current wave shapes at striking point P2 showed that the highest voltage was obtained at waveshape 10/350 μs at 11277 kV followed by wave shapes of 2/70 μs, 8/20 μs and 0.7/6 μs. The high value of transient voltage was clamped at a lower level of 2.029 kV. Different lightning amplitudes were also applied, ranging from 2-200 kA selected based on the CIGRE distribution. It showed that the current and voltage at P1 and P2 were directly proportional. Therefore, the SPD will be designed at an acceptable rating and proper position of SPD installation at solar PV Rooftop will be proposed. The results obtained in this study can then be utilised to appropriately assign a SPD to protect the PV systems that are connected to the grid. Installing SPDs without considering the needs of lightning protection zones would expose the expensive equipment to potential damage even though the proper energy coordination of SPDs is in place. As such, the simulation results provide a basis for controlling the impacts of direct lightning strikes on electrical equipment and power grids and thus justify SPD coordination to ensure the reliability of the system.
  17. Chiroma AA, Khaza'ai H, Abd Hamid R, Chang SK, Zakaria ZA, Zainal Z
    PLoS One, 2020;15(11):e0241112.
    PMID: 33232330 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0241112
    Natural α-tocopherol (α-TCP), but not tocotrienol, is preferentially retained in the human body. α-Tocopherol transfer protein (α-TTP) is responsible for binding α-TCP for cellular uptake and has high affinity and specificity for α-TCP but not α-tocotrienol. The purpose of this study was to examine the modification of α-TTP together with other related vitamin E-binding genes (i.e., TTPA, SEC14L2, and PI-TPNA) in regulating vitamin E uptake in neuronal cells at rest and under oxidative stress. Oxidative stress was induced with H2O2 for an hour which was followed by supplementation with different ratios of α-TCP and tocotrienol-rich fraction (TRF) for four hours. The cellular levels of vitamin E were quantified to determine bioavailability at cellular levels. The expression levels of TTPA, SEC14L2, and PI-TPNA genes in 0% α-TCP were found to be positively correlated with the levels of vitamin E in resting neuronal cells. In addition, the regulation of all the above-mentioned genes affect the distribution of vitamin E in the neuronal cells. It was observed that, increased levels of α-TCP secretion occur under oxidative stress. Thus, our results showed that in conclusion vitamin E-binding proteins may be modified in the absence of α-TCP to produce tocotrienols (TCT), as a source of vitamin E. The current study suggests that the expression levels of vitamin E transport proteins may influence the cellular concentrations of vitamin E levels in the neuronal cells.
  18. Mustapha M, Lawal BK, Sha'aban A, Jatau AI, Wada AS, Bala AA, et al.
    PLoS One, 2021;16(11):e0260672.
    PMID: 34843594 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0260672
    Students of the health sciences are the future frontliners to fight pandemics. The students' participation in COVID-19 response varies across countries and are mostly for educational purposes. Understanding the determinants of COVID-19 vaccine acceptability is necessary for a successful vaccination program. This study aimed to investigate the factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine acceptance among health sciences students in Northwest Nigeria. The study was an online self-administered cross-sectional study involving a survey among students of health sciences in some selected universities in Northwest Nigeria. The survey collected pertinent data from the students, including socio-demographic characteristics, risk perception for COVID-19, and willingness to accept the COVID-19 vaccine. Multiple logistic regression was used to determine the predictors of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance. A total of 440 responses with a median (interquartile range) age of 23 (4.0) years were included in the study. The prevalence of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance was 40.0%. Factors that independently predict acceptance of the vaccine were age of 25 years and above (adjusted odds ratio, aOR, 2.72; 95% confidence interval, CI, 1.44-5.16; p = 0.002), instructions from heads of institutions (aOR, 11.71; 95% CI, 5.91-23.20; p<0.001), trust in the government (aOR, 20.52; 95% CI, 8.18-51.51; p<0.001) and willingness to pay for the vaccine (aOR, 7.92; 95% CI, 2.63-23.85; p<0.001). The prevalence of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance among students of health sciences was low. Older age, mandate by heads of the institution, trust in the government and readiness to pay for the vaccine were associated with acceptance of the vaccine. Therefore, stakeholders should prioritize strategies that would maximize the vaccination uptake.
  19. Vincent-Chong VK, Anwar A, Karen-Ng LP, Cheong SC, Yang YH, Pradeep PJ, et al.
    PLoS One, 2013;8(2):e54705.
    PMID: 23405089 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0054705
    Despite the advances in diagnosis and treatment of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), mortality and morbidity rates have not improved over the past decade. A major drawback in diagnosis and treatment of OSCC is the lack of knowledge relating to how genetic instability in oral cancer genomes affects oral carcinogenesis. Hence, the key aim of this study was to identify copy number alterations (CNAs) that may be cancer associated in OSCC using high-resolution array comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH). To our knowledge this is the first study to use ultra-high density aCGH microarrays to profile a large number of OSCC genomes (n = 46). The most frequently amplified CNAs were located on chromosome 11q11(52%), 2p22.3(52%), 1q21.3-q22(54%), 6p21.32(59%), 20p13(61%), 7q34(52% and 72%),8p11.23-p11.22(80%), 8q11.1-q24.4(54%), 9q13-q34.3(54%), 11q23.3-q25(57%); 14q21.3-q31.1(54%); 14q31.3-q32.33(57%), 20p13-p12.3(54%) and 20q11.21-q13.33(52%). The most frequently deleted chromosome region was located on 3q26.1 (54%). In order to verify the CNAs from aCGH using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR), the three top most amplified regions and their associated genes, namely ADAM5P (8p11.23-p11.22), MGAM (7q34) and SIRPB1 (20p13.1), were selected in this study. The ADAM5P locus was found to be amplified in 39 samples and deleted in one; MGAM (24 amplifications and 3 deletions); and SIRPB1 (12 amplifications, others undetermined). On the basis of putative cancer-related annotations, two genes, namely ADAM metallopeptidase domain 9 (ADAM9) and maltase-glucoamylase alpha-glucosidase (MGAM), that mapped to CNA regions were selected for further evaluation of their mRNA expression using reverse transcriptase qPCR. The over-expression of MGAM was confirmed with a 6.6 fold increase in expression at the mRNA level whereas the fold change in ADAM9 demonstrated a 1.6 fold increase. This study has identified significant regions in the OSCC genome that were amplified and resulted in consequent over-expression of the MGAM and ADAM9 genes that may be utilized as biological markers for OSCC.
  20. Vincent-Chong VK, Salahshourifar I, Woo KM, Anwar A, Razali R, Gudimella R, et al.
    PLoS One, 2017;12(4):e0174865.
    PMID: 28384287 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0174865
    BACKGROUND: Cancers of the oral cavity are primarily oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCCs). Many of the OSCCs present at late stages with an exceptionally poor prognosis. A probable limitation in management of patients with OSCC lies in the insufficient knowledge pertaining to the linkage between copy number alterations in OSCC and oral tumourigenesis thereby resulting in an inability to deliver targeted therapy.

    OBJECTIVES: The current study aimed to identify copy number alterations (CNAs) in OSCC using array comparative genomic hybridization (array CGH) and to correlate the CNAs with clinico-pathologic parameters and clinical outcomes.

    MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using array CGH, genome-wide profiling was performed on 75 OSCCs. Selected genes that were harboured in the frequently amplified and deleted regions were validated using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Thereafter, pathway and network functional analysis were carried out using Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA) software.

    RESULTS: Multiple chromosomal regions including 3q, 5p, 7p, 8q, 9p, 10p, 11q were frequently amplified, while 3p and 8p chromosomal regions were frequently deleted. These findings were in confirmation with our previous study using ultra-dense array CGH. In addition, amplification of 8q, 11q, 7p and 9p and deletion of 8p chromosomal regions showed a significant correlation with clinico-pathologic parameters such as the size of the tumour, metastatic lymph nodes and pathological staging. Co-amplification of 7p, 8q, 9p and 11q regions that harbored amplified genes namely CCND1, EGFR, TPM2 and LRP12 respectively, when combined, continues to be an independent prognostic factor in OSCC.

    CONCLUSION: Amplification of 3q, 5p, 7p, 8q, 9p, 10p, 11q and deletion of 3p and 8p chromosomal regions were recurrent among OSCC patients. Co-alteration of 7p, 8q, 9p and 11q was found to be associated with clinico-pathologic parameters and poor survival. These regions contain genes that play critical roles in tumourigenesis pathways.

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