Displaying publications 7541 - 7560 of 8505 in total

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  1. Vythilingam I, Noorazian YM, Huat TC, Jiram AI, Yusri YM, Azahari AH, et al.
    Parasit Vectors, 2008;1(1):26.
    PMID: 18710577 DOI: 10.1186/1756-3305-1-26
  2. Shaari K, Ling KC, Rashid ZM, Jean TP, Abas F, Raof SM, et al.
    Mar Drugs, 2009;7(1):1-8.
    PMID: 19370166 DOI: 10.3390/md7010001
    In a preliminary screen, Aaptos aaptos showed significant cytotoxic activity towards a panel of cell lines and was thus subjected to bioassay-guided isolation of the bioactive constituents. In addition to the known aaptamine, two new derivatives of the alkaloid were isolated from the bioactive chloroform fraction of the crude methanolic extract. Detailed analysis by NMR and mass spectroscopy enabled their identification to be 3-(phenethylamino)demethyl(oxy)aaptamine and 3-(isopentylamino)demethyl(oxy) aaptamine. The cytotoxic activities of the three alkaloids were further evaluated against CEM-SS cells.
  3. Naing CM, Hakim M, Yee DA, Mun KR, Yung TC, Jian KK, et al.
    PMID: 21073071
    This study aimed to assess knowledge of and attitudes toward HIV/AIDS among a community in a semi-urban setting in Malaysia, to determine factors affecting perceptions toward people living with HIV in the community, and to provide baseline information for planning preventive measures against HIV/AIDS. This cross-sectional study was conducted in August 2009. Two hundred sixty-two household members were interviewed with a semi-structured questionnaire. Most respondents (232; 88.5%) had heard of HIV/AIDS. Only a few respondents (6; 2.6%) could correctly answer all the questionnaire items. Misconceptions about disease transmission were seen among surveyed participants, such as the belief HIV/AIDS can be contracted from saliva (104; 44.8%), mosquito bites (95; 40.9%) or casual touch (86; 37.1%). A multivariate linear regression model showed better perceptions towards people living with HIV depend on an improved knowledge of HIV/AIDS transmission. Current data emphasize the need to scale up HIV/AIDS education incorporating the mode of disease transmission.
  4. Latifah SY, Armania N, Tze TH, Azhar Y, Nordiana AH, Norazalina S, et al.
    Nutr J, 2010 Mar 26;9:16.
    PMID: 20346115 DOI: 10.1186/1475-2891-9-16
    Chemoprevention has become an important area in cancer research due to the failure of current therapeutic modalities. Epidemiological and preclinical studies have demonstrated that nutrition plays a vital role in the etiology of cancer. This study was conducted to determine the chemopreventive effects of germinated brown rice (GBR) in rats induced with colon cancer. GBR is brown rice that has been claimed to be richer in nutrients compared to the common white rice. The male Sprague Dawley rats (6 weeks of age) were randomly divided into 5 groups: (G1) positive control (with colon cancer, unfed with GBR), (G2) fed with 2.5 g/kg of GBR (GBR (g)/weight of rat (kg)), (G3) fed with 5 g/kg of GBR, (G4) fed with 10 g/kg of GBR and (G5) negative control (without colon cancer, unfed with GBR). GBR was administered orally once daily via gavage after injection of 15 mg/kg of body weight of azoxymethane (AOM) once a week for two weeks, intraperitonially. After 8 weeks of treatment, animals were sacrificed and colons were removed. Colonic aberrant crypt foci (ACF) were evaluated histopathologically. Total number of ACF and AC, and multicrypt of ACF, and the expression of beta-catenin and COX-2 reduced significantly (p < 0.05) in all the groups treated with GBR (G2, G3 and G4) compared to the control group (G1). Spearman rank correlation test showed significant positive linear relationship between total beta-catenin and COX-2 score (Spearman's rho = 0.616, p = 0.0001). It is demonstrated that GBR inhibits the development of total number of ACF and AC, and multicrypt of ACF, reduces the expression of beta-catenin and COX-2, and thus can be a promising dietary supplement in prevention of colon cancer.
  5. Zhu ZY, Wang CM, Lo LC, Lin G, Feng F, Tan J, et al.
    Anim. Genet., 2010 Apr;41(2):208-12.
    PMID: 19793264 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2052.2009.01973.x
    Microsatellites are the most popular markers for parentage assignment and population genetic studies. To meet the demand for international comparability for genetic studies of Asian seabass, a standard panel of 28 microsatellites has been selected and characterized using the DNA of 24 individuals from Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Australia. The average allele number of these markers was 10.82 +/- 0.71 (range: 6-19), and the expected heterozygosity averaged 0.76 +/- 0.02 (range: 0.63-1.00). All microsatellites showed Mendelian inheritance. In addition, eight standard size controls have been developed by cloning a set of microsatellite alleles into a pGEM-T vector to calibrate allele sizes determined by different laboratories, and are available upon request. Seven multiplex PCRs, each amplifying 3-5 markers, were optimized to accurately and rapidly genotype microsatellites. Parentage assignment using 10 microsatellites in two crosses (10 x 10 and 20 x 20) demonstrated a high power of these markers for revealing parent-sibling connections. This standard set of microsatellites will standardize genetic diversity studies of Asian seabass, and the multiplex PCR sets will facilitate parentage assignment.
  6. Kong NC, Chia YC, Khalid BA, Juwita S, Samiah Yasmin AK, Yap LY, et al.
    Med J Malaysia, 2006 Oct;61(4):457-65.
    PMID: 17243524 MyJurnal
    Microalbuminuria is the earliest indicator of diabetic kidney disease and generalised vascular endothelial dysfunction. The Microalbuminuria Prevalence (MAP) Study was carried out to assess the prevalence of macroalbuminuria, microalbuminuria and normoalbuminuria in Asian hypertensive patients with type 2 diabetes on usual care. This paper presents a subanalysis of data from patients in Malaysia. In 733 analysed patients, the prevalence of macroalbuminuria and microalbuminuria was 15.7% and 39.7%, respectively. The high prevalence of diabetic nephropathy in these high-risk patients is a cause for concern, and the Malaysian Health Care system should be prepared for a pandemic of end-stage renal disease due to diabetic nephropathy.

    Study site: six medical centres in Kuala Lumpur, Kota Bharu,
    Kuching and Kota Kinabalu
  7. Khairul MF, Min TH, Low JH, Nasriyyah CH, A'shikin AN, Norazmi MN, et al.
    Jpn J Infect Dis, 2006 Oct;59(5):329-31.
    PMID: 17060702
    Fluoxetine (FLX), a P-glycoprotein inhibitor with antimalarial activity, is promising candidate for reversing chloroquine/mefloquine (CQ/MQ) resistance. The Dd2 strain of CQ- and MQ-resistant Plasmodium falciparum was synchronized and assayed with various concentrations of CQ/MQ individually and in combination with FLX or verapamil (VPL). Our results indicated the 50% inhibitory concentration values of CQ and MQ were greatly lowered when FLX was used simultaneously. Isobolograms indicated that CQ-FLX combinations are more synergistic (mean fractional inhibitory concentration [FIC] index 0.55) than MQ-FLX (mean FIC index 0.64), and their synergistic effect was better than or at par with CQ-VPL (mean FIC index 0.88) and MQ-VPL (mean FIC index 0.60) combinations. We conclude that the FLX potentiates the CQ and MQ response on multidrug-resistant P. falciparum at clinically achievable concentrations.
  8. Ali MA, Bastian S, Ismail R, Choon TS, Ali S, Aubry A, et al.
    J Enzyme Inhib Med Chem, 2011 Dec;26(6):890-4.
    PMID: 21395486 DOI: 10.3109/14756366.2011.559945
    A series of pyrazoline derivatives were synthesized and in vitro activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv was carried out. Among the synthesized compounds, compounds (4d) and (4f) 4-aminophenyl-3-(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)-6,7-dimethoxy-2,3,3a,4-tetrahydroindeno[1,2-c]pyrazol-2-ylmethanone and 4-aminophenyl-6,7-dimethoxy-3-phenyl-2,3,3a,4-tetrahydroindeno[1,2-c]pyrazol-2-ylmethanone were found to be the most active agent against M. tuberculosis H37Rv with a minimum inhibitory concentration of 10 μg/mL.
  9. Ali MA, Ismail R, Choon TS, Yoon YK, Wei AC, Pandian S, et al.
    Acta Pol Pharm, 2011 May-Jun;68(3):343-8.
    PMID: 21648188
    A series of novel 3-(substituted phenyl)-6,7-dimethoxy-3a,4-dihydro-3H-indeno[1,2-c]isoxazole analogues were synthesized by the reaction of 5,6-dimethoxy-2-[(E)-1-phenylmethylidene]-1-indanone with hydroxylamine hydrochloride. The title compounds were tested for their in vitro anti-HIV activity. Among the compounds, (4g) showed a promising anti-HIV activity in the in vitro testing against IIIB and ROD strains. The IC50 of both IIIB and ROD were found to be 9.05 microM and > 125 microM, respectively.
  10. Suresh Kumar R, Ashraf Ali M, Osman H, Ismail R, Choon TS, Yoon YK, et al.
    Bioorg Med Chem Lett, 2011 Jul 1;21(13):3997-4000.
    PMID: 21621414 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2011.05.003
    Hexacyclic derivatives share vital pharmacological properties, considered useful in Alzheimer's disease. The aim of this study was synthesis and its evaluation for acetyl cholinesterase inhibitory activity of novel hexacyclic analogues. Compound 4f, showed potent inhibitory activity against acetyl cholinesterase enzyme with IC(50) 0.72 μmol/L.
  11. Hughes AJ, Ariffin N, Huat TL, Abdul Molok H, Hashim S, Sarijo J, et al.
    Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol, 2005 Jan;26(1):100-4.
    PMID: 15693416
    Most reports of nosocomial infection (NI) prevalence have come from developed countries with established infection control programs. In developing countries, infection control is often not as well established due to lack of staff and resources. We examined the rate of NI in our institution.
  12. Ali MA, Ismail R, Choon TS, Yoon YK, Wei AC, Pandian S, et al.
    Bioorg Med Chem Lett, 2010 Dec 1;20(23):7064-6.
    PMID: 20951037 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2010.09.108
    Series of pyrolidine analogues were synthesized and examined as acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitors. Among the compounds, compounds 4k and 6k were the most potent inhibitors of the series. Compound 4k, showed potent inhibitory activity against acetyl cholinesterase enzyme with IC(50) 0.10 μmol/L. Pyrolidine analogues might be potential acetyl cholinesterase agents for AD.
  13. Yunrong T, Jin WW, Mahendran HA, Koon YB, Jahit S, Kamaruddin MA, et al.
    Dis Esophagus, 2024 Apr 02;37(4).
    PMID: 38163959 DOI: 10.1093/dote/doad072
    BACKGROUND: Esophagectomy is the standard of care for curative esophageal cancer. However, it is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Esophageal cancer is known to negatively affect the nutritional status of patients and many manifest cancer sarcopenia. At present, measures of sarcopenia involve complex and often subjective measurements. We assess whether the Psoas Muscle Index (PMI); an inexpensive, simple, validated method used to diagnose sarcopenia, can be used to predict adverse outcomes in patients after curative esophagectomy.

    METHODS: Multi-centre, retrospective cohort between 2010-2020, involving all consecutive patients undergoing curative esophagectomy for esophageal cancer in University Malaya Medical Centre, Sungai Buloh Hospital, and Sultanah Aminah Hospital. The cut-off value differentiating low and normal PMI is defined as 443mm2/m2 in males and 326326 mm2/m2 in females. Complications were recorded using the Clavien-Dindo Scale.

    RESULTS: There was no statistical correlation between PMI and major post-esophagectomy complications (p-value: 0.495). However, complication profile was different, and patients with low PMIs had higher 30-day mortality (21.7%) when compared with patients with normal PMI (8.1%) (p-value: 0.048).

    CONCLUSIONS: Although PMI did not significantly predict post-esophagectomy complications, low PMI correlates with higher 30-day mortality, reflecting a lower tolerance for complications among these patients. PMI is a useful, inexpensive tool to identify sarcopenia and aids the patient selection process. This alerts healthcare professionals to institute intensive physiotherapy and nutritional optimization prior to esophagectomy.

  14. Mohamed NF, Jiun Ting T, Ab Manan N, Mohd Senari IF, Muhammad Firdaus Chan MF, Rahmatullah B, et al.
    PMID: 38163335 DOI: 10.1177/13591045231206967
    This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of social anxiety disorder (SAD) among Malaysian secondary school students during the COVID-19 pandemic and to explore its correlations with demographic variables, impulsivity behavior, and internet gaming disorder (IGD). A total of 1574 participants from 12 government secondary schools across five Malaysian states, comprising 569 males and 1005 females, completed an online questionnaire containing validated Malay versions of the Social Interaction Anxiety Scale, Barratt Impulsiveness Scale, and Internet Gaming Disorder Scale - Short Form. The findings revealed a notable SAD prevalence rate of 40.53% among Malaysian adolescents. Logistic regression analysis unveiled significant associations between SAD and factors such as attention impulsiveness (OR = 2.58, p < .001), motor impulsiveness (OR = 1.47, p = .03), female gender (OR = 2, p < .001), Malay ethnicity, and IGD (OR = 1.08, p < .001). In conclusion, this study provides valuable insights into the extent of social anxiety experienced by Malaysian secondary school students during the pandemic, shedding light on the demographic and psychosocial factors linked to its emergence. Furthermore, the research underscores a robust link between IGD and SAD, emphasizing the need for comprehensive interventions addressing both issues concurrently. By recognizing the multifaceted nature of these associations, future interventions can be tailored to provide holistic support for adolescents' mental well-being.
  15. Xu S, Lan H, Teng Q, Li X, Jin Z, Qu Y, et al.
    Int J Biol Macromol, 2023 Aug 12;251:126286.
    PMID: 37579904 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.126286
    H7 avian influenza virus has caused multiple human infections and poses a severe public health threat. In response to the highly variable nature of AIVs, a novel, easily regenerated DNA vaccine has great potential in treating or preventing avian influenza pandemics. Nevertheless, DNA vaccines have many disadvantages, such as weak immunogenicity and poor in vivo delivery. To further characterize and solve these issues and develop a novel H7 AIV DNA vaccine with enhanced stability and immunogenicity, we constructed nine AIV DNA plasmids, and the immunogenicity screened showed that mice immunized with pβH7N2SH9 elicited stronger hemagglutination-inhibiting (HI) antibodies than other eight plasmid DNAs. Then, to address the susceptibility to degradation and low transfection rate of DNA vaccine in vivo, we developed pβH7N2SH9/DGL NPs by encapsulating the pβH7N2SH9 within the dendrigraft poly-l-lysines nanoparticles. As expected, these NPs exhibited excellent physical and chemical properties, were capable of promote lymphocyte proliferation, and induce stronger humoral and cellular responses than the naked pβH7N2SH9, including higher levels of HI antibodies than naked pβH7N2SH9, as well as the production of cytokines, namely, IL-2, IFN-α. Taken together, our results suggest that the construction of an immune-enhanced H7-AIV DNA nanovaccine may be a promising strategy against most influenza viruses.
  16. Ismail AJB, Ahmad ND, Ching CS, Lean CS, Keong TTB, Zaini MI, et al.
    Korean J Transplant, 2023 Jun 30;37(2):85-94.
    PMID: 37435142 DOI: 10.4285/kjt.23.0009
    BACKGROUND: Improving organ donation rates requires better detection of possible organ donors, which in turn necessitates identifying barriers preventing the identification of possible organ donors. The objectives of this study were to determine the actual rate of possible deceased organ donors among nonreferred cases and to identify barriers to their identification as possible donors.

    METHODS: This retrospective observational study used 6 months of data collected from two intensive care units (ICUs). Possible organ donors were defined as patients with a Glasgow Coma Scale score <5 and evidence of severe neurological damage. Barriers that led to the nonidentification of these patients as possible organ donors were also identified.

    RESULTS: Fifty-six of 819 patients admitted to the ICUs during the study period were detected as possible organ donors, representing a 6.83% possible organ donor detection rate. Nonclinical barriers to the identification of possible organ donors were found to be more significant than clinical barriers (55% vs. 45%, respectively). The most significant nonclinical barrier was an unknown reason, despite patients being medically suitable for deceased organ donation and fulfilling the criteria for possible organ donor classification. Unresolved sepsis was the main clinical barrier.

    CONCLUSIONS: The significant rate of unreferred possible deceased organ donors found in this study reveals the need to increase awareness and knowledge among clinicians of the proper detection of possible donors at an early stage to avoid the loss of possible deceased organ donors, and thereby increase the deceased organ donation rate in Malaysian hospitals.

  17. Dasila H, Sah VK, Jaggi V, Kumar A, Tewari L, Taj G, et al.
    Front Microbiol, 2023;14:1135693.
    PMID: 37025630 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1135693
    It is well-known that phosphate-solubilizing bacteria (PSB) promote crop growth and yield. The information regarding characterization of PSB isolated from agroforestry systems and their impact on wheat crops under field conditions is rarely known. In the present study, we aim to develop psychrotroph-based P biofertilizers, and for that, four PSB strains (Pseudomonas sp. L3, Pseudomonas sp. P2, Streptomyces sp. T3, and Streptococcus sp. T4) previously isolated from three different agroforestry zones and already screened for wheat growth under pot trial conditions were evaluated on wheat crop under field conditions. Two field experiments were employed; set 1 includes PSB + recommended dose of fertilizers (RDF) and set 2 includes PSB - RDF. In both field experiments, the response of the PSB-treated wheat crop was significantly higher compared to the uninoculated control. In field set 1, an increase of 22% in grain yield (GY), 16% in biological yield (BY), and 10% in grain per spike (GPS) was observed in consortia (CNS, L3 + P2) treatment, followed by L3 and P2 treatments. Inoculation of PSB mitigates soil P deficiency as it positively influences soil alkaline phosphatase (AP) and soil acid phosphatase (AcP) activity which positively correlated with grain NPK %. The highest grain NPK % was reported in CNS-treated wheat with RDF (N-0.26%, P-0.18%, and K-1.66%) and without RDF (N-0.27, P-0.26, and K-1.46%), respectively. All parameters, including soil enzyme activities, plant agronomic data, and yield data were analyzed by principal component analysis (PCA), resulting in the selection of two PSB strains. The conditions for optimal P solubilization, in L3 (temperature-18.46, pH-5.2, and glucose concentration-0.8%) and P2 (temperature-17°C, pH-5.0, and glucose concentration-0.89%), were obtained through response surface methodology (RSM) modeling. The P solubilizing potential of selected strains at <20°C makes them a suitable candidate for the development of psychrotroph-based P biofertilizers. Low-temperature P solubilization of the PSB strains from agroforestry systems makes them potential biofertilizers for winter crops.
  18. Mohd Mokhtar MA, Pin TM, Zakaria MI, Hairi NN, Kamaruzzaman SB, Vyrn CA, et al.
    Geriatr Gerontol Int, 2015 Aug;15(8):944-50.
    PMID: 25311907 DOI: 10.1111/ggi.12369
    AIM: To determine the pattern of utilization of emergency department (ED) services by older patients in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, compared with younger patients in the same setting.
    METHODS: The sociodemographics, clinical characteristics and resource utilization of consecutive patients attending the adult ED at the University Malaya Medical Center were recorded during a typical week.
    RESULTS: A total of 1649 patients were included in the study; 422/1649 (25.6%) were aged ≥60 years and 1077 (74.4%) were aged <60 years. Older adult patients were more likely to be diagnosed with ischemic heart disease (12.6% vs 2.5%, P 
  19. Veeramuthu V, Narayanan V, Kuo TL, Delano-Wood L, Chinna K, Bondi MW, et al.
    J Neurotrauma, 2015 Oct 1;32(19):1497-509.
    PMID: 25952562 DOI: 10.1089/neu.2014.3750
    We explored the prognostic value of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) parameters of selected white matter (WM) tracts in predicting neuropsychological outcome, both at baseline and 6 months later, among well-characterized patients diagnosed with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). Sixty-one patients with mTBI (mean age=27.08; standard deviation [SD], 8.55) underwent scanning at an average of 10 h (SD, 4.26) post-trauma along with assessment of their neuropsychological performance at an average of 4.35 h (SD, 7.08) upon full Glasgow Coma Scale recovery. Results were then compared to 19 healthy control participants (mean age=29.05; SD, 5.84), both in the acute stage and 6 months post-trauma. DTI and neuropsychological measures between acute and chronic phases were compared, and significant differences emerged. Specifically, chronic-phase fractional anisotropy and radial diffusivity values showed significant group differences in the corona radiata, anterior limb of internal capsule, cingulum, superior longitudinal fasciculus, optic radiation, and genu of corpus callosum. Findings also demonstrated associations between DTI indices and neuropsychological outcome across two time points. Our results provide new evidence for the use of DTI as an imaging biomarker and indicator of WM damage occurring in the context of mTBI, and they underscore the dynamic nature of brain injury and possible biological basis of chronic neurocognitive alterations.
  20. Beng TS, Ahmad F, Loong LC, Chin LE, Zainal NZ, Guan NC, et al.
    Am J Hosp Palliat Care, 2016 Jul;33(6):555-60.
    PMID: 25632044 DOI: 10.1177/1049909115569048
    A pilot study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of 5-minute mindful breathing in distress reduction. Twenty palliative care patients and family caregivers with a distress score ≥4 measured by the Distress Thermometer were recruited and randomly assigned to mindful breathing or "listening" (being listened to). Median distress reductions after 5 minutes were 2.5 for the mindful breathing group and 1.0 for the listening group. A significantly larger reduction in the distress score was observed in the mindful breathing group (Mann-Whitney U test: U = 8.0, n1 = n2 = 10, mean rank1 = 6.30, mean rank2 = 14.70, z = -3.208, P = .001). The 5-minute mindful breathing could be useful in distress reduction in palliative care.
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