Displaying publications 61 - 80 of 360 in total

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  1. Choon JWY, Wu DBC, Chong HY, Lo WTL, Chong CSY, Chung WS, et al.
    J Med Econ, 2019 Mar;22(3):273-279.
    PMID: 30561238 DOI: 10.1080/13696998.2018.1560749
    BACKGROUND: Very few data are available to demonstrate the economic benefit of early paliperidone palmitate once-monthly long-acting injectable (PP1M) treatment in patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder.

    METHODS AND MATERIALS: This study has retrospectively compared the healthcare utilization and associated costs of pre- and post-PPIM treatment in 413 patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder recruited from three major public hospitals providing psychiatric services in Hong Kong. Patients were categorized into early treatment (≤3 years since diagnosis) and chronic (>3 years) groups, and also whether they were receiving polypharmacy (POP).

    RESULTS: It was found that patients who were started on early therapy with no POP had the most favourable outcomes. Overall results of the entire cohort, including both early and late treatments, indicate that there was a slight increase in annual in-patient days (IP) per patient and outpatient visit (OP) by 3.18 and 1.87, respectively, and a decrease in emergency room visit (ER) of 0.9 (p 

  2. Lalitha P, Siti Suraiya MN, Lim KL, Lee SY, Nur Haslindawaty AR, Chan YY, et al.
    J Microbiol Methods, 2008 Sep;75(1):142-4.
    PMID: 18579241 DOI: 10.1016/j.mimet.2008.05.001
    A PCR assay has been developed based on a lolB (hemM) gene, which was found to be highly conserved among the Vibrio cholerae species but non-conserved among the other enteric bacteria. The lolB PCR detected all O1, O139 and non-O1/non-O139 serogroup and biotypes of V. cholerae. The analytical specificity of this assay was 100% while the analytical sensitivity was 10 pg/microL and 10(3) CFU/mL at DNA and bacterial level respectively. The diagnostic sensitivity and specificity was 98.5% and 100% respectively.
  3. Wong CK, Hor JY, Loo YP, Heng HS, Lee S, Perianen PP, et al.
    J Neuroimmunol, 2021 07 15;356:577584.
    PMID: 33933821 DOI: 10.1016/j.jneuroim.2021.577584
    NMDAR encephalitis may be more common among non-Caucasians. A population-based study was conducted to estimate its incidence in Sabah, Malaysia, where the population consists predominantly of Austronesians (84%), and with a Chinese minority. Registries of NMDAR encephalitis at neurology referral centers were reviewed for case ascertainment. The annual incidence was 2.29/million (Austronesians: 2.56/million, Chinese: 1.31/million). Among pediatric population, the incidence was: Austronesians: 3.63/million, Chinese: 2.59/million. Our study demonstrated a higher incidence of NMDAR encephalitis among Austronesians than the predominantly Caucasian populations in Europe (0.5-0.9/million; pediatric: 0.7-1.5/million). Racial and genetic factors may contribute to risks of developing NMDAR encephalitis.
  4. Lee SK, Sirajudeen KN, Sundaram A, Zakaria R, Singh HJ
    J Physiol Biochem, 2011 Jun;67(2):249-57.
    PMID: 21210316 DOI: 10.1007/s13105-010-0070-2
    Although melatonin lowers blood pressure in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR), its effect following antenatal and postpartum supplementation on the subsequent development of hypertension in SHR pups remains unknown. To investigate this, SHR dams were given melatonin in drinking water (10 mg/kg body weight/day) from day 1 of pregnancy until day 21 postpartum. After weaning, a group of male pups continued to receive melatonin till the age of 16 weeks (Mel-SHR), while no further melatonin was given to another group of male pups (Maternal-Mel-SHR). Controls received plain drinking water. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) was measured at 4, 6, 8, 12 and 16 weeks of age, after which the kidneys were collected for analysis of antioxidant enzyme profiles. SBP was significantly lower till the age of 8 weeks in Maternal-Mel-SHR and Mel-SHR than that in the controls, after which no significant difference was evident in SBP between the controls and Maternal-Mel-SHR. SBP in Mel-SHR was lower than that in controls and Maternal-Mel-SHR at 12 and 16 weeks of age. Renal glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and glutathione s-transferase (GST) activities, levels of total glutathione and relative GPx-1 protein were significantly higher in Mel-SHR. GPx protein was however significantly higher in Mel-SHR. No significant differences were evident between the three groups in the activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione reductase. In conclusion, it appears that while antenatal and postpartum melatonin supplementation decreases the rate of rise in blood pressure in SHR offspring, it however does not alter the tendency of offspring of SHR to develop hypertension.
  5. Lee SK, Arunkumar S, Sirajudeen KN, Singh HJ
    J Physiol Biochem, 2010 Dec;66(4):321-7.
    PMID: 20680541 DOI: 10.1007/s13105-010-0038-2
    Glutathione (GSH) forms a part of the antioxidant system that plays a vital role in preventing oxidative stress, and an imbalance in the oxidant/antioxidant system has been linked to the pathogenesis of hypertension. The aim of this study was to investigate the status of the GSH system in the kidney of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). Components of the GSH system, including glutathione peroxidase (GPx), glutathione reductase (GR), glutathione-S-transferase (GST), and total GSH content, were measured in the kidneys of 4, 6, 8, 12, and 16 weeks old SHR and Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats. Systolic blood pressure of SHR was significantly higher from the age of 6 weeks onwards compared with age-matched WKY rats. GPx activity in the SHR was significantly lower from the age of 8 weeks onwards when compared to that in age-matched WKY rats. No significant differences were evident in the GPx-1 protein abundance, and its relative mRNA levels, GR, GST activity, and total GSH content between SHR and age-matched WKY rats. The lower GPx activity suggests of an impairment of the GSH system in the SHR, which might be due to an abnormality in its protein rather than non-availability of a cofactor. Its role in the development of hypertension in SHR however remains unclear.
  6. Atarhim MA, Lee S, Copnell B
    J Relig Health, 2019 Feb;58(1):180-194.
    PMID: 29679189 DOI: 10.1007/s10943-018-0624-0
    The increasing evidence that spirituality is a critical component for promoting health and well-being has made spirituality more significant to nursing practice. However, although nurses' perceptions of spirituality have been studied in western countries, there has been little research on this topic in Southeast Asian countries where religions other than Christianity predominate. This study explores Malaysian nurses' perceptions of spirituality and spiritual care and examines associations between socio-demographics and their perceptions. The Malaysian Nurse Forum Facebook closed group was used for data collection with 208 completed the online survey. The participants considered that spirituality is a fundamental aspect of nursing. Nonetheless, half of the respondents were uncertain regarding the use of the spiritual dimension for individuals with no religious affiliation. Significant differences were found between educational levels in mean scores for spirituality and spiritual care. There was also a positive relationship between perception of spirituality and spiritual care among the respondents. Despite the positive perceptions of nurses of spirituality in nursing care, the vast majority of nurses felt that they required more education and training relating to spiritual aspects of care, delivered within the appropriate cultural context.
  7. Lee SH, Yii NW, Hanifah YA
    J R Coll Surg Edinb, 1991 Oct;36(5):323-7.
    PMID: 1757914
    Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus has emerged as an important cause of nosocomial infections in recent years. During 1988 in the Department of Surgery of the University Hospital in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 148 patients were shown to be infected or colonized with these organisms. The patients at risk were those who stay in hospital for greater than 14 days, those over 50 years of age, patients who underwent neurosurgery, cardiothoracic surgery, or were admitted with major burns. Of the 148 patients, 78 (52.7%) were clinically infected, the remaining 70 being colonized. A total of 28 patients died (18.9%) but only five (3.4%) as a direct result of this infection. The estimated annual cost of controlling the organism was found to be approximately MR$250,000. (50,000 pounds). This nosocomial infection therefore represents a serious problem, especially in developing countries where health funding and health facilities are limited.
  8. Asghar MT, Yusof YA, Mokhtar MN, Yaacob ME, Ghazali HM, Varith J, et al.
    J Sci Food Agric, 2020 Aug;100(10):4012-4019.
    PMID: 32337729 DOI: 10.1002/jsfa.10446
    BACKGROUND: Coconut sugar has a caramel color with a taste like brown sugar. It is commonly used as natural sweetener. However, coconut sugar has been produced from coconut sap using a traditional method that involves heating the sap at high temperature (>100 °C) in an open pan for a long period (3-5 h). This conventional method results in an over-cooked sugar, which leads to quality deterioration in terms of both its physical and chemical properties. The current study aimed to investigate the processing of coconut sap into sugar syrup using alternative processing techniques such as rotary vacuum evaporation (RE) and microwave evaporation (ME), comparing them with open-heat evaporation (OHE) technique.

    RESULTS: Coconut sugar syrup produced by rotary evaporation at 60 °C and 250 mbar vacuum (RE-60) required the shortest production time (12.2 min) and the lowest processing temperature (54.8 °C) when compared with ME (13 min and 103.2 °C) and OHE (46.8 min and 101.6 °C). It also had a light brownish color with a higher L* value (35.17) than the ME (29.84) and OHE (23.84) methods. It was found to contain higher amounts of monosaccharides (fructose and glucose) and lower amounts of disaccharides (sucrose). Furthermore, the amount of energy required for RE-60 (0.35 kWh) was much less than for OHE (0.83 kWh).

    CONCLUSION: This study provided an alternative processing method for the sugar processing industry to produce coconut sugar using the rotary evaporation method at 60 °C under 250 mbar vacuum with better physicochemical qualities, shorter processing time, and minimum input energy. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry.

  9. Verdoia M, Suryapranata H, Damen S, Camaro C, Benit E, Barbieri L, et al.
    J Thromb Thrombolysis, 2021 Oct;52(3):797-807.
    PMID: 33847862 DOI: 10.1007/s11239-021-02439-x
    BACKGROUND: Gender differences in the thrombotic and bleeding risk have been suggested to condition the benefits of antithrombotic therapies in Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS) patients, and mainly among those undergoing percutaneous coronary interventions with drug eluting stents (DES). The impact of gender on the optimal duration of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) in ACS patients is still unexplored and was, therefore, the aim of the present sub-study.

    METHODS: REDUCE was a prospective, multicenter, randomized investigator-initiated study designed to enroll 1500 ACS patients after treatment with the COMBO Dual Stent Therapy, based on a noninferiority design. Patients were randomized in a 1:1 fashion to either 3 or 12 months of DAPT. Primary study endpoint was a composite of all-cause mortality, myocardial infarction, definite/probable stent thrombosis (ST), stroke, target-vessel revascularization (TVR) and bleedings (BARC II, III, V) at 12 months. Secondary endpoints were cardiovascular mortality and the individual components of the primary endpoint within 24 months.

    RESULTS: From June 2014 to May 2016 300 women and 1196 men were included in the study. Among them, 43.7% of females and 51.9% of males were assigned to the 3 months DAPT treatment. Baseline characteristics were well matched between the two arms, with the exception of a lower rate of TIMI flow 

  10. Lee SC, Ng M, Tan CL, Ting SL
    Malays Fam Physician, 2020;15(1):54-57.
    PMID: 32284807
    Chickenpox may lead to several neurological complications. Optic neuritis is one of the complications which has rarely been described, especially in immunocompetent individuals. We report a case of an 11-year-old immunocompetent girl who presented with sudden onset bilateral vision loss three weeks after varicella eruption. Ophthalmic examination revealed bilateral optic disc edema. Diagnosis of bilateral optic neuritis secondary to varicella was established based upon the preceding medical history, supported with clinical and radiological findings.
  11. Chee S, Lee S
    Malays J Nutr, 2003 Sep;9(2):85-93.
    PMID: 22691730 MyJurnal
    The relationship between dietary habits and bone health status was evaluated in 61 pairs of premenopausal mothers and their biological daughters aged 10-19 years. Subjects were volunteers living in Kuala Lumpur. Bone status of the calcaneus was assessed using Quantitative Ultrasound (QUS) which measured the Broadband Ultrasound Attenuation (BUA; in units of dB/MHz) of the bone. Daily nutrient intake of all subjects was evaluated using a 3-day dietary record. Reproductive history, food intake habits, and physical activity level were assessed using questionnaires. Bone health status of mothers (mean BUA of 98.0 ± 15.8 dB/MHz) was significantly higher (p<0.001) compared to their daughters (mean BUA of 86.4 ± 17.0 dB/MHz). BUA (r=0.30, p<0.05), weight (r=0.30, p<0.05) and BMI (r=0.32, p<0.05) were significantly correlated within mother-daughter pairs. Lifestyle characteristics such as calcium intake and physical activity were not correlated. However, other dietary habits (energy intake, milk intake and frequency of skipping meals) in daughters were significantly correlated with their mothers. This study suggests that mothers play an important role in influencing the dietary habits of their daughters, which in turn may affect their bone health status.
  12. Konuma A, Tsumura Y, Lee CT, Lee SL, Okuda T
    Mol Ecol, 2000 Nov;9(11):1843-52.
    PMID: 11091320
    Pollen flow and population genetic structure among 30 potentially flowering individuals of Neobalanocarpus heimii, a tropical emergent tree, were investigated in a lowland tropical rainforest of Malaysia using microsatellite polymorphism. The 248 offspring in the vicinity of five reproductive trees of the 30 potentially flowering trees were used in paternity analysis for pollen-flow study. Four primer pairs, developed in different species of dipterocarps, were adopted to detect microsatellite polymorphism. Based upon microsatellite polymorphism, pollen flow and seed migration were detected. Pollen-flow events of more than 400 m were observed directly, based on paternity analysis in the study plot. The estimated average mating distance of the five reproductive trees was 524 m. This result suggests that reproduction of this species is mediated by a long-distance pollinator. The haplotypes of some offspring were not compatible with the nearest reproductive tree. Thus, the results suggest that some seeds are dispersed by a seed dispersal vector. Investigation of genetic structure showed significant and negative correlation of genetic relatedness and spatial distances between the 30 potentially flowering trees, but this correlation was weak. We suggest that long-distance gene flow and seed migration are responsible for the poorly developed genetic structure of this species.
  13. Ng KK, Lee SL, Koh CL
    Mol Ecol, 2004 Mar;13(3):657-69.
    PMID: 14871369
    Analyses of the spatial distribution pattern, spatial genetic structure and of genetic diversity were carried out in two tropical tree species with contrasting breeding systems and different ploidy levels using a 50-ha demographic plot in a lowland dipterocarp forest in Peninsular Malaysia. Shorea leprosula is a diploid and predominantly outcrossed species, whereas S. ovalis ssp. sericea is an autotetraploid species with apomictic mode of reproduction. Genetic diversity parameters estimated for S. leprosula using microsatellite were consistently higher than using allozyme. In comparisons with S. leprosula and other tropical tree species, S. ovalis ssp. sericea also displayed relatively high levels of genetic diversity. This might be explained by the lower pressure of genetic drift due to tetrasomic inheritance, and for autotetraploids each locus can accommodate up to four different alleles and this allows maintenance of more alleles at individual loci. The observed high levels of genetic diversity in S. ovalis ssp. sericea can also be due to a random retention of more heterogeneous individuals in the past, and the apomictic mode of reproduction might be an evolutionary strategy, which allows the species to maintain high levels of genetic diversity. The spatial distribution pattern analyses of both species showed significant levels of aggregation at small and medium but random distribution at the big diameter-class. The decrease in magnitude of spatial aggregation from small- to large-diameter classes might be due to compensatory mortality during recruitment and survival under competitive thinning process. Spatial genetic structure analyses for both species revealed significant spatial genetic structure for short distances in all the three diameter-classes. The magnitude of spatial genetic structure in both species was observed to be decreasing from smaller- to larger-diameter classes. The high spatial genetic structuring observed in S. ovalis ssp. sericea at the small-diameter class is due primarily to limited seed dispersal and apomictic mode of reproduction. The similar observation in S. leprosula, however, can be explained by limited seed and pollen dispersal, which supports further the fact that the species is pollinated by weak fliers, mainly of Thrips and Megalurothrips in the lowland dipterocarp forest.
  14. Peyrot WJ, Lee SH, Milaneschi Y, Abdellaoui A, Byrne EM, Esko T, et al.
    Mol Psychiatry, 2015 Jun;20(6):735-43.
    PMID: 25917368 DOI: 10.1038/mp.2015.50
    An association between lower educational attainment (EA) and an increased risk for depression has been confirmed in various western countries. This study examines whether pleiotropic genetic effects contribute to this association. Therefore, data were analyzed from a total of 9662 major depressive disorder (MDD) cases and 14,949 controls (with no lifetime MDD diagnosis) from the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium with additional Dutch and Estonian data. The association of EA and MDD was assessed with logistic regression in 15,138 individuals indicating a significantly negative association in our sample with an odds ratio for MDD 0.78 (0.75-0.82) per standard deviation increase in EA. With data of 884,105 autosomal common single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), three methods were applied to test for pleiotropy between MDD and EA: (i) genetic profile risk scores (GPRS) derived from training data for EA (independent meta-analysis on ~120,000 subjects) and MDD (using a 10-fold leave-one-out procedure in the current sample), (ii) bivariate genomic-relationship-matrix restricted maximum likelihood (GREML) and (iii) SNP effect concordance analysis (SECA). With these methods, we found (i) that the EA-GPRS did not predict MDD status, and MDD-GPRS did not predict EA, (ii) a weak negative genetic correlation with bivariate GREML analyses, but this correlation was not consistently significant, (iii) no evidence for concordance of MDD and EA SNP effects with SECA analysis. To conclude, our study confirms an association of lower EA and MDD risk, but this association was not because of measurable pleiotropic genetic effects, which suggests that environmental factors could be involved, for example, socioeconomic status.
  15. Lee SY, Mustafa S, Ching YW, Shafee N
    Mol Biol (Mosk), 2017 3 3;51(1):104-110.
    PMID: 28251972 DOI: 10.7868/S0026898417010116
    Both zinc and the α-subunit of hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF-1α) play important roles in the remodelling of mammary gland tissues. In the present study, we examined the level and the transcriptional activity of HIF-1α in mammary cells upon zinc treatment. In MCF-7 mammary adenocarcinoma and MCF-10A mammary epithelial cell lines, the toxicity levels of zinc differ. Interestingly, both cell lines overexpress HIF-1α following zinc treatment. As it was evident from an up-regulation of its specific target gene CA9 that encodes carbonic anhydrase IX, the stabilized HIF-1α translocated to the nucleus and was transcriptionally active. Hence, we conclude that zinc causes normoxic accumulation of transcriptionally active HIF-1α by interfering with its post-translational regulation.
  16. New SY, Lee ST, Su XD
    Nanoscale, 2016 Oct 20;8(41):17729-17746.
    PMID: 27722695
    12 years after the introduction of DNA-templated silver nanoclusters (DNA-AgNCs), exciting progress has been made and yet we are still in the midst of trying to fully understand this nanomaterial. The prominent excellence of DNA-AgNCs is undoubtedly its modulatable emission property, of which how variation in DNA templates causes emission tuning remains elusive. Based on the up-to-date DNA-AgNCs, we aim to establish the correlation between the structure/sequence of DNA templates and emission behaviour of AgNCs. Herein, we systematically present a wide-range of DNA-AgNCs based on the structural complexity of the DNA templates, including single-stranded DNA (ssDNA), double-stranded DNA (dsDNA), triple-stranded DNA (tsDNA) and DNA nanostructures. For each DNA category, we discuss the emission property, quantum yield and synthesis condition of the respective AgNCs, before cross-comparing the impact of different DNA scaffolds on the properties of AgNCs. A future outlook for this area is given as a conclusion. By putting the information together, this review may shed new light on understanding DNA-AgNCs while we are expecting continuous breakthroughs in this field.
  17. Serrano O, Lovelock CE, B Atwood T, Macreadie PI, Canto R, Phinn S, et al.
    Nat Commun, 2019 10 02;10(1):4313.
    PMID: 31575872 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-12176-8
    Policies aiming to preserve vegetated coastal ecosystems (VCE; tidal marshes, mangroves and seagrasses) to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions require national assessments of blue carbon resources. Here, we present organic carbon (C) storage in VCE across Australian climate regions and estimate potential annual CO2 emission benefits of VCE conservation and restoration. Australia contributes 5-11% of the C stored in VCE globally (70-185 Tg C in aboveground biomass, and 1,055-1,540 Tg C in the upper 1 m of soils). Potential CO2 emissions from current VCE losses are estimated at 2.1-3.1 Tg CO2-e yr-1, increasing annual CO2 emissions from land use change in Australia by 12-21%. This assessment, the most comprehensive for any nation to-date, demonstrates the potential of conservation and restoration of VCE to underpin national policy development for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
  18. Kim H, Liu Y, Lu K, Chang CS, Sung D, Akl M, et al.
    Nat Nanotechnol, 2023 May;18(5):464-470.
    PMID: 36941360 DOI: 10.1038/s41565-023-01340-3
    Layer transfer techniques have been extensively explored for semiconductor device fabrication as a path to reduce costs and to form heterogeneously integrated devices. These techniques entail isolating epitaxial layers from an expensive donor wafer to form freestanding membranes. However, current layer transfer processes are still low-throughput and too expensive to be commercially suitable. Here we report a high-throughput layer transfer technique that can produce multiple compound semiconductor membranes from a single wafer. We directly grow two-dimensional (2D) materials on III-N and III-V substrates using epitaxy tools, which enables a scheme comprised of multiple alternating layers of 2D materials and epilayers that can be formed by a single growth run. Each epilayer in the multistack structure is then harvested by layer-by-layer mechanical exfoliation, producing multiple freestanding membranes from a single wafer without involving time-consuming processes such as sacrificial layer etching or wafer polishing. Moreover, atomic-precision exfoliation at the 2D interface allows for the recycling of the wafers for subsequent membrane production, with the potential for greatly reducing the manufacturing cost.
  19. Chiou CF, Wang BC, Caldwell R, Furnback W, Lee JS, Kothandaraman N, et al.
    Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat, 2015;11:1989-94.
    PMID: 26346330 DOI: 10.2147/NDT.S86722
    Schizophrenia results in substantial health care utilization costs. Much of these costs can be attributed to health care use resulting from nonadherence to treatment, relapse, and hospitalization.
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