Introduction: The survivorship of mosquito is the most important aspect that affects its ability as a pathogen trans- mitting vector such as Aedes albopictus which is a vector of dengue. In this study, temperature stress effect on the survival of adult Aedes albopictus were investigated. Methods: It was conducted by manipulating different constant temperatures (15°C to 35°C) on juvenile stage of Ae. albopictus in natural and artificial container. Then, the devel- opment growth of adult mosquito was observed under laboratory condition. The effects of exposed temperature on certain biological parameters of adult mosquito were evaluated in terms of survival rates, longevity of female mosquito, fecundity rate, gonotrophic cycle and wing length of the adult mosquito. Results: In higher temperatures, the longevity of adult female was reduced and the highest longevity was found at optimum temperature (25°C) with average of 8.6 ± 0.18 days and 6.7 ± 0.29 days in natural and artificial container respectively. Both sexes showed a clearly tendency towards decreasing survivorship with increasing temperature where the highest survival was found at 15°C. Conversely, survival was lowest at a high temperature (30°C to 35°C). This study also showed that the wing length of both sexes was significantly affected by the rearing temperature where the longest found at 15°C and the shortest at 35°C. Conclusion: Thus, this study provide useful information of mosquito ecology in response to varia- tion of temperatures.
Topological indices are numerical values that can be analysed to predict the chemical properties of the molecular structure and the topological indices are computed for a graph related to groups. Meanwhile, the conjugacy class graph of is defined as a graph with a vertex set represented by the non-central conjugacy classes of . Two distinct vertices are connected if they have a common prime divisor. The main objective of this article is to find various topological indices including the Wiener index, the first Zagreb index and the second Zagreb index for the conjugacy class graph of dihedral groups of order where the dihedral group is the group of symmetries of regular polygon, which includes rotations and reflections. Many topological indices have been determined for simple and connected graphs in general but not graphs related to groups. In this article, the Wiener index and Zagreb index of conjugacy class graph of dihedral groups are generalized.
Presented herein is a case of one different morphological anomaly of pronator quadratus (PQ) muscle. Here, the shape of PQ was not similar to the normal morphology of the muscle. The PQ muscle appeared to be in distinct triangular-shaped instead of quadrangular-shaped. In addition, this triangular-shaped was found in two sites i.e. proximal and distal. Significantly, the PQ muscle consisted of two fleshy red fibres and white aponeurosis. Proximally placed portion had a wide base and a narrower apex. The larger base was attached to the ulna and formed of fleshy red fibres which converged laterally to be continuous with aponeurosis ending on the radius. In contrast, the distal triangular portion had the fleshy fibres attached to the radius and converged medially to be continuous with aponeurotic portions on the ulna. Each portion were referred as pronator triangularis proximalis and pronator triangularis distalis. These variations might affect atypically in cases of forearm pronation. Information of these variations is important in hand surgeries and provide an additional knowledge on the relationship between morphology of PQ muscle and the limitation or the strength in the action of it.
This study presents a two-strain deterministic model which incorporates Dengvaxia vaccine and insecticide (adulticide) control strategies to forecast the dynamics of transmission and control of dengue in Madeira Island if there is a new outbreak with a different virus serotypes after the first outbreak in 2012. We construct suitable Lyapunov functions to investigate the global stability of the disease-free and boundary equilibrium points. Qualitative analysis of the model which incorporates time-varying controls with the specific goal of minimizing dengue disease transmission and the costs related to the control implementation by employing the optimal control theory is carried out. Three strategies, namely the use of Dengvaxia vaccine only, application of adulticide only, and the combination of Dengvaxia vaccine and adulticide are considered for the controls implementation. The necessary conditions are derived for the optimal control of dengue. We examine the impacts of the control strategies on the dynamics of infected humans and mosquito population by simulating the optimality system. The disease-free equilibrium is found to be globally asymptotically stable whenever the basic reproduction numbers associated with virus serotypes 1 and j (j ∈ {2,3,4}), respectively, satisfy R01,R0j ≤ 1, and the boundary equilibrium is globally asymptotically stable when the related R0i (i = 1,j) is above one. It is shown that the strategy based on the combination of Dengvaxia vaccine and adulticide helps in an effective control of dengue spread in the Island.
The three dimensional free convection boundary layer flow near a stagnation point region is embedded in viscous nanofluid with the effect of g-jitter is studied in this paper. Copper (Cu) and aluminium oxide (Al2O3) types of water base nanofluid are cho- sen with the constant Prandtl number, Pr=6.2. Based on Tiwari-Das nanofluid model, the boundary layer equation used is converted into a non-dimensional form by adopting non- dimensional variables and is solved numerically by engaging an implicit finite-difference scheme known as Keller-box method. Behaviors of fluid flow such as skin friction and Nusset number are studied by the controlled parameters including oscillation frequency, amplitude of gravity modulation and nanoparticles volume fraction. The reduced skin friction and Nusset number are presented graphically and discussed for different values of principal curvatures ratio at the nodal point. The numerical results shows that, in- crement occurs in the values of Nusset number with the presence of solid nanoparticles together with the values of the skin friction. It is worth mentioning that for the plane stagnation point there is an absence of reduced skin friction along the y-direction where as for axisymmetric stagnation point, the reduced skin friction for both directions are the same. As nanoparticles volume fraction increased, the skin friction increased as well as the Nusset number. The results, indicated that skin frictions of copper are found higher than aluminium oxide.
Free convection flow in a boundary layer region is a motion that results from the interaction of gravity with density differences within a fluid. These differences occur due to temperature or concentration gradients or due to their composition. Studies per- taining free convection flows of incompressible viscous fluids have received much attention in recent years both theoretically (exact or approximate solutions) and experimentally. The situation where the heat be transported to the convective fluid via a bounding sur- face having finite heat capacity is known as Newtonian heating (or conjugate convective flows). In this paper, the unsteady free convection flow of an incompressible viscous fluid between two parallel plates with Newtonian heating is studied. Appropriate non- dimensional variables are used to reduce the dimensional governing equations along with imposed initial and boundary conditions into dimensionless forms. The exact solutions for velocity and temperature are obtained using the Laplace transform technique. The corresponding expressions for skin friction and Nusselt number are also calculated. The graphical results are displayed to illustrate the influence of various embedded parameters such as Newtonian heating parameter and Grashof number. The results show that the effect of Newtonian heating parameter increases the Nusselt number but reduces the skin friction.
: Studies on bacterial growth pattern from the conventional approach are defective due
to their failure to explain the interactions or simply the complementary effects of the factors
influencing the bacterial growth. In this study, the individual and collaborative effects of
Pseudomonas putida growth variables were evaluated using a 2-level fractional factorial design of
experiment (FFDOE). The growth of the organism was found to respond remarkably to different
concentrations of nutrient media (carbon source) and the other independent variables. Factorial
models were developed from the experimental design to study the individual and interactive effects
of the studied parameters on the response. The studied parameters and their levels were as follows:
nutrient concentration (4-16 g/L), acclimatization time (24-72 hrs), agitation (140-200 rpm), and
temperature (30-40oC). These parameters were statistically validated using analysis of variance
(ANOVA) and the results revealed that the model terms were statistically significant with an Fvalue of 415.17 at P temperature > nutrient concentration versus temperature >
agitation > nutrient concentration versus agitation. Based on the R
2
and the adjusted R
2
values of
>95%, the estimated variables showed a high degree of relationship between the observed and the
predicted values; thus, the predictive ability of the models was suggested. It could, therefore, be
concluded that nutrient concentration, temperature, and agitation can greatly influence the growth
of P. putida within a specific range.
Introduction: Ruthenium polypyridyl complex (RPC), [Ru(dppz)2PiP]2+ or RuPiP, where dppz = dipyridophenazine, and PiP = 2-phenylimidazo[4,5-f][1,10]phenantroline has been shown to exhibit anticancer activities by stalling the replication fork progression in human cancer cell line, causing DNA double-strand break (DSB) leading to the initiation of DNA damage response (DDR). Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) enzymes are activated in response to DNA damage thus, RuPiP may be advantageously combined with the inhibitors of PARP to improve its efficacy in cancer cell killing. This study was conducted to investigate the cytotoxic effects of RuPiP and selected PARP inhibitor, NU1025, alone or in combination in vitro and the possible combinations in order to achieve synergism against three different cancer cell lines. Methods: Cell viability was determined by MTT assay based on established method and the combination index (CI) values were calculated using Chou and Talalay method. Results: Here, we reported that the treatment with RuPiP alone led to dose-dependent decreases in the cell viability meanwhile NU1025 exhibited no toxicity as a single agent. The CI values (
Vector surveillance in high-rise buildings is important to predict and monitor the presence of vectors regarding their abundance and distribution. In this study, the infestation profile of Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus species in different environmental settings were investigated. Methods: Four high-rise apartments in four different localities were selected for ovitrap surveillance. Fifty ovitraps were placed in semi indoor and outdoor settings. Results: A total of 507 (42.8%) from ovitraps showed the presence of the Aedes species larvae. Out of these, 170 (33.5%) of the positive ovitraps were those placed in semi indoor and 337 (66.5%) in outdoor. Of the total 16,613 Aedes larvae found, 4,130 (24.9%) were from semi indoor, and 12,483 (75.1%) from outdoor. In terms of distribution, Ae. albopictus was predominantly found in outdoor environments (POI=87.5%; MLT=36.45 larvae). Ae. aegypti was also found in outdoor environments (POI=14.89%; MLT=8.26 larvae). There was a significant difference in POI for both Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus in the two different environments but no significant difference was observed in MLT, indicating that the density of the Aedes species in both environments was well distributed. Conclusion: In this study, the patterns of Aedes habitat in high-rise apartments were observed. This study has shown an invasion and adaptation of Aedes mosquitoes into the ecosystems of high-rise buildings. It can be concluded that housing designs and the condition of the surrounding environment affects the infestation profile and the distribution of Aedes mosquitoes.
Introduction: Even though exclusive breastfeeding prevalence has increased from 19.3% in 2006 to 47.1% in 2016, this practice was slightly higher in urban areas (48.3%) compared to rural area (45.1%) in Malaysia. National Plan of Action for Nutrition of Malaysia III has set an indicator to achieve at least 70% exclusive breastfeeding by 2025. Therefore this study is to identify predictors that influenced exclusive breastfeeding practice in rural areas. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in six rural health clinics in Hulu Langat District, Selangor among moth- ers with youngest child aged 6-48 months old. Respondents were selected through systematic random sampling. Validated self-administered questionnaire was used to assess sociodemographic factors, maternal factors, external factors and child’s factors. Mother’s height and weight was measured and body mass index was calculated. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 23. Multivariate logistic regression was used to determine the predictors for ex- clusive breastfeeding practice. Results: Response rate was 96% with a total of 311 mothers participated in this study. More than half of the mothers exclusively breastfed (52.4%). The predictors for exclusive breastfeeding were Malay ethnicity (AOR=3.951, 95% CI: 1.374-11.358), having tertiary education (AOR=2.401, 95% CI: 1.100-5.241) and positive attitude toward breastfeeding (AOR=7.755, 95% CI: 1.382-43.502). Conclusion: Prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding was higher in this study than the national level. Programme planners should pay special attention to Chinese and Indian ethnicities, mothers with lower level of education and negative attitude in order to improve breastfeeding practice among rural mothers.
Smoked food was one of the most authentic dishes in Malaysian cuisines. However, local consumers were still unaware on the hygienic level of these smoked products. Nowadays, the smoked products were smoked in an open space that allowed the contamination of bacteria on the food. This study aimed to determine the occurrence and antibiotic resistance of Salmonella in the smoke catfish and meat at the local street stalls in Kuala Pilah, Negeri Sembilan by MPN-PCR methods. The microbial concentration of Salmonella sp. in smoked catfish was 2.4 x 10-8 MPN/g in smoked catfish and 2.9 x 10-7 MPN/g in smoked meat and were confirmed by culturing on selective agar of Salmonella Shigella agar. The prevalence of Salmonella sp. was found to be 68% in both samples by MPN-PCR approach. Salmonella sp. were 100% detected in smoked catfish followed by smoked meat by 44% respectively. All the positive isolates from MPN-PCR were continued with antibiotic susceptibility to determine the resistance level of Salmonella sp. towards selected antibiotics. As result, the isolates showed a multi-resistance patters from one to four antibiotics tested with MAR indices ranging from 0.25 to 1.00. The outcome indicated a high rate of foodborne pathogens which indicated the need to create the awareness on the safety and proper handling of smoked products to minimization of any potential health hazard caused by this foodborne pathogen.
Hyperdensity of basal ganglia in computed tomography (CT) of brain is always recognised as hemorrhagic stroke or calcification. Features of hyperglycemia include muscle weakness, hypotonia, pyramidal tract signs and hemichorea-hemiballismus (HC-HB), which mimic the symptoms of stroke. Hyperdensity of the basal ganglia was reported in patient with non-ketotic hyperglycemia (NKH). Inability to recognize the hyperdensity in CT brain as a feature of NKH may lead to failure of treatment. Early recognition and reversal of hyperglycemia will improve the outcome. This was a case of an atypical presentation of stroke-like symptoms with the neuroimaging finding showing asymmetric hyperdensity of basal ganglia. Neurological examination failed to elicit any sign of HC-HB. Laboratory test showed hyperglycemia with absence of acidosis and ketonaemia. The patient was diagnosed having basal ganglia hemorrhage and referred to the Neurosurgical team. However, the stroke-like symptoms completely resolved following the normalization of glucose level. This is the only other reported case of NKH with typical neuroimaging features not associated with HC-HB. One should be aware of the possibility of NKH in the absence of movement disorder with asymmetric basal ganglia hyperdensity in CT brain. Misinterpretation as acute intracranial bleeding may result in suboptimal management of the true underlying cause.
The issue of overwork due to numerous responsibilities among academicians is getting a serious
attention in educational literature. Academicians have to fulfil many responsib ilitie s simultaneously,
including teaching, conducting research, writing, publication, holding administrative posts,
involvement in committees and community services, and other professional works which may
improve the image of their university. Thus, the o bjecti ves of this study are to examine the
academicians’ perceptions on their academic and non academic responsibilities and investigate the
relationship between the respondents’ length of service with academic workloads and administrative
posts. This stud y has used self administered questionnaires, which have been distributed to 391
lecturers from various faculties on the Campus of UiTM Cawangan Terengganu. Results obtained
from 119 academicians have indicated that a majority of the respondents have chosen to be in the
teaching and learning track for their performance evaluation purpose. This is consistent with the
findings that they have spent most of their working hours to fulfil their academic workloads. In
addition, the non academic responsibilities hav e requ ired them to work beyond office hours in
performing their duties. Overall, the findings of this study have shown that most academicians have
spent more time on the academic responsibilities. On the other hand, the correlation has revealed that
the lo nger t he length of service of the respondents, the more academic workloads will be given and
the higher their chances to be appointed as administrators. This has implied that the academicians will
be responsible for higher positions and a wide range of tas ks as they become more experienced and at
a senior level.
Dengue disease, which is caused by dengue virus (DENV) has been a major worldwide concern, with increased number of cases each year. Currently, there are no specific medications to treat the disease. Hence, there is a dire need to develop novel drugs for disease treatment. Glycolysis is a metabolic pathway that serves as the main source of energy for DENV replication and targeting the pathway is one of the ideal approach to discover new anti-DENV drugs. This paper focuses on the inhibition of human hexokinase isoform 2 (HK2) enzyme, which is one of the important enzymes in glycolysis, in the quest to disrupt DENV replication. In order to search for potential inhibitors, two methods were conducted, which are ligand-based screening and structure-based screening approaches. Docking of Daidzin , which was derived from Kudzu, a Japanese plant, into the active site of HK2 has shown the nearest binding affinity score (-7.94 kcal/mol) to glucose‘s (GLC), which is -8.15 kcal/mol. Meanwhile, Ethyl (2R)-2-[[3-[2-[(4-methylbenzoyl) amino]ethyl]-[1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-b]pyridazin-6-yl]sulfanyl]butanoate (Ethyl 2(R)), a compound which is the analogue of ((22E, 24R)-6β-methoxyergosta-7, 9(11), 22-triene-3β,5α-diol) or compound 2 from Ganoderma sinense obtained from ligand-based screening was also docked into the binding site of HK2, showing a binding affinity score of -8.43 kcal/mol. Both docking was conducted by using AutoDock4 software at virtual screening phase. These compounds were further analysed in an inhibition assay to determine the effects of these potential naturally-derived inhibitors on the activity of HK2. The outcome from the inhibition studies showed that both compounds exhibited substantial inhibition on the activity of HK2 enzyme, where Daidzin, at 0.5 mM, resulted in HK2 remaining activity of 87.28%, while Ethyl (2R) resulted in 70.09% of HK2 remaining activity at 0.5 mM concentration. The results also indicate that as the concentration of these compounds increased, the percentage of remaining enzyme activity decreased. In conclusion, this study has served as a platform for the development of anti-dengue drugs based on naturally-derived compounds, which is anticipated to be a safer option for dengue treatment.
This study aimed to review the availability of sugar-free medicine available in the market using the online Monthly Index of Medical Specialties (MIMS) Malaysia 2016. Data collection was obtained from product information (PI) for prescription medications contained in the MIMS Malaysia 2016. Concise information for each product was collected based on therapeutic class groupings. The therapeutic class obtained from PI was assigned to one of the 11 major therapeutic classes. PI that stated its use in paediatrics was further reviewed for the availability of sugar free ingredient. Each product was then allocated into the poison groups: Group B, Group C and Non-Scheduled Poison. A total of 282 PI items from 336 companies in MIMS Malaysia 2016 that satisfied our eligibility criteria were reviewed. Of the 282 PI items reviewed, most of the products, 169 (59.9%) were sugarbased product, while 87 (30.9%) of them belong to sugar free products. Our study found that most of the medicines reviewed in the MIMS Malaysia 2016 were under Group C (134 of total 282). There is still a high number of sugar-containing medicines despite the promotion of sugar-free medication. Therefore, consumers need to be educated on the use of sugar-free medicines in children to increase the demand and availability in the market.
Introduction: Unequal retinal image size (RIS) or aniseikonia is usually related with anisometropia. Higher dif- ferences of RIS may manifest symptoms such as dizziness, headache or disorientation. In worst case might cause suppression that leads to amblyopia. Current study aims to evaluate the consistency of aniseikonia measurement in Smart Optometry smartphone application among myopic, hyperopic, and astigmatic simulated anisometropia and real anisometropia groups. Methods: Fifteen real anisometropes (refractive error; -0.50 until -6.00 diopters; D) and fifteen emmetropes (refractive error: -0.25 until +0.50D) were recruited. Real anisometropes wore their habitual spectacle correction while each emmetropes were fitted using soft contact lenses of +4.00DS, -4.00DS and -4.00DC with base curve 8.6 and total diameter 14.2mm in random order to mimic myopic-, hyperopic- and astigmat- ic-anisometropia before testing. Participants with any ocular disease and binocular vision problem were excluded. The consistency of aniseikonia measurement was determined in two visits, separated by at least 24-hour interval. Three repetitive measurements were taken in each visit. Results: Independent t-test and paired t-test showed that real and simulated anisometropia gave insignificant aniseikonia percentage, p>0.05. ICC findings revealed moder- ate-to-good agreement for all simulated and real groups. Bland Altman analysis between two visits exhibited good agreement among all simulated group; myopic (mean difference 0.2047; 95%CI:-1.1386-1.549), hyperopic (mean difference 0.2200; 95%CI:-0.9286-1.3686) and astigmatic (mean difference 0.2533; 95%CI:-0.7114-1.2180). Real anisometropes demonstrated good agreement with bias value of 0.2247(95%CI:-0.9162-1.3656) using Bland Altman plot. Conclusion: Smart Optometry application provides consistent measurement of aniseikonia regardless any types of anisometropia.
Introduction: Proper distribution of human resources is an important factor ensuring high-quality performance and sustained service quality. The aim of this study was determining the workload pressure among medical officers in health clinics (HCs) in Kelantan. Method: A record review survey was conducted between January and April 2019 using human resources data for 2018 involving HCs in Kelantan. It included all the HCs in Kelantan and excluded community clinics. Workload pressure was determined using a tool known as Workload Indicator of Staffing Needs, developed by World Health Organization. A high workload pressure was defined as a ratio between required and acquired medical officers of less than 1. The data were presented descriptively using as frequencies and percentages. Results: All 85 HCs in Kelantan were involved in the study; 90% (9/10) of the Kelantan districts recorded high work- load pressure. Moreover, 68.2% (58/85) HCs had high workload pressure. Tanah Merah, Tumpat, Pasir Mas, and Kota Bharu had the most HCs with high workload pressure, and most such HCs were found in areas with a high-den- sity population, requiring huge coverage. Conclusion: The Kelantan State Health Department should develop better human resource distribution strategies to ensure the sustainability of quality care in HCs.
This study was done to determine the effect of pasteurization on the stability of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and its enzyme in raw and pasteurized cow’s and goat’s milk. The total viable count for plate count of the bacterial growth concentration was higher in both pasteurized cow’s and goat’s milk at 2.48 log CFU/ml. This is followed by raw cow’s milk (1.59 log CFU/ml) and raw goat’s milk (0.65 log CFU/ml). Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) was found to be similar in both raw cow’s and goat’s milk (p>0.05), and pasteurized milk of both animals also contained the same amount of LAB (p>0.05). LAB was still detected in pasteurized milk (p
Introduction: Primary health care plays an important role in healthcare systems. In Malaysia, One (1) Malaysia Clinic (now known as Community Clinic since 2018) was established in 2010 aims to increase healthcare services accessibility within the poor urban population. The aim was to look at the effectiveness of One (1) Malaysia Clinic as a new form of public primary health clinic by looking at expectations and perceptions of the quality of the provided services by the patients. Method: It applied a cross sectional study involving nine clinics in of the busiest district in Kelantan namely, Kota Bharu district. 386 respondents which were Malaysian citizen, 18 years old and above were involved in this study. The survey used Malay validated SERVQUAL questionnaire. The Service Quality (SQ) gap was calculated. Result: The empathy dimension obtained the highest expectation and perception score, while the tangi- ble dimension has the lowest expectation and perception score. In all SERVQUAL dimension, the expectations and perceptions of the service provided was significantly different with P < 0.001. The most critical dimension identified was tangible dimension as it has the largest negative SQ gap score. Conclusion: Negative gaps for all SERVQUAL dimensions and individual items indicated that provided services at One (1) Malaysia Clinic still could not fulfilled the patient’s expectation. A continuous improvement program is needed especially on tangible dimension in deliv- ering a quality healthcare services.
Taxis, being a significant element of mobility, play a sufficiently great role in public transportation. However, the issues towards taxi services have gradually increaseddue tothe poor servicesgiven to passengers by taxi operators,leadingto the demand for otherride servicealternatives.With the developmentof technology, GrabCarwasdeveloped and launched asanonline taxi booking through smartphone application which can easily connectpassengers and drivers. The main purpose of this study is to find out the perception of taxi operators towards GrabCar service and vice versa sothatthere will be a clear point of view to identify opportunities andchallenges for taxi operators. Standardized open-endedinterviews were conducted with5taxi and 5 GrabCar operatorsin Kuala Terengganu and Kuala Nerus. Interview transcriptswere analyzed using content analysis. The findingsshowedthat there weremore challenges than opportunities for the taxi operators. This studycould help the government to improvetaxi services in general and GrabCar servicesin sharing economy.