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Fulltext Orthosiphon stamineus Proteins Alleviate Hydrogen Peroxide Stress in SH-SY5Y Cells

Chung YS, Ahmed PK, Othman I, Shaikh MF

Life (Basel), 2021 Jun 20;11(6).
PMID: 34202937 DOI: 10.3390/life11060585

The neuroprotective potential of Orthosiphon stamineus leaf proteins (OSLPs) has never been evaluated in SH-SY5Y cells challenged by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). This work thus aims to elucidate OSLP neuroprotective potential in alleviating H2O2 stress. OSLPs at varying concentrations were evaluated for cytotoxicity (24 and 48 h) and neuroprotective potential in H2O2-induced SH-SY5Y cells (24 h). The protective mechanism of H2O2-induced SH-SY5Y cells was also explored via mass-spectrometry-based label-free quantitative proteomics (LFQ) and bioinformatics. OSLPs (25, 50, 125, 250, 500, and 1000 µg/mL; 24 and 48 h) were found to be safe. Pre-treatments with OSLP doses (250, 500, and 1000 µg/mL, 24 h) significantly increased the survival of SH-SY5Y cells in a concentration-dependent manner and improved cell architecture-pyramidal-shaped cells, reduced clumping and shrinkage, with apparent neurite formations. OSLP pre-treatment (1000 µg/mL, 24 h) lowered the expressions of two major heat shock proteins, HSPA8 (heat shock protein family A (Hsp70) member 8) and HSP90AA1 (heat shock protein 90), which promote cellular stress signaling under stress conditions. OSLP is, therefore, suggested to be anti-inflammatory by modulating the "signaling of interleukin-4 and interleukin-13" pathway as the predominant mechanism in addition to regulating the "attenuation phase" and "HSP90 chaperone cycle for steroid hormone receptors" pathways to counteract heat shock protein (HSP)-induced damage under stress conditions.
Fulltext Green education divide: a comparative case study analysis of countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations

Teow HH, Ahmed PK, Nair MS, Vaithilingam S

Lancet Planet Health, 2024 Apr;8 Suppl 1:S20.
PMID: 38632916 DOI: 10.1016/S2542-5196(24)00085-8

BACKGROUND: Green education is an essential precursor to promoting long-term sustainable practices and fostering environmentally conscious behaviours, especially among the younger generations. Such education equips individuals with the knowledge, awareness, and experiences necessary for green behavioural shifts, empowering them to engage actively in sustainable practices in the long run, which is essential for ensuring environmental sustainability. However, green education practices and policies vary among the countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) owing to different levels of socioeconomic development, national priorities, and capacities of each member state. We aimed to analyse and compare the disparities in green education among pace-setter, maturing, and emerging ASEAN countries.
METHODS: We used a case-study approach-a desktop analysis based on journal articles, country reports, newspaper articles, and other sources from the past 10 years-to analyse and compare the green education disparities among pace-setter, maturing, and emerging ASEAN countries.
FINDINGS: As a pace-setter ASEAN country, Singapore has made impressive progress in promoting green education through the effective implementation of pragmatic policies and impactful green education initiatives. Furthermore, the country has established extensive formal and informal green education programmes that closely align with the Singapore Green Plan 2030. By contrast, maturing ASEAN countries are making incremental progress in incorporating green education into their formal education systems. However, challenges faced by these countries include a shortage of well-trained teachers, the lack of specific green education subjects in school syllabuses, and financial constraints. Despite these challenges, innovative approaches-such as partnerships with non-governmental organisations (eg, the World Wide Fund for Nature)-have emerged as promising strategies to promote green education within these maturing nations. Emerging ASEAN countries face the biggest challenges in promoting green education. Competing national priorities, political instability, limited funding and resources, inadequate infrastructure, and a lack of qualified educators pose challenging barriers to advancing green education within emerging ASEAN nations.
INTERPRETATION: This study provides insights into the best practices and challenges surrounding green education within pace-setter, maturing, and emerging ASEAN countries. To address the disparities in green education among these countries, there is a need to adopt a holistic ecosystem framework characterised by the so-called 8i enablers, namely infrastructure (eg, well-equipped laboratories and learning spaces), infostructure (eg, advanced teaching technologies), intellectual capital (eg, well-trained educators), integrity systems (eg, efficient green education governance systems), incentives (eg, public and private funding for green education initiatives), institutions (ie, strong institutional leaders), interaction (ie, cooperation and collaboration among relevant stakeholders), and internationalisation (eg, leveraging regional and international partnerships to access expertise and resources).
FUNDING: None.
Fulltext Orthosiphon stamineus Proteins Alleviate Pentylenetetrazol-Induced Seizures in Zebrafish

Chung YS, Choo BKM, Ahmed PK, Othman I, Shaikh MF

Biomedicines, 2020 Jul 02;8(7).
PMID: 32630817 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines8070191

The anticonvulsive potential of proteins extracted from Orthosiphon stamineus leaves (OSLP) has never been elucidated in zebrafish (Danio rerio). This study thus aims to elucidate the anticonvulsive potential of OSLP in pentylenetetrazol (PTZ)-induced seizure model. Physical changes (seizure score and seizure onset time, behavior, locomotor) and neurotransmitter analysis were elucidated to assess the pharmacological activity. The protective mechanism of OSLP on brain was also studied using mass spectrometry-based label-free proteomic quantification (LFQ) and bioinformatics. OSLP was found to be safe up to 800 µg/kg and pre-treatment with OSLP (800 µg/kg, i.p., 30 min) decreased the frequency of convulsive activities (lower seizure score and prolonged seizure onset time), improved locomotor behaviors (reduced erratic swimming movements and bottom-dwelling habit), and lowered the excitatory neurotransmitter (glutamate). Pre-treatment with OSLP increased protein Complexin 2 (Cplx 2) expression in the zebrafish brain. Cplx2 is an important regulator in the trans-SNARE complex which is required during the vesicle priming phase in the calcium-dependent synaptic vesicle exocytosis. Findings in this study collectively suggests that OSLP could be regulating the release of neurotransmitters via calcium-dependent synaptic vesicle exocytosis mediated by the "Synaptic Vesicle Cycle" pathway. OSLP's anticonvulsive actions could be acting differently from diazepam (DZP) and with that, it might not produce the similar cognitive insults such as DZP.
Fulltext A Systematic Review of the Protective Actions of Cat's Whiskers (Misai Kucing) on the Central Nervous System

Chung YS, Choo BKM, Ahmed PK, Othman I, Shaikh MF

Front Pharmacol, 2020;11:692.
PMID: 32477146 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2020.00692

Orthosiphon stamineus (OS) or Orthosiphon aristatus var. aristatus (OAA) is commonly known as cat's whiskers or "misai kucing". It is an herbaceous shrub that is popular in many different traditional and complementary medicinal systems. Its popularity has been justified by the plethora of studies that have shown that the secondary metabolites of the plant has effects that range from anti-inflammatory and gastroprotective to anorexic and antihypertensive. As such, OS could also be a potential treatment for Central Nervous System (CNS) disorders. However, a cohesive synthesis of the protective actions of OS was lacking. This systematic review was therefore commenced to elaborate on the various protective mechanisms of OS in the CNS. The PRISMA model was used and five databases (Google Scholar, SCOPUS, SpringerLink, ScienceDirect, and PubMed) were searched with relevant keywords to finally identify four articles that met the inclusion criteria. The articles described the protective effects of OS extracts on Alzheimer's disease, epilepsy, learning and memory, oxidative stress, and neurotoxicity. All the articles found were experimental or preclinical studies on animal models or in vitro systems. The reported activities demonstrated that OS could be a potential neuroprotective agent and might improve CNS conditions like neurodegeneration, neuroinflammation, and oxidative stress.