The Sandakan Formation of the Segama Group is exposed across the Sandakan Peninsular in eastern Sabah. This Upper Miocene part of the Segama Group unconformably overlies the Garinono Formation and is conformably overlain by the Bongaya Formation. This formation was investigated with detailed logging of outcrops and microfossils analysis in order to map the depositional facies and sedimentary environment. This study showed the presence of seven lithofacies: Thick amalgamated sandstone; thin, lenticular interbedded HCS sandstones and mudstone; laminated mudstone with Rhizophora; trough cross-bedded sandstone; laminated mudstone; strip mudstone with thin sandstone and siltstone; and interbedded HCS sandstone and mudstone. Based on the presence of Rhizophora, Brownlowia, Florchuetia sp., Polypodium, Stenochleana palustris, Ascidian spicule low angle cross bedding, very fine grained sandstone, thin alternations of very fine sandstone, silt and clay layers showing cyclicity (muddy rhythemites), rocks in the Sandakan Formation are interpreted as mangal estuary and open marine facies. Three facies associations could be deduced from the seven lithofacies: Gradual coarsening upwards shoreface; abrupt change facies and prograding estuary facies association.
Foreign bodies in the laryngotracheobronchial tree are not uncommon. Their clinical presentations, the radiological and endoscopic findings in sixteen cases that presented to the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia were reviewed. The technique of removal is also discussed.
Study site: Hospital Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (UKM unit)
One of the most important and debilitating complication of diabetes mellitus is foot problem such as ulcers, infections and amputations. However, these complications are preventable by simple intervention such as regular foot care practice. This study aims to assess the foot care practice and its associated factors among type 2 diabetes mellitus patients attending primary health clinics in Kuantan. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study conducted at four primary health clinics in Kuantan involving 450 study participants who were selected by using universal sampling method. Level of awareness and practice toward diabetic foot care was assessed using validated self-administered questionnaire. Multiple logistic regressions were performed to identify factors associated with poor foot care practice among the respondents. RESULTS:About 59.6% of respondents had poor foot care practice and 50.9% had poor awareness level. Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified that, increasing age (OR0.97, 95% CI: 0.955-0.993) and good awareness towards foot problem (OR0.43, 95%CI: 0.289-0.643) were less likely to have poor foot care practice. However, Malay ethnicity (OR 1.81, 95% CI: 1.002-3.271) and obesity (OR1.9, 95% CI: 1.225-2.976) were associated with poor foot care practice after controlling other variables. CONCLUSION:Majority of the respondents had poor foot care practice and poor awareness. Respondents who are older and have better awareness are less likely to have poor foot care practice. Diabetic patients who are Malays and/or obese are predicted to have poor diabetic foot practice and hence must be prioritized for a sustainable patient education and compliance towards foot care practice at primary care level.
The diabetic foot at risk is the diabetic foot which is at risk of ulceration, hence the importance of identifying the foot at this stage. This study aims to assess the prevalence of diabetic foot at risk and its associated factors among type 2 diabetes mellitus patients’ attending primary health clinics in Kuantan.Methods and methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted at four primary health clinics in Kuantan involving 450 study participants who were selected by using universal sampling method. Foot examination was carried out and foot at risk was classified based on the Kings’ Classification. Multiple logistic regressions were performed to identify the predictors for diabetic foot at risk. Results: The prevalence of diabetic foot at risk was 31.3%. Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified age (OR 1.04, 95% CI: 1.01-1.06), smoker (OR 4.11, 95% CI: 1.96-8.63) and duration of diabetes more than 10 years (OR1.77, 95% CI: 1.05-2.98) as risk factors for diabetic foot at risk. Respondents with higher diabetic foot practice score (OR 0.87, 95% CI: 0.77-0.98) have lesser risk of developing diabetic foot at risk. Conclusion: Patients who are older, smoker and/or have chronic diabetes are predicted to be at higher risk to develop the diabetic foot at risk. This study also showed that patients with better foot care practice has lesser risk. Therefore, these are the groups of patients that need to be targeted for early detection and intervention to prevent serious complications.
This paper reports a case of Tinea imbricata in a young Orang Asli boy which was noted during his admission for severe symptomatic anemia. Upon discharge, he was started on syrup Griseofulvin 10mg/kg daily and Whitfield cream for 4 weeks. The Department of Orang Asli Development (JAKOA) and the local Health Clinic were contacted before discharge to facilitate patient's follow-up and monitoring. Outbreaks of Tinea imbricata among the Orang Asli have been known to happen from time to time. Although this dermatophyte infection is rare in the urban population, transmission among travelers has been reported. This case report highlights its unique presentation and treatment approach.
Benzeneboronate of catecholic carboxyl methyl esters, N-acetyldopamine, coumarin and catechol estrogens were prepared as crystalline derivatives in high yield. Related catechol compounds with extra polar functional group(s) (OH, NH2) do not form or only partially form unstable cyclic boronate derivatives.
Crude glycoside extracts from the plant, Sarcolobus globosus, were tested on the rat phrenic nerve-diaphragm, chick biventer cervicis and frog rectus abdominis preparations. Nerve-stimulated twitches were inhibited by the extract. The muscle paralysis was not similar to that by curare-like blockers as it was not reversed by neostigmine or by a tetanus. Although contractures to acetylcholine or carbachol were not affected by 0.6 mg/ml of the extract, higher concentration of the extracts (3 mg/ml) depressed the log dose-response curve of acetylcholine and carbachol. The results suggest that the neuromuscular blocking effect of the extracts is either dose-dependent or due to a mixture of toxins with presynaptic or postsynaptic actions.
Hypopigmented mycosis fungoides (MF) is a rare variant of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma, a type of extranodal non-Hodgkin lymphoma. This report presents the case of a 9-year-old boy with a 2-year history of asymptomatic, hypopigmented skin lesions that were resistant to topical treatment. He was initially treated for a fungal skin infection and had received multiple courses of topical antifungals and steroids but showed no improvement, which led to further evaluation and a referral to a dermatologist. A skin biopsy was performed, and the diagnosis of hypopigmented MF was confirmed through skin histopathology and immunohistochemistry study. His lesions responded well to cycles of narrowband ultraviolet B phototherapy, showing almost complete clearance after 4 months without any side effects.
A new dienamide, (2E,4E)-7-(3',4'-dimethoxyphenyl)-N-ethyl-6-(R)-hydroxyhepta- 2,4-dienamide, named (-)-kunstleramide (1), were isolated from the bark of Beilschmiedia kunstleri Gamble together with one neolignan: (+)-kunstlerone (2) and seven known alkaloids: (+)-nornuciferine (3), (-)-isocaryachine (4), (+)-cassythicine (5), (+)-laurotetanine (6), (+)-boldine (7), noratherosperminine (8), (+)-N-demethylphyllocaryptine (9). Their structures were established from spectroscopic techniques, most notably 1D- and 2D-NMR, UV, IR, OR, circular dichroism (CD) spectra and LCMS-IT-TOF. (-)-Kunstleramide (1) exhibited very poor dose-dependent inhibition of DPPH activity, with an IC₅₀ value of 179.5 ± 4.4 μg/mL, but showed a moderate cytotoxic effect on MTT assays of A375, A549, HT-29, PC-3 and WRL-68 with EC₅₀ values of 64.65, 44.74, 55.94, 73.87 and 70.95 µg/mL, respectively.
The transseptal transsphenoidal hypophysectomy has become a relatively frequent procedure in recent years. We performed 20 such procedures between January 1984 and December 1987 for various pituitary disorders. Significant complications such as CSF rhinorrhea, meningitis, diabetes insipidus, haemorrhage and septal perforation are discussed. The mortality rate for the series was 5%. In analysing the data, we feel that this technique of hypophysectomy is a safe procedure.
The term tumefactive fibroinflammatory lesion is used to describe an unusual fibrosclerosing disorder that behaves in a malignant way clinically but is histologically benign. Lesions in the head and neck are believed to be part of the broader fibrosclerosing syndrome which include pseudotumour of the orbit, Reidel's thyroiditis, sclerosing cholangitis and mediastinal fibrosis. Clinical diagnosis is often difficult and relies heavily on histopathology. Steroid therapy is suggested as the first line of management, while surgery or radiation therapy is reserved for failures.
Despite the advancements made in the knowledge and treatment of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) since it was first discovered, people living with HIV (PLWH) continue to be stigmatized. This paper presents the case of an HIV-infected patient who delayed the necessary treatment due to stigma and ultimately presented with AIDS. Through social support, however, he was able to overcome his internalized stigma; he was finally willing to start on antiretroviral treatment (ART). This case report addresses the effect of stigma on and the role of social support in the management of an individual with HIV.
We recently reported that (23R, 24E)-23-acetoxymangiferonic acid (23R-AMA), a cycloartane triterpenoid isolated by activity-guided separation from a methanol extract of Garcinia sp. bark, inhibited melanin production via inhibition of tyrosinase (TYR) expression in the B16-F10 melanoma cell line. Since 23R-AMA also inhibited microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF) expression, an upstream factor of TYR, these features of 23R-AMA were thought to be appropriate for development of whitening cosmetics. However, 23R-AMA exhibited growth inhibition other than inhibition of melanin production in B16-F10 cells. Therefore, we investigated biological activities of 23R-AMA in detail, focused on its application as an anti-melanoma compound. In this study, we demonstrated that 23R-AMA inhibited cell proliferation and basic FGF (bFGF)-induced migration in B16-F10 cells. Furthermore, 23R-AMA promoted ser45/thr41 phosphorylation of β-catenin and suppressed its intranuclear accumulation, which was suggested to be related to inhibition of MITF expression. The transcriptional activity of MITF is known to be regulated by phosphorylation via activated ERK. Further investigation revealed that 23R-AMA inhibited phosphorylation of c-Raf, MEK-1, and ERK, and also that of upstream molecules including FAK and c-Src. These results suggested that 23R-AMA inhibited growth and migration of B16-F10 melanoma by regulating both MITF expression and its activity. The activities of 23R-AMA reported in this study are new aspects of cycloartane triterpenoids.
The article Cycloartane triterpenoid (23R, 24E)-23-acetoxymangiferonic acid inhibited proliferation and migration in B16-F10 melanoma via MITF downregulation caused by inhibition of both β-catenin.
Plants of the Apocynaceae family have been traditionally used in the treatment of age-related brain disorders. Rauvolfia reflexa, a member of the family, has been used as an antidote for poisons and to treat malaria. The dichloromethane, ethanol and methanol extracts from the leaves of Rauvolfia reflexa showed potential acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) inhibitory activities, with IC50 values in the 8.49 to 52.23 g/mL range. Further cholinesterase inhibitory-guided isolation of these extracts afforded four bioactive compounds, namely: (E)-3-(3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl)acrylic acid (1), (E)-methyl 3-(4-hydroxy-3,5-dimethoxyphenyl) acrylate (2), 17-methoxycarbonyl-14-heptadecaenyl-4-hydroxy-3-methoxycinnamate (3) and 1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-1-oxo-β-carboline (4). The isolated compounds showed moderate cholinesterase inhibitory activity compared to the reference standard, physostigmine. Compounds 1 and 2 showed the highest inhibitory activity against AChE (IC50 = 60.17 µM) and BChE (IC50 = 61.72 µM), respectively. Despite having similar molecular weight, compounds 1 and 2 were structurally different according to their chemical substitution patterns, leading to their different enzyme inhibition selectivity. Compound 2 was more selective against BChE, whereas compound 1 was a selective inhibitor of AChE. Molecular docking revealed that both compounds 1 and 2 were inserted, but not deeply into the active site of the cholinesterase enzymes.
A study was conducted to investigate the influence of Asian monsoon on chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) content in Sabah waters and to identify the related oceanographic conditions that caused phytoplankton blooms at the eastern and western coasts of Sabah, Malaysia. A series of remote sensing measurements including surface Chl-a, sea surface temperature, sea surface height anomaly, wind speed, wind stress curl, and Ekman pumping were analyzed to study the oceanographic conditions that lead to large-scale nutrients enrichment in the surface layer. The results showed that the Chl-a content increased at the northwest coast from December to April due to strong northeasterly wind and coastal upwelling in Kota Kinabalu water. The southwest coast (Labuan water) maintained high concentrations throughout the year due to the effect of Padas River discharge during the rainy season and the changing direction of Baram River plume during the northeast monsoon (NEM). However, with the continuous supply of nutrients from the upwelling area, the high Chl-a batches were maintained at the offshore water off Labuan for a longer time during NEM. On the other side, the northeast coast illustrated a high Chl-a in Sandakan water during NEM, whereas the northern tip off Kudat did not show a pronounced change throughout the year. The southeast coast (Tawau water) was highly influenced by the direction of the surface water transport between the Sulu and Sulawesi Seas and the prevailing surface currents. The study demonstrates the presence of seasonal phytoplankton blooms in Sabah waters which will aid in forecasting the possible biological response and could further assist in marine resource managements.
Three independent mol-ecules of the title estrone derivative and a mol-ecule of methanol comprise the asymmetric unit of the title compound [systematic name: 13-methyl-6,7,8,9,11,12,13,14,15,16-deca-hydro-cyclo-penta-[a]phenanthren-3-ol-meth-an-ol (3/1)], 3C(18)H(24)O·CH(3)OH. Two of the estrone mol-ecules exhibit 50:50 disorder (one displays whole-mol-ecule disorder and the other partial disorder in the fused five- and six-membered rings) so that five (partial) mol-ecular conformations are discernable. The conformation of the six-membered ring abutting the aromatic ring is close to a half-chair in all five components. The conformation of the six-membered ring fused to the five-membered ring is based on a chair with varying degrees of distortion ranging from minor to significant. Two distinct conformations are found for the five-membered ring: in four mol-ecules, the five-membered ring is twisted about the bond linking it to the six-membered ring, and in the other, the five-membered ring is an envelope with the quaternary C atom being the flap atom. The crystal packing features O-H⋯O hydrogen bonding whereby the four mol-ecules comprising the asymmetric unit are linked into a supra-molecular chain along the b axis.
Two independent mol-ecules comprise the asymmetric unit of the title cholestane derivative, C(29)H(49)NO(3) {systematic name: (3S,8S,9S,10R,13R,14S,17R)-17-[(1R)-1,5-dimethyl-hex-yl]-6-hy-droxy-imino-10,13-dimethyl-2,3,4,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17-tetra-deca-hydro-1H-cyclo-penta-[a]phenanthren-3-yl ace-tate}. The major differences between the mol-ecules relate to the relative orientations of the terminal acetyl [C-C-O-C torsion angles = -158.8 (3) and -81.7 (3)°] and alkyl groups [C-C-C-C = 168.9 (3) and 65.8 (4)°]. In the crystal, the independent mol-ecules associate via pairs of O-H⋯N hydrogen bonds, forming dimeric aggregates. Supra-molecular layers in the ab plane are mediated by C-H⋯O inter-actions.
In the title cholestane derivative, C(28)H(48) [systematic name: (1S,2S,7R,10R,11R,14R,15R)-2,5,10,15-tetra-methyl-14-[(2R)-6-methyl-heptan-2-yl]tetra-cyclo-[8.7.0.0(2,7).0(11,15)]hepta-dec-4-ene], the cyclo-hexene ring adopts a half-chair conformation. The parent 5α-cholest-2-ene and the equivalent fragment of the title compound are almost superimposable (r.m.s. deviation = 0.033 Å).
The asymmetric unit of the title compound {systematic name: (3S,8S,9S,10R,13R,14S,17R)-17-[(E,2R,5S)-5-ethyl-6-methyl-hept-3-en-2-yl]-10,13-dimethyl-2,3,4,7,8,9,11,12,14,15,16,17-dodeca-hydro-1H-cyclo-penta-[a]phenanthren-3-yl p-toluene-sulfonate}, C(36)H(54)O(3)S, comprises two independent mol-ecules that differ significantly in terms of the relative orientations of the peripheral groups; the conformation about the C=C bond of the side chain is E. In the crystal, mol-ecules associate into linear supra-molecular chains aligned along the a axis via C-H⋯O inter-actions.