Displaying publications 1 - 20 of 23 in total

Abstract:
Sort:
  1. Nordin F, Ahmad RNR, Farzaneh F
    Virus Res, 2017 05 02;235:106-114.
    PMID: 28408207 DOI: 10.1016/j.virusres.2017.04.007
    Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) are somatic cells reprogrammed to pluripotency by forced expression of pluripotency factors. These cells are shown to have the same pluripotent potential as embryonic stem cells (ESC) and considered as an alternative to the much controversial usage of ESC which involved human embryos. However, the traditional method in reprogramming cells into iPSC using genome-integrating retro- or lenti- viruses remains an obstacle for its application in clinical setting. Although numerous studies have been conducted for a safer DNA-based reprogramming, reprogramming of iPSC by genetic modifications may raise the possibility of malignant transformation and has been a major limitation for its usage in clinical applications. Therefore, there is a need for an alternative method to reprogram the cells without the use of gene editing and a much safer way to deliver transcription factors to induce pluripotency on target cells. Using protein transduction approach, a number of studies have demonstrated the generation of human iPSCs from human fibroblasts and mouse embryonic fibroblasts by direct delivery of reprogramming proteins. In this review, the definition and mechanism of HIV-TAT protein (a type of protein transduction domain) in delivering recombinant proteins, including the potential of protein-based delivery to induce iPSC were further discussed.
  2. Nordin F, Idris MRM, Mahdy ZA, Wahid SFA
    BMC Pregnancy Childbirth, 2020 Jul 10;20(1):399.
    PMID: 32650736 DOI: 10.1186/s12884-020-03084-7
    BACKGROUND: Umbilical cord blood (UCB) has been proposed as the potential source of haematopoietic stem cells (HSC) for allogeneic transplantation. However, few studies have shown that a common disease in pregnancy such as preeclampsia would affect the quality of UCB-HSC. Total nucleated cell count (TNC) is an important parameter that can be used to predict engraftment including UCB banking. Colony forming unit (CFU) assay is widely used as an indicator to predict the success of engraftment, since direct quantitative assay for HSC proliferation is unavailable. The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of preeclampsia in pregnancy on the stemness and differentiation potency of UCB-HSC.

    METHODS: Mononuclear cells (MNC) were isolated from UCB and further enriched for CD34+ cells using immune-magnetic method followed by CFU assay. A panel of HSC markers including differentiated haematopoietic markers were used to confirm the differentiation ability of UCB-HSC by flow cytometry analysis.

    RESULTS/ DISCUSSION: The HSC progenitor's colonies from the preeclampsia group were significantly lower compared to the control. This correlates with the low UCB volume, TNC and CD34+ cells count. In addition, the UCB-enriched CD34+ population were lymphoid progenitors and capable to differentiate into natural killer cells and T-lymphocytes.

    CONCLUSION: These findings should be taken into consideration when selecting UCB from preeclamptic mothers for banking and predicting successful treatment related to UCB transplant.

  3. Vijakumaran U, Nordin F, Hamid ZA, Abdullah M, Jun TG
    Protein Pept Lett, 2020;27(11):1092-1101.
    PMID: 32484079 DOI: 10.2174/0929866527666200525164135
    The cell membrane is a protective layer that strictly controls the passage of molecules restricting the delivery of biomolecules such as drugs, oligonucleotides, peptides, and siRNA into the cells. This shortcoming has been overcome by the discovery of Cell-Penetrating Peptides (CPPs) that has undergone 30 years of evolution. To date, CPPs are largely modified to improve its efficacy and to suit the different delivery applications. The modes of CPPs penetration are still an unresolved mystery and requires further investigations to increase its effectiveness and to diversify its use. Despite having huge potential as a biomolecule carrier, CPPs also have some drawbacks. In this review, the natural and synthetic CPPs, the modifications that have been conducted on CPPs to improve its efficacy, its extended applications, modes of penetration and limitation as well as challenges will be discussed.
  4. Wan Kamarul Zaman WS, Nurul AA, Nordin F
    Biomedicines, 2021 Sep 17;9(9).
    PMID: 34572431 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines9091245
    "Jekyll and Hyde" refers to persons with an unpredictably dual personality, who are battling between good and evil within themselves In this regard, even cells consist of good and evil counterparts. Normal stem cells (NSCs) and cancer stem cells (CSCs) are two types of cells that share some similar characteristics but have distinct functions that play a major role in physiological and pathophysiological development. In reality, NSCs such as the adult and embryonic stem cells, are the good cells and the ultimate treatment used in cell therapy. CSCs are the corrupted cells that are a subpopulation of cancer cells within the cancer microenvironment that grow into a massive tumour or malignancy that needs to be treated. Hence, understanding the connection between NSCs and CSCs is important not just in cancer development but also in their therapeutic implication, which is the focus of this review.
  5. Mahindran E, Law JX, Ng MH, Nordin F
    Int J Mol Sci, 2021 Sep 29;22(19).
    PMID: 34638883 DOI: 10.3390/ijms221910542
    Projected life expectancy continues to grow worldwide owing to the advancement of new treatments and technologies leading to rapid growth of geriatric population. Thus, age-associated diseases especially in the musculoskeletal system are becoming more common. Loss of bone (osteoporosis) and muscle (sarcopenia) mass are conditions whose prevalence is increasing because of the change in population distribution in the world towards an older mean age. The deterioration in the bone and muscle functions can cause severe disability and seriously affects the patients' quality of life. Currently, there is no treatment to prevent and reverse age-related musculoskeletal frailty. Existing interventions are mainly to slow down and control the signs and symptoms. Mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) transplantation is a promising approach to attenuate age-related musculoskeletal frailty. This review compiles the present knowledge of the causes and changes of the musculoskeletal frailty and the potential of MSC transplantation as a regenerative therapy for age-related musculoskeletal frailty.
  6. Mark JKK, Lim CSY, Nordin F, Tye GJ
    Mol Biol Rep, 2022 Nov;49(11):10593-10608.
    PMID: 35674877 DOI: 10.1007/s11033-022-07651-3
    BACKGROUND: Antibodies have proven to be remarkably successful for biomedical applications. They play important roles in epidemiology and medicine from diagnostics of diseases to therapeutics, treating diseases from incessant chronic diseases such as rheumatology to pandemic outbreaks. With no end in sight for the demand for antibody products, optimizations and new techniques must be expanded to accommodate this.

    METHODS AND RESULTS: This review discusses optimizations and techniques for antibody production through choice of discovery platforms, expression systems, cell culture mediums, and other strategies to increase expression yield. Each system has its own merits and demerits, and the strategy chosen is critical in addressing various biological aspects.

    CONCLUSIONS: There is still insufficient evidence to validate the efficacy of some of these techniques, and further research is needed to consolidate these industrial production systems. There is no doubt that more strategies, systems, and pipelines will contribute to enhance biopharmaceutical production.

  7. Mohd Idris MR, Nordin F, Mahdy ZA, Abd Wahid SF
    Front Med (Lausanne), 2021;8:727179.
    PMID: 34490314 DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2021.727179
    Background: The in utero environment has many factors that can support cell differentiation. Cytokines, chemokines and growth factors play big roles in haematopoietic mechanisms. Some diseases like gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) might affect the environment and haematopoietic stem cell (HSC) quality. The aim of this study is to investigate the adverse effects of GDM on umbilical cord blood (UCB) HSC in terms of differentiation potency including the UCB parameters used for banking and transplantation purposes. Methods: UCB-HSC was collected from 42 GDM and 38 normal pregnancies. UCB-HSC was isolated and further enriched using immuno-magnetic separation beads (MACS). The UCB-HSC were cultured in methylcellulose media to investigate the differentiation potency. The level of erythropoietin (EPO) and insulin in the UCB plasma was measured using enzyme linked immunoassay (ELISA) technique. Result: The UCB parameters; volume, total nucleated count (TNC) and total CD34+ cells were significantly reduced in the GDM group compared to the control group. The number of HSC progenitors' colonies were significantly reduced in the GDM group except for progenitor BFU-E, which was significantly increased (GDM = 94.19 ± 6.21, Control = 73.61 ± 2.73, p = 0.010). This data was associated with higher EPO level in GDM group. However, the insulin level in the GDM group was comparable to the Control group. Conclusion: Our results suggest that the changes in the in utero environment due to abnormalities during pregnancy such as GDM might affect the differentiation potency of UCB-HSC. These findings can be considered as an additional parameter for the inclusion and exclusion criteria for UCB banking, particularly for mothers with GDM.
  8. Nordin F, Hamid ZA, Chan L, Farzaneh F, Hamid MK
    Methods Mol Biol, 2016;1448:159-73.
    PMID: 27317180 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-3753-0_12
    Non-integrating lentiviral vectors or also known as integrase-defective lentiviral (IDLV) hold a great promise for gene therapy application. They retain high transduction efficiency for efficient gene transfer in various cell types both in vitro and in vivo. IDLV is produced via a combined mutations introduced on the HIV-based lentiviral to disable their integration potency. Therefore, IDLV is considered safer than the wild-type integrase-proficient lentiviral vector as they could avoid the potential insertional mutagenesis associated with the nonspecific integration of transgene into target cell genome afforded by the wild-type vectors.Here we describe the system of IDLV which is produced through mutation in the integrase enzymes at the position of D64 located within the catalytic core domain. The efficiency of the IDLV in expressing the enhanced green fluorescent protein (GFP) reporter gene in transduced human monocyte (U937) cell lines was investigated. Expression of the transgene was driven by the spleen focus-forming virus (SFFV) LTRs. Transduction efficiency was studied using both the IDLV (ID-SFFV-GFP) and their wild-type counterparts (integrase-proficient SFFV-GFP). GFP expression was analyzed by fluorescence microscope and FACS analysis.Based on the results, the number of the GFP-positive cells in ID-SFFV-GFP-transduced U937 cells decreased rapidly over time. The percentage of GFP-positive cells decreased from ~50 % to almost 0, up to 10 days post-transduction. In wild-type SFFV-GFP-transduced cells, GFP expression is remained consistently at about 100 %. These data confirmed that the transgene expression in the ID-SFFV-GFP-transduced cells is transient in dividing cells. The lack of an origin of replication due to mutation of integrase enzymes in the ID-SFFV-GFP virus vector has caused the progressive loss of the GFP expression in dividing cells.Integrase-defective lentivirus will be a suitable choice for safer clinical applications. It preserves the advantages of the wild-type lentiviral vectors but with the benefit of transgene expression without stable integration into host genome, therefore reducing the potential risk of insertional mutagenesis.
  9. Jajere SM, Hassan L, Abdul Aziz S, Zakaria Z, Abu J, Nordin F, et al.
    Poult Sci, 2019 Nov 01;98(11):5961-5970.
    PMID: 31392329 DOI: 10.3382/ps/pez392
    Village chicken or Ayam Kampung, common to Southeast Asian countries, has always been regarded as superior in comparison to commercial broiler chicken in terms of wholesomeness and health benefits. The current study investigates the prevalence and risk factors of Salmonella among village chicken flocks from the central and southern states of Peninsular Malaysia. A total of 35 village flocks were sampled from Selangor (n = 19), Melaka (n = 10), Johor (n = 4), and Negeri Sembilan (n = 2). In total, 1,042 samples were collected; these included cloacal swabs (n = 675), eggs (n = 62), pooled drinking water (n = 175), pooled feeds (n = 70), and pooled flies (n = 60). Isolation of Salmonella from cloacal swabs, poultry drinking water, and feeds was carried out according to the protocols and recommendations of the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) terrestrial manual. The prevalence of Salmonella at an individual bird-level was 2.5% (17/675, 95% CI: 1.6 to 4.0). All eggs screened were negative; in the case of environmental samples, however, Salmonella was detected in 5.14% (9/175), 7.14% (5/70), and 5.0% (3/60) for water, feed, and flies, respectively. A total of 34 isolates and 8 Salmonella serotypes were identified. Weltevreden (20.6%) was the most common, followed by Typhimurium and Agona (17.6%), Albany and Enteritidis (8.8%), Molade (5.9%), Corvallis and Schleissheim (2.9%), and others grouped as Salmonella spp. (11.8%). Multivariable logistic regression models revealed that Salmonella positivity among flocks could be strongly predicted by storage of feeds (uncovered feeds; OR = 10.38; 95% CI: 1.25 to 86.39; p = 0.030) and uncovered water tanks (uncovered tank; OR = 6.43; 95% CI: 1.02 to 40.60; p = 0.048). The presence of Salmonella in village chickens in the study area was lower than that of commercial chickens in Malaysia.
  10. Shaharir SS, Kadir WDA, Nordin F, Bakar FA, Ting MWH, Jamil A, et al.
    Lupus, 2019 Jan;28(1):137-144.
    PMID: 30458692 DOI: 10.1177/0961203318812676
    BACKGROUND: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease which predominantly affects females. The disease characteristics in male SLE patients are reported to be distinct and may vary across ethnicities and geographical regions.

    OBJECTIVE: To determine and compare the clinical phenotype and organ damage between male and female patients with SLE in Malaysia.

    METHODOLOGY: This was a cross-sectional study involving SLE patients from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre from June 2016 until June 2017. Information on their socio-demographics and disease characteristics were obtained from the clinical records. Disease damage was assessed using the Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics/American College of Rheumatology (SLICC/ACR) damage index (SDI) scores. The disease characteristics, autoantibody profiles and organ damage were compared between male and female patients, and multivariable analysis using male sex as dependent variable was then performed.

    RESULTS: A total of 418 patients were recruited and a total of 59 (14.1%) patients were male. Male patients presented with lower SLE ACR criteria at initial presentation but a significantly higher number of them had renal involvement (lupus nephritis) (78.0% versus 63.8%, p = 0.04). Male patients had less musculoskeletal involvement (45.8% versus 63.0%, p = 0.02) and tended to have lesser mucocutaneous involvement. Immunologic profile revealed that a lower number of male patients had positive anti-Ro antibody (22.7% versus 44.7%, p = 0.04) and they tended to have positive lupus anticoagulant antibody (27.6% versus 14.3%, p = 0.06). Presence of organ damage (SDI score ≥ 1) was significantly higher among males (55.9% versus 39.6%, p = 0.02) with higher renal damage (25.4% versus 9.2%, p = 0.004) and cardiovascular event of ischaemic heart disease or stroke (20.3% versus 7.0%, p = 0.004). They were also inclined to develop damage much earlier as compared to female patients, 3 (interquartile range (IQR) 7.5) versus 5 (IQR 7) years, p = 0.08. The occurrence of disease damage was independently associated with male gender with odds ratio of 1.9 (95% confidence interval 1.1-3.5), p = 0.02.

    CONCLUSION: Male patients with SLE have more severe disease with renal damage and cardiovascular event.

  11. Thanaskody K, Jusop AS, Tye GJ, Wan Kamarul Zaman WS, Dass SA, Nordin F
    Front Cell Dev Biol, 2022;10:1005926.
    PMID: 36407112 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2022.1005926
    Over the past 2 decades, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have attracted a lot of interest as a unique therapeutic approach for a variety of diseases. MSCs are capable of self-renewal and multilineage differentiation capacity, immunomodulatory, and anti-inflammatory properties allowing it to play a role in regenerative medicine. Furthermore, MSCs are low in tumorigenicity and immune privileged, which permits the use of allogeneic MSCs for therapies that eliminate the need to collect MSCs directly from patients. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) can be generated from adult cells through gene reprogramming with ectopic expression of specific pluripotency factors. Advancement in iPS technology avoids the destruction of embryos to make pluripotent cells, making it free of ethical concerns. iPSCs can self-renew and develop into a plethora of specialized cells making it a useful resource for regenerative medicine as they may be created from any human source. MSCs have also been used to treat individuals infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus. MSCs have undergone more clinical trials than iPSCs due to high tumorigenicity, which can trigger oncogenic transformation. In this review, we discussed the overview of mesenchymal stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells. We briefly present therapeutic approaches and COVID-19-related diseases using MSCs and iPSCs.
  12. Raman N, Imran SAM, Ahmad Amin Noordin KB, Wan Kamarul Zaman WS, Nordin F
    Heliyon, 2022 Nov;8(11):e11624.
    PMID: 36425431 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e11624
    Cardiac muscle cells have an innate capacity to perceive and react to mechanical strain via a mechanism known as mechanotransduction, whereby the cardiac muscle cells are intrinsically capable of sensing and responding to mechanical strain. This process occurs in the heart when mechanical inputs are converted to biochemical processes that result in myocardial structure and function changes. Mechanotransduction and its downstream effects work as compensatory mechanisms during early load adaptation. However, prolonged, and aberrant loading may cause maladaptive remodeling, resulting in altered physiological function, pathological cardiac hypertrophy, and heart failure. The rapid advancement of stem cell research has raised the hopes of both patients and clinicians. Mesenchymal progenitors have become one of the most intriguing possibilities for treating illnesses ranging from cartilage abnormalities to heart issues. Their immunomodulatory properties have also allowed for allogenic usage, besides expanding their potential for cardiomyocyte applications. In the present review, we highlighted mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in cardiovascular mechanotransduction, differentiation of cardiomyocytes and the use of MSCs in cardiovascular disease and tissue engineering.
  13. Loke XY, Imran SAM, Tye GJ, Wan Kamarul Zaman WS, Nordin F
    Int J Mol Sci, 2021 Nov 17;22(22).
    PMID: 34830303 DOI: 10.3390/ijms222212421
    The rapid mutation of the SARS-CoV-2 virus is now a major concern with no effective drugs and treatments. The severity of the disease is linked to the induction of a cytokine storm that promotes extensive inflammation in the lung, leading to many acute lung injuries, pulmonary edema, and eventually death. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) might prove to be a treatment option as they have immunomodulation and regenerative properties. Clinical trials utilizing MSCs in treating acute lung injury (ALI) or acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) have provided a basis in treating post-COVID-19 patients. In this review, we discussed the effects of MSCs as an immunomodulator to reduce the severity and death in patients with COVID-19, including the usage of MSCs as an alternative regenerative therapy in post-COVID-19 patients. This review also includes the current clinical trials in utilizing MSCs and their potential future utilization for long-COVID treatments.
  14. Chin DS, Lim CSY, Nordin F, Arifin N, Jun TG
    Curr Pharm Biotechnol, 2022;23(4):552-578.
    PMID: 34414871 DOI: 10.2174/1389201022666210820093608
    BACKGROUND: Natural killer (NK) cells have potent effector functions that can be further improved for therapeutic purposes through antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC). Specific killing of virus-infected cells and cancer cells is modulated through target specific antibodies that subsequently recruit NK cells for ADCC. NK cells produce cytokines similar to activated T cells, but is less persistent as NK cells have short-lived responses. These features benefit the development of customisable and more individualised cell-based therapies.

    OBJECTIVES: Preclinical studies with NK cells were promising and several clinical studies are ongoing to investigate their use in antibody therapies. However, more reliable ADCC assays are required for evaluating NK cell activity to optimise therapeutic antibodies. The therapeutic potential of NK cell therapy could then be improved by harnessing ADCC.

    METHODS: This review discusses recent studies on key components of NK cell-mediated ADCC, current clinical trials involving NK cells, ADCC assay developments and various techniques to improve ADCC.

    RESULTS: Improvements can be made to NK-mediated ADCC through modifications of antibodies, effector cells and target antigens. Different aspects of antibodies were studied extensively, including modifying glycosylation patterns, novel production methods, combination regiments, bispecific antibodies, and conjugated antibodies. Modification of NK cells and tumour surface markers could improve ADCC of even treatment-resistant cancer cells. Additives such as cytokines and other immunomodulatory agents can further augment ADCC to supplement NK cell-based therapies.

    CONCLUSION: ADCC improvements could be incorporated with current biological techniques such as adoptive transfer of NK cells and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) NK cells, to improve the outcome of NK cell-based therapy and pave the way for future immunotherapies.

  15. Wong MTJ, Dhaliwal SS, Balakrishnan V, Nordin F, Norazmi MN, Tye GJ
    PMID: 36674401 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph20021647
    (1) Background: The assessment of vaccine effectiveness against the Omicron variant is vital in the fight against COVID-19, but research on booster vaccine efficacy using nationwide data was lacking at the time of writing. This study investigates the effectiveness of booster doses on the Omicron wave in Malaysia against COVID-19 infections and deaths; (2) Methods: This study uses nationally representative data on COVID-19 from 1 January to 31 March 2022, when the Omicron variant was predominant in Malaysia. Daily new infections, deaths, ICU utilization and Rt values were compared. A screening method was used to predict the vaccine effectiveness against COVID-19 infections, whereas logistic regression was used to estimate vaccine effectiveness against COVID-19-related deaths, with efficacy comparison between AZD1222, BNT162b2 and CoronaVac; (3) Results: Malaysia's Omicron wave started at the end of January 2022, peaking on 5 March 2022. At the time of writing, statistics for daily new deaths, ICU utilization, and effective reproductive values (Rt) were showing a downtrend. Boosted vaccination is 95.4% (95% CI: 95.4, 95.4) effective in curbing COVID-19 infection, compared to non-boosted vaccination, which is 87.2% (95% CI: 87.2, 87.2). For symptomatic infection, boosted vaccination is 97.4% (95% CI: 97.4, 97.4) effective, and a non-boosted vaccination is 90.9% (95% CI: 90.9, 90.9). Against COVID-19-related death, boosted vaccination yields a vaccine effectiveness (VE) of 91.7 (95% CI: 90.6, 92.7) and full vaccination yields a VE of 65.7% (95% CI: 61.9, 69.1). Looking into the different vaccines as boosters, AZD1222 is 95.2% (CI 95%: 92.7, 96.8) effective, BNT162b2 is 91.8% (CI 95%: 90.7, 92.8) effective and CoronaVac is 88.8% (CI 95%: 84.9, 91.7) effective against COVID-19 deaths. (4) Conclusions: Boosters are effective in increasing protection against COVID-19, including the Omicron variant. Given that the VE observed was lower, CoronaVac recipients are encouraged to take boosters due to its lower VE.
  16. Ahmad Sophien AN, Jusop AS, Tye GJ, Tan YF, Wan Kamarul Zaman WS, Nordin F
    Front Med (Lausanne), 2023;10:1195374.
    PMID: 37547615 DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2023.1195374
    The vital role of the intestines as the main site for the digestion and absorption of nutrients for the body continues subconsciously throughout one's lifetime, but underneath all the complex processes lie the intestinal stem cells and the gut microbiota that work together to maintain the intestinal epithelium. Intestinal stem cells (ISC) are multipotent stem cells from which all intestinal epithelial cells originate, and the gut microbiota refers to the abundant collection of various microorganisms that reside in the gastrointestinal tract. Both reside in the intestines and have many mechanisms and pathways in place with the ultimate goal of co-managing human gastrointestinal tract homeostasis. Based on the abundance of research that is focused on either of these two topics, this suggests that there are many methods by which both players affect one another. Therefore, this review aims to address the relationship between ISC and the gut microbiota in the context of regenerative medicine. Understanding the principles behind both aspects is therefore essential in further studies in the field of regenerative medicine by making use of the underlying designed mechanisms.
  17. Jusop AS, Thanaskody K, Tye GJ, Dass SA, Wan Kamarul Zaman WS, Nordin F
    Front Mol Neurosci, 2023;16:1173433.
    PMID: 37602192 DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2023.1173433
    Neurodegenerative diseases are adult-onset neurological conditions that are notoriously difficult to model for drug discovery and development because most models are unable to accurately recapitulate pathology in disease-relevant cells, making it extremely difficult to explore the potential mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative diseases. Therefore, alternative models of human or animal cells have been developed to bridge the gap and allow the impact of new therapeutic strategies to be anticipated more accurately by trying to mimic neuronal and glial cell interactions and many more mechanisms. In tandem with the emergence of human-induced pluripotent stem cells which were first generated in 2007, the accessibility to human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC) derived from patients can be differentiated into disease-relevant neurons, providing an unrivaled platform for in vitro modeling, drug testing, and therapeutic strategy development. The recent development of three-dimensional (3D) brain organoids derived from iPSCs as the best alternative models for the study of the pathological features of neurodegenerative diseases. This review highlights the overview of current iPSC-based disease modeling and recent advances in the development of iPSC models that incorporate neurodegenerative diseases. In addition, a summary of the existing brain organoid-based disease modeling of Alzheimer's disease was presented. We have also discussed the current methodologies of regional specific brain organoids modeled, its potential applications, emphasizing brain organoids as a promising platform for the modeling of patient-specific diseases, the development of personalized therapies, and contributing to the design of ongoing or future clinical trials on organoid technologies.
  18. Dass SA, Balakrishnan V, Arifin N, Lim CSY, Nordin F, Tye GJ
    Front Immunol, 2022;13:833715.
    PMID: 35242137 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.833715
    2020 will be marked in history for the dreadful implications of the COVID-19 pandemic that shook the world globally. The pandemic has reshaped the normality of life and affected mankind in the aspects of mental and physical health, financial, economy, growth, and development. The focus shift to COVID-19 has indirectly impacted an existing air-borne disease, Tuberculosis. In addition to the decrease in TB diagnosis, the emergence of the TB/COVID-19 syndemic and its serious implications (possible reactivation of latent TB post-COVID-19, aggravation of an existing active TB condition, or escalation of the severity of a COVID-19 during TB-COVID-19 coinfection), serve as primary reasons to equally prioritize TB. On a different note, the valuable lessons learnt for the COVID-19 pandemic provide useful knowledge for enhancing TB diagnostics and therapeutics. In this review, the crucial need to focus on TB amid the COVID-19 pandemic has been discussed. Besides, a general comparison between COVID-19 and TB in the aspects of pathogenesis, diagnostics, symptoms, and treatment options with importance given to antibody therapy were presented. Lastly, the lessons learnt from the COVID-19 pandemic and how it is applicable to enhance the antibody-based immunotherapy for TB have been presented.
  19. Noor Azlan NAB, Vitus V, Nor Rashid N, Nordin F, Tye GJ, Wan Kamarul Zaman WS
    Cell Tissue Res, 2024 Mar;395(3):227-250.
    PMID: 38244032 DOI: 10.1007/s00441-023-03857-4
    The promising field of regenerative medicine is thrilling as it can repair and restore organs for various debilitating diseases. Mesenchymal stem cells are one of the main components in regenerative medicine that work through the release of secretomes. By adopting the use of the secretome in cell-free-based therapy, we may be able to address the challenges faced in cell-based therapy. As one of the components of cell-free-based therapy, secretome has the advantage of a better safety and efficacy profile than mesenchymal stem cells. However, secretome has its challenges that need to be addressed, such as its bioprocessing methods that may impact the secretome content and its mechanisms of action in clinical settings. Effective and standardization of bioprocessing protocols are important to ensure the supply and sustainability of secretomes for clinical applications. This may eventually impact its commercialization and marketability. In this review, the bioprocessing methods and their impacts on the secretome profile and treatment are discussed. This improves understanding of its fundamental aspects leading to potential clinical applications.
  20. Tee GH, Hairi NN, Nordin F, Choo WY, Chan YY, Kaur G, et al.
    Asian Pac J Cancer Prev, 2015;16(9):3659-65.
    PMID: 25987018
    BACKGROUND: Waterpipe tobacco smoking has becoming popular especially among young people worldwide. Smokers are attracted by its sweeter, smoother smoke, social ambience and the misconception of reduced harm. The objective of this study was to systematically review the effects of waterpipe tobacco policies and practices in reducing its prevalence.

    MATERIALS AND METHODS: A systematic review was conducted electronically using the PubMed, OVID, Science Direct, Proquest and Embase databases. All possible studies from 1980 to 2013 were initially screened based on titles and abstracts. The selected articles were subjected to data extraction and quality rating.

    RESULTS: Three studies met the inclusion criteria and were eligible for this review. Almost all of the waterpipe tobacco products and its accessories did not comply with the regulations on health warning labelling practices as stipulated under Article 11 of WHO FCTC. In addition, the grisly new warning labels for cigarettes introduced by Food and Drug Administration did not affect hookah tobacco smoking generally. Indoor air quality in smoking lounges was found to be poor and some hookah lounges were operated without smoke shop certification.

    CONCLUSIONS: Our findings revealed the availability of minimal information on the practices in controlling waterpipe smoking in reducing its prevalence. The lack of comprehensive legislations or practices in controlling waterpipe smoking warrants further research and policy initiatives to curb this burgeoning global epidemic, especially among the vulnerable younger population.
Related Terms
Filters
Contact Us

Please provide feedback to Administrator (afdal@afpm.org.my)

External Links