Intermittent EGFR-TKI Therapy is Associated with Durable Response in Advanced EGFR-Mutant NSCLC: A Case Report

@#Madam S, who diagnosed to have stage IV lung adenocarcinoma with exon 21 L858R point mutation (T3N2M1a) was admitted for massive pericardial effusion in April 2016. She was ECOG 4 on admission. Her ECOG improved to 1 after pericardial tapping and initiation of free sample erlotinib 100 mg daily. Repeated CT thorax post treatment showed the disease was partial responded. Due to financial constraints, she had never bought any EGFR-TKI. She was given a free sample of erlotinib intermittently for total of 12 months followed by intermittent afatinib supply for 2 years. Due to this limited supply, she took half doses of afatinib by cutting a 40 mg tablet once every few days to sustain the continuation of cancer treatment. No major side effects were observed and she remained ECOG 0 with good weight gain. Up to her last clinic visit in September 2021, her PFS was more than 5 years. Intermittent doses of EGFR-TKI may prolong PFS in patients with advanced EGFRm+ NSCLC who has limited treatment options.

Development of a plant-based culinary nutrition model for sports science students

@#Introduction: Food and fitness levels are key factors required to maintain functional life. Hence, nutrition education is crucial in spreading awareness among Sports Science students. There is a paucity of plant-based nutrition knowledge and plantbased culinary skills for fitness locally. Therefore, this study aimed to develop a valid Plant-Based Culinary Nutrition Model (PBCNM) with nutrition knowledge and basic culinary skills to improve fitness among Sports Science students. Methods: This exploratory sequential mixed method study consisted of 2 phases. In Phase 1, a three-round modified Delphi method was conducted with 13 experts to generate a questionnaire that was validated. Lawshe worksheet determined the content validity ratio (CVR) for an item. Content validity index (CVI) for each section and the overall instrument was calculated. In Phase 2, quantitative data collection and analysis addressed the research questions and research gaps leading to model development. A total of 271 undergraduate Sports Science students at higher learning institutions were recruited as respondents. Results: In Phase 1, CVR of the overall survey was 1.0 and CVI was 0.834. Subsequently, the questionnaire was pilot tested for reliability and a Cronbach’s alpha score of 0.836 was obtained for the overall questionnaire. In Phase 2, the respondents’ mean and standard deviation score for the model’s components and needs was 4.21±0.73 for items 1-15. The integration of experts’ perspectives on the need of PBCNM for fitness and feedback from respondents resulted in the development of PBCNM. Conclusion: This study highlighted PBCNM as a helpful guideline for better fitness management.

Application of Proteomics in Alzheimer’s Disease: A Mini Review

@#Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is classified as one of neurodegenerative disease caused by neuronal death. It is characterized as memory impairment, including the inability to produce new memories. Since AD has low treatment effectiveness, proteomics research opens possibilities for advancement. Proteomics is the study of proteomes produced by the disease-bearing host to identify and understand diseases. In this case, to investigate the use of protein as a reliable molecular entity and their involvement in AD. Therefore, this review focused on three main applications of proteomics; the potential use of proteomics as a diagnostic tool for AD, the use of proteomics to assess the treatment progression of AD and the advancement in AD research. The review discussed three research areas utilizing the proteomics approach: ageing, behavioural, and demographic research of AD populations. Proteomic approaches have also been shown to be effective to discover the biomarkers for infectious diseases, cancers, heart diseases, and neurological disorders. Although much work remained to be done, the proteomics approach is an interesting method to be carried out in detecting AD at an earlier stage and will be very useful for AD treatment and management in the future.

Periosteum: Functional Anatomy and Clinical Application

@#Periosteum is a connective tissue that envelopes the outer surface of bones and is tightly bound to the underlying bone by Sharpey’s fibers. It is composed of two layers, the outer fibrous layer and the inner cambium layer. The periosteum is densely vascularised and contains an osteoprogenitor niche that serves as a repository for bone-forming cells, which makes it an essential bone-regenerating tissue and has immensely contributed to fracture healing. Due to the high vascularity of inner cambium layer of the periosteum, periosteal transplantation has been widely used in the management of bone defects and fracture by orthopedic surgeons. Nevertheless, the use of periosteal graft in the management of bone defect is limited due to its contracted nature after being harvested. This review summarizes the current state of knowledge about the structure of periosteum, and how periosteal transplantation have been used in clinical practices, with special reference on its expansion.

Household income, frequency of purchasing outside meals, eating behaviour and body mass index status among undergraduate students during first phase of COVID-19 lockdown

@#Introduction: COVID-19 lockdown has changed the eating behaviours of people, which could affect their body mass index (BMI). These changes affected meal purchasing habits of university students, depending on their household income. Thus, the current study aimed to investigate the association between eating behaviour, household income, frequency of purchasing outside meals with BMI among undergraduate students. Methods: This was a retrospective cross-sectional study conducted among 112 undergraduate students. Subjects recalled information during the first phase of COVID-19 lockdown, which was from March 2020 till July 2020. Questionnaire consisted of socio-demography, anthropometry, frequency of purchasing outside meals, and eating behaviour using the Malay version Dutch Eating Behaviour Questionnaire (DEBQ). Results: About 64.3% of subjects reported purchasing outside meals 1-2 times per week. Higher restrained eating behaviour score was correlated with purchasing outside meals about 3-4 times and >4 times a week. Normal weight students had significantly higher restrained eating behaviour score [3.0(1.1)] than those in the obese group [2.9(1.1)]. Household income had no association with frequency of purchasing outside meals. Conclusion: Eating behaviour affected BMI and the frequency of purchasing outside meals during COVID-19 lockdown. COVID-19 lockdown has resulted in tremendous changes in the eating behaviour and physical activity pattern of university students. Future studies should focus on increasing the nutrition knowledge of university students, especially on the aspect of eating out.

Effect of symbiotic bee fungus on survival of stingless bee Heterotrigona itama larvae

Aims@#Symbiotic bee fungus associated with the stingless bee larval food has been revealed to play a major role in performing a mutual relationship with the host. The fungus is believed capable to produce crucial nutrients that are required for larval pupation. However, detailed information on the fungus identification isolated from the larval food of our native Indo-Malaya stingless bee, Heterotrigona itama (Hymenoptera: Apidae), is poorly understood. Hence, this study was conducted to determine the effect of fungus isolated from the stingless bee larval food on the survival of H. itama larvae and identify the isolated fungus using both morphological and molecular analyses.@*Methodology and results@#Elisa plates designed with F-bottom type were used as artificial brood cells in a controlled condition. The eggs transferred to Elisa plates were kept in the incubator with 75%-100% humidity and 25 ± 2.5 °C of temperature. This study carried out in three different treatments: (1) microbes-free larval food, (2) fresh larval food and (3) microbes-free larval food with fungus supplement. Results showed that the survival of H. itama larvae depends on the presence of beneficial fungus with the highest survival rate (Treatment 2 = 85.71%). The absence of the beneficial fungus in the fluid food of H. itama showed the lowest survival rate (Treatment 1 = 37.14%). Microscopy analysis showed that the fungus had various forms, including unconjugated asci, round-shaped ascospore and pseudohyphae. The molecular characterisation of the isolated fungi was performed using 23S rRNA gene sequencing using universal primers ITS1 and ITS4. DNA barcoding of three isolated fungi confirmed all isolated fungi matched Panus lecomtei (Basidiomycetes; Poriales; Polyporaceae) with 99.70% of similarity.@*Conclusion, significance and impact of study@#This study provides information on the importance of whitish fungus in appearance that existed in the brood cell, which is proposed to be the crucial component of in-vitro stingless bee queen rearing protocol.

Validity and reliability of plant-based culinary nutrition model questionnaire for fitness among sports science students

@#Introduction: There is an emerging focus on plant-based foods that have the added advantage of being nutritious without side effects. Besides, its preparation with nutritional awareness and culinary skills could be an effective solution for improving personal fitness. This study aimed to determine validity and reliability of a questionnaire for the development of a plant-based culinary nutrition model for fitness among sports science students. Methods: This study employed exploratory sequential mixed method design and was carried out in two phases. Phase 1 employed a qualitative design utilising modified Delphi method to determine content validity index (CVI) of the questionnaire, while phase 2 was a quantitative design using Cronbach’s alpha statistical analysis to evaluate reliability of the instrument. The questionnaire consisted of the need for plant-based culinary nutrition model (Section A) and the model’s components (Section B). Thirteen expert panels from diverse expertise in sports nutrition and 30 sports science students took part. Results: Phase 1 resulted in development of a questionnaire where Section A and Section B scored CVI of 0.834 and 1.000, respectively. For phase 2, Cronbach’s alpha score for reliability of the questionnaire was 0.836 with a total of 15 items. The Cronbach’s alpha score for questionnaire items from Sections A and B were 0.709 and 0.832, respectively. Conclusion: The questionnaire developed in this study is validated and is considered reliable for use as a significant tool for plantbased culinary nutrition among sports science students.

Work-related Quality of Life and Its Associated Factors Among House Officers Working at Two Hospitals in Selangor

@#Introduction: Mental health-related problems are on the rise among medical doctors, with many house officers (HOs) have quitted training prematurely owing to work and life-related factors. However, the quality of work-life (QOWL) among Malaysian HOs remains unknown. Hence, we aimed to determine the mean score of QOWL and its predictors among HOs working at two tertiary hospitals. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study conducted at two tertiary hospitals in Selangor, between May and August 2019. A stratified random sampling was employed. The Malay version of work-related quality of life scale (M-WRQLS-2) and the patient health questionnaire (M-PHQ-9) were used for data collection. Statistical analysis was performed using the SPSS version 23.0 (IBM, Chicago, IL). Results: A total of 260 (72.9%) respondents completed the questionnaires. The overall score of QOWL was 3.05 ± 0.48 (95% CI: 2.99, 3.11). Depressed HOs had a significantly lower mean score across all subscales (p < 0.005) except for the stress at work (SAW) subscale. Two predictors were inversely associated with QOWL. These were the M-PHQ-9 score [β= -0.049,95% CI: -0.06, -0.04] and being female [β=-0.129,95% CI: -0.24, -0.02]. Conclusion: HOs who worked at the two hospitals in Selangor perceived their overall QOWL as average. However, being female and having depression were found to be associated with lower QOWL. Therefore, early interventions targeting female HOs and those with depressive symptoms are warranted. Further research and strategies aiming to improve the overall quality of work-life and its dimensions for HOs during housemanship training are vital.

Association of Temperature and Rainfall with Aedes Mosquito Population in 17th College of Universiti Putra Malaysia

@#Introduction: Dengue is an arboviral disease affecting many tropical and subtropical regions. Statistics in Malaysia show that a cumulative of 57,627 number of DF cases with 94 cumulative number of deaths have occurred until July 8th 2020. Weather affects Aedes mosquito population and dengue incidence through the breeding behaviour of mosquitoes. This study aims to evaluate the association of temperature and rainfall with Aedes mosquito population in the 17th College, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) and also to evaluate the accuracy of mobile ‘AedesTech’ automated counting application. Methods: Aedes Mosquito Home system (AMHS) were placed at each level of Block A, B, C and D of 17th College, UPM. The eggs laid by Aedes mosquito on the tissues inside the ovitrap were counted manually and via ‘AedesTech’ automated counting application. Monthly temperature and rainfall data from November 2018 until April 2019 were obtained from Malaysian Meteorological Department. Results: Temperature was inversely correlated to Aedes mosquito eggs count and ovitrap index. Rainfall was directly correlated to Aedes population as the number of mosquito eggs and ovitrap index were high in months recording high rainfall. The number of eggs count from ‘AedesTech’ Mobile App Version 5.9 (M=143) was significantly higher than the numbers from manual counting (M=35) indicating the ‘AedesTech’ auto-count is inaccurate. Conclusion: Temperature and rainfall have an influence on the Aedes mosquito population in the 17th College, UPM. The ‘AedesTech’ Mobile App Version 5.9 has low accuracy and therefore needs to be upgraded.

Quantification of Muscle Metabolites Using Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (1 H-MRS) for Incomplete Spinal Cord Injury Patients: Preliminary Study

@#Introduction: This preliminary study aimed to non-invasively evaluate choline (CHO), creatine (Cr) and intramyocellular lipid (IMCL) metabolites in skeletal muscles at pre- and post-functional electrical stimulation (FES) exercise among incomplete spinal cord injury (SCI) of American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale (ASIA-AIS) D patients using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy or 1 H-MRS. Methods: These metabolites were measured from the vastus lateralis and semitendinosus muscles of three incomplete SCI ASIA-AIS D patients who completed the FES exercise and later underwent 3 Tesla (T) MRI (repetition time/echo time; TR/TE of 3500ms/100ms, field-ofview; FOV of 20cm, slice thickness of 6mm) and 1 H-MRS (TR/TE of 2000ms/31ms, voxel size of 20mm x 20mm x 35mm). Results: Out of those selected metabolites, only CHO value of vastus lateralis showed a statistically significant difference between pre- and post FES exercise 1 H-MRS scanning (p = 0.01). Conclusion: Therefore, this preliminary finding has postulated that the quantification of muscle metabolites using 1 H-MRS imaging could be used as a potential indicator in evaluating the muscle strength for incomplete SCI ASIA-AIS D patients after the completion of FES cycling exercise.

Evaluation of beak and feather disease virus, avian polyomavirus and avian papillomavirus of captives psittacine birds in Seri Kembangan, Selangor, Malaysia

Aims@#Psittacine birds such as parrots, macaws, cockatoos, lovebirds and parakeets, are widely reared as household pets or at aviary due to their attractive features. However, the status of virus-causing diseases of psittacine species in Malaysia is fairly under-documented. Therefore, this study was aimed to detect the presence of three common avian viruses that infect psittacine birds, i.e. beak and feather disease virus (BFDV), avian polyomavirus and avian papillomavirus. @*Methodology and results@#Faecal samples from twelve asymptomatic captive psittacine birds of different species were collected from an undisclosed animal garden in Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia. Briefly, the sample was homogenised and resuspended with SM buffer with the ratio 1:1 (weight of sample/g: volume of SM buffer/mL) before centrifugation at 1,000 × g for 20 min. The supernatant was collected and filtered before subjected to genomic DNA extraction using a commercialised kit. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique was used to screen the V1, VP1 and L1 genes of beak and feather disease virus (BFDV), avian polyomavirus and avian papillomavirus, respectively. Findings revealed that the samples were negative for BFDV and avian polyomavirus. However, positive results of 1.5 kbp PCR amplicon were detected for avian papillomavirus in four out of the 12 samples (33.33%), which was from the white-crested cockatoo, African grey parrot, yellow-collared macaw and Senegal parrot. Sequence analysis of the L1 gene from the Senegal parrot Poicephalus senegalus revealed 93% identity to a reference Psittacus erithacus timneh avian papillomavirus.@*Conclusion, significance and impact of study@#This study added to the limited prevalence data of three important avian viruses which infect captive psittacines in Seri Kembangan, Selangor, Malaysia. Avian papillomavirus, but not BFDV and avian polyomavirus, was detected in the collected captive psittacine birds. Therefore, a routine screening can be performed to monitor the health status of birds despite their asymptomatic manifestation, in order to prevent possible virus transmission.

The use of emergency contraception among female senior high students in the Ho municipality of the Volta Region, Ghana

Background: Emergency contraception (EC) is one option for preventing unplanned pregnancy when it is available and properly used. Unsafe abortions are responsible for nearly one third of maternal deaths in sub-Saharan Africa and about quarter of unsafe abortions are among teenagers.Methods: A quantitative descriptive cross-sectional study. Data was collected using a pretested questionnaire. 260 senior high students were selected using a systematic sampling method in the Volta Region, Ghana. Data were cleaned and entered into SPSS version 22 and analysed into descriptive statistics.Results: Respondents acquired awareness about EC from friends (36.9%), family members (5.6%) and the mass media (41.6%). The required time for EC to be taken were stated as immediately after sex (57.9%), 24 hours after sex (1.2%) and (30.6%) did not know. 28.4% of participants indicated they would not use EC in the future as their faith was against it, 18.0% believed EC is ineffective and 24.9% consider it dangerous to their health. Reasons for use of EC included condom slipped (35.7%), inability to be on daily pill (33.7%), forced unprotected sex (8.2%) and miscalculation of the safe menstrual period (22.4%). There was a significant relationship between age and history of use of EC (p=0.000, c2=8.128, n=260).Conclusions: Strengthening education in Senior High Schools on sexual and reproductive health, with special emphasis on emergency contraceptives as a pregnancy preventive procedure will remain imperative to reducing the canker of maternal mortality attributed to adolescent abortions while improving understanding of the appropriate use of EC.

Knowledge of pregnant women on the factors that influence anaemia in pregnancy in a rural farming district of the Western Region of Ghana

Background: The presence of anaemia in pregnancy is one of the serious public health concerns across the globe especially in developing countries like Ghana. This study assessed pregnant women's knowledge on factors influencing aneamia in pregnancy in a low-income district of Ghana.Methods: A quantitative descriptive cross-sectional study. Data was collected using a pretested questionnaire. 112 pregnant women seeking antenatal care were recruited using systematic sampling technique in the Wassa East district of Ghana. Data were cleaned and entered into SPSS version 22 and analysed into descriptive statistics.Results: Majority of participants; 72.3% did not know the causes of anaemia in pregnancy. Pregnant women (27.7%) indicated nutritional deficiency as a common cause of anaemia; 18.7% of them could identify appropriately at least one sign of anaemia in pregnancy with 28% asserting that pregnancy-related anaemia can affect labour, despite 72% indicating that anaemia could cause maternal mortality. The reasons for irregular ANC attendance included; perceived non importance of ANC (18.8%), financial difficulties (17.9%), health facility inaccessibility (18.8%) and time constraints (44.5%). There was a strong association between knowledge level on the cause of anaemia in pregnancy and the educational level of pregnant women (p=0.005 chi square = 50.289).Conclusions: Lack of knowledge on the importance of antenatal care and financial constraints were among the reasons leading to a surge in anaemia amongst pregnant women in the district. Health providers should incorporate services which enable pregnant women to access valuable information on anaemia prevention in pregnancy.

Students’ Reasoning Achievement Based On Net And Wall Category In Physical Education

Background: Reasoning refers to logical thinking involving problem-solving and decision-making skills. Physical Education teachers need to manage teaching and learning processes efficiently to build reasoning ability among students. The purpose of this study was to identify the students’ reasoning achievement level based on the net and wall category using RSAT in Physical Education. Methods: A quasi-experimental design was used in this study in four schools in the district of Hilir Perak, Perak. The sample of the study consisted of 240 Form 2 students who used RSAT instrument (validity, r = .78; reliability, r = .74) in the pre-test and post-test. The treatment group underwent teaching and learning programs based on the net and wall TGfU model while the control group underwent the badminton technical model. The subjects of the control group received six teaching and learning sessions based on the plans provided. Results: The pre-test result of treatment group showed overall (M = 2.21; SD = 0.30) compared to the control group (M = 2.18; SD = 0.43). The students of the treatment group (M = 3.64; SD = 0.67) showed higher mean score compared to control group (M = 2.88; SD = 0.82) in post-test. The achievement level of the treatment group students showed that the majority of respondents achieved good level (n = 85; 60.70%) while the control group achieved pass level (n = 62; 44.30%). Conclusion: The study concluded that the use of RSAT could improve the reasoning level among students holistically and comprehensively. The implication of the study suggested an RSAT instrument to be used as an alternative instrument for determining the level of the learning domain based on reasoning to achieve higher-order thinking skills.

Staff Reflection on the Effectiveness of Whatsapp Usage for Organizational Communication: a Study in a Private Malaysian Medical School

@#Introduction: Recently mobile communication technology had tremendous advances and became the priority for most of the users with some opponent opinions that highlight the accountability and the privacy issues in using these messaging applications. WhatsApp is scored to be the first top used messaging application worldwide that is used in 180 countries by about 1.5 billion population. This research aims to determine the staff reflections regarding the WhatsApp usage for organizational communication. Methods: This study is implied among the staff at the medical and health life science cluster, Management and Science University (MSU), Malaysia. A questionnaire was distributed to all the staff through an online google form. Responses were analysed by the ‘Statistical Package for Social Sciences’ (SPSS) Version 24.0. Results: Results showed that all the staff responded (100%) are using WhatsApp for organizational communication with variable degrees of satisfaction; 8.1% are extremely satisfied, 61.3 % are satisfied, 12.9% are not satisfied and 16.1 % are extremely not satisfied. Their level of satisfaction is significantly affected by the respondent’s age, benefit of usage, and the time of messaging. Conclusion: To ensure effectiveness of communication through WhatsApp, it should be through official groups and the organization should put specific announced rules for the time of usage and the content of messages to be posted to all members.

Associations of Father’s Breastfeeding Attitude and Support With the Duration of Exclusive Breastfeeding Among First-time Mothers

@#Introduction: Initiating and sustaining breastfeeding are influence by many factors including involvement, attitude and support from the partner. Research on breastfeeding mostly investigate maternal factors, although the father’s behaviour and role may influence the success of breastfeeding. Hence, this study aimed to determine the associations of father’s attitude and support with the duration of exclusive breastfeeding new parents. Methods: The study involved 104 new parents in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, recruited at three randomly selected antenatal clinics using purposive sampling. Fathers’ breastfeeding attitude was measured using Iowa-Infant-Feeding-Attitude-Scale, whereas paternal support using Subjective Norms and Paternal-Breastfeeding-Influence-Scale questionnaires. Mothers were asked about breastfeeding practice. Results: Exclusive breastfeeding duration rates at six months was 27.9%. The average score for paternal attitude on breastfeeding was 61.0 ±6.3, indicating father’s positive attitude towards breastfeeding. The mean score of paternal breastfeeding supports for subjective norms surrounding breastfeeding and overall support score were 4.3+0.6 and 4.06+0.6, respectively, demonstrating frequent paternal engaging and support in breastfeeding. Duration of exclusive breastfeeding were positively associated with the paternal attitude (β=0.235, p=0.027) and overall mean score for breastfeeding support (β=2.166, p=0.028), but negatively associated with support strategies score (β= -2.203, p=0.026). Conclusion: Overall, paternal support and positive attitude were associated with breastfeeding duration. It is important to increase public awareness on the important roles of fathers during the breastfeeding process such as emphasizing the husband’s role in supporting their wives to breastfeed, as well as the importance of paternal role in caring the baby, especially among new couples.

Clinical assessment and grading of back pain in horses

Background@#The clinical presentation of horses with back pain (BP) vary considerably with most horse's willingness to take part in athletic or riding purpose becoming impossible.However, there are some clinical features that are directly responsible for the loss or failure of performance. @*Objectives@#To investigate the clinical features of the thoracolumbar region associated with BP in horses and to use some of the clinical features to classify equine BP. @*Methods@#Twenty-four horses comprised of 14 with BP and 10 apparently healthy horses were assessed for clinical abnormality that best differentiate BP from normal horses. The horses were then graded (0–5) using the degree of pain response, muscular hypertonicity, thoracolumbar joint stiffness and overall physical dysfunction of the horse. @*Results@#The common clinical features that significantly differentiate horses with BP from non-BP were longissimus dorsi spasm at palpation (78.6%), paravertebral muscle stiffness (64.3%), resist lateral bending (64.3%), and poor hindlimb impulsion (85.7%). There were significantly (p < 0.05) higher scores for pain response to palpation, muscular hypertonicity, thoracolumbar joint stiffness and physical dysfunction among horses with BP in relation to non-BP. A significant relationship exists between all the graded abnormalities. Based on the cumulative score, horses with BP were categorized into mild, mild-moderate, moderate and severe cases. @*Conclusions@#BP in horse can be differentiated by severity of pain response to back palpation, back muscle hypertonicity, thoracolumbar joint stiffness, physical dysfunctions and their cumulative grading score is useful in the assessment and categorization of BP in horses.

Computational Prediction of miR130a Target Genes in Cancer

@#Introduction: Cancer is one of the main causes of mortality globally and the incidence has been rising over the years. Studies have shown that miRNAs have the potential as cancer biomarkers. The miR-130a has been reported to be upregulated in several types of cancer, which indicate the important roles of miR-130a in cancer development and metastasis. The aim of this study is to identify potential target genes and to predict the regulatory function of miR130a-3p and 5p in cancer. Methods: Three bioinformatics platforms namely miRWalk, the Database for annotations, visualization and integrated discovery (DAVID) Gene Functional Classification Tool and miRanda-miRSVR analysis tools were used to identify possible interaction between miR-130a and its target. Protein-protein interaction (PPI) network for the predicted target genes was then constructed. Results: The analyses have identified nine predicted target genes for miR-130a-3p (RAPGEF4, SOS2, NRP1, RPS6KB1, MET, IL15, ACVR1, RYR2 and ITPR1), and ten for miR-130a-5p (BCL11A, SPOPL, NLK, PPARGC1A, POU4F2, CPEB4, ST18, RSBN1L, ELF5 and ARID4B), that might play an important role in the development of cancer. Findings from this report suggest that miR-130a may involves in controlling cancer related genes; MET, ACVR1 and BCL11A. miR-130a-3p may regulates MET which involves in apoptosis and metastasis, and ACVR1 which involves in metastasis and angiogenesis. miR-130a-5p may regulates BCL11A which involves in apoptosis, proliferation and tumorigenesis. Conclusion: This study has highlighted the molecular interaction of miR-130a with associated genes and pathways, suggesting therapeutic potential of miR130a as personalised targeted therapy for cancer.

Sociodemographic Factors as Determinants of Fruit and Vegetable Consumption in Malaysia (Faktor Sociodemografi Sebagai Penentu Pengambilan Buah-Buahan dan Sayur-Sayuran Di Malaysia) / Jurnal Sains Kesihatan Malaysia

@#The present study examines the factors affecting fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption in Malaysia. A nationally representative data that consists of a large sample size is used. Hence, the findings can provide inferential information. The present study uses secondary data from the Malaysian Household Expenditure Survey 2009/2010. The survey was carried out using a two-stage stratified sampling. The first stage was based on Enumeration Blocks, while the second stage was based on Living Quarters. A lognormal hurdle model is used to estimate the consumption decision and amount decision of FV across ethnic groups. The results suggest that household size, income, gender, marital status, age and education play significant roles in FV consumption. The probability of consuming FV and amount spent increase with household size (p<0.05). Higher income earners are more likely to consume FV than lower income earners (p<0.05). Being male (p<0.05) and unmarried (p<0.05) seem to reduce the consumption likelihood and amount spent. Compared to younger household heads, older household heads have a higher tendency to consume FV (p<0.05). In terms of policy implication, an intervention measure directed toward increasing FV consumption should focus particularly on those who are associated with low FV consumption. In conclusion, household heads’ sociodemographic and household characteristics are important in determining consumption decision and amount decision of FV among Malaysian households.