Geological Studies to Support the Tourism Site: A Case Study in the <i>Rafflesia</i>Trail, Near Kampung Jedip, Lojing Highlands, Kelantan, Malaysia

Some geological studies were performed in the Rafflesia Trail, near Kampung Jedip, in Lojing Highlands, Kelantan. This area is famous for its Rafflesia and has become one of the tourism attractions in Kelantan. However, the recent development of agricultural activities has significant effects on the area. The objective of these studies is to give substantial geological information including geomorphology, lithology, structural features, geohazard potentials, and water quality analysis in the study area. Desk study was conducted by reviewing some literatures related to the topic and the study area. Field work was organized during a scientific expedition in January 2014, to collect data, samples, and photographs. Geomorphologically, the study area is a mountainous area which mostly consists of mountain ridges and mountain valleys. Some fluvial features occur in the study area, such as waterfalls, cascades, rapids, runs, pools, potholes, lateral bars, and point bars. This area is composed of granitic rocks, mostly granite porphyry, and covered by superficial deposits of Quaternary age. The geological structure that is commonly found in the study area is joints, where they divide the rock body into large, roughly angular blocks, which is called as brecciation. The potential geohazard in the study area is landslides, where some of them are composed of soil only and others are mixtures of rock and soil. The water quality analysis has managed to identify that the stream water in this area generally has the quality of Class III (according to INWQS for Malaysia). These studies recommend that this area should be supported as a sustainable tourism site in Lojing Highlands.

Antibiotic Resistance and Heavy Metals Tolerance in Gram-Negative Bacteria from Diseased American Bullfrog (Rana catesbeiana) Cultured in Malaysia

A total of 140 bacterial isolates have been successfully isolated from various organs of diseased American bullfrog （Rana catesbeiana） cultured in Malaysia. The most frequently isolated bacteria was Edwardsiella spp. （46 isolates） followed by Aeromonas spp. （33 isolates）, Flavobacterium spp. （31 isolates）, and Vibrio spp. （30 isolates）. Majority of the bacterial isolates were found sensitive to furazolidone （85.0%）, chloramphenicol （85.0%）, oxolinic acid （90.0%）, florfenicol （95.0%）, and flumequine （97.5%）. On the other hand, most of the bacterial isolates were resistant to oleandomycin （77.5%） and lincomycin （87.5%）. Nitrofurantoin and flumequine can be inhibited the growth of all of Vibrio spp. whereas all isolates of Edwardsiella spp. were found sensitive to florfenicol and flumequine. Multiple antibiotic resistance （MAR） index were in range of 0.30-0.40, indicating that bacterial isolates from cultured bullfrogs may have received high risk exposure to the tested antibiotics. In addition, 90-100% of the isolates were resistant to copper, cadmium, and chromium. These results provided insight information on tolerance level of bacterial isolates from cultured bullfrogs to 21 antibiotics as well as heavy metals.

Predictors of in-hospital mortality by logistic regression analysis among melioidosis patients in Northern Malaysia:A retrospective study

Objective:To identify the predictors of mortality among in-hospital melioidosis patients.Methods:A total of 453 patients in Hospital Sultanah Bahiyah,Kedah,and Hospital Tuanku Fauziah,Perlis with culture-confirmed melioidosis were retrospectively included in the study.Advanced multiple logistic regression was used to obtain the final model of predictors of mortality from melioidosis.The analysis was performed using STATA/SE 14.0.Results:A total of 50.11%(227/453)of the patients died at the hospital,and a majority(86.75%,393/453)of cases were bacteremic.The logistic regression estimated that the bacteremic type of melioidosis,low platelet count,abnormal white blood cell counts,and increased urea value were predictors of mortality.The results showed that bacteremic melioidosis increased the risk of death by 4.39 times(OR 4.39,95%CI 1.83-10.55,P=0.001)compared to non-bacteremic melioidosis.Based on laboratory test,the adjusted ORs from the final model showed that all three blood investigations were included as the associated factors of mortality for the disease[high white blood cell(>10×10^(9)/L):OR 2.43,95%CI1.41-4.17,P<0.001;low white blood cell(<4×10^(9)/L):OR 3.82,95%CI 1.09-13.34,P=0.036;low platelet(<100×10^(9)/L):OR 4.19,95%CI 1.89-9.30,P<0.001;high urea(>7800μmol/L):OR 5.53,95%CI 2.50-12.30,P<0.001;and low level of urea(<2500μmol/L):OR 3.52,95%CI 1.71-7.23,P=0.001].Conclusions:Routine blood investigations during a hospital admission can early identify predictors of mortality in melioidosis patients.

Evaluation of anti-bacterial and anti-oxidant potential of an drographolide and echiodinin isolated from callus culture of Andrographis paniculata Nees

Objective:To evaluate the anti-bacterial and anti-oxidant activity of and rographolide(AND)and echiodinin(ECH)of Andrographis paniculata.Methods:In this study,an attempt has been made to demonstrate the anti-microbial and anti-oxidant activity of isolated AND and ECH by broth micro-dilution method and 2,2-dipheny l-2-picryl-hydrazyl(DPPH)assay,respectively.Structure elucidation was determined by electro-spray ionization-MSD,NMR(1H and13C)and IR spectra.Results:AND was effective against most of the strains tested including Mycobacterium smegmatis,showing broad spectrum of growth inhibition activity with Minimum inhibitory concentration values againstStaphylococcus aureus(100μg/mL),Streptococcus thermophilus(350μg/mL)Bacillus subtilis(100μg/mL),Escherichia coli(50μg/mL),Mycobacterium smegmatis(200μg/mL),Klebsiella pneumonia(100μg/mL),andPseudomonas aeruginosa(200μg/mL).ECH showed specific anti-bacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus,Escherichia coli,Bacillus subtilis and Pseudomonas aeruginosaat a concentration higher than 225μg/mL.Both AND and ECH were not effective against the two yeast strains,Candida albicansand Saccharomyces cerevisiae tested in this study.Conclusion:This preliminary study showed promising anti-bacterial activity and moderate free radical scavenging activity of AND and ECH,and it may provide the scientific rationale for its popular folklore medicines.

Keladi candik(Alocasia longiloba Miq.) petiole extracts promote wound healing in a full thickness excision wound model in rats

Objective: To investigate the wound-healing effect of Alocasia longiloba(A. longiloba) petiole extract on wounds in rats.Methods: Twenty-two male Sprague-dawley rats were randomly assigned to receive 10% solcoseryl gel, phosphate buffer saline, 50% ethanol, 95% ethanol and hexane extracts of A. longiloba at 1.5%, 3% and 6% doses, respectively. A full thicknesses wound(6 mm) was created on the dorsal of the rat; and all rats were applied with the extract solutions, 10% solcoseryl gel and phosphate buffer saline once a day topically until day 12. The wound was photographed on day 1, 6 and 12, and the percentage of wound contraction was calculated. On day 12, rats were sacrificed and histological examination of granulation tissue was carried out using haematoxylin & eosin and Masson's Trichrome stain to determine the wound healing effect.Results: In this study, 6% of 50% and 95% ethanol extracts of A. longiloba showed 82.50% and 82.32% wound contraction, respectively, and were comparable with 10% solcoseryl gel(82.30%). Meanwhile, phosphate buffer saline treated group showed the lowest wound contraction(69.86%). Histological assessment of wound treated with 6% of 95% ethanol extract of A. longiloba showed distinct epidermal and dermal layer, higher proliferation of fibroblast and more angiogenesis with collagen compared to other wound treated groups.Conclusions: A. longiloba petiole extracts have a wound healing potential and 6% of 95% ethanol extract of A. longiloba is more effective. Further studies are required to understand the wound healing mechanism of action of the extract.

A recent review on phytochemical constituents and medicinal properties of kesum(Polygonum minus Huds.)

Medicinal plants and herbal preparations are gaining renowned interest in scientific communities nowadays due to their reliable pharmacological actions and affordability to common people which makes them effective in control of various diseases.Polygonum minus(Polygonaceae)locally known as kesuni is an aromatic plant commonly used in Malay delicacies.The plant is having potential applications due to its high volatile oil constituents in perfumes and powerful antioxidant activity.It has been used traditionally to treat various ailments including dandruff.The research has been carried out by various researchers using different in vitro and in vivo models for biological evaluations to support these claims.This review paper may help upcoming research activities on Polygonum minus by giving up to date information on the phytochemical constituents and medicinal properties of kesum to a possible extent with relevant data.

Evaluation of the virulence of entomopathogenic fungus, Isaria fumosorosea isolates against subterranean termites Coptotermes spp.(Isoptera:Rhinotermitidae)

The entomopathogenic fungus Isaria fumosorosea Wize, formerly known as Paecilomyces fumosoroseus is reported as a promising biocontrol agent for controlling subterranean termites, particularly those belonging to the family Rhinotermitidae. In Malaysia, the family Rhinotermitidae includes two species of subterranean termites with extremely high economic importance; namely Coptotermes curvignathus Holmgren, and the Asian SLubterranean Termite (Coptotermes gestroi Wasmann). To comprehend the potential control of this soil-dwelling fungus against these subterranean termites in Malaysia, an investigation was carried out by testing the pathogenecity of 11 isolates against these termite species. All isolates showed pathogenic potential against the termite (Mortality rate of C. curvignathus:84.4%; C. gestroi:67.3%). IsolatePF49 was the most effective against both species of termites and was further tested for its virulence and mycosis.The LC_(50) values of PF49 against C. curvignathus and C.gestroi were 7.55×103 and 1.09×102 conidia/ml,respectively. The average number of days required to complete the mycosis process in C. curvignathus and C.gestroi were 4.7 and 8 days, respectively. These fungi are believed useful for protecting living trees, plants, wood,wood structures, and other cellulosic materials susceptible to termite infestation and damage.

A Review: Interactions of Equine Herpesvirus-1 with Immune System and Equine Lymphocyte

Equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) remains one of the most common viral pathogens affecting horses worldwide presenting as a persistent infection which can establish latency in nerve ganglia (trigeminal ganglion), lymphoid tissues of the respiratory tract and peripheral blood lymphocytes. EHV-1 infection induces both humoral and cellular immune responses in horses. Virus neutralising antibody, particularly in the nasopharynx, is to kill free virus shed from infected epithelial cells. Hence this antibody has important functions in reducing virus shedding and spreading infection to cohorts. Cellular immune responses, particularly those carried out by cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL), have been shown to be effective in killing virus-infected cells in vitro. This review underlines the state of knowledge regarding immunity to EHV-1 and also its interaction with equine lymphocyte. Finally, the review also includes the importance of the viral immediate early (IE) protein in the pathogenesis of EHV-1. This information can be used as the basis for future research.

Corchorus olitorius aqueous extract attenuates quorum sensing-regulated virulence factor production and biofilm formation

Objective:To investigate the effect of Corchorus olitorius aqueous fraction(COAF)on quorum sensing(QS)-regulated virulence factors and biofilm formation in Pseudomonas aeruginosa(PAO1).Methods:The preliminary screening of the anti-QS effect of COAF was performed by evaluating the anti-pathogenic activity against Chromobacterium violaceum CV026 biosensor strain.Next,the inhibitory effects of COAF on QS-regulated pyocyanin production,proteolytic and elastolytic activities,swarming motility,and biofilm formation were evaluated in PAO1.Results:The results showed that the treatment of COAF significantly decreased the biofilm biomass,attenuated virulence factors,and inhibited swarming motility of PAO1 without affecting the growth of the bacteria in a dose-dependent manner.COAF at 2000μg/mL significantly decreased Las B elastase activity in PAO1 culture,exopolysaccharide production,swarming motility,pyocyanin level,and biomass of PAO1 by 55%(P<0.05),60%(P<0.01),61%(P<0.01),65%(P<0.01)and 73%(P<0.01),respectively.In addition,the production of violacein was decreased by 62%(P<0.01)with the treatment of a high dose of COAF.Conclusions:These findings indicate that COAF can be a potential source of anti-QS agents.

Comparison of Cox proportional hazards model,Cox proportional hazards with time-varying coefficients model,and lognormal accelerated failure time model:Application in time to event analysis of melioidosis patients

Objective:To compare the prognostic factors of mortality among melioidosis patients between lognormal accelerated failure time(AFT),Cox proportional hazards(PH),and Cox PH with time-varying coefficient(TVC)models.Methods:A retrospective study was conducted from 2014 to 2019 among 453 patients who were admitted to Hospital Sultanah Bahiyah,Kedah and Hospital Tuanku Fauziah,Perlis in Northern Malaysia due to confirmed-cultured melioidosis.The prognostic factors of mortality from melioidosis were obtained from AFT survival analysis,and Cox’s models and the findings were compared by using the goodness of fit methods.The analyses were done by using Stata SE version 14.0.Results:A total of 242 patients(53.4%)survived.In this study,the median survival time of melioidosis patients was 30.0 days(95%CI 0.0-60.9).Six significant prognostic factors were identified in the Cox PH model and Cox PH-TVC model.In AFT survival analysis,a total of seven significant prognostic factors were identified.The results were found to be only a slight difference between the identified prognostic factors among the models.AFT survival showed better results compared to Cox's models,with the lowest Akaike information criteria and best fitted Cox-snell residuals.Conclusions:AFT survival analysis provides more reliable results and can be used as an alternative statistical analysis for determining the prognostic factors of mortality in melioidosis patients in certain situations.

New modular platform based on multi-adjuvanted amphiphilic chitosan nanoparticles for efficient lipopeptide vaccine delivery against group A streptococcus

An effective vaccine against group A streptococcus(GAS)is highly desirable for definitive control of GAS infections.In the present study,two variants of amphiphilic chitosan nanoparticles-based GAS vaccines were developed.The vaccines were primarily composed of encapsulated KLH protein(a source of T helper cell epitopes)and lipidated M-protein derived B cell peptide epitope(lipoJ14)within the amphiphilic structure of nanoparticles.The only difference between themwas one of the nanoparticles vaccines received additional surface coating with poly(I:C).The formulated vaccines exhibited nanosized particles within the range of 220–240 nm.Cellular uptake study showed that nanoparticles vaccine without additional poly(I:C)coating has greater uptake by dendritic cells and macrophages compared to nanoparticles vaccine that was functionalized with poly(I:C).Both vaccines were found to be safe in mice and showed negligible cytotoxicity against HEK293 cells.Upon immunization in mice,both nanoparticle vaccines produced high antigen-specific antibodies titres that were regulated by a balanced Th1 and Th2 response compared to physical mixture.These antibodies elicited high opsonic activity against the tested GAS strains.Overall,our data demonstrated that amphiphilic chitosan nanoparticles platform induced a potent immune response even without additional inclusion of poly(I:C).

Phylogenetic Relationships of <i>Termitomyces aurantiacus</i>Inferred from Internal Transcribed Spacers DNA Sequences

Fungus-growing termites cultivate species of the mutualistic basidiomycete genus Termitomyces on a substrate called the fungal comb. Identification of fungal species based on morphological features is complicated, tedious, and prone to errors. As an alternative, nuclear ribosomal DNA sequences consisting of the internal transcribed spacers (ITS1 and ITS2) and 5.8S rDNA were used to identify Malaysian isolates of Termitomyces sp. The morphological characteristics and molecular data indicate that Malaysian Termitomyces isolated is clearly monophyletic and belongs to the Tricholomataceae family. The Malaysian isolates analyzed in this study represent the termite fungus species called T. aurantiacus.

Academia Capabilities,Knowledge Transfer Programme Mechanism and Performance

Knowledge transfer(KT)is an attempt by an entity to copy and utilize an explicit type of knowledge from another entity.The main reason is none other than to expand the ability and increasing the value through inter-organization collaborative affiliation.Nonetheless,questions may arise as to what extent do capabilities,mechanism and performance or success is associated.Using inputs from 154 respondents which consist of various KTP(knowledge transfer program)partners namely from the community(total 94)and industry(total 60),this article highlights the associations between the three main categories of variables.Using Smart PLS(partial least squares),the study provides evidence that academia knowledge,academia readiness,academia skills,and ethics and conduct affect KTP performance through the mediation role of KT mechanism.Academia readiness was also found to be the most significant predictor to KT mechanism.In summary,all the significant capabilities have indirect positive impact towards KTP performance.Thus,higher education institutions must emphasize their internal strength in order to continue supporting the success of inter-organization collaborative affiliation.

Histopathology and Immunohistochemistry Assessments of Acute Experimental Infection by <i>Brucella melitensis</i>in Bucks

Background: Brucellosis in male goats is characterized by arthritis, orchitis and epididymitis, which may induce infertility. Nevertheless, these lesions were categorized as chronic while acute lesions had not been described. This study investigates the histopathological and immuno histochemistry reactions in organs of bucks acutely infected by Brucella melitensis. Results: Only testis and prepuce of acutely infected bucks showed significantly severe histological lesions. Other internal organs had mild to moderate lesions. However, positive immunohistochemistry stainings were observed in organs except the bulbourethral gland. There was a significant positive correlation between the distribution of B. melitensis and IHC intensity but no significant correlation between the IHC intensity and histopathology lesions. Conclusion: The results indicate that acute brucellosis did not lead to clinical presentation, although B. melitensis was well distributed in various organs of bucks.

Bioregeneration of spent activated carbon:Review of key factors and recent mathematical models of kinetics

The disposal of spent activated carbon(AC) will inevitably create secondary pollution. In overcoming this problem, the spent AC can be regenerated by means of biological approach. Bioregeneration is the phenomenon in which through the action of microorganisms, the adsorbed pollutants on the surface of the AC will be biodegraded and this enables further adsorption of pollutants to occur with time elapse. This review provides the challenges and perspectives for effective bioregeneration to occur in biological activated carbon(BAC)column. Owing to very few reported works on the bioregeneration rate in BAC column, emphasis is put forward on the recently developed models of bioregeneration kinetic in batch system. All in all, providing potential solutions in increasing the lifespan of AC and the enhancement of bioregeneration rate will definitely overcome the bottlenecks in spent AC bioregeneration.

An Idyllic Vista of Islamic Banking Enhancement Knowledge Towards Triumph of Knowledge Delivery Process

Definition—Banking or another word of financial institution is taking a role as succor for today’s society as a fast generated processor in handling money flows.Inclusively,Islamic Banking(IB)means the detailed and comprehensive processor in handling money flows according to Shariah principle or Islamic regulation.This approach seems particularly well suited for an individual aims for marketing executives in which the approach is presumably according to the real purposes.Purpose—The purpose of this paper is to develop a heightened framework for process delivery of Islamic Banking(IB)knowledge thru the mediation of Islamic social finance attributes.The framework consists of three define variables:accomplishment of knowledge delivery process in IB,IB enhancement knowledge,and Islamic social finance attributes.Design/methodology/approach—The paper used a triangulation study.The quantitative approach consists of the collection of primary data through a self‐administered questionnaire distributed to 405 Islamic banks’players in Peninsular Malaysia.The partial least squares structural equation modelling(PLS-SEM)method was the main statistical technique employed in this study.In parallel,qualitative approach was used,in forms of semi structured interviews with four Islamic banks’experts.The data also gathered from Quran and Hadith.Originality/value—The study has shown that IB enhancement knowledge is discovered to have a significant effect on knowledge delivery process in IB and a partial mediating effect on the relationship between independent variable and dependent variable.Overall the results indicate the model provides good illustration of the emerging shape of knowledge delivery process in IB.

MELex: The Construction of Malay-English Sentiment Lexicon

Currently,the sentiment analysis research in the Malaysian context lacks in terms of the availability of the sentiment lexicon.Thus,this issue is addressed in this paper in order to enhance the accuracy of sentiment analysis.In this study,a new lexicon for sentiment analysis is constructed.A detailed review of existing approaches has been conducted,and a new bilingual sentiment lexicon known as MELex(Malay-English Lexicon)has been generated.Constructing MELex involves three activities:seed words selection,polarity assignment,and synonym expansions.Our approach differs from previous works in that MELex can analyze text for the two most widely used languages in Malaysia,Malay,and English,with the accuracy achieved,is 90%.It is evaluated based on the experimentation and case study approaches where the affordable housing projects in Malaysia are selected as case projects.This finding has given an implication on the ability of MELex to analyze public sentiments in the Malaysian context.The novel aspects of this paper are two-fold.Firstly,it introduces the new technique in assigning the polarity score,and second,it improves the performance over the classification of mixed language content.

Arabic Sentiment Analysis of Users’ Opinions of Governmental Mobile Applications

Different types of pandemics that have appeared from time to time have changed many aspects of daily life.Some governments encourage their citizens to use certain applications to help control the spread of disease and to deliver other services during lockdown.The Saudi government has launched several mobile apps to control the pandemic and have made these apps available through Google Play and the app store.A huge number of reviews are written daily by users to express their opinions,which include significant information to improve these applications.The manual processing and extracting of information from users’reviews is an extremely difficult and time-consuming task.Therefore,the use of intelligent methods is necessary to analyse users’reviews and extract issues that can help in improving these apps.This research aims to support the efforts made by the Saudi government for its citizens and residents by analysing the opinions of people in Saudi Arabia that can be found as reviews on Google Play and the app store using sentiment analysis and machine learning methods.To the best of our knowledge,this is the first study to explore users’opinions about governmental apps in Saudi Arabia.The findings of this analysis will help government officers make the right decisions to improve the quality of the provided services and help application developers improve these applications by fixing potential issues that cannot be identified during application testing phases.A new dataset used for this research includes 8000 user reviews gathered from social media,Google Play and the app store.Different methods are applied to the dataset,and the results show that the k nearest neighbourhood(KNN)method generates the highest accuracy compared to other implemented methods.

Determination of Antioxidant and Cytotoxic Activities of Red Seaweed, （Gracilaria manilaensis） against Different Cancer Cell Lines

Antioxidants play an important role in inhibiting and scavenging free radicals in human, providing protection against cellular damage in relation to cancer initiation. Seaweeds have been proved to have high antioxidant activity. Thus, this research was carried out to determine the antioxidant and anticancer properties of edible red seaweed, Gracilaria manilaensis （Gracilariales, Rhodophyta）. The extracts were prepared by Soxhlet extraction using organic solvents with different polarities. The antioxidant activities of extracts were determined in terms of their flee radical scavenging activity （RSA IC50） and total phenolic content （TPC）. The cytotoxic activity of extracts were tested against human ovarian cancer cell line （Caov-3）, human breast cancer cell line （MDA-MB-231 and MCF-7）, human cervical cell line （HeLa）, mouse fibroblast cell line （L929） and Madin-Darby canine kidney （MDCK） and the cell viability after 72 h incubation was determined by methylene blue assay. The findings showed that acetone extract has the lowest DPPH IC50 value followed by ethyl acetate extract. Both extracts also showed high values of TPC. Dichloromethane extract had the strongest cytotoxic on MDA-MB-231 （53.90 μg/mL ± 5.59 μg/mL） and HeLa （95.50 μg/mL）. While, acetone and ethyl acetate extracts were cytotoxic on MCF-7 （66.07 μg/mL） and Caov-3 （69.67 μg/mL ± 13.94 μg/mL）. It could be concluded that the antioxidant and cytotoxic activities of G. manilaensis were influenced by the types of solvents used and thus had a potential to develop as a cancer chemoprevention or anticancer agent against selected cancer.

Editorial special issue:Friendly nutritional strategies for sustainable aquaculture

The aquaculture sector provides the primary protein source for the global population while generating income and revenue(FAO,2020).Apart from that,aquaculturists are responsible for developing and maintaining sustainable production methods,including aquafeed production(Albrektsen et al.,2022).