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Iqbal RM, Binti Riza Effendi NI, Syed Alwi SS, Saidi HI, Sarchio SNE. Insomnia and depression levels among Malaysian undergraduate students in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS), Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) during Movement Control Order (MCO). PLoS One 2023; 18:e0283098. [PMID: 37816038 PMCID: PMC10564170 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0283098] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2022] [Accepted: 03/01/2023] [Indexed: 10/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Rapid outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 has caused the implementation of the movement control order (MCO) which aimed to reduce the spread in Covid-19 infections. While some may find it easy to adjust to the new norm, others found it difficult to switch from their normal routines and habits as according to the MCO SOP. This resulted in a more frequent insomnia and depression that subsequently impacted their mental health. Insomnia and depression levels are examined in this study as they relate to the Covid-19 Pandemic and the MCO among Malaysian undergraduate health sciences students at the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, UPM. Random sampling methods were utilised with consideration of inclusion and exclusion criteria. The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) were the instrument packages used in this investigation. An internet platform was used to distribute the questionnaire. Based on the results, it is concluded that depression and insomnia are significantly correlated, with a p-value of 0.05. This study also revealed the link between the severity of insomnia and the severity of depression among UPM students studying health sciences. The percentage of students with depression and insomnia was rather high (54.9% and 33.9%, respectively), and this occurred during the second wave of Covid-19 cases in Malaysia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raja Muhammad Iqbal
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Nur Ilyana Binti Riza Effendi
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Sharifah Sakinah Syed Alwi
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Hasni Idayu Saidi
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Seri Narti Edayu Sarchio
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia
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Najm AA, Eziwar Dyari HR, Othman BA, Syed Alwi SS, Azfaralarriff A, Shahid M, Sanusi SA, Law D, Fazry S. Epidermal Mucus of Anabas testudineus as a Promising Source of Antibacterial and Anticancer Agents. SAINS MALAYS 2022. [DOI: 10.17576/jsm-2022-5105-08] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Anabas testudineus is a sturdy freshwater fish that can live in a polluted environment due to the epidermal mucus (EM) that protects the fish from pathogens or germs. This study explored the functional properties of the EM as a potential antimicrobial and anticancer agent. Inactive Pseudomonas aeruginosa was introduced into fish tanks to stimulate the production of EM. This stimulus significantly increased EM production by more than 100% after 10 days of stimulation, indicating that EM production was influenced by environmental biotic stress. In vitro antibacterial activity tests showed that EM has significant antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli (12 ± 0.23 mm) and P. aeruginosa (10 ± 0.13 mm) at the tested concentration of 1000 μg/mL. Further characterisation against cells showed that EM has a cytotoxic effect against human breast cancer (MCF7) and human melanoma (A375.S2) producing an IC50 value of 4.97 ± 0.25 and 6.27 ± 0.17 mg/mL, respectively. In contrast, no cytotoxicity against normal fibroblast skin cells (HS27) was observed. In addition, apoptosis analysis showed that EM could cause DNA fragmentation of cancer cells, while no effect on normal cells was observed. These findings indicated that EM from A. testudineus could be further studied and explored as an anticancer agent.
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Najm AAK, Azfaralariff A, Dyari HRE, Othman BA, Shahid M, Khalili N, Law D, Syed Alwi SS, Fazry S. Anti-breast cancer synthetic peptides derived from the Anabas testudineus skin mucus fractions. Sci Rep 2021; 11:23182. [PMID: 34848729 PMCID: PMC8632885 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-02007-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2021] [Accepted: 11/09/2021] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Previous study has shown the antimicrobial activities of mucus protein extracted from Anabastestudineus. In this study, we are interested in characterizing the anticancer activity of the A.testudineus antimicrobial peptides (AMPs). The mucus was extracted, fractioned, and subjected to antibacterial activity testing to confirm the fish's AMPs production. The cytotoxic activity of each fraction was also identified. Fraction 2 (F2), which shows toxicity against MCF7 and MDA-MB-231 were sent for peptide sequencing to identify the bioactive peptide. The two peptides were then synthetically produced and subjected to cytotoxic assay to prove their efficacy against cancer cell lines. The IC50 for AtMP1 against MCF7 and MDA-MB-231 were 8.25 ± 0.14 μg/ml and 9.35 ± 0.25 μg/ml respectively, while for AtMP2 it is 5.89 ± 0.14 μg/ml and 6.97 ± 0.24 μg/ml respectively. AtMP1 and AtMP2 treatment for 48 h induced breast cancer cell cycle arrest and apoptosis by upregulating the p53, which lead to upregulate pro-apoptotic BAX gene and downregulate the anti-apoptotic BCL-2 gene, consequently, trigger the activation of the caspase-3. This interaction was supported by docking analysis (QuickDBD, HPEPDOCK, and ZDOCK) and immunoprecipitation. This study provided new prospects in the development of highly effective and selective cancer therapeutics based on antimicrobial peptides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahmed Abdul Kareem Najm
- Department of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600, Bangi, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia
| | - Ahmad Azfaralariff
- Department of Food Sciences, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600, Bangi, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia.,Innovative Center for Confectionery Technology (MANIS), Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600, Bangi, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia
| | - Herryawan Ryadi Eziwar Dyari
- Department of Earth Sciences and Environmental, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600, Bangi, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia
| | - Babul Airianah Othman
- Department of Food Sciences, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600, Bangi, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia
| | - Muhammad Shahid
- Department of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600, Bangi, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia
| | - Nahid Khalili
- Department of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600, Bangi, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia
| | - Douglas Law
- Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Inti International University, Persiaran Perdana BBN Putra Nilai, 71800, Nilai, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia
| | - Sharifah Sakinah Syed Alwi
- Department of Biomedical Science, Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400, UPM Serdang, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia
| | - Shazrul Fazry
- Department of Food Sciences, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600, Bangi, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia. .,Innovative Center for Confectionery Technology (MANIS), Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600, Bangi, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia. .,Chini Lake Research Centre, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600, Bangi, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia.
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Alexander HR, Syed Alwi SS, Yazan LS, Zakarial Ansar FH, Ong YS. Migration and Proliferation Effects of Thymoquinone-Loaded Nanostructured Lipid Carrier (TQ-NLC) and Thymoquinone (TQ) on In Vitro Wound Healing Models. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med 2019; 2019:9725738. [PMID: 31915456 PMCID: PMC6935463 DOI: 10.1155/2019/9725738] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2019] [Accepted: 11/11/2019] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Wound healing is a regulated biological event that involves several processes including infiltrating leukocyte subtypes and resident cells. Impaired wound healing is one of the major problems in diabetic patients due to the abnormal physiological changes of tissues and cells in major processes. Thymoquinone, a bioactive compound found in Nigella sativa has been demonstrated to possess antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant effects. Today, the rapidly progressing nanotechnology sets a new alternative carrier to enhance and favour the speed of healing process. In order to overcome its low bioavailability, TQ is loaded into a colloidal drug carrier known as a nanostructured lipid carrier (NLC). This study aimed to determine the effect of TQ-NLC and TQ on cell proliferation and migration, mode of cell death, and the antioxidant levels in normal and diabetic cell models, 3T3 and 3T3-L1. Cytotoxicity of TQ-NLC and TQ was determined by MTT assay. The IC10 values obtained for 3T3-L1 treated with TQ-NLC and TQ for 24 hours were 4.7 ± 3.3 and 5.3 ± 0.6 μM, respectively. As for 3T3, the IC10 values obtained for TQ-NLC and TQ at 24 hours were 4.3 ± 0.17 and 3.9 ± 2.05 μM, respectively. TQ-NLC was observed to increase the number of 3T3 and 3T3-L1 healthy cells (87-95%) and gradually decrease early apoptotic cells in time- and dose-dependant manner compared with TQ. In the proliferation and migration assay, 3T3-L1 treated with TQ-NLC showed higher proliferation and migration rate (p < 0.05) compared with TQ. TQ-NLC also acted as an antioxidant by reducing the ROS levels in both cells after injury at concentration as low as 3 μM. Thus, this study demonstrated that TQ-NLC has better proliferation and migration as well as antioxidant effect compared with TQ especially on 3T3-L1 which confirms its ability as a good antidiabetic and antioxidant agent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Henna Roshini Alexander
- Department of Biomedical Science, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Sharifah Sakinah Syed Alwi
- Department of Biomedical Science, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Latifah Saiful Yazan
- Department of Biomedical Science, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Fatin Hanani Zakarial Ansar
- Department of Biomedical Science, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Yong Sze Ong
- Department of Biomedical Science, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
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Zaulkffali AS, Md Razip NN, Syed Alwi SS, Abd Jalil A, Abd Mutalib MS, Gopalsamy B, Chang SK, Zainal Z, Ibrahim NN, Zakaria ZA, Khaza'ai H. Vitamins D and E Stimulate the PI3K-AKT Signalling Pathway in Insulin-Resistant SK-N-SH Neuronal Cells. Nutrients 2019; 11:nu11102525. [PMID: 31635074 PMCID: PMC6836113 DOI: 10.3390/nu11102525] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2019] [Revised: 09/20/2019] [Accepted: 09/27/2019] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
This study investigated the effects of vitamins D and E on an insulin-resistant model and hypothesized that this treatment would reverse the effects of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and improves insulin signalling. An insulin-resistant model was induced in SK-N-SH neuronal cells with a treatment of 250 nM insulin and re-challenged with 100 nM at two different incubation time (16 h and 24 h). The effects of vitamin D (10 and 20 ng/mL), vitamin E in the form of tocotrienol-rich fraction (TRF) (200 ng/mL) and the combination of vitamins D and E on insulin signalling markers (IR, PI3K, GLUT3, GLUT4, and p-AKT), glucose uptake and AD markers (GSK3β and TAU) were determined using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The results demonstrated an improvement of the insulin signalling pathway upon treatment with vitamin D alone, with significant increases in IR, PI3K, GLUT3, GLUT4 expression levels, as well as AKT phosphorylation and glucose uptake, while GSK3β and TAU expression levels was decreased significantly. On the contrary, vitamin E alone, increased p-AKT, reduced the ROS as well as GSK3β and TAU but had no effect on the insulin signalling expression levels. The combination of vitamins D and E only showed significant increase in GLUT4, p-AKT, reduced ROS as well as GSK3β and TAU. Thus, the universal role of vitamin D, E alone and in combinations could be the potential nutritional agents in restoring the sensitivity of neuronal cells towards insulin and delaying the pathophysiological progression of AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amirah Salwani Zaulkffali
- Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Malaysia.
| | - Nurliyana Najwa Md Razip
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Malaysia.
| | - Sharifah Sakinah Syed Alwi
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Malaysia.
| | - Afifah Abd Jalil
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Malaysia.
| | - Mohd Sokhini Abd Mutalib
- Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Malaysia.
| | - Banulata Gopalsamy
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Malaysia.
| | - Sui Kiat Chang
- Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, School of Health Sciences, International Medical University, Kuala Lumpur 57000, Malaysia.
| | - Zaida Zainal
- Nutrition Unit, Product Development and Advisory Services Division, Malaysian Palm Oil Board, Bandar Baru Bangi 43000, Malaysia.
| | - Nafissa Nadia Ibrahim
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Malaysia.
| | - Zainul Amiruddin Zakaria
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Malaysia.
| | - Huzwah Khaza'ai
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Malaysia.
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