Dietary And Lifestyle Factors Associated With Risk Ofcolorectal Adenoma In Patients At Hospital Kuala Lumpur

Cancer is now the third leading cause of death in Malaysia and one in four Malaysians is at risk of developing cancer. In Peninsular Malaysia, there was a slight decline in percentage of colon (-0.2%) and rectal (-0.2%) cancer incidence in males in the year 2003 compared to the previous year as reported by National Cancer Registry (2004). Yet, there was an increase in percentages of these cancer incidences in women (+0.4% in colon cancer and +0.7% in rectal cancer). Colorectal cancers are thought to develop over a period of several years, and most of them develop from benign, neoplastic adenomatous polyps (Bond, 2000). Colorectal adenomas have been shown, but not always, significantly related to various dietary and lifestyle factors. These factors have yet to be reported in relation to colorectal polyps in the Malaysian population. This case-control study was carried out to determine the relationship between dietary and lifestyle characteristics, and risk for colorectal adenomas among Malaysians. After screening for inclusion and exclusion criteria, 11 8 men and women with good cognition and who were at least 30 years at the time of interview and have undergone colonoscopy in Hospital Kuala Lumpur were enrolled in the this study upon obtaining ethical clearance. Fifty nine patients diagnosed with colorectal adenomas were recruited as case subjects, while a similar number of patients diagnosed negative for any polyps were recruited as controls. A structured and pre-tested interviewer administrated questionnaire was used for data collection. The fasting blood samples were collected by trained and qualified nurse, and analyzed using relevant analysis in the laboratory. The collected data were then analyzed with SPSS version 12.0. Multivariate analysis concluded that the higher servings of fruits (adjusted OR = 0.150, 95% CI = 0.052 - 0.434) and vegetables (adjusted OR = 0.344, 95% CI = 0.149 - 0.794), crude fibre intake (adjusted OR = 0.659, 95% CI = 0.481 - 0.905) and plasma levels of total cholesterol (adjusted OR = 5.370, 95% CI = 1.861 - 15.495), LDL (adjusted OR = 1.093, 95% CI = 1.022 - 2.386) and vitamin E (adjusted OR = 0.481, 95% CI = 0.306 - 0.758) found to significantly contribute to the risk for colorectal adenomas, upon adjusting for potential covariates. A larger study and possibly a prospective study which recruits study subjects from various places in Malaysia will be an excellent effort to confirm these findings. Interventions with focuses on behavioural change may be able to reduce one's risk for colorectal adenomas which in the long-term reduce hisher risk for developing colorectal cancer in the future

Asymmetric Coulomb Oscillation and Giant Anisotropic Magnetoresistance in Doped Graphene Nanojunctions

We report here the charge transport behavior in graphene nanojunctions in which graphene nanodots, with relatively long relaxation time, are interfaced with ferromagnetic electrodes. Subsequently we explore the effect of substitutional doping of transition metal atoms in zigzag graphene nanodots (z-GNDs) on the charge transport under non-collinear magnetization. Only substitutional doping of transition metal atoms in z-GNDs at certain sites demonstrates the spin filtering effect with a large tunnelling magnetoresistance as high as 700%, making it actually suitable for spintronic applications. From the electrical field simulation around the junction area within the electrostatic physics model, we find that the value of electric field strength increases especially with doped graphene nanodots, as the gap between the gate electrode and tip axis is reduced from 3 nm to 1 nm. Our detailed analysis further suggests the onset of asymmetric Coulomb oscillations with varying amplitudes in graphene nanodots, on being doped with magnetic ions. Such kind of tunability in the electronic conductance can potentially be exploited in designing spintronic logic gates at nanoscale.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figure

Dietary risk factors for colorectal adenomatous polyps: a mini review

At least 6 million deaths occurred worldwide are due to cancer and this figure is expected to rise to 15 millions by the year 2020. Colorectal cancer is among the most commonly occurring cancers both globally and in Malaysia. Numerous studies have shown significant relationships between various dietary components and the risks for colorectal cancer. Meanwhile, several theories have been suggested as etiological explanations, one of which is the influence of dietary factors on the cell proliferation rate. A higher cell proliferation rate is statistically associated with increased risk of colorectal cancer. However, evidence of a significant relationship between diet and colorectal adenomas, a potential precursor for colorectal cancer, remains insufficient. Colorectal adenomas or polyps are vital in their relationship with colorectal cancers as almost 70% of all colorectal cancers are developed from these polyps. Studying the modifiable risk factors related to polyps will provide an opportunity for the prevention of colorectal cancer even before it develops. This paper reviews the available evidence linking dietary factors with the risk for colorectal adenomas. As the numbers of published studies are limited, of which most are concentrated in Western countries, there is a need for epidemiological studies in Malaysia to strengthen the evidence of a relationship between diet and colorectal adenomas

ECOSENSE: An Energy Consumption Protocol for Wireless Sensor Networks

AbstractThis paper ‘ECOSENSE’ proposes a medium access protocol derived for wireless sensor networks. Energy is a precious resource for wireless sensor networks, as sensor nodes are powered by small batteries. Various approaches have been proposed so far, to increase the life of wireless sensor networks. With the goal of developing a practical, efficient energy consumption protocol for wireless sensor networks, we introduced a threshold policy for the nodes in the entire network, where the sensors are distributed activated, whenever they are required. We calculated the life period of sensors and using priority levels and threshold values, we prolong the lifespan of sensor nodes. Scheduling is done according to the remaining life period of sensor nodes. We compare our algorithm with the existing S-MAC protocol and found considerably better due to its reconfigurable activation policy

Obesity and Risk of Colorectal Adenomatous Polyps: a Case-Control Study in Hospital Kuala Lumpur

Colorectal adenomas are precursor lesions of colorectal cancer. Several studies have proposed that obesity is a risk factor for colorectal adenoma. This case-control study examined the relationship between body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, waistto-hip ratio (WHR), body fat percentage and colorectal adenomatous polyps (CRA) in patients who have had a colonoscopy at the Hospital Kuala Lumpur (HKL). Fifty-nine patients (42 males and 17 females) positively identified as having CRA and 59 polypfree subjects were recruited as controls (33 males and 26 females). A pre-tested questionnaire was used to collect socio-economic information, while anthropometric measurements were determined directly by established methods. The mean BMI of female case subjects was significantly higher than control females (25.63 + 4.87 kg/m2 vs. 23.86 + 3.70 kg/m2, p<0.05) but the difference in BMI was not significant in men. The mean WHR of male subjects was significantly higher in the case group (0.92 + 0.07 vs. 0.90 + 0.06, p<0.05). After adjusting for confounders, waist circumference was the only indicator that was found to significantly increase the risk for CRA in women (OR = 6.349, 95% CI = 1.063 � 37.919). Higher BMI, WHR and body fat percentage showed a non-significant risk in female subjects. In men, none of the obesity indicators were found to be significant risk factors for CRA. These findings suggest that abdominal obesity may be a contributing factor to CRA risk particularly in women. A prospective study is needed to confirm the role of obesity in the development of CRA in Malaysians. A1, Kandiah M2, H3, & JA

Biomechanical analysis of posterior lumbar interbody aages

A popular yet effective surgical treatment used in medical field to treat degenerative disc disease related to low back pain is known as the lumbar interbody fusion procedure. One of the main aims of posterior lumbar interbody fusion (PLIF), using cages or bone grafts are to provide stability during body movements and mechanical support between two vertebrae, maintain disc height and to help out with the fusion process. This procedure restores disc height, enlarges the stenotic foramen, stabilises the spine, and provides mechanical strength between vertebrae

Stromule extension along microtubules coordinated with actin-mediated anchoring guides perinuclear chloroplast movement during innate immunity.

Dynamic tubular extensions from chloroplasts called stromules have recently been shown to connect with nuclei and function during innate immunity. We demonstrate that stromules extend along microtubules (MTs) and MT organization directly affects stromule dynamics since stabilization of MTs chemically or genetically increases stromule numbers and length. Although actin filaments (AFs) are not required for stromule extension, they provide anchor points for stromules. Interestingly, there is a strong correlation between the direction of stromules from chloroplasts and the direction of chloroplast movement. Stromule-directed chloroplast movement was observed in steady-state conditions without immune induction, suggesting it is a general function of stromules in epidermal cells. Our results show that MTs and AFs may facilitate perinuclear clustering of chloroplasts during an innate immune response. We propose a model in which stromules extend along MTs and connect to AF anchor points surrounding nuclei, facilitating stromule-directed movement of chloroplasts to nuclei during innate immunity