The antimetastatic and antiangiogenesis effects of kefir water on murine breast cancer cells

Background. Kefir is a unique cultured product that contains beneficial probiotics. Kefir culture from other parts of the world exhibits numerous beneficial qualities such as anti-inflammatory, immunomodulation, and anticancer effects. Nevertheless, kefir cultures from different parts of the world exert different effects because of variation in culture conditions and media. Breast cancer is the leading cancer in women, and metastasis is the major cause of death associated with breast cancer. The antimetastatic and antiangiogenic effects of kefir water made from kefir grains cultured in Malaysia were studied in 4T1 breast cancer cells. Methods. 4T1 cancer cells were treated with kefir water in vitro to assess its antimigration and anti-invasion effects. BALB/c mice were injected with 4T1 cancer cells and treated orally with kefir water for 28 days. Results. Kefir water was cytotoxic toward 4T1 cells at IC50 (half-maximal inhibitory concentration) of 12.5 and 8.33 mg/mL for 48 and 72 hours, respectively. A significant reduction in tumor size and weight (0.9132 ± 0.219 g) and a substantial increase in helper T cells (5-fold) and cytotoxic T cells (7-fold) were observed in the kefir water–treated group. Proinflammatory and proangiogenic markers were significantly reduced in the kefir water–treated group. Conclusions. Kefir water inhibited tumor proliferation in vitro and in vivo mainly through cancer cell apoptosis, immunomodulation by stimulating T helper cells and cytotoxic T cells, and anti-inflammatory, antimetastatic, and antiangiogenesis effects. This study brought out the potential of the probiotic beverage kefir water in cancer treatment

The Land-Potential Knowledge System (LandPKS): mobile apps and collaboration for optimizing climate change investments

Massive investments in climate change mitigation and adaptation are projected during coming decades. Many of these investments will seek to modify how land is managed. The return on both types of investments can be increased through an understanding of land potential: the potential of the land to support primary production and ecosystem services, and its resilience. A Land-Potential Knowledge System (LandPKS) is being developed and implemented to provide individual users with point-based estimates of land potential based on the integration of simple, geo-tagged user inputs with cloud-based information and knowledge. This system will rely on mobile phones for knowledge and information exchange, and use cloud computing to integrate, interpret, and access relevant knowledge and information, including local knowledge about land with similar potential. The system will initially provide management options based on long-term land potential, which depends on climate, topography, and relatively static soil properties, such as soil texture, depth, and mineralogy. Future modules will provide more specific management information based on the status of relatively dynamic soil properties such as organic matter and nutrient content, and of weather. The paper includes a discussion of how this system can be used to help distinguish between meteorological and edaphic drought

Screening and investigation of dye decolorization activities of basidiomycetes

ArticleJOURNAL OF BIOSCIENCE AND BIOENGINEERING. 105(1): 69-72 (2008)journal articl

Examining outcomes following thrombolysis in an increasingly older and dependent stroke population

We are grateful for the support of the nurses from Chest, Heart and Stroke Scotland for assisting in obtaining follow-up functional status at three months.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Under positive pressure: how stakeholder pressure affects corporate social responsibility implementation

This study tests a model that links stakeholder pressure to the implementation of corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities and market performance. Stakeholder groups and competitors might exert pressure on companies to implement CSR, which could lead to positive effects on market performance. Using structural equation modeling (SEM), the authors find that stakeholders and competitors exert pressure differently. The effect of CSR implementation on market performance is moderated by market dynamism: It affects market performance more in dynamic environments. The authors discuss implications for both companies and stakeholders

Assessment of Climate Change in Italy by Variants of Ordered Correspondence Analysis

This paper explores climate changes in Italy over the last 30 years. The data come from the European observation gridded dataset and are concerned with the temperature throughout the country. We focus our attention on two Italian regions (Lombardy in northern Italy and Campania in southern Italy) and on two particular years roughly thirty years apart (1986 and 2015). Our primary aim is to assess the most important changes in temperature in Italy using some variants of correspondence analysis for ordered categorical variables. Such variants are based on a decomposition method using orthogonal polynomials instead of singular vectors and allow one to easily classify the meteorological station observations. A simulation study, based on bootstrap sampling, is undertaken to demonstrate the reliability of the results

Smart Cities and Digitalisation: A Research Agenda of Public Administration

The emerging smart cities framework and the core of next-generation information technology innovations serve as the landscape of near-future management of city development and e-Government systems guided by policies and strategies. Data science, or big data is an essential area for governments as data is collected in various forms of  e-commerce, traffic, security, energy, and geographical aspects as well as data sharing from private sector data. This paper is aimed at evaluating the extent of development of smart cities in selected countries in Asia and the adoption of resources, connectivity, and business coordinations in promoting technology and deployment of innovation for public administration. Meta literature and case studies are employed in this paper, focusing on the publications from year 2000 onward to capture the latest development in smart cities and digitalization. The findings contribute to research agenda and practical implications thus far in advancing our understandings of smart cities and digitalization transformation in the pursuit of smart city development in and around Asia as this is yet to be reviewed. Consequently, this paper paves the way towards a better understanding of the extent of smart city initiatives and development in and around Asia. This study is supported by the Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia under Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS), Project ID: 18252, FRGS/1/2020/TK02/UM/01/1