Effects of salvadora persica extract on the bacterial population in single-species biofilm

The effect of S. persica extract on the population of bacteria in single-species biofilm was investigated. An artificial mouth (NAM) system was used for the development of biofilm. In one experiment, aqueous extract of S. persica at sub-MIC concentration (5 mg/mL) was first pumped into the NAM system to treat the experimental pellicle on glass beads before inoculating it with the bacteria (Strep. mitis, Strep. mutans and Strep. sanguinis). This would resemble using the aqueous extract of S. persica before meals. In another experiment, the aqueous extract of S. persica was pumped into the NAM system after the bacterial inoculation and this would resemble using it after meals. In both experiments, 24 h biofilms were allowed to form. The bacterial population of the biofilms was determined and expressed as colony forming unit per mL (cfu mL-1). For negative control, sterilized distilled water was used whereas for positive control, commercial Listerine. It was found that the population of Strep. mitis, Strep. mutans and Strep. sanguinis in the respective biofilms for both experiments involving treatment with S. persica extract or Listerine was significantly reduced by more than 70% (p<0.05) when compared with the negative control. Comparing the effect of S. persica with Listerine on the bacterial population of the biofilms when used either before or after meal showed that S. persica is slightly less effective towards S. sanguinis before meal and towards S. mutans after meal (p<0.05). This study suggests that the efficiency of the antibacterial effect of S. persica is species-related and by its way of usage

[Knowledge, Attitude and Awareness of First Year Medical Students of (Upm) on Medical Etnics] Pengetahuan, Sikap dan Kesedaran Pelajar Perubatan Tahun Pertama Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) terhadap Etika Perubatan: Satu Deskriptif dan Penemuan

This study is a preliminary research about the readiness of first-year medical student of UPM on knowledge, attitude and awareness of medical ethics. The main objective of the study was to assess and identify the level of knowledge, interest and awareness of UPM medical students on medical ethics. In addition, this study also aims to determine the readiness of UPM medical students in medical ethics as applied in the main practice of their profession for the sake of public welfare. The data was obtained quantitatively through distribution of questionnaires to 88 respondents from first-year students in medical courses UPM. Data were analyzed using simple descriptive statistics. The study indicated that the level of knowledge of the first year UPM medical students to medical ethics is moderate. The level of awareness of the importance of medical ethics in medical institutions is also moderate. In a nutshell, the study shows that majority of the respondents have a high interest in medical ethics, at the same time give the conclusion that medical ethics is essential in a medical institution especially for the medical practitioners itself. Keywords: ethics, medicine, knowledge, interest, awareness Kajian ini merupakan satu tinjauan awal pengkaji tentang kesediaan pelajar perubatan tahun pertama UPM dari aspek pengetahuan, sikap dan kesedaran terhadap etika perubatan. Tujuan utama kajian ialah untuk mengkaji dan mengenal pasti tahap pengetahuan, minat dan kesedaran pelajar perubatan UPM terhadap etika perubatan. Di samping itu, kajian ini juga bertujuan untuk menentukan tahap kesediaan pelajar perubatan UPM dalam menerapkan etika perubatan sebagai amalan utama dalam profesion mereka untuk kesejahteraan masyarakat. Data kajian telah diperolehi secara kuantitatif melalui kaedah soal selidik. Borang soal selidik telah diedarkan kepada 88 responden yang terdiri daripada pelajar tahun pertama kursus perubatan di UPM. Data dianalisis menggunakan simple descriptive statistic. Hasil kajian mendapati tahap pengetahuan pelajar perubatan tahun pertama UPM terhadap etika perubatan adalah sederhana. Tahap kesedaran dalam mengenalpasti tahap kepentingan etika perubatan dalam institusi perubatan juga sederhana. Secara keseluruhannya, kajian ini mendapati bahawa kebanyakan responden mempunyai minat yang tinggi terhadap etika perubatan sekaligus memberi kesimpulan bahawa etika perubatan amatlah penting dalam sesebuah institusi perubatan khususnya bagi pengamal perubatan itu sendiri. Kata kunci: etika, perubatan, pengetahuan, minat, kesedaran. &nbsp

Sustainability of halal food industry: an ethical perspective

This paper attempts to have an overview of the implementation of ethics in the sustainable halal food industry as it may affect the halal industry directly and indirectly. Ethics is a fundamental prerequisite to action as individuals and society have a belief system that acknowledges the importance of natural development to human development will they engage in actions for sustainable development. The implementation of ethics in the halal food industry is reviewed in terms of the aspects of authority, manufacturer, and consumer. There are four main aspects of ethics reviewed in this study, namely the knowledge, relation, social impact and lifestyle. Further investigation digests the knowledge and relation between halal and sustainability, analysis on social impact, and lifestyle change may contribute towards sustainable halal food industry. In short, this paper generates ideas for researchers to conduct other researches that may lead to the sustainable halal food industry in Malaysia

Towards an enhancement of organizational information security through Threat Factor Profiling (TFP) model

Information security has been identified by organizations as part of internal operations that need to be well implemented and protected. This is because each day the organizations face a high probability of increase of threats to their networks and services that will lead to information security issues. Thus, effective information security management is required in order to protect their information assets. Threat profiling is a method that can be used by an organization to address the security challenges. Threat profiling allows analysts to understand and organize intelligent information related to threat groups. This paper presents a comparative analysis that was conducted to study the existing threat profiling models. It was found that existing threat models were constructed based on specific objectives, thus each model is limited to only certain components or factors such as assets, threat sources, countermeasures, threat agents, threat outcomes and threat actors. It is suggested that threat profiling can be improved by the combination of components found in each existing threat profiling model/framework. The proposed model can be used by an organization in executing a proactive approach to incident management

Scoring matrix framework for threat factor profiling model

One of the important requirements in preparing for an information security risk management system is to construct a threat profiling model that can be used to identify and classify threats. The threat profiling model provides an organization with a complete set of information including pattern of threat scenarios and analysis on the threat they encounter. However, an organization must set objectives and results of a threat profiling, as well as metrics in order to measure, appreciate and counter the potential threats. The main contribution of this paper is the framework of the threat scoring which extends our previous findings on combinations of components found in referred threat models. Furthermore, to the best of our knowledge, threat scoring framework has not been investigated by any previous approaches. In fact, the computed threat score enables the quantification of the degree of threat severity which is an important benchmark for an organization to plan their countermeasure actions. Therefore, a scoring matrix framework for Threat Factor Profiling (TFP) model that includes identification and classification of threat is proposed. The purpose of this framework is to identify threats based on activity within an information system of an organization. The Threat Profile Report presents the collected data of threat based on the predetermined matrix