First record of Dahliphora sigmoides Schmitz (Diptera: Phoridae) in Malaysia on animal carcass in concealed environment

Dahliphora sigmoides Schmitz (Diptera: Phoridae) was recorded for the first time in Malaysia, occurring on animal carcass placed in garbage bin at Forensic Science Simulation Site, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Bangi. This finding expands the knowledge of its distribution in this region. Notes on the species description, its locality and collection procedure are presented herein

Jerantinine A induces tumor-specific cell death through modulation of splicing factor 3b subunit 1 (SF3B1)

Precursor mRNA (pre-mRNA) splicing is catalyzed by a large ribonucleoprotein complex known as the spliceosome. Numerous studies have indicated that aberrant splicing patterns or mutations in spliceosome components, including the splicing factor 3b subunit 1 (SF3B1), are associated with hallmark cancer phenotypes. This has led to the identification and development of small molecules with spliceosome-modulating activity as potential anticancer agents. Jerantinine A (JA) is a novel indole alkaloid which displays potent anti-proliferative activities against human cancer cell lines by inhibiting tubulin polymerization and inducing G2/M cell cycle arrest. Using a combined pooled-genome wide shRNA library screen and global proteomic profiling, we showed that JA targets the spliceosome by up-regulating SF3B1 and SF3B3 protein in breast cancer cells. Notably, JA induced significant tumor-specific cell death and a significant increase in unspliced pre-mRNAs. In contrast, depletion of endogenous SF3B1 abrogated the apoptotic effects, but not the G2/M cell cycle arrest induced by JA. Further analyses showed that JA stabilizes endogenous SF3B1 protein in breast cancer cells and induced dissociation of the protein from the nucleosome complex. Together, these results demonstrate that JA exerts its antitumor activity by targeting SF3B1 and SF3B3 in addition to its reported targeting of tubulin polymerization

The impact of customer due diligence in the Islamic banking institutions in Malaysia: a legal perspective

The money laundering and terrorism financing are the financial crimes that caused global threat to the financial integrity and economic activities of the country. In combating these financial crimes, the international standards imposed by the Financial Act ion Task Force (“FATF”) requires that all financial institutions in all countries to undertake the Customer Due Diligence (“CDD”) as its preventive measurements in combating these financial crimes. In Malaysia, this CDD requirement is regulated under Section 16 of the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 (Act 613) (“AMLATFPUAA”). This CDD requirements is applicable to all the ‘Reporting Institutions’ listed under the First Schedule of the AMLATFPUAA which includes the Islamic banking institutions in Malaysia. As such, the legal requirements provide that there is no exception for the Islamic banking institutions to follow this statutory requirement. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to highlight the standards in conducting CDD requirements on the Islamic banking institutions in Malaysia. This paper is significant by emphasising the Policy Document on conducting CDD under the ‘Anti- Money Laundering and Counter Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT)- Banking and Deposit- Taking Institutions (Sector 1)’ which is set out by the Central Bank of Malaysia (“BNM”). This paper employs library based research by analysing the primary and secondary legal sources on CDD standards and legal requirements. This paper suggests that the Islamic banking institutions in Malaysia are in compliance with the international standards on CDD as imposed by the FATF and the statutory obligations under the AMLATFPUAA. Therefore, continuous efforts by the Islamic banks in Malaysia are required in combating these financial crimes

Integrating Green Affective Values and Materials Selection in Automotive Design: A Preliminary Study

This paper presents a study on the integrating consumer’s green affective values and material selection in the context of product design, specifically in the automotive design. Green affective values are important element in the design to understand user’s emotion, need and preferences toward the green products. It is extremely important to understand user’s feeling on product to avoid potential market failure. The first impression on product is captivated by the use of materials. It is pointed out that intangible issues such as perceptions and intentions of the designer should take a role in the materials selection activity in product design. However, study on the linkage between green affective values and material selection are rarely found in the literature. Therefore, the objectives of this study are to identify the significant green affective values of the consumers in Malaysia and propose a guideline for automotive designers to incorporate affective values into conceptual design and investigate its linkage on material selection. The guideline includes a technology used to translate the consumer’s eco-feeling and impression of a particular component design with appropriate material selection, in this case is on car steering wheel design. Three surveys were conducted to obtain consumer’s understanding on affective values and the feelings elicited when presented with visual stimuli of the material. Semantic differential scale and factor analysis were used to analyze the results. The responses obtained from the surveys were used to develop an eco-tool, which translates user’s feelings and emotions into material properties and linking them to certain materials they perceived as “greenerâ€. Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) and fuzzy logic were used in developing the material scorecard with regards to environmental profile of design model. The eco-tool was validated by product design experts to understand the usefulness and operability of the guideline. It was found that the tool is easy to navigate and having great potential to help designers on integrating green affective value in design with inclusion of technical aspect and cost into the tool