Heavy metal quantification of classroom dust in school environment and its impacts on children health from Rawang (Malaysia)

This study aimed to determine bioavailable heavy metal concentrations (As, Cd, Co, Cu, Cr, Ni, Pb, Zn) and their potential sources in classroom dust collected from children’s hand palms in Rawang (Malaysia). This study also aimed to determine the association between bioavailable heavy metal concentration in classroom dust and children’s respiratory symptoms. Health risk assessment (HRA) was applied to evaluate health risks (non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic) due to heavy metals in classroom dust. The mean of bioavailable heavy metal concentrations in classroom dust found on children’s hand palms was shown in the following order: Zn (1.25E + 01 μg/g) > Cu (9.59E-01 μg/g) > Ni (5.34E-01 μg/g) > Cr (4.72E-02 μg/g) > Co (2.34E-02 μg/g) > As (1.77E-02 μg/g) > Cd (9.60E-03 μg/g) > Pb (5.00E-03 μg/g). Hierarchical cluster analysis has clustered 17 sampling locations into three clusters, whereby cluster 1 (S3, S4, S6, S15) located in residential areas and near to roads exposed to vehicle emissions, cluster 2 (S10, S12, S9, S7) located near Rawang town and cluster 3 (S13, S16, S1, S2, S8, S14, S11, S17, S5) located near industrial, residential and plantation areas. Emissions from vehicles, plantations and industrial activities were found as the main sources of heavy metals in classroom dust in Rawang. There is no association found between bioavailable heavy metal concentrations and respiratory symptoms, except for Cu (OR = 0.03). Health risks (non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks) indicated that there are no potential non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks of heavy metals in classroom dust toward children health

Bioavailable heavy metal concentration in classroom dust and related health risk assessment of primary school children in Rawang, Malaysia

Children are vulnerable to heavy metals in classroom dust. A total of 51 classroom dust samples were collected from children’s palms using wet tissue wiping method from April to June 2016. Physiologically Based Extraction Test (PBET) was applied to determine bioavailable heavy metal concentrations and potential health risks among the school children were estimated. The highest mean of bioavailable heavy metal concentration in classroom dust was Zn (12.5103 μg/g), followed by Cu (0.9585 μg/g), Ni (0.5340 μg/g), Cr (0.0472 μg/g), Co (0.0234 μg/g), As (0.0177 μg/g), Cd (0.0096 μg g), and Pb (0.0050 μg/g). Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to determine heavy metal sources in classroom dust. Heavy metals in PC1 (As, Cd, Co, Cu, Zn) were mostly linked with natural and anthropogenic sources, while PC2 (Cr, Ni) were more related to anthropogenic activities (industrial activities, traffic congestion). Hierarchical cluster has indicated three clusters, namely Cluster 1 (S3, S4, S6, S15) as residential areas, Cluster 2 (S7, S9, S10, S12) as industrial area and Cluster 3 (S1, S2, S5, S8, S14, S11, S13, S16, S17) as a mixed land use area (residential, industrial, plantation). Emissions from vehicles, plantations and industrial activities were the main heavy metal sources in classroom dust. The relationship between bioavailable heavy metal concentrations in classroom dust with school and classroom characteristics was done using Spearman’s Rho. Only Cu (r = 0.767, p = 0.016) was found significant related with distance between school and traffic road, while Cd (r = -0.725, p = 0.027) was found negatively related to classroom floor level. There were no potential health risks (non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic) of ingestion pathway reported

Working for corporate women - the Singaporean perspective

The subject of interest in our research is subordinates’ perception of female managers in Singapore. Through this research, we hope to provide feedback to the population of female managers in Singapore and enhance their effectiveness. We applied the Leadership Inventory Style developed by Reardon, Rowe and Bennis in the construction of our questionnaire and as a basis for our recommendations

Effect of a spiritual care training program for staff on patient outcomes

© 2017 Cambridge University Press. Objective: Physicians and nurses do not assess spirituality routinely, even though spiritual care is a vital part of palliative care for patients with an advanced serious illness. The aim of our study was to determine whether a training program for healthcare professionals on spirituality and the taking of a spiritual history would result in improved patient quality of life (QoL) and spiritual well-being. Method: This was a cluster-controlled trial of a spiritual care training program for palliative care doctors and nurses. Three of seven clinical teams (clusters) received the intervention, while the other four served as controls. Included patients were newly referred to the palliative care service, had an estimated survival of more than one month, and were aware of their diagnosis and prognosis. The primary outcome measure was the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-Being (FACIT-Sp) patient-reported questionnaire, which patients completed at two timepoints. Total FACIT-Sp score includes the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General (FACT-G) questionnaire, which measures overall quality of life, as well as a spiritual well-being score. Results: Some 144 patients completed the FACIT-Sp at both timepoints - 74 in the control group and 70 in the intervention group. The change in overall quality of life, measured by change in FACT-G scores, was 3.89 points (95% confidence interval [CI 95%] = -0.42 to 8.19, p = 0.076) higher in the intervention group than in the control group. The difference between the intervention and control groups in terms of change in spiritual well-being was 0.32 (CI 95% = -2.23 to 2.88, p = 0.804). Significance of results: A brief spiritual care training program can possibly help bring about enhanced improvement of global patient QoL, but the effect on patients\u27 spiritual well-being was not as evident in our participants. Further study with larger sample sizes is needed to allow for more definite conclusions to be drawn

Effect of a spiritual care training program for staff on patient outcomes

© 2017 Cambridge University Press. Objective: Physicians and nurses do not assess spirituality routinely, even though spiritual care is a vital part of palliative care for patients with an advanced serious illness. The aim of our study was to determine whether a training program for healthcare professionals on spirituality and the taking of a spiritual history would result in improved patient quality of life (QoL) and spiritual well-being. Method: This was a cluster-controlled trial of a spiritual care training program for palliative care doctors and nurses. Three of seven clinical teams (clusters) received the intervention, while the other four served as controls. Included patients were newly referred to the palliative care service, had an estimated survival of more than one month, and were aware of their diagnosis and prognosis. The primary outcome measure was the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-Being (FACIT-Sp) patient-reported questionnaire, which patients completed at two timepoints. Total FACIT-Sp score includes the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General (FACT-G) questionnaire, which measures overall quality of life, as well as a spiritual well-being score. Results: Some 144 patients completed the FACIT-Sp at both timepoints - 74 in the control group and 70 in the intervention group. The change in overall quality of life, measured by change in FACT-G scores, was 3.89 points (95% confidence interval [CI 95%] = -0.42 to 8.19, p = 0.076) higher in the intervention group than in the control group. The difference between the intervention and control groups in terms of change in spiritual well-being was 0.32 (CI 95% = -2.23 to 2.88, p = 0.804). Significance of results: A brief spiritual care training program can possibly help bring about enhanced improvement of global patient QoL, but the effect on patients\u27 spiritual well-being was not as evident in our participants. Further study with larger sample sizes is needed to allow for more definite conclusions to be drawn

Clinical relevance of screening checklists for detecting cancer predisposition syndromes in Asian childhood tumours

Assessment of cancer predisposition syndromes (CPS) in childhood tumours is challenging to paediatric oncologists due to inconsistent recognizable clinical phenotypes and family histories, especially in cohorts with unknown prevalence of germline mutations. Screening checklists were developed to facilitate CPS detection in paediatric patients; however, their clinical value have yet been validated. Our study aims to assess the utility of clinical screening checklists validated by genetic sequencing in an Asian cohort of childhood tumours. We evaluated 102 patients under age 18 years recruited over a period of 31 months. Patient records were reviewed against two published checklists and germline mutations in 100 cancer-associated genes were profiled through a combination of whole-exome sequencing and multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification on blood-derived genomic DNA. Pathogenic germline mutations were identified in ten (10%) patients across six known cancer predisposition genes: TP53, DICER1, NF1, FH, SDHD and VHL. Fifty-four (53%) patients screened positive on both checklists, including all ten pathogenic germline carriers. TP53 was most frequently mutated, affecting five children with adrenocortical carcinoma, sarcomas and diffuse astrocytoma. Disparity in prevalence of germline mutations across tumour types suggested variable genetic susceptibility and implied potential contribution of novel susceptibility genes. Only five (50%) children with pathogenic germline mutations had a family history of cancer. We conclude that CPS screening checklists are adequately sensitive to detect at-risk children and are relevant for clinical application. In addition, our study showed that 10% of Asian paediatric solid tumours have a heritable component, consistent with other populations.NMRC (Natl Medical Research Council, S’pore)Published versio

The scaffold RhoGAP protein ARHGAP8/BPGAP1 synchronizes Rac and Rho signaling to facilitate cell migration

Rho GTPases regulate cell morphogenesis and motility under the tight control of guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs) and GTPase-activating proteins (GAPs). However, the underlying mechanism(s) that coordinate their spatiotemporal activities, whether separately or together, remain unclear. We show that a prometastatic RhoGAP, ARHGAP8/BPGAP1, binds to inactive Rac1 and localizes to lamellipodia. BPGAP1 recruits the RacGEF Vav1 under epidermal growth factor (EGF) stimulation and activates Rac1, leading to polarized cell motility, spreading, invadopodium formation, and cell extravasation and promotes cancer cell migration. Importantly, BPGAP1 down-regulates local RhoA activity, which influences Rac1 binding to BPGAP1 and its subsequent activation by Vav1. Our results highlight the importance of BPGAP1 in recruiting Vav1 and Rac1 to promote Rac1 activation for cell motility. BPGAP1 also serves to control the timing of Rac1 activation with RhoA inactivation via its RhoGAP activity. BPGAP1, therefore, acts as a dual-function scaffold that recruits Vav1 to activate Rac1 while inactivating RhoA to synchronize both Rho and Rac signaling in cell motility. As epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), Vav1, RhoA, Rac1, and BPGAP1 are all associated with cancer metastasis, BPGAP1 could provide a crucial checkpoint for the EGFR-BPGAP1-Vav1-Rac1-RhoA signaling axis for cancer intervention.Published versionThis work was supported by the National Medical Research Council, a CBRG New Investigator Grant (CBRG-NIG; R-714-000-115-511 to C.Q.P.), a Journal of Cell Science—The Company of Biologists Travel Fellowship (to C.Q.P.), Cancer Research UK (C6620/A15961 to A.J.R.), and the Mechanobiology Institute of Singapore (to B.C.L.), cofunded by the National Research Foundation and the Ministry of Education, Singapore, and also supported by Ministry of Education Academic Research Fund Tier 3 (MOE Grant No: MOE2016-T3-1-002) to B.C.L

Severe Pediatric Adenovirus 7 Disease in Singapore Linked to Recent Outbreaks across Asia

During November 2012–July 2013, a marked increase of adenovirus type 7 (Ad7) infections associated with severe disease was documented among pediatric patients in Singapore. Phylogenetic analysis revealed close genetic links with severe Ad7 outbreaks in China, Taiwan, and other parts of Asia