Regulation of DNA synthesis and the cell cycle in human prostate cancer cells and lymphocytes by ovine uterine serpin

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Uterine serpins are members of the serine proteinase inhibitor superfamily. Like some other serpins, these proteins do not appear to be functional proteinase inhibitors. The most studied member of the group, ovine uterine serpin (OvUS), inhibits proliferation of several cell types including activated lymphocytes, bovine preimplantation embryos, and cell lines for lymphoma, canine primary osteosarcoma and human prostate cancer (PC-3) cells. The goal for the present study was to evaluate the mechanism by which OvUS inhibits cell proliferation. In particular, it was tested whether inhibition of DNA synthesis in PC-3 cells involves cytotoxic actions of OvUS or the induction of apoptosis. The effect of OvUS in the production of the autocrine and angiogenic cytokine interleukin (IL)-8 by PC-3 cells was also determined. Finally, it was tested whether OvUS blocks specific steps in the cell cycle using both PC-3 cells and lymphocytes.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Recombinant OvUS blocked proliferation of PC-3 cells at concentrations as low as 8 μg/ml as determined by measurements of [³H]thymidine incorporation or ATP content per well. Treatment of PC-3 cells with OvUS did not cause cytotoxicity or apoptosis or alter interleukin-8 secretion into medium. Results from flow cytometry experiments showed that OvUS blocked the entry of PC-3 cells into S phase and the exit from G₂/M phase. In addition, OvUS blocked entry of lymphocytes into S phase following activation of proliferation with phytohemagglutinin.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Results indicate that OvUS acts to block cell proliferation through disruption of the cell cycle dynamics rather than induction of cytotoxicity or apoptosis. The finding that OvUS can regulate cell proliferation makes this one of only a few serpins that function to inhibit cell growth.</p

Menopause Rating Scale (MRS) in Bahasa Melayu language- Translation and Validation In Multiethnic Population In Malaysia

Abstract Background The menopause Rating Scale (MRS) is an internationally used tool to measure menopause-related symptoms to date and is unavailable in the Bahasa Melayu language. We aimed to translate and validate the Bahasa Melayu version of the MRS. Methods Translation of the English version of MRS into Bahasa Melayu was done by a bilingual expert and back-translated. Bahasa Melayu MRS was reviewed by a panel to determine the face validity. A total of 321 women aged 40–60 years residing in Klang, Selangor, Malaysia were selected by stratified random sampling method in a house-to-house survey. The Bahasa Melayu MRS was self-administered. Reliability analyses, including test-retest reliability (on 30 women after a two-week interval) were conducted. To ascertain the construct validity, 11 items were analyzed using exploratory factor analyses to determine the factor structure. To further support the psychometric study, confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to evaluate the structural model fit of Bahasa Melayu MRS. Results A total of 294 (91.6%) completed the survey and their mean age was 50.9 years (SD = 6.3). An overall Cronbach’s alpha for MRS was 0.904. Cronbach’s alpha for psychosomatic, urogenital, and Somatovegetative subscales were 0.889, 0.846, and 0.776 respectively. The corrected item correlations were approximately 0.6 and inter-item correlations were between 0.3 and 0.9. Assumptions for exploratory factor analyses were not violated; Kaiser–Meier–Olkin test revealed a value of 0.883 and Bartlett’s test value of sphericity was statistically significant (χ2 = 2400.483 and p &lt; 0.001). EFA identified three factors accounting for 51.4% of the variance. This study encountered straddling of items. EFA yielded all 4 psychological items in Factor 2. The items which are supposedly falling into Somatic-Vegetative and Urogenital domains are straddled in Factor 1. Two items (heart complications and bladder problems) are grouped in the 3rd Factor. Nevertheless, confirmatory factor analyses showed a good model fit, fitting well into the theoretical constructs. Conclusion The translated English version of the Menopause Rating Scale into the Bahasa Version showed excellent reliability, test-retest reliability, and construct validity. The instrument can be used to assess menopause-related symptoms among Malaysian women.</jats:p

Disease Monitoring Parameters for Autoimmune Diseases

Autoimmune diseases are complex chronic multisystem disorders that are potentially life threatening. The etiology of autoimmune diseases is not known but genetic, hormonal, and environmental factors are found to be involved in their pathogenesis. The clinical course is usually very long and patients have circulating autoantibodies in their serum before the appearance of clinical signs and symptoms. Seventy-five percent of the autoimmune diseases occur in women and it is one of the top ten causes of death in women below the age of 65 years. Many women may possess irregular non-specific symptoms such fatigue, muscle pain, and joint pain because of the genes and may or may not progress to one or the other symptomatic autoimmune diseases leading to severe complications including organ failure and death. Increased death rates in women because of autoimmune diseases have been recently reported in the US and UK. Researchers have also reported a steep rise in economic burden due to autoimmune diseases. Early diagnosis of the autoimmune diseases may play an important role in modifying the course of disease progression. Following up of patients with autoimmune diseases on a regular basis with available prognostic tests will greatly reduce morbidity and possibly mortality in these patients. In this comprehensive review article, we have summarized available prognostic strategies and recommendations for common autoimmune disorders

Disease Monitoring Parameters for Autoimmune Diseases

Autoimmune diseases are complex chronic multisystem disorders that are potentially life threatening. The etiology of autoimmune diseases is not known but genetic, hormonal, and environmental factors are found to be involved in their pathogenesis. The clinical course is usually very long and patients have circulating autoantibodies in their serum before the appearance of clinical signs and symptoms. Seventy-five percent of the autoimmune diseases occur in women and it is one of the top ten causes of death in women below the age of 65 years. Many women may possess irregular non-specific symptoms such fatigue, muscle pain, and joint pain because of the genes and may or may not progress to one or the other symptomatic autoimmune diseases leading to severe complications including organ failure and death. Increased death rates in women because of autoimmune diseases have been recently reported in the US and UK. Researchers have also reported a steep rise in economic burden due to autoimmune diseases. Early diagnosis of the autoimmune diseases may play an important role in modifying the course of disease progression. Following up of patients with autoimmune diseases on a regular basis with available prognostic tests will greatly reduce morbidity and possibly mortality in these patients. In this comprehensive review article, we have summarized available prognostic strategies and recommendations for common autoimmune disorders.</jats:p

Teachers' knowledge and perception towards children with an autism spectrum disorder

This study aims to assess teacher’s knowledge and perception towards children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in Malaysia. A cross-sectional study was done by using convenient sampling. Respondents that fulfill the inclusion & exclusion criteria were sent online validated questionnaire, data were analyzedusing SPSS. As a result, only a few of the respondents have good knowledge ofautism, however,more have a positive attitude towards autism.In conclusion, we found that teachers did, in fact, recognize their own lack of knowledge of ASD and this awareness co-existed with an interest in increasing their knowledge and skills in this area.Este estudio tiene como objetivo evaluar el conocimiento y la percepción del maestro hacia los niños con trastorno del espectro autista(TEA) en Malasia. Se realizó un estudio transversal mediante el uso de muestreo conveniente. Los encuestados que cumplieron con los criterios de inclusión y exclusión fueron enviados a un cuestionario validado en línea, los datos fueron analizados utilizando SPSS. Como resultado, solo unos pocos de los encuestados tienen un buen conocimiento del autismo, sin embargo, más tienen una actitud positiva hacia el autismo. En conclusión, descubrimos que los maestros, de hecho, reconocían su propia falta de conocimiento de TEA y esta conciencia coexistía con un interés en aumentar sus conocimientos y habilidades en esta área