BRANDING THROUGH FACEBOOK FOR INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER LEARNING

The intention of this study is to determine the perception of students towards the effectiveness of Facebook branding for institutions of higher learning through the use of social networking sites (SNS). It is also to explore the important role they play as a media in branding for institutions of higher learning. The findings of this research are intended to provide accurate and useful information so as to facilitate further research in similar fields of study. Permission was granted by the Directors of the IHLs to deliver and collect the questionnaires. Questionnaires were given to 200 students of ten selected institutions of higher learning in the Klang Valley. The respondents involved were students enrolled in the social science, technology and art and design courses as well as all the school administrators ranging from the Principals right down to the key personnel of these departments. The respondents were asked about their perception with regards to its current Facebook website and how does it play a role in branding the institutions of higher learning so as to gain their true interpretation and understanding of Internet branding. Responses from the respondents showed that, generally branding through Facebook was more important when compared to the use of other traditional mass media. Website was another medium that could be important for branding institutions of higher learning. Many student respondents agreed that branding through Facebook was more effective in finding information as compared to the use of the traditional mass media. From the traditional mass media, one might find it difficult to obtain the required information since many institutions of higher learning seldom employ any publicity using any traditional mass media. Educational institutions that posted good websites that could provide clearer and sufficient information to their potential students, would then have a more competitive advantage compare to those who did not. Besides that, the findings have also indicated that branding through a website was definitely more effective in influencing the students in making decisions to enroll in their courses when compared to the use of traditional mass media strategy. Keywords: Facebook, Branding, Institution of Higher learning, social networking, Internet branding

Remote Monitoring of Patient Respiration with Mask Attachment -- A Pragmatic Solution for Medical Facilities

Remote monitoring of vital signs in infectious patients minimizes the risks of viral transmissions to healthcare professionals. Evidence indicates that donning face masks reduces the risk of viral transmissions and is now the norm in medical facilities. We propose attaching an acoustic-sensing device onto face masks to assist medical facilities in monitoring patients' respiration remotely. Usability and functionality studies of the modified face mask were evaluated on 16 healthy participants, who were blindfolded throughout the data collection. Around half of the participants noticed the difference between the modified and unmodified masks but they also reported there was no discomfort in using the modified mask. Respiratory rates of the participants were evaluated for one minute and the mean error of respiratory rate was found to be 2.0 +/- 1.3 breath per minute. As all participants were healthy, the wheeze detection algorithm was assessed by playing 176 wheezes and 176 normal breaths through a foam mannequin. The recordings were played at three different times to account for varying environmental noise. The overall accuracy of the wheeze detection algorithm was 91.9%. The current findings support and suggest the use of the mask attachment in medical facilities.Comment: Published on Inventions, 10 page

Molecular characterisation of Haemoglobin Constant Spring and Haemoglobin Quong Sze with a combine-amplification refractory mutation system

Background: The interaction of the non-deletional α +- thalassaemia mutations Haemoglobin Constant Spring and Haemoglobin Quong Sze with the Southeast Asian double α-globin gene deletion results in non-deletional Haemoglobin H disease. Accurate detection of non-deletional Haemoglobin H disease, which is associated with severe phenotypes, is necessary as these mutations have been confirmed in the Malaysian population. Methods: DNA from two families with Haemoglobin H disease was extracted from EDTA-anticoagulated whole blood and subjected to molecular analysis for α-thalassaemia. A duplex polymerase chain reaction was used to detect the Southeast Asian α-globin gene deletion. Polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis was then carried out to determine the presence of Haemoglobin Constant Spring and Haemoglobin Quong Sze. A combine- amplification refractory mutation system protocol was optimised and implemented for the rapid and specific molecular characterisation of Haemoglobin Constant Spring and Haemoglobin Quong Sze in a single polymerase chain reaction. Results and Conclusions: The combine- amplification refractory mutation system for Haemoglobin Constant Spring and Haemoglobin Quong Sze, together with the duplex polymerase chain reaction, provides accurate pre- and postnatal diagnosis of non-deletional Haemoglobin H disease and allows detailed genotype analyses using minimal quantities of DNA

Thalassemia intermedia in HbH-CS disease with compound heterozygosity for β-thalassemia: challenges in hemoglobin analysis and clinical diagnosis

Co-inheritance of α-thalassemia with homozygosity or compound heterozygosity for β-thalassemia may ameliorate β-thalassemia major. A wide range of clinical phenotypes is produced depending on the number of α-thalassemia alleles (-α/αα --/αα, --/-α). The co-inheritance of β-thalassemia with α-thalassemia with a single gene deletion (-α/αα) is usually associated with thalassemia major. In contrast, the co-inheritance of β-thalassemia with two α-genes deleted in cis or trans (--/αα or -α/-α) generally produces β-thalassemia intermedia. In Southeast Asia, the most common defect responsible for α-thalassemia is the Southeast Asian (SEA) deletion of 20.5 kilobases. The presence of the SEA deletion with Hb Constant Spring (HbCS) produces HbH-CS disease. Co-inheritance of HbH-CS with compound heterozygosity for β-thalassemia is very rare. This study presents a Malay patient with HbH-CS disorder and β° /β +-thalassemia. The SEA deletion was confirmed in the patient using a duplex-PCR. A Combine-Amplification Refractory Mutation System (C-ARMS) technique to simultaneously detect HbCS and Hb Quong Sze confirmed HbCS in the patient. Compound heterozygosity for CD41/ 42 and Poly A was confirmed using the ARMS. This is a unique case as the SEA α-gene deletion in cis (-- SEA/αα) is generally not present in the Malays, who more commonly posses the two α-gene deletion in trans (-α/-α). In addition, the β-globin gene mutation at CD41/42 is a common mutation in the Chinese and not in the Malays. The presence of both the SEA deletion and CD41/42 in the mother of the patient suggests the possible introduction of these two defects into the family by marriage with a Chinese

Interaction of Hb South Florida (codon 1; GTG→ATG) and HbE, with β-thalassemia (IVS1-1; G→A): expression of different clinical phenotypes

Introduction: Interactions of different hemoglobin variants with thalassemia alleles can result in various clinical phenotypes. HbE-β-thalassemia generally manifests with severe anemia where individuals exhibit β-thalassemia major with regular blood transfusions or β-thalassemia intermedia with periodic blood transfusions. This study presents a unique Malay family with three β-globin gene defects—HbE, Hb South Florida, and IVS1-1 (G→A). Materials and methods: HbE activates a cryptic splice site that produces non-functional mRNAs. Hb South Florida is a rare β-hemoglobin variant, and its interactions with other β-thalassemia alleles have not been reported. IVS1-1 is a Mediterranean mutation that affects mRNA processing giving rise to βo-thalassemia. Results and discussion: Fifteen mutations along the β-globin gene complex were analyzed using the amplification refractory mutation system. Hb South Florida was identified by direct sequencing using genomic DNA Conclusion: The affected child with HbE/IVS1-1 produced a β-thalassemia major phenotype. Compound heterozygosity for Hb South Florida/IVS1-1 produced a β-thalassemia carrier phenotype in the mother

Pichia-expressed recombinant D6 and DARC negatively affect cell migration and invasion of breast cancer cells

Atypical chemokine receptor proteins are termed ‘decoy proteins’ as their binding to the respective ligands does not lead to a typical signaling pathway but intercepts the action of chemokines. This method of chemokine activity regulation may also function in tumor suppression. D6 and DARC (Duffy Antigen Receptor for Chemokines) have been reported as decoy chemokine receptors in cancer studies. Purified Pichia-expressed D6 and DARC, produced in-house, were used in cell-based studies to test their biological activities. Cell viability tests showed that recombinant D6 and DARC did not affect cell viability significantly, suggesting that they were not involved in breast cancer cell death. Wound healing assays showed that the presence of recombinant D6 or DARC at 10 μg/mL optimally inhibited the migration of breast cancer cells. ELISA showed an inverse relationship between the recombinant proteins and CCL levels in the treated cells. Migration assay using Boyden chamber demonstrated the function of the recombinant proteins in inhibiting chemotaxis activity of treated cells. Invasion assay showed the ability of the recombinant proteins in inhibiting the invasion property of treated cells. Comparison of single and combinatorial effects of the recombinant proteins showed that the combination of D6 and DARC at a 1:1 ratio (10 μg/mL) is most effective in reducing CCL levels and inhibiting the migration and invasion of treated cells. It was shown that the purified Pichia-expressed recombinant D6 and DARC are the negative regulators of breast cancer cell migration and invasion, and the inhibition effects were greater when they were used in combination

Identification of α°-thalassaemia (–SEA) using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for embryonic zeta-globin chain detection – a preliminary study

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the UBI MAGIWELTM ζ-GLOBIN ELISA Kit for the presumptive diagnosis of αo-thalassaemia. The ELISA results obtained were confirmed by molecular characterisation of αo-thalassaemia using a Duplex-PCR. Methods: Routine peripheral blood counts and red cell indices were determined in 94 blood samples sent for Hb analysis. Hb subtypes were quantified by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and Hb electrophoresis conducted on agarose gel at pH 8.5. Zeta-globin chain levels were determined using the UBI MAGIWELTM ζ-GLOBIN ELISA Kit. Molecular analysis was performed using a duplex-PCR which simultaneously amplifies a normal 136 bp sequence between the ψα−α2-globin genes and a 730 bp Southeast Asian deletion-specific sequence (–SEA) between the ψα2−θ1-globin genes. Results: Using the ELISA assay kit, 20 blood samples were presumptively identified as α-thalassaemia carriers from elevated ζ-globin chains (OD>0.3) while the remaining 74 blood samples showed OD<0.3. Molecular characterisation confirmed amplification of the 136 bp normal fragment in all the blood samples. Seventeen of the 20 DNA samples from the α-thalassaemia carriers amplified the SEA-deletion specific fragment. The remaining three DNA samples did not amplify the SEA-deletion specific fragment but amplified the normal α-globin gene sequence, indicating the presence of amplifiable DNA in these samples. Further molecular characterisation of the α-3.7 and -α4.2 deletions and Hb Constant Spring (CS) mutation showed the absence of these defects in these 3 DNA samples. Conclusion: This preliminary investigation showed the sensitivity and specificity of the UBI MAGIWEL ζ-globin ELISA kit as 100 % and 96.1 % respectively in the detection of α-thalassaemia-1 carriers (–SEA)

High Prevalence of Alpha- and Beta-Thalassemia in the Kadazandusuns in East Malaysia: Challenges in Providing Effective Health Care for an Indigenous Group

Thalassemia can lead to severe transfusion-dependent anemia, and it is the most common genetic disorder in Malaysia. This paper aims to determine the prevalence of thalassemia in the Kadazandusuns, the largest indigenous group in Sabah, East Malaysia. α- and β-thalassemia were confirmed in 33.6% and 12.8%, of the individuals studied respectively. The high prevalence of α- and β-thalassemia in the Kadazandusuns indicates that thalassemia screening, genetic counseling, and prenatal diagnosis should be included as part of their healthcare system. This preliminary paper serves as a baseline for further investigations into the health and genetic defects of the major indigenous population in Sabah, East Malaysia

ACHIKO-M Database for high myopia analysis and its evaluation

Myopia is the leading public health concern with high prevalence in developed countries. In this paper, we present the ACHIKO-M fundus image database with both myopic and emmetropic cases for high myopia study. The database contains 705 myopic subjects and 151 normal subjects with both left eye and right eye images for each subject. In addition, various clinical data is also available, allowing correlation study of different risk factors. We evaluated two state-of-the-art automated myopia detection algorithms on this database to show how it can be used. Both methods achieve more than 90% accuracy for myopia diagnosis. We will also discuss how ACHIKO-M can be a good database for both scientific and clinical research of myopia