Isolation of human salivary exosome on the morphology and gene expression of human periodontal ligament fibroblast cell line

The increasing incidence of periodontal diseases has led to the advancement in periodontal therapy including periodontal tissue regeneration. The development of human salivary-derived exosomes has become one of the promising researches to improve cell-based tissue engineering. Due to established functions showed by exosomes, human salivary exosomes were isolated and its effect on the morphology and gene expression of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and collagen type 1 (COL1) in human periodontal ligament fibroblast (HPdLF) cell line was studied. Unstimulated saliva samples collected from healthy male subjects were used. Exosomes were isolated by ultracentrifugation while the confirmation and establishment of its storage condition were carried out by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Western blot assay and Nanoparticle Tracking Analysis (NTA) in the presence and absence of protease inhibitor. Morphology and number of HPdLF cells treated with exosomes were viewed under inverted microscope and calculated by using trypan blue respectively. Determination of the gene expression level of bFGF and COL1 in the presence and absence of human salivary exosomes in HPdLF cells was performed using quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RTqPCR). This study showed that salivary exosomes were stable at several temperatures tested with and without protease inhibitor. SEM analysis demonstrated the round shape of exosomes, ranged between 10 nm to 100 nm in diameter. Western blot result confirmed that isolated exosomes expressed exosomal marker CD63. NTA estimated the concentration and individual size of exosomes. There was no significant difference in the morphology and number of HPdLF cells for both exosome treated and untreated samples, however, exosomes upregulated bFGF gene expression. This study concluded that human salivary exosomes are stable biomaterial and able to upregulate bFGF gene that was expressed by HPdLF cells. Thus, they might have potential to be used as alternative biomaterial in tissue engineering for periodontal regeneration

Commercial herbal slimming products: evaluation of heavy metals and microorganism contamination at different batch production

Herbal-based slimming products which are consumed orally may be contaminated with heavy metals as well as microorganisms. This study aimed to evaluate the safety level of these slimming products by determining heavy metals and microbial contamination in different batch production. Six different brands of herbal-based slimming products (A, B, C, G, H and I) with three different batch productions (1, 2 and 3) were investigated (n =18). Five heavy metals Arsenic, Cadmium, Chromium, Copper and Zinc were determined using an Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS). The presence of microorganisms was determined by total aerobic count and the bacteria were identified. The samples’ moisture content was determined by calculating the percentage of water loss after drying process. All batches of samples A and B had high content of zinc, over the permissible level of 5ppm while, 6 samples contained Chromium above the permissible level (1.5 ppm). All 3 batches of sample A presented with the highest total daily intake of heavy metals. Bacteria were present in all the samples tested with the highest numbers in samples G, H and A followed by B, I and C. The highest number of fungi was found in product A while product I was free from fungal contamination. Aspergillus spp. was the predominant fungus present in the samples. There was a weak correlation between moisture content and bacteria (r = 0.087) and fungal (r = 0.253) presence in the samples. As some herbal slimming products contain heavy metals as well as microorganisms, consumers need to be more vigilant and discerning when selecting products to be consumed

Isu kecacatan bangunan dalam aspek penyelenggaraan

Malaysia merupakan salah satu negara yang pesat membangun dari sektor pembinaan.Selepas kemelesetan ekonomi berakhir, industri pembinaan semakin sibuk dan menunjukkan pertumbuhan yang pesat dengan bantuan teknologi terkini dan pembinaan yang maju. Walaupun secangih mana bangunan itu dihasilkan, struktur sesebuah bangunan pasti tidak terlepas daripada kerosakan dan masalah kecacatan.Disebabkan masalah tersebut, kajian ini dijalankan untuk mengenalpasti isu-isu kecacatan bangunan dalam penyelenggaraan kecacatan bukan sahaja memberi kesan kepada keselamatan , kesihatan dan keselesaan pelanggan , tetapi juga akan menjejaskan rupa dan estetika bangunan.Dengan mengenalpasti isu kecacatan yang berlaku, langkah-langkah terbaik boleh diambil untuk mengurangkan kecacatan daripada berulang

Faktor utama terhadap amalan terbaik dalam sektor pembinaan di Malaysia

Keselamatan adalah salah satu daripada sektor yang paling penting di dalam sektor industri di Malaysia.Salah satu sektor yang menekankan tentang keselamatan ialah sektor pembinaan. Sektor pembinaan telah banyak menyumbang dalam penjanaan ekonomi di Malaysia.Kadang-kadang, di dalam sektor ini terdapat beberapa masalah yang timbul berkaitan dengan sektor keselamatan.Banyak projek pembinaan di Malaysia menghadapi masalah akibat daripada keselamatan dalam industri pembinaan.Masalah yang paling umum ialah masalah bangunan runtuh selepas bangunan siap dibina.Jadi adalah penting untuk kita mengurangkan masalah keselamatan di dalam industri pembinaan di Malaysia.Kajian ini juga bertujuan untuk mengenalpasti dan menilai amalan terbaik keselamatan pekerja di tapak pembinaan. Objektif kajian ini juga adalah untuk memastikan bahawa rekabentuk proses pembinaan di tapak pembinaan mengikut peraturan yang telah ditetapkan supaya dapat menjamin keselamatan kepada pekerja

Research Article Status of Emotional Intelligence (EI) Level of Biomedical Science Programme in Kuala Lumpur

Abstract: Emotional Intelligence (EI) is part of those who regulate their emotions according to a logically consistent of emotional functioning. This cross-sectional study is carried out among year 1 to 3 students of Biomedical Science Programme in Kuala Lumpur The questionnaire is based on three criteria which are intrapersonal ability, stress management and general mood. The sample size is 135 students by using stratified random sampling. The general objective of this study is to determine the emotional intelligence level of Biomedical Science students among socio demographic factor. The results showed the mean of EI male students (111.84±12.92 S.D.) is lower than that in female students (112.02±10.23 S.D.), the mean of EI among student staying in campus (112.55±10.947 S.D.) are higher than cam us student staying off-campus (110.76±10.274 S.D.) and the mean of EI among first year (114.35±13.32 S.D.) is the highest compared to that in Year 2 (113.16±9.592 S.D.) and Year 3 (109.93±10.169 S.D.). However there was no significance mean difference of EI between gender, year of study and residences (p>0.05). In conclusion, Emotional Intelligence (EI) is at average level (79.7%) and it was not depending on gender year of study and residences

Kesukaran memahami bahasa iIdonesia: satu tinjauan terhadap media Indonesia

Bahasa Malaysia dan bahasa Indonesia merupakan dua bahasa yang berasal dari satu rumpun bahasa yang sama iatu.bahasa Melayu. Namun disebabkan kedudukan geografi dan batasan politik yang berbeza, perkembangan kedua-dua bahasa tersebut telah menampakkan perbezaan yang jelas. Hal ini s~ tentu akan menimbulkan masalah bagi warga Malaysia dalam memaharni kandungan teks dalam bahasa Indonesia. Kajian ini dijalankan bertujuan mengenal pasti bentuk-bentuk kesukaran yang dialami oleh warga Malaysia dalam memahami maksud perkataan atau istilah yang terdapat dalam media cetak di Indonesia . Tumpuan khusus kajian adaJah terhadap surat khabar harian yang popular di Indonesia iaitu Harian Knmpas yang boleh didapati melalui Kompas e-paper merupakan versi elektronik dari surat kbabar Harian Kompas

Utilizing Speed Reading Technique for Students’ Ability in Comprehending Text

Learning to read in junior high school is one of the language skills that plays an important role. Reading skill is the third skill that is mastered by students in having a role in language skills and mastery of other subject matter. This study aims to determine students' speed reading ability. This research used descriptive quantitative method. The population of this study were all students of class VIII SMP Negeri 35 Makassar with a total of 288 students. The sample is 36 students. The sampling technique is a side random technique. Data obtained were analyzed using the percentage technique. The results of the data analysis showed that from 36 students as respondents, only 20 students (55.55%) managed to score above 75. This shows that the speed reading ability of class VIII students of SMP Negeri 35 Makassar is still poor because it is still under of the standard, which is at least 85% of all respondents. Therefore, it is recommended that students and teachers are more active and the learning support facilities are improved