Harnessing bacterial antimicrobial peptides: a comprehensive review on properties, mechanisms, applications, and challenges in combating antimicrobial resistance.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a significant global health concern, due to the persistence of pathogens and the emergence of resistance in bacterial infections. Bacterial-derived antimicrobial peptides (BAMPs) have emerged as a promising strategy to combat these challenges. Known for their diversity and multifaceted nature, BAMPs are notable bioactive agents which exhibit potent antimicrobial activities against various pathogens.

Predictors of elevated C-reactive protein among pre-treatment, newly diagnosed breast cancer patients: A cross-sectional study.

Background & Aims: Accumulating evidence showed that inflammation contributes markedly to cancer progression, with C-reactive protein (CRP) being one of the lengthily studied inflammation marker. For breast cancer (BCa), pre-treatment elevated CRP upon diagnosis was linked with increased mortality. This study aimed to identify factors predictive of elevated CRP in pre-treatment BCa population that can serve as potential therapeutic targets to reduce inflammation.

Sequence analysis of LipL41 and LipL21: Prospective Outer Membrane Proteins (OMPs) in early diagnosing leptospirosis.

Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease mostly occurring in tropical climate countries. The etiology of the disease is due to microbes from the genus . Higher number of cases reported worldwide indicated the disease is not easily eradicated.

Genetic diversity of hepatitis B co-infection with hepatitis C, D and E viruses among Malaysian chronic hepatitis B patients.

Background: Hepatitis B virus co-infection with other strains of viral hepatitis is associated with increased risk of liver cirrhosis and hepatic decompensation.

Objectives: This is a prevalence study that assessed the genetic diversity of chronic hepatitis B patients and coinfection.

Methods: Chronic hepatitis B patients enrolled in this study were tested for antibodies of other hepatitis viruses using ELISA kits.

Nasal colonisation, antimicrobial susceptibility and genotypic pattern of Staphylococcus aureus among agricultural biotechnology students in Besut, Terengganu, east coast of Malaysia.

Background: This study aimed to profile the antimicrobial susceptibility and presence of resistance and virulence genes of methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) and MRSA nasal carriage, by means of genotypic analyses, in students of a tertiary institution in the state of Terengganu, east coast of Malaysia.

Methods: A total of 370 agricultural biotechnology students from Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin in Besut, Terengganu, were enrolled in this study. Antimicrobial susceptibility profiles were evaluated by standard methods.

Development of nanoemulsion for efficient brain parenteral delivery of cefuroxime: designs, characterizations, and pharmacokinetics.

Background And Aim: Drugs that are effective against diseases in the central nervous system and reach the brain via blood must pass through the blood-brain barrier (BBB), a unique interface that protects against potential harmful molecules. This presents a major challenge in neuro-drug delivery. This study attempts to fabricate the cefuroxime-loaded nanoemulsion (CLN) to increase drug penetration into the brain when parenterally administered.

Characterization of resistance to selected antibiotics and Panton-Valentine leukocidin-positive in a healthy student population at a Malaysian University.

Introduction: This study aims to assess the antimicrobial susceptibility profiles of strains isolated from university students and to determine the prevalence of constitutive and inducible clindamycin resistance, the latter being able to cause therapeutic failure due to false in vitro clindamycin susceptibility.

Methods: strains were isolated from the nasal swabs of 200 health sciences students of a Malaysian university. Twelve classes of antibiotics were used to evaluate the antimicrobial susceptibility profiles with the macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin B (MLS) phenotype for inducible clindamycin resistance determined by the double-diffusion test (D-test).

Expression of Human Cytokine Genes Associated with Chronic Hepatitis B Disease Progression.

Background: Hepatitis viruses are non-cytopathic viruses that lead to the infection and pathogenesis of liver diseases as a result of immunologically mediated events.

Objective: To investigate the expression of human inflammatory cytokines in chronic hepatitis B patients according to the severity of the infection.

Methods: We recruited a total of 120 patients, 40 of whom from cirrhotic, 40 non-cirrhotic, and 40 acute flare chronic hepatitis B and 40 healthy controls.

Prevalence and molecular characterisation of Schistosoma haematobium among primary school children in Kebbi State, Nigeria.

Schistosomiasis is the major source of morbidity in Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. It is estimated that 207 million people are infected, of which 97% are in Africa. The aim of this study was the determining of prevalence as well as the phylogeny of S.

Genotypic characterization of Malaysian human isolates of Streptococcus pneumoniae from carriage and clinical sources.

This study characterized carriage and clinical pneumococcal isolates for serotypes, penicillin susceptibility, virulence genes and restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) pattern of penicillin binding protein (PBP) genes. DNA fingerprint of isolates was generated by BOX-PCR. Majority of serotypes were 23F followed by 19F, 19A and 6A.

Modified silver staining in 2DE improves protein detection even at extremely low sample concentration.

The typical concentration of protein loaded varies from 0.13 to 1.40 μg/μL for a classical silver staining method in 2DE gel.

Determination of phenotypes and pneumococcal surface protein A family types of Streptococcus pneumoniae from Malaysian healthy children.

Background: There is limited information about pneumococcal carriage among healthy children in Malaysia. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the prevalence rate, serotype distribution, susceptibility pattern, and pneumococcal surface protein A (PspA) family types of Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates in the nasal carriage of children 5 years old or younger in three day care centers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Methods: Nasal swabs were collected from 195 healthy children, age 5 years or younger, from June to December 2010.