Impact of COVID-19 on dengue: a twofold challenge to public health in Sabah, Malaysia.

Introduction: The dengue epidemic poses a significant public health challenge in Malaysia, and the concurrent presence of dengue and SARS-CoV-2 infections has further strained its healthcare system. Sabah, the second largest state in Malaysia, located in the northern part of Borneo Island, has been particularly hard-hit by both dengue and SARS-CoV-2 outbreaks. This study aims to analyze the status of dengue infections in Sabah over the past decade and understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on dengue virus transmission.

Improved limit of detection for zoonotic and surveillance using reverse transcription for total nucleic acid preserved samples or dried blood spots.

Background: Zoonotic and symptomatic and asymptomatic infections occur across endemic areas of Southeast Asia. Most infections are low-parasitemia, with an unknown proportion below routine microscopy detection thresholds. Molecular surveillance tools optimizing the limit of detection (LOD) would allow more accurate estimates of zoonotic malaria prevalence.

A protocol and training guidelines for mosquito sampling in remote areas with limited power supply.

Mosquito-borne diseases pose a significant threat in many Southeast Asian countries, particularly through the sylvatic cycle, which has a wildlife reservoir in forests and rural areas. Studying the composition and diversity of vectors and pathogen transmission is especially challenging in forests and rural areas due to their remoteness, limited accessibility, lack of power, and underdeveloped infrastructure. This study is based on the WHO mosquito sampling protocol, modifies technical details to support mosquito collection in difficult-to-access and resource-limited areas.

Exploring the role of gut microbiota in advancing personalized medicine.

Ongoing extensive research in the field of gut microbiota (GM) has highlighted the crucial role of gut-dwelling microbes in human health. These microbes possess 100 times more genes than the human genome and offer significant biochemical advantages to the host in nutrient and drug absorption, metabolism, and excretion. It is increasingly clear that GM modulates the efficacy and toxicity of drugs, especially those taken orally.

An In Silico Design of Peptides Targeting the S1/S2 Cleavage Site of the SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein.

SARS-CoV-2, responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic, invades host cells via its spike protein, which includes critical binding regions, such as the receptor-binding domain (RBD), the S1/S2 cleavage site, the S2 cleavage site, and heptad-repeat (HR) sections. Peptides targeting the RBD and HR1 inhibit binding to host ACE2 receptors and the formation of the fusion core. Other peptides target proteases, such as TMPRSS2 and cathepsin L, to prevent the cleavage of the S protein.

Timeline of SARS-CoV-2 Transmission in Sabah, Malaysia: Tracking the Molecular Evolution.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic poses an unprecedented public health challenge in Malaysia. The impact of COVID-19 varies between countries, including geographically divided states within a country. The deadly transmission of COVID-19 has taken a heavy toll in Sabah, Malaysia's third most populous state, contributing nearly 10% to the recorded national death toll as of 31 December 2022.

Dataset of the complete genome of strain 2BA6PG isolated from sediment from the bottom of the salt lake Verkhnee Beloe (Buryatia, Russia).

The strain 2BA6PG was isolated from sediment from the bottom of the salt lake Verkhnee Beloe (Buryatia, Russia). This strain's 7,651,223 bp complete genome has a high G + C content of 72.1% and consists of 7,069 coding sequences and 315 subsystems.

Bacterial polysaccharides-A big source for prebiotics and therapeutics.

Bacterial polysaccharides are unique due to their higher purity, hydrophilic nature, and a finer three-dimensional fibrous structure. Primarily, these polymers provide protection, support, and energy to the microorganism, however, more recently several auxiliary properties of these biopolymers have been unmasked. Microbial polysaccharides have shown therapeutic abilities against various illnesses, augmented the healing abilities of the herbal and Western medicines, improved overall health of the host, and have exerted positive impact on the growth of gut dwelling beneficial bacteria.

COVID-19 Treatment-Current Status, Advances, and Gap.

COVID-19, which emerged in December 2019, was declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) in March 2020. The disease was caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). It has caused millions of deaths worldwide and caused social and economic disruption.

Bacteriocins as Potential Therapeutic Approaches in the Treatment of Various Cancers: A Review of In Vitro Studies.

Cancer is regarded as one of the most common and leading causes of death. Despite the availability of conventional treatments against cancer cells, current treatments are not the optimal treatment for cancer as they possess the possibility of causing various unwanted side effects to the body. As a result, this prompts a search for an alternative treatment without exhibiting any additional side effects.

Antimicrobial activities and phytochemical properties of against pathogenic microorganisms.

Medicinal plants have been widely used in healthcare based on traditional knowledge. We investigated the antimicrobial activities and phytochemical contents of a plant known as (), which Sabah native people have used for health benefits. Methanolic extracts and fractions of the leaves of were tested for their phytochemical contents and their antimicrobial activities against four Gram-negative and five Gram-positive strains of bacteria.

Risk Association, Linkage Disequilibrium, and Haplotype Analyses of β-Like Globin Gene Polymorphisms with Malaria Risk in the Sabah Population of Malaysian Borneo.

Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the β-like globin gene of the human hosts to the risk of malaria are unclear. Therefore, this study investigates these associations in the Sabah population, with a high incidence of malaria cases. In brief, DNA was extracted from 188 post-diagnostic blood samples infected with parasites and 170 healthy controls without a history of malaria.

Catalytic Properties of Caseinolytic Protease Subunit of and Its Inhibition by a Member of δ-Lactone, Hyptolide.

The caseinolytic protease (Clp) system plays an essential role in the protein homeostasis of the malaria parasite, particularly at the stage of apicoplast development. The inhibition of this protein is known to have a lethal effect on the parasite and is therefore considered an interesting avenue for antimalaria drugs discovery. The catalytic activity of the Clp system is modulated by its proteolytic subunit (ClpP), which belongs to the serine protease family member and is therefore extensively studied for further inhibitors development.

Bioactivities and Mode of Actions of Dibutyl Phthalates and Nocardamine from sp. H11809.

Dibutyl phthalate (DBP) produced by sp. H11809 exerted inhibitory activity against human GSK-3β ( GSK-3β) and 3D7 ( 3D7) malaria parasites. The current study aimed to determine DBP's plausible mode of action against GSK-3β and 3D7.

Prevalence of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Different Clinical Stages before the National COVID-19 Vaccination Programme in Malaysia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

More than 1.75 million COVID-19 infections and 16 thousand associated deaths have been reported in Malaysia. A meta-analysis on the prevalence of COVID-19 in different clinical stages before the National COVID-19 Vaccination Program in Malaysia is still lacking.

An Updated Review on the Role of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms in COVID-19 Disease Severity: A Global Aspect.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and recently has become a serious global pandemic. Age, gender, and comorbidities are known to be common risk factors for severe COVID-19 but are not enough to fully explain the magnitude of their effect on the risk of severity of the disease. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in several genes have been reported as a genetic factor contributing to COVID-19 severity.

Technical data on the inhibition properties of some medicinal plant extracts towards caseinolytic protease proteolytic subunit of .

Proteolytic subunit of the caseinolytic protease system of (Pk-ClpP; EC 3.4.21.

Peptide Conjugate on Multilayer Graphene Oxide Film for the Osteogenic Differentiation of Human Wharton's Jelly-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells.

Graphene oxide (GO) is extensively studied as a template material for mesenchymal stem cell application due to its two-dimensional nature and unique functionalization chemistries. Herein, a new type of peptide-conjugated multilayer graphene oxide (peptide/m-GO film) was fabricated and used as biomaterial for culturing human Wharton's jelly-derived mesenchymal stem cells (WJ-MSCs). The characterization of the peptide/m-GO films was performed, and the biocompatibility of the WJ-MSCs on the peptide/m-GO films was investigated.

Draft genome sequence data of sp. FH025.

The genome data of sp. FH025 comprised of 8,381,474 bp with a high GC content of 72.51%.

Diversity and natural selection of Merozoite surface Protein-1 in three species of human malaria parasites: Contribution from South-East Asian isolates.

The present study aimed to examine the genetic diversity of human malaria parasites (i.e., P.

Draft Genome Sequence of sp. Strain PL002, Isolated from Antarctic Algae.

Here, we report the draft genome sequence of sp. strain PL002, isolated from Antarctic algae. The 4,299,965-bp genome sequence is assembled into 170 contigs, has 32.

Case-Control Study and Meta-Analysis of the Association Between LIPG rs9958947 SNP and Stroke Risk.

The rs9958947 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) resides in the promoter region of the lipase G (LIPG) gene. This newly discovered SNP increases the risk of stroke in some Asian populations, including Chinese and Korean populations. Stroke is one of the top 5 leading causes of death in Malaysia, so it is of interest to investigate whether this SNP is associated with stroke risk in the Malaysian population.

Genetic diversity of circumsporozoite protein in Plasmodium knowlesi isolates from Malaysian Borneo and Peninsular Malaysia.

Background: Understanding the genetic diversity of candidate genes for malaria vaccines such as circumsporozoite protein (csp) may enhance the development of vaccines for treating Plasmodium knowlesi. Hence, the aim of this study is to investigate the genetic diversity of non-repeat regions of csp in P. knowlesi from Malaysian Borneo and Peninsular Malaysia.

Esterification of residual palm oil using solid acid catalyst derived from rice husk.

In this study, carbon-silica based acid catalysts derived from rice husks (RH) were successfully synthesised using microwave (MW) technology. The results showed that MW sulphonation produced Sulphur (S) content of 17.2-18.

Prevalence of Alpha(α)-Thalassemia in Southeast Asia (2010-2020): A Meta-Analysis Involving 83,674 Subjects.

Alpha(α)-thalassemia is a blood disorder caused by many types of inheritable α-globin gene mutations which causes no-to-severe clinical symptoms, such as Hb Bart's hydrops fetalis that leads to early foetal death. Therefore, the aim of this meta-analysis was to provide an update from year 2010 to 2020 on the prevalence of α-thalassemia in Southeast Asia. A systematic literature search was performed using PubMed and SCOPUS databases for related studies published from 2010 to 2020, based on specified inclusion and exclusion criteria.