Selenium is a micronutrient mineral found mainly in soils. Studies on selenium have increased rapidly worldwide especially after it has been shown to reduce the risk of certain types of cancer in humans and animals. The exact mechanism of action on how selenium inhibits diseases, in particular cancer, is still unknown. To date, the use of selenium in preventing or treating diseases is limited. However, many aspects about the biochemistry of selenium have been identified. This article reviews a number of key clinical, experimental and epidemiological studies on selenium as an anti-carcinogenic agent for some types of cancers. Some nutritional information on selenium and its recommended intake are also included. More clinical and experimental studies are needed to confirm previous findings on the role of selenium as an anticarcinogenic agent.
Selenium ; Selenium measurement ; Minerals ; experiment ; Clinical

While cancer is considered to be one of the leading causes of death worldwide, there is a growing scientific and public interests on selenium as a dietary and antioxidant of many diseases, in particular, cancer. Despite advanced technology and significant improvement of surgical, chemical, hormonal and radio therapies, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is still common in Asia and Africa and is increasing in the developed countries. Prognosis of HCC at an early stage is still challenging. At the moment, combination of Alpha feto protein (AFP) and ultrasonography tests offers more accurate and sensitive results for the diagnosis of HCC. Selenium (also known as the moon element) has been recognized for almost 49 years as an antioxidant and anti cancer agent. The weight of evidence supports the position of selenium as an anti cancer agent for HCC but the molecular mechanism of how selenium inhibits HCC is still unknown. Numerous theories have been proposed and selenium induced apoptosis and cell cycle arrest is the predominant one so far.

The higher education provider in this country has established a platform for training of biomedical scientist at the undergraduate level. The program provides a sound foundation to explore the science of biomedicine and complement the healthcare system by preparing medical laboratory professionals as a platform to apply their knowledge. Apart from medical laboratory and healthcare service, graduates of the program can also explore and adapt in regard to employment in other interesting niche areas of academic and industry. This effort can further culminate into greater support and further strengthening of the discipline

Background: Microwave is the most reliable sample digestion method. However, it requires expensive microwave digester automation and has relatively low productivity. In this study, three non-automated digestion methods, i.e. wet acid digestion using nitric acid (HNO3) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), wet acid digestion using HNO3, and dry washing, are compared in order to determine the best approach. Methods: Certified reference material IAEA-086 (International Atomic Energy Agency, Austria) and hair and nail samples from 20 female students of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, aged 19 to 30 years, were collected and analysed using the three digestion methods. Results: For hair samples, analysis of variance of repeated measures showed significant differences in the level of all elements (P < 0.001) between the three methods. For nail samples, only the copper (Cu) level showed no significant difference (P = 0.100) between methods. Wet acid digestion using HNO3 and H2O2 showed the best within- and between-run relative standard deviation (RSD) values, with within-run RSD for all elements, except for selenium (Se), < 5%. The between-run precision ranges from 6.14% to 17.96% for hair and from 3.53% to 11.52% for nail samples. Wet acid digestion using HNO3 and H2O2 showed both good accuracy and precision for manganese (Mn) and magnesium (Mg), with percentage recoveries of 110% and 96.9%, respectively. All elements show higher method detection limit (MDL) values than the previous study: 0.05 μg/g Mg for wet acid digestion using HNO3, 0.02 μg/g Se for wet acid digestion using HNO3 and H2O2, and 0.2 μg/g Mg for dry ash method. Conclusion: Wet acid digestion using HNO3 and H2O2 proved to be the best method in terms of precision, accuracy, recovery, and MDL. However, only Mn and Mg showed adequate precision, accuracy, and percentage of recovery.

Objective: Female sexual dysfunction is a known complication of diabetes mellitus. The aims of this study is to estimate the prevalence of sexual dysfunction and the types of sexual dysfunction experienced by Malay women with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Methods: Cross sectional study was conducted on married Malay women with type 2 diabetes mellitus, receiving treatment from two community clinics in Selangor, Malaysia. Female sexual function was assessed using Malay version of Female Sexual Function Index. Results: This study found that sexual dysfunction was present among 18.2% women. Lack of libido was the commonest symptom among these women and was observed in 40.9% of women followed by sexual dissatisfaction (36.4%). Sexual arousal disorder was observed in 22.7%, 18.2% complained of lack of lubrication, and 22.7% had vaginal discomfort. Orgasmic dysfunction was found in only 4.5% of these women. Conclusion: This preliminary research showed sexual desire disorder was the commonest type of sexual disorder among diabetic women.

Disturbances in immune system contribute to chronic infection among diabetic patients. Hibiscus sabdariffa L. (roselle) fruit extract has been scientifi cally proven to possess antioxidant, antidiabetic and antiinfl ammatory properties. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of H. sabdariffa fruit extract against oxidative stress parameter and T lymphocyte population in spleen of streptozotocin (STZ) induced diabetic rats. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were injected with 45 mg/kg STZ to induce diabetic condition and further treated with 100 mg/kg H. sabdariffa fruit aquoeus extract daily for 28 days. Spleen was harvested to determine the oxidative stress indicators and quantifi cation of T lymphocytes. The results showed a signifi cant decreased in the number of spleen cells and spleen weight in the diabetic rats compared with control rats. However, there were no signifi cant changes in the level of malondialdehyde (MDA), protein carbonyl and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity the percentage of spleen CD3+ CD4+ and CD3+ CD8+ T lymphocytes amongst groups of study. In addition, histology observation showed no pathological alteration in spleen histology of diabetic rats. The fi ndings suggested that aqueous extract of H. Sabdariffa fruit supplementation has no effect on the oxidative stress and the percentage of CD3+ CD4+ and CD3+ CD8+ T lymphocytes in spleen of diabetic rats

In the present study, the effects of alpha lipoic acid (ALA) supplementation on glycemic control and lipid profile in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats have been evaluated. Sprague Dawley rats were divided into nondiabetic (NDM), diabetic without supplementation (No Suppl) and diabetic with ALA groups. ALA was orally administered once a day for 8 weeks with a dose of 100 mg/kg BW. Supplementation of ALA to STZ-induced rats prevented the severe damage to the islet cells of the pancreas and lowered the plasma glucose and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels. Supplementation of ALA also suppressed the increased of total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides and low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) levels in the plasma of diabetic rats as well as increased high density lipoproteincholesterol (HDL-C) levels. In conclusion, this study suggest that ALA may be effective in controlling glycemic status and improving dyslipidemia in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats and has the potential in reducing cardiovascular complications due to diabetes mellitus.
Rattus norvegicus ; Streptozocin ; Aminolevulinic Acid ; Dyslipidemia ; Thioctic Acid

Forensic entomology is defined as knowledge about insect and its relationship with a decomposed human body. With this knowledge, post-mortem interval (PMI) can be estimated. PMI can be determined by taking into consideration the insect species and the developmental stage of the insects. Identification of the insect species requires the insect to develop into adulthood. Since this will take a relatively long time, the objectives of this study were to optimize temperature and humidity for the growth of Chrysomya megacephala larvae to adults. C. megacephala larvae were transferred into a rearing container and put inside a special incubator with temperature adjusted to 27, 30, 33, 36 and 39°C separately. Once optimum temperature for larvae growth was determined, optimum relative humidity was determined then for the length of time taken for C. megacephala larvae to develop into adults. To achieve this, the larvae of C. megacephala were incubated in a special incubator and the relative humidity set at 54.2, 57.6, 76.0 and 67.5% (control) separately. The developmental stages of C. megacephala for both temperatures and humidity levels were recorded accordingly. Results obtained indicated that C. megacephala developmental stages grew much faster in 33oC than other temperatures. The optimum relative humidity level for the species was 76.0%. By utilizing the appropriate temperature and relative humidity the development of C. megacephala, from eggs to adults could be reduced from 8 to 9 days to 5 days.

OBJECTIVE: To determine and compare the frequency distribution of various arch shapes in ethnic Malays and Malaysian Aborigines in Peninsular Malaysia and to investigate the morphological differences of arch form between these two ethnic groups. METHODS: We examined 120 ethnic Malay study models (60 maxillary, 60 mandibular) and 129 Malaysian Aboriginal study models (66 maxillary, 63 mandibular). We marked 18 buccal tips and incisor line angles on each model, and digitized them using 2-dimensional coordinate system. Dental arches were classified as square, ovoid, or tapered by printing the scanned images and superimposing Orthoform arch templates on them. RESULTS: The most common maxillary arch shape in both ethnic groups was ovoid, as was the most common mandibular arch shape among ethnic Malay females. The rarest arch shape was square. Chi-square tests, indicated that only the distribution of the mandibular arch shape was significantly different between groups (p = 0.040). However, when compared using independent t-tests, there was no difference in the mean value of arch width between groups. Arch shape distribution was not different between genders of either ethnic group, except for the mandibular arch of ethnic Malays. CONCLUSIONS: Ethnic Malays and Malaysian Aborigines have similar dental arch dimensions and shapes.
Dental Arch ; Ethnic Groups ; Female ; Humans ; Incisor ; Malaysia

Oxidative stress involved in various pathological conditions. Plants have been proven to act as a natural exogenousantioxidant. The aim of this research is to investigate the protective effects of Etlingera coccinea leaves aqueous extracton autoxidation-induced ox brain homogenate. The brain homogenate was divided into 7 groups: control group withPBS solution, positive control group with 100 μg/ml ascorbic acid, test group with 25, 50, 100, 200 and 400 μg/ml of E.coccinea. The antioxidant potential of E. coccinea aqueous extract has been evaluated by antioxidant capacity assaysuch as Total phenolic content (TPC), radical scavenging assay (DPPH) and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP).Malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione (GSH) were also measured at 0 hr and 1 hr after37°C water bath incubation to determine the antioxidant status and oxidative damage. TPC assay showed (4.85 ± 0.28)mg GAE/g of dry weight of E. coccinea leaves. Based on DPPH and FRAP assay, E. coccinea aqueous extract showed adose-dependent antioxidant activity. MDA level in the 50 μg/ml E. coccinea was significantly lower compared to the othergroups (p < 0.05). The SOD activity was significantly increase in 400 μg/ml E. coccinea (p < 0.05) compared to othergroups. E. coccinea at the dose of 25 μg/ml and 50 μg/ml showed significant increase in GSH level compared to othergroups (p < 0.05). In conclusion, 25 μg/ml and 50 μg/ml of E. coccinea leave aqueous extracts exhibited a potentialprotective effect on autoxidation-induced ox brain h