Irisin treatment improves healing of dystrophic skeletal muscle

Background: Irisin is an exercise induced myokine that is shown to promote browning of adipose tissue and hence, increase energy expenditure. Furthermore, our unpublished results indicate that Irisin improves myogenic differentiation and induces skeletal muscle hypertrophy. Since exercise induced skeletal muscle hypertrophy improves muscle strength, we wanted to investigate if ectopic injection of Irisin peptide improves skeletal muscle function in a mouse model of muscular dystrophy. This utility of Irisin peptide is yet to be studied in animal models. Methods: In order to test this hypothesis, we expressed and purified recombinant murine Irisin peptide from E. coli. Three- to six-week-old male mdx mice were injected IP with either vehicle (dialysis buffer) or Irisin recombinant peptide for two or four weeks, three times-a-week. Results: Irisin injection increased muscle weights and enhanced grip strength in mdx mice. Improved muscle strength can be attributed to the significant hypertrophy observed in the Irisin injected mdx mice. Moreover, Irisin treatment resulted in reduced accumulation of fibrotic tissue and myofiber necrosis in mdx mice. In addition, Irisin improved sarcolemmal stability, which is severely compromised in mdx mice. Conclusion: Irisin injection induced skeletal muscle hypertrophy, improved muscle strength and reduced necrosis and fibrotic tissue in a murine dystrophy model. These results demonstrate the potential therapeutic value of Irisin in muscular dystrophy

Sucrose ester micellar-mediated synthesis of Ag nanoparticles and the antibacterial properties

Ag nanoparticles with diameter in the range of 10–25 nm had been synthesized using a simple sucrose ester micellar-mediated method. Ag nanoparticles were formed by adding AgNO3 solution into the sucrose ester micellar solution containing sodium hydroxide at atmospheric condition after 24 h of aging time. Trace amount of dimethyl formamide (DMF) in the sucrose ester solution served as a reducing agent while NaOH acted as a catalyst. The produced Ag nanoparticles were highly stable in the sucrose ester micellar system as there was no precipitation after 6 months of storage. The as-synthesized Ag nanoparticles were characterized using transmission electron microscope (TEM), X-ray diffractometer (XRD), dynamic light scattering (DLS) and UV–vis spectroscopy (UV–vis). Formation mechanism of Ag nanoparticles in the micellar-mediated synthesis is postulated. The antibacterial properties of the Ag nanoparticles were tested against Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) (Gram-positive) and Aeromonas hydrophila (Gram-negative) bacteria. This work provides a simple and “green” method for the synthesis of highly stable Ag nanoparticles in aqueous solution with promising antibacterial property

One-pot preparation of three-component oil-in-water high internal phase emulsions stabilized by palm-based laureth surfactants and their moisturizing properties

In the present study, olive and olein oils had been used for the preparation of three-component high internal phase emulsions with oil volume fraction of more than 0.77 stabilized by palm-based laureth surfactants for the first time, respectively. These emulsions were easily prepared by one-pot homogenization. The critical micelle concentration and Gibbs energy of the as-synthesized surfactants were determined and discussed. Likewise, the morphology, structural properties, stability and hydration efficacy of the as-prepared emulsions were investigated. Droplet size distribution observed from the optical micrographs was in agreement with the light scattering results which suggested that droplet size increased with increasing ethylene oxide chain length. The rheological measurements of the emulsions at room (25°C) and elevated (40°C) temperatures were interpreted to give clear and direct explanation on the structure and stability of the emulsions. The hydration efficacy of the emulsions was examined in vivo using a corneometer. Both the emulsions containing olive and olein oils, respectively exhibited high stability as indicated by the rheological measurements and the structural properties did not differ from one another. However, olein oil’s hydration efficacy was higher than olive oil’s, suggesting that olein oil could well be a potential moisturizing lipid which might interest the dermatologists

Irisin is a pro-myogenic factor that induces skeletal muscle hypertrophy and rescues denervation-induced atrophy

Exercise induces expression of the myokine irisin, which is known to promote browning of white adipose tissue and has been shown to mediate beneficial effects following exercise. Here we show that irisin induces expression of a number of pro-myogenic and exercise response genes in myotubes. Irisin increases myogenic differentiation and myoblast fusion via activation of IL6 signaling. Injection of irisin in mice induces significant hypertrophy and enhances grip strength of uninjured muscle. Following skeletal muscle injury, irisin injection improves regeneration and induces hypertrophy. The effects of irisin on hypertrophy are due to activation of satellite cells and enhanced protein synthesis. In addition, irisin injection rescues loss of skeletal muscle mass following denervation by enhancing satellite cell activation and reducing protein degradation. These data suggest that irisin functions as a pro-myogenic factor in mice

PROGRESS REPORT APPLICATION FOR CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS

Document management is crucial for a childcare centre to keep the child information record. The current process of information record-keeping is filling paper forms and store it in files with different labelling for easy retrieval. However, more and more problems will arise as the record grows, and it will take more time for record retrieval as there are more labelling inside a file cabinet. The purpose of this project is to develop a Progress Report Application for Children with Special Needs for Pertubuhan PDK Sentuhan Kasih. Currently, the childcare centre does not have a digital application to manage child information. This proposed application provides the childcare centre to store data and provide a platform for the parent to view the child progress report. To achieve the project objectives, Madam Norhayati, one of the members of the EIP team of the Pertubuhan PDK Sentuhan Kasih has explained her needs and demonstrated the management flow of the care centre. The methodology to be used for this project is Rapid Application Development Model. The application is design after analysing three existing application in the market. The applications are Childcare Management Software for Early Education by ECCESoft (Cirrutech, 2014), Daily Connect by Seacloud Software (Seacloud, n.d) and Bloomz by Bloomz (Bloomz, 2017)

Extra-Ribosomal Functions of the Ribosomal Protein, RPS3 as Predicted by In Silico Analysis

Products of ribosomal protein (RP) genes have been found to play extra-ribosomal roles that range from DNA repair to RNA splicing. Their association with congenital disorders or cancers has also been widely documented. However, the relatively large number of different RPs, each with perhaps unique biological roles, has compounded the comprehensive elucidation of the physiological functions of each RPs. Experimental functional studies on the many and variegated RPs are labour intensive, time-consuming and costly. Moreover, experimental studies unguided by theoretically insights entail inaccurate results. Therefore, knowledge on the actual roles of these proteins remains largely undefined. A valid alternative is the use of bioinformatics resources to computationally predict functional roles of these biomolecules. Findings from such in silico studies of the RPS3 are reported herein. We reveal an array of possible extra-ribosomal functions that includes regulation of transcription (including via NF-κB-mediated, POK-induced and DNA-dependent), regulation of p53 activities and its stabilisation, inflammatory immune response, modulation of nNOS activities, and anti-oxidative capabilities. Our findings provide computational prediction of de novo extra-ribosomal functions of RPS3. These results will enhance the theoretical basis for designing future experimental studies on elucidating its definitive physiological roles

Facile synthesis of silver nanoparticles under γ-irradiation: effect of chitosan concentration

In the present study, a biopolymer, low molecular weight chitosan had been utilized as a “green” stabilizing agent for the synthesis of silver nanoparticles under γ‐irradiation. The as‐synthesized silver nanoparticles have particle diameters in the range of 5 nm–30 nm depending on the percentage of chitosan used (0.1 wt%, 0.5 wt%, 1.0 wt% & 2.0 wt%). It was found that the yield of the silver nanoparticles was in accordance with the concentration of chitosan presence in the solution due to the reduction by the chitosan radical during irradiation. The highly stable chitosan encapsulated silver nanoparticles were characterized using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), UV‐Visible spectrophotometer (UV‐VIS) and X‐ray diffraction spectroscopy (XRD)

The photodegradation of organic compounds by ZnO nanopowder

The commercialized ZnO nanopowder has been employed in this study to investigate the photocatalytic degradation of two organic compounds, Methylene Blue (MB) and Phenol Red (PR) in an aqueous suspension of ZnO nanoparticles under UV light irradiation. This study has considered ZnO as the photocatalyst because it has been reported as a suitable substitute for TiO2 in certain application. For the characterization of the ZnO photocatalyst, X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), specific surface area analysis (BET), and UV-visible spectroscopy were exploited. X-ray diffractometry result for the ZnO nanoparticles exhibit normal crystalline phase features. All observed peaks can be indexed to the pure hexagonal wurtzite crystal structures, with the space group of P63mc. From the XRD pattern, no diffraction peaks from other impurities have been observed. In addition, TEM measurement shows that most of the nanoparticles are spherical and rod-like in shape and fairly monodispersed. A significant degradation of the organic compounds were observed in the presence of the catalyst without the irradiation of the UV light and the degradation increases significantly when irradiated with the UV light for a certain period of time. Besides, for the same period of irradiation, the photodegradation of the organic compounds was increased as the photocatalyst loading increases. The BET measurement for ZnO was 11.9 m2/g. The effect of some parameters such as initial concentration of organic compounds and photocatalyst loading were also determined

γ-ray assisted synthesis of Ni3Se2 nanoparticles stabilized by natural polymer

Nickel selenide nanoparticles were synthesized using γ-ray irradiation in the presence of natural polymer, chitosan as capping agent. Chitosan is the deacetylated product of chitin, the second most abundant organic resources after cellulose. The nanoparticles were produced using nickel acetate and selenium dioxide and the as-prepared chitosan stabilized nanoparticles were soluble and stable in aqueous solution. The morphology and structure of the nickel selenide nanoparticles were characterized using transmission electron microscope (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Optical properties of the nanoparticles were characterized by UV–Visible spectrophotometer and photoluminescent spectroscopy. The XRD result shows that the nickel selenide conformed to Ni3Se2 with crystal structure of rhombohedral. The absorption spectrum of the Ni3Se2 nanoparticles covered from around 300–600 nm which makes it a potential photovoltaic and optoelectronic device material. In this report, γ-ray irradiation provided a “green”, simple and clean route for the synthesis of chitosan stabilized Ni3Se2 nanoparticles. The size and size distribution of the nickel selenide nanoparticles were influenced by the concentration of chitosan and absorbed dose of γ-ray irradiation