Accurate diagnosis of colorectal cancer (CRC) relies on the use of invasive tools such as colonoscopy and sigmoidoscopy. Non-invasive tools are less sensitive in detecting the disease, particularly in the early stage. A number of researchers have used metabolomics analyses on serum/plasma samples of patients with CRC compared with normal healthy individuals in an effort to identify biomarkers for CRC. The aim of the present review is to compare reported serum metabolomics profiles of CRC and to identify common metabolites affected among these studies. A literature search was performed to include any experimental studies on global metabolomics profile of CRC using serum/plasma samples published up to March 2018. The Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies (QUADAS) tool was used to assess the quality of the studies reviewed. In total, nine studies were included. The studies used various analytical platforms and were performed on different populations. A pathway enrichment analysis was performed using the data from all the studies under review. The most affected pathways identified were protein biosynthesis, urea cycle, ammonia recycling, alanine metabolism, glutathione metabolism and citric acid cycle. The metabolomics analysis revealed levels of metabolites of glycolysis, tricarboxylic acid cycle, anaerobic respiration, protein, lipid and glutathione metabolism were significantly different between cancer and control samples. Although the majority of differentiating metabolites identified were different in the different studies, there were several metabolites that were common. These metabolites include pyruvic acid, glucose, lactic acid, malic acid, fumaric acid, 3-hydroxybutyric acid, tryptophan, phenylalanine, tyrosine, creatinine and ornithine. The consistent dysregulation of these metabolites among the different studies suggest the possibility of common diagnostic biomarkers for CRC.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Early diagnosis and accurate staging of the disease is vital to improve the prognosis. Metabolomics has been used to identify changes in metabolite profiles in the different stages of cancer in order to introduce new non-invasive molecular tools for staging. In this systematic review, we aim to identify the common metabolite changes in human biological samples and the dominant metabolic pathways associated with CRC progression. A broad systematic search was carried out from selected databases. Four reviewers screened and reviewed the titles, abstracts, and full-text articles according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Quality assessment was conducted on the eight articles which met the criteria. Data showed that the metabolites involved with redox status, energy metabolism and intermediates of amino acids, choline and nucleotides metabolism were the most affected during CRC progression. However, there were differences in the levels of individual metabolites detected between the studies, and this might be due to the study population, sample preparation, analytical platforms used and statistical tools. In conclusion, this systematic review highlights the changes in metabolites from early to late stages of CRC. Moreover, biomarkers for prognosis are important to reduce CRC-related mortality.

The pandemic of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has brought much fear and anxiety worldwide due to the rapid transmission rate and mortality. The exponential surge of COVID- 19 cases need to be addressed aggressively to flatten the epidemic curve. This review aims to describe the COVID-19 disease epidemiology and disease transmission, response actions taken by the authorities to control this pandemic and risk communication strategies in Malaysia. A literature search via the ScienceDirect and Google Scholar databases of published articles and official statements from the Ministry of Health, Malaysia from December 2019 to May 2020 was conducted. The first wave of COVID-19 outbreak in Malaysia started in late January involving 22 cases but the second wave involved more cases due to the massive religious gathering that occurred in late February. Malaysia implemented the Movement Control Order (MCO) on 18th March 2020 and other well-coordinated response action plans to prevent community transmission. The reproduction number (R0) was successfully reduced from 3.6 to 0.3 due to the MCO. Malaysia’s risk communication strategies that include daily press conference by the Director General of Health and dissemination of information through nationaltelevision and social media, played a crucial role in dealing with the COVID-19 outbreak. In conclusion, effective response actions and mitigation plans, should be the main priorities to combat this pandemic. The immediate direction will need to be focused on development of vaccines for COVID-19. Future research should study the origin of the virus in animals and the role of comorbidities contributing to poorer prognosis.

Mobility disability affects the quality of life for the older urban population. The objectives of this research paper were to determine the burden of mobility disability and explore influential factors affecting the quality of life of urban community aged 50 and above with mobility disability. Total of 481 participants who were randomly selected from two urban health centres have been interviewed using structured questionnaire in December 2014. The prevalence of mobility disability was 23.1%. All domains quality of life of older urbanites with mobility disability were significantly affected as compared with those without. These factors need to be emphasized in future planning for elderly.© 2016. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia.Keywords: Mobility disability; urban; elderly; quality of life

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Mobility disability affects the quality of life for the older urban population. The objectives of this research paper were to determine the burden of mobility disability and explore influential factors affecting the quality of life of urban community aged 50 and above with mobility disability. Total of 481 participants who were randomly selected from two health centres has been interviewed using structured questionnaire in December 2014. The prevalence of mobility disability was 23.1%. All domains quality of life of the older people with mobility disability were significantly affected as compared with those without. These factors need to be emphasized in future planning for elderly. Keywords: mobility disability; urban; elderly; quality of lifeeISSN 2398-4279 © 2018. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA cE-Bs by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia. https://doi.org/10.21834/ajqol.v3i11.126

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Background: Viral Hepatitis HIV Co-infection is an important and preventable cause of chronic liver disease, and having them lead to many consequences, especially for those living in wrenched conditions. Thus it is a significant health issue in the communities. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of Viral Hepatitis-HIV Co-Infection and determine the associated variables with this Co-Infection. Methods: A cross-sectional study was done using HIV Case Registry ( Anti Retroviral -(ARV) line listing). We included 1274 patients who were seen under the HIV Clinic services, which were screened for Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) and Hepatitis C Virus ( HCV) upon registered to the clinic. Factors associated with the HBV-HIV and HCV-HIV were determined using bivariate, and multivariate logistic regression analysis using SPSS and odds ratio was used as the measures of association. A P-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant for all the tests. Results: From the 1274 number of HIV patients, the prevalence of HBV-HIV is 5.6% (71 cases), while the prevalence with HCV co-infection was 14.8% (189 cases). As for the frequency of multiple HIV-Coinfection, out of 238 HIV cases with Co-Infection, the majority of 167 cases (70.17%) were HCV-HIV Co-Infected followed by 49 cases (20.5%) were HBV-HIV Co-Infected. In comparison, another 22 cases ( 9.24%) were Co-Infected with HBV-HCV-HIV. In the final model of HBV-HIV Co-Infection, only male gender, CD4 count category less than 199 cells/mm3 and primary care type of facilities were associated with the disease whereas, in the HCV-HIV Coinfection, only male gender, Malay race, Intravenous Drug User (IVDU) modes of transmission, and source of the case from high-risk screening program were associated with the disease. Conclusions: Co-Infection with HCV-HIV is more prevalent from HBV-HIV in our study population. A more targeted intervention of HBV revaccination and more frequent screening of HCV post HCV treatment as reinfection is anticipated in high-risk behaviour patient are some of the intervention programs that can be suggested.