Search

The Malta BioBank forms part of the new inter-faculty Centre for Molecular Medicine and BioBanking at the University of Malta and is the BBMRI-ERIC national node of Malta (BBMRI.mt) (Refer to Poster 82). The business model of the Clinical Bank is based on a collaboration between the University of Malta, the Department of Health and Mater Dei Hospital’s departments including Pathology, Paediatrics, Neurology and Oncology. The clinical catalogue holds a number of disease collections including: the Globin Bank; Parkinson’s Disease (PD); Diabetes; Multiple Sclerosis; Renal Disorders; various cancers including breast, colon, lung and gastric cancer; and a number of rare diseases., N/A

The Malta BioBank forms part of the new inter-faculty Centre of Molecular Medicine and BioBanking at the University of Malta and is the national node of the Bio-Banking and Bio-Molecular Resources Research Infrastructure (BBMRI.mt). The clinical catalogue holds a number of rare disease collections including haemoglobinopathies, neuromuscular and neurodegenerative diseases, renal disorders and various cancers. The Department of Physiology & Biochemistry and the Department of Pathology within the Faculty of Medicine & Surgery at the University of Malta caries out various lines of research amongst which are KLF mutation analysis, familial breast cancer, mitochondrial disorders, sudden cardiac death and rare kidney disorders., N/A

Introduction: Breast cancer is the commonest cause of cancer mortality in Maltese females. The availability of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4E (eIF4E) is reduced by mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) inhibitors e.g. rapamycin and metformin. Expression of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutarylcoenzynre A reductase (HMG-CoA reductase), the mevalonate pathway rate limiting enzyme, is regulated by eIF4E. Additionally statins e.g. simvastatin, are HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors., peer-reviewed

Introduction: Breast cancer is classified into intrinsic molecular subtypes, each relating to predictive prognostic and clinical outcomes. Rapamycin inhibits the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway, which is often deregulated in various types of cancer. mTOR inhibitors are associated with antiproliferation and apoptosis. Aim: Investigating the differential expression of breast cancer signature genes following rapamycin treatment in various breast cancer subtypes., peer-reviewed

The University Of Malta (UOM) welcomes students with disability and acknowledges the contribution they can make to the university as an inclusive learning community. One main purpose of this document is to reassure students that the UOM is intent on removing all barriers and obstacles within its power in order to enable students to choose and follow the course they would like to take up and for which they have the necessary requirements. The UOM aims to facilitate their full participation in all student activities throughout the time they spend on campus. The university will also strive to sensitise all staff and students as well as visitors to ensure an inclusive community., N/A

The role of women in academia has always greatly interested me. Several years ago, when I was asked to become Gender Issues Committee chairperson at the University of Malta, I readily accepted. http://www.um.edu.mt/think/shattering-womens-glass-ceiling/, N/A

Propolis is a complex honeybee product deposited in the beehives, where it protects the hive and its occupants from microbial infection. Propolis has several reported medical applications in view of its numerous bioactive properties. The water insoluble fraction of crude Maltese honeybee propolis was extracted in methanol. Analysis by gas chromatography – mass spectrometry (GC-MS) showed the diterpenoid totarol to be the predominant constituent in all samples. The evaporated methanol residue was dissolved in dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO) and used for cytotoxicity testing on human cancer cell lines using standard 3-[4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyl-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assays. Results obtained show that the propolis collected from Malta has cytotoxic activity in cancer cells in vitro. However, propolis collected from different sites, only a few miles apart and at different times of the year, showed marked variations in the cytotoxicity, which correlated clearly with totarol content. This reflects the differences in the species of plants, on which the bees had foraged and indicates the importance of collection site and season of collection on the bioactivity of propolis products., peer-reviewed

Human ribs are angulated. There are changes in rib angulation that occur with body growth. Rib angulation was correlated with the vectors of chest wall forces estimated by an ellipsoid biomechanical model using finite element analysis., peer-reviewed

The use of biomechanical techniques can help model the forces that act on median sternotomy closures and determine the mechanisms of median sternotomy dehiscene. This can guide changes in sternal wiring techniques in order to reduce the appreciable morbidity and morality of median sternotomy dehiscene., peer-reviewed

Dehiscene of median sternotomy wounds remains a clinical problem. Sternal forces can be calculated by thin shell theory and this data may be used to guide optimal wire placement in the sternum during median sternotomy wiring., peer-reviewed

Variations in rib cortical thickness data are analysed by assessing the chest wall as a load bearing shell structure., peer-reviewed

Objective: To determine whether hospital stay predisposes to nasal colonisation with Staphylococcus aureus and Methicillin Resistant S. aureus (MRSA). Method: Nasal swabs were taken from cadavers undergoing post-mortem examinations at the mortuary of St. Luke’s Hospital. The swabs were taken to the Bacteriology Laboratory where attempts were made to culture S. aureus. Vitek® Gram Positive Susceptibility Cards were used for antibiotic susceptibility. MRSA positive organisms were tested using Penicillin Binding Protein Latex Agglutination. Key Findings: Ninety-three swabs were taken. The proportion of S. aureus nasal carriage was similar in both hospitalised and non-hospitalised groups. However, 8 out of 15 (53%) S. aureus carriers in the hospitalised group were MRSA positive, compared to 4 out of 19 (21%) S. aureus carriers in the non-hospitalised group. Conclusion: Hospitalisation increases the incidence of MRSA carriage compared to the non-hospitalised population., peer-reviewed