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Purpose: This study seeks to investigate the impact of co-administering either a Prostaglandin EP2 receptor agonist or an EP1 receptor antagonist alone with a low dose BMP7 on in vitro healing process, collagen content and maturation of human osteoblasts. Methodology: Human osteoblast cells were used in this study. These cells were cultured and subjected to different concentrations of Prostaglandin EP2 receptor agonist, EP1 receptor antagonist, BMP7, Control (Ct) (Vehicle alone), and various combinations treatments. Cell viability at 24, 48 and 72 hours (h) was evaluated using the XTT assay. A wound healing assay was conducted to observe the migration ability of human osteoblast cells. Additionally, Sirius red staining and Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy Imaging (FT-IR) was employed to analyze various parameters, including total protein concentration, collagen production, mature collagen concentration, and mineral content. Results: The combination of low dose BMP7 and Prostaglandin EP2 receptor agonist resulted to the lowest cell viability when compared to both the Ct and individual treatments. In contrast, the Prostaglandin EP1 receptor antagonist alone showed the highest cellular viability at 72 h. In the wound healing assay, the combined treatment of low dose BMP7 with the Prostaglandin EP2 receptor agonist and EP1 receptor antagonist showed a decrease in human osteoblast healing after 24 h. Analysis of FT-IR data indicated a reduction in total protein content, collagen maturity, collagen concentration and mineral content in combination treatment compared to the single or Ct treatments. Conclusion: The combination of a Prostaglandin EP2 receptor agonist or an EP1 receptor antagonist when combined with low dose BMP7 significantly hinders both human osteoblast healing and collagen maturity/concentration in comparison to low dose BMP7 treatment alone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The performance of apparently biocompatible implanted bovine bone grafts may be compromised by unresolved chronic inflammation, and poor graft incorporation leading to implant failure. Monitoring the intensity and duration of the inflammatory response caused by implanted bone grafts is crucial. In this study, the ability of demineralized (DMB) and decellularized (DCC) bovine bone substitutes in initiating inflammatory responses to peripheral blood monocyte-derived macrophages (PBMMs) was investigated. The response of PBMMs to bone substitutes was evaluated by using both direct and indirect cell culture, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, apoptosis, immunophenotyping, and cytokine production. Analysis of DMB and DCC substitutes using scanning electron microscope (SEM) showed a roughened surface with a size ranging between 500 and 750 μm. PBMMs treated with DMB demonstrated cell aggregation and clumping mimicking lipopolysaccharide (LPS) treated PBMMs and a higher proliferation ability (166.93%) compared to control (100%) and DCC treatments (115.64%; p<0.001) at 24h. This was associated with a significantly increased production of intracellular ROS in PBMMs exposed to DMB substitutes than control (3158.5 vs 1715.5; p<0.001) and DCC treatment (2117.5). The bone substitute exposure also caused an increase in percentage apoptosis which was significantly (p<0.0001) higher in both DMB (27.85) and DCC (29.2) treatment than control (19.383). A significant increase in proinflammatory cytokine expression (TNF-α: 3.4 folds; p<0.05) was observed in DMB substitute-treated PBMMs compared to control. Notably, IL-1β mRNA was significantly higher in DMB (21.75 folds; p<0.0001) than control and DCC (5.01 folds). In contrast, DCC substitutes exhibited immunoregulatory effects on PBMMs, as indicated by the expression for CD86, CD206, and HLDR surface markers mimicking IL-4 treatments. In conclusion, DMB excites a higher immunological response compared to DCC suggesting decellularization process of tissues dampen down inflammatory reactions when exposed to PBMM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dental arches undergo visible alterations after orthodontic treatment. It was indicated that significant variation was observed between dentitions in the arch width as well as arch depth. The aim of this study is comparing the dental arch change after treatment with reverse twin block and reverse pull face mask appliances on dental study model measurements of Class III malocclusion. A prospective clinical trial consisted of a total of 97 Class III malocclusion Malay children aged from 8 to 11 years enrolled in two treatment groups. The reverse twin block appliance group, which consists of 49 subjects and reverse pull face mask group, consists of 48 subjects. The duration of the treatment period 0.68 (SD=0.25) months. Upper and lower impressions are taken at the beginning and end of treatment. Multiple regressions used to analyze the data. The significance level set at 0.05. There was showed no significant differences in dental arches change between reverse twin block appliance and reverse pull face mask appliance except for variable Upper arch depth change (UADC) which was showed significant difference and increased in reverse pull face mask appliance group than reverse twin block appliance group (P <0.001). Both appliances did not affect the inter-teeth distances, except for reverse pull face mask appliance, which increased upper dental arch length. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to evaluate the relationship between sex and age on dental arch change in the reverse-pull face mask appliance on dental study model measurements. This study is a randomized clinical trial consisted of 48 (21 males, 27 females) Malay children with Class III malocclusion allocated to two groups. A total of 48 children received reverse-pull face mask appliance for a period eight months therapy. The children were again divided into early and late treatment groups. The first treatment group is comprising 23 children treated in the early mixed dentition with a mean age of 8.50 (SD=0.20) years. The second treatment group is comprising 25 children treated in the late mixed dentition with a mean age of 10.54 (SD=0.30) years. The inclusion criteria were reverse overjet and Class III deciduous canine relationship and Class III molar relationship. Upper and lower impressions are taken at the beginning and end of treatment. Multiple regressions used to analyse the data. The significance level set at 0.05. There is no relationship between age and sex, affecting the dentoskeletal changes after treatment with a reverse pull face mask appliance. Assessment of post-treatment study models showed that both appliances changed the maxillary and mandibular dental arch shape but did not affect the inter-teeth distances. There are no effects of sex and age on dental arch change measurements after treatment with a reverse pull face mask appliance for the treatment of Class III malocclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The human craniofacial skeleton and its associated dental arches undergo visible alterations as they grow. Relatively rapid changes take place during the transitional dentition in the dental arches. The purpose was to evaluate the relationship between sex and age on dental arch change in the reverse twin block appliance on dental study model measurements. This study is a randomized clinical trial consisted of 49 (22 males, 27 females) Malay children with Class III malocclusion were allocated to two groups. The first group which consist of 23 subjects (10 males, 13 females) treated in the early mixed dentition with mean age of was 8.43 (SD=0.20) years and late-treatment group included 26 subjects (12 males, 14 females) treated in the late mixed dentition with mean age of was 10.45 (SD=0.29) years. Upper and lower impressions were taken at the beginning and end of treatment. Multiple regressions were used to analyse the data. Significance level was set at 0.05. There is no relationship between age and sex affecting the dentoskeletal changes after treatment with reverse twin block appliance. Assessment of post treatment study models showed that both appliances changed the maxillary and mandibular dental arch shape but do not affect the inter-teeth distances. There are no effects of sex and age on dental arch change measurements after treatment with Reverse Twin Block appliance for the treatment of Class III malocclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The objective of this study was to compare the dental patterns between OSA patients and non-OSA patients as a control group. Method: Fifty subjects aged ranged (18-65) years old were divided into two groups, 25 with OSA who were diagnosed by polysomnography (PSG), and 25 as a control group consisting of patients who did not have OSA according to PSG findings. A total of 8 variables related to dental morphology was measured. ANCOVA test was used to compare means between the two study groups. Result: The results showed that upper and lower dental arches showed no differences between OSA patients and control group. Conclusion: The study concluded that the OSA patient’s control group had the same dental features. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A safe neighbourhood provides a trusting platform for people to interact with one another, and in turn, promotes higher levels of social capital among neighbours. Young people who grow up in a safe neighbourhood may learn to form trusting relationships with their neighbours. This experience might enhance their subjective well-being by reconciliation and regeneration of their own worldviews with that of others. On the other hand, these trusting relationships with neighbours could increase the perceived safety of the neighbourhood because the sense of security is based on the amount of help they could get, especially in emergency circumstances. Thus, in this paper, we aim to explore the role of Perceived Neighbourhood Safety as a mediator to Neighbourhood Social Capital (NSC) and Subjective Well-Being. We surveyed 5,237 youths ranging in age from 15 to 25 years. Respondents were recruited using stratified and clustering sampling. Results from the Pearson correlation show a significant relationship between NSC and the Subjective Well- Being of youth; youth who trust and reciprocate towards their neighbourhoods perceive life as happier. This study also found that Perceived Neighbourhood Safety is a partial mediator for NSC and Subjective Well-Being in youth. These findings show that the importance of the neighbourhood bond goes beyond crime prevention to include well-being of youth in a community. Therefore, there is a need to promote activities that could strengthen the elements of trust and reciprocity among neighbours. Future research could look into how different activities could enhance the subjective well-being of neighbours from different age groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Efforts have been made to narrow the digital divide in disadvantaged communities through increased investment in Internet infrastructure, with such initiatives particularly advanced by community-based facilities. The hope is for such investment to afford more underprivileged groups the benefits of 21st century society, where many public services are, by default, accessible online. Accordingly, this study focusses on how 15-to-25-year-old Malaysian youths in marginalised communities engage with the Internet in performing various activities in their everyday lives. The findings indicate that the majority of these individuals have access to the Internet but that their engagement spans only basic activities such as communication and uploading and downloading of materials. In terms of intermediate and advanced activities, the investigated youths minimally shop online, search for educational materials and participate in civic and political causes. The results also indicate that attitudes towards the Internet considerably influence the decision of Malaysian youth to occupy themselves with digital activities. Fostering a digitally-inclusive society necessitates expanding digital engagement beyond basic activities -- a goal that can be achieved by improving the digital literacy of youth and offering them participatory literacy programmes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Embedded in democratic constitutions are the rights and freedoms that accompany citizenship, and these rights and freedoms include participation. The central concept of social participation is that citizens can transform themselves from passive bystanders into actively involved citizens working towards what they perceive to be the public good. It is crucial for young generations to participate in socio-political activities, as the development of any society in large part has to do with this demography. This paper examines the offline civic and political participation of 15 to 25-year-olds in Malaysia. The paper is based on a nation-wide survey of 5,042 youth members in Malaysia both from marginalised and mainstream communities. The findings show that this demographic is more active in civic participation as compared to political participation. The top three forms of participation were found to be forms of civic participation, with the least amount of participation found in the political sphere. While mainstream youth appear to have a higher amount of participation compared to those from marginalised communities, their participation is still average overall. Additional resources are thus needed for the economic, cultural and social development of the youth in Malaysia to support future trends in participation. A level playing field is required for young people both from marginalised and mainstream communities to improve their social participation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to explore the factors related to job preferences among youths living in marginalised and non-marginalised areas in Sabah. Four dimensions related to job preferences were identified in this study: communality, job comfort, job goals and selfrealisation. The study also explored differences in job preferences by gender and ethnicity. A total of 732 youths participated in the study, including individuals from marginalised (N=521) and non-marginalised (N=211) communities. The study found no significant differences in job preferences among marginalised and non-marginalised youths in Sabah. Job comfort was found to be the key factor determining job preferences among youths. In terms of gender, job preferences among young men and women differed only in the dimension of communality in non-marginalised communities and in the dimension of selfrealisation in marginalised communities. In terms of ethnicity, there were no significant differences for non-marginalised youth, but significant differences existed in the dimension of self-realisation for marginalised youth. This study's findings can contribute to the development of government policies aiming to help young people find employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]