Animal models undeniably offer advantages for studying bone regeneration in bone tissue engineering. Currently, a lack of documented and standardized critical size defects (CSD) protocol exists for femoral bone. This study established a femoral bone rat model to evaluate engineered scaffold and its effect on bone regeneration. Eight Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into four groups, each induced with specific sizes of circular femoral defects: 1.5 mm diameter; 4.0 mm depth (Groups A and B), and 2.4 mm diameter; 7.0 mm depth (Groups C and D). Rats were euthanized at 4- and 8-weeks post-induction. Observations revealed that the 4-week period was insufficient for initiating the bone healing process. Notable signs of bone healing and remodelling become apparent only after 8 weeks with normal morbidity scoring at week 5 onwards. Gross examination indicated that rat models with a defect size of 1.5 mm diameter; and 4.0 mm depth healed at a faster rate suggesting inadequate defect size. In contrast, the rat model 2.4 mm diameter; and 7.0 mm depth defect emerged as the suitable model with evidence of newly formed bone signifying the process of mineralization at the defect site. The Hematoxylin and Eosin (H&E) staining of bone tissue demonstrates substantial formation of bone tissues (osteoid) and vascularized areas, consequently supporting the efficacy of this model. Therefore, this study finds that the 8-week timepoint with a 2.4 mm diameter and 7.0 mm circular defect is ideal for assessing bone regeneration of an engineered scaffold in rat bone model.

Background. Quercus infectoria (QI) is a plant used in traditional medicines in Asia. The plant was reported to contain various active phytochemical compounds that have potential to stimulate bone formation. However, the precise mechanism of the stimulation effect of QI on osteoblast has not been elucidated. The present study was carried out to isolate QI semipurified fractions from aqueous QI extract and to delineate the molecular mechanism of QI semipurified fraction that enhanced bone formation by using hFOB1.19 human fetal osteoblast cell model. Methods. Isolation of QI semipurified fractions was established by means of column chromatography and thin layer chromatography. Established QI semipurified fractions were identified using Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS). Cells were treated with derived QI semipurified fractions and investigated for mineralization deposition and protein expression level of BMP-2, Runx2, and OPN by ELISA followed gene expression analysis of BMP-2 and Runx2 by RT-PCR. Results. Column chromatography isolation and purification yield Fractions A, B, and C. LC-MS analysis reveals the presence of polyphenols in each fraction. Results show that QI semipurified fractions increased the activity and upregulated the gene expression of BMP-2 and Runx2 at day 1, day 3, and day 7. OPN activity increased in cells treated with QI semipurified fractions at day 1 and day 3. Meanwhile, at day 7, expression of OPN decreased in activity. Furthermore, the study showed that combination of Fractions A, B, and C with osteoporotic drug (pamidronate) further increased the activity and upregulated the gene expression of BMP-2 and Runx2. Conclusions. These findings demonstrated that polyphenols from semipurified fractions of QI enhanced bone formation through expression of the investigated bone-related marker that is its potential role when combined with readily available osteoporotic drug.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has undoubtedly impacted anatomy education. This has led to a vast shift from a face to face (F2F) session to a complete online session and practical demonstration. Nonetheless, this pandemic provides an opportunity for anatomy educationists to embark on an alternative delivery of anatomy education via an online platform. The aim of this study was to evaluate the students’ perception of the online teaching and learning in anatomy course delivery among the first-year medical students in Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (USIM). A total of 90 first-year medical students partook in an online questionnaire-based survey after semester completion of online anatomy course delivery. Synchronous online lectures conferred positive responses from the students with 73.0% of the students perceived effective communication with lecturers through the online platform. Out of these, 71.6% inclined towards online lectures as it allows them the flexibility to record the lecture and revisit it. Gross anatomy practical sessions were executed asynchronously via pre-recorded video with an additional supplementary quiz on USIM’s Global Open Access Learning system (GOALS) while histology practical was executed synchronously via virtual slide demonstration. A total of 80.1% students felt convenient with histology practical, however, only 48.3% students responded positively to the gross practical. Overall, 76.4% students favoured the conventional practical compared to the online sessions. Meanwhile, an online examination had disputable responses between the different exam formats whereby 71.9% students perceived that Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ) were conducted conveniently contradictory to the Modified Essay Questions (MEQ) in which only 34.9% students responded positively. In addition, 57.3% students disclosed multiple setbacks during the Objective Structures Practical Exam (OSPE). The extensive and impromptu changes in the study technique have received multiple responses from the students. Overall, the students preferred an online platform for didactic sessions but a real live classroom for practical sessions.

The complicated pathology of current diseases requires an intricate treatment. Today, current application of individual single-target drugs or therapeutic approaches is inadequate to target these diseases not to mentioned perceived shortcomings and presented with numerous adverse effects. The extensive and successful documented findings in natural product researches urges the need to make use of these knowledge in the development of new generation of medicine. Polyphenols are compounds naturally derived from plants and have been describe in many research to have tremendous medical benefit. Therefore, a synergistic combination of readily available drugs or other therapeutic approaches is a favourable approach to enhance efficacy, overcome toxicity and optimize safety. The objective of this review is to describe the synergistic effects between the combination of a variety of polyphenols with synthetic drugs or other therapeutic approaches which can help to improve therapeutic efficacy subsequently minimize the adverse effects of a substance targeted in various diseases focusing mainly on cancer, diabetic, microbial infections and tissue regeneration along with their underlying mechanism.