Eurycoma longifolia (E. longifolia), a herb commonly consumed for its aphrodisiac properties, is widely used by Asian males. This may include hypertensive patients receiving propranolol which may cause sexual dysfunction as one of its side-effects. There is no published study of the potential pharmacokinetic interaction between propranolol and the herb. To study propranolol's pharmacokinetics when E. longifolia is consumed, comparing volunteers given either propranolol or a placebo. This is a placebo-controlled randomized single-blinded crossover study of the effect of a water-based extract of E. longifolia on the pharmacokinetics of a single dose of proporanolol (Inderal(®)) in 14 healthy non-smoker young males. Eighty milligram of propranonol was orally administered with (i) placebo (Lactose) or (ii) 200 mg of water-based extract of E. longifolia (0·0272 ± 0·0026%eurycomanone) following an overnight fasting. Blood samples were collected at 0, 0·5, 1, 1·5, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8 and 10 h for propranolol's plasma concentration determinations using a validated high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method. When propranolol was administered with E. longifolia, its bioavailability (AUC0-∞) decreased by 29% while C(max) was reduced by 42% and T(max) was significantly prolonged by almost 86%. The terminal elimination half-life, however, was not significantly affected. The bioavailability of propranolol is significantly decreased when consumed together with E. longifolia. The interaction is due to a reduction in absorption, rather than an increase in propranolol's metabolism. Although the pharmacodynamics of propranolol was not affected in healthy volunteers, caution is still advisable with co-administration of the drug and the herb.

Many previous published methods for the quantitative determination of propranolol (PRN) in human plasma have poor recoveries and were not validated according to the FDA guideline. The aim of this study is to develop a simple HPLC method for detecting PRN in human plasma and to validate it so that it can be applied to a clinical study. Chromatographic separation was achieved using a mixture of a mobile phase consisting of 160 ml water, 180 ml methanol, 70 ml acetonitrile, 2.5 ml acetic acid, and 125 µl triethylamine (v/v). The pH of the whole mixture was adjusted to 3.4. A flow rate of 0.5 ml/min was employed throughout with a 15 µl injection volume. Detection was done using a UV detector at 291 nm. The validated method was linear for concentrations ranging from 15–180 ng/ ml with a good separation and specificity for both PRN and its internal standard, oxprenolol (OXP), with excellent recoveries, precision, and accuracies. The limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) were 1 and 10 ng/ml, respectively. The stability studies demonstrated that PRN is stable in the autosampler vials and also up to 3.5 months. To the authors’ knowledge, the recovery, that ranged between 97.9–102.7%, is the highest among all previously reported methods that used HPLC with UV detection. The developed and validated method for PRN analysis is excellen,t and applicable to a clinical study.

The environmental impact of peat extraction in plant nurseries requires urgent attention due to climate change and habitat destruction. Substituting peat moss with compost derived from palm oil waste in oil palm nurseries presents a viable solution. However, the challenges in its implementation must be considered. This research focuses on optimizing composting conditions for palm oil waste and examines the impact of the compost on soil quality, nutrient availability, and seedling growth. Measurements such as the culling rate, plant height, leaf length, and chlorophyll content were taken to assess seedling growth in nurseries. The compost was also tested as a soil amendment for 5-year-old palm trees, with foliar analysis conducted to evaluate the nutrient assimilation. The results show that optimized compost significantly enhanced the seedling growth by 20–50%, evidenced by the increased plant height, longer leaf length, and higher chlorophyll content. Additionally, the foliar analysis demonstrated an improvement of 5–15% in the nutrient assimilation in the 5-year-old palm trees. This research highlights the potential of optimizing oil palm waste composting for sustainable planting media in nurseries, mitigating environmental impacts and promoting productivity in oil palm plantations. Adopting this circular economy model can address waste management challenges while ensuring a resilient and sustainable approach in the palm oil industry.

Food safety is a crucial issue in every country. Without a good food safety system, a country will suffer economically and socially. This paper aims to revisit the literature on food safety knowledge, attitude, and practice in Malaysia and globally. Foodborne illnesses are caused by food that has been contaminated at any stage of the food production, delivery, and consumption chain. Non-compliance with food handling guidelines linked to a lack of food safety awareness was the leading cause of foodborne illnesses. This paper highlighted consumers’ role in preventing foodborne diseases by following food safety recommendations when preparing food at home. Hence, studies on consumers' food safety knowledge, attitude, and practice are very important for future development programs on food safety guidelines, and to ensure successful implementations.

Purpose: Root-knot nematodes (RKN) remain one of the leading causes of economic damage in black pepper (Piper nigrum L.) cultivation worldwide. An experiment was conducted to evaluate the response of black pepper plants to RKN when irrigated with three nutrient solutions; Hoagland solution only, Hoagland solution + 0.005 mM potassium silicate solution, and Hoagland solution + 2 mM salicylic acid solution. Research Method: Plants grown in medium-sized polybags were inoculated with RKN and routinely irrigated with the appropriate nutrient solutions. Presence of foliar symptoms of RKN infection on plants, their aerial growth plus root infestation were assessed. Superoxide anion and hydrogen peroxide production from the plant leaves were also detected after inoculation. Findings: Foliar symptoms of RKN infection started manifesting after 81 days from inoculation. Plants without silicate or salicylic acid supplementation displayed the most severe foliar disorder symptoms, highest root galling and the shortest aerial growth. Plants irrigated with potassium silicate had the highest aerial growth and their leaves showed the least oxidative stress when challenged with RKN. Originality: From present results, soil amendment with potassium silicate is a promising tool for reducing root galling and promoting aerial growth in RKN-infested black pepper fields.