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Borneo, the third-largest island in the world, is shared between Malaysia (Sabah and Sarawak), Indonesia (Kalimantan) and Brunei. As a biodiversity hotspot, it is home to about 15,000 flowering plants and 3000 tree species, of which many are endemic to the region. Locally derived plant-based foods are gaining popularity due to their lower environmental impact, contribution to food sustainability and health benefits. The local fruits and vegetables of Borneo have been used traditionally by the indigenous community for medicinal purposes. This community knowledge can provide a valuable guide to their potential for use as functional foods. This review explores the contemporary foods from Borneo, including fruit, vegetables, seaweeds and plant-derived food products that are locally consumed. The findings show that the unique tropical food groups have a wide diversity of phytochemical compositions that possess a wide array of biological activities including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-microbial, anti-proliferative, anti-fungal, wound healing and expectorant properties. The wide range of plant-based foods in Borneo deserves further development for wider applications as functional foods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Road degradation is a common problem in Malaysia which caused by weather changes, expanding loads as well as the effects of ageing, moisture and temperature results in high maintenance expenses on conventional bitumen pavement. Therefore, it has been recommended on the modification of bitumen as a substitute technique to address this issue and extend the pavement’s lifespan. This study addresses the inadequacy of existing solutions by focusing on the direct mixing approach and the use of pre-treatment using chemical solvent and some additives specifically on epoxidized natural rubber, natural rubber latex and cup lump natural rubber (CLNR). Additionally, this study intends to give a brief summary of how bitumen performance is improved by the inclusion of additives or modifiers by emphasizing the key attributes of modified bitumen after the addition of modifiers. Further information is also provided on the quantity and application method of each addition in order to determine the ideal value for different applications. This study will examine the use of several additives based on past research, such as polyphosphoric acid, Zychotherm, as well as the use of toluene and xylene to maintain the homogeneity of the rubberized bitumen. Studies on the usage of cup lump natural rubber (CLNR) are not common, thus future study should investigate more closely at CLNR and its mixing technique. This research contributes to the field by providing insights into the practical application of modified bitumen for sustainable road construction, especially in regions with a significant rubber industry.

Cratoxylum cochinchinense is a perennial plant found in Southeast Asia, having diverse terminologies in various Southeast Asian countries. It has been traditionally used as medicine, tea and food spice until today. Its phytochemical analysis reveals a rich array of bioactive compounds in different parts of the plant, specifically xanthones, which are scientifically determined to be the most abundant secondary metabolites in C. cochinchinense. Xanthones do possess numerous beneficial properties and are actively researched to unlock its vast potential. It could be synthesized both biologically and synthetically, where the latter method is gaining much interest among researchers to improve its biological properties. Due to limited compiled resources on the biological benefits of xanthones from C. cochinchinense, this paper aims to review their cytotoxic properties specifically towards cancer cells, as well as their antimalarial and antibacterial effects in order to further support the medicinal use of this plant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Auricularia cornea, or wood ear mushroom (WEM), is an edible macrofungus that is popular as a delicacy and for various biological activities. This study aims to determine the nutrient composition, in vitro antioxidant activities and the effect on postprandial blood glucose in human subjects after consuming instant noodles incorporated with 5% WEM powder. The proximate composition of WEM powder was 9.76% moisture, 2.40% ash, 7.52% protein, 0.15% fat, 37.96% crude fibre, 42.21% carbohydrate, and a total dietary fibre was 69.43%. Meanwhile, the proximate composition of 5% WEM noodles was 10.21% moisture, 2.87% ash, 11.37% protein, 0.16% fat, 5.68% crude fibre and 68.96% carbohydrates, while the total dietary fibre was 13.30%. The mineral content of WEM powder in decreasing order: potassium > calcium > magnesium > sodium > iron > zinc > manganese > copper > selenium > chromium. The incorporation of 5% WEM powder significantly (p < 0.05) reduced carbohydrates and increased the ash, crude fibre and total dietary fibre, antioxidant activities and total phenolic content of the instant noodles. Furthermore, the incorporation of 5% WEM significantly increased potassium, calcium, magnesium, iron, and zinc content. The addition of WEM powder reduced the postprandial glycaemic response and produced a moderate glycaemic index (GI). In conclusion, the incorporation with WEM powder could be an effective way of developing nutritious and low GI instant noodles, thus, improving nutrient intake and human health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The origins of upland traditional rice varieties in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo and their domestications are still being debated until today, despite the fact that rice planting has been practiced for centuries in this region. We report the genetic diversity of upland traditional rice varieties in Sabah targeting the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase 3 (COX3) gene in this study. The upland traditional rice germplasms were collected from three divisions in Sabah, namely the Interior Division (ID), Sandakan Division (SD), and West Coast Division (WCD). Polymerase chain reaction was conducted to amplify the COX3 gene of these germplasms, cloned into a vector, and subjected to direct sequencing. The genetic diversity of the aligned COX3 coding sequences among rice varieties were analyzed. This study identified an amino acid variant (S186L) in the COX3 gene that enables the differentiation between Japonica and Indica rice groups, and almost all the upland traditional rice varieties in this study shared the same ancestor as the Japonica group. The genetic diversity among the upland traditional rice varieties was relatively low and the genetic variations in the COX3 gene had undergone positive selection. A total of 14 monomorphic amino acid variations were identified. Rice varieties from ID were more genetically similar to those from WCD but genetically diverse to rice varieties from SD. In conclusion, the S186L amino acid variant in the COX3 gene is a reliable molecular marker to differentiate between Japonica and Indica rice groups in this study. The genetic knowledge of rice varieties in this study could be utilized to broaden the genetic diversity of rice in a local and international scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graft copolymerization of methyl acrylate (MA) and acrylonitrile (AN) onto acacia cellulose was carried out using free radical initiating process in which ceric ammonium nitrate (CAN) was used as an initiator. The optimum grafting yield was determined by the certain amount of acacia cellulose (AGU), mineral acid (H2SO4), CAN, MA, and AN at 0.062, 0.120, 0.016, 0.397, and 0.550 mol L−1, respectively. The poly(methyl acrylate- co-acrylonitrile)-grafted acacia cellulose was obtained at 55°C after 2-h stirring, and purified acrylic polymer-grafted cellulose was characterized by FTIR and TG analysis. Therein, the ester and nitrile functional groups of the grafted copolymers were reacted with hydroxylamine solution for conversion into the hydroxamic acid and amidoxime ligands. The chelating behavior of the prepared ligands toward some metal ions was investigated using batch technique. The metal ions sorption capacities of the ligands were pH dependent, and the sorption capacity toward the metal ions was in the following order: Zn2+ > Fe3+ > Cr3+ > Cu2+ > Ni2+. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]