Background The private sector is playing an increasingly important role in family planning services globally. The active participation of private providers is associated with a higher contraceptive prevalence rate. Objectives To examine the differentials and determinants of the utilization of private providers for family planning services. Method This study used the 2014 Malaysian Population and Family Survey data. Cross-tabulations and logistic regression were performed on 1,817 current users of modern methods. Results Overall, 26% of modern method users obtained their supplies from private clinics/pharmacies and 15.2% from other sources, such as drug stores and sundry shops. The odds of utilizing the private sector for family planning services differ significantly across regions and socio-economic groups. The odds of obtaining supply from the private clinics/pharmacies were higher among the Chinese and urban women (AOR > 1), and it was lower among those from the eastern region (AOR = 0.47, 95% CI = 0.30–0.73). Non-Bumiputera, urban, higher educated, and working women, and those whose husbands decided on family planning had higher odds of obtaining the supply from the other sources (AOR > 1). Conclusion The private sector complements and supplements the public sector in providing family planning services to the public.

Eucheuma denticulatum or commonly known as “Spinosum”, is an economically important red alga that naturally grows on coral reefs with moderately strong currents in tropical and sub-tropical areas. This species is the primary source of iota-carrageenan which has high demands in the food, pharmaceutical and manufacturing industries, and as such it has been widely cultivated. The increasing global demand for carrageenan has led to extensive commercial cultivation of carrageenophytes mainly in the tropics. The carrageenophyte seaweeds including E. denticulatum are indigenous to Sabah, Malaysia. To enrich the information on the genes involved in carrageenan biosynthesis, RNA sequencing has been performed and transcriptomic dataset has been generated using Illumina HiSeq™ 2000 sequencer. The raw data and transcriptomic data have been deposited in NCBI database with the accession number PRJNA477734. These data will provide valuable resources for functional genomics annotation and investigation of mechanisms underlying the regulations of genes in this algal species.

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The Rhodophyta, Kappaphycus alvarezii, is widely cultivated for its highly valuable kappa carrageenan. K.alvarezii has also been known for its capacity to absorb and accumulate excess heavy metal from itssurrounding. The study was undertaken to unravel the effect of different cadmium treatments towards K.alvarezii at different exposure times by determining the biomass change percentage, algal cell viability andthe changes in chlorophyll and protein content at Cd concentrations ranging from 50 to 500 μM for 5, 10and 15 days. While there was no significant change in the percentage of the biomass change, the viabilityof the algal cells increased significantly with increasing Cd concentration and exposure time. This wasaccompanied by significant increase in protein content following similar pattern as shown by the viabilityof the cells. In contrast, chlorophylls a and b content decreased significantly with increasing Cdconcentration. The ability of the alga to uptake Cd was also increased with increasing Cd concentrationspossibly indicating that the ability of K. alvarezii to survive the high level of Cd might be due to its abilityto accumulate heavy metal. The results from this research revealed the unique manner in which K. alvareziiresponds to Cd stress which is unlike any other algae. Thus the findings obtained from this study maycontribute important information on how macroalgae adapt to heavy metal pollution.

Cadmium based quantum dots (Cd QDs) is well established and extensively used for various applications, but found limiting usage in bioimaging application, due to its high toxicity and insolubility in aqueous solution. Passivation and/or encapsulation of the Cd QDs with a non-toxic and biocompatible polymer are common practice to overcome the drawback. In our work, CdSe is synthesized as a core and encapsulated with ZnS to produce a hydrophobic colloidal core/shell CdSe/ZnS QD. Then, a biocompatible PEGylated amphiphilic polymer as matrices is used to encapsulate CdSe/ZnS QD for converting it into water dispersible property which required for in-vitro imaging applications. The cell viability and cellular uptake of the biocomposite were studied against cancerous and non-cancerous cells. Also, peak of emission spectrum was recorded to determine the photostability of this biocomposites under continuous UV light illumination up to 100 minutes.