Antioxidant activity of Piper caninum and Cyclooxygenase-2 inhibition by methoxylated flavones.

Background: This study investigated on antioxidant activity of Piper caninum and cyclooxygenase-2 inhibition by methoxylated flavones.Materials and methods: The present study was carried out to quantify the total phenolic content and free radical scavenging activities of the crude extracts by Folin-Ciocalteu and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl free radical scavenging assay respectively.Results: Methanolic extracts of Piper caninum exhibited the highest total phenolic content and free radical scavenging activities. All the pure compounds possessed significant cyclooxygenase-2 inhibition at physiological concentrations.Conclusion: Based on in vitro and molecular docking, we therefore suggest that Piper caninum methoxylated flavones are potent inhibitors of cyclooxygenase-2 at physiological concentrationsKey words: Piper caninum; antioxidant; cyclooxygenase-2.List of abbreviations: COX-2, cyclooxygenase-2; DPPH, 2,2-diphenyl- 1-picrylhydrazyl; PGE2, prostaglandin E2

Implementasi Jaminan Kesehatan Dalam Upaya Memenuhi Hak Asasi Sosial (Studi Kasus Penggunaan Jamkesmas di Desa Kenteng, Kecamatan Nogosari, Kabupaten Boyolali)

Tujuan penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui gambaran umum penggunaan Jamkesmas, untuk mengetahui kesesuaian pelaksanaan Jamkesmas di Desa Kenteng, Kecamatan Nogosari, Kabupaten Boyolali dalam upaya memenuhi hak asasi sosial, untuk mengetahui kendala-kendala yang terjadi dalam pelaksanaan Jamkesmas dan solusi mengatasi kendala-kendala yang terjadi dalam pelaksanaan Jamkesmas di Desa Kenteng, Kecamatan Nogosari, Kabupaten Boyolali dalam upaya memenuhi hak asasi sosial. Teknik pengumpulan data menggunakan metode observasi, wawancara, dan dokumentasi. Teknik analisis data digunakan model interaktif dengan langkah yaitu pengumpulan data, reduksi data, penyajian data, dan penarikan kesimpulan. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa pelaksanaan Jamkesmas untuk memberikan jaminan pelayanan kesehatan bagi masyarakat yang miskin dan kurang mampu. Pelayanan kesehatan dengan menggunakan Jamkesmas berupa pelayanan kesehatan dasar dan lanjutan. Pelayanan kesehatan dasar diberikan di Puskesmas dan jaringannya sedangkan pelayanan kesehatan lanjutan diberikan di Rumah Sakit. Pelaksanaan Jamkesmas di Desa Kenteng, Kecamatan Nogosari, Kabupaten Boyolali sesuai dengan hak asasi sosial berupa terpenuhinya indikator pelayanan kesehatan bagi pasien Jamkesmas. Pasien Jamkesmas mendapatkan pelayanan administrasi, konsultasi dan pemeriksaan dokter, obat-obatan yang sesuai kebutuhan, fasilitas kesehatan yang layak, dan makanan yang bergizi. Kendala yang terjadi dalam pelaksanaan Jamkesmas yaitu kurangnya pengetahuan masyarakat, oknum petugas yang nakal, sistem rujukan kurang optimal, penyediaan obat-obatan dan ketersediaan ruang, dan peran dari pemerintah dalam pelaksanaan Jamkesmas kurang maksimal. Solusi untuk mengatasi kendala pelaksanaan Jamkesmas yaitu sosialisasi kepada masyarakat terkait Jamkesmas, peningkatan pengawasan dan sistem rujukan, pengalihan ruang kelas III, dan peningkatan peran pemerintah dalam pelaksanaan Jamkesmas

Knowledge and Attitude towards HIV/AIDS among transsexuals in Kuantan, Pahang

Introduction: Lack of knowledge and negative attitude towards HIV/AIDS may be the risk factors for HIV infection among transsexuals. Research on knowledge and attitude towards HIV infection in transsexual communities is very limited at both local and international levels. This study aimed to assess the knowledge and attitude towards HIV infection among the male-to-female transsexual community in Kuantan, Pahang. Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out from July to August 2014 among 33 male-to-female transsexuals in Kuantan, Pahang. Convenience sampling was used. Participants who gave consent answered a self-administered questionnaire. Data obtained was analyzed with descriptive statistics, χ 2 -test, and independent sample t test. Results: The majority of the subjects in this study were 29 years and below (48.5%), Muslims (93.9%), and had completed up to secondary education (60.6%). Most of them were sex workers (60.6%), and had relatively low income (no income to RM 3000, mean of RM1528). A total of 87.9% of the subjects demonstrated good knowledge and also positive attitude towards HIV/AIDS. Level of education was significantly associated with scores in knowledge (p=0.01). Conclusions: Despite the positive outcome from this study, misconceptions towards HIV/AIDS still exist among transsexuals. Education and interventions from multiple directions on HIV/AIDS are essential to deliver the correct information to this population, so as to emphasize prevention, early detection, and holistic medical care. Transsexuals also require attention from religious bodies and non-governmental organizations to help them in employment, financial, spiritual, and psycho-social issues

Approaches in biotechnological applications of natural polymers

Natural polymers, such as gums and mucilage, are biocompatible, cheap, easily available and non-toxic materials of native origin. These polymers are increasingly preferred over synthetic materials for industrial applications due to their intrinsic properties, as well as they are considered alternative sources of raw materials since they present characteristics of sustainability, biodegradability and biosafety. As definition, gums and mucilages are polysaccharides or complex carbohydrates consisting of one or more monosaccharides or their derivatives linked in bewildering variety of linkages and structures. Natural gums are considered polysaccharides naturally occurring in varieties of plant seeds and exudates, tree or shrub exudates, seaweed extracts, fungi, bacteria, and animal sources. Water-soluble gums, also known as hydrocolloids, are considered exudates and are pathological products; therefore, they do not form a part of cell wall. On the other hand, mucilages are part of cell and physiological products. It is important to highlight that gums represent the largest amounts of polymer materials derived from plants. Gums have enormously large and broad applications in both food and non-food industries, being commonly used as thickening, binding, emulsifying, suspending, stabilizing agents and matrices for drug release in pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. In the food industry, their gelling properties and the ability to mold edible films and coatings are extensively studied. The use of gums depends on the intrinsic properties that they provide, often at costs below those of synthetic polymers. For upgrading the value of gums, they are being processed into various forms, including the most recent nanomaterials, for various biotechnological applications. Thus, the main natural polymers including galactomannans, cellulose, chitin, agar, carrageenan, alginate, cashew gum, pectin and starch, in addition to the current researches about them are reviewed in this article.. }To the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientfíico e Tecnológico (CNPq) for fellowships (LCBBC and MGCC) and the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nvíel Superior (CAPES) (PBSA). This study was supported by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the scope of the strategic funding of UID/BIO/04469/2013 unit, the Project RECI/BBB-EBI/0179/2012 (FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-027462) and COMPETE 2020 (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006684) (JAT)

Hubungan pengetahuan spinal anestesi dengan tingkat kecemasan pre operasi pada pasien sectio caesarea di RSKIA Sadewa Yogyakarta

Latar Belakang: Tindakan pembedahan dengan spinal anestesi dapat menimbulkan ancaman tubuh, integritas serta jiwa seseorang. Kecemasan yang dialami pasien yang direncanakan pembedahan dapat terjadi karena kurang pengetahuan tentang prosedur pembiusan yang akan dijalani. Kecemasan yang dialami pasien dapat memberikan efek kegelisahan dan mempengaruhi kardiovaskular yang dapat mengganggu proses pembedahan. Tujuan: Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui hubungan pengetahuan spinal anestesi dengan tingkat kecemasan pre operasi. Metode: Desain penelitian ini adalah korelasional dengan pendekatan cross sectional. Populasi pada penelitian ini adalah pasien sectio caesarea dengan kriteria inklusi dan ekslusi di Instalasi Bedah Sentral RSKIA Sadewa Yogyakarta. Jumlah sampel penelitian ini sebanyak 32 responden yang diperoleh dengan consecutive sampling. Instrumen pengetahuan menggunakan kuesioner dan kecemasan pasien pre operasi menggunakan instrument APAIS. Data yang diperoleh dianalisis menggunakan Uji Spearman rho dengan ?= 0,05. Hasil: Penelitian menunjukkan ada hubungan antara pengetahuan prosedur anestesi spinal dengan kecemasan pasien intraoperatif dengan p = 0,000. Kesimpulan: Pengetahuan tentang prosedur anestesi spinal dibutuhkan guna mendorong responden menggunakan mekanisme koping yang positif dalam mengatasi kecemasan yang dialami. Pengetahuan yang baik menyebabkan mekanisme koping responden menjadi positif yaitu memberikan strategi pemecahan masalah dalam mengurangi kecemasan yang dialami. Diharapkan penata anestesi meningkatkan pemberian edukasi pre operasi kepada pasien tentang spinal anestesi agar kecemasan pasien pre operasi berkuran

Prevalence of Mistreatment or Belittlement among Medical Students – A Cross Sectional Survey at a Private Medical School in Karachi, Pakistan

Background: Mistreatment or belittlement of medical students either by faculty or fellow students has often been reported. Perception of mistreatment has also been associated with increased degree of psychological morbidity. There is a lack of such studies being conducted amongst the medical students of Pakistan. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and forms of perceived mistreatment and presence of mental health morbidity in a private medical school in Pakistan. Also, any association between mental health morbidity and mistreatment was to be identified. Methods: A cross sectional study was carried out on medical students from Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan during the period of June-September 2007. A self administered questionnaire, adapted from Frank et al and Baldwin et al was distributed to a total of 350 students. The questionnaire consisted of three parts: the first dealing with the demographics of the population, the second concerning the various forms of mistreatment, while the third assessed the mental health of students using the General Health Questionnaire 12(GHQ12). Descriptive statistics were performed. The Chi-square test and Fisher\u27s exact tests were applied. Results: A total of 350 students were approached out of which 232 completed the questionnaire giving a response rate of 66.2%. Mistreatment was reported by 62.5% (145/232) of the respondents. Of these, 69.7% (83/145) were males and 54.9% (62/145) were females. There was a significant relationship between gender, year division, stress at medical school and possible use of drugs/alcohol and reported mistreatment but no statistical relationship was seen with psychiatric morbidity. The overall prevalence of psychological morbidity was 34.8% (77/221). Conclusion: This study suggests high prevalence of perceived mistreatment and psychological morbidity among Pakistani medical students. However, no association was found between these two aspects of medical student education. There is a need to bring about changes to make the medical education environment conducive to learning. Increased student feedback, support systems and guidance about progress throughout the year and the provision of adequate learning resources may provide help with resolving both of these issues

Ongoing strategies to improve the management of upper respiratory tract infections and reduce inappropriate antibiotic use particularly among lower and middle-income countries: findings and implications for the future

Introduction: Antibiotics are indispensable to maintaining human health; however, their overuse has resulted in resistant organisms, increasing morbidity, mortality and costs. Increasing antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a major public health threat, resulting in multiple campaigns across countries to improve appropriate antimicrobial use. This includes addressing the overuse of antimicrobials for self-limiting infections, such as upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs), particularly in lower- and middle-income countries (LMICs) where there is the greatest inappropriate use and where antibiotic utilization has increased the most in recent years. Consequently, there is a need to document current practices and successful initiatives in LMICs to improve future antimicrobial use. Methodology: Documentation of current epidemiology and management of URTIs, particularly in LMICs, as well as campaigns to improve future antimicrobial use and their influence where known. Results: Much concern remains regarding the prescribing and dispensing of antibiotics for URTIs among LMICs. This includes considerable self-purchasing, up to 100% of pharmacies in some LMICs. However, multiple activities are now ongoing to improve future use. These incorporate educational initiatives among all key stakeholder groups, as well as legislation and other activities to reduce self-purchasing as part of National Action Plans (NAPs). Further activities are still needed however. These include increased physician and pharmacist education, starting in medical and pharmacy schools; greater monitoring of prescribing and dispensing practices, including the development of pertinent quality indicators; and targeted patient information and health education campaigns. It is recognized that such activities are more challenging in LMICs given more limited resources and a lack of healthcare professionals. Conclusion: Initiatives will grow across LMICs to reduce inappropriate prescribing and dispensing of antimicrobials for URTIs as part of NAPs and other activities, and these will be monitored

International Society of Sports Nutrition Position Stand: Probiotics.

Position statement: The International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN) provides an objective and critical review of the mechanisms and use of probiotic supplementation to optimize the health, performance, and recovery of athletes. Based on the current available literature, the conclusions of the ISSN are as follows: 1)Probiotics are live microorganisms that, when administered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit on the host (FAO/WHO).2)Probiotic administration has been linked to a multitude of health benefits, with gut and immune health being the most researched applications.3)Despite the existence of shared, core mechanisms for probiotic function, health benefits of probiotics are strain- and dose-dependent.4)Athletes have varying gut microbiota compositions that appear to reflect the activity level of the host in comparison to sedentary people, with the differences linked primarily to the volume of exercise and amount of protein consumption. Whether differences in gut microbiota composition affect probiotic efficacy is unknown.5)The main function of the gut is to digest food and absorb nutrients. In athletic populations, certain probiotics strains can increase absorption of key nutrients such as amino acids from protein, and affect the pharmacology and physiological properties of multiple food components.6)Immune depression in athletes worsens with excessive training load, psychological stress, disturbed sleep, and environmental extremes, all of which can contribute to an increased risk of respiratory tract infections. In certain situations, including exposure to crowds, foreign travel and poor hygiene at home, and training or competition venues, athletes' exposure to pathogens may be elevated leading to increased rates of infections. Approximately 70% of the immune system is located in the gut and probiotic supplementation has been shown to promote a healthy immune response. In an athletic population, specific probiotic strains can reduce the number of episodes, severity and duration of upper respiratory tract infections.7)Intense, prolonged exercise, especially in the heat, has been shown to increase gut permeability which potentially can result in systemic toxemia. Specific probiotic strains can improve the integrity of the gut-barrier function in athletes.8)Administration of selected anti-inflammatory probiotic strains have been linked to improved recovery from muscle-damaging exercise.9)The minimal effective dose and method of administration (potency per serving, single vs. split dose, delivery form) of a specific probiotic strain depends on validation studies for this particular strain. Products that contain probiotics must include the genus, species, and strain of each live microorganism on its label as well as the total estimated quantity of each probiotic strain at the end of the product's shelf life, as measured by colony forming units (CFU) or live cells.10)Preclinical and early human research has shown potential probiotic benefits relevant to an athletic population that include improved body composition and lean body mass, normalizing age-related declines in testosterone levels, reductions in cortisol levels indicating improved responses to a physical or mental stressor, reduction of exercise-induced lactate, and increased neurotransmitter synthesis, cognition and mood. However, these potential benefits require validation in more rigorous human studies and in an athletic population