Small-Scaled Analysis for Amylose Content in Brown Rice and Thai Rice Clustering based on Amylose Content

บทคัดย่อ ข้าว (Oryza sativa L.) เป็นพืชที่มีการปลูกอย่างแพร่หลายในภูมิภาคต่างๆ ของประเทศไทย ทำให้ประเทศไทยเป็นแหล่งพันธุกรรมของแป้งข้าวลักษณะต่างๆ การศึกษานี้มีวัตถุประสงค์เพื่อพัฒนาวิธีวิเคราะห์ปริมาณแอมิโลสโดยใช้เนื้อเยื่อปริมาณน้อยและนำข้อมูลปริมาณแอมิโลสมาใช้ในการจัดกลุ่มพันธุ์ข้าวไทยจำนวน 100 พันธุ์ที่จากภูมิภาคต่างๆ ของประเทศไทย การใช้ตัวอย่างข้าวลดลง 5 เท่าจากวิธีดั้งเดิมสามารถใช้ในการวิเคราะห์ปริมาณแอมิโลสได้และการอ่านค่าด้วยไมโครเพลทรีดเดอร์ได้ เมื่อทำการวิเคราะห์ปริมาณแอมิโลส พบว่าปริมาณแอมิโลสในข้าวพันธุ์ต่างๆ มีความแตกต่างกันอย่างมีนัยสำคัญทางสถิติ อยู่ในช่วงร้อยละ 7.04 ถึง 32.73 ข้าวพันธุ์เอวมดแดงมีปริมาณแอมิโลสสูงที่สุด ในขณะที่ข้าวพันธุ์ก่ำเมืองน่านมีปริมาณแอมิโลสต่ำที่สุด ผลการวิเคราะห์ปริมาณแอมิโลสในข้าวกล้องสามารถแบ่งกลุ่มข้าวเป็น 4 กลุ่ม ได้แก่ ข้าวเหนียวที่มีปริมาณแอมิโลสต่ำ ข้าวเจ้าที่มีปริมาณแอมิโลสต่ำ ข้าวเจ้าที่มีปริมาณแอมิโลสปานกลางและข้าวเจ้าที่มีปริมาณแอมิโลสสูงตามลำดับ ข้าวเหนียวพบมากในพบในภาคกลางและภาคตะวันออก ข้อมูลจากการวิจัยนี้สามารถนำไปใช้เป็นข้อมูลพื้นฐานในการพัฒนาพันธุ์ข้าวที่มีสมบัติแป้งที่จำเพาะต่อไปได้ ABSTRACT Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is plant which distributes throughout Thailand. These represent the collection of genetic resources for starch characteristics in rice grains. This research aims to develop small-scaled quantifying method for amylose content determination in rice grains and to use the amylose content for cluster analysis of 100 Thai rice cultivars distributed throughout Thailand. Five-fold reduction in rice grain weight compared to the original method could be used for amylose content measurement. This method could be applied to use microplate reader for quantification in order to analyze a large number of samples. Rice grains were used for amylose content determination. The amylose contents in various cultivars were significantly different and ranged from 7.04-32.73%. ‘Aew Mod Daeng’ rice had the highest amylose content, while ‘Gam Meuang Nahn’ rice showed the lowest amylose. When amylose content was subjected to cluster analysis, these cultivars could be separated into 4 groups, which were sticky rice with low amylose content, rice with low amylose content, rice with intermediate amylose content and rice with high amylose content.  Sticky rice cultivars were found in the northern and the upper northeastern of Thailand, while most of rice cultivars were rice with intermediate amylose content and the majority was found in the central and the eastern part of Thailand. This information can be used for breeding program to develop the new cultivar with specific starch characteristics

Leptospirosis: Skin Wounds and Control Strategies, Thailand, 1999

After an outbreak of leptospirosis in workers who participated in cleaning a pond during September 1999 in Thailand, a serologic survey was conducted. Among a cohort of 104 persons from one village who participated in pond cleaning activity, 43 (41.3%) were seropositive for immunoglobulin M antibodies against Leptospira, indicating recent infection. Only 17 (39.5%) of 43 seropositive persons reported a recent febrile illness; the remaining seropositive persons were considered asymptomatic, suggesting that asymptomatic leptospirosis infection may be common where leptospirosis is endemic. Multivariable logistic regression indicated that wearing long pants or skirts was independently protective against leptospirosis infection (ORadjusted = 0.217), while the presence of more than two wounds on the body was independently associated with infection (ORadjusted = 3.97). Educational efforts should be enhanced in areas where leptospirosis is endemic to encourage the use of protective clothing. In addition wound management and avoidance of potentially contaminated water when skin wounds are present should be included in health education programs

Risk of potentially rabid animal exposure among foreign travelers in Southeast Asia.

BACKGROUND: Each year millions of travelers visit Southeast Asia where rabies is still prevalent. This study aimed to assess the risk of rabies exposure, i.e., by being bitten or licked by an animal, among travelers in Southeast Asia. The secondary objective was to assess their attitudes and practices related to rabies. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Foreign travelers departing to the destination outside Southeast Asia were invited to fill out the study questionnaire in the departure hall of Bangkok International Airport. They were asked about their demographic profile, travel characteristics, pre-travel health preparations, their possible exposure and their practices related to rabies during this trip. From June 2010 to February 2011, 7,681 completed questionnaires were collected. Sixty-two percent of the travelers were male, and the median age was 32 years. 34.0% of the participants were from Western/Central Europe, while 32.1% were from East Asia. Up to 59.3% had sought health information before this trip. Travel clinics were the source of information for 23.6% of travelers. Overall, only 11.6% of the participants had completed their rabies pre-exposure prophylaxis, and 15.3% had received only 1-2 shots, while 73.1% had not been vaccinated at all. In this study, the risk of being bitten was 1.11 per 100 travelers per month and the risk of being licked was 3.12 per 100 travelers per month. Among those who were bitten, only 37.1% went to the hospital to get post exposure treatment. Travelers with East Asian nationalities and longer duration of stay were significantly related to higher risk of animal exposure. Reason for travel was not related to the risk of animal exposure. CONCLUSIONS: Travelers were at risk of being exposed to potentially rabid animals while traveling in Southeast Asia. Many were inadequately informed and unprepared for this life-threatening risk. Rabies prevention advice should be included in every pre-travel visit

Genome-Wide Association Study of Starch Properties in Local Thai Rice

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is the main source of energy for humans and a staple food of high cultural significance for much of the world’s population. Rice with highly resistant starch (RS) is beneficial for health and can reduce the risk of disease, especially type II diabetes. The identification of loci affecting starch properties will facilitate breeding of high-quality and health-supportive rice. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) of 230 rice cultivars was used to identify candidate loci affecting starch properties. The apparent amylose content (AAC) among rice cultivars ranged from 7.04 to 33.06%, and the AAC was positively correlated with RS (R2 = 0.94) and negatively correlated with rapidly available glucose (RAG) (R2 = −0.73). Three loci responsible for starch properties were detected on chromosomes 1, 6, and 11. On chromosome 6, the most significant SNP corresponded to LOC_Os06g04200 which encodes granule-bound starch synthase I (GBSSI) or starch synthase. Two novel loci associated with starch traits were LOC_Os01g65810 and LOC_Os11g01580, which encode an unknown protein and a sodium/calcium exchanger, respectively. The markers associated with GBSSI and LOC_Os11g01580 were tested in two independent sets of rice populations to confirm their effect on starch properties. The identification of genes associated with starch traits will further the understanding of the molecular mechanisms affecting starch in rice and may be useful in the selection of rice varieties with improved starch

Relation of Travel Clinic visit to Travelers' Knowledge about rabies.

*<p>Statistical significance.</p