Aspirin Resistance and Its Importance

The use of salicylates (popularly known as aspirin or ASA) is well established for the secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease. However, there are reportedly a numer of patients who suffered repeat cardiovascular events despite being given aspirin “prophylaxis”, and uncertainty prevails on whether or not this is due to an inherent inability of aspirin to sufficiently modify platelet activity or are there other mechanisms involved. Coined as “aspirinresistance”, the condition warrants attention as an ineffective prophylaxis may lead to unexpected morbidity and subsequent disappointmen

Archaic mitochondrial DNA inserts in modern day nuclear genomes

Traces of interbreeding of Neanderthals and Denisovans with modern humans in the form of archaic DNA have been detected in the genomes of present-day human populations outside sub-Saharan Africa. Up to now, only nuclear archaic DNA has been detected in modern humans; we therefore attempted to identify archaic mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) residing in modern human nuclear genomes as nuclear inserts of mitochondrial DNA (NUMTs)

Angiogenesis, Inflammation, Platelets Count, and Metastatic Status as a Predictor for Thrombosis Risk in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Patients

Aim: to assess the use of of angiogenesis, inflammation, platelets count, and metastatic status as predictors for thrombosis risk represented by soluble P-selectin level in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients. Methods: a cross sectional study was conducted on NPC patients at the Hematology and Oncology Clinic of Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital, Jakarta, during Mei to October 2012. Data regarding angiogenesis (CD105 and VEGFR-2), inflammation (IL-6), platelets count, and metastatic status were assessed at enrollment, as well as soluble P-selectin levels in all eligible patients. Bivariate analysis continued with multiple linear regression analysis were done to identify independent predictors for soluble P-selectin levels. Results: sixty NPC patients were enrolled in the study. There was correlation between platelet counts (r=0.389; p=0.002), IL-6 (r=0.595; p<0.001) and number of metastatic sites (r=0.542; p<0.001) with soluble P-selectin level, and a linear regression analysis showed that these three variables can predict soluble P-selectin levels with adjusted R-square 65%. There was no correlation between VEGFR-2 and CD105 levels with soluble P-selectin levels.Conclusion: platelet counts, IL-6 level, and number of sites of metastasis can be used as predictors of soluble P-selectin level as parameter of thrombosis risk in NPC patients. Key words: nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), thrombosis risk, soluble P-selectin

Analisis Mikrosatelit Pada Sampel Feses Gajah Sumatera (Elephas Maximus Sumatranus) Di Taman Nasional Tesso Nilo, Riau

Sumatran elephant (Elephas maximus sumatranus) is an endemic land mammal on Sumatra Island which now is on critically endangered. The population of Sumatran elephant in Riau Province spread in 9 pouches of population, one of them is population in Tesso Nilo National Park (TNNP). Habitat fragmentation and land conversion in protected areas caused condition of Sumatran elephant\u27s population had deteriorated. Therefore, we need a precise conservation effort to save the population of Sumatran elephant in TNNP. These efforts require appropriate information on the number of individuals and population genetic. The aims of this study were to determine the number of individuals, variation and frequency of allele, and the level of heterozygosity of Sumatran elephant population in TNNP based on genetic information. Molecular analysis using microsatellite marker was performed on 108 non-invasive samples which were collected using CMR method. The result revealed that there were 73 individuals of Sumatran elephant in TNNP. The average number of allele variation from 13 microsatelite loci which were analized was 2.85 allele/locus with average observed heterozygosity (0.507) is higher than expected heterozygosity (0.490). Those indicates that allele frequencies found to be above of the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. This studyproved that there is no genetic pressure of Sumatran elephant population in TNNP

Opioid Use in Cancer Pain Management in Indonesia: a Call For Attention

Severe pain is a major problem for cancer patients, and pain management often requires the use of opioids. Indonesia is one of the countries where the use of opioids for cancer patients is extremely low, and this calls for attention, as many cancer patients in the country undergo unnecessary suffering as the consequence of this opioid underuse. The inability to assess pain correctly, failure to determine the correct dose, fear of addiction, overly tight regulation, all contribute to the failure to implement rational use of opioids for cancer patients. Breakthrough pain, a problem which requires special attention not only because it is commonly found but also requires proper knowledge to handle them. These hurdles are discussed in the present review, in order to bring a better understanding about the correct use of opioids in severe cancer pain. Some examples where opiods are used inappropriately in cancer pain management are also discussed.Key words: opioid, break through pain, cancer pain, morphine

Rasio Seks Dan Sebaran Spasial Populasi Gajah Sumatera (Elephas Maximus Sumatranus) Di Taman Nasional Tesso Nilo, Riau

The Sumatran Elephant (Elephas maximus sumatranus) is one of the largest mammal and endemic species on the island of Sumatra. It's conservation status is critically endangered. The information about sex ratio and spatial distribution is an important component to make a priority in conservation strategy. The aims of this study were to determine sex ratio and spatial distribution of Sumatran Elephant in Tesso Nilo National Park. The multiplex PCR method was used in this study to amplify fragments SRY1 and AMELY2 on the Y chromosome and fragment PLP1 on the X chromosome for sex identification in Sumatran Elephant. The analysis of spatial distribution were conducted using Arc GIS 10.1. The result indicated that sex ratio of Sumatran Elephant population in TNNP is 1:3 and the distribution of Sumatran Elephant is generally spread outside of the region TNNP

Bioprospecting of Bacterial Symbiont of Tunicate Didemnum Molle From Sambangan, Karimunjawa Islands

Coral reef is a productive ecosystem with high biodiversity in the sea and being targeted to find a useful bioactive compound. However, the serious problem in development of bioactive compounds from marine invertebrate is the supply problem, because to get a small amounts of active compounds a massive numbers of sea organisms are needed. Tunicate is an animal in coral reef ecosystem that produces many bioactive compounds with pharmacological activities, such as, antibacterial, antitumor, and anticancer compounds. It has been reported that bacterial symbionts of coral reef invertebrates may synthesize the same compounds as the host. The purposes of this research are to isolate and to identify microbes which have antibacterial activity against MDR bacteria based PCR 16S rRNA and to detect the existence of PKS and NRPS biosynthetic gene fragments from tunicate bacteria of Didemnum molle. Out of 15 bacterial isolates, one isolate showed antibacterial potential against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus sp. Molecular identification result showed that TS2A5 bacterium has a homology of 99 % with Virgibacillus sp. strain GSP17 16S ribosomal RNA gene. This isolate was also capable of amplifying NRPS gene fragment