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Biomedical subjects

Jamsai Suwansaksri

Publications and source records attributed to Jamsai Suwansaksri.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Lead intoxication: a summary of the clinical presentation among Thai patients.

Lead is an important toxic metal found in industrial communities. Due to the industrialization in the recent decade in Thailand, lead intoxication as a toxicant-related disorder becomes a new public health problem. A retrospective study on clinical presentation of hospitalized patients with diagnosis of lead intoxication during year 1990-1999 in King Chulalongkorn Memorial hospital, the largest Thai Red Cross Society Hospital, was performed. All 14 cases diagnosed with lead intoxication were identified in our series. Average age of the subjects was 25.55 +/- 21.93 years old. Male predominance was detected in our series (male:female = 12:2). Two main groups of subjects as; (1) childhood aged below 10 years old (male:female = 4:2) and (2) adult aged between 24 and 60 years old (n = 8, all male), can be identified. For the first group, the clinical presentations were convulsion (n = 3), unexplained anemia (n = 1), attention deficit (n = 1) and asymptomatic (n = 1), respectively. All of the subjects in this group presented the history of living at the old battery plant area. Five of the six cases came from the same village. For the second group, the clinical presentations were unexplained abdominal pain (n = 5), chronic renal failure (n = 1), unexplained anemia (n = 1) and asymptomatic (n = 1), respectively. Most of the subjects (75%) in this group presented the history of working in the battery plant for more than 10 years. Another case presented the history of gunshot and residual bullet in the bone marrow. The other one left is an interesting case with the history of prolonged usage of ritual pill and holy paper incineration. Like other studies, battery plant had strong relation with the lead intoxication. Although the total identified cases are rather few, there may be more undetected asymptomatic lead intoxication cases in the community. Specific control of lead resulted from battery plant and monitoring of the workers as public health strategies are still recommended.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

White blood cell sister chromatid exchange among a sample of Thai subjects exposed to toluene, an observation.

There is a particular concern with toluene because some research has indicated that toluene exposure could result in chronic toxicity including mutagenesis and carcinogenesis. This study aimed to determine the rate of sister chromatid exchanges (SCE), a marker for genotoxicity, and its correlation to the classical urine biomarker for toluene exposure, urine hippuric acid, among a sample of Thai exposed subjects. A total of 26 police (all males) were included in this study. The average (mean +/- SD) urine hippuric acid level in these police was 0.8 +/- 0.4 mg/g creatinine. The average (mean +/- SD) SCE level in these police was 4.5 +/- 1.0/cell. The average SCE among the police with high urine hippuric acid levels was non-significantly higher than the average SCE level of those without (P = 0.41). This implies that the cytogenetic response to toluene was not different between the subjects with and without high toluene exposure. High exposure to toluene seems not to be related to high SCE.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

High sister chromatid exchange among a sample of traffic policemen in Bangkok, Thailand.

There are several volatile substances from the traffic, including benzene, toluene, carbon monoxide, lead and formaldehyde. Most of these substances are considered carcinogens. Police are at occupational risk for toxic fume exposure. This study compared sister chromatid exchange (SCE), a marker for genotoxicity, among a sample of Thai traffic policemen in Bangkok with healthy control subjects. Thirty police officers (all male) and 20 controls were included in this study. The average (mean+/-SD) SCE for policemen and controls were 4.40+/-0.93/cell and 0.24+/-0.12/cell, respectively. A significantly higher SCE among the policemen was observed. Concern for and prevention of toxic substance exposure in traffic police officers should be made a national goal.

Case-Control Studies↗
PubMed2006

Detection of Cryptococcus neoformans in bird excreta.

We evaluated 14 samples of bird excreta from pigeons, parrots, open billed storks and crows obtained from thirteen places in Bangkok and nearby areas between April and July 2004. These bird excreta were examined for Cryptococcus neoformans by direct plating method to inspect their ability to grow at 37 degrees C. Capsule production was examined by Indian ink preparation. They were also tested for urease and phenoloxidase enzymes. Cryptococcus neoformans var neoformans was recovered from pigeon excreta in 9.09%. This implies those having impaired immunity may get this fungus from the environment.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Feasibility of using papaya skin extract for digestion of swamp eel viscera for harvesting infective stage larva of Gnathostoma spp.

In this study, we reported the feasibility of using papaya skin extract (Carica papaya L.) as an alternative to enzyme pepsin in harvesting Gnathostoma spinigerum third-stage larvae. From experimental digestion, we found that the different numbers of recovered larvae between papaya skin extract and pepsin were not statistically significant (p >0.05). When the derived larvae from pepsin and papaya skin extract digestion were cultivated in BME medium for 7 days, the survival rates were not significantly different either (p >0.05). Thus, papaya skin extract might be another choice for recovering Gnathostoma spinigerum third-stage larvae.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Monitoring of urine trans, trans-muconic acid level among smokers and non-smokers.

Smoking has contributed to various neurological, cardiovascular, and pulmonary diseases. According to carcinogens found in cigarette smog, benzene is one of the important carcinogenic compounds. The urinary trans, trans-muconic acid (ttMA) levels among a sample of 10 Thai smokers and 35 Thai non-smokers were investigated, compared and reported. The average urinary ttMA level in smokers and non-smokers were 2.19 +/- 2.32 and 0.24 +/- 0.33 mg/gCr, respectively. A significant higher urinary ttMA level among the smokers was observed (P < 0.05). Since the higher urinary ttMA indicates the higher occult risk for cancer, the usage of urinary ttMA is recommended as a monitoring tool to follow up benzene exposure in the smokers.

Benzene↗
PubMed2004

Causative agents of liver abscess in Thai hepatitis B carriers.

Liver abscess and hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection are two significant tropical gastrointestinal disorders. The concurrence between these two disorders yields poor prognosis, which then often leads to the need for intensive care. The aim of this study was to investigate the causal pathogens of liver abscess in HBV carriers. This retrospective case review was conducted on 35 Thai hospitalized HBV carriers who had diagnosis of liver abscess. A high rate of amoebic liver abscess in this series (37.1%) was demonstrated; Gram-negative aerobes were the major abscess pathogens. The causative pathogens of HBV carriers were similar to those in the overall patient population with abscess. The treatment plan for liver abscess in the general population can also be applied to HBV carriers.

AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections↗
PubMed2004

Urine phenol and myeloperoxidase index: an observation in benzene exposed subjects.

Benzene is a colorless poisonous liquid with a sweet odor. At present, it is documented as a known inducer of leukemia. Potential metabolic mechanisms underlying the hemopoietic toxicity of benzene include bioactivation of phenolic metabolites of benzene by myeloperoxidases in bone marrow, which results in hydroquinolone, a major leukemogen. There is no previous correlative study between the level of phenol, urine benzene metabolite, and the myeloperoxidase index (MPXI). Here, the correlation between the urine phenol and MPXI were studied in 24 Thai subjects occupationally exposed to benzene. Of interest, the regression analysis show no significant correlation between urine phenol level and MPXI (r = -0.05, P = 0.81).

Benzene↗
PubMed2004

The urine trans, trans muconic acid biomarker and platelet count in a sample of subjects with benzene exposure.

Benzene exposure is of particular concern because of ongoing exposure to thousands of workers. Prolonged exposure can cause chronic toxicity, especially hematologic disorders. The effects of benzene on red blood cells and white blood cells have been clearly proposed; however, the effect of benzene on platelets has not been studied. The correlation between the level of trans, trans muconic acid (ttMA), a urine metabolite of benzene, and the platelet count of subjects occupationally exposed to benzene was studied. Thirty volunteers who were occupationally exposed to benzene were investigated for both urine ttMA levels and platelet parameters. According to the regression analysis, no significant correlation existed between urine ttMA level and any platelet parameters (p > 0.05). However, although there is no statistical significance, the platelet count and PCT decreased while the urine ttMA increased. In addition, using the upper normal limit ttMA level as the cutoff level, the statistically significant lower platelet count and PCT was observed in the subjects with urine ttMA higher than upper normal limit. This report is the first world report on this topic and the results from this study can provide good basic data for further understanding the effect of benzene exposure on the platelet.

Benzene↗
PubMed2004

Blood carboxyhemoglobin level and platelets: a correlation study.

The high level of air pollution is an important problem. One of these major pollutants is carbon monoxide (CO), which can block normal physiology. Hematologic alteration is another important side effect of exposure to CO. Adverse effects on red blood cells, formation of nonfunctional hemoglobin called carboxyhemoglobin (COHb), have been well documented. The effect of CO on platelets is not well documented. Therefore, the correlation between the level of blood COHb and the platelet count was evaluated in 28 subjects exposed to CO. There is no statistical significance; however, decreased platelet count, platelet distribution width, and plateletcrit, and an increase in blood COHb were observed.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Effect of smoking on platelet count and platelet parameters: an observation.

Arterial thrombosis occurs with increased frequency in cigarette smokers. It is believed that disturbance of platelet function, especially aggregation, is the essential mechanism responsible for this pathology. However, the effect of smoking on the quantity of platelets might be another contributing factor. The effect of smoking on platelet count is still controversial. We performed a cross section-al study to compare the platelet count and platelet parameters in Thai police who are smokers and non-smokers. A total of 30 Thai police in Bangkok were included in this study. Of the 30 police, there are 5 non-smokers and 25 smokers. The platelet counts and platelet parameters of the subjects were not significantly different between smokers and non-smokers.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Pineapple juice for digestion of swamp eel viscera for harvesting infective-stage larva of Gnathostoma spp.

Third-stage larvae were used as antigen in the diagnosis of gnathostomiasis in Western blot analysis. Normally, the larvae were obtained from digestion of eel's liver (Fluta alba) by the enzyme pepsin. We used pineapple juice (Ananus comosus) instead of enzyme pepsin in harvesting Gnathostoma spinigerum third-stage larvae. The difference in recovered larvae numbers, between pineapple juice and pepsin, were not statistically significantly different (p>0.05). The larvae from pepsin and pineapple juice digestion were cultivated on BME for 7 days; the survival rates were not significantly different (p>0.05). Thus, pineapple juice is another enzyme of choice for recovering Gnathostoma spinigerum third-stage larvae.

Ananas↗