Effects of gamma irradiation dose and short-term storage on phytochemicals,antioxidants, and textural properties of boiled ‘Tainan 9’ peanuts

Boiled peanuts are preferable as a ready-to-eat healthy snack; however, gamma irradiation as a postharvest treatment of raw peanuts may induce unfavourable food components. Hence, the phytochemical, antioxidant, and the texture of boiled ‘Tainan 9’ peanuts pretreated with gamma irradiation (0, 2.5, 5, and 10 kGy) and stored at 29 ± 2 °C for up to 180 days were investigated. Both gamma irradiation and storage time contributed to testa darkening in raw peanuts. In boiled irradiated products, irradiation doses and storage time affected the moisture content (MC), total proteins, total oil, total soluble sugars, and antioxidant capacity (P ≤ 0.05). Total phenolic and flavonoid contents showed an increase at days 90 and decreased at days 180 across all treatments. A positive correlation was observed among ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), total phenolics, and total flavonoids. Gamma irradiation at 10 kGy led to increase of peroxide value (PV) (P ≤ 0.05), but malondialdehyde (MDA) content was unaffected. Textural properties of boiled irradiated peanuts were soft. As a result, gamma irradiation at 5 kGy is recommended for postharvest treatment of raw peanuts with subsequent storage up to 180 days to obtain the eating quality of boiled peanuts with good phytochemicals and antioxidant properties, which is a challenge for food industry.     

Modifiers and Amplifiers of High and low Flows on the Ping River in Northern Thailand (1921–2009): The Roles of Climatic Events and Anthropogenic Activity

We analyse an 89-year streamflow record (1921?C2009) from the Upper Ping River in northern Thailand to determine if anomalous flows have increased over time (Trenberth, Clim Res 47:123?C138, 1999; Trenberth, Clim Chang 42:327?C339, 2011). We also relate the temporal behavior of high and low flows to climatic phenomena and anthropogenic activities. Peak flows have not increased significantly since 1921. However, minimum flows showed a very significant downward trend over the study period (???=?0.01). Annual and wet season discharge show significant downward trends (???=?0.05). All flow variables appear to be more variable now than 90?years ago especially annual peak flows. Both annual peak and minimum flows are correlated with annual and wet season rainfall totals. Minimum flow is also sensitive to the length of the monsoon season and number of rainy days in the previous monsoon season. Peak flow activity is driven predominantly by climate phenomena, such as tropical storm activity and monsoon anomalies, but the relationship between peak flows and ENSO phenomena is unclear. In general, annual discharge variables did not correspond unequivocally with El Nin? or La Nin? events. Minimum flows show a major decline from the mid-1950s in line with major anthropogenic changes in the catchment. The plausible intensification of the hydrological cycle that may accompany global warming is of concern because of the potential to affect tropical storm activity and monsoon anomalies, phenomena that are linked with very high flows in this river system. The obvious effect of human activities such as reservoir management on low flows calls for careful management to prevent droughts in the future.     

Alcohol, illicit and non-illicit psychoactive drug use and road traffic injury in Thailand: A case-control study

The objective of this study was to determine the relationship between alcohol use, psychoactive drug use and road traffic injury (RTI). A case-control study was conducted among drivers in Bangkok, Thailand. Two hundred cases and 849 controls were enrolled between February and November 2006. Cases who sustained a RTI were matched with four controls recruited from petrol stations within a 1-km radius of the reported crash site of the case.A positive alcohol breath test (≥50 mg/dl), and positive tests for the presence of illicit (amphetamine, cocaine, marijuana) and non-illicit psychoactive drugs (antihistamine, benzodiazepine, antidepressants), using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) were documented as primary measures.There were significantly higher odds of an alcohol breath test ≥50 mg/dl (adjusted odds ratio (OR) 63.6 (95% CI: 25.5-158.9)), illicit psychoactive drugs (adjusted OR 3.4 (95% CI: 1.7-6.6)) and non-illicit psychoactive drug (adjusted OR 3.1 (95% CI: 1.5-6.3)) among cases than controls.Even though driving under the influence of psychoactive drugs has been significantly linked to RTI, its contribution to road safety is much lower than driving under the influence of alcohol. With limited resources, the priority for RTI prevention should be given to control of driving under the influence of alcohol.     

Prevalence of psychoactive drug use among drivers in Thailand: A roadside survey

The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of psychoactive drug and alcohol use among general drivers and predictors of the drug use in Thailand. One thousand six hundred and thirty-five motor vehicle drivers were randomly selected from five geographical regions of Thailand between December 2005 and May 2006.The prevalence of psychoactive drugs was determined using urine tests by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS).Among 1635 drivers, 5.5% were tested positive for breath alcohol with 2% having a level exceeding the legal limit (>50 mg%). Psychoactive drug was presented in 158 (9.7%) urine samples for drug analysis. The top 3 most frequently detected licit drugs were antihistamines (2.0%), sedative cough suppressant (0.7%) and benzodiazepines (0.2%). Illicit drugs detected included amphetamine (1.8%), cannabis (1.1%), mitragynine (Kratom) (0.9%) and morphine (0.1%). Only type of driver (commercial/non-commercial) was a significant predictor with psychoactive drug use.The prevalence of psychoactive drug use among drivers not involved in road crashes in Thailand was not as low as an earlier study in Europe using objective measurements, particularly among commercial drivers. However, for illicit drugs, the prevalence detected in this study was lower than those of earlier studies from high-income countries.     

Validation of Promoters and Codon Optimization on CRISPR/Cas9-Engineered Jurkat Cells Stably Expressing αRep4E3 for Interfering with HIV-1 Replication

Persistent and efficient therapeutic protein expression in the specific target cell is a significant concern in gene therapy. The controllable integration site, suitable promoter, and proper codon usage influence the effectiveness of the therapeutic outcome. Previously, we developed a non-immunoglobulin scaffold, alpha repeat protein (αRep4E3), as an HIV-1 RNA packaging interference system in SupT1 cells using the lentiviral gene transfer. Although the success of anti-HIV-1 activity was evidenced, the integration site is uncontrollable and may not be practical for clinical translation. In this study, we use the CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing technology to precisely knock-in αRep4E3 genes into the adeno-associated virus integration site 1 (AAVS1) safe harbor locus of the target cells. We compare the αRep4E3 expression under the regulation of three different promoters, including cytomegalovirus (CMV), human elongation factor-1 alpha (EF1α), and ubiquitin C (UbC) promoters with and without codon optimization in HEK293T cells. The results demonstrated that the EF1α promoter with codon-optimized αRep4E3mCherry showed higher protein expression than other promoters with non-optimized codons. We then performed a proof-of-concept study by knocking in the αRep4E3mCherry gene at the AAVS1 locus of the Jurkat cells. The results showed that the αRep4E3mCherry-expressing Jurkat cells exhibited anti-HIV-1 activities against HIV-1NL4-3 strain as evidenced by decreased capsid (p24) protein levels and viral genome copies as compared to the untransfected Jurkat control cells. Altogether, our study demonstrates that the αRep4E3 could interfere with the viral RNA packaging and suggests that the αRep4E3 scaffold protein could be a promising anti-viral molecule that offers a functional cure for people living with HIV-1.