Department of Tropical Nutrition-thailand

Department of Tropical Nutrition and Food Science

7 3Faculty of Tropical Medicine Annual Report 1998

Office Telephone: 248 5748, 248 5749;246 0321, 246 9000-13, 246 0056, 246 0058,246 1272-73, 246 1278 ext. 581-585, 268Fax: 248 5748, 248 5749, 246 8340

ProfessorPanata Migasena M.D., D.T.M.&H., Ph.D(Tropical Medicine)

F.R.C.P. (T)Praneet Pongpaew B.Sc.(Chemistry), M.Sc.(Biochemistry),

M.S.(Nutrition)e-mail : [email protected]

Associate ProfessorNiyomsri Vudhivai B.Sc.(Pharmacy), M.Sc.(Tropical Medicine)Venus Supawan B.Sc.(Medical Technology), M.T.(ASCP)

e-mail : [email protected] Tungtrongchitr B.Sc.(Medical Technology),

M.Sc.(Tropical Medicine), Ph.D.(Tropical Medicine)e-mail : [email protected]

Assistant ProfessorTalabporn Harnroongroj B.Sc.(Medical Technology),

M.Sc. (Tropical Medicine), Dr. oec. troph.(Nutrition and Food Sciences)e-mail : [email protected]

Kanjana Hongtong B.Sc.(Health. Ed.), D.A.Nutrition,M.Sc. (Tropical Medicine)e-mail : [email protected]

Songsak Petmitr B.Ed.(Secondary School), M.S.(Chemistry Ed.),Ph.D.(Biochemistry)e-mail : [email protected]

LecturerKarunee Kwanbunjan B.Sc.(Biology), M.Sc.(Tropical Medicine)

Dr. oec. troph. (Nutrition and Food Sciences)e-mail : [email protected]

ScientistSeevika Vorasanta B.Sc.(Nutrition), M.C.H.(Nutrition)Pornrutsami Jintaridhi B.Sc. (Nursing), M.Sc. (Nutrition)

e-mail : [email protected]

ResearcherAnong Kitjaroentham B.Sc. (Medical Technology),

M.Sc. (Tropical Medicine)e-mail : [email protected]

Medical Science AssociateYaovamarn Chantaranipapong Cert. in Chemical Laboratory

AssistantWichien Jomthong Cert. in Medical Laboratory Technician

General Affair OfficerSaijai Paisiri B.A. (General Management)

DEPARTMENT OF TROPICAL NUTRITION AND FOOD SCIENCEDEPARTMENT OF TROPICAL NUTRITION AND FOOD SCIENCE

HeadAssoc.Prof. Supranee Changbumrung

B.Sc.(Pharmacy), M.Sc.(Tropical Medicine),Dr.agr. (Nutrition and Food Sciences)Tel. 246-0321, 246-9100-13 Ext. 581248-5749 Fax: 248-5749e-mail : [email protected], [email protected]


Faculty of Tropical Medicine Annual Report 19987 4

CURRENT RESEARCH ACTIVITIES

Operational and multidisciplinary research projects:1. Food and health relationship in Asian population2. Dietary pattern, lifestyle and nutritional status of health science university students in Bangkok3. Investigation of nutritional, health and dietary patterns of Thai elderly4. Serum leptin concentration in obese subjects5. Micronutrients and oxidative stress in obese subjects

Basic science research projects1. Identification of gene mutation in lung cancer cells in Thai patients2. Molecular Biology of carcinogenesis in lung cancer3. Development of food and medicinal plant

Second International Short Training Course Food Safety and Food Control 199814-25 September 1998

28 Participants

International Workshop on The role of University/Ministry of Public Health/SEAMEOTROPMED/WHO/ICD/etc. in the course structure of Master Degree Program

in Food Safety and Food Control22-23 September 1998

25 Participants

TRAINING COURSES

WORKSHOP



ABSTRACTS

RIBOFLAVIN AND NUTRITIONAL STATUS OF THAI ROAD SWEEPERS IN BANGKOK

Niyomsri Vudhivai1, Praneet Pongpaew1,Rungsunn Tungtrongchitr1,Benjaluck Phonrat2,Vicha Horsawat1, Frank Peter Schelp3

1Department of Tropical Nutrition and Food Science, Faculty of TropicalMedicine, Mahidol University, 420/6 Rajvithi road, Rajthevee,Bangkok 10400, Thailand

2Department of Clinical Tropical Medicine, Faculty of Tropical Medicine,Mahidol University, 420/6 Rajvithi road, Rajthevee, Bangkok 10400,Thailand

3Department of Epidemiology, Institute of Social Medicine, Faculty ofMedicine, Free University, Berlin, Germany

Anthropometric measurements, haematologicalparameters and riboflavin status of Thai roadsweepers in Bangkok were determined. According toa physical check-up and X-rays taken, all individuals

investigated were apparently healthy. The age of thestudy group varied between 20 and 59 years. Themedian for the males was 44 years and for the females37 years. Over- and undernutrition were found amongthose investigated. 25.9% (BMI ≤ 20.1) of the malesand 1.8% (BMI ≤18.7) of the females were under-nourished. 31.5 % of the males and 43.8 % of thefemales were overnourished (BMI ≥ 25.0). 13.0% ofthe males and 10.7% of the females had ∝EGR ≥1.30,or vitamin B2 insufficiency.

Published in : Intern Med 1997;13:77-80.

EVALUATION AND MONITORING OF IODINE DEFICIENCY DISORDERS (IDD)IN SCHOOL CHILDREN IN NORTHEAST, THAILAND

Praneet Pongpaew1, Rungsunn Tungtrongchitr1,Venus Supawan1, Niyomsri Vudhivai1,Pattara Sanchaisuriya2, Chalor Intarakhao3,Udomsak Mahaweerawat3, Benjaluck Phonrat1, Pisit Jotking3,Wongsa Kongdee4, Frank Peter Schelp5,Sastri Saowakhontha6

1Department of Tropical Nutrition and Food Science,Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University

2Department of Nutrition, Faculty of Public Health, Khon Kaen University3Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine,Khon Kaen University

4Department of Public Health Administration, Faculty of Public Health,Khon Kaen University

5Department of Epidemiology, Institute of Social Medicine,Free University Berlin, Germany.

6Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Khon Kaen University

In using an operational research approach thepossibility of improving iodine deficiency disorder(IDD) in school children at Khon Kaen province wasinvestigated during the period of one year. Fourschools in Pupaman and Srichompu districts, namelyBan Khoa Wong, Na Fai Witaya, Ban Pa Num Tiengand Ban Non Khom school were selected for this study.Ban Non Khom school served as control. Differentmeans were used for iodine fortification. Iodinatedsalt was used for the children of the Ban Khoa Wongschool, in Na Fai Witaya school iodinated water andiodinated fish sauce were provided for the children inBan Pa Num Tieng school. Iodinated salt, water andfish sauce was provided through the help of the schoolteachers under the supervision and the advice fromthe team of investigators. Urine iodine excretion,

palpation of the thyroid gland and the thyroidhormones T4, T3 and TSH were selected formonitoring and evaluating the outcome of the study.

The proportion of children with low urineiodine excretion, indicated by a cut-off point suggestedby the WHO/ICCIDD/UNICEF working group,decreased during the course of the project in all schoolsreceiving iodine supplementation as well as in thecontrol school. However the decrease was less in thecontrol school in comparison with the implementa-tion schools. Also the goitre rate decreased in allschools under investigation. The decrease of thegoitre rate for the children of the control schoolmight be due to the activities of a village healthvolunteer in a nearby village who was using iodinatedsalt for IDD control according to the presentlyongoing national programme initiated by the Minis-try of Public Health. No significant difference in thelevel of thyroid hormones were detected before andat the end of the supplementation for theexperimental schools as well as for the control school.

The results from the determination of thyroidhormones serum levels could not be used forassessing the outcome of the project. The measuringof urinary iodine excretion might be helpful inmonitoring the iodine intake during the interventionphase. Long term effects of iodine fortification couldbe seen best by the declining proportion of childrenwith goitre. An observation of one year might not be



enough to clearly see the outcome of the project. Theother possible contributing errors in this study is dueto intra observer variation of the palpation techniquewhen the sample size is not big enough. Goitrogensin this area might be another risk factor for the highprevalence rate of the goitre. Further study in thisfield should be encouraged.

The results of the study indicate that iodinefortification of salt and fish sauce is more effective thanfortification of drinking water. Due to the localpreference to add fish sauce (nam pla) instead of saltto almost all dishes, nam pla proved to be the best

vehicle for iodine fortification. The success of theproject depended heavily on the understanding andco-operation of the school teachers and the schoolchildren.

Major constraints in conducting this project hadbeen the insufficient distribution of iodinated salt andpotassium iodide solution for fortifying drinkingwater and the inconsistency of iodide concentrationin salt after fortification.

Published in : Asia Pacific J Clin Nutr 1998;7:131-7.

EFFECTS OF STORAGE CONDITIONS ON THE STABILITY OF IODINE IN IODIZED SALT,FISH SAUCE AND DRINKING WATER

Rungsunn Tungtrongchitr1, Praneet Pongpaew1,Venus Supawan1, Yaowaman Chantaranipapong1,Udomsak Mahaweerawat2, Benjaluck Phonrat3,Chalor Intarakhao2, Sastri Saowakhontha4, Frank Peter Schelp5

1Department of Tropical Nutrition and Food Science, Faculty ofTropical Medicine, Mahidol Uiversity, 420/6 Rajvithi road, Rajthevee,Bangkok 10400, Thailand

2Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Khon Kaen University3Department of Clinical Tropical Medicine, Faculty of Tropical Medicine,Mahidol University, 420/6 Rajvithi road, Rajthevee, Bangkok 10400,Thailand

4Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Khon Kaen University5Department of Epidemiology, Institute of Social Medicine,Free University, Berlin, Germany

Stability of iodine content in iodized salt,

iodinated fish sauce, and iodinated drinking water wastested under different storage conditions i.e., roomtemperature, 25°C and 37°C, light exposure, and du-ration of storage. Light exposure, temperature andduration of storage showed direct effect on theiodine concentration in fish sauce and drinking waterbut do not effect the iodine content in salt. However,multiple factor regression analysis revealed that onlytime and temperature were related to iodine stabilityin salt and drinking water

Published in : Food 1998;28:31-41.

NUTRITIONAL STATUS OF SCHOOL CHILDREN IN AN ENDEMIC AREA OF IODINEDEFICIENCY DISORDERS (IDD) AFTER ONE YEAR OF IODINE SUPPLEMENTATION

Praneet Pongpaew1, Rungsunn Tungtrongchitr1,Benjaluck Phonrat2, Venus Supawan1, Frank Peter Schelp3,Chalor Intarakhao4, Udomsak Mahaweerawat4,Sastri Saowakontha5

1Department of Tropical Nutrition and Food Science, Faculty ofTropical Medicine, Mahidol University, 420/6 Rajvithi Road, Rajthevee,Bangkok 10400, Thailand

2Department of Clinical Tropical Medicine, Faculty of Tropical Medicine,Mahidol University, 420/6 Rajvithi Road, Rajthevee, Bangkok 10400,Thailand

3Department of Epidemiology, Institute of Social Medicine,Free University, 12203 Berlin, Germany

4Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine,Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen 40002, Thailand

5Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Khon Kaen University,Khon Kaen 40002, Thailand

To improve the health and nutritional status ofschool children in an area of iodine deficiencydisorders (IDD) by means of different iodinefortifications in salt, fish sauce and drinking water,anthropometric assessment for nutritional measure-

ment, including hematological status, were performed.There was a significant difference in the weight andheight of the children from the four schools investi-gated, before and after supplementation in each school.The prevalence of anemia, (as indicated byhematological measurement) and iodine deficiency (asindicated by urinary iodine concentration in thechildren from the four schools) were assessed andcompared before and after iodine supplementation; adecrease in prevalence was found in all schoolchildren. However, serum ferritin did not changebefore and after supplementation in all schoolchildren.

Published in : Southeast Asian J Trop Med Public

Health 1998;29:50-7.



KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE AND PRACTICES TOWARDS AIDSOF RURAL POPULATION IN NORTHEAST THAILAND

Udomsak Mahaweerawat1, Chalor Intarakhao1,Praneet Pongpaew2, Rungsunn Tungtrongchitr2,Anong Kitjaroentham2, Benjaluck Phonrat3,Sastri Saowakontha4, Frank Peter Schelp5

1Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine,Khon Kaen University

2Department of Tropical Nutrition and Food Science, Faculty ofTropical Medicine, Mahidol University, 420/6 Rajvithi Road,Rajthevee, Bangkok 10400, Thailand

3Department of Clinical Tropical Medicine, Faculty ofTropical Medicine, Mahidol University, 420/6 Rajvithi road,Rajthevee, Bangkok 10400, Thailand


Knowledge, attitude and practices of villagers inrelation to AIDS and HIV infection were assessed in3 districts of Khon Kaen province. By cluster randomsampling of 350 villagers (166 males, 15 to 72 yearsold and 184 females, 15 to 54 years of age) from 10villages had been selected for this study. The villagers

were asked by using a pre-prepared questionnaire bytrained interviewers. The majority of them (95% C.I.:86.9 to 91.7%) did know very well about the route ofinfection for HIV. However as far as the symptoms ofAIDS had been concerned, they were less wellinformed (34.8%). Over 30% (32.6%) of villagers hadthe correct attitude towards prevention of HIVinfection and almost 43% did not discriminate patientssuffering from AIDS. From all villagers questionedonly 36% confessed that they abstained from riskybehaviors such as visiting prostitutes, havingunprotected sex and drug injections. Theinformation gained through this study might be usedfor further planning of HIV and AIDS controlmeasures.

Published in : Thai Aids J 1998 (in press).

MANAGEMENT OF IODINE FORTIFICATION AND IODINATED SALT DISTRIBUTIONIN ENDEMIC AREA OF IODINE DEFICIENCY DISORDERS IN NORTHEAST THAILAND

Praneet Pongpaew1, Rungsunn Tungtrongchitr1,Benjaluck Phonrat2, Chalor Intarakhao3,Udomsak Mahaweerawat3, Yaowamarn Chantaranipapong1,Venus Supawan1, Niyomsri Vudhivai1, Siriwan Tribunyatkul1,Sastri Saowakhontha3, Frank Peter Schelp5

1Department of Tropical Nutrition and Food Science, Faculty ofTropical Medicine, Mahidol University, 420/6 Rajvithi Road,Rajthevee, Bangkok 10400, Thailand

2Department of Clinical Tropical Medicine, Faculty of Tropical Medicine,Mahidol University, 420/6 Rajvithi road, Rajthevee, Bangkok 10400,

Thailand3Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Khon KaenUniversity


The management of iodine fortifications andiodinated salt distribution on village, subdistrict anddistricts level in Khon Kaen province, northeastThailand where the prevalence of iodine deficiencydisorders is high, were investigated. 10 villages from3 districts were selected at random. The informationabout the production, distribution and use ofiodinated salt was collected from villagers, villagefoodstore, provincial foodstore, subdistrict anddistrict health officers, provincial health officer, healthpromotion center including producers through aprepared questionnaire. Proper knowledge andattitude towards using iodized salt of villagers wasfound to be the range of 63.8-81.7%. The price of

salt is not the important factors for purchasing. About48.8-60.0% of all villagers investigated did not useiodized salt. They want to buy salt from village healthvolunteer and health officers. The major constraintsfor iodized salt preparation is an inadequate andirregular supply of potassium iodate. The shortage ofiodized salt supplied to the village foodstore is also aproblem. The middleman preferred to sell rock saltbecause they can make more profit. At the subdistrict/district level, the supply of potassuium iodate fromthe health promotion center is not enough forproducing iodized salt. In addition, support andsupervision from central organizations is inefficient,amount other reason because the number of manpowers is limited. At the provincial and healthpromotion center, the revolving fund and the stockof iodized salt are inadequate. Iodized salt producedby large firm are in good quality whereas small saltproducer on a cottage scale supplied low quality saltto a rather high price. Production and distribution ofiodized salt should be promoted and monitoredbetter than at present in order to reach thepopulation at village level.

Published in : J Public Health 1998 (in press).



SEROLOGICAL AUTOANTIBODIES CHARACTERISTICS IN SYSTEMIC LUPUSERYTHEMATOSUS (SLE) PATIENTS IN INSTITUTE OF DERMATOLOGY, BANGKOK

Somchai Chanjanakijskul1, Rungsunn Tungtrongchitr2,Praneet Pongpaew2

1Section of Immunology, Institute of Dermatology, Ministry ofPublic Health, 420/7 Rajvithi road, Rajthevee, Bangkok 10400.

2Department of Tropical Nutrition and Food Science, Faculty ofTropical Medicine, Mahidol University, 420/6 Rajvithi road,Rajthevee, Bangkok 10400

One hundred systemic lupus erythematosus(SLE) patients from Institute of Dermatology,Bangkok were studied for serological autoantibodiescharacteristics namely antinuclear antibodies (ANA),anti Sm, anti nRNP, anti nDNA, Rheumatoid factor(Rh factor), FTA-Abs and RPR. These patients agedbetween 10 to 71 years old in both sexes. PositiveANA, anti nDNA and anti Sm, the important

NUTRITIONAL STATUS AND SERUM LIPIDS OF A RURAL POPULATIONIN NORTHEAST THAILAND - AN EXAMPLE OF HEALTH TRANSITION

Kamron Chaisir1, Praneet Pongpaew2,Rungsunn Tungtrongchitr2, Benjaluck Phonrat2, Sirikul Kulleap1,Pannavadee Sutthiwong1, Chalor Intarakhao3,Udomsak Mahaweerawat3, Wongsa Khongdee3,Pattara Sanchaisuriya3, Sastri Saowakontha3, Alfred Merkle4,Frank Peter Schelp51Khon Kaen Provincial Health Office, Thailand2Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand3Khon Kaen University, Thailand4Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTS),Eschborn, Germany

5Institute of Social Medicine and Medical Psychology, Free UniversityBerlin, Germany

An investigation was undertaken in NortheastThailand, a country undergoing rapid healthtransition, to find out whether there is a likelihoodthat the nutritional and lipid pattern of an adultpopulation in Northeast Thailand is related tocoronary heart disease in the same way as in westerncountries. In a cross-sectional study, the body massindex (BMI) and the waist-hip ratio as well as theimportant plasma lipids were determined. Thenutritional status and the lipid profile of the predomi-nantly middle-aged population is characterised by agenerally favourable nutritional status and lipidconcentrations, where the distribution, indicated by

markers for SLE were found to be 79, 13 and 13percent respectively. The others non-specifics antibodyfor SLE: anti nRNP, Rh factor, FTA-Abs, RPR werefound to be positive 21.0, 7.0, 3.0 and 7.0 percentrespectively. In cases of SLE patients with positiveANA, the percentage of anti nRNP, anti Sm and antinDNA were found to be 32.8, 20.3 and 20.3 percentrespectively. No other autoantibodies were found inSLE patients with the negative ANA in this study.Therefore, ANA might be the most importantautoantibody for screening in SLE patients.

Published in : Bull Med Tech Phy Ther 1998 (in press).

the medians, of the relevant variables over the totalpopulation is concerned. A rather high proportion ofindividuals was found to be overnourished and to havehigh triglyceride levels. Individuals with hightriglyceride levels run a risk of developing coronaryheart disease only when the LDL-HDL fraction isabove 5. Only 3% of the total population investigatedhad a LDL-HDL ratio above that value. Since hyper-triglyceridaemia is also linked to the insulin resistantsyndrome, it is concluded that, if the mortality ofcoronary heart disease increases in future, then thismust be accounted probably more to the after-effectsof the insulin-resistant syndrome than to the directeffect of an atherogenic lipid pattern. This view issupported by a high prevalence of impaired glucosetolerance (IGT) and non-insulin dependent diabetesmellitus (NIDDM) in the population under survey.Preventive measures in the area should concentrateamong others on reducing overnutrition, especiallyamong women, and increasing physical activity andscreening for NIDDM.

Published in : Internat J Vit Nutr Res 1998;68:196-202.



ALPHA1-ANTITRYPSIN PHENOTYPE OF CHILDREN WITH LIVER DISEASES IN THAILAND

Voranush Chongsrisawat1, Podchanad Jantaradsamee1,Boosba Vivatvakin1, Praneet Pongpaew2, Yong Poovorawan1

1Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn Universityand Hospital, Bangkok 10330, Thailand

2Department of Tropical Nutrition and Food Science, Faculty of TropicalMedicine, Mahidol University, Bangkok 10400, Thailand

Alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency (PiZZ) constitutesnot only the most common hereditary cause of liverdiseases, but also of the most prevalent metabolicdiseases in need of liver transplantation. It is acodominantly inherited disorder which predisposes tochronic liver disease, usually beginning in early infancy.The purpose of the present study has been to investi-gate α1-antitrypsin phenotype in pediatric patientswith various liver diseases. Phenotypic identificationof α1-antitrypsin variants has been carried out in 69children with various liver diseases and 100 healthy

CANCER GENES AND CHOLANGIOCARCINOMA

Songsak Petmitr

Department of Tropical Nutrition and Food Science, Faculty ofTropical Medicine, Mahidol University , Rajvithi Road,Bangkok 10400, Thailand.

Genes involved in cancer development includeoncogenes and tumor suppressor genes. Ras oncogeneand mutation in p53 tumor suppressor gene arscommonly found in many types of cancer. In Thai

patients with cholangiocarcinoma ras oncogenesoccur less frequently than in other ethnic groups andfurthermore, p53 mutations also occur with lowerincidence when compared with Japanese subjects. Itis unclear at this time the basis for these differences.


Health 1997;28 (supplement 1): 80-4.

K-ras ONCOGENE AND P53 GENE MUTATIONS IN CHOLANGIOCARCINOMAFROM THAI PATIENTS

Songsak Petmitr1 , Somchai Pinlaor1, Ampai Thousungnoen1,Anant Koralak2, Panata Migasena1

1Department of Tropical Nutrition and Food Science, Faculty ofTropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Rajvithi Road,Bangkok 10400, Thailand.

2Pathology Division, National Cancer Institute, Rama VI Road,Bangkok 10400, Thailand.

Paraffin embedded tissues from twenty Thaipatients with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinomas werestudied for K-ras gene mutations at codon 12, 13 and61 and for p53 gene mutations in exon 5 to 8 usingpolymerase chain reaction and thermal cycle

controls using isoelectric focusing on polyacrylamidegel slabs. PiMM represents the most commonphenotype detected in both groups (92% in the groupwith liver diseases and 88% in normal controls). Wecould detect PiZZ in only one healthy child but innone of those with liver diseases. Consequently α1-antitrypsin deficiency does not appear to be acommon cause for liver disease among children inThailand. Further studies are necessary to elucidatethe frequency of various α1-antitrypsin variants andthe clinical relevance with respect to liver diseases inThailand.

Published in : Asian Pacific J Allerg Immunol

1998;16:27-30.

sequencing. Results showed that point mutations atthese regions in K-ras oncogene were not present inall the samples. One case harboured a p53 genemutation in codon 282 in exon 8, CGG (arginine) toTGG (tryptophane), but the mutation was not foundin other patient’s tissues with similar histologicalfeatures .


Health 1998; 29: 71-5.



DETECTION OF K-ras GENE MUTATIONS IN LUNG CANCER BY PCR -PIRA, DOT-BLOTHYBRIDIZATION AND DIRECT SEQUENCING

Songsak Petmitr1, Duangdao Wongsommart1, Pantap Sutinont2,Anant Karalak3, Panata Migasena1

1Department of Tropical Nutrition and Food Science, Faculty ofTropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Bangkok 10400,

2Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine,Siriraj Hospital,Mahidol University, Bangkok 10700,

3Pathology Division, National Cancer Institute, Bangkok 10400,Thailand.

The K-ras gene mutations at codon 12 have beenanalyzed in DNA extracted from paraffin embeddedlung cancer tissue from 50 patients. K-ras gene exonI was amplified by polymerase chain reaction and thepoint mutation at codon 12 was determined byprimer-introduced restriction analysis (PIRA) and bymutant allele specific oligonucleotide (MASO) probehybridization. Point mutation at codon 12 wasdetected in 14 cases (28%) by PCR-PIRA and 5 cases(10%) by MASO probe hybridization. The nucleotidechange in these PCR products were then identifiedby direct sequencing. Eleven cases (22%) harbouredthe following mutations from the normal(GGT,glycine): TGT (cysteine) 5 cases, GTT (valine)3 cases, GCT (alanine) 2 cases, and GAT (aspartic

p53 GENE MUTATIONS IN NON-SMALL CELL LUNG CANCER FROM THAI PATIENTS

Songsak Petmitr1, Siriwan Makthiengtrong1, Pantap Sutinont2,Panata Migasena1

1Department of Tropical Nutrition and Food Science, Faculty ofTropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Rajvithi Road,Bangkok 10400, Thailand.

2Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Siriraj Hospital,Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand.

Paraffin embedded tissues from twenty-two Thaipatients with non-small cell lung cancer were studiedfor p53 gene mutations in exon 5 to 8 using poly-merase chain reaction and thermal cycle sequencing.Results showed that point mutations in this region

acid) one case. The mutation in both cancerous andits normal counterpart tissue was found in onepositive case (TGT,cysteine). Among the 17 cases, 3(18 %) patients with squamous cell carcinoma and 8out of 21 (38%) with adenocarcinoma exhibited thepoint mutation. No such mutations were found in 11patients with the other histological types (5 cases ofgiant cell carcinomas, 2 carcinoid tumors, 2bronchioalvelars , 2 undifferentiated carcinomas andone large cell carcinoma). In addition, pointmutations were found in 28 % of patients ( 9 out of32 cases) who had a past history of tobacco smokingand only in 11 % of non-smokers ( 2 out of 18 cases).

Acknowledgement : This work was supported by China

Medical Board of New York, Inc.(USA).

Presented at : International Symposium Workshop on

Epidemiology and Prevention of Cancer, Bangkok,

November 2-5, 1998.

of p53 gene were present in 3 cases. One harbouredthe base change from GAC to AAC at codon 281,changing amino acid from aspartate to asparagine,whilst the other two cases were transversion of AAA(lysine) to ACA (threonine) at codon 292. All sub-jects with p53 mutation had a past history of tobaccosmoking.

Submitted to J Med Assoc Thai 1998.



GENETIC INSTIBILITY OF MICROSATELLITES IN MOST NON-SMALL CELL LUNGCANCER CAUSED BY TOBACCO SMOKING

Songsak Petmitr1, Sairiporn Nuchfaong1, Panthep Suttinont2

1Departments of Tropical Nutrition and Food Science, Faculty ofTropical Medicine

2Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Siriraj Hospital,Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand

Genetic alterations at 12 dinucleotide repeat locilocated on human chromosomes 2, 3, 12, and 17 havebeen analyzed in non-small cell lung cancer from Thaipatients by PCR-base assay followed by polyacryla-mide gel electrophoresis and autoradiography. Twelveout of 18 cases (67%) harbored the microsatellitealterations. Single locus change was detected in 4tumors, while eight other tumors present two or moreloci changes. Among of the 18 cases, 10 (55%)

patients had a past history of tobacco smoking, ofwhom 9 (90%) were in the group with microsatellitealterations, whereas the non-smokers, 3 (38%) hadthese alterations. The result indicated thatmicrosatellites DNA may use as biomarker for diag-nosis of lung cancer.

Acknowledgement : This work was supported by The

Thailand Research Fund.

Presented at : The 29th World Conference of IUATLD/

UICTMR, Bangkok, November 23-26, 1998.

Documents

Department of Tropical Nutrition-thailand