The prevalence of dyslipidemia in Indonesia continues to increase. Free radicals are increasing the occurrence of diseases, one of them is dyslipidemia. Previous studies showed that antioxidant compounds have strong potential as dyslipidemia drug. The mechanism action of dyslipidemia treatment is inhibiting cholesterol synthesis through the HMG CoA reductase and cholesterol absorption mediated with lipase. This study aimed to analyze the antioxidant activity along with the inhibition of HMG CoA reductase and lipase in a combination of ethanolic extract of Anredera cordifolia leaf (EB) with ethanolic extract of Curcuma xanthorrhiza rhizome (ET) and its single form. The antioxidant activity test was conducted using DPPH method by making serial dilution of samples and ascorbic acid with adding DPPH and methanol as standard. The inhibitory activity of HMG CoA and lipase was conducted by making a series concentration of sample as well as simvastatin as the comparison. The results showed that the highest antioxidant activity is in ET samples IC50 16.21 ± 1.74 µg/mL, but was less potential compared to ascorbic acid IC50 7,63±0,85 µg/mL. The most potential inhibition of HMG CoA and lipase is in ET samples IC50 8.35 ± 0.02 and 22.35 ± 1.26 µg/mL. The combination of ET-EB (1: 1) is better than EB but lower than ET in antioxidant activity as well as the inhibition of HMG CoA reductase and lipase. The result showed a correlation that the higher antioxidant activity, the higher inhibitory of HMG CoA reductase and lipase respectively.

Primaquine is an effective anti-hypnozoite drug for Plasmodium vivax and Plasmodium ovale. However, it can trigger erythrocyte hemolysis in people with glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency. In a previous report from South Central Timor (SCT), Indonesia, we described the prevalence of Vanua Lava, Chatham, and Viangchan variants; in this study, other G6PD variants (Kaiping, Coimbra, Gaohe, Canton, and Mahidol) were subsequently analyzed. For clarity, all of these results are described together. The 381 DNA samples from the previous study during 2013-2014 were analyzed for G6PD variants by using PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP). The prevalence of G6PD deficiency in SCT was 6.3% (24/381 cases), including 4.2% (16/381 cases), 0.5% (2/381 cases), and 1.6% (6/381 cases) for Coimbra, Kaiping, and Vanua Lava variants, respectively. No other variants were found in this population. A significant association was found between ethnicity and the distribution of G6PD Kaiping in female subjects. A positive association was shown between G6PD activity and heterozygous females carrying Coimbra genotype, hemizygous males carrying Vanua Lava, Plasmodium falciparum infection in female subjects, and P. vivax infection in male subjects. Further molecular analysis of heterozygous females, particularly in malaria-endemic areas, is needed for mapping distribution of G6PD deficiency status in Indonesia.

Annona muricata or soursop contains acetogenin which can induce apoptosis in vitro and has cytotoxic effect. The study has been done to examine soursop leaves extract’s potency in vivo especially to induce apoptosis in 7,12-Dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA)-induced Sprague Dawley rats. The induction process was done twice a week for five weeks. The soursop leaves extract were given in three dosages, that are 200, 400, and 800 mg/kgBW for seventeen days after two weeks DMBA induction. Data analysis showed that Annona muricata leaves ethanolic extract could enhance p53 pathway significantly with a dose independent manner in DMBA-induced rats.Keywords: Proapoptosis,  Annona muricata leaves ethanolic extract, hepatoma

Indonesian tobacco is largely used for cigarettes. The Indonesian cigarettes export market is currently affected because many countries have signed the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) which is under the auspices of the World Health Organization (WHO). Exploration of the potential of tobacco as a raw material of a hygienic product is an alternative solution for the sustainability of tobacco cultivation while increasing the empowerment of tobacco farmers. The high nicotine content of tobacco is needed to be used as raw material of a hygienic product. The purpose of this research is to isolate nicotine from tobacco leaves and find out the tobacco with the highest nicotine content. The design of this study is experimental laboratory. Tobacco leaf samples were taken from tobacco producing regions in Indonesia. Nicotine was isolated from tobacco leaves using ethanol 96%. Quantitative analysis of nicotine compound was carried out using Gas Chromatography Mass Spectroscopy (GCMS). The result showed nicotine content in tobacco leaf samples ranged 0.08-2.53% and the highest nicotine content is in tobacco samples from Purwodadi.

Background: Insufficient plasma level of dihydroartemisinin (DHA) can select resistance and will further hinder malaria elimination program. We investigated clinical applicability of a validated liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) assay to quantify plasma concentration of DHA in healthy subjects from a single oral administration of fixed dose combination of Dihydroartemisinin-Piperaquine.Materials and Methods: Micro-elution solid-phase extraction in a 96-well plate format was used to prepare the samples. DHA separation happened in Acquity UPLCTM BEH C18 column (50 × 2.1 mm, 1.7 µm). Mobile phase was a mixture of acetonitrile-ammonium acetate 10 mM pH 3.5 (50:50, v/v) at 0.3 mL/minute flow rate. Waters Acquity UPLC™ H-Class system coupled with triple quadruple mass spectrometry in positive electrospray ionization mode was used for detection. The internal standard was a stable isotope labelled DHA.Results: Calibration curve was linear with a correlation coefficient >0.995 over a concentration range of 1–1,000 ng/mL. Bias and variation for accuracy and precision were in the range of 15% (20% at the lower limit of quantification). Using 5 µL sample, lower limit of quantification was 1 ng. Matrix effect was less than 15%. The method was successfully applied to investigate the pharmacokinetics of DHA from five healthy subjects, although carry over and the role of anticoagulants were not tested.Conclusion: The LC-MS/MS assay for the quantification of plasma DHA was validated for selectivity, linearity, lower limit of quantitation, accuracy, precision, matrix effect and stability. Although clinical applicability was demonstrated, this method was to be improved to address the not-tested validation parameters.Keywords: dihydroartemisinin, liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry assay (LC-MS/MS), malaria, Indonesia