Papers by Aaron Jan S Palmares
Journal of Laboratory and Precision Medicine, 2024
Background: Many enzymes were explored and used as biomarkers, but some were less specific and le... more Background: Many enzymes were explored and used as biomarkers, but some were less specific and less sensitive, therefore, they were replaced with more reliable non-enzymatic biomarkers. Thus, to date, not so many enzyme biomarkers and their isotypes have been added to the menus of clinical chemistry laboratories. This review paper, therefore, attempts to summate published literature related to "novel" enzymes that have been studied as potential biomarkers through clinical trials and randomized control trials in the past 12 years. This review also aims to explore the trends, methodologies, gaps, and updates surrounding these enzymes and the progress of their application in clinical settings. Preferably, selecting only studies that used biological fluids as specimens, and analytical methods that are routinely done in clinical chemistry laboratories. Methods: Studies related to "novel" enzymes, published from January 2012 to December 2023, were systematically searched in PubMed following the PRISMA 2020 guidelines. The search term for potentially relevant studies was "enzyme activity". The data was gathered using a data extraction template and was grouped into three categories according to their clinical applications. Results: The search yielded 42 eligible articles from the initial search of 3,255 articles via registers. The studies reported the potential use of "novel" enzymes as biomarkers for tumors or cancer, tissues and organ function, and other diseases or medical conditions not specified to an organ system. Conclusions: Numerous directions and opportunities within clinical enzymology exist, especially on how "novel" enzymes can serve as potential biomarkers for diagnosis, prognosis, and therapy monitoring of various diseases. As the recent advances in biochemistry and the continuing collaboration among researchers, clinicians, and industry stakeholders continue to unveil the complicated roles of enzymes in various diseases, the integration and recalibration of this "novel" enzymes into routine clinical practice holds promise for more accurate, timely, and personalized treatment strategies.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Journal of Public Health and Emergency, 2023
Background: Routine diagnostic tests for malaria infection rely primarily on microscopy and rapid... more Background: Routine diagnostic tests for malaria infection rely primarily on microscopy and rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs). In the case of the Philippines, following progress in malaria control, the country may need a more sensitive diagnostic approach to identify residual malaria transmission and early detection of asymptomatic individuals. Therefore, there is a need to adopt diagnostic tests that are useful in a country gearing towards subnational malaria elimination. This review paper, therefore, attempts to summate published literature related to the development of commercially available malaria diagnostic tests that have undergone a clinical trial or randomized control trial, associate these developments with the malaria detection methods done in the Philippines, and relate their effects to the country's malaria mortality and morbidity rates. Methods: The earliest published research that studies the detection of a malaria biomarker in clinical samples until December 2022 was systematically searched in MEDLINE through PubMed following the PRISMA 2020 guideline. The search term used to find potentially relevant studies was "Malaria diagnosis". Using a data extraction form, the data was grouped into five categories according to malaria biomarkers or targets. Results: The search yielded a total of 41 eligible articles from the initial search of 1,799 articles via registers and citation searching. Among the studies, the detection of malaria-infected red blood cells (RBCs), P. falciparum histidine-rich protein 2 (PfHRP-2), parasite lactate dehydrogenase (pLDH), hemozoin, and DNA/ssRNA genes was reported. Among the 41 studies, only two related studies were conducted in the Philippines. Conclusions: Despite the technological advances in the commercially available malaria diagnostic tests, the diagnostic test applied in the Philippines seems to have not evolved much through the decades as it relies mostly on microscopy and RDTs. Yet the country has recorded a significant decrease in the number of confirmed cases and reported deaths from malaria since 2000, as observed by the National Malaria Control and Elimination Program (NMCEP). Nevertheless, the diagnostic practice using microscopy and RDTs that was used to confirm cases may not provide an accurate picture of malaria incidence in a country gearing towards malaria elimination, as this might neglect residual malaria transmission.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Asian Journal of Biological and Life Sciences, 2018
Aiming at the improvement of the molecular diagnosis of dengue infection, whole blood and plasma ... more Aiming at the improvement of the molecular diagnosis of dengue infection, whole blood and plasma samples from 31 suspected dengue patients admitted at San Lazaro Hospital (Manila, Philippines) were examined using dengue RT-PCR. Using TRIzol® for whole blood and TRIzol® LS for its corresponding plasma in the RNA extraction phase, 26 (84%) whole blood samples were positive while only 15 (48%) for its corresponding plasma (P=0.001). In contrast to screening with SD BIOLINE® dengue NS1 antigen test of which 24 (77%) were positive, plasma RT-PCR had significantly lower results (P=0.035) while there is no significant difference for whole blood RT-PCR (P=0.727). In contrast to SD BIOLINE® dengue antibody test (IgM and/or IgG) of which 13 (42%) were positive, whole blood RT-PCR obtained a significantly higher result (P=0.004) while there is no significant difference with plasma RT-PCR (P=0.832). These results indicate that the better specimen for RNA extraction for dengue diagnosis by RT-PCR is the whole blood. Aside from rapid detection and quantification of viral load, increasing the success rate of RNA extraction can be useful for molecular epidemiological studies involving the classification of dengue into different serotypes and genotypes, and the characterization of dengue strains to reveal markers of virulence.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Asian Journal of Biological and Life Sciences, 2017
This study aims to determine if the rate of RT-PCR detection of Dengue virus from clinical plasma... more This study aims to determine if the rate of RT-PCR detection of Dengue virus from clinical plasma would vary between the RNA extracts of QIAamp® Viral RNA and TRIzol® LS in the first week of Dengue infection. Plasma samples from 31 individuals clinically suspected of being infected with dengue virus in days 1 to 7 of fever onset were extracted for RNA using the protocol of QIAamp® Viral RNA and TRIzol® LS. The paired RNA extracts of plasma samples were analyzed for the presence of Dengue virus RNA using RT-PCR. Out of 31 samples, a significantly higher rate of RT-PCR detection was obtained with QIAamp® than TRIzol® (74% vs. 48%, p=0.039). In comparison to Dengue NS1 antigen positivity, a significantly lower rate of RT-PCR detection was obtained with TRIzol® (77% vs. 48%, p=0.035), while there was no significant difference with QIAamp® (77% vs. 74%, p=1.000). In comparison to Dengue IgM/IgG antibody positivity, the rates of RT-PCR detection with QIAamp® were significantly higher (42% vs. 74%, p=0.031), while there was no significant difference with TRIzol® (42% vs. 48%, p=0.832). These results suggest that RNA extraction using QIAamp® Viral RNA provides a more sufficiently pure RNA template for a conventional RT-PCR than TRIzol® LS.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Uploads
Papers by Aaron Jan S Palmares