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Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) harms the environment and human health, because it requires mercury (Hg). Therefore, this study uses a questionnaire survey to identify the effects of the medical checkup findings, group discussion, and educational seminar on the values of illegal miners and residents in Bunikasih, Indonesia, regarding the environmental and health effects of Hg. Transdisciplinary communities of practice (TDCoP) were formed to pursue alternative livelihoods than illegal ASGM. Environmental pollution after ASGM closure was assessed. The questionnaire showed that respondents changed their views on Hg's effects and were willing to stop ASGM practices. In an environmental impact assessment study, tea leaf samples were obtained between the ASGM activity location and village housing in two periods during ASGM closure to identify the concentrations of Hg, lead, and arsenic. Their mean concentration values in Period 1 (2) were 0.54 ± 0.14, 0.66 ± 0.09, and 0.34 ± 0.12 mg kg-1 (0.08 ± 0.04, 0.34 ± 0.14, and 0.07 ± 0.06 mg kg-1), respectively, indicating a decrease in environmental pollution. In conclusion, the government-driven cessation of ASGM in the study area shows a reduction in environmental pollution, and the change in the perception of the participants regarding the ASGM and TDCoP approaches help to make these changes permanent.

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Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) has been a major part of people's livelihood in the rural areas of many developing countries, including those in Southeast Asia (SEA). Nevertheless, because of the use of mercury, ASGM activities have significant local and global adverse impacts on the environment and ASGM community health. Although there have been many monodisciplinary projects by academic researchers and governments to solve the environmental and health problems in SEA ASGM communities, they have not been sufficient to solve the complex socioeconomic problems. This review first outlines the nature of the SEA ASGM activities and the consequent environmental, community health, and socioeconomic problems and then introduces an approach using transdisciplinary communities of practice that involves both academic and nonacademic participants to relieve these wicked ASGM problems and to improve the environmental governance and community health in ASGM communities in SEA.

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Mercury (Hg) is one of the most harmful metals and has been a public health concern according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is the world's fastest-growing source of Hg and can release Hg into the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and geosphere. Hg has been widely used in ASGM industries throughout Southeast Asia countries, including Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, and Thailand. Here, 16 relevant studies were systematically searched by performing the PRISMA flow, combining the keywords of "Hg", "ASGM", and relevant study areas. Mercury concentrations exceeding the WHO and United States Environmental Protection Agency guideline values were reported in environmental (i.e., air, water, and soil) and biomonitoring samples (i.e., plants, fish, and human hair). ASGM-related health risks to miners and nonminers, specifically in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Myanmar, were also assessed. The findings indicated severe Hg contamination around the ASGM process, specifically the gold-amalgamation stage, was significantly high. To one point, Hg atmospheric concentrations from all observed studies was shown to be extremely high in the vicinity of gold operating areas. Attentions should be given regarding the public health concern, specifically for the vulnerable groups such as adults, pregnant women, and children who live near the ASGM activity. This review summarizes the effects of Hg in Myanmar and other Southeast Asian countries. In the future, more research and assessment will be required to investigate the current and evolving situation in ASGM communities.

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Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) has a known negative effect on the community's health; therefore, assessment to monitor community health is essential to detect any issues and enable early treatment. Because ASGM-related health issues are complex and cannot be addressed effectively with a traditional one-time health assessment alone, both long-term and regular health assessments using a transdisciplinary approach should be considered. In response to this need, we designed an online health assessment tool as a reference for a future long-term health assessment system. An online video interview was conducted with 54 respondents living in the ASGM area of Chaung Gyi Village, Thabeikkyin Township, Mandalay Region, Myanmar, via a social networking service application. The tool was used to evaluate community health during the coronavirus 2019 pandemic, including mercury intoxication symptoms, mining-related diseases, and other diseases. Results show that persons working in mining versus non-mining occupations had a greater prevalence of pulmonary diseases, such as pulmonary tuberculosis, silicosis, and bronchial asthma, in addition to malaria. Based on these findings, online health assessment using a transdisciplinary approach can be recommended as an effective tool for sustainable and long-term health assessment of ASGM-related disease and should be performed regularly following physical health surveys.

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Increasing artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) in developing countries has raised health concerns in mining communities. A preliminary health survey was conducted in Thabeikkyin Township, Mandalay Region, Myanmar, in February 2020 to assess the health conditions of an ASGM community. Respiratory function and other clinical assessments were evaluated in miners and non-miners, and participants' hair was analyzed for heavy metals. Respiratory function of miners was similar to that of non-miners. However, miners' respiratory function declined with longer mining activity duration. In total, 3 out of 18 miners showed neurological signs and symptoms of chronic mercury intoxication. The median concentration of the hair mercury was significantly higher in miners than non-miners (P = 0.01), and 9 out of 18 miners and 2 out of 11 non-miners showed the warning level of mercury. We found that, despite an association between declining respiratory function and length of time mining, only a minority of miners showed clinical features of chronic mercury intoxication. Further clinical surveys with a larger sample size are necessary to determine the broader health status of this community. In addition, clinical indicators such as pulmonary function tests are recommended as additional criteria for the diagnosis of mercury intoxication.

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Treatment with dopaminergic agents result excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) and some studies have shown the benefit of using modafinil for treating excessive daytime sleepiness of Parkinson's disease (PD) patient. We investigated whether modafinil have ameliorative properties against levodopa induced excessive nighttime sleepiness (ENS) in MPTP-treated murine nocturnal PD model. Our EEG analyses of whole day recordings revealed that modafinil reduce ENS of this nocturnal PD models with levodopa medications. Therefore, we investigated whether, modafinil post-treatment followed by MPTP shows any effect on monoamine contents of brain and found to robustly increased noradrenaline (NA) concentration of MPTP treated mice. Modafinil post-treatment, in neurorestorative context (5 days post-lesion) led to increased striatal dopamine (DA) concentrations of MPTP-treated mice. Here, we first confirmed that modafinil ameliorates levodopa induced excessive sleepiness and restores monoaminergic systems. The arousal and anti-parkinsonian effects displayed by modafinil indicate that in combination with dopaminergic agents, modafinil co-administration may be worthwhile in trying to suppress the excessive daytime sleepiness and progressive dopaminergic neuron loss in PD.

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Pregabalin, a novel agent for treating partial epilepsy and peripheral neuropathic and central pain, was studied for its effect on driving performance in healthy volunteers. Sixteen healthy male volunteers who drove regularly were enrolled in a double-blind, parallel-group, placebo-controlled study assessing the effect of pregabalin on driving performance. Subjects received an oral dose of pregabalin 75 mg or placebo, and a second dose 12 hours later. A driving simulator was used to test simple and complicated braking reaction time, and simple and complicated steering-wheel techniques before the first dose, and 1 hour and 3 hours after the second dose of pregabalin or placebo. The effect of training during the driving test on the driving performance of each group was also evaluated. There were no statistically significant differences in driving performance between the pregabalin and the placebo groups. However, the pregabalin group showed no significant improvement in steering-wheel skills with training, whereas the placebo group showed a significant (P<0.05) improvement with training. In this study using a driving simulator, pregabalin did not impair driving performance but mildly reduced the training effects of driving experiments. Although pregabalin caused sleepiness, it had no severe effect on driving ability after a second dose of 75 mg after the initial introduction of pregabalin.

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OBJECTIVES: Some patients with Parkinson disease improved their symptoms on treatment with nicotine patch or gum. Nicotine has also been studied for its antidyskinetic effect on levodopa-induced dyskinesia. We determined the effects of nicotine on levodopa pharmacokinetics and gastric emptying in healthy subjects and on levodopa transport in Caco-2 monolayers in vitro. METHODS: Healthy subjects received transdermal nicotine patch application followed by oral levodopa/benserazide, 100/25 mg, in a fasting state and with enteral nutrition. Levodopa pharmacokinetics was determined, and gastric emptying was evaluated by carbon 13 ((13)C)-labeled acetic acid breath testing. In vitro studies using intestinal Caco-2 cell monolayers evaluated whether the intestinal transport of levodopa was affected by nicotine and its metabolite, cotinine. RESULT: Nicotine did not increase mean plasma concentration significantly during fasting or with enteral nutrition, although the extent of levodopa absorption was reduced by 34% to 60% in some individuals and the mean plasma concentration of levodopa was statistically decreased by nicotine in subjects who received enteral nutrition. However, gastric parameters were not significantly affected by nicotine. Nicotine and cotinine at 0.1 µmol/L significantly reduced levodopa uptake by Caco-2 cells (P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: We found that nicotine reduced plasma levodopa concentration in some healthy subjects but with no alteration of gastric emptying rate. In vitro, nicotine inhibited levodopa transport by Caco-2 cell monolayers in an α-methyl amino isobutyric acid-independent, 2-amino-norbornanecarboxylic acid-dependent manner. These results suggest that nicotine may inhibit the transport of levodopa by the system L-amino acid transporter.

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Zonisamide is an antiepileptic drug that also improves the cardinal symptoms of Parkinson's disease. This study investigated the effects of zonisamide on dopaminergic neuronal degeneration in 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP)-treated mice. Six groups of mice were treated as follows: 1) normal saline; 2) MPTP, 15 mg/kg×4 every 2h; 3) MPTP and zonisamide, 40 mg/kg×1, 1h after the last MPTP dose; 4) MPTP and zonisamide, 1 day after the last dose of MPTP; 5) MPTP and zonisamide, 1h before the first MPTP dose; and 6) zonisamide, 40 mg/kg. MPTP-treatment decreased the contents of dopamine as well as the number and area of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH)-positive neurons. Concurrent treatment of mice with zonisamide and MPTP did not show any inhibition of the toxic effect of MPTP towards dopamine contents at 1 week after treatment but it increased the number and area of TH-positive neurons compared to the MPTP-treated group. Surviving TH-positive neurons had recovery of dopamine production after several weeks. Moreover, zonisamide increased the number of S100ß-positive and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP)-positive astrocytes and dopamine turnover. These results suggest that zonisamide acts as a neuro-protectant against MPTP-induced dopaminergic neuronal degeneration as shown by an increase of TH-positive neurons and this may be mediated by increased S100ß secretion.

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