Human platelets are anucleate cells that lack in deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), thus hampering genomic study on them. However, the presence of their own messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) transcript allows functional study via the transcriptome approach. Transcriptome not only allows profiling of platelet but also aids in studying gene regulation in virus infections and other diseases that have an impact on platelets. Some viruses are known to affect the platelet either by causing a reduction or destruction. Dengue virus is one of the most postulated virus having such effect and frequently linked to platelet reduction. The transcriptome approach has a pivotal role in providing a deeper insight to link certain diseases and their effect on platelets. This review critically discusses role of platelet in dengue and other viral diseases of public health relevance, with a specific focus on the methods currently used in platelet transcriptome profiling.
Pulse wave velocity (PWV), augmentation index (AI) and finger photoplethysmography fitness index (PPGF) are non-invasive markers of vascular function and may predict future cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. In women, the changes from both oestrogen and progesterone levels during menstrual cycle may give significant impact on vascular function. Thus, this study was designed to investigate the variation of vascular function during follicular and luteal phase in healthy young women. Twenty-two healthy young women with regular menstrual cycle were recruited. Blood pressure (BP), body mass index (BMI), PWV, AI, PPGF, estradiol (Es) and progesterone (Prog) level were measured during follicular (F) and mid-luteal (L) phase. Data was analyzed via SPSS version 20 and P value < 0.05 was considered to be significant. The mean age of the subjects was 22.73 ± 0.60 years. There was significant variations of estradiol and progesterone levels during menstrual cycle whereby the level of estradiol (EsF = 107.6 ± 52.56 pmol/L vs. EsL = 555.16 ± 152.79 pmol/L, P