Clinical features of Epstein-Barr virus-associated infectious mononucleosis in hospitalized Korean children

PurposeFew studies have been conducted on the recent status of infectious mononucleosis (IM) in Korean children. The aim of this study was to evaluate the recent trend in the clinical manifestations of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated IM as well as the clinical differences according to age.MethodsA retrospective study was performed on 81 children hospitalized with EBV-associated IM who fulfilled the serological criteria for the diagnosis of EBV infection (viral capsid antigen immunoglobulin M positive). The patients were divided into 3 age groups: <5 years, 5 to 9 years, and ≥10 years. We evaluated the recent trend in clinical manifestations and the differences in clinical and laboratory findings among the 3 age groups.ResultsThirty (37%) children were under 5 years of age, 38 (46.9%) were 5 to 9 years of age, and 13 (16%) were 10 years of age or older. The differences in the symptoms and signs among the 3 age groups were not statistically significant, except for headache. The mean duration of fever was 7.7 days (range, 0 to 18 days). A comparison of liver enzyme elevation among the age groups showed an association with advancing age (26.6%, 63.1%, and 76.9%, respectively, P=0.04)ConclusionThis study showed that EBV-associated IM in Korean children continues to occur mostly in children under 10 years of age. In children with EBV-associated IM, the incidence of headache and liver enzyme elevation, the duration of fever, and the proportion of females to males were all positively associated with advancing age

A Case of Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia Type 1 with Primary Liver Gastrinoma

Gastrinoma is the most frequent functional pancreaticoduodenal endocrine tumor in patients with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN 1). Primary hepatic gastrinomas in MEN 1 are very rare, with no previous reports published in the literature. We reported the case of a 39 yr old female patient with a history of repeated peptic ulcers and a hypoglycemia episode. Abdominal CT indicated a well-defined liver mass and a pancreatic head mass. Somatostatin-receptor scintigraphy with [111In] DTPA octeotride demonstrated a strong uptake of the radiotracer in the left lateral segment at the site of the hepatic mass. After operation, immunohistochemical staining was consistent with pancreatic insulinoma and primary hepatic gastrinoma. As the liver is a common site of metastases from gastrinoma, primary liver gastrinoma has not yet been reported with MEN 1. We diagnosed this patient using immunohistochemical studies and treated this patient by hepatic segmentectomy

Spontaneous Uterine Rupture in the First Trimester: A Case Report

Uterine rupture is one of the most feared obstetric complications affecting the pregnant woman and fetus. Most of the cases have various risk factors and mainly occur during the second or third trimester. However, spontaneous uterine rupture during the first trimester is extremely rare. We experienced a case of spontaneous uterine rupture in a 36-yr-old multiparous woman without definite risk factors. The initial impression was a hemoperitoneum of an unknown origin with normal early pregnancy. Intensive surgical method would be needed for accurate diagnosis and immediate management in bad situation by hemoperitoneum even though a patient was early pregnancy

Endoscopic Management of Acute Cholecystitis and Cholangitis Caused by Limy Bile

Limy bile is a relatively rare condition in which a radiopaque material is visible in the gallbladder, extending rarely into the bile duct, on plain radiography. Acute cholangitis or cholecystitis caused by limy bile is a very rare condition. There are no definite treatment guidelines for limy bile, but in most cases with cholangitis or cholecystitis, laparoscopic cholecystectomy has been the preferred treatment. We report a case of limy bile with biliary symptoms that was treated only with an endoscopic procedure

3D garment digitisation for virtual wardrobe using a commodity depth sensor

5-Aminovaleric acid (5AVA) is an important five-carbon platform chemical that can be used for the synthesis of polymers and other chemicals of industrial interest. Enzymatic conversion of L-lysine to 5AVA has been achieved by employing lysine 2-monooxygenase encoded by the davB gene and 5-aminovaleramidase encoded by the davA gene. Additionally, a recombinant Escherichia coli strain expressing the davB and davA genes has been developed for bioconversion of L-lysine to 5AVA. To use glucose and xylose derived from lignocellulosic biomass as substrates, rather than L-lysine as a substrate, we previously examined direct fermentative production of 5AVA from glucose by metabolically engineered E. coli strains. However, the yield and productivity of 5AVA achieved by recombinant E. coli strains remain very low. Thus, Corynebacterium glutamicum, a highly efficient L-lysine producing microorganism, should be useful in the development of direct fermentative production of 5AVA using L-lysine as a precursor for 5AVA. Here, we report the development of metabolically engineered C. glutamicum strains for enhanced fermentative production of 5AVA from glucose.Various expression vectors containing different promoters and origins of replication were examined for optimal expression of Pseudomonas putida davB and davA genes encoding lysine 2-monooxygenase and delta-aminovaleramidase, respectively. Among them, expression of the C. glutamicum codon-optimized davA gene fused with His-Tag at its N-Terminal and the davB gene as an operon under a strong synthetic H promoter (plasmid p36davAB3) in C. glutamicum enabled the most efficient production of 5AVA. Flask culture and fed-batch culture of this strain produced 6.9 and 19.7\ua0g/L (together with 11.9\ua0g/L glutaric acid as major byproduct) of 5AVA, respectively. Homology modeling suggested that endogenous gamma-aminobutyrate aminotransferase encoded by the gabT gene might be responsible for the conversion of 5AVA to glutaric acid in recombinant C. glutamicum. Fed-batch culture of a C. glutamicum gabT mutant-harboring p36davAB3 produced 33.1\ua0g/L 5AVA with much reduced (2.0\ua0g/L) production of glutaric acid.Corynebacterium glutamicum was successfully engineered to produce 5AVA from glucose by optimizing the expression of two key enzymes, lysine 2-monooxygenase and delta-aminovaleramidase. In addition, production of glutaric acid, a major byproduct, was significantly reduced by employing C. glutamicum gabT mutant as a host strain. The metabolically engineered C. glutamicum strains developed in this study should be useful for enhanced fermentative production of the novel C5 platform chemical 5AVA from renewable resources

Coronary Artery Perforation Following Implantation of a Drug-Eluting Stent Rescued by Deployment of a Covered Stent in Symptomatic Myocardial Bridging

We successfully rescued a patient whose coronary artery perforated following implantation of a drug-eluting stent (DES), by deploying a stent-graft in symptomatic myocardial bridging. Our case demonstrated that coronary perforation could be handled without difficulty when perforated myocardial bridging is confined to the interventricular groov