COMPARING THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN FRONT-LEG AND BACK-LEG ROUND-HOUSE KICKS ATIACKING MOVEMENT ABILITIES IIN TAEKWONDO

The purpose of this study is to compare front-leg and back-leg movement abilities in Taekwondo athletes with a weight level of less than 68 kg. Six male subjects (age: 19.8±1, height: 175.6±3.9, weight: 62.5±4.8) conducted back-leg attacking movements and front-leg attacking movements with their dominant leg. The back-leg attacking movements include back leg round-house kick and strike back round house kick. The front-leg attacking movements include front leg round-house kick and slide round-house kick. From statistics obtained, the kicking of relative force, compound acceleration, and tangential acceleration are better for back-leg attacking movements. However, front-leg attacking movements are better in tangential velocity. The range of waist a rotation and the flexibility of the hip joint are important to roundhouse kick techniques to the kinetic chain

The impact of revised CLSI cefazolin breakpoints on the clinical outcomes of Escherichia coli bacteremia

AbstractBackground/PurposeThe susceptibility breakpoints of cephalosporins for Enterobacteriaceae were revised by the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) in 2010 and 2011. The clinical outcome and susceptibility data were analyzed to evaluate the impact of revised CLSI cefazolin breakpoints on the treatment of Escherichia coli bacteremia.MethodsForty-three bacteremic Escherichia coli isolates from Taichung Veterans General Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan, during the period from January 2013 to December 2013, were selected to analyze the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) distributions of cefazolin and the correlated clinical responses to cefazolin therapy.ResultsThe modal cefazolin MIC among the 43 isolates was 1 μg/mL and accounted for 18 (42%) isolates. The cumulative percentage for MICs ≤ 2 μg/mL was 79%. The conventional dosing regimens achieved clinical cure in 33 (97%) of 34 patients with bacteremia due to E. coli with a cefazolin MIC ≤ 2 μg/mL, in all of the six patients with a cefazolin MIC of 4 μg/mL, and all of the three patients with a cefazolin MIC of 8 μg/mL.ConclusionThe microbiological data support the revised CLSI breakpoints of cefazolin. The conventional cefazolin dosing regimens can still achieve satisfactory clinical cure rates for bacteremia of E. coli with a cefazolin MIC ≤ 2 μg/mL in patients without severe septic shock. Before the approval of the efficacy of cefazolin for the treatment of E. coli isolates with a cefazolin MIC of 4 μg/mL, it is prudent to use cefazolin only when a high drug level can be achieved in the infection site, such as the urinary tract

A Small-Molecule Inhibitor of TopBP1 Exerts Anti-myc Activity and Synergy With PARP Inhibitors

We have previously identified TopBP1 (topoisomerase IIβ-binding protein 1) as a promising target for cancer therapy, given its role in the convergence of Rb, PI(3)K/Akt, and p53 pathways. Based on this, we conducted a large-scale molecular docking screening to identify a small-molecule inhibitor that specifically targets the BRCT7/8 domains of TopBP1, which we have named 5D4. Our studies show that 5D4 inhibits TopBP1 interactions with E2F1, mutant p53, and Cancerous Inhibitor of Protein Phosphatase 2A. This leads to the activation of E2F1-mediated apoptosis and the inhibition of mutant p53 gain of function. In addition, 5D4 disrupts the interaction of TopBP1 with MIZ1, which in turn allows MIZ1 to bind to its target gene promoters and repress MYC activity. Moreover, 5D4 inhibits the association of the TopBP1-PLK1 complex and prevents the formation of Rad51 foci. When combined with inhibitors of PARP1/2 or PARP14, 5D4 synergizes to effectively block cancer cell proliferation. Our animal studies have demonstrated the antitumor activity of 5D4 in breast and ovarian cancer xenograft models. Moreover, the effectiveness of 5D4 is further enhanced when combined with a PARP1/2 inhibitor talazoparib. Taken together, our findings strongly support the potential use of TopBP1-BRCT7/8 inhibitors as a targeted cancer therapy

The association of molecular typing, vancomycin MIC, and clinical outcome for patients with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections

AbstractBackground/PurposeThere are reports of an increase in vancomycin minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) over time, a phenomenon referred to as “MIC creep”, but some studies have conflicting results. The aim of this study is to evaluate the association of molecular typing, vancomycin MIC, and clinical outcome for patients with MRSA infections.MethodsThirty-two MRSA isolates from Taichung Veterans General Hospital (TCVGH), Taichung, Taiwan during the period of 2003 to 2008 were analyzed for the association of sequence typing, vancomycin MIC, and the correlated clinical outcome for patients with MRSA infections. The vancomycin MICs of 28 additional isolates from 2014 were used for the detection of MIC creep.ResultsAmong the genotypes of 32 isolates, there were 17 (53.1%) isolates with ST239-SCCmecIII, seven (21.9%) isolates with ST5-SCCmecII, six (18.8%) isolates with ST59-SCCmecIV, and two (6.2%) isolates with ST59-SCCmecVT. Two isolates had an MIC of 2 μg/mL and were identified as ST239-SCCmecIII. No statistically significant change in the distribution of MICs of all isolates was observed between 2003 and 2014 (p = 0.263). There was no significant difference in the mortality rates between two groups of patients with vancomycin MICs < 2 μg/mL and ≥ 2 μg/mL (p = > 0.99).ConclusionThere was no vancomycin MIC creep in the period from 2003 to 2014 in this study. Appropriate prognostic models for assessment of the association among sequence types, vancomycin MICs, and clinical outcome warrant further investigation

Fabrication of multianalyte CeO2 nanograin electrolyte–insulator–semiconductor biosensors by using CF4 plasma treatment

Multianalyte CeO2 biosensors have been demonstrated to detect pH, glucose, and urine concentrations. To enhance the multianalyte sensing capability of these biosensors, CF4 plasma treatment was applied to create nanograin structures on the CeO2 membrane surface and thereby increase the contact surface area. Multiple material analyses indicated that crystallization or grainization caused by the incorporation of flourine atoms during plasma treatment might be related to the formation of the nanograins. Because of the changes in surface morphology and crystalline structures, the multianalyte sensing performance was considerably enhanced. Multianalyte CeO2 nanograin electrolyte–insulator–semiconductor biosensors exhibit potential for use in future biomedical sensing device applications

Overexpression of Nuclear Protein Kinase CK2 α Catalytic Subunit (CK2α) as a Poor Prognosticator in Human Colorectal Cancer

BACKGROUND: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common malignancies but the current therapeutic approaches for advanced CRC are less efficient. Thus, novel therapeutic approaches are badly needed. The purpose of this study is to investigate the involvement of nuclear protein kinase CK2 α subunit (CK2α) in tumor progression, and in the prognosis of human CRC. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Expression levels of nuclear CK2α were analyzed in 245 colorectal tissues from patients with CRC by immunohistochemistry, quantitative real-time PCR and Western blot. We correlated the expression levels with clinicopathologic parameters and prognosis in human CRC patients. Overexpression of nuclear CK2α was significantly correlated with depth of invasion, nodal status, American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) staging, degree of differentiation, and perineural invasion. Patients with high expression levels of nuclear CK2α had a significantly poorer overall survival rate compared with patients with low expression levels of nuclear CK2α. In multi-variate Cox regression analysis, overexpression of nuclear CK2α was proven to be an independent prognostic marker for CRC. In addition, DLD-1 human colon cancer cells were employed as a cellular model to study the role of CK2α on cell growth, and the expression of CK2α in DLD-1 cells was inhibited by using siRNA technology. The data indicated that CK2α-specific siRNA treatment resulted in growth inhibition. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Taken together, overexpression of nuclear CK2α can be a useful marker for predicting the outcome of patients with CRC

Discovery of dominant and dormant genes from expression data using a novel generalization of SNR for multi-class problems

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The Signal-to-Noise-Ratio (SNR) is often used for identification of biomarkers for two-class problems and no formal and useful generalization of SNR is available for multiclass problems. We propose innovative generalizations of SNR for multiclass cancer discrimination through introduction of two indices, Gene Dominant Index and Gene Dormant Index (GDIs). These two indices lead to the concepts of dominant and dormant genes with biological significance. We use these indices to develop methodologies for discovery of dominant and dormant biomarkers with interesting biological significance. The dominancy and dormancy of the identified biomarkers and their excellent discriminating power are also demonstrated pictorially using the scatterplot of individual gene and 2-D Sammon's projection of the selected set of genes. Using information from the literature we have shown that the GDI based method can identify dominant and dormant genes that play significant roles in cancer biology. These biomarkers are also used to design diagnostic prediction systems.</p> <p>Results and discussion</p> <p>To evaluate the effectiveness of the GDIs, we have used four multiclass cancer data sets (Small Round Blue Cell Tumors, Leukemia, Central Nervous System Tumors, and Lung Cancer). For each data set we demonstrate that the new indices can find biologically meaningful genes that can act as biomarkers. We then use six machine learning tools, Nearest Neighbor Classifier (NNC), Nearest Mean Classifier (NMC), Support Vector Machine (SVM) classifier with linear kernel, and SVM classifier with Gaussian kernel, where both SVMs are used in conjunction with one-vs-all (OVA) and one-vs-one (OVO) strategies. We found GDIs to be very effective in identifying biomarkers with strong class specific signatures. With all six tools and for all data sets we could achieve better or comparable prediction accuracies usually with fewer marker genes than results reported in the literature using the same computational protocols. The dominant genes are usually easy to find while good dormant genes may not always be available as dormant genes require stronger constraints to be satisfied; but when they are available, they can be used for authentication of diagnosis.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Since GDI based schemes can find a small set of dominant/dormant biomarkers that is adequate to design diagnostic prediction systems, it opens up the possibility of using real-time qPCR assays or antibody based methods such as ELISA for an easy and low cost diagnosis of diseases. The dominant and dormant genes found by GDIs can be used in different ways to design more reliable diagnostic prediction systems.</p

Empiric antibiotic choices for community-acquired biliary tract infections

SummaryBackgroundThe study was conducted to reveal the most appropriate empiric antibiotics for the treatment of community-acquired biliary tract infections (CA-BTI) at a regional hospital in Taiwan.MethodsThe study was performed between October 1, 2010 and October 31, 2012. All positive bile culture results of presumptive community-acquired origins were collected. The associated etiologic microorganisms and their antimicrobial susceptibilities were analyzed. The appropriateness of empiric therapy (defined as the effectiveness of the antibiotics against the etiologic agents) and the subsequent treatment response were examined through the review of medical records.ResultsA total of 115 patients (cholecystitis, 83 cases, 72.2%; cholangitis, 32 cases, 27.8%) and 189 isolates (136 Gram-negative bacilli, 37 Gram-positive cocci, and 16 anaerobes) were analyzed. The most frequent pathogens were Escherichia coli (n = 69, 36.5%), Klebsiella spp. (n = 37, 19.6%), enterococci (n = 29, 15.3%), and Bacteroides spp. (n = 11, 5.8%). Penicillin resistance (5.4%) was low in Gram-positive cocci, whereas higher resistance (>20%) to cefazolin, cefuroxime, and ampicillin–sulbactam was found in Gram-negative bacilli. Anaerobes also demonstrated high resistance to clindamycin (37.5%) but less to metronidazole (12.5%). Appropriate empiric therapy was found in 92 (80%) cases, and among them, 83 (90.2%) were treated successfully. The treatment success rate (69.6%) was significantly lower among the remaining 23 cases with inappropriate empiric therapy (16 of 23 vs. 83 of 92, p < 0.05). A high treatment success rate (97.2%) was observed among cases empirically treated with ceftriaxone plus metronidazole.ConclusionThe combination of ceftriaxone plus metronidazole appears to be the most appropriate empiric antibiotics for the treatment of CA-BTI at this hospital. Because different hospitals may encounter microorganisms of different antimicrobial susceptibilities, similar approaches may be followed by other hospitals where appropriate empiric therapy has not yet been established for the treatment of CA-BTI

Use of Rubber Dams During Root Canal Treatment in Taiwan

Background/PurposeIsolation of teeth with rubber dams is an important procedure for infection control in dentistry, especially in endodontic treatment. This study surveyed the prevalence of rubber dam usage in nonsurgical root canal treatment (RCT) by dentists under the National Health Insurance system in Taiwan.MethodsA total of 1,332 completed RCT cases were randomly selected from a large database from the Bureau of National Health Insurance in Taiwan in 2004. The radiographs and dental charts of the selected cases were evaluated for the prevalence of rubber dam usage in RCT. The frequencies of rubber dam usage for RCT by dentists were compared between hospitals and private dental clinics and among six different regions in Taiwan.ResultsThe overall prevalence of rubber dam usage for RCT by dentists under the National Health Insurance system in Taiwan was 16.5%. The frequency of rubber dam usage for RCT by dentists in hospitals (32.8%) was significantly higher than that (10.3%) in private dental clinics (p < 0.0001). However, there was no significant difference in the frequency of rubber dam usage for RCT by dentists among six different geographic regions in Taiwan.ConclusionThe prevalence of rubber dam usage for RCT by dentists in Taiwan is relatively low. Because rubber dam isolation of an endodontically-treated tooth can provide better infection control, increase patient protection, and improve treatment efficiency, there is an urgent need to advise dentists in Taiwan to use rubber dams for every RCT case