Effect of KH-BaRoKer-SeongJangTang based on traditional medicine theory on longitudinal bone growth

ABSTRACT KH-BaRoKer-SeongJangTang (KBS) is a recently developed formulation by using traditional drugs considering traditional medical theory of Oriental books such as ShinNongBonChoGyeong and JuRye, which has been used to improve the growth of child in Korea. Although KBS is usually prescribed to many children who are in retard for their age, its pharmacological effects have not been fully understood in experimental models. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of KBS on bone growth. Growth plate thickness and bone parameters such as bone volume/tissue volume (BV/TV), trabecular thickness (Tb.Th), trabecular number (Tb.N), connection density (Conn.D), and total porosity were analyzed by means of microcomputed tomography. Serum insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) levels were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Hepatic IGF-I mRNA expression was analyzed by real-time polymerase chain reaction. Phosphorylation of signal transducer and activator of transcription5 (STAT5) was investigated using Western blot analysis and immunohistochemistry. The thickness of growth plate was increased by KBS. BV/TV, Tb.Th, TbN, Conn.D, and total porosity were improved by KBS. Hepatic IGF-I mRNA and serum IGF-I levels were elevated by KBS. Phosphorylation of STAT5 was increased with administration of KBS. These results suggest that KBS would be helpful to children who are in retard for their age through the elevation of IGF-I

Network-Level Structural Abnormalities of Cerebral Cortex in Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus

Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) usually begins in childhood and adolescence and causes lifelong damage to several major organs including the brain. Despite increasing evidence of T1DM-induced structural deficits in cortical regions implicated in higher cognitive and emotional functions, little is known whether and how the structural connectivity between these regions is altered in the T1DM brain. Using inter-regional covariance of cortical thickness measurements from high-resolution T1-weighted magnetic resonance data, we examined the topological organizations of cortical structural networks in 81 T1DM patients and 38 healthy subjects. We found a relative absence of hierarchically high-level hubs in the prefrontal lobe of T1DM patients, which suggests ineffective top-down control of the prefrontal cortex in T1DM. Furthermore, inter-network connections between the strategic/executive control system and systems subserving other cortical functions including language and mnemonic/emotional processing were also less integrated in T1DM patients than in healthy individuals. The current results provide structural evidence for T1DM-related dysfunctional cortical organization, which specifically underlie the top-down cognitive control of language, memory, and emotion. © 2013 Lyoo et al

Transcranial direct current stimulation for online gamers: A prospective single-arm feasibility study

Aim: Excessive use of online games can have negative influences on mental health and daily functioning. Although the effects of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) have been investigated for the treatment of addiction, it has not been evaluated for excessive online game use. This study aimed to investigate the feasibility and tolerability of tDCS over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) in online gamers. Methods: A total of 15 online gamers received 12 active tDCS sessions over the DLPFC (anodal left/cathodal right, 2 mA for 30 min, 3 times per week for 4 weeks). Before and after tDCS sessions, all participants underwent 18F-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose positron emission tomography scans and completed the Internet Addiction Test (IAT), Brief Self Control Scale (BSCS), and Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II). Results: After tDCS sessions, weekly hours spent on games (p = .02) and scores of IAT (p < .001) and BDI-II (p = .01) were decreased, whereas BSCS score was increased (p = .01). Increases in self-control were associated with decreases in both addiction severity (p = .002) and time spent on games (p = .02). Moreover, abnormal right-greater-than-left asymmetry of regional cerebral glucose metabolism in the DLPFC was partially alleviated (p = .04). Conclusions: Our preliminary results suggest that tDCS may be useful for reducing online game use by improving interhemispheric balance of glucose metabolism in the DLPFC and enhancing self-control. Larger sham-controlled studies with longer follow-up period are warranted to validate the efficacy of tDCS in gamers

Crystal structure of L-aspartate aminotransferase from Schizosaccharomyces pombe.

L-aspartate aminotransferase is a pyridoxal 5'-phosphate-dependent transaminase that catalyzes reversible transfer of an α-amino group from aspartate to α-ketoglutarate or from glutamate to oxaloacetate. L-aspartate aminotransferase not only mediates amino acid and carbohydrate metabolism but also regulates the cellular level of amino acids by catalyzing amino acid degradation and biosynthesis. To expand our structural information, we determined the crystal structure of L-aspartate aminotransferase from Schizosaccharomyces pombe at 2.1 Å resolution. A structural comparison between two yeast L-aspartate aminotransferases revealed conserved enzymatic mechanism mediated by the open-closed conformational change. Compared with higher eukaryotic species, L-aspartate aminotransferases showed distinguishable inter-subunit interaction between the N-terminal arm and a large domain of the opposite subunit. Interestingly, structural homology search showed varied conformation of the N-terminal arm among 71 structures of the family. Therefore, we classified pyridoxal 5'-phosphate-dependent enzymes into eight subclasses based on the structural feature of N-terminal arms. In addition, structure and sequence comparisons showed strong relationships among the eight subclasses. Our results may provide insights into structure-based evolutionary aspects of pyridoxal 5'-phosphate-dependent enzymes

탄소 첨가가 CoCrFeNiMo 중엔트로피합금의 미세조직과 기계적 특성 에 미치는 영향

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The Impact of Amyloid-Beta Positivity with 18F-Florbetaben PET on Neuropsychological Aspects in Parkinson’s Disease Dementia

The neuropathology of Parkinson&rsquo;s disease dementia (PDD) is heterogenous, and the impacts of each pathophysiology and their synergistic effects are not fully understood. The aim of this study was to evaluate the frequency and impacts of co-existence with Alzheimer&rsquo;s disease in patients with PDD by using 18F-florbetaben PET imaging. A total of 23 patients with PDD participated in the study. All participants underwent 18F-florbetaben PET and completed a standardized neuropsychological battery and assessment of motor symptoms. The results of cognitive tests, neuropsychiatric symptoms, and motor symptoms were analyzed between the positive and negative 18F-florbetaben PET groups. Four patients (17.4%) showed significant amyloid burden. Patients with amyloid-beta showed poorer performance in executive function and more severe neuropsychiatric symptoms than those without amyloid-beta. Motor symptoms assessed by UPDRS part III and the modified H&amp;Y Scale were not different between the two groups. The amyloid PET scan of a patient with PDD can effectively reflect a co-existing Alzheimer&rsquo;s disease pathology. Amyloid PET scans might be able to help physicians of PDD patients showing rapid progression or severe cognitive/behavioral features

Molecular Rh(III) and Ir(III) Catalysts Immobilized on Bipyridine-Based Covalent Triazine Frameworks for the Hydrogenation of CO2 to Formate

The catalytic reactivity of molecular Rh(III)/Ir(III) catalysts immobilized on two- and three-dimensional Bipyridine-based Covalent Triazine Frameworks (bpy-CTF) for the hydrogenation of CO2 to formate has been described. The heterogenized Ir complex demonstrated superior catalytic efficiency over its Rh counterpart. The Ir catalyst immobilized on two-dimensional bpy-CTF showed an improved turnover frequency and turnover number compared to its three-dimensional counterpart. The two-dimensional Ir catalyst produced a maximum formate concentration of 1.8 M and maintained its catalytic efficiency over five consecutive runs with an average of 92% in each cycle. The reduced activity after recycling was studied by density functional theory calculations, and a plausible leaching pathway along with a rational catalyst design guidance have been proposed

Crystal Structure of Nitrilase-Like Protein Nit2 from Kluyveromyces lactis

The nitrilase superfamily, including 13 branches, plays various biological functions in signaling molecule synthesis, vitamin metabolism, small-molecule detoxification, and posttranslational modifications. Most of the mammals and yeasts have Nit1 and Nit2 proteins, which belong to the nitrilase-like (Nit) branch of the nitrilase superfamily. Recent studies have suggested that Nit1 is a metabolite repair enzyme, whereas Nit2 shows ω-amidase activity. In addition, Nit1 and Nit2 are suggested as putative tumor suppressors through different ways in mammals. Yeast Nit2 (yNit2) is a homolog of mouse Nit1 based on similarity in sequence. To understand its specific structural features, we determined the crystal structure of Nit2 from Kluyveromyces lactis (KlNit2) at 2.2 Å resolution and compared it with the structure of yeast-, worm-, and mouse-derived Nit2 proteins. Based on our structural analysis, we identified five distinguishable structural features from 28 structural homologs. This study might potentially provide insights into the structural relationships of a broad spectrum of nitrilases