Sericea lespedeza (Lespedeza cuneata) whole plant extract enhances rat muscle mass and sperm production by increasing the activity of NO-cGMP pathway and serum testosterone

Purpose: To analyze the effects of an aqueous extract of Sericea lespedeza (SL) on rat male menopause.Methods: Levels of nitric oxide (NO), endothelial nitric oxide synthase (NOS), cGMP, and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) in the penile corpus cavernosum of the rats were evaluated using appropriate kits. Serum levels of dihydrotestosterone (DHT), testosterone, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), and 17-beta hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases (17β-HSD) were measured with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits. Total and motile sperms were counted on a hemocytometer. Histological changes in rat testis and epididymis were analyzed with hematoxylin and eosin staining.Results: The levels of NO, NOS, and cGMP (but not PGE2) increased in a dose-dependent manner (p< 0.05) upon administration of an aqueous extract of SL (AESL), while levels of DHT, 17β-HSD, and testosterone increased in the group administered with 300 mg/kg of AESL. Epididymal sperm count increased by 24 % in such rats compared to controls (p < 0.05).Conclusion: The aqueous extract of SL improves sperm count and muscle mass in rats by increasing the levels of NO, NOS, cGMP and testosterone. Thus, SL extract can potentially be developed as an alternative therapeutic agent for clinical management of TDS. Keywords: NO-cGMP, Testosterone, Hormones, Sperm count, Muscle mass, Sericea lespedeza, Lespedeza cuneat

Development of a high yield purification process for the production of influenza virus vaccines

Production of influenza virus in animal cells has emerged as an alternative to conventional platforms such as egg-based production system. Animal cells, especially MDCK and VERO cell lines, are widely used as the primary production cell for influenza virus vaccine because of their high susceptibility to infection with various influenza viruses. Recently, a robust and reliable purification process was successfully developed for the production of quadri-valent HA proteins (from two strains of the type A virus and two strains of the type B virus) by using animal cell-based production system in Green Cross Corp., Korea. The UF/DF process, Benzonase treatment at high temperature as well as column chromatography strategy was optimized to maximize the final HA production yields. Benzonase treatment was conducted to reduce in hcDNA (host cell DNA) because hcDNA was main impurity for cell-based influenza virus vaccine. A simple and stable UF/DF process has been tested with membrane molecular weight cutoffs of 100 and 300 kDa as well as 0.2 and 0.45 um microfiltration membrane. Anion exchange chromatography (AEC) and size exclusion chromatography (SEC) were selected for acceptable reduction in hcDNA and HCP. AEC was used to separate hcDNA from virus at a salt concentration of 0.5 M sodium chloride. The HA yield through AEC & SEC combination process was sufficiently achieved under specific purification process condition. Overall, the amount of residual hcDNA was reduced to an acceptable level (10ng/dose) and the increased HA yield was maintained throughout the whole process. The performance, productivity and scalability of the purification process were successfully demonstrated in over 30 GMP batches using 4 different influenza virus strains

A Case of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension Associated With Hyperthyroidism, Persistent After Euthyroidism Was Obtained

Cardiovascular manifestations in hyperthyroidism occur frequently with various phenotypes. An association between hyperthyroidism and pulmonary arterial hypertension has been reported. In previously reported cases, the hemodynamic and symptomatic recovery of pulmonary arterial hypertension is usually concomitant with achievement of euthyroidism. We report a patient who had pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with Graves' disease, which persisted after euthyroidism was obtained

Efficacy of Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) supplement in management of constipation among nursing home residents

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Constipation is a significant problem in the elderly, specifically nursing home and/or extended-care facility residents are reported to suffer from constipation. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are beneficial probiotic organisms that contribute to improved nutrition, microbial balance, and immuno-enhancement of the intestinal tract, as well as diarrhea and constipation effect. The objective of this study was to investigate the efficacy of this LAB supplement in the management of nursing home residents.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Nineteen subjects (8M, 11F; mean age 77.1 ± 10.1) suffering with chronic constipation were assigned to receive LAB (3.0 × 10¹¹CFU/g) twice (to be taken 30 minutes after breakfast and dinner) a day for 2 weeks in November 2008. Subjects draw up a questionnaire on defecation habits (frequency of defecation, amount and state of stool), and we collected fecal samples from the subjects both before entering and after ending the trial, to investigate LAB levels and inhibition of harmful enzyme activities. Results were tested with SAS and Student's t-test.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Analysis of questionnaire showed that there was an increase in the frequency of defecation and amount of stool excreted in defecation habit after LAB treatment, but there were no significant changes. And it also affects the intestinal environment, through significantly increase (<it>p </it>< 0.05) fecal LAB levels. In addition, tryptophanase and urease among harmful enzyme activities of intestinal microflora were significantly decreased (<it>p </it>< 0.05) after LAB treatment.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>LAB, when added to the standard treatment regimen for nursing home residents with chronic constipation, increased defecation habit such as frequency of defecation, amount and state of stool. So, it may be used as functional probiotics to improve human health by helping to prevent constipation.</p

Next-generation sequencing analysis of hepatitis C virus resistance–associated substitutions in direct-acting antiviral failure in South Korea

Background/Aims We used next-generation sequencing (NGS) to analyze resistance-associated substitutions (RASs) and retreatment outcomes in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection who failed direct-acting antiviral agent (DAA) treatment in South Korea. Methods Using prospectively collected data from the Korean HCV cohort study, we recruited 36 patients who failed DAA treatment in 10 centers between 2007 and 2020; 29 blood samples were available from 24 patients. RASs were analyzed using NGS. Results RASs were analyzed for 13 patients with genotype 1b, 10 with genotype 2, and one with genotype 3a. The unsuccessful DAA regimens were daclatasvir+asunaprevir (n=11), sofosbuvir+ribavirin (n=9), ledipasvir/sofosbuvir (n=3), and glecaprevir/pibrentasvir (n=1). In the patients with genotype 1b, NS3, NS5A, and NS5B RASs were detected in eight, seven, and seven of 10 patients at baseline and in four, six, and two of six patients after DAA failure, respectively. Among the 10 patients with genotype 2, the only baseline RAS was NS3 Y56F, which was detected in one patient. NS5A F28C was detected after DAA failure in a patient with genotype 2 infection who was erroneously treated with daclatasvir+asunaprevir. After retreatment, 16 patients had a 100% sustained virological response rate. Conclusions NS3 and NS5A RASs were commonly present at baseline, and there was an increasing trend of NS5A RASs after failed DAA treatment in genotype 1b. However, RASs were rarely present in patients with genotype 2 who were treated with sofosbuvir+ribavirin. Despite baseline or treatment-emergent RASs, retreatment with pan-genotypic DAA was highly successful in Korea, so we encourage active retreatment after unsuccessful DAA treatment

A Multiinstitutional Consensus Study on the Pathologic Diagnosis of Endometrial Hyperplasia and Carcinoma

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to examine the reproducibility of both the diagnosis of endometrial hyperplasia (EH) or adenocarcinoma, and the histologic grading (HG) of endometrioid adenocarcinoma (EC). METHODS: Ninety-three cases of EH or adenocarcinomas were reviewed independently by 21 pathologists of the Gynecologic Pathology Study Group. A consensus diagnosis was defined as agreement among more than two thirds of the 21 pathologists. RESULTS: There was no agreement on the diagnosis in 13 cases (14.0%). According to the consensus review, six of the 11 EH cases (54.5%) were diagnosed as EH, 48 of the 57 EC cases (84.2%) were EC, and 5 of the 6 serous carcinomas (SC) (83.3%) were SC. There was no consensus for the 6 atypical EH (AEH) cases. On the HG of EC, there was no agreement in 2 cases (3.5%). According to the consensus review, 30 of the 33 G1 cases (90.9%) were G1, 11 of the 18 G2 cases (61.1%) were G2, and 4 of the 4 G3 cases (100.0%) were G3. CONCLUSIONS: The consensus study showed high agreement for both EC and SC, but there was no consensus for AEH. The reproducibility for the HG of G2 was poor. We suggest that simplification of the classification of EH and a two-tiered grading system for EC will be necessary.This study was partly supported by research fund of Chungnam National University in 2007

Topical application of Jaungo in atopic dermatitis patients: study protocol for a randomized, controlled trial

Abstract Background Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common pruritic inflammatory skin disease with increasing prevalence. It can manifest with many different clinical phenotypes; however, in its chronic stage, hyperpigmentation, excoriation, lichenification, and dryness are the main symptoms. Jaungo comprises two herbs, Lithospermi radix and Angelica gigantis radix, and three carrier oils, and is an approved herbal ointment for xerosis cutis in Korea. In past studies, we demonstrated that Jaungo had anti-inflammatory and antiallergic activity in in vitro and in vivo AD models; however, there are few relevant randomized controlled clinical trials on Jaungo in AD. Methods/design A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, single-center, phase IIa clinical trial was designed to investigate the safety, preliminary efficacy, and dose response of Jaungo in AD. The study protocol was approved by the Institutional Review Boards of the Kyung Hee University Korean Medicine Hospital (No. KOMCIRB-160617-HR-027) and the Korea Food and Drug Administration (No. 30907). The study aims to enroll 34 AD patients to be randomly distributed among three parallel groups: treatment 1, treatment 2, and the placebo group. Treatment group 1 applies Jaungo twice a day, while treatment group 2 applies Jaungo and the placebo ointment once a day, separately, and the placebo group applies the placebo ointment twice a day, for a total of 3 weeks each. Participants will be evaluated for eczema before and after the application of the ointments based on several parameters including the Eczema Area and Severity Index, the SCORing of Atopic Dermatitis Index, the Dermatology Life Quality Index, transepidermal water loss, total IgE level, eosinophil count, and IL-17, IL-22, and IFN-γ levels. Discussion The trial is currently ongoing and the enrollment of subjects has been initiated. There is an urgent need to develop a drug for the treatment of dry, hyperpigmented, scaly, and thickened skin in chronic-stage AD. This study will determine the efficacy and safety of Jaungo in AD, providing evidence for specific AD symptoms treated by Jaungo. Trial registration Clinical Trials.gov, identifier: NCT02900131 . Registered on 2 September 2016. Korea Clinical Research Information Service, identifier: KCT0002060 . Registered on 22 July 2016

Perceptions of nurses on human papillomavirus vaccinations in the Republic of Korea.

BACKGROUND:In June 2016, the Republic of Korea included free human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccinations for all 12-year-old girls in its national immunization program. PURPOSE:This study investigated perceptions of nurses on HPV vaccination and their intent to vaccinate preteens at the best ages. METHODS:Recruited for the survey were 514 health teachers (181, 35.2%), public health nurses (168, 32.7%), and clinical nurses (165, 32.1%). Factor-analysis was conducted to validate the Vaccine-Hesitancy Scale for Korean nurses. Related variables associated with vaccine-acceptance were examined using the Kruskal-Wallis test and Spearman's rho coefficients, due to lack of normalization. RESULTS:Factor-analysis results showed that two factors of positive acceptance (7 items) and negative acceptance (3 items) accounted for 67.46% of the total variance, and explained 47.4% and 20.1%, respectively. Nurses who positively accepted HPV vaccine differed significantly in agreement to vaccinate girls or boys. For the proper vaccination age, a significant difference emerged between answers for girls and vaccine-acceptance scores, whereas no difference emerged between answers for boys and the scores. The vaccinated status of respondents significantly related to higher HPV vaccine acceptance, although age, religion, marital status, education, and working duration did not. CONCLUSIONS:This study showed that vaccine-acceptance levels reflect nurses' attitudes and opinions about HPV vaccination for girls and boys