Effect of media and gelling agents on shoot organogenesis of Liriope platyphylla

Liriope platyphylla can be multiplied either by planting seeds or dividing its tuberous roots. In this study, a method for L. platyphylla plant shoot organogenesis from meristem explants was developed employing medium and gelling agents. For the selection of optimal medium conditions for shoot organogenesis, the effects of full- and half-strength B5, SH, and MS media were examined. Different concentrations of the gelling agents such as phytagar (6, 7, 8, and 9 g L-1) and gellan gum (2, 3, 4, and 5 g L-1) were examined for efficient shoot formation. The results revealed the superiority of half-strength MS basal medium in shoot organogenesis and growth of Liriope platyphylla. But the half-strength B5 media performed poorly. Compared to plant agar, gellan gum performed well in terms of shoot regeneration and shoot length. When gellan gum was used at 3 g L-1 the maximum number of shoots explant-1 (5.8) and longest shoot (45.8 mm) was observed but the lowest number of shoots explant-1 (3.2) and shortest shoot (21.4 mm) was registered with 5 g L-1. It is proposed from our study that half-strength MS media and gellan gun gelling agent at 3 g/l could be applied in shoot organogenesis and growth of L. platyphylla

Immunopathogenesis of Ocular Behçet’s Disease

Behçet’s disease (BD) is a chronic recurrent systemic inflammatory disorder of unknown etiology characterized by oral and genital ulcerations, skin lesions, and uveitis. The ocular involvement of BD, or Behçet’s uveitis (BU), is characterized by panuveitis or posterior uveitis with occlusive retinal vasculitis and tends to be more recurrent and sight threatening than other endogenous autoimmune uveitides, despite aggressive immunosuppression. Although pathogenesis of BD is unclear, researches have revealed that immunological aberrations may be the cornerstone of BD development. General hypothesis of BD pathogenesis is that inflammatory response is initiated by infectious agents or autoantigens in patients with predisposing genetic factors and perpetuated by both innate and acquired immunity. In addition, a network of immune mediators plays a substantial role in the inflammatory cascade. Recently, we found that the immunopathogenesis of BU is distinct from other autoimmune uveitides regarding intraocular effector cell profiles, maturation markers of dendritic cells, and the cytokine/chemokine environment. In addition, accumulating evidence indicates the involvement of Th17 cells in BD and BU. Recent studies on genetics and biologics therapies in refractory BU also support the immunological association with the pathogenesis of BU. In this review, we provide an overview of novel findings regarding the immunopathogenesis of BU

How lessons learned from the 2015 Middle East respiratory syndrome outbreak affected the response to coronavirus disease 2019 in the Republic of Korea

The Republic of Korea (ROK) experienced a public health crisis due to Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) in 2015 and is currently going through the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Lessons learned from the disastrous MERS outbreak were reflected in the preparedness system, and the readiness capabilities that were subsequently developed enabled the country to successfully flatten the epidemic curve of COVID-19 in late February and March 2020. In this review, we summarize and compare the epidemiology and response of the ROK to the 2015 MERS outbreak and the COVID-19 epidemic in early 2020. We emphasize that, because further COVID-19 waves seem inevitable, it is urgent to develop comprehensive preparedness and response plans for the worst-case scenarios of the COVID-19 pandemic. Simultaneously strengthening healthcare capacity to endure the peak demand and implementing smart strategies to sustain social distancing and public hygiene are necessary until safe and effective therapeutics and vaccines against COVID-19 are available.Peer reviewe

Ability of Stratus OCT to identify localized retinal nerve fiber layer defects in patients with normal standard automated perimetry results

PURPOSE: To evaluate the ability of Stratus optical coherence tomography (OCT; Carl Zeiss Meditec, Dublin, CA) with its internal normative database to discriminate between healthy eyes and eyes with a localized retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) defect not accompanied by a perimetric defect according to standard automated perimetry (SAP) (i.e., a preperimetric localized RNFL defect). METHODS: Data were retrospectively reviewed from 49 eyes of 49 subjects with preperimetric localized RNFL defects, and 49 healthy control eyes of 49 age-matched subjects, with classification into each group based primarily on red-free fundus photography RESULTS: The sensitivity and specificity of various OCT RNFL thickness parameters for identifying subjects with preperimetric localized RNFL defects was determined. In addition, the topographic relationship between the OCT-measured RNFL thickness and the localized RNFL defect location according to red-free fundus photography (i.e., the red-free RNFL defect) was examined. results. The sensitivity of the Stratus OCT RNFL thickness parameters ranged from 2.0% to 40.8%. The highest sensitivity was yielded using a criterion of > or =1 clock hour that were abnormal at the 5% level, which had a specificity of 85.7%. The OCT-measured RNFL thickness showed excellent topographic agreement with the red-free RNFL defect location. CONCLUSIONS: Although the sensitivity of current Stratus OCT RNFL thickness parameters is low for preperimetric localized RNFL defects, it appears that OCT has the potential to recognize such defects. Further study is needed to develop new analytical methods that will increase OCT sensitivity for identifying preperimetric localized RNFL damage

Analysis of carotenoid accumulation and expression of carotenoid biosynthesis genes in different organs of Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa subsp. pekinensis)

The relationship between carotenoid accumulation and expression of carotenoid biosynthesis genes was investigated in the flowers, stems, young leaves, old leaves, and roots of Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa subsp. pekinensis). Quantitative real-time PCR analysis showed that the mRNA levels of BrPSY, BrPDS, BrZDS, BrLCYB, BrLCYE, BrCHXB, and BrZEP leading to the production of carotenoids were highest in the flowers or the leaves and lowest in the roots of Chinese cabbage. In contrast, the mRNA expression of BrNCED, a gene involved in abscisic acid (ABA) biosynthesis, was highest in the roots. High-performance liquid chromatography revealed that carotenoids, namely, lutein and β-carotene, were distributed predominantly in the flowers and leaves, with very little in the underground organ, the roots. Specifically, old leaves contained 120.3 μg/g lutein and 103.93 μg/g β-carotene, which is the most potent dietary precursor of vitamin A. Moreover, we found a relatively large amount of cis isomers of β-carotene, namely, 9-cis β-carotene and 13-cis β-carotene, in Chinese cabbage. These results provide insight into carotenoid biosynthetic mechanisms in Chinese cabbage and may be helpful in the metabolic engineering of carotenoid biosynthesis in plants

Phenylalanine ammonia-lyase expression and pyranocoumarin accumulation in Angelica gigas plantlets exposed to light-emitting diodes

Angelica gigas (Dang Gui) is an important medicinal plant. In this study, we examined the accumulation of pyranocoumarin (decursin and decursinol angelate) and the expression of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) in Korean angelica plantlet grown under different light-emitting diodes (LEDs) (red, orange, green, blue, and white). Three weeks after LED exposure (WAE), the transcript levels of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase mRNA in seedlings grown under orange LEDs were 4-, 18-, and 7-fold higher than those in seedlings grown under green, blue, and white LEDs, respectively. The decursinol angelate content was almost double than the decursin content. The highest levels of decursin (3.2 mg/g dry weight) and decursinol angelate (6 mg/g dry weight) were detected in plants grown under orange LEDs, at 2 WAE. Therefore, we suggest that orange LEDs may affect decursin and decursinol angelate accumulation. The findings of this study could help to determine an effective strategy for producing secondary metabolites in A. gigas using LED technology

Epidural Pneumatic Pseudocyst with Lumbar Radiculopathy: Two Case Reports and Review of the Literature

Intradiscal vacuum phenomenon is commonly shown in radiographic studies of the degenerative spine. In terms of pathophysiology, intradiscal gas migrates to the epidural space, and then it could compress neural tissues and lead to severe radicular pain and/or neurologic deficits. Herein, we report two patients with lumbar radiculopathy resulting from gas-containing pseudocysts at the L5-S1 space, including our treatment and literature review. One patient had been underwent L5-S1 partial laminectomy and removal of the gas-containing pseudocyst, and the other underwent right selective L5 root block. After the procedures, they didn’t have any remarkable complaints. In the present study, we suggest that surgical decompression may be effective in patients who were untreatable with conservative treatment