Discrimination and Proper Use of Polygoni Multiflori Radix, Cynanchi Wilfordii Radix, and Cynanchi Auriculati Radix in Korea: A Descriptive Review

Polygoni Multiflori Radix (PMR), Cynanchi Wilfordii Radix (CWR), and Cynanchi Auriculati Radix (CAR) are very popular herbal medicines in Traditional Korean Medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine, and Kampo Medicine. However, the plant origins, efficacies, and traditional uses of these herbal medicines differ. In Korea, PMR is called Ha Su O (He Shou Wu in China), and CWR is called Baek Ha Su O or Baek Su O (Bai Shou Wu in China). Baek Su O refers to CWR in Korea and CAR in China. CAR has not been used as a traditional herbal medicine, and it cannot be legally used as a food or food ingredient in Korea. However, CAR is cultivated in Korea and imported from China. Because the morphology of CWR and CAR is very similar, they are often confused and misused in Korea. This review discusses the reasons for the confusion and misuse of these substances in Korea and provides the exact plant origins, efficacies, uses, components, and toxicities of PMR, CWR, and CAR so that they can be correctly understood and used

Silent Microbleeds and Hemorrhagic Conversion of an Embolic Infarction

We report a patient with multiple simultaneous embolic infarctions with localized hemorrhagic conversion. A 75-year-old male patient had several silent microbleeds (SMBs) exclusively in the cerebral cortex, and underwent angioplasty and stenting for bilateral carotid stenosis. He subsequently experienced embolic infarctions in the cortex and the striatum: the cortical infarction, where an SMB had been present, showed hemorrhagic conversion, whereas the striatal infarction did not. This case suggests that SMBs are indicators of an underlying hemorrhage-prone state

Effects of Chung-Pae Inhalation Therapy on a Mouse Model of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Chung-pae (CP) inhalation therapy is a method frequently used in Korea to treat lung disease, especially chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This study investigated the effects of CP inhalation on a COPD animal model. C57BL/6 mice received porcine pancreatic elastase (PPE) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) alternately three times for 3 weeks to induce COPD. Then, CP (5 or 20 mg/kg) was administered every 2 h after the final LPS administration. The effect of CP was evaluated by bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid analysis, histological analysis of lung tissue, and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction analysis of mRNA of interleukin- (IL-) 1β, tumor necrosis factor- (TNF-) α, IL-6, and tumor growth factor- (TGF-) β. Intratracheal CP administration reduced the number of leukocytes and neutrophils in BAL fluid, inhibited the histological appearance of lung damage, and decreased the mRNA levels of the proinflammatory cytokines IL-1β, TNF-α, IL-6, and TGF-β. Intratracheal CP administration effectively decreased the chronic inflammation and pathological changes in a PPE- and LPS-induced COPD mouse model. Therefore, we suggest that CP is a promising strategy for COPD

Episodic astasia-abasia associated with hyperperfusion in the subthalamic region and dorsal brainstem

Astasia-abasia refers to the inability to stand or walk despite possessing good motor strength and conserved voluntary coordination. Although it is usually regarded as a psychogenic disorder, organic causes have been reported. Herein we describe a patient who presented with alcohol-induced episodic astasia-abasia. Interestingly, SPECT performed during an episode showed hyperperfusion in the dorsal brainstem and subthalamic region. These areas roughly coincide with the mesencephalic locomotor region and subthalamic locomotor region, respectively, and it is conceivable that abnormal neural activity in these areas is related to the symptoms in our patient.Musienko PE, 2008, BEHAV BRAIN RES, V190, P124, DOI 10.1016/j.bbr.2008.02.011Jahn K, 2008, NEUROIMAGE, V39, P786, DOI 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2007.09.047Song IU, 2007, EUR NEUROL, V57, P106, DOI 10.1159/000098061Kataoka H, 2006, STROKE, V37, pE3, DOI 10.1161/01.STR.0000195046.89926.98Lee PH, 2005, EUR J NEUROL, V12, P317Hathout GM, 2005, AM J ROENTGENOL, V184, P953Ouchi Y, 2001, J CEREBR BLOOD F MET, V21, P1058Yazici KM, 1998, PSYCHIAT RES-NEUROIM, V83, P163TIIHONEN J, 1994, AM J PSYCHIAT, V151, P1505MASDEU JC, 1994, ANN NEUROL, V35, P619FELICE KJ, 1990, NEUROLOGY, V40, P1004MASDEU JC, 1988, ANN NEUROL, V23, P596

Association of Alcohol Consumption with the Risk of Ocular Trauma

This study was conducted to evaluate the influence of alcohol consumption on the risk of ocular trauma. We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 1,024 patients who visited emergency department and received ophthalmologic examination from January 1 to December 31, 2009. The patients were divided into 2 groups: those with ocular trauma (n = 494) and those without (n = 530); the influence of alcohol consumption was compared between these 2 groups. In the ocular trauma group, the association of the causes and types of ocular trauma with alcohol consumption was evaluated. One of 530 patients of no trauma group and 117 (23.7%) of 494 patients of trauma group were related with alcohol intake, and the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.001). Concerning the causes, physical assault was significantly more common in alcohol-associated injury (P < 0.001). Regarding the types of injury, orbital wall fracture and hyphema showed a significant association with alcohol consumption (P < 0.001). Older age and nighttime injury were significantly related to the increased risk of alcohol-associated ocular trauma (P = 0.018 and < 0.001, respectively). In conclusion, alcohol consumption significantly increases the risk of ocular trauma

Postoperative occlusion of visual axis with fibrous membrane in the presence of anterior capsular phimosis in a patient with pseudoexfoliation syndrome: a case report

This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made.Abstract Background To report a case of postoperative fibrous membrane formation occluding the visual axis in the presence of anterior capsular phimosis in a patient with pseudoexfoliation syndrome. Case presentation A 79-year-old Asian woman with pseudoexfoliation syndrome underwent uneventful phacoemulsification and implantation of one-piece hydrophilic acrylic square-edged intraocular lens (Cristalens) in the right eye. Two months later, she had blurred vision in the right eye with the best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) of 20/40. Formation of fibrous membrane occluding the capsulorhexis opening with contraction of anterior capsule was observed, which was confirmed by anterior segment optical coherence tomography. Clear visual axis was achieved by lysis of the membrane using Nd:YAG laser. The BCVA improved to 20/20. Conclusions Occlusion of the visual axis with fibrous membrane can develop in the presence of anterior capsular phimosis in a patient with pseudoexfoliation syndrome

Differential profiling of breast cancer plasma proteome by isotope-coded affinity tagging method reveals biotinidase as a breast cancer biomarker

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Breast cancer is one of the leading causes of women's death worldwide. It is important to discover a reliable biomarker for the detection of breast cancer. Plasma is the most ideal source for cancer biomarker discovery since many cells cross-communicate through the secretion of soluble proteins into blood.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Plasma proteomes obtained from 6 breast cancer patients and 6 normal healthy women were analyzed by using the isotope-coded affinity tag (ICAT) labeling approach and tandem mass spectrometry. All the plasma samples used were depleted of highly abundant 6 plasma proteins by immune-affinity column chromatography before ICAT labeling. Several proteins showing differential abundance level were selected based on literature searches and their specificity to the commercially available antibodies, and then verified by immunoblot assays.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A total of 155 proteins were identified and quantified by ICAT method. Among them, 33 proteins showed abundance changes by more than 1.5-fold between the plasmas of breast cancer patients and healthy women. We chose 5 proteins for the follow-up confirmation in the individual plasma samples using immunoblot assay. Four proteins, α1-acid glycoprotein 2, monocyte differentiation antigen CD14, biotinidase (BTD), and glutathione peroxidase 3, showed similar abundance ratio to ICAT result. Using a blind set of plasmas obtained from 21 breast cancer patients and 21 normal healthy controls, we confirmed that BTD was significantly down-regulated in breast cancer plasma (Wilcoxon rank-sum test, <it>p </it>= 0.002). BTD levels were lowered in all cancer grades (I-IV) except cancer grade zero. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of BTD was 0.78. Estrogen receptor status (<it>p </it>= 0.940) and progesterone receptor status (<it>p </it>= 0.440) were not associated with the plasma BTD levels.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our study suggests that BTD is a potential serological biomarker for the detection of breast cancer.</p

Paradoxical effect of obesity on hemorrhagic transformation after acute ischemic stroke

Background : Among the patients with established coronary artery diseases, obese patients tend to have a more favorable prognosis, which is called as obesity paradox. Interestingly, mildly obese patients who underwent coronary revascularization had a lower risk of bleeding. In this context, we have investigated the association between obesity and hemorrhagic transformation (HTf) after acute ischemic stroke. Methods : A total of 365 patients with first-ever acute ischemic stroke were included in this study. Demographic, clinical and radiological information was collected and HTf was evaluated through follow-up T2*-weighted gradient-recalled echo MRI performed usually within 1 week after occurrence of stroke. Body mass index was calculated, and obesity was defined using the World Health Organization Western Pacific Regional Office criteria. Results : The HTf was identified in 59 patients (16.2%). As the severity of obesity increased, the occurrence of HTf decreased. Compared with the normal weight group and after controlling possible confounders including acute and previous treatment, stroke severity and subtype, the risk of HTf decreased significantly in the obese group (odds ratio, 0.39; 95% confidence interval, 0.17-0.87). Conclusions : The better outcome for HTf seen in obese patients suggests the existence of a bleeding-obesity paradox in acute ischemic stroke.This work was supported by grants of the Korean Health Technology R&D Project, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Republic of Korea (A111014).Peer Reviewe