Seroprevalence of Antibodies against Anisakis simplex Larvae among Health-Examined Residents in Three Hospitals of Southern Parts of Korea

The present study was performed to estimate the seroprevalence of larval Anisakis simplex infection among the residents health-examined in 3 hospitals in southern parts of Korea. A total of 498 serum samples (1 serum per person) were collected in 3 hospitals in Busan Metropolitan city, Masan city, and Geoje city in Gyeongsangnam-do (Province) and were examined by IgE-ELISA and IgE-western blotting with larval A. simplex crude extract and excretory-secretory products (ESP). The prevalence of antibody positivity was 5.0% and 6.6% with ELISA against crude extracts and ESP, respectively. It was also revealed that infection occurred throughout all age groups and higher in females than in males. A specific protein band of 130 kDa was detected from 10 patients with western blot analysis against crude extract and ESP among those who showed positive results by ELISA. Our study showed for the first time the seroprevalence of anisakiasis in Korea. The allergen of 130 kDa can be a candidate for serologic diagnosis of anisakiasis

Classification of Metastatic versus Non-Metastatic Axillary Nodes in Breast Cancer Patients: Value of Cortex-Hilum Area Ratio with Ultrasound

Purpose: To investigate the significance of the cortex-hilum (CH) area ratio and longitudinal-transverse (LT) axis ratio and the blood flow pattern for diagnosis of metastatic axillary lymph nodes by ultrasound in breast cancer patients. Methods: From October 2005 to July 2006, we prospectively evaluated axillary nodes with ultrasound in 205 consecutive patients who had category 4B, 4C or 5 breast lesions according to the Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System-Ultrasound (BI-RADS-Ultrasound ®). Among the 205, there were 24 patients who had pathologic verification of breast cancer and axillary lymph node status. For a total of 80 axillary nodes we measured the areas of the cortex and hilum of lymph nodes and calculated the area ratio. We also measured the length of the longitudinal and transverse axis of the lymph nodes and calculated the length ratio. We evaluated the blood flow pattern on power Doppler imaging and classified each lymp

Transcriptomics Using the Enriched Arabidopsis Shoot Apex Reveals Developmental Priming Genes Involved in Plastic Plant Growth under Salt Stress Conditions

In the shoot apical meristem (SAM), the homeostasis of the stem cell population supplying new cells for organ formation is likely a key mechanism of multicellular plant growth and development. As plants are sessile organisms and constantly encounter environmental abiotic stresses, postembryonic development from the shoot stem cell population must be considered with surrounding abiotic stresses for plant adaptation. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms for plant adaptation remain unclear. Previous studies found that the stem-cell-related mutant clv3-2 has the property of salt tolerance without the differential response of typical stress-responsive genes compared to those in WT Ler. Based on these facts, we hypothesized that shoot meristems contain developmental priming genes having comprehensively converged functions involved in abiotic stress response and development. To better understand the biological process of developmental priming genes in the SAM, we performed RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) and transcriptome analysis through comparing genome-wide gene expression profiles between enriched shoot apex and leaf tissues. As a result, 121 putative developmental priming genes differentially expressed in the shoot apex compared to the leaf were identified under normal and salt stress conditions. RNA-seq experiments also revealed the shoot apex-specific responsive genes for salt stress conditions. Based on combinatorial comparisons, 19 developmental priming genes were finally identified, including developmental genes related to cell division and abiotic/biotic-stress-responsive genes. Moreover, some priming genes showed CLV3-dependent responses under salt stress conditions in the clv3-2. These results presumably provide insight into how shoot meristem tissues have relatively high viability against stressful environmental conditions for the developmental plasticity of plants

System Framework for Cardiovascular Disease Prediction Based on Big Data Technology

Amid growing concern over the changing climate, environment, and health care, the interconnectivity between cardiovascular diseases, coupled with rapid industrialization, and a variety of environmental factors, has been the focus of recent research. It is necessary to research risk factor extraction techniques that consider individual external factors and predict diseases and conditions. Therefore, we designed a framework to collect and store various domains of data on the causes of cardiovascular disease, and constructed a big data integrated database. A variety of open source databases were integrated and migrated onto distributed storage devices. The integrated database was composed of clinical data on cardiovascular diseases, national health and nutrition examination surveys, statistical geographic information, population and housing censuses, meteorological administration data, and Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service data. The framework was composed of data, speed, analysis, and service layers, all stored on distributed storage devices. Finally, we proposed a framework for a cardiovascular disease prediction system based on lambda architecture to solve the problems associated with the real-time analyses of big data. This system can be used to help predict and diagnose illnesses, such as cardiovascular diseases

TBG-136, a Schizophyllum commune-derived β-glucan benefits gut microbiota and intestinal health: A randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled clinical trial

β-glucan exerts beneficial biological activities such as immunoregulatory, anticancer, antioxidative, antiaging, and wound healing. However, the effects of β-glucan on constipation have not been thoroughly studied. Thus, the present study aimed to investigate the effects of β-glucan-derived from Schizophyllum commune supplementation (TBG-136) on gut microbiota and intestinal health in constipated subjects. As a result, Lactobacillus was significantly increased in the TBG-136 group compared to the placebo group (P < 0.05) after 8 weeks of TBG-136 supplementation. Additionally, TBG-136 group significantly improved the rectosigmoid CTT and the number of defecations compared to the placebo group (P < 0.05). Thus, β-glucan derived from Schizophyllum commune helps individuals' health and quality of life by increasing the beneficial bacteria and improving symptoms of constipation

Epidemiology and outcomes from non-traumatic out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in Korea: A nationwide observational study

Objectives: We aimed to describe the epidemiological features and to determine the predictors for survival to discharge of non-traumatic out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) in Korea. Subjects and methods: A nationwide Utstein style OHCA database (2006-2007) was constructed from ambulance records and hospital medical record review. Cases were enrolled when they were non-traumatic OHCA with presumed cardiac aetiology. Using the population census (2005), we calculated age-gender standardized incidence rates (SIR) and mortality (SMR). We modelled a multivariate logistic regression analysis to determine the effect of risk factors on hospital outcomes. Results: The total number of EMS-assessed non-traumatic OHCA patients was 19 045. The SIR was 20.9 (2006) and 22.2 (2007) per 100 000 and survival-to-discharge rate was 2.3% for EMS-assessed non-traumatic OHCA, and was 3.5% for the resuscitation-attempted group. From a multivariate logistic regression analysis, witnessed arrest, and shorter basic life support (BLS) and EMS intervals turned out to be significant predictors of good outcome in the resuscitation-attempted group. Conclusion: From a nationwide OHCA cohort, the incidence of EMS-assessed non-traumatic OHCA was found to be low. Survival-to-discharge rate in the resuscitation-attempted group was 3.5%, which was significantly associated with witnessed arrest, and shorter BLS and EMS intervals. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.This study was financially supported by the Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention (2007–2008).Spaite DW, 2009, ANN EMERG MED, V54, P248, DOI 10.1016/j.annemergmed.2008.11.020Iwami T, 2009, CIRCULATION, V119, P728, DOI 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.108.802058Spaite DW, 2008, RESUSCITATION, V79, P61, DOI 10.1016/j.resuscitation.2008.05.006Nichol G, 2008, JAMA-J AM MED ASSOC, V300, P1423, DOI 10.1001/jama.300.12.1423Ong MEH, 2008, RESUSCITATION, V78, P119, DOI 10.1016/j.resuscitation.2008.03.012Rosamond W, 2008, CIRCULATION, V117, pE25, DOI 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.107.187998Ma MHM, 2007, RESUSCITATION, V74, P461, DOI 10.1016/j.resuscitation.2007.02.006Galea S, 2007, AM J EPIDEMIOL, V166, P534, DOI 10.1093/aje/kwm102Sunde K, 2007, RESUSCITATION, V73, P29, DOI 10.1016/j.resuscitation.2006.08.016Lee CC, 2006, YONSEI MED J, V47, P587Donoghue AJ, 2005, ANN EMERG MED, V46, P512, DOI 10.1016/j.annemergmed.2005.05.028Atwood C, 2005, RESUSCITATION, V67, P75, DOI 10.1016/j.resuscitation.2005.03.021*AM HEART ASS, 2005, CIRCULATION, V112, P1, DOI DOI 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.105.166550Herlitz J, 2005, AM HEART J, V149, P61, DOI 10.1016/j.ahj.2004.07.014Jacobs I, 2004, CIRCULATION, V110, P3385, DOI 10.1161/01.CIR.0000147236.85306.15Nishiuchi T, 2003, RESUSCITATION, V59, P329, DOI 10.1016/S0300-9572(03)00241-7Stiell IG, 1999, JAMA-J AM MED ASSOC, V281, P1175Stiell IG, 1999, ANN EMERG MED, V33, P44