Detection of an Ala601Thr mutation of plasminogen gene in 3 out of 36 Korean patients with deep vein thrombosis.

Plasminogen is a key proenzyme in the fibrinolytic and thrombolytic systems. Congenital deficiency of plasminogen and molecular abnormality of plasminogen (dysplasminogenemia) have been reported in association with the thrombotic tendency in human. In dysplasminogenemia, the level of immunoreactive plasminogen is normal, although the functional activity is reduced. Human plasminogen gene spans about 52.5 kb of DNA and consists of 19 exons. Three types of mutations (Ala601Thr, Val355Phe, and Asp676Asn) have been described in dysplasminogenemia. In this study, we measured the plasminogen activity in patients with deep vein thrombosis and analyzed the DNA sequence to detect three point mutations (Ala601Thr, Val355Phe and Asp676Asn) in patients with hypo/dysplasminogenemia. Dysplasminogenemia was identified in 3 (8.3%) of unrelated 36 patients with deep vein thrombosis and the Ala601Thr mutation was detected in all three patients with dysplasminogenemia. In conclusion, dysplasminogenemia is not rare in deep vein thrombosis, which suggests a risk factor for the thrombosis in Korean population

Diagnosis of Overt Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation: A Comparative Study Using Criteria from the International Society Versus the Korean Society on Thrombosis and Hemostasis

PURPOSE: Since 1993, Koreans have used diagnostic criteria set by the Korean Society on Thrombosis and Hemostasis (KSTH) in the diagnosis of overt disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC). In 2001, the Scientific and Standardization Committee (SCC) of the International Society on Thrombosis and Hemostasis (ISTH) proposed new diagnostic criteria for the diagnosis of overt DIC. We wanted to compare the use of the ISTH versus KSTH criteria in the diagnosis of overt DIC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We enrolled 131 patients over the age of 15 years, who had been admitted and diagnosed as having DIC from May 2000 to April 2005 at the Youngdong Severance Hospital, Seoul, Korea. Of the 131 patients, there were 71 males and 60 females, with a median age of 61 years. Hemostatic tests, including platelet counts, PT, aPTT, fibrinogen level and D-dimer, were evaluated based on the respective scoring systems. To assess the concordance between the two diagnostic systems, we used the Student's t-test and the K-coefficient. RESULTS: There were 79 patients compatible with the ISTH criteria and 63 patients with the KSTH criteria. Sixty-one patients were compatible with both diagnostic systems. The grade of agreement, or concordance rate, was 84.7% and the K-coefficient, or interrater reliability, was as low as 0.6 without significance. However, if we scored 1 point for a fibrinogen level of 100-150 mg/dL, and 2 points for a level below 100 mg/dL, for the ISTH criteria, then 63 patients were compatible with both diagnostic systems, and the concordance rate increased to 85.5% and the K-coefficient to 0.71 with significance. CONCLUSION: To achieve good agreement between the ISTH and KSTH diagnostic systems for overt DIC, we highly recommend changing the plasma fibrinogen cut-off value in the ISTH criteria from 100mg/dL to 150 mg/dL and scoring up to 2 points for a level below 100 mg/dL.ope

Bloody nipple discharge in an infant

Although milky nipple discharge appears frequently in infants, bloody nipple discharge is a very rare finding. We experienced a 4-month-old, breast-fed infant who showed bilateral bloody nipple discharge with no signs of infection, engorgement, or hypertrophy. The infant's hormonal examination and coagulation tests were normal, and an ultrasound examination revealed mammary duct ectasia. The symptoms resolved spontaneously within 6 weeks without any specific treatment, except that we advised the mother to refrain from taking herbal medicine. Since no such case has been previously reported in Korea, we present this case with a brief review of the literature

THERMAL HYDRAULIC ISSUES OF CONTAINMENT FILTERED VENTING SYSTEM FOR A LONG OPERATING TIME

This study investigated the thermal hydraulic issues in the Containment Filtered Venting System (CFVS) for a long operating time using the MELCOR computer code. The modeling of the CFVS, including the models for pool scrubbing and the filter, was added to the input file for the OPR-1000, and a Station Blackout (SBO) was chosen as an accident scenario. Although depressurization in the containment building as a primary objective of the CFVS was successful, the decontamination feature by scrubbing and filtering in the CFVS for a long operating time could fail by the continuous evaporation of the scrubbing solution. After the operation of the CFVS, the atmosphere temperature in the CFVS became slightly above the water saturation temperature owing to the release of an amount of steam with high temperature from the containment building to the scrubbing solution. Reduced pipe diameters at the inlet and outlet of the CFVS vessel mitigated the evaporation of scrubbing water by controlling the amount of high-temperature steam and the water saturation temperature

Full-length genomic analysis of korean porcine sapelovirus strains.

Porcine sapelovirus (PSV), a species of the genus Sapelovirus within the family Picornaviridae, is associated with diarrhea, pneumonia, severe neurological disorders, and reproductive failure in pigs. However, the structural features of the complete PSV genome remain largely unknown. To analyze the structural features of PSV genomes, the full-length nucleotide sequences of three Korean PSV strains were determined and analyzed using bioinformatic techniques in comparison with other known PSV strains. The Korean PSV genomes ranged from 7,542 to 7,566 nucleotides excluding the 3' poly(A) tail, and showed the typical picornavirus genome organization; 5'untranslated region (UTR)-L-VP4-VP2-VP3-VP1-2A-2B-2C-3A-3B-3C-3D-3'UTR. Three distinct cis-active RNA elements, the internal ribosome entry site (IRES) in the 5'UTR, a cis-replication element (CRE) in the 2C coding region and 3'UTR were identified and their structures were predicted. Interestingly, the structural features of the CRE and 3'UTR were different between PSV strains. The availability of these first complete genome sequences for PSV strains will facilitate future investigations of the molecular pathogenesis and evolutionary characteristics of PSV

Plasma Factor XIII Activity in Patients with Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation

The objective of this study was to investigate the correlation between factor XIII (FXIII) activity and disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) parameters and also to evaluate the clinical usefulness of DIC diagnosis. Citrated plasma from eighty patients with potential DIC was analyzed for FXIII activity. The primary patient conditions (48 male and 32 female, mean age, 51 years) were malignancy (n = 29), infection (n = 25), inflammation (n = 6), heart disease (n = 3), thrombosis (n = 2), injury (n = 2), and other miscellaneous conditions (n = 13). FXIII testing was performed using the CoaLinkTM FXIII Incorporation Assay Kit (PeopleBio Inc.). Among 80 patients who were suspected to have DIC based on clinical analysis, 46 (57.5%) fulfilled the overt DIC criteria (DIC score > = 5) according to the International Society of Thrombosis and Haemostasis. FXIII levels in the plasma were significantly decreased in overt DIC compared to non-overt DIC patients (mean 75.1% and 199.7% respectively, p < 0.0001). Interestingly, we found a significant inverse correlation between DIC scores and FXIII activity. In addition, FXIII activity significantly correlated with other hemostatic markers that included platelet count, prothrombin time, activated partial thromboplastin time, fibrinogen, and D-dimer. FXIII levels were significantly lower in patients with liver or renal dysfunction. In conclusion, FXIII cross-linking activity measurements may have differential diagnostic value as well as predictive value in patients who are suspected to have DIC

Follicular Dendritic Cell Sarcoma of the Abdomen: the Imaging Findings

Follicular dendritic cell sarcoma is a rare neoplasm that originates from follicular dendritic cells in lymphoid follicles. This disease usually involves the lymph nodes, and especially the head and neck area. Rarely, extranodal sites may be affected, including tonsil, the oral cavity, liver, spleen and the gastrointestinal tract. We report here on the imaging findings of follicular dendritic cell sarcoma of the abdomen that involved the retroperitoneal lymph nodes and colon. It shows as a well-defined, enhancing homogenous mass with internal necrosis and regional lymphadenopathy

Association of Oncogenic Human Papillomaviruses(HPV 16, 18) with Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia and Cervical Cancer

The prevalence of oncogenic human papillomavirus (HPV) type 16 and 18 was investigated by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method in cervical scrapes omitting prior DNA extraction. Samples were obtained from 70 gynecologic inpatients with normal cervix and 160 women with cervical neoplastic lesion ( N = 50 in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) I, N = 50 in CIN II, N = 30 in CIN III, N = 30 in invasive cervical cancer). Eight members were excluded from the data due to failure of ,f3-g10bin amplification during the PCR procedure. The HPV 16 prevalence rate was 19.1 % (13/68) in the normal group, 38.8 % (19/49) in CIN 1,57.1 % (28/49) in CIN 11,75.9 % (22/29) in CIN III, 88.9% (24/27) in invasive cancer. For HPV type 18, DNA positivity was 4.4 % (3/68), 8.2 % (4/49), 12.2 % (6/49), 13.8 % (4/29), 18.5 % (5/27), respectively. In the whole series a consistent correlation was found between HPV positivity and severity of cervical lesion. HPV 16 was the more prevalent type and about five times more common than HPV 18. These results suggest that HPV 16 and 18 may be strongly associated with carcinogenesis of cervical cancer. The high risk HPV typing by direct PCR from cervical scrapes can be used as a useful marker for the presence of neoplastic cells and also served as a simple tool in identifying women who are at risk of developing dysplasia and cervical cancer