LINE FUSION GENES: a database of LINE expression in human genes

BACKGROUND: Long Interspersed Nuclear Elements (LINEs) are the most abundant retrotransposons in humans. About 79% of human genes are estimated to contain at least one segment of LINE per transcription unit. Recent studies have shown that LINE elements can affect protein sequences, splicing patterns and expression of human genes. DESCRIPTION: We have developed a database, LINE FUSION GENES, for elucidating LINE expression throughout the human gene database. We searched the 28,171 genes listed in the NCBI database for LINE elements and analyzed their structures and expression patterns. The results show that the mRNA sequences of 1,329 genes were affected by LINE expression. The LINE expression types were classified on the basis of LINEs in the 5' UTR, exon or 3' UTR sequences of the mRNAs. Our database provides further information, such as the tissue distribution and chromosomal location of the genes, and the domain structure that is changed by LINE integration. We have linked all the accession numbers to the NCBI data bank to provide mRNA sequences for subsequent users. CONCLUSION: We believe that our work will interest genome scientists and might help them to gain insight into the implications of LINE expression for human evolution and disease. AVAILABILITY

Transduction of Cu, Zn-superoxide dismutase mediated by an HIV-1 Tat protein basic domain into human chondrocytes

This study was performed to investigate the transduction of a full-length superoxide dismutase (SOD) protein fused to transactivator of transcription (Tat) into human chondrocytes, and to determine the regulatory function of transduced Tat-SOD in the inflammatory cytokine induced catabolic pathway. The pTat-SOD expression vector was constructed to express the basic domain of HIV-1 Tat as a fusion protein with Cu, Zn-SOD. We also purified histidine-tagged SOD without an HIV-1 Tat and Tat-GFP as control proteins. Cartilage samples were obtained from patients with osteoarthritis (OA) and chondrocytes were cultured in both a monolayer and an explant. For the transduction of fusion proteins, cells/explants were treated with a variety of concentrations of fusion proteins. The transduced protein was detected by fluorescein labeling, western blotting and SOD activity assay. Effects of transduced Tat-SOD on the regulation of IL-1 induced nitric oxide (NO) production and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) mRNA expression was assessed by the Griess reaction and reverse transcriptase PCR, respectively. Tat-SOD was successfully delivered into both the monolayer and explant cultured chondrocytes, whereas the control SOD was not. The intracellular transduction of Tat-SOD into cultured chondrocytes was detected after 1 hours, and the amount of transduced protein did not change significantly after further incubation. SOD enzyme activity increased in a dose-dependent manner. NO production and iNOS mRNA expression, in response to IL-1 stimulation, was significantly down-regulated by pretreatment with Tat-SOD fusion proteins. This study shows that protein delivery employing the Tat-protein transduction domain is feasible as a therapeutic modality to regulate catabolic processes in cartilage. Construction of additional Tat-fusion proteins that can regulate cartilage metabolism favorably and application of this technology in in vivo models of arthritis are the subjects of future studies

Cancer Statistics in Korea: Incidence, Mortality, Survival, and Prevalence in 2008

PURPOSE: This paper overviews the nationwide cancer statistics including incidence, mortality, survival and prevalence, and their trends in Korea based on the year 2008 cancer incidence data. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Incidence data from 1993 to 2008 were obtained from the Korea National Cancer Incidence Database, and the vital status was followed through December 31, 2009. Mortality data from 1983 to 2008 were obtained from the Korea National Statistics Office. Crude rates and age-standardized rates for incidence, mortality, prevalence and relative survival were calculated. RESULTS: There were 178,816 cancer cases and 68,912 cancer deaths observed during year 2008 and 724,663 10-year cancer prevalent cases as of January 1, 2009 in Korea. The incidence rate for all cancer combined showed an annual increase of 3.1% from 1999 to 2008. CONCLUSION: With significantly increasing cancer incidence, Korea faces a large cancer burden and efficient cancer control programs are essential.ope

Malignancies in Korean Patients with Inflammatory Myopathy

The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and the common type of malignancies in Korean patients with polymyositis (PM) and dermatomyositis (DM) and to evaluate the differences of clinical and laboratory findings between patients with malignancy and those without malignancy. Forty-one Korean patients, who were diagnosed as PM or DM, were enrolled in this study. They fulfilled the Bohan and Peter's criteria for a definite diagnosis of PM and DM. Patients with PM were 25 and those with DM were 16. Eleven out of 41 patients (26.8%) had malignancies. The malignancy was diagnosed simultaneously or later in 81.8% of patients with inflammatory myopathy (IM). The breast cancer was the most common malignancy. In this study, forty three years old as a screening age for malignancy had 88.9% sensitivity and 50.2% specificity. The serum levels of creatine kinase (CK) were significantly lower in patients with malignancy than those without malignancy

Incidence and clinicopathologic behavior of uterine cervical carcinoma in renal transplant recipients

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Renal allograft recipients are reported to have a higher incidence of malignancy than the general population. This single hospital-based study examined the incidence and clinicopathologic behavior of uterine cervical carcinoma in renal transplant recipients.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Among 453 women receiving renal transplantation from January 1990 to December 2008, 5 patients were diagnosed with cervical carcinoma. Medical records of these 5 patients were retrospectively reviewed, and clinicopathologic data were collected and analyzed.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The incidence of cervical carcinoma in renal transplant recipients was 58.1 out of 100,000 per year, which is 3.5 times higher than in the general Korean population. The mean interval between the time of renal transplantation and the time of cervical carcinoma diagnosis was 80.7 months. After a median follow-up of 96.2 months, there was no recurrence of the disease or death. In 4 patients who were positive from human papillomavirus in situ hybridization (HPV ISH), high or probably high risk HPV DNA was detected in all. Punctate staining of HPV ISH was detected in 3 out of 4 patients.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Higher incidence of cervical carcinoma is expected in renal transplant recipients, so appropriate surveillance is needed to ensure early detection and treatment of cervical carcinoma.</p

Analysis of import changes through shift-share, location quotient and BCG techniques: Gwangyang Port in Asia

The main aim of this article is to analyze the import changes of Gwangyang Port using shift-share, location quotient and BCG matrix techniques. We perform the standard shift-share analysis and spatial shift-share analysis for the period 2010–2018 and investigate the import performance of Gwangyang Port for coal, iron ore, natural gas and vegetable matter. The static analysis shows that the regional shift effect, which is the most important component, is negative for coal and iron ore, but positive for natural gas and vegetable matter. The spatial shift-share analysis also indicates that Gwangyang Port experiences not only the gains in regional competitiveness but the industrial advantage for iron ore, natural gas and vegetable matter owing to its higher competitiveness. Incorporating location coefficients into BCG matrix for coal imports, we also show that Gwangyang Port succeeds upgrading its position for natural gas and vegetable matter, but fails escaping from transformation category or upgrading its position for coal and iron ore

Digital Workflow for Retrofitting a Surveyed Crown Using a Removable Partial Denture as an Antagonist

Digital workflow expedites the procedure of retrofitting a surveyed crown against an existing removable partial denture (RPD). This article describes a simple and straightforward technique of digital workflow where an existing RPD is scanned as an antagonist to design the rest seat, guide plane, and height of contour of a surveyed crown.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/156192/2/jopr13187_am.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/156192/1/jopr13187.pd

Effects of a Tumor Necrosis Factor-α Antagonist on Experimentally Induced Rhinosinusitis

This prospective, randomized, and controlled study examined the effects of tumor necrosis factor soluble receptor type I (sTNFRI, a TNF-α antagonist) on experimentally induced rhinosinusitis in rats. The experimental groups received an instillation of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) plus an intramuscular injection of amoxicillin/clavulanate (antibiotic group), an instillation of sTNFRI (sTNFRI group), an instillation of sTNFRI and an injection of amoxicillin/clavulanate (sTNFRI/antibiotic group), or no additional treatment (LPS group). Histopathological changes were determined using hematoxylin-eosin and periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) staining. Leakage of exudate was determined using fluorescence microscopy. Vascular permeability was measured using the Evans blue dye technique. Expression of MUC5AC was measured using reverse transcriptase PCR. The sTNFRI, antibiotic, and sTNFRI/antibiotic groups had significantly less capillary permeability, mucosal edema, PAS staining, and expression of MUC5AC than the LPS group. There were no differences in capillary permeability, mucosal edema, PAS staining, and MUC5AC expression between the sTNFRI and sTNFRI/antibiotic groups. The antibiotic group had PAS staining similar to that of the sTNFRI and sTNFRI/antibiotic groups but had a greater increase in capillary permeability, mucosal edema, and MUC5AC expression. This study shows that sTNFRI reduces inflammatory activity and mucus hypersecretion in LPS-induced rhinosinusitis in rats