Efficacy evaluation of combination vaccine of recombinant C-terminal fragments of ApxIA, ApxIIA and ApxIIIA in piglets

The efficacy of the combination vaccine of the individual C-terminal fragments of ApxIA, ApxIIA and ApxIIIA of Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae (APP) was evaluated in piglets. Twenty piglets were divided equally into 2 groups (n=10). All piglets were intramuscularly primed at 4 week-of-age (0 week post prime inoculation (WPPI)) and were intramuscularly boosted at 6 week-of-age (2 WPPI). Group A piglets were inoculated with sterile PBS and group B piglets were inoculated with the combination vaccine. Concentrations of each of the C-terminal fragment-specific IgG as determined by ELISA were significantly higher in group B than in group A from 2 WPPI until the end of this study. Clinical signs were observed from only 10% of group B piglets after the challenge with the mixture of APP serotypes 1, 2 and 5 at 4 WPPI, while 50% of group A piglets were protected against APP infections. Overall, intramuscular inoculation with the vaccine candidate can efficiently protect piglets against APP infection

Intracorporeal Anastomosis Using Linear Stapler in Laparoscopic Distal Gastrectomy: Comparison between Gastroduodenostomy and Gastrojejunostomy

Purpose: Intracorporeal anastomosis during laparoscopic gastrectomy is becoming increasingly prevalent. However, selection of the anastomosis method after laparoscopic distal gastrectomy is equivocal because of a lack of technical feasibility and safety. We compared intracorporeal gastroduodenostomy with gastrojejunostomy using linear staplers to evaluate the technical feasibility and safety of intracorporeal anastomoses as well as its' minimally invasiveness. Materials and Methods: Retrospective analyses of a prospectively collected database for gastric cancer revealed 47 gastric cancer patients who underwent laparoscopic distal gastrectomy with either intracorporeal gastroduodenostomy or gastrojejunostomy from March 2011 to June 2011. Perioperative outcomes such as operation time, postoperative complication, and hospital stay were compared according to the type of anastomosis. Postoperative inflammatory response was also compared between the two groups using white blood cell count and high sensitivity C-reactive protein. Results: Among the 47 patients, 26 patients received gastroduodenostomy, whereas 21 patients received gastrojejunostomy without open conversion or additional mini-laparotomy incision. There was no difference in mean operation time, blood loss, and length of postoperative hospital stays. There was no statistically significant difference in postoperative complication or mortality between two groups. However, significantly more staplers were used for gastroduodenostomy than for gastrojejunostomy (n=6) than for gastroduodenostomy and (n=5). Conclusions: Intracorporeal anastomosis during laparoscopic gastrectomy using linear stapler, either gastroduodenostomy or gastrojejunostomy, shows comparable and acceptable early postoperative outcomes and are safe and feasible. Therefore, surgeons may choose either anastomosis method as long as oncological safety is guaranteedope

Altered Resting-State Functional Connectivity in Wernicke's Encephalopathy With Vestibular Impairment

Objectives: To reveal the neural basis of Wernicke's encephalopathy (WE) with impaired vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR), we evaluated resting-state functional connectivity (rs-fc) in the vestibular processing brain regions. Methods: Rs-fc between the vestibular regions and the rest of the brain were compared with neurotological features including the head-impulse tests (vHIT) and caloric responses in patients with WE (n = 5, mean age 53.4 ± 10 years) and healthy controls (n = 20, mean age 55.0 ± 9.2 years). Rs-fc analyses employed a region of interest (ROI)-based approach using regions selected a priori that participate in vestibular processing including the cerebellar vermis, insula, parietal operculum, and calcarine cortex. Results: The main neurologic findings for patients with WE were mental changes; gait ataxia; spontaneous and gaze-evoked nystagmus (GEN); and bilaterally positive HIT for the horizontal canals. Video HIT documented bilateral horizontal canal dysfunction with decreased gain and corrective saccades. Caloric irrigation and rotation chair testing revealed prominent bilateral horizontal canal paresis. Patients with WE also had decreased spatial memory, which substantially recovered after treatments. Functional connections at the predefined seed regions, including the insular cortex and parietal operculum, were attenuated in the WE group compared to healthy controls. Conclusions: WE is related to impaired VOR and visuospatial dysfunction, and fMRI documented changes in the rs-fc of multisensory vestibular processing regions including the insula, parietal operculum, and superior temporal gyrus, which participate in integration of vestibular perception

Fine mapping and identification of candidate genes for the sy-2 locus in a temperature-sensitive chili pepper (Capsicum chinense)

Key message The sy-2 temperature-sensitive gene from Capsicum chinense was fine mapped to a 138.8-kb region at the distal portion of pepper chromosome 1. Based on expression analyses, two putative F-box genes were identified as sy-2 candidate genes. Abstract Seychelles-2 (sy-2) is a temperature-sensitive natural mutant of Capsicum chinense, which exhibits an abnormal leaf phenotype when grown at temperatures below 24 °C. We previously showed that the sy-2 phenotype is controlled by a single recessive gene, sy-2, located on pepper chromosome 1. In this study, a high-resolution genetic and physical map for the sy-2 locus was constructed using two individual F2 mapping populations derived from a cross between C. chinense mutant sy-2 and wild-type No. 3341. The sy-2 gene was fine mapped to a 138.8-kb region between markers SNP 5-5 and SNP 3-8 at the distal portion of chromosome 1, based on comparative genomic analysis and genomic information from pepper. The sy-2 target region was predicted to contain 27 genes. Expression analysis of these predicted genes showed a differential expression pattern for ORF10 and ORF20 between mutant and wild-type plants; with both having significantly lower expression in sy-2 than in wild-type plants. In addition, the coding sequences of both ORF10 and ORF20 contained single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) causing amino acid changes, which may have important functional consequences. ORF10 and ORF20 are predicted to encode F-box proteins, which are components of the SCF complex. Based on the differential expression pattern and the presence of nonsynonymous SNPs, we suggest that these two putative F-box genes are most likely responsible for the temperature-sensitive phenotypes in pepper. Further investigation of these genes may enable a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms of low temperature sensitivity in plants.OAIID:RECH_ACHV_DSTSH_NO:T201625254RECH_ACHV_FG:RR00200001ADJUST_YN:EMP_ID:A076900CITE_RATE:3.9FILENAME:TAG(2016) Fine mapping and identification of candidate genes for sy2.pdfDEPT_NM:식물생산과학부EMAIL:[email protected]_YN:YFILEURL:https://srnd.snu.ac.kr/eXrepEIR/fws/file/c773c8d3-fc79-496f-af60-fa1b9b2e214e/linkCONFIRM:

Association of retroperitoneal fibrosis with malignancy and its outcomes

Introduction Retroperitoneal fibrosis (RPF) is characterized by a highly fibrotic retroperitoneal mass and encompasses the idiopathic form and secondary to malignancies. Because we have limited knowledge whether RPF is associated with malignancy, we aimed to investigate the relationship between RPF and malignancy and to compare the characteristics and prognosis of cancers among patients with RPF. Methods Medical records of 111 patients diagnosed as having RPF were reviewed and 38 cases of cancer, confirmed by biopsy, were identified. Standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) were calculated for cancers and stratified according to cancer type and RPF-cancer diagnosis interval. Cancer characteristics and outcomes were compared between RPF-cancer diagnosis intervals. Results The average age at RPF diagnosis was 59.2 ± 15.0 years, and 69.4% of the patients were male. The cancer SIRs in patients with RPF relative to age- and sex-matched individuals in the general population was 2.2 (1.6–3.1). SIRs of renal pelvis cancer and multiple myeloma were significantly higher than in the general population. When stratified by RPF-cancer intervals, the SIR for cancer was 9.9 within 1 year of RPF diagnosis, while no significant increase in the SIR was found after 1 year from RPF diagnosis. Cancer stage was more advanced at the time of diagnosis in patients within a 1-year interval for RPF than those with cancer within a >5-year interval, with a correspondingly increased mortality in the former patients. Conclusions RPF was significantly associated with malignancy, particularly those diagnosed within 1 year of RPF diagnosis. Cancer stages at diagnosis were more advanced and the mortality rate was higher in patients within a 1-year interval between RPF and cancer diagnosis than in those with a >5-year interval between diagnoses.This work was supported by Biomedical Research Institute grant, Kyungpook National University Hospital (2017), and by the research fund of Rheumatology Research Foundation (RRF-2016-05). This work was partly supported by a grant of the Korea Health Technology R&D Project through the Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHIDI), funded by the Ministry of Health & Welfare, Republic of Korea (grant number HI14C1277)

CT-Guided Percutaneous Vertebroplasty in the Treatment of an Upper Thoracic Compression Fracture

Percutaneous vertebroplasty (PVP) has been used to relieve pain and to prevent further collapse of the vertebral body in patients with an osteoporotic compression fracture. The most commonly affected site for the use of PVP is the thoracolumbar junction. There are few reports that have described on the usefulness of PVP in the treatment of a high thoracic compression fracture. We report a case of an upper thoracic compression fracture that was treated with computed tomography (CT)-guided PVP. It was possible to obtain easy access to the narrow thoracic pedicle and it was also possible to monitor continuously the proper volume of polymethylmethacrylate employed, under CT guidance

EFFECTIVE DOSE MEASUREMENT FOR CONE BEAM COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY USING GLASS DOSIMETER

During image-guided radiation therapy, the patient is exposed to unwanted radiation from imaging devices built into the medical LINAC. In the present study, the effective dose delivered to a patient from a cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) machine was measured. Absorbed doses in specific organs listed in ICRP Publication 103 were measured with glass dosimeters calibrated with kilovolt (kV) X-rays using a whole body physical phantom for typical radiotherapy sites, including the head and neck, chest, and pelvis. The effective dose per scan for the head and neck, chest, and pelvis were 3.37±0.29, 7.36±0.33, and 4.09±0.29 mSv, respectively. The results highlight the importance of the compensation of treatment dose by managing imaging dose