Meta-analysis of single-cell RNA-sequencing data for depicting the transcriptomic landscape of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a respiratory disease characterized by airflow limitation and chronic inflammation of the lungs that is a leading cause of death worldwide. Since the complete pathological mechanisms at the single-cell level are not fully understood yet, an integrative approach to characterizing the single-cell-resolution landscape of COPD is required. To identify the cell types and mechanisms associated with the development of COPD, we conducted a meta-analysis using three single-cell RNA-sequencing datasets of COPD.

Blood flow characteristics of diabetic patients with complications detected by optical measurement.

Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the most common diseases worldwide. Uncontrolled and prolonged hyperglycemia can cause diabetic complications, which reduce the quality of life of patients. Diabetic complications are common in DM patients.

Principal component analysis of dynamic fluorescence images for diagnosis of diabetic vasculopathy.

Indocyanine green (ICG) fluorescence imaging has been clinically used for noninvasive visualizations of vascular structures. We have previously developed a diagnostic system based on dynamic ICG fluorescence imaging for sensitive detection of vascular disorders. However, because high-dimensional raw data were used, the analysis of the ICG dynamics proved difficult.

Rosiglitazone and fenofibrate improve insulin sensitivity of pre-diabetic OLETF rats by reducing malonyl-CoA levels in the liver and skeletal muscle.

Aims: Rosiglitazone and fenofibrate, specific agonists of the peroxisome proliferator activated receptors-γ (PPARγ) and -α (PPARα), respectively, improve insulin sensitivity in diabetic animals and in patients with type 2 diabetes. Here we investigated how pre-diabetic Otsuka Long–Evans Tokushima Fatty (OLETF) rats fed with normal and high-fat diets respond to these PPAR agonists.

Main Methods: Pre-diabetic OLETF rats were subjected to high-fat or standard diets with or without rosiglitazone or fenofibrate for 2 weeks.

Hyperleptinemia as a robust risk factor of coronary artery disease and metabolic syndrome in type 2 diabetic patients.

Leptin has been linked to adiposity, insulin resistance, and coronary artery disease (CAD). We examined whether the leptin concentrations are associated with the risk of CAD and metabolic syndrome (MS). The plasma leptin concentrations were measured in 556 diabetic patients (341 men and 215 women).

A case of multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 combined with papillary thyroid carcinoma.

This is the first report of papillary thyroid carcinoma combined with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN1) in Korea. MEN1 is a hereditary disease comprising neoplastic disorders such as pituitary, parathyroid and pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor, such as gastrinoma. But papillary thyroid cancer was never regarded as its component before in Korea.

Lacunar infarction in type 2 diabetes is associated with an elevated intracranial arterial pulsatility index.

Purpose: The arterial pulsatility index (PI) is measured by transcranial Doppler ultrasonography (TCD) and is postulated to reflect the vascular resistance distal to the artery being examined. An increased PI of the intracranial artery is often reported with diabetes mellitus (DM), old age, hypertension, intracranial hypertension, vascular dementia, and small artery disease. Microvascular complication of DM, which may contribute to cerebral infarction, involves the small perforating artery and may influence the PI of the proximal artery.

The increase in abdominal subcutaneous fat depot is an independent factor to determine the glycemic control after rosiglitazone treatment.

Objective: The goal was to investigate the interrelationships between the hypoglycemic effects of rosiglitazone and the changes in the regional adiposity of type 2 diabetic patients.

Design And Methods: We added rosiglitazone (4 mg/day) to 173 diabetic patients (111 males and 62 females) already taking a stable dose of conventional antidiabetic medications except for thiazolidinediones. The abdominal fat distribution was assessed by ultrasonography at baseline and 12 weeks later.

The level of 2-h post-challenge glucose is an independent risk factor of carotid intima-media thickness progression in Korean type 2 diabetic patients.

Objective: To evaluate the relationship between the metabolic abnormalities commonly associated with diabetes and the changes in carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) in Korean type 2 diabetic patients who do not have clinically manifest cardiovascular disease (CVD).

Design: In a prospective study, a total of 152 type 2 diabetic patients were recruited from a group of outpatients at the Yonsei University Hospital.

Materials And Methods: The carotid IMTs of 152 subjects with type 2 diabetes (mean age 63.

Comparison of body fat composition and serum adiponectin levels in diabetic obesity and non-diabetic obesity.

Objective: Clinical aspects of diabetes and obesity are somewhat different, even at similar levels of insulin resistance. The purpose of this study was to determine differences in body fat distribution and serum adiponectin concentrations in diabetic and non-diabetic obese participants. We were also interested in identifying the characteristics of insulin resistance in these two groups, particularly from the standpoint of adiponectin.

The relation between birth weight and insulin resistance in Korean adolescents.

Low birth weight is associated with insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes in adults. The fetal programming hypothesis has shown that insulin resistance and its associated metabolic disturbances result from a poor gestational environment, for which low birth weight is a surrogate. An at-home questionnaire survey was performed on 660 middle school students (12-15 years) in Seoul, Korea, and 152 cases were randomly selected based on their birth weight.

Characteristics of type 2 diabetes in terms of insulin resistance in Korea.

The aim of this study was to assess the implications of insulin resistance on the clinical and biochemical profiles of Korean type 2 diabetic patients. 122 patients with type 2 diabetes underwent a short insulin tolerance test to assess insulin resistance. Subjects were classified in tertiles according to ISI (insulin sensitivity index), and the tertile I (the insulin- resistant group) and tertile III (the insulin-sensitive group) clinical and biochemical parameters were compared.

Serum levels of advanced glycation end products are associated with in-stent restenosis in diabetic patients.

The formation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs), in various tissues has been known to enhance immunoinflammatory reactions and local oxidant stresses in long standing diabetes. Recently, AGEs have been reported to play a role in neointimal formation in animal models of arterial injury. We attempted to determine whether the serum levels of AGEs are associated with coronary restenosis in diabetic patients.

Preventative effects of rosiglitazone on restenosis after coronary stent implantation in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Objective: Despite the popularity of coronary stenting in coronary artery disease (CAD), restenosis remains a challenging clinical problem. This study evaluated the efficacy of rosiglitazone for preventing in-stent restenosis in type 2 diabetic patients.

Research Design And Methods: We conducted a prospective, randomized, case-controlled trial involving 95 diabetic patients with CAD who were randomly assigned to either the control or rosiglitazone group (48 and 47 patients, respectively).

Graves' disease associated with Klinefelter's syndrome.

Klinefelter's syndrome is one of the most common forms of primary hypogonadism and infertility in males. It is characterized by small and firm testes, gynecomastia, azoospermia, and an elevated gonadotropin level. The frequencies of diabetes mellitus, breast cancer, and germ cell neoplasia increases in Klinefelter's syndrome.

Correlation between midthigh low-density muscle and insulin resistance in obese nondiabetic patients in Korea.

Objective: We investigated the link between lipid-rich skeletal muscle, namely low-density muscle, and insulin resistance in Korea.

Research Design And Methods: Abdominal adipose tissue areas and midthigh skeletal muscle areas of 75 obese nondiabetic subjects (23 men, 52 women; mean age +/- SD, 41.9 +/- 14.

A case of thyroid storm due to thyrotoxicosis factitia.

We describe a case of thyroid storm due to thyrotoxicosis factitia, which was caused by the ingestion of excessive quantities of exogenous thyroid hormone for the purpose of reducing weight. An 18-year-old female was admitted to the hospital 24 hours after taking up to 50 tablets of synthyroid (1 tablet of synthyroid : levothyroxine 100 microg). Because of her stuporous mental state and acute respiratory failure, she was intubated and treated in the intensive care unit.

The effect of iodine restriction on thyroid function in patients with hypothyroidism due to Hashimoto's thyroiditis.

Lifelong thyroid hormone replacement is indicated in patients with hypothyroidism as a result of Hashimoto's thyroiditis. However, previous reports have shown that excess iodine induces hypothyroidism in Hashimoto's thyroiditis. This study investigated the effects of iodine restriction on the thyroid function and the predictable factors for recovery in patients with hypothyroidism due to Hashimoto's thyroiditis.

Atherosclerosis in rheumatoid arthritis: morphologic evidence obtained by carotid ultrasound.

Objective: Recent studies have suggested increased cardiovascular disease among patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We undertook this study to obtain morphologic evidence of subclinical atherosclerosis in RA patients.

Methods: We used high-resolution B-mode ultrasound to compare carotid artery intima-media wall thickness (IMT) between 53 postmenopausal women with RA and 53 controls matched by age, sex, and menopause status.