Exosomal microRNA-4661-5p-based serum panel as a potential diagnostic biomarker for early-stage hepatocellular carcinoma.

Currently, a reliable serum biomarker for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has not been established, particularly for early-stage HCC (single tumor < 2 cm). We aimed to investigate diagnostic serum exosomal microRNA (exo-miR) panel for early-stage HCC. Driver oncogenic miR (onco-miR) candidates were selected by integrative analysis of miR expression profiles from three different RNA sequencing datasets of human HCC.

Serum small extracellular vesicle-derived LINC00853 as a novel diagnostic marker for early hepatocellular carcinoma.

This study aimed to identify novel long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) biomarkers for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) using publicly available tissue genomic datasets and validate their diagnostic utility for early-stage HCC. Differentially expressed lncRNAs between 371 HCC and 50 nontumor tissues were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas liver hepatocellular carcinoma (TCGA_LIHC) project. Subsequently, the expression of the serum- and extracellular vesicle (EV)-derived lncRNA was assessed in 10 patients with HCC and 10 healthy controls using RT-qPCR.

The Incidence and Etiologies of Third Cranial Nerve Palsy in Koreans: A 10-year Nationwide Cohort Study.

Purpose: This study aimed to determine the incidence, prevalence, and etiologies of third cranial nerve (CN3) palsy in Koreans.

Methods: Data were collected from the National Health Insurance Service-National Sample Cohort (NHIS-NSC) database of South Korea and analyzed. Incident CN3 palsy subjects in the cohort population were defined as cases occurring after the initial 4-year or longer washout period.

A scoring system for the diagnosis of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis from liver biopsy.

Background: Liver biopsy is the essential method to diagnose non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), but histological features of NASH are too subjective to achieve reproducible diagnoses in early stages of disease. We aimed to identify the key histological features of NASH and devise a scoring model for diagnosis.

Methods: Thirteen pathologists blindly assessed 12 histological factors and final histological diagnoses ('not-NASH,' 'borderline,' and 'NASH') of 31 liver biopsies that were diagnosed as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) or NASH before and after consensus.

Pretreatment of Anthocyanin from the Fruit of Acts as a Potent Inhibitor of TNF-α Effect by Inhibiting NF-κB-Regulated Genes in Human Breast Cancer Cells.

(Meoru in Korea) has been used in Korean folk medicine for the treatment of inflammatory diseases and cancers. Evidence suggests that NF-κB activation is mainly involved in cancer cell proliferation, invasion, angiogenesis, and metastasis. TNF-α also enhances the inflammatory process in tumor development.

Animal and Clinical Studies Evaluating Blood Glucose Control With Palatinose-Based Alternative Sweeteners.

Animal and clinical studies were performed to determine whether Palatinose-based alternative sweeteners with increased sweetness contributed to blood glucose elevations. In the animal study, male Sprague-Dawley rats (6 weeks old) received an oral load of 2 g of glucose or Palatinose-based alternative sweeteners per kilogram of body weight. Thirty minutes after the glucose load, the rat blood glucose levels in the Palatinose-based alternative sweetener groups were significantly lower than those in the glucose groups ( < 0.

Placental delayed villous maturation is associated with evidence of chronic fetal hypoxia.

Background Normal development of the human placenta, referred to as villous tree maturation, entails formation of the vasculosyncytial membranes. These structures develop by the approximation of syncytiotrophoblasts with the villous capillary endothelium and constitute the most efficient sites of gaseous exchange in the placenta. Defective maturation of the villous tree can lead to deficient vasculosyncytial membranes, implicated in the high incidence of hypoxic complications.

Inhibition of RIPK3 Pathway Attenuates Intestinal Inflammation and Cell Death of Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Suppresses Necroptosis in Peripheral Mononuclear Cells of Ulcerative Colitis Patients.

Receptor-interacting serine/threonine-protein kinase (RIPK) 3 is a member of the TNF receptor-I signaling complex and mediates necroptosis, an inflammatory cell death. Ulcerative colitis (UC) is an excessive inflammatory disease caused by uncontrolled T cell activation. The current study is aimed to determine whether RIPK3 inhibitor attenuates UC development inhibiting inflammation and necroptosis using experimental colitis mice model.

Effectiveness of an oral health education programme for older adults using a workbook.

Objective: This study investigated the effects of an oral health education programme utilising a workbook for people aged 65 years or older.

Materials And Methods: A pre-post quasi-experimental design was used to verify the effectiveness of an oral health education programme using a workbook. Oral health education was provided once a week for 5 weeks from May to June 2019.

Effects of Auricular Acupressure in Patients on Hemodialysis.

Background: Although studies on the effectiveness of self-management in limiting fluid intake in patients on hemodialysis have been conducted extensively, xerostomia, which is a powerful stimulus of fluid intake, has received scarce attention.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a 4-week auricular acupressure treatment on xerostomia, salivary flow rate, interdialytic weight gain, constipation, and diet-related quality of life in patients on hemodialysis in Korea.

Methods: This was a randomized controlled trial.

Polyphenols Extracted from L. Exhibit Anti-Cancer Effects on Radio-Resistant MDA-MB-231 Human Breast Cancer Cells by Suppressing Stem Cell Phenotype, β-Catenin, and MMP-9.

L. has been reported to show anti-cancer activities. Here, we determined whether polyphenols extracted from L.

New Microglia on the Block.

Microglia exhibit differing functions and phenotypes depending on life stage and the context of health or disease. Recently, in Nature Neuroscience, Marschallinger et al. (2020) described a new state of microglia, namely "lipid-droplet-accumulating microglia" (LDAM), that contributes to neuronal inflammation and age-related neurodegeneration.

EpCAM-high liver cancer stem cells resist natural killer cell-mediated cytotoxicity by upregulating CEACAM1.

Background: Natural killer (NK) cells can recognize and kill cancer cells directly, but their activity can be attenuated by various inhibitory molecules expressed on the surface. The expression of epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM), a potential marker for cancer stem cells (CSCs), is known to be strongly associated with poor clinical outcomes in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). NK cells targeting CSCs may be a promising strategy for anti-tumor therapy, but little is known about how they respond to EpCAM CSCs in HCC.

Liver stiffness measured by MR elastography is a predictor of early HCC recurrence after treatment.

Objectives: Magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) is a non-invasive tool for measuring liver stiffness (LS) with high diagnostic accuracy. This study investigated whether quantified LS by MRE could predict early recurrence of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) within the Milan criteria.

Methods: A prospectively collected cohort, which included the HCC patients who underwent MRE before treatment (an HCC-MRE cohort), was analyzed.

Comprehensive analyses with radiological and biological markers of breast cancer on contrast-enhanced chest CT: a single center experience using dual-layer spectral detector CT.

Objectives: To evaluate the predictive value of virtual monoenergetic images (VMIs) by assessing tumor conspicuity on dual-layer spectral detector CT (SDCT) and correlate tumor conspicuity on VMI with prognostic biomarkers in patients with breast cancer.

Methods: Sixty-four patients underwent arterial phase and 90-s delayed phase dual-layer SDCT. A retrospective tumor conspicuity analysis of 14 benign tumors and 65 breast cancers was performed using conventional images (CIs) and VMI at 40 keV (VMI40) on arterial and delayed phase scans (CI, VMI40, CI, VMI40).

Serum Exosomal MicroRNA, miR-10b-5p, as a Potential Diagnostic Biomarker for Early-Stage Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Exosomal microRNAs (exo-miRs) have been promising cancer biomarkers. MiRs in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cell-derived exosomes (HEX) were analyzed to identify reliable serum biomarkers for HCC. To detect overexpressed miRs in HEX, extracted exosomal small RNAs from human HCC cell lines and normal hepatocytes were sequenced and analyzed.

The Long Way to Refugee Status Acquisition and Mental Health in Post-Migration: Based on Asylum Seekers and Refugees in South Korea.

Apart from North Korean defectors, South Korea is becoming a destination for Asylum seekers from all over the world. However, 1 out of 220 asylum applicants receives recognition through long and arduous administration and litigation process while being underrepresented in any kind of support services.This particular study comparatively tested the mental health status of recognized refugees(n = 45) and Asylum applicants (n = 55) to determine if the acquisition of refugee status could make a difference in their overall quality of life.

Hemistepsin A alleviates liver fibrosis by inducing apoptosis of activated hepatic stellate cells via inhibition of nuclear factor-κB and Akt.

Hemistepsin A (HsA), isolated from Hemistepta lyrata (Bunge) Bunge, has the ability to ameliorate hepatitis in mice. However, the effects of H. lyrata and HsA on other types of liver disease have not been explored.

Clinical difference between benign and malignant tumors of the hard palate.

Objective: To determine the clinical characteristics and treatment results of benign and malignant tumors of the hard palate in our hospital.

Patients And Methods: A total of 25 patients who underwent surgical treatment for hard palate tumors between 2008 and 2018 were included in this study. Their demographic characteristics, smoking status, alcohol consumption, symptoms, duration of symptoms, size and localization of hard palate tumor, status of mucosal surface, radiologic examinations, surgery, reconstruction method, histopathologic results, treatment outcomes, oral intake start time, adjuvant treatment, postoperative complications, and recurrence were reviewed.

The incidence and etiology of sixth cranial nerve palsy in Koreans: A 10-year nationwide cohort study.

We aimed to investigate the incidence, prevalence, and etiology of sixth cranial nerve (CN6) palsy in the general Korean population. The nationally representative dataset of the Korea National Health Insurance Service-National Sample Cohort from 2006 through 2015 was analyzed. The incidence and prevalence of CN6 palsy were estimated in the cohort population, confirming that incident cases of CN6 palsy involved a preceding disease-free period of ≥4 years.

Seven-day Green Tea Supplementation Revamps Gut Microbiome and Caecum/Skin Metabolome in Mice from Stress.

Green tea supplementation has beneficial health effects. However, its underlying mechanisms, such as effects on modulating the intestinal microbiome and endogenous metabolome, particularly following short-term supplementation, are largely unclear. We conducted an integrative metabolomics study to evaluate the effects of short-term (7-day) supplementation of green tea extract (GTE) or its components, epigallocatechin gallate, caffeine, and theanine, on the caecum microbiota and caecum/skin metabolome in mice.

Association between oral health status and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in Korean adults.

Objectives: This study aimed to elucidate the association between oral health status and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Korean adults (≥ 40 years old) using a representative national dataset from the 6th Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (6th KNHANES, 2013-2015).

Methods: Participants aged ≥ 40 years from the 6th KNHANES who had received an oral and pulmonary function tests (N = 7719) were included in this study. The participant characteristics according to COPD were compared using t-test and chi-squared test.

Integrated Metabolomics and Transcriptomics Unravel the Metabolic Pathway Variations for Different Sized Beech Mushrooms.

Beech mushrooms ( ) are largely relished for their characteristic earthy flavor, chewy-texture, and gustatory and nutritional properties in East Asian societies. Intriguingly, the aforementioned properties of beech mushroom can be subsumed under its elusive metabolome and subtle transcriptome regulating its various stages of growth and development. Herein, we carried out an integrated metabolomic and transcriptomic profiling for different sized beech mushrooms across spatial components (cap and stipe) to delineate their signature pathways.