Focal interstitial fibrosis manifesting as nodular ground-glass opacity: thin-section CT findings.

The purpose of this study was to describe the thin-section computed tomographic (CT) features of focal interstitial fibrosis manifesting as nodular ground-glass opacity (GGO) and its changes during follow-up. The thin-section CT findings of pathologically proven focal interstitial fibrosis manifesting as nodular GGO were retrospectively evaluated in nine patients (five women and four men; mean age, 59.3 years; age range, 34-81 years).

Nodular ground-glass opacity at thin-section CT: histologic correlation and evaluation of change at follow-up.

The popularization of computed tomography (CT) in clinical practice and the introduction of mass screening for early lung cancer with the use of CT have increased the frequency of findings of subtle nodules or nodular ground-glass opacity. Nodular ground-glass opacity may be observed in malignancies such as bronchioloalveolar carcinoma and adenocarcinoma, as well as in their putative precursors, such as atypical adenomatous hyperplasia. Nodular ground-glass opacity also may be seen in the presence of benign conditions, including focal interstitial fibrosis, inflammation, and hemorrhage.

Protective effect of uridine on cornea in a rabbit dry eye model.

Purpose: To investigate the effect of uridine on cultured human corneal epithelial cells and keratocytes in vitro and to evaluate whether the application of uridine-containing eye drops could improve ocular surface health in an in vivo dry eye model.

Methods: Uridine was added to cultured epithelial cells (3 x 10(4) cells/well) and keratocytes (1 x 10(4) cells/well) at various concentrations (0.5-50 microM).

Nodular ground-glass opacities on thin-section CT: size change during follow-up and pathological results.

Objective: To evaluate the inter-group differences in growth and the pathological results of nodular ground-glass opacities (GGOs) according to their size and focal solid portions.

Materials And Methods: Ninety-six nodular GGOs in 55 individuals followed by CT for at least one month from an initial chest CT were included. Forty nodular GGOs in 30 individuals were pathologically confirmed to be: adenocarcinoma (n = 15), bronchioloalveolar carcinoma (BAC) (n = 11), atypical adenomatous hyperplasia (AAH) (n = 8), focal interstitial fibrosis (n = 5) and aspergillosis (n = 1).

Determination of optimal timing window for pulmonary artery MDCT angiography.

Objective: The purpose of our study was to determine the optimal timing window for pulmonary artery MDCT angiography.

Subjects And Methods: We prospectively studied 150 patients. Routine chest CT scans were acquired using 1.

[The determinants of adolescent smoking by gender and type of school in Korea].

Objectives: This study assessed the influences of various factors that are related to youth smoking such as gender, age and type of school, and we wanted to provide supporting data for tailored and effective policy initiatives to reduce adolescent smoking.

Methods: A self-report survey was conducted on 14,910 teen-age students who were selected based on the nationwide distribution of students in large and small cities and counties, the gender ratio of the students and the ratio of students attending various type of school at 38 middle and high schools in six representative areas of each province. The survey was handled and managed by a health education teacher at each school.

Expression, purification, crystallization, and preliminary X-Ray analysis of the human UDP-glucose dehydrogenase.

UDP-glucose dehydrogenase (UGDH) catalyzes the synthesis of UDP-glucuronic acid from UDP-glucose resulting in the formation of proteoglycans that are involved in promoting normal cellular growth and migration. Overproduction of proteoglycans has been implicated in the progression of certain epithelial cancers. Here, human UGDH (hUGDH) was purified and crystallized from a solution of 0.

Identification of OmpU of Vibrio vulnificus as a fibronectin-binding protein and its role in bacterial pathogenesis.

Vibrio vulnificus is a pathogenic bacterium that causes gastroenteritis and primary septicemia. To identify factors involved in microbial adherence to the host cells, we investigated bacterial proteins capable of binding to fibronectin, one of the main components comprised of the extracellular matrix of mammalian cells. A protein of approximately 35 kDa was purified from the extracts of V.

CT analysis of the anterior mediastinum in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and nonspecific interstitial pneumonia.

Objective: We wanted to determine whether the amount and shape of the anterior mediastinal fat in the patients suffering with usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP) or nonspecific interstitial pneumonia (NSIP) was different from those of the normal control group.

Materials And Methods: We selected patients who suffered with UIP (n = 26) and NSIP (n = 26) who had undergone CT scans. Twenty-six controls were selected from individuals with normal CT findings and normal pulmonary function tests.

PLD2 forms a functional complex with mTOR/raptor to transduce mitogenic signals.

Mammalian target-of-rapamycin (mTOR), which is a master controller of cell growth, senses a mitogenic signal in part through the lipid second messenger phosphatidic acid (PA), generated by phospholipase D (PLD). To understand further which isozymes of PLD are involved in this process, we compared the effect of PLD isozymes on mTOR activation. We found that PLD2 has an essential role in mitogen-induced mTOR activation as the siRNA-mediated knockdown of PLD2, not of PLD1, profoundly reduced the phosphorylations of S6K1 and 4EBP1, well-known mTOR effectors.

CT findings of atypical adenomatous hyperplasia in the lung.

Objective: The aim of this study was to analyze the computed tomographic (CT) findings of atypical adenomatous hyperplasia (AAH) in the lung.

Materials And Methods: The CT findings of AAHs in eight patients were retrospectively reviewed. The CT findings of each AAH lesion were evaluated for multiplicity, location, shape, size and internal density of the lesion, the interface between the normal lung and the lesion, the internal features within the lesion and any change of the lesion on the follow-up CT scans (range: 33 to 540 days; average: 145.

The value of computed tomography for predicting empyema-associated malignancy.

Objective: To determine the value of computed tomography (CT) scanning in detecting associated malignancy in patients with chronic empyema.

Methods: Two radiologists retrospectively reviewed CT scans of 112 consecutive patients with chronic empyema and arrived at a consensus about the findings. Among these patients, 6 were confirmed by pathology evaluation to have empyema-associated malignancy (EAM), including 4 lymphomas.

Three-dimensional MDCT imaging and CT esophagography for evaluation of esophageal tumors: preliminary study.

The aim of this study was to determine whether multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) imaging, including CT esophagography (CTE), can be used as a comprehensive imaging test for esophageal tumors. Twenty-three patients with esophageal neoplasms underwent MDCT with esophageal distension and endoscopy. Of them, 20 underwent barium study.

The prevalence of pulmonary parenchymal tuberculosis in patients with tuberculous pleuritis.

Study Objective: To examine the prevalence and characteristics of parenchymal tuberculous pleuritis in adult patients.

Design: Prospective cohort study.

Setting: Three hospitals affiliated with Seoul National University in South Korea.

False positive and false negative FDG-PET scans in various thoracic diseases.

Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)-positron emission tomography (PET) is being used more and more to differentiate benign from malignant focal lesions and it has been shown to be more efficacious than conventional chest computed tomography (CT). However, FDG is not a cancer-specific agent, and false positive findings in benign diseases have been reported. Infectious diseases (mycobacterial, fungal, bacterial infection), sarcoidosis, radiation pneumonitis and post-operative surgical conditions have shown intense uptake on PET scan.

Increased expression of MIP-3alpha/CCL20 in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from patients with ulcerative colitis and its down-regulation by sulfasalazine and glucocorticoid treatment.

Unlabelled: CCL20 expression is known to increase in the mucosal tissues of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs). Moreover, the discovery of Nod2 as the IBD1 susceptibility gene has underscored the significance of blood mononuclear cells in IBD pathogenesis.

Methods: This study addresses whether CCL20 expression is similarly altered in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of patients with ulcerative colitis (UC), a major type of IBD in Korea.

Induction and localization of NOD2 protein in human endothelial cells.

NOD2 is mainly expressed in human monocytes/macrophages and intestinal epithelial cells and has been speculated to play in gut physiology. However, whether NOD2 is expressed in vascular endothelium is not currently determined. Human umbilical vascular endothelial cells (HUVECs) minimally expressed NOD2 gene, whereas stimulation of HUVEC with bacterial LPS, IL-1beta, or TNF-alpha resulted in significant up-regulation of NOD2.

Computer-aided diagnosis of localized ground-glass opacity in the lung at CT: initial experience.

The purpose of this study was to develop an automated scheme to facilitate detection of localized ground-glass opacity (GGO) in the lung at computed tomography (CT). Institutional review board approval and informed consent were not required. Two radiologists reviewed CT images from 14 patients (five men, nine women) who had lung cancer or metastasis and whose malignancy was classified as GGO.

Iron chelator induces MIP-alpha/CCL20 in human intestinal epithelial cells: implication for triggering mucosal adaptive immunity.

A previous report by this laboratory demonstrated that bacterial iron chelator (siderophore) triggers inflammatory signals, including the production of CXC chemokine IL-8, in human intestinal epithelial cells (IECs). Microarray-based gene expression profiling revealed that iron chelator also induces macrophage inflammatory protein 3 alpha (MIP-3alpha)/CC chemokine-ligand 20 (CCL20). As CCL20 is chemotactic for the cells involved in host adaptive immunity, this suggests that iron chelator may stimulate IECs to have the capacity to link mucosal innate and adaptive immunity.

Critical role of the cysteine 323 residue in the catalytic activity of human glutamate dehydrogenase isozymes.

The role of residue C323 in catalysis by human glutamate dehydrogenase isozymes (hGDH1 and hGDH2) was examined by substituting Arg, Gly, Leu, Met, or Tyr at C323 by cassette mutagenesis using synthetic human GDH isozyme genes. As a result, the Km of the enzyme for NADH and alpha-ketoglutarate increased up to 1.6-fold and 1.

Validation of the Korean version of the oswestry disability index.

Study Design: Validation of a translated, culturally adapted questionnaire.

Objectives: To translate and culturally adapt a Korean version of the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) and to validate its use in Korean patients.

Summary Of Background Data: The ODI is one of the most widely used and validated instruments for measuring disability in spinal disorders.

Acute lung injury: effects of prone positioning on cephalocaudal distribution of lung inflation--CT assessment in dogs.

Purpose: To quantify cephalocaudal gradient of lung inflation in acute lung injury in a dog model in prone versus supine position.

Materials And Methods: Experiments were performed in accordance with Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals, as approved by National Research Council (National Institutes of Health), and were approved by committee on care and use of animals in research at Seoul National University Hospital. After induction of acute lung injury with intravenous injection of oleic acid, dogs were randomized to be ventilated in either prone (n = 6) or supine (n = 6) position.