Human CLOCK gene-associated attention deficit hyperactivity disorder-related features in healthy adults: quantitative association study using Wender Utah Rating Scale.

Circadian rhythm disturbance is highly prevalent in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Recently, the association between the CLOCK gene and ADHD has been demonstrated in clinical samples, and the CLOCK gene's role was thought to be mediated by rhythm dysregulation. Meanwhile, ADHD has been suggested as the extreme end of a continuously distributed trait that can be found in the general population.

Isolation and characterization of a metagenome-derived thermoalkaliphilic esterase with high stability over a broad pH range.

A novel alkaliphilic esterase (EstJ) was identified from a soil metagenome of Jeju Island, Korea, using a 96-well plate-based functional assay for determination of pH dependence of activity. The amino acid sequence of EstJ showed low similarity (32-45 %) to putative α/β hydrolases derived from whole-genome sequencing studies. EstJ, although not belonging to any of the known families of bacterial lipolytic enzymes, however, it showed closest sequence identity to the family IV enzymes that are related to the mammalian hormone-sensitive lipases.

3D reconstruction of skin pathological tissue: the understanding of microrelief pattern and dermal ridge.

Aim: Most studies about the structures of the human skin have been on the general histologic features of the skin. The purpose of this study was to understand the relationship between the microrelief (MR) pattern and histologic structure of the human skin, and to find the usefulness of the three-dimensional reconstruction (3DR) technique of pathological skin tissue.

Materials, Subjects, And Methods: Human skin specimens were obtained from the medial forearm, abdomen, and volar aspects of the finger tips of cadavers.

Polymorphisms in DNA repair and apoptosis-related genes and clinical outcomes of patients with non-small cell lung cancer treated with first-line paclitaxel-cisplatin chemotherapy.

This study was conducted to analyze a comprehensive panel of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in genes in DNA repair and apoptosis pathways and determine the relationship between polymorphisms and treatment outcomes of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treated with first-line paclitaxel-cisplatin chemotherapy. Three hundred eighty two patients with NSCLC were enrolled. Seventy-four SNPs in 48 genes (42 SNPs in 27 DNA repair pathway genes and 32 SNPs in 21 apoptotic pathway genes) were genotyped and their associations with chemotherapy response and overall survival (OS) were analyzed.

Giant petroclival endodermal cyst with xanthogranulomatous changes.

Endodermal cyst is a rare developmental cyst of the CNS, such as a Rathke cleft and colloid cyst lined by columnar epithelium of presumed endodermal origin. Intracranial endodermal cysts are rare, and most are found in the posterior fossa. The authors report a case of petroclival endodermal cyst with extensive bone destruction.

The Metastatic Rate of Internal Mammary Lymph Nodes When Metastasis of Internal Mammary Lymph Node Is Suspected on PET/CT.

Purpose: Metastatic status of internal mammary lymph node (IMLN) has a clinical importance in assessing the stage and prognosis of breast cancer. But, when metastasis of IMLN is suspected; the management is controversial. We retrospectively reviewed 36 breast cancer patients who underwent IMLN biopsy, and investigated the pathologic status of IMLN which suspected metastasis with positron emission tomography and computed tomography (PET/CT).

Comparative evaluation of three chromogenic media combined with broth enrichment and the real-time PCR-based Xpert MRSA assay for screening of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in nasal swabs.

Background: We evaluated the performance of three chromogenic media (Brilliance agar I [Oxoid, UK], Brilliance agar II [Oxoid], and ChromID MRSA [Biomérieux, France]) combined with broth enrichment and the Xpert MRSA assay for screening of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

Methods: We obtained 401 pairs of duplicate nasal swabs from 321 patients. One swab was suspended overnight in tryptic soy broth; 50-µL aliquots of suspension were inoculated on the three chromogenic media.

Gaba transporter SLC6A11 gene polymorphism associated with tardive dyskinesia.

Background: Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) insufficiency has been reported to be related to the tardive dyskinesia (TD) susceptibility. Inada et al. (Pharmacogenet Genomics 2008;18:317-23) identified eight genes belonging to GABA receptor signaling pathway that may be involved in TD susceptibility by genome-wide screening and they replicated associations in an independent sample for polymorphisms in SLC6A11 (GABA transporter 3), GABRG3 (c-3 subunit of GABA-A receptor) and GABRB2 (β-2 subunit of GABA-A receptor).

A functional variant at 19q13.3, rs967591G>A, is associated with shorter survival of early-stage lung cancer.

Purpose: This study was conducted to investigate the associations between single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) in 19q13.3 and survival of patients with early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), and to define the causative functional SNP of the association.

Experimental Design: A two-stage study design was used to evaluate five SNPs in relation to survival outcomes in 328 patients and then to validate the results in an independent patient population (n = 483).

Genome-wide association study of lung cancer in Korean non-smoking women.

Lung cancer in never-smokers ranks as the seventh most common cause of cancer death worldwide, and the incidence of lung cancer in non-smoking Korean women appears to be steadily increasing. To identify the effect of genetic polymorphisms on lung cancer risk in non-smoking Korean women, we conducted a genome-wide association study of Korean female non-smokers with lung cancer. We analyzed 440,794 genotype data of 285 cases and 1,455 controls, and nineteen SNPs were associated with lung cancer development (P < 0.

CA-074Me, a cathepsin B inhibitor, decreases APP accumulation and protects primary rat cortical neurons treated with okadaic acid.

Upregulation of the lysosomal system has been suggested to contribute to the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). But the exact role of this system remains unknown. Okadaic acid (OA), a protein phosphatase-2A inhibitor, increases tau phosphorylation, β-amyloid deposition, and neuronal cell death, which are the pathological hallmarks of AD.

Protective effect of ginsenoside-Rb2 from Korean red ginseng on the lethal infection of haemagglutinating virus of Japan in mice.

Korean red ginseng has been shown to possess a variety of biological activities. However, little is known about antiviral activity of ginsenosides of Korean red ginseng. Here, we investigated the protective effect by oral administration of various ginsenosides on the lethal infection of haemagglutinating virus of Japan (HVJ) in mice.

Increase in Insulin Secretion Induced by Panax ginseng Berry Extracts Contributes to the Amelioration of Hyperglycemia in Streptozotocininduced Diabetic Mice.

Panax ginseng has long been used as a traditional herbal medicine. More recently, it has received attention for its anti-diabetic and anti-obesity effects in humans and in animal models of type 2 diabetes. In the present study, we tested the hypoglycemic effects of ginseng berry extract in beta-cell-deficient mice and investigated the mechanisms involved.

Fibronectin expression in carcinoma cells correlates with tumor aggressiveness and poor clinical outcome in patients with invasive breast cancer.

Fibronectin (FN), a large heterodimeric glycoprotein, can be found in soluble form in plasma or in insoluble form as an extracellular matrix protein. Cellular FN is produced by various types of benign and malignant epithelial and mesenchymal cells and is widely distributed in malignant tumors. We evaluated FN expression in cancer cells (epithelial FN; E-FN) and intratumor stroma (stromal FN, S-FN) of 1596 invasive breast cancer samples using immunohistochemistry on tissue microarrays.

A case of synchronous presentation of primary non-small cell lung carcinoma and pheochromocytoma.

We report a rare synchronous presentation of primary lung cancer and adrenal pheochromocytoma. A 59-year-old woman was diagnosed with right upper lobe non-small cell lung carcinoma measuring 2.8 cm and a right adrenal gland mass measuring 3.

Genetic and epigenetic alterations of the LKB1 gene and their associations with mutations in TP53 and EGFR pathway genes in Korean non-small cell lung cancers.

Introduction: Liver kinase 1 (LKB1) plays a critical barrier role in lung tumorigenesis by controlling initiation, differentiation and metastasis. We searched for genetic and epigenetic alterations of the LKB1 gene in Korean non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLCs) and correlated the results with clinicopathological features. We also investigated the relationship between genetic and epigenetic alterations of LKB1 and mutations in the TP53 gene and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) pathway genes.

Ablative fractional laser treatment for hypertrophic scars: comparison between Er:YAG and CO2 fractional lasers.

Background: Nonablative fractional photothermolysis has been reported to show early promise in the treatment of hypertrophic scars, but there are few reports on ablative fractional photothermolysis for the treatment of hypertrophic scars.

Aim: To evaluate and compare the efficacy and safety of Er:YAG fractional laser (EYFL) and CO2 fractional laser (CO2FL) for treatment of hypertrophic scars.

Methods: Thirteen patients with hypertrophic scars were treated with 2,940 nm EYFL, and ten were treated with 10,600 nm CO2FL.

Short-term efficacy and tolerability of rufinamide adjunctive therapy in children with refractory generalised epilepsy.

We evaluated the efficacy and tolerability of rufinamide adjunctive therapy in children with refractory generalised epilepsy. The study cohort consisted of 20 patients with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, 5 with Dravet syndrome, and 28 with unclassified refractory generalised epilepsy. Patients with more than 50% seizure reduction at three and six months were defined as responders.

How do weather extremes affect rice productivity in a changing climate? An answer to episodic lack of sunshine.

Here, we experimentally examined how an episodic lack of sunshine (ELS), as an extreme weather event, would affect rice productivity under warming with elevated [CO2 ]. In 2009 and 2010, rice plants were grown at two levels of [CO2 ] (ca. 390 and 650 μl l(-1) ) and three levels of warming (≈ambient, +1.

Impact of local surgical treatment on survival in young women with T1 breast cancer: long-term results of a population-based cohort.

The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of the type of local surgical treatment on survival in young women aged less than 40 years with T1 breast cancer. We analyzed data from 3,512 patients aged ≤40 years old who were diagnosed with T1 breast cancer from the Korean Breast Cancer Registry database between January 1988 and December 2006 and underwent either breast-conserving therapy (BCT) or mastectomy. The overall survival (OS) and breast-cancer-specific survival (BCSS) were compared between BCT and mastectomy.

Circadian Rhythm Characteristics in Mood Disorders: Comparison among Bipolar I Disorder, Bipolar II Disorder and Recurrent Major Depressive Disorder.

Objective: Morningness/eveningness (M/E) is a stable characteristic of individuals. Circadian rhythms are altered in episodes of mood disorder. Mood disorder patients were more evening-type than normal population.

Genetic variants of AICDA/CASP14 associated with childhood brain tumor.

We conducted a hospital-based case-control study in Korea to investigate whether apoptosis- and cell cycle control-related genes are associated with childhood brain tumor. Incident brain tumor cases (N = 70) and non-cancer controls (N = 140), frequency-matched by age and gender, were selected from 3 teaching hospitals in Seoul between 2003 and 2006. Tag single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (N = 297) in 30 genes related to apoptosis and cell cycle control were selected using a pairwise linkage-disequilibrium-based algorithm.

Adjunctive aripiprazole therapy with escitalopram in patients with co-morbid major depressive disorder and alcohol dependence: clinical and neuroimaging evidence.

The effective treatment of depression has been reported to reduce the severity of alcohol use, potentially reflecting improvements in common brain reward circuits. We hypothesized that augmentation therapy of escitalopram with aripiprazole would improve depressive symptoms as well as reduce craving for alcohol and cue-induced brain activity in patients with co-morbid alcohol dependence and major depressive disorder, compared with treatment with escitalopram alone. Thirty-five subjects with major depressive disorder and alcohol dependence were recruited and randomly assigned into 17 aripiprazole + escitalopram and 18 escitalopram only groups.