Time-Series Trends of Depressive Levels of Korean Adults During the 2020 COVID-19 Pandemic in South Korea.

Objective: This study aimed to observe the changes in people's depressive levels over 9 months since the coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak as well as to identify the predictors of people's depressive levels including COVID-19 infection fear in the context of South Korea in 2020.

Methods: For these purposes, four cross-sectional surveys were periodically implemented from March to December 2020. We randomly recruited 6,142 Korean adults (aged 19 to 70) by using a quota survey.

Downregulation of SOCS1 increases interferon-induced ISGylation during differentiation of induced-pluripotent stem cells to hepatocytes.

Background & Aims: Increased expression of IFN-stimulated gene 15 (ISG15) and subsequently increased ISGylation are key factors in the host response to viral infection. In this study, we sought to characterize the expression of ISG15, ISGylation, and associated enzymes at each stage of differentiation from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to hepatocytes.

Methods: To study the regulation of ISGylation, we utilized patient samples and cell culture models including iPSCs, hepatocytes-like cells, immortalized cell lines, and primary human hepatocytes.

Factors Related to Anxiety and Depression Among Adolescents During COVID-19: A Web-Based Cross-Sectional Survey.

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak and subsequent disease-containment measures (such as school closures) significantly affected the lives of adolescents. We evaluated the mental-health status and factors associated with anxiety and depression among South Korean adolescents.

Methods: A nationwide online survey was conducted to evaluate the mental-health status of South Korean adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Structural Model Analysis of Discriminatory Behavior Toward People With Severe Mental Illness.

Objective: This study aimed to determine how prejudice and attitude toward people with severe mental illness, formed through exposure to the mass media, affect discriminatory behavior toward them.

Methods: Between September and November 2019, demographic data were collected using an online survey of 622 adults residing in South Korea. The scales used in this study were taken from the 2008 survey by the National Human Rights Commission of Korea.

Effects of COVID-19-related stress and fear on depression in schizophrenia patients and the general population.

This study compared the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related stress, fear of infection, loneliness, and depression between patients with schizophrenia and the general population. A face-to-face survey was administered to 1340 patients with a schizophrenia spectrum disorder and online survey of the general population (n = 2000) was conducted. The information gathered included the level of COVID-19-related stress, fear of infection, the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 score, and the three-item UCLA Loneliness Scale score.

COVID-19 and Risk Factors of Anxiety and Depression in South Korea.

Objective: The aims of this study were to explore the prevalence of and identify predictors of anxiety and depression related to coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) in South Korea.

Methods: The analysis is based on a quota survey design and a sampling frame that permitted recruitment of a national sample of 1,014 individuals between March 17-31, 2020. Several standardized measurements were used, including GAD-7, PHQ-9, COVID-19 related fear, restrictions in deaily life, as well as sociodemographic information and physical and psychosocial needs during the pandemic.

Psychosocial Support during the COVID-19 Outbreak in Korea: Activities of Multidisciplinary Mental Health Professionals.

As of April 18, 2020, there have been a total of 10,653 confirmed cases and 232 deaths due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Korea. The pathogen spread quickly, and the outbreak caused nationwide anxiety and shock. This study presented the anecdotal records that provided a detailed process of the multidisciplinary teamwork in mental health during the COVID-19 outbreak in the country.

HIV and HCV augments inflammatory responses through increased TREM-1 expression and signaling in Kupffer and Myeloid cells.

Chronic infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) affects an estimated 35 million and 75 million individuals worldwide, respectively. These viruses induce persistent inflammation which often drives the development or progression of organ-specific diseases and even cancer including Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC). In this study, we sought to examine inflammatory responses following HIV or HCV stimulation of macrophages or Kupffer cells (KCs), that may contribute to virus mediated inflammation and subsequent liver disease.

TIR-Domain-Containing Adapter-Inducing Interferon- (TRIF) Regulates CXCR5+ T helper Cells in the Intestine.

Objective: Establishing an effective humoral immunity is an important host defense mechanism in intestinal mucosa. T follicular helper (Tfh) cells are a spectrum of CXCR5 expressing T helper cells that induce antigen-specific B cell differentiation. Because the differentiation of T helper cells is largely regulated by innate immunity, we addressed whether TRIF signaling regulates Tfh cell differentiation and its ability to trigger humoral immune responses in the intestine.

Hepatitis B Virus and DNA Stimulation Trigger a Rapid Innate Immune Response through NF-κB.

Cell-intrinsic innate immunity provides a rapid first line of defense to thwart invading viral pathogens through the production of antiviral and inflammatory genes. However, the presence of many of these signaling pathways in the liver and their role in hepatitis B virus (HBV) pathogenesis is unknown. Recent identification of intracellular DNA-sensing pathways and involvement in numerous diverse disease processes including viral pathogenesis and carcinogenesis suggest a role for these processes in HBV infection.

Human intestinal epithelial cells express interleukin-10 through Toll-like receptor 4-mediated epithelial-macrophage crosstalk.

In the intestine, interaction between epithelial cells and macrophages (MΦs) create a unique immunoregulatory microenvironment necessary to maintain local immune and tissue homeostasis. Human intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) have been shown to express interleukin (IL)-10, which keeps epithelial integrity. We have demonstrated that bacterial signaling through Toll-like receptor (TLR) 4 induces 15-deoxy-Δ-12,14-prostaglandin J2 (15d-PGJ2) synthesis in intestinal MΦs by cyclooxygenase (Cox)-2 expression.

A unique host defense pathway: TRIF mediates both antiviral and antibacterial immune responses.

Both anti-viral and anti-bacterial host defense mechanisms involve TRIF signaling. TRIF provides early clearance of pathogens and coordination of a local inflammatory ensemble through an interferon cascade, while it may trigger organ damage. The multipotentiality of TRIF-mediated immune machinery may direct the fate of our continuous battle with microbes.

TRIF mobilizes unique primary defense against Gram-negative bacteria in intestinal interface.

The gastrointestinal tract is the largest mucosal surface in our body. It houses diverse microorganisms that collectively form the commensal microbial community. The security of this community is kept by host-microbial interactions and is violated by foreign pathogens that induce local as well as systemic pathology.