Evaluation on the Nutrition Quotient Scores of Elderly People Living Alone in Korea.

As the Korean society is aging rapidly, the issues on physical, social, economic, and mental disabilities of single-person households aged 65 years or older has also increased. This study aimed to investigate the nutrition-related dietary conditions of elderly people living alone and determine their dietary behavior by calculating the nutrition quotient for elderly (NQ-E). One hundred and three elderly people living alone who were basic living recipients were recruited from six senior welfare centers in Seoul, and the data were collected using a questionnaire from 19 July 2016 to 17 August 2016, with a 1:1 in-depth interview using the modified version of the NQ-E questionnaire.

You Are Not Alone: A Serial Mediation of Social Attraction, Privacy Concerns, and Satisfaction in Voice AI Use.

The popularity of voice-activated artificial intelligence (voice AI) has grown rapidly as people continue to use smart speakers such as Amazon Alexa and Google Home to support everyday tasks. However, little is known about how loneliness relates to voice AI use, or the potential mediators in this association. This study investigates the mediating roles of users' perceptions (i.

Efficacy of a Hip Brace for Hip Displacement in Children With Cerebral Palsy: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: There is no consensus on interventions to slow the progress of hip displacement in patients with cerebral palsy.

Objective: To investigate the efficacy of a novel hip brace in preventing progressive hip displacement in patients with cerebral palsy.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This 2-group randomized clinical trial was conducted at 4 tertiary hospitals in South Korea from July 2019 to November 2021.

Evaluation of the nutrient quotient for the elderly (NQ-E) using congregate meal services according to their oral health conditions.

Background/objectives: The purposes of this study were to evaluate the nutritional status and dietary habits of the elderly using the nutrition quotient for the elderly (NQ-E) and to analyze the differences in the NQ-E according to their levels of oral health.

Subjects/methods: The survey was administered to 123 elderly people receiving congregate meal services in Seoul. The questionnaire comprised 3 domains: oral health status, general characteristics, and the NQ-E for the elderly.

Specialized neurons in the right habenula mediate response to aversive olfactory cues.

Hemispheric specializations are well studied at the functional level but less is known about the underlying neural mechanisms. We identified a small cluster of cholinergic neurons in the dorsal habenula (dHb) of zebrafish, defined by their expression of the a () gene and their efferent connections with a subregion of the ventral interpeduncular nucleus (vIPN). The -expressing neurons in the right dHb are innervated by a subset of mitral cells from both the left and right olfactory bulb and are activated upon exposure to the odorant cadaverine that is repellent to adult zebrafish.

Generation of foxn1/Casper Mutant Zebrafish for Allograft and Xenograft of Normal and Malignant Cells.

Cell transplantation into immunodeficient recipients is a widely used approach to study stem cell and cancer biology; however, studying cell states post transplantation in vivo is inconvenient in mammals. Here, we generated a foxn1/Casper mutant zebrafish that is transparent and exhibits T cell deficiency. By employing the line for hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) transplantation (HSCT), we could achieve nonconditioned transplantation.

Loss of abcd4 in zebrafish leads to vitamin B-deficiency anemia.

ABCD4, a member of the ATP-binding cassette transporter superfamily, is associated with the transport of vitamin B which is crucial for the development of red blood cells (RBCs) and may also be involved in its metabolism. However, the molecular function of ABCD4 during RBC development in zebrafish is mostly unknown. Using a morpholino-based knockdown approach, we found that abcd4-knockdown resulted in abnormal RBCs of irregular shapes and various sizes.

A new species of bomolochid Orbitacolax brevispinus n. sp. and redescription of taeniacanthid Cirracanthus inimici (Yamaguti et Yamasu, 1959) (Crustacea: Copepoda: Cyclopoida) parasitic on marine fishes of Korea.

Two species of cyclopoid copepods are recorded in this study. (1) A new species of bomolochid, Orbitacolax brevispinus n. sp.

Chd7 Is Critical for Early T-Cell Development and Thymus Organogenesis in Zebrafish.

Coloboma, heart defect, atresia choanae, retarded growth and development, genital hypoplasia, ear anomalies/deafness (CHARGE) syndrome is a congenital disorder affecting multiple organs and mainly caused by mutations in CHD7, a gene encoding a chromatin-remodeling protein. Immunodeficiency and reduced T cells have been noted in CHARGE syndrome. However, the mechanisms underlying T lymphopenia are largely unexplored.

Targeted knockout of a chemokine-like gene increases anxiety and fear responses.

Emotional responses, such as fear and anxiety, are fundamentally important behavioral phenomena with strong fitness components in most animal species. Anxiety-related disorders continue to represent a major unmet medical need in our society, mostly because we still do not fully understand the mechanisms of these diseases. Animal models may speed up discovery of these mechanisms.

Deficiency of a brain-specific chemokine-like molecule, SAM3, induces cardinal phenotypes of autism spectrum disorders in mice.

Chemokines are small secreted signaling proteins produced by a broad range of cells, including immune cells. Several studies have recently suggested potential roles of chemokines and their receptors in the pathophysiology of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). SAM3 is a novel brain-specific chemokine-like molecule with an unknown physiological function.

Ottogi Inhibits Wnt/β-catenin Signaling by Regulating Cell Membrane Trafficking of Frizzled8.

Wnt signaling controls critical developmental processes including tissue/body patterning. Here we report the identification of a novel regulator of Wnt signaling, OTTOGI (OTG), isolated from a large-scale expression screening of human cDNAs in zebrafish embryos. Overexpression of OTG in zebrafish embryos caused dorso-anteriorized phenotype, inhibited the expression of Wnt target genes, and prevented nuclear accumulation of β-catenin.

Zebrafish knockout of Down syndrome gene, , shows social impairments relevant to autism.

Background: maps to the Down syndrome critical region at 21q22. Mutations in this kinase-encoding gene have been reported to cause microcephaly associated with either intellectual disability or autism in humans. Intellectual disability accompanied by microcephaly was recapitulated in a murine model by overexpressing which mimicked Down syndrome phenotypes.

Development of zebrafish medulloblastoma-like PNET model by TALEN-mediated somatic gene inactivation.

Genetically engineered animal tumor models have traditionally been generated by the gain of single or multiple oncogenes or the loss of tumor suppressor genes; however, the development of live animal models has been difficult given that cancer phenotypes are generally induced by somatic mutation rather than by germline genetic inactivation. In this study, we developed somatically mutated tumor models using TALEN-mediated somatic gene inactivation of or tumor suppressor genes in zebrafish. One-cell stage injection of -TALEN mRNA resulted in malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors with high frequency (about 39%) and early onset (about 35 weeks of age) in F0 mutant zebrafish.

The effect of weight bearing on bone mineral density and bone growth in children with cerebral palsy: A randomized controlled preliminary trial.

Background: The present study aims to explore the effect of weight bearing exercise on bone mineral density (BMD) and bone growth in children with cerebral palsy (CP).

Methods: Twelve children with CP of functional level of gross motor functional classification scale (GMFCS) V and 6 healthy children (control group) were included in the study. Participants underwent a dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scan to measure the BMD of the femur and full-length anteroposterior radiography to measure the bone length of the femur and tibia at baseline and after 6 months.

Complete mitochondrial genome of Kishi velvet shrimp, (Rathbun, 1902) (Crustacea: Decapoda: Penaeidae) in the East China Sea.

We determined the complete mitochondrial genome of (Rathbun, 1902, which is collected from East China Sea (124°E and 33.5°N). Total mitochondrial genome length of was 15 939 bp, in which 13 proteins, two ribosomal RNAs, 22 transfer RNAs and a putative control region were encoded.

Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Infection Control and Prevention Guideline for Healthcare Facilities.

Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) is an acute viral respiratory illness with high mortality caused by a new strain of betacoronavirus (MERS-CoV). Since the report of the first patient in Saudi Arabia in 2012, large-scale outbreaks through hospital-acquired infection and inter-hospital transmission have been reported. Most of the patients reported in South Korea were also infected in hospital settings.

Improved Dysphagia After Decannulation of Tracheostomy in Patients With Brain Injuries.

Objective: To investigate improved dysphagia after the decannulation of a tracheostomy in patients with brain injuries.

Methods: The subjects of this study are patients with brain injuries who were admitted to the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine in Myongji Hospital and who underwent a decannulation between 2012 and 2014. A video fluoroscopic swallowing study (VFSS) was performed in order to investigate whether the patients' dysphagia had improved.

Thoracic Radiculopathy Resulting From Retrograde Neuronal Degeneration.

We report a case of thoracic radiculopathy caused by retrograde degeneration from an intercostal nerve mass. A 74-year-old woman presented with thoracic radicular pain in the T4 dermatome. Needle electromyography revealed abnormal spontaneous activity in the left paraspinal muscle.

Effectiveness of Rehabilitative Balloon Swallowing Treatment on Upper Esophageal Sphincter Relaxation and Pharyngeal Motility for Neurogenic Dysphagia.

Objective: To investigate the relationship between dysphagia severity and opening of the upper esophageal sphincter (UES), and to assess the effect of balloon size on functional improvement after rehabilitative balloon swallowing treatment in patients with severe dysphagia with cricopharyngeus muscle dysfunction (CPD).

Methods: We reviewed videofluoroscopic swallowing studies (VFSS) conducted in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Myongji Hospital from January through December in 2012. All subjects diagnosed with CPD by VFSS further swallowed a 16-Fr Foley catheter filled with barium sulfate suspension for three to five minutes.

ZC4H2, an XLID gene, is required for the generation of a specific subset of CNS interneurons.

Miles-Carpenter syndrome (MCS) was described in 1991 as an XLID syndrome with fingertip arches and contractures and mapped to proximal Xq. Patients had microcephaly, short stature, mild spasticity, thoracic scoliosis, hyperextendable MCP joints, rocker-bottom feet, hyperextended elbows and knees. A mutation, p.

IFT46 plays an essential role in cilia development.

Cilia are microtubule-based structures that project into the extracellular space. Ciliary defects are associated with several human diseases, including polycystic kidney disease, primary ciliary dyskinesia, left-right axis patterning, hydrocephalus and retinal degeneration. However, the genetic and cellular biological control of ciliogenesis remains poorly understood.

Rapid Origin Determination of the Northern Mauxia Shrimp (Acetes chinensis) Based on Allele Specific Polymerase Chain Reaction of Partial Mitochondrial 16S rRNA Gene.

Acetes chinensis is an economically important shrimp that belongs to the Sergestidae family; following fermentation, A. chinensis' economic value, however, is low in China, and much of the catch in China is exported to Korea at a low price, thus leading to potential false labeling. For this reason, we developed a simple method to identify A.

Induction of clusterin expression by neuronal cell death in Zebrafish.

Clusterin, a protein associated with multiple functions, is expressed in a wide variety of mammalian tissues. Although clusterin is known to be involved in neurodegenerative diseases, ageing, and tumorigenesis, a detailed analysis of the consequences of gain- or loss-of-function approaches has yet to be performed to understand the underlying mechanisms of clusterin functions. Since clusterin levels change in neurological diseases, it is likely that clusterin contributes to cell death and degeneration in general.

FIH-1, a novel interactor of mindbomb, functions as an essential anti-angiogenic factor during zebrafish vascular development.

Objective: It has been shown that Mindbomb (Mib), an E3 Ubiquitin ligase, is an essential modulator of Notch signaling during development. However, its effects on vascular development remain largely unknown.

Approaches And Results: We identified a number of novel proteins that physically interact with Mib, including the Factor Inhibiting Hypoxia Inducible Factor 1 (FIH-1, also known as HIF1AN) from a yeast two hybrid screen, as previously reported.