The beneficial effects of empagliflozin, an SGLT2 inhibitor, on atherosclerosis in ApoE mice fed a western diet.

Aims/hypothesis: A recent large clinical study has shown that empagliflozin has a lower rate of cardiovascular and all-cause mortality when compared with placebo in patients with type 2 diabetes. We investigated the effect of empagliflozin (compared with glimepiride) on the progression of atherosclerosis, and its possible mechanisms of action.

Methods: Forty-eight 5-week-old male ApoE mice were fed a western diet for 20 weeks and divided into four groups: control (saline, 154 mmol/l NaCl), glimepiride 0.

One-hour postload plasma glucose concentration in people with normal glucose homeostasis predicts future diabetes mellitus: a 12-year community-based cohort study.

Objective: In Caucasians, plasma glucose concentration at 1 h during an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) may be a better predictor of future diabetes mellitus than the fasting or 2-h postload glucose concentration. We investigated whether the 1-h glucose concentration could be used to predict future diabetes mellitus in Asian ethnicity.

Measurements: A total of 5703 Koreans with normal glucose tolerance were enrolled from the Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study.

A genetic variant in GLP1R is associated with response to DPP-4 inhibitors in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Incretin hormone-based therapy in type 2 diabetes has been widely used, and dipepdityl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors, which prevent incretin degradation, have become popular oral hypoglycemic agents. The efficacy of DPP-4 inhibitors varies from individuals, and factors determining responses to DPP-4 inhibitors have not been fully established. We aimed to investigate whether genetic variations in glucagon-like peptide (GLP-1) receptor are associated with responses to DPP-4 inhibitors in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Predictive Values of the New Sarcopenia Index by the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health Sarcopenia Project for Mortality among Older Korean Adults.

Objective: We evaluated the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health (FNIH) Sarcopenia Project's recommended criteria for sarcopenia's association with mortality among older Korean adults.

Methods: We conducted a community-based prospective cohort study which included 560 (285 men and 275 women) older Korean adults aged ≥65 years. Muscle mass (appendicular skeletal muscle mass-to-body mass index ratio (ASM/BMI)), handgrip strength, and walking velocity were evaluated in association with all-cause mortality during 6-year follow-up.

Clinical whole exome sequencing in early onset diabetes patients.

Aims: There could be an overlap of monogenic diabetes and early onset type 2 diabetes in those who are diagnosed before age of 30years. Genetic diagnosis in these patients might improve the quality of care. A limited number of studies have used whole exome sequencing (WES) in Asian patients with early onset diabetes, and the clinical utility of WES is largely unknown.

Serum bilirubin levels are positively associated with glycemic variability in women with type 2 diabetes.

Aims/introduction: Glycemic variability is known to induce oxidative stress. We investigated the relationships between glycemic variability and serum bilirubin levels, an endogenous anti-oxidant, in patients with diabetes.

Materials And Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out with 77 patients with type 2 diabetes who had been recruited to two clinical studies from 2008 to 2014.

Rg3 Improves Mitochondrial Function and the Expression of Key Genes Involved in Mitochondrial Biogenesis in C2C12 Myotubes.

Background: Panax ginseng has glucose-lowering effects, some of which are associated with the improvement in insulin resistance in skeletal muscle. Because mitochondria play a pivotal role in the insulin resistance of skeletal muscle, we investigated the effects of the ginsenoside Rg3, one of the active components of P. ginseng, on mitochondrial function and biogenesis in C2C12 myotubes.

Comprehensive assessment of lipoprotein subfraction profiles according to glucose metabolism status, and association with insulin resistance in subjects with early-stage impaired glucose metabolism.

Background: Early detection of atherogenic dyslipidemia is crucial. We investigated lipoprotein subfraction parameters according to glucose metabolism status.

Methods: We recruited 1255 lipid-lowering drug-naïve subjects with normal fasting glucose (NFG; n=200, 15.

Attenuation of carotid neointimal formation after direct delivery of a recombinant adenovirus expressing glucagon-like peptide-1 in diabetic rats.

Aims: Enhancement of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) reduces glucose levels and preserves pancreatic β-cell function, but its effect against restenosis is unknown.

Methods And Results: We investigated the effect of subcutaneous injection of exenatide or local delivery of a recombinant adenovirus expressing GLP-1 (rAd-GLP-1) into carotid artery, in reducing the occurrence of restenosis following balloon injury. As a control, we inserted β-galactosidase cDNA in the same vector (rAd-βGAL).

Incidence and Predictors of Febrile Neutropenia among Early-Stage Breast Cancer Patients Receiving Anthracycline-Based Chemotherapy in Korea.

Objective: This retrospective study was undertaken to assess the incidence of and risk factors for febrile neutropenia (FN) during adjuvant chemotherapy for early-stage breast cancer (ESBC).

Methods: A multicenter survey of three tertiary hospitals was conducted, with data extracted from the records of ESBC patients treated with adjuvant chemotherapy containing AC (doxorubicin, 60 mg/m2 and cyclophosphamide, 600 mg/m2 every 21 days). Assessments included clinical characteristics, chemotherapy dose modifications, and incidence of FN.

Methylsulfonylmethane (MSM), an organosulfur compound, is effective against obesity-induced metabolic disorders in mice.

Methylsulfonylmethane (MSM), an organosulfur compound, has been used as a dietary supplement that can improve various metabolic diseases. However, the effect of MSM on obesity-linked metabolic disorders remains unclear. The goal of the current study is to determine whether MSM has beneficial effects on glucose and lipid homeostasis in obesity-associated pathophysiologic states.

Metabolic syndrome independently predicts future diabetes in women with a history of gestational diabetes mellitus.

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is an established predisposing condition for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). However, it is not thoroughly evaluated whether MetS increases the risk of T2DM in women with a previous history of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) who already at high risk of T2DM compared with the general population. We investigated the impact of MetS on the development of postpartum diabetes in women with a history of GDM.

Vildagliptin reduces plasma stromal cell-derived factor-1α in patients with type 2 diabetes compared with glimepiride.

Aims/introduction: Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors might have pleiotropic protective effects on cardiovascular disease (CVD), in contrast to sulfonylureas. Therefore, we compared various CVD risk factors between vildagliptin and glimepiride.

Materials And Methods: We carried out a randomized, prospective and crossover trial.

Changes in Adherence to Non-Pharmacological Guidelines for Hypertension.

This study aimed to compare levels of adherence to non-pharmacological guidelines between patients with and without hypertension diagnoses, and examined temporal changes in adherence during recent decades. We used data from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1998-2012), including 13,768 Korean hypertensive patients aged ≥ 30 years who were categorized according to the presence or absence of a hypertension diagnosis, based on blood pressure and self-reported information. Adherence to the guidelines was calculated for 6 components, including dietary and lifestyle habits.

A coding variant in confers susceptibility to thiopurine-induced leukopenia in East Asian patients with IBD.

Objective: Myelosuppression is a life-threatening complication of thiopurine therapy, and the incidence of thiopurine-induced myelosuppression is higher in East Asians than in Europeans. We investigated genetic factors associated with thiopurine-induced leukopenia in patients with IBD.

Design: A genome-wide association study (GWAS) was conducted in thiopurine-treated patients with IBD, followed by high-throughput sequencing of genes identified as significant in the GWAS or those involved in thiopurine metabolism (n=331).

Thyroid-stimulating hormone improves insulin sensitivity in skeletal muscle cells via cAMP/PKA/CREB pathway-dependent upregulation of insulin receptor substrate-1 expression.

Thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) receptor is expressed in extrathyroidal tissues such as hepatocytes, adipocytes, and skeletal muscle, which suggests a possible novel role of TSH in various metabolic processes in extrathyroidal tissues independent of thyroid hormones. We investigated whether TSH has any effects on glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity in the skeletal muscle using diet-induced obesity (DIO) mouse models and rodent skeletal muscle cells. TSH improved glucose tolerance in DIO mice and this was associated with an improvement of skeletal muscle insulin sensitivity resulting from the increased expression of insulin receptor substrate (IRS)-1 protein and mRNA therein.

Association between Toenail Mercury and Metabolic Syndrome Is Modified by Selenium.

Background: Although Asian populations consume relatively large amounts of fish and seafood and have a high prevalence of metabolic diseases, few studies have investigated the association between chronic mercury exposure and metabolic syndrome and its effect modification by selenium.

Methods: We analyzed baseline data from the Trace Element Study of Korean Adults in the Yeungnam area. Participants included 232 men and 269 women, aged 35 years or older, who had complete data regarding demographic, lifestyle, diet, toenail mercury and selenium levels, and health.

The genetic architecture of type 2 diabetes.

The genetic architecture of common traits, including the number, frequency, and effect sizes of inherited variants that contribute to individual risk, has been long debated. Genome-wide association studies have identified scores of common variants associated with type 2 diabetes, but in aggregate, these explain only a fraction of the heritability of this disease. Here, to test the hypothesis that lower-frequency variants explain much of the remainder, the GoT2D and T2D-GENES consortia performed whole-genome sequencing in 2,657 European individuals with and without diabetes, and exome sequencing in 12,940 individuals from five ancestry groups.

Reproducibility and validity of a semi-quantitative FFQ for trace elements.

The aim of this study was to test the reproducibility and validity of a self-administered FFQ for the Trace Element Study of Korean Adults in the Yeungnam area (SELEN). Study subjects were recruited from the SELEN cohort selected from rural and urban areas in Yeungnam, Korea. A semi-quantitative FFQ with 146 items was developed considering the dietary characteristics of cohorts in the study area.

Impact of metabolic syndrome on the progression of coronary calcium and of coronary artery disease assessed by repeated cardiac computed tomography scans.

Background: It is not clear how severe metabolic syndrome (MS) affects the development of coronary atherosclerosis.

Methods: This was an observational, retrospective cohort study with Koreans who received health check-ups voluntarily. A total of 2426 subjects had baseline and follow-up coronary artery calcium score (CACS) data.

The prognostic role of serum C-X-C chemokine receptor type 4 in patients with metastatic or recurrent colorectal cancer.

Background: C-X-C chemokine receptor type 4 (CXCR4) is involved in tumor progression including angiogenesis, metastasis, and survival. However, whether serum CXCR4 levels in metastatic or recurrent colorectal cancer have a prognostic role, have not been evaluated.

Methods: We analyzed serum samples from 55 patients with advanced colorectal cancer diagnosed between March 2008 and July 2011.

Efficacy and safety of the addition of a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitor to insulin therapy in patients with type 2 diabetes: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Aims: To compare the efficacy and safety of the addition of a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitor or a placebo in patients with type 2 diabetes inadequately controlled with insulin.

Methods: We searched randomised controlled trials (RCTs) from MEDLINE, EMBASE, LILACS, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials and the ClinicalTrials.gov online registry.

1,5-Anhydro-D-Glucitol Could Reflect Hypoglycemia Risk in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Receiving Insulin Therapy.

Background: The identification of a marker for hypoglycemia could help patients achieve strict glucose control with a lower risk of hypoglycemia. 1,5-Anhydro-D-glucitol (1,5-AG) reflects postprandial hyperglycemia in patients with well-controlled diabetes, which contributes to glycemic variability. Because glycemic variability is related to hypoglycemia, we aimed to evaluate the value of 1,5-AG as a marker of hypoglycemia.

Evaluation of Non-Laboratory and Laboratory Prediction Models for Current and Future Diabetes Mellitus: A Cross-Sectional and Retrospective Cohort Study.

Background: Various diabetes risk scores composed of non-laboratory parameters have been developed, but only a few studies performed cross-validation of these scores and a comparison with laboratory parameters. We evaluated the performance of diabetes risk scores composed of non-laboratory parameters, including a recently published Korean risk score (KRS), and compared them with laboratory parameters.

Methods: The data of 26,675 individuals who visited the Seoul National University Hospital Healthcare System Gangnam Center for a health screening program were reviewed for cross-sectional validation.