Publications by authors named "Mu-Chi Chung"

Mitochondria, vital organelles that generate ATP, determine cell fate. Dysfunctional and damaged mitochondria are fragmented and removed through mitophagy, a mitochondrial quality control mechanism. The FDA-approved drug IMQ, a synthetic agonist of Toll-like receptor 7, exhibits antitumor activity against various skin malignancies.

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Admission for renal biopsy is considered the gold standard for diagnosing kidney disease. However, prolonged waiting times for admission can lead to delayed diagnosis. Despite this issue, there are currently no studies demonstrating how to improve the efficiency of renal biopsy procedures.

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Kidney transplant recipients have an increased risk of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection and disease. A strategy for mitigating the risk of CMV infection in kidney transplant recipients has not yet been established in Taiwan. The Transplantation Society of Taiwan aimed to develop a consensus by expert opinion on the prevention and management of CMV infection.

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Objective: Limited research has explored the long-term effect of reduced PM exposure on cognitive function. This study aimed to investigate the effects of time-dependent PM exposure and the interactions of PM and aging on declines in Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores, in carriers and non-carriers of the APOE-ε4 allele.

Methods: Participants aged over 60 were recruited for this cohort study, undergoing MMSE tests twice from the Taiwan Biobank Program from 2008 to 2020.

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Article Synopsis
  • Melanogenesis not only protects the skin from UV radiation but also influences melanoma behavior, and this study investigates the effect of Imiquimod (IMQ) on this process in melanoma cells.
  • IMQ, a TLR7 agonist, was found to induce melanogenesis in B16F10 mouse melanoma cells by enhancing crucial proteins and tyrosinase activity, leading to increased pigmentation.
  • The mechanism involves elevated levels of intracellular cAMP due to IMQ's inhibition of phosphodiesterase 4B, along with reactive oxygen species (ROS) playing a role in activating this pathway.
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High-energy, low-protein formulas (HE-LPFs) are commonly used as oral nutritional supplements (ONSs) to help provide extra calories to patients who are adhering to a low-protein diet (LPD) after diagnosis with chronic kidney disease (CKD). This randomized controlled trial aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of an HE-LPF as either a partial or a total replacement for one meal in pre-dialysis CKD patients. Stage 4-5 CKD patients received either a once-daily HE-LPF (HE-LPF group) or normal food (control group) for a period of 4 weeks while following an LPD.

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Background: Cryptococcosis is one of the most frequent fungal eye infections in patients with immunosuppression. Currently, treatment approaches for non-meningeal, non-pulmonary cryptococcosis are based on those used for cryptococcal meningitis or pneumonia.

Case Presentation: We present a rare case of non-meningeal, non-pulmonary cryptococcosis with clinical manifestations limited to one eye of a cadaveric kidney transplant recipient with chronic-active antibody-mediated rejection.

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The aldosterone-to-renin ratio (ARR) is the standard screening test for primary aldosteronism (PA). Because of the poor reproducibility of the ARR, repeat testing is recommended if the result is not compatible with the clinical condition. Various methods to measure renin are used in different hospitals in Taiwan, and the ARR cutoff values also differ among laboratories.

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Importance: The association between sodium-glucose transport protein 2 inhibitor (SGLT2i) use and the incidence of acute kidney injury (AKI) remains controversial. The benefits of SGLT2i use in patients to reduce AKI requiring dialysis (AKI-D) and concomitant diseases with AKI as well as improve AKI prognosis have not yet been established.

Objective: To investigate the association between SGLT2i use and AKI incidence in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D).

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Article Synopsis
  • * Out of 3208 patients, those on dialysis and with advanced CKD experienced significantly higher rates of severe hypocalcemia than those with better renal function (6.9% vs. 2.0% vs. 0.1%).
  • * After the integrated care program, the incidence of severe hypocalcemia among advanced CKD and dialysis patients decreased notably (from 6.8% to 0.8%), suggesting that a multidisciplinary approach may improve patient outcomes. *
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The clarification of possible exposure sources of multiple metals to identify associations between metal doses and urothelial carcinoma (UC) risk is currently limited in the literature. We sought to identify the exposure sources of 10 metals (Vanadium, chromium, manganese, cobalt, nickel, copper, zinc, arsenic, cadmium, and lead) using principal component analysis (PCA) and then linked various principal component (PC) scores with environmental characteristics, including smoking-related indices, PM, and distance to the nearest bus station. In addition, urinary 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) and DNA hypomethylation markers (5-methyl-2'-deoxycytidine levels; %5-MedC) were investigated in combination with UC risks.

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Chlorfenapyr is a new contact and stomach insecticide derived from natural pyrroles secreted by spp. It is a pro-insecticide and acts after metabolic transformation to its active metabolite tralopyril. Tralopyril is an uncoupler of oxidative phosphorylation in the mitochondria of the target insects and of experiment animals, leading to the disruption of adenosine triphosphate synthesis and death.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study investigated kidney disease patterns in elderly patients (65+) compared to younger ones (18-64), using data from biopsies conducted between 1992 and 2008 at a single center.
  • - Geriatric patients primarily presented with membranous nephropathy (46.1%), while younger patients showed a broader range of conditions; the elderly had a higher prevalence of this specific kidney disease and lower rates of lupus and IgA nephropathy.
  • - The findings highlighted significant differences in renal disease distribution and lower 5-year survival rates among elderly patients, reflecting the unique healthcare challenges posed by chronic kidney diseases in this age group.
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Background: Fuzzy inference systems (FISs) based on fuzzy theory in mathematics were previously applied to infer supplementary points for the limited number of monitoring sites and improve the uncertainty of spatial data. Therefore we adopted the FIS method to simulate spatiotemporal levels of air pollutants [particulate matter <2.5 μm (PM), sulfur dioxide (SO) and (NO)] and investigated the association of levels of air pollutants with the community-based prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD).

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Introduction: Air pollution is a novel environmental risk factor for chronic kidney disease (CKD). Air quality improved during COVID-19 lockdowns; however, the effects of these lockdowns on PM concentrations and renal function remain unclear.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study to compare air pollution and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) decline in patients with stage 5 CKD between a year-long period of lockdown (2020; n = 724) and a similar period before lockdown (2019, n = 758).

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Article Synopsis
  • Contrast-medium-associated kidney injury arises from using contrast media, affecting small blood vessels linked to both kidney and brain conditions.
  • A study analyzed data from over 11 million National Health Insurance enrollees, matching nearly 1.5 million patients exposed to contrast media with those who were not.
  • Findings showed a 2.09-fold increased risk of dementia in exposed patients, with young individuals without prior health issues facing a notably higher risk, particularly for vascular dementia.
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Context: Protocatechuic aldehyde (PCA) is a natural product that has various benefits for fibrosis.

Objective: This study evaluated the effects of PCA on renal fibrosis.

Materials And Methods: Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) was induced by 20 ng/mL transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), followed by treatment with 1 and 5 μM PCA, in the rat renal proximal tubular cell line NRK-52E.

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Sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitor (SGLT2i) potentially decrease all-cause and cardiovascular death, however, associations with non-cardiovascular death remain unclear. Therefore, we investigated SGLT2i associations with death and the cause of death. We used the Taiwanese National Health Institutes Research database linked to the National Register of Deaths (NRD).

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Limited literature has explored the effect of air pollutants on chronic kidney disease (CKD) progression, especially for patients with pre-end-stage renal disease (pre-ESRD). In this study, we reported the linear and nonlinear relationships of air pollutants of particles with diameter <2.5 μm (PM) and nitrogen dioxide (NO) with estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) deterioration after adjusting for smoking status and other traditional clinical factors.

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Background: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is increasing, with heavy metal exposure an important risk factor. Additionally, the antioxidant folic acid has been studied for reducing blood arsenic levels and related tissue damage. Therefore, we explored the association and mediation effects among various heavy metal levels in blood, plasma folate, other CKD risk factors, and impaired estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR).

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The relationship between heavy metal exposure and human health has been investigated mostly for individual metals, failing to consider their potential interactions. In this study, we assessed the joint effects of multiple metals using generalized weighted quantile sum (WQS) regression on the risk of urothelial carcinoma (UC). Also, we performed mediation analysis to evaluate the mediator %5-MedC in DNA involved in the mechanism of urothelial carcinogenesis.

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Importance: The use of sodium-glucose transport protein 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors is currently a standard intervention in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) and exerts favorable pleiotropic effects to consistently lower blood urate levels. However, to date, no association between SGLT2 inhibitor use and the incidence of gout have been established.

Objective: To investigate whether prescribed SGLT2 inhibitors are associated with lower gout incidence in patients with T2DM.

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Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is one of the most severe chronic kidney diseases in diabetes and is the main cause of end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Protocatechuic aldehyde (PCA) is a natural product with a variety of effects on pulmonary fibrosis. In this study, we examined the effects of PCA in C57BL/KS db/db male mice.

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Background: Previous studies have shown inconsistent results regarding the impact of traffic pollution on the prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Therefore, using frequency matching and propensity scores, we explored the association between traffic pollution and COPD in a cohort of 8284 residents in a major agricultural county in Taiwan.

Methods: All subjects completed a structured questionnaire interview and health checkups.

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Background: The impact of peritoneal dialysis-associated peritonitis (PD peritonitis) on long-term outcomes is uncertain. This nationwide retrospective study was conducted in Taiwan to understand the incidence, risk factors and long-term outcomes of PD peritonitis.

Methods: A total of 11,202 incident adult peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients from 2000 to 2010 were collected from a Longitudinal Health Insurance Database and followed up until the end of 2011.

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