Relapse pattern and prognostic factors for patients with primary central nervous system lymphoma.

Background: Primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) rarely relapses in extracranial sites, and no specialized guidelines for follow-up evaluation have been proposed.

Methods: We analyzed 65 patients with newly diagnosed PNCSL to evaluate the pattern of relapse and prognostic factors.

Results: Of the 65 patients analyzed, 55 had only parenchymal brain disease, and 10 had both intracranial and extracranial lesions.

A phase I/II study of bortezomib plus CHOP every 2 weeks (CHOP-14) in patients with advanced-stage diffuse large B-cell lymphomas.

Background: Bortezomib targets molecular dysregulation of nuclear factor-κB activation and cell cycle control, which are characteristic features of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). We evaluated the safety and efficacy of bortezomib treatment with dose-dense cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone (CHOP) every 2 weeks (CHOP-14).

Methods: Untreated DLBCL patients were enrolled.

Genetic and epileptic features in Rett syndrome.

Purpose: Rett syndrome is a severe neurodevelopmental disorder in females. Most have mutations in the methyl-CpG-binding protein 2 (MECP2) gene (80-90%). Epilepsy is a significant commonly accompanied feature in Rett syndrome.

Rufinamide as an adjuvant treatment in children with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome.

Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy of rufinamide as an add-on treatment in children and adolescents with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS).

Methods: The study was an open-label, observational clinical trial of rufinamide as an add-on treatment in intractable LGS patients. This intent-to-treat trial included 4 weeks of scheduled titrated doses and a 12-week maintenance phase with a target dose of 20-40 mg/kg rufinamide, adjusted according to its effectiveness and tolerability after a baseline period of 4 weeks.

The Prevalence, Genotype and Antimicrobial Susceptibility of High- and Low-Level Mupirocin Resistant Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

Background: Mupirocin has been used for the treatment of skin infections and eradication of nasal carriage of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The increased use of this antibiotic has been accompanied by outbreaks of MRSA that are resistant to mupirocin.

Objective: This study aims to determine the prevalence, genotype and antimicrobial susceptibility of mupirocin-resistant MRSA from 4 Korean hospitals.

Alteration of Ryanodine-receptors in Cultured Rat Aortic Smooth Muscle Cells.

Vascular smooth muscle cells can obtain a proliferative function in environments such as atherosclerosis in vivo or primary culture in vitro. Proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells is accompanied by changes in ryanodine receptors (RyRs). In several studies, the cytosolic Ca(2+) response to caffeine is decreased during smooth muscle cell culture.

Laser-induced thermal desorption facilitates postsource decay of peptide ions.

We investigated the thermal mechanism involved in laser desorption/ionization (LDI) of thermally labile molecules from the flat surfaces of amorphous Si (a-Si) and crystalline Si (c-Si). a-Si was selected for this study because of its thermal property, such as low thermal conductivity; thus, it was predicted to be highly susceptible to laser-induced surface heating. By virtue of lack of surface nanostructures, the flat surfaces offer a simple model system to focus on the thermal mechanism, avoiding other effects, including possible non-thermal contributions that can arise from the physical existence of surface nanostructures.

In vivo optical neural recording using fiber-based surface plasmon resonance.

We propose an intrinsic optical method for in vivo neural recording using optic fiber-based surface plasmon resonance (SPR) phenomena. The fiber-based SPR method is electrical artifact free, labeling free, and feasible for a portable system compared with conventional in vivo neural recording systems. We simultaneously detected SPR signals and electrical neural activity from the rat somatosensory cortex evoked by electrical stimulation on the forepaw.

A 1μm diameter tip fiber-based surface plasmon resonance system for single unit optical neural recording.

A gold-deposited optical fiber sensor system based on surface plasmon resonance (SPR) was developed for optical measurement of neuronal activity. To enhance the sensitivity of localized SPR and to make a precise and safe contact with the cellular membrane, we designed a tapered optical probe of 1 μm diameter at the tip of the fiber. By wet etching and gold evaporating processes, pencil-shaped optical probes were successfully fabricated.

The sudden unexpected infant death case registry: a method to improve surveillance.

This article describes a multistate population-based surveillance system for monitoring sudden unexpected infant deaths (SUIDs) known as the SUID Case Registry pilot program. The pilot program represents collaboration between the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Center for Child Death Review (NCCDR), which is funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration. The SUID Case Registry builds on existing child death review system activities and protocols.

Non-invasive prenatal determination of fetal gender using QF-PCR analysis of cell-free fetal DNA in maternal plasma.

Background: Detection of cell-free fetal DNA (cffDNA) in maternal plasma has given rise to the possibility of new non-invasive approaches for early prenatal diagnoses. We evaluated the feasibility and accuracy of non-invasive fetal gender determination using quantitative fluorescent-polymerase chain reaction (QF-PCR) analysis of circulating cffDNA in the first-trimester maternal plasma.

Methods: Plasma samples were prospectively collected from 202 singleton pregnancies at 4 to 13 weeks of gestation.

Neural Correlates of Stroop Performance in Alzheimer's Disease: A FDG-PET Study.

Background/aims: The Stroop test is commonly applied in elderly subjects for the evaluation of cognitive impairment related to Alzheimer's disease (AD) and related disorders. This study aimed to investigate the functional neural correlates of the Stroop performance in AD.

Methods: In 136 probable AD patients and 54 cognitively normal elderly, a [(18)F]-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography scan and Stroop Color Word Test (SCWT) were performed.

Prognostic value of immunohistochemical biomarkers at different cut-off values in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma treated with CHOP chemotherapy.

Many predictive models have been proposed for better stratification of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Hans' algorithm has been widely used as standard to sub-classify DLBCL into germinal center B-cell (GCB) and non-GCB origins. However, there have been disagreements in the literature regarding its prognostic significance.

Non-invasive epigenetic detection of fetal trisomy 21 in first trimester maternal plasma.

Background: Down syndrome (DS) is the most common known aneuploidy, caused by an extra copy of all or part of chromosome 21. Fetal-specific epigenetic markers have been investigated for non-invasive prenatal detection of fetal DS. The phosphodiesterases gene, PDE9A, located on chromosome 21q22.

Interaction of silver nanoparticles with biological surfaces of Caenorhabditis elegans.

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are being used in an increasing number of industrial and commercial applications; this has resulted in an increased release of AgNPs into the environment. Understanding the interaction of AgNPs with biological surfaces is important, as such understanding will facilitate predictions of the further effects of nanoparticles on biological systems. This study highlights the interaction of citrate-coated silver nanoparticles (cAgNPs) with the biological surfaces of the nematode C.

Microsatellite instability is associated with the clinicopathologic features of gastric cancer in sporadic gastric cancer patients.

Purpose: Replication error is an important mechanism in carcinogenesis. The microsatellite instability (MSI-H) of colorectal cancers is associated with the development of multiple cancers. The influence of MSI-H on the development of multiple gastric cancers in sporadic gastric cancer patients has not been defined.

Inguinal hernia repair in overweight and obese patients.

Purpose: To describe the clinical characteristics and outcomes after inguinal hernia repair in overweight and obese patients.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 636 adult patients who underwent mesh plug inguinal hernia repair performed by one surgeon from November 2001 to January 2009.The clinical characteristics and surgical outcomes of the patients were analyzed.

Inguinal hernia repair in patients with liver cirrhosis accompanied by ascites.

Purpose: We describe the clinical characteristics and assess the outcomes and stability of inguinal hernia repair under local anesthesia for patients with liver cirrhosis accompanied by ascites.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 22 patients with cirrhosis and ascites who underwent mesh plug hernia repair performed by a single surgeon from January 2002 to August 2009, and the clinical characteristics and outcomes of the patients were analyzed.

Results: Twenty-two patients were included in the study.

Relationships of basal level of serum 17-hydroxyprogesterone with that of serum androstenedione and their stimulated responses to a low dose of ACTH in young adult patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia due to 21-hydroxylase deficiency.

A single measurement of serum 17α-hydroxyprogesterone (17OHP) level can be unreliable because of its marked diurnal variation. We investigated the relationship of serum level of 17OHP with that of androstenedione (AD), which shows a smaller diurnal variation. And we tested whether the responses of these two hormones to low-dose ACTH stimulation are correlated in patients with 21-hydroxylase deficiency.

CD68 and CD163 as prognostic factors for Korean patients with Hodgkin lymphoma.

Background: Limited progress had been made in prognostic stratification of patients with Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) until recent studies suggested that the number of CD68-expressing macrophages is prognostic in classical HL. However, its significance in Asian patients with HL has not been explored yet perhaps because of its low incidence in Asia.

Methods: In this work, we performed immunohistochemical analysis of CD163, as well as CD68, in 144 Korean patients with HL treated between November 1990 and December 2009 in a single center.

Multiple fibromas of tendon sheath: unusual presentation.

Fibroma of the tendon sheath is an uncommon soft tissue tumor presenting as a solitary, slow-growing, firm, painless, small nodule, which shows strong attachment to the tendon or tendon sheath. It is usually localized on fingers and hand tendons in adults between the age of 20 and 40 years old. This case concerns a 61-year-old man presenting with a 5-year history of multiple cutaneous nodules on both palms and soles.

Basal cell nevus syndrome showing several histologic types of Basal cell carcinoma.

Basal cell nevus syndrome (BCNS), or Gorlin Syndrome, is an autosomal dominant disorder, characterized by multiple developmental abnormalities and associated with germline mutations in the PTCH gene. Patients show multiple and early onset basal cell carcinomas (BCCs) in skin, odontogeniccysts in the jaw, pits on palms and soles, medulloblastoma, hypertelorism, and calcification of the falx cerebri. Clinical features of BCCs in these patients are indistinguishable from ordinary BCCs.

Comparison between wild and hatchery populations of Korean pen shell (Atrina pectinata) using microsatellite DNA markers.

Pen shell (Atrina pectinata) is a popular food source with a high commercial value in a number of Asian Pacific areas. The natural A. pectinata population has been declining continuously over the past several decades.

Prepregnancy obesity trends among low-income women, United States, 1999-2008.

There is limited data on prepregnancy obesity trends specifically among low-income women, a population at high risk for obstetric complications. Using the Pregnancy Nutrition Surveillance System, we assessed prepregnancy obesity [body mass index (BMI) ≥ 30 kg/m(2)] trends among women who participated in the Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children in 1999, 2004, and 2008. Prepregnancy BMI was calculated using measured height and self-reported prepregnancy weight.

Age and racial/ethnic disparities in prepregnancy smoking among women who delivered live births.

Introduction: Prenatal smoking prevalence remains high in the United States. To reduce prenatal smoking prevalence, efforts should focus on delivering evidence-based cessation interventions to women who are most likely to smoke before pregnancy. Our objective was to identify groups with the highest prepregnancy smoking prevalence by age within 6 racial/ethnic groups.