Ellobium chinense (Pfeiffer, 1854) is a brackish pulmonate species that inhabits the bases of mangrove trees and is most commonly found in salt grass meadows. Threats to mangrove ecosystems due to habitat degradation and overexploitation have threatened the species with extinction. In South Korea, E.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Air pollution causes many diseases and deaths. It is important to see how air pollution affects obesity, which is common worldwide. Therefore, we analyzed data from a smartphone application for intentional weight loss, and then we validated them.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The aim of this study was to investigate which glycemic parameters better reflect urinary N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase (uNAG) abnormality, a marker for renal tubulopathy, in subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) subjects with normoalbuminuria and a normal estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR).
Methods: We classified 1,061 participants with T2DM into two groups according to uNAG level-normal vs. high (>5.
Unlabelled: Attenuation of senescence progression may be attractive way to preserve the functionality of pancreatic islets (PI) after transplantation. In this study, we developed a model for in vitro induction of premature senescence in rat PI and showed the effectiveness of quercetin (QU) to prevent the senescence. To provide targeted-delivery of QU to the PI after transplantation, we prepared the hybrid clusters (HC) of islet single cells (ISC) and QU-loaded polymeric microspheres (QU; ∼7.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA joint design for sampling functional data is proposed to achieve optimal prediction of both functional data and a scalar outcome. The motivating application is fetal growth, where the objective is to determine the optimal times to collect ultrasound measurements in order to recover fetal growth trajectories and to predict child birth outcomes. The joint design is formulated using an optimization criterion and implemented in a pilot study.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFClin Exp Otorhinolaryngol
September 2018
Objectives: The classical overlay tympanoplasty is technically difficult with some disadvantages and thus less popular. However, it is particularly useful for large, anterior perforations. In this study, we describe the technique of a modified overlay graft in the tympanoplasty coined as the swing-door overlay tympanoplasty and report its outcomes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe overall goal is to study the effect of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) on membrane distribution of major water channel protein aquaporin 5 (AQP5) in salivary gland during hyperglycemia. Par C10 cells treated with high glucose (50 mM) showed a reduced membrane distribution of AQP5. The functional expression of AQP5 was downregulated due to intracellular Ca overload and ER stress.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci
January 2019
Objectives: The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to assess the sensitivity and specificity of dual-energy CT (DECT) for the detection of bone marrow oedema (BME).
Methods: An electronic search of the PubMed and EMBASE databases was conducted. Bivariate modelling and hierarchical summary receiver-operating characteristic modelling were performed to evaluate the overall diagnostic performance of DECT for BME.
Purpose: Severe asthma and asthma-chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) overlap syndrome (ACOS) are difficult to control and are often associated with poor clinical outcomes. However, much is not understood regarding the diagnosis and treatment of severe asthma and ACOS. To evaluate the current perceptions of severe asthma and COPD among asthma and COPD specialists, we designed an e-mail and internet-based questionnaire survey.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Perineural spread is not an uncommon feature in carcinoma of the head and neck. On the contrary, perineural spread in pelvic malignancies has been rarely reported. This is the first report on perineural spread of the obturator nerve and the lumbosacral plexus from primary vaginal cancer.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: To evaluate the therapeutic effects of middle ear tendon resection (METR) on middle ear myoclonic tinnitus (MEMT) and to investigate its long-term effects on hearing and hyperacusis.
Materials And Methods: Thirty-seven patients with MEMT with a mean age of 33.2 ± 11.
Objectives: To compare physicians' perceptions and practice of end-of-life care in the ICU in three East Asian countries cultures similarly rooted in Confucianism.
Design: A structured and scenario-based survey of physicians who managed ICU patients from May 2012 to December 2012.
Setting: ICUs in China, Korea, and Japan.
Background: Although 3D-isotropic MR arthrography has been characterized as a substitute imaging tool for rotator cuff tear (RCT) and labral lesions, it has not been commonly used in clinical practice because of controversy related to image blurring and indistinctness of structural edges.
Purpose: To perform a comparison of the diagnostic performance of 3D-isotropic MR arthrography and 2D-conventional MR arthrography for diagnosis of RCT (solely RCT, full/partial-thickness supraspinatus [SST]-infraspinatus [IST] tear, or subscapularis [SSc] tear) and labral lesions.
Study Type: Meta-analysis.
Clusterin is a secretory glycoprotein that is involved in multiple physiopathological processes, including lipid metabolism. Previous studies have shown that clusterin prevents hepatic lipid accumulation via suppression of sterol regulatory element-binding protein (SREBP) 1. In this study, we examined the role of clusterin in renal lipid accumulation in clusterin-knockout mice and NRK52e tubular epithelial cells.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) is an environmental contaminant. Xanthohumol is a prenylated flavonoid found in hops (Humulus lupulus) and beer. The aim of the current study was to explore the role of xanthohumol in modulating the toxicity of TCDD in MC3T3-E1 osteoblastic cells.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBiochem Biophys Res Commun
March 2018
Background: In the eighth edition, TNM staging system omits location of nodal metastasis as a criterion for staging patients with papillary thyroid cancer (PTC). Accordingly, all of non-metastatic N1b PTC patients are classified as stage I or II solely according to an age-cutoff of 55 years. We hypothesized that incorporating other lymph node (LN) factors into TNM staging system would better predict cancer-specific mortality (CSM) in N1b patients.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study aimed to investigate the long-term motor outcome according to early diffusion tensor tractography findings for the affected corticospinal tract (CST) in poststroke hemiplegic patients. A total of 48 supratentorial subacute patients after stroke were enrolled, who had a brain MRI scan within 6 weeks from onset, and no stroke recurrence reported within the 2-year follow-up period. Diffusion tensor images were obtained and CSTs were reconstructed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: To assess the sensitivity and specificity of quantitative assessment of the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) for differentiating benign and malignant vertebral bone marrow lesions (BMLs) and compression fractures (CFs) METHODS: An electronic literature search of MEDLINE and EMBASE was conducted. Bivariate modelling and hierarchical summary receiver operating characteristic modelling were performed to evaluate the diagnostic performance of ADC for differentiating vertebral BMLs. Subgroup analysis was performed for differentiating benign and malignant vertebral CFs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) is an important metabolic regulator expressed predominantly in the liver. In this study, we evaluated the role of LY2405319, an analogue of FGF21, in hepatic stellate cell (HSC) activation and in a methionine and choline-deficient (MCD)-diet induced mouse model of liver fibrosis. During liver injury, HSCs trans-differentiate into activated myofibroblasts which produce alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) and become a major cell type in hepatic fibrogenesis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLiver fibrosis is a progressive pathological process that accompanies wound healing; however, therapeutics for reversing hepatic fibrosis are unavailable. Activation of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) play a critical role in liver fibrosis. Recent reports showed that succinate and its receptor, G-protein coupled receptor 91 (GPR91), act as signaling molecules during the activation of HSCs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng
May 2018
2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) is a well-known environmental contaminant that exerts its toxicity through a variety of signaling mechanisms. The present study evaluated the effects of 27-deoxyactein, one of the major constituents isolated from Cimicifuga racemosa, on TCDD-induced toxicity in osteoblastic MC3T3-E1 cells. TCDD reduced cell survival, markedly increased apoptosis, and enhanced autophagy activity.
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