Epigenetic link between Agent Orange exposure and type 2 diabetes in Korean veterans.

Conflicting findings have been reported regarding the association between Agent Orange (AO) exposure and type 2 diabetes. This study aimed to examine whether AO exposure is associated with the development of type 2 diabetes and to verify the causal relationship between AO exposure and type 2 diabetes by combining DNA methylation with DNA genotype analyses. An epigenome-wide association study and DNA genotype analyses of the blood of AO-exposed and AO-unexposed individuals with type 2 diabetes and that of healthy controls were performed.

Comparative analysis of batch correction methods for FDG PET/CT using metabolic radiogenomic data of lung cancer patients.

In radiomics research, the issue of different instruments being used is significant. In this study, we compared three correction methods to reduce the batch effects in radiogenomic data from fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET/CT images of lung cancer patients. Texture features of the FDG PET/CT images and genomic data were retrospectively obtained.

Sericin mediated gold/silver bimetallic nanoparticles and exploration of its multi-therapeutic efficiency and photocatalytic degradation potential.

The current investigation aimed at bimetallic gold-silver nanoparticles (Au/Ag NPs), here called BM-GS NPs, synthesis using sericin protein as the reducing agent in an easy, cost-effective, and sustainable way. The obtained BM-GS NPs were characterized by UV-Visible spectroscopy, Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDS), atomic force microscopy (AFM), Dynamic light scattering (DLS) and Zeta potential, X-ray Powder Diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and Thermogravimetric analysis followed by evaluation of its multitherapeutic and photocatalytic degradation potentials. The TEM analysis revealed its spherical nature and the EDS result displayed the presence of both Ag and Au elements, confirming the synthesis of BM-GS NPs.

Silk Sericin Protein Materials: Characteristics and Applications in Food-Sector Industries.

There is growing concern about the use of plastic in packaging for food materials, as this results in increased plastic waste materials in the environment. To counter this, alternative sources of packaging materials that are natural and based on eco-friendly materials and proteins have been widely investigated for their potential application in food packaging and other industries of the food sector. Sericin, a silk protein that is usually discarded in large quantities by the sericulture and textile industries during the degumming process of manufacturing silk from silk cocoons, can be explored for its application in food packaging and in other food sectors as a functional food and component of food items.

Synthesis of Biogenic Gold Nanoparticles by Using Sericin Protein from Silk Cocoon and Investigation of Its Wound Healing, Antioxidant, and Antibacterial Potentials.

Introduction: A number of biological wastes and factory waste materials have been tested recently for the eco-friendly biosynthesis of nanoparticles. Sericin protein (SSP) is usually removed from the silk cocoon during the degumming process in the process of making the silk, and this sericin protein is normally thrown away by the sericulture industries as waste materials. It is found that this sericin protein possesses a number of biological properties.

Identification of genetic variants associated with diabetic kidney disease in multiple Korean cohorts via a genome-wide association study mega-analysis.

Background: The pathogenesis of diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is complex, involving metabolic and hemodynamic factors. Although DKD has been established as a heritable disorder and several genetic studies have been conducted, the identification of unique genetic variants for DKD is limited by its multiplex classification based on the phenotypes of diabetes mellitus (DM) and chronic kidney disease (CKD). Thus, we aimed to identify the genetic variants related to DKD that differentiate it from type 2 DM and CKD.

Risk assessment of hexachlorobutadiene (HCBD) in the Korean diet.

Hexachlorobutadiene (HCBD) is a persistent organic pollutant (POP), and a toxin whose primary target organ is the kidney. Consequently, quantifying the amount of HCBD in food is essential for determining whether it poses a health risk. The current study established and validated an analytical method for assessing HCBD in food using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS).

The development of a lifestyle modification mobile application, "Health for You" for overweight and obese breast cancer survivors in Korea.

Purpose: This study aimed to develop a lifestyle modification (LSM) mobile application based on the Android operating system for overweight and obese breast cancer survivors (BCS) in Korea and evaluate its usability.

Methods: The content analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation of the LSM intervention mobile application for overweight and obese BCS was conducted by identifying survivors' needs, searching the literature, and reviewing existing mobile applications. The survey was conducted from June 1 to December 28, 2020 at Jeonju city, Korea.

Correction: Metallosupramolecules of pillar[5]-bis-trithiacrown including a mercury(II) iodide ion-triplet complex.

Correction for 'Metallosupramolecules of pillar[5]-bis-trithiacrown including a mercury(ii) iodide ion-triplet complex' by Mingyeong Shin et al., Chem. Commun.

Metallosupramolecules of pillar[5]-bis-trithiacrown including a mercury(ii) iodide ion-triplet complex.

A combination of pillar[5]-bis-trithiacrown (L) and mercury(ii) halides afforded a monomer complex (Cl-form), a 1-D coordination polymer (Br-form) and a supramolecular ion-triplet complex [(I·Hg·I)@L] (I-form). In the ion-triplet complex, the host encapsulates the (I-Hg-I) entity via Hgπ and C-HI interactions, reflecting geometrical complementarity.

Uncertainty estimation of exposure factors for consumer products based on various sample sizes.

Usage patterns of consumer products (CP) must be determined for accurate exposure assessments. The purpose was to quantitatively estimate the uncertainty in exposure factors of CP according to various sample sizes. The uncertainty was calculated based on exposure factors of 3,333 participants representing the Korean population referred to as the 'parent population'.

Promoter Polymorphism-219T/G is an Effect Modifier of the Influence of ε4 on Alzheimer's Disease Risk in a Multiracial Sample.

Variants in the gene region may explain ethnic differences in the association of Alzheimer's disease (AD) with ε4. Ethnic differences in allele frequencies for three region SNPs (single nucleotide polymorphisms) were identified and tested for association in 19,398 East Asians (EastA), including Koreans and Japanese, 15,836 European ancestry (EuroA) individuals, and 4985 African Americans, and with brain imaging measures of cortical atrophy in sub-samples of Koreans and EuroAs. Among ε4/ε4 individuals, AD risk increased substantially in a dose-dependent manner with the number of promoter SNP rs405509 alleles in EastAs : OR (odds ratio) = 27.

SNP genotype calling and quality control for multi-batch-based studies.

Background: In genetic analyses, the term 'batch effect' refers to systematic differences caused by batch heterogeneity. Controlling this unintended effect is the most important step in quality control (QC) processes that precede analyses. Currently, batch effects are not appropriately controlled by statistics, and newer approaches are required.

Detection of Pyocyanin Using a New Biodegradable SERS Biosensor Fabricated Using Gold Coated Zein Nanostructures Further Decorated with Gold Nanoparticles.

In this paper, a biodegradable gold coated zein film surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) platform, with gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) deposited on the surface to further enhance the Raman signal, was used to detect pyocyanin (PYO), the toxin secreted by Pseudomonas aeruginosa. An inverted pyramid structure imprinted on a zein film and gold coated during the transfer process was further improved with the deposition and fixing of gold nanoparticles, which resulted in enhancement of the SERS signal by approximately a decade. This new platform served as a lab-on-a-chip sensor to enable the sensitive and rapid detection of PYO in drinking water.

3D Plasmon Coupling Assisted Sers on Nanoparticle-Nanocup Array Hybrids.

Unique colorimetric optical properties of nanomaterials can effectively influence the light absorption or emission of molecules. Here, we design plasmonic substrate for surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) by inducing three-dimensional (3D) hot spots on the sensing surface. The 3D hot spots are formed by the self-assembly of plasmonic nanoparticles (NPs) on a 3D plasmonic nanocup array structure.

Snapshot and crystallographic observations of kinetic and thermodynamic products for NOS macrocyclic complexes.

Direct observation and structural characterization of a kinetic product and a thermodynamic product for complexes with an NOS macrocycle () are reported. reacts with copper(I) iodide to give a mononuclear complex [Cu()](CuI)·2CHCl (), featuring three separate units. When cadmium(II) iodide was reacted with , an anion-coordinated complex [Cd()I](CdI)·4CHCN () with a needle-type crystal shape was formed as the kinetic product.

Group 12 Metal Complexes of an 18-Membered NOS Macrocycle Incorporating Two Pyridines: First Examples of an Infinite Mercury(I) Complex and a Dumbbell-Shaped Heteronuclear Complex with a Macrocyclic Ligand.

Homo- and heteronuclear group 12 metal (Zn, Cd, and Hg) complexes 1-6 containing a newly designed 18-membered NOS macrocycle incorporating two pyridine subunits (L) were prepared and structurally characterized. The individual complexes isolated exhibit unusual stoichiometries, geometries, oxidation states, and structural topologies and include an infinite mercurous complex and a heteronuclear dumbbell-shaped complex. Both the Zn(II) complex [Zn(L)][ZnBr] (1) and the Cd(II) complex [Cd(L)Br] (2) are mononuclear, with the metal ion located inside the macrocyclic cavity.

Sensitivity Tuning through Additive Heterogeneous Plasmon Coupling between 3D Assembled Plasmonic Nanoparticle and Nanocup Arrays.

Plasmonic substrates have fixed sensitivity once the geometry of the structure is defined. In order to improve the sensitivity, significant research effort has been focused on designing new plasmonic structures, which involves high fabrication costs; however, a method is reported for improving sensitivity not by redesigning the structure but by simply assembling plasmonic nanoparticles (NPs) near the evanescent field of the underlying 3D plasmonic nanostructure. Here, a nanoscale Lycurgus cup array (nanoLCA) is employed as a base colorimetric plasmonic substrate and an assembly template.

Absorbance amplification using chromophore-nanoplasmon coupling for ultrasensitive protein quantification.

A plasmonic nanoscale Lycurgus cup array (nanoLCA), via near-field interaction with chromophores in commercial colorimetric biochemical assays, can drastically enhance assay sensitivity by over 2 orders of magnitude. A 96-microwell plate modified by placing the plasmonic nanoLCA on the well-bottom was used with the commercial Bradford protein quantification assay. Plasmons on the nanoLCA serve as an energy donor to matched resonance chromophores, and the near-field plasmonic energy coupling effect results in an increase in absorbance value at the plasmonic resonance wavelength.

Vertically stacked plasmonic nanoparticles in a circular arrangement: a key to colorimetric refractive index sensing.

True colorimetric sensing produces a linear spectral response of a single peak within the visible light range with various surrounding media refractive indices. We demonstrate how the circular arrangement of hemispheric silver nanoparticles achieves colorimetric properties without modifying the associated full-width-half-maximum values in a broad range of surrounding media refractive indices. We also show that the vertical out-of-plane arrangement of each circular array in nanoholes enhances the signal-to-noise ratio.