Complete chloroplast genomes of three Polygala species and indel marker development for identification of authentic polygalae radix (Polygala tenuifolia).

Background: In Korea, only Polygala tenuifolia is registered as Polygalae Radix in the pharmacopoeia, while in China, both P. tenuifolia and P. sibirica are used equally.

Separating Risk Prediction: Myocardial Infarction vs. Ischemic Stroke in 6.2M Screenings.

Background: Traditional cardiovascular disease risk prediction models generate a combined risk assessment for myocardial infarction (MI) and ischemic stroke (IS), which may inadequately reflect the distinct etiologies and disparate risk factors of MI and IS. We aim to develop prediction models that separately estimate the risks of MI and IS.

Methods: Our analysis included 6,242,404 individuals over 40 years old who participated in a cardiovascular health screening examination in 2009.

Disparities in Overall Survival Rates for Cancers across Income Levels in the Republic of Korea.

Background: The overall survival rates among cancer patients have been improving. However, the increase in survival is not uniform across socioeconomic status. Thus, we investigated income disparities in the 5-year survival rate (5YSR) in cancer patients and the temporal trends.

Epidemiology and Trends of Obesity and Bariatric Surgery in Korea.

The prevalence of obesity in Korea has steadily increased over the past decade, reaching 38.4% in 2021. Notably, the rate of class II- III obesity, defined as a body mass index (BMI) of 30 kg/m2 or higher, exceeded 7% in the same year.

Increased cardiovascular disease risk among adolescents and young adults with gastric cancer.

Background: Previous studies have investigated cardiovascular disease (CVD) risks in cancer patients, but there is limited knowledge concerning the CVD risk in adult and young adolescent (AYA) survivors of gastric cancer.

Objectives: This study aims to investigate the incidence of CVD in AYA gastric cancer survivors, analyzing it by treatment type and identifying associated risk factors.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study using Korean National Health Insurance Service data collected from 2006 to 2019.

Long-term health outcomes by cancer diagnosed age among adolescent and young adult: multinational representative database.

Background: The cancer experienced in adolescent and young adult (AYA) could disturb developmental changes and long-term life. The current AYA guidelines and research for survivorship were developed and reported according to the general age range of 15-39 years; however, expected life events vary by diagnosed age. We aimed to examine the social, psychological, and physical well-being of AYA cancer survivors by age at diagnosis using a multinational representative dataset focusing on age at diagnosis.

2023 Obesity Fact Sheet: Prevalence of Obesity and Abdominal Obesity in Adults, Adolescents, and Children in Korea from 2012 to 2021.

Background: The 2023 Obesity Fact Sheet aims to present an updated overview of obesity prevalence across all age groups, including children and adolescents.

Methods: This study included individuals aged ≥20 years (n=16,941,423 in 2021) who underwent health checkups provided by the Korean National Health Insurance Service between 2012 and 2021. The prevalence of obesity and abdominal obesity was standardized by age and sex using data from the 2010 population and housing census.

Associations between body weight change and incidence of major depressive disorder in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a nationwide longitudinal follow-up cohort study of 1.1 million.

Background: Comorbid depression substantially affects the management of glycemia and diabetes-related complications among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. In this study, we sought to determine the association between weight change over 4 years and depression risk among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Methods: This population-based retrospective cohort study from the National Health Insurance Services of Korea included 1 111 345 patients with type 2 diabetes who were divided into groups according to body weight change over 4 years.

Assessment of acetylcholinesterase activity in CD9-positive exosomes from patients with Parkinson's disease.

Introduction: Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by dopaminergic dysfunction and associated with abnormalities in the cholinergic system. However, the relationship between PD and cholinergic dysfunction, particularly in exosomes, is not fully understood.

Methods: We enrolled 37 patients with PD and 44 healthy controls (HC) to investigate acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity in CD9-positive and L1CAM-positive exosomes.

Disparities in Cancer Incidence across Income Levels in South Korea.

Background: Recent nationwide studies of disparities in cancer incidence by income are scarce in Korea. This study investigated such disparities in cancer incidence and the stage at cancer diagnosis across income groups in Korea.

Methods: This study utilized data from a national cancer database, specifically focusing on cases recorded in the year 2018.

Risk factors for early-onset lung cancer in Korea: analysis of a nationally representative population-based cohort.

Objectives: We examined the associations of socioeconomic factors, health behaviors, and comorbidities with early-onset lung cancer.

Methods: The study included 6,794,287 individuals aged 20-39 years who participated in a Korean national health check-up program from 2009 to 2012. During the follow-up period, 4,684 participants developed lung cancer.

Association between breakfast frequency and metabolic syndrome among young adults in South Korea.

Skipping breakfast is highly prevalent but it is not clear whether breakfast frequency is associated with metabolic syndrome in young adults. We aimed to assess the association between breakfast frequency and metabolic syndrome in Korean young adults. This cross-sectional study was based on health check-up data of university students aged 18-39 years between 2016 and 2018.

Racial differences in long-term social, physical, and psychological health among adolescent and young adult cancer survivors.

Background: The current guidelines for survivorship in adolescents and young adults (AYA) cancer are based on studies conducted in the United States and European AYA survivors. However, previous studies have shown that the health-related quality of life in cancer survivors can vary depending on race, yet the long-term health differences among AYA survivors by race/ethnicity have not been fully explored. Therefore, our aim is to compare the psychosocial and physical health of AYA survivors and their matched controls across different racial and ethnic groups.

Current Status and Physicians' Perspectives of Childhood Cancer Survivorship in Korea: A Nationwide Survey of Pediatric Hematologists/Oncologists.

Background: Data on the status of long-term follow-up (LTFU) care for childhood cancer survivors (CCSs) in Korea is lacking. This study was conducted to evaluate the current status of LTFU care for CCSs and relevant physicians' perspectives.

Methods: A nationwide online survey of pediatric hematologists/oncologists in the Republic of Korea was undertaken.

Smart Contract Broker: Improving Smart Contract Reusability in a Blockchain Environment.

In this paper, we propose a smart contract broker to improve the reusability of smart contracts in a blockchain environment. The current blockchain platform lacks a standard approach to sharing and managing smart contracts, which makes it difficult for developers to reuse them and leads to efficiency issues. The proposed smart contract broker uses tags to identify and organize smart contracts, and it provides an environment for comparing and reusing smart contracts.

Hydrogel Magnetomechanical Actuator Nanoparticles for Wireless Remote Control of Mechanosignaling .

As a new enabling nanotechnology tool for wireless, target-specific, and long-distance stimulation of mechanoreceptors , here we present a hydrogel magnetomechanical actuator (h-MMA) nanoparticle. To allow both deep-tissue penetration of input signals and efficient force generation, h-MMA integrates a two-step transduction mechanism that converts magnetic anisotropic energy to thermal energy within its magnetic core (..

Blood pressure and dementia risk by physical frailty in the elderly: a nationwide cohort study.

Background: Midlife hypertension has been recognized as a modifiable risk factor for dementia, but association between blood pressure (BP) in late life and dementia has been inconclusive. In addition, few studies have investigated effects of BP control on dementia incidence in the frail elderly. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the association of BP and dementia incidence with concomitant consideration of physical frailty in the young elderly population.

Different correlation of body mass index with body fatness and obesity-related biomarker according to age, sex and race-ethnicity.

The relationship between body mass index (BMI) and body fatness could differ according to age, sex, and race-ethnicity. We aimed to evaluate in which contexts BMI could be a good measure for body fatness compared to dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) derived measures. The study population included 18,061 participants (9141 men and 8920 women) aged 18 and older who tested DXA from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) database from 1999 to 2006, and 8107 men and 10,754 women with DXA data from Korea NHANES from 2008 to 2011 to represent the Asian population.

Associations of reproductive factors with incidence of myocardial infarction and ischemic stroke in postmenopausal women: a cohort study.

Background: To assess the association between the reproductive factors of age at menarche, age at menopause, and reproductive span and the incidence of myocardial infarction (MI) and ischemic stroke (IS).

Methods: We used a population-based retrospective cohort study from the National Health Insurance Service database of Korea including a total of 1,224,547 postmenopausal women. Associations between age at menarche (≤ 12, 13-14 [reference], 15, 16, and ≥ 17 years), age at menopause (< 40, 40-45, 46-50, 51-54 [reference], and ≥ 55 years), and reproductive span (< 30, 30-33, 34-36, 37-40 [reference], and ≥ 41 years) and the incidence of MI and IS were assessed by Cox proportional hazard models with adjustment for traditional cardiovascular risk factors and various reproductive factors.