Validity of the Original and Short Versions of the Dynamic Gait Index in Predicting Falls in Stroke Survivors.

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the validity of the original version and short version of the Dynamic Gait Index (DGI-8 and DGI-4) in predicting falls in stroke survivors.

Design: This is a retrospective, cross-sectional study.

Method: This study collected data for 57 chronic stroke survivors and evaluated the validity of the DGI-8 and DGI-4.

Factors influencing sexual function of middle-aged married Korean women.

[Purpose] This study investigated the status of women's sexual function and relevant factors given the fact that women's health is crucial to the national health, and in particular that women's sexual health has a significant impact on their overall health. [Subjects and Methods] This study surveyed 353 women living in South Korea's P and K metropolitan regions from July 2012 to August 10, 2013. The Female Sexual Functional Index (FSFI), the Sexual Attitude Scale (SAS), sexual knowledge and questionnaires were used.

Influence of light touch using the fingertips on postural stability of poststroke patients.

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of fingertip light touch on the postural control in poststroke patients. [Subjects] In the study, the subjects were recruited through a rehabilitation hospital, and 21 patients were screened from among 30 volunteers. [Methods] The subjects participated in an experiment that measured postural sway during the static standing posture without light touch and postural sway during the static standing posture with light touch as follows: visual information not blocked without light touch, visual information blocked without light touch, visual information blocked with light touch using fingertips, and visual information not blocked with light touch using fingertips.

Antimicrobial activity of peptides derived from olive flounder lipopolysaccharide binding protein/bactericidal permeability-increasing protein (LBP/BPI).

We describe the antimicrobial function of peptides derived from the C-terminus of the olive flounder LBP BPI precursor protein. The investigated peptides, namely, ofLBP1N, ofLBP2A, ofLBP4N, ofLBP5A, and ofLBP6A, formed α-helical structures, showing significant antimicrobial activity against several Gram-negative bacteria, Gram-positive bacteria, and the yeast Candida albicans, but very limited hemolytic activities. The biological activities of these five analogs were evaluated against biomembranes or artificial membranes for the development of candidate therapeutic agents.

A novel esterase from Paenibacillus sp. PBS-2 is a new member of the β-lactamase belonging to the family VIII lipases/esterases.

Screening of a gene library from Paenibacillus sp. PBS-2 generated in Escherichia coli led to the identification of a clone with lipolytic activity. Sequence analysis showed an open reading frame encoding a polypeptide of 378 amino acid residues with a predicted molecular mass of 42 kDa.

[A structural model for health risk behavior of late adolescents: based on 2010 Korea Adolescent Health Survey].

Purpose: This study was done to construct and test a structural model to explain health risk behavior of late adolescents.

Methods: Data for this study were secondary data from the 2010 Korea Adolescent Health Survey based and 3,675 high school students who participated. Data were analyzed using SPSS 18.

Complete mitochondrial genome of Pacific abalone (Haliotis discus hannai) from Korea.

We have sequenced and characterized the complete mitochondrial DNA of an economically and ecologically important Pacific abalone, Haliotis discus hannai (Haliotidae, Gastropoda). The mitogenome of the Pacific abalone is 16,886 nt total length with a 39.6% G+C composition.

Factors Influencing Depression among Elderly Patients in Geriatric Hospitals.

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of depression among elderly patients and identify the factors influencing depression in a geriatric hospital in Korea. [Subjects] A self-report questionnaire was administered to the patients in community geriatric hospitals. Participants were 195 elderly patients.

Genetic organization of two types of flounder warm-temperature acclimation-associated 65-kDa protein and their gene expression profiles.

We isolated and characterized two cDNA clone encoding warm-temperature acclimation-associated 65-kDa proteins (PoWap65-1 and PoWap65-2) from the olive flounder, Paralichthys olivaceus. The deduced amino acid sequences of PoWap65s showed overall identities of 33-73% with other fish Wap65 and mammalian hemopexin-like proteins. The 5'-flanking regions of both PoWap65-encoding genes contained various putative transcriptional elements.

Tenacibaculum halocynthiae sp. nov., a member of the family Flavobacteriaceae isolated from sea squirt Halocynthia roretzi.

A Gram-negative, non-spore-forming, aerobic, non-flagellated, non-gliding and rod-shaped bacterial strain, designated P-R2A1-2(T), was isolated from sea squirt (Halocynthia roretzi) collected from the South Sea, Korea. It grew optimally at 25-28 °C, at pH 7.0-8.

Structural and functional characterization of pituitary adenylyl cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP)/PACAP-related peptide (PRP) and its receptor in olive flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus).

We identified full-length cDNAs encoding pituitary adenylyl cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP), PACAP-related peptide (PRP), and PACAP-specific receptor (PAC1R) from olive flounder, Paralichthys olivaceus. Two variant mRNA forms were created by alternative splicing. Comparison of genomic and cDNA sequences of the PRP-PACAP precursor revealed that skipping of exon 4 within PRP resulted in two variant transcripts: a long form encoding both PRP and PACAP and a short form encoding PACAP only.

Gene cloning and characterization of a cold-adapted esterase from Acinetobacter venetianus V28.

Acinetobacter venetians V28 was isolated from the intestine of righteye flounder, Poecilopsetta plinthus caught in Vietnam seawater, and the esterase gene was cloned using a shotgun method. The amino acid sequence deduced from the nucleotide sequence (1,017 bp) corresponded to a protein of 338 amino acid residues with a molecular weight of 37,186. The esterase had 87% and 72% identities with the lipases of A.

[Factors influencing depression among middle-school girls].

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of depression among school girls in Korea and identify factors influencing the tendency to depression.

Methods: A self-report survey was conducted with South Korean middle schoolgirls who were in the 8th and 9th grades. Four hundred and one schoolgirls were included in the study.

Cloning and expression analysis of a small HSP26 gene of Pacific abalone (Haliotis discus hannai).

Heat shock proteins (HSPs) are evolutionally conserved from micro organism to mammals and play important roles in many biological processes including thermal tolerance. We isolated a homologue of small HSP26 (sHSP26) from a subtracted cDNA library of heat shock-treated abalone (Haliotis discus hannai). The abalone sHSP26 encompossed 793 nt, including a coding region of 501 nt.

Phylogenetic analysis of six species of pacific abalone (Haliotidae) based on DNA sequences of 16s rRNA and cytochrome c oxidase subunit I mitochondrial genes.

Six species of abalones (Haliotidae) are found on the Korean coasts. Identification and characterization of these abalones are usually based on morphologic characters. In this research we compared the partial sequences of the mitochondrial 16S ribosomal RNA and cytochrome c oxidase subunit I genes to identify species using molecular data and to determine their phylogenetic relationships.