This study evaluated the cellular localization of cyclic AMP-responsive element binding protein-binding protein (CBP) expression in pig retinas during postnatal development. Immunohistochemistry and Western blot analysis were performed on retinal tissue from 2-day-old, 5-week-old, and 6-month-old pigs. Western blot analysis detected the expression of CBP in the retinas of 2-day-old piglets and showed that it was significantly decreased in the retinas of 5-week-old and 6-month-old pigs. Immunohistochemically, CBP was intensely immunostained in protein kinase C alpha (PKCalpha)-positive-bipolar cells, glutamine synthetase-positive Muller cells, and in ganglion cells in 2-day-old piglets. CBP was detected weakly in the inner plexiform, outer nuclear, and rod and cone layers. CBP immunoreactivity in the ganglion cell layer was decreased in the retinas of 5-week-old and 6-month-old pigs, while clear CBP expression detected in the neurite of PKCalpha-positive bipolar cells in the inner nuclear layer. In addition, CBP immunoreactivity in Muller cells and glial fibrillary acidic protein-positive glial processes was particularly noteworthy in pig retinas, but not in rat retinas. The results indicate that CBP is expressed differentially in the retinal neurons and glial cells according to growth and animal species, and may play an important role in homeostasis in Muller cells, neurite extention in bipolar cells, and signal transduction in photoreceptor cells in the porcine retina.
Animals ; Blotting, Western ; Carrier Proteins ; Ganglion Cysts ; Glutamine ; Homeostasis ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Infant ; Neurites ; Neuroglia ; Photoreceptor Cells ; Protein Kinase C-alpha ; Rats ; Retina ; Retinal Neurons ; Retinaldehyde ; Signal Transduction ; Swine

Objective: This study aimed to validate the Korean version of a short screening tool for psychosis as the first stage in finding undiagnosed psychosis in the community. Methods: The sample contained 126 consecutive psychiatric outpatients in National Medical Center, Seoul, Korea, between July 20 and July 22, 2020. The Psychosis Screener (PS) comprises 7 items covering psychotic symptoms. The presence of each psychotic symptom was determined by a trained mental health professional and coded “yes” or “no.” Two psychiatrists reviewed the medical records independently and extracted the ICD-10-based diagnoses. Any differences between the two clinicians were resolved by consensus, and the agreed diagnosis was used as a gold standard in the study. Results: Among 126 psychiatric outpatients who were enrolled in a consecutive manner during the study period, the proportion of psychosis was 15.1%. The PS showed 78.9% sensitivity and 72.0% specificity when the optimal cut-off was 2, indicating that a score of 2 or more on the screener identified a likely case of psychosis. The area under the curve for the PS was 0.78 (95% CI: 0.67–0.87). Conclusion The Korean version of the PS has an ability to discriminate between those who meet the diagnostic criteria for psychosis and those who do not in a high-prevalence group.

Objective: This study aimed to validate the Korean version of a short screening tool for psychosis as the first stage in finding undiagnosed psychosis in the community. Methods: The sample contained 126 consecutive psychiatric outpatients in National Medical Center, Seoul, Korea, between July 20 and July 22, 2020. The Psychosis Screener (PS) comprises 7 items covering psychotic symptoms. The presence of each psychotic symptom was determined by a trained mental health professional and coded “yes” or “no.” Two psychiatrists reviewed the medical records independently and extracted the ICD-10-based diagnoses. Any differences between the two clinicians were resolved by consensus, and the agreed diagnosis was used as a gold standard in the study. Results: Among 126 psychiatric outpatients who were enrolled in a consecutive manner during the study period, the proportion of psychosis was 15.1%. The PS showed 78.9% sensitivity and 72.0% specificity when the optimal cut-off was 2, indicating that a score of 2 or more on the screener identified a likely case of psychosis. The area under the curve for the PS was 0.78 (95% CI: 0.67–0.87). Conclusion The Korean version of the PS has an ability to discriminate between those who meet the diagnostic criteria for psychosis and those who do not in a high-prevalence group.

Natural killer (NK) cells are innate immune cells that are crucial for anticancer activity and have been developed as an immune cell therapy for leukemia. However, their limited effectiveness against solid tumors has prompted research into methods to enhance NK cell activity through combination therapies. Health supplements capable of boosting immune surveillance against tumor cells are gaining attention owing to their potential benefits. Resveratrol, a stilbenoid produced by several plants including peanuts and grapes, reportedly exerts anticancer effects and can activate immune cells. The peanut sprout extract cultivated with fermented sawdust medium (PSEFS) is rich in resveratrol, leveraging its health benefits in terms of the dry weight of herbal products, thus maximizing the utilization of resveratrol’s beneficial properties. Our study compared the efficacy of resveratrol and PSEFS and revealed that PSEFS significantly enhanced NK cell activation compared with an equivalent dose of resveratrol. We investigated the ability of PSEFS to potentiate NK cell anticancer activity, focusing on NK cell survival, tumor cell lysis, and NK cell activation in PSEFS-administered mice. Our findings suggest that PSEFS could be a potential NK cell booster for cancer immunotherapy.

Natural killer (NK) cells are innate immune cells that are crucial for anticancer activity and have been developed as an immune cell therapy for leukemia. However, their limited effectiveness against solid tumors has prompted research into methods to enhance NK cell activity through combination therapies. Health supplements capable of boosting immune surveillance against tumor cells are gaining attention owing to their potential benefits. Resveratrol, a stilbenoid produced by several plants including peanuts and grapes, reportedly exerts anticancer effects and can activate immune cells. The peanut sprout extract cultivated with fermented sawdust medium (PSEFS) is rich in resveratrol, leveraging its health benefits in terms of the dry weight of herbal products, thus maximizing the utilization of resveratrol’s beneficial properties. Our study compared the efficacy of resveratrol and PSEFS and revealed that PSEFS significantly enhanced NK cell activation compared with an equivalent dose of resveratrol. We investigated the ability of PSEFS to potentiate NK cell anticancer activity, focusing on NK cell survival, tumor cell lysis, and NK cell activation in PSEFS-administered mice. Our findings suggest that PSEFS could be a potential NK cell booster for cancer immunotherapy.

Natural killer (NK) cells are innate immune cells that are crucial for anticancer activity and have been developed as an immune cell therapy for leukemia. However, their limited effectiveness against solid tumors has prompted research into methods to enhance NK cell activity through combination therapies. Health supplements capable of boosting immune surveillance against tumor cells are gaining attention owing to their potential benefits. Resveratrol, a stilbenoid produced by several plants including peanuts and grapes, reportedly exerts anticancer effects and can activate immune cells. The peanut sprout extract cultivated with fermented sawdust medium (PSEFS) is rich in resveratrol, leveraging its health benefits in terms of the dry weight of herbal products, thus maximizing the utilization of resveratrol’s beneficial properties. Our study compared the efficacy of resveratrol and PSEFS and revealed that PSEFS significantly enhanced NK cell activation compared with an equivalent dose of resveratrol. We investigated the ability of PSEFS to potentiate NK cell anticancer activity, focusing on NK cell survival, tumor cell lysis, and NK cell activation in PSEFS-administered mice. Our findings suggest that PSEFS could be a potential NK cell booster for cancer immunotherapy.

Microorganisms play important roles in obesity; however, the role of the gut microbiomes in obesity is controversial because of the inconsistent findings. This study investigated the gut microbiome communities in obese and lean groups of captive healthy cynomolgus monkeys reared under strict identical environmental conditions, including their diet. No significant differences in the relative abundance of Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes and Prevotella were observed between the obese and lean groups, but a significant difference in Spirochetes (p < 0.05) was noted. Microbial diversity and richness were similar, but highly variable results in microbial composition, diversity, and richness were observed in individuals, irrespective of their state of obesity. Distinct clustering between the groups was not observed by principal coordinate analysis using an unweighted pair group method. Higher sharedness values (95.81% ± 2.28% at the genus level, and 79.54% ± 5.88% at the species level) were identified among individual monkeys. This paper reports the association between the gut microbiome and obesity in captive non-human primate models reared under controlled environments. The relative proportion of Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes as well as the microbial diversity known to affect obesity were similar in the obese and lean groups of monkeys reared under identical conditions. Therefore, obesity-associated microbial changes reported previously appear to be associated directly with environmental factors, particularly diet, rather than obesity.
Bacteroidetes ; Diet ; Environment, Controlled ; Firmicutes ; Gastrointestinal Microbiome ; Haplorhini ; Macaca fascicularis ; Methods ; Microbiota ; Obesity ; Prevotella ; Primates ; Spirochaetales