Orientia tsutsugamushi, a causative pathogen of Scrub typhus, is a gram-negative intracellular bacterium. Outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) are produced from the membrane of bacteria and play many roles related to the survival of the pathogen. However, there have been no reports confirming whether O. tsutsugamushi indeed produce OMVs. O. tsutsugamushi boryong was cultured in ECV-304 cells for the purification of OMVs. Western blot analysis and immunoenrichment using anti-O. tsutsugamushi monoclonal antibody and electron microscopy were employed for identification and characterization of OMVs. We confirm the presence of OMVs derived from O. tsutsugamushi, and also found that those OMVs contain a major surface antigen of 56-kDa protein and variant immunogenic antigens.
Antibodies, Monoclonal/*immunology ; Antigens, Bacterial/*immunology ; Antigens, Surface/*immunology ; Cell Line ; Cell Membrane/immunology ; Humans ; Microscopy, Electron ; Orientia tsutsugamushi/*immunology/metabolism ; Scrub Typhus/diagnosis/microbiology ; Secretory Vesicles/*immunology

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is rapidly spreading around the world, causing much morbidity and mortality everywhere. However, effective treatments or vaccines are still not available. Although convalescent plasma (CP) therapy can be useful in the treatment of COVID-19, it has not been widely used in Korea because of the concerns about adverse effects and the difficulty in matching patients to donors. The use of ABO-incompatible plasma is not contraindicated in treatment, but can be hesitated due to the lack of experience of physicians. Here, we describe a 68-year old man with COVID-19 who was treated ABO-incompatible plasma therapy; additionally, we comment on the acute side effects associated with ABO mismatch transfusion. To overcome the obstacles of donor-recipient connections (schedule and distance), we propose the storage of frozen plasma, modification of the current Blood Management Law, and the establishment of a CP bank. We suggest that experience gained in CP therapy will be useful for not only the treatment of COVID-19, but also for coping with new emerging infectious diseases.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) is a highly effective therapy for refractory and recurrent Clostridium difficile infection (CDI). Despite its excellent efficacy and recent widespread use, FMT has not been widely used in South Korea thus far. We describe our experience with FMT to treat refractory/recurrent CDI. METHODS: We conducted a chart review of patients who underwent FMT for refractory/recurrent CDI at Inha University Hospital, between March 2014 and June 2016. The demographic information, treatment data, and adverse events were reviewed. FMT was administered via colonoscopy and/or duodenoscopy. All stool donors were rigorously screened to prevent infectious disease transmission. RESULTS: FMT was performed in nine patients with refractory/recurrent CDI. All patients were dramatically cured. Bowel movement was normalized within one week after FMT. There were no procedure-related adverse events, except aspiration pneumonia in one patient. During the follow-up period (mean 11.4 months), recurrence of CDI was observed in one patient at one month after FMT due to antibiotics. CONCLUSIONS: FMT is a safe, well-tolerated and highly effective treatment for refractory/recurrent CDI. Although there are many barriers to using FMT, we expect that FMT will be widely used to treat refractory/recurrent CDI in South Korea.
Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Clostridium difficile* ; Clostridium* ; Colonoscopy ; Disease Transmission, Infectious ; Duodenoscopy ; Fecal Microbiota Transplantation* ; Follow-Up Studies ; Gastrointestinal Microbiome ; Humans ; Korea ; Pneumonia, Aspiration ; Recurrence ; Tissue Donors

The incidence of pulmonary thromboembolism increases with age. The risk factors of pulmonary thromboembolism include surgery, malignancy, obesity, lupus anticoagulants, and vascular conditions such as deep vein thrombosis. Thromboembolism in younger patients or in unusual locations, the possibility of primary thrombophilic conditions should be considered. Primary thrombophilic states include myeloproliferative disorders (MPD). JAK2 V617F mutation is found commonly in patients diagnosed with MPD, in 90~95% of polycythemia vera (PV) and in 50~60% of essential thrombocytosis (ET) patients. Sometimes the JAK2 V617F mutation is found in cases without MPD. The relationship between JAK2 V617F mutation and thrombosis has not been defined. Recently, clinical evidence suggests that this mutation may be variably associated with thrombosis. We present one case of pulmonary thromboembolism in a young patient, who was positive for the JAK2 V617F mutation and did not have MPD.
Anticoagulants ; Humans ; Incidence ; Myeloproliferative Disorders ; Obesity ; Polycythemia Vera ; Pulmonary Embolism ; Risk Factors ; Thrombocytosis ; Thromboembolism ; Thrombosis ; Venous Thrombosis

Well-established standards and specifications for medical devices not only provide clarity and consistency in licensing processes but also secure device safety and effectiveness. This study reviewed regulatory standards and specifications for veterinary medical devices in Korea based on data obtained through analyses of those medical devices. General standards for electromechanical, electromagnetic, and biological safety and individual standards for 76 electric and 70 general medical device products have been established by the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. However, the first standards and specifications for veterinary medical devices were established in March 2000 for two products (disposable needle and syringe). Similar to the large number of standards for medical devices, there have been general standards for safety and individual standards for 72 veterinary medical devices (27 electric medical devices, 12 non-electric medical devices, 10 medical supplies, and 23 other types) established since 2014. These new standards considered, among other aspects, the devices' applications, usage characteristics, and industrial environment. To date, the establishment of standards and specifications for veterinary medical devices remains limited. This study suggests that improvements should be made to the regulation of general and individual standards associated with various veterinary medical instruments, supplies, and in vitro diagnostic medical reagents.
Equipment and Supplies ; Equipment Safety ; In Vitro Techniques ; Indicators and Reagents ; Korea* ; Licensure ; Magnets ; Needles

PURPOSE: Cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 plays an important role in promoting cancer cell proliferation and angiogenesis in human bladder cancer. In this study, we investigated the antitumor or antiangiogenic effects of selective COX-2 inhibitor on N-butyl-N-(4-hydroxybutyl)nitrosamine (BBN)-induced rat bladder tumorigenesis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty male Fischer 344 rats (control) were given only 0.05% BBN, while 40 rats (experimental) were administered 1,500mg/ kg celecoxib once daily and this treatment started from 1 week before their BBN treatment. Ten rats from the control groups and the experimental groups were then sacrificed at 4, 12, 16 and 24 weeks after BBN treatment. We observed all the bladders macroscopically as well as microscopically, and we measured the COX-2 expression in the bladder tissues. Utilizing a cDNA microarray, we analyzed the significant differences of gene expression between the 12 week-control group and the 12 week-experimental group. RESULTS: The incidence of tumor was lower in the experimental group than in the control group from week 12 to week 24. The COX-2 expressions were more significantly decreased via the BBN induction (p<0.05) in the experimental groups than in the control groups after 4 weeks. For the 12 week-experimental group, there were 15 genes altered by the administration of selective COX-2 inhibitor, and the selective COX-2 inhibitor especially regulated transgelin, membrane metallo endopeptidase and apolipoprotein E of these 15 genes to prevent the incidence of bladder tumor. CONCLUSIONS: Selective COX-2 inhibitor has an inhibitory effect on BBN-induced rat bladder tumorigenesis. In the pre-neoplastic phase, selective COX-2 inhibitor regulates transgelin, membrane metallo endopeptidase and apolipoprotein E to prevent the incidence of bladder tumor.
Angiogenesis Inducing Agents ; Animals ; Apolipoproteins ; Butylhydroxybutylnitrosamine ; Carcinogenesis ; Cell Proliferation ; Cyclooxygenase 2* ; Gene Expression* ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Neprilysin ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis ; Prostaglandin-Endoperoxide Synthases ; Rats* ; Transcriptome* ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms* ; Urinary Bladder* ; Celecoxib

Three trials of external quality assessment were performed in 2005. The first and the second trials were assessed by 14 test items including tumor markers, hormones and immunoproteins and the third trial was intended only for five items of immunoproteins, i.e. Immunoglobulin G (IgG), IgM, IgA, Complement 3 (C3) and C4. Fourteen test items of immunoassay method including 5 tumor markers, 4 hormones and 5 imunoproteins were surveyed. The response rate of external quality assessment for Immunoassay Subcommittee were 94.4% ~ 95.0% in this year. Ten control materials of the first and second trials were consisted of 8 home-made pooled sera and 2 commercial control sera (LyphoCheck, BioRad, USA and Randox, Randox Ltd., UK). And, for the third trial we used the 05-S-4 specimen of the Immunoserology Subcommittee control material. The results are summarized as follows. 1. Laboratories participating in external quality control program of Immunoassay Subcommittee were 305 laboratories and the response rate were 94.4% and 95.0% in 2005. 2. Autoanalyzers based on enhanced or improved enzyme/chemiluminiscence imunoassay were mostly used in the field of immunoassay testing. 3. A new reporting system which uses the internet web site was introduced in this year from the second trial of external quality survey. 4. Some test items show big variations of the test results of the same control material according to autoanalyzer and reagents. The quality of the participating laboratories seems to be improved step by step. And, the new methods of reporting system and statistic analyses introduced this year were considered to get a good reputation from the member institutes for the surveillance systems.
Academies and Institutes ; Complement C3 ; Immunoassay* ; Immunoglobulin A ; Immunoglobulin G ; Immunoglobulin M ; Immunoproteins ; Indicators and Reagents ; Internet ; Quality Control ; Biomarkers, Tumor

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Cat-scratch disease (CSD), caused by Bartonella henselae is one of the most common zoonosis. However, only several cases of B. henselae infection have been reported in Korea. This study investigated the seroprevalence of B. henselae in healthy adults and related risk factors. METHODS: Serum samples from 300 healthy participants were analyzed using an immunoglobulin G immunof luorescence assay (IFA) for B. henselae isolated in Korea. Surveys on the risk factors for B. henselae infection were conducted simultaneously. RESULTS: Of the participants, 47.7% and 15.0% raised dogs and cats, respectively. The overall seroprevalence of B. henselae was 15.0% (IFA titer ≥ 1:64). Participants who had raised cats showed 22.2% seropositivity against B. henselae, and those with no experience with cats showed 13.7% seroprevalence (p = 0.17). Participants who had cats as pets or been scratched by cats, showed 9.8% seropositivity against B. henselae (IFA titer ≥ 1:256). However, those who had not raised or been scratched by a cat showed 2.0% seropositivity (p = 0.015). CONCLUSIONS: In Korea, the seroprevalence of B. henselae is higher than expected, suggesting that Bartonella infection due to B. henselae is not uncommon. Cats are proposed to play a more important role than dogs in transmission of CSD.
Adult* ; Animals ; Bartonella henselae* ; Bartonella Infections ; Bartonella* ; Cat-Scratch Disease ; Cats ; Dogs ; Healthy Volunteers ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin G ; Korea* ; Risk Factors ; Seroepidemiologic Studies*

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Cat-scratch disease (CSD), caused by Bartonella henselae is one of the most common zoonosis. However, only several cases of B. henselae infection have been reported in Korea. This study investigated the seroprevalence of B. henselae in healthy adults and related risk factors. METHODS: Serum samples from 300 healthy participants were analyzed using an immunoglobulin G immunof luorescence assay (IFA) for B. henselae isolated in Korea. Surveys on the risk factors for B. henselae infection were conducted simultaneously. RESULTS: Of the participants, 47.7% and 15.0% raised dogs and cats, respectively. The overall seroprevalence of B. henselae was 15.0% (IFA titer ≥ 1:64). Participants who had raised cats showed 22.2% seropositivity against B. henselae, and those with no experience with cats showed 13.7% seroprevalence (p = 0.17). Participants who had cats as pets or been scratched by cats, showed 9.8% seropositivity against B. henselae (IFA titer ≥ 1:256). However, those who had not raised or been scratched by a cat showed 2.0% seropositivity (p = 0.015). CONCLUSIONS: In Korea, the seroprevalence of B. henselae is higher than expected, suggesting that Bartonella infection due to B. henselae is not uncommon. Cats are proposed to play a more important role than dogs in transmission of CSD.
Adult* ; Animals ; Bartonella henselae* ; Bartonella Infections ; Bartonella* ; Cat-Scratch Disease ; Cats ; Dogs ; Healthy Volunteers ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin G ; Korea* ; Risk Factors ; Seroepidemiologic Studies*

A 38-year-old male-to-female transgender patient who had undergone a transsexual operation 20 years earlier presented with right flank pain and chills. Abdominal CT scan and gastrografin colon enema revealed a right psoas abscess and an abnormal communication between the large bowel and this psoas abscess. She underwent a right hemicolectomy and was finally diagnosed as having a Klebsiella psoas abscess due to perforated diverticulitis and intestinal tuberculosis. Additional antibiotics and antituberculous medication were required. A secondary psoas abscess due to diverticulitis is rare, and to our knowledge, no case combined with intestinal tuberculosis has previously been reported. We present the case with a brief review of related reports.
Adult ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Chills ; Colon ; Diatrizoate Meglumine ; Diverticulitis ; Enema ; Flank Pain ; Humans ; Klebsiella ; Psoas Abscess ; Tuberculosis