Desmoplastic small round cell tumor (DSRCT) is a rare neoplasm of young adults and it is characterized by polyphenotypic differentiation. We experienced a case of abdominal DSRCT that occurred in a 19-year-old female who presented with painful swelling of her right forearm. The tumor was cytokeratin-negative and it exhibited some tumor cells with intranuclear inclusions. Molecular demonstration of EWS-WT1 fusion transcripts is particularly useful to confirm the diagnosis of DSRCT without epithelial differentiation. We report here on a case of cytokeratin-negative DSRCT that showed an unusual feature of intranuclear inclusions.
Desmoplastic Small Round Cell Tumor ; Female ; Forearm ; Humans ; Intranuclear Inclusion Bodies ; Keratins ; Young Adult

No abstract available.
Diptera*

Kallmann syndrome is characterized by hypogonadotropic hypogonadism resulting from insufficient release of GnRH and associated with anosmia or hyposmia. We experienced two cases of Kallmann syndrome with abnormal brain MRI findings(olfactory bulb aplasia) & secondary sexual dysfunction.
Brain ; Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone ; Hypogonadism ; Kallmann Syndrome* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Olfaction Disorders

Kallmann syndrome is characterized by hypogonadotropic hypogonadism resulting from insufficient release of GnRH and associated with anosmia or hyposmia. We experienced two cases of Kallmann syndrome with abnormal brain MRI findings(olfactory bulb aplasia) & secondary sexual dysfunction.
Brain ; Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone ; Hypogonadism ; Kallmann Syndrome* ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Olfaction Disorders

OBJECTIVE: This study was conducted to examine the effect of vitrification on the survival and in vitro development of mice 1-cell zygotes. METHOD: Effects of exposure to vitrification solution and vitrification, with different concentrations of the cryoprotectant solution, were examined. The 1-cell zygotes were also subjected to a slow freezing- thawing method to compare with vitrification method. Solution composed of ethylene glycol (6.0 M, 5.0 M, 4.0 M) and sucrose (1.0 M) were used as cryopropectant. The experiments employed the method loading the embryos on electron microscope grids. RESULTS: I. The effects of exposure in vitrification solution 1-cell zygotes were non-toxic at all concentrations of the vitrification solution showing the survival rate between 88.1% and 97.5%. Development into 2-cell was more successful in the higher concentrations of the vitrification solution. Therefore, higher concentrations of the vitirification solution do not seem to cause any problems in vitrification procedure. II. The effects of vitrification method 1-cell zygotes showed the survival rate between 78.8% and 92.4%. The lowest and the highest survival rate was observed in the 6.0 M and 4.0 M vitrification solution, respectively. 2-cell development rates varied from 77.6% to 91.3%. Blastocyst development rate was shown highest in 5.0 M and the lowest in 4.0 M solution. Therefore, the highest 2-cell and blastocyst development rate was observed in 5.0 M solution. III. Comparison of vitrification and slow freezing-thawing method on 1-cell zygotes This experiment showed that 1-cell zygotes had the highest survival and development rates in 5.0 M vitrification solution. Vitrified group of 1-cell zygotes, in the 5.0 M vitrification solution, were compared with the group processed in slow freezing-thawing method. The development rate into 2-cell and blastocyst as well as the survival rate were higher in the vitrified group than in the slowly freezed group. CONCLUSION: 1. The results demonstrate that the best cryoprotectant is a 5.0 M vitrification solution for 1-cell zygotes. 2. Vitrification method significantly increases the survival rate of the 1-cell zygote and its development into 2-cell and blastocyst. Equilibration and exposure time during the vitrification was remarkerbly short in this experiment. Total time, from the exposure to vitirification solution to storage in the liquid nitrogen, was taken only 90 seconds. In contrast, the slow freezing-thawing method have taken more than four hours. Taken together, we presume that the overall time used for the procedure contributes to the results as an important parameter. 3. The loading of 1-cell zygotes on the EM grid is technically more simple and takes less time than the straw or cryo vial method.
Animals ; Blastocyst ; Embryonic Structures ; Ethylene Glycol ; Group Processes ; Mice ; Nitrogen ; Sucrose ; Survival Rate ; Vitrification* ; Zygote*

No abstract available.
Breast* ; Jaundice* ; Milk, Human*

PURPOSE:The natural course of Hashimoto' thyroiditis (HT) is so dynamic that the disease progresses to overt hypothyroid or spontaneous recovery. The authors reviewed the clinical course of this disease and analysed the possible predicting factors regarding remission. METHODS:Thirty nine patients with HT (38 girls and 1 boy) were studied retrospectively. Of these patients, 30 were followed for more than 2 years. The possible remission factors were analyzed at initial diagnosis and during follow-up period. RESULTS:The mean age at the diagnosis was 11.8+/-.1 years. Initial thyroid function was euthyroid in 38.5%, compensated hypothyroid in 35.9%, overt hypothyroid in 23.1%, and hyperthyroid in 2.6% of patients. Antithyroglobulin antibody (ATA) was positive in 94.7%, and antimicrosomal antibody (AMA) was positive in 74.4%. The overall remission rate was 53.3% during the follow-up period (51+/-7 months). Initial goiter size, thyroid function status, and autoantibody titer had no relation to the remission rate statistically. Follow-up autoantibody titers in remission group were marginally lower than those in nonremission group (P<0.1), and follow-up AMA titer was significantly higher than initial titers in nonremission group (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: We could not find any predictable remission factors from the initial clinical and autoantibody status. But, during follow-up period, patients with lower autoantibody titers showed slight higher remission, and those with increasing AMA titer showed less remission. Above results suggest that we should monitor antithyroid antibody titer as well as thyroid function regularly.
Adolescent* ; Child* ; Diagnosis ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Goiter ; Humans ; Retrospective Studies ; Thyroid Gland* ; Thyroiditis*

No abstract available.
Glaucoma* ; Manometry* ; Mass Screening*

PURPOSE: Acute diarrhea in young children is a major problem in pediatric hospitals worldwide. We evaluated the clinical efficacy of orally administered Lactobacillus acidophilus in the treatment of acute diarrhea in children. METHODS: From September 2002 to July 2003 at National Police Hospital 41 children aged 3 months to 5 years with acute diarrhea were enrolled in this study. The patients were randomized to one of two groups to receive either 0.5 x 10(8) colony forming unit (CFU) of L. acidophilus or matching placebo on admission and every 8 hours during hospitalization. RESULTS: The mean duration of diarrhea in all 41 children was decreased (p=0.001) in the L. acidophilus (40.5 hours) group compared to the placebo (56.6 hours) group. Stool frequency was also reduced (p=0.01) on the 3rd day in the L. acidophilus group. Rotavirus was identified in 58% of the patients. The decrease of duration of diarrhea was more significant in rotavirus-negative patients (p=0.002) compared to the rotavirus-positive patients (p=0.027). CONCLUSION: L. acidophilus shows to be an effective therapeutic agent in acute diarrhea in children. Further studies are needed to confirm the present findings.
Child* ; Diarrhea* ; Hospitalization ; Hospitals, Pediatric ; Humans ; Lactobacillus acidophilus* ; Lactobacillus* ; Police ; Probiotics ; Rotavirus ; Stem Cells

DNA profiling with sets of short tandem repeat (STR) markers is the most popular method for identifying human DNA in forensics. Identification by STR typing might fail when DNA is degraded or is present in low amounts, such as in disaster victim identification (DVI) samples. In such cases, more information might be obtained by using additional markers such as single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Multiplex PCR and microarray are convenient techniques to analyze SNP markers. We used an AccuID(TM) Chip, SNP-based DNA chip manufactured by DNA Link Corporation, to confirm genetic relationship between two human bone samples that had been buried for more than 50 years and blood samples from the alleged descendants of the sources of the bone fragments. The chip combines an Affymetrix resequencing array with a multiplex PCR technology and can genotype hundreds of SNP markers in a single experiment. Genotyping the two bone samples yielded 90.5 and 77 SNP markers. The commonly genotyped markers (61 and 47 SNP loci) in each bone-family pair provided high paternity indices to support the genetic relationships in both cases.
Disasters ; DNA Fingerprinting ; DNA* ; Forensic Anthropology* ; Genotype ; Humans* ; Microsatellite Repeats ; Multiplex Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis* ; Paternity ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide