Objective: To examine the effects of Tribulus terrestris L. (T. terrestris) extract on the modulation of calcium channels to evaluate its use in topical agents for treatment of atopic dermatitis. Methods: The 70% methanol extract of T. terrestris was prepared. Human HEK293T cells with over-expressed calcium release-activated calcium channel protein 1 (Orai1), transient receptor potential vanilloid 1, or transient receptor potential vanilloid 3 (TRPV3) were treated with T. terrestris extract. Modulation of ion channels was measured using a conventional whole-cell patch-clamp technique. Results: T. terrestris extract (100 mg/mL) significantly inhibited Orai1 activity in Orai1-stromal interaction molecule 1 co-overexpressed HEK293T cells. In addition, T. terrestris extract significantly increased the TRPV3 activity compared with 2-Aminoethyl diphe-nylborinate (100 mmol/L), which induces the full activation of TRPV3. Conclusions: Our results suggest that T. terrestris extract may have a therapeutic po-tential for recovery of abnormal skin barrier pathologies in atopic dermatitis through modulating the activities of calcium ion channels, Orai1 and TRPV3. This is the first study to report the modulatory effect of a medicinal plant on the function of ion channels in skin barrier.

The cytologic examination of the urine is very simple and inexpensive procedure for the detection and follow up the genitourinary tumors, and worthy as a mass screening test. The voided urines of 20 patients who were admitted to the department of urology, Seoul city hospital from October 1983 to September 1985 with the diagnosis of bladder carcinoma were analysed as to variations in PH and osmolality values and quality of cytologic smears. The same analyses were repeated after addition of trichloracetic acid (TCA) and after diuresis was obtained by Furosemide medication. Standardization of values of PH (average 2) and of osmolality (average 300 mosm/kg) was obtained by adding TCA to furosemide urine. The cellular smears of this TCA treated furosemide urine exhibited the finest cytological details when compared to the smears obtained by routine method.
Diagnosis* ; Diuresis ; Furosemide ; Hospitals, Urban ; Humans ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Mass Screening ; Osmolar Concentration ; Seoul ; Urinary Bladder ; Urology

No abstract available.
Leukemia* ; Sweet Syndrome*

Acetylcholine provocation test was performed in 54 patients who were admitted to Seoul National University Hospital between August, 1989 and October, 1990 with chest painn and normal or near normal(narrowin of less than 30%) coronary arteries on baseline coronary angiogram. 1) After provocation with intracoronary acetylcholine, 19 patients showed coronary artery constriction of less than 50%, 5 patients showed constriction of 50 to 74%, 21 patients showed constriction of 75 to 99% and 5 patients showed total occlusion. patients with typical symptoms of variant angina showed coronary artery constriction of more than 50% in 81% of cases while those without such symptoms showed constriction of more than 50% in only 28%. 2) We classified the coronary artery constriction over 50% after acetylcholine provocation into focal, diffuse, combined type and total occlusion. 3) Branches of coronary artery on which constriction was provoked by acetylcholine were right coronary, left anterior descending and left circumflex in the decreasing order of frequency. 4) In patients with focal constriction less than 50%, there was neither ECG change nor development of chest pain, and out of 13 patients with focal constriction of more than 75%, 11 patients showed both chest pain and ST segment change and 2 of them showed either chest pain or ST sement change. 5) In 4 patients with diffuse constriction of less than 75%, we could not observe ECG change and chest pain and in 11 patients with diffuse constriction of more than 75%, six showed chest pain and ST segment change, four showed chest pain without ECG change and one showed neither chest pain nor ECG change. 6) In 5 patients with total occlusion, 3 of them showed both chest pain and ST segment change and 2 of them showed only chest pain. 7) Patients with coronary artery constriction of more than 75% showed significant difference in occurrence of chest pain and ST segment change in comparison with patients with coronary artery constriction of less than 75%(p<0.01). It is suggested that dynamic coronary artery constriction of more than 75% after acetylcholine provocation can be considered as positive test regardless of the morphologic feature of the lesion, whether it is diffuse or focal.
Acetylcholine* ; Chest Pain ; Constriction ; Coronary Vessels* ; Electrocardiography ; Humans ; Seoul ; Spasm* ; Thorax

Acetylcholine provocation test was performed in 54 patients who were admitted to Seoul National University Hospital between August, 1989 and October, 1990 with chest painn and normal or near normal(narrowin of less than 30%) coronary arteries on baseline coronary angiogram. 1) After provocation with intracoronary acetylcholine, 19 patients showed coronary artery constriction of less than 50%, 5 patients showed constriction of 50 to 74%, 21 patients showed constriction of 75 to 99% and 5 patients showed total occlusion. patients with typical symptoms of variant angina showed coronary artery constriction of more than 50% in 81% of cases while those without such symptoms showed constriction of more than 50% in only 28%. 2) We classified the coronary artery constriction over 50% after acetylcholine provocation into focal, diffuse, combined type and total occlusion. 3) Branches of coronary artery on which constriction was provoked by acetylcholine were right coronary, left anterior descending and left circumflex in the decreasing order of frequency. 4) In patients with focal constriction less than 50%, there was neither ECG change nor development of chest pain, and out of 13 patients with focal constriction of more than 75%, 11 patients showed both chest pain and ST segment change and 2 of them showed either chest pain or ST sement change. 5) In 4 patients with diffuse constriction of less than 75%, we could not observe ECG change and chest pain and in 11 patients with diffuse constriction of more than 75%, six showed chest pain and ST segment change, four showed chest pain without ECG change and one showed neither chest pain nor ECG change. 6) In 5 patients with total occlusion, 3 of them showed both chest pain and ST segment change and 2 of them showed only chest pain. 7) Patients with coronary artery constriction of more than 75% showed significant difference in occurrence of chest pain and ST segment change in comparison with patients with coronary artery constriction of less than 75%(p<0.01). It is suggested that dynamic coronary artery constriction of more than 75% after acetylcholine provocation can be considered as positive test regardless of the morphologic feature of the lesion, whether it is diffuse or focal.
Acetylcholine* ; Chest Pain ; Constriction ; Coronary Vessels* ; Electrocardiography ; Humans ; Seoul ; Spasm* ; Thorax

OBJECTIVE: We used nucleated erythrocytes in maternal blood for prenatal determination of the fetal gender as the preliminary experiment for the screening of fetal genetic status and the BclI DNA polymorphism in an attempt to clarify the origin of erythrocytes in maternal blood. METHODS: In seventeen pregnant women, venous blood was withdrawn and the nucleated erythrocytes were recovered by magnetic activated cell sorting (MACS) and immunostaining. After isolation of nucleated erythrocytes by micromanipulation, we performed nested PCR for amelogenin gene to identify the fetal gender and performed BclI DNA polymorphism to clarify the origin of erythrocytes. RESULTS: We could amplify the minute DNA in a single cell by primer extension preamplification and nested PCR of amelogenin gene in 94 (48.7%) cells and could identify the fetal gender by 58.8%. BclI DNA polymorphism revealed that the several cells, which did not reveal the specific band of Y chromosome in spite of the pregnancy of male fetuses, must be the cells from mother. CONCLUSION: Through this study, we could conclude that several nucleated erythrocytes in maternal blood circulation can originate from mother, therefore we must develop the new method to identify the nucleated erythrocyte of fetal origin. Considering that we must apply for the larger number of pregnant women to screen, the procedure was multi-step and complex. Therefore, we must design the new scheme to utilize the nucleated erythrocytes in maternal blood.
Amelogenin ; Blood Circulation ; DNA ; Erythroblasts ; Erythrocytes ; Female ; Fetus ; Humans ; Male ; Mass Screening ; Micromanipulation ; Mothers ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Pregnancy ; Pregnant Women ; Y Chromosome

PURPOSE:Tumor cells can be shed into a venous blood stream by manipulation of tumor during surgery, resulting metastasis to distant organs from the primary tumor. In order to elucidate the effect of early lymphovascular dissection prior to tumor mobilization, we studied the difference in carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) values of tumor draining veins before and after tumor mobilization. METHODS:Blood samples were taken from the tumor draining veins of sixteen patients during operations. The lymphovascular dissection was performed before the tumor mobilization, and the main draining vein from the tumor was isolated and the proximal end was ligated and blood samples were taken, then the tumor mobilization was made. Just before the removal of the tumor, we took the second sets of blood samples from the same sites. RESULTS:There were no significant differences in CEA values between peripheral blood (1.8+/-1.2 ng/mL) and tumor draining veins before the tumor mobilization. The mean CEA value of draining veins after the tumor mobilization (14.3+/-11.9 ng/mL) was significantly higher than that of draining veins before the mobilization (2.2+/-2.1 ng/mL)(P<0.001). CONCLUSIONS:Theses results suggest that early lymphovascular dissection procedures before tumor mobilization can reduce the opportunity of tumor cell dissemination into draining vein.
Carcinoembryonic Antigen* ; Colorectal Neoplasms* ; Humans ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Rivers ; Veins

Abdominal pregnancy is a very rare and life threatening varient of ectopic pregnancy with high maternal mortality and perinatal mortality. A 26-year-old woman, gravida 2, para 0, abortion 2, visited our emergency department for amenorrhea for 11 weeks and lower abdominal pain. Diagnostic transvaginal ultrasonographic finding suggested ruptured ectopic pregnancy. Serum Hemoglobin level was 8.1 mg/dL, and Hematocrit value was 25.2%. On laparatomy about 2.000 mL of blood was filled in the abdomen and severe adhesion was found on right adnexa, posterior cul-de-sac and omentum. A live fetus was attached to uterus. After adhesiolysis, we removed conceptus from uterine surface. We performed subtotal hysterectomy and excised right fallopian tube. 10 pints of packed red blood cell and 3 pints of fresh frozen plasma were given to the patient during and after the operation. Patient recovered postoperatively without any complications and discharged at postoperative seventh day. We experienced a case of first trimester secondary abdominal pregnancy after tubal reanastomosis and reported it with brief of a literature review.
Abdomen ; Abdominal Pain ; Adult ; Amenorrhea ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Erythrocytes ; Fallopian Tubes ; Female ; Fetus ; Hematocrit ; Humans ; Hysterectomy ; Maternal Mortality ; Omentum ; Perinatal Mortality ; Plasma ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Trimester, First ; Pregnancy, Abdominal* ; Pregnancy, Ectopic ; Sterilization Reversal* ; Uterus

BACKGROUND: Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is one of the most common complications after gynecological laparoscopic surgery and it appears more frequently after use of inhalation anesthetics than total intravenous anesthesia (TIVA). Palonosetron was introduced as a new-generation potent antiemetic agent, which may reduce PONV more effectively than previous drugs. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether palonosetron could prevent PONV after gynecological laparoscopic surgery, regardless of the anesthetic technique employed. METHODS: Seventy-three patients scheduled for gynecological laparoscopic surgery were randomly assigned into 3 groups according to the anesthetic agent employed (group 1: inhalation anesthesia with desflurane, group 2: inhalation anesthesia with sevoflurane, group 3: total intravenous anesthesia with propofol and remifentanil). Palonosetron 0.075 mg was administered intravenously before the induction. Opioids were not used for postoperative pain control. The incidences of nausea, vomiting and side effects were recorded from 2 hr upto 48 hr, postoperatively. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in the incidence of PONV, severity of nausea, and the use of rescue antiemetics among the groups, throughout the observation. No differences were observed in the adverse side effects among the groups. CONCLUSIONS: Palonosetron decreased the incidence of PONV after gynecological laparoscopic surgery to a similar level, regardless of the anesthetic technique.
Analgesics, Opioid ; Anesthesia, Inhalation ; Anesthesia, Intravenous* ; Anesthetics, Inhalation ; Antiemetics ; Female ; Gynecologic Surgical Procedures ; Humans ; Incidence ; Laparoscopy* ; Nausea ; Pain, Postoperative ; Postoperative Nausea and Vomiting* ; Propofol ; Vomiting

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: There has been a need for functional status measurement tool with better validity than the existing tools such as New York Heart Association Functional Class. Duke Activity Status Index (DASI) is a representative example of a tool that was developed to enhance the validity of measurement by asking the patients about the ability to perform specific activities and scoring the response. Because such a tool must be culture-sensitive, it is desirable to use 'Koreanized' version of the tool. No Koreanized version of the functional status measurement tool has been developed yet. The objective of this study is to develop a Korean version of DASI. MATERIALS AND METHOD: In the developmental phase, a pilot questionnaire asking the ability to perform specific activity was made with reference to existing tools, such as Specific Activity Scale and DASI. Substitution, correction and addition of items were done through the pilot study. Ninety-nine patients was asked to fill developmental version of questionnaire, then underwent treadmill exercise test. Weight for each items were assigned to optimize the correlation between the calculated index (KASI) and total treadmill exercise time. Criteria for categorical functional classification were determined to maximize the agreement between KASI-estimated functional class (KASIFC) and functional class estimated by exercise time. In the validation phase, final version of questionnaire was tested in independent group of 159 patients. The questionnaire was self-administered. Canadian Cardiovascular Society Functional Class (CCSFC) was estimated by the physician who is in charge of treadmill exercise test. RESULTS: In the validation phase, Spearman correlation coefficient between KASI and treadmill exercise time was 0.62(p=.0001) and between CCSFC and exercise time -0.48(p=.0001). KASIFC agreed with functional class estimated by exercise time in 77% of cases, disagreed by 1 class in 20% and by 2 classes in 1%. KASIFC agreed with functional class estimated by exercise time in 77% of cases, disagreed by 1 class in 20% and by 2 classes in 1%. These two methods did not differ significantly in categorical classification. CONCLUSION: KASI is more accurate or at least as accurate as the existing tool in estimation of functional status. The characteristics such as self-administration, availability of outcome as a continuous variable are expected to make it a convenient, efficacious and useful tool in various clinical researches.
Classification ; Exercise Test ; Heart ; Humans ; Pilot Projects ; Surveys and Questionnaires