Many researchers have reported that oxidative damage to mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is increased in several age-related disorders. Damage to mitochondrial constituents and mtDNA can generate additional mitochondrial dysfunction that may result in greater reactive oxygen species production, triggering a circular chain of events. However, the mechanisms underlying this vicious cycle have yet to be fully investigated. In this review, we summarize the relationship of oxidative stress-induced mitochondrial dysfunction with mtDNA mutation in neurodegenerative disorders.
Animals ; DNA, Mitochondrial/*genetics ; Humans ; Mitochondria/drug effects/genetics/metabolism ; Molecular Targeted Therapy ; *Mutation ; Neurodegenerative Diseases/drug therapy/*genetics/metabolism ; Reactive Oxygen Species/metabolism

No abstract available.
Humans ; Neurodegenerative Diseases/*drug therapy/*etiology

The purpose of this study was to explore the experience of turnover to a long-term care hospital nurse. Methods: Data were collected using in-depth interviews and analyzed using a Giorgi’s phenomenological approach. The participants were ten nurses who worked on the wards of a long-term care hospital in Busan metropolitan. Results: The results were summarized into five themes and seventeen core meanings. The five themes were ‘A choice based on one's convenience’, ‘Feeling overwhelmed by tasks beyond the scope of nursing duties’, ‘Thinking about turnover from time to time’, ‘An environment where personal growth as a nurse cannot be expected’ and ‘Becoming a nurse for long-term care’. Conclusion: To ensure patient safety and prevent nurse turnover in long-term care hospitals, it is necessary to improve the nursing environment, establish clear job manuals, and create a reasonable salary system.

OBJECTIVES: The Samsung Ombudsperson Commission was launched as an independent third-party institution following an agreement among Samsung Electronics, Supporters for Health and Right of People in Semiconductor Industry (Banolim in Korean, an independent NGO), and the Family Compensation Committee, in accordance with the industry accident prevention measure required by the settlement committee to address the issues related to employees who allegedly died from leukemia and other diseases as a result of working at Samsung's semiconductor production facilities. METHODS: The Commission has carried out a comprehensive range of activities to review and evaluate the status of the company's occupational accidents management system, as well as occupational safety and health risk management within its facilities. RESULTS: Based on the results of this review, termed a comprehensive diagnosis, the Commission presented action plans for improvement to strengthen the company's existing safety and health management system and to effectively address uncertain risks in this area going forward. CONCLUSIONS: The Commission will monitor the execution of the suggested tasks and provide advice and guidance to ensure that Samsung's semiconductor and liquid crystal display production lines are safer.
Accident Prevention ; Accidents, Occupational ; Compensation and Redress ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Korea ; Leukemia ; Liquid Crystals ; Occupational Diseases ; Occupational Health ; Risk Management ; Semiconductors

OBJECTIVES: The Samsung Ombudsperson Commission was launched as an independent third-party institution following an agreement among Samsung Electronics, Supporters for Health and Right of People in Semiconductor Industry (Banolim in Korean, an independent NGO), and the Family Compensation Committee, in accordance with the industry accident prevention measure required by the settlement committee to address the issues related to employees who allegedly died from leukemia and other diseases as a result of working at Samsung's semiconductor production facilities. METHODS: The Commission has carried out a comprehensive range of activities to review and evaluate the status of the company's occupational accidents management system, as well as occupational safety and health risk management within its facilities. RESULTS: Based on the results of this review, termed a comprehensive diagnosis, the Commission presented action plans for improvement to strengthen the company's existing safety and health management system and to effectively address uncertain risks in this area going forward. CONCLUSIONS The Commission will monitor the execution of the suggested tasks and provide advice and guidance to ensure that Samsung's semiconductor and liquid crystal display production lines are safer.

This systematic review summarizes existing evidence and outlines the benefits of artificial intelligence-assisted spine surgery. The popularity of artificial intelligence has grown significantly, demonstrating its benefits in computer-assisted surgery and advancements in spinal treatment. This study adhered to the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses), a set of reporting guidelines specifically designed for systematic reviews and meta-analyses. The search strategy used Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terms, including “MeSH (Artificial intelligence),” “Spine” AND “Spinal” filters, in the last 10 years, and English— from January 1, 2013, to October 31, 2023. In total, 442 articles fulfilled the first screening criteria. A detailed analysis of those articles identified 220 that matched the criteria, of which 11 were considered appropriate for this analysis after applying the complete inclusion and exclusion criteria. In total, 11 studies met the eligibility criteria. Analysis of these studies revealed the types of artificial intelligence-assisted spine surgery. No evidence suggests the superiority of assisted spine surgery with or without artificial intelligence in terms of outcomes. In terms of feasibility, accuracy, safety, and facilitating lower patient radiation exposure compared with standard fluoroscopic guidance, artificial intelligence-assisted spine surgery produced satisfactory and superior outcomes. The incorporation of artificial intelligence with augmented and virtual reality appears promising, with the potential to enhance surgeon proficiency and overall surgical safety.

The purpose of this study was to investigate factors associated with the critical thinking ability of nursing students at the individual and school levels. The study adopted a descriptive design and recruited 465 nursing students from four nursing schools from November 2014 to September 2015 through convenience sampling. The Clinical Critical Thinking Skill Test was used to measure critical thinking ability, and the data were analyzed with the SAS ver. 9.4 program (SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA) for descriptive statistics, t-test, analysis of variance, and multi-level model. The results showed that clinical practicum experience (β=−0.72, p=0.025), taking critical thinking courses (β=0.63, p=0.010), and taking simulation courses (β=0.56, p=0.035) improved critical thinking ability in the individual level model. In the school level model, the interaction effect between the years of clinical practice done by the student and the presence of full-time clinical instructors was significant (β=1.29, p=0.011). These results suggest that critical thinking ability improves with the more years of clinical practice individual nursing students have, and this improvement is greater with the presence of full-time clinical instructors in the school. Therefore, it is recommended that nursing students undergo critical thinking and simulation courses to develop their critical thinking ability, and dedicated clinical instructors in nursing schools should play a vital role.
Humans ; Nursing ; Preceptorship ; Problem Solving ; Schools, Nursing ; Simulation Training ; Students, Nursing ; Thinking

BACKGROUND: Molecular epidemiological typing of Neisseria gonorrhoeae is crucial for monitoring the spread of resistant strains. As reference strains can be used for laboratory internal quality control, we genetically characterised the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC) gonococcal strains by Neisseria gonorrhoeae multiantigen sequence typing (NG-MAST) and porB sequence typing using public multilocus sequence typing (PubMLST). METHODS: Eight ATCC gonococcal reference strains (ATCC 19424, ATCC 31426, ATCC 35541, ATCC 43069, ATCC 43070, ATCC 49226, ATCC 49926, and ATCC 49981) from Culti-Loops (Thermo Fisher Scientific, USA) were cultured. After DNA extraction, porB and tbpB were amplified and sequenced. Sequence types (STs) and allele numbers were each determined by NG-MAST (http://www.ng-mast.net) and porB sequence typing using PubMLST (http://pubmlst.org/neisseria/porB/). RESULTS: ATCC 19424 was identified as ST 266 by NG-MAST, and as Allele 946 by PubMLST. ATCC31426 was assigned a novel ST by NG-MAST, and was assigned Allele 958 with 1.2% mismatch by PubMLST. ATCC 35541 was identified as ST 12 by NG-MAST, and as Allele 624 by PubMLST. ATCC 43069 and ATCC 43070 were both identified as ST 681 by NG-MAST, and as Allele 984 by PubMLST. ATCC 49226 was identified as ST 1572 by NG-MAST, and as Allele 2110 by PubMLST. ATCC 49926 and ATCC 49981 were both identified as ST 16496 by NG-MAST, and as Allele 928 by PubMLST. CONCLUSIONS: The ST data obtained for ATCC gonococcal reference strains by NG-MAST and porB sequence typing using PubMLST can be used for quality assurance of molecular epidemiological typing in clinical microbiological laboratories.
Alleles ; DNA ; Multilocus Sequence Typing ; Neisseria gonorrhoeae ; Neisseria ; Quality Control

Numerous systemic diseases manifest with oral symptoms and signs. The molecular diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the most prevalent neurodegenerative disease worldwide, currently relies on invasive or expensive methods, emphasizing the imperative for easily accessible biomarkers.In this study, we explored the expression patterns of key proteins implicated in AD pathophysiology within the taste buds of mice. We detected the expression of amyloid precursor protein (APP) and tau protein in the taste buds of normal C57BL/6 mice. Phosphorylated tau was predominantly found in type II and III taste cells, while APP was located in type I taste cells. Remarkably, we observed significantly stronger immunoreactivity to phosphorylated tau in the taste buds of aged AD mouse models compared to age-matched controls. These findings underscore the oral expression of biomarkers associated with AD, highlighting the diagnostic potential of the oral cavity for neurodegenerative diseases.

Abnormal aggregation of α-synuclein is a key element in the pathogenesis of several neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson’s disease (PD), dementia with Lewy bodies, and multiple system atrophy. α-synuclein aggregation spreads through various brain regions during the course of disease progression, a propagation that is thought to be mediated by the secretion and subsequent uptake of extracellular α-synuclein aggregates between neuronal cells. Thus, aggregated forms of this protein have emerged as promising targets for disease-modifying therapy for PD and related diseases. Here, we generated and characterized conformation-specific antibodies that preferentially recognize aggregated forms of α-synuclein. These antibodies promoted phagocytosis of extracellular α-synuclein aggregates by microglial cells and interfered with cell-to-cell propagation of α-synuclein. In an α-synuclein transgenic model, passive immunization with aggregate-specific antibodies significantly ameliorated pathological phenotypes, reducing α-synuclein aggregation, gliosis, inflammation, and neuronal loss. These results suggest that conformation-specific antibodies targeting α-synuclein aggregates are promising therapeutic agents for PD and related synucleinopathies.