Osteochondritis dissecans of the knee occurs twice as often in males as in females. The peak incidence is about fifteen years of age, and most patients are first diagnosed before the age of eighteen. The etiology of osteochondritis dissecans is still unknown, but the most accepted theories are trauma, ischemia, abnormal ossification within the physes, constitutional or genetic predisposition, and a combination of these. Osteochondritis dissecans of the knee associated with gout was first reported by Carrabba in 1969. And no additional case has been reported. The purpose of this paper is to present an unusual case of osteochondritis dissecans of the knee associated with gout.
Female ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Gout* ; Humans ; Incidence ; Ischemia ; Knee* ; Male ; Osteochondritis Dissecans* ; Osteochondritis*

Intensive chemical investigation of Korean marine sponge Spongia sp. has led to the isolation of two new scalaranes. The planar structures of the new compounds 1 and 2 were determined through 1D and 2D NMR spectral data analysis, while the relative stereochemistry of the compounds was determined based on the analysis of 1H-1H coupling constants and NOESY spectroscopic data. Compounds 1 and 2 did not display any significant biological activities on farnesoid X-activated receptor (FXR) in co-transfection assay.
Porifera* ; Statistics as Topic

Human palatine tonsil-derived mesenchymal stem cells (TMSCs) are known to be a new source of progenitor cells. Using waste tissue after tonsillectomy as a cell provider can be the biggest benefit of TMSCs, compared with other stem cells. The purpose of this study was to investigate tenogenic differentiation of TMSCs and to access the differential effects of transforming growth factor beta 3 (TGF-β3) on the tenogenesis of TMSCs. Human tonsil was obtained after tonsillectomy. Using a cytometric analysis, we were able to find that the TMSCs had typical mesenchymal stem cell markers: positive for CD73, CD90, and CD105, and negative for CD14, CD34, and CD45. Using TGF-β3, the expressions of tenocyte-specific genes and proteins, such as collagen type 1 (COL1), tenomodulin (TNMD), and scleraxis (SCX), were measured by a quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR), immunofluorescence staining, immunohistochemistry and Western blot analyses. Quantitative PCR assay showed that TGF-β3 significantly increased the expressions of tenocyte lineage marker genes, including COL1, TNMD, and SCX, at a 3-day treatment, compared with control. However, these increases were not found at long-term exposures (7 or 10 days), except that TNMD expression was maintained at 50 ng/mL at a 7-day exposure to TGF-β3. Like genes, the protein expression levels of COL1, TNMD, and SCX were also induced in TGF-β3-treated TMSCs in a 3-day treatment, which were maintained for 10 days, as evidenced by immunofluorescence staining, immunohistochemistry and Western blot analyses. This study demonstrated that TMSCs in tenogenic stimulation with TGF-β3 have a high tenogenic differentiation potential.
Blotting, Western ; Collagen ; Fluorescent Antibody Technique ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Mesenchymal Stromal Cells* ; Palatine Tonsil ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Stem Cells ; Tonsillectomy ; Transforming Growth Factor beta

Objective: Subdural hematoma (SDH) primarily occurs in elderly patients. While most patients have good prognosis, some do not. Hematoma recurrence is one of the factors influencing prognosis. Moreover, some characteristic radiological factors may increase the recurrence rate. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the presence of trauma influenced radiological characteristics and hematoma recurrence in SDH patients treated with burr hole trephination. Methods: From January 2012 to December 2014, we selected 83 patients diagnosed with unilateral SDH using computed tomography and/or magnetic resonance imaging. We divided the patients into 2 groups based on the presence of trauma. We compared the 2 groups with multiple parameters, such as patient factors, radiological characteristics, and recurrence rate. Results: Patients who had a prolonged international normalized ratio (INR) were significantly more common in the non-traumatic SDH group (22.2%:55.2%, p=0.002). There was no statistical difference in radiological parameters between the 2 groups. The recurrence rate was marginally higher in the non-traumatic SDH group (14.8%:17.2%, p=0.502), but this difference was not statistically significant. Conclusion There were no statistically significant differences in the radiological findings, including brain atrophy, hematoma density, thickness of hematoma, and degree of midline shifting between the 2 groups. The associated trauma history may not influence recurrence. Anticoagulants medication influence INR prolongation, and commonly shown in nontraumatic group, but not statistically. INR prolongation was statistically more common in non-traumatic SDH patients than in traumatic SDH patients. INR prolongation is only a different characteristic between 2 groups.

No abstract available.
Brain Abscess* ; Brain* ; Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococci*

Kimura's disease is a rare chronic inflammatory disease of the lymphoid organs and this presents as painless nodules in the head and neck area. It occurs endemically in the Far East Asia and sporadically in the West. Its exact etiology is unknown and it has no potential to transform into malignant disease. However, it is often confused with malignant disease such as malignant lymphoma. We report a case of NK/T cell lymphoma patient who had Kimura's disease in the right thigh 3 years ago. She then suffered from sudden dyspnea. Radiological studies revealed multiple small nodules scattered in both lung fields. NK/T cell lymphoma was diagnosed by open lung biopsy. In addition, Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) was detected in the previous site of Kimura's disease and lung nodule by molecular pathologic examination. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of NK/T cell lymphoma complicating Kimura's disease with coexisting chronic EBV infection.
Asia ; Biopsy ; Dyspnea ; Epstein-Barr Virus Infections ; Far East ; Follow-Up Studies* ; Head ; Herpesvirus 4, Human ; Humans ; Lung ; Lymphoma* ; Neck ; Thigh

A new alpha-pyrone derivative, violapyrone J (1), and along with the two known violapyrones B (2) and C (3) were isolated from the fermentation broth of a marine actinomycete Streptomyces sp. SC0718. The structure of violapyrone J (1) was elucidated from 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopic analyses.
Actinobacteria* ; Fermentation ; Streptomyces*

BACKGROUND: Using analysis of air samples from the workplace, we report on one case of pneumoconiosis in an individual who has been working in a polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) spraying process for 28 years. CASE PRESENTATION: The patient was diagnosed with granulomatous lung disease caused by PTFE using computed tomography (CT), lung biopsy and electron microscopy. To assess the qualitative and quantitative exposure to PTFE in workplace, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) were performed on air samples from the workplace. The presence of PTFE particles was confirmed, and the airborne concentration of PTFE was estimated to be 0.75 mg/m3. CONCLUSIONS: This case demonstrates that long-term exposure to PTFE spraying can cause granulomatous lung lesions such as pneumoconiosis; such lesions appear to be caused not by the degradation products of PTFE from high temperatures but by spraying the particles of PTFE. Along with air-sampling analysis, we suggest monitoring the concentration of airborne PTFE particles related to chronic lung disease.
Biopsy ; Humans ; Hygiene ; Lung ; Lung Diseases ; Microscopy, Electron ; Occupational Diseases ; Pneumoconiosis ; Polytetrafluoroethylene ; Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared ; Spectrum Analysis

AbstractThe demand for natural substances with anti-melanogenic activity is increasing due to the recent interest in skin whitening. Intensive investigation on the culture broth of Streptomyces sp. SCO-736, a marine bacterium from the Antarctica coast, has led to the isolation of a new natural product named antaroide (1). The chemical structure was established through the interpretation of MS, UV, and NMR spectroscopic data. Antaroide is a nine-membered macrolide with lactone and lactam moieties. To investigate its applicability in skin whitening cosmetics, its anti-melanogenic activity in B16F10 murine melanoma cells was examined. As a result, antaroide displayed strong inhibitory activities against melanin synthesis and also attenuated the dendrite formation induced by the α-melanocyte stimulating hormone (α-MSH). Antaroide suppressed the mRNA expression of the melanogenic enzymes such as tyrosinase, TRP-1 and TRP-2. This suggests that it may serve as a transcriptional regulator of melanogenesis. Collectively, the discovery of this novel natural nine-membered macrolide and its anti-melanogenic activity could give new insights for the development of skin whitening agents.

Background: Nonpharmacological interventions (NPIs) reduce the incidence of respiratory infections. After NPIs imposed during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic ceased, respiratory infections gradually increased worldwide. However, few studies have been conducted on severe respiratory infections requiring hospitalization in pediatric patients.This study compares epidemiological changes in severe respiratory infections during pre-NPI, NPI, and post-NPI periods in order to evaluate the effect of that NPI on severe respiratory infections in children. Methods: We retrospectively studied data collected at 13 Korean sentinel sites from January 2018 to October 2022 that were lodged in the national Severe Acute Respiratory Infections (SARIs) surveillance database. Results: A total of 9,631 pediatric patients were admitted with SARIs during the pre-NPI period, 579 during the NPI period, and 1,580 during the post-NPI period. During the NPI period, the number of pediatric patients hospitalized with severe respiratory infections decreased dramatically, thus from 72.1 per 1,000 to 6.6 per 1,000. However, after NPIs ceased, the number increased to 22.8 per 1,000. During the post-NPI period, the positive test rate increased to the level noted before the pandemic. Conclusion Strict NPIs including school and daycare center closures effectively reduced severe respiratory infections requiring hospitalization of children. However, childcare was severely compromised. To prepare for future respiratory infections, there is a need to develop a social consensus on NPIs that are appropriate for children.