OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate whether embryonic stem (ES) cells can be established from isolated blastomeres of mouse embryos. METHODS: Blastomeres were separated from mouse (C57Bl/6J) 2- or 4-cell embryos. Isolated blastomeres or whole 4-cell embryos were co-cultured with mitosis-arrested STO feeder cells in DMEM supplemented with recombinant murine leukemia inhibitory factor and ES-qualified fetal bovine serum. After the tentative ES cell lines were maintained from isolated blastomeres or whole embryos, some of them were frozen and the others were sub-cultured continually. Characteristics of tentative ES cell lines as were evaluated for specific gene expressions with immunocytochemistry and RT-PCR. RESULTS: One ES cell line (3.0%) was established from isolated blastomere of 2-cell embryo and one cell line (4.0%) from isolated two blastomeres of 4-cell embryo. And five cell lines (16.7%) were established from whole 4-cell embryos. Both cell lines from isolated blastomere and whole embryo expressed mouse ES cells specific markers such as SSEA-1, Oct-4 and alkaline phosphatase. Marker genes of three germ layers were expressed from embryoid bodies of both cell lines. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that mouse ES cells could be established from isolated blastomeres, although the efficiency is lower than whole embryos. This animal model could be applied to establishment of autologous human ES cells from biopsied blastomeres of preimplantation embryos in human IVF-ET program.
Alkaline Phosphatase ; Animals ; Antigens, CD15 ; Blastocyst* ; Blastomeres* ; Cell Line ; Embryoid Bodies ; Embryonic Stem Cells* ; Embryonic Structures ; Feeder Cells ; Gene Expression ; Germ Layers ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Leukemia Inhibitory Factor ; Mice* ; Models, Animal

PURPOSE: In children on anticancer chemotherapy, bloodstream infections (BSIs) are a major cause of morbidity and mortality. We investigated febrile episodes and bloodstream infections in pediatric cancer patients to guide proper selection of empiric antibiotics for febrile pediatric hemato-oncologic patients. METHODS: All febrile episodes treated in the division of hematology-oncology, the department of pediatrics, Hanyang University Hospital, between July 2005 and June 2008 were reviewed. Episodes with and without bloodstream infections were compared. RESULTS: Forty cases (18.9%, 25 patients) of BSI occurred in 212 febrile episodes (63 patients). Thirty-seven cases (23.6%, 22 patients) of BSI occurred in 157 febrile episodes with neutropenia (54 patients). Microorganisms identified in BSI corresponded to 23 gram-positive bacteria (51.2%), 20 gram-negative bacteria (44.5%), and 2 fungi (4.4%). Rates of BSI between those who had received umbilical cord blood transplantation and those who had received transplantation from other source were significantly different (55.0% vs. 7.7%, P=0.001). No differences in mortality rate were observed among organisms in BSI patients. For febrile episodes the rate of BSI was higher among those with Chemoport than those with Hickman catheter (P=0.029) and gram-positive pathogens were more likely to be associated with Chemoport (P=0.001). CONCLUSION: The study showed the rate of BSI, distribution of pathogens with regard to neutropenia, transplantation, central venous catheters, and antimicrobial susceptibility of pathogens in order to help guide in the choice of optimal empiric antibiotics in pediatric febrile neutropenic hemato-oncologic patients.
Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Bacteremia ; Catheters ; Central Venous Catheters ; Child ; Fetal Blood ; Fever ; Fungi ; Gram-Negative Bacteria ; Gram-Positive Bacteria ; Humans ; Neutropenia ; Pediatrics ; Transplants

PURPOSE:Insulin-like growth factor-I(IGF-I) is an essential anabolic factor for postnatal rat brain development and IGF-I expression is highly abundant during the first 21 days, critical growth period. Hypoxic-ischemic brain insults occurring during the perinatal period result in neuronal necrosis and permanent brain damage. To investigate the regulation of the action of IGF-I in response to such a hypoxic insult, we examined the gene expression of IGF-I and IGFBP-5 during the first 72 hr after hypoxic-ischemic injury in immature rat brain. METHODS:Ligation of the right carotid artery of 7-day-old rats was followed by 2 hour exposure to 8% oxygen to produce severe hypoxic brain damage. Using reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR), the expression of IGF-I mRNA and IGFBP-5 mRNA was determined in both hypoxic and control brains at post 1, 4, 12, 24, 48 hr and 72 hr after hypoxic-ischemic insult. RESULTS:The IGF-I mRNA and IGFBP-5 mRNA expression of hypoxic brain were not different from those of controls at 1 hr of recovery but IGF-I mRNA expression was decreased rapidly at post 4 hr, this decrease more pronounced at 12 hr of recovery. IGF-I mRNA and IGFBP-5 mRNA expression were increased at 48 hr and 24 hr of recovery, respectively and both IGF-I mRNA and IGFBP-5 mRNA expression showed similar level of controls at 72 hr of recovery. CONCLUSION: Out findings suggest that IGF-I play a important role in both neuronal loss and repair process following hypoxic-ischemic brain injury and IGFBP-5 is also strongly involved in the repair of damaged brain tissue by mediating IGF-I action. (J Korean Soc Pediatr Endocrinol 2003;8:56-63)
Animals ; Brain Injuries* ; Brain* ; Carotid Arteries ; Gene Expression ; Hypoxia, Brain ; Insulin-Like Growth Factor Binding Protein 5 ; Insulin-Like Growth Factor I ; Necrosis ; Negotiating ; Neurons ; Oxygen ; Rats* ; RNA, Messenger*

Both idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and pulmonary involvement of collagen vascular disease(CVD) are well known cause of diffuse interstitial lung disease which lead to fibrosis and honeycombing. We analyzed HRCT findings of 33 patients with IPF and 14 patients with CVD in terms of predominant pattern, site of involvement, mediastinal lymph node enlargement, pleural change and pulmonary volume loss. Criteria of mediastinal lymph node enlargement and pleural thickening were 15mm in long diameter and 3mm, respectively. Volume loss of the lung was measured by using hilar height ratio (apex to hilum/hilum to diaphragmatic dome). Mean age was 61 years for IPF and 46 years for CVD and male: female ratio was 27:6, 4:10, respectively. Predominant HRCT pattern was honeycombing for IPF (63%), and ground-glass opacity for CVD (66%) (p=0.001). Predominantly, subpleural involvement was seen in 90% for IPF and 74% for CVD. Mediastinal lymph node enlargement was seen in 47% of the patient with IPF and 14% with CVD (p=0.004). pleural thickening was seen in 97% of the patients with IPF and 42% with CVD (P=0.002), Pleural effusion was seen in 10% of the patients with IPF and 36% with CVD (P=0.009). Hilar height ratio of more than 1.5 was seen in 84% of the patients with IPF and 29% with CVD. In conclusion, our study shows that patients with IPF are prone to have more progressed stage of pulmonary fibrosis than the patients with CVD on HRCT.
Collagen* ; Female ; Fibrosis ; Humans ; Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis* ; Lung ; Lung Diseases, Interstitial ; Lymph Nodes ; Male ; Pleural Effusion ; Pulmonary Fibrosis

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to determine regional differences and the factors that affect unmet medical needs. METHODS: Data from the 6th Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2015) were used, and 4,946 health survey participants who provided responses on medical utilization and health behavior were included in the study. RESULTS: A statistically significant difference was observed in the incidence rate of unmet medical needs in terms of region. The independent variables that affected unmet medical needs were sex, age, education, region, household income, insurance type, smoking status, self-reported health status, and stress awareness. Gender (female), lower education level, rural residents, lowest household income, poor self-reported health status, and stress awareness increased the probability of unmet medical needs. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggested that different policies and approaches should be considered for each population that is at risk to address the primary cause of the unmet medical needs. Further studies that include medical expenses and the relevant variables of an area should be conducted in the future.
Education ; Family Characteristics ; Health Behavior ; Health Surveys ; Incidence ; Insurance ; Korea* ; Nutrition Surveys* ; Smoke ; Smoking

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to determine whether there were differences in mental health specific to regions in Korea, and the factors that affected mental health status. METHODS: Data from the 2016 Community Health Survey in Korea were used; 224,421 health survey participants provided responses on mental health issues, demographics, and health behavior, and were included in the study. RESULTS: A statistically significant difference was observed in the incidence of mental health status between different regions of Korea. Independent variables that affected mental health were sex, age, marital status, household income, economic activity, whether living with dementia patients, self-reported health status, smoking, alcohol drinking, sleep time, and chronic diseases. Risk factors associated with symptoms of depression were gender (female), bereavement or being divorced, low household income, family member with dementia, poor self-reported health status, currently smoking, level of physical activity, insufficient hours of sleep and suffering from chronic diseases. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that a standardized healthcare policy is needed to reduce regional variation in mental health. In the future, similar studies that include medical expenses for mental healthcare and relevant variables according to regions of Korea should be conducted.
Alcohol Drinking ; Bereavement ; Chronic Disease ; Delivery of Health Care ; Dementia ; Demography ; Depression ; Divorce ; Family Characteristics ; Health Behavior ; Health Surveys* ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea ; Marital Status ; Mental Health* ; Motor Activity ; Risk Factors ; Smoke ; Smoking

BACKGROUND: More attention is given to oxidative hypothesis which causes atherosclerosis to be recognized as inflammatory response. The relationship between serum ferritin which catalyzes lipid peroxidation and high sensitivity C-reactive protein which reflects vascular inflammation was investigated among adults in a health promotion center. METHODS: The study group consisted of 297 men and women (men 86, women 211) who visited the health promotion center of a hospital in Seoul to have a health checkup from October 1, 2004 to April 1, 2005. These subjects answered the questionnares and were measured in the following; blood tests, brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity and several anthropometric measurements. Statistical analysis was performed on 111 subjects after exclusion of those subjects who were taking antihypertensive agents or antidiabetic agents, and who had acute inflammatory diseases, acute liver diseases, anemia, and who had a WBC > or =11,000x10(3)/mm3 or a serum ferritin > or =200 ug/L or a ABI (Ankle Brachial Index) <0.9. RESULTS: The average serum ferritin concentration of men against women was 132.57+/-43.12 ng/ml to 78.23+/-38.10 ng/ml which means that men have about 1.7 times as high concentration than women (P<0.001). Serum ferritin was significantly correlated with high sensitivity C-reactive protein (r=0.332). Even in multiple stepwise regression analysis, there was a independent relationship between serum ferritin and high sensitivity C-reactive protein (beta=0.138, P=0.010). When we analyzed with distinction of sex, this relationship in women was constant (beta=0.131, P=0.031), but serum ferritin in men just showed the trend of correlation with BMI (beta=9.510, P=0.059). CONCLUSION: There is a significant relationship between the increase of serum ferritin and high sensitivity C-reactive protein in healthy women; furthermore, studies in men need to be confirmed.
Acute Disease ; Adult ; Anemia ; Antihypertensive Agents ; Atherosclerosis ; C-Reactive Protein ; Female ; Ferritins ; Health Promotion ; Hematologic Tests ; Humans ; Hypoglycemic Agents ; Inflammation ; Lipid Peroxidation ; Liver Diseases ; Male ; Oxidative Stress ; Pulse Wave Analysis

Purpose: With the 2021 revision of dietary guidelines in Korean emphasizing environmentally sustainable dietary practices, this study attempted to develop an evaluation tool to comprehensively evaluate the degree of practice and compliance with food and nutrient intake, dietary habits, and dietary culture guidelines based on the revised dietary guidelines. Methods: The candidate evaluation items were collected by reviewing 934 literature reviews on domestic and foreign dietary evaluations. Fifty-nine candidate items were derived by selecting the items corresponding to dietary guidelines. The content validity ratio (CVR) cutoff point evaluation was conducted with 11 experts to delete 11 items that did not meet the CVR standard. Fifty-five pilot survey candidate items were selected through revision and additional process according to expert opinion. Seventy final candidate items were selected by adding 15 questions for validity verification and reference. A pilot survey was conducted online and offline on 332 adults aged 19–64 in Seoul and the metropolitan area, and exploratory factor analysis was used to verify the construct validity of the evaluation items. Through exploratory factor analysis, the Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin, Bartlett's sphericity test, variance explained, and Cronbach's alpha criteria were confirmed in each process. Results: Exploratory factor analyses derived three criteria: food and nutrient intakes (11 items), eating behaviors (9 items), and dietary culture (14 items), consisting of 34 evaluation items. Conclusion The present scale was validated and can be used for comprehensive evaluations of the dietary guidelines for Korean adults in a simple way.

PURPOSE: Gonadotropin releasing hormone analogue (GnRHa) or growth hormone (GH) improve final height in girls with central precocious puberty. We studied the effect of these agents on adult height in children with advanced puberty. METHODS: We analysed height, bone age, growth velocity, predicted adult height (PAH), and final adult height (FAH) in 61 girls and 19 boys with advanced puberty, who were treated with GnRHa combined GH or GH. RESULTS: In Girls 1) FAH (SDS) of combination group (GnRHa+GH, n=7) was similar to their pretreatment PAH (SDS) [153.9+/-6.0 cm (-1.3+/-1.2) vs 152.8+/-4.7 cm (-1.5+/-0.9)]. In GH group (n=18), FAH was significantly increased [155.7+/-4.9 cm (-0.9+/-1.0) vs 149.9+/-4.6 cm (-2.1+/-0.9)] (P<0.001). 2) PAH (SDS) of combination group increased from 151.5+/-5.9 cm (-1.8+/-1.2) to 157.8+/-7.1 cm (-0.5+/-1.4) and that of GH group increased from 149.5+/-5.9 cm (-2.2+/-1.2) to 155.8+/-5.8 cm (-0.9+/-1.2) (P<0.001). During first year of treatment, growth velocity of GH group was significantly higher than that of combination group (6.6+/-2.1 cm/year vs 9.4+/-2.5 cm/year, P=0.001) In boys 1) In both group (7 boys of combination group and 8 boys of GH group), FAH was similar to their pretreatment PAH and their growth velocity during first year of treatment had no significant difference (7.6+/-2.3 cm/year vs 9.2+/-2.9 cm/year). CONCLUSION: In girls with advanced puberty, GnRHa delayed bone maturation but had no significant effect on FAH. In contrast, GH increased FAH through increment of growth velociy. In boys with advanced puberty, no significant effect of GnRHa or GH.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Child* ; Female ; Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone* ; Gonadotropins* ; Growth Hormone* ; Humans ; Puberty* ; Puberty, Precocious

OBJECTIVES: Child abuse can affect mental and physical health of abused children. Accurate assessment of mental health of abused children is integral to providing proper treatment and preventing any further impact of childhood abuse on their future life. In this study, we investigated psychiatric illnesses among abused children. METHODS: Semi-structured interviews using the Kiddie-Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia-Present and Lifetime Version-Korean Version were conducted for 61 abused children after obtaining consent from their guardians. We also assessed the relationship between the demographic data of these abused children and their diagnoses. RESULTS: Among the abused children, more than half had more than one psychiatric disorder. The most frequently diagnosed disorders were attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder, depressive disorder, and oppositional defiant disorder. The incidence of posttraumatic stress disorder was higher in abused girls compared with abused boys. Abused children had a higher suicide risk than the general population. Among the parents of abused children, 50.8% had alcohol use disorders. CONCLUSION: Among the abused children, 50.8% had psychiatric disorders. Administration of intensive psychiatric treatment to abused children, and prevention of child abuse by education, treatment, and monitoring high-risk parents is imperative.
Attention Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders ; Child Abuse ; Child* ; Depressive Disorder ; Diagnosis ; Education ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Mental Disorders* ; Mental Health ; Mood Disorders ; Parents ; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic ; Suicide