Appetite controlling has been an main strategy for regulating food intake and energy balance in obesity treatment. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of drinking tea of the medicinal herbs, fennel and fenugreek, on the subjective appetite in overweight Korean women. The study was conducted using a placebo-controlled, single-blinded, randomized, and 3-way crossover design. Nine healthy women were given fennel tea (FT), fenugreek tea (FGT), or placebo tea (PT). After drinking a given tea, a lunch buffet was provided and then food consumption of subjects was analyzed. Subjective appetite, hunger, fullness, desire to eat, and prospective food consumption were measured at seven independent time point using a visual analog scale (VAS). Mean age of 9 subjects were 49.7 +/- 4.5 years and their mean body mass index were 24.6 +/- 0.6 kg/m2. There was no significant difference in food consumption in the lunch buffet after drinking each tea; however, with respect to the subjective appetite scale, FGT decreased hunger, led to less prospective food consumption, and increased feelings of fullness compared with the PT (p < 0.05). Similarly, the consumption of FT resulted in decreased hunger, less prospective food consumption, and increased feelings of fullness compared with the PT (p < 0.05). The area under the curve of VAS graph indicated that FGT resulted in a higher feeling of fullness than the PT (p < 0.05). In conclusion, drinking the FT and FGT were significantly effective aid to suppress subjective appetite among overweight women in South Korea.
Appetite* ; Body Mass Index ; Cross-Over Studies ; Drinking* ; Eating ; Female ; Foeniculum* ; Humans ; Hunger ; Korea ; Lunch ; Obesity ; Overweight* ; Plants, Medicinal ; Tea* ; Trigonella* ; Visual Analog Scale

Clinicians often have difficulties diagnosing patients with subtle phenotypes of Noonan syndrome phenotypes. Facial recognition technology can help in the identification of several genetic syndromes with facial dysmorphic features, especially those with mild or atypical phenotypes. A patient visited our clinic at 5 years of age with short stature. She was administered growth hormone treatment for 6 years, but her growth curve was still below the 3rd percentile. She and her mother had wide-spaced eyes and short stature, but there were no other remarkable features of a genetic syndrome. We analyzed their photographs using a smartphone facial recognition application. The results suggested Noonan syndrome; therefore, we performed targeted next-generation sequencing of genes associated with short stature. The results showed that they had a mutation on the PTPN11 gene known as the pathogenic mutation of Noonan syndrome. Facial recognition technology can help in the diagnosis of Noonan syndrome and other genetic syndromes, especially in patients with mild phenotypes.

Purpose: In Cambodia, noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) account for 64% of all deaths. A lack of risk perception of NCDs leads to poor measures of their prevention and management. This study aimed to investigate Cambodians’ risk perceptions of NCDs based on the health belief model. Methods: A cross-sectional design was used, and using convenience sampling, participants included 200 Cambodians aged 40 years or older. A face-to-face administered structured questionnaire was used to assess demographic characteristics, health behaviors, and risk perceptions of NCDs. Results: Of the constructs of NCD risk perception, perceived severity (88.2%) and benefits (86.3%) were high, but relative to these, perceived cues to action (64.1%), barriers (63.5%), and self-efficacy (58.1%) were low. Conclusion It is important to improve perceived self-efficacy in government health promotion, outreach, and improvement programs and to reduce perceived barriers through medical tests either by facility-based delivery or via outreach health services in Cambodia.

Background and Objectives: Liver cirrhosis is accompanied by abnormal vascular shunts. The Wnt pathway is essential for endothelial cell survival and proliferation. C-reactive protein (CRP), which is produced by hepatocyte, activates angiogenesis in cardiovascular diseases. Methods: and Results: The expression of CRP in CCl 4 -injured rat livers was detected using qRT-PCR and Western blotting after transplantation of placenta-derived mesenchymal stem cells (PD-MSCs) into rats. To determine whether CRP functions in hepatic regeneration by promoting angiogenesis through the Wnt pathway, we detected VEGF and β-catenin in liver tissues and BrdU and β-catenin in hepatocytes by immunofluorescence. The expression levels of CRP, Wnt pathway-related and angiogenic factors were increased in CCl 4 -injured and PD-MSCs transplanted rat livers. In vitro, the expression levels of Wnt signaling and angiogenic factors were decreased in siRNA-CRP-transfected rat hepatocytes. Conclusions CRP upregulation by PD-MSCs participates in vascular remodeling to promote liver regeneration via the Wnt signaling pathway during hepatic failure.

Alcohol dependence is a serious disorder that can be related with a number of potential health-related and social consequences. Cortical thickness measurements would provide important information on the cortical structural alterations in patients with alcohol dependence. Twenty-one patients with alcohol dependence and 22 healthy comparison subjects have been recruited and underwent high-resolution brain magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and clinical assessments. T1-weighted MR images were analyzed using the cortical thickness analysis program. Significantly thinner cortical thickness in patients with alcohol dependence than healthy comparison subjects was noted in the left superior frontal cortical region, correcting for multiple comparisons and adjusting with age and hemispheric average cortical thickness. There was a significant association between thickness in the cluster of the left superior frontal cortex and the duration of alcohol use. The prefrontal cortical region may particularly be vulnerable to chronic alcohol exposure. It is also possible that the pre-existing deficit in this region may have rendered individuals more susceptible to alcohol dependence.
Alcoholism ; Brain ; Cerebral Cortex ; Frontal Lobe ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Gastric cancer frequently disseminates to the liver, lung, and bone via hematogeneous, lymphatic, or peritoneal routes. However, gastric adenocarcinoma that metastasize to the colon and that shows typical linea platisca pattern on colonofiberscopy has rarely been reported. Recently, the authors experience a case of advanced gastric cancer with colonic metastases in a 55-year-old female patient. Multiple colonic lymphoid hyperplasias were detected on colonofiberscopy and biopsy revealed metastatic gastric cancer to the colonic wall. She was treated with mFOLFOX (5-FU, oxaliplatin, leucovorin) and has achieved stable disease status without disease progression. Herein, we report a rare case of signet ring-cell gastric cancer which metastasized to the colon in the form of multiple colonic lymphoid hyperplasias.
Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols/therapeutic use ; Colonic Neoplasms/*diagnosis/secondary ; Colonoscopy ; Female ; Fluorouracil/administration & dosage ; Gastroscopy ; Humans ; Hyperplasia/diagnosis ; Leucovorin/administration & dosage ; Middle Aged ; Organoplatinum Compounds/administration & dosage ; Positron-Emission Tomography ; Stomach Neoplasms/*diagnosis/drug therapy ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

The sibling relationship and its potential impact on neurodevelopment and mental health are important areas of neuroscientific research. Validation of the tools assessing the quality of the sibling relationship would be the first essential step for conducting neurobiological and psychosocial studies related to the sibling relationship. However, to the best of our knowledge, no sibling relationship assessment tools have been empirically validated in Korean. We aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Korean version of the Lifespan Sibling Relationship Scale (LSRS), which is one of the most commonly used self-report questionnaires to assess the quality of the sibling relationship. A total of 109 adults completed a series of self-report questionnaires including the LSRS, the mental health subscale of the Medical Outcomes Study-Short Form 36 version 2 (SF36v2), the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SLS), and the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale (MC-SDS). The internal consistency, subscale intercorrelations, one-week test-retest reliability, convergent validity, divergent validity, and the construct validity were assessed. All six subscale scores and the total score of the LSRS demonstrated good internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha=0.85-0.94) and good test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient=0.77-0.92). Correlations of the LSRS with the SF36v2 mental health score (r=0.32, p=0.01) and with the SLS (r=0.27, p=0.04) supported the good convergent validity. The divergent validity was shown by the non-significant correlation of the LSRS with the MC-SDS (r=0.15, p=0.26). Two factors were extracted through factor analysis, which explained 78.63% of the total variance. The three Adult subscales loaded on the first factor and the three Child subscales loaded on the second factor. Results suggest that the Korean version of the LSRS is a reliable and valid tool for examining the sibling relationship.
Adult ; Child ; Humans ; Mental Health ; Psychometrics ; Reproducibility of Results* ; Siblings* ; Social Desirability ; Surveys and Questionnaires

We report our experience of a concurrent robot assisted distal gastrectomy and partial nephrectomy for synchronous early gastric cancer and renal cell carcinoma. A 55-year-old female patient was diagnosed with early gastric cancer on screening endoscopy. Abdominal computed tomography showed an incidental right renal cell carcinoma. Robot assisted distal gastrectomy was performed, followed by partial nephrectomy. The final pathological examination showed signet ring cell carcinoma within the lamina propria and renal cell carcinoma with negative resection margins. The patient showed no evidence of recurrence at 6-months. A robot-assisted combined operation could be a treatment option for early stages of synchronous malignancies.
Carcinoma, Renal Cell* ; Carcinoma, Signet Ring Cell ; Endoscopy ; Female ; Gastrectomy* ; Humans ; Mass Screening ; Middle Aged ; Mucous Membrane ; Nephrectomy* ; Recurrence ; Robotics ; Stomach Neoplasms* ; Surgical Procedures, Minimally Invasive

The role of glutamatergic system in the neurobiology of mood disorders draws increasing attention, as disturbance of this system is consistently implicated in mood disorders including major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder. Thus, the glutamate hypothesis of mood disorders is expected to complement and improve the prevailing monoamine hypothesis, and may indicate novel therapeutic targets. Since the contribution of astrocytes is found to be crucial not only in the modulation of the glutamatergic system but also in the maintenance of brain energy metabolism, alterations in the astrocytic function and neuroenergetic environment are suggested as the potential neurobiological underpinnings of mood disorders. In the present review, the evidence of glutamatergic abnormalities in mood disorders based on postmortem and magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) studies is presented, and disrupted energy metabolism involving astrocytic dysfunction is proposed as the underlying mechanism linking altered energy metabolism, perturbations in the glutamatergic system, and pathogenesis of mood disorders.
Astrocytes ; Bipolar Disorder ; Brain ; Complement System Proteins ; Depressive Disorder, Major ; Energy Metabolism ; Glutamic Acid ; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy ; Mood Disorders* ; Neurobiology

DWP208 is a sodium succinate form of ZYM-201 which is a triterpenoid glycoside isolated from Sanguisorba officinalis, a medicinal plant prescribed for various diseases, such as duodenal ulcers and bleeding in East Asian counties. We demonstrated that this compound is able to normalize the altered lipid metabolism induced by hyperglycemia and a high fat diet. In this study, we determined whether hyperlipidemic conditions induced with chronically treated alcohol can also be restored by DWP208. Similar to our previous results, orally administered DWP208 (1 to 10 mg/kg) also ameliorated the hyperlipidemia that was induced by alcohol. This compound reversed the alcohol-induced hyperlipidemia including (i) up-regulated hyperlipidemic parameters such as low-density lipoprotein (LDL), very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), atherosclerotic index (AI), triglyceride, and total cholesterol, and (ii) down-regulated hyperlipidemic parameters such as absolute body weight, superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) in serum and liver. According to our data, the ameliorative activity of DWP208 is due to its indirect anti-oxidative activity as a result of which lipid peroxide and hydroxyl radical levels were reduced and the activity of SOD was enhanced. Therefore, our data strongly suggest that DWP208 can be used as a remedy against alcohol-induced hyperlipidemia.
Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Body Weight ; Cholesterol ; Diet, High-Fat ; Duodenal Ulcer ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Hydroxyl Radical ; Hyperglycemia ; Hyperlipidemias* ; Lipid Metabolism ; Lipoproteins ; Liver ; Plants, Medicinal ; Sanguisorba ; Sodium* ; Succinic Acid* ; Superoxide Dismutase ; Triglycerides