No abstract available.
Humans* ; Neutrophils* ; Superoxides*

No abstract available.
Breast Neoplasms* ; Breast* ; Drug Therapy ; Neoadjuvant Therapy

Control of tuberculosis is threatened by widespread emergence of drug resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Understanding the molecular basis of resistance might lead to development of novel rapid methods for diagnosing drug resistance. Rifampin is a key component among therapeutic regimens for the tuberculosis; therefore, patients who have drug resistance do not convalesce satisfactorily. The molecular mechanism of resistance to rifampin in M. tuberulosis has been elucidated. Substitutions of a limited number of highly conserved amino acids encoded by the rpoB gene are responsible for the ""single-step"" high-level resistance of M. tuberculosis to rifampin. Currently, two genotype-based protocols allow drug test from minimally grown cultured materials: (i)mutation identification by direct sequencing of PCR-amplified material. and (ii)mutation screening by PCR-SSCP. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the usefulness of the both methods. A sample of 75 isolates of M. tuberculosis was studied, and it inculded 36 rifampin-resistant strains and 39 rifampin-sensitive strains by conventional methods. Mutaions were identified in 36 rifampin-resistant isolates but in none of 39 sensitive isolates. All mutations were clustered within a region of 23 amino acids. Both methods allow detection of rifampin resistance in 2 to 3 days and will thus help in the early management of infection by M. tuberculosis.
Amino Acids ; Drug Resistance ; Humans ; Mass Screening ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis* ; Mycobacterium* ; Rifampin ; Tuberculosis

Control of tuberculosis is threatened by widesread emergence of drug resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Rifampin is a key component among therapeutic regimens for the tuberculosis; therefore patients in whom resistance to this drug develop have a poor outlook, particularly if rifampin resistance is associated with resistance to other tuberculosis drugs. The purpose of this study was to detect the mutation in rpoB gene of rifampin resistant M. tuberculosis in Korea and to evaluate the usefulness of the method in clinical aspects. A sample of 80 M. tuberculosis was studied, and it included 40 rifampin resistance isolates and 40 rifampin sensitive isolates by conventional methods. The detection method involved the amplification by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) of the Rif' region and the identification of mutations by single-strand DNA conformation polymorphism analysis (SSCP) of the amplification products (157 bp). Mutation were identified in 39 of 40 rifampin resistant isolates, and in 1 of 40 rifampin sensitive isolates.
Humans ; Korea ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis* ; Mycobacterium* ; Nucleic Acid Conformation ; Polymerase Chain Reaction* ; Rifampin ; Tuberculosis

BACKGROUND: To find out characteristics and classification of toxic agents by clinical analysis of pediatric poisoning and to determine the clinical availability of grading by using MSPC score. METHOD: Subjects were patients under 15 years exposed to toxic agents, who visited Ajou university hospital emergency center from June, 1994 to October, 1997. The study was performed retrospectively. RESULTS: The subjects were 126 cases and male to female sex ratio was 1.2:1. Mean age was 29+/-30 months old. The most common route of exposure was ingestion, following contact, inhalation and bite. The most common reason was mistake by the patient, following mistake by caregiver, suicide attempt and accident. The MSPC score distribution of symptomatic patient was as follows; 1 point: 26 cases(63.4%), 2 point: 12 cases(29.2%), 3 point: 1 case(2.4%), 4 point: 2 cases(4.8%). The classification of exposed poison was as follows; therapeutic drugs: 29 cases(23.0%), non-therapeutic drugs: 97 cases(73.0%). The most common exposed poison was household products: 23 patients(18.3%) were admitted to hospital. CONCLUSION: There was statistically significant difference in the classification of poison, MSPC score, treatment modality at hospital, first follow up period after discharge between admitted group and non-admitted group. There was statistically significant difference in the reason of exposure, route of exposure, MSPC score, admission period according to patient's age. severity grading according to MSPC score is regarded as an available method to determine the modality of management.
Caregivers ; Classification ; Eating ; Emergencies ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Household Products ; Humans ; Inhalation ; Male ; Poisoning* ; Retrospective Studies ; Sex Ratio ; Suicide

PURPOSE: The aim of this study is that the prevalence of rotavirus infection was evaluated by each group and clinical features of group A, B and C rotaviruses infections were described respectively to compare one with another. METHODS: Between January 2010 and December 2010, we enrolled a group of children below 10 years of age admitted for management of acute diarrhea at the Catholic University of Korea Bucheon St. Mary's Hospital. A total of 310 stool samples documented to be free of common bacterial pathogens were collected from children with diarrhea. The presence of group A, B or C rotavirus is indicated by amplification of DNA segments of the expected lengths after the first and second PCRs. RESULTS: In a total of 310 stool specimens, 40 (12.9%) specimens were positive for rotaviruses. These included 23 (7.4%) positive for group A, 5 (1.6%) for group B and 12 (3.9%) for group C rotaviruses. Group B rotavirus infected patients had significantly less diarrheas per day (group A: P=0.01, group C: P=0.01) and shorter duration of vomiting days (group A: P=0.03, group C: P=0.03) than those with group A and C rotaviruses infection respectively. All the group B rotaviruses had been isolated in March and October. Group C rotavirus infections were prevalent during late summer and early winter and peaked in October. CONCLUSION: These findings indicate that group B and C rotaviruses are notable causes or the contributing causes of diarrhea among infants and children in Korea.
Child* ; Diarrhea ; DNA ; Gastroenteritis* ; Gyeonggi-do ; Humans ; Infant ; Korea ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Prevalence* ; Rotavirus ; Rotavirus Infections ; Vomiting

The purpose of this study was to examine the reliability and validity of attention deficit disorder evaluation scale-school version(ADDES-SV). Between October 1996 and November 1996, ADDES-SV was administered to 263 elementary school students in the second grade and between Jun 1996 and October 1996, 28 attention deficit hyperactivity disorder patients. In the reliability test, the test-retest reliability coefficient was significantly high and that of inattention was 0.88, that of impulsivity was 0.80, that of hyperactivity was 0.83 and total score was 0.83. In the reliability test by internal consistancy, the Cronbach alpha coefficient was significantly high and that of inattention was 0.98, that of impulsivity was 0.87, that of hyperactivity was 0.87(p<0.05). The half-sprit reliability coefficient by first-second half method showed high correlation and that of inattention was part 1: 0.96, part 2: 0.96 impulsivity was part 1: 0.95, part 2: 0.93, hyperactivity was part 1: 0.92, part 2: 0.94(p<0.05). Inter-rater reliability by pearson correlation coefficient was significantly high and that of inattention was 0.92, that of impulsivity was 0.87, that of hyperactivity was 0.89 and total score was 0.89. The concurrent validity between ADDES-SV and CAP scale was 0.85 in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder patient group and 0.79 in normal control group(p<0.05). In discriminant validity test between attention deficit hyperactivity disorder patient group and normal control group, the patient group showed higher score(p<0.05). The total discriminant capacity of the patient group in ADDES-SV was 94.6%. In this point of view, ADDES-SV scale showed high reliability and validity in applying to Korean subjects and was proved to be the useful screening test tool for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder research.
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity* ; Humans ; Impulsive Behavior ; Mass Screening ; Reproducibility of Results*

In order to observe the effects of serum albumin and fibrinogen on biophysical surface properties and the morphology of pulmonary surfactant in vitro, we measured the surface adsorption rate, dynamic minimum and maximum surface tension (min-, max-ST) by Pulsating Bubble Surfactometer, and demonstrated ultrastructures on a series of mixtures with varying concentrations of albumin or fibrinogen and Surfactant-TA. The albumin and fibrinogen significantly inhibited the adsorption rate and ST-lowering properties of surfactant through increasing STs of adsorption rate, min-ST, and max-ST. The characteristic morphology of the Surfactant-TA changed from lamellar rod-like structure with open ends into spherical structures with loss of their open ends by mixing with albumin or fibrinogen. These inhibitory effects of albumin and fibrinogen on surface properties of surfactant were dependent upon the increasing concentration of albumin or fibrinogen. We concluded that albumin and fibrinogen significantly altered surfactant function and its ultrastructural morphology in vitro. These findings support the concept that albumin and fibrinogen-induced surfactant dysfunction may play an important role in the pathophysiology of adult respiratory distress syndrome, and this adverse effect of albumin and fibrinogen on surfactant might be overcome by administration of large doses of exogenous surfactant.
Adsorption ; Animal ; Cattle ; Fibrinogen/pharmacology* ; Human ; Pulmonary Surfactants/ultrastructure* ; Pulmonary Surfactants/drug effects ; Serum Albumin, Bovine/pharmacology* ; Surface Properties

Splenic hamartomas are rare benign tumors, which are usually small in size and asymptomatic and which are discovered incidentally at surgery or autopsy. The authors report on a case of splenic hamar toma in a 35-year-old man with intermittent left upper quardrant pain, who underwent an elective splenc tomy. Final pathology confirmed diagnosis of a hamartoma of the red pulp in the spleen. The patient's symptoms were resolved after the splenectomy. A splenic hamartoma should be kept in mind in the differential diagnosis of splenic tumors. The authors suggest that a splenectomy is indicated in cases where malignancy cannot be excluded and in cases of associated clinical symptoms or hematologic disorders.
Adult ; Autopsy ; Diagnosis ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Hamartoma* ; Humans ; Pathology ; Spleen* ; Splenectomy

Human body is one of the most complex and diverse microbial ecosystem in which various microbes are living together with their hosts. Starting with Louis Pasteur's postulation that human health is dependent on gut-resident microbiota, microbes in the gastrointestinal tract have been studied using culture-based techniques. Cultivation has the great advantage that isolates can be recovered and used to further studies for their ability to utilize different substrates and other physiological properties. However, cultivation method is very labor-intensive and can not reveal representative microbial diversity of human intestinal tract. Only small fraction of the microbes residing in human intestine can be cultured and majority of intestinal microbes (approximately 60~70% of intestinal microbes) can not be come into view with currently available cultivation techniques. To avoid reliance on cultivation, many culture-independent molecular methods have been developed to analysis environmental microbes and our understanding of complex microbial communities has been greatly increased by molecular methods in recent decades. These culture-independent methods are mainly based on the use of microbial DNA sequences. Among prokaryotic DNAs targeted by molecular analysis, approximately 1.5 kb long 16S ribosomal DNA gene that encodes part of the small subunit (SSU) of ribosome is often used for analysis of microbial diversity. Molecular techniques introduced in microbial ecology have made it possible to study the composition of intestinal flora in a culture-independent way based on the detection of SSU rDNA.
Base Sequence ; DNA ; DNA, Ribosomal ; Ecology ; Ecosystem ; Gastrointestinal Tract ; Human Body ; Humans ; Imidazoles ; Intestines ; Metagenome ; Nitro Compounds ; Ribosomes