No abstract available.
Methicillin Resistance* ; Methicillin* ; Staphylococcus*

The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between inflammatory cytokines and chronic disease status in Korean elderly. The subjects were 248 elderly people aged over 65 years recruited from Health Center in Seoul. The subjects were classified into 3 groups based on their disease (diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia) status: subjects with one diagnosed disease of diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia fall into singular group (n=89), subjects with more than 2 disease into multiple group (n=39), and those with free of the diseases into normal (n=122). Anthropometric and biochemical characteristics, and dietary intakes were assessed. Dietary intakes were surveyed by 24-recall method. The means of IL-2, IL-6, MCP-1 and C3 were not differ among 3 groups. However, when subjects classified into tertiles of IL-6, MCP-1, TNF-alpha and C3 and frequencies of each tertile were compared, the multiple group showed significantly lower frequencies in lowest tertile than normal group (p < 0.05), suggesting higher tendency of inflammatory responses. For hematological values, blood pressure, triglycerides, fasting blood glucose levels were highest in multiple group (p < 0.05) compared to other 2 groups. BMI, body fat (kg), and triceps skinfold thickness were also significantly higher in multiple group than in 2 other groups (p < 0.05). Moreover, the concentrations of IL-2, IL-6 and C3 were significantly correlated with hematologic values of fasting blood glucose, total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, and triglycerides or obesity factors such as triceps skinfold thickness, BMI, and body fat (%). Among singular and multiple group, the subjects with higher intakes for vitamins A, C, and E showed the higher level of IL-2 and the lower level of MCP-1, and C3. In conclusion, blood concentrations of triglycerides and proinflammatory cytokines, blood pressure, obesity parameters (BMI, body fat, triceps skinfold thickness) were higher in multiple group than in normal, but this result strongly suggest that the increasement of the vitamin A, C, and E intakes would modify the cytokine levels to reduce the inflammatory response in the elderly people with chronic diseases.
Adipose Tissue ; Aged* ; Blood Glucose ; Blood Pressure ; Cholesterol ; Chronic Disease* ; Cytokines* ; Fasting ; Humans ; Hyperlipidemias ; Hypertension ; Interleukin-2 ; Interleukin-6 ; Obesity ; Seoul ; Skinfold Thickness ; Triglycerides ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha ; Vitamin A ; Vitamins

Diabetic mastopathy is a rare disease that occurs in long-term insulin-dependent diabetic patient. It manifests as a hard palpable breast mass that may be clinically indistinguishable from a breast carcinoma. Mammography shows a non-specific, dense, heterogenous glandular opacity in both breasts. Sonography shows a markedly hypoechoic, ill-marginated mass with a posterior acoustic shadowing. We present the mammography, ultrasonography and MRI findings of a 54-year-old woman with diabetic mastopathy.
Acoustics ; Breast ; Breast Neoplasms ; Female ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging* ; Mammography ; Middle Aged ; Rare Diseases ; Shadowing (Histology) ; Ultrasonography

We present herein the occurrence of multifocal adenocarcinomas with a minute signet ring cell carcinoma that arose within a gastric inverted hyperplastic polyp (IHP) in a 40-year-old woman. Endoscopic ultrasonography demonstrated a heterogeneous hypoechoic mass in the third layer of the gastric wall. The endoscopic submucosal dissection specimen measuring 3.5x3.2x1.8 cm was a well-circumscribed protruding lesion that had a slit-shaped cavity. Histologically, the lesion consisted mainly of endophytic proliferation of hyperplastic columnar cells resembling normal foveolar epithelium. In addition, six foci of adenocarcinomas and a minute focus of signet ring cell carcinoma were randomly distributed in the superficial and deep regions. The adenocarcinoma was gradually transitioning from dysplasia, while the signet ring cell carcinoma was surrounded by hyperplastic foveolar epithelium. This is the first report of a gastric IHP with multifocal intramucosal adenocarcinomas and a signet ring cell carcinoma, and endoscopic submucosal dissection is used to completely resect it.
Adenocarcinoma ; Adult ; Carcinoma, Signet Ring Cell ; Endosonography ; Epithelium ; Female ; Humans ; Polyps ; Stomach

BACKGROUND: Defects in mitochondrial function have been shown to participate in the induction of neuronal cell injury. The extracellular-signal-regulated kinase (ERK) signaling pathway plays a crucial role in almost all cell functions, including proliferation, differentiation, survival, and death. However, the effect of ERK inhibition on oxysterol-induced apoptosis remains uncertain. METHODS: This study assessed the effect of ERK inhibition on the apoptotic effect of 7-ketocholesterol. RESULTS: Treatment with 7-ketocholesterol increased phosphorylated-ERK1/2 levels in differentiated PC12 cells, while the total amount of ERK was not altered. 7-Ketocholesterol decreased Bid and Bcl-2 levels, increased Bax and p53 levels, and promoted cytochrome c release, which elicits the activation of caspases (-8, -9, and -3), nuclear damage, and cell death. ERK and farnesyltransferase inhibitors inhibited the 7-ketocholesterol-induced phosphorylation of ERK1/2, activation of apoptosis-related proteins, and cell death in PC12 cells. CONCLUSIONS: The ERK and farnesyltransferase inhibitors, which did not exhibit toxicity, may inhibit the 7-ketocholesterol toxicity on differentiated PC12 cells by suppressing the activation of the caspase-8-dependent pathway as well as activation of the mitochondria-mediated cell-death pathway, leading to the activation of caspases. The inhibition of ERK may confer a beneficial protective effect against the neuronal cell injury induced by cholesterol oxidation products.
Animals ; Apoptosis ; Caspases ; Cell Death ; Cholesterol ; Cytochromes c ; Farnesyltranstransferase ; Ketocholesterols ; Neurons ; PC12 Cells ; Phosphorylation ; Phosphotransferases ; Proteins

Lysosomal acid lipase (LAL) plays a central role in the intracellular degradation of neutral lipids derived from plasma lipoproteins. In this study, we investigated the missense mutation within exon 2 of human LAL gene changing of codon -6 of prepeptide from threonine to proline. The Thr-6Pro mutation was detected by the Hae III restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) and single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP). We analyzed the mutation in subjects with 221 unrelated randomly selected control samples and 86 patients with familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) in Korea. We observed that mutation is present with high frequency in Korea compared to other populations studied previously. The frequency of PP homozygote in the FH group was observed considerably higher than that of control. However, there was no significant difference of genotype frequency between two groups. These results, together with the fact that plasma lipids and lipoproteins levels between genotypes showed no statistical difference, suggest that the Thr-6Pro mutation in the LAL gene may have no association with the increased risk of FH development.
Codon ; Exons ; Genotype ; Homozygote ; Humans* ; Hyperlipoproteinemia Type II* ; Korea* ; Lipoproteins ; Mutation, Missense* ; Plasma ; Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length ; Proline ; Sterol Esterase* ; Threonine

BACKGROUND: The Apolipoprotein B/apolipoprotein A-I ratio (apoB/apoA-I) is a powerful clinical indicator of metabolic syndrome. However, few studies have searched for an association between ApoB/ApoA-I and metabolic syndrome in Korean patients with type 2 diabetes. We investigated the relation between ApoB/ApoA-I and the risk of metabolic syndrome and its components. METHODS: Subjects were 812 (424 males and 388 females) Korean patients who were being treated for type 2 diabetes at Huh's Diabetes Center in Seoul. The patients were classified into quartiles (lowest:Q1-highest:Q4) of ApoB/ApoA-I by gender. Anthropometric and hematological characteristics and dietary intake using a food frequency questionnaire were assessed. RESULTS: The prevalence of metabolic syndrome in our sample was 47.9% in males and 66.5% in females. The odds ratios (OR) for metabolic syndrome and for having its components were significantly increased from Q2 to Q4 quartiles of ApoB/ApoA-I in males (OR = 5.37; 95% CI = 2.98-9.65 and OR = 7.41; 95% CI = 4.04-13.6) and females (OR = 2.57; 95% CI = 1.28-5.15 and OR = 8.49; 95% CI = 4.28-16.8). These trends withstood adjustment for age, duration of type 2 diabetes, fasting blood glucose levels, and macronutrient intake both in males (OR = 5.24; 95% CI = 2.80-9.24 and OR = 7.98; 95% CI = 4.09-15.6) and in females (OR=4.41; 95% CI = 2.26-8.61 and OR = 8.29; 95% CI = 3.85-17.8). CONCLUSION: ApoB/ApoA-I appeared to be independently associated with risk of having metabolic syndrome and its components in Korean patients with type 2 diabetes after adjustment for putative risk factors including macronutrient intake, a particularly important lifestyle factor for patients with type 2 diabetes. A follow-up study of this population should evaluate the mechanisms underlying the relation between ApoB/ApoA-I and metabolic syndrome and its components.
Apolipoprotein A-I ; Apolipoproteins ; Blood Glucose ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; Fasting ; Female ; Humans ; Life Style ; Male ; Metabolic Syndrome X ; Odds Ratio ; Prevalence ; Risk Factors ; Surveys and Questionnaires

No abstract available.
Dendritic Cell Sarcoma, Interdigitating* ; Dendritic Cells* ; Lymphoma*

The present study was to investigate the nutritional status and factors related to malnutrition in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients requiring hemodialysis (HD) in South Korea. Subjects were ESRD outpatients from general hospitals or HD centers in Seoul referred to the dialysis clinic for maintenance HD care. A total of 110 patients (46 men and 64 women; mean ages 58.6 +/- 1.0 y) were eligible for this study. The family history of chronic renal failure (CRF) was considered positive if a patient reported having either a first-degree or second-degree relative with CRF. Malnutrition was defined as a triceps skinfold thickness or mid-arm muscle circumference below the fifth percentile for age and sex and forty-seven of the 110 patients were malnourished. Almost all (94%) patients had anemia (hemoglobin: <13 g/dL for men and <12 g/dL for women). Energy intake was below the recommended intake levels of energy [30-35 kcal/kg ideal body weight (IBW)] and protein (1.2 g/kg IBW) in 60% of patients. The duration of HD was longer in malnourished HD patients (P=0.0095). Malnutrition was more prevalent in women (P=0.0014), those who never smoked (P=0.0007), nondiabetic patients (P=0.0113), and patients with bone diseases (P=0.0427), adequate HD (spKt/V> or =1.2) (P=0.0178), and those with a family history of CRF (P=0.0255). Multiple logistic regression was used to examine the relationship between malnutrition and potential risk factors. After adjusting for age, sex, and other putative risk factors for malnutrition, the OR for malnutrition was greater in HD patients with a family history of CRF (OR, 3.290; 95% CI, 1.003-10.793). Active nutrition monitoring is needed to improve the nutritional status of HD patients. A family history of CRF may be an independent risk factor for malnutrition in Korean HD patients. A follow-up study is needed to investigate whether there is a causal relationship between a family history of CRF and malnutrition in Korean ESRD patients.
Anemia ; Bone Diseases ; Dialysis ; Energy Intake ; Female ; Hospitals, General ; Humans ; Ideal Body Weight ; Kidney Failure, Chronic ; Korea ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Malnutrition ; Muscles ; Nutritional Status ; Outpatients ; Renal Dialysis ; Republic of Korea ; Risk Factors ; Skinfold Thickness ; Smoke

The objectives of this study were to develop a food-frequency questionnaire (FFQ) for Vietnamese female immigrants in Korea and to evaluate the validity of the FFQ. A total of 80 food items were selected in developing the FFQ according to consumption frequency, the contribution of energy and other nutrients, and the cooking methods based on one-day 24 hour recall (24HR) from 918 Vietnamese female immigrants between November 2006 and November 2007. The FFQ was validated by comparison with 24HR of 425 Vietnamese female immigrants between November 2008 and August 2009. The absolute nutrient intake calculated from the FFQ was higher than that estimated by 24HR for most nutrients. The correlation coefficients between 24HR and FFQ ranged from 0.10 (vitamin C) - 0.36 (energy) for crude intake, 0.05 (vitamin E) - 0.32 (calcium) for per 1000 kcal, and 0.08 (zinc) - 0.34 (calcium) for energy-adjusted, respectively. More than 70% of subjects were classified into the same or adjacent agreement groups for nutrients other than fiber, sodium, vitamin A, vitamin C, and vitamin E, while less than 10% of subjects were classified into complete disagreement groups. We conclude that the FFQ appears to be an acceptable tool for estimating nutrient intake and dietary patterns of Vietnamese female immigrants in Korea. Future studies to validate the FFQ using various biomarkers or other dietary assessment methods are needed.
Ascorbic Acid ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Biomarkers ; Cooking ; Emigrants and Immigrants ; Female ; Genome ; Humans ; Korea ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Sodium ; Vitamin A ; Vitamin E ; Vitamins