No abstract available.
Myxoma*

Candida species are frequently found in the normal microorganism of humans, which facilitates their encounter with most implanted biomaterials and host surfaces. Medical devices such as stents, prostheses, implants and various types of catheters have all been shown to support colonization and biofilm formation by Candida. Candida albicans remains the fungal species most commonly associated with biofilm formation and the increase in Candida infections in the last decades has almost paralleled the increase and widespread use of a broad range of medical implant devices, mainly in populations with impaired host defenses. The formation of C. albicans biofilms carries important clinical repercussions because of their increased resistance to antifungal therapy and the ability of cells within biofilms to withstand host immune defenses. Also, biofilm formation on medical devices can negatively impact the host by serving as a reservoir or source for future continuing infections. This review article aims to provide insights on various aspects of C. albicans biofilms, formation and structure, their role in pathogenesis and antifungal drug resistance.
Biocompatible Materials ; Biofilms ; Candida ; Candida albicans ; Catheters ; Colon ; Drug Resistance, Fungal ; Humans ; Prostheses and Implants ; Stents

PURPOSE: Laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB) and laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) are the most effective intervention and cure in achieving sustained weight loss in the morbidly obese with co-morbities, especially in type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM). Currently, there are few data in the literature presenting early diabetic outcomes between the 2 major bariatric surgeries in Korea. The aim of this study is to observe weight loss, improvement of type 2 DM after LRYGB and LAGB. METHODS: 33 retrospective data were obtained from diabetic subjects undergoing LRYGB (n=53) and LAGB (n=77). These measurements included age, sex, body mass index (BMI), pre-operative diabetic duration, post-operative diabetic at follow-up visit after surgery. Paired t-test, and SPSS12.0 were used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: 33 morbidly obese patients with type 2 DM who had both procedures complain of general weakness. Most patients were taking oral medications or insulin and tired of them. Pre and post-op 12 months of percent of excess weight loss (%EWL), fetal bovine serum (FBS), hemoglobin A1c (HbA1C) presented at 0%, 185.6 mg/dl, 8.7% and 70.6%, 123.4 mg/dl, 6.6% in patients who had LRYGB (P<0.05). Pre and post-op 12 months of %EWL, FBS, HbA1C presented at 0%, 180.6 mg/dl, 8.4% and 32.8%, 136.5 mg/dl, 6.8% in patients who had LAGB (P<0.05). Rate of discontinuance or decreasing for treatment of type 2 DM after surgery showed 94% for LRYGB versus 80% for LAGB, and unchanged rates were 6% versus 20%, respectively. CONCLUSION: This study showed LRYGB and LAGB are quite satisfactory and promising bariatric procedures with significant weight loss and improvement of type 2 DM in Koreans. LRYGB is significantly associated with more weight loss, more diabetic outcome than LAGB. Clinical experiences in Korea with both procedures are limited and a larger number of cases are need, but the recent data shows promising results that are comparable to the international experience.
Bariatric Surgery ; Body Mass Index ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; Follow-Up Studies ; Gastric Bypass ; Hemoglobins ; Humans ; Insulin ; Korea ; Retrospective Studies ; Weight Loss

In this study, we investigated the effect of methanolic extract isolated from the root of Lycoris aurea (LA) on the growth of cancer cells and the tube formation activity of endothelial cells. Various cancer cells were treated with LA at doses of 0.3, 1, 3, 10 or 30 microg/ml and LA significantly suppressed the growth of several cancer cell lines, including ACHN, HCT-15, K-562, MCF-7, PC-3 and SK-OV-3, in a dose-dependent manner. We also found that LA induced cell cycle arrest at G2/M phase in ACHN renal cell adenocarcinoma cells. Further study demonstrated that LA concentration-dependently inhibited the tube formation, which is a widely used in vitro model of reorganization stage of angiogenesis, in human umbilical vein endothelial cells. Collectively, these results show that LA inhibits the growth of cancer cells and tube formation of endothelial cells and the growth-inhibitory effect of LA might be mediated, at least in part, by blocking cell cycle progression.
Carcinoma, Renal Cell ; Cell Cycle ; Cell Cycle Checkpoints ; Cell Line ; Endothelial Cells ; Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells ; Lycoris ; Methanol

Exon skipping is an efficient technique to inhibit specific gene expression induced by a short-sequence peptide nucleic acid (PNA).To date, there has been no study on the effects of PNA on skin pigmentation. In melanocytes, the tripartite complex is responsible for the transport of mature melanosomes from the nucleus to the dendrites. The tripartite complex is composed of Rab27a, Mlph (Melanophilin), and Myosin Va. Defects in the protein Mlph, a melanosome transport-related protein, are known to cause hypopigmentation. Our study shows that Olipass peptide nucleic acid (OPNA), a cell membrane-permeable PNA, targets exon skipping in the Mlph SHD domain, which is involved in Rab27a binding. Our findings demonstrate that OPNA induced exon skipping in melan-a cells, resulting in shortened Mlph mRNA, reduced Mlph protein levels, and melanosome aggregation, as observed by microscopy. Therefore, OPNA inhibits the expression of Mlph by inducing exon skipping within the gene. These results suggest that OPNA, which targets Mlph, may be a potential new whitening agent to inhibit melanosome movement.