BACKGROUND: The wound healing process is impaired or delayed in aged patients. The development of a new wound healing model is needed. Nerve growth factor (NGF) plays a special role in wound healing because NGF is expressed only in proliferating tissues such as wounds. OBJECTIVE: The aim of our study was to develop a wound healing model using a 3-dimensional culture system, raft culture, by comparing the level of NGF expression according to the wound stage after an artificial wound was made to the raft samples. We tried to specifically localize the site of NGF expression both in mRNA and protein level. METHODS: Raft culture using normal human keratinocytes was done and a 2 mm slit wound was made in the center of the raft samples. Raft samples of no wound, 4 d, 7 d, and 9 d after wounding were prepared. In situ RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry were performed to detect and localize NGF expression after making wounds and the addition of substance P (SP). RESULTS: We failed to localize NGF mRNA expression in raft samples by in situ RT-PCR. Immunohistochemistry showed NGF staining throughout the epidermis although a little more dense staining was found in the basal layer. NGF(+) cells tended to increase until 7 d after wounding, but there were no significant differences according to the wounding days. There was `a tendency that the SP(+) group showed more NGF(+) cells than the SP(-) group, but there were no statistical differences. CONCLUSION: We think that our in vitro raft wound model using NGF expression could be used, at least in part, as an objective indicator for wound healing. In our raft model lacking nerve, NGF may not be suitable for representing wound healing process because this model can not reflect the interaction between the skin and the nervous system. Expression of growth factors or cytokines other than NGF need to be applied to our raft culture system.
Cytokines ; Epidermis ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins ; Keratinocytes ; Nerve Growth Factor ; Nervous System ; RNA, Messenger ; Skin ; Substance P ; Wound Healing* ; Wounds and Injuries*

Bone marrow pressure is neither arterial pressure nor venous pressure of extremity, that is thought the precapillary pressure of bone. It is different between long bone and flat bone, and is also different in various site of the bone. Author measured bone marrow pressure of 84 normal femoral heads of Korean adults for basic data of early diagnosis of avascular necrosis of femoral head. The results are followings : 1. The baseline bone marrow pressure of Korean healthy adults is average 22.5 ±7.2mmHg. 2. The most significant change of bone marrow pressure in stress test is observed at 5 min. after injection of 5cc normal saline. 3. The increase of bone marrow pressure at 5 min. after stress test was average 7.4 ±4.4 mmHg. 4. Sex and age factors do not influence bone marrow pressure.
Adult ; Age Factors ; Arterial Pressure ; Bone Marrow ; Early Diagnosis ; Exercise Test ; Extremities ; Head ; Humans ; Necrosis ; Venous Pressure

The Measurement of CSF glucose and CSF glucose-to-blood glucose ratio is a very useful laboratory test for the differential diagnosis of meningitis. We have observed the change of blood glucose & CSF glucose-to-blood glucose ratio according to the time of blood sampling in 84 patients with aseptic meningitis who had been admitted to the department of pediatrics, Dong Kang hospital from May 1993 to June 1993. The results obtained were as follows: 1) The blood glucose level examined with blood sample drawn just before lumbar puncture and one just after lumbar puncture was 98.29+/-16.20mg/dl and 106.49+/-19.47mg/dl, respectively. 2) The blood glucose level examined with blood sample drawn just before lumbar puncture and one 30 min. after lumbar puncture was 96.47+/-21.52mg/dl and 117.00+/-22.12mg/dl, respectively. 3) The CSF glucose-to-blood glucose ratios examined with blood sample drawn just before lumbar puncture and one just after lumbar puncture was 67.70+/-12.40% and 62.83+/-12.62%, respectively. 4) The CSF glucose-to-blood glucose ratios examined with blood sample drawn just before lumbar puncture and one just after lumbar puncture was 70.10+/-21.77% and 56.35+/-13.75%, reskpectively. We concluded that a simultaneous blood glucose level should be taken just before lumbar puncture.
Blood Glucose ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Glucose* ; Humans ; Meningitis ; Meningitis, Aseptic* ; Pediatrics ; Spinal Puncture

Epidermal keratinocytes are important sources of a wide variety of cytokines that include the endothelin-1 (ET-1). Glucocorticoids have been shown to inhibit the production of several cytokines. However, their effect on ET-1 synthesis by keratinocytes is still unknown. It has been reported that ultraviolet B (UVB) irradiation stimulates both the synthesis and release of ET-1 and it was observed that ET-1 secretion by HaCat cells increased with increasing UVB exposure. In this study, the effects of glucocorticoid on ET-1 production were evaluated using cultured HaCat keratinocytes. The results showed that dexamethasone suppressed basal re-lease of ET-1. In addition, it strongly inhibited the UVB-mediated augmentation of ET-1 production. Furthermore, lincomycin slightly enhanced the inhibitory effect of dexamethasone on ET-1 synthesis.
Cytokines ; Dexamethasone* ; Endothelin-1 ; Glucocorticoids ; Keratinocytes* ; Lincomycin

Hurthle cell tumors are an infrequent neoplasm of the thyroid gland in adults. Hurthle cell tumors represent 4. 5% to 10% of all primary thyroid epithelial neoplasms in the foreign literature. It has been known as Hurthle cell tumor since Ewing was the first to use this term in 1928. Tumor occurring in an infant was described by Symmers(1941) and Morrow(1945). The authors experienced a case of congenital Hurthle cell tumor of the thyroid gland in a 2 months old boy. He was admitted to the pediatric surgical department because of a growing mass in the neck since birth. Ultrasonogram showed a huge lobulated homogenous solid mass with medium level echogenicity in the region of the thyroid gland. Subtotal thyroidectomy of right lobe and total thyroidectomy of left lobe were done. The specimen measures 2x3x1.5 cm and 7x3x3 cm, respectively. It was an encapsulated, yellow gray firm and solid mass. The cut surface was smooth, glistening and homogenous. Microscopicully, the tumor was composed of tightly packed regular follicles lined by polyhedral, cuboidal, large cells with a granular acidophilic cytoplasms. The nuclei are vesicular, usually only a little bit larger than those of normal thyroid cells.
Infant ; Adult ; Male ; Female ; Humans

Chronic mucocutaneous randidiasis is a clinical syndrome characte ized by chronic and reccurent superficial candidal infection of the skin, mucous membranes, and nails. This syndrome is frequently associated with immune deficiency or endocrinopathy, especially hypopar; thyroidism. We report a case of chrcinic mucocutaneous candidiasis associated with hypoparathyroidism in a 8- year-old girl.
Candidiasis ; Candidiasis, Chronic Mucocutaneous* ; Female ; Humans ; Hypoparathyroidism* ; Mucous Membrane ; Skin ; Thyroid Gland

This study was aimed to elucidate the effect of intracerebroventricular losartan administration on arterial pressure regulation during hemorrhage in rats by power spectral analysis of blood pressure and heart rate variability. Nineteen male Sprague-Dawley rats weighing 240-300g were divided into losartan-administered(n=10) and control(n=9) groups. Hemorrhage was induced with a withdrawal pump from the femoral artery at 3ml/kg/min for 5min. Arterial presure was measured with a pressure transducer connected to the contralateral femoral artery for 5min before, during and after hemorrhage. The blood pressure signal digitized at 500 Hz through a data acquisition system was analyzed with fast Fourier transform algorithm to yield power spectra of systolic(SP) and diastolic(DP) blood pressure and instantaneous heart rate(HR). Powers of very low frequency (VLF, 0.02-0.26 Hz), low frequency(LF, 0.26-0.75 Hz) and high frequency(HF, 0.75-5.00 Hz) band were obtained. Basal systolic and diastolic blood pressure was 149+/-9 and 99+/-2mmHg, respectively, and was not changed by hemorrhage in control rats. Basal blood pressure in losartan group was 143+/-9 and 97+/-6mmHg and was significantly lowered to 116+/-13 and 77+/-9mmHg, respectively. HR was significantly increased during and after hemorrhage in both groups. Total power of SP variability in losartan group was 13.9+/-3.2mmHg2 before hemorrhage and was significantly increased to 66.6+/-25.3mmHg2 during hemorrhage. VLF, LF and HF powers of SP variability were 7.3+/-2.0, 3.8+/-1.1 and 2.8+/-0.7mmHg2, respectively, in losartan group and 5.5+/-1.4, 3.7+/-1.5 and 2.8+/-0.8mmHg2 in control rats. VLF and HF powers of SP were increased to 33.0+/-15.2 and 20.3+/-6.4mmHg2 in losartan group, and VLF power was increased to 7.9+/-1.5mmHg2 in control group. VLF power of DP variability increased from 3.3+/-0.9 before hemorrhage to 5.9+/-1.0mmHg2 during hemorrhage in control group. Powers of DP variability in losartan group and those of HR variability in both groups were not changed by hemorrhage. The above results suggested that losartan aggravated the arterial pressure fall during hemorrhage by impairing the sympathetic nerve activation by central angiotensin II.
Angiotensin II ; Animals ; Arterial Pressure ; Blood Pressure* ; Femoral Artery ; Fourier Analysis ; Heart Rate* ; Heart* ; Hemorrhage* ; Humans ; Lateral Ventricles* ; Losartan* ; Male ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Transducers, Pressure

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence of personality disorders among non-alcoholics and hospitalized alcoholics and the extent and nature of the overlap between different axis II disorders. METHODS: Subjects were 87 non-alcoholics in the general population group and 94 alcoholics admitted to psychiatric hospital. Alcohol dependence was diagnosed according to DSM-IV by the MAST, and general group and patients were assessed with the PDQ-4+. RESULTS: In the general population group, 52.3% of non-alcoholics had at least one personality disorder and the average number of personality disorders was 1.23 per person. In the alcohol group, 88.3% of the patients had at least one personality disorder and the average number of personality disorders was 4.26 per patient. CONCLUSION: In our study, there is no single "alcoholic personality" emerged.
Alcoholics* ; Alcoholism ; Axis, Cervical Vertebra ; Comorbidity ; Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders ; Hospitals, Psychiatric ; Humans ; Personality Disorders* ; Population Groups ; Prevalence

Most cardiac tumors are metastases, and primary cardiac tumors are rare; even among primary cardiac tumors, primary cardiac neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) are extremely rare. Herein, we report a case of a patient presenting a left atrial mass without past medical history. Because of the location and movement of the mass, as well as the patient's cerebral infarction episode, the mass was initially suspected to be a thrombus. However, the mass was surgically diagnosed as NET.

To evaluate in vitro anti-HIV efficacies of nucleoside derivatives, MT-4 cell line was infected with HIV-1 and HIV-2 respectively and treated with various compounds and the formerly approved drugs such as AZT, d4T, ddC and ddI. CPE method was used to evaluate their antiviral activity Most dideoxynucleosides, AZT, d4T, ddC and ddI, showed anti-HIV activities against both viruses but no other compounds including anti-herpesvirus drugs did any. Further experiments were carried out to study their inhibitory mechanism of viral adsorption. The results showed no inhibition of syncytium formation due to an interaction between the gp120 expressed in HIV-infected cell surface and CD4 receptor on the uninfected cell surface in the presence of AZT. AZT showed no activity up to 100 microgram/ml. Inhibition of reverse transcriptase (RT) in the presence of AZT-triphosphate was tested by using RT expressed in E. coli and purified and its IC50 was 4.5 nM.
Adsorption ; Cell Line ; Dideoxynucleosides ; Giant Cells ; HIV-1 ; HIV-2 ; Inhibitory Concentration 50 ; RNA-Directed DNA Polymerase ; Stavudine