PURPOSE: To examine the expression of Connective Tissue Growth Factor (CTGF) in osteosarcoma and to evaluate its role in osteosarcoma invasion and proliferation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The mRNA expression of CTGF from 23 patient-derived osteosarcoma cell lines was examined, and the role of CTGF in cell invasion and proliferation was examined using siRNA transfection. RESULTS: The over-expression of CTGF mRNA was observed in 17 cell lines (74%). CTGF-specific siRNA transfection into SaOS-2 and MG63 cell lines resulted in efficient knockdown of CTGF expression on Western blot analysis. siRNA transfected cells showed decreased migration on Matrigel invasion assay and decreased cell proliferation on WST-1 assay. CONCLUSION: These results indicated that the CTGF expression may play an important role in osteosarcoma progression, and may be a therapeutic target of osteosarcoma.
Blotting, Western ; Cell Line ; Cell Proliferation ; Connective Tissue Growth Factor ; Osteosarcoma* ; RNA, Messenger ; RNA, Small Interfering ; Transfection

PURPOSE: This study was to analyze the effect size of complementary and alternative intervention studies in reference to dysmenorrhea and menstrual distress. METHODS: In order to conduct a meta-analysis, a total of 393 studies were retrieved from the database. Twenty-eight studies that were published from March 2001 to February 2011 were selected. RESULTS: Intervention studies included seven studies on aromatherapy, five on auriculotherapy, three on each Koryo-Sooji-Chim and moxibustion, two on each heat therapy and magnetic therapy and six on other therapy. The effect size of the intervention studies on dysmenorrhea and menstrual distress was greater than 0.48 for Koryo-Sooji-Chim, moxibustion, aromatherapy, auriculotherapy and other therapy. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that drug free therapy can reduce the levels of menstrual distress, despite the small number of intervention studies and randomized controlled trials.
Aromatherapy ; Auriculotherapy ; Dysmenorrhea ; Female ; Hot Temperature ; Clinical Trial ; Magnetics ; Magnets ; Menstruation ; Moxibustion

Purpose: This study aimed to examine the effects of maternal coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) impact, parental stress, parenting behavior, and spousal support on changes in parenting behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A total of 162 mothers who raised infants and toddlers under 24 months of age participated in this descriptive study via a web survey. The researchers collected data, which included demographic variables about mothers and babies, COVID-19 impact, parenting stress, spousal support, parenting behavior, and changes in parenting behavior after the pandemic. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics ver. 24.0 using descriptive statistics, paired t-tests, analysis of variance, Pearson correlation, and multiple regression tests. Results: With the spread of COVID-19, mothers with infants and toddlers appeared to be affected in the order of psychological burden, resources, and financial burden, and their parenting stress increased compared to that before the pandemic. The change in mothers’ parenting behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic increased significantly as the mothers were significantly influenced by COVID-19. In addition, it was confirmed that the change in parenting behavior significantly decreased as mothers’ parenting stress increased. Conclusion Change in infants’ and toddlers’ mothers’ parenting behavior was associated with both COVID-19 impact and parenting stress in South Korea during the pandemic.

The present study was aimed at investigating the effect of cyclosporine A (CsA) on the renal renin-angiotensin systems. In rats chronically treated with CsA, the intrarenal expression of various genes of the renin-angiotensin system was assessed by Northern blot analysis. Along with the increases in plasma and renal renin activities, chronic CsA-treatment differentially affected the renal expression of renin-angiotensin system. The treatment with CsA for one week did not significantly alter the expression of either type 1 angiotensin II receptor (AT1A) or angiotensinogen gene, but increased the renin mRNA level. The three-week-treatment caused increases in the expression not only of renin but also of AT1A and angiotensinogen genes. Supplementation with L-arginine kept the expression of renin mRNA normal in the one-week-treated, but failed to prevent the alterations of the gene expression in the three-week-treated. Feedback control among components of the renin-angiotensin system also influences angiotesinogen. In the liver, the expression of angiotensinogen mRNA was decreased by the CsA-treatment for either one- or three-weeks. In conclusion, chronic CsA-treatment is associated with a differential expression of various genes for the renin-angiotensin system. L-Arginine may be effective in maintaining the normality of renin-angiotensin system only during early period after beginning the use of CsA.
Angiotensinogen ; Animals ; Arginine ; Blotting, Northern ; Cyclosporine* ; Gene Expression ; Liver ; Plasma ; Rats ; Receptors, Angiotensin ; Renin ; Renin-Angiotensin System* ; RNA, Messenger

No abstract available.
Mass Screening*

Bullous pemphigoid(BP) and herpes gestationis(HG) are subepidermal bullous diseases which show clinical and immunological similarities. Both diseases show immune deposits along the basement membrane zone and their autoantibodies bind a common antigenic site within the non-collagenous stretch of the 180 kDa BPAG2 ectodomain. Besides its association with pregnancy, HG has some characteristic features that distinguish it from BP. The serum of patients with HG often contains an IgG that avidly fixes complement, and showes IgG1 subclass predominance. We report here two cases of non-pregnant young women presenting clinical and histological features of bullous pemphigoid or herpes gestationis. The immunopathology, IgG subtyping and immunoblotting studies showed that the autoantibodies in the patients were the characteristic ones of herpes gestationis. The patients might be a subtype of BP that have characteristics of autoantibodies of HG patients.
Autoantibodies* ; Basement Membrane ; Complement System Proteins ; Female ; Humans ; Immunoblotting ; Immunoglobulin G ; Pemphigoid Gestationis* ; Pemphigoid, Bullous* ; Pregnancy

The purpose of this study was to compare the anthropometry and nutrition knowledge, food behaviour and lifestyle of women college students with different obesity indexes. The subjects were 251 women college students who were randomly selected from Kunsan National University. The height, body weight, soft/lean mass, fat mass, percentage of body fat, and fat distribution were measured, and health-related lifestyle habits were evaluated based on questionnaires. The subjects were assigned to one of the following groups based on their Body Mass Index (BMI): underweight, normal weight and overweight. The results were as follows. Their body weight, soft/lean mass, fat mass, percentage of body fat, and fat distribution were significantly higher in the overweight subjects when compared to the underweight or normal weight subjects. Standard of living, self-recognition of health status and duration of exercise were significantly correlated with their BMIs. Self-satisfaction with body weight decreased as the BMI increased. Most subjects had poor habits such as skipping meals and lack of exercises. The overweight and the underweight groups skipped meals more frequently than the normal weight group. There were no significant differences in the scores on the nutritional knowledge and the dietary behaviour of the subjects with different BMIs. Therefore, proper nutritional education on regular meals and intervention are required if women college students are to have normal weights and healthy lifestyles.
Adipose Tissue ; Anthropometry* ; Body Height ; Body Mass Index ; Body Weight ; Education ; Exercise ; Female ; Humans ; Jeollabuk-do* ; Life Style* ; Meals ; Obesity ; Overweight ; Socioeconomic Factors ; Thinness ; Weights and Measures ; Surveys and Questionnaires

The purpose of this study was to investigate the change in food habits of girl students 1985 and 1998. A similar study had been conducted in 1985 and this study was carried in May, 1998 using the questionnaires. The subjects were 746 female students in middle school, high school and university students living in Jeonbuk region. The average score of food habit was 4.11+/-1.63 out of a possible 10. This aversge is lower than the 4.91 score in 1985, especially the score of university students lowered from 4.80 points to 3.52+/-1.58 points. The correlation coefficient between the score of food habit and standard of living, utilizing increase as compared with the 54.9% in 1985. The most preferred side-dish changed from fried food to Kimchi. The preference of snacks was not changed. Eating bread increased at breakfast but eating noodles increased at lunch. University students' lunch basket preparation ratio decreased from 32.6% to 3.3%, so they had more noodles at refectory than lunch basket. The reason for skipping breakfast did not changes, but skipping lunch changed from annoyance due to lunch basket preparation to lack of time and no appetite. Skipping supper was changed from missing time to weight control. Having supper at home decreased from 96.6% to 75.9%. Substitution food on no preparation of lunch basket was changed from bread to noodles. The preference for biscuits and snack did not changes but fewer students preferend bread and fried food. In order to improve the nutritional status of the girl students, they must establish good food habits, especially by eating 3 regular meals per day and balancing their diet they should also be notified that severe weight control is very harmful for health.
Appetite ; Bread ; Breakfast ; Diet ; Eating ; Female* ; Food Habits* ; Humans ; Jeollabuk-do* ; Lunch ; Meals ; Nutritional Status ; Snacks ; Socioeconomic Factors ; Surveys and Questionnaires

The purpose of this study was to compare the body compositions and food behaviors of middle aged men with different obesity indices. The subjects were 62 middle aged men who lived Gunsan city. Heights, body weights, soft/lean masses, fat masses, percentages of body fat, and fat distributions were measured. Food habits and health-related lifestyle habits were evaluated based on questionnaires. The subjects were assigned to one of the following groups based on their percentage of body fat (%Fat); normal, overweight and obesity. The results were as follows: their heights, fat masses, percentages of body fat, WHR, RBW, BMI and fitness scores were significantly higher in the obese subjects when compared to the normal and overweight subjects. Self-perceptions of weight and desires of weight control were significantly related with their percents of Fat. The overweight and the obese groups skipped meals, ate supper out, ate snacks, smoked tobacco, and exercised less frequently than the normal group. There were no significant differences in the scores of the dietary habits and drinking of alcohol among the three groups. Therefore, proper nutritional education on regular meals and intervention is required if middle aged men want to be of normal weight and have healthy lifestyles.
Adipose Tissue* ; Body Composition* ; Body Height ; Drinking ; Education ; Food Habits ; Humans ; Jeollabuk-do* ; Life Style ; Male ; Meals ; Middle Aged* ; Obesity ; Overweight ; Self Concept ; Smoke ; Snacks ; Tobacco ; Weights and Measures ; Surveys and Questionnaires

This study empirically examined the actual level of elementary school children's knowledge of nutrition and the extent of current nutrition education for the children through the use of textbooks. Two or three classes were sampled from each of six schools, respectively, in Gangneung; of the 562 questionnaires that were distributed, 537 were returned and used for analysis. Respondents were all sixth-graders, on average boys and girls were 153.02+/-8.19cm and 152.79+/-7.15cm in height and 45.27+/-10.32kg and 43.33+/-7.46kg in weight, respectively, which was consistent with others' research. Most children had two siblings and a working mother, considered that they were well off, and their mother prepared meals. Children regularly had breakfast and dinner, although more children had dinner than breakfast. As a whole, their knowledge of the main nutrients contained in foods was lower than their general knowledge of nutrition. There were significant differences in knowledge of the main nutrients contained in foods, with girls showing more knowledge than boys (p<0.01). Most of them learned about nutrition at school, followed by home. At school, Practical Technology classes taught them the most about nutrition. Although Physical Education classes were expected to teach about nutrition in a quantitative way, they accounted for just 4.7% of the overall knowledge. As for the children's understanding of nutrition education through use of a textbook at school, just 19% of the students gained a very good understanding. As for interest in nutrition education at school, 22.2% of the students had no interest, while girls were more likely to have their interest in nutrition education at school affected by knowledge of nutrition than boys. For both boys and girls, the most desired method of education was cooking practice. More research across subjects is necessary so that nutrition education concentrated on the curriculum for fifth-graders can be provided by stages from the lower grades. Since cooking practice or games were preferred, it is necessary to develop nutrition education methods to incite active interest rather than passive education.
Breakfast ; Child ; Cooking ; Curriculum ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Eating* ; Education* ; Female ; Gangwon-do* ; Humans ; Meals ; Mothers ; Physical Education and Training ; Siblings