Phosphodiesterase (PDE) 4 inhibitors have been shown to induce the cAMP-mediated signaling pathway by inhibiting cAMP hydrolysis. This study investigated the effect of a PDE4 inhibitor on the expression of the inducible cAMP early repressor (ICER), which is an endogenous inhibitor of CRE- mediated transcription, in osteoblastic cells. RT-PCR analysis revealed that rolipram, a PDE4 inhibitor, stimulates the ICER mRNA in a dose dependent manner. The induction of ICER mRNA expression by rolipram was suppressed by the inhibitors of protein kinase A (PKA) and p38 MAPK, suggesting the involvement of PKA and p38 MAPK activation in ICER expression by rolipram. It was previously shown that rolipram induced the expression of TNF-related activation-induced cytokine (TRANCE, also known as RANKL, ODF, or OPGL) in osteoblasts. This paper provides evidences that a transcriptional repressor like ICER might modulate TRANCE mRNA expression by rolipram in osteoblasts.
3', 5'-Cyclic-Nucleotide Phosphodiesterase/*antagonists & inhibitors ; Animals ; Animals, Outbred Strains ; Cyclic AMP-Dependent Protein Kinases/metabolism ; DNA-Binding Proteins/genetics/*metabolism ; Gene Expression/drug effects ; Mice ; Osteoblasts/*drug effects/metabolism ; Phosphodiesterase Inhibitors/*pharmacology ; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't ; Rolipram/*pharmacology ; Transcription Factors/genetics/*metabolism ; p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases/metabolism

Purpose: This study sought to translate the Stressors in Nursing Students Scale (SINS) into Korean (SINS-K) and verify its validity and reliability for identifying stressors of Korean nursing students. Methods: A methodological design was used. The SINS scale was translated into Korean and administered to 428 nursing students. The results of 213 students were used for exploratory factor analysis, and 215 responses were used for confirmatory factor analysis. Results: The SINS-K showed good internal consistency. The measurement items were consistent, and the independence between factors was maintained. After confirming convergent validity and discriminant validity, the final scale was completed with 33 items. The four factors extracted from the SINS-K were named “clinical practice”, “finance”, “education”, and “conflict”. Conclusion Despite differences in culture and language between countries, the results of this study are similar to those of the original tool. The findings provide information for developing strategies to reduce stressors among nursing students in a global context.

BACKGROUND: Valdecoxib is a selective cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitor. It is effective in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, primary dysmenorrhea, and postoperative pain. Two kinds of sodium currents, tetrodotoxin-sensitive (TTX-S) and tetrodotoxin-resistant (TTX-R), are expressed in the dorsal root ganglia (DRG). Both sodium currents are implicated in the formation of normal and abnormal pain. METHODS: The effects of valdecoxib on sodium currents in rat DRG neurons were investigated using the whole-cell variation of the patch-clamp technique. RESULTS: Valdecoxib suppressed two types of sodium currents in a dose-dependent manner, without altering the activation and inactivation kinetics of either current type. It shifted the activation voltage toward a depolarizing direction and the steady-state inactivation voltage toward a hyperpolarizing direction, and suppressed resting channels to similar extents in both types of sodium currents. Valdecoxib slowed the recovery of both sodium currents from inactivation, and suppressed them in a frequency-dependent manner. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that valdecoxib may produce analgesic effects through the inhibition of sodium currents in sensory neurons as well as COX-2.
Analgesia ; Animals ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid ; Cyclooxygenase 2 ; Diagnosis-Related Groups ; Dysmenorrhea ; Female ; Ganglia, Spinal ; Kinetics ; Neurons ; Osteoarthritis ; Pain, Postoperative ; Patch-Clamp Techniques ; Rats ; Sensory Receptor Cells* ; Sodium Channels ; Sodium* ; Tetrodotoxin

PURPOSE: Tuberculosis (TB) is a major infectious disease and is responsible for two million deaths annually. For the identification and quantitation of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis), a causative agent of TB, a sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) against the MPT64 protein of M. tuberculosis, an antigen marker of the M. tuberculosis complex, was developed. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The MPT64 protein was expressed, and anti-MPT64 monoclonal antibodies were prepared. A sandwich ELISA was established using recombinant MPT64 protein and anti-MPT64 monoclonal antibodies. The sandwich MPT64 ELISA was evaluated using reference and clinical mycobacterial strains. RESULTS: The sandwich MPT64 ELISA detected MPT64 protein from 2.1 ng/mL to 250 ng/mL (equivalent to 1.7x10(4) CFU/mL and 2.0x10(6) CFU/mL). All 389 clinical M. tuberculosis isolates tested positive in the sandwich MPT64 ELISA (sensitivity, 100%), and the assay showed no cross reactivity to any tested nontuberculous mycobacterial strain (specificity, 100%). CONCLUSION: The sandwich MPT64 ELISA is a highly sensitive and quantitative test for MPT64 protein, which can identify M. tuberculosis.
Antigens, Bacterial/*analysis/immunology ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay/*methods ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis/*immunology

PURPOSE: To report on the current practices in breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in Korea. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We invited the 68 members of the Korean Society of Breast Imaging who were working in hospitals with available breast MRI to participate in a survey on how they performed and interpreted breast MRI. We asked one member from each hospital to respond to the survey. A total of 22 surveys from 22 hospitals were analyzed. RESULTS: Out of 22 hospitals, 13 (59.1%) performed at least 300 breast MRI examinations per year, and 5 out of 22 (22.7%) performed > 1200 per year. Out of 31 machines, 14 (45.2%) machines were 1.5-T scanners and 17 (54.8%) were 3.0-T scanners. All hospitals did contrast-enhanced breast MRI. Full-time breast radiologists supervised the performance and interpreted breast MRI in 19 of 22 (86.4%) of hospitals. All hospitals used BI-RADS for MRI interpretation. For computer-aided detection (CAD), 13 (59.1%) hospitals sometimes or always use it and 9 (40.9%) hospitals did not use CAD. Two (9.1%) and twelve (54.5%) hospitals never and rarely interpreted breast MRI without correlating the mammography or ultrasound, respectively. The majority of respondents rarely (13/21, 61.9%) or never (5/21, 23.8%) interpreted breast MRI performed at an outside facility. Of the hospitals performing contrast-enhanced examinations, 15 of 22 (68.2%) did not perform MRI-guided interventional procedures. CONCLUSION: Breast MRI is extensively performed in Korea. The indication and practical patterns are diverse. The information from this survey would provide the basis for the development of Korean breast MRI practice guidelines.
Breast Neoplasms ; Breast* ; Diagnosis ; Korea ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging* ; Mammography ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Ultrasonography

The authors describe the successful perioperative management of a 3-year-old boy from Dubai with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency, who underwent robot-assisted laparoscopic pyeloplasty for complete right ureteropelvic junction obstruction. G6PD deficiency is a genetic disorder predisposing patients to hemolytic anemia from oxidative stress. Important considerations in anesthetic management include avoiding oxidative stress, which can be caused by various conditions, and monitoring for hypercapnia, which can cause acidosis and hemolysis. Laparoscopic surgery is usually associated with hypercapnia and therefore an increased risk for respiratory acidosis. During surgery in this particular case, efforts were made to avoid carbon dioxide retention and to keep the patient warm. General anesthesia was induced with thiopental sodium, rocuronium, and fentanyl, and maintained with sevoflurane. There were no signs of hemolysis in the perioperative period and he was discharged owing to his improved condition.
Acidosis ; Acidosis, Respiratory ; Anemia, Hemolytic ; Anesthesia, General ; Carbon Dioxide ; Child, Preschool ; Fentanyl ; Glucose-6-Phosphate* ; Glucosephosphate Dehydrogenase Deficiency* ; Glucosephosphate Dehydrogenase* ; Hemolysis ; Humans ; Hypercapnia ; Laparoscopy* ; Male ; Oxidative Stress ; Perioperative Period ; Thiopental

Transurethral resection is the most efficacious and safest urologic procedure for the treatment of benign prostatic hypertrophy, prostate cancer, and bladder cancer. Complications of transurethral resection include hemorrhage, infection, transurethral resection syndrome, and bladder perforation. Early detection of bladder perforation is important because it can cause critical ventilation and hemodynamic changes. In this case, we detected bladder perforation as the cause of ventilation and hemodynamic change intraoperatively and treated it by immediate surgical repair.
Hemodynamics* ; Hemorrhage ; Prostatic Hyperplasia ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms* ; Urinary Bladder* ; Ventilation*

Transurethral resection is the most efficacious and safest urologic procedure for the treatment of benign prostatic hypertrophy, prostate cancer, and bladder cancer. Complications of transurethral resection include hemorrhage, infection, transurethral resection syndrome, and bladder perforation. Early detection of bladder perforation is important because it can cause critical ventilation and hemodynamic changes. In this case, we detected bladder perforation as the cause of ventilation and hemodynamic change intraoperatively and treated it by immediate surgical repair.
Hemodynamics* ; Hemorrhage ; Prostatic Hyperplasia ; Prostatic Neoplasms ; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms* ; Urinary Bladder* ; Ventilation*

beta-asarone (BAS) is an active component of Acori graminei rhizoma, a traditional medicine used clinically in treating dementia and chronic stress in Korea. However, the cognitive effects of BAS and its mechanism of action have remained elusive. The purpose of this study was to examine whether BAS improved spatial cognitive impairment induced in rats following chronic corticosterone (CORT) administration. CORT administration (40 mg/kg, i.p., 21 days) resulted in cognitive impairment in the avoidance conditioning test (AAT) and the Morris water maze (MWM) test that was reversed by BAS (200 mg/kg, i.p). Additionally, as assessed by immunohistochemistry and RT-PCR analysis, the administration of BAS significantly alleviated memory-associated decreases in the expression levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and cAMP-response element-binding protein (CREB) proteins and mRNAs in the hippocampus. Also, BAS administration significantly restored the expression of Bax and Bcl-2 mRNAs in the hippocampus. Thus, BAS may be an effective therapeutic for learning and memory disturbances, and its neuroprotective effect was mediated, in part, by normalizing the CORT response, resulting in regulation of BDNF and CREB functions and anti-apoptosis in rats.
Animals ; Apoptosis* ; Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor ; Corticosterone* ; Dementia ; Hippocampus* ; Immunohistochemistry ; Korea ; Learning ; Medicine, Traditional ; Memory ; Memory, Short-Term* ; Neuroprotective Agents ; Rats* ; RNA, Messenger ; Water

We examined whether wogonin (WO) improved hippocampal neuronal activity, behavioral alterations and cognitive impairment, in rats induced by administration of trimethyltin (TMT), an organotin compound that is neurotoxic to these animals. The ability of WO to improve cognitive efficacy in the TMT-induced neurodegenerative rats was investigated using a passive avoidance test, and the Morris water maze test, and using immunohistochemistry to detect components of the acetylcholinergic system, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and cAMP-response element-binding protein (CREB) expression. Rats injected with TMT showed impairments in learning and memory and daily administration of WO improved memory function, and reduced aggressive behavior. Administration of WO significantly alleviated the TMT-induced loss of cholinergic immunoreactivity and restored the hippocampal expression levels of BDNF and CREB proteins and their encoding mRNAs to normal levels. These findings suggest that WO might be useful as a new therapy for treatment of various neurodegenerative diseases.
Animals ; Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor ; Cholinergic Neurons ; Cognition Disorders ; Cyclic AMP Response Element-Binding Protein ; Immunohistochemistry ; Learning ; Memory ; Neurodegenerative Diseases ; Neurons* ; Rats* ; RNA, Messenger ; Water