PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of the ulmus root-bark dressing on tissue regeneration in experimentally-induced pressure ulcers in rats. METHOD: A randomized pretest/post-test control group time-series study design was used. Thirty-three male Sprague-Dawley rats were used in this study. The rats were anesthetized with 100mg/kg of ketamine. Pressure ulcers were induced at 140mmHg for three hours using a personally-designed pressing apparatus. For four weeks, the ulmus root-bark dressing was applied every other day in the experimental group (n=18) and a wet gauze dressing in the control group (n=15). For data analysis, the statistical program SPSS WIN 12 was used. The wounds were examined by light microscopy and electron microscopy. RESULT: There were significant statistical differences in the size of the pressure ulcers as time went by(p=0.006). It should be noted that there were no significant statistical differences in the number of capillaries. Using light microscopy the inflammatory infiltration and neovascularization in the dermis in the experimental group emerged densely in the early stages, but recovered rapidly at the latter stages. In addition, the reepithelization of the epidermis occurred earlier than in the control group. By electron microscopy, the cell organelles of the capillary endothelial cells and the basal lamina of capillaries in the experimental group showed a more rapid maturation during the latter stages, compared with the control group. CONCLUSION: According to this study, it can be concluded that the ulmus root-bark dressing is effective regarding the healing of pressure ulcers.
Animals ; Bandages ; Capillaries/ultrastructure ; Male ; *Phytotherapy ; Plant Bark ; Plant Roots ; Pressure Ulcer/*drug therapy/pathology ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Regeneration ; Treatment Outcome ; *Ulmus

No abstract available.
Plasma ; Protein C Deficiency* ; Protein C* ; Purpura Fulminans* ; Purpura* ; Warfarin

No abstract available.
Paramyxoviridae Infections* ; Polymerase Chain Reaction* ; Reverse Transcription*

Background: Swallowing function deterioration is a common problem experienced by older adults worldwide. Many studies have been conducted to improve swallowing function in older adults; however, due to differences in intervention methods and study designs, it is difficult to draw a common conclusion. This study aimed to analyze trends and intervention methods in studies of swallowing function intervention for older adults conducted from 2010 to 2022, to establish a systematic approach for developing interventions to improve swallowing function in older adults and to provide evidence for this approach. Methods: Literature research was conducted for studies published between 2010 and 2022 that applied to swallow function interventions to adults aged 60 years or older. Databases including PubMed, Medline, RISS, Science On, KISS, and KCI were used. From a total of 1,164 articles searched using keywords, 20 articles were selected for final analysis. Results: The number of published articles steadily increased over time, and the intervention period was most commonly 6 or 8 weeks. The types of interventions included focused exercises to improve oral muscle strength in 12 articles and programs incorporating education, practice, and expert management in 8 articles. Among the focused exercises, tongue-strengthening exercises were most common in 4 articles. The evaluation variables for intervention effects were muscle strength evaluation, oral function evaluation, quality of life, and oral health and hygiene status. Muscle strength and oral function evaluations were statistically significant in focused exercise interventions, while the quality of life and oral health and hygiene status was significant in program interventions. Conclusion This literature review is meaningful as a study that can be used to select the intervention period and program contents when planning an elderly swallowing intervention program.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Cadmium is a toxic metal that is an occupational and environmental concern especially because of its human carcinogenicity; it induces serious adverse effects in various organs and tissues. Even low levels of exposure to cadmium could be harmful owing to its extremely long half-life in the body. Cadmium intoxication may be prevented by the consumption of dietary components that potentially reduce its accumulation in the body. Dietary chitosan is a polysaccharide derived from animal sources; it has been known for its ability to bind to divalent cations including cadmium, in addition to other beneficial effects including hypocholesterolemic and anticancer effects. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the role of dietary chitosan in reducing cadmium accumulation using an in vivo system. MATERIALS/METHODS: Cadmium was administered orally at 2 mg (three times per week) to three groups of Sprague-Dawley rats: control, low-dose, and high-dose (0, 3, and 5%, respectively) chitosan diet groups for eight weeks. Cadmium accumulation, as well as tissue functional and histological changes, was determined. RESULTS: Compared to the control group, rats fed the chitosan diet showed significantly lower levels of cadmium in blood and tissues including the kidneys, liver, and femur. Biochemical analysis of liver function including the determination of aspartate aminotransferase and total bilirubin levels showed that dietary chitosan reduced hepatic tissue damage caused by cadmium intoxication and prevented the associated bone disorder. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that dietary chitosan has the potential to reduce cadmium accumulation in the body as well as protect liver function and bone health against cadmium intoxication.
Animals ; Aspartate Aminotransferases ; Bilirubin ; Cadmium* ; Cations, Divalent ; Chitosan* ; Diet ; Femur ; Half-Life ; Humans ; Kidney ; Liver ; Rats* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) isolated from various tissues have been well characterized for therapeutic application to clinical diseases. However, in contrast to MSCs from other animal species, the characteristics of feline MSCs have not been fully documented. In this study, we conducted extensive characterization of feline adipose tissue-derived MSCs (fAD-MSCs). Study fAD-MSCs were individually isolated from the intra-abdominal adipose tissues of six felines. The expression levels of cell surface markers and pluripotent markers were evaluated. Next, proliferation capacity was analyzed by performing cumulative population doubling level (CPDL) and doubling time (DT) calculation assays. Differentiation potentials of fAD-MSCs into mesodermal cell lineages were analyzed by examining specific staining and molecular markers. All fAD-MSCs positively expressed cell surface markers such as CD29, CD44, CD90, CD105, CD166, and MHC-I, while CD14, CD34, CD45, and CD73 were negatively expressed. The CPDL of the fAD-MSCs was maintained until passage 5 to 6 (P5 to P6), whereas DT increased after P3 to P4. Also, stem cell-specific pluripotent markers (Oct3/4, Nanog, and SSEA-4) were detected. Importantly, all fAD-MSCs demonstrated mesodermal differentiation capacity. These results suggest that fully characterized fAD-MSCs could be beneficial when considering the use of these cells in feline disease research.
Animals ; Cat Diseases ; Cats ; Cell Lineage ; Mesenchymal Stromal Cells* ; Mesoderm

Trichomoniasis is the most common curable sexually-transmitted infection (STI) worldwide. There are few reports on the prevalence of Trichomonas vaginalis in Korea. The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence of trichomoniasis by PCR in Guri city, Korea. All adult women who visited Hanyang University Guri Hospital for health screening within the National Health Care Service were invited to participate in the study, and 424 women were enrolled between March and June 2011. PCR was used to detect Trichomonas vaginalis using primers based on a repetitive sequence cloned from T. vaginalis (TV-E650). Fourteen women (3.3%) were found to have T. vaginalis. All were over 50, and they were significantly older on average than the 410 Trichomonas-negative women (mean ages 63.4 vs 55.3 years). It seems that T. vaginalis infection is not rare in women receiving health screening, especially among those over 50.
Adult ; Clone Cells ; Delivery of Health Care ; Female ; Humans ; Korea* ; Mass Screening* ; Polymerase Chain Reaction* ; Prevalence* ; Repetitive Sequences, Nucleic Acid ; Trichomonas vaginalis

Although Korean influenza virus isolates have been genetically associated with the vaccine strains of the corresponding year, influenza B viruses have prevailed almost every year in Korea during the past decades. We have analyzed the genetic characteristics and evolutionary patterns of the haemagglutinin (HA) 1 domains of influenza B viruses isolated during 1988-1999 using direct RT-PCR and sequencing. Phylogenetic analysis of influenza B viruses isolated in Korea indicated that antigenically and genetically distinguishable strains of the lineage II and lineage III variants had been cocirculated. Variants prevailed in early 1990s are represented in 1996/97 and 1998/99 and some different variants have been cocirculated geographically and prevailed concurrently in Korea. All HA1s of Korean isolates have amino acid substitutions mainly in the region between position 124 and 310, which was previously proposed an immunodominant region. Insertion-deletion patterns of the HA gene revealed that Korean influenza B viruses were evolved from Lee40 with different manner between lineage II and III viruses. Lineage III viruses were also divided into two groups as conserved group and inserted group, in relation to Lee40. But lineage II viruses had evolved with directional pattern. Antigenic index proposed that influenza B isolates prevailed since 1996/97 seasons might had emerged from the antigenic variants of a Seo1697-like virus and that new variants might appear from the lineage II viruses resulting in persistent prevalence in Korea.
Amino Acid Substitution ; Influenza B virus* ; Influenza, Human* ; Korea* ; Orthomyxoviridae ; Prevalence ; Seasons

PURPOSE: This study reports the development of the Korean Version of the Treatment Satisfaction Visual Analogue Scale (TS-VAS) and the Overactive Bladder Satisfaction with Treatment Questionnaire (OAB-SAT-q) based on the original versions, with subsequent linguistic validation by Korean patients with overactive bladder receiving active treatment from a physician. METHODS: Translation and linguistic validation were performed in 2016. The validation process included permission for translation, forward translation, reconciliation, backward translation, cognitive debriefing, and proofreading. The original versions of the TS-VAS and OAB-SAT-q were independently translated into Korean by 2 bilingual translators and were then reconciled into a single version. The third bilingual translator performed a backward translation of the reconciled version into English. A trained interviewer and 5 Korean-speaking patients with OAB carried out the cognitive debriefing. RESULTS: During the forward translation process, the terms used in the 2 questionnaires were adjusted to use more appropriate expressions in the Korean language than were used in the original versions. During the backward translation process, no changes were made in terms of semantic equivalence. In the cognitive debriefing session, 5 patients were asked to fill in the answers within 8 minutes; most of them reported that the translated questions were clear and easy to understand. CONCLUSIONS: The present study presents successful linguistic validation of the Korean version of the TS-VAS and OAB-SAT-q, which could be useful tools for evaluating treatment satisfaction in patients.
Humans ; Linguistics* ; Patient Satisfaction ; Semantics ; Urinary Bladder, Overactive*

A capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (capture ELISA) was developed to detect Clostridium botulinum neurotoxin type A (BoNT/A) in assay buffer and human serum. The assay is based upon affinity-purified rabbit polyclonal and biotinylated monoclonal antibodies directed against the BoNT/A complex purified from C. botulinum ATCC19397. For the capture ELISA, the optimized amount (2 microgram/ml) of rabbit polyclonal antibody was immobilized on ELISA plates to detect BoNT/A (ranging from 0 to 500 ng/ml), which was recognized by 2 microgram/ml of the monoclonal antibody. From three independent repeated experiments, standard curves were linear over the range of 0~31.25 ng/ml BoNT/A and the coefficients (r(2)) ranged from 0.9951~0.9999 for all assays. The inter-variations were typically 0.50~6.93% and the specificity was confirmed by showing no cross-reactivity against BoNT/B and /E. The detection limit of capture ELISA was 0.488 ng/ml, which was close to mouse LD(50). In addition, application with BoNT/A-spiking human sera showed a possibility to detect BoNT/A with capture ELISA from the contaminated human sera. Taken together, the newly developed capture ELISA could serve as a rapid and sensitive screening tool for detecting BoNT/A simultaneously from massive specimens.
Animals ; Antibodies, Monoclonal ; Clostridium botulinum ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Humans ; Limit of Detection ; Mass Screening ; Mice ; Sensitivity and Specificity