Many factors exert an influence on enzyme activity and thus on the rate of reactions that they catalyse. The most important of these factors are pH, temperature, substrate concentration, and the concentration of some inhibitors present. A solution of the enzyme diastase, which breaks down molecules of the polysaccharide starch to the disaccharide maltose by hydrolysis, was provided. Activity of these enzyme was measured by the rate at which starch was removed from the reaction mixture. These experiments were designed to study this reaction rate under varying conditions and the following results were obtained. 1. The range of optimum pH for this enzyme at room temperature was 4.0-7.0 and the optimum pH was 5.0. 2. The range of optimum temperatures for this enzyme at pH 7.0 was 30-50 degrees C and the optimum temperature was 40 degrees C. 3. The relationship between the enzyme activity and substrate concentration could be expressed by the Michaelis-Menten equation. The limiting velocity of these enzyme at room temperature and pH 7.0 was 415 microgram starch removed/ml of reaction mixture/min and Km, Michaelis constant, was 343 microgram/ml. 4. Inhibitors NaCl and HgCl2 blocked this enzyme activity completely at 1% and 0.01% respectively.
Amylases* ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Hydrolysis ; Maltose ; Mercuric Chloride ; Starch ; Water*

Asbestos industry has been in operation over 60 years in Korea. However, the prevalence of asbestosis has not been yet reported. With rapid turn-over of workers, previous cross-sectional studies of current workers on the job could not find cases with exposures long enough for the development of asbestosis. This study was done to evaluate asbestosis prevalence of those worksites with operation history of more than 20 years. In total, 139 workers from 5 worksites were examined. Asbestos industries covered in the study include 2 asbestos textile, 1 brake lining, and 2 ship repairing worksites. Chest x-ray was taken from all workers and read by two exports familiar with pneumoconiosis classification according to 1980 ILO guidelines. Those with findings compatible with asbestosis were further checked with high resolution computerized tomography (HRCT). Pulmonary function tests were done according to ATS guidelines, and occupational and previous medical history was taken through a standardized interview. Air-borne asbestos was measured according to NI0SH method 7400. The air-borno asbestos concentrations ranged from 0.2-1.3 f/cc for asbestos textile, from 0.7~l.0 f/cc for brake lining, and from 6.3-7.8 f/cc during asbestos removal at ship repairing worksite. Of the 139 workers 25 had abnormal chest radiographic findings, and 10 of them had findings compatible with pneumoconiosis. When work history and current asbestos measurements were accounted, 9 workers who had more than 10 years of asbestos exposure history showed chest radiographic findings of pneumoconiosis with Finally, 4 workers showed finding of pulmonary fibrosis and/or pleural thickening at HRCT, and 2 of them had restrictive lung function changes. The study results showed that, among 139 sutjects, there were 4 (3%) definite asbeatosis cases confirmed with HRCT. The prevalence of probable asbestosis was 7% for 10-14 years of exposure, 13% for 15-19 years of exposure, and 23% for 20 or more years of exposure. The prevalence of compensable asbestosis with abnormal lung function was 4-6% for those with 15 or more years of exposure.
Asbestos* ; Asbestosis* ; Classification ; Korea ; Lung ; Pneumoconiosis ; Prevalence* ; Pulmonary Fibrosis ; Radiography, Thoracic ; Respiratory Function Tests ; Ships ; Textiles ; Thorax ; Workplace

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the feasibility of robotic single-port transumbilical total hysterectomy using a home-made surgical glove port system. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients who underwent robotic single-port transumbilical total hysterectomy between January 2010 and July 2010. All surgical procedures were performed through a single 3-4-cm umbilical incision, with a multi-channel system consisting of a wound retractor, a surgical glove, and two 10/12-mm and two 8 mm trocars. RESULTS: Seven patients were treated with robotic single-port transumbilical total hysterectomy. Procedures included total hysterectomy due to benign gynecological disease (n=5), extra-fascial hysterectomy due to carcinoma in situ of the cervix (n=1), and radical hysterectomy due to cervical cancer IB1 (n=1). The median total operative time was 109 minutes (range, 105 to 311 minutes), the median blood loss was 100 mL (range, 10 to 750 mL), and the median weight of the resected uteri was 200 g (range, 40 to 310 g). One benign case was converted to 3-port robotic surgery due to severe pelvic adhesions, and no post-operative complications occurred. CONCLUSION: Robotic single-port transumbilical total hysterectomy is technically feasible in selected patients with gynecological disease. Robotics may enhance surgical skills during single-port transumbilical hysterectomy, especially in patients with gynecologic cancers.
Carcinoma in Situ ; Cervix Uteri ; Female ; Gloves, Surgical ; Gynecology ; Humans ; Hysterectomy ; Medical Records ; Operative Time ; Pilot Projects ; Retrospective Studies ; Robotics ; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms ; Uterus

A case of breast sparganosis was confirmed by surgical excision of a worm (fragmented into 5 pieces) in a 59-year-old Korean woman suffering from a palpable mass in the left breast. Mammography and ultrasonography characteristically revealed the presence of several well-defined, isodense and hypoechoic tubular masses, in the upper quadrant of the left breast, each mass consisting of a continuous cord- or worm-like structure. During surgery, a long segment of an actively moving sparganum of Spirometra sp. and 4 small fragments of the same worm, giving a total length of 20.3 cm, were extracted from the upper outer quadrant of the left breast and the axillary region. The infection source remains unclear, because the patient denied ingesting any snake or frog meat or drinking untreated water.
Middle Aged ; Humans ; Female ; Diphyllobothriasis/*diagnosis/parasitology/pathology ; Breast Diseases/*parasitology/pathology/*surgery

Gliosarcoma (GS) is a rare variant (2%) of glioblastoma (GBM) that poses clinical genomic challenges because of its poor prognosis and limited genomic information. To gain a comprehensive view of the genomic alterations in GS and to understand the molecular etiology of GS, we applied whole-exome sequencing analyses for 28 GS cases (6 blood-matched fresh-frozen tissues for the discovery set, 22 formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissues for the validation set) and copy-number variation microarrays for 5 blood-matched fresh-frozen tissues. TP53 mutations were more prevalent in the GS cases (20/28, 70%) compared to the GBM cases (29/90, 32%), and the GS patients with TP53 mutations showed a significantly shorter survival (multivariate Cox analysis, hazard ratio=23.9, 95% confidence interval, 2.87–199.63, P=0.003). A pathway analysis showed recurrent alterations in MAPK signaling (EGFR, RASGRF2 and TP53), phosphatidylinositol/calcium signaling (CACNA1s, PLCs and ITPRs) and focal adhesion/tight junction (PTEN and PAK3) pathways. Genomic profiling of the matched recurrent GS cases detected the occurrence of TP53 mutations in two recurrent GS cases, which suggests that TP53 mutations play a role in treatment resistance. Functionally, we found that TP53 mutations are associated with the epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) process of sarcomatous components of GS. We provide the first comprehensive genome-wide genetic alternation profiling of GS, which suggests novel prognostic subgroups in GS patients based on their TP53 mutation status and provides new insight in the pathogenesis and targeted treatment of GS.
Glioblastoma ; Gliosarcoma* ; Humans ; Prevalence* ; Prognosis

Background: Postoperative thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) suppression therapy is recommended for patients with intermediate- and high-risk differentiated thyroid cancer to prevent the recurrence of thyroid cancer. With the recent increase in small thyroid cancer cases, the extent of resection during surgery has generally decreased. Therefore, questions have been raised about the efficacy and long-term side effects of TSH suppression therapy in patients who have undergone a lobectomy. Methods: This is a multicenter, prospective, randomized, controlled clinical trial in which 2,986 patients with papillary thyroid cancer are randomized into a high-TSH group (intervention) and a low-TSH group (control) after having undergone a lobectomy. The principle of treatment includes a TSH-lowering regimen aimed at TSH levels between 0.3 and 1.99 μIU/mL in the low-TSH group. The high-TSH group targets TSH levels between 2.0 and 7.99 μIU/mL. The dose of levothyroxine will be adjusted at each visit to maintain the target TSH level. The primary outcome is recurrence-free survival, as assessed by neck ultrasound every 6 to 12 months. Secondary endpoints include disease-free survival, overall survival, success rate in reaching the TSH target range, the proportion of patients with major cardiovascular diseases or bone metabolic disease, the quality of life, and medical costs. The follow-up period is 5 years. Conclusion The results of this trial will contribute to establishing the optimal indication for TSH suppression therapy in low-risk papillary thyroid cancer patients by evaluating the benefit and harm of lowering TSH levels in terms of recurrence, metabolic complications, costs, and quality of life.

Background: Postoperative thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) suppression therapy is recommended for patients with intermediate- and high-risk differentiated thyroid cancer to prevent the recurrence of thyroid cancer. With the recent increase in small thyroid cancer cases, the extent of resection during surgery has generally decreased. Therefore, questions have been raised about the efficacy and long-term side effects of TSH suppression therapy in patients who have undergone a lobectomy. Methods: This is a multicenter, prospective, randomized, controlled clinical trial in which 2,986 patients with papillary thyroid cancer are randomized into a high-TSH group (intervention) and a low-TSH group (control) after having undergone a lobectomy. The principle of treatment includes a TSH-lowering regimen aimed at TSH levels between 0.3 and 1.99 μIU/mL in the low-TSH group. The high-TSH group targets TSH levels between 2.0 and 7.99 μIU/mL. The dose of levothyroxine will be adjusted at each visit to maintain the target TSH level. The primary outcome is recurrence-free survival, as assessed by neck ultrasound every 6 to 12 months. Secondary endpoints include disease-free survival, overall survival, success rate in reaching the TSH target range, the proportion of patients with major cardiovascular diseases or bone metabolic disease, the quality of life, and medical costs. The follow-up period is 5 years. Conclusion The results of this trial will contribute to establishing the optimal indication for TSH suppression therapy in low-risk papillary thyroid cancer patients by evaluating the benefit and harm of lowering TSH levels in terms of recurrence, metabolic complications, costs, and quality of life.