Although encounters with poisonous marine organisms occur predominantly in warm temperatures and tropical seas, dangerous marine animals are found as far north as 50degrees latitude. There are some 1000 catfish species inhabiting both fresh and salt waters; many of these fishes are capable of inflicting serious stings. The oriental catfish (Plotosus lineatus) possesses one of the most potent known marine toxins, and it is potentially lethal. We report a case of moderate envenomation by an oriental catfish. A 42-year-old male was stung by an oriental catfish. A puncture wound was noted on his left swollen thumb. He complained of severe pain in the hand and forearm, especially in the punctured finger. Initial management included hotwater immersion, tetanus prophylaxis, antibiotics, analgesics and digital nerve block. He was discharged after observation in the emergency department.
Adult ; Analgesics ; Animals ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Aquatic Organisms ; Bites and Stings ; Catfishes* ; Emergency Service, Hospital ; Fingers ; Fishes ; Forearm ; Hand ; Humans ; Immersion ; Male ; Marine Toxins ; Nerve Block ; Oceans and Seas ; Punctures ; Spine* ; Tetanus ; Thumb ; Wounds and Injuries

This study investigated the hypothesis that the dentin bond strength of self-etching adhesive (SEA) might be improved by applying additional layer of bonding resin that might alleviate the pH difference between the SEA and the restorative composite resin. Two SEAs were used in this study; Experimental SEA (Exp, pH: 1.96) and Adper Prompt (AP, 3M ESPE, USA, pH: 1.0). In the control groups, they were applied with two sequential coats. In the experimental groups, after applying the first coat of assigned SEAs, the D/E bonding resin of All-Bond 2 (Bisco Inc., USA, pH: 6.9) was applied as the intermediate adhesive. Z-250 (3M ESPE, USA) composite resin was built-up in order to prepare hourglass-shaped specimens. The microtensile bond strength (MTBS) was measured and the effect of the intermediate layer on the bond strength was analyzed for each SEA using t-test. The fracture mode of each specimen was inspected using stereomicroscope and Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope (FE-SEM). When D/E bonding resin was applied as the second coat, MTBS was significantly higher than that of the control groups. The incidence of the failure between the adhesive and the composite or between the adhesive and dentin decreased and that of the failure within the adhesive layer increased. According to the results, applying the bonding resin of neutral pH can increase the bond strength of SEAs by alleviating the difference in acidity between the SEA and restorative composite resin.
Adhesives* ; Dentin* ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Incidence ; Oceans and Seas

Advances in novel drugs, therapies, and genetic techniques have revolutionized the diagnosis and treatment of cancers, substantially improving cancer patients' prognosis. Although rare tumors account for a non-negligible number, the practice of precision medicine and development of novel therapies are largely hampered by many obstacles. Their low incidence and drastic regional disparities result in the difficulty of informative evidence-based diagnosis and subtyping. Sample exhaustion due to difficulty in diagnosis also leads to a lack of recommended therapeutic strategies in clinical guidelines, insufficient biomarkers for prognosis/efficacy, and inability to identify potential novel therapies in clinical trials. Herein, by reviewing the epidemiological data of Chinese solid tumors and publications defining rare tumors in other areas, we proposed a definition of rare tumor in China, including 515 tumor types with incidences of less than 2.5/100 000 per year. We also summarized the current diagnosis process, treatment recommendations, and global developmental progress of targeted drugs and immunotherapy agents on the status quo. Lastly, we pinpointed the current recommendation chance for patients with rare tumors to be involved in a clinical trial by NCCN. With this informative report, we aimed to raise awareness on the importance of rare tumor investigations and guarantee a bright future for rare tumor patients.
Humans ; Neoplasms/pathology* ; Biomarkers ; Prognosis ; Oceans and Seas ; China/epidemiology*

OBJECTIVETo determine the metal contents of lichen species from East Black Sea region of Turkey for investigation of trace metal pollution sourced traffic.

METHODSThe levels of copper, cadmium, lead, zinc, manganese, iron, chromium, nickel, cobalt, palladium in lichen samples collected from East Black Sea region of Turkey were determined by flame and graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry after microwave digestion method. The accuracy of the method was corrected by standard reference material (NIST SRM IAEA-336 Lichen).

RESULTSThe contents of investigated trace metals in lichen samples were 7.19-22.4 microg/g for copper, 0.10-0.64 microg/g for cadmium, 4.03-44.6 microg/g for lead, 14.5-41.8 microg/g for zinc, 25.8-208 microg/g for manganese, 331-436 microg/g for iron, 1.20-3.01 microg/g for chromium, 1.48-3.90 microg/g for nickel, 0.20-3.55 microg/g for cobalt, 0.11-0.64 microg/g for palladium. The results were compared with the literature values.

CONCLUSIONSome lichen species such as Xanthoparmelia conspersa, Xanthoria calcicola, Peltigera membranacea, and Physcia adscendens are accumulated trace metals at a high ratio.

Environmental Monitoring ; Lichens ; chemistry ; Metals, Heavy ; analysis ; Oceans and Seas ; Transportation ; Turkey

PURPOSE: The death rate of liver cancer in Korea has been reported as one of the highest in the world. This study was conducted to investigate geographical variations of liver cancer mortality in Korea in order to obtain insight into possible environmental factors related to liver cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The sex-specific standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) of liver cancer were calculated for 168 basic administrative units in Korea based upon the vital statistics for the seven years 1992 to 1998, as well as the sex- and age-specific population of each area for 1995. The SMRs were classified into six categories and depicted on a map for each sex. RESULTS: The southern provinces showed clearly higher mortality rates as compared to the rest of the country in both males and females. Looking at the maps in detail, there was a geographical variation even within the southern provinces. The areas around large rivers, some costal areas, and costal islands showed a high mortality rate. Even in the middle and northern provinces, the eastern costal areas showed relatively higher mortality rates as compared to inland areas. Conversely, some southern areas known for low levels of pollution showed relatively lower mortality rates. CONCLUSION: This finding suggests a possible relationship between liver cancer and water-related foods from polluted rivers or seas. Further studies should be performed in order to clarify which factors cause this geographical variation.
Female ; Humans ; Islands ; Korea* ; Liver Neoplasms* ; Liver* ; Male ; Mortality* ; Oceans and Seas ; Rivers ; Vital Statistics

The evolutionary transition from single cells to the metazoan forced the appearance of adult stem cells and a hypoxic niche, when oxygenation of the environment forced the appearance of oxidative phosphorylation from that of glycolysis. The prevailing paradigm in the cancer field is that cancers start from the "immortalization" or "re-programming" of a normal, differentiated cell with many mitochondria, that metabolize via oxidative phosphorylation. This paradigm has been challenged with one that assumes that the target cell for carcinogenesis is the normal, immortal adult stem cell, with few mitochondria. This adult organ-specific stem cell is blocked from "mortalizing" or from "programming" to be terminally differentiated. Two hypotheses have been offered to explain cancers, namely, the "stem cell theory" and the "de-differentiation" or "re-programming" theory. This Commentary postulates that the paleochemistry of the oceans, which, initially, provided conditions for life's energy to arise via glycolysis, changed to oxidative phosphorylation for life's processes. In doing so, stem cells evolved, within hypoxic niches, to protect the species germinal and somatic genomes. This Commentary provides support for the "stem cell theory", in that cancer cells, which, unlike differentiated cells, have few mitochondria and metabolize via glycolysis. The major argument against the "de-differentiation theory" is that, if re-programming of a differentiated cell to an "induced pluri-potent stem cell" happened in an adult, teratomas, rather than carcinomas, should be the result.
Adult ; Adult Stem Cells ; Energy Metabolism ; Genome ; Glycolysis ; Humans ; Mitochondria ; Oceans and Seas ; Oxidative Phosphorylation ; Oxygen ; Stem Cells ; Teratoma

Compared with cultured fish, the fish oil of ocean wild fish contains much more Eicosapntemacnioc acid (EPA), Docosahexenoic acid (DHA), fat-soluble vitamin. To improve the utility value of oacean wild fish, small hairtail was used as raw material to investigate the technology of extracting fish oil with enzyme. The variables to affect the efficiency of extraction, extracting and centrifugation were selected as temperature, reaction time and pH value. Optimal technology conditions were determined by the response surface method: The liquid/solid ratio is 6, pH 7.3, enzyme amount of 1000 u/g raw material, agitation speed of 200 r/min, enzymolysis under 45 degrees C for 90 min. The optimum extraction conditions were as follows: 100 mL extractant (every 20 g surimi), pH4.0, extracted under 40 degrees C for 25 min. The optimal centrifuge conditions were: centrifuge speed of 3000 r/min (1865 g), centrifuged for 10 min. The oil extraction efficiency was 79.9%. This study developed the traditional technology of fish oil extraction, and improved the protection of the active components.
Animals ; Docosahexaenoic Acids ; analysis ; Eicosapentaenoic Acid ; analysis ; Enzymes ; metabolism ; Fish Oils ; isolation & purification ; Fishes ; metabolism ; Oceans and Seas ; Technology, Pharmaceutical ; methods

OBJECTIVEThe wetland at Dalian Bay in the Northeast of China has been polluted by oil severely. The effect of various microbes and operation parameters on the bioremediation of oil-polluted wetlands at Dalian Bay was investigated and reported previously. In the study, other operation conditions related to the status of medium were investigated via statistical experimental design and analysis and a necessary information is involved to use micro-technology in the application.

METHODSThe method used involved the direct inoculation of selected bacteria, which were capable of degrading oil. The operation conditions were further optimized and evaluated by gravimetrical assay.

RESULTSThe optimal pH and temperature for the studied bacteria to degrade the existing oil pollutants were established as pH 8.0 and 27 degrees C. The mixed of various bacteria showed better results in terms of oil degradation than any single one. Among the selected four factors, disturbance, oxidant, nutrients, and biosurfactant, the former two contributed more impacts on the oil degradation in the early stage of process, while the latter two became the limiting factors in the late stage. Three sets of optimal conditions were obtained for each individual stage, but no one was suitable for the overall process.

CONCLUSIONThe study demonstrated the technical feasibility of using direct inoculation into the contaminated soil samples to remove oil pollutants. It suggested that the operation conditions should be monitored and adjusted during the different stages of bio-reactions in the process to achieve the best result of oil degradation.

Bacteria ; metabolism ; Biodegradation, Environmental ; China ; Ecosystem ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration ; Oceans and Seas ; Petroleum ; metabolism ; Soil ; analysis ; Soil Pollutants ; chemistry ; metabolism ; Temperature

PURPOSE: This study was designed to determine the characteristics of patients who suffered from an injury associated with a maritime accident. METHODS: Using reviews of medical records, we retrospectively investigated the characteristics of maritime accident related injured patients that visited the emergency center of Inha University hospital. Variables analyzed were age, sex, sailor or passenger, type of accident, time required to arrive at the hospital, type of injury, site of injury, submersion or not, level of submersion, severity of injury, disposition of injury, type of ship, gross tonnage of ship, and distance from shore. RESULTS: Between January 1999 and December 2009, a total of 85 patients who were injured because of a maritime accident visited the emergency center of InHa Univ. hospital. The mean age of patients was 45.7+/-15.1 years old. Fifty four were male and 31 were female. The most common types of injury were submersion (40.0%) and contusion (38.8%). Submersed patients as a group had a higher injury severity and higher mortality than those not submersed. The most frequent sites of injury were the extremities (62.9%) and the head and neck (35.5%). The mean injury severity scale were 4.63+/-13.05 units?. Almost all patients (85.9%) had a mild degree of injury. The mortality rate was 10.6%; the most common cause of death was drowning. CONCLUSION: Submerged patients have a higher injury severity and mortality than non-submerged patients. Capsizing and sinking is associated with a higher severity of injury and mortality according to the type of accident, because submersion confers high risk for injury and mortality. Prevention of submersion is important for reducing injury severity and mortality in patients who have maritime accidents.
Cause of Death ; Contusions ; Emergencies ; Extremities ; Female ; Head ; Humans ; Immersion ; Male ; Medical Records ; Military Personnel ; Neck ; Oceans and Seas ; Retrospective Studies ; Ships

The present study was performed to determine the infection status of anisakid larvae in marine fish collected from 3 sea areas of the Republic of Korea. Total 86 marine fish (8 species) collected from the East Sea (Goseong-gun, Gangwon-do), 171 fish (10 species) from the South Sea (Sacheon-si, Gyeongsangnam-do), and 92 fish (7 species) from the Yellow Sea (Incheon Metropolitan City) were examined by both naked eyes and artificial digestion method. Among the total of 349 fish examined, 213 (61.0%) were infected with 8 species of anisakid larvae, i.e., Anisakis simplex, 6 types of Contracaecum spp., and Raphidascaris sp., and the mean larval density was 13.8 per infected fish. Anisakid larvae were detected in 45 fish (52.3%) from the East Sea, 131 fish (76.6%) from the South Sea, and 37 fish (40.2%) from the Yellow Sea. The average numbers of larvae detected were 4.0, 16.6, and 15.9, respectively. Anisakis simplex larvae were detected in 149 fish (42.7%), and the mean larval density was 9.0 per infected fish. They were found in 26 fish (30.2%) collected from the East Sea, 96 fish (56.1%) from the South Sea, and 27 fish (29.3%) from the Yellow Sea. The average numbers of larvae detected were 2.9, 10.3, and 10.5, respectively. Conclusively, the present study suggests that the infection rate and density of anisakid larvae are more or less higher in the fish from the South Sea than those from the East Sea or the Yellow Sea.
Animals ; Anisakiasis/epidemiology/parasitology/*veterinary ; Anisakis/*isolation & purification ; Data Collection ; Fish Diseases/*epidemiology/parasitology ; Fishes ; Larva ; Oceans and Seas ; Republic of Korea/epidemiology