BACKGROUND: Plant extracts have been widely used as important therapeutic drugs for many centuries all over the world. There have been many reports that natural products have various kinds of biological activities such as anti-allergy, anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial activities. Recently, the screening for the efficacy and safety of natural products has been extensively performed. OBJECTIVE: This study was carried out to find a beneficial plant extract possessing excellent antioxidative and anti-melanogenic activities. We have found that the leaf of Robinia pseudo-acacia L. has active substances which are involved in those activities. METHODS: To confirm the antioxidative activity of the extract obtained from the leaves of Robinia pseudo-acacia L., scavenging ability of the extract on DPPH free radicals and its inhibitory effects on lipid autoxidation and peroxidation were investigated. In addition, inhibitory effects of the extract on mushroom tyrosinase as well as melanin biosynthesis in cultured B16 melanoma cells were evaluated. RESULTS: The acacia extract showed not only powerful antioxidative activity but also antimelanogenic acitivity as strong as that of arbutin which is a well known inhibitor of melanogenesis. CONCLUSION: These resulis suggest that the extract from the leaves of Robinia pseudo-acacia L. could be used as a 4ghtening and antioxidative agent for the skin.
Acacia ; Agaricales ; Arbutin ; Biological Products ; Free Radicals ; Mass Screening ; Melanins ; Melanoma, Experimental ; Monophenol Monooxygenase ; Plant Extracts ; Plants ; Robinia* ; Skin

No abstract available.
Animals ; Humans* ; Mice* ; Muramidase* ; Paneth Cells* ; Rats*

The incidence of conjoined twins is so rare that few anesthesiologists have an opportunity of managing them. Especially in Korea, there are only a few reports describing the anesthetic management for surgical separation of newborn conjoined twins. We experienced the successful anesthetic management for surgical separation of thoraco-xiphopagus conjoined twins without any particular problems. After applying the noninvasive monitors (ECG, pulse oximeter), one of the twins (twinA) with congenital heart disease was administered with intravenous ketamine for induction of anesthesia and intubated without neuromuscular blocker. Anesthesia was maintained with N2O-O2 and hand ventilation using Mapleson D breathing circuit. After maintaining airway of the twinA, the twinB was intubated and maintained with the same manner. Eighteen days after the separation procedure, the twinA with congenital heart disease died and the other one, twinB has been alive with normal growth and development.
Anesthesia ; Growth and Development ; Hand ; Heart Defects, Congenital ; Humans ; Incidence ; Infant, Newborn ; Ketamine ; Korea ; Neuromuscular Blockade ; Respiration ; Twins, Conjoined* ; Ventilation

BACKGROUND: Paraquat is a widely used herbicide, known to cause lethal toxicity in humans. Most studies about paraquat have concentrated on systemic toxicity, however several cases of paraquat-induced dermatitis have been reported. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to confirm the cutaneous toxic effect of paraquat and to select potential antidotes in paraquat-induced dermatitis. METHODS: Keratinocyte toxicity due to paraquat and the toxicity reduction capacity of several drugs were investigated in eitro. Topical effects of these drugs on paraquat-induced dermatitis in guinea pig skin was also investigated. RESULTS: Over 50% of keratinocytes failed to survive at a concentration of 2X10-4M paraquat by a neutral red uptake assay. Skin irritation by paraquat was observed at 2% concentration by non-invasive methods as well as a skin biopsy. Dexamethasone, glutathione and tocopherol showed some capacity to reduce paraquat-induced keratinocyte toxicity in vitro. Only dexamethasone, however, showed a reduction of cutaneous blood flow volume and dermal inflammatory cell infiltration in the guinea pig study. CONCLUSION: This result indicates the possible in eitro protective effect of paraquat toxicity in glutathione and tocopherol. Dexamethasone was capable of reducing paraquat-induced cytotoxicity and dermatitis both in vitro and in vivo.
Animals ; Antidotes* ; Biopsy ; Dermatitis ; Dexamethasone ; Glutathione ; Guinea Pigs ; Humans ; In Vitro Techniques ; Keratinocytes ; Neutral Red ; Paraquat* ; Skin* ; Tocopherols

Morphometry of nuclei of the benign and malignant prostatic lesions was performed to study the relationship between nuclear size and shape and the prognosis of prostatic adenocarcinoma. Fifty one cases of prostatic adenocarcinoma and 13 cases of benign prostatic hyperplasia were included to evaluate area, perimeter, Dmax, Dmin, and 5 form factors of the nuclei by image analyzer (Zeiss Ibas 2000) using hematoxylin-eosin stained slides. All analytic factors of nuclear size and shape were significantly different between benign lesions and adenocarcinomas. Increased nuclear size was associated with nu- clear irregularity, presence of metastasis, advanced clinical stage, and high Gleason's grade and score of prostatic adenocarcinoma. On Kaplan-Meier method, survival was decreased with older age, no hormonal treatment, stage D, high Gleason's grade and stage as well as with larger size and irregular shape of the nuclei. In conclusion, morphometry of nuclei of the prostate can be a helpful tool to differentiate between benign and malignant lesions. Nuclear morphology is thought to be associated with prognosis of prostatic adenocarcinoma.
Adenocarcinoma ; Breast ; Fibroadenoma ; Hepatitis B e Antigens* ; Hepatitis B Surface Antigens* ; Hepatitis B* ; Hepatitis* ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Prognosis ; Prostate ; Prostatic Hyperplasia

No abstract available.

No abstract available.
Asthma* ; Child* ; Dermatitis, Atopic* ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin E* ; Rhinitis*

A localized area of alopecia of the scalp can be a challenge in diagnosis. We report two patients with alopecia which was found to be associated with underlying congenital melanocytic nevus. Congenital melanocytic nevus should be taken into consideration in the differential diagnosis of alopecic plaques of the scalp.
Alopecia* ; Diagnosis ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Humans ; Nevus, Pigmented* ; Scalp

Though the occurrence of multiple primary malignant tumor is a rare finding but the reported cases of it has increased in recent years. We collected multiple primary cancer of different organ, tissue and the multicentric origin of bilaterally paired organs. This paper reports 6 cases of multiple primary malignant tumors which were experienced at Yeungnam university hospital in Taegu during the past 2 years with review of journals. The results were as follows. 1. The incidence of multiple primary cancer was 0.31% for 2 years (1987-1988). 2. The ratio between male and female was 1:1 and mean age of incidence was 54.1 years. 3. The ratio between synchronous and metachronous (interval more than 6 months) was 1:1. 4. The time interval between first and second cancer was average 2.7 years in metachronous cases. 5. The most frequent involved organ was stomach, breast and colon in order of frequency. 6. The incidence of familial cancer associations was found in one out of 6 cases. 7. The test of DNCB, multitest CMI and ratio of T4 to T8 were performed in 4 cases but there was no definitive evidence of abnormality. We concluded that every effort should be made to discover the presence of synchronous malignancies in the patients who are being treated for a known tumor, and also special care should be given to detect new metachronous lesions is required.
Breast ; Colon ; Daegu ; Dinitrochlorobenzene ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Neoplasms, Second Primary ; Stomach

BACKGROUND: Nitric Oxide (NO) has been discovered to be an important endothelium-derived relaxing factor. The exogenous inhaled NO may diffuse from the alveoli to pulmonary vascular smooth muscle and produce pulmonary vasodilation, but any NO that diffuses into blood will be inactivated before it can produce systemic effects. To examine the effects of NO on pulmonary and systemic hemodynamics, NO was inhaled by experimental dogs in an attempt to reduce the increase in pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) and pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) induced by hypoxia in dogs. METHODS: Eight mongrel dogs were studied while inhaling 1)50% O2 (baseline), 2)12% O2 in N2 (hypoxia), 3)followed by the same hypoxic gas mixture of O2 and N2 containing 20, 40 and 80 ppm of NO, respectively. RESULTS: Breathing at FIO2 0.12 nearly doubled the pulmonary vascular resistance from 173 56dyn sec cm-5 to 407 139dyn sec cm-5 and significantly increased the mean pulmonary artery pressure from 16 3mmHg to 22 4mmHg. After adding 20~80 ppm NO to the inspired gas while maintaining the FIO2 at 0.12, the mean pulmonary artery pressure decreased (p<0.05) to the level when breathing oxygen at FIO2 0.5 while the PaO2 and PaCO2 were unchanged. The pulmonary vascular resistance decreased significantly and the right ventricular stroke work index returned to a level similar to breathing at FIO2 0.5 by addition of NO into the breathing circuit. Pulmonary hypertension resumed within 3~5 minutes of ceasing NO inhalation. In none of our studies did inhaling NO produce systemic hypotension and elevate methemoglobin levels. CONCLUSIONS: Inhalation of 20~80 ppm NO selectively induced pulmonary vasodilation and reversed hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction without causing systemic vasodilation and bronchodilation. Methemoglobin and NO2 were within normal limit during the study.
Animals ; Anoxia ; Dogs ; Endothelium-Dependent Relaxing Factors ; Hemodynamics* ; Hypertension, Pulmonary ; Hypotension ; Inhalation* ; Methemoglobin ; Muscle, Smooth, Vascular ; Nitric Oxide* ; Oxygen ; Pulmonary Artery ; Respiration ; Stroke ; Vascular Resistance ; Vasoconstriction* ; Vasodilation