No abstract available.
Animals ; Dogs* ; Lactic Acid*

PURPOSE: Obesity is, along with metabolic syndrome, closely related with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. This study tried to evaluate the prevalence of nonalcoholic liver disease in obese children and verify the factors associated with the disease. METHODS: Two hundred and seventy nine children who showed a body mass index of 95 percentile over the baseline in health examinations of surrounding schools were evaluated. Questionnaires, body measurements, blood examinations, and ultrasonographic measurements of abdominal fat were examined. RESULTS: Out of 279 children enrolled for the study, 27 children were found to possess nonalcoholic liver disease(9.7%). Among those found to be positive for nonalcoholic liver disease, it's prevalence increased to 15.2%(22 out of 144 children) among children with severe obesity. Factors known to be involved with metabolic syndrome, namely waist/hip circumference ratio and thickness of abdominal fat, were found to be closely related to nonalcoholic fatty liver as well. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of nonalcoholic fatty liver in obese children was 9.7%, with higher incidence observable in severer obesity. Factors responsible for metabolic syndrome were closely associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, and the level of insulin resistance, which is an useful index in both diseases, can be utilized in evaluation of the effect of treatment and control of risk factors.
Abdominal Fat ; Body Mass Index ; Child* ; Fatty Liver* ; Humans ; Incidence ; Insulin Resistance ; Liver ; Liver Diseases ; Obesity ; Obesity, Morbid ; Prevalence* ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Risk Factors

Our previous experimental work with tissue plasminogen activator (TPA) suggested the possibility of the clearance of vitreous hemorrhage by repetitive injections of low-dose TPA. We therefore investigated in rabbits the effect of both repeated injections of TPA and the change of the integrity of the vitreous body on the clearance of vitreous hemorrhage. Vitreous hemorrhage was produced by intravitreal injection of 0.05 ml of autologous whole blood in the pigmented rabbit eyes with intact vitreous or gas-compressed vitreous. Three intravitreal injections of 3-g TPA (total dose of 9 microgram), separated by 7-day intervals, were performed. The endpoint for vitreous hemorrhage clearance was defined as clear visualization of the posterior central retina of the rabbits. Regardless of whether gas compression vitrectomy was performed, repeated injections of low-dose TPA resulted in rapid clearance of fresh vitreous hemorrhage in approximately two to three weeks after the last TPA injection. No evidence of retinal toxicity was seen in all experimental groups. Repetitive injections of low-dose TPA may be effective in the treatment of fresh vitreous hemorrhage.
Animals ; Disease Models, Animal ; Injections ; Rabbits ; Tissue Plasminogen Activator/*administration & dosage/therapeutic use ; Vitreous Body/drug effects ; Vitreous Hemorrhage/*drug therapy

The hypervariable short tandem repeat (STR) locus D12S391 was investigated in a Korean population. A total of 14 alleles were detected by size under denaturing conditions in 517 unrelated individuals. To confirm all of the alleles detected in a Korean population, a total of 34 fragments were sequenced. Prior to allele designation, we constructed the allelic ladders containing 11 alleles sequenced in this study. Allele 18 is the most common with a frequency of 0.281 in Koreans, and one variant allele 19.3 which have been confirmed by sequencing, was detected. The observed heterozygosity, the power of discrimination (PD), and the mean exclusion chance (MEC) for the locus D12S391 is 0.781, 0.946 and 0.652, respectively. No deviation from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium was observed in a Korean population (p=0.557). In the 424 meioses in 105 Korean families confirmed using other 17 STR loci, no mutation was detected in locus D12S391. The STR locus D12S391system is useful both for the analysis identification and parternity.
Alleles ; Discrimination (Psychology) ; Gene Frequency ; Genetics, Population* ; Humans ; Meiosis ; Microsatellite Repeats ; Sequence Analysis

PURPOSE: Insulin-like growth factors (IGF) regulate a wide range of biological functions including cell proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis through paracrine and autocrine mechanisms. Accordingly, the present study analyzed polymorphisms of IGF genes and their impact on the prognosis for patients with colorectal cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Four hundred and two consecutive patients with curatively resected colorectal adenocarcinoma were enrolled in the present study. The genomic DNA was extracted from fresh colorectal tissue and 8 polymorphisms of IGF genes determined using a real-time polymerase chain reaction genotyping assay. RESULTS: Pathologic stages after surgery were as follows: stage 0/I (n=85, 21.1%), stage II (n=147, 36.6%), stage III (n=145, 36.1%), and stage IV (n=25, 6.2%). Multivariate survival analysis including stage, age, site of disease, and carcinoembryonic antigen level showed that the progression-free survival for patients with the IGF2 +1280 GG genotype was slightly better than for the patients with the combined IGF2 +1280 AA and AG genotype (p=0.056), although there was no significant difference in the overall survival. However, the other polymorphisms were not associated with survival. CONCLUSION: None of the 8 IGF1 or IGF2 gene polymorphisms investigated in this study were found to be independent prognostic markers for Korean patients with surgically resected colorectal cancer.
Adenocarcinoma ; Apoptosis ; Carcinoembryonic Antigen ; Cell Proliferation ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; Disease-Free Survival ; DNA ; Genotype ; Humans ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Prognosis ; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Somatomedins

PURPOSE: Insulin-like growth factors (IGF) regulate a wide range of biological functions including cell proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis through paracrine and autocrine mechanisms. Accordingly, the present study analyzed polymorphisms of IGF genes and their impact on the prognosis for patients with colorectal cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Four hundred and two consecutive patients with curatively resected colorectal adenocarcinoma were enrolled in the present study. The genomic DNA was extracted from fresh colorectal tissue and 8 polymorphisms of IGF genes determined using a real-time polymerase chain reaction genotyping assay. RESULTS: Pathologic stages after surgery were as follows: stage 0/I (n=85, 21.1%), stage II (n=147, 36.6%), stage III (n=145, 36.1%), and stage IV (n=25, 6.2%). Multivariate survival analysis including stage, age, site of disease, and carcinoembryonic antigen level showed that the progression-free survival for patients with the IGF2 +1280 GG genotype was slightly better than for the patients with the combined IGF2 +1280 AA and AG genotype (p=0.056), although there was no significant difference in the overall survival. However, the other polymorphisms were not associated with survival. CONCLUSION: None of the 8 IGF1 or IGF2 gene polymorphisms investigated in this study were found to be independent prognostic markers for Korean patients with surgically resected colorectal cancer.
Adenocarcinoma ; Apoptosis ; Carcinoembryonic Antigen ; Cell Proliferation ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; Disease-Free Survival ; DNA ; Genotype ; Humans ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Prognosis ; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Somatomedins

Objectives: . Using tissue-engineered materials for esophageal reconstruction is a technically challenging task in animals that requires bioreactor training to enhance cellular reactivity. There have been many attempts at esophageal tissue engineering, but the success rate has been limited due to difficulty in initial epithelialization in the special environment of peristalsis. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the potential of an artificial esophagus that can enhance the regeneration of esophageal mucosa and muscle through the optimal combination of a double-layered polymeric scaffold and a custom-designed mesenchymal stem cell-based bioreactor system in a canine model. Methods: . We fabricated a novel double-layered scaffold as a tissue-engineered esophagus using an electrospinning technique. Prior to transplantation, human-derived mesenchymal stem cells were seeded into the lumen of the scaffold, and bioreactor cultivation was performed to enhance cellular reactivity. After 3 days of cultivation using the bioreactor system, tissue-engineered artificial esophagus was transplanted into a partial esophageal defect (5×3 cm-long resection) in a canine model. Results: . Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed that the electrospun fibers in a tubular scaffold were randomly and circumferentially located toward the inner and outer surfaces. Complete recovery of the esophageal mucosa was confirmed by endoscopic analysis and SEM. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy and computed tomography also showed that there were no signs of leakage or stricture and that there was a normal lumen with complete epithelialization. Significant regeneration of the mucosal layer was observed by keratin-5 immunostaining. Alpha-smooth muscle actin immunostaining showed significantly greater esophageal muscle regeneration at 12 months than at 6 months. Conclusion . Custom-designed bioreactor cultured electrospun polyurethane scaffolds can be a promising approach for esophageal tissue engineering.

PURPOSE: This study analyzed potentially functional polymorphisms in CASPASE (CASP) genes and their impact on the prognosis for Korean colorectal cancer patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 397 consecutive patients with curatively resected colorectal adenocarcinoma were enrolled in this study. Genomic DNA from these patients was extracted from fresh colorectal tissue, and the 10 polymorphisms in the CASP3, CASP6, CASP7, CASP8, CASP9, and CASP10 genes were determined using a reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction genotyping assay. RESULTS: The median patient age was 63 years, and 218 (54.9%) patients had colon cancer, while 179 (45.1%) patients had rectal cancer. Univariate and multivariate survival analysis including pathologic stage, patient age, differentiation, and carcinoembryonic antigen level demonstrated that these polymorphisms were not associated with either disease-free or overall survival. CONCLUSION: None of the 10 polymorphisms in the CASP genes investigated in this study was found to be an independent prognostic marker for Korean patients with curatively resected colorectal cancer.
Adenocarcinoma ; Carcinoembryonic Antigen ; Caspase 3 ; Caspases ; Colonic Neoplasms ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; DNA ; Humans ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Prognosis ; Rectal Neoplasms ; Reverse Transcription

The present study analyzed the prognostic impact of MET gene copy number in patients with curatively resected gastric cancer who received a combination regimen of cisplatin and S-1. The MET gene copy number was analyzed by use of quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. From January 2006 to July 2010, 70 tumor samples from 74 patients enrolled in a pilot study were analyzed. According to a cutoff MET gene copy number of > or =2 copies, a high MET gene copy number was observed in 38 patients (54.3%). The characteristics of the 2 groups divided according to MET gene copy number were similar. With a median follow-up duration of 26.4 months (range, 2.6-73.2 months), the estimated 3-year relapse-free survival and overall survival rates were 54.3% and 77.4%, respectively. No significant association was observed between the MET gene copy number and survival in a multivariate analysis. The MET gene copy number investigated in this study was not found to be associated with prognosis in patients with curatively resected gastric cancer.
Chemotherapy, Adjuvant ; Cisplatin ; Follow-Up Studies ; Gene Dosage ; Humans ; Multivariate Analysis ; Pilot Projects ; Prognosis ; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Stomach Neoplasms ; Survival Rate