BACKGROUND: bFGF, a member of the fibroblast growth factor family, potently induces vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation and decreased synthesis of the collagens. OBJECTIVE: For further investigation of the effect of bFGF on extracellular matrix homeostasis in the skin, we evaluated the expression of type I and type VII collagen gene at the transcriptional levels. METHOD: We examined that recombinant human bFGF affects the expression of genes involved in ECM synthesis and remodeling in human dermal fibroblasts cultures as judged by Northern blot analysis. RESULTS: The steady state levels of type I and VII collagen gene mRNA were decreased with age dependent pattern up to 0.13 and 0.44 folds respectively. The transcriptional levels of type I collagen mRNA were increased by TGF-B, treatment but markedly decreased by bFGF as well as TNF-a. But there were no synergistic effects bFGF and TNF-a on type I collagen gene expression. The levels of type VII collagen gene expression were increased by both bFGF and TGF-B,. The TNF-a showed slightly antagnostic effects on type VII collagen gene expression. CONCLUSION: The type I and VII collagen gene expression in dermal fibroblasts is clearly subjected to modulation by the cytokines including bFGF with uncoordinate regulatory pathway. In addition to its function of vascular proliferation, bFGF also may play a major role in physiologic skin condition and in repair process such as formation of a stable dermoepidermal junction during skin wound healing.
Blotting, Northern ; Cell Proliferation ; Collagen Type I ; Collagen Type VII ; Collagen* ; Cytokines ; Extracellular Matrix ; Fibroblast Growth Factors ; Fibroblasts* ; Gene Expression* ; Homeostasis ; Humans ; Methods ; Muscle, Smooth, Vascular ; RNA, Messenger ; Skin ; Wound Healing

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

STUDY OBJECTIVE: We evaluate the clinical characteristics and natural history of patients presenting with spontaneous pneumomediastinum (SPNM) . DESIGN: A retrospective case series was conducted to identify patients diagnosed with SPNM. ICD-7(J98.2) discharge codes were used for Jan. 1993 to Aug. 1996 at four institutions , and emergency department(ED) records and admission charts were reviewed. Clinical features, interventions, complications, setting, etiology, symptoms, and length of hospital stay were recorded. PARTICIPANTS: All ED patients more than 12 years old with a diagnosis of SPNM. RESULTS: Thirteen cases were identified. Age range was 14 to 58 years(mean 24 years). Presenting symptoms were chest pain in eight(62%), dyspnea in six(46%), both symptoms in three(23%), no complaints in three(23%). Seven(54%) patients complained only of throat discomfort. Seven(54%) had subcutaneous emphysema, and two(15.3%) had a small pneumothorax. Two(15.3%) were smokers. Three(23%) had normal esophagograms and another three had normal chest CT findings. Two cases(15.3%) were associated with inhalational drug use and three cases were due to exercise. Nine cases(69%) had a history of "Valsalva-type" maneuver. Two patients(15%) had a history of antituberculous treatment and one(7.7.%) had suffered from bronchial asthma. Mean hospital days were 7.3 days(range 3 to 14), none of all needed any intervention. Specifically, no patient developed a subsequent pneumothorax or airway compromise. Seven cases(54%) were received prophylactic antibiotics. CONCLUSION: Most simple SPNM cases are benign disease and most of them(78%) had shown typical chest pain, dyspnea and subcutaneous emphysema. Inhalational drug use is not a main cause of SPNM yet, but increase in use of bronchoinhalers is a suspicous cause of SPNM.
Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Asthma ; Chest Pain ; Child ; Diagnosis ; Dyspnea ; Emergencies ; Humans ; Length of Stay ; Mediastinal Emphysema* ; Natural History* ; Pharynx ; Pneumothorax ; Retrospective Studies ; Subcutaneous Emphysema ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

The infection with tapeworm of the Mesocestodes sp. has been rarely reported and only 8 cases of human infection were found in the world up to date. This is to report the first case of human infection with this tapeworm belonged to Cyclophyllidea in Korea. In January 1967, a 45 years old man visited to the out clinic of St. Mary's Hospital with the complaints of intermittent indigestion and abdominal distension nearly for 1 year. Laboratory findings appeared almost normal except increased eosinophils up to 14 per cent. The characteristic ova of Mesocestoides sp. were found by the serial stool examinations, which contained hexacanth larva inside the egg shell without operculum as in Cyclophyllidea. It was failed to reveal the scolex by the first evacuation, but one among 3 worms evacuated by the treatment with atabrine and enough purgations 2 months later, has been found the characteristic scolex. They were 85 cm to 136 cm long and the scolex had 4 distinct suckers but no rostellum, the matured proglottid had numerous testes bilaterally and ovary with yolk glands in central parts, and in the gravid proglottid spiral uterus was opened to uterine pore and characterized by the spherically distended uterine capsules. The patient had the history of ingestion of 15 snakes as raw about 1 year ago as usually seen in Japanese cases.
parasitology-helminth-cestoda-Mesocestodes sp. ; case report

No abstract available.
Breast* ; Child* ; Humans

No abstract available.
Ovotesticular Disorders of Sex Development*

PURPOSE: Endothelin-1(ET-1) is a potent vasoconstrictor peptide. It has potent contractile and proliferative effects on vascular smooth muscle cells. Congenital heart diseases are often accompanied by pulmonary hypertension, and the severity of pulmonary hypertension is important in the prognosis. The aim of this study was to elucidate changes of ET-1 after pulmonary venous stenosis in a dog model, and investigate the interaction between pulmonary venous pressure and ET-1. METHODS: Plasma ET-1 levels were measured by radioimmuno-assay at the thoracic aorta, left pulmonary artery and left pulmonary vein. Pressures were also monitored at the same sites. Immunohistochemical staining of ET-1 was performed in the lung tissue. RESULTS: Increased serum ET-1 levels were noted at 1 hour after left pulmonary vein stenosis in the left pulmonary vein and aorta, and at 2 days after stenosis in the left pulmonary artery. Left pulmonary venous pressure was significantly increased at 1 hour after pulmonary vein stenosis, and systolic pulmonary artery pressure at 2 days after stenosis. Increased expression of ET-1 was noted by immunohistochemical staining at the lung tissue at 7 days after stenosis of left pulmonary vein. CONCLUSION: Increased serum ET-1 level and expression of ET-1 in immunohistochemical staining at lung tissue were noted after stenosis of pulmonary vein. Serum ET-1 level would be useful in the diagnosis and prediction of pulmonary artery hypertension. (J Korean Pediatr Soc 2000;43:769 778)
Animals ; Aorta ; Aorta, Thoracic ; Constriction, Pathologic* ; Diagnosis ; Dogs ; Endothelin-1* ; Endothelins ; Heart Diseases ; Hypertension ; Hypertension, Pulmonary ; Lung ; Muscle, Smooth, Vascular ; Plasma ; Prognosis ; Pulmonary Artery ; Pulmonary Veins ; Venous Pressure

The study conducted from May to September in 1994 to investigate applicability of the Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly-Screening version(HHIE-S) in parallel with the puretone audiometer to the initial screening test of noise-induced hearing loss(NIHL) in some noise-exposed workers. Subjects were selected by systemic sampling that took every fifth person from 6,700 workers taking the annual occupational health examination by the department of Health Maintenance of Dongsan Hospital Keimyung University in Taegu. The authors administered the pure-tone audiometric test and self-reported questionnaire of HHIE-S including items of sociodemographic and job-related variables concurrently. The final subjects analysed were 1,019(488 males and 531 females) excluding fourteen persons who had many missing values in their questionnaires. The reliability coefficients of HHIE-S scale by Cronbach's alpha were 0.84. In the univariate analysis of hearing handicap measured by the HHIE-S, work duration, military service and the hearing threshold loss at 1kHz and 4kHz was the only selected variable explaining the hearing handicap in males and hearing threshold loss at 1kHz and 4kHz, age, and work duration were selected in females. In ROC curves for HHIE-S scores against NIHL as gold standard which was defined by the follow-up audiogram as more than 30dB of the average of 0.5/1/2kHz and 50dB at 4kHz, the optimal cutoff for the parallel HHIE-S appeared to be 8. The results suggest that HHIE-S appeared to have some reliability and validity in this data and might be used in screening NIHL in parallel with pure-tone audiometer in noise-exposed workers.
Daegu ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hearing ; Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced* ; Humans ; Male ; Mass Screening* ; Military Personnel ; Occupational Health ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Reproducibility of Results ; ROC Curve

Study of filariasis to determine important factors involved in its ecology was carried out on Che Ju Island for three consecutive years from 1968 to 1970 in seven villages, three coastal villages and four islets remote from the main island. One village which was located in mountainous area far from the coast was surveyed to serve as control area. About 90% of population inhabiting the study area had at least one blood smear during the three-year period; about one third had three blood smears, and a little over one third had two, and the rest only one examination. Animal and mosquito surveys were carried out at the same period. Followings are the results obtained: All human cases but several had microfilariae identical to the description of B. malayi. The several cases who had morphologically different microfilariae from that of B. malayi need further study for definite conclusion. Five persons randomly sampled from Mf positives and bled every two hours demonstrated nocturnal periodicity between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m. Human is considered to be only reservoir host for human filariasis in the area since animal survey and experimental exposure to the infective larvae of human filaria species showed failure to infect animals. Microfilaria rate, microfilaria density, prevalence of elephantiasis varied by area and age with correlation, which indicated cumulative process of the parasite by repeated exposure and development of host immunity to certain extent. Clinical manifestation of filariasis (symptom complex and elephantiasis ) taken from history and inspection was low in its prevalence with range of 0.9% 11.8% of total population. Only 5.2% of 517 Mf positives had the clinical manifestation. 24.8% of 109 persons with clinical manifestation had microfilaria; 42.9% with symptom complex only, 23.1% with both symptoms and elephantiasis, and none with elephantiasis only were microfilaria positive. Ae. togoi was the only species infected with the filaria. Mosquito infection rate by area showed positive correlation to the Mf rate and density of human population; where the Mf rate and density were high, the mosquito infection rate also high.
parasitology-helminth-nematoda ; ecology ; epidemiology ; Brugia malayi ; filariasis

No abstract available.
Dyspnea* ; Hypothyroidism*