The growing demand for physiologically relevant human liver models has driven significant progress in generating hepatic cells and organoids derived from pluripotent stem cells. These regenerative cell sources serve as powerful platforms for elucidating the mechanisms underlying liver diseases and for evaluating drug responses under human-relevant conditions. Moreover, they hold tremendous promise as cell-based therapeutics for various hepatic disorders. The utility of these regenerative cell technologies is further expanded when combined with gene-editing techniques, which enable precise modeling of pathogenic variants and targeted correction of disease-associated mutations. Gene editing can also be leveraged to enhance the functionality and therapeutic potential of regenerative hepatocyte products. In this review, we summarize recent advances at the interface of gene editing and hepatic cell regeneration, emphasizing their applications in genetic disease modeling, therapeutic gene correction, drug testing, and cell-based therapies for liver disorders. We also provide an overview of major gene-editing tools and practical guidance for implementing them in pluripotent stem cells-based regenerative workflows, concluding with future perspectives on the integration of gene editing and regenerative hepatocyte technologies.

Background: Sarcopenia is a muscle-wasting condition that affects older individuals. It can lead to changes in movement patterns, which can increase the risk of falls and other injuries. Methods: Older women participants aged ≥65 years who could walk independently were recruited and classified into two groups based on knee extension strength (KES). Participants with low KES scores were assigned to the possible sarcopenia group (PSG; n=7) and an 8-week exercise intervention was implemented. Healthy seniors with high KES scores were classified as the reference group (RG; n=4), and a 3-week exercise intervention was conducted. Kinematic movement data were recorded during the intervention period. All participants' exercise repetitions were used in the data analysis (number of data points=1,128). Results: The PSG showed significantly larger movement patterns in knee rotation during wide squats compared to the RG, attributed to weakened lower limb strength. The voting classifier, trained on the movement patterns from wide squats, determined that significant differences in overall movement patterns between the two groups persisted until the end of the exercise intervention. However, after the exercise intervention, significant improvements in lower limb strength in the PSG resulted in reduced knee rotation range of motion and max, thereby stabilizing movements and eliminating significant differences with the RG. Conclusion This study suggests that exercise interventions can modify the movement patterns in older individuals with possible sarcopenia. These findings provide fundamental data for developing an exercise management system that remotely tracks and monitors the movement patterns of older adults during exercise activities.

Background: Sarcopenia is a muscle-wasting condition that affects older individuals. It can lead to changes in movement patterns, which can increase the risk of falls and other injuries. Methods: Older women participants aged ≥65 years who could walk independently were recruited and classified into two groups based on knee extension strength (KES). Participants with low KES scores were assigned to the possible sarcopenia group (PSG; n=7) and an 8-week exercise intervention was implemented. Healthy seniors with high KES scores were classified as the reference group (RG; n=4), and a 3-week exercise intervention was conducted. Kinematic movement data were recorded during the intervention period. All participants' exercise repetitions were used in the data analysis (number of data points=1,128). Results: The PSG showed significantly larger movement patterns in knee rotation during wide squats compared to the RG, attributed to weakened lower limb strength. The voting classifier, trained on the movement patterns from wide squats, determined that significant differences in overall movement patterns between the two groups persisted until the end of the exercise intervention. However, after the exercise intervention, significant improvements in lower limb strength in the PSG resulted in reduced knee rotation range of motion and max, thereby stabilizing movements and eliminating significant differences with the RG. Conclusion This study suggests that exercise interventions can modify the movement patterns in older individuals with possible sarcopenia. These findings provide fundamental data for developing an exercise management system that remotely tracks and monitors the movement patterns of older adults during exercise activities.

Background: Sarcopenia is a muscle-wasting condition that affects older individuals. It can lead to changes in movement patterns, which can increase the risk of falls and other injuries. Methods: Older women participants aged ≥65 years who could walk independently were recruited and classified into two groups based on knee extension strength (KES). Participants with low KES scores were assigned to the possible sarcopenia group (PSG; n=7) and an 8-week exercise intervention was implemented. Healthy seniors with high KES scores were classified as the reference group (RG; n=4), and a 3-week exercise intervention was conducted. Kinematic movement data were recorded during the intervention period. All participants' exercise repetitions were used in the data analysis (number of data points=1,128). Results: The PSG showed significantly larger movement patterns in knee rotation during wide squats compared to the RG, attributed to weakened lower limb strength. The voting classifier, trained on the movement patterns from wide squats, determined that significant differences in overall movement patterns between the two groups persisted until the end of the exercise intervention. However, after the exercise intervention, significant improvements in lower limb strength in the PSG resulted in reduced knee rotation range of motion and max, thereby stabilizing movements and eliminating significant differences with the RG. Conclusion This study suggests that exercise interventions can modify the movement patterns in older individuals with possible sarcopenia. These findings provide fundamental data for developing an exercise management system that remotely tracks and monitors the movement patterns of older adults during exercise activities.

This report provides a detailed description of the methodology for ophthalmic examinations according to the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) VII and VIII (from 2017 to 2021). The KNHANES is a nationwide survey which has been performed since 1998 in representatives of whole Korean population. During the KNHANES VII and VIII, in addition to the ophthalmic questionnaire, intraocular pressure measurement, visual field test, auto refractometry, axial length and optical coherence tomography measurements were included. This new survey will provide not only provide normative and pathologic ophthalmic data including intraocular pressure, refractive error, axial length, visual field and precise measurement of anterior segment, macula and optic nerve with optical coherence tomography, but also a more accurate diagnosis for major adult blindness diseases, including age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, and other ocular diseases, for the national Korean population.

This report provides a detailed description of the methodology for ophthalmic examinations according to the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) VII and VIII (from 2017 to 2021). The KNHANES is a nationwide survey which has been performed since 1998 in representatives of whole Korean population. During the KNHANES VII and VIII, in addition to the ophthalmic questionnaire, intraocular pressure measurement, visual field test, auto refractometry, axial length and optical coherence tomography measurements were included. This new survey will provide not only provide normative and pathologic ophthalmic data including intraocular pressure, refractive error, axial length, visual field and precise measurement of anterior segment, macula and optic nerve with optical coherence tomography, but also a more accurate diagnosis for major adult blindness diseases, including age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, and other ocular diseases, for the national Korean population.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to reveal the relationship of depression with growth factors such as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), nerve growth factor (NGF), and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) in inpatients diagnosed with alcohol dependence, and to identify candidate growth factors as biological markers to indicate the comorbid of alcohol dependence and depression. METHODS: This study examined demographic factors in 45 alcohol-dependent patients. The ADS (Korean version of the Alcohol Dependence Scale) and BDI (Korean version of Beck's Depression Inventory) were used. BDNF, NGF, and IGF-1 were measured through ELISA. RESULTS: The average drinking quantity and the ADS score were significantly more severe in alcohol-dependent patients with depression than in those without depression. Linearly comparing BDNF, NGF, and IGF-1 with BDI values, IGF-1 was the growth factor significantly correlated with BDI scores. BDI scores were significantly correlated with ADS scores. IGF-1 was significantly higher in alcohol-dependent patients with depression. Alcohol-dependent patients with depression had greater alcohol use and more severe ADS scores. BDNF and NGF showed no significant difference between alcohol-dependent patients with and without depression, but IGF-1 was significantly higher in those with than in those without depression. CONCLUSION: IGF-1 was found to be associated with depression in alcohol-dependent patients, suggesting that IGF-1 in alcohol-dependent patients could be an important biomarker to indicate whether alcohol-dependence is accompanied by depression.
Alcoholism ; Biomarkers ; Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor ; Demography ; Depression* ; Drinking ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Humans ; Inpatients ; Insulin-Like Growth Factor I ; Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins* ; Nerve Growth Factor

BACKGROUND: We investigated clinical course and risk factors for diabetic retinopathy (DR) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). METHODS: A total of 759 patients with T2DM without DR were included from January 2001 to December 2004. Retinopathy evaluation was performed at least annually by ophthalmologists. The severity of the DR was classified into five categories according to the International Clinical Diabetic Retinopathy Severity Scales. RESULTS: Of the 759 patients, 523 patients (68.9%) completed the follow-up evaluation. During the follow-up period, 235 patients (44.9%) developed DR, and 32 patients (13.6%) progressed to severe nonproliferative DR (NPDR) or proliferative DR (PDR). The mean duration of diabetes at the first diagnosis of mild NPDR, moderate NPDR, and severe NPDR or PDR were 14.8, 16.7, and 17.3 years, respectively. After adjusting multiple confounding factors, the significant risk factors for the incidence of DR risk in patients with T2DM were old age, longer duration of diabetes, higher mean glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), and albuminuria. Even in the patients who had been diagnosed with diabetes for longer than 10 years at baseline, a decrease in HbA1c led to a significant reduction in the risk of developing DR (hazard ratio, 0.73 per 1% HbA1c decrement; 95% confidence interval, 0.58 to 0.91; P=0.005). CONCLUSION: This prospective cohort study demonstrates that glycemic control, diabetes duration, age, and albuminuria are important risk factors for the development of DR. More aggressive retinal screening for T2DM patients diagnosed with DR should be required in order to not miss rapid progression of DR.
Albuminuria ; Cohort Studies ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2* ; Diabetic Retinopathy* ; Diagnosis ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hemoglobin A, Glycosylated ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea* ; Mass Screening ; Prospective Studies ; Retinaldehyde ; Risk Factors* ; Weights and Measures

Noncompaction of the ventricular myocardium is a rare congenital cardiomyopathy caused by arrest of normal endomyocardial embryogenesis. Isolated right ventricular noncompaction (IRNC) is an even rarer form of this disease. We report herein on a 68 year-old male diagnosed with IRNC who presented with right-sided heart failure, without involvement of the left ventricle. Diagnosis was achieved with the aid of echocardiography and ventriculography. Medical treatment including prescription of diuretics, a calcium channel blocker, and digitalis, improved both the symptoms and right ventricular function.
Calcium Channels ; Cardiomyopathies ; Diagnosis ; Digitalis ; Diuretics ; Echocardiography ; Embryonic Development ; Female ; Heart Failure ; Heart Ventricles ; Humans ; Male ; Myocardium ; Pregnancy ; Prescriptions ; Ventricular Function, Right

Coronary artery fistula draining into lung parenchymal vasculature has not been reported. Herein, we describe a case of an 81-year-old woman who presented with a localized pulmonary edema on right upper lobe associated with coronary fistula emptied into vasculature in right upper lobe. She underwent transcatheter closure of the fistula with an Amplatzer Vascular Plug 4, which resulted in complete occlusion and improved localized pulmonary edema.
Aged, 80 and over ; Coronary Vessels* ; Female ; Fistula* ; Humans ; Lung* ; Pulmonary Edema*