The introduction of metagenomics into the field of virology has facilitated the exploration of viral communities in various natural habitats. Understanding the viral ecology of a variety of sample types throughout the biosphere is important per se, but it also has potential applications in clinical and diagnostic virology. However, the procedures used by viral metagenomics may produce technical errors, such as amplification bias, while public viral databases are very limited, which may hamper the determination of the viral diversity in samples. This review considers the current state of viral metagenomics, based on examples from Korean viral metagenomic studies-i.e., rice paddy soil, fermented foods, human gut, seawater, and the near-surface atmosphere. Viral metagenomics has become widespread due to various methodological developments, and much attention has been focused on studies that consider the intrinsic role of viruses that interact with their hosts.
Atmosphere ; Bacteriophages ; Bias (Epidemiology) ; DNA Viruses ; Ecology ; Ecosystem ; Humans ; Korea ; Metagenomics ; Seawater ; Sequence Analysis, DNA ; Soil

BACKGROUND: Although upper gastrointestinal (UGI) endoscopy is highly sensitive for the detection of esophago-gastroduodenal lesions, pain and discomfort during the procedure cause examinees to experience stress and anxiety. Moreover, there have been only a few studies on relief of pain and discomfort during UGI endoscopy through preparatory interventions. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between a preparatory education program and the discomfort and retching experienced by examinees during endoscopy. METHODS: A total of 306 examinees who visited a health promotion center and underwent non-sedated endoscopy from May 13 to July 3, 2009 were included in this study. After they were assigned to experimental (n = 154) and control groups (n = 152), their discomfort and retching were measured with a visual analogue scale. The preparatory education program consisted of cognitive intervention, behavioral intervention and information. RESULTS: The preparatory education program relieved discomfort during endoscopy in male subjects, in subjects aged 60 and over, or in subjects with previous endoscopic experience with statistical significance (P < 0.05). It also relieved retching during endoscopy in subjects aged 60 and over with statistical significance (P = 0.023). Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that the preparatory education program significantly relieved the discomfort of examinees during endoscopy (P = 0.028). CONCLUSION: We found that the preparatory education program used in this study could significantly relieve the discomfort caused by endoscopy, particularly in subjects aged 60 and over, or in male subjects with a high incidence of stomach cancer in Korea.
Aged ; Anxiety ; Endoscopy ; Endoscopy, Gastrointestinal ; Health Promotion ; Humans ; Incidence ; Korea ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Stomach Neoplasms

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the detection of circulating tumor cell molecular markers from localized colorectal cancer and the time-course of a surgical manipulation or surgical modality. METHODS: From January 2010 to June 2010, samples from the peripheral blood and the inferior mesenteric vein were collected from 42 patients with cancer of the sigmoid colon or rectum. Pre-operative, intra-operative (both pre-mobilization and post-mobilization), and post-operative samples were collected. We examined carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) mRNA and cytokeratin-20 (CK20) mRNA by real-time reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. Changes in mRNA detection rates were analyzed according to the time of blood sample collection, the surgical modality, and patient clinicopathological features. RESULTS: mRNA expression rates before surgical resection did not differ between blood samples from the peripheral and inferior mesenteric veins. The detection rate for CEA and CK20 mRNA showed a tendency to increase after operative mobilization of the cancer-bearing bowel segment. Furthermore, the cumulative detection rates for CEA and CK20 mRNA increased significantly over the course of surgery (pre-mobilization vs. post-mobilization). The cumulative detection rate decreased significantly after surgical resection compared with the pre-operative rates. However, no significant difference was observed in the detection rates between different surgical modalities (laparoscopy vs. open surgery). CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that surgical manipulation has a negative influence on the dissemination of circulating tumor cells during operations on localized colorectal cancer. However, the type of surgical technique did not affect circulating tumor cells.
Carcinoembryonic Antigen ; Colon ; Colorectal Neoplasms ; Humans ; Keratin-20 ; Mesenteric Veins ; Neoplastic Cells, Circulating ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Rectum ; RNA, Messenger ; Sigmoid Neoplasms

BACKGROUND: Mutated or deregulated expression of C-erbB-2 causes this gene to function as a potent oncogene. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a crucial angiogenic molecule in lung cancer. Both C-erbB-2 and VEGF can promote growth, proliferation and metastasis in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The purpose of this study was to investigate evaluate the relationship between the expressions of the C-erbB-2 and VEGF genes using immunohistochemistry. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ninety-five patients with NSCLC were involved (60 squamous cell carcinoma and 35 adenocarcinoma). The formalin-fixed paraffin embedded specimens were immunohistochemically stained for C-erbB-2 and VEGF using the avidin-biotin complex method. RESULTS: Positive C-erbB-2 expression was observed more often in adenocarcinomas than squamous cell carcinomas (p<0.05). Although the immunohistochemical expressions of C-erbB-2 and VEGF in non-small-cell lung cancer showed increased tendencies at an advanced stage, the correlation between early and advanced cancers was insignificant. In adenocarcinomas, the expressions of VEGF and C-erbB-2 were significantly (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: The overexpression fo C-erbB-2 was significantly higher in adenocarcinomas than squamous cell carcinomas, and correlated with the expression of VEGF in adenocarcinomas of the lungs.
Adenocarcinoma ; Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung* ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Lung ; Lung Neoplasms ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Oncogenes ; Paraffin ; Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A*

Invasive aspergillus tracheobronchitis is uncommon manifestation of infection due to Aspergillus species, occurring in severely immunocompromised patients who are generally neutropenic with haematological diseases, AIDS, or after heart and lung transplantation. The pseudomembranous form is the most severe condition and is usually fatal despite treatment with antifungal agents. However, there are a few cases reported with no apparent severe compromise in the host defences. We encountered a pseudomembranous necrotizing bronchial aspergillosis in a 73-year old male patient, who was treated successfully with antifungal agents.
Aged ; Antifungal Agents ; Aspergillosis* ; Aspergillus ; Heart ; Humans ; Immunocompromised Host ; Lung Transplantation ; Male

BACKGROUND: In AIDS patients, the respiratory tract is one of the most frequently involved site of by an opportunistic infection, and an even common, casual pulmonary infection manifests in a peculiar ways in AIDS patients. In Korea, because of the low prevalence of AIDS, there is insufficient data compared with other Southeast Asian counties. However, considering the sexual behavior of the younger generation, it is expected that it will not be long before AIDS becomes a major public health issue in Korea. This study examined the clinical manifestation of HIV positive people and AIDS patients. The pulmonary manifestion of HIV-positive was evaluated. This study focused on the differences in the clinical manifestation between AIDS patients with pulmonary disease and simple HIV positive people. The characteristics of common pulmonary infections in AIDS patients were also analyzed. METHOD: The medical records of 28 HIV positive patients who visited the hospital of ChungAng University Hospital from January, 2001 to February, 2006 were analyzed retrospectively. RESULT: Twenty-seven patients out of 28 HIV positive patients were male and the average age was 40.6(23-65). Patients in their thirties were most commonly affected. Elven patients had pulmonary diseases. Pulmonary tuberculosis (4 cases) and pneumocystis pneumonia (4 cases) were the most common respiratory infection. One patient showed a peculiar type of systemic cryptococcus. which was accompanied by lung and pleural dissemination. The CD4+lymphocyte count of patients with a pulmonary infection was significantly lower in patients with a pulmonary manifestation than those with only a HIV infection (79.5/mm3 vs 400/mm3, respectively)(p<.05). Patients with pulmonary disease were in a more severe immunosuppressive state. There were 4 patients with pulmonary tuberculosis, 4 with pneumocystis pneumonia, 4 with secondary syphilis, 2 with primary syphilis, and 2 with HZV infection. The average CD4 lymphocyte counts was 56/mm3 in those with pulmonary tuberculosis, 42/mm3 in those with pneumocystis pneumonia, and 455/mm3 in those with secondary syphilis. CONCLUSION: This study examined the clinical manifestation of HIV positive patients, particularly AIDS patients with pulmonary disease, A more severe immunosuppressive status was observed in HIV-related pulmonary compared with those with HIV-related extrapulmonary disease, and the frequency of pulmonary tuberculosis in pulmonary disease was higher than expected. Respiratory infection in AIDS manifest in uncommon ways e.g. disseminated cryptococcosis involving the lung and pleura. Evidently, AIDS patients with a respiratory infection have a more severe form of immunosuppression than those with a simple HIV infection. As expected, patients with a pulmonary infection were in a more severe immunosuppressed state than those with a simple HIV infection. Opportunistic infections can show peculiar clinical presentations in AIDS patients.
Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; CD4 Lymphocyte Count ; Cryptococcosis ; Cryptococcus ; HIV ; HIV Infections ; Humans ; Immunosuppression ; Korea ; Lung ; Lung Diseases ; Male ; Medical Records ; Opportunistic Infections ; Pleura ; Pneumonia, Pneumocystis ; Prevalence ; Public Health ; Respiratory System ; Retrospective Studies ; Sexual Behavior ; Syphilis ; Tuberculosis, Pulmonary

The effects of intracellular and extracellular pH on the inwardly rectifying K+ (IRK) channel of the bovine aortic endothelial cells (BAECs) were examined using whole-cell patch-clamp technique. The IRK current, efficiently blocked by Ba2+ (200microM), is the most prominent membrane current in BAECs, which mainly determines the resting membrane potential. The expression of Kir2.1 was observed in BAECs using reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis. Intracellular alkalinization, elicited by the extracellular substitution of NaCl with NH4Cl (30 mM), significantly augmented the amplitude of IRK current. On the contrary, the amplitude of IRK current was attenuated by the Na-acetate (30 mM)-induced intracellular acidification. The changes in extracellular pH also closely modulated the amplitude of IRK current, which was decreased to 40.2+/-1.3% of control upon switching the extracellular pH to 4.0 from 7.4. The extracellular pH value for half-maximal inhibition (pK) of IRK current was 5.11. These results demonstrate that the activity of IRK channel in BAECs, probably Kir2.1, was suppressed by proton at both sides of plasma membrane.
Cell Membrane ; Endothelial Cells* ; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration* ; Membrane Potentials ; Membranes ; Patch-Clamp Techniques ; Protons

BACKGROUND: This study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of plasma concentration of vitamin C is on the plasma total antioxidant status(TAS) in patients with paraquat intoxication. METHODS: As a preliminary research for this study, we measured plasma vitamin C levels, uric acid, TAS, and bilirubin from 100 healthy Koreans aged between 25-55 years. Various concentrations of vitamin C were constructed in vitro with normal pooled plasma between 1mg/dl and 100 mg/dL and TAS was measured. Both vitamin C concentrations and TAS were measured from the blood samples, taken at 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 9 hours after a bolus injection of vitamin C(50 mg/kg) from 7 volunteers who had been recruited from medical students at our hospital. Various amounts of vitamin C were given to 10 patients with paraquat intoxication for 5 consecutive days in the morning : first day ; 100 mg single dose, second day; 500 mg single dose, third day ; 1,000 mg single dose, fourth day : 3,000 mg single dose, and fifth day ; 3,000 mg three times every 8 hours. RESULTS: The mean value of TAS and vitamin C measured in 100 healthy Korean adults was 2.22 +/-0.16 mmol/L and 0.48+/-0.10 mg/dL. Age and sex do not influence these levels(p> 0.05, data are not presented). A direct correlation was observed between TAS and vitamin C concentrations of 1 mg/dL and 100 mg/dL both in vivo and vitro. As the vitamin C concentration was increased gradually 5 consecutive days, the TAS values increased in the same way as follows : first day(vitamin C 100 mg) 2.26+/-0.98 mmol/L, second day(vitamin C 500 mg) 2.76+/-0.78 mmol/L, third day(vitamin C 1.000 mg) 2.81+/-0.68 mmol/L, fourth day(vitamin C 3.000 mg) 3.18 mmol/L. On the fifth day when 3.000 mg of vitamin C was given by bolus intravenous injection 3 times(every 8 hours for a day), the TAS values measured one hour after the injection was 3.58+/-0.37 mmol/L. CONCLUSION: When vitamin C is used as a free radical scavenger, the loading dose and maintenance dose should be around 2278 mg intravenous bolus and 146 mg/hour. High doses of vitamin C are effective and safe for patients with acute paraquat intoxication.
Adult ; Ascorbic Acid* ; Bilirubin ; Free Radical Scavengers ; Humans ; Injections, Intravenous ; Paraquat* ; Plasma* ; Pulmonary Fibrosis ; Students, Medical ; Uric Acid ; Vitamins* ; Volunteers

21 patients of urethral injury was made for diversion of urine by suprapubic cystostomy as initial treatment. In our experience suprapubic cystostomy at the time of injury followed 9-17 weeks later by perineal urethroplasty resulted in a low incidence of complication. The following results were obtained. 1. The most common cause of urethral injury was traffic accident. 2. The most common clinical symptom was external urethral bleeding. 3. Among the 13 cases of complete urethral injury, posterior urethral injury was in 11 cases. 4. Of 7 patients with fractured pelvis most had posteriorurethral injuries, except for 1 case of falling inwhich . the injury involved the anterior urethra. 5. Normal micturation was in 2 cases who were performed suprapubic cystostomy alone. 6. Duration from urethral injury from urethroplasty was 9-17 weeks. 7. Urethral stricture and incontinence after urethroplasty were in 1 case each.
Accidents, Traffic ; Cystostomy ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Incidence ; Pelvis ; Urethra ; Urethral Stricture

Diagnostic ultrasound was a simple, rapid, harmless, and painless method to visualize ultrascrotal contents, it provided information that was difficult to obtain on clinical examination. We recently tested the effectiveness of diagnostic ultrasound in 41 men with scrotal masses. In general, ultrasound was highly effective in differentiating and characterizing testicular and extratesticular masses. The following results were obtained. 1. The ultrasonic examination revealed 37 extratesticular lesions, 3 testicular lesions and 1 indeterminate lesion. Of the extratesticular lesions 22 were believed to be cystic but represented 18 hydroceles and 4 spermatoceles. 15 lesions were thought to be solid that represented epididymitis. 2. The accuracy rate the scrotal ultrasound, given a complete clinical history, was 97% in this series. 3. The tumor showed decreased echogenicity within the testicle, which was enlarged. The characteristic appearance of hydrocele, spermatocele were sonolucent cystic mass. The epididymis was enlarged in 11 patients with epididymitis, the echogenicity within testicle was decreased in 5 patients with epididymitis.
Epididymis ; Epididymitis ; Humans ; Male ; Spermatocele ; Testis ; Ultrasonics ; Ultrasonography