• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.425-437
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• 2021

Although the contributions of sitagliptin to endothelial dysfunction in diabetes mellitus were previously reported, the mechanisms still undefined. Autophagy plays an important role in the development of diabetes mellitus, but its role in diabetic macrovascular complications is unclear. This study aims to observe the effect of sitagliptin on macrovascular endothelium in diabetes and explore the role of autophagy in this process. Diabetic rats were induced through administration of high-fat diet and intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin. Then diabetic rats were treated with or without sitagliptin for 12 weeks. Endothelial damage and autophagy were measured. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells were cultured either in normal glucose or in high glucose medium and intervened with different concentrations of sitagliptin. Rapamycin was used to induce autophagy. Cell viability, apoptosis and autophagy were detected. The expressions of proteins in c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK)-Bcl-2-Beclin-1 pathway were measured. Sitagliptin attenuated injuries of endothelium in vivo and in vitro. The expression of microtubuleassociated protein 1 light chain 3 II (LC3II) and beclin-1 were increased in aortas of diabetic rats and cells cultured with high-glucose, while sitagliptin inhibited the over-expression of LC3II and beclin-1. In vitro pre-treatment with sitagliptin decreased rapamycin-induced autophagy. However, after pretreatment with rapamycin, the protective effect of sitagliptin on endothelial cells was abolished. Further studies revealed sitagliptin increased the expression of Bcl-2, while inhibited the expression of JNK in vivo. Sitagliptin attenuates injuries of vascular endothelial cells caused by high glucose through inhibiting over-activated autophagy. JNK-Bcl-2-Beclin-1 pathway may be involved in this process.

• Mass Spectrometry Letters
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.115-124
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• 2022

Emerging evidence has shown that RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) dynamically regulate all aspects of RNA in cells and involve in major biological processes of RNA, including splicing, modification, transport, transcription and degradation. RBPs, as powerful and versatile regulatory molecule, are essential to maintain cellular homeostasis. Perturbation of RNA-protein interactions and aberration of RBPs function is associated with diverse diseases, such as cancer, autoimmune disease, and neurological disorders. Therefore, it is crucial to systematically investigate the RNA-binding proteome for understanding interactions of RNA with proteins. Thanks to the development of the mass spectrometry, a variety of proteome-wide methods have been explored to define comprehensively RNA-protein interactions in recent years and thereby contributed to speeding up the study of RNA biology. In this review, we systematically described these methods and summarized the advantages and disadvantages of each method.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.168-178
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• 2021

Objective: To provide an automatic method for segmentation and diameter measurement of type B aortic dissection (TBAD). Materials and Methods: Aortic computed tomography angiographic images from 139 patients with TBAD were consecutively collected. We implemented a deep learning method based on a three-dimensional (3D) deep convolutional neural (CNN) network, which realizes automatic segmentation and measurement of the entire aorta (EA), true lumen (TL), and false lumen (FL). The accuracy, stability, and measurement time were compared between deep learning and manual methods. The intra- and inter-observer reproducibility of the manual method was also evaluated. Results: The mean dice coefficient scores were 0.958, 0.961, and 0.932 for EA, TL, and FL, respectively. There was a linear relationship between the reference standard and measurement by the manual and deep learning method (r = 0.964 and 0.991, respectively). The average measurement error of the deep learning method was less than that of the manual method (EA, 1.64% vs. 4.13%; TL, 2.46% vs. 11.67%; FL, 2.50% vs. 8.02%). Bland-Altman plots revealed that the deviations of the diameters between the deep learning method and the reference standard were -0.042 mm (-3.412 to 3.330 mm), -0.376 mm (-3.328 to 2.577 mm), and 0.026 mm (-3.040 to 3.092 mm) for EA, TL, and FL, respectively. For the manual method, the corresponding deviations were -0.166 mm (-1.419 to 1.086 mm), -0.050 mm (-0.970 to 1.070 mm), and -0.085 mm (-1.010 to 0.084 mm). Intra- and inter-observer differences were found in measurements with the manual method, but not with the deep learning method. The measurement time with the deep learning method was markedly shorter than with the manual method (21.7 ± 1.1 vs. 82.5 ± 16.1 minutes, p < 0.001). Conclusion: The performance of efficient segmentation and diameter measurement of TBADs based on the 3D deep CNN was both accurate and stable. This method is promising for evaluating aortic morphology automatically and alleviating the workload of radiologists in the near future.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.2369-2373
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• 2015

Objective: To analyze efficacy of neoadjuvant chemotherapy for advanced ovarian cancer. Materials and Methods: A total of 107 patients with advanced ovarian cancer undergoing cytoreductive surgery were divided into a neoadjuvant chemotherapy group (n=61) and a primary debulking group (n=46) and retrospectively analyzed. Platinum-based adjuvant chemotherapy was applied to both groups after cytoreductive surgery ande overall and progression-free survival times were calculated. Results: No significant difference was observed in duration of hospitalization ($20.8{\pm}6.1$ vs. $20.2{\pm}5.4$ days, p>0.05). The operation time of neoadjuvant chemotherapy group was shorter than the initial surgery group ($3.1{\pm}0.7$ vs. $3.4{\pm}0.8$ h, p<0.05). There were no significant differences in median overall survival time between neoadjuvant chemotherapy group and surgery group (42 vs. 55 months, p>0.05). Similarly, there was no difference in median progression-free survival between neoadjuvant chemotherapy group and surgery group (16 vs. 17 months, p>0.05). The surgical residual tumor size demonstrated no significant difference between initial surgery and neoadjuvant chemotherapy groups (p>0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that more than 3 cycles of regimen with neoadjuvant chemotherapy was associated with more resistance to chemotherapy compared with patients without receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy (OR: 5.962, 95%CI: 1.184-30.030, p<0.05). Conclusions:Neoadjuvant chemotherapy can shorten the operation time. However, it does not improve survival rates of advanced ovarian cancer patients.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.13
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• pp.5395-5399
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• 2014

Purpose: This study was designed to evaluate the outcomes of laparoscopic colorectal resection in a period of learning curve completed by surgeons with different experience and aptitudes with a view to making clear whether seniors had a better learning curve compared with juniors. Methods: From May 2010 to August 2012, the first twenty patients underwent laparoscopic colorectal resection completed by each surgeon were selected for analysis retrospectively. A total of 240 patients treated by 5 seniors and 7 juniors were divided into the senior group (n=100) and the junior group (n=140). The short-term outcomes of laparoscopic surgery of the two groups were compared. Results: The mean numbers of lymph nodes harvested were $21.2{\pm}11.0$ in the senior group and $17.3{\pm}11.5$ in the junior group (p=0.010); The mean operative times were $187.9{\pm}60.0min$ as compared to $231.3{\pm}55.7min$ (p=0.006), and blood loss values were $177.0{\pm}100.7ml$ and $234.0{\pm}185ml$, respectively (p=0.001); Conversion rate in the senior group was obviously lower than in the junior group (10.0% vs 20.7%, p=0.027) and the mean time to passing of first flatus were $3.3{\pm}0.9$ and $3.8{\pm}0.9$ days (p=0.001). For low rectal cancer, the sphincter preserving rates were 68.7% and 35.3% (p=0.027). Conclusions: Seniors could perform laparoscopic colorectal resection with relatively better oncological outcomes and quicker recovery, and seniors could master the laparoscopic skill more easily and quickly. Seniors had a better learning curve for laparoscopic colorectal cancer resection compared to juniors.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.444-447
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• 2022

Reconstruction of soft tissue defects around the knee is challenging, and the most common solution is to use various locoregional flaps or, in some difficult cases, a free flap. The distally based anterolateral thigh (dALT) flap is a commonly used flap that relies on reverse blood flow from the descending branch of the lateral circumflex femoral artery (d-LCFA). Here, we present the case of an anteromedial knee reconstruction using a dALT flap after resection of a pleomorphic undifferentiated sarcoma. The tumor resection resulted in a 14 × 7 cm defect, and a dALT flap, measuring 20 × 8 cm was elevated. During the surgery, we found a robust oblique branch of the LCFA (o-LCFA) sending off two sizable perforators to the anterolateral thigh region, whereas the d-LCFA was relatively small with no usable perforators. Therefore, we harvested a dALT flap relying on reverse flow from the o-LCFA. The patient's postoperative course was uneventful, and the flap survived without complications. This report demonstrates that reverse flow from the o-LCFA may be an alternative to nourish a dALT flap in cases where the d-LCFA is hypoplastic or suitable perforators from the d-LCFA are unavailable.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.606-611
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• 2004

In East-South Asia it has been known that Korean ginseng(Panax ginseng) increases blood pressure, whereas American ginseng(Panax quinquefolius) doesn't. This study was designed to find out if Korean ginseng really could increase blood pressure comparing with American ginseng. Double-blind randomized controlled trials on blood pressure and pulse rate of Korean ginseng and American ginseng in Koreans and Chineses was performed. There was no significant difference on blood pressure and pulse rate between Korean ginseng and American ginseng in both Koreans and Chineses by repeated-measures ANOVA. It was revealed that Korean ginseng does not increase blood pressure. Maybe the concept that Korean ginseng increases blood pressure is concerned with commercial interests dealing with American Ginseng.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.169-171
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• 2017

Background: Many stroke patients receive traditional medical care in Korea and China. Stroke patients comprise the largest proportion of inpatients in traditional Korean medicine and traditional Chinese medicine hospitals. The purpose of this study is to identify the types and effects of Chinese medicine widely used in China and Korea, and to apply them to future studies of stroke. Methods: Nine Korean and Chinese databases will be surveyed for clinical studies of herbal medicines for stroke, published between the inception of the database and August 2017. Clinical studies of decoctions or modified decoctions will be included without restriction on study type. The frequencies and patterns of formulas or single herb usage and the any type of herbal medicine utilization will be analyzed. Dissemination: The results of the systematic review will be published in a peer-reviewed journal and disseminated electronically and in print. Updates of the review will be conducted to inform and guide healthcare practices.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.24
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• pp.10791-10795
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• 2015

Background: Phyllodes tumors of the breast are rare fibroepithelial lesions, so relatively little is known about this disease entity. The present study was designed to identify differences in clinical features between benign borderline and malignant phyllodes tumors. Materials and Methods: Data from 246 women with phyllodes tumors of the breast treated in Cancer Hospital Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences between 2002 and 2012 were collected and analyzed, including age at presentation, age at treatment, course, size of primary tumor, location, histological type, type of surgery and treatment, local recurrence, distant metastasis, fibroadenoma history, disease-free survival and number of mitosis per 10hpf. There are 125 (55%) benign, 55 (24%) borderline and 47 (21%) malignant tumors. Results: In univariate analysis, average age at presentation, average age at treatment, size of primary tumor, ulceration or not, type of primary surgery, distant metastasis and number of mitosis per 10 hpf turned out to be statistically different among the three PT types (p=0.014, 0.018, <0.000, 0.003, <0.000, 0.001 and <0.000, respectively), while recurrence and disease-free survival (DFS) demonstrated trends for statistical significance (P =0.055 and 0.060, respectively). Multivariate analysis revealed distant metastasis and excision were significantly different in benign, borderline and malignant phyllodes tumors of the breast (p=0.041 and 0.018, OR=0.061 and 0.051). At the same time, size of primary tumor with p=0.052 tended to be different between groups (OR=1.127). However, age at treatment, ulceration and DFS showed no statistically significant variation (p=0.400, 0.286 and 0.413, respectively). Conclusions: Benign borderline and malignant phyllode tumors have different distant metastasis risk, different primary tumor size and different surgical procedures, and malignant PTs are more likely to be bigger and to metastasize.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.52 no.4
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• pp.835-840
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• 2020

A position-sensitive CsI(Tl) crystal array coupled with the multi-anode position sensitive photomultiplier tube (PS-PMT), Hamamatsu H8500C, has been developed at the Institute of Modern Physics. An effective, fast, and economical readout circuit based on discretized positioning circuit (DPC) bridge was designed for the 64-channel multi-anode flat panel PSPMT. The horizontal and vertical position resolutions are 0.58 mm and 0.63 mm respectively for the 1.0 × 1.0 × 5.0 ㎣ CsI(Tl) array, and the horizontal and vertical position resolutions are 0.86 mm and 0.80 mm respectively for the 2.0 × 2.0 × 10.0 ㎣ CsI(Tl) array. These results show that the CsI(Tl) crystal array with low cost could be applied in the fields of medical imaging and high-resolution gamma camera.