• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.387-395
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• 2022

Purpose: Toxins produced by Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) can cause enteritis and diarrhea. Although the number of pediatric CDI cases is increasing, the clinical management of pediatric CDI, including patient characteristics and prognosis, remains unclear. This study aimed to elucidate the background and clinical course of patients with CDI and evaluate the reliability of diagnostic tests in a tertiary pediatric hospital in Japan. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of children diagnosed with CDI between 2011 and 2021 at the Saitama Children's Medical Center in Saitama, Japan. Results: During the study period, 1,252 C. difficile antigen/toxin tests were performed, and 37 patients were diagnosed with CDI. The main underlying diseases among the patients were hematological and malignant disorders and gastrointestinal diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) (59.4%). Two patients (5.4%) had an unremarkable medical history. Among the 37 patients, 27 (73.0%) were immunocompromised, 25 (67.6%) had a history of antibiotic use within the past two months, and 6 (16.2%) were negative on the initial test but were positive on the second test. Finally, 28 patients (75.7%) required primary antibiotic therapy only, and two patients with IBD required additional antibiotic therapy as secondary treatment. Conclusion: The number of pediatric patients with CDI is increasing. Both a comprehensive interview, including underlying diseases and history of antibiotic use, and an understanding of the features of clinical examinations should be emphasized to appropriately diagnose and treat CDI.

• Development and Reproduction
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.91-97
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• 2004

The objective of this study was to assess that the effects of DEHP administration on reproductive characteristics and blood hematological and chemical values in pups born after DEHP administration in pregnant mice. DEHP was administrated to pregnant mice by intraperitoneally injection with 0, 0.5, 1.0 and 10.0mg/kg B.W, 5 times at 3 days interval from Day 1 to Day 16 in the gestation period. The body weight and reproductive organ weight(testis, epididymis and coagulating gland) in male pups on 45 day after birth was not affected in all experimental groups, but vesicular gland in DEHP groups was significantly lower than that of control group(P<0.05). The semen characteristics of male pups were not affected in DEHP treatment groups. The WBC, HB, HT, MCH and albumin values in male pups were not affected in all experimental groups, but RBC MCV, MCHC, PLT and total protein values were significantly different among the experimental groups(P<0.05). In female pups, the effects of DEHP administration were not affected the body and uterus weight, but the left ovary in 10.0mg DEHP group was significantly heavier than in control and 0.5mg DEHP group(P<0.05). The WBC, MCV, MCH, MCHC, PLT, albumin, BUN and total protein values in female were not different in all experimental groups. The RBC, HB and HT values were significantly different among the experimental gruop(P<0.05). The historical evaluation of testis in male pups that were grown to 45 days after birth was not different in all experimental groups. The ovary in female pups had many corpus luteum in 10.0mg DEHP group. The endometriosisi of uterus was significantly decreased in DEHP group. There results suggest that low concentration of DEHP administration in pup born after DEHP administration in pregnant mice was not affered on reproductive characteristic, but was affected on blood hematological and chemical values.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology and Dermatology
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.76-88
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• 2009

Back ground and Objective : There is a need for objectification and scientific verification of Pattern identification in Oriental medicine. The purpose of this study was to investigate the skin characteristics of Qi deficiency and Blood deficiency animal models. Material and Methods : Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into three groups: normal group, Qi deficiency group and Blood deficiency group. The Qi deficiency animal model was induced through restriction of food (75g/kg/day) for 20 days. Blood deficiency animal model was induced by bleeding from tail vein(0.3 ml/time) 8 times. The normal animal model was kept without any intervention. The general condition was observed by measuring body weight, body temperature, blood pressure, pulse rate, and hematological and biochemical parameters. The skin characteristics were observed by measuring the erythema index(EI), melanin index(Ml), transepidermal water loss(TEWL) and dermal microcirculation. Results : 1. In the Qi deficiency group, body weight was lower than the other groups. In the Qi deficiency group, blood pressure was lower than in the Normal group. There was no difference in body temperature and pulse rate between the three groups. 2. In the Qi deficiency group, blood sugar was lower than in the Blood deficiency group. There was no difference in triacylglycerol between the three groups. In the Qi deficiency group, the WBC count was lower than in the Blood deficiency group. RBC count was highest in the Qi deficiency group, Normal group and Blood deficiency group respectively. In the Qi deficiency group, Hb and Hct were higher than the other groups. 3. EI and MI were decreased in the Qi deficiency group, and EI showed a significant decrease. 4. EI and MI were increased in the Blood deficiency group, and MI showed a significant increase. 5. TEWL was significantly increased in the Qi deficiency group, while it was decreased in the Blood deficiency group, TEWL was highest in the Qi deficiency group, Normal group and Blood deficiency group respectively and all three groups showed significant difference. 6. In the Qi deficiency group, dermal microcirculation was lower than the other groups. Conclusion : The above results show that the erythema index decreases in the Qi deficiency model, and the melanin index increases in the Blood deficiency model. The Qi deficiency animal model shows an increase in transepidermal water loss, while the Blood deficiency animal model shows a decrease. Further studies should develop new models of Pattern Identification that are more specific.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.38 no.6
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• pp.955-970
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• 2017

Objectives: The aim of this observational study was to identify and analyze the patterns to compare the characteristics of asthma patients. Methods: The subjects were 40 asthma patients who had satisfied the inclusion and exclusion criteria. They were divided into deficiency syndrome and excess syndrome groups, and cold syndrome and heat syndrome groups. Their quality of life was measured by the quality of life questionnaire for adult Korean asthmatics (QLQAKA) and VAS. Heart rate variability (HRV) was measured, and the degree of obesity was evaluated by body mass index (BMI). Hematological, biochemical, and immunoglobulin (Ig) E laboratory tests were included. Results: Based on pattern identification, the 40 asthma patients could be divided into two categories of groups: 1) the deficiency syndrome (N=18) and the excess syndrome (N=22) groups: 2) the cold syndrome (N=35) and the heat syndrome (N=5) groups. The mean value of HF differed significantly between the deficiency and excess syndrome groups. The mean value of IgE in blood tests of asthmatics was greater than four times the reference value. For BMI, the subjects were classified into three groups: normal weight (N=12), overweight (N=12), and obese (N=16). Conclusions: Development of a more accurate asthma-specific pattern identification tool could play a crucial role in asthma control. In addition, good control of asthma can improve the quality of life. Obesity is one of the factors associated with asthma exacerbation.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.672-682
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• 2017

Objective: This study was conducted to investigate the effects of probiotic, prebiotic and synbiotic with and without feed restriction on broilers performance, blood parameters, carcass characteristics, and feed cost of production from 1 to 56 days of age. Methods: Two hundred and forty unsexed one day-old chicks of Arbor Acres breed were used. Two trials, I and II, were conducted, with 120 birds in both. Each trial was divided into 4 equal groups. The birds in trial I were fed ad libitum throughout the experiment, while the chicks in trial II were fed ad libitum during the first week of age, then subjected to 5 hours/d of feed restriction from the beginning of the second week up to the end of the experiment. In both trials, the birds in group 1 were fed on a control diet while the other groups were given the same control diet supplemented either with a probiotic in group 2, prebiotic in group 3, or synbiotic in group 4. Results: It was found that chicks fed diets supplemented with probiotic, prebiotic and synbiotic (with and without feed restriction) exhibited higher body weight and feed efficiency than chicks fed the control diets. The feed additives in both trials did not affect hemoglobin, serum total protein, albumin, globulin, glucose, and total cholesterol, except the packed cell volume which was increased in the additive treatments with restriction at the end of the experiment. Moreover, the dietary treatments did not influence the carcass yield. However, the relative weights of liver, gizzard and proventriculus, small intestine and bursa of fabricius were found to be increased. The additives decreased the visible fat in the carcass, with more decreasing effect in the additive groups with restriction. The lowest feed cost per kg of weight gain was observed in the birds fed diets supplemented with synbiotic, probiotic and prebiotic. Feed restriction improved the feed conversion ratio, economic return, but decreased the feed intake, serum total cholesterol and visible fat in comparison with non-restricted groups. Conclusion: The biological feed additives could be routinely added to broiler diets, especially when a feed restriction program is followed. Finally, it can be recommended to restrict feed, and add probiotic or synbiotic to increase weight, improve feed conversion rate and reduce feed cost of production.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.165-175
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• 2017

To minimize the damage caused by summer season such as high temperature and red tide, this study was conducted to investigate the effect of feeding and starvation on the survival rate, growth, growth restoration and physiological response of red seabream Pagrus major which were reared in marine net cage ($6m{\times}6m{\times}6m$). The feeding group was fed throughout the experiment for 10 weeks, whereas starvation group was not fed for 6 weeks and subsequent refeeding for 4 weeks. Survival rates of feeding and starvation groups were 94.4% and 98.1% respectively. The growth rate of starvation group was significantly lower than feeding group during starvation period, but recovered rapidly after feeding. The nutritional status such as albumin, total protein, total cholesterol, triglyceride also showed similar tendency to the growth data. Hematocrit and hemoglobin levels were higher in the feeding group than the starvation group during starvation period. Aspartate aminotransferase, glucose and total cholesterol were rapidly increased at the same time (in 5 week) in feeding group, whereas starvation group did not significant difference during starvation period. It was shown that the feeding group is more sensitive to stress than the starvation group. Thus, starvation can be applied as a rearing management plan of net cage fish farm in summer season.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.134-141
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• 2014

Along with the wide use of radiotherapy in cancer treatment, there is growing interest in beneficial effect of low-dose irradiation (LDI) in cancer therapy. Therefore, we investigate how LDI affects immune responses in mice model. Total body irradiation (TBI) on C57BL/6 mice was given at low-dose rate of $1mGy{\cdot}min^{-1}$ using $^{137}Cs$ source at three times for consecutive three days. Hematological examination, total cell numbers of spleen, populations and characteristics of splenocytes were determined. Total numbers of RBC or platelet in irradiated mice showed no significant changes. WBC counts were decreased in a dose-dependent manner 2 days after TBI, however, these differences are gradually waned until 28 days. Dose-dependent decrease in the number of splenocytes of TBI mice at day 2 was also improved as time progressed. While the level of Foxp3 mRNA was decreased, the frequency of $CD4^+$ T cells and $CD69^+$ cells in spleen was increased at day 2 and 14. Fractionated low-dose TBI on mice exhibited normal body weight with no distinguishable behavior during whole experimental periods. These results suggest that some parameters of immune system could be altered and evaluated by fractionated low-dose TBI and be used to broaden boundary of low dose radiation research.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.27-44
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• 1974

A general survey of 82 perschool children and 473 school children (from 1st to 3rd grade) residing in the Dongnae area of Shindong Myun, choonseoung Gun, Kangwon Province was conducted from June 12 to 21, 1973, to obtain information concerning nutritional status, especially the protein and iron nutrition of preschool and school children in a rural area of Korea. A sample of 58 children 2 to 9 years old was selected from these 555 children for hematological, biochemical and parasitological tests. The results of these tests are presented below, 1) Both the mean body height and mean body weight of these children were higher and heavier than the averages in the Korean Physical Standards. About 39 per cent were above the 90 th percentile of the Korean Physical Standards of height and 35 per cent were above the 90th percentile of the Korean Physical Standards of weight. 2) The rate of infestation by helminthes was 67.6 per cent and there were no cases of hookworm infestation Among the ascaris-infected children, 61.6 per cent fell within an Ascaris E.P.G. count range of $501{\sim}2,000$. This was considered a rather mild intensify of ascaris infection. Nutrient loss due to helminthes was also estimated to be low. 3) The mean hemoglobin level was 11.3gm% $({\pm}0.94)$, and 68.4 per cent of the children were anemic (less than 11gm% among those 5 years old or less, less than l2gm% among those 6 years old or more). The average hematocrit value was 36.1% $({\pm}2.36)$, and only 3.5 per cent showed more than 34% on the M.C.H.C. test. These results showed that the incidence of anemia, in these rural children was high, and that in general it displayed hypochromic characteristics. 4) The average serum iron level was $78.2{\mu}g%$\;({\pm}29.8). The Proportion of the children showing less than $50{\mu}g% in the serum iron level was 5.6 per cent, while 41.8 percent revealed $450{\mu}g% or more in the TIBC determination. Transferrin saturation was below 15% in 71.4 percent of the preschool children, and in 28.6 percent of the school children. Those who had a serum iron level of $50{\mu}g% or less and a TIBC of more than $450{\mu}g% constituted 11.9 percent of the children examined. From these results, it was concluded that especially preschool children were low in iron nutrition, and that most of the anemia might be iron-deficiency anemia. 5) The mean values of total serum protein and albumin were 6.98gm% and 4.99gm% respectively. Especially in serum albumin, all children stowed more than 4 gm%. 6) The mean urinary urea nitrogen Per creatinine ratio was 11.5 $({\pm}4.2)$, and 21.8 percent had a ratio of more than 15. Considering these results, it was suggested that protein nutrition in these children was relatively good.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.31-40
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• 2007

The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between insulin resistance and cardiovascular disease risk factors in Korean type 2 diabetes patients. The subjects were 429 (male: 218, female: 211) type 2 DM patients visited DM clinic, and they were classified into quartiles based on $K_{ITT}$ index (%/min, Insulin Tolerance Test). Anthropometric and biochemical characteristics, and dietary intakes by Food Frequency Questionnaire were assessed. The means of waist circumference, fat mass, percent body fat and abdominal fat thickness were significantly higher in the lowest quartile (the most insulin resistant group) than in the highest quartile (the least insulin resistant group) of $K_{ITT}$ index (%/min)(p<0.05), For hematological values, the lowest quartile showed significantly higher fasting blood glucose, HbA1c, C-peptide, insulin, triglyceride, ApoB/apoA-1 ratio and C-reactive protein compared to the highest quartile (p < 0.05). Moreover, $K_{ITT}$ index (%/min) was negatively correlated with waist circumference, fat mass, percent body fat, abdominal fat thickness and fasting blood concentrations of glucose, HbA1c, C-peptide, insulin, cholesterol, triglyceride, ApoB/apoA-1 ratio and C-reactive protein (p < 0.05). Nutrient intakes were not significantly different among the quartile groups of $K_{ITT}$ index (%/min) and also not correlated with insulin resistance, however, they showed correlation with obesity parameters (BMI, waist circumference, waist-hip ratio, vat mass, abdominal fat thickness), which were strongly associated with insulin resistance. In conclusion, cardiovascular disease risk would be higher as the insulin resistance grows in Korean type 2 DM patients, and nutrient intakes would affect to the insulin resistance through the effect on anthropometric parameters.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.372-380
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• 2006

The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between inflammatory cytokines and chronic disease status in Korean elderly. The subjects were 248 elderly people aged over 65 years recruited from Health Center in Seoul. The subjects were classified into 3 groups based on their disease (diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia) status: subjects with one diagnosed disease of diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia fall into singular group (n=89), subjects with more than 2 disease into multiple group (n=39), and those with free of the diseases into normal (n=122). Anthropometric and biochemical characteristics, and dietary intakes were assessed. Dietary intakes were surveyed by 24-recall method. The means of IL-2, IL-6, MCP-1 and C3 were not differ among 3 groups. However, when subjects classified into tertiles of IL-6, MCP-1, TNF-$\alpha$ and C3 and frequencies of each fertile were compared, the multiple group showed significantly lower frequencies in lowest fertile than normal group (p<0.05), suggesting higher tendency of inflammatory responses. For hematological values, blood pressure, triglycerides, fasting blood glucose levels were highest in multiple group (p<0.05) compared to other 2 groups. BMI, body fat(kg), and triceps skinfold thickness were also significantly higher in multiple group than in 2 other groups(p<0.05). Moreover, the concentrations of IL-2, IL-6 and C3 were significantly correlated with hematologic values of fasting blood glucose, total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, and triglycerides or obesity factors such as triceps skinfold thickness, BMI, and body fat(%). Among singular and multiple group, the subjects with higher intakes for vitamins A, C, and E showed the higher level of IL-2 and the lower level of MCP-1, and C3. In conclusion, blood concentrations of triglycerides and proinflammatory cytokines, blood pressure, obesity parameters (BMI, body fat, triceps skinfold thickness) were higher in multiple group than in normal, but this result strongly suggest that the increasement of the vitamin A, C, and E intakes would modify the cytokine levels to reduce the inflammatory response in the elderly people with chronic diseases.