• Health Policy and Management
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.149-151
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• 2015

United Nations (UN) adopted 17 global sustainable development agenda to the year 2030 in the 68th general assembly on september, 2015. The global agendas and goals are important for 3 reasons: (1) to adopt the international standard for determining the health status; (2) to identify areas in need of attention; and (3) to advance international cooperation regarding health issues. In the area of infectious diseases, our goals include the eradication of human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immune deficiency syndrome, tuberculosis, and malaria as well as a substantial reduction of hepatitis by the year 2030. In the area of non-communicable diseases, our goal is to reduce premature mortality (${\leq}70years$) at least 30% by the year 2030. Preventive activities such as smoking cessation, alcohol abstinence, nutritional measures, and physical activities, should also be promoted intensively nationwide. It is also necessary to establish stringent policies for control hypertension, diabetes, obesity, and hypercholesterolemia. Additionally, environmental health, injury by traffic accident, mental health, and drug and alcohol abuse are important health policies. Furthermore, in the area of international health and cooperation, maternal and child health remain important areas of support for underdeveloped countries. Education and training towards the empowerment of health professionals in underdeveloped countries is also an important issue. The global agenda prioritize resources(manpower and budget) allocation of international organizations such as UN, World Health Organization, United Nations Development Programme, and World Bank. The global agenda also sets the contribution levels of Official Developmental Assistance donor countries. Health professionals such as professors and researchers will have to turn their attention to areas of vital international importance, and play an important role in implementation strategies and futhermore guiding global agenda.

• Journal of Korean Medical Science
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• v.33 no.50
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• pp.321.1-321.7
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• 2018

Background: Pertussis is highly contagious respiratory disease. Healthcare workers (HCWs) can be an important mediator of the disease. A seroprevalence of pertussis was investigated in HCWs to determine the immune status against pertussis and to detect the unidentified pertussis. Methods: This study was conducted for HCWs at a hospital located in Korea in 2011. After obtaining written informed consent for HCWs voluntarily participating in the study, 10 mL of blood was collected from each subject. Demographic and medical data were collected using questionnaire. Data on the underlying disease and vaccination history were reviewed again through medical records. The presence of anti-pertussis toxin (anti-PT) immunoglobulin G (IgG), and immunoglobulin A (IgA) was detected by quantitative analysis using a commercially available ELISA kit (EUROIMMUN, $L{\ddot{u}}beck$, Germany). Results: A total of 412 HCW participated in the study. Among them, 14 were excluded due to the inadequate sample amount or medical history not secured. Of the 398 HCWs analyzed, 16.6% (66/398) were men and the mean age was $33.82{\pm}9.10years$ (range, 21-67). The mean anti-PT IgG titer was $8.32{\pm}20.40IU/mL$ (range, 0.4-287.5 IU/mL). The overall seroprevalence (rate of anti-PT IgG antibody [Ab] titer > 5 IU/mL) was 33.7%. Three (0.8%) HCWs had the Ab level > 100 IU/mL indicated acute infection. There was no statistically significant difference in the seroprevalence and mean titer of anti-PT IgG Ab according to age group, type of occupation, patient-facing position, or working in the pediatric department. Conclusion: The seroprevalence of pertussis of the HCWs of a university hospital in Korea was low, and there were some unrecognized acute infections. Therefore, booster immunization of pertussis to HCWs should be actively considered.

• Korean Linguistics
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• v.71
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• pp.1-22
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• 2016

The early 20th century is a period of time when Korea confronted with the surging waves of modernization, and made a variety of internal reactions. The Korean language, not immune to the upheaval, also experienced new changes and gradually gained characteristics of today's Korean. Although scholars have not yet fully agreed upon the time division of Korean, Gabo reformation (1896) is usually considered to be the beginning of modern Korean. Thus, the early 20th century was also the beginning of modern Korean. Phonological, lexical, and grammatical characteristics of modern day Korean began to appear during this period of time. Phonologically, the 10 vowel system was established, glottal sounds and aspirated sounds increased, vowel harmony declined. Phenomena such as vowel raising, front-vowelization, monophthongization, and the word-initial rule appeared. Meanwhile, hangul-Chinese mix writing became common practice, and hangul-only writing also started to take place in narrative writing, and elements of spoken language began to reflect in written language. All those pointed to the unification of written and spoken language. Under the influence of modernization, a great amount of new words appeared. Especially, Japanese and other foreign words flooded in in great quantities. Grammatically, '-eos-(-엇-), -neun-(-는-), -ges-(-겟-)' trichotomy system of tenses was established, and hearer-oriented honorific system also formed a binary system of 'hasoseo(하소서), hasibsio(하십시오), hao(하오), hage(하게), haera(해라)' and 'hae (해), haeyo(해요)'. In word formation and sentence construction, the use of '-gi(-기)' became more frequent than '-eum(-음)', while '~geot(~것)' also significantly increased. In negative, causative and passive expressions, the use of long form, which has fewer restrictions than the short form, became more frequent. A tendency towards simplicity appeared. In the same vain, long and complex sentences with several clauses tend to be avoided. Instead, short simple sentences became more favorable. Korean linguistics scholars should pay closer attention to the modernization period, which includes the early 20th century. In order to fully understand today's Korean language, more thorough research on this immediately preceding period is necessary.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.429-440
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• 2019

Several studies have attempted to identify factors associated with longevity and maintenance of health in centenarians. In this study, we analyzed and compared the gut microbiota of centenarians in longevity villages with the elderly and adults in the same region and urbanized towns. Fecal samples were collected from centenarians, elderly, and young adults in longevity villages, and the gut microbiota sequences of elderly and young adults in urbanized towns of Korea were obtained from public databases. The relative abundance of Firmicutes was found to be considerably higher in subjects from longevity villages than those from urbanized towns, whereas Bacteroidetes was lower. Age-related rearrangement of gut microbiota was observed in centenarians, such as reduced proportions of Faecalibacterium and Prevotella, and increased proportion of Escherichia, along with higher abundances of Akkermansia, Clostridium, Collinsella, and uncultured Christensenellaceae. Gut microbiota of centenarians in rehabilitation hospitals were also different to those residing at home. These differences could be due to differences in diet patterns and living environments. In addition, phosphatidylinositol signaling system, glycosphingolipid biosynthesis, and various types of N-glycan biosynthesis were predicted to be higher in the gut microbiota of centenarians (corrected p < 0.05). These three metabolic pathways of gut microbiota can be associated with the immune status and healthy gut environment of centenarians. Although further studies are necessary to validate the function of microbiota between groups, this study provides valuable information on centenarians' gut microbiota.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.48 no.3
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• pp.607-615
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• 2021

Cytokines are protein mediators that possess the ability to assist cell-to-cell communication in immune system-related activities. In general, pathogen endotoxins activate the release of inflammatory mediators, and with time, there is an increase in the cytokine levels in the body. Interleukin (IL)-6 mediates the acute-phase inflammatory response, and elevated IL-6 levels have been reported in peritoneal fluids of women with pelvic inflammation and endometriosis, thereby associating it with oocyte quality and infertility. To overcome subfertility or infertility in humans and animals, the present study was done to examine the effect of recombinant IL-6 on porcine oocytes matured in vitro and subsequently to determine the fertilization rate and embryo development. Porcine oocytes were incubated with varying concentrations of IL-6 (0 - 2 ㎍·mL^-1) for 44 h followed by in vitro fertilization and culturing of the oocytes. The oocytes or embryos were fixed with 3.7% paraformaldehyde (PFA) and stained with fluorescence dyes, and the meiotic spindle, chromosome organization, fertilization status and embryo development were subsequently assessed under a fluorescence microscope. We observed induction of an abnormal meiotic spindle alignment in the oocytes incubated with IL-6 compared to the control oocytes incubated without IL-6. Moreover, significantly decreased fertilization rates and embryo development were observed for oocytes incubated with IL-6 (p < 0.05). Thus, an increased IL-6 level during oocyte maturation could be associated with fertilization failure due to an aberrant chromosomal alignment and a disruption of the cortical granules. Taken together, our results indicate that successful assisted reproduction can be achieved by controlling the levels of inflammatory cytokines.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology and Dermatology
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.55-69
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• 2021

Objectives : The purpose of this study is to review the latest discussions on the mechanism of Itching. Methods : Articles that reviewed the mechanism of itching were searched from Pubmed (January 2016 to June 2021). In addition, review articles discussing the gastrointestinal tract and the mechanisms of pruritus were searched seperately. Results : The articles are classified into three categories. These categories are the classification according to the passage of time (acute, chronic), the immune factors involved (inflammatory, non-inflammatory), and the neurophysiological mechanism (pruritoceptive itching, neuropathic itching, neurogenic itching, psychogenic itching). In each category, the articles over the past five years are summarized and reviewed. Also, how the status of the gastrointestinal tract is reflected in itching was discussed in terms of leaky gut syndrome, neuro/gastrointestinal peptides, and gut microbiota. Conclusions : This review introduces the recently discussed mechanism of itching, and in particular, examines how the gastrointestinal tract is related to skin itching. Based on these considerations, it is expected that more diverse therapeutic approaches can be explored in the future.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.681-698
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• 2022

The Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus, Atlantic salmon Salmo salar, rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss, olive flounder Paralichthys olivaceus, common carp Cyprinus carpio, grass carp Ctenopharyngodon idella and rohu carp Labeo rohita are farmed commercially worldwide. Production of these important finfishes is rapidly expanding, and intensive culture practices can lead to stress in fish, often reducing resistance to infectious diseases. Antibiotics and other drugs are routinely used for the treatment of diseases and sometimes applied preventatively to combat microbial pathogens. This strategy is responsible for the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance, mass killing of environmental/beneficial bacteria, and residual effects in humans. As an alternative, the administration of probiotics has gained acceptance for disease control in aquaculture. Probiotics have been found to improve growth, feed utilization, immunological status, disease resistance, and to promote transcriptomic profiles and internal microbial balance of host organisms. The present review discusses the effects of single and multi-strain probiotics on growth, immunity, heamato-biochemical parameters, and disease resistance of the above-mentioned finfishes. The application and outcome of probiotics in the field or open pond system, gaps in existing knowledge, and issues worthy of further research are also highlighted.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.44 no.5
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• pp.281-291
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• 2021

Tissue-resident macrophages play an important role in maintaining tissue homeostasis and innate immune defense against invading microbial pathogens. Brain-resident macrophages can be classified into microglia in the brain parenchyma and non-parenchymal brain macrophages, also known as central nervous system-associated or border-associated macrophages, in the brain-circulation interface. Microglia and non-parenchymal brain macrophages, including meningeal, perivascular, and choroid plexus macrophages, are mostly produced during embryonic development, and maintained their population by self-renewal. Microglia have gained much attention for their dual roles in the maintenance of brain homeostasis and the induction of neuroinflammation. In particular, diverse phenotypes of microglia have been increasingly identified under pathological conditions. Single-cell phenotypic analysis revealed that microglia are highly heterogenous and plastic, thus it is difficult to define the status of microglia as M1/M2 or resting/activated state due to complex nature of microglia. Meanwhile, physiological function of non-parenchymal brain macrophages remain to be fully demonstrated. In this review, we have summarized the origin and signatures of brain-resident macrophages and discussed the unique features of microglia, particularly, their phenotypic polarization, diversity of subtypes, and inflammasome responses related to neurodegenerative diseases.

• Journal of Marine Life Science
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.94-101
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• 2022

In this study, the marine medaka Oryzias javanicus was exposed to two concentrations of non-toxin-producing red tide dinoflagellate C. polykrikoides (1,000 and 2,000 cells ml^-1) for 96 h, and the time-course biochemical responses of antioxidant and immunity parameters were analyzed in the liver tissue. Significant ichthyotoxicity with increasing cell concentrations of C. polykrikoides and exposure period was observed for 96 h. Opercular respiratory rate was lowered in marine medaka exposed to 2,000 cells ml^-1 of C. polykrikoides. Intracellular malondialdehyde (MDA) content significantly elevated in response to both cell concentrations. In the case of glutathione (GSH) content, the levels were significantly elevated by 1,000 cells ml^-1 of C. polykrikoides, but the contents significantly depleted upon exposure to 2,000 cells ml^-1 of C. polykrikoides. Similarly, enzymatic activities of catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) were increased by 1,000 cells ml^-1 of C. polykrikoides, whereas their activities were lowered by 2,000 cells ml^-1 of C. polykrikoides. Analysis of the two immunity parameters, alternative complement pathway and lysozyme, showed significantly lowered activities in 2,000 cells ml^-1 of C. polykrikoides-exposed liver tissue. These biochemical effects of C. polykrikoides on marine medaka would be helpful for understanding its acute effects in marine fish.

• Korean Journal of Exercise Nutrition
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.1-7
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• 2021

[Purpose] Recent studies have shown that COVID-19 is often associated with altered gut microbiota composition and reflects disease severity. Furthermore, various reports suggest that the interaction between COVID-19 and host-microbiota homeostasis is mediated through the modulation of microRNAs (miRNAs). Thus, in this review, we aim to summarize the association between human microbiota and miRNAs in COVID-19 pathogenesis. [Methods] We searched for the existing literature using the keywords such "COVID-19 or microbiota," "microbiota or microRNA," and "COVID-19 or probiotics" in PubMed until March 31, 2021. Subsequently, we thoroughly reviewed the articles related to microbiota and miRNAs in COVID-19 to generate a comprehensive picture depicting the association between human microbiota and microRNAs in the pathogenesis of COVID-19. [Results] There exists strong experimental evidence suggesting that the composition and diversity of human microbiota are altered in COVID-19 patients, implicating a bidirectional association between the respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts. In addition, SARS-CoV-2 encoded miRNAs and host cellular microRNAs modulated by human microbiota can interfere with viral replication and regulate host gene expression involved in the initiation and progression of COVID-19. These findings suggest that the manipulation of human microbiota with probiotics may play a significant role against SARS-CoV-2 infection by enhancing the host immune system and lowering the inflammatory status. [Conclusion] The human microbiota-miRNA axis can be used as a therapeutic approach for COVID-19. Hence, further studies are needed to investigate the exact molecular mechanisms underlying the regulation of miRNA expression in human microbiota and how these miRNA profiles mediate viral infection through host-microbe interactions.