• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.32 no.9
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• pp.1086-1097
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• 2022

During the last decades, research and therapeutic methods in cancer treatment have been evolving. As the results, nowadays, cancer patients are receiving several types of treatments, ranging from chemotherapy and radiation therapy to surgery and immunotherapy. In fact, most cancer patients take a combination of current anti-cancer therapies to improve the efficacy of treatment. However, current strategies still cause some side effects to patients, such as pain and depression. Therefore, there is the need to discover better ways to eradicate cancer whilst minimizing side effects. Recently, immunotherapy, particularly immune checkpoint blockade, is rising as an effective anti-cancer treatment. Unlike chemotherapy or radiation therapy, immunotherapy has few side effects and a higher tumor cell removal efficacy depend on cellular immunological mechanisms. Moreover, recent studies suggest that tissue immune responses are regulated by their microbiome composition. Each tissue has their specific microenvironment, which makes their microbiome composition different, particularly in the context of different types of cancer, such as breast, colorectal, kidney, lung, and skin. Herein, we review the current understanding of the relationship of immune responses and tissue microbiome in cancer in both animal and human studies. Moreover, we discuss the cancer-microbiome-immune axis in the context of cancer development and treatment. Finally, we speculate on strategies to control tissue microbiome alterations that may synergistically affect the immune system and impact cancer treatment outcomes.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.85-88
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• 2021

A 9-year-old, intact female Shih-tzu dog presented with a three-week history of anorexia, lethargy, and weight loss. Abdominal radiography revealed a mass in the right cranial quadrant of the abdomen that was displacing the right kidney caudally. Ultrasonography showed a large, irregular, heterogeneous hepatic mass and a small amount of peritoneal fluid. On computed tomography (CT), a large hypoattenuating mass with heterogeneous contrast enhancement occupied the right lateral lobe, and parts of the right medial and caudate lobes of the liver. There was no evidence of regional lymph node or pulmonary metastasis. Lobectomy of the right medial, right lateral and caudate liver lobes was performed, however, the patient did not recover from surgery. Hepatoblastoma was confirmed by histological examination. Hepatoblastoma is rare in dogs, and this is the first report describing CT imaging of hepatoblastoma in a dog.

• BMB Reports
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• v.56 no.12
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• pp.669-674
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• 2023

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection leads to various clinical symptoms including anemia. Lipocalin-2 has various biological functions, including defense against bacterial infections through iron sequestration, and it serves as a biomarker for kidney injury. In a human protein array, we observed increased lipocalin-2 expression due to parental SARS-CoV-2 infection in the Calu-3 human lung cancer cell line. The secretion of lipocalin-2 was also elevated in response to parental SARS-CoV-2 infection, and the SARS-CoV-2 Alpha, Beta, and Delta variants similarly induced this phenomenon. In a Calu-3 implanted mouse xenograft model, parental SARSCoV-2 and Delta variant induced lipocalin-2 expression and secretion. Additionally, the iron concentration increased in the Calu-3 tumor tissues and decreased in the serum due to infection. In conclusion, SARS-CoV-2 infection induces the production and secretion of lipocalin-2, potentially resulting in a decrease in iron concentration in serum. Because the concentration of iron ions in the blood is associated with anemia, this phenomenon could contribute to developing anemia in COVID-19 patients.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.451-456
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• 2018

The current study was conducted to confirm the anti-cancer effect of Sarijang, which is a mixture of extracts from purple bamboo salt, Rhynchosia nulubilis, garlic, and Ulmi cortex. Nude mice were injected with a human-derived colorectal cancer cell (HCT116 cell line) and subsequently administered Sarijang for 4 weeks, following which the body weight, organ weight, and tumor size were measured. To evaluate the anti-cancer mechanism of Sarijang, the levels of p16 and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), cell cycle regulators in colorectal cancer, were measured. To evaluate the toxicity of Sarijang on liver and kidney, aspartate transaminase, alanine transaminase, blood urea nitrogen, and creatinine were analyzed. Sarijang not only reduced the tumor size by enhancing p16 and suppressing ERK, but also showed no side-effect in the liver and kidneys. Taken together, Sarijang has the potential to inhibit tumor growth without side effects, and may be used as a useful functional food.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.35 no.10
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• pp.755-759
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• 2002

A 64-year-old man was admitted for gross hematuria. Preoperative study revealed right renal cell carcinoma with inferior vena cava(IVC) tumor thrombus. Right radical nephrectomy was performed, and deep hypothermic circulatory arrest(DHCA) with retrograde cerebral perfusion(RCP) was used for extraction of tumor thrombus in the IVC. The thrombus originated from the right kidney, which extended the orifice of the gonadal vein in the left renal vein laterally, the hepatic vein superiorly, and 3cm below the right renal vein inferiorly. The thrombus was removed completely without caval wall injury under DHCA with RCP, and the postoperative course was uneventful. He received immunotherapy with interferon, and followed up without any surgical problem.

• Reproductive and Developmental Biology
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.145-152
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• 2007

Transgenic mice were generated by microinjecting a plasmid DNA containing the SV40 (simian virus 40) large T antigen (Tag) gene fused with mouse albumin promoter/enhancer sequences into fertilized one-cell mouse embryos. Among eleven founder transgenic animals, four developed hepatocellular carcinoma, two showed kidney cancer and one developed skin and brain tumors. Three stable transgenic lines, #1-2, #1-6 and #1-11 were established. Members of the lines #1-6 and #1-11 reproducibly developed liver tumors by 8 to 10 weeks of age but did not exhibit any phenotypic changes in other tissues. Histological changes loading to liver tumor formation occurred with predictable kinetics and could be classified into three distinct stages; (a) newborn to 3 weeks of age, characterized by hyperplastic hepatocytes with reduced amounts of cytoplasm without any nuclear alterations, (b) between 4 to 8 weeks of age, characterized by diffuse liver cell dysplasia without observable tumor nodules, and (c) 9 weeks of age and thereafter, characterized by hepatocellular carcinomas in the background of extensive liver dysplasia. Metastasis to the lung from a liver carcinoma was observed in #1-11 founder animal. This transgenic mouse system displays similarities with human liver cancers in a number of aspects and provides a useful model for the study of molecular events involved in hepatocarcinogenesis.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.94-100
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• 1999

The aim of this retrospective study was to determine whether a nephron sparing surgery might be feasible in patients with a small solid renal tumor. Materials and methods: Between 1988 and 1999, 21 patients with a radiologically detectable small solid renal tumor underwent enucleoresection, wedge resection and polar segmental nephrectomy. The mean age of the 11 men and 10 women in this study was 43 years (range 14 to 68). According to the preoperative radiological diagnosis, 15 among the 21 patients were considered to have renal cell carcinoma, 4 were considered to have angiomyolipoma, and in the remaining 2 patients, radiological differentiation of renal tumors was difficult. Among 15 patients considered to have renal cell carcinoma, 14 were found to have renal cell carcinoma and the remaining one patient was diagnosed as having oncocytoma on pathologic examination. Radiological determination of angiomyolipoma in four patients was confirmed to be correct on pathological examination. The 2 patients whose radiological diagnose was difficult were found to have cavernous hemangioma and angiomyolipoma. One patient with renal cell carcinoma developed arteriocaliceal fistula, the only immediate complication in this series and underwent nephrectomy on postoperative 10th day. The mean follow up duration for the 14 patients with renal cell carcinoma was 18.6 months (range:1-103). There was no other tumor involvement in the resection margins following the nephron sparing surgery. These results suggest that nephron sparing surgery provides an effective treatment for patients with a single, small, unilateral, localized renal tumor. Longer follow-up is suggested for more definite verification of the role of nephron sparing surgery.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.106-113
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• 2012

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the variation of radiation dose distribution for liver tumor located in liver dome and for the interest organs(normal liver, kidney, stomach) with the pencil beam convolution (PBC) algorithm versus anisotropic Analyticalal algorithm (AAA) of the Varian Eclipse treatment planning system, The target volumes from 20 liver cancer patients were used to create treatment plans. Treatment plans for 10 patients were performed in Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT) plan and others were performed in 3 Dimensional Conformal Radiation Therapy (3DCRT) plan. dose calculation was recalculated by AAA algorithm after dose calculation was performed by PBC algorithm for 20 patients. Plans were optimized to 100% of the PTV by the Prescription Isodose in Dose Calculation with the PBC algorithm. Plans were recalculated with the AAA, retaining identical beam arrangements, monitor units, field weighting and collimator condition. In this study, Total PTV was to be statistically significant (SRS: p=0.018, 3DCRT: p=0.006) between PBC and AAA algorithm. and in the case of PTV, ITV in liver dome, plans for 3DCRT were to be statistically significant respectively (p=0.013, p=0.024). normal liver and kidney were to be statistically significant (p=0.009, p=0.037). For the predictive index of dose variation, CVF ratio was to be statistically significant for PTV in the liver dome versus PTV (SRS r=0.684, 3DCRT r=0.732, p<0.01) and CVF ratio for Tumor size was to be statistically significant (SRS r=-0.193, p=0.017, 3DCRT r=0.237, p=0.023).

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.846-860
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• 1998

Background: Endotoxin (LPS : lipopolysaccharide), a potent activator of immune system, can induce acute and chronic inflammation through the production of cytokines by a variety of cells, such as monocytes, endothelial cells, lymphocytes, eosinophils, neutrophils and fibroblasts. LPS stimulate the mononucelar cells by two different pathway, the CD14 dependent and independent way, of which the former has been well documented, but not the latter. LPS binds to the LPS-binding protein (LBP), in serum, to make the LPS-LBP complex which interacts with CD14 molecules on the mononuclear cell surface in peripheral blood or is transported to the tissues. In case of high concentration of LPS, LPS can stimulate directly the macrophages without LBP. We investigated to detect the generation of proinflammatory cytokines such as interleukin 1 (IL-1), IL-6 and TNF-$\alpha$ and fibrogenic cytokine, TGF-$\beta$, by peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) after LPS stimulation under serum-free conditions, which lacks LBPs. Methods : PBMC were obtained by centrifugation on Ficoll Hypaque solution of peripheral venous bloods from healthy normal subjects, then stimulated in the presence of LPS (0.1 ${\mu}g/mL$ to 100 ${\mu}g/mL$ ). The activities of IL-1, IL-6, TNF, and TGF-$\beta$ were measured by bioassaies using cytokines - dependent proliferating or inhibiting cell lines. The cellular sources producing the cytokines was investigated by immunohistochemical stains and in situ hybridization. Results : PBMC started to produce IL-6, TNF-$\alpha$ and TGF-$\beta$ in 1 hr, 4 hrs and 8hrs, respectively, after LPS stimulation. The production of IL-6, TNF-$\alpha$ and TGF-$\beta$ continuously increased 96 hrs after stimulation of LPS. The amount of production was 19.8 ng/ml of IL-6 by $10^5$ PBMC, 4.1 ng/mL of TNF by $10^6$ PBMC and 34.4 pg/mL of TGF-$\beta$ by $2{\times}10^6$ PBMC. The immunoreactivity to IL-6, TNF-$\alpha$ and TGF-$\beta$ were detected on monocytes in LPS-stimulated PBMC. Some of lymphocytes showed positive immunoreactivity to TGF-$\beta$. Double immunohistochemical stain showed that IL-1$\beta$, IL-6, TNF-$\alpha$ expression was not associated with CD14 postivity on monocytes. IL-1$\beta$, IL-6, TNF-$\alpha$ and TGF-$\beta$mRNA expression were same as observed in immunoreactivity for each cytokines. Conclusion: When monocytes are stimulated with LPS under serum-free conditions, IL-6 and TNF-$\alpha$ are secreted in early stage of inflammation. In contrast, the secretion of TGF-$\beta$ arise in the late stages and that is maintained after 96 hrs. The main cells releasing IL-1$\beta$, IL-6, TNF-$\alpha$ and TGF-$\beta$ are monocytes, but also lymphocytes can secret TGF-$\beta$.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.331-339
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• 2014

To test feasibility of proton arc therapy (PAT) in the treatment of para-aortic lymph node tumor and compare its dosimetric properties with advanced radiotherapy techniques such as intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and conventional 3D conformal proton beam therapy (PBT). The treatment plans for para-aortic lymph node tumor were planned for 9 patients treated at our institution using IMRT, PBT, and PAT. Feasibility test and dosimetric evaluation were based on comparisons of dose volume histograms (DVHs) which reveal mean dose, $D_{30%}$, $D_{60%}$, $D_{90%}$, $V_{30%}$, $V_{60%}$, $V_{90%}$, organ equivalent doses (OEDs), normal tissue complication probability (NTCP), homogeneity index (HI) and conformity index (CI). The average doses delivered by PAT to the liver, kidney, small bowel, duodenum, stomach were 7.6%, 3%, 17.3%, 26.7%, and 14.4%, of the prescription dose (PD), respectively, which is higher than the doses delivered by IMRT (0.4%, 7.2%, 14.2%, 15.9%, and 12.8%, respectively) and PBT (4.9%, 0.5%, 14.12%, 16.1% 9.9%, respectively). The average homogeneity index and conformity index of tumor using PAT were 12.1 and 1.21, respectively which were much better than IMRT (21.5 and 1.47, respectively) and comparable to PBT (13.1 and 1.23, respectively). The result shows that both NTCP and OED of PAT are generally lower than IMRT and PBT. This study demonstrates that PAT is better in target conformity and homogeneity than IMRT and PBT but worse than IMRT and PBT for most of dosimetric factor which indicate that PAT is not recommended for the treatment of para-aortic lymph node tumor.