• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.43 no.3
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• pp.367-376
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• 1996

Background : The diagnosis of emphysema during life is based on a combination of clinical, functional, and radiographic findings, but this combination is relatively insensitive and nonspecific. The development of rapid, high-resolution third and fourth generation CT scanners has enabled us to resolve pulmonary parenchymal abnormalities with great precision. We compared the chest HRCT findings to the pulmonary function test and arterial blood gas analysis in pulmonary emphysema patients to test the ability of HRCT to quantify the degree of pulmonary emphysema. Methods : From october 1994 to october 1995, the study group consisted of 20 subjects in whom HRCT of the thorax and pulmonary function studies had been obtained at St. Mary's hospital. The analysis was from scans at preselected anatomic levels and incorporated both lungs. On each HRCT slice the lung parenchyma was assessed for two aspects of emphysema: severity and extent. The five levels were graded and scored separately for the left and right lung giving a total of 10 lung fields. A combination of severity and extent gave the degree of emphysema. We compared the HRCT quantitation of emphysema, pulmonary function tests, ABGA, CBC, and patients characteristics(age, sex, height, weight, smoking amounts etc.) in 20 patients. Results : 1) There was a significant inverse correlation between HRCT scores for emphysema and percentage predicted values of DLco(r = -0.68, p < 0.05), DLco/VA(r = -0.49, p < 0.05), FEV1(r = -0.53, p < 0.05), and FVC(r = -0.47, p < 0.05). 2) There was a significant correlation between the HRCT scores and percentage predicted values of TLC(r = 0.50, p < 0.05), RV(r = 0.64, p < 0.05). 3) There was a significant inverse correlation between the HRCT scores and PaO2(r = -0.48, p < 0.05) and significant correlation with D(A-a)O2(r = -0.48, p < 0.05) but no significant correlation between the HRCT scores and PaCO2. 4) There was no significant correlation between the HRCT scores and age, sex, height, weight, smoking amounts in patients, hemoglobin, hematocrit, and wbc counts. Conclusion : High-Resolution CT provides a useful method for early detection and quantitating emphysema in life and correlates significantly with pulmonary function tests and arterial blood gas analysis.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.23-30
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• 2004

Background: A human orthologue of mouse S100A6-binding protein (CacyBP), Siah-1-interacting protein (SIP) had been shown to be a component of novel ubiquitinylation pathway regulating $\beta$-catenin degradation. The role of the protein seems to be important in cell proliferation and cancer evolution but the expression pattern of SIP in actively dividing cancer tissues has not been known. For the elucidation of the role of SIP protein in carcinogenesis, it is essential to produce monoclonal antibodies specific to the protein. Methods: cDNA sequence coding for ORF region of human SIP gene was amplified and cloned into an expression vector to produce His-tag fusion protein. Recombinant SIP protein and monoclonal antibody to the protein were produced. The N-terminal specificity of anti-SIP monoclonal antibody was conformed by immunoblot analysis and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). To study the relation between SIP and colon carcinogenesis, the presence of SIP protein in colon carcinoma tissues was visualized by immunostaining using the monoclonal antibody produced in this study. Results: His-tag-SIP (NSIP) recombinant protein was produced and purified. A monoclonal antibody (Korea patent pending; #2003-45296) to the protein was produced and employed to analyze the expression pattern of SIP in colon carcinoma tissues. Conclusion: The data suggested that anti-SIP monoclonal antibody produced here was valuable for the diagnosis of colon carcinoma and elucidation of the mechanism of colon carcinogenesis.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.114-123
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• 1997

Background : To assess the diagnostic role of bronchoscopic lavage for the evaluation of pneumonia in intensive care unit(ICU), the results were compared to blind endobronchial specimen. Method : From September 1993 to August 1996, twenty-eight ICU patients suspected pneumonia on the basis of clinical evidence and performed bronchoscopy under the diagnostic or therapeutic purpose were studied retrospectively for the clinical findings including culture of bronchoscopic and blind endobronchial specimen. Bronchoscopic specimen was got through small amount of bronchoalveolar lavage with 20-40ml saline, one or two times on the suspected site. Results : l. Main reasons of ICU admission were respiratory and impending respiratory failure Nosocomial pneumonia was most common with 16 cases; each for community acquired and immunocompromised type with 6 cases. Diagnostic purpose of bronchoscopy was performed in 20 cases as 71 percent in total, whereas therapeutic removal of secretion in 8 cases. The complication during bronchoscopic evaluation was trivial. 2. The agreement between blind endobronchial and bronchoscopic specimen on microbial culture was only 39.3 percent. However, 2 cases each for aspergillosis and tuberculosis were diagnosed under bronchoscopic evaluation. 3 The application of mechanical ventilation occured significantly frequently in multidrug resistant pneumonia compared with other pneumonia in terms of bronchoscopic specimen. 4. The application of mechanical ventilation was significantly common in nosocomial pneurmonia compared with other types of pneumonia. Conclusion : The selective bronchoalveolar lavage and therapeutic removal of bronchial secretion with bronchoscopy in ICU patient accompanying pneumonia is a very useful tool with safety. The multidrug resistant pneumonia or nosocomial pneumonia could be closely associated with the use of mechanical ventilation.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.108-115
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• 2018

In the present study, results of the identification of Gram-positive bacilli (GPB) were analyzed by using the MALDI-TOF MS technique to score each 2-year blood culture at a university hospital. In addition, 16S rRNA sequence analyses and MALDI-TOF MS results are compared to targeting strains that had been isolated two or more times within the same patient, to evaluate the usefulness of MALDI-TOF MS in GPB identification. According to the cut-off (${\geq}1.7$) criteria, there were 410 (57.5%) reliable strains and 303 (42.5%) non-identified strains among the GPB identification results of 713 strains, using a microflex MALDI Biotyper (Bruker Daltonik GmbH, Bremen, Germany). The isolation appeared most often in the following order: Corynebacterium striatum, Bacillus cereus, Bacillus subtilis, Paenibacillus urinalis, and Listeria monocytogenes. Nearly three-fourths, 66 out of 89 (74.2%) of the strains for Corynebacterium striatum; 44 out of 60 (73.3%) strains for Bacillus cereus; and all (25 out of 25, 100%) Listeria monocytogenes strains were identified by their high scores of 2.0 or higher. Most (293 strains out of 303) non-identified strains were strains isolated only once and not significant as infectious bacilli. A total of 43 out of 50 (86.0%) strains matched and were able to be identified based on the 16 rRNA sequencing comparison results of strains that were isolated twice or more within the same patient and significant as infection bacilli. Non-matching among 5 out of 7 strains was not identified, even with MALDI-TOF MS. In conclusion, GPB can be identified in blood cultures using MALDI-TOF MS. This can be done accurately with ease, rapidly, and at a low cost. It is also thought to be helpful in GPB diagnosis and treatment.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Inherited Metabolic disease
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.63-68
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• 2017

Gaucher disease (GD) is caused by the deficiency of glucocerebrosidase. In pediatric patients with GD, especially Type I GD, enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) can reduce the hepatosplenomegaly and improve the hematologic finding and growth velocity. Herein, we report a 2-year-old girl with Type I GD presented with hepatosplenomegaly, bone pain and growth retardation. A 2 year-old-girl was referred to our hospital due to severe hepatosplenomegaly and growth retardation. She suffered from both leg pain and chronic fatigue. Simple x-ray showed widened distal long bones like that of an 'Erlenmeyer flask' which is associated with GD. The laboratory test showed anemia and thrombocytopenia. The enzyme activity was markedly reduced and the direct sequencing of the GBA gene showed the compound heterozygous mutations, p.G46E and p.L444P. As the G46E have been considered as the protective gene against neuronopathic genotype, we could assess the Type I GD in this patient. After one year of ERT, the growth velocity became 11 cm per year. Bone pain and fatigue disappeared. The volume of liver and spleen was reduced from $683cm^3$ and $703cm^3$ to $590cm^3$ and $235cm^3$, respectively. Although GD is an extremely rare disease in Korea, growth retardation and bone pain in children are the important signs which lead to early detection of GD and a simple radiologic finding is helpful to assess the GD at outpatient clinic. We highlight that the early diagnosis and early ERT is important for good growth and outcome for pediatric patients with GD.

• Journal of Embryo Transfer
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.255-260
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• 2016

The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of vitamin or mineral supplements on the conception rates of dairy heifers when replacing the last injection of GnRH with hCG in ovsynch protocol (experiment 1) and also to investigate whether the estrus synchronization treatment in the heifer stage affects the conception rates after $1^{st}$ parturition (experiment 2). In experiment 1, 50 heifers were randomly assigned into 3 groups: 20 heifers each in groups 1 and 2, and 10 in group 3. All three groups were treated with an intramuscular injection of GnRH on day 0 (day 0 = the day of program start), $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$ on day 7 and hCG on day 9, and were inseminated on day 10, 12~16h after hCG injection. In group 1 (vitamin group), the heifers were treated with an intramuscular injection of 5 ml of vitamin-ADE $500^{(R)}$, and group 2 (mineral group) was treated twice with an intramuscular injection of 30 ml of mineral supplement-LAPTOVET$^{(R)}$ on a one-week interval beginning on the day of hormone treatment (day 0 and day 7 respectively). Group 3 (control) was treated only with hormones. Pregnancy diagnosis was performed by ultrasonography through a rectal probe. First service conception rates (FSCR) and average services per conception (ASPC) were recorded for all subjects. Of the total 50 heifers, 6 (2 in group 1, 3 in group 2, and 1 in group 3) heifers were eliminated due to accidents during experiment 1. FSCRs were 58.8% (10/17), 66.7% (12/18) and 44.4% (4/9) in groups 1, 2 and 3, respectively. ASPCs were $1.53{\pm}0.72$, $1.27{\pm}0.59$ and $1.63{\pm}0.74$ in groups 1, 2 and 3, respectively. Although there were no significant difference between the groups, relatively good results (higher FSCR and lower ASPC) were obtained in both group 1 and 2. In experiment 2, 11 primiparous cows from group 2 of experiment 1 in heifer stage which had been treated both with the hormones for estrus synchronizing and mineral supplements (ES group), and 12 primiparous cows treated only with minerals (non-ES group) were compared to examine the effects of estrus synchronization program on conception rates after $1^{st}$ parturition. Following the examination, postpartum ASPCs were $1.55{\pm}0.82$ and $2.17{\pm}1.47$ in ES group and non-ES group, respectively. The postpartum average days open (ADO) were $116{\pm}56$ and $197{\pm}93$ in ES group and non-ES group, respectively. Although there were no significant difference between the two groups, desirable results (lower ASPC and shorter ADO) were found in ES group after $1^{st}$ parturiton. In conclusion, experiment 1 indicates that vitamin or mineral supplement with ovsynch protocol may have some positive effect on FSCR and ASPC of dairy heifers, and in experiment 2, ES program in heifer stage had a positive effect on ASPC and ADO following $1^{st}$ parturition.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.95-99
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• 2001

Purpose : To evaluate the effectiveness and tolerance of postoperative external radiotherapy for patients with intracranial meningiomas. Materials and Methods : The records of thirty three patients with intracranial meningiomas who were treated with postoperative external irradiation at our institution between Feb, 1988 and Nov, 1999 were retrospectively analyzed. Median age of patients at diagnosis was 53 years with range of 17 to 68 years. Sites of involvement were parasagital, cerebral convexity, sphenoid ridge, parasellar and tentorium cerebelli. Of 33 evaluated patients, 15 transitional, 10 meningotheliomatous, 4 hemangiopericytic, 3 atypical and 1 malignant meningioma were identified. Four patients underwent biopsy alone and remaining 29 patients underwent total tumor resection. A dose of 50 to 60 Gy was delivered in 28-35 daily fractions over a period of 5 to 7 weeks. Follow-up period ranged from 12 months to 8 years. Results : The actuarial survival rates at 5 and 7 years for entire group of patients were 78% and 67%, respectively. The corresponding disease free survival rates were 73% and 61%, respectively. The overall local control rate at 5 years was 83%. One out of 25 patients in benign group developed local failure, while 4 out of 8 patients in malignant group did local failure (p<0.05). Of 4 patients who underwent biopsy alone, 2 developed local failure. There was no significant difference in 5 year actuarial survival between patients who underwent total tumor resection and those who did biopsy alone. Patients whose age is under 60 showed slightly better survival than those whose age is 60 or older, although this was not statistically significant. There was no documented late complications in any patients. Conclusion : Based on our study, we might conclude that postoperative external beam radiotherapy tends to improve survival of patients with intracranial meningiomas comparing with surgery alone.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.137-144
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• 1985

Radiation therapy was the treatment of choice for CML in the past, in the form of SI or radioactive phosphorus. Its use has been replaced to a large extent by various chemotherapeutic agents. Recently SI in CML has been used, both to relieve painful splenomegaly and to take advantage of an indirect effect of SI on unirradiated bone marrow. We have treated 15 CML cases who had a huge spleen during chemotherapy or even after chemotherapy by 6 MV linear accelerator during the past two years at the Division of Radiation Therapy, Kang Nam St. Mary's Hospital, Catholic College. Response to SI has been rated according to the scoring system of Roger W. Byhardt, et al. which evaluated the splenic and hematologic response as well as the response of disease-related systems. According to this scoring system, most patients demonstrated a significant relief of splenomegaly along with improvement of hemogram. And we observed the change of Karnofsky Performance Status after SI, and survival after a confirmative diagnosis and SI.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.79 no.4
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• pp.282-288
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• 2016

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) is a major health problem, and accurate and rapid diagnosis of multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extended drug-resistant (XDR) TB is important for appropriate treatment. In this study, performances of solid and liquid culture methods were compared with respect to MDR- and XDR-TB isolate recovery and drug susceptibility testing. Methods: Sputum specimens from 304 patients were stained with Ziehl-Neelsen method. Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) isolates were tested for recovery on $L{\ddot{o}wenstein$-Jensen (LJ) medium and the BacT Alert 3D system. For drug susceptibility testing of Mtb, isolates were evaluated on M-KIT plates and the BacT Alert 3D system. Results: The recovery rates were 94.9% (206/217) and 98.2% (213/217) for LJ medium and the BacT Alert 3D system, respectively (kappa coefficient, 0.884). The rate of drug resistance was 13.4% for at least one or more drugs, 6.0% for MDR-TB and 2.3% for XDR-TB. M-KIT plate and BacT 3D Alert 3D system were comparable in drug susceptibility testing for isoniazid (97.7%; kappa coefficient, 0.905) and rifampin (98.6%; kappa coefficient, 0.907). Antibiotic resistance was observed using M-KIT plates for 24 of the total 29 Mtb isolates (82.8%). Conclusion: The liquid culture system showed greater reduction in the culture period, as compared with LJ medium; however, drug susceptibility testing using M-KIT plates was advantageous for simultaneous testing against multiple drug targets.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.149-155
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• 2006

Meningeal hemangiopericytoma (HPC) is an uncommon dura-based tumor and can recur not only locally but also distantly in the neural axis or extraneural sites. We report our experience of radiation therapy, one preoperative and one elective postoperative, In two patients with meningeal HPC and reviewed the role of radiation therapy. A 41-year-old man (Case 1) presented with a 3-month history of headache and right hemiparesis. The mass was nearly unresectable at the first and second operation and diagnosed as meningeal HPC. Preoperative radiation therapy was given with a total dose of 55.8 Gy/31 fractions to the large residual mass of left frontoparietal area. Follow-up computerized tomography (CT) showed marked regression of tumor after radiation therapy. The third operation was peformed to remove the residual tumor at 6 months after the radiation therapy and a $2{\times}2cm$ sized tumor was encountered. The mass was totally removed. The serial follow-up CT showed no evidence of recurrence and he is alive without distant metastasis for 4 years and 10 months after the first operation. A 45-year-old woman (Case 2) presented with suddenly developed headache and visual impairment. Tumor mass occupying right frontal lobe was removed with the preoperative diagnosis of meningioma. It was totally removed with attached sagittal sinus and diagnosed as meningeal HPC. Elective postoperative radiation therapy was peformed to reduce local recurrence with a total dose of 54 Gy/30 fractions to the involved area of right frontal lobe. She is alive for 5 years maintaining normal activity without local recurrence and distant metastasis.