• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.24 no.10
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• pp.936-937
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• 2023

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.24-34
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• 2019

The safety of food is occasionally questionable, as there have been some reports of products contaminated with illegal adulterants. In this study, the presence of 16 sedative-hypnotics and sleep inducers in dietary supplements was determined by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography with UV detection (UPLC-UV) and quadruple Orbitrap mass spectrometry (Q-Orbitrap-MS). The UPLC method was validated, providing a linearity (R2) of more than 0.999, and LODs and LOQs that ranged from 0.2 to 0.5 and 0.6 to $1.5{\mu}g\;mL^{-1}$, respectively. The repeatabilities were 0.2-8.4 % (intra-day) and 0.3-4.5 % (inter-day), and the accuracies were 89.0-117.0 % (intra-day) and 87.8-111.9 % (inter-day). The mean recoveries of the spiked samples ranged from 98.7 to 107.3 %. The relative standard deviation (%RSD) of the stability was less than 2.4 %. Using the developed method, one sedative-hypnotic compound, phenobarbital, was detected in one of the nineteen samples tested. In addition, the major characteristic fragment ions of each target compound were confirmed using Q-Orbitrap-MS for higher accuracy. Monitoring the presence of these 16 sedative-hypnotics and sleep inducers in dietary supplements should be pursued in the interest of human health, and the results of this study confirmed that the developed method has value for this application.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.10
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• pp.5961-5964
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• 2013

Background: Breast cancer in Kazakhstan and its Kyzylorda oblast is the most prevalent cancer in women and features increasing trends of incidence. The aim of study was to reveal risk factors for breast cancer among women of Kyzylorda oblast of Kazakhstan. Materials and Methods: A hospital-based case-control study was conducted at Kyzylorda oblast Oncology Center, including 114 cases of breast cancer and 196 controls. Binary logistic regression analysis was performed. Results: Social and behavioral risk factors for breast cancer were evaluated, among which unfavorable living conditions, chronic stress, unilateral breastfeeding, breastfeeding less than 3 months and over 2 years, abortions, and hereditary predisposition were found to be related with increased breast cancer risk. Breastfeeding for 6-24 months was found to be protective. Conclusions: The findings may have significant impact on activity planning aimed towards breast cancer reduction among women in Kazakhstan.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.19 no.10
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• pp.1092-1097
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• 2009

A novel exopolysaccharide named Ebosin was produced by Streptomyces sp. 139, with medicinal activity. Its biosynthesis gene cluster (ste) has been previously identified. For the functional study of the ste7 gene in Ebosin biosynthesis, it was disrupted with a double crossover via homologous recombination. The monosaccharide composition of EPS-7m produced by the mutant strain Streptomyces sp. 139 ($ste7^-$) was found altered from that of Ebosin, with fucose decreasing remarkably. For biochemical characterization of Ste7, the ste7 gene was cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli BL21. With a continuous coupled spectrophotometric assay, Ste7 was demonstrated to have the ability of catalyzing the transfer of fucose specifically from GDP-$\beta$-L-fucose to a fucose acceptor, the lipid carrier located in the cytoplasmic membrane of Streptomyces sp. 139 ($ste7^-$). Therefore, the ste7 gene has been identified to code for a fucosyltransferase, which plays an essential role in the formation of repeating sugars units during Ebosin biosynthesis.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.168-180
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• 2022

Ephedra is a genus of the Ephedraceae family and is found in temperate regions, such as Central Asia and Europe. Among the various ephedra species, Ma Huang (Ephedra herb) is derived from the aerial parts of Ephedra sinica S tapf, Ephedra equisetina Bunge, and Ephedra intermedia Schrenk & C.A. Mey. Ma Huang contains various ephedra alkaloids, including (-)-ephedrine, (+)-pseudoephedrine, (-)-norephedrine, (+)-norpseudoephedrine, (-)-methylephedrine, and (+)-methylpseudoephedrine, which are found naturally as single enantiomers, although they can be prepared as racemates. Although the use of Ma Huang in foods is prohibited in Korea, products containing Ma Huang can be imported, and so it is necessary to develop a suitable analytical technique for the detection of Ma Huang in foods. Herein, we report the development of analytical methods for the detection of ephedra alkaloids in products containing Ma Huang. Following sample purification by solid phase extraction, quantitative analysis was performed using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS). Additionally, the enantiomers were successfully separated using HPLC-DAD. We successfully analyzed various food samples, where the ephedra alkaloids were qualitatively and quantitatively determined, and the enantiomers were separated. It is expected that these methods may contribute toward preventing the distribution of illegal products containing Ma Huang.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.16
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• pp.7343-7350
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• 2015

Genetic changes associated with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) provide very important diagnostic and prognostic information with a direct impact on patient management. Detection of chromosome abnormalities by conventional cytogenetics combined with fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) play a very significant role in assessing risk stratification. Identification of specific chromosome abnormalities has led to the recognition of genetic subgroups based on reciprocal translocations, deletions and modal number in B or T-cell ALL. In the last twelve years 102 newly diagnosed childhood/adult ALL bone marrow samples were analysed for chromosomal abnormalities with conventional G-banding, and FISH (selected cases) using specific probes in our hospital. G-banded karyotype analysis found clonal numerical and/or structural chromosomal aberrations in 74.2% of cases. Patients with pseudodiploidy represented the most frequent group (38.7%) followed by high hyperdiploidy group (12.9%), low hyperdiploidy group (9.7%), hypodiploidy (<46) group (9.7%) and high hypertriploidy group (3.2%). The highest observed numerical chromosomal alteration was high hyperdiploidy (12.9%) with abnormal karyotypes while abnormal 12p (7.5%) was the highest observed structural abnormality followed by t(12;21)(p13.3;q22) resulting in ETV6/RUNX1 fusion (5.4%) and t(9;22)(q34.1;q11.2) resulting in BCR/ABL1 fusion (4.3%). Interestingly, we identified 16 cases with rare and complex structural aberrations. Application of the FISH technique produced major improvements in the sensitivity and accuracy of cytogenetic analysis with ALL patients. In conclusion it confirmed heterogeneity of ALL by identifying various recurrent chromosomal aberrations along with non-specific rearrangements and their association with specific immunophenotypes. This study pool is representative of paediatric/adult ALL patients in Oman.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.12
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• pp.4921-4926
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• 2015

Background: Breast cancer is the most common cancer type among women with increasing incidence rates, improved prognosis and survival. According to the localization of the tumor, breast cancer is designated as unilateral (UBC) or bilateral (BBC). BBC can be classified as synchronous (SBBC) or metachronous (MBBC) based on the time interval between the diagnosis of the first and the secondary tumors. According to the guideline of WHO 2012, BBC is generally defined as SBBC when contralateral breast carcinoma is diagnosed within 3 months. The aim of this study was to compare the characteristics and patterns of metastasis of BBC patients with UBC. Materials and Methods: A cohort of 768 patients with breast cancer treated at the Turkish Ministry of Health-Izmir Bozyaka Research and Training Hospital between 1976 and 2012 were studied. Survival analysis was performed comparing UBC and BBC patients. In addition, evaluations were performed in patients with SBBC and MBBC sub-groups. We used a 3-months interval to distinguish metachronous from synchronous. Results: When clinical and histopathological parameters were statistically evaluated, ER status, event-free and overall survival were found to be significant between UBC and BBC patients. In comparison of SBBC and MBBC patients, age, histological type of tumor, event-free and overall survival were found to be significant. Conclusions: BBC cases were found to show worse prognosis than UBC cases. Among BBC, SBBC had the worst prognosis based on overall survival rates.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.24 no.7
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• pp.998-1003
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• 2014

Aspartate aminotransferase (AST; E.C. 2.6.1.1), a vitamin B6-dependent enzyme, preferentially promotes the mutual transformation of aspartate and ${\alpha}$-ketoglutarate to oxaloacetate and glutamate. It plays a key role in amino acid metabolism and has been widely recommended as a biomarker of liver and heart damage. Our study aimed to evaluate the extensive preparation of AST and its application in quality control in clinical laboratories. We describe a scheme to express and purify the 6His-AST fusion protein. An optimized sequence coding AST was synthesized and transformed into Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3) strain for protein expression. Ideally, the fusion protein has a volumetric productivity achieving 900 mg/l cultures. After affinity chromatography, the enzyme activity of purified AST reached 150,000 U/L. Commutability assessment between the engineered AST and standard AST from Roche suggested that the engineered AST was the better candidate for the reference material. Moreover, the AST showed high stability during long-term storage at $-20^{\circ}C$. In conclusion, the highly soluble 6His-tagged AST can become a convenient tool for supplying a much better and cheaper standard or reference material for the clinical laboratory.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.15
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• pp.6627-6632
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• 2015

Background: We conducted a study exploring the clinical safety and efficacy of decitabine in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), combined with a complex karyotype. Materials and Methods: From April 2009 to September 2013, a total of 35 patients with AML/MDS combined with a complex karyotype diagnosed in the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University were included for retrospective analysis. All patients were treated with decitabine alone ($20mg/m^2$ daily for 5 days) or combination AAG chemotherapy (Acla 20mg qod*4d, Ara-C $10mg/m^2$ q12h*7d, G-CSF $300{\mu}g$ qd, the dose of G-CSF adjusted to the amount in blood routinely). Results: In 35 patients, 15 exhibited a complete response (CR), and 6 a partial response (PR), the overall response rate (CR+PR) being 60% (21 of 35). Median disease-free survival was 18 months and overall survival was 14 months. In the 15 MDS patients with a complex karyotype, the CR rate was 53.3% (8 of 15); in 20 AML patients with complex karyotype, the overall response rate was 65% (13 of 20). The response rate of decitabine alone (22 cases) was 56.5% (13 of 22), while in the combination chemotherapy group (13 cases), the effective rate was 61.5% (8 of 13)(P>0.05). There are 15 patients with chromosome 7 aberration, after treatment with decitabine, 7 CR, 3 PR, overall response rate was 66.7% (10 of 15). Of 18 patients with 3 to 5 kinds of chromosomal abnormalities, 66.7% demonstrated a response; of 17 with more than 5 chromosomal abnormalities, 52.9% had a response. In the total of 35 patients, with one course (23 patients) and ${\geq}$two courses (12 patients), the overall response rate was 40.9% and 92.3% (P<0.05). Grade III to IV hematological toxicity was observed in 27 cases (75%). Grade III to IV infections were clinically documented in 7 (20%). Grades I to II non-hematological toxicity were infections (18 patients), haematuria (2 patients), and bleeding (3 patients). With follow-up until September 2013, 7 patients were surviving, 18 had died and 10 were lost to follow-up. In the 6 cases who underwent allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) all were still relapse-free survivors. Conclusions: Decitabine alone or combination with AAG can improve outcome of AML/MDS with a complex karyotype, there being no significant difference decitabine in inducing remission rates in patients with different karyotype. Increasing the number of courses can improve efficiency. This approach with fewer treatment side effects in patients with a better tolerance should be employed in order to create an improved subsequent chance for HSCT.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.8 no.6
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• pp.719-723
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• 2014

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: South Korean's sodium consumption level is more than twice the upper limit level suggested by the WHO. Steep increases in the prevalence of hypertension and cardiovascular disease in Korea necessitate more effective sodium reduction programs. This study was conducted in order to compare sodium intake-related eating behaviors and key psychosocial factors according to age group and gender. SUBJECTS/METHODS: Using an online survey, a total of 1,564 adults (20-59 years old) considered to be geographically representative of South Korea were recruited and surveyed. The major outcomes were perceived behaviors, knowledge, intentions, and self-efficacy related to sodium intake. RESULTS: The results show that perceived behavior and level of self-efficacy related to low sodium consumption differed by age and gender. Female participants showed better behavior and intention towards low sodium intake than male counterparts. Young participants in their 20s showed the lowest intention to change their current sodium intake as well as lowest self-efficacy measures. CONCLUSIONS: Future sodium reduction interventions should be developed with tailored messages targeting different age and gender groups. Specifically, interventions can be planned and implemented at the college level or for workers in their early career to increase their intention and self-efficacy as a means of preventing future health complications associated with high sodium intake.