• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.105-108
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• 2019

Background: Although kidney transplantation outcomes have improved dramatically after using calcineurin inhibitors (CNIs), CNI toxicity continues to be reported and the mechanism remains uncertain. Here, we investigated the neurotoxicity of CNIs by focusing on the viability of glioma cells. Methods: Glioma cells were treated with several concentrations of CNIs for 24 hours at $37^{\circ}C$ and their cell viability was evaluated using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay. Results: Exposure to 0, 0.25, 0.5, 2.5, 5.0, and 10.0 mM concentrations respectively showed 100%, 64.3%, 61.3%, 68.1%, 62.4%, and 68.6% cell viability for cyclosporine and 100%, 38.6%, 40.8%, 43.7%, 37.8%, and 43.0% for tacrolimus. The direct toxic effect of tacrolimus on glioma cell viability was stronger than that of cyclosporine at the same concentration. Conclusion: CNIs can cause neurological side effects by directly exerting cytotoxic effects on brain cells. Therefore, we should carefully monitor the neurologic symptoms and level of CNIs in kidney transplant patients.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Physical Medicine
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.43-51
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• 2019

PURPOSE: To prevent secondary complications from decreased pulmonary functions and promote neurological recovery, identification of respiratory capacity change patterns depending on different postures of stroke patients and investigation of their properties are needed for active rehabilitation. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the changes in vital capacity in response to different positions and to implement the results as clinical data. METHODS: A respiratory function test was administered to 52 patients with stroke in the sitting, supine, paretic side lying, and non-paretic side lying positions. Pulmonary function indexes used for comparison were forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume at 1 second (FEV1), forced expiratory flow 25-75% (FEF 25-75%), and maximum voluntary ventilation (MVV). One-way repeated ANOVA was used for analysis, and post hoc analysis was conducted using least significant difference (LSD). RESULTS: All pulmonary function indexes were measured in the order of sitting, paretic side lying, supine, and non-paretic side lying positions. Excluding the FEF25-75% and MVV of the supine compared with the paretic side lying position, all other pulmonary function indexes differed significantly (p<.05). CONCLUSION: There are differences in pulmonary function indexes depending on different postures of stroke patients, and the study showed that the non-paretic side lying position yielded the greatest effect on lung ventilation mechanisms. Based on these results, appropriate postures need to be considered during physical therapy interventions for stroke patients.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.310-318
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• 2020

The sciatic nerve is the largest nerve among the peripheral nerves, and the damage to the sciatic nerve is caused by mechanical and physical pressure. This is an important disease that consumes a lot of time and money in the treatment process. Among them, research on relieving nerve pain caused by damage to the peripheral sciatic nerve has been made efforts to prevent and treat this disease through various methods such as drugs, natural products, electrical stimulation, exercise therapy, and massage. Existing treatments are not very effective in neurological pain, and countermeasures are needed. Forsythia Fructus, used in this study, has been used as a therapeutic agent for infectious diseases and a pain reliever for cancer from the past, and in past studies, it has been known to properly control the inflammatory response. In this study, rengyolone, a physiologically active substance of Forsythiae Fructus, was administered to rats that caused chronic left nerve pain to verify the pain relief effect. As a result of the experiment, it was found that mechanical pain and cold stimulation pain were significantly reduced in the rengyolone-treated group compared to the non-administered group. In addition, it was found that nerve growth factor (NGF) mRNA expression was significantly reduced and Cyclin-dependent kinase 2 (Cdc2) expression was increased in the rengyolone administration group. This increase in NGF expression is thought to be related to rengyolone's anti-inflammatory regulatory mechanism. It is expected that the reduced NGF was directly involved in pain relief.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.83-88
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• 2023

Purpose: This study was to investigate the effect of forward head posture (FHP) and round shoulder posture (RSP) on changes in muscle activities according to shoulder flexion and abduction tasks. Methods: Twenty-two male subjects with no history of neurological, musculoskeletal surgery or injuries, or pain in the spine region within the previous 3-month periods were recruited for this study. Craniovertebral angle (CVA) and Scapula Index were measured before performing 90° abduction and flexion tasks holding a 3kg dumbbell. Muscle activities were measured during the tasks. All measurements except height of the acromion were carried out in a sitting position at the height of the subject's knee angle of 90 degrees, and two tasks were randomly performed with the arm that the subject mainly use to throw the ball. The abduction and flexion angles were checked by the examiner using a goniometer beside the subject. Results: Correlation coefficient analysis between Scapular Index and upper trapezius muscle activity during shoulder abduction task showed significant positive correlation. No significant correlation was observed between CVA, Scapular Index, and other muscle activities. Conclusion: FHP showed increased muscle activation, making it difficult to change muscle activity under lower loads, and RSP was correlated with UT activation in shoulder abduction. Therefore, in the RSP, the loaded shoulder abduction is considered a potential risk factor for increasing shoulder muscle tension. This paper proposes an approach to treating RSP before FHP.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.129-133
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• 2023

Background: With the rise in global mobility, aircraft indoor air quality has become a significant public health concern. This study focuses on the health implications of increased travel and bleed air-air drawn from aircraft engines for cabin pressurization and air conditioning. Objectives: This research aims to review the potential health effects related to exposure to aircraft cabin air, particularly the effects of bleed air during fume events. Methods: We conducted a literature review of existing studies on aircraft cabin air quality. We focused on both the immediate and health effects of exposure to cabin air, particularly those related to bleed air contaminants. Results: The review found a possible link between exposure to aircraft cabin air and certain health issues, especially in cabin crew and frequent flyers. There was an increased incidence of respiratory and neurological symptoms related to bleed air exposure. However, the cumulative health effects of frequent air travel remain inconclusive due to limited data. Conclusions: This study highlights the need for improving air quality in aircraft to protect public health. While further research is needed to understand the cumulative effects of frequent air travel, the reduction of exposure to bleed air contaminants should be a priority. These findings underline the need for regulatory changes and technological improvements in aircraft cabin air quality.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.47 no.2
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• pp.42-48
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• 2023

An adult male Eurasian river otter (Lutra lutra) with ataxia and lethargy was rescued. Through the necropsy of this otter with neurological symptoms, a broad range of vascular damage caused by mercury toxicity in several organs, hepatocellular necrosis, and vacuolation in the brain. In mercury examination, liver, kidney, and hair showed values of 0.878 ± 0.027, 1.807 ± 0.049, and 5.712 ± 0.102 ㎍/g, respectively. Compared with certified reference material, it was confirmed that the concentration of mercury were 6.7 times, 13.7 times, and 43.3 times higher, respectively. When the symptoms and diagnosis results were comprehensively reviewed, this otter's demise was revealed due to mercury poisoning. The mercury concentration in the liver does not exceed the lowest observed effect level of 3.4 ㎍/g. However, even at low concentrations, long-term accumulation can cause symptoms including neuropathy, and the possibility that these heavy metals have accumulated in other wild animals cannot be ruled out. It seems that continuous monitoring using sentinel animals is necessary.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.17
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• pp.7389-7394
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• 2014

Background: Chemotherapy is one of the major means for control of malignancies, with cisplatin (CDDP) as one of the main agents, widely used for the treatment of various malignant solid tumors. However, prevention of hepatotoxicity from cisplatin is one of the urgent issues in cancer chemotherapy. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effects of pu-erh tea on hepatotoxicity through body weight and tissue antioxidant parameters like, liver coefficient, serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT), serum aspartate aminotransferase (AST), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX), malondialdehyde(MDA) and glutathione (GSH) levels, and light microscopic evaluation by histological findings. Materials and Methods: The rats were randomly divided into five groups: Control (n=10), cisplatin (3 mg/kg p.i., n=10), cisplatin+pu-erh (0.32 g/kg/day i.g., n=10), cisplatin+pu-erh (0.8 g/kg/day i.g., n=10) and cisplatin+pu-erh (1.6 g/kg/day i.g., n=10). Pu-erh tea powder was administrated for 31 consecutive days. The rats were sacrificed at the end on the second day after a single dose of cisplatin treatment for measuring indices. Results: Pu-erh tea powder exhibited a protective effect by decreasing MDA and GSH and increasing the SOD and GSH-PX levels and GSH-PX/MDA ratio in camparison with the control group. Besides, pu-erh tea was also able to alleviate the pathological damage to some extent. Conclusion: Pu-erh tea powder is protective against cisplatin-induced liver oxidative damages, especially at the medium dosage (0.8 g/kg/d).

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.39-47
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• 2010

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a neurotrophic factor involved in neuronal differentiation, plasticity, survival and regeneration. BDNF draws massive attention mainly due to the potential as a therapeutic target in neurological diseases such as depression and Alzheimer's disease. In a primary screening for the natural compounds enhancing BDNF release from cultured rat primary cortical neuron, we found that compounds such as baicalein, tanshinone IIa, cinnamic acid, epiberberine, genistein and wogonin among many others increased BDNF release. All the compounds at $0.1{\mu}M$ of concentration barely showed stimulatory effect on BDNF induction, however, their combination (mixture 1; baicalein, tanshinone IIa and cinnamic acid, mixture 2; epiberberine, genistein and wogonin) showed synergistic increase in BDNF release as well as mRNA and protein expression. The level of BDNF expression was comparable to the maximum BDNF stimulation attainable by a positive control oroxylin A ($20{\mu}M$) without cell toxicity as determined by MTT analysis. Both mixtures synergistically increased the phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) as well as cAMP response element binding protein (CREB), an immediate and essential regulator of BDNF expression. Similar to these results, mixture of these compounds synergistically inhibited the up-regulation of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) induced by lipopolysaccharide treatments in rat primary astrocytes. These results suggest that the combinatorial treatment of natural compounds in lower concentration might be a useful strategy to obtain sufficient BDNF stimulation in neurological disease condition such as depression, while minimizing potential side effects and toxicity of higher concentration of a single compound.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.297-301
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• 2005

This study was performed to evaluate the effects of the combination of electroacupuncture (EA) and surgical decompression on paraplegia due to spinal compression in dogs. Ten clinically healthy dogs were assigned into two groups (group A and group B). The one is for the combination of EA and surgical decompression, and the other is for surgical decompression alone. After decompression, neurological function was evaluated daily with modified Tarlov grading system. SEPs were measured as objective evaluation of normal spinal cord function before spinal compression and after neurological recovery. The period of rehabilitation in group A was significantly shorter than that in group B (p<0.05). Conduction velocity of SEPs showed a tendency to return to normal when the dogs got full recovery. According to these results, it was considered that the EA with surgical decompression was more effective than surgical decompression alone for paraplegia resulting from spinal cord injury in dog.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Emergency Medicine
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.509-518
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• 2018

Objective: The evidence that hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) therapy is more effective for improving the acute neuropsychological status (ANS) of carbon monoxide poisoning than normobaric oxygen (NBO) therapy is not convincing. This is because the levels of carboxyhemoglobin (COHb) do not correlate with the clinical severity of carbon monoxide poisoning and there is no universally accepted severity scale of carbon monoxide poisoning. This paper suggests a new scale for the clinical and neurological severity of carbon monoxide poisoning, called the ANS, and assesses the effect of HBO therapy for each level of ANS compared to NBO therapy. Methods: A total of 217 patients who had been hospitalized because of carbon monoxide poisoning from January 2009 to July 2013 were studied. ANS was suggested as a new severity scale of carbon monoxide poisoning considered in the Glasgow Coma Scale, acute neuro-psychologic signs and symptoms, or cardiac ischemia on the initial medical contact. HBO therapy is indicated in those who have a loss of consciousness, seizure, coma, abnormal findings on a neurological examination, pregnancy, persistent cardiac ischemia, level of COHb >25%, or severe metabolic acidosis (pH <7.2). The end point is the day of discharge, and recovery is defined as a normal neuro-psychological status without any sequelae. Results: The levels of troponin T and creatinine increased significantly with increasing ANS score. In the moderate to severe group (ANS 2 and 3), the recovery rate was significantly higher when treated with HBO therapy than with NBO therapy (P=0.030). On the other hand, the development of delayed neuro-psychological sequelae (DNS) did not correlate with any level of ANS, type of oxygen therapy, or recovery on discharge. Conclusion: In the moderate to severe poisoned group, HBO therapy is more effective for improving the ANS from carbon monoxide poisoning than NBO therapy. On the other hand, the development of DNS of HBO therapy is no more preventable than with NBO therapy. Although the level of ANS is low, the patient needs to be provided with sufficient information and a follow-up visit is recommended for any abnormal symptoms because the ANS does not correlate with the development and degree of DNS.