• 대한의생명과학회지
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• 제10권2호
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• pp.163-169
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• 2004

Worldwide, tuberculosis remains one of the leading infectious diseases, accounting for nearly 3 million deaths and more than 8 million new cases annually. DNA typing of Mycobacterium tuberculosis is important for the control of tuberculosis, since it can be used to track transmission route of tuberculosis, source of internal laboratory contaminations, and to answer questions on the nature of tuberculosis infections such as reactivation or exogenous reinfection of disease. At present, IS6110-based RFLP is the choice of method for typing large numbers of clinical isolates of M. tuberculosis, since it has the highest resolution power. However, RFLP requires long time, high cost and qualified experts, so only reference level laboratories can use the RFLP technique. In order to have an optional molecular typing method suitable for the clinical settings, this study evaluated the use of one of PCR-based typing methods, IS6110-based outward PCR for typing clinical isolates of M. tuberculosis. In brief, the results from this study showed that IS6110-based RFLP is useful to discriminate diverse clinical isolates of M. tuberculosis as well as to identify clinical isolates that belong to the same family or cluster groups that have been previously classified by RFLP analysis. In addition, the banding profiles resulted from IS6110-based outward PCR seemed to represent genomic characteristics of M. tuberculosis, since strains belong to the K-family generated unique band that is not present in any other strains but present only in the genome of K-family strains. The IS6110-based outward PCR was also shown to be useful with DNAs isolated directly from liquid cultures indicating this method can be suitable for typing M. tuberculosis in clinical settings.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• 제51권4호
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• pp.401-412
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• 2013

Because of an increased number of Acanthamoeba keratitis (AK) along with associated disease burdens, medical professionals have become more aware of this pathogen in recent years. In this study, by analyzing both the nuclear 18S small subunit ribosomal RNA (18S rRNA) and mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene loci, 27 clinical Acanthamoeba strains that caused AK in Japan were classified into 3 genotypes, T3 (3 strains), T4 (23 strains), and T5 (one strain). Most haplotypes were identical to the reference haplotypes reported from all over the world, and thus no specificity of the haplotype distribution in Japan was found. The T4 sub-genotype analysis using the 16S rRNA gene locus also revealed a clear subconformation within the T4 cluster, and lead to the recognition of a new sub-genotype T4i, in addition to the previously reported sub-genotypes T4a-T4h. Furthermore, 9 out of 23 strains in the T4 genotype were identified to a specific haplotype (AF479533), which seems to be a causal haplotype of AK. While heterozygous nuclear haplotypes were observed from 2 strains, the mitochondrial haplotypes were homozygous as T4 genotype in the both strains, and suggested a possibility of nuclear hybridization (mating reproduction) between different strains in Acanthamoeba. The nuclear 18S rRNA gene and mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene loci of Acanthamoeba spp. possess different unique characteristics usable for the genotyping analyses, and those specific features could contribute to the establishment of molecular taxonomy for the species complex of Acanthamoeba.

• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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• 제18권1호
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• pp.1-14
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• 2011

Tuberculosis is a disease with high morbidity and mortality in children worldwide. Despite the decrease in the incidence of tuberculosis in Korea, more than 30,000 new patients are diagnosed each year. Active tuberculosis is less frequent in children compared to adults but the risk of miliary tuberculosis and CNS tuberculosis is much higher. The diagnosis of tuberculosis in children and adolescents is difficult due to the nonspecific symptoms upon presentation. Diagnostic work up is based on the confirmation of tuberculosis infection by tuberculin skin test, abnormal radiologic findings, and contact with an adult with active tuberculosis. Anti-tuberculosis medications are prescribed according to the drug susceptibility of the index patient. Latent tuberculosis infection plays an important role in adult tuberculosis by reactivation. Thus, it is critical to accurately diagnose latent tuberculosis in children to prevent reactivation in adulthood. Korean guidelines for diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis in children and adolescents provide evidence based recommendations in the optimal diagnosis and treatment for active and latent tuberculosis in children and adolescents based on the current Korean situation.

• 한국환경농학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국환경농학회 2009년도 정기총회 및 국제심포지엄
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• pp.228-239
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• 2009

The observations on climate change show a clear increase in the temperature of the Earth's surface and the oceans, a reduction in the land snow cover, and melting of the sea ice and glaciers. The effects of climate change are likely to include more variable weather, heat waves, increased mean temperature, rains, flooding and droughts. The threat of climate change and global warming on human and animal health is now recognized as a global issue. This presentation is described an overview of the latest scientific knowledge on the impact of climate change on zoonotic diseases. Climate strongly affects agriculture and livestock production and influences animal diseases, vectors and pathogens, and their habitat. Global warming are likely to change the temporal and geographical distribution of infectious diseases, including those that are vector-borne such as West Nile fever, Rift Valley fever, Japanese encephalitis, bluetongue, malaria and visceral leishmaniasis, and other diarrheal diseases. The distribution and prevalence of vector-borne diseases may be the most significant effect of climate change. The impact of climate change on the emergence and re-emergence of animal diseases has been confirmed by a majority of countries. Emerging zoonotic diseases are increasingly recognized as a global and regional issue with potential serious human health and economic impacts and their current upward trends are likely to continue. Coordinated international responses are therefore essential across veterinary and human health sectors, regions and countries to control and prevent emerging zoonoses. A new early warning and alert systems is developing and introducing for enhancing surveillance and response to zoonotic diseases. And international networks that include public health, research, medical and veterinary laboratories working with zoonotic pathogens should be established and strengthened. Facing this challenging future, the long-term strategies for zoonotic diseases that may be affected by climate change is need for better prevention and control measures in susceptible livestock, wildlife and vectors in Korea. In conclusion, strengthening global, regional and national early warning systems is extremely important, as are coordinated research programmes and subsequent prevention and control measures, and need for the global surveillance network essential for early detection of zoonotic diseases.

• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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• 제15권1호
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• pp.5-11
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• 2008

Primary rotavirus gastroenteritis infection usually occurs in infants under 2 years of age worldwide regardless of level of hygiene, quality of water, food or sanitation or type of behavior. In Korea, the disease mostly occurred in infants under 2 year old, and usually in late fall to early winter with the highest incidence shown in November until early 1990s. However, since then, relatively the age incidence of this infection has increased in children over 2 years old, and it has mainly occurred in late winter to early spring with the highest incidence shown between February and March. And rotavirus gastroenteritis serotypes varied year to year as well as varied by year within the same region in our country. The comparison of severity scores between age groups in Korea showed that severity score was lowest in infants less than 3 months and highest in infants more than 6 months and less than 12 months, and hospitalization period between age groups was longest in infants older than 3 months and less than 3 months and highest in infants more than 6 months and less than 12 months and less than 6 months. In this aspect, rotavirus vaccines should be given to infants less than 2 years of age in whom the incidence of rotavirus gastroenteritis is the highest, and vaccination should be ideally started before 3 months considering hospitalization period and severity of rotavirus gastroenteritis. However, It should be careful for the introduction of new rotavirus vaccine, and the effectiveness of rotavirus vaccines should be assessed by long-term post marketing surveillance. And we guess an multivalent vaccine may be an ideal rotavirus vaccine to prevent primary infection caused by variable rotavirus strains in Korea. In addition, clinical epidemiology studies on rotavirus gastroenteritis which evaluate the age and serotypes related severity should be continuously conducted in various regions.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• 제28권12호
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• pp.1107-1112
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• 1995

Between December 1993 and December 1994, fifty-eight percent of the mitral valve patients[33/57 had undergone mitral valve repair. Their mean age was 49[SD-16 years[range 11 - 75 and they were consisted with 15 males and 18 females. The causes of mitral disease in 33 patients were classified as follows: 19 cases[58% were degenerative, 9[27% were rheumatic, 3[9% were congenital and 2[6% were infectious. Carpentier`s functional classification was consisted with Class I 4 cases[12% , II 25 [76% and III 4 [12% . Surgical techniques included prosthetic annuloplasty in 32 cases[97% , leaflet resection in 16[48% , chorda shortening in 13[39% , chorda transfer in 9[27% , new chorda formation in 7[21% , commissurotomy in 7[21% , leaflet mobilization in 4[12% , chorda resection in 3[9% , papillary muscle splitting in 2[6% , cleft repair in 2[6% , leaflet patching in 1[3% and vegetation removal in 1[3% . Average number of mitral anatomical lesions per patient was 3.3 and We used average 3.0 procedures upon mitral valve apparatus per patient. Intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography was carried out in 27 patients[82% for providing an immediate and accurate assessment of the adequacy of the reconstruction before closure of the chest. Operative mortality was absent. The mean functional class[NYHA was 2.87 preoperative and improved to 1.03 postoperatively. Postoperative Doppler echocardiography showed much improvement from grade II MR[5 , grade III[5 , grade IV[21 to no MR[26 , only trace MR[3 , grade III MR[2 . Postoperative mean mitral valve area was 2.4$\pm$0.6cm2[range 1.5 - 4.0 . We conclude that cautiously evaluated mitral valve reconstruction is stable and predictable operation with minimal postoperative left ventricular dysfunction.

• 한국가금학회지
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• 제31권1호
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• pp.37-44
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• 2004

It has been recognized that the hen, like its mammalian counterparts, provides young chicks with antibodies as protection against hostile invaders. This system facilitates the transfer of specific antibodies from serum to egg yolk, and provides a supply of antibodies called immunoglobulin Y(IgY) to the developing embryo and the hatched chick. The protection against pathogens that the relatively immune-incompetent newly hatched chick has, is through transmission of antibodies from the mother via the egg. Egg yolk, therefore, can be loaded with a large amount of IgY against pathogens which can immobilize the existing or invading pathogens during the embryo development or in day-old chicks. Thus, the immunization of laying hens to various pathogens results in production of different antigen-specific IgY in eggs. Egg yolk contains 8∼20 mg of jmmunoglobulins (IgY) per ml or 136∼340 mg per yolk suggesting that more than 30 g of IgY can be obtained from one immunized hen in a year. By immunizing laying hens with antigens and collecting IgY from egg yolk, low cost antibodies at less than $10 per g compared to more than $20,000 per g of mammalian IgG can be obtained. This IgY technology opens new potential market applications in medicine, public health, veterinary medicine and food safety. A broader use of IgY technology could be applied as biological or diagnostic tool, nutraceutical or functional food development, oral-supplementation for prophylaxis, and as pathogen-specific antimicrobial agents for infectious disease control. This paper has emphasized that when IgY-loaded chicken eggs are produced and consumed, the specific antibody binds, immobilizes and consequently reduces or inhibits the growth or colony forming abilities of microbial pathogens. This concept could serve as an alternative agent to replace the use of antibiotics, since today, more and more antibiotics are less effective in the treatment of infections, due to the emergence of drug-resistant bacteria.

• Archives of Pharmacal Research
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• 제27권5호
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• pp.576-580
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• 2004

Primaquine is used for relapses caused by vivax malaria hypnozoites. No studies on the pharmacokinetics of primaquine (PMQ) has been reported in Korean patients. In our study, thirty vivax malaria patients were given 15 mg primaquine daily for 14 days after 3 days of chloroquine treatment. Plasma samples were taken at intervals after each daily dose of PMQ for 3 days. Plasma concentrations of PMQ and carboxyprimaquine (CPMQ), the major metabolite of primaquine, were measured by HPLC. The PMQ concentrations reached a maximum of 0.28$\pm$0.18 $\mu\textrm{g}$/mL at 1.5 h after the first dose. The maximum concentration of CPMQ was 0.32$\pm$0.13 $\mu\textrm{g}$/mL at 4 h. Higher drug concentrations with repeated dosing were observed for CPMQ, but not for the parent drug, PMQ. The elimination half-life was 3.76$\pm$1.8 hand 15.7$\pm$12.2 h, for PMQ and CPMQ, respectively. Large variation in the plasma concentrations of both drugs was observed. Overall, PMQ is absorbed and metabolized rapidly after oral administration. It was noted that the mean peak plasma concentration of PMQ was significantly higher and that of CPMQ was lower in our patients compared to other studies. This suggests a potential difference of inter-ethnic groups, which warrants further investigations.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• 제45권4호
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• pp.888-895
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• 1998

Malaria is one of the most common infectious diseases in the world. Plasmodium falciparum, accounting for nearly all malaria mortality, kills an estimated 1 to 2 million persons yearly and has several features that make it deadlist of malarias. While cerebral malaria is the most common presentation of severe disease, acute lung injury associated with malaria is uncommon but serious and fatal complication. We report two cases of severe malaria with ARDS and multi-organ failure. All two patients traveled to foreign countries, Kenya, Papua New Guinea where choroquine-resistant malaria is distributed. The first case, which developed cerebral malaria, hypoglycemia, multi-organ failure, and ARDS, treated with quinine and mechanical ventilator, but expired due to oxygenation failure. Autopsy showed acute necrotizing infiltration, diffuse eosinophilic fibrinoid deposits along the alveolar space, and alveolar macrophage with malaria pigment The second case also developed multi-organ failure, followed by ARDS, and was treated with quinine, exchange transfusion, plasmapheresis, and mechanical ventilator. He recovered with residual restrictive lung change after treatment.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• 제2권1호
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• pp.183-190
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• 1985

본 시안(MCRCODE-N)은 말 그대로 시안인 바 많은 수정과 첨가가 필요할 것이라고 생각되나 국내 실정에 맞는 검사법이라고 생각된다. 본 시안을 이용하여 결정을 보완하는 일이 시급한 바 동학 선후배의 지도 편달을 바라는 바 이다.