• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.555-564
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• 2021

Thalamus is known to play an important role in the regulation of nerve function. Thalamus, located in the center of the brain, is involved in sleep, arousal, and emotional regulation, and has been reported to be associated with multiple sclerosis, essential tremors, and neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease. In addition, it has been reported that iron deposits in the thalamus can cause depressive symptoms with age. Although there are discrepancies between studies, it can be deduced that the thalamus region has a clear effect on neurological disorders due to a strong relationship between the thalamus and neurological functions such as emotional control and processing. Through tractography analysis, the connectivity between the detailed areas of each subcortical region was investigated in the form of a matrix, showing strong connectivity and weak interhemispheric connectivity. In the 59> group, the WM connectivity of thalamus was found to be weaker than those of the two groups. Comparisons between the two groups showed that the young groups (10-39 and 40-59) had higher connection intensity than the 59> group and that statistically significant differences in 3 connection pathways were found in each hemisphere. A decrease in thalamus-related connection strength in aging has shown that it can affect emotional and neurological disorders such as anxiety and depression, and network measurements can help assess cognitive impairment across clinical conditions.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.43 no.2
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• pp.1-7
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• 2022

Objectives: Bee venom (BV) is a widely used therapy in Traditional East Asian Medicine (TEAM). We previously reported that BV was clinically effective for treating Parkinson's disease, that phospholipase A₂ (PLA₂) was the main component of BV, and that it induced regulatory T cells (Tregs) by binding CD206 on dendritic cells (DCs). Therefore, we aimed to reconfirm our findings in human blood samples and investigate the relationship between CD206⁺ DCs and clinical syndrome differentiation in TEAM. Methods: We surveyed 100 subjects with questionnaires on cold-heat patternization and obtained their blood samples. The obtained human peripheral blood monocytes (hPBMCs) were washed with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS). After resuspension with ex vivo media, numbers of cells were counted. Tregs were counted after culturing the samples in a 37℃ CO₂ incubator for 72 h. Results: We divided the subjects into a relatively high CD206⁺ group or a relatively low CD206⁺ group. The heat factor scores of high CD206⁺ group were significantly higher than that of low CD206⁺ group (high vs low: 239.2 ± 54.1 vs 208.4 ± 55.1, p=0.023). After culturing with PLA₂, Tregs increased in the high CD206⁺ group but decreased in the low CD206⁺ group. Conclusion: In this study, we reconfirm that CD206⁺ DCs induced Treg differentiation by incubating human blood samples with PLA₂ and that they showed an association with syndrome differentiation, especially with heat patterns, in TEAM. A heat pattern in TEAM might be one indication for PLA₂ therapy because its score was elevated in the high CD206⁺ group.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.32 no.10
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• pp.771-777
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• 2022

Dopaminergic (DA) cell death in Parkinson's disease (PD) has been attributed to multiple, distinct genetic and environmental factors. In rare familial PD loss of parkin function mutations play a key role in nigral DA neuron-specific pathogenesis primarily via endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. In more prevalent sporadic PD, environmental exposure to pesticides has a significant epidemiological role. However, it is largely unknown how environmental exposure to xenobiotics is etiologically linked with the known etiology in familial PD. In the present study biochemical evidence for a common pathogenic mechanism between sporadic and familial PD has been identified employing the recently characterized mesencephalic DA cell line, N27-A. Dieldrin, an organochlorine pesticide epidemiologically implicated in sporadic PD, induced the markers of ER stress response such as a chaperone BiP/Grp78, heme oxygenase-1 and especially, parkin. Accordingly, dieldrin activated the ER resident Caspase-12, a mediator of ER stress-specific apoptosis, during cell death of N27-A cells. Of great interest the dieldrin-induced DA neuronal cell death was synergistically rescued by the overexpression of ER resident neuroprotective proteins, parkin and Bcl-2. The present findings implicate that accumulation of ER stress could be one of common pathogenic mechanisms in idiopathic and familial PD, and some ER proteins, such as parkin and Bcl-2 may effectively attenuate ER stress-mediated N27-A DA cell death.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.54 no.4
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• pp.298-306
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• 2022

This study sought to evaluate the mechanism of cellular injury caused by ferrous sulfate (FeSO₄) and the protective effects of Parnassia palustris L. (PP) extract against FeSO₄-induced cytotoxicity of cultured C6 glioma cells. FeSO₄ is known to cause neurotoxicity and induce Parkinson's disease. The antioxidative effects of PP, such as superoxide dismutase (SOD)-like and superoxide anion-radical (SAR)-scavenging activities, as well as effects on cell viability, were studied. FeSO₄ significantly decreased cell viability in a dose-dependent manner and the XTT₅₀ value, the concentration of FeSO₄ which reduced the cell viability by half, was measured at 63.3 μM in these cultures. FeSO₄ was estimated to be highly cytotoxic by the Borenfreund and Puerner toxicity criteria. Quercetin, an antioxidant, significantly improved cell viability, damaged by FeSO₄-induced cytotoxicity. While evaluating the protective effects of the PP extract on FeSO₄-induced cytotoxicity, it was observed that the extract significantly increased cell viability compared to the FeSO₄-treated group. Also, the PP extract showed superoxide dismutase (SOD)-like and superoxide anion radical (SAR)-scavenging activities. Based on these findings, it can be concluded that FeSO₄ induced oxidative stress-related cytotoxicity, and the PP extract effectively protected against this cytotoxicity via its antioxidative effects. In conclusion, natural antioxidant sources such as PP may be agents useful for preventing oxidative stress-related cytotoxicity induced by heavy metal compounds such as the FeSO₄, a known Parkinsonism inducer.

• The Journal of the Society of Stroke on Korean Medicine
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.25-34
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• 2015

■ Objectives The purpose of this case report is to show the effect of korean medicine on a progressive supranuclear palsy patient with gait disturbance and dizziness. ■ Methods A patient with gait disturbance and dizziness diagnosed as progressive supranuclear palsy was treated with herbal medicine, acupuncture, electro-acupuncture, moxibustion. The period of admission is 16 days and we evauated the improvements of symptoms by the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale(UPDRS), Numeric Rating Scale(NRS) and Global Assessment(G/A). ■ Results After taking Modified Bosimhwan andbeing treated by acupuncture therapy, improvements of gait disturbance and dizziness are observed. ■ Conclusion This case report proved the effect of Korean medicine on progressive supranuclear palsy.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.55 no.2
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• pp.105-112
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• 2023

Leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2) is known to play a crucial role in the pathophysiology of neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's disease. LRRK2 is predominantly expressed in the lung as well as the brain. However, it is unclear whether LRRK2 expression correlates with the pathogenesis of lung squamous cell carcinoma (LUSC). This study analyzes the prognostic significance of LRRK2 in LUSC using the Kaplan-Meier plotter tool. High expression of LRRK2 is known to be associated with a bad prognosis in patients with LUSC. Patients with high LRRK2 expression, tumor mutational burden, high neoantigen load, and even gender correlation reportedly have the worse survival rates. In the gene expression profiling interactive analysis (GEPIA) database, the severity of pathogenesis in LUSC with high LRRK2 expression positively corresponds to a high expression of anti-inflammatory cytokines but not inflammatory cytokines. Similarly, the increased expression of interleukin (IL)10-related genes was shown to be significantly linked in LRRK2-high LUSC patients having a poor prognosis. Moreover, the tumor immune estimation resource (TIMER) database suggests that macrophages are one of the cellular sources of IL10 in LRRK2-high LUSC patients. Collectively, our results demonstrate that the postulated LRRK2-IL10 axis is a potential therapeutic target and prognostic biomarker for LUSC.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.53 no.1
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• pp.27-38
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• 2020

Purpose: This study assessed the food intake and nutritional status of the elderly in long-term care facilities in order to provide adequate food services and improve the nutritional status. Methods: The survey was carried out from August 2019 to October 2019 for the elderly in long-term care facilities located in Gwangju Metropolitan City. The survey was conducted to collect data from 199 elderly persons (34 males and 165 females) aged over 65 years old. The food intake was assessed using a 1-day 24-hour recall method. Results: More than 90% of the subjects were over 75 years old. Forty five percent of the subjects were active, 44.2% of the subjects perceived themselves as not being healthy. Dementia and Parkinson's disease were the most common diseases, followed by hypertension, musculo-skeletal disease, diabetes, and stroke. Only 25.6% of the subjects had most of their teeth intact, and 44.7% of the subjects had difficulty in chewing and swallowing. The total food intake was 1,127 g in males and 1,078 g in females. The most frequently consumed foods were kimchi, cooked rice with multi-grains, soybean soup, cooked rice with white rice, yogurt, pumpkin porridge, soy milk, and duck soup. The average energy intake of the subjects was 1,564.9 kcal in males and 1,535.5 kcal in females. The overall nutritional status of the elderly in the long-term care facilities was poor. In particular, the intake of vitamin D and calcium, vitamin C, riboflavin, and potassium were very low. The intake of vitamin D was 5 ㎍, and 86.4% of the elderly were below the estimated average requirement, while the intake of sodium was high. Conclusion: The results of this study can be used to understand the health and nutritional status and to improve the food services and nutrition management for the elderly in longterm care facilities.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.21 no.8
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• pp.1163-1167
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• 2011

Excessive alcohol consumption causes various degenerative brain diseases including Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. Absorbed ethanol is metabolized to acetaldehyde and acetic acid by alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) and aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH). Acetaldehyde is well known as a toxicant through generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Therefore, ALDH2 activity may play important roles in the pathogenesis of alcohol-induced brain diseases. In this study, we demonstrated the effects of ALDH2 enzyme activity on lipid peroxidation in brain tissues and urine of mice exposed to ethanol for 8 weeks. Five male, 8-week old Aldh2 (+/+) and Aldh2 (-/-) mice (C57BL/6J strain) in each group were exposed to ethanol for 8 weeks (2 g/kg wt./day) using gavage, and those in the control group received 0.9% saline alone. Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) level, a marker for lipid peroxidation, was measured in whole brain tissue and urine by high performance liquid chromatography. As a result, chronic ethanol treatment did not show any statistical change on the TBARS level of brain tissue in both Aldh2 (+/+) mice and in Aldh2 (-/-) mice. However, following ethanol exposure for 8 weeks in Aldh2 (-/-) mice, the urinary TBARS levels were significantly increased to more than double compared to the pretreatment group. This result was not observed in Aldh2 (+/+) mice. These results suggest that although ALDH2 enzyme activity plays a role in the generation of ROS in the whole body, it does not seem to be important in the pathogenesis of alcohol induced degenerative brain diseases.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.29 no.10
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• pp.1096-1103
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• 2019

Neuroinflammation is mediated by the activation of microglia and has been implicated in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. Therefore, the inhibition of neuroinflammation may be an effective solution to treat these brain disorders. Protaetia brevitarsis seulensis is an insect belonging to the order Coleoptera and inhabits Korea, China, Japan and Siberia. P. brevitarsis seulensis is an edible insect that can be consumed as a protein source for humans. It has been reported that P. brevitarsis seulensis contains useful bioactive substances for hepatoprotection and improving blood circulation, such as indole alkaloids. Microglia cells are the main source of proinflammatory cytokines and nitric oxide (NO) in the central nervous system, which Perform neuroimmune, inflammatory, and other neurobilogical functions. In this study, we investigated the anti-neuroinflammatory effects of P. brevitarsis seulensis ethanol extract (PBE) in activated microglia cells treated with lipopolysaccgarude (LPS, 100 ng/ml). As a result, PBE significantly inhibited NO production without cytotoxicity and decreased the expression levels of inducible NO synthase and cyclooxygenase-2. In addition, the production of inflammatory cytokine secreted by LPS was also reduced by PBE. These results suggest that PBE could be a good source of functional substances to prevent neuroinflammation and neurodegenerative diseases.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.48-52
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• 2013

Purpose: Bed, living a long time is required in adult patients with brain lesions such as stroke, traumatic brain injury, and Parkinson's disease, causing pneumonia and respiratory diseases may be due to aspiration of food or saliva. In patients with recurrent pneumonia or pulmonary symptoms, there is a need to determine the possibility of pulmonary aspiration due to aspiration of saliva. Materials and Methods: Saliva due to aspiration pneumonia diagnosis in patients with brain lesions request for inspection to the Department of Nuclear Medicine, 10 patients (male 6, female 4) were included in this study. Patients were fasted before the test, $^{99m}Tc_{O4}$ 185 MBq (5 mCi) of less than 1 mL of solution was administered in the oral cavity. Administration and 20 minutes of dynamic imaging acquisition, and immediately after that the static images were acquired. Delayed scan after 2-4 hours if necessary. Results: Positivity rate of all 10 patients was 60%. In 4 patients showed positive reactions after the administration of oral cavity in a 20-minute dynamic imaging were able to confirm whether the aspiration. In the remaining 2 patients, four hours of additional delay tests were able to confirm whether the aspiration. Conclusion: Does not require changes in patient posture compared to the other checks that can be diagnosed with aspiration pneumonia. A simple test and takes less time. Therefore be useful in providing information for the diagnosis and treatment modality.