• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.57 no.10
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• pp.451-456
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• 2014

Purpose: We evaluated serum procalcitonin (PCT) as a diagnostic marker of neonatal sepsis, and compared PCT levels with C-reactive protein (CRP) levels. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 269 neonates with a suspected infection, admitted to Wonkwang University School of Medicine & Hospital between January 2011 and December 2012, for whom PCT and CRP values had been obtained. Neonates were categorized into 4 groups according to infection severity. CRP and PCT values were analyzed and compared, and their effectiveness as diagnostic markers was determined by using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. We also calculated the sensitivity, specificity, and positive, and negative predictive values. Results: The mean PCT and CRP concentrations were respectively $56.27{\pm}81.89$ and $71.14{\pm}37.17mg/L$ in the "confirmed sepsis" group; $15.64{\pm}32.64$ and $39.23{\pm}41.41mg/L$ in the "suspected sepsis" group; $9.49{\pm}4.30$ and $0.97{\pm}1.16mg/L$ in the "mild infection" group; and $0.21{\pm}0.12$ and $0.72{\pm}0.7mg/L$ in the control group. High concentrations indicated greater severity of infection (P<0.001). Five of 18 patients with confirmed sepsis had low PCT levels (<1.0 mg/L) despite high CRP levels. In the ROC analysis, the area under the curve was 0.951 for CRP and 0.803 for PCT. The cutoff concentrations of 0.5 mg/L for PCT and 1.0 mg/L for CRP were optimal for diagnosing neonatal sepsis (sensitivity, 88.29% vs. 100%; specificity, 58.17% vs. 85.66%; positive predictive value, 13.2% vs. 33.3%; negative predictive value, 98.6% vs. 100%, respectively). Conclusion: PCT is a highly effective early diagnostic marker of neonatal infection. However, it may not be as reliable as CRP.

• Childhood Kidney Diseases
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.27-35
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• 2020

Purpose: Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are the most common and serious bacterial infections in children. Therefore, early diagnosis of vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) for treatment planning and the identification of noninvasive markers that can predict renal injury are important in patients with UTIs. We analyzed the clinical features of pediatric UTIs commonly encountered by general practitioners and reinterpreted the blood tests and imaging findings to identify the important clinical predictive markers of VUR in order to selectively perform VCUG. Methods: This retrospective study was performed among 183 children diagnosed with a UTI or acute pyelonephritis. Results: The most significant predictor of high grade and bilateral VUR identified using area under the curve analyses was hydronephrosis on kidney ultrasound images with renal cortical defects on dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) kidney scan simultaneously, followed by hydronephrosis only on kidney ultrasound. Conclusion: The presence of hydronephrosis on kidney ultrasound images or cortical defects or asymmetric kidneys on the DMSA kidney scans can be predictive markers of VUR, reducing the need for VCUG. Our study can thus help minimize the exposure to radiation among patients through selective VCUG.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.3819-3823
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• 2013

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major cause of cancer mortality worldwide. The outcome of HCC depends mainly on its early diagnosis. To date, the performance of traditional biomarkers is unsatisfactory. Talins were firstly identified as cytoplasmic protein partners of integrins but Talin-1 appears to play a crucial role in cancer formation and progression. Our study was conducted to assess the diagnostic value of serum Talin-1 (TLN1) compared to the most feasible traditional biomarker alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) for the diagnosis of HCC. Methods: TLN1 was detected using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in serum samples from 120 Egyptian subjects including 40 with HCC, 40 with liver cirrhosis (LC) and 40 healthy controls (HC). Results: ROC curve analysis was used to create a predictive model for TLN1 relative to AFP in HCC diagnosis. Serum levels of TLN1 in hepatocellular carcinoma patients were significantly higher compared to the other groups (p<0.0001). The diagnostic accuracy of TLN1 was higher than that of AFP regarding sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value in diagnosis of HCC. Conclusions: The present study showed for the first time that Talin-1 (TLN1) is a potential diagnostic marker for HCC, with a higher sensitivity and specificity compared to the traditional biomarker AFP.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.63 no.8
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• pp.329-334
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• 2020

Background: Birth asphyxia is a leading cause of neonatal mortality. Ischemia-modified albumin (IMA) levels may have a predictive role in the identification and prevention of hypoxic disorders, as they increase in cases of ischemia of the liver, heart, brain, bowel, and kidney. Purpose: This study aimed to assess the value of IMA levels as a diagnostic marker for neonatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE). Methods: Sixty newborns who fulfilled 3 or more of the clinical and biochemical criteria and developed HIE as defined by Levene staging were included in our study as the asphyxia group. Neonates with congenital malformation, systemic infection, intrauterine growth retardation, low-birth weight, cardiac or hemolytic disease, family history of neurological diseases, congenital or perinatal infections, preeclampsia, diabetes, and renal diseases were excluded from the study. Sixty healthy neonates matched for gestational age and with no maternal history of illness, established respiration at birth, and an Apgar score ≥7 at 1 and 5 minutes were included as the control group. IMA was determined by double-antibody enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay of a cord blood sample collected within 30 minutes after birth. Results: Cord blood IMA levels were higher in asphyxiated newborns than in controls (250.83±36.07 pmol/mL vs. 120.24±38.9 pmol/mL). Comparison of IMA levels by HIE stage revealed a highly significant difference among them (207.3±26.65, 259.28±11.68, 294.99±4.41 pmol/mL for mild, moderate, and severe, respectively). At a cutoff of 197.6 pmol/mL, the sensitivity was 84.5%, specificity was 86%, positive predictive value was 82.8%, negative predictive value was 88.3%, and area under the curve was 0.963 (P<0.001). Conclusion: IMA levels can be a reliable marker for the early diagnosis of neonatal HIE and can be a predictor of injury severity.

• Proceedings of the Plant Resources Society of Korea Conference
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• 2023.04a
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• pp.62-62
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• 2023

Zanthoxylum piperitum ("chopi" in Korean) has been used as traditional medicinal plants with high anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antifungal activities. The aims of the study were to identify marker compounds and to investigate metabolites variation of chopi according to different parts and harvest times. Every month from June to September, chopi were harvested with three different parts: leaves, leaf-twig mixtures, twigs. Using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), two main marker compounds (quercitrin and quercetin-3-O-glucoside) were characterized in 70% ethanol extracts of chopi. Quantification of the two marker compounds were subsequently conducted by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), representing that contents of these compounds were higher in leaves and leaf-twig mixtures rather than twigs. For the comprehensive analysis of metabolites associated with production of marker compounds, 35 primary metabolites were identified using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Multivariate analysis results represented that plant parts were main contributors to the separation of chopi. However, significant differences were not observed between leaves and leaf-twig mixtures samples. The partial least square (PLS) predictive model revealed that monosaccharides (fructose, galactose, glucose, mannose, xylose) and branched-chain amino acids (isoleucine, valine, leucine) were important determinants for the production of marker compounds together with alanine, inositol, GABA, and theronic acid. This study could be extended to stabilize and utilize chopi as an industrial material, as well as to find good candidates with various nutritional traits.

• Language and Information
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.137-161
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• 2004

In this paper, I will look at two conditional connectives in Korean and point out differences between -(u)myen and -ta/la-myen in their distributions and semantics. One of the differences is that -ta/la-myen always allows epistemic interpretation, whereas -(u)myen allows epistemic interpretation only when the event time of the antecedent clause is in the past or present. A second difference is that only -(u)myen is used in purely temporal and habitual conditionals. A third difference is that the modality marker -keyss, which can have volitional or predictive interpretation with -(u)myen, cannot have predictive interpretation with -ta/la-myen. I propose that -ta/la-myen has the operator of settledness, which is defined with respect to the speech time, and explain the differences listed based on the semantics of settledness.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.17
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• pp.7825-7829
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• 2015

Background: Egypt has the highest prevalence of HCV infection in the world (~14.7%). Around 10-15% of HCV-infected persons will advance to cirrhosis within the first 20 years. The incidence of HCC is expected to grow in the next two decades, largely due to HCV related cirrhosis, and detection of HCC at an early stage is critical for a favorable clinical outcome. No simple reliable non-invasive marker has been available till now. B2M, a non-glycosylated polypeptide composed of 99 amino acids, is one of the components of HLA class I molecules on the surfaces of all nucleated cells. It has been reported that the level of serum B2M is elevated in patients with chronic hepatitis C and HCV-related HCC when compared to HCV-negative patients or healthy donors. Determining the clinical utility of serum B2M as a marker for disease progression in Egyptian patients with HCV related chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma was the aim of the present study. Materials and Methods: In this analytical cross sectional study 92 participants were included in 4 equal groups: Group (1) non cirrhotic chronic HCV; Group (2) HCV related liver cirrhosis; Group (3) HCC on top of HCV,; and Group (4) healthy controls. History taking, clinical examination, routine labs and abdominal ultrasound were conducted for all patients, PCR and Metavir scores for group (1) patients, and triphasic CT abdomen and AFP for Group (3) patients. B2M levels were measured in serum with a fully-automated IMX system. Results: The mean serum B2M level of Group (1) was $4.25{\pm}1.48{\mu}g/ml$., Group (2) was $7.48{\pm}3.04$, Group (3) was $6.62{\pm}2.49$ and Group (4) was $1.62{\pm}0.63$. Serum B2M levels were significantly higher in diseased than control group (p<0.01) being significantly higher in cirrhosis ($7.48{\pm}3.04$) and HCC groups ($6.62{\pm}2.49$) than the HCV group ($4.25{\pm}1.48$) (p<0.01). There was a significant correlation between B2M Level and ALK, total and direct bilirubin and INR (p<0.05), and a significant inverse correlation between B2M level and albumin, total proteins, HB andWBCS values (p<0.05). There was no significant correlation between B2M level and viral load or Metavir score, largest tumour size or AFP (p>0.05). The best B2M cut-off for HCV diagnosis was 2.6 with a sensitivity of 100%, a specificity of 92%, a positive predictive value (PPV) of 97% and a negative predictive value (NPV) of 100%. The best B2M cut-off for HCC diagnosis was 4.55 which yielded sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive values of 74%, 62%, 39.5, 87.8% respectively (p-value <0.01) while best cut-off for cirrhosis was 4.9, with sensitivity 74 % and specificity 74%.The sensitivity for HCC diagnosis increased upon B2M and AFP combined estimation to 91%, specificity to 79%, NPV to 95% and accuracy to 83%. Conclusions: Serum B2M level is elevated in HCV related chronic liver diseases and may be used as a marker for HCV disease progression towards cirrhosis and carcinoma.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.57 no.5
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• pp.211-216
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• 2014

Asthma comprises a heterogeneous group of disorders characterized by airway inflammation, airway obstruction, and airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR). Airway inflammation, which induces AHR and recurrence of asthma, is the main pathophysiology of asthma. The fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) level is a noninvasive, reproducible measurement of eosinophilic airway inflammation that is easy to perform in young children. As airway inflammation precedes asthma attacks and airway obstruction, elevated FeNO levels may be useful as predictive markers for risk of recurrence of asthma. This review discusses FeNO measurements among early-childhood wheezing phenotypes that have been identified in large-scale longitudinal studies. These wheezing phenotypes are classified into three to six categories based on the onset and persistence of wheezing from birth to later childhood. Each phenotype has characteristic findings for atopic sensitization, lung function, AHR, or FeNO. For example, in one birth cohort study, children with asthma and persistent wheezing at 7 years had higher FeNO levels at 4 years compared to children without wheezing, which suggested that FeNO could be a predictive marker for later development of asthma. Preschool-aged children with recurrent wheezing and stringent asthma predictive indices also had higher FeNO levels in the first 4 years of life compared to children with wheezing and loose indices or children with no wheeze, suggesting that FeNO measurements may provide an additional parameter for predicting persistent wheezing in preschool children. Additional large-scale longitudinal studies are required to establish cutoff levels for FeNO as a risk factor for persistent asthma.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.2089-2092
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• 2016

Background: The impact of mean platelet volume (MPV) on prognosis, diagnosis and response to therapy in cancer patients has been widely investigated. In the present study, we evaluated whether MPV at diagnosis has predictive value for pathologic complete response (pCR) after neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with locally advanced breast cancer (LABC). Materials and Methods: A total of 109 patients with LABC from Akdeniz University and Antalya Research and Training Hospital were evaluated retrospectively. Results: ROC curve analysis suggested that the optimum MPV cut-off point for LABC patients with pCR (+) was 8.15 (AUC:0.378, 95%CI [0.256-0.499], p=0.077). The patients with MPV <8.15 had higher pCR rates (29.2% vs. 13.1%, p=0.038). After binary logistic regression analysis, MPV and estrogen receptor absence were independent predictors for pCR. Conclusions: MPV has an independent predictive value for pCR after neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with LABC.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.11
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• pp.5353-5361
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• 2012

Interleukin-18 (IL-18) is an immune-stimulatory cytokine with antitumor activity in preclinical models. It plays pivotal roles in linking inflammatory immune responses and tumor progression and is a useful candidate in gene therapy of lymphoma or lymphoid leukemia. A phase I study of recombinant human IL-18 (rhIL-18) in patients with advanced cancer concluded that rhIL-18 can be safely given in biologically active doses to patients with advanced cancer. Some viruses can induce the secretion of IL-18 for immune evasion. The individual cytokine activity might be potentiated or inhibited by combinations of cytokines. Here we focus on combinational effects of cytokines with IL-18 in cancer progression. IL-18 is an important non-invasive marker suspected of contributing to metastasis. Serum IL-18 may a useful biological marker as independent prognostic factor of survival. In this review we cover roles of IL-18 in immune evasion, metastasis and angiogenesis, applications for chemotherapy and prognostic or diagnostic significance.