• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.47 no.1
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• pp.23-32
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• 2023

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly infectious respiratory disease caused by a severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). SARS-CoV-2 infection may cause clinical manifestations of multiple organ damage, including various neurological syndromes. There are currently two oral antiviral drugs-Paxlovid and molnupiravir-that are recognized to treat COVID-19, but there are still no drugs that can specifically fight the challenges of SARS-CoV-2 variants. Nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-like receptor pyrin domain-containing-3 (NLRP3) inflammasome is a multimolecular complex that can sense heterogeneous pathogen-associated molecular patterns associated with neurological disorders. The NLRP3 activation stimulates the production of caspase-1-mediated interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-18, and other cytokines in immune cells. Panax (P.) ginseng is a medicinal plant that has traditionally been widely used to boost immunity and treat various pathological conditions in the nervous system due to its safety and anti-inflammatory/oxidant/viral activities. Several recent reports have indicated that P. ginseng and its active ingredients may regulate NLRP3 inflammasome activation in the nervous system. Therefore, this review article discusses the current knowledge regarding the pathogenesis of neurological disorders related to COVID-19 and NLRP3 inflammasome activation and the possibility of using P. ginseng in a strategy targeting this pathway to treat neurological disorders.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.86 no.2
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• pp.94-101
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• 2023

A recent understanding of the dynamic continuous spectrum of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection has led to the recognition of incipient tuberculosis, which refers to the latent infection state that has begun to progress to active tuberculosis. The importance of early detection of these individuals with a high-risk of progression to active tuberculosis is emphasized to efficiently implement targeted tuberculosis preventive therapy. However, the tuberculin skin test or interferon-γ release assay, which is currently used for the diagnosis of latent tuberculosis infection, does not aid in the prediction of the risk of progression to active tuberculosis. Thus, a novel test is urgently needed. Recently, simultaneous and systematic analysis of differentially expressed genes using a high-throughput platform has enabled the discovery of key genes that may serve potential biomarkers for the diagnosis or prognosis of diseases. This host transcriptional investigation has been extended to the field of tuberculosis, providing promising results. The present review focuses on recent progress and challenges in the field of blood transcriptional signatures to predict progression to active tuberculosis.

• Journal of Dental Anesthesia and Pain Medicine
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.179-192
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• 2023

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common sleep-breathing disorder associated with significant comorbidities and perioperative complications. This narrative review is aimed at comprehensively overviewing preoperative risk evaluation and perioperative management strategies for patients with OSA. OSA is characterized by recurrent episodes of upper airway obstruction during sleep leading to hypoxemia and arousal. Anatomical features, such as upper airway narrowing and obesity, contribute to the development of OSA. OSA can be diagnosed based on polysomnography findings, and positive airway pressure therapy is the mainstay of treatment. However, alternative therapies, such as oral appliances or upper airway surgery, can be considered for patients with intolerance. Patients with OSA face perioperative challenges due to difficult airway management, comorbidities, and effects of sedatives and analgesics. Anatomical changes, reduced upper airway muscle tone, and obesity increase the risks of airway obstruction, and difficulties in intubation and mask ventilation. OSA-related comorbidities, such as cardiovascular and respiratory disorders, further increase perioperative risks. Sedatives and opioids can exacerbate respiratory depression and compromise airway patency. Therefore, careful consideration of alternative pain management options is necessary. Although the association between OSA and postoperative mortality remains controversial, concerns exist regarding adverse outcomes in patients with OSA. Understanding the pathophysiology of OSA, implementing appropriate preoperative evaluations, and tailoring perioperative management strategies are vital to ensure patient safety and optimize surgical outcomes.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.40 no.2
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• pp.207-211
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• 2023

Fat embolism syndrome is a rare but alarming, life-threatening clinical condition attributed to fat emboli entering the circulation. It usually occurs as a complication of long-bone fractures and joint reconstruction surgery. Neurological manifestations usually occur 12 to 72 hours after the initial insult. These neurological complications include cerebral infarction, spinal cord ischemia, hemorrhagic stroke, seizures, and coma. Other features include an acute confusional state, autonomic dysfunction, and retinal ischemia. In this case series, we describe three patients with fat embolism syndrome who presented with atypical symptoms and signs and with unusual neuroimaging findings. Cerebral fat embolism may occur without any respiratory or dermatological signs. In these cases, diagnosis was established after excluding other differential diagnoses. Neuroimaging using brain magnetic resonance imaging is of paramount importance in establishing a diagnosis. Aggressive hemodynamic and respiratory support from the beginning and consideration of orthopedic surgical intervention within the first 24 hours after trauma are critical to decreased morbidity and mortality.

• Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.90-95
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• 2006

Asian Americans is a minority population contributing approximately 4% to the total population of the United States, however it is one of the fastest growing populations. Although Asian Americans as a group have socioeconomic profiles that are similar to white Americans, significant variations exists within and across Asian ethnic groups. The top ten leading causes of death for Asian Americans includes cancer, heart diseases, stroke, unintentional injuries, diabetes, influenza and pneumonia, chronic lower respiratory disease, suicide, nephritis, and septicemia. The prevalence of obesity is lower among Asian Americans, however this should be taken with considerations specific to Asians. High salt and low calcium consumption seem to be dietary risk factors for Asian Americans, although dietary patterns are changing with acculturation. Factors affecting dietary patterns are discussed in this paper. A proactive nutrition education approach for Asian Americans should be promoting maintaining 'healthy' aspects of ethnic diets and adopting 'healthy' American diets. Collaboration with nutrition educators in Asian countries would be helpful to overcome limited resources available for researching and developing nutrition education messages and materials for Asian Americans. (J Community Nutrition 8(2): 90-95, 2006)

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.1-5
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• 2022

Diagnostics, vaccines, and drugs are indispensable tools and control measures employed to overcome infectious diseases such as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Diagnostic tools based on RT-PCR were developed early in the COVID-19 pandemic and were urgently required for quarantine (testing, tracing and isolation). Vaccines such as mRNA vaccines and virus-vectored vaccines were also successfully developed using new platform technologies within one year after identifying severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) as the causative agent of COVID-19. Drug development has been conducted in various ways including drug repurposing, convalescent plasma therapy, and monoclonal antibody development. Among the above efforts, this review examines COVID-19 drug development along with the related and upcoming challenges.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.66 no.1
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• pp.31-56
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• 2024

Pig farming, a vital industry, necessitates proactive measures for early disease detection and crush symptom monitoring to ensure optimum pig health and safety. This review explores advanced thermal sensing technologies and computer vision-based thermal imaging techniques employed for pig disease and piglet crush symptom monitoring on pig farms. Infrared thermography (IRT) is a non-invasive and efficient technology for measuring pig body temperature, providing advantages such as non-destructive, long-distance, and high-sensitivity measurements. Unlike traditional methods, IRT offers a quick and labor-saving approach to acquiring physiological data impacted by environmental temperature, crucial for understanding pig body physiology and metabolism. IRT aids in early disease detection, respiratory health monitoring, and evaluating vaccination effectiveness. Challenges include body surface emissivity variations affecting measurement accuracy. Thermal imaging and deep learning algorithms are used for pig behavior recognition, with the dorsal plane effective for stress detection. Remote health monitoring through thermal imaging, deep learning, and wearable devices facilitates non-invasive assessment of pig health, minimizing medication use. Integration of advanced sensors, thermal imaging, and deep learning shows potential for disease detection and improvement in pig farming, but challenges and ethical considerations must be addressed for successful implementation. This review summarizes the state-of-the-art technologies used in the pig farming industry, including computer vision algorithms such as object detection, image segmentation, and deep learning techniques. It also discusses the benefits and limitations of IRT technology, providing an overview of the current research field. This study provides valuable insights for researchers and farmers regarding IRT application in pig production, highlighting notable approaches and the latest research findings in this field.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.24 no.7
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• pp.912-918
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• 2011

Newly born lambs have to face challenges in a new environment totally different from that of the uterus. Adaptation to extra-uterine life involves functional changes with almost each organ and system in the body undergoing a series of metabolic and anatomical modifications. Failure to adapt the extra-uterine environment can not only lead to homeostatic disturbances but also lead to the death of the affected lambs. Hematological parameters of newly born lambs show variability that differs between breeds of lambs. The purpose of present study was to determine homeostatic responses and physiological reference values in Kajli breed lambs occurring in the neonatal period through changes in blood profile, respiratory rate, heart rate, live weight and rectal, scrotal and skin temperatures. For this purpose, sixteen clinically fit lambs (males = 10 and females = 6) with a mean body weight $6.92{\pm}0.46$ kg were selected. Physiological data of selected parameters of each Kajli lamb was recorded at three day intervals and hematological parameters at five days for a period of 30 days. In general, statistical analysis showed a significant effect of time (p<0.001) on all the studied physiological and hematological parameters except platelets counts, white blood cells and hemoglobin concentration. The results documented in the current study are an addition to existing knowledge of the physiology of Kajli sheep breed should be helpful in developing feeding, disease diagnoses and treatment protocols for newborn Kajli stock.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.84 no.1
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• pp.55-66
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• 2021

Background: Particulate matter 10 (PM₁₀; airborne particles <10 ㎛) inhalation has been demonstrated to induce airway and lung diseases. In this study, we investigate the effects of PM₁₀ inhalation on RNA expression in lung tissues using a murine model. Methods: Female BALB/c mice were affected with PM₁₀, ovalbumin (OVA), or both OVA and PM₁₀. PM₁₀ was administered intranasally while OVA was both intraperitoneally injected and intranasally administered. Treatments occurred 4 times over a 2-week period. Two days after the final challenges, mice were sacrificed. Full RNA sequencing using lung homogenates was conducted. Results: While PM₁₀ did not induce cell proliferation in bronchoalveolar fluid or lead to airway hyper-responsiveness, it did cause airway inflammation and lung fibrosis. Levels of interleukin 1β, tumor necrosis factor-α, and transforming growth factor-β in lung homogenates were significantly elevated in the PM₁₀-treated group, compared to the control group. The PM₁₀ group also showed increased RNA expression of Rn45a, Snord22, Atp6v0c-ps2, Snora28, Snord15b, Snora70, and Mmp12. Generally, genes associated with RNA splicing, DNA repair, the inflammatory response, the immune response, cell death, and apoptotic processes were highly expressed in the PM₁₀-treated group. The OVA/PM₁₀ treatment did not produce greater effects than OVA alone. However, the OVA/PM₁₀-treated group did show increased RNA expression of Clca1, Snord22, Retnla, Prg2, Tff2, Atp6v0c-ps2, and Fcgbp when compared to the control groups. These genes are associated with RNA splicing, DNA repair, the inflammatory response, and the immune response. Conclusion: Inhalation of PM₁₀ extensively altered RNA expression while also inducing cellular inflammation, fibrosis, and increased inflammatory cytokines in this murine mouse model.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.57 no.1
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• pp.36-43
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• 2024

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) can lead to acute respiratory failure, which frequently necessitates invasive mechanical ventilation and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). However, the limited availability of ECMO resources poses challenges to patient selection and associated decision-making. Consequently, this retrospective single-center study was undertaken to evaluate the characteristics and clinical outcomes of patients with COVID-19 receiving ECMO. Methods: Between March 2020 and July 2022, 65 patients with COVID-19 were treated with ECMO and were subsequently reviewed. Patient demographics, laboratory data, and clinical outcomes were examined, and statistical analyses were performed to identify risk factors associated with mortality. Results: Of the patients studied, 15 (23.1%) survived and were discharged from the hospital, while 50 (76.9%) died during their hospitalization. The survival group had a significantly lower median age, at 52 years (interquartile range [IQR], 47.5-61.5 years), compared to 64 years (IQR, 60.0-68.0 years) among mortality group (p=0.016). However, no significant differences were observed in other underlying conditions or in factors related to intervention timing. Multivariable analysis revealed that the requirement of a change in ECMO mode (odds ratio [OR], 366.77; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.92-69911.92; p=0.0275) and the initiation of continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) (OR, 139.15; 95% CI, 1.95-9,910.14; p=0.0233) were independent predictors of mortality. Conclusion: Changes in ECMO mode and the initiation of CRRT during management were associated with mortality in patients with COVID-19 who were supported by ECMO. Patients exhibiting these factors require careful monitoring due to the potential for adverse outcomes.