• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.299-307
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• 2003

Objectives: The present study was conducted to evaluate the mobile transposon-like element, clone MTi7 (MTi7) expression in the mouse ovary and to determine its role(s) in the mouse oocytes by RNA interference (RNAi). Methods: MTi7 mRNA expression was localized by in situ hybridization in day5 and adult ovaries. Double stranded RNA (dsRNA) was prepared for c-mos, a gene with known function as control, and the MTi7. Each dsRNA was microinjected into the germinal vesicle (GV) stage oocytes then oocyte maturation and intracellular changes were evaluated. Results: In situ hybridization analysis revealed that MTi7 mRNA localized to the oocyte cytoplasm from primordial to preovulatory follicles. After dsRNA injection, we found 43-54% GV arrest of microinjected GV oocytes with 68%-90% decrease in targeted c-mos or MTi7 mRNA. Conclusions: This is the first report of the oocyte-specific expression of the MTi7 mRNA. From results of RNAi for MTi7, we concluded that the MTi7 is involved in the germinal vesicle breakdown in GV oocytes, and MTi7 may be implicated with c-mos for its function. We report here that RNAi provides an outstanding approach to study the function of a gene with unknown functions.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.47 no.1
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• pp.1-11
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• 2020

Endometriosis is a common inflammatory disease in women of reproductive age and is one of the major causes of infertility. Endometriosis causes a sustained reduction of ovarian reserve through both physical mechanisms and inflammatory reactions, which result in the production of reactive oxygen species and tissue fibrosis. The severity of endometriosis is related to ovarian reserve. With regard to infertility treatment, medical therapy as a neoadjuvant or adjuvant to surgical therapy has no definite beneficial effect. Surgical treatment of endometriosis can lead to ovarian injury during the resection of endometriotic tissue, which leads to the deterioration of ovarian reserve. To overcome this disadvantage, a multistep technique has been proposed to minimize the reduction of ovarian reserve. When considering surgical treatment of endometriosis in patients experiencing infertility, it should be kept in mind that ovarian reserve can be reduced both due to endometriosis itself and by the process of removing endometriosis. In cases of mild- to moderate-stage endometriosis, intrauterine insemination with ovarian stimulation after surgical treatment may increase the likelihood of pregnancy. In cases of severe endometriosis, the characteristics of the patient should be considered in a multidisciplinary manner to determine the prioritization of treatment modalities, including surgical treatment and assisted reproduction methods such as in vitro fertilization. The risk of cancer, complications after pregnancy, and infection during oocyte retrieval should also be considered when making treatment decisions.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.69 no.6
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• pp.450-455
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• 2010

Background: High cortisol levels are frequently observed in patients with severe infections are of prognostic value in sepsis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical usefulness of serum cortisol in assessment for the severity of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). Methods: This study analyzed the results of 52 CAP subjects admitted in Changwon Fatima Hospital between July 2008 to May 2010. Total serum cortisol, infection markers such as C-reactive protein (CRP), procalcitonin (PCT) and CURB (Confusion, Uremia, Respiratory rate, Blood pressure)-65 were examined retrospectively. Results: In clinically unstable subjects on admission day 4, baseline serum cortisol, CURB-65, and CRP were elevated significantly compared to those of stable subjects. Area under curve (AUC) of cortisol, CRP, and CURB-65 from ROC curves were 0.847, 0.783, and 0.724 respectively. In the subjects with serum cortisol ${\geq}22.82{\mu}g/dL$, CRP, PCT, CURB-65 score, and mortality were significantly elevated. Conclusion: These findings suggest that measurement of serum cortisol in early stage may provide helpful information in the assessment of CAP severity.

• Environmental Mutagens and Carcinogens
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.25-31
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• 2005

The objective was to use MR imaging to provide a template of posterior fossa development during the late stages in the chick embryos. The MR findings were then correlated with histological data. Fourteen normal formalin-fixed embryonic specimens with a gestational age of 14 to 20 days were examined with 1.5 Tesla unit MRl using a conventional clinical magnet and pulse sequences. The MR findings were correlated with the whole-mount histological specimens. Resolution of the morphological features of posterior fossa development in embryos greater than 14 days gestational age was possible. Development of cerebellum, brain stem, 4th ventricle and bony posterior fossa was documented. In the 14-day-old embryos, a premordial cerebellum was visualized in the enlarged bony posterior fossa, and it covered the the roof of the primitive fourth ventricle. The bony posterior fossa grows at the same rate along the supratentorial skull. The supratentorial skull and the rostral part of the brain grows at the same rate. The cerebellum begins to grow later than the rostral part of the brain. In the 19- to 20-day-old embryos, MRl revealed the rapid development of the cerebellar hemispheres, along with an increase in volume manifested by the more typical mushroom-shaped configuration observed in the newly hatched. At this stage, the cerebellum almost completely filled the posterior fossa and covered the entire fourth ventricle. The brain stem grew steadily, but the volume change was too subtle to evaluate. Features of cerebellar histogeneis were beyond the resolution of MRl. However, there were lots of artifacts in the features of the bony posterior fossa. An MR template of normal posterior fossa development would be useful to avoid confusion of normal development with abnormal development and to identify the expected developmental features when provided the estimated gestational age of a embryo.

• Journal of Dental Anesthesia and Pain Medicine
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.151-159
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• 2018

Background: The pain involved in orthodontic treatments may involve inflammatory processes. This study evaluated the effect of using a naproxen patch for pain reduction in the separating stage of fixed orthodontic treatment. Methods: In this double-blind, randomized, controlled clinical trial of 35 orthodontic patients (age: 14-19 years) who had pain during separator placement, each patient randomly placed naproxen and placebo patches in the first permanent molar region, in opposite quadrants of the same jaw. Patches were replaced every 8 hours until 3 days after separator placement. Patients recorded their pain perception at 2, 6, and 24 hours, and on days 2 (6 PM), 3 (10 AM and 6 PM), and 7 (10 AM and 6 PM), using a visual analog scale. Mean pain scores were compared for the two patches, and effects of sex and age thereon determined. Results: Data from 29 patients (21 girls, eight boys) were analyzed. Mean pain values decreased over time for both patches (P < 0.001). Recorded pain did not differ significantly between the sexes (P = 0.059) or between those aged <16 and those ${\geq}16years$ (P = 0.106). Mean pain recorded with naproxen patches was statistically significantly less than that with placebo patches at all time points (P = 0.004). Conclusion: The naproxen patch was more efficient than the placebo patch for reducing pain at all time points. The highest pain score was recorded at 6 hours, and the least pain was recorded at the $7^{th}$ day after separator placement.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.463-472
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• 2020

Direct reprogramming, also known as a trans-differentiation, is a technique to allow mature cells to be converted into other types of cells without inducing a pluripotent stage. It has been suggested as a major strategy to acquire the desired type of cells in cell-based therapies to repair damaged tissues. Studies related to switching the fate of cells through epigenetic modification have been progressing and they can bypass safety issues raised by the virus-based transfection methods. In this study, a protocol was established to directly convert fully differentiated fibroblasts into diverse mesenchymal-lineage cells, such as osteoblasts, adipocytes, chondrocytes, and ectodermal cells, including neurons, by means of DNA demethylation, immediately followed by culturing in various differentiating media. First, 24 h exposure of 5-azacytidine (5-aza-CN), a well-characterized DNA methyl transferase inhibitor, to NIH-3T3 murine fibroblast cells induced the expression of stem-cell markers, that is, increasing cell plasticity. Next, 5-aza-CN treated fibroblasts were cultured in osteogenic, adipogenic, chondrogenic, and neurogenic media with or without bone morphogenetic protein 2 for a designated period. Differentiation of each desired type of cell was verified by quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction/western blot assays for appropriate marker expression and by various staining methods, such as alkaline phosphatase/alizarin red S/oil red O/alcian blue. These proposed procedures allowed easier acquisition of the desired cells without any transgenic modification, using direct reprogramming technology, and thus may help make it more available in the clinical fields of regenerative medicine.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.46-51
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• 2015

Background: Maintenance of adequate vascular access for hemodialysis is important in patients with end-stage renal disease. Once arteriovenous fistula (AVF) occlusion occurs, the patient should be treated with rescue therapy. This study was performed to evaluate the results of a rescue therapy for AVF occlusion. Methods: From January 2008 to December 2012, 47 patients who underwent surgical rescue therapy for AVF occlusion after graft AVF formation, were enrolled in this study. The patients were divided into two groups, namely the graft repair group (group A, n=19) and the thrombectomy group (group B, n=28). Postoperative results of both groups were analyzed retrospectively. Results: There were no statistically significant differences in the clinical characteristics between the two groups. In terms of the duration of AVF patency after the first rescue therapy, group A showed a longer AVF patency duration than group B ($24.5{\pm}21.9$ months versus $17.7{\pm}13.6$ months), but there was no statistically significant difference (p=0.310). In terms of the annual frequency of AVF occlusion after the rescue therapy of group A was lower than that of group B (0.59 versus 0.71), but there was no statistically significant difference (p=0.540). The AVF patency rates at 1, 2, 3, and 5 years after the first rescue therapy in group A were 52.6%, 31.5%, 21.0%, and 15.7%, respectively, and those in group B, they were 32.1%, 25.0%, 17.8%, and 7.14%, respectively. There was no statistically significant difference (p=0.402). Conclusion: Graft repair revealed comparable results. Although there was no statistically significant difference, the patent duration and annual frequency of AVF occlusion of group A were better than those of group B. Therefore, graft repair is considered as a safe and useful procedure for maintaining graft AVF.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.47 no.1
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• pp.26-39
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• 2020

In maize, immature embryos (IEs) are highly regenerative explants most suitable for producing high frequencies of plantlet regeneration in vitro. Apart from media, explants, and hormones, genotypic variation also influences in vitro characters to a great extent. In the present study, IEs were used to study the distinctive effect of variation of size/stage and hormones in different genotypes on five in vitro characters viz., frequency of callus induction, growth rate of total callus, frequency of E. callus induction, and volume and number of regenerated plantlets. LS medium with different concentrations of 2,4-D (0.5, 1.5, 2.5, 4.0 and 5.0 mg/L) were used to study the former four in vitro characters, and medium with 6-benzylaminopurine and kinetin (0.5 mg/L, each) was used for plantlet regeneration. IEs of 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5 and 3.0 mm in size were isolated from four inbred lines viz., NM74C, NM81A, NM5883 and NM5884. Two-way ANOVA revealed that explant size and genotypes, as well as hormonal concentrations showed significant effects on in vitro characters. Two millimeter IEs were found to be suitable for in vitro cultures. LS medium with 1.5 mg/L 2,4-D and LS with BAP and Kn (0.5 mg/L, each) were found to be the best hormonal concentrations for callus induction, maintenance, and regeneration, respectively. Among the four genotypes, NM81A and NM5883 yielded more non-embryogenic and Type I E. calli. In contrast, NM74C and NM5884 yielded more highly regenerative Type II calli. Inbred line NM5884 was found to be the best among these four genotypes.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Physical Medicine
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.259-265
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• 2012

Purpose : Patients with Parkionson's disease have a temporal and spatial restriction for their's exercise treatment. The aim of this study is to verify the effectiveness of e-exercise program on balance, gait, and endurance ability in people with Parkinson's disease. Methods : Eighteen participants, with Parkinson's disease that ranged from stage to on the Hoehn & Yahr scale, were assigned to two group. Two group were divided into on-line group that exercised in home by computer video, and off-line group that exercised in clinical center. Exercise program that included 3 sections (warm-up, main exercise, cool down)-5 parts(stretch, strength, balance, gait, stretch) was used to train for participants. We used the functional reach test for balance ability, timed up and go test for gait ability, 6 minute walking test for endurance ability. Wilkoxon sign lank tests were used to assess the difference of balance, gait, and endurance ability in pre-and post test each groups. Mann-whitney tests were used to assess the difference of balance, gait, and endurance ability between groups. Results : Wilkoxon sign lank tests revealed that both group were improved the balance, gait and endurance agility by e-exercise program intervention. Mann-whitney tests showed that there were no differences between groups in the variation of balance, gait, endurance ability. Conclusion : We believe that exercise program with on-line(e-exercise program) is an effective intervention for people with Parkinson's disease and is no different than off-line exercise group in the variation of balance, gait, endurance ability.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Precision Engineering
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• v.28 no.12
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• pp.1425-1433
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• 2011

We investigated an early rehabilitation training system that increase the intensity of patient rehabilitation training to shorten the time it takes for patients to progress to a secondary rehabilitation training stage by allowing patients incapable of self-ambulation. It consisted of tilting bed, unstable platform using strong springs and training program for lower limb rehabilitation. We performed experimental study on the muscular activities of tibialis anterior(TA), soleus(SO), gastrocnemius(GA) in the lower extremities during training of straight line, circle, quardrangle pattern during tilting angle of $30^{\circ}$, $60^{\circ}$. The muscle activities were higher during tilting angle of $30^{\circ}$ than $60^{\circ}$. In straight line pattern, the muscle activities were higher by SO, GA and TA during medio-lateral direction, however, by TA, SO and GA during anterio-posterior direction. In circle and quardrangle pattern, the muscle activities were higher by TA, SO and GA during clockwise and counterclockwise direction. The results indicate that the early rehabilitation training system could be applied to improve the lower extremity muscular strength for elderly and patients, especially, stroke.