• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.55 no.3
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• pp.319-325
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• 2017

We described 4 human infection cases of zoonotic fish-tapeworm, Diphyllobothrium nihonkaiense, identified with morphological and molecular characters and briefly reviewed Chinese cases in consideration of it as an emerging parasitic disease in China. The scolex and mature and gravid proglottids of some cases were seen, a rosette-shaped uterus was observed in the middle of the mature and gravid proglottids, and the diphyllobothriid eggs were yellowish-brown in color and displayed a small knob or abopercular protuberance on the opposite end of a lid-like opening. The average size of the eggs was recorded as $62-67{\times}42-45{\mu}m$. The parasitic materials gathered from 4 human cases were morphologically identified as belonging to the genera Diphyllobothrium and Adenocephalus. The phylogenetic analysis based on the nucleotide sequences of cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 gene of the etiologic agents confirmed that the 4 cases were D. nihonkaiense infection. The finding of 4 additional D. nihonkaiense cases suggests that D. nihonkaiense might be a major causative species of human diphyllobothriasis in China. A combined morphological and molecular analysis is the main method to confirm D. nihonkaiense infection.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.490-495
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• 2004

Brain cells produce cytokines and chemokines during the inflammatory process of many neuronal diseases both in animal models and in patients. Inflammatory cytokines are the main responsible for the onset of inflammatory cascade. During the past decade, a growing corpus of evidence has indicated an important role of these cytokines in the development of brain damage. ZhenganXifeng-tang (ZGXFT) is a Korean herbal prescription, which has been successfully applied for the treatment of various neuronal diseases. However, its effect in experimental models remains unknown. Astrocytes are predominant neuroglial cells of the central nervous system and are actively involved in cytokine-mediated events in inflammatory disease. An inflammatory response associated with β-amyloid (Aβ) and interleukin (IL)-1β is responsible for the pathology of inflammation disease. To investigate the biological effect of ZGXFT, the author examined cytotoxicity, effect of cytokines (IL-6 and IL-8) secretion and expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) on human astrocytoma cell line U373MG stimulated with IL-1β plus M fragment 25-35 (Aβ [25-35]). ZGXFT by itself had no effect on cell viability on human astrocytoma cells. The secretion of IL-6 and IL-8 was inhibited by pre-treatment with ZGXFT in human astrocytoma cells. In addition, the expression of COX-2 was induced by IL-1β plus AB[25-35] and was partially inhibited by treatment with ZGXFT. The author demonstrates the regulatory effects of inflammatory reactions by ZGXFT in human astrocytes for the first time and suggest the anti-inflammatory effect of ZGXFT may reduce and delay pathologic events of inflammatory disease.

• Genomics & Informatics
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• v.3 no.4
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• pp.133-141
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• 2005

Most of the endogenous retroviral genes integrated into the primate genome after the split of New World monkeys in the Oligocene era, approximately 33 million years ago. Because they can change the structure of adjacent genes and move between and within chromosomes they may play important roles in evolutionas well as in many kinds of disease and the creation of genetic polymorphism. Comparative analysis of HERVs (human endogenous retroviruses) and their LTR (long terminal repeat) elements in the primate genomes will help us to understand the possible impact of HERV elements in the evolution and phylogeny of primates. For example, HERV-K LTR and SINE-R elements have been identified that have been subject to recent change in the course of primate evolution. They are specific elements to the human genome and could be related to biological function. The HERV-M element is related to the superfamily of HERV-K and is integrated into the periphilin gene as the truncated form, 5'LTR-gag-pol-3'LTR. PCR and RT-PCR approaches indicated that the insertion of various retrotransposable elements in a common ancestor genome may make different transcript variants in different primate species. Examination of the HERV-W elementrevealed that env fragments were detected on human chromosomes 1, 3-7, 12, 14, 17, 20, and X, whilst the pol fragments were detected on human chromosomes 2-8, 10-15, 20, 21, X, and Y. Bioinformatic blast search showed that almost full-length of the HERV-W family was identified on human chromosomes 1-8, 11-15, 17, 18, 21, and X. Expression analysis of HERV-W genes (gag, pol, and env) in human tissues by RT-PCR indicated that gag and pol were expressed in specific tissues, whilst env was constituitively expressed in all tissues examined. DNA sequence based phylogenetic analysis indicated that the gag, pol and env genes have evolved independently during primate evolution. It will thus be of considerable interest to expand the current HERV gene information of various primates and disease tissues.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.55 no.3
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• pp.77-82
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• 2012

Human astrovirus (HAstV) is a major cause of acute diarrhea among children, resulting in outbreaks of diarrhea and occasionally hospitalization. Improved surveillance and application of sensitive molecular diagnostics have further defined the impact of HAstV infections in children. These studies have shown that HAstV infections are clinically milder (diarrhea, vomiting, fever) than infections with other enteric agents. Among the 8 serotypes of HAstV identified, serotype 1 is the predominant strain worldwide. In addition to serotype 1, the detection rate of HAstV types 2 to 8 has increased by using newly developed assays. HAstV is less common compared with other major gastroenteritis viruses, including norovirus and rotavirus; however, it is a potentially important viral etiological agent with a significant role in acute gastroenteritis. A better understanding of the molecular epidemiology and characteristics of HAstV strains may be valuable to develop specific prevention strategies.

• Genomics & Informatics
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.70-77
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• 2016

Transposable elements are one of major sources to cause genomic instability through various mechanisms including de novo insertion, insertion-mediated genomic deletion, and recombination-associated genomic deletion. Among them is Alu element which is the most abundant element, composing ~10% of the human genome. The element emerged in the primate genome 65 million years ago and has since propagated successfully in the human and non-human primate genomes. Alu element is a non-autonomous retrotransposon and therefore retrotransposed using L1-enzyme machinery. The 'master gene' model has been generally accepted to explain Alu element amplification in primate genomes. According to the model, different subfamilies of Alu elements are created by mutations on the master gene and most Alu elements are amplified from the hyperactive master genes. Alu element is frequently involved in genomic rearrangements in the human genome due to its abundance and sequence identity between them. The genomic rearrangements caused by Alu elements could lead to genetic disorders such as hereditary disease, blood disorder, and neurological disorder. In fact, Alu elements are associated with approximately 0.1% of human genetic disorders. The first part of this review discusses mechanisms of Alu amplification and diversity among different Alu subfamilies. The second part discusses the particular role of Alu elements in generating genomic rearrangements as well as human genetic disorders.

• Journal of dental hygiene science
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.77-85
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• 2019

In the past gut microbiome has been the main focus of microbiome research. Studies about the microbiome inside oral cavities and other organs are underway. Studies about the relationship between noninfectious diseases and periodontal diseases, and the negative effects of harmful oral microbes on systemic health have been published in the recent past. A lot of attention is being paid towards fostering a healthy oral microbial ecosystem. This study aimed to understand the roles and effects of the microbiome inside the human body can potentially help cure various diseases including inflammatory bowel diseases with no known cure such as Crohn's disease, atopic dermatitis, obesity, cancer, diabetes, brain diseases and oral diseases. The present study examined technological trends in the correlation between the human microbiome and diseases in the human body, interactions between the human body's immunity, the metabolic system, and the microbiome, and research trends in other countries. While it has been proven that human microbiome is closely correlated with human diseases, most studies are still in the early stage of trying to compare the composition of microbiomes between health and patient groups. Since the oral environment is a dynamic environment that changes due to not only food intake but also other external factors such as lifestyle, hygiene, and drug intake, it is necessary to continue in-depth research on the microbiome composition characteristics to understand the complex functions of oral microorganisms. Analyzing the oral microbiome using computational technology may aid in disease diagnosis and prevention.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.165-174
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• 2011

Naturally occurring small molecules from plants, microorganisms, and animals allow the design of drugs that can be beneficial in virtually all kinds of human diseases. Liver diseases with diverse etiologies such as viral infection, chemical intoxication, and metabolic fat accumulation are one of the leading causes of human mortality. Unfortunately, however, there are few effective drugs available capable of stopping or reversing the progress of liver disease. Here, we discuss the current advances in developing hepatoprotective natural products for several arrays of liver disease pathogenesis.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Embryo Transfer Conference
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• 2004.10a
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• pp.98-99
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• 2004

• Proceeding of EDISON Challenge
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• 2017.03a
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• pp.625-627
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• 2017

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in America [1]. This kind of situation leads researcher to find out how to analyze the disease without using a living human heart. Computer simulation is the solution. Based on the existed clinical data and mathematical formulas from the journals, we can simulate a human heart activity using a computer. Moreover, we can also use the existed biological data in our simulation program, such as CellML (Cell Markup Language) [2].

• Proceedings of the PSK Conference
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• 2003.04a
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• pp.196.2-197
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• 2003

Parkinson's disease (PO) is a widespread neurodegenerative disorder. Even though PD has been studied in many aspects, it is still unknown the molecular signaling mechanisms linking reactive oxygen species (ROS) and neuronal apoptosis in PD. A better understanding of cellular mechanisms that occur in Parkinson's disease is essential for development of new therapies. In this study we investigated the signaling molecules involved in neuronal apoptosis induced by 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) in human SK-N-SH neuroblastoma cells as a model cellular system. (omitted)