• BMB Reports
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• v.35 no.6
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• pp.537-546
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• 2002

NF-${\kappa}B$/Rel transcription factor family participates in diverse biological processes including embryo development, hematopoiesis, immune regulation, as well as neuronal functions. In this review, the NF-${\kappa}B$/Rel signal transduction pathways and their important roles in the regulation of immune system will be discussed. NF-${\kappa}B$/Rel members execute distinct functions in multiple immune cell types via the regulation of target genes essential for cell proliferation, survival, effector functions, cell trafficking and communication, as well as the formation of lymphoid architecture. Consequently, proper activation of NF-${\kappa}B$/Rel during immune responses to allergens, auto-antigens, allo-antigens, and pathogenic infection is crucial for the integrity of host innate and adaptive immunity.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.10-15
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• 2011

In this review, we have provided an overview of the environmental risk factors for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), focusing on the major environmental toxicants related to the disorder. Researchers have indicated that since the characteristics of ADHD are complex, the disorder’s etiology involves multiple genes of moderate effect interacting with environmental factors. The possible roles of prenatal and perinatal exposure have been the main focus of research on environmental risk factors for ADHD. Among environmental toxicants, we reviewed the potential effects on the development of ADHD of exposure to lead, nicotine, alcohol, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and dioxin. Further, for the each neurotoxicant, clinical prevention or intervention strategies aimed at reducing a child’s risk from environmental toxic insults have been presented.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.5
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• pp.2699-2701
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• 2013

The RAS family genes encode small GTP-binding cytoplasmic proteins. Activated KRAS engages multiple effector pathways, notably the RAF-mitogen-activated protein kinase, phosphoinositide-3-kinase (PI3K) and RalGDS pathways. In the clinical field, K-ras oncogene activation is frequently found in human cancers and thus may serve as a potential diagnostic marker for cancer cells in circulation. This mini-review aims to summarise information on Ras-induced oncogenesis and the clinical significance of K-ras.

• BMB Reports
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• v.41 no.10
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• pp.739-744
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• 2008

Turnip yellow mosaic virus (TYMV) is a positive strand RNA virus that infects mainly Cruciferae plants. In this study, the TYMV genome was modified by inserting an extra subgenomic RNA promoter and a multiple cloning site. This modified TYMV was introduced into Nicotiana benthamiana using a Agrobacterium-mediated T-DNA transfer system (agroinfiltration). When a gene encoding $\beta$-glucuronidase or green fluorescent protein was expressed using this modified TYMV as a vector, replication of the recombinant viruses, especially the virus containing $\beta$-glucuronidase gene, was severely inhibited. The suppression of replication was reduced by co-expression of viral silencing suppressor genes, such as tombusviral p19, closteroviral p21 or potyviral HC-Pro. As expected, two subgenomic RNAs were produced from the recombinant TYMV, where the larger one contained the foreign gene. An RNase protection assay revealed that the recombinant subgenomic RNA was encapsidated as efficiently as the genuine subgenomic RNA.

• Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.259-262
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• 2010

In this review, we give an overview of psychiatric perspectives on environmental disease. The concept of genetic heritability and its meaning with regard to environmental risk factors will be discussed. Recent ideas of gene-environment interaction and neurodevelopmental disorder in psychiatry will also be introduced. This article discusses the environmental risk factors for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism, the two major environmental diseases and neurodevelopmental disorders in psychiatry. Given that both ADHD and autism are complex conditions, the etiology is likely to involve multiple genes of moderate effect interacting with environmental factors. We will introduce recent environmental issues related to these two disorders.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.54 no.6
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• pp.241-245
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• 2011

Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is a genetic multisystem disorder that results from mutations in the TSC1 or TSC2 genes, and is associated with hamartomas in several organs, including subependymal giant cell tumors. The neurological manifestations of TSC are particularly challenging and include infantile spasms, intractable epilepsy, cognitive disabilities, and autism. The TSC1- and TSC2-encoded proteins modulate cell function via the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling cascade, and are key factors in the regulation of cell growth and proliferation. The mTOR pathway provides an intersection for an intricate network of protein cascades that respond to cellular nutrition, energy levels, and growth factor stimulation. In the brain, TSC1 and TSC2 have been implicated in cell body size, dendritic arborization, axonal outgrowth and targeting, neuronal migration, cortical lamination, and spine formation. The mTOR pathway represents a logical candidate for drug targeting, because mTOR regulates multiple cellular functions that may contribute to epileptogenesis, including protein synthesis, cell growth and proliferation, and synaptic plasticity. Antagonism of the mTOR pathway with rapamycin and related compounds may provide new therapeutic options for TSC patients.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.599-606
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• 1994

Bacillus stearothermomophilus, a strong xylan degrader, was confirmed to express multiple esterase activities in addition to the major xylanolytic enzymes. One of the genes encoding the esterases was isolated from the genomic library of B. stearothermophilus constructed with EcoRl restriction endonuclease and pBR322 plasmid. Three recombinant plasmids showing the tributyrin degrading activity were selected from approximately 7, 000 E. coli HB101 transformants, and were found to have the same insert of a 3.2 kb DNA fragment. Restriction mapping and hybridization studies revealed that the gene(estII) on the hybrid plasmid (pKMG7) had originated from the B. stearothermophilus chromosome, and was distinct from the estl, another esterase gene of B. stearothermophilus isolated in the previous work. The E. coli cells harboring pKMG7 produced an acetylxylan esterase that exibited similar substrate specificity to the esterase encoded by the estI gene.

• Childhood Kidney Diseases
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.64-66
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• 2018

Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) is the most frequent hereditary renal disease and causes terminal chronic renal failure. ADPKD is characterized by bilateral multiple renal cysts, which are produced by mutations of the PKD1 and PKD2 genes. PKD1 is located on chromosome 16 and encodes a protein that is involved in cell cycle regulation and intracellular calcium transport in epithelial cells and is responsible for 85% of ADPKD cases. Although nine cases of unilateral ADPKD with contralateral kidney agenesis have been reported, there have been no reports of early childhood ADPKD. Here, we report the only case of unilateral ADPKD with contralateral kidney dysplasia in the world in a four year-old girl who was intrauterinely diagnosed since she was 20 weeks old and followed for four years until present.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.37 no.8
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• pp.569-574
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• 2014

As a scaffold, SLX4/FANCP interacts with multiple proteins involved in genome integrity. Although not having recognizable catalytic domains, SLX4 participates in diverse genome maintenance pathways by delivering nucleases where they are needed, and promoting their cooperative execution to prevent genomic instabilities. Physiological importance of SLX4 is emphasized by the identification of causative mutations of SLX4 genes in patients diagnosed with Fanconi anemia (FA), a rare recessive genetic disorder characterized by genomic instability and predisposition to cancers. Recent progress in understanding functional roles of SLX4 has greatly expanded our knowledge in the repair of DNA interstrand crosslinks (ICLs), Holliday junction (HJ) resolution, telomere homeostasis and regulation of DNA damage response induced by replication stress. Here, these diverse functions of SLX4 are reviewed in detail.

• Communications for Statistical Applications and Methods
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.559-568
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• 2018

Gene classification can involve complex order-restricted inference. Examining gene expression pattern across groups with order-restriction makes standard statistical inference ineffective and thus, requires different methods. For this problem, Roy's union-intersection principle has some merit. The M-estimator adjusting for outlier arrays in a microarray study produces a robust test statistic with distribution-insensitive clustering of genes. The M-estimator in conjunction with a union-intersection principle provides a nonstandard robust procedure. By exact permutation distribution theory, a conditionally distribution-free test based on the proposed test statistic generates corresponding p-values in a small sample size setup. We apply a false discovery rate (FDR) as a multiple testing procedure to p-values in simulated data and real microarray data. FDR procedure for proposed test statistics controls the FDR at all levels of ${\alpha}$ and ${\pi}_0$ (the proportion of true null); however, the FDR procedure for test statistics based upon normal theory (ANOVA) fails to control FDR.