• Journal of the Korean Society of Visualization
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.25-31
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• 2012

High-performance smartphones, equipped with a digital camera and an application software, can render conventional bench-top laboratory instruments mobile at affordable costs. As the smartphone-based devices are portable and wireless, they have wide applications especially in providing point-of-care (POC) tests in resource-constrained areas. We developed a hand-held diagnostic system, Mobile SmartScope, which consists of a small optical unit integrated with a smartphone. The performance of the SmartScope was favorably compared with that of conventional light microscopy in detecting and quantifying red blood cells. We also evaluated the fluorescence detection limit of the SmartScope incorporated with a blue light-emitting diode and appropriate optical filters by using fluorescently labeled microbeads for intensity calibration.

• The Korean Journal of Malacology
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.15-21
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• 2013

Nitric oxide (NO) is an important intra-intercellular signaling molecule that regulates many physiological processes and participates in the development some pathological conditions in animals. In this study, we compared different methods for determining NO concentration in the hemocytes of Manila clam Ruditapes philippinarum. For measuring the intracellular NO levels, we used the specific fluorescent probe 4,5-diaminofluorescein diacetate (DAF-2 DA), and the quantification methods that were compared were based on image analysis, spectrophotometry, and flow cytometry. NO concentration could be determined using all the 3 methods, and the concentration varied significantly depending upon the presence of NO regulators in the hemocytes; NO concentration increased in the presence of L-arginine, while it decreased in the presence of N-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester. In particular, it is found that estimation of NO using a flowcytometry is more economical, reliable and accurate compared to image analysis and spectrophotometry. Accordingly we believe that determining NO concentration by using flowcytometry will be useful in evaluating physiological and pathological conditions in marine bivalves.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.247-255
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• 2002

Purpose : This study was undertaken to obtain basic data about the megakaryocyte colony formation of fetal liver cells by using immunocytochemical staining and ex vivo culture with growth factors. Methods : The mononuclear cells were isolated from fetal liver and bone marrow with idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura(ITP) and pancytopenia. These mononuclear cells were cultured in $MegaCult^{TM}-C$(Stem Cell Tech, Canada) media in the presence of growth factors and CFU-Megakaryocyte( CFU-Mk) colonies were counted on day 12. The expansion of CD34+ and CD41+ cell was analyzed by flow cytometry after 5 days incubation using flask culture. Results : The numbers of CFU-Mk colonies of mononuclear cells obtained from fetal liver in the 11th week gestational age were more than those in the 19th week specimens; growth factors could not enhance the colony expansion in all cases. Total numbers of CFU-Mk colony of fetal liver cells were higher than bone marrow from ITP or pancytopenia groups. The numbers of pure or large CFU-Mk colonies of fetal liver cells were also higher than bone marrow specimens. The rate of CD34+ cell expression of fetal liver was increased after flask culture and the enhancement effect of epression was seen only in cases which added thrombopoietin. The rate of CD41+ cell expression of fetal liver was increased after incubation, but the enhancement effect of growth factors was unclear. Conclusion : This study revealed good results about the megakaryocyte colony assay of fetal liver mononuclear cells using $MegaCult^{TM}-C$ media. This study suggests that the fetal liver could be a good source of megakaryocytic progenitor cells for clinical application in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.58 no.2
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• pp.139-143
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• 2015

In the present study, we investigated the oral toxicity of Amomum tsao-ko Crevost et Lemaire, (Zingiberaceae) extract in Balb/c mice (BALB, n=60) for 3 weeks. Balb/c mice (10 mice/group, 6 group, $20{\pm}2g$, 6 weeks) were orally administered for 21 days, with dosage of 250, 500, 1000, 2000 mg/kg/day. Ethanol extract of A. tsao-ko did not affect any significant change of mortality, clinical signs, organs and body weights. Also, there were not significantly difference from the naive group (control) in hematological and serum biochemical examination. Consequently, these findings indicate that 3-week treatment with the ethanol extract of A. tsao-ko was not any toxic effects in Balb/c mice and the no-observed adverse effect level (NOAEL) for oral toxicity was determined to be 2000 mg/kg/day under our experimental conditions.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.225-229
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• 2015

Epilepsy is a disorder that causes recurring seizures, and the most objective and useful test for detecting epilepsy is the electroencephalogram (EEG). The subjects of this study are 244 patients who received an EEG after being diagnosed with epilepsy at Seoul National University Hospital in 2014, and who have agreed to the purpose of the study. Based on the EEG results, subjects were divided into normal and abnormal groups with 122 subjects in each group, regardless of their gender and age, to investigate the correlation of EEG and complete blood cell count (CBC) test results. The four significant categories that displayed significant correlation between EEG results and CBC hematological measurements in this study were the white blood cell (WBC), red blood cell (RBC), neutrophil, and lymphocyte tests. The WBC (p<0.05) and neutrophil (p<0.01) showed a positive correlation with EEG results, while RBC (p<0.05) and lymphocyte (p<0.01) showed a negative correlation. One of the limitations of this study is that it is lacking the blood test result analysis according to the types of anti-epilepsy medicine. However, the analysis of EEG results by the same disease has significant meaning. Therefore, further studies are needed to statistically analyze more data in the future.

• Laboratory Medicine Online
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.110-114
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• 2011

There have been a few reports of hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) with chromosomal abnormalities. Clonal chromosomal abnormalities in HLH patients are usually found in association with hematologic malignancies and rarely with epstein-barr virus (EBV) infection. Here, we report a fatal case of HLH with clonal karyotype abnormalities. A 75-yr-old man was admitted with persistent anorexia and high fever. Laboratory data revealed pancytopenia, hypofibrinogenemia, hyperferritinemia, prolonged prothrombin time and activated partial thromboplastin time, and marked elevated level of serum transaminases. In real time-PCR using whole blood, EBV DNA was not detected but cytomegalovirus (CMV) DNA was detected. The bone marrow aspiration smear showed hyperplasia of mature histiocytes with prominent hemophagocytosis. In chromosomal analysis of bone marrow aspirates, complex chromosomal abnormalities were found. In spite of steroid pulse therapy and antibiotic treatment, he died of disseminated intravascular coagulopathy.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.73-79
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• 1995

The effect of prior cumulative mixing was evaluated by means of a simple regression model which used as a dependent variable percentage(%) change of each repeated observed value for the initial value. The red blood cell count (RBC), hematocrit (Hct), and mean corpuscular volume(MCV) showed a significant decrease (p<.01), but % of basophils had a significant increase (p<.05). The ratios of rate of change (regression coefficient/SD) were .0012 for RBC, .0020 for Hct, .0024 for MCV, and .0011 for % of basophils. Of the 19 parameters evaluated, 21% changed.

• The Korean Journal of Zoology
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.239-247
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• 1996

An embryonic stem (ES) cell-based in vitro model system was examined to determine whether a simple differentiation of embryoid bodies (EB) in the suspension medium is useful to dissect early erythropoiesis. Characteristics of the differentiating EBs were monitored for their differentiation potential to generate hematopoietic cell types by general morphology, benzidine staining and two-step colony assays, and expressivity of several erythroid marker genes by the RT-PCR analysis for total cellular RNA prepared from the differentiating EBs. Every ematopoietic lineage cells were generated from the differentiating EBs with reproducible frequencies, similar to the other sophisticated differentiation protocols. Furthermore, the globin gene switching in differentiating ES cells paralleled the sequence of events found in the mouse embryo, and such that their expression was activated by at least 12 hrs later than those of erythroid-specific transcription factors, GATA-1 and Tal-1 The erythropoietic differentiation program initiated reproducibly and efficiently in this simple differentiation system in a suspension culture, such that this system may be useful for dissection of the molecular events of early erythropoiesis.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.54 no.1
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• pp.15-22
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• 2022

Procalcitonin (PCT) can provide an experimental rationale and a diagnostic lead to distinguish between bacterial and viral infections. This study sought to investigate the clinical characteristics and prognosis of patients with high PCT levels, to improve clinical diagnosis, and to determine whether PCT levels were associated with the subsequent development of sepsis in the general population. This was a retrospective observational study conducted on outpatients (N=127) over a year. The general data and laboratory parameters studied were PCT, C-reactive protein (CRP), and complete blood count (CBC). The positive rates of CRP and white blood cells (WBCs) in the elevated PCT group were higher than those of the normal group (P<0.05); the specificity and sensitivity of the PCT levels were obviously higher than those of the CRP and WBC levels at diagnosis (P<0.05). The mean PCT levels in the low group were significantly higher than those in the high or moderate group (P<0.001). There was a significant positive correlation with CRP, total WBCs, and neutrophils (P<.001). The main finding of this study was the significant association between an elevated PCT level and CRP and WBC levels, signifying a high diagnostic value. This has important implications for the diagnosis of bacterial infections and therapeutic implications for the use of antibiotic treatment in specific patients.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Telematics and Electronics C
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• v.36C no.12
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• pp.90-97
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• 1999

Recently, there have been many researches to automate processing and analysing image data in medical field, due to the advance of image processing techniques, the fast communication network and high performance hardware. In this paper, we design and implement the system based on the multi-layer neural network model to be able to analyze, differentiate and count blood cells in the peripheral blood image. To do these, we segment red and white-blood cell in blood image acquired from microscope with CCD(Charge-coupled device) camera and then apply the various feature extraction algorithms to classify. In addition to, we reduce multi-variate feature number using PCA(Principle Component Analysis) to construct more efficient classifier. So, in this paper, we are sure that the proposed system can be applied to a pathological guided system.