• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.1145-1150
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• 2011

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationships between fatigue, stress resistance and emotion in middle aged women under the developmental crisis using a brain wave measurement which is a cranial physiological index. From March 2005 to June 2009, women aged between 35 and 65 (N=4402) who volunteered for a brain wave test at the KRIJUS( Korea Research Institute of Jungshin Science) were monitored the brain function quotient (tension degree, anti-stress quotient and emotional quotient). Correlation and time-series linear analysis revealed significantly the relationships between fatigue, stress resistance and emotion. Also, according to the emotional propensity, cheerful propensity was higher in the cheerful and depressed propensity, positive propensity was higher in the positive and negative propensity, during the whole test, cheerful and positive propensity was higher. Therefore, it is necessary to increase the quality of life by decreasing fatigue and stress level of the middle-aged women to maintain and increase their individual health and the better family relationship.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.54 no.6
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• pp.453-460
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• 2013

Objective : There is a rich literature confirming the default mode network found compatible with task-induced deactivation regions in normal subjects, but few investigations of alterations of the motor deactivation in patients with intracranial lesions. Therefore, we hypothesized that an intracranial lesion results in abnormal changes in a task-induced deactivation region compared with default mode network, and these changes are associated with specific attributes of allocated regions. Methods : Blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during a motor task were obtained from 27 intracranial lesion patients (mean age, 57.3 years; range 15-78 years) who had various kinds of brain tumors. The BOLD fMRI data for each patient were evaluated to obtain activation or deactivation regions. The distinctive deactivation regions from intracranial lesion patients were evaluated by comparing to the literature reports. Results : There were additive deactivated regions according to intracranial lesions : fusiform gyrus in cavernous hemangioma; lateral occipital gyrus in meningioma; crus cerebri in hemangiopericytoma; globus pallidus, lateral occipital gyrus, caudate nucleus, fusiform gyrus, lingual gyrus, claustrum, substantia nigra, subthalamic nucleus in GBM; fusiform gyrus in metastatic brain tumors. Conclusion : There is increasing interest in human brain function using fMRI. The authors report the brain function migrations and changes that occur in patients with intracranial lesions.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.347-354
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• 2015

Excess manganese (Mn) is neurotoxic. Increased manganese stores in the brain are associated with a number of behavioral problems, including motor dysfunction, memory loss and psychiatric disorders. We previously showed that the transport and neurotoxicity of manganese after intranasal instillation of the metal are altered in Hfe-deficient mice, a mouse model of the iron overload disorder hereditary hemochromatosis (HH). However, it is not fully understood whether loss of Hfe function modifies Mn neurotoxicity after ingestion. To investigate the role of Hfe in oral Mn toxicity, we exposed Hfe-knockout ($Hfe^{-/-}$) and their control wild-type ($Hfe^{+/+}$) mice to $MnCl_2$ in drinking water (5 mg/mL) for 5 weeks. Motor coordination and spatial memory capacity were determined by the rotarod test and the Barnes maze test, respectively. Brain and liver metal levels were analyzed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Compared with the water-drinking group, mice drinking Mn significantly increased Mn concentrations in the liver and brain of both genotypes. Mn exposure decreased iron levels in the liver, but not in the brain. Neither Mn nor Hfe deficiency altered tissue concentrations of copper or zinc. The rotarod test showed that Mn exposure decreased motor skills in $Hfe^{+/+}$ mice, but not in $Hfe^{-/-}$ mice (p = 0.023). In the Barns maze test, latency to find the target hole was not altered in Mn-exposed $Hfe^{+/+}$ compared with water-drinking $Hfe^{+/+}$ mice. However, Mn-exposed $Hfe^{-/-}$ mice spent more time to find the target hole than Mn-drinking $Hfe^{+/+}$ mice (p = 0.028). These data indicate that loss of Hfe function impairs spatial memory upon Mn exposure in drinking water. Our results suggest that individuals with hemochromatosis could be more vulnerable to memory deficits induced by Mn ingestion from our environment. The pathophysiological role of HFE in manganese neurotoxicity should be carefully examined in patients with HFE-associated hemochromatosis and other iron overload disorders.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.203-214
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• 2014

In this study, a meta-analysis was conducted to investigate the effect of community-based rehabilitation on patients with brain injury by ICF factor in previous studies and examine the application of recent community-based rehabilitation program. Total 15 articles that satisfied the selection criteria were divided by ICF factors to obtain the effect size. Homogeneity and publication bias were tested for those selected papers. As a result, the overall effect size of community-based rehabilitation was 0.22; the effect size by physical function and structure among the ICF factors came to be 0.21; and the effect size of activity and participation was 0.20, indicating a small effect size. The studies involved in a meta-analysis were considered as the absence of heterogeneity and publication bias, which indicates that the results of this study are subjectively reliable. These results well explained the level of change on ICF factors, especially physical function and structure, activity and participation, in other words, the intervention effect of community-based rehabilitation on patients with brain injury.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.918-927
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• 2016

Cryptococcus neoformans is a life-threatening pathogenic yeast that causes devastating meningoencephalitis. The mechanism of cryptococcal brain invasion is largely unknown, and recent studies suggest that its extracellular microvesicles may be involved in the invasion process. The 14-3-3 protein is abundant in the extracellular microvesicles of C. neoformans, and the 14-3-3-GFP fusion has been used as the microvesicle's marker. However, the physiological role of 14-3-3 has not been explored. In this report, we have found that C. neoformans contains a single 14-3-3 gene that apparently is an essential gene. To explore the functions of 14-3-3, we substituted the promoter region of the 14-3-3 with the copper-controllable promoter CTR4. The CTR4 regulatory strain showed an enlarged cell size, drastic changes in morphology, and a decrease in the thickness of the capsule under copper-enriched conditions. Furthermore, the mutant cells produced a lower amount of total proteins in their extracellular microvesicles and reduced adhesion to human brain microvascular endothelial cells in vitro. Proteomic analyses of the protein components under 14-3-3-overexpressed and -suppressed conditions revealed that the 14-3-3 function(s) might be associated with the microvesicle biogenesis. Our results support that 14-3-3 has diverse pertinent roles in both physiology and pathogenesis in C. neoformans. Its gene functions are closely relevant to the pathogenesis of this fungus.

• Korean Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.8-17
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• 2006

Neurofeedback, also known as EEG biofeedback or neurotherapy, is a new therapy differentiated from biofeedback in that brain waves are monitored to study brain itself as well as its functions. Needless to say, it has originated from biofeedback, however it has established itself as an independent and specialized therapy in the field of neurotherapy. In order to have a better understanding of neurofeedback we are going to have a look into its historical and theoretical background first and then we will explain how it can be used clinically. Neurofeedback was clinically introduced for epilepsy for the first time and its effect was proved. Since then it has been used successfully for a number of psychiatric disorders, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder(ADHD), anxiety, anxiety and mood disorder, sleep disorder, substance dependency, etc. Furthermore, it has been used for non-psychiatric or psychosomatic symptoms, such as headache, chronic pains, chronic fatigue symptoms, etc. Recently, it has been also used for non-medical areas, such as improvement of peak performance for sports and art activities, enhancement of cognitive function, etc, making the neurofeedback a very promising field for its potential and effectiveness.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.63 no.2
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• pp.163-170
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• 2020

Objective : Milk fat globule-epidermal growth factor VIII (MFG-E8) may play a key role in inflammatory responses and has the potential to function as a neuroprotective agent for ameliorating brain injury in cerebral infarction. This study aimed to determine the role of MFG-E8 in brain injury in the subacute phase of cerebral ischemia in a rat model. Methods : Focal cerebral ischemia was induced in rats by occluding the middle cerebral artery with the modified intraluminal filament technique. Twenty-four hours after ischemia induction, rats were randomly assigned to two groups and treated with either recombinant human MFG-E8 or saline. Functional outcomes were assessed using the modified Neurological Severity Score (mNSS), and infarct volumes were evaluated using histology. Anti-inflammation, angiogenesis, and neurogenesis were assessed using immunohistochemistry with antibodies against ionized calcium-binding adapter molecule 1 (Iba-1), rat endothelial cell antigen-1 (RECA-1), and bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU)/doublecortin (DCX), respectively. Results : Our results showed that intravenous MFG-E8 treatment did not reduce the infarct volume; however, the mNSS test revealed that neurobehavioral deficits were significantly improved in the MFG-E8-treated group than in the vehicle group. Immunofluorescence staining revealed a significantly lower number of Iba-1-positive cells and higher number of RECA-1 in the periinfarcted brain region, and significantly higher numbers of BrdU- and DCX-positive cells in the subventricular zone in the MFG-E8-treated group than in the vehicle group. Conclusion : Our findings suggest that MFG-E8 improves neurological function by suppressing inflammation and enhancing angiogenesis and neuronal proliferation in the subacute phase of cerebral infarction.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.54 no.5
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• pp.390-398
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• 2013

Objective : We determined whether the relationship between the neuropsychological performance of patients with mild traumatic brain injury (TBI) and their psychopathological characteristics measured by disability evaluation are interrelated. In addition, we assessed which psychopathological variable was most influential on neuropsychological performance via statistical clustering of the same characteristics of mild TBI. Methods : A total of 219 disability evaluation participants with mild brain injury were selected. All participants were classified into three groups, based on their psychopathological characteristics, via a two-step cluster analysis using validity and clinical scales from the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) and Symptom Checklist-90-revised (SCL-90-R). The Korean Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (K-WAIS), Korean Memory Assessment Scale (K-MAS) and the Korean Boston Naming Test (K-BNT) were used to evaluate the neurocognitive functions of mild TBI patients. Results : Over a quarter (26.9%) experienced severe psychopathological symptoms and 43.4% experienced mild or moderate psychopathological symptoms, and all of the mild TBI patients showed a significant relationship between neurocognitive functions and subjective and/or objective psychopathic symptoms, but the degree of this relationship was moderate. Variances of neurocognitive function were explained by neurotic and psychotic symptoms, but the role of these factors were different to each other and participants did not show intelligence and other cognitive domain decrement except for global memory abilities compared to the non-psychopathology group. Conclusion : Certain patients with mild TBI showed psychopathological symptoms, but these were not directly related to cognitive decrement. Psychopathology and cognitive decrement are discrete aspects in patients with mild TBI. Furthermore, the neurotic symptoms of mild TBI patients made positive complements to decrements or impairments of neurocognitive functions, but the psychotic symptoms had a negative effect on neurocognitive functions.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.120-128
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• 2002

Objectives:The purpose of this study was to develop a cognitive rehabilitation program and to investigate the effect of the program that restores the deficiency of memory, which is necessary to operate on high cognitive function such as problem-solving or judgement, for TBI(traumatic brain injury) patients. Methods:Sixteen TBI patients participated in this study. The inclusion criteria were : 1) aged 18 to 60 ; 2) higher than IQ 80 ; 3) lower than MMSE-K 25 and K-MAS(Korean version of Memory Assessment Scale) 85. We administered our program to an experimental group(N=8) in order to improve attention and memory for 4 weeks(total 12 section). Our program was not administrated to a control group(N=8) for 4 weeks. After administrating this program, we measured MMSE-K and K-MAS for the experimental and control groups. Results:The findings of the study were as follows. 1) the experimental group showed significant improvement on MMSE-K score in comparison with baseline, but the control group did not. 2) the experimental group showed significant improvement on K-MAS score in comparison with baseline, but the control group did not. In particular, among the three subscales of K-MAS, only verbal memory scale revealed significant improvement, while visual and short-term memory scales revealed no differences. Conclusion:Our cognitive rehabilitation program improves cognitive state and memory, particulary verbal memory, for TBI patients. These results imply that our program aids in rehabilitation of basic cognition such as memory which is necessary to operate on high cognitive function such as problem-solving or judgement, for TBI(traumatic brain injury) patients.

• Sleep Medicine and Psychophysiology
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.15-28
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• 1997

Longterm memory is encoded in the neuronal connectivities of the brain. The most successful models of human memory in their operations are models of distributed and self-organized associative memory, which are founded in the principle of simulaneous convergence in network formation. Memory is not perceived as the qualities inherent in physical objects or events, but as a set of relations previously established in a neural net by simultaneousy occuring experiences. When it is easy to find correlations with existing neural networks through analysis of network structures, memory is automatically encoded in cerebral cortex. However, in the emergence of informations which are complicated to classify and correlated with existing networks, and conflictual with other networks, those informations are sent to the subcortex including hippocampus. Memory is stored in the form of templates distributed across several different cortical regions. The hippocampus provides detailed maps for the conjoint binding and calling up of widely distributed informations. Knowledge about the distribution of correlated networks can transform the existing networks into new one. Then, hippocampus consolidats new formed network. Amygdala may enable the emotions to influence the information processing and memory as well as providing the visceral informations to them. Cortico-striatal-pallido-thalamo-cortical loop also play an important role in memory function with analysis of language and concept. In case of difficulty in processing in spite of parallel process of informations, frontal lobe organizes theses complicated informations of network analysis through temporal processing. With understanding of brain mechanism of memory and information processing, the brain mechanism of mental phenomena including psychopathology can be better explained in terms of neurobiology and meuropsychology.