• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.50 no.3
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• pp.297-303
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• 2018

This study investigated the effect of community-based health intervention program to improve metabolic disease in Jeju island. There were 50 obese local residents in the experimental group (body mass index, $BMI{\geq}25kg/m^2$). They participated in cooking therapy with nutrition education (4 times), exercise program with proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) and stretching training (9 times), and alternative medicine program with healing touch massage (3 times) during a 3-week period. To evaluate the effectiveness of the program, body composition, blood lipid profiles, blood glucose, and waist circumference were assessed before and after the intervention program. After the program, the value of total cholesterol (TC), glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1C), diastolic blood pressure, percent body fat, and waist circumference were decreased, and became the normal value. Especially, HbA1C, percent body fat, and waist circumference were significantly decreased (P<0.001) in the experimental group, while HbA1C, percent body fat, and waist circumference were significantly increased (P<0.001) in the control group (N=50), who had no intervention. Our results suggest that metabolic syndrome associated markers need intervention program for improving them. In conclusion, although this study did not analyze the effect of the health intervention program and cooking therapy separately, considering the result of this 3-week, short term program, the effect will be more profuse if cooking therapy and exercise program were performed concurrently.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.33 no.10
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• pp.808-819
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• 2023

This study was conducted to develop a selection marker for the identification of the Bacillus licheniformis K12 strain in microbial communities. The strain not only demonstrates good growth at moderate temperatures but also contains enzymes that catalyze the decomposition of various polymer materials, such as proteases, amylases, cellulases, lipases, and xylanases. To identify molecular markers appropriate for use in a microbial community, a search was conducted to identify variable gene regions that show considerable genetic mutations, such as recombinase, integration, and transposase sites, as well as phase-related genes. As a result, five areas were identified that have potential as selection markers. The candidate markers were two recombinase sites (BLK1 and BLK2), two integration sites (BLK3 and BLK4), and one phase-related site (BLK5). A PCR analysis performed with different Bacillus species (e.g., B. licheniformis, Bacillus velezensis, Bacillus subtilis, and Bacillus cereus) confirmed that PCR products appeared at specific locations in B. licheniformis: BLK1 in recombinase, BLK2 in recombinase family protein, and BLK3 and BLK4 as site-specific integrations. In addition, BLK1 and BLK3 were identified as good candidate markers via a PCR analysis performed on subspecies of standard B. licheniformis strains. Therefore, the findings suggest that BLK1 can be used as a selection marker for B. licheniformis species and subspecies in the microbiome.

• Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.93-100
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• 2009

In Malaysia, Labisia pumila Benth & Hook f, popularly known as 'Kacip Fatimah' has been used traditionally to treat various elements of the woman's health in Malay community. The objective of this study was to develop randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) based DNA markers for the identification of L. pumila and to distinguish its three varieties from each other. Total DNA from nine accessions of L. pumila was extracted by CTAB method and polymerase chain reactions (PCR) were carried out to amplify the segments of DNA using different primers to develop DNA barcode using RAPD technique. To find out variety-specific DNA marker/s, twenty different 10-mer primer sequences with annealing temperature from 36-$40^{\circ}C$ were evaluated in triplicate. Out of 20 random primers, two primers (OPA-1 and OPA-2/A10) were selected which produced reliable RAPD band patterns. To have DNA based handle, two RAPD amplification products were cloned and sequenced to determine the identity of the DNA. RAPD analysis using two random primers generated 72 discrete bands ranging in size 200 bp-3,000 bp. Fifty nine of these were polymorphic loci (82%) and thirteen were non-polymorphic loci (18%). A total of 32 bands polymorphic loci (72%) were amplified with primer OPA-1 and analyzed by cluster analysis and UPGMA (Unweighted Pair Group Method with Arithmetic) to present a dendogram depicting the degree of genetic relationship among nine accessions of L. pumila. Our results shows the reasonable genetic diversity among the L. pumila varieties and within varieties; and two RAPD marker sequences obtained could be used to identify L. pumila at species level.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.143-148
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• 2007

The introduced exotic species has often caused severe problems to the native ecosystem. One of such species is the freshwater fish gengorobuna (Carassius cuvieri) introduced from Japan. The first step to assess harmful effects of this species on the Korean freshwater ecosystem is to discriminate it from the most similar native crucian carp (Carassius auratus). Because traditional morphological identification often gives unreliable results due to their highly similar phenotype, a new more efficient method is needed. For this purpose, molecular markers produced by the efficient one-step PCR method using three primers (DDF, DDR and DDR1) were developed and tested in the present study. This molecular marker will play an important role in monitoring fish community of Korean freshwater ecosystem.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.17
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• pp.7497-7500
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• 2015

Background: Tumor markers, designated as a broad group of substances produced by malignancies, could be in the form of biochemical substances, immunological substances, cell surface changes and genetic alterations. Cancer, a disorder of cellular behavior is characterized by alteration of serum glycoproteins. L-fucose, a hexose, which is the terminal sugar in most of the plasma glycoproteins, may be useful as a tumor marker for the detection, monitoring and prognostic assessment of malignancies. The aim of the study was to ascertain the role of serum fucose as a biomarker for early detection of oral cancer and to compare serum fucose levels in healthy controls, leukoplakia and oral cancer patients. Materials and Methods: The study included 60 (100.0%) subjects, who were grouped as 20 (33.3%) control subjects, 20 (33.3%) squamous cell carcinoma patients and 20 (33.3%) leukoplakia patients. Fucose estimation was done using UV-visible spectrophotometry based on the method as adopted by Winzler using cysteine reagent. The results were analyzed statistically using ANOVA with Bonferroni post hoc tests. Results: Results showed a high significance in serum fucose in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and leukoplakia subjects compared to normal controls. There was a gradual increase in the values noted from control to leukoplakia and to squamous cell carcinoma. Conclusions: Estimation of serum fucose may be a reliable marker and can be used as an effective diagnostic biomarker in oral squamous cell carcinoma patients.

• Imaging Science in Dentistry
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• v.46 no.2
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• pp.93-101
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• 2016

Purpose: The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of varying resolutions of cone-beam computed tomography images on the accuracy of linear measurements of edentulous areas in human cadaver heads. Intact cadaver heads were used to simulate a clinical situation. Materials and Methods: Fiduciary markers were placed in the edentulous areas of 4 intact embalmed cadaver heads. The heads were scanned with two different CBCT units using a large field of view ($13cm{\times}16cm$) and small field of view ($5cm{\times}8cm$) at varying voxel sizes (0.3 mm, 0.2 mm, and 0.16 mm). The ground truth was established with digital caliper measurements. The imaging measurements were then compared with caliper measurements to determine accuracy. Results: The Wilcoxon signed rank test revealed no statistically significant difference between the medians of the physical measurements obtained with calipers and the medians of the CBCT measurements. A comparison of accuracy among the different imaging protocols revealed no significant differences as determined by the Friedman test. The intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.961, indicating excellent reproducibility. Inter-observer variability was determined graphically with a Bland-Altman plot and by calculating the intraclass correlation coefficient. The Bland-Altman plot indicated very good reproducibility for smaller measurements but larger discrepancies with larger measurements. Conclusion: The CBCT-based linear measurements in the edentulous sites using different voxel sizes and FOVs are accurate compared with the direct caliper measurements of these sites. Higher resolution CBCT images with smaller voxel size did not result in greater accuracy of the linear measurements.

• Animal cells and systems
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.329-336
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• 2012

This study evaluated ecological health, using various biomarkers and bioindicators, of pale chub (Zacco platypus) as a sentinel species, in Daejeon Stream, South Korea, during AprilMay 2011. The biomarkers and bioindicators were compared among three sites of control: Reference ($C_z$), transition ($T_z$), and the urban zones ($U_z$); and the 7-Ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) activity, DNA damage, acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity, and vitellogenin (VTG) concentrations were more significantly increased in the $U_z$ than in the $C_z$. Also, physiological markers such as condition factor, liver somatic index, visceral somatic index, and gonad somatic index were significantly increased in the $U_z$ than in the $C_z$. For the health assessments, three categorized parameters of blood chemistry, molecular biomarkers, and physiological bioindicators were standardized and calculated as a star-plot, representing values of Integrated Health Response (IHR). Values of IHR had more significant (P<0.05) increases in the $U_z$ than any other zones, indicating an impairment of ecological health by organic matter, nutrients (N, P), and toxic chemicals. This study is based on low levels of biological organization approach of molecular and physiological biomarkers and bioindicators, so further study of high-levels of biological organization approach such as community and population is required for overall range of health assessments. The approach of IHR values, however, may be useful in providing early warning of future impacts on ecological health.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.270-278
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• 2020

Background: Although the identification of clinical and laboratory features in pediatric COVID-19 patients is essential in establishing an appropriate treatment plan, a systematic review and meta-analysis on the topic has yet to be reported. Methods: We searched MEDLINE, Embase, and Web of Science to access clinical and laboratory characteristics as well as clinical outcomes of children with COVID-19 infection. A meta-analysis using random-effect model was performed to estimate pooled prevalence and 95% confidence intervals. Results: Among the 532 studies initially collected, 12 articles were finally included in the meta-analysis. Among the investigated 320 pediatric patients with COVID-19, fever (48.2%) and cough (39.3%) were the most common symptoms. Almost one third of patients (30.4%) were asymptomatic. In laboratory findings, only 11.4% of pediatric patients experienced lymphocytopenia. Increased inflammatory markers including c-reactive protein (18.6%) and procalcitonin (32.4%) were observed. Only a few patients needed mechanical ventilation and intensive care support, and only one death was reported. Conclusion: Pediatric patients with COVID-19 infection exhibited milder symptoms and more favorable outcomes compared to adults. However, considering the high rate of asymptomatic pediatric patients, close monitoring is required to prevent community infection in asymptomatic conditions and hidden disease progression.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.120-127
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• 2024

Bats serve as vectors and natural reservoir hosts for various infectious viruses, bacteria, and fungi. These pathogens have also been detected in bat feces and can cause severe illnesses in hosts, other animals, and humans. Because pathogens can easily spread into the environment through bat feces, determining the bacterial communities in bat guano is crucial to mitigate potential disease transmission and outbreaks. This study primarily aimed to examine bacterial communities in the feces of insectivorous bats living in South Korea. Fecal samples were collected after capturing 84 individuals of four different bat species in two regions of South Korea, and the bacterial microbiota was assessed through next generation sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene. The results revealed that, with respect to the relative abundance at the phylum level, Myotis bombinus was dominated by Firmicutes (47.24%) and Proteobacteria (42.66%) whereas Miniopterus fuliginosus (82.78%), Rhinolophus ferrumequinum (63.46%), and Myotis macrodactylus (78.04%) were dominated by Proteobacteria. Alpha diversity analysis showed no difference in abundance between species and a significant difference (p < 0.05) between M. bombinus and M. fuliginosus. Beta-diversity analysis revealed that Clostridium, Asaia, and Enterobacteriaceae_g were clustered as major factors at the genus level using principal component analysis. Additionally, linear discriminant analysis effect size was conducted based on relative expression information to select bacterial markers for each bat species. Clostridium was relatively abundant in M. bombinus, whereas Mycoplasma_g10 was relatively abundant in R. ferrumequinum. Our results provide an overview of bat guano microbiota diversity and the significance of pathogenic taxa for humans and the environment, highlighting a better understanding of preventing emerging diseases. We anticipate that this research will yield bioinformatic data to advance our knowledge of overall microbial genetic diversity and clustering characteristics in insectivorous bat feces in South Korea.

• The Korean Journal of Medicine
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• v.99 no.2
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• pp.111-115
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• 2024

Human metapneumovirus (hMPV) infections commonly present as mild upper respiratory tract infections in healthy adults, although severe respiratory complications have been observed, particularly in elderly and immunocompromised patients. We report a case in whom pneumonia caused by hMPV progressed to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in a healthy adult without underlying diseases. A 31-year-old female presented with fever and dyspnea, prompting transfer to our hospital for mechanical ventilation 3 days after symptom onset. Auscultation revealed coarse breath sounds and crackles in both lung fields, and chest X-ray showed non-specific infiltrative nodules with poorly defined borders throughout both lungs. ARDS caused by community-acquired pneumonia was diagnosed. hMPV was identified via rapid testing of respiratory samples for genes that encode pneumonia pathogens and drug resistance markers; we employed reverse transcription polymerase chain reactions to these ends. Six days later, the patient was weaned off the mechanical ventilator, and discharged from the hospital in good clinical condition.