• 한국재난정보학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국재난정보학회 2015년 정기학술대회
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• pp.298-299
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• 2015

본 논문은 2013년 5월 국제바이러스 분류 위원회에서 중동호흡기증후군을 일으키는 신종 코로나바이러스를 메르스코로나바이러스(MERS-CoV)라 명명한 후, 2015년 5월 국내에 감염자가 들어와 이후 확산되고, 중동 호흡기 증후군 환자 발생 후 국내 첫 사망자가 발생한 일개 병원 지역응급의료센터 내원 후 확산을 막기 위하여 시행하였던 경험들을 공유하고자 한 내용이다.

• Clinical Nutrition Research
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• 제12권1호
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• pp.77-89
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• 2023

This study aimed to find out the effect of vitamins on respiratory-related viral infections, including coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), through the literature reviews. From January 2000 to June 2021, the studies (cohort studies, cross-sectional studies, case-control studies, randomized control trials) related to vitamins (vitamin A, D, E, C, B₆, folate, and B₁₂) and COVID-19/severe acute respiratory syndrome/Middle East respiratory syndrome/cold/influenza were selected from the PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane libraries and analyzed. The relationship between vitamins and virus-related respiratory diseases was identified. Through the review, 39 studies were selected on vitamin D, one study on vitamin E, 11 studies on vitamin C, and 3 studies on folate. Regarding COVID-19, 18 studies on vitamin D, 4 studies on vitamin C, and 2 studies on folate showed significant effects of the intake of these nutrients in preventing COVID-19. Regarding colds and influenza, 3 studies on vitamin D, 1 study on vitamin E, 3 studies on vitamin C, and 1 study on folate demonstrated that the intake of these nutrients significantly prevents these diseases. Therefore, this review suggested the intake of vitamins D, E, C, and folate is important for preventing respiratory diseases related to viruses, such as COVID-19, colds, and influenza. The relationship between these nutrients and virus-related respiratory diseases should be continuously monitored in the future.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• 제21권1호
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• pp.11.1-11.10
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• 2021

Coronavirus causes an infectious disease in various species and crosses the species barriers leading to the outbreak of zoonotic diseases. Due to the respiratory diseases are mainly caused in humans and viruses are replicated and excreted through the respiratory tract, the nasal fluid and sputum are mainly used for diagnosis. Early diagnosis of coronavirus plays an important role in preventing its spread and is essential for quarantine policies. For rapid decision and prompt triage of infected host, the immunochromatographic assay (ICA) has been widely used for point of care testing. However, when the ICA is applied to an expectorated sputum in which antigens are present, the viscosity of sputum interferes with the migration of the antigens on the test strip. To overcome this limitation, it is necessary to use a mucolytic agent without affecting the antigens. In this study, we combined known mucolytic agents to lower the viscosity of sputum and applied that to alpha and beta coronavirus, porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV) and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), respectively, spiked in sputum to find optimal pretreatment conditions. The pretreatment method using tris(2-carboxyethyl)phosphine (TCEP) and BSA was suitable for ICA diagnosis of sputum samples spiked with PEDV and MERS-CoV. This sensitive assay for the detection of coronavirus in sputum provides an useful information for the diagnosis of pathogen in low respiratory tract.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제29권12호
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• pp.2014-2021
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• 2019

Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) belongs to the genus Betacoronavirus and causes severe morbidity and mortality in humans especially when infected patients have underlying diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Previously, we demonstrated that MERS-CoV-encoded ORF8b strongly inhibits MDA5- and RIG-I-mediated induction of the interferon beta (IFN-β) promoter activities. Here, we report that ORF8b seemed to regulate MDA5 or RIG-I differentially as protein levels of MDA5 were significantly down-regulated while those of RIG-I were largely unperturbed. In addition, ORF8b seemed to efficiently suppress phosphorylation of IRF3 at the residues of 386 and 396 in cells transfected with RIG-I while total endogenous levels of IRF3 remained largely unchanged. Furthermore, ORF8b was able to inhibit all forms of RIG-I; full-length, RIG-I-1-734, and RIG-I-1-228, the last of which contains only the CARD domains. Taken together, it is tempting to postulate that ORF8b may interfere with the CARD-CARD interactions between RIG-I and MAVS. Further detailed analysis is required to delineate the mechanisms of how ORF8b inhibits the MDA5/RIG-I receptor signaling pathway.

• 한국산학기술학회논문지
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• 제17권2호
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• pp.427-435
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• 2016

최근 중동 호흡기 증후군의 발현으로 손 씻기가 강조되고 있는 실정이다. 본 연구의 목적은 중동호흡기 증후군의 예방을 위하여 손 씻기의 빈도에 영향을 미치는 요인을 파악하기 위하여 기질불안, 건강통제위, 건강증진행위의 관계를 분석하였다. 314명의 간호 대학생들에게 중동 호흡기 증후군을 예방하는 방법, 손 씻는 횟수, 기질불안, 건강통제위, 건강증진행위에 대하여 설문조사하였고, 수집된 자료는 Pearson correlation, 다중회귀분석으로 분석하였다. 손 씻기 수행 빈도에 영향을 미치는 요인으로는 손 씻기 중요도 이였으며, 손 씻기 중요도에 영향을 미치는 요인은 내적통제위로 나타났다. 또한, 대부분의 간호 대학생이 손 씻기가 중동 호흡기 증후군의 가장 중요한 예방법으로 인지하였다. 이에 손 씻기의 중요성과 내적 통제위를 강화한 건강교육을 진행해야 할 것이다.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• 제28권4호
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• pp.311-319
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• 2020

Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is a newly emerging viral disease with fatal outcomes. However, no MERS-CoV-specific treatment is commercially available. Given the absence of previous structure-based drug discovery studies targeting MERS-CoV fusion proteins, this set of compounds is considered the first generation of MERS-CoV small molecule fusion inhibitors. After a virtual screening campaign of 1.56 million compounds followed by cell-cell fusion assay and MERS-CoV plaques inhibition assay, three new compounds were identified. Compound numbers 22, 73, and 74 showed IC₅₀ values of 12.6, 21.8, and 11.12 µM, respectively, and were most effective at the onset of spike-receptor interactions. The compounds exhibited safe profiles against Human embryonic kidney cells 293 at a concentration of 20 µM with no observed toxicity in Vero cells at 10 µM. The experimental results are accompanied with predicted favorable pharmacokinetic descriptors and drug-likeness parameters. In conclusion, this study provides the first generation of MERS-CoV fusion inhibitors with potencies in the low micromolar range.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• 제22권5호
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• pp.41.1-41.16
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• 2022

The human antimicrobial peptide LL-37 has chemotactic and modulatory activities in various immune cells, including dendritic cells. Because of its characteristics, LL-37 can be considered an adjuvant for vaccine development. In this study, we confirmed the possible adjuvant activity of LL-37 in mucosal vaccine development against Middle East respiratory syndrome-coronavirus (MERS-CoV) by means of intranasal immunization in C57BL/6 and human dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (hDPP4)-transgenic (hDPP4-Tg) mice. Intranasal immunization using the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of MERS-CoV spike protein (S-RBD) recombined with LL-37 (S-RBD-LL-37) induced an efficient mucosal IgA and systemic IgG response with virus-neutralizing activity, compared with S-RBD. Ag-specific CTL stimulation was also efficiently induced in the lungs of mice that had been intranasally immunized with S-RBD-LL-37, compared with S-RBD. Importantly, intranasal immunization of hDPP4-Tg mice with S-RBD-LL-37 led to reduced immune cell infiltration into the lungs after infection with MERS-CoV. Finally, intranasal immunization of hDPP4-Tg mice with S-RBD-LL-37 led to enhanced protective efficacy, with increased survival and reduced body weight loss after challenge infection with MERS-CoV. Collectively, these results suggest that S-RBD-LL-37 is an effective intranasal vaccine candidate molecule against MERS-CoV infection.

• 한국직업건강간호학회지
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• 제26권4호
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• pp.207-217
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• 2017

Purpose: This study aimed to evaluate the workplace response system (WRS) against infectious disasters (IDs) based on the response attitudes and capacity of occupational health nurses (OHNs) who worked during the 2015 Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) outbreak in South Korea. Methods: Fifty-one participants who had worked as OHNs at the time of the 2015 MERS outbreak were surveyed from November 20 to December 10, 2016. Data were collected using a self-report questionnaire and analyzed using descriptive statistics and McNemaer's test. Results: According to the survey results, the following were lacking in the WRS: a dedicated ID-response team, manuals, related education programs for OHNs, and health education programs for workers. Results also confirmed that workers were vulnerable to new infectious diseases because of the lack of health checkups and support for workers before and after business trips abroad. Among the respondents, 98.0% answered affirmatively that an ID was important for health management in the workplace, but 64.7% answered that it was difficult to manage an ID. The perceived capacity items to respond to IDs ranged from 3.0 points to 3.3 points. This scores were generally high. Conclusion: As the WRS is currently insufficient, it is necessary to develop an adequate WRS to IDs by addressing the identified problems.

• 시큐리티연구
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• 제52호
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• pp.145-162
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• 2017

2015년 대한민국은 중동호흡기증후군(Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus; MERS; 메르스) 유행으로 큰 사회적 문제를 겪었다. 한국 정부는 그 대처 과정에서 한국정부의 재난대응체제의 문제점을 드러내며 많은 비판을 받은 바 있다. 국가위기관리와 감염병 대응체계와 관련하여 이와 비근한 외국의 사례로 1999년부터 시작된 미국의 웨스트 나일 바이러스(West Nile Virus; WNV) 사태가 있다. 이때 미 오리건(Oregon) 주(州)는 주정부와 지방 정부 및 관련 기관들 간의 긴밀한 협업을 통해 효과적으로 WNV 사태에 대처하여 위기관리의 모범적인 사례로 간주되고 있다. 이 논문에서는 한국의 메르스 사태와 미국 오리건 주의 웨스트 나일 바이러스 사태의 사례들을 정리 비교하여 정부간 조직간 협업과 정보공유를 중심으로 국가위기 관리 및 감염병 대응체계에 대한 함의점을 찾고자 하였다. 사례비교의 결과 컨트롤 타워의 역할, 정보공유 및 공개의 중요성, 기존 시스템과 사회 네트워크의 활용, 지속가능한 정부간 협업이라는 네 가지 함의점을 도출할 수 있었다.

• 의학교육논단
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• 제18권2호
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• pp.99-105
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• 2016

The purpose of this study was to inquire into the knowledge of medical students on the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) and evaluate whether infection prevention education impacts students' level of knowledge and individual hygiene practices. This study also investigated the route by which medical students obtain disease-related information. The study involved a survey conducted in August of 2015 at two medical schools in Busan. In the first year to fourth year, a total of 345 students are enrolled (111 students in A school and 234 students in B school). Before the study was carried out, university A performed infection prevention education related to MERS, but B did not. We used self-developed questionnaires to survey the demographic characteristics, routes of acquisition of MERS information, degree of knowledge of MERS, educational satisfaction, and personal hygiene practices before and after education. Knowledge level differences according to gender and year in school were not statistically significant. Students obtained their information about MERS from various news media sources and the Internet, and through social network sites. Students practiced sanitary control behaviors in an average of 2.2 manners (standard deviation=0.95). The level of knowledge of MERS revealed a positive correlation with the frequency and total numbers of personal hygiene practices. This finding suggests that the infection prevention education program played a role in knowledge acquisition and personal hygiene practices for the medical students. In order to provide accurate and reliable knowledge of disease and preventive health behavior to medical students, continuous and well-planned education programs are necessary.