• Title/Summary/Keyword: Viral diseases

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Comparison of Laboratory Tests Applied for Diagnosing the SARS-CoV-2 Infection (SARS-CoV-2 감염의 진단에 이용되는 검사실 테스트의 비교)

  • Lee, Chang-Gun;Lee, Dongsup
    • Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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    • v.54 no.2
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    • pp.79-94
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    • 2022
  • Due to the highly contagious nature and severity of the respiratory diseases caused by COVID-19, economical and accurate tests are required to better monitor and prevent the spread of this contagion. As the structural and molecular properties of SARS-CoV-2 were being revealed during the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic, many manufacturers of COVID-19 diagnostic kits actively invested in the design, development, validation, verification, and implementation of diagnostic tests. Currently, diagnostic tests for SARS-CoV-2 are the most widely used and validated techniques for rapid antigen, and immuno-serological assays for specific IgG and IgM antibody tests and molecular diagnostic tests. Molecular diagnostic assays are the gold standard for direct detection of viral RNA in individuals suspected to be infected with SARS-CoV-2. Antibody-based serological tests are indirect tests applied to determine COVID-19 prevalence in the community and identify individuals who have obtained immunity. In the future, it is necessary to explore technical problems encountered in the early stages of global or regional outbreaks of pandemics and provide future directions for better diagnostic tests. This article evaluates the commercially available and FDA-approved molecular and immunological diagnostic assays and analyzes their performance characteristics.

One-health Approach in the Post-COVID-19 Era: Focusing on Animal Infection (One-health 관점에서 본 Post-COVID-19 시대의 동물 감염)

  • Hye-Jeong Jang;Sun-Nyoung Yu;O-Yu Kwon;Soon-Cheol Ahn
    • Journal of Life Science
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    • v.33 no.2
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    • pp.199-207
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    • 2023
  • To prepare for the threat of a future epidemic in the post-COVID-19 era, research based on the one-health concept (i.e., the health of humans, animals, and the environment as "one") is essential. Cross-species infections are being identified as a result of the high infection rate and viral load of SARS-CoV-2 in humans. The possibility of transmission of SARS-CoV-2 from humans to mink has been determined. In addition, the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 from humans to cats through contact has been considered possible. The data so far show that livestock and poultry are less likely to be infected with SARS-CoV-2. However, if infections are established through a new mutation, the resulting diseases are expected to have enormous ripple effects on various fields, such as human food security, the economy, and trade. In addition, there are concerns about the endemic prospect of SARS-CoV-2 and the high accessibility of companion animals. This is because the evolution of the virus likely occurs in animal hosts. Once SARS-CoV-2 is established in other species, they might serve as intermediate hosts for the re-emergence of the virus in the human population. Thus, it is necessary to ensure a rapid response to future outbreaks by accumulating research data on the animal infection of SARS-CoV-2. These data can have implications for the development of animal models for vaccines and therapeutics against SARS-CoV-2. Therefore, in this study, epidemiological reviews were analyzed, and response strategies against SARS-CoV-2 infection in animals were presented using the One-health approach.

Development of a Real-Time Control & Management System with In-Vitro Diagnostic Medical Device for Dengue Fever (실시간 뎅기열 관리를 위한 관제시스템 개발)

  • Changsun, Ahn;Yongho, Park;Jungdae, Moon;Jongchan, Park;Youngkon, Seo;Allen, Sohn;Yoonjong, Choi;Yanghwa, Ha;Bongsu, Jung;Youngjoo, Kim
    • KIPS Transactions on Computer and Communication Systems
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    • v.12 no.2
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    • pp.77-84
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    • 2023
  • Dengue virus transmission is a viral infection disease between humans and Aedes mosquitoes. Dengue is ubiquitous throughout the tropics and subtropical zones, where 1/3 of the global population live. The weather in Korea is also changing to subtropical weather, resulting in increased vulnerable Korean population to dengue virus transmission. It is important to control and prevent the dengue risk with track-recording & monitoring system. It is also required to have the control system to treat and monitor dengue patients with various cases such as regions, ages, genders according to the track-record of the disease. In this paper, we developed a Dengue Control & Prevention System, which can monitor and control dengue outbreaks in real-time with in-vitro diagnostic devices. Dengue Control & Prevention System is composed of in-vitro diagnostic device, which is a fluorescent immunoassay, and real-time monitoring system. In the future, we expect that our Dengue Control & Prevention System can be upgraded to have various disease information from Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency for government policies and diseases control in Korea.

Agricultural Characteristics of an Early-maturing, Multiple Resistant and High Quality Rice variety Cheolweon109

  • Yong-Jae Won;Eok-Keun Ahn;Woong-Jo Hyun;Kuk-Hyun Jeong;Yoon-Sung Lee;Jeong-Joo Kim;Ji-Eun Kwak;Bon-Il Ku;Won-Young Choi;Hyang-Mi Park
    • Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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    • 2022.10a
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    • pp.266-266
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    • 2022
  • The outbreaks of blast, bacterial blight and viral diseases have been increasing in early maturing rice cultivating areas in the central northern regions, recently. As the occurrence of sudden insects pests and disasters increases due to global climate warming, it is urgent to develop a variety of disaster-tolerant, high-quality varieties in response. This study was carried out to elucidate the characteristics of early-maturing, high-quality and multiple disease resistant rice variety, Cheolweon109 that was adapted to cultivation in the mid-mountainous regions of the central northern regions. Cheolweon109 was derived from a cross between Suweon546, medium maturing variety, and Sangju44 which is early maturing and resistant to blast, bacterial blight and rice stripe virus. The heading date of Cheolweon109 was July 30, 3 days later than Odae. The culm length of Cheolweon109 was 79 cm, which was about 5 cm taller than Odae, and the ripening ratio was 85.1%, which was 10% higher than that of Odae. This variety had 5.54 MT/ha of milled rice productivity, which was 99% of the Odae. Although Cheolweon109 was tall, it was strong against lodging. It was strong against bacterial blight (K1, K2, K3 race), rice stripe virus, and the pre-harvest sprouting which rate was 2.4%. The appearance of the grains of rice was clean, the glossiness was 70.6, and the head rice ratio was 95.3% high. Because Cheolweon109 had superior disease resistance, disaster resistance, and high quality than Odae, it was expected that can be used to expand the diversity of early maturing and high-quality rice varieties in central northern regions.

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A Literature Study of Dermatosurgical Diseases in the ImJeungJiNamUiAn (臨證指南醫案에 나타난 피부외과 질환에 대한 문헌고찰)

  • Cho, Jae-Hun;Chae, Byung-Yoon;Kim, Yoon-Bum
    • The Journal of Korean Medicine Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology and Dermatology
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    • v.15 no.2
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    • pp.271-288
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    • 2002
  • Authors investigated the pathogenesis and treatment of dennatosurgical diseases in the ImJeungJiNamUiAn(臨證指南醫案). 1. The symptoms and diseases of dermatosurgery were as follows; 1) BanSaJinRa(반사진라) : eczema, atopic dermatitis, seborrheic dermatitis, psoriasis, lichen planus, pityriasis rosea, hives, dermographism, angioedema, cholinergic urticaria, urticaria pigmentosa, acne, milium, syringoma, keratosis pilaris, discoid lupus erythematosus, hypersensitivity vasculitis, drug eruption, polymorphic light eruption, rheumatic fever, juvenile rheumatoid arthritis(Still's disease), acute febrile neutrophilic dermatosis(Sweet's syndrome), Paget's disease, folliculitis, viral exanthems, molluscum contagiosum, tinea, tinea versicolor, lymphoma, lymphadenitis, lymphangitis, granuloma annulare, cherry angioma 2) ChangYang(瘡瘍) : acute stage eczema, seborrheic dermatitis, stasis ulcer, intertrigo, xerosis, psoriasis, lichen planus, ichthyosis, pityriasis rosea, rosacea, acne, keratosis pilaris, dyshidrosis, dermatitis herpetiformis, herpes gestationis, bullae in diabetics, pemphigus, lupus erythematosus, fixed drug eruption, erythema multiforme, toxic epidermal necrolysis, toxic shock syndrome, staphylococcal scaled skin syndrome, scarlet fever, folliculitis, impetigo, pyoderma gangrenosum, tinea, candidiasis, scabies, herpes simplex, herpes zoster, chicken pox, Kawasaki syndrome, lipoma, goiter, thyroid nodule, thyroiditis, hyperthyroidism, thyroid cancer, benign breast disorder, breast carcinoma, hepatic abscess, appendicitis, hemorrhoid 3) Yeok(疫) : scarlet fever, chicken pox, measles, rubella, exanthem subitum, erythema infectiosum, Epstein-Barr virus infection, cytomegalovirus infection, hand-foot-mouth disease, Kawasaki disease 4) Han(汗) : hyperhidrosis 2. The pathogenesis and treatment of dermatosurgery were as follows; 1) When the pathogenesis of BalSa(발사), BalJin(發疹), BalLa(발라) and HangJong(項腫) are wind-warm(風溫), exogenous cold with endogenous heat(外寒內熱), wind-damp(風濕), the treatment of evaporation(解表) with Menthae Herba(薄荷), Arctii Fructus(牛蒡子), Forsythiae Fructus(連翹) Mori Cortex(桑白皮), Fritillariae Cirrhosae Bulbus(貝母), Armeniaoae Amarum Semen(杏仁), Ephedrae Herba(麻黃), Cinnamomi Ramulus(桂枝), Curcumae Longae Rhizoma(薑黃), etc can be applied. 2) When the pathogenesis of BuYang(부양), ChangI(瘡痍) and ChangJilGaeSeon(瘡疾疥癬) are wind-heat(風熱), blood fever with wind transformation(血熱風動), wind-damp(風濕), the treatment of wind-dispelling(疏風) with Arctii Fructus(牛蒡子), Schizonepetae Herba(荊芥), Ledebouriellae Radix(防風), Dictamni Radicis Cortex(白鮮皮), Bombyx Batrytioatus(白??), etc can be applied. 3) When the pathogenesis of SaHuHaeSu(사후해수), SaJin(사진), BalJin(發疹), EunJin(은진) and BuYang(부양) are wind-heat(風熱), exogenous cold with endogenous heat(外寒內熱), exogenous warm pathogen with endogenous damp-heat(溫邪外感 濕熱內蘊), warm pathogen's penetration(溫邪內陷), insidious heat's penetration of pericardium(伏熱入包絡), the treatment of Ki-cooling(淸氣) with TongSeongHwan(通聖丸), Praeparatum(豆?), Phyllostachys Folium(竹葉), Mori Cortex(桑白皮), Tetrapanacis Medulla(通草), etc can be applied. 4) When the pathogenesis of JeokBan(적반), BalLa(발라), GuChang(久瘡), GyeolHaek(結核), DamHaek(痰核), Yeong(?), YuJu(流注), Breast Diseases(乳房疾患) and DoHan(盜汗) are stagnancy's injury of Ki and blood(鬱傷氣血), gallbladder fire with stomach damp(膽火胃濕), deficiency of Yin in stomach with Kwolum's check (胃陰虛 厥陰乘), heat's penetration of blood collaterals with disharmony of liver and stomach(熱入血絡 肝胃不和), insidious pathogen in Kwolum(邪伏厥陰), the treatment of mediation(和解) with Prunellae Spica(夏枯草), Chrysanthemi Flos(菊花), Mori Folium (桑葉), Bupleuri Radix(柴胡), Coptidis Rhizoma(黃連), Scutellariae Radix(黃芩), Gardeniae Fructus(梔子), Cyperi Rhizoma(香附子), Toosendan Fructus(川?子), Curcumae Radix(鬱金), Moutan Cortex(牧丹皮), Paeoniae Radix Rubra(赤芍藥), Unoariae Ramulus Et Uncus(釣鉤藤), Cinnamorni Ramulus(桂枝), Paeoniae Radix Alba(白芍藥), Polygoni Multiflori Radix (何首烏), Cannabis Fructus (胡麻子), Ostreae Concha(牡蠣), Zizyphi Spinosae Semen(酸棗仁), Pinelliae Rhizoma(半夏), Poria(백복령). etc can be applied. 5) When the pathogenesis of BanJin(반진), BalLa(발라), ChangI(瘡痍), NamgChang(膿瘡). ChangJilGaeSeon(瘡疾疥癬), ChangYang(瘡瘍), SeoYang(署瘍), NongYang(膿瘍) and GweYang(潰瘍) are wind-damp(風濕), summer heat-damp(暑濕), damp-warm(濕溫), downward flow of damp-heat(濕熱下垂), damp-heat with phlegm transformation(濕熱化痰), gallbladder fire with stomach damp(膽火胃濕), overdose of cold herbs(寒凉之樂 過服), the treatment of damp-resolving(化濕) with Pinelliae Rhizoma(半夏), armeniacae Amarum Semen(杏仁), Arecae Pericarpium(大腹皮), Poria(백복령), Coicis Semen(薏苡仁), Talcum(滑石), Glauberitum(寒水石), Dioscoreae Tokoro Rhizoma(??), Alismatis Rhizoma(澤瀉), Phellodendri Cortex(黃柏), Phaseoli Radiati Semen(?豆皮), Bombycis Excrementum(?沙), Bombyx Batryticatus(白??), Stephaniae Tetrandrae Radix(防己), etc can be applied. 6) When the pathogenesis of ChangPo(瘡泡), hepatic abscess(肝癰) and appendicitis(腸癰) are food poisoning(食物中毒), Ki obstruction & blood stasis in the interior(기비혈어재과), damp-heat stagnation with six Bu organs suspension(濕熱結聚 六腑不通), the treatment of purgation(通下) with DaeHwangMokDanPiTang(大黃牧丹皮湯), Manitis Squama(穿山甲), Curcumae Radix(鬱金), Curcumae Longae Rhizoma(薑黃), Tetrapanacis Medulla(通草), etc can be applied. 7) When the pathogenesis of JeokBan(적반), BanJin(반진), EunJin(은진). BuYang(부양), ChangI(瘡痍), ChangPo(瘡泡), GuChang(久瘡), NongYang(膿瘍), GweYang(潰瘍), Jeong(정), Jeol(癤), YeokRyeo(疫?) and YeokRyeolpDan(疫?入?) are wind-heat stagnation(風熱久未解), blood fever in Yangmyong(陽明血熱), blood fever with transformation(血熱風動), heat's penetration of blood collaterals(熱入血絡). fever in blood(血分有熱), insidious heat in triple energizer(三焦伏熱), pathogen's penetration of pericardium(心包受邪), deficiency of Yong(營虛), epidemic pathogen(感受穢濁), the treatment of Yong & blood-cooling(淸營凉血) with SeoGakJiHwangTang(犀角地黃湯), Scrophulariae Radix(玄參), Salviae Miltiorrhizae Radix(丹參), Angelicae Gigantis Radix(當歸), Polygoni Multiflori Radix(何首烏), Cannabis Fructus(胡麻子), Biotae Semen(柏子仁), Liriopis Tuber(麥門冬), Phaseoli Semen(赤豆皮), Forsythiae Fructus(連翹), SaJin(사진), YangDok(瘍毒) and YeokRyeoIpDan(역려입단) are insidious heat's penetration of pericardium(伏熱入包絡), damp-warm's penetration of blood collaterals(濕溫入血絡), epidemic pathogen's penetration of pericardium(심포감수역려), the treatment of resuscitation(開竅) with JiBoDan(至寶丹), UHwangHwan(牛黃丸), Forsythiae Fructus(連翹), Curcumae Radix(鬱金), Tetrapanacis Medulla(通草), Acori Graminei Rhizoma(石菖蒲), etc can be applied. 9) When the pathogenesis of SaHuSinTong(사후신통), SaHuYeolBuJi(사후열부지), ChangI(瘡痍), YangSon(瘍損) and DoHan(盜汗) are deficiency of Yin in Yangmyong stomach(陽明胃陰虛), deficiency of Yin(陰虛), the treatment of Yin-replenishing(滋陰) with MaekMunDongTang(麥門冬湯), GyeongOkGo(瓊玉膏), Schizandrae Fructus(五味子), Adenophorae Radix(沙參), Lycii Radicis Cortex (地骨皮), Polygonati Odorati Rhizoma(玉竹), Dindrobii Herba(石斛), Paeoniae Radix Alba(白芍藥), Ligustri Lucidi Fructus (女貞子), etc can be applied. 10) When the pathogenesis of RuYang(漏瘍) is endogenous wind in Yang collaterals(陽絡內風), the treatment of endogenous wind-calming(息風) with Mume Fructus(烏梅), Paeoniae Radix Alba (白芍藥), etc be applied. 11) When the pathogenesis of GuChang(久瘡), GweYang(潰瘍), RuYang(漏瘍), ChiChang(痔瘡), JaHan(自汗) and OSimHan(五心汗) are consumption of stomach(胃損), consumption of Ki & blood(氣血耗盡), overexertion of heart vitality(勞傷心神), deficiency of Yong(營虛), deficiency of Wi(衛虛), deficiency of Yang(陽虛), the treatment of Yang-restoring & exhaustion-arresting(回陽固脫) with RijungTang(理中湯), jinMuTang(眞武湯), SaengMaekSaGunjaTang(生脈四君子湯), Astragali Radix (황기), Ledebouriellae Radix(防風), Cinnamomi Ramulus(桂枝), Angelicae Gigantis Radix(當歸), Ostreae Concha(牡蠣), Zanthoxyli Fructus(川椒), Cuscutae Semen(兎絲子), etc can be applied.

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Effect of retinoic acid on the bystander effect in gene therapy using the Herpes Simplex Virus thymidine kinase (Herpes Simplex Virus thymidine kinase gene을 이용한 유전자 치료에서 retinoic acid가 bystander effect에 미치는 영향)

  • Park, Jae Yong;Kim, Chang Ho;Jung, Tae Hoon;Albelda, Steven M.
    • Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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    • v.44 no.1
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    • pp.162-174
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    • 1997
  • Background : Metabolic cooperation via gap junctional intercellular communication (GJIC) is an important mechanism of the bystander effect in gene therapy using the Herpes Simplex Virus thymidine kinase/ganciclovir (HSVtk) "prodrug" system. Since retinoids have been reported to increase GJIC by induction of connexin 43 expression, we hyporthesized that treatment of tumor cells with retinoic acid could augment the bystander effect of the HSVtk/GCV system and result in improved tumor cell killing by enhancing GJIC. Methods : We transferred HSVtk gene to SKHep-J cell line that does not express connexin43, and also transferred the gene to human and murine mesothelioma cell lines that express connexin43. We verified that retinoic acid enhanced GJIC utilizing a functional double-dye transfer study and evaluated the effects of retinoic acid on the growth rate of tumor cells. We then tested the effects of retinoic acid on bystander-mediated cell killing. Results : Addition of all-trans retinoic acid (RA) increased GJIC in cell lines expressing connexin 43 and was asspciated with more efficient in vitro bystander killing in cells transduced with HSVtk via adenoviral and retroviral vectors. In contrast, there was no increase in the efficiency of the bystander effect after exposure to RA in a cell line which had no delectable connexin 43. Conclusion : These results provide evidence that retinoids can augment the efficiency of cell killing with the HSVtk/GCV system by enhancing bystander effect and may thus be a promising new approach to improve responses in gene therapy utilizing the HSVtk system to treat tumors.

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A Small Outbreak of Measles in 2013: In a Single Hospital in Northern Gyeonggi-do (2013년 경기 북부 한 병원에서 확인된 소규모 홍역 유행)

  • Kim, Min Jae;Kim, So Hyun;Kim, Sung Un;Jang, Mi Jin;Lee, Hyun Seung;Kim, Young Hoon;Han, Ji Whan;Kim, Jin Tack;Jang, Pil Sang
    • Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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    • v.22 no.2
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    • pp.63-68
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    • 2015
  • Purpose: This study analyzed a small outbreak of measles at a single hospital located in northern Gyeonggi-do in 2013. Methods: We reviewed the medical records of measles patients at The Catholic University of Korea Uijeongbu St. Mary's Hospital from August to October, 2013. Results: Fifteen children were confirmed to have measles by RT-PCR and serum IgM test; 1 neonate, 11 infants, and 3 toddlers. None of the patients had received Measles-Mumps-Rubella vaccination. All patients showed B3 type in viral genotyping. Nine children (60%) had been exposed to measles during treatment for other diseases in the pediatric ward. Incubation period was between 8 and 15 days. Fever started at a median 10 days after exposure and persisted for a median of 8 days. Rash showed at a median 13 days after exposure. Respiratory complications were observed in 40% of patients. Diarrhea developed in 53% of patients. Conclusion: Although measles has been well-controlled due to the high rate of vaccination coverage, it is possible to have an outbreak at any given time, especially in infants. We must learn from this outbreak, and remain fully aware of the possibility of reemergence and provide proper management, including vaccination or immune globulin administration, to infants exposed to measles. Reevaluation of serum IgG titer of neonates, infants, and pregnant women may be the first step to prevent further outbreaks.

Occurrence of Viral Diseases in Barley Fields and Responses of Resistant Genes to BaYMV-Ik and BaMMV (맥류 바이러스병 발생 현황 및 BaYMV-Ik와 BnMMV에 대한 저항성 유전자의 반응)

  • Park Jong-Chul;Seo Jae-Hwan;Kim Yang-Kil;Kim Jung-Gon
    • KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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    • v.50 no.3
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    • pp.197-204
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    • 2005
  • The major symptom such as yellowish and mosaic spots in overwintering barley were mostly caused by viruses such as Barley yellow mosaic virus (BaYMV) and Barley mild mosaic virus (BaMMV) in the nation-wide for four years. The result showed that more than $78\%$ collected samples were infected by the viruses. The incidence of Ba YMV was more than $70\%$, and relatively uniformly distributed in the southern regions of barley fields in Korea. However the incidence of BaYMV in Gyeonggi Province was as low as $19\%$ compared to $65\~85\%$ in the rest of regions. Occurrence of BaMMV varied depending on investigated regions such as $20\~40\%$ in Jeonbuk, Jeonnam, Gangwon and Gyeongnam, and a lower infection in Gyeongbuk, Chungnam and Gyeonggi Provinces. In this result, $60\%$ of BaMMV was found to be in the southwest regions of Korea such as Jeonbuk and Jeonnam Provinces. Over all, both BaYMV and BaMMV were thought to be dominantly casual agents in overwintering barley by either solely or mixed infections. Soil-borne wheat mosaic virus(SBWMV) occurred at most $14\%$ in Gyeonggi and Barley yellow dwarf virus-MAY (BYDV­MAV) was found only one place in Jeonbuk, suggesting that SBWMV and BYDV-MAV were not significant diseases in Korea. Exotic genetic resources that possess different resistant genes to BaYMV and BaMMV were tested to identify the responses to the viruses occurred in Iksan. According to the ELISA results, BaYMV and BaMMV were infected in some plant materials but SBWMV was not identified. Any resistant gene was not effective to BaYMV-Ik (Insan strain) and BaMMY. Ishukushirazu (rym 3) and Chosen (rym 3), Tokushima Mochi Hadaka (rym 4y) and Hakei 1-41 (rym 5a) showed resistant response with little symptoms to BaYMY. The other five accessions possessing rym 1+5, rym 2, rym 4m, rym 5 and rym 9, respectively, were resistant to BaMMV. Various symptoms were observed in the tested plant materials such as not only yellowish and mosaic symptoms mostly but also necrotic spot, tissue necrosis, leaf stripe and leaf curling. However, it was difficult to find any relationship between resistant genes and specific symptoms.

Cause of enteroviral infection in children in chungnam area summer, 2005 (2005년 하절기에 충남지역 소아에서의 장바이러스 감염원인)

  • Jeon, Se Yun;Choi, Suk Joo;Kim, Yong Bae;Nam, Hae Seon;Park, Kwi Sung;Baek, Kyung Ah;Park, Joon Soo
    • Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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    • v.49 no.11
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    • pp.1186-1193
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    • 2006
  • Purpose : Enterovirus infection is a type of viral infection that occurs relatively frequently in children during summer. It has clinical symptoms of non-specific fever, aseptic encephalomeningitis, gastrointestinal diseases, skin rash and, hand-foot-mouth disease. However, it can also occcaisionally, result in fatal symptoms like myocarditis, epicardial inflammation, transverse myelitis, quadriplegia and etc. There have been epidemic enterovirus studies, but not in the Chungnam area. Therefore, we undertook this study in order to comprehend the cause viruses in this area. Methods: We enlisted 157 children hospitalized with enteroviral infections at Soonchunhyang University hospital in Cheonan between May and August 2005. Cerebrospinal fluids or feces were collected during the acute phase after hospitalization, and observed the cytopathic effects caused by enterovirus and using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Results : The number of children hospitalized due to possible enteroviral infection during the period of study was 157. The number of children who tested positive with the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction totalled 32 cases (20.4 percent). Among the children with entroviral diseases, 20 were male and 12 were female, thus the sex ratio of male to female was 1.67:1. Their clinical symptoms included fever most frequently (93.7 percent), was followed by headaches (90.0 percent), meningeal irritation signs (65.0 percent), and abdominal pain (30.0 percent). As for the type of isolated enterovirus, there were 17 cases of echovirus 18 and 6 cases of coxsackievirus B5. Furthermore, there were 2 cases of echovirus 9, 1 case of coxsackievirus A6 and coxsackievirus B3, respectively. But 5 cases were not determined by genotype. Conclusion : Echovirus 18 is circulating in Korea. We reported on identified enteroviruses, including echovirus 18, using RT-PCR in the Chungnam area during the summer of 2005.

Murine Typhus as a Cause of Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome in Endemic Area (급성호흡곤란증후군의 원인으로서의 발진열)

  • Yoon, Ji Yeol;Lim, Chae Man;Lee, Sang Do;Kim, Woo Sung;Kim, Dong Soon;Kim, Won Dong;Kim, Hyun Kuk;Woo, Young Dae;Park, Mi Yeoun;Koh, Younsuck
    • Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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    • v.52 no.4
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    • pp.367-375
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    • 2002
  • Background : Murine typhus is a flea-borne, worldwide Rickettsial disease caused by Rickettsia typhi. Its symptoms are typically mild but sometimes can be fatal. The major clinical features include fever, rash, and headache. Recently, we experienced 6 cases of ARDS associated with a Rickettsia typhi infection. This study was aimed to analyze the attributing factors for fatal murine typhus and to review the characteristics of the patients who showed acute respiratory distress syndrome as the initial presentation. Methods : The medical records of 15 patients diagnosed as murine typhus were reviewed. The diagnosis was made by single titers of 1:512 or higher, or a 4-fold rise with compatible clinical features. Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) was defined according to the American-European Consensus Conference. The Characteristics between the ARDS group and the non-ARDS group of murine typhus were compared. Results : Six patients developed ARDS as their initial presentation. Two of them were women and three of them had lived urban area. None of Them a showed skin rash. One of them expired during treatment. The time lapse until the commencement of the specific treatment, the lower serum albumin level, the higher serum total bilirubin level, the higher APACHE III score and the higher MOD score were significantly associated with the ARDS group compared to the non-ARDS group. Conclusion : Murine typhus should be considered as one of the etiologies for the ARDS of unknown cause, particularly in an endemic regions. ARDS caused by Murine typhus generally has a good prognosis.