• Korean Journal of Head & Neck Oncology
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.81-85
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• 1997

Basal cell adenocarcinoma is a rare, recently described neoplasm of the salivary gland. We have experienced three cases of basal cell adenocarcinoma of the parotid gland. The tumors from patient 1 and patient 2 showed intraparotid growth in superficial lobe without cervical lymphnode metastasis. So, patient 1 and patient 2 underwent only a superficial parotidectomy and subdigastric lymphnode dissection without any adjuvant therapy. They are alive without recurrence or distant metastasis. But that of patient 3 showed widely invasive growth with multiple cervical lymph node metastases. The CT scan showed a $8{\times}7cm$ sized huge mass replacing the parotid gland with irregular margin and multiple lymphnode enlargements along the internal jugular vein. Total parotidectomy with sacrifying the facial nerve and standard radical neck dissection were caried out. Microscopically, the tumor consisted of solid nest and sheet of uniform basaloid cells separated by a fibrous connective tissue stroma with the evidence of lymphovascular invasion. As a result of the lymphnode metastasis and invasiveness of the tumor, radiation therapy was given postoperatively. We thought that close follow-up would be mandatory in this patient because of high risk of possible local recurrence and distant metastasis.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.183-194
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• 2006

The threadlike structures of fascia were examined by tight and electron microscopy. In order to distinguish its tissue organization, we used staining methods including hematoxylin-eosin, Masson's trichrome, Van Gieson's collagen fiber stain and Kluver-Barrera's luxol fast blue for nerve stain. Under the light microscope, the threadlike structures were composed of many collagen fibers and nerve. In higher magnification, they looked like as the bundle of tubular structures. Many myoid cell-spindle nuclei were observed in the tissue, which were taken from the fascia. It was identical with Bonghan duct known as one of meridian network theory. In the early 1960's the North Korean Bong-Han Kim showed the anatomical structures of the acupuncture points, and explained the meridian system as the concrete duct network system. According to Bonghan theory the Bonghan ducts spread throughout the body Because it is believed that the duct could have the role of signal pathway, the theory was reinvestigated in these days. All of the threadlike structures isolated from fascia shows the abundance of collagen fibers. The electron microscope examination (TEM) could confirm the well arranged collagen fiber and nerve. This investigation reveals that superficial Bohghan duct are nerve fiber parallel running with collagen fibers. We conjectured that the intermingled structure of collagen fiber, blood vessel and nerve fiber might have the role of meridian system. And the more, regardless of histological research, the study on collagen fiber as response transmitter in acupuncture treatment are in need.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.228-236
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• 2004

Retinal ganglion cells transmit visual scene as an action potential to visual cortex through optic nerve. Conventional recording method using single intra- or extra-cellular electrode enables us to understand the response of specific neuron on specific time. Therefore, it is not possible to determine how the nerve impulses in the population of retinal ganglion cells collectively encode the visual stimulus with conventional recording. This requires recording the simultaneous electrical signals of many neurons. Recent advances in multi-electrode recording have brought us closer to understanding how visual information is encoded by population of retinal ganglion cells. We examined how ganglion cells act together to encode a visual scene with multi-electrode array (MEA). With light stimulation (on duration: 2 sec, off duration: 5 sec) generated on a color monitor driven by custom-made software, we isolated three functional types of ganglion cell activities; ON (35.0$\pm$4.4%), OFF (31.4$\pm$1.9%), and ON/OFF cells (34.6$\pm$5.3%) (Total number of retinal pieces = 8). We observed that nearby neurons often fire action potential near synchrony (< 1 ms). And this narrow correlation is seen among cells within a cluster which is made of 6～8 cells. As there are many more synchronized firing patterns than ganglion cells, such a distributed code might allow the retina to compress a large number of distinct visual messages into a small number of ganglion cells.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.1462-1469
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• 2008

The purpose of the study was to confirm what effect HRHDT treatment had on cell extinction by damage of endoplasmic reticulum induced to PC-12 cell damage by glucose deprivation. The study confirmed what effect it had on forming the condition of glucose deprivation within a culture fluid of PC-12 cell and on a nerve cell's survival rates and tested whether HRHDT could prevent extinction of PC-12 cell by glucose deprivation. Also, the study confirmed what effect HRHDT treatment had on the emitted quantity of LDH by glucose deprivation. To examine PC-12 cell's behavioral change under the condition of glucose deprivation and a protective effect of HRHDT on the change, the study observed PC-12 cell's behavioral change with a microscope. Also, the study confirmed density of calcium ion within cells followed by a culture time in the condition of glucose deprivation with FACS and confirmed what effect HRHDT treatment had on the above density of calcium ion within cells. Finally, the study carried out the western blot and confirmed what effect HRHDT treatment had on revelation of GRP 78 and CHOP protein and a segmental type of aspase 12. In this study, HRHDT rescued PC-12 cells from glucose deprivation-induced cell death. HRHDT also prevents the LDH release, Ca++ accumulation, and morphological change, which was associated with the ER stress. Furthermore, HRHDT reduced the expression of ER chaperone (Grp78 and CHOP) proteins by glucose deprivation in PC-12 cells. These results suggest that HRHDT might provide a useful therapeutic strategy in treatment of the neurodegenerative diseases caused by glucose deprivation injuries.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.19 no.10
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• pp.1346-1351
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• 2009

Recent evidence has shown that many pluripotetic neural crest cells are fate-restricted and that different fate-restricted crest cells emigrate from the neural tube at different times. Jin et al. (2001) identified the expression patterns of Wnts and its antagonists at the time that neural crest cells were being specified and suggested that Wnt signaling was involved in the segregation/differentiation of neural crest cells in the trunk in vitro. In this study, we evaluated the effects of Wnt signaling in avian neural crest lineage segregation. To accomplish this, Wnt signaling was disturbed at the time of neural crest segregation and differentiation by grafting Wnt-3a expressing cells and conducting dominant negative glycogen synthase kinase (dnGSK) electroporation. Stimulation of Wnt signaling induced neural crest lineage segregation and melanoblast specification, and increased the expression levels of genes known to be involved in neural crest development such as cadherin 7 and Slug, which suggests that they are involved in Wnt-induced neural crest lineage differentiation into melanoblasts.

• Archives of Craniofacial Surgery
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.151-155
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• 2012

Purpose: Basal cell adenoma of the salivary gland is an uncommon type of monomorphic adenoma. The most frequent location is parotid gland. It usually appears as a firm, mobile and slow-growing mass. Originally the term "basal cell adenoma" is described as a benign salivary gland tumor comprised of uniform appearing basaloid cells which are arranged in solid, trabecular, tubular, and membranous patterns. But the myxoid and chondroid mesenchymal like component as seen in pleomorphic adenoma is lacking in basal cell adenoma. We report a case of basal cell adenoma of parotid gland with review of the literatures. Methods: The 59-year-old female patient was referred to our department with a painless palpable mass in the left preauricular region for about 1 year. Movable and nontender subcutaneous mass was palpable. There was no evidence of cervical metastasis in computed tomography and ultrasonography. On fine needle aspiration cytology, pleomorphic adenoma was suspected. Under general anesthesia, superficial parotidectomy including tumor was performed. The biopsy result was basal cell adenoma. Results: Long-term follow-up for 54 months showed favorable result without evidence of recurrence except for temporary facial nerve weakness right after the surgery. Conclusion: Basal cell adenoma is the third most frequent benign tumor of the salivary gland, following pleomorphic adenoma and Warthin's tumor, although the incidence is low. The typical clinical feature of the basal cell adenoma is slowly growing, asymptomatic, and freely movable parotid mass. Basal cell adenoma should be also considered as a differential diagnosis of the parotid gland benign tumor.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.11-27
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• 1994

The morphological development of the carotid body was studied by electron microscope in human fetuses from 40mm to 260mm crown rump length (10-30 weeks of gestational age). At 40mm fetus, the carotid body was composed of cluster of primitive glomus cells, primitive supporting cells, unmyelinated nerve fibers, and blood capillaries. In connective tissue between internal and external carotid arteries adjacent to the superior cervical sympathetic ganglion, two types of glomus cells through all prenatal period were found. Dark cells contained a dense cytoplasm with conspicuous large dense-cored granules, whereas light cells had a less dense cytoplasm with dense-cored granules. The light cells contained dense-cored granules that were smaller and less abundant than those in the dark cells. The primitive supporting cells appeared star-shaped with attenuated cytoplasmic extensions intervening between the adjacent glomus cells. Synaptic contact between the axon terminals and soma of the glomus cells were first observed at 40mm fetus. In 80-100mm fetus, the carotid body contained tightly packed collection of glomus cells and supporting cells which surrounded the abundant thin-walled blood vessels. Intercellular junctions between the glomus cells and adjacent cells were commonly seen. Nerve endings on the glomus cells have the form of small boutons and the other from of large calyces. During the second half of the fetal period, the glomus cells were completely enveloped by supporting cells and nerve terminals. At 260mm, the morphological features of carotid body were similar to those of human adult. The result of this study demonstrates that there are differences between the carotid body and aorticopulmonary bodies, especially with respect to their synaptic complexes, abundant blood capillaries, and two glomus cell types.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.17-26
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• 2018

The characteristic features of the arachnid central nervous system (CNS) are related to its body segmentation, and the body in the Opiliones appears to be a single oval structure because of its broad connection between two tagmata (prosoma and opisthosoma). Nevertheless, structural organization of the ganglionic neurons and nerves in the harvestman Leiobunum japonicum is quite similar to the CNS in most other arachnids. This paper describes the fine structural details of the main groups of neuropiles in the CNS ganglia revealed by the transmission electron microscopy. In particular, electron-microscopic features of neural clusters in the main neuroganglia of the CNS (supraesophageal ganglion, protocerebral ganglion, optic lobes, central body, and subesophageal ganglion) could provide indications for the nervous pathways associated with nerve terminations and plexuses. The CNS of this harvestman consists of a supraesophageal ganglion (brain) and a subesophageal mass, and there are no ganglia in the abdomen. Cell bodies of neuroganglia are found in the periphery, but central parts of the ganglia are mostly fibrous in all ganglia. Neuroglial cells occupy the spaces left by nerve cells. Since the nerve cells in the ganglia are typical composed of monopolar neurons, axons and dendrites of neurons are distributed along the same direction.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.38 no.6
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• pp.890-893
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• 2011

Purpose: Schwannoma is a slow-growing, encapsulated benign peripheral nerve tumor that originates from the Schwann cell of the nerve sheath. Schwannoma most frequently involves the major nerve. Schwannoma of the foot is rare. This is a report of our experience with a small, deep-seated, and non-palpable schwannoma occurring in the foot. Methods: A 42-year-old woman presented with the plantar pain of the right foot during 2 years. Physical examination did not identified a palpable mass. She made a clinical diagnosis of plantar fasciitis and was conservatively treated 2 years ago. Since her plantar foot pain was aggravated, she was recently visited again. For the evaluation of her plantar foot pain, sonographic examination of the whole right foot was performed, and it revealed a small hypoechoic hetergenous, deep-seated mass beneath the plantar aponeurosis. At operation, a $0.7{\times}0.6{\times}0.4$ cm sized, ovoid, yellowish grey mass was removed. Results: Histology was confirmed that the mass was a benign schwannoma. There were no postoperative complications. Conclusion: Unsusual case of a schwannoma with the plantar foot pain during 2 years is presented. It should be recognized a small, deep-seated, non-palpable

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.161-168
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• 2009

In the peripheral nerves, injury-induced cytokines and growth factors perform critical functions in the activation of both the MEK/ERK and JAK/STAT3 pathways. In this study, we determined that nerve injury-induced ERK activation was temporally correlated with STAT3 phosphorylation at the serine 727 residue. In cultured Schwann cells, we noted that ERK activation is required for the serine phosphorylation of STAT3 by neuropoietic cytokine interleukin-6 (IL-6). Serine phosphorylated STAT3 by IL-6 was transported into Schwann cell nuclei, thereby indicating that ERK may regulate the transcriptional activity of STAT3 via the induction of serine phosphorylation of STAT3. Neuregulin-1 (NRG) also induced the serine phosphorylation of STAT3 in an ERK-dependent fashion. In contrast with the IL-6 response, serine phosphorylated STAT3 induced by NRG was not detected in the nucleus, thus indicating the non-nuclear function of serine phosphorylated STAT3 in response to NRG. Finally, we determined that the inhibition of ERK prevented injury-induced serine phosphorylation of STAT3 in an ex-vivo explants culture of the sciatic nerves. Collectively, the results of this study show that ERK may be an upstream kinase for the serine phosphorylation of STAT3 induced by multiple stimuli in Schwann cells after peripheral nerve injury.