A dextransucrase (LcDS) gene from Leuconostoc citreum HJ-P4 has been amplified and cloned in E. coli. The LcDS gene consists of 4,431 nucleotides encoding 1,477 amino acid residues sharing 63-98% of ...amino acid sequence identities with other known dextransucrases from Leuc. mesenteroides. Interestingly, 0.1 mM of IPTG induction at 15℃ remarkably increased the LcDS productivity to 19,187 U/l culture broth, which was over 330-fold higher than that induced at 37℃. Optimal reaction temperature and pH of LcDS were determined as 35℃ and pH 5.5 in 20 mM sodium acetate buffer, respectively. Meanwhile, 0.1 mM CaCl₂ increased its activity to the maximum of 686 U/mg, which was 2.1-fold higher than that in the absence of calcium ion. Similar to the native Leuconostoc dextransucrase, recombinant LcDS could successfully produce a series of isomaltooligosaccharides from sucrose and maltose, on the basis of its transglycosylation activity.
We aimed to assess the adequacy and efficacy of ultrasound (US)-guided fine-needle aspiration (US-FNA) for small solid thyroid nodules (SSTNs) with the largest diameter <5 mm and compared these ...according to nodule size.
Among 656 SSTNs in 569 patients, each SSTN was classified into 1 of 4 groups according to the largest diameter: 1 mm ≤ group A < 2 mm; 2 mm ≤ group B < 3 mm; 3 mm ≤ group C < 4 mm, and 4 mm ≤ group D < 5 mm. We compared the adequacy and efficacy of US-FNA between these groups using histopathologic results as a reference standard.
571 (87.0%) SSTNs were adequately sampled by US-FNA and 200 of these were histopathologically confirmed. The adequacy of US-FNA for SSTNs varied according to the nodule diameter: the smaller the nodule diameter, the lower the diagnostic adequacy. The diagnostic efficacy of US-FNA for SSTNs showed a significant relationship with nodule size: diagnostic efficacy in groups A and B was lower than in groups C and D.
The adequacy of US-FNA for SSTNs tended to decrease with decreased nodule size, and diagnostic efficacy of US-FNA for SSTNs with the largest diameter <3 mm was lower than for those ≥3 mm.
Abstract 2683▪▪This icon denotes a clinically relevant abstract
Secondary central nervous system (CNS) involvement in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) includes CNS relapse or CNS involvement ...with systemic disease progression. Although many publications have provided information regarding the incidence and risk factors for CNS involvement in DLBCL, its incidence reported across those studies varies widely. It might be related with that the majority of data were from retrospective analyses. Furthermore, the role of CNS prophylaxis for DLBCL has been challenged, especially in the era of R-CHOP (rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone). As a result, this rare but fatal clinical problem still remains a therapeutic dilemma in the management of DLBCL. In this study, we prospectively explored the risk factors of CNS involvement and the clinical impact of screening evaluation for CNS involvement.
We analyzed the incidence of secondary CNS involvement in pathologically confirmed DLBCL patients enrolled in the Prospective Cohort Study with Risk-adapted Central Nervous System Evaluation in Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma (PROCESS study, NCT01202448). Patients should be treated with at least one cycle of R-CHOP, and provide written informed consents. We assessed the risk of CNS involvement based on previously reported risk factors: serum LDH elevation, the number of extranodal involvements, serum albumin, bone marrow invasion, HIV positivity, the involvement of testis, breast, paranasal sinus, bone, retroperitoneal lymph nodes, orbit, and epidural space. If patients had any of these risk factors, they underwent CSF study to screen the CNS involvement at diagnosis. If the results were abnormal, additional studies including brain MRI could be done depending on physicians' decision. CNS prophylaxis was done with intrathecal chemotherapy with methotrexate for patients who had positive findings of screening evaluation or were determined to have a risk of CNS involvement based on physicians' decision.
564 patients were enrolled between 2010 and 2012 from 26 institutions belonged to the Consortium for Improving Survival of Lymphoma (CISL). They were prospectively monitored with the median follow-up duration of 10.5 months. The median age was 59.5 years old (range 20–89 years), and approximately a half of patients had Ann Arbor stage III/IV (n = 276, 48.9%) and 193 patients involved two or more than two extranodal sites (34.2%). Based on the International Prognostic Index (IPI) risk, 192 patients belonged to high or high-intermediate risk (34%). Among patients (n = 368) who had at least one of risk factors for CNS involvement, 243 patients underwent CNS evaluation, and the evidence of CNS involvement was found in16 patients including positive cytology (n = 11), and brain parenchyma lesion (n = 5). The other 78 patients showed equivocal results of CSF analysis including the presence of atypical cells (n = 17). Intrathecal prophylaxis was done for 51 patients whereas high dose methotrexate chemotherapy was combined with R-CHOP for patients with brain lesion. During follow-up, 14 cases of additional CNS involvement including brain parenchyma (n = 8), leptomeningeal (n = 5), and ocular invasion (n = 1) were observed. The median time to CNS event in these 14 patients was 7.5 months (range 1.2 – 15.9 months). Thus, 30 cases of secondary CNS involvement were documented in our study population at the time of analysis (5.3%) including 16 cases at diagnosis and 14 cases during follow-up. The univariate analysis for evaluation of risk factors demonstrated serum LDH, the number of extranodal involvements, bone marrow invasion, and the involvement of retroperitoneal lymph nodes, breast, paranasal sinus and orbit were significantly associated with CNS involvement. The high/high-intermediate risk of IPI was also predictive of CNS involvement (P < 0.05). However, in the multivariate analysis, bone marrow invasion and the involvement of breast, paranasal sinus and orbit were independently predictive for CNS involvement.
The incidence of secondary CNS involvement in DLBCL patients treated with R-CHOP was around 5%, and a half of cases had the evidence of CNS involvement at diagnosis. Considering a particular risk of CNS involvement of disease-related factors, risk-adapted active screening against CNS involvement may help to improve treatment outcome of patients with DLBCL.
No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
A polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) method was used to determine the presence and diversity of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) in takju. a traditional Korean ...rice wine. Bacterial DNAs were extracted from 15 commercial rice wines and amplicons of partial 16S rRNA genes were separated by DGGE and intense bands were sequenced. Lactobacillus (Lb.) paracasei, Lb. plantarum, and Leuconostoc pseudomesenteroides were detected in all samples and Lb. harbinensis and Lb. parabuchneri were found with above 80% frequency of occurrence. Unknown species of Lactobacillus were also widely detected. This result revealed that, regardless of products and raw materials, the distribution profiles of LAB in takju products have a common pattern comprising of above predominant species and, furthermore, takju can be regarded as a LAB-rich fermented food providing various probiotics.
Leuconostoc mesenteroides subsp.
mesenteroides (LMM) KCTC 3100, is one of the prominent species in the fermentation of kimchi, a traditional Korean food. In the present study, we investigated the ...capacity of this microorganism in inducing Th1 cytokines in the presence of Th2 signals in vitro and in vivo and the requirement of NF-κB and MAPK signaling. Stimulation with heat-killed LMM in mouse splenocytes induced the expression of IFN-γ, which was dependent on IL-12 production by LMM. Pre-treatment with LMM in vitro augmented the production of IFN-γ and IL-4 in response to anti-CD3 plus recombinant IL-4 (rIL-4). LMM administration to mice, beginning either before or after the development of OVA sensitization, increased OVA-restimulated IFN-γ production in the splenocytes and reduced serum total and OVA-specific IgE levels. However, only the pre-sensitization treatment induced a slight reduction in IL-4 from the same cells, but the post-sensitization treatment did not. Induction of IL-12 by LMM in peritoneal macrophages involved NF-κB, p38 and JNK, but not ERK1/2. In conclusion, our data presented the upregulation of IFN-γ by LMM under the pro-Th2 conditions and the requirement of NF-κB, p38 and JNK for IL-12 production. These observations suggest that this microorganism can be a useful Th1-inducing agent in modulating the Th1/Th2 imbalance.
Previously, we demonstrated that the erythropoietin receptor (EpoR) is present on fibroblasts, where it regulates focal contact. Here, we assessed whether this action of EpoR is involved in the ...reduced cell adhesion observed in colonocytes exposed to Clostridium difficile toxin A. EpoR was present and functionally active in cells of the human colonic epithelial cell line HT29 and epithelial cells of human colon tissues. Toxin A significantly decreased activating phosphorylations of EpoR and its downstream signaling molecules JAK-2 (Janus kinase 2) and STAT5 (signal transducer and activator of transcription 5). In vitro kinase assays confirmed that toxin A inhibited JAK 2 kinase activity. Pharmacological inhibition of JAK2 (with AG490) abrogated activating phosphorylations of EpoR and also decreased focal contacts in association with inactivation of paxillin, an essential focal adhesion molecule. In addition, AG490 treatment significantly decreased expression of occludin (a tight junction molecule) and tight junction levels. Taken together, these data suggest that inhibition of JAK2 by toxin A in colonocytes causes inactivation of EpoR, thereby enhancing the inhibition of focal contact formation and loss of tight junctions known to be associated with the enzymatic activity of toxin A.
중국은 예로부터 우리나라와 정치, 경제, 문화적으로 가장 가까운 나라였으며, 이 에 따라 중국어는 가장 중요한 외국어로 인식되었다. 우리나라에서는 고려시대에는 통문관(通文館), 조선시대 사역원(司譯院)을 통해 중국어가 교육되었고 四書나 直 解小學과 같은 중국의 경전이나 老乞大, 朴通事와 같은 회화서를 사용했다. 조 선 중기, 왜란과 호란을 ...겪으면서 실질적인 의사소통에 필요한 교재가 필요함을 깨 달으며 여러 회화서의 개수본(改修本) 뿐만 아니라, 譯語類解와 같은 유해류(類解 類), 즉 분류어휘집도 편찬되었는데 이는 다양하고 풍부한 어휘 학습을 도와 정확한 의사소통에 기여하였다. 이후 19세기에 들어서는 민간에서 중국어 학습 수요가 증가 하여 민간인 저자에 의해 華語類抄, 漢語抄, 華語, 漢談官話와 같은 유해류 서적이 편찬되었다. 이들은 19세기에서 20세기에 이르는 근현대시기 한국과 중국 두나라의 언어사를 조명할 수 있다는 점에서 중요한 의의를 갖는다. 漢談官話는 1902년 필사, 편찬된 것으로 추정되며, 저자는 미상이다. 18개의 부 류(部類)로 나누어 총 613개의 어휘를 실었다. 譯語類解나 華語類抄처럼 천문(天 文)으로 시작하지 않고 인사‧관직 관련 어휘로 시작하고 있으며, ‘一字部’, ‘不字部’, ‘長語類’와 같이 일상생활에서 주로 쓰이는 구어체의 어휘, 어구, 문장 표현을 실어 실용성을 높였다. 어휘 부류 및 뜻풀이의 형식과 내용에서는 기존 유해서의 전통을 계승하면서도, 혁신을 꾀하였다. 각 부에 수록된 어휘는 의미의 상관관계에 따라 연 관성이 있는 표제어끼리 가깝게 배열되었다. 또한, 사용자가 비교적 쉽게 이해할 수 있는 언문(諺文) 대역어(즉 당시의 한국어)와 한자 및 한문을 이용하여 뜻풀이했다. 譯語類解나 華語類抄와 공통적으로 수록된 어휘 비율이 매우 낮아 漢談官話의 저자가 매우 독자적인 시각에서 어휘를 수집, 분류했음을 알 수 있다. 漢談官話의 주음(注音) 측면에서 살펴보면, 見組 성모가 일부 구개음화 되기 전 의 형태인 ‘ㄱ’, ‘ㅋ’으로 기록된 것과 日母가 영성모로 기록된 것은 동북 방언의 영 향을 받은 부분이다. 그러나 來母를 ‘ㄴ’으로 주음 한 것과 같이 당시 한국 한자음을 학습하는 사람들이 범하는 오류에 따라 주음하고, 端組를 ‘ㅈ’혹은 ‘ㅊ’과 같이 한국 한자음에서의 구개음화 현상에 따라 주음하며, ‘兒’을 ‘라’로 기록한 것은 저자의 중 국어 음운학적 지식의 한계에 기인한 것이자, 이 책의 한계를 보여주는 부분이다. 그 러나 漢談官話는 체제, 형식, 어휘, 뜻풀이 면에서 볼 때 기존 유해류 서적과는 뚜 렷한 차별성을 보이는 혁신적인 성격의 유해류 서적이라고 할 수 있으며, 근현대 한 중 양국의 언어사 연구에 있어서 매우 중요한 가치를 지닌다.
China has historically been the foremost nation in terms of political, economic, and cultural proximity to Korea. Consequently, the Chinese language has held par amount significance as a foreign language of study. In Korea, Chinese education dates back to the utilization of institutions such as Tongmunguan during Goryeo Dynasty and Sayeokwon during the Joseon Dynasty. In addition, Classical texts in cluding Sa-seo(四書), Jik-hae-so-hak(直解小學), as well as Chinese conversational t extbooks like No-geol-dae(老乞大) and Bak-tong-sa(朴通事) were instrumental in t his educational process. Recognizing the exigency for practical communication ma terials amidst events such as the Japanese invasion and the Manchu war during t he mid-Joseon Dynasty, efforts were made to compile Classificatory Glossaries lik e Yeok-eo-yu-hae(譯語類解) and various conversational textbooks. Subsequently, in the 19th century, private authors compiled additional Classificatory Glossaries s uch as Hwa-eo-lyu-cho(華語類抄), Han-eo-cho(漢語抄), Hwa-eo(華語), and Han-da m-guan-hwa(漢談官話). Of particular interest, Han-dam-guan-hwa(漢談官話) stands out as an anonymous classificatory glossary encompassing 613 vocabulary words, organized into 18 categories. It diverges from its predecessors in terms of classifi cation, vocabulary selection, and pronunciation script. Consequently, a comparativ e analysis with preceding glossaries is imperative to accurately elucidate the disti nctive characteristics of Han-dam-guan-hwa(漢談官話). This paper undertakes a co mparative analysis of Han-dam-guan-hwa(漢談官話) alongside previously compiled glossaries such as Yeok-eo-yu-hae(譯語類解) and Hwa-eo-lyu-cho(華語類抄). Throu gh an examination of their formation, vocabulary, and phonology, it seeks to co mprehensively delineate the unique features of Han-dam-guan-hwa(漢談官話) and illuminate its significance and scholarly merit.
A 71-year-old woman who had suffered from pulmonary thromboembolism with deep vein thrombosis for 12 years presented the hospital with a huge thoracic aortic aneurysm. During thoracic endovascular ...therapy, she had a sudden coronary artery occlusion without having organized stenosis or plaque rupture even under the dual antiplatelet treatment and heparinization. She turned out to be having a protein S deficiency. A procedure related thrombotic adverse event in patient with protein S deficiency is very rare, so we report a case with literature review.
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