[Laparoscopic transchiatal access in Boerhaave syndrome]. / Laparoskopicheskii transkhiatal'nyi dostup pri sindrome Burkhave.

Diagnosis of spontaneous rupture of the esophagus (Boerhaave syndrome) followed by purulent mediastinitis and pleural empyema has now been greatly simplified due to CT. The main thing is to suspect this syndrome in a timely manner. Methods of surgical treatment of this disease are still being discussed. We present successful laparoscopic treatment of spontaneous rupture of the esophagus.

Improving the bioavailability of manganese and meat quality of broilers by using hot-melt extrusion nano method.

1. Mineral excretion is an issue in the poultry industry. The use of micro minerals in nano form can increase bioavailability and decrease excretion rate. However, information concerning the bioavailability of nano manganese (Mn) in broiler chicks is limited.2. This experiment studied the influences of hot-melt extrusion (HME)-processed manganese sulphate on body weight gain, Mn bioavailability, nutrient digestibility and meat quality in broiler chicks fed a corn-soybean meal-based diet as a starter and grower phase. A total of 700 birds (Ross 308, 1-day-old) were randomly placed in 35 cages (20 birds per cage). The broiler chicks were fed one of seven experimental diets, which consisted of a control (without supplemental Mn), different levels of MnSO4 (IN-Mn60; 60, 120, and 200 mg/kg), or HME MnSO4 (HME-Mn; 60, 120, and 200 mg/kg).3. There was an increased serum Mn content in broilers fed diet supplemented with HME-Mn. In the grower phase, increased dietary Mn levels elevated the concentrations in the serum, liver, and tibia. There were increases in the excreta Mn content of broilers fed increasing levels. The supplementation of HME-Mn showed a lower percentage of abdominal fat compared with the IN-Mn treatment diets. Supplementation with HME-Mn decreased intramuscular fat compared with the diets supplemented with IN-Mn. The supplementation of HME-Mn decreased the thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) at d 6 of age. The HME-Mn source showed a greater decrease in TBARS compared with the IN-Mn treatment.4. In conclusion, HME processing increased bioavailability and could be used as an environmentally friendly method to facilitate lower levels of Mn in the diet of broiler chickens.

Comparison of five membrane filters to collect bioaerosols for airborne microbiome analysis.

AIMS: Recovering DNA of airborne micro-organisms (AM) from air is a challenging task. We compared five membrane filters for bioaerosol sampling-mixed cellulose ester (MCE), polyethersulfone (PES), polyamide (PA), polytetrafluorethylene (PTFE) and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF)-based on their bacterial, fungal and eukaryotic DNA recoveries. METHODS AND RESULTS: Bacterial, fungal and eukaryotic populations were quantified using quantitative PCR. With a bacterial consortium, PTFE exhibited the best recovery efficiency (113%), followed by PA (92%), PES (86%), MCE (48%) and PVDF (1%). When filters were compared with air, PA was used as a control to normalize results from the others. The bacterial, fungal and eukaryotic DNA recovery ratios were markedly greater in PES (9·3, 11·5 and 10·3 respectively) than in the remaining. Eukaryotic MiSeq sequencing revealed that PES recovered a more diverse and considerably richer assemblage (richness ratios, 4·97 vs ≤ 1·16 for PES vs the others). Rank abundance distribution analysis showed that distribution tails were longer (>4 times) in PES, but these did not differ between the remaining and PA. Community comparison showed that PES exhibited a lower variation across trials than the PA, while the remaining did not. CONCLUSIONS: PES filter markedly outperformed the other filters in quantitative and qualitative recovery of AM. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: Our findings demonstrated the importance of filter selection for sampling AM.

[Pulmonary insufficiency in acute stroke: risk factors and mechanisms of development]. / Dykhatel'naya nedostatochnost' v ostrom periode tserebral'nogo insul'ta: faktory riska i mekhanizmy razvitiya.

Various degrees of pulmonary insufficiency (PI) (PaO2 ≤60 mm Hg, SaO2 ≤90%) are diagnosed in most of patients with severe acute stroke (AS). Frequency and severity of PI positively correlates with the severity of AS. PI worsens patient's condition, prolongs the hospitalization period, and increases the probability of fatal outcome. Early clinical signs of PI may be undiagnosed due to the severity of stroke and thus not treated. The initiating pathogenic mechanism of PI is stress-related activation of sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and systemic immunosuppression. In severe stroke with mass effect, the rapid and significant increase in intracranial pressure may additionally activate the SNS. Risk factors of PI include older age, previous pulmonary disease, prolonged supine position, respiratory muscle dysfunction, apnea, and concomitant somatic diseases. Decompensation of somatic diseases leads to multiple stage reactions with facilitation of functional and morphologic changes in the pulmonary system, hypoxemia and hypoxia, promotes infectious complications and multiple organ failure and worsens neurological outcome. Diagnosis and treatment of PI in AS decreases mortality and improves rehabilitation prognosis.

Effects of quorum quenching on temporal succession of activated sludge microbial community in a membrane bioreactor.

AIMS: Quorum quenching (QQ) is an attractive strategy for mitigating biofouling in membrane bioreactors (MBRs). However, the effects of QQ on the activated sludge (AS) process have not been adequately evaluated. This study investigated the long-term effects of QQ on a laboratory-scale anoxic-oxic MBR, focusing on AS performance and microbial community. METHODS AND RESULTS: Anoxic-oxic MBRs with and without QQ were operated for 91 days. QQ did not affect COD and TN removal efficiencies over the experimental period, during which its activity remained >90%. QQ reduced floc size by approximately 8% but had no effect on biomass concentration. AS microbial communities were regularly analysed using massively parallel sequencing. AS bacterial communities were temporally dynamic irrespective of QQ presence, for example, a temporal increase in bacterial diversity and a temporal decay of community similarity. QQ counteracted the temporal change in diversity and the temporal distance-community decay. Community comparison revealed that QQ changed the successional trajectory of the AS community at a late period, because it decelerated temporal changes of specific members, such as Thiothrix and Sphingomonadaceae*. Correlation networks revealed that QQ increased network clustering, complexity and density. The combined results suggest that the tighter microbial association by QQ increased the community resistance. CONCLUSIONS: QQ can enhance the diversity and stability of the AS community in MBR by counteracting the innate temporal change in community structure. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: Our findings are useful for the further advancement of QQ-based strategies in engineered microbial environments.

Risk of malignancy in patients with psoriasis: a 15-year nationwide population-based prospective cohort study in Korea.

BACKGROUND: The association between psoriasis and risk of malignancy has not been thoroughly evaluated in a large longitudinal cohort of Asian population. OBJECTIVE: To determine the long-term risk of malignancy in Korean adult patients with psoriasis. METHODS: We conducted a nationwide population-based prospective cohort study with a 15-year observational period. During the baseline period (1997-2000), total 1 773 786 Korean subjects who received health insurance from the National Health Insurance System were enrolled and 5788 subjects were defined as a psoriasis group. The number of new-onset malignancy was collected during the observational period (2001-2015). RESULTS: Patients with psoriasis had a higher adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) for development of overall malignancy [aHR 1.08, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.00-1.18] and gastric cancer (aHR 1.31, 95% CI 1.08-1.58) compared to controls. The risks of non-Hodgkin lymphoma and non-melanoma skin cancer were significantly increased only in patients with psoriasis who received systemic treatments (aHR 2.86, 95% CI 1.07-7.61 and aHR 3.93, 95% CI 1.47-10.47, respectively). CONCLUSION: Psoriasis is associated with long-term risk for overall malignancy in Koreans, which was primarily driven by the increased risk of gastric cancer.

A large-aperture strip-grid beam splitter for partially combined two millimeter-wave diagnostics on Korea Superconducting Tokamak Advanced Research.

A large-aperture beam splitter has been developed for simultaneous operation of two millimeter-wave diagnostics employing different probe beams in the frequency and polarization, microwave imaging reflectometer (∼85 GHz X-mode), and collective scattering system (300 GHz O-mode), on the Korea Superconducting Tokamak Advanced Research device. The beam splitter was designed based on a polarizer concept (i.e., grid of metal strips on a thin dielectric sheet), and this can be an optimal solution for these two diagnostics. Fabrication of the strips with uniform sub-millimeter width and spacing on a large dielectric sheet was achieved with an etching technique, and the laboratory test results on the reflection and transmission ratio are in good agreement with design values.

Development of a novel methanotrophic process with the helper micro-organism Hyphomicrobium sp. NM3.

AIMS: Microbial consortia can be more efficient at biological processes than single isolates. The purposes of this study were to design and evaluate a synthetic microbial consortium containing the methanotroph Methylocystis sp. M6 and the helper Hyphomicrobium sp. NM3, and develop a novel methanotrophic process for this consortium utilizing a dialysis membrane. METHODS AND RESULTS: Hyphomicrobium increased the methane-oxidation rate (MOR), biomass and stability at a dilution rate of 0·067 day-1 in fed-batch co-culture. qRT-PCR showed that Methylocystis population increased gradually with time, whereas Hyphomicrobium population remained stable despite cell washing, confirming synergistic population interaction. At 0·1 day-1 , spiking of Hyphomicrobium effectively increased the methanotrophic activity, after which Hyphomicrobium population decreased with time, indicating that the consortium is optimal at <0·1 day-1 . When Hyphomicrobium was grown in dialysis membrane within the bioreactor, MOR increased linearly up to 155·1 ± 1·0 mmol l-1  day-1 at 0·067, 0·1, 0·2 and 0·4 day-1 , which is the highest observed value for a methanotrophic reactor. CONCLUSIONS: Hyphomicrobium sp. NM3 is a promising helper micro-organism for methanotrophs. Hyphomicrobium-methanotroph consortia used concurrently with existing methods can produce an efficient and stable methane oxidation system. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: This novel methanotrophic process is superior to those previously reported in the literature, and can provide efficient and stable methane oxidation.

The HLA-A*33:110 allele identified in a volunteer donor for hematopoietic stem cell transplant.

HLA-A*33:110 differs from HLA-A*33:03:01:01 in a codon 149 in exon 3.

The HLA-B*46:67 allele identified in a volunteer donor for hematopoietic stem cell transplant.

HLA-B*46:67 differs from HLA-B*46:01:01 in codons 94, 95, and 103 in exon 3.

The HLA-B*54:35 and -B*54:38 identified in volunteer donors for hematopoietic stem cell transplant.

HLA-B*54:35 and -B*54:38 differ from HLA-B*54:01:01 in codons in exons 2 and 3.

The HLA-B*15:400N allele identified in a volunteer donor for hematopoietic stem cell transplant.

HLA-B*15:400N differs from HLA-B*15:01:01:01 by nucleotide deletions from position 328 to 331 in exon 3.

The HLA-B*58:01:20 allele identified in a volunteer donor for hematopoietic stem cell transplant.

HLA-B*58:01:20 differs from HLA-B*58:01:01:01 by a single synonymous nucleotide exchange at position 297 in exon 3.

The HLA-A*26:132 allele identified in a volunteer donor for hematopoietic stem cell transplant.

HLA-A*26:132 differs from HLA-A*26:01:01:01 at nucleotides 269 and 346 in exons 2 and 3.

PPARγ Maintains Homeostasis through Autophagy Regulation in Dental Pulp.

This study investigated the relevance between pulp vitality and autophagy in aged human dental pulp cells (HDPCs) and whether peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) affects autophagy regulation for homeostasis in the aging progress. In vivo experiments were used in human and Sprague-Dawley rat teeth obtained from young and adult individuals. Aging- and autophagy-related molecules were determined by immunohistochemistry and hematoxylin and eosin staining. HDPCs were serially subcultured until spontaneously arrested for in vitro aging, and the replication deficiency adenovirus was introduced for PPARγ overexpression. Subsequently, the effect of PPARγ on regulation of autophagy molecules, mitochondria activity, and cell viability was assessed using Western blotting, confocal microscopy, and the MTT assay, respectively. In adult pulp tissue, autophagy molecules (autophagy protein 5, microtubule-associated protein 1A/1B light chain, and Beclin-1) were increased, but aging-related (PPARγ and heme oxygenase 1 [HO-1]) and dentinogenesis (dentin sialophosphoprotein and dentin matrix acidic phosphoprotein) molecules were decreased. In aged HDPCs, autophagy and intercellular adhesion molecule 1 and vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 were increased, while PPARγ and HO-1 were decreased. Under stimulation with lipopolysaccharide, autophagy- and aging-related molecules were differentially expressed between young and aged cells. PPARγ induced HO-1 and autophagy molecules but reduced inflammatory molecules in aged cells. In addition, PPARγ activated strong mitochondrial activity and cell viability in aging cells. Inhibition of HO-1 by tin protoporphyrin IX exacerbated autophagy and mitochondrial activity as well as cell viability in young cells. This study indicates that PPARγ maintains pulp homeostasis through the regulation of autophagy molecules during the life span of HDPCs.

Estimation of size of cord blood inventory based on high-resolution typing of HLAs.

Methods for estimating the cord blood (CB) inventory size required vary according to the ethnic diversity of the HLA, degree of HLA matching and HLA-typing resolution. We estimated the CB inventory size required using 7190 stored CB units (CBU) and 2450 patients who were awaiting or underwent allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. With high-resolution typing of HLA-A, B and DRB1, 94.6% of Korean patients could find CBUs in 100 000 CBUs with a 5/6 match, and 95.7% could find CBUs in 5000 CBUs with a 4/6 match. With low-resolution typing of HLA-A and B and high-resolution typing of leukocyte antigen-DRB1, 95% of patients could find CBUs in 50 000 CBUs with a 5/6 match, and 96.7% could find CBUs in 3000 CBUs  with a 4/6 match. With additional high-resolution typing for HLA-A and B, which could improve transplantation outcome, the size of the CB inventory would need to increase twofold for Koreans.

The adequacy of the distal resection margin after preoperative chemoradiotherapy for rectal cancer.

AIM: The study aimed to determine the adequacy of the distal margin in patients having preoperative chemoradiotherapy (CRT) followed by restorative surgery for rectal cancer. METHOD: A total of 368 patients with locally advanced rectal cancer treated for cure at our institution between July 1999 and March 2009 were included in the study. All underwent preoperative CRT and sphincter-sparing surgery. The distal margin and other factors were examined for their effect on recurrence and survival. The median duration of follow-up was 48 months. RESULTS: The length of distal margin ranged from 0 to 9.0 cm (median 1.5 cm). The pelvic control and disease-free survival rates at 5 years for patients with a margin of ≤ 3 mm were no different from those in whom it was > 3 mm (P = 0.6 and 0.8). The 5-year pelvic control rates between the ≤ 3 mm and > 3 mm groups were 66.7 and 86.2% in patients with a ypT3-4 tumour (P = 0.049) and 70.0 and 89.1% in patients who showed no response to CRT (P = 0.039). CONCLUSION: The results suggest that a distal margin of < 3 mm in the surgical specimen after preoperative CRT is associated with a lower rate of pelvic tumour control at 5 years in patients with Stage ypT3-4 tumours or in those who do not respond to CRT.

Development of inorganic and organic hybrid nanocoating based on carbon nanotubes for corrosion resistance.

In this study, we report the synthesis and characterization of novel hybrid nanocoating based on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on anodized aluminum surfaces (AAO). The hybrid nanocoating was deposited by number of methods which include spray coating, spin coating and dip coating. The bonding of nanocoating with metal surface is an important parameter for successful modification of the metal surfaces. The improved adhesion of nanocoating on metal surfaces could be attributed to chemical bonding of sol-gel nanocoating with anodized surfaces. The nanocoated anodized aluminum surfaces showed superior adhesion and excellent anticorrosive properties. The nanocoated panels showed enhanced galvanic protection comparable to 80% of titanium metal as determined by galvanic corrosion measurements. It also showed higher thermal conductivities than stainless steel and bare anodized surfaces.

The effect of montelukast and antiadhesion barrier solution on the capsule formation after insertion of silicone implants in a white rat model.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSES: Capsular contracture is one of the most severe complications that can occur in breast surgery following silicone implant insertion. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of montelukast and antiadhesion barrier solution (AABS) on reducing capsular formation and their possible synergism. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was approved by the Animal Ethics Committee (Reference No. KNU 2012-33) and was conducted in accordance with the Kyungpook National University - Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee, Animal Ethics Committee. The experiments in this study were conducted in vivo in 4 groups of 24 rats. Following silicone implant insertion, the pocket was injected with different agents. Group I (control group) was given normal saline injections into the pocket and fed with pure water. Group II was given injections of AABS and fed with pure water. Group III was given injections of normal saline and the medication montelukast during the experimental period. Group IV was given injections of AABS and montelukast as postoperative medication. Peri-implant capsules were excised after 8 weeks and were evaluated for transparency, inflammatory cell content, capsule thickness, collagen pattern and TGF-ß expression. RESULTS: The capsules in the experimental groups (i.e., groups II-IV) were significantly more transparent than those in group I (controls; p < 0.05, Student's t test). The mean capsule thickness of the experimental groups II (296 ± 14.76 µm), III (280 ± 14.77 µm) and IV (276 ± 39.28 µm) was smaller than that of the control group I (361 ± 35.43 µm). Compared to the control group, the histologic findings in the experimental groups suggested a decreased inflammatory response occurring in the peri-implant capsules as they exhibited minor vascularization and a reduced number of mast cells and macrophages. The collagen patterns in the experimental groups were of a lower density than in the control group with the former showing a loose, tidy collagen pattern. The amounts of TGF-ß and collagen I were higher in the control group than in the experimental groups. Group IV (the synergic effect group) had a more pronounced effect on all the parameters examined than that in groups II and III with separate drug administration. CONCLUSIONS: Montelukast and AABS reduced the thickness, the inflammatory cell infiltrate and the myofibroblast content of the peri-implant capsules around silicone implants in this white rat model. They lowered the expression of the fibrotic mediator, TGF-ß, and inhibited the peri-implant capsular fibrosis. Therefore, montelukast and AABS are effective in the reduction of silicone-induced peri-implant capsular formation.