Dopamine and serotonin alterations by Hizikia fusiformis extracts under in vitro cortical primary neuronal cell cultures

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES@#Hizikia fusiformis (HF) is a class of brown seaweeds whose active ingredients exert central nervous system protective effects, such as neuroprotection;however, the underlying mechanisms remain unknown. Given that dopamine (DA) and serotonin (5HT) are two major neurotransmitters involved in various psychiatric disorders and neuronal growth in early neurodevelopmental processes, we investigated whether HF extract could modulate the molecular expression associated with DA and 5HT transmission as well as the structural formation of neurons.MATERIALS/METHODS: in vitro cell cultures were prepared from cerebral cortical neurons obtained from CD-1 mice on embryonic day 14. Cultured cells were treated with 0.1, 1.0, or 10.0 μg/mL of HT extract for 24 h, followed by fluorescence immunostaining for DA and 5HT-related receptors and transporters and some neuronal structural formation-associated molecules. @*RESULTS@#HF extract dose-dependently upregulated the expression levels of selective DA and 5HT receptors, and downregulated the levels of DA and 5HT transporters. Moreover, HF extract increased the neurofilament light chain expression. @*CONCLUSION@#These results suggest that HF may modulate DA and 5HT transmission, thereby affecting neurodevelopment.

Growth and clinical efficacy of fortified human milk and premature formula on very low birth weight infants / 소아과

PURPOSE: A prospective, controlled trial was conducted to evaluate growth, efficacy, safety and nutritional status for very low birth weight infants fed with human milk fortified with Maeil human milk fortifier (Maeil HMF(R); Maeil Dairies Co., Ltd.). METHODS: We enrolled 45 premature infants with a birth weight <1,500 g and gestational age <33 weeks, who were born at Dong-A University Hospital from October, 2006 through December, 2007. They were divided into 2 groups: infants in one group were fed with human milk fortified with HMF(R), and the second were fed with preterm formula. Growth, biochemical indices, feeding tolerance, and other adverse events in each group were assessed serially and compared relatively. Follow-up data were also collected after discharge at 1, 3, and 6 months corrected age. RESULTS: Characteristics of the 2 groups including average gestational age, birth weight, sex, respiratory distress syndrome, patent ductus arteriosus, and other adverse events (sepsis, retinopathy of prematurity, and intraventricular hemorrhage) showed no significant difference. Average feeding start day (8.00+/-3.27 d vs. 8.86+/-5.37 d) (P=0.99) and the number of days required to reach full feeding after start feeding (41.78+/-20.47 d vs 36.86+/-20.63 d) (P=0.55) were not significantly different in the group fed human milk fortified with HMF(R) when compared with the group that was fed preterm formula. The duration of total parenteral nutrition and the incidence of feeding intolerance also showed no differences between the 2 groups. Although infants fed with human milk fortified with HMF(R) showed faster weight gain than those fed with preterm formula at the end stage of the admission period, other growth indices of the two groups showed no significant difference. No significant correlations were found between the 2 groups with regard to weight gain velocity, height gain velocity, head circumference velocity, and post- discharge follow up growth indices. CONCLUSION: Premature infants fed human milk fortified with HMF(R) showed no significant difference compared with those fed preterm formula in growth, biochemical indices, and adverse events. Using human milk fortifier can be an alternative choice for very low birth weight infants, who need high levels nutritional support even after discharge from NICU.

Three cases of Twin-to-Twin Transfusion Syndrome which were managed with maternal digitalization / 대한산부인과학회잡지

Twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) is one of the complications showing high mortality rate in monochorionic twins with vascular communication in the placenta. Clinical manifestations of TTTS are usually characterized by polyhydramnios, circulatory overload, cardiac failure and fetal hydrops in the recipient twin and symmetrical fetal growth restriction, oligohydramnios, hypovolemia and anemia in the donor twin. TTTS occurres in 10-35% of monochorionic twins. We report three cases of TTTS with fetal hydrops in which amnioreduction was serially attempted and maternal digoxin treatment was tried for the therapeutic purpose.

Analgesic Effect of Sugar Solution in Infantile Colic

PURPOSE: Infantile colic is one of the most commonly encountered problems, characterized by excessive crying in apparently healthy young infants within the first 3 months of life. It is commonly assumed that the infant with colic has distress and possible pain. In recent investigations, it has been found that sucrose has an analgesic effect in newborn infants. The purpose of this study is to examine if sugar solution as sucrose also has an analgesic effect on infant colic. METHODS: This prospective randomized, double-blind placebo controlled study examined healthy term infants aged 4 to 12 weeks with colic. A total of 40 infants were randomly assigned into two groups who visited Daedong Hospital from June 1999 to June 2001. Each group received sugar solution or sterile water. All data from parental diaries and interviews were recorded and analysed blindly. RESULTS: The daily crying time and the colic improvement score were significantly better in sugar solution group as compared with the control(P=0.019, 0.045). No significant differences were noted between groups regarding the number of night wakenings(P=0.173). CONCLUSION: We conclude that sugar solution has an analgesic effect on infantile colic.

Transcatheter Closure of the Patent Ductus Arteriosus

PURPOSE: Transcatheter closure of the patent ductus arteriosus(PDA) is a well-established, effective therapeutic modality, and many kinds of devices have been used to perform this closure. The aim of this study is to compare the effects of different kinds of devices. METHODS: We reviewed retrospectively the charts of 43 patients who were admitted to Kyung pook University Hospital between June 1995 and July 1998 to close PDA with many kinds of devices(Rashkind umbrella and duct occlud) through the catheter. We evaluated demographic factors, associated anomalies, cardiac catheterization data, types and sizes of PDA on cineangiocardiograms, implantation rates and complete closure rates. RESULTS: We were able to implant devices in 41(95.4%) out of the 43 patients. The patients were aged from 9 months to 28 years(rnedian 2.3 years), weighing from 8.0 to 71.8kg(median 14kg). There were 34 females and 9 males. Complications after procedure were hemolysis(3 cases, 7.3%) and mild left pulmonary artery stenosis(4 cases, 9.8%). Complete closure on aortic angiogram 15 min. after procedure were done in 26 cases(63.4%), 11/15(73.3%) with RU, 10/19(52.6%) with DC, and 5/8(62.55) with DO without significant differences. Serial complete closure rate with color flow Doppler study were 63.4%(26/41) at 1 week, 74.4%(29/39) at 3 months, 76.9%(30/39) at 6 months and 79.5%(31/39) at 12 months respectively. CONCLUSION: Catheter occlusion of small PDA is a very effective way of obviating the need for surgery, although further efforts will be needed to improve complete closure and reduce complications.

The Effect of Coculture with Human Oviductal cells on In Vitro Development of ICR Mouse Embryo / 대한산부인과학회잡지

OBJECTIVE: To examine the effects of coculture with human oviductal cells regarding the development of 1-cell stage ICR mouse embryos and to investigate the effects of duration and start time of coculture. MATERIALS AND METHODS: ICR mice were superovulated with PMSG/hCG and 1-cell stage mouse embryos were recruited. 1-cell mouse embryos were cocultured on human oviductal cells in a CO2 incubator(coculture group) and were cultured on 0.4 % BSA+HTF media(control group)(Experiment 1). 1-cell mouse embryos were cocultured on human oviductal cells for 36, 44, 52, 60 hours after hCG IP respectively, and then were transferred to 0.4 % BSA+HTF media(Experiment 2). In comparison, 1-cell mouse embryos were cultured by using 0.4 % BSA+HTF media, and then were transferred to human oviductal cell coculture system using the same schedule(Experiment 3). Afterward, they were examined regarding the development to 2-cell, 4~8 cell stage mouse embryos, morulas and blastocysts. RESULTS: In experiment 1, the developmental rates to 2-cell embryos of coculture group and control group were 97.3 % and 98.7 %, respectively. After 2-cell embryos, coculture group showed significantly higher developmental rate than control group (p<0.05). In experiment 2, the developmental rates after 2-cell embryos showed the significant differences. The groups with coculture effects removed before post-hCG 60 hours showed significantly lower developmental rates (p<0.05). In experiment 3, the developmental rates after 2-cell embryos were higher when the coculture started at an earlier stage. Furthermore, the groups which were cocultured from post-hCG 52 hours exhibited significant lower developmental rate than the groups which were cocultured continuously (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: The coculture with human oviductal cell could improve the development of the embryos in vitro and might mimic the natural physiological condition better than media environment. The degree of improvement was more pronounced when the coculture started at an earlier stage and the duration of coculture was longer. More importantly, the changes of culture condition at post-hCG 52 hours in which secondary mitosis occurs, have significant detrimental effects on growth and development of mouse embryos.

A Case of Congenital Myotonic Dystrophy Diagnosed by Molecular Genetics

Congenital myotonic dystrophy is an inherited, autosomal dominant disease that results in a progressive wasting of the skeletal muscle, and sometimes heart and smooth muscles in human. In the newborn period, an affected infant is profoundly weak, has difficulty in sucking and swallowing, and may have severe respiratory difficulties. Myotonia is not a feature of the condition at this stage. Motor development is usually delayed in these children, and they may show some signs of mental retardation. Generally, the condition improves through the early years but deteriorates during late childhood and adolescence, when the 'adult' features of the disease gradually emerge. The gene defect responsible for myotonic dystrophy has proved to be a region of unstable fragment of DNA on chromosome 19. An expansion of a CTG(cytosinethymine-guanine) repeat in the 3'-untranslated region of a protein kinase gene contributes to the development of myotonic dystrophy. We have diagnosed and experienced a case of congenital myotonic dystrophy in a neonate with the chief complaint of respiratory difficulty and apnea. So we report the case and the brief review of related literatures.