Woman with hemorrhagic spots on her abdomen.

Abstract Lipodissolve is a product that is composed of phosphatidylcholine and deoxycholate mixture, and other adjuvant. Lipodissolve injection seems to be performed in many countries for local fat reduction without any legal and scientific evidences of its safety and efficacy despite the US FDA warning.1 Herein, we report a case with agitation and metabolic acidosis following lipodissolve injection.

Antimicrobial activities of therapeutic herbal plants against Listeria monocytogenes and the herbal plant cytotoxicity on Caco-2 cell.

AIMS: This study investigated the antimicrobial effect of various therapeutic herbal plants on Listeria monocytogenes, and their cytotoxicity effect on mammalian cells. METHODS AND RESULTS: The extracts from 69 therapeutic herbal plants were used to investigate the effect on the growth inhibition of L. monocytogenes, and their minimal inhibition concentrations and minimal bactericidal concentrations were determined. Among the plants, Psoraleae semen L. (Bogolji) and Sophorae radix L. (Gosam) extracts, which showed obvious antilisterial activity, were examined for the stability to heat, NaCl and acidic condition. Moreover, cytotoxicities of Bogolji and Gosam were tested, using Caco-2 cells. L. monocytogenes growth was completely inhibited by Bogolji and Gosam extracts at 3.2-6.3 and 50-100 AU ml(-1), respectively, and heat, NaCl and acidic condition did not affect the antilisterial activity of Bogolji and Gosam. Cytotoxic activities were observed only at high concentration (50 AU ml(-1)) of Bogolji extract. CONCLUSION: Bogolji and Gosam could be considered as potential phytochemicals to control L. monocytogenes. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: Use of therapeutic herbal plants should be useful in controlling L. monocytogenes, because most consumers have better acceptance for phytochemicals than synthetic chemicals.

Apoptotic effect of Polygonum Cuspidatum in oral cancer cells through the regulation of specificity protein 1.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate the growth inhibitory and apoptosis-inducing effects and mechanisms of Polygonum cuspidatum root in oral cancer cells. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The testing materials were separated by normal-phase silica gel liquid chromatography. The effect of P. cuspidatum root on apoptotsis and its mechanism were performed using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-20yl)-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulphophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium) (MTS) assay, western blot analysis, RT-PCR, promoter assay, and (4'-6-Diamidino-2-phenylindole) (DAPI) staining. RESULTS: The methanol extract of P. cuspidatum (MEPC) inhibited the proliferation of oral cancer cells by inducing caspase-dependent apoptosis. Protein and mRNA expression levels and the transactivation of Specificity protein 1 (Sp1) were markedly decreased in KB cells treated with MEPC. Ethyl acetate fraction (EA) from MEPC was more potent than aqueous fraction (AQ) from MEPC to induce apoptosis. F2, F3, and F4 from EA differentially inhibited the growth of KB cells, and it depends on the amount of Emodin in F2, F3, and F4. Moreover, Emodin inhibited oral cancer cell growth and induced caspase-dependent apoptosis by decreasing Sp1. MEPC also decreased an apoptosis-related downstream target of Sp1 protein, survivin. CONCLUSION: The results from this study strongly suggest that MEPC, its fraction, and Emodin may be potential bioactive materials to cause apoptosis mechanism via the down-regulation of Sp1 in oral cancer cells.

Unusual acute encephalitis involving the thalamus: imaging features.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the brain CT and MR imaging findings of unusual acute encephalitis involving the thalamus. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records and CT and/or MR imaging findings of six patients with acute encephalitis involving the thalamus. CT (n=6) and MR imaging (n=6) were performed during the acute and/or convalescent stage of the illness. RESULTS: Brain CT showed brain swelling (n=2), low attenuation of both thalami (n=1) or normal findings (n=3). Initial MR imaging indicated that in all patients the thalamus was involved either bilaterally (n=5) or unilaterally (n=1). Lesions were also present in the midbrain (n=5), medial temporal lobe (n=4), pons (n=3), both hippocampi (n=3) the insular cortex (n=2), medulla (n=2), lateral temporal lobe cortex (n=1), both cingulate gyri (n=1), both basal ganglia (n=1), and the left hemispheric cortex (n=1). CONCLUSION: These CT or MR imaging findings of acute encephalitis of unknown etiology were similar to a combination of those of Japanese encephalitis and herpes simplex encephalitis. In order to document the specific causative agents which lead to the appearance of these imaging features, further investigation is required.

Involvement of caspase-3 in apoptosis induced by Viscum album var. coloratum agglutinin in HL-60 cells.

A cytotoxic lectin (Viscum album L. coloratum agglutinin, VCA) from Korean mistletoe was isolated by affinity chromatography on Sepharose 4B immobilized with asialofetuin. In HL-60 cells, addition of VCA resulted in a dose- and time-dependent growth suppression, morphological changes of apoptotic nuclei, and DNA fragmentation characteristics of apoptosis. To investigate how caspase-3 activation during VCA-induced apoptosis induces cleavages of PARP, the expression of PARP and the pattern of caspase-3 activation in HL-60 cells were investigated. The native and processed PARP forms typically seen in apoptotic cells were observed, and a decrease in expression of the 32-kDa form of caspase-3 in a dose-dependent manner was observed. The VCA-induced apoptosis was significantly inhibited by a caspase-3 specific inhibitor, z-DEVD-FMK, and the PARP processing and caspase-3 activation were also inhibited by the inhibitor. A possible involvement of cell cycle arrest in VCA-induced apoptosis was investigated by flow cytometry and the results suggested that the apoptotic effect of VCA is not involved in the induction of cell cycle arrest.

Amino-acid sequence and glycan structures of cysteine proteases with proline specificity from ginger rhizome Zingiber officinale.

The ginger proteases (GP-I and GP-II), isolated from the ginger rhizome Zingiber officinale, have an unusual substrate specificity preference for cleaving peptides with a proline residue at the P2 position. The complete amino-acid sequence of GP-II, a glycoprotein containing 221 amino acids, and about 98% that of GP-I have been determined. Both proteases, which are 82% similar, have cysteine residues at positions 27 and histidines at position 161, corresponding to the essential cysteine-histidine diads found in the papain family of cysteine proteases, and six corresponding cysteine residues that form the three invariant disulfide linkages seen in this family of proteins. The sequence homology with other members (papain, bromelain, actinidin, protease omega, etc.) of this family is approximately 50%. GP-II has two predicted glycosylation sites at Asn99 and Asn156. Analyisis by electrospray and collision-induced dissociation MS showed that both sites were occupied by the glycans (Man)3(Xyl)1(Fuc)1(GlcNAc)2 and (Man)3(Xyl)1(Fuc)1(GlcNAc)3, in a ratio of approximately 7 : 1. Both glycans are xylose containing biantennary complex types that share the common core structural unit, Man1-->6(Man1-->3) (Xyl1-->2)Man1-->4GlcNAc1-->4(Fuc1-->3)GlcNAc for the major form, with an additional N-acetylglucosamine residue being linked, in the minor form, to one of the terminal mannose units of the core structure.

A partial blockade of catecholaminergic neurotransmission with 6-hydroxydopamine decreases mRNA level of gonadotropin releasing hormone in the male rat hypothalamus.

Central catecholamines (CA) are known to be involved in the regulation of synthesis and secretion of gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) from the hypothalamus. However, no attempt has been yet made to determine whether CA affects GnRH gene expression. To this end, the effect of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA), a catecholaminergic neurotoxin, on GnRH mRNA level was examined. Hypothalamic tissues obtained from adult male rats were incubated with medium containing 6-OHDA. To ensure the effect of 6-OHDA on CA depleting action, CA levels in media and in postincubation tissues were determined. Increasing concentrations of 6-OHDA resulted in decrease in norepinephrine (NE) and dopamine (DA) contents in a dose dependent manner. Treatment with 6-OHDA (5 x 10(-4) M produced a time-dependent decrease in NE but not DA, when CA levels in media were determined at 30 min intervals during the incubation period. To determine changes in GnRH mRNA level in response to 6-OHDA treatment in vitro, for 2.5 h total cytoplasmic RNA fractions were isolated from postincubation hypothalamic tissues and used for RNA-blot hybridization with 32P-labeled GnRH riboprobe. A blockade of CA neurotransmission with 6-OHDA (5 x 10(-4) M) significantly reduced GnRH mRNA level by half over its control and internal control (actin mRNA) groups. Northern blot analysis revealed that addition of NE (1 x 10(-6) M) reversed the decreased GnRH mRNA level by 6-OHDA.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Treatment of infections due to multiresistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae with sulbactam/ampicillin.

Between January and April 1984, 229 of 448 male patients with urethritis at the Choong-Ku Venereal Disease Clinic in Seoul had positive urethral cultures: 66 for penicillinase-producing Neisseria gonorrhoeae (PPNG) and 163 for non-penicillinase-producing N. gonorrhoeae (non-PPNG). Forty-five men with PPNG urethritis were enrolled in a study of the efficacy of treatment with sulbactam/ampicillin plus probenecid. Diagnosis and evaluation of cure were based on culture results. The agar-plate dilution method was used for susceptibility testing, and the chromogenic cephalosporin test was used for detection of beta-lactamases. MICs of various antibiotics for the isolates were high. MICs of sulbactam/ampicillin were 0.25-4 micrograms/ml, with an MIC90 of 4 micrograms/ml, a value 16-fold lower than that for ampicillin alone (MIC90 greater than 32 micrograms/ml). Patients were treated with 1 g of probenecid orally and either one vial of sodium sulbactam/ampicillin or two vials intramuscularly. Each vial contained 0.5 g of sodium sulbactam and 1 g of sodium ampicillin. Patients were followed up for three to five days. All patients but one were cured, and no remarkable adverse reactions were noted. The two regimens of sulbactam/ampicillin were equally effective in the treatment of uncomplicated PPNG in men.