Defects in aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase cause partial B and T cell immunodeficiency.

Aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (ARSs) are emerging as important regulators in various immune diseases; however, their roles in immune cells remain unclear. In this study, using alanyl-tRNA synthetase (AARS) mutant (sti) mice with neurodegenerative disorder, we investigated the effect of translational fidelity in immune cells. Dysfunctional AARS caused disorders in immune cell responses and cellularity. The impairment was caused by dampened TCR signaling than cytokine signaling. Therefore, sti mutant inhibits TCR signaling, impeding T cell survival and responses. B cell numbers were decreased in sti mice. Despite low B cell cellularity, serum IgM, IgA, and IgE levels were higher in sti mice than in wild-type mice. Misacylation of ARS and the consequent translational infidelity induce disturbances in signaling pathways critical for immune cell survival and responses. Our findings provide a novel mechanism by which translational fidelity might play a critical role in cellular and humoral immune responses.

Evaluation of changing trend in depression, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts among adolescents with asthma and identification of associated factors: 11-year national data analysis in 788,411 participants.

OBJECTIVES: We identified associated factors for depression and suicidality in adolescents with asthma. METHODS: We obtained data from the annual Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Surveys, completed from 2007 to 2017, as a stratified, multistage, clustered sample. Using self-reported questionnaires, students provided yes-or-no answers to questions addressing doctor-diagnosed asthma and self-experienced depression and suicidality. Associated factors for depression and suicidality were tested by logistic regression models after controlling for potential confounding factors. A total of 788,411 adolescents completed the survey. RESULTS: The prevalence of asthma was similar every year during the survey with 8.9% overall rate. Among them, the prevalence of depression (45.8-29.9%), suicidal ideation (28.6-15.5%), and suicide attempts (9.3-3.9%) decreased. Participants with asthma perceived themselves as unhealthier and unhappier, had more stress, sleep dissatisfaction, depression, suicidal ideation and suicide attempts than did subjects without asthma. In the multivariate model, perception of stress was most strongly associated with depression (adjusted Odds ratio: 4.78, 95% confidence intervals; 4.17-5.06) and suicide attempts (2.51; 1.67-2.93), whereas, perceived unhappiness was most strongly associated with suicidal ideation (4.81; 3.87-5.46) among adolescents with asthma. Asthma itself was also associated with depression, suicidal ideation and suicide attempts (1.12; 1.09-1.22, 1.18; 1.07-1.24, and 1.15; 1.04-1.19, respectively). CONCLUSION: Although the prevalence of asthma was similar every year, the prevalence of depression and suicidality among adolescents with asthma decreased. Nevertheless, clinical physicians should pay more attention to screen for depression and suicidality among adolescents with asthma, especially having associated factors.

Influencing Factors for Influenza Vaccination among South Korean Adolescents with Asthma Based on a Nationwide Cross-Sectional Study.

BACKGROUND: Influenza viral infection is a major public health problem with significant morbidity and mortality.Asthma is a risk factor for developing serious complications related to influenza infection. OBJECTIVE: We explored factors associated with influenza vaccination coverage among adolescents with asthma. METHODS: Data were obtained from 62,276 participants in the 13th Korean Youth Risk Behavior Web-Based Survey (KYRBS) conducted in 2017. KYRBS data were obtained from a stratified, multistage, clustered sample. We used multiple logistic regression analyses to identify variables potentially related to influenza vaccination in adolescents with asthma. RESULTS: The proportion of asthma was 8.8%, and the influenza vaccination rate overall was 37.9%. It was 41.8% in the asthma group and 37.5% in the nonasthma group (p < 0.001). After regression, male sex (odds ratio (OR) = 1.45; 95% CI 1.35-1.55), a high socioeconomic status (OR = 1.12; 95% CI 1.05-1.19), residence at an orphanage (OR = 1.93; 95% CI 1.38-2.29), regular breakfast consumption (OR = 1.09; 95% CI 1.02-1.17), and subjective good health (OR = 2.39; 95% CI 1.69-3.39) were associated with increased influenza vaccination, whereas current smoking (OR = 0.87; 95% CI 0.67-0.96) and a depressive mood (OR = 0.77; 95% CI 0.64-0.95) were inversely associated in adolescents with asthma. CONCLUSION: It is important to improve influenza vaccination in adolescents with asthma, especially females, those with a low socioeconomic status, independent residents, breakfast skippers, current smokers, and those who consider themselves unhealthy and have depressive moods.

Association of atopic dermatitis with suicide risk among 788,411 adolescents: A Korean cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is known to negatively influence the mental health of patients. However, only a few studies have explored the influencing factors for psychiatric problems among adolescents with AD. OBJECTIVE: To assess the association of AD and suicidal behaviors among adolescents by analyzing data from the 3rd through the 13th annual Korean Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Surveys (completed from 2007 to 2017). METHODS: Survey data were obtained from a stratified, multistage, clustered sample. Students self-reported AD if they had received a diagnosis of AD by a physician. Influencing factors for suicidal behaviors were tested by logistic regression models. RESULTS: A total of 788,411 adolescents completed the survey. The proportion of participants with AD was 22.2%. Those reporting suicide ideation and suicide attempts were 19.0%, and 4.5%, respectively. Compared with adolescents without AD, those with AD were more likely to be female, to skip breakfast less frequently, to exercise less frequently, to drink less alcohol, and to not be current smokers and were statistically significantly more likely to have negative mental health states. In the multivariable model, perceived unhappiness and suicidal ideation were the strongest influencing factors for suicidal ideation (adjusted odds ratio, 4.90; 95% CI, 4.31-5.57) and for suicidal attempts (adjusted odds ratio, 48.01; 95% CI, 42.69-53.09), respectively. CONCLUSION: Adolescents with AD had a meaningful prevalence of suicidal behaviors. Although further research is needed to clarify this association, adolescents with AD with influencing factors for negative mental health state may need intervention from practitioners who use a multidisciplinary team approach to prevent suicide.

Low-mass-ion discriminant equation: a new concept for colorectal cancer screening.

Blood metabolites can be detected as low-mass ions (LMIs) by mass spectrometry (MS). These LMIs may reflect the pathological changes in metabolism that occur as part of a disease state, such as cancer. We constructed a LMI discriminant equation (LOME) to investigate whether systematic LMI profiling might be applied to cancer screening. LMI information including m/z and mass peak intensity was obtained by five independent MALDI-MS analyses, using 1,127 sera collected from healthy individuals and cancer patients with colorectal cancer (CRC), breast cancer (BRC), gastric cancer (GC) and other types of cancer. Using a two-stage principal component analysis to determine weighting factors for individual LMIs and a two-stage LMI selection procedure, we selected a total of 104 and 23 major LMIs by the LOME algorithms for separating CRC from control and rest of cancer samples, respectively. CRC LOME demonstrated excellent discriminating power in a validation set (sensitivity/specificity: 93.21%/96.47%). Furthermore, in a fecal occult blood test (FOBT) of available validation samples, the discriminating power of CRC LOME was much stronger (sensitivity/specificity: 94.79%/97.96%) than that of the FOBT (sensitivity/specificity: 50.00%/100.0%), which is the standard CRC screening tool. The robust discriminating power of the LOME scheme was reconfirmed in screens for BRC (sensitivity/specificity: 92.45%/96.57%) and GC (sensitivity/specificity: 93.18%/98.85%). Our study demonstrates that LOMEs might be powerful noninvasive diagnostic tools with high sensitivity/specificity in cancer screening. The use of LOMEs could potentially enable screening for multiple diseases (including different types of cancer) from a single sampling of LMI information.

Iodine status in Korean preschool children as determined by urinary iodine excretion.

PURPOSE: Iodine is a trace element of thyroid hormones. Excessive or insufficient iodine intake is associated with various thyroid diseases. Urinary iodine (UI) is a sensitive indicator and a recommended barometer of population iodine intake. In Korea, there has been no available data regarding iodine intake in preschool children. We investigated the iodine intake status of Korean preschool children through examination of their UI. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was performed in 611 healthy preschool children (302 from Seoul and 309 from Masan), aged from 2 to 7 in 2010. UI concentration was measured by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. RESULTS: The median UI concentration was 438.8 µg/L. Insufficient iodine intakes (<100 µg/L) were seen in 24 children (3.9%), and excessive iodine ingestion (>300 µg/L) was found in 406 children (66.4%). There were no significant differences in UI between different sexes and ages. Additionally, the median UI concentration was higher in children from Seoul (512.2 µg/L) than that in children from Masan (362.4 µg/L, P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: About two-thirds of Korean preschool children were in the state of excessive iodine intake, and 3.9% of children showed insufficient iodine intake. Preventive measures and follow-up for iodine intake in preschool children are needed.

Decreased cellular levels of palmitic amide are linked to 5-fluorouracil resistance in human colon cancer cells.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The aim of this study was to investigate whether profiling metabolic compounds in human colon cancer cells with induced 5-florouracil resistance enables identification of predictive biomarkers for 5-florouracil resistance. METHODOLOGY: 5-florouracil resistant and parental cells were extracted using methanol/chloroform solution, and analyzed by MALDI-TOF. Principal components analysis and discriminant analysis was performed to select low-mass ions with strong discriminating power between 5-florouracil resistant and parental cells. The correlation between the intensities of low-mass ions and intrinsic 5-florouracil resistance in 11 colon cancer cells was analyzed using the Spearman rank coefficient. RESULTS: Eleven low-mass ions had strong discrimi-nating power between 5-florouracil-resistant and parental cells. Of these, the intensity of a low-mass ion with 256.29 m/z was negatively correlated with intrinsic 5-florouracil resistance in 11 colon cancer cells (r = -0.6545, P = 0.0338). By searching the H+ adduct with 0.05 m/z tolerance in the Human Metabolome Database, a low-mass ion of 256.29 m/z was identified as palmitic amide. Interestingly, extracellular treatment with palmitic amide reduced 5-florouracil resistance and invasiveness in 5-florouracil-resistant cells. CONCLUSIONS: Palmitic amide showed potential not only as a predictor of 5-florouracil resistance, but also for reduction of 5-florouracil resistance in colon cancer cells.

Analysis of the anatomical characteristics of the pelvis in Koreans to aid in development of a NOTES platform.

Transanal endoscopic microsurgery (TEM) is a minimally invasive technique affording full-thickness resection of rectal tumors and can also be used as a platform for transrectal access to the peritoneal cavity for NOTES (natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery) procedures. The authors investigated the anatomical characteristics of the pelvis in Koreans to develop an ergonomically designed NOTES platform. A total of 256 patients (156 men and 100 women) who underwent pelvic magnetic resonance imaging for evaluating rectal neoplasms were enrolled for analysis. The authors retrospectively reviewed and calculated anatomical lengths and angles on pelvic magnetic resonance images and analyzed differences in pelvic anatomy in terms of patient gender, age, and body mass index. Various angulations were noted from the anal canal to the sacral promontory, attributable to the shape of the sacral bone. Minimal difference in pelvic anatomy was evident between men and women. In conclusions, the authors expect that their data will be useful in the development of ergonomic TEM-NOTES platforms.

The cytoprotective effect of butin against oxidative stress is mediated by the up-regulation of manganese superoxide dismutase expression through a PI3K/Akt/Nrf2-dependent pathway.

Butin (7,3',4'-trihydroxydihydroflavone), a flavonoid with antioxidant activity, was recently reported to protect cells against H2O2-induced apoptosis, oxidative DNA damage and oxidative mitochondrial dysfunction. The objective of the present study was to elucidate the mechanism by which butin protects mitochondria. The antioxidant function of manganese superoxide dismutase (Mn SOD) is important in preventing oxidative stress. While exposure to H2O2 reduced the expression of Mn SOD in Chinese hamster lung fibroblast (V79-4), the addition of butin restored Mn SOD expression at both the mRNA and protein levels, resulting in increased Mn SOD activity. The transcription factor NF-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) regulates Mn SOD gene expression by binding to the antioxidant responsive element (ARE). Butin enhanced the nuclear translocation and ARE-binding activity of Nrf2, which was decreased by H2O2. The siRNA-mediated knockdown of Nrf2 attenuated butin-induced Mn SOD expression and activity. Further, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (PKB, Akt) contributed to the ARE-driven Mn SOD expression. Butin activated PI3K/Akt and exposure to either LY294002 (a PI3K inhibitor), Akt inhibitor IV (an Akt-specific inhibitor), or Akt siRNA suppressed the butin-induced activation of Nrf2, resulting in decreased Mn SOD expression and activity. Finally, the cytoprotective effect of butin against H2O2-induced cell damage was suppressed by the siRNA-mediated knockdown of Mn SOD. These studies demonstrate that butin attenuates oxidative stress by activating Nrf2-mediated Mn SOD induction via the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.

Genetic analysis of dystrophin gene for affected male and female carriers with Duchenne/Becker muscular dystrophy in Korea.

Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy (DMD/BMD) are X-linked recessive disorders caused by mutation in dystrophin gene. We analyzed the results of a genetic test in 29 DMD/BMD patients, their six female relatives, and two myopathic female patients in Korea. As the methods developed, we applied different procedures for dystrophin gene analysis; initially, multiplex polymerase chain reaction was used, followed by multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA). Additionally, we used direct DNA sequencing for some patients who had negative results using the above methods. The overall mutation detection rate was 72.4% (21/29) in DMD/BMD patients, identifying deletions in 58.6% (17/29). Most of the deletions were confined to the central hot spot region between exons 44 and 55 (52.9%, 7/19). The percentage of deletions and duplications revealed by MLPA was 45.5% (5/11) and 27.2% (3/11), respectively. Using the MLPA method, we detected mutations confirming their carrier status in all female relatives and symptomatic female patients. In one patient in whom MLPA revealed a single exon deletion of the dystrophin gene, subsequent DNA sequencing analysis identified a novel nonsense mutation (c.4558G > T; Gln1520X). The MLPA assay is a useful quantitative method for detecting mutation in asymptomatic or symptomatic carriers as well as DMD/BMD patients.

Different Metabolomic and Proteomic Profiles of Cerebrospinal Fluid in Ventricular and Lumbar Compartments in Relation to Leptomeningeal Metastases.

The different molecular profiles of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) between ventricular and lumbar compartments remain elusive, especially in the context of leptomeningeal metastasis (LM), which affects CSF flow. We evaluated CSF metabolomic and proteomic profiles based on the compartments and the diagnosis of spinal LM, proved by MRI from 20 paired ventricular and lumbar CSF samples of LM patients, including 12 spinal LM (+) samples. In metabolome analysis, 9512 low-mass ions (LMIs) were identified-7 LMIs were abundant in all lumbar versus paired ventricular CSF samples, and 3 LMIs were significantly abundant in all ventricular CSF. In comparisons between spinal LM (+) CSF and LM (-) CSF, 105 LMIs were discriminative for spinal LM (+) CSF. In proteome analysis, a total of 1536 proteins were measured. A total of 18 proteins, including complement C3, were more highly expressed in all lumbar CSF, compared with paired ventricular CSF, while 82 proteins, including coagulation factor V, were higher in the ventricular CSF. Of 37 discriminative proteins, including uteroglobin and complement component C8 gamma chain, 4 were higher in all spinal LM (+) CSF versus spinal LM (-) CSF. We further evaluated metabolic pathways associated with these discriminative proteins using the Gene Ontology database. We found that 16/17 spinal LM (+) pathways, including complement activation, were associated with lumbar discriminative proteins, whereas only 2 pathways were associated with ventricular-discriminative proteins. In conclusion, we determined that metabolite and protein profiles differed between paired lumbar and ventricular CSF samples. The protein profiles of spinal LM (+) CSF showed more similarity with the lumbar CSF than the ventricular CSF. Thus, we suggest that CSF LMIs and proteins could reflect LM disease activity and that LM-associated differences in CSF are more likely to be present in the lumbar compartment.

Inhibition of matrix metalloproteinase-1 induced by oxidative stress in human keratinocytes by mangiferin isolated from Anemarrhena asphodeloides.

Oxidative stress is related to the synthesis of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), which cause skin aging. The protective effects of mangiferin derived from Anemarrhena asphodeloides were investigated against hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2))-induced damage using human skin keratinocyte (HaCaT) cells. Mangiferin was found to scavenge intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), superoxide radicals, and hydroxyl radicals. ROS regulate MMPs gene expression and activation of proenzymes. Mangiferin inhibited H(2)O(2)-induced MMP-1 gene expression and protein levels as well as its activity. Moreover, it abrogated mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase (MEK)-extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway and stress-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (SEK)-c-JUN N-terminal kinase (JNK) pathway, which are induced by H(2)O(2) treatment. And, it inhibited DNA binding activity of activator protein-1 (AP-1), a transcription factor of MMP-1 and downstream of ERK and JNK. Finally, it protected the human skin keratinocytes from H(2)O(2)-induced cell death. Taken together, these results indicate that mangiferin attenuated H(2)O(2)-induced MMP-1 activation via inhibition of ERK and JNK pathway and AP-1.

Thyroid cysts treated with ethanol ablation can mimic malignancy during sonographic follow-up.

PURPOSE: We aimed to assess long-term ultrasound (US) findings after US-guided percutaneous ethanol ablation (EA) in benign thyroid cysts and predominantly cystic thyroid nodules. METHODS: Forty patients with thyroid cysts (n = 14) and predominantly cystic thyroid nodules (n = 26) underwent long-term US follow-up (range, 12-36 months; mean, 18.2 months) after EA. US images of 40 post-EA nodules were retrospectively investigated to study the reduction in nodule volume and detailed US appearance. RESULTS: On follow-up US, post-EA nodules showed the following features: Marked hypoechogenicity (n = 28), spiculated margin (n = 7), microcalcifications (n = 6), taller-than-wide shape (n = 2), centrally predominant vascularity (n = 3), no vascularity (n = 31), mixed vascularity (n = 3), and peripheral vascularity (n = 3). Post-EA nodules were diagnosed by US as benign (n = 3), probably benign (n = 2), borderline (n = 5), possibly malignant (n = 20), and malignant (n = 10). No statistical difference in the incidence of malignant US findings was observed between thyroid cysts and predominantly cystic thyroid nodules (p > 0.05, Fisher's exact test). CONCLUSIONS: Long-term follow-up US after successful EA of benign thyroid cysts and predominantly cystic thyroid nodules revealed a high incidence of findings that are usually associated with malignancy. Recognizing these consequences of the procedure would help avoid unnecessary FNA on post-EA nodules.

Plasma complement C7 as a target in non-small cell lung cancer patients to implement 3P medicine strategies.

BACKGROUND: Programmed cell death-1 (PD-1)/programmed cell death ligand-1 (PD-L1) immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) significantly affect outcomes in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. However, differences in reactions toward PD-1/PD-L1 ICI among patients impose inefficient treatment. Therefore, developing a reliable biomarker to predict PD-1/PD-L1 ICI reaction is highly necessary for predictive, preventive, and personalized (3P) medicine. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We recruited 63 patients from the National Cancer Center (NCC) and classified them into the training and validation sets. Next, 99 patients were recruited for inclusion into the external validation set at the Samsung Medical Center (SMC). Proteomic analysis enabled us to identify plasma C7 levels, which were significantly different among groups classified by their overall response to the RECIST V 1.1-based assessment. Analytical performance was evaluated to predict the PD-1/PD-L1 ICI response for each type of immunotherapy, and NSCLC histology was evaluated by determining the C7 levels via ELISA. RESULTS: Plasma C7 levels were significantly different between patients with and without clinical benefits (PFS ≥ 6 months). Among the groups sorted by histology and PD-1/PD-L1 immunotherapy type, only the predicted accuracy for pembrolizumab-treated patients from both NCC and SMC was greater than 73%. In patients treated with pembrolizumab, C7 levels were superior to those of the companion diagnostics 22C3 (70.3%) and SP263 (62.1%). Moreover, for pembrolizumab-treated patients for whom the PD-L1 tumor proportion score (TPS) was < 50%, the predictive accuracy of C7 was nearly 20% higher than that of 22C3 and SP263. CONCLUSION: Evaluation of plasma C7 levels shows an accurate prediction of NSCLC patient reactions on pembrolizumab. It demonstrates plasma C7 is an alternative and supportive biomarker to overcome the predictive limitation of previous 22C3 and SP263. Thus, it is clear that clinical use of plasma C7 allows predictive diagnosis on lung cancer patients who have not been successfully treated with current CDx and targeted prevention on metastatic diseases in secondary care caused by a misdiagnosis of current CDx. Reduction of patients' financial burden and increased efficacy of cancer treatment would also enable prediction, prevention, and personalization of medical service on NSCLC patients. In other words, plasma C7 provides efficient medical service and an optimized medical economy followed which finally promotes the prosperity of 3P medicine. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13167-021-00266-x.

Influenza-associated Neurologic Complications in Hospitalized Pediatric Patients: A Multicenter Retrospective Study in Republic of Korea.

BACKGROUND: The rates of influenza-associated neurologic complications are variable among studies, and a difference has been observed between the Western and Asian countries. The study aims to evaluate the frequency and characteristics of influenza-associated neurologic complications. METHODS: We performed a retrospective review of hospitalized cases of influenza infection from October 2010 to April 2017 from 3 referral hospitals. RESULTS: A total of 1988 influenza cases were identified. Influenza-associated neurologic complications were 161 cases (8.1%); influenza virus A was detected in 113 (70.2%) cases, B in 47 (29.2%) cases and both A and B in 1 case (0.6%). Twenty-four patients (15%) had underlying neurologic diseases. The most common diagnosis was a simple febrile convulsion (44%), followed by complex febrile convulsion (29%), fever-provoked seizure under pre-existing neurologic disease or afebrile seizure (14%), encephalopathy/encephalitis (8%) and meningitis (5%). Most of the patients fully recovered (96%). Three patients (1.9%) died of myocarditis (n = 1), encephalopathy (n = 1), and simultaneous encephalitis and myocarditis (n = 1). Pre-existing neurologic disease, age groups of 6 months to 6 years and 6-12 years were a risk factor of influenza-associated neurologic complications with an adjusted odds ratio of 5.41 (95% confidence interval [CI] 3.23-9.06, P < 0.001), 12.99 (95% CI 1.77-95.19, P = 0.01) and 8.54 (95% CI 1.14-64.79, P = 0.04), respectively. There was no association between neuropsychiatric adverse events and oseltamivir prescription (P = 0.17). CONCLUSIONS: Influenza-associated neurologic complications are not uncommon, and most patients fully recovered. The frequency of influenza-associated neurologic complications in Korean children was not significantly different from that of children in Western countries.

Experimental Assessment of Leptomeningeal Metastasis Diagnosis in Medulloblastoma Using Cerebrospinal Fluid Metabolomic Profiles.

Diagnosing leptomeningeal metastasis (LM) in medulloblastoma is currently based on positive cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) cytology or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) finding. However, the relevance of discordant results has not been established. We evaluated the diagnostic potential of CSF metabolomic profiles in the medulloblastoma LM assessment. A total of 83 CSF samples from medulloblastoma patients with documented MRI and CSF cytology results at the time of sampling for LM underwent low-mass ions (LMIs) analysis using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. Discriminating LMIs were selected by a summed sensitivity and specificity (>160%) and LMI discriminant equation (LOME) algorithms, evaluated by measuring diagnostic accuracy for verifying LM groups of different MRI/cytology results. Diagnostic accuracy of LM in medulloblastoma was 0.722 for cytology and 0.889 for MRI. Among 6572 LMIs identified in all sample, we identified 27 discriminative LMIs differentiating MRI (+)/cytology (+) from MRI (-)/cytology (-). Using LMI discriminant equation (LOME) analysis, we selected 9 LMIs with a sensitivity of 100% and a specificity of 93.6% for differentiating MRI (+)/cytology (+) from MRI (-)/cytology (-). Another LOME of 20 LMIs significantly differentiated sampling time relative to treatment (p = 0.007) and the presence or absence of LM-related symptoms (p = 0.03) in the MRI (+)/cytology (-) group. CSF metabolomics of medulloblastoma patients revealed significantly different profiles among LM diagnosed with different test results. We suggest that LM patients could be screened by appropriately selected LOME-generated LMIs to support LM diagnosis by either MRI or cytology alone.

Analysis of bacterial and fungal communities in Japanese- and Chinese-fermented soybean pastes using nested PCR-DGGE.

The microbial diversity of Japanese- and Chinese-fermented soybean pastes was investigated using nested PCR-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE). Five Japanese-fermented soybean paste samples and three Chinese-fermented soybean paste samples were analyzed for bacteria and fungi. Extracted DNA was used as a template for PCR to amplify 16S rRNA and 18S rRNA genes. The nearly complete 16S rRNA and 18S rRNA genes were amplified using universal primers, and the resulting products were subsequently used as a template in a nested PCR to obtain suitable fragments for DGGE. Tetragenococcus halophilus and Staphylococcus gallinarum were found to dominate the bacterial microbiota in Japanese samples, whereas Bacillus sp. was detected as the predominant species in Chinese samples. DGGE analysis of fungi in soybean pastes determined the presence of Aspergillus oryzae and Zygosaccharomyces rouxii in most of the Chinese and Japanese samples. Some differences were observed in the bacterial diversity of Japanese- and Chinese-fermented soybean pastes.

Identification and distribution of Bacillus species in doenjang by whole-cell protein patterns and 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis.

Many bacteria are involved in fermentation of doenjang and Bacillus species are known to perform significant roles. Although the SDS-PAGE technique has been frequently used for classification and identification of bacteria in various samples, there has been no investigation of the microbial diversity in doenjang. This study aims to investigate the identification and distribution of dominant Bacillus species in doenjang using SDS-PAGE profiles of whole cell proteins and 16S rDNA sequencing. SDS-PAGE of whole cell proteins of the reference Bacillus strains yielded differential banding patterns that could be considered to be highly specific fingerprints. Bacterial strains isolated from doenjang samples were grouped using whole cell protein patterns, which were confirmed by the analysis of 16S rDNA sequencing. B. subtilis was found to be the most dominant strain in most of the samples, and B. licheniformis and B. amyloliquefaciens were less frequently detected. The results obtained in this study showed that a combined identification method, SDS-PAGE patterns of whole cell proteins and subsequent 16S rDNA sequence analysis, could successfully identify Bacillus species isolated from doenjang.

Health-related behaviors and mental health states of South Korean adolescents with atopic dermatitis.

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common chronic skin disease with a negative influence on adolescent mental health state. We aimed to identify the influencing factors for mental health in adolescents with AD. We used data from the 13th Korean Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey (KYRBS) conducted in 2017. KYRBS data were obtained from a stratified, multistage, clustered sample. Participants responded to the question "have you ever been diagnosed with AD by a doctor?" and several yes/no questions about stress, depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation. Among 62 276 participants, the proportion of adolescents with AD was 25.0%. Compared with adolescents without AD, those with AD were significantly more likely to experience stress, depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation (P < 0.001) at rates of 59.1%, 27.8% and 13.9%, respectively. In the multivariate logistic regression model, subjective unhappiness was most strongly associated with stress in subjects with AD (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 7.34; 95% confidence interval [CI], 5.87-9.18), while depression (aOR, 9.83; 95% CI, 7.85-11.32) and suicidal ideation (aOR, 5.70; 95% CI, 5.01-6.48) were reciprocally the most important risk factors in adolescents with AD. AD in adolescents is associated with a higher prevalence of stress, depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation. It is important for pediatricians to watch for these risks and to screen for suicidality in adolescents with AD.

Evaluation of a possible association between allergic rhinitis and depression, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts among adolescents based on a nationwide cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE: We assessed associated factors for depression and suicidality among adolescents with allergic rhinitis (AR) by analyzing data from annual Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Surveys (KYRBSs) completed from 2007 to 2017. METHODS: Data from the KYRBS were obtained from a stratified, multistage, clustered sample. Using self-reported questionnaires, students provided yes-or-no answers to questions addressing their doctor-diagnosed AR and self-experienced depression, suicidal ideation and suicide attempts. Associated factors for depression and suicidality were identified by logistic regression models after controlling for potential confounding factors. A total of 818,684 adolescents were targeted, and 788,411 adolescents completed the survey. RESULTS: An AR diagnosis was reported in 30.8% of respondents. Among respondents with AR, 34.5%, 18.4%, and 4.2% reported depression, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts, respectively. Adolescents with AR were significantly more likely to have negative mental health status, including suicidality than adolescents without AR. After multiple logistic regression analyses, perception of stress was most strongly associated with depression and suicidal ideation (adjusted odds ratio: 5.16 [95% confidence interval; 5.04-5.28], 4.81 [4.65-4.98], respectively). For suicide attempts, subjective unhappiness was most strongly associated (3.63 [3.47-3.79]) among adolescents with AR. Presence of AR itself was also associated with depression and suicidality (1.10 [1.08-1.11], 1.08 [1.06-1.10], 1.05 [1.01-1.08], respectively). CONCLUSION: Adolescents with AR had significantly greater prevalence of depression and suicidality. Multidisciplinary team approaches, including psychological support, may be needed to prevent suicide among adolescents with AR, especially those with identifiable risk factors.