Nipple Schwannoma: A Case Report and Literature Review on Nipple Mass / 한국유방암학회지

Schwannomas are slow-growing benign tumors originating from the Schwann cells of the peripheral nerve sheaths. Herein, we report the first documented case of a schwannoma presenting as a painful nipple mass in a 32-year-old woman. This mass initially developed six years ago following a period of breastfeeding. Breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans revealed an iso-intense mass, with an approximate size of 2.2 cm, on a T1-weighted image with internal cystic changes. The mass exhibited heterogeneously delayed enhancement and restricted diffusion.Surgical excision was performed, and the diagnosis of cutaneous plexiform nipple schwannoma was confirmed histopathologically. A literature review revealed that the MRI findings of the nipple mass in our case were consistent with the common features of a schwannoma.

Analysis of Research Status on Disease of Women and Children in North Korea: Literature Analysis Through Academic Journals

Purpose@#Since the division of the Korean Peninsula into South and North Korea in 1948, the gaps in the medical system and the socioeconomic status between these 2 countries has expanded. The purpose of this study was to analyze the distribution of different areas of research, as well as the types of research that was conducted in the North Korean medical journal, ‘Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynecology.’ This study aimed to specifically investigate the medical research status of healthcare in women and children. @*Methods@#This study analyzed a total of 949 papers that were published in the North Korean medical journal, ‘Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynecology.’ Papers from January 2015 to December 2019 were included. For the analysis, the 8th Korean Standard Classification of Diseases, disease name, subspecialty classification, and research classifications were extracted from the papers.Result: Of the 949 papers included in the analysis, 495, 366, and 88 studies were conducted in the major fields of obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, and on breast surgery, respectively. Within the field of obstetrics and gynecology, the most studied subspecialties were maternal and fetal medicine, general gynecology, and gynecologic oncology. To a lesser extent, the following subspecialties were reported: gynecologic endocrinology (6.7%), infertility (6.3%), and urogynecology (approximately 1%). @*Conclusion@#Although North Korean papers differ from those published worldwide (due to government intervention), they are still a useful source of information as they are easier to access than alternative data sources. The results from this study have implications for understanding the distribution of research on different areas of healthcare, as well as the burden of healthcare in North Korea.

Preparation and evaluation of dioscin nanostructured lipid carriers / 中国中药杂志

In this report, a heat and high-pressure homogenization method was used to prepare dioscin nanostructured lipid carriers, and the formulation of dioscin nanostructured lipid carriers was optimized by central composite design-response surface methodology. In vitro evaluation data showed that the preparation of dioscin nanostructured lipid carriers under optimal process by central composite design-response surface methodology had a spherical shape and homogeneous size distribution, with a particle size of (90.9±0.6) nm, a polydispersity index of (0.253±0.07), Zeta potential of (-45.7±0.5) mV, encapsulation efficiency of (90.2±0.5)%, and the drug loading of (23.30±0.10)%. These results clearly indicate that the preparation of dioscin nanostructured lipid carriers made with the heat and high-pressure homogenization method have very good physical and chemical properties, suitable for therapeutic applications.

Clinical Evaluation of Rapid Diagnostic Test Kit Using the Polysaccharide as a Genus-Specific Diagnostic Antigen for Leptospirosis in Korea, Bulgaria, and Argentina

Leptospirosis, a zoonotic disease that is caused by many serovars which are more than 200 in the world, is an emerging worldwide disease. Accurate and rapid diagnostic tests for leptospirosis are a critical step to diagnose the disease. There are some commercial kits available for diagnosis of leptospirosis, but the obscurity of a species- or genus-specific antigen of pathogenic Leptospira interrogans causes the reduced sensitivity and specificity. In this study, the polysaccharide derived from lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of nonpathogenic Leptospira biflexa serovar patoc was prepared, and the antigenicity was confirmed by immunoblot and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The performance of the rapid diagnostic test (RDT) kit using the polysaccharide as a diagnostic antigen was evaluated in Korea, Bulgaria and Argentina. The sensitivity was 93.9%, 100%, and 81.0% and the specificity was 97.9%, 100%, and 95.4% in Korea (which is a rare region occurring with 2 serovars mostly), Bulgaria (epidemic region with 3 serovars chiefly) and Argentina (endemic region with 19 serovars mainly) respectively. These results indicate that this RDT is applicable for global diagnosis of leptospirosis. This rapid and effective diagnosis will be helpful for diagnosis and manage of leptospirosis to use and the polysaccharide of Leptospira may be called as genus specific antigen for diagnosis.

Clinical Evaluation of Rapid Diagnostic Test Kit Using the Polysaccharide as a Genus-Specific Diagnostic Antigen for Leptospirosis in Korea, Bulgaria, and Argentina

Leptospirosis, a zoonotic disease that is caused by many serovars which are more than 200 in the world, is an emerging worldwide disease. Accurate and rapid diagnostic tests for leptospirosis are a critical step to diagnose the disease. There are some commercial kits available for diagnosis of leptospirosis, but the obscurity of a species- or genus-specific antigen of pathogenic Leptospira interrogans causes the reduced sensitivity and specificity. In this study, the polysaccharide derived from lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of nonpathogenic Leptospira biflexa serovar patoc was prepared, and the antigenicity was confirmed by immunoblot and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The performance of the rapid diagnostic test (RDT) kit using the polysaccharide as a diagnostic antigen was evaluated in Korea, Bulgaria and Argentina. The sensitivity was 93.9%, 100%, and 81.0% and the specificity was 97.9%, 100%, and 95.4% in Korea (which is a rare region occurring with 2 serovars mostly), Bulgaria (epidemic region with 3 serovars chiefly) and Argentina (endemic region with 19 serovars mainly) respectively. These results indicate that this RDT is applicable for global diagnosis of leptospirosis. This rapid and effective diagnosis will be helpful for diagnosis and manage of leptospirosis to use and the polysaccharide of Leptospira may be called as genus specific antigen for diagnosis.

Application value of optimal energy imaging technique of monoenergetic dual-energy computed tomography in feeding arteries examination of rectal cancer / 中华消化外科杂志

Objective To explore the application value of optimal energy imaging technique of monoenergetic dual-energy computed tomography (DECT) in feeding arteries examination of rectal cancer.Methods The clinical data of 33 patients with rectal cancer who were admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University from July 2012 to July 2014 were analyzed retrospectively.The polychromatic and monochromatic images of feeding arteries of tumors were reconstructed and evaluated using a subjective image quality score of 5-point scale by 2 observers.The consistency and scores of evaluation were analyzed by the κ test and MannWhitney U test.The CT value of feeding arteries of tumors and hip muscle,image noise and contrast to noise ratio (CNR) were measured and calculated by 2 observers,and were compared by the independent sample t test.The consistency of data between the 2 observers were measured by the intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC).Results Inferior mesenteric arteries were contributor of blood supply of tumors in all the 33 patients,including 4 cases with right inferior rectal artery as contributor of blood supply of tumors,2 cases with bilateral inferior rectal artery.Among patients with abnormal blood vessels,there were 8 patients with left colic artery and sigmoid artery having common trunk,4 patients with left colic artery originated from Inferior mesenteric artery,1 patient with absence of left colic artery.The 0-,1-,2-,3-,4-score polychromatic image quality of feeding arteries of tumors were detected in 0,13,13,5,2 patients and 0,11,14,6,2 patients by 2 observers,respectively.The 0-,1-,2-,3-,4-score monochromatic image quality of feeding arteries of tumors were detected in 0,0,7,7,19 patients and 0,0,6,9,18 patients by 2 observers,respectively.Good interobserver agreement was found for the evaluation of subjective scores (κ =0.864,0.897).The subjective scores of image quality of feeding arteries in the polychromatic images and in the monochromatic images were 1.9 ± 0.9 and 3.4 ± 0.8,with significant difference (Z =-5.21,P ＜ 0.05).The latter was superior to the former.The ICC values of the CT values of feeding arteries of tumor,hip muscle,image noise and CNR were 0.953,0.907,0.839,0.964 and 0.966,0.933,0.952,0.962 from the 2 observers,with a good consistency.The CT values of feeding arteries of tumor,gluteal muscles,image noise and CNR in the polychromatic images and in the monochromatic images were (234 ± 52)HU and (412±83)HU,(57±9)HU and (71 ±15)HU,(21 ±3)HU and (31 ±6)HU,9 ±3 and 11 ±4,respectively,with significant differences (t =-18.65,-4.44,-14.14,-6.55,P ＜ 0.05).The levels of monochromatic images of 33 patients were 51-61 keV,with a median of 55 keV.Conclusion The optimal energy imaging technique of monoenergetic DECT can improve the angiographic quality of feeding arteries in patients with rectal cancer.

Improvement of the Diagnostic Sensitivity of Scrub Typhus Using a Mixture of Recombinant Antigens Derived from Orientia tsutsugamushi Serotypes

Diagnosis of scrub typhus is difficult because its symptoms are very similar to other acute febrile illnesses, such as leptospirosis, murine typhus, and other viral hemorrhagic fevers. To differentiate scrub typhus from other acute febrile diseases, a rapid and reliable serological diagnosis is important. We have developed a chimeric recombinant antigen cr56 and two other recombinant antigens, r21 and kr56, from various serotypes of Orientia tsutsugamushi. They were tested for the detection of antibodies against O. tsutsugamushi in the patient's serum samples using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and dot-blot analyses. As of conventional immunofluorescence assay (IFA), when the mixture of these three recombinant antigens was used, both sensitivity and specificity of the recombinant antigens were increased up to 98% in IgM and IgG at ELISA and dot blotting. Additionally, both sensitivity and specificity by detection of IgM and IgG antibodies at rapid diagnostic test (RDT), using the mixture of three antigens and gold conjugated antibodies, were 99%. Our results suggest the use of mixture of these recombinant antigen proteins in ELISA or RDT is suitable as a diagnostic test for scrub typhus.

Antibacterial activity and mechanism of baicalein / 药学学报

Baicalein (BAI) is an effective bactericide. The antibacterial activity and mechanism experiments were carried out by determining conductivity and content of macromolecules of membrane penetrability, the oxidative respiratory metabolism and protein synthesis changes and the inhibition of DNA topoisomerase activities. Electrical conductivity and the number of large molecules of BAI increased 2.48% and 1.8%, respectively, than that of the control. However, the membrane integrity did not destroyed by BAI directly. With BAI treatment, inhibition rates of activities for SDH and MDH were 56.2% and 57.4%, respectively, demonstrating that BAI could inhibit cell respiratory. After treated with BAI for 20 h, the total soluble content of proteins decreased by 42.83%. Moreover, the activities of DNA topoisomerase I and II were inhibited completely by 0.2 mmol x L(-1) BAI. These results indicated that BAI had obvious antibacterial activity on Staphylococcus aureus. The mechanism is that it could affect bacterial membrane penetrability, inhibit protein synthesis and influence SDH, MDH and DNA topoisomerase I and II activities to exert its antibacterial functions.

CONSTRUCTION OF DELAYED MENARCHE EVALUATION IN KOREAN FEMALE ATHLETES / 体力科学

In the present study we conducted a regression analysis of age at menarche against Maximum Peak Velocity (MPV) of height in non-athlete Korean girls which was derived with the wavelet interpolation method, and composed linear to quartic regression polynomials to obtain the best regression polynomial. We then applied the age at menarche and age at MPV of height of athletes to the best polynomial regression evaluation, and investigated the validity of a delayed menarche evaluation that we constructed. Moreover, the relation between delayed menarche and menstrual status was examined by investigating delayed menarche and menstrual pain in individuals for the first time. The subjects were 124 second year female students at a physical education high school in the suburbs of Pusan, South Korea. A questionnaire survey of these girls was conducted, from which their date of birth, age at menarche, and athletic activities in elementary, junior high, and high school were obtained. In addition, health check records were examined retrospectively, and longitudinal growth data for height were obtained from the 1st year of elementary school (7 years old) until the second year of high school (17 years old). Next, the same survey as above was also done for second year students at a general high school in the same area, as a control group. Three hundred forty-five non-athletes for whom all data were available were selected. As the results, the third order polynomial was found to be most suitable for the regression polynomial. When it was applied to individual female Korean athletes with respect to the regression evaluation, positive scores were obtained for many athletes and an overall delay in menarche was seen. Delayed menarche was not seen, however, in archery athletes. A strong delay in menarche was thus found in Korean athletes. And it was shown that 80% had moderate or greater menstrual pain and a close relation with menstrual abnormalities, the effectiveness of the delayed menarche evaluation was further validated.