Improving order-to-antibiotic time by operating an automated dispensing cabinet system in the emergency medical center

Objective@#If empirical antibiotics must be administered, the pharmacy needs to deliver the drug to emergency patients as soon as possible. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of the installation of an automated dispensing cabinet system in an emergency center. @*Methods@#A retrospective study was conducted through the analysis of medical records in an emergency medical center for 12 months before and after the installation of the system. The order-to-antibiotic time and door-to-antibiotic time were collected retrospectively through a system log analysis. For the satisfaction survey, nursing providers who use the dispensing system were administered a survey questionnaire related to the system. @*Results@#This study covered 1,292 prescriptions before and 1,377 after the introduction of the system in the emergency center. It was observed that the average time from the order-to-drug administration decreased (48.7±57.9 vs. 41.1±52.3, P=0.001) after the introduction of the system. The door-to-drug administration time also showed a decrease (293.6±260.2 vs. 267.4±221.1, P=0.006). A satisfaction survey was conducted on 38 users of the system who agreed to participate and respond. The score of the satisfaction survey was 3.63±0.44. The user response showed that they were most satisfied with the prevention of medication errors (4.00±0.62) and system control (4.00±0.57). @*Conclusion@#The automated dispensing cabinet system in an emergency center can shorten the order-to-drug time and door-to-drug time. In addition, it helps to improve the satisfaction and work efficiency of emergency medical workers related to medication dispensation.

Expression of N-terminal truncated desmoglein 3 (Delta NDg3) in epidermis and its role in keratinocyte differentiation

During a search for keratinocyte differentiation-related genes, we obtained a cDNA fragment from the 5'-untranslated region of a previously identified splicing variant of desmoglein 3 (Dg3). This transcript encodes a protein of 282 amino acids, which corresponds to the N-terminal truncated intracellular domain of Dg3 (Delta NDg3). Northern blot analysis detected a 4.6-kb transcript matching the predicted size of Delta NDg3 mRNA, and Western blot analysis with an antibody raised against the Dg3 C-terminus (H-145) detected a 31-kDa protein. Increased Delta NDg3 expression was observed in differentiating keratinocytes by RT-PCR and Western blot analysis, suggesting that Delta NDg3 is indeed a differentiation-related gene product. In immunohistochemical studies of normal and pathologic tissues, H-145 antibody detected the protein in the cytoplasm of suprabasal layer cells, whereas an antibody directed against the N-terminal region of Dg3 (AF1720) reacted with a membrane protein in the basal layer. In addition, Delta NDg3 transcript and protein were upregulated in psoriatic epidermis, and protein expression appeared to increase in epidermal tumors including Bowen's disease and squamous cell carcinoma. Moreover, overexpression of Delta NDg3 led to increased migration and weakening of cell adhesion. These results suggest that Delta NDg3 have a role in keratinocyte differentiation, and that may be related with tumorigenesis of epithelial origin.

C-Terminal Serine Rich Region of IKK-beta Interacts with Bfl-1, a Homologue of Bcl-2 / 대한진단검사의학회지

BACKGROUND: Bcl-2 family proteins play a central role in regulating apoptosis. In human, over 20 members of this family have been identified to date. Bfl-1, a member of the Bcl-2 family, has been known to retard apoptosis in various cell lines. However, the function of Bfl-1 remains unclear. METHODS: In order to investigate the Bfl-1 function, we employed yeast two-hybrid system to identify the proteins which are capable of interacting with Bfl-1. The interaction of inhibitor kappaB kinase-beta (IKK-beta) and Bfl-1 was confirmed using glutathione S-transferase pull down assays. To determine which regions of IKK-beta were required for interaction with Bfl-1, we constructed 12 deletion mutants of IKK-beta and 5 deletion mutants of Bfl-1. RESULTS: Bfl-1 interacted with the C-terminal region of IKK-beta which is a subunit of IKK complex, and IKK-beta activity is very important in the NF-kappaB related pathway. In addition, the amino acids 673-745 of IKK-beta were important for Bfl-1 interactions, and amino acids 1-484 of Bfl-1, including Bcl-2 homology domains (BH1, BH2, BH3, BH4), were crucial for IKK-beta interactions. CONCLUSIONS: IKK beta C-terminus contains many serine residues as binding partner of Bfl-1. Our results suggested that Bfl-1 is involved in the NF-kappaB activation through interaction of IKK-beta and Bfl-1. Further studies need to be performed to understand functions of the IKK-beta and Bfl-1 associated with the regulation of the NF-kappaB activation pathway.