RESUMEN
Since the neuroprotective effects of coffee and tobacco on Parkinson’s disease have been reported more than 50 years ago, clinical studies using caffeine and nicotine that were presumed as effective components of coffee and tobacco, respectively, are being actively executed. However, most results failed to show significant differences between the tested and control groups, and some studies revealed contradictory results to the neuroprotection. The reason for this might be that the effective components are something other than nicotine or caffeine, and/or differences to design the clinical trials such as patients recruiting, prescribed amount and period, and analyzed criteria etc. The review summarizes recent results for effect of coffee, tobacco as well as alcohol, representatives of indulgent food, on Parkinson’s disease.
RESUMEN
Mutations in the Leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2 ) gene are the most prevalent cause of familial Parkinson’s disease (PD). The increase in LRRK2 kinase activity observed in the pathogenic G2019S mutation is important for PD development. Several studies have reported that increased LRRK2 kinase activity and treatment with LRRK2 kinase inhibitors decreased and increased ciliogenesis, respectively, in mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) and retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells. In contrast, treatment of SH-SY5Y dopaminergic neuronal cells with PD-causing chemicals increased ciliogenesis. Because these reports were somewhat contradictory, we tested the effect of LRRK2 kinase activity on ciliogenesis in neurons. In SH-SY5Y cells, LRRK2 inhibitor treatment slightly increased ciliogenesis, but serum starvation showed no increase. In rat primary neurons, LRRK2 inhibitor treatment repeatedly showed no significant change. Little difference was observed between primary cortical neurons prepared from wild-type (WT) and G2019S +/- mice. However, a significant increase in ciliogenesis was observed in G2019S +/- compared to WT human fibroblasts, and this pattern was maintained in neural stem cells (NSCs) differentiated from the induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) prepared from the same WT/G2019S fibroblast pair. NSCs differentiated from G2019S and its gene-corrected WT counterpart iPSCs were also used to test ciliogenesis in an isogenic background. The results showed no significant difference between WT and G2019S regardless of kinase inhibitor treatment and B27-deprivation-mimicking serum starvation. These results suggest that LRRK2 kinase activity may be not a direct regulator of ciliogenesis and ciliogenesis varies depending upon the cell type or genetic background.
RESUMEN
Since the neuroprotective effects of coffee and tobacco on Parkinson’s disease have been reported more than 50 years ago, clinical studies using caffeine and nicotine that were presumed as effective components of coffee and tobacco, respectively, are being actively executed. However, most results failed to show significant differences between the tested and control groups, and some studies revealed contradictory results to the neuroprotection. The reason for this might be that the effective components are something other than nicotine or caffeine, and/or differences to design the clinical trials such as patients recruiting, prescribed amount and period, and analyzed criteria etc. The review summarizes recent results for effect of coffee, tobacco as well as alcohol, representatives of indulgent food, on Parkinson’s disease.
RESUMEN
Mutations in the Leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2 ) gene are the most prevalent cause of familial Parkinson’s disease (PD). The increase in LRRK2 kinase activity observed in the pathogenic G2019S mutation is important for PD development. Several studies have reported that increased LRRK2 kinase activity and treatment with LRRK2 kinase inhibitors decreased and increased ciliogenesis, respectively, in mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) and retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells. In contrast, treatment of SH-SY5Y dopaminergic neuronal cells with PD-causing chemicals increased ciliogenesis. Because these reports were somewhat contradictory, we tested the effect of LRRK2 kinase activity on ciliogenesis in neurons. In SH-SY5Y cells, LRRK2 inhibitor treatment slightly increased ciliogenesis, but serum starvation showed no increase. In rat primary neurons, LRRK2 inhibitor treatment repeatedly showed no significant change. Little difference was observed between primary cortical neurons prepared from wild-type (WT) and G2019S +/- mice. However, a significant increase in ciliogenesis was observed in G2019S +/- compared to WT human fibroblasts, and this pattern was maintained in neural stem cells (NSCs) differentiated from the induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) prepared from the same WT/G2019S fibroblast pair. NSCs differentiated from G2019S and its gene-corrected WT counterpart iPSCs were also used to test ciliogenesis in an isogenic background. The results showed no significant difference between WT and G2019S regardless of kinase inhibitor treatment and B27-deprivation-mimicking serum starvation. These results suggest that LRRK2 kinase activity may be not a direct regulator of ciliogenesis and ciliogenesis varies depending upon the cell type or genetic background.
RESUMEN
With the rapid spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a particularly sharp increase in the number of confirmed cases in Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions at the end of February, Korea faced an unprecedented shortage of medical resources, including hospital beds. To cope with this shortage, the government introduced a severity scoring system for patients with COVID-19 and designed a new type of quarantine facility for treating and isolating patients with mild symptoms out of the hospital, namely, the Residential Treatment Center (RTC). A patient with mild symptoms was immediately isolated in the RTC and continuously monitored to detect changes in symptoms. If the symptoms aggravate, the patient was transferred to a hospital. RTCs were designed by creating a quarantine environment in existing lodging facilities capable of accommodating > 100 individuals. The facilities were entirely divided into a clean zone (working area) and contaminated zone (patient zone), separating the space, air, and movement routes, and the staff wore level D personal protective equipment (PPE) in the contaminated zone. The staffs consisted of medical personnel, police officers, soldiers, and operation personnel, and worked in two or three shifts per day.Their duty was mainly to monitor the health conditions of quarantined patients, provide accommodations, and regularly collect specimens to determine if they can be released.For the past two months, RTCs secured approximately 4,000 isolation rooms and treated approximately 3,000 patients with mild symptoms and operated stably without additional spread of the disease in and out of the centers. Based on these experience, we would like to suggest the utilization of RTCs as strategic quarantine facilities in pandemic situations.
RESUMEN
With the rapid spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a particularly sharp increase in the number of confirmed cases in Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions at the end of February, Korea faced an unprecedented shortage of medical resources, including hospital beds. To cope with this shortage, the government introduced a severity scoring system for patients with COVID-19 and designed a new type of quarantine facility for treating and isolating patients with mild symptoms out of the hospital, namely, the Residential Treatment Center (RTC). A patient with mild symptoms was immediately isolated in the RTC and continuously monitored to detect changes in symptoms. If the symptoms aggravate, the patient was transferred to a hospital. RTCs were designed by creating a quarantine environment in existing lodging facilities capable of accommodating > 100 individuals. The facilities were entirely divided into a clean zone (working area) and contaminated zone (patient zone), separating the space, air, and movement routes, and the staff wore level D personal protective equipment (PPE) in the contaminated zone. The staffs consisted of medical personnel, police officers, soldiers, and operation personnel, and worked in two or three shifts per day.Their duty was mainly to monitor the health conditions of quarantined patients, provide accommodations, and regularly collect specimens to determine if they can be released.For the past two months, RTCs secured approximately 4,000 isolation rooms and treated approximately 3,000 patients with mild symptoms and operated stably without additional spread of the disease in and out of the centers. Based on these experience, we would like to suggest the utilization of RTCs as strategic quarantine facilities in pandemic situations.
RESUMEN
PURPOSE: This study aimed to examine the factors related to the bone mineral density (BMD) in male and female adults aged 50 years or older. The factors included were socio-demographics, body mass index (BMI), blood pressure, blood lipids, and health habits. METHODS: As a secondary data analysis, this study used raw data from the 5th Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, and selected 2,295 adults aged over 50 years who participated in the survey and had BMD values. The T-score of the femoral neck was evaluated for BMD. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, ANOVA and multiple regression. RESULTS: The factors influencing the BMD in men were age (β=−.029, p<.001), BMI (β=.100, p<.001), triglyceride (β=−.001, p=.001), and calcium (β=.001, p=.003), and the suggested regression equation explained 25.6% of the variance in BMD (F=16.32, p<.001). The factors related to BMD in women were age (β=−.060, p<.001), BMI (β=.091, p<.001), total cholesterol (β=−.002, p=.028), HDL cholesterol (β=.009, p=.001), and calcium (β=.001, p=.004), and the suggested regression equation explained 47.0% of the variance in BMD (F=61.72, p<.001). CONCLUSION: Based on the findings of this study, the modifiable factors, such as BMI, blood cholesterol, and calcium, should be targeted to improve the BMD in both men and women.