Polysaccharide from Hizikia Fusiformis Enhances the Immunomodulatory Activity of Macrophages

Background and Objectives@#Hizikia fusiformis is widely used in oriental health food in Japan, China, and Korea, and is known for its anti-oxidation properties.Materials and Method: In this study, we investigated the anti-inflammatory and immune-modulatory effects and mechanisms of Hizikia fusiformis (H. fusiformis) extracts in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-treated RAW 264.7 cells. RAW 264.7 cells were incubated in the presence of different concentrations of the viscozyme component of H. fusiformis (1, 2, 5, and 10 μg/mL), and changes in expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines (GM-CSF, iNOS, VEGF, and COX-2) were evaluated by real-time PCR and immunoblotting. In addition, the associated signaling pathway including phospho (p)-pNF-κB 65, p-pIkBa, p-p38, and p-p44/42 was also evaluated. @*Results@#The viscozyme component of H. fusiformis downregulated the expression of GM-CSF, iNOS, VEGF, and COX-2 mRNA. The augmented NO and ROS production was decreased by administration of H. fusiformis. The signal intensity of p-pNF-κB 65, p-pIkBa, p-p38, and p-p44/42 protein activated by LPS was ameliorated by administration of the viscozyme fraction in RAW 264.7 cells. @*Conclusion@#These results suggest that H. fusiformis has potential as a therapeutic agent for inflammatory diseases.

Antiallergic Effect of Hizikia fusiformis in an Ovalbumin-Induced Allergic Rhinitis Mouse Model

OBJECTIVES: The extract of Hizikia fusiformis is known to exhibit anticancer, antiatopic and antioxidant activities. We aimed to investigate the extract of H. fusiformis on allergic rhinitis inflammation in a mouse model. METHODS: The 4-week-old BALB/c mice were randomly assigned into four groups: group A, control group (n=9); group B, allergic rhinitis group (n=10); group C (n=10) received 300 mg/kg of H. fusiformis during nasal challenging period; group D (n=10) received 600 mg/kg of H. fusiformis during general sensitization period and 300 mg/kg of H. fusiformis during nasal challenging period. Allergic inflammation was made with ovalbumin (OVA) and alum then challenged intranasally with OVA. H. fusiformis was intraperitoneally administered 3 hours before the OVA administration. Allergic symptom score and the levels of immunoglobulin G1 (IgG1), IgG2a, OVA-specific IgE antibodies, levels of cytokines in the nasal mucosa and in spleen cell culture supernatant, such as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin 4 (IL-4), IL-5, IL-13, and IL-10 were assessed. The percentage of regulatory T cell was analyzed by flow cytometry. Eosinophilic infiltration and goblet cell hyperplasia were also evaluated. RESULTS: H. fusiformis administered groups C and D showed significant inhibitory effects on nasal symptoms, IL-13 mRNA expression and eosinophil infiltration/goblet cell hyperplasia in the nasal tissue; OVA-specific IgE production in serum (P<0.05). In group D, H. fusiformis treatment downregulated IL-4, IL-5, IL-13, TNF-α, and IL-10 cytokine expression in splenocyte culture as well as significantly decreased IgG2a, IgG1 levels in serum compared with group B (P<0.05). However, the expressions of IL-5, interferon-γ and forkhead box P3 mRNA did not change in groups C and D. CONCLUSION: H. fusiformis could induce antiallergic inflammation by suppressing the T-helper type 2 cytokine production (IL-13) locally and systemically, OVA-specific IgE formation, goblet cell hyperplasia, and eosinophilic infiltration in a mouse model of allergic rhinitis. Thus, H. fusiformis could be considered as a potential therapeutic agent in treating allergic rhinitis.

Physicochemical characterization of porcine bone-derived grafting material and comparison with bovine xenografts for dental applications

PURPOSE: The physicochemical properties of a xenograft are very important because they strongly influence the bone regeneration capabilities of the graft material. Even though porcine xenografts have many advantages, only a few porcine xenografts are commercially available, and most of their physicochemical characteristics have yet to be reported. Thus, in this work we aimed to investigate the physicochemical characteristics of a porcine bone grafting material and compare them with those of 2 commercially available bovine xenografts to assess the potential of xenogenic porcine bone graft materials for dental applications. METHODS: We used various characterization techniques, such as scanning electron microscopy, the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller adsorption method, atomic force microscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and others, to compare the physicochemical properties of xenografts of different origins. RESULTS: The porcine bone grafting material had relatively high porosity (78.4%) and a large average specific surface area (SSA; 69.9 m²/g), with high surface roughness (10-point average roughness, 4.47 µm) and sub-100-nm hydroxyapatite crystals on the surface. Moreover, this material presented a significant fraction of sub-100-nm pores, with negligible amounts of residual organic substances. Apart from some minor differences, the overall characteristics of the porcine bone grafting material were very similar to those of one of the bovine bone grafting material. However, many of these morphostructural properties were significantly different from the other bovine bone grafting material, which exhibited relatively smooth surface morphology with a porosity of 62.0% and an average SSA of 0.5 m²/g. CONCLUSIONS: Considering that both bovine bone grafting materials have been successfully used in oral surgery applications in the last few decades, this work shows that the porcine-derived grafting material possesses most of the key physiochemical characteristics required for its application as a highly efficient xenograft material for bone replacement.

Angioedema of the Left Maxillary Area

Surgical Results after Unilateral Laminectomy for the Removal of Spinal Cord Tumors

OBJECTIVE: To reduce the risk of postoperative spinal instability or deformity, unilateral laminectomy (UL) has been recommended to remove spinal space-occupying lesions. The purpose of this study was to determine whether there were any advantages of UL for removal of spinal cord tumors. METHODS: From May 1995 to May 2010, 94 patients with spinal cord tumors, who underwent tumor removal via UL in our institute, were enrolled in this study. Intramedullary spinal cord tumors were excluded. Simple radiographs were obtained for accessing the restoration of the spinal column. Spinal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was also obtained during the follow-up period to evaluate tumor recurrence. RESULTS: There were 51 women and 43 men; their mean age was 47.8 years (range, 9-83 years). The mean follow-up period was 52.6 months (range, 24 month-16 years). The sites of the tumors were cervical in 21 cases, thoracic in 37, lumbar in 33, and sacral in 3. These cases included 85 intradural extramedullary (IDEM) and 9 extradural (ED) lesions. IDEM tumors consisted mainly of neurilemmomas (56.3%) and meningiomas (22.3%).Tumors were totally removed in 80 cases and subtotally removed in 14 cases. Postoperative neurological status was improved in 53 cases, unchanged in 31 cases, and worsened in 10 cases. During follow-up, MRI showed tumor recurrence in 4 patients. Histopathologically, three cases were meningiomas and one case was neurilemmoma. None of the patients showed spinal instability or kyphotic deformity at last follow-up. CONCLUSION: UL is an optimal approach for providing sufficient exposure of spinal cord tumors without development of postoperative spinal instability and regional sagittal imbalance in any location of spinal column. In cases of meningioma, careful long-term follow up is needed due to it's relatively high recurrence rate after removal via UL.

A Comparative Study of Oral and Vaginal Misoprostol Administration in Mid-trimester Pregnancy Termination / 대한산부인과학회잡지

OBJECTIVE: To compare the effectiveness of oral misoprostol with vaginal misoprostol administration in mid-trimester pregnancy termination after pretreatment with serial laminarias tenting. METHODS: This study was made in 50 patients for mid-trimester pregnancy termination at Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Chonbuk National University Hospital from January 1999 through December 2002. Twenty five women received misoprostol orally in a dose of 200 micro gram every hour for 3 doses followed by 400 micro gram every 4 hours after serial laminarias tenting. Twenty five women received misoprostol vaginally in a dose of 400 micro gram every 4 hours after serial laminarias tenting. Side effects of drug, induction to delivery interval, delivery numbers within 24 hours, curettage numbers for retained placenta, and the length of hospital stay were compared. RESULTS: The mean time of induction to delivery interval was significantly shorter in the vaginal group (15.5 +/- 12.7 vs 24.2 +/- 14.3 hours, p<0.01). The length of hospital stay was also shorter in the vaginal group (38.9 +/- 13.1 vs 47.2 +/- 14.5 hours, p<0.01). The number of patients delivered within 24 hours was more in the vaginal group (92 vs 72%, p<0.05). The side effects of misoprostol were slightly more common in the oral group than the vaginal group without statistical significance. CONCLUSION: We suspect that after serial tenting of laminarias, intravaginal misoprostol appears to be more safe and effective than oral misoprostol for mid-trimester termination.

A Clinical Study of Borderline Malignant Tumors of the Ovary / 대한산부인과학회잡지

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the clinical and histopathological features, treatment and prognosis of borderline ovarian tumors (BOT). METHODS: Thirty nine cases of BOT were treated between January 1985 and December 2001 at Maryknoll Hospital. All of BOT were classified in accordance with the WHO criteria for histological typing and clinical staging according to the FIGO system. The clinical records of all patients were reviewed retrospectively. RESULTS: The incidence of BOT was 21.0% (39/186) of epithelial ovarian malignancies and patients with these tumors tended to present at younger age (36.6 years old) than those with invasive carcinoma (53.6 years old). Fourteen patients (35.9%) were nullipara. The most common chief complaint was palpable mass (28.2%). Serous type (17.9%) occurred less frequently than mucinous type (76.9%). The positive ratio of CA 125 was 45%. Stage I was 37 cases (94.8%), stage II, 1 case (2.6%), and stage III, 1 case (2.6%). The mean size of mucinous tumors was larger than that of serous types (18.7 cm vs 10.0 cm). Twenty three (59%) cases were managed by conservative surgery (unilateral salpingo-oophorectomy) and sixteen cases (41%) by extirpative operation. Post-operative adjuvant chemotherapy was given to seven patients (17.9%). Median follow-up period was 30 months. One patient expired in case of mucinous tumor and seven cases lost during follow-up. Overall survival rate was 96.9%. CONCLUSION: Borderline ovarian tumors constitute approximately 21.0% of epithelial ovarian malignancy and occur in younger patients than those with invasive cancer. It is mostly seen serous and mucinous types and most of them are diagnosed at early stage making definite treatment possible.

The Motor Cortex Mapping Using Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation in Normal Subjects

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the characteristics of the motor cortex map for abductor pollicis brevis muscle (APB) using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) in normal subjects. METHOD: Ten adults without neurological disorder were studied. A piece of cloth which marked at 1 cm interval was fixed on the head of the subject. The motor cortex mapping for APB was done with butterfly magnetic stimulator, and then with round magnetic stimulator. RESULTS: The average optimal scalp position for left APB was located on lateral 6.2 cm, anterior 0.1 cm from Cz and that for right APB was located on lateral 6.0 cm, anterior 0.1 cm from Cz when stimulated with butterfly magnetic stimulator. The differences between hemispheres were less than 1 cm in the location of optimal scalp position and less than 10% in excitatory threshold (ET) irrespective of magnetic stimulator. The ipsilateral motor evoked potential (MEP) was not evoked in all subjects. The ET when stimulated with butterfly magnetic stimulator was higher to that when stimulated with round magnetic stimulator. CONCLUSION: We conclude that TMS using butterfly and round magnetic stimulator is useful for the motor cortex mapping.