Biological effects of chitosan oligosaccharides on the skin and their clinical applicability.

The skin can be divided into the epidermis and dermis, which each performing distinct functions based on their diverse components, including their respective primary cells, keratinocytes and fibroblasts. The anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, immune-modulating, and anti-cancer effects of chitosan oligosaccharides have been investigated in several studies in the field of biomedical sciences. However, the relationship between skin and skin diseases and chitosan oligosaccharides has received relatively little attention as compared to the application studies such as chemically modification, scaffold, drug carrier, and etc.

End-of-life Care, Comfort Care, and Hospice: Terms and Concepts.

Purpose: This study aims to clarify and standardize the terms and concepts associated with end-of-life care, specifically within the contexts of hospice and palliative care.

Methods: We reviewed references pertaining to hospice and palliative care, including definitions of end-of-life care and comfort care. Two meetings were held with members of the medical terminology committee of the Korean Society for Hospice and Palliative Care, along with experts in the field, to establish a consensus on the terms used.

Effectiveness of Atherectomy and Drug-Coated Balloon Angioplasty in Femoropopliteal Disease: A Comprehensive Outcome Study.

Purpose: Atherectomy has been reintroduced for debulking calcified atheroma to enhance the efficacy of drug-coated balloons (DCBs); however, its efficacy in severe calcification and related outcomes have not been fully evaluated. This study aimed to evaluate the outcomes of atherectomy and DCB angioplasty for treating femoropopliteal occlusive disease (FPOD).

Materials And Methods: From 2014 to July 2022, 85 limbs in 76 patients with FPOD underwent atherectomy with DCB angioplasty.

Comparing clinical outcomes of vitamin K antagonists vs non-vitamin K antagonists in anticoagulant therapy for mesenteric venous thrombosis.

Objective: Non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants have shown similar efficacy and lower bleeding rates than vitamin K antagonists for venous thromboembolism. However, this has not been proven in mesenteric vein thrombosis. This study aimed to compare the clinical outcomes of vitamin K antagonists and non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants.

Mesenchymal stem cell exosomes differentially regulate gene expression of mast cells.

Emerging evidence indicates that the immunomodulatory effect of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) is primarily attributed to the paracrine pathway. As a key paracrine effector, MSC-derived exosomes are small vesicles that play an important role in cell-to-cell communication by carrying bioactive substances. We previously found that exosomes derived from tonsil-derived mesenchymal stem cells (T-MSCs) were able to effectively attenuate inflammatory responses in mast cells.

Popliteal Artery Entrapment Syndrome Presented with Popliteal Artery Pseudoaneurysm: A Case Report.

Popliteal artery entrapment syndrome (PAES) is a rare vascular disorder characterized by the compression of the popliteal artery behind the knee, primarily affecting physically active individuals. This is a case of a 36-year-old man who presented with a 1-week history of sudden-onset left leg pain. Diagnostic evaluation, including physical examination, color duplex ultrasonography, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging, revealed a popliteal artery pseudoaneurysm caused by type 5 PAES.

Age-Related Skin Inflammation in A 2,4-Dintrochlorobenzene-Induced Atopic Dermatitis Mouse Model.

One of the most affected aspects of the aging process is immunity, with age-related immune system decline being responsible for an increase in susceptibility to infectious diseases and cancer risk. On the other hand, the aging process is accompanied with low-grade pro-inflammatory status. This condition involves a persistent rise in cytokine levels that can activate both innate and adaptive immune systems.

Clinical Outcomes of Internal Iliac Artery Interruption during Endovascular Aneurysm Repair.

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the clinical outcomes of internal iliac artery (IIA) interruption during endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) and to identify the risk factors for ischemic complications.

Materials And Methods: Endovascular treatment was performed in 316 patients with aneurysms or pseudoaneurysms of the abdominal aorta or iliac arteries between March 2006 and January 2022. Medical records and radiological imaging studies were retrospectively reviewed.

Significance of collateral circulation in managing persistent sciatic artery: Two case reports.

Persistent sciatic artery (PSA) is a rare congenital anomaly considered an embryologic remnant of the internal iliac artery. Traditionally, the classification systems categorized PSA based on the completeness of PSA and superficial femoral artery (SFA) alongside the origin of PSA. The most common class has been known as type 2a in Pillet-Gauffre classification, meaning complete PSA with incomplete SFA.

Right Gastroepiploic Artery Transposition for a Common Hepatic Artery and Proper Hepatic Artery Aneurysm Repair.

Although hepatic artery aneurysms (HAAs) are uncommon, they are associated with risk of rupture. HAAs >2 cm in diameter require endovascular or open surgical repairs. For HAAs involving the proper hepatic artery or gastroduodenal artery, which is a collateral artery from the superior mesenteric artery, hepatic arterial reconstruction is especially important to avoid ischemic liver injury.

Long-term follow up of surgical management of blood blister-like aneurysms at non-branching sites of the internal carotid artery.

To describe long-term follow-up of 25 patients who presented with subarachnoid hemorrhages due to blood blister-like aneurysms (BBAs) treated with direct clipping or clip reinforcement with or without direct neck repair. Between June 1993 and July 2009, 25 consecutive patients with ruptured BBAs of the supraclinoid internal carotid artery were retrospectively reviewed. The mean age of patients was 39.

Type Ic Endoleak after LifeStream Balloon-Expandable Stent Graft and Zenith Iliac Branch Device Placement.

Considering the recent advancements in endovascular management of aortoiliac aneurysms, the use of an iliac branch device (IBD) to preserve pelvic blood flow and reduce complications caused by embolization of the internal iliac artery (IIA) is recommended by various guidelines. Although the outcomes reported following IBD placement are mainly positive and durable, IBD-specific complications such as a type Ic endoleak and associated reintervention may occur. Moreover, only one IBD device and one type of balloon-expandable bridging stent graft for IIA are currently available on the domestic market.

The impact of ambient air pollution on lung function and respiratory symptoms in elite athletes.

Background: Air pollution has become a significant public health concern. During exercise, many physiological factors are thought to increase the effects of air pollution. Air pollution most affects lung function and respiratory symptoms.

Association between weekend catch-up sleep and the risk of depression among Korean middle-aged adults.

Unlabelled: Determining whether weekend catch-up sleep (CUS) is related to high risk of depression in the general middle-aged population in Korea. This study is a cross-sectional study analyzing data from 2016 to 2017 collected in the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey VII-1, 2; less than 35 years, and more than 65 years were excluded. Interviews on sociodemographic characteristics, mood and sleep-related profiles, and comorbid medical conditions were conducted.

Gender differences in risk factors for the 2 year development of sarcopenia in community-dwelling older adults.

Background: Sarcopenia is an age-related chronic condition that can lead to mobility disabilities. This study aimed to evaluate the risk factors for incident sarcopenia in older Korean adults.

Methods: The Korean Frailty and Aging Cohort Study (KFACS) is a multicentre prospective study with a baseline examination in 2016-2017.

Pathogenic Variants Are Frequent Among the Korean General Population.

Objective: This study aimed to determine the frequency of pathogenic variants among Koreans.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we queried for pathogenic variants in 2 Korean public genome databases: the Korean Reference Genome Database (KRGDB) and the Korean Genome Project (Korea1K). In addition, we screened the 3 most common pathogenic variants (p.

Impact of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease on the risk of sarcopenia: a nationwide multicenter prospective study.

Background And Aims: Despite the association between sarcopenia and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), no study has evaluated the predictive role of NAFLD in sarcopenia. We investigated impact of NAFLD on the risk of low muscle mass (LMM) and low muscle strength (LMS) in a nationwide multicenter study.

Methods: A total of 1595 community-dwelling people aged 70-84 years were followed for 2 years in the Korean Frailty and Aging Cohort Study.

Living and eating alone on depressive symptoms by physical frailty status: A cross-sectional study based on the Korean Frailty and Aging Cohort Study.

Background: General health conditions in older adults, including their mental health, differ greatly based on their physical health conditions rather than age. Thus, we evaluated how lifestyle factors, which included eating and living, affected depressive symptoms in older adults based on their physical frailty status.

Methods: We included older adults aged 70-84 years from the Korean Frailty and Aging Cohort Study (KFACS).

Correlation between neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio and overactive bladder in South Korean women: a community-based, cross-sectional study.

Objective: Many women with overactive bladder (OAB) do not seek medical care despite urinary symptoms. As the diagnosis and treatment of OAB are often late, there is a need to identify undiagnosed OAB patients and start effective treatment. Furthermore, an objective and appropriate screening biomarker for OAB is needed.

Computational Design of Potent D-Peptide Inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2.

Blocking the association between the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike protein receptor-binding domain (RBD) and the human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is an attractive therapeutic approach to prevent the virus from entering human cells. While antibodies and other modalities have been developed to this end, d-amino acid peptides offer unique advantages, including serum stability, low immunogenicity, and low cost of production. Here, we designed potent novel D-peptide inhibitors that mimic the ACE2 α1-binding helix by searching a mirror-image version of the PDB.

Association of plasma FGF21 levels with muscle mass and muscle strength in a national multicentre cohort study: Korean Frailty and Aging Cohort Study.

Background: despite of the beneficial effects of fibroblast growth factor (FGF) 21 in several metabolic diseases, the association of plasma FGF21 with muscle mass and muscle strength is still unclear.

Methods: a total of 386 community-dwelling older adults aged 70-84 years were analysed. Appendicular skeletal muscle mass was measured using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and normalised to the square of height (ASM/ht2).

TMPRSS2 and RNA-Dependent RNA Polymerase Are Effective Targets of Therapeutic Intervention for Treatment of COVID-19 Caused by SARS-CoV-2 Variants (B.1.1.7 and B.1.351).

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a causative agent of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, and the development of therapeutic interventions is urgently needed. So far, monoclonal antibodies and drug repositioning are the main methods for drug development, and this effort was partially successful. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants has been reported in many parts of the world, and the main concern is whether the current vaccines and therapeutics are still effective against these variant viruses.

A phase I study of IMC-001, a PD-L1 blocker, in patients with metastatic or locally advanced solid tumors.

Introduction IMC-001 is a fully human IgG1 monoclonal antibody that binds to human PD-L1 (programmed death-ligand 1). This study evaluated the safety, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of IMC-001 in patients with advanced solid tumors. Materials and Methods This open-labeled phase I study used a standard 3 + 3 dose-escalation design, with doses ranging from 2 to 20 mg/kg.