Bioactivity Evaluation of a Novel Formulated Curcumin.

Curcumin has been used as a traditional medicine and/or functional food in several cultures because of its health benefits including anticancer properties. However, poor oral bioavailability of curcumin has limited its oral usage as a food supplement and medical food. Here we formulated curcumin pellets using a solid dispersion technique.

Using the Pleiotropic Characteristics of Curcumin to Validate the Potential Application of a Novel Gene Expression Screening Platform.

Curcumin is a polyphenol derived from that exhibits anticancer and anti-inflammatory properties. The consumption of foods at supernutritional levels to obtain health benefits may paradoxically result in negative health outcomes. In the present study, multiple targeting characteristics of curcumin were analyzed using our gene expression screening system, which utilized the gene expression signatures of curcumin from human hepatocellular carcinoma and colorectal cancer cells to query gene expression databases and effectively identify the molecular actions of curcumin.

The Incidence of Necrotizing Fasciitis in Taiwan: A Nationwide Population-Based Study.

Background: Little is known about the national population-based incidence rates of necrotizing fasciitis (NF) and related epidemiological profiles in Asian countries. We plastic surgeons always face and treat this complicated disease in the first line at the hospital.

Methods: Using Taiwan's National Health Insurance inpatient claims data from 2005 through 2010, we investigated the national annual incidence rate of NF by sex, age, year, month, beneficiary category, and region.

Endoscopy-Assisted Total Mastectomy Followed by Immediate Pedicled Transverse Rectus Abdominis Musculocutaneous (TRAM) Flap Reconstruction: Preliminary Results of 48 Patients.

Background: Endoscopy-assisted breast surgery performed through minimal axillary and/or periareolar incisions is a viable option for patients with breast cancer. In this study, we report the preliminary results of patients with breast cancer who underwent endoscopy-assisted total mastectomy (EATM) followed immediately by pedicled transverse abdominis musculocutaneous (TRAM) flap reconstruction.

Methods: Patients in this study comprised women with breast cancer who received EATM and pedicled TRAM flap reconstruction.

Temporal patterns of body temperatures in the acute stage of stroke.

Objective: The present study aimed to describe the day-by-day temporal patterns of body temperatures in acute stroke and to delineate the differences in serial daily changes in body temperatures between intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) and cerebral infarct (CI).

Methods: We retrospectively enrolled 90 patients (32 with ICH and 58 with CI), admitted within 12 hours after the onset of stroke. Body temperatures were measured as the tympanic temperatures during the initial 6 days of hospitalization.