Comparison of 90‐day case‐fatality after ischemic stroke between two different stroke outcome registries using propensity score matching analysis

Yu, K‐,H.,Hong, K‐,S.,Lee, B&#x2010,C.,Oh, M&#x2010,S.,Cho, Y&#x2010,J.,Koo, J&#x2010,S.,Park, J&#x2010,M.,Bae, H&#x2010,J.,Han, M&#x2010,K.,Ju, Y&#x2010,S.,Kang, D&#x2010,W.,Appelros, P. Blackwell Publishing Ltd 2011 Acta neurologica Scandinavica Vol.123 No.5

<P>Yu K‐H, Hong K‐S, Lee B‐C, Oh M‐S, Cho Y‐J, Koo J‐S, Park J‐M, Bae H‐J, Han M‐K, Ju Y‐S, Kang D‐W, Appelros P, Norrving B, Terent A. Comparison of 90‐day case‐fatality after ischemic stroke between two different stroke outcome registries using propensity score matching analysis. 
Acta Neurol Scand: 2011: 123: 325–331. 
© 2010 John Wiley & Sons A/S.</P><P><B>Background – </B> It has not been clarified whether the disparity in ischemic stroke outcome between populations is caused by ethnic and geographic differences or by variations in case mix. Propensity score matching (PSM) analysis can overcome some analytical problems but is rarely used in stroke outcome research. This study was to compare the ischemic stroke case‐fatality between two PSM cohorts of Sweden and Korea.</P><P><B>Methods – </B> Prognostic variables related to baseline characteristics and stroke care were included in our PSM model. Then, we selected 7675 Swedish and 1220 Korean patients with ischemic stroke from each stroke registers and performed one‐to‐one matching based on propensity scores of each patient.</P><P><B>Results – </B> After PSM, all measured variables were well balanced in 1163 matched subjects, and the 90‐day case‐fatality was identical 6.2% (HR 0.997, 95%CI 0.905–1.099) in Sweden and Korea.</P><P><B>Conclusions – </B> No difference is found in the 90‐day case‐fatality in propensity score‐matched Swedish and Korean patients with ischemic stroke.</P>

Plant‐expressed Fc‐fusion protein tetravalent dengue vaccine with inherent adjuvant properties

Kim, Mi Young,Copland, Alastair,Nayak, Kaustuv,Chandele, Anmol,Ahmed, Muhammad S.,Zhang, Qibo,Diogo, Gil R.,Paul, Matthew J.,Hofmann, Sven,Yang, Moon&#x2010,Sik,Jang, Yong&#x2010,Suk,Ma, Julian K BLACKWELL 2018 PLANT BIOTECHNOLOGY JOURNAL Vol.16 No.7

<P><B>Summary</B></P><P>Dengue is a major global disease requiring improved treatment and prevention strategies. The recently licensed Sanofi Pasteur Dengvaxia vaccine does not protect children under the age of nine, and additional vaccine strategies are thus needed to halt this expanding global epidemic. Here, we employed a molecular engineering approach and plant expression to produce a humanized and highly immunogenic poly‐immunoglobulin G scaffold (PIGS) fused to the consensus dengue envelope protein III domain (cEDIII). The immunogenicity of this IgG Fc receptor‐targeted vaccine candidate was demonstrated in transgenic mice expressing human FcγRI/CD64, by induction of neutralizing antibodies and evidence of cell‐mediated immunity. Furthermore, these molecules were able to prime immune cells from human adenoid/tonsillar tissue <I>ex vivo</I> as evidenced by antigen‐specific CD4<SUP>+</SUP> and CD8<SUP>+</SUP> T‐cell proliferation, IFN‐γ and antibody production. The purified polymeric fraction of dengue PIGS (D‐PIGS) induced stronger immune activation than the monomeric form, suggesting a more efficient interaction with the low‐affinity Fcγ receptors on antigen‐presenting cells. These results show that the plant‐expressed D‐PIGS have the potential for translation towards a safe and easily scalable single antigen‐based tetravalent dengue vaccine.</P>

Serum Adipokine Concentrations in Dogs with Naturally Occurring Pituitary‐Dependent Hyperadrenocorticism

Cho, K.&#x2010,D.,Paek, J.,Kang, J.&#x2010,H.,Chang, D.,Na, K.&#x2010,J.,Yang, M.&#x2010,P. John Wiley and Sons Inc. 2014 Journal of veterinary internal medicine Vol.28 No.2

<P><B>Background</B></P><P>An excess of intra‐abdominal fat is observed frequently in dogs with hyperadrenocorticism (HAC). Adipokine dysregulation is a possible cause of complications related to visceral obesity, but little information is available on adipokine in dogs with naturally occurring HAC.</P><P><B>Objectives</B></P><P>To examine the differences in the circulating adipokines concentrations in overweight dogs with and without pituitary‐dependent HAC (PDH).</P><P><B>Animals</B></P><P>Thirty healthy dogs and 15 client‐owned dogs with PDH.</P><P><B>Methods</B></P><P>Case–controlled observational study, which enrolled 15 overweight dogs diagnosed with PDH and 30 otherwise healthy dogs of similar body condition score. Nine of 15 dogs with PDH were treated with low‐dose trilostane twice daily and reassessed after treatment.</P><P><B>Results</B></P><P>The serum leptin (<I>P</I> < .0001) and insulin (<I>P</I> < .0001) concentrations were significantly higher in the PDH group (leptin, 22.8 ± 8.8 [mean ± SD]; insulin, 9.1 ± 6.1) than the healthy group (leptin, 4.9 ± 3.7; insulin, 1.9 ± 0.9). However, there were no significant differences in the adiponectin, resistin, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‐α, interleukin (IL)‐1β, IL‐6, IL‐10, and IL‐18 levels between the 2 groups. In the PDH group, the serum cortisol concentrations had a linear association with the leptin concentrations, and there were significant decreases in the leptin (<I>P</I> = .0039) and insulin (<I>P</I> = .0039) levels after trilostane treatment. However, the leptin and insulin levels remained higher after trilostane treatment than in healthy control dogs with similar body condition score.</P><P><B>Conclusions and Clinical Importance</B></P><P>Hypercortisolemia in dogs with PDH might upregulate the circulating leptin levels. However, a large population‐based study will be necessary to determine whether the upregulation of leptin is involved directly with the complications caused by HAC.</P>

Estimation of the 6‐digit level allele and haplotype frequencies of HLA‐A, ‐B, and ‐C in Koreans using ambiguity‐solving DNA typing

Jun, J.&#x2010,H.,Hwang, K.,Kim, S.&#x2010,K.,Oh, H.&#x2010,B.,Cho, M.&#x2010,C.,Lee, K.&#x2010,J. Munksgaard 2014 Tissue antigens Vol.84 No.3

<P><B>Abstract</B></P><P>Because Korean society is fast becoming multi‐ethnic, the determination of ambiguous human leukocyte antigen (HLA) types using HLA allele frequencies is becoming less applicable. In this study, we focused on the development of new technical methods to directly resolve the ambiguities arising from HLA genotyping. One hundred and fifty unrelated healthy Korean adults were included in this study. All alleles from each HLA locus were first divided into 2–4 groups, with each group amplified in a single PCR tube (multi‐group‐specific amplification, MGSA). To resolve phase ambiguities, some allele groups were also amplified separately in small group‐specific amplification (SGSA) tubes. In order to then resolve incomplete sequence ambiguities, primers for MGSA and SGSA were initially designed to cover additional exons. If needed, a heterozygous ambiguity resolving primer (HARP) or sequence specific primer (SSP) was also used. When MGSA and SGSA methods were applied, the rate of phase ambiguity was greatly reduced to an average of 6% (1.3% in HLA‐A, 15.7% in ‐B, and 2.0% in ‐C). Additional HARP and SSP methods could resolve all the phase ambiguities. Using our proposed method, we also detected three alleles that have not been previously reported in Korea, <I>C*04:82</I>, <I>C*07:18</I>, and <I>C*08:22</I>, and report 6‐digit level HLA allele and haplotype frequencies among Koreans. In conclusion, the use of MGSA/SGSA for the initial amplification step is a cost‐effective method facilitating timely and accurate reporting, given the continuing increase in the ethnic diversity of the Korean population. The MGSA described here can be applicable to various populations and thus could be shared by the majority of HLA typing laboratories. However, efforts to solve HLA ambiguity should continue, because SGSA, HARPs and SSPs would be specific to a particular population.</P>

Molecular genetic diversity and population structure of a selected core set in garlic and its relatives using novel SSR markers

Zhao, W.&#x2010,G.,Chung, J.&#x2010,W.,Lee, G.&#x2010,A.,Ma, K.&#x2010,H.,Kim, H.&#x2010,H.,Kim, K.&#x2010,T.,Chung, I.&#x2010,M.,Lee, J.&#x2010,K.,Kim, N.&#x2010,S.,Kim, S.&#x2010,M.,Park, Y.&#x2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd 2011 Plant breeding Vol.130 No.1

<P> <I>With 7 figures and 6 tables</I> </P><P><B>Abstract</B></P><P>Garlic is widely consumed for its culinary and medical benefits. Six hundred and thirteen accessions of garlic and its relatives with diverse origin were evaluated for genetic diversity at eight recently novel simple sequence repeat loci in this study. A total of 113 alleles were detected, the average allelic richness was 14.1 alleles per locus. Using a heuristic approach, a core set of 95 accessions was successfully developed, which showed 100% coverage of alleles with minimum redundancy. The model‐based structure analysis here revealed the presence of four subpopulations in the selected core set, which was basically consistent with clustering based on the genetic distance. The analysis of molecular variance based on this core set showed that between‐population component of genetic variance is <15.6% in contrast to 84.4% for the within population component. Overall <I>F</I><SUB>ST</SUB> value was 0.1560, indicating a moderate differentiation among the four groups. These results will provide an effective aid for future allele mining, association genetics, mapping and cloning gene(s), germplasm conservation, and improvement programs.</P>

Serum Adipokine Concentrations in Dogs with Acute Pancreatitis

Paek, J.,Kang, J.&#x2010,H.,Kim, H.&#x2010,S.,Lee, I.,Seo, K.W.,Yang, M.&#x2010,P. John Wiley and Sons Inc. 2014 Journal of veterinary internal medicine Vol.28 No.6

<P><B>Background</B></P><P>Limited information is available about the role of adipokines in the development and progression of acute pancreatitis (AP) in dogs.</P><P><B>Objectives</B></P><P>To determine whether the circulating concentrations of adipokines differed between healthy dogs and dogs with AP, and whether the circulating concentrations differed between AP survivors and AP nonsurvivors.</P><P><B>Animals</B></P><P>Twenty‐eight healthy dogs and 25 client‐owned dogs with AP.</P><P><B>Methods</B></P><P>Prospective observational cohort study of 25 client‐owned dogs with newly diagnosed AP and 28 otherwise healthy dogs with similar body condition scores. The serum concentrations of leptin, adiponectin, resistin, visfatin, interleukin (IL)‐1β, IL‐6, IL‐10, IL‐18, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‐α were measured.</P><P><B>Results</B></P><P>The serum concentrations of leptin (<I>P </I>=<I> </I>.0021), resistin (<I>P </I>=<I> </I>.0010), visfatin (<I>P </I><<I> </I>.0001), IL‐1β (<I>P </I><<I> </I>.0001), IL‐6 (<I>P </I>=<I> </I>.0002), IL‐10 (<I>P </I><<I> </I>.0001), and IL‐18 (<I>P </I><<I> </I>.0001) were significantly higher in dogs with AP than healthy dogs, whereas the adiponectin concentration (<I>P </I>=<I> </I>.0011) was significantly lower. There were significant differences in the serum concentrations of leptin (<I>P </I>=<I> </I>.028) and adiponectin (<I>P </I>=<I> </I>.046) in survivors and nonsurvivors. After the disappearance of clinical signs, the concentrations of resistin (<I>P </I>=<I> </I>.037) and IL‐1β (<I>P </I>=<I> </I>.027) decreased significantly, whereas the serum concentrations of leptin (<I>P </I>><I> </I>.999), adiponectin (<I>P </I>=<I> </I>.11), visfatin (<I>P </I>=<I> </I>.83), IL‐6 (<I>P </I>=<I> </I>.82), IL‐10 (<I>P </I>=<I> </I>.82), IL‐18 (<I>P </I>=<I> </I>.56), and TNF‐α (<I>P </I>=<I> </I>.94) did not differ significantly.</P><P><B>Conclusion and Clinical Importance</B></P><P>This study showed that dysregulation of adipokines might be involved in the pathogenesis of AP. In addition, leptin and adiponectin are likely to be associated with mortality rate in AP.</P>

Sequence variations of the locus‐specific 5′ untranslated regions of SLA class I genes and the development of a comprehensive genomic DNA‐based high‐resolution typing method for SLA‐2

Choi, H.,Le, M. T.,Lee, H.,Choi, M.&#x2010,K.,Cho, H.&#x2010,S.,Nagasundarapandian, S.,Kwon, O.&#x2010,J.,Kim, J.&#x2010,H.,Seo, K.,Park, J.&#x2010,K.,Lee, J.&#x2010,H.,Ho, C.&#x2010,S.,Park, C. Munksgaard 2015 Tissue antigens Vol.86 No.4

<P><B>Abstract</B></P><P>The genetic diversity of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I molecules of pigs has not been well characterized. Therefore, the influence of MHC genetic diversity on the immune‐related traits of pigs, including disease resistance and other MHC‐dependent traits, is not well understood. Here, we attempted to develop an efficient method for systemic analysis of the polymorphisms in the epitope‐binding region of swine leukocyte antigens (SLA) class I genes. We performed a comparative analysis of the last 92 bp of the 5′ untranslated region (UTR) to the beginning of exon 4 of six SLA classical class I‐related genes, SLA‐1, ‐2, ‐3, ‐4, ‐5, and ‐<I>9</I>, from 36 different sequences. Based on this information, we developed a genomic polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and direct sequencing‐based comprehensive typing method for SLA‐2. We successfully typed SLA‐2 from 400 pigs and 8 cell lines, consisting of 9 different pig breeds, and identified 49 SLA‐2 alleles, including 31 previously reported alleles and 18 new alleles. We observed differences in the composition of SLA‐2 alleles among different breeds. Our method can be used to study other SLA class I loci and to deepen our knowledge of MHC class I genes in pigs.</P>

OGLE‐2009‐BLG‐023/MOA‐2009‐BLG‐028: characterization of a binary microlensing event based on survey data

Hwang, K.&#x2010,H.,Han, C.,Udalski, A.,Sumi, T.,Gould, A.,Jaroszy&#x144,ski, M.,Kubiak, M.,Szyma&#x144,ski, M. K.,Pietrzy&#x144,ski, G.,Soszy&#x144,ski, I.,Szewczyk, O.,Ulaczyk, K.,Wyrzykowski, &#x13 Blackwell Publishing Ltd 2011 MONTHLY NOTICES- ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY Vol.413 No.2

<P><B>ABSTRACT</B></P><P>We report the result of the analysis of the light curve of a caustic‐crossing binary‐lens microlensing event OGLE‐2009‐BLG‐023/MOA‐2009‐BLG‐028. Even though the event was observed solely by survey experiments, we could uniquely determine the mass of the lens and distance to it by simultaneously measuring the Einstein radius and lens parallax. From this, we find that the lens system is composed of M‐type dwarfs with masses (0.50 ± 0.07) and (0.15 ± 0.02) M<SUB>⊙</SUB> located in the Galactic disc with a distance of ∼1.8 kpc toward the Galactic bulge direction. The event demonstrates that physical lens parameters of binary‐lens events can be routinely determined from future high‐cadence lensing surveys and thus microlensing can provide a new way to study Galactic binaries.</P>

Fully Transparent Non‐volatile Memory Thin‐Film Transistors Using an Organic Ferroelectric and Oxide Semiconductor Below 200 °C

Yoon, Sung&#x2010,Min,Yang, Shinhyuk,Byun, Chunwon,Park, Sang&#x2010,Hee K.,Cho, Doo&#x2010,Hee,Jung, Soon&#x2010,Won,Kwon, Oh&#x2010,Sang,Hwang, Chi&#x2010,Sun WILEY‐VCH Verlag 2010 Advanced Functional Materials Vol.20 No.6

<P><B>Abstract</B></P>10.1002/adfm.200902095.abs<P>A fully transparent non‐volatile memory thin‐film transistor (T‐MTFT) is demonstrated. The gate stack is composed of organic ferroelectric poly(vinylidene fluoride‐trifluoroethylene) [P(VDF‐TrFE)] and oxide semiconducting Al‐Zn‐Sn‐O (AZTO) layers, in which thin Al<SUB>2</SUB>O<SUB>3</SUB> is introduced between two layers. All the fabrication processes are performed below 200 °C on the glass substrate. The transmittance of the fabricated device was more than 90% at the wavelength of 550 nm. The memory window obtained in the T‐MTFT was 7.5 V with a gate voltage sweep of −10 to 10 V, and it was still 1.8 V even with a lower voltage sweep of −6 to 6 V. The field‐effect mobility, subthreshold swing, on/off ratio, and gate leakage currents were obtained to be 32.2 cm<SUP>2</SUP> V<SUP>−1</SUP> s<SUP>−1</SUP>, 0.45 V decade<SUP>−1</SUP>, 10<SUP>8</SUP>, and 10<SUP>−13</SUP> A, respectively. All these characteristics correspond to the best performances among all types of non‐volatile memory transistors reported so far, although the programming speed and retention time should be more improved.</P>

WDR11‐mediated Hedgehog signalling defects underlie a new ciliopathy related to Kallmann syndrome

Kim, Yeon&#x2010,Joo,Osborn, Daniel PS,Lee, Ji&#x2010,Young,Araki, Masatake,Araki, Kimi,Mohun, Timothy,Kä,nsä,koski, Johanna,Brandstack, Nina,Kim, Hyun&#x2010,Taek,Miralles, Francesc,Kim, Cheo John Wiley and Sons Inc. 2018 EMBO reports Vol.19 No.2

<P><B>Abstract</B></P><P>WDR11 has been implicated in congenital hypogonadotropic hypogonadism (CHH) and Kallmann syndrome (KS), human developmental genetic disorders defined by delayed puberty and infertility. However, WDR11's role in development is poorly understood. Here, we report that WDR11 modulates the Hedgehog (Hh) signalling pathway and is essential for ciliogenesis. Disruption of WDR11 expression in mouse and zebrafish results in phenotypic characteristics associated with defective Hh signalling, accompanied by dysgenesis of ciliated tissues. <I>Wdr11</I>‐null mice also exhibit early‐onset obesity. We find that WDR11 shuttles from the cilium to the nucleus in response to Hh signalling. WDR11 regulates the proteolytic processing of GLI3 and cooperates with the transcription factor EMX1 in the induction of downstream Hh pathway gene expression and gonadotrophin‐releasing hormone production. The CHH/KS‐associated human mutations result in loss of function of WDR11. Treatment with the Hh agonist purmorphamine partially rescues the WDR11 haploinsufficiency phenotypes. Our study reveals a novel class of ciliopathy caused by WDR11 mutations and suggests that CHH/KS may be a part of the human ciliopathy spectrum.</P>