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Purpose Several observational studies have presented conflicting results on the association between the use of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) or histamine H2 receptor antagonist (H2RA) and the risk of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to examine this association. Methods In July 2021, PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and Web of Science were searched for articles investigating the relationship between the two main acid suppressants and COVID-19. Studies showing the effect estimates as hazard ratio (HR) for severe outcomes or incidence of COVID-19 were evaluated using a random-effects model. Results A total of 15 retrospective cohort studies with 18,109 COVID-19 cases were included in the current meta-analysis. PPI use was significantly associated with severe outcomes of COVID-19 (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.53; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.20–1.95) but not with the incidence of COVID-19, whereas H2RA use was significantly associated with decreased incidence (HR = 0.86, 95% CI: 0.76–0.97). For subgroup analyses of PPIs, increased severe outcomes of COVID-19 were observed in 60 years, while in-hospital use and use in Asia were associated with higher disease severity. Conclusions Close observation can be considered for COVID-19 patients who use PPIs to prevent severe outcomes. However, caution should be taken because of substantial heterogeneity and plausible protopathic bias. Supplementary information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00228-021-03255-1.

As the research and development of autonomous vehicles has become more active, lane detection technologies for providing road information have become key elements. There are limits to detecting lanes in dynamic driving environments in conventional machine vision research, as the approaches are generally dependent on expert scenarios and fine-tuned heuristics. Deep learning has shown good performance in classifying target information with this distribution of nonlinear data; thus, many studies have actively applied deep learning to lane detection. However, most of these studies have focused on improving the accuracy, rather than on the operating speed. For the work reported herein, a benchmarking deep-learning framework for lane detection was applied with lightened feature extraction modules and decoder modules. These were used to compare performances and to present an indicator for selecting a model for optimizing real-time performance and accuracy. The VGG-16, MobileNet, and ShuffleNet networks were used for the encoder module, whereas frontend dilation and UNet were used for the decoder module. The limitations of the benchmarking framework were analyzed, and perspective loss concepts were applied to the processing of the network using front-view images to ensure improvements in the accuracy and operating speed. All of the candidate networks obtained objective performance indicators based on a large-scale benchmark dataset (TuSimple) and network training with a dataset collected and verified via performance on public roads in Singapore.

Polypharmacy and its rising global prevalence is a growing public health burden. Using a large representative nationwide Korean cohort (N = 761,145), we conducted a retrospective cross-sectional study aiming to identify subpopulations of patients with polypharmacy and characterize their unique patterns through cluster analysis. Patients aged ≥ 30 years who were prescribed at least one medication between 2014 and 2018 were included in our study. Six clusters were identified: cluster 1 mostly included patients who were hospitalized for a long time (4.3 ± 5.3 days); cluster 2 consisted of patients with disabilities (100.0%) and had the highest mean number of prescription drugs (7.7 ± 2.8 medications); cluster 3 was a group of low-income patients (99.9%); cluster 4 was a group of high-income patients (80.2%) who frequently (46.4 ± 25.9 days) visited hospitals/clinics (7.3 ± 2.7 places); cluster 5 was mostly elderly (74.9 ± 9.8 years) females (80.3%); and cluster 6 comprised mostly middle-aged (56.4 ± 1.5 years) males (88.6%) (all P P

Background Fluorescent imaging may aid with the precise diagnosis and treatment of patients with gallbladder cancer. In this study, we sought to demonstrate whether the da Vinci® surgical system and Firefly™ camera could detect EGFR-targeted fluorescent images in orthotopic mouse models of gallbladder cancer. Methods An orthotopic mouse model of gallbladder cancer was created by injecting NOZ gallbladder cancer cells mixed with Matrigel into the gallbladder. In vivo imaging of subcutaneous and orthotopic gallbladder tumors was performed after the injection of DyLight 650- or 800-conjugated EGFR antibody. Results Western blotting, flow cytometry, and confocal microscopy showed the presence of EGFR in NOZ cells, but not in HEK293 cells. Subcutaneous NOZ cell tumors fluoresced after injection with fluorescent EGFR antibody, but subcutaneous HEK293 tumors did not. Fluorescent EGFR antibody made orthotopic NOZ tumors fluoresce, with an intensity stronger than that in the surrounding normal tissues. Histochemical examination confirmed the location of the tumors inside the gallbladder and adjacent liver parenchyma. Fluorescent signal was also detected in orthotopic gallbladder tumors with Firefly™ camera. Conclusion Our study showed that fluorescent EGFR antibodies and the Firefly camera in the da Vinci system can detect fluorescing gallbladder tumors, which demonstrates their potential use for molecular imaging-based prevision surgery in the near future.

STAT5 is a transcription factor that is activated by various cytokines, hormones, and growth factors. Activated STAT5 is then translocated to the nucleus and regulates the transcription of target genes, affecting several biological processes. Several studies have investigated the role of STAT5 in adipogenesis, but unfortunately, its role in adipogenesis remains controversial. In the present study, we generated adipocyte-specific Stat5 conditional knockout (cKO) (Stat5fl/fl;Apn-cre) mice to investigate the role of STAT5 in the adipogenesis of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs). BMSC adipogenesis was significantly inhibited upon overexpression of constitutively active STAT5A, while it was enhanced in the absence of Stat5 in vitro. In vivo adipose staining and histological analyses revealed increased adipose volume in the bone marrow of Stat5 cKO mice. ATF3 is the target of STAT5 during STAT5-mediated inhibition of adipogenesis, and its transcription is regulated by the binding of STAT5 to the Atf3 promoter. ATF3 overexpression was sufficient to suppress the enhanced adipogenesis of Stat5-deficient adipocytes, and Atf3 silencing abolished the STAT5-mediated inhibition of adipogenesis. Stat5 cKO mice exhibited reduced bone volume due to an increase in the osteoclast number, and coculture of bone marrow-derived macrophages with Stat5 cKO adipocytes resulted in enhanced osteoclastogenesis, suggesting that an increase in the adipocyte number may contribute to bone loss. In summary, this study shows that STAT5 is a negative regulator of BMSC adipogenesis and contributes to bone homeostasis via direct and indirect regulation of osteoclast differentiation; therefore, it may be a leading target for the treatment of both obesity and bone loss-related diseases., Obesity and osteoporosis: a common therapeutic target A protein connected with bone maintenance and fat cell differentiation could provide a novel therapeutic target for both obesity and osteoporosis. The processes of healthy bone remodeling and fat cell (adipocyte) differentiation from bone marrow stem cells (BMSCs) are intrinsically connected. The transcription factor protein STAT5 plays roles in maintaining bone homeostasis and adipocyte differentiation, but its role in the latter is unclear. Nacksung Kim at Chonnam National University Medical School in Gwangju, South Korea, and co-workers examined the role of STAT5 in mice. Mice without the Stat5 gene had increased fat tissue in their bone marrow, suggesting increased BMSC differentiation into adipocytes. The mice also had reduced bone mass due to increased numbers of bone-degrading cells. Further investigations showed that STAT5 regulates the differentiation of BMSCs into adipocytes via activation of a regulatory gene.

Cav1.2 channel phosphorylation plays an important role in regulating neuronal plasticity by action potential-dependent Ca2+ entry. Most studies of Cav1.2 regulation by phosphorylation have been reported in heart and muscles. Here, we identified phosphorylation sites of neuronal Cav1.2 channel protein purified from rat brain using mass spectrometry. The functional characterization of these phosphorylation sites showed altered voltage-dependent biophysical properties of the channel, without affecting current density. These results show that neuronal Cav1.2 channel is regulated by phosphorylation in a complex mechanism involving multiple phosphorylation sites.

Several observational studies have shown contradictory results regarding the association between sunlight exposure and the risk of malignant lymphoma. Thus, we aimed to systematically determine the association between sunlight exposure and lymphoid malignancy risk through a meta-analysis. A thorough search of four electronic databases (PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Scopus) was performed to identify eligible studies until 13 August 2020. A random-effects model was used to calculate risk estimates of sunlight exposure. The main outcome measure was the risk of lymphoid malignancy subtypes with odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) according to various forms of solar ultraviolet radiation. In total, 17 case–control studies and 9 cohort studies including 216,285 non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) and 23,017 Hodgkin’s lymphoma (HL) patients were included in the final analysis. Personal sunlight exposure was significantly associated with a decreased risk of HL (OR 0.77; 95% CI 0.68–0.87) and NHL (OR 0.81; 95% CI 0.71–0.92), including all subtypes except T-cell lymphoma. Ambient sunlight exposure at residence was associated with a reduced risk of HL (OR 0.88; 95% CI 0.81–0.95) and all NHL subtypes (OR 0.84; 95% CI 0.73–0.96), except for chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma. As the number of sunburns and sunbaths increased, the risk of NHL tended to decrease. While there was an observed protective effect both from case–control and prospective studies, substantial heterogeneity was found in the current study. Thus, more evidence is required to confirm that promoting sunlight exposure can prevent the development of lymphoid neoplasia.

We investigated the efficacy and safety of liraglutide 3 mg daily in combination with diet and exercise 2, 4, and 6 months after initiation in real-world settings in Korea. People first using liraglutide starting in 2018 were recruited from ten sites in Korea. Body weight and body mass index (BMI) were measured after 2, 4, and 6 months and compared with baseline values. The full cohort comprised 769 participants: 672 in the 2-month group, 427 in the 4-month group, and 219 in the 6-month group. The baseline mean ± standard deviation of BMI and body weight were 32.2 ± 5.1 kg/m2, and 87.5 ± 18.8 kg, respectively. Body weight and BMI decreased after initiation of liraglutide treatment: −2.94 kg and −1.08 kg/m2 at 2 months; −4.23 kg and −1.55 kg/m2 at 4 months, and −5.14 kg and −1.89 kg/m2 at 6 months (all P

Semisulcospira gottschei is an Asian endemic species inhabiting Korea and China. However, genetic structure analysis of the resource management of this species has not been performed. To investigate the genetic diversity among populations, microsatellites can be used to determine the geographic origins of marine and freshwater species. This study investigated the genetic structures of the Korean and Chinese populations of S. gottschei based on mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) Cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) and polymorphic microsatellite loci developed from Semisulcospira coreana. Analysis of the mtDNA COI sequence revealed 43 haplotypes, which indicated no gene flow between the Korean and Chinese populations. To further elucidate the genetic structures of the Korean and Chinese populations, the population genetics of S. gottschei were analyzed using nine microsatellite markers. The genetic diversity analysis showed an average of 5.25 alleles per locus, with an average allelic richness of 4.02. Excessive homozygosity was found at all loci, which was expected to be due to the presence of null alleles at all loci. Populations of S. gottschei formed two separate clusters according to pairwise FST and AMOVA. Also, the UPGMA tree, PCA, STRUCTURE, and GeneClass indicated separation of the 11 populations into two clusters: Korea and China. These results have potential use in the management, restoration, and distinction of the origin country of populations.

Visualizations of the microwave electric and magnetic near-field distributions of radio-frequency (RF) filters were performed using the technique of thermoelastic optical indicator microscopy (TEOIM). New optical indicators based on periodic dielectric-metal structures were designed for electric field visualization. Depending on the structure orientation, such metasurface-based indicators allow separately visualization of the Ex and Ey components of the in-plane electric field. Numerical simulations were conducted to examine the working principle of the designed indicator structures, and the results were compared to the experimental, showing good agreement. In addition, the 3D visualization of the microwave near-field distribution was built, to show the field intensity and distribution dependencies on the distance from the RF filter.

To quantify a passive range of cyclorotation using a smartphone application and evaluate its associations with fundus torsion and rectus muscle cyclorotation in superior oblique palsy (SOP) and V-pattern strabismus. Fifty-two patients showing overelevation in adduction (30 with congenital SOP and 22 with V-pattern strabismus) underwent forced cyclorotation on the photographs. A photograph of the globe was taken in maximally excyclorotated and incyclorotated positions after marking at the 6 and 12 o’clock limbus under general anaesthesia, and the rotational alignment of these markings was read using the toriCAM application. The degrees of forced cyclorotation were compared between the two groups. Disc-fovea angle on fundus photographs and rectus muscle cyclorotation in the coronal view on orbital computed tomography were correlated with the range of forced excyclorotation. The range of forced excyclorotation was greater in V-pattern strabismus than that in SOP (58.5° vs. 46.8°, p

In this population-based cohort study on comparative osteoporotic fracture risks between different biologic disease-modifying drugs among patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), we did not find a significant difference in the risk of osteoporotic fractures between RA patients receiving TNF inhibitors versus abatacept or tocilizumab. We aimed to investigate the comparative risk of osteoporotic fractures between rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients who initiated TNF inhibitors (TNFis) versus abatacept or tocilizumab. Using the Korea National Health Insurance Service datasets from 2002 to 2016, RA patients who initiated TNFis, abatacept, or tocilizumab were identified. The primary outcome was a composite end point of non-vertebral fractures and hospitalized vertebral fractures; secondary outcomes were two components of the primary outcome and fractures occurring at the humerus/forearm. Propensity score (PS) matching with a variable ratio up to 10 TNFi initiators per 1 comparator drug initiator was used to adjust for > 50 baseline confounders. We estimated hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence interval (CI) of fractures comparing TNFi initiators to abatacept and to tocilizumab by Cox proportional hazard models stratified by a matching ratio. After PS-matching, 2307 TNFi initiators PS-matched on 588 abatacept initiators, and 2462 TNFi initiators on 640 tocilizumab initiators were included. A total of 77 fractures occurred during a mean follow-up of 454 days among TNFi and abatacept initiators and 83 fractures during 461 days among TNFi and tocilizumab initiators. The PS-matched HR (95% CI) was 0.91 (0.48–1.71) comparing TNFi versus abatacept initiators, and 1.00 (0.55–1.83) comparing TNFi versus tocilizumab initiators. Analysis on vertebral and non-vertebral fractures showed similar results. In this nationally representative cohort, we did not find a significant difference in the risk of fractures between TNFi initiators versus abatacept or tocilizumab among RA patients.

We report high performance internal light outcoupling films based on phase separation polymer for indium tin oxide-free organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs). The two immiscible polymers of poly(amic acid) and polyimide in a blend film result in nanoporous structures after spin-coating by self-assembly process. The OLEDs are prepared by solution process including phase separation films and transparent electrodes, allowing for low-cost and high-speed manufacturing. The phase separation films prepared between the glass substrate and the poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) transparent electrode remarkably improve the outcoupling performance of OLEDs. The poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA)-assisted phase separation films significantly improve the external quantum efficiency and power efficiency of OLEDs by a factor 1.88 and 1.87, respectively, compared to the reference device without any outcoupling structure. Our results demonstrate that phase separation films developed here offer new opportunities in improving the outcoupling efficiency in OLEDs.

Technologies for the longitudinal monitoring of a person’s health are poorly integrated with clinical workflows, and have rarely produced actionable biometric data for healthcare providers. Here, we describe easily deployable hardware and software for the long-term analysis of a user’s excreta through data collection and models of human health. The ‘smart’ toilet, which is self-contained and operates autonomously by leveraging pressure and motion sensors, analyses the user’s urine using a standard-of-care colorimetric assay that traces red–green–blue values from images of urinalysis strips, calculates the flow rate and volume of urine using computer vision as a uroflowmeter, and classifies stool according to the Bristol stool form scale using deep learning, with performance that is comparable to the performance of trained medical personnel. Each user of the toilet is identified through their fingerprint and the distinctive features of their anoderm, and the data are securely stored and analysed in an encrypted cloud server. The toilet may find uses in the screening, diagnosis and longitudinal monitoring of specific patient populations. A ‘smart’ toilet that uses pressure and motion sensors, biometric identification, urinalysis strips, a computer-vision uroflowmeter and machine learning longitudinally tracks biomarkers of health and disease in the user’s urine and stool.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune disease affecting primarily joints and an increased risk of developing malignant lymphomas in RA has been well reported. However, primary lymphoma in a joint in RA patient is rare. We report the case of a 65-year-old man with RA suffering from pain and swelling of left sternoclavicular (SC) joint, which was not relieved by adding low-dose glucocorticoid. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed a para-osseous soft tissue swelling around the SC joint and a fracture of proximal clavicle. Histology of the soft tissue demonstrated diffuse large B-cell lymphoma and the patient subsequently underwent R-CHOP (rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisolone) chemotherapy. He was successfully treated with six cycles of R-CHOP chemotherapy, with discontinuation of MTX, resulting in a complete response. We performed a literature review and identified nine cases of lymphoma which involved joints in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. This is the first described case of a primary large B-cell lymphoma involving the unilateral SC joint in a patient with RA, which was initially confused with aggravation of RA. Therefore, malignant lymphoma should be considered in the differential diagnosis when a RA patient develops monoarthritis with spontaneous fracture, even without B symptoms.

Recently, many researchers focus on the best way to produce high-quality meat, as the trend in food consumption today is to focus on quality. In general, consumers’ preferences in beef differ depending on taste and meatiness. Therefore, researchers are interested in how the marbling score affects the flavors of meat or the various factors that make up the meatiness to captivate the consumers’ tastes. This study identifies single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) or gene combinations that affect the carcass traits of Korean cattle (Hanwoo) by using the multifactor dimensionality reduction (MDR) method. We collected the candidate SNPs to identify SNPs related to marbling scores from whole-exome sequencing and bovine SNP genotyping data. Using 96 Hanwoo samples, we performed PCR amplification to investigate the polymorphism status. In addition, we investigated genetic relationships between carcass traits and SNPs using 612 Hanwoo samples. Furthermore, each candidate SNP genotype and the combinations of SNP genotypes were verified to improve the accuracy of genetic relationships using MDR method. Twenty-four candidate SNPs associated with carcass trait and marbling scores were identified from SNP genotyping and whole-exome sequencing. Among them, three SNP markers (c.459 T > C of the PLCB1 gene, c.271 A > C of the C/EBPα gene, and g.17257 A > G of the TDRKH gene) were showed statistically significant differences between intramuscular fat and genotypes. Especially, two candidate SNPs, including c.459 T > C located in the PLCB1 gene and c.271 A > C located in the C/EBPα gene, could be highly associated with the intramuscular fat of Hanwoo quality grade. In addition, the combination of SNP genotypes is showed higher significant differences with carcass weight, backfat thickness, and longissimus dorsi muscle area. Three SNP genotypes and the combination of SNP genotypes in the PLCB1, C/EBPα, and TDRKH genes may be useful genetic markers for improving beef quality.

This study was performed to evaluate the effects of a diamond-like carbon (DLC) layer on the biological properties of a pre-treated titanium dioxide (TiO2) coronary stent surface. TiO2 and DLC were coated onto a cobalt-chromium stent surface in consecutive order using the plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition method (TiO2/DLC). To investigate the effect of TiO2, a group treated only with DLC was also prepared as a control. The surface characteristics were investigated by SEM, ESCA, AFM, and contact angle analyses. To estimate the effect of surface modification on biological response, endothelial cell migration was carried out. As a result, cracking of the coating layer on the strut curved portion in the DLC group was restored in the TiO2/DLC group. ESCA result showed that the peaks sp2 and sp3 were slightly shifted and higher in the TiO2/DLC group. The surface roughness average was highly increased in the TiO2/DLC group (Ra; 18.033) compared to the BMS (Ra; 9.258) and DLC groups (Ra; 10.144). By the increment of Ra, the surface property became hydrophilic in the TiO2/DLC group (39.8° ± 5.88°) compared to the non-treated (72.7° ± 2.24°) and DLC (78.6° ± 2.24°) groups. Endothelial cell migration was significantly increased in the TiO2/DLC group (68.9 ± 13.52%) compared to the non-treated (5.4 ± 3.14%) and DLC groups (22.3 ± 8.22%). Therefore, the improvement of surface properties and endothelial cell migration in the TiO2/DLC group could improve the physiological response in the human body.

Korean freshwater snails of the genus Semisulcospira are widely distributed across East Asia. It has been a very popular nutritional food in Korea, and is an ecologically important water quality indicator because it lives only in clean water. However, no microsatellite markers have been generated to study the population genetic diversity of this genus. In the present study, we developed and characterized 18 novel microsatellite loci from Semisulcospira coreana genomic DNA. The microsatellites were isolated using 454 GS-FLX titanium sequencing and 18 markers were used for genotyping in S. coreana. In addition, we also tested the cross-species transferability of the microsatellite markers in four additional Semisulcospira spp. We identified 18 polymorphic loci and the number of alleles per loci, and their polymorphism information content values ranged from 2 to 17 and 0.203 to 0.902, respectively. The observed and expected heterozygosities of the loci ranged from 0.063 to 0.924 and 0.226 to 0.924, respectively. According to the analysis of the cross-species transferability of these markers, four species, S. forticosta, S. gottschei, S. tegulata, and S. libertina, showed a very high transferability (80%–85%). These results show that this set of nuclear markers could be useful for population genetics studies of this species and closely related species.

This study sought to develop a novel diagnostic tool for atopic dermatitis (AD). Mouse transcriptome data were obtained via RNA-sequencing of dorsal skin tissues of CBA/J mice affected with contact hypersensitivity (induced by treatment with 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene) or brush stimulation-induced AD-like skin condition. Human transcriptome data were collected from German, Swedish, and American cohorts of AD patients from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. edgeR and SAM algorithms were used to analyze differentially expressed murine and human genes, respectively. The FAIME algorithm was then employed to assign pathway scores based on KEGG pathway database annotations. Numerous genes and pathways demonstrated similar dysregulation patterns in both the murine models and human AD. Upon integrating transcriptome information from both murine and human data, we identified 36 commonly dysregulated differentially expressed genes, which were designated as a 36-gene signature. A severity score (AD index) was applied to each human sample to assess the predictive power of the 36-gene AD signature. The diagnostic power and predictive accuracy of this signature were demonstrated for both AD severity and treatment outcomes in patients with AD. This genetic signature is expected to improve both AD diagnosis and targeted preclinical research.

In this study, a new optical method is presented to determine the concentrations of NaCl and glucose aqueous solutions by using a thermo-elastic optical indicator microscope. By measuring the microwave near-field distribution intensity, concentration changes of NaCl and glucose aqueous solutions were detected in the 0–100 mg/ml range, when exposed to microwave irradiation at 12 GHz frequency. Microwave near-field distribution intensity decreased as the NaCl or glucose concentration increased due to the changes of the absorption properties of aqueous solution. This method provides a novel approach for monitoring NaCl and glucose in biological liquids by using a CCD sensor capable of visualizing NaCl and glucose concentrations without scanning.

Background Archaea are one of the least-studied members of the gut-dwelling autochthonous microbiota. Few studies have reported the dominance of methanogens in the archaeal microbiome (archaeome) of the human gut, although limited information regarding the diversity and abundance of other archaeal phylotypes is available. Results We surveyed the archaeome of faecal samples collected from 897 East Asian subjects living in South Korea. In total, 42.47% faecal samples were positive for archaeal colonisation; these were subsequently subjected to archaeal 16S rRNA gene deep sequencing and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction-based abundance estimation. The mean archaeal relative abundance was 10.24 ± 4.58% of the total bacterial and archaeal abundance. We observed extensive colonisation of haloarchaea (95.54%) in the archaea-positive faecal samples, with 9.63% mean relative abundance in archaeal communities. Haloarchaea were relatively more abundant than methanogens in some samples. The presence of haloarchaea was also verified by fluorescence in situ hybridisation analysis. Owing to large inter-individual variations, we categorised the human gut archaeome into four archaeal enterotypes. Conclusions The study demonstrated that the human gut archaeome is indigenous, responsive, and functional, expanding our understanding of the archaeal signature in the gut of human individuals.

Background Ambient fine particulate matter is a rising concern for global public health. It was recently suggested that exposure to fine particulate matter may contribute to the development of diabetes and dyslipidaemia. This study aims to examine the potential associations of ambient particulate matter exposure with changes in fasting glucose and lipid profiles in Koreans. Method We used the data from the National Health Insurance Service–National Sample Cohort (NHIS-NSC), a nationwide database representative of the Korean population. A total of 85,869 individuals aged ≥20 years were included. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to assess the associations between exposure to particulate matter and changes in fasting glucose and lipid profiles at 2-year intervals after adjusting for confounders. Results Significant associations were observed between an increase in interquartile range for particulate matter 2.5) and elevated levels of fasting glucose and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (p for trend = 0.015 and 0.010, respectively), while no association for particulate matter sized 2.5–10 μm in diameter (PM10–2.5) was noted after adjusting for the other covariates. Sub-group analyses showed stronger associations in individuals who were older (≥60 years) or physically inactive. Conclusions Fine particulate matter exposure affects worsening fasting glucose and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, with no evidence of an association for coarse particulate matter.

In this paper, R404 refrigeration system is evaluated to understand the exergy characteristics of an indirect refrigeration system for R404A that adopted CO2 as a secondary refrigerant. This provides basic data for the optimal design of indirect refrigeration system for the R404A. The results are summarized as follows. It was confirmed that the system’s exergy loss increased as the R404A condensation temperature, the CO2 cooler temperature difference, and the CO2 mass flow rate increased under a fixed experimental condition. However, the system’s exergy loss decreased as the CO2 evaporation temperature increased. It was also found that the exergy loss of the R404A refrigeration system was higher than that of the CO2 secondary refrigerant system. It was also confirmed that total exergy loss of the R404A refrigeration system and the indirect refrigeration system tended to be inversely related to the coefficient of performance. Regardless of any experimental conditions, the exergy loss rate of components was the largest in the compressor, followed by the R404A condenser, the expansion valve, the internal heat exchanger, the CO2 cooler, the CO2 evaporator and the pump. Therefore, in conclusion, it is necessary to reduce exergy loss in the compressor and the R404A condenser to improve the overall performance of this system.

To evaluate the efficacy and safety of infliximab biosimilar CT-P13 in patients with active Takayasu arteritis (TAK). In this single-center open-label trial, patients with active TAK received CT-P13 at a starting dose of 5 mg/kg at weeks 0, 2, 6, and then every 8 weeks up to week 46. They were followed up until week 54. From week 14 to week 46, patients with inadequate response received increased dose of CT-P13 by 1.5 mg/kg. Concomitant prednisolone was allowed ≤ 10 mg/day. The primary efficacy end point was the achievement of partial or complete remission at week 30. All patients underwent positron emission tomography–computed tomography (PET–CT) at baseline and week 30. Twelve patients with TAK received CT-P13; one patient with protocol violation was excluded from analysis. Nine (81.8%) patients had taken concomitant prednisolone with median dose of 5.0 mg/day. At week 30, three (27.3%) patients achieved complete remission and six (54.5%) patients achieved partial remission. Statistically significant improvements in modified Indian Takayasu Clinical Activity Score (ITAS2010), ITAS-A, and serum levels of erythrocyte sedimentation rate and C-reactive protein were seen at week 30 from baseline. PET parameters were significantly reduced from baseline to week 30, including maximum standardized uptake value, target-to-vein ratio, target-to-liver ratio, and PET Vascular Activity Score. There were no serious adverse events. Treatment with CT-P13 may lead to improvement in clinical, radiographic, and serological activities with lower glucocorticoid requirement in TAK. Trial registration number NCT02457585. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1007/s00296-018-4159-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Studies using unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) are being actively conducted to obtain and apply spatial information. Spatial information based on orthophoto can be analyzed only when positional accuracy of these photos is high. To solve this problem, survey techniques, such as virtual reference station–real time kinematic (VRS–RTK) are used to create a ground control point (GCP), and geo-referencing is performed on the images. However, orthophoto based on non-fiducial points are generated in scenarios where spatial information is urgently required or in physical environments where GCPs are unlikely to be surveyed. In this method, a location error occurs and reduces the accuracy of orthophoto. In this study, a method that estimates GCPs using only measurement information using the UAV without a GCP survey and generates orthophoto based on those points, is proposed and its applicability is verified. 254 aerial photos were obtained using UAV. The location of six GCPs was estimated based on measurement information using UAV. Subsequently, the aerial photos and GCPs estimated based on the UAV measurement information were used to generate an orthophoto. This orthophoto was compared with those based on VRS–RTK GCPs and non-fiducial points in an error analysis. The analytic result indicates that the orthophoto based on the proposed method has an error that is 74.53% lower compared to that based on non-fiducial points. It is anticipated that the method proposed in this study to generate orthophoto based on information surveyed using the UAV can be effectively applied under physical environments where GCPs are unlikely to be established.

The aim of this study was to examine the oral health-related behaviors in mothers and their children and the prevalence of dental caries in both. A sample of 2536 children and their mothers was selected from the Fifth Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Variables were analyzed using multiple regression to evaluate the prevalence of dental caries among children and mothers, demographic socioeconomic status, and oral health-related behaviors. The average age of the mothers was 40.28 years and that of the children was 10.88 years. Mean DT scores were 0.67 for mothers and 0.29 for children. Mean DMFT scores were 6.63 for mothers and 1.76 for children. The higher the mother’s number of decayed, missing, or filled permanent teeth (DMFT score, B = 0.076, P