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Objective: To evaluate the association between body mass index and mortality from overall cardiovascular disease and specific subtypes of cardiovascular disease in east and south Asians., Design: Pooled analyses of 20 prospective cohorts in Asia, including data from 835,082 east Asians and 289,815 south Asians. Cohorts were identified through a systematic search of the literature in early 2008, followed by a survey that was sent to each cohort to assess data availability., Setting: General populations in east Asia (China, Taiwan, Singapore, Japan, and Korea) and south Asia (India and Bangladesh)., Participants: 1,124,897 men and women (mean age 53.4 years at baseline)., Main Outcome Measures: Risk of death from overall cardiovascular disease, coronary heart disease, stroke, and (in east Asians only) stroke subtypes., Results: 49,184 cardiovascular deaths (40,791 in east Asians and 8393 in south Asians) were identified during a mean follow-up of 9.7 years. East Asians with a body mass index of 25 or above had a raised risk of death from overall cardiovascular disease, compared with the reference range of body mass index (values 22.5-24.9; hazard ratio 1.09 (95% confidence interval 1.03 to 1.15), 1.27 (1.20 to 1.35), 1.59 (1.43 to 1.76), 1.74 (1.47 to 2.06), and 1.97 (1.44 to 2.71) for body mass index ranges 25.0-27.4, 27.5-29.9, 30.0-32.4, 32.5-34.9, and 35.0-50.0, respectively). This association was similar for risk of death from coronary heart disease and ischaemic stroke; for haemorrhagic stroke, the risk of death was higher at body mass index values of 27.5 and above. Elevated risk of death from cardiovascular disease was also observed at lower categories of body mass index (hazard ratio 1.19 (95% confidence interval 1.02 to 1.39) and 2.16 (1.37 to 3.40) for body mass index ranges 15.0-17.4 and <15.0, respectively), compared with the reference range. In south Asians, the association between body mass index and mortality from cardiovascular disease was less pronounced than that in east Asians. South Asians had an increased risk of death observed for coronary heart disease only in individuals with a body mass index greater than 35 (hazard ratio 1.90, 95% confidence interval 1.15 to 3.12)., Conclusions: Body mass index shows a U shaped association with death from overall cardiovascular disease among east Asians: increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease is observed at lower and higher ranges of body mass index. A high body mass index is a risk factor for mortality from overall cardiovascular disease and for specific diseases, including coronary heart disease, ischaemic stroke, and haemorrhagic stroke in east Asians. Higher body mass index is a weak risk factor for mortality from cardiovascular disease in south Asians.

Aspergilli known as black- and white-koji molds which are used for awamori, shochu, makgeolli and other food and beverage fermentations, are reported in the literature as A. luchuensis, A. awamori, A. kawachii, or A. acidus. In order to elucidate the taxonomic position of these species, available ex-type cultures were compared based on morphology and molecular characters. A. luchuensis, A. kawachii and A. acidus showed the same banding patterns in RAPD, and the three species had the same rDNA-ITS, β-tubulin and calmodulin sequences and these differed from those of the closely related A. niger and A. tubingensis. Morphologically, the three species are not significantly different from each other or from A. niger and A. tubingensis. It is concluded that A. luchuensis, A. kawachii and A. acidus are the same species, and A. luchuensis is selected as the correct name based on priority. Strains of A. awamori which are stored in National Research Institute of Brewing in Japan, represent A. niger (n = 14) and A. luchuensis (n = 6). The neotype of A. awamori (CBS 557.65 =  NRRL 4948) does not originate from awamori fermentation and it is shown to be identical with the unknown taxon Aspergillus welwitschiae. Extrolite analysis of strains of A. luchuensis showed that they do not produce mycotoxins and therefore can be considered safe for food and beverage fermentations. A. luchuensis is also frequently isolated from meju and nuruk in Korea and Puerh tea in China and the species is probably common in the fermentation environment of East Asia. A re-description of A. luchuensis is provided because the incomplete data in the original literature.

To identify new genetic factors for colorectal cancer (CRC), we conducted a genome-wide association study in east Asians. By analyzing genome-wide data in 2,098 cases and 5,749 controls, we selected 64 promising SNPs for replication in an independent set of samples, including up to 5,358 cases and 5,922 controls. We identified four SNPs with association P values of 8.58 × 10(-7) to 3.77 × 10(-10) in the combined analysis of all east Asian samples. Three of the four were replicated in a study conducted in 26,060 individuals of European descent, with combined P values of 1.22 × 10(-10) for rs647161 (5q31.1), 6.64 × 10(-9) for rs2423279 (20p12.3) and 3.06 × 10(-8) for rs10774214 (12p13.32 near the CCND2 gene), derived from meta-analysis of data from both east Asian and European-ancestry populations. This study identified three new CRC susceptibility loci and provides additional insight into the genetics and biology of CRC.

Background: Non-ablative 1550-nm erbium-doped fractional photothermolysis systems (FPS) and 10 600-nm carbon dioxide fractional laser systems (CO(2) FS) have been effectively used to treat scars., Objective: We compared the efficacy and safety of single-session treatments of FPS and CO(2) FS for acne scars through a randomized, split-face, evaluator-blinded study., Methods: Eight patients with acne scars were enrolled in this study. Half of each subject's face was treated with FPS and the other half was treated with CO(2) FS. We used a quartile grading scale for evaluations., Results: At 3 months after the treatment, the mean grade of improvement based on clinical assessment was 2.0 +/- 0.5 for FPS and 2.5 +/- 0.8 for CO(2) FS. On each side treated by FPS and CO(2) FS, the mean duration of post-therapy crusting and scaling was 2.3 and 7.4 days respectively and that of post-therapy erythema was 7.5 and 11.5 days respectively. The mean VAS pain score was 3.9 +/- 2.0 with the FPS and 7.0 +/- 2.0 with the CO(2) FS., Conclusion: We demonstrated the efficacy and safety of single-session acne scar treatment using FPS and CO(2) FS in East Asian patients. We believe that our study could be used as an essential reference when choosing laser modalities for scar treatment.

The mutagenic potential of the extracted components of Gryllus bimaculatus, a species of cricket, was evaluated using short-term genotoxicity tests including the Ames, chromosome aberration, and micronuclei tests. In a Salmonella typhimurium assay, G. bimaculatus extract did not produce any mutagenic response in the absence or presence of S9 mix with TA98, TA100, TA1535, and TA1537. Chromosome aberration testing showed that G. bimaculatus had no significant effect on Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells. In the mouse micronucleus test, no significant alteration in occurrence of micronucleated polychromatic erythrocytes was observed in ICR male mice intraperitoneally administered with G. bimaculatus extract at doses of 15, 150, or 1500 mg/kg. These results indicate that G. bimaculatus extract exerts no mutagenic effect in these in vitro and in vivo systems.