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Sugammadex, the first noncompetitive antagonist developed for the reversal of neuromuscular blockade (NMB), is one of the few drugs that has revolutionized anesthetic practice. However, sugammadex use was only recently approved for children aged 2 to 17 years, and it remains unapproved for children under 2. Although the precision and reliability of reversal of NMB with sugammadex are of great benefit in pediatric anesthesia, several important questions remain regarding its use in our youngest patients. In this brief narrative review, we aim to provide an overview of the key considerations and potential challenges that anesthesiologists often face when using sugammadex in pediatric patients.

Abstract We examined the joint association of physical activity (PA) and socio-economic status (SES) on all-causes and cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality in 6945 elderly Koreans (mean age: 71.6 years, 41.8% male) using data from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2007–2013) and death data from Statistics Korea (2019). The SES included household income and education level. PA was assessed using the IPAQ and categorized according to the 2018 PA Guidelines. In stratified analyses using Cox proportional hazards by SES adherence to PA guidelines those who low household income group was associated with a reduced risk of all-cause mortality and CVD mortality, while in the lowest educational level group, it was associated with a reduced risk of all-cause mortality and CVD mortality. In the joint analysis, PA was associated with a significant reduction in all-cause mortality in all groups when compared with those who did not meet PA those who had the lowest SES. However, PA with CVD mortality risk was not significantly associated in the ‘upper-middle’ income and ‘high school’ education groups. The study revealed that PA significantly association mortality, particularly among older adults with low SES. This finding suggests the potential for targeted government interventions to promote healthy aging.

Purpose This study assessed the alignment between Korean medical schools’ mission statements (MSs) and Korean Doctor’s Role (KDR) domains, considering school characteristics. Methods We analyzed the South Korean medical school’s MS characteristics using a mixed-methods approach. Quantitative analysis preprocessed MS text data to identify concept words, while qualitative content analysis categorized information into predefined KDR domains and extracted themes from other parts. Results At the KDR domain level, “social accountability” was the most frequent, followed by “education and research” and “patient care,” while “professionalism” had the least frequency. At the competency level, the most frequent domains were “involvement in public and global health initiatives,” while “self-regulation based on professional leadership” and “professionalism and self-management” were not present. Conclusion The study found that the majority of MSs had a homogeneous pattern and included traditional themes. Medical schools should evaluate and incorporate missing elements in their MSs to reflect the institution’s own purpose and current societal needs.

Abstract In this study, we described and discussed the late onset spontaneous posterior capsule rupture with intraocular lens (IOL) dislocation years after uncomplicated cataract surgery and implantation of hydrophobic acrylic IOLs. Eight patients presented with spontaneous posterior capsule rupture and IOL dislocation 5–20 years after uncomplicated phacoemulsification and IOL (AcrySof, Alcon, US) implantation. None of the patients had undergone posterior capsulotomy in the past. Four of the patients admitted habitual eye rubbing. An intact and well-centered continuous curvilinear capsulotomy edge was observed in all cases. IOLs were dislocated or displaced behind the anterior capsulotomy with a significant decrease in vision. A large rupture with a curled edge of the broken posterior capsule was visible. Dislocated IOLs were removed, and a three-piece IOL was inserted in the sulcus in six cases and suture fixated to the sclera in two cases. Improved vision was achieved in all cases. Although the mechanism underlying this late complication is unclear, habitual eye rubbing or IOL design may play a role. Further investigation is needed to prevent this complication in the future.

Abstract Although previous studies have shown correlation between regional cerebral oxygen saturation (rScO2) and mixed venous oxygen saturation (SvO2), there is a lack of pragmatic information on the clinical applicability of these findings, such as tracking ability. We retrospectively analyzed continuous intraoperative recordings of rScO2 and SvO2 obtained from a pulmonary artery catheter and either of two near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) devices (INVOS 5100C, Medtronic; O3, Masimo) during off-pump cardiopulmonary bypass (OPCAB) surgery in adult patients. The ability of rScO2 to track SvO2 was quantitatively evaluated with 5 min interval changes transformed into relative values. The analysis included 176 h of data acquired from 48 subjects (26 and 22 subjects for INVOS and O3 dataset, respectively). The area under ROC of the left-rScO2 for detecting change of SvO2 ≥ 10% in INVOS and O3 datasets were 0.919 (95% CI 0.903–0.936) and 0.852 (95% CI 0.818–0.885). The concordance rates between the interval changes of left-rScO2 and SvO2 in INVOS and O3 datasets were 90.6% and 91.9% with 10% exclusion zone. rScO2 can serve as a noninvasive tool for detecting changes in SvO2 levels, a critical hemodynamic measurement.

In this study, we performed a quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) of Salmonella through intake of egg consumption after cooking (dry-heat, moist-heat, and raw consumption). Egg samples (n = 201) from retail markets were analyzed for the presence of Salmonella. In addition, temperature and time were investigated during egg transit, storage, and display. A predictive model was developed to characterize the kinetic behavior of Salmonella in eggs, and data on egg consumption and frequency were collected. Eventually, the data was simulated to estimate egg-related foodborne illnesses. Salmonella was not found in any of the 201 egg samples. Thus, the estimated initial contamination level was –4.0 Log CFU/g. With R2 values of 0.898 and 0.922, the constructed predictive models were adequate for describing the fate of Salmonella in eggs throughout distribution and storage. Eggs were consumed raw (1.5%, 39.2 g), dry-heated (57.5%, 43.0 g), and moist-heated (41%, 36.1 g). The probability of foodborne Salmonella illness from the consumption of cooked eggs was evaluated to be 6.8×10−10. Additionally, the probability of foodborne illness not applied cooking methods was 1.9×10−7, indicating that Salmonella can be reduced by cooking. Therefore, the risk of Salmonella infection through consumption of eggs after cooking might be low in S. Korea.

Campylobacter is a major zoonotic pathogen that causes gastrointestinal and, rarely, immune diseases in humans. The antimicrobial-resistance gene cfr(C) carried by Campylobacter and is a cfr-like gene that targets bacterial 23S rRNA through A2503 methylation. cfr(C) confers cross-resistance to five antimicrobial classes (PhLOPSA), including lincosamide, streptogramin A, and pleuromutilin, which are classified as critically important antimicrobials to human by the World Health Organization. To elucidate the genetic variation and horizontal transfer mechanism of cfr(C), we analyzed the genetic background and horizontal transfer unit of Campylobacter-derived cfr(C) through comparative genomic analysis. We identified nine cfr(C)-positive C. coli strains of 157 strains isolated from swine sources. Three novel cfr(C) gene single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) sites (19delA, 674C > A, and 890 T > C) were identified from nine cfr(C)-positive strains. Among six identified cfr(C) SNP variant types (SNP-I to -VI), five types of randomly inserted cfr(C)-cassettes on chromosome and one type of plasmid-like element were identified, their gene cassette composition differing depending on the cfr(C) variants. Three of six cfr(C) cassette types contained aminoglycoside-streptothricin resistance cluster “aphA3-sat4-aadE.” The cfr(C) gene cassette with pcp gene (GC-1, GC-4, and GC-5) formed a pcp-mediated circular intermediate “pcp-hp-cfr(C)-aphA3,” which has not been previously reported. Other two cfr(C) cassette-types with ISChh1 formed circular intermediate “ISChh1-aphA3-cfr(C)-lnu (G)-pnp-ant1-hp-ATPase” and “ISChh1-aphA3-cfr(C)-hp.” In conjugation assay, the pcp-mediated circular intermediate was naturally transferred to the plasmid of recipient C. coli wild-type strain from swine source, and comparative genomic analysis revealed that cfr(C) encoded in pcp-mediated circular intermediate was inserted into the plasmid of recipient by homologous recombination with pcp and aphA3. This study revealed that novel multidrug resistance gene cfr(C) carried by C. coli from swine sources can be highly genetically diverse and transferable. Moreover, we suggest that the transferability of chromosomal cfr(C) may contribute to the global spread of multidrug resistance against clinically important antimicrobials.

ABSTRACT: Objectives: Global spread of mobilized colistin resistance gene (mcr)-carrying Escherichia coli poses serious threats to public health. This study aimed to provide insights into different threats posed by two major mcr variants: mcr-1.1 and mcr-3.1. Methods: Genetic backgrounds and characteristics of mobile genetic elements carrying mcr-1.1 or mcr-3.1 in 74 (mcr)-carrying E. coli isolated from swine farms were analysed, and comparative genomic analysis was performed with the public sequence database. Results: The mcr-1.1 showed high horizontal transferability (6.30 logCFU/ml). Genetic background of mcr-1.1, including genetic cassette/plasmid, was transferred without insertion sequences (ISs) and/or multi-drug resistance (MDR) and highly shared across strains. The major mcr-1.1-cassette was “mcr-1.1-pap2”, mainly encoded in IncI2 and IncX4. Mcr-3.1 exhibited relatively lower conjugation frequency (0.97 logCFU/ml). The mcr-3.1-cassette was flanked by IS26 and was highly variable across strains because of the insertion, deletion, or truncation of IS6100, IS4321, or IS5075. Near the mcr-3.1 cassette, MDR regions consisting of antimicrobial/heavy metal resistance genes were identified, which varied across strains. From the MCR3-E13 strain, a mcr-3.1-carrying IncHI2-fragment was integrated into the bacterial chromosome via IS26-mediated co-integration. To our knowledge, this was the first study to describe that a mcr-3.1-carrying plasmid could be inserted into the bacterial chromosome. Conclusions: Based on high horizontal transferability, mcr-1.1 could play a major role on colistin resistance propagation. On the other hand, mcr-3.1 could be transmitted with MDR and have dual pathways mediated by plasmid transfer (horizontal transmission) and chromosomal insertion (vertical transmission), enabling it to proliferate stably despite its lower horizontal transferability.

Abstract Background Blood pressure measurement is an essential element during intraoperative patient management. However, errors caused by changes in transducer levels can occur during surgery. Methods This single center, prospective, observational study enrolled 25 consecutive patients scheduled for elective cardiac surgery with invasive arterial and central venous pressure (CVP) monitoring. Hydrostatic pressures caused by level differences (leveling pressure) between a reference point (on the center of the left biceps brachii muscle) and the transducers (fixed on the right side of the operating table) for arterial and central lines were continuously measured using a leveling transducer. Adjusted pressures were calculated as measured pressure – leveling pressure. Hypotension (mean arterial pressure 20 mmHg) levels were determined using unadjusted and adjusted pressures. Results Twenty-two patients were included in the analysis. Leveling pressure ≥ 3 mmHg and ≥ 5 mmHg observed at 46.0 and 18.7% of pooled data points, respectively. Determinations of hypotension using unadjusted and adjusted pressures showed disagreements ranging from 3.3 to 9.4% depending on the cutoffs. Disagreements in defined levels of CVP and PAP were observed at 23.0 and 17.2% of the data points, respectively. Conclusions The errors in pressure measurement due to changes in transducer level were not trivial and caused variable disagreements in the determination of MAP, CVP, and PAP levels. To prevent distortions in intraoperative hemodynamic management, strategies should be sought to minimize or adjust for these errors in clinical practice. Trial registration cris.nih.go.kr (KCT0006510).

Fascial plane blocks are useful for multimodal analgesia after cardiac surgery since they can provide effective analgesia without the serious risks associated with conventional techniques such as neuraxial hematoma and pneumothorax. This narrative review covers blocks performed at the parasternal intercostal, interpectoral, pectoserratus, serratus anterior, erector spinae, and retrolaminar planes, which are targets for fascial plane blocks in cardiac surgery. Brief anatomical considerations, mechanisms, and currently available evidence are reviewed. Additionally, recent evidence on fascial plane blocks for subcutaneous-implantable cardioverter-defibrillator implantation are also reviewed.

Arterioureteral fistula is a rare but life-threatening condition. An endovascular treatment approach is commonly used; however, there is a potential risk of infection. We present a case in which a patient presented with abdominal pain and was diagnosed with a ruptured internal iliac artery aneurysm and a subsequent arterioureteral fistula. An aortic stent graft was inserted to treat the arterioureteral fistula, but it subsequently became infected, resulting in the patient's death. This case underscores the importance of early diagnosis and treatment of arterioureteral fistula and the possibility of graft infection.

In this study, a microbial risk assessment was performed for the bacteria Vibrio parahaemolyticus, which causes a foodborne illness following the consumption of Jeotgal, a fermented seafood in South Korea. The assessment comprised of six stages: product, market, home, consumption, dose-response, and risk. The initial contamination level (IC) was calculated based on the prevalence of V. parahaemolyticus in 90 Jeotgal samples. The kinetic behavior of V. parahaemolyticus was described using predictive models. The data on transportation conditions from manufacturer to market and home were collected through personal communication and from previous studies. Data for the Jeotgal consumption status were obtained, and an appropriate probability distribution was established. The simulation models responding to the scenario were analyzed using the @RISK program. The IC of V. parahaemolyticus was estimated using beta distribution [Beta (1, 91)]. The cell counts during transportation were estimated using Weibull and polynomial models [δ = 1 / (0.0718 – 0.0097 × T + 0.0005 × T2)], while the probability distributions for time and temperature were estimated using Pert, Weibull, Uniform, and LogLogistic distributions. Daily average consumption amounts were assessed using the Pareto distribution [0.60284,1.32,Risk Truncate(0,155)]. The results indicated that the risk of V. parahaemolyticus infection through Jeotgal consumption is low in South Korea.

Abstract Purpose To determine the repair of LMPR lesions would improve the ACL graft maturation. Method A total of 49 patients underwent ACL reconstruction were included in this study. Patients were furtherly sub-grouped according to the status of LMPR: intact (17), repair (16) and resected (16). Assessments performed pre- and 2 years post-operatively included patients-reported scores and arthrometer side-to-side difference. Magnetic resonance imaging was used 2 years after the surgery to compare the lateral meniscal extrusion (LME), anterior tibial subluxation of the medial compartment (ATSMC), anterior tibial subluxation of the lateral compartment (ATSLC), the difference of ATSMC and ATSLC, and signal/noise quotient (SNQ) of ACL graft. Results In LMPR resected group, it showed greater post-operative ATSMC-ATSLC difference when compared with pre-operatively (P = 0.006) and with the other 2 groups (intact: P = 0.031; repair: P = 0.048). SNQ of ACL graft was higher in LMPR resected group than those in LMPR intact (P = 0.004) and repair group (P = 0.002). The LMPR repair group showed significant reduction in LME post-operatively (P = 0.001). Post-operative measures on ATSLC-ATSMC difference (β = 0.304, P = 0.049) and LME (β = 0.492, P = 0.003) showed significant association with graft SNQ. Conclusions Transtibial repair of LMPR concomitant with ACL reconstruction restored translational stability, reduced meniscus extrusion, making it beneficial for ACL graft maturation.

Abstract Background The clinical range of central venous pressure (CVP) (typically 5 to 15 mmHg) is much less than the range of mean arterial blood pressure (60 to 120 mmHg), suggesting that CVP may have little impact on estimation of systemic vascular resistance (SVR). The accuracy and feasibility of using an arbitrary CVP rather than actual CVP for the estimation of SVR during intraoperative period is not known. Methods Using vital records obtained from patients who underwent neurological and cardiac surgery, the present study retrospectively calculated SVR using fixed values of CVP (0, 5, 10, 15, and 20 mmHg) and randomly changing values of CVP (5 to 15 mmHg) and compared these calculated SVRs with actual SVR, calculated using actual CVP. Differences between actual SVR and SVRs based on fixed and random CVPs were quantified as root mean square error (RMSE) and mean absolute percentage error (MAPE). Bland-Altman analysis and four-quadrant plot analysis were performed. Results A total of 34 patients are included, including 18 who underwent neurosurgery and 16 who underwent cardiac surgery; 501,380 s (139.3 h) of data was analyzed. The SVR derived from a fixed CVP of 10 mmHg (SVRf10) showed the highest accuracy (RMSE: 115 and 104 [dynes/sec/cm− 5] and MAPE: 6.3 and 5.7% in neurological and cardiac surgery, respectively). The 95% limits of agreement between SVRf10 and actual SVR were − 208.5 (95% confidence interval [CI], − 306.3 to − 148.1) and 242.2 (95% CI, 181.8 to 340.0) dynes/sec/cm− 5 in neurosurgery and − 268.1 (95% CI, − 367.5 to − 207.7) and 163.2 (95% CI, 102.9 to 262.6) dynes/sec/cm− 5 in cardiac surgery. All the SVRs derived from the fixed CVPs (regardless of its absolute value) showed excellent trending ability (concordance rate > 0.99). Conclusions SVR can be estimated from a fixed value of CVP without causing significant deviation or a loss of trending ability. However, caution is needed when using point estimates of SVR when the actual CVP is expected to be out of the typical clinical range. Trial registration This study was registered Clinical Research Information Service, a clinical trial registry in South Korea ( KCT0006187 ).

Abstract Costoclavicular brachial plexus block is emerging as a promising infraclavicular approach performed just below the clavicle. However, there are relatively little data regarding the hemidiaphragmatic paralysis (HDP) compared to the commonly performed supraclavicular block. We hypothesized that the incidence of HDP in costoclavicular block is lower than supraclavicular block like classical infraclavicular approach. Eighty patients were randomly assigned to ultrasound-guided supraclavicular (group S) or costoclavicular (group C) block with 25 mL of local anesthetics (1:1 mixture of 1% lidocaine and 0.75% ropivacaine). The primary outcome was the incidence of HDP, defined as less than 20% of fractional change in the diaphragm thickness on ultrasound M-mode. Also, pulmonary function test and chest radiograph were assessed before and after the surgery. The incidence of HDP was 4/35 (11.4%) in the group C and 19/40 (47.5%) in the group S (risk difference, − 36%; 95% CI − 54 to − 17%; P = 0.002). The mean (SD) change of DTF values were 30.3% (44.0) and 56.9% (39.3) in the group C and S, respectively (difference in means, − 26.6%; 95% CI − 45.8 to − 7.4%; P = 0.007). The pulmonary function was more preserved in group C than in group S. The determined diagnostic cut off value of the diaphragm elevation on chest radiograph was 29 mm. Despite the very contiguous location of the two approaches around the clavicle, costoclavicular block can significantly reduce the risk of HDP compared with supraclavicular block.

Objective The objective of this study was to evaluate the antimicrobial effects of fermented Maillard reaction products made by milk proteins (FMRPs) on Clostridium perfringens (C. perfringens), and to elucidate antimicrobial modes of FMRPs on the bacteria, using physiological and morphological analyses. Methods Antimicrobial effects of FMRPs (whey protein plus galactose fermented by Lactobacillus rhamnosus [L. rhamnosus] 4B15 [Gal-4B15] or Lactobacillus gasseri 4M13 [Gal-4M13], and whey protein plus glucose fermented by L. rhamnosus 4B15 [Glc-4B15] or L. gasseri 4M13 [Glc-4M13]) on C. perfringens were tested by examining growth responses of the pathogen. Iron chelation activity analysis, propidium iodide uptake assay, and morphological analysis with field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) were conducted to elucidate the modes of antimicrobial activities of FMRPs. Results When C. perfringens were exposed to the FMRPs, C. perfringens cell counts were decreased (p

Abstract Textbook outcome is a composite quality measurement of short-term outcomes for evaluating complex surgical procedures. We compared textbook outcome and survival of robotic total gastrectomy (RTG) with those of laparoscopic total gastrectomy (LTG). We retrospectively reviewed 395 patients (RTG, n = 74; LTG, n = 321) who underwent curative total gastrectomy for gastric cancer via minimally invasive approaches from 2009 to 2018. We performed propensity score matched analysis to adjust for potential selection bias. Textbook outcome included a negative resection margin, no intraoperative complication, retrieved lymph nodes > 15, no severe complication, no reintervention, no unplanned intensive care unit admission, hospitalization ≤ 21 days, no readmission after discharge, and no postoperative mortality. Survival outcomes included 3-year overall and relapse-free survival rates. After matching, 74 patients in each group were selected. Textbook outcome was similar in the RTG and LTG groups (70.3% and 75.7%, respectively), although RTG required a longer operative time. The quality metric least often achieved was the presence of severe complications in both groups (77.0% in both groups). There were no differences in the 3-year overall survival rate (98.6% and 89.7%, respectively; log-rank P = 0.144) and relapse-free survival rate between the RTG and LTG groups (97.3% and 87.0%, respectively; log-rank P = 0.167). Textbook outcome and survival outcome of RTG were similar to those of LTG for gastric cancer.

Abstract Background Anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) is an alternative to conservative therapy in the treatment of cervical spondylopathy. This study evaluated the clinical outcome of ACDF with BMP-2-adsorbed β-tricalcium phosphate granules. Methods Thirty-two patients with cervical spondylopathy received treatment of ACDF with BMP-2-adsorbed β-tricalcium phosphate granules. The clinical outcomes were evaluated with the Japanese Orthopedic Association (JOA) scores and Neck Disability Index (NDI). Meanwhile, the cervical curvature and intervertebral heights were obtained through lateral cervical X-ray films pre- and postoperatively at each interval, and the precision of cervical fusion was assessed by three-dimensional computed tomography scan. Results The follow-up averaged 15.2 months (range 13–18). Average JOA scores significantly increased from a preoperative point (7.4 ± 1.2) to each interval after surgery (P < 0.05). NDI decreased from preoperative point (43.1 ± 9.0) to each interval after surgery (P < 0.05). The angles of cervical curvature and intervertebral heights were improved postoperatively and kept throughout the follow-up period. CT scan demonstrated a fusion rate of 82.9% at 6 months postoperatively and was improved to 100% at 12 months postoperatively. In all cases, no complications appeared and reported due to any lapse in surgical procedure skills throughout the follow-up period. Conclusions Our preliminary findings suggest that BMP-2-adsorbed β-tricalcium phosphate granules will be an effective alternative to autogenous bone grafting for cervical fusion in treating cervical spondylopathy. Our surgical procedure usingβ-tricalcium phosphate granules could improve neurological function, recover intervertebral height and cervical curvature, and could be potentially exploitable in the clinical setting.

Global spread of Escherichia coli strains carrying the mobilized colistin resistance gene mcr-1.1 (MCR1-EC) poses serious threats to public health. Colistin has been generally prescribed for swine colibacillosis, having made swine farms as major reservoirs of MCR1-EC. The present study aimed to understand characteristic differences of MCR1-EC, including prevalence, antimicrobial resistance, and virulence, according to swine production stages. In addition, genetic relatedness was evaluated between MCR1-EC isolated from this study as well as pig-, human-, and chicken-derived strains published in the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), based on the multi-locus sequence types (MLSTs) and whole-genome sequences (WGS). Individual fecal samples (n = 331) were collected from asymptomatic weaning-piglets, growers, finishers, and sows from 10 farrow-to-finishing farms in South Korea between 2017 and 2019. The weighted prevalence of MCR1-EC was 11.6% (95% CI: 8.9%–15.0%, 55/331), with the highest prevalence at weaning stage. The 96.2% of MCR1-EC showed multi-drug resistance. Notably, weaning stage-derived MCR1-EC showed higher resistance rates (e.g., against extended-spectrum β-lactams or quinolones) than those from other stages. MCR1-EC with virulence advantages (e.g., intestinal/extraintestinal pathogenic E. coli or robust biofilm formation) were identified from all pig stages, accounting for nearly half of the total strains. WGS-based in-depth characterization showed that intestinal pathogenic MCR1-EC harbored multi-drug resistance and multiple virulence factors, which were highly shared between strains isolated from pigs of different stages. The clonal distribution of MCR1-EC was shared within swine farms but rarely across farms. The major clonal type of MCR1-EC from swine farms and NCBI database was ST10-A. Core genomes of MCR1-EC isolated from individuals within closed environments (same farms or human hospitals) were highly shared (genetic distance

In this systematic review, we synthesize ten empirical peer-reviewed articles published between 2019 and 2023 that used generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) for automated feedback in higher education. There are significant opportunities and challenges to integrate these tools effectively into learning environments as the demand for timely and personalized feedback grows. We examine the articles based on instructional contexts and system characteristics, identifying critical implementation possibilities for GenAI in automated feedback. Our findings reveal that GenAI provides diverse feedback across various contexts with multiple instructional purposes. GenAI systems can reduce instructor workload by automating routine grading and feedback tasks, allowing educators to focus on more complex teaching responsibilities with augmented capabilities. Additionally, these systems enhance communication, offer cognitive and emotional support, and improve accessibility by creating supportive, stress-free learning environments. Overall, implementing GenAI automated feedback systems improves educational outcomes and creates a more efficient and supportive learning environment for students and instructors. We conclude with future research directions to better integrate GenAI with human instruction by reconsidering instructors' roles, especially in providing feedback to create more effective educational experiences.

Statistical preconditioning enables fast methods for distributed large-scale empirical risk minimization problems. In this approach, multiple worker nodes compute gradients in parallel, which are then used by the central node to update the parameter by solving an auxiliary (preconditioned) smaller-scale optimization problem. The recently proposed Statistically Preconditioned Accelerated Gradient (SPAG) method [1] has complexity bounds superior to other such algorithms but requires an exact solution for computationally intensive auxiliary optimization problems at every iteration. In this paper, we propose an Inexact SPAG (InSPAG) and explicitly characterize the accuracy by which the corresponding auxiliary subproblem needs to be solved to guarantee the same convergence rate as the exact method. We build our results by first developing an inexact adaptive accelerated Bregman proximal gradient method for general optimization problems under relative smoothness and strong convexity assumptions, which may be of independent interest. Moreover, we explore the properties of the auxiliary problem in the InSPAG algorithm assuming Lipschitz third-order derivatives and strong convexity. For such problem class, we develop a linearly convergent Hyperfast second-order method and estimate the total complexity of the InSPAG method with hyperfast auxiliary problem solver. Finally, we illustrate the proposed method's practical efficiency by performing large-scale numerical experiments on logistic regression models. To the best of our knowledge, these are the first empirical results on implementing high-order methods on large-scale problems, as we work with data where the dimension is of the order of 3 million, and the number of samples is 700 million.

This study predicted Salmonella outbreak risk from eating cooked poultry in various methods. The incidence of Salmonella in poultry meat and the environment from farm to home for consumption was investigated. To develop the predictive models, Salmonella growth data were collected at 4–25 °C during storage and fitted with the Baranyi model. The effects of cooking on cell counts in poultry meat were investigated. Temperature, duration, and consumption patterns were all searched. A simulation in @Risk was run using these data to estimate the probability of foodborne Salmonella disease. In farm, Salmonella was detected from only fecal samples (8.5%; 56/660). In slaughterhouses, Salmonella was detected from feces 16.0% (38/237) for chicken and 19.5% (82/420) for duck) and from carcasses of each step (scalding, defeathering, and chilling) by cross contamination. In chicken (n = 270) and duck (n = 205), Salmonella was detected in 5 chicken (1.9%) and 16 duck meat samples (7.8%). Salmonella contamination levels were initially estimated to be −3.1 Log CFU/g and −2.5 Log CFU/g, respectively. With R2 values between 0.862 and 0.924, the predictive models were suitable for describing the fate of Salmonella in poultry meat with of 0.862 and 0.924. The Salmonella was not detected when poultry meat cooks completely. However, if poultry meat contaminated with Salmonella were cooked incompletely, Salmonella remained on the food surface. The risk of foodborne Salmonella disease from poultry consumption after cooking was 3.0 × 10−10/person/day and 8.8 × 10−11/person/day in South Korea, indicating a low risk.

A sudden cardiac event in patients with heart disease can lead to a heart attack in extreme cases. Therefore, prompt interventions for the particular heart situation and periodic monitoring are critical. This study focuses on a heart sound analysis method that can be monitored daily using multimodal signals acquired with wearable devices. The dual deterministic model-based heart sound analysis is designed in a parallel structure that uses two bio-signals (PCG and PPG signals) related to the heartbeat, enabling more accurate heart sound identification. The experimental results show promising performance of the proposed Model III (DDM-HSA with window and envelope filter), which had the highest performance, and S1 and S2 showed average accuracy (unit: %) of 95.39 (±2.14) and 92.55 (±3.74), respectively. The findings of this study are anticipated to provide improved technology to detect heart sounds and analyze cardiac activities using only bio-signals that can be measured using wearable devices in a mobile environment.

Abstract Background The monitoring of pathogens of fishery auction markets is important to obtain safe fishery products regarding hygiene and sanitation. In this study, aerobic, coliform, Escherichia coli, and Vibrio cholerae were monitored in the fishery products and environmental samples obtained from fishery auction markets. Methods The fishery products (flounder, octopus, skate, rock cod, sea bass, snail, monkfish, flatfish, comb pen shell, corb shell, conger eel, hairtail, croaker, and pilchard) were placed in filter bags, and the environmental samples (samples from the water tanks at the fishery auction markets, seawater from the fishery distribution vehicles, ice from wooden or plastic boxes, and surface samples from wooden and plastic boxes used for fish storage) were collected. Aerobic bacteria, E. coli, and coliform in the samples were enumerated on aerobic count plates and E. coli/coliform count plates, respectively. For V. cholerae O1 and V. cholerae non-O1 quantification, most probable number (MPN)-PCR analysis was performed. Results Aerobic and coliform bacteria were detected in most samples, but E. coli was not detected. Wooden boxes were contaminated with high levels of aerobic and coliform bacteria in all seasons (spring, summer, and fall). During fall, V. cholerae non-O1 were detected in snails, hairtails, croakers, flatfishes, pilchards, plastic boxes, and water samples. Conclusions These results indicate an increased prevalence of V. cholerae contamination in fishery products in fall, including food contact samples, which can be vehicles for cross-contamination.

Staphylococcus aureus is a known enterotoxin-producing foodborne pathogen; however, the invasion mechanism of the bacterium into intestinal cells remains unclear. The aim of this study was to determine whether S. aureus can invade Caco-2 cells, and to elucidate the gene responsible for this invasion. Caco2 cells were infected with S. aureus strains NCCP10862, KACC13236, KACC10768 and KACC11596, and their invasion efficiencies were evaluated. Proteins found in the invasive and noninvasive S. aureus strains were labelled with isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification (iTRAQ), and the gene encoding the protein responsible for S. aureus invasion was deleted using a temperature-sensitive plasmid, pIMAY. The Caco-2 cell invasion efficiencies of the wild type and mutant S. aureus were then compared. Among the S. aureus strains, only NCCP10862 and KACC10768 were able to invade Caco2 cells, and these strains had a higher level of pyruvate formate lyase (Pfl) protein expression than that of the noninvasive strains. Therefore, a pflB-deletion mutant of KACC10768 was prepared, which revealed a 60% decrease in invasion efficiency when compared to the wild type. These results indicate that certain S. aureus strains can invade intestinal cells, and the protein encoded by the pfl gene is involved in this invasion.

The effects of Lactobacillus curvatus SMFM2016-NK on periodontal disease and its actions in the intestines were examined, and the genome sequence of L. curvatus SMFM2016-NK was determined. A total of 110 probiotic bacteria isolated from cheese and 360 isolated from kimchi were examined in this study. Isolates 4Y, 44, and 98–1-3 were found to display antimicrobial effects. In particular, isolate 98–1-3 decreased volume loss in trabecular tissues, alleviated the histological score and alveolar process volume, decreased the number of osteoclast cells, and increased the number of osteoblast cells. Periodontitis and treatment with isolate 98–1-3 were found to alter the composition of gut microbiome. Isolate 98–1-3 was eventually named L. curvatus SMFM2016-NK, and its genome sequence was determined. Based on the lack of β-glucuronidase activity, antibiotic resistance, and biogenic amines, L. curvatus SMFM2016-NK was deemed safe. Our findings suggest that L. curvatus SMFM2016-NK is both a novel strain and a beneficial probiotic for alleviating symptoms of periodontal disease.

The worldwide spread of extended spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)- and AmpC β-lactamase (AmpC)-producing Escherichia coli poses serious threats to public health. Swine farms have been regarded as important reservoirs of ESBL/AmpC-EC. This study aimed to determine the prevalence, ESBL/AmpC types, and clonal distribution of ESBL/AmpC-EC from swine farms and analyze the difference according to the swine production stages. In addition, we evaluated the potential risks of swine ESBL/AmpC-EC clones to humans. Individual fecal samples (n = 292) were collected from weaning, growing, finishing, and pregnant pigs in nine swine farms of South Korea between July 2017 and March 2020. In total, 161 ESBL/AmpC-EC isolates were identified (55.1%), with the highest prevalence detected in the weaning stage (86.3%). The dominant ESBL and AmpC types were CTX-M-55 (69.6%) and CMY-2 (4.3%), respectively. CTX-M found in all production stages, while CMY was only found in growing and finishing stages. In the conjugation assay, the high transferability of CTX-M gene (55.8%) was identified, while the transfer of CMY gene was not identified. The major clonal complexes (CCs) were CC101-B1 (26.8%), CC10-A (8.7%), and CC648-F (2.9%). There was similarity in clonal distribution between different swine production stages within swine farms, estimated using the k-means analysis, which suggested a clonal transmission between the different swine stages. Among swine ESBL/AmpC-EC sequence types (STs), seven STs (ST101, ST10, ST648, ST457, ST410, ST617, and ST744) were common with the human ESBL/AmpC-EC, which registered in National Center for Biotechnology Information database. The clonal population structure analysis based on the virulence factor (VF) presented that swine ESBL/AmpC-EC clones, especially ST101-B1, harbored a highly virulent profile. In conclusion, ESBL/AmpC-EC was distributed throughout the swine production stages, with the highest prevalence in the weaning stage. The CTX-M was present in all stages, while CMY was mostly found in growing-finishing stages. The swine ESBL/AmpC-EC was identified to harbor shared clone types with human ESBL/AmpC-EC and a virulent profile posing potential risk to humans. Considering the possibility of genetic and clonal distribution of ESBL/AmpC-EC among swine production stages, this study suggests the need for strategies considering the production system to control the prevalence of ESBL/AmpC-EC in swine farms.

Campylobacter, a major foodborne pathogen, is susceptible to oxygen. Recently, aerotolerant Campylobacter with enhanced tolerance to aerobic stress has become a major concern in food safety. However, the aerotolerance of Campylobacter coli from pigs has not been studied extensively. Here, we sought to investigate the prevalence of C. coli across multiple swine groups in farms, including weaning, growing, and fattening pigs in production stages and pregnant sows. Additionally, we analyzed C. coli aerotolerance, quinolone resistance, virulence potential, and multilocus sequence typing (MLST) genotypes. Finally, we compared the characteristics of C. coli according to the aerotolerance levels. In total, we obtained 124 (66.3%) C. coli isolates from 187 swine fecal samples across six swine farms. The pathogen was prevalent in weaning (45.5%), growing (68.3%), and fattening (75.4%) pigs, and pregnant sows (66.7%). Hyper-aerotolerant HAT C. coli (13.7% of 124 isolates) was present in all swine groups, with the highest proportion in the pregnant sows (27.3%). All HAT isolates possessed diverse virulence-related genes such as flaA, cadF, pldA, ceuE, and cdtA. All C. coli isolates were resistant to quinolones, and 12 (10%) presented high-level ciprofloxacin resistance (MIC ≥ 32 μg/mL). The proportion of C. coli isolates with a high-level ciprofloxacin resistance was the highest in HAT C. coli (18.8%). Furthermore, six MLST sequence types (STs) (ST827, ST830, ST854, ST1016, ST1068, and ST1096) of swine-derived C. coli were in common with human-derived C. coli (PubMLST). The proportion of C. coli belonging to such shared STs at each aerotolerance level was the highest in HAT C. coli (HAT vs. oxygen-sensitive; OR = 3.13). In conclusion, quinolone resistance of C. coli may be distributed throughout in all swine groups in farms. HAT C. coli is likely to remain in pig farms and re-infect other pigs in the farms. Furthermore, swine-derived HAT C. coli could be transmitted to humans easily through the food chain owing to its aerotolerance, and it could pose a threat to public health owing to its high-level ciprofloxacin resistance and virulence. This study highlights the need to develop management practices that prevent the transmission of swine-derived HAT C. coli to humans.

Heart sounds and heart rate (pulse) are the most common physiological signals used in the diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases. Measuring these signals using a device and analyzing their interrelationships simultaneously can improve the accuracy of existing methods and propose new approaches for the diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases. In this study, we have presented a novel smart stethoscope based on multimodal physiological signal measurement technology for personal cardiovascular health monitoring. The proposed device is designed in the shape of a compact personal computer mouse for easy grasping and attachment to the surface of the chest using only one hand. A digital microphone and photoplehysmogram sensor are installed on the bottom and top surfaces of the device, respectively, to measure heart sound and pulse from the user’s chest and finger simultaneously. In addition, a high-performance Bluetooth Low Energy System-on-Chip ARM microprocessor is used for pre-processing of measured data and communication with the smartphone. The prototype is assembled on a manufactured printed circuit board and 3D-printed shell to conduct an in vivo experiment to test the performance of physiological signal measurement and usability by observing users’ muscle fatigue variation.

The successful quality control and quality assurance of compaction operations are vital for the long-term performance of earth structures. Traditional in situ measurement methods are in practice for assessing compaction project specifications. These methods have several shortcomings and cannot provide complete compaction quality information. With the advancement in automation and information technology in the construction section, intelligent compaction roller technology has the potential to solve this problem. However, this technology still has many problems and needs more comprehensive studies for its implementation. This study focuses on the development of a Web-GIS-based intelligent compaction system and the assessment of the practical application of this technology. The developed system consists of major components—namely, system hardware and software—to provide real-time compaction information and an effective management system. An experimental study was conducted to assess the correlation between the developed system’s compaction quality and traditional measurement methods. The linear regression analysis identifies the strong correlation and promises the feasibility of an intelligent compaction system instead of a traditional in situ test for compaction quality control. Two implementation case studies of real-time projects are presented to validate and demonstrate the practicality of the developed system.

Objective The objective of this study was to estimate the risk of Campylobacter jejuni (C. jejuni) infection from various jerky products in Korea. Methods For the exposure assessment, the prevalence and predictive models of C. jejuni in the jerky and the temperature and time of the distribution and storage were investigated. In addition, the consumption amounts and frequencies of the products were also investigated. The data for C. jejuni for the prevalence, distribution temperature, distribution time, consumption amount, and consumption frequency were fitted with the @RISK fitting program to obtain appropriate probabilistic distributions. Subsequently, the dose-response models for Campylobacter were researched in the literature. Eventually, the distributions, predictive model, and dose-response model were used to make a simulation model with @RISK to estimate the risk of C. jejuni foodborne illness from the intake of jerky. Results Among 275 jerky samples, there were no C. jejuni positive samples, and thus, the initial contamination level was statistically predicted with the RiskUniform distribution [RiskUniform (−2, 0.48)]. To describe the changes in the C. jejuni cell counts during distribution and storage, the developed predictive models with the Weibull model (primary model) and polynomial model (secondary model) were utilized. The appropriate probabilistic distribution was the BetaGeneral distribution, and it showed that the average jerky consumption was 51.83 g/d with a frequency of 0.61%. The developed simulation model from this data series and the dose-response model (Beta Poisson model) showed that the risk of C. jejuni foodborne illness per day per person from jerky consumption was 1.56×10−12. Conclusion This result suggests that the risk of C. jejuni in jerky could be considered low in Korea.

Abstract Here, we review the history and the trends in the research on the nonvisual effect of light in the field of physiological anthropology. Research on the nonvisual effect of light in the field of physiological anthropology was pioneered by Sato and colleagues in the early 1990s. These authors found that the color temperature of light affected physiological functions in humans. The groundbreaking event with regard to the study of nonvisual effects of light was the discovery of the intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells in the mammalian retina in the early 2000s. The interest of the physiological anthropology scientific community in the nonvisual effects of light has been increasing since then. A total of 61 papers on nonvisual effects of light were published in the Journal of Physiological Anthropology (including its predecessor journals) until October 2018, 14 papers (1.4/year) in the decade from 1992 to 2001, 45 papers (2.8/year) in the 16 years between 2002 and 2017, and two papers in 2018 (January–October). The number of papers on this topic has been increasing in recent years. We categorized all papers according to light conditions, such as color temperature of light, light intensity, and monochromatic light. Among the 61 papers, 11 papers were related to color temperature, 20 papers were related to light intensity, 18 papers were related to monochromatic light, and 12 papers were classified as others. We provide an overview of these papers and mention future research prospects.

BACKGROUND: Prostate cancers exhibit intratumor heterogeneity (ITH), like other cancer types. The ITH may affect diverse phenotypes such as treatment response, drug resistance, and clinical outcomes. It is crucial to consider ITH to understand tumorigenesis. METHODS: Genomic and transcriptomic profiles of prostate cancer patients were investigated to determine which markers are correlated with the degree of tumor heterogeneity. In addition, the correlation between the immune activity and clonality of tumors was examined. RESULTS: Tumor heterogeneity across all prostate cancer samples was variable. However, ITH events were dependent on genomic and clinical features. Interestingly, prostate-specific antigen score increased in tumors with multiple subclones, indicating high-grade tumor heterogeneity. On the other hand, CD8-positive T-cell activation decreased in highly heterogeneous tumors. Intriguingly, PTEN deletion was prominently enriched in high heterogeneity groups, with a strong association with heterozygous loss. Expression of major genes including PTEN, CDC42EP5, RNLS, GP2, NETO2, and AMPD3 was closely related to tumor heterogeneity in association with PTEN deletion. CONCLUSIONS: In prostate cancer, ITH, a potential factor affecting tumor progression, is associated with PTEN deletion and cytotoxic T cell inactivation.

Depression in the elderly is an important social issue considering the population aging of the world. In particular, elderly living alone who has narrowed social relationship due to bereavement and retirement are more prone to be depressed. Long-term depressed mood can be a precursor to eventual depression as a disease. Our goal is how to predict the depressed mood of single household elderly from unobtrusive monitoring of their daily life. We have selected a wearable band with multiple sensors for monitoring elderly people. Depression questionnaire has been surveyed periodically to be used as the labels. Instead of working with depression patients, we recruited 14 single household elderly people from a nearby community. The wearable band provided daily activity and biometric data for 71 days. From the data, we generate a depressed mood prediction model. Multiple features from the collected sensor data are exploited for model generation. One general model is generated to be used as the baseline for the initial model deployment. Personal models are also generated for model refinement. The general model has a high recall of 80% in an MLP model. Individual models achieved an average recall of 82.7%. In this study, we have demonstrated that we can generate depressed mood prediction models with data collected from real daily living. Our work has shown the feasibility of using a wearable band as an unobtrusive depression monitoring sensor even for elderly people.

To predict the two-year recurrence-free survival of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), we propose a prediction model using radiomic features of the inner and outer regions of the tumor. The intratumoral region and the peritumoral regions from the boundary to 3 cm were used to extract the radiomic features based on the intensity, texture, and shape features. Feature selection was performed to identify significant radiomic features to predict two-year recurrence-free survival, and patient classification was performed into recurrence and non-recurrence groups using SVM and random forest classifiers. The probability of two-year recurrence-free survival was estimated with the Kaplan–Meier curve. In the experiment, CT images of 217 non-small-cell lung cancer patients at stages I-IIIA who underwent surgical resection at the Veterans Health Service Medical Center (VHSMC) were used. Regarding the classification performance on whole tumors, the combined radiomic features for intratumoral and peritumoral regions of 6 mm and 9 mm showed improved performance (AUC 0.66, 0.66) compared to T stage and N stage (AUC 0.60), intratumoral (AUC 0.64) and peritumoral 6 mm and 9 mm classifiers (AUC 0.59, 0.62). In the assessment of the classification performance according to the tumor size, combined regions of 21 mm and 3 mm were significant when predicting outcomes compared to other regions of tumors under 3 cm (AUC 0.70) and 3 cm~5 cm (AUC 0.75), respectively. For tumors larger than 5 cm, the combined 3 mm region was significant in predictions compared to the other features (AUC 0.71). Through this experiment, it was confirmed that peritumoral and combined regions showed higher performance than the intratumoral region for tumors less than 5 cm in size and that intratumoral and combined regions showed more stable performance than the peritumoral region in tumors larger than 5 cm.

Machine reading comprehension is a question answering mechanism in which a machine reads, understands, and answers questions from a given text. These reasoning skills can be sufficiently grafted into the Korean College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) to bring about new scientific and educational advances. In this paper, we propose a novel Korean CSAT Question and Answering (KCQA) model and effectively utilize four easy data augmentation strategies with round trip translation to augment the insufficient data in the training dataset. To evaluate the effectiveness of KCQA, 30 students appeared for the test under conditions identical to the proposed model. Our qualitative and quantitative analysis along with experimental results revealed that KCQA achieved better performance than humans with a higher F1 score of 3.86.

Abstract Background It is well known that light containing the blue component stimulates the intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) and plays a role in melatonin suppression and pupillary constriction. In our previous studies, we verified that simultaneous exposure to blue and green light resulted in less pupillary constriction than blue light exposure. Hence, we hypothesized that the nonvisual effects of polychromatic white light might be increased by blocking the green component. Therefore, we conducted an experiment using optical filters that blocked blue or green component and examined the nonvisual effects of these lights on pupillary constriction and electroencephalogram power spectra. Methods Ten healthy young males participated in this study. The participant sat on a chair with his eyes facing an integrating sphere. After 10 min of light adaptation, the participant’s left eye was exposed to white pulsed light (1000 lx; pulse width 2.5 ms) every 10 s with a blue-blocking glasses, a green-blocking glasses, or control glasses (no lens), and pupillary constriction was measured. Then, after rest for 10 min, the participant was exposed a continuous white light of 1000 lx with a blue- or green-blocking glasses or control glasses and electroencephalogram was measured. Results Pupillary constriction with the blue-blocking glasses was significantly less than that observed with the green-blocking glasses. Furthermore, pupillary constriction under the green-blocking glasses was significantly greater than that observed with the control glasses. Conclusions A reduction in the green component of light facilitated pupillary constriction. Thus, the effects of polychromatic white light containing blue and green components on ipRGCs are apparently increased by removing the green component.

Nitrite plays a major role in inhibiting the growth of foodborne pathogens, including Clostridium botulinum (C. botulinum) that causes botulism, a life-threatening disease. Nitrite serves as a color-fixing agent in processed meat products. However, N-nitroso compounds can be produced from nitrite, which are considered as carcinogens. Thus, consumers desire processed meat products that contain lower concentrations (below conventional concentrations of products) of nitrite or no nitrite at all, although the portion of nitrite intake by processed meat consumption in total nitrite intake is very low. However, lower nitrite levels might expose consumers to risk of botulism poisoning due to C. botulinum or illness caused by other foodborne pathogens. Hence, lower nitrite concentrations in combination with other factors such as low pH, high sodium chloride level, and others have been recommended to decrease the risk of food poisoning. In addition, natural compounds that can inhibit bacterial growth and function as color-fixing agents have been developed to replace nitrite in processed meat products. However, their antibotulinal effects have not been fully clarified. Therefore, to have processed meat products with lower nitrite concentrations, low pH, high sodium chloride concentration, and others should also be applied together. Before using natural compounds as replacement of nitrite, their antibotulinal activities should be examined.

Cardiac auscultation is one of the most popular diagnosis approaches to determine cardiovascular status based on listening to heart sounds with a stethoscope. However, heart sounds can be masked by visceral sounds such as organ movement and breathing, and a doctor’s level of experience can more seriously affect the accuracy of auscultation results. To improve the accuracy of auscultation, and to allow nonmedical staff to conduct cardiac auscultation anywhere and anytime, a hybrid-type personal smart stethoscope with an automatic heart sound analysis function is presented in this paper. The device was designed with a folding finger-ring shape that can be worn on the finger and placed on the chest to measure photoplethysmogram (PPG) signals and acquire the heart sound simultaneously. The measured heart sounds are detected as phonocardiogram (PCG) signals, and the boundaries of the heart sound variation and the peaks of the PPG signal are detected in preprocessing by an advanced Shannon entropy envelope. According to the relationship between PCG and PPG signals, an automatic heart sound analysis algorithm based on calculating the time interval between the first and second heart sounds (S1, S2) and the peak of the PPG was developed and implemented via the manufactured prototype device. The prototype device underwent accuracy and usability testing with 20 young adults, and the experimental results showed that the proposed smart stethoscope could satisfactorily collect the heart sounds and PPG signals. In addition, within the developed algorithm, the device was as accurate in start-points of heart sound detection as professional physiological signal-acquisition systems. Furthermore, the experimental results demonstrated that the device was able to identify S1 and S2 heart sounds automatically with high accuracy.

Abstract Background The simultaneous exposure to blue and green light was reported to result in less melatonin suppression than monochromatic exposure to blue or green light. Here, we conducted an experiment using extremely short blue- and green-pulsed light to examine their visual and nonvisual effects on visual evoked potentials (VEPs), pupillary constriction, electroretinograms (ERGs), and subjective evaluations. Methods Twelve adult male subjects were exposed to three light conditions: blue-pulsed light (2.5-ms pulse width), green-pulsed light (2.5-ms pulse width), and simultaneous blue- and green-pulsed light with white background light. We measured the subject’s pupil diameter three times in each condition. Then, after 10 min of rest, the subject was exposed to the same three light conditions. We measured the averaged ERG and VEP during 210 pulsed-light exposures in each condition. We also determined subjective evaluations using a visual analog scale (VAS) method. Results The pupillary constriction during the simultaneous exposure to blue- and green-pulsed light was significantly lower than that during the blue-pulsed light exposure despite the double irradiance intensity of the combination. We also found that the b/|a| wave of the ERGs during the simultaneous exposure to blue- and green-pulsed light was lower than that during the blue-pulsed light exposure. We confirmed the subadditive response to pulsed light on pupillary constriction and ERG. However, the P100 of the VEPs during the blue-pulsed light were smaller than those during the simultaneous blue- and green-pulsed light and green-pulsed light, indicating that the P100 amplitude might depend on the luminance of light. Conclusions Our findings demonstrated the effect of the subadditive response to extremely short pulsed light on pupillary constriction and ERG responses. The effects on ipRGCs by the blue-pulsed light exposure are apparently reduced by the simultaneous irradiation of green light. The blue versus yellow (b/y) bipolar cells in the retina might be responsible for this phenomenon.

Abstract Background Recent advances in next-generation sequencing technologies have enabled comprehensive analysis of the gut microbiota, which is closely linked to the health of the host. Consequently, several studies have explored the factors affecting gut microbiota composition. In recent years, increasing number of dog owners are feeding their pets a natural diet i.e., one consisting of bones, raw meat (such as chicken and beef), and vegetables, instead of commercial feed. However, the effect of these diets on the microbiota of dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) is unclear. Methods and results Six dogs fed a natural diet and five dogs fed a commercial feed were selected; dog fecal metagenomic DNA samples were analyzed using the Illumina MiSeq platform. Pronounced differences in alpha and beta diversities, and taxonomic composition of the core gut microbiota were observed between the two groups. According to alpha diversity, the number of operational taxonomic units, the richness estimates, and diversity indices of microbiota were significantly higher (p

Abstract Background In the human retina, the contribution of intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) to the regulation of the pupillary response remains poorly understood. The objective of the current study was to determine the response dynamics of the pupillary light reflex to short, successive pulses of light. In order to better assess the roles of ipRGCs and cones, we used pulses of blue and green light. Methods Each participant was exposed to 1-ms blue (466 nm) and/or green (527 nm) light pulses simultaneously or separately, with inter-stimulus intervals (ISIs) of 0, 250, 500, 750, or 1000 ms. Pupil diameter was measured using an infrared camera system. Results We found that human pupillary light responses during simultaneous irradiation or successive irradiation with ISIs ≤ 250 ms were equivalent, though successive irradiation of blue- and green-pulsed light with ISIs ≥ 500 ms induced markedly increased pupillary constriction. Conclusions We propose that this result may be related to cell hyperpolarization that occurs in the retina just after the first light stimulus is turned off, with the threshold for this effect being between 250 and 500 ms in the human retina.

Abstract Background As a primary source of Shiga-toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) infection, cattle are often targeted to develop strategies for reducing STEC contamination. Monitoring the virulence potentials of STEC isolates from cattle is important for tracing contamination sources, managing outbreaks or sporadic cases, and reducing the risks for human infection. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of STEC in cattle farm samples in South Korea and to assess their virulence potentials. Results In total, 63 STEC were isolated from 496 cattle farm samples, and temperature and rainfall affected STEC prevalence (p

Abstract Background Exposure to pulsed light results in non-visual physiological responses in humans. The present study aims to investigate whether such non-visual effects are influenced to a greater extent by the intensity of lighting or by the power (quantity) of lighting. Methods >Twelve healthy young male participants (23 ± 0.3 years, 21–24 age range) were recruited for the present study. Participants were exposed to light of varying levels of intensity and quantity whose frequency was held constant across the conditions, which consisted of exposure to blue (different intensity, constant quantity) and white (constant intensity, different quantity) LEDs. Pupillary constriction, electroencephalogram (EEG) alpha band ratio, subjective sleepiness, concentration and perception of blueness were measured. Results Pupillary constriction and subjective concentration were significantly greater under the high-intensity and short pulse width (HS) condition than under the low-intensity and long pulse width (LL) conditions at three time points during exposure to high-intensity light. However, no significant differences were observed among the results at the three time points during exposure to different quantities of pulsed light. Conclusions The results of the present study indicate that non-visual influences of pulsed light on physiological function are mainly determined not by the quantity but by the intensity of the emitted light, with relatively higher levels of intensity producing more significant physiological changes, suggesting potent excitation of intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells.

Objective The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of combinations of NaNO2 and NaCl concentrations on Listeria monocytogenes (L. monocytogenes) growth in emulsion-type sausage. Methods Emulsion-type sausages formulated with different combinations of NaNO2 (0 and 10 ppm) and NaCl (1.00%, 1.25%, and 1.50%) were inoculated with a five-strain L. monocytogenes mixture, and stored at 4°C, 10°C, and 15°C, under aerobic or vacuum conditions. L. monocytogenes cell counts were measured at appropriate intervals, and kinetic parameters such as growth rate and lag phase duration (LPD) were calculated using the modified Gompertz model. Results Growth rates increased (0.004 to 0.079 Log colony-forming unit [CFU]/g/h) as storage temperature increased, but LPD decreased (445.11 to 8.35 h) as storage temperature and NaCl concentration increased. The effect of combinations of NaCl and low-NaNO2 on L. monocytogenes growth was not observed at 4°C and 10°C, but it was observed at 15°C, regardless of atmospheric conditions. Conclusion These results indicate that low concentrations of NaNO2 and NaCl in emulsion-type sausage may not be sufficient to prevent L. monocytogenes growth, regardless of whether they are vacuum-packaged and stored at low temperatures. Therefore, additional techniques are necessary for L. monocytogenes control in the product.

Campylobacter jejuni is one of the most common zoonotic pathogens worldwide. Although the main sources of human C. jejuni infection are livestock, wildlife can also affect C. jejuni transmission in humans. However, it remains unclear whether wild mice harbor C. jejuni and are involved in the “environment–wildlife–livestock–human” transmission cycle of C. jejuni in humans. Here, we characterized C. jejuni from wild mice and identified genetic traces of wild mouse-derived C. jejuni in other hosts using a traditional approach, along with comparative genomics. We captured 115 wild mice (49 Mus musculus and 66 Micromys minutus) without any clinical symptoms from 22 sesame fields in Korea over 2 years. Among them, M. minutus were typically caught in remote areas of human houses and C. jejuni was solely isolated from M. minutus (42/66, 63.6%). We identified a single clone (MLST ST-8388) in all 42 C. jejuni isolates, which had not been previously reported, and all isolates had the same virulence/survival-factor profile, except for the plasmid-mediated virB11 gene. No isolates exhibited antibiotic resistance, either in phenotypic and genetic terms. Comparative-genomic analysis and MST revealed that C. jejuni derived from M. minutus (strain SCJK2) was not genetically related to those derived from other sources (registered in the NCBI genome database and PubMLST database). Therefore, we hypothesize that C. jejuni from M. minutus is a normal component of the gut flora following adaptation to the gastro-intestinal tract. Furthermore, M. minutus-derived C. jejuni had different ancestral lineages from those derived from other sources, and there was a low chance of C. jejuni transmission from M. minutus to humans/livestock because of their habitat. In conclusion, M. minutus may be a potential reservoir for a novel C. jejuni, which is genetically different from those of other sources, but may not be involved in the transmission of C. jejuni to other hosts, including humans and livestock. This study could form the basis for further studies focused on understanding the transmission cycle of C. jejuni, as well as other zoonotic pathogens originating from wild mice.

This study evaluated the anti-obesity effects of lactic acid bacteria. Thirty-one lactic acid bacteria were examined in vitro for their ability to inhibit α-glucosidase activity, lipase activity, and 3T3-L1 cell differentiation. Four selected lactic acid bacteria were administered to obese C57BL/6J mice models for 8 weeks. The degree of improvement in obesity was determined by weight gain and serum biochemical analysis. The expression levels of genes (Fas and Cpt-2) related to obesity in the liver were analyzed by quantitative reverse transcription (qRT)-PCR. In addition, antioxidant protein levels (SOD-2, CAT, and GPx-1) in the liver were evaluated. The lactic acid bacteria-treated groups (PPGK1, LFNK3, LPNK2, and LFNK4) showed lower weight increase rate than the control group. The total cholesterol (T-chol), triglyceride (TG), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels in the blood serum of the LFNK4 group were the lowest among other groups, compared to the control group. The expression levels of lipid metabolism-related genes (Fas and Cpt-2) in the liver of the LFNK4 group were lower in Fas and higher in Cpt-2 than in the control group. The antioxidant protein expression levels (SOD-2, CAT, and GPx-1) in the liver tissue were also higher in the LFNK4 group. These results indicate that L. fermentum SMFM2017-NK4 has anti-obesity effects.

Earthwork is seemingly guesswork, but it requires a high level of accuracy and precise planning. Differences between earthwork design and finishing levels cause project delays and cost overrun due to the time-consuming nature of earthwork re-work. Therefore, error-free earthwork planning and design review is a key to the success of earthwork projects. This study utilized an integrated approach of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-based point cloud and BIM (Building Information Modeling) to verify the design and to operate the earthwork planning. The integrated approach was proposed and applied to a 420 square meters housing construction project to review an original earthwork design and create an earthwork plan for excavator work. As a result, errors in earthwork design that caused by inaccurate initial DEM was revealed, thus the earthwork design was revised with a UAV-based point cloud map. Additionally, the integrated approach was able to generate an explicit task sequence for an excavator.