Culture Syndrome

Inflamm-aging refers to the chronic low-grade inflammation that occurs with aging and cellular senescence, and it is linked to various diseases. Understanding the markers involved in inflammation and aging, as well as their interaction with environmental factors and bodily control mechanisms, can provide crucial tools for assessing the resilience (i.e. the ability to adapt and improve) of the human body, particularly in the presence of chronic degenerative conditions or vulnerable life stages, that place the individual and the community to which he belongs in a state of potential fragility...

OBJECTIVES: To develop a Thai version of the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (ASCRS)-modified Standard Patient Evaluation of Eye Dryness (SPEED) II© preoperative ocular surface disease (OSD) questionnaire (ASCRS SPEED II-Thai) and evaluate its validity and reliability in Thai cataract surgery candidates. METHODS: The original English version of the questionnaire was translated and adapted cross-culturally to Thai language. The ASCRS SPEED II-Thai was evaluated for content validity, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability...

Pegfilgrastim dramatically reduces febrile neutropenia (FN) caused by high-risk chemotherapy. This report details the presentation of a 72-year-old female who developed a fatal infection of Pseudomonas aeruginosa pneumonia that occurred during preoperative chemotherapy despite pegfilgrastim administration. She was brought to the hospital with symptoms of high fever and general fatigue during chemotherapy, but her respiratory symptoms were minimal, and a chest computed tomography (CT) showed no obvious signs of pneumonia...

Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell (BMSC)-derived exosomes (BMSC-Exos) have a variety of biological functions and are extensively involved in the regulation of inflammatory diseases, as well as tissue repair and regeneration. However, the mechanism of action of these compounds in dry eye disease (DED) in mice is still unclear. This study demonstrated that the Treg/Th17 ratio was strongly imbalanced in DED clinical samples. BMSC-Exos can modulate the Treg/Th17 balance, improve the integrity of the corneal epithelial layer, and ameliorate DED progression in mice...

Fever can be due to infectious or noninfectious causes and results from the body's natural response to exogenous or endogenous pyrogens. Laboratory tests including complete blood count, differential blood count, C‑reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate and procalcitonin do not have sufficient sensitivity and specificity to definitively detect or rule out an infectious (bacterial, viral, parasitic) cause of fever. Blood cultures should be carried out when bacteremic or septic illnesses are suspected...

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) remains one of the major threats to swine industry, resulting in huge economic losses worldwide. Currently, PRRSV has diversified into multiple lineages with characteristics of extensive recombination in China. In this research, three virus strains were isolated and four virus whole genome sequences were generated and analyzed from clinical samples collected in Gansu province of China in 2023. The four virus strains were designated GSTS4-2023, GSLX2-2023, GSFEI2-2023 and GSBY4-2023...

Green nail syndrome (GNS) is a rare diagnosis in which a patient presents with green-yellow, green-blue, or green-brown discoloration of a finger or toenail. It occurs due to a Pseudomonas aeruginosa  infection of the nail.  Pseudomonas aeruginosa  produces pigments that can infuse into the underside of the nail plate, creating a color change. Here, we present the case of a 34-year-old female with a green-brown area of discoloration of her right middle finger in which the diagnosis of GNS was made...

BACKGROUND: Acute lung injury (ALI) and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) are clinically severe respiratory disorders without available pharmacological therapies. Dynasore is a cell-permeable molecule that inhibits GTPase activity and exerts protective effects in several disease models. However, whether dynasore can alleviate lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced ALI is unknown. This study investigated the effect of dynasore on macrophage activation and explored its potential mechanisms in LPS-induced ALI in vitro and in vivo...

The Nicotiana tabacum L. plant, a medicinal resource, holds significant potential for benefiting human health, as evidenced by its use in Native American and ancient Chinese cultures. Modern medical and pharmaceutical studies have investigated that the abundant and distinctive function metabolites in tobacco including nicotine, solanesol, cembranoid diterpenes, essential oil, seed oil and other tobacco extracts, avoiding the toxic components of smoke, mainly have the anti-oxidation, anti-lipid production, pro-lipid oxidation, pro-insulin sensitivity, anti-inflammation, anti-apoptosis and antimicrobial activities...

OBJECTIVES: This research program involves two phases to identify enablers and barriers to diabetes care for Aboriginal people on Ngarrindjeri country; and co-design a strength-based metabolic syndrome and Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) remission program with the Ngarrindjeri community. STUDY DESIGN: A study protocol on qualitative research. METHODS: The study will recruit Aboriginal people living on Ngarrindjeri country above 18 years of age with a diagnosis of metabolic syndrome or T2D...

OBJECTIVE: To identify possible stone-promoting microbes, we compared the profiles of microbes grown from stones of patients with and without metabolic syndrome (MetS). The association between MetS and urinary stone disease is well established, but the exact pathophysiologic relationship remains unknown. Recent evidence suggests urinary tract dysbiosis may lead to increased nephrolithiasis risk. METHODS: At the time of percutaneous nephrolithotomy, bladder urine and stone fragments were collected from patients with and without MetS...

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The pathogenesis of staphylococcal infections is mediated by virulence factors, such as enzymes, toxins, and biofilms, which increase the resistance of microorganisms to host immune system evasion. Testing and searching for standardized multi-level algorithms for the indication and differentiation of biofilms at the early stages of diagnosis will contribute to the development of preventive measures to control the critical points of technology and manage dangerous risk factors for the spread of infectious diseases...

Disorders of the gut-brain interaction (DGBIs) are presently classified into mutually exclusive anatomical area-related symptom-based categories according to the Rome IV criteria. The pathophysiology of visceral nociception, which contributes to the wide range of symptoms of DGBIs, involves complex psychobiological processes arising from the bidirectional interactions of multiple systems at the gut and brain levels, which affect symptom expression and illness behaviors. The attitude toward an illness and expression of pain and bowel habit vary across cultures with variable interpretation based on sociocultural beliefs, which may not tally with the medical definitions...

INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE: Septic arthritis (SA), an infection affecting joints, is primarily attributed to bacteria, viruses, or fungi, with the hip, knee, and ankle being common sites of involvement. However, SA of the proximal tibiofibular joint is exceptionally rare. We report a highly uncommon case of lateral knee pain with fever in an 11-year-old boy caused by SA of the proximal tibiofibular joint. CASE PRESENTATION: The case involves an 11-year-old male admitted with atraumatic knee pain, fever, and limping...

The measurement of the enterovirus and the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in sewage water is relevant in the early detection of the introduction or disappearance of these viruses in the ecosystem. We evaluated the co-circulation of the enteroviruses and SARS-CoV-2 in 81 sewage water samples collected between September 2021 and April 2023 from different regions of north and southeast Romania, at the border with Ukraine. We used, for the molecular detection of the pathogens, the multiplex real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay produced for respiratory samples and the Respiratory 2...

BACKGROUND: The development of antiretroviral therapy broadly extends the life expectancy of persons living with HIV (PLHIV). However, stigma and discrimination are still great threat to these individuals and the world's public health care system. Accurate and reproducible measures are prerequisites for robust results. Therefore, it is essential to choose an acceptable measure with satisfactory psychometric properties to assess stigma and discrimination. There has been no systematic review of different stigma and discrimination tools in the field of HIV care...

BACKGROUND: Kawasaki disease (KD) is a pediatric systemic vasculitis characterized by endothelial cell dysfunction. Semaphorin 7A (Sema7A) has been reported to regulate endothelial phenotypes associated with cardiovascular diseases, while its role in KD remains unknown. This study aims to investigate the effect of Sema7A on endothelial permeability and inflammatory response in KD conditions. METHODS: Blood samples were collected from 68 KD patients and 25 healthy children (HC)...

BACKGROUND/AIM: Cancer cachexia is a wasting syndrome that has a devastating impact on the prognosis of patients with cancer. It is well-documented that pro-inflammatory cytokines are involved in the progression of this disorder. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the protective effect of taurine, an essential nonprotein amino acid with great anti-inflammatory properties, in attenuating muscle atrophy induced by cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Conditioned media (CM) derived from T24 human bladder carcinoma cells with or without 5 mM taurine were incubated with human skeletal muscle cells (HSkMCs) and their differentiation was examined...

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Plantaginis Semen (PS) is widely utilized as a common herb in several Asian countries, particularly China, due to its diuretic, anti-hypertensive, anti-hyperlipidemic, and anti-hyperglycemic properties. Furthermore, it is acknowledged for its ability to mitigate renal complications associated with metabolic syndrome. Despite its extensive usage, there is limited systematic literature elucidating its therapeutic mechanisms, thus emphasizing the necessity for comprehensive investigations in this field...

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: A herbal formula Tong-Xie-Yao-Fang (TXYF) is traditionally used to treat irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), modern pharmacological evidence supports that the formula efficacy is associated with altered gut microbiota. Yet, the mechanistic role of gut microbiota in the therapy of TXYF remains unclear. We previously clarified that gut microbiota-dysregulated bile acid (BA) metabolism contribute to the pathogenesis of IBS, deriving a hypothesis that microbiota-BA metabolic axis might be a potential target of TXYF...