Junga Lee

Thyrotoxic autoimmune encephalopathy: a repeat positron emission tomography study

Thyroid related autoantibodies have been related to the development of encephalopathy, known as Hashimoto’s encephalopathy. However, their relation with the encephalopathy occurring in patients with Graves’ disease has not been well established. The case is reported of a 51 year old woman presenting with subacute progressive dementia with evidence of hyperthyroidism. She had Graves’ disease associated with high titres of thyroid related autoantibodies. Her encephalopathy was not improved by antithyroid drugs, but promptly responded to corticosteroid treatment, and stabilised with a gradual reduction of thyroid related autoantibody titres. Brain positron emission tomography initially showed a diffuse and multifocal cerebral hypometabolism with subsequent normalisation on her clinical recovery, which was consistent with the acute and reversible cerebral inflammation probably mediated by autoimmune mechanisms.

Association between body mass index and prognosis of colorectal cancer: a meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies.

Studies have reported conflicting results on the association between body mass index (BMI) and prognosis of colorectal cancer. Therefore, we have conducted a meta-analysis of prospective studies, which examined the association of pre- and post-diagnostic BMI with colorectal cancer-specific mortality and all-cause mortality in patients with colorectal cancer. We searched Medline and EMBASE database published between 1970 and September 2014. A total of 508 articles were identified, of which 16 prospective cohort studies were included for the current meta-analysis. The analysis included 58,917 patients who were followed up over a period ranging from 4.9 to 20 years (median: 9.9 years). We found that being underweight before cancer diagnosis was associated with increased all-cause mortality (Relative risk [RR]: 1.63, 95% CI: 1.18–2.23, p < 0.01) and being obese (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) before cancer diagnosis was associated with increased colorectal cancer-specific mortality (RR: 1.22, 95% CI: 1.003–1.35, p < 0.01) and all-cause mortality (RR: 1.25, 95% CI: 1.14–1.36, p < 0.01). On the other hand, being underweight (RR: 1.33, 95% CI: 1.20–1.47, p < 0.01), obese (RR: 1.08, 95% CI: 1.03–1.3, p < 0.01), and class II/III obese (BMI ≥ 35 kg/m2; RR: 1.13, 95% CI: 1.04–1.23, p < 0.01) after diagnosis were associated with significantly increased all-cause mortality. Being obese prior to diagnosis of colorectal cancer was associated with increased colorectal cancer-specific mortality and all-cause mortality, whereas being obese after diagnosis was associated with increased all-cause mortality. The associations with being underweight may reflect reverse causation. Maintaining a healthy body weight should be discussed with colorectal cancer survivors.

The effect of oncologists' exercise recommendations on the level of exercise and quality of life in survivors of breast and colorectal cancer: A randomized controlled trial

The purpose of the current study was to examine the effect of an oncologists exercise recommendation with and without an exercise motivation package on the amount of exercise participation and quality of life (QOL) in survivors of breast and colorectal cancer.

Effects of Exercise on Insulin, IGF-axis, Adipocytokines, and Inflammatory Markers in Breast Cancer Survivors: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Background: Insulin, IGF axis, adiponectin, and inflammatory markers are associated with breast cancer. Given that physical activity improves prognosis of breast cancer survivors, we investigated the effects of exercise on these markers as potential mediators between physical activity and breast cancer. Methods: PubMed, EMBASE, CENTRAL, CINAHL, and SportDiscus were searched up to December 3, 2015, to identify randomized controlled trials (RCT) that investigated the effect of exercise on insulin, IGF axis, and cytokines in breast cancer survivors. Weighted mean difference (WMD) was calculated using either fixed- or random-effects models on the basis of the heterogeneity of the studies. Results: A total of 18 studies involving 681 breast cancer survivors were included, and these numbers were reduced for individual biomarker analyses. We found that exercise significantly reduced fasting insulin levels [WMD, −3.46 μU/mL; 95% confidence interval (CI), −5.97 to −0.95; P = 0.007]. Furthermore, potentially meaningful but statistically nonsignificant changes were observed in insulin resistance (WMD, −0.73; 95% CI, −0.54 to 0.13; P = 0.23), adiponectin (WMD, 1.17 μg/mL; 95% CI, −0.87 to 3.20; P = 0.26), and C-reactive protein (WMD, −1.10 mg/L; 95% CI, −2.39 to 0.20; P = 0.10). Subgroup analyses showed that fasting insulin levels were significantly more impacted in studies in which intervention participants experienced a weight reduction (WMD, −7.10 μU/mL; 95% CI, −10.31 to −3.90; P < 0.001). Conclusions: Exercise reduces fasting insulin levels in breast cancer survivors. This may be due to exercise-induced reductions in body weight. Impact: Practitioners and clinicians may better help breast cancer prognosis be improved through exercise, anticipating physiological effects on cancer. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 26(3); 355–65. ©2016 AACR.

Association between cardiorespiratory fitness and the prevalence of metabolic syndrome among Korean adults: a cross sectional study

BackgroundThe purpose of the current study was to investigate the association between cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), measured by a simple step test, and the prevalence of metabolic syndrome among Korean adults, in a cross sectional design.MethodsA total of 1,007 Korean adults (488 men and 519 women) who underwent routine health checkups were recruited. CRF was measured by Tecumseh step test. The National Cholesterol Education Program’s Adult Treatment Panel III guideline was used to determine the prevalence of metabolic syndrome. A logistic regression was performed to reveal possible associations.ResultsThe results of the study showed that a lower level of CRF was significantly associated with a higher prevalence of metabolic syndrome in men, but not in women. On the other hand, higher BMI was associated with a higher prevalence of metabolic syndrome in both men and women. However, BMI was not associated with fasting glucose nor hemoglobinA1c in men. When the combined impact of BMI and CRF on the prevalence of metabolic syndrome was analyzed, a significantly increased prevalence of metabolic syndrome was found in both men (odds ratio [OR]: 18.8, 95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 5.0 - 70.5) and women (OR: 8.1, 95% CI: 2.8 - 23.9) who had high BMI and low cardiorespiratory fitness. On the other hand, the prevalence of metabolic syndrome was only increased 7.9 times (95% CI: 2.0 - 31.2) in men and 5.4 times (95% CI: 1.9 - 15.9) in women who had high level of CRF and high BMI.ConclusionIn conclusion, the current study demonstrated the low CRF and obesity was a predictor for metabolic syndrome in Korean adults.

Complete mitochondrial genome of the rabbitfish Siganus fuscescens (Perciformes, Siganidae)

We determined the complete nucleotide sequence of the mitochondrial genome for the rabbitfish Siganus fuscescens (Perciformes, Siganidae). This mitochondrial genome, consisting of 16,491 base pairs (bp), included 13 protein-coding genes, 2 ribosomal RNAs, 22 transfer RNAs, and a noncoding control region similar those found in other vertebrates; the gene order was identical to that of typical vertebrates. Most of the genes of S. fuscescens were encoded on the H-strand, while the ND6 and eight tRNA (Gln, Ala, Asn, Cys, Tyr, Ser [UCN], Glu, and Pro) genes were encoded on the L-strand. The reading frames of ATPase 8 and 6 and those of ND4L and ND4 overlapped by ten and seven nucleotides, respectively. All mitochondrial protein-coding genes began with an ATG start codon, except for CO1, which started with GTG. Open reading frames of S. fuscescens ended with TAA (ND1, CO1, ATPase 8, ND4L, ND5 and ND6), and the remainder had incomplete stop codons, either TA (ATPase 6 and CO3) or T (ND2, CO2, ND3, ND4, and Cytb). The origin of L-strand replication in S. fuscescens was located in a cluster of five tRNA genes (WANCY) and was 34 nucleotides in length. A major noncoding region between the tRNA-Pro and tRNA-Phe genes (828 bp) was considered to be the control region (D-loop). Within this sequence, we identified a conserved sequence block characteristic of this region. The rabbitfish was grouped with Siganus canaliculatus in most parsimony analyses, which showed 100% bootstrap support for their divergence. These findings are useful for inferring phylogenetic relationships and identification within the suborder Acanthuroidei.

Exercise Barriers in Korean Colorectal Cancer Patients

BACKGROUND To identify barriers to exercise in Korean colorectal cancer patients and survivors, and to analyze differences in exercise barriers by age, gender, treatment status, and physical activity level. MATERIALS AND METHODS A total of 427 colorectal cancer patients and survivors from different stages and medical status completed a self-administered questionnaire that surveyed their barriers to exercise and exercise participation. RESULTS The greatest perceived exercise barriers for the sampled population as a whole were fatigue, low level of physical fitness, and poor health. Those under 60-years old reported lack of time (p=0.008), whereas those over 60 reported low level of physical fitness (p=0.014) as greater exercise barriers than their counterparts. Women reported fatigue as a greater barrier than men (p<0.001). Those who were receiving treatment rated poor health (p=0.0005) and cancer-related factors as greater exercise barriers compared to those who were not receiving treatment. A multivariate model found that other demographic and medical status were not potential factors that may affect exercise participation. Further, for those who were not participating in physical activity, tendency to be physically inactive (p<0.001) and lack of exercise skill (p<0.001) were highly significant barriers, compared to those who were participating in physical activity. Also, for those who were not meeting ACSM guidelines, cancer-related exercise barriers were additionally reported (p<0.001), compared to those who were. CONCLUSIONS Our study suggests that fatigue, low level of physical fitness, and poor health are most reported exercise barriers for Korean colorectal cancer survivors and there are differences in exercise barriers by age, sex, treatment status, and physical activity level. Therefore, support for cancer patients should be provided considering these variables to increase exercise participation.

EPOC aware energy expenditure estimation with machine learning

In 2014, 39 % of adults were overweight, and 13 % were obese. Clearly, knowing exact energy expenditure (EE) is important for sports training and weight control. Furthermore, excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC) must be included in the total EE. This paper presents a machine learning-based EE estimation approach with EPOC for aerobic exercise using a heart rate sensor. On a dataset acquired from 33 subjects, we apply machine learning algorithms using Weka machine learning toolkit. We could achieve 0.88 correlation and 0.23 kcal/min root mean square error (RMSE) with linear regression. The proposed model could be applied to various wearable devices such as a smartwatch.

The effect of oncologists' exercise recommendations on the level of exercise and quality of life in survivors of breast and colorectal cancer: A randomized controlled trial: Exercise Recommendation in Breast Cancer and CRC

The purpose of the current study was to examine the effect of an oncologists exercise recommendation with and without an exercise motivation package on the amount of exercise participation and quality of life (QOL) in survivors of breast and colorectal cancer.

The Effect of Oncologists’ Exercise Recommendation on the Level of Exercise and Quality of Life in Breast and Colorectal Cancer Survivors: Randomized Controlled Trial

The purpose of the current study was to examine the effect of an oncologists exercise recommendation with and without an exercise motivation package on the amount of exercise participation and quality of life (QOL) in survivors of breast and colorectal cancer.