Won Duck Kim

A Fatal Case of Severe Hemolytic Disease of Newborn Associated with Anti-Jkb

The Kidd blood group is clinically significant since the Jk antibodies can cause acute and delayed transfusion reactions as well as hemolytic disease of newborn (HDN). In general, HDN due to anti-Jkb incompatibility is rare and it usually displays mild clinical symptoms with a favorable prognosis. Yet, we apparently experienced the second case of HDN due to anti-Jkb with severe clinical symptoms and a fatal outcome. A female patient having the AB, Rh(D)-positive boodtype was admitted for jaundice on the fourth day after birth. At the time of admission, the patient was lethargic and exhibited high pitched crying. The laboratory data indicated a hemoglobin value of 11.4 mg/dL, a reticulocyte count of 14.9% and a total bilirubin of 46.1 mg/dL, a direct bilirubin of 1.1 mg/dL and a strong positive result (+++) on the direct Coombs test. As a result of the identification of irregular antibody from the maternal serum, anti-Jkb was detected, which was also found in the eluate made from infants blood. Despite the aggressive treatment with exchange transfusion and intensive phototherapy, the patient died of intractable seizure and acute renal failure on the fourth day of admission. Therefore, pediatricians should be aware of the clinical courses of hemolytic jaundice due to anti-Jkb, and they should be ready to treat this disease with active therapeutic interventions.

Development of a time-temperature integrator system using Burkholderia cepacia lipase

A time-temperature integrator (TTI) is a device used to show a time-temperature dependent change that reflects the temperature history and quality status of the food to which it is attached. An enzymatic TTI system based on the reaction between Burkholderia cepacia lipase and tricaprylin, which causes a pH change, was developed. The temperature dependence of the response rate of this new lipase-type TTI was modeled using the Arrhenius equation, and the estimated activation energy was calculated as 70.61±11.10 kJ/mol (±95% confidence interval). The TTI response was validated under dynamic storage conditions with independent variable temperature experiments, and a good agreement was obtained between the predicted and measured values.

Parotid sialolithiasis in a two-year-old boy.

Sialolithiasis is caused by the obstruction of a salivary gland or its excretory duct by the formation of calcareous concretions or sialoliths; this results in salivary ectasia and provokes subsequent dilation of the salivary gland. Sialolithiasis is relatively common, accounting for 30% of salivary diseases; however, it is rarely observed in childhood. This case report describes a 2-year-old male patient who complained of a painful swelling over the right cheek, and presented with palpable stones and pus discharge from the orifice of the right Stensens duct. Computerized tomography of the neck confirmed the diagnosis, and the patient received intravenous empiric antibiotics combined with intraoral sialolithotomy. We also provide a review of the spectrum of concepts regarding the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment of sialolithiasis.

Development of a lipase-based time temperature indicator system for monitoring ground beef quality

A time-temperature indicator (TTI) based on Burkholderia cepacia lipase (BCL) activity was developed for monitoring ground beef quality under dynamic storage conditions. The growth of Pseudomonas spp., the major specific spoilage bacterium in meat, was used as a ground beef spoilage index. Arrhenius and logistic models were used to show temperature dependence of the growth of Pseudomonas spp. in ground beef. Under different isothermal conditions (25, 18, 12, and 5°C), the spoilage of ground beef by Pseudomonas spp. and the color change of the BCL-TTI had similar activation energies of 47.5 and 35.8 kJ/mol, respectively. The suitability of the BCL-TTI was validated for ground beef under two dynamic storage conditions using a predictive microbial growth model. The results showed that the endpoint of the BCL-TTI system was close to the end of the shelf life for ground beef with a relative error <10%. Therefore, the BCL-TTI system developed in this study could be useful as an effective tool for monitoring quality changes in ground beef during distribution and storage.