Male, increased sebum and decreased skin elasticity were mostly correlated with facial pore development. Further studies on population with various demographic profiles and more severe acne may be helpful to elucidate the potential effect of aging and acne severity on facial pores.

Oral finasteride, 5 mg/day, may be an effective and safe treatment for normoandrogenic women with FPHL.

Small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO)-specific proteases (SENPs) that reverse protein modification by SUMO are involved in the control of numerous cellular processes, including transcription, cell division, and cancer development. However, the physiological function of SENPs in energy metabolism remains unclear. Here, we investigated the role of SENP2 in fatty acid metabolism in C2C12 myotubes and in vivo. In C2C12 myotubes, treatment with saturated fatty acids, like palmitate, led to nuclear factor-κB–mediated increase in the expression of SENP2. This increase promoted the recruitment of peroxisome proliferator–activated receptor (PPAR)δ and PPARγ, through desumoylation of PPARs, to the promoters of the genes involved in fatty acid oxidation (FAO), such as carnitine-palmitoyl transferase-1 (CPT1b) and long-chain acyl-CoA synthetase 1 (ACSL1). In addition, SENP2 overexpression substantially increased FAO in C2C12 myotubes. Consistent with the cell culture system, muscle-specific SENP2 overexpression led to a marked increase in the mRNA levels of CPT1b and ACSL1 and thereby in FAO in the skeletal muscle, which ultimately alleviated high-fat diet–induced obesity and insulin resistance. Collectively, these data identify SENP2 as an important regulator of fatty acid metabolism in skeletal muscle and further implicate that muscle SENP2 could be a novel therapeutic target for the treatment of obesity-linked metabolic disorders.

This was the first study to report the significant correlations between the casual sebum level and the number, proportion and location of acne lesions in a large acne patients group, using an objective, bioengineering method. Moreover, we also found that the influence of sebum was prominent on the inflammatory lesions. In addition, both age and gender influenced the correlation between the casual sebum level and the acne.

This prospective, randomized, doubleblind study compared the effects of dexmedetomidine and remifentanil on haemodynamic stability, sedation and postoperative pain control in the postanaesthetic care unit (PACU). Fifty consecutive patients scheduled for total laparoscopic hysterectomy were randomly assigned to receive infusions of either dexmedetomidine (1 µg/kg) i.v. over 10 min followed by 0.2 -0.7 µg/kg per h continuous i.v. infusion or remifentanil (0.8 -1.2 µg/kg) i.v. over 1 min followed by 0.05 -0.1 µg/kg i.v. per min, starting at the end of surgery to the time in the PACU. Modified observer's assessment of alertness scores were significantly lower in the dexmedetomidine group than in the remifentanil group at 0, 5 and 10 min after arrival in the PACU. Blood pressure and heart rate in the dexmedetomidine group were significantly lower than that recorded in the remifentanil group in the PACU. Dexmedetomidine, at the doses used in this study, had a significant advantage over remifentanil in terms of postoperative haemodynamic stability.

The objectives of the study were to analyze the clinical features of inverted papillomas (IP) associated with malignancy and to evaluate the correlation of tumor stage, survival and histolologic features. We conducted a retrospective review of 18 IP associated with malignancy patients. In addition, we compared histopathologic characteristics (tumor differentiation and malignant cell proportion) with clinical outcomes. Eleven of the tumors were present on the nasal cavity and 7 on the maxillary sinus. The rates of synchronous and metachronous malignancy were 10.1 and 1.1%, respectively. The disease-free survival rate was 83.3%. The tumors were staged as T1 (5/18), T2 (2/18), T3 (8/18), and T4 (3/18). According to the percentage of the malignant cell in the entire tumor tissue, 4 patients (22%) were in grade I, 4 patients (22%) were in grade II, 3 patients (17%) were in grade III, and 7 patients (39%) were in grade IV. There was no relationship between recurrence- and/or disease-free survival and histologic findings including tumor differentiation and malignant proportion. IP-associated malignancy tends to occur synchronously and have more favorable prognosis compared to other sinonasal malignancy. Furthermore, the proportion of malignant cell to IP and tumor stage seems not to affect the clinical outcome of IP-associated malignancy.

Aim: To investigate the association between Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection and iron deficiency anaemia (IDA). Methods: Haemoglobin levels, iron parameters and serum IgG antibodies to H. pylori were measured in 693 children aged 9 to 12 y. Results: No significant differences in the seroprevalence of H. pylori infection and antibody titres to H. pylori were found between the IDA group and the non‐anaemic controls. Conclusion: H. pylori infection does not seem to contribute to iron deficiency in prepubescent children.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of intracochlear bleeding during cochleostomy on cochlear inflammatory response and residual hearing in a guinea pig animal model. Auditory brainstem response threshold shifts were greater in blood injected ears (p<0.05). Interleukin-1β, interleukin-10, tumor necrosis factor-α and nitric oxide synthase 2, cytokines that are related to early stage inflammation, were significantly increased in blood injected ears compared to normal and cochleostomy only ears at 1 day after surgery; with the increased IL-1β being sustained until 3 days after the surgery (p<0.05). Hair cells were more severely damaged in blood injected ears than in cochleostomy only ears. Histopathologic examination revealed more extensive fibrosis and ossification in blood injected ears than cochleostomy only ears. These results show that intracochlear bleeding enhanced cochlear inflammation resulting in increased fibrosis and ossification in an experimental animal model.