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Purpose: Climate and lifestyle changes increase an individual's susceptibility to various allergens and also the incidence of allergic diseases. We aimed to examine the changes in sensitization rate for aeroallergens over a 10-year period in Korean children. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 4493 children who visited the allergy clinic at a tertiary hospital in Korea for allergic rhinitis or asthma from January 2009 to December 2018. The serum specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) levels were measured to confirm the sensitization against Dermatophagoides farinae (D. farinae), Alternaria, weed and tree pollen mixtures, as well as cat and dog dander through ImmunoCAP test. Results: D. farinae was the most common sensitizing aeroallergen (45.9%) during the 10-year span. The sensitization rate for tree pollen mixture (p for trend <0.001), weed pollen mixtures (p for trend <0.001), dog dander (p for trend=0.025), and cat dander (p for trend=0.003) showed ascending trends during the 10-year study period. Furthermore, the sensitization rate for multiple allergens (≥2) in 2018 increased significantly compared to that in 2009 (p for trend=0.013). Compared with children without sensitization to D. farinae, those with sensitization to D. farinae showed higher sensitization rates to other aeroallergens (p for interaction <0.001). Conclusion: Children's sensitization rate to cat and dog dander and weed and tree pollen mixtures significantly increased during the 10-year period in Korea. Children with sensitization to D. farinae are likely to be sensitized to other aeroallergens as well.

Propiconazole (PCZ) is a hepatotoxic triazole fungicide. There are insufficient data on how PCZ induces liver fibrosis in humans. This study aimed to investigate the effect of PCZ on liver fibrosis and its underlying mechanisms. HepG2 cells and Sprague−Dawley rats were exposed to PCZ at doses of 0−160 μM (3−72 h) and 0.5−50 mg/kg body weight/day (28 days), respectively. PCZ-treated cells activated intracellular oxidative stress via cytochrome P450 and had higher mRNA levels of interleukin-1β, tumor necrosis factor-α, matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2, MMP-9, and transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) than the control. PCZ treatment in cells induced a morphological transition with E-cadherin decrease and vimentin and Snail increase via the oxidative stress and TGF-β/Smad pathways. PCZ administration in rats induced liver fibrosis through pathological changes, epithelial−mesenchymal transition, and collagen deposition. Thus, our data suggest that exposure of PCZ to humans may be a risk factor for the functional integrity of the liver.

Chicken meat is a popular food commodity that is widely consumed worldwide. However, the shelf-life or quality maintenance of chicken meat is a major concern for industries because of spoilage by microbial growth. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of chitosan and duck fat-based emulsion coatings on the quality characteristics and microbial stability of chicken meat during refrigerated storage. The coated chicken meat samples were as follows: control (non-coated), DFC0 (coated with duck fat), DFC0.5 (coated with duck fat and 0.5% chitosan), DFC1 (coated with duck fat and 1% chitosan), DFC2 (coated with duck fat and 2% chitosan), and SOC2 (coated with soybean oil and 2% chitosan). The results showed that the apparent viscosity and coating rate were higher in DFC2 than in other groups. Physicochemical parameters (pH, color, and Warner–Bratzler shear force) were better in DFC2 than those in other groups during 15 days of storage. Moreover, DFC2 delayed lipid oxidation, protein deterioration, and growth of microorganisms during storage. These data suggest that chitosan-supplemented duck fat-based emulsion coating could be used to maintain the quality of raw chicken meat during refrigerated storage.