In Ho Chang

Bio: In Ho Chang is an academic researcher from Chung-Ang University. The author has contributed to research in topics: Bladder cancer & Prostate cancer. The author has an hindex of 19, co-authored 147 publications receiving 1300 citations. Previous affiliations of In Ho Chang include Seoul National University & Korea Electric Power Corporation.

Expression of resistin in the prostate and its stimulatory effect on prostate cancer cell proliferation.

Abstract: What’s known on the subject? and What does the study add? We found that resistin, a member of adipokine family, is expressed in human prostate cancers and induces prostate cancer cell proliferation through PI3K/Akt signaling pathways We are studying the effect of resistin on other urogenital tract diseases besides prostate cancer, and the relationship between other adipokines and the urogenital tract diseases OBJECTIVES • To determine whether resistin, a novel adipokine, induces prostate cancer cell proliferation • To identify the mechanisms underlying the activation of prostate cancer cells by resistin MATERIALS AND METHODS • Semi-quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemical staining were performed to investigate the intensity of prostate epithelial resistin expression • Human full-length resistin gene (RETN) was transfected into the PC-3 cells using the pEGFP-N1 vector to assess the effect of overexpression of resistin in prostate cancer cell line PC-3 • Various concentrations of human recombinant protein resistin were added to the hormone-insensitive prostate cancer cell lines PC-3 and DU-145 for 48 h, and cell proliferation was assessed by a water-soluble tetrazolium salt assay RESULTS • Human prostate cancer cell lines PC-3 and DU-145 were found to express the human resistin mRNA • Resistin protein was strongly detected in high-grade prostate cancer tissue, whereas BPH or low-grade prostate cancer tissue revealed fainter expression of resistin • Cell proliferation was stimulated by both the full-length resistin gene overexpression and resistin treatment • Akt phosphorylation occurred after addition of resistin to PC-3 and DU-145 cells LY294002, a pharmacological inhibitor of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), significantly inhibited PC-3 and DU-145 cell proliferation after resistin treatment CONCLUSIONS • Resistin is expressed in human prostate cancers • Resistin induces prostate cancer cell proliferation through PI3K/Akt signalling pathways • The proliferative effect of resistin on prostate cancer cells may account in part for prostate cancer progression

Adjuvant Chemotherapy in the Management of pT3N0M0 Transitional Cell Carcinoma of the Upper Urinary Tract

Abstract: Introduction: We investigate the efficacy of postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy for locally advanced, but lymph node negative, pathologic stage T3 transitional cell carcinoma (TCC)

Pain, Catastrophizing, and Depression in Chronic Prostatitis/Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome

Abstract: Persistent and disabling pain is the hallmark of chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS). However, disease severity (as measured by objective indexes such as those that use radiography or serology) is only marginally related to patients' reports of pain severity, and pain-related presentation can differ widely among individuals with CP/CPPS. Increasing evidence in support of the biopsychosocial model of pain suggests that cognitive and emotional processes are crucial contributors to inter-individual differences in the perception and impact of pain. This review describes the growing body of literature relating depression and catastrophizing to the experience of pain and pain-related sequelae in CP/CPPS. Depression and catastrophizing are consistently associated with the reported severity of pain, sensitivity to pain, physical disability, poor treatment outcomes, and inflammatory disease activity and potentially with early mortality. A variety of pathways, from cognitive to behavioral to neurophysiological, seem to mediate these deleterious effects. Collectively, depression and catastrophizing are critically important variables in understanding the experience of pain in patients with CP/CPPS. Pain, depression, and catastrophizing might all be uniquely important therapeutic targets in the multimodal management of a range of such conditions.

The International Society of Urological Pathology (ISUP) Grading System for Renal Cell Carcinoma and Other Prognostic Parameters

Abstract: The International Society of Urological Pathology 2012 Consensus Conference made recommendations regarding classification, prognostic factors, staging, and immunohistochemical and molecular assessment of adult renal tumors. Issues relating to prognostic factors were coordinated by a workgroup who identified tumor morphotype, sarcomatoid/rhabdoid differentiation, tumor necrosis, grading, and microvascular invasion as potential prognostic parameters. There was consensus that the main morphotypes of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) were of prognostic significance, that subtyping of papillary RCC (types 1 and 2) provided additional prognostic information, and that clear cell tubulopapillary RCC was associated with a more favorable outcome. For tumors showing sarcomatoid or rhabdoid differentiation, there was consensus that a minimum proportion of tumor was not required for diagnostic purposes. It was also agreed upon that the underlying subtype of carcinoma should be reported. For sarcomatoid carcinoma, it was further agreed upon that if the underlying carcinoma subtype was absent the tumor should be classified as a grade 4 unclassified carcinoma with a sarcomatoid component. Tumor necrosis was considered to have prognostic significance, with assessment based on macroscopic and microscopic examination of the tumor. It was recommended that for clear cell RCC the amount of necrosis should be quantified. There was consensus that nucleolar prominence defined grades 1 to 3 of clear cell and papillary RCCs, whereas extreme nuclear pleomorphism or sarcomatoid and/or rhabdoid differentiation defined grade 4 tumors. It was agreed upon that chromophobe RCC should not be graded. There was consensus that microvascular invasion should not be included as a staging criterion for RCC.

Antimicrobial peptides: key components of the innate immune system

Abstract: Life-threatening infectious diseases are on their way to cause a worldwide crisis, as treating them effectively is becoming increasingly difficult due to the emergence of antibiotic resistant strains. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) form an ancient type of innate immunity found universally in all living organisms, providing a principal first-line of defense against the invading pathogens. The unique diverse function and architecture of AMPs has attracted considerable attention by scientists, both in terms of understanding the basic biology of the innate immune system, and as a tool in the design of molecular templates for new anti-infective drugs. AMPs are gene-encoded short (<100 amino acids), amphipathic molecules with hydrophobic and cationic amino acids arranged spatially, which exhibit broad spectrum antimicrobial activity. AMPs have been the subject of natural evolution, as have the microbes, for hundreds of millions of years. Despite this long history of co-evolution, AMPs have not lost their ability to kill or inhibit the microbes totally, nor have the microbes learnt to avoid the lethal punch of AMPs. AMPs therefore have potential to provide an important breakthrough and form the basis for a new class of antibiotics. In this review, we would like to give an overview of cationic antimicrobial peptides, origin, structure, functions, and mode of action of AMPs, which are highly expressed and found in humans, as well as a brief discussion about widely abundant, well characterized AMPs in mammals, in addition to pharmaceutical aspects and the additional functions of AMPs.

Obesity and Diabetes: The Increased Risk of Cancer and Cancer-Related Mortality.

Abstract: Obesity and type 2 diabetes are becoming increasingly prevalent worldwide, and both are associated with an increased incidence and mortality from many cancers. The metabolic abnormalities associated with type 2 diabetes develop many years before the onset of diabetes and, therefore, may be contributing to cancer risk before individuals are aware that they are at risk. Multiple factors potentially contribute to the progression of cancer in obesity and type 2 diabetes, including hyperinsulinemia and insulin-like growth factor I, hyperglycemia, dyslipidemia, adipokines and cytokines, and the gut microbiome. These metabolic changes may contribute directly or indirectly to cancer progression. Intentional weight loss may protect against cancer development, and therapies for diabetes may prove to be effective adjuvant agents in reducing cancer progression. In this review we discuss the current epidemiology, basic science, and clinical data that link obesity, diabetes, and cancer and how treating obesity and type 2 diabetes could also reduce cancer risk and improve outcomes.

Guidelines on Renal Cell Carcinoma

Abstract: Introduction The use of imaging techniques such as ultrasound (US) and computed tomography (CT) has increased the detection of asymptomatic renal cell cancer (RCC). In addition, during the last 10 years, mortality rates have stabilised and even declined in some European countries. The peak incidence of RCC occurs between 60 and 70 years of age, with a 3:2 ratio of men to women. Aetiological factors include lifestyle, such as smoking, obesity and hypertension. The most effective prophylaxis is to avoid cigarette smoking and obesity.