https://ir.ymlib.yonsei.ac.kr/handle/22282913/181701 2026-04-13T12:28:35Z 2026-04-13T12:28:35Z Seo, Han Young Jung, Haewon Lee, Se-Young Jung, Hae-Gwang Son, Yu-Min Bak, Yeonju Hwang, Seo-Yeon Kim, Jung-Hee Park, In Ho Shin, Jeon-Soo Oh, Jong-Won https://ir.ymlib.yonsei.ac.kr/handle/22282913/211761 2026-04-06T00:14:10Z 2026-06-01T00:00:00Z

Title: A transferable SARS-CoV-2 IRES module enables dual translation initiation for enhanced antigen expression in COVID-19 mRNA vaccines Authors: Seo, Han Young; Jung, Haewon; Lee, Se-Young; Jung, Hae-Gwang; Son, Yu-Min; Bak, Yeonju; Hwang, Seo-Yeon; Kim, Jung-Hee; Park, In Ho; Shin, Jeon-Soo; Oh, Jong-Won Abstract: mRNA vaccines are a versatile platform for infectious disease prevention and therapeutic applications, yet their performance is limited by exclusive reliance on cap-dependent translation, which is markedly suppressed under hypoxia and cellular stress. Here, we report a hybrid 5 ' untranslated region (5 ' UTR) that enables dual translation initiation via both cap-dependent and internal ribosome entry site (IRES) mechanisms. This element integrates a minimal stem-loop 4.5-5 module (SL4.5-5) from the SARS-CoV-2 genomic 5 ' UTR, in which a conserved 5 '-UUUCGU-3 ' motif within the SL5 loops is essential for function. Incorporating the SL4.5-5 module downstream of conventional 5 ' UTRs confers cap-independent translation capacity and enhances overall translation efficiency under translation-restrictive conditions such as hypoxia. When applied to the 5 ' UTRs of clinically validated COVID-19 vaccines, this module improves antigen expression in both modified and unmodified mRNAs. Notably, unmodified Omicron BA.5 and XBB.1.5 mRNA vaccines containing this element elicited potent humoral and cellular immune responses at sub-microgram doses, comparable to those induced by the approved N1-methylpseu-douridine-incorporated mRNA vaccine, raxtozinameran. These findings identify SL4.5-5 as a modular IRES element that enables dual translation initiation, promoting efficient protein synthesis under cap-dependent translation-restrictive conditions and expanding the functional landscape of mRNA vaccines and therapeutics beyond cap-dependent limitations.

2026-06-01T00:00:00Z Lee, Dongjun Jeong, Kyungjun Oh, Jeongho Kim, Changsoo Park, Seungyoung Lee, Yongjin https://ir.ymlib.yonsei.ac.kr/handle/22282913/211240 2026-03-16T04:50:05Z 2026-04-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Korean dioxin risk patterns: Modulation by dietary-socio-demographic and behavioral factors Authors: Lee, Dongjun; Jeong, Kyungjun; Oh, Jeongho; Kim, Changsoo; Park, Seungyoung; Lee, Yongjin Abstract: Background: Dioxins, well-known persistent organic pollutants, accumulate in the human body primarily through dietary exposure. However, it may be significant to examine the current status of dioxin risk in relation to physiological factors, lifestyle factors, and socioeconomic conditions with dietary patterns. Objectives: This study aimed to identify the non-carcinogenic dioxin risk patterns according to physiological, socioeconomic, lifestyle, and dietary factors. Methods: Physiological, socioeconomic, lifestyle, and dietary factors were surveyed for 153 Korean adults (aged 20-59) living in metropolitan areas. 29 dioxin congeners were analyzed in serum samples. The estimated daily dioxin intake was calculated by combining the surveyed dietary consumption data with the dioxin concentrations provided by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety of Korea. The non-carcinogenic risk from comparing the estimated intake with WHO TDI value was classified into surveyed factors. The association between dietary intake and blood dioxin concentrations was evaluated using a generalized linear model. Results: Females exhibited a higher risk than males, and the risk increased with advancing age. Current smokers showed a lower risk compared to non-smokers and former smokers, while participants with a history of disease demonstrated a notably lower risk than those without such a history. Furthermore, higher monthly income was associated with an increased risk, whereas higher educational attainment was inversely associated with risk. Shellfish was associated with increasing blood DL-PCBs levels. Conclusion: Socio-demographic and behavioral factors may play an important role in modulating the noncarcinogenic risk associated with dietary dioxin exposure. Changes in dioxin risk patterns across such factors warrant further examination through additional investigation.

2026-04-01T00:00:00Z Kim, Keu Eun San Lee, Ye Jin Park, Ji Hae Kwak, Nakwon Kim, Su-Young Jhun, Byung Woo Yim, Jae-Joon Shin, Sung Jae 박지해 https://ir.ymlib.yonsei.ac.kr/handle/22282913/211184 2026-03-16T01:58:52Z 2026-04-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Distinct serum metabolic profiles with supportive diagnostic value in differentiating tuberculosis and Mycobacterium avium complex pulmonary disease Authors: Kim, Keu Eun San; Lee, Ye Jin; Park, Ji Hae; Kwak, Nakwon; Kim, Su-Young; Jhun, Byung Woo; Yim, Jae-Joon; Shin, Sung Jae; 박지해 Abstract: Background: Pulmonary infectious diseases caused by Mycobacterium species, including Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC), remain significant public health threats. However, current gold-standard diagnostics are time-consuming and have limited ability to differentiate these clinically similar presentations. This study investigated serum metabolic distinctions between tuberculosis (TB) and MAC pulmonary disease (MAC-PD) to identify biomarkers with supportive diagnostic value for differential diagnosis. Methods: We performed LC/MS-based metabolic profiling of 181 serum samples from TB and MAC-PD patients. The study cohort was subsequently divided into a training set (TB, n = 30; MAC-PD, n = 30) and a validation set (TB, n = 51; MAC-PD, n = 70). Results: Five key metabolites were identified, including four sphingoid base lipids that were decreased in TB compared with MAC-PD, and 2-hydroxyglutaric acid (2-HG), which was increased. Logistic regression using this five-metabolite panel achieved strong discriminatory performance, with an area under the curve of 0.988 (95 % CI: 0.970-1.00 0) in the training set and 0.997 (95 % CI: 0.991-1.00 0) in the validation set. Consistent performance across multiple machine learning models reinforces the stability and supportive diagnostic value of the five-metabolite panel. Conclusions: This study provides a novel approach for the differential diagnosis of two major mycobacterial pulmonary diseases. The identified metabolites, particularly alterations in sphingoid base lipids and 2-HG, demonstrated robust discriminative potential. These findings support their potential role as biomarkers in clinical practice, enabling earlier and more accurate differentiation of TB and MAC-PD. (c) 2026 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

2026-04-01T00:00:00Z Jeong, Sihyeon Moon, In Tae Jeon, Jaeik Jeong, Dawun Lee, Jina Kim, Jiyeon Lee, Seung-Ah Jang, Yeonggul Yoon, Yeonyee E. Chang, Hyuk-Jae https://ir.ymlib.yonsei.ac.kr/handle/22282913/211723 2026-04-03T00:32:15Z 2026-04-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Deep learning-based multi-view echocardiographic framework for comprehensive diagnosis of pericardial disease Authors: Jeong, Sihyeon; Moon, In Tae; Jeon, Jaeik; Jeong, Dawun; Lee, Jina; Kim, Jiyeon; Lee, Seung-Ah; Jang, Yeonggul; Yoon, Yeonyee E.; Chang, Hyuk-Jae Abstract: Aims Pericardial disease spans a wide spectrum from small effusions to life-threatening tamponade or constriction. Transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) is the main diagnostic tool, but its interpretation is limited by operator dependence and incomplete functional assessment. Existing deep learning (DL) models focus mainly on effusion detection, lacking broader evaluation. Methods and results We developed a DL-based framework that performs sequential assessment of pericardial disease: (i) morphological features, including effusion amount (normal/small/moderate/large) and pericardial thickening/adhesion (yes/no), from five B-mode views, and (ii) haemodynamic significance (yes/no), incorporating Doppler and inferior vena cava measurements. The developmental dataset comprises 2253 TTEs from multiple Korean institutions (225 for internal testing), and the independent external test set consists of 274 TTEs. In the internal test set, diagnostic accuracy was 81.8–97.3% for effusion, 91.6% for thickening/adhesion, and 86.2% for haemodynamic significance. External test set accuracy was 80.3–94.2%, 94.5%, and 85.5%, respectively. Area under the receiver operating curves for the three tasks were 0.92–0.99, 0.90, and 0.79 internally, and 0.95–0.98, 0.85, and 0.76 externally. Sensitivity for thickening/adhesion and haemodynamic significance improved from 66.7% to 77.3%, and 68.8% to 80.8%, respectively, when poor image quality were excluded. Similar performance gains were observed in subgroups with complete target views and a higher number of available video clips. Conclusion This study presents the first DL-based TTE model for broader pericardial disease evaluation, integrating morphological with supportive functional assessments. The proposed framework demonstrated strong generalizability and aligned with the real-world diagnostic workflow. However, caution is warranted when interpreting results under suboptimal imaging conditions. © The Author(s) 2026. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology.

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