Tien-Jen Lin

• MD,Ph D
• Taipei Medical University

Probiotics may protect against asthma. We want to investigate whether probiotics can reverse the adverse effects of phthalate exposure on asthma. We selected the female offspring of BALB/c mice, born from pregnant female mice fed with diethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP). They were continuously administrated DEHP and Lactobacillus salivarius ssp. salicini...

Bacteroides fragilis (BF) plays a critical role in developing and maintaining the mammalian immune system. We previously found that BF colonization could prevent inflammation and tumor formation in a germ-free (GF) colitis-associated colorectal cancer (CAC) mouse model. The role of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) in CAC development has not been clearly...

High fructose diet causes metabolic syndrome and induces host gut microbial dysbiosis and related obesity and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Several antibiotic treatments could prevent fatty liver. However, there are studies that have demonstrated that a high-fructose diet could influence the gut microbial dysbiosis and induce fatty live...

Ubiquinol (QH), a reduced form of coenzyme Q10, is a lipid antioxidant that is hydro-soluble and is commonly formulated in commercial supplements. Ubiquinol has been increasingly reported to exert antioxidant functions, in addition to its role in the cell energy-producing system of mitochondria and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production. The aim o...

Objective: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is generally considered as a major risk factor in the progression of colitis-associated colorectal cancer (CAC). Previous studies have indicated that the composition of gut microflora may be involved in CAC induction and progress. Bacteroides fragilis (BF) is a Gram-negative anaerobe belonging to colonic...

The incidence of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has markedly increased. Our research findings during the past showed that medicinal plant extracts and the derived phytochemical components from Wedelia chinensis (WC) can have strong anti-colitis activities. Here, we further identified the key component phytochemicals from active fractions of diffe...

Background: The measurement of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in ambient air is quite difficult to perform. Using urine biomarkers of PAH such as 2-naphthol is one approach to this problem. This study explored the association between urine 2-naphthol levels and allergic diseases. The associations between 2-naphthol levels and oxidative str...

Purpose: Bisphenol A (BPA) exposure may increase the risk of asthma. Genetic polymorphisms of oxidative stress-related genes, glutathione S-transferases (GSTM1, GSTP1), manganese superoxide dismutase, catalase, myeloperoxidase, and microsomal epoxide hydrolase may be related to BPA exposure. The aim is to evaluate whether oxidative stress genes mo...

Candidate SNP and TaqMan assay information

Distribution of BPAG levels (ng/mL)

Association between different genotypes and asthma

Sciatica due to contained herniated discs can be managed with epidural neuroplasty which has emerged as a minimally invasive technique for the treatment of low back pain. Epiduroscopy also provides an alternative minimally invasive technique that offers diagnostic and therapeutic advantages. However, both procedures are not free of complications. T...

Phytochemicals or their derived compounds are being increasingly recognized as potentially potent complementary treatments for cancer. Among them, some phytochemicals are being actively evaluated for use as adjuvants in anticancer therapies. For instance, shikonin and hypericin were found to induce immunogenic cell death of specific cancer cells, a...

Shikonin, a natural plant product isolated from the herb Lithospermum erythrorhizon, has been found to strongly stimulate immunogenic cell death (ICD) of tumor cells, which induced a potent immune response by dendritic cells (DCs) to suppress tumor growth and/or metastasis. Recently, specific intracellular protein targets including heterogeneous nu...

Suppression of tumor metastasis is a key strategy for successful cancer interventions. Previous studies indicated that rapamycin (sirolimus) may promote tumor regression activity or enhance immune response against tumor targets. However, rapamycin also exhibits immunosuppressant effects and is hence used clinically as an organ transplantation drug....

Background: The tumor cell lysate-pulsed, dendritic cell (DC)-based cancer vaccine approaches are being actively evaluated for application to cancer immunotherapy, hopefully at a personalized medicine base. There is apparently an emerging technical problem however, the lack of highly efficacious potency in activation of patient's DCs for T-cell pr...

Exposure to high environmental temperature leading to increased core body temperature above 40°C and central nervous system abnormalities such as convulsions, delirium, or coma is defined as heat stroke. Studies in humans and animals indicate that the heat shock responses of the host contribute to multiple organ injury and death during heat stroke....

Objective. The goal of the present study was to examine the clinical results of percutaneous endoscopic lumbar discectomy (PELD) and open lumbar surgery for patients with adjacent segment degeneration (ASD) and recurrence of disc herniation. Methods. From December 2011 to November 2013, we collected forty-three patients who underwent repeated lumba...

Little is known about the role of genetic and environmental modifiers in atopic march. To investigate the effects of filaggrin (FLG) P478S polymorphisms and environmental factors on the risk of asthma in a cohort of children with atopic dermatitis (AD). In 2010, 3,246 children from Childhood Environment and Allergic Diseases Cohort Study cohort wer...

Background: Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) are a major health care problem worldwide. Approximately 1.5 million new TBI cases occur annually in the United States, with mortality rates ranging between 35% and 40% in severe patients. Despite the incidence of these injuries and their substantial socioeconomic implications, no specific pharmacologica...

Study design: Case report. Objective: To describe the surgical technique and outcome of 2 cases of lap-shoulder belt injury involving burst fracture at L5 and cauda equina syndrome (CES). Summary of background data: Lap-shoulder belts have largely replaced lap belts in the front seats of cars, and therefore the concept of seat belt injury need...

Epidemiologic evidence for an association between vaccinations and atopy development is inconsistent. We evaluated the influence of Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) combination vaccines in 6-month-old infants on the prevalence of atopic disorders in 18-month-old children. We used multistage, stratified systematic sampling to recruit 24,200 mothe...

It is rare for hemorrhage within a vestibular schwannoma to occur, which is caused by the rupture of fragile intratumoral vessels. When this type of hemorrhage does take place, acute onset of headache and hearing loss are frequently experienced.We report a patient with intra-tumoral hemorrhage inside a vestibular schwannoma after mild head injury,...

Whether environmental exposures may modulate the effect of the skin barrier gene on atopic dermatitis (AD) remains to be elucidated. To determine whether filaggrin (FLG) variants can serve as a predictor for atopic disorders in Chinese individuals and if allergen exposures may modify the effect of FLG variants on AD by total IgE levels. In total, 1...

The increase in the prevalence of atopic dermatitis (AD) is likely to involve changes in specific environmental exposures among genetically susceptible individuals. To evaluate the effect of glutathione S-transferase (GST) genotype polymorphisms and prenatal smoke exposure on pediatric AD on the basis of the cord blood cotinine levels. We conducted...

Background/Purpose The aim of the present study was to review the clinical manifestations, risk factors and outcome in traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients with post-traumatic cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leakage. Methods We reviewed the medical records of 1,323 patients who were identified with CSF leakage that occurred after head trauma. Results...

A 25-year-old man developed neck pain, Horner's syndrome, and monoplegia immediately after a motorcycle accident. The patient had worn a safety helmet and had fellen from the motorcycle. Then he struck the ground with his left arm hyperextended. The computed tomogram of the neck showed a compressive, intraspinal mass extending cranio-caudally from...

Encephalocele, glioma and dermoid cyst are the most common midline nasal masses. Given their potential for intracranial extension, prompt treatment is necessary to prevent complications. Herein, we present two cases of midline nasal masses. A comparison was made to delineate the differences between their clinical courses, treatments and outcomes. C...

Recently, we showed that L-arginine (L-Arg) supplementation could attenuate acute exercise-induced oxidative and inflammatory stress in aging rats. In this study, we investigate whether L-Arg supplementation protects cellular oxidative stress, inflammation, or the mitochondrial DNA 4834-bp large deletion (mtDNA4834 deletion) in 14-week-old young ra...

Even though exhaustive exercise-induced oxidative stress increases the risk of tissue damage, regular endurance training is widely assumed to improve cardiac function and protects against heart disease. We tested the hypothesis that an endurance training program prevents exhaustive exercise-induced increases in cardiac dysfunction and apoptosis in...

Cholestasis occurs in a wide variety of human liver diseases, and hepatocellular injury is an invariant feature of cholestasis, causing liver dysfunction and inflammation, promoting fibrogenesis, and ultimately leading to liver failure. Insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1) acts in an autocrine and paracrine manner to promote glucose utilization, usi...

This study examined the effects of beta-carotene on antioxidant status in rats with chronic alcohol consumption. At the beginning of experiment (week 0), according to both the plasma aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) activities, rats (n = 24) were divided into 3 groups and fed with a standard diet (group C), a diet...

Little is known about the exposure profiles of melamine in children. We evaluated the association of clinical findings, exposure patterns and biomarkers with nephrolithiasis in children with potential exposure to melamine. A case-control study was conducted in children aged 0-16 years with potential exposure to contaminated dairy products. Cases we...

Little is known about melamine (MEL) analysis in children's urine. In this study, an isotopic ultra-performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC/MS/MS) method was developed and systematically validated for the analysis of MEL in urine. The method is easily performed and comprises acidification, solid-phase extraction (SPE) and U...

Background Epidural neuroplasty have emerged as minimally invasive techniques for treatment of low back pain and lower extremity pain due to contained herniated discs when conservative management has failed. A few studies have examined their effects on functional activity and pain medication use. Outcomes of the procedure to treat the ailment were...

CyberKnife stereotactic radiosurgery (CKSRS) has been proved effective in treating intra-cranial lesions. To treat acoustic neuroma (AN) patients with or without neurofibromatosis Type 2 (NF2) associations, the functional preservation of hearing, trigeminal nerve, and facial nerve are important. Twenty-one patients were treated with hypofractionate...

In 1991, a population-based epidemiologic traumatic brain injury (TBI) study was done in urban and rural areas of Taiwan; this was 5 years before the helmet use law was passed and 8 years before the drink driving law was passed. In order to evaluate the impact of three major determinants (time, geography, and legislation) on the epidemiology of TBI...

The present study was a multicenter, retrospective study which aimed to evaluate the efficacy of propofol, a new choice of pharmacotherapy in head-injured patients. Head-injured patients admitted to 3 hospitals during the period from January 2003 to December 2004 were included in this clinical trial. Data on patients' demographics, laboratory data,...

We report the case of a young male who presented at the age of 34 years with intracranial hemorrhage due to moyamoya disease. He was later diagnosed with hypogonadism and hypopituitarism. Chromosomal evaluation revealed a normal karyotype. The results of further neuroradiological studies led to the diagnosis of empty sella syndrome.

Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) is a generalized disease known to be associated with intracranial aneurysms. Non-aneurysmal intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) has also been reported in ADPKD. We report a familial clustering of ICH and symptomatic ADPKD. This pedigree had at least six affected family members who suffered from ADPKD,...

Graft extrusion is a dilemma that follows anterior cervical discectomy. We report on a case of an extrusion of a biocompatible osteoconductive polymer (BOP) graft extruded orally after anterior cervical discectomy and fusion. This case highlights the potential dangers in slipped or dislodged grafts and stresses the importance of investigation of pa...