Tyrophagus putrescentiae (Tp) as a storage mite inhabitats in stored grains, hay, and straw at agricultural areas. T. putrescentiae stimulates an immune response and triggers inflammatory cytokines release, and thus it is a source of allergen that sensitize and induce allergic reactions. Also, T. putrescentiae has been reported to cause asthma and atopic disease by cross-reactivity with Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (Dp). The study on T. putrescentiae in human monocytic THP-1 cells is not enough to understand cytokine expression and pathological mechanisms. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of T. putrescentiae extract (TpE) on production of inflammatory cytokines and expression of mRNA level in THP-1 cells. THP-1 cells are treated with TpE and supernatants were analyzed for the production of cytokines using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). mRNA level in the culture cells was measured by a reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). As a result of this study, TpE significantly induced secretion of interleukin-6, interleukin-8, and monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1) in THP-1 cells in time- and dose-dependent manner. These results suggest that TpE may play a role in contributing to inflammatory disease through stimulation of immune cell. Further research of T. putrescentiae is needed to understand the elucidation of the pathogenic mechanism.

This study was carried out to identify how a self-stretching exercise program affects pain for each body area, pain relief and job satisfaction for care workers. 20 of 40 care workers with musculoskeletal symptom were randomly selected and participated a self-stretching exercise program consisting of 15 motions. The intervention was done five times or more per weeks for 8 weeks and 1 session lasted within 15 minutes. 'Musculoskeletal symptom survey table' of the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency(KOSHA) and JDI(Job Descriptive Index) was used for pain on the musculoskeletal symptom and job satisfaction. Survey were done twice before and after the program. The result of this study showed that self-stretching exercise program group(SSPG) relieved from pain significantly in the shoulders(p<.01) and lumbar(p<.05), comparing to the non selfstretching exercise program group(NSPG). Although no significant difference on variations in the JDI appeared in SSPG, the significant reduction appeared from the colleague relationship and organization in NSPG(p<.05). SSPG showed the significant increase on variations in JDI from the job and organization comparing to NSPG. Especially, the improvement on satisfaction for the organization was shown(p<.05). Accordingly, the self-stretching exercise program for care workers can be said to positively affect the overall pain relief and increase on the JDI.