Essential oils are generally not only antibiotic and anticarcinogenic, 1,2) but also have a sedative effect on stress. It has been shown that these essential oils contain ketone, terpene, and phenolic ether for sedation.3) Although essential oils have been regarded as useful sedatives, 4) there is little information on the antimicrobial or antifungal activities of essential oils extracted from coniferous trees. Essential oils with antimicrobial properties from medicinal as well as other edible plants have been recognized since antiquity.2) In addition, essential oils are used as food flavoring agents, and have a broad spectrum of in vitro antimicrobial activities attributed to the high content of phenolic derivatives. 5) More recently, plant extracts have been developed and proposed for use in foods as natural antioxidants. 6) In the present study, we investigated the antimicrobial and antifungal activities of several essential oils extracted from the coniferous trees Pinus densiflora, Pinus koraiensis, and Chamaecyparis obtusa against bacteria and fungi that commonly cause foot rot and other diseases. The essential oils were quantified using gas chromatography (GC) and identified in gas chromatography-mass spectrometric (GC-MS) analysis. In addition, the antibacterial effects against grampositive and gram-negative bacteria and antifungal effects against fungi were assayed using essential oils distilled from the needles of coniferous trees. MATERIALS AND METHODS Essential Oil ExtractionThe needles of the Japanese red pine (P. densiflora), Korean pine (P. koraiensis), and Japanese cypress (C. obtusa) were collected at the Reforestation Experiment Site of Chungbu Forest Experiment Station, Gyeonggi province, Korea. The essential oil from freshly cut needles of each species was obtained by steam distillation using a manufactured apparatus with a condenser. Distillation continued for 2-3 h at 100°C, and the volatile compounds containing the water-soluble fraction were allowed to settle for 20 min. The essential oil layer was separated and finally purified through a microfiltering and dehydration process.Measurement of Refractive Index The refractive index of chemical compounds is considered important because it indicates characteristic physical properties. We determined the index of the oils using an Abbe refractometer equipped with a sodium lamp (Bausch & Lomb, GD8804, U.S.A.).Quantification and Identification Each essential oil compound was quantified using a gas chromatograph (GC, Shimadzu GC-14A, Japan) equipped with a Shimadzu CPB-20 capillary column (0.2 mm inner diameterϫ50 m length). First, the calibration curves for several standard essential oils were obtained, and the calibration equation of each compound was used for quantification. GC analysis was carried out using helium carrier gas with an FID detector, and the injection and detection temperatures were 150 and 200°C, respectively. The oven temperature was increased from 50 to 200°C at intervals of 2°C/min over 75 min. Some other essential oils were id...

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The aim of this study was to evaluate the infectious complications after living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) in children. We enrolled 95 children (38 boys and 57 girls) who underwent LDLT from 1994 to 2004. The median age was 22 months (range, 6 months to 15 yr). We retrospectively investigated the proven episodes of bacterial, viral, and fungal infection. There occurred 150 infections in 67 (70%) of 95 patients (1.49 infections/patient); 74 in 43 patients were bacterial, 2 in 2 were fungal, and 74 in 42 were viral. The most common sites of bacterial infection were the bloodstream (33%) and abdomen (25%). Most of the bacterial infections occurred within the first month after LDLT. Bacterial and fungal infections did not result in any deaths. The most common causes of viral infection were Epstein-Barr virus in 37 patients and cytomegalovirus in 18. Seven of the 14 deaths after LDLT were associated with viral infection. Our study suggests that infection is one of the important causes of morbidity and mortality after LDLT. Especially careful monitoring and management of viral infections is crucial for improving the outcome of LDLT in children.