• Journal of Life Science
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• v.28 no.12
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• pp.1507-1515
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• 2018

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is characterized by prostatic hypertrophy mainly in the elderly. Corni Fructus is reportedly effective in the prevention and treatment of various diseases, but its efficacy on BPH has not been previously studied. In the present study, we investigated whether or not a Corni Fructus water extract (CF) could prevent testosterone-induced prostatic hyperplasia in rats. To induce BPH, castrated rats were subcutaneously injected with testosterone propionate (TP). CF was administered daily by oral gavage, along with the TP injections, and finasteride, a selective inhibitor of $5{\alpha}$-reductase type 2, was used as a positive control. The results show that CF significantly reduces prostate weight and histopathologic changes while also decreasing levels of serum dihydrotestosterone, similar to the finasteride-treated group. CF also suppresses TP-induced $5{\alpha}$-reductase expression and concentration in prostate tissue and serum, respectively. Furthermore, CF markedly inhibited TP-induced expression of the androgen receptor (AR) and the steroid receptor coactivator 1, an AR coactivator, which was associated with a decrease in prostate-specific antigen levels in both serum and prostate tissue. In conclusion, the results of this study indicate that CF weakens BPH status by inactivation of $5{\alpha}$-reductase and AR.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.12 no.6
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• pp.737-743
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• 2018

Patient exposure dose exposure test, which is one of the items of accuracy control of Computed Tomography, conducts measurements every year based on the installation and operation of special medical equipment under Article 38 of the Medical Law, And keep records. The CT-Dose phantom used for dosimetry can accurately measure doses, but has the disadvantage of high price. Therefore, through this research, the existing CT - Dose phantom was similarly manufactured with a 3D printer and compared with the existing phantom to examine the usefulness. In order to produce the same phantom as the conventional CT-Dose phantom, a 3D printer of the FFF method is used by using a PLA filament, and in order to calculate the CTDIw value, Ion chambers were inserted into the central part and the central part, and measurements were made ten times each. Measurement results The CT-Dose phantom was measured at $30.44{\pm}0.31mGy$ in the periphery, $29.55{\pm}0.34mGy$ CTDIw value was measured at $30.14{\pm}0.30mGy$ in the center, and the phantom fabricated using the 3D printer was measured at the periphery $30.59{\pm}0.18mGy$, the central part was $29.01{\pm}0.04mGy$, and the CTDIw value was measured at $30.06{\pm}0.13mGy$. Analysis using the Mann - Whiteney U-test of the SPSS statistical program showed that there was a statistically significant difference in the result values in the central part, but statistically significant differences were observed between the peripheral part and CTDIw results I did not show. In conclusion, even in the CT-Dose phantom made with a 3D printer, we showed dose measurement performance like existing CT-Dose phantom and confirmed the possibility of low-cost phantom production using 3D printer through this research did it.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.449-456
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• 2018

Cervical cancer is the fourth most frequently diagnosed cancer in women worldwide. In lower Human Development Index countries, it has the second highest incidence and mortality among cancer in women. Therefore, better diagnosis and treatment systems are needed. Among them, estrogen receptor alpha ($ER-{\alpha}$) mRNA expression has been analyzed with RT-qPCR since several studies reported that $ER-{\alpha}$ is necessary in the maturation of the uterus and is related to cervical cancer. In this study, $ER-{\alpha}$ quantitative analysis was performed on various lesions and normal tissue samples. Based on the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, its sensitivity and specificity were 85% and 75%, respectively, showing higher or similar results to those of conventional HPV tests. In addition, its expression level was analyzed with clinical information. With regression analysis, the R square value between the $ER-{\alpha}$ mRNA expression level and menopause status was 0.5041, indicating a strong correlation. This study was performed as part of a pilot study and suggests that $ER-{\alpha}$ is related to carcinogenesis. Future studies will examine other hormones and menopausal factors with a larger sample size.

• The Journal of Korean Academy of Sensory Integration
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.34-49
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• 2018

Objective : This study aimed to examine the psychometric properties of Korean version of Pediatric Volitional Questionnaire (PVQ-K) using classical test theory. Methods : For the translation of Pediatric Volitional Questionnaire (PVQ), as recommended in the literature, four-stage translation method was used. For the psychometric properties of Korean version of the Pediatric Volitional Questionnaire (PVQ-K), internal consistency reliability, content validity, and construct validity of the test using the known groups method and convergent and divergent methods were examined. For the recruitment of participants, a convenience sampling method is used. Participants of this study were 10 children with neuro-developmental disabilities hospitalized two different rehabilitations center and 10 children with typical development living in Daejeon, South Korea. All 20 participants were in aged from two to five years. Results : In terms of the content validity index, it was over 0.78, confirmed by nine experts of children development. PVQ-K successfully discriminated the scores of children with typical development from those with neurodevelopmental disabilities (p < .05). It is found that there is significant correlations between achievement stage of PVQ-K and the Korean Developmental Screening Test for Infants & Children (K-DTS)(.652 ~ .799 for subcategory, .706 for total scale). The internal consistency was .944 (Cronbach's ${\alpha}$). In qualitative content analysis, it was examined that how Korean children behave and respond in the environment, and how children's volition was strengthened or weakened by the environment. Conclusion : The results propose that PVQ-K can be a useful occupation-focused measure. This study recommend further study on PVQ-K with larger samples combined with the item-response theory approach.

• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.39-47
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• 2019

Purpose: This study was performed to investigate the current status of pediatric palliative care provision and how it is perceived by the palliative care experts. Methods: A descriptive study was conducted with 61 hospice institutions. From September through October 2017, a questionnaire was completed by experts from the participating institutions. Data were analyzed using SPSS 21.0. Results: Among 61 institutions, palliative care is currently provided for pediatric cancer patients by 11 institutions (18.0%), all of which are concentrated in Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi and Gyengsang provinces; 85.2% of all do not plan to provide specialized pediatric palliative care in the future. According to the experts, the main barriers in providing pediatric palliative care were the insufficient number of trained specialists regardless of the delivery type. Experts said that it was appropriate to intervene when children were diagnosed with cancer that was less likely to be cured (33.7%) and to move to palliative care institutions when their conditions worsened (38.2%); and it was necessary to establish a specialized pediatric palliative care system, independent from the existing institutions for adult patients (73.8%). Conclusion: It is necessary to develop an education program to establish a nationwide pediatric palliative care centers. Pediatric palliative care intervention should be provided upon diagnosis rather than at the point of death. Patients should be transferred to palliative care institutions after intervention by their existing pediatric palliative care team at the hospital is started.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.108 no.3
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• pp.382-391
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• 2019

This study was conducted to verify whether smartphone hiking apps, which generate social network data including location information, are useful tools for analyzing the use characteristics of a forest recreation area. For this purpose, the study identified the functions and service characteristics of smartphone hiking apps. Also, the use characteristics of the area of Daegwallyoung were analyzed, compared with the results of the field survey, and the applicability of hiking apps was reviewed. As a result, the service types of hiking apps were analyzed in terms of three categories: "information offering," "hiking record," and "information sharing." This study focused on an app that is one of the "hiking record" types with the greatest number of users. Analysis of the data from hiking apps and a field survey in the Daegwallyoung area showed that both hiking apps and the field survey can be used to identify the movement patterns, but hiking apps based on a global positioning system (GPS) are more efficient and objective tools for understanding the use patterns in a forest recreation area, as well as for extracting user-generated photos. Second, although it is advantageous to analyze the patterns objectively through the walking-speed data generated, field surveys and observation are needed as complements for understanding the types of activities in each space. The hiking apps are based on cellphone use and are specific to "hiking" use, so user bias can limit the usefulness of the data. It is significant that this research shows the applicability of hiking apps for analyzing the use patterns of forest recreation areas through the location-based social network data of app users who record their hiking information voluntarily.

• Management & Information Systems Review
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.183-208
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• 2019

The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of the transformational leadership on helping behaviors and deviant behaviors of organizational members and to verify the control effect of value consistency and to suggest a process for effective business management and human resource management. For this purpose, questionnaires were distributed to employees working in office management, area marketing, and manufacturing industries in Seoul, Gyeonggi and Chungcheong provinces, and the final 334 copies were used for empirical analysis. Data were analyzed using SPSS 18.0, and reliability analysis, factor analysis for validity, correlation analysis, and regression analysis were conducted to verify the research hypothesis. The results of the empirical analysis based on the questionnaire based on the object are as follows. First, charisma of transformational leadership showed negative impact on helping behavior, and intellectual stimulation of transformational leadership and individual care showed positive influence on helping behavior. Second, charisma of transformational leadership showed negative influence on deviant behavior, whereas intellectual stimulation of transformational leadership and sub - constitutional factor of individual care did not show significant influence on deviant behavior. Third, as a result of confirming the moderating role of transformational leadership and helping behavior on the level of value consistency, it showed moderating effects on charisma and individual consideration of transformational leadership. Through this study, we proved the effectiveness of transformative leadership which increases the helping behaviors of the members and reduces the deviant behavior. Based on this, we proposed the necessity of developing managers' transformational leadership improvement program to enhance the sustainability of the organization. And we confirmed the partial influence relationship on the adjustment effect of value consistency. In addition, negative influence of charisma suggests a significant point in the management process design.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.21 no.5
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• pp.587-609
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• 2019

Short-and long-term stabilities of bentonite, favored material as buffer in geological repositories for high-level waste were reviewed in this paper in addition to alternative design concepts of buffer to mitigate the thermal load from decay heat of SF (Spent Fuel) and further increase the disposal efficiency. It is generally reported that the irreversible changes in structure, hydraulic behavior, and swelling capacity are produced due to temperature increase and vapor flow between $150{\sim}250^{\circ}C$. Provided that the maximum temperature of bentonite is less than $150^{\circ}C$, however, the effects of temperature on the material, structural, and mineralogical stability seems to be minor. The maximum temperature in disposal system will constrain and determine the amount of waste to be disposed per unit area and be regarded as an important design parameter influencing the availability of disposal site. Thus, it is necessary to identify the effects of high temperature on the performance of buffer and allow for the thermal constraint greater than $100^{\circ}C$. In addition, the development of high-performance EBS (Engineered Barrier System) such as composite bentonite buffer mixed with graphite or silica and multi-layered buffer (i.e., highly thermal-conductive layer or insulating layer) should be taken into account to enhance the disposal efficiency in parallel with the development of multilayer repository. This will contribute to increase of reliability and securing the acceptance of the people with regard to a high-level waste disposal.

• Journal of the Korean Applied Science and Technology
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.766-778
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• 2019

In this study, Poria cocos bark were extracted by supercritical process, and anti-inflammatory, whitening, and antioxidant effects were measured in comparison with ethanol extract. Also, An effective percutaneous permeation method using a selected formulation of the extract and a drug delivery peptide was proposed. Pachymic acid, known as the anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory compound of the ventricle, is an indicator component and the HPLC analysis shows that the supercritical extract of the pericardium is more than twice that of the Poria cocos bark extract. In order to confirm antioxidative effect of Bombyx mori, DPPH scavenging ability and ABTS scavenging ability test showed that the ethanol extract of Poria cocos Back had lower concentration than the supercritical extract of Poria cocos back. However, RAW 264.7 Measurements of Nitric oxide (NO) production in cells showed lower NO production at the same concentration than the Poria cocos back ethanol extract. In addition, after 72 hours of processing of $20{\mu}g/mL$ of the Poria cocos back extract in B16 melanoma cells, both the intracellular and extracellular melanin extract were effective and the supercritical extract was lower melanin content. No toxicity was observed at the concentration of $800{\mu}g/mL$ in RAW 264.7 cells used in NO production experiments. However, in B16 melanoma cells, even at $50{\mu}g/mL$, both Poria cocos back ethanol extract and supercritical extract showed a survival rate of less than 60%. The liposome formulation and drug delivery peptides were shown to be useful for percutaneous permeation of Supercritical Extract of Poria cocos back using a liposome formulation and a drug delivery peptide. it is expected that there will be great potential for development as a variety of cosmetic materials for Poria cocos back.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.29 no.10
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• pp.1104-1110
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• 2019

Recently, there has been an increase in the elderly population of the world. Consequently, bone metabolic diseases such as osteoporosis are emerging as a social problem. Osteoclasts play a role in bone resorption, and osteoporosis is induced when bone resorption occurs excessively. Because currently used bone resorption inhibitors may cause side effects when used for a long period of time, it is necessary to develop a new material that effectively inhibits osteoclast differentiation. This study aimed to confirm the inhibitory effect of ethanol extract of Locusta migratoria on RANKL-induced osteoclast differentiation and its mechanism. The toxicity and proliferation effects of LME on RAW264.7 osteoclasts were measured by an MTS assay. There was no cytotoxicity or proliferation when the osteoclasts were treated with up to $2,000{\mu}g/ml$ of LME. In order to confirm the effect of LME on the differentiation of osteoclasts, osteoclasts were treated with RANKL alone or with LME for 3 days. As a result of a TRAP (tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase) assay, the increasing osteoclast differentiation by RANKL decreased in a concentration-dependent manner with the treatment of LME. In addition, LME suppressed the expression of differentiation-related marker genes (TRAP, RANK, NFATc1, and CK) and proteins (NFATc1 and c-Src) that had been increased by RANKL. Also, LME influenced the $NF-{\kappa}B$, ERK and JNK signaling pathways, resulting in the inhibition of osteoclast differentiation. These results suggest that LME may be used as a novel functional material for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis by playing a role in inhibiting bone absorption.