• Journal of Life Science
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.520-525
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• 2009

Early onset of Batten disease (EBD), one of the most lethal neurodegenerative storage disorders of childhood, is caused by inactivating mutations in the Ceroid Lipofuscinosis, Neuronal (CLN1) gene. Neurogranin, a calmodulin-binding protein, is expressed in the brain and participates in the protein kinase C (PKC) signaling pathway. While oxidative stress is the suggested cause of neurodegeneration in EBD, its molecular mechanism(s) remains obscure. In this research, we examined the levels of neurogranin in the brain mRNA of wild-type (WT) mice and EBD knockout (KO) mice, as well as the proteins. We also performed neuronal cultures to measure the expression levels of neurgranin and phosphorylated-neurogranin with or without oxidative stress inducers and anti-oxidants. Results showed that neurogranin in both EBD KO mice brain mRNA and protein extracts decreased in an age dependent manner. However, high amounts of phosphorylated-neurogranin were detected in the 6-month brain. This pattern was also confirmed by cultured neurospheres samples. Moreover, neurospheres treated with $H_2O_2$, an oxidative stress inducer, showed increased phosphorylated-neurogranin patterns. Interestingly, this pattern returned to normal status when treated with N-acetyl-L-cystein, an anti-oxidant, after $H_2O_2$ treatment was performed. Our results suggest that the phosphorylation of neurogranin is affected by oxidative stress status in EBD, and appropriate anti-oxidant treatment will relieve hyper-phosphorylation of neurogranin.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.19 no.10
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• pp.483-489
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• 2018

Driving behaviors are reported to be vulnerable to safe driving in unexpected situations or driving in the city due to deterioration of physical and cognitive functions in elderly drivers. The purpose of this study was to investigate the difference in driving behaviors according to age of self-drivers and to identify changes in physical function related to driving caused by normal aging. The subjects of the study included 75 healthy adults (21 persons aged 20-39 years, 40 persons 40-64 years, 14 persons 65 years old) who were self-driving and possessed a driver's license. Data included sex, dominant hand, medication, exercise, age, and driving time obtained by a self-reported questionnaire. In addition, this study measured steering, acceleration and braking using a Driver Test Station. Results of the study showed there was no significant difference in power test according to age group, but the total time of the timer test and the emergency brake test significantly differed according to age. The timer test and emergency brake test were completed fastest in young adults between 20 and 39 years old and completed slowest in elderly people 65 years old or over. Based on our study results, it is suggested that normal aging affects the perceptual-cognitive processes associated with driving behaviors.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.59 no.3
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• pp.341-349
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• 2014

Field emergence of Azuki bean is poor due to hard seed coat as compared to other legumes. In this study, an attempt was made to develop prediction method with regression analysis based on various seed vigor tests in laboratory for field emergence of azuki bean. Azuki bean seeds artificially aged to provide various levels of seed quality were evaluated by the standard germination test (SGT), cold germination test (CT), cool germination test (CGT), complex stressing vigor test (CSVT), tetrazolium(TZ) vigor test and electroconductivity test. The SGT was suitable for predicting the field emergence in the unaged high vigor seeds. The abnormal seedling percentage and shoot length in the CGT were highly correlated with field emergence of moderate vigor seeds artificially aged for 2 days. Electroconductivity, seed viability in the CSVT, and vigor and predicted germinability in the tetrazolium vigor test were also useful for predicting field emergence. Percent of ungerminated seed in the CSVT was correlated with field emergence in the low vigor seeds artificially aged for 4 days. In a stepwise multiple regression analysis, seed viability in the SGT, normal seedling percentage and dry matter weight in the CGT accounted for 86.9% of the predicted value of field emergence in azuki bean.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.43 no.4
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• pp.458-463
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• 2011

Recent studies have revealed that collagen peptide (CP) plays a protective role in skin by improving the activity of antioxidants and acts as an inducer of skin regeneration by positive feedback. In this study, we focused on the beneficial effect of reinforcing the CP skin barrier. To evaluate the skin barrier, hairless mice were exposed to UVB irradiation and acetone-treatment, with or without oral administration of CP. The effects on skin appearance, trans-epidermal water loss, epidermal thickness, and cytokine content were measured using bioengineering and histochemical methods. In the CP treated group, the skin had better appearance and less damage than that of the control. Furthermore, in HaCaT cells, the amount of serinepalmytoyl transferase (SPT) mRNA increased by about 1.6-fold after treatment (CP, 100 mg/L), reflecting that CP can induce SPT expression and reinforce the recovery of skin barrier function. These results suggest that CP is not only an anti-wrinkling agent but also a potent candidate as an epidermal moisturizer.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.29 no.6
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• pp.705-711
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• 2019

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is the most common urogenital disorder in men, benign tumor and is a typical disease deteriorating the quality of old men's lives, and its prevalence increases with age. Though the molecular pathogenesis of BPH has not yet been clearly revealed, it is known that the variation and aging of the endocrine including sex hormone may cause BPH. Especially the hypertrophy of the prostate cell by the formation of the excessive dihydrotestosterone (DHT) is estimated to cause BPH. If testosterone exists excessively in blood, a lot of DHT is produced in prostate by $5{\alpha}-reductase$. Thus, in this study we tried to analyze haematological change and histopathological change by using the model rat with BPH caused by hypodermic injection of testosterone to prove the effect of Houttuynia cordata extracts on BPH. Rats were divided into four experimental groups: no treatment group (N), the testosterone injection and D.W treatment group (DO), the testosterone injection and Houttuynia cordata treatment group (HO) and testosterone injection and finasteride treatment group (FO). Prostate weight, volume and weight ratio in the HO and FO groups were significantly lower than the DO group. Testosterone and DHT levels in the HO group were significantly lower than the DO group. The HO and FO groups showed trophic symptoms and were lined by flattened epithelial cells, thus, the stromal proliferation is relatively low as compared to the DO group. These results suggest that Houttuynia cordata may control benign prostatic hyperplasia.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.13 no.12
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• pp.321-327
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• 2013

Impaired naming difficulty is common in normal elderly as well as in patients with neurological impairment. The 60-item Korean version-Boston Naming Test(K-BNT) is one of the most commonly used test for measuring confrontational naming ability. However, age-related cognitive decline may make the elderly difficult concentrating during the 60-item test, therefore, item reduction of the K-BNT would improve test validity and reliability. Thus, the purpose of this study was to develop a short form of the K-BNT based on Item Response Theory(IRT). Considering item-fit index, sex factor, and item difficulty through Rasch analysis, the 15-item K-BNT(i.e., K-BNT-15) was developed. Via administration of the K-BNT-15, we observed age-related decline in naming ability and significantly different performance between the normal elderly and patients with mild cognitive impairment. This study demonstrates the utility of IRT for developing a short-form language evaluation tool. The K-BNT-15 can be effective as a language screening tool to differentiate between normal aging and pathological diseases.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.49 no.6
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• pp.429-436
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• 2016

Purpose: Solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation causes inflammation and matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) overexpression and extracellular matrix depletion, leading to skin photoaging such as wrinkle formation, dryness, and sagging. Activation of MMP is influenced by various molecules such as reactive oxygen species (ROS), proinflammatory cytokines, and transient receptor potential vanilloid type (TRPV)-1, which are increased in UV-irradiated skin cells. Aralia elata (AE) ethanolic extract was reported to inhibit ROS generation caused by UVB-irradiation in keratinocytes. In this study, we investigated the photoprotective effect of AE ethanolic extract on UVB-irradiated human keratinocytes (HaCaT) and human dermal fibroblasts (HDF). Methods: AE was freeze-dried, extracted in 70% ethanol, and concentrated. Skin cells were treated with AE extract for 24 h and then exposed to UVB ($55mJ/cm^2$). After 48 h of incubation, proinflammatory cytokines, MMP-1, type-1 procollagen, and TRPV-1 levels were measured by ELISA or Western blotting. Results: Treatment with AE extract ($100{\mu}g/mL$) significantly inhibited UVB-induced IL-6, IL-8, and $PGE_2$ production in HaCaT by 25.6%, 5.3%, and 70.2%, respectively, and also inhibited elevation of MMP-1 and TRPV-1 caused by UVB irradiation by 20.0% and 41.9%, respectively (p < 0.05). In HDF, AE extract treatment significantly inhibited both elevation of MMP-1 and reduction of type-1 procollagen caused by UVB irradiation (p < 0.05). In addition, type-1 procollagen was elevated by AE extract treatment in normal HDFs (p < 0.05). Conclusion: AE 70% ethanol extract has photoprotective ability via reduction of proinflammatory mediators, TRPV-1 and MMP-1 production, and elevation of collagen synthesis. Our findings suggest that AE extract might be a good natural material to protect against UVB-induced premature skin aging.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.22 no.10
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• pp.1428-1433
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• 2012

Longevity is an exciting but difficult subject to study because it is determined by complex processes that require the coordinated action of several genetic factors as well as physiological and environmental influences. Genetic approaches have been applied to animal models to identify the molecular mechanism responsible for longevity. Several experimental model organisms obtained over the last decades suggest that the complete deletion of a single gene by gene targeting has proven to be an invaluable tool for the discovery of the mechanisms underlying longevity. The first discovery of long-lived mutants came from Caenorhabditis elegans research, which identified the insulin/IGF-1 pathway as responsible for longevity in this worm. IGF-1 is a multifunctional polypeptide that has sequence similarity to insulin and is involved in normal growth and development of cells. Several factors in the IGF-1 system have since been studied by gene targeting in the control of longevity in lower species, including nematode and fruit fly. In addition, significant progress has been made using mice models to extend the lifespan by targeted mutations that interfere with growth hormone/IGF-1 and IGF-1 signaling cascades. A recent finding that IGF-1 is involved in aging in mice was achieved by using liver-specific knockout mutant mice, and this clearly demonstrated that the IGF-1 signal pathway can extend the lifespan in both invertebrates and vertebrate models. Although the underlying molecular mechanisms for the control of longevity are not fully understood, it is widely accepted that reduced IGF-1 signaling plays an important role in the control of aging and longevity. Several genes involved in the IGF-1 signaling system are reviewed in relation to longevity in genetically modified mice models.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.241-252
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• 2004

Purpose: Population based structural and functional maps of the brain provide effective tools for the analysis and interpretation of complex and individually variable brain data. Brain MRI and PET standard templates and statistical probabilistic maps based on image data of Korean normal volunteers have been developed and probabilistic maps based on cytoarchitectonic data have been introduced. A quantification method using these data was developed for the objective assessment of regional intensity in the brain images. Materials and Methods: Age, gender and ethnic specific anatomical and functional brain templates based on MR and PET images of Korean normal volunteers were developed. Korean structural probabilistic maps for 89 brain regions and cytoarchitectonic probabilistic maps for 13 Brodmann areas were transformed onto the standard templates. Brain FDG PET and SPGR MR images of normal volunteers were spatially normalized onto the template of each modality and gender. Regional uptake of radiotracers in PET and gray matter concentration in MR images were then quantified by averaging (or summing) regional intensities weighted using the probabilistic maps of brain regions. Regionally specific effects of aging on glucose metabolism in cingulate cortex were also examined. Results: Quantification program could generate quantification results for single spatially normalized images per 20 seconds. Glucose metabolism change in cingulate gyrus was regionally specific: ratios of glucose metabolism in the rostral anterior cingulate vs. posterior cingulate and the caudal anterior cingulate vs. posterior cingulate were significantly decreased as the age increased. 'Rostral anterior'/'posterior' was decreased by 3.1% per decade of age ($P<10^{-11}$, r=0.81) and 'caudal anterior'/'posterior' was decreased by 1.7% ($P<10^{-8}$, r=0.72). Conclusion: Ethnic specific standard templates and probabilistic maps and quantification program developed in this study will be useful for the analysis of brain image of Korean people since the difference in shape of the hemispheres and the sulcal pattern of brain relative to age, gender, races, and diseases cannot be fully overcome by the nonlinear spatial normalization techniques.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2015.08a
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• pp.141.2-141.2
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• 2015

교류임피던스 측정기법을 이용하여 전기화학적으로 외부환경에서 소재 금속까지 물질 및 전하이동에 관한 임피던스 측정이 가능하며 도막의 부식 및 노화정도 및 내식성의 평가가 가능하여 산업체에서 널리 이용되고 있다. RPCS(Remote Plasma Cleaning Source)는 패널 및 반도체 제조공정에서 CVD 증착공정 후 챔버 내부에 입혀지는 Si(실리콘)을 화학적으로 세정하기 위한 F(불소) Radical을 공급하는 원격 고밀도 플라즈마를 발생시키는 제품이다. RPCS의 바디는 알루미늄을 사용하고 절연 및 플라즈마에 대한 내구성을 확보하기 위해 아노다이징 코팅을 한다. 반응기 내벽의 표면이 공정 플라즈마에 노출될 때 소재는 화학적으로 매우 활성이 높은 라디칼과의 반응뿐만 아니라 이온의 충격을 동시에 받게 되며 이 과정에서 다량의 불소 (Fluorine) 라디칼과 전계에 반응한 이온의 운동에 노출되면서 아노다이징 코팅이 손상되는데 이는 기기의 수명 단축 및 파티클을 발생시키며, Arc의 원인이 되기도 한다. 실제 사용 환경에서는 기기의 분해 없이 아노다이징의 상태를 주기적으로 모니터링 하기가 대단히 어려워, 정기적으로 교체하고 있는 실정이다. 본 연구에서는 RPCS내 발생된 플라즈마 현상을 컨덕터로 활용하여 고주파 리액턴스를 임피던스로 환산하여 아노다이징 코팅의 손상 정도를 진단 및 모니터링하였다. 아노다이징이 손상된 내부 블럭과 정상상태인 내부 블럭의 임피던스를 비교하였고, 아노다이징 두께별 임피던스를 측정하였다. 그 결과 아노다이징 절연막이 손상된 블록의 임피던스가 정상 블록에 비해 낮았으며 두께별 임피던스도 비례함을 알 수 있었다. 향후에는 장기간 현장에서 축척되어진 시험데이터를 바탕으로 아노다이징 코팅의 수명예측진단 시스템을 구축하고자 한다.