• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.43 no.2
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• pp.160-165
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• 2010

To reduce the dose of fertilizers is very important to sustainable production of many horticultural crops, including strawberry. In order to practice the environment friendly agriculture of strawberry cultivation in plastic film house, soil chemical properties of 435 soil samples (232 for loam, 83 for sandy loam, and 120 for silt loam) in Chungnam Province from2008 to 2009 were determined. The average of pH, EC, OM, Av. $P_2O_5$, Ex. $K^+$, Ex. $Ca^{2+}$, Ex. $Mg^{2+}$, and Ex. $Na^+$ was 6.5, 2.28 dS $m^{-1}$, 26 g $kg^{-1}$, 910 mg $kg^{-1}$, 1.09 $cmol_c\;kg^{-1}$, 8.3 $cmol_c\;kg^{-1}$, 2.5 $cmol_c\;kg^{-1}$, and 0.58 $cmol_c\;kg^{-1}$, respectively. The content of Av. $P_2O_5$ in sandy loam soil was significantly higher than silt loam soil, whereas other properties showed no difference between soil texture. The kinds of strawberry cultivars showed no difference in soil chemical properties. The frequency distribution within optimum range of soil chemical properties was 30.6%, 35.4%, 37.0%, 5.3%, 8.5%, 8.5%, and 17.9% for pH, EC, OM, Av. $P_2O_5$, Ex. $K^+$, Ex. $Ca^{2+}$, and Ex. $Mg^{2+}$, respectively. Especially, excessive portion of Av. $P_2O_5$, and Ex. $Ca^{2+}$ were high 86.9%, and 86.0%, respectively. EC values of soil samples were significantly positive correlatoin with all chemical properties except soil pH. In principle component analysis of chemical properties in soil samples, the percentage of variance explained by PC 1 was 38.8%, while PC 2 explained 17.8%of the variance, for a cumulative total of 56.6%. These results were able to distinguish between soil textures and strawberry cultivars. Also, these results considered that understanding of soil chemical properties under using principal component analysis be able to improve amounts of fertilizers for sustainable agriculture in plastic film house.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.267-276
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• 1998

Any detector inserted into a phantom should have such a geometry that it caused as small as possible perturbation of the electron fluence. Plane parallel chambers meet this requirement better than other chambers of configurations. IAEA protocol recommends the use of plane parallel chambers for this reason. However, the cylindrical chambers are widely used for convenient. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the absorbed dose due to the differences of four different dosimetry protocols such as IAEA protocol using cylindrical chamber, TG 21 protocol using cylindrical chamber, Markus protocol using plane parallel chamber, and TG 39 report for the calibration of plane parallel chamber in electron beams. Depth-ionization measurements for the electron beams of nominal energy 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18 MeV from Siemens accelerator with a 10$\times$10 cm$^2$ field size were made using a radiation field analyser with 0.125 cc ion chamber. Dosimetric measurements by IAEA and TG 21 protocol were made with a farmer type ionization chamber in solid water for each electron energy, respectively. Dosimetric measurements by Markus protocol were made with a plane parallel ionization chamber in solid water for each electron energy, respectively. The cavity-gas calibration factor for the plane parallel chamber was obtained with the use of 18 MeV electron beam as guided by TG 39 report. Dosimetric measurements by TG 39 were performed with a plane parallel ionization chamber in solid water for each electron energy, respectively. For all the energies and protocols, measurements were made along the central axis of the distance of 100 cm (SSD = 100 cm) with 10$\times$10 cm$^2$ field size at the depth of d$_{max}$ for each electron beam, respectively. In the case of 18 MeV, the discrepancy of 0.9 % between IAEA and TG 21 was found and the two protocols were agreed within 0.7 % for other energies. In the case of 18 MeV and 6 MeV, the discrepancies of $\pm$ 0.8 % between Markus and TG 39 was found, respectively and the two protocols were agreed within 0.5 % for other energies. Since the discrepancy of 1.6 % between cylindrical and plane parallel chamber was found for 18 MeV, it is suggested to get the calibration factor using other method as guided. by TG 39.9.

• The Korean Journal of Mycology
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• v.41 no.2
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• pp.104-111
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• 2013

Phellinus baumii is a medicinal mushroom used in Asian countries for a long period of time. The purpose of this study was to investigate the skin whitening activities of methanol extracts from fruiting bodies of P. baumii. To evaluate the antioxidant activities of the extract, polyphenol and flavonoid contents, and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging activity and chelating activity on ferrous ions were studied. For assay of skin whitening activities, tyrosinase and DOPA inhibitory activities, and tyrosinase and melanin synthesis inhibitory activities of B16/F10 melanoma cells treated with the methanol extract were investigated. The total polyphenol content of P. baumii methanol extract was 4.19. DPPH scavenging ability of P. baumii methanol extract was 88.26% in $25{\mu}g/mL$ concentration. We tested tyrosinase inhibitory activity and melanin contents in melanoma cells. The tyrosinase activity was inhibited to 65.17% at the concentration of $125{\mu}g/mL$ and melanin synthesis was inhibited to 57.61% at the concentration of $25{\mu}g/mL$. Overall, the experimental results showed that P. baumii methanol extract had inhibitory activities of tyrosinase and melanin synthesis by dose dependent manner in B16/F10 melanoma cells. Strong ultra-violet absorption spectra in the range of 270~370 nm indicated that ethanol extract of P. baumii could protect the skin from UV. Therefore, P. baumii methanol extract might be used for development of skin whitening, anti-UV and skin care agents.

• The Journal of Korean Society for Radiation Therapy
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.1-9
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• 2003

I. Purpose The multileaf collimator(MLC) has many advantages, but use of the MLC increased effective penumbra and isodose undulation in dose distribution compared with that of an alloy block. In this work, we introduced the HD-270 MLC, which can improve the above disadvantages of MLC, and reported its feasibility study. II. Method and Materials The HD-270 MLC is a technique which combines the use of the existing Siemens multileaf collimator(3D MLC) with patient translation perpendicular to the leaf plane. The technique produces a smoothed isodose distribution with the reduced isodose undulation and effective penumbra. To assess the efficacy of the HD-270 technique and determine the appropriate resolution, a polygonal shaped MLC field was made to produce field edge angles from 0 degree to 75 degree with a step of 15 degree. Each HD-270 group was generated according to the allowed resolution, i. e., 5, 3, and 2mm. The experiment was carried out on Primus, a Siemens linear accelerator configured with HD-270 MLC. The total 60 MU of 6 MV photon beam was delivered to X-Omat film(Kodak, USA) at a SAD of 100 cm and 1.5 cm depth in solid water phantom. Exposed films were scanned by Lumiscan75(LUMISYS) and analyzed using RIT113 software(Radiological Imaging Technology Inc., USA). To test the mechanical accuracy of table movement, the transverse, longitudinal, and vertical positions were controlled by a consol with ${\pm}5\;mm,\;{\pm}4\;mm,\;{\pm}3\;mm,\;and\;{\pm}2\;mm$ steps, and then measured using a dial gauge with an accuracy of 0.001 inch. During the experiments, the table loaded with about 50Kg human phantom to simulate the real treatment situation. III. Results The effective penumbra and isodose undulation became larger with increase the resolution and field edge angle. The accuracy of the table movement on each direction is good within the ${\pm}1\;mm$. IV. Conclusion Clinical use of the MLC can be increased by using of the HD-270 MLC which complements to the disadvantages of the MLC.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.27-34
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• 2008

A Korean urban contamination model METRO-K (${\underline{M}}odel$ for ${\underline{E}}stimates$ the ${\underline{T}}ransient$ Behavior of ${\underline{R}}adi{\underline{O}}active$ Materials in the ${\underline{K}}orean$ Urban Environment, which is capable of calculating the exposure doses resulting from radioactive contamination in an urban environment, is taking part in a model testing program EMRAS (${\underline{E}}nvironmental$ ${\underline{M}}odelling$ for ${\underline{RA}}diation$ ${\underline{S}}afety$) oragnized by the IAEA (${\underline{I}}nternational$ ${\underline{A}}tomic$ ${\underline{E}}nergy$ ${\underline{A}}gency$). For radioactive contamination scenarios of Pripyat districts and a hypothetical RDD (${\underline{R}}adiological$ ${\underline{D}}ispersal$ ${\underline{D}}evice$), the predicted results using METRO-K were submitted to the EMRAS's Urban Contamination Working Group. In this paper, the predicted results for the contamination scenarios of a Pripyat district were shown in case of both without remediation measures and with ones. Comparing with the predictied results of the models that have taken part in EMRAS program, a feasibility for decision-making support of METRO-K was investigated. As a predicted result of METRO-K, to take immediately remediation measures following a radioactive contamination, if possible, might be one of the best ways to reduce exposure dose. It was found that the discrepancies of predicted results among the models are resulted from 1) modeling approaches and applied parameter values, 2) exposure pathways which are considered in models, 3) assumptions of assessor such as contamination surfaces which might affect to an exposure receptor and their sizes, 4) parameter values which are related with remediation measures applied through literature survey. It was indentified that a Korean urban contamination model METRO-K is a useful tool for dicision-making support through the participation of EMRAS program.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.233-240
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• 2005

To discover new functional materials using edible plants, antioxidant activities of methanol extracts from various parts of seven wild vegetables were investigated in vitro. Total polyphenol contents, determined by Folin-Denis method, varied from 16.74 to $130.22{\mu}g/mg$. Radical-scavenging activities of methanol extracts were examined using ${\alpha},\;{\alpha}-diphenyl-{\beta}-pirrylhydrazyl$ (DPPH) radicals and 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) assay. Inhibition effects on peroxidation of linoleic acid determined by ferric thiocyanate (FTC) method and on oxidative degradation of 2-deoxy-D-ribose in Fenton-type reaction system were dose-dependent. Athyrium acutipinulum Kodama (leaf and rood), Achyranthes japonica (Miq.) Nakai (seed), and Solidago virga-aurea var. gigantea Nakai (root) showed relatively high antioxidant activities in various systems.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.28 no.12
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• pp.1516-1522
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• 2018

Atherosclerosis is an obstructive vessel disease mainly caused by chronic arterial inflammation to which the proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) is the main pathological response. In the present study, the primary responsible inflammatory cytokine and its signaling pathway was investigated. The proliferation and migration of VSMCs was significantly enhanced by the prostaglandin $F_{2{\alpha}}$ ($PGF_{2{\alpha}}$), while neither was affected by tumor necrosis factor ${\alpha}$. Prostacyclin $I_2$ was seen to enhance the proliferation of VSMCs while simultaneously suppressing their migration. Both prostaglandin $D_2$ and prostaglandin $E_2$ significantly enhanced the migration of VSMCs, however, proliferation was not affected by either of them. The proliferation and migration of VSMCs stimulated by $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$ progressed in a dose-dependent manner; the $EC_{50}$ value of both proliferation and migration was $0.1{\mu}M$. VSMCs highly expressed the phospholipase isoform $C-{\beta}3$ ($PLC-{\beta}3$) while others such as $PLC-{\beta}1$, $PLC-{\beta}2$, and $PLC-{\beta}4$ were not expressed. Inhibition of the PLCs by U73122 completely blocked the $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$-induced migration of VSMCs, and, in addition, silencing $PLC-{\beta}3$ significantly diminished the $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$-induced proliferation and migration of VSMCs. Given these results, we suggest that $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$ plays a crucial role in the proliferation and migration of VSMCs, and activation of $PLC-{\beta}3$ could be involved in their $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$-dependent migration.

• The Korean Journal of Pharmacology
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.407-416
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• 1996

The reactive intermediates formed during the metabolism of therapeutic agents, toxicants and carcinogens by cytochromes P450 are frequently capable of covalently binding to tissue macromolecules and causing tissue damage. It has been shown that YH439, a congener of malotilate, is effective in suppressing hepatic P450 2E1 expression. The present study was designed to further establish the mechanistic basis of YH439 protection against toxicant by assessing its effects against chemical-mediated potentiated hepatotoxicity. Retinoyl palmitate (Vit-A) pretreatment of rats for 7 days substantially enhanced carbon tetrachloride hepatotoxicity, as supported by an ${\sim}5-fold$ increase in serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) activity, as compared to $CCl_4$ treatment alone. The elevation of ALT activity due to Vit-A was completely blocked by the treatment of $GdCl_3$ a selective inhibitor of Kupffer cell activity. Concomitant pretreatment of rats with both YH439 and Vit-A resulted in a 94% decrease in Vit-A-potentiated $CCl_4$ hepatotoxicity. YH439 was also effective against propyl sulfide-potentiated $CCl_4-induced$ hepatotoxicity. Whereas propyl sulfide (50 mg/kg, 7d) enhanced $CCl_4-induced$ hepatotoxicity by >5-fold, relative to $CCl_4$ treatment alone, concomitant treatment of animals with both propyl sulfide and YH439 at the doses of 100 and 200 mg/kg prevented propyl sulfide-potentiated $CCl_4$ hepatotoxicity by 35% and 90%, respectively. Allyl sulfide, a suppressant of hepatic P450 2E1 expression, completely blocked the propyl sulfide-enhanced hepatotoxicity, indicating that propyl sulfide potentiation of $CCl_4$ hepatotoxicity was highly associated with the expression of P450 2E1 and that YH439 blocked the propyl sulfide-enhanced hepatotoxicity through modulation of P450 2E1 levels. Propyl sulfide- and $CCl_4-induced$ stimulation of lipid peroxidation was also suppressed by YH439 in a dose-related manner, as supported by decreases in malonedialdehyde production. The role of P450 2E1 induction in the potentiation of $CCl_4$ toxicity and the effects of YH439 were further evaluated using pyridine as a P450 2E1 inducer. Pyridine pretreatment substantially enhanced the $CCl_4$ hepatotoicity by 23-fold, relative to $CCl_4$ alone. YH439, however, failed to reduce the pyridine-potentiated toxicity, suggesting that the other form(s) of cytochroms P450 inducible by pyridine, but not suppressible by YH439 treatment, may play a role in potentiating $CCl_4-induced$ hepatotoxicity. YH439 was capable of blocking cadmium chloride-induced liver toxicity in mice. These results demonstrated that YH439 efficiently blocks Vit-A-enhanced hepatotoxiciy through Kupffer cell inactivation and that the suppression of P450 2E1 expression by YH439 is highly associated with blocking of propyl sulfide-mediated hepatotoxicity.

• Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.40-47
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• 2006

Purpose: The aim of this study was to examine the effects of attenuation correction (AC) and scatter correction (SC) on the quantification of PET count rates. Materials and Methods: To assess the effects of AC and SC $^{18}F$-FDG PET images of phantom and cat brain were acquired using microPET R4 scanner. Thirty-minute transmission images using $^{68}Ge$ source and emission images after injection of FDG were acquired. PET images were reconstructed using 2D OSEM. AC and SC were applied. Regional count rates were measured using ROIs drawn on cerebral cortex including frontal, parietal, and latral temporal lobes and deep gray matter including head of caudate nucleus, putamen and thalamus for pre- and post-AC and SC images. The count rates were then normalized with the injected dose per body weight. To assess the effects of AC, count ratio of "deep gray matter/cerebral cortex" was calculated. To assess the effects of SC, ROIs were also drawn on the gray matter (GM) and white matter (WM), and contrast between them ((GM-WM)/GM was measured. Results: After the AC, count ratio of "deep gray matter/cerebral cortex" was increased by $17{\pm}7%$. After the SC, contrast was also increased by $12{\pm}3%$. Conclusion: Relative count of deep gray matter and contrast between gray and white matters were increased after AC and SC, suggesting that the AC would be critical for the quantitative analysis of cat brain PET data.

• Resources Recycling
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.56-65
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• 2022

Copper is one of the non-ferrous metals used in the electrical/electronic manufacturing industries due to its superior properties particularly the high conductivity and less resistivity. The effluent generated from the surface finishing process of these industries contains higher copper content which gets discharged in to water bodies directly or indirectly. This causes severe environmental pollution and also results in loss of an important valuable metal. To overcome this issue, continuous R & D activities are going on across the globe in adsorption area with the purpose of finding an efficient, low cost and ecofriendly adsorbent. In view of the above, present investigation was made to compare the performance of a plant root (Datura root powder) as a bio-adsorbent to that of the synthetic one (Tulsion T-42) for copper adsorption from such effluent. Experiments were carried out in batch studies to optimize parameters such as adsorbent dose, contact time, pH, feed concentration, etc. Results of the batch experiments indicate that 0.2 g of Datura root powder and 0.1 g of Tulsion T-42 showed 95% copper adsorption from an initial feed/solution of 100 ppm Cu at pH 4 in contact time of 15 and 30 min, respectively. Adsorption data for both the adsorbents were fitted well to the Freundlich isotherm. Experimental results were also validated with the kinetic model, which showed that the adsorption of copper followed pseudo-second order rate expression for the both adsorbents. Overall result demonstrates that the bio-adsorbent tested has a potential applicability for metal recovery from the waste solutions/effluents of metal finishing units. In view of the requirements of commercial viability and minimal environmental damage there from, Datura root powder being an effective material for metal uptake, may prove to be a feasible adsorbent for copper recovery after the necessary scale-up studies.