• Title/Summary/Keyword: Defenses

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Regulation of Attorney Ethics in International Arbitration (국제중재에서 변호사의 비윤리적 행위 규제에 대한 연구)

  • Hong, Seok-Mo
    • Journal of Arbitration Studies
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    • v.25 no.2
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    • pp.3-17
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    • 2015
  • For many years commentators have requested more active regulation of attorney ethics in international arbitration. Gradual deterioration of ethical standards in international arbitration will bring disrepute and, once its reputation is lost, it could take decades to rebuild confidence. The first reason for increasing unethical behavior is that there is no ethical code generally applied to all lawyers participating in international arbitration. A second reason might be that nobody is actively regulating attorneys in international arbitration. The first step to solve this problem is that major arbitration institutions should cooperate to enact a uniform code of conduct to be generally applied to all attorneys representing parties in international arbitration. Recently, IBA and LCIA prepared guidelines on party representation in international arbitration, and the guidelines will help attorneys follow uniform standardsof ethics. However, this will not be sufficient. There should be a regulating body to monitor attorney ethics and take sanctions against unethical attorneys accordingly. Arbitrators, who can see unethical behavior by attorneys from the closest distance, are the most appropriate regulating force rather than courts of arbitration seat or an attorney's licensing country. Of course, arbitrators don't have powers to withdraw or suspend an attorney's license, but they have powers to control attorneys'behavior within arbitration proceedings such as an allocation of fees and costs, barring the assertion of claims or defenses, drawing adverse inferences, or precluding the submission of evidence or testimony. Furthermore, arbitrators should be provided with such obligation as active control of attorney ethics. Even arbitration institutions should participate by imposing on an attorney who is a repeat offender a suspension from appearing in future arbitrations. Unethical behavior will decrease through concerted actions among arbitrational institutions to introduce a uniform code of conduct and to empower arbitrators for more efficient regulation of attorney ethics.

Flood prediction in the Namgang Dam basin using a long short-term memory (LSTM) algorithm

  • Lee, Seungsoo;An, Hyunuk;Hur, Youngteck;Kim, Yeonsu;Byun, Jisun
    • Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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    • v.47 no.3
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    • pp.471-483
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    • 2020
  • Flood prediction is an important issue to prevent damages by flood inundation caused by increasing high-intensity rainfall with climate change. In recent years, machine learning algorithms have been receiving attention in many scientific fields including hydrology, water resources, natural hazards, etc. The performance of a machine learning algorithm was investigated to predict the water elevation of a river in this study. The aim of this study was to develop a new method for securing a large enough lead time for flood defenses by predicting river water elevation using the a long- short-term memory (LSTM) technique. The water elevation data at the Oisong gauging station were selected to evaluate its applicability. The test data were the water elevation data measured by K-water from 15 February 2013 to 26 August 2018, approximately 5 years 6 months, at 1 hour intervals. To investigate the predictability of the data in terms of the data characteristics and the lead time of the prediction data, the data were divided into the same interval data (group-A) and time average data (group-B) set. Next, the predictability was evaluated by constructing a total of 36 cases. Based on the results, group-A had a more stable water elevation prediction skill compared to group-B with a lead time from 1 to 6 h. Thus, the LSTM technique using only measured water elevation data can be used for securing the appropriate lead time for flood defense in a river.

Protective effect of ginsenosides Rk3 and Rh4 on cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury in vitro and in vivo

  • Baek, Seung-Hoon;Shin, Byong-kyu;Kim, Nam Jae;Chang, Sun-Young;Park, Jeong Hill
    • Journal of Ginseng Research
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    • v.41 no.3
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    • pp.233-239
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    • 2017
  • Background: Nephrotoxicity is the major side effect in cisplatin chemotherapy. Previously, we reported that the ginsenosides Rk3 and Rh4 reduced cisplatin toxicity on porcine renal proximal epithelial tubular cells (LLC-PK1). Here, we aimed to evaluate the protective effect of ginsenosides Rk3 and Rh4 on kidney function and elucidate their antioxidant effect using in vitro and in vivo models of cisplatin-induced acute renal failure. Methods: An enriched mixture of ginsenosides Rk3 and Rh4 (KG-KH; 49.3% and 43.1%, respectively) was purified from sun ginseng (heat processed Panax ginseng). Cytotoxicity was induced by treatment of $20{\mu}M$ cisplatin to LLC-PK1 cells and rat model of acute renal failure was generated by single intraperitoneal injection of 5 mg/kg cisplatin. Protective effects were assessed by determining cell viability, reactive oxygen species generation, blood urea nitrogen, serum creatinine, antioxidant enzyme activity, and histopathological examination. Results: The in vitro assay demonstrated that KG-KH ($50{\mu}g/mL$) significantly increased cell viability (4.6-fold), superoxide dismutase activity (2.8-fold), and glutathione reductase activity (1.5-fold), but reduced reactive oxygen species generation (56%) compared to cisplatin control cells. KG-KH (6 mg/kg, per os) also significantly inhibited renal edema (87% kidney index) and dysfunction (71.4% blood urea nitrogen, 67.4% creatinine) compared to cisplatin control rats. Of note, KG-KH significantly recovered the kidney levels of catalase (1.2-fold) and superoxide dismutase (1.5-fold). Conclusion: Considering the oxidative injury as an early trigger of cisplatin nephrotoxicity, our findings suggest that ginsenosides Rk3 and Rh4 protect the kidney from cisplatin-induced oxidative injury and help to recover renal function by restoring intrinsic antioxidant defenses.

Examination of the Antioxidant Potential of Pycnogenol under Conditions of Oxidative Stress in Escherichia coli Mutants Deficient in HP1 and Superoxide Dismutase Activities

  • Youm, Jeong-A;Kim, Young-Gon
    • Journal of Microbiology
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    • v.41 no.1
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    • pp.28-33
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    • 2003
  • Pycnogenol (PYC) is believed to have potential as a therapeutic agent against free radical-mediated oxidative stress. It is important, therefore, to understand the interactions between PYC and cellular defenses against oxidative stress. Toward this end, we analyzed the survival rates on the gene expression responses of E. coli sod katG mutants to PYC after pre-treatment of PQ or H$_2$O$_2$-mediated stress under aerobic conditions. We identified SOD induced by PYC, but not HP1 in sod hate mutants. A striking result was the PYC induction of SOD with antioxidant property in single katG mutant cells, particularly MnSOD and CuZnSOD. These inductions were further increased with oxidative stress, while HP1 was not induced in these conditions. The effects of pycnogenol treatment on these cells depend in part on its concentration on the stress response. Protective effects of PYC exposure which affected gene expression in cells were consistent with cell survival rates. Our results demonstrate that pycnogenol may alter the stress response gene expression in a specific manner such as SOXRS because PYC induction of single mutant only worked under increased PQ stress. All together our data indicate that SOD activity is essential for the cellular defense against PQ-mediated oxidative stress, suggesting that PYC may not be effective as an antioxidant in only oxidative stress conditions. On the other hand, it was expected that PYC may play a role as a pro-oxidant and if it is available for use, it should be evaluated carefully.

Effects of cardiac biological activities on low-intensity physical training in doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity rat models

  • Ki, Yeong-Kye;Kim, Gye-Yeop;Kim, Eun-Jung
    • Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Science
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    • v.3 no.2
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    • pp.107-111
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    • 2014
  • Objective: In the present study, we investigated the protective effects of low-intensity treadmill training in doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity rat models. Design: Randomized controlled trial. Methods: In this study, we randomly divided them into four groups. The normal group included non-cardiotoxicity normal control (n=10), the control group included non-treadmill training after doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity (n=10), the experimental group I included low-intensity treadmill training (3 m/min) after doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity (n=10), and the experimental group II included low-intensity treadmill training (8 m/min) after doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity (n=10). Rats in the treadmill training group underwent treadmill training, which began at 2 weeks after first intraperitoneal injection. We determined the body weight change for each rat on days 1 and 21. Biochemical markers (lactate dehydrogenase [LDH], creatine kinase [CK], glutathion, aspartate transaminase [AST], and alanine transaminase [ALT]) concentration in the serum change of rats from all four groups was examined at the end of the experiment. Results: The results showed that the experimental group I and II showed a significant increase in body weight as compared with that of the control group (p<0.05). We observed that the biochemical markers (LDH, CK, glutathion, AST, and ALT) were improved in the experimental group I than the experimental group II (p<0.05). There was no difference between the experimental groups. Conclusions: In conclusion, our data suggest that low-intensity treadmill training applied after doxorubicin treatment protects against cardiotoxicity following treatment, possibly by enhancing antioxidant defenses and inhibiting cardiac muscle cell apoptosis.

Role of RIN4 in Regulating PAMP-Triggered Immunity and Effector-Triggered Immunity: Current Status and Future Perspectives

  • Ray, Sujit Kumar;Macoy, Donah Mary;Kim, Woe-Yeon;Lee, Sang Yeol;Kim, Min Gab
    • Molecules and Cells
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    • v.42 no.7
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    • pp.503-511
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    • 2019
  • As sessile organisms, plants have developed sophisticated system to defend themselves against microbial attack. Since plants do not have specialized immune cells, all plant cells appear to have the innate ability to recognize pathogens and turn on an appropriate defense response. The plant innate immune system has two major branches: PAMPs (pathogen associated molecular patterns)-triggered immunity (PTI) and effector-triggered immunity (ETI). The ability to discriminate between self and non-self is a fundamental feature of living organisms, and it is a prerequisite for the activation of plant defenses specific to microbial infection. Arabidopsis cells express receptors that detect extracellular molecules or structures of the microbes, which are called collectively PAMPs and activate PTI. However, nucleotidebinding site leucine-rich repeats (NB-LRR) proteins mediated ETI is induced by direct or indirect recognition of effector molecules encoded by avr genes. In Arabidopsis, plasmamembrane localized multifunctional protein RIN4 (RPM1-interacting protein 4) plays important role in both PTI and ETI. Previous studies have suggested that RIN4 functions as a negative regulator of PTI. In addition, many different bacterial effector proteins modify RIN4 to destabilize plant immunity and several NB-LRR proteins, including RPM1 (resistance to Pseudomonas syringae pv. maculicola 1), RPS2 (resistance to P. syringae 2) guard RIN4. This review summarizes the current studies that have described signaling mechanism of RIN4 function, modification of RIN4 by bacterial effectors and different interacting partner of RIN4 in defense related pathway. In addition, the emerging role of the RIN4 in plant physiology and intercellular signaling as it presents in exosomes will be discussed.

Production of transgenic cattle by somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) with the human granulocyte colony-stimulation factor (hG-CSF)

  • Carvalho, Bruno P.;Cunha, Andrielle T.M.;Silva, Bianca D.M.;Sousa, Regivaldo V.;Leme, Ligiane O.;Dode, Margot A.N.;Melo, Eduardo O.
    • Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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    • v.61 no.2
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    • pp.61-68
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    • 2019
  • The hG-CSF (human Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor) is a growth and stimulation factor capable of inducing the proliferation of bone marrow cells, several types of leukocytes, among other hematopoietic tissue cells. hG-CSF is used in used to treat anomalies that reder a small number of circulating white blood cells, which may compromise the immune defenses of the affected person. For these reasons, the production of hG-CSF in a bioreactor system using the mammary gland of genetic modified animals is a possibility of adding value to the bovine genetic material and reducing the costs of hG-CSF production in pharmaceutical industry. In this study, we aimed the production of transgenic hG-CSF bovine through the lipofection of bovine primary fibroblasts with an hG-CSF expression cassette and cloning these fibroblasts by the somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) technique. The bovine fibroblasts transfected with the hG-CSF cassette presented a stable insertion of this construct into their genome and were efficiently synchronized to G0/G1 cell cycle stage. The transgenic fibroblasts were cloned by SCNT and produced 103 transferred embryos and 2 pregnancies, one of which reached 7 months of gestation.

The Mitigating Effects of Seaward Dune Reinforcement Against Coastal Erosion in Dasa-ri, Chungcheongnam-do, South Korea (해안사구 모래보강을 통한 해안침식 저감 효과 - 충청남도 다사리 사구를 사례로 -)

  • Kong, Hak-Yang;Park, Sung-Min;Shin, Young Kyu;Choi, Kwang Hee
    • Journal of The Geomorphological Association of Korea
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    • v.25 no.4
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    • pp.37-47
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    • 2018
  • Coastal sand dunes have been regarded as natural defenses to protect hinterland from disasters such as storm surge and typhoons. However, many dunes are not well-deserved in South Korea because of imprudent land development or inappropriate measures after coastal erosion. Lately, beach nourishment and dune reinforcement are emphasized as the effective and environmentally sustainable solution for the coastal protection. They are regarded good strategies to keep landscapes for a time, with little side effects. However, there is little knowledge on the construction methods including proper design and time plans for the best results.In addition, the effects of dune reinforcement in the field should be tested.In thisstudy, we performed sand filling in an eroded dune scarp and surveyed topographic changes in the beach-dune system, which is located along Dasa-ri coast, Chungnam Province, South Korea. Using a network RTK-GPS and drone-based aerial photographs, we analyzed the temporal and spatial changes in the area, before and after the reinforcement. As a result, the dune reinforcement seems to be helpful to mitigates the coastal erosion and to prevent the coastline retreat at least for one year.

Influence of spent ginger yeast cultures on the production performance, egg quality, serum composition, and intestinal microbiota of laying hens

  • Liu, Junhan;Jin, Yuhong;Yang, Junhua
    • Animal Bioscience
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    • v.35 no.8
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    • pp.1205-1214
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    • 2022
  • Objective: Spent ginger is a byproduct of juice extraction from the rhizome of ginger (Zingiber officinale). Despite its nutritional value, it is difficult to preserve or further process and thus is often wasted. This study uses spent ginger as a substrate for fermentation and cultivates spent ginger yeast cultures (SGYCs) that are then added to the feed of laying hens. The effects of SGYCs on production performance, egg quality, serum composition, and intestinal microbiota of laying hens were investigated. Methods: Eighty 60-week-old Hy-Line Brown hens were separated into 5 experimental groups with 4 replicates per group (4 hens per cage, 4 cages per replicate). The control group was fed a basal diet while experimental groups were also given SGYCs at the levels of 5, 10, 20, and 40 g/kg for 6 weeks. Results: The addition of SGYCs significantly increased the laying rate and nutrient digestibility, decreased feed conversion ratio, and enhanced the color of egg yolks (p<0.05). No changes were observed in activity levels of alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase in the serum (p>0.05), but the activities of superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase, and peroxidase all significantly increased, and contents of malondialdehyde were significantly reduced (p<0.05). In addition, changes in the relative abundance of Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes might be the main factor contributing to the significant increase in the apparent digestibility of crude protein and crude fat in laying hens (p<0.05). Conclusion: The current evidence shows that dietary supplementation of SGYCs to the feed of laying hens can improve laying rates, enhance antioxidative defenses, and influence dominant intestinal bacteria.

Mapping of the Complement C9 Binding Region on Clonorchis sinensis Paramyosin

  • Kang, Jung-Mi;Le, Huong Giang;Vo, Tuan Cuong;Yoo, Won Gi;Sohn, Woon-Mok;Na, Byoung-Kuk
    • Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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    • v.60 no.4
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    • pp.255-259
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    • 2022
  • Heliminthic paramyosin is a multifunctional protein that not only acts as a structural protein in muscle layers but as an immune-modulatory molecule interacting with the host immune system. Previously, we found that paramyosin from Clonorchis sinensis (CsPmy) is bound to human complement C9 protein (C9). To analyze the C9 binding region on CsPmy, overlapping recombinant fragments of CsPmy were produced and their binding activity to human C9 was investigated. The fragmental expression of CsPmy and C9 binding assays revealed that the C9 binding region was located at the C-terminus of CsPmy. Further analysis of the C-terminus of CsPmy to narrow the C9 binding region on CsPmy indicated that the region flanking 731Leu-780Leu was a potent C9 binding region. The CsPmy fragments corresponding to the region effectively inhibited human C9 polymerization. These results provide a precise molecular basis for CsPmy as a potent immunomodulator to evade host immune defenses by inhibiting complement attack.