• Journal of the Korea Computer Graphics Society
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.19-27
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• 2013

This paper presents a real-time GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) isosurface ray-caster that improves the performance by 4-7 folds from our previous method, while keeping the superior visual quality. Such an improvement is achieved by incorporating an efficient empty-space skipping scheme and an analytic normal computation. The empty-space skipping scheme is done by building an min/max octree computed from the BB(Bernslein-B$\acute{e}$zier)-form of spline pieces and the analytic normal Formula provides not only a nice visual quality but also an improved evaluation performance.

• Speech Sciences
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.191-203
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• 2003

This study examined the effect of vocal loudness on nasalance measures, under the conditions of three sentence patterns (i.e., Oral sentences, Mixed sentences, Nasal sentences). The vocal loudness level was classified into soft voice (55 dB), medium voice (65 dB) and loud voice (75 dB). The participants in the present study were 30 normal adults (male: female =1:1). Kay's Nasometer 6200 was used to measure nasalance and Sound level meter was used to adjust the loudness level. The results of the present study are as follows. Firstly, the change in vocal loudness is in the following. In the Oral sentence stimuli, the loud voice for both male and female showed the highest nasalance degree, and the medium voice the lowest level. In the Mixed and Nasal sentence stimuli, however, male participants showed the highest degree of nasalance in the soft voice, and the lowest degree in the loud voice, and female showed the highest degree of nasalance in the soft voice and the lowest in the medium voice. Secondly, when each subject's nasalance scores were ranked in a ordered manner, noticeable tendency. Lowest nasalance score occurred in the loud voice and the highest nasalance score was recorded in the soft voice during participants' reading of the Nasal sentences. However, it was hard to find such pattern in the Oral sentences. It is assumed that velopharyngeal function could be related to these findings. Furthermore, the findings associated with vocal loudness may have diagnostic as well as clinical implications.

• Electrical & Electronic Materials
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.6-12
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• 1995

High Tc superconducting YBa$_{2}$Cu$_{3}$$O_{7-x}$ thin films were prepared on various substrates by off-axis rf magnetron sputtering method to examine the substrate effects on the film structure and its R-T characteristics. The SEM analysis showed that the surface morphology of the grown YBa$_{2}$Cu$_{3}$O.sub 7-x/, film has different characteristic structure with different substrate used. The film on (100) SrTiO$_{3}$ substrate has critical current density of 3*10$^{5}$ A/cm$^{2}$ at 77K under zero magnetic field. The X-ray diffraction measurements revealed that the films on (100) SrTiO$_{3}$ substrate have mixed a-axis and c-axis normal to the substrate surface and the films on (100) MgO and ZrO$_{2}$/sapphire substrates have c-axis normal orientation to the substrate surface. However, YBa$_{2}$Cu$_{3}$$O_{7-x}$ films on (100) sapphire substrates showed no preferential orientation.ion.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.39-45
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• 2015

Changes in speech production in normal elderly might be subtle and gradual. Therefore, an acoustic analysis is appropriate to identify the effect of aging on speech. For this purpose, this study examined four speech parameters; voice onset time (VOT), VOT range, $f_0$ of following vowel($f_0FV$), and $f_0FV$ difference in two age groups, old (mean age 74.57 yrs.) and young (m: 27.43 yrs.). The results show that compared to the older group the younger demonstrated significantly shorter VOTs in lenis and longer in aspirated stop. VOT ranges were relatively broad and consequently overlapped between the phonation types (e.g., lenis, fortis, aspirated). The $f_0FV$ values in the older group which are an integral parameter with VOT were lower compared with the young group. The $f_0FV$ differences in the old female group were significantly narrower than the young female group, therefore, clear distinction became difficult. In conclusion, contrast in temporal information was obscured, and the domain of glottal information was diminished on stop consonants in Korean elderly. The findings suggest that central/peripheral changes by aging could lead to a deficit in coordination between phonation and articulation.

• BMB Reports
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• v.48 no.8
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• pp.427-428
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• 2015

Despite high interests on microenvironmental regulation of leukemic cells, little is known for bone marrow (BM) niche in leukemia patients. Our recent study on BMs of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients showed that the mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) are altered during leukemic conditions in a clinical course-dependent manner. Leukemic blasts caused reprogramming of transcriptomes in MSCs and remodeling of niche cross-talk, selectively suppressing normal primitive hematopoietic cells while supporting leukemogenesis and chemo-resistance. Notably, differences in BM stromal remodeling were correlated to heterogeneity in subsequent clinical courses of AML, i.e., low numbers of mesenchymal progenitors at initial diagnosis were correlated to complete remission for 5-8 years, and high contents of mesenchymal progenitor or MSCs correlated to early or late relapse, respectively. Thus, stromal remodeling by leukemic cell is an intrinsic part of leukemogenesis that can contribute to the clonal dominance of leukemic cells over normal hematopoietic cells, and can serve as a biomarker for prediction of prognosis. [BMB Reports 2015; 48(8): 427-428]

• BMB Reports
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• v.48 no.11
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• pp.609-617
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• 2015

NAD(P)H:quinone oxidoreductase (NQO1), an obligatory two-electron reductase, is a ubiquitous cytosolic enzyme that catalyzes the reduction of quinone substrates. The NQO1- mediated two-electron reduction of quinones can be either chemoprotection/detoxification or a chemotherapeutic response, depending on the target quinones. When toxic quinones are reduced by NQO1, they are conjugated with glutathione or glucuronic acid and excreted from the cells. Based on this protective effect of NQO1, the use of dietary compounds to induce the expression of NQO1 has emerged as a promising strategy for cancer prevention. On the other hand, NQO1-mediated two-electron reduction converts certain quinone compounds (such as mitomycin C, E09, RH1 and β-lapachone) to cytotoxic agents, leading to cell death. It has been known that NQO1 is expressed at high levels in numerous human cancers, including breast, colon, cervix, lung, and pancreas, as compared with normal tissues. This implies that tumors can be preferentially damaged relative to normal tissue by cytotoxic quinone drugs. Importantly, NQO1 has been shown to stabilize many proteins, including p53 and p33ING1b, by inhibiting their proteasomal degradation. This review will summarize the biological roles of NQO1 in cancer, with emphasis on recent findings and the potential of NQO1 as a therapeutic target for the cancer therapy.

• BMB Reports
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• v.51 no.2
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• pp.59-64
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• 2018

The airway epithelium is the first place, where a defense mechanism is initiated against environmental stimuli. Mucociliary transport (MCT), which is the defense mechanism of the airway and the role of airway epithelium as mechanical barriers are essential in innate immunity. To maintain normal physiologic function, normal oxygenation is critical for the production of energy for optimal cellular functions. Several pathologic conditions are associated with a decrease in oxygen tension in airway epithelium and chronic sinusitis is one of the airway diseases, which is associated with the hypoxic condition, a potent inflammatory stimulant. We have observed the overexpression of the hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1), an essential factor for oxygen homeostasis, in the epithelium of sinus mucosa in sinusitis patients. In a series of previous reports, we have found hypoxia-induced mucus hyperproduction, especially by MUC5AC hyperproduction, disruption of epithelial barrier function by the production of VEGF, and down-regulation of junctional proteins such as ZO-1 and E-cadherin. Furthermore, hypoxia-induced inflammation by HMGB1 translocation into the cytoplasm results in the release of IL-8 through a ROS-dependent mechanism in upper airway epithelium. In this mini-review, we briefly introduce and summarize current progress in the pathogenesis of sinusitis related to hypoxia. The investigation of hypoxia-related pathophysiology in airway epithelium will suggest new insights on airway inflammatory diseases, such as rhinosinusitis for clinical application and drug development.

• Transactions of the Korean Society for Noise and Vibration Engineering
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• v.18 no.6
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• pp.598-605
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• 2008

An improved beamforming method is proposed to measure the surface impedance of absorbing materials in a free field. It is possible to estimate the surface impedance by decomposing measured signals into incident and reflected signals by using the spatial filter matrix of the beamforming method. Wavelet do-noising techniques which reduce the white Gaussian noise are applied to improve the results. Phase calibration method is also used to improve the results of the measured surface impedance in a low frequency range. The results of the normal incidence experiments that are performed in a semi-anechoic chamber are verified by comparing with those of the standard test method that is presented in ASTM E1050. The proposed method is found to be reliable to measure the surface impedance for frequencies higher than 400 Hz.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.1351-1355
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• 2016

Background: Multiple myeloma (MM) is influenced by genetic and micro-environmental changes. Malignant plasma cells produce an abnormal monoclonal immunoglobulin, as well as cytokines, such as IL-10 and IL-6 which stimulate cells of the bone marrow microenvironment (BMM) and cause dysfunction and failure of many organs. B cell activating factor (BAFF), IL6 and IL10 are known to influence the growth and survival of malignant clones. Aim: The objectives of the present study were to investigate the circulating levels of BAFF, IL-10 and IL-6, correlate them with well-known parameters of disease activity in patients with MM, and to detect their impact on patients' survival. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted on 89 newly diagnosed MM patients and seventy apparently healthy volunteers as a normal control group. BAFF, IL6, IL10 were measured by ELISA for both groups and survival analysis was performed for all patients. Results: Studied markers were higher in the MM patients compared to the normal control subjects. Patients survival was improved by high serum BAFF levels. Conclusions: High levels of BAFF were found to improve patients' survival. BAFF and IL-6 can be considered probable diagnostic markers for MM.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.53-72
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• 2001

Dry skin is caused mainly by the perturbation of stratum corneum lipids which affected by ageing, change of season, excess use of surfactant and the effect of disease like atopic dermatitis and psoriasis. Intercellular lipid structures in stratum corneum are responsible for the barrier function of mammalian skin. The major lipd classes that can be extracted from stratum corneum are ceramides, cholesterol and fatty acid, which make up approximately 50, 25, 10 percent of the stratum corneum lipid mass, respectively. Small amount of cholesterol sulfate, phospholipids, glycosylceramide and cholesterol esters are also present. Recent studies have shown that application of one or two these lipids to the perturbed skin delays barrier recovery; only equimolar mixtures allow normal recovery. We observed that barrier recovery rate was improved in hairless mouse by topical application of single neutral lipids (ceramide, free fatty acid, cholesterol) and lipid mixtures. Whereas the application of single lipid didn’t allows a significant enhancement comparing with normal barrier repair, the equimolar mixtures of 3 components(including synthetic pseudoceramide PC104) improved barrier repair, as assessed by the transepidermal water loss. At clinical study to the volunteers aged over sixty, skin dryness recuperated by the increase of moisture(capacitance) and the reduction of scaling. Utilization of physiologic lipid mixture containing natural ceramides or synthetic pseudoceramide could lead to new forms of topical therapy for the dryness and dermatoses(e.g., psoriasis, atopic dermatitis and irritant dermatitis).