• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.51 no.3
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• pp.363-367
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• 2013

The prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii infection in birds has epidemiological significance because birds are indeed considered as a good indicator of environmental contamination by T. gondii oocysts. In this study, the prevalence of T. gondii in 313 house sparrows in Lanzhou, northwestern China was assayed by the modified agglutination test (MAT). Antibodies to T. gondii were positive in 39 (12.46%) of 313 samples (MAT titer ${\geq}$ 1:5). Tissues of heart, brain, and lung from the 39 seropositive house sparrows were tested for T. gondii DNA, 11 of which were found to be positive for the T. gondii B1 gene by PCR amplification. These positive DNA samples were typed at 9 genetic markers, including 8 nuclear loci, i.e., SAG1, 5'- and 3'-SAG2, alternative SAG2, SAG3, GRA6, L358, PK1, c22-8 and an apicoplast locus Apico. Of them, 4 isolates were genotyped with complete data for all loci, and 2 genotypes (Type II variants; ToxoDB #3 and a new genotype) were identified. These results showed that there is a potential risk for human infection with T. gondii in this region. To our knowledge, this is the first report of T. gondii seroprevalence in house sparrows in China.

• Restorative Dentistry and Endodontics
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.9-18
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• 2017

Objectives: This study evaluated color differences (${\Delta}Es$) and translucency parameter changes (${\Delta}TPs$) of various computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) blocks after immersion in coffee. Materials and Methods: Eight CAD/CAM blocks and four restorative composite resins were evaluated. The CIE $L^{\ast}a^{\ast}b^{\ast}$ values of 2.0 mm thick disk-shaped specimens were measured using the spectrophotometer on white and black backgrounds (n = 6). The ${\Delta}Es$ and ${\Delta}TPs$ of one day, one week, and one month immersion in coffee or water were calculated. The values of each material were analyzed by two-way ANOVA and Tukey's multiple comparisons (${\alpha}=0.05$). The ${\Delta}Es$ after prophylaxis paste polishing of 1 month coffee immersion specimens, water sorption and solubility were also evaluated. Results: After one month in coffee, ${\Delta}Es$ of CAD/CAM composite resin blocks and restorative composites ranged from 1.6 to 3.7 and from 2.1 to 7.9, respectively, and ${\Delta}TPs$ decreased. The ANOVA of ${\Delta}Es$ and ${\Delta}TPs$ revealed significant differences in two main factors, immersion periods and media, and their interaction except for ${\Delta}Es$ of TEL (Telio CAD, Ivoclar Vivadent). The ${\Delta}Es$ significantly decreased after prophylaxis polishing except GRA (Gradia Block, GC). There was no significant correlation between ${\Delta}Es$ and water sorption or solubility in water. Conclusions: The ${\Delta}Es$ of CAD/CAM blocks after immersion in coffee varied among products and were comparable to those of restorative composite resins. The discoloration of CAD/CAM composite resin blocks could be effectively removed with prophylaxis paste polishing, while that of some restorative composites could not be removed.

• Journal of Korean Society of Industrial and Systems Engineering
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.199-208
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• 2023

Taguchi method is one of the most popular approaches for design optimization such that performance characteristics become robust to uncontrollable noise variables. However, most previous Taguchi method applications have addressed a single-characteristic problem. Problems with multiple characteristics are more common in practice. The multi-criteria decision making(MCDM) problem is to select the optimal one among multiple alternatives by integrating a number of criteria that may conflict with each other. Representative MCDM methods include TOPSIS(Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution), GRA(Grey Relational Analysis), PCA(Principal Component Analysis), fuzzy logic system, and so on. Therefore, numerous approaches have been conducted to deal with the multi-characteristic design problem by combining original Taguchi method and MCDM methods. In the MCDM problem, multiple criteria generally have different measurement units, which means that there may be a large difference in the physical value of the criteria and ultimately makes it difficult to integrate the measurements for the criteria. Therefore, the normalization technique is usually utilized to convert different units of criteria into one identical unit. There are four normalization techniques commonly used in MCDM problems, including vector normalization, linear scale transformation(max-min, max, or sum). However, the normalization techniques have several shortcomings and do not adequately incorporate the practical matters. For example, if certain alternative has maximum value of data for certain criterion, this alternative is considered as the solution in original process. However, if the maximum value of data does not satisfy the required degree of fulfillment of designer or customer, the alternative may not be considered as the solution. To solve this problem, this paper employs the desirability function that has been proposed in our previous research. The desirability function uses upper limit and lower limit in normalization process. The threshold points for establishing upper or lower limits let us know what degree of fulfillment of designer or customer is. This paper proposes a new design optimization technique for multi-characteristic design problem by integrating the Taguchi method and our desirability functions. Finally, the proposed technique is able to obtain the optimal solution that is robust to multi-characteristic performances.