• Korean Journal of Acupuncture
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.1-15
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• 2011

Objectives : The purpose of this study is to evaluate the feasibility of massive clinical research and to make a basic analysis on the effectiveness and safety of moxibustion treatment on knee osteoarthritis compared to usual care. Methods and Results : This study is a protocol for a pilot randomized controlled trial. Forty participants are assigned to the moxibustion group (n=20) and usual care group (n=20). Participants assigned to the moxibustion group receive moxibustion treatment on the affected knee(s) at six standard acupuncture points (ST36, ST35, ST34, SP9, Ex-LE04 and SP10) three times per week for four weeks (total of 12 sessions). Participants in the usual care group don't receive moxibustion treatment during the study period and follow-up are made on the 5th, 9th and 13th weeks after random allocation. Both groups are allowed to use any kind of treatment, including surgery, conventional medication, physical treatment, acupuncture, herbal medicine, over-the-counter drugs and other active treatments. Education material that explains knee osteoarthritis and current management options and self-exercise is provided for each group. The pain scale of the Korean Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Questionnaire (K-WOMAC) is the primary outcome measurement used in this study. Other subscales of the K-WOMAC, the Short-Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Physical Function test, Patient Global Assessment, and Pain Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) are used as outcome variables to evaluate the effectiveness of acupuncture. Safety is assessed at every visit. Conclusions : The result of this trial will provide a basis for the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture treatment for knee osteoarthritis.

• Fire Science and Engineering
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.95-104
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• 2018

The 119 emergency medical services(EMS) personnel studied in this research are constantly exposed to traumatic events, which can lead to a variety of psychosocial problems and poor quality of life. In this study, we examined the effects of the Mind Subtraction Meditation Program on post-traumatic growth and resilience of 119 EMS personnel. In this study, we measured the conditions of 26 EMS personnel of A firefighting headquarters based on post-traumatic growth and resilience before and after implementing the short-term intensive for 2 nights and 3 days in $201^*$. The results showed that there was a significant increase in post-traumatic growth from $2.85({\pm}.67)$ to $3.60({\pm}.72)$ and resilience from $2.45({\pm}.39)$ to $2.83({\pm}.48)$ of the subjects between before and after the Mind Subtraction Meditation. In conclusion, the Mind Subtraction Meditation Program was effective in improving the posttraumatic growth and resilience of 119 EMS personnel. Therefore, Mind Subtraction Meditation Program could be proposed as a mental health promotion program for EMS personnel.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.260-268
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• 2016

Background: During the aging process, skin shows visible changes, characterized by a loss of elasticity and the appearance of wrinkles due to reduced collagen production and decreased elasticity of elastin fibers. Panax ginseng Meyer has been used as a traditional medicine for various diseases due to its wide range of biological activities including skin protective effects. Ginsenosides are the main components responsible for the biological activities of ginseng. However, the protective activities of an enzymatic preparation of red ginseng against human skin aging have not been investigated. Methods: The efficacy of an enzyme-treated powder complex of red ginseng (BG11001) in preventing human skin aging was evaluated by oral administration to 78 randomized individuals. All patients were requested to take three daily capsules containing either 750 mg of BG11001 or a placebo vehicle for 24 wk; at the end of the testing period, skin roughness, elasticity, and skin water content were measured. Results: BG11001 significantly reduced the average roughness of eye wrinkles and the Global Photo Damage Score compared with the placebo, although there were no significant differences in arithmetic roughness average between the groups. In addition, gross elasticity and net elasticity values increased, and transepidermal water loss level decreased, indicating improved skin elasticity and moisture content. Conclusion: In conclusion, enzyme-treated red ginseng extract significantly improved eye wrinkle roughness, skin elasticity, and moisture content. Moreover, enzyme-treated red ginseng extract would be useful substance as a bio-health skin care product.

• 한국균학회소식:학술대회논문집
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• 2014.10a
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• pp.11-11
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• 2014

Fungal pathogens have huge impact on health and economic wellbeing of human by causing life-threatening mycoses in immune-compromised patients or by destroying crop plants. A key determinant of fungal pathogenesis is their ability to undergo developmental change in response to host or environmental factors. Genetic pathways that regulate such morphological transitions and adaptation are therefore extensively studied during the last few decades. Given that epigenetic as well as genetic components play pivotal roles in development of plants and mammals, contribution of microbial epigenetic counterparts to this morphogenetic process is intriguing yet nearly unappreciated question to date. To bridge this gap in our knowledge, we set out to investigate histone modifications among epigenetic mechanisms that possibly regulate fungal adaptation and processes involved in pathogenesis of a model plant pathogenic fungus, Magnaporthe oryzae. M. oryzae is a causal agent of rice blast disease, which destroys 10 to 30% of the rice crop annually. Since the rice is the staple food for more than half of human population, the disease is a major threat to global food security. In addition to the socioeconomic impact of the disease it causes, the fungus is genetically tractable and can undergo well-defined morphological transitions including asexual spore production and appressorium (a specialized infection structure) formation in vitro, making it a model to study fungal development and pathogenicity. For functional and comparative analysis of histone modifications, a web-based database (dbHiMo) was constructed to archive and analyze histone modifying enzymes from eukaryotic species whose genome sequences are available. Histone modifying enzymes were identified applying a search pipeline built upon profile hidden Markov model (HMM) to proteomes. The database incorporates 22,169 histone-modifying enzymes identified from 342 species including 214 fungal, 33 plants, and 77 metazoan species. The dbHiMo provides users with web-based personalized data browsing and analysis tools, supporting comparative and evolutionary genomics. Based on the database entries, functional analysis of genes encoding histone acetyltransferases and histone demethylases is under way. Here I provide examples of such analyses that show how histone acetylation and methylation is implicated in regulating important aspects of fungal pathogenesis. Current analysis of histone modifying enzymes will be followed by ChIP-Seq and RNA-seq experiments to pinpoint the genes that are controlled by particular histone modifications. We anticipate that our work will provide not only the significant advances in our understanding of epigenetic mechanisms operating in microbial eukaryotes but also basis to expand our perspective on regulation of development in fungal pathogens.

• Journal of Korean Ophthalmic Optics Society
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.419-427
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• 2014

Purpose: We propose an effective marketing strategy for eyeglasses stores on the basis of surveys about the relationships between customers' social values, customer satisfaction and selecting glasses store. Methods: All 245 surveys were conducted about customers had visited the eyeglasses store located in Seoul and Northern Gyeonggi-do regions from January 1 to June 30, 2014, and it were analyzed by SPSS v.20.0 statistical package program. Results: The order of customers' social values factors which have an influence on 'Selecting Store' is "Society oriented", "Ability oriented", "Freedom oriented" and "Happiness oriented". Also, the order of customers' social values factors which have an influence on satisfaction is "Society oriented", "Ability oriented". In addition, Customer Satisfaction is affected by Service, one of the factor of 'Selecting Store' factors. Conclusions: Each type of marketing activities should be conducted for customers by their various values. The best plan to elicit good reactions from customers is meeting them through "Society-oriented" factors. Meeting with customers through the "Ability-oriented" factors is second only to the best option. It is shown that the method to increase the satisfaction for customers' return visit is to manage 'Service factors' well.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.1007-1021
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• 2018

Cancer represents one of the most significant threats to human health on a global scale. Hence, the development of effective cancer prevention strategies, as well as the discovery of novel therapeutic agents against cancer, is urgently required. In light of this challenge, this research aimed to evaluate the effects of several potent bioactive peptides and proteins contained in crocodile white blood cell extract (cWBC) against LU-1, LNCaP, PC-3, MCF-7, and CaCo-2 cancer cell lines. The results demonstrate that 25, 50, 100, and $200{\mu}g/ml$ cWBC exhibits a strong cytotoxic effect against all investigated cell lines ($IC_{50}$ $70.34-101.0{\mu}g/ml$), while showing no signs of cytotoxicity towards noncancerous Vero and HaCaT cells. Specifically, cWBC treatment caused a significant reduction in the cancerous cells' colony forming ability. A remarkable suppression of cancerous cell migration was observed after treatment with cWBC, indicating potent antimetastatic properties. The mechanism involved in the cancer cell cytotoxicity of cWBC may be related to apoptosis induction, as evidenced by typical apoptotic morphology features. Moreover, certain cWBC concentrations induced significant overproduction of ROS and significantly inhibited the $S-G_2/M$ transition in the cancer cell. The molecular mechanisms of cWBC in apoptosis induction were to decrease Bcl-2 and XIAP expression levels and increase the expression levels of caspase-3, caspase-8, and p53. These led to a decrease in the expression level of the cell cycle-associated gene cyclin-B1 and the arrest of cell population growth. Consequently, these findings demonstrate the prospect of the use of cWBC for cancer therapy.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.31 no.10
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• pp.933-940
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• 2009

To evaluate characteristics in spray flame, laminar counterflow is investigated on the effects of equivalence ratio and fuel by a two-dimensional DNS (direct numerical simulation). For the gaseous phase, Eulerian mass, momentum, energy, and species conservation equations are solved. For the disperse phase, all individual droplets are calculated by the Lagrangian method without the parcel model. n-Decane ($C_{10}H_{22}$) and n-heptane ($C_7H_{16}$) is used as a liquid spray fuel, and a one-step global reaction is employed for the combustion reaction model. As equivalence ratio increases, the fuel ignites early and the high temperature region spreads wider. The peak value of temperature, however, tends to once increase and then decreases with increasing equivalence ratio. The decrease in the peak value of temperature for the higher equivalence ratio condition is caused by the cooling effect associated with droplet group combustion. Since the evaporation of n-heptane is early, the high temperature region spreads wider than ndecane, but the peak values of temperature for both n-heptane and n-decane is almost same.

• Journal of Agricultural Extension & Community Development
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.363-384
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• 2009

This study aimed at finding directions for Korean agriculture to establish a new paradigm of sustainable development. Various problematic issues and concerns in the environment necessitate the transformation of Korea's development paradigm from unconditional growth to "Green Growth" through new policies on green value and review of various advanced researches. In this research, the environment-friendly agriculture's problems, particularly in agribusiness were analyzed. Drawing from Michael Porter's Value Chain Analysis, this research developed a value chain model in agriculture that reflects the environment and the present situations. Future directions in the agriculture sector were also discussed. Korea realized food self-sufficiency through the green revolution in the early 1970s. However, a lot of problems have also occurred, including ground and water pollution and the destruction of ecosystems as a result of the overuse of pesticides and chemical fertilizers. In the late 1970s, the growing interest on environment-friendly agriculture led to the introduction of sustainable methods and techniques. Unfortunately however, these were not innovative enough to foster environment-friendly agriculture. Thereafter, the consumers' distrust on agricultural products has worsened and concerns about health have increased. In view of this, the Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries introduced in December 1993 a system of Quality-Certified Products for organic and pesticide-free agri-foods. Although a fundamental step toward the sustainability of the global environment, this system was not enough to promote environment-friendly agriculture. In 2008, Korea's vision is for "Low Carbon Green Growth" to move forward while also coping with climate change. But primary sectors in a typical value chain do not consider the green value of their operations nor look at production from an environmental perspective. In order to attain sustainable development, there is a need to use less resources and energy than what is presently used in Korean agricultural and value production. The typical value chain should be transformed into a "closed-loop" such that the beginning and the end of the chain are linked together. Such structure allows the flow of materials, products and even wastes among participants in the chain in a sustained cycle. This may result in a zero-waste sustainable production without destroying the ecosystem.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.313-318
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• 2016

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the clinical utility of the Korean Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition (K-WISC-IV) and General Ability Index (GAI) in children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Methods: The GAI and Full Scale IQ (FSIQ) in K-WISC-IV were compared for a group of 79 children with ADHD and 234 normal children. The mean differences within each group were testified by the t-test and Cohen's d. The Wechsler's descriptive classifications for each GAI and FSIQ score were analyzed in the children with ADHD. Additionally, the critical value for the difference between the means of the FSIQ and GAI was calculated in the normal children. Results: The score on the GAI was higher than that on the FSIQ in the children with ADHD, with a mean difference of 2.19 points. The implications of these findings are discussed regarding the cognitive characteristics of the children with ADHD. According to Wechsler's descriptive classification, the application of the GAI showed a lower (7.59%), equal (61.65%) or higher (60.76%) prevalence of ADHD compared to the application of FSIQ. Conclusion: The implications of these findings are discussed regarding the cognitive characteristics of the children with ADHD. The GAI reflecting the attention and behavioral problems in children with ADHD could be utilized as an alternative global intelligence estimate that considers their potential for development.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.72 no.1
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• pp.44-49
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• 2012

Background: Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) is an increasing public health problem and poses a serious threat to global TB control. Fluoroquinolone (FQ) and aminoglycoside (AG) are essential anti-TB drugs for MDR-TB treatment. REBA MTB-FQ$^{(R)}$ and REBA MTB-KM$^{(R)}$ (M&D, Wonju, Korea) were evaluated for rapid detection of FQ and kanamycin (KM) resistance in MDR-TB clinical isolates. Methods: M. tuberculosis (n=67) were isolated and cultured from the sputum samples of MDR-TB patients for extracting DNA of the bacilli. Mutations in genes, gyrA and rrs, that have been known to be associated with resistance to FQ and KM were analyzed using both REBA MTB-FQ$^{(R)}$ and REBA MTB-KM$^{(R)}$, respectively. The isolates were also utilized for a conventional phenotypic drug susceptibility test (DST) as the gold standard of FQ and KM resistance. The molecular and phenotypic DST results were compared. Results: Sensitivity and specificity of REBA MTB-FQ$^{(R)}$ were 77 and 100%, respectively. Positive predictive value and negative predictive value of the assay were 100 and 95%, respectively, for FQ resistance. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value of REBA MTB-KM$^{(R)}$ for detecting KM resistance were 66%, 94%, 70%, and 95%, respectively. Conclusion: REBA MTB-FQ$^{(R)}$ and REBA MTB-KM$^{(R)}$ evaluated in this study showed excellent specificities as 100 and 94%, respectively. However, sensitivities of the assays were low. It is essential to increase sensitivity of the rapid drug resistance assays for appropriate MDR-TB treatment, suggesting further investigation to detect new or other mutation sites of the associated genes in M. tuberculosis is required.