• Reproductive and Developmental Biology
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• 제33권3호
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• pp.157-162
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• 2009

This study was performed to comprehend the developmental characteristics of cloned embryos knocked out (KO) of $\alpha$-1,3-galactosyltransferase (GalT) gene. Immature oocytes were collected and cultured for 40 hrs (1-step) or 20hrs (with hormone) + 20hrs (without hormone) (2-step). The embryos transferred with miniature pig ear fibroblast cell were used as control. The reconstructed embryos were cultured in PZM-3 with 5% $CO_2$ in air at $38.5^{\circ}C$ for 6 days. To determine the quality of the blstocysts, TUNEL and quantitative realtime RT-PCR were performed. The embryos were transferred to a surrogate (Landrace) at an earlier stage of the estrus cycle. The maturation rate was significantly higher in 2-step method than that of 1-step (p<0.05). The blastocyst development of GalT KO embryos was significantly lower than that of normal cloned embryos (p<0.05). The total and apoptotic cell number of GalT KO blastocysts was not different statistically from control. The relative abundance of Bax-$\alpha$/Bcl-xl ratio was significantly higher in both cloned blastocysts than that of in vivo blastocysts (p<0.05). Taken together, it can be postulated that the lower developmental potential and higher expression of apoptosis related genes in GalT KO SCNT embryos might be a cause of a low efficiency of GalT KO cloned miniature pig production.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• 제27권6호
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• pp.553-561
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• 2019

Rab25, a member of the Rab11 small GTPase family, is central to achieving cellular polarity in epithelial tissues. Rab25 is highly expressed in epithelial cells of various tissues including breast, vagina, cervix, the gastrointestinal tract, and skin. Rab25 plays key roles in tumorigenesis, mainly by regulating epithelial differentiation and proliferation. However, its role in skin physiology is relatively unknown. In this study, we demonstrated that Rab25 knock-out (KO) mice show a skin barrier dysfunction with high trans-epidermal water loss and low cutaneous hydration. To examine this observation, we investigated the histology and epidermal differentiation markers of the skin in Rab25 KO mice. Rab25 KO increased cell proliferation at the basal layer of epidermis, whereas the supra-basal layer remained unaffected. Ceramide, which is a critical lipid component for skin barrier function, was not altered by Rab25 KO in its distribution or amount, as determined by immunohistochemistry. Notably, levels of epidermal differentiation markers, including loricrin, involucrin, and keratins (5, 14, 1, and 10) increased prominently in Rab25 KO mice. In line with this, depletion of Rab25 with single hairpin RNA increased the expression of differentiation markers in a human keratinocyte cell line, HaCaT. Transcriptomic analysis of the skin revealed increased expression of genes associated with skin development, epidermal development, and keratinocyte differentiation in Rab25 KO mice. Collectively, these results suggested that Rab25 is involved in the regulation of epidermal differentiation and proliferation.

• BMB Reports
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• 제55권8호
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• pp.401-406
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• 2022

Ahnak, a large protein first identified as an inhibitor of TGF-β signaling in human neuroblastoma, was recently shown to promote TGF-β in some cancers. The TGF-β signaling pathway regulates cell growth, various biological functions, and cancer growth and metastasis. In this study, we used Ahnak knockout (KO) mice that underwent a 70% partial hepatectomy (PH) to investigate the function of Ahnak in TGF-β signaling during liver regeneration. At the indicated time points after PH, we analyzed the mRNA and protein expression of the TGF -β/Smad signaling pathway and cell cycle-related factors, evaluated the cell cycle through proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) immunostaining, analyzed the mitotic index by hematoxylin and eosin staining. We also measured the ratio of liver tissue weight to body weight. Activation of TGF-β signaling was confirmed by analyzing the levels of phospho-Smad 2 and 3 in the liver at the indicated time points after PH and was lower in Ahnak KO mice than in WT mice. The expression levels of cyclin B1, D1, and E1; proteins in the Rb/E2F transcriptional pathway, which regulates the cell cycle; and the numbers of PCNA-positive cells were increased in Ahnak KO mice and showed tendencies opposite that of TGF-β expression. During postoperative regeneration, the liver weight to body weight ratio tended to increase faster in Ahnak KO mice. However, 7 days after PH, both groups of mice showed similar rates of regeneration, following which their active regeneration stopped. Analysis of hepatocytes undergoing mitosis showed that there were more mitotic cells in Ahnak KO mice, consistent with the weight ratio. Our findings suggest that Ahnak enhances TGF-β signaling during postoperative liver regeneration, resulting in cell cycle disruption; this highlights a novel role of Ahnak in liver regeneration. These results provide new insight into liver regeneration and potential treatment targets for liver diseases that require surgical treatment.

• 응용통계연구
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• 제35권5호
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• pp.657-666
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• 2022

정보적 설명 변수 공간은 일반적인 충분차원축소 방법들이 요구하는 가정들이 만족하지 않을 때 중심부분공간을 추정하기 위해 유용하다. 최근 Ko와 Yoo (2022)는 다변량 회귀에서 Li 등 (2008)이 제시한 투영-재표본 방법론을 사용하여 정보적 설명 변수 공간이 아닌 투영-재표본 정보적 설명 변수 공간을 새로이 정의하였다. 이 공간은 기존의 정보적 설명 변수 공간에 포함되지만 중심 부분 공간을 포함한다. 본 논문에서는 다변량 회귀에서 정보적 설명 변수 공간을 직접적으로 추정할 수 있는 방법을 제안하고, 이를 Ko와 Yoo (2022)가 제시한 방법과 이론적으로 그리고 모의실험을 통해 비교하고자 한다. 모의실험에 따르면 Ko-Yoo 방법론이 본 논문에서 제시한 추정 방법보다 더 정확하게 중심 부분 공간을 추정하고, 추정값들의 변동이 적다는 측면에서 보다 더 효율적임을 알 수 있다.

• 한국정보과학회 언어공학연구회:학술대회논문집(한글 및 한국어 정보처리)
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• 한국정보과학회언어공학연구회 2021년도 제33회 한글 및 한국어 정보처리 학술대회
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• pp.457-460
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• 2021

대화 시스템은 인공지능과 사람이 자연어로 의사 소통을 하는 시스템으로 크게 목적 지향 대화와 일상대화 시스템으로 연구되고 있다. 목적 지향 대화 시스템의 경우 날씨 확인, 호텔 및 항공권 예약, 일정 관리 등의 사용자가 생활에 필요한 도메인들로 이루어져 있으며 각 도메인 별로 목적에 따른 시나리오들이 존재한다. 이러한 대화는 사용자에게 명확한 발화을 제공할 수 있으나 자연스러움은 떨어진다. 일상 대화의 경우 다양한 도메인이 존재하며, 시나리오가 존재하지 않기 때문에 사용자에게 자연스러운 발화를 제공할 수 있다. 또한 일상 대화의 경우 검색 기반이나 생성 기반으로 시스템이 개발되고 있다. 검색 기반의 경우 발화 쌍에 대한 데이터베이스가 필요하지만, 생성 기반의 경우 이러한 데이터베이스가 없이 모델의 Language Modeling (LM)으로 부터 생성된 발화에 의존한다. 따라서 모델의 성능에 따라 발화의 품질이 달라진다. 최근에는 사전학습 모델이 자연어처리 작업에서 높은 성능을 보이고 있으며, 일상 대화 도메인에서도 역시 높은 성능을 보이고 있다. 일상 대화에서 가장 높은 성능을 보이고 있는 사전학습 모델은 Auto Regressive 기반 생성모델이고, 한국어에서는 대표적으로 KoGPT2가 존재한다. 그러나, KoGPT2의 경우 문어체 데이터만 학습되어 있기 때문에 대화체에서는 낮은 성능을 보이고 있다. 본 논문에서는 대화체에서 높은 성능을 보이는 한국어 기반 KoDialoGPT2를 개발하였고, 기존의 KoGPT2보다 높은 성능을 보였다.

• International Journal of Stem Cells
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• 제16권1호
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• pp.44-51
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• 2023

Background and Objectives: DNA methyltransferases (Dnmts) play an important role in regulating DNA methylation during early developmental processes and cellular differentiation. In this study, we aimed to investigate the role of Dnmts in neural differentiation of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and in maintenance of the resulting neural stem cells (NSCs). Methods and Results: We used three types of Dnmt knockout (KO) ESCs, including Dnmt1 KO, Dnmt3a/3b double KO (Dnmt3 DKO), and Dnmt1/3a/3b triple KO (Dnmt TKO), to investigate the role of Dnmts in neural differentiation of ESCs. All three types of Dnmt KO ESCs could form neural rosette and differentiate into NSCs in vitro. Interestingly, however, after passage three, Dnmt KO ESC-derived NSCs could not maintain their self-renewal and differentiated into neurons and glial cells. Conclusions: Taken together, the data suggested that, although deficiency of Dnmts had no effect on the differentiation of ESCs into NSCs, the latter had defective maintenance, thereby indicating that Dnmts are crucial for self-renewal of NSCs.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• 제18권2호
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• pp.194-209
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• 2024

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: High levels of plasma low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol are an important determinant of atherosclerotic lesion formation. The disruption of cholesterol efflux or reverse cholesterol transport (RCT) in peripheral tissues and macrophages may promote atherogenesis. The aim of the current study was to examine whether bioactive ellagic acid, a functional food component, improved RCT functionality and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) function in diet-induced atherogenesis of apolipoproteins E (apoE) knockout (KO) mice. MATERIALS/METHODS: Wild type mice and apoE KO mice were fed a high-cholesterol Paigen diet for 10 weeks to induce hypercholesterolemia and atherosclerosis, and concomitantly received 10 mg/kg ellagic acid via gavage. RESULTS: Supplying ellagic acid enhanced induction of apoE and ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter G1 in oxidized LDL-exposed macrophages, facilitating cholesterol efflux associated with RCT. Oral administration of ellagic acid to apoE KO mice fed on Paigen diet improved hypercholesterolemia with reduced atherogenic index. This compound enhanced the expression of ABC transporters in peritoneal macrophages isolated from apoE KO mice fed on Paigen diet, indicating increased cholesterol efflux. Plasma levels of cholesterol ester transport protein and phospholipid transport protein involved in RCT were elevated in mice lack of apoE gene, which was substantially reduced by supplementing ellagic acid to Paigen diet-fed mice. In addition, ellagic acid attenuated hepatic lipid accumulation in apoE KO mice, evidenced by staining of hematoxylin and eosin and oil red O. Furthermore, the supplementation of 10 mg/kg ellagic acid favorably influenced the transcriptional levels of hepatic LDL receptor and scavenger receptor-B1 in Paigen diet-fed apoE KO mice. CONCLUSION: Ellagic acid may be an athero-protective dietary compound encumbering diet-induced atherogenesis though improving the RCT functionality.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• 제66권
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• pp.359-368
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• 2023

This study aims to explore the impact of Krill Oil (KO, Superba^TM Boost) on skin moisturization regulation. The research involved five groups: an intact control, a reference group (L-AA 100 mg/kg), and KO groups (400, 200, and 100 mg/kg), each comprising ten mice. Oral administration was conducted for 8 weeks (56 days), during which changes in body weight, hyaluronan, collagen type 1 (COL1), transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), ceramide, and water contents were analyzed in dorsal back skin tissue. Real-time PCR was employed to assess gene expression related to hyaluronic acid synthesis (HAS1, HAS2, HAS3), COL1 synthesis (COL1A1 and COL1A2), and TGF-β1. Results demonstrated that KO administration significantly increased hyaluronan content, hyaluronic acid synthesis (HAS1, HAS2, HAS3), COL1 content, COL1 synthesis (COL1A1 and COL1A2), TGF-β1 content, TGF-β1 mRNA expression, ceramide content, and water content in a concentration-dependent manner compared to the intact control. Importantly, no discernible disparities were noted between the KO and L-AA groups, even though they received equivalent oral dosages. This study accentuates the potential utility of exogenous KO in the regulation of skin moisture, thus positioning it as a promising avenue for the development of nutricosmetics. Future research endeavors should delve into the role of KO in safeguarding against both intrinsic and extrinsic aging-related skin manifestations, as well as its potential to ameliorate skin wrinkles, in conjunction with its moisturizing attributes.

• 한국문헌정보학회지
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• 제58권2호
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• pp.269-288
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• 2024

KOS 레지스트리를 구조화하기 위해서는 수집된 KOS의 특성에 맞는 분류체계를 선정해야 한다. 이 연구에서는 다양한 분류체계를 적용하여 수집된 국내 KOS 를 분류하고, 그 결과를 바탕으로 KOS 레지스트리의 구조화를 위한 분류체계를 선정할 때 고려해야 할 시사점을 제공하고자 했다. 웹탐색을 통해 수집된 313개의 KOS 데이터를 대상으로 총 5종의 분류체계와 시소러스를 적용하여 분류하고 그 결과를 분석했다. 분석 결과, KOS 레지스트리의 국제적 연계를 위해서는 국외 분류체계를 적용하고, 국내 지식자원과 연계하거나 국내 연구자들에게 최적화하기 위해서는 국내 분류체계를 적용할 필요가 있었다. 그리고 KOS의 분야별 특성에 따라 연구 분야 KOS는 학문 분야를 기반으로 하는 분류체계를 적용하고, 공공 분야 KOS는 정부 업무기능을 기반으로 하는 분류체계를 적용하는 것을 검토할 필요가 있었다. 마지막으로 국내 KOS와 국제 KOS와의 연계를 강화할 필요가 있었고, 이를 위해서 복수의 분류체계를 적용할 필요가 있었다.

• 한국전문물리치료학회지
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• 제31권2호
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• pp.174-181
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• 2024

Background: Effective management of clinical assessment tools is critical in stroke and brain injury rehabilitation research. Managing rehabilitation outcome measures (ROMs) scores and training therapists in multicenter randomized clinical trials (RCTs) is challenging. Objects: The aim of this study was to develop a web-based platform, the Korean Rehabilitation Outcome Measurement (KoROM), to address these limitations and improve both therapist training and patient involvement in the rehabilitation process. Methods: The development of the KoROM spanned from June 2021 to July 2022, and included literature and web-based searches to identify relevant ROMs and design a user-friendly platform. Feedback from six physical therapy and informatics experts during pilot testing refined the platform. Results: Several clinical assessment tools categorized under the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF) model are categorized in the KoROM. The therapist version includes patient management, assessment tool information, and data downloads, while the patient version provides a simplified interface for viewing scores and printing summaries. The master version provides full access to user information and clinical assessment scores. Therapists enter clinical assessment scores into the KoROM and learn ROMs through instructional videos and self-checklists as part of the therapist standardization process. Conclusion: The KoROM is a specialized online platform that improves the management of ROMs, facilitates therapist education, and promotes patient involvement in the rehabilitation process. The KoROM can be used not only in multi-site RCTs, but also in community rehabilitation exercise centers.