• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.13-23
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• 2017

Objectives: This study was conducted to evaluate a relationship between the blood concentrations of toxic metals and the blood pressure in people living near the copper smelter. Methods: The study included 570 adults living within 4km of the smelter. We compared systolic and diastolic blood pressure between tertiary groups for blood cadmium, mercury and lead levels, respectively. Multiple regression analysis was performed to identify risk factors affecting systolic and diastolic blood pressures. Results: In male subjects, there is a significant difference in the mean of systolic and diastolic blood pressure between tertiary groups of blood cadmium and mercury levels, but in women, there was no significant difference in the mean systolic and diastolic blood pressures in all tertiary groups of heavy metals. The results of multiple regression analysis showed that age, BMI, and cadmium concentration in men were risk factors for blood pressure. In women, age and BMI, drinking and smoking, and blood mercury were significantly influenced to blood pressure. Conclusions: Residents living near the Janghang smelter showed high concentrations of blood lead and cadmium, suggesting that they were exposed to high concentrations of heavy metals released from the smelter in the past. Such exposure may have caused some blood pressure increase. Especially, the concentration of cadmium in the case of men and the concentration of mercury in blood in the case of women were found to be significantly related to the increase of blood pressure. The local population should be advised to make efforts to reduce exposure to environmental contaminants, in order to minimize cardiovascular disease, and to pay close attention to any health problems possibly related to toxic metal exposure.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.311-317
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• 2019

Background Since the initial Research and Reconstruction Forum (R&R Forum) in 2011, the R&R Forum, Korean Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (KSAPS), and Korean Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons (KSPRS) have held annual meetings. This study was conducted to provide updated information on the publication rate of presentations at those meetings. Methods Plastic surgery-related abstracts presented at the R&R Forum, KSAPS, and KSPRS between 2011 and 2015 were collected. The sessions were divided into free papers, posters, and e-presentations (or e-posters) for each annual meeting. Abstract publication status was confirmed through PubMed, Google Scholar, the KCI-Korean Journal Database, and the KM-base database. Results In total, 2,335 abstracts were presented in the free paper, poster, and e-presentation sessions. Of these, 622 (26.6%) were published. The overall publication rates were 240 of 684 abstracts (35.1%) presented at the R&R Forum, 56 of 216 abstracts (25.9%) presented at the KSAPS meetings, and 326 of 1,435 abstracts (22.7%) presented at the KSPRS meetings. In terms of specific annual meetings, the 2014 R&R Forum had the highest publication rate (39.9%), followed by the 2015 KSAPS (31.0%) and the 2015 KSPRS (28.8%). Conclusions Scientific researchers present diverse results at these professional meetings, with a focus on innovative surgical techniques and improved surgical outcomes. This is our second study on this topic. Despite its limitations, this study indirectly shows that the recognition of Korean plastic surgeons and the quality of the annual meetings of Korean societies of plastic surgery have risen to the global level.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.307-316
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• 2000

Bacillus circulans S-1 extracellular pullulan 6-glucanohydrolase (EP) (EC 3.2.1.41) has been characterized with a purified enzyme of 140 kDa. The N-terminal amino acid sequence of the purified enzyme was P-L-N-M-S-Q-P. The enzyme displayed a temperature optimum of around $60^{\circ}C$ and a pH optimum of around pH 9.0. The enzyme was stable to incubation from pH 4.0 to pH 11.0 at $4^{\circ}C$ for 48h. The presence of substrate allowed the protection of the enzyme from heat inactivation. The activity of the enzyme was stimulated by several metal ions such as Mn2+ and Ca2+. The enzyme had an apparent Km of 7.92 mg/ml for pullulan. The purfied enzyme completely hydrolysed pullulan to maltotriose.

• The Journal of the Korean Society for Microbiology
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.35-53
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• 1987

Multiply resistant Shigella strains isolated in Taegu area were subjected for the characterization of R plasmids. All strains isolated in 1984 and 1985 were susceptible to gentamicin, amikacin, and cephalothin, and most strains were susceptible to kanamycin (Km) and rifampin by agar dilution antimicrobial susceptibility test. The resistance frequency of S. flexneri against ampicillin (Ap) was higher than that of S. sonnei. The strains resistant to sulfisomidine (Su) and trimethoprim (Tp) were found at higher frequency in S. sonnei than in S. flexneri. The most prevalent resistance pattern of S. flexneri was chloramphenicol (Cm) tetracycline (Tc) streptomycin (Sm) Ap, followed by the pattern of CmTcSmSuApTp, CmTcSmSuApTp nalidixic acid, and CmTcSmSuAp in the decreasing order. The antibiogram of CmTcSmSuTp was found to be the most frequent pattern in S. sonnei. The ratio of conjugal transfer of S. flexneri was 47% and 75% of S. sonnei. The average number of plasmid harboring in Shigella was 4 and the size of plasmid ranged 1.3 to 134 megadalton (Mdal). Most S. flexneri carried plasmids of 2 to 3 Mdal and S. sonnei carried those of 3 to 4 Mdal size. The sizes of conjugative plasmids ranged 40-90 Mdal. The incompatibility group (Inc) F II plasmids (54-59 Mdal) were most frequent and rare Inc B plasmids (60 Mdal) of isolates in 1979 and 1980 and Inc FI (87 Mdal) of 1983 isolates were able to be classified by the colony test with standard reference plasmids. The R plasmids of known Inc group were tested for the restriction endonuclease analysis. The pattern of plasmids digested by EcoRl were apparently different by the Inc group but there was no significant difference between species or by the resistance patterns. Nonconjugative plasmids and their phenotypes were identified by transformation test. The transformants were resistant to less than two drugs. Colicin producing transformants carried the Col plasmid of 3.7 or 3.9 Mdal size. $Ap^r$ plasmids derived from S. sonnei were found to be mobilized by transfer factor RT641 to E. coli #CS100. $Ap^r$ plasm ids of same size shared by S. flexneri, S. sonnei, and E. coli were digested with Pstl. All of them showed two restriction fragments of 2.8 kilobase(kb) and 0.7kb. Other plasmids ($Sm^r\;Su^r$) derived from S. flexneri, S. boydii, and S. sonnei were digested with Pstl and they showed same restriction fragment patterns of 3.1kb and 2.9kb. The plasmid profiles of three strains of S. sonnei producing colicin and showing same resistance pattern of CmTcSmSuApTpKm appeared to be similar. Restriction patterns by EcoRl and the behavior of plasmids in conjugation or transformation process were also similar between those plasmids. The restriction patterns were significantly different between the plasmids of Inc FI group and those of unclassified Inc group.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.59-71
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• 1985

During a period from February 1st to November 30th in 1983, measurements were made twice a month on dustfalls and concentrations of various cations ana anions in their filtrates in an urban (Heuksuk-dong, Seoul) and in a rural (Ansung) districts. Standard British Deposit Gauge method was applied for collection of dustfalls and ion chromatographic method using Ion Chromatograph 10 (Dionex, U.S.A.) for determination of cation and anion concentrations. The results obtained were as follows: 1. Annual mean values of dustfalls were $8.30{\pm}5.09tons/km^2/month$ in an urban and $6.20{\pm}0.82tons/km^2/month$ in a rural districts. And annual mean values of pH of filtrates of the collected samples were $5.3{\pm}0.76$ in an urban and $6.0{\pm}0.82$ in a rural districts. 2. Annual mean concentrations of common cations and anions in their filtrates were as follows: urban rural (unit: ppm) $$Na^{+}\;1.7{\pm}1.30\;1.9{\pm}1.86$$ $$NH^{+}_{4}\;2.4{\pm}1.60\;1.3{\pm}1.59$$ $$K^{+}\;0.7{\pm}0.47\;1.5{\pm}3.79$$ $$Ca^{++}\;5.3{\pm}0.95\;3.4{\pm}2.58$$ $$Mg^{++}\;0.7{\pm}0.89\;0.5{\pm}0.83$$ $$Cl^{-}\;2.0{\pm}1.31\;4.0{\pm}2.35$$ $$NO^{-}_{3}\;4.0{\pm}2.35\;2.7{\pm}1.31$$ $$So^{--}_{4}\;16.9{\pm}17.40\;6.8{\pm}8.00$$ Some of anions such as $Br^{-},\;{PO_4}^{-3}\;and\;{NO_2}^{-}$ were scarecely detected and $F^{-}$ was measured at very low concentrations ranging from 0.1 to 0.5 ppm in Feb., Oct. and Nov. in an urban and in Feb. in a rural districts. 3. By two-way analysis of variance with 4 replications for dustfalls, pH and concentrations of various ion by district and month of a year, statistically significant differences were noted in dustfalls (p<0.01), pH (p<0.01) and concentrations of various ion (p<0.01) by month of a year, and in dustfalls (p<0.05) and concentrations of various ion such as ${NH_4}^{+},\;Ca^{++},\;{NO_{3}}^{-}\;and\;{SO_4}^{--}$ (p<0.01) by district. 4. There were statistically significant differences pH in Spring (Feb., Mar and Apr.) (p<0.01) and in ${SO_4}^{--}$ in Autumn (Aug., Sept., Oct. and Nov.) (p<0.05) between the two districts.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.147-158
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• 2002

Objective : The aim of the present study is to investigate the effect of stimulation on different sites of the body on MBP(mean blood pressure) and HR(heart rate). Methods : Six healthy men have participated in this study. Before and after 10 min, exercise on a running machine of l0km/hr, acupressure, plain acupuncture and electroacupuncture(50Hz) stimulation was practiced on GV20, LI4, ST36, BL40 and non-acupoints on T4 and T10 respectively for 20 min. and in a control group without any treatment. The changes of MBP and HR after exercise have been observed for 20 min. at 5 minute intervals. Results : Compared with control, no significant difference was observed in research of the blood pressure measurement regardless of methods nor sites of stimulation. But there were trends of reduction in the heart rates in all experimental groups. Especially, in the group of acupressure on T10 before exercise, GV20, T10 after exercise and electroacupuncture on GV20, LI4, BL40 after exercise there was statistically significant decreases in heart rates. Conclusion : From the present experiment, it is concluded that somatic stimulation has effect on the heart rates but not on the blood pressures, and the presence of effective sites on the decreases of heart rates suggest that this effect may depend on sites of stimulation.

• Journal of Veterinary Science
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.36.1-36.14
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• 2022

Background: Since 2003, the H5 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) subtype has caused massive economic losses in the poultry industry in South Korea. The role of inland water bodies in avian influenza (AI) outbreaks has not been investigated. Identifying water bodies that facilitate risk pathways leading to the incursion of the HPAI virus (HPAIV) into poultry farms is essential for implementing specific precautionary measures to prevent viral transmission. Objectives: This matched case-control study (1:4) examined whether inland waters were associated with a higher risk of AI outbreaks in the neighboring poultry farms. Methods: Rivers, irrigation canals, lakes, and ponds were considered inland water bodies. The cases and controls were chosen based on the matching criteria. The nearest possible farms located within a radius of 3 km of the case farms were chosen as the control farms. The poultry farms were selected randomly, and two HPAI epidemics (H5N8 [2014-2016] and H5N6 [2016-2017]) were studied. Conditional logistic regression analysis was applied. Results: Statistical analysis revealed that inland waters near poultry farms were significant risk factors for AI outbreaks. The study speculated that freely wandering wild waterfowl and small animals contaminate areas surrounding poultry farms. Conclusions: Pet birds and animals raised alongside poultry birds on farm premises may wander easily to nearby waters, potentially increasing the risk of AI infection in poultry farms. Mechanical transmission of the AI virus occurs when poultry farm workers or visitors come into contact with infected water bodies or their surroundings. To prevent AI outbreaks in the future, poultry farms should adopt strict precautions to avoid contact with nearby water bodies and their surroundings.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.185-193
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• 1997

The characteristics of $Na^+$-dependent cycloleucine uptake was investigated in OK cells with regard to substrate specificity and regulation by protein kinase C (PKC). Inhibition studies with different synthetic and natural amino acids showed a broad spectrum affinity to neutral amino acids regardless of their different side chains including branched or aromatic, indicating that the $Na^+$-dependent cycloleucine uptake in OK cells is mediated by System $B^o$ or System $B^o$-like transporter rather than the classical System A or ASC. Phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) and phorbol 12,13-dibutyrate, but not $4{\alpha}-PMA$ elicited a time-dependent biphasic stimulation of $Na^+$-dependent cycloleucine uptake, which produced early transient peak at 30 min and late sustained peak at 180min. Both the early and late stimulations by PMA were due to an increase in Vmax and not due to a change in Km. PKC inhibitors blocked both the early and late stimulation by PMA, while protein synthesis inhibitors blocked the late stimulation only. These results suggest the existence and regulation by PKC of System $B^o$ or System $B^o$-like broad spectrum transport system for neutral amino acids in OK cells.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.51 no.6
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• pp.697-703
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• 2018

In 2017, total coliform (TC), fecal coliform (FC) and fecal Streptococci (FS) bacteria were examined in seawater samples collected at coastal sites on Jeju Island (Aewol as a control, Namwon, and Daejeong) and at Pohang (Yeongil as a control, Guryongpo-North, and Guryongpo-South) to examine the correlations between the density of fish farms and distributions of the indicator bacteria. Only a few TC, FC, and FS colonies were detected in all of the samples obtained from Jeju Island. Of note, 2,000 and 1,000 CFU of FS $100mL^{-1}$ were detected in samples from Guryongpo-South in June and August, respectively. Although the total area of approved fish farms located within 5 km of the sampling point at Guryongpo-South is 5-16 times smaller than in other regions, the number of indicator bacteria was highest in this region. Therefore, microbiological pollution in the Guryongpo-South region might be due to sources other than the effluent released from nearby fish farms.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.73-78
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• 2022

Since Traditional Korean medicine (TKM) doctors use various knowledge systems during treatment, diagnosis results may differ for each TKM doctor. However, it is difficult to explain all the reasons for the diagnosis because TKM doctors use both explicit and implicit knowledge. In this study, an upgraded random forest (RF)-based evaluation tool was proposed to extract clinical knowledge of TKM doctors. Also, it was confirmed to what extent the professor's clinical knowledge was delivered to the trainees by using the evaluation tool. The data used to construct the evaluation tool were targeted at 106 people who visited the Sasang Constitutional Department at Kyung Hee University Korean Medicine Hospital at Gangdong. For explicit knowledge extraction, four TKM doctors were asked to express the importance of symptoms as scores. In addition, for implicit knowledge extraction, importance score was confirmed in the RF model that learned the patient's symptoms and the TKM doctor's constitutional determination results. In order to confirm the delivery of clinical knowledge, the similarity of symptoms that professors and trainees consider important when discriminating constitution was calculated using the Jaccard coefficient. As a result of the study, our proposed tool was able to successfully evaluate the clinical knowledge of TKM doctors. Also, it was confirmed that the professor's clinical knowledge was delivered to the trainee. Our tool can be used in various fields such as providing feedback on treatment, education of training TKM doctors, and development of AI in TKM.