• Infection and chemotherapy
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.301-310
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• 2018

Backgroud: Influenza vaccination is recommended for adults aged ${\geq}65$ years as they are at high risk of significant morbidity and mortality. This open-label, multicenter, post-marketing surveillance study assessed the safety of the MF59-adjuvanted trivalent inactivated subunit influenza vaccine, which is marketed as $FLUAD^{(R)}$ and $VANTAFLU^{(R)}$, in South Korean subjects aged ${\geq}65$ years. Materials and Methods: Solicited local and systemic adverse events (AEs) were collected from day 1 to 4 of the study. All unsolicited AEs and serious AEs (SAEs) were recorded from day 1 until study termination (day 29). Results: Of the 770 subjects enrolled ($FLUAD^{(R)}$, n = 389; $VANTAFLU^{(R)}$, n = 381), 39% overall experienced any solicited AE. Local AEs were reported by 33% of subjects overall; with the most common events being injection-site pain (30%) and tenderness (27%). Systemic AEs were reported by 19% of subjects overall with the most common events being myalgia (11%) and fatigue (8%). Conclusion: These results show that the MF59-adjuvanted influenza vaccine known as $FLUAD^{(R)}$ or $VANTAFLU^{(R)}$ had acceptable safety profiles in older adults (aged ${\geq}65$ years) in South Korea.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.53 no.6
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• pp.870-877
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• 2020

Twenty-three Bacillus cereus strain isolated from commercial jeotgal were investigated for 11 toxin genes and susceptibility to 25 different antimicrobials. The hemolytic enterotoxins hblA, hblC, and hblD were detected in 13.0%, and non-hemolytic enterotoxins nheA, nheB, and nheC were detected in 26.1%, 100%, and 100% of the isolates, respectively. The positive rates of cytK, entFM, becT, hlyII, and ces were 73.9%, 60.9%, 26.1%, 8.7%, and 0.0%, respectively. According to the disk diffusion susceptibility test, all of the strains studied were resistant to cefuroxime, followed by cefoxitin (78.3%), oxacillin (78.3%), ampicillin (69.6%), penicillin G (69.6%), and amoxicillin (65.2%). However, all the strains were susceptible to 11 other antimicrobials, including amikacin, chloramphenicol, and ciprofloxacin. The average minimum inhibitory concentrations of amoxicillin, ampicillin, and cefuroxime against B. cereus were 462.9, 235.0, and 135.0 ㎍/mL, respectively. These results highlight the need for sanitizing commercial jeotgal, and provide evidence to help reduce the risk of jeotgal contamination by antimicrobial-resistant bacteria.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.54 no.6
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• pp.918-926
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• 2021

We isolated 28 Vibrio vulnificus strains from seawater and fisheries and investigated the positive rate of eight virulence genes. Additionally, we evaluated the susceptibility of these strains to 25 antimicrobials. The positive rates of fur, vvhA, tcp, rtxA, vcgC, viuB, vvp, and acfA were 100, 92.9, 92.9, 67.9, 64.3, 25.0, 14.3, and 7.1%, respectively. A disk diffusion susceptibility test revealed that, all the investigated strains had the highest resistance to amoxicillin and oxacillin, followed by that to streptomycin (96.4%), cefoxitin (92.9%), clindamycin (82.1%), amikacin (67.9%), vancomycin (46.4%), nalidixic acid (7.1%), penicillin G (7.1%), and ampicillin (3.6%). Moreover, they were susceptible to 10 other antimicrobials, including cefotaxime, chloramphenicol, erythromycin, gentamicin, and rifampicin. Notably, amoxicillin, oxacillin, and streptomycin had average minimum inhibitory concentrations of 132.6, 603.4, and 23.1 ㎍/mL against V. vulnificus, respectively. These observations provide new insights regarding the necessity for sanitation of commercial fisheries and can potentially, help reduce the risk posed by fisheries contaminated with bacteria resistant to antimicrobials.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.54 no.5
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• pp.1560-1569
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• 2022

Liquid fueled molten salt reactors (MSRs) have seen renewed interest because of their inherent safety features, higher thermal efficiency and potential for efficient thorium utilisation for power generation. Thorium fluoride is one of the salts used in liquid fueled MSRs employing Th-U cycle. In the present study, ThF₄ was prepared by hydro-fluorination of ThO₂ using anhydrous HF gas. Process parameters viz. bed depth, hydrofluorination time and hydrofluorination temperature, were optimized for the preparation of ThF₄ in a static bed reactor setup. The products were characterized with X-Ray diffraction and experimental conditions for complete conversion to ThF₄ were established which also corroborated with the yield values. Hydrofluorination of ThO₂ at 450 ℃ for half an hour at a bed depth of 6 mm gave the best result, with a yield of about 99.36% ThF₄. No unconverted oxide or any other impurity was observed. Rietveld refinement was performed on the XRD data of this ThF₄, and Chi2 value of 3.54 indicated good agreement between observed and calculated profiles.

• Journal of The Geomorphological Association of Korea
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.57-71
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• 2011

Granitic regolith profile in Goseong, southern Korea, reveals various types of corestones from unweathered round fresh rocks to decomposed rock cores with unweathered spheroidal rock-layers on outer surface, deep weathering profile with 10m in depth, and red saprolite usually cited as related to high temperature climatic environment. In respect of this optical features such as the depth and the color of the profile, Goseong granitic profile may be regarded as products of paleoclimate with more high temperature and humidity than the present. But it is revealed that halloysite is a predominant clay mineral in upper part as well as lower part by XRD analysis. Halloysite is dominant mineral in hydrothermal alteration milieu. The leaching rate of chemical components is up to 97%, very high compared to common granite profiles with 60~70% in Korean peninsula. So, it is assumed that granitic red regolith in Goseong is a product of hydrothermal alteration, not meteoric weathering.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.56 no.6
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• pp.826-832
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• 2023

Clostridium perfringens causes diarrhea and other diseases in humans and animals. We investigated the prevalence, toxin gene profiles, and antimicrobial resistance of C. perfringens isolated from commercial jeotgal sample. C. perfringens was isolated from 11 of 22 commercial jeotgals. All C. perfringens strains were positive for the alpha toxin gene, but not for the beta, epsilon, iota, CPE or NetB toxin genes; therefore, all strains were identified as type A C. perfringens. However, the beta2 toxin gene was identified in 54.5% of isolates. Disk diffusion susceptibility tests showed that most isolates were resistant to kanamycin (90.9%), nalidixic acid (72.7%), oxacillin (54.5%), erythromycin (27.3%), ciprofloxacin (9.1%) and clindamycin (9.1%). However, all strains were susceptible to 14 other antimicrobial including amoxicillin, ampicillin, and chloramphenicol. The average minimum inhibitory concentrations against C. perfringens of clindamycin, kanamycin, and nalidixic acid were 128.0, 128.0, and 54.0 ㎍/mL, respectively. These results provide new insight into the necessity for sanitation of commercial jeotgal, and provide evidence to help reduce the risk of contamination with antimicrobial-resistant bacteria.

• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.770-784
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• 2023

Although most lemons are imported into Korea, their consumption is increasing. Development of domestic varieties of Jeramon and Minimon is currently underway in an effort to meet the increasing demand for fresh lemons. In this study, an analysis of the physicochemical characteristics of Jeramon and Minimon, including their flavor components and antioxidant properties, was conducted. The results revealed that these new varieties of Korean lemon can be regarded as good sources of antioxidants and phytochemicals. Compared to Sunkist, the most consumed lemon variety in Korea, Minimon contained more than twice as much β-cryptoxanthin, and the content of L-ascorbic acid was more than three-four-fold higher in both Minimon and Jeramon. In addition, results from measurement of DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging activities indicated that Jeramon extract exhibited the highest antioxidant activity. In the volatile profile analysis, the profiles of volatile components showed high similarity among the three lemon samples, and the composition ratio was largely dominated by terpenoids. A markedly higher ratio of d-limonene and thymol was detected in the Minimon variety compared with that in the other two varieties. Collectively, the findings from this study on Korean lemon varieties provide a basis as well as valuable guidance for breeding domestic lemon varieties.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.57 no.3
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• pp.253-261
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• 2024

This study investigated the digital color profiles corresponding to different maturity stages and levels of brown croaker Miichthys miiuy specimens collected from the Southern Sea of South Korea. Maturity stages were determined using photomicrographs of ovarian developmental phases, which were compared with digital color values. Brown croaker specimens ranged from 24 to 81 cm in standard length; mature ovaries were predominantly observed in specimens that exceed 40 cm in length. Monthly ovary color values were primarily concentrated in the 1st and 4th quadrants, with both a^* and b^* values falling within a range of ±15 centered on the origin. Similarly, the testes color values were predominantly situated in the 4th quadrant, with a^* and b^* values ranging from -5 to 15 and 10 to 14, respectively. While the color values of the mature and spawning stages overlapped within a narrow range, distinguishing between them required both the color value and monthly color value distribution to be considered. Thus, this study underscores the efficacy of digital color measurements for assessing brown croaker gonad maturity, and provides more quantitative insights compared to subjective visual assessments by humans.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.43 no.4
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• pp.522-529
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• 2014

Sea tangle (Laminaria japonica) is well known as having anti-diabetic and hypolipidemic effects in animals as well as in humans. In this study, we evaluated the effects of sea tangle-added patty on postprandial blood glucose and lipid profiles in borderline-hypercholesterolemic (cholesterol ${\geq}200$ mg/dL) adults. Eleven subjects voluntarily participated in the experiment, and each subject provided written consent. Experimental patty (E) was made by adding 2.25 g of sea tangle powder as a substitution to 1.125 g each of pork and chicken. In the first week, 200 g of Control patty (C) was provided to each subject, who had fasted more than 12 hours. In the second week, the same amount of E patty was supplied under the same conditions. Serum glucose levels increased significantly less at 30, 60, and 120 min after consumption of E patty compared to the levels at all time points after eating C patty. Thus, the change in the area under curve (${\Delta}AUC$) of serum glucose levels through 120 minutes was lower when consuming E patty compared to C patty. Although serum C-peptide concentrations were not significantly different at all time points between the two patties, the ${\Delta}AUC$ of serum C-peptide concentrations through 120 minutes was lower when consuming E patty compared to C patty. However, there were no differences in serum levels of triglyceride, total cholesterol, LDL-C, and HDL-C at 30, 60, 120, 180, and 240 min between the two patties. Further, each ${\Delta}AUC$ of these lipid levels through 240 minutes was not significantly different between the two patties. The results indicate that sea tangle-added patty may decrease postprandial plasma glucose concentrations and reduce insulin secretion, although it might not ameliorate serum lipid profiles in adults with borderline-hypercholesterolemia.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.64-69
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• 2011

Steamed rice is usually used as an essential ingredient when Takju or Yakju is brewed in Korea. Alternatively, non-steamed rice can be used to keep thermolabile nutrients and fresh tastes richer in Takju or Yakju. In this study, therefore, the physicochemical properties (ethanol and sugar contents, pH, total acidities, and turbidities) and the fermentative microbial profiles (aerobic mesophillic bacteria (AMB), fungi, lactic acid bacteria (LAB), acetic acid bacteria (AAB), and Escherichia coli and coliforms) have been compared among 4 Takju and 1 Yakju samples brewed using steamed or non-steamed rice. Yakju brewed using non-steamed rice has approximately 2-3 times higher ethanol and sugar contents than other 4 Takjus brewed using steamed or non-steamed rice. The pH and total acidity values of all the 5 samples ranged 3.77-4.30 and 0.12-0.35, respectively. As for turbidities, Yakju brewed using nons-teamed rice was transparent, but other 4 Takjus were not. The AMB and fungal counts for Yakju brewed using nons-teamed rice were approximately $10^4$-fold less than those for 4 Takjus. The LAB counts for Takju and Yakju brewed using non-steamed rice were $10^3$-fold less than those for Takjus brewed using steamed rice. The AAB counts ranged $2-6\;log_{10}\;CFU/mL$ for all the 5 samples. E.coli and coliforms were not detected. Overall, there was no significant difference in microbial counts among 4 Takjus brewed using steamed or non-steamed rice, but Takju has higher microbial counts than Yakju. All the 5 samples were conclusively considered to be hygienically brewed and processed containing plenty of beneficial microorganisms.