• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.26 no.12
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• pp.2206-2213
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• 2016

Recently, several studies have revealed that commercial microbial identification systems do not accurately identify the uncommon causative species of candidiasis, including Candida famata, Meyerozyma guilliermondii, and C. auris. We investigated the accuracy of species-level identification in a collection of clinical isolates previously identified as C. famata (N = 38), C. lusitaniae (N = 1 2), and M. guilliermondii (N = 5) by the Vitek 2 system. All 55 isolates were re-analyzed by the Phoenix system (Becton Dickinson Diagnostics), two matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry analyzers (a Vitek MS and a Bruker Biotyper), and by sequencing of internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions or 26S rRNA gene D1/D2 domains. Among 38 isolates previously identified as C. famata by the Vitek 2 system, the majority (27/38 isolates, 71.1%) were identified as C. tropicalis (20 isolates) or C. albicans (7 isolates) by ITS sequencing, and none was identified as C. famata. Among 20 isolates that were identified as C. tropicalis, 17 (85%) were isolated from urine. The two isolates that were identified as C. auris by ITS sequencing originated from ear discharge. The Phoenix system did not accurately identify C. lusitaniae, C. krusei, or C. auris. The correct identification rate for 55 isolates was 92.7% (51/55 isolates) for the Vitek MS and 94.6% (52/55 isolates) for the Bruker Biotyper, as compared with results from ITS sequencing. These results suggest that C. famata is very rare in Korea, and that the possibility of misidentification should be noted when an uncommon Candida species is identified.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.18 no.E4
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• pp.203-213
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• 2002

Receptor modeling is one of statistical methods to achieve reasonable air pollution strategies. In order to maintain and manage ambient air quality, it is necessary to identify sources and to apportion its sources for ambient particulate matters. The main purpose of the study was to survey seasonal trends of inorganic elements in the coarse and fine particles. Second, this study has attempted emission sources qualitatively by a receptor method, the PMF mo-del. After that. both PMF (positive matrix factorization) model and TTFA (target transformation factor analysis) model were applied to compare and to estimate mass contribution of coarse and fine particle sources at the receptor. A total of 138 sets of samples was collected from 1989 to 1996 by a low volume cascade impactor with 9 size fraction stages at Kyung Hee University in Korea. Sixteen chemical species (Si, Ca, Fe, K, Pb, Na, Zn, Mg, Ba, Ni, V, Mn, Cr, Br, Cu. Co) were characterized by XRF. The study result showed that the weighted arithmetic mean of coarse and fine particles were 51.3 and 54.4 $\mu\textrm{g}$/㎥, respectively. Contribution of both particle fractions were esti-mated using TTFA and PMF models. The number of estimated sources was seven according to TTFA model and 8 according to PMF model. Comparison of TTFA and PMF revealed that both methodologies exhibited similar trends in their contribution pattern. However, large differences between contributions were observed in some sour-ces. The results of this study may help to suggest control strategies in local countries where known source profiles do not exist.

• The Journal of Korean Orthopaedic Ultrasound Society
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.10-14
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• 2013

Pilomatricoma is a benign skin tumor that develops from hair matrix cells. It most commonly occurs in the head and neck, followed by the upper extremities. Accuracy of preoperative diagnosis was low in previous studies and excisional biopsy was even performed frequently without imaging studies. We report a case of pilomatricoma of the shoulder that was easily diagnosed by ultrasound including color Doppler, which is a more useful imaging modality than computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging scans not only because of its cost effectiveness but also because of the precise information obtained from mass contents.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.19-27
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• 2013

Background Acellular dermal matrix (ADM) allografts and their putative benefits have been increasingly described in prosthesis based breast reconstruction. There have been a myriad of analyses outlining ADM complication profiles, but few large-scale, multi-institutional studies exploring these outcomes. In this study, complication rates of acellular dermis-assisted tissue expander breast reconstruction were compared with traditional submuscular methods by evaluation of the American College of Surgeon's National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) registry. Methods Patients who underwent immediate tissue expander breast reconstruction from 2006-2010 were identified using surgical procedure codes. Two hundred forty tracked variables from over 250 participating sites were extracted for patients undergoing acellular dermis-assisted versus submuscular tissue expander reconstruction. Thirty-day postoperative outcomes and captured risk factors for complications were compared between the two groups. Results A total of 9,159 patients underwent tissue expander breast reconstruction; 1,717 using acellular dermis and 7,442 with submuscular expander placement. Total complications and reconstruction related complications were similar in both cohorts (5.5% vs. 5.3%, P=0.68 and 4.7% vs. 4.3%, P=0.39, respectively). Multivariate logistic regression revealed body mass index and smoking as independent risk factors for reconstructive complications in both cohorts (P<0.01). Conclusions The NSQIP database provides large-scale, multi-institutional, independent outcomes for acellular dermis and submuscular breast reconstruction. Both thirty-day complication profiles and risk factors for post operative morbidity are similar between these two reconstructive approaches.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.763-768
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• 2012

This study has been performed to measure the prevalence and microbial flora on chicken slaughtering as well as the processing process from the months of October to November. Whole-chicken rinsing technique was used in order to analyze the incidence of microorganisms on chicken carcass at the stage before chilling (after evisceration), after chilling and after cutting. The swab technique was used on processing the processed samples, such as working plates and cutting knives. Brine and cooling water from four cooling tubs were taken from each processing processes and were used as samples. Furthermore, the matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI MS) for whole cell fingerprinting in combination with a dedicated bioinformatic software tool was used to identify the isolated microorganisms. Of the tested samples and processes, brine ($4.50{\pm}0.64$ Log CFU/mL) and chicken carcass before chilling ($4.15{\pm}0.46$ Log CFU/mL) showed the highest population of microorganisms; the predominant microbial flora of them were Moellerella wisconsensis (54.84%), a member of the Enterobacteriaceae family, and Escherichia coli (60.36%), respectively. However, the predominant microbial flora of cut carcass was changed to Staphylococcus aureus (27.32%), which is a kind of pathogenic microorganism that can cause a food-borne illness. Therefore, the slaughtering and processing procedure of chicken are needed to be controlled more hygienically.

• Plant Biotechnology Reports
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.167-174
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• 2009

To identify genes involved in rice Pi5-mediated disease resistance to Magnaporthe oryzae, we compared the proteomes of the RIL260 rice strain carrying the Pi5 resistance gene with its susceptible mutants M5465 and M7023. Proteins were extracted from the leaf tissues of both RIL260 and the mutant lines at 0, 24, and 48 h after M. oryzae inoculation and separated by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2-DE). Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) analysis identified eight proteins that were differently expressed between the resistant and susceptible plants (three down- and five up-regulated proteins in the mutants). The down-regulated proteins included a triosephosphate isomerase (spot no. 2210), a 2,3-bisphosphoglycerate-independent phosphoglycerate mutase (no. 3611), and an unknown protein (no. 4505). In addition, the five up-regulated proteins in the mutants were predicted to be a fructokinase I (no. 313), a glutathione S-transferase (no. 2310), an atpB of chloroplast ATP synthase (no. 3616), an aminopeptidase N (no. 3724), and an unknown protein (no. 308). These results suggest that proteomic analysis of rice susceptible mutants is a useful method for identifying novel proteins involved in resistance to the M. oryzae pathogen.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.115-121
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• 2017

In this work, p-type Bi-Sb-Te alloys powders are prepared using gas atomization, a mass production powder preparation method involving rapid solidification. To study the effect of the sintering temperature on the microstructure and thermoelectric properties, gas-atomized powders are consolidated at different temperatures (623, 703, and 743 K) using spark plasma sintering. The crystal structures of the gas-atomized powders and sintered bulks are identified using an X-ray diffraction technique. Texture analysis by electron backscatter diffraction reveals that the grains are randomly oriented in the entire matrix, and no preferred orientation in any unique direction is observed. The hardness values decrease with increasing sintering temperature owing to a decrease in grain size. The conductivity increases gradually with increasing sintering temperature, whereas the Seebeck coefficient decreases owing to increases in the carrier mobility with grain size. The lowest thermal conductivity is obtained for the bulk sintered at a low temperature (603 K), mainly because of its fine-grained microstructure. A peak ZT of 1.06 is achieved for the sample sintered at 703 K owing to its moderate electrical conductivity and sustainable thermal conductivity.

• Food Science and Biotechnology
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.249-252
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• 2009

Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) was employed to assess the thermo-tolerance characteristics of Bifrdobacterium infantis ATCC 27920 to mild heat adaptation. When exposed to various heat levels, pH, and hydrogen peroxide ($H_2O_2$) stress conditions, B. infantis ATCC 27920 exhibited high level of stress resistance. Under mild-heat treatment ($46^{\circ}C$), no significant change in viability level was observed after 2 hr. Interestingly, improved viability was observed in mild-heat adapted ($46^{\circ}C$ for 1 hr) cultures exposed to $55^{\circ}C$, in comparison to control experiments. Viability was not affected by pH, bile, and $H_2O_2$ stress conditions. 2-DE analysis revealed those mild-heat adaptation up-regulated 4 proteins and down-regulated 3 proteins. Among these protein spots, isopropyhnalate dehydratase (leuD), glycosyltransferase (glgA), and ribosomal protein L5 (rp1E) were identified by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALD1-TOF/MS).

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.48 no.3
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• pp.354-361
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• 2015

Mitochondrial heat shock protein 75 (mtHSP75) is a member of the HSP90 family and plays essential roles in refolding proteins of the mitochondrial matrix. Mitochondria provide energy in the form of ATP and generate reactive oxygen species (ROS). Heat shock proteins (HSPs) are activated in response to stress, and protect cells. In this study, we characterized the mtHSP75 of the big-belly seahorse Hippocampus abdominalis. The protein (BsmtHSP75) is encoded by an open reading frame (ORF) of 2,157 nucleotides, has 719 amino acids (aa), and is of molecular mass 82 kDa. BsmtHSP75 has two functional domains, a histidine kinase-like ATPase (HATPase_c) domain (123-276 aa) and an HSP90 family domain (302-718 aa). BsmtHSP75 was expressed in all tested tissues of healthy seahorses. The ovary contained the highest transcription level, followed (in order) by the blood, brain, and muscle. Pouch tissue showed the lowest expression level. The expression of BsmtHSP75 was significantly (P<0.05) up-regulated on viral or bacterial challenge, suggesting that BsmtHSP75 plays a role in the immune defense against bacterial and viral pathogens.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.58 no.1
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• pp.106-112
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• 2020

Analyzing vitamin D levels is important for monitoring health conditions because vitamin D deficiency is associated with various diseases such as rickets, osteomalacia, cardiovascular disorders and some cancers. However, vitamin D concentration in the blood is very low with optimal level of 75 nmol/L, making quantitative analysis difficult. The objective of this study was to develop a highly sensitive analysis method for vitamin D using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS). 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D), which has been used as an indicator of vitamin D metabolites in human biofluids was chemically derivatized using a secosteroid signal enhancing tag (SecoSET) with powerful dienophile and permanent positive charge. The SecoSET-derivatized 25(OH)D provided good linearity (R² > 0.99) and sensitivity (limit of quantitation: 11.3 fmol). Chemical derivatization of deuterated 25-hydroxyvitamin D₃ (d₆-25(OH)D3) with SecoSET enabled absolute quantitative analysis using MALDI-MS. The highly sensitive method could be successfully applied into monitoring of quantitative changes of bioactive vitamin D metabolites after treatment with ketoconazole to inhibit 1α-hydroxylase reaction related to vitamin D metabolism in human breast cancer cells. Taken together, we developed a MALDI-MS-based platform that could quantitatively analyze vitamin D metabolites from cell products, blood and other biofluids. This platform may be applied to monitor various diseases associated with vitamin D deficiency such as rickets, osteomalacia and breast cancer.