• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.89-94
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• 2014

We investigated whether regional hyperthermia (HT) increased post-surgical complications in patients with locally advanced rectal cancer treated with preoperative concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT). Between 1996 and 2007, 205 patients treated with preoperative CCRT and curative surgery were evaluable for the analysis of acute and late toxicities. A total dose of 39.6 Gy or 45 Gy was delivered concurrently with one or two cycles of chemotherapy (5-fluorouracil, leucovorin). Eighty-eight patients received regional HT twice a week using an 8-MHz radiofrequency capacitive heating device. Surgery was performed 4~6 weeks after the completion of preoperative CCRT. The median age was 59 years (range, 18~83) and the median follow-up period was 61months (range, 2~191). The 5-year overall survival and complication-free survival rate of all patients was 77.4% and 73.7%, respectively. Early leakage, delayed leakage, anastomotic stricture, fistula, and small bowel obstruction occurred in 1.0%, 2.9%, 1.5%, 5.9%, and 17.1%, respectively. HT did not increase all kinds of complications. The 5-year complication-free survival rate was 71.8% in the non-HT group and 76.3% in the HT group (p=0.293). Regional HT did not increase postoperative complications in patients with locally advanced rectal cancer treated with preoperative CCRT followed by curative surgery.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.2627-2630
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• 2013

Background: Ovarian cancer continues to pose a major challenge to physicians and radiologists. It is the third most common gynecologic malignancy and estimated to be fifth leading cancer cause of death in women, constituting 23% of all gynecological malignancies. Multi-detector computed tomography (MDCT) appears to offer an excellent modality in diagnosing ovarian cancer based on combination of its availability, meticulous technique, efficacy and familiarity of radiologists and physicians. The aim of this study was to compute sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values and diagnostic accuracy of 64-slice MDCT in classifying ovarian masses; 95% confidence intervals were reported. Materials and Methods: We prospectively designed a cross-sectional analytical study to collect data from July 2010 to August 2011 from a tertiary care hospital in Karachi, Pakistan. A sample of 105 women aged between 15-80 years referred for 64-MDCT of abdomen and pelvis with clinical suspicion of malignant ovarian cancer, irrespective of stage of disease, were enrolled by non-probability purposive sampling. All patients who were already known cases of histologically proven ovarian carcinoma and having some contraindication to radiation or iodinated contrast media were excluded. Results: Our prospective study reports sensitivity, specificity; positive and negative predictive values with 95%CI and accuracy were computed. Kappa was calculated to report agreement among the two radiologists. For reader A, MDCT was found to have 92% (0.83, 0.97) sensitivity and 86.7% (0.68, 0.96) specificity, while PPV and NPV were 94.5% (0.86, 0.98) and 86.7% (0.63, 0.92), respectively. Accuracy reported by reader A was 90.5%. For reader B, sensitivity, specificity, PPV and NPV were 94.6% (0.86, 0.98) 90% (0.72, 0.97) 96% (0.88, 0.99) and 87.1% (0.69, 0.95) respectively. Accuracy computed by reader B was 93.3%. Excellent agreement was found between the two radiologists with a significant kappa value of 0.887. Conclusion: Based on our study results, we conclude MDCT is a reliable imaging modality in diagnosis of ovarian masses accurately with insignificant interobserver variability.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.184-189
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• 2011

The purpose of this study was to compare the image between DSA and MDCT Angiography and to examine whether MDCT Angiography could be useful as a screening test for the diagnosis of cerebral aneurysm in patients who were diagnosed with cerebral aneurysm on DSA. Of patients who were diagnosed with cerebral aneurysm DSA at University Hospital, 194 patients who concomitantly underwent MDCT Angiography were enrolled in the current retrospective study. The methods for analyzing cerebral aneurysm were to analyze the presence of cerebral aneurysm on DSA and MDCT Angiography. In cases in which it exceeded 1, the corresponding cases were classified as narrow-neck aneurysms. In otherwise cases, they were classified as wide-neck aneurysms. Thus, a comparative analysis could be performed to ascertain if cases were narrow-neck or wide-neck aneurysms. As compared with DSA, the sensitivity of MDCT Angiography for cerebral aneurysm was measured to be 97.4%. The degree of consistency between narrow-neck and wide-neck aneurysms was 90.2% and the proportion of undetectable an at MDCT Angiography was 2.54%. mean size was 2.4 mm. It is expected that a non-invasive diagnostic modality for a screening test for cerebral aneurysm, MDCT Angiography might be a very useful regimen as compared with an invasive one, DSA.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.44 no.5
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• pp.532-539
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• 2012

Electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy of gamma-irradiated fresh broccoli and kimchi cabbage was conducted to identify their irradiation history. Different pretreatments, such as freeze-drying (FD), oven-drying (OD), alcoholic-drying (ALD), and water-washing and alcoholic-drying (WAD) were used to lower the moisture contents of the samples prior to ESR analysis. The non-irradiated samples exhibited a single central signal ($g_0$=2.0007) with clear effect of $Mn^{2+}$, especially in kimchi cabbage. Upon irradiation, there was an increase in the intensity of the central signal, and two side peaks, mutually spaced at 6 mT, were also observed. These side peaks with $g_1$ (left)=2.023 and $g_2$ (right)=1.985 were attributed to radiation-induced cellulose radicals. Leaf and stem in broccoli, and root and stem in kimchi cabbage provided good ESR signal responses upon irradiation. The signal noise was reduced in case of ALD and WAD pretreatments, particularly due to $Mn^{2+}$ signals. The ALD treatment was found most feasible to detect the improved ESR spectra in the irradiated samples.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.910-916
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• 2002

As the utilization of medicinal herbs in food and bio-industry increases, safe hygienic technologies for them are demanded. To consider the possibility of application of radiation technology for this purpose, the genotoxi-cological safety of three r -irradiated medicinal herbs were studied. Astragali Radix, Atractylodes Rhizoma and Cimicifugae Rhizoma were irradiated at 10 kGy, and then were extracted with hot water. The genotoxicity of the extracts was examined in two short-term in vitro tests: (1) Salmonella reversion assay (Ames test) in strains of TA98 and TA100; (2) Micronucleus test in cultured Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells. The extract was treated at maximum doses of 5 mg/plate in Salmonella reversion assay, and 1 mg/mL in micronucleus test where growth of CHO cells was inhibited by 50%. In Salmonella reversion assay with or without metabolic activation, both ex-tracts of irradiated and non-irradiated herbs showed no significant differences in formation of revertant colonies compared with the negative control. And also in micronucleus test, the incidences of micronucleus in CHO cells cultured with extracts of irradiated herbs were almost same as negative control in less than 3%. These results of two in vitro tests suggest that ${\gamma}$-irradiated herbs do not show mutagenicity and cytogenetic toxicity. Further tests of in vivo genotoxicity and chronic toxicity are needed to ascertain the safety of ${\gamma}$-irradiated herbs.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.33 no.9
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• pp.1522-1528
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• 2004

Electron spin resonance (ESR) and hydrocarbon characteristics were analyzed to establish identification conditions for irradiated dried red pepper. The ESR spectroscopy for 4 different parts (powder, pericarp, seed, stem) of the samples showed that irradiated samples signaled (g=2.024, 2.006, 1.987) a pair of peaks from a cellulose radical at intervals of 6 mT, which were not found on the non-irradiated samples. The ESR signals increased in directly proportion to the irradiation doses, which were still detectable after 12 weeks of storage at room temperature. The GC-MS analysis of hydrocarbons after fat extraction and separation by florisil column chromatography revealed that hydrocarbons, such as 1-tetradecene (14:1), 1,7,10-hexadecatriene (16:3), 1,7-hexadecadiene (16:2), 1-hexadecene (16:1), 6,9-heptadecadiene (17:2), and 8-heptadecene (17:1), were detected only from the irradiated samples immediately after irradiation and 8 months of storage. They linearly increased with the dose of irradiation, suggesting them as radiation-induced markers for irradiated dried red pepper.

• Journal of Bio-Environment Control
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.123-132
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• 2016

The importance of energy saving technology for managing greenhouse was recently highlighted. For practical use of energy in greenhouse, it is necessary to simulate energy flow precisely and estimate heating/cooling loads of greenhouse. So the main purpose of this study was to develope and to validate greenhouse energy model and to estimate annual/maximum energy loads using Building Energy Simulation (BES). Field experiments were carried out in a multi-span plastic-film greenhouse in Jeju Island ($33.2^{\circ}N$, $126.3^{\circ}E$) for 2 months. To develop energy model of the greenhouse, a set of sensors was used to measure the greenhouse microclimate such as air temperature, humidity, leaf temperature, solar radiation, carbon dioxide concentration and so on. Moreover, characteristic length of plant leaf, leaf area index and diffuse non-interceptance were utilized to calculate sensible and latent heat exchange of plant. The internal temperature of greenhouse was compared to validate the greenhouse energy model. Developed model provided a good estimation for the internal temperature throughout the experiments period (coefficients of determination > 0.85, index of agreement > 0.92). After the model validation, we used last 10 years weather data to calculate energy loads of greenhouse according to growth stage of greenhouse crop. The tendency of heating/cooling loads change was depends on external weather condition and optimal temperature for growing crops at each stage. In addition, maximum heating/cooling loads of reference greenhouse were estimated to 644,014 and $756,456kJ{\cdot}hr^{-1}$, respectively.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.73-79
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• 2006

Nebulin is a giant ($600{\sim}900$ kDa), modular sarcomeric protein proposed to regulate the assembly, and to specify the precise lengths of actin filamints in vertebrate skeletal muscles. Recently, There is an evidence that the nebulin also expressed in non muscle tissue, brain and liver. We identified a new isoform of nebulin from adult brain library by PCR screening. It contains two simple-repeats exon 165, 166 and linker-repeats exon $154{\sim}161$ except exon 159. The nebulin modules M160 to M170 (exon 150 to exon 161) has been shown to bind desmin. In mature striated muscle, desmin intermediate filaments surround Z-discs and link individual myofibrils laterally at their Z-discs and to other intracellular structures, including the costameres and the intercalated discs of the sarcolemma, sarcoplasmic reticulum, mitochondria, T-tubules, and nuclei. Therefore, it is an interesting possibility that the differential splice pathways within the linker region of nebulin modify the affinity of nebulin's interaction with desmin. The specific interactions of nebulin and desmin were confirmed in vivo by yeast two hybrid experiments. To verify in the cellular level the interaction between nebulin isoform and desmin, we transfected COS-7 cell with EGFP-tagged nebulin and DsRed-tagged desmin. Based on evidence showing that despite exon 159 was deleted, the new isoform of nebulin was interact with desmin. This suggest that nebulin in brain may interact with another intermediate filament. The conservation of these ligand-binding capacity in brain and skeletal nebulins suggest that nebulins may have conserved roles in brain and skeletal muscle.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.36 no.10
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• pp.748-753
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• 2003

Background: The pulmonary nodules (PN), when indicated, need thoracoscopic resection, especially in cases of non-diagnostic or technically infeasible PCNA (percutaneous needle aspiration). In the difficult situations of small or deeply seated PN, several techniques facilitating thoracoscopy have been used for detecting them. Our new protocol for managing PN was developed and prospectively reviewed. Material and Method: In the procedure of PCNA, we firstly placed the tip of the needle in the center of, or just in contact with PN under CT guidance, and loaded one or two segments of platinum radiomarker inside the needle after removing the stylet. Then, we forced the radiomarker to move to the tip of the needle by pushing the stylet. Finally, if the tip of the needle was not within PN, it was reoriented to the their center to obtain the sample for PCNA. Result: Between May 1999 and May 2000, radiomarkers were successfully placed in 28 PN of 26 patients, with the exception of one. In 18 (85%) of 21 nodules needing throacoscopy, intraoperative fluoroscopy was used to detect them or guide stapling resection during thoracoscopy. Conclusion: The advantages of this technique are that there is that there is no need for further localization for thoracoscopy even in cases of unsuccessful PCNA, and it was more effective in respect to both cost and time. Therefore, this strategy for PN expecting thoracoscopy will be helpful to patients and medical staff alike.

• Proceedings of the Korea Water Resources Association Conference
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• 2009.05a
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• pp.1112-1116
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• 2009

The importance of securing water resources and their efficient management has attracted more attention recently due to water deficit. In water budget analysis, however, evapotranspiration (${\lambda}E$) has been approximated as the residual in the water balance equation or estimated from empirical equations and assumptions. To minimize the uncertainties in these estimates, it is necessary to directly measure ${\lambda}E$. In this study, using the eddy covariance technique, we have measured ${\lambda}E$ in a mixed forest in the Seolmacheon catchment in Korea from September 2007 to December 2008. During the growing season (May - July), ${\lambda}E$ in this mixed forest averaged about 2.2 mm $d^{-1}$, whereas it was on average 0.5 mm $d^{-1}$ during the non-growing season in winter. The annual total ${\lambda}E$ in 2008 was 581 mm $y^{-1}$, which is about 1/3 of the annual precipitation of 1997 mm. Despite the differences in the amount and frequency of precipitation, the accumulated ${\lambda}E$ during the overlapping period (i.e., September to December) for 2007 and 2008 was both ${\sim}$ 110 mm, showing virtually no difference. The omega factor, which is a measure of decoupling between forest and the atmosphere, was on average 0.5, indicating that the contributions of equilibrium ${\lambda}E$ and imposed ${\lambda}E$ to the total ${\lambda}E$ were about the same. The results suggest that ${\lambda}E$in this mixed forest was controlled by various factors such as net radiation, vapor pressure deficit, and canopy conductance. In this study, based on the direct measurements of ${\lambda}E$, we have quantified the relative contribution of ${\lambda}E$in the water balance of a mixed forest in the Seolmacheon catchment. In combination with runoff data, the information on ${\lambda}E$ would greatly enhance the reliability of water budget analysis in this catchment.