• Journal of Life Science
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.447-454
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• 2019

Fat accumulation in adipocytes occurs through the process of adipogenesis in which preadipocytes differentiate into adipocytes. Obesity is a metabolic disorder caused by excessive accumulation of fat in the body, which increases the incidence of cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and various cancers. Recently, inhibition of adipocyte differentiation was shown to be a potential antiobesity strategy. In this study, the inhibitory effect of dichloromethane fractions from Illicium verum Hooker fil. water extract on the differentiation of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes to adipocytes was investigated. Dichloromethane fractions from I. verum Hooker fil. significantly inhibited adipocyte differentiation when applied during the adipocyte differentiation process, as assessed by measuring fat accumulation using Oil-red O staining. In addition, dichloromethane fractions from I. verum Hooker fil. reduced important adipogenic transcription factors, such as CCAAT/enhancer binding protein ${\alpha}$ ($C/EBP{\alpha}$), $C/EBP{\beta}$, and peroxisome proliferator activated receptor ${\gamma}$ ($PPAR{\gamma}$). The expression of FAS and LPL, which are terminal differentiation markers of mature adipocytes, was also reduced in the 3T3-L1 adipocytes treated with dichloromethane fractions from I. verum Hooker fil. In addition, the treatment significantly inhibited mitotic clonal expansion, which is essential for adipocyte differentiation, by arresting the G1 phase of the cell cycle. Taken together, these results suggest that dichloromethane fractions from I. verum Hooker fil. may be a natural material with antiobesity effects.

• Korean Journal of Organic Agriculture
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.719-729
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• 2018

Green manure crops can be efficient replacements of high nutrient materials such as livestock compost, organic fertilizers, etc. in organic farming. Grass-legume mixtures or mixed cropping of legumes with non-legumes can aid in abating the shortcomings of each plant type under monoculture (i.e. legumes have low biomass yields while grasses are poor at fixing nitrogen). This study was conducted to investigate the effects of barley (B) and hairy vetch (H) mixtures on green manure yield in nutrient accumulated organic upland soils of Korea. In one cropping season, single crops of barley and hairy vetch (Barley: 160 kg/ha, Hairy vetch: 90 kg/ha) as well as mixtures of both crops at different seeding rates (B66:H33, B33: H66) were grown and the obtained results are as shown below. The biomass yield and nutrient productivities were higher in barley-hairy vetch mixture. The biomass yield and total phosphorus content were higher for the mixed crops by 78~132% and 200% respectively than those of the hairy vetch monoculture. Total nitrogen content of the mixed crops was also higher than those of the barley monoculture by 43~44%. The biomass yield (5.60 Mg/ha) and nutrient contents (87.7 kg N/ha, 23 kg $P_2O_5/ha$) were highest in the case of B66:H33 seeding rate. Accordingly, this study concludes that the barley-hairy vetch mixtures cropped at B66:H33 seeding rate is efficient in increasing green manure productivity due to complementary effects observed and the highest biomass yield and nutrient contents.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.308-312
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• 2018

We analyzed rice sample with scab (collected in 2017) for fungal occurrence and found that frequency of Fusarium spp. was the highest among fungal genera. Within Fusarium, Fusarium asiaticum-nivalenol type dominated as 79%. Among mycotoxins, zearalenone was the highest toxin detected (1117 ng/g), followed by deoxynivalenol (163 ng/g), 15-acetyl deoxynivalenol (155 ng/g), nivalenol (110 ng/g). Analysis of mycotoxin levels in scabby and healthy grains (collected in 2015) revealed that both grain samples were contaminated with zearalenone. However, level difference of zearalenone between the samples was over 5 times as the scabby samples were 1400-2370 ng/g, while healthy ones were 240-430 ng/g. This result indicates that scabby grains should be removed when harvest to reduce zearalenone contamination in rice.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.63 no.4
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• pp.390-398
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• 2018

Miscanthus is a perennial energy plant that reproduces via rhizomes and has C4 metabolism. The flowering pattern of a wild type M. sacchariflorus (WTM) is affected by environmental conditions such as photoperiod and soil water status. Geodae-Uksae 1 (Geodea), which is a new M. sacchariflorus cultivar, has a lower heading rate than WMS; however the mechanism with why this happens is unknown. To confirm the effects of drought or waterlogging stresses on the growth of WTM and Geodea at the reproductive stage, we investigated variations in morphological characteristics and nutrient contents of the two Miscanthus species after four months of three water treatments. Morphological traits of the two Miscanthus species under the drought condition were similar to those under the control condition. But, the height of Geodea increased by 30% in response to the waterlogging stress. In WTM, the heading rate under the drought condition was lowest, while there was no significant difference between the waterlogging and control conditions. In the two Miscanthus species, nutrient contents, such as sucrose, total N, $P_2O_5$, K and Mg, were the highest under the drought condition, wherea Ca and Mg contents under the waterlogging condition were more than three times lower than those under the drought condition. The current study results showed that drought stress accelerated senescence and then inhibited nutrient mobilization in WTM, while waterlogging stress promoted the growth. This study is the first report to confirm that waterlogging stress promotes flowering of M. sacchariflorus.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.61-68
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• 2019

As the pollution of water resources deteriorates due to industrialization and urbanization, it is difficult to supply clean water through a water treatment method using chlorine. Therefore, the introduction of advanced water treatment facilities using ozone is on the increase. However, epoxy which is used as waterproofing and anticorrosives and stainless steel used in conventional waterproofing and anti-corrosive methods have deteriorated because of the strong oxidizing power of ozone, causing problems such as leaking. Moreover, it even causes the durability degradation of a concrete. Therefore, in this study, metal spraying system was used as the means of constructing a metal panel with excellent ozone resistance and chemical resistance which is an easier method than an existing construction method. Ozone resistance was evaluated in accordance with the type of metal sprayed coatings to develop a finishing method which can prevent the concrete structure of water treatment facilities from deterioration. Furthermore, electrochemical stability in actual sewage treatment plant environment was evaluated. Experimental results showed that Ti has superior ozone resistance after spraying and the electrochemical stability in the sewage treatment plant environment showed that Ti has the highest polarization resistance of $403.83k{\cdot}{\Omega}{\cdot}cm^2$, which ensures high levels of durability.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Service
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.31-37
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• 2019

There have been a total tenth FMD outbreaks in Korea and for the first time, type O and A were detected simultaneously in 2017, which led to difficulties in FMD control. For the effective prevention of FMD, the importance of discrimination of serotypes became greater. Therefore, the most urgent requirement in case of FMD outbreak is differential diagnosis of serotypes. In this study, we developed a PNA probe-mediated multiplex real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) assay using the peptide nucleic acid (PNA) probe, which is known to be stable to nucleotide mutation and that could specifically detect the all FMDV serotype A, FMDVA Yeoncheon strain which was occurred in Korea in 2017, and FMDV A viruses shown 96% similarity with FMDVA/Yeoncheon strain, at the same time. Therefore, It is believed that the newly introduced FMDVA will be effectively diagnosed using the PNA probe multiplex RT-PCR developed in this study, and ultimately contribute to the prevention of FMD.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Emergency Medicine
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.449-454
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• 2018

Objective: The SAFARI score was introduced to assess the risk of convulsive seizure during admission for aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage in 2017. This study was conducted to determine whether the SAFARI score derived from the afore-mentioned study could be applied to patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage in Korea. Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of patients who were diagnosed with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage from March 2013 to October 2017. Patients' age, sex, blood pressure, pulse rate, body temperature, Glasgow-Coma Scale, Hunt-Hess scale, modified Fisher grade, size of ruptured aneurysm, surgery type, transfusion, and SAFARI score were compared between the seizure and non-seizure groups. The area under the receiver operator characteristic curves was calculated to evaluate the predictive ability for seizure during admission. Logistic regression analysis was used to analyze predictive factors for seizure during admission. Results: A total of 220 patients were included. Ninety-seven (44.1%) were male and 123 (55.9%) were female. The mean age of the patients was 65.8 years old (range, 56-75). The area under the curve of the SAFARI score for predicting seizure was 0.813. The SAFARI score was the only significant predictor of seizure during admission, while other factors were not statistically significant upon logistic regression analysis. Conclusion: The SAFARI score could be used for predicting seizure during admission in patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage.

• Journal of the Architectural Institute of Korea Planning & Design
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• v.34 no.12
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• pp.65-76
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• 2018

Due to the rapid demographic and structural changes, Korea has faced a variety of social issues and quickly entered the aged society since the 2000s. In order deal with this reality, diverse types of welfare policies are emerging in the society as a whole. The government began to supply domestic public silver housing in 2016 to provide against the quickly growing aged society and now, the government is planning to supply approximately 50,000 housing by 2022 for quantitative growth of aged society, by selecting 1st and 2nd designated areas for the project additionally. This public retirement(silver) housing combines 'space' with 'service'. The lower floors are a public silver welfare Facilities and the upper floors are a housing spaces. This type of housing is to deal with requirements of rental housing residents by combining physical space with supporting service. Based on barrier-free design, the complex and unit house have safety handles and alarm bells in the bathroom, undulating washstands, bathroom sliding doors, corridor safety handles, and emergency safety exit lamps in each housing unit so the aged and the disabled can use easily and conveniently. Also, hand rails are installed and stepped pulleys are removed to promote convenience. Currently, the government is planning to increase the supply, focusing on low-income groups, such as beneficiaries of national basic livelihood and the working poor. Recognizing that the public retirement(silver) housing project is at its early stage, this study examined satisfaction, based on evaluations of real residents. This study aimed to obtain more empirical research data and apply them to public retirement(silver) house space analysis. For analysis, this study targeted Wirye public retirement(silver) housing and Magnolia public retirement(silver) housing that are in operation, and literature review, previous research review, and field survey were conducted to examine the present state. Using the questionnaires consisting of four large classification items; Block Layout, Housing Unit, Welfare Facilities, and Barrier-free Design, and sub-details, a survey was conducted to analyze residents' satisfaction. In conclusion, it is anticipated that this study would serve as basic research data about public retirement(silver) housing to increase continuously in future by analyzing public retirement(silver) housing spaces, on the basis of the analyzed data.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.31-46
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• 2021

In South Korea, there is a growing domestic need for a biotope map which contains ecological and environmental geographic information of a city. After the production of a Urban Ecological Maps(biotope map) by the Seoul metropolitan government in 2000, Natural Environment Conservation Act was revised in 2017 to make it mandatory for a local government to draw up its own urban ecological map. The aim of the present study was to find out ways to utilize an urban ecological map as a mean of communication between natural environment planning and urban planning sectors in a preliminary stage before introducing a big framework of 'environmental and ecological planning.' The northern area of Incheon metropolitan city was selected as the target area for this study. The major research content includes a comparative analysis of special-purpose zones, urban planning zones, restricted development zones, and conservation forests with focus on biotope types and Grades 1 of 'Biotope Type Assessment.' Farmland biotopes and forest biotopes within an area designated as an urban zone (residential, commercial and industrial zones) need to be redesignated as a zone which can conserve them. Especially considering a high possibility of damage to a large scale of natural green areas, these areas need to be readjusted immediately. If the entire area designated as an urban planning zone is to be developed, it is likely to cause serious damage to natural biotopes in the area (56.2%), including farmland biotope (30.4%), forest biotope (15.0%) and grassland biotope (10.8%), and thus, readjustment is needed. In case of a conservation forest, as it can possibly be damaged by the designation of special-purpose zones, it is necessary to match the designation of conservation forests or a special-purpose zones with their biotope types. In conclusion, we present a variety of thematic maps for utilization of an urban ecological map and propose a phase-specific environmental and ecological plan. Phase 1 is the establishment of a urban plan in consideration of ecological status; Phase 2 is the independent establishment of an environmental and ecological plan by an environment department; Phase 3 is an integrated management of ecological planning system and urban planning system.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.228-235
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• 2021

Backgroud: Ginsenoside compound K (GK) is a major metabolite of protopanaxadiol-type ginsenosides and has remarkable anticancer activities in vitro and in vivo. This work used an ionic cross-linking method to entrap GK within O-carboxymethyl chitosan (OCMC) nanoparticles (Nps) to form GK-loaded OCMC Nps (GK-OCMC Nps), which enhance the aqueous solubility and stability of GK. Methods: The GK-OCMC Nps were characterized using several physicochemical techniques, including x-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, zeta potential analysis, and particle size analysis via dynamic light scattering. GK was released from GK-OCMC Nps and was conducted using the dialysis bag diffusion method. The effects of GK and GK-OCMC Nps on PC3 cell viability were measured by using the 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2-H-tetrazolium bromide assay. Fluorescent technology based on Cy5.5-labeled probes was used to explore the cellular uptake of GK-OCMC Nps. Results: The GK-OCMC NPs had a suitable particle size and zeta potential; they were spherical with good dispersion. In vitro drug release from GK-OCMC NPs was pH dependent. Moreover, the in vitro cytotoxicity study and cellular uptake assays indicated that the GK-OCMC Nps significantly enhanced the cytotoxicity and cellular uptake of GK toward the PC3 cells. GK-OCMC Nps also significantly promoted the activities of both caspase-3 and caspase-9. Conclusion: GK-OCMC Nps are potential nanocarriers for delivering hydrophobic drugs, thereby enhancing water solubility and permeability and improving the antiproliferative effects of GK.