• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.77.2-77.2
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• 2012

Infrared dark clouds(IRDCs) are believed to be the progenitors of massive stars and clusters. We obtained 350 and 850 ${\mu}m$ continuum maps of the IRDC G049.40-00.01 using SHARC-II on CSO. Twenty-one dense clumps were identified within G049.40-00.01 based on the 350 ${\mu}m$ continuum map with an angular resolution of about 9.6". We present submillimeter continuum maps and report physical properties of the clumps. The masses of clumps are from 50 to 600 solar mass. About 70% of the clumps are associated with bright 24 ${\mu}m$ emission sources indicating protostars. The most massive two clumps show enhanced, extended 4.5 ${\mu}m$ emission representing on-going star forming activity. The size-mass distribution of the clumps suggests that many of them are forming high-mass stars. G049.40-00.01 contains numerous objects in various evolutionary stages of star formation, from pre-stellar clumps to H II regions.

• BMB Reports
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.453-458
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• 1998

Human thrombopoietin (hTPO) was expressed to high levels in insect cells using the baculovirus expression system. Full-length hTPO cDNA containing a native signal peptide sequence was amplified by PCR from a human fetal liver cDNA library and cloned into the Autographa californica nuclear polyhedrosis virus (AcNPV) expression vector. Immunoblot analysis with antiserum against hTPO indicated that an approximately 55 kDa protein was produced in recombinant AcNPV infected insect cells. Recombinant hTPO was produced 4-fold higher in Trichoplusia ni (Tn5) cells than in Spodoptera frugiperda (Sf9) cells. with most of the hTPO produced in Tn5 cells secreted into the culture medium. Addition of tunicamycin in the culture medium resulted in the reduction of the size of hTPO to 35-38 kDa, and most of the protein remained within the cell. These results suggest that N-glycosylation of hTPO is required for the secretion of the protein into the culture medium in insect cells. hTPO produced in insect cells induced proliferation and maturation of megakaryocyte progenitors, indicating that it is in a biologically active form.

• BMB Reports
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• v.48 no.8
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• pp.427-428
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• 2015

Despite high interests on microenvironmental regulation of leukemic cells, little is known for bone marrow (BM) niche in leukemia patients. Our recent study on BMs of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients showed that the mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) are altered during leukemic conditions in a clinical course-dependent manner. Leukemic blasts caused reprogramming of transcriptomes in MSCs and remodeling of niche cross-talk, selectively suppressing normal primitive hematopoietic cells while supporting leukemogenesis and chemo-resistance. Notably, differences in BM stromal remodeling were correlated to heterogeneity in subsequent clinical courses of AML, i.e., low numbers of mesenchymal progenitors at initial diagnosis were correlated to complete remission for 5-8 years, and high contents of mesenchymal progenitor or MSCs correlated to early or late relapse, respectively. Thus, stromal remodeling by leukemic cell is an intrinsic part of leukemogenesis that can contribute to the clonal dominance of leukemic cells over normal hematopoietic cells, and can serve as a biomarker for prediction of prognosis. [BMB Reports 2015; 48(8): 427-428]

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2017.06a
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• pp.11-11
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• 2017

The most drought resistant among the five most important cereal crops, and a key dual-use (grain and biomass) crop in regions containing some of the world's most degraded soils, sorghum has inherent climate resilience that is likely to become more important under environmental conditions that are projected by many climate change models. The importance of sorghum might be further elevated by the development of productive genotypes that increase the extent and duration of soil cover beyond those of conventional annual crops, mitigating or even reversing losses of ecological capital through multiple crops from single plantings. Rich genetic and genomic resources have been developed to link Sorghum phenotypic diversity to its molecular basis, and in particular the genus has become a model for dissecting the molecular control of perenniality. Nature has made Sorghum perennial at least twice, and crosses between wild perennials and cultivated sorghums show the feasibility of developing genotypes with varying degrees of investment in perenniality while still providing harvestable food, feed, sugar and/or cellulose. Genetic analysis of progeny from these crosses is revealing the hereditary basis of traits related to ratooning and perenniality and providing diagnostic DNA markers. One perennial Sorghum species has adapted to continents and latitudes far beyond the reach of its progenitors, surviving stresses year after year that are only periodically experienced by conventional (annual) sorghum, and may also harbor novel alleles that may mitigate production challenges in conventional annual sorghums.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.42.1-42.1
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• 2017

We investigate the evolutionary properties of red supergiant stars (RSGs), using stellar evolution model of Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics (MESA). In this study, we calculate models with mass range of 9-39M_sun and several different convection parameters (e.g. mixing length, overshooting, and semiconvection) at SMC, LMC, Milky Way, and M31 metallicities. We compare the calculated evolutionary tracks with observed RSGs in SMC, LMC, Milky Way and M31, and discuss appropriate input physical parameters in model calculation. We find that a larger mixing length parameter is necessary for M31 metallicity to fit the positions of RSGs in H-R diagram, compared to lower metallicity environments. Theoretically predicted numbers of yellow supergiant stars (YSGs) are also compared with the observed population. We find that Ledoux models with semiconvection can better explain the number of YSGs. Finally, we investigate the final radius, final star mass, and final hydrogen envelope mass of RSGs and discussed the their properties as type II-P supernova progenitors.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.31.3-32
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• 2018

Supernovae (SNe) are well known as good cosmological distance probes owing to their brightness. Specifically, type Ia SNe contribute greatly to our understanding of acceleration of cosmic expansion. However, type IIP supernovae are the most common type of SNe and have been found out to a large redshift, so the application of these SNe as distance indicators is promising. IMSNG is a project for monitoring nearby galaxies (<50Mpc) to catch early light curves of transients and get inspections of their progenitors. The daily monitoring observation allows us to construct a dense light curve of SNe, too. In this talk, we present the light curves of two SNe IIP, SN 2014cx (NGC337) and SN 2017eaw (NGC6946), using our IMSNG data. A newly developed technique, the Photometric Color Method (PCM), employs only photometric data to estimate distances for SNe IIP. We present the distances to our targets measured through PCM and compare this to that of obtained via other methods.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.57 no.3
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• pp.101-109
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• 2014

The use of glucocorticoids (GCs) in the perinatal period is suspected of being associated with adverse effects on long-term neurodevelopmental outcomes for preterm infants. Repeated administration of antenatal GCs to mothers at risk of preterm birth may adversely affect fetal growth and head circumference. Fetal exposure to excess GCs during critical periods of brain development may profoundly modify the limbic system (primarily the hippocampus), resulting in long-term effects on cognition, behavior, memory, co-ordination of the autonomic nervous system, and regulation of the endocrine system later in adult life. Postnatal GC treatment for chronic lung disease in premature infants, particularly involving the use of dexamethasone, has been shown to induce neurodevelopmental impairment and increases the risk of cerebral palsy. In contrast to studies involving postnatal dexamethasone, long-term follow-up studies for hydrocortisone therapy have not revealed adverse effects on neurodevelopmental outcomes. In experimental studies on animals, GCs has been shown to impair neurogenesis, and induce neuronal apoptosis in the immature brains of newborn animals. A recent study has demonstrated that dexamethasone-induced hypomyelination may result from the apoptotic degeneration of oligodendrocyte progenitors in the immature brain. Thus, based on clinical and experimental studies, there is enough evidence to advice caution regarding the use of GCs in the perinatal period; and moreover, the potential long-term effects of GCs on brain development need to be determined.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.37 no.9
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• pp.685-690
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• 2014

Osteoclasts are large polykaryons that have the unique capacity to degrade bone and are generated by the differentiation of myeloid lineage progenitors. To identify the genes involved in osteoclast development, we performed microarray analysis, and we found that carboxypeptidase E (CPE), a prohormone processing enzyme, was highly upregulated in osteoclasts compared with their precursors, bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMMs). Here, we demonstrate a novel role for CPE in receptor activator of NF-${\kappa}B$ ligand (RANKL)-induced osteoclast differentiation. The overexpression of CPE in BMMs increases the formation of tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP)-positive multinuclear osteoclasts and the expression of c-Fos and nuclear factor of activated T cells c1 (NFATc1), which are key regulators in osteoclastogenesis. Furthermore, employing CPE knockout mice, we show that CPE deficiency attenuates osteoclast formation. Together, our data suggest that CPE might be an important modulator of RANKL-induced osteoclast differentiation.

• Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.57-71
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• 2006

We investigated the structural parameters of a sample of 30 dwarf galaxies(15 dEs and 15 dS0s) in the Virgo Cluster using i-band images from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 4. Among 28 galaxies for which surface brightness profiles were derived from ellipse fittings, 23 galaxies had a single component that was adequately described by a generalized $S\acute{e}rsic$ function with a shape parameter ranging from n=0.5 to 2, while 5 galaxies(2 dEs and 3 dS0s) had bulge and disk components that were fitted by a generalized $S\acute{e}rsic$ function and an exponential function, respectively. Since the majority of dwarf galaxies in the present sample had a single component, it seems likely that genuine dS0 galaxies that have disk and bulge components are quite rare in the Virgo Cluster. The similarity in structural parameters of genuine dS0 galaxies in the Virgo Cluster with those of Magellanic-type galaxies implies that the progenitors of dwarf lenticular galaxies in the Virgo Cluster were most likely Magellanic-type galaxies if dS0s are harassed late-type spirals.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.77.2-77.2
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• 2016

We present preliminary results of the analysis of chemical abundances for seven hypervelocity star (HVS) candidates. These objects are G and K dwarfs in the Galactic disk selected from the Sloan Extension for Galactic Understanding and Exploration. Unlike other HVSs discovered thus far, their stellar orbits and kinematics suggest that they do not originate in the Galactic center or in an accretion event. These factors imply yet-unknown mechanisms that give rise to these kinematically-extreme disk stars. In order to study in detail their progenitors and possible formation mechanisms, we obtained spectra of these stars at a resolving power of R~6000, with the Dual Imaging Spectrograph at the Apache Point Observatory. We derive the abundances of chemical elements, C, Mg, Ca, Ti, Cr, Fe, and Ba from the observed spectra, using MOOG. We compare them with the ones of typical Galactic disk stars and discuss discrepancies between them to search for clues to their origin.