• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.60 no.3
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• pp.446-451
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• 2022

In this study, to improve capacity and cycle stability, the pitch coated nano silicon sheets/CNT composites were prepared through electrostatic bonding of nano silicon sheets and CNT. Silica sheets were synthesized by hydrolyzing TEOS on the crystal planes of NaCl, and then nano silicon sheets were prepared by using magnesiothermic reduction method. To fabricate the nano silicon sheets/CNT composites, the negatively charged CNT after the acid treatment was used to assemble the positively charged nano silicon sheets modified with APTES. THF as a solvent was used in the coating process of PFO pitch. The physical properties of the prepared anode composites were analysed by FE-SEM, XRD and EDS. The electrochemical performances of the synthesized anode composites were performed by current charge/discharge, rate performances, differential capacity and EIS tests in the electrolyte LiPF₆ dissolve solvent (EC:DMC:EMC = 1:1:1 vol%). It was found that the anode material with high capacity and stability could be synthesized when high composition of silicon and conductivity of CNT were used. The pitch coated nano silicon sheets/CNT anode composites showed initial discharge capacity of 2344.9 mAh/g and the capacity retention ratio of 81% after 50 cycles. The electrochemical property of pitch coated anode material was more improved than that of the nano silicon sheets/CNT composites.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.105-112
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• 2022

For the commercialization of all-solid-state batteries, it is essential to develop a solid electrolyte that can be operable at room temperature, and it is necessary to manufacture all-solid-state batteries by adopting materials with high ionic conductivity. Therefore, in order to increase the ionic conductivity of the existing oxide-based solid, Li₇La₃Zr₂O₁₂ (LLZO) doped with heterogeneous elements was used as a filler material (Al and Nb-LLZO). An electrolyte with garnet-type inorganic filler doped was prepared. The binary metal element and the polymer mixture of poly(ethylene oxide)/poly(propylene carbonate) (PEO/PPC) (1:1) are uniformly manufactured at a ratio of 1:2.4, The electrochemical performance was tested at room temperature and 60 ℃ to verify room temperature operability of the all-solid-state battery. The prepared composite electrolyte shows improved ionic conductivity derived from co-doping of the binary elements, and the PPC helps to improve the ionic conductivity, thereby increasing the capacity of all-solid-state batteries at room temperature as well as 60 ℃. It was confirmed that the capacity retention rate was improved.

• The Journal of Advanced Prosthodontics
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.202-213
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• 2023

PURPOSE. This prospective clinical study was conducted to evaluate the clinical usefulness of the freely detachable zirconia ball- and spring-retained implant prosthesis (BSRP) through a comparative analysis of screw- and cement-retained implant prosthesis (SCRP). MATERIALS AND METHODS. A multi-center, randomized, prospective clinical study evaluating the clinical usefulness of the detachable zirconia ball- and spring-retained implant prostheses was conducted. Sixty-four implant prostheses in 64 patients were examined. Periodic observational studies were conducted at 0, 3, 6, and 12 months after delivery of the implant prosthesis. Factors such as implant success rate, marginal bone resorption, periodontal pocket depth, plaque and bleeding index, and prosthetic complications were evaluated, respectively. RESULTS. During the 1-year observation period, all implants survived without functional problems and clinical mobility, showing a 100% implant success rate. Marginal bone resorption was significantly higher in the SCRP group than in the BSRP group only at the time of implant prosthesis delivery (P = .043). In all observation periods, periodontal pocket depth was slightly higher in the BSRP group than in the SCRP group, but there was no significant difference (P > .05). The modified plaque index (mPI) scores of both groups were moderate. Higher ratio of a score 2 in modified sulcus bleeding index (mBI) was observed in the BSRP group in the 6- and 12-months observation. CONCLUSION. Within the limitations of this study, the newly developed zirconia ball- and spring-retained implant prosthesis could be considered as an applicable and predictable treatment method along with the existing screw- and cement-retained prosthesis.

• Journal of Practical Agriculture & Fisheries Research
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.50-62
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• 2004

Tuber yield and content of general component and diosgenin which is a main bioactive property were investigated in order to determine the growth characteristics of round typed yam(Dioscorea opposita L.) and the potential of artificial culture at Suwon, Korea. Tubers of round yam was initiated to form at 60 days after planting and then enlargement of tubers lasted by 160 days after planting. Compared to short typed yam(108g), tuber weight of round yam was higher(127g) on the basis of dry weight at 200 days after planting. In comparison of general component between round yam and short yam, protein of round yam(3.62%) was higher than short yam(2.10%). Water content in round yam(64.5%) was lower in short yam(79.4%), indicating a higher dry weight ratio of round yam. Hardness of round yam was 2787.6 while short yam showed about two times higher hardness(4946.9). Lightness was higher in round yam(77.4). In tuber extracts analysis, diosgenin content was respectively 3.32% in round yam and 2.61% in short yam.

• Journal of Veterinary Science
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.44.1-44.17
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• 2023

Background: Antibiotic resistance is a significant public health concern around the globe. Antimicrobial peptides exhibit broad-spectrum and efficient antibacterial activity with an added advantage of low drug resistance. The higher water content and 3D network structure of the hydrogels are beneficial for maintaining antimicrobial peptide activity and help to prevent degradation. The antimicrobial peptide released from hydrogels also hasten the local wound healing by promoting epithelial tissue regeneration and granulation tissue formation. Objective: This study aimed at developing sodium alginate based hydrogel loaded with a novel antimicrobial peptide Chol-37(F34-R) and to investigate the characteristics in vitro and in vivo as an alternative antibacterial wound dressing to treat infectious wounds. Methods: Hydrogels were developed and optimized by varying the concentrations of crosslinkers and subjected to various characterization tests like cross-sectional morphology, swelling index, percent water contents, water retention ratio, drug release and antibacterial activity in vitro, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa infected wound mice model in vivo. Results: The results indicated that the hydrogel C proved superior in terms of cross-sectional morphology having uniformly sized interconnected pores, a good swelling index, with the capacity to retain a higher quantity of water. Furthermore, the optimized hydrogel has been found to exert a significant antimicrobial activity against bacteria and was also found to prevent bacterial infiltration into the wound site due to forming an impermeable barrier between the wound bed and external environment. The optimized hydrogel was found to significantly hasten skin regeneration in animal models when compared to other treatments in addition to strong inhibitory effect on the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines (interleukin-1β and tumor necrosis factor-α). Conclusions: Our results suggest that sodium alginate -based hydrogels loaded with Chol-37(F34-R) hold the potential to be used as an alternative to conventional antibiotics in treating infectious skin wounds.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2022.10a
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• pp.296-296
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• 2022

This study was investigated to compare the milling and physicochemical characteristics of six Korean wheat cultivars (Keumkang, KK; Jokyung, JK; Goso, GS; Joongmo2008, JM; Baekkang, BK; Saekeumkang, SKK) and five foreign wheat classes (Australian standard white wheat, ASW; Australian hard, AH; US northern spring, NS; US hard red winter, HRW; Soft wheat, SW). Korea and foreign wheat grains were milled using a Buhler MLU-202. Flour moisture, ash, protein, gluten, sedimentation, particle size, solvent retention capacity (SRC) and dough properties of flour were analyzed. Results showed that the hard wheats had a greater total flour yield and reduction fraction yield than the soft wheats regardless of the country. However, there were in the milling characteristics between the US and Korean soft wheats. GS, a soft wheat in Korea, had the lowest flour yield (59.6%) and the highest bran fraction yield (21.4%). The particle sizes of flour by milling fraction were B1>B2>B3 for the largest, and the R1〈R2〈R3 for the smallest. Particle size, ash, protein contents and the values of lactic acid SRC showed highly correlated with flour yield. The gluten-performance-index (GPI) is the ratio of the lactic acid SRC value to the sum of sodium carbonate and sucrose SRC values, and it has been used as a quality indicator for overall performance potential of flour. GPI values differed depending on the wheat variety or class, JM (0.82) was the highest value, and SKK (0.56) and SW (0.59) were low. The curve pattern of the Mixolab result also gives a quality indication of the flour sample. JM and NS flour had similar pattern at water absorption and gluten strength parameters and BK and HRW had similar viscosity patterns. These results will enable further study for blending Korean wheat cultivar to improve the flour quality.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.23 no.7
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• pp.720-731
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• 2022

Objective: We aimed to develop and test a deep learning algorithm (DLA) for fully automated measurement of the volume and signal intensity (SI) of the liver and spleen using gadoxetic acid-enhanced hepatobiliary phase (HBP)-magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and to evaluate the clinical utility of DLA-assisted assessment of functional liver capacity. Materials and Methods: The DLA was developed using HBP-MRI data from 1014 patients. Using an independent test dataset (110 internal and 90 external MRI data), the segmentation performance of the DLA was measured using the Dice similarity score (DSS), and the agreement between the DLA and the ground truth for the volume and SI measurements was assessed with a Bland-Altman 95% limit of agreement (LOA). In 276 separate patients (male:female, 191:85; mean age ± standard deviation, 40 ± 15 years) who underwent hepatic resection, we evaluated the correlations between various DLA-based MRI indices, including liver volume normalized by body surface area (LV_BSA), liver-to-spleen SI ratio (LSSR), MRI parameter-adjusted LSSR (aLSSR), LSSR × LV_BSA, and aLSSR × LV_BSA, and the indocyanine green retention rate at 15 minutes (ICG-R15), and determined the diagnostic performance of the DLA-based MRI indices to detect ICG-R15 ≥ 20%. Results: In the test dataset, the mean DSS was 0.977 for liver segmentation and 0.946 for spleen segmentation. The Bland-Altman 95% LOAs were 0.08% ± 3.70% for the liver volume, 0.20% ± 7.89% for the spleen volume, -0.02% ± 1.28% for the liver SI, and -0.01% ± 1.70% for the spleen SI. Among DLA-based MRI indices, aLSSR × LV_BSA showed the strongest correlation with ICG-R15 (r = -0.54, p < 0.001), with area under receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.932 (95% confidence interval, 0.895-0.959) to diagnose ICG-R15 ≥ 20%. Conclusion: Our DLA can accurately measure the volume and SI of the liver and spleen and may be useful for assessing functional liver capacity using gadoxetic acid-enhanced HBP-MRI.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.47 no.5
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• pp.627-637
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• 2023

Background: Damage to the healthy intestinal epithelial layer and regulation of the intestinal immune system, closely interrelated, are considered pivotal parts of the curative treatment for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Plant-based diets and phytochemicals can support the immune microenvironment in the intestinal epithelial barrier for a balanced immune system by improving the intestinal microecological balance and may have therapeutic potential in colitis. However, there have been only a few reports on the therapeutic potential of plant-derived exosome-like nanoparticles (PENs) and the underlying mechanism in colitis. This study aimed to assess the therapeutic effect of PENs from Panax ginseng, ginseng-derived exosome-like nanoparticles (GENs), in a mouse model of IBD, with a focus on the intestinal immune microenvironment. Method: To evaluate the anti-inflammatory effect of GENs on acute colitis, we treated GENs in Caco2 and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) -induced RAW 264.7 macrophages and analyzed the gene expression of proinflammatory cytokines and anti-inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-10 by real-time PCR (RT-PCR). Furthermore, we further examined bacterial DNA from feces and determined the alteration of gut microbiota composition in DSS-induced colitis mice after administration of GENs through 16S rRNA gene sequencing analysis. Result: GENs with low toxicity showed a long-lasting intestinal retention effect for 48 h, which could lead to effective suppression of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-α and IL-6 production through inhibition of NF-κB in DSS-induced colitis. As a result, it showed longer colon length and suppressed thickening of the colon wall in the mice treated with GENs. Due to the amelioration of the progression of DSS-induced colitis with GENs treatment, the prolonged survival rate was observed for 17 days compared to 9 days in the PBS-treated group. In the gut microbiota analysis, the ratio of Firmicutes/Bacteroidota was decreased, which means GENs have therapeutic effectiveness against IBD. Ingesting GENs would be expected to slow colitis progression, strengthen the gut microbiota, and maintain gut homeostasis by preventing bacterial dysbiosis. Conclusion: GENs have a therapeutic effect on colitis through modulation of the intestinal microbiota and immune microenvironment. GENs not only ameliorate the inflammation in the damaged intestine by downregulating pro-inflammatory cytokines but also help balance the microbiota on the intestinal barrier and thereby improve the digestive system.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.17 no.6
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• pp.588-597
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• 2016

In this study, we attempted to improve the biogas production efficiency by varying the mixing ratio of the mixed sludge of organic wastes in the improved single-phase anaerobic digestion process. The types of organic waste used in this study were raw sewage sludge, food wastewater leachate and livestock excretions. The biomethane potential was determined through the BMP test. The results showed that the biomethane potential of the livestock excretions was the highest at $1.55m^3CN4/kgVS$, and that the highest value of the composite sample, containing primary sludge, food waste leachate and livestock excretions at proportions of 50%, 30% and 20% respectively) was $0.43m^3CN4/kgVS$. On the other hand, the optimal mixture ratio of composite sludge in the demonstration plant was 68.5 (raw sludge) : 18.0 (food waste leachate) : 13.5 (livestock excretions), which was a somewhat different result from that obtained in the BMP test. This difference was attributed to the changes in the composite sludge properties and digester operating conditions, such as the retention time. The amount of biogas produced in the single-phase anaerobic digestion process was $2,514m^3/d$ with a methane content of 62.8%. Considering the value of $2,319m^3/d$ of biogas produced as its design capacity, it was considered that this process demonstrated the maximum capacity. Also, through this study, it was shown that, in the case of the anaerobic digestion process, the two-phase digestion process is better in terms of its stable tank operation and high efficiency, whereas the existing single-phase digestion process allows for the improvement of the digestion efficiency and performance.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.59-64
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• 2013

Using $Na_2CO_3$ and $MeSO_4$ (Me = Ni, Co and Mn) as starting materials, the precursor of $[Ni_{0.6}Co_{0.2}Mn_{0.2}]CO_3$ has been synthesized by carbonate co-precipitation. The precursor was mixed with $Li_2CO_3$, and calcined at 750, 850, and$950^{\circ}C$ in air. Effect of calcinations temperature on characteristics of $Li[Ni_{0.6}Co_{0.2}Mn_{0.2}]O_2$ cathode materials was investigated. The structure and characteristics of $Li[Ni_{0.6}Co_{0.2}Mn_{0.2}]O_2$ were determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and electrochemical measurements. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) results show that the intensity ratio of $I_{(003)}/I_{(104)}$ increased and the R-factor ratio decreased with the increase of calcinations temperature. And Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) result show that the primary particle size increased. Especially, the $Li[Ni_{0.6}Co_{0.2}Mn_{0.2}]O_2$ calcined at $950^{\circ}C$ for 24 H shows excellent electrochemical performances with reversible specific capacity of $165.3mAhg^{-1}$ [cut-off voltage 2.5~4.3 V, 0.1 C($17mAhg^{-1}$)] and good capacity retention of 95.4% after 50th charge/discharge cycles[cut-off voltage 2.5~4.3 V, 1 C($170mAhg^{-1}$)].