• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.375-387
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• 2012

The objective of this study is investigation of contamination levels and assessment of health risk effects of heavy metals in herbal pills. 31 Items and 93 samples were obtained for this investigation from major herbal medicine producing areas, herbal markets and on-line supermarkets from Jan to Jun in 2010. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer method was conducted for the quantitative analysis of Pb, Cd and As. In addition, the mercury analyzer system was conducted for that of Hg without sample digestion. The average contents of heavy metals in samples were as follows : 0.87 mg/kg for Pb, 0.08 mg/kg for Cd, 2.87 mg/kg for As and 0.16 mg/kg for Hg, respectively. In addition, the average contents of heavy metals in different parts of plants, including cortex, fructus, herba, radix, seed, algae and others were 0.63 mg/kg, 3.94 mg/kg, 1.42 mg/kg, 1.05 mg/kg, 0.16 mg/kg, 22.31 mg/kg and 10.17 mg/kg, respectively. After the estimations of dietary exposure, the acceptable daily intake (ADI), the average daily dose (ADD), the provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI) and the relative hazard of heavy metals were evaluated. As the results, the relative hazards compared to PTWI in samples were below the recommended standard of JECFA as Pb 3.1%, Cd 0.9%, Hg 0.5%. Cancer risks through slope factor (SF) by Ministry of Environment Republic Korea and Environmental Protection Agency was $4.24{\times}10^{-7}$ for Pb and $3.38{\times}10^{-4}$ for As (assuming that the total arsenic content was equal to the inorganic arsenic). Based on our results, possible Pb-induced cancer risks in herbal pills according to parts used including cortex, fructus, herba, radix, seed, algae and others were $1.95{\times}10^{-7}$, $1.45{\times}10^{-6}$, $2.14{\times}10^{-7}$, $6.27{\times}10^{-7}$, $1.99{\times}10^{-8}$, $3.61{\times}10^{-7}$ and $9.64{\times}10^{-8}$, respectively. Possible As-induced cancer risks in herbal pills by parts used including cortex, fructus, herba, radix, seed, algae and others were $1.54{\times}10^{-5}$, $7.24{\times}10^{-5}$, $1.23{\times}10^{-4}$, $2.02{\times}10^{-5}$, $3.25{\times}10^{-6}$, $2.18{\times}10^{-3}$ and $5.67{\times}10^{-6}$ respectively. Taken together, these results indicate that the majority of samples except for some samples with relative high contents of heavy metals were safe.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.243-251
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• 2020

In this study, we investigated pesticide residues in 207 agricultural products distributed by direct trade in the northern area of Gyeonggi Province. A total of 94 general agricultural products and 113 eco-friendly agricultural products collected from local grocers and cooperative stores were analyzed by multiresidue method for 263 pesticides using GC (gas chromatography)/ECD (electron capture detector), GC/NPD (nitrogen phosphorus detector), GC-MS/MS (tandem mass spectrometry), LC (liquid chromatography)/PDA (photodiode array detector), LC/FLD (fluorescence detector), LC-MS/MS. All samples showing pesticide residues were general agricultural products collected from local food stores. The pesticide residue levels of 14 samples (6.8%) were below the maximum residue limits (MRLs) and one of them (0.5%) exceeded the MRLs. Sixteen pesticides were detected from samples of the following produce items: spinach, young cabbage, perilla leaves, mallow, cucumber, chives and water dropwort. The safety of the detected pesticides was assessed by monitoring the daily intake estimate (EDI) and the daily intake allowance (ADI) based on the amount of pesticides detected. The ADI percentage range (the ratio of EDI to ADI) was 0.0134-61.6259% and there was no health risk connected with consuming agricultural products in which pesticide residues were detected.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.308-328
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• 2010

As the older adult period $({\geq}65y)$ is increasing, it is needed to investigate the trend of aging-dependent anthropomeric index and nutrient intake, and establish the more specific dietary guide for the different stages of aging period. To find the difference in nutrient intake among the Koreans aged 50-64, 65-74 and 75 years and older, and also any characteristics of dwellers in longevity area, we recruited 1,083 subjects (385 male and 698 female) aged 50-95 years (mean age, 71.3 yrs) living in Kugoksoondam area (Kurye, Goksung, Soonchang and Damyang counties), known as a longevity-belt region in Jeonlaprovince, Korea. We measured some anthropometric index and collected 2 day-dietary record. Nutrient intakes were analyzed by using DW24 program. The mean height and weight of subjects aged 75 years and older were lower than Korean national reference. BMI and obesity $({\geq}25kg/m^2)$ prevalence were significantly decreasing with aging. Underweight $(BMI<18.5kg/m^2)$ prevalence was also increasing with aging, especially in males, and it was slightly higher than national average, but similar to that in some other rural area. Obesity prevalence of male subjects was lower compared to national prevalence, but abdominal obesity prevalence $(waist{\geq}80cm)$ was very high in females (about 89%). In both genders, the average proportional contribution of carbohydrate, protein and fat to energy intake was not different between 65-74 years and 75 years and older. On overall, nutrient intake and quality of diet of females were inferior to those of males so that many of females aged 75 years and older assumed to be at risk of malnourished status. Fiber, folate and vitamin E intakes were substantially higher compared to those in 2007 KNHNES and other some studies in rural area. While almost nutrient %EAR was significantly decreased with aging in females, there was no significant difference in %EAR for protein, vitamin A, $B_1$, $B_6$, $B_{12}$, niacin, Ca and Zn between 65-74 years and 75 years and older in males. Vitamin $B_2$ for male aged 50-64 years, vitamin $B_2$ and Ca for male aged 65 years and over and female aged 50-74 years, and vitamin $B_2$, vitamin C, Ca and folate intake for female aged 75 years and older were assessed to be at risk to undernutrition based on the prevalence of intake below EAR. MAR of 13 nutrients and the number of nutrients consuming below EAR were significantly decreasing with aging in both genders, however, the number of nutrients of INQ < 1 and the average mini-nutritional assessment score were not significantly different between 65-74 years and 75 years and older. Taken together, decreasing tendency of nutrients intake and the quality of diet with aging was more evident in females than in males, and it is unique that our subjects consumed substantially higher fiber, folate and vitamin E compared to not only urban but also some other rural areas.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.666-677
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• 2019

In order to understand the distribution of organic matter and heavy metal concentrations in the surface sediments of fishery resources protection areas (FRPAs), we measured the grain size, ignition loss (IL), chemical oxygen demand (COD), acid volatile sulfide (AVS), and concentrations of heavy metals (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Pb, and Zn) in the surface sediments collected at 54 stations of 5 FRPAs (Gamak Bay, Yeoja Bay, Deukryang Bay, Wando coast, and Youngkwang coast) in the southwestern coast of Korea in February 2017. The surface sediments consisted of fine sediment such as mud, with 2.9~8.8Ø (7.4±0.1Ø) of mean grain size. The average concentrations of IL, COD, and AVS in the sediments were 4.63±0.96 %, 13.0±3.1 mgO₂/g·dry, and 0.092±0.124 mgS/g·dry, respectively, and were lower for sediments from the Youngkwang coast than those from other FRPAs. The average concentrations of heavy metals in the sediment were 7.5±0.9 mg/kg for As, 0.04±0.02 mg/kg for Cd, 70.2±9.7 mg/kg for Cr, 15.3±2.8 mg/kg for Cu, 3.3±0.5 % for Fe, 0.014±0.003 mg/kg for Hg, 25.0±6.0 mg/kg for Pb, and 99±14 mg/kg for Zn, respectively, and were relatively higher for sediments in the inner bays than those from the outer bays and coasts. Based on the assessment of sediment samples using the sediment quality guidelines (SQGs), the pollutant load index (PLI), and the ecological risk index (ERI), the surface sediments of FRPAs in the southwestern coast of Korea do not appear to be polluted by heavy metals, suggesting that the heavy metal concentrations in the sediments would not adversely impact aquatic and benthic organisms.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.549-556
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• 2017

This study compared the spatial scattered dose distribution according to whether the recently developed radiation shielding is used or not in order to understand the spatial scattered dose distribution of C-arm. The horizontal side distribution increased by $30^{\circ}$ in the interval of the radius 50 cm on the height of 95 cm based on the head of the patient, and it was measured by increasing $30^{\circ}$ with the interval of 50 cm in the vertical side of each horizontal side. In the same method, the radiation shielding was installed and measured. The result of measurement shows that the horizontal side of 50 cm distance was $0^{\circ}$, $90^{\circ}$ and $180^{\circ}$, was $1.77{\pm}0.12$, $1.90{\pm}0.13$, $2.12{\pm}0.14$, and $2.69{\pm}0.15mSv/h$ in the $270^{\circ}$ direction, and was $1.59{\pm}0.12$, $0.99{\pm}0.09$, $1.47{\pm}0.11$, and $1.37{\pm}0.11mSv/h$ after the use of the radiation shielding. In addition, the vertical distribution in horizontal direction $90^{\circ}$ with 50 cm distance was $30^{\circ}$, $60^{\circ}$, $120^{\circ}$, was $3.85{\pm}0.18$, $9.15{\pm}0.28$, $10.82{\pm}0.31$, and $5.40{\pm}0.22mSv/h$ in $150^{\circ}$, and was $2.03{\pm}0.13$, $4.32{\pm}0.19$, $2.76{\pm}0.16$, and $1.92{\pm}0.13mSv/h\;mR/h$ after the use of the radiation shielding. Both direction showed decrease according to the use of the radiation shielding. Therefore, radiation related workers who work in operating rooms should recognize the spatial scattered dose distribution exactly and need to try to prevent the risk of radiation exposure with proper protective measures.

• The Journal of Korean Society for Radiation Therapy
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• v.30 no.1_2
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• pp.35-40
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• 2018

Purpose : The range of force differs from the size of proton energy used in our hospital. The compensator enables to change energy size based on distal thickness which also makes changes in dose rate. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of changing the thickness of compensator distal on dose range and beam on time. Subject and Methodology : Five low energy patients who have received proton therapy were selected as subjects for this study. Beam on was checked for the selected patients during the existing therapy. After then, the thickness of distal of compensator was increased by 2 cm up to 14 cm through proton therapy plan system(TPS) for comparative analysis. For the evaluation of dose range, the value of the target's conformity index(CI) and the maximum dose of rear side target's organ at risk(OAR) were compared. Furthermore, to evaluate the effect of therapy time, beam on time was compared by making compensator distal in each thickness. Result : The result of homogeneity index and conformity index of the increased compensator distal showed the same level in all patients. The comparison results of OAR of target rear side showed 7 cGy at spine cord of abdomen at maximum, 88 cGy at eyeball's RT lens, 391 cGy at RT lens of nasal cavity 51 cGy at trachea of the mediastinum, and 661 cGy at a small bowl of the pelvis. The comparison results of the beam on time showed a reduction from 126 seconds to 62 seconds for the abdomen, from 105 seconds to 37 seconds for the eyeball, from 187 seconds to 134 seconds for nasal cavity, from 100 seconds to 40 seconds for mediastinum, from 440 seconds to 118 seconds for the pelvis. Conclusion : The research result showed that as the distal thickness of compensator increased, the size of energy increased. In addition, beam on decreased due to the increase of dose rate. It is expected that the result would help reduce the treatment time and increase the convenience of patients if it is applied to liver patients who need respiratorygated therapy and pediatric patients. However, distal penumbra increased as the size energy increased. Therefore, in treating cases where OAR is in the vicinity of the target rear side, the influence of penumbra should be taken into account in adjusting thickness level of the compensator in proton therapy plan.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.59-65
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• 2005

This study was performed to estimate the soil loss on a national scale and grade regions with the potential risk of soil erosion. Universal soil loss equation (USLE) for rainfall and runoff erosivity factors (R), cover management factors (C) and support practice factors (P) and revised USLE for soil erodibility factors (K) and topographic factors (LS) were used. To estimate the soil loss, the whole nation was divided into 21,337 groups according to city county, soil phase and land use type. The R factors were high in the southern coast of Gyeongnam and Jeonnam and part of the western coast of Gyeonggi and low in the inland and eastern coast of Gyeongbuk. The K factors were higher in the regions located on the lower streams of rivers and the plain lands of the western coast of Chungnam and Jeonbuk. The average slope of upland areas in Pyeongchang-gun was the steepest of 30.1%. The foot-slope areas from the Taebaek Mountains to the Sobaek Mountains had steep uplands. Total soil loss of Korea was estimated as $50{\times}10^6Mg$ in 2004. The potential risk of soil erosion in upland was the severest in Gyeongnam and the amount of soil erosion was the greatest in Jeonnam. The regions in which annual soil loss was estimated over $50Mg\;ha^{-1}$ were graded as "the very severe" and their acreage was $168{\times}10^3ha$ in 2004. The soil erosion maps of city/county of Korea were made based on digital soil maps with 1:25,000 scale.

• Korean Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.12-23
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• 2023

The goal of international development projects is to assist sustainable development in recipient countries through foreign aid from donor countries. However, despite the need for both countries to negotiate and work together from the initial stages to maintain sustainability after the project, clear guidelines or standards have not been established. Additionally, despite the need for donor countries, which are relatively advanced, to understand the situation of recipient countries, many projects are donor-centric and fail to prioritize the value of sustainability. Therefore, this study extracted economic, social, and environmental risks that threaten sustainability through literature review and proposed a sustainability framework based on these criteria. To validate framework, actual international development cases conducted by advanced donor countries such as Australia, the United States, and Japan, in collaboration with South Korea, were analyzed by applying content analysis with the reports, which covers the overall contents from the planning stage to the operation stage. Analysis of sustainability perspectives focused on economy, society and the environment, advanced donor countries emphasized (1) the importance of pre-assessment, (2) the need for coordination with the local population and communities despite the existence of donor-specific values, and (3) addressing economic considerations such as pre-operational and maintenance costs, social communication with the local population, and environmental considerations starting from the initial stages of construction regarding the treatment of pollutants as values to be improved. Compared to other advanced donor countries, the Republic of Korea should also focus on consultation with local residents to achieve social integration, and improve sustainability by deployment the managers in local sites for better negotiation.The proposed framework in this study will serve as a tool to enhance communication among the countries and the locals, with the expectation of increasing project efficiency and sustainability.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.54 no.5
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• pp.621-629
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• 2016

Recently, the researches on quantitative structure activity relationship (QSAR) for describing toxicities or activities of chemicals based on chemical structural characteristics have been widely carried out in order to estimate the toxicity of chemicals in multiuse facilities. Because the toxicity of chemicals are explained by various kinds of molecular descriptors, an important step for QSAR model development is how to select significant molecular descriptors. This research proposes a statistical selection of significant molecular descriptors and a new QSAR model based on partial least square (PLS). The proposed QSAR model is applied to estimate the logarithm of partition coefficients (log P) of 130 polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and lethal concentration ($LC_{50}$) of 14 PCBs, where the prediction accuracies of the proposed QSAR model are compared to a conventional QSAR model provided by OECD QSAR toolbox. For the selection of significant molecular descriptors that have high correlation with molecular descriptors and activity information of the chemicals of interest, correlation coefficient (r) and variable importance of projection (VIP) are applied and then PLS model of the selected molecular descriptors and activity information is used to predict toxicities and activity information of chemicals. In the prediction results of coefficient of regression ($R^2$) and prediction residual error sum of square (PRESS), the proposed QSAR model showed improved prediction performances of log P and $LC_{50}$ by 26% and 91% than the conventional QSAR model, respectively. The proposed QSAR method based on computational toxicology can improve the prediction performance of the toxicities and the activity information of chemicals, which can contribute to the health and environmental risk assessment of toxic chemicals.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.53 no.3
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• pp.300-306
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• 2010

Purpose : Recent changes in the population structure of Korea, such as rapid decline in birth rate and exponential increase in old-aged people, prompted us to prepare a new health improvement program in children and adolescents. Methods : We reviewed current health screenings applied for children and adolescents in Korea and other developed countries. We collected and reviewed population-based data focused on mortality and morbidity, and other health-related statistical data. We generated problem lists in current systems and developed new principles. Results : Current health screening programs for children and adolescents were usually based on laboratory tests, such as blood tests, urinalysis, and radiologic tests. Almost all of these programs lacked evidence based on population data or controlled studies. In most developed countries, laboratory tests are used only very selectively, and they usually focus on primary prevention of diseases and health improvement using anticipatory guidance. In Korea, statistics on mortality and morbidity reveal that diseases related to lifestyle, such as obesity and metabolic syndrome, are increasing in all generations. Conclusion : We recommend a periodic health screening program with anticipatory guidance, which is focused on growth and developmental surveillance in infants and children. We no longer recommend old programs that are based on laboratory and radiologic examinations. School health screening programs should also be changed to meet current health issues, such as developing a healthier lifestyle to minimize risk behaviors—or example, good mental health, balanced nutrition, and more exercise.