• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.22 no.11
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• pp.25-35
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• 2006

This paper investigates the mechanical characteristics of reinforced lightweight soil (RLS) using waste fishing net. RLS used in this experiment consists of dredged soil taken from construction site of Busan New Port, cement, air foam and waste fishing net. Several series of laboratory tests were performed to compare behavior characteristics between RLS and unreinforced lightweight soil, in which the reinforced effect by waste fishing net on RLS was evaluated. The experimental results of RLS indicated that the stress-strain relationship and the unconfined compressive strength are strongly influenced by the content of waste fishing net. Compressive strength of RLS Increased with the increase in curing time and generally increased by adding waste fishing net, but the amount of increase in compressive strength was not proportional to the content of waste fishing net. In this test, the maximum increase in compressive strength was obtained at 0.25% content of waste fishing net. On the other hand, water content of RLS rapidly decreased up to 7 days of curing time and converged to constant value.

• Advances in concrete construction
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.163-181
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• 2022

To study the mechanical properties of steel reinforced recycled concrete (SRRC) filled circular steel tube columns under eccentric compression loads, this study presents a finite element model which can simulate the eccentrically compressed columns using ABAQUS software. The analytical model was established by selecting the reasonable nonlinear analysis theory and the constitutive relationship of materials in the columns. The influences of design parameters on the eccentric compressive performance of columns were also considered in detail, such as the diameter-thickness ratio of circular steel tube, replacement percentage of recycled coarse aggregate (RCA), slenderness ratio, eccentricity, recycled aggregate concrete (RAC) strength and steel strength and so on. The deformation diagram, stress nephogram and load-displacement curves of the eccentrically compressed columns were obtained and compared with the test results of specimens. The results show that although there is a certain error between the calculation results and the test results, the error is small, which shows the rationality on the numerical model of eccentrically compressed columns. The failure of the columns is mainly due to the symmetrical bending of the columns towards the middle compression zone, which is a typical compression bending failure. The eccentric bearing capacity and deformation capacity of columns increase with the increase of the strength of steel tube and profile steel respectively. Compared with profile steel, the strength of steel tube has a greater influence on the eccentric compressive performance of columns. Improving the strength of RAC is beneficial to the eccentric bearing capacity of columns. In addition, the eccentric bearing capacity and deformation capacity of columns decrease with the increase of replacement percentage of RCA. The section form of profile steel has little influence on the eccentric compression performance of columns. On this basis, the calculation formulas on the nominal eccentric bearing capacity of columns were also put forward and the results calculated by the proposed formulas are in good agreement with the test values.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.28 no.6D
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• pp.905-913
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• 2008

Recently, concrete tracks are introduced into high-speed railroads as an alternative to ballast tracks. Concrete tracks are superior to ballast tracks in the aspect of durability, maintenance and safety. However, deteriorated stiffness of railroad bed and settlement of soft ground induced by trapped or seepage water lead to problems in safety of train operation. In this research, flexural rigidity of concrete tracks was employed as an index of track displacement and a new seismic technique called FRACTAL (Flexural-Rigidity Assessment of Concrete Tracks by Antisymmetric Lamb Waves) method was proposed to delineate flexural rigidity of concrete tracks in a 2-D image. In this paper, to establish theoretical background, parametric research was performed using numerical simulations of stress-wave tests at concrete tracks. Feasibility of the FRACTAL technique was proved at a real concrete track for Korean high-speed trains. Validity of the FRACTAL technique was also verified by comparing the results of impulse-response tests performed at the same measurement array and the results of DC resistivity survey performed at a shoulder nearby the track.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Grassland and Forage Science
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• v.43 no.3
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• pp.168-176
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• 2023

Silicon (Si) has the potential to improve plant growth and stress tolerance. The study aimed to explore Si-involving plant responses and molecular characterization of different Si-responsive genes in alfalfa. In this study, the exogenous supplementation of Si enhanced plant growth, and biomass yield. Si-acquisition in alfalfa root and shoot was higher in Si-supplemented compared to silicon deficient (-Si) plants, implying Si-acquisition has beneficial on alfalfa plants. As a consequence, the quantum efficiency of photosystem II (Fv/Fm) was significantly increased in silicon-sufficient (+Si) plants. The quantitative gene expression analysis exhibited a significant upregulation of the Lsi1, Lsi2, Lsi3, NIP5;1, and NIP6;1 genes in alfalfa roots, while BOR1, BOR4, NIP2, and NIP3 showed no significant variation in their expression. The MEME results further noticed the association of four motifs related to the major intrinsic protein (MIP). The interaction analysis revealed that NIP5;1 and Lsi1 showed a shared gene network with NIP2, BOR1, and BOR4, and Lsi2, Lsi3 and NIP3-1, respectively. These results suggest that members of the major intrinsic proteins (MIPs) family especially Lsi1, Lsi2, Lsi3, NIP5;1, and NIP6;1 genes helped to pass water and other neutral solutes through the cell membrane and those played significant roles in Si uptake and transport in plants. Together, these insights might be useful for alfalfa breeding and genome editing approaches for alfalfa improvement.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.34 no.6
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• pp.640-648
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• 2023

The purpose of this study was to determine the inhibitory effect of heavy metals [Cd(II), Ni(II), and Zn(II)] on the growth of Rhodobacter species (Rhodobacter blasticus, Rhodobacter sphaeroides, and Rhodobacter capsulatus) and their potential use for Cd(II), Ni(II), and Zn(II) bioremoval from liquid media. The presence of toxic heavy metals prolonged the lag phase in growth and reduced biomass growth for all three Rhodobacter species at concentrations of Cd, Ni, and Zn above 10 mg/L. However, all three Rhodobacter species also had a relatively high specific growth rate against each toxic heavy metal stress test for concentrations below 20 mg/L and possessed a potential bioaccumulation ability. The removal efficiency by all strains was highest for Cd(II), followed by Ni(II), and lowest for Zn(II), with the removal efficiency of Cd(II) by Rhodobacter species being 66% or more. Among the three strains, R. blasticus showed a higher removal efficiency of Cd(II) and Ni(II) than R. capsulatus and R. sphaeroides. Results also suggest that the bio-removal processes of toxic heavy metal ions by Rhodobacter species involve both bioaccumulation (intracellular uptake) and biosorption (surface binding).

• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.51 no.6
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• pp.493-508
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• 2023

Round timber materials of 600 mm length, cut from large-cross-section round timber of red pine (Pinus densiflora S. et Z.) of 450 mm width and 4.2 m length, were prepared as the target of kiln drying in this study. After treating the target materials through end sealing (ES), end sealing - kerfing (ES-K), lateral sealing - end sealing - boring (LS-ES-B), or lateral sealing - partial end sealing (LS-PES), the effects of the treatment on the incidence of drying defects were determined. The target materials with exposed lateral surface and sealed cross surface were steamed at the initial temperature of 65℃ above the official pest control temperature of 56℃, followed by kiln drying toward the final temperature of 75℃. The target materials with sealed lateral surfaces, on the other hand, were dried at the initial temperature of 90℃ at almost the maximum temperature of conventional kiln drying, as there is no risk of early check formation caused by surface moisture evaporation. The final temperature was set at approximately 100℃. The drying time, taken for the target materials with initial moisture content of 70%-80% to reach the target moisture content of 19%, varied across treatment conditions. The measured drying time was 1,146 hours (approximately 48 days) for the timber with sealed cross surface and 745 hours (approximately 31 days) for the timber with sealed lateral surface, until the moisture content reached the target level. The formation of surface checks could not be prevented in the control and ES groups, but a definite preventive effect was obtained for the LS-ES-B and LS-PES groups.

• Design & Manufacturing
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.8-14
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• 2023

In this study, basic research was conducted on manufacturing technology of thick-walled light guide a component that controls the light source of automobile lamps. As a preliminary study for manufacturing the final injection molded parts, a model for analyzing the influence of micro patterns on light guides is presented. The optical characteristics of the light guide were analyzed according to the change of the curvature radius of the micro-optical pattern, and the injection molding characteristics of the light guide according to the change of injection molding conditions were analytically evaluated. It was confirmed that the luminance uniformity improves as the R value decreases for changes in the micro-pattern R value, but it was confirmed that there are technical limitations in actual injection mold core processing and high-replication injection molding. Injection molding analysis showed that cooling channel design is very important compared to general injection molding due to thick-wall characteristics and thickness variation. It was also confirmed that the cooling channel has a great influence on the cycle time and birefringence result due to residual stress. As a result of analyzing the influence of filling time, holding condition, and cooling on shrinkage, it was found that the cooling water temperature has a significant effect on the shrinkage of ultra-fine light guide parts, and the holding condition also has a significant effect.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.230-243
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• 2023

Objective: High temperatures can trigger cellular oxidative stress and disrupt spermatogenesis, potentially leading to male infertility. We investigated the effects of retinoic acid (RA), chitosan nanoparticles (CHNPs), and retinoic acid loaded with chitosan nanoparticles (RACHNPs) on spermatogenesis in mice induced by scrotal hyperthermia (Hyp). Methods: Thirty mice (weighing 25 to 30 g) were divided into five experimental groups of six mice each. The groups were as follows: control, Hyp induced by a water bath (43 ℃C for 30 minutes/day for 5 weeks), Hyp+RA (2 mg/kg/day), Hyp+CHNPs (2 mg/kg/72 hours), and Hyp+RACHNPs (4 mg/kg/72 hours). The mice were treated for 35 days. After the experimental treatments, the animals were euthanized. Sperm samples were collected for analysis of sperm parameters, and blood serum was isolated for testosterone measurement. Testis samples were also collected for histopathology assessment, reactive oxygen species (ROS) evaluation, and RNA extraction, which was done to compare the expression levels of the bax, bcl2, p53, Fas, and FasL genes among groups. Additionally, immunohistochemical staining was performed. Results: Treatment with RACHNPs significantly increased stereological parameters such as testicular volume, seminiferous tubule length, and testicular cell count. Additionally, it increased testosterone concentration and improved sperm parameters. We observed significant decreases in ROS production and caspase-3 immunostaining in the RACHNP group. Moreover, the expression levels of bax, p53, Fas, and FasL significantly decreased in the groups treated with RACHNPs and RA. Conclusion: RACHNPs can be considered a potent antioxidative and antiapoptotic agent for therapeutic strategies in reproductive and regenerative medicine.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.44 no.8
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• pp.1137-1143
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• 2015

This study investigated the free radical-scavenging and antitumor activities of hot water, water, acetone, ethanol, ethyl acetate, chloroform, and hexane extracts of fruits and leaves from Prunus mume. The various extracts were evaluated for their total polyphenol, flavonoid, and tannin contents, scavenging activities by DPPH and ABTS analyses, reducing power, protective effects against oxidative stress in L-132 cells, and antitumor activities against A549, HeLa, and U87 cancer cells. Ethanol extracts of fruits and leaves showed the highest total polyphenol content (336.41 and 523 mg GAE/100 g, respectively). DPPH and ABTS radical-scavenging activities increased according to concentration of fruit. DPPH radical-scavenging activity of ethanol extracts from leaves was 65.48% at $200{\mu}g/mL$. All extract fractions of leaves showed high ABTS radical-scavenging activities. The reducing power activities increased according to increasing concentration of fruits and leaves. All extracts of leaves performed better than extracts of fruits in terms of protective effects against oxidative stress in L-132 cells. Ethyl acetate, chloroform, hexane, ethanol extracts of fruits and leaves showed anticancer activities against A549, HeLa, and U87 cancer cells. However, ethanol extracts of fruits and leaves showed no toxicity in normal cells (BNLCL2). This study suggests that antioxidant activities of fruits and leaves from P. mume depend on polyphenol contents. Thus, fruits and leaves from P. mume can be useful as natural antioxidant compounds.

• The Journal of Korean Obstetrics and Gynecology
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.30-47
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• 2013

Objectives: The purpose of the present study is to investigate anti-depressive effects of Samul-tanggahyangbuja (SGH) on ovariectomized and chronic mild stress (CMS) induced rats. Methods: Ovariectomized rats were exposed to CMS for 4 weeks. Changes of depression behavior were tested by using sucrose intake test (SIT), elevated plus maze (EPM), forced swimming test (FST) and Morris water maze test (MWMT) in rats until being orally medicated with SGH (100 or 400 mg/kg/day). In addition, the serum levels of corticosterone (CORT), IL-4, IL-$1{\beta}$ and changes of 5-HT in the brain were measured. Results: 1. SGH 400 mg/kg treated group (SGH 400) significantly increased amount of sucrose intake compared with the control group (p<0.05). 2. SGH 100 mg/kg treated group (SGH 100) and SGH 400 significantly increased the time spent in the open arms of the EPM compared with the control group (p<0.01). SGH 400 also significantly increased the number of crossing of the open and closed arms compared with the control group (p<0.05). 3. SGH significantly shortened the immobility time in FST compared with the control group (SGH 100 p<0.05, SGH 400 p<0.01). 4. SGH significantly increased performance of acquisition trials compared with the control group (p<0.05, on day 4, 5 of SGH 100 and 400). SGH 400 also significantly increased performance of retention trials compared with the control group (p<0.05). 5. The serum levels of corticosterone and IL-4 were not significantly different among the groups. There were no changes on the serum levels of corticosterone, IL-$1{\beta}$ and IL-4 after administration with SGH. 6. SGH 400 significantly increased the level of 5-HT in the hippocampus compared with the control group (p<0.05). SGH significantly increased the levels of 5-HT in the hypothalamus compared with the control group (SGH 100 p<0.05, SGH 400 p<0.01). Conclusions: These results suggest that SGH has the anti-depressive effect on ovariectomized rat and affect 5-HT system rather than hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and immune system.