• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.41 no.5
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• pp.663-679
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• 2021

To elucidate the differences in the collapse behavior between a single-story beam-column assembly and multi-story frame, two 1/3-scale two-bay composite frames, including a single-story composite beam-column assembly and a three-story composite sub-frame, were designed and quasi-statically tested. The load-displacement responses, failure modes, and internal force development of the two frames were analyzed and compared in detail. Furthermore, the resistance mechanisms of the two specimens were explored, and the respective contributions of different load-resisting mechanisms to the total resistances were quantitatively separated to gain deeper insights. The experimental tests indicated that Vierendeel action was present in the two-dimensional multi-story frames, which led to an uneven internal force distribution among the three stories. The collapse resistance of TSDWA-3S in the flexural stage was not significantly increased by the structural redundancy provided by the additional story, as compared to that of TSDWA-1S. Although the development of the load response was similar in the two specimens at flexural stage, the collapse mechanisms of the multi-story composite frame were much more complicated than those of the single-story beam-column assembly, and the combined action between stories was critical in determining the internal force redistribution and rebalancing of the remaining structure.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.51-57
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• 2015

Vaccines are the most effective and cost-efficient method for preventing diseases caused by infectious pathogens. Despite the great success of vaccines, development of safe and strong vaccines is still required for emerging new pathogens, re-emerging old pathogens, and in order to improve the inadequate protection conferred by existing vaccines. One of the most important strategies for the development of effective new vaccines is the selection and usage of a suitable adjuvant. Immunologic adjuvants are essential for enhancing vaccine potency by improvement of the humoral and/or cell-mediated immune response to vaccine antigens. Thus, formulation of vaccines with appropriate adjuvants is an attractive approach towards eliciting protective and long-lasting immunity in humans. However, only a limited number of adjuvants is licensed for human vaccines due to concerns about safety and toxicity. We summarize current knowledge about the potential benefits of adjuvants, the characteristics of adjuvants and the mechanisms of adjuvants in human vaccines. Adjuvants have diverse modes of action and should be selected for use on the basis of the type of immune response that is desired for a particular vaccine. Better understanding of current adjuvants will help exploring new adjuvant formulations and facilitate rational design of vaccines against infectious diseases.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.347-366
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• 2007

Guyed masts subjected to turbulent winds exhibit complex vibrations featuring many vibration modes, each of which contributes to various structural responses in differing degrees. This dynamic behaviour is further complicated by nonlinear guy cable properties. While previous studies have indicated that conventional frequency domain methods can reliably reproduce load effects within the mast, the system linearization required to perform such an analysis makes it difficult to relate these results directly to corresponding guy forces. As a result, the estimation of peak load effects arising jointly from the structural action of the mast and guys, such as leg loads produced as a result of guy reactions and mast bending moments, is uncertain. A numerical study was therefore undertaken to study peak load effects in a 295 m tall guyed mast acted on by simulated turbulent wind. Responses calculated explicitly from nonlinear time domain finite element analyses were compared with approximate methods in the frequency domain for estimating peak values of selected responses, including guy tension, mast axial loads and mast leg loads. It was found that these peak dynamic load effects could be accurately estimated from frequency domain analysis results by employing simple, slightly conservative assumptions regarding the correlation of related effects.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.118-124
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• 2017

Bell pepper is an economically important crop worldwide; however, production is restricted by a number of fungal diseases that cause significant yield loss. Chemical control is the most common approach adopted by growers to manage a number of these diseases. Monitoring for the development to resistance to fungicides in pathogenic fungal populations is central to devising integrated pest management strategies. Two fungal species, Fusarium incarnatum-equiseti species complex (FIESC) and Colletotrichum truncatum are important pathogens of bell pepper in Trinidad. This study was carried out to determine the sensitivity of 71 isolates belonging to these two fungal species to fungicides with different modes of action based on in vitro bioassays. There was no significant difference in log effective concentration required to achieve 50% colony growth inhibition ($LogEC_{50}$) values when field location and fungicide were considered for each species separately based on ANOVA analyses. However, the $LogEC_{50}$ value for the Aranguez-Antracol locationfungicide combination was almost twice the value for the Maloney/Macoya-Antracol location-fungicide combination regardless of fungal species. $LogEC_{50}$ values for Benomyl fungicide was also higher for C. truncatum isolates than for FIESC isolates and for any other fungicide. Cropping practices in these locations may explain the fungicide sensitivity data obtained.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.303-307
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• 2003

Tributyltin (TBT) used world-wide in antifouling paints toy ships is a wide-spread environmental pollutant. At low doses, antiproliferative modes of action have been shown to be involved, whereas at higher doses apoptosis seems to be the mechanism of toxicity in reproductive organs by TBT. In this study, we investigated that the mechanisms underlying apoptosis induced by TBT in R2C cell. Effects of TBT on intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ level and reactive oxygen species (ROS) were investigated in R2C cells by fluorescence detector. TBT significantly induced intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ level in a time-dependent manner. The rise in intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ level was followed by a time-dependent generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) at the cytosol level. Simultaneously, TBT induced the release of cytochrome c from the mitochondrial membrane into the cytosol. Furthermore, ROS production and the release of cytochrome c were reduced by BAPTA, an intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ chelator, indicating the important role of $Ca^{2+}$ in R2C during these early intracellular events. In addition, Z-DEVD FMB, a caspase -3 inhibitor, decreased apoptosis by TBT. Taken together, the present results indicated that the apoptotic pathway by TBT might start with an increase in intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ level, continues with release of ROS and cytochrome c from mitochondria, activation of caspases, and finally results in DNA fragmentation.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.14 no.5
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• pp.1014-1021
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• 2004

Two thermostable xylanases, designated XynA and XynB, were purified to homogeneity from the culture supernatant of Paenibacillus sp. DG-22 by ion-exchange and gel-filtration chromatography. The molecular masses of xylanases A and B were 20 and 30 kDa, respectively, as determined by SDS-PAGE, and their isoelectric points were 9.1 and 8.9, respectively. Both enzymes had similar pH and temperature optima (pH 5.0-6.5 and $70^{\circ}C$), but their stability at various temperatures differed. Xylanase B was comparatively more stable than xylanase A at higher temperatures. Xylanases A and B differed in their $K_m$ and $V_{max}$ values. XynA had a $K_m$ of 2.0 mg/ml and a $V_{max}$ of 2,553 U/mg, whereas XynB had a K_m$ of 1.2 mg/ml and a $V_{max}$, of 754 U/mg. Both enzymes were endo-acting, as revealed by their hydrolysis product profiles on birchwood xylan, but showed different modes of action. Xylotriose was the major product of XynA activity, whereas XynB produced mainly xylobiose. These enzymes utilized small oligosaccharides such as xylotriose and xylotetraose as substrates, but did not hydrolyzed xylobiose. The amino terminal sequences of XynA and XynB were determined. Xylanase A showed high similarity with low molecular mass xylanases of family 11.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.302-306
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• 2015

VvpM, one of the extracellular metalloproteases produced by Vibrio vulnificus, induces apoptotic cell death via a pathway consisting of ERK activation, cytochrome c release, and activation of caspases-9 and -3. VvpM-treated cells also showed necrotic cell death as stained by propidium iodide (PI). The percentage of PI-stained cells was decreased by pretreatment with Necrostatin-1, indicating that VvpM-mediated cell death occurs through necroptosis. The appearance of autophagic vesicles and lipidated form of light-chain-3B in rVvpM-treated cells suggests an involvement of autophagy in this process. Therefore, the multifarious action of VvpM might be one of the factors responsible for V. vulnificus pathogenesis.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.1571-1578
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• 2013

Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide. Recently, the demand for more effective and safer therapeutic agents for the chemoprevention of human cancer has increased. As a white rot fungus, Inonotus obliquus is valued as an edible and medicinal resource. Chemical investigations have shown that I. obliquus produces a diverse range of secondary metabolites, including phenolic compounds, melanins, and lanostane-type triterpenoids. Among these are active components for antioxidant, antitumoral, and antiviral activities and for improving human immunity against infection of pathogenic microbes. Importantly, their anticancer activities have become a hot recently, but with relatively little knowledge of their modes of action. Some compounds extracted from I. obliquus arrest cancer cells in the G0/G1 phase and then induce cell apoptosis or differentiation, whereas some examples directly participate in the cell apoptosis pathway. In other cases, polysaccharides from I. obliquus can indirectly be involved in anticancer processes mainly via stimulating the immune system. Furthermore, the antioxidative ability of I. obliquus extracts can prevent generation of cancer cells. In this review, we highlight recent findings regarding mechanisms underlying the anticancer influence of I. obliquus, to provide a comprehensive landscape view of the actions of this mushroom in preventing cancer.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.197-212
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• 2005

Tall buildings under wind action usually oscillate simultaneously in the along-wind and across-wind directions as well as in torsional modes. While several procedures have been developed for predicting wind-induced loads and responses in along-wind direction, accurate analytical methods for estimating across-wind and torsional response have not been possible yet. Simplified empirical formulas for estimation of the across-wind dynamic responses of rectangular tall buildings are presented in this paper. Unlike established empirical formulas in codifications, the formulas proposed in this paper are developed based on simultaneous pressure measurements from a series of tall building models with various side and aspect ratios in a boundary layer wind tunnel. Comparisons of the across-wind responses determined by the proposed formulas and the results obtained from the wind tunnel tests as well as those estimated by two well-known wind loading codes are made to examine the applicability and accuracy of the proposed simplified formulas. It is shown through the comparisons that the proposed simplified formulas can be served as an alternative and useful tool for the design and analysis of wind effects on rectangular tall buildings.

• Asian Journal of Turfgrass Science
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.89-94
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• 1989

Research was conducted to obtain t he optimum treatment Of sodium hypochlorite(NaOC I) at various temperatures in t he seed scarification for stimulating germination of zoysiagrass (Zocysia Japonica Steud ) seed. Morphological changes of seed coat were also examined by scanning electron micros cop(SEM). l. Differences in temperature of scarification with 2 .4% NaOCI showed little influence on promoting germination of seeds but seeds treated with 1% solution at l5˚C germinated less than that of higher temperatures. The promotion effect of 4% solution on germination was diminished when seeds were treated for 8 hours of more. The most favorable seed scarification unaffected hy temperature for enhancing germination was 4-6hours treatment at 4% solution in fresh seeds. 2. $GA_3$, treatment did not enhance germination of water-pretreated control seeds hut germination of seeds pretreated with NaOCI l was increased additional 10% or more hy$ GA_3$, Water pretreated control seeds treated with 50 mM hydrogen peroxide(H'O )germinated about 44%. In NaOCI treated seeds. $H_2$$O_2$ treatment increased germination additional l 0% or more. 3. NaOCI l and KOH treatment softened the seed coat and formed the pores hy removing the scab-like thikenings attached to the seed surface. These results suggest that the modes of action of NaOCl in the promotion of seed germination reside in it increase of the permeability of the seed coat, and in the provision of additional oxygen to the seed.