• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.424-431
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• 2011

BACKGROUND: Tributyltin chloride is among the most toxic compounds known for aquatic ecosystems. Microorganisms are responsible for removal of TBTCl. Nevertheless, only a limited number of marine bacteria were investigated for biodegradation of TBTCl in Korea. METHODS AND RESULTS: The number of TBTCl resistant bacteria ranged from $2.5{\times}10^3$ to $3.8{\times}10^3$ cfu/mL in the seawater, and ranged from $3.2{\times}10^5$ to $9.1{\times}10^5$ cfu/g in the surface sediment, respectively. The morphological, physiological, and biochemical characteristics of TBTCl resistant bacteria were investigated by API 20NE and other tests. The most abundant species of TBTCl resistant bacteria were Vibrio spp. (19.2%), Bacillus spp. (16.2%), Aeromonas spp. (15.2%), and Pseudomonas spp. (13.1%), etc. Eleven TBTCl resistant isolates also had a resistance to heavy metals (Cd, Cu, Hg, and Zn). Among them, isolate T7 showing the strong TBTCl-resistance was selected. This isolate was identified as the genus Pantoea by 16S rRNA gene sequencing and designated as Pantoea sp. T7. In addition, this bacterium was cultivated up to the growth of 50.7% after 60 hrs at TBTCl concentration of $500{\mu}M$. TBTCl-degrading activity of Pantoea sp. T7 was measured by GC-FPD analysis. As a result of biological TBTCl-degradation at TBTCl concentration of $100{\mu}M$, TBTCl-removal efficiency of Pantoeasp. T7 was 62.7% after 40 hrs. CONCLUSION(S): These results suggest that Pantoea sp. T7 is potentially useful for the bioremediation of TBT contamination.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.50 no.3
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• pp.293-300
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• 2008

Muscle fat content including intramuscular fat content(IMF) is the most important parameter in meat quality of cattle. Triacylglycerol is the major component of fat and is found in adipocyte and skeletal muscle. In present study, we carried out the determined of triacylglycerol contents and mRNA expression patterns of genes related with triacylglycerol biosynthesis such as ACSS2, GPAT, MGAT and DGAT in Hanwoo longissimus muscle using the real-time PCR. The triacylglycerol contents were continuously increased during the fattening stages. Interestingly, the contents of triacylglycerol were 7.4 fold higher(0.34 vs. 2.51, P<0.01) in 27 months old group than 12 months old group. The mRNA levels of ACSS2, GPAT and DGAT genes were also increased during fattening stages, whereas that of MGAT gene did not show difference among the stages. Thus, these results suggested that increasing of the triacylglycerol contents in longissimus muscle during fattening stages may be related with increased expressions of triacylglycerol biosynthesis genes(ACSS2, GPAT and DGAT). These results will be helpful to understand the mechanism of muscle fat deposition in skeletal muscle.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.119-128
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• 1998

This paper describes a filtering algorithm which employs apriori information of SPECT lesion detectability potential for the filtering of degraded projection images prior to the backprojection reconstruction. In this algorithm, we determined m minimum detectable lesion sized(MDLSs) by assuming m object contrasts uniformly-chosen in the range of 0.0-1.0, based on a signal/noise model which provides the capability potential of SPECT in terms of physical factors. A best estimate of given projection image is attempted as a weighted combination of the subimages from m optimal filters whose design is focused on maximizing the local S/N ratios for the MDLS-lesions. These subimages show relatively larger resolution recovery effect and relatively smaller noise reduction effect with the decreased MDLS, and the weighting on each subimage was controlled by the difference between the subimage and the maximum-resolution-recovered projection image. The proposed filtering algoritym was tested on SPECT image reconstruction problems, and produced good results. Especially, this algorithm showed the adaptive effect that approximately averages the filter outputs in homogeneous areas and sensitively depends on each filter strength on contrast preserving/enhancing in textured lesion areas of the reconstructed image.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.391-401
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• 2000

Flow through compliant tubes with linear taper in wall thickness is numerically simulated by finite element analysis. For verification of the numerical method, flow through a compliant stenotic vessel is simulated and the results are compared to the existing experimental data. Steady two-dimensional flow in a collapsible channel with initial tension is also simulated and the results are compared with numerical solutions from the literature. Computational results show that as cross-sectional area decreases with the reduction in downstream pressure, flow rate increases and reaches the maximum when the speed index (mean velocity divided by wave speed) is near the unity at the point of minimum cross-section area, indicating the flow limitation or choking (flow speed equals wave speed) in one-dimensional studies. for further reductions in downstream pressure, flow rate decreases. The flow limitation or choking consist of the main reasons of waterfall effect which occurs in the airways, capillaries of lung, and other veins. Cross-sectional narrowing is significant but localized. When the ratio of downstream-to-upstream wall thickness is 2, the area throat is located near the downstream end. As this ratio is increased to 3, the constriction moves to the upstream end of the tube.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.411-417
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• 2000

This paper describes the analysis of the oscillometric method based on the shape of arterial pressure and proposal of a new algorithm for estimating the blood pressure by computer simulation. In the first step, the arterial pressure model which is able to control the shape of arterial pressure was designed and then we simulated the oscillometric model using both the existing exponential model showing the static arterial pressure-volume relation and the designed arterial pressure model. By analyzing the correlation of characteristic ratio based on the shape of arterial pressure, we could find that the characteristic ratio was not the only standard parameter for estimating systolic and diastolic pressure. We were able to estimate the shape of arterial pressure by computing the correlation of arterial pressure shape with oscillation shape. Finally, we proposed an algorithm which is able to estimate systolic and diastolic pressure according to pressure(Pp) table constructed from the relation of maximum amplitude of oscillation and arterial pressure shape. We tested 60 arterial pressure waveforms having various arterial pressure shape and pulse. As a results, the absolute deviation average values of the estimation of systolic, diastolic and mean pressure were 1.62%, 2.40% and 2.20%, respectively. In conclusions, the proposed algorithm showed the possibility of usefullness in estimating the blood pressure.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.241-246
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• 2003

To evaluate the usefulness if functional MR imaging(MRI) for the determination of language dominance system and to assess differences in the visual and auditory instrument language generation task according to activation task or activated area. Functional maps of the language area were obtained during visual and auditory instructions in word generation tasks in 6 healthy volunteer with right-handness were examined on a 1.5T scanner and the EPI BOLD technique, and three pulse sequence technique get of the true axial planes. Both task consisted of 96 phases including 6 activations and rests contents. Postprocessing were done on MRDx program by using cross correlation method. Two task compare the blain activation area surveyed of 1anguage lateralization index. To evaluated of the detection rates of Broca. Wernicke, pre-frontal lobe, Supplementary Motor Area (SMA) and pre-motor cortex areas and the differences of language lateraliaztion among two word generation task To lateralization index survey in 1anguage area on right and left in brain get to activation area pixel in brain. Compared to visual and auditory instrument task in the language areas get to the lateralization index. Two language generation task high detection rates of Broca and Wernicke areas. The visual instruction no detected in the auditory area, and auditory instruction no detected in the visual area. There was statistics significant different of them among language generation task. 1'his indicated that language area obtained image of the brain functional MR imaging usefulness in the visual and auditory task instrument.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.267-273
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• 2003

The present study attempted to observe what changes the supply of highly concentrated (30%) oxygen cause to people's ability of visuospatial cognition, compared to air of normal oxygen concentration (21%). This study sampled eight male university students (the average age : 23.5) as subjects for functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) study It also developed equipment that supplies 21% and 30% oxygen) at a constant rate of 8L/min. Two questionnaires containing 20 questions were developed to measure the ability of visuospatial cognition, and accuracy was calculated from the result of task performance. The experiment paradigm consisted of the run conducting tasks at 30%'s concentration of oxygen and another run at 21%'s concentration of oxygen. Each run was composed of four blocks and each block included eight control tasks and five visuospatial taks. 3T MRI was used and fMRI was obtained through the single-shot EPI method. The activation in the occipital-associated area, bilateral superior parietal lobes, bilateral inferior parietal lobes. bilateral precuneus, bilateral postcentral gyri, bilateral middle frontal gyri, bilateral inferior frontal gyri, bilateral medial frontal gyri, bilateral superior frontal gyri, bilateral cingulate gyri was significantly increased at the 30%'s concentration of oxygen rather than 21%'s. Furthermore, the result of task performance showed the accuracy increased at 30%'s concentration of oxygen rather than 21%'s. From the result of this study, it is concluded that the supply of highly concentrated oxygen has a positive effect on the ability of visuospatial cognition.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.309-318
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• 2015

Alcohol consumption increases the risk of type 2 diabetes. However, its effects on prediabetes or early diabetes have not been studied. We investigated endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in the pancreas and liver resulting from chronic alcohol consumption in the prediabetes and early stages of diabetes. We separated Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty (OLETF) rats, a type-2 diabetic animal model, into two groups based on diabetic stage: prediabetes and early diabetes were defined as occurrence between the ages of 11 to 16 weeks and 17 to 22 weeks, respectively. The experimental group received an ethanol-containing liquid diet for 6 weeks. An intraperitoneal glucose tolerance test was conducted after 16 and 22 weeks for the prediabetic and early diabetes groups, respectively. There were no significant differences in body weight between the control and ethanol groups. Fasting and 120-min glucose levels were lower and higher, respectively, in the ethanol group than in the control group. In prediabetes rats, alcohol induced significant expression of ER stress markers in the pancreas; however, alcohol did not affect the liver. In early diabetes rats, alcohol significantly increased most ER stress-marker levels in both the pancreas and liver. These results indicate that chronic alcohol consumption increased the risk of diabetes in prediabetic and early diabetic OLETF rats; the pancreas was more susceptible to damage than was the liver in the early diabetic stages, and the adaptive and proapoptotic pathway of ER stress may play key roles in the development and progression of diabetes affected by chronic alcohol ingestion.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.20 no.5
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• pp.507-514
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• 2016

Although 3D-complex fractionated atrial electrogram (CFAE) mapping is useful in radiofrequency catheter ablation for persistent atrial fibrillation (AF), the directions and configuration of the bipolar electrodes may affect the electrogram. This study aimed to compare the spatial reproducibility of CFAE by changing the catheter orientations and electrode distance in an in -silico left atrium (LA). We conducted this study by importing the heart CT image of a patient with AF into a 3D-homogeneous human LA model. Electrogram morphology, CFAE-cycle lengths (CLs) were compared for 16 different orientations of a virtual bipolar conventional catheter (conv-cath: size 3.5 mm, inter-electrode distance 4.75 mm). Additionally, the spatial correlations of CFAE-CLs and the percentage of consistent sites with CFAE-CL<120 ms were analyzed. The results from the conv-cath were compared with that obtained using a mini catheter (mini-cath: size 1 mm, inter-electrode distance 2.5 mm). Depending on the catheter orientation, the electrogram morphology and CFAE-CLs varied (conv-cath: $11.5{\pm}0.7%$ variation, mini-cath: $7.1{\pm}1.2%$ variation), however the mini-cath produced less variation of CFAE-CL than conv-cath (p<0.001). There were moderate spatial correlations among CFAE-CL measured at 16 orientations (conv-cath: $r=0.3055{\pm}0.2194$ vs. mini-cath: $0.6074{\pm}0.0733$, p<0.001). Additionally, the ratio of consistent CFAE sites was higher for mini catheter than conventional one ($38.3{\pm}4.6%$ vs. $22.3{\pm}1.4%$, p<0.05). Electrograms and CFAE distribution are affected by catheter orientation and electrode configuration in the in-silico LA model. However, there was moderate spatial consistency of CFAE areas, and narrowly spaced bipolar catheters were less influenced by catheter direction than conventional catheters.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.66-72
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• 2008

The major risk associated with the use of automated power injectors is the well known complication of contrast material extravasation at the injection site. Automated injection of computed tomography (CT) contrast media can produce the compartment syndrome. The purpose of this study was to assess the ability of this device during clinically important episodes of extravasation. The extravasation detection accessory (EDA) system was composed of a strain gage, an amplifier and a computer based system. A strain gage pliable adhesive patch was applied to the skin aver the intravenous catheter and the catheter was connected to the power injector with a cable to monitor the resolution data. If the programmed monitoring, which was developed with MS Visual C++, at the extravasation occurred, then the injection was interrupted the auto injector. CT was used to demonstrate the clinically important extravasation. This study was a prospective, observational study in which the EDA system was used to monitor the automated mechanical injection of contrast material in 7 dogs. There were two true-positive cases (range of extravasation volumes: $18{\sim}22ml$), twenty three true-negative cases, three false-positive cases and no false-negative cases. The EDA system had a sensitivity of 100% and a specificity of 88% for the detection of clinically important extravasation. The EDA system had good sensitivity for the detection of clinically important extravasation and the EDA system has the clinical potential for the early detection of extravasation of the contrast medium that is administered with power injectors. The EDA system is easy to use safe and accurate for the monitoring extravasation of the intravenous injections, and this system may prove especially useful in CT applications.