• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.11 no.5
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• pp.423-434
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• 2011

Tongwamen Bridge is a critical link between Dongmen Island and the land in Shipu town, Zhejiang province, China. It is a 238 m span, half-through, concrete-filled steel tubular (CFST) X-type arch bridge. The width of the deck is only 10 m, yielding a width-to-span ratio of 1/23.8. The plane truss type section rib was adopted, which made of two CFST chords and web member system. The lateral stability is the key issue to this bridge. However, the existing researches on Tongwamen Bridge's lateral stability are all the deterministic structural analysis. In this paper, a new strategy for positioning sampling points of the response surface method (RSM), based on the composite method combining RSM with geometric method for structural reliability analysis, is employed to obtain the reliability index of lateral stability. In addition the correlated parameters were discussed in detail to find the major factors. According to the analysis results, increasing the stiff of lateral braces between the arch ribs and setting the proper inward-incline degree of the arch rib can enhance obviously the reliability of lateral stability. Moreover, the deck action of non-orienting force is less than the two factors above. The calculated results indicate that the arch ribs are safe enough to keep excellent stability, and it provides the foundation that the plane truss rib would be a competitive solution for a long-span, narrow, CFST arch bridge.

• Anxiety and mood
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.107-112
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• 2011

Objective : This study aimed to ascertain the effect of interpersonal sensitivity/resilience on depression and anxiety in firefighters whose frequency of exposure to traumatic events is high. Method : A survey was performed and data related to 75 firefighters were analyzed. Questionnaires included the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R). To assess the susceptibility or protector roles with respect to psychopathology, the Interpersonal Sensitivity Measure (IPSM) and Conner-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) were used. Results : The personality characteristic, interpersonal sensitivity (IPSM) showed a significant positive correlation with depression (BDI, r=0.557, p<0.001) and posttraumatic stress symptoms (IES-R, r=0.316 ; p<0.001). In contrast, resilience and symptom parameters (BDI, IES-R) were negatively correlated with each other, but not statistically significant. However, an adaptive factor for change, a third sub-factor of CD-RISC, had significant negative correlation with depression and anxiety symptoms (BDI, r=-0.275, p<0.005 ; IES-R, r=-0.254, p<0.005). Conclusion : The results of the present study showed that some personality traits may act as vulnerability or protective factors with respect to the psychopathologies of depression and anxiety.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.21 no.10
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• pp.1522-1528
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• 2008

The objective of this study was to develop a model for simulating gastric digestion in the pig. The model was constructed to include the chemical and physical changes associated with gastric digestion such as enzyme release, digestion product removal and gastric emptying. Digesta was collected from the stomach cannula of pigs to establish system parameters and to document the ability of the model to simulate gastric digestion. The results showed that the average pH of gastric digesta increased significantly from 2.47 to 4.97 after feed consumption and then decreased 140 min postprandial. The model described the decrease in pH within the pigs' stomach as $pH_t=5.182e^{-0.0014t}$, where t represents the postprandial time in minutes. The cumulative distribution function of liquid digesta was $V_t=64.509e^{0.0109t}$. The average pepsin activity in the liquid digesta was 317Anson units/mL. There was significant gastric emptying 220 min after feed consumption. The cybernetic dynamic system of gastric digestion was set according to the above data in order to compare with in vivo changes. The time course of crude protein digestion predicted by the model was highly correlated with observed in vivo digestion (r = 0.97; p = 0.0001), Model prediction for protein digestion was higher than that observed for a traditional static in vitro method (r = 0.89; p = 0.0001).

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.23 no.9
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• pp.1221-1228
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• 2010

This study aimed to examine the effect of overfeeding on biochemical parameters and lipoprotein-lipase (LPL) mRNA expression in different tissues associated with hepatic lipogenesis in Sichuan white and Landes geese. Fifty healthy male Sichuan white geese and fifty male Landes geese (Cygnus atratus) were hatched on the same day under the same feeding conditions and were selected as experimental animals. After overfeeding for 14 days (from 14 weeks to 16 weeks) and then slaughtering, the biochemical changes of hepatic lipogenesis were evaluated. Results showed that i) in Landes geese, the plasma concentration of glucose was higher (p<0.001), while plasma concentrations of insulin and VLDL were both lower (p<0.01); ii) the LPL mRNA level in pectoralis muscle and leg muscle of the overfed groups in both breeds was higher (p<0.05) than in the control groups; iii) in Sichuan white geese, the proportion of fatty liver weight was positively correlated with plasma triacylglycerols (TG)(p<0.05) and VLDL concentrations (p<0.05), while these correlations were not significant in Landes geese; and iv) the activity of LPL had significant positive correlation with the proportions of lipids in subcutaneous adipose tissue and abdominal adipose tissue in Sichuan white geese, while in Landes geese the correlation was negative (p<0.05) with proportions of lipids in the liver, LPL activity had a significant positive correlation with the proportions of lipids in subcutaneous adipose tissue. These results suggest that the Landes geese have a better ability to use the massive amount of ingested food and to store lipids preferentially in the liver, but the Sichuan white geese have a relatively lower ability to use energetic nutrients and lipid storage is more efficient in the adipose tissues.

• Reproductive and Developmental Biology
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.127-133
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• 2008

The objective of this study was two folds: to investigate the relationship between paternal identification rate and sperm quality parameters such as motility and sperm chromatin structure assay after heterospermic insemination; to see if mutual complement between tests and development of useful technique to enhance the fertility in artificial insemination. In individual boar's fertilizing ability, 3 high fertility boars showed significantly high fertility (p<0.05) compared to 3 low fertility boars, but there was no difference in litter size between two groups. Sperm motility test in pooled and individual semen using computer assisted sperm analysis (CASA) revealed that no significant difference among boars. The high fertile boar showed tendency of low %Red (High red fluorescence/green+red fluorescence) in sperm chromatin structure assay (SCSA) but paternal identification rate from piglets did not differ after heterospermic insemination. The correlation coefficient between individual or pooled semen function test and farrowing rates were well correlated as follows: %Red with litter size (r= - 0.53, p=0.03); %Red with paternal identification rates (r=-0.51, p=0.03); paternal identification rates with litter size (r=0.57, p=0.02). These results indicate that sperm chromatin structure assay and sperm quality parameter test in pooled semen are useful method to predict and evaluate the fertilizing capacity after heterospermic insemination in boars.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.12
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• pp.7737-7741
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• 2013

Background: Human papilloma virus infection is associated with genesis and malignant potential of cervical cancer. E6 and E7 oncogens are known to bind to p53 and retinoblastoma gene products, abrogating their functions as tumor suppressors, leading to an abnormal cell cycle machinery. Roles of the p53 homolog p63 have also been postulated, E6 expression leading to TAp63b degradation allowing anchorage independent growth. Molecular studies correlated with clinicopathological factors are important to determine prognosis and treatment strategies, but results have been controversial and need to be clarified. Aim: To investigate expression of p53 and p63 in cervical squamous cell carcinomas in correlation with age, FIGO staging, morphology, and cancer cell proliferation. Materials and Methods: Expression of p53 and p63 immunohistochemical staining in a total of 56 paraffin-embedded tissues of cervical squamous cell carcinomas from Dr. Sardjito General Hospital Indonesia, was evaluated for correlation with clinicopathological parameters. The Mann-Whitney test was used to compare the percentage of p53 and p63 expression with patient age, FIGO staging and morphology and to compare mean p53 and p63 expression. The Spearman correlation test was applied to correlate p53 and p63 expression with that of Ki-67. A p-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: There were significant associations between p53 expression with age (p=0.019) and FIGO staging (p=0.026), but not with with morphology or Ki-67 expression. There were no links between p63 expression and age, morphology, FIGO staging or Ki-67. Conclusions: This study indicated that p53 has a prognostic value in cervical squamous cell carcinomas given the relation with FIGO staging.

• Journal of Pharmaceutical Investigation
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.29-33
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• 1990

Plasma and saliva concentrations of acetaminophen (AAP) were determined at various time points by HPLC after oral administration of AAP tablets (AAP 500 mg) to four healthy male Korean subjects. Saliva concentrations (S) of AAP were significantly correlated with plasma AAP concentrations (P). The S/P ratio of AAP was calculated to be 1.05 (r =0.944, $p<10^{-6}$) for all the data points from the subjects. It showed a little intersubject variation and ranged from 0.89 to 1.46 in each subject. Bioavailability parameters such as AUC, $C_{max}$ and $T_{max}$ which are usually obtained from the plasma concentration data will be predictable approximately by saliva concentration data. Saliva seems to be very convinient and useful samples for the preliminary studies of bioavailability and bioequivalence of AAP preparations, since it can be collected frequently without any painful venipuncture to the subjects, that is inevitable in plasma sampling. Evaluation of the bioavailability of a preparation by saliva samples will reduce the cost, time and safety risk greatly in developing a new drug delivery system for AAP.

• Journal of Astronomy and Space Sciences
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.145-148
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• 2014

There was a research on the prolongation of solar cycle 23 by the solar cyclic variation of solar, interplanetary geomagnetic parameters by Oh & Kim (2013). They also suggested that the sunspot number cannot typically explain the variation of total solar irradiance any more. Instead of the sunspot number, a new index is introduced to explain the degree of solar activity. We have analyzed the frequency of sunspot appearance, the length of solar cycle, and the rise time to a solar maximum as the characteristics of solar cycle. Then, we have examined the predictability of solar activity by the characteristics of preceding solar cycle. We have also investigated the hemispheric variation of flare index for the periods that the leading sunspot has the same magnetic polarity. As a result, it was found that there was a good correlation between the length of preceding solar cycle and spotless days. When the length of preceding solar cycle gets longer, the spotless days increase. It is also shown that the shorter rise time to a solar maximum is highly correlated with the increase of sunspots at a solar maximum. Therefore, the appearance frequency of spotless days and the length of solar cycle are more significant than the general sunspot number as an index of declining solar activity. Additionally, the activity of flares leads in the northern hemisphere and is stronger in the hemisphere with leading sunspots in positive polarity than in the hemisphere with leading sunspots in negative polarity. This result suggests that it is necessary to analyze the magnetic polarity's effect on the flares and to interpret the period from the solar maximum to solar maximum as the definition of solar cycle.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.3872-3878
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• 2014

In this study, the dynamic load transfer function, which is necessary for analyzing a pile installed by a vibro hammer, was determined by comparing the results of the analyses and instrumented tests. The static load transfer function was modeled by the Ramberg-Osgood model through an analytical method before determining the dynamic load transfer curve. The parameters of the Ramberg-Osgood model were correlated with the N value of the standard penetration test and average values of the correlation coefficient were 0.97 for the shaft load transfer and 0.98 for the base load transfer. The dynamic load transfer function was simulated using the modified Ramberg-Osgood model. The results showed that there were little differences in the characteristics of dynamic load transfer between the results of the measurement and prediction.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.5 no.6
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• pp.520-526
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• 2011

Folate deficiency and hyperhomocysteinemia are found in most patients with alcoholic liver disease. Oxidative stress is one of the most important mechanisms contributing to homocysteine (Hcy)-induced tissue injury. However it has not been examined whether exogenous administration of folic acid attenuates oxidative stress and hepatic toxicity. The aim of this study was to investigate the in vivo effect of folic acid supplementation on oxidative stress and hepatic toxicity induced by chronic ethanol consumption. Wistar rats (n = 32) were divided into four groups and fed 0%, 12%, 36% ethanol, or 36% ethanol plus folic acid (10 mg folic acid/L) diets. After 5 weeks, chronic consumption of the 36% ethanol diet significantly increased plasma alanine transaminase (ALT) (P < 0.05) and aspartate transaminase (AST) (P < 0.05), triglycerides (TG) (P < 0.05), Hcy (P < 0.001), and low density lipoprotein conjugated dienes (CD) (P < 0.05) but decreased total radical-trapping antioxidant potential (TRAP) (P < 0.001). These changes were prevented partially by folic acid supplementation. The 12% ethanol diet had no apparent effect on most parameters. Plasma Hcy concentration was well correlated with plasma ALT (r = $0.612^{**}$), AST (r = $0.652^*$), CD (r = $0.495^*$), and TRAP (r = $-0.486^*$). The results indicate that moderately elevated Hcy is associated with increased oxidative stress and liver injury in alcohol-fed rats, and suggests that folic acid supplementation appears to attenuate hepatic toxicity induced by chronic ethanol consumption possibly by decreasing oxidative stress.