• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.62 no.6
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• pp.712-722
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• 2019

Objective : Although magnetic resonance guided focused ultrasound (MRgFUS) has been used as minimally invasive and effective neurosurgical treatment, it exhibits some limitations, mainly related to acoustic properties of the skull barrier. This study was undertaken to identify skull characteristics that contribute to optimal ultrasonic energy transmission for MRgFUS procedures. Methods : For ex vivo skull experiments, various acoustic fields were measured under different conditions, using five non-embalmed cadaver skulls. For clinical skull analyses, brain computed tomography data of 46 patients who underwent MRgFUS ablations (18 unilateral thalamotomy, nine unilateral pallidotomy, and 19 bilateral capsulotomy) were retrospectively reviewed. Patients' skull factors and sonication parameters were comparatively analyzed with respect to the cadaveric skulls. Results : Skull experiments identified three important factors related skull penetration of ultrasound, including skull density ratio (SDR), skull volume, and incidence angle of the acoustic rays against the skull surface. In clinical results, SDR and skull volume correlated with maximal temperature (Tmax) and energy requirement to achieve Tmax (p<0.05). In addition, considering the incidence angle determined by brain target location, less energy was required to reach Tmax in the central, rather than lateral targets particularly when compared between thalamotomy and capsulotomy (p<0.05). Conclusion : This study reconfirmed previously identified skull factors, including SDR and skull volume, for successful MRgFUS; it identified an additional factor, incidence angle of acoustic rays against the skull surface. To guarantee successful transcranial MRgFUS treatment without suffering these various skull issues, further technical improvements are required.

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.56 no.1
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• pp.98-103
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• 2019

Optical filters to control light wavelength of displays or cameras are fabricated by multi-layer stacking process of low and high index thin films. The process of multi-layer stacking of thin films has received much attention as an optimal process for effective manufacturing in the optical filter industry. However, multi-layer processing has disadvantages of complicated thin film process, and difficulty of precise control of film morphology and material selection, all of which are critical for transmittance and coloring effect on filters. In this study, the composite $TiO_2$, which can be used to control of UV absorption, coated on nano hollow silica sol, was synthesized as a coating material for optical filters. Furthermore, systematic analysis of the process parameters during the chemical reaction, and of the structural properties of the coating solutions was performed using SEM, TEM, XRD and photo spectrometry. From the structural analysis, we found that the 85 nm nano hollow silica with 2.5 nm $TiO_2$ shell formation was successfully synthesized at proper pH control and titanium butoxide content. Photo luminescence characteristics, excited by UV irradiation, show that stable absorption of 350 nm-light, correlated with a 3.54 eV band gap, existed for the $TiO_2$ shell-nano hollow silica reacted with 8.8 mole titanium butoxide solution. Transmittance observed on substrate of the $TiO_2$ shell-nano hollow silica showed effective absorption of 200-300 nm UV light without deterioration of visible light transparency.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.19-27
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• 2019

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the water quality and phytoplankton community in Bukhan River which account for 44.4 % of the total inflow into Lake Paldang, using multivariate statistical techniques (i.e., correlation analysis, principal component analysis (PCA)/factor analysis (FA)). Water samples were collected from March to November 2015 and the following parameters measured; water temperature, pH, DO, EC, SS, BOD, Chl-a, COD, TN, $NO_3-N$, $NH_3-N$, TP, DTP, $PO_4-P$, and phytoplankton community. The water quality of the main stream and the tributaries were not significantly different apart from the relatively high concentration of BOD, COD and nutrients recorded in MH. The highest cell density of Stephanodiscus hantzschii and Merismopedia glauca dominated phytoplankton was observed in PD. Based on the correlation analysis, total phytoplankton and cyanophyceae were highly correlated with BOD, COD and nutrients. PCA/FA resulted in four main factors accounting for 82.240 % of the total variance in the water quality dataset. The group of component 1 (TN, DTN, DO, $NO_3-N$, water temperature) and component 2 ($PO_4-P$, T-P, DTP, SS) were classified as nutrient element factor whereas component 3 (Chl-a, COD, BOD, $NH_3-N$, pH) was related to organic substances. Hence, the identification of the main potential environmental pollution factors in Bukhan River will help policy makers make better and more informed decisions on how to improve the water quality.

• Kosin Medical Journal
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.369-379
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• 2018

Objectives: Analysis of heart rate variability (HRV) has been used as a measure of cardiac autonomic function. According to the pNN50 statistic, the percentage of differences between successive normal RR intervals (RRI) that exceed 50 ms, has been known to reflect cardiac vagal modulation. Relatively little is known about the validity of pNN50 during general anesthesia (GA). Therefore, we evaluated the correlation of pNN50 with other variables such as HF, RMSSD, SD1 of HRV reflecting the vagal tone, and examined the validity of pNN50 in anesthetized patients. Methods: We assessed changes in RRI, pNN50, root mean square of successive differences of RRI (RMSSD), high frequency (HF) and standard deviation 1 (SD1) of $Poincar{\acute{e}}$ plots after GA using sevoflurane anesthesia. We also calculated the probability distributions for the family of pNNx statistics (x: 2-50 ms). Results: All HRV variables were significantly decreased during GA. HF power was not correlated with pNN50 during GA (r = 0.096, P = 0.392). Less than pNN47 was shown to have a correlation with other variables. Conclusions: These data suggest that pNN50 can not reflect the level of vagal tone during GA.

• Journal of the Korean neurological association
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.302-309
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• 2018

Background: Although orthostatic hypotension (OH) and cognitive impairment (CI) are common non- motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease (PD), the relationship between OH and CI remains to be clarified. This study was aimed to investigate the relationship between OH and CI in PD. Methods: We recruited 192 patients who were diagnosed as PD based on the UK Brain Bank diagnostic criteria. The Hoehn & Yahr stages were ranged I to III and patients underwent extensive clinical evaluation, including brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for cerebral white matter hyperintensity (WMH), tilt table test, the Korean version of Montreal Cognitive Assessments and the Korean version of Mini-Mental Status Examination in one month from the first clinic visit. The participants were divided into two groups according to the presence of OH (OH+ vs. OH-) and cognitive function (cognitive normal, CN vs. CI), respectively. Results: Significant relationship between OH and cognitive function (p=0.04) was found in our patients. The patients with OH+ had higher risk of CI by 2.6 times than that of OH- patients. Maximum heart rate change during tilt table test was correlated with cognitive function and white matter changes, whereas blood pressure change during tilt table test showed no correlation with those parameters. Conclusions: There was significant relationship between OH and CI in PD. Therefore, PD patients with either symptom may need periodic evaluation and proper management for OH and cognitive functions.

• BMB Reports
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• v.54 no.10
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• pp.497-504
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• 2021

EGR1 (early growth response 1) is dysregulated in many cancers and exhibits both tumor suppressor and promoter activities, making it an appealing target for cancer therapy. Here, we used a systematic multi-omics analysis to review the expression of EGR1 and its role in regulating clinical outcomes in breast cancer (BC). EGR1 expression, its promoter methylation, and protein expression pattern were assessed using various publicly available tools. COSMIC-based somatic mutations and cBioPortal-based copy number alterations were analyzed, and the prognostic roles of EGR1 in BC were determined using Prognoscan and Kaplan-Meier Plotter. We also used bc-GenEx-Miner to investigate the EGR1 co-expression profile. EGR1 was more often downregulated in BC tissues than in normal breast tissue, and its knockdown was positively correlated with poor survival. Low EGR1 expression levels were also associated with increased risk of ER+, PR+, and HER2- BCs. High positive correlations were observed among EGR1, DUSP1, FOS, FOSB, CYR61, and JUN mRNA expression in BC tissue. This systematic review suggested that EGR1 expression may serve as a prognostic marker for BC patients and that clinicopathological parameters influence its prognostic utility. In addition to EGR1, DUSP1, FOS, FOSB, CYR61, and JUN can jointly be considered prognostic indicators for BC.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.78 no.1
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• pp.53-66
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• 2021

The determination of the damage index to reveal the performance level of a structure can constitute the seismic risk generalization approach based on the parametric analysis. This study implemented this concept to one kind of civil engineering structure that is the concrete gravity dam. Different cases of the structure exhibit their individual responses, which constitute different considerations. Therefore, this approach allows the parametric study of concrete as well as soil for evaluating the seismic nature in the generalized case. To ensure that the target algorithm applicable to most of the concrete gravity dams, a very simple procedure has been considered. In order to develop a correlated algorithm (by response surface methodology; RSM) between the ground motion and the structural property, randomized sampling was adopted through a stochastic method called half-fractional central composite design. The responses in the case of fluid-foundation-dam interaction (FFDI) make it more reliable by introducing the foundation as being bounded by infinite elements. To evaluate the seismic generalization of FFDI models, incremental dynamic analysis (IDA) was carried out under the impacts of various earthquake records, which have been selected from the Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research Center data. Here, the displacement-based damage indexed fragility curves have been generated to show the variation in the seismic pattern of the dam. The responses to the sensitivity analysis of the various parameters presented here are the most effective controlling factors for the concrete gravity dam. Finally, to establish the accuracy of the proposed approach, reliable verification was adopted in this study.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.39-53
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• 2021

By means of installing sloped rolling-type seismic isolators (SRI), the horizontal acceleration transmitted to the to-be-protected object above can be effectively and significantly reduced under external disturbance. To prevent the maximum horizontal displacement response of SRI from reaching a threshold, designing large and conservative damping force for SRI might be required, which will also enlarge the transmitted acceleration response. In a word, when adopting seismic isolation, minimizing acceleration or displacement responses is always a trade-off. Therefore, this paper proposes that by exploiting the possible information provided by an earthquake early warning system, the damping force applied to SRI which can better control both acceleration and displacement responses might be determined in advance and accordingly adjusted in a semi-active control manner. By using a large number of ground motion records with peak ground acceleration not less than 80 gal, the numerical results present that the maximum horizontal displacement response of SRI is highly correlated with and proportional to some important parameters of input excitations, the velocity pulse energy rate and peak velocity in particular. A control law employing the basic form of hyperbolic tangent function and two objective functions are considered in this study for conceptually developing suitable control algorithms. Compared with the numerical results of simply designing a constant, large damping factor to prevent SRI from pounding, adopting the recommended control algorithms can have more than 60% reduction of acceleration responses in average under the excitations. More importantly, it is effective in reducing acceleration responses under approximately 98% of the excitations.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.539-545
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• 2021

Objective: Endometritis is a major disease, that causes infertility in cattle, and is usually categorized as clinical or subclinical endometritis (SCE). The nutritional condition during the dry period is important for recovery after the last stage of the lactation period, and for postpartum production and reproduction. This study aimed to clarify the relationship between nutritional and metabolic characteristics in the dry period, and the risk of postpartum SCE. Methods: Multiparous Holstein dairy cows (n = 25, raised in a tied stall) were used. Endometrial cytological analysis was performed around 30 days post-partum, with 5% to 14% polymorphonuclear (PMN) as a cut-off point to define SCE. Serum levels of glucose, non-esterified fatty acids, β-hydroxybutyric acid (BHBA), blood urea nitrogen, total cholesterol, aspartate aminotransferase, γ-glutamyl transpeptidase, calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium were measured in the cows at the dry period to evaluate energy status, protein metabolism, and mineral metabolism. Results: The incidence of SCE in the cows was 60.0% (n = 15/25) and the mean PMN% in postpartum cows diagnosed as SCE was 8.05%±2.6%. Overall, 17 and 8 samples were collected from the cows in the far-off and close-up periods, respectively. The serum concentration of BHBA in the far-off period and serum glucose concentration in the closeup period were correlated with postpartum PMN% (r = 0.62, p<0.01; r = -0.74, p<0.05, respectively). Serum levels of calcium and magnesium in the dry period were associated with the incidence of postpartum SCE (healthy vs SCE cows, p<0.05). Conclusion: Blood levels of glucose, BHBA, calcium, and magnesium in dry periods could be useful parameters for predicting the risk of postpartum SCE. The present study also suggests that management in the close-up period is essential for promoting recovery from calving fatigue.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.54 no.1
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• pp.25-30
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• 2021

Background: Life-long anticoagulant therapy is mandatory for patients who undergo heart valve replacement with implantation of a mechanical prosthesis. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of a nurse-led patient educational program concerning oral anticoagulant therapy intake after heart valve replacement surgery on patients' knowledge of important parameters of anticoagulant administration. Methods: In this single-center study, 200 patients who underwent surgical implantation of a mechanical prosthesis were divided into 2 groups. The control group received the basic education concerning oral anticoagulants, while the intervention group received a personalized educational program. Results: Personalized education was correlated with a better regulation of therapeutic international normalized ratio (INR) levels and adequate knowledge among patients. Therapeutic levels of INR were achieved in 45% of the patients during the first month, 71% in the third month, and 89% in the sixth month after discharge in the intervention group, compared to 25%, 47%, and 76% in the control group, respectively. Patients' satisfaction with the information was higher in the intervention group than in the control group. The percentage of satisfaction reached 80% for the intervention group versus 37% for the patients of the control group. Conclusion: The implementation of the nurse-led educational programs was associated with improved clinical results and increased adherence to oral anticoagulant treatment.