• Macromolecular Research
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• v.12 no.5
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• pp.443-450
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• 2004

We have studied the effects that inorganic zeolite powder have on structurally different copolymer [poly(propylene-co-ethylene)] and terpolymer [poly(propylene-co-ethylene-co-l-butene)] systems and the possibility of preparing suitable porous composite films. The impact strength and yield stress of the composites did not improve upon any further loading of zeolite, but the modulus increased gradually with respect to the filler loading. The experimental modulus of each of the two systems was compared with theoretical models. We performed a morphological study of the filler mixing efficiency and image analysis. The number-, weight-, and z-average air hole diameters were compared with respect to the draw ratio as well as the zeolite loading. The experimental results suggest that these two matrices can provide a new choice for preparing future multiphase polymeric porous films by stretching them unidirectionally. In particular, we suggest that a 40 wt% zeolite loading at a draw ratio of 4 is useful for porous film applications.

• Journal of the Korea Institute of Building Construction
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.185-192
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• 2016

The semi-adiabatic calorimetry technique is a robust and easy technique that can be used to measure the temperature rise of concrete. This method is often used for investigating the maturity of concrete, as well as to predict maximum temperature rise of mass concrete using various heat loss compensating models. Semi-adiabatic calorimetry can also be used for predicting setting time of concrete. However, it has seldom been used to investigate the hydration characteristics of various cement paste samples. In this research, semi-adiabatic calorimetry and X-ray diffraction methods were used to investigate the hydration characteristics of 3 different ASTM type I Portland cements. First derivative of temperature rise (dT/dt) curve was used to isolate individual peaks. Based on the results of the experiments, a combination of dT/dt curve with XRD could be used to successfully identify hydration at a specific time period, showing its potential to be used as an alternative tool for hydration studies of cement-based materials.

• Korean Journal of Pharmacognosy
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• v.52 no.3
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• pp.127-133
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• 2021

Platelet activation plays a major role in cardiovascular disorders (CVDs). Thus, disrupting platelet activation represents an attractive therapeutic target on CVDs. Esculetin, a bioactive 6,7-dihydroxy derivative of coumarin, possesses pharmacological activities against obesity, diabetes, renal failure, and CVDs. In other report, the effect of esculetin has been examined in human platelet activation and experimental mouse models, and esculetin inhibited collagen- and arachidonic acid-induced platelet aggregation in washed human platelets. However, it had no effects on other agonists such as thrombin and U46619, and its mechanism is not also clearly known. This study investigated the effect of esculetin on collagen-induced human platelet aggregation, and we clarified the mechanism. Esuletin has effects on the down regulation of PI3K/Akt and MAPK, phosphoproteins that act in the signaling process in platelet aggregation. The effects of esculetin reduced of TXA₂ production and phospholipase A₂ activation, and intracellular granule secretion including ATP and serotonin, leading to inhibit platelet aggregation. These results clearly clarified the effect of esculetin in inhibiting platelet activity and thrombus formation in humans.

• Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.54 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2021

We report X-ray timing and spectral properties of the pulsar PSR J0205+6449 measured using NuSTAR and Chandra observatories. We measure the pulsar's rotation frequency ν = 15.20102357(9) s-1 and its derivative $\dot{\nu}=-4.5(1){\times}10^{-11}\;s^{-2}$ during the observation period, and model the 2-30 keV on-pulse spectrum of the pulsar with a power law having a photon index Γpsr = 1.07 ± 0.16 and a 2-30 keV flux F2-30 keV = 7.3±0.6 × 10-13 erg cm-2 s-1. The Chandra 0.5-10 keV data are analyzed for an investigation of the pulsar's thermal emission properties. We use thermal and non-thermal emission models to fit the Chandra spectra and infer the surface temperature T∞ and luminosity Lth of the neutron star to be T∞ = 0.5 - 0.8 MK and Lth = 1 - 5 × 1032 erg s-1. This agrees with previous results which indicated that PSR J0205+6449 has a low surface temperature and luminosity for its age of 800-5600 yrs.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.270-276
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• 2021

Physiological agents trigger a signaling process called "inside-out signaling" and activated platelets promote adhesion, granule release, and conformational changes of glycoprotein IIb/IIIa (αIIb/β₃). Activated αIIb/β₃ interacts with fibrinogen and initiates a second signaling step called "external signaling". These two signaling pathways can cause hemostasis or thrombosis, and thrombosis is a possible medical problem in arterial and venous vessels, and platelet-mediated thrombosis is a major cause of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Therefore, modulating platelet activity is important for platelet-mediated thrombosis and cardiovascular disease. Esculetin is a coumarin-based physiologically active 6,7-dihydroxy derivative known to have pharmacological activity against obesity, diabetes, renal failure and CVD. Although some studies have confirmed the effects of esculetin in human platelet activation and experimental mouse models, it is not clear how esculetin has antiplatelet and antithrombotic effects. We confirmed the effect and mechanism of action of escultein on human platelets induced by collagen. As a result, esculetin decreased Ca²⁺ recruitment through upregulation of inositol 1, 4, 5-triphosphate receptor. In addition, esculetin upregulates cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) and cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP)-dependent pathways and inhibits fibrinogen binding and thrombus contraction. Our results demonstrate the antiplatelet effect and antithrombotic effect of esculetin in human platelets. Therefore, we suggest that esculetin could be a potential phytochemical for the prevention of thrombus-mediated CVD.

• International Journal of Oral Biology
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.53-60
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• 2024

Nicotinamide (NAM), a water-soluble derivative of vitamin B3, has emerged as a potential therapeutic agent for bone-related disorders. In particular, it promotes bone metabolism and alleviates delayed tooth eruptions associated with cleidocranial dysplasia (CCD). NAM serves as a precursor for nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, a key coenzyme involved in cellular metabolism that plays an essential role in oxidative phosphorylation and mitochondrial function. Recent research has highlighted the capacity of NAM to enhance osteogenic differentiation and regulate the interaction between osteoblasts and osteoclasts, which is critical for maintaining bone homeostasis. Moreover, the effect of NAM in preventing delayed tooth eruptions in CCD models underscores its potential as a noninvasive therapeutic option. Considering its safety profile and therapeutic potential, NAM is a promising candidate for long-term treatment of bone diseases and prevention of age-related bone disorders.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Nondestructive Testing
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.361-368
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• 2002

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of preprocessing the transmitted energy spectrum data on development of a robust model to predict the sugar content in intact apples. The spectrum data were measured from 120 Fuji apple samples conveying at the speed of 2 apples per second. Computer algorithms of preprocessing methods such as MSC, SNV, first derivative, OSC and their combinations were developed and applied to the raw spectrum data set. The results indicated that correlation coefficients between the transmitted energy values at each wavelength and sugar contents of apples were significantly improved by the preprocessing of MSC and SNV in particular as compared with those of no-preprocessing. SEPs of the prediction models showed great difference depending on the preprocessing method of the raw spectrum data, the largest of 1.265%brix and the smallest of 0.507% brix. Such a result means that an appropriate preprocessing method corresponding to the characteristics of the spectrum data set should be found or developed for minimizing the prediction errors. It was observed that MSC and SNV are closely related to prediction accuracy, OSC is to number of PLS factors and the first derivative resulted in decrease of the prediction accuracy. A robust calibration model could be d3eveloped by the combined preprocessing of MSC and OSC, which showed that SEP=0.507%brix, bias=0.0327 and R2=0.8823.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.94-99
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• 1997

Capsaicin is known to be an analgesic agent, affecting the synthesis, storage, , transport and release of substance p, the principal neurotransmitter of pain from periphery to the central nervous system(CNS). DA-5018, a newly synthesized capsaicin derivative has shown potent analgesic effect comparable to that of morphine in various rat models of experimentally inducted acute pairs. In this study the mechanism of analgesic actlvity of DA-5018 was examined. First, the electrically-evoked contraction of guinea pig trachea was inhibited by DA-5018 and these inhibition was recovered by incubation with capsafepine(3$\muM$), capsaicin receptor antagonist and this result suggested that DA-5018 has affinity on capsaicin receptor. The correlation between the norciceptive threshold and the release of substance P was evaluated. In vivo perfusion of slices of the rat spinal cord with DA-5018(10, 100$\muM$) produced a significant increase of the release of substance P and this increase was less than that of capsaicin(10$\muM$). The norciceptive threshold of rat treated with DA-5018(1 mg/kg, p.o) in tall pinch test increased from 2.9$\pm$0.3 to 23.5 $\pm$6.61. Tail pinch latency increased to a maximun at 15 min after DA-5018 treatment and then declined to control values by 120 min. The capsaicin-evoked release ot substance P from the spinal cord slices of rat treated with DA-5018 reduced from 2.38$\pm$ 0.79 to 0.69$\pm$ 0.26 pg/mg wet weight. This reduction reached to a minium at 15 min after DA-5018 treatment and then recovered to control value by 120 min. These results mean that analgesic activity of DA-5018 is due to release of substance P The effect of DA-5018 cream on electrically-evoked neurogenic inflammation of rat saphenous nerve was compared with capsaicin (zostrix-HP). DA-5018 showed 34% inhibition of the neurogenic extravasation while capsaicin showed significant 67% inhibition. This result indicates that the potency of DA-5018 in the release of substance P is less than that of capsaicin. These results suggest that the release of substance P is partially involved in the mechanism of analgesic action of DA-50l8.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.89-100
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• 2004

The comet assay (also called the single-cell gel electrophoresis assay) has been widely used for detecting DNA damage and repair in individual cells. Since the conventional methods of evaluating comet assay data using frequency statistics are unsatisfactory we developed a new quantitative measure of DNA damage/repair that is based on all information residing in the dose/time-response curves of a comet experiment. Blood samples were taken from 25 breast cancer patients before undergoing radiotherapy. The comet assay was performed under alkaline conditions using isolated lymphocytes. Tail DNA, tail length, tail moment and tail inertia of the comet were measured for each patient at four doses of $\gamma$-rays (0, 2, 4 and 8 Gy) and at four time points after irradiation (0, 10, 20 and 30 min) using 100 cells each. The resulting three-dimensional dose-time response surface was modeled by multiple regression, and the second derivative, termed 2D, on dose and time was determined. A software module was programmed in SAS/AF to compute 2D values. We applied the new method successfully to data obtained from cancer patients to be assessed for their radiation sensitivity. We computed the 2D values for the four damage measures, i.e., tail moment, tail length, tail DNA and tail inertia, and examined the pairwise correlation coefficients of 2D both on the log scale and the unlogged scale. 2D values based on tail moment and tail DNA showed a high correlation and, therefore, these two damage measures can be used interchangeably as far as DNA repair is concerned. 2D values based on tail inertia have a correlation profile different from the other 2D values which may reflect different facets of DNA damage/repair. Using the dose-time response surface, other statistical models, e.g., the proportional hazards model, become applicable for data analysis. The 2D approach can be applied to all DNA repair measures, Le., tail moment, tail length, tail DNA and tail inertia, and appears to be superior to conventional evaluation methods as it integrates all data of the dose/time-response curves of a comet assay.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.53 no.3
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• pp.244-250
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to measure fundamental data required for the prediction of milling ratios, and to develop regression models to predict the head rice ratio of milled rice using NIR spectra of hulled rice. A total of 81 rice samples used in this study were collected from Jeongeup, Jeonbuk province in 2006. NIR spectra were measured using one mode of measurement, reflection. The reflectance spectra were measured in the wavelength region of 400-2500 nm with an NIR spectrophotometer "NIRSystems 6500" (Foss, Silverspring, USA). Calibration equations were developed by the modified partial least squares (MPLS), partial least squares (PLS), and principal components regression (PCR). Math treatments were 1-4-4-1, 1-10-10-1, 2-4-4-1, and 2-10-10-1. The software used was WinISI (Infrasoft International, State College, USA). Automatic head rice production and quality checking system used was "SY2000-AHRPQCS" (Ssangyong, Korea). The calibration was made with the first derivative and the spectrum designated was in 8 nm interval. The determination coefficients of head rice ratios were 0.8353, 0.8416 and 0.5277 for the MPLS, PLS and PCR, respectively. Those obtained with 20 nm interval were 0.8144, 0.8354 and 0.6908 for the MPLS, PLS and PCR, respectively. The calibration was made with second derivative that spectrum designated was 8 nm in interval. The determination coefficients of head rice ratios were 0.7994, 0.8017 and 0.4473 for the MPLS, PLS and PCR, respectively. Those with 20 nm interval were 0.8004, 0.8493 and 0.6609 for the MPLS, PLS and PCR, respectively. These results indicate that the accuracy of determination coefficient for MPLS and PLS is higher than that of PCR.