• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.147-153
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• 2001

Objective: The present study was performed to investigate the efficiency of partial laser assisted hatching (p-LAH; lased 1/2 ZP width from ZP edge) on hatching of mouse blastocysts. Methods: We used non-contact $1.48{\mu}m$ diode laser (MTM, Switzland) to create a precise hole on zona pellucida. 2-cell embryos were collected from the mouse (ICR) oviduct at 48 hours after hCG administration. Collected 2-cell embryos were cultured in the P-1 medium supplemented with 0.4% BSA. For experiments, embryos at 8-cell stage were used after $20{\sim}22$ hours in culture. After conventional (c-LAH) or partial laser assisted hatching, the embryos were further cultured in P-1 medium supplemented with 0.4% BSA for 3 days. To compare efficiency of complete and partial laser assisted hatching, hatching rate, hatching time and blastocyst diameter and zona pellucida thickness at hatching time were investigated. Embryos were examined every 12 hours. Blastocyst diameter and zona pellucida thickness at hatching time were measured with an ocular micrometer. Results: Hatching rates of p-LAH group (84.2%) was significantly higher than that of control group (39.3%), but there was no difference between the p-LAH (84.2%) and c-LAH (91.2%). p-LAH group was hatched 12 hours earlier than control group, but hatched 12 hours later than c-LAH group. The diameter of blastocyst at hatching time of p-LAH group ($113.1{\pm}6.4{\mu}m$) was smaller than that of control group ($122.2{\pm}5.0{\mu}m$), but larger than that of c-LAH group ($102.2{\pm}2.7{\mu}m$). Zona pellucida thickness at hatching time of p-LAH group ($6.4{\pm}0.9{\mu}m$) was thicker than that of control group ($4.5{\pm}1.5{\mu}m$), but thinner than that of c-LAH group ($10.0{\pm}0.8{\mu}m$). Conclusion: These results suggest that p-LAH may maintains the cell arrangement of early embryos to ensure successful development and prevent precocious hatching of blastocyst when compare to c-LAH and conventional (acidic tyrode) AH. Thus, p-LAH may provide a valuable and effective AH technique for human ART program.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.239-244
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• 2015

Calanthe striata f. sieboldii Decne. ex Regel is a terrestrial orchid with beautiful flowers arranged in racemose inflorescences. This species is threatened due to over-collection and loss of suitable habitats. Asymbiotic germination is useful in the conservation efforts to re-establish plants in the wild, and for commercial propagation. In this study, we investigate the effects of sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl), three types of culture media (Phytomax Orchid Maintenance - POM, Seed Germination Maintenance - SGM, and Murashige and Skoog 1962 - MS), and plant growth regulators on embryo swelling, protocorm formation, and embryo diameter of C. striata f. sieboldii. Treatment with 1% NaOCl for 30 min greatly enhanced embryo swelling (28.3%), embryo diameter ($205.8{\mu}m$), and embryo protocorm formation (54.8%) compared to seeds without NaOCl treatment (embryo swelling 8.5%, embryo diameter $14.6{\mu}m$, and protocorm formation 13.4%) on POM medium. Protocorm formation on POM medium supplemented with 1.0 mg/L N6-benzyladenine (BA) (95.6%) was better than the control (54.5%). Additionally, the effects of activated charcoal (AC) and sucrose on seedling growth in in vitro culture were examined. The protocorm converted into healthy plants with well-developed shoot primordia on the POM medium with AC and sucrose. The most suitable conditions for seedling growth after 10 weeks of culture were the POM medium with AC or sucrose. These results show effective asymbiotic seed germination and in vitro seedling growth of C. striata f. sieboldii.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Nondestructive Testing
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.504-509
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• 2016

Defects in dissimilar metal welds are reported to be on the increase during the operating lifespan and aging of nuclear power plants. In Korea, reported cases of defects due to dissimilar metal welds include the drain nozzle of a steam generator and RCS hot tube sampling nozzles. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop a reliable automated nondestructive inspection technique and a system for the inspection of dissimilar metal welds of small diameter nozzles in a high radiation area of a nuclear power plant. In this study, to ensure effective defect inspection of small diameter nozzles (RCS high-temperature tube sampling nozzle) of a nuclear power plant, three different methods were developed. These include: (1) optimum inspection probe design by beam simulation, (2) multi-directions UT optimum inspection technique for the inspection of small diameters of different welded parts, and (3) remote control automatic inspection system. The developed technique and systems have been verified to be suitable for use in the inspection of defects in smaller diameter nozzles in nuclear power plants.

• Journal of Bio-Environment Control
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.275-280
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• 1999

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of $CO_2$ concentration(310 or 950$\mu$ mol.mol$^{-1}$ ) and air current speed(0.3, 0.5, 0.7 or 0.9m.s$^{-1}$ ) on the growth and development of eggp1ant Plug seedlings (Solanum melongena L.) under artificial 1ighting. For the treatment of $CO_2$ enrichment, stem length and diameter, the ratio of stem length to stem diameter, plant height, leaf area, net photosynthetic rate, top dried weight were significantly different at 1% level. Stem length of plug seedlings decreased at the condition under enriched $CO_2$ and high air current speed above plug stand. Stem diameter of plug seedlings increased and plant height decreased with the increasing $CO_2$ concentration. Plug seedlings had maximum net photosynthetic rate at the air current speed of 0.7m.s$^{-1}$ . Net photosynthetic rate at $CO_2$ concentration of 950$\mu$mol.mol$^{-1}$ increased by 46% than those at 310$\mu$mol.mol$^{-1}$ . Thus $CO_2$ enrichment would be effective for the production of plug seedlings with high quality.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.108 no.4
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• pp.562-573
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• 2019

In a cable yarding system, a small-scale tower yarder attached to a farm tractor wasdeveloped and used for small-diameter tree harvesting operations. Based on this design, improvement of traction performance was required for medium- and large-diameter tree harvesting operations. In this study, the mechanical transmission employed for the tower yarder was modified into ahydro-mechanical transmission system. Maximum traction forces, including tractor engine speed and hydraulic power pressure, were investigated, and comparisons were made between the mechanical and hydro-mechanical transmission systems. Six tractor engine speeds (1,200, 1,400, 1,600, 1,800, 2,000, and 2,200) and three levels of power transmission mechanism pressure (4.9, 6.9, and 8.8 MPa) were investigated in the two different transmission systems. Results showed a maximum traction force of 15,146.6 N at an engine rotation speed of 757 rpm in the current mechanical transmission system, and 36,140.0 N at anengine rotation speed of 1,575 rpm in the modified hydro-mechanical transmission system. The maximum traction forces for the hydro-mechanical transmission were 2.4 times greater than those of the mechanical transmission, and may therefore be applicable to medium and large-diameter tree harvesting operations. Thus,as a modified version of the conventional transmission system, the new hydro-mechanical transmission system may be cost-effective for use in large-scale cable yarding operations. In the future, however, it will be necessary to investigate problems that may arise from field application tests.

• Korean Journal of Optics and Photonics
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.287-293
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• 2008

The collimator which makes a collimated beam, is an essential instrument for assembly and evaluation of telescopes. Recently, the Cassegrain type collimator has been widely used for its compact size as the focal length of high resolution cameras becomes longer. However, this kind of collimator has a disadvantage in that the secondary mirror is a heat source which can degrade the evaluation accuracy for an IR camera system. In this paper, we present the fabrication and measurement process for an off-axis parabolic mirror with the physical diameter pf 1 m, effective diameter 930 mm, and the focal length 6 m. After four months of works we obtained the final surface wave-front error of 30.4 nm rms ($\lambda$/138, ${\lambda}=4.2\;{\mu}m$), which is capable of evaluation of an IR camera as well as a visible camera.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.513-527
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• 2018

The Tunnel Boring Machine(TBM) is relatively insufficient to cope with unpredicted changes in ground conditions as compared with Conventional Tunnelling Methods. Therefore, it is very important to predict the TBM performance at the design stage and estimate the advance rate for the calculation of the construction period. In this study, we added data to 211 TBM databases constructed in the previous study and analyzed the correlation between TBM outer diameter, maximum thrust, maximum cutterhead torque, cutterhead driving power and RPM, which are the main design and manufacturing specifications of TBM. As a result of the analysis from results obtained in the previous studies, it was confirmed that TBM outer diameter is very effective and important in estimating maximum thrust, maximum cutterhead torque, and cutterhead driving power of the TBM. As a result of comparing the regression equations derived from other TBM databases outside the country and the regression equation obtained from the present study results, the maximum thrust showed a similar tendency to each other, but the maximum torque estimated from the regression equation of this study was higher than that of other countries in the case of the large scale TBM.

• The Journal of Korean Academy of Prosthodontics
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.268-280
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• 1994

Tissue conditioners have been used for treatment of denture stomatitis caused by wearing of dentures. Early studies pointed out Candide albicans (C. albicans) as main etiologic factor, and antifugal agents were added for control of the species. But there is a little information about broad comparison on the effect of tissue conditioners and antifungal agents added. The purpose of the present study was to compare the inhibiting effect of four tissue conditioners and one temporary soft liner on the growth of C. albicans for treatment of denture stomatitis using gel diffusion method by measuring diameter of the zone of growth inhibition. Three antifungal agents were added to each material for evaluation of the effect of added agents. Finally, observation was made to evaluate the effect of the loss of antifungal elements by aging of the specimen. The results of this study were obtained as follows : 1. Tempo had remarkable antifungal effect showing the zone of growth inhibition as 2.35 mm at 1st day, and was most effective on End: 4th and 7th day from incubation (p<0.05). But Coecomfort, Dura conditioner, Visco-gel, Coe-soft had little antifungal effect from the 1st day of incubation. 2. Nystatin was most effective showing 9.60-12.04 mm of zone of inhibition at the 1st day from incubation. The antifungal properties were reduced to amphotericin B, chlorhexidine and materials without agent (p<0.05), and the effect was diminished by time. 3. As pretreatment with amphotericin B, nystatin, chlorhexidine, Tempo was very effective at the 1st day from incubation showing zone of inhibition as 3.65, 12.04, 4.78 mm with addition of each agent. Dura conditioner had strongest antifungal effect at the next day as 2.86, 5.33, 1.29 mm of zone of inhibition, and yielding results of Coe-comfort, Tempo, Coe-soft was shown at 4th and 7th day from incubation (p<0.05). Taken all together, tissue conditioners have little antifungal effect except Tempo. Formation of the zone of growth inhibition was due to agents amphotericin B, nystatin, chlorhexidine and nystatin was most effective. Conclusively, it is advisable to select material which is effective on the growth of C. albican and consider addition of antifungal agents for treatment of denture stomatitis.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.561-569
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• 2013

This study examines locational environment factors that may affect the vegetation structure in the forests of Naejang National Park. To that end, we selected LAI (Leaf Area Index), diameter at breast height, and tree height as structural variables as well as altitude above sea level, gradient, slope direction, soil moisture, topographic location, and amount of solar radiation as locational environment factors, using the method of canonical correlation analysis in order to find out correlation between them. As to the simple correlation between the locational environment factors and structural variables, the correlation coefficient was relatively low (0.6). The values of LAI, measured along the ridge with higher altitudes, decreased as the soil moisture and solar radiation increased. However, LAI increased as the gradient increased and the slope direction faced the north (farther from the east). In respect of the diameter at breast height, the diameter decreased as the altitude and gradient increased. But the diameter increased as the moisture and solar radiation increased. The tree height decreased as the moisture increased and the site was closer to the ridge. These various correlations show a variety of locational environment factors in the national park, implying that the structural variables are affected by complex locational environment factors. This study conducted a canonical correlation analysis on locational environment factors which may affect the vegetation structure, and the result showed that LAI increased and tree height & diameter at breast height decreased as the solar radiation & moisture decreased and altitude increased. Although more factors that may affect vegetation structure (e.g. climate) should be taken into account, this study is significant in that the vegetation structure, which can adapt to more unfavorable conditions in terms of solar radiation, moisture, and higher altitudes, could be inferred in a statistical way. The results of this study, especially the locational environment factors based on DEM, can be used for assessing diversity of vegetation structure in a forest and for monitoring the structure in a national park on a regular basis so as to establish more effective maintenance plans of a park.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.299-306
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• 2009

Purpose : To compare radiation dose for coronary CT angiography (CTA) obtained with 6 examination protocols such as a retrospectively ECG gated helical scan, a prospectively ECG gated sequential scan, low kVp technique, and cardiac dose modulation technique. Materials and Methods : Coronary CTA was performed by using 6 current clinical protocols to evaluate effective dose and organ dose in primary beam area with anthropomorphic female phantom and glass dosimetric system in 64 channel multi-detector CT. After acquiring topograms of frontal and lateral projection with 80 kVp and 10 mA, main coronary scan was done with 0.35 sec tube rotation time, 40 mm collimation ($0.625\;mm{\times}64\;ea$), small scan field of view (32 cm diameter), 105 mm scan length. Heart beat rate of phantom was maintained 60 bpm in ECG gating. In constant mAs technique 120 kVp, 600 mA was used, and 100 kVp for low kVp technique. In a retrospectively ECG gated helical CT technique 0.22 pitch was used, peak mA (600 mA) was adopted in range of $40{\sim}80%$ of R-R interval and 120mA(80% reduction) in others with cardiac dose modulation. And 210 mAs was used without cardiac dose modulation. In a prospectively ECG gated sequential CT technique data were acquired at 75% R-R interval (middle diastolic phase in cardiac cycle), and 120 msec additional padding of the tube-on time was used. For effective dose calculation region specific conversion factor of dose length product in thorax was used, which was recommended by EUR 16262. Results : The mean effective dose for conventional coronary CTA without cardiac dose modulation in a retrospectively ECG gated helical scan was 17.8 mSv, and mean organ dose of heart was 103.8 mGy. With low kVp and cardiac dose modulation the mean effective dose showed 54.5% reduction, and heart dose showed 52.3% reduction, compared with that of conventional coronary CTA. And at the sequential scan(SnapShot pulse mode) under prospective ECG gating the mean effective dose was 4.9 mSv, this represents an 72.5% reduction compared with that of conventional coronary CTA. And heart dose was 33.8 mGy, this represents 67.4% reduction. In the sequential scan technique under prospective ECG gating with low kVp the mean effective dose was 3.0 mSv, this represents an 83.2% reduction compared with that of conventional coronary CTA. And heart dose was 17.7 mGy, this represents an 82.9% reduction. Conclusion : In coronary CTA at retrospectively ECG gated helical scan, cardiac dose modulation technique using low kVp reduced dose to 50% above compared with the conventional helical scan. And the prospectively ECG gated sequential scan offers substantially reduced dose compared with the traditional retrospectively ECG gated helical scan.