• Genomics & Informatics
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.19.1-19.15
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• 2022

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) is an important food and feed crop which rich in mineral sources. The WUSCHEL-related homeobox (WOX) gene family plays important roles in plant development and identification of putative gene families, their structure, and potential functions is a primary step for not only understanding the genetic mechanisms behind various biological process but also for genetic improvement. A variety of computational tools, including MAFFT, HMMER, hidden Markov models, Pfam, SMART, MEGA, ProtTest, BLASTn, and BRAD, among others, were used. We identified 34 MsWOX genes based on a systematic analysis of the alfalfa plant genome spread in eight chromosomes. This is an expansion of the gene family which we attribute to observed chromosomal duplications. Sequence alignment analysis revealed 61 conserved proteins containing a homeodomain. Phylogenetic study sung reveal five evolutionary clades with 15 motif distributions. Gene structure analysis reveals various exon, intron, and untranslated structures which are consistent in genes from similar clades. Functional analysis prediction of promoter regions reveals various transcription binding sites containing key growth, development, and stress-responsive transcription factor families such as MYB, ERF, AP2, and NAC which are spread across the genes. Most of the genes are predicted to be in the nucleus. Also, there are duplication events in some genes which explain the expansion of the family. The present research provides a clue on the potential roles of MsWOX family genes that will be useful for further understanding their functional roles in alfalfa plants.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.49 no.6
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• pp.615-631
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• 2023

To investigate the seismic behavior of steel slag self-stressing concrete-filled circular steel tubular (SSSCFCST) columns, 14 specimens were designed, namely, 10 SSSCFCST columns and four ordinary steel slag (SS) concrete (SSC)-filled circular steel tubular (SSCFCST) columns. Comparative tests were conducted under low reversed cyclic loading considering various parameters, such as the axial compression ratio, diameter-thickness ratio, shear-span ratio, and expansion ratio of SSC. The failure process of the specimens was observed, and hysteretic and skeleton curves were obtained. Next, the influence of these parameters on the hysteretic behavior of the SSSCFCST columns was analyzed. The self stress of SS considerably increased the bearing capacity and ductility of the specimens. Results indicated that specimens with a shear-span ratio of 1.83 exhibited compression bending failure, whereas those with shear-span ratios of 0.91 or 1.37 exhibited drum-shaped cracking failure. However, shear-bond failure occurred in the nonloading direction. The stiffness of the falling section of the specimens decreased with increasing shear-span ratio. The hysteretic curves exhibited a weak pinch phenomenon, and their shapes evolved from a full shuttle shape to a bow shape during loading. The skeleton curves of the specimens were nearly complete, progressing through elastic, elastoplastic, and plastic stages. Based on the experimental study and considering the effects of the SSC expansion rate, shear-span ratio, diameter-thickness ratio, and axial compression ratio on the seismic behavior, a peak displacement coefficient of 0.91 was introduced through regression analysis. A simplified method for calculating load-displacement skeleton curves was proposed and loading and unloading rules for SSSCFCST columns were provided. The load-displacement restorative force model of the specimens was established. These findings can serve as a guide for further research and practical application of SSSCFCST columns.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.45-54
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• 2020

Recently, market demands of miniaturization, high interconnection density, and fine pitch of PCBs continuously keep increasing. Therefore, SLP (substrate like PCB) technology using a modified semi additive process (MSAP) has attracted great attention. In particular, SLP technology is essential for the development of high-capacity batteries and 5G technology for smartphones. In this study, the reliability of the microvia of hybrid SLP, which is made of conventional HDI (high density interconnect) and MSAP technologies, was investigated by experimental and numerical analysis. Through thermal cycling reliability test using IST (interconnect stress test) and finite element numerical analysis, the effects of various parameters such as prepreg properties, thickness, number of layers, microvia size, and misalignment on microvia reliability were investigated for optimal design of SLP. As thermal expansion coefficient (CTE) of prepreg decreased, the reliability of microvia increased. The thinner the prepreg thickness, the higher the reliability. Increasing the size of the microvia hole and the pad will alleviate stress and improve reliability. On the other hand, as the number of prepreg layers increased, the reliability of microvia decreased. Also, the larger the misalignment, the lower the reliability. In particular, among these parameters, CTE of prepreg material has the greatest impact on the microvia reliability. The results of numerical stress analysis were in good agreement with the experimental results. As the stress of the microvia decreased, the reliability of the microvia increased. These experimental and numerical results will provide a useful guideline for design and fabrication of SLP substrate.

• Journal of the Korean Arthroscopy Society
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.1-6
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• 2000

Purpose : The purpose of this study was to compare the results of ACL reconstruction using bone-patellar tendon-bone to hamstring. Materials and Methods : Thirty-two ACL reconstructions with autogenous BPTB and eighteen reconstructions with hamstring were compared in terms of functional outcome, stability and tunnel expansion. Results : The functional score of BPTB group was higher than hamstring group in OAK(Orthopadishe Arbeitsguppe Knie) and IKDC(International Knee Documentation Committee) system. In BPTB group, OAK scores were 71.6$({\pm}10.0)$ preoperatively and 88.5$({\pm}7.9)$ finally. In hamstring group, OAK scores were 73.9$({\pm}11.5)$ and 82.5$({\pm}12.9)$ respectively. There was no difference in stability checked by either $KT-1000^{TM}$ or stress view. Anterior tibial translation measured by $KT-1000^{TM}$ were 2.4$({\pm}1.8)$mm in BPTB and 2.3$({\pm}2.4)$mm in hamstring group. Anterior tibial translation in stress view were 2.8$({\pm}3.4)$mm in BPTB and 2.8$({\pm}2.5)$mm in hamstring group. There was no difference in tibial tunnel expansion but femoral tunnel was more enlarged in hamstring group than BPTB (P=0.03). Conclusion : As there was no difference in stability between two groups, it seems prudent to select either graft defend on such factors as anterior knee pain, skeletal maturity and cosmetic concern. Tunnel expansion seems not to affect stability, but further study is needed to confirm that decrease of which might improve stability.

• The Journal of Korean Academy of Prosthodontics
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• v.39 no.6
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• pp.709-734
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• 2001

The aims of this experiment were to investigate the strain and temperature changes simultaneously within autopolymerzing acrylic resin specimens. A computerized data acquisition system with an electrical resistance strain gauge and a thermocouple was used over time periods up to 180 minutes. The overall strain kinetics, the effects of stress relaxation and additional heat supply during the polymerization were evaluated. Stone mold replicas with an inner butt-joint rectangular cavity ($40.0{\times}25.0mm$, 5.0mm in depth) were duplicated from a brass master mold. A strain gauge (AE-11-S50N-120-EC, CAS Inc., Korea) and a thermocouple were installed within the cavity, which had been connected to a personal computer and a precision signal conditioning amplifier (DA1600 Dynamic Strain Amplifier, CAS Inc., Korea) so that real-time recordings of both polymerization-induced strain and temperature changes were performed. After each of fresh resin mixture was poured into the mold replica, data recording was done up to 180 minutes with three-second interval. Each of two poly(methyl methacrylate) products (Duralay, Vertex) and a vinyl ethyl methacrylate product (Snap) was examined repeatedly ten times. Additionally, removal procedures were done after 15, 30 and 60 minutes from the start of mixing to evaluate the effect of stress relaxation after deflasking. Six specimens for each of nine conditions were examined. After removal from the mold, the specimen continued bench-curing up to 180 minutes. Using a waterbath (Hanau Junior Curing Unit, Model No.76-0, Teledyne Hanau, New York, U.S.A.) with its temperature control maintained at $50^{\circ}C$, heat-soaking procedures with two different durations (15 and 45 minutes) were done to evaluate the effect of additional heat supply on the strain and temperature changes within the specimen during the polymerization. Five specimens for each of six conditions were examined. Within the parameters of this study the following results were drawn: 1. The mean shrinkage strains reached $-3095{\mu}{\epsilon},\;-1796{\mu}{\epsilon}$ and $-2959{\mu}{\epsilon}$ for Duralay, Snap and Vertex, respectively. The mean maximum temperature rise reached $56.7^{\circ}C,\;41.3^{\circ}C$ and $56.1^{\circ}C$ for Duralay, Snap, and Vertex, respectively. A vinyl ethyl methacrylate product (Snap) showed significantly less polymerization shrinkage strain (p<0.01) and significantly lower maximum temperature rise (p<0.01) than the other two poly(methyl methacrylate) products (Duralay, Vertex). 2. Mean maximum shrinkage rate for each resin was calculated to $-31.8{\mu}{\epsilon}/sec,\;-15.9{\mu}{\epsilon}/sec$ and $-31.8{\mu}{\epsilon}/sec$ for Duralay, Snap and Vertex, respectively. Snap showed significantly lower maximum shrinkage rate than Duralay and Vertex (p<0.01). 3. From the second experiment, some expansion was observed immediately after removal of specimen from the mold, and the amount of expansion increased as the removal time was delayed. For each removal time, Snap showed significantly less strain changes than the other two poly(methyl methacrylate) products (p<0.05). 4. During the external heat supply for the resins, higher maximum temperature rises were found. Meanwhile, the maximum shrinkage rates were not different from those of room temperature polymerizations. 5. From the third experiment, the external heat supply for the resins during polymerization could temporarily decrease or even reverse shrinkage strains of each material. But, shrinkage re-occurred in the linear nature after completion of heat supply. 6. Linear thermal expansion coefficients obtained from the end of heat supply continuing for an additional 5 minutes, showed that Snap exhibited significantly lower values than the other two poly(methyl methacrylate) products (p<0.01). Moreover, little difference was found between the mean linear thermal expansion coefficients obtained from two different heating durations (p>0.05).

• Journal of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute of Korea
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.169-177
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• 2016

Sliding slab track system, which consists of low friction sliding layer between track slab and bridge deck, is recently devised to reduce track-bridge interaction effect of continuously welded rail(CWR) without applying special devices such as rail expansion joint(REJ). In this study, a series of track-bridge interaction analyses of a long-span bridge with sliding slab track and REJ are performed respectively and the results are compared. The bridge model includes PSC box girder bridge with 9 continuous spans, and steel-concrete composite girder bridge with 2 continuous spans. The total length of the bridge model is 1,205m, and the maximum spacing between the two fixed supports is 825m. Analyses results showed that the sliding slab track system is highly effective on interaction reduction since lower rail additional axial stress is resulted than REJ application. Additionally, horizontal reaction forces in fixed supports were also reduced compared to the results of REJ application. However, higher slab axial forces were developed in the sliding slab track due to the temperature load. Therefore, track slab section of the sliding slab track system should be carefully designed against slab axial forces.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.1765-1775
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• 2013

The application of FRP wire as a mean of improving strength and ductility capacity of concrete cylinders under axial compressive load through confinement is investigated experimentally in this study. An experimental investigation involves axial compressive test of three confining amounts of FRP wire and three concrete compressive strengths. The effectiveness of FRP wire confinement on the concrete microstructure were examined by evaluating the internal concrete damage using axial, circumferential, and volumetric strains. The axial stress-strain relations of FRP wire confined concrete showed bilinear behavior with transition region. It showed strain-hardening behavior in the post-cracking region. The load carrying capacity was linearly increased with increasing of the amount of FRP wire. The ultimate strength of the 35 MPa specimen confined with 3 layer of FRP wire was increased by 286% compared to control one. When the concrete were effectively confined with FRP wire, horizontal cracks were formed by shearing. It was developed from sudden expansion of the concrete due to confinement ruptures at one side while the FRP wire was still working in hindering expansion of concrete at the other side of the crack. The FRP wire failure strains obtained from FRP wire confined concrete tests were 55~90%, average 69.5%, of the FRP wire ultimate uniaxial tensile strain. It was as high as any other FRP confined method. The magnitude of FRP wire failure strain was related to the FRP wire effectiveness.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.20 no.8
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• pp.113-121
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• 2004

The present study is suggested to estimate the degree of secondary consolidation caused by various changes of stress such as loading, unloading and reloading in improving poor subsoil through pre-compression loading construction method and, for this purpose, examined the characteristics of the consolidation of Kunsan clay through incremental loading test (IL) using standard consolidation tester and constant loading rate test (CLR), which were adapted from the constant rate of strain test (CRS). In addition, after CRS test, this study determined the characteristics of secondary consolidation and relationships among void ratio, effective stress and time according to the ratio of effective over-consolidation on reloading at the point of time of random expansion. Kunsan clay had larger expansion and smaller secondary consolidation settlement when the ratio of effective over-consolidation was high. In addition, when loading was applied after the load was removed at once, the secondary consolidation coefficient $C'_{\alpha}$ was smaller than that when the load was removed gradually, and when the ratio of effective over-consolidation was over 1.4 a similar value was produced. Based on the entire settlement resulting from reloading, the secondary consolidation coefficient $C"_{\alpha}$ increased non-linearly with the lapse of time but the final value was similar to that in the case of rapid removal. The strain velocity of void ratio was in a regular linear relationship with the increase of loading time regardless of the ratio of effective over-consolidation in both tests and it grew smaller with the increase of the ratio of effective over-consolidation.tion.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.93-101
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• 2022

RC Slab bridges in Korea account for more than 70% of the total bridges for more than 20 years of service. As the number of aging structures increases, the importance of safety diagnosis and maintenance of structures increases. For highway bridges, cracks are a main cause of deck deterioration, which is very closely related to the decrease in bridge durability and service life. In addition, the damage rate of expansion joints and bearings accounts for approximately 73% higher than that of major members. Therefore, this study defined damage scenarios combined with devices damages and deck deterioration. The stress distribution and maximum stress on the deck were then evaluated using design vehicle load and daily temperature gradient for single and combined damage scenarios. Furthermore, this study performed damage-spread analysis and predicted condition ratings according to a deck deterioration model generated from the inspection and diagnosis history data of cracks. The heterogeneous damages combined with the member damages of expansion joints and bearings increased the rate of crack area and damage spread, which accelerated the time to reach the condition rating of C. Therefore, damage to bridge members requires proper and prompt repair and replacement, and otherwise it can cause the damage to bridge deck and the spread of the damage.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.31 no.9
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• pp.1420-1430
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• 2018

Objective: Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) is a major ingredient of catechin polyphenols and is considered one of the most promising bioactive compounds in green tea because of its strong antioxidant properties. However, the protective role of EGCG in bovine oocyte in vitro maturation (IVM) has not been investigated. Therefore, we aimed to study the effects of EGCG on IVM of bovine oocytes. Methods: Bovine oocytes were treated with different concentrations of EGCG (0, 25, 50, 100, and $200{\mu}M$), and the nuclear and cytoplasmic maturation, cumulus cell expansion, intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels, total antioxidant capacity, the early apoptosis and the developmental competence of in vitro fertilized embryos were measured. The mRNA abundances of antioxidant genes (nuclear factor erythriod-2 related factor 2 [NRF2], superoxide dismutase 1 [SOD1], catalase [CAT], and glutathione peroxidase 4 [GPX4]) in matured bovine oocytes were also quantified. Results: Nuclear maturation which is characterized by first polar body extrusion, and cytoplasmic maturation characterized by peripheral and cortical distribution of cortical granules and homogeneous mitochondrial distribution were significantly improved in the $50{\mu}M$ EGCG-treated group compared with the control group. Adding $50{\mu}M$ EGCG to the maturation medium significantly increased the cumulus cell expansion index and upregulated the mRNA levels of cumulus cell expansion-related genes (hyaluronan synthase 2, tumor necrosis factor alpha induced protein 6, pentraxin 3, and prostaglandin 2). Both the intracellular ROS level and the early apoptotic rate of matured oocytes were significantly decreased in the $50{\mu}M$ EGCG group, and the total antioxidant ability was markedly enhanced. Additionally, both the cleavage and blastocyst rates were significantly higher in the $50{\mu}M$ EGCG-treated oocytes after in vitro fertilization than in the control oocytes. The mRNA abundance of NRF2, SOD1, CAT, and GPX4 were significantly increased in the $50{\mu}M$ EGCG-treated oocytes. Conclusion: In conclusion, $50{\mu}M$ EGCG can improve the bovine oocyte maturation, and the protective role of EGCG may be correlated with its antioxidative property.