• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.45 no.1
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• pp.11-30
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• 2024

Objectives: This study evaluated the effects of Ssanghwa-tang (SHT) on lung injury and muscle loss in a COPD mouse model. Methods: C57BL/6 mice were challenged with cigarette smoke extract and lipopolysaccharide, and then treated with two concentrations of SHT (250 and 500 mg/kg). After sacrifice, the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) or lung tissue was analyzed by cytospin, ELISA, real-time PCR, flow cytometry analysis, and H&E and Masson's trichrome staining. The grip strength of COPD mice was measured using a grip strength meter. The running time of COPD mice was measured by a treadmill test. Muscle tissue of the quadriceps was stained with H&E and Masson's trichrome staining. Results: SHT significantly inhibited the increase in neutrophil numbers in BALF and significantly decreased immune cell activity in BALF and lung tissue. It also significantly inhibited the increase in TNF-α, IL-17, and MIP2 in BALF. Real-time PCR analysis revealed that the mRNA expression of TNF-α, IL-17, MIP2, and TRPV1 in lung tissue showed a significant decrease compared with the control group. Lung tissue damage was significantly reduced in the histological analysis. The grip strength and running time of the COPD mice showed a significant decrease compared with the control group. In histological staining, SHT was found to reduce the damage to muscle tissue. Conclusions: This study indicates that SHT can be used as a therapeutic agent for COPD patients by inhibiting lung injury and muscle loss.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.21-28
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• 2008

Background: A co-inhibitory molecule, B7-H4, is believed to negatively regulate T cell immunity by suppressing T cell proliferation and inhibiting cytokine production. However, the mechanism behind B7-H4-mediated tolerance remains unclear. Methods: Balb/c $(H-2^d)$ mice were fed with dendritic cell line, DC2.4 $(H-2^d)$ every day for 10 days. Meantime, mice were hydrodynamically injected with recombinant plasmid expressing B7-H4 fusion protein (B7-H4.hFc) or hFc via tail vein. One day after last feeding, mice were immunized with allogeneic B6 spleen cells. 14 days following immunization, mice were challenged with B6 spleen cells to ear back and the ear swelling was determined the next day. Subsequently, a mixed lymphocyte reaction (MLR) was also performed and cytokines profiles from the reaction were examined by sandwich ELISA. Frequency of immunosuppressive cell population was assayed with flow cytometry and mRNA for FoxP3 was determined by RT-PCR. Results: Tolerant mice given plasmid expressing B7-H4.hFc showed a significant reduction in ear swelling compared to control mice. In addition, T cells from mice given B7-H4.hFc plasmid revealed a significant hyporesponsiveness of T cells against allogeneic spleen cells and showed a significant decrease in Th1 and Th2 cytokines such as IFN-${\gamma}$, IL-5, and TNF-${\alpha}$. Interestingly, flow cytometric analysis showed that the frequency of CD4+CD25+FoxP3+ Tregs in spleen was increased in tolerant mice given recombinant B7-H4.hFc plasmid compared to control group. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate that B7-H4 synergistically potentiates oral tolerance induced by allogeneic cells by increasing the frequency of FoxP3+ CD4+CD25+ Treg and reducing Th1 and Th2 cytokine production.

• Journal of the Institute of Electronics Engineers of Korea SD
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• v.42 no.4 s.334
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• pp.19-28
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• 2005

In this paper, we proposed a parallel fast 2-D discrete wavelet transform hardware architecture based on lifting scheme. The proposed architecture improved the 2-D processing speed, and reduced internal memory buffer size. The previous lifting scheme based parallel 2-D wavelet transform architectures were consisted with row direction and column direction modules, which were pair of prediction and update filter module. In 2-D wavelet transform, column direction processing used the row direction results, which were not generated in column direction order but in row direction order, so most hardware architecture need internal buffer memory. The proposed architecture focused on the reducing of the internal memory buffer size and the total calculation time. Reducing the total calculation time, we proposed a 4-way data flow scheduling and memory based parallel hardware architecture. The 4-way data flow scheduling can increase the row direction parallel performance, and reduced the initial latency of starting of the row direction calculation. In this hardware architecture, the internal buffer memory didn't used to store the results of the row direction calculation, while it contained intermediate values of column direction calculation. This method is very effective in column direction processing, because the input data of column direction were not generated in column direction order The proposed architecture was implemented with VHDL and Altera Stratix device. The implementation results showed overall calculation time reduced from $N^2/2+\alpha$ to $N^2/4+\beta$, and internal buffer memory size reduced by around $50\%$ of previous works.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.81-90
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• 2002

Purpose : To establish and verify the proper and the practical IMRT (Intensity--modulated radiation therapy) patient QA (Quality Assurance). Materials and Methods : An IMRT QA which consists of 3 steps and 16 items were designed and examined the validity of the program by applying to 9 patients, 12 IMRT cases of various sites. The three step OA program consists of RTP related QA, treatment information flow QA, and a treatment delivery QA procedure. The evaluation of organ constraints, the validity of the point dose, and the dose distribution are major issues in the RTP related QA procedure. The leaf sequence file generation, the evaluation of the MLC control file, the comparison of the dry run film, and the IMRT field simulate image were included in the treatment information flow procedure QA. The patient setup QA, the verification of the IMRT treatment fields to the patients, and the examination of the data in the Record & Verify system make up the treatment delivery QA procedure. Results : The point dose measurement results of 10 cases showed good agreement with the RTP calculation within $3\%$. One case showed more than a $3\%$ difference and the other case showed more than $5\%$, which was out side the tolerance level. We could not find any differences of more than 2 mm between the RTP leaf sequence and the dry run film. Film dosimetry and the dose distribution from the phantom plan showed the same tendency, but quantitative analysis was not possible because of the film dosimetry nature. No error had been found from the MLC control file and one mis-registration case was found before treatment. Conclusion : This study shows the usefulness and the necessity of the IMRT patient QA program. The whole procedure of this program should be peformed, especially by institutions that have just started to accumulate experience. But, the program is too complex and time consuming. Therefore, we propose practical and essential QA items for institutions in which the IMRT is performed as a routine procedure.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Geographic Information Studies
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.53-69
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• 2020

The increase of the impermeable area due to industrialization and urban development distorts the hydrological circulation system and cause serious stream drying phenomena. In order to manage this, it is necessary to develop a technology for impact assessment of stream drying phenomena, which enables quantitative evaluation and prediction. In this study, the cause of streamflow reduction was assessed for dam and weir watersheds in the five major river basins of South Korea by using distributed hydrological model DrySAT-WFT (Drying Stream Assessment Tool and Water Flow Tracking) and GIS time series data. For the modeling, the 5 influencing factors of stream drying phenomena (soil erosion, forest growth, road-river disconnection, groundwater use, urban development) were selected and prepared as GIS-based time series spatial data from 1976 to 2015. The DrySAT-WFT was calibrated and validated from 2005 to 2015 at 8 multipurpose dam watershed (Chungju, Soyang, Andong, Imha, Hapcheon, Seomjin river, Juam, and Yongdam) and 4 gauging stations (Osucheon, Mihocheon, Maruek, and Chogang) respectively. The calibration results showed that the coefficient of determination (R²) was 0.76 in average (0.66 to 0.84) and the Nash-Sutcliffe model efficiency was 0.62 in average (0.52 to 0.72). Based on the 2010s (2006~2015) weather condition for the whole period, the streamflow impact was estimated by applying GIS data for each decade (1980s: 1976~1985, 1990s: 1986~1995, 2000s: 1996~2005, 2010s: 2006~2015). The results showed that the 2010s averaged-wet streamflow (Q95) showed decrease of 4.1~6.3%, the 2010s averaged-normal streamflow (Q185) showed decreased of 6.7~9.1% and the 2010s averaged-drought streamflow (Q355) showed decrease of 8.4~10.4% compared to 1980s streamflows respectively on the whole. During 1975~2015, the increase of groundwater use covered 40.5% contribution and the next was forest growth with 29.0% contribution among the 5 influencing factors.

• Journal of Bio-Environment Control
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.293-302
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• 2014

This study was carried out to develop rain shelter which can make an appropriate size and environment for Chinese cabbage rainproof cultivation. Fifty three farms with chinese cabbage rainproof cultivation system have been investigated to set up width and height of rain shelter. Mostly the width of 6m was desired for rain shelter and the height of 1.6m for their eaves, so these values were chosen as the dimensions for rain shelter. After an analysis of their structural safety and installation costs by the specifications of the rafter pipe, Ø$25.4{\times}1.5t$ and 90cm have been set as the size of rafter that such size costs the least. This size is stable with $27m{\cdot}s^{-1}$ of wind velocity and 17cm of snow depth. Therefore it is difficult to apply this dimension to area with higher climate load. In order to sort out such problem, the rain shelter has been designed to avoid damage on frame by opening plastic film to the ridge. Once greenhouse band is loosen by turning the manual switch at the both sides of rain shelter and open button of controller is pushed then switch motor rises up along the guide pipe and plastic film is opened to the ridge. Chinese cabbage can be damaged by insects if rain shelter is opened completely as revealed a field. To prevent this, farmers can install an insect-proof net. Further, the greenhouse can be damaged by typhoon while growing Chinese cabbage therefore the effect of an insect-proof net on structural safety has been analyzed. And then structural safety has been analyzed through using flow-structure interaction method at the wind condition of $40m{\cdot}s^{-1}$. And it assumed that wind applied perpendicular to side of the rain shelter which was covered by insect-proof net. The results indicated that plastic film was directly affected by wind therefore high pressure occurred on the surface. But wind load on insect-proof net was smaller than on plastic film and pressure distribution was also uniform. The results of structural analysis by applying pressure data extracted from flow analysis indicated that the maximum stress occurred at the end of pipe which is the ground part and the value has been 54.6MPa. The allowable stress of pipe in the standard of structural safety must be 215 MPa or more therefore structural safety of this rain shelter is satisfied.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.17 no.6
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• pp.495-499
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• 1985

To develope a process by which liquid foods can be stored in the liquid state at the frozen storage temperature, suitable cryoprotectants were selected. Orange juice, chosen as an example of liquid foods, was stored with combined cryoprotectants at $-15^{\circ}C$, and quality changes of orange juice during storage were evaluated. Among 7 cryoprotectants tested, NaCl solution had lower initial freezing point than others, and initial freezing points of glucose, fructose, glycerol, propylene glycol and citric acid were close to each other. Considering flavor quality of orange juice, cryoprotectants suitable for reducing freezing point of orange juice were glucose, fructose, glycerol, and citric acid. Combined cryoprotectants for reducing freezing point of 3 and 4 folds concentrated orange juice to $-15^{\circ}C$ consisted of 10% glucose, 8% frutose, 4.6% glycerol and 3% citric acid, and 5.5% glucose, 4.5% fructose, 4.6% glycerol, and 3% cirtric acid, respectively. When destruction of ascorbic acid, sedimentation volume and sensory flavor score of orange juice stored with combined cryoprotectants at $-15^{\circ}C$ and the control stored at $-18^{\circ}C$ were compared, there were no significant differences. These results indicated that liquid foods with suitable combined cryoprotectants could be stored at $-15^{\circ}C$ or below in the liquid state without adverse effect on quality of the stored products.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.55 no.6
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• pp.570-578
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• 2003

Background : Ambient particles during Asian dust events are usually sized less than $10{\mu}m$, known to be associated with the adverse effects on the general populations. But, there has been no considerable evidence linking these particles to the adverse effects on airways. The objectives of this study was to investigate the possible adverse effects of Asian dust events on respiratory function and symptoms in subjects with bronchial asthma. Patients and Methods : From march to June 2002, Asthmatic patients who were diagnosed with bronchial challenge test or bronchodilator response were enrolled. We divided them into three groups; mild, moderate, and severe, according to the severity. Subjects with other organ insufficiency such as heart, kidney, liver, and malignancy were excluded. All patients completed twice daily diaries and recorded peak flow rate, respiratory symptom, and daily activity. Daily and hourly mean pollutant levels of particulate matter < $10{\mu}m$ in diameter($PM_{10}$), nitrogen dioxide($NO_2$), sulphur dioxide($SO_2$), ozone($O_3$) and carbon monoxide(CO) were measured at the 10 different monitoring sites. Results : Dust events occured 14 times during the study period. Daily averages of 4 air pollutant were measured with an increased level of $PM_{10}$, decreased level of $NO_2$ and $SO_2$, and no change in CO during dust days compared to those during control days. An increase in $PM_{10}$ concentration was associated with an increase of subjects with PEF variability of >20% (p<0.05), night time symptom(p<0.05), and a decrease in mean PEF (p<0.05), which were calculated by the longitudinal data analysis. Otherwise, there was no association between $PM_{10}$ level and bronchodialtor inhaler, and daytime respiratory symptoms. Conclusion : This study shows evidence that ambient air pollution, especially $PM_{10}$, during Asian dust events, could be one of the many aggravating factors at least in patients with airway diseases. This data can be used as a primary source to set up a new policy on air environmental control and to evaluate the safety of air pollution index. We also expect that this research will help identify precise components of dust, which are more linked to the adverse effects.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.437-443
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• 2010

This study was designed to examine the aerobic capacity and ventilatory response during an incremental exercise in elite high school cyclists. Twelve boys ($17{\pm}1\;yr$, $175{\pm}5\;cm$, $70{\pm}9\;kg$) participated in anthropometric measurements, incremental exercise testing, and pulmonary function tests. During incremental exercise testing using a cycle ergometer, their maximal oxygen uptake ($VO_2max$), maximal power output, ventilation, ventilatory equivalents for oxygen ($V_E/VO_2$) and carbon dioxide ($V_E/VCO_2$), respiratory rate, and tidal volume were measured. Time variables such as inspiratory time (Ti), expiratory time (Te), breathing time (Tb), and inspiratory duty cycle (Ti/Tb), as well as inspiratory flow rate ($V_T$/Ti) were assessed. Pulmonary function of vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in one second ($FEV_1$), $FEV_1$/FVC, and peak expiratory flow were evaluated. Their $VO_2max$, maximal heart rate, and Wmax were $57.5{\pm}3.9\;ml{\cdot}kg^{-1}{\cdot}min^{-1}$, $194.1{\pm}8.6\;beat{\cdot}min^{-1}$, and 452 W, respectively. $VO_2max$ was not related to any anthropometric parameters. Most ventilatory variables progressively increased with exercise intensity. As intensity increased, Ti, Tb, Tb decreased while Ti/Tb was maintained. Below an intensity of 250 W, height, weight, body mass index, and body surface were highly correlated with $V_T$/Ti and Ti/Tb (p<0.05). Collectively, $VO_2max$ appeared to be lower than adult cyclists, suggesting a different pattern of ventilatory control as age advances. Morphological characteristics were not related to $VO_2max$ in the population. Time variables of ventilatory response seemed to be related only at an exercise intensity level of less than 250 W. $V_T$/Ti may be related to exercise endurance capacity, but Ti/Tb was similar to adult cyclists.

• Journal of the korean academy of Pediatric Dentistry
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.43-52
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• 2006

Topical fluoride application for children is a widely peformed procedure in the field of pediatric dentistry to prevent dental caries. However, it is recently recognized as having some unwanted effects on several esthetic restorative materials as it roughens the surface of the restorative materials. The aim of this study was to evaluate the surface changes in composite resins to topical fluoride. Composite resins(Z $250^{(R)}$, Ultraseal $XT^{(R)}$ Filtek $flow^{(R)}$ $Revolution^{(R)}$, $Denfil^{(R)}$) in topical fluoride agents were immersed and their surface roughness, weight loss and SEM were evaluated. The results were as follows : 1. The 4 minutes-immersion groups showed more roughened surface than 1 minute-immersion groups and the control groups showed the smoothest surface among all the materials, and there was statistically significant difference except the revolution between the groups. 2. There was no significant difference between the 1 minute-immersion groups and 4 minutes-immersion groups in weight loss. 3. The experimental group treated with topical fluoride gel showed the generally mere roughened surface than control group in the SEM findings.