• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• 제31권1호
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• pp.1-8
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• 2006

Objectives: We studied to find out the relevant relationship between the type of residence and the level of mental depression among aged people. Methods: The authors surveyed 156 people who are over 65 in a small city. Here are three groups: 50 persons who live in the facility for the aged. 72 persons who live with their family and 34 persons who live alone. We developed the questionnaire and the severity of depressive symptoms was measured using Korean Form of Geriatric Depression Scale (KGDS) score. Results: Positive rate of depressive disorders among the aged people was 43.6%. Positive rate of depressive disorders among the aged who live in the facility for the aged was 42.0% and that persons who live with their family was 9.7%. It's more likely to be their gender, the marital status, schooling, going out and pocket money that affect on their mental depression. According to the multiple logistic regression, the odds ratios of the persons who live in the facility for the aged versus persons who live with their family and pocket money in a month were significant (p<0.05). Conclusions: The research shows that the mental depression in the aged people is more serious in the facility for the aged and also significantly related to their pocket money.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제15권7호
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• pp.2951-2957
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• 2014

Background: Gastric carcinogenesis is a complicated process that involves environmental and genetic factors like interleukin-4 (IL-4) and IL-8. Single nucleotide polymorphisms in their genes are associated with changed levels of gene expression. Here, we investigated the association between IL4-590 C>T and IL8-251T>A and gastric cancer (GC) risk in Sichuan of Southwestern China. Materials and Methods: We surveyed the research subjects using a self-designed questionnaire with questions on demographic factors and putative risk factors. Approximately 2-5ml of whole blood was collected after field survey to analyze IL4-590 C>T and IL8-251T>A genotypes using MALDI-TOF MS. Results: Our study recruited 308 pairs of GC patients and controls, including 224 (72.7%) men and 84 (27.3%) women in each group. There were 99 cardia and 176 noncardia GC patients in the case group. The case and control groups had an average age of $57.7{\pm}10.6$ ($mean{\pm}SD$) and $57.6{\pm}11.1$ years. GC patients reported a significantly greater proportion of family history of cancer (29.9% vs 10.7%, p<0.01) and drinking (54.6% vs 43.2%, p<0.01) than did controls. Variant genotypes of IL-4-590 C>T and IL-8-251 T>A were not associated with overall GC risk (adjusted OR, 0.89; 95%CI, 0.61-1.28 for CT or CC vs TT; adjusted OR, 1.14; 95%CI, 0.86-1.79 for TA or AA vs TT). Stratification analysis of two SNPs for risk by subsites only found that variant IL-8-251 TA or AA genotype was associated with increased noncardia GC risk (adjusted OR, 2.58; 95%CI, 1.19-5.57). We did not observe interactions between the IL-8-251 T>A genotype and smoking (adjusted OR, 0.38; 95%CI, 0.08-1.79) or drinking (adjusted OR, 0.36; 95%CI, 0.08-1.65) for risk of noncardia GC. Conclusions: Our data indicate no association between the two SNPs of IL-4-590 and IL-8-251 with overall GC risk, while the IL-8-251 TA or AA genotype conferred risk of cardia GC. Our findings contribute to the evidence body for risk of SNPs associated with the development of gastric cancer in this region.

• Asia pacific journal of information systems
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• 제21권1호
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• pp.1-27
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• 2011

In an attempt to cope with widespread, dynamic, and accelerating changes in both internal and external business environments, companies often utilize information technologies such as SCM(Supply Chain Management). To date, SCM research has mainly focused on the effects of dynamic factors on SCM success and emphasized adoption strategies and critical success factors. Consequently, the effects of more static factors such as interdependency between SCM partners have been largely ignored. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to examine the effects of both dynamic and static factors on SCM performance by controlling for information quality and partnership quality. The five factors examined in this study include innovative ness, mutual dependency, quality of information, partnership quality, and SCM performance. All factors were examined from the perspective of part suppliers, except the mutual dependency which was examined from two aspects: supplier's dependency on customer and customer's dependency on supplier. Data was collected through five hundred survey questionnaires distributed to the part supplier companies that have implemented SCM systems for at least one year. As a result, a total of 170 valid responses were obtained. A structural equation research model was fitted using SAS 9.1.3 and SMART-PLS 2.0. The results of this study can be summarized as follows. First, innovativeness positively affected SCM information quality. SCM partnership quality, and ultimately SCM performance. The path coefficient between innovativeness and information quality was 0.387, with a t-value of 3.528. Innovativeness also had a positively direct effect on partnership quality. The path coefficient was 0.351 with a t-value of 3.366. The total effect of innovativeness on partnership quality was significant, although its indirect effect on partnership quality by altering information quality was negligible. The total indirect effect of innovativeness on SCM performance by affecting information quality and partnership quality was significant with a p-value of 0.014. Innovativeness played an important role in determining SCM performance. Second, mutual dependency showed no significant effect on SCM information quality. This result contradicts the earlier assertion that the more dependent two companies are, the more accurate and timely the information they exchange ought to be. This study showed that this may not be the case; a partner may provide information of poor quality even when it is strongly dependent on the other. Mutual dependency showed significant effect on partnership quality. However, when the mutual dependency perceived by suppliers was divided into two parts, one being a supplier's dependency on its customer company and the other being a customer's dependency on the supplier, the latter showed a significant impact on the perceived SCM partnership quality. This result indicates that a customer company can hardly improve the partnership quality perceived by suppliers by making them more dependent. It improves only when the suppliers perceive that their partners, typically having more bargaining power, are more dependent on them. The overall effect of mutual dependency of any kind on SCM performance, however, was not significant. Although mutual dependency has been mentioned as an important static factor influencing almost every aspect of cooperation on a supply chain, its influences may not be as significant as it was initially perceived to be. Third, the correlation between information quality and partnership quality was 0.448 with a p-value of less than 0.001. Information quality had a path coefficient of 0.256 to partnership quality with a t-value of 2.940. The quality of information exchanged between partners may have an impact on their partnership quality. Fourth, information quality also had a significant impact on SCM performance with a path coefficient of 0.325 with a t-value of 3.611. In this study, SCM performance was divided into four categories: product quality, cost saving, service quality, and order fulfillment. Information quality has Significant impacts on product quality, cost saving and service quality, but not on order fulfillment. Fifth, partnership quality, as expected, had a significant impact on SCM performance. The path coefficient was 0.403 with a t-value of 3.539. Partnership quality, like information quality, had positive impacts on product quality, cost saving and service quality, but showed no impact on order fulfillment. It seemed that order fulfillment is the hardest category of performance that SCM can satisfy. One major limitation of this study is that it surveyed only the suppliers. To better understand the dual aspects of SCM, it is important to survey both suppliers and the assemblers, especially in pairs. This research, to our best knowledge, was the first attempt to study the level of dependency between the two groups by measuring the dual aspects of SCM and studying mutual dependency from the categories of suppliers and assemblers each.. In the future, a more comprehensive and precise measurement of SCM characteristics needs to be achieved by examining from both the supplier's and assembler's perspectives.

• Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging
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• 제40권6호
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• pp.322-326
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• 2006

A low iodine diet (LID) for $1{\sim}2$ weeks is recommended for patients who undergoing radioiodine remnant ablation. However, the LID educations for patients are different among centers because there is no concrete recommendation for protocol of LID. In this investigation, we compared two representative types of LID protocols performed in several centers in Korea using urine iodine to creatinine ratio (urine I/Cr). Methods: From 2006, April to June, patients referred to our center for radioiodine remnant ablation of thyroid cancer from several local hospitals which had different LID protocols were included. We divided into two groups, stringent LID for 1week and less stringent LID for 2 weeks, then measured their urine I/Cr ratio with spot urine when patients were admitted to the hospital. Results: Total 27 patients were included in this investigation (M:F=1:26; 13 in one-week stringent LID; 14 in two-week less stringent LID. Average of urine I/Cr ratio was $127.87{\pm}78.52{\mu}g/g$ in stringent LID for 1 week, and $289.75{\pm}188.24{\mu}g/g$ in less stringent LID for 2 weeks. It was significantly lower in stringent LID for 1 week group (p=0.008). The number of patients whose urine I/Cr ratios were below $100{\mu}g/g$ was 6 of 13 in stringent LID for 1 week group, and 3 of 14 in less stringent LID for 2 weeks group. Conclusion: Stringent LID for 1 week resulted in better urinary I/Cr ratio in our investigation compared with the other protocol. However it still resulted in plenty of inadequate range of I/Cr ratio, so more stringent protocol such as stringent LID for 2 weeks is expected more desirable.

• Journal of Distribution Research
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• 제16권1호
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• pp.117-140
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• 2011

The sales promotion strategy can be classified into two categories: cost-down and value-added promotions. Although many studies have been performed on sales promotion in the past, little attention has been given on cost-down promotion, and in particular on its strategy. Also there has been a renewed interest on value-added promotion strategy as means of attracting more customers and delivering value by providing a greater benefit. This study examines the effect of value-added promotion on the evaluation of promotional products. The topic is important because the value-added promotions are not always perceived as a benefit by consumers and they depend on the situational factors. We postulate three hypotheses on the basis of related literature. We conduct two studies: one employing experiment (study 1) and the other, quasi-experiment (study 2) to investigate the effect of two situational factors, namely the promotional package type and retailer uncertainty on the valuation of promotional products. Study 1 employs 2 promotional package types (bundled with freebie type vs. one-plus-one type) by 3 evaluation targets (overall package, a focal product and freebie) in experimental design. Also it is found that consumers devaluate the promotional product when the level of retailer uncertainty is high (t=-4.70, p=.000) as shown in Table 2. As depicted in Figure 2, the interaction effect of retailer uncertainty and package types on the evaluation of promotional product as a whole does not appear to be significant. However, when the level of retailer uncertainty is high, the focal product suffers from lower valuation if it is included in a bundle with freebie type package. The purpose of Study 2 is to cross-check the results of Study 1. The results of Study 2 also show that the consumers devaluate the promotional products as a whole when the level of retailer uncertainty is high. Furthermore, Study2 examines the consumers' willingness to purchase. The willingness to purchase of 2 different consumer groups divided by their reservation prices before and after exposure to a promotional stimuli shows no significant differences(t=1.911, p=.057). The results suggest that the consumers' reservation prices before the exposure to the promotion can be a reference prices of their's. But after the promotional events, the promotional price would become their reference prices. Furthermore, when the level of retailer uncertainty is high, consumers devaluate the promotional product as a whole. Because the promotional offerings activate the persuasion knowledge of consumers and make them incorporate negative inference about the firm's motives into their valuation and consequently, consumers tend to hesitate to purchase.

• Journal of the Korean Arthroscopy Society
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• 제11권1호
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• pp.24-31
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• 2007

Purpose: To evaluate any combined rotator cuff pathologies in adhesive capsulitis patients with magnetic resonance arthrography (MRA) or ultrasonography (USG), and to see any differences in findings between MRA and USG. Materials and Methods: From June to December 2005, 80 consecutive patients with adhesive capsulitis were prospectively evaluated with either MRA or USG. Two groups were randomly assigned for examination. Evaluation were focused on any combined rotator cuff pathologies especially supraspinatus tendon. Results: Small (less than 1 cm) full-thickness SSP tendon tear were seen in 6 patients (MRA 4, USG 2, 8%) and partial-thickness SSP tendon tears in 21 (MRA 12, USG 9, 26%). In addition, supraspinatus tendinopathy were seen in 15 patients (MRA 7, USG 8, 19%). Overall, various SSP pathologies were reported in 42 patients (53%) of the study objects (MRA 23, 68% and USG 19, 41%). Subscapularis tendon partial tears were reported in 9 patients (MRA 6, USG 3, 11%). There were no statistical differences of the findings between MRA and USG in detecting rotator cuff pathologies (p>0.5). Conclusion: Nearly one half of the adhesive capsulitis patients showed various supraspinatus tendon pathology in MRA or USG. Although MRA group showed slight higher percentage of associated rotator cuff pathology than USG group (without statistical significance), this could be attributed to better resolution capacity of MRA than USG.

• Maxillofacial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
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• 제20권4호
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• pp.305-315
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• 1998

The fibrous layer of mandibular condyle of the neonatal, 1-, 7-, 14-, 27-, 55-days and 1 year old rats were examined in the electron microscope with particular attention to the ultrastructure and diameter of collagen fibrils. In the 1-day rats, most of the cells of the fibrous layer were undifferentiated mesenchymal cells and fibroblasts with rough a little developed rough endoplasmic reticulum(RER) and golgi apparatus(GA). In 7-, 17 and 27-days old rats, most of the fibroblast showed well developed GA and RER with widely distended cisternae containing granular materials. In many of these cells contained intracytoplasmic filaments among the cytoplamic organelle. In 55-day and 1-year old rats, three types of cells were observed, ie, cells containing well developed cytoplasmic organelle presumed to be involved in the collagen fibril synthesis, cells showing well developed lysosomes, golgi apparatus, mitochondria and short cytoplasmic process presumed to be involved in the active resorption of the injured collagen fibrils or cellular debris, cells containing many intracytoplasmic filaments and a little organelle presumed to be cells of inactive state. The average diameters of collagen fibrils were similar in 1- and 7-day old rats as $38.48{\pm}3.81nm$, $38.06{\pm}3.86nm$. That was thickest in 14 days old rats as $50.21{\pm}3.93nm$ among experimental groups. They were gradually thinner in 27-, 55-day rats as $40.05{\pm}2.52nm$, $43.63{\pm}1.20nm$ and thinnest in 1-year old rats as $37.38{\pm}2.17nm$. The distribution pattern of diameters of collagen fibrils were unimordal with peak of 30-60nm in rats from 1-day to 17-day old. With aging from 27-day to 1 year old rats, collagen fibril diameters showed wide distribution pattern and percentage of thin collagen fibrils increased. These results may show the functional adaptation of fibrous layer of mandibular condyle to the increased mechanical forces with aging.

• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• 제18권1호
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• pp.7-16
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• 2014

Purpose : To evaluate the prevalence and pattern of perfusion defect (PD) on first-pass stress perfusion MR imaging in relation with the degree of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) and late gadolinium-enhancement (LGE) in patients with apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (APH). Materials and Methods: Cardiac MR imaging with first-pass stress perfusion, cine, and LGE sequence was performed in 26 patients with APH from January 2008 to December 2012. We analyzed a total of 416 segments for LV wall thickness on end-diastolic phase of cine images, and evaluated the number of hypertrophied segment and number of consecutive hypertrophied segment (NCH). We assessed the presence or absence of PD and LGE from all patients. If there was PD, we subdivided the pattern into sporadic (sporadic-PD) or ring (ring-PD). Using univariate logistic method, we obtained the independent predictor for presence of overall PD and ring-PD. Results: PD on stress perfusion MRI was observed in 20 patients (76.9%), 12 of them (60%) showed ring-PD. Maximal LV wall thickness and number of hypertrophied segment were independent predictors for overall PD (all, p < 0.05). NCH with more than 3 segments was an additional independent factor for ring-PD. However, LGE was not statistically related with PD in patients with APH. Conclusion: About three quarters of the patients with APH showed PD, most of them represented as ring-PD. LVH degree or distribution was related with pattern of PD, however, LGE was not related with PD. Therefore, the clinical significance of PD in the patients with APH seems to be different from those with non-APH, and further comparison study between the two groups should be carried out.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• 제44권1호
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• pp.65-72
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• 2006

Recent technical advances in the biorecognition engineering and the microparticle fabrication may enable us to develop the single step purification using magnetic particle, because of its simplicity, efficacy, ease of automation, and process economics. In this study, we used commercial magnetic particles from Seradyn, Inc. (Indianapolis, USA). It was ca. 2.8 micron in diameter, consisted of polystyrene core and magnetite coating, and its surface had carboxyl groups. The model, capture protein was IgG and anti-IgG was used as the ligand molecule. We studied the different surfaces ('nude', ester-activated, and anti-IgG coated) for their biorecognition of IgG. At a high pH condition, we could reduce non-specific binding. Also anti-IgG immobilized magnetic particle could capture IgG more selectively. We attempted 'oriented immobilization' of anti-IgG, in which the polysaccharides moiety near the C-terminus was selectively oxidized and linked to the hydrazine-coated MP, to improve the efficacy of biorecognitive binding. Using this method, the IgG capturing ability was improved by ca. 2 fold. From the binary mixture of the IgG-insulin, IgG could be more selectively captured. In summary, the oriented immobilization of oxidized anti-IgG proved to be as effective as the streptavidin-biotin system and yet simpler and cost-effective. This immobilization method can find its applications in protein biochips and biotargeting.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• 제41권6호
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• pp.790-795
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• 2012

In this study, the general components and minerals of fermented Curcuma longa L. (FC) by Aspergillus oryzae were examined as well as the hepatoprotective effects of FC on acute hepatotoxicity induced by a single dose of galactosamine (GalN, 650 mg/kg body weight (b.w.)). The FC was found to consist of 0.15% moisture, 4.68% crude fat, 4.35% crude protein, 6.92% crude fiber, and 6.83% crude ash. The P, Ca, and Mg levels in FC were also quantitatively analyzed. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into six groups; nontreated control, GalN, 150 mg/kg b.w. of silymarin plus GalN, 30 mg/kg b.w. of FC plus GalN, 100 mg/kg b.w. of FC plus GalN, and 300 mg/kg b.w. of FC plus GalN. Pretreatment 300 mg/kg b.w. of FC during 14 days significantly decreased the increased in aspartate aminotransferase, alanine amino transferase, and triglyceride (TG) induced by GalN. Severe liver damage, hepatocellular necrosis, infiltration of inflammatory cells, and councilman body necrosis on histopathological liver tissues were observed in GalN treated rats. Administration of 300 mg/kg b.w. of FC significantly decreased the degree of live damage. These results suggest that FC displays hepatoprotective activity and FC was able to lower the TG levels in serum; thus, FC may serve as a useful material for health food and clinical conditions associated with liver disease.