• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.71-80
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• 2012

Against the backdrop of the clear impact of climate change, it has become essential to analyze the influence of climate change and relevant vulnerabilities. This research involved evaluating the impact of heat waves in Seoul, from among many local autonomous bodies that are responsible for implementing measures on adapting to climate change. To carry out the evaluation, the A1B scenario was used to forecast future temperature levels. Future climate scenario results were downscaled to $1km{\times}1km$ to result in the incorporation of regional characteristics. In assessing the influence of heat waves on people-especially the excess mortality-we analyzed critical temperature levels that affect excess mortality and came up with the excess mortality. Results of this evaluation on the impact of climate change and vulnerabilities indicate that the number of days on which the daily average temperature reaches $28.1^{\circ}C$-the critical temperature for excess mortality-in Seoul will sharply increase in the 2050s and 2090s. The highest level of impact will be in the month of August. The most affected areas in the summer will be Songpa-gu, Gangnam-gu, and Yeongdeungpo-gu. These areas have a high concentration of residences which means that heat island effects are one of the reasons for the high level of impact. The excess mortality from heat waves is expected to be at least five times the current figure in 2090. Adaptation plan needs to be made on drawing up long-term adaptation measures as well as implementing short-term measures to minimize or adapt the impact of climate change.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.22 no.10
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• pp.1423-1431
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• 2012

The inhibitory effect of IgY against Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Vibrio vulnificus responsible for seafood-borne diseases was investigated in this study. Water-soluble fractions (WSF) of protein containing IgYs were isolated from the egg yolk of hens initially immunized with formalin-inactivated V. parahaemolyticus or V. vulnificus. Protein, total and specific IgY contents of the WSF were determined. The inhibitory and protective effects of IgYs on the growth of V. parahaemolyticus and V. vulnificus were assayed in liquid medium and in mice. IgYs showed high affinity to their corresponding antigens with high titer from day 28 onwards. Protein contents and total IgY concentrations remained stable throughout the immunization period, whereas specific IgY concentrations increased steadily and reached a plateau at day 49. Specific IgY powder (150 mg/ml) significantly inhibited further multiplication of both V. parahaemolyticus and V. vulnificus in liquid medium as compared with the control IgY. The bacteria count in mice feces was lower in mice pretreated with specific IgYs than in those pretreated with PBS or control IgY. Higher survival of mice was observed in the experimental groups pretreated with either anti-V. parahaemolyticus (75% survival) or anti-V. vulnificus (87% survival) IgYs, compared with those in the control groups pretreated with PBS or nonspecific IgY. All mice in the control groups died within three days after bacteria inoculation; hence, the protective effect of specific IgYs against infection caused by V. parahaemolyticus and V. vulnificus was demonstrated.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.29-37
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• 2016

CO₂ injection well sealant is vulnerable to supercritical CO₂ (scCO₂) exposure. To develop an alternative to the conventional sealant system (class G cement/class F fly ash), the performance of slag cement (SPC) systems containing class F fly ash (FFA) or class C fly ash (CFA) was evaluated and compared with the conventional sealant under scCO₂ conditions. All sealant systems showed an immediate increase in compressive strength upon scCO₂ exposure and, at 37.6 MPa, SPC/CFA showed the highest compressive strength after 14 days, which was much higher than the 29.8 MPa of the conventional sealant system. Substantial decreases in porosity were observed in all sealant systems, which were partly responsible for the increase in strength. Carbonation reactions led to pH decreases in the tested sealants from 12.5 to 10~11.6. In particular, the greatest decrease in pH in slag cement/class C fly ash probably supported relatively sustainable alkali activation reactions and the integrity of cement hydrates in this system. XRD revealed the presence of CaCO₃ and a decrease in the content of cement hydrates in the tested sealants upon scCO₂ exposure. TGA demonstrated a greater increase of CaCO₃ and calcium-silicate-hydrate phases in SPC/CFA than in the conventional sealant upon scCO₂ exposure.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.151-157
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• 1985

Events detected by the KIER microearthquake network operated in the Southern Part of Korea for 265 days in 1982~1984 were reviewed, and some of them were identified to be a dynamite explosion from several construction sites. The purpose of the present work is to determine the crustal structure of the Southern Korea using the time-destance data obtained from such explosion seismic records. The time·distance data can be well explained by a crustal model composed of four horizontal layers of which thickness, p and s-wave velocity ($V_p$ and $V_s$) are characterized as follows. 1st layer (surface) ; 0~2km, $V_p=5.5km/sec$, $V_s=3.3km/sec$ 2nd layer (upper crust) ; 2~15km, $V_p=6.0km/sec$, $V_s=3.5km/sec$ 3rd layer (lower crust) ; 15~29km, $V_p=6.6km/sec$, $V_s=3.7km/sec$ 4th layer (upper mantle) ; 29km~ , $V_p=7.7km/sec$, $V_s=4.3km/sec$ The relatively shallow crust·mantle boundary and low $P_n$ velocity compared with the mean values for stable intraplate region are noteworthy. Supposedely, it is responsible for the high heat flow in the South-eastern Korea or an anomalous subterranean mantle. The mean $V_p/V_s$ ratio calculated from the relation between p-wave arrival and s-p arrival times appears to be 1.735 which is nearly equivalent to the elastic medium of ${\lambda}={\mu}$. However, the ratio tends to be slightly larger with the depth. The ratio is rather high compared with that of the adjacent Japanese Island, and the fact suggests that the underlying crust and upper mantle in this region are more ductile and hence the earthquake occurrences are apt to be interrupted. As an alternative curstal model, a seismic velocity structure in which velocities are successively increased with the depth is also proposed by the inversion of the time·distance data. With the velocity profile, it is possible to calculate a travel time table which is appropriate to determine the earthquake parameters for the local events.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.58 no.5
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• pp.343-348
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• 2014

In the present studies, we examined effect of chamomile flowers extract (CH-Ex), which has traditionally been used as antiphlogistics in Europe for many centuries, against Candida albicans-caused septic arthritis. Candida albicans is a major etiological agent among fungal septic arthritis. This effect was investigated in a murine model of the septic arthritis. That is, mice that were given an emulsion form of C. albicans cell wall (CACW) via footpad route were treated intraperitoneally with the CH-Ex for 3 times every 3 days. Degrees of the footpad-swellings were measured with dial gauger. Data showed that the CH-Ex resulted in the reduction of swelling. For instance, at Day 9 when swelling reached the highest peak, there was up to app. 60% reduction of edema in mice injected with the CH-Ex, compared to that of the control mice that received no treatment (P<0.05). This therapeutic anti-arthritic activity appeared to be mediated by inhibitions of NO (nitric oxide) production from activated RAW264.7 macrophages and proliferation of Con A-treated T lymphocytes. Analysis by HPLC revealed that the CH-Ex contained eight polyphenolic compounds including chlorogenic acid (CRA) and rutin. We have reported the CRA and rutin respectively have the anti-arthritic activity. This correlation implicates that CRA and rutin in the CH-Ex may be responsible for the activity. Combined all together, the CH-Ex has anti-arthritic activity against C. albicans-caused septic arthritis, possibly by inhibiting NO production and proliferation of T cells. This activity seems to be contributed by, at least, CRA and rutin among the compounds in the CH-Ex.

• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.515-526
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• 2021

This study aimed to investigate the evaluation of firefighting gloves and the behavior regarding their usage, of firefighting officials in Seoul, using a questionnaire. Responses from a total of 270 firefighters who are responsible for putting out fires or undertaking rescue works in Seoul were analyzed. As per the findings, the firefighters considered ease of hand operation and fire/flame protection as the most important performance factors for firefighting gloves, and they were satisfied with the supply status of the gloves. The average number of firefighting gloves currently owned by the firefighters was 2.6 ± 0.8 pairs. Thirty-nine percent of the respondents said that their firefighting gloves lasted, with maintained performance, for more than six months and less than a year, and when asked how they handled the gloves with degraded performance, 46% of them said that they would discard them. Sixty-eight percent of the respondents said that they used the most recently developed and supplied gloves, which they considered as the most satisfying gloves and which they mainly used these days. Respondents were highly satisfied with the fire/flame protection performance of their firefighting gloves, but were less satisfied, however, with the glove fit. These results suggest that there has been a significant improvement in the overall performance level and supply status of the firefighting gloves. Given the current situation, careful considerations with flexible approaches are needed on the current firefighting gloves size system as well as on the personal protective equipment maintenance and management scheme.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.101-106
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• 2019

Most diabetic patients experience diabetic mellitus (DM) urinary bladder dysfunction. A number of studies evaluate bladder smooth muscle contraction in DM. In this study, we evaluated the change of bladder smooth muscle contraction between normal rats and DM rats. Furthermore, we used pharmacological inhibitors to determine the differences in the signaling pathways between normal and DM rats. Rats in the DM group received an intraperitoneal injection of 65 mg/kg streptozotocin and measured blood glucose level after 14 days to confirm DM. Bladder smooth muscle contraction was induced using acetylcholine (ACh, $10^{-4}M$). The materials such as, atropine (a muscarinic receptor antagonist), U73122 (a phospholipase C inhibitor), DPCPX (an adenosine $A_1$ receptor antagonist), udenafil (a PDE5 inhibitor), prazosin (an ${\alpha}_1$-receptor antagonist), papaverine (a smooth muscle relaxant), verapamil (a calcium channel blocker), and chelerythrine (a protein kinase C inhibitor) were pre-treated in bladder smooth muscle. We found that the DM rats had lower bladder smooth muscle contractility than normal rats. When prazosin, udenafil, verapamil, and U73122 were pre-treated, there were significant differences between normal and DM rats. Taken together, it was concluded that the change of intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ release mediated by PLC/IP3 and PDE5 activity were responsible for decreased bladder smooth muscle contractility in DM rats.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.46 no.3
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• pp.689-703
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• 2019

The term quality or freshness of eggs in industrial production still poses concerns regarding whether washing is necessary. Therefore, the aims of this study were to examine the effects of different storage times and temperatures and to perform a comparison between washed and unwashed eggs. A total of 1000 washed and 1000 unwashed egg samples were stored at three different temperatures (5, 10, and $25^{\circ}C$) for 0 - 8 weeks and were used for the data collection. On the designated day, the eggs were processed to evaluate their internal and external quality traits, such as the Haugh unit, airspace volume, eggshell strength, pH, and microbiological profile. Significant differences (p < 0.05) were observed between the washed and unwashed eggs for each quality trait. The results indicate that storage between 5 and $10^{\circ}C$ better preserved the quality of eggs compared with the storage at $25^{\circ}C$ throughout the days of the storage. Overall, this study suggests that the storage time and temperature have a vital role in maintaining the quality of eggs which were significantly affected during storage. In addition, all the quality parameters differed between the washed and unwashed samples which is further responsible for deteriorating the quality of the eggs.

• CELLMED
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.2.1-2.6
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• 2019

Decoction of Cocos nucifera husk fibre is used indigenously in Nigeria for malaria treatment. Polyphenols have been identified as the phytochemicals responsible for the antimalarial activity of Cocos nucifera husk fibre, though their toxicity has not been evaluated. The polyphenols of Cocos nucifera husk fibre were therefore evaluated for their effects on selected kidney function indices in mice. Fifty mice were randomly divided into five groups (A-E) of ten mice each. Mice in group A were orally administered 5% DMSO solution while those in groups B, C, D and E were orally administered 31.25, 62.5, 125 and 250 mg/Kg body weight of the polyphenols respectively for seven days. Serum urea, creatinine and uric acid concentrations were determined. Serum levels of sodium, potassium, chloride and calcium ions and kidney alkaline phosphatase (ALP), glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) and gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) activities were also determined. The results showed that the polyphenols significantly reduced (p<0.05) urea concentration at 250 mg/Kg body weight and creatinine concentration at all doses compared to controls. The polyphenols caused no significant alteration (p>0.05) in serum uric acid concentration and kidney ALP, GGT and GDH activities compared to controls. There was significant increase (p<0.05) in serum sodium ion concentration at 31.25, 125 and 250 mg/Kg body weight of polyphenols whereas significant increase (p<0.05) in serum potassium and chloride ions was observed at 62.5 and 250 mg/Kg body weight compared to controls. Thus, polyphenols of Cocos nucifera husk fibre may adversely affect some osmoregulatory functions of the kidney, especially at higher concentrations.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.222-229
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• 2019

Korean ginseng (Panax ginseng Meyer) was processed by drying, steaming, or puffing, and the effects of these processes on the ginsenoside profile were investigated. The main root of 4-year-old raw Korean ginseng was dried to produce white ginseng. Steaming, followed by drying, was employed to produce red or black ginseng. In addition, these three varieties of processed ginseng were puffed using a rotational puffing gun. Puffed ginseng showed significantly higher extraction yields of ginsenosides (49.87-58.60 g solid extract/100 g of sample) and crude saponin content (59.40-63.87 mg saponin/g of dried ginseng) than non-puffed ginseng, respectively. Moreover, puffing effectively transformed the major ginsenosides (Rb1, Rb2, Rc, Rd, Re, and Rg1) of ginseng into minor ones (F2, Rg3, Rk1, and Rg5), comparable to the steaming process effect on the levels of the transformed ginsenosides. However, steaming takes much longer (4 to 36 days) than puffing (less than 30 min) for ginsenoside transformation. Consequently, puffing may be an effective and economical technique for enhancing the extraction yield and levels of minor ginsenosides responsible for the major biological activities of ginseng.