• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.13-19
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• 1976

Serum levels of human placental lactogen have been measured by hemagglutination-inhibition reaction in 67 normal pregnant state and in 15 postpartum 24 hour state, HAIR is less sensitive and reliable method than radioimmunoassay, but simple, rapid, less expensive and fairly accurate, so it is more helpful in screening of large antenatal population with or without high risk complications. 1) Sensitivity of HPL-HAIR test kit was $0.1{\mu}g$/ml of H.P.L. serum level and had no cross reaction to HCG or male serum or non-pregenant female or newborn infant, 2) H.P.L. value was around $2{\mu}g$/ml until 24th week of pregnancy and rose to $6{\sim}8$ ${\mu}g$/ml continuously until about 36th week of pregnancy and then slightly decreased or stationary. 3) H.P.L. value in postpartum 24 hour state was undetectable. 4) There was poor correlation between maternal serum H.P.L. value at term and baby weight.

• Food Science and Biotechnology
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.67-70
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• 2007

Mackerel (Scomber japonicus) often causes severe allergic reactions in sensitive people. Food containing undeclared mackerel may pose a risk to such people. The major allergenic protein in fish such as mackerel, codfish, and Alaska pollack has been found to be parvalbumin. In this study, we developed a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method to detect mackerel DNA using primers corresponding to the parvalbumin gene. We cloned and sequenced 1.5 kb of parvalbumin gene by PCR using mackerel genomic DNA as a template. Nucleotide sequence analysis of genomic parvalbumin gene, composed of 4 exons and 3 introns, allowed the selection of two pairs of oligonucleotide primers specific for mackerel. These primers successfully enabled PCR amplification of specific regions of genomic parvalbumin DNA from mackerel, but no amplification from 8 other fish samples, surimi, and 6 boiled fish pastes. The sensitivity of this method was sufficient to detect 5 ng of purified mackerel DNA mixed with 50 ng of surimi DNA. This rapid and specific method for the detection of allergenic mackerel would be beneficial in reducing food allergy caused by the ingestion of hidden allergen in processed food.

• Journal of Korean Medicine for Obesity Research
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.69-80
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• 2006

Object : Waist circumference(WC), waist-hip ratio(WHR), waist-stature ratio(WSR), and body mass index(BMI) are commonly used for evaluating obesity. This Research were done to determine what is more sensitive obesity indexes(WC, WHR, WSR, BMI) Correlated with body composition such as body fat mass, body fat(%), visceral fat area, and fat free mass. And what is more sensitively correlated obesity indexes with % changes of body composition during weight reduction treatment. Methods : This clinical retrospective research were carried out 127 cases of female obese outpatients with weight reduction treatment during 1 month. Bioelectrical impedence analysis(for body composition) and body size(for anthropometric obesity indexes) were estimated in pre-treatment and post-treatment to evaluate the obesity indexes. Pearson correlation coefficients were used to select useful obesity index. Result & Conclusion : BMI is useful index for diagnosis and evaluation of obesity. WSR is sensitively correlated with visceral fat area and body fat(%). So, WSR is useful index for evaluating abdominal obesity and risk factors of metabolic syndrome. WC is correlated with both body fat mass and fat free mass. WHR is not optimal for diagnosis and evaluation of obesity.

• Journal of Welding and Joining
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.61-66
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• 2005

A probabilistic approach for evaluating failure risk is suggested in this paper. Probabilistic fracture analyses were performed for a pressurized pipe of a Cr-Mo steel reflecting variation of material properties at high temperature. A crack was assumed to be located along the weld fusion line. Probability density functions of major variables were determined by statistical analyses of material creep and creep crack growth data measured by the previous experimental studies by authors. Distributions of these variables were implemented in Monte Carlo simulation of this study. As a fracture parameter for characterizing growth of a fusion line crack between two materials with different creep properties, $C_t$ normalized with $C^*$ was employed. And the elapsed time was also normalized with tT, Resultingly, failure probability as a function of operating time was evaluated fur various cases. Conventional deterministic life assessment result was turned out to be conservative compared with that of probabilistic result. Sensitivity analysis for each input variable was conducted to understand the most influencing variable to the analysis results. Internal pressure, creep crack growth coefficient and creep coefficient were more sensitive to failure probability than other variables.

• Journal of Microbiology
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• v.43 no.spc1
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• pp.65-84
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• 2005

Invasive candidiasis is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Clinical diagnosis is complicated by a lack of specific clinical signs and symptoms of disease. Laboratory diagnosis is also complex because circulating antibodies to Candida species may occur in normal individuals as the result of commensal colonization of mucosal surfaces thereby reducing the usefulness of antibody detection for the diagnosis of this disease. In addition, Candida species antigens are often rapidly cleared from the circulation so that antigen detection tests often lack the desired level of sensitivity. Microbiological confirmation is difficult because blood cultures can be negative in up to 50% of autopsy-proven cases of deep-seated candidiasis or may only become positive late in the infection. Positive cultures from urine or mucosal surfaces do not necessarily indicate invasive disease although can occur during systemic infection. Furthermore, differences in the virulence and in the susceptibility of the various Candida species to antifungal drugs make identification to the species level important for clinical management. Newer molecular biological tests have generated interest but are not yet standardized or readily available in most clinical laboratory settings nor have they been validated in large clinical trials. Laboratory surveillance of at-risk patients could result in earlier initiation of antifungal therapy if sensitive and specific diagnostic tests, which are also cost effective, become available. This review will compare diagnostic tests currently in use as well as those under development by describing their assets and limitations for the diagnosis of invasive candidiasis.

• Journal of Radiation Industry
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.181-185
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• 2015

Today the biosafety evaluation, a common problem of vital importance, is based on internationally proved test-systems, standards and techniques. The paradigm of biosafety includes multidisciplinary approach, a combination of physical, chemical and biological tests to monitor the environmental level of pollutants and needs to be improved by modern approaches. The genetic risk of environmental pollutions has long been studied by many researchers. In this study, used was the known sensitive plant test-system, clones of plant Tradescantia (spiderwort) able to detect gene mutations (frequency of mutational events and formation of micronuclei) in combination with chemical and, in some instances, with radiological measurements. In addition, male gametophyte generation of fruit trees was applied as bioindicators of genotoxicity. The obtained results did not show any significant increase along with wind direction. As for the male gametophyte assay, the fertility of the investigated fruit-trees near to NPP did not significantly differ from that of the control point. The influence of the NPP on the male generative system of the investigated taxa of fruit trees for the investigated year was not revealed. The system described needs to be expanded by species of interest (human) as there is a difficulty to transfer the revealed dose correlations to humans. The development of this idea includes various levels: population (epidemiological studies), individual, cellular, molecular (DNA), etc.

• Journal of Lipid and Atherosclerosis
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.88-97
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• 2018

The prevalence of atherothrombotic disease continues to rise, presenting an increasing number of challenges to modern society and creating interest in functional foods. Platelet activation, adhesion, and aggregation at vascular endothelial disruption sites are key events in atherothrombotic disease. Physiological challenges such as hyperlipidemia, obesity, and cigarette smoking are associated with vascular changes underlying platelet aggregation and inflammatory processes. However, it is difficult to determine the beneficial response of functional foods in healthy subjects. To address this problem, challenge models and high-risk models related to smokers, obesity, and dyslipidemia are proposed as sensitive measures to evaluate the effects of functional foods in healthy subjects. In this review, we construct a model to evaluate the effects of functional food such as natural products on blood flow based on a human intervention study.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.119-135
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• 2018

Currently, Korean firms are making a lot of effort to invest in research and development (R&D) by spending a lot of development costs in order to cope with the 4th industrial revolution. On the other hand, the capital market of Korea, which is the main source of funding, has caused a lot of cost of capital for firms by its reorganization mainly with safe assets in the experience of foreign exchange crisis at the end of 1997, the sub-prime mortgage crisis in 2007 and the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers in September 2008. Thus, this study empirically analyzed the effect of development expenses on credit rating and firm value. The credit rating was measured by commercial paper(CP) credit rating which is sensitive for investors in terms of risk because it is issued only by the credit of the firms. Firm value was defined as Tobin's Q, which has been widely used in prior studies. The results of the analysis are summarized as follows; Firstly, development expenses did not affect credit rating. Development expenses are recognized as intangible assets for uncertainty of economic benefits and long-term investment. Thus, it seems that there is no effect of development expenses on CP credit rating as CP credit rating is evaluated by short-term credit rating.

• International Journal of Advanced Culture Technology
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.124-130
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• 2018

Proper management and prevention of dysphagia are urgently needed in acute care of stroke patients in Korea. However, no highly sensitive and accessible nurse-led screening tools have been validated within the Korean settings. The purpose of this study was to validate a screening tool led by nurses to identify dysphagia and aspiration risks among acute stroke patients. Registered nurses (RNs) screened 131 residents from a university hospital in South Korea using the Korean version of the Standardized Swallowing Assessment (K-SSA). Results were validated against those from the Gugging Swallowing Screen (GUSS). Compared to results from the GUSS, with 9- and 14-point cutoffs, the K-SSA had a sensitivity of 0.80 and specificity of 0.90 [95% CI 0.806, 0.992] for screening dysphagia and 1.00 sensitivity and 0.94 specificity [95% CI 0.862, 1.000] for screening aspiration risks. The K-SSA demonstrated excellent sensitivity and specificity for screening individuals at risk of dysphagia and aspiration when led by RNs for acute stroke patients.

• International Journal of Oral Biology
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• v.46 no.1
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• pp.1-6
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• 2021

Since the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-2019), the infection has spread worldwide due to the highly contagious nature of severe acute syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). To manage SARS-CoV-2, the development of diagnostic assays that can quickly and accurately identify the disease in patients is necessary. Currently, nucleic acid-based testing and serology-based testing are two widely used approaches. Of these, nucleic acid-based testing with quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (RT-qPCR) using nasopharyngeal (NP) and/or oropharyngeal (OP) swabs is considered to be the gold standard. Recently, the use of saliva samples has been considered as an alternative method of sample collection. Compared to the NP and OP swab methods, saliva specimens have several advantages. Saliva specimens are easier to collect. Self-collection of saliva specimens can reduce the risk of infection to healthcare providers and reduce sample collection time and cost. Until recently, the sensitivity and accuracy of the data obtained using saliva specimens for SARS-CoV-2 detection was controversial. However, recent clinical research has found that sensitive and reliable data can be obtained from saliva specimens using RT-qPCR, with approximately 81% to 95% correspondence with the data obtained from NP and OP swabs. These data suggest that self-collected saliva is an alternative option for the diagnosis of COVID-19.