• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
• /
• v.54 no.1
• /
• pp.59-63
• /
• 2012

Bovine serum contains various nutrients and growth factors that can be potentially used in biological experiments, drug manufacturing process and food industry. However, almost all the bovine blood has been wasted during slaughter process in Korea, thus there is a high demand for alternative uses of the wasted sera. In order to produce high quality and safe sera, it is necessary to screen zoonotic pathogens as well as other microbial contaminants to prevent any downstream contamination. The present research has been undertaken to assess biological safety of Hanwoo sera by determining microbiological contamination during slaughtering and handling processes. Serological tests have been performed to detect bacteria, mycoplasma and virus contamination in total of 52 Hanwoo sera. No sera were found to be contaminated with mycoplasma or virus, but only two sera were found to be contaminated with Bacillus thuringiensis. The present result shows that Hanwoo sera obtained from slaughtering process are biologically safe and have potentials to be developed as a biological reagent. Moreover, the methods employed in our study may provide basic standard for microbiological screening methods once wasted Hanwoo sera gain industrial values.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
• /
• v.51 no.5
• /
• pp.387-394
• /
• 2009

This study was carried out to screen and identify the chitinase and chitosanase producing microorganisms from the feces of calves medicated DFM sincluding chitin in order to do the immune fortification of Korean Native calves. Ten isolates were grown in the medium containing chitin and chitosan that had more than $10^5$ cfu/g in feces. Among these 10 strains, 2 strains (HANDI 110 and HANDI 309) had the chitinase activities and 2 strains (HANWOO and HANYOO) had the chitosanase activities in calves' feces. They showed no reaction in hemolysis tests by utilizing chitin and chitosan. The results from morphological, physicochemical and genetical identification indicated the HANDI 110 as a strain of Escherichia fergusonii, HANDI 309 was identified as a strain of Acinetobacter parvus, HANWOO was identified as a strain of Comamonas koreensis, and HANYOO as a strain of Chryseobacterium indologenes.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
• /
• v.28 no.1 s.49
• /
• pp.225-243
• /
• 1995

Benzidine Industry in Korea has started after Japan has banned its production in early 1970's, and it has been in operation in Korea for over 20 years. However, it is not known yet whether any bladder cancer has developed from benzidine exposure. This study was done to screen benzidine-exposed workers for bladder cancer, and to examine the feasibility of employing screening test at the workplace. All the workplaces that manufacture or use benzidine for more than 20 years in Korea have been covered in this study, and they include 2 benzidine manufacturing factories, 5 benzidine using factories, as well as 2 benzidine free factories as an outside control. In total, 516 workers were screened with urine stick test and urine cytology test for the evidence of hematuria and abnormal urothelial cells. Each worker was also asked about risk factors and symptoms of bladder cancer including past medical history, smoking, medication and occupational history Benzidine in the air was measured by personal and area sampling. Out of 516 screened workers, 84(16.3%) workers showed positive hematuria in urine stick test, and 7(1.4%) workers showed degenerative cells in urine cytology tests. Those workers with abnormal urine test results who have been exposed to benzidine fo more than 10 years were further screened, and, in total, 23 workers were examined with intra-venous pyelography and cystoscopy. None of those screened had any evidence of bladder cancer When workers with only past hematuria history were included in the positive hematuria group, 96(18.5%) had positive hematuria. On the multiple logistic regression analysis, positive hematuria was significantly associated with benzidine exposure, history of other occupations with elevated bladder cancer risk, pyuria and glycosuria. The association got stronger as direct benzidine exposure was accounted through individual task analysis, and as exposure duration was accounted with tenure analysis. For those with benzidine exposure with more than 10 years of tenure, the odds of having positive hematuria was elevated 2.14(95%C.I is 1.08 to 4.25) times more than for those without exposure. Even though bladder cancer was not detected for several limitations including short observation period, majority of studied workers with short latency, healthy worker effect, and low sensitivity of single screening test in a cross-sectional study, the study results suggest that hematuria screening is a feasible and very useful test for bladder cancer screening among benzidine exposed workers.

• The Journal of Korean Society of Virology
• /
• v.27 no.1
• /
• pp.19-27
• /
• 1997

To develop the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for the detection of type D simian retrovirus (SRV) infection, an oligonucleotide primer pair was designed to hybridize to the sequences within env gene of SRV subtype 1 (SRV-1). The 3' proximal env sequences annealing to the primers had been rather conserved among three different subtypes of SRV, SRV-1, SRV-2, and SRV-3 (Mason-Pfizer Monkey Virus: MPMV). The PCR using the primer pair targeting an env region successfully detected and amplified all three subtypes of SRV with excellent specificity after single round of reaction. The tests with peripheral blood mononuclear cells infected either with simian immunodeficiency virus or simian T-Iymphotropic virus type 1, major immunosuppressive viral agents together with SRV in simian, verified the specificity of the PCR by excluding any cross reactivity. Semiquantitative titration PCR, amplifying serially diluted plasmid DNA of each subtype, was performed to evaluate sensitivity limits of the reaction. Based on molecular weight of each cloned SRV genome, the PCR should be able to detect one SRV-infected cell per more than $5-7{\times}10^4$ uninfected cells after simple ethidium bromide staining of resulting products. The PCR must be very efficient screening system with its quickness, certainty, and sensitivity for SRV-infected animals used in human AIDS research model. Second round amplification of the reaction products from the first PCR, or Southern hybridization by radiolabeled probes shall render to compete its efficacy to ELISA which has been the most sensitive technique to screen SRV infection but with frequent ambiguity problem.

• Journal of Life Science
• /
• v.17 no.2 s.82
• /
• pp.272-278
• /
• 2007

Proteases are enzymes that break peptide bonds between amino acids of other proteins and occupy a crucial position with respect to their applications in both physiological and commercial fields. In order to screen new source of protease, bacteria producing extracellular proteases at low temperature were isolated from deep sea water of East Sea, Korea. A bacterium showing the best growth rate and production of an extracellular protease at low temperature was designated HJ 47. The DNA sequence analysis of the 16S rRNA gene, phenotypic tests and morphology led to the placement of this organism in the genus Pseudoalteromonas. Although maximal growth was observed at $37^{\circ}C$, enzyme production per culture time was maximum at $20^{\circ}C$. At this temperature, extracellluar protease production was detected from the end of the exponential phage to stationary phase, and maximal at 15 hours after initial production. The optimum temperature and pH of the protease were found to be $35^{\circ}C$ and 8.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
• /
• v.45 no.5
• /
• pp.603-608
• /
• 2002

Purpose : Pertussis is a highly communicable infectious disease in children with high mortality, especially in young infants. The incidence of pertussis in South Korea has decreased to about 10 cases a year in late '90s. Doubting previously reported incidences of pertussis, we designed this study to establish exact epidemiology and a diagnostic basis of pertussis. Methods : From Mar. 2000 to Mar. 2001, polymerase chain reaction(PCR) and cultures of nasopharyngeal aspirates were taken from 49 patients who were clinically suspected of pertussis in Kangdong Sacred Heart Hospital. Results : Among 49 patients suspected of pertussis, 10 cases showed positive results by PCR method. Four out of those 10 cases were positive in culture. The peak outbreak was noticed in the spring(Mar.-May) and the autumn(Sep.-Nov.). The mean age of the patients was 3.6 months. Eight of the 10 cases which were PCR positive results proved not to be immunized against pertussis. Conclusion : Most of the pertussis patients in our study were diagnosed as bronchiolitis, pneumonia or bronchitis at the beginning of the disease and only a few patients showed typical clinical manifestations of pertussis, including whooping. When the above results are taken together, we suggest the possibility that the actual prevalence of pertussis in South Korea might be higher than that of previous reports. The importance of pertussis screen tests should be emphasized in children with severe coughs.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.16 no.9
• /
• pp.1377-1383
• /
• 2006

Among 46 Acinetobacter baumannii isolates collected in 2004, two imipenem-resistant isolates were obtained from clinical specimens taken from patients hospitalized in Busan, Republic of Korea. Two carbapenemase-producing isolates were further investigated to determine the mechanism of resistance. These isolates were analyzed by antibiotic susceptibility testing, microbiological tests of carbapenemase activity, determination of pI, transconjugation test, enterobacterial repetitive consensus (ERIC)-PCR, and DNA sequencing. Two cases of infection by A. baumannii producing the IMP-1 ${\beta}$-lactamase were detected. The isolates were characterized by a modified cloverleaf synergy test and EDTA-disk synergy test. Isoelectric focusing of crude bacterial extracts revealed nitrocefin-positive bands with a pI value of 9.0. PCR amplification and characterization of the amplicons by direct sequencing indicated that the isolates carried a $bla_{IMP-l}$ determinant. The isolates were characterized by a multidrug resistance phenotype, including penicillins, extended-spectrum cephalosporins, carbapenems, and aminoglycosides. These results indicate that the observed imipenem resistance of two Korean A. baumannii isolates was due to the spread of an IMP-1-producing clone. Our microbiological test of carbapenemase activity is simple to screen class B metallo-${\beta}$-lactamase-producing clinical isolates to determine their clinical impact and to prevent further spread. This study shows that the $bla_{IMP-l}$ resistance determinant, which is emerging in Korea, may become an emerging therapeutic problem, since clinicians are advised not to use extended-spectrum cephalosporins, imipenem, and aminoglycosides. This observation emphasizes the importance of having effective control measures in Asian hospitals, such as early detection of colonized patients, isolation procedures, and a judicious use of antibiotics.

• Annals of Clinical Microbiology
• /
• v.21 no.4
• /
• pp.75-79
• /
• 2018

Background: Urine culture is one of the most frequently requested tests in microbiology. Automated urine analyzers yield much infection-related information. The Sysmex UF-5000 analyzer (Sysmex, Japan) is a new flow cytometry urine analyzer capable of quantifying urinary particles, including bacteria, WBCs, and yeast-like cells (YLCs) and can provide a Gram stainability flag. In this work, we evaluated how many unnecessary urine cultures could be screened out using the UF-5000. Methods: We compared the culture results of 126 urine samples among 453 requested urine cultures (from sources other than the Urology and Nephrology departments) with urinalysis results. Urine cultures were considered positive if bacterial or YLC growth was ${\geq}10^4CFUs/mL$. Results: We used urinalysis cut-off values of $50/{\mu}L$ and $100/{\mu}L$ for bacteria and YLC, respectively. Forty eight of the 126 (38.1%, or 10.6% of 453 requested) cultures were below these cut-off values and did not contain any culture-positive samples. Conclusion: Bacteria and YLC counts generated using the UF-5000 analyzer could be used to screen out negative cultures and reduce urine culture volume by ~10% without sacrificing detection of positive cultures.

• Asia-pacific Journal of Multimedia Services Convergent with Art, Humanities, and Sociology
• /
• v.9 no.9
• /
• pp.721-736
• /
• 2019

In this paper, the behavior of the fire smoke due to the operation of the ventilation systems when the fire occurred in the underground station (6 basement floors) and the tunnel at the great depth was measured. Fire smoke was generated by using a smoke generator which realized heat buoyancy effect by using hot air blower. The two locations of the fire were selected on the platform and on the platform of the tunnel located outside the screen door. A ventilation mode is generally used in which smoke is exhausted through a vent hole provided in a platform when a platform fire occurs. The tests were performed by operating the exhaust through the ventilation holes of the tunnel part located at both ends of the platform. The smoke density and the wind speed/velocity were measured at various positions, and the videos were taken to analyze the movement and smoke of the smoke. In both cases for fire inside the platform and in the railway tunnel, due to the ventilation mode operation of the fan for the platform and the exhaust of the fans in the tunnel smoke were well exhausted and the smoke propagation to the area near the smoke zone was suppressed. The smoke-control mode, which is applied to both fans for the platform and fans for in the tunnel at both ends of the platform, can provide a safer evacuation environment to the passengers from the fire smoke when the platform fire or fire train stops.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
• /
• v.17 no.2
• /
• pp.99-114
• /
• 2022

Crowdfunding is one of new financing alternatives and is innovative and creative. In order to proceed with crowdfunding, various functions are required, such as design for screen composition, marketing and promotion for the public, accounting to manage the collected funds, and product production and purchase for reward. In addition, since it is a project that must be completed in a short period of time, cooperation between team members is important. This paper studied how the characteristics of the team conducting crowdfunding affect the team performance in crowdfunding. In this study, we set functional background diversity and shared leadership necessary for crowdfunding as team characteristic variables and crowdfunding amount, completion of work and team innovation as team performance variables. This study tests the hypotheses from 220 university students in 79 teams. The findings suggest that functional diversity and shared leadership are positively related to the completion of work and team innovation but not related to crowdfunding amount. To date, few studies have studied the relationship between characteristics of the crowdfunding team and performance. Therefore, the study on functional diversity and shared leadership in crowdfunding can expand existing crowdfunding study area.