• Journal of Life Science
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.513-521
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• 2020

B-cell-specific Moloney murine leukemia virus integration site 1 (Bmi1) is a polycomb group protein and a core component of polycomb repressive complex 1. Initial research into Bmi1 has focused on its role in tumorigenesis, and it is generally accepted that it is important for the proliferation and survival of cancer cells. However, more recent studies have revealed that Bmi1 is downregulated in brains with neurodegenerative disease and that it regulates the function of mitochondria and reactive oxygen species levels. In this study, we tested the therapeutic potential of Bmi1 in pilocarpine-induced seizures in Bmi1-knockout mice. Bmi1 expression transiently increased in the hippocampal CA1 and CA3 and the dentate gyrus following pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus (SE). In terms of seizure behavior, SE induction was 43.14% and 53.57% for Bmi1^+/+ and Bmi1^+/- mice, respectively. However, there was no significant difference in mortality or hippocampal damage between the two groups. Two months after SE induction, the frequency of epileptic seizures in the Bmi1^+/- mice was 50% lower than in the control group, although the difference was not statistically significant. In addition, mossy fiber outgrowth in the Bmi1^+/- mice was significantly higher than in their wild-type littermates. Taken together, these data indicate that reduced Bmi1 activity increases pilocarpine-induced seizure probability and mossy fiber outgrowth.

• Education of Primary School Mathematics
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.85-97
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• 2010

The purpose of this study is to develop a teaching program in consideration of the geometrical thinking levels of students to make a contribution to teaching figures effectively. To do this, we checked the geometrical thinking levels of fourth-graders, developed a teaching program based on van Hiele's theory, and investigated its effect on their geometrical thinking levels. The teaching program based on van Hiele's theory put emphasis on group member interaction and specific activities through offering various geometrical experiences. It contributed to actualizing activity-centered, student-oriented, inquiry-oriented and inductive instruction instead of sticking to expository, teacher-led and deductive instruction. And it consequently served to improving their geometrical thinking levels, even though some students didn't show any improvement and one student was rather degraded in that regard - but in the former case they made partial progress though there was little marked improvement, and in the latter case she needs to be considered in relation to her affective aspects above all. The findings of the study suggest that individual variances in thinking level should be recognized by teachers. Students who are at a lower level should be given easier tasks, and more challenging tasks should be assigned to those who are at an intermediate level in order for them to have a positive self-concept about mathematics learning and ultimately to foster their thinking levels.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.12 no.5
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• pp.505-514
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• 2002

The aim of this study was to evaluate the anticonvulsant activity of four agents derived from tropinone (T-1: 2,4-dipyrrolylmethenylnortropinone, T-2: 2,4-diphenylmethenylnortropinone, T-3 : 2,4-difurfurylmethenylnortropinone, T-4 : 2,4-dimethoxyphenylmethenylnortropinone) in NIH Swiss mouse. Pentylenetetrazole (nZ) was injected via intraperi-toniurn in mouse and Maximal Electroshock (MES) stimulation was through both conjunctivas by electrodes. Tropinone derivatives were treated at 15 minutes before PTZ or MES procedure. PIZ of 25 mg/kg induced generalized seizure in mouse, effects of tropinone derivatives on PTZ-induced seizure were monitored. Compared with control group, T-4 decreased seizure grade most effectively. Also T-4 increased onset time of PTZ-induced seizure. This result showed that T-4 is most effective on PTZ-induced seizure. In MES-induced seizure, T-1 decreased seizure grade and recovery time. nNOS expression in hippocampus and cortex were increased in nZ- and MES-induced seizure animals compared with control. Pretreatment of tropinone derivatives in PTZ-induced seizure did not affected nNOS expression in brain tissues, but T-1 and T-4 decreased nNOS expression in cortex of MES-induced seizure animals. These findings suggest that tropinone derivatives have specific anticonvulsant activities according to PTZ- and MES-induced seizure. 2,4- dimethoxyphenylmethenylnoroopinone is most effective in PTZ-induced seizure and 2,4-di methoxyphenylmethenylnortropinone is most effective in MES-induced seizure.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.25 no.11
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• pp.1255-1264
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• 2015

Cnidium officinale, a traditional herb, has diverse beneficial pharmacological activities, such as anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anticancer, and antiangiogenesis effects. However, the cellular and molecular mechanisms of apoptosis by C. officinale are poorly defined. The present study investigated the proapoptotic effects of water, ethanol, and methanol extract of C. officinale (WECO, EECO, and MECO, respectively) in human leukemia U937 cells. The antiproliferative activity of EECO was higher than that of WECO and MECO. The antiproliferative effect of EECO treatment in U937 cells was associated with the induction of apoptotic cell death, including increased populations of annexin-V positive cells, the formation of apoptotic bodies, DNA fragmentation, and increased numbers of cells with a loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP, Δψm). EECO-induced apoptotic cell death was associated with upregulation of death receptor 4 (DR4) and down-regulation of cellular inhibitor of apoptosis protein-1 (cIAP-1), Bcl-2, and total Bid. The EECO treatment also induced the proteolytic activation of caspases (-3, -8, and -9), and degradation of caspase-3 substrate proteins, such as poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), β-catenin, and phospholipase C-γ1 (PLCγ1). In addition, the EECO treatment effectively activated the adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) signaling pathway. However, compound C, a specific inhibitor of AMPK, significantly reduced EECO-induced apoptosis. These results indicate that AMPK is a key regulator of apoptosis in response to EECO in human leukemia U937 cells.

• The Korean Journal of Food And Nutrition
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• v.29 no.6
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• pp.930-937
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• 2016

This study investigated the quality characteristics, antioxidant activities, and retarding retrogradation of sponge cakes made with 0%, 1%, 3%, 5% and 7% pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata Duch.) leaf powder. Specific capacity significantly increased with the addition (0.33~0.38), but baking loss and dough yield were not significantly different (p<0.05). In color, there was a decrease in the L-value, a-value and b-value, but ${\Delta}E$ increased in proportion to the amount of pumpkin leaf powder. Moisture content increased in the 0~3% additions, from 27.90~31.68%, but decreased in 5% and 7% (22.37% and 28.15%, respectively). pH tended to decrease significantly according to the amount of pumpkin leaf powder (p<0.05). Hardness increased with the addition of pumpkin leaf powder, and pumpkin leaf groups presented higher springiness and cohesiveness than the control. Chewiness was not significantly differ (p<0.05). In retarding retrogradation, Avrami exponent (n) showed that addition of 5% (0.1329) had more retarding retrogradation effect than the control (0.4319), whereas time constant (1/k) showed both 3% (100.00) and 5% (70.42) addition had more effect than control (18.45). Total phenols and flavonoids content increased proportionate to the addition levels. ABTS radical scavenging activity tended to increase according to the level of pumpkin leaf powder. In sensory properties, 5% addition showed maximum color, and 3% addition had the highest scores in flavor, moistness, sweetness, chewiness and overall acceptability. These results suggested that pumpkin leaf was a good addition to improve the quality characteristics, health and sensory preferences. The most appropriate proportion to have the effect of retarding retrogradation in sponge cake is 3%.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.194-206
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• 2020

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate microRNAs (miRNAs) related to follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) responsiveness using miRNA microarrays and to identify their target genes to determine the molecular regulatory pathways involved in FSH signaling in KGN cells. Methods: To change the cellular responsiveness to FSH, KGN cells were treated with FSH receptor (FSHR)-specific small interfering RNA (siRNA) followed by FSH. miRNA expression profiles were determined through miRNA microarray analysis. Potential target genes of selected miRNAs were predicted using bioinformatics tools, and their regulatory function was confirmed in KGN cells. Results: We found that six miRNAs (miR-1261, miR-130a-3p, miR-329-3p, miR-185-5p, miR-144-5p and miR-4463) were differentially expressed after FSHR siRNA treatment in KGN cells. Through a bioinformatics analysis, we showed that these miRNAs were predicted to regulate a large number of genes, which we narrowed down to cytochrome P450 family 19 subfamily A member 1 (CYP19A1) and estrogen receptor alpha (ESR1) as the main targets for miR-4463. Functional analysis revealed that miR-4463 is a regulatory factor for aromatase expression and function in KGN cells. Conclusion: In this study, we identified differentially expressed miRNAs related to FSH responsiveness. In particular, upregulation of miR-4463 expression by FSHR deficiency in human granulosa cells impaired 17β-estradiol synthesis by targeting CYP19A1 and ESR1. Therefore, our data might provide novel candidates for molecular biomarkers for use in research into poor responders.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.1277-1284
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• 2016

Background: Early detection is a critical part of reducing the burden of breast cancer and breast self-examination (BSE) has been found to be an especially important early detection strategy in low and middle income countries such as Malaysia. Although reports indicate that Malaysian women report an increase in BSE activity in recent years, additional research is needed to explore factors that may help to increase this behavior among Southeastern Asian women. Objective: This study is the first of its kind to explore how the predicting variables of self-efficacy, perceived barriers, and body image factors correlate with self-reports of past BSE, and intention to conduct future breast self-exams among female students in Malaysia. Materials and Methods: Through the analysis of data collected from a prior study of female students from nine Malaysian universities (n=842), this study found that self-efficacy, perceived barriers and specific body image sub-constructs (MBSRQ-Appearance Scales) were correlated with, and at times predicted, both the likelihood of past BSE and the intention to conduct breast self-exams in the future. Results: Self-efficacy (SE) positively predicted the likelihood of past self-exam behavior, and intention to conduct future breast self-exams. Perceived barriers (BR) negatively predicted past behavior and future intention of breast self-exams. The body image sub-constructs of appearance evaluation (AE) and overweight preoccupation (OWP) predicted the likelihood of past behavior but did not predict intention for future behavior. Appearance orientation (AO) had a somewhat opposite effect: AO did not correlate with or predict past behavior but did correlate with intention to conduct breast self-exams in the future. The body image sub-constructs of body area satisfaction (BASS) and self-classified weight (SCW) showed no correlation with the subjects' past breast self-exam behavior nor with their intention to conduct breast self-exams in the future. Conclusions: Findings from this study indicate that both self-efficacy and perceived barriers to BSE are significant psychosocial factors that influence BSE behavior. These results suggest that health promotion interventions that help enhance self-efficacy and reduce perceived barriers have the potential to increase the intentions of Malaysian women to perform breast self-exams, which can promote early detection of breast cancers. Future research should evaluate targeted communication interventions for addressing self-efficacy and perceived barriers to breast self-exams with at-risk Malaysian women. and further explore the relationship between BSE and body image.

• Journal of Agricultural Extension & Community Development
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.1021-1039
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• 2012

Based on the ergonomic evaluation of workers in the domestic traditional Korean sweet manufacturer, one of the small scale agricultural product manufacturers, the purpose of this study is on estimating the specific works and muscles that have possibility of musculoskeletal disorder through an EMG experiment for quantitative evaluation. The method followed in an order: works that have musculoskeletal disorder risk were extracted through ergonomic assessment tools, RULA and REBA, and then EMG experiment on the postures was carried out with six healthy adult male patients. As an ergonomic evaluation result, work posture during the drying process had the greatest musculoskeletal disorder risk, and EMG activity in the cleansing work posture scored the highest among the drying, cleansing, and coating work postures. In particular in the drying work, relatively high EMG activities were shown in the two muscles in the lower body: biceps femoris muscle, and gastrocnemius, than any other muscles. Therefore, during the traditional Korean sweet workplace design in future, the workplace requires a posture that deeply bow wrist for a long time should be avoided.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.45-56
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• 2002

Objectives: Recently, recombinant FSH (rFSH) has been manufactured using a Chinese hamster ovary cell line transfected with the gene encoding human FSH. Both rFSH and urinary gonadotropin (uFSH) could be used for controlled ovarian hyperstimulation (COH). However, uFSH implies a number of disadvantages, such as batch-to-batch inconsistency, no absolute source control, dependence on large amounts of urine, low specific activity, and low purity. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of rFSH in human IVF-ET program. Materials and Methods: A total of 508 infertile women was enrolled in this study. They are classified into rFSH group (n=177) or uFSH group (n=331), and all of them were matched by age and cause of infertility in same period. The $Puregon^{(R)}$ (Organon, Holland) was used as rFSH, and the Metrodin-$HP^{(R)}$ (Serono, Switzeland) and $Humegon^{(R)}$ (Organon, Holland) was used as uFSH. We subdivided the patients into three age groups. The outcomes of IVF-ET program were analyzed using the statistical package for social sciences (SPSS). Results: There was no significant differences in the level of estradiol on hCG injection day, the numbers of retrieved oocytes, matured oocytes, fertilized oocytes, transferred embryos, frozen embryos between the two groups. The total dose (IU) of gonadotropin for COH was significantly lower in the rFSH group compared to uFSH group ($1339{\pm}5491.1$ vs $2527.8{\pm}1075.2$ IU, p<0.001). Clinical pregnancy rate per embryo transfer in the rFSH group showed increasing tendency, compared to the uFSH group, but there was no statistical significance (35.2% vs 29.3%). Our results demonstrated that the relative efficiency of rFSH compared with uFSH is higher in older patients. Conclusions: The ovarian stimulatory effect and clinical outcome of recombinant FSH was similar to that of the urinary gonadotropin. The IVF-ET cycles with significantly lower dose of gonadotropin in rFSH group showed comparable results. Therefore, we suggest that recombinant FSH is more potent and effective than urinary gonadotropin.

• Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life
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• v.19 no.5
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• pp.723-728
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• 2009

In this study, the effects of feeding providing Holstein cows with with TMR feed including amended with undried citrus byproducts on the properties of their raw milk were investigated. Two samples were used for the experiment: T0 (raw milk produced by dairy cows fed with TMR feed not including citrus byproducts) and T1 (raw milk produced by cows fed with TMR feed including citrus byproducts). The All experiments were conducted with Holstein cows at a dairy farm in the on Jeju island, and were repeated three times, in each, after of which raw milk obtained from 7 cows of each samplein each group was analyzed[ED highlight - please ensure this is correct]. The daily milk yield and somatic cell numbers of T0 and T1 were 24.16 kg and 25.97 kg, and 660,000 thousands and 445,000 thousands, respectively, which means that feeding citrus byproducts to cows increases daily milk yield and reduces somatic cell numbers. There was were no significant differences between T0 and T1 in terms of the raw milk's total plate count, specific gravity, titration acidity, and or the amount of milk protein, lactose, nonfat solids, free amino acids and volatile compounds, while raw milk in T1 showed significantly lower levels of milk fat in raw milk. The antioxidant activity of raw milk was improved by citrus byproducts TMR feed containing citrus byproducts.