• Journal of the Institute of Convergence Signal Processing
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.91-98
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• 2019

Accidents of worker that occur in isolated places are difficult to rescue, unlike general construction accidents. There is a problem of communication limitation when an accident occurs in an isolated place. Also, it is difficult to search the accident place due to the absence of CCTV. In order to solve these problems, this paper proposes a device that combines IoT technology with a safety helmet, which must be worn in the workplace. The proposed device additionally designs and implements a real-time PPG(Photoplethysmography) sensor, body temperature sensor, accelerometer sensor and a camera sensor on the helmet. The proposed helmet system allows the user and the control center to monitor the state of the worker. In addition, when an abnormal biological signal or fall occurs to the worker, the image is transmitted to the control center. By using the proposed system, it is possible to check the status of the worker in real time, so that it has an advantage that it can cope with the accident quickly.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.19 no.7
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• pp.949-955
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• 2009

Mucosal epithelia sense external stress signals and transmit them to the intracellular cascade responses. Ribotoxic stress-producing chemicals such as deoxynivalenol (DON) or other trichothecene mycotoxins have been linked with gastrointestinal inflammatory diseases by Fusarium-contamination. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that DON evokes the epithelial sentinel signals of RNA-dependent protein kinase (PKR) and early growth response gene 1 (EGR-1), which together contribute to the pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin 8 (IL-8) in human intestinal epithelial cells. PKR suppression by the dominant negative PKR expression attenuated DON-stimulated interleukin-8 production. Moreover, 1L-8 transcriptional activation by DON was also reduced by PKR inhibition in the human intestinal epithelial cells. Treatment with the PKR inhibitor also suppressed EGR-1 promoter activity, mRNA and protein induction, although mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases such as extracellular signal-regulated protein kinases (ERK) 1/2, p38, c-Jun N-terminal Kinase (INK) were little affected or even enhanced in presence of a PKR inhibitor. These patterns were also compared in the EGR-1-suppressed cells, which showed much more suppressed production of 1L-8. All things taken into consideration, DON-activated sentinel signals of EGR-1 via PKR mediated interleukin-8 production in human intestinal epithelial cells, which provide insight into the possible general mechanism associated with mucosal inflammation as an intestinal toxic insult by ribotoxic trichothecene mycotoxins.

• Korean Journal of Acupuncture
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.135-142
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• 2013

Objectives : This study aimed to investigate the general effects of low-frequency electrical stimulation of the ankle joint acupuncture points(BL62 and KI6) on the brain waves of elderly women as a pilot study to figure out the possibility of candidate non-invasive and non-chemical stimulation method for the enhancing the brain function. Methods : A randomized, controlled, double-blinded clinical trial was performed in 31 healthy women(mean age, 54.5 years) within a treatment duration of 12 sessions. In the experimental group, low-frequency electrical stimulation was applied using the maximum range of the individual insensible strength(mean current, $0.04{\mu}A$). The control group received sham stimulation. The background electroencephalographic activity was measured before and after the12 sessions. Results : After 12 sessions of stimulation, the relative power of the alpha wave increased(32 of 32 channels: significant difference in 11 channels, p<0.05); the theta(30 of 32 channels: significant difference in 10 channels, p<0.05), beta(31 of 32 channels), and gamma(30 of 32 channels: significant difference in 7 channels, p<0.05) powers were also decreased compared with the sham group. Conclusions : Electrical stimulation on the ankle joint acupuncture points(BL62 and KI6) seemed to stabilize the elderly women brain by inducing the alpha power and reducing beta, theta, and gamma powers. These results provide insight into the action mechanism of the stimulation and can assist the future developement of a non-invasive and non-chemical treatment technique for stressor related cognitive problems.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.100-108
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• 2021

In the oral cavity, there are hundreds of microbial species that exist as planktonic cells or are incorporated into biofilms. The accumulation and proliferation of pathogenic bacteria in the oral biofilm can lead to caries and periodontitis, which are typical oral diseases. The oral bacteria in the biofilm not only can resist environmental stress inside the oral cavity, but also have a 1,000 times higher resistance to antibiotics than planktonic cells by genes exchange through the interaction between cells in the oral biofilm. Therefore, if the formation of oral biofilm is suppressed or removed, oral diseases caused by bacterial infection can be more effectively prevented or treated. In particular, since oral biofilms have the characteristic of forming a biofilm by gathering several bacteria, quorum sensing, a signaling system between cells, can be a target for controlling the oral biofilm. In addition, a method of inhibiting biofilm formation by using arginine, an alkali-producing substrate of oral bacteria, is used to convert the distribution of oral microorganisms into an environment similar to that of healthy teeth or inhibit the secretion of glucosyltransferase by S. mutans to inhibit the formation of non-soluble glucans. It can be a target to control oral biofilm. This method of inhibiting or removing the oral biofilm formation rather than inducing the death of pathogenic bacteria in the oral cavity will be a new strategy that can selectively prevent or therapeutic avenues for oral diseases including dental caries.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.33 no.9
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• pp.730-735
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• 2023

In the past decade, numerous studies have been carried out to quantify aging with the help of artificial intelligence. Using DNA methylation data, various models have been developed; these are commonly called epigenetic clocks. Epigenetic age acceleration is usually associated with disease conditions. Schizophrenia is a mental illness associated with severe mental and physical stress. This disease leads to high mortality and morbidity rates in young people compared with other psychological disorders. In the past, the research community considered this disease to be related to the accelerated aging hypothesis. In the current study, we wanted to investigate the epigenetic age acceleration changes in schizophrenia patients to obtain epigenetic insights into the disease. To measure the epigenetic age acceleration, we used two different DNA methylation clock models, namely, Horvath clock and Epi clock, as these are pan-tissue models. We utilized 450k array data compatible with both clocks. We found a slower epigenetic acceleration in the patients' samples when we used the Epi clock. We further analyzed the differentially methylated CpG sites between the control and cases and performed pathway enrichment analysis. We found that most of the CpGs are involved in neuronal processes.

• Journal of Korea Water Resources Association
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• v.57 no.8
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• pp.509-518
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• 2024

Flash drought is a rapid-onset drought that occurs rapidly over a short period due to abrupt changes in meteorological and environmental factors. In this study, we utilized satellite-based soil moisture product from the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer-2(AMSR2) ascending X-band to calculate the weekly Flash Drought Intensity Index (FDII). We also analyzed the characteristics of flash droughts on the Korean Peninsula over a 10-year period from 2013 to 2022. The analysis of monthly spatial distribution patterns of the irrigation period across the Korean Peninsula revealed significant variations. In North Korea (NK), a substantial increase in the rate of intensification (FD_INT) was observed due to the rapid depletion of soil moisture, whereas South Korea (SK) experienced a significant increase in drought severity (DRO_SEV). Additionally, regional time series analysis revealed that both FD_INT and DRO_SEV were significantly high in the Gangwon province of both NK and SK. The estimation of probability density by region revealed a clear difference in FD_INT between NK and SK, with SK showing a higher probability of severe drought occurrence primarily due to the high values of DRO_SEV. As a result, it is inferred that the occurrence frequency and damage of flash droughts in NK are higher than those in SK, as indicated by the higher density of large FDII values in the NK region. We analyzed the correlation between DRO_SEV and the Evaporative Stress Index (ESI) across the Korean Peninsula and confirmed a positive correlation ranging from 0.4 to 0.6. It is concluded that analyzing overall drought conditions through the average drought severity holds high utility. These findings are expected to contribute to understanding the characteristics of flash droughts on the Korean Peninsula and formulating post-event response plans.