• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.27 no.11
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• pp.1554-1561
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• 2014

Present study analyzed the changes in peripheral blood testosterone concentrations and testicular cytogram in relation to age and semen quality in crossbred males. Three different age groups of crossbred males viz. bull calves (6 months, n = 5), young bulls (15 months, n = 5) and adult bulls (4 to 6 years, n = 8) were utilized for the study. Testicular fine needle aspiration cytology technique was used to quantify testicular cytology and their indices. Peripheral blood testosterone concentrations were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method. Semen samples collected from adult bulls were microscopically evaluated for quality parameters. Mean peripheral blood testosterone concentrations in bull calves, young bulls and adult bulls were $2.28{\pm}0.09ng/mL$, $1.42{\pm}0.22ng/mL$ and $5.66{\pm}1.08ng/mL$ respectively, and that in adult bulls were significantly different (p<0.01) from young bulls and bull calves. There was no significant difference between the proportion of different testicular cells in bull calves and young bulls. Between young and adult bulls, significant differences (p<0.01) were observed in the proportion of spermatocytes, spermatozoa, and sperm: Sertoli cell ratio. The proportions of Sertoli cells showed a significant difference (p<0.01) between the three age groups. The number of primary spermatocytes had a positive correlation with peripheral blood testosterone concentrations in bull calves (r = 0.719, p<0.01). Number of Sertoli cells per 100 germ cells was negatively correlated with blood testosterone concentration in young bulls (r = -0.713, p<0.01). Among different semen parameters in adult bulls, ejaculate volume (r = 0.790, p<0.05) had positive relationship, and sperm motility had significant negative correlation (r = -0.711, p<0.05) with testosterone concentrations. The number of Sertoli cells and Sertoli cell index had a positive correlation with various semen quality parameters (p<0.001). Results of the present study conclude that number of Sertoli cells and Sertoli cell index are good indicators of semen quality, but peripheral blood testosterone concentrations may not have a direct relationship with various seminal attributes in crossbred bulls.

• The Korean Journal of Malacology
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.25-32
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• 2014

The age and growth of Neptunea (Barbitonia) arthritica cumingii sampled from the West Sea of Korea were determined from 1,062 operculums from October 2007 to September 2008. Age of Neptunea (Barbitonia) arthritica cumingii was determined from the rings on the operculum. The relationship between shell height (SH; mm) and shell width (SW; mm) was expressed by the following equation : SW = 0.5757 SH + 0.222 ($R^2$ = 0.8723), and shell height (SH; mm) and total weight (TW; g) was highly correlated by the equation : TW = 0.0002 $SH^{2.8162}$ ($R^2$ = 0.9121). The main spawning periods was estimated June to July through fatness index analysis. The relationship between shell height and ring radius of operculum in each ring group was expressed as a regression line. Therefore, there is a correspondence in each ring formation. Based on the monthly variations in the marginal index (MI) of the operculum, it is assumed that the ring of this species was formed once a year during the period of July to August. Growth curves for shell height (SH) and total weight (TW) fitted to the von Bertalanffy's equation were expressed as follows : $$SH_t=173.964(1-e^{-0.164(t+1.173)})$$ $$TW_t=407.952(1-e^{-0.164(t+1.173)})^{2.8162}$$

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.19 no.6
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• pp.231-239
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• 2018

This study was conducted to examine the influence of personal characteristics of infant-toddler and mother, social support and mother-child interaction on mother-child attachment. A descriptive study was implemented, and data were gathered from March 1 to September 30, 2016. The subjects were 215 mothers whose children were in infancy or toddlers. A survey was conducted with self-administered questionnaires regarding general characteristics, social support, mother-child interaction and attachment. SPSS 24.0 was used for descriptive statistics, intergroup comparisons of average scores, correlation analysis and multiple regression analysis. Statistically significant differences in average attachment scores according to gender (t=3.200, p<0.002), age (t=4.037, p<0.001) and temperament (F=4.614, p<0.011) were observed among the characteristics of infant-toddlers, as well as according to age (F=18.028, p<0.001) and academic credentials (F=4.241, p<0.016) among the characteristics of mother. Attachment was correlated with social support (r=0.507, p<0.001) and with mother-child interaction (r=0.571, p<0.001). The factors that affected attachment were mother-child interaction (${\beta}=0.361$, p<0.001), social support (${\beta}=0.309$, p<0.001), age (under the age of 30)(${\beta}=-0.370$, p<0.001) and marriage duration (less than 10 years)(${\beta}=-0.179$, p<0.033). Overall, the results indicate that interaction programs that bolster social support and mother-child interactions that exert a crucial influence on attachment should be developed.

• Journal of Korean society of Dental Hygiene
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• v.10 no.6
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• pp.1083-1093
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• 2010

Objective : The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of the oral health behavior of oral prophylaxis clients and some residents in a community to their simplified oral environment index. Methods : The subjects in this study were 520 people who had their teeth cleaned in the oral prophylaxis practice lab in the department of dental hygiene at J health college. A survey was conducted from March 23 to June 3, 2010, by way of the self-reported questionnaire. The data materials are analyzed by general characteristics frequency and ratio, the relationship of oral health behavior and sex, age, scaling experience, simplified oral hygiene index $x^{2}$ test analysis. Results : 1. Concerning links between gender and oral health behavior including daily toothbrushing frequency, the largest group of the respondents brushed their teeth three times a day(p<0.05). As to educational experiences on toothbrushing method and the use of oral hygiene supplies, the women had more educational experiences than the men(p<0.05). 2. Regarding connections between age and oral health behavior involving daily toothbrushing frequency, the largest number of the respondents brushed their teeth three times a day in every age group (p <0.001). As for educational experiences on toothbrushing method, those who were in their 50s and up(64.7%) learned about that, and they had more educational experiences with age(p<0.05). As for scaling experiences, the older respondents had their teeth scaled more often (p<0.001). 3. As to relationship between scaling experiences and oral health behavior, there were differences in toothbrushing frequency according to scaling experiences(p <0.05). Regarding educational experiences on toothbrushing method, those who had their teeth cleaned received more toothbrushing education(p<0.001). Concerning smoking, the nonsmokers had more experiences to get their teeth cleaned (p<0.001). 4. As for links between simplified oral environment index and oral health behavior including a time for toothbrushing, the respondents who did toothbrushing after every meal(80.4%) had good simplified oral environment indexes(p<0.05). 5. In regard to relationship between simplified oral environment index and oral health behavior, oral environment index had a positive correlation to the use of oral hygiene supplies( r=0.129**), toothbrushing time(r=0.116**) and educational experiences on toothbrushing method (r=0.099**). Smoking(r=-0.092**) had a negative correlation to that. Conclusion : The above-mentioned findings illustrate that oral health behavior is one of crucial factors to affect oral health status and oral environment care. Therefore oral prophylaxis practice lab visitors should receive education on the right toothbrushing method and the use of oral hygiene supplies to promote their oral health, and an incremental oral health care system that involves regular scaling should be introduced.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.329-348
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• 2011

This research analyzed 168,010 cases of death of the aged over 65 from 244,867cases of death excluding 7 unknown age cases from 244,874 all age cases of death by using the death data of the National Statistical Office for 2007 to figure out factors affecting the quality of causes of death statistics of the aged and to suggest the ways of improving the quality of death statistics of the aged in korea. This research tried to derive factors affecting ill-defined cause of death category in acordance with WHO's guidelines and to find causes of lowering the accuracy of causes of death statistics of the aged. This research identified the problems of causes of death statistics of the aged by using both demographic characteristics such as sex, age, marital status, educational attainment, residential region, region size and factors of death items as independent variable to find causes of ill-defined cause of death of the aged. Logistic regression analysis was executed to calculate the hazard ratio about the ill-defined causes of death of the aged and multiple regression analysis was conducted to derive factors affecting the ill-defined cause of death by regional groups through using these independent variables such as the component ratio of over age 65, female death rates, doctors insitutions rate, medical institutions rate, attaching rates of death certificate by neighborhood. As a results of this research, R-code was the highest of ill-defined causes of death, accounting for 82.1%, and senility death(R54) of R-code was the highest, accounting for 91.2%. through subdivided order distribution of the ill-defined causes of death of the aged. As ill-defined causes of death by regional groups, attaching rates of death certificate by neighborhood was the most important factor(p<0.05) and also showed regression model's description with 83.8% ($R^2$=83.8%). Furthermore, Jeon-nam was the highest in the regional groups and these regions such as Je-ju, Jeon-buk, Chung-nam were not only attaching the death certificate by neighborhood but also were high at the rate of ill-defined causes of death. Therefore, this research found that both reconsideration about death certificate by neighborhood and education for doctors who write death certificate were needed the most.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.63 no.11
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• pp.438-446
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• 2020

Background: Most developmental screening tools in Korea are adopted from foreign tests. To ensure efficient screening of infants and children in Korea, a nationwide screening tool with high reliability and validity is needed. Purpose: This study aimed to independently develop, standardize, and validate the Korean Developmental Screening Test for Infants and Children (K-DST) for screening infants and children for neurodevelopmental disorders in Korea. Methods: The standardization and validation conducted in 2012-2014 of 3,284 subjects (4-71 months of age) resulted in the first edition of the K-DST. The restandardization and revalidation performed in 2015-2016 of 3.06 million attendees of the National Health Screening Program for Infants and Children resulted in the revised K-DST. We analyzed inter-item consistency and test-retest reliability for the reliability analysis. Regarding the validation of K-DST, we examined the construct validity, sensitivity and specificity, receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, and a criterion-related validity analysis. Results: We ultimately selected 8 questions in 6 developmental domains. For most age groups and each domain, internal consistency was 0.73-0.93 and test-retest reliability was 0.77-0.88. The revised K-DST had high discriminatory ability with a sensitivity of 0.833 and specificity of 0.979. The test supported construct validity by distinguishing between normal and neurodevelopmentally delayed groups. The language and cognition domain of the revised K-DST was highly correlated with the K-Bayley Scales of Infant Development-II's Mental Age Quotient (r=0.766, 0.739), while the gross and fine motor domains were highly correlated with Motor Age Quotient (r=0.695, 0.668), respectively. The Verbal Intelligence Quotient of Korean Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scales of Intelligence was highly correlated with the K-DST cognition and language domains (r=0.701, 0.770), as was the performance intelligence quotient with the fine motor domain (r=0.700). Conclusion: The K-DST is reliable and valid, suggesting its good potential as an effective screening tool for infants and children with neurodevelopmental disorders in Korea.

• Phonetics and Speech Sciences
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.17-25
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• 2023

This study examines the fundamental frequency(f0) distribution of 2,740 Korean speakers in a dialogue speech corpus. Praat and R were used for the collection and analysis of acoustical f0 data after removing extreme values considering the interquartile f0 range of the intonational phrases produced by each individual speaker. Results showed that the average f0 value of all speakers was 185 Hz and the median value was 187 Hz. The f0 data showed a positively skewed distribution of 0.11, and the kurtosis was -0.09, which is close to the normal distribution. The pitch values of daily conversations varied in the range of 238 Hz. Further examination of the male and female groups showed distinct median f0 values: 114 Hz for males and 199 Hz for females. A t-test between the two groups yielded a significant difference. The skewness representing the distribution shape was 1.24 for the male group and 0.58 for the female group. The kurtosis was 5.21 and 3.88 for the male and female groups, and the male group values appeared leptokurtic. A regression analysis between the median f0 and age yielded a slope of 0.15 for the male group and -0.586 for the female group, which indicated a divergent relationship. In conclusion, a normative f0 distribution of different Korean age and sex groups can be examined in the conversational speech corpus recorded by a massive number of participants. However, more rigorous data might be required to define a relation between age and f0 values.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.165-170
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• 2002

Mature weight (A) and rate of maturing (k) estimated by nonlinear regression were studied to determine the optimum age range over which the estimate of growth curve parameters can be estimated. The weight-age data from 1,133 Hanwoo bulls at Hanwoo Improvement Center of N.A.C.F. were used to fit the growth curve using Gompertz model. All available weight data from birth to the specific age of months were used for the estimation of parameters: the six specific ages used were 12, 14, 16, 18, 20 22 and 24 months of age. The mean estimates of mature weight (A) were 966.5, 1,255.9, 1,126.2, 916.5, 842.2, 780.9 and 767.0kg for ages 12 through 24 months, respectively. The mean estimates of mature weight (A) to 22 and 24 months of age were not different from each other. However, they were different from the estimates based on the data to other ages. Mean estimates of rate of maturing (k) were 3.362, 3.595, 3.536, 3.421, 3.403, 3.409 and 3.411 for ages 12 through 24 months, respectively. The mean estimates of maturing rate (k) for ages 18 through 24 months of age were not significantly different from each other. However, they were different from the estimates based on the data to other ages. Correlations among estimates of A at various ages showed the highest value of 0.93 between 22 and 24 months. Correlations among estimates of k at various ages were highest ranging from 0.91 to 0.99 among 18 to 24 months. The correlations between A and k were positive and tended to decrease with the increase of the age from 0.84 for the age of 12 months to 0.10 for the age of 24 months. Thus, the estimates of growth curve parameters, A and k, suitable for genetic studies can be derived from accumulated Hanwoo bulls after 22 months of age.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.49 no.1
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• pp.93-98
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• 2006

Purpose : Ghrelin stimulates the secretion of growth hormone and other pituitary hormones, and has orexigenic effects. It may have a physiologic role in fetal and neonatal growth. Leptin secreted by the adipocytes reflects fat mass in infants as well as adults. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relation of cord blood ghrelin and leptin levels to body weight(BW), body mass index(BMI), insulin-like growth factor-I(IGF-I) and insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3(IGFBP-3) levels in appropriate for gestational age(AGA) newborns. Methods : Sixty healthy AGA newborns(31 males and 29 females, gestational age[GA] 34-42 weeks) were included in this study, whose BW and BMI were measured at delivery. Umbilical cord venous blood samples were withdrawn, and ghrelin and leptin were measured by radioimmunoassay. Cord blood IGF-I and IGFBP-3 were determined by immunoradiometric assay. Results : The mean levels of ghrelin were inversely correlated with BW(r=-0.29, P<0.05) and GA (r=-0.28, P<0.05), but were not affected by gender. The mean levels of leptin levels showed positive correlation with BW(r=0.44, P<0.01), GA(r=0.36, P<0.01), and BMI(r=0.28, P<0.05). The leptin levels of females were higher than those of males. There was no gender difference in leptin levels in neonates under GA 37 weeks. However, the leptin levels of females were higher than those of males (P<0.01) in newborns with GA 37 weeks or over. There was no correlation between ghrelin and leptin levels. Ghrelin and leptin levels showed no relations to cord blood IGF-I and IGFBP-3 levels. Conclusion : These data suggest that cord blood ghrelin may have an inverse correlation with BW in AGA newborns, and leptin levels are positively correlated with BW and fat mass. Further study of ghrelin concentrations in cord blood is necessary to elucidate the physiological and pathological roles of ghrelin during the fetal and neonatal periods.

• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.125-130
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• 2021

Purpose: The dental age estimation of children is performed using dental maturity. Postmortem missing of the anterior teeth or the distortion of image of the anterior teeth in panoramic radiographs can make it difficult to analyze the development of the anterior teeth. This pilot study was conducted to derive a new age estimation method based only on the developmental stage of mandibular posterior teeth. Methods: This study was conducted using panoramic radiographs of 650 subjects aged 3 to 15 years old. The dental developmental stages of the lower left first premolar, second premolar, first molar and second molar were evaluated according to the Demirjian's criteria. The intra-/inter-observer reliability was evaluated, and multiple linear regression analyses were performed including the developmental stage of each tooth as an independent variable. Results: The intra-/inter-observer reliability was 0.9626 and 0.8877, respectively, and showed very high reproducibility. Multiple linear regression analyses were performed for males and females, and the age calculation table was derived by obtaining the intercept and the coefficient according to the development stage of each tooth. The coefficient of determination (r²) of the age calculation method was 0.9634 for male and 0.9570 for female subjects, and the mean difference between chronological age and estimated dental age was -0.42 and -0.21, respectively. Conclusions: This pilot study evaluated the developmental stages of four lower posterior teeth in the Korean group according to Demirjian's criteria, and derived age estimation method. The accuracy was lower than when more teeth were used, but it will be useful to estimate age of children when the anterior teeth are difficult to accurately analyze.