• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.222-228
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• 2020

Background: 20(S)-ginsenoside-Rg3 (C₄₂H₇₂O₁₃), a natural triterpenoid saponin, is extracted from red ginseng. The increasing use of 20(S)-ginsenoside Rg3 has raised product safety concerns. Methods: In acute toxicity, 20(S)-ginsenoside Rg3 was singly and orally administrated to Kunming mice and Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats at the maximum doses of 1600 mg/kg and 800 mg/kg, respectively. In the 26-week toxicity study, we used repeated oral administration of 20(S)-ginsenoside Rg3 in SD rats over 26 weeks at doses of 0, 20, 60, or 180 mg/kg. Moreover, a 4-week recovery period was scheduled to observe the persistence, delayed occurrence, and reversibility of toxic effects. Results: The result of acute toxicity shows that oral administration of 20(S)-ginsenoside Rg3 to mice and rats did not induce mortality or toxicity up to 1600 and 800 mg/kg, respectively. During a 26-week administration period and a 4-week withdrawal period (recovery period), there were no significant differences in clinical signs, body weight, food consumption, urinalysis parameters, biochemical and hematological values, or histopathological findings. Conclusion: The mean oral lethal dose (LD₅₀) of 20(S)-ginsenoside Rg3, in acute toxicity, is above 1600 mg/kg and 800 mg/kg in mice and rats, respectively. In a repeated-dose 26-week oral toxicity study, the no-observed-adverse-effect level for female and male SD rats was 180 mg/kg.

• Journal of Korean Society of Disaster and Security
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.47-56
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• 2019

Recently, in order to overcome the difficulty of entering a fire source due to the occurrence of a large amount of smoke in the event of a fire in a parking lot, it has used that a method of discharge smoke using air supply, exhaust fans and jet fans installed for ventilation of parking lots. In this study, the variation of flow in the smoke layer was observed using CCTV under two conditions, in which only the air supply fan operates and the manned fan operates together, and the temperature around the plume was compared to Albert eq. to assess its suitability as a parking lot ventilation performance evaluation method. As a result, it was found that the smoke layer could be disturbed if the Jet Fan was operated at the same time, which could lead to the possibility of an initial evacuation disturbance. However, the additional operation of the Jet Fan has been confirmed by the observation CCTV that the emission performance is improved, which is believed to help conduct the suppression operation. The temperature around the plume was measured and compared to Alpert eq, and was analyzed to be about $2^{\circ}C$ lower at the center axis of the plume and $9.0^{\circ}C$ higher at 8 m in the direction of the discharge of smoke. The results of temperature measurements around the plume were lower than the maximum temperature expected in AS 4391 and did not exceed the expected temperature risk caused by the experiment. As with these results, the temperature risk from the progression of hot smoke tests is foreseeable, so it will be available as one of the general evaluation methods for assessing smoke control performance in a parking lot without relevant criteria.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.163-169
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• 2022

Background: It is estimated that about 13 million artisanal and small-scale miners carry out their activities under harsh, precarious, unfriendly, and risky conditions. Yet, our understanding of the extent to which these workers use personal protective equipment (PPE) and navigate through the various risks and hazards they face is still limited. This article has two main objectives. First, it explores the extent of usage of PPE among artisanal and small-scale miners for the prevention of hazards and risks. Second, it examines the coping strategies used by these miners as a response to experiences of occupational injuries and risks Methods: A cross-sectional survey of small-scale miners was conducted in six communities across three districts in Ghana, West Africa. The mixed methods approach was adopted. A total of 148 small-scale miners participated in the study. Six focus group discussions (FGDs) were held across the six communities. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics. Chi-square tests were used to analyse the relationship between some socio-demographic characteristics (sex, age, and educational background) and the usage of PPE. Open-ended questions and responses from FGDs were analysed based on the content and verbatim quotations from miners. Results: Findings suggest that 78% of the miners interviewed do not use the appropriate PPE citing reasons such as cost, and their personal discomfort associated with use of PPE. There was no significant relationship between socio-demographic characteristics (i.e., sex, age, education and major mining activity) and the usage of PPE. The study further revealed four main coping strategies used by miners to handle the risks. These are rest, taking unprescribed medication and hard drugs, registration with health insurance scheme and savings and investments. Conclusion: This study shows that very few artisanal miners use PPE despite the significant hazards and risks to which they are exposed. The study recommends to the government to put in place measures to ensure that miners adhere to health and safety regulations before undertaking mining activities. This means that health and safety plans and use of PPE should be linked to the license acquisition process for miners.

• Knowledge Management Research
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.131-163
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• 2016

The purpose of this study is to empirically analyze how social comparative learning of forum participants affects learning effects with an emphasis on participants' characteristics. As today's society is changing at a fast pace, the desire for new knowledge and information has grown accordingly. To quench this thirst for knowledge and information, seminars, symposiums, conferences, forums, conventions, exhibitions, and more are taking place as part of knowledge sharing events across the world. Also, the increased need for knowledge and information exchange has led the development and growth of the convention industry and Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Events (Exhibitions)(MICE) industry. Especially, forum is a type of event which invites professionals and specialists to discuss diverse topics and share their knowledge and experience with the audience. The participants utilize it as an opportunity to get close to information providers and enjoy the pleasure of knowledge exchange. However, there have been few empirical analyses on who the participants are, why they attend forum, how they pick up and learn new information and knowledge, and what kinds of learning effects they achieve after the event. This paper is to analyze how social comparative learning of the forum's participants influences learning effects based on Albert Bandura's Social Learning Theory (1977, 1997, 1982. 2001) and Leon Festinger's Social Comparative Theory (1950, 1954). By dividing the participants into two groups, one with high level of self-efficacy and the other with low level of self-efficacy, we have examined the differences in learning effects between the two groups using them as moderating variables. This study was conducted in 'MBN Y Forum 2016,' which is one of the most representative knowledge exchange forums of South Korea. An online survey was distributed out and, 1,307(39.2%) out of the total participants of 3,338 have completed the survey. The survey included questions about whether the participants have gained positive or negative motivations by comparing themselves to the speakers (upward comparison learning) and other participants (lateral comparison learning). The results have shown the quality of messages that the speakers are presenting as knowledge providers is the most significant factor that acts on learning effects. Particularly, the participants had higher levels of self-efficacy and self-esteem than average people. They had a clear goal to learn from the speakers (upward comparison) and received positive motivations from them. In other words, no negative learning effects had been found. This presents a managerial implication that having a qualified speaker is necessary for a forum to be successful. On the other hand, the results from the comparison with the other participants (lateral comparison) were different. The participants were likely to compare themselves to the other participants through observational learning. They could compare listening attitudes, language skills, or capabilities to ask a question. The results have showed the participants received positive motivations from the lateral group but at the same time were jealous of abilities of the others. When the quality of a question by a participant is not good enough, it can have a negative influence on the participants' learning effects. The first group with high levels of self-efficacy and self-esteem had no correlation to negative learning effects from the speakers. They rather had a strong desire to learn from the speakers. On the contrary, the participants perceived the lateral group as a learning subset and competitor. The second group with low levels of self-efficacy and self-esteem saw the quasi-group as a rival. This presents that the individual learning effects can be different depending on the participants' characteristics.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.22 no.8
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• pp.1114-1119
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• 2012

Bacteria are frequently contaminated during the collection and processing procedures of boar semen. Of the contaminants, Stenotrophomonas (S.) maltophilia is a Gram-negative bacterium that is widely distributed in a variety of habitats. Although PCR assays have been developed for the detection of S. maltophilia, they cross-react with some species of Xanthomonas. In this study, we designed a primer set for the detection of S. maltophilia in order to target the chiA (GenBank accession no. NC_010943) gene. The specific PCR products were amplified from S. maltophilia only, not from other tested strains that are frequently found in semen. The detection limit of the PCR was $1.5{\times}10^3$ CFU/ml with pure-cultured S. maltophilia and $1.5{\times}10^4$ CFU/ml with S. maltophilia spiked in semen. Twenty-six (5.9%) S. maltophilia were isolated from 440 semen samples. The PCR results exhibited 98.9% agreement with a comparison of S. maltophilia isolation. Also, the sensitivity and specificity of the PCR were 100% and 98.7%, respectively. In the antimicrobial susceptibility test, S. maltophilia isolates were highly susceptible to enrofloxacin and florfenicol, while the majority of them were resistant to amoxicillin/clavulanic acid, apramycin, ceftiofur, penicillin, and spectinomycin. These results indicated that the PCR using the chiA gene was proven to be reliable and effective for the detection of S. maltophilia with high levels of sensitivity and specificity.