• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.621-628
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• 1997

Background : As the pleural inflammation progresses, exudative pleural fluid becomes loculated rapidly with pleural thickening. Complete drainage is important to prevent pleural fibrosis, entrapment and depression of lung function. Intrapleural urokinase instillation therapy has been advocated as a method to facilitate drainage of gelatinous pleural fluid and to allow enzymatic debriment of pleural surface. This study was designed to investigate the predictors of effectiveness of intrapleural urokinase in the treatment of loculated pleural effusion. Method : Thirty-five patients received a single radiographically guided pig-tail catheter ranging in size from 10 to 12 French. Twenty-two patients had tuberculous pleural effusions, and 13 had non-tuberculous postpneumonic empyemas. A total of 240,000 units of urokinase was dissolved in 240 ml of normal saline and the aliquots of 80mL was instilled into the pleural cavity via pig-tail catheter per every 8hr. Effectiveness of intrapleural urokinase instillation therapy was assessed by biochemical markers, ultrasonography, and technical details. A greater than 50% improvement on follow-up chest radiographs was defined as success group. Result : Twenty-seven of 35 (77.1%) patients had successful outcome to urokinase instillation therapy. Duration of symptoms before admission was shorter in success group ($11.8{\pm}6.9day$) than in failure group ($26.62{\pm}16.5day$) (P<0.05). Amount of drained fluid during urokinase therapy was larger in success group ($917.1{\pm}392.7ml$) than in failure group ($613.8{\pm}259.7ml$) (P<0.05). Pleural fluid glucose was higher in success group ($89.7{\pm}35.9mg/dl$) than in failure group ($41.2{\pm}47.1mg/dl$) (P<0.05). Pleural fluid LDH was lower in success group ($878.4{\pm}654.3IU/L$) than in failure group ($2711.1{\pm}973.1IU/L$) (P<0.05). Honeycomb septated pattern on chest ultrasonography was observed in six of eight failure group, but none of success group (P<0.05). Conclusion : Longer duration of symptoms before admission, smaller amount of drained fluid during urokinase therapy, lower glucose value, higher LDH value in pleural fluid examination, and honeycomb septation pattern on chest ultrasonograph were predictors for failure group of intrapleural urokinase instillation therapy.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.123-139
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• 2011

It is expected that identification and lists of $C_4$ plants in specific regions are useful not only for the ecological researches that are related to vegetation phenology and succession but also as an index of climate change. In this review, $C_4$ plants growing in South Korea were listed and their life forms were investigated. In addition, we discussed the influences that climatic change and the $C_4$ plants exerted on plant ecosystem. Photosynthetic pathway types ($C_3$ and $C_4$) for the plant species in South Korea were determined by reviewing the scientific literatures published between 1971 and 2010. Of the total 4476 species in 1123 genera and 197 families, 206 species (4.6%) in 84 genera (7.5%) and 21 families (10.7%) were identified as $C_4$ plants (including $C_3$-$C_4$ intermediate plants). Among the identified $C_4$ species, 53 species (25.7%) in 26 genera and 15 families were classified as Dicotyledoneae, while 153 species (74.3%) in 58 genera and 6 families were classified as Monocotyledoneae. The majority of the $C_4$ species belong to four families: Chenopodiaceae (15 species), Amaranthaceae (13 species), Gramineae (102 speceis) and Cyperaceae (45 species). With respect to life form composition of 206 $C_4$ species, Th-$R_5$-$D_4$-t was most dominant: 95 species (46.1%) were included in Th, 123 species (59.7%) in $R_5$, 179 species (86.9%) in $D_4$, and 122 species (59.2%) in t. The projected increase in temperature due to climate change may provide better conditions for the growth of $C_4$ plants. Such a result will have considerable impacts on the interspecific competition between $C_3$ and $C_4$ plants, the distribution of $C_4$ plants, plant phenology, and plant diversity.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.43 no.6
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• pp.1018-1023
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• 2010

Climatic change was observed and analyzed in view of impacts on agricultural ecosystem, inter alia on rice cropping. The changed climate gave rise to earlier transplanting of rice seedling and later harvest after 40 years. Also phenological change and prolonged growth duration was observed. The meteorological data was selected from the standardized climatological data of 30 year normals of 1960s and 2000s, which were published by Korea Meteorological Administration. Development stages and growing periods of rice crop were compared by analyzing critical and optimum temperatures of each growth stage during these two periods. The first appearance date of $15^{\circ}C$ was ranged from Apr. 29 to May 23 in the year-normals of 1960s and it varied from Apr. 24 to May 16 in the normals of 2000s. The difference of the first appearance date of $15^{\circ}C$ was 0~10 days earlier in the year-normals of 2000s than the 1960s. The last harvesting date was determined to be the last appearance date of mean air temperature $15^{\circ}C$. The difference in the last appearance date of $15^{\circ}C$ was 1 to 13 days later in the year-normals of 2000s than in 1960s. The plant height of a rice variety, Hwayoung-byeo was 101~109 cm in 4 local areas, Seoul, Kangneung, Kwangju and Daegu. The plant height became 1~4 cm taller under warm condition. Rice grain yields estimated with daily weather data for the year-normals of 1960s and 2000s were 453~580 kg $10a^{-1}$ and 409~484 kg $10a^{-1}$ respectively. Rice grain yield of the former period was 50~100 kg $10a^{-1}$ higher than that hat in the later period.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.123-130
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• 2011

Objectives of this study were to compare the environmental effects of digestates produced in bioenergy village on the rice paddy field for recycling. Digestates were applied to the soils and the soil properties and the crop responses were analyzed according to the standard methods of soil evaluation. Plant height and the number of tiller showed similar results in both the conventional and digestate treated field, and the yield of rough rice was higher in the field treated with digestates than that with chemical fertilizer. The amounts of nitrogen absorbed in straw and grain were larger in the digestates-treated field than chemical fertilizer-treated one, and efficiency of nitrogen applied was shown to be the highest in 100% treated digestate of the pig manure. Exchangeable cation and pH increased in the soil treated with digestate after harvesting, but salt was not accumulated. With these results, it was concluded that resource recycling in green town can be facilitated through the securement of arable lands for the application of digestates and the proper use of these fertilizers. Long-term effects of digestate application on the soil environment should be sustainingly studied.