• Korean Journal of Transplantation
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.84-91
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• 2018

Background: This study examined the outcomes of ABO incompatible living donor liver transplantation (LDLT). The changes in the immunologic factors that might help predict the long term outcomes were also studied. Methods: Twenty-three patients, who underwent ABO incompatible LDLT from 2010 to 2015, were reviewed retrospectively. The protocol was the same as for ABO compatible LDLT except for the administration of rituximab and plasma exchange. The clinical outcomes and immunologic factors, such as isoagglutinin titer and cluster of differentiation 20+ (CD20+) lymphocyte levels were reviewed. Results: The center showed a 3-year survival of 64% with no case of antibody-mediated rejection. When transplantation-unrelated mortalities (for example, traffic accidents and myocardial infarction) were removed from statistical analysis, the 3-year survival was 77.8%. Although isoagglutinin titers continued to remain at low levels, the CD20+ lymphocyte levels recovered to the pre-Rituximab levels at postoperative one year. Conclusions: As donor shortages continue, ABO incompatible liver transplantation is a feasible method to expand the donor pool. On the other hand, caution is still needed until more long-term outcomes are reported. Because CD20+ lymphocytes are recovered with time, more immunologic studies will be needed in the future.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.86-96
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• 2022

Background: To explore the association between low back pain (LBP) and pelvic pain (PP) and rectus abdominis diastasis (RAD) in postpartum women and identify the characteristics and risk factors. Methods: Women diagnosed with RAD and a history of labor and delivery, between 2009 and 2018, were identified from six hospitals within the Partners Healthcare System. Univariate and multivariable binary logistic regression analyses were used to identify the risk factors associated with pain. Results: Age at onset of RAD in the non-cesarean delivery group was earlier than those in cesarean delivery (CD) group (P = 0.017). Women who underwent CD demonstrated 4.5 times greater risk of RAD than those who had no CD exposure. The cumulative composition ratio of LBP at every age stage of the period from 8 years pre-first delivery to 8 years post-first delivery was significantly higher than the other five conditions (RAD, umbilical hernia, PP, depressive disorder [DD], and strain of muscle, fascia, and tendon [SMFT]) (P for trend < 0.001). Women with DD, SMFT, and PP were more likely to have LBP (odds ratio [OR] = 1.91, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.06 to 3.47, P = 0.032; OR = 4.50, 95% CI 1.64 to 12.36, P = 0.003; OR = 2.14, 95% CI 1.17 to 3.89, P = 0.013; respectively). Conclusions: In postpartum women with RAD, DD, SMFT, and PP were found to be risk factors contributing to the development of LBP. Race and LBP also played roles in the development of PP.

• The Journal of Korea Institute of Information, Electronics, and Communication Technology
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.122-127
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• 2021

This paper produces CdS thin film using ITO glass as substrates. The MDS (Multiplex Deposition Sputter System) was used to produce devices by changing RF power and deposition time. The manufactured specimen was analyzed for its optical properties. The purpose of this paper is to find the fabrication conditions that can be applied to the photo-absorbing layer of solar cells. When RF power was 50W and deposition time was 10 minutes, the thickness was measured at 64Å. At 100W, the thickness was measured at 406Å and at 150 W, the thickness was measured at 889Å. Thin films were found to increase in thickness as RF power increased. As a result of the light transmittance measurement, 550-850nm was observed to have a transmittance of approximately 70% or more when the RF power was 50W, 100W, and 150W. Increasing RF power increased thickness and increased particle size, resulting in increased thin film density, resulting in reduced light transmittance. When RF power was 100W and deposition time was 15 minutes, the band gap was calculated at 3.998eV. When deposition time is 20 minutes, it is 3.987eV, 150W is 3.965eV at 15 minutes, and 3.831eV at 20 minutes. It was measured that the band gap decreased as the RF power increased. At XRD analysis, diffraction peaks at 2Θ=26.44 could be observed regardless of changes in RF power and deposition time. The FWHM was shown to decrease with increasing deposition time. And it was measured that the particle size increased as RF power was constant and deposition time was increased.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.49 no.5
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• pp.262-274
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• 2023

Background: Exposure levels for heavy metals such as lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), and cadmium (Cd) have increased due to human activities. They are known to be a public health concern. Objectives: This study aimed to determine the exposure levels to heavy metals in the blood and urine of South Korean adults and to present the contribution rate of exposure pathways using an exposure algorithm for men aged 19~64, women aged 19~64, and all seniors aged 65 or older. Methods: We analyzed data from the Korean National Environmental Health Survey (KoNEHS) Cycle 4 (2018~2020). A total of 2,646 participants aged ≥19 years were included. Multiple regression analysis was performed to determine the factors affecting heavy metal concentrations. The contribution rate was calculated by applying three exposure algorithms for ingestion, inhalation, and dermal exposure. Results: Factors that commonly affect heavy metal concentrations in blood and urine were gender and age. The main influencing factors for Pb and Cd were education level and smoking status, while frequency of fish consumption and of alcohol consumption were indicated to be the main influencing factors for mercury. The contribution rates of lead and cadmium from food ingestion were 78.03~79.62% and 88.39~92.89%, respectively. Additionally, the highest contribution for mercury was accounted for by food at 81.69~85.77%. As a result of the risk assessment, cadmium was found to pose a potential health risk a with total cancer risk (TCR) of more than 1×10^-6. Conclusions: The KoNEHS could be an important study for determining the level of exposure to heavy metals and their influencing factors. Integrated exposure to heavy metals could assess the main exposure pathways, and this methodology could be applied to exposure management of heavy metals.

• Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.42-48
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• 1995

The experiment was carried out to purify and to investigate the properties of the cyclodextrinase produced from Bacillus megaterium KFCC 11855. The enzyme was partially purified with $(NH_4)_2SO_4$ and chromatography on DEAE-trisacryl, Ultrogel AcA 34, DEAE-trisacryl and Ultrogel HA. The optimum temperature and pH of the purified enzyme were $60^{\circ}C$ and 6.0, respectively. The enzyme was stable at the temperature of $45^{\circ}C$ below and at the pH range of $6.0{\sim}9.0$, respectively. The Km value for ${\gamma}-cyclodextrin$ was 0.903 mM. The enzyme activity was increased by $Mg^{2+}$ and $Mn^{2+}$, but decreased by $Hg^{2+}$ and $Cu^{2+}$. The enzyme degraded ${\gamma}-cyclodextrin$ but not ${\alpha}-cyclodextrin$. The degree of ${\beta}-CD$ degradation by the enzyme was very low. The decomposed products of ${\gamma}-cyclodextrin$ by the enzyme were mainly glucose, maltose and a little amount of maltotriose.

• Journal of Pharmaceutical Investigation
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.227-237
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• 1995

Omeprazole(OMP) complexes such as inclusion complexes of OMP with $hydroxypropyl-{\beta}-cyclodextrin$(HPCD) and ${\beta}-cyclodextrin({\beta}-CD)$, OMP-cholestyramine(CHL) and OMP-ethylenediamine(OMP-ED) were prepared, respectively. The partition coefficients in Witepsol H-15 /pH 7.4 phosphate buffer solution of OMP complexes$(OMP-HPCD;\;3.69{\pm}0.26,\;OMP-{\beta}-CD;\;4.08{\pm}0.21,\;OMP-CHL;\;4.36{\pm}0.25\;and\;omeprazole\;sodium(OMP-Na);\;3.64{\pm}0.37)$ were higher than that of OMP $(2.66{\pm}0.47)$. OMP was not completely dissolved until even 3 hrs, but all the OMP complexes studied were released about 100% in 20 min. The rectal suppositories containing OMP or each above OMP complex were prepared using Witepsol H-15 base, and their dissolution and stability were examined, and pharmacokinetic study were investigated after their rectal administrations to the rabbits. While the suppository containing OMP was released only less than 60% in 150 min, $OMP-{\beta}-CD$, OMP-CHL, OMP-Na and OMP-ED suppositories were all released about 65% in 20 min. Especially, OMP-HPCD suppository released OMP about 70% in 10 min. All the additives such as sodium laurylsulfate, eglumine, arginine and PVP increased drug release from OMP-HPCD suppository to some extent. The decomposition rate constants of OMP in the suppositories were $9.117{\times}10^{-3}\;day^{-l}$ for OMP suppository, $2.121{\times}10^{-2}$ for OMP-HPCD, $1.607{\times}10^{-2}$ for $OMP-{\beta}-CD$, $9.26{\times}10^{-3}$ for OMP-Na, $6.769{\times}10^{-3}$ for OMP-CHL and $5.58{\times}10^{-3}\;day^{-l}$ for OMP-ED suppository, respectively. Additives such as arginine, eglumine and ED had some stabilizing effect for OMP-HPCD, OMP-CHL and OMP-Na suppositories, respectively. After 6 month-storage at $30^{\circ}C$, 75% RH, OMP-CHL suppository was most stable. The values of Tmax for OMP-HPCD and OMP-Na suppositories were $11.7{\pm}2.36\;and\;11.4{\pm}2.56\;min$, respectively. The values of Cmax for OMP-HPCD and OMP-CHL suppository were $2.31\;{\mu}g/ml\;(p<0.01)\;and\;1.89\;{\mu}g/ml\;p<0.01)$, respectively. The values of AUC for OMP and $OMP-{\beta}-CD$ suppository were $61.9{\pm}25.79\;and\;68.6{\pm}29.48\;{\mu}g\;{\cdot}\;min/ml$, and the corresponding values for OMP-HPCD and OMP-CHL were $106.1{\pm}43.16\;(p<0.05)\;and\;127.3{\pm}42.52\;{\mu}g\;{\cdot}\;min/ml(p<0.01)$, respectively. The above results indicate the OMP-HPCD and OMP-CHL suppositories have the excellent bioavailabilties in vivo study.

• Journal of Pharmaceutical Investigation
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.1-11
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• 1996

Biphenyldimethyldicarboxylate (PMC), which has been used to treat hepatitis, is insoluble in water, therefore it has low bioavailability after oral administration. For the purpose of increasing the dissolution rate of PMC, the physical mixtures and inclusion complexes of PMC and $dimethyl-{\beta}-cyclodextrin\;(DM\;{\beta}CD)\;or\;hydroxypropyl-{\beta}-cyclodextrin\;(HP{\beta}CD)$ in molar ratio of 1 : 1 and 1 : 2 were prepared by solvent evaporation method. Mixed micelles of PMC were prepared by reacting PMC with bile salts [sodium cholate(NaC), sodium glycocholate (NaGC)] and oleic acid (OA) or palmitoylcarnitine chloride(PCC). Chloroform/water partition coefficient (PC) of PMC was 36.14 in artificial gastric juice (AGJ) and 33.47 in artificial intestinal juice (AIJ), respectively, on the other hand octanol/water PC was 63.36. PMC formulation was prepared by reacting PMC with PEG400-glycerin system(95 : 5, 90 : 10, respectively) and PEG400-PEG4000-glycerin system (70 : 25 : 5, 65 : 25 : 10, respectively). Dissolution test was performed in AGJ and AIJ by paddle method at $37{\pm}0.5^{\circ}C$. The dissolution rates of PMC tablets on the market were 5.74% and 8.26% at AGJ and AIJ, respectively and marketed PMC capsules were 22.14% and 28.64% at AGJ and AIJ, respectively. The dissolution rates of inclusion complexes of PMC with $DM{\beta}CD$ and $HP{\beta}CD$ in a molar ratio of 1 : 1 were more fast than those of corresponding physical mixtures. The decreasing order of dissolution rates was as follows; PMC-PEG400-PEG4000-glycerin formulation > PMC-PEG400-glycerin formulation > mixed micelles > CD inclusion complexes. The dissolution rates of PMC-PEG400-glycerin and PMC-PEG400-PEG4000-glycerin formulation were most fast and the percentage of dissolution was almost 100% within 20 minutes. And their dissolution rates after 120 minutes were markedly increased as compared with capsules on the market (4.0-fold and 3.2-fold in PMC-PEG400-glycerin formulation at AGJ and AIJ, respectively, and 4.8-fold and 3.7-fold in PMC-PEG400-PEG4000-glycerin formulation at AGJ and AIJ, respectively).

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.253-261
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• 2011

Objectives : This study aimed to investigate the efficacy and safety of Metadate CD (MCD) when given to Korean children and adolescents with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). We also explored the effects of the drug on diverse neuro-cognitive functions. Methods : Ninety-one subjects with ADHD (mean age 8.6${\pm}$2.2 years) were recruited at 6 outpatient clinics in Seoul, Korea. We used the ADHD Rating Scale (ARS), Clinical Global Impression (CGI), and comprehensive attention test (CAT) to measure the drug's effects. Results : After 0.92${\pm}$0.32mg/kg/day of MCD were administered for 57.4${\pm}$7.6 days, there was a 48.5% reduction in the mean total ARS scores (p<.001). Fifty-seven subjects (64.8%) showed either much improved or very much improved outcomes on the CGI-Improvement scale. The CGI-Severity scale also decreased from an average of 4.7 to an average of 2.9 (p<.001). Errors and response time standard deviations of the CAT, sustained attention test-to-response tasks, the flanker test, and divided attention test scores decreased after treatment (p<.05). The forward memory span of the spatial working memory test scores increased (p<.05). Thirty-five patients (39.8%) experienced side effects, of which the most common were headache (14.8%), nausea (12.5%), and anorexia (9.1%). Conclusion : This open-label study suggests that MCD is effective and safe in improving the symptoms and neurocognitive functions of Korean children and adolescents with ADHD.

• Journal of the Optical Society of Korea
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• v.20 no.5
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• pp.586-592
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• 2016

This paper proposes a luminance compensation method using optical sensors to achieve high luminance uniformity of active matrix organic light-emitting diode (AMOLED) displays. The proposed method compensates for the non-uniformity of luminance by capturing the luminance of entire pixels and extracting the characteristic parameters. Data modulation using the extracted characteristic parameters is performed to improve luminance uniformity. In addition, memory size is optimized by selecting an optimal bit depth of the extracted characteristic parameters according to the trade-off between the required memory size and luminance uniformity. To verify the proposed compensation method with the optimized memory size, a 40-inch 1920×1080 AMOLED display with a target maximum luminance of 350 cd/m² is used. The proposed compensation method considering a 4σ range of luminance reduces luminance error from ± 38.64%, ± 36.32%, and ± 43.12% to ± 2.68%, ± 2.64%, and ± 2.76% for red, green, and blue colors, respectively. The optimal bit depth of each characteristic parameter is 6-bit and the total required memory size to achieve high luminance uniformity is 74.6 Mbits.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.822-835
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• 1997

Background : There have been many in vitro evidences that interleukin-4(IL-4) might be the most important cytokine inducing IgE synthesis from B-cells, and interferon-gamma(IFN-$\gamma$) might be a main cytokine antagonizing IL-4-mediated IgE synthesis. Recently some reports demonstrated that IFN-$\gamma$ might be used as a new therapeutic modality in some allergic diseases with high serum IgE level, such as atopic dermatitis or bronchial asthma. To evaluate the in vivo effect of IFN-$\gamma$ in bronchial asthma we tried a clinical study. Methods : Fifty bronchial asthmatics(serum IgE level over 200 IU/ml) who did not respond to inhaled or systemic corticosteroid treatment, and 17 healthy nonsmoking volunteers were included in this study. The CD 23 expressions of peripheral B-cells, the IL-4 activities of peripheral T-cells, the serum soluble CD23(sCD23) levels, and the superoxide anion(${O_2}^-$) generations by peripheral PMN were compared between bronchial asthmatics and normal subjects. The IL-4 activities of peripheral T-cells were analyzed by T-cell supernatant (T-sup)-induced CD23 expression from tonsil B-cells. In bronchial asthmatics the serum IgE levels and histamine $PC_{20}$ in addition to the above parameters were also compared before and after IFN-$\gamma$ treatment. IFN-$\gamma$ was administered subcutaneously with a weekly dose of 30,000 IU per kilogram of body weight for 4 weeks. Results : The ${O_2}^-$ generations by peripheral PMNs in bronchial asthmatics were higher than normal subjects($8.23{\pm}0.94$ vs $5.00{\pm}0.68\;nmol/1{\times}10^6$ cells, P<0.05), and significantly decreased after IFN-$\gamma$ treatment compared to initial values($3.69{\pm}0.88$ vs $8.61{\pm}1.53\;nmol/1{\times}10^6$ cells, P<0.05). CD23 expression of peripheral B-cells in bronchial asthmatics was higher than normal subjects($47.47{\pm}2.96%$, vs $31.62{\pm}1.92%$, P<0.05), but showed no significant change after IFN-$\gamma$ treatment. The serum sCD23 levels in bronchial asthmatics were slightly higher than normal subjects($191.04{\pm}23.3\;U/ml$ vs $162.85{\pm}4.85\;U/ml$), and 11(64.7%) of 17 patients showed a decreasing pattern in their serum sCD23 levels after IFN-$\gamma$ treatment. However the means of serum sCD23 levels were not different before and after IFN-$\gamma$ treatment. The IL-4 activities of peripheral T-cells in bronchial asthmatics were slightly higher than normal subjects($22.48{\pm}6.81%$ vs $18.90{\pm}2.43%$), and slightly increased after IFN-$\gamma$ treatment($27.90{\pm}2.56%$). Nine(60%) of 15 patients showed a decreasing pattern in their serum IgE levels after IFN-$\gamma$ treatment. And the levels of serum IgE were significantly decreased after IFN-$\gamma$ treatment compared to initial values ($658.67{\pm}120.84\;IU/ml$ vs $1394.32{\pm}314.42\;IU/ml$, P<0.05). Ten(83.3%) of 12 patients showed an improving pattern in bronchial hyperresponsiveness after IFN-$\gamma$ treatment, and the means of histamine $PC_{20}$ were significantly increased after IFN-$\gamma$ treatment compared to initial values ($1.22{\pm}0.29mg/ml$ vs $0.69{\pm}0.17mg/ml$, P<0.05). Conclusion : Our results suggest that IFN-$\gamma$ may be useful as well as safety in the treatment of bronchial asthmatics with high serum IgE level and that in vivo effects of IFN-$\gamma$ may be different from its in vitro effects on the regulations of IgE synthesis or the respiratory burst of PMN.