• Journal of Acupuncture Research
• /
• v.25 no.4
• /
• pp.81-94
• /
• 2008

Rheumatoid arthritis(RA) is a general, chronic, inflammatory and auto-immune disease and it can lead to joint edema, pain, stiffness which are caused by an inflammation in synovium covering our joints. Ulmus davidiana Planchon is a traditional herb used for the treatment on various inflammations, gastrointestinal trouble, ENT(ear, nose, and throat) disease, edema, cancer etc. and it works effectively on arthritis as well. In these study to search for the treatment efficacy of Ulmus davidiana Planchon in RA, I measure manifestation of cytokine gene in synoviocyte treated with Ulmus davidiana Planchon herbal acupuncture and in EL-4 cell, manifestation of cytokine gene cell related to T-cell. And after Ulmus davidiana Planchon herbal acupuncture treatment in Collagen induced arthritis(CIA) which has been known by a general model of RA, DBA mice, I observed foot thickness, general shape of synovium, early cytokine induce CIA and, generation and mutation of cytokine related to the control of T-cell specialization. It comes to conclusion as belows. 1. In synovium treated with Ulmus davidiana Planchon herbal acupuncture, there was the decrease in MIF mRNA does-dependently. Incase of CIA mice treated with Ulmus davidiana Planchon herbal acupuncture, there were the decrease in the damage in synovium and generation of the MIF which is related to induction of the early RA cytokine and IL-6 proinflammatory cytokine. 2. In case of EL-4 treated with Ulmus davidiana Planchon herbal acupuncture, there were decrease in the manifestation of the IL-2 mRNA, but the increase in the manifestation of the IL-4 does-dependently. 3. In the synovium of CIA mice treated with Ulmus davidiana Planchon herbal acupuncture, there were the decrease in generation of IL-2, IL-12 and CD-28, but the increase in generation of IL-4. These result suggest that Ulmus davidiana Planchon can block the process of the early RA by Inhibiting MIF activation, and mitigate Rheumatoid Arthritis by controlling Tcell specialization.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
• /
• v.47 no.3
• /
• pp.245-258
• /
• 2021

Objectives: In many previous studies, endocrine disruptors (EDCs) have been found to affect delays in puberty. Various EDCs have been reported on, but there have been only limited epidemiologic studies on the effects of exposure to environmental heavy metals and pyrethroid pesticides on puberty delay. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the association of exposure to environmental mercury, cadmium, and pyrethroid pesticides with delayed puberty in children based on national survey data that represents Korean children. Methods: We selected 450 children at the ages of 9-11 years old from the third Korean National Environmental Health Survey (3rd KoNEHS). The relations of urinary Hg, Cd, and 3-PBA with pubertal development were evaluated using multiple logistic regression analyses. Results: Urinary Hg levels were significantly associated with delayed puberty in boys [testicle development: OR=0.41 (95% CI: 0.20, 0.84); genitalia development: OR=0.35 (95% CI: 0.15, 0.81)]. Girls with higher Hg levels were more likely to experience delayed menarche [OR=0.23 (95% CI: 0.06, 0.90)]. We observed a significant 49% reduction in odds for menarche per increasing unit of urinary cadmium levels [OR=0.51 (95% CI: 0.24, 1.01)]. In addition, urinary 3-PBA showed a negative association with genitalia development in boys and menarche in girls [genitalia development: OR=0.73 (95% CI: 0.55, 0.96); menarche: OR=0.56 (95% CI: 0.32, 1.00)]. Conclusions: The results of this study support the hypothesis that exposure to environmental mercury, cadmium and pyrethroid pesticides may affect puberty delays. Additional evidence needs to be obtained through further prospective studies.

• Korean Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine
• /
• v.30 no.1
• /
• pp.22-29
• /
• 2022

Objectives : In this study, we evaluate psychological stress, symptoms of anxiety and depressed mood and resilience which medical residents and interns perceived during COVID-19 event, then investigate the associations between stress and the symptoms and mediating effect of resilience on the associations. Methods : In this study, we made a self-reporting form to evaluate psychological stress with perceived stress scale (PSS), symptoms of anxiety and depressed mood with Hospital anxiety and depression scale (HAD), and resilience with Conner-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC). Medical residents and interns, who worked in a hospital during COVID-19 event, filled the self-reporting forms from july, 2020 to august, 2020. We conducted a Pearson correlation coefficient and a multiple regression to confirm association between psychological stress and symptoms of anxiety and depressed mood, then mediating effect of resilience. Results : The higher stress perceived, the more symptoms of anxiety and depressed mood were reported by medical residents and interns. The higher resilience is associated with lower stress and less symptoms of anxiety and depressed mood, which resilience is proven to mediate partially the association between stress and symptoms of depressed mood. Conclusions : This study shows that resilience has a partial mediating effects on the association between stress and psychological pathology especially depressed mood, given that medical residents and interns were under psychological distress during COVID-19 event. This suggests that resilience is the key for medical trainees to overcome the future crisis like COVID-19 event.

• BMB Reports
• /
• v.55 no.2
• /
• pp.81-86
• /
• 2022

Macrophages are a major cellular component of innate immunity and are mainly known to have phagocytic activity. In the tumor microenvironment (TME), they can be differentiated into tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs). As the most abundant immune cells in the TME, TAMs promote tumor progression by enhancing angiogenesis, suppressing T cells and increasing immunosuppressive cytokine production. N-myc downstream-regulated gene 2 (NDRG2) is a tumor suppressor gene, whose expression is down-regulated in various cancers. However, the effect of NDRG2 on the differentiation of macrophages into TAMs in breast cancer remains elusive. In this study, we investigated the effect of NDRG2 expression in breast cancer cells on the differentiation of macrophages into TAMs. Compared to tumor cell-conditioned medium (TCCM) from 4T1-mock cells, TCCM from NDRG2-over-expressing 4T1 mouse breast cancer cells did not significantly change the morphology of RAW 264.7 cells. However, TCCM from 4T1-NDRG2 cells reduced the mRNA levels of TAM-related genes, including MR1, IL-10, ARG1 and iNOS, in RAW 264.7 cells. In addition, TCCM from 4T1-NDRG2 cells reduced the expression of TAM-related surface markers, such as CD206, in peritoneal macrophages (PEM). The mRNA expression of TAM-related genes, including IL-10, YM1, FIZZ1, MR1, ARG1 and iNOS, was also downregulated by TCCM from 4T1-NDRG2 cells. Remarkably, TCCM from 4T1-NDRG2 cells reduced the expression of PD-L1 and Fra-1 as well as the production of GM-CSF, IL-10 and ROS, leading to the attenuation of T cell-inhibitory activity of PEM. These data showed that compared with TCCM from 4T1-mock cells, TCCM from 4T1-NDRG2 cells suppressed the TAM differentiation and activation. Collectively, these results suggest that NDRG2 expression in breast cancer may reduce the differentiation of macrophages into TAMs in the TME.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
• /
• v.34 no.1
• /
• pp.1-11
• /
• 2024

This research investigated the preparation of activated carbon derived from Krabok (Irvingia malayana) seed shells to improve the quality of crude glycerol obtained during biodiesel production. The activated carbon was prepared using a dry chemical activation method with NaOH, utilizing an innovative biomass incinerator. The results revealed that the resulting KC/AC-two-step exhibited favorable physicochemical adsorption properties, with a high surface area of 758.72 m²/g and an iodine number of 611.10 mg/g. These values meet the criteria of the industrial product standard for activated carbon No. TIS 900-2004, as specified by the Ministry of Industry in Thailand. Additionally, the adsorption efficiency for methylene blue reached an impressive 99.35 %. This developed activated carbon was then used to improve the quality of crude glycerol obtained from biodiesel production. The experimental results showed that the KC/AC-two-step increased the purity of crude glycerol to 73.61 %. In comparison, commercially available activated carbon (C/AC) resulted in a higher crude glycerol purity of 81.19 %, as analyzed by the GC technique. Additionally, the metal content (Zn, Cu, Fe, Pb, Cd, and Na) in purified glycerol using KC/AC-two-step was below the standards for heavy metals permitted in food and cosmeceuticals by the Food and Drug Administration of Thailand and the European Committee for Food Contact Materials and Articles. As a result, it can be inferred that Krabok seed shells have favorable properties for producing activated carbon suitable as an adsorbent to enhance crude glycerol purity. Furthermore, the improved crude glycerol from this research has potential for various industrial applications.

• Journal of Conservation Science
• /
• v.37 no.6
• /
• pp.689-700
• /
• 2021

This study aims to optimize the measurement conditions of handmade Hanji paper to reduce the time required for measurement while meeting folding endurance standards, for various basis weights. Thirteen types were selected, including 12 types of Hanji with grammages of 17 g/m², 30 g/m², and 45 g/m², and one type of 75 g/m² copy paper, and 24 sheets were prepared in the laid and chain directions. Subsequently, folding endurance experiments at different load (14.72 N, 9.81 N, 4.91 N) and specimen width conditions (15 mm, 10 mm, 5 mm) were performed, using a 4-MIT folding endurance tester. The results showed that, for specimen widths of 15 mm and 10 mm under a load of 4.91 N, the folding endurance falls within the reference range (10~10000 times). In particular, reduced folding endurance range and measurement time were observed at a width of 10 mm under a load of 4.91 N. Moreover, the endurance trend lines based on the average values of load and specimen width ranges enabled the prediction of the folding endurance within those ranges, according to the decreasing slope. Furthermore, for a specimen width of 15 mm under a load of 4.91 N, the folding endurance in the comparison group (35 to 17723 times) significantly exceeds the upper limit of the reference range (10~10000 times). Therefore, the measurement conditions of 4.91 N with a specimen width of 10 mm are proposed.

• The Journal of Korean Academic Society of Nursing Education
• /
• v.2
• /
• pp.75-94
• /
• 1996

This survey study was aimed at identifying the degree of educational need of the KNOU(Korea National Open University) nursing students defined as admission purposes, satisfaction of distance learning education, learning methods, and courses after graduation. Among randomly assigned 1000 students, 320 KNOU nursing students who allowed to participate in the study completed the questionnaires. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-square test, and t-test, Results of this study were as follows : 1. The admission purposes of the KNOU nursing students were 'in order to get a bachelor's degree(83.8%)', 'to acquire knowledge for task(61.3%)', or 'to be admitted for the graduate school (53.1%)' etc. Comparing the admission purposes by age, tow items- 'to explore new possibilities for myself' and 'excellent curriculum' showed statistically significant differences. These two items were also found to show significant differences by marital status. 2. For the media maintenance, the results showed that students use their own cassett radios(96.3%), VTR(49.4%), TV only for the study (44.1%), personal computer (3.31%), or joining Hitel (6.3%). 3. Listening rates of the radio lecture were 'over 80%(9.1%)', '50-80%(9.1%)', '20-50%(18.1%)', 'below 20%(30%)' and 'never(33.1%)', And record lecture showed listening rates as follows : 'over80%(17.2%)', '50-80%(15.9%)', '20-50%(24.4%)', 'below 20%(27,2%)' and 'never(14.4%)'. 4. The difficulties with KNOU life were 'listening radio lectures(38.8%)', studying by following teaching schedules (37.8%)', 'isolated self-study(10.3%)', and 'appearance in the attending classes(8.1%)'. 5. As for satisfaction with teaching methods, the data showed that 81.2% of the respondents were satisfied (or very satisfied) with 'attending classes' and 75%, with 'paper lectures'. On the other hand some of respondents were very dissatisfied with 'recorded lecture(12.8%)' and 'radio lecture(10.9%)' 6. The results also showed that the students want to have 'video conferencing lecture(77.2%)', 'cable TV(64.1%)' and 'CD ROM program' to improve learning effects. 7. Concerning learning attitudes, 48.8% of the students reported 'study mainly for examnination', and only 4.1% answered 'study every day with plan'. The learning attitude showed significant differences by marital status and age. The students also evaluated themelves as 'study very hard(5.9%)', 'study hard in general(41.6%)', 'study a little(40.3%)' and 'study little(11.9%)'. 8. The students responded the most effective learning material was the 'textbook (92.2%)'. 9. For the purposes of using the local center, the results showed 'for the attending classes(76.3%)', 'for the use of references(14.7%)', and 'for the study group(66.7%)'. 10. The results revealed that 20.3% of the respondents had ever experienced unregistration or temporary withdrawal, and 53.4% among them did not register more than one time. The most common reason for the unregistration was 'due to family affairs or their job (70.8%)'. 11. 88.1% of the respondents answered 'they will graduate without fail'. 12. Regarding the benefits from the KNOU graduation, respondents indicated 'graduate school admission(38.1%)', 'self-confidence in social life(17.5%)', and understanding social problems (10.9%)'. 13. 64.4% of the students showed that they have intention to enter the graduate school. The item 'changing work place' showed statistically significant differences by marital status and age.

• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
• /
• v.6 no.2
• /
• pp.81-92
• /
• 2001

According to analyses of high-resolution seismic profiles (air gun, sparker, and SBP) and a deep-drill core(YSDP 105) in the mid-eastern Yellow Sea, stratigraphic and geoacoustic models have been established and seismo-acoustic modeling has been fulfilled using ray tracing of finite element method. Stratigraphic model reflects seismo-, litho-, and chrono-stratigraphic sequences formed under a significant influence of Quaternary glacio-eustatic sea-level fluctuations. Each sequence consists of terrestrial to very-shallow-marine coarse-grained lowstand systems tract and tidal fine-grained transgressive to highstand systems tract. Based on mean grain-size data (121 samples) of the drill core, bulk density and P-wave velocity of depositional units have been inferred and extrapolated down to a depth of the recovery using the Hamilton's regression equations. As goo-acoustic parameters, the 121 pairs of bulk density and P-wave velocity have been averaged on each unit of the stratigraphic model. As a result of computer ray-tracing simulation of the subsurface strata, we have found that there are complex ray paths and many acoustic-shadow zones owing to the presence of irregular layer boundaries and low-velocity layers.

• Proceedings of the Plant Resources Society of Korea Conference
• /
• 2019.04a
• /
• pp.21-22
• /
• 2019

Melanin is a mixture of pigmented biopolymers synthesized by epidermal melanocytes that determine the skin, eye, and hair colors. Melanocytes produce two different kinds of melanin, eumelanin (dark brown/black insoluble pigments found in dark skin and dark hair and pheomelanin (lighter red/yellow). The biological role of melanin is to prevent skin damage by ultraviolet (UV) radiation. However, the overproduction or deficiency of melanin synthesis could lead to serious dermatological problems, which include melasma, melanoderma, lentigo, and vitiligo. Therefore, regulating melanin production is important to prevent the pigmentation disorders. Myanmar has a rich in natural resources. However, the chemical constituents of these natural resources in Myanmar have not been fully investigated. In the effort to search for compounds with anti-melanin deposition activity from Myanmar natural resources, five plants were collected in Myanmar. Extracts of these collected five plants were tested for anti-melanin deposition activity against a mouse melanoma cell line (B16-F10) induced with ${\alpha}$-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (${\alpha}$-MSH) and 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine (IBMX), and their anti-melanin deposition activities were compared with the positive control, arbutin. Among the tested extracts, the CHCl3 extracts of the Premna serratifolia (syn: P. integrifolia) wood showed anti-melanin deposition activities with IC50 values of $81.3{\mu}g/mL$. Hence, this study aims to identify secondary metabolites with anti-melanin deposition activity from P. serratifolia wood of Myanmar. P. serratifolia belongs to the Verbenaceae family and is widely distributed in near western sea coast from South Asia to South East Asia, which include India, Malaysia, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Sri Lanka. People in Tanintharyi region located in the southern part of Myanmar utilize the P. serratifolia, Sperethusa crenulata, Naringi crenulata, and Limonia acidissima as Thanaka, traditional cosmetics in Myanmar. Thanaka is applied in the form of paste onto skins to make it smooth and clear, as well as to prevent wrinkles, skin aging, excessive facial oil, pimples, blackheads, and whiteheads. However, the chemical constituents responsible for their cosmetic properties are yet to be identified. Moreover, the chemical constituents of P. serratifolia was almost uncharacterized. Investigation of the P. serratifolia chemical constituents is thus an attractive endeavor to discover new anti-melanin deposition active compounds. The investigation of the chemical constituents of the active CHCl3 extract of P. serratifolia led to isolation of four new lignoids, premnan A (1), premnan B (2), taungtangyiol C (3), and 7,9-dihydroxydolichanthin B (4), together with premnan C (5) (assumed to be an artifact), one natural newlignoid,(3R,4S)-4-(1,3-benzodioxol-5-ylcarbonyl)-3-[(R)-1-(1,3-benzo dioxol-5-yl)-1-hydroxy methyl]tetrahydro-2-furanone (6), and five known compounds (7-11)1,2). The structures of all isolated compounds were determined on the basis of their spectroscopic data and by comparison with the reported literatures. The absolute configurations of 1-3 and 5 were also determined by optical rotation and circular dichroism (CD) data analyses1). The anti-melanin deposition activities of all the isolated compounds were evaluated against B16-F10 cell line. 7,9-Dihydroxydolichanthin B (4) and ($2{\alpha},3{\alpha}$)-olean-12-en-28-oic acid (11) showed strong anti-melanin deposition activities with IC50 values of 18.4 and $11.2{\mu}M$, respectively, without cytotoxicity2). On the other hand, compounds 1-3, 5, and 7 showed melanogenesis enhancing activities1). To better understand their anti-melanin deposition mechanism, the effects of 4 and 11 on tyrosinase activities were investigated. The assay indicated that compounds 4 and 11 did not inhibit tyrosinase. Furthermore, we also examined the mRNA expression of microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF), tyrosinase (TYR), tyrosinase-related protein-1 (TRP-1), and tyrosinase-related protein-2 (TRP-2). Compounds 4 and 11 down-regulated the expression of Tyr and Mitf mRNAs, respectively. Although the P. serratifolia wood has been used as traditional cosmetics in Myanmar for centuries, there are no scientific evidences to support its effectiveness as cosmetics. Investigation of the anti-melanin deposition activity of the chemical constituents of P. serratifolia thus provided insight into the effectiveness of the P. serratifolia wood as a cosmetic agent.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
• /
• v.18 no.2
• /
• pp.126-134
• /
• 1999

To provide the basic information for the water improvement and control of water resource in Nakdong river districts, the physico-chemical characteristics of water in four main streams and three branch streams of the river were investigated through 36 times totally, one time per each month from January in 1995 to November in 1997. The pH values of each sites in main or branch stream of Nakdong river was pH $6.3{\sim}9.3$ range, pH range of Jukpo and Namji area at spring and fall was almost over pH 8.5, which was exceeded the water quality standard for agriculture. DO values of Nakdong river was almost $8.0{\sim}13mg/l$, except for Kangchang area in downstream of Kumho river. BOD values in Dasa area where was prior to mixing of Kumho river was $1.5{\sim}4.8mg/l$, which was under the water quality standard for agriculture(8mg/l), but BOD values followed mixing of Kumho river was over the permit standard of agricultural water as $3.8{\sim}8.9mg/l$ in Koryung, $3.4{\sim}8.4mg/l$ in Jukpo and $3.3{\sim}7.8mg/l$ in Namji according to time or season. Especially, BOD values at Gangchang area in Kumho river were $7.6{\sim}18.5mg/l$, which was over the water quality standard for agriculture and so Kumho river was a main pollutant: source of Nakdong river. COD values of main stream of Nakdong river was over the permit standard of agriculture(8mg/l) as $5.2{\sim}13.5mg/l$ in Koryvng, $5.0{\sim}12.7mg/l$ in Jukpo and $5.0{\sim}12.2mg/l$ in Namji according to time or season. And COD values was much high rather than BOD values and its gap of concentration was increased along with downstream. $NH_4-N$ of main stream of Nakdong river followed mixing of Kumho river($0.5{\sim}13.1mg/l$) was the highest affected in Koryung($0.18{\sim}5.0mg/l$) and detected much more in winter than in summer. T-N in Koryung($4.96{\sim}12.06mg/l$) followed mixing of Kumho river was significantly high rather than $2.86{\sim}4.86mg/l$ in Dasa, $4.20{\sim}8.20mg/l$ in Jukpo and $3.18{\sim}8.64mg/l$ in Namji, which was almost over the permit standard of agricultural water(1.0mg/l). T-P in Koryung($0.10{\sim}0.58mg/l$) also was significantly high rather than those $0.07{\sim}0.36mg/l$ in Jukpo and $0.08{\sim}0.4mg/l$ in Namji as over the standard of agricultural water(0.1mg/l). The concentration of T-N or T-P in Nakdong districts was trended of increasing in every year.