• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.16
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• pp.6811-6817
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• 2014

Background: Breast cancer risk prediction models are widely used in clinical practice. They should be useful in identifying high risk women for screening in limited-resource countries. However, previous models showed poor performance in derived and validated settings. Therefore, we aimed to develop and validate a breast cancer risk prediction model for Thai women. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study consisted of derived and validation phases. Data collected at Ramathibodi and other two hospitals were used for deriving and externally validating models, respectively. Multiple logistic regression was applied to construct the model. Calibration and discrimination performances were assessed using the observed/expected ratio and concordance statistic (C-statistic), respectively. A bootstrap with 200 repetitions was applied for internal validation. Results: Age, menopausal status, body mass index, and use of oral contraceptives were significantly associated with breast cancer and were included in the model. Observed/expected ratio and C-statistic were 1.00 (95% CI: 0.82, 1.21) and 0.651 (95% CI: 0.595, 0.707), respectively. Internal validation showed good performance with a bias of 0.010 (95% CI: 0.002, 0.018) and C-statistic of 0.646(95% CI: 0.642, 0.650). The observed/expected ratio and C-statistic from external validation were 0.97 (95% CI: 0.68, 1.35) and 0.609 (95% CI: 0.511, 0.706), respectively. Risk scores were created and was stratified as low (0-0.86), low-intermediate (0.87-1.14), intermediate-high (1.15-1.52), and high-risk (1.53-3.40) groups. Conclusions: A Thai breast cancer risk prediction model was created with good calibration and fair discrimination performance. Risk stratification should aid to prioritize high risk women to receive an organized breast cancer screening program in Thailand and other limited-resource countries.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.2495-2500
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• 2014

Background: Lung cancer is one of the most commonly diagnosed cancers and the most frequent cause of cancer-related death worldwide. In Iran, it ranks second and third as the cancer-causing death in men and women, respectively. We carried out this study to find out the demographic, clinical, and histological characteristics and risk factors of lung cancer in a referral tertiary center in Iran. Materials and Methods: A retrospective study was conducted on cases of primary lung cancer based on the results of registered cancer reports of cytological and pathological specimens between March 2001 and March 2012. Demographic variables, clinical manifestations, histology and location of tumors were determined based on the data found in the medical records of each patient. Definite or probable etiologic factors were identified. Data analysis was performed with SPSS version 16 and a p-value ${\leq}0.05$ was considered as significant. Results: A total of 203 patients, with a mean age of 65.7 years (SD=11.2), with primary lung cancer were identified, 81.3% being men. Of the total, 110 cases (54.2%) were living in urban areas. In 53.2% of cases, the site of tumor was on the right side and in 72.9% of cases the lesion was centrally located. The histological types of lung cancer were squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) in 107 cases (52.7%), adenocarcinoma (AC) in 30 cases (14.8%), and small cell carcinoma (SC) in 27 cases (13.3%). Significant correlations between the gender and residence, smoking, and the histological type and location (central or peripheral) of tumor were found. The percentage of smokers was 75.2% in men and 15.8% in women. Conclusions: Smoking was the most important risk factor and squamous cell carcinoma the most common histological type of lung cancer in our study. Male sex and being a smoker was associated with histological types of SCC while being nonsmoker had relationship with adenocarcinoma.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.551-560
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• 2018

Bellflower root (Platycodon grandiflorum), which belongs to the Campanulaceae family, is a perennial grass that grows naturally in Korea, northeastern China, and Japan. Bellflower is widely consumed as both food and medicine owing to its high nutritional value and potential therapeutic effects. Since foodborne disease outbreaks often come from vegetables, understanding the public health risk of microorganisms on fresh vegetables is pivotal to predict and prevent foodborne disease outbreaks. We investigated the microbial communities on the bellflower root (n = 10). 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing targeting the V6-V9 regions of 16S rRNA genes was conducted via the 454-Titanium platform. The sequence quality was checked and phylogenetic assessments were performed using the RDP classifier implemented in QIIME with a bootstrap cutoff of 80%. Principal coordinate analysis was performed using the weighted Fast UniFrac distance. The average number of sequence reads generated per sample was 67,192 sequences. At the phylum level, bacterial communities from the bellflower root were composed primarily of Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, and Actinobacteria in March and September samples. Genera Serratia, Pseudomonas, and Pantoea comprised more than 54% of the total bellflower root bacteria. Principal coordinate analysis plots demonstrated that the microbial community of bellflower root in March samples was different from those in September samples. Potential pathogenic genera, such as Pantoea, were detected in bellflower root samples. Even though further studies will be required to determine if these species are associated with foodborne illness, our results indicate that the 16S rRNA gene-based sequencing approach can be used to detect pathogenic bacteria on fresh vegetables.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.15-25
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• 2020

Biogas production potential was experimentally estimated for mono- and co-digestion of cow manure and waste grass. The two organic wastes were mixed at five different ratios (100:0, 75:25, 50:50, 25:75, 0:100) on the volatile solids basis, and were assessed using biochemical methane potential (BMP) test. Thee reaction temperatures, 25℃, 30℃ and 35℃, were applied as well, resulting in 15 different combinations for the test. The results showed that both higher temperature and waste grass mixing ratio resulted in higher methane yield and maximum methane production rate. Based on the experimental results, a theoretical farm- or community-scale (240 or 2400 ㎥) anaerobic digester was designed to evaluate the energy balance associated with mono- and co-digestion of the wastes at different temperatures. Although the energy production increased as the temperature and the waste grass mixing ratio increased, the net energy gain, energy production subtracted by energy consumption for heating and maintenance, was estimated to be the highest at 30℃, followed by at 35℃ and 25℃. Therefore, it is advised that both the experimental methane production and the detailed design parameters must be considered for the optimization of the net energy gain from these wastes.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.21 no.8
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• pp.160-169
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• 2020

This study was conducted to identify the linkage and cooperation experiences in public case-management services of visiting health care practitioners. Focus group interviews were conducted with three people in charge of providing visiting healthcare services in public health centers. A semi-structured interview questionnaire was developed in advance through discussions among researchers In response to the interview questions, study participants described in detail the success and failure factors associated with linkage and cooperation that they experienced while providing visiting healthcare services. The interview data were analyzed qualitatively to identify the main themes and sub-themes reflecting visiting nurses' experiences with linkage and cooperation. The three main themes were: 'Guidelines act as positive performance factors for community-based linkage and cooperation', 'Unstable employment and lack of an integrated system act as barriers to linkage and cooperation', and 'Necessary for multidimensional approach to promoting linkage and cooperation'. Based on these results, the authors propose the development of clear linkage and cooperation standards and procedures, thereby ensuring job security for visiting nurses. Moreover, an integrated information system should be developed and implemented.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.404-410
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• 2015

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Although the association of body mass index (BMI) with metabolic syndrome (MetS) is well documented, there is little knowledge on the independent and joint associations of BMI and physical activity with MetS risk based on a continuous scoring system. This study was designed to explore the effect of physical activity on interactions between excess body weight and continuous metabolic syndrome (cMetS) in a nationwide survey of Iranian children and adolescents. SUBJECTS/METHODS: Data on 5,625 school students between 10 and 18 years of age were analyzed. BMI percentiles, screen time activity (STA), leisure time physical activity (LTPA) levels, and components of cMetS risk score were extracted. Standardized residuals (z-scores) were calculated for MetS components. Linear regression models were used to study the interactions between different combinations of cMetS, LTPA, and BMI percentiles. RESULTS: Overall, 984 (17.5%) subjects were underweight, whereas 501 (8.9%) and 451 (8%) participants were overweight and obese, respectively. All standardized values for cMetS components, except fasting blood glucose level, were directly correlated with BMI percentiles in all models (P-trend < 0.001); these associations were independent of STA and LTPA levels. Linear associations were also observed among LTPA and standardized residuals for blood pressure, high-density lipoprotein, and waist circumference (P-trend < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that BMI percentiles are associated with cMetS risk score independent of LTPA and STA levels.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.15 no.9
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• pp.243-256
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• 2015

This study aimed at investigating the effects of sub-variables of elderly people's lifestyle health and leisure oriented pursuits, outdoor and challenge pursuits, security and material pursuits, family oriented pursuits, and peer oriented pursuits on what they perceive to be successful later years. The background of this study was that there has been few study on the older population in Korea with focus on their cultural and traditional norms. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of elderly people's lifestyle on what they perceive to be successful later years, thereby identifying practical implications for better social welfare associated with successful later years. Analysis was carried out of self reported questionnaires and self-interviews with elderly people aged over 65 frequenting a welfare center for elders and a community center in a city in Korea. In order to examine the effects, a reliability test, a descriptive analysis, a correlation analysis, and a multi-regression analysis were performed. The results of the analysis for sub-variables of lifestyle showed that health and leisure oriented pursuits, outdoor and challenge pursuits, security and material pursuits, family oriented pursuits, and peer oriented pursuits had significant positive impact on successful later years. The two most influential were peer oriented and family oriented pursuits. Drawing on the results, this study suggests that what is needed for dejected and lonely elderly members in the society is to provide them with opportunities for developing and keeping good relationships with friends and family members and there is a need for a system where old people, as consumers of cultural capital, can have easy access to a variety of cultural resources and activities at a local and regional level.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.43 no.4
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• pp.453-457
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• 2010

To investigate the difference in N isotope ratio ($^{15}N/^{14}N$, expressed as ${\delta}^{15}N$) among N sources (synthetic fertilizer, livestock manure, and manure compost), eight synthetic fertilizer, four livestock manure, and thirty-seven compost samples were collected and analyzed for ${\delta}^{15}N$. The mean ${\delta}^{15}N$ values of N sources were $-1.5{\pm}0.5$‰ (range: -3.9 to +0.5‰) for synthetic fertilizer, $+6.3{\pm}0.4$‰ (+5.3 to +7.2‰) for manure, and $+16.0{\pm}0.4$‰ (+9.3 to +20.9‰) for compost. The lower ${\delta}^{15}N$ of synthetic fertilizer was attributed to its N source, atmospheric $N_2$ of which ${\delta}^{15}N$ is 0‰ Meanwhile, more $^{15}N$-enrichment of compost than manure was assumed to be resulted from N isotopic fractionation (faster loss of $^{14}N$-bearing compound than $^{15}N$) associated with N loss particularly via $NH_3$ volatilization during composting. Therefore, our study shows that ${\delta}^{15}N$ values could successfully serve in discriminating two major N sources (synthetic fertilizer and compost) in agricultural system.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.214-221
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• 2009

Denitrification efficiency associated with incorporation of the diffrent carbon substrates with the anaerobic sludge was investigated. For this each kinetic constant such as methane reaction and specific denitrification rate (SDNR) were determined in each treated sludge. In the pure methanogenesis, the specific methanogenesis activity (SMA) value was the highest at $0.76COD/g\;VSS{\cdot}day$ when the acetate was incorporated with the anaerobic sludge which has already been adapted at consistent C/N ratio 5 for reatively higher denitrifier population. The anaerobic dinitrificaition and methanogenesis reaction were dependent on both the types of carbon substrate and sludge showing the higher denitrificaition reaction constant at $1.96hr^{-1}$ with incorporation of acetate with the anaerobic sludge at C/N ratio 5 than any other carbon sources examined. When the glucose was introduced as electron donor for the anaerobic sludge adapted with different carbon substrates the SDNR showed the highest value with the sludge adapted to glucose followed by the sludge adapted to piggery sludge and acetate.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.234-241
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• 2007

Biological amendments consisting of suspensions of selected microorganisms are often used in conjunction with various organic materials for amending soils to improve soil quality and plant growth. The effects of the biological amendment on chemical and biological properties of soil were investigated for a biological amendmentalone and when combined with different organic materials includingmunicipal compost (MC), poultry litter (PL), and cover crops (red clover (RC) and spring oats). A liquid preparation of a biological amendment called Effective Microorganisms was sprayed on the tested plots three times over a two-year period. Effective Microorganisms alone did not influence pH, K, or organic matter content in soil. However, increases in P in PL-treated soils in fall of both years andCa in MC-treated soil in fall 2001, and decreases in Ca, Mg, and cation exchange capacity (CEC) in RC-planted soil were associated with EM. Increased dehydrogenase(DH) activitiesassociated with Effective Microorganismswere only detected in July (P=0.0222) and October (P=0.0834) for RC-planted soils in the first year. Fluorescein diacetate (FDA) hydrolysisappeared to be enhanced by Effective Microorganisms in soils untreated or treated with MC and oatsbut only sporadically during the sampling period. FDA hydrolysis in both PL- and RC-treated soils as well as DH activity in PL-treated soils decreased with Effective Microorganisms treatment. Effective Microorganisms did not influence substrate utilization patterns expressed by the BIOLOG assay. We conclude that Effective Microorganisms effects on soil chemical and biological properties varied depending on the added organic materials. Effective Microorganisms periodically increased soil DH activity and FDA hydrolysis with RC and with MC plus oats, respectively.