• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.43 no.2
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• pp.305-311
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• 2019

Background: Gintonin is a ginseng-derived exogenous ligand of the G protein-coupled lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) receptor. We previously reported that gintonin stimulates gliotransmitter release in primary cortical astrocytes. Astrocytes play key roles in the functions of neurovascular systems. Although vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is known to influence the normal growth and maintenance of cranial blood vessels and the nervous system, there is little information about the effect of gintonin on VEGF regulation in primary astrocytes, under normal and hypoxic conditions. Methods: Using primary cortical astrocytes of mice, the effects of gintonin on the release, expression, and distribution of VEGF were examined. We further investigated whether the gintonin-mediated VEGF release protects astrocytes from hypoxia. Results: Gintonin administration stimulated the release and expression of VEGF from astrocytes in a concentration- and time-dependent manner. The gintonin-mediated increase in the release of VEGF was inhibited by the LPA1/3 receptor antagonist, Ki16425; phospholipase C inhibitor, U73122; inositol 1,4,5- triphosphate receptor antagonist, 2-APB; and intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ chelator, BAPTA. Hypoxia further stimulated astrocytic VEGF release. Gintonin treatment stimulated additional VEGF release and restored cell viability that had decreased due to hypoxia, via the VEGF receptor pathway. Altogether, the regulation of VEGF release and expression and astrocytic protection mediated by gintonin under hypoxia are achieved via the LPA receptor-VEGF signaling pathways. Conclusion: The present study shows that the gintonin-mediated regulation of VEGF in cortical astrocytes might be neuroprotective against hypoxic insults and could explain the molecular basis of the beneficial effects of ginseng on the central nervous system.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.333-359
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• 2021

Gases such as hydrogen and radon can be generated around the canister in high-level radioactive waste disposal systems due to several reasons including the corrosion of metal materials. When the gas generation rate exceeds the gas diffusion rate in the low-permeability bentonite buffer, the gas phase will form and accumulate in the engineered barrier system. If the gas pressure exceeds the gas entry pressure, gas can migrate into the bentonite buffer, resulting in pathway dilation flow and advective flow. Because a sudden occurrence of dilation flow can cause radionuclide leakage out of the engineered barrier of the radioactive waste disposal system, it is necessary to understand the gas migration behavior in the bentonite buffer to quantitatively evaluate the long-term safety of the engineered barrier. Experimental research investigating the characteristics of gas migration in saturated bentonite and research developing numerical models capable of simulating such behaviors are being actively conducted worldwide. In this technical note, previous gas injection experiments and the numerical models proposed to verify such behaviors are introduced, and the future challenges necessary for the investigation of gas migration are summarized.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.26-46
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• 2020

An irrigated-maize agroecosystem is viewed as an open thermodynamic system upon which solar radiation impresses a large gradient that moves the system away from equilibrium. Following the imperative of the second law of thermodynamics, such agroecosystem resists and reduces the externally applied gradient by using all means of this nature-human coupled system acting together as a nonequilibrium dissipative process. The ultimate purpose of our study is to test this hypothesis by examining the energetics of agroecosystem growth and development. As a first step toward this test, we employed the eddy covariance flux data from 2003 to 2014 at the AmeriFlux NE1 irrigated-maize site at Mead, Nebraska, USA, and analyzed the energetics of this agroecosystem by scrutinizing its radiation, energy and entropy exchange. Our results showed: (1) more energy capture during growing season than non-growing season, and increasing energy capture through growing season until senescence; (2) more energy flow activity within and through the system, providing greater potential for degradation; (3) higher efficiency in terms of carbon uptake and water use through growing season until senescence; and (4) the resulting energy degradation occurred at the expense of increasing net entropy accumulation within the system as well as net entropy transfer out to the surrounding environment. Under the drought conditions in 2012, the increased entropy production within the system was accompanied by the enhanced entropy transfer out of the system, resulting in insignificant net entropy change. Drought mitigation with more frequent irrigation shifted the main route of entropy transfer from sensible to latent heat fluxes, yielding the production and carbon uptake exceeding the 12-year mean values at the cost of less efficient use of water and light.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.82-93
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• 2000

Purpose: We characterized the signals obtained from the components of a small gamma camera using Nal(Tl)-position sensitive photomultiplier tube (PSPMT) and optimized the parameters employed in the modules of the system. Materials and Methods: The small gamma camera system consists of a Nal(Tl) crystal ($60{\times}60{\times}6mm^3$) coupled with a Hamamatsu R3941 PSPMT, a resister chain circuit, preamplifiers, nuclear instrument modules (NIMs), an analog to digital converter and a personal computer for control and display. The PSPMT was read out using a resistive charge division circuit which multiplexes the 34 cross wire anode channels into 4 signals (X+, X-, Y+, Y -). Those signals were individually amplified by four preamplifiers and then, shaped and amplified by amplifiers. The signals were discriminated and digitized via triggering signal and used to localize the position of an event by applying the Anger logic. The gamma camera control and image display was performed by a program implemented using a graphic software. Results: The characteristics of signal and the parameters employed in each module of the system were presented. The intrinsic sensitivity of the system was approximately $8{\times}10^3$ counts/sec/${\mu}Ci$. The intrinsic energy resolution of the system was 18% FWHM at 140 keV. The spatial resolution obtained using a line-slit mask and $^{99m}Tc$ point source were, respectively, 2.2 and 2.3 mm FWHM in X and Y directions. Breast phantom containing $2{\sim}7mm$ diameter spheres was successfully imaged with a parallel hole collimator. The image displayed accurate size and activity distribution over the imaging field of view Conclusion: We proposed a simple method for development of a small gamma camera and presented the characteristics of the signals from the system and the optimized parameters used in the modules of the small gamma camera.

• Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.123-133
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• 1981

If we are to define that the traditional costume is a comprehensive expression of the culture, thoughts, and arts of a country, it is needless to say that the traditional costume would have always reflected the social and cultural aspects of the times. In order words, the cultural contemplation of a certain people at some point the history is only possible when we observe the distintive features of the costume worn by the people of respective times. Although the Korean people had the native costume of its own from the times of the Ancient Choson to the Three Kingdoms of Koguryo, Paekche, and Silla, the Chinese influence on Korean traditional costume became somewhat pronounced ever since the Silla strenghtened the political ties with the T'ang dynasty in China, and it came to a climax when the dual structure in Korean native costume, being compounded with the Chinese touch, continued to be prevailed from the era of the Unified Silla to the Koryo and throughout the succeeding Yi dynasty, thereby copying the typical aspects of Chinese pattern in clothing and dresses worn by the ruling classes, namely the goverment officials including the Kings. Therefore, it is our aim to study the pattern of Chinese influence on our traditional costume, as well as social and cultural aspects by way of contrasting and comparing our official outfit system, which had been developing in dualism since the era of the Unified Silla, with that of China, and to trace in part the Korean traditional costume. In comparing our traditional official outfit system with that of China, we have basically concentrated on the comparison of the official outfit systems during the periods of the Three Kingdoms, the Koryo, and The Yi dynasty with that of corresponding era of Chinese history, namely the dynasties of T'ang, Sung, and Ming, and followed the documentary records for the comparison. Koreans had fallen into the practice of worshipping the powerful in China and begun to adopt the culture and institutions of the T'ang dynasty since the founding of the Unified Silla. From this time forth, Korean people started to wear the clothes in Chinese style. The style of clothing during the period of the Koryo Kingdom was deeply influenced by that of the T'ang and Sung dynasties in China, and it was also under the influenced of the Yuan dynasty(dynasty established by the Mongols) at one time, because of the Koryo's subordinative position to the Yuan. At the close of the Koryo dynasty, the King Kongmin ordered the stoppage on the use of 'Ji-Joung', the name of an era for the Yuan dynasty, in May of the eighteenth year of his rule in order to have the royal authority recognized by a newly rising power dominating the Chinese continent, the Mind. Kind Kongmin presented a memorial, repaying a kindness to the Emperor T'aejo of the Ming dynasty in celebration of his enthronement and requested that the emperor choose an official outfit, thereby the Chinese influence being converted to that of the Ming. As a matter of course, the Chinese influence deepened all the more during the era of the Yi dynasty coupled with the forces of the toadyic ideology of worshipping the China, dominant current of the times, and the entire costume, from the imperial crown and robe to the official outfit system of government officials, such as official uniforms, ordinary clothes, sacrificial robes, and court dresses followed the Chinese style in their design. Koreans did not have the opportunity of developing the official outfit system on its own and they just wore the official outfit designated on separate occasions by the emperors of China, whenever the changes in dynasty occurred in the continent. Especially, the Chinese influence had greatly affected in leading our consciousness on the traditional costume to the consciousness of the class and authority. Judging from the results, Koreans had been attaching weight to the formulation of the traditional outfit system for the ruling classes in all respective times of the history and the formulation of the system was nothing more than the simple following of the Chinese system.

• Journal of the Korean Vacuum Society
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.16-22
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• 2008

We studied plasma etching of polycarbonate in $O_2/SF_6$, $O_2/N_2$ and $O_2/CH_4$. A capacitively coupled plasma system was employed for the research. For patterning, we used a photolithography method with UV exposure after coating a photoresist on the polycarbonate. Main variables in the experiment were the mixing ratio of $O_2$ and other gases, and RF chuck power. Especially, we used only a mechanical pump for in order to operate the system. The chamber pressure was fixed at 100 mTorr. All of surface profilometry, atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy were used for characterization of the etched polycarbonate samples. According to the results, $O_2/SF_6$ plasmas gave the higher etch rate of the polycarbonate than pure $O_2$ and $SF_6$ plasmas. For example, with maintaining 100W RF chuck power and 100 mTorr chamber pressure, 20 sccm $O_2$ plasma provided about $0.4{\mu}m$/min of polycarbonate etch rate and 20 sccm $SF_6$ produced only $0.2{\mu}m$/min. However, the mixed plasma of 60 % $O_2$ and 40 % $SF_6$ gas flow rate generated about $0.56{\mu}m$ with even low -DC bias induced compared to that of $O_2$. More addition of $SF_6$ to the mixture reduced etch of polycarbonate. The surface roughness of etched polycarbonate was roughed about 3 times worse measured by atomic force microscopy. However examination with scanning electron microscopy indicated that the surface was comparable to that of photoresist. Increase of RF chuck power raised -DC bias on the chuck and etch rate of polycarbonate almost linearly. The etch selectivity of polycarbonate to photoresist was about 1:1. The meaning of these results was that the simple capacitively coupled plasma system can be used to make a microstructure on polymer with $O_2/SF_6$ plasmas. This result can be applied to plasma processing of other polymers.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.243-248
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• 2011

A selective determination method of mercury (II) ion in aqueous solution by luminol-based chemiluminescence system (luminol CL system) has been developed. Determination of metal ions such as copper (II), iron (III), chromium (III) ion in solution by the luminol CL system using its catalytic role in the reaction of luminol and hydrogen peroxide has been reported by several groups. In this study, the catalytic activity of mercury (II) ion in the reaction of luminol and hydrogen peroxide was observed by the enhanced CL intensity of the luminol CL system. Based on this phenomenon, experimental conditions of the luminol CL system were investigated and optimized to determine mercury (II) ion in aqueous solution. While mercury (II) ion in mixed sample solution containing mercury (I) and (II) ions highly enhanced the CL intensity of the luminol CL system, the mercury (I) ion could not enhanced the CL intensity. Thus selective determination of the mercury (II) ions in a mixture containing mercury (I) and (II) ions could be achieved. Each concentration of mercury (I) and (II) ions in aqueous solution can be obtained from the results of the CL method that give the concentration of only mercury (II) ion and the inductively coupled plasma (ICP) method that give the total concentration of mercury ions. On the optimized conditions, the calibration curve of mercury (II) ion was linear over the range from $1.25{\times}10^{-5}$ to $2.50{\times}10^{-3}M$ with correlation coefficient of 0.991. The detection limit of mercury (II) ion in aqueous solution was calculated to be $1.25{\times}10^{-7}M$.

• Journal of the korean academy of Pediatric Dentistry
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.560-568
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• 2007

This study was performed to compare the shear bond strength of primary enamel & dentin treated by AQ Bond $Plus^{TM}$ and G $Bond^{TM}$, recently developed 6th generation dentin bonding system, to that of Single $Bond^{TM}$ being widely used. Also by observing the resin tag under scanning electron microscope, Resin tags of each material were also observed under scanning electron microscope and compared to one another. The possibility of clinical application of All-in-One system which has an advantage to reduce chair-time for children with difficult behavior pattern was evaluated. The results obtained are as follows: 1. No statistically significant difference between groups was found in shear bond strength of primary enamel. 2. In primary dentin, the shear bond strength of AQ Bond $Plus^{TM}$ was $1.15\;{\pm}\;0.37\;MPa$, G $Bond^{TM}$ was $1.69\;{\pm}\;0.74\;MPa$ and Single $Bond^{TM}$ was $0.56\;{\pm}\;0.11\;MPa$. There were no statistical difference between AQ Bond $Plus^{TM}$ and G $Bond^{TM}$ and between G $Bond^{TM}$ and Single $Bond^{TM}$, whereas statistically significant difference was found between AQ Bond $Plus^{TM}$ and Single $Bond^{TM}$. 3. Under scanning electron microscope, resin tags observed in AQ Bond $Plus^{TM}$ and G $Bond^{TM}$ were very weak and tangled while strong and thick tags were shown with many lateral branches in Single $Bond^{TM}$. The result of the present study coupled with the advantages of less working time over the previous generation suggests that All-in-One system might be effectively used in adhesive dental procedures for primary teeth.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.684-689
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• 2012

Poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) microspheres is one of the widely-used polymeric materials for the bio-field application and the electric materials. For the synthesis of PAA microspheres, the polymerization technique using surfactants is applied. After the synthesis, the purification and separation processes are required for the removal of surfactant. When general organic solvents were used, many problems, such as huge amount of waste solvent, additional separation processes, and the possibility of residual media, were occurred. Thus, High-pressure Soxhlet extraction using liquid $CO_2$ was developed to solve these problems. In this study, High-pressure Soxhlet extraction of the synthesized PAA microspheres using liquid $CO_2$ was conducted for the removal of Monasil PCA which is used for the dispersion polymerization of acrylic acid in compressed liquid Dimethyl ether (DME). The morphology of the extracted PAA particles was checked by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and the residual concentration of Monasil PCA was analyzed by inductively coupled plasma - Optical Emission Spectrometer (ICP-OES). For studying the effect of the solvent effect, Soxhlet extraction was conducted using n-hexane, liquid DME, and liquid $CO_2$. In case of n-hexane, some extracted PAA microspheres were produced. However, deformation was also occurred due to the high thermal energy of n-hexane vapor. Liquid DME could not remove Monasil PCA. When using liquid $CO_2$, the extracted PAA microspheres which were free for the residual solvent were produced without deformation. For finding the optimum operating condition, high-pressure Soxhlet extraction was conducted for 8 hours with changing the temperature of reboiler and condenser. When the extractor temperature is $19.6{\pm}0.2^{\circ}C$ and the pressure is $51.5{\pm}0.5$ bar, the best removal efficiency was obtained.

• Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
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• v.36 no.5_1
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• pp.679-692
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• 2020

We coupled a CFD model to the WRF-Chem model (WRF-CFD model) and investigated the characteristics of flows and carbon monoxide (CO) distributions in a building-congested district. We validated the simulated results against the measured wind speeds, wind directions, and CO concentrations. The WRF-Chem model simulated the winds from southwesterly to southeasterly, overestimating the measured wind speeds. The statistical validation showed that the WRF-CFD model simulated the measured wind speeds more realistically than the WRF-Chem model. The WRF-Chem model significantly underestimated the measured CO concentrations, and the WRF-CFD model improved the CO concentration prediction. Based on the statistical validation results, the WRF-CFD model improved the performance in predicting the CO concentrations by taking complicatedly distributed buildings and mobiles sources of CO into account. At 04 KST on May 22, there was a downdraft around the AQMS, and airflow with a relatively low CO concentration was advected from the upper layer. Resultantly, the CO concentration was lower at the AQMS than the surrounding area. At 15 KST on May 22, there was an updraft around the AQMS. This resulted in a slightly higher CO concentration than the surroundings. The WRF-CFD model transported CO emitted from the mobile sources to the AQMS measurement altitude, well reproducing the measured CO concentration. At 18 KST on May 22, the WRF-CFD model simulated high CO concentrations because of high CO emission, broad updraft area, and an increase in turbulent diffusion cause by wind-shear increase near the ground.