• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• 제10권6호
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• pp.303-307
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• 2006

The effects of ethanol on corticostriatal synaptic transmission were examined, using extracellular recording and analysis of population spike amplitudes in rat brain slices, to study how acute ethanol intoxication impairs striatal function. Ethanol caused a decrease in population spike amplitudes in a dose dependent manner ($50{\sim}200mM$). Pretreatment with picrotoxin, a ${\gamma}-amino$ butyric acid $(GABA)_{A}$ receptor antagonist, increased the population spikes but ethanol (100 mM) was still effective in decreasing the population spikes under this condition. In the presence of $_{(DL)}-2-amino-5-phosphonovaleric$ acid (APV), N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist, the inhibitory action of ethanol on population spikes was not shown. These results suggest that ethanol inhibits the glutamatergic corticostriatal synaptic transmission through blockade of NMDA receptors.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• 제59권6호
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• pp.256-261
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• 2016

Purpose: Latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) in young children may progress to severe active tuberculosis (TB) disease and serve as a reservoir for future transmission of TB disease. There are limited data on interferon-${\gamma}$ release assay (IGRA) performance in young children, which our research aims to address by investigating the usefulness of IGRA for the diagnosis of LTBI. Methods: We performed a tuberculin skin test (TST) and IGRA on children who were younger than 18 years and were admitted to Chung-Ang University Hospital during May 2011-June 2015. Blood samples for IGRA were collected, processed, and interpreted according to manufacturer protocol. Results: Among 149 children, 31 (20.8%) and 10 (6.7%) were diagnosed with LTBI and active pulmonary TB, respectively. In subjects lacking contact history with active TB patients, TST and IGRA results were positive in 41.4% (29 of 70) and 12.9% (9 of 70) subjects, respectively. The agreement (kappa) of TST and IGRA was 0.123. The control group, consisting of non-TB-infected subjects, showed no correlation between age and changes in interferon-${\gamma}$ concentration after nil antigen, TB-specific antigen, or mitogen stimulation in IGRAs (P=0.384, P=0.176, and P=0.077, respectively). In serial IGRAs, interferon-${\gamma}$ response to TB antigen increased in IGRA-positive LTBI subjects, but did not change considerably in initially IGRA-negative LTBI or control subjects. Conclusion: The lack of decrease in interferon-${\gamma}$ response in young children indicates that IGRA could be considered for this age group. Serial IGRA tests might accurately diagnose LTBI in children lacking contact history with active TB patients.

• Maxillofacial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
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• 제27권6호
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• pp.523-527
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• 2005

Allograft donations are commonly found to be contaminated. The most of tissue banks has promoted the use of ionizing radiation for the sterilization of biological tissues. The potential for transmission of human infectious diseases and contamination of microorganism has created serious concern for the continued clinical use of hard and soft-tissue allografts. Tissue banks have employed 15-25kGy for sterilization of hard and tendon allografts, which, according to the national standards, approaches the level at which the tissue quality is adversely affected for transplantation. The donations of allogeneic tissues to the Korea Tissue Bank over a 2-year period were reviewed, and the incidence and bacteriology of contamination were detailed. Clinical outcomes were determined for donors who had positive cultures at the time of retrieval and during the processing and they were compared with those of post sterilization. After exposure of the frozen block bone to 25kGy and the processed tissues to 15kGy of gamma irradiation, the authors were able to demonstrate complete inactivation of the bacteria. The aim of this study was to obtain the effects of gamma irradiation and the irradiation dose according to the type of tissue, through conventional microbiologic test without on influence of biocompatibility in allografts. The contamination rate after the final irradiation sterilization is 0% in the processed allografts. This may be due to the fact that the gamma radiation and processing steps are effective to control contamination.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• 제34권8호
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• pp.2461-2465
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• 2013

Pd-$Ce/{\gamma}-Al_2O_3-TiO_2$ catalysts were prepared by combined sol-gel and impregnation methods. Transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, $H_2$-temperature-programmed reduction, $O_2$-temperature-programmed desorption, and ethanol oxidation experiments were conducted to determine the properties of the catalysts. Addition of an optimal amount of Ce improved the performance of the $Pd/{\gamma}-Al_2O_3-TiO_2$ catalyst in promoting the complete oxidation of ethanol. The catalyst with 1% Ce exhibited the highest activity, and catalyzed complete oxidation of ethanol at $175^{\circ}C$; its selectivity to $CO_2$ reached 87%. Characterization results show that addition of appropriate amount of Ce could enrich the PdO species, and weaken the Pd-O bonds, thus enhancing oxidation ability of the catalyst. Meanwhile, the introduction of $CeO_2$ could make PdO better dispersed on ${\gamma}-Al_2O_3-TiO_2$, which is beneficial for the improvement of the catalytic oxidation activity.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• 제85권1호
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• pp.29-53
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• 2023

High-strength shielding concrete against gamma radiation is a priority for many medical and industrial facilities. This paper aimed to investigate the gamma-ray shielding properties of high-strength hematite concrete mixed with silica fume (SF) with nanoparticles of lead dioxide (PbO₂), tungsten oxide (WO₃), and bismuth oxide (Bi₂O₃). The effect of mixing steel fibres with the aforementioned binders was also investigated. The reference mixture was prepared for high-strength concrete (HSCC) containing 100% hematite coarse and fine aggregate. Thirteen mixtures containing 5% SF and nanoparticles of PbO₂, WO₃, and Bi₂O₃ (2%, 5%, and 7% of the cement mass, respectively) were prepared. Steel fibres were added at a volume ratio of 0.28% of the volume of concrete with 5% of nanoparticles. The slump test was conducted to workability of fresh concrete Unit weight water permeability, compressive strength, splitting tensile strength, flexural strength, and modulus of elasticity tests were conducted to assess concrete's engineering properties at 28 days. Gamma-ray radiation of 137Cs emits photons with an energy of 662 keV, and that of 60Co emits two photons with energies of 1173 and 1332 keV were applied on concrete specimens to assess radiation shielding properties. Nanoparticles partially replacing cement reduced slump in workability of fresh concrete. The compressive strength of mixtures, including nanoparticles was shown to be greater, achieving 94.5 MPa for the mixture consisting of 7.5 PbO2. In contrast, the mixture (5PbO₂-F) containing steel fibres achieved the highest values for splitting tensile, flexural strength, and modulus of elasticity (11.71, 15.97, and 42,840 MPa, respectively). High-strength shielded concrete (7.5PbO2) showed the best radiation protection. It also showed the minimum concrete thickness required to prevent the transmission of radiation.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제55권6호
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• pp.2158-2165
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• 2023

Marine radioactivity monitoring is critical for taking immediate action in case of unexpected nuclear accidents at nuclear facilities located near coastal areas. Especially when the level of contamination is not predictable, mobile monitoring systems will be useful for wide-area ocean radiation survey and for determination of the level of radioactivity. Here, we used a silicon photomultiplier and a high-efficiency GAGG crystal to fabricate a compact, battery-powered gamma spectroscopy that can be used in an ocean environment. The developed spectroscopy has compact dimensions of 6.5 × 6.5× 8 cm³ and weighs 560 g. We used LoRa, a low-power wireless protocol for communication. Successful data transmission was achieved within 1.4 m water depth. The developed gamma spectroscopy was able to detect radioactivity from a ¹³⁷Cs point source (3.7 kBq) at a distance of 20 cm in water. Moreover, we demonstrated an unmanned radioactivity monitoring system in a real sea by combining unmanned surface vehicle with the developed gamma spectroscopy. A hidden ¹³⁷Cs source (3.07 MBq) was detected by the unmanned system at a distance of 3 m. After successfully testing the developed mobile spectroscopy in an ocean environment, we believe that our proposed system will be an effective solution for mobile real-time marine radioactivity monitoring.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제52권3호
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• pp.647-653
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• 2020

Stainless steel is used commonly in nuclear applications for shielding radiation, so in this study, three different types of new stainless steel samples were designed and developed. New stainless steel compound ratios were determined by using Monte Carlo Simulation program Geant 4 code. In the sample production, iron (Fe), nickel (Ni), chromium (Cr), silicium (Si), sulphur (S), carbon (C), molybdenum (Mo), manganese (Mn), wolfram (W), rhenium (Re), titanium (Ti) and vanadium (V), powder materials were used with powder metallurgy method. Total macroscopic cross sections, mean free path and transmission number were calculated for the fast neutron radiation shielding by using (Geant 4) code. In addition to neutron shielding, the gamma absorption parameters such as mass attenuation coefficients (MACs) and half value layer (HVL) were calculated using Win-XCOM software. Sulfuric acid abrasion and compressive strength tests were carried out and all samples showed good resistance to acid wear and pressure force. The neutron equivalent dose was measured using an average 4.5 MeV energy fast neutron source. Results were compared to 316LN type stainless steel, which commonly used in shielding radiation. New stainless steel samples were found to absorb neutron better than 316LN stainless steel at both low and high temperatures.

• KSBB Journal
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• 제25권1호
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• pp.97-102
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• 2010

The enhancement of immunity for atopic dermatitis with application of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA)-loaded liposome was evaluated on NC/Nga mice. The EPA-loaded liposome was coated with thiol-chitosan. The liposomes were characterized with transmission electron microscopy (TEM), surface zeta potential & particle size analyzer (Zeta-PSA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The loading efficiency of EPA in the liposome was about 4.7%. The particle size of the EPA-Ioaded liposome was about 230 nm. The values of Immunoglobulin E (IgE), interleukin-4 (IL-4), and tumor necrosis factor-$\alpha$ (TNF-$\alpha$) were reduced significantly with application of the EPA-loaded liposome. The interferon-$\gamma$ (IFN-$\gamma$) value was increased with the application effect. It is concluded that EPA loaded liposome have immunity advancing effects in mouse model of atopic dermatitis.

• 한국분말재료학회지
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• 제14권1호
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• pp.19-25
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• 2007

This study was focused on the optimization of low-pressure ultrasonic spraying process for synthesis of pure ${\gamma}-Fe_2O_3$ nanoparticles. As process variables, pressure in the reactor, precursor concentration, and reaction temperature were changed in order to control the chemical and microstructural properties of iron oxide nanoparticles including crystal phase, mean particle size and particle size distribution. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) studies revealed that pure ${\gamma}-Fe_2O_3$ nanoparticles with narrow particle size distribution of 5-15 nm were successfully synthesized from iron pentacarbonyl ($Fe(CO)_{5}$) in hexane under 30 mbar with precursor concentrations of 0.1M and 0.2M, at temperatures over $800^{\circ}C$. Also magnetic properties, coercivity ($H_c$) and saturation magnetization ($M_s$) were reported in terms of the microstructure of particles based on the results from vibration sampling magnetometer (VSM).

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제52권11호
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• pp.2607-2612
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• 2020

The present work was aimed to show the possibility of using hydrogel (acrylic/boric acid) for evaluation of the neutron radiation shielding. The influence of acrylic acid concentration, different gamma doses and relative contents of boric acid were studied. The physical properties and the thermomechanical stability of the studied samples were investigated. The shielding property of the composite for neutron was tested by Pu-Be neutron source (5 Ci) under room temperature. The neutron fluence rates and gamma fluxes were measured using a stilbene organic scintillator. The macroscopic effective removal cross-section Σ_R (cm^-1) of fast neutrons and total attenuation coefficient μ (cm^-1) of gamma rays has been studied experimentally. The transmission parameters, the relaxation length (??) and the half-value layer (HVL) were obtained. The obtained results indicated that the addition of boric acid to acrylic acid tends to increase the macroscopic effective removal cross-section Σ_R (cm^-1) to 0.141 compared to 0.094 of ordinary concrete.