• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.15 no.10
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• pp.6234-6241
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• 2014

The purpose of this study was to examine the status of medical staff stress and accommodating manners on the death of patients in a hospital setting for serving the basic information to develop a death education program of medical personnel from April 1 to April 30, 2014. A survey was performed on 353 medical personnel at K university hospital, located in Daejeon metropolitan city. Frequency analysis, chi-square test, and independent t-test were used to analyze the data. The results showed that 'to understand the value of the time and preparedness of a meaningful future' were the most important perspectives on the contents of death education (p<0.05), 'in order to change perceptions and attitudes toward death positively' was the most important reason why they required death education'(p<0.05), 'case-based teaching and problem-based learning' was the most effective way of death education (p<0.05), 'negative or hostile response of a patient's guardian to medical personnel' was the largest stress that medical personnel confront upon witnessing a death'(p<0.05). An understanding of the death of patients by medical personnel and an awareness of the need for death education will help improve the understanding of the patient, their guardian, and medical personnel themselves. The main findings will contribute to the development of a specific death education program on the medical personnel in a hospital setting.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.115-127
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• 1973

Leaf discoloration of IR667 lines (tropical) and leading locals (temperate) in fields was classified according to the probable causes and nutritional disorder due to soil reduction in 1972 was investigated. 1. The causes of leaf discoloration in IR667 were low air temperature, soil reduction, seed born, insect bite, nitrogen depression, overdose pesticide, strong wind, early senescence and unknown one. 2. Leaf discoloration due to soil reduction which has been called Sageumbyeong by famers, was caused by the heavy application of $Ca(OH)_2$, compost and poor drainage followed by Zn and K deficiency and Fe toxicity. 3. About 30 days after transplanting deficiency concentration of K and Zn in leaf blade appears to be less than 2.0% and 20ppm respectively, and greater than 200ppm, 500ppm, and 1.0% respectively for toxicity or excess of Fe, Mn and Ca. and in the shoot 2.4% for K, 30ppm for Zn and 800ppm for Fe. The value of K/Ca should be greaterthan 2.0 for health. 4. When plants were damaged by soil reduction the contents of N, P, Ca, Mg, Fe, Mn, Na in shoot were increased and those of K, Zn, Si were decreased. 5. IR667 lines show in shoot higher content of N, P, Ca, Mg, Si, Na, and lower content K, Zn, Fe, Mn and lower root activity than local leading varietles in either healthy or disieased case, indicating IR667 lines are likely more suseptible to soil reduction damage. 6. Normal soil was less than 6.5 of pH and greater than -50 mv of Eh, but pH of problem soil was ranged from 6.7 to 7.4 and Eh from -100 to -190. 7. The root activity (${\alpha}$-naphthylamine oxidation) decreased at early stage of soil redudtion damage, then increased with severity and at the end it decreased again, but IR667 lines showed always lower root activity than local ones.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.26 no.2 s.42
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• pp.222-230
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• 1993

Industrial glues, known as 'Bonds' in Korea, contain many kinds of organic solvents, and glue sniffing of youths became one of the social problems in Korea. Mixed exposures to solvents by glue sniffing may induce chronic toxicities different from those by exposures to solvents of single component. To test effects of the glue sniffing on weight gain or central nervous system, two groups of 20 male Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to air(control group) or vapors of the glues to narcotic status(exposed group), and weight check, tail flick test, hot plate test, rotarod treadmill test were done on the 14th,24th, 36th, 45th, 53rd, 86th, 102nd, 117th, 134th and 151st days after the first exposure. On the 188th day, their brains were excised and examined by a pathologist. Weight gain, controlled against time change, showed significant difference between the groups, but response times in tail flick test, hot plate tests, and rotarod treadmill test didn't. In pathological examination with blind method, no macroscopic or microscopic differences were found between the two groups. These results suggests that organic lesion in central nervous system may not ensue glue sniffing, but, before firm conclusion, more studies in various exposure conditions should be followed.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.300-308
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• 2011

Osteoporosis is a disease involving a decrease in bone mineral density and increased risk of fractures. Osteoblast and osteoclast activities are important for bone formation. The MC3T3-E1 osteoblastic cell line is a well-accepted model of osteogellsis in vitro. Hijikia fusiforme is a kind of edible brown seaweed that grows mainly in the Northwest Pacific region, including the countries of Korea, Japan and China, and it has been widely used as a medicinal and health food in Korea. In this study, by using osteoblasts, the effects of Hijikia fusiforme fractions on proliferation, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, collagen synthesis and mineralization of cells were investigated. Hijikia fusiforme were subjected to fractionation by using hexane, methanol, butanol and aqueous. Proliferation of the MC3T3-E1 osteoblastic cells that were treated with Hijikia fusiforme fractions increased by approximately 120%. Regarding effects of Hijikia fusiforme fractions on ALP activity, 1 ${\mu}g$/ml butanol fraction showed the highest activity. The synthesis of collagen increased significantly in response to treatment with Hijikia fusiforme fractions, with the exception of the hexane fraction. Moreover, mineralization in the MC3T3-E1 cells that were treated with 100 ${\mu}g$/ml butanol fraction increased by 281%. Also, when 100 ${\mu}g$/ml aqueous fraction was added, mineralization increased by 240%. These results indicate that Hijikia fusiforme fractions have anabolic effect on bone through the promotion of osteoblastic differentiation, suggesting that it could be used for the treatment of common metabolic bone diseases.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.50 no.1
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• pp.98-104
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• 2018

Oxyresveratrol (trans-2, 3', 4, 5'-tetrahydroxystilbene), found in many plants including grape, peanut and mulberry, is a phytoalexin, an antimicrobial and antioxidative substance that rapidly accumulates in areas infected by the pathogen. We examined the accumulation of oxyresveratrol in nine Morus alba L. cultivars with respect to storage time and temperature postharvest and infection with GRAS microorganisms. Among the nine cultivars, the Suwon cultivar showed the highest oxyresveratrol content (9.6-fold increase) postharvest, when stored at $30^{\circ}C$ for 7 days. The optimal temperature and postharvest storage time for oxyresveratrol accumulation was $30^{\circ}C$ and 6 days. When Ramulus mori was infected with five microorganisms, the accumulation of oxyresveratrol increased over 4-fold in response to B. coagulans infection. These results suggest that oxyresveratrol accumulation is influenced by storage temperature, storage time, Ramulus mori cultivars, and microbial attack. Therefore, postharvest storage for an appropriate time period at a suitable temperature might be a useful way to industrially produce Ramulus mori cultivars with high oxyresveratrol content.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.14-23
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• 2015

This study examined the glycemic indices (GIs) and glycemic loads of carbohydrate-rich snacks in Korea according to variety and cooking method. The most popular carbohydrate snacks (corn, potatoes, sweet potatoes, chestnuts, and red beans) from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey nutrient database were cooked using a variety of conventional cooking methods (steaming, baking, porridge, puffing, and frying). The GIs of foods were measured in 60 healthy males after receiving permission from the University Hospital institutional review board (KMC IRB 1306-01). Blood glucose and insulin levels were then measured at 0, 15, 30, 60, 90, and 120 min after consuming glucose, and each test food contained 50 g of carbohydrates (corn: 170.0 g, potatoes: 359.7 g, sweet potatoes: 160.3 g, chestnuts: 134.8 g, red beans: 73.1 g). GI values for test foods were calculated based on the increase in the area under the blood glucose response curve for each subject. Steamed potatoes ($93.6{\pm}11.6$), corn porridge ($91.8{\pm}19.5$), baked sweet potatoes ($90.9{\pm}9.6$), baked potatoes ($78.2{\pm}14.5$), steamed corn ($73.4{\pm}9.9$), and steamed sweet potatoes ($70.8{\pm}6.1$) were shown to be considered high GI foods, whereas baked chestnuts ($54.3{\pm}6.3$), red bean porridge ($33.1{\pm}5.5$), steamed red beans ($22.1{\pm}3.2$), fried potatoes ($41.5{\pm}7.8$), and ground and pan-fried potatoes ($28.0{\pm}5.1$) were considered as low GI foods. The results suggest that the cooking method of carbohydrate-rich snacks is an important determinant of GI values.

• Journal of Korean Medical Science
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• v.33 no.52
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• pp.346.1-346.11
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• 2018

Background: To evaluate the therapeutic benefits of the treat-to-target (T2T) strategy for Asian patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in Korea. Methods: In a 1-year, multicenter, open-label strategy trial, 346 patients with early RA were recruited from 20 institutions across Korea and stratified into 2 groups, depending on whether they were recruited by rheumatologists who have adopted the T2T strategy (T2T group) or by rheumatologists who provided usual care (non-T2T group). Data regarding demographics, rheumatoid factor titer, anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibody titer, disease activity score of 28 joints (DAS28), and Korean Health Assessment Questionnaire (KHAQ) score were obtained at baseline and after 1 year of treatment. In the T2T group, the prescription for disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs was tailored to the predefined treatment target in each patient, namely remission (DAS28 < 2.6) or low disease activity (LDA) ($2.6{\leq}DAS28$ < 3.2). Results: Data were available for 163 T2T patients and 162 non-T2T patients. At the end of the study period, clinical outcomes were better in the T2T group than in the non-T2T group (LDA or remission, 59.5% vs. 35.8%; P < 0.001; remission, 43.6% vs. 19.8%; P < 0.001). Compared with non-T2T, T2T was also associated with higher rate of good European League Against Rheumatism response (63.0% vs. 39.8%; P < 0.001), improved KHAQ scores (-0.38 vs. -0.13; P = 0.008), and higher frequency of follow-up visits (5.0 vs. 2.0 visits/year; P < 0.001). Conclusion: In Asian patients with early RA, T2T improves disease activity and physical function. Setting a pre-defined treatment target in terms of DAS28 is recommended.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.145-152
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• 2015

The present study aimed to investigate comparative anti-inflammatory effects of Litsea japonica fruit and leaf extract considering the balance of safety and efficacy. Dose response studies were performed to determine the inhibitory effects of 70% EtOH extract of leaf (L70%) on the pro-inflammatory enzymes expression, COX-2/PGE2 and NO/iNOS, and pro-inflammatory cytokines production, IL-$1{\beta}$, IL-6, and TNF-$\alpha$ in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells. We also examined comparative effects of 30 and 70% EtOH extract of fruits (F30% and F70%) at low concentration ($10{\mu}g/ml$ ) in the same conditions. L70% at 50 and $100{\mu}g/ml$ showed inhibitory effects on almost all the inflammatory mediators we examined except for COX-2 regulation, but there were no effects at $10{\mu}g/ml$. Since $100{\mu}g/ml$ of L70% have 18.2% cytotoxicity, we compared the effects of fruit extract, F30% and F70% at $10{\mu}g/ml$ on the regulation of NO/iNOS, PGE2, IL-$1{\beta}$, IL-6, and TNF-$\alpha$ and obtained that fruit extacts are more efficacious and safe than leaf. This study suggests that the 30% EtOH fraction of L. japonica fruit could be a good candidate for development as a functional food supplement in the prevention of inflammatory disorders.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.484-491
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• 2019

Proanthocyanidins are naturally occurring polyphenolic compounds abundant in many vegetables, plant skins (rind/bark), seeds, flowers, fruits, and nuts. Numerous in vitro and in vivo studies have demonstrated myriad effects potentially beneficial to human health, such as antioxidation, immunomodulation, DNA repair, and antitumor activity. Among immune cells, macrophages are crucial players in a variety of inflammatory responses to environmental conditions. However, it has been widely reported that macrophages cause chronic inflammation and are involved in a variety of diseases, such as obesity, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and cancer. In this study, we report the suppressive effect of proanthocyanidins via the heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1)-related system, on the immune response of the LPS-stimulated mouse macrophage cell line RAW264.7. Increased HO-1 expression at mRNA and protein levels were found in proanthocyanidins-treated RAW264.7 cells. Further, proanthocyanidins enhanced nuclear factor-erythroid 2-related factor 2 translocation into the nucleus. RAW264.7 cells were treated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) with or without proanthocyanidins, and inflammatory mediator expression levels were assessed. Proanthocyanidins treatment resulted in the attenuation of nitric oxide production and inducible nitric oxide synthase expression in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 cells. In addition, mRNA and protein expression of proinflammatory cytokines, such as tumor necrosis factor-${\alpha}$ and interleukin-6, was inhibited by proanthocyanidins treatment in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 cells. These findings support proanthocyanidins as a promising anti-inflammatory agent.

• Journal of Climate Change Research
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.423-433
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• 2018

Particulate matter air pollution is a serious problem affecting human health and visibility. The variations in $PM_{10}$ concentrations are influenced by not only local emission sources, but also atmospheric circulation conditions. In this study, we investigate the temporal features of $PM_{10}$ concentrations in South Korea and the atmospheric circulation patterns associated with high concentration episodes of $PM_{10}$ during winter (December-January-February) 2001-2016. Based on those analyses, a Korea Particulate matter Index (KPI) is developed to represent the large-scale atmospheric pattern associated with high concentration episodes of $PM_{10}$. The atmospheric patterns are characterized by persistent high-pressure anomalies, weakened lower-level north-westerly anomalies, and northward shift of the upper-level meridional wind anomalies near the Korean Peninsula. To evaluate the change in occurrence of high concentration episodes of $PM_{10}$ under a possible future warmer climate, we apply KPI analysis to CMIP5 climate simulations. Here, historical and two representative concentration pathway (RCP) scenarios (RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5) are used. It is found that the occurrence of atmospheric conditions favorable for high $PM_{10}$ concentration episodes tends to increase over South Korea in response to climate change. This suggests that large-scale atmospheric circulation changes under future warmer climate can contribute to increasing high $PM_{10}$ concentration episodes in South Korea.