• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.54 no.4
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• pp.423-429
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• 2016

Cryptosporidium is an important pathogen causing gastrointestinal disease in snakes and is distributed worldwide. The main objectives of this study were to detect and identify Cryptosporidium species in captive snakes from exotic pet shops and snake farms in Thailand. In total, 165 fecal samples were examined from 8 snake species, boa constrictor (Boa constrictor constrictor), corn snake (Elaphe guttata), ball python (Python regius), milk snake (Lampropeltis triangulum), king snake (Lampropeltis getula), rock python (Python sebae), rainbow boa (Epicrates cenchria), and carpet python (Morelia spilota). Cryptosporidium oocysts were examined using the dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO)-modified acid-fast staining and a molecular method based on nested-PCR, PCR-RFLP analysis, and sequencing amplification of the SSU rRNA gene. DMSO-modified acid-fast staining revealed the presence of Cryptosporidium oocysts in 12 out of 165 (7.3%) samples, whereas PCR produced positive results in 40 (24.2%) samples. Molecular characterization indicated the presence of Cryptosporidium parvum (mouse genotype) as the most common species in 24 samples (60%) from 5 species of snake followed by Cryptosporidium serpentis in 9 samples (22.5%) from 2 species of snake and Cryptosporidium muris in 3 samples (7.5%) from P. regius.

• Journal of KIISE:Computing Practices and Letters
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• v.8 no.6
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• pp.705-716
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• 2002

This paper proposes a method which visualizes MRI head data in 3 dimensions with direct volume rendering. Though surface rendering is usually used for MRI data visualization, it has some limits of displaying little speckles because it loses the information of the speckles in the surfaces while acquiring the information. Direct volume rendering has ability of displaying little speckles, but it doesn't treat MRI data because of the data features of MRI. In this paper, we try to visualize MRI head data in 3 dimensions as follows. First, we separate the brain region from the head region of MRI head data, next increase the pixel level of the brain region, then combine the brain region with the increased pixel level and the head region without brain region, last visualizes the combined MRI head data with direct volume rendering. We segment the brain region from head region based on histogram threshold, morphology operations and snakes algorithm. The proposed segmentation method shows 91~95% similarity with a hand segmentation. The method rather clearly visualizes the organs of the head in 3 dimensions.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.85-92
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• 2014

In order to study the home range of the red-tongue viper snake (Gloydis ussuriensis) and the short-tailed viper snake (Gloydius saxatilis) belonging to the viperidae of squamat in Korea, we implanted radio-transmitters which were weighed less than 5% of individual mass in them and traced their location by radio-tracking. Surgeries for transmitter insertion were performed on 5 red-tongue viper snakes and 6 short-tailed viper snakes (total 11 individuals) and the average ratio of transmitter mass to body mass were 4.2% and 2.2%, respectively. After radio-transmitter implantation, all short-tailed viper snakes survived but 4 out of 5 red-tongue viper snakes did not survive during the convalescence stage, showing only 20% of survival rate. The results suggest that the ratio of transmitter mass to body mass should be less than 3.6% at least in these species, although previous studies have recommended various ranges from 1% to 7% as the acceptable ratios.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.42-53
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• 2017

One of the negative ecological effects following road construction is roadkill; animals die on the roads after being struck by vehicles. Roadkills have been a major concern in South Korea due to the large mountain areas in the country and have been mentioned as a causal factor for the decline in wildlife. Although snake roadkills frequently occur, as with mammals, birds, and amphibians, there are not many related studies done on snake roadkills. In this study, we determined snake roadkill patterns in the northeast part of South Korea including most of the Gangwon-do areas and parts of Gyeonggi-do, Chungcheongbuk-do, and Gyeongsangbuk-do by analyzing the snake roadkills found between May 2007 and Aug 2012. We identified a total of 155 roadkilled snakes from 10 different species. Red-sided water snake (Rhabdophis tigrinus), Red-tongue viper snake (Gloydius ussuriensis), Cat snake (Elaphe dione), Red-banded snake (Dinodon rufozonatus), and Viper snake (Gloydius brevicaudus) accounted for more than 90% of the total cases. It was found that more active forager snakes were killed than sit-and-wait foragers, more male snakes were killed than female snakes, and more adult snakes were killed than subadult snakes. The snake roadkill frequency was the highest in September between the altitudes of 200 and 400 m, and on roads between either a mountain and a body of water or between a mountain and a crop field. Our results are expected to enhance the understanding of snake roadkills in general and to determine the areas, specific sites and species for planning projects for snake roadkill reduction in the northeast of South Korea.

• Journal of KIISE:Software and Applications
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• v.27 no.7
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• pp.731-741
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• 2000

This paper proposes a method to detect a facial region and extract facial features which is crucial for visual recognition of human faces. In this paper, we extract the MER(Minimum Enclosing Rectangle) of a face and facial components using projection analysis on both edge image and binary image. We use an active contour model(snakes) for extraction of the contours of eye, mouth, eyebrow, and face in order to reflect the individual differences of facial shapes and converge quickly. The determination of initial contour is very important for the performance of snakes. Particularly, we detect Minimum Enclosing Rectangle(MER) of facial components and then determine initial contours using general shape of facial components within the boundary of the obtained MER. We obtained experimental results to show that MER extraction of the eye, mouth, and face was performed successfully. But in the case of images with bright eyebrow, MER extraction of eyebrow was performed poorly. We obtained good contour extraction with the individual differences of facial shapes. Particularly, in the eye contour extraction, we combined edges by first order derivative operator and zero crossings by second order derivative operator in designing energy function of snakes, and we achieved good eye contours. For the face contour extraction, we used both edges and grey level intensity of pixels in designing of energy function. Good face contours were extracted as well.

• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.52-62
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• 2022

Objectives: Snake venom is a complex mixture of various pharmacologically active substances, such as small proteins, peptides, and organic and mineral components. This paper aims to identify and analyse the proteins in common venomous snakes, such as Gloydius blomhoffii (G. blomhoffii) and Agkistrodon acutus (A. acutus), in Korea. Methods: We used mass spectrometry, electrophoresis, N-terminal sequencing and in-gel digestion to analyse the proteins in these two snake venoms. Results: We identified eight proteins in G. blomhoffii venom and four proteins in A. acutus venom. The proteins detected in G. blomhoffii and A. acutus venoms were phospholipase A₂, snake venom metalloproteinase and cysteine-rich secretory protein. Snake C-type lectin (snaclec) was unique to A. acutus venom. Conclusion: These data will contribute to the current knowledge of proteins present in the venoms of viper snakes and provide useful information for investigating their therapeutic potential.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.51 no.3
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• pp.170-172
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• 2012

Central nervous system (CNS) sparganosis is a rare parasitic infestation caused by ingestion of the raw or inadequately cooked snakes or frogs. Sparganum is well known for its ability of migrating though the tissue, therefore, it can cause various neurological symptoms if it involves neurological systems. A 51-year-old male patient visited our department of neurosurgery complaining of the motor weakness and radiating pain on both upper extremities over 4 months. He had a history of ingesting raw snakes untill his late twenties. The magnetic resonance (MR) images of. cervical spine revealed an intramedullary ill-defined enhancing lesion with the aggregated cysts in the upper cervical spinal cord. Under presumptive diagnosis of sparganosis, we took brain MR image. The brain MR images revealed the signal change in right fronto-temporallobe suggesting the trajectory of parasitic migration via ventricular systems. He underwent a midline myelotomy and granuloma removal followed by the posterior laminoplasty. Pathologic findings showed inflammatory changes and necrosis with keratinized tissue suggesting the CNS sparganosis. We report an uncommon case of CNS sparganosis migrated from the brain to the spinal cord with literature review.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Costume
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• v.22
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• pp.85-96
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• 1994

The purpose of this research is to find out the role of shaman's costume in Yakut Yukachir Goldi. The results are as follows: 1. Yakut shaman's costumes are decorated by their worship symbols made from metals-wild ducks crucian carps diving beetles and fishes. They believe that these costumes help shamans to travel the heaven underwater or underground systems to collect wanted infor-mation transforming them into the shape of decorated animals. 2. Yukachir shaman's costumes are decorated by symbolized cross medals in the shape of birds and human designed backbone which give shamans much power and many different kinds of medals and tassels representing all sorts and conditions of shaman's power. They consider their cstumes as feather and believe they give them new power and make them to fly anywhere they want. 3. Goldi shaman's costumes have paintings of animal guradians-leopards tigers bears birds snakes lizards and so on. Birds represents freedom of the spirit and eternity. snakes represents rebirth and immorality and lizards represents the trees of underground the earth and the lifetrees of the heaven. Shamans ascend through th holy tree to th heaven and to the world of underground in a comatose condition. Shaman costume itself plays the role of the spiritual safeguard. Wearing their costume shaman get all animal's supernatural authority and power. This makes the shaman to contact with the spirit and to travel the heaven and the under-ground world.

• The Korean Journal of Zoology
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.276-296
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• 1990

This study attempts to investigate several enteroendocrine cells in the gastrointestinal epithelia of the Korean snakes (Dinodon rufozonatum rufozonotum Rhabdophis tigrina tigrina, Enhydris rufodorsata, Agkistrodon blomhoffii brevicaudus, Agkistrodon saxatilis, Agkistodon calginosus). For a light-microscopical examination of immunocytochemistry, the paraffin sections (5 $\mu$ m) of tissue specimens taken from the various parts of the gastrointestinal tract were stained immunocytochemically by PAP procedure with 10 antisera. The frequency of enteroendocrine cells per unit area (mm$^2$) of each mucosa were counted and the shapes of the cells were observed. In Dinodon rufozonatum rufozonatum, Rhobdophis tigrina tigrina, Enhydris rufodorsata, Agkistrodon saxatilis and Agkistrodon caliginosus, cholecystokinin (CCK)-8, gastrin, pancreatic polypeptide (PP) and serotonin cells were observed. But the freuqency of these immunoreactive cells differ trom each portion of gastrointestinal tracts of all species, respectively. In Agkistrodon blomhoffii brevicaudus, CCK-8, gastrin and serotonin cells were observed. CCK-8 and serotonin cells were found in whole gastrointestinal tracts and gastrin cells were observed in pylorus and mucosa of small intestine. The frequency of these cells was different from each portion. The shapes of CCK-8, gastrin, PP and serotonin cells were pyramidal or oval and closed type in stomach. A large number of these cells were spindle in shape and open type in small intestine and anterior pant of large intestine, whereas some cells were closed type. In posterior part of large intestine and rectum, these cells were oval in shape and closed type.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.68-71
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• 2014

The occurrence of CRPS after a snake bite was very rare, only two cases were reported worldwide. Here we report a case that the 44-year-old female patient bitten by snakes CRPS type 1 was treated consecutive intravenous regional block, lumbar sympathectomy and antiepileptic drug therapy, also discuss the possible pathophysiology.