• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.62 no.11
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• pp.416-421
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• 2019

Background: The seropositivity rate of hepatitis B surface antigen (anti-HBs) antibodies is known to be ≥95% after hepatitis B virus vaccination during infancy. However, a low level or absence of anti-HBs in healthy children is discovered in many cases. Recent studies in adults reported that a reduced anti-HBs production rate is related to obesity. Purpose: To investigate whether body mass index (BMI) affects anti-HBs levels in healthy children following 3 serial dose vaccinations in infancy. Methods: We recruited 1,200 healthy volunteers aged 3, 5, 7, or 10 years from 4-day care centers and 4 elementary schools. All subjects completed a questionnaire including body weight, height, and vaccine type received. Levels of serum hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and anti-HBs in all subjects were analyzed using electrochemiluminescence immunoassay. The standardized scores (z score) for each sex and age were obtained using the lambda-mu-sigma method in the 2017 Korean National Growth Charts for children and adolescents. Results: Our subjects (n=1,200) comprised 750 males (62.5%) and 450 females (37.5%). The overall anti-HBs seropositivity rate was 57.9% (695 of 1,200). We identified significant differences in mean BMI values between seronegative and seropositive groups (17.45 vs. 16.62, respectively; P<0.001). The anti-HBs titer was significantly decreased as the BMI z score increased adjusting for age and sex (B=-15.725; standard error=5.494; P=0.004). The probability of anti-HBs seropositivity based on BMI z score was decreased to an OR of 0.820 after the control for confounding variables (95% confidence interval, 0.728-0.923; P=0.001). Conclusion: There was a significant association between anti-HBs titer and BMI z score after adjustment for age and sex. Our results indicate that BMI is a potential factor affecting anti-HBs titer in healthy children.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.75.2-75.2
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• 2019

Low surface brightness (LSB) dwarf galaxies hold a key to resolve the small-scale problems of Lambda Cold Dark Matter (LCDM) paradigm such as missing satellites problem. Many recent studies found LSB dwarf galaxies around massive galaxies beyond Local Group up to 10Mpc. Motivated by this, we can increase the number of them by searching for LSB dwarf galaxies around galaxies up to 40Mpc. We use stacked deep (${\mu}_R{\sim}26.2mag\;arcsec^{-2}$) optical B, R-band images taken from Maidanak 1.5m telescope, one of facilities of Intensive Monitoring Survey of Nearby Galaxies (IMSNG) which monitored nearby galaxies in a day cadence from 2014 to 2016. Extended LSB sources in ambient regions of 16 nearby galaxies are selected using central surface brightness and total R magnitude criteria. After that, 24 LSB dwarf candidates are selected with visual inspection. To identify if the candidates are satellites or not, we are trying to compare the number density of LSB dwarf candidates around massive galaxies with those in Canada-France-Hawaii-Telescope Legacy Survey (CFHTLS) wide fields which have no dominant massive galaxies for control sample.

• Entomological Research
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• v.48 no.5
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• pp.384-389
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• 2018

Aphis gossypii Glover is an important insect pest that functions as a viral vector and mediates approximately 45 different viral diseases. As part of a strategy for control of A. gossypii, we investigated the functions of genes using RNAi. To this end, a cDNA library was constructed for various genes and for selecting appropriate targets for RNAi mediated silencing. The cDNA library was constructed using the Gateway cloning system with site-specific recombination of bacteriophage ${\lambda}$. It was used to carry out single step cloning of A. gossypii cDNAs. As a result, a cDNA library with a titer of $8.4{\times}10^6$ was constructed. Since the sequences in this library carry att sites, they can be cloned into various binary vectors. This library will be of value for various studies. For later screening of selected genes, it is planned to clone the library into virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) vectors, which makes it possible to analyze gene function and allow subsequent transfection of plants. Such transfection experiments will allow testing of RNAi-induced insecticidal activity or repellent activity to A. gossypii, and result in the identification of target genes. It is also expected that the constructed cDNA library will be useful for analysis of gene functions in A. gossypii.

• Journal of the Korea Institute of Information and Communication Engineering
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.15-23
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• 2022

Among the learning methods for Continuous Learning environments, "Learning without Forgetting" has fixed regularization strengths, which can lead to poor performance in environments where various data are received. We suggest a way to set weights variable by identifying the features of the data we want to learn. We applied weights adaptively using correlation and complexity. Scenarios with various data are used for evaluation and experiments showed accuracy increases by up to 5% in the new task and up to 11% in the previous task. In addition, it was found that the adaptive weight value obtained by the algorithm proposed in this paper, approached the optimal weight value calculated manually by repeated experiments for each experimental scenario. The correlation coefficient value is 0.739, and overall average task accuracy increased. It can be seen that the method of this paper sets an appropriate lambda value every time a new task is learned, and derives the optimal result value in various scenarios.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.185-192
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• 2014

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the results for the quality assurance through a statistical analysis on the output characteristics of linear accelerators belonging to Yeungnam University Medical Center by using the Shewhart-type chart, Exponentially weighted moving average chart (EWMA) chart, and process capability indices $C_p$ and $C_{pk}$. To achieve this, we used the output values measured using respective treatment devices (21EX, 21EX-S, and Novalis Tx) by medical physicists every month from September, 2012 to April, 2014. The output characteristics of treatment devices followed the IAEA TRS-398 guidelines, and the measurements included photon beams of 6 MV, 10 MV, and 15 MV and electron beams of 4 MeV, 6 MeV, 9 MeV, 12 MeV, 16MeV, and 20 MeV. The statistical analysis was done for the output characteristics measured, and was corrected every month. The width of control limit of weighting factors and measurement values were calculated as ${\lambda}=0.10$ and L=2.703, respectively; and the process capability indices $C_p$ and $C_{pk}$ were greater than or equal to 1 for all energies of the linear accelerators (21EX, 21EX-S, and Novalis Tx). Measured values of output doses with drastic and minor changes were found through the Shewhart-type chart and EWMA chart, respectively. The process capability indices $C_p$ and $C_{pk}$ of the treatment devices in our institution were, respectively, 2.384 and 2.136 for 21EX, 1.917 and 1.682 for 21EX-S, and 2.895 and 2.473 for Novalis Tx, proving that Novalis Tx has the most stable and accurate output characteristics.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.355-360
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• 2009

In this study, the arylsulfatase gene (astA, 984 bp ORF) from Pseudoalteromonas carrageenovora genome was expressed on the cell surface of S. cerevisiae by fusing with Aga2p linked to the membrane anchored protein, Aga1p. The constructed plasmid, pCTAST (7.1 kb), was introduced to S. cerevisiae EBY100 cell, and yeast transformants on YPDG plate showed the hydrolyzing activity for 4-methylumbelliferyl-sulfate and p-nitrophenyl-sulfate. When S. cerevisiae EBY100/pCTAST was grown on YPDG medium, the arylsulfatase activity of cell pellet reached about 1.2 unit/mL, whereas no extracellular arylsulfatase activity was detected. The DNA ladder in agarose prepared from agar by this recombinant arylsulfatase showed similar resolution and migration patterns with a commercial agarose. This results revealed that arylsulfatase expressed on the cell surface of S. cerevisiae could be applicable to the economic production of electrophoretic-grade agarose.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.241-248
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• 2019

Pesticide exposure may induce biochemical alterations including oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation. However, in the context of developmental origin of health and disease, putative trans-generational effect of exposure to pesticides are insufficiently studied. We therefore aimed to evaluate the biochemical effect of gestational exposure to four pesticides on female Wistar rats and their offspring at adult age. We studied 30 female nulliparous Wistar rats divided into 5 equal groups. Group 1 served as the control group and received distilled water while group 2, 3, 4 and 5 received orally pesticide 1 (imidacloprid), pesticide 2 (chlorpyrifos), pesticide 3 (imidacloprid + lambda cyhalothrin) and pesticide 4 (oxamyl) respectively once daily throughout gestation at a dose equivalent to 1/10 lethal dose 50. The mothers were followed up until one month post gestation. The offspring were followed up from birth until adult age (12 weeks). In all animals at each time point we evaluated malondialdehyde (MDA), oxidative stress and liver function enzymes. There was similar variation of total body weight in all the groups during and after gestation. However, Female Wistar rats of the exposed groups had significant alterations in liver SOD (-30.8% to +64.1%), catalase (-38.8% to -85.7%) and GSH (-29.2% to -86.5%) and; kidney catalase (> 100%), GSH (> 100%). Moreover, MDA, alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST) levels were significantly higher in pesticide exposed rats compared to the control group. Similar alterations in antioxidant enzymes, MDA and liver function enzymes were observed in offspring of treated rats evidenced at weaning and persisting until adult age. Exposure to pesticides causes oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation in exposed female Wistar rats and their offspring. The persistence in offspring at adult age suggests transgenerational adverse effects.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.138-148
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• 2018

Objective: Fusarium mycotoxins deoxynivalenol (DON) and zearalenone (ZEN), common contaminants in the feed of farm animals, cause immune function impairment and organ inflammation. Consequently, the main objective of this study was to elucidate DON and ZEN effects on the mRNA expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines and other immune related genes in the kidneys of piglets. Methods: Fifteen 6-week-old piglets were randomly assigned to three dietary treatments for 4 weeks: control diet, and diets contaminated with either 8 mg DON/kg feed or 0.8 mg ZEN/kg feed. Kidney samples were collected after treatment, and RNA-seq was used to investigate the effects on immune-related genes and gene networks. Results: A total of 186 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were screened (120 upregulated and 66 downregulated). Gene ontology analysis revealed that the immune response, and cellular and metabolic processes were significantly controlled by these DEGs. The inflammatory stimulation might be an effect of the following enriched Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes pathway analysis found related to immune and disease responses: cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction, chemokine signaling pathway, toll-like receptor signaling pathway, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), tuberculosis, Epstein-Barr virus infection, and chemical carcinogenesis. The effects of DON and ZEN on genome-wide expression were assessed, and it was found that the DEGs associated with inflammatory cytokines (interleukin 10 receptor, beta, chemokine [C-X-C motif] ligand 9, CXCL10, chemokine [C-C motif] ligand 4), proliferation (insulin like growth factor binding protein 4, IgG heavy chain, receptor-type tyrosine-protein phosphatase C, cytochrome P450 1A1, ATP-binding cassette sub-family 8), and other immune response networks (lysozyme, complement component 4 binding protein alpha, oligoadenylate synthetase 2, signaling lymphocytic activation molecule-9, ${\alpha}$-aminoadipic semialdehyde dehydrogenase, Ig lambda chain c region, pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase, isozyme 4, carboxylesterase 1), were suppressed by DON and ZEN. Conclusion: In summary, our results indicate that high concentrations of DON and ZEN suppress the inflammatory response in kidneys, leading to potential effects on immune homeostasis.

• The Journal of Korean Institute of Electromagnetic Engineering and Science
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• v.17 no.3 s.106
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• pp.249-258
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• 2006

In this letter, we propose a novel printed helix antenna for RFID reader in UHF band. The printed strip line of the antenna is first wound up outside a polygonal shaped layer and then the winding continues on an inner layer to control the overall gain and the radiation pattern. In addition, the winding pitch angles on each layer have either negative or positive values resulting in the broad CP bandwidth. The detail structure of the antenna was optimized using Pareto genetic algorithm(GA), so as to obtain excellent performances for RFID reader antennas. The optimized two-layered polygonal helix was fabricated on the cardboard of a flexible substrate and the performances were measured and compared with the simulations. The fabricated antenna was made up of copper tape which can adhere to a flexible cardboard and had 21.4 % matching bandwidth, 31.9 % CP bandwidth, readable range of $5.5m^2$ with kr=3.2. Also based on the current distribution of the strip line of the antenna and sensitivity of the antenna bents points, we confirmed that the antenna has the quarter-wave transformer near the feed for the broad matching bandwidth and radiates the traveling wave for the broad CP bandwidth using the bent strip line.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.19 no.11
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• pp.1672-1678
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• 2009

The purified antifungal substances produced by Bacillus amyloliquefaciens IUB158-03 was positive to ninhydrin but negative to aniline, suggesting that the antifungal substance could be a peptide. FAB-MS, UV adsorption spectrum, and amino acid composition analysis revealed that the molecular weight of the antifungal substance was 1042 and that maximal adsorption was at 220 nm and 277 nm. The antifungal substance was composed of $Asn_3$, $Gln_2$, $Ser_1$, $Gly_1$, and $Tyr_1$. The composition and structural characteristics of antifungal substance were analysed by $^1H$-NMR spectrum, $^1H$-COSY, HMQC, which revealed that the compound belongs to the iturin A family. Temperature and pH had little effect on the stability of the antifungal substance in the ranges of $-70{\sim}121^{\circ}C$ and pH 6.0~10.0, respectively. It showed strong antibiotic activity against fungi. An in vitro cytotoxicity test using NIH3T3 cell showed that the antifungal substance does not have cytotoxicity. The number of circulating leukocytes and the hematobiological analysis of the mice administered with the antifungal substances was similar to those of the control group, indicating no cytotoxicity in vivo. Therefore, the antifungal substances extracted from culture broth of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens IUB158-03 have future potential as biocontrol agents against plant diseases caused by fungi.