• Imaging Science in Dentistry
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.165-174
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• 2017

Purpose: This study was performed to investigate the influence of object shape and distance from the center of the image on the volumetric accuracy of cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) scans, according to different parameters of tube voltage and current. Materials and Methods: Four geometric objects(cylinder, cube, pyramid, and hexagon) with predefined dimensions were fabricated. The objects consisted of Teflon-perfluoroalkoxy embedded in a hydrocolloid matrix (Dupli-Coe-Loid TM; GC America Inc., Alsip, IL, USA), encased in an acrylic resin cylinder assembly. An Alphard Vega Dental CT system (Asahi Roentgen Ind. Co., Ltd, Kyoto, Japan) was used to acquire CBCT images. OnDemand 3D (CyberMed Inc., Seoul, Korea) software was used for object segmentation and image analysis. The accuracy was expressed by the volume error (VE). The VE was calculated under 3 different exposure settings. The measured volumes of the objects were compared to the true volumes for statistical analysis. Results: The mean VE ranged from -4.47% to 2.35%. There was no significant relationship between an object's shape and the VE. A significant correlation was found between the distance of the object to the center of the image and the VE. Tube voltage affected the volume measurements and the VE, but tube current did not. Conclusion: The evaluated CBCT device provided satisfactory volume measurements. To assess volume measurements, it might be sufficient to use serial scans with a high resolution, but a low dose. This information may provide useful guidance for assessing volume measurements.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.46 no.3
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• pp.193-202
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• 2013

The concentrations of heavy metals such as cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), lead (Pb), zinc (Zn), nickel (Ni), and arsenic (As) in sand samples collected from selected children's playground and their correlation with environmental parameters, such as concentration of particulate matter in the atmosphere ($PM_{10}$), apartment age (> 5 years), clay and organic matter contents in sand samples, were analyzed. The average heavy metal concentration in samples was 0.040 mg $kg^{-1}$ for Cd, 0.200 mg $kg^{-1}$ for Cr, 1.75 mg $kg^{-1}$ for Cu, 15.1 mg $kg^{-1}$ for Ni, 3.42 mg $kg^{-1}$ for Pb, 66.7 mg $kg^{-1}$ for Zn and 0.750 mg $kg^{-1}$ for As, all of which were below the environmental regulatory level established by Korea Ministry of Environment. However, in the consideration of direct and oral exposure by children to playground sand, the risk of the concentration range in the samples might be greatly enhanced. Heavy metal concentration in samples collected from high $PM_{10}$ (> $70{\mu}gm^{-3}$) area was slightly greater than in samples from low $PM_{10}$ (< $70{\mu}gm^{-3}$), indicating the contribution of particulate matter in air phase to heavy metal concentration in playground sand samples. The concentrations of both Cd and Pb were the highest in apartments older than 21 years (0.050 mg $kg^{-1}$ and 5.28 mg $kg^{-1}$ for Cd and Pb respectively) and showed positive correlation with apartment age (p<0.01 and p<0.001 for Cd and Pb, respectively). Clay content in playground sands ranged 3.8~11.2% and was positively correlated with heavy metal concentration. Organic matter content was negligible (mostly < 0.1%) and showed poor correlation with heavy metal concentration. In conclusion, concentration of heavy metals in playground sand was found to be predominantly influenced by the apartment age and clay content in sand samples and supplemented by dust deposition of particulate matter ($PM_{10}$) from atmosphere.

• Clean Technology
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.89-95
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• 2016

The nanotoxicity of ZnO nanoparticles used in cosmetics and tire industry is one of emerged issues. Herein, the removal of ZnO nanoparticles dispersed in aqueous phase and its ecotoxicity were investigated. In the short-term exposure for fertilized eggs (O. latipes), the deformity was observed at 5 mg L⁻¹ of ZnO nanoparticles in some individuals and delayed hatching of eggs by retarded growth was observed at 10 mg L⁻¹ of ZnO nanoparticles. This result show that ZnO nanoparticles have cytotoxic effect to the organisms lived in water phase. Therefore, herein, the removal of ZnO nanoparticles in aqueous phase by chemical precipitation was investigated. After addition of Na₂S and Na₂HPO₄, the precipitated ZnO was transformed to ZnS and Zn₃(PO₄)₂ particles, respectively. The removal efficiency of ZnO was reached to almost 100% for two cases. In addition, the toxicity tests about ZnS and Zn₃(PO₄)₂ particles showed no acute toxicity for D. magna. This implies that transformation of ZnO to ZnS and Zn₃(PO₄)₂ particles with very low ionization constant might decrease effectively the toxicity of ZnO.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.86-95
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• 2020

Background: Ginsenoside Rb1 (Rb1), one of the most abundant protopanaxadiol-type ginsenosides, exerts excellent neuroprotective effects even though it has low intracephalic exposure. Purpose: The present study aimed to elucidate the apparent contradiction between the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of Rb1 by studying the mechanisms underlying neuroprotective effects of Rb1 based on regulation of microflora. Methods: A pseudo germ-free (PGF) rat model was established, and neuroprotective effects of Rb1 were compared between conventional and PGF rats. The relative abundances of common probiotics were quantified to reveal the authentic probiotics that dominate in the neuroprotection of Rb1. The expressions of the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptors, including GABAA receptors (α2, β2, and γ2) and GABAB receptors (1b and 2), in the normal, ischemia/reperfusion (I/R), and I/R+Rb1 rat hippocampus and striatum were assessed to reveal the neuroprotective mechanism of Rb1. Results: The results showed that microbiota plays a key role in neuroprotection of Rb1. The relative abundance of Lactobacillus helveticus (Lac.H) increased 15.26 fold after pretreatment with Rb1. I/R surgery induced effects on infarct size, neurological deficit score, and proinflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α) were prevented by colonizing the rat gastrointestinal tract with Lac.H (1 × 10⁹ CFU) by gavage 15 d before I/R surgery. Both Rb1 and Lac.H upregulated expression of GABA receptors in I/R rats. Coadministration of a GABA_A receptor antagonist significantly attenuated neuroprotective effects of Rb1 and Lac.H. Conclusion: In sum, Rb1 exerts neuroprotective effects by regulating Lac.H and GABA receptors rather than through direct distribution to the target sites.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.10-18
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• 2017

Korean Red Pine (Pinus densiflora) has been protected and used as the most ecologically and socio-culturally important tree species in Korea. However, as dieback of Korean red pines has occurred in the protected area of the forest genetic resources. The aims of this study is to identify causes for dieback of pine tree by investigating topographical characteristics of pine tree dieback and its correlation to meteorological factors. We extracted the dead trees from the time series aerial images and analyzed geomorphological characteristics of dead tree concentration area. As a result, 1,956 dead pine trees were extracted in the study region of 2,600 ha. Dieback of pine trees was found mostly in the areas with high altitude, high solar radiation, low topographic wetness index, south and south-west slopes, ridgelines, and high wind exposure compared to other living pine forest area. These areas are classified as high temperature and high drought stress regions due to micro-climatic characteristics affected by topographic factors. As high temperature and drought stress are generally increasing with climate change, we can evaluated that a risk of pine tree dieback is also increasing. Based on these geomorphological characteristics, we developed a pine tree dieback risk map using Maximum Entropy Model (MaxEnt), and it can be useful for establishing Korean red pine protection and management strategies.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.48-55
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• 2013

Objective: The use of nanoparticle products is expected to present a potential harmful effect on consumers. Also, the lack of information regarding inhaled nanoparticles may pose a serious problem. In this study, we addressed this issue by studying pulmonary toxicity after nasal instillation of Al-NPs in SD rats. Methods: The animals were exposed to Al-NPs at 1 mg/kg body weight (low dose), 20 mg/kg body weight (medium dose) and 40 mg/kg body weight (high dose). To determine pulmonary toxicity, bronchoalveolar lavage (ts.AnBAL) fluid analysis and histopathological examination were conducted in rats. In addition, cell viability was investigated at 24 hours after the treatment with Al-NPs. Results: BAL fluid analysis showed that total cells (TC) count and total protein (TP) concentrations increased significantly in all treatment groups, approximately two to three times. Also, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and cytokines such as TNF-alpha and IL-6 dose-dependently increased following nasal instillation of Al-NPs. However, polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) levels showed no significant changes in a dose dependant manner in BAL fluid. In the cytotoxicity analysis, the treatment of Al-NPs significantly and dose-dependently induced cell viability loss (20 to 30%) and damage of cell membrane (5 to 10%) in rat normal lung epithelial cells (L2). Conclusions: Our results suggest that inhaled Al-NPs in the lungs may be removed quickly by alveolar macrophages with minimal inflammatory reaction, but Al-NPs have the potential to affect lung permeability. Therefore, extensive toxicity evaluations of Al-NPs are required prior to their practical application as consumer products.

• Restorative Dentistry and Endodontics
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.313-323
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• 2011

Objectives: This study investigated the optimal combination of 3-component photoinitiation system, consisting of CQ, p-octyloxy-phenyl-phenyl iodonium hexafluoroantimonate (OPPI), and 2-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) to increase the degree of conversion of resin monomers, and analyze the effect of the ratio of the photoinitiator to the co-initiator. Materials and Methods: Each photoinitiators (CQ and OPP) and co-initiator (DMAEMA) were mixed in three levels with 0.2 wt.% (low concentration, L), 1.0 wt.% (medium concentration, M), and 2.0 wt.% (high concentration, H). A total of nine groups using the Taguchi method were tested according to the following proportion of components in the photoinitiator system: LLL, LMM, LHH, MLM, MMH, MHL, HLH, HML, HHM. Each monomer was polymerized using a quartz-tungsten-halogen curing unit (Demetron 400, USA) for 5, 20, 40, 60, 300 sec and the degree of conversion (DC) was determined at each exposure time using FTIR. Results: Significant differences were found for DC values in groups. MMH group and HHM group exhibited greater initial DC than the others. No significant difference was found with the ratio of the photoinitiators (CQ, OPPI) to the co-initiator (DMAEMA). The concentrations of CQ didn't affect the DC values, but those of OPPI did strongly. Conclusions: MMH and HHM groups seem to be best ones to get increased DC. MMH group is indicated for bright, translucent color and HHM group is good for dark, opaque colored-resin.

• The KIPS Transactions:PartC
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• v.10C no.6
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• pp.747-754
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• 2003

Thia paper suggests a milti user-authentication system comprises that DNA biometric informatiom, owner's RFID(Radio Frequency Identification) smartcard of hardware token, and PKI digital signqture of software. This system improved items proposed in [1] as follows : this mechanism provides one RFID smartcard instead of two user-authentication smartcard(the biometric registered seal card and the DNA personal ID card), and solbers user information exposure as RFID of low proce when the card is lost. In addition, this can be perfect multi user-autentication system to enable identification even in cases such as identical twins, the DNA collected from the blood of patient who has undergone a medical procedure involving blood replacement and the DNA of the blood donor, mutation in the DNA base of cancer cells and other cells. Therefore, the proposed system is applied to terminal log-on with RFID smart card that stores accurate digital DNA biometric information instead of present biometric user-authentication system with the card is lost, which doesn't expose any personal DNA information. The security of PKI digital signature private key can be improved because secure pseudo random number generator can generate infinite one-time pseudo randon number corresponding to a user ID to keep private key of PKI digital signature securely whenever authenticated users access a system. Un addition, this user-authentication system can be used in credit card, resident card, passport, etc. acceletating the use of biometric RFID smart' card. The security of proposed system is shown by statistical anaysis.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.23-38
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• 2014

The composition of carbonate sands from a sabkha at Ruwais in the UAE differs from that of silica sand, and these sands are crushed easily under low compression pressures. Accordingly, particle crushing of carbonate sand occurs under high pressure, which results in additional settlement and reduces the shear strength. In this study, consolidation and triaxial tests were conducted to analyze the characteristics of carbonate sands following particle crushing. The unusual shear strength graphs of the carbonate sands result from the degree of particle pre-crushing. For the range at p' > p in the p (p')-q diagram, negative (-) excess porewater pressures occur if the axial pressure causes particle crushing that induces exposure of the inner voids. In addition, the q value decreased after particle crushing. In conclusion, the unusual characteristics of the carbonate sands were induced by particle crushing. The triaxial tests revealed that the degree of particle pre-crushing influenced the excess porewater pressure.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.295-306
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• 2004

Spatial patterns in the macrobenthic community structure in the inter- and subtidal zones in front of the Iwon Dike and environmental variables were examined in August 2001, In total, 156 macrobenthic species(123 intertidal species and 90 subtidal species) were recorded during this study, predominately polychaetes $(40{\%})$, bivalves $(22{\%})$, and crustaceans $(22{\%})$. Polychaetes made up less than $40{\%}$ of the intertidal communitr, but more than $50{\%}$ of the subtidal community. The mean density during this study was $1,456ind./m^{2}.$ Multivariate analysis (multidimensional scaling) revealed significant differences in community structure among four regions: near the Iwon dike (B1), the high and middle intertidal zone (B2), low intertidal zone (Al), and subtidal zone (A2). The number of species, total density, and diversity (H') varied significantly among the four regions. The distribution of macrobenthic community was affected by environmental variables, such as ${\%}$ silt/clay content, total sulfide, lose of ignition, and chemical oxygen demand. These environmental variables were negatively correlated with the dominant species (Nephtys polybranchia, Umbonium thomasi, and Scoloplos armiger) in the intertidal area, but positively correlated with the dominant species (Lumbrineris cruzensis, Notomastus latericeus, and Moerella sp.) in the subtidal area. Environmental variables $({\%}\;silt/clay content and total sulfide)$ were positively correlated with the dominant species (Heteromastus filiformis) in region Bl, but negatively correlated with the dominant species (Umbonium thomasi and Scoloplos koreanus) in region B2. Amphipods Urothoe spp. and Monoculodes koreanus were the dominant species in region Al. Umbonium thomasi, the dominant species in region B2, was not found in regions Bl or Al. We suggest that the inter-specific competition for territory and exposure to seawater may be important factors controlling the macrobenthic community structure in the inter- and subtidal zones in front of the Iwon Dike.