• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.61-68
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• 2018

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to test the association between APOA5 3'-UTR variants (rs662799) and cardiometabolic traits in Koreans. SUBJECTS/METHODS: For this study, epidemiological data, Apolipoprotein A5 (APOA5) genotype information, and lymphoblastoid cell line (LCL) biospecimens from a subset of the Ansung-Ansan cohort within the Korean Genome and Epidemiology study (KoGES-ASAS; n = 7,704) as well as epidemiological data along with genomic DNA biospecimens of participants from a subset of the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES 2011-12; n = 2,235) were obtained. APOA5 mRNA expression was also measured. RESULTS: APOA5 rs662799 genotype distributions in both the KoGES-ASAS and KNHANES groups were 50.6% for TT, 41.3% for TC, and 8.1% for CC, which are similar to those in previous reports. In both groups, minor C allele carriers, particularly subjects with CC homozygosity, had lower high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and higher triglyceride levels than TT homozygotes. Linear regression analysis showed that the minor C allele significantly contributed to reduction of circulating HDL cholesterol levels [${\beta}=-2.048$, P < 0.001; ${\beta}=-2.199$, P < 0.001] as well as elevation of circulating triglyceride levels [${\beta}=0.053$, P < 0.001; ${\beta}=0.066$, P < 0.001] in both the KoGES-ASAS and KNHANES groups. In addition, higher expression levels of APOA5 in LCLs of 64 healthy individuals were negatively associated with body mass index (r = -0.277, P = 0.027) and circulating triglyceride level (r = -0.340, P = 0.006) but not significantly correlated with circulating HDL cholesterol level. On the other hand, we observed no significant difference in the mRNA level of APOA5 according to APOA5 rs662799 polymorphisms. CONCLUSIONS: The C allele of APOA5 rs662799 was found to be significantly associated with cardiometabolic traits in a large Korean population from the KoGES-ASAS and KNHANES. The effect of this genotype may be associated with post-transcriptional regulation, which deserves further experimental confirmation.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.31 no.11
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• pp.1766-1772
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• 2018

Objective: This experiment was to investigate the effect of increasing levels of apparent metabolizable energy ($AME_n$) on the laying performance, egg quality, blood parameters, blood biochemistry, intestinal morphology, and apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of energy and nutrients in diets fed to laying hens. Methods: A total of three-hundred twenty 33-week-old Hy-Line Brown laying hens (Gallus domesticus) were evenly assigned to four experimental diets of 2,750, 2,850, 2,950, and 3,050 kcal $AME_n/kg$ in pens with floors covered with deep litter of rice hulls. There were four replicates of each treatment, each consisting of 20 birds in a pen. Results: $AME_n$ intake was increased (linear, p<0.05) with inclusion level of $AME_n$ in diets increased. Feed intake and feed conversion ratio were improved (linear, p<0.01), but hen-day egg production tended to be increased with an increasing level of $AME_n$ in diets. During the experiment, leukocyte concentration and blood biochemistry (total cholesterol, triglyceride, glucose, total protein, calcium, asparate aminotransferase, and alanine transferase were not influenced by increasing level of $AME_n$ in diets. Gross energy and ether extract were increased (linear, p<0.01) as the inclusion level of $AME_n$ in diets increased. Conclusion: Laying hens fed high $AME_n$ diet (i.e., 3,050 kcal/kg in the current experiment) tended to overconsume energy with a positive effect on feed intake, feed conversion ratio, nutrient digestibility, and intestinal morphology but not on egg production and egg mass.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.588-596
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• 2020

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of low doses of organic trace minerals (iron, copper, manganese, and zinc) on productive performance, egg quality, yolk and tissue mineral retention, and fecal mineral excretion of laying hens during the late laying period. Methods: A total of 405 healthy hens (HY-Line White, 50-week-old) were randomly divided into 3 treatments, with 9 replicates per treatment and 15 birds per replicate. The dietary treatments included feeding a basal diet + inorganic trace minerals at commercial levels (CON), a basal diet + inorganic trace minerals at 1/3 commercial levels (ITM), and a basal diet + proteinated trace minerals at 1/3 commercial levels (TRT). The trial lasted for 56 days. Results: Compared to CON, ITM decreased (p<0.05) egg production, daily egg mass, albumen height, eggshell strength, yolk Fe concentration, serum alkaline phosphatase activity and total protein, and increased (p<0.05) egg loss and feed to egg ratio. Whereas with productive performance, egg quality, yolk mineral retention, and serum indices there were no differences (p>0.05) between CON and TRT. The concentrations of Fe and Mn in the tissue and tibia were changed notably in ITM relative to CON and TRT. Both ITM and TRT reduced (p<0.05) fecal mineral excretion compared to CON. Conclusion: These results indicate that dietary supplementation of low-dose organic trace minerals reduced fecal mineral excretion without negatively impacting hen performance and egg quality.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.155-161
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• 2009

Lithium secondary batteries have been widely used in the portable electric devices as power source. Recently it is expected that the realm of its applications expands to the markets such as energy storage medium of hybrid electric vehicle(HEV), electric vehicle(EV). Cathode active material is crucial in terms of performance, durability, capacity of lithium secondary batteries. It is urgent to develope the technology for mass production of cathode material to cope with the markets' demands in the near future. In this study, a calcination furnace running in real production line is modelled in 3D, and the thermal flow and gas flow after chemical reaction in the furnace is analyzed through numerical computations. Based on the results, it is shown that large volume of $CO_2$ gas is generated from chemical reaction. High concentration of $CO_2$ gas and it's stagnation is clearly found from the reactant containers in which the reaction occur to the bottom area of the furnace. It is also studied that 15% or more $CO_2$ mol fraction could affect to proper formation of $LiCoO_2$ through TGA-DSC analysis. The solutions to evacuate carbon dioxide from the furnace are suggested through the change of furnace design and operating condition as well.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.297-307
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• 2014

Cavern Thermal Energy Storage system stores thermal energy in caverns to recover industrial waste heat or avoid the sporadic characteristics of renewable-energy resources, and its advantages include high injection-and-extraction powers and the flexibility in selecting a storage medium. In the present study, the structural stability of rock mass pillar between these silo-type storage caverns was assessed using a coupled thermal-mechanical model in $FLAC^{3D}$. The results of numerical simulations showed that thermal stresses due to long-term storage depended on pillar width and had significant effect on the pillar stability. A sensitivity analysis of main factors indicated that the influence on the pillar stability increased in the order cavern depth < pillar width < in situ condition. It was suggested that two identical caverns should be separated by at least one diameter of the cavern and small-diameter shaft neighboring the cavern should be separated by more than half of the cavern diameter. Meanwhile, when the line of centers of two caverns was parallel to the direction of maximum horizontal principal stress, the shielding effect of the caverns could minimize an adverse effect caused by a large horizontal stress.

• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.30-34
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• 2006

Purpose: This study is to report the operating result of the Hospice Cyber Counselling Program for improving quality of lift for terminal patients and their families. Methods: This study was performed followed by counsellor training, building strategy of public relations, management, and evaluation of the effect in order. Results: 72 subjects visited our cyber homepage and became members for approximately 9 months from Oct. 2004 to July 2005; 17 subjects in their 20s (23.6%), 12 subjects in their 30s (16.7%), 17 subjects in their 40s (23.6%), and 13 subjects above 50s (18%). Classified by diagnose related group, cancer related disease consist of 90%. As for the relationship between contents of counselling and counselling applicants, families consist of 90% and self-applicants only 10%. Only 30 members used on-line counselling and their counselling frequency was just 35 times. Although counselling frequency and the number of members who used the counselling site were not high, they tend to contact with a counsellor continuously and use the site actively after the first counselling. Conclusion: Cyber counselling program for hospice was practically managed to improve quality of life for terminal patients and their families as a basic activity for hospice business activation. Basic public relations with regard to hospice business by mass media and the press should be performed continuously and the hospice training program is required for medical personnel to be continue.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Groundwater Environment
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• v.5 no.4
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• pp.192-202
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• 1998

We investigated the geochemistry and environmental isotopes of granite-bedrock groundwater in the Yeongcheon diversion tunnel which is located about 300 m below the land surface. The hydrochemistry of groundwaters belongs to the Ca-HCO$_3$type, and is controlled by flow systems and water-rock interaction in the flow conduits (fractures). The deuterium and oxygen-18 data are clustered along the meteoric water line, indicating that the groundwater are commonly of meteoric water origin and are not affected by secondary isotope effects such as evaporation and isotope exchange. Tritium data show that the groundwaters were mostly recharged before pre-thermonuclear period and have been mixed with younger surface water flowing down rapidly into the tunnel along fractured zones. Based on the mass balance and reaction simulation approaches, using both the hydrochemistry of groundwater and the secondary mineralogy of fracture-filling materials, we have modeled the low-temperature hydrogeochemical evolution of groundwater in the area. The results of geochemical simulation show that the concentrations of Ca$\^$2＋/, Na$\^$＋/ and HCO$_3$and pH of waters increase progressively owing to the dissolution of reactive minerals in flow paths. The concentrations of Mg$\^$2＋/ and K$\^$＋/ frist increase with the dissolution, but later decrease when montmorillonite and illitic material are precipitated respectively. The continuous adding of reactive minerals, namely the progressively larger degrees of water/rock interaction, causes the formation of secondary minerals with the following sequence: first hematite, then gibbsite, then kaolinite, then montmorillonite, then illtic material, and finally microcline. During the simulation all the gibbsite is consumed, kaolinite precipitates and then the continuous reaction converts the kaolinite to montmorillonite and illitic material. The reaction simulation results agree well with the observed, water chemistry and secondary mineralogy, indicating the successful applicability of this simulation technique to delineate the complex hydrogeochemistry of bedrock groundwaters.

• Journal of Korean Society of Steel Construction
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.45-53
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• 2009

More than 40% of railway bridges on the conventional lines in Korea consist of track-on-steel plate girder (TOSPG) bridges. This type of bridge is typically designed without considering seismic loadings, as most of them were built before 1970. The seismic performance of this particular type of bridge could be upgraded through various seismic retrofit schemes, and seismic risk assessment could play a key role in decision-making on the level of the seismic retrofit. This study performed a seismic risk assessment of TOSPG bridges in Korea. The seismic damage of several crucial components of TOSPG bridges--fixed bearings, free bearings, and piers--were probabilistically estimated, and their seismic fragility curves were developed. The probability that the components would exceed their predefined limit states was also calculated by combining the fragility curves and the seismic hazard function. The analysis showed that the piers of TOSPG bridges, which are made of plain concrete without rebars, have relatively low risk against seismic loadings in Korea. This is because the mass of the superstructures of TOSPG bridges is relatively small, and hence, the seismic loading being transferred to the piers is minimal. The line-type bearings typically used for TOSPG bridges, however, are exposed to a degree of seismic risk. Among the bearings, the probability of the free-end bearings and the fixed-end bearings exceeding the slight damage state in 50 years was found to be 12.78% and 4.23%, respectively. The gap between these probability values lessened towards more serious damage states. This study could effectively provide an engineering background for decision-making activities on the seismic retrofit of railway bridges.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.62 no.4
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• pp.399-406
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• 2019

The roots of Scrophularia buergeriana were extracted with 80% aqueous Methanol and the concentrates were partitioned into EtOAc, n-BuOH, and H₂O fractions. The repeated silica gel or octadecyl SiO₂column, and medium pressure liquid chromatographies for the n-BuOH fraction led to isolation of phenylethanoid glycosides and iridoid glycosides. The chemical structures of these compounds were determined as harpagoside (1), angoroside C (2), aucubin (3) and acetoside (4) based on spectroscopic analyses including nuclear magnetic resonance and MS. A simple and efficient HPLC with UV detection method for the simultaneous determination of the four compounds (1-4) has been developed and applied to their content determination in the S. buergeriana. The roots were extracted by 80% methanol, and the contents of 1, 2, 3, and 4 were determined to 11.5, 7.6, 41.2, and 4.8 mg/g, respectively. Additionally, angoroside C (2) and acetoside (4) exhibited hepatoprotective effect against ethanol-induced hepatotoxicity in HepG2 cell line.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.39 no.6
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• pp.701-707
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• 2007

Anti-diabetic effect of Platycodi radix (PR) extract fractions was determined if vitro by investigating insulin-like action, insulin sensitizing action, glucose-stimulated insulin secretion, gene expression related to ${\beta}-cell$ function and mass, and ${\alpha}$-glucoamylase suppressing action. Insulin-like activity was not promoted by the treatment of PR methanol factions in 373-L1 fibroblast. However, treatment with 0, 20 and 100% PR methanol fractions along with 1 ng/mL insulin increased insulin-stimulated glucose uptake in 373-L1 adipocytes. In addition, the treatment of 0% and 100% methanol fractions along with differentiation inducers significantly increased the differentiation of 373-L1 fibroblasts to adipocytes. These fractions may contain insulin sensitizer. The 20%, 80% and 100% methanol fractions enhanced glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in Min6 cells, insulin secreting cell line. This was related to the mechanism to promote glucose sensing and ${\beta}-cell$ proliferation, which was regulated by the induction of IRS-2, glucokinase and PDX-1 genes. As expected, 20, 80 and 100% methanol fractions increased mRNA levels of IRS-2, glucokinase and PDX-1 genes. However, PR fractions did not affect the ${\alpha}-glucoamylase$ activity in vitro. These data suggested that PR extract fractions have anti-diabetic actions through improving insulin sensitization, glucose-stimulated insulin secretion, and ${\beta}-cell$ proliferation. Therefore, PR extracts can be beneficial for anti-diabetic treatment in lean diabetic patients.