• Genomics & Informatics
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.19.1-19.15
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• 2022

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) is an important food and feed crop which rich in mineral sources. The WUSCHEL-related homeobox (WOX) gene family plays important roles in plant development and identification of putative gene families, their structure, and potential functions is a primary step for not only understanding the genetic mechanisms behind various biological process but also for genetic improvement. A variety of computational tools, including MAFFT, HMMER, hidden Markov models, Pfam, SMART, MEGA, ProtTest, BLASTn, and BRAD, among others, were used. We identified 34 MsWOX genes based on a systematic analysis of the alfalfa plant genome spread in eight chromosomes. This is an expansion of the gene family which we attribute to observed chromosomal duplications. Sequence alignment analysis revealed 61 conserved proteins containing a homeodomain. Phylogenetic study sung reveal five evolutionary clades with 15 motif distributions. Gene structure analysis reveals various exon, intron, and untranslated structures which are consistent in genes from similar clades. Functional analysis prediction of promoter regions reveals various transcription binding sites containing key growth, development, and stress-responsive transcription factor families such as MYB, ERF, AP2, and NAC which are spread across the genes. Most of the genes are predicted to be in the nucleus. Also, there are duplication events in some genes which explain the expansion of the family. The present research provides a clue on the potential roles of MsWOX family genes that will be useful for further understanding their functional roles in alfalfa plants.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.153-158
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• 2021

Purpose: This study evaluated the features of a pressure mapping system for patient motion monitoring in radiation therapy. Methods: The pressure mapping system includes an MS 9802 force sensing resistor (FSR) sensor with 2,304 force sensing nodes using 48 columns and 48 rows, controller, and control PC (personal computer). Radiation beam attenuation caused by pressure mapping sensor and signal perturbation by 6 and 10 mega voltage (MV) photon beam was evaluated. The maximum relative pressure value (mRPV), average relative pressure value (aRPV), the center of pressure (COP), and area of pressure distribution were obtained with/without radiation using the upper body of an anthropomorphic phantom for 30 minutes with 15 MV. Results: It was confirmed that the differences in attenuation induced by the FSR sensor for 6 and 10 MV photon beams were small. The differences in mRPV, aRPV, area of pressure distribution with/without radiation are about 0.6%, 1.2%, and 0.5%, respectively. The COP values with/without radiation were also similar. Conclusions: The characteristics of a pressure mapping system during radiation treatment were evaluated on the basis of attenuation and signal perturbation using radiation. The pressure distribution measured using the FSR sensor with little attenuation and signal perturbation by the MV photon beam would be helpful for patient motion monitoring.

• Ocean and Polar Research
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.331-338
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• 2022

The high latitude scleractinian coral Alveopora japonica Eguchi, 1965 occurs in high density in the shallow rocky subtidal in Jeju Island, forming coral carpets. Despite its ecological role providing a unique habitat for other benthic organisms, the benthic fauna associated with the A. japonica coral carpet is poorly known. To identify fauna associated with the coral carpet, we explored three sites dominated by A. japonica and one control site on northwestern Jeju Island in May 2013. Using SCUBA, we collected A. japonica and the epibenthic mega-fauna associated with the colonies in 1×1 m² and identified them to the species level. At a depth of 10 to 15 m, A. japonica colonies heavily covered the seafloor, forming a layer called a coral carpet, with a density of 94 (Keumneung-ri), 133 (Biyangdo), and 155 (Gwidok-ri) colonies/m². Thirty-four molluscan species were identified from the four sites, including 20 bivalves and 14 gastropods. The coral carpets were enriched with sessile bivalves compared to the control site, as we identified twenty bivalve and eight gastropod species from the coral carpets. Most bivalve species associated with the coral carpets had tropical-subtropical affinities, while gastropods were mainly subtropical and subtropical-low boreal species. Leiosolenus lischkei M. Huber, 2010, in the family Mytilidae and Barbatia steamsi (Pilsbry, 1895), in the family Arcidae, were the two most abundant bivalve species in the coral carpet, L. lischkei being a borer, and B. stearnsi a nestler. The tropical to subtropical Pacific star shell Astralium haematragum (Menke, 1829)was the most abundant gastropod at the study sites. The bivalves and gastropods associated with the coral carpet were small-sized juveniles or sub-adults, suggesting that the coral carpet provides a micro-habitat for the bivalves and gastropods.

• Journal of Veterinary Science
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.12.1-12.11
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• 2021

Background: Bats have been considered natural reservoirs for several pathogenic human coronaviruses (CoVs) in the last two decades. Recently, a bat CoV was detected in the Republic of Korea; its entire genome was sequenced and reported to be genetically similar to that of the severe acute respiratory syndrome CoV (SARS-CoV). Objectives: The objective of this study was to compare the genetic sequences of SARS-CoV, SARS-CoV-2, and the two Korean bat CoV strains 16BO133 and B15-21, to estimate the likelihood of an interaction between the Korean bat CoVs and the human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor. Methods: The phylogenetic analysis was conducted with the maximum-likelihood (ML) method using MEGA 7 software. The Korean bat CoVs receptor binding domain (RBD) of the spike protein was analyzed by comparative homology modeling using the SWISS-MODEL server. The binding energies of the complexes were calculated using PRODIGY and MM/GBGA. Results: Phylogenetic analyses of the entire RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, spike regions, and the complete genome revealed that the Korean CoVs, along with SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2, belong to the subgenus Sarbecovirus, within BetaCoVs. However, the two Korean CoVs were distinct from SARS-CoV-2. Specifically, the spike gene of the Korean CoVs, which is involved in host infection, differed from that of SARS-CoV-2, showing only 66.8%-67.0% nucleotide homology and presented deletions within the RBD, particularly within regions critical for cross-species transmission and that mediate interaction with ACE2. Binding free energy calculation revealed that the binding affinity of Korean bat CoV RBD to hACE2 was drastically lower than that of SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2. Conclusions: These results suggest that Korean bat CoVs are unlikely to bind to the human ACE2 receptor.

• 한국체육학회지인문사회과학편
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• v.55 no.1
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• pp.441-455
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• 2016

International sports events is one of the core products in the sports industry. The increasing number of nations are bidding to host the international sports event such as Olympics Game because of expecting to development of a city or nation. Hosting a international sports events are inter-connected and affected by system of socials, politics, cultures and economics. As the scale of the international sports events became larger, sports events process importance is growing. The purpose of this study was build a model of the sports event process in the attract steps. By analyzing event process in the attract steps, the core processes(1. Search, 2. Applications, 3. Practice, 4. Follow-up management) was set and stakeholders and function were analyzed. The modeling was used as IDEF method.

• Asia Marketing Journal
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.1-20
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• 2009

Feng Shui practice is very popular in East Asia and has been rapidly adopted by the population of the West. As Feng Shui involves knowledge of object placement, it opens opportunities to market Feng Shui knowledge and products. This paper presents an analysis of a successful Feng Shui enterprise, World of Feng Shui (WOFS), that has been established by a well-known Feng Shui expert Lillian Too and her daughter Jennifer Too. The enterprise's marketing strategies and tactics are tied to the theoretical concept of social influence, widely researched in the consumer behavior literature. The three types of social influence (informational, utilitarian, and value-expressive) are examined in relation to WOFS' marketing strategies using secondary data material. The main results indicate that the strategies of WOFS enterprise address all three types of social influence. The articles generated on-and off-line can be mostly associated with the informational influence. The off- line activities such as events, courses/workshops, and TV shows are also informational in nature. The Q & A sections/postings can be considered as representative of the utilitarian influence. They give experts (e.g., Lillian Too) the opportunity to provide individuals with problem-specific recommendations. Mega-mall website provides the value-expressive influence as purchase and consumption of the Feng Shui products is most susceptible to this type of influence. In terms of implications, WOFS enterprise strategies are suitable not only for consumes but also for business executives in Asia and in the West as architects, designers, and homeowners across continents use Feng Shui practices for building placements and decoration of dwellings and workplaces. Feng Shui practice has some limitations such as conflicting opinions of experts and increased complexity when the dimension of time is taken into consideration. Still, Feng Shui as a practice is growing globally adjusting itself to regional and cultural challenges.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2022.10a
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• pp.252-252
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• 2022

Genotype-by-environment interaction (GEI) refers to the comparative response of genotypes to different environments conditions. Thus, understanding GEI is a fundamental component for selecting superior genotypes for breeding programs. The significance of utilizing early maturing cultivars not only provides flexibility in planting dates, but also serves as an effective strategy to reduce methane emission from the paddy fields. In this study, we conducted multi-environment trials (METs) to evaluate yield-related traits such as culm length, panicle length, panicle number, spikelet per plant, and thousand grain weight. A total of eighty-one Korean commercial rice cultivars categorized as early maturing cultivars, were cultivated in three regions, two planting seasons for two years. The genotype main effect plus genotype-by-environment interaction (GGE) biplot analysis of yield-related traits and grain yield explained 70.02-91.24% of genotype plus GEI variation, and exhibited various patterns of mega-environment delineation, discriminating ability, representativeness, and genotype rankings across the planting seasons and environments. Moreover, simultaneous selection using weighted average of absolute scores from the singular value decomposition (WAASB) and multi-trait stability index (MTSI) revealed six highly recommended genotypes with high stability and crop productivity. The winning genotypes under specific environment can be utilized as useful genetic materials to develop regional specialty cultivars, and recommended genotypes can be used as elite climate-resilient parents to improve yield-potential and reduce methane emission as part to accomplish carbon-neutrality.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.143-150
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• 2014

In general radiotherapy, mega-voltage (MV) x-ray images are widely used as the unique method to verify radio-therapeutic fields. But, the image quality of MV images is much lower than that of kilo-voltage x-ray images due to scatter interactions. Since 1990s, studies for the scatter correction have performed with digital-based MV imaging systems. In this study, a novel method for the scatter correction is suggested using scatter to primary ratio (SPR), instead of conventional methods such as digital image processing or scatter kernel calculations. We measured two MV images with and without a solid water phantom describing a patient body with given imaging conditions, and calculated un-attenuated ratios. Then, we obtained SPR distributions for the scatter correction. For experimental validation, a line-pair (LP) phantom using several Al bars and a clinical pelvis MV image was used. As the result, scatter signals of the LP phantom image were successfully reduced so that original density distribution of the phantom was restored. Moreover, image contrast values increased after SPR correction at all ROIs of the clinical image. The mean value of increases was 48%. The SPR correction method suggested in this study has high reliability because it is based on actually measured data. Also, this method can be easily adopted in clinics without additional cost. We expected that the SPR correction can be an effective method to improve the quality of MV image guided radiotherapy.

• Proceedings of the Korean Association for Survey Research Conference
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• 2003.06a
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• pp.140-160
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• 2003

The purpose of this study is to identify and evaluate the competitiveness of ports in ASEAN(Association of Southeast Asian Nations), which plays a leading role in basing the hub of international logistics strategies as a countermeasure in changes of international logistics environments. This region represents most severe competition among Mega hub ports in the world in terms of container cargo throughput at the onset of the 21st century. The research method in this study accounted for over lapping between attributes, and introduced the HFP method that can perform mathematical operations. The scope of this study was strictly confined to the ports of ASEAN, which cover the top 100 of 350 container ports that were presented in Containerization International Yearbook 2002 wi th reference to container throughput. The results of this study show Singapore in the number one position. Even compared with major ports in Korea (after getting comparative ratings and applying tile same data and evaluation structure), the number one position still goes to Singapore and then Busan(2) and Manila(2), followed by Port Klang(4), Tanjung Priok(5), Tanjung Perak(6), Bangkok(7), Inchon(8), Laem Chabang(9) and Penang(9). In terms of the main contributions of this study, it is the first empirical study to apply the combined at tributes of detailed and representative attributes into the advanced HFP model which was enhanced by the KJ method to evaluate the port competitiveness in ASEAN. Up-to-now, none have comprehensively conducted researches with sophisticated port methodology that has discussed a variety of changes in port development and terminal transfers of major shipping lines. Moreover, through the comparative evaluation among major ports in Korea and ASEAN, the presentation of comparative competitiveness for Korean ports is a great achievement in this study. In order to reinforce this study, it needs further compensative research, including cost factors which could not be applied to modeling the subject ports by lack of consistently qualified data in ASEAN.

• Proceedings of the KSR Conference
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• 2011.10a
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• pp.2192-2204
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• 2011

Recently, The government is actively transit road-oriented Traffic System to the eco-friendly and high-efficiency railroad-oriented transportation system for the sustainable green growth. The second plan of Nationwide Railway Network which has been officially announced rearrange to integration, multi-core, open architecture country by the railway network and integrate to the one mega city that rink an important city in one hour 30 minute. But the railroad industry is disadvantageous when it compares with the road industry on the ground that railroad industry peculiarities(a cost-benefit analysis, an environment value, etc) have not reflected in the (preliminary) feasibility study for SOC industry. The government establish Improved methodology of Rail Investment Rating System and improved preliminary feasibility study in railroad project by introduction many content(analysis periods, rate of discount, the benefits of shortening of transit hours, the estimation of traffic accident reduction benefits, investment cost of vehicle substitution and operation and maintenance cost of high speed rail) about the Improved methodology of Rail Investment Rating System. This study is intended to consideration the key content that was included in the Improved methodology of Rail Investment Rating System. In addition, the points to be considered for additional study have been reviewed in this study. We hope we will carry out make a reasonable and objective Rail Investment Rating System and to perform the railway industry of the virtuous cycle such improvement plans are reflected at a hereafter railroad section.