• Journal of Life Science
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• v.33 no.12
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• pp.1036-1045
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• 2023

Sarcopenia, a condition characterized by the insidious loss of skeletal muscle mass and strength, represents a significant and growing healthcare challenge, impacting the mobility and quality of life of aging populations worldwide. This study investigated the therapeutic potential of soybean leaf extract (SL) for dexamethasone (Dexa)-induced muscle atrophy in vitro and in an in vivo model. In vitro experiments showed that SL significantly alleviated Dexa-induced atrophy in C2C12 myotube cells, as evidenced by preserved myotube morphology, density, and size. Moreover, SL treatment significantly reduced the mRNA and protein levels of muscle RING-finger protein-1 (MuRF1) and muscle atrophy F-box (MAFbx), key factors regulating muscle atrophy. In a Dexa-induced atrophy mouse model, SL administration significantly inhibited Dexa-induced weight loss and muscle wasting, preserving the mass of the gastrocnemius and tibialis anterior muscles. Furthermore, mice treated with SL exhibited significant improvements in muscle function compared to their counterparts suffering from Dexa-induced muscle atrophy, as evidenced by a notable increase in grip strength and extended endurance on treadmill tests. Moreover, SL suppressed the expression of muscle atrophy-related proteins in skeletal muscle, highlighting its protective role against Dexa-induced muscle atrophy. These results suggest that SL has potential as a natural treatment for muscle-wasting conditions, such as sarcopenia.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.18 no.5
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• pp.91-107
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• 2023

Lean startup is a concept that combines the words "lean," meaning an efficient way of running a business, and "startup," meaning a new business. It is often cited as a strategy for minimizing failure in early-stage businesses, especially in software-based startups. By scrutinizing the case of a startup L, this study suggests that lean startup methodology(LSM) can be useful for hardware and manufacturing companies and identifies ways for early startups to successfully implement LSM. To this end, the study explained the core of LSM including the concepts of hypothesis-driven approach, BML feedback loop, minimum viable product(MVP), and pivot. Five criteria to evaluate the successful implementation of LSM were derived from the core concepts and applied to evaluate the case of startup L . The early startup L pivoted its main business model from defecation alert system for patients with limited mobility to one for infants or toddlers, and finally to a smart bottle for infants. In developing the former two products, analyzed from LSM's perspective, company L neither established a specific customer value proposition for its startup idea and nor verified it through MVP experiment, thus failed to create a BML feedback loop. However, through two rounds of pivots, startup L discovered new target customers and customer needs, and was able to establish a successful business model by repeatedly experimenting with MVPs with minimal effort and time. In other words, Company L's case shows that it is essential to go through the customer-market validation stage at the beginning of the business, and that it should be done through an MVP method that does not waste the startup's time and resources. It also shows that it is necessary to abandon and pivot a product or service that customers do not want, even if it is technically superior and functionally complete. Lastly, the study proves that the lean startup methodology is not limited to the software industry, but can also be applied to technology-based hardware industry. The findings of this study can be used as guidelines and methodologies for early-stage companies to minimize failures and to accelerate the process of establishing a business model, scaling up, and going global.

• Journal of the Mineralogical Society of Korea
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.85-94
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• 2012

The $AsO_4$ ion in acid mine drainage has been known to substitute for $SO_4$ in schwertmannite and prevent schwertmannite from being converted to goethite. There have been studies on the heavy metal sorption on schwertmannite, but no experimental results have been reported on the characteristics of heavy metal sorption on $AsO_4$-substituted schwertmannite. In this study, we conducted sorption experiments of Cu, Pb, and Zn on the $AsO_4$-substituted schwertmannite at pH 4 and 6 in the solution of 3, 10, 30, and 100 mg/L concentrations. For all heavy metals, the sorbed heavy metals significantly increase at pH 6 compared with at pH 4. At both pH 4 and 6, Pb shows the highest sorption capacity and those of Cu and Zn are similar. With increasing time, the sorbed heavy meal contents increase too. However, in the case of Zn, the most sorptions occur at the initial stage and no significant increase is observed with time. Among the concentration ranges in which we conducted the experiment, the increasing trend is clear in high concentrated solutions such as 100 mg/L. We applied several sorption kinetic model and it shows that the diffusion process may be the most important factor controlling the sorption kinetics of Cu, Pb, and Zn on $AsO_4$-substituted schwertmannite. Considering the previous results that pure schwertmannite has similar sorption capacity for all three heavy metals at pH 6 and has higher sorption capacity for Cu and Pb than Zn at pH 4, our experiments indicates that substitution of $AsO_4$ for $SO_4$ on schwertmannite changes surface and sorption characteristics of schwertmannite. It also shows that $AsO_4$ contributes not only to the stability of schwertmannite, but also to the mobility of heavy metals in acid mine drainage.

• Korean Journal of Mineralogy and Petrology
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.101-109
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• 2022

The mobility and transport of radioactive cesium are crucial factors to consider for the safety assessment of high-level radioactive waste disposal sites in granite. The retardation of radionuclides in the fractured crystalline rock is mainly controlled by the hydrochemical condition of groundwater and surface reactions with minerals present in the fractures. This paper reports the experimental results of cesium sorption to the Wonju Granite, a typical Mesozoic granite in Korea, performed in an anaerobic chamber that mimics the anoxic environment of a deep disposal site. We measured the rates and amounts of cesium (¹³³Cs) removed by crushed granite samples in different electrolyte (NaCl, KCl, and CaCl₂) solutions and a synthetic groundwater solution, with variations in the initial cesium concentration (10^-5, 5×10^-6, 10^-6, 5×10^-7 M). The cesium sorption kinetic and isotherm data were successfully simulated by the pseudo-second-order kinetic model (r²= 0.99) and the Freundlich isotherm model (r²= 0.99), respectively. The sorption distribution coefficient of granite increased almost linearly with increasing biotite content in granite samples, indicating that biotite is an effective cesium scavenger. The cesium removal was minimal in KCl solution compared to that in NaCl or CaCl₂ solution, regardless of the ionic strength and initial cesium concentration that we examined, showing that K⁺ is the most competitive ion against cesium in sorption to granite. Because it is the main source mineral of K⁺ in fracture fluids, biotite may also hinder the sorption of cesium, which warrants further research.

• Journal of the Korean Crystal Growth and Crystal Technology
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• v.18 no.5
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• pp.217-224
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• 2008

A stoichiometric mixture of evaporating materials for $ZnIn_2Se_4$ single crystal thin films was prepared from horizontal electric furnace. To obtain the single crystal thin films, $ZnIn_2Se_4$ mixed crystal was deposited on thoroughly etched semi-insulating GaAs(100) substrate by the Hot Wall Epitaxy (HWE) system. The source and substrate temperatures were $630^{\circ}C$ and $400^{\circ}C$, respectively. The crystalline structure of the single crystal thin films was investigated by the photoluminescence and double crystal X-ray diffraction (DCXD). The carrier density and mobility of $ZnIn_2Se_4$ single crystal thin films measured from Hall effect by van der Pauw method are $9.41\times10^{16}cm^{-3}$ and $292cm^2/v{\cdot}s$ at 293 K, respectively. The temperature dependence of the energy band gap of the $ZnIn_2Se_4$ obtained from the absorption spectra was well described by the Varshni's relation, $E_g(T)=1.8622eV-(5.23\times10^{-4}eV/K)T^2/(T+775.5K)$. The crystal field and the spin-orbit splitting energies for the valence band of the $ZnIn_2Se_4$ have been estimated to be 182.7 meV and 42.6 meV, respectively, by means of the photocurrent spectra and the Hopfield quasicubic model. These results indicate that the splitting of the ${\Delta}so$ definitely exists in the ${\Gamma}_5$ states of the valence band of the $ZnIn_2Se_4/GaAs$ epilayer. The three photo current peaks observed at 10 K are ascribed to the $A_{1}-$, $B_{1}-exciton$ for n = 1 and $C_{27}-exciton$ peaks for n = 27.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2016.02a
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• pp.284-284
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• 2016

Topological insulator (TI) is a bulk-insulating material with topologically protected Dirac surface states in the band gap. In particular, $Bi_2Se_3$ attracted great attention as a model three-dimensional TI due to its simple electronic structure of the surface states in a relatively large band gap (~0.3 eV). However, experimental efforts using $Bi_2Se_3$ have been difficult due to the abundance of structural defects, which frequently results in the bulk conduction being dominant over the surface conduction in transport due to the bulk doping effects of the defect sites. One promising approach in avoiding this problem is to reduce the structural defects by heteroepitaxially grow $Bi_2Se_3$ on a substrate with a compatible lattice structure, while also preventing surface degradation by encapsulating the pristine interface between $Bi_2Se_3$ and the substrate in a clean growth environment. A particularly promising choice of substrate for the heteroepitaxial growth is hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN), which has the same two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals (vdW) layered structure and hexagonal lattice symmetry as $Bi_2Se_3$. Moreover, since h-BN is a dielectric insulator with a large bandgap energy of 5.97 eV and chemically inert surfaces, it is well suited as a substrate for high mobility electronic transport studies of vdW material systems. Here we report the heteroepitaxial growth and characterization of high quality topological insulator $Bi_2Se_3$ thin films prepared on h-BN layers. Especially, we used molecular beam epitaxy to achieve high quality TI thin films with extremely low defect concentrations and an ideal interface between the films and substrates. To optimize the morphology and microstructural quality of the films, a two-step growth was performed on h-BN layers transferred on transmission electron microscopy (TEM) compatible substrates. The resulting $Bi_2Se_3$ thin films were highly crystalline with atomically smooth terraces over a large area, and the $Bi_2Se_3$ and h-BN exhibited a clear heteroepitaxial relationship with an atomically abrupt and clean interface, as examined by high-resolution TEM. Magnetotransport characterizations revealed that this interface supports a high quality topological surface state devoid of bulk contribution, as evidenced by Hall, Shubnikov-de Haas, and weak anti-localization measurements. We believe that the experimental scheme demonstrated in this talk can serve as a promising method for the preparation of high quality TI thin films as well as many other heterostructures based on 2D vdW layered materials.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.11 no.5
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• pp.309-318
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• 2002

A stoichiometric mixture of evaporating materials for $CdIn_2S_4$ single crystal thin films was prepared from horizontal electric furnace. To obtain the single crystal thin films, $CdIn_2S_4$ mixed crystal was deposited on thoroughly etched semi-insulating GaAs(100) substrate by the Hot Wall Epitaxy (HWE) system. The source and substrate temperatures were $630^{\circ}C$ and $420^{\circ}C$, respectively. The crystalline structure of the single crystal thin films was investigated by the photoluminescence and double crystal X-ray diffraction (DCXD). The carrier density and mobility of $CdIn_2S_4$ single crystal thin films measured with Hall effect by van der Pauw method are $9.01{\times}10^{16}\;cm^{-3}$ and $219\;cm^2/V{\cdot}s$ at 293 K, respectively. The temperature dependence of the energy band gap of the $CdIn_2S_4$ obtained from the absorption spectra was well described by the Varshni's relation, $E_g(T)=2.7116\;eV-(7.74{\times}10^{-4}\;eV)T^2/(T+434)$. The crystal field and the spin-orbit splitting energies for the valence band of the $CdIn_2S_4$ have been estimated to be 0.1291 eV and 0.0248 eV, respectively, by means of the photocurrent spectra and the Hopfield quasi cubic model. These results indicate that the splitting of the ${\Delta}so$ definitely exists in the ${\Gamma}5$ states of the valence band of the $AgInS_2$/GaAs epilayer. The three photocurrent peaks observed at 10K areascribed to the $A_1$-, $B_1$-, and C1-exciton peaks for n = 1.

• The korean journal of orthodontics
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• v.31 no.5 s.88
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• pp.517-523
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• 2001

Titanium miniscrews we being used increasingly as an anchorage for tooth movement, because they ate easy to place and to remove, increase the number of sites available, give minimum strain to patients regarding surgical procedures, and offer uneventful healing alter removal. The use of titanium miniscrews as an orthodontic anchorage has been reported in clinical case reports, but clinicians have experienced screw loosening when using such screws.' To our knowledge, there are no published reports evaluating the stability of miniscrews. Information about the length of miniscrews used in relation to the location is of some importance, as stability will vary depending on bone duality The purpose of this study was to evaluate a variety of Lengths of miniscrews (dimeter: 2mm) which were inserted in maxilla or mandible and to demonstrate in a dog model which miniscrew provides fundamental stability in the jaws. 10 mm long miniscrews in the maxilla and 8mm long: miniscrews in the mandible showed no clinical mobility and retained their position throughout an 8 weeks force (200g) application. The mucosal condition around the screws was healthy in cases in which miniserews were inserted in the alveolar bone between the roots and the head of the screws emerged into the attached gingiva. When the force application was terminated, radiographic analysis revealed neither rent resorption not periodontal pathology around the miniscrews that remained stable during the entire treatment period. This study suggests that if titanium miniscrews with adequate length are properly used depending on the location, they provide sufficient stability for orthodontic anchorage.

• Journal of Animal Environmental Science
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.135-144
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• 2002

A computer simulation was carried out to investigate the optimum capacity of liquid manure tank spreader which is used as a tractor attachment. Soil physical properties, such as soil moisture content, bulk density, soil hardness and soil types were measured in the 10 major rice production area for computer simulation. Mathematical model which include soil physical properties and vehicle factor was used for computer simulation. Most of the soil type of the investigated area was sandy clay loam. Soil moisture content ranged between 30 and 40% mostly. Soil bulk density was in the range of 1,500 to 1,700 kg/$m^3$. Soil hardness ranged between 1 to 18 $cm^2$. Soil hardness incorporate the effects of many soil physical properties such as soil moisture content, soil type and soil bulk density, and so the range of soil hardness is greater than any other physical properties. The capacity of liquid manure tank spreader was above 3,000 kg$_{f}$ for the most of the investigated areas, and mostly in the range of 4,000 to 6,000 $kg_f$ depending upon the slip. But for the soft soil area such as Andong and Asan, the tractor itself has mobility problem and shows no pulling force for some places. For this area, the capacity of liquid manure tank spreader ranged between 1,000 and 2,000 $kg_f$ mostly, so the capacity of liquid manure tank spreader should be designed as a small capacity trailer compared to the other area.mpared to the other area.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.277-286
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• 2023

Sarcopenia is the age-related loss of muscle mass and function. It is a natural part of aging and can lead to decreased mobility and increased frailty. The ubiquitin-proteasome pathway, which is involved in muscle protein degradation, is closely linked to sarcopenia. Germinated Rhynchosia nulubilis hydrolysate (GRH) has been reported to have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, but there have been no reports on its inhibitory effect on muscle reduction. However, no study has yet explored the relationship between GRH and muscle loss inhibition. In this study, we evaluated the effects of GRH on muscle atrophy inhibitory activity in dexamethasone (Dexa)-induced muscle atrophy C2C12 myotubes and mouse models. Moreover, we identified a molecular pathway underlying the effects of GRH on skeletal muscle. May Grunwald-Giemsa staining showed that the length and area of myotubes increased in the groups treated with GRH. In addition, the GRH-treated group significantly reduced the expression of muscle ring finger protein 1 and muscular atrophy F-box (MAFbx) in the Dexa-induced muscular atrophy C2C12 model. GRH also improved muscle strength in C57BL/6 mice with Dexa-induced muscle atrophy, resulting in prolonged running exhaustive time and increased grip strength. We found that muscle strengthening by GRH was correlated with a decreased expression of the MAFbx gene in mouse muscle tissue. In conclusion, GRH can attenuate Dexa-induced muscle atrophy by inhibiting the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway via downregulation of the MAFbx gene expression.