• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.429-437
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• 2012

Objectives : Obesity is an important cause of diabetes, and lipotoxicity causes insulin resistance. In this study, we investigated the effects of Salvia miltiorrhiza on high fat diet-induced obese type 2 diabetic mouse models. Methods : Diabetes was induced in ICR male mouse (23~25 g) with Surwit's high fat, high sucrose diet. Mice were divided into 4 groups (n=10) of normal, control, Salvia miltiorrhiza, and metformin. After 8 weeks, body weight, OGTT, fructosamine, lipid profile, serum level of adiponectin and leptin, epididymal fat pad, liver weight and epididymal adipocyte size were measured. Results : Salvia miltiorrhiza significantly reduced oral glucose tolerance levels, fructosamine serum level, epididymal fat weight, and epididymal adipocyte size. Salvia miltiorrhiza also increased HDL-cholesterol, adiponectin and leptin serum levels. Conclusions : These results show that Salvia miltiorrhiza improves insulin resistance. Therefore we suggest that Salvia miltiorrhiza would be an effective treatment for obese type 2 diabetic patients.

• Preventive Nutrition and Food Science
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.230-237
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• 2015

This study investigated the impact of microalgal oil (MO) on body weight management in C57BL/6J mice. Obesity was induced for 8 weeks and animals were orally supplemented with the following for 8 additional weeks: beef tallow (BT), corn oil, fish oil (FO), microalgal oil (MO), or none, as a high fat diet control group (HD). A normal control group was fed with a normal diet. After completing the experiment, the FO and MO groups showed significant decreases in body weight gain, epididymal fat pad weights, serum triglycerides, and total cholesterol levels compared to the HD and BT groups. A lower mRNA expression level of lipid anabolic gene and higher levels of lipid catabolic genes were observed in both FO and MO groups. Serum insulin and leptin concentrations were lower in the MO group. These results indicated that microalgal oil has an anti-obesity effect that can combat high fat diet-induced obesity in mice.

• Journal of Information Technology Services
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.309-321
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• 2014

Recently, due to the advent of ubiquitous computing and the spread of intelligent portable device such as smart phone, iPad and PDA has been amplified, a variety of services and the amount of information has also increased fastly. It is becoming a part of our common life style that the demands for enjoying the wireless internet are increasing anytime or anyplace without any restriction of time and place. And also, the demands for e-commerce and many different items on e-commerce and interesting of associated items are increasing. Existing collaborative filtering (CF), explicit method, can not only reflect exact attributes of item, but also still has the problem of sparsity and scalability, though it has been practically used to improve these defects. In this paper, using a implicit method without onerous question and answer to the users, not used user's profile for rating to reduce customers' searching effort to find out the items with high purchasability, it is necessary for us to analyse the segmentation of customer and item based on customer data and purchase history data, which is able to reflect the attributes of the item in order to improve the accuracy of recommendation. We propose the method of recommendation system using association rule and weighted preference so as to consider many different items on e-commerce and to refect the profit/weight/importance of attributed of a item. To verify improved performance of proposing system, we make experiments with dataset collected in a cosmetic internet shopping mall.

• The KIPS Transactions:PartA
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• v.13A no.7 s.104
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• pp.589-598
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• 2006

In this paper, we describe the development and optimization of an embedded Biuetooth solution on an SoC platform for real-time audio streaming over a Bluetooth wireless link. The solution includes embedded Bluetooth protocol stack and profile simplemented on a virtual operating system for portability, and other optimization techniques to fully exploit the benefits of multimedia-oriented SoC. The optimization techniques implemented in this paper are memory access minimization by using on-chip scratch pad memory, codec library optimization with DSP and parallel memory access instruction set, and dynamic audio quality adjustment regarding current wireless link status. Experimental results show that the optimized solution presented in this paper can support high-qualify audio streaming without the support of external memory.

• Transactions of Materials Processing
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• v.7 no.6
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• pp.554-561
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• 1998

This paper describes a research work of developing a computer-aided design of lead frame semicon-ductor with piercing operation which is very precise for progressive working. An approach to the sys-tem is based on to knowledge-based rules. Knowledge for the system is formulated from plasticity theories experimental results and the empirical knowledge of field experts. This system has been writ-ten using AutoLISP to AutoCAD on a personal computer and is composed of three main modules which are input and shape treatment production feasibility check and strip-layout module. Based on the knowledge-based rules the system is designed by considering several factors such as material and thickness of product complexities of blank geometry and punch profile, and availability of press. Also strip-layout drawing generated by piercing operation according to punch profiles considered V-notch dimple. pad chamfer spank cavity punch camber and cross bow of lead frame is displayed in graphic forms. This system can be used by a novice who may not have any knowledge of tool design and will invrease efficiencies to the designer in this field.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.8 no.6
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• pp.618-624
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• 2014

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Isoflavones are widely believed to be beneficial to human health, in relation to their antioxidant potentials. Exercise can cause an imbalance between reactive oxygen species (ROS) and antioxidants. This study was conducted in order to investigate the ability of isoflavones in amelioration of oxidative stress induced by exercise. MATERIALS/METHODS: Male Sprague-Dawley rats were assigned to one of four groups: isoflavone-free with no exercise (CON-sd), isoflavone-free with exercise (CON-ex), isoflavone-supplemented with no exercise (ISF-sd), and isoflavone-supplemented with exercise (ISF-ex). Animals exercised on the treadmill for 30 minutes per day, five days per week. TBARS as a marker of oxidative stress and antioxidant enzyme activity, including SOD, GSH-px, and catalase were determined in liver tissue. Serum lipid profile was also examined. RESULTS: A significant effect of isoflavone alone was observed on abdominal fat pad mass. ISF-ex had significantly less abdominal fat pad than CON-ex. Both exercise and isoflavone treatment had significant effects on lowering plasma triglyceride (TG), thus, the ISF-ex group had a significantly lower TG level than the CON-sd group, by 30.9%. However, no differences were observed in plasma cholesterol, HDL-C, and cholesterol/HDL-C ratio. Exercise, isoflavone, and exercise-isoflavone interaction effects were significant on thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) (P = 0.001, 0.002, and 0.005, respectively). The CON-ex group showed a higher TBARS level than the other three groups. By contrast, in the ISF-ex group, TBARS was restored to the level of the ISF-sd or CON-sd group. Isoflavone had a significant effect on superoxide dismutase (SOD) (P = 0.022) and catalase activities (P = 0.049). Significantly higher SOD and catalase activities were observed in ISF-ex than CON-ex. SOD and catalase activities showed an inverse pattern of TBARS. Taken together, isoflavones increased the activities of SOD and catalase with concomitant decreases in TBARS, indicative of decreased oxidative stress. CONCLUSIONS: Isoflavone supplementation enhances antioxidant action with attenuation of exercise-induced oxidative stress, as measured by decreases in TBARS, and inhibits body fat accumulation and plasma TG increase. Antioxidative effects ascribed to isoflavones may be partially exerted via enhancement of antioxidant enzyme activities.

• The KSFM Journal of Fluid Machinery
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.44-52
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• 2009

Small scale steam turbines are used as mechanical drivers in chemical process plant or power generators. In this study, a design technology was developed for a 100kW class steam turbine which will be used for removing $CO_2$ from the emission gas on a reheated cycle system. This turbine is operated at a low inlet total pressure of $5\;kgf/cm^2$. It consists of two stages and operates at the partial admission. For the meanline analysis, a performance prediction method was developed and it was validated through the performances on the operating small steam turbines which are using at plants. Their results showed that the output power was predicted within 10% deviation although the steam turbines adopted in this analysis were operated at different flow conditions and rotor size. The turbine blades was initially designed based on the computed results obtained from the meanline analysis. A supersonic nozzle was designed on the basis of the operating conditions of the turbine, and the first stage rotor was designed using a supersonic blade design method. The stator and second stage rotor was designed using design parameters for the blade profile. Finally, Those blades were iteratively modified from the flow structures obtained from the three-dimensional flow analysis to increase the turbine performance. The turbine rotor system was designed so that it could stably operate by 76% separation margin with tilting pad bearings.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.106-113
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• 2010

In this study, we compared corn gluten hydrolyzates, BCAAs, and leucine for their effects on body weight reduction in high fat-induced obese rats in order to determine the major active components in the corn gluten hydrolyzates. After obesity was induced for 13 weeks with high fat diet, the overweight-induced SD rats (n = 64) were stratified according to body weight, randomly blocked into eight treatments, and raised for 8 weeks. Four groups were changed to a normal diet and the other groups remained on the high fat diet. Each of the groups within both diets was fed either casein, corn gluten hydrolyzates, leucine, or branched chain amino acids, respectively. Daily food intake, body weight gain, and food efficiency ratio were significantly lower in the corn gluten hydrolyzate groups compared to the other groups, regardless of the high fat diet or normal fat diet. The rats fed the corn gluten hydrolyzates diet had the lowest perirenal fat pad weights whereas muscle weight was significantly increased in the corn gluten hydrolyzates groups. Plasma triglyceride, hepatic total lipid, and total cholesterol contents were significantly reduced in the corn gluten hydrolyzates groups. Other lipid profile measurements were not significantly changed. Plasma triglyceride and hepatic total lipid were also significantly reduced in the BCAA and leucine groups. Leptin levels were significantly lower and adiponectin was significantly higher in the corn gluten hydrolyzates groups. Fasting blood glucose, insulin, C-peptide, and HOMA-IR levels were also significantly reduced in the corn gluten hydrozylates groups, regardless of fat level.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.50 no.6
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• pp.578-585
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• 2023

An artificial sphincter implanted in the bulbous urethra to treat severe postprostatectomy urinary incontinence is effective, but embedding-associated complications can occur. We assessed the feasibility, efficacy, and safety of urethral graciloplasty cross-innervated by the pudendal nerve. A simulation surgery on three male fresh cadavers was performed. Both ends of the gracilis muscle were isolated only on its vascular pedicle with proximal end of the obturator nerve severed and transferred to the perineum. We examined whether the gracilis muscle could be wrapped around the bulbous urethra and whether the obturator nerve was long enough to suture with the pudendal nerve. In addition, surgery was performed on a 71-year-old male patient with severe urinary incontinence. The postoperative 12-month outcomes were assessed using a 24-hour pad test and urodynamic study. In all cadaveric simulations, the gracilis muscles could be wrapped around the bulbous urethra in a γ-loop configuration. The length of the obturator nerve was sufficient for neurorrhaphy with the pudendal nerve. In the clinical case, the postoperative course was uneventful. The mean maximum urethral closure pressure and functional profile length increased from 40.7 to 70 cm H₂O and from 40.1 to 45.3 mm, respectively. Although urinary incontinence was not completely cured, the patient was able to maintain urinary continence at night. Urethral graciloplasty cross-innervated by the pudendal nerve is effective in raising the urethral pressure and reducing urinary incontinence.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.221-229
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• 2018

Tenofovir nanoparticles are novel therapeutic intervention in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection reaching the virus in their sanctuary sites. However, there has been no systemic toxicity testing of this formulation despite global concerns on the safety of nano drugs. Therefore, this study was designed to investigate the toxicity of Tenofovir nanoparticle (NTDF) on the liver and kidney using an animal model. Fifteen adult male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats maintained at the animal house of the biomedical resources unit of the University of KwaZulu-Natal were weighed and divided into three groups. Control animals (A) were administered with normal saline (NS). The therapeutic doses of Tenofovir (TDF) and nanoparticles of Tenofovir (NTDF) were administered to group B and C and observed for signs of stress for four weeks after which animals were weighed and sacrificed. Liver and kidney were removed and fixed in formal saline, processed and stained using H/E, PAS and MT stains for light microscopy. Serum was obtained for renal function test (RFT) and liver function test (LFT). Cellular measurements and capturing were done using ImageJ and Leica software 2.0. Data were analysed using graph pad 6, p values < 0.05 were significant. We observed no signs of behavioural toxicity and no mortality during this study, however, in the kidneys, we reported mild morphological perturbations widening of Bowman's space, and vacuolations in glomerulus and tubules of TDF and NTDF animals. Also, there was a significant elevation of glycogen deposition in NTDF and TDF animals when compared with control. In the liver, there were mild histological changes with widening of sinusoidal spaces, vacuolations in hepatocytes and elevation of glycogen deposition in TDF and NTDF administered animals. In addition to this, there were no significant differences in stereological measurements and cell count, LFT, RFT, weight changes and organo-somatic index between treatment groups and control. In conclusion, NTDF and TDF in therapeutic doses can lead to mild hepatic and renal histological damage. Further studies are needed to understand the precise genetic mechanism.