• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
• /
• v.16 no.6
• /
• pp.511-524
• /
• 2007

Korea has 30 years of experiences in environmental impact assessment (EIA). Although EIA includes sanitation-public health factor, considering health impacts, among 74 unit projects of 17 sections, health impacts haven't been properly considered or have been ignored in many cases. The increasing awareness on the importance of health impacts has triggered this study to seek an optimal introduction scheme of health impact assessment (HIA). The processes of EIA already include screening, scoping, analysis, impact assessment, consultation, document review, decision making and monitoring, in which they would be the essential parts of HIA. In this context, integrating HIA into the existing EIA process could be the most effective way to use the benefits in both legal and procedural processes existed and to avoid the confusion and overlapping since the close relationships between environment and health impacts might be. Furthermore, it is desirable that the existing sanitation-public health factor should be substituted by and extended to environment-health factor with sufficient determinants to properly consider health impacts. When considering the first step of HIA, the prospective and qualitative approach is suitable more than the retrospective and quantitative one due to the lack of database accumulated. Similarly, an approach based on epidemiology and toxicology could analyze the limited evidences and impacts related to human disease, whereas one based on socio-science and psychology could provide the effective means available for predicting how the people and community will act by the change of surroundings. Checklist approach with various and comprehensive health determinants focused on prospective and qualitative methods will be very useful for more convenient and progressive dissemination of HIA. Various checklist approaches of toolkits could be found from HIA documents elsewhere, for example Westminster Toolkit, and they would be helpful to figure out how to develop common procedures and health determinants for checklist, in which the unique characteristics on korean cultural and political context compared to abroad should be carefully considered since checklist would be the most basic and essential part of HIA. After the establishment of checklist and procedural processes, the pilot projects should be conducted. Main purpose of pilot projects is to apparently prove the effectiveness and profitability of HIA. Pilot projects should be implemented to decide the effectiveness and suitability of HIA for future projects, programs and policies, and should be provided as the positive cases that can be achieved through the proper implementation and progress.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
• /
• v.15 no.11
• /
• pp.6518-6526
• /
• 2014

The aim of this study was to obtain a complete picture of green catalytic technology developments. The data set for analysis was collected from the data from 4,172 patents, 28,726 technical papers and 548 Government R&D projects. The covering periods were 2001 to 2012 for patents and technical papers, whereas while that for the Government R&D projects were 2001 to 2011. The analysis methodologies consisted of qualitative and quantitative approaches. The patent for catalytic technology has been increasing, even though it was developed some time ago. The increase in patents for catalytic technology has been outstanding since 2008. As a result of the analysis of patents, fuel cell comprised 41.9%, followed by coal liquefaction 23.6%. The analysis of technical papers ranked fuel cell ranked 1st, followed by hydrogen. Fuel cells, hydrogen and coal liquefaction outperformed in green catalytic technological developments. As a result of this study, it was apparently concluded that the speed for the green economy from the fossil fuel-based economy has accelerated. Therefore it will be necessary to prepare for the early realization of a green energy-based economy on a variety of aspects as soon as possible.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.33 no.2
• /
• pp.187-196
• /
• 2020

Objective: Porcine respiratory disease is one of the most important health problems causing significant economic losses. To understand the genetic basis for susceptibility to swine enzootic pneumonia (EP) in pigs, we detected 102,809 single nucleotide polymorphisms in a total of 249 individuals based on genome-wide sequencing data. Methods: Genome comparison of susceptibility to swine EP in three pig breeds (Jinhua, Erhualian, and Meishan) with two western lines that are considered more resistant (Duroc and Landrace) using cross-population extended haplotype homozygosity and F-statistic (F_ST) statistical approaches identified 691 positively selected genes. Based on quantitative trait loci, gene ontology terms and literature search, we selected 14 candidate genes that have convincible biological functions associated with swine EP or human asthma. Results: Most of these genes were tested by several methods including transcription analysis and candidate genes association study. Among these genes: cytochrome P450 1A1 and catenin beta 1 (CTNNB1) are involved in fertility; transforming growth factor beta receptor 3 plays a role in meat quality traits; Wnt family member 2, CTNNB1 and transcription factor 7 take part in adipogenesis and fat deposition simultaneously; plasminogen activator, urokinase receptor (completely linked to AXL receptor tyrosine kinase, r² = 1) plays an essential role in the successful ovulation of matured oocytes in pigs; colipase like 2 (strongly linked to SAM pointed domain containing ETS transcription factor, r² = 0.848) is involved in male fertility. Conclusion: These adverse genes susceptible to swine EP may be selected while selecting for economic traits (especially reproduction traits) due to pleiotropic and hitchhiking effect of linked genes. Our study provided a completely new point of view to understand the genetic basis for susceptibility or resistance to swine EP in pigs thereby, provides insight for designing sustainable breed selection programs. Finally, the candidate genes are crucial due to their potential roles in respiratory diseases in a large number of species, including human.

• The Korean Journal of Zoology
• /
• v.26 no.4
• /
• pp.235-251
• /
• 1983

Several approaches have been made to access the mechanism of fusion in chick myoblast in vitro. Lactoperoxidase-catalyzed iodination was applied to labell cell surface proteins during myogenesis. Quantitative as well as qualitative changes were observed in $^131$I surface components of prefusion and postfusion cells. Two proteins with a molecular weight of 165K and 93K daltons were observed to appear at the onset of fusion as compared to prefusion stage. At the same time, 245K dalton protein decreased whereas the low molecular weight proteins increased consistently. The decrease of high molecular weight proteins appears to be associated with the cell cycle of myoblast during differentiation. The increased appearance of low molecular weight proteins might be due to the proteolytic cleavage of the high molecular weight proteins. Examination of intracellulr cAMP levels during fusion has revealed that a large but transient increase in cAMP occurs before the onset of fusion. This result suggests a causal relationship between the increase of cAMP and the onset of fusion, and further, that differentiating myoblasts are synthronized to a high degree. During the course of myoblast differentiation, at least four lowe molecular weight proteins, which different from major surface proteins iodinated, were identifiable in the culture medium. These proteins could be ascribed to be released from the membrane by proteolytic cleavage of surface proteins in the course of myoblast fusion. The significance of cell surface alterations and the released proteins during the fusion, the involvement of cAMP in the onset of fusion and the possibility that fusion is promoted by external factor(s) are discussed.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.15 no.18
• /
• pp.7575-7581
• /
• 2014

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play an essential role in the development and progression of nasopharyngeal carcinomas (NPC). Despite advances in the field of cancer molecular biology and biomarker discovery, the development of clinically validated biomarkers for primary NPC has remained elusive. In this study, we investigated the expression and clinical significance of miRNAs as novel primary NPC diagnostic biomarkers. We used an array containing 2, 500 miRNAs to identify 22 significant miRNAs, and these candidate miRNAs were validated using 67 fresh NPC and 25 normal control tissues via quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). Expression and correlation analyses were performed with various statistical approaches, in addition to logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic curve analyses to evaluate diagnostic efficacy. qRT-PCR revealed five differentially expressed miRNAs (miR-93-5p, miR-135b-5p, miR-205-5p and miR-183-5p) in NPC tissue samples relative to control samples (p<0.05), with miR-135b-5p and miR-205-5p being of significant diagnostic value (p<0.01). Moreover, comparison of NPC patient clinicopathologic data revealed a negative correlation between miR-93-5p and miR-183-5p expression levels and lymph node status (p<0.05). These findings display an altered expression of many miRNAs in NPC tissues, thus providing information pertinent to pathophysiological and diagnostic research. Ultimately, miR-135b-5p and miR-205-5p may be implicated as novel NPC candidate biomarkers, while miR-93-5p, miR-650 and miR-183-5p may find application as relevant clinical pathology and diagnostic candidate biomarkers.

• Korean Journal of Childcare and Education
• /
• v.11 no.3
• /
• pp.149-167
• /
• 2015

This study aims to propose the future direction of research of the Nuri-Curriculum, a national level curriculum, analyzing the subjects, the research methods, and the contents of Nuri-Curriculum studies, and current research trends. For these purposes, 102 Nuri-Curriculum articles in major child care-related journals from 2012-2015 are reviewed. PASW 18.0 program was used to calculate frequency and percentage rate. The major findings are as follows. First, a considerable amount of research has been carried out despite a relatively short implementation period. Second, many research topics dealt with include curriculum-related material. Third, 74.5 percent of the articles used quantitative methods, and content-analysis was the most widely used method among them. On the contrary, there was relatively less research which used the experimental method applying the curriculum to real practice, observational or qualitative method. Fourth, most of the research contents focus on the direction of making of the curriculum. Therefore, this paper proposes the necessity of supplementary research including its application to real practice as the research approaches on the Nuri-Curriculum performed so far have been limited.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.10 no.4
• /
• pp.482-503
• /
• 2019

Introduction: A new third version of the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire (COPSOQ III) has been developed in response to trends in working life, theoretical concepts, and international experience. A key component of the COPSOQ III is a defined set of mandatory core items to be included in national short, middle, and long versions of the questionnaire. The aim of the present article is to present and test the reliability of the new international middle version of the COPSOQ III. Methods: The questionnaire was tested among 23,361 employees during 2016-2017 in Canada, Spain, France, Germany, Sweden, and Turkey. A total of 26 dimensions (measured through scales or single items) of the middle version and two from the long version were tested. Psychometric properties of the dimensions were assessed regarding reliability (Cronbach α), ceiling and floor effects (fractions with extreme answers), and distinctiveness (correlations with other dimensions). Results: Most international middle dimensions had satisfactory reliability in most countries, though some ceiling and floor effects were present. Dimensions with missing values were rare. Most dimensions had low to medium intercorrelations. Conclusions: The COPSOQ III offers reliable and distinct measures of a wide range of psychosocial dimensions of modern working life in different countries; although a few measures could be improved. Future testing should focus on validation of the COPSOQ items and dimensions using both qualitative and quantitative approaches. Such investigations would enhance the basis for recommendations using the COPSOQ III.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
• /
• v.39 no.5 s.180
• /
• pp.615-626
• /
• 2006

The natural resources and material life-cycle include all human activities related to resources and material extraction, transportation, processing, use, recovery and disposal. Sustainable material management (SMM) is an integrated set of policy approaches targeted on economic agents throughout the material life-cycles and designed to result in economically efficient and environmentally effective material use. The material flows of industrial mineral, ores and fossil fuels have also long been a focal area for environmental policies because of the high environmental pressures associated with extraction, processing, consumption, and final disposal of these materials. OECD work on material flow is to improve the quantitative and analytical knowledge bases about natural resource and material flows within and among countries, so as to better understand the importance of material resources in member countries' economies. In several EU Member States, material flow accounts are part of official statistics. Material flow analysis (MFA) is a valuation method which assesses the efficiency of use of materials using information from material flow accounting. Material flow analysis helps to identify waste of natural resources and other materials in the economy which would otherwise go unnoticed in conventional economic monitoring systems. Resource use and resource efficiency has emerged as a major issue for long-term sustainability and environmental policy.

• Journal of Korean Society of Coastal and Ocean Engineers
• /
• v.22 no.2
• /
• pp.79-87
• /
• 2010

This is the first of the two papers dealing with reliability analyses for external and internal stability of a quay wall constructed on a special foundation. A new practical reliability analysis method is proposed in this paper to evaluate the quantitative risk associated with external stability of a quay wall constructed on the deep cement mixed ground. The method can consider uncertainties in various design variables. For the risk estimation to external stability of the improved soil-quay wall, three corresponding limit state functions of sliding, overturning and bearing capacity are fully defined by introducing concept of the secondary random variable. Three representative reliability methods, MVFOSM, FORM and MCS are then applied to evaluate the failure probabilities of the three limit state functions explicitly expressed in terms of the basic and secondary random variables. From the reliability analysis results, the failure probabilities obtained from the three approaches are very close to each other, and the sliding failure mode appears to be the most critical when the earthquake loading is under consideration.

• Reproductive and Developmental Biology
• /
• v.32 no.3
• /
• pp.141-146
• /
• 2008

To search a new porcine pheromonal odorant, the models of four type (2D-QSAR, HQSAR, CoMFA & CoMSlA) were derived from quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) between tetrahydrofuran-2-yl family compounds and their observed binding affinity constants (Obs.p$[Od]_{50}$). The optimized CoMFA model (predictability; $r^{2}_{cv.}(q^2)$=0.886 & correlation coefficient: $r^{2}_{ncv.}$=0.984) from ligand based approaches was confirmed as the best model among them. The $N^{1}$-allyl-$N^{2}$-(tetrahydrofuran-2-yl)methyl)oxalamide (P1), 2-(4-trimethylammoniummethylcyclohexyloxy)tetrahydrofurane (P5) and 2-(3-trimethylammoniummethylcyclohexyloxy)tetrahydrofurane (P6) molecules predicted as porcine pheromonal odorant by the CoMFA model were showed relatively high binding affinity constant values (Pred.p$[Od]_{50}=8{\sim}10$) and very lower toxicity values against some sorts of toxicity.