• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.519-527
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• 2022

Shear failure in soil is the primary cause of most geotechnical structure failures or instability. Soil water content is a significant factor affecting soil shear strength. In this study, the shear strength of samples with different water contents was tested. The shear strength, cohesion, and internal friction angle decreased with increasing water content. Based on the variation of cohesion and internal friction angle, the water content zone was divided into a high-water content zone and low-water content zone with a threshold water content of 15.05%. Cohesion and internal friction angle have a good linear relationship with water content in both zones. Environmental Scanning Electron Microscopy (ESEM) test presented that the aggregates size of the compacted loess gradually increases with increasing water content. Meanwhile, the clay in the compacted loess forms a matric that envelops around the surface of the aggregates and fills the inter-aggregates pores. A quantitative analysis of bound water and free water under different water contents using a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) test was carried out. The threshold water content between bound water and free water was slightly below the plastic limit, which is consistent with the results of shear strength parameters. Combined with the T2 distributions obtained by NMR, one can define a T2 relaxation time of 1.58 ms as the boundary point for bound water distribution without free water. Finally, the effects of bound water and free water on shear strength parameters were analyzed using linear regression analysis.

• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.181-191
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• 2013

Purpose : To evaluate the usefulness of in vivo magnetic resonance (MR) imaging for tracking intravenously injected superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO)-labeled human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) in an acute renal failure (ARF) rat model. Materials and Methods: HUVECs were labeled with SPIO and poly-L-lysine (PLL) complex. Relaxation rates at 1.5-T MR, cell viability, and labeling stability were assessed. HUVECs were injected into the tail vein of ARF rats (labeled cells in 10 rats, unlabeled cells in 2 rats). Follow-up serial $T2^*$-weighted gradient-echo MR imaging was performed at 1, 3, 5 and 7 days after injection, and the MR findings were compared with histologic findings. Results: There was an average of $98.4{\pm}2.4%$ Prussian blue stain-positive cells after labeling with SPIOPLL complex. Relaxation rates ($R2^*$) of all cultured HUVECs at day 3 and 5 were not markedly decreased compared with that at day 1. The stability of SPIO in HUVECs was maintained during the proliferation of HUVECs in culture media. In the presence of left unilateral renal artery ischemia, $T2^*$-weighted MR imaging performed 1 day after the intravenous injection of labeled HUVECs revealed a significant signal intensity (SI) loss exclusively in the left renal outer medulla regions, but not in the right kidney. The MR imaging findings at days 3, 5 and 7 after intravenous injection of HUVECs showed a SI loss in the outer medulla regions of the ischemically injured kidney, but the SI progressively recovered with time and the right kidney did not have a significant change in SI in the same period. Upon histologic analysis, the SI loss on MR images was correspondent to the presence of Prussian blue stained cells, primarily in the renal outer medulla. Conclusion: MR imaging appears to be useful for in vivo monitoring of intravenously injected SPIO-labeled HUVECs in an ischemically injured rat kidney.

• International Journal of Vascular Biomedical Engineering
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.13-19
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• 2003

Endothelial release of nitric oxide (NO) contributes to the regulation of vascular tone by inducing vascular relaxation. To estimate the blood flow-dependent nitric oxide level and half-life (T1/2) of nitric oxide in vivo state, we investigated the change of aortic NO currents during the change of aortic blood flow rate using NO-selective electrode system and electromagnetic flowmeter in the aorta of anesthetized rats. Resting mean aortic blood flow rate was $49.6{\pm}5.6ml/min$ in the anesthetized rats. NO currents in the aorta were increased by the elevation of blood pressure and/or blood flow rate. When the aortic blood flow was occluded by the clamping, aortic NO currents were decreased. The difference of NO concentration between resting state and occluded state was $1.34{\pm}0.26{\mu}M$ (n=7). This NO concentration was estimated as blood flow-dependent nitric oxide concentration in the rats. Also, while the aortic blood flow was occluded, NO currents were decreased with exponential pattern with $12.84{\pm}2.15$ seconds of time constant and $7.70{\pm}1.07$ seconds of half-life. To summarize, this study suggested that blood flow-dependent NO concentration and half-life of nitric oxide were about $1.3{\mu}M$ and 7.7 seconds, respectively, in the aorta of anesthetized rats. The nitric oxide-selective electrode system is useful for the direct and continuous measurement of NO in vivo state.

• Journal of the Korean Magnetic Resonance Society
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.98-104
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• 2013

The ERETIC (Electronic REference To access In vivo Concentrations)2 method is a new qNMR experimental technique to measure analytes based on the signal of the reference compound without additional hardware equipment. In this study, ERETIC2 method was validated, and we sought to identify whether it would be possible to apply this method to a specific compound analysis of metabolites in plant. The $90^{\circ}$ pulse value (P1) and spin-lattice relaxation time ($T_1$) of each compound were measured for ERETIC2. The $9^1H$ of 3-(trimethylsilyl) propionic-2,2,3,3-$d_4$ acid (TSP) was used as a reference peak for ERETIC 2, and then, a suitable solvent and pulse sequence for each compound were selected. Under the NOESY-presat sequence, the relative accuracy error for quantitative analyses of primary metabolites was within the range of 5%, with the exception of glucose, which showed ${\geq}$ 55% error due to saturation. It showed excellent results for the quantification of glucose by using a $30^{\circ}$ pulse sequence, which did not suppress the water peak. In addition, the quantitative accuracy for secondary metabolites was extremely accurate, with an error ${\leq}$5% when considering the purity of the standard sample. The ERETIC2 method showed outstanding linearity, precision, and accuracy.

• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.14-30
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• 1998

Manganese is an essential element in the body. It is mainly deposited in the liver and to a lesser degree in the basal ganglia of the brain and eliminated through the bile duct. Rapid turnover of managanese in the body makes it difficult to evaluate the manganese exposure in workers, esecially in those with irregular or intermittent exposure, like welders. Therefore, conventional biomarkers, including blood and urine manganese can provide only a limited information about the long-tern or cumulative exposure to manganese. Introduction of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) made a progress in the assessment of manganese exposure in the medical conditions related to manganese accumulation, e. g. hepatic failure and long-term total parenteral nutrition. Manganese shortens spin-lattice(T1) relaxation time on MRI due to its paramagnetic property, resulting in high signal intensity (HSI) on T1-weighted image(T1W1) of MRI. Manganese deposition in the brain, therefore, can be visualizedas an HSI in the globus pallidus, the substantia nigra, the putamen and the pituitary. clinical and epidemiologic studies regarding the MRI findings in the cases of occupational and non-occupational manganese exposure were reviewed. relationships between HSI on T1W1 of MRI and age, gender, occupational manganese exposure, and neurological dysfunction were analysed. Relationships betwen biological exposure indices and HSI on MRE werealso reviewed. Literatures were reviewed to establish the relationships between HSI, Manganese deposition in the brain, pathologic findings, and neurological dysfunction. HSI on T1W1 of MRI reflects regional manganese deposition in the brain. This relationship enables an estimation of regional manganese deposition in the brain by analysing MR signal intensity. Manganese deposition in the brain can induce a neuronal loss in the basal ganglia but functional abnormality is supposed to be related to the cumulative exposure of manganese in the brain, use of brain MRI for the assessment of exposure in a group of workers seems to be hardly rationalized, while ti can be a useful adjunct for the evaluation of manganese exposure int he cases with suspected manganese-related health problems.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.4 no.3
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• pp.43-52
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• 1984

This paper is concerned with the strain characteristics of the time effect on the remoulded saturated day sampled from the downstream of the Yeongsan river, and the constitutive equation that can generally explain time-dependent behaviors of norma1ly consolidated clay. This paper examines whether or not the afore-said constitutive equation can be applied to the remoulded Mooan-clay. Throughout this study, the conclusions obtained are as follows. 1. Throughout the isotropic consolidation test for 7 days and the isotropic relaxation test, the existence of the static and dynamic yielding surfaces is confirmed respectively. 2. The characteristics of time effect of the deformation, namely, the existence of a unique stress-strain-time relation, is conformed from the experimental result on the Mooan-clay. 3. The prodictions of the stress path and the strain on the Cam-clay theory is not consistent with those observed during the experiments. 4. Constitutive equation(2-3-12) obtained by applying Cam-clay theory to Perzyna's elastic-viscoplasticity theory can explain the behavior of pore water pressure during isotropic stress relaxation, concerned with time dependency under undrained condition. The equation can also explain the results of the undrained triaxial compression test for the clay with different strain rate under the same or different consolidation history. 5. This constitutive equation has eight material parameters which can be determined from triaxial compression tests.

• Journal of the Mineralogical Society of Korea
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.301-312
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• 2011

The study on the atomic structure of iron-bearing silicate glasses has significant geological implications for both diverse igneous processes on Earth surface and ultra-low velocity zones at the core-mantle boundary. Here, we report experimental results on the effect of iron content on the atomic structure in iron-bearing alkali silicate glasses ($Na_2O-Fe_2O_3-SiO_2$ glasses, up to 16.07 wt% $Fe_2O_3$) using $^{29}Si$ and $^{17}O$ solid-state NMR spectroscopy. $^{29}Si$ spin-lattice ($T_1$) relaxation time for the glasses decreases with increasing iron content due to an enhanced interaction between nuclear spin and unpaired electron in iron. $^{29}Si$ MAS NMR spectra for the glasses show a decrease in signal intensity and an increase in peak width with increasing iron content. However, the heterogeneous peak broa-dening in $^{29}Si$ MAS NMR spectra suggests the heterogeneous distribution of $Q^n$ species around iron in iron-bearing silicate glasses. While nonbridging oxygen ($Na-O-Si$) and bridging oxygen (Si-O-Si) peaks are partially resolved in $^{17}O$ MAS NMR spectrum for iron-free silicate glass, it is difficult to distinguish the oxygen clusters in iron-bearing silicate glass. The Lorentzian peak shape for $^{29}Si$ and $^{17}O$ MAS NMR spectra may reflect life-time broadening due to spin-electron interaction. These results demonstrate that solid-state NMR can be an effective probe of the detailed structure in iron-bearing silicate glasses.

• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.47-54
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• 2012

Purpose : This study was performed to evaluate the characteristics of rat mesenchymal stem cells (RMSCs) transduced with human ferritin gene and investigate $in$ $vitro$ MRI detectability of ferritin-transduced RMSCs. Materials and Methods: The RMSCs expressing both myc-tagged human ferritin heavy chain subunit (myc-FTH) and green fluorescence protein (GFP) were transduced with lentiviurs. Transduced cells were sorted by GFP expression using a fluorescence-activated cell sorter. Myc-FTH and GFP expression in transduced cells were detected by immunofluorescence staining. The cell proliferative ability and viability were assessed by MTT assay. The RMSC surface markers (CD29+/CD45-) were analyzed by flow cytometry. The intracellular iron amount was measured spectrophotometically and the presence of ferritin-iron accumulation was detected by Prussian blue staining. $In$ $vitro$ magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) study of cell phantoms was done on 9.4 T MR scanner to evaluate the feasibility of imaging the ferritin-transduced RMSCs. Results: The myc-FTH and GFP genes were stably transduced into RMSCs. No significant differences were observed in terms of biologic properties in transduced RMSCs compared with non-transduced RMSCs. Ferritin-transduced RMSCs exhibited increased iron accumulation ability and showed significantly lower $T_2$ relaxation time than non-transduced RMSCs. Conclusion: Ferritin gene as MR reporter gene could be used for non-invasive tracking and visualization of therapeutic mesenchymal stem cells by MRI.

• Journal of the Korean Magnetics Society
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.40-44
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• 2006

[ $Zn_{0.5}Ni_{0.5}Fe_2O_4$ ] nanoparticles have been prepared by a sol-gel method. The structural and magnetic properties have been investigated by XRD, SEM, and Mossbauer spectroscopy, VSM. $Zn_{0.5}Ni_{0.5}Fe_2O_4$ powder that was annealed at $300^{\circ}C$ has spinel structure and behaved superparamagnetically at room temperature. The estimated size of superparammagnetic $Zn_{0.5}Ni_{0.5}Fe_2O_4$ nanoparticle is around 7 nm. The hyperfine fields of the A and I patterns at 4.2 K were found to be 510 and 475 kOe, respectively. The blocking temperature $(T_B)$ of superparammagnetic $Zn_{0.5}Ni_{0.5}Fe_2O_4$ nanoparticle is about 90 K. The magnetic anisotropy constant and relaxation time constant of $Zn_{0.5}Ni_{0.5}Fe_2O_4$ nanoparticle were calculated to be $K=1.6\times10^6erg/cm^3$.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing Administration
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.149-167
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• 1999

This study was designed and carried out to investigate the effect of Assertiveness Training on the stress response and assertive behavior of emergency room nurses from September 22, to December 21. 1997. The subjects were 45 emergency room nurses of three general hospitals of Korea University Medical Center; 25 assigned for the experimental and 20 for the control group. The Assertive Training Program was composed of cognitive training, behavioral training and progressive muscle relaxation. The subjects of the experimental group carried out the 15-minute progressive muscle relaxation according to recorded-tape once a day for 6 weeks. The cognitive and the behavioural training were conducted by the investigator for 5-8 subjects at a time for 9 series, at an interval of 4-5 days. Post-measurement were administered to all sujects in two groups three weeks after the last session. The level of general stress (Cline, 1992), job stress (Kim & Koo, 1984), physiological response to stress (cortisol, epinephrine, norepinephrine), symptoms of stress (Lee, 1984) and assertive behavior (Kim, 1982) were measured before the first and after the last experiments. Data were analysed by x2, t, paired t, Wilcoxon signed rank tests Wilcoxon rank sums tests. The results are as follows : 1. The level of general stress of the experimental group was lower than that of the control group, however, no significant difference between the two groups (P=0.234) was revealed. 2. A significant reduction of job stress was revealed in the experimental group (P=0.017). 1) A significant reduction of interpersonal conflicts in the experimental group was revealed (P=0.018). 3. The physiological stress-response were analyzed as follows : 1) A decrease of Cortisol in both the experimental and the control groups was noticed, however, the difference between the two groups was not statistically significant (P=0.991). Pre-and post-measurement of the level of Corti sol revealed that a notable decrease in the experimental group and an increase in the control group with no significant difference in the day-day subjects (P=0.765), a significant decrease was noted on the level of Cortisol of the experimental group in the night-night nurses (P=0.036). 2) An increase of Epinephrine in both groups was noticed, however, a difference was not statistically significant between the two groups (P=0.082). Pre-and post-measurement of the level of Epinephrine revealed that a notable decrease in the experimental group and an increase in the control group with no significant difference in the day-day subjects (P=0.136). increases were noted on the level of Epinephrinel of both groups in the night-night nurses (P=0.136), 3) The level of Norepinephrine of the experimental group was significantly decreased (P=0.020). Pre-and post-measurement of the level of Norepinephrine revealed that a notable decrease in the experimental group and an increase in the control group with no significant difference in the day-day subjects (P=0.073). a significant decrease was noted on the level of Norepinephrine of the experimental group in the night-night nurses (P=0.036), 4. Symptoms of stress were reduced in both groups, with no significant differences between the groups (P=0.127). 1) The physical stress symptoms were reduced in both groups, with no significant difference (P=0.386), 2) The cognitive-behavioral stress symptoms were significantly reduced in the experimental group (P=0.037). 3) The emotional stress symptoms were reduced in both groups with no significant difference between the groups (P=0.110). 5. The assertive behavior was significantly increased in the experimental group (P=0.000). This study signified the Assertiveness Training as an effective mean of self intervention for the reduction of stress of nurses assigned to emergency rooms.