• The Journal of Korean Medicine Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology and Dermatology
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.61-67
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• 2012

Objective : The endpoint of this trial is to verify therapeutical availability of conventional western eyedrops combined with acupuncture treatment by means of BUT(tear film break-up time), Schirmer's test, which have been considered to be typical methods for diagnosing dry eye syndrome. Methods : The subjects of this trial included the outpatients who had been diagnosed with dry eye syndrome in Pusan national university hospital and underwent acupuncture treatment from March 2011 to April 2011. They received acupuncture treatment once a week, three times while constantly using Restasis or artificial tears. We collated and analyzed the outcome data of Schirmer's test and BUT conducted at the beginning of this trial and three times more after each acupuncture treatments. Acupoints, such as, Chanjuk(BL2), Eoryo, Sajukgong(TE23), Taeyang, Sabaek(ST2), limited around both eyes were selected based on their clinical effects referring to medical books. Results : 1. From BUT test results, Restasis and acupuncture combined group showed statistically significant difference, however, artificial tears and acupuncture combined group showed difference only between before and after the treatment, which is not statistically significant. 2. From Schirmer's test results, Restasis and acupuncture combined group showed statistically significant difference, however, artificial tears and acupuncture combined group showed difference only between before and after the treatment, which is not statistically significant. 3. The average duration of treatment was statistically 16.3 days for Restasis and acupuncture combined group. Conclusions : Combination of acupuncture and Restasis for dry eye syndrome can shorten the duration of treatment. Therefore, clinical benefit is expected to be worth.

• Journal of the Korean Recycled Construction Resources Institute
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.483-491
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• 2021

The purpose of this study is to analyze the economic effect of the use of recycled aggregate on the construction industry and the effect of increasing the value of the recycled aggregate production industry on the premise of supporting quality assurance technology to promote the high-quality use of recycled aggregate. Accordingly, the production cost of ready-mixed concrete that can be obtained through the use of high-quality recycled aggregate is analyzed according to the recycled aggregate application rate recommended in the recycled aggregate quality standard, The economic effect of general ready-mixed concrete and recycled aggregate-applied rea dy-mixed concrete industry wa s a na lyzed by identifying the domestic rea dy-mixed concrete industry sca le a nd the ra te of satisfaction of recycled aggregate volume, and a cost-benefit analysis method was used to examine the benefits of high-quality recycled aggregate production and sales. As a result, the production cost of ready-mixed concrete is reduced by 2.3~16.2% depending on the application rate, the economic effect of the use of recycled aggregate on the construction industry is about 106.8~142.6 billion KRW, and the effect of increasing the value of the recycled aggregate production industry generated about 1.22 times the benefit.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.409-424
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• 2019

Objectives: This research aimed to confirm the efficacy of oriental medicine in sixth cranial nerve palsy and to evaluate the quality of the studies. Methods: Using the medical subject heading (MeSH) keywords "abducens nerve palsy", "abducens nerve paralysis", "sixth nerve palsy", "herbal medicine", "Chinese medicine", "oriental medicine" and "acupuncture", we collected the research papers through an electronic database search in Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System (OASIS), National Discovery for Science Leaders (NDSL), PubMed, Cochran Library, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI). Results: A total of 136 papers were searched from the databases. Among these, 15 case reports and 8 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) met our criteria. 17 articles were found on the use of acupuncture as the main intervention, 11 on the use of herbal medicine as the main intervention, and 9 on the use of electroacupuncture as the main intervention. The frequently used acupoints were LI4, EX-HN5, GB1, BL2, TE23, LR3, BL1, ST2, GB20, and ST36. All 23 studies confirmed the efficacy of Korean medicine. According to the assessment using the risk of bias, the overall quality of the RCTs was low. Conclusions: Twenty-three papers suggested that Korean medicine treatment for abducens nerve palsy was effective in many cases. Analyzing the potential bias was difficult.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.29 no.9
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• pp.1047-1054
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• 2019

Transposable elements (TEs) occupy approximately 45% of the human genome and can enter functional genes randomly. During evolutionary radiation, multiple copies of TEs are produced by duplication events. Those elements contribute to biodiversity and phylogenomics. Most of them are controlled by epigenetic regulation, such as methylation or acetylation. Every species contains their own specific mobile elements, and they are divided into DNA transposons and retrotransposons. Retrotransposons can be divided by the presence of a long terminal repeat (LTR). They show various biological functions, such as promoter, enhancer, exonization, rearrangement, and alternative splicing. Also, they are strongly implicated to genomic instability, causing various diseases. Therefore, they could be used as biomarkers for the diagnosis and prognosis of diseases such as cancers. Recently, it was found that TEs could produce miRNAs, which play roles in gene inhibition through mRNA cleavage or translational repression, binding seed regions of target genes. Studies of TE-derived miRNAs offer a potential for the expression of functional genes. Comparative analyses of different types of miRNAs in various species and tissues could be of interest in the fields of evolution and phylogeny. Those events allow us to understand the importance of TEs in relation to biological roles and various diseases.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.523-530
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• 2019

The purpose of this study was to obtain the K-edge images using a spectral CT system based on a photon-counting detector and implement the 3D fusion imaging using the conventional and spectral CT images. Also, we evaluated the clinical feasibility of the 3D fusion images though the quantitative analysis of image quality. A spectral CT system based on a CdTe photon-counting detector was used to obtain K-edge images. A pork phantom was manufactured with the six tubes including diluted iodine and gadolinium solutions. The K-edge images were obtained by the low-energy thresholds of 35 and 52 keV for iodine and gadolinium imaging with the X-ray spectrum, which was generated at a tube voltage of 100 kVp with a tube current of $500{\mu}A$. We implemented 3D fusion imaging by combining the iodine and gadolinium K-edge images with the conventional CT images. The results showed that the CNRs of the 3D fusion images were 6.76-14.9 times higher than those of the conventional CT images. Also, the 3D fusion images was able to provide the maps of target materials. Therefore, the technique proposed in this study can improve the quality of CT images and the diagnostic efficiency through the additional information of target materials.

• Journal of Embryo Transfer
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.255-264
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• 2018

This experiment was conducted to analyse the effects of flavone supplementation on the preimplantation development of in-vitro produced porcine embryos. During in-vitro development, immature oocytes and early embryos were exposed to different concentrations of flavone (0, $1{\mu}M$, $25{\mu}M$, $50{\mu}M$, and $100{\mu}M$ respectively). Results showed that $100{\mu}M$ of flavone significantly reduced the intracellular ROS levels of oocytes accompanied with a significant rise in GSH level. In parthenogenesis, no significant change was observed in the cleavage rates whether flavone was supplemented in IVM or IVC media. In IVM supplemented group, the blastocyst development rate was significantly enhanced by $1{\mu}M$ concentration than other groups (51.5% vs. 41.3%, 44.0%, 36.3%, 31.7%; P<0.05) respectively. However, in IVC group $1{\mu}M$ concentration significantly improved the blastocysts production than $50{\mu}M$ and control groups (50.0% vs. 40.5%, 38.0%; P<0.05) respectively. Following nuclear transfer, the cleavage rate of IVM group was significantly more in $1{\mu}M$ than $50{\mu}M$ and $100{\mu}M$ groups (92.9% vs. 89.7%, 87.8%; P<0.05), followed by similar pattern of cloned blastocysts production being significantly higher in $1{\mu}M$ group than $50{\mu}M$, $100{\mu}M$ and control groups (16.8% vs. 9.0%, 7.1%, 12.8%; P<0.05) respectively. In IVC group, $1{\mu}M$ concentration resulted in significantly higher cleavage rate than $25{\mu}M$ and $50{\mu}M$ groups (91.7% vs. 87.8%, 88.8%; P<0.05) respectively. However, the blastocysts production was significantly higher in $100{\mu}M$ group than others (26.2% vs. 13.6%, 14.0%, 18.2%; P<0.05) respectively. The optimal concentrations of flavone significantly enhanced the percentages of ICM:TE than control group (43.8% vs. 37.6%; P<0.05) accompanied with significantly higher expression levels of reprogramming related genes. In conclusion, the optimal concentrations of $1{\mu}M$ during IVM and $100{\mu}M$ during IVC can significantly improve the production of porcine in-vitro embryos.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.51 no.3
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• pp.200-206
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• 2019

A potentially functional yogurt co-fermented with Monascus-fermented soybean powder (MFSP) was prepared, and its quality and antioxidant properties were investigated. Skim milk powder with (SMP+MFSP, 1:1, w/w) or without MFSP (SMP; control) was fermented by probiotic cultures consisting of L. delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus KCTC 3635 and S. thermophilus KCTC 5092. The functional yogurt fermented with MFSP contained significantly (p<0.05) higher levels of ${\gamma}-aminobutryric$ acid (GABA; $107.22{\pm}3.06{\mu}g/g$), isoflavone aglycone (daidzein+genistein; $201.21{\pm}6.29{\mu}g/g$), and ubiquinone ($39.05{\pm}0.08{\mu}g/g$) than the control yogurt. During fermentation at $36^{\circ}C$ for 48 h, the functional yogurt displayed higher titratable acidity, viable cell numbers, and radical scavenging activity and a lower pH than the control yogurt (p<0.05). These results indicate that MFSP has great potential for enriching the free isoflavones, GABA, and ubiquinone contents in yogurt.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.15-25
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• 2022

In this study, the efficiency of treatment of moisture and organic matter in food waste was analyzed according to the air blast volume and preheating using the bio-drying method. Te mount of air blast volume and preheating were determined by the evaluation of temperature and CO2 during food waste treatment using the bio-drying method. As a results, the increase in the air blast volume increased the moisture removal efficiency and removal rate, but, lowered the temperature inside the bio-drying by the decease in microbial activity. In order to maintain the activity of microorganisms, it was estimated that it was necessary to inject an appropriate air blast rate according th the properties of the food waste. In this study, the injection of air blast volume at 15L/min was optimal. It was evaluated that the organic matter and water removal rates according to the presence or absence of air preheating, the organic matter removal rate and water removal rate increased by 3-5% when air preheating was not performed. Also, there was no internal aggregation caused by the generation of condensate inside the bio-drying. Therefore, for effective bio-drying of food waste, it is necessary to maintain an appropriate air blast volume to maintain microbial activity, and it is considered that injection through preheating of air is required.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology and Dermatology
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.64-77
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• 2023

Objectives : Recently, the number of patients with dry eye syndrome has been steadily increasing. However, established treatment for it does not yet exist. This study compared electronic moxibustion with acupuncture for patients with dry eye in terms of efficacy and safety. Methods : This trial was designed as an investigator-initiated, single-blinded, comparative, randomized controlled trial. Thirty patients with dry eye were randomized to the electronic moxibustion treatment group(EMG) or the acupuncture treatment group(AG) in equal proportion. The participants who assigned to the EMG were treated with electronic moxibustion to ten acupoints including both sides of BL2, GB14, TE23, and LI4 for 12 minutes. The participants who were assigned to the AG were treated with acupuncture to the same acupoints for 15 minutes. Over 4 weeks, each intervention was carried out twelve times in total. The primary outcome was the ocular surface disease index(OSDI). The secondary outcomes were the subjective symptoms visual analog scale(VAS), quality of life(QoL), Schirmer I test(SIT), and general assessment. Adverse events and vital signs were also investigated for safety assessment. Results : In intragroup comparisons, both the EMG and the AG significantly improved the OSDI scores, the subjective symptoms VAS scores, the QoL scores, and the SIT results after 4 weeks of the trial. However, there were no statistical differences in intergroup comparisons between the two groups after 4 weeks. The safety of electronic moxibustion and acupuncture was confirmed by no occurrence of serious adverse events. Conclusions : Both electronic moxibustion and acupuncture were effective for dry eye syndrome, and they were safe. Electronic moxibustion and acupuncture can be used for dry eye syndrome as equivalent treatments.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.32 no.11
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• pp.481-488
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• 2022

The Cu₂ZnSn(S_xSe_1-x)₄ (CZTSSe) absorbers are promising thin film solar cells (TFSCs) materials, to replace existing Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ (CIGS) and CdTe photovoltaic technology. However, the best reported efficiency for a CZTSSe device, of 13.6 %, is still too low for commercial use. Recently, partially replacing the Zn²⁺ element with a Cd²⁺element has attracting attention as one of the promising strategies for improving the photovoltaic characteristics of the CZTSSe TFSCs. Cd²⁺ elements are known to improve the grain size of the CZTSSe absorber thin films and improve optoelectronic properties by suppressing potential defects, causing short-circuit current (J_sc) loss. In this study, the structural, compositional, and morphological characteristics of CZTSSe and CZCTSSe thin films were investigated using X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence spectrometer (XRF), and Field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), respectively. The FE-SEM images revealed that the grain size improved with increasing Cd²⁺ alloying in the CZTSSe thin films. Moreover, there was a slight decrease in small grain distribution as well as voids near the CZTSSe/Mo interface after Cd²⁺ alloying. The solar cells prepared using the most promising CZTSSe absorber thin films with Cd²⁺ alloying (8 min. 30 sec.) exhibited a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 9.33 %, J_sc of 34.0 mA/cm², and fill factor (FF) of 62.7 %, respectively.