• Journal of Life Science
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• v.33 no.8
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• pp.612-622
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• 2023

T-cell deficiency may occur in various clinical conditions including congenital defects, cell/organ transplantation, HIV infection and aging. In this regard, the development of artificial thymus has recently been attracting much attention. To achieve this aim, the development of techniques for 3D culture of thymic stromal cells is necessary because thymocytes grown only in a 3D thymic microenvironment can be differentiated fully to become mature, immunocompetent T cells; the same cannot be achieved for thymocytes grown in 2D. This study aimed to develop a nanotechnology-based 3D culture technique using polymeric scaffolds for thymic epithelial cells (TECs), the main component of thymic stromal cells. Scanning electron microscopic observation revealed that the pores of both PCL and PCL/PLGA scaffolds were filled with TECs. Interestingly, TECs grown in 3D on polydopamine-coated scaffolds exhibited enhanced cell attachment and proliferation compared to those grown on non-coated scaffolds. In addition, the gene expression of thymopoietic factors was upregulated in TECs cultured in 3D on polydopamine-coated scaffolds compared to those cultured in 2D. Taken together, the results of the present study demonstrate an efficient 3D culture model for TECs using polymeric scaffolds and provide new insights into a novel platform technology that can be applied to develop functional, biocompatible scaffolds for the 3D culture of thymocytes. This will eventually shed light on techniques for the in vitro development of T cells as well as the synthesis of artificial thymus.

• Journal of Korea Entertainment Industry Association
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.121-138
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• 2019

A term 'Wolabal' which is an abbreviation of the words, in South Korea means the balance between work and life. The term reflects on people's thoughts to seek for their happiness these days. In fact, they think that the quality of the life is more valuable than any other things on their lives, reflecting on the issues caused by modern societies. 'Wolabal' has emerged as an alternatives to solve the social issues like economic recession, high unemployment rate, aging society, low birth rate and etc. However, in order to establish 'Wolabal' as a culture the comprehensive agreement between an individual and society should be considered first. In society, the system or policies to forster cultural business should be settled while in individual, it is necessary to change the way they think about their work and the qualities of their lives. From this view we have to focus on the relationship between their work and leisure. On the relationship between their work and leisure we should understand that the relationship is not conflicted but co-exists and understanding the real meaning of the relationship is critical in balancing between work and life. The recognition to the labor which has been from the past would give not only the meaning of individual survival but the one of their whole lives. Despite this, modern society has faded away the real meaning of labor because it has focused on the mass manufacturing and sometimes the long-termed economic sluggish has emerged. This trend has made people think about their lives and seek for their lives' real value.

• KIPS Transactions on Computer and Communication Systems
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.119-126
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• 2023

Sarcopenia is not well known enough to be classified as a disease in 2021 in Korea, but it is recognized as a social problem in developed countries that have entered an aging society. The diagnosis of sarcopenia follows the international standard guidelines presented by the European Working Group for Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP) and the d Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia (AWGS). Recently, it is recommended to evaluate muscle function by using physical performance evaluation, walking speed measurement, and standing test in addition to absolute muscle mass as a diagnostic method. As a representative method for measuring muscle mass, the body composition analysis method using DEXA has been formally implemented in clinical practice. In addition, various studies for measuring muscle mass using abdominal images of MRI or CT are being actively conducted. In this paper, we develop an AI image segmentation model based on abdominal images of CT with a relatively short imaging time for the diagnosis of sarcopenia and describe the multicenter validation. We developed an artificial intelligence model using U-Net that can automatically segment muscle, subcutaneous fat, and visceral fat by selecting the L3 region from the CT image. Also, to evaluate the performance of the model, internal verification was performed by calculating the intersection over union (IOU) of the partitioned area, and the results of external verification using data from other hospitals are shown. Based on the verification results, we tried to review and supplement the problems and solutions.

• 한국노년학
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.155-170
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• 2005

The purpose of study is to compare the level of participation of the elderly people in the activity of production between Korea and Canada and to identify the factors related to the participation of the elderly people in the activity of production between Korea and Canada. In order to conduct a comparative culture study two data sets were used; one was the 1999 Survey of Time Use collected by Korean Statistics Office and the other was 1998 Survey of Time Use collected by Canadian Statistics Office. Many countries have been collected a time use survey and used to study labor, welfare, and culture. Total number of 17,730 Korean and 2,729 Canadian between 55 and 84 were included to analyze the data. It is clear from the results that older people engage in various productive behaviors, particularly when the definition of activities is broadened to include unpaid work. It is also clear the overall productive contributions are higher among older Koreans than among older Canadians. While the focus in this study has been strictly on productive activities, the aging well literature suggests that the ability to remain independent in later life is enhanced through continued engagement in productive activities. It is thus critical that we better understand the nature of later-life activities and in particular the wide-ranging contributions made by older people. This is an important area of further exploration.

• 한국노년학
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.513-527
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• 2009

The purpose of this study was to verify the effect of senior simulation on geriatric unit nurses' attitude and job satisfaction toward the elderly with one group pretest-posttest design. The subjects of this study were the 30 nurses who are working in geriatric units in a general hospital in Daegu, Korea and who were well informed about the purpose of this study and allowed to join the study. The data were collected from August 23 to September 6, 2006. The experimental procedure was to do activities for daily living for 45 minutes wearing senior simulation suit. Self administered questionnaires were used to ask the nurses' attitude toward the elderly and job satisfaction in their work before, right after, and one week after senior simulation. According to the results of this study, there were significant changes in the geriatric nurses' attitude toward the elderly and job satisfaction after aging simulation implying that senior simulation is an effective intervention to facilitate nurses to do quality care for the elderly with sympathetic understanding and attitude. Senior simulation needs to be applied to geriatric education for the nursing students and health care providers who are involved in care for the elderly.

• 한국노년학
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.529-546
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• 2009

Depression in old age not only is prevalent but also causes a considerable amount of burden in physical, psychosocial, and economic terms. Intervention, however, is often delayed due to the understanding that considers depressive symptoms as a normal process of aging or signs of physical illnesses. Since the recognition of symptoms often initiate one's help seeking process, a correct identification of symptoms can contribute to early detection and intervention to depression in oneself as well as in others. This study interviewed 104 older adults living in an urban area, and explored their ability to correctly identify depressive symptoms and factors related to identification. The study results show that respondents who were able to correctly identify symptoms of depression were only 14%, and the rest defined the symptoms as social, economic, and other psychological issues. Of the factors in the logistic regression model, age being 75 and over and mass media as source of mental health information affected negatively their ability to correctly identify symptoms; mental health education programs affected positively their ability. Based on these results, it is suggested that such strategies as employing a face-to-face provision of concrete information and counseling can be more effective than delivering information via large-scale lectures. Additionally, a future research deems necessary to conduct an in-depth examination of mental health/illness-related contents on mass media.

• Journal of Korea Port Economic Association
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.179-189
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• 2023

Korea's port development adjusts the completion time and size of port facilities according to the future port throughput. The current port development system, which is referred to as "throughput-linked port development (Trigger Rule)", has received positive evaluation for efficiently executing the limited port development budget. Recently concerns have been growing over deteriorating service levels in port facilities in Korea due to accelerated aging of terminal facilities. However, the current port development system does not possess any standard for assessing the level of service and utilizing development indicators. The purpose of this paper is to calculate the Port Service Index (PSI) by selecting indicators to measure the Level of Service (LOS) of ports and deriving weights between the indicators, so that the current "throughput-linked port development (Trigger Rule)" can be linked with the level of service. Based on the result of analysis on a variety of preceding studies, the ship waiting rate, berth productivity, ship turnaround time and ship productivity were selected as four indicators to constitute the Port Service Index. The AHP and entropy methodologies were used to derive weights for each of four indicators which were later combined to calculate the comprehensive weight. The calculation formula of the Port Service Index (PSI) was derived by using the aggregated weights of each indicator, based on which the LOS of domestic container and bulk terminals were evaluated and this measurement result was divided into 6 classes to define each LOS. This paper contributes to draw the improvement measures for port development system that are able to connect the quantitative indicator of throughput, as well as a qualitative indicator of the level of "service".

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.480-494
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• 2023

Objectives: This study sought to assess the effectiveness of community-based nutrition counseling on improving nutritional status, managing complex chronic diseases, and enhancing the quality of life for elderly individuals with chronic conditions, particularly in older adults with high levels of food insecurity and multiple chronic illnesses. Methods: Thirty elderly subjects with diabetes and hypertension who were registered at local Senior Welfare Center received individualized nutrition counseling, based on their Nutrition Quotient for the Elderly (NQ-E) index. Over a 16-week period, they received tailored counseling and underwent various health and nutritional assessments. The final analysis included 28 participants after two dropped out. Data analysis was conducted using the SPSS v28.0. Results: The subjects were over 70, with multiple chronic diseases including diabetes and hypertension and predominantly female. After 16 weeks, significant improvements were observed in the subjects' grip strength, and HbA1c levels, as well as in their NQ-E scores, indicating improved dietary balance and diversity. There were no significant improvements in the 'Moderation' subdomain of the NQ-E index, suggesting that this aspect requires further attention in nutritional counseling. The subjects' nutritional risk scores (NSI) were also significantly decreased, indicating less nutritional risk. Lastly, as measured by the SF-36K, the subjects' quality of life showed significant improvement in several domains including physical role performance and social function. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that tailored nutrition counseling, based on the NQ-E index, can improve elderly health, manage chronic diseases, and enhance quality of life. This approach potentially broadens the scope of community nutritionists' roles within an aging society. However, additional research is necessary to evaluate these interventions' long-term effects and sustainability.

• Journal of dental hygiene science
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.282-295
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• 2023

Background: Secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor (SLPI) protects tissues from proteases and promotes cell proliferation and healing. SLPI also reduces periodontal inflammation and alveolar bone resorption by inhibiting proinflammatory cytokine expression in rat periodontal tissues and osteoblasts. However, little is known of the role of SLPI in the expression of osteoclast regulatory factors from osteoblasts, which are crucial for the interaction between osteoblasts and osteoclasts. Therefore, we aimed to determine the effects of SLPI on the regulation of osteoclasts and osteoblasts in LPS-treated alveolar bone and osteoblasts. Methods: Periodontitis was induced in rats using LPS. After each LPS injection, SLPI was injected into the same area. Immunohistochemical analysis was performed with antibodies against SLPI, RANKL, OPG, and Runx2 in the periodontal tissue. RT-PCR and western blotting were performed to determine the expression levels of SLPI, RANKL, OPG, and Runx2 in LPS- and SLPI/LPS-treated MC3T3-E1 cells. SLPI/LPS-treated MC3T3-E1 cells were also stained with Alizarin Red S. Results: Immunohistochemical analysis showed that the expression levels of SLPI, OPG, and Runx2 were higher while that of RANKL was lower in the LPS/SLPI group relative to those in the LPS group. The mRNA and protein expression of SLPI, OPG, and Runx2 was higher in SLPI/LPS/MC3T3-E1 cells than in LPS/MC3T3-E1 cells, and RANKL expression was lower. During differentiation, OPG and Runx2 protein levels were higher whereas RANKL levels were lower in SLPI/LPS/MC3T3-E1 than in LPS/MC3T3-E1 cells on days 0, 4, 7, and 10. In addition, mineralization and matrix deposition were higher in SLPI/LPS/MC3T3-E1 than in LPS/MC3T3-E1 on days 7 and 10. SLPI decreased RANKL expression in LPS-treated alveolar bone and osteoblasts but increased the expression of OPG and Runx2. Conclusion: SLPI can be considered as a regulatory molecule that indirectly regulates osteoclast activation via osteoblasts and promotes osteoblast differentiation.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.100-107
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• 2024

Currently, in Korea, due to the rapid aging and deterioration of facilities, the minimum Maintenance Level and Performance Level' of facilities are required by the 'Facility Safety Act' or 'Infrastructure Management Act'. Since infrastructure assets have a long lifespan and the pattern of deterioration over time is complex, it is very difficult to maintain infrastructure as 'minimum maintenance state' or 'minimum performance state' by the current way of management. 'Asset Management' shall be performed not only by a technical perspective, but also by an accounting perspective such as cost and asset value. However, due to lack of awareness of 'asset management' among stakeholder, only technical perspective management is being carried out in practice. In order to effectively manage infrastructure assets, complex consideration of various asset value factors such as budget and service as well as safety and durability are required. In this paper, we presented a theory to evaluate and quantify the road network value for efficient asset management of the road network. We also presented a method of simulation to apply the theory presented in this paper. Through simulation and the results derived from this study, it is possible to specify the budget for the future national asset management, and to optimize the strategy for the management of old road facilities.