• Journal of Pharmaceutical Investigation
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.355-361
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• 2006

Intraarticular corticosteroid injections for therapy of rheumatic arthritis are administered with the aim of optimal local anti-inflammatory effect at the injection site. Since the side effects of corticosteroidal drug, dexamethasone(DEX), administered at hish dose limited the therapeutic efficacy, there was a need to design a new drug delivery system for controlled release of dexamethasone. As a prodrug for continuous therapeutic efficacy, dexamethasone-21-palmitate(DEX-PAL) was prepared via esterification of palmitoyl chloride and dexamethasone. DEX-PAL was identified by NMR and MASS analysis. DEX-PAL or DEX was entrapped in lipid nanosphere which could be prepared by using a self emulsification-solvent evaporation method. Physicochemical characteristics such as mean particle diameter, zeta potential and drug loading efficiency of the lipid nanospheres were investigated with variation of either the kind of lipid or the lipid composition. The lipid nanospheres had a mean diameter $83{\sim}95$ nm and DEX-PAL loading efficiency of up to 95%. The drug loading efficiency increased with the increase of aliphatic chain length attached to the phospholipid. The incorporation of cationic lipid was very efficient for both reducing particle size of lipid nanospheres and enhancing drug loading efficiency. The lipid nanospheres containing DEX-PAL may be a promising novel drug carrier for the controlled release of the poorly water-soluble drugs.

• Journal of Institute of Control, Robotics and Systems
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• v.18 no.5
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• pp.487-495
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• 2012

In this paper, a Smart Home Service Robot, McBot II, which performs mess-cleanup function etc. in house, is designed much more optimally than other service robots. It is newly developed in much more practical system than McBot I which we had developed two years ago. One characteristic attribute of mobile platforms equipped with a set of dependent wheels is their omni- directionality and the ability to realize complex translational and rotational trajectories for agile navigation in door. An accurate coordination of steering angle and spinning rate of each wheel is necessary for a consistent motion. This paper develops trajectory controller of 3-wheels omni-directional mobile robot using fuzzy azimuth estimator. A specialized anthropomorphic robot manipulator which can be attached to the housemaid robot McBot II, is developed in this paper. This built-in type manipulator consists of both arms with 4 DOF (Degree of Freedom) each and both hands with 3 DOF each. The robotic arm is optimally designed to satisfy both the minimum mechanical size and the maximum workspace. Minimum mass and length are required for the built-in cooperated-arms system. But that makes the workspace so small. This paper proposes optimal design method to overcome the problem by using neck joint to move the arms horizontally forward/backward and waist joint to move them vertically up/down. The robotic hand, which has two fingers and a thumb, is also optimally designed in task-based concept. Finally, the good performance of the developed McBot II is confirmed through live tests of the mess-cleanup task.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.3 no.4
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• pp.287-293
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• 2012

Objectives: Metabolic syndrome has received attention as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, with particular importance attached to visceral fat accumulation, which is associated with lifestyle-related diseases and is strongly correlated with waist circumference. In this study, our aim is to propose waist circumference cut-off values that can be used as a marker for fatty liver based on a sample of workers receiving health checkups in Japan. Methods: This study was conducted in a total of 21,866 workers who underwent periodic health checkups between January 2007 and December 2007. The mean age of the subjects was 47.4 years for men (standard deviation [SD]: 8.0) and 44.7 years for women (SD: 6.9). Evaluation included abdominal ultrasound and measurement of waist circumference, body mass index, fasting blood glucose, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and blood pressure. Results: Based on receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, the optimal waist circumference cut-off values were shown as 85.0 cm (sensitivity 0.72, specificity 0.69) for men and 80.0 cm (sensitivity 0.75, specificity 0.78) for women. Conclusion: Abdominal ultrasound is the most efficient means of diagnosing fatty liver, but this examination seldom occurs because the test is not routinely performed at workers' health checkups. In people found to have a high risk of fatty liver, recommendations can be made for abdominal ultrasound based on the waist circumference cut-off values obtained in this study. That is, waist circumference can be used in high risk individuals as an effective marker for early detection of fatty liver.

• Korean Journal of Head & Neck Oncology
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.55-58
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• 2024

Myxoma is a locally invasive neoplasm usually involving the jaw bones, typically occurs between the second and fourth decades. This tumor may comprise 3%-6% of odontogenic tumors. Myxomas of the soft tissue of the face are very rare. We present an unusual case of myxofibroma occurring in a 13-year-old man involving the soft tissue of the face. It congenitally occurred and was a 1 cm sized, ovoid in shape, swelling located on the glabella without any symptoms. An excisional biopsy was performed. A well encapsulated ovoid mass was attached to the corrugator supercilli muscle below the frontalis muscle. It was measured 1.1 × 1 × 0.8 cm and completely excised. Histological examination revealed myxofibroma showing stellate and spinde-shaped cells throughout myxoid ground substance. The unusual features of this case are the site of the tumor, which was localized to the non-tooth bearing area of the mandible and its congenital occurrence history.

• Journal of the korean academy of Pediatric Dentistry
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.680-684
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• 2004

The hemangioma, a benign proliferation of blood vessel, is the most common tumor of infancy and childhood. In many instances, the lesion probably represents a hamartoma or malformation rather than a true neoplasm. In the oral cavity, common sites are lips, followed by tongue, buccal mucosa and palate. Clinical characteristics appear as a flat or raised reddish-blue lesion and are generally solitary. They are classified on the basis of their histological appearance into capillary, mixed, cavernous or a sclerosing variety. A 6-year-old male of this case was referred to the Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Chonnam National University with a chief complaint of swelling lesion on gingiva. The strawberry appearance mass was detected by clinical examination on attached gingiva at the upper left primary lateral incisor and canine. Surgical excision and biopsy were carried out for histological examination and the lesion was diagnosed with a capillary hemangioma. The risk of recurrence after this therapy is rare, and there is no malignant transformation. Despite their benign origins and behaviour, hemangiomas in the region of oral cavity are always clinically important to the dental profession because of bleeding tendency.

• The Journal of the Korean bone and joint tumor society
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• v.5 no.3
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• pp.178-182
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• 1999

We report a case of bizarre parosteal osteochondromatous proliferation of the right femur in an 18-year-old man. Roentgenograms showed a calcific mass attached to the underlying cortex with a broad base. Histologically, the lesion showed hypercellular cartilaginous tissue with maturation into trabecular bone, which contained spindle cells and lymphocytes in the intertrabecular spaces. Bizarre parosteal osteochondromatous proliferations are a form of heterotopic ossification and should not be mistaken for osteosarcoma or chondrosarcoma.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.1967-1974
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• 1991

When the functional electrical stimulation is employed to recover mobility to the plegic, it is very important to understand functions of the selected muscles. I have investigated how a muscle acts to accelerate the body segments, since the body segements are connected by joints so that contraction of a muscle not only rotates the segments to which it is attached but also causes other segments to rotate by creation a reaction force at every joint, which is called the inertial coupling. I found that a single-joint muscle always acts to accelerate the spanned joint in the same direction as the joint torque produced by the muscle. However, a double-joint muscle can act to accelerate the spanned joint in the opposite direction to the joint torque produced by the muscle depending on (1) the body position, (2) the body-segmental parameters, and (3) the type of the movement. Investigating the condition number of the inertia matrix of the body-segmental model gave us some insights into how controllable the body-segmental system is for different values of the factors mentioned above. The results suggested that the upright position is the most undesirable position to independently control the three segments(trunk, thigh and shank) and that the controllability is the most sensitive to variation of the shank length and the trunk mass, which implies that accuracy is required particularly when we estimate these two body-segmental parameters before the paralyzed muscles are innervated by using electrical stimulation.

• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2007.06a
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• pp.280-283
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• 2007

The first grid-connected, building-integrated transparent amorphous silicon photovoltaic installation has been operated since October 2004 in Yongin, Korea. The 2.2kWp transparent PV system was applied to the facade of entrance hall in newly constructed KOLON E&C R&D building. The PV module is a nominal 0.98m ${\times}$ 0.95m, 10% transparent, laminated, amorphous(a-Si) thin-film device rated at 44 Wp per module. To demonstrate the architectural features of thin film PV technologies for daylighting application, transparent PV modules are attached to the building envelope with the form of single glazed window and special point glazing(SPG) frames. Besides power generation, the 10% transmittance of a-Si PV module provides very smooth natural daylight to the entrance hall without any special shading devices for whole year. The installation is fully instrumented and is continuously monitored in order to allow the performance assessment of amorphous silicon PV operating at the prevailing conditions. This paper presents measured power performance data from the first 12 months of operation. For the first year, annual average system specific yield was just 486.4kWh/kWp/year which is almost half of typical amorphous silicon PV output under the best angle and orientation. It should be caused by building orientation and self-shading of adjacent mass. Besides annual power output, various statistical analysis was performed to identify the characteristics of transparent thin film PV system.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.47 no.5
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• pp.459-473
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• 2014

The recent mass appearances of jellyfish in Korea have caused economic and social damage, as they plague swimmers and fishermen. However, jellyfish have high economic and nutritional value, and contain low levels of calories and hydrolysates. Thus, jellyfish are a natural, healthy food that can improve high blood pressure, bronchitis, and a multitude of other diseases. Here, we present research on the ecology, classification, bloom, damage caused, food component characterization, and tissues of jellyfish, with the aim of facilitating further study. Research on use of jellyfish as salted products, and for collagen and qniumucin would also be valuable. A jellyfish body is classified into three parts: the body, termed the umbrella; the oral arm; and the tentacle. Jellyfish are planktonic marine members of a group of invertebrate animals comprising the classes Schypozoa (phylum Cnidaria) and Cuboza. In Korea in 2012, jellyfish damage resulted in decreases of annual catch and commercial value estimated at 177 and 141 billion won, respectively. Because concentrations of heavy metals are below the safety limits for seafood, dried jellyfish appear to be safe raw materials for food. The proximate compositions of Nemopilema nomurai and Aurelia aurita were 97.1% and 96.5% moisture, 0.9% and 1.2% crude proteins, undetected and 0.1% crude lipids, and 1.7% and 1.8% ash, respectively. According to their total contents of essential, total, and non-essential amino acids, jellyfish gonads were deemed good-quality protein. Because the major functional components of jellyfish are collagen and qniumucin, jellyfish can be used salted, or these components of healthy diets can be extracted from them. For more effective use of jellyfish, unit costs should be decreased and safety guaranteed. Additionally, dehydrators attached to conveyor belts should be developed. Since jellyfish can be used throughout the year, they should be listed in the Korean Food Standards Codex as a food source.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.679-687
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• 2007

Nanoscale zero valent ion (nZVI) technology is emerging as an innovative method to treat contaminated groundwater. The activity of nZVI is very high due to their high specific surface area, and supporting this material can help to preserve its chemical nature by inhibiting oxidation. In this study, nZVI particles were attached to granular ion-exchange resin through borohydride reduction of ferrous ions, and chemical reduction of nitrate by this material was investigated as a potential technology to remove nitrate from groundwater. The pore structure and physical characteristics were measured and the change by the adsorption of nZVI was discussed. Batch tests were conducted to characterize the activity of the supported nZVI and the results indicated that the degradation of nitrate appeared to be a pseudo first-order reaction with the observed reaction rate constant of $0.425h^{-1}$ without pH control. The reduction process continued but at a much lower rate with a rate constant of $0.044h^{-1}$, which is likely limited by mass transfer. To assess the effects of other ions commonly found in groundwater, the same experiments were conducted in simulated groundwater with the same level of nitrate. In simulated groundwater, the rate constant was $0.078h^{-1}$ and it also reduced to $0.0021h^{-1}$ in later phase. The major limitation in application of ZVI for nitrate reduction is ammonium production. By using a support material with ion exchange capacity, the problem of ammonium release can be solved. The ammonium was not detected in the batch test, even when other competitive ions such as calcium and potassium existed.