• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.982-992
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• 2005

Acupuncture as a therapeutic intervention is widely used for the treatment of many functional disorders such as substance abuse and mental dysfunction. Clinical trials are currently underway to determine the effectiveness of acupuncture in the treatment of drug addiction. Yet, there are still many unanswered questions about the basic mechanism of acupuncture. Studies have shown that both the psychomotor stimulant effects and rewarding properties of addictive drugs, including morphine, are sensitized by repeated drug administration and raised the possibility that both of these effects may De linked to the same or closely overlapping the mesolimbic dopamine systems. Neiguan (PC6) point on the pericardium channel which is associated with the brain and its mental function, has been used to treat mental, psychosomatic disorders and gastroenterological disorders. The present study was designed to investigate the effect of acupuncture on repeated morphine-induced changes in extracellular dopamine levels using in vivo microdialysis and to measure the effect of acupuncture on repeated morphine-induced behavioral changes. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were treated twice a day for three days with increasing doses of morphine (10, 20 and 40 mg/kg, s.c.) or with saline. After 15 days of withdrawal, rats were challenged with morphine hydrochloride (5 mg/kg, s.c.). Acupuncture was applied at bilateral Neiguan (PC6) points for 1min after the morphine challenge. Results showed that acupuncture at the specific acupoint PC6, but not at control points (tail and HE8) significantly decreased both dopamine release, behavior induced by a systemic morphine challenge or a single s.c. morphine injection in the morphine-repeated animals. These results suggest that reduction in sensitization may be one mechanism whereby acupuncture alleviates morphine craving in addicts. Moreover, in a more general sense these results suggest that acupuncture can be used as a therapeutic intervention for correcting reversible malfunction of the body by direction of brain pathway and thus acupuncture can contribute to the biochemical balance in the central nervous system by regulating neurotransmitters.

• Journal of Korean Library and Information Science Society
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• v.53 no.3
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• pp.263-285
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• 2022

This study presented the factor analysis on constructing the new factors affecting the middle school students' online learning behaviors from the questionnaires employed among middle school students. A total of 204 students participated and the data were collected in South Korea. The sample of middle school ninth-grade students was selected and used through purposive sampling. Findings from the factor analysis provided evidence for the eight-factor solution for the 35-items accounting for 66.15% of the shared variance. A wide range of factors has been considered to identify students' online learning behaviors. The appropriate experience and use of e-learning in the middle school period is also important as it will be a critical stepstone for future education. This research provides information that has been taken into account for advancing online learning to enhance the quality of e-learning systems for middle school students. The study results provided eight new factors affecting the middle school students' online learning behaviors; that is 1) communication using social media as a learning tool, 2) intention to share information using ICT, 3) addiction of technology, 4) adoption of technology, 5) seeking information using ICT, 6) use of social media learning, 7) information search using ICT, and 8) immersion of technology. This study confirmed that middle school students prefer communication using social media as a learning tool, and value intention to share information using ICT for the most part. The data obtained based on factor analysis can highlight the online learning behaviors towards a mixture of social media learning and ICT to ensure a new educational platform for the future of e-learning. This research expects to be useful for both middle schools of online learning to better understand students' online learning behaviors and design online learning environments and information professionals to better assist students who particularly need digital literacy.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.260-266
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• 2020

Alcohol impacts many central nervous systems, such as dopamine, serotonin, opioids, and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), leading to addiction. Many studies have investigated the relationship between GABA and alcoholism. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of GABA high and low rice intake on the alcohol intake behavior of mice. Black sticky rice with giant embryo (BSRGE), black sticky rice (BSR), giant embryo rice (GER), and rice (Rice) were germinated for 48 hr in brown rice. The embryos were then collected and used in the study. The diets were fed to respective C57BL/6 mouse groups ad libitum for 16 days and investigated for 2 hr alcohol intake, 22 hr water intake, 24 hr feed intake, and body weight. As a result of the repeated measure of ANOVA for the daily change of alcohol intake for 2 hr daily between the BSRGE and BSR groups, there was a significant difference in the number of days of intake (DF = 7, F = 4.812, p = 0.026). A significant daily decrease in alcohol intake was observed in the BSRGE group compared to the BSR group. This reduction was consistent from Day 10 to Day 16. Alcohol consumption also significantly decreased in the GER group compared to the Rice group. This decrease was observed from Day 12 to Day 16. In conclusion, BSRGE and GER resulted in decreased alcohol intake in C57BL/6 mice compared to BSR and rice. This suggests that BSRGE may prevent relapse in patients with alcohol use disorder.