• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.358-367
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• 2021

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) as an international health emergency. Current diagnostic tests are based on the reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) method, which is the gold standard test that involves the amplification of viral RNA. However, the RT-qPCR assay has limitations in terms of sensitivity and quantification. In this study, we tested both qPCR and droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) to detect low amounts of viral RNA. The cycle threshold (CT) of the viral RNA by RT-PCR significantly varied according to the sequences of the primer and probe sets with in vitro transcript (IVT) RNA or viral RNA as templates, whereas the copy number of the viral RNA by ddPCR was effectively quantified with IVT RNA, cultured viral RNA, and RNA from clinical samples. Furthermore, the clinical samples were assayed via both methods, and the sensitivity of the ddPCR was determined to be equal to or more than that of the RT-qPCR. However, the ddPCR assay is more suitable for determining the copy number of reference materials. These findings suggest that the qPCR assay with the ddPCR defined reference materials could be used as a highly sensitive and compatible diagnostic method for viral RNA detection.

• Journal of Dairy Science and Biotechnology
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.1-14
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• 2019

In general, milk is a nutritious food and is very helpful in improving and maintaining a person's health. However, over the past 30 years, a number of studies have reported the presence of Aflatoxin M1 in milk and milk products worldwide. The contamination with Aflatoxin M1 in milk and dairy products has become an important issue all over the world. The presence of the mycotoxin in these products was a major concern particularly among children and infants, who are more sensitive than adults. This study reviewed recent data to summarize the current status of Aflatoxin M1 in milk and dairy products produced in various regions around the world, related regulations, reduction strategies, detection methods, and future research tasks. Strict regulation and superior milk-handling techniques are essential to minimize Aflatoxin M1 contamination in milk and dairy products using ever-evolving analytical techniques. Furthermore, education should be imparted to ensure that Aflatoxin M1 that may exist in milk and dairy products and its effects on human health are made aware of.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.132-148
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• 2019

Recently, safety and environmental concerns have become major social issues. Especially, a special underground-safety law has been made and enacted to prevent ground subsidence around construction sites. For environmental problems, several researches have started or will start on characterization of contaminated sites, in-situ environmental remediation in subsurface, and monitoring of remediation results. As a part of the researches, geophysical surveys, which have been mainly applied to explore mineral resources, geological features or ground, are used to characterize not only contaminated areas but also fluid flow paths in subsurface environments. As a basic study for the application of geophysical surveys to detect contamination in subsurface, this paper analyzes previous researches to understand changes in geophysical properties of contaminated zones by various contaminants such as leachate, heavy metals, and non-adequate phase liquid (NAPL). Furthermore, this paper briefly introduces how geophysical surveys like direct-current electrical resistivity, induced polarization and ground penetration radar surveys can be applied to detect each contamination, before analyzing case studies of the applications in contaminated areas by NAPL, leachate, heavy metal or nitrogen oxides.

• Atmosphere
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.257-267
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• 2019

This study is to assess the applicability of the Extreme Forecast Index (EFI) algorithm of the ECMWF seasonal forecast system to the Global Seasonal Forecasting System version 5 (GloSea5), operational seasonal forecast system of the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA). The EFI is based on the difference between Cumulative Distribution Function (CDF) curves of the model's climate data and the current ensemble forecast distribution, which is essential to diagnose the predictability in the extreme cases. To investigate its applicability, the experiment was conducted during the heat-wave cases (the year of 1994 and 2003) and compared GloSea5 hindcast data based EFI with anomaly data of ERA-Interim. The data also used to determine quantitative estimates of Probability Of Detection (POD), False Alarm Ratio (FAR), and spatial pattern correlation. The results showed that the area of ERA-Interim indicating above 4-degree temperature corresponded to the area of EFI 0.8 and above. POD showed high ratio (0.7 and 0.9, respectively), when ERA-Interim anomaly data were the highest (on Jul. 11, 1994 (> $5^{\circ}C$) and Aug. 8, 2003 (> $7^{\circ}C$), respectively). The spatial pattern showed a high correlation in the range of 0.5~0.9. However, the correlation decreased as the lead time increased. Furthermore, the case of Korea heat wave in 2018 was conducted using GloSea5 forecast data to validate EFI showed successful prediction for two to three weeks lead time. As a result, the EFI forecasts can be used to predict the probability that an extreme weather event of interest might occur. Overall, we expected these results to be available for extreme weather forecasting.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.46 no.3
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• pp.137-142
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• 2019

Gene edited crops can be classified as SDN-1, SDN-2 and SDN-3 group depending on their mutation's range and the usage of donor DNA. The SDN-1 and SDN-2 crops, in particular, could be developed as 100% transgene-free, which do not contain any DNA fragment of the vector or guide RNA used for gene editing such as CRISPR Cas9 system. Therefore, there are no scientific methods available for the detection of these crops and differentiation with the one produced by conventional cross breeding techniques. Additionally, it would be impossible to properly implement the existing GMO regulation law, in particular, the national legislation for "GMO labelling". In this regard, Australia has announced that SDN-1 crops will not be subjected to the existing GMO regulation. Furthermore, Argentina and Brazil have established a new policy that GE crops with no transgene (100% transgene-free crops) should be exempted from the scope of the GMO. In addition, Japan has also announced that "an organism that has no remnants of inserted nucleic acid processed extracellularly is not subjected to the Cartagena Act". It means that SDN-2 crops can also be exempted from the scope of GMO. In this trend, in South Korea, I suggested that gene edited crops with no remnants of inserted foreign DNA fragments should be excluded from the existing GMO regulation. Thus, I expect that diverse elite crop lines should be developed by using advanced gene editing technologies

• Journal of Conservation Science
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.191-208
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• 2021

In this study, the status of damage by subterranean termites and their management according to the region and type of domestic wooden cultural properties were identified. This was based on the survey reports of agencies conducting regular nationwide and regional monitoring of subterranean termites. In addition, using geographical information system (GIS) based on the survey contents, a map was constructed of termite infestation and its progress on 2,805 wooden cultural properties that were surveyed nationwide. Based on the map produced, a total of 486 cases of termite infestation were confirmed in wooden cultural properties during 2018-2019, of which 143 cases (approximately 29.4%) were confirmed to be owing to the invasion of termites in the ground and infestation of wood materials. A web platform and an application using a mapping application program interface were created to increase accessibility to the investigated damage status data. The methods employed by each institution for investigating and monitoring the invasion of termites in the ground included the use of detection dogs, visual observation, installation of wood specimens made of pine, and microwave equipment. However, it was confirmed that monitoring and survey methods were not applied to determine the territorial range of the subterranean termite colonies. Accordingly, the use of dyeing and mark-release-recapture methods were deemed necessary to understand the current status, such as calculating the scope of the target wooden cultural property, when monitoring subterranean termite colonies.

• Journal of Internet of Things and Convergence
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.27-32
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• 2020

Along with the aging of the population, the number of dementia patients is increasing, and the social and economic burden is also increasing. Currently, the effective way to manage dementia patients is to identify patients with dementia early. However, in rural and island areas where medical staff are scarce, there is a problem that it is difficult to visit a hospital and get an early examination. Therefore, we propose a remote early detection system for dementia to solve the problems. The remote dementia early diagnosis system is a system that allows a patient to receive examination and treatment from a remote dementia expert using remote medical technology based on real-time image communication. The remote early diagnosis system for dementia consists of a local client system used by medical staff at health centers in the island, an image server that transmits, stores and manages images, and an expert client used by remote dementia experts. The local client subsystem satisfies the current medical law's remote collaboration by allowing the patient to use it with the health center's medical staff. In addition, expert clients are used by dementia experts, and can store/manage patient information, analyze patient history information, and predict the degree of dementia progression in the future.

• The Journal of the Institute of Internet, Broadcasting and Communication
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.85-91
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• 2020

Recently, video-taping equipment such as CCTV have been seeing more use for crime prevention and general safety concerns. Since these video-taping equipment operates all throughout the day, the need for security personnel is lessened, and naturally costs incurred from managing such manpower should also decrease. However, technology currently used predominantly lacks self-sufficiency when given the task of searching for a specific object in the recorded video such as a person, and has to be done manually; current security-based video equipment is insufficient in an environment where real-time information retrieval is required. In this paper, we propose a technology that uses the latest deep-learning technology and OpenCV library to quickly search for a specific person in a video; the search is based on the clothing information that is inputted by the user and transmits the result in real time. We implemented our system to automatically recognize specific human objects in real time by using the YOLO library, whilst deep learning technology is used to classify human clothes into top/bottom clothes. Colors are also detected through the OpenCV library which are then all combined to identify the requested object. The system presented in this paper not only accurately and quickly recognizes a person object with a specific clothing, but also has a potential extensibility that can be used for other types of object recognition in a video surveillance system for various purposes.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.47 no.1
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• pp.64-77
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• 2021

Objective: Biological monitoring of trace elements in human blood samples has become an important indicator of the health environment. The purpose of this study was to detect and evaluate multiple metal items in blood samples based on ICP-MS, to perform comparative evaluation with the existing analysis method, and to develop and verify a new method. Methods: 100 μL of whole blood from 80 healthy subjects was used to analyze ten metals (Sb, tAs, Cd, Pb, Mn, Hg, Mo, Ni, Se, Tl) using ICP-MS. Verification of the analysis method included calculation of linearity, accuracy, precision and detection limits. In addition, a comparative test with the conventional graphite furnace atomic absorption spectroscopy (GF-AAS) method was performed. In the case of Pb, Cd, and Hg in whole blood, cross-analysis between Pb, Cd, and Hg analysis methods was performed to confirm the difference between the existing method and the new method (ICP-MS). Results: The coefficient of determination (R2) was 0.999 or higher in seven items and 0.995 or higher in three items. The Pb result showed that Pearson's correlation coefficient was very high at 0.983, and the intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.966. The Cd result showed that Pearson's correlation coefficient was 0.917 between the existing method and the new analysis concentration value. Its intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.960, and there was no significant difference between the two groups. Hg had a low correlation at 0.687, and the intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.761, which was lower than that of Pb and Cd. The intra-day and inter-day accuracy of Pd and Cd were satisfactory, but Hg did not meet the criteria for both accuracy and precision when compared with the conventional analysis method. Conclusion: This study can be meaningful in that it proposes a more efficient and feasible analysis method by verifying a blood heavy metal concentration experiment using multiple simultaneous analyses. All samples were processed and analyzed using the new ICP-MS. It was confirmed that the agreement between the two methods was very high, with the agreement between the current and new methods being 0.769 to 0.998. This study proposes an efficient simultaneous methodology capable of analyzing multiple elements with small samples. In the future, studies of various applications and the reliability of ICP-MS analysis methods are required, and research on the verification of accurate, precise, and continuous analysis methods is required.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.65 no.6
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• pp.790-800
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• 2022

Objective : EID3 (EP300-interacting inhibitor of differentiation) was identified as a novel member of EID family and plays a pivotal role in colorectal cancer development. However, its role in glioma remained elusive. In current study, we identified EID3 as a novel oncogenic molecule in human glioma and is critical for glioma cell survival, proliferation and invasion. Methods : A total of five patients with glioma were recruited in present study and fresh glioma samples were removed from patients. Four weeks old male non-obese diabetic severe combined immune deficiency (NOD/SCID) mice were used as transplant recipient models. The subcutaneous tumor size was calculated and recorded every week with vernier caliper. EID3 and AMP-activated protein kinase α1 (AMPKα1) expression levels were confirmed by real-time polymerase chain reaction and Western blot assays. Colony formation assays were performed to evaluate cell proliferation. Methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium (MTT) assays were performed for cell viability assessment. Trypan blue staining approach was applied for cell death assessment. Cell Apoptosis DNA ELISA Detection Kit was used for apoptosis assessment. Results : EID3 was preferentially expressed in glioma tissues/cells, while undetectable in astrocytes, neuronal cells, or normal brain tissues. EID3 knocking down significantly hindered glioma cell proliferation and invasion, as well as induced reduction of cell viability, apoptosis and cell death. EID3 knocking down also greatly inhibited tumor growth in SCID mice. Knocking down of AMPKα1 could effectively rescue glioma cells from apoptosis and cell death caused by EID3 absence, indicating that AMPKα1 acted as a key downstream regulator of EID3 and mediated suppression effects caused by EID3 knocking down inhibition. These findings were confirmed in glioma cells generated patient-derived xenograft models. AMPKα1 protein levels were affected by MG132 treatment in glioma, which suggested EID3 might down regulate AMPKα1 through protein degradation. Conclusion : Collectively, our study demonstrated that EID3 promoted glioma cell proliferation and survival by inhibiting AMPKα1 expression. Targeting EID3 might represent a promising strategy for treating glioma.