• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.209-217
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• 2021

Although forest fires are more often triggered by artificial causes than by natural causes, the combustion conditions that spread forest fire damage over a large area are affected by natural phenomena. Therefore, using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), which can analyze the dependent and causal relationships between various factors, this study evaluated the causal relationships and relative influences between forest fire, weather, and drought, taking Gangwon Province as our sample region. The results indicated that the impact of drought on forest fires was 27 % and that of the weather was 38 %. In addition, forest fires in spring accounted for about 60 % of total forest fires. This indicatesthat along with meteorological factors, the autumn and winter droughts in the previous year affected forest fires. In assessing the risk of forest fires, if severe meteorological droughts occur in autumn and winter, the probability of forest fires may increase in the spring of the following year.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.310-319
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• 2021

Background: Humidifier disinfectant exposure is an ongoing issue, and there is still considerable related controversy. Various approaches are needed to secure scientific evidence on the extent of the victims' damages and for the determination of appropriate compensation. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess the association between humidifier disinfectant (HD) use and academic achievement in Korean children. Methods: This study used data from the 8th Panel Study on Korean Children in 2015. For the final study, 1,598 cases were used. T-tests and multiple linear regression analyses were conducted to determine whether the use of humidifier disinfectant is a factor that affects academic ability. Results: Children in groups using humidifier disinfectant showed statistically significantly lower scores in all areas of language, including reading, speaking and writing, and statistically lower scores in all areas of mathematics, including counting, addition and subtraction. In the multiple regression analysis results, which control for the effects of various demographic/social variables, the use of humidifier disinfectants showed statistically significant beta coefficients (β: -0.357, p<0.001), negatively affecting children's language ability. As for the 'math' variable, which was created by combining counting, addition, and subtraction scores, the use of humidifier disinfectants as independent variables also showed statistically significant beta coefficients (β: -0.200, p<0.001), negatively affecting children's math ability. Conclusions: The results of the study showed that depending on whether or not humidifier disinfectants were used, there are differences in children's language abilities, such as reading, speaking, and writing, as well as in their mathematical abilities, such as counting, adding, and subtracting numbers. These findings are thought to serve as a scientific basis for extending the perspective from health effects to more diverse areas of demographic and social impact related to humidifier disinfectant damage and compensation.

• Journal of the Korean Geosynthetics Society
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.151-163
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• 2021

This paper is dealt with railway slope stability for slope reinforcement using a geosynthetic concrete composite mat(GCCM). Recently, according to a change in weather caused by global warming, train operation has been restricted by the loss of backfill slope at the roadbed, which is consists of gravel, due to typhoons and heavy rainfall. In addition, the amount of damage is getting more significant than the cost of restoration, and the safety of workers is worried. In order to improve this limitation, a slope stability analysis was applied with a rapid hardening composite mat so that it can quickly secure a construction surface with increased workability and work stability and reduce maintenance costs by preventing re-loss in case of heavy rain and fundamentally blocking vegetation. As a result of the analysis, it was confirmed that the increase in safety factor was confirmed when the rapid harding composite mat was applied.

• The Journal of Churna Manual Medicine for Spine and Nerves
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.47-54
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• 2021

Objectives This review was conducted to study use of Aconitum herbal medicine for pain control in musculoskeletal disease. Methods Musculoskeletal disease is a major factor of social cost increase and physical disability. Various drugs, surgery and imaging are being overused regardlessly. Aconitum herbal plants are one of the most toxic Korean traditional herbs. However, they could be utilized effectively on patients with appropriate processing and decocting time. We searched Korean medicine literature to see various features of aconitum herbal plants and tried to find the utilization of the plants in effective way for pain control in musculoskeletal disease. Results Aconitum herbal plants needs to be used carefully because of intoxication which could lead to severe damage to human body. Processing of these toxic plants could minimize the harm and raise the benefits, such as relieving various types of pain and positive inotropic action. Further studies with clearer evidence and discovering aftereffects of processing in more details are needed. Conclusions Aconitum herbal plants could dedicate to controlling pain in musculoskeletal disease with various forms and appropriate processing.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.19-28
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• 2022

In this study, three types of combined isolator consisting of High Damping Rubber Bearing (HDRB) and wire isolator were developed for Uninterruptible Power Supply system (UPS). The dynamic characteristics of the combined isolator were investigated through one-axis shaking table test. The input acceleration were generated in accordance with ICC-ES AC156 code. Scale factors of the input acceleration were designed to be 0.5-2 times the required response spectrum defined in ICC-ES AC156. Based on the test results, damage and dynamic characteristics of the UPS were investigated: including natural frequency, damping ratio, acceleration time history response, dynamic amplification factor and relative displacement. Based on that, it was found that the combined isolator developed in this study could improve the seismic behavior of the UPS, in particular, the response acceleration.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.1-8
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• 2022

Objectives : Dioscorea batas Decaisne (DB) has been known to be good for the digestive system on Eastern Asia. However, the protective effect of DB on acute pancreatitis (AP) has not been studied. In this study, we tried to investigate the protective effect of DB water extract on caerulein-induced AP. Methods : To measure the protective effect of DB on AP, Mice were injected with cholecystokinin analogue caerulein (50 ㎍/kg) hourly for 6 times. DB water extract (200 or 400 mg/kg) or saline (control group) was administered orally 1 h before the first injection of caerulein. The mice were sacrificed at 6 h after the last injection of caerulein. The pancreas tissues and serum samples were immediately taken for further analysis. Results : Administration of DB water extract showed the inhibitory effect on the increase of pancreas weight/body weight ratio, pancreatic histological damage. And the rise of serum lipase level was significantly reduced in DB water extract treatment group during AP in mice. However administration of DB water extract did not show significant reduction in serum amylase level. Also, mRNA levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines Interleukin (IL)-6 and Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-𝛼 but not IL-1𝛽 were inhibited by administration of DB water extract. Conclusions : Taken together, we found that administration of DB water extract ameliorates the severity of caerulein-induced AP, which suggests the potential to be an effective treatment on AP.

• BMB Reports
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• v.55 no.8
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• pp.370-379
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• 2022

Human pregnancy is a delicate and complex process where multiorgan interactions between two independent systems, the mother, and her fetus, maintain pregnancy. Intercellular interactions that can define homeostasis at the various cellular level between the two systems allow uninterrupted fetal growth and development until delivery. Interactions are needed for tissue remodeling during pregnancy at both fetal and maternal tissue layers. One of the mechanisms that help tissue remodeling is via cellular transitions where epithelial cells undergo a cyclic transition from epithelial to mesenchymal (EMT) and back from mesenchymal to epithelial (MET). Two major pregnancy-associated tissue systems that use EMT, and MET are the fetal membrane (amniochorion) amnion epithelial layer and cervical epithelial cells and will be reviewed here. EMT is often associated with localized inflammation, and it is a well-balanced process to facilitate tissue remodeling. Cyclic transition processes are important because a terminal state or the static state of EMT can cause accumulation of proinflammatory mesenchymal cells in the matrix regions of these tissues and increase localized inflammation that can cause tissue damage. Interactions that determine homeostasis are often controlled by both endocrine and paracrine mediators. Pregnancy maintenance hormone progesterone and its receptors are critical for maintaining the balance between EMT and MET. Increased intrauterine oxidative stress at term can force a static (terminal) EMT and increase inflammation that are physiologic processes that destabilize homeostasis that maintain pregnancy to promote labor and delivery of the fetus. However, conditions that can produce an untimely increase in EMT and inflammation can be pathologic. These tissue damages are often associated with adverse pregnancy complications such as preterm prelabor rupture of the membranes (pPROM) and spontaneous preterm birth (PTB). Therefore, an understanding of the biomolecular processes that maintain cyclic EMT-MET is critical to reducing the risk of pPROM and PTB. Extracellular vesicles (exosomes of 40-160 nm) that can carry various cargo are involved in cellular transitions as paracrine mediators. Exosomes can carry a variety of biomolecules as cargo. Studies specifically using exosomes from cells undergone EMT can carry a pro-inflammatory cargo and in a paracrine fashion can modify the neighboring tissue environment to cause enhancement of uterine inflammation.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.32 no.7
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• pp.877-884
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• 2022

Probiotics are microorganisms that can benefit host health when ingested in a live state, and lactic acid bacteria are the most common type. Among fungi, Saccharomyces boulardii (SB) is the only strain known to have a probiotic function with beneficial effects on colitis; however, information on other probiotic yeast strains is limited. Therefore, this study aimed to discover yeast strains expressing intestinal anti-inflammatory activities by exhibiting probiotic properties in dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-induced colitis mice model. Nuruk (Korean traditional fermentation starter) containing various microbial strains was used as a source for yeast strains, and S. cerevisiae 28-7 (SC28-7) strain was selected with in vitro and in vivo characteristics to enable survival in the intestines. After 14 days of pretreatment with the yeast strains, DSS was co-administered for six days to induce colitis in mice. The results revealed that the disease activity index score was lowered by SC28-7 treatment compared to the DSS group, and the colon length and weight/length ratio were recovered in a pattern similar to that of the normal group. SC28-7 administration significantly reduced the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines in the serum and modified the mRNA expression of inflammatory cytokines (interleukin-1β, transforming growth factor-β, and interferon-γ) and proteins involved in gut barrier functions (mucin 2, mucin 3, zonula occludens-1, and occludin) in colon tissues. These results indicate that SC28-7 attenuates DSS-induced colon damage and inflammation, supporting its future use as a probiotic yeast for treating and preventing intestinal inflammatory diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.485-502
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• 2021

In order to evaluate the impact of ground subsidence and superstructures that are inevitably caused by tunnel excavation, a total of seven major influencing factors of surface subsidence and structural soundness reduction were set, and a Parameter Study using numerical analysis was conducted. Stability analysis was performed using scheme of Boscardin and Cording method and the maximum subsidence amount and the angular displacement, and correlation analysis was performed for each major influencing factor. In addition, it was applied that used the mutual behavior of the ground and the structure by parameter analysis in the site of the 𐩒𐩒𐩒 tunnel located in Hwaseong-si, Gyeonggi-do, and the applicability of the site was analyzed. As a result, the error was found to be 1.0%, and it could be used as a basic material for determining the appropriate tunnel route under various conditions when evaluating the stability of the structure according to tunnel excavating at the design stage.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.31 no.7
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• pp.990-998
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• 2021

Melanin is a natural skin pigment produced by specialized cells called melanocytes via a multistage biochemical pathway known as melanogenesis, involving the oxidation and polymerization of tyrosine. Melanogenesis is initiated upon exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation, causing the skin to darken, which protects skin cells from UVB radiation damage. However, the abnormal accumulation of melanin may lead to the development of certain skin diseases, including skin cancer. In this study, the antioxidant and antimelanogenic activities of the cell-free supernatant (CFS) of twenty strains were evaluated. Based on the results of 60% 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl scavenging activity, 21% 2,2'-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) scavenging capacity, and a 50% ascorbic acid equivalent ferric reducing antioxidant power value, Limosilactobacillus fermentum JNU532 was selected as the strain with the highest antioxidant potential. No cytotoxicity was observed in cells treated with the CFS of L. fermentum JNU532. Tyrosinase activity was reduced by 16.7% in CFS-treated B16F10 cells (but not in the cell-free system), with >23.2% reduction in melanin content upon treatment with the L. fermentum JNU532-derived CFS. The inhibitory effect of the L. fermentum JNU532-derived CFS on B16F10 cell melanogenesis pathways was investigated using quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and western blotting. The inhibitory effects of the L. fermentum JNU532-derived CFS were mediated by inhibiting the transcription of TYR, TRP-1, TRP-2, and MITF and the protein expression of TYR, TRP-1, TRP-2, and MITF. Therefore, L. fermentum JNU532 may be considered a potentially useful, natural depigmentation agent.