• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
• /
• v.53 no.4
• /
• pp.413-419
• /
• 2015

The present study determined and compared the genetic diversity of Plasmodium falciparum strains infecting children living in 2 areas from Gabon with different malaria endemicity. Blood samples were collected from febrile children from 2008 to 2009 in 2 health centres from rural (Oyem) and urban (Owendo) areas. Genetic diversity was determined in P. falciparum isolates by analyzing the merozoite surface protein-1 (msp1) gene polymorphism using nested-PCR. Overall, 168 children with mild falciparum malaria were included. K1, Ro33, and Mad20 alleles were found in 110 (65.5%), 94 (55.9%), and 35 (20.8%) isolates, respectively, without difference according to the site (P>0.05). Allelic families' frequencies were comparable between children less than 5 years old from the 2 sites; while among the older children the proportions of Ro33 and Mad20 alleles were 1.7 to 2.0 fold higher at Oyem. Thirty-three different alleles were detected, 16 (48.5%) were common to both sites, and 10 out of the 17 specific alleles were found at Oyem. Furthermore, multiple infection carriers were frequent at Oyem (57.7% vs 42.2% at Owendo; P=0.04) where the complexity of infection was of 1.88 (${\pm}0.95$) higher compared to that found at Owendo ($1.55{\pm}0.75$). Extended genetic diversity of P. falciparum strains infecting Gabonese symptomatic children and high multiplicity of infections were observed in rural area. Alleles common to the 2 sites were frequent; the site-specific alleles predominated in the rural area. Such distribution of the alleles should be taken into accounts when designing MSP1 or MSP2 malaria vaccine.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
• /
• v.50 no.6
• /
• pp.637-649
• /
• 2017

Lipid levels and fatty acid compositions of 20 species of subtropical fish caught off the coast of Jeju Island, Korea were determined. The fish were categorized according to total lipid (TL) content as follows; lean fish ($TL=1.19{\pm}0.32%$, n=10 species), low-fat fish ($TL=3.02{\pm}0.44%$, n=6 species) and medium-fat fish ($TL=6.87{\pm}1.23%$, n=4 species). The prominent fatty acids were saturated fatty acids (SFAs), at 16:0 and 18:0 monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), at 18:1n-9 and 16:1n-7, and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), at 22:6n-3, 20:5n-3 and/or 20:4n-6. Across all species, the percentages of PUFAs and SFAs were $38.0{\pm}7.89%$ and $34.3{\pm}3.08%$, respectively, with no significant difference between both groups (P<0.05), but showed higher proportions than that of MUFA group ($27.8{\pm}7.23%$) (P<0.05). The proportion of n-3 PUFAs was $27.1{\pm}8.68%$ across all fish species, similar to levels in other fishes from Korea. These results suggest that subtropical fish from Jeju Island are a good source of n-3 PUFAs for humans.

• The Korean Journal of Food And Nutrition
• /
• v.34 no.5
• /
• pp.498-505
• /
• 2021

This study tried to develop Jinmal dasik using pine nuts leaf powder with antibacterial and antioxidant properties. After preparing the Jinmal dasik in proportions of 0%, 2%, 4%, 6%, and 8% by varying the ratio of pine needle powder, the moisture, color, physical properties, antioxidant properties and sensory quality were measured. Except for the 8% Jinmal dasik, the L value of chromaticity significantly decreased as the amount of pine needle powder increased (p<0.001). In addition, the value significantly decreased with increased density (p<0.001). Based on our physical properties evaluation results, the hardness, cohesiveness, and elasticity decreased significantly as the amount of pine needle powder increased (p<0.001), but adhesion and chewiness increased significantly with an increase in the amount of pine needle powder (p<0.001). Total polyphenol content was significantly increased except for the 8% Jinmal dasik (p<0.001). DPPH and ABTS also increased significantly as the amount of pine needle powder increased (p<0.001). Our sensory evaluation, showed the 2% Jinmal dasik to have the highest degree of preference, however, there was no significant difference among the proportion groups (p=0.053).

• Anatomy and Cell Biology
• /
• v.57 no.2
• /
• pp.288-293
• /
• 2024

The temporal fascia is a double lamina sandwiching a thick fat layer above the zygomatic bony arch. To characterize each lamina, their developmental processes were examined in fetuses. We observed histological sections from 22 half-heads of 10 mid-term fetuses at 14-18 weeks (crown-rump length, 95-150 mm) and 12 near-term fetuses at 26-40 weeks (crown-rump length, 215-334 mm). The superficial lamina of the temporal fascia was not evident at mid-term. Instead, a loose subcutaneous tissue was attached to the thin, deep lamina of the temporal fascia covering the temporalis muscle. At near-term, the deep lamina became thick, while the superficial lamina appeared and exhibited several variations: i) a mono-layered thick membrane (5 specimens); ii) a multi-layered membranous structure (6) and; iii) a cluster of independent thick fasciae each of which were separated by fatty tissues (1). In the second and third patterns, fatty tissue between the two laminae was likely to contain longitudinal fibrous bands in parallel with the deep lamina. Varying proportions of the multi-layered superficial lamina were not attached to the zygomatic arch, but extended below the bony arch. Whether or not lobulation or septation of fatty tissues was evident was not dependent on age. The deep lamina seemed to develop from the temporalis muscle depending on the muscle contraction. In contrast, the superficial lamina developed from subcutaneous collagenous bundles continuous to the cheek. Therein, a difference in development was clearly seen between two categories of the fasciae.

• International Journal of Highway Engineering
• /
• v.17 no.6
• /
• pp.19-26
• /
• 2015

PURPOSES : This study intends to develop an inorganic soil pavement material using industrial by-products and to evaluate its applicability as a road pavement material. METHODS : In this study, a compressive strength experiment was conducted based on the NaOH solution molarity and water glass content to understand the strength properties of the soil pavement material according to the mixing ratio of alkali activator. In addition, the strength characteristic of the inorganic soil pavement material was analyzed based on the binder content. The performance of the soil pavement was evaluated by conducing an accelerated pavement test and a falling weight deflectometer (FWD) test. RESULTS : As a result of the soil pavement material test based on the mixture ratio of alkali activator, it was identified that the activator that mixed a 10 M NaOH solution to water glass in a 5:5 ratio is appropriate. As a result of the inorganic soil pavement materials test based on the binder content, the strength development increased sharply when the amount of added binder was over 300 kg; this level of binder content satisfied 28 days of 18 MPa of compression strength, which is the standard for existing soil pavement design. According to the measured results of the FWD test, the dynamic k-value did not show a significant difference before or after the accelerated pavement testing. Furthermore, the effective modulus decreased by approximately 50%, compared with the initial effective modulus for pedestrian pavement. CONCLUSIONS : Based on these results, inorganic soil pavement can be applied by changing the mixture proportions according to the use of the pavement, and can be utilized as road pavement from light load roads to access roads.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.33 no.10
• /
• pp.1590-1598
• /
• 2020

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of lysophospholipids (LPL) supplementation on rumen fermentation, degradability, and microbial diversity in forage with high oil diet in an in vitro system. Methods: Four experimental treatments were used: i) annual ryegrass (CON), ii) 93% annual ryegrass +7% corn oil on a dry matter (DM) basis (OiL), iii) OiL with a low level (0.08% of dietary DM) of LPL (LLPL), and iv) OiL with a high level (0.16% of dietary DM) of LPL (HLPL). An in vitro fermentation experiment was performed using strained rumen fluid for 48 h incubations. In vitro DM degradability (IVDMD), in vitro neutral detergent fiber degradability, pH, ammonia nitrogen (NH₃-N), volatile fatty acid (VFA), and microbial diversity were estimated. Results: There was no significant change in IVDMD, pH, NH₃-N, and total VFA production among treatments. The LPL supplementation significantly increased the proportion of butyrate and valerate (Linear effect [Lin], p = 0.004 and <0.001, respectively). The LPL supplementation tended to increase the total bacteria in a linear manner (p = 0.089). There were significant decreases in the relative proportions of cellulolytic (Fibrobacter succinogenes and Ruminococcus albus) and lipolytic (Anaerovibrio lipolytica and Butyrivibrio proteoclasticus) bacteria with increasing levels of LPL supplementation (Lin, p = 0.028, 0.006, 0.003, and 0.003, respectively). Conclusion: The LPL supplementation had antimicrobial effects on several cellulolytic and lipolytic bacteria, with no significant difference in nutrient degradability (DM and neutral detergent fiber) and general bacterial counts, suggesting that LPL supplementation might increase the enzymatic activity of rumen bacteria. Therefore, LPL supplementation may be more effective as an antimicrobial agent rather than as an emulsifier in the rumen.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.17 no.4
• /
• pp.2165-2170
• /
• 2016

Background: The survival of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients is usually low due to late diagnosis. Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital as the largest tertiary referral hospital in Indonesia, has recently improved its modalities for advanced HCC management, but there has not been any evaluation on any improvement in HCC patient survival. Materials and Methods: A retrospective analysis on 114 HCC patients in 2013-2014 were conducted and compared with the database for 77 HCC patients in 1998-1999. Clinical characteristics and treatment received were recorded and the survival of both groups was analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method and compared using the log-rank test. Results: The percentage of HBV positive patients had increased after fifteen years from 32.5% to 67.5%. Only two patients (1.8%) in 2013-2014 were diagnosed with HCC during surveillance program. Proportions of Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer A, B, C, and D in 2013-2014 were 1.8%, 42%, 28.1%, and 28.1%, respectively. There was an increase in the use of potentially curative treatment, such as surgical resection or combination of loco-regional therapies. The one-year survival rate increased from 24.1% in 1998-1999 to 29.4% in 2013-2014, while the median survival decreased from 146 days to 138 days, but the difference was not statistically significant (p=0.913). Conclusions: There was no improvement in the median survival of HCC patients after fifteen years because most continued to present at late stages. There is an urgent need for a nationwide implementation of a hepatitis screening program and HCC surveillance education.

• Proceedings of the National Institute of Ecology of the Republic of Korea
• /
• v.2 no.1
• /
• pp.1-14
• /
• 2021

The study has been carried out with an objective to prepare Siberian roe deer habitat potential maps in South Korea based on three geographic information system-based models including frequency ratio (FR) as a bivariate statistical approach as well as convolutional neural network (CNN) and long short-term memory (LSTM) as machine learning algorithms. According to field observations, 741 locations were reported as roe deer's habitat preferences. The dataset were divided with a proportion of 70:30 for constructing models and validation purposes. Through FR model, a total of 10 influential factors were opted for the modelling process, namely altitude, valley depth, slope height, topographic position index (TPI), topographic wetness index (TWI), normalized difference water index, drainage density, road density, radar intensity, and morphological feature. The results of variable importance analysis determined that TPI, TWI, altitude and valley depth have higher impact on predicting. Furthermore, the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was applied to assess the prediction accuracies of three models. The results showed that all the models almost have similar performances, but LSTM model had relatively higher prediction ability in comparison to FR and CNN models with the accuracy of 76% and 73% during the training and validation process. The obtained map of LSTM model was categorized into five classes of potentiality including very low, low, moderate, high and very high with proportions of 19.70%, 19.81%, 19.31%, 19.86%, and 21.31%, respectively. The resultant potential maps may be valuable to monitor and preserve the Siberian roe deer habitats.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
• /
• v.17 no.5
• /
• pp.883-898
• /
• 2023

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Probiotics have been suggested as potent modulators of age-related disorders in immunological functions, yet little is known about sex-dependent effects of probiotic supplements. Therefore, we aimed to investigate sex-dependent effects of probiotics on profiles of the gut microbiota and peripheral immune cells in healthy older adults. SUBJECTS/METHODS: In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter trial, healthy elderly individuals ≥ 65 yrs old were administered probiotic capsules (or placebo) for 12 wk. Gut microbiota was analyzed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing and bioinformatic analyses. Peripheral immune cells were profiled using flow cytometry for lymphocytes (natural killer, B, CD4⁺ T, and CD8⁺ T cells), dendritic cells, monocytes, and their subpopulations. RESULTS: Compared with placebo, phylum Firmicutes was significantly reduced in the probiotic group in women, but not in men. At the genus level, sex-specific responses included reductions in the relative abundances of pro-inflammatory gut microbes, including Catabacter and unclassified_Coriobacteriales, and Burkholderia and unclassified Enterobacteriaceae, in men and women, respectively. Peripheral immune cell profiling analysis revealed that in men, probiotics significantly reduced the proportions of dendritic cells and CD14⁺ CD16^- monocytes; however, these effects were not observed in women. In contrast, the proportion of total CD4⁺ T cells was significantly reduced in women in the probiotic group. Additionally, serum lipopolysaccharide-binding protein levels showed a decreasing tendency that were positively associated with changes in gut bacteria, including Catabacter (ρ = 0.678, P < 0.05) and Burkholderia (ρ = 0.673, P < 0.05) in men and women, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that probiotic supplementation may reduce the incidence of inflammation-related diseases by regulating the profiles of the gut microbiota and peripheral immune cells in healthy elders in a sex-specific manner.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
• /
• v.41 no.4
• /
• pp.466-471
• /
• 2008

Little is known about DNA-level and physiological levels for health assessments of stream or river environments. Recently, comet assay, so called Single Cell Gel Electrophoresis (SCGE) is introduced for assessments of DNA damage in the medical science, food science and mammal toxicology. The comet assay is known as a biomarker which is one of the best barometers in assessing the DNA damage by oxidative stress. In this study, we conducted the comet assay using sentinel species, Zacco platypus, as one of the pre-warning alarm systems for the aquatic ecosystem health assessments and also applied it to Gap Stream as a model system. Tail extent moments in the S1 and S2 were 5.20 and 9.90 respectively and the moment was 19.89 in the S3. Statistical ANOVA in the tail moments showed a significant difference (n=75, p<0.05) between S1 and S3. Also, the proportions of DNA in the tail were 14.47, 23.64, and $30.04{\mu}m$ in the upstream (control site), midstream, downstream sites, respectively. Our results in the downstream were accord with previous studies of individual-level, population-level, and community-level in Gap Stream. Our results suggest that the comet assay may be used as an important tool for diagnosing ecological health of aquatic ecosystems in the level of DNA.