• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.21 no.5
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• pp.59-68
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• 2004

Objective : This study was designed to evaluate the effect of electroacupuncture with various scales on symptoms of idiopathic Parkinson's disease. Methods : Subjects were voluntarily recruited by newspapers and internet. All the subjects are confirmed as idiopathic parkinson's disease by a neurologist. The acupuncture therapy was performed twice a week for 8 weeks. Acupuncture points for EA group were GB34, and LR3, electrical stimulation frequency was 120Hz, duration 15 minutes, and intensity is up to pain threshold according to patients. The patient's symptoms were assessed before, after 4 weeks and after 8 weeks treatments by unified Parkinson's disease rating scale(UPDRS), modified Hoehn-Yahr(H-Y) stage, Schwab & England activity of daily living and freezing of gait questionnaire(FOGQ). Results : UPDRS I, II, III, IV and total UPDRS scores were significantly improved after 4 weeks(p<0.05) and after 8 weeks(p<0.05) compared to the pre-treatment. The scores of ADL were significantly improved after 4 weeks(p<0.05) and after 8 weeks(p<0.05). There were significant changes in H-Y stage after 4 weeks(p<0.05), but There were no significant changes in H-Y stage after 8 weeks. There were significant changes in FOGQ scale after 4 weeks(p<0.05) and after 8 weeks(p<0.05). Conclusion : This study suggests that electroacupuncutre treatments can be applicable to improve symptoms in the patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.91-97
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• 2005

Objective : This study was designed to evaluate the effect of moxibustion with various scales on symptoms of idiopathic Parkinson's disease. Methods : Subjects were voluntarily recruited by newspapers and internet. All the subjects are confirmed as idiopathic parkinson's disease by a neurologist. The moxibustion therapy was performed 5 times a week by patient's family at home and once a week by oriental medical doctor at hospital. Moxibustion points were GV2O, CV12, ST36, BL18, BL2O. Intensity was up to pain threshold according to patients not to get burned. The patient's symptoms were assessed before, after 4 weeks and after 8 weeks treatment by unified Parkinson's disease rating scale(UPDRS), modified Hoehn-Yahr(H-Y) stage, Schwab & England activity of daily living and freezing of gait questionnaire(FOGQ). Results : Total UPDRS scores were significantly improved after 4 weeks(p<0.01) and after 8 weeks(p<0.01) compared to the pre-treatment. There were significant changes in H-Y stage after 4 weeks(p<0.05), but there were no significant changes in H-Y stage after 8 weeks. The scores of ADL were not significantly improved after 4 weeks(p>0.05) and after 8 weeks(p>0.05). There were significant changes in FOGQ scale after 4 weeks(p=0.05) and but there were no significant changes in FOGQ scale after 8 weeks(p=0.13). Conclusion : This study suggests that moxibustion treatments can be applicable to improve symptoms in the patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease.

• Annals of Geriatric Medicine and Research
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.176-183
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• 2018

Background: Although the frequency and intensity of headaches decrease in older adults, headaches in this population are still an important neurological disorder. The purpose of this study was to investigate the associations of headache characteristics in older adults with the development of cardiovascular disease and cognitive dysfunction. Methods: We prospectively enrolled 125 older (${\geq}65$ years old) patients with headache who were making their first visit to outpatient clinics and who had no prior history of cognitive dysfunction from 11 hospitals in Korea between August 2014 and February 2015. We investigated the occurrence of newly developed/or recurrent headache, cardiovascular disease, cognitive dysfunction, and poor functional outcomes. Results: The mean age of all included patients was 72.6 years, 68.8% were women, and 43 (34.4%) had newly developed/or recurrent headache during follow-up. During a median follow-up of 31 months (interquartile range, 28-34 months), 21 participants (16.8%) experienced cardiovascular disease, and 26 (20.8%) developed cognitive dysfunction. Upon multivariate analysis and after adjusting for sex, age, and other factors, presence of newly developed/or recurrent headache was found to be associated with cardiovascular disease (hazard ratio [HR], 4.03; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.28-12.61; p=0.017) and frequency of headache for the recent 3 months was related with cognitive dysfunction (HR, 1.05; 95% CI, 1.00-1.09; p=0.017) and poor functional outcomes (HR, 1.06; 95% CI, 1.01-1.11; p=0.011). Conclusion: Our study demonstrated that there is an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, cognitive dysfunction, and poor functional outcomes in older patients with frequent, newly developed, or recurrent headache.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.427-433
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• 2007

This study was conducted to investigate the usefulness of PASL image technique through visual and quantitative assessment by dividing CBF image, conventional perfusion magnetic resonance image, anterior cerebral artery, middle cerebral artery and posterior cerebral artery into 6 territories both right and left in moyamoya disease. In visual assessment, the scope of decreased perfusion in the PASL CBF image and conventional perfusion MR CBF image agreed with the position of deficiency in the MR image. The quantitative assessment, showed that the scope and position of decreased perfusion accord with both in the PASL CBF image and the existing conventional perfusion MR CBF image but the assessment of measuring the quantity of perfusion according to signal intensity showed a little difference.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.56 no.1
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• pp.41-48
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• 2018

The infection status of Clonorchis sinensis metacercariae (CsMc) was examined in freshwater fish from a highly prevalent site, Wicheon (a branch of Nakdong-gang), which is located in Gunwi-gun, Gyeongsangbuk-do, the Republic of Korea. Total 1,162 fish in 32 species were examined by the artificial digestion method through 6 years. CsMc were detected in 720 (67.5%) out of 1,067 fish (26 spp.) and their density was 610 per fish infected. In the susceptible gobioninid fish group, i.e., Pungtungia herzi, Squalidus gracilis majimae, Squalidus japonicus coreanus, Sarcocheilichthys variegatus wakiyae and Pseudorasbora parva, all of 323 fish were infected with an average of 1,310 CsMc. Total 23 (95.8%) gobioninid fish, i.e., Pseudogobio esocinus, Abbottina springeri, Hemibarbus longirostris, Microphysogobio koreensis, and Microphysogobio jeoni, were infected with 127 CsMc in average. In the acheilognathinid fish (bitterlings) group, the prevalence was 77.0%, and the density was 50 CsMc per fish infected. In the rasborinid fish (chubs) group, i.e., Zacco platypus, Zacco temminckii, Zacco koreanus, and Opsariichthys uncirostris amurensis, 147 (36.5%) out of 403 fish examined were infected with 15 CsMc in average. The susceptibility indices of CsMc were 412 in the overall positive fish group, 1,310 in the gobioninid group-1, 122 in the gobioninid group-2, 38.5 in the acheilognathinid group, and 5.5 in the rasborinid fish group. Conclusively, it was confirmed that CsMc are highly prevalent in fish from Wicheon, and their infection tendency varied according to the subfamily groups in Cyprinidae fish hosts.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.17 no.8
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• pp.351-365
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• 2017

Illness has long been an important plot device in Korean dramas. In earlier years, the device typically was supposed to be in the form of a terminal bodily disease occurring for the female main character toward the end of the story. On the other hand, the latest trend is to situate a mental illness for the male lead character at the earlier part, and use it as a tool to build characters, construct causal relations and set the intense tone for the overall story. The mental illness as a plot device helps to provide a series of reversals, revelations and turnarounds, giving viewers a stronger sense of intensity, empathy and identification. While the illness used to play the role of a deus ex machina to make a big emotional finish, the latest adoption of the mental illness as a main plot device has enhanced the flexibility of the plot and the effect of versimilitude in dramas. These noticeable changes make one suspect that the focus of Korea's drama contents might have already begun to grow out of the conventional soap operas into different genres.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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• v.54 no.1
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• pp.63-72
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• 2012

In livestock industry, damage caused by the epidemic diseases such as Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD), Highly-Pathogenic-Avian-Influenza (HPAI) and Porcine-Reproductive-and-Respiratory-Syndrome (PRRS) was very serious. The financial loss incurred from FMD alone which occurred on Nov. 2011 in Korea was estimated at 3 billion won, 23 % of annual livestock industry production. The livestock industry in Korea has greater risk of disease infection because of high density production, etc. Investigating the spread of livestock diseases should consider both direct and indirect contact as well as other various factors including airborne. Airborne infection of livestock disease was first hypothesised in the early 1900s, however, field experimental studies are still limited. Furthermore, no protocol is available in detecting airborne viruses in the field. In this study, effective virus samplers were investigated by comparative analysis of the type of samplers used detect to airborne virus. Laboratory experiments were conducted to compare virus samplers such as Bio-sampler, Dust-sampler, Compact-Cascade-Impactor (CCI) and Microflow in detecting PRRSV. Samples were analyzed by Reverse-Transcription PCR to assess the efficiency of the instrument in detecting the airborne virus. First, samples were classified into five levels according to light intensity of gel images and then the classified results were normalized. In every case, Bio-sampler and Dust-sampler were comparable with each other and have shown to be more effective than CCI and Microflow samplers.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.353-361
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• 2011

In this study, cyanidin-3-glucoside (C3G) fraction extracted from the mulberry fruit (Morus alba L.) was investigated for its neuroprotective effects against oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD) and glutamate-induced cell death in rat primary cortical neurons. Cell membrane damage and mitochondrial function were assessed by LDH release and MTT reduction assays, respectively. A time-course study of OGD-induced cell death of primary cortical neurons at 7 days in vitro (DIV) indicated that neuronal death was OGD duration-dependent. It was also demonstrated that OGD for 3.5 h resulted in approximately 50% cell death, as determined by the LDH release assay. Treatments with mulberry C3G fraction prevented membrane damage and preserved the mitochondrial function of the primary cortical neurons exposed to OGD for 3.5 h in a concentration-dependent manner. Glutamate-induced cell death was more pronounced in DIV-9 and DIV-11 cells than that in DIV-7 neurons, and an application of $50{\mu}M$ glutamate was shown to induce approximately 40% cell death in DIV-9 neurons. Interestingly, treatment with mulberry C3G fraction did not provide a protective effect against glutamate-induced cell death in primary cortical neurons. On the other hand, treatment with mulberry C3G fraction maintained the mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) in primary cortical neurons exposed to OGD as assessed by the intensity of rhodamine-123 fluorescence. These results therefore suggest that the neuroprotective effects of mulberry C3G fraction are mediated by the maintenance of the MMP and mitochondrial function but not by attenuating glutamate-induced excitotoxicity in rat primary cortical neurons.

• Journal of Korean Medical classics
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.35-50
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• 2010

By grouping freshly the virtue terms used in herbal medicine, we are apt to establish the position coordinates of concepts and raise the level of the herbal virtue research in future. As the terms related to the herbal virtue used in herbal medicine are used with the virtue terms mingled with the chief treatable disease terms, it's hard to use the herbal virtue data only. And though the virtues terms imply many data like medical act data or medical operation data, we can't use them fully. We sort the terms related to the herbal virtue into the virtue terms and the chief treatable disease terms and acquire many data like medical act data or medical operation data and group the data by same attribute. At this time in the process of classification we establish sort standards inductively, put relations between the attributes in order, out of this result we grasp the actual conditions of the virtue terms used now, and show useful data for herbal virtue research in future. We got the chief treatable disease terms from the ones related to the herbal virtue, acquired a lot of data from the virtue terms and grouped the data by the same attribute. We established a proper standard inductively in the process of classification, put the relations between the attributes in order, grasped the actual conditions of the virtue terms in use at the moment out of the result of the classification and presented the applicable data for the herbal virtue research in future.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.63 no.4
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• pp.463-469
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• 2020

Objective : This study aimed to investigate the changes and significance of microRNA155 levels in serum of patients with cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD). Methods : Thirty patients with CSVD who met the inclusion criteria were selected and divided into eight patients with lacunar infarction (LI) group and 22 patients with multiple lacunar infarction (MLI) combined with white matter lesions (WML) group according to the results of head magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Thirty samples from healthy volunteers without abnormalities after head MRI examination were selected as the control group. The levels of serum microRNA155 in each group were determined by real-time polymerase chain reaction, and the correlation between microRNA155 in the serum of patients with CSVD and the increase of imaging lesions was analyzed by Spearman correlation analysis. Results : Compared with the control group, the serum microRNA155 level in the LI group, MLI combined with WML group increased, the difference was statistically significant (p<0.05); serum microRNA155 level was positively correlated with the increase of imaging lesions (p<0.05). Conclusion : The change of serum microRNA155 level in patients with CSVD may be one of its self-protection mechanisms, and the intensity of this self-protection mechanism is positively correlated with the number of CSVD lesions.