• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.63 no.4
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• pp.457-462
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• 2020

Pancreatic cancer is among the most difficult-to-treat tumors. More than half of patients with this cancer have very few symptoms at the early stages, allowing the development of distant metastases and resistance to cancer treatment. In this study, we found that Juniperus chinensis extract (JCX) decreased the cell viability and migration activity of PANC-1 and SNU-213 pancreatic cancer cells in a dose-dependent manner. JCX increased caspase-3 activation and generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). N-acetylcysteine treatment blocked JCX-induced ROS generation and the negative effects on pancreatic cancer cell viability. In addition, JCX down-regulated the levels of phospho-focal adhesion kinase (p-FAK) and phospho-extracellular signal-regulated kinase (p-ERK). Together, these results indicate that JCX induces apoptosis in human pancreatic cancer cell lines through ROS production, downregulating FAK/ERK signaling and activating caspase-3. We propose that JCX-derived compounds represent candidates for the development of alternative medicines for the treatment of pancreatic cancer.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.54 no.1
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• pp.310-317
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• 2022

The mass attenuation coefficient is the primary physical parameter to model narrow beam gamma-ray attenuation. A new machine learning based approach is proposed to model gamma-ray shielding behavior of composites alternative to theoretical calculations. Two fuzzy logic algorithms and a neural network algorithm were trained and tested with different mixture ratios of vanadium slag/epoxy resin/antimony in the 0.05 MeV-2 MeV energy range. Two of the algorithms showed excellent agreement with testing data after optimizing adjustable parameters, with root mean squared error (RMSE) values down to 0.0001. Those results are remarkable because mass attenuation coefficients are often presented with four significant figures. Different training data sizes were tried to determine the least number of data points required to train sufficient models. Data set size more than 1000 is seen to be required to model in above 0.05 MeV energy. Below this energy, more data points with finer energy resolution might be required. Neuro-fuzzy models were three times faster to train than neural network models, while neural network models depicted low RMSE. Fuzzy logic algorithms are overlooked in complex function approximation, yet grid partitioned fuzzy algorithms showed excellent calculation efficiency and good convergence in predicting mass attenuation coefficient.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.48 no.4
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• pp.427-432
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• 2021

The conventional approach of looking down a microscope to perform microsurgical procedures is associated with occupational injuries, anti-ergonomic postures, and increased tremor and fatigue, all of which predispose microsurgeons to early retirement. Recently, three-dimensional (3D) visualization of real-time microscope magnification has been developed as an alternative. Despite its commercial availability, no supermicrosurgical procedures have been reported using this technology to date. Lymphovenous anastomoses (LVAs) often require suturing vessels with diameters of 0.2-0.8 mm, thus representing the ultimate microsurgical challenge. After performing the first documented LVA procedure using 3D-augmented visualization in our unit and gaining experience with this technique, we conducted an anonymized in-house survey among microsurgeons who had used this approach. The participants considered that 3D visualization for supermicrosurgery was equivalent in terms of handling, optical detail, depth resolution, and safety to conventional binocular magnification. This survey revealed that team communication, resident education, and ergonomics were superior using 3D digital hybrid visualization. Postoperative muscle fatigue, tremor, and pain were also reduced. The major drawbacks of the 3D visualization microscopic systems are the associated costs, required space, and difficulty of visualizing the lymphatic contrast used.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.87-105
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• 2021

Purpose - The purpose of this study was to explores how CEO general human capital, one of the most critical issues in recent research, affects compensation schemes. Design/methodology/approach - This study collected the CEOs of S&P500 companies from 2001 to 2009 and contains 4,155 CEO-firm-year observations and 704 different CEOs. Findings - First, only contingent bonus is affected by general human capital and reputation. Second, the career concerns of CEOs are relevant, especially when explaining CEO tenure. Third, we offer an alternative view of what determines the level of cash compensation schemes and the factors that affect the running of a firm. Fourth, we also suggest that the increase in general human capital can be explained by the increase in its relative importance in managing a modern firm. Overall, the results of this study do not only contribute to academics but also important to boards and shareholders. Research implications or Originality - This study intends to fill the gap in the extant literature by examining the relationship between general human capital and compensation schemes.First, we add to the compensation literature by arguing that a cash compensation scheme is efficient for generalist CEOs. We break down CEO cash compensation schemes into fixed and contingent bonus compensation and investigate whether general human capital differentially affects CEO cash compensation schemes, and thus, the sensitivity to unequal pay for human capital. Second, we contribute to the reputation literature by arguing that CEO perceived reputation also affects CEO compensation schemes.

• CELLMED
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.14.1-14.2
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• 2022

Currently, a 70-year-old woman started suffering from S.I joint pain from 1973 and had severe pain in the S.I joint, wrist, and elbow from 1975 to 1977, and was diagnosed with spinal tuberculosis at a general hospital. From 1978 to 1987, she suffered from chronic fatigue and insomnia, and since January 1, 1988, she was unable to get up while lying down, suffering from whole body joint, muscle pain, and fibromyalgia. In May 1989, she was also diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis through genetic testing at the Catholic St. Mary's Hospital Rheumatology Department in Korea, and was treated with sulfasalazine, analgesic, and immunosuppressant, methotrexate, for 12 years until 1999, but none of the drugs eliminated the pain. She was hospitalized and discharged repeatedly, and continued to receive salt water poultice and exercise therapy at home, but was unable to move at all. In 2000, after biologic treatment with Remicade injection (Remsima®), she was able to walk and move, and after that, she was continuously prescribed biologics. From 2015 to 2019, Enbrel® (Etanercept) injection was prescribed once a week, but the symptoms such as severe pain (joint and muscle, fibromyalgia), scleroderma, Sjogren's syndrome (dryness of eyes, nose and mouth), difficulty swallowing, chronic fatigue, and stiff body appeared. Around January 2018, hepatic indicators were high and lymphocytes became enlarged. However, most serious injuries were highly improved after the OCNT combination therapy using active phytonutrients, anthocyanin-fucoidan nanocomplex. Therefore, for patients with such experiences, OCNT treatment is proposed as an alternative.

• Korean Journal of Acupuncture
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.18-24
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• 2023

A 53-year-old woman with right shoulder pain after falling down presented at our outpatient department after conventional treatment that had little effect. She was treated with integrative Korean Medicine treatment as an outpatient from February 2, 2022 to July 4, 2022. Based on Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) findings, the patient was diagnosed with a right rotator cuff tear. With 39 treatment sessions, Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) score decreased and showed improvement in assessment. On May 6, MRI was retaken to show restoration of the supraspinatus tendon tear. The patient felt almost no pain on July 4, declaring the end of treatment. This successful case suggests that integrative Korean Medicine treatment might be an attractive alternative for severe rotator cuff tears.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.56 no.3
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• pp.1037-1051
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• 2024

This paper presents the construction results and design of the UNIST Reactor Innovation platform for small modular reactors as a versatile testbed for exploring innovative technologies. The platform uses simulant fluids to simulate the thermal-hydraulic behavior of a reference small modular reactor design, allowing for cost-effective design modifications. Scaling analysis results for single and two-phase natural circulation flows are outlined based on the three-level scaling methodology. The platform's capability to simulate natural circulation behavior was validated through performance calculations using the 1-D system thermal-hydraulic code-based calculation. The strategies for evaluating cutting-edge technologies, such as the integration of a solid oxide electrolysis cell for hydrogen production into a small modular reactor, are presented. To overcome experimental limitations, the hardware-in-the-loop technique is proposed as an alternative, enabling real-time simulation of physical phenomena that cannot be implemented within the experimental facility's hardware. Overall, the proposed versatile innovation platform is expected to provide valuable insights for advancing research in the field of small modular reactors and nuclear-based hydrogen production.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.56 no.3
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• pp.793-802
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• 2024

In the framework of the European project SAMOSAFER, this numerical study focuses on some thermal aspects of the Emergency Draining Tank (EDT) located underneath the core of a Molten Salt Reactor. In case of an emergency, this tank passively receives the liquid fuel salt and is designed to ensure a subcritical state. An important requirement is that the fuel does not overheat to maintain the EDT Hastelloy container integrity. The present EDT is based upon a group of hexagonal cooling assemblies arranged in a hexagonal grid and cooled down thanks to conduction through the inert salt layer up to an air flow in charge of removing the heat. This numerical thermal study relies on a conjugated heat transfer analysis coupling a Finite Element solid thermal code (SYRTHES) and two instances of a Finite Volume CFD codes (Code_Saturne). Calculations on an initial design suggest that a simple center airpipe flow is likely to not sufficiently cool the device. Alternative solutions have been evaluated. Introduction of fins to enhance the heat transfer do not bring a noticeable improvement regarding maximum temperature reached. However, a solution in which the central pipe air flow is replaced by several cooling channels located closer to the fuel is investigated and suggests a better cooling.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.12-24
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• 2008

Background and Objective : Chungsangboha-tang (CSBHT) has analgesic, sedative, anti-convulsive and anti-histamine effects, so it alleviates the symptoms of asthma. For the comparison of anti-inflammatory effect(s) on CSBHT, PD098059 was used as a negative control. Materials and Methods : This study emphasized THP-1 cells, which had been well characterized as a human monocytic leukemic cell line. The cells resemble monocytes with respect to several criteria and can be differentiated into macrophage-like cells by treatment with PMA. By using the MTS assay, it was possible to prove the safety of CSBHT. Results : Results shows that the CSBHT did not affected cell survival within $10^{1}$ ng/ml to $10^{5}$ ng/ml. Especially, $10^{5}$ ng/ml CSBHT treated cells show 70% deduction of $TNF-{\alpha}$ gene expression against that of LPS treated group. Furthermore, $IL-1{\beta}$, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10 and $TNF-{\alpha}$ levels are down-regulated when treated with CSBHT with concentrations up to 100 ug/ml on monocyte-derived macrophages. Interestingly, CSBHT-treated samples showed that overall transcriptional activities were down-regulated to 20% of that of PD098059 ($TNF-{\alpha}$ inhibitor). At protein level, the expression of $TNF-{\alpha}$ showed similar results as that of transcriptional activity. Results show that the protein level decreased more in the CSBHT-treated group (487 ${\pm}$ 87 pg/ml) than in the LPS-treated group (703 ${\pm}$ 103 pg/ml). In addition, the protein level of IL-8 in the CSBHT treated-group (9.84 ${\pm}$ 3.28 ng/ml) decreased similar as the expression of the control and PD098059-treated groups. Conclusion : CSBHT affects immune response, especially allergic responses and suppression of inflammatory reaction. The results provide us an alternative way to care for clinical inflammatory diseases, not only asthma but also the other possible general inflammatory and allergic diseases.

• Journal of Haehwa Medicine
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.201-214
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• 2000

Precise and detailed clinical research and evaluation based on objective standards are imperative factors in securing reliability of a clinical test. Built on this principle, this clinical test has been conducted during the period between March 1999 and March 2000 dealing with 31 outpatients treated with ShiHo-GuizhiTang or ShiHo-GuizhiTang modify and ShiHo-GuizhiTang mixed prescriptions at the Sung-bo ORIENTAL MEDICAL CLINIC. A variety of information relating to those patients has been collected and analyzed under such criteria as precise diagnoses and their clinical effectiveness. The analysis was duly based on "The theory of cold syndrome". Then, the 31 patients' individual clinical information was compared one another by breaking down the results into sub-categories including gender, age, disease, main symptom, blood pressure, pulse beats, syndrome of abdomen, treatment period, modify and mixed prescription, and evaluation. The result of this clinical test can be summarized as follows: First, ShiHo-GuizhiTang appears to be more frequently prescribed in the case of female patients than in the case of male patients despite the fact that it does not necessarily need to be applied only to female. In addition, the numbers of prescriptions of ShiHo-GuizhiTang in the two age groups consisting of elementary school children and economically active adults respectively were the highest among other age groups. Second, ShiHo-GuizhiTang proved to be most effective in treatment for respiratory ailments and arthritis. Third, ShiHo-GuizhiTang brought down blood pressure of hypertension patients and at the same time benefited patients with normal or lower-than-normal blood pressure who were vulnerable to diseases due to low disease-resistance. Fourth, ShiHo-GuizhiTang was effective in the case of frequent pulse(rapid pulse) and thereby indicating the fact it carries Taiyang superficies syndrome. 지맥 arises from suppressed immune responses owing to adrenocortical hormones. ShiHo-GuizhiTang controls and revitalizes those suppressed immune systems which stem from slow pulse and, as a consequence of that process, helps them return to normal condition of pulse. Fifth, from the standpoint of syndrome of abdomen, feeling of obstruction in the epigastrium serves as an important standard in the process of diagnosing diseases and evaluating effectiveness of treatments. Sixth, according to the results of the clinical test with the 31 patients, a total of 81 percent of test subjects benefited from the treatment. The figure is the sum of 52 percent of I-class (both main symptom and accompanying symptoms had been eliminated) and 29 percent of II-class (part of main symptom and accompanying symptoms had been eliminated) respectively. All told it is safe to say that ShiHo-GuizhiTang can elect to be a viable clinical treatment. In conclusion, it is estimated that this clinical study has drawn up guidelines for objective diagnostic standards and evaluation on specific treatments' effectiveness. This will lead to more general application of ShiHo-GuizhiTang. On top of that, this study could also provide an opportunity to stress the significance of ShiHo-GuizhiTang and ShiHo-GuizhiTang modify and ShiHo-GuizhiTang mixed prescriptions as an alternative treatment for collagen disease which comes from environmental degradation and pollution.