• Environmental Mutagens and Carcinogens
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.149-155
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• 2001

Eighty-one workers including 38 employees directly incinerating industry wastes were recruited from a company located in South Korea. To evaluate the association between urinary 1-hydroxypyrene glucuronide (1-OHPG) levels, as internal dose of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) exposure, and glycophorin A (GPA) mutation frequency, as an early biologic effect indicator. Urinary 1-OHPG levels were measured by synchronous fluorescence spectroscopy after immunoaffinity purification using monoclonal antibody 8E11. Erythrocyte GPA variant frequency (NN or NO) was assessed in MN heterozygotes with a flow cytometic assay. The GSTM1 and GSTT1 genotypes were assessed by a multiplex PCR method. The GPA NN phenotype frequency was higher in occupationally exposed group (n=14, mean$\pm$S.D. 6.6$\pm$12.0 in 10/SUP 6/ erythrocyte cells) than in non-exposed group (n=22, 2.1$\pm$3.5). Similarly, the GPA(NO or NN) phenotype frequency was higher in exposed group (n=14, 9.7$\pm$17.3) than non-exposed group (n=22, 4.2$\pm$6.3). The above differences failed to reach statistical significance, but a significant increase was seen in GPA variant frequency levels with increase in urinary 1-OHPG levels (Spearman's correlation: p=0.06 (NO), p=0.07 (NO or NN)). When this association was evaluated by GSTM1 genotype status, the association between GPA mutation and urinary 1-OHPG levels was stronger in individuals with GSTM1 present genotype (Spearmans correlation; r=0.50, p=0.02). These results suggest that the association between urinary 1-OHPG and GPA mutation is be modulated by the GSTM1 genotype.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.26 no.4 s.44
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• pp.565-573
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• 1993

Noise is not only affecting the ear and the auditory cortex locally, but its influence is widely spread throughout the brain structures, e. g., the reticular formation, the brain stem nuclei or the subcortical forebrain area. Hence, any of the organism's activities can be hindered or stimulated by noise. High noise is a stressor and the catecholamine level can be used both as a stress marker and as an indicator of modified sympathetic nervous system activity. Several recent studies have found that the urinary excretion of catecholamines is increased due to high noise intensity, especially unexpectedly high and long lasting noise. The present study was conducted in order to examine the effects of noise stress on urinary excretion of ctecholamines in rats and humans. Rats were exposed to 90 dB noise for 10, 30, and 60 minutes, 3 and 12 hours. 24 hour . urinary samples were collected and the catecholamones were extracted by alumina and analyzed by HPLC-ECD. Catecholamine levels increased with time of exposure up to 60 minutes : norepinephrine concentration at 60 min of noise=1.038 ng/ml, epinephrine=0.636 ng/ml. Urine catecholamines of blue collar workers exposed to 90 dB of noise at the work place were collected between 2 and 4 p.m. and compared to that of white collar workers exposed to 70 dB. Mean norepinephrine level of the blue collar workers was 0.89 ng/ml (${\pm}0.25$), epinephrine 0.24ng/m1 (${\pm}0.09$), and that of the white collar workers 0.48 ng/ml (${\pm}0.12$), epinephrine 0.19 ng/ml(${\pm}0.05$). It was concluded that noise acts as a stressor and increases the catecholamine levels in both rats and humans.

• Development and Reproduction
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.85-93
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• 2005

Estrogens are known as the steroid hormones and essential regulators of developments, differentiations, and fertility in animals including humans. Recently, classic focus on estrogens which are considered as female hormone is changing in the whole field of reproductive endocrinology. Especially, interest in estrogen functions in male reproduction is increasing more and more, as numerous studies about the endocrine disruptors, interrupting the endocrine system, are being carried out. To understand exactly the function of estrogen in a male reproductive system, a summary for estrogen receptors upon developmental distributions in testis will be useful. In addition to the regulatory roles of estrogen in male, unexpected exposure to exogenous estrogens causes defects of differentiation of male reproductive system and an injury of spermatogenesis. Also, this review highlights the indicator of exogenous estrogens to perturb male fertility. These approaches would give tile practical information about estrogen roles in male development and reproduction.

• Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
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• v.29
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• pp.2.1-2.7
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• 2014

Objectives Heat shock protein 90 (HSP90) is a highly conserved molecular chaperone important in the maturation of a broad spectrum of protein. In this study, an HSP90 gene was isolated from Asian paddle crab, Charybdis japonica, as a bio-indicator to monitor the marine ecosystem. Methods This work reports the responses of C. japonica HSP90 mRNA expression to cellular stress by endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), such as bisphenol A (BPA) and 4-nonylphenol (NP) using real-time. reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Results The deduced amino acid sequence of HSP90 from C. japonica shared a high degree of homology with their homologues in other species. In a phylogenetic analysis, C. japonica HSP90 is evolutionally related with an ortholog of the other crustacean species. The expression of HSP90 gene was almost distributed in all the examined tissues of the C. japonica crab but expression levels varied among the different body parts of the crabs. We examined HSP90 mRNA expression pattern in C. japonica crabs exposed to EDCs for various exposure times. The expression of HSP90 transcripts was significantly increased in C. japonica crabs exposed to BPA and NP at different concentrations for 12, 24, 48 and 96 hours. The mRNA expression of HSP90 gene was significantly induced in a concentration- and time-dependent manner after BPA or NP exposures for 96 hours. Conclusions Taken together, expression analysis of Asian paddle crab HSP90 gene provided useful molecular information about crab responses in stress conditions and potential ways to monitor the EDCs stressors in marine environments.

• Anxiety and mood
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.60-65
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• 2017

Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) has been noted as a significant risk factor for possible suicide attempts. According to the Interpersonal Psychological Theory of Suicide, individuals can attempt suicide after they have acquired the capability to commit it. The acquired capability for suicide can be defined as one's habituated level to the pain and fear associated with suicidal behaviors. This is obtained through constant exposure to painful and provocative events, NSSIs being a prime example. This article reviews prior related studies to determine the extent to which the acquired capability for suicide can be utilized as a predictive factor for fatal suicide attempts following NSSIs. Our review finds a total of 11 studies that directly or indirectly support the claim that the acquired capability for suicide should be considered as a relevant factor linking NSSIs and suicide attempts. Given that NSSIs are most frequently observed in clinical settings, our findings suggest that the acquired capability for suicide will be a useful indicator for clinicians to predict the risk of future suicide attempts by patients.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.15 no.11
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• pp.6877-6883
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• 2014

The continuous social development has led to increasing pollution in lakes. This study proposed the LVRI (Lake Vulnerability Resilience Indicator) based on the vulnerability assessment of climate change for an environmental risk assessment in lakes sufferign water pollution in an integrated aspect of the characteristics in lake watersheds. A total of 11 representative assessment factors were selected and constructed for 6 lake basins in the Geum River Watershed to calculate the exposure, sensitivity and adaptation indicators in a vulnerability assessment classification system. The weight coefficients for assessment factors of the LVRI were also calculated using the Entropy method. This study also compared the rank results of the lake environmental risk with/without the weight coefficients of assessment factors for the practical application of the proposed lake environmental risk assessment method. The lake environmental risk results estimated in this study can be used for long-term water quality analysis and management in lakes.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.16
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• pp.6955-6960
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• 2014

Background: The cytokinesis-block micronucleus (CBMN) assay is a standard cytogenetic tool employed to evaluate chromosomal damage subsequent to pesticide exposure. Objectives: To evaluate the pooled levels of total micronuclei (MN) and binucleated cells with micronuclei (MNC) in 1000 binucleated lymphocytes among population occupationally exposed to pesticides and further determine the more sensitive biomarker of CBMN. Materials and Methods: A meta-analysis on the pooled levels of MN and MNC in binucleated lymphocytes among occupationally pesticide-exposed populations was conducted using STATA 10.0 software and Review Manager 5.0.24 in this study. Results: We found significant differences in frequencies of MN and MNC in 1000 binucleated lymphocytes between pesticide-exposed groups and controls, and the summary estimates of weighted mean difference were 6.82 [95% confidence interval (95% CI): 4.86-8.78] and 5.08 (95% CI: 2.93-7.23), respectively. However, when we conducted sensitivity analyses further, only the MN remained statistically different, but not the MNC, the summary estimates of weight mean difference were 2.86 (95% CI: 2.51-3.21) and 0.50 (95% CI: -0.16-1.17), respectively. We also observed pesticide-exposed subjects had significantly higher MN frequencies than controls among smokers and nonsmokers, male and female populations, and American, Asian and European countries in stratified analyses. Conclusions: The frequency of MN in peripheral blood lymphocytes might be a more sensitive indicator of early genetic effects than MNC using the CBMN assay for occupationally pesticide-exposed populations.

• KCID journal
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.33-42
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• 2011

Climate change has impacts on not only the average temperature rise but also the intensity and frequency of extreme events such as flood and drought. It is also expected that the damages on agricultural infrastructure will be increased resulting from increased rainfall intensity and frequency caused by climate change. To strengthen the climate change adaptation capacity, it is necessary to identify the vulnerability of a given society's physical infrastructures and to develop appropriate adaptation strategies with infrastructure management because generally facilities related to human settlements are vulnerable to climate changes and establishing an adaptive public infrastructure would reduce the damages and the repair cost. Therefore, development of mitigation strategies for agricultural infrastructure against climatic hazard is very important, but there are few studies on agricultural infrastructure vulnerability assessment and adaptation strategies. The concept of vulnerability, however, is difficult to functionally define due to the fact that vulnerability itself includes many aspects (biological, socioeconomic, etc.) in various sectors. As such, much research on vulnerability has used indicators which are useful for standardization and aggregation. In this study, for the vulnerability assessment for agricultural infrastructure, 3 categories of climate exposure, sensitivity, and adaptation capacity were defined which are composed of 16 sub-categories and 49 proxy variables. Database for each proxy variables was established based on local administrative province. Future studies are required to define the weighting factor and standardization method to calculate the vulnerability indicator for agricultural infrastructure against climate change.

• International Journal of Oral Biology
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.91-97
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• 2017

Although anti-aging activities of melatonin, a hormone secreted by the pineal gland, have been reported in senescence-accelerated mouse models and several types of cells, its impact and mechanism on the senescence of human dental pulp cells (HDPCs) remains unknown. In this study, we examined the impact of melatonin on cellular premature senescence of HDPCs. Here, we found that melatonin markedly inhibited senescent characteristics of HDPCs after exposure to hydrogen peroxide ($H_2O_2$), including the increase in senescence-associated ${\beta}$-galactosidase (SA-${\beta}$-gal)-positive HDPCs and the upregulation of p21 protein, an indicator for senescence. In addition, as melatonin attenuated $H_2O_2$-stimulated phosphorylation of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), while selective inhibition of JNK activity with SP600125 significantly attenuated $H_2O_2$-induced increase in SA-beta-gal activity. Results reveal that melatonin antagonizes premature senescence of HDPCs via JNK pathway. Thus, melatonin may have therapeutic potential to prevent stress-induced premature senescence, possibly correlated with development of dental pulp diseases, and to maintain oral health across the life span.

• The Korean Journal of Ecology
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.63-80
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• 1987

Detrended correspondence analysis(DCA) and two way indicator species analysis(TWINSPAN) were applied to Pinus densiflora stands nearby Seoul area in order to classify them into several groups based on herbaceous species and environmental relationships. The eighteen Pinus densiflora stands were perferenially selected, In each stand, 30 to 60 quadrats, (20X20)cm, were randomly estabilished. In each quadrat, all stems for herbaceous plants were recorded by species and their covers were measured. In addition environmental factors such as soil depth, thickness of litter layer, soil compressibility, tree density, basal area, elevation, slope and exposure were detemined for each stand. Four to twelve soil cores were collected and physical and KDICical properties were determined. This survey was conducted form 15, July, 1985 to 22, September, 1985. Analysis of the vegetation and environmental data were performed with DECORANA and TWINSPAN. Stand ordination (DECORANA) and classification (TWINSPAN) based on herbaceous species suggest that the stands can be classified into five groups in terms of herbaceous species composition and environmental relationships. Type I, Type II, Type III, Type IV and Type V were classified to SUBMESIC-CLO-SED-CANOPY (Artemisia keiskeana, Carex nanella), MESIC-CLOSED CANOPY (Spodiopogon sibiricus, Miscanthus sinensis, Carex nanella, Pteridum aquilinum, Melampyrum rosium), SUBMESIC-OPEN CANOPY (Carex nanella, Spodiopogon sibiricus, Miscanthus sinensis), XERIC-CLOSED CANOPY (Carex nanella, Spodiopogon sibiricus, Carex nanella), and XERIC-OPEN CANOPY (Arundinella hirts, Spodiopogon sibiricus, Carex nanella), respectively. These results were consitent with environmental trends on stan ordination. Application of the ordination and classifiaction to Pinus densiflora stands were effective as a approach on obtaining perliminary ecological information.