• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.432-441
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• 2016

In this study, we predicted species distributions in Mt. Inwang and Mt. An as preceding research to build ecological corridor by considering connectivity of habitats which have been fragmented in the city. We analyzed species distributions by using Maxent (Maximum Entropy Approach) model with species presence. We used 23 points of mammals and 15 points of Titmouse (Parus major, P. palustris, P. varius) as target species from appearance points of species examined. We build 4 geography factors, 4 vegetation factors, and 2 distance factors as model variables In case of mammals, factors that affected species distribution model was Digital Elevation Model(DEM, 34%) followed by Distance from edge forest to interior (24.8%) and Species of tree (10%). On the other hand, in case of Parus species, factors that affected species distribution model were DEM (39.6%) followed by distance from road (35.4%) and Density-class (8.2%). Therefore, birds and mammals prefer interior of mountain, and this area needs to be protected.

• Reproductive and Developmental Biology
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.99-105
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• 2009

Curcumin is a major active component of the food flovour tumeric. It has been used for the treatment of many diseases such as inflammatory and infectious diseases, cancer and other disease due to its antioxidant properties. Curcumin is a powerful scavenger of many free radicals such as superoxide anion, hydroxyl radical and nitric oxide. The objective of this study was to investigate the antioxidative effects of curcumin against hydrogen peroxide on semen quality during in vitro storage of boar semen. The sperm treated with different concentration of curcumin (1, 5 and 10 ${\mu}M$) in the presence or absence of hydrogen peroxide (250 ${\mu}M\;H_2O_2$) were incubated for 3, 6 and 9 hr at $37^{\circ}C$ and analyzed sperm characteristics such as motility, membrane integrity (MI), lipid peroxidation (LPO), reactive oxygen species (ROS) and DNA fragmentation (DF). The sperm motility and MI in $H_2O_2$ treated group ($47.8%{\pm}6.8$ and $24.8%{\pm}2.2$) were significantly decreased when compare to curcumin treated group ($79.8%{\pm}2.7$ and $34.6%{\pm}1.0$, respectively) irrespective of incubation periods(p<0.05). The LPO of spermatozoal plasma membrane was measured by thiobarbituric acid (TBA) reactions for malondialdehyde (MDA), MDA level in control ($11.6{\pm}0.6\;nmol/L{\times}10^6$) and curcumin groups ($10.7{\pm}0.3\;nmol/L{\times}10^6$) were lower than those of curcumin plus $H_2O_2$ ($17.1{\pm}0.8\;nmol/L{\times}10^6$) or $H_2O_2$ group ($22.5{\pm}1.9\;nmol/L{\times}10^6$) from 3 to 9 hr incubation periods. The DF by sperm chromatin dispersion (SCD) test and ROS production measured by 2',7'-dichlorofluorescein (DCF) fluorescence intensity were no significantly difference through all experimental groups (p>0.05). Correlation among evaluation methods for sperm quality, motility vs MI and DF vs ROS was positively correlated while motility vs DF and ROS vs LPO were negatively correlated in all treatment groups. These results demonstrate that curcumin can effectively improve the sperm quality during in vitro storage of boar semen through its hydrogen peroxide scavenging mechanism as an antioxidant.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.21 no.5
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• pp.615-622
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• 2020

Frangible bullets, which are shredded after impact on a target, reduce the possibility of both ricochet and unexpected injury in shooting training and in mission acts in dams, nuclear power plants, and cultural properties. Reducing the levels of hazardous materials in shooting ranges, such as lead, has become an important agenda for the government and environmental groups. In this study, the shape of a frangible bullet was designed for efficient shredding, and the safety and reliability were confirmed by actual firing under different process conditions. In addition, the physical characteristics, such as compaction pressure, density, and frangibility of each process, were compared by analyzing the microstructure of the sintered frangible bullet. The experiment revealed the smallest fragmentation after impact on the target under the following conditions: Cu-Sn 85:15; sintering temperature, 600℃; sintering time, one hour. Further development of the process conditions and experimental methods will contribute to the performance and environmental improvement of a frangible bullet.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.333-352
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• 2017

A comparison study is made between the dynamic properties of an argillaceous siltstone and its grouting-reinforced body. The purpose is to investigate how grout injection can help repair broken soft rocks. A slightly weathered argillaceous siltstone is selected, and part of the siltstone is mechanically crushed and cemented with Portland cement to simulate the grouting-reinforced body. Core specimens with the size of $50mm{\times}38mm$ are prepared from the original rock and the grouting-reinforced body. Impact tests on these samples are then carried out using a Split Hopkinson Pressure Bar (SHPB) apparatus. Failure patterns are analyzed and geotechnical parameters of the specimens are estimated. Based on the experimental results, for the grouting-reinforced body, its shock resistance is poorer than that of the original rock, and most cracks happen in the cementation boundaries between the cement mortar and the original rock particles. It was observed that the grouting-reinforced body ends up with more fragmented residues, most of them have larger fractal dimensions, and its dynamic strength is generally lower. The mass ratio of broken rocks to cement has a significant effect on its dynamic properties and there is an optimal ratio that the maximum dynamic peak strength can be achieved. The dynamic strain-softening behavior of the grouting-reinforced body is more significant compared with that of the original rock. Both the time dependent damage model and the modified overstress damage model are equally applicable to the original rock, but the former performs much better compared with the latter for the grouting-reinforced body. In addition, it was also shown that water content and impact velocity both have significant effect on dynamic properties of the original rock and its grouting-reinforced body. Higher water content leads to more small broken rock pieces, larger fractal dimensions, lower dynamic peak strength and smaller elastic modulus. However, the water content plays a minor role in fractal dimensions when the impact velocity is beyond a certain value. Higher impact loading rate leads to higher degree of fragmentation and larger fractal dimensions both in argillaceous siltstone and its grouting-reinforced body. These results provide a sound basis for the quantitative evaluation on how cement grouting can contribute to the repair of broken soft rocks.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.51-61
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• 2014

It is necessary to perform a dynamic analysis to numerically evaluate the effect of blasting on nearby facilities. The blast load time history, which cannot be directly measured, is most often determined from empirical equation. The load has to be adjusted to account for various factors influencing the load and the frequency, but there is not a clear guideline on how to adjust the load. In this study, a series of 2D dynamic numerical analyses that simulates a closely monitored test blasting is performed, from which the blast load that matches the measured vibrations are derived. In the analyses, it is assumed that the hole generated by the blasting is in the form of a circle, and the load was applied normally to the wall of the opening. Special attention was given in selecting the damping ratio for the ground, since it has important influence on the wave propagation and attenuation characteristics of the blast induce waves. The damping ratio was selected such that it matches favorably with the attenuation curve of the measurement. The analyses demonstrate that the empirical blast load widely used in practice highly overstimates the vibration since it does not account for the energy loss due to rock fragmentation. If the empirical load is used without proper adjustment, the numerical analysis may seriously overstimate the predicted vibration, and thus has to be reduced in the analysis.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.22
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• pp.9655-9660
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• 2014

Background: Nigella Sativa (NS) is an herb from the Ranunculaceae family that exhibits numerous medicinal properties and has been used as important constituent of many complementary and alternative medicines (CAMs). The ability of NS to kill cancer cells such as PC3, HeLa and hepatoma cells is well established. However, our understanding of the mode of death caused by NS remains nebulous. The objective of this study was to gain further insight into the mode and mechanism of death caused by NS in breast cancer MCF-7 cells. Materials and Methods: Human breast cancer cells (MCF-7) were treated with a methanolic extract of NS, and a dose- and time-dependent study was performed. The $IC_{50}$ was calculated using a Cell Titer $Blue^{(R)}$ viability assay assay, and evidence for DNA fragmentation was obtained by fluorescence microscopy TUNEL assay. Gene expression was also profiled for a number of apoptosis-related genes (Caspase-3, -8, -9 and p53 genes) through qPCR. Results: The $IC_{50}$ of MCF-7 cells was $62.8{\mu}L/mL$. When MCF-7 cells were exposed to $50{\mu}L/mL$ and $100{\mu}L/mL$ NS for 24h, 48h and 72h, microscopic examination (TUNEL assay) revealed a dose- and time-dependent increase in apoptosis. Similarly, the expression of the Caspase-3, -8, -9 and p53 genes increased significantly according to the dose and time. Conclusions: NS induced apoptosis in MCF-7 cells through both the p53 and caspase pathways. NS could potentially represent an alternative source of medicine for breast cancer therapy.

• Journal of the Korean association of regional geographers
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.100-109
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• 2010

The study examines two different sites to analyze the difference of stream channel profile between two different landuse areas on Neponset River, Boston, MA. Landuse represents the current status of land in terms of human, agricultural or forest, industry and environmental activity types. According to the previous research, forest and urban area are significantly distinguished in chemical characteristic, shape and bed load of the stream. On the chosen sites, I look at the cross-section profile, the slope, velocity, and roughness of the channels. With the data collected at the site I determined the value for the channel bed material using Manning's equation, and compared with the result of HEC-RAS model with the cross-section profile data I measured. In the forest area, water surface elevation and bed material obtained through Manning's equation are very close to HEC-RAS model result. However, in the resident area the Manning's 'n' value calculated much higher than assumption which was considered as cobble whose 'n' value is 0.03-0.06. The difference could be caused by unusual steep elevation on the site and the dam present down further. With the steep elevation upside of dam, there is critical-depth condition occurs. The difference of Manning's 'n' value reflects the difference of depth. HEC-RAS model was run to analyze the difference and the result shows that depth is 0.36 much less than 0.688 what I computed when the Manning's n value is 0.03(cobble) instead of the result of the study (0.13292). Beside, dam is a major source of fragmentation and degradation of stream, and it's possibly inferred upstream water levels are increased and stream velocity is decreased. This study is meaningful for introduction of HEC-RAS in geography field to analyze different sites with channel bed material, and it is going to be used more actively to manage river and river side.

• Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.51 no.2
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• pp.129-135
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• 2008

Berberine is an isoquinoline alkaloid used in traditional Chinese medicine and has been isolated from a variety of plants, such as Coptis chinensis and Phellodendron amurense. It has a wide spectrum of clinical applications such as in anti-tumor, anti-microbial, and anti-inflammatory activities. However, it is still unknown that berberine related with reactive oxygen species (ROS)-mediated apoptosis pathway in human hepatoma HepG2 cells. In the present study, we are examined the molecular mechanism of ROS- and p38 MAP kinase-mediated apoptosis by berberine in HepG2 cells. Berberine increased cytotoxicity effects by time- and does-dependent manner. $LD_{50}$ was detected 50 ${\mu}M$ at 48h of exposure to berberine. Nuclei cleavage and apoptotic DNA fragmentation were observed in cells treated with 50 ${\mu}M$ of berberine for 48h. Moreover, berberine induced the activating of caspase-3, p53, p38 and Bax expression, whereas the expression of anti-apoptotic signaling pathways, Bcl-2, was decreased. Additionally, berberine-treated cells had an increased level of generation of ROS and nitric oxide (NO). These results indicated that berberine induces apoptosis of HepG2 cells may be mediated oxidative injury acts as an early and upstream change, triggers mitochondrial dysfunction, Bcl-2 and Bax modulation, p38 and p53 activation, caspase-3 activation, and consequent leading to apoptosis.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.27-34
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• 2000

The chloroform and methanol (2;1, v/v) extract from an edible plant, Actinidia arguta Planchon, appeared to possess antitumor activity against human leukemias Jurkat T and U937 cells through inducing apoptosis. The substance in the solvent extract was purified by silica gel column chromatography, preparative TLC, and Sephadex LH-20 column chromatography. Characteristics of the substance analyzed by UV scanning analysis, $^1H$ and $^{13}C$ NMR spectra suggested that the substance belongs to the chlorophyll derivatives-like group. The $IC_{50}$ value of the chlorophyll derivative (Cp-D) determined by MTT assay was $15\mu\textrm{g}/ml$ for Jurkat, $10\mu\textrm{g}/ml$ for U937, and $11.4\mu\textrm{g}/ml$ for HL-60m and was more toxic to these leukemias than to solid tumors or normal fibroblast. In order to elucidate cellular mechanisms underlying the cytotoxicity, the effect of the Cp-D on Jurkat T cells was investigated. When cells were treated with the Cp-D at a concentration of $15\mu\textrm{g}/ml$, [3H]thymidine incorporation declined rapidly and wa undetectable in 1h. However, no significant changes were made in the cell cycle distribution of the cells by 24h. The sub-Gl peak representing apoptotic cells began to be detectable in 36h, at which time apoptotic DNA fragmentation was also detected on agarose gel electrophoresis, demonstrating that the cytotoxic effect of the Cp-D is attributable to the induced apoptosis. Under the same conditions, although the protein level of cyclin-dependent kinases such as cdc4, csk6, cdk2, and cdc2 was not significantly changed until 24h, the kinase activity of all c안 rapidly declined and reached a minimum level within 1-6h and then recovered to the initial level by 12h and sustained until 24h. These results suggest that inactivation of cdks at an inappropriate time during the cell cycle progression in jurkat T cells following a treatment with the Cp-D leads to induction of apoptotic cell death.

• Journal of KIISE
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• v.41 no.9
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• pp.728-743
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• 2014

Finger printing and sequence alignment are well-known approaches for document similarity comparison. A fingerprinting method is simple and fast, but it can not find particular similar regions. A string alignment method is used for identifying regions of similarity by arranging the sequences of a string. It has an advantage of finding particular similar regions, but it also has a disadvantage of taking more computing time. The Multi-Level Alignment (MLA) is a new method designed for taking the advantages of both methods. The MLA divides input documents into uniform length blocks, and then extracts fingerprints from each block and calculates similarity of block pairs by comparing the fingerprints. A similarity table is created in this process. Finally, sequence alignment is used for specifying longest similar regions in the similarity table. The MLA allows users to change block's size to control proportion of the fingerprint algorithm and the sequence alignment. As a document is divided into several blocks, similar regions are also fragmented into two or more blocks. To solve this fragmentation problem, we proposed a united block method. Experimentally, we show that computing document's similarity with the united block is more accurate than the original MLA method, with minor time loss.