• Geotechnical Engineering
• /
• v.6 no.2
• /
• pp.47-54
• /
• 1990

The accuracy of a limit equilibrium analysis of slope stability depends on the accuracy with which the strength properties and geometric conditions can be defined, and on the inherent accuracy of the method of analysis. Most of the slope stability analysis method have been computer coded, and this is a comparative study on the accuracy of these programs. Comparative analyses have shown that for the slopes with relatively simple conditions Host of the programs which are widely used in this country result in the same value of safety factor with an accuracy no worse than $\pm$5%. Similar results can be obtained from the examination of the several slope failure for which accurate information is available on the strength and geometric conditions of the earth slope. The critical failure surface, however, can be different from the actual slip surface, although nearly the same factors of safety are obtained from the analyses of each surface.

• International Journal of Industrial Entomology and Biomaterials
• /
• v.32 no.2
• /
• pp.49-53
• /
• 2016

Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) are essential growth factors for bone formation, skeletal development and bone regeneration. The BMP-2/7 heterodimer is known to have remarkable effects on osteogenic induction that are even stronger than the BMP-2 or BMP-7 homodimers. We designed a recombinant human BMP-2/7 (rhBMP-2/7) heterodimer protein with four glycine residues between BMP-2 and BMP-7 protein to facilitate free bond rotation of domains. The Baculovirus Expression Vector System (BEVS) is routinely used to produce recombinant proteins in the milligram scale. In this study, the BEVS was used to express the rhBMP-2/7 protein whrer the recombinant baculovirus was recovered in the host Sf9 cells. To confirm the biological activity of rhBMP-2/7 protein secreted from the BEVS as an osteogenic differentiation and induction factor, we measured the BMP-induced ALP activity. rhBMP-2/7 could be used as an alternative to BMPs to overcome limitations like short half-life and requirement for high concentrations. Furthermore, rhBMP-2/7 may be an efficient tool for various application studies such as bone regeneration and skeletal development.

• Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Research
• /
• v.10 no.6
• /
• pp.575-590
• /
• 2018

The prevalence of allergic disorders has dramatically increased over the past decade, particularly in developed countries. Apart from gastrointestinal disorders, neoplasia, genital and dermatological diseases etc., dysregulation of gut microbiota (dysbiosis) has also been found to be associated with increased risk of allergies. Probiotics are increasingly being employed to correct dysbiosis and, in turn, to modulate allergic diseases. However, several factors like strain variations and effector metabolites or component of them in a bacterial species can affect the efficacy of those as probiotics. On the other hand, host variations like geographical locations, food habits etc. could also affect the expected results from probiotic usage. Thus, there is a glaring deficiency in our approach to establish probiotics as an irrefutable treatment avenue for suitable disorders. In this review, we explicate on the reported probiotics and their effects on certain allergic diseases like atopic dermatitis, food allergy and asthma to establish their utility. We propose possible measures like elucidation of effector molecules and functional mechanisms of probiotics towards establishing probiotics for therapeutic use. Certain probiotics studies have led to very alarming outcomes which could have been precluded, had effective guidelines been in place. Thus, we also propose ways to secure the safety of probiotics. Overall, our efforts tend to propose necessary discovery and quality assurance guidelines for developing probiotics as potential immunomodulatory 'Pharmabiotics.'

• Research in Plant Disease
• /
• v.27 no.3
• /
• pp.91-98
• /
• 2021

The current social demand for organic, sustainable, and eco-friendly approaches for farming, while ensuring the health and productivity of crops is increasing rapidly. Biocontrol agents are applied to crops to ensure biological control of plant pathogens. Research on the biological control of white root rot disease caused by a soil-borne pathogen, Rosellinia necatrix, is limited in pears compared to that in apple and avocado. This pathogenic fungus has an extensive host range, and symptoms of this disease include rotting of roots, yellowing and falling of leaves, wilting, and finally tree death. The severity of the disease caused by R. necatrix, makes it the most harmful fungal pathogen infecting the economical fruit tree species, such as pears, and is one of the main limiting factors in pear farming, with devastating effects on plant health and yield. In addition to agronomic and cultural practices, growers use chemical treatments to control the disease. However, rising public concern about environmental pollution and harmful effects of chemicals in humans and animals has facilitated the search for novel and environmentally friendly disease control methods. This review will briefly summarize the current status of biocontrol agents, ecofriendly methods, and possible approaches to control disease in pear orchards.

• Journal of Auto-vehicle Safety Association
• /
• v.11 no.3
• /
• pp.30-36
• /
• 2019

This paper suggests a car-following algorithm for urban environment, with multiple target candidates. Until now, advanced driver assistant systems (ADASs) and self-driving technologies have been researched to cope with diverse possible scenarios. Among them, car-following driving has been formed the groundwork of autonomous vehicle for its integrity and flexibility to other modes such as smart cruise system (SCC) and platooning. Although the field has a rich history, most researches has been focused on the shape of target trajectory, such as the order of interpolated polynomial, in simple single-lane situation. However, to introduce the car-following mode in urban environment, realistic situation should be reflected: multi-lane road, target's unstable driving tendency, obstacles. Therefore, the suggested car-following system includes both in-lane preceding vehicle and other factors such as side-lane targets. The algorithm is comprised of three parts: path candidate generation and optimal trajectory selection. In the first part, initial guesses of desired paths are calculated as polynomial function connecting host vehicle's state and vicinal vehicle's predicted future states. In the second part, final target trajectory is selected using quadratic cost function reflecting safeness, control input efficiency, and initial objective such as velocity. Finally, adjusted path and control input are calculated using model predictive control (MPC). The suggested algorithm's performance is verified using off-line simulation using Matlab; the results shows reasonable car-following motion planning.

• Advances in Computational Design
• /
• v.4 no.2
• /
• pp.91-118
• /
• 2019

Every year, many people are severely injured or lose their lives in accidents such as fire, chemical spill, public pandemonium, school shooting, and workplace violence. Research indicates that the fate of people in an emergency situation involving one or more hazards depends not only on the design of the space (e.g., residential building, industrial facility, shopping mall, sports stadium, school, concert hall) in which the incident occurs, but also on a host of other factors including but not limited to (a) occupants' characteristics, (b) level of familiarity with and cognition of the surroundings, and (c) effectiveness of hazard intervention systems. In this paper, we present EVAQ, a simulation framework for modeling large crowd evacuation by taking into account occupants' behaviors and interactions during an emergency. In particular, human's personal (i.e., age, gender, disability) and interpersonal (i.e., group behavior and interactions) attributes are parameterized in a hazard-impacted environment. In addition, different hazard types (e.g., fire, lone wolf attacker) and propagation patterns, as well as intervention schemes (simulating building repellent systems, firefighters, law enforcement) are modeled. Next, the application of EVAQ to crowd egress planning in an airport terminal under human attack, and a shopping mall in fire emergency are presented and results are discussed. Finally, a validation test is performed using real world data from a past building fire incident to assess the reliability and integrity of EVAQ in comparison with existing evacuation modeling tools.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
• /
• v.38 no.1
• /
• pp.27-33
• /
• 2021

The gut is a complex organ that has played an important role in digestion, absorption, endocrine functions, and immunity. The gut mucosal barriers consist of the immunologic barrier and nonimmunologic barrier. During critical illnesses, the gut is susceptible to injury due to the induction of intestinal hyperpermeability. Gut hyperpermeability and barrier dysfunction may lead to systemic inflammatory response syndrome. Additionally, gut microbiota are altered during critical illnesses. The etiology of such microbiome alterations in critical illnesses is multifactorial. The interaction or systemic host defense modulation between distant organs and the gut microbiome is increasingly studied in disease research. No treatment modality exists to significantly enhance the gut epithelial integrity, permeability, or mucus layer in critically ill patients. However, multiple helpful approaches including clinical and preclinical strategies exist. Enteral nutrition is associated with an increased mucosal barrier in animal and human studies. The trophic effects of enteral nutrition might help to maintain the intestinal physiology, prevent atrophy of gut villi, reduce intestinal permeability, and protect against ischemia-reperfusion injury. The microbiome approach such as the use of probiotics, fecal microbial transplantation, and selective decontamination of the digestive tract has been suggested. However, its evidence does not have a high quality. To promote rapid hypertrophy of the small bowel, various factors have been reported, including the epidermal growth factor, membrane permeant inhibitor of myosin light chain kinase, mucus surrogate, pharmacologic vagus nerve agonist, immune-enhancing diet, and glucagon-like peptide-2 as preclinical strategies. However, the evidence remains unclear.

• International Journal of Advanced Culture Technology
• /
• v.8 no.4
• /
• pp.39-50
• /
• 2020

The current number of international students is gradually increasing in the world due to their passion for study or exchange students programs related to be affiliated with their universities. Many international students have great hope for their successful life of studying abroad. The factors that play a key role in successful study abroad can be seen as life satisfaction in host country and career commitment. Therefore, this study suggested the way to improve students' life satisfaction and career commitment among Chinese international students in Korea. It focused on social identification as a core factor in improving international student life satisfaction and career commitment. In addition, it also focused on social support as a factor to increase social identification. According to the results of empirical analysis, it was verified that perceived social support improves social identification among international students. In addition, social identification improves their life satisfaction and career commitment. Therefore, the mediating effect of social identification was found to be significant in the relationship between perceived social support and life satisfaction and career commitment. This study was verified that if international students perceive social support, they can experience social identification. This process can eventually lead to life satisfaction and career commitment. Based on these results, it emphasized that the role and importance of social identification. Finally, the practical implications and future research directions were discussed.

• Journal of Convergence Korean Medicine
• /
• v.4 no.1
• /
• pp.5-11
• /
• 2022

Objectives: Inflammasomes are molecular platforms that are generated inside cytoplasmic compartments. The objective is to mediate immunological responses of the host to cell damage and infection. Caspase-1 is triggered by inflammasome to generate interleukin-1𝛽 (IL-1𝛽), an inflammatory cytokine, and pyroptosis, an inflammatory form of apoptosis. Methods: In the past two decades, scientists have uncovered several inflammasomes. The most research has been conducted on NLRP3 inflamamsomes, whose activity can be stimulated by a variety of induction factors. However, the unregulated activation of NLRP3 inflammasomes is also a role in the etiology of several human disorders. Previous research has demonstrated that NLRP3 inflammasomes have a significant role in the innate and acquired immune systems, as well as in the prevalence of joint illnesses such rheumatoid arthritis. Conclusion: Within the scope of this review, we will present a brief overview of the biological features of NLRP3 inflamamsomes as well as a description of the underlying mechanisms governing activation and regulation. In particular, we explore the function of inflammasomes in the development of rheumatoid arthritis as well as the promise of recently identified medicines that target inflamasomes.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
• /
• v.50 no.4
• /
• pp.457-464
• /
• 2022

A public health concern emerging from a zoonotic disease. Monkeypox is caused by the orthopoxvirus specie Monkeypox virus (MPXV). Monkeypox was identified as the most common orthopoxvirus infection in humans following the eradication of smallpox. Monkeypox has a similar clinical presentation to smallpox. The MPXV is now considered a high-threat pathogen that causes a serious public-health problem. The continuous spread of Monkeypox virus from West Africa to all other places around the world throughout 2018 to 2022, have raised concerns that MPXV could have emerged to acquire the immunological and ecological niche vacated by smallpox virus. This review highlights the current knowledge about Monkeypox evolution, infection biology, and epidemiology around the world since from 1970 to 2022, with a focus on the human, viral, and cellular factors that influence virus emergence, infection, spread, and maintenance in nature. This paper also discusses the current therapeutic options for Monkeypox treatment and control. Under the right conditions, with limited smallpox vaccination and very little orthopoxvirus immunity in some areas of the world, MPXV could become a more efficient human pathogen. Finally, the review identified knowledge gaps, particularly in terms of identifying a definitive reservoir host for monkeypox and proposes future research endeavors to address the unanswered questions.