• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.20 no.7
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• pp.158-165
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• 2019

Although evaluation of writing disabilities identification and timely intervention are required, clinicians adopt a manual scoring method and there is a possibility of error due to subjective evaluation. In this study, the size ratio and position of letters are digitized and quantified through image processing of offline handwritten characters. We tried to evaluate objectively and accurately the performance of writing through comparison with existing methods. From November 12th to 16th, 2018, 20 adults without neurological injury were selected. They used a pencil to follow the 10 words, 2 sentence stimuli after keeping the usual habit, and we collected the writing test data. The results showed that the height of the word was 1.2 times larger than the width and it tilted to the lower left. The spacing interval was 9mm on average. In the Paired T test, a high correlation was showed between our system and existing methods in the word and sentence 2. This demonstrated the possibility as a testing tool. This study evaluated objectively and precisely writing performance of offline handwritten characters through image processing and provided preliminary data for performance standards. In the future, it can be suggested as a basic data on writing diagnosis of various ages.

• Journal of Korea Society of Industrial Information Systems
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.47-54
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• 2020

The acupressure is a treatment that applies pressure to certain parts of the body and has been mainly used for pain relief in the field of oriental medicine. However, the treatment effect is often different depending on the practitioner's ability, experience, and physical strength, so standardized acupressure is needed. In this regard, the equipment is being released, but this is mainly a rolling massage method, which reduces energy concentration and poses a risk of injury. Therefore, in this study, a device that provides vertical acupressure based on variable bogie (wheel truck) was implemented. As a result of experimenting with load and body pressure distribution and desirability to validate the device's bearing pressure, the acupressure rod held up to 150kg, the body pressure ratio was measured lower than the body pressure ratio of the comparison item in section 0%

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.221-228
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• 2021

Recently, there has been an increased awareness on the use of High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) as a non-surgical treatment option for leiomyomas. This study aimed to assess gynecologists' perception of HIFU therapy for uterine leiomyomas in Korea. We analyzed questionnaires from 162 Korean gynecologists who provided data on 1) demographics, 2) pattern of practice with respect to leiomyomas, and 3) opinion regarding HIFU therapy for leiomyomas. Of the 162 gynecologists, 2.8 % regarded HIFU as a first-line treatment for leiomyomas. HIFU was only available at the workplace of 19 % of respondents; of these, 58 % had requested the use of HIFU. When asked about their perception of HIFU for treating leiomyomas, only 19 % of the respondents thought that it was effective. The commonest perceived complication was a delay in the adequate treatment of sarcoma (59 %), followed by bowel injury (52 %). The respondents considered HIFU to be suitable in the following circumstances: age between 40 and 49 years, those patients who no longer desired pregnancy, medium-sized (5-6 cm) leiomyomas, and up to 2 leiomyomas. The Korean gynecologists' perception of HIFU as a treatment for leiomyomas is still not favorable. Gynecologists working at hospitals where HIFU is available tended to have a higher positive perception of this treatment. In addition to research involving a large number of gynecologists from multiple countries, a study on the long-term outcomes of HIFU is needed.

• Journal of Industrial Convergence
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.37-42
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• 2023

This study aimed to examine the safety of HemoHIM, a dietary supplement containing methoxsalen. HemoHIM is a dietary supplement marketed globally, and a competitor to ginseng. It has been reported to contain methoxsalen, a plant extract for treating psoriasis and vitiligo. Methoxsalen is known to cause hepatotoxicity, but most of the cases has been reported from ingestion as a drug, not a food. There are no reports of hepatotoxicity from the consumption derived from natural products such as Angelica gigas, Cnidium officinale, and Paeonia lactiflora, which are the main ingredients in the HemoHIM. However, a recent case of acute hepatitis was reported in Hong-Kong after ingestion of HemoHIM. It is difficult to conclude that hepatitis was caused by HemoHIM, because there was no check of co-occurring medications with a higher risk of hepatotoxicity, no description of the progress, no quantitative comparison of methoxsalen in HemoHIM to it in common foods such as carrots and celery, and no description of the patient's underlying diseases. On the other hand, there was a study that suggest hemoHIM is safe, and that study had adequate number of subjects even though more studies are needed to ensure safety.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.24-31
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• 2003

Objective of this study was to assess rice growth and percolation water salinity under the irrigation of the discharge waters from the municipal wastewater treatment plant and from the industrial wastewater treatment plant as alternative water resources during transplanting season. Three kinds of waters were irrigated; the discharge water from an industrial wastewater treatment plant (DIWT), the discharge water from the municipal wastewater treatment plant (DMWT), and groundwater. Concentrations of $COD_{er}$, $NH_4{^+}_-N$, $Mn^{2+}$, and $Ni^+$ in DIWT, SS content and $PO_4-P$ concentrations in DMWT were higher than those of reuse water criteria of other country for agricultural irrigation. The plant height in the irrigation of DMWT was shorter by 2 cm than the groundwater irrigation except for 10 days irrigation. However, the number of tillerings was not significantly different between DMWT and the groundwater. For the harvest index, there were no significant difference between DMWT and DIWT for 20 days irrigation, but slightly higher in DIWT than that of DMWT for 30 days irrigation regardless of soil types. The salinity of percolation water in the rhizosphere with irrigation of DIWT had more twofold than DMWT, but SAR value from DMWT had no significantly different from the groundwater irrigation. The average $EC_i$ values in the rooting zone irrigated with DIWT and DMWT for 30 days after rice transplanting were 4.7 and $3.4dS\;m^{-1}$ in clay loam soil, and were 3.5 and $2.5dS\;m^{-1}$ in sandy loam soil, respectively. There was dramatic decrease in $EC_i$ value at 30 days after rice transplanting even though $EC_i$ of DIWT had more twofold than DMWT. However, $EC_i$ from DMWT had no significant difference from the groundwater. Therefore, it might be considered that there was limited possibility to irrigate DMWT to overcome drought injury of rice transplanting season in paddy field.

• Food Engineering Progress
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.318-325
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• 2017

Alcoholic steatosis is a fundamental metabolic disorder and may precede the onset of more severe forms of alcoholic liver disease. In this study, we isolated enzymatichydrolysate from Semisulcospira libertine by alcalase hydrolysis and investigated the protective effect of Semisulcospira libertine hydrolysate on liver injury induced by alcohol in the mouse model of chronic and binge ethanol feeding (NIAAA). In an in vitro study, the hydrolysate protects HepG2 cells from ethanol toxicity. Liver damage was assessed by histopathological examination, as well as by quantitating activities of serum aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and alkaline phosphatase (ALP). After the administration of S. libertina hydrolysate, fat accumulation and infiltration of inflammatory cells in liver tissues were significantly decreased in the NIAAA mouse model. The elevated levels of serum AST, ALT, and ALP activities, along with the lipid contents of a damaged liver, were recovered in experimental mice administrated with S. libertina hydrolysate, suggesting its role in blood enzyme activation and lipid content restoration within damaged liver tissues. Moreover, treatment with S. libertine hydrolysate reduced the expression rate of cyclooxygenase (COX-2), interleukin $(IL)-1{\beta}$, and IL-6, which accelerate inflammation and induces tissue damage. All data showed that S. libertine hydrolysate has a preventive role against alcohol-induced liver damages by improving the activities of blood enzymes and modulating the expression of inflammation factor, suggesting S. libertine hydrolysate could be a commercially potential material for the restoration of hepatotoxicity.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.83 no.1
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• pp.25-31
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• 1994

This study was conducted to investigate sensitivity of woody plants growing in urban and industrial regions of Seoul and Taejon, Korea. Malondialdehyde(MDA) contents were analyzed in tree foliage of Pinus densiflora, Pinus koraiensis, Ginkgo biloba, Liriodendron tulipifera and Platanus occidentalis. In addition, MDA contents were analyzed in the foliage of tree seedlings, i.e. Pinus densiflora. Pinus koraiensis, Ginkgo biloba and Liriodendron tulipifera, with the fumigation of $SO_2$ in gas chamber 4 hours a day for six days. MDA contents of leaves in Ginkgo biloba, Platanus occidentalis and Liriodendron tulipifera in polluted regions were higher than those in unpolluted region and among them Liriodendron tulipifera had the highest. MDA contents of Pinus densiflora and Pinus koraiensis increased with the increase of needle age. MDA contents of Liriodendron tulipifera seedlings were increased with the higher concentrations of $SO_2$ but MDA contents in other seedlings showed no changes with $SO_2$ treatment concentrations. MDA contents in all species were increased with the passage of exposure day. Especially. Liriodendron tulipifera had higher MDA content than other species. In Liriodendron tulipifera the MDA production increased with the passage of exposure day until the fourth day after that decreased.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.405-417
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• 2015

Objectives: The aim of this study is to evaluate the association between physical factors, working conditions and occupational injuries among Korean workers. Methods: We used data from the 2nd Korean Working Conditions Survey, conducted in 2010. A total of 7,114 workers over 15 years of age were selected from among 10,019 Korean workers. The participants were interviewed using questionnaires. A multiple logistic regression model was used to analyze the associations among physical factors, working conditions and occupational injuries. Results: After the adjustment of socio-demographic factors, the odds ratio of injuries through physical factors such as vibration (adjusted Odds Ratio [aOR] 4.037, 95% CI 2.30-7.09), noise (aOR 4.562, 95% CI 2.64-7.89), high temperature (aOR 3.262, 95% CI 1.86-5.73), and low temperature (aOR 3.358, 95% CI 1.76-6.41) were greater in the exposed group than in the non-exposed group. The odds ratios of occupational injury(aOR 5.272, 95% CI 3.19-8.7 for very high speed work, aOR 3.303, 95% CI 1.95-5.60 for tight deadlines, and aOR 3.641, 95% CI 1.72-7.70 for not enough time to work) increased with increased work demands. Conclusions: In this study, physical factors such as vibration, noise, and high and low temperatures were significantly correlated with occupational injuries according to the increase in exposure intensity(p for trend <0.001). Also, working conditions such as high-speed work, tight deadlines and insufficient time to work showed significant associations with occupational injuries(p for trend<0.001).

• International Journal of Industrial Entomology and Biomaterials
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.105-112
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• 2009

The greenhouse whitefly, Trialeurodes vaporariorum (Westwood) and the sweet potato whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) are serious insect pests that have a wide host range including cucumber, tomato, and pepper. In this study, we tested larvicidal efficacy of several on-the-market environment-friendly agricultural materials (EFAM) to select the effective products after the target pests were stabilized in indoor rearing condition. The developmental periods of two whiteflies are as follows: in the case of T. vaporariorum, egg duration is 9.6 days and nymph is 18.9 days, and in the case of B. tabaci, egg duration is 7.4 days and nymph is 15.2 days under $25^{\circ}C$ with relative humidity (RH) of $60{\pm}5%$ and a photoperiod of 16 L:8D. The total period of T. vaporariorum was 5 days longer than B. tabaci. Among 22 EFAMs six products showed more than 60% of insecticide efficacy against T. vaporariorum BTV B, BTV D, BTV G, BTV L, BTV M, and BTV S. On the other hand, seven EFAM products showed over 60% of insecticide efficacy against B. tabaci BTV D, BTV G, BTV K, BTV L, BTV M, BTV N, and BTV U. In the case of Spodptera litura previously, 16 EFAMs were tested against $2^{nd}$ instar S. litura, and six EFAMs were found to have more than 90% efficacy. Test of these six EFAMs against entire larval stages were performed in this study. Although some of these products showed still more than 90% of insecticidal efficacy against up to $3^{rd}$ instar larvae, the efficacy of these EFAMs sharply decreased as ages increase, resulting in less than 60% of efficacy of the products at most. This result indicates the difficulty to control S. litura with the on-the-market EFAMs alone under economic injury level. Collectively, it is required to find more EFAMs, and find alternative method, and combined way of controlling to control those insect pests tested in this study.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.43-48
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• 2011

For the application of nano-sized material in various fields, the evaluation of nano-sized material toxicity is important. In the present study, various concentrations of 200 nm-sized silicon dioxide nanoparticle suspension were intraperitonially injected into mice to identify the toxicity of silicon dioxide nanoparticle in vivo. In the hematological analysis of group II treated with silicon dioxide nanoparticle 100 mg/kg body weight, lymphocytes and monocytes were significantly different compared to the control group. In group III treated with silicon dioxide nanoparticle 200 mg/kg body weight, lymphocytes, monocytes and hemoglobin were significantly different compared to the control group. In blood biochemical analysis of group III, the concentration of AST, ALT, BUN, and creatinine were significantly different compared to the control group. Histopathologic examination of the kidney indicated a mild injury only in mice received 200 mg/kg silicon dioxide nanoparticle. According to the results of the present study, the significant differences in the hematological and blood biochemical analyses and abnormal histopathological findings in the mouse kidney may have been related to exposure to silicon dioxide nanoparticle.