• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.48-54
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• 2021

Purpose In ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT, the absorption of ¹⁸F-FDG due to the activation of Brown Adipose Tissue (BAT) greatly interferes with the discrimination of lymph node malignant metastasis. Warming the patient's body temperature before and after injection of ¹⁸F-FDG to prevent FDG absorption by BAT is a safe and non-pharmacological approach. The purpose of this study was to identify and select patients with a high potential for BAT activation in advance, and to investigate whether BAT can inhibit FDG absorption when the body temperature is raised for a short time by directly applying heat to the target patient. Materials and Methods Among the patients who underwent ¹⁸F-FDG PET/CT at the National Cancer Center from January 2020 to December 2020, 825 female patients (415 in the thermal group, 410 in the non-thermal group) under 50 years old were included. The thermal group was administered heat for 10 minutes before injection of ¹⁸F-FDG. For statistical analysis, the Z test comparing the ratios between the two groups was used, and logistic regression analysis was performed to correct for important variables (BMI, outdoor temperature, blood sugar) according to the results of the previous retrospective study. Results Among 825 patients, 19 patients with BAT activated (Thermal group: 5(1.2%), Non-thermal group: 14(3.41%)) accounted for 2.3% of the total. As a result of performing the Z test to compare the ratios between the two groups, the activation of BAT in the thermal group was significantly decreased (P=0.034). In the univariate logistic regression analysis, the activation of BAT was also decreased in the thermal group (OR: 0.34, P<0.05). In the multivariate results, BAT activation increased in patients younger than 45 years old (OR: 4.46, P<0.05) and outdoor temperature less than 13.2 degrees (OR: 9.97, P<0.05). BAT activation tended to decrease in the thermal group, but there was no significant difference (OR: 0.37, P=0.066). Conclusion We confirmed that the activation of BAT tends to decrease by 62.5% in the group subjected to the thermal method, and it will be of great help in preventing FDG absorption of BAT more effectively in the future.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.32 no.7
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• pp.532-541
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• 2022

Obesity induced by high-fat diet (HFD) is verified as a strong risk factor and negative prognostic factor for prostate cancer in several genetically engineered mice although it was not examined in the normal mice. To investigate whether HFD-induced obesity can affect the development and progression of cancer in the prostate of normal mice, alterations in the weight and histological structure of the prostate as well as the expression of cancer-related proteins were analyzed in obese C57BL/6N mice fed with 60% HFD for 16 weeks. First, HFD-induced obesity, including an increase in organ weight, body weight, fat accumulation, and serum lipid profile, was successfully induced in C57BL/6N mice after HFD treatment. The total weight of the prostate significantly increased HFD-induced obesity in the model mice compared with the control group. Among the four lobes of the prostate, the weight of the ventral prostate (VP) and anterior prostate (AP) were higher in HFD-induced obesity model mice than in the control group, although the weights of the lateral prostate (DLP) and seminal vesicle (SV) were constantly maintained. In addition, the incidences of hyperplasia and non-hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) in the histological structure were remarkably increased in HFD-induced obesity model mice, while the epithelial thickness was higher in the same group. A significant increase in the phosphorylation levels of key proteins in the AKT (protein kinase B) signaling pathway was detected in HFD-induced obesity model mice. Therefore, these results suggest that HFD-induced obesity can promote hyperplasia and NHL in the prostates of C57BL/6N mice through the activation of the AKT signaling pathway.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.31 no.12
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• pp.1110-1119
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• 2021

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the inflammatory response in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-treated RAW 264.7 macrophages could be promoted by particulate matter 2.5 (PM_2.5) stimulation. To this end, the levels of inflammatory parameters, reactive oxygen species (ROS) and inflammation-regulating genes were investigated in RAW 264.7 cells treated with PM_2.5 in the presence or absence of LPS. Our results showed that the production levels of pro-inflammatory mediators (nitric oxide and prostaglandin E₂) and cytokines (interleukin-6 and -1β) were significantly increased by PM_2.5 stimulation in LPS-treated RAW 264.7 cells, which was correlated with increased expression genes involved in their production. In addition, when LPS-treated RAW 264.7 cells were exposed to PM_2.5, nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-κB) expression was further increased in the nucleus, and the expression of inhibitor of NF-κB as well as NF-κB in the cytoplasm was decreased. These results suggest that the co-treatment of PM_2.5 and LPS further increases the activation of the NF-κB signaling pathway compared to each treatment alone, thereby contributing to the promotion of transcriptional activity of inflammatory genes. Furthermore, although the generation of ROS was greatly increased by PM_2.5 in LPS-treated RAW 264.7 cells, the NF-κB inhibitor did not reduce the generation of ROS. In addition, when the generation of ROS was artificially suppressed, the production of inflammatory mediators and the activation of NF-κB were both abolished. Therefore, our results suggest that the increase in the NF-κB-mediated inflammatory response induced by PM_2.5 in LPS-treated RAW 264.7 macrophages was a ROS generation-dependent phenomenon.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.149-156
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• 2023

The purpose of this study is to compare of growth and chlorophyl between old-barley seed (OBS, 2019) and New-barley seed (NBS, 2020) exposed by X-ray. After germination the OBS and NBS, experimental group was exposed by 30 Gy X-ray using linear accelerator (Clinac IS, VERIAN, USA), by 6 MV X-ray, SSD 100 cm, 18 × 10 cm², 600 MU/min. Length was measured every day until 9th day, and chlorophyl was analyzed using spectrophotometer(uv-1800, shimadzu, japan) after measuring weight in 9th day. Data analysis was performed the Independent T-test using SPSS ver 26.0(Chicago, IL, USA). NBS grow more faster than OBS in control group, but OBS grow more faster than NBS in experimental group. Length of control group was longer significantly every day than that of experimental group in OBS. NBS weighted more than OBS in control group, but OBS weighted more than NBS in experimental group. In comparing chlorophyl density, NBS high more than OBS in control group as well as experimental group. Growth and weight of OBS was effected more those than NBS by X-ray, but NBS in chlorophyl by X-ray. It is expected to be used as basic data for future X-ray research in barley seed.

• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.211-219
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• 2022

Objective: This study was conducted to investigate the awareness of work-related disease prevention of farmers. Method: As a research method, a qualitative focus group interview was conducted in 18 participants. Results: Prevention and management services for work-related diseases of farmers mostly are based on research from other fields and so are not highly effective because their content is not relevant to agricultural work. It has been suggested that such program designers be required to have some appropriate related knowledge, and that incentives and a certification system for participation in such education be established. To analyze work-related diseases of farmers, fields of prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation should be created. They demanded the designation of hospitals and the actualization of compensation for farmers' safety insurance. The work-related diseases to address were include musculoskeletal diseases, pesticide poisoning-related diseases (cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease), psychiatric diseases such as depression, and allergic diseases. However, this must have been the result of the harmful factors they felt during agricultural work. And for farmer patients diagnosed with work-related diseases, it was said to strengthen farmer safety insurance. Conclusion: In order to increase the safely and health effects of agricultural work, it is necessary to prevent and manage work-related diseases of farmers. Projects should be developed in consideration of cultural and economic barriers of farmers and the characteristics of the work.

• Journal of the korean academy of Pediatric Dentistry
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.285-299
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• 2022

The aim of this study is to investigate the awareness and perception of pediatric dentists regarding dental health insurance (DHI) system in Korea. Online surveys were sent to the members of the Korean Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (KAPD), and the responses were collected. The survey, consisting of 41 questions, was subdivided into 'general background of the respondents', 'the awareness on national health insurance (NHI) and DHI', 'the awareness on DHI pertaining to pediatric dentistry', 'issues that need improvement on DHI pertaining to pediatric dentistry', 'DHI claims', and 'the roles of KAPD in DHI'. In total, 302 responded, with a response rate of 28.9%. Excluding 2 questionnaires with insufficient answers, a total of 300 survey results were analyzed. According to the analysis, pediatric dentists thought that the coverage of DHI was not as sufficient compared to that of NHI, but were expecting its scope to broaden in the future. The satisfaction rate was higher in pit and fissure sealant and composite resin filling than in caries-detecting quantitative light-induced fluorescence. Pediatric dentists considered permanent tooth composite resin filling (65.7%) needed an increase in insurance copayment, while topical fluoride application (74.7%) to require insurance coverage. DHI claims were generally handled by dental hygienists and/or nursing assistants. Approximately half of the respondents answered that they have had experiences on appealing for insurance denials. Lastly, pediatric dentists generally had a positive attitude towards providing information for the DHI. This study is expected to be used as a sound dataset for the DHI policy development concerning pediatric dentistry.

• Journal of Industrial Convergence
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• v.20 no.9
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• pp.59-70
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• 2022

Background: Diabetes education is an important factor in blood glucose control. Reinforced education is necessary for effective diabetes education. However, it is difficult to provide reinforced diabetes education within Korea's medical environment. Therefore, we want to analyze the effect of continuous diabetes education using mobile health care that can effectively provide repeated education without having to face the patient. Methods: This study is a multicenter, randomized, controlled, pre-post design study conducted to analyze the effect of a continuous diabetes education method. A total of 109 people were registered at five hospitals in south Korea, and they were randomly assigned to the app group (34 people) who received real-time coaching and repetitive training, the logbook group (37 people) who received face-to-face training after writing a blood glucose logbook, and the general group (38 people) who received a one-time diabetes education. The study was conducted for a total of 24 weeks. Twenty-one patients withdrew their consent and failed to perform an HbA1c. A final 88 patients were analyzed. The difference in HbA1c, Self-management behavior, and Quality of life before and after education was analyzed. Results: The study involved 51 (58%) male subjects, mean age was 55.8 years and mean duration of diabetes was 7.6 years. After 24 weeks of intervention, there was no significant difference in self-care behavior and quality of life between the three groups, but the HbA1c of the app group significantly decreased after education compared to the logbook group and the general group (F=4.62, p=.013). Conclusion: It can be seen through the app group that receiving real-time education is more effective in improving blood glucose management and continuous diabetes education is important.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.32 no.12
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• pp.979-988
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• 2022

Halophytes have been reported to possess a variety of physiological activities, such as anti-cancer, anti-oxidant, anti-diabetes, anti-inflammatory, and anti-obesity. Studies on the roots of the halophyte Rosa rugosa, in particular, have shown a variety of physiological activities and are known to be effective for nursing diabetic complications in traditional Korean medicine. In this study, the effect of R. rugosa on adipogenesis was investigated in 3T3-L1 pre-adipocytes treated with crude extract and solvent fractions (H₂O, n-BuOH, 85% aq. MeOH, and n-Hex) obtained from R. rugosa roots. Treatment with extract and the solvent fractions inhibited the formation of intracellular lipid droplets in differentiated 3T3-L1 adipocytes compared to the untreated group. In particular, n-BuOH and 85% aq. MeOH fractions effectively decreased the expression of adipogenic transcription factors: peroxisome proliferator activated receptor-γ (PPARγ), CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein α (C/EBPα), and sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1c (SREBP1c) in both mRNA and protein levels. In conclusion, these results suggest that R. rugosa contains anti-adipogenic molecules that can be utilized as a nutraceutical against obesity. Further refining of n-BuOH and 85% aq. MeOH fractions and analysis of their action mechanisms could yield potential therapeutic agents with anti-adipogenic effects.

• The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
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• v.8 no.5
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• pp.271-278
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• 2022

This study attempted to prepare basic data for international students with Vietnamese nationality in Korea to identify positive psychological capital, social support, social presence, and quality of life and to prepare support measures to improve their quality of life. Data collection is from May 1, 2021 to June 30, 2021, and was conducted through an online survey for anonymity and convenience. For data analysis, the IBM SPSS/25 statistical program was used, and the significance level for the results was measured as .05, and the reliability of each measurement tool was calculated. The results of this study are summarized as follows. First, the age of the subjects was '24 years old-27 years old', and women accounted for the majority. In the fourth grade, the fourth grade was the most, with "outgoing" personality, "sometimes" experiences of interpersonal conflict, "more than four years and less than five years" in the period of residence in Korea, and the level of Korean proficiency was "grade three." Second, the average quality of life of Vietnamese international students was 3.52 points (out of 5 points), positive psychological capital was 3.98 points (out of 6 points), social support was 2.96 points (out of 4 points), and social presence was 3.59 points (out of 5 points). Third, in the case of the quality of life of Vietnamese international students, there was a significant difference according to their personality, and as a result of post-verification, the quality of life of the 'extroverted' group was higher than the 'mixed' group. There was a significant difference according to interpersonal conflict), and as a result of post-examination, the "no conflict" group had a higher quality of life than the "conflict frequent" group. Fourth, the factors that most affected the subject's quality of life were social support, positive psychological capital, and personality (extroverted). The explanatory power of the model was 33.2%.

• Journal of Intelligence and Information Systems
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.185-209
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• 2023

With the advent of the 4th industrial revolution, various technologies have received much attention. Technologies related to the 4th industry include the Internet of Things (IoT), big data, artificial intelligence, virtual reality (VR), 3D printers, and robotics, and these technologies are often converged. In particular, the robotics field is combined with technologies such as big data, artificial intelligence, VR, and digital twins. Accordingly, much research using robotics is being conducted, which is applied to distribution, airports, hotels, restaurants, and transportation fields. In the given situation, research on human-robot interaction is attracting attention, but it has not yet reached the level of user satisfaction. However, research on robots capable of perfect communication is steadily being conducted, and it is expected that it will be able to replace human emotional labor. Therefore, it is necessary to discuss whether the current human-robot interaction technology can be applied to business. To this end, this study first examines the trend of human-robot interaction technology. Second, we compare LDA (Latent Dirichlet Allocation) topic modeling and BERTopic topic modeling methods. As a result, we found that the concept of human-robot interaction and basic interaction was discussed in the studies from 1992 to 2002. From 2003 to 2012, many studies on social expression were conducted, and studies related to judgment such as face detection and recognition were conducted. In the studies from 2013 to 2022, service topics such as elderly nursing, education, and autism treatment appeared, and research on social expression continued. However, it seems that it has not yet reached the level that can be applied to business. As a result of comparing LDA (Latent Dirichlet Allocation) topic modeling and the BERTopic topic modeling method, it was confirmed that BERTopic is a superior method to LDA.