• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.30 no.12
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• pp.1801-1809
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• 2020

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) was first identified in 1952 as a causative agent of outbreaks. CHIKV is transmitted by two mosquito species, Aedes aegypti and A. albopictus. Symptoms after CHIKV infection in human are typically fever and joint pain, but can also include headache, muscle pain, joint swelling, polyarthralgia, and rash. CHIKV is an enveloped single-stranded, positive-sense RNA virus with a diameter of approximately 70 nm. The pathogenesis of CHIKV infection and the mechanism by which the virus evades the innate immune system remain poorly understood. Moreover, little is known about the roles of CHIKV-encoded genes in the viral evasion of host immune responses, especially type I interferon (IFN) responses. Therefore, in the present study, we screened CHIKV-encoded genes for their regulatory effect on the activation of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB), a critical transcription factor for the optimal activation of IFN-β. Among others, non-structural protein 2 (nsP2) strongly inhibited melanoma differentiation-associated protein 5 (MDA5)-mediated induction of the NF-κB pathway in a dose-dependent manner. Elucidation of the detailed mechanisms of nsP2-mediated inhibition of the MDA5/RIG-I signaling pathway is anticipated to contribute to the development of virus-specific therapeutics against CHIKV infection.

• Transactions on Electrical and Electronic Materials
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.192-195
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• 2012

We reported diborane ($B_2H_6$) doped wide bandgap hydrogenated amorphous silicon oxide (p-type a-SiOx:H) films prepared by using silane ($SiH_4$) hydrogen ($H_2$) and nitrous oxide ($N_2O$) in a radio frequency (RF) plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) system. We improved the $E_{opt}$ and conductivity of p-type a-SiOx:H films with various $N_2O$ and $B_2H_6$ ratios and applied those films in regards to the a-Si thin film solar cells. For the single layer p-type a-SiOx:H films, we achieved an optical band gap energy ($E_{opt}$) of 1.91 and 1.99 eV, electrical conductivity of approximately $10^{-7}$ S/cm and activation energy ($E_a$) of 0.57 to 0.52 eV with various $N_2O$ and $B_2H_6$ ratios. We applied those films for the a-Si thin film solar cell and the current-voltage characteristics are as given as: $V_{oc}$ = 853 and 842 mV, $J_{sc}$ = 13.87 and 15.13 $mA/cm^2$. FF = 0.645 and 0.656 and ${\eta}$ = 7.54 and 8.36% with $B_2H_6$ ratios of 0.5 and 1% respectively.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.525-547
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• 1989

Hemorrhagic tendency observed in open heart surgery patients has been attributed, among other causes, to increased fibrinolytic activity during extracorporeal circulation. But the exact mechanism of enhanced fibrinolytic activity which occurs during extracorporeal circulation is still unknown. So, we studied and compared the changes of parameters of fibrinolytic and protein C system according to time obtained from the plasma of 31 adult open heart surgery patients[EGG group] and 10 adult general thoracic surgery patients[control group], in order to confirm the hypothesis that the activated protein C system might affect the fibrinolytic system during extracorporeal circulation. In ECC group, the nature of the enhanced fibrinolytic activity that evolved during extracorporeal circulation was characterized by significant increase in fibrin degradation products[P < 0.01] and significant decrease in plasminogen and alpha2-antiplasmin[P < 0.05, P < 0.01] in spite of adequate amount of heparin administration. These changes were most pronounced in the early phase of extracorporeal circulation and normalized after termination of extracorporeal circulation. The results of these observations were the same after volume correction with the value of hematocrit. The change of volume corrected protein C ratio during extracorporeal circulation revealed similar pattern to those of plasminogen and alpha2-antiplasmin [P < 0.01], but volume corrected ratio of free protein S showed significant increase after the commencement of extracorporeal circulation then decreased after extracorporeal circulation. Although the above mentioned changes occur similarly in both bubble type oxygenator-used and membrane oxygenator-used patients groups, but the degree of decrease was more severe in membrane oxygenator-used patients group [P < 0.01] and showed much slower recovery to reach to the preextracorporeal circulation level. These results confirm the hypothesis that the enhanced fibrinolysis during extracorporeal circulation might be caused by the activation of protein C system and the activation is possibly linked to the appearance of thrombin from contact activation of blood after wide exposure to the synthetic surfaces of extracorporeal circuit. Key words: Extracorporeal circulation, Enhanced fibrinolysis, Protein C system.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.483-487
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• 2020

In this study, the effects of suspension training according to the types of ground. Fourteen healthy male college students measured for the characteristics of core muscle activity in suspension training on two different types of grounds, normal flat and unstable ground using a gym ball. EMG (Electromyography) was exploited to measure the activity of the core muscles according to the types of the ground. Muscle activity of the abdominal muscles, external oblique muscles, internal oblique muscles, and lower lumbar standing muscles was measured. The variables in analyses were measured by the means of % MVC method to standardize the EMG signal according to the ground type for each core muscle. In order to verify the differences in core muscles according to the type of ground the paired t-tests were performed at the significance level of 0.05 (p<.05). As a result of measuring the activity of the core muscles according to the various types of grounds, the difference between muscle characteristics obtained in two different grounds did not appear to be statistically significant. However, the result is an important clue to reconsider the notion that the training effect on the unstable ground is generally superior to the effect on the stable ground in the core muscle training. The type of ground in the core muscle training has been found not to significantly affect the muscle activation according to the results of this study. Regardless of the type of exercise program, hence, the difference in muscle activation will not be insignificant even with the standardized program strengthening core muscles.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.258-262
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• 2010

Radiotherapy is one of the major therapies for cancer treatment. p53 acts as a central mediator of the cellular response to stressful stimuli, such as radiation. Recently it has been known that activation of the phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K) pathway is associated with radioresistance. In this study, we investigated whether X-irradiation up-regulates PI3K in a p53-dependent manner in human colon cancer cells. In order to study this phenomenon, we have treated p53-wild type and p53-mutant type HCT116 cells with X-ray. Treatment of wild type HCT116 cells with 8 Gy resulted in a marked increase in PI3K (p85), which paralleled an increase in PTEN, a counterpart of PI3K. However, these effects of X-rays in the p53-mutant cells were not observed. These results suggest that the X-irradiation-induced up-regulation of PI3K/PTEN pathway is p53-dependent.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.61-66
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• 2010

Retinoids have many beneficial effects on dermatological applications. But, retinoids cause skin irritation. In this study, the safety of retinoids was clarified via both primary skin irritation test in rabbits and sensitization study using an integrated model for the differentiation of chemical-induced allergic and irritant skin reaction (IMDS), an alternative method to sensitization test. The effects of retinoids on the change of ultraviolet A (UVA)-induced matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1) in human skin fibroblasts and the modulation of type-1 pN collagen synthesis in hairless mice were examined to clarify the anti-wrinkle effects. Alltrans retinol (t-ROL) and its derivative, all-trans retinoic acid (t-RA), showed mild skin irritation but did not induce the sensitization. t-ROL and t-RA exerted anti-wrinkle effects by inhibiting the UVA-induced MMP-1 in human skin fibroblasts and increasing the type-1 pN collagen synthesis in hairless mice. These findings suggest that retinoids do not induce the allergy, and show anti-wrinkle effects by decreasing MMP-1 activation and increasing collagen synthesis.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers Conference
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• 2002.07a
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• pp.346-349
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• 2002

High Power and high dose ion implantation is essentially needed to make power MOSFET devices based on SiC wafers, because the diffusivities of the impurities such as Al, N, p, B in SiC crystal are very low. In addition, it is needed high temperature annealing for electrical activation of the implanted species. Due to the very high annealing temperature, the surface morphology after electrical activation annealing becomes very rough. We have found the different surface morphologies between implanted and unimplanted region. The unimplanted region showed smoother surface morphology It implies that the damage induced by high energy ion implantation affects the roughening mechanism. Some parts of Si-C bonding are broken in the damaged layer, s\ulcorner the surface migration and sublimation become easy. Therefore the macrostep formation will be promoted. N-type 4H-SiC wafers, which were Al ion implanted at acceleration energy ranged from 30kev to 360kev, were activated at 1600$^{\circ}C$ for 30min. The pre-activation annealing for damage relaxation was performed at 1100-1500$^{\circ}C$ for 30min. The surface morphologies of pre-activation annealed and activation annealed were characterized by atomic force microscopy(AFM).

• International Journal of Oral Biology
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.115-121
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• 2009

Bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) 2 is a potent osteogenic factor. Although both Smad1/5 and mitogenactivated protein kinases (MAPKs) are activated by BMP2, the hierarchical relationship between them is unclear. In this study, we examined if BMP2-stimulated MAPK activation is regulated by Smad1/5 or vice versa. When C2C12 cells were treated with BMP2, the activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), p38 MAPK and c-Jun-N-terminal kinase was evident within 5 min. The knockdown of both Smad1 and Smad5 by small interfering RNA did not affect the activation of these MAPKs. In addition, neither the overexpression of Smad1 nor Smad5 induced ERK activation. When ERK activation was induced by constitutively active MEK1 expression, the protein level and activation of Smad1 increased. Furthermore, the inhibition of constitutively active BMP receptor type IB-induced ERK activation significantly suppressed Smad1 activation. These results indicate that Smad1/5 activation is not necessary for BMP2-induced MAPK activation and also that ERK positively regulates Smad1 activation.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.203-212
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• 2020

Promyelocytic leukemia (PML) gene, through alternative splicing of its C-terminal region, generates several PML isoforms that interact with specific partners and perform distinct functions. The PML protein is a tumor suppressor that plays an important role by interacting with various proteins. Herein, we investigated the effect of the PML isoforms on oncostatin M (OSM)-induced signal transducer and activator of transcription-3 (STAT-3) transcriptional activity. PML influenced OSM-induced STAT-3 activity in a cell type-specific manner, which was dependent on the p53 status of the cells but regardless of PML isoform. Interestingly, overexpression of PML exerted opposite effects on OSM-induced STAT-3 activity in p53 wild-type and mutant cells. Specifically, overexpression of PML in the cell lines bearing wild-type p53 (NIH3T3 and U87-MG cells) decreased OSM-induced STAT-3 transcriptional activity, whereas overexpression of PML increased OSM-induced STAT-3 transcriptional activity in mutant p53-bearing cell lines (HEK293T and U251-MG cells). When wild-type p53 cells were co-transfected with PML-IV and R273H-p53 mutant, OSM-mediated STAT-3 transcriptional activity was significantly enhanced, compared to that of cells which were transfected with PML-IV alone; however, when cells bearing mutant p53 were co-transfected with PML-IV and wild-type p53, OSM-induced STAT-3 transcriptional activity was significantly decreased, compared to that of transfected cells with PML-IV alone. In conclusion, PML acts together with wild-type or mutant p53 and influences OSM-mediated STAT-3 activity in a negative or positive manner, resulting in the aberrant activation of STAT-3 in cancer cells bearing mutant p53 probably might occur through the interaction of mutant p53 with PML.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.228-231
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• 1986

The effect of temperature and pH on the degrdation of minoxidil in the aqueous solution was investigated and the stability of pharmaceutical preparation for solution was also studied. The degradation of minoxidil in the aqueous solution was first order type reaction and the rate constant at $20^{\circ}C$ in pH 7.0 phosphate buffer solution was 9.464${\times]10^{-3} day^{-1}$ and calculated activation energy was 11.7 kcal/mol. The degradation of minoxidil was acid-base catalytic reaction and the most stable range of pH was about 5.0. The liquid pharmaceutical preparation was very stable in 3 months.