• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.43 no.2
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• pp.218-225
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• 2019

Background: Streptococcus pneumoniae, more than 90 serotypes of which exist, is recognized as an etiologic agent of pneumonia, meningitis, and sepsis associated with significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. Immunization with a pneumococcal pep27 mutant (${{\Delta}}pep27$) has been shown to confer comprehensive, long-term protection against even nontypeable strains. However, ${{\Delta}}pep27$ is effective as a vaccine only after at least three rounds of immunization. Therefore, treatments capable of enhancing the efficiency of ${{\Delta}}pep27$ immunization should be identified without delay. Panax ginseng Mayer has already been shown to have pharmacological and antioxidant effects. Here, the ability of Korean Red Ginseng (KRG) to enhance the efficacy of ${{\Delta}}pep27$ immunization was investigated. Methods: Mice were treated with KRG and immunized with ${{\Delta}}pep27$ before infection with the pathogenic S. pneumoniae strain D39. Total reactive oxygen species production was measured using lung homogenates, and inducible nitric oxide (NO) synthase and antiapoptotic protein expression was determined by immunoblotting. The phagocytic activity of peritoneal macrophages was also tested after KRG treatment. Results: Compared with the other treatments, KRG significantly increased survival rate after lethal challenge and resulted in faster bacterial clearance via increased phagocytosis. Moreover, KRG enhanced ${{\Delta}}pep27$ vaccine efficacy by inhibiting reactive oxygen species production, reducing extracellular signal-regulated kinase apoptosis signaling and inflammation. Conclusion: Taken together, our results suggest that KRG reduces the time required for immunization with the ${{\Delta}}pep27$ vaccine by enhancing its efficacy.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.31 no.12
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• pp.1656-1666
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• 2021

Dental pathogens lead to chronic diseases like periodontitis, which causes loss of teeth. Here, we examined the plausible antibacterial efficacy of copper nanoparticles (CuNPs) synthesized using Cupressus macrocarpa extract (CME) against periodontitis-causing bacteria. The antimicrobial properties of CME-CuNPs were then assessed against oral microbes (M. luteus. B. subtilis, P. aerioginosa) that cause periodontal disease and were identified using morphological/ biochemical analysis, and 16S-rRNA techniques. The CME-CuNPs were characterized, and accordingly, the peak found at 577 nm using UV-Vis spectrometer showed the formation of stable CME-CuNPs. Also, the results revealed the formation of spherical and oblong monodispersed CME-CuNPs with sizes ranged from 11.3 to 22.4 nm. The FTIR analysis suggested that the CME contains reducing agents that consequently had a role in Cu reduction and CME-CuNP formation. Furthermore, the CME-CuNPs exhibited potent antimicrobial efficacy against different isolates which was superior to the reported values in literature. The antibacterial efficacy of CME-CuNPs on oral bacteria was compared to the synergistic solution of clindamycin with CME-CuNPs. The solution exhibited a superior capacity to prevent bacterial growth. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC), and fractional inhibitory concentration (FIC) of CME-CuNPs with clindamycin recorded against the selected periodontal disease-causing microorganisms were observed between the range of 2.6-3.6 ㎍/ml, 4-5 ㎍/ml and 0.312-0.5, respectively. Finally, the synergistic antimicrobial efficacy exhibited by CME-CuNPs with clindamycin against the tested strains could be useful for the future development of more effective treatments to control dental diseases.

• Asia pacific journal of information systems
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.863-898
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• 2023

Previous studies have shown that insiders pose risks to the security of organisations' secret information. Information security policy (ISP) intentional violation can jeopardise organisations. For years, ISP violations persist despite organisations' best attempts to tackle the problem through security, education, training and awareness (SETA) programs and technology solutions. Stopping hacking attempts e.g., phishing relies on personnel's behaviour. Therefore, it is crucial to consider employee behaviour when designing strategies to protect sensitive data. In this case, organisations should also focus on improving employee behaviour on security and creating positive security perceptions. This paper investigates the role of psychological capital (PsyCap), punishment and organisational security resources in influencing employee behaviour and ultimately reducing ISP violations. The model of the proposed study has been modified to investigate the connection between self-efficacy, resilience, optimism, hope, perceived sanction severity, perceived sanction certainty, security response effectiveness, security competence and ISP violation. The sample of the study includes 364 bank employees in Jordan who participated in a survey using a self-administered questionnaire. The findings show that the proposed approach acquired an acceptable fit with the data and 17 of 25 hypotheses were confirmed to be correct. Furthermore, the variables self-efficacy, resilience, security response efficacy, and protection motivation directly influence ISP violations, while perceived sanction severity and optimism indirectly influence ISP violations through protection motivation. Additionally, hope, perceived sanction certainty, and security skills have no effect on ISP infractions that are statistically significant. Finally, self-efficacy, resiliency, optimism, hope, perceived severity of sanctions, perceived certainty of sanctions, perceived effectiveness of security responses, and security competence have a substantial influence on protection motivation.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.324-335
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• 2012

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of dietary self-efficacy and illness beliefs, perceived benefits, and perceived barriers for the reduction of sodium intake in the elderly. A cross-sectional study was performed on 252 elderly people, aged 65 yrs and above, living in Daejeon Metropolitan city and Jecheon city, Chungbuk from March 21 to March 30, 2011. Dietary self-efficacy of three factors (resisting relapse, reducing salt and behavioral skills), perceived benefits and barriers, accurate and inaccurate illness beliefs were measured by 5 or 4 point Likert scale. With the increasing education level of the elderly, dietary self-efficacy, and accurate illness belief score increased and perceived barrier score decreased. Perceived benefits score was higher in the subject living alone compared to those living with siblings or spouses. Among three factors of dietary self-efficacy, reducing salt was scored highest and behavioral skills scored lowest in the elderly. Recording meal diary and reading labels for salt content in the items of behavioral skills showed lower score than other items. Accurate illness beliefs and perceived benefits were more scored than inaccurate illness beliefs and perceived barriers respectively in the subjects. The subjects with higher accurate illness beliefs, lower inaccurate illness beliefs, higher perceived benefits, and lower perceived barriers for the reduction of sodium intake showed higher dietary self-efficacy. In summary, accurate illness beliefs and perceived benefits positively correlated with dietary self-efficacy for the reduction of sodium intake in the elderly, whereas inaccurate illness beliefs and perceived barriers are negatively correlated.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.29-38
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• 2009

Objectives : This preliminary study evaluated the efficacy of two short-term programs for reducing depressive symptoms in female adolescents with depressive disorder. Methods : The participants were 23 middle school students who were randomly assigned to three groups : the cognitive-behavioral program group, the psycho education-program group and the no-intervention control group. Results : At postintervention, the students in cognitive-behavioral program group reported significantly lower levels of depressive symptoms, negative self-statement, automatic thought and psychiatric symptoms than did those in the no-intervention group and those in the psychoeducation-program group. Conclusion : The results suggest that the cognitive-behavioral program for female adolescent with depressive disorder was more effective in reducing depressive symptoms than the psychoeducation-program.

• Proceedings of the SCSK Conference
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• 2003.09b
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• pp.201-212
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• 2003

The heartwood extract of Artocarpus lakoocha Roxb., which contains a potent tyrosinase inhibitor oxyresveratrol, was evaluated for its melanin-reducing efficacy in both guinea pigs and human volunteers. After 4 week-daily application of the extract dissolved in propylene glycol to the back of guinea pigs, significant reduction in melanin content was detected, with the effect greater than 3% kojic acid and solvent propylene glycol (P < 0.05). The extract was subsequently tested in female volunteers (3 groups of 20 subjects) using a parallel clinical trial with self-control. The first group received the A. lakoocha solution in propylene glycol whereas the second and the third group respectively received 0.25% licorice extract and 3% kojic acid in the same solvent. The subject in each group twice daily applied the test solution on one arm whereas the remaining arm was applied with only propylene glycol (self-control) for 12 weeks. The A. lakoocha extract was found to be the most effective agent, giving the shortest onset of significant whitening after only 4 weeks of application (P < 0.05), followed by 3% kojic acid (8 weeks) and 0.25% licorice extract (10 weeks). The whitening effect also increased with time, with the highest extent observed with A. lakoocha at week 12. The in vitro antityrosinase activity of A. lakoocha extract decreased with time upon storage at room temperature but could be stabilized by a combination of several antioxidants. In conclusion, the heartwood extract of A. lakoocha appeared to have promising potential for use as an effective and economical skin-whitening agent.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.110-121
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• 2021

The objective of this study was to conduct a systematic review and network meta-analysis to evaluate and compare the effectiveness of various types of acupuncture for menopausal hot flashes (HF). Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were retrieved from 8 electronic databases, and the risk of bias was evaluated for the included studies. Pairwise meta-analysis and network meta-analysis were performed using Review Manager and R software for indirect comparison and ranking, respectively. In total, 23 RCTs (2,302 patients) were eligible for systematic review, of which 10 were included in network meta-analysis. Network meta-analysis showed manual acupuncture (MA) had the highest probability of reducing HF frequency and severity, followed by sham acupuncture (SA), electroacupuncture, usual care, or no treatment; furthermore, warm acupuncture significantly improved menopause-specific quality of life compared with MA or electroacupuncture. Compared with hormone replacement therapy, acupuncture had less efficacy in reducing HF frequency but enhanced menopause-specific quality of life. There was no significant difference between MA and SA in mitigating HF. The existing evidence showed that MA could be used for alleviating menopausal HF. However, it is recommended that more high-quality RCTs should be performed.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.19-29
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• 2021

Objective : This study was designed to investigate anti-oxidative, anti-aging and anti-inflammatory activities of Zingiber officinale Roscoe water (ZD) and 50% ethanol extracts (ZE). Method : The antioxidant capacity of ZD or ZE was analyzed by DPPH, ABTS scavenging activities and reducing power, respectively. The anti-aging efficacy was performed with tyrosinase and collagenase inhibition activities. The anti-inflammatory activities were confirmed through inhibition of nitric oxide production and TNF-�� expression in LPS-treated Raw 264.7 cells. Result : As a result of measuring DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging activities, both ZD and ZE extracts increased in concentration-dependent manners. The ABTS radical scavenging activities of water and 50% ethanol extract were similar to that of positive control at high concentration. On reducing power, both ZD and ZE showed higher activities than the positive control at high concentration. On inhibition activities of tyrosinase and collagenase both ZD and ZE showed the large inhibition rates at low concentration. Also, the inhibitory efficacy of ZD on NO and TNF-�� production was better than ZE in RAW 264.7 cells. Conclusion : These results suggest that ZD and ZE have anti-oxidative, anti-aging and anti-inflammatory effects in vitro. Especially, ZD was more effective than ZE. Thus, Ginger extract is considered to be highly useful as a cosmetic or food material with anti-oxidative, anti-aging (prevention of whitening and wrinkle) and anti-inflammatory effects. Also these effects may vary depending on the extraction solvent.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.2-15
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• 2022

Objectives: Children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) tend to be noisy and violate rules with their disruptive behaviors, resulting in greater difficulties with off-task behaviors and being at risk for social refusal. The visual activity schedule (VAS) intervention program is a frequently used method to teach multiple skills involving on-task, use of schedules, transition behaviors, social initiation, independent play skills, classroom skills, and academic skills. The current systematic review aimed to examine the efficacy of using VAS intervention in reducing problem behaviors in children with ADHD between 5 and 12 years of age. Methods: Systematic searches were conducted using two electronic databases (PubMed and Scopus) to identify relevant studies published in English between 2010 and 2020. Four studies met the inclusion criteria: two studies examined the effect of schedule-based tasks and the use of an iPad on classroom skills, while the other two examined randomized clinical trials (RCTs) of psychosocial treatment for ADHD inattentive type and a cross-sectional study examined the impact of the group size on task behavior and work productivity in children with ADHD. Results: The findings indicate that the interventions used in all four studies could lead to increased satisfaction among participants and parents, as well as a reduction in problem behavior. In terms of the research indicators, the RCT had low quality, while the others were of high quality. Conclusion: A larger number of studies and the ADHD clinical population would help to increase the generalizability of future reviews of treatments in this context.

• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.52 no.2
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• pp.145-156
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• 2024

Unlike resistant cells, persister cells resist antibiotics due to a decreased cellular metabolic rate and can transition back to normal susceptible cells when the antibiotic is removed. These persister cells contribute to the chronic symptoms of infectious diseases and promote the emergence of resistant strains with continuous antibiotic exposure. Therefore, eliminating persister cells represents a promising approach to significantly enhance antibiotic efficacy. Here, we found that Coicis Semen extract reduced Staphylococcus aureus persister cells at a concentration of 0.5 g/L. Linoleic acid and oleic acid, the major components of Coicis Semen extract, exhibited a comparable reduction in persister cells when combined with three antibiotics: ciprofloxacin, oxacillin, and tobramycin. Conversely, these effects were nullified in the presence of the surfactant Tween 80 (1%), suggesting that the hydrophobic characteristics of linoleic acid and oleic acids play a pivotal role in reducing the number of S. aureus persister cells. Considering the concentration-dependent effects of linoleic acid and oleic acid, the persister-reducing activity of Coicis Semen extract was primarily attributed to these fatty acids. Moreover, Coicis Semen extract, linoleic acid, and oleic acid increased the cell membrane permeability of S. aureus. Interestingly, this effect was counteracted by 1% Tween 80, indicating a close association between the reduction of persister cells and the increase in cell membrane permeability. The identified compounds could thus be used to eliminate persister cells, thereby enhancing therapeutic efficacy and shortening treatment duration. When used in conjunction with antibiotics, they may also mitigate chronic symptoms and significantly reduce the emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.