• Animal Bioscience
• /
• v.36 no.3
• /
• pp.404-416
• /
• 2023

Objective: Daweizi (DWZ) is a famous indigenous pig breed in China and characterized by tender meat and high fat percentage. However, the expression profiles and functions of transcripts in DWZ pigs is still in infancy. The object of this study was to depict the transcript profiles in DWZ pigs and screen the potential pathway influence adipogenesis and fat deposition, Methods: Histological analysis of backfat tissue was firstly performed between DWZ and lean-type Yorkshire pigs, and then RNA sequencing technology was utilized to explore miRNAs, lncRNAs and mRNAs profiles in backfat tissue. 18 differentially expressed (DE) transcripts were randomly selected for quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (QPCR) to validate the reliability of the sequencing results. Finally, gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis were conducted to investigate the potential pathways influence adipocyte differentiation, adipogenesis and lipid metabolism, and a schematic model was further proposed. Results: A total of 1,625 differentially expressed transcripts were identified in DWZ pigs, including 27 upregulated and 45 downregulated miRNAs, 64 upregulated and 119 down-regulated lncRNA, 814 upregulated and 556 downregulated mRNAs. QPCR analysis exhibited strong consistency with the sequencing data. GO and KEGG analysis elucidated that the differentially expressed transcripts were mainly associated with cell growth and death, signal transduction, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR), AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), PI3K-Akt, adipocytokine and foxo signaling pathways, all of which are strongly involved in cell development, lipid metabolism and adipogenesis. Further analysis indicated that the BGIR9823_87926/miR-194a-5p/AQP7 network may be effective in the process of adipocyte differentiation or adipogenesis. Conclusion: Our study provides comprehensive insights into the regulatory network of backfat deposition and lipid metabolism in pigs from the point of view of miRNAs, lncRNAs and mRNAs.

• Analyses & Alternatives
• /
• v.7 no.1
• /
• pp.45-81
• /
• 2023

This paper examines how Korean economy has been asymmetrically changed after economics crises. The three crises during the last three decades, covid19, global financial crisis, and currency crisis, have deteriorated the economic inequalities of Korea in various ways. First, manufacture industry has been affected larger by economic crises, but recovered fast. The shocks in service sector were small but persist longer or were permanent. Second, although the covid19 spreaded out more to the capital area, the negative economic shock was greater in the non-capital region. That is, the crisis in the capital region transferred or amplified to the other region. Third, the inequality between permanent and temporary workers became worse after crises. Fourth, the sluggish small business growth problem became more serious during the covid19. In order to overcome the industrial and labor inequality, it is desirable to government strategy for economic development from focusing on high value-added industry to a balanced growth for all industry and region. To this end, governemt support should be asymmetric. That is, it should focus on indirect support such as regulatory reforms in the high value-added and private-led industries, and, for small business related service sector and non-capital region which have had limited opportunity of renovation and growth, the more active effort of government and government-driven gowth strategy would be desirable.

• Health Policy and Management
• /
• v.34 no.2
• /
• pp.106-119
• /
• 2024

Drug shortage is a persistent phenomenon that poses a public health risk worldwide and occurs due to a range of causes. The purpose of this study is to review key policies to prepare for and respond to drug shortages in selected countries, such as the United States, Canada, and some European countries in order to draw implications. This study reviewed the reports and articles derived from search engines and Google Scholar by using keywords such as drug shortage and stock-out. Over the last decade or so, the United States have strengthened requirements on advance notification for disruption and interruption of drug manufacturing, established the Inter-agency Drug Shortages Task Force to promote the communication and coordination of responses, and expedited drug regulatory processes. Similarly, Canada established the Multi-Stakeholder Steering Committee on drug shortages by involving representatives from central and local governments and private sectors. Canada also adopted a tiered approach to the communication of drug shortages based on the assessment of the severity of the shortage problem and released a detailed information guide on communication. In 2019, the joint task force between the European Medicines Agency and the Heads of Medicines Agencies issued guidelines on drug shortage communication in the European Economic Area. The countries reviewed in this paper focus on communication across different stakeholders for the monitoring of and timely response to drug shortages. The efforts to protect public health from the negative impact of the drug shortage crisis would require multi-sectorial and multi-governmental coordination and development of guidelines.

• Journal of Life Science
• /
• v.34 no.4
• /
• pp.279-285
• /
• 2024

The zonula occludens (ZO) protein serves as a scaffolding protein, providing structural support at the junctions between cells and the cytoplasmic surface. It acts as a bridge between integral membrane proteins and the cytoskeleton. Besides its structural role, it also participates in regulating cell growth and proliferation. Recent studies have highlighted the involvement of ZO protein in various diseases, including cancer. Specifically, research has indicated that ZO protein influences the cancer microenvironment surrounding cancer cells, thereby facilitating their growth and development. ZO proteins exert diverse functions in the cancer microenvironment, impacting processes such as angiogenesis, inflammatory responses, the epithelial-mesenchymal transition, and interactions with mesenchymal stem cells. The specific mechanisms vary depending on the type of cancer and environmental conditions. Recent research unveiled several signaling pathways involving ZO protein, which could potentially impede cancer progression in the tumor microenvironment. Consequently, these insights open avenues for novel treatment strategies. While the numerous physiological, structural, and morphological roles of ZO protein have been observed at the cellular and in vivo levels, understanding the signaling mechanisms it operates in vivo and how these mechanisms influence the cancer microenvironment remains a challenge. In this review, we delineate the characteristics and regulatory mechanisms of ZO protein in the context of the cancer microenvironment. Additionally, we propose leveraging the properties of ZO protein to devise defense mechanisms within the cancer cell environment and provide an overview of its in vivo role.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
• /
• v.44 no.1
• /
• pp.85-93
• /
• 2024

The monitoring of environmental information (e.g. noise, dust, vibration, temperature, humidity) is crucial to the safe and sustainable operation of a construction site. However, commercial sensors exhibit certain drawbacks when applied on-site. First, the installation cost is prohibitively high. Second, these sensors have been engineered without considering the rugged and harsh conditions of a construction site, resulting in error-prone sensing. Third, construction sites are compelled to allocate additional resources in terms of manpower, expenses, and physical spaces to accommodate individual sensors. This research developed an integrated sensing module to measure the environmental information in construction site. The sensing module slashes the installation cost to 3.3%, is robust enough to harsh and outdoor sites, and consolidates multiple sensors into a single unit. The sensing module also supports GPS, LTE, and real-time sensing. The evaluation showed remarkable results including 97.5% accuracy and 99.9% precision in noise measurement, an 89.7% accuracy in dust measurement, and a 93.5% reliability in data transmission. This research empowers the collection of substantial volumes and high-quality environmental data from construction sites, providing invaluable support to decision-making process. These encompass objective regulatory compliance checking, simulations of environmental data dispersion, and the development of environmental mitigation strategies.

• Korean Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
• /
• v.25 no.3
• /
• pp.27-36
• /
• 2024

The effective control of cost overrun is a crucial issue for construction companies to secure profitability. Especially in situations where cost pressures are significant due to factors such as rising raw material prices and increased financial costs due to high-interest rate policies, cost overruns resulting from project failures have a highly detrimental impact on the profitability of construction firms. The objective of this study is to analyze the current status of cost overrun control measures adopted by construction companies using the IPA technique and provide key characteristics and implications. The IPA analysis results showed that practitioners in general contractors exhibit a high level of interest and effort regarding cost overrun while the performance level is relatively low. Nevertheless, the measures considered important to control cost overruns generally show a high tendency for execution as well. Cost overrun control measures that show high importance but low execution are primarily related to collaboration and communication sectors. To effectively control cost overruns, enhancing collaboration and communication with construction supervisors/CM, headquarters, and regulatory authorities emerged as the most urgent need. Through this study, the current status and areas for improvement regarding cost overrun control measures in general contractors can be identified. This can be valuable for deriving directions and enhancements for future cost overrun control strategy development.

• Journal of Industrial Convergence
• /
• v.22 no.5
• /
• pp.1-10
• /
• 2024

This study proposes a developmental policy direction for the online platform industry, moving away from the regulatory-centered discussions that have predominated thus far. To offer policy directions, the PEST-SWOT-AHP analysis model was employed. The study first categorizes the issues of the domestic online platform industry into political, economic, social, and technological aspects, which are then further categorized into 16 strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. The relative importance among these factors was measured, leading to the derivation of four final strategies. The analysis indicates that policy directions should prioritize addressing weaknesses, with 'improving regulations that hinder innovation' being the most important factor across all categories, while technological factors were consistently rated highly in importance apart from this. Accordingly, the policy direction for the domestic online platform industry suggests avoiding excessive regulation and instead emphasizing policy support centered around technological development. This study is significant in that it presents a macroscopic developmental direction for online platform policies that have not been discussed in existing academic research, and it provides professional and objective indicators through consensus among scholars and researchers. In the future, it is hoped that research will continue to propose detailed policy strategies and implementation systems based on a macroscopic perspective.

• Journal of Navigation and Port Research
• /
• v.47 no.6
• /
• pp.437-447
• /
• 2023

By actively adopting technologies from the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the port industry is trending toward new types of ports, such as automated and smart ports. However, behind the development of these ports, there is an increasing risk of cyber security incidents and threats within ports and container terminals, including information leakage through cargo handling equipment and ransomware attacks leading to disruptions in terminal operations. Despite the necessity of research to enhance cyber security within ports, there is a lack of such studies in the domestic context. This study focuses on Busan Port, a representative port in South Korea that actively incorporates technology from the Fourth Industrial Revolution, in order to discover variables for improving cyber security in container terminals. The research results categorized factors for enhancing cyber security in Busan Port's container terminals into network construction and policy support, standardization of education and personnel training, and legal and regulatory factors. Subsequently, multiple regression analysis was conducted based on these factors, leading to the identification of detailed factors for securing and enhancing safety, reliability, performance, and satisfaction in Busan Port's container terminals. The significance of this study lies in providing direction for enhancing cyber security in Busan Port's container terminals and addressing the increasing incidents of cyber security attacks within ports and container terminals.

• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
• /
• v.27 no.2
• /
• pp.59-69
• /
• 2024

This study investigates the therapeutic potential of Indigo Naturalis (IN) in treating a Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). The objective is to comprehensively examine the effects and pharmacological mechanisms of IN on IBD, assessing its potential as an novel treatment for IBD. Analysis of 11 selected papers is conducted to understand the effects of IN, focusing on compounds like indirubin, isatin, indigo, and tryptanthrin. This study evaluates their impact on Disease Activity Index (DAI) score, colon length, mucosal damage, and macrophage infiltration in Dextran Sulfate Sodium (DSS)-induced colitis mice. Additionally, It investigate into the anti-inflammatory mechanisms, including Aryl hydrocarbon Receptor (AhR) pathway activation, Nuclear Factor kappa B (NF-κB)/nod-like receptor family pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3)/Interleukin 1 beta (IL-1β) inhibition, and modulation of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)/myeloid differentiation primary response 88 (MYD88)/NF-κB and Mitogen Activated Protein Kinase (MAPK) pathways. Immunomodulatory effects on T helper 17 (Th17)/regulatory T cell (Treg cell) balance and Glycogen synthase kinase-3 beta (GSK3-β) expression are also explored. Furthermore, the study addresses the role of IN in restoring intestinal microbiota diversity, reducing pathogenic bacteria, and increasing beneficial bacteria. The findings reveal that IN, particularly indirubin and indigo, demonstrates significant improvements in DAI score, colon length, mucosal damage, and macrophage infiltration in DSS-induced colitis mice. The anti-inflammatory effects are attributed to the activation of the AhR pathway, inhibition of inflammatory pathways, and modulation of immune responses. These results exhibit the potential of IN in IBD treatment. Notably, the restoration of intestinal microbiota diversity and balance further supports its efficacy. IN emerges as a promising and effective treatment for IBD, demonstrating anti-inflammatory effects and positive outcomes in preclinical studies. However, potential side effects necessitate further investigation for safe therapeutic development. The study underscores the need for future research to explore a broader range of active ingredients in IN to enhance therapeutic efficacy and safety.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
• /
• v.66 no.4
• /
• pp.663-681
• /
• 2024

Co-infection with porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) and Haemophilus parasuis (HPS) has severely restricted the healthy development of pig breeding. Exploring disease resistance of non-coding RNAs in pigs co-infected with PRRSV and HPS is therefore critical to complement and elucidate the molecular mechanisms of disease resistance in Kele piglets and to innovate the use of local pig germplasm resources in China. RNA-seq of lungs from Kele piglets with single-infection of PRRSV or HPS and co-infection of both pathogens was performed. Two hundred and twenty-five differentially expressed long non-coding RNAs (DElncRNAs) and 30 DEmicroRNAs (DEmiRNAs) were identified and characterized in the PRRSV and HPS co-infection (PRRSV-HPS) group. Compared with the single-infection groups, 146 unique DElncRNAs, 17 unique DEmiRNAs, and 206 target differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in the PRRSV-HPS group. The expression patterns of 20 DEmiRNAs and DElncRNAs confirmed by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) were consistent with those determined by high-throughput sequencing. In the PRRSV-HPS group, the target DEGs were enriched in eight immune Gene Ontology terms relating to two unique DEmiRNAs and 16 DElncRNAs, and the unique target DEGs participated the host immune response to pathogens infection by affecting 15 immune-related Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes enrichment pathways. Notably, competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) networks of different groups were constructed, and the ssc-miR-671-5p miRNA was validated as a potential regulatory factor to regulate DTX4 and AEBP1 genes to achieve innate antiviral effects and inhibit pulmonary fibrosis by dual-luciferase reporter assays. These results provided insight into further study on the molecular mechanisms of resistance to PRRSV and HPS co-infection in Kele piglets.