Publications by authors named "Sang-Hee Woo"
This study conducted real-time monitoring of size-resolved particle concentrations ranging from 9 nm to 10 μm simultaneously at four sites on the park ground and the roof of a five-story apartment buildings in the upwind and downwind areas of the Olympic Expressway next to apartment complex areas of Seoul, Korea. Using a positive matrix factorization model for source apportionment, eight factors were resolved at each monitoring site: four exhaust emissions of vehicles, one non-exhaust emission of vehicle, two regional sources, and one unknown source. After categorizing monitoring data into three cases by wind conditions, impact and contribution of each vehicle-related source on the local road to the roadside pollution was quantified and characterized by subtracting the urban background concentrations.
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- Adenovirus detection in South Korea was typically below 10% but spiked in summer 2023, peaking at 42.2% in week 34.
- Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the average detection rate was 8.2%, but it decreased to 6.1% during the pandemic years of 2020 to 2022.
- In 2023, surprisingly high rates of adenovirus were found primarily in children aged 0-12, with the 0-6 age group reaching a peak of 61.6%, indicating significant shifts in respiratory virus patterns post-pandemic.
Article Synopsis
- The COVID-19 pandemic led to a significant decline in the incidence of various respiratory viruses due to health measures, but these infections returned as restrictions were lifted, particularly in Korean children.
- A nationwide surveillance study analyzed respiratory virus data from children and adolescents from January 2017 to June 2023, comparing detection rates and age distributions before and after the pandemic.
- Findings showed a drop in overall virus detection during the pandemic, with a notable increase in co-detections post-pandemic; unique outbreaks of certain viruses like PIV and HMPV occurred out of season, and the average age of affected children increased significantly in 2023 compared to pre-pandemic years.
Article Synopsis
- The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) is conducting genomic surveillance to track and analyze SARS-CoV-2 variants in South Korea using over 102,000 patient samples.
- COVID-19 variant waves emerged first internationally and then spread domestically, with key variants including B.41 in 2020, Delta in 2021, and various Omicron sub-lineages in 2022.
- The KDCA has been proactive in detecting new variants before widespread outbreaks, highlighting the need for ongoing monitoring to safeguard public health against emerging threats.
Increased viral load in patients infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 Omicron variant in the Republic of Korea.
Osong Public Health Res Perspect
August 2023
Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been declared a global pandemic owing to the rapid spread of the causative agent, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. Its Delta and Omicron variants are more transmissible and pathogenic than other variants. Some debates have emerged on the mechanism of variants of concern.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn urban areas, particulate matter emitted from vehicles directly affects the health of citizens near roads. Thus, in this study, particle size distribution was measured by the horizontal and vertical distances along a highway road with heavy traffic to characterize the dispersion phenomena of particulate matter emitted from vehicles. In addition, the contribution of pollution sources was analyzed using a source-receptor model.
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- - Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, there has been a significant decline in the detection of respiratory infectious diseases, particularly influenza, due to decreased specimen collection as most patients are directed to COVID-19 screening clinics.
- - To address this issue, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency expanded surveillance efforts by including data from private medical diagnostic centers, leading to an unexpected rise in human parainfluenza virus (hPIV) detections beginning in August 2021.
- - The increase in hPIV detections was especially notable in young children, with rates surpassing 70% by October 2021, and the detection occurred later in metropolitan areas compared to suburban areas, indicating a shift in prevalence patterns during the
Electric vehicles (EVs) are regarded as zero emission vehicles due to the absence of exhaust emissions. However, they still contribute non-exhaust particulate matter (PM) emissions, generated by brake wear, tire wear, road wear, and resuspended road dust. In fact, because EVs are heavier than internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs), their non-exhaust emissions are like to be even higher.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTires generally wear out due to the friction between the tire and the road surface. Minimizing tire wear could reduce the non-exhaust particulate matter (PM) emissions from tires. Typically, tire treadwear grade can be used as an indicator of PM emissions from tires.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFChemical Leaching from Tire Wear Particles with Various Treadwear Ratings.
Int J Environ Res Public Health
May 2022
Physical friction between a tire and the road surface generates tire wear particles (TWPs), which are a source of microplastics and particulate matter. This study investigated the trends of chemical leaching from TWPs depending on the treadwear rating of the tire. A road simulator was used to produce TWPs from tires with various treadwear ratings.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCondensable particulate matter (CPM) corresponds to primary particulate matter ≤2.5 μm (PM) obtained through the condensation of gaseous air pollutants caused by temperature drops in the atmosphere. The internal combustion of vehicle engines can produce CPM because of the condensable compounds in the exhaust gas.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSevere acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spread rapidly, causing in COVID-19 being declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization. The key variants include alpha, beta, gamma, and delta; these exhibit high viral transmission, pathogenicity, and immune evasion mechanisms. The delta variant, first confirmed in India, was detected in the majority of COVID-19 patients at the recent wave in the Republic of Korea.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe report the rapid emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 lineages B.1.619 and B.
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- As COVID-19 continues, reinfections are likely to rise, but confirmation is challenging due to the need for whole-genome sequencing to assess genetic differences between infections.* -
- In a study of four suspected reinfection cases in young patients (ages 10-29), researchers found that only two were confirmed reinfections, both involving the Epsilon variant.* -
- The study highlights the increasing potential for reinfections amid the ongoing pandemic and emphasizes the importance of continuous monitoring of COVID-19 cases.*
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates how genomic epidemiology was used to analyze the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in South Korea by examining viral genome sequences from over 2,000 cases during 2020.
- The analysis found that while most imported cases from travelers did not spread widely, four viral subgroups caused local outbreaks, which were eventually controlled after enhanced social distancing measures were implemented.
- The results suggest that South Korea's traveler quarantine and social distancing strategies were effective in reducing virus spread, but further improvements are needed to fully control variants and future pandemics.
Article Synopsis
- This text indicates a correction has been made to the scholarly article identified by the DOI 10.1093/ve/veab077.
- It implies that there was an error or necessary update in the previously published work.
- The correction is important for ensuring the integrity and accuracy of the research findings presented in that article.
Background: After the detection of the first case of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in South Korea on January 20, 2019, it has triggered three major outbreaks. To decrease the disease burden of COVID-19, social distancing and active mask wearing were encouraged, reducing the number of patients with influenza-like illness and altering the detection rate of influenza and respiratory viruses in the Korea Influenza and Respiratory Viruses Surveillance System (KINRESS). We examined the changes in respiratory viruses due to COVID-19 in South Korea and virological causes of the high detection rate of human rhinovirus (hRV) in 2020.
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- A new real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) test for detecting SARS-CoV-2 was developed and validated, not requiring Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) reagents.
- This assay demonstrated high specificity for SARS-CoV-2, as it did not amplify other respiratory viruses, and maintained excellent performance metrics such as sensitivity and accuracy.
- With a low limit of detection and strong repeatability, this RT-qPCR assay can effectively support early COVID-19 diagnosis in South Korea without relying on existing EUA-approved kits.
Genomic Surveillance of SARS-CoV-2: Distribution of Clades in the Republic of Korea in 2020.
Osong Public Health Res Perspect
February 2021
Article Synopsis
- - A novel beta-coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, emerged in December 2019, leading to a global outbreak and prompting genomic surveillance in South Korea.
- - The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency sequenced 2,488 SARS-CoV-2 samples over a year, noting a shift in dominant virus clades from S and V to GH by March 2020.
- - The study found that quarantining international travelers effectively limited the spread of multiple SARS-CoV-2 variants within Korea.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates the potential transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID-19, through non-respiratory routes such as serum, urine, and stool in hospitalized patients.
- Out of 74 patients, SARS-CoV-2 was detected in 15 samples, with the highest detection rate in stool (10.1%).
- The findings suggest that although the virus can be detected in non-respiratory samples, it could not be isolated, indicating a low risk of transmission through these routes.
Identification of Coronavirus Isolated from a Patient in Korea with COVID-19.
Osong Public Health Res Perspect
February 2020
Article Synopsis
- The outbreak of unexplained pneumonia in Wuhan in December 2019 led to the identification of the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) as the cause, resulting in the naming of the disease COVID-19 by WHO.
- Samples from suspected COVID-19 patients in South Korea were tested, and methods like cell inoculation and genome sequencing confirmed the presence of the virus.
- The isolated virus, with over 99.9% genetic similarity to previously identified SARS-CoV-2 strains from other countries, was named BetaCoV/Korea/KCDC03/2020, demonstrating distinctive SARS-CoV-like features through electron microscopy.
Understanding characteristics of diurnal particle concentration variation in an underground subway tunnel is important to reduce subway passengers' exposure to high levels of toxic particle pollution. In this study, real-time particle monitoring for eight consecutive days was done at a shelter located in the middle of a one-way underground subway tunnel in Seoul, Republic of Korea, during the summer of 2015. Particle mass concentration was measured using a dust monitor and particle number concentration using an optical particle counter.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: Between November 20, 2016 and April 17, 2017, outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) A/H5N6 occurred on poultry farms in Gyeonggi Province in the Republic of Korea. A serosurvey was conducted among poultry farmers to identify the transmission of HPAI A/H5N6 virus to humans.
Methods: A descriptive study of 870 poultry farmers in Gyeonggi Province in Korea was conducted during the 2016-2017 outbreaks.