Dyslipidemia is a significant risk factor for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), a leading cause of death worldwide. Burge is widely used in East Asia for cardiovascular health, showing potential benefits in lowering cholesterol and reducing inflammation. This study systematically reviewed and conducted a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) to assess the clinical effectiveness of in treating dyslipidemia.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnviron Sci Pollut Res Int
January 2024
A gecko foot-inspired, mushroom-shaped artificial dry adhesive exploiting intermolecular forces between microstructure and surface has drawn research attention for its strong adhesive force. However, the high pull-off strength corresponding to the adhesive force matters when detaching fragile substrates. In this study, we report a vacuum-powered soft actuator having oblique air chambers and a dry adhesive.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnviron Sci Pollut Res Int
January 2023
Bird deaths due to collisions with artificial structures, such as glass windows of buildings and transparent noise barriers, are continuing to occur in South Korea. The government is trying to prevent bird collisions by increasing the attachment of specially designed tapes to help birds avoid windows. This article estimates the economic benefits arising from the prevention of collisions by applying a choice experiment (CE).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnviron Sci Pollut Res Int
December 2022
Aurelia aurita (AA), a legally registered harmful marine organism in South Korea, is damaging marine human leisure activities, local residents' tourism income, fisheries, and cooling water intake at power plants. The government is therefore seeking to eradicate AA by removing AA-attached larvae (polyps). This article looks into the public willingness to pay (WTP) for the eradication, utilizing a contingent valuation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAir pollution is an important global issue, and governments are making efforts to reduce air pollutant emissions. The elaborate calculation of the social costs of air pollution is essential for justifying the substantial public expenditure on air pollution control policies. This study aims to derive the monetary value of reducing different kinds of air pollutants through the public's willingness to pay (WTP).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnviron Sci Pollut Res Int
July 2021
Background/purpose: Glass ionomers undergo degradation when exposed to fluoride, which changes the physico-chemical characteristics of the materials. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the surface changes of resin-modified glass ionomer (RMGI) when immersed in a sodium fluoride (NaF) solution according to pH and time.
Materials And Methods: 120 RMGI specimens were prepared, and 30 specimens were placed in four types of storage solutions for four weeks; pH 7 artificial saliva with or without 0.
Environ Sci Pollut Res Int
December 2020
South Korea is pursuing an energy transition policy (ETP) of expanding the use of renewable energy and natural gas and decreasing that of nuclear energy and coal in total generation. An investigation of whether the public is for or against the ETP is needed by the government. This article explores the public preference toward the ETP employing the data collected through a survey of 1000 individuals.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnviron Sci Pollut Res Int
September 2020
Onshore wind farms have the advantage of a lower cost than offshore wind farms, but their negative environmental impact has been pointed out as a problem. If this environmental impact can be lessened, public acceptance of onshore wind farms will be significantly increased. This study investigates public attitudes to the lessening of the environmental impact of onshore wind farms, focusing on three specific attributes: visual impact, ecosystem destruction and noise pollution.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnviron Sci Pollut Res Int
June 2019
The ecosystem of the Seocheon coastal wetland (SCW), one of the wetland protected areas in South Korea, was registered in the Ramsar Wetlands in 2009 as an area rich in biodiversity and inhabited by endangered wild animals and plants. Since then, preserving the ecosystem of the SCW has emerged as an important task. Thus, the South Korean government is carrying out various research and management projects to preserve the ecological integrity of the SCW.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnviron Sci Pollut Res Int
April 2019
Combined heat and power (CHP), which produces both heat and electricity at the same time, is so efficient that it can reduce energy use and emit less carbon dioxide (CO) than conventional fossil fuel use. This article attempts to look empirically into the impact of CHP share in total electricity generation on CO emissions in a cross-country context. Data from 35 countries during the period 2009-2015 are used.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnviron Sci Pollut Res Int
June 2018
Korean government has made and will continue to make a considerable investment in contaminated soil remediation to rectify the problems that arise from soil pollution. Quantitative information on the benefits of contaminated soil remediation is widely demanded by the public as well as the government. This article aims to assess the external benefits of contaminated soil remediation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe purpose of this study was to investigate the potential of gold nanoparticles as radiosensitizer for use in neutron therapy against hepatocellular carcinoma. The hepatocellular carcinoma cells lines Huh7 and HepG2 were irradiated with γ and neutron radiation in the presence or absence of gold nanoparticles. Effects were evaluated by transmission electron microscopy, cell survival, cell cycle, DNA damage, migration, and invasiveness.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAlternating electric fields at an intermediate frequency (100~300 kHz), referred to as tumour-treating fields (TTF), are believed to interrupt the process of mitosis via apoptosis and to act as an inhibitor of cell proliferation. Although the existence of an antimitotic effect of TTF is widely known, the proposed apoptotic mechanism of TTF on cell function and the efficacy of TTF are controversial issues among medical experts. To resolve these controversial issues, a better understanding of the underlying molecular mechanisms of TTF on cell function and the differences between the effects of TTF alone and in combination with other treatment techniques is essential.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTreatment with alternating electric fields at an intermediate frequency (100-300 kHz), referred to as tumor treating fields (TTF) therapy, inhibits cancer cell proliferation. In the present study, we demonstrated that TTF application suppressed the metastatic potential of U87 and U373 glioblastoma cell lines via the NF-kB, MAPK and PI3K/AKT signaling pathways. Wound-healing and transwell assays showed that TTF suppressed cell migration and invasion compared with controls.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe have investigated the combined effect of tissue heterogeneity and its variation associated with geometric error in stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) for lung cancer. The treatment plans for eight lung cancer patients were calculated using effective path length (EPL) correction and Monte Carlo (MC) algorithms, with both having the same beam configuration for each patient. These two kinds of plans for individual patients were then subsequently recalculated with adding systematic and random geometric errors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Ocul Pharmacol Ther
December 2015
Purpose: We evaluated the angiographic features of the affected limbus in patients with pterygia and assessed limbal reconstruction outcomes after limbal-conjunctival autograft (LCA) transplantation in terms of vascular remodeling.
Methods: We studied prospectively 31 eyes of 31 patients who underwent pterygium excision and LCA transplantation; 28 eyes of 28 normal participants served as controls. Anterior segment indocyanine green angiography (ICGA) was performed for each participant preoperatively and at 1 week, and 1 and 3 months postoperatively.
Conventional laser accelerated proton beam has broad energy spectra. It is not suitable for clinical use directly, so it is necessary for employing energy selection system. However, in the conventional laser accelerated proton system, the intensity of the proton beams in the low energy regime is higher than that in the high energy regime.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: Esophageal tolerance is needed to guide the safe administration of stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS). We evaluated comprehensive dose-volume parameters of acute esophageal toxicity in patients with spinal metastasis treated with SRS.
Materials And Methods: From May 2008 to May 2011, 30 cases in 27 patients with spinal metastasis received single fraction SRS to targets neighboring esophagus.
Purpose: To examine the dosimetric effect of intrafraction movements occurred during image-guided frameless brain radiosurgery and to derive the optimal margin recipe to compensate the movement.
Methods: The patients' movements during image-guided radiosurgeries were measured using skull-tracking method incorporated in the CyberKnife system. The dosimetric changes with the movements were computed using the six different dynamic-arc treatment plans based on the dose-grid analysis method.