AIM: To evaluate the pharmaceutical safety of a Chinese herbal formula, Chunggan extract (CGX), traditionally prescribed as a hepatotherapeutic drug via systemic acute and subacute toxicological study. METHODS: Twenty...AIM: To evaluate the pharmaceutical safety of a Chinese herbal formula, Chunggan extract (CGX), traditionally prescribed as a hepatotherapeutic drug via systemic acute and subacute toxicological study. METHODS: Twenty male dogs and 20 female dogs were fed doses 50 times and 4 times greater than the clinically-recommended drug dosages in an acute and a subacute toxicological study, respectively. Adverse effects were examined by comparing the differences between normal and drug-administered groups using clinical signs, necropsies, histopathologic findings, haematology, urinalysis, and biochemical analysis. RESULTS: In the acute study no change in the body weight, diarrhoea, apetite, mortality rate and histopa- thology of major organs was observed in male or female dogs with a single administration of CGX at 5 g/kg. No drug-induced abnormalities at analysis of histopathology, haematology, urinalysis, and biochemistry were found with any dose of this drug. CONCLUSION: CGX is supposed to be very safe when used in a clinical application with a wide therapeutic index.展开更多
Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry （LA-ICP-MS） has been widely adopted for the direct multi-elemental analysis with high sensitivity. Especially analysis of fine ceramics by LA-ICP-MS withou...Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry （LA-ICP-MS） has been widely adopted for the direct multi-elemental analysis with high sensitivity. Especially analysis of fine ceramics by LA-ICP-MS without time-consuming sample decomposition process has been one of the most expecting application field. Small additive elements in MgO powders were analyzed by LA-ICP-MS. For precise and accurate analysis influence of carrier gas （Ar or He） was presented by the signal intensities of ICP-MS, relative standard deviation of signal intensities and ablated particle size distribution. Ablated particles were collected and analyzed by scanning electron microscopy （SEM） to investigate the particle size distribution, and the ablated sample surface was examined by camscope. In He gas atmosphere, the signal was more stable than in Ar gas atmosphere. The signal intensity was higher in Ar than in He. Examination of ablated particles and sample surface reveals that more particles were generated in Ar atmosphere and the distribution of particle size was larger.展开更多
As a reliability quantitative specification, parametric accelerated life testing was used to assess the reliability of a newly designed compressor of a commercial refrigerator subjected to repetitive stresses. A gener...As a reliability quantitative specification, parametric accelerated life testing was used to assess the reliability of a newly designed compressor of a commercial refrigerator subjected to repetitive stresses. A generalized life-stress failure model and new sample size equation with a new load concept were derived starting with the basic refrigeration cycle. The sample size equation with the acceleration factor also enabled the parametric accelerated life testing to quickly evaluate the expected lifetime. The design of this testing should help an engineer uncover the design parameters affecting reliability during the design process of the compressor system. Consequently, it should help companies improve product reliability and avoid recalls due to the product failures in the field. A newly designed compressor in a commercial refrigerator was used as a test case.展开更多
AIM： To determine intestinal permeability, the serum tumor necrosis factor （TNF）-α level and urine nitric oxide （NO） metabolites are altered in liver cirrhosis （LC） with or without ascites. METHODS： Fifty-thr...AIM： To determine intestinal permeability, the serum tumor necrosis factor （TNF）-α level and urine nitric oxide （NO） metabolites are altered in liver cirrhosis （LC） with or without ascites. METHODS： Fifty-three patients with LC and 26 healthy control subjects were enrolled in the study. The intestinal permeability value is expressed as the percentage of polyethylene glycol （PEG） 400 and 3350 retrieval in 8-h urine samples as determined by high performance liquid chromatography. Serum TNF-α concentrations and urine NO metabolites were determined using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA） and Greiss reaction method, respectively. RESULTS： The intestinal permeability index wassignificantly higher in patients with LC with ascites than in healthy control subjects or patients with LC without ascites （0.88 ± 0.12 vs 0.52 ± 0.05 or 0.53 ± 0.03, P 〈 0.05） and correlated with urine nitrite excretion （r = 0.98）. Interestingly, the serum TNF-α concentration was significantly higher in LC without ascites than in control subjects or in LC with ascites （198.9 ± 55.8 pg/mL vs 40.9 ± 12.3 pg/mL or 32.1 ± 13.3 pg/mL, P 〈 0.05）. Urine nitrite excretion was significantly higher in LC with ascites than in the control subjects or in LC without ascites（ 1170.9± 28.7 μmol/L vs 903.1 ± 55.1 μmol/L or 956.7 ± 47.7 μmol/L, P 〈 0.05）. COMCLUSIOM： Increased intestinal macromolecular permeability and NO is probably of importance in the pathophysiology and progression of LC with ascites, but the serum TNF-α concentration was not related to LC with ascites.展开更多
The hydration of quick lime and the sulfation of hydrated lime were carried out for verification of relationship between the reactivity of quick lime and the properties of hydrated lime as a sorbent. The effect of rea...The hydration of quick lime and the sulfation of hydrated lime were carried out for verification of relationship between the reactivity of quick lime and the properties of hydrated lime as a sorbent. The effect of reactivity of quick lime was investigated with the change of calcination temperature and time. Results obtained showed that the temperature rise during the hydration of quick limes varied from 31 to 69℃ with the variation of calcination temperature and time. The specific surface area and the sulfation ability of hydrated lime prepared by hydration of quick lime showed a proportional relationship with the reactivity of quick lime. The hydrated lime which was prepared by hydration of quick lime calcined at 1100℃ had the highest reactivity and showed 41.53 m^2/g of the specific surface area, 0.16 cm^3/g of the pore volume and 87% of the removal efficiency for SO2 removal,展开更多
A medical device is an instrument that includes components,parts,or accessories to diagnose or treat patients.Since the complexity of medical devices has increased in recent years,functional safety and basic safety ar...A medical device is an instrument that includes components,parts,or accessories to diagnose or treat patients.Since the complexity of medical devices has increased in recent years,functional safety and basic safety are required to ensure the overall device safety.Functional safety is part of the overall safety that relates to the equipment under control(EUC)and to the EUC control system that depends on the correct functionality of the electrical/electronic/programmable electronic(E/E/PE)safety-related systems.This study proposes approach methods to functional safety of medical devices for which it is important to correctly identify the safety functions and the safety integrity level(SIL).The relationship between the functional safety and essential performance is identified focusing on the safety function.The essential performance of E/E/PE systems is defined as the safety function of the functional safety.The target SIL of the essential performance is determined according to the potential risk levels,based on the classification rules of medical devices.This approach is applied to the pulse oximeter as a case study.The target SIL for the functionality of the power-failure alarm condition is determined to be SIL1.The target SILs of other functions are determined as SIL2.展开更多
A pot experiment was conducted in a plastic film house to evaluate the translocation and uptake of heavy metals(Pb,Cd,Cu,and Zn) into brown rice(Oryza sativa L.) and the heavy metals residues in soils which had previo...A pot experiment was conducted in a plastic film house to evaluate the translocation and uptake of heavy metals(Pb,Cd,Cu,and Zn) into brown rice(Oryza sativa L.) and the heavy metals residues in soils which had previously been irrigated with domestic wastewater for a long time(3 years).The range of Pb,Cd,Cu,and Zn was 5.10 ± 0.01,0.105 ± 0.017,5.76 ± 0.42,and 23.56 ± 1.40 mg kg-1,respectively in the domestic wastewater-irrigated soil,and 0.370 ± 0.006,0.011 ± 0.001,0.340 ± 0.04,and 2.05 ± 0.18 mg kg-1,respectively,in the domestic wastewater-irrigated brown rice.The results indicated that application of domestic wastewater to arable land slightly increased the levels of Pb,Cd,Cu,and Zn in soil and brown rice(P < 0.01).The concentrations of heavy metals in brown rice were lower than the recommended tolerable levels proposed by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives.However,the continuous monitoring and pollution control of hazardous materials from domestic wastewater are needed in order to prevent excessive build-up of heavy metals in the food chain.展开更多
Emission characterization of particle number as well as particle mass from three diesel passenger cars equipped with diesel particulate filter（DPF）, diesel oxidation catalyst（DOC）and exhaust gas recirculation（EGR...Emission characterization of particle number as well as particle mass from three diesel passenger cars equipped with diesel particulate filter（DPF）, diesel oxidation catalyst（DOC）and exhaust gas recirculation（EGR） under the vehicle driving cycles and regulatory cycle.Total particle number emissions（PNEs） decreased gradually during speed-up of vehicle from 17.3 to 97.3 km/hr. As the average vehicle speed increases, the size-segregated peak of particle number concentration shifts to smaller size ranges of particles. The correlation analysis with various particulate components such as particle number concentration（PNC）,ultrafine particle number concentration（UFPNC） and particulate matter（PM） mass was conducted to compare gaseous compounds（CO, CO2, HC and NOx）. The UFPNC and PM were not only emitted highly in Seoul during severe traffic jam conditions, but also have good correlation with hydrocarbons and NOxinfluencing high potential on secondary aerosol generation. The effect of the dilution temperature on total PNC under the New European Driving Cycle（NEDC）, was slightly higher than the dilution ratio. In addition, the nuclei mode（DP： ≤ 13 nm） was confirmed to be more sensitive to the dilution temperature rather than other particle size ranges. Comparison with particle composition between vehicle speed cycles and regulatory cycle showed that sulfate was slightly increased at regulatory cycle, while other components were relatively similar. During cold start test, semivolatile nucleation particles were increased due to effect of cold environment. Research on particle formation dependent on dilution conditions of diesel passenger cars under the NEDC is important to verify impact on vehicular traffic and secondary aerosol formation in Seoul.展开更多
文摘AIM: To evaluate the pharmaceutical safety of a Chinese herbal formula, Chunggan extract (CGX), traditionally prescribed as a hepatotherapeutic drug via systemic acute and subacute toxicological study. METHODS: Twenty male dogs and 20 female dogs were fed doses 50 times and 4 times greater than the clinically-recommended drug dosages in an acute and a subacute toxicological study, respectively. Adverse effects were examined by comparing the differences between normal and drug-administered groups using clinical signs, necropsies, histopathologic findings, haematology, urinalysis, and biochemical analysis. RESULTS: In the acute study no change in the body weight, diarrhoea, apetite, mortality rate and histopa- thology of major organs was observed in male or female dogs with a single administration of CGX at 5 g/kg. No drug-induced abnormalities at analysis of histopathology, haematology, urinalysis, and biochemistry were found with any dose of this drug. CONCLUSION: CGX is supposed to be very safe when used in a clinical application with a wide therapeutic index.
基金supported by grants-in-aid for the National Research Laboratory Program from MOST/KOSEF (No. R0A-2003-000-10320)partially supported by grants-in-aid for the National Core Research Center Program from MOST/KOSEF (No. R15-2006-022-01001-0)
文摘Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry （LA-ICP-MS） has been widely adopted for the direct multi-elemental analysis with high sensitivity. Especially analysis of fine ceramics by LA-ICP-MS without time-consuming sample decomposition process has been one of the most expecting application field. Small additive elements in MgO powders were analyzed by LA-ICP-MS. For precise and accurate analysis influence of carrier gas （Ar or He） was presented by the signal intensities of ICP-MS, relative standard deviation of signal intensities and ablated particle size distribution. Ablated particles were collected and analyzed by scanning electron microscopy （SEM） to investigate the particle size distribution, and the ablated sample surface was examined by camscope. In He gas atmosphere, the signal was more stable than in Ar gas atmosphere. The signal intensity was higher in Ar than in He. Examination of ablated particles and sample surface reveals that more particles were generated in Ar atmosphere and the distribution of particle size was larger.
文摘As a reliability quantitative specification, parametric accelerated life testing was used to assess the reliability of a newly designed compressor of a commercial refrigerator subjected to repetitive stresses. A generalized life-stress failure model and new sample size equation with a new load concept were derived starting with the basic refrigeration cycle. The sample size equation with the acceleration factor also enabled the parametric accelerated life testing to quickly evaluate the expected lifetime. The design of this testing should help an engineer uncover the design parameters affecting reliability during the design process of the compressor system. Consequently, it should help companies improve product reliability and avoid recalls due to the product failures in the field. A newly designed compressor in a commercial refrigerator was used as a test case.
基金A grant from the National R&D Program for Cancer Control,Ministry of Health & Welfare,Republic of Korea,No.0520190-1
文摘AIM： To determine intestinal permeability, the serum tumor necrosis factor （TNF）-α level and urine nitric oxide （NO） metabolites are altered in liver cirrhosis （LC） with or without ascites. METHODS： Fifty-three patients with LC and 26 healthy control subjects were enrolled in the study. The intestinal permeability value is expressed as the percentage of polyethylene glycol （PEG） 400 and 3350 retrieval in 8-h urine samples as determined by high performance liquid chromatography. Serum TNF-α concentrations and urine NO metabolites were determined using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay （ELISA） and Greiss reaction method, respectively. RESULTS： The intestinal permeability index wassignificantly higher in patients with LC with ascites than in healthy control subjects or patients with LC without ascites （0.88 ± 0.12 vs 0.52 ± 0.05 or 0.53 ± 0.03, P 〈 0.05） and correlated with urine nitrite excretion （r = 0.98）. Interestingly, the serum TNF-α concentration was significantly higher in LC without ascites than in control subjects or in LC with ascites （198.9 ± 55.8 pg/mL vs 40.9 ± 12.3 pg/mL or 32.1 ± 13.3 pg/mL, P 〈 0.05）. Urine nitrite excretion was significantly higher in LC with ascites than in the control subjects or in LC without ascites（ 1170.9± 28.7 μmol/L vs 903.1 ± 55.1 μmol/L or 956.7 ± 47.7 μmol/L, P 〈 0.05）. COMCLUSIOM： Increased intestinal macromolecular permeability and NO is probably of importance in the pathophysiology and progression of LC with ascites, but the serum TNF-α concentration was not related to LC with ascites.
基金supported by grants-in-aid for the National Research Laboratory Program from MOST/KOSEF (No. R0A-2003-000-10320)partially supported by grants-in-aid for the National Core Research Center Program from MOST/KOSEF (No. R15-2006-022-01001-0)
文摘The hydration of quick lime and the sulfation of hydrated lime were carried out for verification of relationship between the reactivity of quick lime and the properties of hydrated lime as a sorbent. The effect of reactivity of quick lime was investigated with the change of calcination temperature and time. Results obtained showed that the temperature rise during the hydration of quick limes varied from 31 to 69℃ with the variation of calcination temperature and time. The specific surface area and the sulfation ability of hydrated lime prepared by hydration of quick lime showed a proportional relationship with the reactivity of quick lime. The hydrated lime which was prepared by hydration of quick lime calcined at 1100℃ had the highest reactivity and showed 41.53 m^2/g of the specific surface area, 0.16 cm^3/g of the pore volume and 87% of the removal efficiency for SO2 removal,
文摘A medical device is an instrument that includes components,parts,or accessories to diagnose or treat patients.Since the complexity of medical devices has increased in recent years,functional safety and basic safety are required to ensure the overall device safety.Functional safety is part of the overall safety that relates to the equipment under control(EUC)and to the EUC control system that depends on the correct functionality of the electrical/electronic/programmable electronic(E/E/PE)safety-related systems.This study proposes approach methods to functional safety of medical devices for which it is important to correctly identify the safety functions and the safety integrity level(SIL).The relationship between the functional safety and essential performance is identified focusing on the safety function.The essential performance of E/E/PE systems is defined as the safety function of the functional safety.The target SIL of the essential performance is determined according to the potential risk levels,based on the classification rules of medical devices.This approach is applied to the pulse oximeter as a case study.The target SIL for the functionality of the power-failure alarm condition is determined to be SIL1.The target SILs of other functions are determined as SIL2.
文摘A pot experiment was conducted in a plastic film house to evaluate the translocation and uptake of heavy metals(Pb,Cd,Cu,and Zn) into brown rice(Oryza sativa L.) and the heavy metals residues in soils which had previously been irrigated with domestic wastewater for a long time(3 years).The range of Pb,Cd,Cu,and Zn was 5.10 ± 0.01,0.105 ± 0.017,5.76 ± 0.42,and 23.56 ± 1.40 mg kg-1,respectively in the domestic wastewater-irrigated soil,and 0.370 ± 0.006,0.011 ± 0.001,0.340 ± 0.04,and 2.05 ± 0.18 mg kg-1,respectively,in the domestic wastewater-irrigated brown rice.The results indicated that application of domestic wastewater to arable land slightly increased the levels of Pb,Cd,Cu,and Zn in soil and brown rice(P < 0.01).The concentrations of heavy metals in brown rice were lower than the recommended tolerable levels proposed by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives.However,the continuous monitoring and pollution control of hazardous materials from domestic wastewater are needed in order to prevent excessive build-up of heavy metals in the food chain.
基金supported by Transportation Pollution Research Center,National Institute of Environmental Research in Republic of Korea
文摘Emission characterization of particle number as well as particle mass from three diesel passenger cars equipped with diesel particulate filter（DPF）, diesel oxidation catalyst（DOC）and exhaust gas recirculation（EGR） under the vehicle driving cycles and regulatory cycle.Total particle number emissions（PNEs） decreased gradually during speed-up of vehicle from 17.3 to 97.3 km/hr. As the average vehicle speed increases, the size-segregated peak of particle number concentration shifts to smaller size ranges of particles. The correlation analysis with various particulate components such as particle number concentration（PNC）,ultrafine particle number concentration（UFPNC） and particulate matter（PM） mass was conducted to compare gaseous compounds（CO, CO2, HC and NOx）. The UFPNC and PM were not only emitted highly in Seoul during severe traffic jam conditions, but also have good correlation with hydrocarbons and NOxinfluencing high potential on secondary aerosol generation. The effect of the dilution temperature on total PNC under the New European Driving Cycle（NEDC）, was slightly higher than the dilution ratio. In addition, the nuclei mode（DP： ≤ 13 nm） was confirmed to be more sensitive to the dilution temperature rather than other particle size ranges. Comparison with particle composition between vehicle speed cycles and regulatory cycle showed that sulfate was slightly increased at regulatory cycle, while other components were relatively similar. During cold start test, semivolatile nucleation particles were increased due to effect of cold environment. Research on particle formation dependent on dilution conditions of diesel passenger cars under the NEDC is important to verify impact on vehicular traffic and secondary aerosol formation in Seoul.
