The Impacts of Tourism and Local Residents' Support on Tourism Development: A Case Study of the Rural Community of Jeongseon, Gangwon Province, South Korea

This research seeks to examine the impact of tourism and local residents’ support for tourism development in a rural tourism destination in the Gangwon province, South Korea named Jeongseon. It looks at the economic, socio-cultural and environmental impact tourism and the benefits and costs to the local residents. This study used the social exchange theory as a theoretical framework. A total of 376 valid responses were collected To achieve the research’s goals, ten research hypotheses were proposed. The findings show that the economic impacts of tourism were most favorably perceived by the local people who also saw benefits in socio-cultural terms. This perception translated into local residents’ support for tourism development even though they saw it as having a negative impact on the environment

THE ROLE OF INNATE LYMPHOID CELLS IN THE HEART AND CARDIAC INFLAMMATION

Innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) are an innate immune cell population that is known to play an important role in infection and inflammation at diverse tissues. ILCs are recognized as an important source of type 2 cytokines and an innate counterpart of T effector cells. Over the past decade, ILCs have been shown to contribute to mounting immune responses against pathogens at mucosal barriers, regulating tissue inflammation, promoting tissue repair and remodeling and maintaining metabolic homeostasis. Although ILCs have been investigated intensively at many mucosal sites including the intestine and lungs, our understanding of the roles of ILCs in the heart is limited. Here we used an IL-33-induced pericarditis mouse model to determine the role of ILCs in the heart and the underlying mechanism on how ILCs contribute to cardiac inflammation. We identified an accumulation of group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) in IL-33-induced pericarditis with a marked increase of eosinophils infiltrating to the heart. Using ST2-deficient and IL-33-deficient mice, we found that IL-33 signaling through its receptor ST2 is essential to induce the expansion of ILC2s and pericarditis. We showed the existence of IL-33 feedback loop containing cardiac fibroblasts as a main source of IL-33 in the heart where endogenous IL-33 expression is upregulated upon exogeneous IL-33 administration. Rag2-/-Il2rg-/- mice were resistant to pericarditis, whereas Rag2-/- mice develop inflammation comparable to WT mice, suggesting that ILC2s, not T cells and B cells, are required for pericarditis development. ILC2s transferred to the heart of ILC-deficient Rag2-/-Il2rg-/- mice restored their susceptibility to eosinophil infiltration. Moreover, ILC2s directed cardiac fibroblasts to produce eotaxin-1 in vitro which might potentially promote eosinophil trafficking to the heart. We also found that eosinophils reside in the mediastinal cavity of naïve and IL-33-treated mice, which implies a possibility that the mediastinal cavity might serve as a reservoir of eosinophils for non-vascular trafficking to the heart. Eosinophils transferred to the mediastinal cavity of eosinophil-deficient ΔdblGATA1 mice after IL-33 treatment migrated more effectively to the heart than intravenously transferred eosinophils. In conclusion, our results demonstrate a pathogenic role of ILC2s in driving pericarditis development with implications for therapeutic strategies

The Characteristics of Action Potentials in Primo Vessels and the Effects of Acetylcholine Injection to the Action Potentials

In a previous study, we found that Primo vessels generate different action potentials in smooth muscles, but this study compared the pulse shape to distinguish the two tissues. Thus, a more sophisticated extracellular experiment was performed in this study using an acetylcholine injection; we then observed changes in the amplitude, FWHM (full width at half maximum), and period to explore Primo vessel function. A third type of pulse was recorded for Primo vessels. We observed fast depolarizing and repolarizing phases for this pulse. Further, its FWHM was 30 ms between smooth muscles and neurons. Acetylcholine affected only the period. The amplitude and FWHM were consistent after injection. Primo-vessels generated action potentials at twice the frequency after injection. From the results, we speculate that Primo-vessels perform a role in transferring signals in a different manner, which may be relevant for acupuncture treatment

An Analysis on Size Suitability of Protective Masks

Since a mask which is not suitable for a human face type has a low protection effect, it is necessary to design the shape of the mask reflecting the face shape of the human body in consideration of the size and shape of each part of the face. The masks analyzed in this study are classified into a yellow dust mask(sanitation mask) and a Fine dust protective mask sold in four countries of Korea, China, the US and England. The standard of Korea is KF(Korea Filter, particle blocking function), which is divided into KF80, KF94 and KF99, which are certified by Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. The standard of the US is N95 that is certified by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). The result ofanalyzing the sizes of products is as follows. First, there was a significant difference among the products in the 3 horizontal length items of Nose-Tragion A, Lip-Tragion A, Menton-Tragion B and the 1 vertical length item of chin-menton length. The Nose-Tragion A was the U.S. 12.2cm \u3e England 10.8cm \u3e China 10.7cm \u3e Korea 9.6cm. The result of analyzing fine dust masks in the market showed that they mark the structures, forms and penetration ratio of fine dust, but there is no size standard for each size. Therefore, it is necessary to establish standards of each size for suitable pattern designs for face shapes in each country

How are public spaces sustaining cultural identities in the context of China’s increasingly globally focused urban developments: using a case study of Putuo in Shanghai

This paper explores what it means for a public space to embody the city within rapid urban change in contemporary urban development and how a space can accomplish this by embracing the culture of the city, its people and its places, using the particular case of Putuo, Shanghai in China. The paper employs mapping and empirical surveys to learn how the local community use the act of communal dance in everyday public spaces of this neighborhood, and seeks not to find generalizable rules for how humans comprehend a city, but instead to better understand how local inhabitants and their chosen activities can influence their built environment. The findings from this emphasize the importance to identify how public spaces can help to define cities with China’s emerging global presence, whilst addressing the ways in which local needs and perspectives can be preserved

Comparisons of ELISA and Western blot assays for detection of autophagy flux

We analyzed autophagy/mitophagy flux in vitro (C2C12 myotubes) and in vivo (mouse skeletal muscle) following the treatments of autophagy inducers (starvation, rapamycin) and a mitophagy inducer (carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone, CCCP) using two immunodetection methods, ELISA and Western blotting, and compared their working range, accuracy, and reliability. The ELISAs showed a broader working range than that of the LC3 Western blots (Table 1). Table 2 showed that data value distribution was tighter and the average standard error from the ELISA was much smaller than those of the Western blot, directly relating to the accuracy of the assay. Test-retest reliability analysis showed good reliability for three individual ELISAs (interclass correlation, ≥ 0.7), but poor reliability for three individual Western blots (interclass correlation, ≤ 0.4) (Table 3). Keywords: Autophagy, Mitophagy, ELISA, Western blot, Skeletal muscl

Increased Prevalence of low High-density Lipoprotein Cholesterol (HDL-C) Levels in Korean Adults: Analysis of the Three Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (KNHANES 1998–2005)

AbstractObjectivesHigh-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular diseases that has shown a remarkable increase, but little is known about the prevalence of low HDL-C in Korea. This study aimed to evaluate changing trends of low HDL-C prevalence, and indicate other risk factors associated with low HDL-C.MethodsWe selected subjects aged ≥20 years from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) 1998, 2001, and 2005 (n = 7962, 6436, and 6412). The mean level of HDL-C and the prevalence of low HDL-C was calculated, and cardiovascular risk factors associated with low HDL-C, as well as demographic, anthropometric, lifestyle, and nutrition factors, were assessed using the KNHANES 2005 data.ResultsMean HDL-C levels in men and women between KNHANES 1998 and 2005 decreased significantly, from 48.1 to 42.3 and from 51.6 to 47.1 mg/dL, respectively (both p < 0.001). The decrease was slightly less for women compared with men for the same period, and women had higher HDL-C levels at all periods. Covariate-adjusted OR revealed that body mass index, waist circumference, and non-alcohol drinker in both men and women were associated with low HDL-C levels by KNHANES 2005, as were employed and light physical activity in men and low fat intake in women.ConclusionThe prevalence of low HDL-C increased significantly from KNHANES 1998 to 2001 and 2005 (p < 0.001) in both men and women. body mass index, waist circumference, and non-alcohol drinker were identified as associated with low HDL-C in Korean adults

Effects and treatment methods of acupuncture and herbal medicine for premenstrual syndrome/premenstrual dysphoric disorder: systematic review

BACKGROUND: During their reproductive years about 10% of women experience some kind of symptoms before menstruation (PMS) in a degree that affects their quality of life (QOL). Acupuncture and herbal medicine has been a recent favorable therapeutic approach. Thus we aimed to review the effects of acupuncture and herbal medicine in the past decade as a preceding research in order to further investigate the most effective Korean Medicine treatment for PMS/PMDD. METHODS: A systematic literature search was conducted using electronic databases on studies published between 2002 and 2012. Our review included randomized controlled clinical trials (RCTs) of acupuncture and herbal medicine for PMS/PMDD. Interventions include acupuncture or herbal medicine. Clinical information including statistical tests was extracted from the articles and summarized in tabular form or in the text. Study outcomes were presented as the rate of improvement (%) and/or end-of-treatment scores. RESULTS: The search yielded 19 studies. In screening the RCTs, 8 studies in acupuncture and 11 studies in herbal medicine that matched the criteria were identified. Different acupuncture techniques including traditional acupuncture, hand acupuncture and moxibustion, and traditional acupuncture technique with auricular points, have been selected for analysis. In herbal medicine, studies on Vitex Agnus castus, Hypericum perforatum, Xiao yao san, Elsholtzia splendens, Cirsium japonicum, and Gingko biloba L. were identified. Experimental groups with Acupuncture and herbal medicine treatment (all herbal medicine except Cirsium japonicum) had significantly improved results regarding PMS/PMDD. CONCLUSIONS: Limited evidence supports the efficacy of alternative medicinal interventions such as acupuncture and herbal medicine in controlling premenstrual syndrome and premenstrual dysphoric disorder. Acupuncture and herbal medicine treatments for premenstrual syndrome and premenstrual dysphoric disorder showed a 50% or better reduction of symptoms compared to the initial state. In both acupuncture and herbal medical interventions, there have been no serious adverse events reported, proving the safety of the interventions while most of the interventions provided over 50% relief of symptoms associated with PMS/PMDD. Stricter diagnostic criteria may have excluded many participants from some studies. Also, depending on the severity of symptoms, the rate of improvement in the outcomes of the studies may have greatly differed

PREDICTION OF RESIDUAL STRENGTH OF COMPOSITE COLUMNS USING FEM ANALYSIS

Fires in buildings cause not only economic losses but also many casualties. A prolonged fire involves the possibility of the damage to structural members, which calls for the repair or reinforcement of the building. Since it is critical to decide whether structural members need reinforcement, the technique to determine the degree of the damage to structural members caused by a fire should be established.  CFT columns are superior to generic steel columns in terms of fire resistance performance thanks to the thermal storage effect of the concrete inside the columns.  Studies have suggested how to reinforce the concrete to further improve the structural strength and fire resistance performance of CFT columns. When CFT columns of a building are damaged by a fire, it is required to determine preciously how serious the structural deterioration of the members is.  The purpose of this study is to evaluate the residual strength of CFT columns damaged by a fire by evaluating the temperature distribution inside the columns and determining the degree of deterioration in the load capacity of concrete and steel in relation to temperature distribution

Understanding the impact of economic migrants and landless farmers on mass produced housing and community space in China, using the case of Zhangjing, Suzhou

As a consequence of the rapid, government-led and globally fuelled urban development that is occurring within China, an unplanned form of urbanization is emerging, whereby landless farmers and economic migrants are resettling and occupying both public space and housing in ways that deviate from the community development plan. The paper will use both historical and contemporary urban theory, together with a case study of Zhangjiing in Suzhou Industrial Park, China as means of critiquing and learning from these consequences and the planning and policy instruments in place. The case of Zhangjing can be critically reviewed in the context of Christopher Alexander’s argument that when a new urban development is created which is modelled or predicated on a tree structure to replace the semi-lattice that was there before, the city takes a step towards dissociating itself from its geographical and cultural context