Envisioning Unity: The Media Discourse in South Korea and Germany on National Unity. A Longitudinal Study on Emerging Transnational Public Spheres

Using the example of the discourse on national unity in Germany and South Korea, this article examines the formation of transnational public spheres along long-wave political issues. It explores to what extent a similar political challenge of two states is conducive to the formation of a transnational public sphere. The findings of a qualitative analysis of frames in the reporting of South Korean and West German leading media on the process of German unification from 1989 to 1991 as well as the initiatives of South Korean President Moon Jae-In for peace and unification on the Korean peninsula in 2018 and 2019 are discussed. The study reveals indications for the emergence of a trans-national public sphere with regard to all important indicators. However, this appears to be fragile and strongly driven by the fall of the Berlin Wall as a key event with global impact

The Traditional Herbal Medicine, Dangkwisoo-San, Prevents Cerebral Ischemic Injury through Nitric Oxide-Dependent Mechanisms

Dangkwisoo-San (DS) is an herbal extract that is widely used in traditional Korean medicine to treat traumatic ecchymosis and pain by promoting blood circulation and relieving blood stasis. However, the effect of DS in cerebrovascular disease has not been examined experimentally. The protective effects of DS on focal ischemic brain were investigated in a mouse model. DS stimulated nitric oxide (NO) production in human brain microvascular endothelial cells (HBMECs). DS (10–300 μg/mL) produced a concentration-dependent relaxation in mouse aorta, which was significantly attenuated by the nitric oxide synthase (NOS) inhibitor L-NAME, suggesting that DS causes vasodilation via a NO-dependent mechanism. DS increased resting cerebral blood flow (CBF), although it caused mild hypotension. To investigate the effect of DS on the acute cerebral injury, C57/BL6J mice received 90 min of middle cerebral artery occlusion followed by 22.5 h of reperfusion. DS administered 3 days before arterial occlusion significantly reduced cerebral infarct size by 53.7% compared with vehicle treatment. However, DS did not reduce brain infarction in mice treated with the relatively specific endothelial NOS (eNOS) inhibitor, N5-(1-iminoethyl)-L-ornithine, suggesting that the neuroprotective effect of DS is primarily endothelium-dependent. This correlated with increased phosphorylation of eNOS in the brains of DS-treated mice. DS acutely improves CBF in eNOS-dependent vasodilation and reduces infarct size in focal cerebral ischemia. These data provide causal evidence that DS is cerebroprotective via the eNOS-dependent production of NO, which ameliorates blood circulation

Assessment of the Type D Personality Construct in the Korean Population: A Validation Study of the Korean DS14

This study aimed to develop a Korean version of the Type D Personality Scale-14 (DS14) and evaluate the psychiatric symptomatology of Korean cardiac patients with Type D personality. Healthy control (n = 954), patients with a coronary heart disease (n = 111) and patients with hypertension and no heart disease (n = 292) were recruited. All three groups completed DS14, the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ), the state subscale of Spielberger State and Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-S), the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Short Depression Scale (CESD), and the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ). The Korean DS14 was internally consistent and stable over time. 27% of the subjects were classified as Type D. Type D individuals had significantly higher mean scores on the STAI-S, CESD, and GHQ compared to non-Type D subjects in each group. The Korean DS14 was a valid and reliable tool for identifying Type D personality. The general population and cardiovascular patients with Type D personality showed higher rate of depression, anxiety and psychological distress regarding their health. Therefore, identifying Type D personality is important in clinical research and practice in chronic medical disorders, especially cardiovascular disease, in Korea

Stemness Evaluation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells from Placentas According to Developmental Stage: Comparison to Those from Adult Bone Marrow

This study was done to evaluate the stemness of human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) derived from placenta according to the development stage and to compare the results to those from adult bone marrow (BM). Based on the source of hMSCs, three groups were defined: group I included term placentas, group II included first-trimester placentas, and group III included adult BM samples. The stemness was evaluated by the proliferation capacity, immunophenotypic expression, mesoderm differentiation, expression of pluripotency markers including telomerase activity. The cumulative population doubling, indicating the proliferation capacity, was significantly higher in group II (P<0.001, 31.7±5.8 vs. 15.7±6.2 with group I, 9.2±4.9 with group III). The pattern of immunophenotypic expression and mesoderm differentiation into adipocytes and osteocytes were similar in all three groups. The expression of pluripotency markers including ALP, SSEA-4, TRA-1-60, TRA-1-81, Oct-4, and telomerase were strongly positive in group II, but very faint positive in the other groups. In conclusions, hMSCs from placentas have different characteristics according to their developmental stage and express mesenchymal stemness potentials similar to those from adult human BMs

Diet and Airway Obstruction: A Cross Sectional Study from the Second Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

Background/Aims: Several dietary factors, such as antioxidant vitamins, have potential roles in the development of obstructive lung diseases. However, the results of studies on the relationships between dietary factors and obstructive lung diseases are inconsistent. The aim of this study was to determine which nutrients are related to airway obstruction (AO) in the Korean population.&Methods: We used data obtained as part of the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES II) in 2001. Analysis was restricted to 1,005 adults who were 18 years of age and older, who had two or more acceptable spirometry curves, and who had participated in the nutrition examination survey. AO was defined as the ratio of forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) to forced vital capacity (FVC) of less than 0.7.&Results: Of the 1,005 study subjects, 78 (7.8%) had AO. Statistically significant factors associated with AO were 55 years of age or older (p = 0.032), central obesity (p = 0.047), hypertension (p < 0.001), smoking of 20 pack-years or more (p < 0.001), low income (p < 0.001), and low dietary protein intake expressed as a ratio of protein to recommended dietary allowance for Koreans (p = 0.037). Multiple logistic regression analyses revealed four factors that were independently associated with AO: smoking of 20 pack-years or more (odds ratio [OR], 5.801; p < 0.001), hypertension (OR, 3.905; p < 0.001), low protein intake (OR, 0.992; p = 0.004), and low income (OR, 1.962; p = 0.018).&Conclusions: In the Korean NHANES, smoking, hypertension, and low income were related to AO. Among dietary factors, only low protein intake was associated with AO

Network Security Node-Edge Scoring System Using Attack Graph Based on Vulnerability Correlation

As network technology has advanced, and as larger and larger quantities of data are being collected, networks are becoming increasingly complex. Various vulnerabilities are being identified in such networks, and related attacks are continuously occurring. To solve these problems and improve the overall quality of network security, a network risk scoring technique using attack graphs and vulnerability information must be used. This technology calculates the degree of risk by collecting information and related vulnerabilities in the nodes and the edges existing in the network-based attack graph, and then determining the degree of risk in a specific network location or the degree of risk occurring when a specific route is passed within the network. However, in most previous research, the risk of the entire route has been calculated and evaluated based on node information, rather than edge information. Since these methods do not include correlations between nodes, it is relatively difficult to evaluate the risk. Therefore, in this paper, we propose a vulnerability Correlation and Attack Graph-based node-edge Scoring System (VCAG-SS) that can accurately measure the risk of a specific route. The proposed method uses the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) along with node and edge information. Performing the previously proposed arithmetic evaluation of confidentiality, integrity, and availability (CIA) and analyzing the correlation of vulnerabilities between each node make it possible to calculate the attack priority. In the experiment, the risk scores of nodes and edges and the risk of each attack route were calculated. Moreover, the most threatening attack route was found by comparing the attack route risk. This confirmed that the proposed method calculated the risk of the network attack route and was able to effectively select the network route by providing the network route priority according to the risk score

Network Security Node-Edge Scoring System Using Attack Graph Based on Vulnerability Correlation

As network technology has advanced, and as larger and larger quantities of data are being collected, networks are becoming increasingly complex. Various vulnerabilities are being identified in such networks, and related attacks are continuously occurring. To solve these problems and improve the overall quality of network security, a network risk scoring technique using attack graphs and vulnerability information must be used. This technology calculates the degree of risk by collecting information and related vulnerabilities in the nodes and the edges existing in the network-based attack graph, and then determining the degree of risk in a specific network location or the degree of risk occurring when a specific route is passed within the network. However, in most previous research, the risk of the entire route has been calculated and evaluated based on node information, rather than edge information. Since these methods do not include correlations between nodes, it is relatively difficult to evaluate the risk. Therefore, in this paper, we propose a vulnerability Correlation and Attack Graph-based node-edge Scoring System (VCAG-SS) that can accurately measure the risk of a specific route. The proposed method uses the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) along with node and edge information. Performing the previously proposed arithmetic evaluation of confidentiality, integrity, and availability (CIA) and analyzing the correlation of vulnerabilities between each node make it possible to calculate the attack priority. In the experiment, the risk scores of nodes and edges and the risk of each attack route were calculated. Moreover, the most threatening attack route was found by comparing the attack route risk. This confirmed that the proposed method calculated the risk of the network attack route and was able to effectively select the network route by providing the network route priority according to the risk score

The pyrH Gene of Vibrio vulnificus Is an Essential In Vivo Survival Factor▿

We have suggested an important role of the pyrH gene during the infectious process of Vibrio vulnificus. Previously, we have identified 12 genes expressed preferentially during human infections by using in vivo-induced antigen technology. Among the in vivo-expressed genes, pyrH encodes UMP kinase catalyzing UMP phosphorylation. Introduction of a deletion mutation to the pyrH gene was lethal to V. vulnificus, and an insertional mutant showed a high frequency of curing. We constructed a site-directed mutant strain (R62H/D77N) on Arg-62 and Asp-77, both predicted to be involved in UMP binding, and characterized the R62H/D77N strain compared with the previously reported insertional mutant. We further investigated the essential role of the pyrH gene in the establishment of infection using the R62H/D77N strain. Cytotoxicity was decreased in the R62H/D77N strain, and the defect was restored by an in trans complementation. The intraperitoneal 50% lethal dose of the R62H/D77N strain increased by 26- and 238,000-fold in normal and iron-overloaded mice, respectively. The growth of the R62H/D77N strain in 50% HeLa cell lysate, 100% human ascitic fluid, and 50% human serum was significantly retarded compared to that of the isogenic wild-type strain. The R62H/D77N mutant also had a critical defect in the ability to survive and replicate even in iron-overloaded mice. These results demonstrate that pyrH is essential for the in vivo survival and growth of V. vulnificus and should be an attractive new target for the development of antibacterial drugs and replication-controllable live attenuated vaccines

Survey and Screening of Fungicide for the Control of Tomato Black Leaf Mold Pseudocercospora fuligena

Tomato black leaf molds were collected from the six metropolitan cities, which were occurred mainly from the end of August until November. There was no significant difference on the fungal growth between potato dextrose agar and tomato-oatmeal agar media. The mycelial growth of the fungus was robust at a relatively high temperature, from 28 to 30°C. The suppression rates of hyphal growth ranged from 17-98% on the media supplemented with four different chemicals such as difenoconazole, fluquinconazole and prochloraz manganese complex, metconazole, and flutianil and there is no different suppression rates of the fungicides on the tested Pseudocercospora fuligena isolates

Evolution of the Tumor Microenvironment toward Immune-Suppressive Seclusion during Brain Metastasis of Breast Cancer: Implications for Targeted Therapy.

Breast cancer (BC) is the second most common solid malignant tumor that metastasizes to the brain. Despite emerging therapies such as immunotherapy, whether the tumor microenvironment (TME) in breast cancer brain metastasis (BCBM) has potential as a target of new treatments is unclear. Expression profiling of 770 genes in 12 pairs of primary BC and matched brain metastasis (BM) samples was performed using the NanoString nCounter PanCancer IO360TM Panel. Immune cell profiles were validated by immunohistochemistry (IHC) in samples from 50 patients with BCBM. Pathway analysis revealed that immune-related pathways were downregulated. Immune cell profiling showed that CD8+ T cells and M1 macrophages were significantly decreased, and M2 macrophages were significantly increased, in BM compared to primary BC samples (p = 0.001, p = 0.021 and p = 0.007, respectively). CCL19 and CCL21, the top differentially expressed genes, were decreased significantly in BM compared to primary BC (p &lt; 0.001, both). IHC showed that the CD8+ count was significantly lower (p = 0.027), and the CD163+ and CD206+ counts were higher, in BM than primary BC (p &lt; 0.001, both). A low CD8+ T cell count, low CD86+ M1 macrophage count, and high M2/M1 macrophage ratio were related to unfavorable clinical outcomes. BC exhibits an immunosuppressive characteristic after metastasis to the brain. These findings will facilitate establishment of a treatment strategy for BCBM based on the TME of metastatic cancer