North Korea's emulation Chinese politics : an examination of Mao Tse-Tung's ideological influence

North Korean leader, Kim Il-song has been known among western observers as a "faithful disciple of Stalin." Furthermore, Communist North Korea has been known to the western world as faithfully following the Soviet model. The central argument of my study is to refute this notion. One should note that there are similar revolutionary backgrounds between China and North Korea, similarities of social conditions, colonial or semi-colonial status, and a timing of revolution. The Chinese model would be a prototype for Asian communism. My study shows abundant evidences that North Korea should be included in the category of Asian communism rather than western communism, and Kim Il-song is a disciple of Mao Tse-tung rather than being Stalin's

Birth statistics of high birth weight infants (macrosomia) in Korea

PurposeThe authors analyzed the trend from the birth-related statistics of high birth weight infants (HBWIs) over 50 years in Korea from 1960 to 2010.MethodsWe used 2 data sources, namely, the hospital units (1960's to 1990's) and Statistics Korea (1993 to 2010). The analyses include the incidence of HBWIs, birth weight distribution, sex ratio, and the relationship of HBWI to maternal age.ResultsThe hospital unit data indicated the incidence of HBWI as 3 to 7% in the 1960's and 1970's and 4 to 7% in the 1980's and 1990's. Data from Statistics Korea indicated the percentages of HBWIs among total live births decreased over the years: 6.7% (1993), 6.3% (1995), 5.1% (2000), 4.5% (2000), and 3.5% (2010). In HBWIs, the birth weight rages and percentage of incidence in infants' were 4.0 to 4.4 kg (90.3%), 4.5 to 4.9 kg (8.8%), 5.0 to 5.4 kg (0.8%), 5.5 to 5.9 kg (0.1%), and >6.0 kg (0.0%) in 2000 but were 92.2%, 7.2%, 0.6%, 0.0%, and 0.0% in 2009. The male to female ratio of HBWIs was 1.89 in 1993 and 1.84 in 2010. In 2010, the mother's age distribution correlated with low (4.9%), normal (91.0%), and high birth weights (3.6%): an increase in mother's age resulted in an increase in the frequency of low birth weight infants (LBWIs) and HBWIs.ConclusionThe incidence of HBWIs for the past 50 years has been dropping in Korea. The older the mother, the higher was the risk of a HBWI and LBWI. We hope that these findings would be utilized as basic data that will aid those managing HBWIs

Changes in the Hearing Thresholds of Infants Who Failed the Newborn Hearing Screening Test and in Infants Treated in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to investigate changes in the hearing thresholds during the first year of life in infants who failed the newborn hearing screening (NHS) test and of infants treated in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).MethodsFrom March 2007 to November 2010, 193 healthy infants who failed the NHS test and 51 infants who were treated in the NICU were referred for evaluation of hearing acuity. Their hearing was evaluated using impedance audiometry, auditory brainstem response (ABR), and otoacoustic emission before 6 months of age, and follow-up hearing tests were administered before 12 months of age. Changes in their hearing thresholds were then analyzed.ResultsOf the 193 healthy infants who failed the NHS test, 60 infants (31%) had normal hearing acuity, 126 infants (65%) had sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL, ABR threshold ≥40 dB) and 7 infants (4%) had auditory neuropathy (AN). On the follow-up hearing tests, which were conducted in 65 infants, 6 infants showed a hearing threshold deterioration of more than 20 dB, and 19 infants showed a hearing threshold improvement of more than 20 dB. Of the 51 infants who were treated in the NICU, 38 infants (75%) had normal hearing acuity, 12 infants (24%) had SNHL, and one infant (2%) had AN. In the follow-up hearing tests, which were performed in 13 infants, one infant with normal hearing progressed to severe hearing loss. Five infants who had SNHL showed a hearing threshold improvement of more than 20 dB, and 4 infants recovered to normal hearing.ConclusionThe hearing thresholds of infants with congenital SNHL can change during the first year of life; therefore, the importance of administration of follow-up hearing tests is emphasized. Irreversible intervention such as cochlear implantation should be considered with great caution within the first year after birth

A novel gene mutation, c.82delC (p.Arg28 Alafs5), in a Korean family with X-linked agammaglobulinemia

X-linked agammaglobulinemia (XLA) is a hereditary humoral immunodeficiency that results from Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) gene mutations. These mutations cause defects in B-cell development, resulting in the virtual absence of these lymphocytes from the peripheral circulation. Consequently, this absence leads to a profound deficiency of lg all isotypes, and an increased susceptibility to encapsulated bacterial infections. A 15-month-old Korean boy presented with recurrent sinusitis and otitis media after 6 months of age, and had a family history of 2 maternal uncles with XLA. Laboratory tests revealed a profound deficiency of Ig isotypes, and a decreased count of CD19+ B cells in the peripheral circulation. Based on his family history and our laboratory test results, he was diagnosed with XLA. We performed BTK gene analysis of peripheral blood samples obtained from family members to confirm the diagnosis. Mutational analysis revealed a novel hemizygous frameshift mutation (c.82delC, p.Arg28Alafs*5), in the BTK gene. His mother and maternal grandmother were heterozygous carriers of this mutation and his two maternal uncles were hemizygous at the same position. After XLA diagnosis, intravenous immunoglobulin (400 mg/kg, monthly) treatment was initiated; recurrent sinusitis and otitis media were subsequently brought under control. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of a Korean pedigree with a novel mutation in the BTK gene

Body Mass Index and Waist Circumference According to Glucose Tolerance Status in Korea: The 2005 Korean Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

The purpose of this study was to investigate the stage of glucose intolerance in which persons showed a maximum obesity in Korea. A total of 4,479 participants, who were involved in the 2005 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, was examined. The participants were divided into 5 groups by fasting plasma glucose (FPG); normal fasting glucose (NFG)1, FPG < 90 mg/dL; NFG2, FPG 90-99 mg/dL; impaired fasting glucose (IFG)1, FPG 100-109 mg/dL; IFG2, FPG 110-125 mg/dL; and diabetes mellitus, FPG ≥ 126 mg/dL or with anti-diabetes drugs. In those with FPG < 110 mg/dL, body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) were increased with increase of FPG (BMI in men; NFG1, 23.3 ± 0.1; NFG2, 24.4 ± 0.1; IFG1, 25.0 ± 0.2 kg/m2, in women; NFG1, 23.0 ± 0.1; NFG2, 24.0 ± 0.1; IFG1, 24.8 ± 0.2 kg/m2, WC in men; NFG1, 82.1 ± 0.3; NFG2, 85.3 ± 0.3; IFG1, 86.7 ± 0.5 cm, in women; NFG1, 77.1 ± 0.2; NFG2, 79.4 ± 0.3; IFG1, 81.8 ± 0.6 cm). In IFG2 and diabetes range, there was no more increase of BMI and WC with increase of FPG in each sex. The data suggest that degree of obesity increases with an increase of FPG in range of FPG < 100 mg/dL, peaked in FPG of 100-109 mg/dL, and then plateaus in higher FPG range in general Korean population

Nanostring-based multigene assay to predict recurrence for gastric cancer patients after surgery

10.1371/journal.pone.0090133PLoS ONE93-POLN

Fimasartan versus perindopril with and without diuretics in the treatment of elderly patients with essential hypertension (Fimasartan in the Senior Subjects (FITNESS)): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Background Hypertension is an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease, even in the elderly. Fimasartan is a new non-peptide angiotensin II receptor blocker with a selective type I receptor blocking effect. The objective of this study is to confirm the safety and the non-inferiority of the blood pressure–lowering effect of fimasartan compared with those of perindopril, which has been proven safe and effective in elderly patients with hypertension. Methods This is a randomized, double-blind, active-controlled, two-parallel group, optional-titration, multicenter, phase 3 study comparing the efficacy and safety of fimasartan and perindopril arginine. The study population consists of individuals 70 years old or older with essential hypertension. The primary outcome will be a change in sitting systolic blood pressure from baseline after the administration of the investigational product for 8 weeks. The secondary outcomes will be a change in sitting diastolic blood pressure from baseline and changes in sitting systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure from baseline after the administration of the investigational product for 4, 16, and 24 weeks. The sample size will be 119 subjects for each group to confer enough power to test for the primary outcome. Discussion Research to confirm the efficacy and safety of a new medicine compared with those of previously proven anti-hypertensive drugs is beneficial to guide physicians in the selection of therapeutic agents. If it is confirmed that the new drug is not inferior to the existing drug, the drug will be considered as an option in the treatment of hypertension in elderly patients. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT03246555, registered on July 25, 2017.The study is funded by Boryung Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. The company was involved in all stages of the study conduct and design. Boryung also took responsibility for all costs associated with the development and publishing of the manuscript

Discutindo a educação ambiental no cotidiano escolar: desenvolvimento de projetos na escola formação inicial e continuada de professores

A presente pesquisa buscou discutir como a Educação Ambiental (EA) vem sendo trabalhada, no Ensino Fundamental e como os docentes desta escola compreendem e vem inserindo a EA no cotidiano escolar., em uma escola estadual do município de Tangará da Serra/MT, Brasil. Para tanto, realizou-se entrevistas com os professores que fazem parte de um projeto interdisciplinar de EA na escola pesquisada. Verificou-se que o projeto da escola não vem conseguindo alcançar os objetivos propostos por: desconhecimento do mesmo, pelos professores; formação deficiente dos professores, não entendimento da EA como processo de ensino-aprendizagem, falta de recursos didáticos, planejamento inadequado das atividades. A partir dessa constatação, procurou-se debater a impossibilidade de tratar do tema fora do trabalho interdisciplinar, bem como, e principalmente, a importância de um estudo mais aprofundado de EA, vinculando teoria e prática, tanto na formação docente, como em projetos escolares, a fim de fugir do tradicional vínculo “EA e ecologia, lixo e horta”.Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias de la Educació

Spray Deposition of Mechanically Alloyed F/M ODS Steel Powder

Thermal/cold spray deposition were used for additive manufacture of oxide dispersion strengthened (ODS) steel layers. Mechanically alloyed F/M ODS steel powders (Fe(bal.)-10Cr-1Mo-0.25Ti-0.35Y2O3 in wt.%) were sprayed by a high velocity oxygen fuel (HVOF) and cold spray methods. HVOF, as a thermal method, was used for manufacturing a 1 mm-thick ODS steel layer with a ~95% density. The source to objective distance (SOD) and feeding rate were controlled to achieve sound manufacturing. Y2 Ti2 O7 nano-particles were preserved in the HVOF sprayed layer; however, unexpected Cr2 O3 phases were frequently observed at the boundary area of the powders. A cold spray was used for manufacturing the Cr2 O3 -free layer and showed great feasibility. The density and yield of the cold spray were roughly 80% and 45%, respectively. The softening of ODS powders before the cold spray was conducted using a tube furnace of up to 1200°C. Microstructural characteristics of the cold sprayed layer were investigated by electron back-scattered diffraction (EBSD), the uniformity of deformation amount inside powders was observed