Sorokdo: From the Island of Stigma to the Island of Historical Reflection

This article focuses on Sorokdo Island (Jeollanam-do, South Korea) as a remnant of the stigmatized landscape reflecting Hansen’s Disease and the Japanese colonial power. Sorokdo began to be stigmatized due to the Japanese colonial rule in the early 20th century when patients with Hansen\u27s Disease were forced to relocate there, suffering from human rights violations and labor exploitation. Isolation and the management of the patients by suppression and control were justified with the logic of modern values of sanitization supported by the colonial rule. Stigma has remained even after the liberation from the colonial power. Continuously recognized by people as an isolated, remote island with a significant concentration of patients with Hansen’s Disease, Sorokdo still is being poorly preserved and overlooked by the public and the government. Based on a literature review and field research, this article illustrates how stigmatized landscapes remain in the hospital, detention/testing rooms, the Japanese Shinto shrine, and Central Park, among others. This article points out the necessity to preserve the landscape so that Sorokdo can be used as a space to educate and reflect on history. The suppression of the patients and workers on this island also should be illuminated. This article further emphasizes that social consensus is required regarding how Sorokdo can be carefully managed as a place that reflects its traumatized colonial history

Slope Matters: Anti-Sprawl and Construction of Urban Nature in Yongin, South Korea

Nature in urban areas is defined, recognised, and used by various actors, such as residents, politicians, construction industries, public officials, civic activists, and tourists. These actors engage in alliances and confrontations to construct urban nature as they imagine and want it. Existing research has shown the role of actors and the relationship between them. However, the position and the role of actors can change over the course of urban development as well. The history of development in Yongin shows the process of the political construction of urban nature by illustrating the conflict between development and the environment. From the late 1980s, large-scale apartment complexes have been built. Development ordinances have supported this incessant expansion of the city by easing regulations on the conversion of forest into residential areas. The result of accelerated expansion of the city without comprehensive urban planning of the city is called ‘the epitome of urban sprawl’. From the late 2010s, the orientation of city development began to change. The relaxed slope ordinance was restored to curb further development. This study explores the background of this amendment from the perspectives of urban political ecology. In order to examine how Yongin’s ‘nature’ was imagined and reconceptualised, we explore how the perception of nature is differentially constructed among various urban actors, especially residents from different districts. Next, we focus on the political strategies of urban actors who developed environmental conservation and public asset discourses from individualised and fragmented complaints. Through this process, this study explored how ‘unchecked urban sprawl’ is imagined, recognised, defined, and, more importantly, prevented. Additionally, the public support for the anti-sprawl shows that actors in urban politics change in the process of urban sprawl

Slope Matters: Anti-Sprawl and Construction of Urban Nature in Yongin, South Korea

Nature in urban areas is defined, recognised, and used by various actors, such as residents, politicians, construction industries, public officials, civic activists, and tourists. These actors engage in alliances and confrontations to construct urban nature as they imagine and want it. Existing research has shown the role of actors and the relationship between them. However, the position and the role of actors can change over the course of urban development as well. The history of development in Yongin shows the process of the political construction of urban nature by illustrating the conflict between development and the environment. From the late 1980s, large-scale apartment complexes have been built. Development ordinances have supported this incessant expansion of the city by easing regulations on the conversion of forest into residential areas. The result of accelerated expansion of the city without comprehensive urban planning of the city is called ‘the epitome of urban sprawl’. From the late 2010s, the orientation of city development began to change. The relaxed slope ordinance was restored to curb further development. This study explores the background of this amendment from the perspectives of urban political ecology. In order to examine how Yongin’s ‘nature’ was imagined and reconceptualised, we explore how the perception of nature is differentially constructed among various urban actors, especially residents from different districts. Next, we focus on the political strategies of urban actors who developed environmental conservation and public asset discourses from individualised and fragmented complaints. Through this process, this study explored how ‘unchecked urban sprawl’ is imagined, recognised, defined, and, more importantly, prevented. Additionally, the public support for the anti-sprawl shows that actors in urban politics change in the process of urban sprawl

The pro-atherogenic effects of macrophages are reduced upon formation of a complex between C-reactive protein and lysophosphatidylcholine

RATIONALE: C-reactive protein (CRP) and lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) are phosphorylcholine-(PC)-containing oxidized phospholipids (oxPLs) found in oxidized LDL (oxLDL), which trigger pro-atherogenic activities of macrophages during the process of atherosclerosis. It has been previously reported that CRP binds to the PC head group of oxLDL in a calcium-dependent manner. The aim of this study was to investigate the importance of binding between CRP and LPC to the pro-atherogenic activities of macrophages. OBJECTIVES AND FINDINGS: A chemiluminescent immunoassay and HPLC showed that human recombinant CRP formed a stable complex with LPC in the presence of calcium. The Kd value of the binding of the CRP-LPC complex to the receptors FcγRIA or FcγRIIA was 3–5 fold lower than that of CRP alone. The CRP-LPC complex triggered less potent generation of reactive oxygen species and less activation of the transcription factors AP-1 and NF-kB by human monocyte-derived macrophages in comparison to CRP or LPC alone. However, CRP did not affect activities driven by components of oxLDL lacking PC, such as upregulation of PPRE, ABCA1, CD36 and PPARγ and the enhancement of cholesterol efflux by human macrophages. The presence of CRP inhibited the association of Dil-labelled oxLDL to human macrophages. CONCLUSIONS: The formation of complexes between CRP and PC-containing oxPLs, such as LPC, suppresses the pro-atherogenic effects of CRP and LPC on macrophages. This effect may in part retard the progression of atherosclerosis

Discovery of 2‑((<i>R</i>)‑4-(2-Fluoro-4-(methylsulfonyl)phenyl)-2-methylpiperazin-1-yl)‑<i>N</i>‑((1<i>R</i>,2<i>s</i>,3<i>S</i>,5<i>S</i>,7<i>S</i>)‑5-hydroxyadamantan-2-yl)pyrimidine-4-carboxamide (SKI2852): A Highly Potent, Selective, and Orally Bioavailable Inhibitor of 11β-Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenase Type 1 (11β-HSD1)

A series of picolinamide- and pyrimidine-4-carboxamide-based inhibitors of 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 was synthesized and evaluated to optimize the lead compound <b>9</b>. The combination of the replacement of a pyridine ring of <b>9</b> with a pyrimidine ring and the introduction of an additional fluorine substituent at the 2-position of the phenyl ring resulted in the discovery of a potent, selective, and orally bioavailable inhibitor, <b>18a</b> (SKI2852), which demonstrated no CYP and PXR liabilities, excellent PK profiles across species, and highly potent and sustainable PD activity. Repeated oral administration of <b>18a</b> significantly reduced blood glucose and HbA1c levels and improved the lipid profiles in <i>ob</i>/<i>ob</i> mice. Moreover, the HbA1c-lowering effect of metformin was synergistically enhanced in combination with <b>18a</b>