Textile Relics Conservation and Effective Cleaning Methods - Conservation of the Korean Youth Baseball Tournament Championship Flag

This study analyzes the effectiveness of the cleaning methods applied to the Korean Youth Baseball Tournament championship flag, Korean cultural asset no. 498, which is currently owned by the Korean Sports Council. This championship flag was first given to the winning baseball team during the Chosun National Athletic Meet in July, 1920 and therefore carries importance in Korean sports history. The conservation process began with the following goals: to understand the current condition of the relic, to reduce the soils, to repair and reinforce the deteriorated areas, and to prevent further major damages to the relic

Detection of an Ala601Thr mutation of plasminogen gene in 3 out of 36 Korean patients with deep vein thrombosis.

Plasminogen is a key proenzyme in the fibrinolytic and thrombolytic systems. Congenital deficiency of plasminogen and molecular abnormality of plasminogen (dysplasminogenemia) have been reported in association with the thrombotic tendency in human. In dysplasminogenemia, the level of immunoreactive plasminogen is normal, although the functional activity is reduced. Human plasminogen gene spans about 52.5 kb of DNA and consists of 19 exons. Three types of mutations (Ala601Thr, Val355Phe, and Asp676Asn) have been described in dysplasminogenemia. In this study, we measured the plasminogen activity in patients with deep vein thrombosis and analyzed the DNA sequence to detect three point mutations (Ala601Thr, Val355Phe and Asp676Asn) in patients with hypo/dysplasminogenemia. Dysplasminogenemia was identified in 3 (8.3%) of unrelated 36 patients with deep vein thrombosis and the Ala601Thr mutation was detected in all three patients with dysplasminogenemia. In conclusion, dysplasminogenemia is not rare in deep vein thrombosis, which suggests a risk factor for the thrombosis in Korean population

Diagnosis of Overt Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation: A Comparative Study Using Criteria from the International Society Versus the Korean Society on Thrombosis and Hemostasis

PURPOSE: Since 1993, Koreans have used diagnostic criteria set by the Korean Society on Thrombosis and Hemostasis (KSTH) in the diagnosis of overt disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC). In 2001, the Scientific and Standardization Committee (SCC) of the International Society on Thrombosis and Hemostasis (ISTH) proposed new diagnostic criteria for the diagnosis of overt DIC. We wanted to compare the use of the ISTH versus KSTH criteria in the diagnosis of overt DIC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We enrolled 131 patients over the age of 15 years, who had been admitted and diagnosed as having DIC from May 2000 to April 2005 at the Youngdong Severance Hospital, Seoul, Korea. Of the 131 patients, there were 71 males and 60 females, with a median age of 61 years. Hemostatic tests, including platelet counts, PT, aPTT, fibrinogen level and D-dimer, were evaluated based on the respective scoring systems. To assess the concordance between the two diagnostic systems, we used the Student's t-test and the K-coefficient. RESULTS: There were 79 patients compatible with the ISTH criteria and 63 patients with the KSTH criteria. Sixty-one patients were compatible with both diagnostic systems. The grade of agreement, or concordance rate, was 84.7% and the K-coefficient, or interrater reliability, was as low as 0.6 without significance. However, if we scored 1 point for a fibrinogen level of 100-150 mg/dL, and 2 points for a level below 100 mg/dL, for the ISTH criteria, then 63 patients were compatible with both diagnostic systems, and the concordance rate increased to 85.5% and the K-coefficient to 0.71 with significance. CONCLUSION: To achieve good agreement between the ISTH and KSTH diagnostic systems for overt DIC, we highly recommend changing the plasma fibrinogen cut-off value in the ISTH criteria from 100mg/dL to 150 mg/dL and scoring up to 2 points for a level below 100 mg/dL.ope

Bidirectional two colored light emission from stress-activated ZnS-microparticles-embedded polydimethylsiloxane elastomer films

Bidirectional two-colored mechanoluminescent light emission has been demonstrated by unifying two polydimethylsiloxane elastomer layers functionalized with zinc sulfide doped with Cu (ZnS:Cu) or Cu and Mn (ZnS:Cu,Mn). The bilayered composite films are simply fabricated by dispensing uncured ZnS:Cu,Mn + PDMS onto previously spin-coated and ardened ZnS:Cu + PDMS film. The robust PDMS-PDMS bonding yields a ilm which can simultaneously emit light with color coordinates of (0.25, 0.56) and (0.50, 0.48), similar to the intrinsic colors of ZnS:Cu and ZnS:Cu,Mn, respectively. Composite films can emit light in upper and lower directions without fracture when it is stretched. © 2013 Optical Society of America.1

Handspinning Enabled Highly Concentrated Carbon Nanotubes with Controlled Orientation in Nanofibers

The novel method, handspinning (HS), was invented by mimicking commonly observed methods in our daily lives. The use of HS allows us to fabricate carbon nanotube-reinforced nanofibers (CNT-reinforced nanofibers) by addressing three significant challenges: (i) the difficulty of forming nanofibers at high concentrations of CNTs, (ii) aggregation of the CNTs, and (iii) control of the orientation of the CNTs. The handspun nanofibers showed better physical properties than fibers fabricated by conventional methods, such as electrospinning. Handspun nanofibers retain a larger amount of CNTs than electrospun nanofibers, and the CNTs are easily aligned uniaxially. We attributed these improvements provided by the HS process to simple mechanical stretching force, which allows for orienting the nanofillers along with the force direction without agglomeration, leading to increased contact area between the CNTs and the polymer matrix, thereby providing enhanced interactions. HS is a simple and straightforward method as it does not require an electric field, and, hence, any kinds of polymers and solvents can be applicable. Furthermore, it is feasible to retain a large amount of various nanofillers in the fibers to enhance their physical and chemical properties. Therefore, HS provides an effective pathway to create new types of reinforced nanofibers with outstanding properties.ArticleSCIENTIFIC REPORTS. 6:37590 (2016)journal articl

Intra-abdominal angiosarcoma developing in a capsule of a foreign body: report of a case with associated hemorrhagic diathesis

BACKGROUNDS: Angiosarcoma occurs very rarely in the gastrointestinal tract and can present great diagnostic difficulty, especially when it is associated with intraabdominal abscess or granulation tissue. CASE PRESENTATION: We report a case where the angiosarcoma was diagnosed after the occurrence of disseminated angiosarcoma and concurrent hemoperitoneum. The tumor developed in the fibrous capsule of a foreign body, which was possibly related to the previous appendectomy twenty years ago, and became a widely disseminated malignant neoplasm in the abdomen. After the operation, the patient's course was dominated by a fatal consumptive coagulapathy. Pathologic examination of the multiple intra-abdominal lesions showed the histological and immunohistological characteristics of the angiosarcoma. CONCLUSION: Even though angiosarcoma in the gastrointestinal tract is extremely rare, when dealing with intraabdominal abscess or the gastrointestinal bleeding in patients who have undergone surgery or radiation therapy in the past, the possibility of angiosarcoma should be considered. To make the definite diagnosis of angiosarcoma and to avoid the misdiagnosis of foreign body granuloma, thorough histological examination and immunohistochemical staining may be prerequisite

Subchronic oral toxicity of silver nanoparticles

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The antibacterial effect of silver nanoparticles has resulted in their extensive application in health, electronic, consumer, medicinal, pesticide, and home products; however, silver nanoparticles remain a controversial area of research with respect to their toxicity in biological and ecological systems.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>This study tested the oral toxicity of silver nanoparticles (56 nm) over a period of 13 weeks (90 days) in F344 rats following Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) test guideline 408 and Good Laboratory Practices (GLP). Five-week-old rats, weighing about 99 g for the males and 92 g for the females, were divided into four 4 groups (10 rats in each group): vehicle control, low-dose (30 mg/kg), middle-dose (125 mg/kg), and high-dose (500 mg/kg). After 90 days of exposure, clinical chemistry, hematology, histopathology, and silver distribution were studied. There was a significant decrease (P < 0.05) in the body weight of male rats after 4 weeks of exposure, although there were no significant changes in food or water consumption during the study period. Significant dose-dependent changes were found in alkaline phosphatase and cholesterol for the male and female rats, indicating that exposure to more than 125 mg/kg of silver nanoparticles may result in slight liver damage. Histopathologic examination revealed a higher incidence of bile-duct hyperplasia, with or without necrosis, fibrosis, and/or pigmentation, in treated animals. There was also a dose-dependent accumulation of silver in all tissues examined. A gender-related difference in the accumulation of silver was noted in the kidneys, with a twofold increase in female kidneys compared to male kidneys.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The target organ for the silver nanoparticles was found to be the liver in both the male and female rats. A NOAEL (no observable adverse effect level) of 30 mg/kg and LOAEL (lowest observable adverse effect level) of 125 mg/kg are suggested from the present study.</p

A highly hydrophilic water-insoluble nanofiber composite as an efficient and easily-handleable adsorbent for the rapid adsorption of cesium from radioactive wastewater

Herein, we report a new Prussian blue nanoparticle (PBNPs) incorporated polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) composite nanofiber (c-PBNPs/PVA) for the rapid adsorption of cesium (Cs) from radioactive wastewater. Initially, various electrospinning parameters such as solvent, PVA wt%, PBNPs wt% and glutaraldehyde (GA) wt% were extensively optimized to obtain a better physicochemical property of the c-PBNPs/PVA. In order to improve the water insoluble nature of the PVA, post cross-linking was carried out for the c-PBNPs/PVA using glutaraldehyde (GA) and HCl vapor as the cross-linker and catalyst, respectively. SEM images revealed the smooth and continuous morphology of the c-PBNPs/PVA composite nanofibers with diameters of 200–300 nm and lengths up to several millimeters. TEM images confirmed homogeneous dispersion and good incorporation of PBNPs into the PVA matrix. The amorphous nature of the c-PBNPs/PVA was confirmed by the XRD analysis. FT-IR spectra showed successful cross-linking of PVA with GA. It was found that the prepared composite nanofiber is highly hydrophilic and water-insoluble. The c-PBNPs/PVA showed an excellent and faster Cs adsorption rate of 96% after only 100 min. These results are comparable to those previously reported. After the Cs adsorption test, the c-PBNPs/PVA composite nanofiber can be easily separated from the wastewater.ArticleRSC ADVANCES. 4(103):59571-59578 (2014)journal articl

Plasma Factor XIII Activity in Patients with Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation

The objective of this study was to investigate the correlation between factor XIII (FXIII) activity and disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) parameters and also to evaluate the clinical usefulness of DIC diagnosis. Citrated plasma from eighty patients with potential DIC was analyzed for FXIII activity. The primary patient conditions (48 male and 32 female, mean age, 51 years) were malignancy (n = 29), infection (n = 25), inflammation (n = 6), heart disease (n = 3), thrombosis (n = 2), injury (n = 2), and other miscellaneous conditions (n = 13). FXIII testing was performed using the CoaLinkTM FXIII Incorporation Assay Kit (PeopleBio Inc.). Among 80 patients who were suspected to have DIC based on clinical analysis, 46 (57.5%) fulfilled the overt DIC criteria (DIC score > = 5) according to the International Society of Thrombosis and Haemostasis. FXIII levels in the plasma were significantly decreased in overt DIC compared to non-overt DIC patients (mean 75.1% and 199.7% respectively, p < 0.0001). Interestingly, we found a significant inverse correlation between DIC scores and FXIII activity. In addition, FXIII activity significantly correlated with other hemostatic markers that included platelet count, prothrombin time, activated partial thromboplastin time, fibrinogen, and D-dimer. FXIII levels were significantly lower in patients with liver or renal dysfunction. In conclusion, FXIII cross-linking activity measurements may have differential diagnostic value as well as predictive value in patients who are suspected to have DIC