Developing a Discipleship Ministry for Seventh-day Adventist Churches in the West Central Korean Conference

Purpose. The purpose of this Ministry Focus Project document was to develop a theoretical and practical framework for implementing a discipleship ministry in the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the West Central Korean Conference in South Korea and ultimately to cultivate a consciousness of discipleship among Adventists. The worldwide Seventh-day Adventist denomination is growing, but it seems that Adventist churches are failing in the area of discipleship. Making disciples needs to be an important part of our Adventist culture. A discipleship curriculum would help the pastors and members of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Korea to become mature, committed, reproducing witnesses for Christ. Method. This study uses demographic data and statistics regarding South Korea. A theoretical framework for this study was established based on the literature review. A systematic discipleship curriculum is offered as the basis for growing churches and deepening the religious experience and commitment through discipleship ministry. Results. A discipleship ministry needs to have a strong foundation in biblical concepts. Church members grow into the likeness of Christ as disciples through spiritual formation and discipleship. The church should offer effective disciple-making models to its members. Attending worship services is not enough to grow into the likeness of Christ as disciples. The congregational profile of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Korea analyzed the current situation, membership trends, and ministerial context. The study revealed some very important challenges that the members of the Korean Church need to seriously consider. Church members leave the church at almost the same rate as people who come into the church. A discipleship ministry is one of the best ways to make a healthy church. Conclusion. The findings of this study indicate the need for a discipleship ministry that focuses on cultivating a level of consciousness of the importance of incorporating discipleship among Adventists. Currently, outreach to save souls is largely dependent on the individual activities of pastors and public evangelism. It is time to focus on a discipleship ministry at the local church level that nurtures new and current members

First demonstration of single trench fiber for delocalization of higher order modes

We demonstrate an ytterbium-doped single-trench fiber ensuring a high losses ratio (~1000) and low power fraction (~0.7) between the higher-order-modes and fundamental-mode with excellent bend robustness and 85% laser efficiency at a wavelength of 1040nm

Phosphorylation of α-syntrophin is responsible for its subcellular localization and interaction with dystrophin in muscle cells

79-85Syntrophin is a well-known adaptor protein that links intracellular proteins with the dystrophin-glycoprotein complex (DGC) at the sarcolemma. However, little is known about the underlying mechanism that regulates the intracellular localization of α-syntrophin and its interaction with dystrophin. In this study, we demonstrate that α-syntrophin phosphorylation determines its intracellular localization and interaction with dystrophin in muscle cells. α-Syntrophin, a predominant isoform in skeletal muscles, directly interacts with ion channels, enzymes, receptors, and DGC proteins. Despite α-syntrophin being a potential signaling molecule, most studies focus on its function as a dystrophin-associated protein. However, we previously reported that α-syntrophin has a variety of DGC-independent functions to modulate cell migration, differentiation, survival, and protein stability. According to the results of the in vitro phosphorylation assays using subcellular fractions, the phosphorylated α-syntrophin accumulated only at the plasma membrane, and this event occurred regardless of dystrophin expression. However, the α-syntrophin interacting with dystrophin at the membrane was not in a phosphorylated state. We also identified that protein kinase C (PKC) was involved in the phosphorylation of α-syntrophin, which restricted α-syntrophin to interact with dystrophin. In conclusion, we demonstrate that the phosphorylation of α-syntrophin by PKC regulates its intracellular localization and interaction with dystrophin

Pseudogap and weak multifractality in disordered Mott charge-density-wave insulator

The competition, coexistence and cooperation of various orders in low-dimensional materials like spin, charge, topological orders and charge-density-wave has been one of the most intriguing issues in condensed matter physics. In particular, layered transition metal dichalcogenides provide an ideal platform for studying such an interplay with a notable case of 1${T}$-TaS$_{2}$ featuring Mott-insulating ground state, charge-density-wave, spin frustration and emerging superconductivity together. We investigated local electronic states of Se-substituted 1${T}$-TaS$_{2}$ by scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy (STM/STS), where superconductivity emerges from the unique Mott-CDW state. Spatially resolved STS measurements reveal that an apparent V-shape pseudogap forms at the Fermi Level (E$_{F}$), with the origin of the electronic states splitting and transformation from the Mott states, and the CDW gaps are largely preserved. The formation of the pseudogap has little correlation to the variation of local Se concentration, but appears to be a global characteristics. Furthermore, the correlation length of local density of states (LDOS) diverges at the Fermi energy and decays rapidly at high energies. The spatial correlation shows a power-law decay close to the Fermi energy. Our statistics analysis of the LDOS indicates that our system exhibits weak multifractal behavior of the wave functions. These findings strongly support a correlated metallic state induced by disorder in our system, which provides an new insight into the novel mechanism of emerging superconductivity in the two-dimensional correlated electronic systems

A case of primary aldosteronism combined with acquired nephrogenic diabetes insipidus

AbstractAldosterone-producing adrenal adenoma can induce various clinical manifestations as a result of chronic exposure to aldosterone. We report a rare case of a 37-year-old man who complained of general weakness and polyuria. He was diagnosed with aldosterone-producing adrenal adenoma and nephrogenic diabetes insipidus. Aldosterone enhances the secretion of potassium in the collecting duct, which can lead to hypokalemia. By contrast, nephrogenic diabetes insipidus, which manifests as polyuria and polydipsia, can occur in several clinical conditions such as acquired tubular disease and those attributed to toxins and congenital causes. Among them, hypokalemia can also damage tubular structures in response to vasopressin. The patient’s urine output was >3 L/d and was diluted. Owing to the ineffectiveness of vasopressin, we eventually made a diagnosis of nephrogenic diabetes insipidus. Laparoscopic adrenalectomy and intraoperative kidney biopsy were subsequently performed. The pathologic finding of kidney biopsy revealed a decrease in aquaporin-2 on immunohistochemical stain

Colonic Absorption of Antiepileptic Agents

Purpose: To evaluate a canine intestinal access-port model to study colonic absorption of drugs. The antiepileptic drugs phenytoin and gabapentin were chosen to study absorption of a lipophilic and hydrophilic compound, respectively. Methods: Drug plasma level—time plots were generated subsequent to small intestinal and colonic drug administration of both drugs. The poorly water-soluble phenytoin was administered in two doses to evaluate the impact of dissolution rate limits on colonic absorption. Maximal plasma concentration (C max ) and area under the plasma level-time curve (AUC) were used to assess the relative contribution of colonic absorption to plasma levels. Results: Whereas colonic gabapentin AUC and C max were only 0.25 and 0.15 of those seen after small intestinal administration, colonic phenytoin AUC and C max were one half and equivalent to, respectively, those observed for small intestinal administration. Furthermore, colonic administration of a higher phenytoin dose showed secondary maxima and continued increases in drug plasma levels with time. Conclusions: Colonic gabapentin absorption is poor compared with upper intestinal absorption, consistent with membrane transport rate limits to the absorption of this hydrophilic AED. Peak phenytoin plasma levels from colonic and small intestinal administration are comparable, indicating membrane transport does not limit absorption of this lipophilic agent. Continued plasma-level increases from higher phenytoin doses are consistent with dissolution-rate control of drug absorption in the colon. We suggest that colonic absorption provides a greater potential for toxicity from phenytoin overdose as a function of continued drug dissolution than for gabapentin overdose.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/66069/1/j.1528-1157.1997.tb01078.x.pd