Mononuclear cells from the cord blood and granulocytecolony stimulating factor-mobilized peripheral blood:is there a potential for treatment of cerebral palsy?

To investigate a possible therapeutic mechanism of cell therapy in the field of cerebral palsy using granulocyte-colony stimulating factor（G-CSF）-mobilized peripheral blood mononuclear cells（m PBMCs）,we compared the expression of inflammatory cytokines and neurotrophic factors in PBMCs and m PBMCs from children with cerebral palsy to those from healthy adult donors and to cord blood mononuclear cells donated from healthy newborns.No significant differences in expression of neurotrophic factors were found between PBMCs and m PBMCs.However,in cerebral palsy children,the expression of interleukin-6 was significantly increased in m PBMCs as compared to PBMCs,and the expression of interleukin-3 was significantly decreased in m PBMCs as compared to PBMCs.In healthy adults,the expression levels of both interleukin-1βand interleukin-6 were significantly increased in m PBMCs as compared to PBMCs.The expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factors in m PBMC from cerebral palsy children was significantly higher than that in the cord blood or m PBMCs from healthy adults.The expression of G-CSF in m PBMCs from cerebral palsy children was comparable to that in the cord blood but significantly higher than that in m PBMCs from healthy adults.Lower expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines（interleukin-1β,interleukin-3,and-6）and higher expression of anti-inflammatory cytokines（interleukin-8 and interleukin-9）were observed from the cord blood and m PBMCs from cerebral palsy children rather than from healthy adults.These findings indicate that m PBMCs from cerebral palsy and cord blood mononuclear cells from healthy newborns have the potential to become seed cells for treatment of cerebral palsy.

Ethanol extract of Kalopanax septemlobus leaf inhibits HepG2 human hepatocellular carcinoma cell proliferation via inducing cell cycle arrest at G_1 phase

Objective:To investigate the effects of an ethanol extract of Kalopanax septemlobus(Thunb.)Koidz.leaf(EEKS) on cell proliferation in human hepatocellular carcinoma cells and its mechanisms of action.Methods:Cells were treated with EEKS and subsequently analyzed for cell proliferation and flow cytometry analysis.Expressions of cell cycle regulators were determined by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction analysis and Western blotting,and activation of eyclin-associaled kinases studied using kinase assays.Results:The EEKS suppressed cell proliferation in both HepG2 and Hep3 B cells,but showed a more sensitive anli-proliferative activity in HepG2 cells.Flow cytometry analysis revealed an association between the growth inhibitory effect of EEKS and with G_1 phase cell cycle arrest in HepG2 cells,along with the dephosphorylation of retinoblastoma protein(pRB) and enhanced binding of pRB with the E2 F transcription factor family proteins.Treatment with EEKS also increased the expression of cyclin-dependent kinase(CDK) inhibitors,such as p21WAF1/CIP1 and p27KIP1.without any noticeable changes in G_1 cyclins and CDKs(except for a slight decrease in CDK4).Treatment of HepG2 cells with EEKS also increased the binding of p21 and p27 with CDK4 and CDK6.which was paralleled by a marked decrease in the cyclin D- and cyclin E-associated kinase activities.Conclusions:Overall,our findings suggest that EEKS may be an effective treatment for liver cancer through suppression of cancer cell proliferation via G_1,cell cycle arrest Further studies arc required to identify the active compounds in EEKS.

韩国HSR 350X高速列车的电气系统

介绍了韩国高速列车HSR 350X的开发情况。该项目由韩国工业集团于1996年启动。350km/h速度是商业运营的目标,列车大约能容纳1000人。

Measurement and evaluation of whole body vibration of agricultural tractor operator

Exposure of whole body vibration(WBV)influences performance,comfort,and long term health risks of tractor operator.Therefore,measurement and evaluation of WBV parameters should be carried out to find probable effects on the health of tractor operators.In this study,a system was designed to measure the WBV of agricultural tractor operators and evaluated the hazard risks on operator’s body according to the ISO standards,and implementation of the WBV test in the official testing station was also suggested.A tri-axial accelerometer was employed to measure vibrations transmitted to the seated operator body as a whole through the supporting surface of the buttock on four typical farm roads under different speeds.The vector sum A(8)exposures on the rough tracks(earthen and grassland roads)exceeded the action limits of 0.5 m/s2 at a 10.9 km/h forward speed and reached to the action limit value at a 16.0 km/h forward speed on the concrete road.The vector sum of VDV(8)exposures did not exceed the action limits of 9.1 m/s1.75 and was greater on the grassland road.The vector sum Sed(8)exposures values exceeded the moderate probability of an adverse health limit of 0.5 MPa on all farm roads at high forward speeds and exceeded the high probability of an adverse health limit of 0.8 MPa on asphalt,concrete,and grassland roads which should be lower than the exposure limit values as suggested by the ISO and EC standards.The WBV evaluation procedure should be considered for implementation at the official tractor test station,which would response to domestic and international tractor test regulations and improve the market competitiveness.

Effects of planting distance and depth on PTO load spectrum of a small riding-type transplanter

The aim of this study was to analyze the effects of the planting distance and depth on the power take-off(PTO)load spectrum of a small riding-type transplanter for the optimal design of the transplanter.To measure load data during actual planting operation,a load measurement system was developed using a torque sensor,a data acquisition system,and an inverter.Field experiments were conducted at four planting distances(26 cm,35 cm,43 cm,and 80 cm)and three planting depths(85 mm,105 mm,and 136 mm)in a field with similar soil conditions.The measured load data were inverted into a load spectrum using rain-flow counting and Smith-Watson-Topper(SWT)methods.The safety factor of a transplanter according to the planting conditions was analyzed using the converted load spectrum and commercial software.The load spectrum for all planting conditions showed torque ratios similar within a high cycle region of 108 to 109.The torque ratio increased when the planting depth increased and planting distance decreased in the low cycle region under less than 108 cycles.The safety factors of the PTO driving gear and the driven gear increased as the planting distance increased at all planting depths.When the planting depth decreased at the same planting distance,the safety factor of the PTO gears increased.The results of this study might provide useful information for a transplanter PTO design considering the working load according to the various planting conditions.

Grain flow rate sensing for a 55 kW full-feed type multi-purpose combine

Real time sensing of crop yield is critical for a successful implementation of precision agriculture.Yield monitoring system is an optional component of a 55 kW multi-purpose combine harvester,developed in Korea,for both domestic and global markets,especially Asian countries where field sizes are relatively small.The aim of the present study was to fabricate and evaluate the performance of a grain flow sensor suitable to the mid-sized full-feed type combine for rice,soybean,and barley.Firstly,commercially available non-contact type sensing modules(optical,ultrasonic,laser,and microwave modules)were chosen for alternative candidates,to be further tested in a laboratory bench.Through the laboratory tests,the ultrasonic module was selected as a potential approach and the performance was improved by increasing the number of modules and their layout.Finally,the improved grain flow sensor was evaluated during field harvesting operation.Field tests with the improved grain flow sensor showed a good potential for rice(R^(2)=0.85,RMSE=126.14 g/s),soybean(R^(2)=0.78,RMSE=43.87 g/s),and barley(R^(2)=0.83,RMSE=37.39 g/s).Further research would be necessary for improvement and commercialization,through various signal processing and field tests under different field and crop conditions.

Development of real-time onion disease monitoring system using image acquisition

In this study, real-time disease monitoring was conducted on onion which is the most representative crop in Republic of Korea, using an image acquisition system newly developed for the mobile measurement of phenotype. The purpose of this study was to improve the accuracy of prediction of disease and state variables by processing images acquired from monitoring. The image acquisition system was consisted of two parts, a motorized driving system and a PTZ(pan, tilt and zoom) camera to take images of the plants. The acquired images were processed as follows. Noise was removed through an image filter and RGB(red, green and blue) colors were converted to HSV(hue, saturation and value), which enabled thresholding of areas with different colors and properties for image binarization by comparing the color of onion leaf with ambient areas. Four objects with the most significant browning in the onion leaf to the naked eye were selected as the samples for data acquired. The thresholding method with image processing was found to be superior to the naked eye in identifying accurate disease areas. In addition, it was found that the incidence of disease was different in each disease area ratio. As a result, the use of image acquisition system in image processing analysis will enable more prompt detection of any changes in the onion and monitoring of disease outbreaks during the crop lifecycle.