Microfluidics based on nanobio sensors technologies can provide convenient and accurate diagnosis tools. In this talk, we present recent developments of nanobio sensors & diagnosis chip using microfluidics, with special emphasis on disposable plastic devices format. In detail, we overview of the common methods used in the fabrication of polymer microfluidic systems, including replica and injection mold-ing. Also we explain the different methods by which on-chip operations—such as the pumping and valving of fluid flow, the mixing of different reagents, and the separation and detection of different biochemical species implemented in a microfluidic format. Finally, a few select biotechnological applications of microfluidics are presented to illustrate both the utility of this technology and its potential applications with insect models in the near future.

Human body and head lice are obligatory human ectoparasites. Although both body and head lice belong to a single species, Pediculus humanus, only body lice are known to be a vector of several bacterial diseases. The higher vector competence of body lice is assumed to be due to their weaker immune response than that of head lice. To test this hypothesis, immune reactions were compared between body and head lice following infections by two model bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli, and a human pathogen, Bartonella quintana. Following dermal or oral challenge, the number of these bacteria increased both in hemocoel and alimentary tract of body lice but not in head lice and the viability of the B. quintana was significantly higher in body louse feces, the major route of infection to human. In addition, body lice showed the lower basal/induced transcription level of major immune genes, cytotoxic reactive oxygen species and phagocytosis activity compared with head lice. These findings suggest that a reduced immune response may be responsible, in part, for the increased proliferation and excretion of viable bacteria which are associated with the high level of human infectivity seen in body versus head lice.

An 81-years-old woman presented multiple mucosa ulcers with a chief complaint of pain during wearing the lower denture. She had been wearing upper and lower complete dentures for five months, and received multiple drugs for the treatment of angina pectoris, constipation, neurosis, hypertension and arthritis (calcium channel blockers, furosemide, captopril, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents and penicillamine, respectively), but no history of immune-diseases and viral infection symptom. The present lesion was primarily diagnosed as traumatic ulcer, candidiasis and lichen planus in the clinical observation, thereby conservatively treated with denture relining, antifungal agent, and steroidal agent. However, the ulcer lesion was not healed for two months and rather increased in size. With the diagnosis of viral infection the immunohistochemical (IHC) staining of IL28 and E6, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using herpes simplex virus (HSV)-1 primer sets was done but entirely showed negative reaction. Therefore, with the patient’s medical history and IHC findings exhibiting strong positive reaction of CD3 and CD28, but rare/weak reaction of NFkB, CD20, IgK and p38, the ulcer lesion was finally diagnosed as drug-induced pemphigoid ulceration which was not an inflammatory granulomatous lesion but related to the retrogressive acantholytic degeneration of epithelial cells caused by multiple drug abuse.

본 논문에서는 온실작물 생육에 적절한 미기상환경을 제공하기 위한 최적의 조건을 찾아내기 위하여 TRNSYS 프로그램을 이용하여 온실의 구조 및 환경인자와 에너지공급기술들에 대하여 시뮬레이션을 실시한 연구논문들을 분석하였다. 본 연구의 목적은 온실에너지 관리를 위해 사용되고 있는 여러 가지 에너지시스 템과 기술들에 관하여 검토하고 이들에 대해 TRNSYS 시뮬레이션을 통해 실시한 효율분석에 관하여 검토하는 것이다. 사용가능한 에너지자원과 다양한 외부기상조건에 따른 에너지절감기술들의 성능을 분석하기 위한 여러 가지 시뮬레이션 모델들에 대해서도 검토하였다. 사용자가 정의하는 인자들을 사용하여 하이브리드 농업시설을 시뮬레이션 할 수 있는 TRNSYS 프로그램의 주요 구조들을 찾아내었다. 문헌검토에서 얻어진 결과를 토대로 TRNSYS 프로그램을 이용하여 온실의 에너지관리를 위한 시뮬레이션 모델을 개발하는데 필요한 몇 가지 중요한 결론들을 도출하였다. TRNSYS 프로그램은 앞으로 온실의 에너지 시뮬레이션을 수행하는데 크게 활용될 것으로 기대된다.

In the international trading system today, regional trade agreements, referring to reciprocal trade agreements between two or more countries providing exclusive trade preferences, govern not only the trade relations among the parties to the RTAs, but also form additional sets of trade disciplines. These agreements exist parallel to the multilateral trading system under the auspices of the World Trade Organization. The GATT/WTO rules authorize RTAs under certain conditions; thus on the surface, RTAs appear to be a legitimate part of the WTO system. However, in substance, the preferential terms of trade in RTAs are essentially in conflict with the most important principle of the WTO system, the most-favored-nation treatment. The current proliferation of RTAs thus makes exclusive RTA preferences, which are supposedly an exception to the MFN principle, a rule rather than an exception. This article examines GATT/WTO rules on RTAs, addresses the potential conflict between RTAs and the WTO system with potential solutions, and analyzes RTAs from the development perspective.

미국 북동부 뉴욕주에 위치한 이타카시 남쪽, 범람지대에 위치한 Southwest 지역은 저소득층 가족을 대상으로 한 복합 커뮤니티로 개발 계획 중인 공휴지이다. 이 지역은 이타카시에 위치한 Cayuga 호로 흘러드는 여러 갈래의 천을 따라 오랜 시간 걸쳐 진행된 지질학적 풍화 및 침식 작용에 의한 침적으로 생성된 삼각지이며 지하수위가 높아 범람이 잦은 곳이다. 해당지역의 매립을 통한 침수 방지 대책도 강구되었다. 하지만 지속된 매립활동에 따른 폐해로 해당 지역 토질구조가 파괴되어 자연배수가 불가능한 습지가 조성되어 Southwest 지역은 주민들에게 외면 받는 장소가 되었다. 이로 인해 Ithaca 시내에 위치한 얼마 남지 않은 시민들을 위한 커뮤니티 시설 개발에 적합한 유휴지임에도 불구하고 불법 쓰레기 투기 및 산업시설, 월마트와 같은 시민들이 요구와 동떨어진 모습의 개발이 있어왔다. 저소득 가정을 위한 주택 수요가 꾸준히 증가하고 있는 Ithaca시에 있어, Southwest 지역은 시민들에게 안락한 커뮤니 티를 제공해 줌과 동시에 주변지역의 생활여건도 개선시킬 수 있는 가능성을 지닌 곳이다. 본 논문은 Ithaca 시의 마지막 남은 개발가능한 Southwest 지역에 대한 정확한 분석과 이해를 통해 지역 주민들이 필요로 하는 활기차고 살기 좋은 커뮤니티 개발을 위한 대안을 제시하고자 한다. 이를 위해 본 논문은 대상지 주변 단절된 도심 조직과 오픈스페이스들을 다시 연결하고, 레크리에이션 시설과 주거시설 및 기타 커뮤니티 시설을 조화롭게 조성해 줌으로서 오랜 시간 주민들로부터 외면 받던 대상지가 주민들을 위한 새로운 기회의 장소로서, 또한 주변 지역 경제 활성화에 기여할 수 있는 방안을 모색하고자 한다.

The sweetpotato whitelfy Bemisia tabaci distribute worldwide and infests more than 500 species of plants. To determine nutritional stress of whiteflies at molecular level, we identified a full cDNA of glucose regulated protein 78 (grp78) which is known to be respond to nutritional restriction in vertebrate species. GRP78 of B. tabaci was highly conserved motifs of the HSP70 family and the C-terminal motif of KDEL characteristic of endoplasmic reticulum-specific HSPs. Real-time RT-PCR analysis showed that the grp78 level was not changed by thermal stress treatment from 4°C to 40°C for 1 h. However, the grp78 level was proportionally increased to the ingestion of a sucrose solution ranging in concentrations from 0% to 30% in a Parafilm feeding chamber. In addition, the grp78 levels were various by the ingestion of leaves of 10 different plants for 24 h; its level was higher with eggplant and pepper but lower with rice and apple. Our study suggests that the grp78 may have a role for cellular chaperones in relation to nutritional uptake of B. tabaci.

Indianmeal moth Plodia interpunctella (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) is an economical pest of stored grains and their products, causing severe loss by feeding and producing silken web containing frass and exuvia. An ectoparasitoid Bracon hebetor Say (Hymenoptera, Braconidae) attacks this pest as a natural enemy and induce paralysis and developmental arrest in it. At molecular level its venom induce many physiological changes in host P. interpunctella to make it suitable source of food and development for its young ones. To explore these physiological changes at molecular level in P. interpunctella, we observed expression level of different genes having different functions related to immunity, defense and development at different intervals followed by B. hebetor envenomation. Fifth instar day 5 old larvae of P. interpunctella were used in experiment. Our results showed that B. hebetor envenomation effect the gene expression differently in host P. interpunctella. This basic study will be the starting point to understand the role of envenomation in host regulation studies.

Due to its rapid development of resistance to nearly all arrays of acaricide, Tetranychus urticae is extremely hard to control using conventional acaricides. As an alternative control measure of acaricide-resistant mites, RNA interference (RNAi)-based methods have recently been suggested. A double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) delivery method using multi-unit chambers was established and employed to screen the RNAi toxicity of 42 T. urticae genes. Among them, the dsRNA treatment of coatomer I (COPI) genes, such as coatomer subunit epsilon (COPE) and beta 2 (COPB2), resulted in high mortality [median lethal time (LT50) = 89.7 and 120.3h, respectively]. The transcript level of the COPE gene was significantly (F3,9 = 16.2, P =0.001) reduced by up to 24% following dsRNA treatment, suggesting that the toxicity was likely mediated by the RNAi of the target gene. As a toxicity enhancement strategy, the recombinant dsRNA was generated by reciprocally recombining half-divided fragments of COPE and COPB2. The two recombinant dsRNAs exhibited higher toxicity than the respective single dsRNA treatments as determined using LT50 values (79.2 and 81.5h, respectively). This finding indicates that the recombination of different genes can enhance RNAi toxicity and be utilized to generate synthetic dsRNA with improved RNAi efficacy.

Leptotrombidium pallidum is the major vector mites for Orientia tsutsugamushi, the causative agent of scrub typhus. To understand the molecular mechanism of L. pallidum, we sequenced the whole genome using Illumina sequencing technology. Totally four genomic libraries with different insert sizes ranging from 280 bp to 8 kb were used to generate 45.1 Gb of genome in the combination of paired-end and mate-pairs sequencing reads. Quality filtering and correction of paired-end reads for very small and/or bad-quality sequences yielded 26.9 Gb of high-quality sequences, which are used to estimate the genome size as 175 Mbusing kmer methods and assembled into a 193.7 Mb genomic sequence scaffolds with N50 length of 92,945 bp. Furthermore, 94% of CEGMA completeness score were obtained from genome scaffold assembly. To facilitate gene annotation, we used a combination of de novo and homology based tools to predict gene models in the chigger mite genome. A combination of evidence-based and de novo approaches predicted 15,842 high-confidence protein-coding genes with an average transcript length of 1,511 bp and 2.4 exons per gene which corresponds to about 12.4% total gene length. Bacterial endosymbiosis are very common in mite species and can range from mutualistic to pathogenic associations. Henceforth, the endosymbionts in L. pallidum were predicted using the NCBI microbial draft genomes and mitochondrial genome. Besides, this L. pallidum draft genome can be used as a significant reference for comparative genomic studies across mite species.

Galaxy clusters, the largest gravitationally bound systems, are an important subject of study to place constraints on cosmological models. Moreover, they are excellent places to test galaxy evolution models in connection to their environments. To date, massive clusters have been found unexpectedly (Kang & Im 2009; Gonzales et al. 2012) and the evolution of galaxies in clusters is still controversial (Elbaz et al. 2007; Faloon et al. 2013). Finding galaxy cluster candidates at z > 1 in a wide, deep imaging survey data will enable us to solve such issues of modern extragalactic astronomy. We report new candidate galaxy clusters in one of the wide and deep survey fields, the European Large Area ISO Survey North1 (ELAIS-N1) and North2 (ELAIS-N2) fields, covering a sky area of 8.75 deg2 and 4.85 deg2 each. We also suggest a new useful color selection technique to separate z > 1 galaxies from low - z galaxies by combining multi-wavelength data.

Biofilms of oral microbes can cause various diseases in the oral cavity, such as dental caries, periodontitis and mucosal disease. Electrolyzed water generated by an electric current passed via water using a metal electrode has an antimicrobial effect on pathogenic bacteria which cause food poisoning. This study investigated the antimicrobial activity of electrolyzed waters using various metal electrodes on the floatage and biofilms of oral microbes. The electrolyzed water was generated by passing electric current using copper, silver and platinum electrodes. The electrolyzed water has a neutral pH. Streptococcus mutans, Porphyromonas gingivalis and Tannerella forsythia were cultured, and were used to form a biofilm using specific media. The floatage and biofilm of the microbes were then treated with the electrolyzed water. The electrolyzed water using platinum electrode (EWP) exhibited strong antimicrobial activity against the floatage and biofilm of the oral microbes. However, the electrolyzed water using copper and silver electrodes had no effect. The EWP disrupted the biofilm of oral microbes, except the S. mutans biofilm. Comparing the different electrolyzed waters that we created the platinum electrode generated water may be an ideal candidate for prevention of dental caries and periodontitis.

Norovirus (NoV) is an etiologic agent of human and animal acute gastroenteritis and is a member of the family Caliciviridae. NoV is classified based on nucleotide sequences of the VP1 gene into at least six genogroups (GI-GVI), among which GI, GII, and GIV are known to infect humans and GII is the most prevalent genogroup. In this study, VP1, the full gene of GII human NoV, was cloned from a human fecal sample and expressed using a baculovirus expression system. Human NoV VP1-specific monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) were produced using expressed recombinant VP1. Expressed VP1 in the recombinant virus was confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), indirect fluorescence antibody (IFA) test, and Western blot analysis. Eight hybridomas secreting VP1-specific MAbs against human GII NoV were generated and characterized. All of the MAbs produced in this study reacted with human GII NoV VP1-recombinant baculoviruses but not with other non-human calicivirus recombinant baculoviruses. These MAbs reacted specifically with human NoV GII.4-2009 virus-like particles (VLPs), and some MAbs showed cross-reactivity with other GII.4 variant VLPs. Expressed human GII NoV VP1-recombinant protein and MAbs specific to this protein can be used as useful reagents for detecting and characterizing human NoV.

Caliber persistent artery (CPA) is a vascular anomaly presenting as a bluish and pulsatile artery in the subepithelial tissue. Although the incidence of CPA was debated, many CPAs occurred in the perioral and facial tissues at which the embryonal strapedial artery networks were distributed. The present study demonstrated a case of CPA occurred in the retromolar buccal mucosa in a 37 years old male. The lesion showed many pinkish granular spots, but was asymptomatic except biting irritation during mastication. It had slowly increased in size up to 20 × 25 mm for 3 years, and recently became hemorrhagic due to the biting injury between left upper and lower second molars. With the fear of oral cancer an incisional biopsy was performed, and followed by histological and immunohistochemical study. Histologically the lesion showed many tortuous artery localized at the submucosa area, and the arterial wall was thick and its lumen was narrowed and shrunken. In the immunochemistry α-SMA was positive for thick smooth muscle layer of artery and arterioles, TGase 2 was weakly positive for the luminal surface of arterial intima, and bFGF was consistently positive for the perivascular fibrous tissue. But PCNA, VEGF, CD31, CMG2, TGF-β1, HSP-70, and 14-3-3 were almost negative for the vascular tissue. Therefore, it was presumed that the lesion was not actively proliferative nor degenerative but still retained its cellular stability and slow growing potential. It was finally diagnosed as CPA differentially from arterio-venous malformation, hemangioma, lymphangioma, and squamous cell carcinoma. The retromolar buccal mucosa CPA is first reported in this study and may present usual clinical findings depending on its size and location. This asymptomatic lesion could be severely hemorrhagic by minor biting injury, therefore, precise differential diagnosis should be made through biopsy, and careful therapy be followed.