Barnyard millet is a short-lived tropical, short-term C4 plant and has superior vitality in humid conditions owing to its freshwater habitat. It shows strong adaptability to soils with poor drainage and low fertility, and efficiently competes with rice in paddy fields. Barnyard millet grain is used as feed in the Indian region and is a great source of dietary fiber, proteins, fats, vitamins, and some essential amino acids. Considering its high nutritional value and its potential as a food resource and fodder crop, various countries are showing interest in cultivating barnyard millet. However, in Korea, farm households have not yet recognized the benefits of cultivating barnyard millet, and research regarding this is scarce. In this review, the features of forage barnyard millet and its related research trends are discussed, with the aim of improving interest in this crop and promoting its cultivation.

Activated carbon fibers (ACFs) were treated by electroless plating of CuO to improve their removal performance for volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The properties of these samples(CuO@ACFs) were evaluated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), BET and N2O chemisorption to determine the area and dispersion of metallic CuO. The removal efficiency for benzene was investigated by gas chromatography (GC). The breakthrough time of CuO@ACFs increased by approximately 120% compared to that of untreated ACFs at benzene of 100 ppm. CuO@ACFs removed 100% of the benzene in 20 h, indicating this material can be used as a removal technology for VOCs.

Since a cluster of pneumonia cases of unknown etiology was first reported in China in December 2019, the number of confirmed cases with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) (caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 [SARS-CoV-2]) worldwide has been increasing, and nearly two million patients are expected to have died by February 2021. Globally, COVID-19 is being considered a primary pulmonary disease, but it is more than a lung infection. This is because patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 present with a variety of clinical signs and symptoms involving many organs, ranging from fever, inflammation, myocardial injury, shock, and the development of coronary artery aneurysm. SARS-CoV-2 shows unique characteristics in its transmission, mortality, and stability in different environmental conditions. During COVID-19 pandemic, about 10 drugs have been clinically tried with none proven to be effective. With no prospect for effective drugs in the near future, there are currently possibilities of success with vaccines and convalescent plasma. Along with the prospect of vaccines and other therapeutic drugs, special precautions (isolation, testing, treating, and tracing) are strictly recommended until we return to normal situations. In this review we comprehensively analyzed the clinical presentations, characteristics, and outcomes of patients with COVID-19, and tried to assess the clinical effects of some drugs as part of the ongoing efforts to understand COVID-19 pandemic.

The fruit of Chaenomeles sinensis (Thouin) Koehne (Chaenomelis Fructus) known as “Mo-Gua” in Korea has been commonly used in traditional medicine to treat inflammatory diseases, such as sore throat. However, its effect on bone metabolism has not been elucidated yet. Here, we examined the effect of Chaenomelis Fructus ethanol extract (CFE) on receptor activator of nuclear factor (NF)-κB ligand (RANKL)-mediated osteoclast differentiation and formation. CF-E considerably inhibited osteoclast differentiation and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase-positive multinuclear cell formation from bone marrow-derived macrophages and osteoclast precursor cells in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, the formation of actin rings and resorption pits were significantly suppressed in CF-E-treated osteoclasts as compared with the findings in non-treated control cells. Consistent with these phenotypic inhibitory results, the expressions of osteoclast differentiation marker genes (Acp5, Atp6v0d2 , Oscar, CtsK, and Tm7sf4) and Nfatc1 , a pivotal transcription factor for osteoclastogenesis, were markedly decreased by CF-E treatment. The inhibitory effect of CF-E on RANKL-induced osteoclastogenesis was associated with the suppression of NFATc1 expression, not by regulation of mitogen-activated protein kinases and NF-κB activation but by the inactivation of phospholipase C gamma 1 and 2. These results indicate that CF-E has an inhibitory effect on osteoclast differentiation and formation, and they suggest the possibility of CF-E as a traditional therapeutic agent against bone-resorptive diseases, such as osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and periodontitis.

To enhance mechanical properties through improvement of dispersion stability of carbon black (CB) in epoxy resins, fluorine functional groups were introduced on the CB surface by fluorination. The changes in the chemical properties and dispersion stabilities after fluorination were evaluated with different partial pressures of fluorine gas. The mechanical properties of the fluorinated CB/epoxy composites were evaluated by the test of tensile, impact strengths and creep behavior. The fluorinated CB/epoxy composites showed approximately 1.6 and 1.1 times enhancement in the tensile and impact strengths compared to that of neat epoxy, respectively. Moreover, when a constant load was applied at 323 K, the fluorinated CB/epoxy composites lasted longer and had smaller strain changes than those of the raw CB/epoxy composites. Thus, well-dispersed CB by fluorination in epoxy resins effectively transfers mechanical stress.

Persistent left cranial vena cava (PLCVC) is a remnant vessel connected with the coronary sinus and draining into the right atrium. A 3-month-old intact male Bichon Frise was evaluated for the presence of a mechanical murmur auscultation in the local animal hospital. No significant clinical signs were present on physical examination except mechanical murmur. Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) was diagnosed in the imaging procedure. During the left thoracotomy, PLCVC was found. The vascular malformation made the surgical process difficult by hiding PDA from the left thoracotomy surgical view. PLCVC and the vagus nerve was carefully dissected and lifted to secure a clear surgical view of PDA. The ductus arteriosus was ligated. Computed tomography angiography (CTA) was performed postoperatively. On CTA, left brachiocephalic vein retaining connection with the coronary sinus draining into the right atrium was observed. CTA is highly recommended for dogs with PDA to provide better postoperative results.

PURPOSES : Thermal cracking (also called low-temperature cracking) is a serious stress for asphalt pavement, especially in eastern South Korea, the northern USA, and Canada. Thermal cracking occurs when the level of thermal stress exceeds the corresponding level of low temperature strength of the given asphalt materials. Therefore, computation of thermal stress is a key factor for understanding, quantifying, and evaluating the level of low-temperature cracking resistance of asphalt pavement. In this paper, two different approaches for computing thermal stress on asphalt binder were introduced: Hopkins and Hamming’s algorithm (1967) and the application of a simple power-law function. All the computed results were compared visually; then the findings and recommendations were discussed. METHODS: Thermal stress of the tested asphalt binder was computed based on the methodology introduced in previous literatures related to viscoelastic theory. To perform the numerical analysis, MATLABTM 2D matrix-correlation and Microsoft Excel visual basic code were developed and used for the function fitting and value-minimization processes, respectively. RESULTS : Different results from thermal stress were observed with application of different computation approaches. This variation of the data trends could be recognized not only visually but also statistically. CONCLUSIONS: It can be concluded that these two different computation approaches can successfully provide upper and lower limits (i.e. boundaries) for thermal stress prediction of a given asphalt binder. Based on these findings, more reliable and reasonable thermal stress results could be provided and finally, better pavement performance predictions could also be expected.

우드펠렛은 가정용, 상업용, 산업용 등으로 사용되며 특히 화력발전소에서 석탄 대용으로 수입량이 급증하여 연간 약 2,400만톤 가량 수입되고 있는 상황이다. 우드펠렛 검역훈증제로 기존에는 메틸브로마이드(이하 MB)가 최근까지 사용되어져 왔으나, MB의 높은 흡착률과 우드펠렛의 과도한 수용비로 인해 최종가스농도 기준에 미치지 못하여 재투약하는 사례가 빈번히 발생해 문제가 되어져왔다. 이를 해결하기 위해 농림축산검역본부에서는 올해 초 MB와 포스핀을 병행으로 처리하는 방식의 소독처리기준을 신설하였다. 새로운 소독처리기준이 설정됨에 따라 배기시 안전한 배기시간 수준을 설정하기 위해 병행처리 후 수착과 탈착되는 가스농도를 조사하였다. 실내 훈증상에 우드펠렛을 채우고 약제 처리한 결과 각 훈증제의 TLV(Threshold Limit Value)-TWA(Time Weighted Average) 기준이하로 농도가 감소되는 배기시간은 25℃일 때 MB는 120시간, 포스핀은 6시간으로 측정되었고 15℃일 때 MB는 186시간, 포스핀은 19시간으로 측정되었다.

고준위방사성폐기물 심지층 처분 대상 암종으로 고려되는 화강암에서 방사성핵종의 장기 거동특성을 이해하기 위한 연구의 일환으로 KURT (KAERI Underground Research Tunnel) 화강암에 존재하는 우라늄의 용출특성에 대한 연구를 수행하였다. 반응 시작 후부터 10일 동안의 반응기간 중 다른 반응용액에 비해 CO3 2- 농도가 높은 UD-CO3 및 UD-Bg 반응용액에서 우라늄의 용출량이 다소 급격하게 증가하였다. 또한 Na 또는 Ca가 다량 함유된 반응용액에서 반응 60일 이후 우라늄 용출량이 다소 급격히 증가하였다. 각 반응용액에 의한 반응 270일까지의 우라늄의 용출량은 UD-CO3 (44.61 μg·L-1), UD-Bg (41.01 μg·L-1), UD-Na (26.87 μg·L-1), UD-Ca (20.26 μg·L-1), UD-CaSi (17.03 μg·L-1), UD-Si (10.47 μg·L-1)으로 지속적으 로 증가 하였으나, 반응 270일 이후 우라늄 용출량은 점차 감소하는 경향을 나타낸다. 이는 화강암 시료 내에 존재하는 우라늄이 반응용액과 상호반응에 의해 최대 용출될 수 있는 한계에 도달하였기 때문으로 판단된다. 우라늄 용출은 혼합된 반응 용액 내의 CO3 2- 존재와 수질의 지화학적 유형에 따라 우라늄의 용출 농도 및 용출 최대치가 나타나는 시점이 다르게 확인되 었다. 이는 시료와 반응용액의 상호반응 과정에서 용존이온의 영향에 의해 화강암시료와 반응용액 사이에 반응속도의 차이가 발생하는 것으로 판단된다.