A twelve-year-old, spayed female Siamese cat was presented for health screening. Abdominal radiography revealed a large amount of mineral opacity substances of various sizes and shapes, along with mild gaseous dilation proximal to the lesion. Ultrasonography showed hyperechoic surface with acoustic shadowing at the ileum and wall thickening of the ileum. Enterotomy was performed to remove the foreign bodies, which were numerous hairball- and stone-like objects. Analysis of the enteroliths revealed a composition of calcium phosphate. Although enterolithiasis is considered rare in cats, it should be included in the differential diagnosis when numerous pebble-like mineral opacity lesions are observed.

Pelle, a serine/threonine kinase, is an intracellular component of the Toll pathway and is involved in antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) production due to pathogenic infection. It is known that the Pelle phosphorylates Cactus and activates the NF-κB signaling pathway in Drosophila, but it is not studied in Tenebrio molitor. In this study we investigated the tissue-specific expression patterns of the Pelle following pathogenic infection at 3, 6, 9, 12, and 24 hours. Additionally, larval mortality and AMP expression against microbial injection were investigated in dsPelle-treated T. molitor larvae. Our results may help to understand the antimicrobial function of TmPelle.

Background: Canine induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are an attractive source for veterinary regenerative medicine, disease modeling, and drug development. Here we used vitamin C (Vc) to improve the reprogramming efficiency of canine iPSCs, and its functions in the reprogramming process were elucidated. Methods: Retroviral transduction of Oct4, Sox2, Klf4, c-Myc (OSKM), and GFP was employed to induce reprogramming in canine fetal fibroblasts. Following transduction, the culture medium was subsequently replaced with ESC medium containing Vc to determine the effect on reprogramming activity. Results: The number of AP-positive iPSC colonies dramatically increased in culture conditions supplemented with Vc. Vc enhanced the efficacy of retrovirus transduction, which appears to be correlated with enhanced cell proliferation capacity. To confirm the characteristics of the Vc-treated iPSCs, the cells were cultured to passage 5, and pluripotency markers including Oct4, Sox2, Nanog, and Tra-1-60 were observed by immunocytochemistry. The expression of endogenous pluripotent genes (Oct4, Nanog, Rex1, and telomerase) were also verified by PCR. The complete silencing of exogenously transduced human OSKM factors was observed exclusively in canine iPSCs treated with Vc. Canine iPSCs treated with Vc are capable of forming embryoid bodies in vitro and have spontaneously differentiated into three germ layers. Conclusions: Our findings emphasize a straightforward method for enhancing the efficiency of canine iPSC generation and provide insight into the Vc effect on the reprogramming process.

Pasture formation and management are crucial to avoid yield reduction. This experiment aimed to examine the effects of tall fescue-centered mixed-seeding combinations on yield and vegetation changes in perennial pastures in the central region for two years, from September 2020 to October 2022. The treatments were arranged in three replications in a randomized block design: control (C), tall fescue-based mixture-1 (T-1), and tall fescue-based mixture-2 (T-2). The tall fescue (TF), orchard grass (OG), perennial ryegrass (PRG), Kentucky bluegrass (KBG), and white clover (WC) were used. The emergency rate of grasses (70.0 to 73.3%) did not differ among mixed seeding combinations. Overwintering rates (81.7 to 83.3%) were similar among treatments. The plant height of grasses was similar at each harvest date, with the highest height (86.2 cm) recorded in the second harvest of the first year, followed by that (58.4 cm) in the third harvest of the first year; it was least (38.9 cm) in the fourth harvest of the second year. There was no significant difference in the dry matter yield of grasses among the mixed seeding combination treatments in the first, third, or fourth harvests of the first year (p>0.05). For second-year grasses, dry matter yield was not significantly different in harvest date among the treatments (p>0.05). Based on mixed seeding ratio, orchard grass showed the highest yield at 70% in the C treatment, followed by tall fescue at 80% and 60% in the T-1 and T-2 treatments, respectively, in the first harvest after seeding. There was no significant difference in feed value between treatments (p>0.05), but a significant difference was observed between the third and fourth harvest (p<0.05). Therefore, it indicated that it is important to create perennial pastures in the central region through mixed seeding combinations centered on tall fescue.

자생식물은 관상용, 약용, 식량자원으로 활용될 수 있는 잠재력을 지닌 고유 유전자원이다. 돌부추(Allium koreanum H.J. Choi & B.U. Oh)는 우리나라 해안 암반지대에 분포하는 자생식물 중 하나로, 기후변화와 서식지 감 소로 인해 보전 가치가 높은 식물이다. 이번 연구는 온도와 과산화수소가 돌부추의 발아에 미치는 영향을 조사하기 위해 수행되었다. 종자를 무처리(대조군) 또는 1% 과산화수소(H2O2)로 90분간 처리한 종자를 준비해 15, 20, 25°C 로 설정된 식물 생장 챔버에 배치하였다. 그 결과, 파종 23일 후 15°C에서 42%인 발아율이 20°C와 25°C에서 각각 18%와 0%인 발아율보다 2배 이상 높았으며, H2O2 처리 여부와 관계없이 15°C에서 발아율이 42%로 가장 높았다. H2O2 처리와 관계없이 최종 발아율 50%(T50)에 도달하는 일수는 20°C에서 가장 짧았지만, 일평균 발아율(MDG)은 15°C에서 가장 높았다. 따라서 1%의 H2O2 처리는 돌부추의 발아율에 큰 영향을 미치지 않았으며, 15°C의 온도가 돌부추의 발아율을 높이는 데 최적인 것으로 판단된다. 본 연구 결과는 돌부추의 발아를 위한 기초 연구 자료로 활 용될 수 있을 것으로 기대된다.

User churn in games often arises due to inadequate game difficulty. To address this, non-player characters (NPCs) has been utilized to modulate difficulty according to individual game skill. Nevertheless, the effectiveness of solely NPC-based adjustments is limited since game difficulty is influenced by both NPCs and environmental factors. This paper introduces a novel method for dynamically tailoring game difficulty by adjusting in-game environments based on player behavior patterns in top-down shooter game. Through analysis of diverse user game play data, we find that factors within the game environment, such as the distribution of enemy characters and the arrangement of terrain, have a substantial influence on the level of difficulty. Furthermore, it has been observed that behavioral patterns of players show variations according to changes in the game environment. Using these analytical result, we devise an artificial neural network model that configures an environment that suit player behavior patterns. With the model, we figure out the user player pattern and control the difficulty dynamically by changing the environment factors. Through the experiments, we show that our method provides an appropriate level of difficulty for users to prevent user churn.

A 13-year-old mixed dog was referred to the animal medical center, Gyeongsang National University. Lung masses were diagnosed at the left cranial and caudal lobes through diagnostic imaging, and consequently, left pneumonectomy was performed using a self-cutting linear endoscopic stapler. The pulmonary arteries, veins, and bronchus of each lung lobe were sealed and resected at once, and any air leakage or bleeding was not observed after the surgery. Compared to the conventional ligation method, the self-cutting linear endoscopic stapler has the advantage of significantly reducing the operation time and enabling simple and reliable sealing.

Climate change effects are particularly apparent in many cool-season grasslands in South Korea. Moreover, the probability of climate extremes has intensified and is expected to increase further. In this study, we performed climate change vulnerability assessments in cool-season grasslands based on the analytic hierarchy process method to contribute toward effective decision-making to help reduce grassland damage caused by climate change and extreme weather conditions. In the analytic hierarchy process analysis, vulnerability was found to be influenced in the order of climate exposure (0.575), adaptive capacity (0.283), and sensitivity (0.141). The climate exposure rating value was low in Jeju-do Province and high in Daegu (0.36–0.39) and Incheon (0.33–0.5). The adaptive capacity index showed that grassland compatibility (0.616) is more important than other indicators. The adaptation index of Jeollanam-do Province was higher than that of other regions and relatively low in Gangwon-do Province. In terms of sensitivity, grassland area and unused grassland area were found to affect sensitivity the most with index values of 0.487 and 0.513, respectively. The grassland area rating value was low in Jeju-do and Gangwon-do Province, which had large grassland areas. In terms of vulnerability, that of Jeju-do Province was lower and of Gyeongsangbuk-do Province higher than of other regions. These results suggest that integrating the three aspects of vulnerability (climate exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity) may offer comprehensive and spatially explicit adaptation plans to reduce the impacts of climate change on the cool-season grasslands of South Korea.

This research is conducted to analyze the compatibility of used monomers and produce the high functional hydrogel ophthalmic polymer containing silane and nanoparticles. VTMS (vinyltrimethoxysilane), TAVS [Triacetoxy(vinyl)silane] and cobalt oxide nanoparticles are used as additives for the basic combination of SilM (silicone monomer), MMA (methyl methacrylate) and MA (methyl acrylate). Also, the materials are copolymerized with EGDMA (ethylene glycol dimethacrylate) as cross-linking agent, AIBN (thermal polymerization initiator) as the initiator. It is judged that the lenses of all combinations are optically excellent and thus have good compatibility. Measurement of the optical and physical characteristics of the manufactured hydrophilic ophthalmic polymer are different in each case. Especially for TAVS, the addition of cobalt oxide nanoparticles increases the oxygen permeability. These materials are considered to create synergy, so they can be used in functional hydrogel ophthalmic lenses.

본 연구는 관상가치가 뛰어난 산꼬리풀의 분화 재배법을 확립하고자 차광, 기비, 추비, 왜화제 및 적심처리를 각각 달리하여 수행하였다. 연구의 결과 차광 시 산꼬리풀의 생육이 감소 하였으며, 차광률이 증가할수록 크게 억제되었다. 기비 처리는 초장, 절간장, 경직경 및 엽수를 유의적으로 증가하였으나, Hyponex를 이용한 추비 처리는 무처리와 비교했을 때 생육증가에 큰 영향을 미치지 않았다. 왜화제 처리시 diniconazole은 농도에 관계없이 왜화효과가 나타났으며, 농도가 증가할수록 크게 억제되었다. Daminozide는 저농도 처리시 무처리와 비교하여 큰 차이가 없었으나, 2000mg·L-1 농도로 처리하였을 때 왜화효과가 나타났으며, 개화율은 diniconazole 저농도에서 가장 낮은 결과를 보였다. 한편 적심 처리에 따른 유의적인 생육 차이는 확인되지 않았다.

In this paper, nitrogen (N)-doped ultra-porous carbon derived from lignin is synthesized through hydrothermal carbonization, KOH activation, and post-doping process for CO2 adsorption. The specific surface areas of obtained N-doped porous carbons range from 247 to 3064 m2/g due to a successful KOH activation. N-containing groups of 0.62–1.17 wt% including pyridinic N, pyridone N, pyridine-N-oxide are found on the surface of porous carbon. N-doped porous carbon achieves the maximum CO2 adsorption capacity of 13.6 mmol/g at 25 °C up to 10 atm and high stability over 10 adsorption/desorption cycles. As confirmed by enthalpy calculation with the Clausius–Clapeyron equation, an adsorption heat of N-doped porous carbon is higher than non-doped porous carbon, indicating a role of N functionalities for enhanced CO2 adsorption capability. The overall results suggest that this carbon has high CO2 capture capacity and can be easily regenerated and reused without any clear loss of CO2 adsorption capacity.