Empirical Analysis of Retirement Pension and IFRS Adoption Effects on Accounting Information: Glance at IT Industry

Hindawi Publishing Corporation 2014 The Scientific World Journal Vol.2014 No.-

<P>This study reviews new pension accounting with K-IFRS and provides empirical changes in liability for retirement allowances with adoption of K-IFRS. It will help to understand the effect of pension accounting on individual firm's financial report and the importance of public announcement of actuarial assumptions. Firms that adopted K-IFRS had various changes in retirement liability compared to the previous financial report not based on K-IFRS. Their actuarial assumptions for pension accounting should be announced, but only few of them were published. Data analysis shows that the small differences of the actuarial assumption may result in a big change of retirement related liability. Firms within IT industry also have similar behaviors, which means that additional financial regulations for pension accounting are recommended.</P>

Postinjury Neuroplasticity in Central Neural Networks

Lee, Bae Hwan,Lim, Tae-Hong,Yoon, Young Wook,Yenari, Midori A.,Jeong, Yong Hindawi Publishing Corporation 2015 Neural plasticity Vol.2015 No.-

Antiproliferative Action of Conjugated Linoleic Acid on Human MCF-7 Breast Cancer Cells Mediated by Enhancement of Gap Junctional Intercellular Communication through Inactivation of NF- <i><i>κ</i></i> B

Rakib, Md. Abdur,Lee, Won Sup,Kim, Gon Sup,Han, Jae Hee,Kim, Jeong Ok,Ha, Yeong Lae Hindawi Publishing Corporation 2013 Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medic Vol.2013 No.-

<P>The major conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) isomers, <I>c</I>9,<I>t</I>11-CLA and <I>t</I>10,<I>c</I>12-CLA, have anticancer effects; however, the exact mechanisms underlying these effects are unknown. Evidence suggests that reversal of reduced gap junctional intercellular communication (GJIC) in cancer cells inhibits cell growth and induces cell death. Hence, we determined that CLA isomers enhance GJIC in human MCF-7 breast cancer cells and investigated the underlying molecular mechanisms. The CLA isomers significantly enhanced GJIC of MCF-7 cells at 40 <I><I>μ</I></I>M concentration, whereas CLA inhibited cell growth and induced caspase-dependent apoptosis. CLA increased connexin43 (Cx43) expression both at the transcriptional and translational levels. CLA inhibited nuclear factor-<I><I>κ</I></I>B (NF-<I><I>κ</I></I>B) activity and enhanced reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation. No significant difference was observed in the efficacy of <I>c</I>9,<I>t</I>11-CLA and <I>t</I>10,<I>c</I>12-CLA. These results suggest that the anticancer effect of CLA is associated with upregulation of GJIC mediated by enhanced Cx43 expression through inactivation of NF-<I><I>κ</I></I>B and generation of ROS in MCF-7 cells.</P>

Availability of Tongue Diagnosis System for Assessing Tongue Coating Thickness in Patients with Functional Dyspepsia

Kim, Juyeon,Son, Jiyoung,Jang, Seungwon,Nam, Dong-Hyun,Han, Gajin,Yeo, Inkwon,Ko, Seok-Jae,Park, Jae-Woo,Ryu, Bongha,Kim, Jinsung Hindawi Publishing Corporation 2013 Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medic Vol.2013 No.-

<P>Tongue diagnosis is an important procedure in traditional Korean medicine (TKM). In particular, tongue coating thickness (TCT) is deemed to show the progression of the disease. However, conventional tongue diagnosis has limitations because of various external factors. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate the availability of tongue diagnosis system (TDS) in the assessment of TCT. This study has been designed as a prospective clinical trial involving 60 patients with functional dyspepsia. Tongue images will be obtained by TDS twice with a 30 min interval. The system will measure the percentage of TCT and classify it as either no coating, thin coating, or thick coating according to the existing diagnostic criteria. After finishing the collection of 60 patients' tongue images, TCT on the images will be simultaneously evaluated by the conventional method to establish the gold standard for assessing TCT by 5 well-trained clinicians. The evaluation will be repeated by the same clinicians after 2 weeks, but the order of the images will be changed. This trial is expected to provide clinical evidence for the availability of TDS as a diagnostic tool and to contribute to the standardization of the diagnosis system used in TKM. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01864837.</P>

The Effects of <i>Banha-sasim-tang</i> on Dyspeptic Symptoms and Gastric Motility in Cases of Functional Dyspepsia: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, and Two-Center Trial

Park, Jae-Woo,Ko, Seok-Jae,Han, Gajin,Yeo, Inkwon,Ryu, Bongha,Kim, Jinsung Hindawi Publishing Corporation 2013 Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medic Vol.2013 No.-

<P><I>Introduction</I>. Functional dyspepsia (FD) is highly prevalent, and no standard treatments exist for this condition. Herbal prescriptions are widely used to treat FD. In traditional Korean medicine, <I>Banha-sasim-tang</I> (BST) is a famous herbal prescription for dyspepsia. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of BST and to examine the relationship between gastric slow waves and dyspeptic symptoms. <I>Materials and Methods</I>. In total, 100 FD patients were recruited; BST or placebo was administered for 6 weeks. The gastrointestinal symptom scale, FD-related quality of life scale, and frequency or power variables regarding gastric slow waves were measured at 0, 6, and 14 weeks. <I>Results</I>. There were no significant differences in the overall dyspeptic symptoms or quality of life between the BST and placebo groups. However, early satiety was significantly improved in the BST group (<I>P</I> = 0.009, at 6 weeks by intention-to-treat analysis). Abnormal gastric dysrhythmias and power ratios were also significantly improved by BST. <I>Conclusion</I>. BST had no significant effects on FD. However, early satiety appeared to improve after BST administration. Electrogastrography may be a useful technique for assessing changes in gastric motility dysfunction after interventions for FD. Further investigation focused on specific symptoms or subtypes of FD is required.</P>

Rubi Fructus ( <i>Rubus coreanus</i> ) Inhibits Differentiation to Adipocytes in 3T3-L1 Cells

Jeong, Mi-Young,Kim, Hye-Lin,Park, Jinbong,An, Hyo-Jin,Kim, Sung-Hoon,Kim, Su-Jin,So, Hong-Seob,Park, Raekil,Um, Jae-Young,Hong, Seung-Heon Hindawi Publishing Corporation 2013 Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medic Vol.2013 No.-

<P>Rubi Fructus (RF) is known to exert several pharmacological effects including antitumor, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory activities. However, its antiobesity effect has not been reported yet. This study was focused on the antidifferentiation effect of RF extract on 3T3-L1 preadipocytes. When 3T3-L1 preadipocytes were differentiating into adipocytes, 10–100 <I><I>μ</I></I>g/mL of RF was added. Next, the lipid contents were quantified by Oil Red O staining. RF significantly reduced lipid accumulation and downregulated the expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor <I><I>γ</I></I> (PPAR<I><I>γ</I></I>), CCAAT0-enhancer-binding proteins <I><I>α</I></I> (C/EBP<I><I>α</I></I>), adipocyte fatty acid-binding protein 2 (aP2), resistin, and adiponectin in ways that were concentration dependent. Moreover, RF markedly upregulated liver kinase B1 and AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK). Interestingly, pretreatment with AMPK<I><I>α</I></I> siRNA and RF downregulated the expression of PPAR<I><I>γ</I></I> and C/EBP<I><I>α</I></I> protein as well as the adipocyte differentiation. Our study shows that RF is capable of inhibiting the differentiation of 3T3-L1 adipocytes through the modulation of PPAR<I><I>γ</I></I>, C/EBP<I><I>α</I></I>, and AMPK, suggesting that it has a potential for therapeutic application in the treatment or prevention of obesity.</P>

Isolation of Resveratrol from Vitis Viniferae Caulis and Its Potent Inhibition of Human Tyrosinase

Park, Jiaa,Boo, Yong Chool Hindawi Publishing Corporation 2013 Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medic Vol.2013 No.-

<P>Tyrosinase (TYR) catalyzes rate-limiting reactions of cellular melanin synthesis, and its inhibitors are of commercial interest as potential skin whitening agents. However, the limited availability of human TYR makes the screening of TYR inhibitors difficult. To overcome this hurdle, we transformed nonmelanocytic human embryonic kidney (HEK) 293 cells to express human TYR constitutively. Using these cells as a source of human TYR, the ethanolic extracts of 52 medicinal plants grown in Korea were tested for human TYR activity, and the extract of Vitis Viniferae Caulis (dried stems of the grape tree, <I>Vitis vinifera</I> L.) was found to inhibit human TYR activity potently. An active compound was isolated from this extract by solvent fractionation followed by liquid column chromatography and identified as resveratrol by spectroscopic and chromatographic analyses. Resveratrol was determined to be a highly potent inhibitor of human TYR (IC50 = 0.39 <I><I>μ</I></I>g mL<SUP>−1</SUP>) as compared with p-coumaric acid (IC50 = 0.66 <I><I>μ</I></I>g mL<SUP>−1</SUP>) and arbutin (IC50 > 100 <I><I>μ</I></I>g mL<SUP>−1</SUP>) and inhibited melanin synthesis by human epidermal melanocytes at subtoxic concentrations. This study suggests that resveratrol and resveratrol-containing extracts of Vitis Viniferae Caulis have a potential use as skin whitening agents.</P>

Gross Morphological Features of the Organ Surface Primo-Vascular System Revealed by Hemacolor Staining

Lim, Chae Jeong,Yoo, Jong-Hyun,Kim, Yongbaek,Lee, So Yeong,Ryu, Pan Dong Hindawi Publishing Corporation 2013 Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medic Vol.2013 No.-

<P>The primo-vascular system (PVS), which consists of primo-vessels (PVs) and primo-nodes (PNs), is a novel thread-like structure identified in many animal species. Various observational methods have been used to clarify its anatomical properties. Here, we used Hemacolor staining to examine the gross morphology of organ-surface PVS in rats. We observed a sinus structure (20–50 <I><I>μ</I></I>m) with a remarkably low cellularity within PNs and PVs and several lines of ductules (3–5 <I><I>μ</I></I>m) filled with single cells or granules (<I>~</I>1 <I><I>μ</I></I>m) in PV. Both sinuses and ductules were linearly aligned along the longitudinal axis of the PVS. Such morphology of the PVS was further confirmed by acridine orange staining. In PN slices, there was a honeycomb-like structure containing the granules with pentagonal lumens (<I>~</I>10 <I><I>μ</I></I>m). Both PVs and PNs were densely filled with WBCs, RBCs, and putative mast cells (MCs), which were 90.3%, 5.9%, and 3.8% of the cell population, respectively. Granules in putative MCs showed spontaneous vibrating movements. In conclusion, the results show that Hemacolor, a simple and rapid staining system, can reveal the gross morphological features reported previously. Our findings may help to elucidate the structure and function of the PVS in normal and disease states in future studies.</P>

Effects of Laser Acupuncture on Longitudinal Bone Growth in Adolescent Rats

Yeom, Mijung,Kim, Sung-Hun,Lee, Bina,Zhang, Xiuyu,Lee, Hyangsook,Hahm, Dae-Hyun,Sohn, Youngjoo,Lee, Hyejung Hindawi Publishing Corporation 2013 Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medic Vol.2013 No.-

<P>Longitudinal bone growth is the results of chondrocyte proliferation and hypertrophy and subsequent endochondral ossification in the growth plate. Recently, laser acupuncture (LA), an intervention to stimulate acupoint with low-level laser irradiation, has been suggested as an intervention to improve the longitudinal bone growth. This study investigated the effects of laser acupuncture on growth, particularly longitudinal bone growth in adolescent male rats. Laser acupuncture was performed once every other day for a total of 9 treatments over 18 days to adolescent male rats. Morphometry of the growth plate, longitudinal bone growth rate, and the protein expression of BMP-2 and IGF-1 in growth plate were observed. The bone growth rate and the heights of growth plates were significantly increased by laser acupuncture. BMP-2 but not IGF-1 immunostaining in growth plate was increased as well. In conclusion, LA promotes longitudinal bone growth in adolescent rats, suggesting that laser acupuncture may be a promising intervention for improving the growth potential for children and adolescents.</P>

Blockade of Airway Inflammation by Kaempferol via Disturbing Tyk-STAT Signaling in Airway Epithelial Cells and in Asthmatic Mice

Gong, Ju-Hyun,Shin, Daekeun,Han, Seon-Young,Park, Sin-Hye,Kang, Min-Kyung,Kim, Jung-Lye,Kang, Young-Hee Hindawi Publishing Corporation 2013 Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medic Vol.2013 No.-

<P>Asthma is characterized by bronchial inflammation causing increased airway hyperresponsiveness and eosinophilia. The interaction between airway epithelium and inflammatory mediators plays a key role in the asthmatic pathogenesis. The <I>in vitro</I> study elucidated inhibitory effects of kaempferol, a flavonoid found in apples and many berries, on inflammation in human airway epithelial BEAS-2B cells. Nontoxic kaempferol at ≤20 <I><I>μ</I></I>M suppressed the LPS-induced IL-8 production through the TLR4 activation, inhibiting eotaxin-1 induction. The <I>in vivo</I> study explored the demoting effects of kaempferol on asthmatic inflammation in BALB/c mice sensitized with ovalbumin (OVA). Mouse macrophage inflammatory protein-2 production and CXCR2 expression were upregulated in OVA-challenged mice, which was attenuated by oral administration of ≥10 mg/kg kaempferol. Kaempferol allayed the airway tissue levels of eotaxin-1 and eotaxin receptor CCR3 enhanced by OVA challenge. This study further explored the blockade of Tyk-STAT signaling by kaempferol in both LPS-stimulated BEAS-2B cells and OVA-challenged mice. LPS activated Tyk2 responsible for eotaxin-1 induction, while kaempferol dose-dependently inhibited LPS- or IL-8-inflamed Tyk2 activation. Similar inhibition of Tyk2 activation by kaempferol was observed in OVA-induced mice. Additionally, LPS stimulated the activation of STAT1/3 signaling concomitant with downregulated expression of Tyk-inhibiting SOCS3. In contrast, kaempferol encumbered STAT1/3 signaling with restoration of SOCS3 expression. Consistently, oral administration of kaempferol blocked STAT3 transactivation elevated by OVA challenge. These results demonstrate that kaempferol alleviated airway inflammation through modulating Tyk2-STAT1/3 signaling responsive to IL-8 in endotoxin-exposed airway epithelium and in asthmatic mice. Therefore, kaempferol may be a therapeutic agent targeting asthmatic diseases.</P>