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Pathogenic variants of KCNQ4 cause symmetrical, late-onset, progressive, high-frequency-affected hearing loss, which eventually involves all frequencies with age. To understand the contribution of KCNQ4 variants to hearing loss, we analyzed whole-exome and genome sequencing data from patients with hearing loss and individuals whose hearing phenotypes were unknown. In KCNQ4, we identified seven missense variants and one deletion variant in 9 hearing loss patients and 14 missense variants in the Korean population with an unknown hearing loss phenotype. The p.R420W and p.R447W variants were found in both cohorts. To investigate the effects of these variants on KCNQ4 function, we performed whole-cell patch clamping and examined their expression levels. Except for p.G435Afs*61, all KCNQ4 variants exhibited normal expression patterns similar to those of wild-type KCNQ4. The p.R331Q, p.R331W, p.G435Afs*61, and p.S691G variants, which were identified in patients with hearing loss, showed a potassium (K+) current density lower than or similar to that of p.L47P, a previously reported pathogenic variant. The p.S185W and p.R216H variants shifted the activation voltage to hyperpolarized voltages. The channel activity of the p.S185W, p.R216H, p.V672M, and p.S691G KCNQ4 proteins was rescued by the KCNQ activators retigabine or zinc pyrithione, whereas p.G435Afs*61 KCNQ4 proteins were partially rescued by sodium butyrate, a chemical chaperone. Additionally, the structure of the variants predicted using AlphaFold2 showed impaired pore configurations, as did the patch-clamp data. Our findings suggest that KCNQ4 variants may be overlooked in hearing loss that starts in adulthood. Some of these variants are medically treatable; hence, genetic screening for KCNQ4 is important.

Roses (Rosa hybrida) are a highly merchandised flower but lack blue varieties. Overexpression of the flavonoid 3′,5′-hydroxylase (F3′5′H) gene can increase the accumulation of blue pigment (delphinidin anthocyanin). However, sometimes the effect of F3′5′H gene alone is inadequate for producing blue flowers. Furthermore, the internal environment of the cell, such as an increase in pH, can also help the conversion of anthocyanins to blue pigments. Nonetheless, genetic engineering methods can simultaneously introduce multiple genes at the same time to regulate the development of blue pigments to achieve the ultimate breeding goal of producing blue color in roses. In the present study, to simultaneously adjust the accumulation of delphinidin and vacuolar pH, we introduced the Viola tricolor flavonoid 3′,5′-hydroxylase (VtF3′5′H) and Rosa hybrida Na+/H+ exchanger (RhNHX) genes into the white rose line “KR056002” using Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. The quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) results showed that the heterologous genes in the transgenic lines were highly expressed in petals and leaves, and simultaneously promoted the expression of related anthocyanin synthesis structural genes. Obvious color changes were observed in both petals and young leaves, especially when petals changed from white to red-purple. The formation of delphinidin was not detected in the petals of control plants, whereas the petals of transgenic lines had higher delphinidin content (135–214 μg/l) and increased pH value (0.45–0.53) compared with those of control plants.

Solution-processed zinc oxide (ZnO) thin-film transistors (TFTs) have received considerable attention as key elements for future electronics due to the ease of fabricating these TFTs and due to the natural abundance and hence low cost of ZnO. However, issues regarding the patterning of solution-processed ZnO semiconductor films unfortunately continue to pose a barrier to their commercialization. In this study, we optimized nanometer-thick photo-curable zinc acrylate (ZnA) films as ZnO precursors and used these precursors to prepare photo-patterned ZnO semiconductors for the fabrication of n-type TFTs. Solution-processed ZnA films were effectively micro-patterned under UV light, because UV-irradiated ZnA film was not solved in etching solvent as a result of photocrosslinking of diacrylate moiety. Through a sol-gel reaction, wurtzite ZnO crystals were stably formed from the photo-patterned ZnA films. After optimizing the film thickness and by using a photo-patterned ZrOx dielectric layer, the prepared ZnO TFT exhibited stable performances with a low-voltage operation within ±2 V. This approach for developing a ZnO semiconductor film can be used to enable the realization of simple, inexpensive, and environmentally friendly solution-processing techniques in electronic device fields.

Purpose : The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors affecting the occupational view of the optometrist by surveying general characteristics, major satisfaction, and occupational view of optometrist with optometry students. Methods : An online survey of 26 questions including general characteristics (11), professional self-concept (5), social perceptions (5), and optometrist’s professionalism (5) was conducted with 196 optometry students in Chungcheongnam-do. For the method of analysis, SPSS 18.0 statistical program was applied, and the statistical significance level was based on p

Purpose : The purpose of this study was to find out preventative measures for CVS symptoms by investigating the subjective symptoms of CVS and the online learning environments in university students currently using the computer a lot. Methods : The study was conducted with 140 university students who agreed to the questionnaire from March to April 2021. They were 70 male and 70 female students (50.0%) aged 19.87±1.48 years on average. The measurement tool was used the questionnaire with 32 questions, involving in general characteristics (4), online learning environment characteristics (12) and the subjective symptoms of CVS (16). Results : It was appeared that the most frequent symptom of CVS was ‘dryness’ (69.3%) and ‘feeling that sight is worsening’ (62.9%), ‘headache’ (60.7%), ’eye pain’ (53.6%) and ‘heavy eyelids’ (50.7%) appeared the most common symptoms in order. The group that spent time over 8 hours a day for computer a day showed more frequent symptoms of CVS, and the group that did not take regular breaks higher incidence in all CVS symptoms than the other group, which was statistically significant. Conclusion : We study confirmed the online learning environment and the subjective symptoms of CVS. The longer the computer usage time was, the higher the occurrences of CVS symptoms was. It was revealed that taking regular rests during online learning would reduce the frequencies of CVS symptoms. Furthermore, it was identified that the recognition of the need for regular eye exercise awareness shows better high results. Therefore, it is necessary to advertise and educate correct eye exercises and a way to relax.

Here we have reported whole-body disposition of wild-type IgG and FcRn non-binding IgG in mice, determined using Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). The disposition data generated using ELISA are compared with previously published biodistribution data generated using radiolabelled IgG. In addition, we introduce a novel concept of ABC(IS) values, which are defined as percentage ratios of tissue interstitial and plasma AUC values. These values can help in predicting tissue interstitial concentrations of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) based on the plasma concentrations. Tissue interstitial concentrations derived from our study are also compared with previously reported values measured using microdialysis or centrifugation method. Lastly, the new set of biodistribution data generated using ELISA are used to refine the PBPK model for mAbs.

Purpose : The purpose of this study was to investigate the customer response attitude, customer satisfaction, change seeking tendencies and switching intentions that customers experienced optical shops to understand the cause that influences the switching intentions of customers.Methods : The online survey was conducted from September to November 2019, and 209 participants who answered the questions were involved in this study. The survey was constructed with 20 questions including the customer response attitude, customer satisfaction, the change seeking tendencies of customers and the switching intentions.Results : The customer response attitude was an average of 3.76 while the customer satisfaction was 3.18, change seeking tendencies of customers was 2.95 and the switching intentions were 2.63. When the optical shop’s customer response attitude improved, the customer satisfaction increased and the switching intentions of customers decreased. When the change of seeking tendencies were high, the switching intentions of customers increased and when the customer satisfaction was high, the switching intentions of customers lowered. It was confirmed that the customer response attitude, change of seeking tendencies of customers and customer satisfaction influenced the switching intentions.Conclusion : The customer response attitude was good with high levels of customer satisfaction, which confirmed that switching intentions of customers was low. The results of this study could be applied as the baseline data in research to reduce the switching intentions of optical shop customers.

For a given entanglement entropy of QFT, we investigate how to reconstruct its dual geometry by applying the Ryu-Takayanagi formula and the deep learning method. In the holographic setup, the radial direction of the dual geometry is identified with the energy scale of the dual QFT. Therefore, the holographic dual geometry can describe how the QFT changes along the RG flow. Intriguingly, we show that the reconstructed geometry only from the entanglement entropy data can give us more information about other physical properties like thermodynamic quantities in the IR region., 17 pages, 9 figures

Purpose : This study aimed to analyze visual functions by vision correction status, by administering questionnaires about visual functions to undergraduates. Methods : The visual functions (vision-specific quality of life) of 290 undergraduates without eye diseases were evaluated by using the Korean version of National Eye Institute's Visual Functional Questionnaire(NEI-VFQ), from March to May, 2019. This study comparatively was analyzed by the differences in visual functions by the wearing purposes of glasses or contact lens. Results : The group that did not need any correction scored 94.17 on the item of visual function, while the one that needed correction scored 85.33. The former showed the highest scores on each item but the latter showed overall lower scores at the items of the general health and general vision, ocular pain and near vision and distance vision. The group that had no need for correction scored higher at VFQ-13, while the one that needed correction scored lower at all items other than near vision and role difficulties. Conclusion : The visual functions based on the status of visual correction for undergraduates showed that the group with uncorrected vision was poorer than the other group. In particular, the scores on the items general health and general vision were significantly worse for the group with uncorrected vision. The findings suggested that uncorrected vision has negative effects on the vision-specific quality of life.

Non-commutative graph theory is an operator space generalization of graph theory. Well known graph parameters such as the independence number and Lovasz theta function were first generalized to this setting by Duan, Severini, and Winter [1] . In [10] , Stahlke introduces a generalization of the chromatic number of a graph and obtains a Lovasz sandwich inequality for certain operator spaces. We introduce two new generalizations of the chromatic number to non-commutative graphs and provide an upper bound on the parameter of Stahlke. We provide a generalization of the graph complement and show the chromatic number of the orthogonal complement of a non-commutative graph is bounded below by its theta number. We also provide a generalization of both Sabidussi's Theorem and Hedetniemi's conjecture to non-commutative graphs.

Central core disease is an autosomal dominant congenital myopathy. It typically manifests as muscle weakness and developmental delay. Central core disease is also associated with malignant hyperthermia which can be developed by volatile agent or succinylcholine. Here, we are reporting a case of a 34-year-old primigravida with central core disease who underwent an emergency cesarean section under spinal anesthesia without complications.

In this paper we introduce the crossed product construction for a discrete group action on an operator system. In analogy to the work of E. Katsoulis and C. Ramsey, we describe three canonical crossed products arising from such a dynamical system. We describe how these crossed product constructions behave under $G$-equivariant maps, tensor products, and the canonical $C^*$-covers. We show that hyperrigidity is preserved under two of the three crossed products. Finally, using A. Kavruk's notion of an operator system that detects $C^*$-nuclearity, we give a negative answer to a question on operator algebra crossed products posed by Katsoulis and Ramsey., 31 pages. Final version to appear in the Journal of Functional Analysis

Background: Streptococcus pneumoniae, more than 90 serotypes of which exist, is recognized as an etiologic agent of pneumonia, meningitis, and sepsis associated with significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. Immunization with a pneumococcal pep27 mutant (Δpep27) has been shown to confer comprehensive, long-term protection against even nontypeable strains. However, Δpep27 is effective as a vaccine only after at least three rounds of immunization. Therefore, treatments capable of enhancing the efficiency of Δpep27 immunization should be identified without delay. Panax ginseng Mayer has already been shown to have pharmacological and antioxidant effects. Here, the ability of Korean Red Ginseng (KRG) to enhance the efficacy of Δpep27 immunization was investigated. Methods: Mice were treated with KRG and immunized with Δpep27 before infection with the pathogenic S. pneumoniae strain D39. Total reactive oxygen species production was measured using lung homogenates, and inducible nitric oxide (NO) synthase and antiapoptotic protein expression was determined by immunoblotting. The phagocytic activity of peritoneal macrophages was also tested after KRG treatment. Results: Compared with the other treatments, KRG significantly increased survival rate after lethal challenge and resulted in faster bacterial clearance via increased phagocytosis. Moreover, KRG enhanced Δpep27 vaccine efficacy by inhibiting reactive oxygen species production, reducing extracellular signal–regulated kinase apoptosis signaling and inflammation. Conclusion: Taken together, our results suggest that KRG reduces the time required for immunization with the Δpep27 vaccine by enhancing its efficacy. Keywords: Korean Red Ginseng (KRG), Δpep27, Streptococcus pneumoniae

Purpose : The purpose of this study was to examine optometrists’ emotional regulation ability, by analyzing the actual condition of optical shops’ regular day off. Methods : The questionnaires about the establishment of optical shops and their enforcement of regular day off were administered to 478 optometrists working in optical shops located in Chungnam and Gangwon areas, from April to December, 2018. Then, a comparative analysis on differences in their emotional labor and burnout, self-care for coping with stress and psychological well-being was conducted. Results : Emotional labor and burnout of employees were more than those of owners, while self-care for coping with stress and psychological well-being of the former were less than those of the latter. Emotional labor and burnout and psychological well-being in some optical shops which enforced regular day off were more than those in others which did not, while self-care for coping with stress in the former was less than that in the former. Conclusion : The enforcement of regular day off decreased the degree of optometrists’ emotional labor and burnout and increased the degree of their self-care for coping with stress and psychological well-being. This study can be usefully used to understand optometrists’ emotional regulation ability and psychological well-being and is thought to contribute to reducing job stress derived from management of optical shops and job performance of optometrists.

Purpose In this study, we investigated the clinical features and prognostic factors of early-onset sepsis (EOS) in neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) patients. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on medical records from January 2010 to June 2017 (7.5 years) of a university hospital NICU. Results There were 45 cases of EOS (1.2%) in 3,862 infants. The most common pathogen responsible for EOS was group B Streptococcus (GBS), implicated in 10 cases (22.2%), followed by Escherichia coli, implicated in 9 cases (20%). The frequency of gram-positive sepsis was higher in term than in preterm infants, whereas the rate of gram-negative infection was higher in preterm than in term infants (P

Disease occurrence in apple cultivars on 13-30 apple orchards from April to October 1992-2010 was investigated at 30 days intervals in Gyeongbuk, Gyeongnam and Jeonbuk provinces of Korea. Apple cultivar ‘Fuji’ was found most susceptible and is being damaged by cedar apple rust, scab, gray mold, Alternaria blotch and Marssonia blotch as major leaf diseases that were observed. The percentage of occurrence of these leaf diseases varies from every year. This variation is based on different rainfall and temperature conditions, cultivation, root stock and changed system of fungicide spray during the particular year and season.

Autosomal dominant hearing loss (ADHL) manifests as an adult-onset disease or a progressive disease. MYO7A variants are associated with DFNA11, a subtype of ADHL. Here, we examined the role and genotype–phenotype correlation of MYO7A in ADHL. Enrolled families suspected of having post-lingual sensorineural hearing loss were selected for exome sequencing. Mutational alleles in MYO7A were identified according to ACMG guidelines. Segregation analysis was performed to examine whether pathogenic variants segregated with affected status of families. All identified pathogenic variants were evaluated for a phenotype–genotype correlation. MYO7A variants were detected in 4.7% of post-lingual families, and 12 of 14 families were multiplex. Five potentially pathogenic missense variants were identified. Fourteen variants causing autosomal dominant deafness were clustered in motor and MyTH4 domains of MYO7A protein. Missense variants in the motor domain caused late onset of hearing loss with ascending tendency. A severe audiological phenotype was apparent in individuals carrying tail domain variants. We report two new pathogenic variants responsible for DFNA11 in the Korean ADHL population. Dominant pathogenic variants of MYO7A occur frequently in motor and MyTH4 domains. Audiological differences among individuals correspond to specific domains which contain the variants. Therefore, appropriate rehabilitation is needed, particularly for patients with late-onset familial hearing loss.

Prevention of dental caries is a key research area, and improvement of the pit and fissure sealants used for caries prevention has been of particular interest. This report describes results of incorporating a zwitterion, sulfobetaine methacrylate (SB), into photo-polymerized resin-based sealants to enhance resistance to cariogenic bacteria and protein adhesion. Varying amounts (1.5&ndash, 5 wt%) of SB were incorporated into a resin-based sealant, and the flexural strength, wettability, depth of cure, protein adhesion, bacterial viability, and cell cytotoxicity of the resultant sealants were evaluated. The flexural strength decreased with the increasing SB content, but this decrease was statistically significant only for sealants containing &ge, 3 wt% SB. Incorporating a zwitterion led to a significant reduction in the water contact angle and protein adhesion. The colony-forming unit count showed a significant reduction in the bacterial viability of S. mutans, which was confirmed with microscopic imaging. Moreover, cell cytotoxicity analysis of SB-modified sealants using an L929 fibroblast showed a cytotoxicity comparable to that of an unmodified control, suggesting no adverse effects on the cellular metabolism upon SB introduction. Hence, we conclude that the addition of 1.5&ndash, 3 wt% SB can significantly enhance the inherent ability of sealants to resist S. mutans adhesion and prevent dental caries.

Wieacker-Wolff syndrome was first described in 1985 and is a rare congenital syndrome cause by ZC4H2 mutation. It is a X-linked recessive disorder characterized by congenital contracture of the feet, mental retardation, progressive neurologic muscular atrophy, scoliosis, and hypoglycemia. 9-years-old boy with brain atrophy, mental retardation, scoliosis, convulsion and exotropia visited our clinic with recurrent hypoglycemia. Hypoglycemia was developed since infant. Physical examination showed dysmorphism and no hepatomegaly. In the ‘critical sample’, ketoacidosis was present and serum levels of free fatty acid was elevated. Lactate was in the normal range. Hyperinsulinism was excluded with ‘critical sample’ and glucagon stimulation test. Combined pituitary stimulation showed no deficiency of growth hormone and cortisol, respectively. Fatty acid oxidation was excluded by serum levels of acylcarnitines and urine organic acid test. Due to the presence of multiple anomaly and under the suspicion of glycogen storage type 0, whole exome sequencing was performed and p.P154T mutation on the ZC4H2 was observed. Although Sanger sequencing is in processing yet, clinical features are very similar compare to previous cases. In summary, we reported a first Korean male with a novel ZC4H2 mutation, P154T.

We determined the quark mass matrix in terms of a small expansion parameter $\sqrt{\varepsilon}$, which gives correctly all the quark masses and the CKM matrix elements at the electroweak (EW) scale, and obtain a progenitor form at the GUT scale by running the EW scale mass matrix. Finally, a possible texture form for the progenitor quark mass matrix is suggested., 7 pages, 1 figure

We construct a flavor model in an anti-SU(5) grand unified theory with a tetrahedral symmetry ${A}_{4}$. We choose a basis where ${Q}_{\text{em}}=\ensuremath{-}\frac{1}{3}$ quarks and charged leptons are already mass eigenstates. This choice is possible from the ${A}_{4}$ symmetry. Then, matter representation ${\overline{\mathbf{10}}}_{\ensuremath{-}1}^{\text{matter}}$ contains both a quark doublet and a heavy neutrino $N$, which enables us to use the ${A}_{4}$ symmetry to both ${Q}_{\text{em}}=+\frac{2}{3}$ quark masses and neutrino masses (through the see saw via $N$). This is made possible because the anti-SU(5) breaking is achieved by the Higgs fields transforming as antisymmetric representations of SU(5), ${\overline{\mathbf{10}}}_{\ensuremath{-}1}^{H}\ensuremath{\bigoplus}{\mathbf{10}}_{+1}^{H}$, reducing the rank-5 anti-SU(5) group down to the rank-4 standard model group $\mathrm{SU}(3{)}_{C}\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}\mathrm{SU}(2{)}_{W}\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}\mathrm{U}(1{)}_{Y}$. For possible mass matrices, the ${A}_{4}$ symmetry predictions on mass matrices at field theory level are derived. Finally, an illustration from string compactification is presented.

We construct holographic Janus solutions, which describe a conformal interface in the theory of M2-branes, in four-dimensional gauged supergravities using a perturbative method. In particular, we study three Einstein-scalar systems and their BPS equations, which are derived by Bobev, Pilch, and Warner (2014). The actions of our interest are all consistent truncations of $D=11$ supergravity chosen to be invariant under $SO(4)\times SO(4)$, $SU(3)\times U(1)\times U(1)$, and $G_2$ symmetry subgroups of $SO(8)$ respectively. The utility of our semi-analytic result is illustrated by the calculation of minimal area surface and the associated holographic entanglement entropy., Comment: 26 pages, 3 figures

The occurrence of heterotopic tissue in the large intestine is unusual. The most common heterotopic tissue type described is gastric-type mucosa. On the other hand, heterotopic salivary gland tissue in the large intestine is extremely rare. To the best of the authors' knowledge, only five cases of heterotopic salivary gland in the large intestine have been reported, and all cases arose in the left colon. One out of five cases arose in the sigmoid colon, and the four other cases were found in the rectum-anal canal region. Endoscopically, they usually appeared as a polyp. The presentation of the patients was rectal bleeding or asymptomatic. Heterotopic salivary gland tissue in the colon has not been reported in Korea. This paper reports a case of heterotopic salivary gland tissue at the hepatic flexure of the colon and reviews the literature on similar cases. A 55-year-old male underwent large bowel endoscopy for colorectal carcinoma screening. The colonoscopy revealed five polyps. A sessile polyp at the hepatic flexure, 0.6 cm in size, was resected in a piecemeal manner. The histopathologic findings revealed a salivary gland with mixed mucinous-serous features and ducts. The other four polyps all were diagnosed as tubular adenoma with low-grade dysplasia.

Background: Ginseng has been the subject of many experimental and clinical studies to uncover the diverse biological activities of its constituent compounds. It is a traditional medicine that has been used for its immunostimulatory, antithrombotic, antioxidative, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer effects. Ginseng may interact with concomitant medications and alter metabolism and/or drug transport, which may alter the known efficacy and safety of a drug; thus, the role of ginseng may be controversial when taken with other medications. Methods: We extensively assessed the effects of Korean Red Ginseng (KRG) in rats on the expression of enzymes responsible for drug metabolism [cytochrome p450 (CYP)] and transporters [multiple drug resistance (MDR) and organic anion transporter (OAT)] in vitro and on the pharmacokinetics of two probe drugs, midazolam and fexofenadine, after a 2-wk repeated administration of KRG at different doses. Results: The results showed that 30 mg/kg KRG significantly increased the expression level of CYP3A11 protein in the liver and 100 mg/kg KRG increased both the mRNA and protein expression of OAT1 in the kidney. Additionally, KRG significantly increased the mRNA and protein expression of OAT1, OAT3, and MDR1 in the liver. Although there were no significant changes in the metabolism of midazolam to its major metabolite, 1′-hydroxymidazolam, KRG significantly decreased the systemic exposure of fexofenadine in a dose-dependent manner. Conclusion: Because KRG is used as a health supplement, there is a risk of KRG overdose; thus, a clinical trial of high doses would be useful. The use of KRG in combination with P-glycoprotein substrate drugs should also be carefully monitored. Keywords: cytochrome P450, drug–drug interaction (DDI), Korean Red Ginseng (KRG)