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This paper proposed a new similarity index for applying to clustering by color-texture using the IOCLBP. We evaluated the relationships of IOCLBP component pairs and investigated a distribution of color-texture properties for apples. And then, we found some correlations between their properties. As selecting the uncorrelated properties and their centric feature vector of apples, the proposed similarity index was introduced as a distance measurer. In experiments of clustering with apple fruits, the results showed that the proposed index has a good performance and is used in color-texture measurer.

Background ChondroT, a new herbal medication, consists of Angelica grosseserrata Maxim., Lonicera japonica Thunb., Angelica gigas Nakai, Clematis terniflora var. manshurica (Rupr.) Ohwi, and Phellodendron amurense Rupr. (6:4:4:4:3). Our previous studies have shown that ChondroT exhibits significant anti-arthritic and anti-inflammatory effects. In this study, we aimed to assess the toxicological safety assessment of ChondroT. Methods This study was designed to assess the safety of ChondroT after repeated oral administration. Male and female Sprague-Dawley rats were treated with ChondroT at oral doses of 0, 500, 1000, and 2000 mg/kg for 13 weeks. Mortality, clinical signs, body weight changes, food consumption, ophthalmological findings, urinalysis, hematological and blood-chemical parameters, necropsy findings, organ weights, and histological markers were recorded throughout the study period. Rats were also monitored for an additional 4 weeks to determine the recovery time. Results No death occurred and no significant changes in food consumption, ophthalmologic findings, and urinalysis were found. Although there were alterations in clinical signs, body weights, hematological parameters, blood-chemical parameters, necropsy findings, organ weights, and histological markers, they were not considered to be toxicologically significant. Conclusions The results suggest that the no-observed adverse effects level (NOAEL) was 2000 mg/kg/day for the test substance. ChondroT, a new complex herbal medication composed of five plants, can therefore be used safely at the NOAEL.

Ganghwaljetongyeum is a traditional Korean herbal medicine used to treat joint pain, limited motion, fever, and swelling; it also inhibits inflammatory processes associated with arthritis. ChondroT, a water extract of Ganghwaljetongyeum, is a new complex herbal medicine. This study investigated the effects of ChondroT using a rat model of monosodium iodoacetate- (MIA-) induced osteoarthritis. Thirty-six rats were randomly divided into three ChondroT groups and a normal, control, and positive control group. Changes in paw edema volume, histopathology, and plantar withdrawal response were analyzed. Further, inflammatory cytokines, arachidonic acids, liver and kidney function, and hematological features were measured. ChondroT significantly decreased paw edema by the 5th day and notably improved articular cartilage damage; it also significantly improved the plantar withdrawal response in terms of both reaction time and force intensity. Moreover, treatment with ChondroT significantly decreased the serum levels of tumor necrosis factor alpha, interleukin-1β, interleukin-6, and prostaglandin E2 and significantly increased serum aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase levels. This study demonstrates that ChondroT has anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects in a MIA-induced osteoarthritis rat model. These results support the clinical relevance of ChondroT for future use in patients with osteoarthritis. However, further studies are required to elucidate the corresponding mechanisms.

Background ChondroT is a complex herbal medicine consisting of water extracts of Ostericum koreanum (Maxim.) Kitag., Lonicera japonica Thunb., Angelica gigas Nakai, Clematis manshurica Rupr., and Phellodendron amurense Rupr. (6:4:4:4:3). Previous studies have reported that ChondroT possesses chondroprotective and anti-inflammatory, anti-osteoarthritic, and anti-hyperuricemic activities. The study is aim to demonstrate the effects of ChondroT and its five constituent herbs on receptor activator of NF-κB ligand (RANKL)-induced osteoclastogenesis and the underlying mechanisms. Methods Osteoclastogenesis was identified in bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDMs) by tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) staining assay, actin ring formation assay and the bone resorption assay. For the molecular mechanisms, activation of RANKL-induced NF-κB and MAPK signaling pathways and the expression levels of osteoclast-specific proteins were investigated by Western blotting. Cell viability was assessed by MTT assay. Actin ring formation and NF-κB translocation were evaluated by immunostaining. Results ChondroT and each of its constituent herbs significantly suppressed osteoclast differentiation dose dependently, and decreased actin ring formation as well as bone-resorbing capacity. Mechanistically, ChondroT and its constituent herbs downregulated the expressional levels of osteoclast-specific proteins such as NFATc1, c-Fos, Cathepsin K, and matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP9) by suppressing NF-κB translocation to nucleus and MAPKs phosphorylation at different levels. Compared to its five constituent herbs, ChondroT exhibited the best inhibitory efficiency against osteoclastogenesis. Conclusions Taken together, ChondroT has anti-osteoclastogenesis properties by inhibiting NF-κB and MAPKs pathways. It could be considered as a potential therapeutic candidate for the treatment of osteoclast-related bone diseases.

In this paper, we proposed real-time tracking of lip feature points and its signal analysis for obtaining visual information while pronouncing. By extracting and tracking the feature points of the lip, it can obtain the visual signals and information. In addition, we compared with the performance of visual and auditory signals in noisy environments. We test a performance with the four basic control commands. The recognition rate is 82.5% with the visual signals. The results showed that the visual signals have better performance than auditory with noise. We will be planning to apply a hybrid signals with both auditory and visual.

Additional file 1. Effects of Phellodendron amurense Rupr. on RANKL-induced osteoclast differentiation in BMDMs.

Background ChondroT, a new herbal medication, consists of the water extracts of Osterici Radix, Lonicerae Folium, Angelicae Gigantis Radix, Clematidis Radix, and Phellodendri Cortex (6:4:4:4:3). We previously reported that ChondroT showed significant anti-arthritis and anti-inflammatory effects. Methods This study was designed to evaluate the effect of ChondroT on hyperuricemia. First, the effect of ChondroT was evaluated on xanthine oxidase (XOD) activity in vitro. The anti-hyperuricemic effect of ChondroT was also studied in potassium oxonate (PO)-induced hyperuricemic model mice. Uric acid (UA) and XOD were evaluated in the serum, urine, and liver of the mice. In addition, we measured serum creatinine (Cr) and blood urea nitrogen (BUN) levels as well as mRNA expression of the mouse urate transporter 1 (mURAT1) to evaluate kidney function and urate excretion in hyperuricemic mice. Results ChondroT showed in vitro XOD inhibitory activity in a dose-dependent manner (P 0.05 and P

Photoacoustic imaging (PAI) is an emerging analytical modality that is under intense preclinical development for the early diagnosis of various medical conditions, including cancer. However, the lack of specific tumor targeting by various contrast agents used in PAI obstructs its clinical applications. In this study, we developed indocyanine green (ICG)-encapsulated micelles specific for the CD 44 receptor and used in near infrared and photoacoustic imaging of tumors. ICG was hydrophobically modified prior to loading into hyaluronic acid (HA)-based micelles utilized for CD 44 based-targeting. We investigated the physicochemical characteristics of prepared HA only and ICG-encapsulated HA micelles (HA-ICG micelles). After intravenous injection of tumor-bearing mice, the bio-distribution and in vivo photoacoustic images of ICG-encapsulated HA micelles accumulating in tumors were also investigated. Our study further encourages the application of this HA-ICG-based nano-platform as a tumor-specific contrast agent for PAI.

Ganghwaljetongyeum (GHJTY) has been used as a standard treatment for arthritis for approximately 15 years at the Korean Medicine Hospital of Dongshin University. GHJTY is composed of 18 medicinal herbs, of which five primary herbs were selected and named new Ganghwaljetongyeum (N-GHJTY). The purpose of the present study was to observe the effect of N-GHJTY on arthritis and to determine its mechanism of action. After confirming arthritis induction using complete Freund’s adjuvant (CFA) in rats, N-GHJTY (62.5, 125, and 250 mg/kg/day) was administered once a day for 10 days. In order to determine pathological changes, edema of the paws and weight were measured before and for 10 days after N-GHJTY administration. Cytokine (TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6) levels and histopathological lesions in the knee joint were also examined. Edema in the paw and knee joint of N-GHJTY-treated rats was significantly decreased at 6, 8, and 10 days after administration, compared to that in the CFA-control group, while weight consistently increased. Rats in N-GHJTY-treated groups also recovered from the CFA-induced pathological changes and showed a significant decline in cytokine levels. Taken together, our results showed that N-GHJTY administration was effective in inhibiting CFA-induced arthritis via anti-inflammatory effects while promoting cartilage recovery by controlling cytokine levels.

In this paper, I describe a system for remote monitoring of devices Android-based sensor data recorded during the operation of the ballast water treatment system. The proposed remote monitoring system is Designed and implemented when a problem occurs in the ballast water treatment system installed in the vessel, provide information if you are unable to determine the cause in the field or engineer dispatch request of external. System developed is composed of a server holding the sensor data information collected from the vessel and a mobile device that is not bound to time and place. The transmission of sensor data between mobile devices and server, and is implemented by TCP/IP to transmit information securely. System is composed of request to the server from the mobile device after the user inputs the input values, to transmit the sensor data. The device provides the information of the sensor with a high level of importance to the user. Through the remote monitoring sensor information of the ballast water treatment system, the system is made to predict the failure of the sensor.

BACKGROUND In South Korea, a few patients with low back pain (LBP) are currently being treated with a combination of traditional Korean medicine (KM) and Western medicine (WM). Although a recent research has reported results regarding patient satisfaction and exploratory effectiveness, evidence of comparative effectiveness still needs to be reviewed. The aim of this study is to evaluate the clinical and cost-effectiveness of KM and WM collaborative treatment (CT) compared with that of sole treatment (ST) for patients with LBP in Korea. METHOD/DESIGN This multisite, prospective observational comparative effectiveness research study is part of a nationwide pilot project for KM and WM collaboration launched by the Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare. The duration of the study is 8 weeks, and the target number of inclusion is 360 patients. Participants receive treatment according to their treatment plan, and a researcher conducts investigations thrice, every 4 weeks. In the final analysis, the merged data from the participants' questionnaire responses, hospital medical records, and administrative data, and Health Insurance Review and Assessment service data will be compared between the CT and ST groups. DISCUSSION This study will provide clinical and economic information about CT for LBP, which might be a milestone for establishing future polices about this collaboration in Korea. TRIAL REGISTRATION The study protocol has been registered with the Clinical Research Information Service (KCT0002827).

Background Previously, we reported that ChondorT showed significant anti-arthritis and anti-inflammatory effects. ChondroT, a new herbal medication, consists of the water extracts of Osterici Radix, Lonicerae Folium, Angelicae Gigantis Radix, Clematidis Radix, and Phellodendri Cortex (6:4:4:4:3). The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of ChondroT in collagenase-induced osteoarthritis rat model. Methods Osteoarthritis was induced by the injection of collagenase into the right knee joint cavity of rats. The samples were divided into seven groups [intact (n = 6), control (n = 6), indomethacin (n = 6), Joins tab (n = 6), ChondroT50 (n = 6), ChondroT100 (n = 6), and ChondroT200 (n = 6)]. The control group was administered normal saline, indomethacin group was administered indomethacin (2 mg/kg), and Joins tab group was administered Joins Tab (20 mg/kg). The ChondroT50, ChondroT100, and ChondroT200 groups were administered 50, 100, and 200 mg/kg of ChondroT, respectively. All oral administrations were initiated 7 days after the induction of arthritis and were continued for a total of 12 days. At the end of the experiment, serum aminotransferase, albumin, blood urea nitrogen, creatinine, leukocyte, and inflammatory cytokines [tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interleukin (IL)-1β, and IL-6] were analyzed. Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) and safranin O-fast green staining of the articular structures of the knee joint were performed. Results TNF-α and IL-1β decreased in the ChondroT100 and ChondroT200 groups compared with those in the control group. IL-6 and aspartate aminotransferase decreased in the ChondroT50, ChondroT100, and ChondroT200 groups compared with that in the control group. Albumin, WBC and lymphocytes decreased in the ChondroT100 and ChondroT200 groups compared with those in the control group. In H&E stain, synoviocytes, cartilage lacunae, and chondrocytes were well preserved in the ChondroT100 and ChondroT200 groups, and safranin O-fast staining showed a clear reaction of proteoglycans in the ChondroT100 and ChondroT200 groups. Conclusions Based on these results, it can be proposed that ChondroT has anti-osteoarthritic effects on collagenase-induced rat model.

Objectives : The purpose of this study is to report that Korean medical treatment is good for deteriorated moderate allergic skin after taking lotus root while getting treatment for contact dermatitis by pain relieving patch. Methods : A 54-year-old woman patient with allergic contact dermatitis received treatment with acupuncture, herbal medicine, etc. We used observation and Visu al Anologue Scale(VAS) to evaluate recovery from erythema, pruritus and skin damages. Results : A visible symptoms to the naked eye and VAS scale were effectively decreased after Korean medicine treatments. Conclusions : Korean medical treatments were effective for allergic contact d ermatitis deteriorated by lotus root while getting treatment contact dermatitis by pain relieving patch.Key words : Allergic contact dermatitis; Pain Relieving Patch; Lotus root ⓒ 2015 the Society of Korean Medicine Ophthalmology & Otolaryng ology & DermatologyThis is an Open Access journal distributed under the terms of t he Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/license/by-nc/3.0/) which permits u nrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Objectives : The purpose of this study is to transcribe the effect of Korean medical treatment on nummular dermatitis with allergic dermatitis.Methods : A 42-year-old man patient suffering from nummular dermatitis with allergic dermatitis was treated with herbal medicine, acupuncture, etc. We observed progress of patient with Visual Anologue Scale(VAS) and used comparative observation through camera photographing.Results : After Korean medical treatment, patient`s chief complaints with erythema, edema, pruritus, and keratin were significantly declined.Conclusions : Korean medical treatments were an effectual cure for nummular dermatitis with allergic dermatitis.

본 연구는 보건복지부 한의약선도기술 사업의 지원에 의하여 이루어진 것임 (과제고유번호 : HI13C2285).RECEIVED June 16, 2015REVISED July 10, 2015ACCEPTEDJuly 15, 2015CORRESPONDING TOSeon-Jong Kim, Department of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation, Mokpo Oriental Hospital of Dongshin University, 313 Baengnyeon-daero, Mokpo 530-822, KoreaTEL (061) 280-7905FAX (061) 280-7788E-mail mofoster@hanmail.netCopyright © 2015 The Society of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation

This paper proposes a novel procedure that uses a combination of overlapped basic convex shapes to decompose 2D silhouette image. A basic convex shape is used here as a structuring element to give a meaningful interpretation to 2D images. Poisson equation is utilized to obtain the basic shapes for either the whole image or a partial region or segment of an image. The reconstruction procedure is used to combine the basic convex shapes to generate the original shape. The decomposition process involves a merging stage, filtering stage and finalized by compromising stage. The merging procedure is based on solving Poisson’s equation for two regions satisfying the same symmetrical conditions which leads to finding equivalencies between basic shapes that need to be merged.We implemented and tested our novel algorithm using 2D silhouette images. The test results showed that the proposed algorithm lead to an efficient shape decomposition procedure that transforms any shape into a simpler basic convex shapes.

In Korea, the Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) has been introduced. For secure information transmission and identification, the electronic signature authorization system of a certificate-based is built, and then the service provide.The certificate is stored in location what users can easily access and copy. Thus, there is a risk that can be stolen by malware or web account hacking. In addition, private key passwords can be exposed by the logging tool, after keyboard security features are disabled. Each of these security weaknesses is a potential conduit for identity theft, property/asset theft, and theft of the actual certificates. The present study proposes a method to prevent the private key file access illegally. When a certificate is stored, the private key is encrypted by the dependent element of the device, and it is stored securely. If private key leakage occurs, the retrieved key could not be used on other devices.

Background Ganghwaljetongyeum (GHJTY) is a complex herbal decoction comprising 18 plants; it is used to treat arthritis. In order to develop a new anti-arthritic herbal medication, we selected 5 out of 18 GHJTY plants by using bioinformatics analysis. The new medication, called ChondroT, comprised water extracts of Osterici Radix, Lonicerae Folium, Angelicae Gigantis Radix, Clematidis Radix, and Phellodendri Cortex. This study was designed to investigate its chondroprotective and anti-inflammatory effects to develop an anti-arthritic herb medicine. Methods ChondroT was validated using a convenient and accurate high-performance liquid chromatography–photodiode array (HPLC–PDA) detection method for simultaneous determination of its seven reference components. The concentrations of the seven marker constituents were in the range of 0.81–5.46 mg/g. The chondroprotective effects were evaluated based on SW1353 chondrocytes and matrix metalloproteinase 1 (MMP1) expression. In addition, the anti-inflammatory effects of ChondroT were studied by Western blotting of pro-inflammatory enzymes and by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) of inflammatory mediators in lipopolysaccharides (LPS)-induced RAW264.7 cells. Results ChondroT enhanced the growth of SW1353 chondrocytes and also significantly inhibited IL-1β-induced MMP-1 expression. However, ChondroT did not show any effects on the growth of HeLa and RAW264.7 cells. The expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) was induced by LPS in RAW264.7 cells, which was significantly decreased by pre-treatment with ChondroT. In addition, ChondroT reduced the activation of NF-kB and production of inflammatory mediators, such as IL-1β, IL-6, PGE2, and nitric oxide (NO) in LPS-induced RAW264.7 cells. Conclusions These results show that ChondroT exerted a chondroprotective effect and demonstrated multi-target mechanisms related to inflammation and arthritis. In addition, the suppressive effect was greater than that exhibited by GHJTY, suggesting that ChondroT, a new complex herbal medication, has therapeutic potential for the treatment of arthritis.

BACKGROUND Arthritis is the most common disease in elderly individuals. Many medications for osteoarthritis treatment have the potential for side effects. Using a bioinformatics tool and preclinical studies, ChondroT, 5 herbal complexes, was identified from Ganghwaljetongyeum, which is a18 herbal complex, which has often used to treat osteoarthritis. The goal of this study is to evaluate short-term safety of ChondroT. METHODS This will be a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled trial. There will be a 2-week run-in period before random allocation to 3 groups, ChondroT 1.0 g, 2.0 g, and placebo groups. Total duration of the clinical trial will be 14 weeks including a 4-week washout follow-up. Participants will be followed-up every 4 weeks, and the effect and the safety will be assessed at visit 2, 3, and 4. All participants are asked to maintain the medication schedule in this protocol. The primary outcome will be measured using pain visual analog scale (VAS) after 8 week treatment and secondary outcomes will include pain VAS score after 4 week treatment, SF-36 survey score, patient's global assessment, physical function test, and the change of erythrocyte sedimentation rate, and C-reactive protein. The repeated-measure analysis will be used for the primary efficacy based on full analysis set and per-protocol. DISCUSSION This study has restrictive inclusion, exclusion criteria, and a well-controlled intervention, and it will be the first randomized controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ChondroT formula in osteoarthritis patients. The trial according to this protocol may provide a new intervention in the treatment of osteoarthritis.

This paper proposes an efficient partial matching system and representation by using a region-based method for 2D image, and we applied to an extraction of the ROI(Region of Interest) according to its matching score. The matching templates consist of the global pattern and the local one. The global pattern can make it by using region-based relation between center region and its rest regions in an object. And, the local pattern can be obtained appling to the same method as global, except relation between objects. As the templates can be normalized, we use this templates for extraction of ROI with invariant to size and position. And, our system operates only one try to match, due to normalizing of region size. To use our system for searching and examining if it`s the ROI by evaluating the matching function, at first, we are searching to find candidate regions with the global template. Then, we try to find the ROI among the candidates, and it works this time by using the local template. We experimented to the binary and the color image respectively, they showed that the proposed system can be used efficiently for representing of the template and the useful applications, such as partially retrievals of 2D image.

This paper gives a novel approach that can be represented an image efficiently with its region and shape information together. To do this, we introduced a region-centralized shape descriptor(RCSD) that the size of region only exists at a center point. RCSD consists of circles with three parameters, the distance and the angle between the tenter points, and the diameter, respectively We verified the RCSD parameters to have an information of shape. We can be proved this by reconstructing the shape from the given parameters and evaluated the difference between the its image and the original one. To get this image, we find the estimated points on the contour from the parameters, and connect them by using an interpolation. According to the evaluation, we obtained 88% performance for real images, and showed that it can be used efficiently for representing the binary images. Also we cu make RCSD parameters to be the normalized patterns to have an invariant of its scale or position, and expand them to improve the quality of the performance.

Photoacoustic imaging (PAI) is an emerging analytical modality that is under intense preclinical development for the early diagnosis of various medical conditions, including cancer. However, the lack of specific tumor targeting by various contrast agents used in PAI obstructs its clinical applications. In this study, we developed indocyanine green (ICG)-encapsulated micelles specific for the CD 44 receptor and used in near infrared and photoacoustic imaging of tumors. ICG was hydrophobically modified prior to loading into hyaluronic acid (HA)-based micelles utilized for CD 44 based-targeting. We investigated the physicochemical characteristics of prepared HA only and ICG-encapsulated HA micelles (HA-ICG micelles). After intravenous injection of tumor-bearing mice, the bio-distribution and in vivo photoacoustic images of ICG-encapsulated HA micelles accumulating in tumors were also investigated. Our study further encourages the application of this HA-ICG-based nano-platform as a tumor-specific contrast agent for PAI.