Gil-Soo Han

The purpose of this study is to measure and analyze changes in lumbar muscle strength and pain index after applying other exercise methods for male patients who underwent Posterior lumbar interbody fusion(PLIF) into a resistance exercise group with 10 participants and a self-exercise group with 7 participants. The results are described below. After the application of exercise, the lumbar muscle strength increased by 43.42% in the resistance exercise group (p.001) at the average value of 7 angles, and the strength increase in the self-exercise group also showed a increase by 27.88%(p.05). Pain decreased by 36.73% in the resistance exercise group and showed a statistically significant difference (p.001). It decreased by 22.91% in the self-exercise group and did not show a statistically significant difference. The above results showed that application of resistance exercise and stabilization exercise as a method of improving low back pain after posterior lumbar inter body fusion reconstruction in male increased lumbar extensor strength and resistance exercise had a positive effect on the significant pain reduction.

Pine wilt disease (PWD), caused by the pinewood nematode, is the most destructive disease in pine forest ecosystems worldwide. Extensive research has been done on PWD, but effective disease management is yet to be devised. Generally, plants can resist pathogen attack via a combination of constitutive and inducible defenses. Systemic acquired resistance (SAR) is an inducible defense that occurs by the localized infection of pathogens or treatment with elicitors. To manage PWD by SAR in pine trees, we tested previously known 12 SAR elicitors. Among them, methyl salicylate (MeSA) was found to induce resistance against PWD in Pinus densiflora seedlings. In addition, the foliar applications of the dispersible concentrate-type formulation of MeSA (MeSA 20 DC) and the emulsifiable concentrate-type formulation of MeSA (MeSA 20 EC) resulted in significantly reduced PWD in pine seedlings. In the field test using 10-year-old P. densiflora trees, MeSA 20 DC showed a 60% decrease in the development of PWD. Also, MeSA 20 EC gave the best results when applied at 0.1 mM concentration 2 and 1 weeks before pinewood nematode (PWN) inoculation in pine seedlings. qRT-PCR analysis confirmed that MeSA induced the expression of defense-related genes, indicating that MeSA can inhibit and delay the migration and reproduction of PWN in pine seedlings by modulating gene expression. These results suggest that foliar application of MeSA could reduce PWD incidence by inducing resistance and provide an economically feasible alternative to trunk-injection agents for PWD management.

The 2016–2017 Candlelight Revolution was one of the most significant events in recent South Korean politics, but little attention has been paid to the powerful conservative counter-movement that accompanied and followed the candlelight protests. This counter-movement was symbolized by demonstrations by flag-carriers who found Park Geun-Hye’s impeachment and Moon Jae-In’s inauguration incomprehensible. They argued that Park was innocent, called for her release from prison, and claimed that Moon’s election was illegitimate. An analysis of speeches made during conservative counter-protests between 2016 and 2019 illustrates how these activists reject the values of a new era in South Korean political and economic life. Instead, their speeches conveyed a clear desire to have the legacy of the industrialization generation recognized in contemporary South Korea. These flag-carriers are evidence that a marginalized set of desires and aspirations about South Korean nationalism and identity coexist with the progressive views of the candlelight protesters. The persistence of such an intense and partisan worldview, however, poses a threat to the future of liberal democracy in South Korea.

The partner switching system (PSS) of the SigF regulatory pathway in Mycobacterium smegmatis has been previously demonstrated to include the anti-sigma factor RsbW (MSMEG_1803) and two anti-sigma factor antagonists RsfA and RsfB. In this study, we further characterized two additional RsbW homologs and revealed the distinct roles of three RsbW homologs [RsbW1 (MSMEG_1803), RsbW2 (MSMEG_6129), and RsbW3 (MSMEG_1787)] in the SigF PSS. RsbW1 and RsbW2 serve as the anti-sigma factor of SigF and the protein kinase phosphorylating RsfB, respectively, while RsbW3 functions as an anti-SigF antagonist through its protein interaction with RsbW1. Using relevant mutant strains, RsfB was demonstrated to be the major anti-SigF antagonist in M. smegmatis. The phosphorylation state of Ser-63 was shown to determine the functionality of RsfB as an anti-SigF antagonist. RsbW2 was demonstrated to be the only protein kinase that phosphorylates RsfB in M. smegmatis. Phosphorylation of Ser-63 inactivates RsfB to render it unable to interact with RsbW1. Our comparative RNA sequencing analysis of the wild-type strain of M. smegmatis and its isogenic Δaa₃ mutant strain lacking the aa₃ cytochrome c oxidase of the respiratory electron transport chain revealed that expression of the SigF regulon is strongly induced under respiration-inhibitory conditions in an RsfB-dependent way.