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Past democratization processes revealed a rise of interorganizational collaboration between social movement organizations. This paper investigates this sociopolitical phenomenon by analyzing the conditions under which alliances form within or across social movement industries in the context of democratizing Korea. A negative binomial regression analysis examines the impacts of the political opportunity structure and the social movement sector on different forms of protests: single, intramovement, and intermovement protests. Statistical results show that various dimensions of the political opportunity structure render differential effects, rather than a uniform effect, on alliance patterns. At the organizational level, coalitions and organizational diversity positively affect all forms ofprotests. The establishment of a strong alliance structure broadly empowers movements by providing a locus of organizational interactions and supports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The ratio of triglycerides (TG, mg/dl) to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C, mg/dl) is a reliable indicator of insulin resistance and atherosclerotic diseases. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between TG/HDL-C and chronic kidney disease (CKD) in a nationally representative sample of Korean adults. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 5,503 subjects (≥19 years of age) who participated in the 2005 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. CKD was defined as an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) below 60 ml/min/1.73 m2 as calculated by the abbreviated formula from the Modification of Diet in Renal Disease study. Results: The overall prevalence of CKD in our sample was 9.0%. eGFR was negatively correlated with logarithm-transformed TG/HDL-C in Pearson's correlation. The prevalence of CKD in increasing TG/HDL-C quintiles was 4.4, 6.6, 9.5, 11.9, and 12.8%. In comparison with the lowest quintile of TG/HDL-C (<1.38), the odds ratio (95% confidence interval) for CKD in the highest quintile of TG/HDL-C (≥4.50) was 2.15 (1.38-3.37), after adjustment for multiple covariates (p value for trend = 0.036). Conclusions: TG/HDL-C was independently associated with increased prevalence of CKD in a sample of Korean adults. Copyright © 2011 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contamination from human and animal fecal waste is a primary cause of water pollution. Microbial source tracking (MST) may be a useful tool for high-quality environmental management and for assessing human health risks associated with water pollution. The goal of this study was to evaluate Enterococcus spp. as a target organism for MST. Thirty-four fecal samples were collected from five different sources (human, chicken, pig, cow, and goose) in South Korea. In total, 237 Enterococcus spp. were isolated from feces using membrane-Enterococcus indoxyl-β-d-glucoside agar. The 16S rRNA gene and the whole genome were analyzed using nucleic acid sequencing and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), respectively. Both phylogenetic analysis and principal coordinate analysis using UniFrac were performed on the nucleic acid sequences of the 16S rRNA gene. According to P-tests from UniFrac, significant differences existed between Enterococcus spp. isolated from human feces and those from animal feces. In addition, we evaluated whether the esp gene of Enterococcus faecium could be a specific target for Enterococcus spp. isolated from human feces. Of 58 E. faecium isolates tested, only three were esp-positive. The specificity of the esp gene of E. faecium isolated from human feces was 100%, but the sensitivity was <10%. These results suggest that Enterococcus spp. have different molecular characteristics according to their fecal source and that these characteristics can be further identified by analyzing the esp gene and 16S rRNA sequences, whereas PFGE provides limited information on the fecal sources of Enterococcus spp. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. The goal of advance directives is to help patients retain their dignity and autonomy by making their own decisions regarding end-stage medical treatment. The purpose of this study was to examine preferences of advance directives among general population in Korea. Method. A descriptive cross-sectional survey was performed from October 2007 to June 2008 in Seoul, Korea. A total of 336 city-dwelling adults self-administered the questionnaire and returned it viamail. Data analyses were conducted using SPSS 17.0. Results. Subjects reported the need for healthcare providers' detailed explanations and recommendations regarding end-of-life care. When there is no hope of recovery and death is imminent, most subjects did not want to receive cardiopulmonary resuscitation nor an IV or tube feeding. However, most of the subjects wanted pain management care. Conclusions. The present study showed that many Korean people have an interest in advance directives. The results show that the autonomy and dignity of patient have increased in importance. To provide better end-of-life care, there is a need to educate patients on the definition and intent of an advance directive. Additional proactive communication between patients and their caregivers should be educated to healthcare providers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]