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Abstract: This paper introduces an application of factor analysis for classifying and illuminating the nature of distinct dimensions of service research and development (R&D) which are difficult to examine due to the unique characteristics of services. The application is based upon the concept that firms would benefit from clarifying R&D and R&D-like activities to assist their R&D decision. Using principal component analysis (PCA) of factor analysis, a number of possibly correlated R&D activities is transformed into a smaller number of uncorrelated activities called principal components, and firms can identify the patterns of service R&D, express their similarities and differences, and develop its R&D portfolio. A case example for service R&D in the Korean ICT industry is provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The identification of the colorants used on ancient textiles provides a historical pathway to the understanding of the processes associated with one of the oldest of chemical technologies, namely textile dyeing. In this paper, time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) was used to detect dyes on textiles avoiding the time-consuming and destructive extraction procedures necessary for the spectrophotometric and chromatographic methods previously used. The plant dyes investigated belong to a variety of chemical groups, which include curcumin, crocin, carthamin, purpurin, alizarin, brazilin, shikonin, and indigo. Reference textile samples were prepared with dye extracts of plants and were characterized by TOF-SIMS. TOF-SIMS spectra for the dyed textiles showed element ions from metallic mordants, specific fragment ions, and molecular ions from organic dyes. Remnant dyes on excavated textiles have also been identified using TOF-SIMS. The ancient textile sample showed the presence of indigo clearly, although the fiber itself had degraded badly. From the results, it was concluded that most of plant dyes can be identified with TOF-SIMS and it is a very promising technique for the archaeology field. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

From water samples collected monthly between 2000 and 2001 from the Han River in Seoul, sixteen strains of Escherichia coli which confer resistance to at least 10 kinds of antimicrobial agents were isolated. From these isolates, 2 kinds of extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBLs) and one plasmid-mediated AmpC beta-lactamase were detected; CTX-M-14 from 10 isolates, TEM-52 from 5 isolates, and CMY-1 from one isolate. Class 1 integron gene cassettes, such as aadA1, dfr12-orfF-aadA2, and dfr17-aadA5, were also detected and the integrons are the same as those found in E. coli isolated from swine, poultry, and humans in Korea. The result of this study indicated the importance of river water as a reservoir for antimicrobial resistance genes and resistant bacteria.

There have been concerns about possible pathogenicity and antimicrobial resistance in Enterococcus, which constitute more than 50% of probiotics in the worldwide market. In this study, Enterococcus in sixteen products manufactured by ten different companies was tested for the presence of six virulence genes and two vancomycin resistance genes. Results in this study showed the safety of Enterococcus on the Korean market and the importance of screening vanA, vanB, agg, cylA, esp, and gelE. Pulse-field gel electrophoresis showed that the sixteen isolates tested in this study are originated from three strains.

Seven Streptococcus agalactiae isolates were obtained from the vagina of 80 asymptomatic women. Three of these isolates showed multi-drug resistant (MDR) phenotypes: two isolates were resistant to clarithromycin, clindamycin, erythromycin, and tetracycline; and one isolate was resistant to clarithromycin, clindamycin, erythromycin, tetracycline, and quinupristin/dalfopristin. There was no clonal relationship among the MDR isolates. This is the first report of quinupristin/dalfopristin-resistant S. agalactiae.

We report the isolation of Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium phage type DT104 (CCARM 8104) from swine in Korea. The CCARM 8104 isolate was resistant to nalidixic acid and showed reduced susceptibility to quinolones. The CCARM 8104 isolate had a missense mutation, Asp87Asn, in the quinolone resistance-determining region in gyrA and produced PSE-1. The CCARM 8104 isolate carried two different class 1 integrons, and the PSE-1 beta-lactamase gene was inserted into a 1,200 bp class 1 integron. The presence of DT104 with pse-1 in an integron located in a plasmid and reduced susceptibility to quinolone in swine pose a significant threat of possible horizontal spread between swine and humans.

Twenty isolates resistant to seven quinolones were isolated from major rivers in Korea. All isolates had three mutations, Ser83-->Leu and Asp87-->Asn in GyrA and Ser80-->Ile or Ser80-->Arg in ParC and three isolates had an additional mutation Glu84-->Gly or Glu84-->Val in ParC. In addition, a clonal spread was not found in these isolates.

Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is one of the most important pathogens in human and veterinary hospitals. The isolation of MRSA from animals and foodstuffs has been reported with an increased incidence. However, methicillin (oxacillin) is not used in animal husbandry or in animal hospitals in Korea. In this study, three pre-MRSA and one silent mecA-carrying methicillin susceptible S. aureus (smMSSA) were isolated from retail chicken meat, and three MRSA were isolated from hospitalized dogs in Korea. The three pre-MRSA isolates were determined to have a staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec) type III, and the smMSSA isolate was not classified. The animal hospital isolates were found to contain SCCmec type II. Seven and 15 S. aureus isolated from hospitalized humans and bovine milk, respectively, were also examined in this study in order to determine the epidemiological origins of MRSA. Multilocus sequencing typing (MLST) revealed that the chicken meat and bovine milk isolates were closely related to the animal hospital isolates. The SCCmec characteristics and MLST analyses indicated the possibility of the human to animal transmission of MRSA. These results highlight the importance of identifying MRSA carriers as well as intercepting MRSA transmission because MRSA is becoming increasingly widespread without any plausible relationship with the use of methicillin (oxacillin).

Among the 443 clinical isolates of Escherichia coli and Klebsiella spp. collected between June and November 2003 from 3 university hospitals in Korea, 62 isolates were confirmed as extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)- or plasmid-mediated AmpC beta-lactamase-producers by double disk synergy test, PCR and sequencing for beta-lactamase genes. The most frequently identified ESBL gene among E. coli and K. pneumoniae isolates was bla(SHV-12) and bla(CTX-M) (bla(CTX-M-9), bla(CTX-M-14), bla(CTX-M-3), and bla(CTX-M-15)). Four kinds of plasmid-mediated AmpC beta-lactamases, ACT-1, CMY-1, CMY-2, and DHA-1, were detected. ESBL production was associated with high levels of resistance to tetracycline, sulfisoxazole, streptomycin, kanamycin, gentamicin and tobramycin when compared to non-ESBL producing isolates. Conclusively, this study suggests that the CTX-M beta-lactamases are prevalent and various kinds of plasmid-mediated AmpC enzymes are distributed in clinical isolates of E. coli and Klebsiella spp. in Korea.

Compared to the number of studies examining extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL)-producing clinical isolates, environmental ESBL-producers have not been studied extensively. To investigate environmental ESBL-producing Escherichia coli, 22 cephalothin-resistant E. coli were isolated from Han River in Seoul, Korea. These isolates were resistant to ampicillin, cephalothin, and gentamicin, and 14 isolates among these were resistant to norfloxacin. All of these isolates produce AmpC and CMY, OXA, or TEM as determined by isoelectric point focusing (IEF) gel electrophoresis and PCR. One isolate (57-214) producing AmpC and OXA was resistant to all antibiotics (ampicillin, cephalothin, norfloxacin, gentamicin, cefotaxime, ceftazidime) tested in this study. Six isolates, including isolate 57-214, could adhere to T24 human bladder cells, and these isolates were not related to each other as shown with random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD). Results showed that environmental ESBL-producing E. coli is able to colonize in bladder cells and directly cause antibiotic-resistant urinary tract infection.