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Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is a complex inflammatory disorder that affects between 2% and 16% of adults in the United States, with estimated healthcare costs between 4 and 12 million USD. Viruses are a common etiologic factor for URIs, are frequently identified in the sinuses of patients with CRS, and trigger CRS exacerbations. Therefore, investigating the role of viruses provides an opportunity to identify their role in the pathogenesis of CRS. In this review, we identified the viruses frequently isolated in patients with CRS, as well as their associated immunologic responses and contributions to inflammation. Rhinovirus, parainfluenza virus, influenza virus, and respiratory syncytial virus are the viruses commonly found in patients with CRS. This information allows us to target pathways early in the pathogenesis of CRS, thereby playing a significant role in slowing the progression of this chronic disease.

Dokdo, a group of oceanic islands located in the East Sea near Ulleungdo Island, Korea, has great biological and ecological diversity. The ecosystem of Dokdo is considered unique because the oceanic climate differs from that of mainland Korea, and the islands have remained isolated for an extended period due to their geographic features. Biological surveys of insects were conducted five times on Dongdo and twice on Seodo in 2019 and 2020. From these surveys, we could find a total of ten orders, 82 families, and 190 species of insects, including two newly described species: Geocoris (Geocoris) pallidipennis (Costa) (Hemiptera: Lygaeidae) and Tephrochlamys japonica (Okadome) (Diptera: Heleomyzidae). These survey results suggest that Dokdo is very important from both academic and conservation perspectives. Establishing a complete database of Dokdo insects will require continued investigations. Such a database would provide basic information for inferring correlations with mainland species.

Background Molecular date of chigger mites, disease vectors of scrub typhus, are lacking; therefore, they are typically identified morphologically. However, owing to the small size of chigger mites, they are easily damaged. Moreover, factors such as spontaneous mutation and the morphological similarity of adults make accurate classification and identification difficult. Therefore, this study aimed to develop a rapid and accurate molecular method for identifying five chigger mite species (Leptotrombidium pallidum, L. palpale, L. scutellare, L. orientale, and Euschoengastia koreaensis) that transmit scrub typhus in the Republic of Korea. Methods Species-specific primers for multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were designed using the internal transcribed spacer regions of 106 chigger mite samples from five species. Results Pieces of multiplex PCR products with unique size were created as follows: L. palpale, 933 bp; L. orientale, 747 bp; L. pallidum, 567 bp; E. koreaensis, 487 bp; L. scutellare, 244 bp). Conclusions A multiplex PCR-based molecular method was successfully developed for identifying five chigger mite species (mainly collected from rodents) that transmit scrub typhus in Korea and are distribute nationwide. This multiplex PCR assay will complement morphological classification, providing an accurate species identification method that will be useful for monitoring chigger mites.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has brought disparities in mental and physical health faced by ethnic minorities to the forefront. In the U.S., Hispanic/Latino communities are plagued by elevated rates of psychiatric conditions and trauma. Exacerbating this burden, common discourse often implicates Hispanic/Latino ethnicity as a causal factor, despite clear evidence of systemic causes, including lack of access to resources, and discrimination. Aims: To parse apart Hispanic/Latino ethnicity from determinants of wellbeing (such as trauma, financial status, and loneliness), we examined mental and physical health during COVID-19 via an online, anonymous survey available in both English and Spanish. Methods: We examined wellbeing across three participant groups, including two groups of Hispanic/Latino adults with varying degrees of ‘belonging’ to the dominant culture in their country of residence: Hispanic/Latino individuals living in Spanish-speaking and/or Central or Latin American countries (Group 1), Hispanic/Latino individuals living in the U.S. (Group 2), and non-Hispanic/Latino individuals living in the U.S. (Group 3). Results: Results demonstrated there were significant differences between groups in specific aspects of wellbeing. Most importantly, results showed Hispanic/Latino ethnicity does not significantly predict psychosocial wellbeing or psychosis risk, and identified several predictors of these outcomes, including U.S. residence, trauma, loneliness, and age. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate that Hispanic/Latino ethnicity itself is not a causal factor of poor psychosocial wellbeing or elevated psychosis risk and instead identify several social and systemic causal factors commonly faced by Hispanic/Latino Americans. We suggest that language reporting on minority mental health acknowledge systemic factors as contributing to poor outcome rather than referring to ethnicity as if it were a causal factor.

To develop a teleoperation system for forest harvesters using images from the work area. In a CPE (customer premises equipment) environment, both the control command to operate a forest harvester and images to monitor the work area are transmitted using 5.8 GHz Wi-Fi. The control command is sent to the harvester by wirelessly connecting CAN (controller area network) buses in the harvester and remote control station. The images are sent to the operator through video streaming over Wi-Fi. To evaluate the feasibility of the proposed teleoperation system, the delays for transmitting control commands and images are measured in various environments such as open space, a space with obstacles, and a forest. The total delay comprised the wireless communication delay and the time required to properly format the data for transmission over Wi-Fi. The delay of CAN-to-Ethernet and Ethernet-to-CAN conversion for transmitting CAN bus data and the delay due to the encoding/decoding of transmitted images were 0.213 and 119.457 ms, respectively. The wireless communication delay was maximum 3.506 ms. Provided that the reception sensitivity did not exceed the capability of the receiving antenna, the data loss did not occur. A field test conducted over 350 m on a relatively flat surface showed that the operator could suitably teleoperate all the harvester actuators and functions by using joysticks and switches under video guidance. A teleoperation system was developed for a forest harvester. The system consists of control command transmission and image transmission over Wi-Fi CPE. The delay between the environment recognition by the operator and actuator control was acceptable according to the operator’s assessment and various studies.

Self-disturbances such as an anomalous perception of one’s own body boundary are central to the phenomenology of schizophrenia (SZ), but measuring the spatial parameters of the hypothesized self–other boundary has proved to be challenging. Peripersonal space (PPS) refers to the immediate zone surrounding the body where the self interacts physically with the environment; the space that corresponds to hypothesized self–other boundary. PPS is represented by enhanced multisensory integration and faster reaction time (RT) for objects near the body. Thus, multisensory RT tasks can be used to estimate self–other boundary. We aimed to quantify PPS in SZ using an immersive virtual reality visuotactile RT paradigm. Twenty-four participants with SZ and 24 demographically matched controls (CO) were asked to detect tactile vibration while watching a ball approaching them, thrown by either a machine (nonsocial condition) or an avatar (social condition). Parameters of PPS were estimated from the midpoint of the spatial range where the tactile RT decreased most rapidly (size) and the gradient of the RT change at this midpoint (slope). Overall, PPS was smaller in participants with SZ compared with CO. PPS slope for participants with SZ was shallower than CO in the social but not in nonsocial condition, indicating an increased uncertainty of self–other boundary across an extended zone in SZ. Social condition also increased false alarms for tactile detection in SZ. Clinical symptoms were not clearly associated with PPS parameters. These findings suggest the context-dependent nature of weakened body boundary in SZ and underscore the importance of reconciliating objective and subjective aspects of self-disturbances.

Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is a complex inflammatory disorder that affects between 2 and 16% of adults in the United States with estimated healthcare costs between 4 to 12 million USD. Viruses are a frequent cause of upper respiratory infections and a trigger for CRS exacerbations. There are several cross-sectional studies that have identified types of viruses associated with CRS. Rhinovirus, parainfluenza virus, influenza virus, and respiratory syncytial virus were the main associated viruses found in nasal lavage samples of patients with CRS. Other viruses such as adenovirus or severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) have weak associations with CRS and were excluded from the review. Rhinovirus and its subtypes utilize glycoproteins like intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1), low density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR) family members, and cadherin-related family member 3 (CDHR3) to invade host cells. Influenza and parainfluenza virus invade through the binding of hemagglutinin (HA) to sialic acid-containing molecules while respiratory syncytial virus has a RSV specific glycoprotein that binds to the cellular receptor human nucleolin (NCL). Viral infection that causes CRS is frequently associated with type 1 and type 2 immune responses. Dysregulated immune response to viral infections can result in the activation of airway remodeling, epithelial-mesenchymal transitions, and epithelial barrier breakdown that are central to the pathogenesis of CRS. Risk factors for viral infections in CRS. Dysfunctional epithelial barrier function and age are strong risk factors for CRS infections. Comorbid respiratory diseases like asthma or allergic rhinitis are highly associated with CRS risk and CRS exacerbations. Children are also more likely to have upper respiratory tract infections than adults and viruses associated with CRS are more prevalent in infants and children. Studying and understanding the role of viruses in CRS is an important step in identifying disease pathogenesis and targeting these pathways early to slow disease progression.

Background: Bodily self-disturbances are highly salient to the phenomenology of schizophrenia (SZ) but difficult to quantify owing to the subjective nature of these experiences that challenge verbal descriptions. The Benson et al. [PsyCh J. 2019 Mar;8(1):110–21] Body Disturbances Inventory (B-BODI) provides visual aids to help participants access the frequency, distressfulness, and vividness of subjective self-experiences with good reliability and validity in North American samples. However, the concept of the self and, accordingly, the conceptualization of self-disorders are influenced by culture. Therefore, we examined self-disturbances in individuals with SZ and control (CO) participants in 2 distinct cultures. Methods: B-BODI was administered to South Korean and North American participants, with and without SZ. Severity of symptoms in diagnosed individuals with SZ and schizotypy in CO was assessed. We also assessed perceived social isolation and mood in all participants. Results: Endorsement and frequency of bodily self-disturbances in SZ were similar in both cultures. In contrast, there were significant cultural differences in the degree of distress and vividness of self-disturbances. Bodily self-disturbances were experienced as more vivid and distressing to Americans than Koreans, regardless of diagnosis. For both cultures, B-BODI scores were associated with positive, but not negative, symptoms in SZ. For CO, elevated schizotypy was associated with B-BODI scores. Mood and loneliness were not associated with B-BODI scores. Conclusion: SZ reported overall increased levels of bodily self-disturbances compared with CO, regardless of culture. However, there were cultural differences in one’s emotional reaction to these experiences. Americans were more distressed by self-disturbances and experienced them more vividly than Koreans. These findings suggest that Americans may be less accepting of anomalous bodily self-experiences relative to Koreans. Last, B-BODI appears to be a useful tool for future cross-cultural studies of SZ phenomenology.

Potatoes are similar in color and size to soil and its clods. They are mostly irregular in the shape as well. Therefore, it is not easy to distinguish potatoes from the soil surface background only with machine vision. This study applied Mask R-CNN, one of the object recognition technologies using deep learning to detect potatoes. The size of object in pixel was obtained on individual potato, and they will be used to predict the yield of potatoes. In order to collect the images needed for deep learning, potato images at the time of harvesting were obtained from potato farms. Annotation was entered for each irregular potato shape, where approximately 4500 potatoes were used. Resnet-101 was selected as the backbone of Mask R-CNN with a feature pyramid network. Transfer training was applied to shorten training time and limit the number of images needed to train the model. The classification performance evaluation was conducted to verify the trained model. The size of potato in pixel was obtained from the output image through the potato detection model by the segmentation algorithm using MATLAB. The total number of training for the potato detection model was 12,000, and the training loss of Mask R-CNN was less than 0.1%. The potato detection results from 69 randomly selected test images showed that the average detection precision was 90.8%, recall 93.0%, and F1 score 91.9%. Potato detection model with Mask R-CNN can detect irregularly shaped potatoes on similar color soil surface. The size of the detected potato region can be extracted as well.

Unmanned aerial vehicle-based remote sensing technology has recently been widely applied to crop monitoring due to the rapid development of unmanned aerial vehicles, and these technologies have considerable potential in smart agriculture applications. Field phenotyping using remote sensing is mostly performed using unmanned aerial vehicles equipped with RGB cameras or multispectral cameras. For accurate field phenotyping for precision agriculture, images taken from multiple perspectives need to be simultaneously collected, and phenotypic measurement errors may occur due to the movement of the drone and plants during flight. In this study, to minimize measurement error and improve the digital surface model, we proposed a collaborative driving system that allows multiple UAVs to simultaneously acquire images from different viewpoints. An integrated navigation system based on MAVSDK is configured for the attitude control and position control of unmanned aerial vehicles. Based on the leader–follower-based swarm driving algorithm and a long-range wireless network system, the follower drone cooperates with the leader drone to maintain a constant speed, direction, and image overlap ratio, and to maintain a rank to improve their phenotyping. A collision avoidance algorithm was developed because different UAVs can collide due to external disturbance (wind) when driving in groups while maintaining a rank. To verify and optimize the flight algorithm developed in this study in a virtual environment, a GAZEBO-based simulation environment was established. Based on the algorithm that has been verified and optimized in the previous simulation environment, some unmanned aerial vehicles were flown in the same flight path in a real field, and the simulation and the real field were compared. As a result of the comparative experiment, the simulated flight accuracy (RMSE) was 0.36 m and the actual field flight accuracy was 0.46 m, showing flight accuracy like that of a commercial program.

We report high efficiency cell processing technologies for the ultra-thin Si solar cells based on crystalline Si thin foils (below a 50 µm thickness) produced by the proton implant exfoliation (PIE) technique. Shallow textures of submicrometer scale is essential for effective light trapping in crystalline Si thin foil based solar cells. In this study, we report the fabrication process of random Si nanohole arrays of ellipsoids by a facile way using low melting point metal nanoparticles of indium which were vacuum-deposited and dewetted spontaneously at room temperature. Combination of dry and wet etch processes with indium nanoparticles as etch masks enables the fabrication of random Si nanohole arrays of an ellipsoidal shape. The optimized etching processes led to effective light trapping nanostructures comparable to conventional micro-pyramids. We also developed the laser fired contact (LFC) process especially suitable for crystalline Si thin foil based PERC solar cells. The laser processing parameters were optimized to obtain a shallow LFC contact in conjunction with a low contact resistance. Lastly, we applied the random Si nanohole arrays and the LFC process to the crystalline Si thin foils (a 48 µm thickness) produced by the PIE technique and achieved the best efficiency of 17.1% while the planar PERC solar cell without the Si nanohole arrays exhibit 15.6%. Also, we demonstrate the ultra-thin wafer is bendable to have a 16 mm critical bending radius.

Recently, manufacturing concepts, such as personalized production and distributed manufacturing, have attracted attention owing to the ongoing revolution in industrial technology. Connected micro s...

Background Genus Anopheles mosquitoes are the primary vectors of human malaria, which is a serious threat to public health worldwide. To reduce the spread of malaria and identify the malaria infection rates in mosquitoes, accurate species identification is needed. Malaria re-emerged in 1993 in the Republic of Korea (ROK), with numbers peaking in 2004 before decreasing to current levels. Eight Anopheles species (Anopheles sinensis, Anopheles pullus, Anopheles belenrae, Anopheles lesteri, Anopheles kleini, Anopheles sineroides, Anopheles koreicus, Anopheles lindesayi) are distributed throughout Korea. Members of the Anopheles Hyrcanus group currently cannot be identified morphologically. The other species of Anopheles can be identified morphologically, except when specimens are damaged in traps. The purpose of this study was to develop a rapid and accurate method for simultaneous molecular identification of the eight Anopheles species present in the ROK. Methods Anopheles spp. used in this study were collected near/in the demilitarized zone in ROK, where most malaria cases are reported. DNA from 165 of the Anopheles specimens was used to develop a multiplex PCR assay. The internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) region of each species was sequenced and analysed for molecular identification. Results DNA from a total of 165 Anopheles specimens was identified to species using a multiplex diagnostic system. These included: 20 An. sinensis, 21 An. koreicus, 17 An. lindesayi, 25 An. kleini, 11 An. lesteri, 22 An. sineroides, 23 An. belenrae, and 26 An. pullus. Each species was clearly distinguished by electrophoresis as follows: 1,112 bp for An. sinensis; 925 bp for An. koreicus; 650 bp for An. lindesayi; 527 bp for An. kleini; 436 bp for An. lesteri; 315 bp for An. sineroides; 260 bp for An. belenrae; and, 157 bp for An. pullus. Conclusion A multiplex PCR assay was developed to identify Anopheles spp. distributed in ROK. This method can be used to accurately identify Anopheles species that are difficult to identify morphologically to determine species distributions and malaria infection rates.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)-based remote sensing techniques have significant potential in agriculture and smart farming applications for the efficient monitoring of plant growth, the irrigation process, disease detection, etc. Most research on field phenotyping with remote sensing was accomplished by a typical UAV equipped with an RGB camera or a multispectral camera over a large farm field. Due to the effects of wind disturbances on point-cloud generation processing with a single-camera image captured from the UAV, precise field phenotyping measurement for crop breeding and agriculture production requires the simultaneous collection of images by multiple cameras that are far enough apart to provide for structure from motion calculations. To improve digital surface models by minimizing measurement errors caused by the motion of the UAV and plants during a flying mission, a cooperative operation system of multiple UAVs was proposed to enable the simultaneous collection of images from different perspectives. A coordinated navigation system based on the Robot Operation System was constructed to compute control commands to stabilize pose control and the location of the UAVs. Based on a leader-follower formation control algorithm through a wireless network system, a follower UAV performed coordination with a leader UAV to maintain the desired constant speed, direction, and percentage of image overlap in a synchronized motion, ultimately enabling task achievement in a short time and improvement of target models based on 3D reconstruction. To validate the performance of the proposed method, measurement errors of field phenotyping, obtained from synchronized multiple UAV-based image collection, were compared with the single UAV-based image collection in simulation and field tests.

Background Genus Anopheles mosquitoes are the primary vectors of human malaria, which is a serious threat to public health worldwide. To reduce the spread of malaria and identify the malaria infection rates in mosquitoes, accurate species identification is needed. Malaria reemerged in 1993 in the Republic of Korea (ROK), with numbers peaking in 2004 before decreasing to current levels. Eight Anopheles species (Anopheles sinensis, An. pullus, An. belenrae, An. lesteri, An. kleini, An. sineroides, An. koreicus, and An. lindesayi) are distributed throughout Korea. Members of the Anopheles Hyrcanus Group currently cannot be identified morphologically. The other species of Anopheles can be identified morphologically, except when specimens are damaged in traps. The purpose of this study was to develop a rapid and accurate method for simultaneous molecular identification of the eight Anopheles species present in the ROK. Methods Anopheles spp. used in this study were collected near/in the demilitarized zone in the ROK, where most malaria cases are reported. DNA from 165 of the Anopheles specimens was used to develop a multiplex PCR assay. The internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) region of each species was sequenced and analyzed for molecular identification. Results DNA from a total of 165 Anopheles specimens was identified to species using a multiplex diagnostic system. These included: 20 An. sinensis, 21 An. koreicus, 17 An. lindesayi, 25 An. kleini, 11 An. lesteri, 22 An. sineroides, 23 An. belenrae, and 26 An. pullus. Molecular weights determined by electrophoresis were 1112 bp for An. sinensis, 925 bp for An. koreicus, 650 bp for An. lindesayi, 527 bp for An. kleini, 436 bp for An. lesteri, 315 bp for An. sineroides, 260 bp for An. belenrae, and 157 bp for An. pullus. Conclusion A multiplex PCR assay was developed to identify Anopheles spp. distributed in the ROK. This method can be used to accurately identify Anopheles species that are difficult to identify morphologically to determine species distributions and malaria infection rates.

Substance abuse comorbidity is highly prevalent and is linked to detrimental outcomes in individuals with psychotic disorder, but the role of personality traits as the underlying mechanism is being increasingly underscored. This study aimed to profile temperamental risks of comorbid substance use disorder in psychotic disorders by performing meta-analyses on personality trait differences between psychotic disorders with comorbidity (dual diagnosis; DD) and without it (psychotic disorders; PSD).

The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has resulted in the worldwide disruption of everyday life but the impact and response to the pandemic have not been uniform. Many countries rapidly deployed physical-distancing mandates to curb the spread of the COVID-19; others did not. Whilst social distancing strategies are necessary to reduce the transmission of the virus, it is also important to examine unintended psychiatric consequences of social isolation. We examined psychological distress in four countries with distinct public health strategies (South Korea, Hong Kong, France and the United States) to identify common and region-specific factors that may contribute to mental illness. From March to July June 2020, an online survey of demographics, general health, mental health, loneliness and social networks was conducted. Overall, younger age, greater concern for COVID, and increased loneliness predicted worse psychological outcome, although the magnitudes of the effects were not uniform among the four countries. We also observed notable differences in psychological distress; Hong Kong, with the strictest lockdown mandate, suffered the most drastic worsening of mental health outcome. To explain differential exacerbations of psychological distress around the globe during the pandemic, contributions of social unrest, economic uncertainty, and disruption to regular routine should be considered.

Highlights • We examined psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the general population in south korea where the spread of the virus has been controlled but there have been signs of population-wide distress. • An online study was conducted to investigate the relationship between mental health, social factors and demographic variables in 400 south korean residents. • Clinical levels of depression, anxiety or stress were reported by 45% of the respondents. Elevated psychosis-risk was present in 12.8%. These represent a drastic increase above the base rate prior to the pandemic. • Loneliness, but not social network size contributed to deteriorating mental health. • The extent of the psychological distress in the general population despite successful mitigation of the pandemic is disconcerting. There is an urgent need to prepare for a potential mental illness epidemic in the near future., South Korea was able to successfully control the spread of COVID-19 without nationwide lockdowns or drastic social distancing efforts, but pandemic-related psychological outcome of the general population remains unknown. Between March and June 2020, 400 South Korean residents participated in an online study of depression, anxiety, stress, psychosis-risk and loneliness, as well as indices of social network, physical health and demographics. Clinical levels of depression, anxiety or stress were reported by 45% of the respondents, and psychosis-risk was present in 12.8%; a drastic increase above the base rate reported by previous studies conducted in South Korea prior to the pandemic. Subjective feelings of loneliness, but not the size of the social network accounted for poor mental health. Women were especially at increased risk for mental health problems. Thus, despite effective mitigation of the pandemic, there was a striking deterioration of mental health. As the psychological burden of the continuing pandemic accrues, the probability of an impending mental health crisis is increasing, especially in countries with greater infection and death rates than South Korea. Comprehensive efforts to address the psychological aftermath of the pandemic are urgently needed.

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a promising tool for alleviating positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia, but its role in functional outcome remains uncertain. This meta-analysis examined the effects of tDCS on general psychopathology symptoms (GPS) from the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) because GPS are closely associated with daily functioning. Literature search using Medline and PsycINFO identified 8 randomized controlled trials with tDCS and PANSS. The GPS were significantly reduced after tDCS but there was no evidence for long-term treatment effects. Further research is needed to optimize the dosing of tDCS and to understand individual differences in treatment response.

Even when individuals with schizophrenia have an intact ability to enjoy rewarding moments, the means to assist them to translate rewarding experiences into goal-directed behaviors is unclear. The present study sought to determine whether informationally administered rewards enhance intrinsic motivation to foster goal-directed behaviors in individuals with schizophrenia (SZ) and healthy controls (HCs). Eighty-four participants (SZ=43, HCs=41) were randomly assigned to conditions involving either a performance-contingent reward with an informationally administered reward or a task-contingent reward with no feedback. Participants were asked to play two cognitive games of equalized difficulty. Accuracy, self-reported intrinsic motivation, free-choice intrinsic motivation (i.e., game play during a free-choice observation period), and perceived competency were measured. Intrinsic motivation and perceived competency in the cognitive games were similar between the two participant groups. The informationally administered reward significantly enhanced self-reported intrinsic motivation and perceived competency in both the groups. The likelihood that individuals with schizophrenia would play the game during the free-choice observation period was four times greater in the informationally administered reward condition than that in the no-feedback condition. Our findings suggest that, in the context of cognitive remediation, individuals with schizophrenia would benefit from informationally administered rewards.

Plasmid DNA was purified using core-shell γ-Fe 2 O 3 @SiO 2 nanoparticles synthesized by a common sol-gel method utilizing tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) as a silica precursor. The dispersibility and TEOS binding affinity of γ-Fe 2 O 3 nanoparticles were enhanced by acid/base treatment due to the formation of additional surface hydroxyl groups prior to SiO 2 deposition. Since SiO 2 was coated under basic conditions in the presence of ammonia as a catalyst, base-treated γ-Fe 2 O 3 nanoparticles were more suited for this modification due to exhibiting a larger zeta potential and a lower saturation magnetization loss. The performance of the synthesized γ-Fe 2 O 3 @SiO 2 nanoparticles with a 15-nm-thick SiO 2 layer in the purification of plasmid DNA was compared to that of commercial Fe 3 O 4 -based magnetic beads. The used DNA samples exhibited similar purities, and all samples had similar theoretical plasmid DNA binding capacities. However, γ-Fe 2 O 3 @SiO 2 nanoparticles exhibited a faster separation speed and a larger saturation magnetization of 100 emu/g compared to that of commercial Fe 3 O 4 -based magnetic beads (75 emu/g).

We demonstrated fabrication of a parabola shaped Si nanostructures of various periods by combined approach of nanosphere lithography and a single step CF4/O2 reactive ion etch (RIE) process. Silica nanosphere monolayers in a hexagonal array were well deposited by a solvent controlled spin coating technique based on binary organic solvents. We showed numerically that a parabolic Si nanostructure of an optimal period among various-shaped nanostructures overcoated with a dielectric layer of a 70 nm thickness provide the most effective antireflection. As the simulation results as a design guide, we fabricated the parabolic Si nanostructures of a 520 nm period and a 300 nm height exhibiting the lowest weighted reflectance of 2.75%. With incorporation of such parabolic Si nanostructures, a damage removal process for 20 sec and SiNx antireflection coating of a 70 nm thickness, the efficiency of solar cells increased to 17.2% while that of the planar cells without the nanostructures exhibited 16.2%. The efficiency enhancement of the cell with the Si nanostructures was attributed to the improved photocurrents arising from the broad spectral antireflection which was confirmed by the external quantum efficiency (EQE) measurements.

Background Schizophrenia has been suggested to be a disorder of social communication, which depends on the way language is used to convey thoughts, beliefs, feelings, and intentions. Everyday language can also reveal personality, emotions, and social skills of the speaker. Extensive past research affirms the central importance of language and thought disorder as diagnostic features of schizophrenia, mostly focused on the neurocognitive aspects of language output collected during clinical interviews, and not on the social nature of language. In this study, we examined narratives written in response to viewing social scenes by individuals with schizophrenia (SZ) and matched controls (CO) using an automated computational linguistics and statistical-based text analysis tool that computes socially-relevant variables. Methods 23 individuals with schizophrenia (SZ) and 23 demographically matched controls (CO) were shown paintings of social situations, and were asked to write reflections describing what they thought and felt about these scenes. Two pictures were presented consecutively. There was no time limit. Resulting narratives were analyzed with the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count program (LIWC; Pennebaker et al, 2015). LIWC computes basic linguistic variables such as the % of self-referring and non-self-referring pronouns, social and emotion words, and cognitive items. LIWC also generates 4 complex variables: formal and logical thinking patterns (“analytic”); social status or confidence (“clout”); authenticity, and emotional tone. Clinical symptoms in SZ were assessed using the Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms (SAPS) and the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS). For all participants, the UCLA Loneliness Scale, the National Adult Reading Test (NART), and the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory (EHI) were administered. Results The two groups did not differ in NART or EHI. There was no group difference in the number of words produced. SZ produced greater number of pronouns than CO but this effect was driven by a higher % of self-referring pronouns in SZ than CO, with no group difference in non self-referring pronouns. For complex variables, CO scored significantly higher in authenticity than SZ but no group differences were observed in clout, analytics, or emotional tone. Loneliness was higher in SZ compared with CO. There were no other significant group differences. In SZ, pronoun use was correlated with positive symptoms (especially with ratings of hallucinations, bizarre behavior, delusions of mind-reading and thought broadcasting) and inversely correlated with negative symptoms (avolition, apathy and motor retardation). Social words were inversely correlated with SAPS Thought Disorder. Clout was inversely correlated with SANS Alogia and SAPS Thought Disorder. Authenticity was correlated with SANS Anhedonia and Asociality. In CO, loneliness was correlated with the % negative emotion words and NART was correlated with total number of emotion words. Discussion We used an automated linguistic analysis tool to extract information relevant to social communication from written narratives. We found group differences in the use of pronouns and authenticity. We also observed associations of clinical symptoms with certain social aspects of language use in schizophrenia. One advantage of automated text analysis tools is the minimization of implicit biases inherent in ratings of interviews. Limitations of this study include lack of direct social functioning measures and the sample size. Future work will incorporate linguistic text analysis within a social paradigm to directly examine the role of language use in social functioning.

This study analyzed and evaluated the energy performance and cost using electricity data from KEPCO (Korean Electric Power Corporation) and actual PV generate data. The analysis was conducted in two houses with different location and size. The demonstration houses were constructed with high thermal insulation and air tightness, and also designed as all-electric houses where all the energy supplies (including heating and cooking) are made of electricity which reduces the maintenance cost and makes maintenance easier. 6kWp grid connected photovoltaic system and air source heat pump for heating and hot water were applied to both houses. The result is summarized as follows. First, for two years, all energy (including plug load, heating, cooling, lighting, hot water supply and ventilation) was supplied by PV system and consequentially zero energy was achieved in both houses. Second, as a result of load matching analysis, in both houses, LCF in summer was relatively higher than that in other seasons and SCF in winter was relatively higher than that in other seasons. Third, monthly electricity bill by the amount of used were not charged, however, additional fees by domestic electricity charging system were charged such as basic electricity fee, VAT on receiving electricity and development fund; average $115 were paid per household.

BACKGROUND: Social impairment is a core feature of schizophrenia. It is present throughout the course of the illness from the premorbid stage and resistant to treatments (Green et al, 2008). Given the important role of social deficits in poor outcome, it is imperative to improve social functioning in individuals with schizophrenia (SZ), but currently available pharmacological and psychosocial interventions have not proven to be very effective. However, recent technological advances have enabled the use of virtual reality (VR) to develop novel psychiatric interventions. We have previously reported preliminary feasibility and acceptability findings from a new VR-based social interaction training program that suggests the benefits of simulating and rehearsing social interactions situations in VR (Adery et al, 2018). In the present study, we evaluated predictors and mediators of the clinical outcome of this VR-intervention. METHODS: 18 outpatients with schizophrenia completed 10 sessions of the social VR training over the course of 5 weeks. At each session, participants were asked to approach and interact with avatars by making appropriate conversations to accomplish social ‘missions’. There were 12 different missions varying in difficulty levels and social settings (café, bus stop and shop). Symptoms (BPRS, SAPS, SANS), emotion recognition (BLERT and a novel facial emotion recognition task), social functioning (Social Functioning Scale) and cognitive functioning (IQ, CogState) were examined in relation to the VR game performance at pre- and post-treatment. Multivariate regression models with backward elimination method were used to verify significant predictors of the outcome. Lastly, mediation analyses were evaluated using bootstrapping (n=5000) to specify the relationship between predictors and behavioral changes. RESULTS: Negative symptoms, especially alogia, anhedonia and asociality improved significantly by post-assessment. Additionally, attention and emotion recognition improved. Within the VR game, number of incorrect responses declined significantly throughout the training period. In multivariate regression models, baseline and changes in social functioning scores predicted clinical symptom improvement. Furthermore, IQ mediated the relationship between performance change in high-difficulty sessions and improvement in alogia. Alogia improvement mediated the relationship between interpersonal communication changes and VR performance. DISCUSSION: Simulation-based social skills VR training game improved clinical symptoms, especially negative symptoms, via changes in social functioning and emotion recognition in schizophrenia. These results suggest that VR-based social skills training may be an effective social intervention method. Although the small sample size limits the scope of our conclusion, the results of the present study illustrate the potential power of technology-based psychiatric interventions.

Severe emotional disturbances such as anxiety and depression have been closely related to aberrant attentional processing of emotional stimuli. However, this has been little studied in schizophrenia, which is also characterized by marked emotional impairments such as heightened negative affect and anhedonia. In the current study, we investigated temporal dynamics of motivated attention to emotional stimuli in schizophrenia. For this purpose, we tracked eye movements of 22 individuals with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder (ISZs) and 19 healthy controls (HCs) to emotional (i.e., happy, sad, angry) and neutral face pairs presented either for 500 ms or 1,500 ms. Initial fixation direction and viewing time at 3 successive intervals (0-500, 500-1,000, 1,000-1,500 ms) were calculated. The results showed that both ISZs and HCs were more likely to orient initial fixations and exhibited longer viewing times to emotional than neutral faces. However, compared with HCs, ISZs allocated less attention to overall faces during the late stage (1,000-1,500 ms) when one of the paired faces displayed negative emotions. Furthermore, positive symptoms were highly associated with initial fixation avoidance to angry faces while depressive symptoms were related to later avoidance of angry faces. Both social amotivation and poor interpersonal functioning were closely related to diminished sustained attention to happy faces. This suggests that early attentional capture of emotional salience may be relatively preserved in schizophrenia, but the people with this disorder display an atypical late attentional process characterized by generalized attentional avoidance of negative stimuli. Of note, aberrant attentional processes of social threat and reward were closely associated with major symptoms and functioning in this disorder. (PsycINFO Database Record

BACKGROUND: An implicit understanding of one’s body with fixed boundaries allows us to differentiate self from other. However, individuals with schizophrenia (SZ) frequently report experiencing bodily self-disturbances such as sudden changes in size and shape of the body and flexible or porous body boundary. In order to quantify bodily disturbances in schizophrenia, we investigated the construct of peripersonal space (PPS), which represents the ‘near’ space immediately surrounding our bodies. Whilst the physical body boundary is fixed, the neural representation of PPS is plastic and can be estimated using multisensory integration paradigms. Moreover, the size and extent of the PPS is thought to be influenced by the social-emotional environment, which in turn has implications for social interactions. We sought to measure PPS in SZ and control participants (CO) by adopting a multisensory integration task in a virtual reality (VR) environment to test whether PPS is altered in SZ when compared to CO. In addition, we examined the effects of social context and threat on the plasticity of PPS. METHODS: SZ and demographically matched CO participated in a visual-tactile response time (RT) task in immersive VR. Participants wore a head-mounted display and trackers on their feet, hands, and the torso. Handheld controllers were used to deliver tactile vibration and to record RTs. In VR, participants faced either an avatar or a machine that threw a ball at a speed of 3m/s. In addition to this visual display, tactile vibration was delivered to the participant’s hand via the controller at one of five set distance points from the initiation of the ball pitch. Participants were asked to press a trigger on the controller as soon as they felt a vibration. There were two social conditions (ball thrown by a person or a machine) and two emotion conditions (threat versus no threat). The RTs were recorded. According to Serino et al (2018), visuo-tactile integration would facilitate the RT nearer one’s PPS boundary. We calculated the location where the visuotactile facilitation occurs to estimate the boundary of PPS. In addition, we examined positive and negative symptoms, social isolation, and social functioning. RESULTS: PPS boundary in SZ differed significantly from that of the CO. However, there were a range of individual differences in PPS within groups. RTs were faster for threat than non-threat stimuli. The impact of social context was not conclusive. DISCUSSION: Preliminary results suggest that PPS can be estimated in VR and that PPS is altered in SZ. Given the importance of PPS in the construction of social self, anomalous experience of PPS in SZ may contribute to self-disturbances. Moreover, individual differences in PPS might impact social interactions and hence contribute to social impairments in schizophrenia.

This study was performed to identify the discrimination experience, and life satisfaction of international marriage women as well as the correlation between the two variables. A total of 108 international marriage women from multicultural family support centers in A city agreed to participate in the survey. The results of study were as follows. The average point of discrimination experience of international marriage women was 2.15 and the life satisfaction was 3.93. Discrimination experience correlated negatively with the life satisfaction (r=-.289, p< .001). Discrimination experience (β=.312, p= .030) of international marriage women was identified as a significant predictor of life satisfaction, i.e., discrimination experience affects the life satisfaction. Therefore, this study recommends programs can regulate the discrimination experience to improve life satisfaction.

Theory of mind (ToM) is the ability to understand mental states of others and it is crucial for building sensitivity to other persons or events. Measuring ToM is important for understanding and rehabilitating social cognitive impairments in persons with schizophrenia. The Social Attribution Task-Multiple Choice (SAT-MC) has been successfully employed to measure ToM between individuals with schizophrenia (SZ) and healthy controls (HC) in North America. Given that the SAT-MC uses geometric shapes, is nonverbal and less culturally loaded than other social cognition measures, it may serve for measuring ToM in schizophrenia across cultures. A total of 120 participants (30 per group; Korean SZ; Korean HC; North American SZ; North American HC) were selected from existing databases to examine the reliability and validity of the SAT-MC. Internal consistency, factor structure, measurement invariance, discriminant validity, and convergent/divergent validity were examined. The SAT-MC had good internal consistency regardless of the clinical and cultural group as evidence by Cronbach's α ≥ 0.78 in all groups. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the one-factor model with a good model fit (χ2 = 188.122, TLI = 0.958, CFI = 0.963, RMSEA = 0.045). The SAT-MC was sensitive to detect individual differences in ToM of SZ and HC, regardless of culture (p The SAT-MC is a reliable measure for evaluating ToM in both Koreans and North Americans with or without schizophrenia, supporting its potential utility in diverse language and cultures for schizophrenia research.

Background This study investigated the genetic structure of Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates from invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) in Korean children after national immunization program (NIP) of extended-valency pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) in Korea from 2014 to 2017. Methods Invasive isolates were collected from 23 hospitals throughout Korea. IPD cases were identified by isolating pneumococci from normally sterile sites. Each isolate was analyzed using standard microbiological techniques, Quellung reaction, multilocus sequence typing, and antimicrobial susceptibility testing. eBURST v3 software was used to estimate the relationships among the isolates and to assign the strains to a clonal complex (CC). Results Ninety-two pneumococcal isolates were analyzed. The source of isolates were blood (77), cerebrospinal fluid (7), pleural fluid (2), joint fluid (2), deep tissue abscess (2), and peritoneal fluid (2). A total of 38 STs and 17 singletons were assigned. Ten clonal complexes were identified: CC320, CC81, CC166, CC439, CC558, CC880, CC3280, CC9395, CC180, and CC310. New STs were assigned: ST13552, ST13553, ST13554, and ST13602. The serotypes were mostly non-vaccine type (NVTs) (82.6%). The most prevalent STs were ST11189 (17.4%, n = 16, all serotype 10A), ST6945 (10.9%, n = 10, all serotype 12F), ST166 (9.8%, n = 9, serotype 11A [22.2%, n = 2], 13 [22.2%, n = 2], 15B/C [22.2%, n = 2], and 23A [33.3%, n = 3]), and ST320 (6.5%, n = 6, all serotype 19A). Major CCs identified were CC166 (11.9%), CC320 (10.9%), and CC81 (10.9%). Serotypes constituting CC81 and CC166 were all NVTs except 6A (n = 1) and 23F (n = 1) in CC81. CC320 consisted of 19A (n = 9) and 19F (n = 1). The relative proportion of NVTs was 61.3% in major CCs. All major three CCs showed multi-drug resistance. Nonsusceptibility to penicillin (80%) and cefotaxime (100%) was the highest in CC320 (serotype 19A [n = 9, 90.0%] and 19F [n = 1, 10.0%]). Conclusion The introduction of extended-valency PCVs has resulted in the change of genetic structure of isolates from IPD of Korean children. In particular, two common CCs (CC81 and CC166), which previously contained vaccine types, were replaced with the NVTs, while CC320 remains unchanged. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.

It is time to extensively reshuffle domestic film industry, which has grown rapidly in recent years. Above all, a most urgent task for domestic film industry is to train specialized staff by working out a foundation for on-site human resource education. For this, it is necessary to review the existing apprenticeship system-a major educational system for domestic film industry for a long time-and then work out a reasonable substitute which can overcome its limitations and succeed its advantages. In other words, it is necessary to switch a current perpendicular rank system, a basis of apprenticeship system, to a horizontal specialized staff system and then establish an industrial information network with which the current status of on-site human resources can be understood and which can comprehensively manage their career, promotion and wages. In this regard, this study suggested the introduction of workplace learning and mentoring as a new system for on-site human resource education for film industry, in order to work out an educational system that could maintain abundant on-site experience and the sense of emotional tie with fellow workers-the advantages of apprenticeship system-and realize a more systematic and specialized workplace learning.