Temporal Changes in Demography and Genetic Diversity of Oriental Storks at the Stage of Long-Term Captive Propagation and Reintroduction Initiation.

Captive propagation and reintroduction are the major steps in the ex-situ conservation of locally extirpated endangered species in a historical region. In a species restoration project conducted in South Korea, we examined temporal changes in demographics and genetic diversity of oriental storks (Ciconia boyciana). Demographic and genetic data from 1996-2018 were analyzed for 80% of all captive and recently reintroduced individuals. Founder establishment and pair formation induced increases in population size and genetic diversity during the early stage of captive propagation. The degree of genetic diversity was found to become saturated and stable with long-term captive propagation. However, this might be a concern for future genetic diversity of both captive and reintroduced populations simultaneously due to the extraction of captive populations at the early stage of reintroduction. Our findings suggest that periodic evaluation of genetic diversity and selection for releasing individuals, using effective genetic markers, would assist in balancing the genetic diversity of the captive and reintroduced oriental storks at the early stage of reintroduction.

Impact of COVID-19 on Adolescents' Smartphone Addiction in South Korea.

The outbreak of COVID-19 impacted numerous people globally, but most notably affected adolescents negatively by contributing to the increase in their use of media and smartphones and therefore their susceptibility to smartphone addiction. Based on the social-ecological model, this study seeks to identify the individual-, family-, and school-level factors of smartphone addiction through two groups of users: a first group whose smartphone usage time increased after the outbreak of COVID-19, and a second group whose usage time did not. Based on the data collected from 360 Korean adolescents aged 15 to 18, results reveal that personal-level factors (i.e., gender, depressive symptoms, self-control, and cyberbullying victimization) are associated with smartphone addiction. For the group whose smartphone usage time increased after the outbreak, economic status, academic performance, and academic year were related to smartphone addiction. Based on these findings, the study makes specific guidelines and suggestions on addressing the smartphone addiction among Korean adolescents.

Effective Disaster Measures for Cambodia: Implications from Focus Group Interview with Potential Young Professionals in Cambodia.

Cambodia suffers from natural disasters despite rapid economic growth. This study diagnosed the current problems of Cambodia's disaster prevention and preparedness, and found more effective disaster measures through two focus group interviews. Participants are potential young professionals studying in Korea as an international graduate student and have been involved in disaster-related activities in Cambodia. Three major disaster measures have been proposed here. First, the effectiveness of government policy should be improved. To implement the current policy realistically and effectively, we need to secure budgets, support technology development, and expand formal education and training. Second, the private sector should cooperate with civil society to provide better support to the community through corporate social responsibility activities. Specifically, non-governmental organizations should strengthen training and monitoring. As a current important issue, hydropower plants must preserve environmental values according to careful planning. Finally, community-based activities must be actively conducted (e.g., active tree planting and differentiated disaster response training by gender or level). The study would serve as preliminary data to support the Cambodian disaster management plan in the future.

Clusterin induces matrix metalloproteinase-9 expression via ERK1/2 and PI3K/Akt/NF-κB pathways in monocytes/macrophages.

Most solid tumor tissues possess a significant population of macrophages, which are known to be closely linked with tumor progression and metastasis. Clusterin has been reported to be overexpressed in various tumors and to have a tumor-promoting role. As clusterin induction and macrophage infiltration occur concurrently at the tumor site, it raises a possibility that clusterin may regulate the function of macrophages via facilitating ECM remodeling. Here, we demonstrate for the first time the expression of MMP-9 by clusterin in human primary monocytes as well as human and murine macrophage cell lines, THP-1, and Raw264.7. MMP-9 expression was accompanied by increased enzymatic activity, as revealed by gelatin zymography. The MMP-9 activity promoted by clusterin was found to be dependent on the activation of ERK1/2 and PI3K/Akt but not p38 or JNK pathways. Inhibition of PI3K activity did not affect the activation of ERK1/2 and vice versa, indicating that the two pathways were independently operated to stimulate MMP-9 activity. Moreover, clusterin facilitated nuclear translocation of NF-κB p65 along with IκB-α degradation and phosphorylation, which was critical for MMP-9 expression. As NF-κB is a central regulator of inflammation, clusterin may provide a molecular link between inflammation and cancer via up-regulating NF-κB and MMP-9. Collectively, these data highlight a novel role of clusterin as a stimulator for MMP-9 expression in macrophages, which may contribute to the tissue reorganization by serving as a modulator for ECM degradation.