Kyungnam University

Yao M., Tijing L.D., Naidu G., Kim S., Matsuyama H., Fane A.G., Shon H.K.

Membrane distillation (MD) is an alternative membrane technology that offers the capacity to treat highly saline water including industrial wastewater, seawater, brine water from other processes, and oil-gas field produced water. However, conventional hydrophobic membranes suffer fast wetting and severe fouling especially when low surface tension chemicals exist in saline water, which compromises the performance of MD. Recent advances in material science and nanomaterials research have led to the incorporation of special wetting properties on membrane surfaces. Membranes with special wettability can achieve high resistance against membrane fouling and wetting, as well as overcome the trade-off between membrane permeability and selectivity. This review summarizes the progress and recent development of studies on MD membranes with special wettability. Firstly, the fundamental concepts pertaining to membrane surface wettability including insights of their benefits and potential issues are highlighted in this review. Secondly, fabrication methods and applications of membranes utilizing various special wettability are discussed in detail, along with their challenges. Finally, this review concludes the advantages of membranes with special wettability and demonstrates potential solutions to the above-mentioned challenges for future research in high saline wastewater treatment.

Rhee T.G., Shim S.R., Forester B.P., Nierenberg A.A., McIntyre R.S., Papakostas G.I., Krystal J.H., Sanacora G., Wilkinson S.T.

ImportanceWhether ketamine is as effective as electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) among patients with major depressive episode remains unknown.ObjectiveTo systematically review and meta-analyze data about clinical efficacy and safety for ketamine and ECT in patients with major depressive episode.Data SourcesPubMed, MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, and Embase were systematically searched using Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) terms and text keywords from database inception through April 19, 2022, with no language limits. Two authors also manually and independently searched all relevant studies in US and European clinical trial registries and Google Scholar.Study SelectionIncluded were studies that involved (1) a diagnosis of depression using standardized diagnostic criteria, (2) intervention/comparator groups consisting of ECT and ketamine, and (3) depressive symptoms as an efficacy outcome using standardized measures.Data Extraction and SynthesisData extraction was completed independently by 2 extractors and cross-checked for errors. Hedges g standardized mean differences (SMDs) were used for improvement in depressive symptoms. SMDs with corresponding 95% CIs were estimated using fixed- or random-effects models. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) reporting guideline was followed.Main Outcomes and MeasuresEfficacy outcomes included depression severity, cognition, and memory performance. Safety outcomes included serious adverse events (eg, suicide attempts and deaths) and other adverse events.ResultsSix clinical trials comprising 340 patients (n = 162 for ECT and n = 178 for ketamine) were included in the review. Six of 6 studies enrolled patients who were eligible to receive ECT, 6 studies were conducted in inpatient settings, and 5 studies were randomized clinical trials. The overall pooled SMD for depression symptoms for ECT when compared with ketamine was −0.69 (95% CI, −0.89 to −0.48; Cochran Q, P = .15; I2 = 39%), suggesting an efficacy advantage for ECT compared with ketamine for depression severity. Significant differences were not observed between groups for studies that assessed cognition/memory or serious adverse events. Both ketamine and ECT had unique adverse effect profiles (ie, ketamine: lower risks for headache and muscle pain; ECT: lower risks for blurred vision, vertigo, diplopia/nystagmus, and transient dissociative/depersonalization symptoms). Limitations included low to moderate methodological quality and underpowered study designs.Conclusions and RelevanceFindings from this systematic review and meta-analysis suggest that ECT may be superior to ketamine for improving depression severity in the acute phase, but treatment options should be individualized and patient-centered.

Yanagisawa T., Rajwa P., Thibault C., Gandaglia G., Mori K., Kawada T., Fukuokaya W., Shim S.R., Mostafaei H., Motlagh R.S., Quhal F., Laukhtina E., Pallauf M., Pradere B., Kimura T., et. al.

Recent randomized controlled trials (RCTs) examined the role of adding androgen receptor signaling inhibitors (ARSIs), including abiraterone acetate (ABI), apalutamide, darolutamide (DAR), and enzalutamide (ENZ), to docetaxel (DOC) and androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) in patients with metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer (mHSPC). To analyze the oncologic benefit of triplet combination therapies using ARSI + DOC + ADT, and comparing them with available treatment regimens in patients with mHSPC. Three databases and meetings abstracts were queried in April 2022 for RCTs analyzing patients treated with first-line combination systemic therapy for mHSPC. The primary interests of measure were overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS). Subgroup analyses were conducted to assess the differential outcomes in patients with low- and high-volume disease as well as de novo and metachronous metastasis. Overall, 11 RCTs were included for meta-analyses and network meta-analyses (NMAs). We found that the triplet combinations outperformed DOC + ADT in terms of OS (pooled hazard ratio [HR]: 0.74, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.65–0.84) and PFS (pooled HR: 0.49, 95% CI: 0.42–0.58). There was no statistically significant difference between patients with low- and high-volume disease in terms of an OS benefit from adding an ARSI to DOC +ADT (both HR: 0.79; p = 1). Based on NMAs, triplet therapy also outperformed ARSI + ADT in terms of OS (DAR + DOC + ADT: pooled HR: 0.74, 95% CI: 0.55–0.99) and PFS (ABI + DOC + ADT: HR: 0.68, 95% CI: 0.51–0.91, and ENZ + DOC + ADT: HR: 0.70, 95% CI: 0.53–0.93). An analysis of treatment ranking among de novo mHSPC patients showed that triplet therapy had the highest likelihood of improved OS in patients with high-volume disease; however, doublet therapy using ARSI + ADT had the highest likelihood of improved OS in patients with low-volume disease. We found that the triplet combination therapy improves survival endpoints in mHSPC patients compared with currently available doublet treatment regimens. Our findings need to be confirmed in further head-to-head trials with longer follow-up and among various patient populations. Our study suggests that triplet therapy with androgen receptor signaling inhibitor, docetaxel, androgen deprivation therapy prolongs survival in patients with metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer compared with the current standard doublet therapy.

Meng B., Chua B., Ryu H.B., Han H.

While volunteer tourism has been gaining in popularity around the world, few studies have looked into the travelers’ re-participation intention within a pro-social context. This study aimed to deve...

Park S., Lee G.

• Playing a full-immersion VR game had a negative effect on static balance and produced adverse effects including eye fatigue and dizziness. • Postural sway and adverse effects were more pronounced in the participants who played the game with a moving background. • Adverse effects should be considered when full-immersion virtual reality games are used in rehabilitation. The use of virtual reality (VR) is associated with several adverse effects including dizziness, headache, and motion sickness. This study investigates how full-immersion VR games cause changes in static balance with associated adverse effects, and whether a fixed or a changing game background is more likely to contribute to such problems. Static balance and adverse effects (eye fatigue and dizziness) were measured in 15 healthy adults under three conditions: baseline; after a full-immersion virtual reality game (PlayStation 4 Pro and PlayStation® VR headset) with a fixed background (15 min); and after a full-immersion virtual reality game with a unfixed background (15 min). Static balance was measured with an AMTI force plate, while eye fatigue and dizziness were measured with the Virtual Reality Symptom Questionnaire (VRSQ) and the Simulator Sickness Questionnaire (SSQ). It was determined that playing a full-immersion VR game had a negative effect on static balance and produced several adverse effects including eye fatigue and dizziness. Moreover, sway velocity and sway length increased significantly in the game with a moving background compared to both the baseline and the game with a fixed background (p < 0.05); VRSQ and SSQ were also significantly higher in this case. It is thus preferable from the perspective of reducing adverse effects that only fixed-background full-immersion VR games be used in rehabilitative interventions.

Yang K., Kim S., Kim S., Son D., Lee J., Kim Y., Sung S., Kim D., Enkhbat T., Kim J., Kim J., Jo W., Kang J.

Park C., Jung D., Chun E., Ahn S., Jang H., Kim Y.

The effects of laser shock peening without coating (LSPwC) on the degradation of copper electrical contact was investigated. A Nd:YAG laser with laser energy densities of 5.3 and 10.6 GW/cm2 was used for the LSPwC process. Surface hardness was enhanced from 55 HV to 110 and 120 HV for the laser shock-peened copper at 5.3 GW/cm2 and 10.6 GW/cm2, respectively. Moreover, near the copper surface, LSPwC introduced the max. compressive residual stress of 387.5 and 385.5 MPa for laser energy densities of 5.3 and 10.6 GW/cm2, respectively. Electron backscatter diffraction and transmission electron microscopy revealed that LSPwC introduced dislocation rearrangement, deformation twins, and grain refinement. The laser shock-peened copper exhibited superior wear resistance compared with the base metal. During the fretting test, the wear loss of the base metal was 1.61 × 10-3 mm3, and this decreased to 0.99 × 10-3 and 0.94 × 10-3 mm3 for the laser shock-peened copper at 5.3 and 10.6 GW/cm2, respectively. Thus, the laser shock-peened copper maintained a low electrical contact resistance during the fretting test, resulting in electrical contact failure delay from 2790 cycles for the base metal to 5011 and 5210 cycles for laser shock-peened copper at 5.3 and 10.6 GW/cm2, respectively.

Ahn S., Jang W., Shim J., Jeon B., Roh H.

Woo Y.C., Yao M., Shim W., Kim Y., Tijing L.D., Jung B., Kim S., Shon H.K.

Electrospun nanofiber membranes (ENMs) have gained increasing interest in membrane distillation (MD) applications due to their high surface area, high hydrophobicity and porosity, and controllable pore size and membrane thickness. However, despite these advantages, ENMs still suffer from wetting issues in MD. Co-axial electrospinning is an attractive strategy for the one-step fabrication of non-woven membranes with core-sheath structures and improved wetting resistance for MD application. In the present study, we investigated poly (vinylidene fluoride- co -hexafluoropropylene) (PH) as the core and PH/silica aerogel (SiA) as the sheath to obtain superhydrophobic co-axial composite ENMs. The surface characterization results indicated that the active layer (i.e., PH) of the co-axial ENMs was rough, highly porous (>80%), and superhydrophobic (contact angle >160°). Further, the co-axial ENMs possessed small pore sizes (1.72 bar). Upon the application in long-term (one month) direct contact MD testing using a 3.5 wt% NaCl solution as the feed, high water vapor flux and salt rejection of 14.5 L/m 2 h and 99.99% were achieved, respectively, when applying the optimal 4 wt% SiA solution loading at the sheath. The ENMs fabricated using the versatile co-axial electrospinning showed great potential for long-term applications in direct contact MD desalination. • 3D-hierarchically structured on nanofiber membranes are fabricated by co-axial electrospinning. • Superhydrophobic co-axial nanofiber membranes can prevent wetting issues during MD operation. • Co-axial nanofiber membranes show a stable flux performance due to its low thermal conductivity. • Co-axial nanofiber membranes can apply to MD for one month without any problems. • Co-axial electrospinning exhibits great potential for long-term MD desalination.

Jin W., Lee D., Jeon Y., Park D.

Biocompatible hydrotalcite nanohybrids, i.e., layered double hydroxide (LDH) based nanohybrids have attracted significant attention for biomedical functions. Benefiting from good biocompatibility, tailored drug incorporation, high drug loading capacity, targeted cellular delivery and natural pH-responsive biodegradability, hydrotalcite nanohybrids have shown great potential in drug/gene delivery, cancer therapy and bio-imaging. This review aims to summarize recent progress of hydrotalcite nanohybrids, including the history of the hydrotalcite-like compounds for application in the medical field, synthesis, functionalization, physicochemical properties, cytotoxicity, cellular uptake mechanism, as well as their related applications in biomedicine. The potential and challenges will also be discussed for further development of LDHs both as drug delivery carriers and diagnostic agents.