• Journal of Life Science
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• v.31 no.6
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• pp.595-602
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• 2021

Human intestinal microbiota play an important role in the regulation of the host's metabolism. There is a close pathological and physiological interaction between dysbiosis of the intestinal microflora and obesity and metabolic syndrome. Akkermansia muciniphila, which was recently isolated from human feces, accounts for about 1-4% of the intestinal microbiota population. The use of A. muciniphila- derived external membrane protein Amuc_1100 and extracellular vesicles (EVs) could be a new strategy for the treatment of obesity. A. muciniphila is considered a next-generation probiotic (NGP) for the treatment of metabolic disorders, such as obesity. Faecalibacterium prausnitzii accounts for about 5% of the intestinal microbiota population in healthy adults and is an indicator of gut health. F. prausnitzii is a butyrate-producing bacterium, with anti-inflammatory effects, and is considered an NGP for the treatment of immune diseases and diabetes. Postbiotics are complex mixtures of metabolites contained in the cell supernatant secreted by probiotics. Parabiotics are microbial cells in which probiotics are inactivated. Paraprobiotics and postbiotics have many advantages over probiotics, such as clear chemical structures, safe dose parameters, and a long shelf life. Thus, they have the potential to replace probiotics. The most natural strategy to restore the imbalance of the intestinal ecosystem normally is to use NGPs among commensal bacteria in the gut. Therefore, it is necessary to develop new foods or drugs such as parabiotics and postbiotics using NGPs.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.289-299
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• 2013

Objectives: For the field application of the dielectric barrier discharge plasma reactor, scale-up of the plasma reactor is needed. This study investigated the possibility of inactivation of microorganisms in sewage using pilot multi-plasma reactor. We also considered the possibility of degradation of total organic carbon (TOC) and nonbiodegradable matter ($UV_{254}$) in sewage. Methods: The pilot plasma reactor consists of plasma reactor with three plasma modules (discharge electrode and quartz dielectric tube), liquid-gas mixer, high voltage transformers, gas supply equipment and a liquid circulation system. In order to determine the operating conditions of the pilot plasma reactor, we performed experiments on the operation parameters such as gas and liquid flow rate and electric discharge voltage. Results: The experimental results showed that optimum operation conditions for the pilot plasma reactor in batch experiments were 1 L/min air flow rate), 4 L/min liquid circulation rate, and 13 kV electric discharge voltage, respectively. The main operation factor of the pilot plasma process was the high voltage. In continuous operation of the air plasma process, residual microorganisms, $UV_{254}$ absorbance and TOC removal rate at optimal condition of 13 kV were $10^{2.24}$ CFU/mL, 56.5% and 8.6%, respectively, while in oxygen plasma process at 10 kV, residual microorganisms, $UV_{254}$ absorbance and TOC removal rate at optimal conditions were $10^{1.0}$ CFU/mL, 73.3% and 24.4%, respectively. Electric power was increased exponentially with the increase in high voltage ($R^2$ = 0.9964). Electric power = $0.0492{\times}\exp^{(0.6027{\times}lectric\;discharge\;voltage)}$ Conclusions: Inactivation of microorganisms in sewage effluent using the pilot plasma process was done. The performance of oxygen plasma process was superior to air plasma process. The power consumption of oxygen plasma process was less than that of air plasma process. However, it was considered that the final evaluation of air and oxygen plasma must be evaluated by considering low power consumption, high process performance, operating costs and facility expenses of an oxygen generator.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.36 no.8
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• pp.1077-1082
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• 2007

In this study, killer yeasts were isolated from traditional Nuruk to improve storage and suppress contaminant in food industry. Among killer yeasts, yeast K15 showed strong killer toxin activity and inhibited growth of Salmonella Typhimurium and Vibrio parahaemolyticus. Killer yeast K15 was identified with Pichia anomala by the Microlog TM 4.0 identification system and homology of the ITS sequence. Killer toxin generated from P. anomala K15 was inactivated by pronase E and suggested to be a protein. Therefore killer toxin of P. anomala K15 was thought to be safe in human such as bacteriocin. P. anomala K15 was sufficient for growth in 50% glucose and could be used to prevent contaminant in initial stages of alcohol beverage fermentation.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.13 no.6
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• pp.970-975
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• 2003

Microbial trichloroethylene (TCE) degradation using trickling biofilter (TBF) is a cost-effective treatment method, in which monooxygenase (MO) fortuitously transforms TCE via cometabolism. Simple TBF, however, could not be stably operated for long-term treatment of TCE due to the contradictory characteristics of cometabolism. In this paper, microbial biocatalyst and biofilm reactor system, a two-stage continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR)/TBF system using Burkholderia cepacia G4 and Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b, are evaluated for the long-term continuous treatment of TCE. The maximum TCE elimination capacities were in the range of 28 and 525 mg TCE/1$.$day. The reactor systems were stably operated for more than 3∼12 months.

• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.423-428
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• 2011

Inactivation kinetic data of Escherichia coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella Typhimurium, and Salmonella Enteritidis via treatment with aqueous chlorine dioxide treatment at a specific concentration were evaluated using the first-order kinetic and Weibull models. The Weibull model showed a better fit with the kinetic data than the first-order kinetic model. The survival curves after the aqueous chlorine dioxide treatment showed $t_R$ values(time required to reduce microbial populations by 90%) of 2.49 min for E. coli O157:H7 at 5 ppm, 1.47 min for L. monocytogenes at 5 ppm, 0.94 min for S. aureus at 5 ppm, 0.87 min for S. Typhimurium at 1 ppm, and 0.08 min for S. Enteritidis at 1 ppm, according to the Weibull model.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.32 no.7
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• pp.722-729
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• 2010

Over the last decades, much consideration has been given to microbiological and chemical risks, especially when wastewater was reclaimed as water resources for urban water, irrigation water and recreational water etc. We investigated the performance of UV-based processes such as UV and UV/$H_2O_2$ for both the removal of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) as an emerging chemical and the inactivation of pathogen with bench-scale experimental study. 38 kinds of PPCPs including antibiotics and analgesics were detected from secondary effluent used as tested water. Bench-scale experimental study showed that UV process would require considerable UV dose for the effective PPCPs removal. Contrarily, PPCPs removal efficiency significantly improved by the combination of $H_2O_2$ with UV even at a lower UV dose and, moreover, their removal efficiency increased with the increased initial $H_2O_2$ concentration. Besides naproxen (>89%), concentrations of all the investigated PPCPs decreased by more than 90% of their initial concentrations under $923\;mJ/cm^3$ of UV dose and 6.2 mg/L of $H_2O_2$. Previous studies showed that this operational condition could get 4~5 log inactivation for Total coliform, indicating that UV/$H_2O_2$ process will be appropriate to comply with the criteria of California Title 22 for Total coliform.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.68-74
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• 2020

This study investigated the inactivation and synergistic efficacy of combined low-temperature heating (LT) and atmospheric plasma (AP) against Escherichia coli in red pepper powder. A cocktail of two strains of E. coli (ATCC 11229, KCCM 11234) was inoculated onto red pepper powder and then treated with LT (60℃ for 5-20 min) and AP (atmospheric plasma for 5-20 min). The counts of E. coli in the red pepper powder were significantly (P<0.05) reduced with the increase in treatment time using LT and AP. The reduction of E. coli levels in red pepper powder when treated with LT alone for 5, 10, 15, and 20-min were 0.25, 1.45, 2.54, and 2.85 log₁₀ CFU/g, respectively. Also, the reduced levels of E. coli on red pepper powder when treated with AP alone for 5, 10, 15, and 20 min were 0.19, 0.32, 0.54, and 0.96 log₁₀ CFU/g, respectively. The synergistic effects were not dependent on the treatment time with AP, but were dependent on the LT treatment time. Synergistic reduction values for combined LT and AP treatment against E. coli in red pepper powder were -0.13 to 2.91 log₁₀ CFU/mL, respectively. Especially, the largest synergistic values (2.91-2.82 log₁₀ CFU/mL) of E. coli in red pepper powder were revealed by the combination of a 20-min treatment with LT and a 15-20-min treatment with AP. All sensory parameters (color, off-odor, taste, texture, and overall acceptability) were not significantly (P>0.05) different between non-treated and all combination-treated samples. Therefore, these results suggest that the combination of LT and AP can be potentially utilized in the food industry to effectively inactivate E. coli without incurring quality deterioration in red pepper powder.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.73-81
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• 2014

Salsola collina, also known as Russian thistle, is widely distributed in and around waste facilities, roadsides, and drought and semi-drought areas, and is used as a traditional folk remedy in Chinese medicine for the treatment of hypertension. In this study, we have evaluated the anti-oxidative and anti-cancer activities of the ethanol extract of S. collina Pall. (EESC), and the molecular mechanisms of its anti-cancer effects on human colon carcinoma HT29 cells. EESC exhibited anti-oxidative activity through DPPH radical scavenging capacity and showed cytotoxic activity in a dose-dependent manner in HT29 cells. After EESC treatment, HT29 cells altered their morphology, becoming smaller and irregular in shape. EESC also induced cell accumulation in the G2/M phase in a dose-dependent manner, accompanied by a decrease of cell population in the G1 phase. The G2/M arrest by EESC was associated with the increased expression of cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitor p21 and Wee1 kinase, which phosphorylates, or inactivates, Cdc2. EESC treatment induced the phosphorylation of Cdc2 and Cdc25C, and inhibited cyclin A and Cdc25C protein expression. In addition, S arrest was induced by the highest concentration of EESC treatment, associated with a decrease of cyclin A and Cdk2 expression. These findings suggest that EESC may possess remarkable anti-oxidative activity and exert an anti-cancer effect in HT29 cells by cell cycle regulation.

• Journal of Conservation Science
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.127-134
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• 2011

In this study, there has been investigated the simulation of irradiation dose using Monte Carlo methodology and experimental substantiation for the biological control of wooden cultural property. In the evaluation of fungal contamination on wooden cultural property, Dongyae, from exhibition storage, Aureobasidium pullulans was mainly identified. But these microorganisms were completely inactivated by 20 kGy gamma irradiation. For dosimetry simulation of Dongyae, Monte Carlo methodology with MCNP was used. The real dosimetry was measured using alanin dosimeters (at 7 different points on the front plan and 7 points on the back plan). Simulated and experimental results are compared and good agreement is observed. These result shows that irradiation can offer biologic control of wooden cultural property by optimal irradiation dose through high penetration power and Monte Carlo simulation.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.483-489
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• 1998

We carried out the expression and characterization of yeast thioredoxin system including thioredexin 1 (Trx1), Trx2, thioredoxin reductase (TR), and a novel thioredoxin (Trx3), which was reported in the data base of Saccharomyces genome. The Trx1, 2 and TR were expressed as soluble proteins in E. coli and the sizes of purified proteins were equal to the reported their molecular weights. The expressed Trx3 was found in both soluble fraction and precipitate. The size of Trx3 purified from soluble fraction of E. coli crude extracts was estimated as 14 kDa on SDS-PAGE instead of 18 kDa for Trx3 in precipitate. N-terminal amino acid sequence of the small size of purified Trx3 from soluble fraction was analyzed as FQSSYTS which is correspond to the sequence from 20 to 26 for Trx3. Trx3 together with thioredoxin reductase and NADPH was able to reduce the disulfide bridge of insulin and 5,5'-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB). Trx3 stimulated the antioxidant effect of thioredoxin peroxidase 1 (TPx1) which inhibited inactivation of glutamine synthetase (GS) in dithiothreitol (DTT) containing metal catalyzed oxidation system. The stimulation effect of Trx3 was 10% of the effect of either Trx1 or Trx2. In addition, Trx3 could reduce the disulfide of TPx to thiol, so that the TPx had thioredoxin dependant peroxidase activity. In western blotting analysis, antibodies against purified Trx3 did not cross-react with crude extracts of yeast, purified Trx1, and Trx2 proteins. But, in PCR reaction using the cDNA library of yeast as a template, gene encoding of trx3 was amplified.