• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.672-681
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• 2019

The ecological characteristics of Sargassum macrocarpum, an ecologically and commercially valuable brown alga, were investigated from May 2018 to June 2019 in Jeju Island, Korea. The S. macrocarpum population formed patches at depths of 3-5 m. Growth in the length of the alga reached a maximum of 135.3±20.0 cm in June. The weight of the alga reached a maximum of 3.6±2.1 kg·wet-wt in May. The mean density and biomass of S. macrocarpum was 4.5 individuals·m^-2 and 4.6 kg·wet-wt.·m^-2 in their habitat. Receptacles were observed from April to August and egg release was detected from June to July when the seawater temperatures were 19.3-22.9℃. The developmental initiation of thalli occurred at temperatures above 14.1℃ and maturation required approximately 726.3 degree-days. The reproductive allocation of this alga, calculated from the reproductive frond length(RFL) and reproductive frond weight(RFW) indices to the whole length and weight, reached a maximum of 69.3% in June. The growth and maturation patterns of S. macrocarpum could be divided into vegetative growth (October-January), maturity preparation (February-April), maturation (May-June), egg release (June-July), and resting period (August-September). This was the first study to examine an S. macrocarpum population throughout the entire year in a natural habitat in Jeju Island, Korea.

• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.12 no.8
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• pp.301-308
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• 2021

In this study, the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory, anti-obesity properties, of Sargassum macrocarpum extracts were identified to assess the availability of Sargassum macrocarpum extracts as cosmetics and foods. To measure antioxidant activity, we conducted TPC, TFC, DPPH, ABTS, NO, FRAP. For polyphenols, 30.81±1.12 mg/g was shown. Flavonoids showed 25.72±0.94 mg/g. The DPPH experiment showed an antioxidant function of 6.746 mg ascorbic acid/g extract, the ABTS experiment showed an antioxidant function of 15.59 mg ascorbic acid/g extract, and the NO experiment showed an antioxidant function of 6.781 mg ascorbic acid/g extract. In FRAP, 1 mg of the Sargassum macrocarpum extract showed a reduction of 4.573±0.097 ㎍ of ascorbic acid. In cytotoxicity experiments, Sargassum macrocarpum extracts showed a cell survival rate of more than 80% at all concentrations, and an inflammatory inhibition of 25.95±0.85%, and an lipid accumulation inhibition of 29.75±2.35%. These results indicate that Sargassum macrocarpum extract is available as an anti-inflammatory cosmetic and anti-obesity inner beauty material. In future studies, it is necessary to study how pure substances containing Sargassum macrocarpum extract affect antioxidants, anti-inflammatory and anti-obesity

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.46-54
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• 2021

The seasonal and vertical biomass of marine forest seaweeds were examined to select a suitable species at 12 sites of the South Sea in Korea between 2018 and 2019. The Habitat Suitability Index (HSI) was also calculated in terms of biomass for six species (three kelp and three Sargassum species). A total of 16 marine forest-forming species including four kelp and 12 Sargassum species were observed at the 12 sites. The average annual seaweed biomass by season and depth ranged from 843.73-2,925.85 g wet wt. m^-2 at the eastern South Sea and from 343.87-4,580.10 g wet wt. m^-2 at the western South Sea. In the kelp species, the Ecklonia cava biomass was predominant, followed by E. stolonifera. The macroalgal species with the greatest biomass was Sargassum macrocarpum, followed by S. horneri. The HSI values of E. stolonifera were between 0.76-1.0 at eight sites and those of E. cava were 0.58-0.92 at four sites, indicating that E. stolonifera was more suitable than E. cava. In the HSI values of the Sargassum species, S. horneri ranged between 0.84-1.0 at all 12 sites and the S. macrocarpum values were between 0.68-0.99. The results indicate that E. cava and S. macrocarpum were the most suitable for the marine forest construction in terms of the seaweed biomass, and E. stolonifera and S. horneri in terms of the HSI values. Thus, we suggest that seaweed biomass and HSI values should be considered when choosing suitable forest-forming species.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.27 no.12
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• pp.1437-1444
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• 2017

Sargassum macrocarpum is a widely distributed marine brown algae found in the North Pacific. The objective of this study was to evaluate the anti-inflammatory activity of an ethanol extract of S. macrocarpum (EESM). First, we investigated the anti-inflammatory activities of EESM in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages. EESM treatment suppressed nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin $E_2$ ($PGE_2$) production and inhibited the expressions of the inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) at the mRNA and protein levels. In addition, the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as tumor necrosis $factor-{\alpha}$ ($TNF-{\alpha}$) and interleukin-1 beta ($IL-1{\beta}$), was decreased in a dose dependent manner. Investigation of the signaling pathways of nuclear factor kappa B ($NF-{\kappa}B$), phosphoinositide-3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt, and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) revealed suppression of $NF-{\kappa}B$ translocation from the cytosol to nucleus by EESM treatment. The phosphorylation of the Akt and ERK proteins was also inhibited by EESM treatment. EESM treatment also stimulated the expression of the heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) enzyme and its upstream transcription factor, nuclear factor-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2). These results suggest that EESM has anti-inflammatory activity and could have potential uses in the field of nutraceuticals.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.627-638
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• 2022

This study was conducted at a village fishing farm on 4 peaks on the main island of Jeju Island and 2 peaks on an inhabited island to compare the distribution characteristics of seaweeds along the coast of Jeju Island from May to December 2018. A total of 101 species of seaweeds were surveyed, including 13 species (12.9%) of green algae, 24 species (23.8%) of Phaeophyta, and 64 species (63.4%) of Rhodophyta. The largest number of seaweeds appeared in May and the fewest in October, showing typical features of a temperate sea area. The number of seaweed species that appeared was 66 and 65 species at the water depths of 5 m and 8 m, respectively, and the largest was 74 species at 12 m. The number of seaweeds that appeared by area was the largest at 66 species on Udo Island, an eastern island near Jeju Island, and the lowest at 27 species in Pyoseon-ri, an eastern part of Jeju Island. The important values of emerging species were high in the order of, Ecklonia cavaand Corallina crassissima at 21.1% and 20.3%, respectively, Corallina aberransat 9.2%, Amphora ephedraeaat 6.2%, and Sargassum macrocarpumat 4.4%. Among seaweeds, an average of 11.2 species of coralline algae appeared, and the mean importance value was 32.6% in the sear area. The lowest importance value was 14.7% on Udo Island, and the highest was 41.0% in Pyoseon-ri. The mean ecological evaluation index (EEI) of seaweed colonies ranged from 2.1 to 10. It was the lowest at the water depth of 12 m in Pyoseon-ri in May and June and was 7.3 or higher in other areas, indicating good condition. This study rated the standardized ecological grade I for the water depth of 12 m on Udo Island and grade II for the water depths of 5 m and 8 m in Sagye-ri and on Chujado Island. Grade III was the water depth of 5 m and 12 m in Pyoseon-ri and Guideok 2-ri and the water depth of 5 m and 8 m in Pyeongdae-ri, and grade IV was the water depth of 8 m in Guideok 2-ri.