• Communications of Mathematical Education
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.471-487
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• 2008

Inventive mathematical thinking, original mathematical problem solving ability, mathematical invention and so on are core concepts, which must be emphasized in all branches of mathematical education. In particular, Polya(1981) insisted that inventive thinking must be emphasized in a suitable level of university mathematical courses. In this paper, the author considered two cases of inventive problem solving ability shown by his many students via real analysis courses. The first case is about the proof of the problem "what is the derived set of the integers Z?" Nearly all books on mathematical analysis sent the question without the proof but some books said that the answer is "empty". Only one book written by Noh, Y. S.(2006) showed the proof by using the definition of accumulation points. But the proof process has some mistakes. But our student Kang, D. S. showed the perfect proof by using The Completeness Axiom, which is very useful in mathematical analysis. The second case is to show the infinite countability of NxN, which is shown by informal proof in many mathematical analysis books with formal proofs. Some students who argued the informal proof as an unreasonable proof were asked to join with us in finding the one-to-one correspondences between NxN and N. Many students worked hard and find two singled-valued mappings and one set-valued mapping covering eight diagrams in the paper. The problems are not easy and the proofs are a little complicated. All the proofs shown in this paper are original and right, so the proofs are deserving of inventive mathematical thoughts, original mathematical problem solving abilities and mathematical inventions. From the inventive proofs of his students, the author confirmed that any students can develope their mathematical abilities by their professors' encouragements.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.164-173
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• 2015

To investigate the effect of lactic acid bacteria on the heavy metal adsorption from internal organs and blood, lactic acid bacteria were isolated from human feces. Some strains resistant to heavy metals were selected by incubation in agar media containing each of chrome and cadmium salts. Among them, a strain named KP-3 was ultimately chosen due to its higher growth rate in selective broth medium containing the heavy metals at the concentration of 0.01%. The strain was identified as Lactobacillus sp. based on its morphological, cultural and physiological characteristics. For evaluating the ability to prevent accumulation of heavy metals by selected Lactobacillus sp. strain in vivo, Sprague Dawley rats were fed with heavy metal salts (cadmium, chrome and lead) with or without cultured whole cells for 7 days. The amounts of heavy metals accumulated in liver, kidney and blood were analyzed. As a result, chrome was accumulated to kidney mostly, and lead was frequently found in liver and kidney. Experimental group (rats fed with lactic acid bacteria) showed less accumulation of heavy metal than control group (rats fed with saline solution). The inhibition rates of heavy metal accumulation were calculated to 41.8% (Cd), 33.4% (Cr) and 44.2% (Pb). Especially, feeding lactic acid bacteria strongly reduced accumulation of cadmium in blood. The results showed that feeding Lactobacillus sp. KP-3 could prevent the bioaccumulation of heavy metals in the living body.

• Proceedings of the Korean Environmental Sciences Society Conference
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• 2002.05b
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• pp.209-212
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• 2002

The heavy use of petroleum products in modern livings has brought ubiquitous environmental contaminants of aromatic compounds, which persist in aquatic and geo-environment without the substantial degradation. The persistence and accumulation of the aromatic compounds, which include xylene, phenol, toluene, phthalate, and so on are known to cause serious problems in our environments. Some of soil and aquatic microorganisms facilitate their growth by degrading aromatic compounds and utilizing degrading products as growth substrates, the biodegradation helps the reentry of carbons of aromatic compounds, preventing their accumulation in our environments. The metabolic studies on the degradation of aromatic compounds by microoganlsms were extensively carried out along with their genetic studies. A Rhodococcus sp. isolated in activated sludges has shown the excellent ability to grow on phenol as a sole carbon source. In the present study investigated a gene encoding phenol-degrading enzymes from a Rhodococcus sp.

• Korean Journal of Plant Tissue Culture
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.325-337
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• 2000

All living organisms depend on soil and water for their sustained growth and development. In recent years, sustenance of life in these growth matrices has been adversely affected by the cumulative increase in environmental pollutants resulting from increasing population, growing economies and resource-use. This review provides a glimpse into the problem of global environmental pollution, the traditional technologies available for remediation and the scope of emerging‘plant-based remediation’technologies. Phytoremediation, the use of plants to effectively remove or stabilize contaminants from the growth substrate, is a low cost and ecologically friendly alternative to the common‘dig and dump’technologies. The field of phytoremediation has been driven by the intrinsic need for identification of ideal candidate plant species. To date, there are only a very few identified plants which satisfy all of the prerequisites for use in phytoremediation. The review focuses on one such plant species, the common horticultural plant scented geranium (Pelargonium sp.), with demonstrated potential to remediate metal / salt contaminated soils / aqueous systems. The characterization of tolerance and metal / salt accumulation potential of Pelargonium sp. and its efficacy in remediating complex contaminated sites are described. The unique ability of scented geraniums to tolerate excessive amounts of multi-metals, hydrocarbon and salt mixtures, and at the same time to accumulate significant amounts of metal and salt ions in the biomass, renders this plant species as one of the ideal candidates for remediation.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.365-371
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• 2017

Hydrogen has potential for preventive and therapeutic applications as an antioxidant. However, micro- and macroparticles of hydrogen in water disappear easily over time. In order to eliminate reactive oxygen species (ROS) related with the aging process, we used functional water containing nanoparticle hydrogen. Nanoparticle hydrogen does not disappear easily and collapse under water after long periods of time. We used murine embryonic fibroblasts that were isolated from 12.5-day embryos of C57BL/6 mice. We investigated the ability of nanoparticle hydrogen in water to suppress hydroxyurea-induced ROS production, cytotoxicity, and the accumulation of ${\beta}-galactosidase$ (an indicator of aging), and promote cell proliferation. The accumulation of ${\beta}-galactosidase$ in the cytoplasm and the appearance of abnormal nuclei were inhibited by daily treatment of cells with hydrogen water. When the aging process was accelerated by hydroxyurea-induced oxidative stress, the effect of hydrogen water was even more remarkable. Thus, this study showed the antioxidant and anti-senescence effects of hydrogen water. Nanoparticle hydrogen water is potentially a potent anti-aging agent.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.1 no.3
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• pp.337-343
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• 1997

Antiulcer effects of YH1238 and YH1885 were determined in the isolated gastric cells from human and rabbit stomach. Intracellular accumulation of $[^{14}C]-aminopyrine\;and\;[^{14}C]-glucose$ oxidation were used as indicators of acid secretory ability of the gastric cells. Unstimulated and stimulated gastric cells with dibutyryl cAMP$(10^{-3}M)$ were used and the inhibitory effects of YH1238 and VH1885 on acid secretion were compared with known proton pump inhibitors such as omerrazole and SK&F 96067. Dibutyryl cAMP stimulated the $[^{14}C]-aminopyrine$ accumulation and $[^{14}C]-glucose$ oxidation, which were inhibited by YH1238, YH1885, SK&F 96067 and omeprazole. Inhibitory effects of YH1238, YH1885 and omeprazole on $[^{14}C]-aminopyrine$ accumulation in stimulated gastric cells were more potent than that of SK&F 96067 at the concentration of $10^{-5}M$. It is suggested that the reversible proton pump inhibitors YH1238 and YH1885 would be effective antiulcer agents.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.105-115
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• 2015

Background: Alcoholic steatosis is the earliest and most common liver disease, and may precede the onset of more severe forms of liver injury. Methods: The effect of Korean Red Ginseng extract (RGE) was tested in two murine models of ethanol (EtOH)-feeding and EtOH-treated hepatocytes. Results: Blood biochemistry analysis demonstrated that RGE treatment improved liver function. Histopathology and measurement of hepatic triglyceride content verified the ability of RGE to inhibit fat accumulation. Consistent with this, RGE administration downregulated hepatic lipogenic gene induction and restored hepatic lipolytic gene repression by EtOH. The role of oxidative stress in the pathogenesis of alcoholic liver diseases is well established. Treatment with RGE attenuated EtOH-induced cytochrome P450 2E1, 4-hydroxynonenal, and nitrotyrosine levels. Alcohol consumption also decreased phosphorylation of adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase, which was restored by RGE. Moreover, RGE markedly inhibited fat accumulation in EtOH-treated hepatocytes, which correlated with a decrease in sterol regulatory element-binding protein-1 and a commensurate increase in sirtuin 1 and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-a expression. Interestingly, the ginsenosides Rb2 and Rd, but not Rb1, significantly inhibited fat accumulation in hepatocytes. Conclusion: These results demonstrate that RGE and its ginsenoside components inhibit alcoholic steatosis and liver injury by adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase/sirtuin 1 activation both in vivo and in vitro, suggesting that RGE may have a potential to treat alcoholic liver disease.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.277-283
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• 2017

Background: The ginseng berry has various bioactivities, including antidiabetic, anticancer, antiinflammatory, and antioxidative properties. Moreover, we have revealed that the active antiaging component of the ginseng berry, syringaresinol, has the ability to stimulate longevity via gene activation. Despite the many known beneficial effects of ginseng, its effects on skin aging are poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the effects of ginseng and the ginseng berry on one of the skin aging processes, melanogenesis, and age-related pigment lipofuscin accumulation, to elucidate the mechanism of action with respect to antiaging. Methods: The human melanoma MNT1 cell line was treated with ginseng root extract, ginseng berry extract, or syringaresinol. Then, the cells were analyzed using a melanin assay, and the tyrosinase activity was estimated. The Caenorhabditis elegans wild type N2 strain was used for the life span assay to analyze the antiaging effects of the samples. A lipofuscin fluorescence assay was performed during 10 passages with the syringaresinol treatment. Results: A 7-d treatment with ginseng berry extract reduced melanin accumulation and tyrosinase activity more than ginseng root extract. These results may be due to the active compound of the ginseng berry, syringaresinol. The antimelanogenic activity was strongly coordinated with the activation of the longevity gene foxo3a. Moreover, the ginseng berry extract had more potent antiaging effects, caused a life span extension, and reduced lipofuscin accumulation. Conclusion: Taken together, our results suggest that these antimelanogenic effects and antiaging effects of ginseng berry mediate the activation of antioxidation-FoxO3a signaling.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.627-636
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• 2020

Background: Cultivation of medicinal crops, which synthesize hundreds of substances for curative functions, was focused on the synthesis of secondary metabolites rather than biomass accumulation. Nutrition is an important restrict factor for plant growth and secondary metabolites, but little attention has been given to the plasticity of nutrient uptake and secondary metabolites synthesis response to soil nitrogen (N) change. Methods: Two year-field experiments of Sanqi (Panax notoginseng), which can synthesize a high level of saponin in cells, were conducted to study the effects of N application on the temporal dynamics of biomass, nutrient absorption, root architecture and the relationships between these parameters and saponin synthesis. Results: Increasing N fertilizer rates could improve the dry matter yields and nutrient absorption ability through increasing the maximum daily growth (or nutrient uptake) rate. Under suitable N level (225 kg/ha N), Sanqi restricted the root length and surface and enhanced the root diameter and N uptake rate per root length (NURI) to promote nutrient absorption, but the opposite status of Sanqi root architecture and NURI was found when soil N was deficient. Furthermore, increasing N rates could promote the accumulation of saponin in roots through improving the NURI, which showed a significant positive relationship with the content of saponin in the taproots. Conclusion: Appropriate N fertilizer rates could optimize both root architecture and nutrient uptake efficiency, then promote both the accumulation of dry matter and the synthesis of saponins.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2019

This study was performed to select the effective plant for phytoremediation of heavy metal contaminated areas. After cultivation of fifteen Compositae plants on soil contaminated with heavy metals for 8 weeks, the growth response and accumulation ability of each parts for heavy metal, such as arsenic, cadmium, copper, lead, and zinc were analyzed. Except Adiantum capillus-veneris, growth of Aster incisus, Coreopsis drumondii), Dendranthema indicum, Saussurea pulchella were relatively fine. Arsenic accumulation ability was the highest by Artemisia gmelini ($25.52mg{\cdot}kg^{-1}$ DW) in underground part, and D. sichotense ($3.35mg{\cdot}kg^{-1}$) in aerial part. Cadmium was the highest by Aster magnus ($2.50mg{\cdot}kg^{-1}$) in aerial part. Aerial and underground part of S. pulchella showed the highest copper accumulation (24.29, $99.92mg{\cdot}kg^{-1}$). In lead, 1.43 (A. magnus)${\sim}5.00mg{\cdot}kg^{-1}$ (S. deltoides) were accumulated in aerial part among fifteen Compositae plants. Aster hayatae ($140.09mg{\cdot}kg^{-1}$), Aster yomena ($109.07mg{\cdot}kg^{-1}$), A. magnus ($100.21mg{\cdot}kg^{-1}$) are absorbed more than $100mg{\cdot}kg^{-1}$ of Zinc. Therefore, they are considered to be phytoremediation material of zinc contaminated areas.