• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.170-174
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• 2012

BACKGROUND: Inappropriate discharge of wastewaters and industrial effluents are becoming detrimental to the aquatic environment. The presence of toxic substances on wastewaters can be detected by physicochemical and biological methods. However, physicochemical methods do not give any information about biological toxicity. Therefore, in this study we tried to detect the presence of toxic substance on waters using sulfur-oxidizing bacteria (SOB) as a bioassay. MATERIALS AND RESULTS: The SOB biosensor was first stabilized using synthetic stream water and operated in both continuous and semi-continuous mode. When the SOB biosensor was operated in continuous mode, the effluent electrical conductivity (EC) stabilized at~1.72 dS/m. While in the case of semi-continuous, the EC stabilized at~0.6 dS/m. The SOB system was also operated at different reaction times to ascertain the shortest reaction time for monitoring the toxicity. Finally, the SOB biosensor was fed with nitrite as toxic substance. When 5 mg/L of nitrite was added to the SOB system, the EC decreased immediately. However, the EC recovered after few cycle. CONCLUSION: This study shows that the SOB biosensor can be used as warning system to protect aquatic environment from hazardous materials. Although SOB biosensor can not give specific information about the toxic substances, it can assess whether the water is toxic or not.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.41 no.5
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• pp.305-313
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• 2015

Objectives: The objective of this study is to identify toxicants causing acute toxicity in effluents from the aluminum rolling industry that violate the discharge limits in Korea. Methods: Whole effluent toxicity tests (WET) were conducted on effluent discharged from the aluminum rolling industry following the US EPA WET test methods. We collected effluent samples three times and evaluated acute toxicity by using Daphnia magna. We employed toxicity identification evaluation (TIE) procedures to identify toxicants causing toxicity in the effluent. Results: No specific chemical groups were identified in the seven different manipulations applied to the of wastewater effluent samples showing 1.3 toxic units (TU) according to the TIE phase I procedures. Water quality parameters for water hardness, electric conductivity and heavy metals (Mn) were 4,322 mg/l as $CaCO_3$, 11.39 mS/cm, and $5,551{\mu}g/l$, respectively. Considering water hardness and reference toxicity, high concentrations of Mn can be disqualified from the causative toxicants. Consequently, high ionic concentrations of $Na^+$(1,648 mg/l), $Ca^{2+}$(1,048 mg/l), $Mg^{2+}$(1,428 mg/l) and $SO_4{^{2-}}$(7,472 mg/l) were identified to be causative toxicants. Water hardness and electric conductivity exceed the $EC_{50}$ value obtained by biological toxicity tests using Daphnia magna. Conclusion: According to TIE procedures, high salt concentration is determined to be a major toxicant in the effluent of agro-industrial wastewater treatment plants receiving wastewater from the aluminum rolling industry.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.45 no.6
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• pp.928-935
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• 2012

World Agriculture faces daunting challenges in feeding the growing population today. Reduction in arable land extent due to numerous reasons threatens achievement of food and nutritional security. Under this back ground, agricultural use of acidic soils, which account for approximately 40 % of the world arable lands is of utmost important. However, due to aluminum (Al) toxicity and low available phosphorous (P) content, crop production in acidic soils is restricted. Citrus, in this context, gains worldwide recognition as a crop adapted to harsh environments. The present paper reviewed Al toxicity and possible toxicity alleviation tactics in citrus. As reported for many other crops, inhibition of root elongation, photosynthesis and growth is experienced in citrus also due to Al toxicity. Focusing at toxicity alleviation, interaction between boron (B) and Al as well as phosphorus and Al has been discussed intensively. Al toxicity in citrus could be alleviated by P through increasing immobilization of Al in roots and P level in shoots rather than through increasing organic acid secretion, which has been widely reported in other crops. Boron-induced changes in Al speciation and/or sub-cellular compartmentation has also been suggested in amelioration of root inhibition in citrus. Despite the species-dependent manner of response to Al toxicity, many commercially important citrus species can be grown successfully in acidic soils, provided toxicity alleviation Agro-biological tactics such as addition of phosphorous fertilizers are used properly.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.463-468
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• 2009

Selenium-containing peptide (Selenium peptide) was produced by autolysis of Saccharomyces cerevisiae which was cultured in inorganic selenium-supplemented medium. Selenium peptide showed antioxidant activity and protective effects on UVB irradiated human fibroblast. Minimal toxicity of selenium peptide was observed whereas selenium nitrate exhibited cell toxicity as low as $10^{-9}\;M$. Selenium peptide also increased human fibroblast growth, procollagen type I and also decreased MMP-1 (matrix metalloprotease-1). This result showed the potential of selenium peptide as a nontoxic antioxidant.

• 한국생물공학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2003.04a
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• pp.635-638
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• 2003

For the acute assessment on biological toxicity of wastewater, surface plasmon resonance(SPR) based cell viability detection was performed using gold surface-confined cell as a result of adhesion-modifying chemicals. Escherichia coli O157:H7 (E. coli O157:H7) was investigated after exposure to EDTA. Cells were immobilized on gold coated slide glass for SPR analysis by the method of cross-linking carboxyl group on the bacterial surface with amine group of poly-L-lysine that had been coupled to the gold surface modified by a self-assembled monolayer of 11-mercaptounde canoic acid (11-(MUA)). Reflective intensity of each flow step was changed with respect to confect of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) disodium salt and phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) solution. The proposed detection technique can be used for biological toxicity test.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.111-120
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• 2021

Asbestos products had been widely used until 2007 in Korea since the 1930s. A total ban on their production and applications has been imposed because of the toxic effect of asbestos fibers on the human health. The inhaled asbestos fibers increase reactive oxygen species and inflammatory reactions in the respiratory airway including the alveolar sac, resulting in DNA damages and secretion of several inflammatory cytokines or chemokines. These paracrine communications promote the proliferation of fibroblasts and the synthesis of collagen fibers, thereby depositing them into the extracellular matrix at the interstitial space of alveoli. The fibrotic tissue hindered the gas exchange in the alveolus. This reviews describes not only the cytotoxic effects of asbestos fibers with different physical or chemical characteristics but also the interaction of cells that make up the respiratory airway to understand the molecular or cellular mechanisms of asbestos fiber-induced toxicity. In addition, we propose a pulmonary toxicity research technique based on the mini-lung that can mimic human respiratory system as an alternative to overcome the limitations of the conventional risk assessment of asbestos fibers.

• Archives of Pharmacal Research
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.61-62
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• 1984

The toxicity of water extracts from intestine parts (digestive tract respiratory tree) of Korean Stichopus japonicus was determined using mouse units and more purified substance decreases the amplitude of contraction of guinia pig atria in vitro; showes negative chronotropic and ionotropic effects in the spontaneously beating guinea pig atria.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.24 no.8
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• pp.1211-1214
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• 2003

The anomalies that appear at every multiple of 15 ℃ in the viscosity of a thin liquid film of water and of water near solid interfaces are explained in this paper by comparing the thermal wavelength and molecular free volume of water, and quantum numbers are found. The possibility that these anomalies are related to the preferred and/or lethal temperatures of organisms is considered. The toxicity of heavy water (D₂O) can also be explained with this approach.

• 한국생물공학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2003.04a
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• pp.361-362
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• 2003

Penicillium sp. PS-113 showed no toxicity against loach(Misgurnus mizolepis) and monnow(Oryzias latipes), a kind of biological indicator, for 96 hours at the concentrations of $1.0\;{\times}\;10^8$ conidia/ml inoculum. Additionally, it showed no toxicity against several plants such as Chinese cabbage(Brassica campestris subsp. napus var. pekinensis), mung bean(Phaseolus radiatus), etc. during their germination at the same concentration of inoculum.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.31-41
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• 1985

The Japanese Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) Standard on Drugs was finalized as a guideline and implemented in April, 1983. This standard is intended to ensure the quality and integrity of the data from nonclinical toxicity studies submitted to the Ministry of Health and Welfare in support of applications for approval to manufacture or import new drugs or to be used in the reevaluation of previously approved drugs. The standard includes a guideline for organizational matters, personnel, facility, equipment, testing operation, documentation and conduct of studies. Principles and influences of implementation of Japanese GLP will be discussed briefly in comparison with foreign GLPs.