• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.312-317
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• 2005

Chemical composition, and mineral and heavy metal contents of Yeomsan and Baekso sun-dried salts (1-5-year-old) were determined. Moisture contents (Yeomsan, 6.07-17.02%; Baekso, 4.29-16.15%) and pH (Yeomsan, 5.92-6.31; Baekso, 5.52-6.23) decreased as age of salts increased, while NaCl contents (Yeomsan, 80.35-92.74%; Baekso, 81.06-94.58%) increased with increasing storage period of salts. Older salts had lower content of water-insoluble matters. Nitrate content was not affected by aging of salts, whereas nitrite content was lower in older salts. Sulfate content of sun-dried salt decreased with aging of salt. Average concentrations (ppm wet weight) of major minerals in Yeomsan and Baekso sun-dried salts were: Mg, Mg, 1002-119; K, 1062-3411; Ca, 1503-3437; Li, 25-101; Ge, 8.35-0.21; Si, 43.99-6.48; and Mn, 6.79-1.55. Mineral content generally decreased with salt aging. Among heavy metals, Hg was not detected in all salts, and Cd (0.02-0.04ppm) was not affected by storage period. Pb was not detected in 5-year-old salts. Older salts showed brighter color than younger ones.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Marine Environment & Energy
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.75-81
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• 2004

A large amount 2.1×106 ㎥ of the polluted sediment was dredged from the Masan Bay and deposited in Gapo confined area, Masan. The dissolved metal concentrations of seawater in the dumping site (Gapo area) were observed during one tidal cycle and compared with those of seawater obtained from Jinhae Bay. The sediment was evaluated as from Non polluted to Moderately polluted by USEPA standards. It was judged that toxicological effects of sediment analyzed ranged from ERL to ERM with copper and zinc, and ERL with cadmium, chrome, lead, and nickel by the Adverse Biological Effects. The pollutant concentration was low in surface sediment compared to deeper sediment since the sediments with relatively low concentrations of pollutant were dumped to the surface. The pollutant concentration was low in surface sediment compared to deeper sediment since the sediments with relatively low concentrations of pollutant were dumped to the surface. The benthic organisms in Gapo area had higher concentrations of trace metals (Oyster: Zn 238.96, Cu 5.29 ㎍/g wet wt., Clam: Zn 17.71, Cu 1.00 ㎍/g wet wt., Mussel. Zn 187.98, Pb 0.28, Cr 0.15, Mn 4.23, Sr 1.45 and Fe 100.33 ㎍/g wet wt.) compared to outside of dumping site. However, the trace metal level in the bivalves was less than the NFPQIS (National Fisheries Products Quality Inspection Service) standard.

• Korean Journal of Optics and Photonics
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.354-360
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• 2005

A high performance LWIR(long wavelength infra red) zoom thermal imaging sensor using $480{\times}6$ HgCdTe(MCT) linear detector has been developed by ADD Korea. The optical system consists of zoom telescope having large objective about 190 mm diameter and optically well corrected scanning system. The zoom ratio of the telescope is 3: 1 and its magnification change is performed by moving two lens groups. And also these moving groups are used for athermalization of the system. It is certain that the zoom sensor can be used in wide operating temperature range without any degradation of the system performance. Especially, the sensor image can be displayed with the HDTV(high definition television) format of which aspect ratio is 16:9. In case of HDTV format, the scanning system is able to display 620,000 pixels. This function can make wider horizontal field of view without any loss of performance than the normal TV format image. The MRTD(minimum resolvable temperature difference) of the LWIR thermal imaging sensor shows good results below 0.04 K at spatial frequency 2 cycles/mrad and 0.23 K at spatial frequency 8 cycles/mrad at the narrow field of view.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.699-709
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• 2017

We measured the grain size, total organic carbon (TOC), total nitrogen (TN), and heavy metals (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mn, Pb, and Zn) in order to understand the spatial distribution and pollution level of organic matter and metals in surface sediment around Goseong Bay, a shellfish farming area, Korea. The surface sediments were composed of finer sediments such as mud and clay. The concentration of TOC, TN, and heavy metals were much higher in the innermost bay than in the mouth and outside of bay. The spatial distribution of organic matter and heavy metals and C/N ratio (5-10) in sediment showed that the organic matter and heavy metals in sediment of the study region were significantly influenced by oceanic origin organic matter and anthropogenic sources, respectively. Based on the results of four assessment techniques (sediment quality guideline, geoaccumulation index, pollution load index, ecological risk index), the sediments around the Goseong Bay were a little polluted for heavy metals and the high metal concentrations in the northern region of bay could adverse impact on benthic organisms in sediment. Thus, the systematic management plan for the improvement of water and sediment environment and the concentrated monitoring of pollutants for sustainable aquaculture and seafood safety around Goseong Bay are necessary in the future.

• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.179-191
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• 2018

In order to determine the distribution characteristics of the heavy metals in surface sediments of the eastern Yellow Sea, heavy metal concentrations (Cu, Pb, Zn, Cd, Cr, Mn, As, Ni, Co, Li, Fe and Al) together with grain size and total organic carbon (TOC), were analyzed. The concentrations of all heavy metals, with the exception of Pb, Mn and As in some stations, were relatively high in the central area of the Yellow Sea and tended to decrease toward the Korean coast. A significant relationship between grain size and concentrations of heavy metals suggested that they were mostly controlled by quartz dilution effect. However, at some stations, Pb, Mn and As exhibited different distribution patterns. For Pb, the differences were caused by petrogenetic influences (feldspar) in coarse-grained sediments. In the case of Mn, biogenetic influences ($CaCO_3$) affected distribution patterns. As was distributed differently because of the existence of a heavy mineral (pyrite). A comparison with previous data (collected in 2000) shows that the heavy metal concentration in the eastern Yellow Sea has not increased over the past fifteen years. The sedimentary environment of dumping sites in the Yellow Sea has not been significantly improved during this period. The results of the pollution assessment revealed that the concentrations of heavy metals in the study area were lower than lower criteria (TEL, MSQ-1) in Korean and Chinese sediment quality guidelines. The enrichment factor (EF), geo-accumulation index ($I_{geo}$) and ecological risk index (ERI) of Cu, Pb, Zn and Cr were higher in the central area of the Yellow Sea.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.530-536
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• 2019

Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most incurable brain cancer derived from the transformed glial cells. Standard anti-GBM treatment, including surgery and chemoradiotherapy, does not ensure good prognosis for the patients with GBM, because successful therapy is often impeded by presence of glioma stem cells (GSCs). GSCs, which is generally divided into proneural (PN) and mesenchymal (MES) subtype, are understood as subpopulation of cancer cells responsible for GBM initiation, progression and recurrence after standard treatments. In the present study, we demonstrate that PN subtype GSCs differentially transit to MES subtype GSCs by specific cytokines. The expression of CD44, a marker of MES subtype GSCs, was observed when GSC11 PN subtype GSCs were exposed to tumor necrosis factor alpha ($TNF-{\alpha}$) cytokine and GSC23 PN subtype GSCs were treated to transforming growth factor beta 1 ($TGF-{\beta}1$) cytokine. Ivy glioblastoma atlas project (Ivy GAP) bioinformatics database showed that $TNF-{\alpha}$ and $TGF-{\beta}1$ were highly expressed in necrotic region and perivascular region, respectively. In addition, $TNF-{\alpha}$ signaling was relatively upregulated in necrotic region, while $TGF-{\beta}$ signaling was increased in perivascular region. Taken together, our observations suggest that MES subtype GSCs can be derived from various PN subtype GSCs by multimodal cytokine stimuli provided by neighboring tumor microenvironment.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.44-53
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• 2021

Urban stormwater runoff contains heavy metals that accumulate in on-site treatment systems, thus resulting to facility deterioration and maintenance problems. In order to resolve these problems, low impact development (LID) technologies that promote natural materials circulation are widely used. LID facilities are capable of treating heavy metals in the runoff by means of plant uptake; however, the uptake or phytoremediation capabilities of plants have not been studied extensively, making it difficult to select the most suitable plant species for a certain LID design. This study investigated the vegetative components of an LID facility, roadside plants, and plants in landscape areas with different heavy metal exposure and frequency to determine the uptake capabilities of different plant species. The plants harvested inside the LID facilities and roadsides with high vehicular traffic exhibited greater heavy metal concentrations in their tissues as compared with the plants in landscape areas. Generally, the accumulation of heavy metals in the plant tissues were found to be influenced by the environmental characteristics (i.e. influent water quality, air pollution level, etc.). Dianthus, Metasequoia, Rhododendron lateritium, and Mugwort were found to be effective in removing Zn in the urban stormwater runoff. Additionally, Dianthus, Metasequoia, Mugwort, and Ginkgo Biloba exhibited excellent removal of Cu. Cherry Tree, Metasequoia, and mugwort efficiently removed Pb, whereas Dianthus was also found to be effective in treating As, Cr, and Cd in stormwater. Overall, different plant species showed varying heavy metal uptake capabilities. The results of this study can be used as an effective tool in selecting suitable plant species for removing heavy metals in the runoff from different land use types.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.39.1-39.15
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• 2023

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination may non-specifically alter the host immune system. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of COVID-19 vaccination on hepatitis B surface Ag (HBsAg) titer and host immunity in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients. Consecutive 2,797 CHB patients who had serial HBsAg measurements during antiviral treatment were included in this study. Changes in the HBsAg levels after COVID-19 vaccination were analyzed. The dynamics of NK cells following COVID-19 vaccination were also examined using serial blood samples collected prospectively from 25 healthy volunteers. Vaccinated CHB patients (n=2,329) had significantly lower HBsAg levels 1-30 days post-vaccination compared to baseline (median, -21.4 IU/ml from baseline), but the levels reverted to baseline by 91-180 days (median, -3.8 IU/ml). The velocity of the HBsAg decline was transiently accelerated within 30 days after vaccination (median velocity: -0.06, -0.39, and -0.04 log₁₀ IU/ml/year in pre-vaccination period, days 1-30, and days 31-90, respectively). In contrast, unvaccinated patients (n=468) had no change in HBsAg levels. Flow cytometric analysis showed that the frequency of NK cells expressing NKG2A, an NK inhibitory receptor, significantly decreased within 7 days after the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine (median, -13.1% from baseline; p<0.001). The decrease in the frequency of NKG2A⁺ NK cells was observed in the CD56^dimCD16⁺ NK cell population regardless of type of COVID-19 vaccine. COVID-19 vaccination leads to a rapid, transient decline in HBsAg titer and a decrease in the frequency of NKG2A⁺ NK cells.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.48.1-48.21
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• 2023

Mesenchymal stromal/stem cells (MSCs) possess immunoregulatory properties and their regulatory functions represent a potential therapy for acute lung injury (ALI). However, uncertainties remain with respect to defining MSCs-derived immunomodulatory pathways. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the mechanism underlying the enhanced effect of human recombinant bone morphogenic protein-2 (rhBMP-2) primed ES-MSCs (MSC^BMP2) in promoting Tregs in ALI mice. MSC were preconditioned with 100 ng/ml rhBMP-2 for 24 h, and then administrated to mice by intravenous injection after intratracheal injection of 1 mg/kg LPS. Treating MSCs with rhBMP-2 significantly increased cellular proliferation and migration, and cytokines array reveled that cytokines release by MSC^BMP2 were associated with migration and growth. MSC^BMP2 ameliorated LPS induced lung injury and reduced myeloperoxidase activity and permeability in mice exposed to LPS. Levels of inducible nitric oxide synthase were decreased while levels of total glutathione and superoxide dismutase activity were further increased via inhibition of phosphorylated STAT1 in ALI mice treated with MSC^BMP2. MSC^BMP2 treatment increased the protein level of IDO1, indicating an increase in Treg cells, and Foxp3⁺CD25⁺ Treg of CD4⁺ cells were further increased in ALI mice treated with MSC^BMP2. In co-culture assays with MSCs and RAW264.7 cells, the protein level of IDO1 was further induced in MSC^BMP2. Additionally, cytokine release of IL-10 was enhanced while both IL-6 and TNF-α were further inhibited. In conclusion, these findings suggest that MSC^BMP2 has therapeutic potential to reduce massive inflammation of respiratory diseases by promoting Treg cells.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.33.1-33.13
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• 2023

Vaccination against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has been acknowledged as an effective mean of preventing infection and hospitalization. However, the emergence of highly transmissible SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern (VOCs) has led to substantial increase in infections among children and adolescents. Vaccine-induced immunity and longevity have not been well defined in this population. Therefore, we aimed to analyze humoral and cellular immune responses against ancestral and SARS-CoV-2 variants after two shots of the BNT162b2 vaccine in healthy adolescents. Although vaccination induced a robust increase of spike-specific binding Abs and neutralizing Abs against the ancestral and SARS-CoV-2 variants, the neutralizing activity against the Omicron variant was significantly low. On the contrary, vaccine-induced memory CD4⁺ T cells exhibited substantial responses against both ancestral and Omicron spike proteins. Notably, CD4⁺ T cell responses against both ancestral and Omicron strains were preserved at 3 months after two shots of the BNT162b2 vaccine without waning. Polyfunctionality of vaccine-induced memory T cells was also preserved in response to Omicron spike protein. The present findings characterize the protective immunity of vaccination for adolescents in the era of continuous emergence of variants/subvariants.