• Proceedings of the Plant Resources Society of Korea Conference
• /
• 2003.04a
• /
• pp.126-126
• /
• 2003

Sucrose-phosphate synthase (SPS) is a key regulatory enzyme in sucrose synthesis. To investigate the role of SPS in carbon partitioning, we produced transgenic rice plants overexpressing a cyanobacterial SPS from Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803. The gene was expressed under the control of the maize Ubil promoter in transgenic plants. Southern and Northern blot analyses confirmed the integration and the expression of the transgene in four transgenic rice lines. All of the four transgenic! lines analyzed showed abnormal vegetative and reproductive developments. Analysis of SPS activities and primary metabolites in the transgenic rice plants will be presented.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
• /
• v.12 no.11
• /
• pp.1145-1157
• /
• 2003

The surface sediments inside Hallim Harbor, one of the major harbors of Jeju Island, were sampled three times (June, September and December, 2001) and analyzed for 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), recommended by US-EPA as priority pollutants, to assess their distribution levels and to suggest their possible origins. The concentrations of PAHs ranged from 19 to 496 ng/g on a dry weight basis with a mean value of 245 ng/g, and the levels were low to moderate in comparison with other areas in the world. Based on comparisons of individual and total PAH concentrations with effects-based and equilibrium partitioning-based on sediment quality guidelines, the potential for the biological effects were expected to be low. The sedimentary PAHs may be correlated with organic carbon and mud contents to some extent. From the examinations of the four PAH origin indices, such as LMW/HMW (low molecular weight 2-3 ring PAHs over high molecular weight 4-6 ring PAHs), phenanthrene/anthracene ratio, fluoranthene/pyrene ratio, chrysene/benzo〔a〕anthracene ratio, it can be concluded that the sediment PAH contaminations were ascribed to both pyrolytic and petrogenic origins.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
• /
• v.24 no.1
• /
• pp.1-9
• /
• 2019

This study presents a technical perspective to the fate characteristics of phenol and m-cresol, which represent some of the most common organic chemicals found in chemical spill accidents, and likely to persist in soil and groundwater due to their highly stable physicochemical properties. Some cases of domestic and foreign chemical accidents linked to phenol and m-cresol contamination were compiled. Due to their low organic carbon-water partitioning coefficient (Koc), phenol and m-cresol tend to migrate into groundwater and remained as dissolved phase. On the other hands, phenol and m-cresol can be readily decomposed by microbes in soil and groundwater under appropriate conditions. Therefore, the fate characteristics of these chemicals are highly contingent on environmental conditions. Thus, if a great quantity of leakage is occurred by chemical accidents, the up-to-date and correct information about fate characteristics taking into account both the chemical and environmental conditions is greatly needed to minimized the potential hazards from these chemicals.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
• /
• v.13 no.5
• /
• pp.47-56
• /
• 2008

Temporal changes of metal solubility have been repeatedly observed in soils equilibrated with metal salt solutions. This phenomenon is known as aging, yet factors that affect the degree of metal aging remain largely unexamined. In this study, we compared the extent of aging on metal partitioning depending on soil, metal, and metal loading. Five soils spiked with four levels of Cd (2.5-20 mg ${kg}^{-1}$), Cu, and Zn (50-400 mg ${kg}^{-1}$) salt solutions were aged in the laboratory up to 1 year. The partitioning coefficient ($K_d$) of each metal was calculated from the ratio of total to dissolved metal concentration in samples collected at times ranging from 1 day to 1 year. The highest $K_d$ values for Cd, Cu and Zn were recorded in a Histosol, Andisol, and fine-textured Alfisol, respectively, whereas the lowest $K_d$ was recorded for an Oxisol and coarsetextured Alfisol. For all soils, a pattern of increasing Kd with aging was evident for Cd and Zn, but not Cu. Rapid Cu sorption was limited when dissolved organic matter was high in soils. In highly-retentive soils, $K_d$ values seemed to be insensitive to metal loading, although a longer period was required for the higher metal loadings to reach the same degree of metal aging as the lower loadings. In soils with low sorption capacity, the $K_d$ values were determined more by metal loading than by aging. Therefore, marked differences can be expected in the degree of metal aging in spiked soils by the soil type, metal and amount of metal added.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
• /
• v.41 no.3
• /
• pp.228-234
• /
• 2008

The purpose of this study was to predict environmental distribution of anthracene, benzene, benzo[a]pyrene, 1-methylphenanthrene and phenanthrene in a four phase biopile system - air, water, soil and non aqueous phase liquid (NAPL) phase using level I fugacity model. Soil samples used for this study were collected from three sites in the United Kingdom which were historically contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons. The level I fugacities (f) for the five contaminants were markedly different, however, the fugacities of each contaminant in three soil samples did not show significant difference. NAPL and soil were the dominant phases for all five contaminants. Results of this study indicated that difference in percentage of organic carbon strongly influenced the partitioning behavior of the cntaminants. The presence of benzene calls for an urgent need for risk-based management of air and water phase. Whereas insignificant amount of chemicals leached in the water phase for other organic contaminants showing greatly reduced potential of groundwater contamination. Furthermore, this study helped us to confirm the association of risk critical contaminants with the residual saturation in treated soils. They also can be used to emphasize the importance of accounting for the partitioning behavior of both NAPL and soil phases in the process of the risk assessment of the sites contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
• /
• v.26 no.5
• /
• pp.20-28
• /
• 2021

Perfluorinated compounds(PFCs), an emerging environmental pollutant, are environmentally persistent and bioaccumulative organic compounds that possess a toxic impact on human health and ecosystems. PFCs are distributed widely in environment media including groundwater, surface water, soil and sediment. PFCs in contaminated solid can potentially leach into groundwater. Therefore, understanding PFCs partitioning between the aqueous phase and solid phase is important for the determination of their fate and transport in the environment. In this study, the sorption equilibrium batch and kinetic experiment of PFCs were carried out to estimated the sorption coefficient(K_d) and the fraction between aqueous-solid phase partition, respectively. Sorption branches of the PFDA(Perfluoro-n-decanoic acid), PFNA(Perfluoro-n-nonanoic acid), PFOA(Perfluoro-n-octanoic acid), PFOS(Perfluoro-1-octane sulfonic acid) and PFHxS(Perfluoro-1-hexane sulfonic acid) isotherms were nearly linear, and the estimated K_d was as follow: PFDA(1.50) > PFOS(1.49) > PFNA(0.81) > PFHxS(0.45) > PFOA(0.39). The sorption kinetics of PFDA, PFNA, PFOA, PFOS and PFHxS onto soil were described by a biexponential adsorption model, suggesting that a fast transport into the surface layer of soil, followed by two-step diffusion transport into the internal water and/or organic matter of soil. Shorter times(<20hr) were required to achieve equilibrium and fraction for adsorption on solid(F₁, F₂) increased with perfluorinated carbon chain length and sulfonate compounds in this study. Overall, our results suggested that not only the perfluorocarbon chain length, but also the terminal functional groups are important contributors to electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions between PFCs and soils, and organic matter in soils significantly affects adsorption maximum capacity than kinetic rate.

• Journal of Integrative Natural Science
• /
• v.7 no.3
• /
• pp.173-182
• /
• 2014

To simplify the different biological investigation of the methanolic extract and solvent-solvent partitioning of Lablab purpures (L. purpures) bark. In-vitro anti-oxidant study was determined using total DPPH radical scavenging assay. In vitro antimicrobial study was measured by observing zone of inhibition. The cytotoxic activity was studied using brine shrimp lethality bioassay and thrombolytic activity by clot disruption method. The antioxidant potential was evaluated by 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and Folin-Ciocalteau reagents using butylated hydroxytolune (BHT) and ascorbic acid as standards. The Aqueous soluble fraction revealed the highest free radical scavenging activity ($IC_{50}=48.76{\mu}g/mL$). The antimicrobial screening of the bark of L. purpures exhibited mild to moderate activity in test microorganisms. The CSF showed the maximum relative percentage inhibition against Salmonella parathyphi (34.2%) for bacteria and C. albicans (28.8%) for fungi whereas, lowest relative percentage inhibition against Sarcina lutea (22.0%) for bacteria and Aspergillus niger (24.4%) for fungi. In the brine shrimp lethality bioassay, The $LC_{50}$ values of Carbon tetrachloride and N-Hexane soluble fraction were found $92.18{\mu}g/mL$, and $68.95{\mu}g/mL$ respectively while the $LC_{50}$ values of standard Vincristine sulphate was $1.37{\mu}g/mL$. The methanolic extract and its organic soluble fractions of Lablab purpureus at concentration 2.0 mg/mL, significantly protected the lysis of erythrocyte membrane induced by hypotonic solution and heat as compared to the standard, acetyl salicylic acid (0.10 mg/mL). The MSF and AQSF produced 61.48 % and 53.75% inhibition of hemolysis of RBC caused by hypotonic solution respectively, whereas acetyl salicylic acid (0.10 mg/mL) showed 76.42%. Ethanol extract of L. purpures and all of its different partitions exhibited moderate thrombolytic activity of 37.25%-2.40%. Very good preliminary screening and simplified experiments were able to show the different biological activity of methanolic extract and its soluble fractions of L. purpures at a time.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
• /
• v.24 no.6
• /
• pp.16-25
• /
• 2019

Anthropogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are formed by the incomplete combustion of fuels and industrial waste. PAHs can be widely exposed to the environment (water, soil and groundwater). PAHs are potentially toxic, mutagenic and/or carcinogenic. Fundamental studies such as biota uptake (e.g., earthworm and plant) of PAHs are highly needed. It is necessary to develop alternative ways to evaluate bioavailability of PAHs instead of using living organisms because it is time-consuming, difficult to apply in the field, and also exaction method is tedious and time-consuming. In this study, sorption behaviors of phenanthrene were evaluated to predict the fate of PAHs in soils. Moreover, bioaccumulation of PAHs in an artificially contaminated soil was evaluated using pea plant (Pisum sativum) as a bioindicator. A novel passive sampler, organic-diffusive gradient in thin-film (o-DGT) for PAHs was newly synthesized, tested as a biomimic surrogate and compared with plant accumulation. Sorption partitioning coefficient (K_P) and sorption capacity (K_F) were in the order of natural soil > loess corresponding to the increase in organic carbon content (f_oc). Biota-to-soil accumulation factor (BSAF) and DGT-to-soil accumulation factor (DSAF) were evaluated. o-DGT uptake was linearly correlated with pea plant uptake of phenanthrene in contaminated soil (R²=0.863). The Tenax TA based o-DGT as a biomimic surrogate can be used for the prediction of pea plant uptake of phenanthrene in contaminated soil.

• Proceedings of the Korea Society of Environmental Toocicology Conference
• /
• 2003.05a
• /
• pp.194-194
• /
• 2003

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC, 1989) has classified whole diesel exhaust as probably carcinogenic to humans. Diesel exhaust particulate matter (DPM) adsorbs different chemical substances including PAHs and nitroarenes. DPM is emphasized because it is a major component of diesel exhaust, it is suspected of contributing to a health hazard. Diesel exhaust is a complex mixture of carbon particles and associated organics and inorganics, and it is not known what fraction or combination of fractions cause the health effects [cancer effects, noncancer effects (respiratory tract irritation/inflammation and changes in lung function)] that have been observed with exposure to diesel exhaust. In order to identify which chemical classes are responsible for the majority of the observed biological activities, we performed a particular biological/chemical analysis. Respirable particulate matter (PM2.5: <2.5mm) was collected from diesel engine exhaust using a high-volume sampler equipped with a cascade impactor. Particulate oganic matter was extracted by the dichloromethane/sonication method and the crude extract was fractionated according to EPA recommended procedure into seven fractions by acid-base partitioning and silica gel column chromatography. We examined genotoxic potentials of diesel exhaust particulate matter using novel genotoxicity tests, which are rapid, simple and sensitive methods for assessing DNA-damage at the DNA and chromosomal level (comet assay, in vitro MN test and Ames test). Higher genotoxic potency was observed in non polar fractions and several PAHs were detected by GC-MS, such as 1,2,5,6 dibenzanthracene, chrysene, 1,2-benzanthracene, phenanthrene and fluoranthene.

• Environmental Engineering Research
• /
• v.14 no.3
• /
• pp.186-194
• /
• 2009

Understanding the environmental fate of human and animal pharmaceuticals and their risk assessment are of great importance due to their growing environmental concerns. Although there are many potential pathways for them to reach the environment, effluents from sewage treatment plants (STPs) are recognized as major point sources. In this study, the removal efficiencies of the 43 selected priority pharmaceuticals in a conventional STP were evaluated using two simple models: an equilibrium partitioning model (EPM) and STPWIN$^{TM}$ program developed by US EPA. It was expected that many pharmaceuticals are not likely to be removed by conventional activated sludge processes because of their relatively low sorption potential to suspended sludge and low biodegradability. Only a few pharmaceuticals were predicted to be easily removed by sorption or biodegradation, and hence a conventional STP may not protect the environment from the release of unwanted pharmaceuticals. However, the prediction made in this study strongly relies on sorption coefficient to suspended sludge and biodegradation half-lives, which may vary significantly depending on models. Removal efficiencies predicted using the EPM were typically higher than those predicted by STPWIN for many hydrophilic pharmaceuticals due to the difference in prediction method for sorption coefficients. Comparison with experimental organic carbon-water partition coefficients ($K_{ocs}) revealed that log KOW-based estimation used in STPWIN is likely to underestimate sorption coefficients, thus resulting low removal efficiency by sorption. Predicted values by the EPM were consistent with limited experimental data although this model does not include biodegradation processes, implying that this simple model can be very useful with reliable Koc values. Because there are not many experimental data available for priority pharmaceuticals to evaluate the model performance, it should be important to obtain reliable experimental data including sorption coefficients and biodegradation rate constants for the prediction of the fate of the selected pharmaceuticals.