• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.29 no.6
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• pp.696-702
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• 2018

Recently, the current thermal battery technology needs new materials for electrodes in the power and energy density to meet various space and defense requirements. In this paper, to replace the pellet type Li(Si) anode having limitations of the formability and capacity, electrochemical properties of the lithium anode with high density for thermal batteries were investigated. The lithium anode (Li 17, 15, 13 wt%) was fabricated by mixing the molten lithium and iron powder used as a binder to hold the molten lithium at $500^{\circ}C$. The single cell with 13 wt% lithium showed a stable performance. The 2.06 V (OCV) of the lithium anode was significantly improved compared to 1.93 V (OCV) of the Li(Si) anode. Specific capacities during the first phase of the lithium anode and Li(Si) were 1,632 and $1,181As{\cdot}g^{-1}$, respectively. As a result of the thermal battery performance test at both room and high temperatures, the voltage and operating time of lithium anode thermal batteries were superior to those of using Li(Si) anode thermal batteries. The power and energy densities of Li anode thermal batteries were also remarkably improved.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.29 no.7
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• pp.1104-1116
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• 2019

In this study, we investigated the potential of using sediment bioelectrochemical systems (SBESs) for in situ treatment of the water and sediment in brackish aquaculture ponds polluted with uneaten feed. An SBES integrated into a laboratory-scale tank simulating a brackish aquaculture pond was established. This test tank and the control (not containing the SBES) were fed with shrimp feed in a scheme that mimics a situation where 50% of feed is uneaten. After the SBES was inoculated with microbial sources from actual shrimp pond sediments, electricity generation was well observed from the first experimental week, indicating successful enrichment of electrochemically active bacteria in the test tank sediment. The electricity generation became steady after 3 weeks of operation, with an average current density of $2.3mA/m^2$ anode surface and an average power density of $0.05mW/m^2$ anode surface. The SBES removed 20-30% more COD of the tank water, compared to the control. After 1 year, the SBES also reduced the amount of sediment in the tank by 40% and thus could remove approximately 40% more COD and approximately 52% more nitrogen from the sediment, compared to the control. Insignificant amounts of nitrite and nitrate were detected, suggesting complete removal of nitrogen by the system. PCR-DGGE-based analyses revealed the dominant presence of Methylophilus rhizosphaerae, Desulfatitalea tepidiphila and Thiothrix eikelboomii, which have not been found in bioelectrochemical systems before, in the bacterial community in the sediment of the SBES-containing tank. The results of this research demonstrate the potential application of SBESs in helping to reduce water pollution threats, fish and shrimp disease risks, and thus farmers' losses.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.382-393
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• 2019

Wound care is a health industry concern affecting millions worldwide. Recent increase in metabolic disorders such as diabetes comes with elevated risk of wound-based complications. Treatment and management of wounds are difficult practices due to complexity of the wound healing process. Conventional wound dressings and treatment applications only provide limited benefits which are mainly aimed to keep wound protected from external factors. To improve wound care, recent developments make biopolymers to be of high interest and importance to researchers and medical practitioners. Biopolymers are polymers or natural origin produced by living organisms. They are credited to be highly biocompatible and biodegradable. Currently, studies reported biopolymers to exhibit various health beneficial properties such as antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, hemostatic, cell proliferative and angiogenic activities which are crucial for effective wound management. Several biopolymers, namely chitosan, cellulose, collagen, hyaluronic acid and alginic acid have been already investigated and applied as wound dressing agents. Different derivatives of biopolymers have also been developed by cross-linking with other molecules, grafting with other polymers, and loading with bioactive agents or drugs which showed promising results towards wound healing without any undesired outcome such as scarring and physiological abnormalities. In this review, current applications of common biopolymers in wound treatment industry are highlighted to be a guide for further applications and studies.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.492-501
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• 2019

Nitrogen-containing heterocycles such as quinoline, quinazolinones and indole are scaffolds of natural products and have broad biological effects. During the last years those structures have been intensively synthesized and modified to yield new synthetic molecules that can specifically inhibit the activity of dysregulated protein kinases in cancer cells. Herein, a series of newly synthesized isoquinolinamine (FX-1 to 8) and isoindoloquinazolinone (FX-9, FX-42, FX-43) compounds were evaluated in regards to their anti-leukemic potential on human B- and T- acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) cells. Several biological effects were observed. B-ALL cells (SEM, RS4;11) were more sensitive against isoquinolinamine compounds than T-ALL cells (Jurkat, CEM). In SEM cells, metabolic activity decreased with $10{\mu}M$ up to 26.7% (FX-3), 25.2% (FX-7) and 14.5% (FX-8). The 3-(p-Tolyl) isoquinolin-1-amine FX-9 was the most effective agent against B- and T-ALL cells with IC50 values ranging from 0.54 to $1.94{\mu}M$. None of the tested compounds displayed hemolysis on erythrocytes or cytotoxicity against healthy leukocytes. Anti-proliferative effect of FX-9 was associated with changes in cell morphology and apoptosis induction. Further, influence of FX-9 on PI3K/AKT, MAPK and JAK/STAT signaling was detected but was heterogeneous. Functional inhibition testing of 58 kinases revealed no specific inhibitory activity among cancer-related kinases. In conclusion, FX-9 displays significant antileukemic activity in B- and T-ALL cells and should be further evaluated in regards to the mechanisms of action. Further compounds of the current series might serve as templates for the design of new compounds and as basic structures for modification approaches.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.29 no.9
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• pp.1010-1015
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• 2019

The interstitial cells of Cajal (ICCs) are the pacemaker cells in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. In the present study, the effects of olanzapine, an atypical antipsychotic agent, on pacemaker potentials in cultured ICCs from the small intestine of the mouse were investigated. The whole-cell patch-clamp configuration was used to record pacemaker potentials from cultured ICCs. Olanzapine produced pacemaker depolarizations in a concentration-dependent manner in current clamp mode. Methoctramine, a muscarinic $M_2$ receptor antagonist, did not inhibit olanzapine-induced pacemaker depolarizations, whereas 4-diphenylacetoxy-N-methylpiperidine methiodide (4-DAMP) muscarinic $M_3$ receptor antagonist did inhibit it. When guanosine 5'-[${\beta}$-thio] diphosphate (GDP-${\beta}$-S; 1 mM) was in the pipette solution, olanzapine-induced pacemaker depolarization was blocked. Also, low $Na^+$ solution externally eliminated the generation of pacemaker potentials and inhibited the olanzapine-induced pacemaker depolarizations. Additionally, the nonselective cation channel blocker, flufenamic acid, inhibited the olanzapine-induced pacemaker depolarizations. Pretreatment with U-73122, an active phospholipase C (PLC) inhibitor, also eliminated the generation of pacemaker potentials and suppressed the olanzapine-induced pacemaker depolarizations. These results suggested that olanzapine modulates the pacemaker potentials through muscarinic $M_3$ receptor activation by G protein-dependent external $Na^+$ and PLC pathway in the ICCs. Therefore, olanzapine could affect intestinal motility through ICCs.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.271-279
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• 2019

The lamina II, also called the substantia gelatinosa (SG), of the trigeminal subnucleus caudalis (Vc), is thought to play an essential role in the control of orofacial nociception. Glycine and serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) are the important neurotransmitters that have the individual parts on the modulation of nociceptive transmission. However, the electrophysiological effects of 5-HT on the glycine receptors on SG neurons of the Vc have not been well studied yet. For this reason, we applied the whole-cell patch clamp technique to explore the interaction of intracellular signal transduction between 5-HT and the glycine receptors on SG neurons of the Vc in mice. In nine of 13 neurons tested (69.2%), pretreatment with 5-HT potentiated glycine-induced current ($I_{Gly}$). Firstly, we examined with a $5-HT_1$ receptor agonist (8-OH-DPAT, $5-HT_{1/7}$ agonist, co-applied with SB-269970, $5-HT_7$ antagonist) and antagonist (WAY-100635), but $5-HT_1$ receptor agonist did not increase $I_{Gly}$ and in the presence of $5-HT_1$ antagonist, the potentiation of 5-HT on $I_{Gly}$ still happened. However, an agonist (${\alpha}$-methyl-5-HT) and antagonist (ketanserin) of the $5-HT_2$ receptor mimicked and inhibited the enhancing effect of 5-HT on $I_{Gly}$ in the SG neurons, respectively. We also verified the role of the $5-HT_7$ receptor by using a $5-HT_7$ antagonist (SB-269970) but it also did not block the enhancement of 5-HT on $I_{Gly}$. Our study demonstrated that 5-HT facilitated $I_{Gly}$ in the SG neurons of the Vc through the $5-HT_2$ receptor. The interaction between 5-HT and glycine appears to have a significant role in modulating the transmission of the nociceptive pathway.

• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.11 no.12
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• pp.97-103
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• 2020

This study sets the solar power system installed and applied to the vertical side wall among the photovoltaic systems in the building as the scope of the research. The theoretical background was considered through literature research as a research method, and the current status, trends and characteristics of solar generator design installed and applied to domestic and foreign vertical side walls were then investigated and analyzed cases. As a result, the importance and necessity of photovoltaic generators, potential for power generation and growth were identified, and positive factors and directions were found for improving aestheticity. Based on this point, we would like to propose expected effects that can be applied to photovoltaic system design installed and applied to vertical side walls in the future, and confirm the direction and significance of the improvement of aesthetic quality of the proposal for development of thin film solar cell design technology using green facade design.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.45 no.1
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• pp.66-74
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• 2021

Background: Abnormal chloride (Cl-) transport has a detrimental impact on mucociliary clearance in both cystic fibrosis (CF) and non-CF chronic rhinosinusitis. Ginseng is a medicinal plant noted to have anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties. The present study aims to assess the capability of red ginseng aqueous extract (RGAE) to promote transepithelial Cl- secretion in nasal epithelium. Methods: Primary murine nasal septal epithelial (MNSE) [wild-type (WT) and transgenic CFTR-/-], fisher-rat-thyroid (FRT) cells expressing human WT CFTR, and TMEM16A-expressing human embryonic kidney cultures were utilized for the present experiments. Ciliary beat frequency (CBF) and airway surface liquid (ASL) depth measurements were performed using micro-optical coherence tomography (μOCT). Mechanisms underlying transepithelial Cl- transport were determined using pharmacologic manipulation in Ussing chambers and whole-cell patch clamp analysis. Results: RGAE (at 30㎍/mL of ginsenosides) significantly increased Cl- transport [measured as change in short-circuit current (ΔISC = ㎂/㎠)] when compared with control in WT and CFTR-/- MNSE (WT vs control = 49.8±2.6 vs 0.1+/-0.2, CFTR-/- = 33.5±1.5 vs 0.2±0.3, p < 0.0001). In FRT cells, the CFTR-mediated ΔISC attributed to RGAE was small (6.8 ± 2.5 vs control, 0.03 ± 0.01, p < 0.05). In patch clamp, TMEM16A-mediated currents were markedly improved with co-administration of RGAE and uridine 5-triphosphate (8406.3 +/- 807.7 pA) over uridine 5-triphosphate (3524.1 +/- 292.4 pA) or RGAE alone (465.2 +/- 90.7 pA) (p < 0.0001). ASL and CBF were significantly greater with RGAE (6.2+/-0.3 ㎛ vs control, 3.9+/-0.09 ㎛; 10.4+/-0.3 Hz vs control, 7.3 ± 0.2 Hz; p < 0.0001) in MNSE. Conclusion: RGAE augments ASL depth and CBF by stimulating Cl- secretion through CaCC, which suggests therapeutic potential in both CF and non-CF chronic rhinosinusitis.

• Clean Technology
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.85-92
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• 2021

A solar water battery is a system that generates power using solar energy. It is a combination of photoelectrochemical cells and an energy storage system. It can simultaneously convert and store solar energy without additional external voltage. Solar water batteries consist of photoelectrodes, storage electrodes and counter electrodes, and their properties and combination are important for the performance and the efficiency of the system. In this study, we tried to find the effect that changing the components of solar water batteries has on its system. The effects of the counter electrode during discharge, the kinds of photoelectrode and storage electrode materials, and electrolytes on the solar energy conversion and storage capacitance were studied. The optimized composition (TiO2 : NaFe-PB : Pt foil) exhibited 72.393 mAh g-1 of discharge capacity after 15 h of photocharging. It indicates that the efficiency of solar energy conversion and storage is largely affected by the configuration of the system. Also, the addition of organic pollutants to the chamber of the photoelectrode improved the battery's photo-current and discharge capacity by efficient photoelectron-hole pair separation with simultaneous degradation of organic pollutants. Solar water batteries are a new eco-friendly solar energy conversion and storage system that does not require additional external voltages. It is also expected to be used for water treatment that utilizes solar energy.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.35 no.6
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• pp.535-543
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• 2020

In addition to the ubiquitous roles of cellular RNA in genetic regulations, gene expression and phenotypic variations in response to environmental cues and chemotactic signals, the regulatory roles of a new type of RNA called extracellular RNAs (exRNAs) are an up-and-coming area of research interest. exRNA is transported outside the cell through membrane blebs known as membrane vesicles or extracellular vesicles (EVs). EV formation is predominant and conserved among all microbial forms, including prokaryotes, eukaryotes, and archaea. This review will focus on the three major topics concerning bacterially derived exRNAs, i.e., 1) the discovery of exRNA and influence of extraneous RNA over bacterial gene regulations, 2) the known secretion mechanism for the release of exRNA, and 3) the possible applications that can be devised with these exRNA secreted by different gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria. Further, this review will also provide an opinion on exRNA- and EV-derived applications such as the species-specific exRNA markers for diagnostics and the possible roles of exRNA in probiotics and the epigenetic regulations of the gut microbiome.