• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.867-878
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• 2011

Development restriction areas (greenbelt areas) of Korea were recognized in 1970 as a means to control urban sprawl and conserve the natural environment. Although there have been some achievements, for a long time many planners and residents have requested a redefining of the green belt due to individual property rights restrictions and urban management problems. In fact, a lot of the greenbelt area is being destroyed by urban development. Therefore, conservation of ecological spaces in the green belt is needed to maintain urban naturalness. In this regard, this study suggests efficient methods to manage the greenbelt through the adoption of a landscape ecological value assessment. The greenbelt of the Seoul Metropolitan Area (SMA) is represented as the case study because there has been mounting pressure to develop the area in Korea. In this study, the assessment of the landscape ecology in the greenbelt area focuses on landscape structure and function. The assessment consists of the following steps: First, patches were derived by NDVI analysis using landsat remote sensing data. Second, characteristics of the patches were quantified by analyzing the landscape structure, such as patch size and shape index. Lastly, the gravity model and least cost path analysis to assess connectivity were applied to evaluate the landscape function in the green belt areas. The assessment result showed that 48.45% of green belt area should be conserved to maintain ecological stability and function. Moreover, major ecological networks were identified near the large patches in the northern and southern areas. However, relative low ecological values were identified in the western part of the green belt area due to the lack of green spaces. Furthermore, some development plans in the green belt were also identified near the conservation area. Based on these results, the restoration needed areas to enhance ecological value in green belt were displayed. This study suggests efficient management of the greenbelt area, which is disappearing as a result of urban development. The area for conservation chosen in this study should be managed carefully in urban planning. Finally, the results of this study can be used in green belt polices and plans for the promotion of ecological naturalness and stability.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.73-79
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• 2006

Nebulin is a giant ($600{\sim}900$ kDa), modular sarcomeric protein proposed to regulate the assembly, and to specify the precise lengths of actin filamints in vertebrate skeletal muscles. Recently, There is an evidence that the nebulin also expressed in non muscle tissue, brain and liver. We identified a new isoform of nebulin from adult brain library by PCR screening. It contains two simple-repeats exon 165, 166 and linker-repeats exon $154{\sim}161$ except exon 159. The nebulin modules M160 to M170 (exon 150 to exon 161) has been shown to bind desmin. In mature striated muscle, desmin intermediate filaments surround Z-discs and link individual myofibrils laterally at their Z-discs and to other intracellular structures, including the costameres and the intercalated discs of the sarcolemma, sarcoplasmic reticulum, mitochondria, T-tubules, and nuclei. Therefore, it is an interesting possibility that the differential splice pathways within the linker region of nebulin modify the affinity of nebulin's interaction with desmin. The specific interactions of nebulin and desmin were confirmed in vivo by yeast two hybrid experiments. To verify in the cellular level the interaction between nebulin isoform and desmin, we transfected COS-7 cell with EGFP-tagged nebulin and DsRed-tagged desmin. Based on evidence showing that despite exon 159 was deleted, the new isoform of nebulin was interact with desmin. This suggest that nebulin in brain may interact with another intermediate filament. The conservation of these ligand-binding capacity in brain and skeletal nebulins suggest that nebulins may have conserved roles in brain and skeletal muscle.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.48 no.4
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• pp.319-324
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• 2010

A family of calcium-dependent protein kinases (CDPKs) is a unique enzyme which plays crucial roles in intracellular calcium signaling in plants, algae, and protozoa. CDPKs of malaria parasites are known to be key regulators for stage-specific cellular responses to calcium, a widespread secondary messenger that controls the progression of the parasite. In our study, we identified a gene encoding Plasmodium vivax CDPK4 (PvCDPK4) and characterized its molecular property and cellular localization. PvCDPK4 was a typical CDPK which had well-conserved N-terminal kinase domain and C-terminal calmodulin-like structure with 4-EF hand motifs for calcium-binding. The recombinant protein of EF hand domain of PvCDPK4 was expressed in Echerichia coli and a 34 kDa product was obtained. Immunofluorescence assay by confocal laser microscopy revealed that the protein was expressed at the mature schizont of P. vivax. The expression of PvCDPK4-EF in schizont suggests that it may participate in the proliferation or egress process in the life cycle of this parasite.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.46 no.2
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• pp.223-227
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• 2010

RNase E plays a major role in the degradation and processing of a large number of RNA transcripts in Escherichia coli and forms the core component of the degradosome, a large protein complex involved in RNA metabolism. RraA and RraB are recently discovered protein inhibitors of RNase E and are evolutionarily conserved. In this study, we observed that, unlike RraA, overexpression of RraB did not rescue growth arrest of E. coli cells overexpressing RNase E. To examine whether this phenomenon stems from differential inhibitory effects of RraA and RraB on RNase E substrates, we analyzed three in vivo RNase E substrates. The results showed that RraA inhibited RNase E activity more efficiently than RraB on the degradation of RNA I, which controls the copy number of ColE1-type plasmid, and rpsO mRNA encoding ribosomal protein S15, while RraB was unable to inhibit the processing of pM1 RNA, a precursor of the RNA component of RNase P, by RNase E. Our results imply that RraB inhibits RNase E activity in a more substrate-dependent manner than RraA and this property of RraB may explain why overexpression of RraB could not rescue cells overexpressing RNase E from growth arrest.

• Journal of Conservation Science
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.1-11
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• 2015

Seated Amitabha Triad at Muwisa Temple (Treasure No. 1312) had been known as wooden Buddha statue, but a precise safety inspection revealed that the statue is terracotta Buddha statue made with clay. The clay layer of Amitabha Triad was conserved due to its severe damage. In this study, experiments were conducted to produce the most appropriate filler for the conservation treatment of the seated Amitabha Triad. Mixed clay samples with various ratios were produced and surface hardening state, crack, color change, and shrinkage of the samples during dry process were measured. Loess, fine sand powder, and cotton were used to produce the mixed clay for the filler with six different ratios and then 12 different concentration glues made with glutinous rice glue, Pachymeniopsis Elliptica glue, and animal glue were added as adhesives. Total 72 types of samples were prepared and comparative study was conducted. As a result, when the mixed clay contains 2.5% cotton compared to the weight per cent of loess and fine sand powder and also loess and fine sand in the mixed clay have a 15:1 ratio, the mixed clay had the lowest shrinkage. Animal glue is considered as an appropriate glue since it had small color change, low physical property change and shringkage. Therefore, mixed clay (loess:fine sand=15:1) mixed with 15ml animal glue is likely to be a suitable filler for conservation treatment of the seated amitabha triad at the Muwisa Temple.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.46 no.1
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• pp.346-361
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• 2013

Since the Ming Castle located in Nanjing was designated by the Government of China as a cultural property in 1988, the Nanjing city government has been conserving the castle according to its plan and thus restoring the historical and cultural values of Nanjing. The project is still in progress, and in this regard, a series of logistics have formulated and a lot of discussions have taken place. Likewise, Korea has been carrying out multidirectional policies to conserve and utilize castles lying throughout the country, appreciating the historical and cultural resources of castles lying throughout the country, and at the same time gets down to designation as the World Heritage. This study focused on how Nanjing, not only a castle city but also a historical city, had established a principle and legal foundation regarding the protection of the Ming Castle, especially on how the problems, which might continually arise in a process where a scheme reached a working stage, had been solved. The problem-solving process is expected to have great implications for Korea in a similar situation. Hereat, this study analyzed the project plans formulated seasonally and gathered data on practical operation by conducting interviews with hands-on workers. The results showed that Nanjing had carried out policies to utilize the castles as tourism resources by harmonizing cityscape and ecological environment, but that it well conserved castles without damaging cultural assets. The stereoscopic protection system for the Ming Castle, based on the consideration of historical and cultural environments, may provide practical and useful data for Korea's administration mapping out for a castle conservation policy and designation as the UNESCO World Heritage.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.230-239
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• 2017

These days, the demand of farm tours is on the rise in Korea. However, most of them are related to farming experience. To overcome the situation, ecological experience is introduced. In this sense, it is necessary to obtain the contents and educational materials of ponds, the space of farming and ecological experience. Therefore, this study analyzed the use patterns of oriental medicine of pond wetland plants. Oriental medicine is used for old and traditional knowledge, and is still applied to various fields, such as medical science, pharmacy, and science. The analyzed result of this study will be helpful for the educational materials of ecological experience. This study surveyed plants of 40 pond wetlands in rural areas, and looked into the use patterns of traditional medicine by using the contents of Korea Traditional Knowledge Portal being operated by Korean Intellectual Property Office. According to the vegetation survey of the 40 pond wetlands, there were a total of 457 taxa in 108 families, 309 genera, 392 species, 59 varieties, 5 forma, and 1 subspecies. Among them, 314 taxa in 53 families, 136 genera, 265 species, 45 varieties, 3 forma, and 1 subspecies had the information on the use patterns of traditional medicine. It means that 68.8% of the plants around pond wetlands contain traditional medicine. Given other application patterns, such as food, handcraft and traditional farming, more than 70~80% are expected to include traditional knowledge. 314 taxa used for traditional medicine had 570 kinds of efficacy and 325 kinds of disease treatment. It means that one taxon has 4.0 (0~20) kinds of efficacy on average and 6.6(0~20) kinds of disease treatment. It is expected that this study result will be applied to various fields, including experience, education, and medical science. And it is considered that valuable pond wetlands are worthwhile to be conserved constantly.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.52 no.2
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• pp.240-253
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• 2019

Archaeological heritages are precious cultural relics and public assets that must be preserved, conserved, and shared with people all over the world. Investigating archaeological heritage is valuable and plays an important role for the public good; our ancestors' cultures can be restored, and it helps with developing a clear understanding of the cultural and social aspects of a historical period as well as teaches about historical factors unreported in the literature. One of the most basic and important conditions necessary for recognizing the value and importance of archaeological heritage investigation, expertise, and quality improvement is to establish detailed criteria for investigation services and the qualification examination of archaeological heritage. Observation of detailed criteria and the qualification examination of archaeological heritage can partially demonstrate society's recognition of strengthening transparency, public property, and the objectivity of the investigation of archaeological heritage. However, the detailed criteria for investigation services and the qualification examination of archaeological heritage currently implemented as administrative rules are neither followed by all institutes in the public and private sectors nor the government. Thus, there are serious problems in terms of the effectiveness and stability of institutions. The detailed criteria for the qualification examination breach the principle of statutory reservation, the principle of statutory regulation, and regulations on the announcement and management of orders and rules. Non-compliance with compensation criteria for investigation services or with detailed criteria for the qualification examination of archaeological heritage will be one of the reasons for the failure of the investigation foundation for archaeological heritage in the future. That is, it will result in the expansion, reproduction, and repetition of a vicious cycle of conflict between developers, who are the decision-makers responsible for selecting an investigating organization for archaeological heritage and determining the cost, and investigating organizations. This includes the impractical shortening of investigation periods and reducing costs by developers, distrust of the values and the importance of investigations of archaeological heritage, a decrease in quality, accidents caused by a lack of safety, a lack of occupational ethics, and non-recruitment of new experts, etc. Therefore, it is necessary to change the structure from a vicious cycle to a virtuous cycle, and promote the enactment of regulations that will ensure effectiveness and stability in the process of attaining the goals of the institution and application of the institution, as well as the continuous advancement of work to fill the gaps with reality.