• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.320-328
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• 2016

This study was conducted to provide important basic information about effective management of the marine environment at major inflow streams in Lake Andong and Lake Imha. The investigation was conducted 8 times from May, 2015 (AD1, AD2, IH1, IH2) to September, 2016 (AD3, AD4, IH3, IH4), and 8 surveyed sites were selected at Lake Andong (4 sites) and Lake Imha (4 sites). The inquiry identified 114 species, $59,913.7inds.\;m^{-2}$ in Lake Andong and 112 species, $39,038.4inds.\;m^{-2}$ in Lake Imha. The results indicate that the number of species and individuals in Lake Andong is more than that in Lake Imha, because Lake Andong has a variety of riparian vegetation and a richness of organic materials. Community analysis at Lake Imha revealed a dominant index of 0.57 (${\pm}0.18$), a diversity index of 2.87 (${\pm}0.31$), an evenness index of 0.73 (${\pm}0.04$), and a richness index of 4.17 (${\pm}0.71$). The results of functional feeding group analysis showed that a high proportion of species and individuals are gathering collectors. The results of functional habitat group analysis showed that a high proportion of species and individuals are clingers. The result of a physico-chemical water assay and dissolved oxygen and electric conductivity tests revealed that these measures increased when the water temperature decreased. The result of Pearson's correlation analysis by biological factors and physico-chemical factors showed that species and electric conductivity are highly correlated with one another. Major inflow streams of Lake Andong and Lake Imha were exposed to various point pollution sources and non-point pollution sources. This implies a necessity for continuous monitoring of the aquatic ecosystems in order to effect systematic water quality management of Lake Andong and Lake Imha.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.13 no.9
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• pp.17-29
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• 2012

To investigate the characteristics of shear strength and soil deformation in soft grounds, in which various vertical drains were placed, two hundreds field monitoring data of embankments performed in thirteen road construction sites at west and south coastal areas of the Korean Peninsula were collected. At first, the relationship between settlement and lateral displacement was investigated into three stages, in which embankment construction works were divided into initial filling stage, final filling stage and stage after complete filling. And then, the relationship of surcharge pressures and embankment heights with undrained shear strength of soft grounds were investigated. The investigation on settlement and lateral displacement illustrated that the increment of lateral flow to the increment of settlement was low during initial filling stage, but increased gradually with filling and showed largest during final filling stage. After complete filling, the lateral displacement was converged, even though the settlement was increased continuously. Therefore, most of lateral flow was occurred during embankment filling. The ratio of the lateral displacement increment to the settlement increment was 20% for initial filling stage, which coincided with the one presented by Tavenas et al.(1979), but became 50% for final filling stage, which was half of the one presented by Tavenas et al.(1979). However, the ratio reduced to 1% to 9%, which was quite lower than the one presented by Tavenas et al.(1979). Shear deformations, even shear failures, were predicted in soft grounds under initial undrained shear strength, since the design heights of embankments were higher than the yield height in all the sites. However, embankment construction would be possible since the yield height became higher than the design height due to improvement of shear strength of soft grounds with application of the vertical drains. In order to perform safely embankments for road constructions, the embankment loads should be designed not to be exceed 5.14 times the initial undrained shear strength of soft grounds and to be less than 3.0 times the undrained shear strength improved with application of vertical drains in soft grounds.

• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.131-141
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• 2009

Purpose : In February 2007, an outbreak of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) skin and soft tissue infections occurred in two newborns in the neonatal unit of Sahmyook Seoul Hospital. We performed this study to investigate the characteristics of MRSA nasal carriage among neonatal unit staffs and the effective infection control measures. Methods : Nasal swab specimens were obtained from the neonatal unit staff for the presence of MRSA. MRSA-colonized staffs were offered decolonization therapy with oral trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole or 2% mupirocin ointment. Every 2-4months after decolonizaton, repeat nasal swab specimens were obtained. Also, samples from the neonatal unit environment and room air were collected. Results : Successful decolonization was achieved in 92% of the cases in 2 weeks after decolonization therapy, but most of the staffs were recolonized after several months. The nature of antibiotic susceptibility was changed from multi-drugsusceptible to multi-drug-resistant. The most frequently contaminated objects were dressing carts, computer keyboards, bassinets and washbowls. In environmental cultures using the settle microbe count method, the colony counts were decreased significantly at the last study period compared with the first study period in the neonatal room, breastfeeding room, service room, and dressing room (P <0.05). Conclusion : Effective control of sustained MRSA transmission within an institution may require prompt identification, treatment, and monitoring of colonized and/or infected staffs. However, nasal decolonization therapy may induce multi-drugresistant MRSA infection and had no effect on decreasing the MRSA nasal carriage rate in our study. Other factors might be more important, such as improving staff education, increasing hand hygiene practices, and environmental sterilization for controlling MRSA infections.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.119-128
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• 2017

BACKGROUND: Miscellaneous cereal have been largely consumed in Korea as due to their physiological functions beneficial to human health. The cereals are currently a social concern because they have been found to contain heavy metals. Thus, monitoring heavy metals in the cereals is an important requirement for food safety analysis. In this study, we determined arsenic concentration in the cereals randomly harvested from different markets. METHODS AND RESULTS: Inorganic arsenic was determined by ICP-MS coupled with HPLC system. The HPLC-ICP-MS analysis was optimized based on the limit of detection and recover test to reach $0.13-1.24{\mu}g/kg$ and 94.3-102.1%, respectively. The concentrations of inorganic arsenic equivalent to daily exposure were levels of $19.91{\mu}g/day$ in mixed grain, $1.07{\mu}g/day$ in glutinous rice, $0.77{\mu}g/day$ in black brown rice, $0.13{\mu}g/day$ in barley and $0.11{\mu}g/day$ in soybeans. CONCLUSION: The levels of arsenic in miscellaneous cereals were found lower than the recommended The Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) levels, suggesting that the cereals marketed in Korea are not potential concern in risk assessment.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.333-342
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• 2020

The aim of this study was to define the toxic effects of phenanthrene (PAHs) on the fertilization and normal embryogenesis rates in the two species of sea urchin (Hemicentrotus pulcherrimus and Mesocentrotus nudus). The sperm and fertilized eggs of both sea urchin species were exposed to serial dilutions of phenanthrene for 10 min and 48 hours, respectively. The fertilization rate and normal embryogenesis rate of H. pulcherrimus and M. nudus were decreased in a concentration-dependent manner. The EC₅₀ for the fertilization rate of H. pulcherrimus and M. nudus was 17.48 mg L^-1 and 16.21 mg L^-1, and the EC₅₀ for the normal embryogenesis rate was 2.99 mg L^-1 and 0.36 mg L^-1, respectively. Between the two species, H. pulcherrimus was more sensitive to phenanthrene exposure, and 48 h normal embryogenesis was the more sensitive endpoint. Therefore, the results of this study demonstrated that the exposure of both sea urchin species to phenanthrene caused alterations in egg fertilization and the early developmental stages.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.47 no.1
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• pp.39-48
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• 2014

In coastal region, estuaries have complex environments where dissolved and particulate matters are mixed with marine water and substances. Suspended sediment (SS) dynamics in coastal water, in particular, plays a major role in erosion/deposition processes, biomass primary production and the transport of nutrients, micropollutants, heavy metals, etc. Temporal variation in suspended sediment concentration (SSC) can be used to explain erosion/sedimentation patterns within coastal zones. Remotely sensed data can be an efficient tool for mapping SS in coastal waters. In this study, we analyzed the variation in SSC in coastal water using the Geostationary Ocean Color Imager (GOCI) and Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) in Gyeonggi-bay. Daily variations in GOCI-derived SSC showed low values during ebb time. Current velocity and water level at 9 and 10 am is 37.6, 28.65 $cm{\cdot}s^{-1}$ and -1.23, -0.61 m respectively. Water level has increased to 1.18 m at flood time. In other words, strong current velocity and increased water level affected high SSC value before flood time but SSC decreased after flood time. Also, we compared seasonal SSC with the river discharge from the Han River and the Imjin River. In summer season, river discharge showed high amount, when SSC had high value near the inland. At this time SSC in open sea had low value. In contrast, river discharge amount from inland showed low value in winter season and, consequently, SSC in the open sea had high value because of northwest monsoon.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.55 no.6
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• pp.570-578
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• 2003

Background : Ambient particles during Asian dust events are usually sized less than $10{\mu}m$, known to be associated with the adverse effects on the general populations. But, there has been no considerable evidence linking these particles to the adverse effects on airways. The objectives of this study was to investigate the possible adverse effects of Asian dust events on respiratory function and symptoms in subjects with bronchial asthma. Patients and Methods : From march to June 2002, Asthmatic patients who were diagnosed with bronchial challenge test or bronchodilator response were enrolled. We divided them into three groups; mild, moderate, and severe, according to the severity. Subjects with other organ insufficiency such as heart, kidney, liver, and malignancy were excluded. All patients completed twice daily diaries and recorded peak flow rate, respiratory symptom, and daily activity. Daily and hourly mean pollutant levels of particulate matter < $10{\mu}m$ in diameter($PM_{10}$), nitrogen dioxide($NO_2$), sulphur dioxide($SO_2$), ozone($O_3$) and carbon monoxide(CO) were measured at the 10 different monitoring sites. Results : Dust events occured 14 times during the study period. Daily averages of 4 air pollutant were measured with an increased level of $PM_{10}$, decreased level of $NO_2$ and $SO_2$, and no change in CO during dust days compared to those during control days. An increase in $PM_{10}$ concentration was associated with an increase of subjects with PEF variability of >20% (p<0.05), night time symptom(p<0.05), and a decrease in mean PEF (p<0.05), which were calculated by the longitudinal data analysis. Otherwise, there was no association between $PM_{10}$ level and bronchodialtor inhaler, and daytime respiratory symptoms. Conclusion : This study shows evidence that ambient air pollution, especially $PM_{10}$, during Asian dust events, could be one of the many aggravating factors at least in patients with airway diseases. This data can be used as a primary source to set up a new policy on air environmental control and to evaluate the safety of air pollution index. We also expect that this research will help identify precise components of dust, which are more linked to the adverse effects.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.30-40
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• 2009

Employing the Numata-type life form, the paper analyzed changes of plants for 4 years at the Human-made Wetlands along Boknaecheon of Juam Lake since its creation. The number of the species planted at the Human-made Wetlands along Boknaecheon of Juam Lake, which was completed in December 2002, were 15 in total including, 10 families, 13 genera, 12 species and 3 varieties. As for the three-featured life forms of the planted species, there were 6 perennial hydatophytes, recording the biggest number of species in dormancy form; species each of $R_5$, $R_3$, $R_{2-3}$ respectively in radicoid from; 20 species of geomantic dissenminule form ($D_1$) in disseminule form and erecred type(e) existed the most in growth form. With regard to the 3 features of life form identified during the final year of the monitoring that lasted 5 years after the completion of the Wetlands, the number of species and individuals was found to have increased but there was no significant change of tendency as against the composition ration(%) of life form. There were 43 species of therophytes (Th) that covered 24.29% in dormancy form, while $R_5$ was prevalent in radicoid form and $D_4$, $D_1$, and $D_{1,4}$ comprosed 77.39% of the whole disseminule form. Growth form was surveyed in the order of erected type (e), bunch type (t), temporal rosette type (pr), branch type (b) and straight rosette type (ps) and these species comprised 64.97% of the whole flora. Consequently, in case of the artificial wetlands along the Boknaecheon of Juam Lake, it turned out that the vegetation type in which pioneer species of succession, or gradually stabilized perennial vegetation favoring Wetlands because the higher dormancy form has its perennial plants' composition ratio getting, the more its succession is progressing. Even though single grained plants ($R_5$) belonging to radicoid in breeding form, succession is predicted to take place considering the fact that they actually belong to ~ plants like Phragmites japonica that form a connection on the surface of the earth. In addition, it is judged that geomantic disseminule form ($D_1$) conveyed by water and gravitational disseminule form favored by the development of waterside woody plants ($D_4$) seem to be better fit to this area in desseminule form. As for growth form, bunch type (t) is judged to become prevalent on the Wetlands while a good variety of phanerophytes will coexist on the earth due to artificial as well as natural disturbances.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.353-364
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• 2009

This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of erosion control works on the stream ecosystem in a mountain torrential stream. The species composition of benthic macroinvertebrates and biological water quality were investigated before and after construction of erosion control works at 5 sites. The total number of benthic macroinvertebrates before construction was 3,086 individuals including 4 phyla, 6 classes, 11 orders, 22 families, and 25 species, but after construction it has decreased to 1,208 individuals including 4 phyla, 6 classes, 10 orders, 17 families, and 19 species. Especially, the diversity, richness, and evenness indices, which were calculated based on existing number of biological species, have decreased or not produced at the erosion control sites, where biological species were not found or the minimum number of species were found. The results of community analysis of benthic macroinvertebrates and ESB(Ecological Score of Benthic macroinvertebrate community) indicated that the environmental qualities of the stream based on saprobity, environmental condition, and water quality decreased after the construction at all sites: before construction, the top of the stream was satisfactory and some satisfactory, the middle was some defectiveness, and the lower was defectiveness and very defectiveness; after construction, all parts of the stream except some parts of the top were very defectiveness. Moreover, the water quality of torrential stream was rated between I to III before construction, but after construction, it declined to $IV{\sim}V$ except control. The habitat damage of benthic macro invertebrates occurred at all investigation sites after the construction of erosion control works led to reduction of the number of biological species and water quality deterioration. The results reported in this study were collected directly after the construction of erosion control works. Therefore, additional studies are needed to further explore the effect of disaster-prevention of erosion control works and the recovery process of stream ecosystem through long term monitoring.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Traditional Landscape Architecture
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.85-97
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• 2010

This study analyzed the distribution, structure and environmental condition of the vegetation of the Chionanthus retusus Lindly et Paxton community at the Wansanchielbong in the Jeonju city to offer basic data for sustainable conservation and ecological management system. And the results are as follows; 1. The average pH of soil at the community was pH 5.69 and it was slightly higher than the average of forest soil pH of Korea. But if the degree of pH will be down, it will be needed some more fertilization of Calcium. 2. The total average for contents of organism was 4.98%. And the nitrate - nitrogen content(mg/kg) of A, B, C, D quadrat was 20.29%, 28.87%, 7.65%, and 23.3% respectively. And there were good condition except quadrat C which was contaminated by amount of earth and sand. 3. The flora of the Chionanthus retusus Lindly et Paxton community was listed as 60 taxa; 37 families, 50 genera, 47 species, 10 varieties and 3 forms. The average appearance species of each Quadrat were A sector 30, B sector 26, C sector 19 and D 19 taxa respectively. 4. Surveyed woody plants in the community were as follows : Chionanthus retusus, Zelkova serrata, Quercus variabilis, Cornus walteri, Robinia pseudo-acacia and those were mixed status. And Chionanthus retusus, Zelkova serrata, Robinia pseudo-acacia, Albizzia julibrisin, Cudrania tricuspidata, Symplocos chinensis for. pilosa were mixed in mid layer trees. Herbaceous plants were founded such as Chionanthus retusus, Zelkova serrata, Robinia pseudo-acacia, Grewia parviflora, Rosa multiflora, Trachelospermum asiaticum was dominant with 35~64% in the ground cover, and Commelina communis, Calamagrostis arundinacea, Dryopteris bissetiana, Lilium lancifolium were founded also. 5. The importance values of Chionanthus retusus was 40.2% in the quadrat A1, 50.2% at quadrat A, 50.0% B1, 45.2% B2, 22.4% C1, 73.6% C2, 33.2% D1 and the total average of I.V. was 44.9%. 6. The average height of surveyed Chionanthus retusus was 5.7m and the average DBH was 12.4cm. The number of trees higher than 2m were 107 and the number of trees lower than 2m were 63. The total numbers of Chionanthus retusus were 170. 7. The age of surveyed Chionanthus retusus were analyzed 42 thru 87 years old and that of Zelkova serrata were 42, Quercus variabilis were 60, Quercus aliena were 48, Robinia pseudo-acacia were 40. 8. The number of trees with DBH 40 through 50cm were 6, and that of 30~39cm were 3, and that of 20~29cm were 16, so the total number that was over 20cm was 25. And there were 70 trees under 10cm of DBH and 63 seedlings. It will be very important data to conserve the habitat that the structure and environmental condition of the Chionanthus retusus Lindly et Paxton community at the Wansanchielbong was stable, and sustainable monitoring will be needed. Now that community is nurse forest of Jeonju City but more positive preservation plan will be needed and assigning monument of city or province also be necessary.