• Molecules and Cells
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.427-435
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• 2008

In this review, we discuss the genes and the related signal pathways that regulate aging and longevity by reviewing recent findings of genetic longevity models in rodents in reference to findings with lower organisms. We also paid special attention to the genes and signals mediating the effects of calorie restriction (CR), a powerful intervention that slows the aging process and extends the lifespan in a range of organisms. An evolutionary view emphasizes the roles of nutrient-sensing and neuroendocrine adaptation to food shortage as the mechanisms underlying the effects of CR. Genetic and non-genetic interventions without CR suggest a role for single or combined hormonal signals that partly mediate the effect of CR. Longevity genes fall into two categories, genes relevant to nutrient-sensing systems and those associated with mitochondrial function or redox regulation. In mammals, disrupted or reduced growth hormone (GH)-insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1 signaling robustly favors longevity. CR also suppresses the GH-IGF-1 axis, indicating the importance of this signal pathway. Surprisingly, there are very few longevity models to evaluate the enhanced anti-oxidative mechanism, while there is substantial evidence supporting the oxidative stress and damage theory of aging. Either increased or reduced mitochondrial function may extend the lifespan. The role of redox regulation and mitochondrial function in CR remains to be elucidated.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.40 no.2
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• pp.337-345
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• 2007

Changes of feeding habitat and feeding organ of a land-locked sweetfish, Plecoglossus altivelis related to their growth process were investigated in the Lake Okjeong, Sannae-myeon, Jeongeup-si, Jeollabuk-do, Korea from 2004 to 2005. In the lake, the post-larvae from 25 to 40 mm in standard length fed mainly on animal organisms such as Copepoda, Branchiopoda and Rotatoria. Also, the juveniles from 50 to 60 mm (SL) fed on Chironomidae of Diptera, Copepoda and Branchiopoda. However, the juvenile from 60 to 70 mm (SL) in the Churyeong Stream fed on animal organisms and aquatic algae, the immature fishes more than 70 mm (SL) fed on only periphyton such as Synedra, Cymbella, Navicula and Pinnularia. Also, the feeding organs of the tooth and stomach were changed according to its growth and food change.

• Environmental Sciences Bulletin of The Korean Environmental Sciences Society
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.57-68
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• 1998

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAMs) are ubiquitous contaminants in marine environments. PAMs enter estuarine and nearshore marine environment via several routes such as combustion of fossil fuels, domestic and industrial effluents and oil spills. PAHs have been the focus of numerous studies in the world because they are potentially carcinogenic, mutagenic, and teratogenic to aquatic organisms and humans from consuming contaminated food. However, one can hardly find any available data on PAM content in marine organisms in Korea. The present study was carried out in order to determine PAM content in oysters from the intertidal and subtidal zones of Chinhae Bay, which is located in near urban communities and an industrial complex, and the bay is considered to be a major repositories of PAHs. 16 PAHs were analyzed by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) with uv/vis and fluorescence detectors in oysters: they are naphthalene (NPTHL), acenaphthylene (ANCPL), acenaphthylene (ACNPN), fluorene (FLURN), phenanthrene (PHEN), anthracene (ANTHR), fluoranthene (FLRTH), pyrene (PYR), benzo(a)anthracene (BaA), chrysene (CHRY), benzo(b)fluoranthene (BbF), benzo(k)fluoranthene (BkF), benzo(a)pyrene (BaP), dibenz(a,h)anthracene(DahA), benzo(g,h,i)peryne (BghiP) and indeno(1,2,3,-cd)pyrene (I123cdP). The PAM contents in oysters from the intertidal and subtidal zones of Chinhae Bay ranged from < 0.1 to 992.0 ug/kg (mean $69.8\pm9.8$ ug/kg).

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.168-175
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• 1998

Feeding habits of Sebastes inermis collected from the eelgrass bed in Kwangyang Bay from January 1994 to December 1994 were studied. S. inermis ($1\~9\;cm\;SL$) was a carnivore which mainly consumed amphipods (gammarid amphipods and caprellid amphipods) and copepods. Its diets included small quantities of caridean shrimps, crabs, gastropods, and fishes. It showed ontogenetic changes in feeding habits. In an initial stage, copepods were major food organisms. However, amphipods were heavily selected as the body size of S. inermis increases. Although consumption of copepods increased during spring, amphipods were major prey organisms for all seasons.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.121-128
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• 2005

Hexachlorobenzene (HCB) was analyzed in various marine organisms of Korea. HCB was detected in all organism samples with residual concentrations from 0.51 to 222 pg/g wet weight. HCB residue was the highest content in crustacean, and followed by bivalves, fish, cephalopods and gastropods. The residues were comparable to or lower than those in marine organisms of other countries. Daily dietary intake of HCB from seafood was estimated to be 13.4 pg/kg body weight/day. The relative contribution of taxonomic group to the total dietary intake of HCB were in the order of crustaceans $(40.1\%)$, bivalves $(34.2\%)$, fish $(23.1\%)$, cephalopods $(2.22\%)$, and gastropods $(0.38\%)$. Daily dietary intake of HCB expressed as toxic equivalent (TEQ) value was estimated to be $1.34\times10^{-3}pg$ TEQ/kg body weight/day. This value did not exceed tolerable daily intake (TDI) proposed by the WHO, the UK toxicity committee and the KFDA. Cancer risk and target hazard quotient (THQ) due to the consumption of the marine organism in Korean adult population were evaluated using the exposure equation of food ingestion. This result suggests that dietary intake of HCB by the consumption of Korean seafood seems to be safe for human health with negligible cancer and non-cancer risks so far.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.21-32
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• 2009

The short-term variations of the mesozooplankton community structure were investigated in Gamak Bay during summer season, 2006. The study was based on a comprehensive survey constituting from 12 stations on June 19, July 28, August 4, and August 29, respectively. Mean of temperature and chlorophyll ${\alpha}$ concentrations in the surface layer were significantly higher than those in bottom layer, and those concentrations were significantly higher in the inner bay than those in the outer bay. A total of 40 taxa including 19 copepods were observed in Gamak Bay during summer season. Mean abundance of total mesozooplankton varied from 1,859 to 26,111 indiv. $m^{-3}$. The dominant species were Noctiluca scintillans, Penilia avirostris, Evadne tergestina, Paracalanus parvus s. 1., Acartia omorii and Cirriped nauplii and cyprii in Gamak Bay, and they contributed 90% of mean abundance of total mesozooplankton. Noctiluca scintillans was high after the rainfall. Cluster analysis showed that the mesozooplankton community could be divided into 4 distinct groups, indicating rapid change of the community in the short-term of this survey. The relative contribution of each group of the N. scintillans, P. avirostris, E. tergestina, and P. parvus s. 1. showed differences during the phytoplankton bloom period. The mesozooplankton community compositions were highly associated with water temperature, and salinity in physical conditions, and food organisms affect short-term variations in mesozooplankton composition. Interestingly, protozoa N. scintillans, and Cladocera appeared to be one of the key organisms to extinguish the phytoplankton bloom. Therefore, this study suggests that N. scintillans, and Cladocera could be a key player to control the mesozooplankton community structure during summer season, 2006.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.31 no.5 s.86
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• pp.431-443
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• 2005

This study was performed to investigate the perceptions of the opinion leaders, such as government officials, researchers, NGO workers, and journalists on the risks of endocrine disrupters (EDs) and genetically modified organisms (GMOs) as well as the related policies on these two hazards or potential hazards. The opinion leaders generally considered the EDs as the most serious hazard among twenty-one environmental health hazards in Korea, and agreed that the EDs would continuously be the most serious hazard. On overall average, the GMOs were ranked the 11th among the twenty-one health hazards. Further investigation indicated that the GMOs were variously ranked by the group of respondents: they were ranked the 2nd by the NGO workers, the 7th by the journalists, the 9th by the researchers and the 11th by the government officials. In general, the respondents considered the dioxin as a hazard with the highest risk while the GMOs were considered less hazardous. The opinion leaders considered that although the risks of the GMOs and EDs were not fully verified, the risks should be controlled through the legislation. The EDs and GMOs should be separately regulated for the time being, while the EDs should put under more strengthened regulation. It is recommended that a web-site containing the information on the EDs and the GMOs be prepared for the journalists. In addition, a training program in relation to the EDs and the GMOs needs to be organized by the Korean Press Foundation and the Korea Food and Drug Administration to educate the journalists. A committee consisting of government officials, scientists, and NGO workers needs to be established, and it should provide framework of future policies and public relations programs.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.57-68
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• 1993

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAMs) are ubiquitous contaminants in marine environments. PAHs enter estuarine and nearshore marine environment via several routes such as combustion of fossil fuels, domestic and industrial effluents and oil spills PAHs have been the focus of numerous studies in the world because they owe potentially carcinogenic, mutagenic, and teratogenic to aquatic organisms and humans from consuming contaminated food. However, one can hardly find any available data on PAM content in marine organisms in Korea. The present study was carried out in order to determine PAH content in oysters from the intertidal and subtidal zones of Chinhae Bay, which is located in near urban communities and an industrial complex, and the bay is considered to be a major repositories of PAHs. 16 PAHs were analyzed by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) with uv/vis and fluorescence detectors in oysters: they are naphthalene (NPTHL), acenaphthylene (ANCPL), acenaphthene (ACNPN), fluorene (FLURN), phenanthrene (PKEN), anthracene (ANTHR), fluoranthene (FLRTH), pyrene (PYRf), benzo(a)anthracene (BaA), chrysene (CHRY), benzo(b)- fluoranthene (BbF), benzo(k)fluoranthene (BkF), benzo(a)pyrene (BaP), dibenz(a, h)anthracene (DhA), benzo(g, h, i)peryne (Bghip) and indeno(1, 2, 3, -cd)pyrene (I123cdP). The PAH contents in oysters from the intertidal and subtidal zones of Chinhae Bay ranged from < 0.1 to 992.0 $\mu\textrm{g}$/kg (mean 69.8 $\pm$ 9.8 $\mu\textrm{g}$/kg). Key words . polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon, high performance liquid chromatography, oyster, Chinhae Bay.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.48 no.4
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• pp.201-206
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• 2021

To ensure the safety of developing or importing genetically modified organisms (GMOs), Korea has enacted the "LMO Act." Accordingly, the safety of using GMOs as food or feed is evaluated in accordance with the concept of "substantial equivalence" proposed by OECD. The allergenicity of GMOs is assessed as a part of their safety evaluation. The methods of allergenicity assessment have been discussed by various international organizations, such as the OECD, FAO, and WHO. The main methods used for the allergenicity assessment of proteins newly expressed in GMOs include assessment of the physicochemical stability of these proteins, evaluation of their amino acid homology with existing allergenic proteins, and serum screening. In this study, we describe guidelines and related studies for the allergenicity assessment of GM crops.

• Clinical Endoscopy
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• v.55 no.1
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• pp.33-40
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• 2022

Background/Aims: Multiple outbreaks of multidrug-resistant organisms have been reported worldwide due to contaminated duodenoscopes. In 2015, the United States Food and Drug Administration recommended the following supplemental enhanced surveillance and reprocessing techniques (ESRT) to improve duodenoscope disinfection: (1) microbiological culture, (2) ethylene oxide sterilization, (3) liquid chemical sterilant processing system, and (4) double high-level disinfection. A systematic review and meta-analysis was performed to assess the impact of ESRT on the contamination rates. Methods: A thorough and systematic search was performed across several databases and conference proceedings from inception until January 2021, and all studies reporting the effectiveness of various ESRTs were identified. The pooled contamination rates of post-ESRT duodenoscopes were estimated using the random effects model. Results: A total of seven studies using various ESRTs were incorporated in the analysis, which included a total of 9,084 post-ESRT duodenoscope cultures. The pooled contamination rate of the post-ESRT duodenoscope was 5% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.3%-10.8%, inconsistency index [I²]=97.97%). Pooled contamination rates for high-risk organisms were 0.8% (95% CI: 0.2%-2.7%, I²=94.96). Conclusions: While ESRT may improve the disinfection process, a post-ESRT contamination rate of 5% is not negligible. Ongoing efforts to mitigate the rate of contamination by improving disinfection techniques and innovations in duodenoscope design to improve safety are warranted.