• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.41 no.5
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• pp.349-357
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• 2015

Objectives: The 2007 Korea National Survey for Environmental Pollutants in the Human Body found the highest blood mercury levels nationwide among residents in Seoksan-ri, Goro-myeon, Gunwi-gun, Gyeonsangbuk-do. With the aim to reduce the blood mercury levels of residents in this region, we conducted this study to identify the association between mercury exposure levels and shark meat consumption. Methods: This survey was conducted with 118 participants in Seoksan-ri before the Chuseok festival and 113 residents were added afterwards. Information on participants was collected via questionnaires. Total mercury concentrations in biological samples were measured using a mercury analyzer with the gold-amalgam collection method. Results: To identify this, we conducted mercury exposure level analysis before and after the Chuseok festival and found that blood and urinary mercury levels after Chuseok (GM of $6.9{\mu}g/L$ in blood and $1.68{\mu}g/g$_cr in urine) were higher than those before (GM of $5.29{\mu}g/L$ in blood and $1.44{\mu}g/g$_cr in urine). This area maintains a custom of using shark meat as one of the ancestral rite foods, and the performance of such rites and shark meat consumption have been identified as main sources of mercury exposure. Other than this, smoking, dental amalgam treatment and residential period in the area also contributed to an increase in mercury exposure levels. On the other hand, recent consumption of oriental medicine and vaccination did not have a significant influence on mercury levels. Conclusion: The results were attributed to the local custom of consuming shark meat with high mercury concentrations during rituals taking place during the festival and ancestral rites. Given that the blood mercury levels in 23.2% of the residents exceeded the HBM II values recommended by the German Commission on Human Biological Monitoring, it is suggested that further appropriate actions and follow-up measures be taken to reduce the mercury exposure levels of the residents that exceeded the reference values.

• Journal of Bio-Environment Control
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.492-501
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• 2009

This study was carried out to investigate influence of tree height on vegetable growth, productivity, and labor input in 5 year old slender spindle 'Fuji'/M.9 apple trees planted with the tree space of $3.2{\times}1.2m$ and trained to the tree height of 2.5m in the apple orchard of Apple Research Station, NIHHS, RDA in Gunwi County, Korea. Tree height was extended to the tree height of 4.0m for two years. And then, the tree height was restricted to 2.5 (control), 3.0, 3.5, and 4.0m in 8th year. Yield per 10a was 46, 25, and 4% higher at the tree height of 4.0, 3.5, and 3.0m than at the tree height of 2.5m respectively in first year and 17, 12, and 10% higher respectively, indicating the taller tree, the higher yield. Soluble solid contents was highest in the height of 2.5m than in any other treatments for 2 years, but fruit skin color was not clear. Labor input was increased parallel with the increase of tree height, but yield per labor input was decreased. Gross income and net income per 10a were increased parallel with the increase of tree height in first year, but not increased in second year. In considering production, labor input, and economic efficiency, the optimum tree height of slender spindle 'Fuji'/M.9 apple planted with the tree space of $3.2{\times}1.2m$ was presumed to be 3.0~3.5m.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.107-115
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• 2003

Chinese yam (Dioscorea opposita cv. Jang-Ma) plants showing necrotic mosaic symptom were collected from their growing fields in Andong, Euisong, Gunwi and Daegu, Korea. Direct negative stainning method by electron microscope showed filamentous particles of about 660 nm in length. Immunosorbent electron microscopy (ISEM) revealed filamentous particles of 660nm decorated with antiserum of Chinese yam necrotic mosaic virus (ChYNMV). The virues purified partially were used to isolate viral RNA as template for RT-PCR to amplify about 1.2 kbp of 3'-terminal region (coat protein, 3'-UTR) with ChYNMV specific and oligo-dT primers. Amino acids sequences of amplified CP genes revealed that the viruses shared 97.9% similarity with ChYNMV (AB044386) wh ich was known as the member of Macluravirus. So the viruses from Chinese yam (D. opposita cv. Jang-Ma) plants were identified as ChYNMV. Comparing the CP amion acid sequences of ChYNMV strains with other macluraviruses such as Cardamon mosaic virus (CdMV), Narcissus latent virus (NLV) and Maclura mosaic virus (MacMV) revealed that N-terminal was the most varialbe region and conserved regions were present within the genus Macluravirus.

• Current Research on Agriculture and Life Sciences
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• v.3
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• pp.105-111
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• 1985

This research is mainly focused on the distributions of pine mushroom(Tricholomo matsutake S.) in Kyungpook province, south eastern part of Korea. The study contributes to graps the trends of producing place and their distributions. The general trends of pine mushroom producing area are scattered over northern part of the province : such as Ulchin Kun, Youngyang Kun, and Bonghwa Kun. The term 'Kun' is equivalent to a country level district of administration. Less concentrated areas are listed : Munkyong Kun, Sangju Kun, Yecheon Kun, Euiseong Kun, Dalseong Kun, Kyungsan Kun, and Cheongdo Kun, which have shown growing spots in pine forest area Pine mushroom do not grow in south eastern part of province, which are Kumreung Kun, Sangju Kun, Chilgog Kun, Wolsong Kun, Koryong Kun. Producing spots classified by Kun area : 117 spots in Ulchin Kun, 70spots in Yongdeog Kun, 54 spots in Youngyang Kun, 38 spots in Munkyong Kun, 37 spots in Cheongsong Kun, 32 spots in Andong Kun, 32 spots in Sangju Kun, 26 spots in Bonghwa, 17 spots in Youngil Kun 15 spots in Yeongcheon Kun, 15 spots in Euiseong Kun, 10 spots in Gyeongsan Kun, 9 spots in Gunwi Kun, 6 spots in Cheongdo Kun, 5 spots in Yecheon Kun, 4 spots in Seonsan Kun, 2 spots in Chilgog Kun, and one spot in Weolseoog Kun.

• Journal of Korea Water Resources Association
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• v.47 no.10
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• pp.973-983
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• 2014

This study focused on the selection of appropriate plant species of VFS (vegetative fiter strips) and the assessment of VFS effects for reducing NPS (non-point source) pollution from uplands. The experimental field was constructed with 1 control and 6 treated plots in the upland area of $1,500m^2$ with 5% slope which is located in Gunwi-gun, Gyeongbuk province. Six vegetation including Chufa, Common crabgrass, Barnyard grass, Turf grass, Tall fescue, Kenturky bluegrass, were applied to install VFS systems during the study period from June 2011 to Dec. 2012. The results of this study showed that 6.1~77.8% in runoff and 15.6~90.3% in TS, 49.9~96.6% in T-P, and 6.7~91.1% in T-N were reduced from the VFS treated plots. Generally high reduction effects were observed from TS, T-P, T-N, and SS, while BOD, TOC, and $NO_3^-$ showed low reductions. The best vegetation type was Turf grass showing higher reduction effects of NPS pollutions and having relatively easier maintenance efforts compared to other vegetations selected in this study. Based on these results, VFS technique found to be an effective management practice for reducing agricultural NPS pollutions in Korean upland conditions. Further study needs to be performed through various field experiments with long term monitoring in order to develop a design manual of VFS system for practical applications.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.94 no.4 s.161
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• pp.269-276
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• 2005

This research was carried out in order to make clear population and community structure of Berchemia berchemiaefolia forest surveyed from October 1998 to October 2004 which was located in Janggok-Ri Gunwi-Gun, Kyungpook province. B. berchemiaefolia community was classified into 3 groups such as Picrasma quassioides group, Carex ciliata-marginata group and Typical group using ZM methods. In case of floristic composition structure according to crown stories, B. berchemiaefolia occupied 42.82%, 34.43%, and 5.28%, in tree layer, subtree layer and shrub layer, respectively. Importance value of Quercus variabilis, Platycarya strobilacea and Quercus serrate species was generally high. Species diversity of Picrasma quassioides group indicated 1.6669 which was highest value among the 3 vegetation groups. Population of B. berchemiaefolia showed overall the structure of reverse J type in DBH class showing the peak between 6 cm and 10 cm and reached 14 meters in height class, and the age structure of the population ranged from 11 years to 60 years showing regular distribution type. Stump sprout or/and epicormic branch made numerous stems around original stump of previous generation which was considered to be cut and disappeared by residents. Seedlings or/and saplings of B. berchemiaefolia were intensively occurred in the opened areas of forest road. Those things could be certainly considered to establish management plan of B. berchemiaefolia forest.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.125-132
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• 2010

Rice is the staple food of more than 50% of the worlds population. Cultivated rice has the AA genome (diploid, 2n=24) and small genome size of only 430 megabase (haploid genome). As the sequencing of rice genome was completed by the International Rice Genome Sequencing Project (IRGSP), many researchers in the world have been working to explore the gene function on rice genome. Insertional mutagenesis has been a powerful strategy for assessing gene function. In maize, well characterized transposable elements have traditionally been used to clone genes for which only phenotypic information is available. In rice endogenous mobile elements such as MITE and Tos (Hirochika. 1997) have been used to generate gene-tagged populations. To date T-DNA and maize transposable element systems has been utilized as main insertional mutagens in rice. A main drawback of a T-DNA scheme is that Agrobacteria-mediated transformation in rice requires extensive facilities, time, and labor. In contrast, the Ac/Ds system offers the advantage of generating new mutants by secondary transposition from a single tagged gene. Revertants can be utilized to correlate phenotype with genotype. To enhance the efficiency of gene detection, advanced gene-tagging systems (i.e. activation, gene or enhancer trap) have been employed for functional genomic studies in rice. Internationally, there have been many projects to develop large scales of insertionally mutagenized populations and databases of insertion sites has been established. Ultimate goals of these projects are to supply genetic materials and informations essential for functional analysis of rice genes and for breeding using agronomically important genes. In this report, we summarize the current status of Ac/Ds-mediated gene tagging systems that has been launched by collaborative works from 2001 in Korea.

• Horticultural Science & Technology
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.879-886
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• 2014

This study was conducted to test in vitro the antagonistic effect of composted liquid manure (CLM) against soil-borne turfgrass pathogenic fungi, Rhizoctonia solani AG-2-2 (IIIB) (brown patch), R. solani AG-2-2 (IV) (large patch), and Sclerotinia homoeocarpa (dollar spot) for environmentally friendly turfgrass management. CLMs were collected from 9 livestock excretion treatment facilities around the country including Gunwi (GW), Hapcheon (HC), Hoengseong (HS), Icheon (IC), Iksan (IS), Muan (MA), Nonsan (NS), and Yeoju (YJ). CLMs of IC, GW, and IS showed s ignificant (p < 0.05) mycelium growth inhibition that was 17.8%, 20.4%, and 48.0% against R. solani AG-2-2 (IIIB), R. solani AG-2-2 (IV), and S. homoeocarpa, respectively. A t otal of 110 bacterial isolates were obtained from the CLMs that showed antagonistic effects. Among them, 5, 4, and 10 microbe isolates showed promising antifungal activity against mycelium growth of R. solani AG-2-2 (IIIB), R. solani AG-2-2 (IV), and S. homoeocarpa, respectively. The bacterial isolates ICIIIB60, GWIV70, and ISSH20 effectively inhibited the mycelial growth of three soil-borne turfgrass pathogens. Selected bacterial isolates were identified as Alcaligenes sp., Bacillus licheniformis Ab2, and B. subtilis C7-3 through 16s rDNA gene sequence analysis. Among 5 fungicides, the most compatible fungicide with ICIIIB60, GWIV70, and ISSH20 was tebuconazol, toclofos-methyl and toclofos-methyl, respectively. These findings suggested that CLMs could be effectively used not only as organic liquid fertilizer sources but also as biological control agents for soil-borne turfgrass diseases such as brown patch, large patch, and dollar spot.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.42 no.5
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• pp.730-735
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• 2013

This study compared the nutritional components (proximate components, fatty acids, amino acids, minerals and vitamins) between genetically modified (GM) drought-tolerant rice and a parental rice cultivar (Ilmibyeo) as a non-GM control. Both GM and non-GM rices were grown and harvested in two different locations, Gunwi and Suweon in Korea. Proximate components (moisture, starch, protein, lipid, and ash contents) were similar between the drought-tolerant GM rice and the conventional non-GM rice. There were no significant differences between the GM and non-GM rice in most of their nutrient compositions, despite minor locational differences of some amino acids and minerals. These results indicate that transgenic rice with a genetically improved resistance to drought is equivalent to the parental rice cultivar without major changes in its chemical contents.

• Journal of the Korean association of regional geographers
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.1-15
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• 2009

This study aims to provide preliminary data needed for establishing policies on the environment and disasters of Goryeong county. The main results are as follows. First, the present master plan of the region does not reflect local socio-economic and environmental conditions and the local people's opinion. Second, The air conditions of Gyeongbuk province and Goryeong county are within the permitted limit of air pollution of Korea. Third, the analysis of water pollution index in Nakdong river system shows improvement of water quality in both Andong and Goryeong. Fourth, the conditions of waste collection and disposal are improved in both Gyeongbuk province and Goryeong county. Fifth, in case of environmental pollutant emitting facilities of Gyeongbuk province, the proportion of 1st to 4th grade(relatively much more environmental pollutant emitting quantity than 5th grade) tends to be increasing. Sixth, environmental pollutant emitting facilities of Goryeong county are remarkably increasing in Dasan, Gaegin, Ssangrim, involving industrial complex. Finally, in case of disasters, it is relatively stable in Yecheon, Gumi, Uiseong, Yeongju and Cheongdo, while relatively unstable in Seongju, Gunwi, Yeongcheon, Chilgok, Mungyeong, Bonghwa and Goryeong.