• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.125-132
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• 2010

In order to assess the effect of pollution on marine ecosystem, we examined the plankton health assessment at 16 stations during summer season in Jinhae Bay. The organic and inorganic pollutant sources (dissolved organic carbon; DOC, chemical oxygen demand; COD and Chlorophyll a; Chl.a), including planktonic orangism such as enterobacteria Escherichia coli, heterotrophic bacteria (HB), autotrophic nano-flagellates (ANF), heterotrophic nano flagellates (HNF), ciliate and harmful algal bloom species (HABs) were used to characterize marine ecosystem health assessment. Of these, we tentatively selected those items Chl.a, HABs, HB and E. coli for plankton health index (PHI). Also, the scoring criteria for each metric were based on a statistical analysis and then, the grades are rated on four levels. As a result, the ecological assessment of these data reveals that PHI in Jinhae Bay is rated as "Good or fair" for overall conditions. The present study suggests that the PHI might be considered as one of important management tool to assess marine ecosystem health of Jinhae Bay.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.87 no.1
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• pp.106-112
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• 1998

This study was conducted to figure out the relationships among soil chemical properties and bacterial biomass related to denitrification and sulfur-reducing and the activity of dehydrogenase, and ultimately to consider the usefulness of dehydrogenase activity as a tool for evaluating the dynamics of forest soil ecosystem. Four sites were selected for the collection of soil samples within two regions(Onsan industrial estate as a polluted region and Mt. Mani at Kanghwa island as a clean area) with two forest types (coniferous and deciduous stands). The soils of Mt. Mani showed higher amount of organic matter, total nitrogen and available phosphorus than those collected from Onsan industrial estate, which indicated that the soils were more beneficial for microbial growth than those of Onsan. The dehydrogenase activity was more sensitive than the denitrifying bacteria or sulfur-reducing bacteria since the activity was significantly different between the regions and season while the two bacterial biomass were not significantly different between the two regions. In addition, the dehydrogenase activity showed relatively high correlation coefficients with organic matter(r=0.53, p=0.004), total nitrogen(r=0.41, p=0.008) and C/Ava. P-ratio(r=-0.52, p=0.001), which was thought to be closely related with microbial activity. Thus, the dehydrogenase activity was thought to be a useful index of soil ecosystem dynamics with considering that the technique need to be applied with the same soil texture for the comparison of the activity as other researchers indicated.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.122-129
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• 2017

Termites are destructive to agriculture, forestry, and buildings, but they can also promote agro-ecosystem balance through the degradation of lignocellulose. Termite-triggered cellulose digestion may be clarified through microbial metabolism of cellulose products. In the present study, we characterized the activities of cellulase and its three components synthesized by the cellulase-producing fungal strain HDZK-BYTF620 isolated from the gut of Odontotermes formosanus. The protein components of cellulases were synthesized by strain HDZK-BYTF620, which were isolated and characterized using polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and the expression of the cellulases was studied at the proteome level.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.44.1-44.28
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• 2022

Gut dysbiosis is one of prominent features in inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) which are of an unknown etiology. Although the cause-and-effect relationship between IBD and gut dysbiosis remains to be elucidated, one area of research has focused on the management of IBD by modulating and correcting gut dysbiosis. The use of antibiotics, probiotics either with or without prebiotics, and fecal microbiota transplantation from healthy donors are representative methods for modulating the intestinal microbiota ecosystem. The gut microbiota is not a simple assembly of bacteria, fungi, and viruses, but a complex organ-like community system composed of numerous kinds of microorganisms. Thus, studies on specific changes in the gut microbiota depending on which treatment option is applied are very limited. Here, we review previous studies on microbial modulation as a therapeutic option for IBD and its significance in the pathogenesis of IBD.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.101-108
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• 2001

Risk assessment defines as the process of estimating both the probability that an event will occur and the probable magnitude of its adverse effects. Chemical or microbial risk assessment generally follows four basic steps, that is, hazard identification, exposure assessment, dose-response assessment, and risk characterization. Risk assessment provides an effective framework for determining the relative urgency of problems and the allocation of resources to reduce risks. Using the results of risk analyses, we can target prevention, reme-diation, or control effects towards areas, sources, or situations in which the greatest risk reductions can be achieved with resources available. Risk assessment is also used to explain chemical and microbial risks as well as ecosystem impacts. Moreover, this process, which allows the quantitation and comparison of diverse risks, lets risk managers utilize the maximum amount of complex information in the decision-making process. This information can also be used to weigh the cost and benefits of control options and to develop standards or treatment options.

• Proceedings of the Korean Environmental Sciences Society Conference
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• 2002.05b
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• pp.452-454
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• 2002

A biosurfactant-producing microorganism, .Pseudomouos sp. EL-G527 was isolated from activated sludge by enrichment culture when grown on mineral salt medium containing n-hexadecane as a carbon source. The biosurfactant from .Pseudomonar sp. EL-G527 exhibited lesser toxicity to bacterial population than synthetic surfactants and in the biodegradation test, biosurfactant was rapidly degraded and lost its activity as surface active material after 1 day incubation. In this study, the biosurfactant from Pseudomonas sp. EL-G527 was effective surface-active compound, more biodegradable and less toxic to microbial ecosystem than various synthetic surfactants.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.136-144
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• 2016

Pseudomonas fluorescens pc78 is an effective biocontrol agent for soil-borne fungal diseases. We previously constructed a P43-gfp tagged biocontrol bacteria P. fluorescens pc78-48 to investigate bacterial traits in natural ecosystem and the environmental risk of genetically modified biocontrol bacteria in tomato rhizosphere. Fluctuation of culturable bacteria profile, microbial community structure, and potential horizontal gene transfer was investigated over time after the bacteria treatment to the tomato rhizosphere. Tagged gene transfer to other organisms such as tomato plants and bacteria cultured on various media was examined by polymerase chain reaction, using gene specific primers. Transfer of chromosomally integrated P43-gfp from pc78 to other organisms was not apparent. Population and colony types of culturable bacteria were not significantly affected by the introduction of P. fluorescens pc78 or pc78-48 into tomato rhizosphere. Additionally, terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism profiles were investigated to estimate the influence on the microbial community structure in tomato rhizosphere between non-treated and pc78-48-treated samples. Interestingly, rhizosphere soil treated with strain pc78-48 exhibited a significantly different bacterial community structure compared to that of non-treated rhizosphere soil. Our results suggest that biocontrol bacteria treatment influences microbial community in tomato rhizosphere, while the chromosomally modified biocontrol bacteria may not pose any specific environmental risk in terms of gene transfer.

• Proceedings of the National Institute of Ecology of the Republic of Korea
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.86-94
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• 2023

Climate change is more rapid in the Arctic than elsewhere in the world, and increased precipitation and warming are expected cause changes in biogeochemical processes due to altered microbial communities and activities. It is crucial to investigate microbial responses to climate change to understand changes in carbon and nitrogen dynamics. We investigated the effects of increased temperature and precipitation on microbial biomass and community structure in dry tundra using two depths of soil samples (organic and mineral layers) under four treatments (control, warming, increased precipitation, and warming with increased precipitation) during the growing season (June-September) in Cambridge Bay, Canada (69°N, 105°W). A phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) analysis method was applied to detect active microorganisms and distinguish major functional groups (e.g., fungi and bacteria) with different roles in organic matter decomposition. The soil layers featured different biomass and community structure; ratios of fungal/bacterial and gram-positive/-negative bacteria were higher in the mineral layer, possibly connected to low substrate quality. Increased temperature and precipitation had no effect in either layer, possibly due to the relatively short treatment period (seven years) or the ecosystem type. Mostly, sampling times did not affect PLFAs in the organic layer, but June mineral soil samples showed higher contents of total PLFAs and PLFA biomarkers for bacteria and fungi than those in other months. Despite the lack of response found in this investigation, long-term monitoring of these communities should be maintained because of the slow response times of vegetation and other parameters in high-Arctic ecosystems.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.40-46
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• 2007

For restoration of disturbed ecosystem in Lake Paro, artificial floating island (AFI) was installed. Even though the lake water was oligo-mesotrophic, the macrophytes, such as Iris ensata, Iris pseudoacorus, Phragmites communis were growing well in the rubberized coconut fiber media. For elucidating this process, total bacterial numbers, active bacterial numbers and exoenzymatic activities of ${\beta}-glucosidase$ and phosphatase of pore water of media and lake water were analyzed. The average of total bacterial numbers, active bacterial numbers and exoenzymatic activities of ${\beta}-glucosidase$ and phosphatase were $28.6{\times}10^{6}\;cells/ml,\;22.7{\times}10^{6}\;cells/ml,\;452.9nM/L/hr,\;and\;16381.9nM/L/hr$ which were 10, 15, 22 and 38 times higher than those of lake water, respectively. Moreover, the total phosphorus and total nitrogen concentration of media showed high values of 0.82 mg/L and 7.0 mg/L, respectively, while those of lake water 0.07 mg/L and 2.3 mg/L. This results suggest that the bacteria was playing an important role for restoration of disturbed ecosystem with newly created microbial ecosystem in media of artificial floating island.

• Journal of dental hygiene science
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.213-219
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• 2019

Background: Smoking exerts an adverse effect on the periodontal tissue by reorganizing the ecosystem of oral microorganisms and is considered to be an important factor in the development of periodontal disease. Although cross-sectional studies on smokers and non-smokers have been attempted to investigate the microbial differences in periodontal oral cavity, only few studies have been conducted to investigate the changes in oral microorganisms during smoking cessation. The purpose of this study was to investigate the changes of bacteria in saliva and gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) over a period of one year among 11 smokers trying to quit smoking. Methods: Eleven smokers trying to quit smoking visited the clinic at baseline, two weeks, two months, four months, six months, and 12 months to give saliva and GCF samples. The amounts of 16S rRNA, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Treponema denticola, Prevotella intermedia, Fusobacterium nucleatum subsp. nucleatum, Streptococcus mutans, and Streptococcus sobrinus in saliva and GCF were quantified using real-time polymerase chain reaction TaqMan probe assay. The results were analyzed by nonparametric statistical analysis using Friedman test and Spearman correlation coefficient. Results: After cessation of smoking, the amounts of 16S rRNA corresponding to P. gingivalis, F. nucleatum, P. intermedia, and T. denticola in saliva decreased and then again increased significantly. The amount of F. nucleatum 16S rRNA in GCF decreased significantly after smoking cessation. Positive correlations were observed between 16S rRNA and F. nucleatum and between F. nucleatum and T. denticola in saliva and GCF. Conclusion: Even if the number of subjects in this study was small, we suggest that smoking cessation may reduce the total bacterial amount and F. nucleatum in GCF. However, the results regarding changes in the microbial ecosystem due to smoking or smoking cessation were inconsistent. Therefore, further in-depth studies need to be carried out.