• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.53 no.4
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• pp.427-435
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• 2020

The most important thing to successfully restore an oak forest is finding suitable climatic conditions and topographic factors for the oak species to be introduced. In this study, in order to find suitable environmental conditions for the five dominant oak trees on the Korean Peninsula, we carried out analysing the information on the location of forest vegetation on the Korean Peninsula. The range of annual mean temperature of the five oak trees was narrow in the order of Q. mongolica (7.7~14.3℃), Q. variabilis (9.2~13.8℃), Q. acutissima (10.5~14.3℃), Q. serrata (11.4~13.7℃), Q. aliena (11.0~12.9℃). The range of annual precipitation of oaks was narrow in order of Q. mongolica (1072.7~1780.9 mm), Q. variablis (1066.6~1554.9 mm), Q. acustissima (1036.5~1504.8 mm), Q. serrata (1062.6~1504.7 mm). The range of altitude was in order of Q. mongolica (147~1388m), Q. serrata (93~950m), Q. variabilis(90~913m), Q. acustissima (60~516m), Q. aliena (55~465 m). The range of slope was in the order of Q. mongolica (8~56°), Q. variabilis(5~52°), Q. serrata (11~45°), Q. aliena (15~38°), Q. acustissima (16~37°). These results are considered to be very useful in the case of ecological restoration using deciduous oak trees on the Korean Peninsula.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.589-602
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• 2020

As can be seen in many earthquakes, liquefaction causes differential settlement, which sometimes produces serious damages such as building destruction and ground subsidence. There are many possible active faults near the Busan city and the Yangsan, Dongrae, and Ilgwang faults among them pass through the city. The Busan city is also located within the influence of recent earthquakes, which occurred in the Gyeongju, Pohang, and Kumamoto (Japan). Along the wide fault valleys in the city, the Quaternary unconsolidated alluvial sediments are thickly accumulated, and the reclaimed lands with beach sediments are widely distributed in the coastal area. A large earthquake near or in the Busan city is thus expected to cause major damage due to liquefaction in urban areas. This study conducted an assessment of the liquefaction hazard according to seismic recurrence intervals across the Busan city. As a result, although there are slight differences in degree depending on seismic recurrence intervals, it is predicted that the liquefaction potential is very high in the areas of the Nakdonggang Estuary, Busan Bay, Suyeong Bay, and Songjeong Station. In addition, it is shown that the shorter the seismic recurrence interval, the greater difference the liquefaction potential depending on site periods.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.45 no.1
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• pp.54-61
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• 2021

Background: The sunfleck is an important light environmental factor for plants that live under the shade of trees. Currently, the smartfarm has a system that can artificially create these sunfleks. Therefore, it was intended to find optimal light conditions by measuring and analyzing photosynthetic responses of Eutrema japonica (Miq.) Koidz., a plant living in shade with high economic value under artificial sunflecks. Results: For this purpose, we used LED pulsed light as the simulated sunflecks and set the light frequency levels of six chambers to 20 Hz, 60 Hz, 180 Hz, 540 Hz, 1620 Hz, and 4860 Hz of a pulsed LED grow system in a plant factory and the duty ratio of the all chambers was set to 30%, 50%, and 70% every 2 weeks. We measured the photosynthetic rate, transpiration rate, stomatal conductance, and substomatal CO2 partial pressure of E. japonica under each light condition. We also calculated the results of measurement, A/Ci, and water use efficiency. According to our results, the photosynthetic rate was not different among different duty ratios, the transpiration rate was higher at the duty ratio of 70% than 30% and 50%, and stomatal conductance was higher at 50% and 70% than at 30%. In addition, the substomatal CO2 partial pressure was higher at the duty ratio of 50% than 30% and 70%, and A/Ci was higher at 30% than 50% and 70%. Water use efficiency was higher at 30% and 50% than at 70%. While the transpiration rate and stomatal conductance generally tended to become higher as the frequency level decreased, other physiological items did not change with different frequency levels. Conclusions: Our results showed that 30% and 50% duty ratios could be better in the cultivation of E. japonica due to suffering from water stress as well as light stress in environments with the 70% duty ratio by decreasing water use efficiency. These results suggest that E. japonica is adapted under the light environment with nature sunflecks around 30-50% duty ratio and low light frequency around 20 Hz.

• Journal of Korea Water Resources Association
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• v.55 no.10
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• pp.749-759
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• 2022

The paradigm of water cycle management in the watershed is changing due to the increase in abnormal climate phenomena caused by climate change and the increase in impervious area due to urbanization. Research is continuously underway based on Low Impact Development technology that can suppress water cycle distortion. In this study, factors that can reflect water cycle distortion were selected before applying LID, and the PSR index for each 148 watershed was calculated for the the Nakdonggang River basin. As of 1975, the PSR index is calculated by calculating the pressure index P, which represents the rate of change in impervious surface area to 2019, the phenomenon index S, which represents the rate of change in water cycle for each subwatershed, and the Low Impact Development area countermeasure index R. The lower PSR index value, the higher the priority management watershed, and the water cycle recovery priority management watershed was calculated in the order of 1, 2, 87, 90, 91, and 147. It is expected that the efficient application of low-impact development factors in accordance with the order of priority management of water cycle by subwatershed in the large area will contribute to the recovery of water cycle distortion.

• Journal of Korea Water Resources Association
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• v.55 no.5
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• pp.383-392
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• 2022

The restoration of the Nakdong River estuary is one of the most important projects of the Ministry of Environment, Republic of Korea. A real-scale experiment of gate operation was executed from 2019 to 2020, and a pilot operation was performed in 2021. The gate of Nakdong River Estuary Barrier (NEB) is supposed to be continuously opened based on the experiment results. Many critical decisions should be made immediately during the experiment based on the real-time measured data and numerical analysis considering the seawater inflows. The decision-making sequence was made systematically with the accurate estimation of seawater inflow. The estimation of seawater inflow is the main research objective and the equations of seawater inflow were developed, reflecting the structural characteristics of NEB. The inflow equations were developed in two forms, overflow and underflow. ADCP (Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler) was used to measure seawater inflow, check the accuracy of the developed equations, and derive the flow coefficient. The comparison error of the developed equations was about 3% compared to the measured data.

• Journal of Korea Water Resources Association
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• v.55 no.11
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• pp.913-922
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• 2022

The purpose of this research is to propose the measurement of improving DEM by using the water surface range of SAR image analysis for river corridors and to suggest the construction of satellite-based 3D river spatial information of inaccessible regions such as North Korea. For this research, it has been progressed from the accessible area, watershed of Namgang river, the branch of Nakdonggang river. The satellite image was collected from SAR satellite image data for a year in 2021 which was provided by ESA from Sentinel-1A/B data and extracted from the seasonal water surface area. Ground gauge water level was collected from hourly intervals data by WAMIS. The DEM was improved by analysis of the river altitude of water surface area change by the combination of the ground water level of minimum to maximum water surface area data extracted from SAR image analysis. After the improvement of DEM, the altitude of the river varied that it is defined to comprise more natural form of river DEM than the existing DEM. The correction validation of improvement DEM was necessary in field survey elevation data; however, the correction validation was not progressed due to the absence of the data. Although, the purpose of this research is to provide the improvement of DEM by using the analyzed water surface by existing DEM data and SAR image analysis. After the progression of additional correction validation research, we would plan to examine the application in other places and to progress the additional methodological research to apply in inaccessible and unmeasured area including the North Korea.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.330-343
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• 2022

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Zanthoxylum schinifolium is traditionally used as a spice for cooking in East Asian countries. This study was undertaken to evaluate the anti-proliferative potential of ethanol extracts of Z. schinifolium leaves (EEZS) against human bladder cancer T24 cells. MATERIALS/METHODS: Subsequent to measuring the cytotoxicity of EEZS, the anti-cancer activity was measured by assessing apoptosis induction, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, and mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP). In addition, we determined the underlying mechanism of EEZS-induced apoptosis through various assays, including Western blot analysis. RESULTS: EEZS treatment concentration-dependently inhibited T24 cell survival, which is associated with apoptosis induction. Exposure to EEZS induced the expression of Fas and Fas-ligand, activated caspases, and subsequently resulted to cleavage of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase. EEZS also enhanced the expression of cytochrome c in the cytoplasm by suppressing MMP, following increase in the ratio of Bax:Bcl-2 expression and truncation of Bid. However, EEZS-mediated growth inhibition and apoptosis were significantly diminished by a pan-caspase inhibitor. Moreover, EEZS inhibited activation of the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway, and the apoptosis-inducing potential of EEZS was promoted in the presence of PI3K/Akt inhibitor. In addition, EEZS enhanced the production of ROS, whereas N-acetyl cysteine (NAC), a ROS scavenger, markedly suppressed growth inhibition and inactivation of the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway induced by EEZS. Furthermore, NAC significantly attenuated the EEZS-induced apoptosis and reduction of cell viability. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, our results indicate that exposure to EEZS exhibits anti-cancer activity in T24 bladder cancer cells through ROS-dependent induction of apoptosis and inactivation of the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.56 no.1
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• pp.1-13
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• 2023

Targeting Microcystin (MC), which is most abundantly detected in the North-Han River water area, we analyzed the relationship between the MC biosynthesis gene (mcyA gene), cyanobacteria cell density, and MC concentration, derived an RNA-MC conversion formula, and derived the cyanobacteria. The concentration of MC present in cells was predicted. In the North-Han River waters, the mcyA gene was found mainly at downstream sites of the North-Han River after Muk-Hyeon Stream junction, and higher copy numbers were found on average than other sites. In the Uiam Lake waters upstream of the North-Han River, the mcyA gene copy number increased at the Kong-Ji Stream point, and after September, the mcyA gene copy number decreased throughout the North-Han River waters. The expression of the mcyA gene was concentrated in the short period of summer due to the spatio-temporal difference between upstream and downstream water bodies. The mcyA gene expression level was not only highly correlated with MC concentration, but also correlated with the cell density of Microcystis aeruginosa and Dolichospermum circinale, which are known to biosynthesize MC. Six conversion formulas derived based on the RNA-MC relationship showed statistical significance (p<0.05) and exhibited high correlation coefficients (r) of 0.9 or higher. The expression level of MC biosynthesis gene present in eRNA determines the synthesis of cyanotoxin substances in water, quickly quantifies gene activity, and can be fully utilized for early warning of MC development.

• Journal of Marine Bioscience and Biotechnology
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.82-89
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• 2023

Microalgae, as photosynthetic organisms, possess the ability to produce a diverse array of bioactive compounds. This study focused on the transformant Chlamydomonas reinhardtii dZL and subjected it to cultivation under varying light intensities (60, 120, 180, and 240 µmol/m²/s). Our aim was to assess the impact of light intensity on both microalgal biomass and carotenoid production. The cultivation took place in 80 mL bubble column photobioreactors, specifically the Multi-cultivator. Notably, the culture exposed to 240 µmol/m²/s exhibited the most rapid cell growth, surpassing even the cell concentration achieved at 180 µmol/m²/s by day 8. A detailed analysis of the specific irradiance rate over time unequivocally revealed a sharp decline in growth rates when the rate fell below 2 × 10^-10 µmol/cell/s. Although the culture with 60 µmol/m²/s yielded the highest carotenoid content (1.2% of dry weight), the culture exposed to 240 µmol/m²/s recorded the highest carotenoid concentration at 8.9 mg/L owing to its higher biomass. Our findings reveal the critical importance of maintaining a specific irradiance rate above 2 × 10^-10 µmol/cell/s to enhance biomass and carotenoid productivity. This study lays the groundwork for defining optimal light intensity conditions applicable to mass culture systems, with the objective of augmenting C. reinhardtii biomass and optimizing carotenoid productivity.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.19-38
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• 2016

This study was carried out to investigate the flora, vegetation and soil properties of serpentine area in Andong, Korea. The vascular plants identified during the seven-round field surveys were a total of 359 taxa: 88 families, 239 genera, 311 species, 6 subspecies, 33 varieties, 6 forms and 3 hybrids. 249 taxa were newly discovered in this region. The plant composition of serpentine area is the deciduous broad-leaved and conifer-mixed forest which is the common one in the middle part of the Korean peninsula. Four taxa of Korean endemic plants such as Clematis brachyura, Populus ${\times}$ tomentiglandulosa, Paulownia coreana and Aster koraiensis were collected. The vascular plants on the red list according to IUCN evaluation basis were found to be seven taxa: Near Threatened (NT) species of Hypericum attenuatum, Polygala tenuifolia and Senecio argunensis, Least Concern (LC) species of Penthorum chinense, Potentilla discolor and Acorus calamus, and Not Evaluate (NE) species of Scorzonera austriaca ssp. glabra. The floristic regional indicator plants found in this area were 19 taxa comprising two taxa of grade IV, five taxa of grade III, four taxa of grade II, and nine taxa of grade I. The naturalized plants were identified as 34 taxa and the percentage of naturalized index (NI) was 9.5 %, and urbanization index (UI) was 10.6 %. Forest soils contained high content of nickel and cadmium. The soil layer consists of loam and silt loam from the surface to a depth of 20 cm and loam and silt clay from a depth of 20 cm to 40 cm.