• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.495-500
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• 2003

Tight junctions (TJ) between adjacent Sertoli cells in testis are important for the formation of the blood testis barrier (BTB). In an effort to verify the reproductive health risk of endocrine-active chemicals (EACs), changes in the transepithelial electrical resistance (TER) and the expression of TJ genes were examined by co-planar polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) treatment in cultured mouse Sertoli cells. Although the increase in TER of Sertoli cells was accelerated by 10 nM co-planar PCB, it was downregulated by 100 nM co-planar PCB. The expression of claudin-1 was downregulated by co-planar PCB in a concentration-dependent manner. On the contrary, the expression of claudin-1 was increased in the Sertoli cells by 10 nM co-planar PCB treatment. These results suggest that the structure and function of TJ may be targeted by co-planar PCB in Sertoli cells. Assessment of the structure and function of TJ in Sertoli cells might be useful for screening the reproductive health risk of EACs.

• Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.201-211
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• 2008

This study was performed to find the atmospheric concentrations of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) at four different heights (l0, 50, 150 and 1,500 cm) using low volume polyurethane foam (PUF) plug air sampler in semi-rural area. ${\alpha}-/{\beta}-/{\gamma}-HCH$ with low molecular weights and Koa (octanol-air partitioning coefficient) in OCPs were similarly high concentrations at all heights, but the other OCPs (p,p'-DDE, p,p'-DDD, p,p'-DDT, Heptachlor epoxide, ${\gamma}$-CHL, ${\alpha}$-CHL, Trans-nonachlor) with high molecular weights and Koa decreased with increasing heights. However, the concentrations of PCBs increased with increasing height.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.187-191
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• 1997

Cell death induced by polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), environmental toxicant, was investigated in mouse splenocytes. The fragmentation of intact DNA, a parameter of apoptotic cell death, was evaluated qualitatively by agarose gel electrophoresis analysis and quantitatively by diphenylamine reaction method. PCBs induced apoptotic cell death of splenocytes in a dose- and time- dependent manner. The effect of serum on the apoptotic cell death induced by PCBs was also investigated. The DNA fragmentation induced by PCB treatment in serum-free medium was clearly inhibited by an addition of serum to the culture medium. The decrease of DNA fragmentation due to serum addition was accompanied with the increase of cell viability.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.18 no.6
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• pp.475-485
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• 2002

An analytical method was investigated for the meaiiurement of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) concentrations in air samples. Procedures required for column chromatographic clean up. silicagel (stage I) and gel permeation chromatography (stage II), were discussed. Identification and quantification of PCBs and OCPs were performed using a combination of gas chromatography/mass spectrometry/ selected ion monitoring. Recovery tests calculated from six samples are 68∼137% for PCBs and 58∼130% for OCPs except for endrin aldehyde. Instrumental detection limits determined for the PCBs and OCPs varied from 0.05 to 0.18 pg/m3 and from 0.71 to 16.82 pg/㎥, respectively. The method has been applied to the analysis of air samples collected at Ansung city, Kyonggi province, Korea. This method may serve as a screening protocol for the simultaneous determination of PCBs and OCPs in air.

• Journal of Microbiology
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.195-201
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• 2001

The effect of moisture content an the reductive dechlorination of polychlorinated biphenyls and population dynamics of dechlorinating microorganisms was investigated in sediments spiked with Aroclor 1248. In sediment slurry with an overlying water layer, dechlorination ensued after a 4-week lag period and reduced the average number of chlorines per biphenyl from 3.91 to 3.15 after 48 weeks. In the sediments of reduced moisture content, however, dechlorination occurred after a lag period of 12 weeks and decreased the average number of chlorines per biphenyl to only 3.62, and the dechlorination rate was also slower. When the population size of dechlorinators, methanogens, and sulfate-reducing bacteria was determined by the most probable number techniques, however, no difference was found between the slurry and the low-moisture sediments, except for methanogens. The growth of dechlorinating populations coincided with the end of the lag period and they then increased by 3 orders of magnitude in two conditions. Specific growth rate of dechlorinators showed little difference between the slurry and the low-moisture sediments; however, growth yield was high in the sediments of reduced moisture content. The reduction of sediment moisture decreased the dechlorination rate and extent of PCBs but did not inhibit the growth of PCB dechlorinators.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.1-7
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• 2021

The removal of PCBs (Polychlorinated biphenyls) in aqueous phase was investigated in the ultraviolet (UV) process, ultrasonics (US) process and ultraviolet/ultrasonic (UV/US) process using PCB No.7 and Aroclor 1260. For PCB No.7 relatively high removal efficiency over 90% was obtained during 20 min in the UV process and UV/US process. On the other hand, lower removal efficiency of 50 - 70% was achieved for it consisted of individual congeners of PCBs containing 3~8 of chlorine atom. It was found that the dechlorination reaction (the photolytic cleavage of C-Cl bond) was considered as a main removal mechanism in the UV process while PCBs were removed by cavitation-induced radical reaction in the US process. No significant dechlorination occurred in the US process. Consequently, it was suggested that the UV process or UV/US process was applicable for the removal of PCBs in aqueous phase in terms of the removal efficiency and operation time. In addition, the application of saturating gas such as Ar and Air could be considered to control redox condition and enhance the severity of acoustic cavitation for the removal of PCBs.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Toxicology Conference
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• 2002.05a
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• pp.131-131
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• 2002

PCBs are wide spread persistent environmental pollutants that exert a broad spectrum of toxic effects. PCBs includes 209 possible congeners differing in extent and position of chlorination of their aromatic rings. In order to understand the toxic mechanism of PCBs, we have tested the effect of PCB on the EROD activity in vivo.(omitted)

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.105-115
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• 1982

Environmental samples contaminated with elemental sulfur(waters 22, sediments 20, crucian carps 19) collected from Soho Lake during the period of Sep. 1981 to Apr. 1982 were analyzed for polychlorinated biphenyls(PCBs) and organochlorine insecticides by GLC-ECD. Elemental sulfur was found to interfere in the residue analysis of environmental samples and the sulfur was eliminated, prior to analysis, with copper powder. PCBs residues in Soho lake were temporarily characterized as Aroclor 1254 and were analyzed at minimum detectable quantity of 0.04 ng by derivatizing PCBs to decachlorobiphenyl(DCB). PCBs were positively detected in all samples and its residue levels in waters, sediments, and crucian carps were $0.015{\sim}0.15$ ppb, $0.038{\sim}0.088$ ppm and 0.091 ppm, respectively. The residue levels of PCBs in all samples but sediments at central and outlet site of the lake were higher than those of total p,p'-DDT. The residue levels of PCBs in waters varied with inlets, i.e. those at right inlet site were three times of those at left inlet site. The main source of PCBs residues in the environmental samples of Soho Lake was not evident by present work.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.220-227
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• 2016

In this paper, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were measured in surface sediments collected three times (June, October, December, 2013), inside Jeju Harbor as major harbors of Jeju Island. The concentration of PCBs inside Jeju Harbor was in the range of 1.62~4.45 (mean) ng/g on a dry weight basis and the levels were very low. In the analysis of PCBS homologue patterns, high-chlorinated PCB congeners were dominant in surface sediments inside Jeju Harbor, indicating that their sources were originated from shipping activity. In the relationships between PCBs concentrations and particle size (mud, sand and gravel) in surface sediments, PCBs concentrations were higher in the sediments with higher mud content, indicating that higher PCBs were distributed with increasing sediments of fine gradules. The PCBs concentrations in surface sediments in this study were very low, compared with ER-L (effect range-low) and TEL (threshold effects level) among sediment quality guideleines (SQGs) applied in foreign countries, such as USA, Canada, and Australia, etc), indicating that their biological effects on the bottom organisms in marine environment were expected to be very low.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.18 no.9
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• pp.1564-1571
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• 2008

We investigated whether the threshold concentration for polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) dechlorination may be lower in biosurfactant-amended sediments compared with biosurfactant-free samples. At PCB concentrations of 40, 60, and 120 ppm, the surfactant amendment enhanced the PCB dechlorination rate at all concentrations and the rate was also faster at higher concentrations. On a congener group basis, dechlorination proceeded largely with group A (congeners with low threshold) in both surfactant-free and -amended sediments, accumulating mainly group C (residual products of dechlorination) congeners, and surfactant enhanced the dechlorination rate of group A congeners. Since the PCB threshold concentration for the inoculum in the experiment was lower than 40 ppm, we carried out another experiment using sediments with lower PCB concentrations, 10, 20, and 30 ppm. Sediments with 100 ppm were also performed to measure dechlorination at a PCB saturation concentration. Comparison between the plateaus exhibited that the extent of dechlorination below 40 ppm PCBs was much lower than that at a saturation concentration of 100 ppm. There was no significant difference in the extent of dechlorination between surfactant-free and -amended sediments. Moreover, surfactant did not change the congener specificity or broaden the congener spectrum for dechlorination at PCB concentrations below 40 ppm. Taken together, it seems that at a given PCB concentration, dechlorination characteristics of dechlorinating populations may be determined by not only the congener specificity of the microorganisms but also the affinity of dechlorinating enzyme(s) to individual PCB congeners.