• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.101 no.2
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• pp.236-243
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• 2012

The leaf growth and physiological characteristics of Forsythia saxatilis were investigated at six natural habitats under different light intensities in Bukhansan in order to figure out an appropriate growth environment for conservation and restoration of F. saxatilis that is Korean endemic plant designated as rare and endangered species. Relative light intensities (RLI) at six habitats showed from 10% to 78% of the full sun. Leaf length, leaf width, leaf area and dry leaf weight of population under highest relative light intensity (78%) were the highest. The ratio of dry leaf weight to leaf area increased with the increase of RLI. The content of photosynthetic pigments such as chlorophyll a, b and carotenoid were the highest at 78% of RLI, whereas the ratio of total chlorophyll to carotenoid content reduced according to the increase of RLI. Photosynthetic parameters, such as photosynthetic rate, also increased with the increase of RLI. The total nonstructural carbohydrate (TNC) was 1.5 times higher at 78% of RLI than that at 10% of RLI and the total soluble sugar (TSS) was the highest at 78% of RLI. In conclusion, leaf characteristics and physiological characteristics have high positive correlation with light intensity. Therefore, light condition should be primarily considered to improve growth and physiology characteristics of F. saxatilis under low light intensity.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.49 no.2
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• pp.110-123
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• 2016

In order to obtain scientific information for the conservation of Utricularia japonica Makino, rare plant species, we investigated life history, phenology, growth and distribution in the east coastal region of Korea. Seven habitats of U. japonica were confirmed in this study. Turion of U. japonica rests overwinter at the bottom and ripens at the water surface and then usually germinate and sprout when the water warms in spring. A single shoot grown from turion divided into several shoots. Shoot decomposition started in October and formed a new turion at the end of the decomposed shoot. Flowering period was from early July to late October. Percentage of flowering ramets was significantly low as 6.3%. U. japonica showed the fastest growth rate from April to July, the maximum growth in August and the highest biomass in October. U. japonica tended to be concentrated in larger ramets in the water depth of 50 cm~150 cm in Cheonjin lake. The main factors affecting the growth of U. japonica were water temperature and turbidity. The establishment and growth of U. japonica in Cheonjin lake were determined by responses to water temperature with seasonal change and to light conditions caused by the different plants. These conditions affect the temporal and spatial distribution of U. japonica and population change. The findings of this study would be helpful to provide the basic information needed for the conservation and restoration of U. japonica.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.125-131
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• 2015

Currently, taxol is mainly extracted from the bark of yews; however, this method can not meet its increasing demand on the market because yews grow very slowly and are a rare and endangered species belonging to first-level conservation plants. Recently, increasing efforts have been made to develop alternative means of taxol production; microbe fermentation would be a very promising method to increase the production scale of taxol. To determine the activities of the taxol extracted from endophytic fungus N. sylviforme HDFS4-26 in inhibiting the growth and causing the apoptosis of cancer cells, on comparison with the taxol extracted from the bark of yew, we used cellular morphology, cell counting kit (CCK-8) assay, staining (HO33258/PI and Giemsa), DNA agarose gel electrophoresis and flow cytometry (FCM) analyses to determine the apoptosis status of breast cancer MCF-7 cells, cervical cancer HeLa cells and ovarian cancer HO8910 cells. Our results showed that the fungal taxol inhibited the growth of MCF-7, HeLa and HO8910 cells in a dose-and time-dependent manner. IC50 values of fungal taxol for HeLa, MCF-7 and HO8910 cells were $0.1-1.0{\mu}g/ml$, $0.001-0.01{\mu}g/ml$ and $0.01-0.1{\mu}g/ml$, respectively. The fungal taxol induced these tumor cells to undergo apoptosis with typical apoptotic characteristics, including morphological changes for chromatin condensation, chromatin crescent formation, nucleus fragmentation, apoptotic body formation and G2/M cell cycle arrest. The fungal taxol at the $0.01-1.0{\mu}g/ml$ had significant effects of inducing apoptosis between 24-48 h, which was the same as that of taxol extracted from yews. This study offers important information and a new resource for the production of an important anticancer drug by endofungus fermentation.

• Ecology and Resilient Infrastructure
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• v.3 no.4
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• pp.307-314
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• 2016

River restoration has recently been performed not only for the improvement of the artificial parts in the past but also for the restoration of abandoned river reaches which were blocked and isolated. For the restoration of abandoned river reaches, it is important to recover the hydraulic and ecological connectivity in the isolated space by longitudinal structures like levees. But because the assessment tools to determine whether the river restoration is performed properly are so rare at present, we aim to provide a tool for assessing ecological connectivity in a target river in this study. In the first step, one-dimensional numerical model for rainfall-runoff and channel routing was developed and then applied to the watershed of the Cheongmi Stream. In this step, a numerical model was developed to assess the restoration of connectivity. The model consists of two parts: one part is to convert the results of one-dimensional channel routing into two-dimensional spatial distribution. The other is to calculate the habitat suitability index according to time steps by using two-dimensional hydraulic features. The model was applied to a restoration area of the Cheongmi Stream. The advantage of this study is that two-dimensional hydraulic analysis can be easily obtained from one-dimensional hydraulic analysis without a complex and time-consuming two-dimensional analysis. HHS (Hydraulic Habitat Suitablility) by sections of target reaches and target species can be easily obtained using the results of this study.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.363-370
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• 2007

Mongolian gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus) has been as an model animal for studing the neurological disease such as stroke and epilepsy because of the congenital incompleteries in Willis circle, as well as the investigation of water metabolism because of the long time-survival in the condition of water-deprived desert condition, compared with other species animal. Aquaporin 2 (AQP2) expressed at the surface of principal cells in collecting duct results from an equilibrium between the AQP2 in intracellular vesicles and the AQP2 on the plasma membrane. Aquaporin 4 (AQP4), which is expressed in cell in a wide range of organ, is also present in the collecting duct principal cells where this is abundant in the basolateral plasma membranes and represent potential exit pathways from the cell for water entering via AQP2. In this research, we divide 3 groups of which each group include the 5 animals. In the study of 7 or 14 days water restricted condition, we investigated the AQP2 and AQP4 by using a quantitative immunohistochemistry in the kidney. The results obtained in this study were summarized as followings. AQP2 is abundant in the apical plasma membrane and apical vesicles in the collecting duct principal cell and at rare abundance in connecting tubules. In the water-deprived Mongolian gerbil kidney, expression of AQP2 was continuosly increased in the cortical collecting duct and inner medullary collecting duct. This increase was both the apical region and cytoplasm. AQP4 is mainly expressed in the inner medulla, although some expression is also noted in the more proximal segment. In the water-deprived Mongolian gerbil kidney, AQP4 was also increased in the inner medullary collecting duct. Immunoactivity was increased in entire inner medullary collecting duct and newly detected in cytoplasm of principal cell. These findings suggest that increased levels of AQP2 and AQP4 in the cortical and inner medulalry collecting duct may play a important role for maintain fluid balance in the water-deprived kidney.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.443-452
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• 2014

Feces contain nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphate, potassium and research of the impact on the environment from feces is very diverse. However, despite the importance of mammals to environment, studies of mammals into the terrestrial ecosystems are rare. Korean water deer (Hydropotes inermis) is an endemic species of Korea and China, and we conducted on factor of plant growth in relation to feces of Korean water deer depending on land use patterns. The analysis of growth, biomass and C/N ratio of Zea mays, amount of feces and land use patterns are strongly affecting the C/N ratio and growth of the Zea mays. The quantity of the feces also influences the growth of plants instead of the land use patterns. Furthermore, the feces of Korean water deer have a lower C/N ratio than that of other animals' feces. Being the process of composting, it is able to serve a suitable fertilizer for a crop growth. In this study, we investigated the impact of feces into the environment in the terrestrial ecosystems and we were able to provide the basic data to the resources of an efficient scheme of animal feces. Further research is needed to quantify the materials amongst the plant, soil and animal, and to understand the relationship ecosystem.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.11 no.5
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• pp.38-59
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• 2008

This research has a meaning to provide basic data for eco-friendly way of district unit plans and ecological landscape planning by evaluation of biotope preservation value at the level of district unit and designating land development of the site, the whole area of Sinseo-dong (Dong-gu, Daegu metropolitan city) for research site. The summary of analysis result is as follows. As a result of classification of biotope types on the research site, it is divided into 11 biotope groups such as a residential biotope group and 51 specific biotope types which is subordinate to the groups. As a result of the first value assessment on classified biotope types, there are 16 types of natural rivers which is full of vegetation as a I class. Also it is analysed as 9 types of IIclass, 14 of IIIclass, 8 of IVclass, and 4 of Vclass. In particular, in light of a wildlife habitat, EB, in case of broad-leaved tree of mixed forest assessed as a II class, was classified into Iclass which is one-step upgraded as a final class with the analysis as there is a structural characteristic (more than 71% of low density, 50 years of age-class). As a result of second assessment, it is analysed that there are 17 special sites (1a,1b) and 33 special sites (2a, 2b, 2c) respectively for preservation of species and biotope. Particularly, in case of the No. 27 space, it was assessed that it has the value of about medium (IIIclass) level, but its value was upgraded with the on-spot detailed investigation that most of Aristolochia contorta, designated as a rare plant by Ministry of Environment, is growing. It is regarded that the above-mentioned research result on evaluation of biotope preservation value is expected to provide very important basic materials for future district unit plans and smooth integration with landscape ecology plans and eco-friendly space development.

• The Journal of the Korean Society for Microbiology
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.461-471
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• 1986

Shigella strains isloated in the Teagu area during the period from 1973 to 1985 were studied for species distribution, drug resistance, and R plasmids. Approximately 1,200 strains were isolated during this period, and most of them were classified into Shigella flexneri, S. sonnei occupied less than 20%, and S. dysenteriae and S. boydii were very rarely isolated. More than 95% of them were resistant to one or more of these drugs; chloramphenicol (Cm), tetracycline (Tc), streptomycin (Sm), sulfisomidine (Su), ampicillin (Ap), and trimethoprim (Tp). Strains resistant to kanamycin, nalidixic acid (Na), and rifampin (Rf) were rare, and no strain was resistant to cephaloridine, gentamicin, and amikacin. Approximately half of the isolates were resistant to drugs in 1973, but the rate of resistant strains increased to more than 95% from 1977. Strains resistant to the four drugs (Cm, Tc, Sm, and Su) occupied the majority of resistant strains until 1977, but the most prevalent multiplicity of drug resistance increased to six drugs (Cm, Tc, Sm, Su, Ap, and Tp) from 1978 with the marked increase of Ap- and Tp-resistant strains. Approximately 75% of them transferred resistance to Escherichia coli by conjugation, and the resistance was considered to be mediated by R plasmids. Almost all of them transferred the complete patterns of resistance to drugs except Na and Rf. However, among some strains of recent isolates, small numbers of segregants of transferred resistance were observed. The R plasmids in Shigella were mostly classified into Inc FII, and only small numbers into Inc B. Segregants were in most cases unclassified.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.58 no.1
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• pp.67-72
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• 2020

Human infection with Echinostoma aegyptica Khalil and Abaza, 1924 (Trematoda: Echinostomatidae) is extremely rare. In this study, we confirmed E. aegyptica infection in 5 riparian residents living along the Mekong River in Savannakhet Province, Lao PDR. The patients revealed eggs of Opisthorchis viverrini/minute intestinal flukes, echinostomes, and other parasites in fecal examinations using the Kato-Katz technique. Following treatment with praziquantel 30-40 mg/kg and pyrantel pamoate 10-15 mg/kg in a single dose and purging with magnesium salts, adult specimens of various helminth species were collected. Among the trematodes, echinostome flukes of 4.5-7.6 mm in length (n = 134; av. 22.3 specimens per case) were of taxonomic interest and subjected in this study. The flukes were morphologically characterized by having total 43-45 collar spines arranged in 2 alternating rows (corner spines usually 5 on each side) and compatible with previous descriptions of E. aegyptica. The patients were mixed-infected with other helminths, so specific clinical manifestations due to this echinostome fluke were difficult to determine. The present paper describes for the first time human E. aegyptica infections in Lao PDR. This is the second report of human infection (2nd-6th cases) with E. aegyptica in the world following the first one from China.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Clinical Toxicology
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.50-54
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• 2015

Podostroma cornu-damae is a rare species of fungus belonging to the Hyocreaceae family. Its fruit body is highly toxic, as it contains trichothecene mycotoxins. The morphology is similar to that of immature Ganoderma lucidum, making identification difficult for non-experts. We experienced such a case of a 56- year-old male who picked and consumed podostroma cornu-damae, and consumed. Later that day, he developed digestive system symptoms, including nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. He presented to the emergency room (ER), there were no abnormal physical findings, symptoms improved after gastric lavage, and the patient voluntarily discharged himself on the same day. The following day, as the symptoms gradually deteriorated, he was admitted via the ER. He was presented with severe pancytopenia, alopecia, desquamation of skin, and acute renal failure. He recovered without any complications after conservative care, antibiotics therapy, and granulocyte colony stimulating factor administration. The most commonly reported complications of podostroma cornu-damae intoxication were reported pancytopenia, infection, disseminated intravascular coagulation, acute renal failure, etc. since Prevention is especially important because its toxicity can be lethal and there is no particular treatment to date, prevention is especially important. Promotion and education for the public are needed.