• Journal of Life Science
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.248-255
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• 2019

This research confirmed the diversity and characterization of gut microorganisms isolated from the intestinal organs of Muraenesox cinereus, collected on the Samcheonpo Coast and Seocheon Coast in South Korea. To isolate strains, Marine agar medium was basically used and cultivated at $37^{\circ}C$ and pH7 for several days aerobically. After single colony isolation, totally 49 pure single-colonies were isolated and phylogenetic analysis was carried out based on the result of 16S rRNA gene DNA sequencing, indicating that isolated strains were divided into 3 phyla, 13 families, 15 genera, 34 species and 49 strains. Proteobacteria phylum, the main phyletic group, comprised 83.7% with 8 families, 8 genera and 26 species of Aeromonadaceae, Pseudoalteromonadaceae, Shewanellaceae, Enterobacteriaceae, Morganellaceae, Moraxellaceae, Pseudomonadaceae, and Vibrionaceae. To confirm whether isolated strain can produce industrially useful enzyme or not, amylase, lipase, and protease enzyme assays were performed individually, showing that 39 strains possessed at least one enzyme activity. Especially the Aeromonas sp. strains showed all enzyme activity tested. This result indicated that isolated strains have shown the possibility of the industrial application. Therefore, this study has contributed for securing domestic genetic resources and the expansion of scientific knowledge of the gut microbial community in Muraenesox cinereus of South Korea.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.580-587
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• 2019

Benthic macroinvertebrates were analyzed in March, June, September, and December 2018 to evaluate water quality in the Songji River in Sacheon-ci, Korea. The identified benthic macroinvertebrates included 447 individuals belonging to 20 species, 18 families, 12 orders, 5 classes, and 3 phyla. Various ecological parameters were estimated for evaluation of the river status. The total ecological score of benthic macroinvertebrate community (TESB) varied from 17 (Station D) to 41 (Station A). The saprobic index and ecological score of benthic macroinvertebrate community (ESB) for the evaluation of river status revealed a water quality evaluation at Station A of II (oligosaprobic), indicating some satisfactory water protection. The benthic macroinvertebrate index (BMI) varied from 25.207 (Site C) to 39.348 (Station A). The evaluation of the river status at Stations C and D was polysaprobic, and sensitive taxa were absent. The mean Shannon-Weaver index (H') of diversity varied from 1.288 (Station D) to 2.250 (Station A). The classification of saprobity based on H' was ${\beta}$-mesosaprobic at Station A and ${\alpha}$-mesosaprobic at the other stations. The value of geometric density was varied from 1.229 (Station A) to 2.071 (Station D), with a mean of 1.582. An artificial load is being added to this river. One of load is the rectal river construction which flows straight through the river physics. Thus, the environment of living organisms deteriorates due to insufficient water. In order to secure the quality of the Songji River and a good environmental habitat, several low-height stepped-beam structures are required.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.163-168
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• 2021

The growth experiment under shading condition has been performed to understand the eco-physiological responses of crops to light in terms of photosynthesis. There are two types of shading: overall shading and partial shading. In this study, the chlorophyll fluorescence of soybean was observed under the overall shading of the box made by polyresin and the partial shading at agrivoltaic system. The overall shading condition during vegetative growth induced lower SPAD and Electron transport rate (ETR). These lower values recovered after removal of shading box. However, the Non-photochemical fluorescence quenching (NPQ) became lower under overall shading and higher under partial shading. Such increase in NPQ limited crop photosynthesis even though the ETR was almost same to the control without shading treatment. Under the condition of partial shading, the values of SP AD and ETR for soybean did not change. However, the NPQ was higher than control condition. This suggests that the crop photosynthesis under both types of shading would be decreased by different eco-physiological processes which are the lower ETR in overall shading and the higher NP Q in partial shading despite the reduced light under shading conditions.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.34-41
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• 2021

The purpose of this research is to improve analysis methods of determining the contents of fatty acids in infant formulas and follow-up formulas. A gas chromatography (GC) method was performed on a GC system coupled to flame ionization detector, with a fused silica capillary column (SP2560, 100 m×0.25 mm, 0.20 ㎛). The method was validated using standard reference material (SRM, NIST 1849a). Performance parameters for method validation such as specificity, linearity, limits of detection (LOD) and quantification (LOQ), accuracy and precision were examined. The linearity of standard solution with correlation coefficient was higher than 0.999 in the range of 0.1-5 mg/mL. The LOD and LOQ were 0.01-0.06 mg/mL and 0.03-0.2 mg/mL, respectively. The recovery using standard reference material was confirmed and the precision was found to be between 0.8% and 2.9% relative standard deviation (RSD). Optimized methods were applied in sample analysis to verify the reliability. All the tested products had acceptable contents of fatty acids compared with component specification for nutrition labeling. The result of this research will provide efficient experimental information and strengthen the management of nutrients in infant formula and follow-up formula.

• Korean Journal of Acupuncture
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.16-31
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• 2021

Objectives : The purpose of this study was to investigate the current status of clinical practice for gout in Korean Medicine (KM). Methods : On-line survey was adopted for this study, targeted at KM Doctors who were registered in the Association of Korean Medicine. The questionnaire included the general status of treatment, pattern identification and treatment method according to three stages given: acute, chronic and asymptomatic hyperuricemia stage. Results : Data from a total of 384 respondents was analyzed. Participants who responded most were in their 40s, working in KM clinics located in Seoul. Acupuncture and herbal medicines were the top priority treatments in preparing recommendations in clinical practice guidelines for gout, and where clinical trials were considered essential. As of the past year, the average number of first visits per month was 86.7%, and the average treatment duration was less than 1 month, accounting for 72.9%. As for the diagnostic method used for gout patients, the "diagnosed by clinical pattern" response was the highest, and the "blood and urine test" response was the highest as the diagnostic equipment used. As for the evaluation scale being used, the "VAS/NRS" response was the highest. Regardless of the gout stage, acupuncture was the most commonly used treatment method for gout patients, and bee venom pharmacopuncture was the highest for the pharmacopuncture used. In the case of herbal medicine, it was found that a wider variety of herbal medication uninsured in health insurance and herbal prescription were used for the staged treatment of gout than herbal medication in national health insurance coverage. In clinical practice, "acupuncture treatment three times a week" was the most common, and the "acupoints in the limb" were the most frequently used; LR3 and SP3 were the most frequently used acupoints. Conclusions : It is suggested that this survey should be helpful to develop clinical practice guideline for gout that reflects actual clinical practice.

• ALGAE
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.25-36
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• 2021

The mixotrophic dinoflagellate Tripos furca causes red tides in the waters of many countries. To understand its population dynamics, mortality due to predation as well as growth rate should be assessed. Prior to the present study, the heterotrophic dinoflagellates Noctiluca scintillans, Polykrikos kofoidii, Protoperidinium steinii, and mixotrophic dinoflagellate Fragilidium subglobosum were known to ingest T. furca. However, if other common heterotrophic protists are able to feed on T. furca has not been tested. We explored interactions between T. furca and nine heterotrophic dinoflagellates and one naked ciliate. Furthermore, we investigated the abundance of T. furca and common heterotrophic protists in coastal-offshore waters off Yeosu, southern Korea, on Jul 31, 2020, during its red tide. Among the tested heterotrophic protists, the heterotrophic dinoflagellates Aduncodinium glandula, Luciella masanensis, and Pfiesteria piscicida were able to feed on T. furca. However, the heterotrophic dinoflagellates Gyrodiniellum shiwhaense, Gyrodinium dominans, Gyrodinium jinhaense, Gyrodinium moestrupii, Oblea rotunda, Oxyrrhis marina, and the naked ciliate Rimostrombidium sp. were unable to feed on it. However, T. furca did not support the growth of A. glandula, L. masanensis, or P. piscicida. Red tides dominated by T. furca prevailed in the South Sea of Korea from Jun 30 to Sep 5, 2020. The maximum abundance of heterotrophic dinoflagellates in the waters off Yeosu on Jul 31, 2020, was as low as 5.0 cells mL-1, and A. glandula, L. masanensis, and P. piscicida were not detected. Furthermore, the abundances of the known predators F. subglobosum, N. scintillans, P. kofoidii, and Protoperidinium spp. were very low or negligible. Therefore, no or low abundance of effective predators might be partially responsible for the long duration of the T. furca red tides in the South Sea of Korea in 2020.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.361-369
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• 2020

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common and multifactorial inflammatory skin disease that is characterized by skin barrier dysfunction, inflammation, and chronic pruritus. AD has a complex etiology that includes genetic, immunological, and environmental factors that cause skin barrier abnormalities and immune dysfunctions. Sophora flavescens (SF) has been used in traditional Chinese medicine, but little research has been conducted on its anti-AD efficacy. In this study, we evaluated the effect of SF extract (SFE) on improving skin barrier function and immune abnormalities, which are the main symptoms of AD. SFE has the capacity to enhance the formation of cornified envelope (CE) that plays an important role in the skin barrier function. In addition, it was confirmed that SFE increased the expression of hyaluronic acid related to skin moisture. The effect of SFE against Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), which increases specifically in AD lesions, confirmed that SFE inhibited the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines induced by S. aureus. Furthermore, SFE was shown to inhibit the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines induced by substance P (SP), the cause of skin neurogenic inflammation. These results demonstrate that SFE could be one of potential candidate agent for the treatment of AD by improving the skin barrier function and immune responses.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.438-446
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• 2022

Some flowers have a high sensual appeal owing to their unique shape, color, smell, and taste and have been used as functional food and oriental medicine. Recently, edible dry flowers (EDFs) have attracted social attention as noble sources of functional teas. In this study, for the risk assessment of EDFs, pathogenic bacteria, heavy metals, and pesticide residues were monitored in 23 types of commercial EDF. No Enterobacteria spp. and Listeria spp. were found in all EDF products. However, common aerobic bacteria (3.24~3.85 Log CFU/g) were found in EDF, namely, Pueraria lobata, Chamaemelum nobile, Acacia decurrens, Rhododendron mucronulatum Turcz, Oenothera lamarckiana, Brassica napus, and Prunus serrulata. Staphylococcus aureus was found in 11 and Salmonella sp. was found in 8 of the 23 EDFs. Considering the cold extraction of EDF for tea and beverages, the regulation of pathogenic bacteria in EDFs is necessary. No heavy metals such as Pb, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, and As were found in all EDFs, except the dry flower of Hemerocallis fulva, which contained Pb at 0.08 ppm. Different pesticides and fungicides were found in EDFs, but their concentrations were very low (0.01~0.08 ppm) and below the maximal residue level. Only the dry flower of Chrysanthemum morifolium had a high content of chlorpyrifos (0.215 ppm), which is long-lasting pesticide. Our results suggest that the establishment of EDF regulations for pesticide residue, culture separation between edible and garden flowers, and guidelines for preventing pathogenic microbial contamination are necessary.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.49 no.1
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• pp.75-87
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• 2021

Type I Interferons (IFNα) are known for their role as biological anticancer agents owing to their cell-apoptosis inducing properties. Development of an appropriate, cost-effective host expression system is crucial for meeting the increasing demand for proteins. Therefore, this study aims to develop codon-optimized IFNα-2b in L. lactis NZ3900. These cells express extracellular protein using the NICE system and Usp₄₅ signal peptide. To validate the mature form of the expressed protein, the recombinant IFNα-2b was screened in a human colorectal cancer cell line using the cytotoxicity assay. The IFNα-2b was successfully cloned into the pNZ8148 vector, thereby generating recombinant L. lactis pNZ8148-SP_Usp45-IFNα-2b. The computational analysis of codon-optimized IFNα-2b revealed no mutation and amino acid changes; additionally, the codon-optimized IFNα-2b showed 100% similarity with native human IFNα-2b, in the BLAST analysis. The partial size exclusion chromatography (SEC) of extracellular protein yielded a 19 kDa protein, which was further confirmed by its positive binding to anti-IFNα-2b in the western blot analysis. The crude protein and SEC-purified partial fraction showed IC₅₀ values of 33.22 ㎍/ml and 127.2 ㎍/ml, respectively, which indicated better activity than the metabolites of L. lactis NZ3900 (231.8 ㎍/ml). These values were also comparable with those of the regular anticancer drug tamoxifen (105.5 ㎍/ml). These results demonstrated L. lactis as a promising host system that functions by utilizing the pNZ8148 NICE system. Meanwhile, codon-optimized usage of the inserted gene increased the optimal protein expression levels, which could be beneficial for its large-scale production. Taken together, the recombinant L. lactis IFNα-2b is a potential alternative treatment for colorectal cancer. Furthermore, its activity was analyzed in the WiDr cell line, to assess its colorectal anticancer activities in vivo.

• Korean journal of applied entomology
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• v.61 no.1
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• pp.255-266
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• 2022

This study was conducted to examine the effects of grass vegetation (W: manual weeding, NW: herbicide sprays) and pyrethroid spray (P: pyrethroid spray, NP: no pyrethroid spray) on the population dynamics of Panonychus citri and natural enemies in citrus orchards. Two essential hypothesis were made to test the population dynamics: 1) weed planting promotes natural enemies by offering habitat and alternative food sources, resulting in the reduction of P. citri populations, and 2) pyrethroid spray removes natural enemies by its non-selective toxicity, resulting in the increasement of P. citri populations. The observed natural enemy populations (mainly Phytoseiids and Agistemus sp.) were not different largely from the expected values in the hypothesis, which assumes more abundant natural enemies in weeds and no pyrethroid plots. Although some discrepancy was occurred in NW+NP and W+NP plots in 2011, the observed values were almost same with expected values in 2012. In overall, pesticide effect was strongly significant and pyrthroids removed largely natural enemies. Although habitat (weeds) effect showed a conflict result, natural enemy population increased in plots allowing weed growth, when considering the increased autumn population relatively compared to that of spring-summer population. The decreased abnormal P. citri populations in pyrethroid plots could be explained under the assumption of a strong repellent behavior of P. citri to the pyrethroids.