• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.89-97
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• 1997

Most of urban streams in Korea have been changed channel forms and suffered from direct inflow of domestic sewage, etc. Therefore, maintenance of structure and function of those ecosystem are hard. The present study was carried out to examine the life survival maintenance ability of the stream by community analysis of aquatic animals in typical urban stream (Jungrang stream) in Seoul. The aquatic animals were composed of 31 species, 18 families, 8 orders, 5 classes in 4 phyla. Seasonal species number showed big fluctuation between 8 species in Winter and 24 species in Autumn. Major dominant species in Jungrang stream were Tubificidae sp.1, Chironomidae sp.1, Chironomidae sp.2 and Physa acuta, and above endurance species for water pollution occupied very high dominance indices. But, Cercion hieroglyphicum, Ischnura asiatica, Rantra chinensis, Herochares striatus, Agabus japonicus in benthic macroinvertebrates of a few individuals are appeared. Also, fry of Carassius auratus and Silurus asotus in fish are occurred. Therefore, we can be inferred on posibility of growth and spawning of above species in the stream. Jungrang stream has a small quantity of natural riffle areas, ponds and watergrass areas by channel form of water course. Aquatic animals in Jungrang stream has been suffered by reduction of self-purification reaction ability and have mass production of attached algae on the stream bed. For analysis of fluctuation of life survival maintenance ability in Jungrang stream, long-term survey is needed.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.70-76
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• 1999

Rice farming is not only the most important income resources of Korean farmers but also the roots of Korean traditional culture. Paddy fields have acted as an food supply base but also have contributed to the public multi-functions such as flood control, water conservation, controlling soil erosion, providing recreational and resting spaces, water purification, air cleaning, oxygen supply and air cooling and so on. The public multi-functions of paddy except rice production have not been evaluated before UR negotiation and starting WTO system. Under the drastic changes of rice economic settings as price decrease of rice and downward decrease of farm income, Korean and Japanese farmers might have lost their intention to grow rice in paddy fields without the direct payment system to compensate rice income decrease. To adapt the direct payment system, the total public value of multi-function of paddy should be identified in terms of money. According to the research results, the total value of multi-functional value of paddy in Korea were estimated 21,596thousand won which is higher than rice production value by 2.1 times. On the other hand the total value of Japanese paddy were amounted to 21,390 Yen which is more than that of Korea by 10times outstandingly. Likewise Japanese have evaluated the paddy field very important enterprise from the view point of food security and multi -functions of paddy to their socio-economic life and environmental sustainability in Japan.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.319-325
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• 2014

A lot of Pond Wetland (Palustrine Wetland) are distributed in agricultural landscapes, Korea. These wetlands are evaluated as important resources for conservation of biodiversity. However, the study of Pond Wetland is rarely conducted except type classification in Korea. In this study, the function of pond wetland as ecosystem services is studied for conservation and utilization of wetland. Research was conducted in three steps; functionality analysis, functionality derivation, and importance analysis. A total of 22 features were derived by analyzing the previous studies. As a result of expert survey, 4 features were selected by each in the field of biological, environmental, and socio-culture among the 22 features. Importance was calculated by conducting a cross-functional features using Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). Finally, 10 ecosystem service functions of pond wetland were derived through expert survey; (1) Water Storage & Irrigation, (2) Vegetation Diversity, (3) Amphibian & Reptile Habitat, (4) Water Purification, (5) Aquatic Insect Habitat, (6) Nutriments Control was derived, (7) Groundwater Recharge, (8) Fishery Habitat, (9) Eco-Experience & Education, and (10) Aesthetic landscape. It is expected that this study is able to utilize in evaluation of pond wetlands ecosystem services by further study on analysis of functional importance and economic value index.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.48 no.4
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• pp.935-944
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• 2021

It has been suggested that bisphenol A (BPA), a known endocrine disruptor, interferes with the endocrine system, causing reproductive dysfunction. Recently, BPA has been found in waste water due to incomplete sewage purification, possibly threatening health through its ingestion via tap water. In this study, young male mice (6 - 7 weeks old) were administered water containing BPA (50 mg·kg^-1) for four weeks, while control mice consumed water without BPA. Serum, epididymal spermatozoa and testicular sections were assessed after sacrificing the mice on day 28. No significant differences were obtained between the groups in the body, testis and seminal vesicle weights. However, the epididymal sperm motility and count levels were significantly reduced in BPA-fed mice. Significantly higher hepatotoxicity levels were also observed in mice ingesting BPA as compared to the control mice. The level of serum testosterone was reduced, and testicular sections revealed incomplete and irregular spermatogenesis in BPA-ingested mice. The sperm proteasomal-proteolytic activity level has been implicated in sperm function and is measured in motile spermatozoa using fluorometric substrates. High ubiquitin C-terminal hydrolase activity levels were observed in the control mice without BPA. During a mating trial, a low pregnancy rate (71.4%) was observed in females mated with males who had consumed BPA (100% in the control mice). Overall, BPA adversely affected spermatogenesis and quality, as indicated by decreased sperm motility, concentration and serum testosterone levels, resulting in reduced fertility competence.

• Journal of Marine Bioscience and Biotechnology
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.81-90
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• 2020

Sialic acid, which is contained in about 60-160 mg/kg in the edible bird's nest (EBN), is known to facilitate in the proper formation of synapses and improve memory function. The objective of this study is to extract effectively the sialic acid from edible bird's nest using affinity bead technology (ABT). After preparing the non-polar polymeric bead "KJM-278-28A" having a porous network structure, and then desorbed sialic acid was concentrated and dried. The analysis of the physicochemical properties of bead "KJM-278-28A" showed that the particle size was 400-700 ㎛, the moisture holding capacity was 67-70%, the surface area (BET) was 705-900 ㎡/g, and the average pore diameter 70-87 Å. The adsorption capacity of the bead "KJM-278-28A" for sialic acid was shown a strong physical force to bind sialic acid to the bead surface of 400 mg/L. In addition, as a result of analyzing the adsorption and desorption effects of sialic acid on water, ethanol, and 10% ethanol on the bead, it was confirmed that desorption effectively occurs from the beads when only ethanol is used. As a result of HPLC measurement of the separated sialic acid solution, a total of four sialic acid peaks of N-acetyl-neuraminic acid (Neu5Ac), α,β-anomer of Neu5Ac and N-glycoly-neuraminic acid were identified. Through these results, it was confirmed that it is possible to separate sialic acid from EBN extract with efficient and high yield when using ABT.

• Journal of Korean Society of Rural Planning
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.47-58
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• 2018

Protected horticultural complexes would increase crop productivity but would adversely affect the groundwater recharge function in the area because the impervious area would increase. Further, they would limit the movement of living beings, affecting biodiversity. Therefore, this study evaluated the groundwater ecosystem services provided by protected horticultural complexes in terms of consistent utilization of water. The estimated amounts of groundwater loss obtained through quantitative assessment of groundwater infiltration showed that a higher impervious area results in higher losses. We, therefore, predict a much higher loss if similar changes in land use are realized on a nationwide scale. A plan to promote groundwater recharge in impervious areas is actively being discussed for urban areas; however, this plan is not yet applicable to farming areas. We consider it is essential to develop groundwater infiltration facilities for horticultural complexes, infiltration trenches, permeable pavements, surface water storage facilities, water purification facilities, etc. Further research and development of groundwater infiltration facilities is important for consistent utilization of water and the improvement of ecosystem services.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.1-7
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• 2008

In this study, the nutrient removal capacity of paddy field was investigated. Paddy field was considered as a constructed wetland. The present study was conducted during a cropping period in a rice cultivation area located in Hampyung-gun, Jeollanamdo, Korea. Water balance and mass balance of nutrients were estimated after intensive field monitoring. The surface runoff losses of T-N and T-P were 20.82 kg/ha and 1.55 kg/ha, respectively. The losses were 13.2% and 6.4% of T-N and T-P input into paddy fields, respectively. The results showed that the paddy fields have nutrient removal function.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.185-193
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• 2003

The purpose of this study was attempted to establish concepts of environmental-friendly applications of flood plain and to suggest the application plans. The results of this study can be summarized as follows; 1. Roles of flood plain as biotop (restoration, preservation, and creation of stream corridor ecosystem) should be considered. 2. Application methods considering environmental and scenic values should be reviewed. 3. Application methods reflecting values as regional ecological resources should be planned. 4. Preservation and application should be considered together, and obtaining a means of living for regional residents and creation of economic profits should be considered together. 5. Land application and approach method by usages (integrated management model) should be applied to utilize and manage flood plain efficiently. 6. Flood plain application programs should be designed reflecting opinions of regional residents. 7. With respect to space planning of flood plain, introduction of facilities focused on ecosystem preservation/ecosystem restoration/experiences/observation/learning/culture/ recreation/water purification could be reviewed positively.

• Preventive Nutrition and Food Science
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.21-28
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• 2004

We purified and characterized a crude polysaccharide from Spirodela polyrhiza with anti-complement activities. The crude polysaccharide fraction (SP-0) which had potential anti-complement activity was extracted in hot water for 4 hrs at 10$0^{\circ}C$. The ethanol-precipitate, the crude polysaccharide traction (SP-1), showed a potent anti-complement activity. Further purification of the crude polysaccharide (SP-1) was carried out by cetavlon, ion exchange chromatography and gel column chromatography. Among cetavlon fractions, SP-4 showed the most potent anti-complement activity. When 100 $\mu\textrm{g}$/mL of SP-4 was incubated with an equal volume of normal human serum (NHS), the TCH$_{50}$ was reduced by about 78%. When the SP-4 fraction was further purified by DEAE-Sepharose (Cl$^{[-10]}$ ), the SP-4IIa, SP-4IIb and SP-4IIc, absorbed fractions, were almost the same as the anti-complement activities of SP-4. SP-4IIc, having the greatest potential activation and the highest yield by ion exchange chromatography, was further purified by gel column chromatography on a Sepharose CL-6B column. Four polysaccharide fractions of SP-4IIc-1, SP-4IIc-2, SP-4IIc-3 and SP-4IIc-4 were obtained, consisting mainly of arabinose, rhamnose, galactose and glucose, with approximate molecular weights of about 305,000, 132,000, 64,000 and 12,000, respectively. Among these subfractions, SP-4IIc-1 had the most potent anti-complement activity. When the SP-4IIc-1 aggregate was applied to a gel column chromatography in 10 mM and 50 mM NaCl solution, the position of the peak fractions shifted to a low molecular weight region, and the molecular weight of SP-4IIc-1 decreased with increased NaCl concentration in the gel column chromatography. It was found that the self-aggregation formed spontaneously in void volume by gel column chromatography using Sepharose CL-6B in water and the self-aggregation significantly affected the anti-complement function.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.15-18
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• 2010

Mangroves are special plant communities that live along intertidal zones in tropical and subtropical areas. They are regarded as one of the most important types of natural ecosystem in the world because of the many ecosystem functions that they perform, of which water purification is the most complex. Mangrove ecosystems are conducive to the deposition and retention of heavy metals. So it is important to understand the impact of heavy metals on mangrove ecosystems, and especially on soil subsystems. We examined the levels of heavy metals in the soil of mangroves in the Dongzhaigang Mangrove National Nature Reserve. Dongzhaigang, the first mangrove nature reserve established in China, is located south of Haikou in Hainan Island and encompasses $33.37\;km^2$, of which mangroves comprise $20.56\;km^2$. To assess the impact of human activities, we collected a large number of soil samples in four sampling areas (the protection station, the harbor, a tour area, and Yeboluo island) in the study area. We measured the concentrations of Cu, Pb, Zn and Cd in the soil samples using the spectra of polyatomic molecules. The average concentrations of Cu, Pb, Zn and Cd were $5.04\;{\mu}g/g$, $10.36\;{\mu}g/g$, $20.06\;{\mu}g/g$ and $0.06\;{\mu}g/g$, respectively, and the heavy metal concentrations were lowest in the protected area, highest in the harbor, and intermediate in Yeboluo Island and the tour area. The heavy metal concentrations in the soil collected from different sample plots are related not only to the physical and chemical properties of the soil, but also to the heavy metal emitted by nearby pollution sources. Our analysis indicates that tourist boats are the main pollution sources in the study area.