• Molecules and Cells
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.18-25
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• 2008

Arsenic trioxide (ATO) can affect many biological functions such as apoptosis and differentiation in various cells. We investigated the involvement of ROS and GSH in ATO-induced HeLa cell death using ROS scavengers, especially N-acetylcysteine (NAC). ATO increased intracellular ${O_2}^{{\cdot}-}$ levels and reduced intracellular GSH content. The ROS scavengers, Tempol, Tiron and Trimetazidine, did not significantly reduce levels of ROS or GSH depletion in ATO-treated HeLa cells. Nor did they reduce the apoptosis induced by ATO. In contrast, treatment with NAC reduced ROS levels and GSH depletion in the ATO-treated HeLa cells and prevented ATO-induced apoptosis. Treatment with exogenous SOD and catalase reduced the depletion of GSH content in ATO-treated cells. Catalase strongly protected the cells from ATO-induced apoptosis. In addition, treatment with SOD, catalase and NAC slightly inhibited the G1 phase accumulation induced by ATO. In conclusion, NAC protects HeLa cells from apoptosis induced by ATO by up-regulating intracellular GSH content and partially reducing the production of ${O_2}^{{\cdot}-}$.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.311-317
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• 2019

The transport systems for metals play crucial roles in both the physiological functions of essential metals and the toxic effects of hazardous metals in mammals and plants. In mammalian cells, Zn transporters such as ZIP8 and ZIP14 have been found to function as the transporters for Mn(II) and Cd(II), contributing to the maintenance of Mn homeostasis and metallothionein-independent transports of Cd, respectively. In rice, the Mn transporter OsNramp5 expressed in the root is used for the uptake of Cd from the soil. Japan began to cultivate OsNramp5 mutant rice, which was found to accumulate little Cd, to prevent Cd accumulation. Inorganic trivalent arsenic (As(III)) is absorbed into mammalian cells via aquaglyceroporin, a water and glycerol channel. The ortholog of aquaporin in rice, OsLsi1, was found to be an Si transporter expressed in rice root, and is responsible for the absorption of soil As(III) into the root. Since rice is a hyperaccumulator of Si, higher amounts of As(III) are incorporated into rice compared to other plants. Thus, the transporters of essential metals are also utilized to incorporate toxic metals in both mammals and plants, and understanding the mechanisms of metal transports is important for the development of mitigation strategies against food contamination.

• Ecology and Resilient Infrastructure
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.290-298
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• 2021

This study was conducted to evaluate the possibility of applying phytoremediation technology by investigating soil and native plants in waste coal landfills exposed to heavy metal contamination for a long period of time. The ability of native plants to accumulate heavy metals using greenhouse cultivation experiments was alse evaluated. Plants were investigated at an abandoned coal mine in Hwajeolyeong, Jeongseon, Gangwon-do. Two species of native plants (Carex breviculmis. R. B. and Salix koriyanagi Kimura ex Goerz.) located in the study area and three Korean native plants (Artemisia japonica Thunb. Hemerocallis hakuunensis Nakai., and Saussurea pulchella (Fisch.) Fisch.) were cultivated in a greenhouse for 12 weeks in artificially contaminated soil. Soils contaminated with arsenic and lead were generated with arsenic concentration gradients of 25, 62.5, 125, and 250 mg kg^-1 and lead concentration gradients of 200, 500, 1000, and 2000 mg kg^-1, respectively. Results showed that none of the five plants could survive at high arsenic concentration treatment (125 and 250 mg kg^-1) and some plants died in 2000 mg kg^-1 lead concentration treatment soil. The plant translocation factor (TF) was highest in H. hakuunensis in arsenic treatments, and A. japonica in lead treatments, respectively. The bioaccumulation factor (BF) of plants was more than 1 in all species in arsenic treatment, whereas it was highest in H. hakuunensis. BF for all species was less than 1 in lead treatment. Particularly, in 2000 mg kg^-1 concentration lead treatment, A. japonica accumulated more than 1000 mg kg^-1 lead and was expected to be a lead hyperaccumulator. In conclusion, A. japonica and H. hakuunensis were excellent in the accumulation of arsenic heavy metals, and S. koriyanagi was excellent in lead accumulation ability. Therefore, the above mentioned three plants are considered to be strong contenders for application of the phytoremediation technology.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.50-59
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• 2008

A greenhouse experiment was conducted to investigate the role of the arbuscular mycorrhizal(AM) fungus, Glomus mosseae(BEG 107) in enhancing growth and arsenic(As) and phosphorus(P) uptake of white clover(Trifolium repens) and evening primrose(Oenothera odorata) in soil collected from a gold mine having concentrations of 381.6 mg total As $kg^{-1}$ and 20.5 mg available As $kg^{-1}$. Trifolium repens and O. odorata are widely distributed on abandoned metalliferous mines in Korea. The percent root colonization by the AM fungus was 55.9% and 62.3% in T. repens and O. odorata, respectively, whereas no root colonization was detected in control plants grown in a sterile medium. The shoot dry weight of T. repens and O. odorata was increased by 323 and 117% in the AM plants compared to non-mycorrhizal(NAM) plants, respectively. The root dry weight increased up to 24% in T. repens and 70% in O. odorata following AM colonization compared to control plants. Mycorrhizal colonization increased the accumulation of As in the root tissues of T. repens and O. odorata by 99.7 and 91.7% compared to the NAM plants, respectively. The total uptake of P following AM colonization increased by 50% in T. repens and 70% in O. odorata, whereas the P concentration was higher in NAM plants than in the AM plants. Colonization with AM fungi increased the As resistance of the host plants to As toxicity by augmenting the yield of dry matter and increasing the total P uptake. Hence, the application of an AM fungus can effectively improve the phytoremediation capability of T. repens and O. odorata in As-contaminated soil.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.21-25
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• 1988

A pot experiment was conducted to find out the effect of arsenic(As) added to soil on the number of roots, root diameter, root length and root tissue of the rice plant. The results obtained were as follows: Higher As levels in soil remarkably reduced not only the number of roots, root length and root diameter, but also the diameter of the central cylinder, the route of the water and inor ganic nutrients of the roots. When arsenic was treated in soil, abnormal cells in the cortex of rice root were developed and considerably increased with higher As levels in the soil. These were only observed in the middle and upper parts of root segments except root tips and they looked like rice roots without epidermis in shape. Therefore, the occurrence of the abnormal cells in the root was attributed to high arsenic accumulation in the root. Its mechanism is not clear. However, it is assumed that the abnormal cells had occurred to compensate for lower amount of water and inorganic nutrient absorption by the injured rice root or self-defense against the penetration of arsenic within the rice root.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.31-38
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• 2002

Bacteria have evolved various types of resistance mechanism to toxic heavy metals, such as arsenic and antimony. An arsenical and antimonial resistant bacterium was isolated from a shallow creek draining a coal-mining area near Taebaek City, in Kangwon-Do, Korea. The isolated bacterium was identified and named as Pseudomonas sp. KM20 after biochemical and physiological studies were conducted. A plasmid was identified and its function was studied. Original cells harboring the plasmid were able to grow in the presence of 15 mM sodium arsenite, while the plasmid-cured (plasmidless) strain was sensitive to as little as 0.5 mM sodium arsenate. These results indicated that the plasmid of Pseudomonas sp. KM20 does indeed encode the arsenic resistance determinant. In growth experiments, prior exposure to 0.1 mM arsenate allowed immediate growth when they were challenged with 5 mM arsenate, 5 mM arsenite, or 0.1 mM antimonite. These results suggested that the arsenate, arsenite, and antimonite resistance determinants of Pseudomonas sp. KM20 plasmid were indeed inducible. When induced, plasmid-bearing resistance cells showed a decreased accumulation $of\;73^As$ and showed an enhanced efflux $of\;^73As$. These results suggested that plasmid encoded a transport system that extruded the toxic metalloids, resulting in the lowering of the intracellular concentration of toxic oxyanion. In a Southern blot study, hybridization with an E. coli R773 arsA-specific probe strongly suggested the absence of an arsA cistron in the plasmid-associated arsenical and antimonial resistance determinant of Pseudomonas sp. KM20.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.21 no.12
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• pp.1306-1311
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• 2011

Recombinant Rhodopseudomonas palustris, harboring the carotenoid-metabolizing gene crtI (CrtIBS), and whose color changes from greenish yellow to red in response to inorganic As(III), was cultured in transparent microplate wells illuminated with a light emitting diode (LED) array. The cells were seen to grow better under near-infrared light, when compared with cells illuminated with blue or green LEDs. The absorbance ratio of 525 to 425 nm after cultivation for 24 h, which reflects red carotenoid accumulation, increased with an increase in As(III) concentrations. The detection limit of cultures illuminated with near-infrared LED was 5 ${\mu}g$/l, which was equivalent to that of cultures in test tubes illuminated with an incandescent lamp. A near-infrared LED array, in combination with a microplate, enabled the simultaneous handling of multiple cultures, including CrtIBS and a control strain, for normalization by the illumination of those with equal photon flux densities. Thus, the introduction of a near-infrared LED array to the assay is advantageous for the monitoring of arsenic in natural water samples that may contain a number of unknown factors and, therefore, need normalization of the reporter event.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.82-87
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• 2016

This study investigates effects of an aging period on arsenic (As) chemical forms in soils and phytotoxicity using artificially As-contaminated soils with a range of As concentrations (0-300 mg/kg) and aging periods (0 and 3 months). A sequential extraction procedure showed that the increasing As concentration in soils increased the ratio of non-specifically and specifically bound As, which are known to be bioavailable. This resulted in increasing As uptake by tomatoes with increasing As concentration (R²=0.87 for exponential fitting); however, the seed germination was not sensitive to the As concentrations of the soil samples. The seed germination was also statistically similar in the soils with 75 and 150 mg-As/kg regardless of the aging period. The time taken until the seed germination (i.e., lag phase), on the other hand, decreased from 10 d to 3 d with aging for 3 months. This can be attributed to the decreased amount of bioavailable As with aging. Overall, this study shows that when the toxic effects of the As-contaminated soils are assessed using tomato plants, it is better to use more sensitive methods than seed germination such as the As accumulation or the lag phase for seed germination.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.149-157
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• 2000

This paper presents the first results of dissolved arsenic in the Kangnung Namdae stream. The distribution of As concentrations measured in 28 August (high water flow) and in 21 November 1997 (low water flow) differs from those of other metals measured during the same period; The concentrations of Doam-dam are lower than those of Obong-dam and accumulation in the downstream in the period of low water flow is not pronounced. The As concentration in the downstream under the low water flow is lower than under high water flow, reciprocally to other metals. Freshwater concentrations are comparable with those measured in pristine river and lower than the world average and the diffrence of concentrations measured during two period is minute. Therefore, the As concentrations in the Namdae stream are background level and the source of As contamination does not exist. In the mixing zone between the freshwater and Donghae seawater, As behave conservatively, indicating the absence of any significant removal or mobilization processes. A first estimation of total dissolved As input from Namdae stream to Donghae coastal sea shows 65.12 kg/yr.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.329-338
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• 2013

The objective of this study is to investigate the contents and seasonal variation of arsenic in soils and crop plant(rice) in paddy fields around the abandoned metal mines in Korea. The soils were extracted by various methods including aqua regia, 1 M $MgCl_2$, 0.01 M $CaCl_2$ and 0.05 M EDTA to evaluate the relationships between soils and crop plants(rice). According to correlation analysis, statistically significant correlation with the four methods(p<0.01) were found in soils extracted by various chemical solutions and arsenic contents in soils were decreased in the order of 1M $MgCl_2$ > 0.01M $CaCl_2$ > 0.05 M EDTA. Biological accumulation coefficients(BACs) of rice stalks were higher than those of rice grain, and the coefficients under reducing(August) environment were higher than those under oxidizing conditions(October). Assuming the rice consumption of 315 g/day by farm households in Korea, the amount of daily intake of arsenic were estimated to be 77.8 ${\mu}g/day$. The daily intake of arsenic from the rice estimates up to 65% of ADI(acceptable daily intake) that the FAO/WHO Joint Food Additive and Contaminants Committee has set to evaluate their safeties.