• Journal of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.67 no.2
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• pp.89-98
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• 2023

The cell membrane, also known as the biological membrane, surrounds every living cell. The main components of cell membranes are lipids and therefore called as lipid membranes. These membranes are mainly made up of a two-dimensional lipid bilayer along with integral and peripheral proteins. The complex nature of lipid membranes makes it difficult to study and hence artificial lipid membranes are prepared which mimic the original lipid membranes. These artificial lipid membranes are prepared from phospholipid vesicles (liposomes). The liposomes are formed when self-forming phospholipid bilayer comes in contact with water. Liposomes can be unilamellar or multilamellar vesicles which comprises of phospholipids that can be produced naturally or synthetically. The phospholipids are non-toxic, biodegradable and are readily produced on a large scale. These liposomes are mostly used in the drug delivery systems. This paper offers comprehensive literature with insights on developing basic understanding of lipid membranes from its structure, organization, and phase behavior to its potential use in biomedical applications. The progress in the field of artificial membrane models considering methods of preparation of liposomes for mimicking lipid membranes, interactions between the lipid membranes, and characterizing techniques such as UV-visible, FTIR, Calorimetry and X-ray diffraction are explained in a concise manner.

• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.109-112
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• 1997

Morphology of carbonate crystals grown on the surface of artificial cell membranes was controlled by changing the interfacial chemistry. For octadecyltriethoxysilane (OTE) films with terminal methyl groups interacting little with an aqueous calcium carbonate solution calcite (104) crystals were formed. Polymerized pentacosadiynoic acid (PDA) films with terminal carboxylic acid groups induced deposition of calcite (012) crystals aligned along with each other within a polymer domain. On the other hand, stearyl alcohol (StOH) films with terminal hydroxyl groups induced deposition of aragonite crystals. When PDA was mixed with StOH, the 8:1 PDA:StOH (molar ratio) film produced dominating calcite (012) crystals without any crystal alignment, and the 4:1 mixture film produced minor calcite (012) crystals and major aragonite crystals. For the 2:1, 1:1, 1:2, and 1:4 mixture films, aragonite crystals were dominating. Hence, it is found that the chemical composition at the interface plays a very important role in controlling the morphology of deposited carbonate crystals.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.156-159
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• 2005

Liposomes are microscopic spherical vesicles that form when lipids are hydrated and have been widely used for biochemical assay, drug delivery and molecular imaging. In particular, they are well known for artificial cell membranes to study cellular functions such as cell fusions and membrane proteins. Here, we firstly report the detection of liposomes by the highly sensitive microfabricated piezoresistive cantilever sensor chip and the phosphatidylserine recognition protein C2A which is chemically immobilized on the sensor surface. The signal created from the bending motion of piezoresistive cantilever after the liposome attachment has been monitored in real time.

• Journal of Electrochemical Science and Technology
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.302-312
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• 2019

The voltage produced from the salinity gradient in reverse electrodialysis (RED) increases proportionally with the number of cell pairs of alternating cation and anion exchange membranes. Large-scale RED systems consisting of hundreds of cell pairs exhibit high voltage of more than 10 V, which is sufficient to utilize water electrolysis as the electrode reaction even though there is no specific strategy for minimizing the overpotential of water electrolysis. Moreover, hydrogen gas can be simultaneously obtained as surplus energy from the electrochemical reduction of water at the cathode if the RED system is equipped with proper venting and collecting facilities. Therefore, RED-driven water electrolysis system can be a promising solution not only for sustainable electric power but also for eco-friendly hydrogen production with high purity without $CO_2$ emission. The RED system in this study includes a high membrane voltage from more than 50 cells, neutral-pH water as the electrolyte, and an artificial NaCl solution as the feed water, which are more universal, economical, and eco-friendly conditions than previous studies on RED with hydrogen production. We measure the amount of hydrogen produced at maximum power of the RED system using a batch-type electrode chamber with a gas bag and evaluate the interrelation between the electric power and hydrogen energy with varied cell pairs. A hydrogen production rate of $1.1{\times}10^{-4}mol\;cm^{-2}h^{-1}$ is obtained, which is larger than previously reported values for RED system with simultaneous hydrogen production.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.547-557
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• 2016

This review discusses the status, antimicrobial mechanisms, application, and regulation of natural preservatives in livestock food systems. Conventional preservatives are synthetic chemical substances including nitrates/nitrites, sulfites, sodium benzoate, propyl gallate, and potassium sorbate. The use of artificial preservatives is being reconsidered because of concerns relating to headache, allergies, and cancer. As the demand for biopreservation in food systems has increased, new natural antimicrobial compounds of various origins are being developed, including plant-derived products (polyphenolics, essential oils, plant antimicrobial peptides (pAMPs)), animal-derived products (lysozymes, lactoperoxidase, lactoferrin, ovotransferrin, antimicrobial peptide (AMP), chitosan and others), and microbial metabolites (nisin, natamycin, pullulan, ε-polylysine, organic acid, and others). These natural preservatives act by inhibiting microbial cell walls/membranes, DNA/RNA replication and transcription, protein synthesis, and metabolism. Natural preservatives have been recognized for their safety; however, these substances can influence color, smell, and toxicity in large amounts while being effective as a food preservative. Therefore, to evaluate the safety and toxicity of natural preservatives, various trials including combinations of other substances or different food preservation systems, and capsulation have been performed. Natamycin and nisin are currently the only natural preservatives being regulated, and other natural preservatives will have to be legally regulated before their widespread use.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.99-110
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• 2018

Compared to yellow dust coming from China or particulate matter created naturally in spring due to Total Suspended Particulate(TSP), particulate matter in winter season have much more serious effect on human body as they penetrate cell membranes. Although such particulate matter are becoming a social issue, there are no concrete plans on how to reduce them. Air-purifying plants are limited in maintaining the indoor air quality of large area because it is usually difficult to quantify their performance. In order to improve this, a bio-filter that can be connected to air conditioner is suggested as an option. This study seeks to improve air conditioning model-based monitoring method for bio-filters from prior studies and objectify correlations between applied vegetation and growing environment into quantitative indicators. By doing so, this study seeks to provide criteria on plants applied to artificial soil-based vegetation bio-filters and basic information to set air-conditioning features. The study results confirmed significant tendency on the growing stability of each purifying plant in mechanical air-conditioning environment. Among three models selected for bio-filter vegetation models, epipremnum aureum showed high performance in quantitative indicators, including soil moisture, EC, and leaf temperature, etc., indicating that it would assure the highest growing stability in this test air-conditioning environment.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.39 no.5
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• pp.965-973
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• 1999

This study was carried out to investigate the effects of vitamin E on the prevention and treatment of Babesia gibsoni. Fifteen mongrel dogs, uninfected with Babesia spp, were assigned to three groups according to vitamin E(${\alpha}-tocopherol$) concentrations in the RBC. The concentrations in each of the three groups were, respectively : ${\alpha}-tocopherol$ in RBC less than $30{\mu}g/{\mu}l$(Group I), $30{\mu}g/{\mu}l{\sim}60{\mu}g/{\mu}l$(Group II), more than $60{\mu}g/{\mu}l$(Group III). Artificial infection was accomplished by injecting $2{\times}10^7{\sim}2{\times}10^8$ erythrocyte of Babesia gibsoni-infected dog into the cephalic vein. We investigated the clinical signs, vitamin E concentrations in RBC and serum, Vitamin A concentrations in serum, hematological values, white blood cell(WBC) viability and RBC membrane osmotic fragility after infection of Babesia gibsoni for a period of 20 days at 5 day intervals. The results obtained are summarized as follows : 1. After infection by Babesia gibsoni, clinical examination revealed depression, anorexia, pale mucous membranes, dark brown urine and diarrhea in proportion as time went on. After 10 days of infection, one dog each of Groups I, II and III revealed depression and anorexia. Two dogs in Group I and one dog each of Groups II and III showed dark brown urine after 15 days. Diarrhea was observed in one dog in each of the 3 groups after 20 days of infection. 2. After 5 days of infection, two dogs in each of Groups I, II and III showed Babesia gibsoni in RBC of blood smear stained with Giemsa. At the 15th day after infection with Babesia gibsoni, they were observed in all experimental animals. After both 5 days and 10 days of infection, the rate of Babesia gibsoni parasitized RBC(permillage, ‰) was 1‰, and increased as time went on. 3. After 5 days of infection by Babesia gibsoni, Group I, which had the lowest vitamin E concentration, showed significantly decreased RBC and PCV levels(p < 0.01). Group II and group III also showed significantly decreased RBC and PCV levels after 15 days of infection(p < 0.05). Particularly after 10 days of infection, Group I showed lower values in RBC and PCV levels compared to Groups II and III. WBC, RBC, fibrinogen and total protein levels between the groups did not differ during experimental periods. 4. According to the WBC differential counts, the ratios of neutrophil to lymphocyte showed a tendency to be slightly higher in Group III (more than $60{\mu}g/{\mu}l$) than in Groups I and II. 5. WBC viability did not differ between the groups. 6. RBC membrane osmotic fragility did not differ between the groups.