• Journal of Environmental Science International
• /
• v.20 no.4
• /
• pp.457-463
• /
• 2011

This study was carried out to compare the toxicity of nano and micrometer particles with Cu and Zn on soil microbial community and metal uptake of buck wheat. In microcosm system, soil was incubated for 14 days after soil aliquots were artificially contaminated with 1,000 mg/kg Cu, Zn nano and micro particles, respectively. After then, buck wheat was planted in incubating soils and non incubating soils. After 14 days, we compared bioaccumulation of metal, and microbial carbon substrate utilization patterns between incubating soils and non-incubating soils. The enrichment factor (EF) values of incubating samples were greater than non-incubating soils. Dehydrogenase activity had been inhibited by Cu and Zn nanoparticles in non-incubating soil, as well as it had been inhibited by Zn micro particles in incubating soils. Results of biolog test, it was not significant different between nano particles and micro particles. It cannot be generalized that nanoparticles of metal are always more toxic to soil microbial activity and diversity than micrometer-sized particles and the toxicity needs to be assessed on a case-by-case basis.

• Research in Plant Disease
• /
• v.22 no.4
• /
• pp.227-235
• /
• 2016

Plant disease caused by root-knot nematode is a major problem in crop production. Using of chemical pesticides, one of the most efficient methods to control nematodes, have raised issues in toxicity to humans and animals and environmental pollution. In this study, to select actinomycete strains that have potential to serve as a microbial agent for control of nematodes, we investigated nematicidal activity of culture broth from 670 Streptomyces isolates. A culture filtrate of KRA15-528 isolate that was identified as S. flavogriseus on the basis of 16S rRNA sequence analysis, showed strong nematicidal activity against second stage of juveniles of Meloidogyne incognita and inhibited egg hatching; exposure to 10% of culture filtrate resulted in 71% juvenile mortality at 48 hours afters treatment and suppressed egg hatching by 54% at 9 days after treatment. When the KRA15-528 culture filtrate was partitioned with ethyl acetate and butanol, ethyl acetate layer exclusively showed strong activity; 91%, 53%, 30% of mortality at 1,000, 500, $250{\mu}g/ml$, respectively. Additionally, the culture filtrate suppressed gall formation on cucumber plant by M. incognita with no phytotoxicity. These results suggest that S. flavogriseus KRA15-528 has potential to serve as a microbial nematicide for the control of root-knot nematode disease.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
• /
• v.20 no.3
• /
• pp.272-280
• /
• 2018

Existing toxicity assessment researches were rarely studied on assessment of the abnormal behavior that affecting survival. Therefore, the study used anti-predator response of amphibians larvae, based on behavioral understanding, to assess toxicity in fullerene nanowhisker(FNW) and fullerene nanowhisker-silver nanoparticle composites(FNW-Ag). The experiment was conducted by dividing the groups not exposed to nanomaterials and exposed to nanomaterials at five concentrations(FNW: $10{\mu}g/ml$, FNW: $100{\mu}g/ml$, FNW: $500{\mu}g/ml$ FNW-Ag: $10{\mu}g/ml$, FNW: $50{\mu}g/ml$). As a result, there were no differences in normal activity except those exposed to concentrations of FNW-Ag $50{\mu}g/ml$, but there were statistically significant differences in anti-predator response except those exposed to concentrations of FNW $10{\mu}g/ml$. That is, exposed of nanomaterials does not affect ordinary movements, but analyses based on behavioral understandings have shown that it has an influence on the anti-predator response. It is therefore considered necessary to have animal behavioral analysis method performed in the assessment of eco-toxic experiment.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.27 no.4
• /
• pp.731-738
• /
• 2017

A novel approach to synthesize silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using leaf extract of Canna edulis Ker-Gawl. (CELE) under ambient conditions is reported here. The as-prepared AgNPs were analyzed by UV-visible spectroscopy, transmission emission microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy, energy-dispersive analysis of X-ray spectroscopy, zeta potential, and dynamic light scattering. The AgNPs showed excellent antimicrobial activity against various pathogens, including bacteria and various fungi. The biocompatibility of the AgNPs was analyzed in the L929 cell line using NRU and MTT assays. Acridine orange/ethidium bromide staining was used to determine whether the AgNPs had necrotic or apoptotic effects on L929 cells. The concentration of AgNPs required for 50% inhibition of growth of mammalian cells is far more than that required for inhibition of pathogenic microorganisms. Thus, CELE is a candidate for the eco-friendly, clean, cost-effective, and nontoxic synthesis of AgNPs.

• Mycobiology
• /
• v.38 no.4
• /
• pp.302-309
• /
• 2010

Formic acid is a representative carboxylic acid that inhibits bacterial cell growth, and thus it is generally considered to constitute an obstacle to the reuse of renewable biomass. In this study, Saccharomyces cerevisiae was used to elucidate changes in protein levels in response to formic acid. Fifty-seven differentially expressed proteins in response to formic acid toxicity in S. cerevisiae were identified by 1D-PAGE and nano-liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (nano-LC-MS/MS) analyses. Among the 28 proteins increased in expression, four were involved in the MAP kinase signal transduction pathway and one in the oxidative stress-induced pathway. A dramatic increase was observed in the number of ion transporters related to maintenance of acid-base balance. Regarding the 29 proteins decreased in expression, they were found to participate in transcription during cell division. Heat shock protein 70, glutathione reductase, and cytochrome c oxidase were measured by LC-MS/MS analysis. Taken together, the inhibitory action of formic acid on S. cerevisiae cells might disrupt the acidbase balance across the cell membrane and generate oxidative stress, leading to repressed cell division and death. S. cerevisiae also induced expression of ion transporters, which may be required to maintain the acid-base balance when yeast cells are exposed to high concentrations of formic acid in growth medium.

• Clean Technology
• /
• v.23 no.4
• /
• pp.388-392
• /
• 2017

In this study, a quantitative environmental impact assessment for the production process of breathable film was conducted employing Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology. Among the various categories, Global Warming (GW) accounted for the highest impact (97%) followed by Human Toxicity (HT). And the key substances of various impact categories included HDPE, PP, and electricity. In the production process, the high impact resulted from mixing process (57%), lamination process (29%), and extruder process (10%). To improve environmental impact, it is necessary to design a new process system that reduces the amount of electricity used and that increases production yields, if raw materials such as HDPE and PP owe excluded.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Propulsion Engineers Conference
• /
• 2017.05a
• /
• pp.406-408
• /
• 2017

Ammonium dinitramide (ADN) Low toxicity monopropellant based 1N class thruster and test equipment were developed. Compared with the hydrazine which used in existing satellite thruster, ADN is easy to handle and has excellent physical characteristics such as density and specific impulse. Due to these characteristics, ADN is attracting attention as an eco-friendly propellant. In this paper, 1N class thruster and thrust measurement system was designed for performance testing of ADN monopropellant. The composition of the propellant for the design and experiment was set at 11.2: 25.4: 63.4 for each of Methanol: $H_2O$: ADN.

• Ceramist
• /
• v.22 no.2
• /
• pp.133-145
• /
• 2019

Thermoelectric energy conversion has attracted much attention because it can convert heat into electric power directly through solid state device and vice versa. Current research is aimed at increasing the thermoelectric figure of merit (ZT ) by improving the power factor and reducing the thermal conductivity. Although there have been significant progresses in increasing ZT of material systems composed of Bi, Te, Ge, Pb, and etc. over the last few decades, their relatively high cost, toxicity, and the scarcity have hindered further development of thermoelectrics to expand practical applications. In this paper, we review the current status of research in the fields of nanostructured thermoelectric materials with eco-friendly and low cost elements, such as skutterudites and oxides, for mid-high temperature applications, highlighting the strategies to improve thermoelectric performance.

• Textile Coloration and Finishing
• /
• v.33 no.4
• /
• pp.230-237
• /
• 2021

The flame-retardant (FR) treatments of wool fibers using Hexafluorozirconate/titanate salts and tetrabromophthalic anhydride can cause skin irritation and gas toxicity due to Zr and Br compounds respectively. A water-soluble polyfunctional cyclophosphazene derivative, synthesized through substitution reaction of Hexachloro cyclophosphazene and N-[3-(Dimethylamino)propyl] metacrylamide, was applied as a durable flame-retardant for wool fabrics. Also, a crosslinked structure was introduced to improve washing durability of the FR-wool, up to 10 laundering cycles, using Acrylamide(AAm) and Triacryloylhexahydrotriazine (TAHT) as a comonomer and a crosslinker respectively. The mole ratios of the TAHT and AAm concentrations compared to the Dichloro tetrakis{N-[3-(Dimethylamino)propyl]methacrylamido} cyclcophosphazene (DCTDCP) were optimized to 1.33 and 7.5 respectively. In addition, the pyrolysis and combustion properties of the FR wool were assessed using LOI, TGA and microcalorimetry suggesting a solid-phase FR mechanism.

• International Journal of Industrial Entomology and Biomaterials
• /
• v.18 no.1
• /
• pp.18-27
• /
• 2009

B. thuringiensis strain LY-99 belonging to subsp. alesti (H3a3c), was isolated from Chinese tobacco warehouse and showed significantly high toxicity to Plutella xylostella. For the identification of the cry1-type genes from B. thuringiensis LY-99, an extended multiplex PCRrestriction fragment length polymorphism (PCRRFLP) method was established by using two pairs of universal primers based on the conserved regions of the cry1-type genes to amplify around 2.4 kb cry1-type gene fragments. Then the DNA fragment was cloned into pGEM-T Easy vector and digested with EcoRI and EcoRV enzymes. Through this method, a known cry1-type gene was successfully identified from the reference strain, B. thuringiensis subsp. alesti. In addition, the RFLP patterns revealed that B. thuringiensis LY-99 included a novel cry1A-type gene in addition to cry1Aa, cry1Ac, cry1Be and cry1Ea genes. The novel cry1A-type gene was designated cry1Ah2 (Genbank accession No DQ269474). An inverse PCR method was used to amplify the flank regions of cry1Ah2 gene. Finally, 3143 bp HindIII fragment from B. thuringiensis LY-99 plasmid DNA including 5' region and partial ORF was amplified, and sequence analysis revealed that cry1Ah2 gene from LY-99 showed 89.31% of maximum sequence similarity with cry1Ac1 crystal protein gene. In addition, the deduced amino acid sequence of Cry1Ah2 protein shared 87.80% of maximum identity with that of Cry1Ac2. This protein therefore belongs to a new class of B. thuringiensis crystal proteins.