• Journal of Life Science
• /
• v.31 no.1
• /
• pp.10-16
• /
• 2021

The consumption of fresh-cut agricultural materials is increasing due to increased public interest in health and the increase of single-person households. Most fresh-cut agricultural materials can be eaten without heating, thus easily exposing the consumer to food-borne pathogens. As a result, food-borne diseases are increasing worldwide. In the analysis of food-borne pathogens, it is important to detect the strains, but this is time consuming and laborious. Alternative detection methods that have been introduced, include polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE), which is performed without prior culturing. Samples of fresh-cut agricultural materials, such as vegetables, were analyzed by the culture-based method. In 129 samples, non-pathogenic Escherichia coli (3.9%), Bacillus cereus (31.8%), Clostridium perfringens (5.4%), Yersinia enterocolitica (0.8%), and enterohemorrhagic E. coli (0.8%) were detected. Eight samples contaminated with bacteria were randomly selected, further analyzed by PCR-DGGE, and compared with the culture-based method. Two cases detected non-pathogenic E. coli by PCR-DGGE only, despite a lack of detection by the culture method. It was supposed there was possibility of sample loss during its 10-fold dilution for appropriate cultivation. In the detection of high-risk food-borne pathogens, it was found that the detection limit was lower in PCR-DGGE than in the culture-based method (10 CFU/g). This suggests that PCR-DGGE can be alternatively used to detect strains. On the other hand, low-risk food-borne pathogens seem to have higher detection limits in PCR-DGGE. Consequentially, this study contributes to the improvement of food-borne pathogen detection and the prevention of its related-diseases in fresh-cut agricultural materials.

• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
• /
• v.11 no.12
• /
• pp.329-341
• /
• 2020

As COVID-19 pandemic sweeps across the world, more than 45 million confirmed cases and over 1,000,000 deaths have occurred till now, and this situation is expected to continue for some time. In particular, more than half of the infections in European countries such as Italy and Spain occurred in nursing homes, and it is reported that over 4,000 people died in nursing homes for older adults in the United States. Therefore, the issues that need to be addressed after the COVID-19 crisis include finding a fundamental solution to group care and shifting to family-centered care. More specifically, it is expected that there will be ever more lively discussion on establishing and expanding hyper-technology based community care, that is, family-centered care integrated with ICT and other Industry 4.0 technologies. This poses a challenge of how to combine social security and social welfare with Industry 4.0 in concrete ways that go beyond the abstract suggestions made in the past. A case in point is the proposal involving smart welfare cities. Given this background, the present paper examined the concept, scope, and content of non-face-to-face care in the context of previous literature on the function and scope of the social security platform, and the concept and expandability of the smart welfare city. Implementing a smart city to realize the kind of social security and welfare that our society seeks to provide has significant bearing on the implementation of community care or aging in place. One limitation of this paper, however, is that it does not address concrete measures for implementing non-face-to-face care from the policy and legal/institutional perspectives, and further studies are needed to explore such measures in the future. It is expected that the findings of this paper will provide the future course and vision not only for the smart welfare city but also for the social security and welfare system in administrative, practical, and legislative aspects, and ultimately contribute to improving the quality of human life.

• Korean Journal of Mineralogy and Petrology
• /
• v.34 no.1
• /
• pp.15-29
• /
• 2021

In the Arctic Ocean, the distribution of sea ice and ice sheets changes as climate changes. Because the distribution of ice cover influences the mineral composition of marine sediments, studying marine sediments transported by sea ice or iceberg is very important to understand the global climate change. This study analyzes marine sediment samples collected from the Arctic Ocean and infers the provenance of the sediments to reconstruct the paleoenvironment changes of the western Arctic. The analyzed samples include four gravity cores collected from the Araon mound in the Chukchi Plateau and one gravity core collected from the slope between the Araon mounds. The core sediments were brown, gray, and greenish gray, each of which corresponds to the characteristic color of sediments deposited during the interglacial/glacial cycle in the western Arctic Ocean. We divide the core sediments into three units based on the analysis of bulk mineral composition, clay mineral composition, and Ice Rafted Debris (IRD) as well as comparison with previous study results. Unit 3 sediments, deposited during the last glacial maximum, were transported by sea ice and currents after the sediments of the Kolyma and Indigirka Rivers were deposited on the continental shelf of the East Siberian Sea. Unit 2 sediments, deposited during the deglacial period, were from the Kolyma and Indigirka Rivers flowing into the East Siberian Sea as well as from the Mackenzie River and the Canadian Archipelago flowing into the Beaufort Sea. Unit 2 sediments also contained an extensive amount of IRD, which originated from the melted Laurentide Ice Sheet. During the interglacial stage, fine-grained sediments of Unit 1 were transported by sea ice and currents from Northern Canada and the East Siberian Sea, but coarse-grained sediments were derived by sea ice from the Canadian Archipelago.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
• /
• v.22 no.1
• /
• pp.468-476
• /
• 2021

This study examined the effects of a hydrothermal pretreatment (HP) on the nutritional values and in vitro fermentation characteristics of tall fescue and corn silage. This study was conducted through a factorial design of 2 (control or HP) × 2 (hay; tall fescue or silage; corn). For the HP, forage was placed into a glass bottle with 20% w/v of water, and the glass bottle was sealed and heated to reach a temperature of 121℃ (0.12 MPa). The solid residue and liquid were collected and oven-dried at 65℃ for three days. The dried materials were tested for in vitro fermentation at 39℃ for 24 and 48 h. The content of ADF increased significantly regardless of the forage type. After in vitro incubation for 24 h, the total VFA content was significantly lower after HP, regardless of the forage type (p ≤ 0.05), and the propionate concentration was increased in corn silage with HP (p ≤ 0.05). After 48 hours of in vitro incubation, the propionate content increased significantly (p ≤ 0.03) in corn silage with HP (p ≤ 0.05), but the butyrate content decreased significantly (p ≤ 0.05). There was no change in the in vitro dry matter and neutral detergent fiber digestibility by HP regardless of the forage type. Therefore, the use of hydrothermally pretreated corn silage could be advantageous for the supply of energy for ruminants.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
• /
• v.36 no.1
• /
• pp.60-67
• /
• 2021

In this study we investigated pesticide residues on herbs and spices disrtibuted in the Incheon Metropolitan area. A total of 112 samples were purchased from off-line and on-line markets from January to October 2020. In accordance with the implementation of the Positive List System (PLS), the proper usage of pesticides is now being enforced. It is assumed that unregistered pesticides are being used on herbs and spices due to the low number of registered pesticides in the agricultural industry. Pesticide residue levels were not detected in 99 samples but 11 kinds of pesticides in 6 samples (13 times) exceeded the MRLs. The pesticides that were used in accordance with the PLS were Diazinon, Diethofencarb and Pyridalyl. However, unregistered pesticides were on the herbs and spices. Therefore, it is necessary to educate producers of herbs and spices on the appropriate use of pesticides. It is also necessary to establish MRLs on herbs and spices.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
• /
• v.52 no.6
• /
• pp.610-615
• /
• 2020

Edible insects might be used as a means to solve food insecurity caused by population growth. Many studies have investigated the biological activity of insects; however, few studies have investigated the nutritional value of insects. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the nutritional value of Allomyrina dichotoma larva protein (ADP) as a source of protein replacement. In vivo studies were conducted to determine the food efficiency ratio (FER), protein efficiency ratio (PER), and true digestibility (TD) of ADP. Experiments were conducted in 3 groups of 8 animals per group using twenty-four 4-week-old SD rats. The experimental groups included the general diet group (Con), in which 20% of the total Kcal in the diet was composed of casein protein, and the ADP group (ADP), in which 20% of the total Kcal was composed of ADP protein, and a non-protein diet group (NP) to measure the protein (metabolic fecal nitrogen) excreted by metabolic processes in the body. As a result of this experiment, we found that the FERs were 0.52 and 0.41 in the casein protein intake (Con) and ADP groups, respectively, thus showing a significantly lower level in the ADP group. The PERs of ADP and Con were 2.39 and 2.63, respectively. The TD of Con and ADP were 91% and 80%, respectively.

• The Korean Journal of Mycology
• /
• v.49 no.1
• /
• pp.87-100
• /
• 2021

This study aimed to isolate wild yeasts obtained from flowers and soil of the Wolpyung park, Daejeon city and Gykpo beach, Buan, Jeollabuk-do in Korea, and to further characterize previously unrecorded wild yeast strains. In total, 88 strains of 62 different species of wild yeasts were isolated from 75 samples obtained from the Wolpyung park. Among these, six strains of Trichosporon moniliiforme and four strains each of Papiliotrema flavescens and Candida melibiosica were isolated. Additionally, 39 strains of 30 different species of wild yeasts were isolated from 35 samples collected from the Gykpo beach. Among the 127 isolated wild yeast strains, 10 strains, including Apiotrichum porosum ASCM32-1, were previously unrecorded. All the 10 previously unrecorded yeasts were oval or global in shape, and three strains, including Candida athensensis WP4-90-3, formed spores. Three strains, including Vishniacozyma taibaiensis WP13-2, were halophilic yeasts which grew in 15% NaCl-containing YPD(yeast extract-peptone-dextrose) medium. Five strains, including C. athensensis WP4-90-3, showed 15% ethanol resistance. Cell-free extracts from Candida oleophila WP5-19-1 and Wickerhamomyces anomalus HO9-2 showed the highest β-glucuronidase inhibitory activity (49.0%) and neutrophil elastase inhibitory activity (38.4%), respectively.

• Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
• /
• v.37 no.3
• /
• pp.419-430
• /
• 2021

Remote sensing techniques using drone-based multispectral image were studied for fast and two-dimensional monitoring of algal blooms in the river. Drone is anticipated to be useful for algal bloom monitoring because of easy access to the field, high spatial resolution, and lowering atmospheric light scattering. In addition, application of multispectral sensors could make image processing and analysis procedures simple, fast, and standardized. Spectral indices derived from the active spectrum of photosynthetic pigments in terrestrial plants and phytoplankton were tested for estimating chlorophyll-a concentrations (Chl-a conc.) from drone-based multispectral image. Spectral indices containing the red-edge band showed high relationships with Chl-a conc. and especially, 3-band model (3BM) and normalized difference chlorophyll index (NDCI) were performed well (R²=0.86, RMSE=7.5). NDCI uses just two spectral bands, red and red-edge, and provides normalized values, so that data processing becomes simple and rapid. The 3BM which was tuned for accurate prediction of Chl-a conc. in productive water bodies adopts originally two spectral bands in the red-edge range, 720 and 760 nm, but here, the near-infrared band replaced the longer red-edge band because the multispectral sensor in this study had only one shorter red-edge band. This index is expected to predict more accurately Chl-a conc. using the sensor specialized with the red-edge range.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
• /
• v.100 no.2
• /
• pp.226-231
• /
• 2011

Ulmus davidiana var. japonica is a deciduous tree species used for traditional medicine. This study was conducted to investigate the variation of samara, seed, germination and growth characteristics among populations and among individuals within five natural populations of U. davidiana var. japonica distributed in Korea. The ten characteristics of samara and seed, the three germination behaviors as well as the two growth traits were studied in samaras collected from total 32 trees. Statistical analysis of all characteristics showed that there were significant differences among populations as well as among individuals within populations. In this study, the mean characteristics of this species were 13.0 mm in samara length, 9.7 mm in samara width, 1.37 in samara index, 0.015 g in samara weight, 3.07 mm in samara stalk length, 3.85 seed length, 2.66 mm in seed width, 1.46 in seed index, 1.29 mm seed thickness, 0.0062 g in seed weigh, 34.8% in germination percentage, 8.6 days in mean germination time, 3.5 ea./day in gemination rate, 37.7 cm in height and 4.90 mm in root collar diameter. Especially, coefficients of variations in samara weight, germination percentage, germination rate, height and root collar diameter were relatively high (${\geq}30.0%$) compared to other traits. There was no significant relationship between population association and geographical distribution. The results of principal component analysis for 15 characteristics showed that primary four principal components (PC's) explained 100% of the total variation. The first PC accounted for 41.8% of the variability which correlated with morphological traits, the second PC accounted for 32.9% of the variability which correlated with germination behaviors and the third PC accounted for 16.3% of the variability which correlated with growth traits.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
• /
• v.22 no.5
• /
• pp.532-539
• /
• 2011

The physical and chemical properties of the dried low rank coals (LRCs) before and after the surface treatment using ozone and ammonia were characterized in this study. The contents of moisture, volatiles, fixed carbon and ash consisting of dried LRCs before the surface treatment were about 2.0, 44.8, 44.9 and 8.9%, respectively. Also, it was composed of carbon of 62.66%, hydrogen of 4.33%, nitrogen of 0.94%, oxygen of 27.01% and sulfur of 0.09%. The dried LRCs was surface-treated with the various dry methods using gases such as ozone at room temperature, ammonia at $200^{\circ}C$ and then the dried LRCs before and after the surface treatment were characterized by the various analysis methods such as FT-IR, TGA, proximate and elemental analysis, caloric value, ignition test, adsorption of $H_2O$ and $NH_3-TPD$. As a result, the oxygen content increased and the calorific value, ignition temperature and the contents of carbon and hydrogen relatively decreased because the oxygen-contained functional groups were additionally generated by the surface oxidation with ozone which plays a role as an oxidant. Also, its $H_2O$ adsorption ability got higher because the hydrophilic oxygen-contained functional groups were additionally generated by the surface oxidation with ozone. On the other hand, it was confirmed that the dried LRCs after the surface treatment with $NH_3$ at $200^{\circ}C$ have the decreased oxygen content, but the increased calorific value, ignition temperature and contents of carbon and hydrogen because of the decomposition of oxygen-contained functional groups the on the surface. In addition, the $H_2O$ adsorption ability was lowered bucause the surface of the dried LRCs might be hydrophobicized by the loss of the hydrophilic oxygen-contained functional groups. It was concluded that the various physico-chemical properties of the dried LRCs can be changed by the surface treatment.