• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.743-748
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• 2013

The temperature dependence of the partition coefficients of a neuropeptide, substance P (SP), in isotropic acidic bicelles was investigated by using a pulsed field gradient nuclear magnetic resonance diffusion technique. The addition of negatively charged dimyristoylphosphatidylserine to the neutral bicelle changed the SP partitioning a little, which implies that the hydrophobic interaction between the hydrophobic residues of SP and the acyl chains of lipid molecules is the major interaction while the electrostatic interaction is minor in SP binding in a lipid membrane. From the temperature dependence of the partition coefficients, thermodynamic functions were calculated. The partitioning of SP into the acidic bicelles is enthalpy-driven, as it is for small unilamellar vesicles and dodecylphosphocholine micelles, while peptide partitioning into a large unilamellar vesicle is entropy-driven. This may mean that the size of lipid membranes is a more important factor for peptide binding than the surface curvature and surface charge density.

• BMB Reports
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.427-431
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• 1998

In the previous report (Choi et al., 1997), the angiogenin binding peptides identified from a phage-peptide library were analyzed by using the fusion proteins composed of the Escherichia coli maltose binding protein and its corresponding peptides. However, it was difficult to obtain a sufficient amount of the fusion proteins required for further analysis because of the low expression level. We now report a high level expression of the fusion protein and analysis of its anti-angiogenin activity. The use of strong T7 promoter and removal of signal sequence allowed about a 20-fold increase in the expression efficiency of the fusion protein. We were able to obtain about 10 mg of purified fusion protein from one liter of culture. The purified fusion protein showed angiogenin-specific affinity and inhibited the binding of biotinylated actin to human angiogenin at $IC_{50}$ of 0.6 mM. Its anti-angiogenin activity was also revealed by the chorioallantoic membrane assay.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.52 no.1
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• pp.28-32
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• 2009

The bacterial toxin, tolaasin, causes brown blotch disease on the cultivated mushrooms by collapsing fungal and fruiting body structure of mushroom. Cytotoxicity of tolaasin was evaluated by measuring hemolytic activity because tolaasins form membrane pores on the red blood cells and destroy cell structure. While we investigated the inhibitions of hemolytic activity of tolaasin by $Zn^{2+}$ and $Cd^{2+}$, we found that $Ni^{2+}$ is another antagonist to block the toxicity of tolaasin. $Ni^{2+}$ inhibited the tolaasin-induced hemolysis in a dose-dependent manner and its Ki value was $\sim10$ mM, implying that the inhibitory effect of $Ni^{2+}$ is stronger than that of $Cd^{2+}$. The hemolytic activity was completely inhibited by $Ni^{2+}$ at the concentration higher than 50 mM. The effect of $Ni^{2+}$ was reversible since it was removed by the addition of EDTA. When the tolaasin-induced hemolysis was suppressed by the addition of 20 mM $Ni^{2+}$, the subsequent addition of EDIA immediately initiated the hemolysis. Although the mechanism of $Ni^{2+}$ -induced inhibition on tolaasin toxicity is not known, $Ni^{2+}$ could inhibit any of fallowing processes of tolaasin action, membrane binding, molecular multimerization, pore formation, and massive ion transport through the membrane pore. Our results indicate that $Ni^{2+}$ inhibits the pore activity of tolaasin, the last step of the toxic process.

• Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.281-286
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• 2006

Tolaasin, a pore-forming toxin, is a 1,985 Da peptide produced by Pseudomonas tolaasii and causes a brown blotch disease on cultivated mushrooms. Tolaasin forms pores on the plasma membrane of various cells including fungi, bacteria, plant as well as erythrocytes, and destroys cell structure. $Zn^{+2}$ has been known to block the tolaasin activity by an unknown mechanism. Thus, we investigated the inhibitory effects of $Zn^{+2}$ on the tolaasin-induced hemolysis to understand the molecular mechanism of tolaasin-induced pore formation. $Zn^{+2}$ and $Cd^{+2}$ inhibited the tolaasin-induced hemolysis in a dose-dependent manner and their Ki values were 170 ${\mu}M$ and 20 mM, respectively. The effect of $Zn^{+2}$ was reversible since the subsequent addition of EDTA chelates $Zn^{+2}$ and removes the inhibitory effect of $Zn^{+2}$. When an osmotic protectant, PEG 2000, was added, the tolaasin-induced hemolysis was not observed. After the removal of osmotic protectant by centrifugation, resuspended erythrocytes with fresh medium were immediately hemolyzed, while the addition of $Zn^{+2}$ prevented from hemolysis, implying that tolaasin-induced pores on the membrane were already formed in the medium containing osmotic protectant. These results suggest that $Zn^{+2}$ inhibits the activity of tolaasin pores and it has minor effects on the membrane binding of tolaasin and the formation of pore.

• Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.85-93
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• 1994

The fish skin gelatin hydrolysates were produced using a continuous two-stage membrane (MWCO 10,000, MWCO 5,000) reactor, and molecular weights, amino acids and functional properties of the hydrolysates were investigated. The major molecular weights distribution of the major fractions were $8{\sim}10\;KDa$ and $4.5{\sim}6.5\;KDa$ in the 1st-step hydrolysates, $2{\sim}6\;KDa$ and $0.5{\sim}2\;KDa$ in the 2nd-step hydrolysates. Among the amino acids in the hydrolysates, glycine, proline, serine, alanine, hydroxyproline, glutamic acid and aspartic acid having sweet taste were responsible for $68{\sim}72%$ of the total amino acids. But valine, methionine, isoleucine, leucine, phenylalanine and histidine having a bitter taste were only $23{\sim}25%$ Taste evaluations show that the gelatin hydrolysates have a brothy and sweet taste, 2nd-step hydrolysate have more a favorable taste than 1st-step hydrolysate. The hydrolysates were completely soluble and clear over the entire pH range. Moisture sorption at intermediate water activities of the 2nd-step hydrolysate was much higher than the unmodified fish skin gelatin, but foaming and emulsification properties were poor. Buffer capacity of the 2nd-step hydrolysate was higher than the fish skin gelatin and 1st-step hydrolysate, while viscosities of the hydrolysates were lower than the fish skin gelatin.

• Journal of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.39 no.9
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• pp.698-704
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• 1995

The ion-selective membrane fabricated with 33 wt% PVC, 66 wt% o-NPOE and 1 wt% 4'-benzothiazolylbenzo-15-crown-5 (TB15C5) as a neutral carrier exhibited an enhanced selectivity to potassium ion over sodium ion compared to those prepared with other 15-crown-5 or 18-crown-6 derivatives. The potentiometric properties (response slope, selectivity, detection limits and lifetime) of TB15C5-based ISE membranes along with those based on valinomycin, benzo-15-crown-5 (B15C5), 4'-aminobenzo-15-crouwn-5 (AB15C5), benzo-18-crown-6 (B18C6), dibenzo-18-crown-6 (DB18C6) and bis[(benzo-15-crown-5)-4'-ylmethyl]pimelate (PI-Ⅱ) ionophores were carefully examined under the same experimental conditions. The enhanced selectivity of TB15C5-based membrane to potassium is explained in terms of the effect of the benzothiazol functional group and the distribution coefficients of metal ions.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.31 no.12
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• pp.3623-3631
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• 2010

We prepared several novel molecular transporters built on myo- and scyllo-inositol scaffolds with variations in the number of guanidine residues, linker chain lengths and patterns. Some of these transporters were found to localize in mitochondria, and the mitochondrial affinity seems to be substantially related to the scaffold stereochemistry.

• Journal of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry
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• v.68
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• pp.416-424
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• 2018

Oil spill and oily wastewater have now become a serious threat to the freshwater and marine environments. Porous materials with super-hydrophobicity and super-oleophilicity are good candidates for the oil adsorption and oil/water separation. Here, flexible hybrid nanofibrous membrane (FHNM) containing $SiO_2$/polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) microspheres was prepared by simultaneous electrospinning and electrospraying. The obtained FHNM combined the flexibility of the nanofiber mat and super-hydrophobicity of the microspheres, which could not be achieved by either only electrospinning or only electrospraying. It was found that when the weight ratio between the $SiO_2$ and PVDF reached a critical value, the $SiO_2$ nanoparticles were present on the PVDF microsphere surface, significantly improving the surface roughness and hence the contact angle of the FHNM. Compared with the pure electrospun PVDF nanofiber mat, most of the FHNMs have a higher oil adsorption capacity. The FHNM could separate the oil with water quickly under the gravity and displayed a high efficiency and good reusability for the oil/water separation. More importantly, the FHNM could not only separate the oil with the pure water but also the corrosive solution including the salt, acid and alkali solution.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.175-181
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• 2006

Hybrid process of thermally-induced phase separation and stretching was developed for the preparation of microporous polypropylene hollow fiber membranes. Precursor for stretching was prepared by using soybean oil as a diluent and benzoic acid as a nucleating agent far the sphenlite control and it was stretched far the micrporous hollow fiber membrane. The effects of stretching ratio and deformation rate for stretching process were investigated. Increase of stretching ratio resulted in the greater pore size with nonuniform size distribution. Higher deformation rate also increaser the pore size with uniform size distribution. Stretching ratio was closely related with the orientation of polymer chain and increased the mechanical strength of the fiber. Increase of deformation rate had little effects on the orientation of crystalline phase, and decreased the orientation of amorphous phase which caused the decrease of tensile strength of the fiber and broke the micro-fibrils connecting spherulites to form a circular pore shape.

• Membrane Journal
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.213-222
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• 2014

In this study, 2-stage recirculation membrane process was developed for purification of high purity bio-methane for the vehicle fuel application. Pure gas permeation and mixture gas permeation test were done as a function of methane content and pressure in the feed using polysulfone membrane modules. 2-stage membrane plant was designed, constructed in a food waste treatment cite. Dehumidification, dry desulfurization, and desiloxane plants are installed for the removal of $H_2O$, $H_2S$ and siloxane in the biogas. Permeation test were done with the pre-treated methane mixture in terms of methane purity and recovery by adjusting the ratio of membrane area (1:1, 1:3, 2:2) in the first and second membrane modules in the plant. When membrane area of 2 stage increased to $3m^2$ from $1m^2$ at 1-stage membrane area of $1m^2$, the feed rate and $CH_4$ recovery at 95% methane purity were increased from 47.1% to 92.5% respectively. When the membrane area increased two-fold (1:1 to 2:2), $CH_4$ recovery increased from 47.1% to 88.3%. When the feed flow rate was increased, in 1:3 ratio, final purity of the methane is reduced, the methane recovery is increased. When operating pressure was increased, the feed rate was increased and recovery was slightly decreased. From this result, membrane area, feed pressure and feed rate could be the important factor to the performance of the membrane process.