• The Korean Journal of Ecology
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.267-279
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• 1992

The relationship between pb, zn, cd, and the microbial biomass and activity were investigated in three public park soils of central and outer london. Variability with distance from the roadside and profile were studied. The heavey metal concentrations were the highest in hampstead heath and hyde park with high trafic density and the lowest in hainault. The highest concentrations of heavy metals were found adjacent to the roadside in the upper parts of the soil profile. Dehydrogenase activity, adenosine tri-phosphate and ergosterol contents used as indices of micrbial biomass and activity, were generally higher in hainadult, and also higher in the upper pats of the soil profile. Simple regression analysis indicated that the microbial biomass and activity were affected significantly by moisture content, water holding capacity, total organic carbon, total nitrogen, and organic mater rather than heavy metal concentration. Highest inputs of nitrogen and carbon were associated with high inputs of heavey metals, all three being derived from vehicle emissions adjacent to the road. The hyde park and hampstead heath microbial populations were able to respond to the c and n input positively by increase in biomass and activity, whereas the hainault populations could not. This rsult suggrsts adaptation in he former to heavy matals, but not in the latter.

• Ocean Science Journal
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.145-153
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• 2005

Variation in the microbial biomass and community structure found in sediment of heavily polluted bays and the adjacent unpolluted areas were examined using phospholipid fatty acid analysis. Total microbial biomass and microbial community structure were responding to environmental determinants, sediment grain size, depth of sediment, and pollution due to petroleum hydrocarbons. The marker fatty acids of microeukaryotes and prokaryotes - aerobic, anaerobic, and sulfate-reducing bacteria - were detected in sediments of the areas studied. Analysis of the fatty acid profiles revealed wide variations in the community structure in sediments, depending on the extent of pollution, sediment depth, and sediment grain size. The abundance of specific bacterial fatty acids points to the dominance of prokaryotic organisms, whose composition differed among the stations. Fatty acid distributions in sediments suggest the high contribution of aerobic bacteria. Sediments of polluted sites were significantly enriched with anaerobic bacteria in comparison with clean areas. The contribution of this bacterial group increased with the depth of sediments. Anaerobic bacteria were predominantly present in muddy sediments, as evidenced from the fatty acid profiles. Relatively high concentrations of marker fatty acids of sulfate-reducing bacteria were associated with organic pollution in this site. Specific fatty acids of microeukaryotes were more abundant in surface sediments than in deeper sediment layers. Among the microeukaryotes, diatoms were an important component. Significant amounts of bacterial biomass, the predominance of bacterial biomarker fatty acids with abundance of anaerobic and sulfate-reducing bacteria are indicative of a prokaryotic consortium responsive to organic pollution.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.155-162
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• 2018

Background: In ecosystem carbon cycle studies, distinguishing between $CO_2$ emitted by roots and by microbes remains very difficult because it is mixed before being released into the atmosphere. Currently, no method for quantifying root and microbial respiration is effective. Therefore, this study investigated the relationship between soil respiration and underground root biomass at varying distances from the tree and tested possibilities for measuring root and microbial respiration. Methods: Soil respiration was measured by the closed chamber method, in which acrylic collars were placed at regular intervals from the tree base. Measurements were made irregularly during one season, including high temperatures in summer and low temperatures in autumn; the soil's temperature and moisture content were also collected. After measurements, roots of each plot were collected, and their dry matter biomass measured to analyze relationships between root biomass and soil respiration. Results: Apart from root biomass, which affects soil's temperature and moisture, no other factors affecting soil respiration showed significant differences between measuring points. At each point, soil respiration showed clear seasonal variations and high exponential correlation with increasing soil temperatures. The root biomass decreased exponentially with increasing distance from the tree. The rate of soil respiration was also highly correlated exponentially with root biomass. Based on these results, the average rate of root respiration in the soil was estimated to be 34.4% (26.6~43.1%). Conclusions: In this study, attempts were made to differentiate the root respiration rate by analyzing the distribution of root biomass and resulting changes in soil respiration. As distance from the tree increased, root biomass and soil respiration values were shown to strongly decrease exponentially. Root biomass increased logarithmically with increases in soil respiration. In addition, soil respiration and underground root biomass were logarithmically related; the calculated root-breathing rate was around 44%. This study method is applicable for determining root and microbial respiration in forest ecosystem carbon cycle research. However, more data should be collected on the distribution of root biomass and the correlated soil respiration.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.116-123
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• 2018

The objective of this study was to examine effects of stand age on soil $CO_2$ efflux in plantation Pinus koraiensis, and to elucidate what extent plant (fine) root and soil microbial biomass contribute to the whole soil $CO_2$ efflux. In three age classes (20-yr-old. 40-yr-old, 70-yr-old) of plantation Pinus koraiensis, in-situ soil respiration, plant fine root biomass and soil microbial biomass were measured from April to November in 2004. Regardless of stand age, soil temperature and soil $CO_2$ efflux increased until July then slowly decreased. Soil respiration was higher in 70-yr-old stand than in 20- and 40-yr stands. Fine root biomass and soil microbial biomass was also higher in 70-yr-old stand. Root exclusion decreased soil respiration in 40-yr stand, but not in 70-yr stand. Soil microbial biomass was higher in 70-yr stand, but there was no monthly variation between July and November. The results suggest that soil respiration may increase as plant stand ages and microbial contribution could play more roles in older stands.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.21 no.7
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• pp.746-752
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• 2011

A composite microbial system (XDC-2) was used to pretreat and hydrolyze corn stalk to enhance anaerobic digestion. The results of pretreatment indicated that sCOD concentrations of hydrolysate were highest (8,233 mg/l) at the fifth day. XDC-2 efficiently degraded the corn stalk by nearly 45%, decreasing the cellulose content by 22.7% and the hemicellulose content by 74.1%. Total levels of volatile products peaked on the fifth day. The six major compounds present were ethanol (0.29 g/l), acetic acid (0.55 g/l), 1,2-ethanediol (0.49 g/l), propionic acid (0.15 g/l), butyric acid (0.22 g/l), and glycerine (2.48 g/l). The results of anaerobic digestion showed that corn stalks treated by XDC-2 produced 68.3% more total biogas and 87.9% more total methane than untreated controls. The technical digestion time for the treated corn stalks was 35.7% shorter than without treatment. The composite microbial system pretreatment could be a cost-effective and environmentally friendly microbial method for efficient biological conversion of corn stalk into bioenergy.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.223-229
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• 2017

BACKGROUND: Tillage systems and fertilization play an important role in crop growth and soil improvement. This study was conducted to determine the effects of tillage and fertilization on the microbial biomass C and dehydrogenase activity of soils in a field under cultivation of soybean. METHODS AND RESULTS: An experimental plot, located in the temperate climate zone, was composed of two main sectors that were no-tillage (NT) and conventional tillage (CT), and they were subdivided into four plots, respectively, in accordance with types of fertilizers (non fertilizer, chemical fertilizer, hairy vetch, and liquid pig manure). Microbial biomass C and dehydrogenase activity were evaluated from May to July in 2016. The microbial biomass C and dehydrogenase activity of NT soils were significantly higher than those of CT in all fertilizer treatments, and they were further increased in hairy vetch treatment than the other fertilizer treatments in both NT and CT. The dehydrogenase activity was closely related to microbial biomass C. CONCLUSION: It is concluded that application of green manure combined with no-tillage can provide viable management practices for enhancing microbial properties of soil.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.181-189
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• 1996

Several phosphate-solubilizing microorganisms were isolated in order to enhance the availability of insoluble phosphates accumulated in soils. Among the microorganisms, Aspergillus niger was selected and identified for this study. The phosphate-solubilizing activity. the phosphorus uptake by plants and the changes in soil microbial biomass by inoculation of Aspergillus niger were investigated. The uptake amounts of phosphorus by lettuce and pimiento were increased by inoculation of Aspergillus niger in all experimental treatments. There was negative correlation between the soil microbial biomass P and the soil phosphorus content. However the soil available phosphorus ($Y=-0.0007X^2+0.7126X^2-29.46$, $R=0.8283^{**}$) and the phosphorus absorption of plants ($Y=0.0049X^2-2.2352X+326.34$, $R=0.6350^*$) were significantly correlated to soil microbial biomass C on the positive section of quadric curve.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.44 no.5
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• pp.696-701
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• 2011

This study was conducted to investigate impacts of soil properties on microbial distribution in Jeonbuk orchard fields. Soil samples were collected from 110 sites cultivated with different fruit plants. The population of aerobic bacteria and fungi and the content of soil microbial biomass carbon (C) were found to increase with increasing silt content in the soils. Different activity of dehydrogenase was not observed among the different textures of soil. Microbial distribution, amount of microbial biomass C, and dehydrogenase activity in the soils were not significantly different among the topographic sites. However, in pear and grape fruit plant fields, coliform group of bacteria was found in relatively higher population, $133.0{\times}10^3\;CFU\;g^{-1}$ and $107.4{\times}10^3\;CFU\;g^{-1}$, respectively. Microbial groups were simplified and their density was reduced with increasing the cultivation periods of fruit plants. The soil microbial distribution was proportionally correlated with some of soil properties such as soil pH, soil organic matter (SOM) content, and exchangeable Mg content; in particular, the population of Bacillus sp. was proportionally correlated with soil pH and exchangeable Mg content. The amounts of microbial biomass C and the dehydrogenase activity in the soils were significantly correlated with the contents of SOM and exchangeable Ca ion (p<0.01).

• Ocean and Polar Research
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.39-50
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• 2013

Biomass and community composition of microphytobentos in tidal flats were studied by HPLC analysis and also investigated to examine the relationship between microphytobenthic pigments and Adenosine-5' triphosphate (ATP) as an index of total microbial biomass in intertidal environments (muddy and sandy sediment) of Gyeonggi Bay, west coast of Korea. Microphytobenthic pigments and ATP concentration in muddy sediment were the highest at the surface while the biomass of microphytobenthos in sandy sediment was the highest at the sub-surface (0.75 cm sediment depth). The detected pigments of microphytobenthos were chlorophyll a, b (euglenophytes), $c_3$, peridinin (dinoflagellates), fucoxanthin (diatom or chrysophytes), diadinoxanthin, alloxanthin (cryptophytes), diatoxanthin, zeaxanthin (cyanobacteria), ${\beta}$-carotein, and pheophytin a (the degraded product of chlorophyll a). Among the pigments which were detected, the concentration of fucoxanthin was the highest, indicating that diatoms dominated in the microphytobenthic community of the tidal flats. There was little significant correlation between OC (Organic Carbon) and ATP in both sediments. However, a positive correlation between chlorophyll a concentration and ATP concentration was found in sandy sediment, suggesting that microbial biomass could be affected by labile OC derived from microphytobenthos. These results provide information that may help us understand the relationship between microphytobenthos and microbial biomass in different intertidal sediment environments.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.254-264
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• 2010

To obtain an efficient natural lignocellulolytic complex enzyme, we screened an efficient lignocellulose-degrading composite microbial system (XDC-2) from composted agricultural and animal wastes amended soil following a long-term directed acclimation. Not only could the XDC-2 degrade natural lignocelluloses, but it could also secrete extracellular xylanase efficiently in liquid culture under static conditions at room temperature. The XDC-2 degraded rice straw by 60.3% after fermentation for 15 days. Hemicelluloses were decomposed effectively, whereas the extracellular xylanase activity was dominant with an activity of 8.357 U/ml on day 6 of the fermentation period. The extracellular crude enzyme noticeably hydrolyzed natural lignocelluloses. The optimum temperature and pH for the xylanase activity were $40^{\circ}C$ and 6.0. However, the xylanase was activated in a wide pH range of 3.0-10.0, and retained more than 80% of its activity at $25-35^{\circ}C$ and pH 5.0-8.0 after three days of incubation in liquid culture under static conditions. PCR-DGGE analysis of successive subcultures indicated that the XDC-2 was structurally stable over long-term restricted and directed cultivation. Analysis of the 168 rRNA gene clone library showed that the XDC-2 was mainly composed of mesophilic bacteria related to the genera Clostridium, Bacteroides, Alcaligenes, Pseudomonas, etc. Our results offer a new approach to exploring efficient lignocellulolytic enzymes by constructing a high-performance composite microbial system with synergistic complex enzymes.