• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.79-83
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• 1995

A number of investigators have reported formation of radiolytic ultrafine particles produced by the interaction of ionizing radiation with atmospheric trace gases. Previous studies have suggested that a very high localized concentration of the hydroxyl radical produced by the radiolysis of water can react with atmospheric trace gases such as $SO_2$ and produce lower vapor pressure compounds that can subsequently nucleate. To determine the trace gas and water vapor concentration dependence of the active, positively charged, first decayt product of radon (Po-218), a well-controlled radon chamber was used in this research. The mobility spectrum of the decay products in the range of $0.07-5.0cm^2/V\;sec$ from the radon chamber was measured using alpha track detector installed inside a specially-designed electrostatic spectrometer. Measurements were taken for different concentrations (0.5ppm to 5ppm) of $SO_2$ in Purified, Compressed air. A kinetics Study following the clustering of $SO_2$ around the $PoO_x^+$ ion in an excess of $SO_2$ for interpretation of the reaction processes was performed.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.195-200
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• 1992

Rhizopus oryzae CJ-2114 was selected for its strong polygalacturonase activity among various strains of mold found in soil. The optimum pH for the enzyme activity was 4.0 and optimum temperature was 4$0^{\circ}C$. The activation energy for the polygalacturonase was calculated by Arrhenius equation was 2.048㎉/㏖. The reaction of this enzyme followed typical Michaelis-Menten kinetics with the Km value of 54.05mM with the $V_{max}$ of 13.9m mole/min. The enzyme is relatively stable in acidic condition. The activity of polygalactur-onase was inhibited completely by C $u^{2+}$, P $b^{2+}$ and Z $n^{2+}$, $_Mn^{2+}$ at concentration of 1 mM. The enzyme can be inactivated by the treatment with maleic anhydride and iodine. The results indicate the possible involvement of histidine at active site. When polygalacturonase from Rhizopus oryzae CJ-2114 was reacted with poly-galacturonic acid as a substrate mono-, di-, and oligogalacturonic acid were produced at early and mono-, digalacturonic acid produced at late incubation time. time.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.1158-1167
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• 2000

To produce ${\beta}-cyclodextrin({\beta}-CD)$, a cyclodextrin glucanotransferase(CGTase) producing Aspergillus sp. CC-2-1 was isolated from soil. The enzyme was purified and its enzymological characteristics were investigated. It was found that production of CGTase reached to the maximum when the wheat bran medium containing 0.1% albumin, 2% $(NH_4)_2S_2O_8$, 2% soluble starch and 0.2% $KH_2PO_4$ was cultured for 5 days at $37^{\circ}C$. The purity of CGTase was increased by 13.14 folds after DEAE-cellulose ion exchange chromatography and Sephadex G-100, G-150 gel filtration and the specific activity was 172.14 unit/mg. Purified enzyme was confirmed as a single band by the polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The molecular weight of CGTase was estimated to be 27,800 by Sephadex G-100 gel filtration and SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The optimum pH and temperature for the CGTase activity were 9.0 and $80^{\circ}C$, respectively. The enzyme was stable in pH $8.0{\sim}11.0$ at $60{\sim}80^{\circ}C$. The activity of purified enzyme was activated by $K^+,\;Cu^{2+}$ and $Zn^{2+}$. The activity of the CGTase was inhibited by the treatment with 2,4-dinitrophenol and iodine. The result suggests that the purified enzyme has phenolic hydroxyl group of tyrosine, histidine imidazole group and terminal amino group at active site. The reaction of this enzyme followed typical Michaelis-Menten kinetics with the $K_m$ value of 18.182 g/L with the $V_{max}$ of 188.68 ${\mu}mole/min$. The activation energy for the CGTase was calculated by Arrhenius equation was 1.548 kcal/mol.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.111 no.3
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• pp.374-384
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• 2022

There is an increasing demand for Tetradium daniellii seedlings due to their uses as alternative energy, for ecological restoration, and as a honey plant. This study was conducted to determine the optimum container for superior seedling production of T. daniellii. Experiments were performed using five plastic container types (500, 350, 320, 300, and 250 ml) for forestry facility cultivation. The height and root collar diameter growth of T. daniellii seedlings were significantly high in the 350-ml container. High growth appeared primarily in the container with a larger cavity volume and lower growing density. Root development was most active in full sunlight. The maximum dry matter production was observed in the 350-ml container, which was similar to the results of height and root collar diameter growth. QI, an index showing the quality of a seedling, was maximum at 0.97 in the 350-ml container. In conclusion, the 350-ml container is optimum for superior seedling production of T. daniellii.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.29-37
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• 2024

This study aimed to investigate the changes in chemical components that occur when weak clay is mixed with steel slag modified with calcium oxide, and to understand the expression characteristics of compressive strength according to hydrophilicity and curing time. XRF testing, SEM imaging, vane shear strength and uniaxial compressive strength testing were conducted. Calcium (Ca) released from the steel slag increases the Ca content in clay by increasing the number of crystal particles and forming a coating layer known as calcium silicate hydrate (CaO-SiO₂-H₂O) through chemical reactions with SiO₂ and Al₂O₃ components. The weak clay stabilized with steel slag is classified into an initial inactive zone where strength relatively does not increase and an activation zone where strength increases over curing time. The vane shear strength of the initial inactive area was found to be 4.4 to 18.4 kN/m² in the state of the weight mixing ratio Rss 30% (steel slag 30% + clay 70%). In the case of the active area, the maximum uniaxial compressive strength increased to 431.8 kN/m² after 480 hours of curing time, which increased due to the apparent adhesion strength of clay through pozzolanic reaction. Therefore, considering the strength expression characteristics of stabilized mixed clay based on the mixing ratio (Rss) during the recycling of steel slag can enhance its practicality in civil engineering sites.

• Clean Technology
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.232-239
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• 2021

In order to develop a novel system named "thermal medium and gas circulation type pyrolysis system," this study was conducted to obtain basic data for process simulation before performing the pyrolysis experiment. Polypropylene (PP) was chosen as model material in the basic pyrolysis experiment instead of waste plastic and fluidized sand (hereinafter referred to as "sand"), and it was used as a heat transfer material in the "thermal medium and gas circulation type pyrolysis system." Ni was impregnated as an active catalyst on the sand to promote catalytic pyrolysis. The basic physical properties of PP were analyzed using a thermogravimetric analyzer, and pyrolysis was performed at 600 ℃ in an N₂ atmosphere to produce liquid oil. The distribution of the carbon number of the liquid oil generated through the catalytic pyrolysis reaction was analyzed using GC/MS. We investigated the effects of varying the pyrolysis space velocity and catalyst amount on the yield of liquid oil and the carbon number distribution of the liquid oil. Using Ni/sand, the yield of liquid oil was increased except with the pyrolysis condition of 10 wt% Ni/sand at a space velocity of 30,000 h^-1, and the composition of C₆ ~ C₁₂ hydrocarbons increased. With increases in the space velocity, higher yields of liquid oil were obtained, but the composition of C₆ ~ C₁₂ hydrocarbons was reduced. With 1 wt% Ni/sand, the oil yield obtained was greater than that obtained with 10 wt% Ni/sand. In summary, when 1 wt% Ni/sand was used at a space velocity of 10,000 h^-1, the oil yield was 60.99 wt% and the composition of C₆ ~ C₁₂ hydrocarbons was highest at 42.06 area%.

• Proceedings of the Korea Environmental Mutagen Society Conference
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• 2003.10a
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• pp.34-63
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• 2003

Occupational and environmental exposure to manganese continue to represent a realistic public health problem in both developed and developing countries. Increased utility of MMT as a replacement for lead in gasoline creates a new source of environmental exposure to manganese. It is, therefore, imperative that further attention be directed at molecular neurotoxicology of manganese. A Need for a more complete understanding of manganese functions both in health and disease, and for a better defined role of manganese in iron metabolism is well substantiated. The in-depth studies in this area should provide novel information on the potential public health risk associated with manganese exposure. It will also explore novel mechanism(s) of manganese-induced neurotoxicity from the angle of Mn-Fe interaction at both systemic and cellular levels. More importantly, the result of these studies will offer clues to the etiology of IPD and its associated abnormal iron and energy metabolism. To achieve these goals, however, a number of outstanding questions remain to be resolved. First, one must understand what species of manganese in the biological matrices plays critical role in the induction of neurotoxicity, Mn(II) or Mn(III)? In our own studies with aconitase, Cpx-I, and Cpx-II, manganese was added to the buffers as the divalent salt, i.e., $MnCl_2$. While it is quite reasonable to suggest that the effect on aconitase and/or Cpx-I activites was associated with the divalent species of manganese, the experimental design does not preclude the possibility that a manganese species of higher oxidation state, such as Mn(III), is required for the induction of these effects. The ionic radius of Mn(III) is 65 ppm, which is similar to the ionic size to Fe(III) (65 ppm at the high spin state) in aconitase (Nieboer and Fletcher, 1996; Sneed et al., 1953). Thus it is plausible that the higher oxidation state of manganese optimally fits into the geometric space of aconitase, serving as the active species in this enzymatic reaction. In the current literature, most of the studies on manganese toxicity have used Mn(II) as $MnCl_2$ rather than Mn(III). The obvious advantage of Mn(II) is its good water solubility, which allows effortless preparation in either in vivo or in vitro investigation, whereas almost all of the Mn(III) salt products on the comparison between two valent manganese species nearly infeasible. Thus a more intimate collaboration with physiochemists to develop a better way to study Mn(III) species in biological matrices is pressingly needed. Second, In spite of the special affinity of manganese for mitochondria and its similar chemical properties to iron, there is a sound reason to postulate that manganese may act as an iron surrogate in certain iron-requiring enzymes. It is, therefore, imperative to design the physiochemical studies to determine whether manganese can indeed exchange with iron in proteins, and to understand how manganese interacts with tertiary structure of proteins. The studies on binding properties (such as affinity constant, dissociation parameter, etc.) of manganese and iron to key enzymes associated with iron and energy regulation would add additional information to our knowledge of Mn-Fe neurotoxicity. Third, manganese exposure, either in vivo or in vitro, promotes cellular overload of iron. It is still unclear, however, how exactly manganese interacts with cellular iron regulatory processes and what is the mechanism underlying this cellular iron overload. As discussed above, the binding of IRP-I to TfR mRNA leads to the expression of TfR, thereby increasing cellular iron uptake. The sequence encoding TfR mRNA, in particular IRE fragments, has been well-documented in literature. It is therefore possible to use molecular technique to elaborate whether manganese cytotoxicity influences the mRNA expression of iron regulatory proteins and how manganese exposure alters the binding activity of IPRs to TfR mRNA. Finally, the current manganese investigation has largely focused on the issues ranging from disposition/toxicity study to the characterization of clinical symptoms. Much less has been done regarding the risk assessment of environmenta/occupational exposure. One of the unsolved, pressing puzzles is the lack of reliable biomarker(s) for manganese-induced neurologic lesions in long-term, low-level exposure situation. Lack of such a diagnostic means renders it impossible to assess the human health risk and long-term social impact associated with potentially elevated manganese in environment. The biochemical interaction between manganese and iron, particularly the ensuing subtle changes of certain relevant proteins, provides the opportunity to identify and develop such a specific biomarker for manganese-induced neuronal damage. By learning the molecular mechanism of cytotoxicity, one will be able to find a better way for prediction and treatment of manganese-initiated neurodegenerative diseases.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.92-100
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• 2016

Low-temperature conversion of nitrogen oxides using plasma-assisted hydrocarbon selective catalytic reduction of (HC-SCR) was investigated. Plasma was created in the catalyst-packed bed so that it could directly interact with the catalyst. The effect of the reaction temperature, the shape of catalyst, the concentration of n-heptane as a reducing agent, the oxygen content, the water vapor content and the energy density on $NO_x$ removal was examined. $NO_x$ conversion efficiencies achieved with the plasma-catalytic hybrid process at a temperature of $250^{\circ}C$ and an specific energy input (SIE) of $42J\;L^{-1}$ were 83% and 69% for one-dimensional Ag catalyst ($Ag\;(nanowire)/{\gamma}-Al_2O_3$) and spherical Ag catalyst ($Ag\;(sphere)/{\gamma}-Al_2O_3$), respectively, whereas that obtained with the catalyst-alone was considerably lower (about 30%) even with $Ag\;(nanowire)/{\gamma}-Al_2O_3$ under the same condition. The enhanced catalytic activity towards $NO_x$ conversion in the presence of plasma can be explained by the formation of more reactive $NO_2$ species and partially oxidized hydrocarbon intermediates from the oxidation of NO and n-heptane under plasma discharge. Increasing the SIE tended to improve $NO_x$ conversion efficiency, and so did the increase in the n-heptane concentration; however, a further increase in the n-heptane concentration beyond $C_1/NO_x$ ratio of 5 did not improve the $NO_x$ conversion efficiency any more. The increase in the humidity affected negatively the $NO_x$ conversion efficiency, resulting in lowering the $NO_x$ conversion efficiency at the higher water vapor content, because water molecules competed with $NO_x$ species for the same active site. The $NO_x$ conversion efficiency increased with increasing the oxygen content from 3 to 15%, in particular at low SIE values, because the formation of $NO_2$ and partially oxidized hydrocarbon intermediates was facilitated.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.1-9
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• 2006

Peroxiredoxins (Prxs) are ubiquitously distributed and play important functions in diverse cellular signaling systems. The proteins are largely classified into three groups, such as typical 2-Cys Prx, atypical 2-Cys Prx, and 1-Cys Prx, that are distinguished by their catalytic mechanisms and number of Cys residues. From the three classes of Prxs, the typical 2-Cys Prx containing the two-conserved Cys residues at its N-terminus and C-terminus catalyzes $H_2O_2$ with the use of thioredoxin (Trx) as an electron donor. During the catalytic cycle, the N-terminal Cys residue undergoes a peroxide-dependent oxidation to sulfenic acid, which can be further oxidized to sulfinic acid at the presence of high concentrations of $H_2O_2$ and a Trx system containing Trx, Trx reductase, and NADPH. The sulfinic acid form of 2-Cys Prx is reduced by the action of sulfiredoxin which requires ATP as an energy source. Under the strong oxidative or heat shock stress conditions, 2-Cys Prx in eukaryotes rapidly switches its protein structure from low-molecular-weight species to high-molecular-weight protein structures. In accordance with its structural changes, the protein concomitantly triggers functional switching from a peroxidase to a molecular chaperone, which can protect its substrate denaturation from external stress. In addition to its N-terminal active site, the C-terminal domain including 'YF-motif' of 2-Cys Prx plays a critical role in the structural changes. Therefore, the C-terminal truncated 2-Cys Prxs are not able to regulate their protein structures and highly resistant to $H_2O_2$-dependent hyperoxidation, suggesting that the reaction is guided by the peroxidatic Cys residue. Based on the results, it may be concluded that the peroxidatic Cys of 2-Cys Prx acts as an '$H_2O_2$-sensor' in the cells. The oxidative stress-dependent regulation of 2-Cys Prx provides a means of defense systems in cells to adapt stress conditions by activating intracellular defense signaling pathways. Particularly, 2-Cys Prxs in plants are localized in chloroplasts with a dynamic protein structure. The protein undergoes conformational changes again oxidative stress. Depending on a redox-potential of the chloroplasts, the plant 2-Cys Prx forms super-molecular weight protein structures, which attach to the thylakoid membranes in a reversible manner.

• Journal of Bio-Environment Control
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.130-140
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• 2020

This study was conducted in order to closely examine about optimum shading for superior seedling production a container seedling of Tetradium daniellii, which is being increased the demand for a seedling due to being used for alternative energy, ecological restoration and honey plant. The experiment of investigating the optimum shading on T. daniellii was carried out by using plastic container types (350 ml/cavity) for the forestry facility cultivation. The shading level was treated with full sunlight and with 35%, 55%, 75% of the full sunlight. As a result of having surveyed height and root collar diameter growth of a containerized seedling in T. daniellii, a case of the shading experiment showed a noticeably high value was indicated in the full sunlight. It was surveyed that the stronger shading level leads to the lower growth value. Root development was most active in full sunlight. Dry matter production, it was investigated to be the highest in full sunlight. It was surveyed to be the similar tendency to the outcome of height and root collar diameter growth. QI, which is index of showing the quality of a seedling, stood at 0.98 in full sunlight, thereby having been investigated to be the highest. As for the chlorophyll content in a seedling, the highest chlorophyll content was indicated in the 75% shading treatment with the relatively highest shading level. The photosynthetic rate and the water use efficiency were surveyed to be the highest in full sunlight with 8.48 μmolCO₂·m^-2s^-1, 1.40 μmolCO₂·mmolm^-1H₂O, respectively. As a result of surveying the whole experiment, optimum shading level for superior seedling production a container seedling of T. daniellii is determined in full sunlight (0%). It is expected that this will be used as a basic data for mass production.