• Journal of Life Science
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.460-467
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• 2016

A filamentous cyanobacterium, Limnothrix sp. KNUA012, was axenically isolated from a freshwater bloom sample in Lake Hapcheon, Hapcheon-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do, Korea. Its morphological and molecular characteristics led to identification of the isolate as a member of the genus Limnothrix. Maximal growth was attained when the culture was incubated at 25℃. Analysis of its lipid composition revealed that strain KNUA012 could autotrophically synthesize alkanes, such as pentadecane (C₁₅H₃₂) and heptadecane (C₁₇H₃₆), which can be directly used as fuel without requiring a transesterification step. Two genes involved in alkane biosynthesis－an acyl-acyl carrier protein reductase and an aldehyde decarbonylase－were present in this cyanobacterium. Some common algal biodiesel constituents－myristoleic acid (C_14:1), palmitic acid (C_16:0), and palmitoleic acid (C_16:1)－were produced by strain KNUA012 as its major fatty acids. A proximate analysis showed that the volatile matter content was 86.0% and an ultimate analysis indicated that the higher heating value was 19.8 MJ kg⁻¹. The isolate also autotrophically produced 21.4 mg g⁻¹ phycocyanin－a high-value antioxidant compound. Therefore, Limnothrix sp. KNUA012 appears to show promise for application in cost-effective production of microalga-based biofuels and biomass feedstock over crop plants.

• The Korean Journal of Malacology
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.353-358
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• 2011

This study is the result of examining the growth and survival rate of larva and spat when supplied with Enriched live food by adding $B_{12}$, chitosan, PSB, and polysaccharides to microalgae (Chaetoceros gracilis, Isochrysis galbana) to raise the survival rate of larva and spat during artificial clam seed production. Microalge (Chaetoceros gracilis, Isochrysis galbana) was strengthened for nutrition with $B_{12}$ 0.1 ppm, chitosan 0.2 ppm, PSB 3 ppm and polysaccharides 1 ppm and was daily supplied for $3{\times}10^3-15{\times}10^3Cells/mL$ and the growth and survival rates were measured. As the result of experiment, the growth of larva did not show much difference with PSB test section $199{\pm}0.59{\mu}m$, $B_{12}$ test section $198{\pm}0.64{\mu}m$, and chitosan $197{\pm}0.52{\mu}m$, survival rate was highest at PSB test section with 99.3%, followed by $B_{12}$ test section 95.9%, and chitosan 94.5%. Growth of early spat was the highest for PSB test section at $2.74{\pm}0.58mm$, followed by polysaccharides $2.67{\pm}0.55mm$, $B_{12}$ $2.54{\pm}0.48mm$, and chitosan $2.49{\pm}0.51mm$, and the survival rate was the highest for PSB test group at 32.1%, followed by $B_{12}$ test section 31.6%, chitosan 28.5%, and polysacharrides 21.4%. From such results, PSB is found to be very effective with low-quality improvement when breeding early spat of clams, and especially for floor-type early spat breeding, it had the effect of suppressing protozoan and germs so that detailed studies from various perspectives should be conducted with various chemicals in the future.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.32 no.7
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• pp.578-587
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• 2022

Korea, as the world's 7^th largest emitter of greenhouse gases, has raised the national greenhouse gas reduction target as international regulations have been strengthened. As it is possible to utilize coastal and marine ecosystems as important nature-based solutions (NbS) for implementing climate change mitigation or adaptation plans, the blue carbon ecosystem is now receiving attention. Blue carbon refers to carbon that is deposited and stored for a long period after carbon dioxide (CO₂) is absorbed as biomass by coastal ecosystems or oceanic ecosystems through photosynthesis. Currently, there are only three blue carbon ecosystems officially recognized by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC): mangroves, salt marshes, and seagrasses. However, the results of new research on the high CO₂ sequestration and storage capacity of various new blue carbon sinks, such as seaweeds, microalgae, coral reefs, and non-vegetated tidal flats, have been continuously reported to the academic community recently. The possibility of IPCC international accreditation is gradually increasing through scientific verification related to calculations. In this review, the current status and potential value of seaweeds, seagrass fields, and non-vegetated tidal flats, which are sources of blue carbon on the east coast, are discussed. This paper confirms that seaweed resources are the most effective NbS in the East Sea of Korea. In addition, we would like to suggest the direction of research and development (R&D) and utilization so that new blue carbon sinks can obtain international IPCC certification in the near future.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.51 no.3
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• pp.21-36
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• 2023

As a solution to environmental issues, such as climate change response, the carbon neutrality strategy, urban heat islands, fine dust, and biodiversity enhancement, the value of urban green spaces and trees are becoming important, and various studies dealing with the effects of trees for environmental improvement are being conducted. This study comprehensively considers the preceding studies on planting tree species, planting structure, planting density, and planting base to propose a direction for the planting renewal of green areas in urban parks and applies the findings to a renewal plan to improve the urban environment through landscaping trees. A field survey was conducted on the planting status of Seoul Children's Grand Park, a large-scale neighborhood park in Seoul, and based on the survey data, a planting function evaluation was conducted, and areas needing improvement in planting function were identified. The planting function evaluation was carried out considering the park function setting, planting concept according to spatial function, and planting status. As a result of the study, the direction of planting renewal according to functional change was derived for each stage of planting function evaluation. Increasing the green area ratio is a priority in setting up park functions, but user convenience should also be considered. As a concept of planting, visual landscape planting involves planting species with beautiful tree shapes, high carbon absorption, and fine dust reduction effects. Ecological landscape planting should create a multi-layered planting site on a slope. Buffer planting should be created as multi-layered forests to improve carbon absorption and fine dust reduction effects. Green planting should consist of broad-leaved trees and herbaceous layers and aim for the natural planting of herbaceous species. For plant species, species with high urban environment improvement effects, local native species, and wild bird preferred species should be selected. As for the planting structure, landscape planting sites and green planting sites should be composed of trees, shrubs, and trees and herbaceous layers that emphasize ecology or require multi-layered buffer functions. A higher standard is applied based on the planting interval for planting density. Installing a rainwater recycling facility and using soil loam for the planting base improves performance. The results of this study are meaningful in that they can be applied to derive areas needing functional improvement by performing planting function evaluation when planning planting renewal of aging urban parks and can suggest renewal directions that reflect the paradigm of functional change of created green areas.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.136-143
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• 2015

Gotjawal areas have the unique ecosystem and we need to approach as the inhabit of animals to conserve Gotjawal. This study was conducted in Hangyeong-myeon Cheongsu-ri located in the western part of Jeju Island belonging to Hangyeong Andeok Gotjawal Zone and Jocheon-eup Seonheul-ri located in the eastern part of Jeju Island belonging to Jocheon Hamdeok Gotjawal Zone. Survey on advent of the birds was done twice a month from February 2013 to December 2014. A total of 66 species and 4,140 individuals in two Gotjawals were observed during the survey period. In Seonheul Gotjawal area, 53 species and 1,907 individuals were observed while it was 49 species and 2,233 individuals in Cheongsu Gotjawal area. The number of species between two Gotjawal areas was not significantly different, but the number of individuals between two Gotjawal areas was significantly different. Thirty-six species were found in both Gotjawal areas as common species and the index of similarity was 0.7. A total of 23 species were classified as the residents, 15 species as the winter visitors, 16 species as the passage migrants, 11 species as the summer visitors, and 2 species as the vagrant. Twelve species as legally protected birds including the natural monument and the endangered species were found and 8 species were found in Seonheul Gotjawal area while it was 10 species in Cheongsu Gotjawal area. The species that directly using a wetland or food resources related to water were 12 in the Seonheul and 6 species were observed in the Cheongsu Gotjawal area, but there is no significant difference between two Gotjawal areas. However, the number of individuals in Seonheul Gotjawal area was significantly higher than in that of in Cheongsu Gotjawal area. We need to research the wetlands and micro climatic condition existing in Gotjawal forests to find the cause of difference of two areas and this difference must be considered as an important indicator for the protection of Gotjawal forests.

• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.31-44
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• 2017

Pfiesteria piscicida is one of heterotrophic dinoflagellate having toxic metaboliges, and it is difficult to detect and quantify this dinoflagellate via light microscope due to small size and morphological similarity with Pfiesteria-like dinoflagellate (PLD) species. Alternatively, we developed quantitative real-time PCR assay based on EvaGreen and determined field accessibility throughout the investigation of distribution in the entire Korean coastal waters and population dynamics in Shihwa Lake. The P. piscicida-specific primers based on internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS 1) were designed and the specificity of primers was confirmed by PCR with other genomic DNAs which have genetic similarity with target species. Through real-time PCR assay, a standard curve which had a significant linear correlation between log cell number and $C_T$ value ($r^2{\geq}0.999$) and one informative melting peak ($88^{\circ}C$) were obtained. These results implies that developed real-time PCR can accurately detect and quantify P. piscicida. Throughout the field applications of real-time PCR assay, P. piscicida was distributed in western (Mokpo and Kimje) and easthern (Gangneng) Korean coastal water even though light microscopy failed to identify P. piscicida. In the investigation of population dynamics in Shihwa Lake, the density of P. piscicida was peaked in June, July and August 2007 at St. 1 where salinity (${\leq}15psu$) was lower than the other 2 sites. In this study, we successed to develop EvaGreen bassed real-time PCR for detection and quantification of P. piscicida in fields, so this developed assay will be useful for various ecological studies in the future.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.168-175
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• 2014

In order to understand the phytoplankton community structure based on their cell size duringlow water temperature periods, we studied 10 stations in the East Sea, Korea on March, 2012. The minimum standing crops of total phytoplankton were $3.4{\times}10^6cells\;L^{-1}$ at the station 5. The maximum values were $7.6{\times}10^6cells\;L^{-1}$ at the station 8, which is two times the amount of the minimum. The carbon mass at the station 4 ($6.3{\times}10^8pg\;L^{-1}$) was more than forty times higher compared with station 5 ($0.08{\times}10^8pg\;L^{-1}$). From these results, we found a significant difference between standing crops and carbon mass which might have caused due to their differences in community structure and cell size. Therefore, we considered the types of plankton biomass to estimate the primary product in the specific location and/or time. The phytoplankton communities were classified in 3 types: microplankton (> $20{\mu}m$), nanoplankton (< $20{\mu}m$) and picoplankton (< $2{\mu}m$). In the case of picoplankton, various morphological types were observed during the study period. These various picoplankton species were further classified as S (spherical), SF (spherical&flagella), O (oval), OF (oval&flagella) or R (rod) type, and we analyzed their community structure based on these categories. The picoplankton was found to be the most dominant type at 8 stations and S type as the most popular. The picoplankton seems to be the significant organism in the marine ecology during low water temperature periods in the coastal waters of East Sea. Therefore, picoplankton \;-with scientific surveys can be considered as the database for their identification. In conclusion, we suggest that cell size of the phytoplankton would be the best criteria to accurately analyze their community structure and to reveal groups having more ecological influence.

• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.79-91
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• 2005

In order to understand growth characteristics of ten major species of microalgae responsible for frequent harmful algal blooms in Korean coastal waters, the growth rates of the isolates were examined in relation with the impacts of water temperature, salinity and irradiance. In addition, their bloom events since 1990 as well as monthly abundance of vegetative cells were analyzed. Heterocapsa triquetra, Eutreptiella gymnastica and Alexandrium tamarense were considered as relatively mid temperature adapted species in that growth rates were comparatively high at low water temperatures of $10{\sim}16^{\circ}C$ and drastically decreased at above $22^{\circ}C$. Prorocentrum micans and Pyramimonas sp. were categorized as relatively high temperature adapted species by showing comparatively better growths at high water temperatures above $25^{\circ}C$. Akashiwo sanguinea, Heterosigma akashiwo, Prorocentrum minimum and Scrippsiella trochoidea were eurythermal species with relative high growth rates in a broad ranges of water temperature, $16{\sim}25^{\circ}C$ were slightly halophobic, showing better growths at low salinities of $10{\sim}30$ psu than at above 35 psu. H. akashiwo, P. minimum and H. triquetra were euryhaline species with remarkable growths in a broad ranges of salinity, 15-40 psu. Frequent algal blooms by these three species at extremely low salinities below 25 psu after rainfall were attributed to their euryhaline and slightly halophobic physiological characteristics. Growth rates of H. akashiwo, P. minimum and Pyraminonas sp. increased with the increase of irradiance within the experimental ranges of $2{\sim}150\;{\mu}E{\cdot}m^{-2}{\cdot}s^{-1}$. However, A. sanguinea, A. tamarense and H. triquetra showed better growths at comparatively low irradiance of $50{\sim}100\;{\mu}E{\cdot}m^{-2}{\cdot}s^{-1}$ and drastic decreases in growth rates above $150\;{\mu}E{\cdot}m^{-2}{\cdot}s^{-1}$ of irradiance. Overall, relatively high temperature adapted species make blooms frequently in high water temperature season with strong natural irradiance, and relatively low temperature adapted species grow better at low water temperature with relatively weak natural irradiance.

• The Korean Journal of Malacology
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.51-63
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• 2013

To assess the effect of environmental factors on the sustainability of cultured production shellfish, we investigated the habitat characteristics of tidal flat (Namhae-po in Taean). We measured the physiochemical parameters (temperature, salanity, pH, dissolved oxygen and nutrients) and the geochemical characteristics (chemical oxygen demand, ignition loss, C/N ratio and C/S ratio). Surface sediments were collected from several site of tidal flat to examine the geochemical characteristics of both the benthic environment and heavy metal pollution. The grain size for research area of tidal flat were similar at the ratio of silt and clay in comparison with the other site of it. The C/N ratio was more than 5.0, reflecting the range arising from the mix of marine organism and organic matter. The C/S ratio (about 2.8) showed that survey area had anoxic or sub-anoxic bottom conditions. The enrichment factor (Ef) and index of accumulation rate (Igeo) of the metals showed that those research areas can be classified as heavily polluted, heavily to moderately polluted, or more or less unpolluted, respectively. Adult surf clam (Mactra veneriformis) density was highest at St. 2 (middle part of the Namhae-po), on the other hand, surf clam spat density was highest at St. 3 (lower part of the Namhae-po). Heavy rain, terrigenous suspended clay with fresh water from neighboring agricultural land, and severe high air temperature during summer could be thought as detrimental causes of spat and adult mortality in Namhae-po tidal flat. We suggested that the growth of shellfish in the tidal flat was effected by the various environmental conditions, so an improvement in the cultured method was needed.

• Journal of Marine Life Science
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.62-69
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• 2017

In order to assess the potential environmental factors in the vicinity of a fish cage farm, we investigated the biotic and abiotic factors during a short-term period in summer 2016 in two inner stations of Tongyeong Obi. High water temperature on August 10^th was apparent among the full depth of up to 29℃, which might have been related to the abnormally high temperatures of large amounts of the Changjiang River discharge along the Tongyeong coast. The concentration of nitrate+nitrite, ammonium, phosphate, and silicate ranged from 0.08 to 5.11 μM, 0.08 to 34.62 μM, 0.01 to 1.15 μM, and 1.46 to 31.79 μM, respectively. The nutrients were mainly supplied by precipitation and leaching from the bottom sediments in the fish culture farm area. It was not retained for a long duration because of the phytoplankton consumption and diffusion by water currents. The chlorophyll a concentration varied from 0.49 ㎍ l^-1 to 7.39 ㎍ l^-1. At that time, Chaetoceros debilis, C. pseudocurvisetus, and Pseudo-nitzschia delicatissima were rapidly proliferated and reached the level of 4.74 × 10⁹ cells l^-1. In particular, the lowest dissolved oxygen was recorded at 4.52 ㎍ l^-1 at the bottom layer after bloom. Therefore, even though phytoplankton blooms in summer have frequently occurred in a fish culture farm area, the oxygen-deficient environments were not found in neither the surface nor bottom layers, which implied that the water masses might be well exchanged from the mouth of the northwest and southeast between Obi and Mireuk Island in the study area.