• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.432-441
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• 2016

Machaerium cuspidatum, a canopy liana, is a species of genus legume in the Fabaceae family and contributes to the total species richness in the tropical rain forests. In the present study, we investigated the antioxidative and anti-cancer effects of M. cuspidatum and its mode of action. The methanol extract of M. cuspidatum (MEMC) exhibited anti-oxidative activity with an $IC_{50}$ value of $1.66{\mu}g/ml$, and this was attributable to its 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging capacity. MEMC also exhibited a cytotoxic effect and induced morphological changes in a dose-dependent manner in several cancer cell lines including human lung adenocarcinoma A549 cells, human hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 cells, and human colon carcinoma HT29 cells. Moreover, MEMC treatment induced the accumulation of subG1 population, which is indicative of apoptosis in A549 and HepG2 cells. MEMC-induced apoptosis was confirmed by the increase in Annexin V-positive apoptotic cells and apoptotic bodies using Annexin-V staining and DAPI staining, respectively. Further investigation showed that MEMC-induced apoptosis was associated with the increase in p53 and Bax expression, and the decrease in Bcl-2 expression. In addition, MEMC treatment led to proteolytic activation of caspase-3, 8, and 9 and degradation of poly-ADP ribose polymerase (PARP). Taken together, these results suggest that MEMC may exert a beneficial anti-cancer effect by inducing apoptosis via both the extrinsic and intrinsic pathways in A549 and HepG2 cells.

• Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
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• v.34 no.6_3
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• pp.1457-1468
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• 2018

The sigma naught (${\sigma}^0$) equation is essential to calculate geo-physical properties from Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images for the applications such as ground target identification,surface classification, sea wind speed calculation, and soil moisture estimation. In this paper, we are suggesting new Kompsat-5 (K5) Radar Cross Section (RCS) and ${\sigma}^0$ equations reflecting the final SAR processor update and absolute radiometric calibration in order to increase the application of K5 SAR images. Firstly, we analyzed the accuracy of the K5 RCS equation by using trihedral corner reflectors installed in the Kompsat calibration site in Mongolia. The average difference between the calculated values using RCS equation and the measured values with K5 SAR processor was about $0.2dBm^2$ for Spotlight and Stripmap imaging modes. In addition, the verification of the K5 ${\sigma}^0$ equation was carried out using the TerraSAR-X (TSX) and Sentinel-1A (S-1A) SAR images over Amazon rainforest, where the backscattering characteristics are not significantly affected by the seasonal change. The calculated ${\sigma}^0$ difference between K5 and TSX/S-1A was less than 0.6 dB. Considering the K5 absolute radiometric accuracy requirement, which is 2.0 dB ($1{\sigma}$), the average difference of $0.2dBm^2$ for RCS equation and the maximum difference of 0.6 dB for ${\sigma}^0$ equation show that the accuracies of the suggested equations are relatively high. In the future, the validity of the suggested RCS and ${\sigma}^0$ equations is expected to be verified through the application such as sea wind speed calculation, where quantitative analysis is possible.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.56 no.3
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• pp.343-363
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• 2023

Sulawesi island, as a global producer of nickel resources, is leading the rapid growth of nickel industry of Indonesia. Nickel laterite deposits in Sulawesi was formed by lateritization of the world-scale East Sulawesi Ophiolite (ESO) under the active tectonic setting and tropical rainforest climate. In this paper, exploration cases for nickel laterite deposits in five regions of Sulawesi are reported. Regional characteristics on nickel laterite deposits in Sulawesi are understood based on various exploration activities such as outcrop, trench and pit survey, petrological observation, geochemical analysis, and interpretation of drilling data, etc.. In the northeastern part of 'Southeast-Arm', which is a strategic location for nickel industry of Indonesia, ESO is extensively exposed to the surface. In the Morombo and Morowali regions, typical high-grade saprolite-type orebodies with a thickness of 10 to 20 m occur. The cases showed that topographic relief tends to regulate Ni-grade distribution and orebody thickness, and that high grade intervals tend to occur in places where joints and garnierite veins are dense. In the Tinanggea and South Palangga regions in the southern part of the Southeast-Arm, overburden composed of Neogene to Quaternary deposits is a major factor affecting the preservation and profitability of nickel laterite deposits. Despite the overburden, high-grade saprolite-type orebodies composed of Ni-bearing serpentine with garnierite veins occur in a thickness of around 10 m to secure economic feasibility. In contrast, in the Ampana region in the northern part of 'East-Arm', low-grade nickel laterite deposits with immature laterite profile was identified, which is thought to be the result of active denudation due to tectonic uplift. Exploration cases in this paper will help to understand characteristics and controlling factors on nickel laterite deposits in Sulawesi, Indonesia.