• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.18 no.11
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• pp.445-453
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• 2017

The Korean government's recent R&D policy has focused on encouraging government-funded research institutes (GRIs) to develop mid-term, long-term, and large-scale R&D projects. It is necessary to prepare thoroughly for the new R&D strategy, but there is no systematic accumulation of planning expertise, and there has been continued demand for good examples of research planning. Therefore, this study analyzes the reports of preliminary feasibility for government R&D programs through a meta-analysis of detailed evaluation items and contents to help researchers enhance their project-planning ability. The evaluation items that can be applied to R&D planning for GRI were reviewed, and twelve detailed evaluation items were selected through content analysis. The results of this study could contribute to practical R&D project planning and the improvement of evaluations.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.10 no.5
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• pp.227-238
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• 2005

The characteristics of nitrogen removal by the free cell and the immobilized cell of R. capsulatus were investigated. Denitrification by R. capsulatus cells resulted in reduction of ORP with the rapid depletion of DO and the increase of pH. Without accumulation of nitrite, the removal efficiencies of ${NO_3}^-$-N for the free cell and the immobilized cell were 99.1 and 99.3%, respectively. During the three-month experiment of goldfish breeding equipped with a water-purification biofilter, the average values of pH and total cell numbers present in an aquarium were not significantly different between water-purification system and the control. The average concentrations of ${NH_4}^+$-N and ${PO_4}^{2-}$-P in water-purification system were relatively low, compared to that in the control. Goldfish died at $11^{th}$, $16^{th}$, $43^{rd}$, and $67^{th}$ days in the control, while goldfish died at $10^{th}$, $20^{th}$, and $39^{th}$ days in the water-purification system. On the days of goldfish's death, the total concentrations of nitrogenous compounds except for ${NO_2}^--N$ were higher than those on the other days of the experiment, especially with the concentrations of ${NH_4}^+$-N ranging from 7.4 to 13.5 mg/L. The water-purification system also showed the less turbidity of water with more active movement of goldfish than the control. PVA gel beads showed almost the full denitrifying ability even after the long-term experiment. As a result, the water-purification system was effective to remove nitrogenous compounds with better survival of goldfish.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.343-353
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• 2017

In the present study, the isolation of selenium (Se)-enriched bacteria from rumen fluid and hot spring water was carried out. Rumen fluid samples were taken from cannulated goats fed a basal diet and the water samples were collected from Selayang hot spring, Selangor-Malaysia. A total number of 140 Se-tolerant isolates were obtained aerobically using an Se-enriched medium and spread plate technique. All the isolates were initially screened for the ability to transform the Se-containing medium to a red-orange culture using a spectrophotometer. Twenty isolates of dark red-orange medium were selected for a screening of the highest Se-containing protein accumulating strains using the dialysis technique and icp.ms to measure the Se content. Four isolates, identified as Enterobacter cloacae (ADS1, ADS7, and ADS11), and Klebsiella pneumoniae (ADS2) from rumen fluid origin, as well as, one isolate from hot spring water (Stenotrophomonas maltophilia (ADS18)), were associated with the highest biomass organic Se-containing protein when grown in a medium enriched with $10{\mu}g/ml$ sodium selenite. In addition, around $50{\mu}g/100{\mu}g$ of the absorbed inorganic Se was accumulated as an organic form. Organic Se-containing protein in all the selected strains showed antioxidant properties in the range of 0.306 to 0.353 Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) mg/ml. Therefore, these strains may offer a potential source of organic Se due to their Se-tolerant nature and higher biomass organic to inorganic Se ratio.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.7
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• pp.3061-3065
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• 2015

Background: Rac3, a member of the Rac family of small guanosine triphosphatases (GTPases), regulates a variety of cell functions, including the organization of the cytoskeleton, cell migration, and invasion. Overexpression of Rac3 has been reported in several human cancers. However, the role of Rac3 in lung cancer (LC) has not been determined in detail. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of silencing of Rac3 expression in human LC cells and the consequences for cell survival. Materials and Methods: Lentivirus small hairpin RNA (shRNA) interference techniques were utilized to knock down the Rac3 gene. Gene and protein expression was quantified by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and Western blotting. LC cell apoptosis was examined by annexin V-APC /propidium iodide staining. Results: Efficient silencing of Rac3 strongly inhibited A549 cell proliferation and colony formation ability, and significantly decreased tumor growth. Moreover, flow cytometry analysis showed that knockdown of Rac3 led to G2/M phase cell cycle arrest as well as an excess accumulation of cells in the G1 and S phase. Conclusions: Thus, functional analysis using shRNAs revealed a critical role for Rac3 in the tumor growth of LC cells. shRNA silencing of Rac3 could provide an effective strategy to treat LC.

• Horticultural Science & Technology
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.493-500
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• 2012

In order to confirm the possibility of UV utilization as a means for disease protection in grapevine the stilbene contents and the disease incidence in UV irradiated leaves were investigated. UV irradiation significantly increased the contents of resveratrol, piceatannol and piceid, in them, resveratrol and piceid showed in vitro inhibition of spore germination and mycelium growth of Botrytis cinerea. The accumulation of both the stilbenes in UV irradiated leaves seems to be enough to inhibit the B. cinerea growth, since the formation of necrotic spot on the leaves was considerably inhibited when they were inoculated with the conidial spores of B. cinerea. However the stilbenes were accumulated only in the leaves exposed directly to UV showing a limited translocation ability of the compounds. Thus it would be necessary to develop a method to evenly irradiate the entire crown of plant with UV in order to expect to protect them from disease by UV irradiation.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.92-100
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• 1996

For the production of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate)(P(3HB-co-3HV)) from butyric acid and valeric acid, 10 strains of bacteria capable of producing P(3HB-co-3HV) were isolated from soil. Among them, the strain HJ-067 showed the best ability of producing P(3HB-co-3HV), and was indentified as a Azotobacter sp. For the production of P(3HB-co-3HV), the optimum concentrations of butyric and valeric acid were 3.0g/l, respectively. The most effective nitrogen source was $(NH_4)_{2}SO_4$ at an optimum concentration of 0.75g/l, which was equivalent to 21.36 in C/N ratio. Deficiency of the cationic metal ions ($Zn^{2+},\;Co^{2+},\;Mn^{2+}$) in the proguction medium had stimulating effect on P(3HB-co-3HV) accumulation, especially in the manganese. deficient medium. The optimum temperature for P(3HB-co-3HV) production was 27$^{\circ}C$ and the optimum initial pH was 7.0. Under the optimum conditions, 1.82g/l of P(3HB-co-3HV) and 3.00g/l of dry biomass were produced after 36 hour cultivation, and the P(3HB-co-3HV) yield and HV% were 60.60% (w/w), 15.92%, respectively.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.274-281
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• 2016

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: The accumulation of amyloid-${\beta}$ ($A{\beta}$) in the brain is a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and plays a key role in cognitive dysfunction. Perilla frutescens var. japonica extract (PFE) and its major compound, rosmarinic acid (RA), have shown antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. We investigated whether administration of PFE and RA contributes to cognitive improvement in an $A{\beta}_{25-35}$-injected mouse model. MATERIALS/METHODS: Male ICR mice were intracerebroventricularly injected with aggregated $A{\beta}_{25-35}$ to induce AD. $A{\beta}_{25-35}$-injected mice were fed PFE (50 mg/kg/day) or RA (0.25 mg/kg/day) for 14 days and examined for learning and memory ability through the T-maze, object recognition, and Morris water maze test. RESULTS: Our present study demonstrated that PFE and RA administration significantly enhanced cognition function and object discrimination, which were impaired by $A{\beta}_{25-35}$, in the T-maze and object recognition tests, respectively. In addition, oral administration of PFE and RA decreased the time to reach the platform and increased the number of crossings over the removed platform when compared with the $A{\beta}_{25-35}$-induced control group in the Morris water maze test. Furthermore, PFE and RA significantly decreased the levels of nitric oxide (NO) and malondialdehyde (MDA) in the brain, kidney, and liver. In particular, PFE markedly attenuated oxidative stress by inhibiting production of NO and MDA in the $A{\beta}_{25-35}$-injected mouse brain. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that PFE and its active compound RA have beneficial effects on cognitive improvement and may help prevent AD induced by $A{\beta}$.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.642-648
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• 2020

In this study, we investigated the effects of linoleic acid (LA) treatment on Brucella abortus infection in professional phagocyte RAW264.7 cells, particularly during the pathogen's invasion and intracellular growth in these cells, as well as in murine model BALB/c mice focusing on bacterial splenic proliferation and immunoregulatory activities. LA inhibited the growth of Brucella in a dose- and time-dependent manner. The ability of the pathogen to enter the phagocytes was inhibited as was its survival within these cells. This was accompanied by increased nitrite accumulation in these cells at 24 h post-infection. The concentration of LA used in the present study did not affect the total body weight or liver function of the mice. During Brucella infection, the total splenic weight of these animals was not changed; rather, resistance to bacterial proliferation was enhanced in the spleen. Furthermore, mice treated with LA displayed elevated levels of IL-12 and IFN-γ but reduced levels of IL-10 during infection. The findings in this study showed the regulatory role of LA against B. abortus infection suggesting its potential use in designing intervention strategy for brucellosis.

• Journal of Oriental Neuropsychiatry
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.151-163
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• 2008

Objective : Recent studies indicate that the deposition of beta-amyloid ($A{\beta}$) is related in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD), but the underlying mechanism is still not clear. Method : To investigate the potential cellular functions of APP and LMK02, we use transgenic drosophila as a model was treated with either LMK02, and the effect in APP expression was determined by climbing assay. LMK02 have been shown to be neuroprotective in fly model systems. We asked whether dietary supplementation with LMK02 would influence behavior and AD-like pathology in a transgenic fly model. Result LMK02 water extract have attenuated fly death in vivo. LMK02-treated fly increased percentage of flight ability more longly and survival ratio more than controls. APP-GRIM drosophila treated with LMK02 had significantly less accumulation of APP deposition in the eye and brain as compared to control drosophila. Conclusion : These results suggest that LMK02 prevent APP-induced neurotoxicity through attenuating flies death induced by APP, and may be useful as potential therapeutic agents for AD.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.20 no.5
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• pp.470-476
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• 2012

Resveratrol, a chemopreventive agent, is rapidly metabolized in the intestine and liver via glucuronidation. Thus, the pharmacokinetics of resveratrol limits its efficacy. To improve efficacy, the activity of resveratrol was investigated in the context of sphingolipid metabolism in human gastric cancer cells. Diverse sphingolipid metabolites, including dihydroceramides (DHCer), were tested for their ability to induce resveratrol cytotoxicity. Exposure to resveratrol ($100{\mu}M$) for 24 hr induced cell death and cell cycle arrest in gastric cancer cells. Exposure to the combination of resveratrol and dimethylsphingosine (DMS) increased cytotoxicity, demonstrating that sphingolipid metabolites intensify resveratrol activity. Specifically, DHCer accumulated in a resveratrol concentration-dependent manner in SNU-1 and HT-29 cells, but not in SNU-668 cells. LC-MS/MS analysis showed that specific DHCer species containing C24:0, C16:0, C24:1, and C22:0 fatty acids chain were increased by up to 30-fold by resveratrol, indicating that resveratrol may partially inhibit DHCer desaturase. Indeed, resveratrol mildly inhibited DHCer desaturase activity compared to the specific inhibitor GT-11 or to retinamide (4-HPR); however, in SNU-1 cells resveratrol alone exhibited a typical cell cycle arrest pattern, which GT-11 did not alter, indicating that inhibition of DHCer desaturase is not essential to the cytotoxicity induced by the combination of resveratrol and sphingolipid metabolites. Resveratrol-induced p53 expression strongly correlated with the enhancement of cytotoxicity observed upon combination of resveratrol with DMS or 4-HPR. Taken together, these results show that DHCer accumulation is a novel lipid biomarker of resveratrol-induced cytotoxicity in human gastric cancer cells.