• Biomedical Science Letters
• /
• v.19 no.1
• /
• pp.41-47
• /
• 2013

Pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) have lots of potential in biomedical sciences owing to its potential to differentiate into any kind of cells in the body. However, it is still a challenge to culture PSCs on a large scale for application to regenerative medicine. Herein, we introduce a synthetic polymer that enables large-scale suspension culture of human PSCs. By employing suspension culture, it became unnecessary to use conventional substrata such as mouse embryonic fibroblast (MEF) or Matrigel$^{TM}$, which are believed to be main causative sources of xenogeneic contamination in cultured human PSCs in vitro. Human PSCs were cultured in the medium in which elastin-like polypeptide (ELP) dissolved. The ELP in the medium became harden as temperature increases by transforming the medium into a semi-solid gel that supported growth of human PSCs in suspension. Gel-sol transition temperature of ELP can be adjusted by modifying the peptide sequence in which 5 amino acids, Val-Pro-Gly-Xaa-Gly, repeated sequentially. We constructed 3D suspension media having transition temperature around $33{\sim}35^{\circ}C$ using an ELP consisted of 40, 60, or 80 repeats of a monomer, which was Val-Pro-Gly-Val-Gly. Among the ELPs, ELP80 was chosen as the best ELP to support growth of human PSCs in suspension culture. This result suggests that the ELP80 can be a medium component for culturing human PSCs in large-scale.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
• /
• v.10 no.4
• /
• pp.205-214
• /
• 2007

Surface water and sediment samples collected from the Mokpo coast of Korea were analyzed for molecular markers of organic municipal wastewaters, i.e., 11 fecal sterols including coprostanol (Cop) and nonylphenolic compounds (NPs), to characterize the main routes of these wastewaters to the coast and to assess contamination levels. Concentrations of Cop ranged from 94 to 7,568 ng/L in surface water and from 43 to 38,108 ng/g dry weight in sediments. Concentrations of NPs [nonylphenol (NP) and nonylphenol mono- and di-ethoxylates ($NP_{1-2}EOs$)] ranged from 123 to 4,729 ng/L in surface water and from 4 to 2,119 ng/ng dry weight in sediments. The levels of these compounds were much higher at stations near the rivers that pass through the urban center of Mokpo and the outfall of the wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). The spatial distribution of Cop levels was statistically similar to that of NPs (r=0.809 and 0.982 in surface water and sediments, respectively), indicating that these compounds may have similar discharge points, transport, mixing, and deposition in the study area. These results suggest that considerable amounts of organic wastewater compounds are discharged through rivers and WWTP effluent to the Mokpo coast.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
• /
• v.46 no.5
• /
• pp.626-637
• /
• 2013

We measured the grain size, ignition loss (IL), chemical oxygen demand (COD), acid volatile sulfide (AVS) and trace metals (Al, Fe, Cu, Pb, Zn, Cd, Cr, Mn, Hg, and As) of intertidal surface sediment collected from 11 islands (62 stations) in the southern region of Jeollanam Province. The objective of this research was to evaluate the organic matter and trace metals contaminations of sediments from coastal island tidal flats. Surface sediment texture was characterized as follows: mud, sandy silt, muddy sand, and slightly gravelly sand facies. The finer sediments are mainly dominated in the northern part of each island. The concentrations of IL, COD, AVS and some trace metals (Al, Fe, Zn, Cr, Cu, and Hg) were higher in the northwestern part of Wan Island and the area between Gogeum and Sinji Islands, and were associated with relatively finer sediment, as compared to other locations. The concentrations of Mn, Pb, Cd, and As were higher in the northwestern and southeastern parts of Geoguem and Pyungil Islands, but were not correlated with mean grain size. Based on sediment quality guidelines (SQGs), the concentrations of trace metals were lower than the values of effect range low (ERL), used in United States, and threshold effects level (TEL), used in Korea, with exception of As. Similarly, the intertidal sediments were moderately contaminated with As, based on the the enrichment factor (EF) and the geoaccumulation index ($I_{geo}$). The high concentration of As in intertidal sediments from this study region may be due to the input of naturally or artificially contaminated submarine groundwater, contaminated waste from seaweed aquaculture operations and/or land-based seaweed processing facilities. Further studies are needed to identify the sources of As in this study region, and to determine the effects of As contamination on coastal ecosystem.

• Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
• /
• v.46 no.2
• /
• pp.75-91
• /
• 2013

We estimate the power spectra of the cosmic microwave background radiation (CMB) temperature anisotropy in localized regions of the sky using the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) 7-year data. We find that the north and south hat regions at high Galactic latitude ($|b|{\geq}30^{\circ}C$) show an anomaly in the power spectrum amplitude around the third peak, which is statistically significant up to 3. We try to explain the cause of the observed anomaly by analyzing the low Galactic latitude ($|b|$ < $30^{\circ}C$) regions where the galaxy contamination is expected to be stronger, and the regions weakly or strongly dominated byWMAP instrument noise. We also consider the possible effect of unresolved radio point sources. We find another but less statistically significant anomaly in the low Galactic latitude north and south regions whose behavior is opposite to the one at high latitude. Our analysis shows that the observed north-south anomaly at high latitude becomes weaker on regions with high number of observations (weak instrument noise), suggesting that the anomaly is significant at sky regions that are dominated by the WMAP instrument noise. We have checked that the observed north-south anomaly has weak dependences on the bin-width used in the power spectrum estimation, and on the Galactic latitude cut. We also discuss the possibility that the detected anomaly may hinge on the particular choice of the multipole bin around the third peak. We anticipate that the issue of whether or not the anomaly is intrinsic one or due to WMAP instrument noise will be resolved by the forthcoming Planck data.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
• /
• v.9 no.3
• /
• pp.241-252
• /
• 2000

Twenty-two water samples(fifteen groundwater and seven geothermal water samples) were collected to elucidate chemical characteristics of the ground and geothermal waters in the Haeundae hot spring area and its vicinity. Major and honor elements were analyzed for ground and geothermal water samples. The concentrations of $K^+$, Na+$, $Ca^{2+}$, $SO_4^{2-}$, $Cl^-$, ^F^-$ and $SiO_2$ were higher in the geothermal water samples than the groundwater samples except $HCO_3^- and Mg^{2+}$ ions. Based on the contents of Fe, Zn, Cu, Al, Mn and Pb, some of the ground and geothermal water samples are contaminated by anthropogenic sources. The ground waters shown on the Piper diagram belong to $Ca-HCO_3$ type, while the geothermal waters Na-Cl type. The graphs of $Cl^-$ versus $Na^+$, $Ca^{2+}, Mg^{2+}, K^+, SO_4^{2-} and HCO_3^-$ indicate that the groundwater is related partly with mineral-water reaction and partly with anthropogenic contamination, while the geothermal water is related with saline water. On the phase stability diagram, groundwater and thermal water mostly fall in the field of stability of kaolinite. This indicates that the ground and geothermal waters proceed with forming kaolinite. Factor and correlation analyses were carried out to simplify the physicochemical data into grouping some factors and to find interaction between them. Based on the Na-K, Na-K-Ca and Na-K-Ca-Mg geothermometers and silica geothermometers, the geothermal reservoir is estimated to have equilibrium temperature between 125${$\mid$circ}C$ and 160${$\mid$circ}C$.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.17 no.1
• /
• pp.15-23
• /
• 2016

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are primarily formed as a result of thermal treatment of food, especially barbecuing or grilling. Contamination by PAHs is due to generation by direct pyrolysis of food nutrients and deposition from smoke produced through incomplete combustion of thermal agents. PAHs are ubiquitous compounds, well-known to be carcinogenic, which can reach the food in different ways. As an important human exposure pathway of contaminants, dietary intake of PAHs is of increasing concern for assessing cancer risk in the human body. In addition, the risks associated with consumption of barbecued meat may increase if consumers use cooking practices that enhance the concentrations of contaminants and their bioaccessibility. Since total PAHs always overestimate the actual amount that is available for absorption by the body, bioaccessibility of PAHs is to be preferred. Bioaccessibility of PAHs in food is the fraction of PAHs mobilized from food matrices during gastrointestinal digestion. An in vitro human digestion model was chosen for assessing the bioaccessibility of PAHs in food as it offers a simple, rapid, low cost alternative to human and animal studies; providing insights which may not be achievable in in vivo studies. Thus, this review aimed not only to provide an overview of general aspects of PAHs such as the formation, carcinogenicity, sources, occurrence, and factors affecting PAH concentrations, but also to enhance understanding of bioaccessibility assessment using an in vitro digestion model.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
• /
• v.35 no.1
• /
• pp.15-23
• /
• 2016

BACKGROUND: Water quality is of concern to water utility operators, public health officials, and populations using the water. If any contaminant is released from a point of entry, it could be spread rapidly throughout the water stream. So the identification of the location of the points of entry and its release history are critical informations to establish the management strategy.METHODS AND RESULTS: Aniline, nonylphenol, pentachlorophenol and formaldehyde in 39 surface water samples were analysed using Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) methods. Formaldehyde, aniline and nonylphenol were mainly detected in the near sites where industrial waste water and domestic sewage were discharged into stream. But pentachlorophenol was detected in the downstream samples where pulp manufacturing plants were operated.CONCLUSION: Results indicate that pentachlorophenol found in main stream of Guem river was mainly introduced from pulp manufacture industries. Otherwise, formaldehyde, aniline and nonylphenol were mainly contaminated from the industrial waste water and domestic sewage.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
• /
• v.25 no.1
• /
• pp.41-50
• /
• 2016

Environmental impact assessment has been implemented for more than 30 years in Korea. During that period, various amendments were carried out about target plan and assessment factors. However, in current environmental impact assessment act, only a few factors has been considered for soil environment assessment. This study analyzes the national and foreign environmental impact assessment guidelines on soil related factors and figures out the problems and implications of Korean environmental impact assessment. In Korea, water quality, topography and geology, hydraulics and hydrology, and soil contamination were analyzed as a soil related factors. The main assessment targets were pollution related factors such as soil pollution levels, amount of rainfall runoff, and non-point sources. However, in the case of foreign guidelines, soil compaction, soil sealing, and soil salinization is being analyzed for evaluating function and quality of soil environment. The revision of soil-related factors are needed for sustainable development of Korea.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
• /
• v.36 no.4
• /
• pp.275-283
• /
• 2020

Fecal coliforms are indicator bacteria to evaluate fecal contamination and microbiological safety in environment water. To examine fecal coliforms by membrane filtration, 1% rosolic acid solution dissolved in sodium hydroxide(0.2 M) should be added to m-FC medium according to Korean standard method. To reduce the exposure of researchers to harmful chemicals and expenditure of unnecessary cost, we evaluated if the rosolic acid solution is required to detect fecal coliforms. For 113 samples collected from five intake sources of Seoul, 42 samples of six tributaries, and 11 samples of sewage, the number of fecal coliforms was compared in medium with or without the reagent. As a result, the number was higher in m-FC medium without the reagent, but there was not a statistically significant difference. In the water intake, m-FC medium without the reagent could be used to examine fecal coliforms except in July, August and in case of rainfall. When heterotrophic plate counts exceeded 1,000 CFU/filter, or during rainfall, there was an effect of background bacteria in two types of the medium. However, it was more appropriate to use m-FC medium with the reagent to suppress gram-positive bacteria that can grow on medium without the reagent. In the tributary and sewage samples, the effect of the background bacteria was low, allowing the use of medium without the reagent regardless rainfall. Thus, it is necessary to present in standard method that the addition of rosolic acid solution in m-FC medium can be selected according to the characteristics of samples.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
• /
• 2003.04a
• /
• pp.94-96
• /
• 2003

Since 1995, MOCT(Ministry of Construction and Transportation) and KOWACO(Korea Water Resources Corporation) have established the National Groundwater Monitoring Network in South Korea and also MOE(Ministry of Environment) has operated Groundwater Quality Monitoring network. Until 2001, 202 monitoring stations by MOCT and 780 monitoring wells by MOE have been constructed, measured groundwater level and analyzed water samples. Groundwater quality analysis has been conducted two times a year during last 6 years for all monitoring wells. The quality data has about 15 components including pH, COD, Count of Coliform group, and etc.. Trend analysis has been peformed for 6 components(Coliform, pH, COD, NO$_3$-N, Cl and EC) of water quality which are analyzed more than 7 times for total monitoring wells. Two test methods have been used ; Sen's test and Mann-Kendall test. These trend tests have been done at the 0.05 significance level. By the result of Sen's test, Count of Coliform group has either upward or downward trends at 4.3 percent of the monitoring points. pH does at 5.6 percent, COD does at 8.6 percent, Nitrate-Nitrogen does at 13.2 percent, Chloride does at 13.4 percent, and. EC does at 11.6 percent of the monitoring points. The exact causes of the groundwater quality trends are difficult to specify. Notable downward trends in nitrate at many monitoring points may be the result of reduction on some contamination sources. Potential causes include diminished agricultural areas, improvements in sewage treatment and a decrease in atmospheric deposition. Increase in chloride at many monitoring points may be the result of increased non-point source pollution such as road salting and runoff from sprawling paved developments and suburbs.