• Applied Microscopy
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.215-217
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• 2017

Dr. Jacques Dubochet, Dr. Joachim Frank, and Dr. Richard Henderson received the 2017 Nobel Prize for Chemistry for their efforts to develop effective ways to obtain high-resolution three-dimensional images of biomolecules using cryo-electron microscopy. Congratulations to the Nobel Prize in the field of electron microscopy, I will explain the scientific contributions of the three winners and introduce the role of cryo-electron microscopy (including cryo technology) in biology.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.1-5
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• 2018

Cryo-transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM) allows us to perform structural analysis of a analyses of large protein complexes, which are difficult to analyze using X-ray crystallography or nuclear magnetic resonance. The most common examples of proteins used are ribosomes and proteasomes. In this paper, we briefly describe the advantage of cryo-TEM and the process of two-dimensional classification by considering a human proteasome as an example.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.46 no.1
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• pp.1-5
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• 2016

Recent cryo-electron microscopy (EM) studies reported the structure of various types of proteins at high resolution which is sufficient to visualize the intermolecular interaction at near atomic level. There are two main factors that cause the advances in cryo-EM; the development of image processing techniques, such as single particle analysis, and the improved electron detection devices. Although the atomic structures of small and asymmetric proteins are not yet to be determined by cryo-EM, this striking improvement implies the bright prospect of the application in biomedical studies. This study reviews the recently published studies reported high resolution structures using improved imaging analysis techniques and electron detectors. Furthermore, we will discuss about the future aspects of cryo-EM application.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.171-175
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• 2017

Negative staining has been traditionally used for exosome imaging; however, the technique is limited to surface topology only and can cause staining artifacts. Therefore, to analyze the internal structure of exosomes, we employed a method of block preparation, thin sectioning, and electron tomography. In addition, an automatic serial sectioning technique with 15-nm thickness through focused ion beam was employed to observe the three-dimensional structure of exosomes of various sizes. Cryo-transmission electron microscopy revealed the near-to-native structure of exosomes.

• Vacuum Magazine
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• v.4 no.4
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• pp.18-22
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• 2017

Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is a versatile and powerful technique that enables direct visualization of biological samples of sizes ranging from whole cell to near-atomic resolution details of a protein molecule. Thanks to numerous technical breakthroughs and monumental discoveries, 3D electron microscopy (3DEM) has become an indispensable tool in the field of structural biology. In particular, development of cryo-electron microscopy(cryo-EM) and computational image processing played pivotal role for the determination of 3D structures of complex biological systems at sub-molecular resolution. Here, basis of TEM and 3DEM will be introduced, especially focusing on technical advancements and practical applications. Also, future prospective of constantly evolving 3DEM field will be discussed, with an anticipation of great biological discoveries that were once considered impossible.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.51
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• pp.13.1-13.7
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• 2021

The novel coronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has arisen as a global pandemic affecting the respiratory system showing acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). However, there is no targeted therapeutic agent yet and due to the growing cases of infections and the rising death tolls, discovery of the possible drug is the need of the hour. In general, the study for discovering therapeutic agent for SARS-CoV-2 is largely focused on large-scale screening with fragment-based drug discovery (FBDD). With the recent advancement in cryo-electron microscopy (Cryo-EM), it has become one of the widely used tools in structural biology. It is effective in investigating the structure of numerous proteins in high-resolution and also had an intense influence on drug discovery, determining the binding reaction and regulation of known drugs as well as leading the design and development of new drug candidates. Here, we review the application of cryo-EM in a structure-based drug design (SBDD) and in silico screening of the recently acquired FBDD in SARS-CoV-2. Such insights will help deliver better understanding in the procurement of the effective remedial solution for this pandemic.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.275-278
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• 2008

Electron tomography (ET) is an electron microscopic technique for obtaining a 3-D image from any electron microscopy specimen and its application in biomedical science has been increased thanks to development of electron microscopy and related technologies during the last decade. There are few researches on ET in Korea during this period. Although the importance of ET has been recognized recently by many researchers, initial approach to electron tomographic research is not easy for beginners. The 4th International Congress on Electron Tomography (4 ICET) was held on Nov $5{\sim}8$, 2006, at San Diego. The program dealt instrumentation, reconstruction algorithm, visualization/quantitative analysis and electron tomographic presentation of biological specimen and nano particles. 1 have summarized oral presentations and analyzed the posters presented on the meeting. Cryo-electron microscopic system was popular system for ET and followed conventional transmission electron microscopic system. Cultured cell line and tissue were most popular specimens analyzed and microorganisms including bacteria and virus also constituted important specimens. This analysis provides a current state of art in ET research and a guide line for practical application of ET and further research strategies.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.49-52
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• 2012

For TEM study of biological samples or polymers that are contained in organic structure, it is often required that the sample is prepared by using ultramicrotome and stained with proper agents to increase the contrast of organic structure. In this study, we investigated an efficient TEM sample preparation method for ductile heterogeneity material by using ultramicrotomy. Cryo-ultramicrotomy is a suitable method that is capable of rendering sample hardness for various ductile materials. However, it has several factors to consider, such as experimental cost, working time and finding the optimal staining conditions. To satisfy these considerations, we prepared TEM sample by using ultramicrotome without cryofunction, and secured the sample hardness by applying the staining process prior to ultrathin sectioning. The cross-linked polyethylene structure in the sample was stained with the 2% $RuO_4$ solution in a sealed test tube for 24 hours at $4^{\circ}C$. After the sample staining, ultrathin sections of sample were prepared using ultramicrotome. As a result, it was revealed that the difficulties associated with staining of ultrathin sections prepared by low-temperature conditions were improved. In addition, appropriate staining depth of sample could be selected for sectioning process. The quality of TEM sample obtained by using this method was better than that of cryo-ultramicroscopy. Finally, it is expected that our method could be effectively applied in TEM sample preparation for a variety of nano-bio convergence materials.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.46 no.2
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• pp.133-145
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• 2020

This study utilized nano-liposomes for the purpose of stabilizing and increasing the solubility of biotin, a water-soluble active material with low solubility. The particle size, zeta potential, and polydispersity index were confirmed with a nano zetasizer. It was possible to manufacture nano liposomes at 100 to 250 nm of particle size and -80 to -30 mV of zeta potential. Dialysis membrane method (DMM) was used to measure the capsulation efficiency of biotin in biotin nano-liposomes, and results showed that pH increased biotin nano-liposomes had higher capsulation efficiency than normal biotin nano-liposome. Through this experiment, it was confirmed that the pH has a great influence on the stability of biotin nano-liposomes. In vitro franz diffusion cell method was used to measure in vitro skin absorption rate of biotin nano-liposomes. The shape of the formulation and biotin solubility in nano-liposome was observed by cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM). Through this study, we confirmed that biotin, which is introduced as closely related to hair health, can be incorporated into a nano-liposome drug delivery system, to make biotin nano-liposome with improved solubility and precipitation problems.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Technology of Plasticity Conference
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• 2007.10a
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• pp.81-83
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• 2007

Cryogenic rolling combined with warm rolling has been found to be more effective than only cryogenic rolling procedure in improving the strength of a 5052 Al alloy. In this study, cryo-rolled 5052 Al alloys were aged at $175^{\circ}C$. Warm rolling was conducted after dipping plates into silicon oil bath. A notable increase of tensile strength is achieved by the precipitation during warm rolling. The mechanical behavior of this alloy was investigated by hardness and tensile tests. The microstructure was investigated by transmission electron microscopy. It was found that the cryogenic rolling combined with warm rolling was very effective in improving tensile strength.