• The Korean Journal of Ecology
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.165-178
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• 1996

We investigated the role of competition in adaptation to varying water availability levels for two ecotypically-differentiated populations of Impatiens pallida found naturally in low- vs. high-water environments. In a greenhouse experiment, seedlings were grown in pure cultures at two densities (n=1 and 2 plants per pot) and in mixed cultures (n=2) under low-, medium- and high-water treatments. The two populations were shown to be genetically distinct across the range of environmental conditions in the greenhouse experiment, confirming previous findings. The two populations had similar morphological responses to density and water availability in pure cultures and mixtures, but the population from the high-water environment showed a greater growth response to high water availability than did the population from the low-water environment and the difference in growth between the two populations decreased from the high-water to low-water treatment. Relative competitive ability of two populations were compared under three different water treatments and two densities. Differential response to watering treatment and density were not reflected in a difference in relative competitive ability. Relative yield totals were significantly greater than 1 overall. The niche differentiation suggested by RYTs>1 may be responsible for the lack of differential competitive effects observed for populations in the three vatering treatments.

• Proceedings of the IEEK Conference
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• 2006.06a
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• pp.933-934
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• 2006

High level perceptual tasks such as context understanding, SLAM and object recognition are essential for intelligent robot to provide services for human supports. Those intelligent robots often use camera sensor for vision information, sonar or laser sensor for range information, encoder for angular velocity of wheel and so on. The information is generated at different time intervals by the different H/W devices and S/W algorithms. The generation of high level information requires the specific mixture of low level information. And the information should be represented to be useful for robots to use in their ecological niche. In conventional robot systems, perceptual module requires the resource to use by tightly coupling whenever it is needed. So the resource and information cannot be easily shared and even could be invalid for the delayed information. In this paper, we propose a synchronization system of robot-centered information for context understanding. Our system represents information for the robot capacity and synchronizes the information that is asynchronously generated, where is employed the black-board architecture.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.43-49
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• 2018

Iris laevigata is geographically restricted and legally protected in Korea. In this study, a mesocosm study was conducted to examine the effects of environmental conditions such as water levels and soil nutrient conditions on the growth and survival of I. laevigata seedlings. Complete submergence lowered the total number of leaves, biomass, and survival rates. A rise in soil nutrients increased overall seedling growth and increased tiller numbers via the promotion of asexual reproduction. Also, we found that the lowest measured values of seedlings are associated with the most stressful condition due to the interaction of low soil nutrients and high water levels. I. laevigata seedlings, however, are distributed in low-nutrient habitats such as floating mat, even though they do not grow well under these conditions. This study suggests that I. laevigata does not prefer low-nutrient condition but choose another benefit such as low competition. Also, the water level must be lower than the seedling height for effective growth and management of I. laevigata.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.457-464
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• 2022

A public health concern emerging from a zoonotic disease. Monkeypox is caused by the orthopoxvirus specie Monkeypox virus (MPXV). Monkeypox was identified as the most common orthopoxvirus infection in humans following the eradication of smallpox. Monkeypox has a similar clinical presentation to smallpox. The MPXV is now considered a high-threat pathogen that causes a serious public-health problem. The continuous spread of Monkeypox virus from West Africa to all other places around the world throughout 2018 to 2022, have raised concerns that MPXV could have emerged to acquire the immunological and ecological niche vacated by smallpox virus. This review highlights the current knowledge about Monkeypox evolution, infection biology, and epidemiology around the world since from 1970 to 2022, with a focus on the human, viral, and cellular factors that influence virus emergence, infection, spread, and maintenance in nature. This paper also discusses the current therapeutic options for Monkeypox treatment and control. Under the right conditions, with limited smallpox vaccination and very little orthopoxvirus immunity in some areas of the world, MPXV could become a more efficient human pathogen. Finally, the review identified knowledge gaps, particularly in terms of identifying a definitive reservoir host for monkeypox and proposes future research endeavors to address the unanswered questions.

• Proceedings of the National Institute of Ecology of the Republic of Korea
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.79-85
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• 2023

The Tibetan Plateau is home to the only alpine crane species, the black-necked crane (Grus nigricollis). Conservation efforts are severely hampered by a lack of knowledge on the spatial distribution and breeding habitats of this species. The ecological niche modeling framework used to predict the spatial distribution of this species, based on the maximum entropy and occurrence record data, allowed us to generate a species-specific spatial distribution map in Ladakh, Trans-Himalaya, India. The model was created by assimilating species occurrence data from 486 geographical sites with 24 topographic and bioclimatic variables. Fourteen variables helped forecast the distribution of black-necked cranes by 96.2%. The area under the curve score for the model training data was high (0.98), indicating the accuracy and predictive performance of the model. Of the total study area, the areas with high and moderate habitat suitability for black-necked cranes were anticipated to be 8,156 km² and 6,759 km², respectively. The area with high habitat suitability within the protected areas was 5,335 km². The spatial distribution predicted using our model showed that the majority of speculated conservation areas bordered the existing protected areas of the Changthang Wildlife Sanctuary. Hence, we believe, that by increasing the current study area, we can account for these gaps in conservation areas, more effectively.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.251-260
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• 2024

Flavobacterium is a genus within the phylum Bacteroidota that remains relatively unexplored. Recent analyses of plant microbiota have identified the phylum Bacteroidota as a major bacterial group in the plant rhizosphere. While Flavobacterium species within the phylum Bacteroidota have been recognized as pathogens in the aquatic habitats, microbiome analysis and the characterization of novel Flavobacterium species have indicated the great diversity and potential of their presence in various environments. Many Flavobacterium species have positively contribute to plant health and development, including growth promotion, disease control, and tolerance to abiotic stress. Despite the well-described beneficial interactions of the Flavobacterium species with plants, the molecular mechanisms and bacterial determinants underlying these interactions remain unclear. To broaden our understanding of the genus Flavobacterium's role in plant health, we review the recent studies focusing on their ecological niche, functional roles, and determinants in plant-beneficial interactions. Additionally, this review discusses putative mechanisms explaining the interactions between plants and Flavobacterium. We have also introduced the importance of future research on Flavobacterium spp. and its potential applications in agriculture.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.193-201
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• 2017

This study was carried out to obtain basic ecological information required for wetland restoration in Korea where wetland is very deficient. To arrive at the objective, we collected the basic ecological information for wetland restoration in four Doombeongs located on Goesan of Chungcheongbuk-do (province), central Korea where maintains relatively integrate feature of Doombeong. Synthesized horizontal distribution of vegetation based on vegetation established naturally except that established by artificial interference, Potamogeton distinctus community, Spirodela polyrhiza community, Sagittaria aginashi community, Trapa japonica community, Scirpus triangulatus community, and Sparganium japonicum community, Persicaria thunbergii community, Juncus effusus var. decipiens community, Ludwigia prostrata community, Humulus japonicus community, Persicaria nodosa community, Miscanthus sacchariflorus community, Phragmites communis - P. japonica community, and Scirpus radicans community, S. gracilistyla community, Spiraea prunifolia for. simpliciflora community, and Rosa multiflora community, and Salix koreensis community and Acer tataricum subsp. ginnala community tended to be established in aquatic zone, herbaceous plant dominated vegetation zone, shrub dominated vegetation zone, and tree and sub-tree dominated vegetation zone, respectively. As the result of DCA ordination based on vegetation data collected from several Doombeongs and their surrounding areas, plant communities tended to be classified into aquatic, wetland, and riparian plant dominated stands. Spatial niche and species composition of major plant communities composing those stands were suggested as the reference information for creating ecological pond as a type of wetland. Further, the importance of wetland and the necessity of wetland restoration was discussed based on functions that the wetland displays.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.45 no.1
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• pp.32-40
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• 2009

To understand contribution of thermophilic microorganisms in decomposition of litter deposits on shore of lakes, we surveyed a lakeshore litter deposit for bacteria growing at $60^{\circ}C$. Ten thermophilic isolates were selected for in-depth characterization, based on their high capacity to degrade high molecular weight organic compounds. Based on phylogenetic analysis on their 16S rRNA gene sequences, all isolates were identified as Geobacillus. The optimal growth temperature and pH of the strains ranged $55{\sim}60^{\circ}C$ and 6.0${\sim}$8.0, respectively. Salinity was inhibitory to the growth of the isolates, showing marked decrease of growth rates at 3% salinity. Based on activities of hydrolytic enzymes and profiles of carbohydrate utilization (determined by API 50 CHB kit), three G. stearothermophilus strains showed patterns clearly distinctive from other isolates. Two G. kaustophilus strains also demonstrated distinctiveness in their metabolic pattern and ecological parameters. However, ecological and metabolic profiles of the other five isolates were more variable and showed some degree of digression from their phylogenetic classification. Therefore, it could be concluded that endospore-forming thermophilic bacteria in lakeshore litter deposits contribute to degradation of organic materials with diverse ecological niches while having successions similar to microbial flora in compost. We propose that the thermophilic isolates and/or their thermo-tolerant enzymes can be applied to industrial processes as appropriate mixtures.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.57 no.1
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• pp.39-50
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• 2024

In ecosystems within limited resources, interspecific competition is inevitable, often leading to the competitive exclusion of inferior species. This study aims to provide foundational information for the conservation and restoration management of Microphysogobio rapidus by evaluating species' ecological response to biological factors within its habitat. To understand this relationship, we collected food web organisms from site where M. rapidus coexist with Microphysogobio yaluensis, a specie ecologically similar to M. rapidus, and evaluated the trophic levels (TL), isotopic niche space (INS), and the overlap of INS among fishes within the habitat using stable isotope analysis. Our analysis revealed that the M. rapidus exhibited a higher TL than M. yaluensis, with TL of 2.6 and 2.4, respectively. M. yaluensis exhibited a broad INS, significantly influencing the feeding characteristics of most fish. Conversely, M. rapidus showed a narrow INS and asymmetric feeding relationships with other species, in habitats with high competition levels. This feeding characteristics of M. rapidus indicate that the increase in competitors sharing the similar resources lead to a decrease in available resources and, consequently, is expected to result in a decrease in their density.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.173-184
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• 2016

Knowledge of the relationships among interspecific competition, spatial distributions and ecological niches plays an important role in understanding biogeographical distribution patterns of species. In this study, the distributional characteristics and ecological niches of the three Viperidae species (Gloydius ussuriensis, G. brevicaudus, and G. saxatilis) in South Korea were determined based on observation data and species distribution model. The effects of interspecific competition on geographical distribution and the division of the ecological niches of the vipers were also examined based on the models of predicted species distribution. The results showed that altitude was the most important environmental variable for their distribution, and the altitudes at which these snakes were distributed correlated with the climate of that region. Although interspecific ecological niches are quite overlapped, their predicted distribution patternsvary by the Taebaek Mountains. When overlaying the distribution models, most of the overlapping habitats were forest areas, which were relatively less overlapped than were the entire research areas. Thus, a parapatric distribution pattern was expected. The abundance of species occurring sympatrically was positively correlated with each other, indicating the lack of serious interspecies competition in this region. In conclusion, although the three Viperidae species in South Korea occupy similar ecological niches, these snakes exhibit parapatric distribution patterns without direct competition. Further research on various geographic variables (e.g., altitude, microhabitat characteristics) using relatively fine grid sizes, as well as further detailed ecological and behavioral research, is needed to determine the causative factors for the parapatric distribution pattern.