• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제19권12호
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• pp.1628-1634
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• 2009

Small heat shock proteins (sHSPs) function as molecular chaperones that protect cells against environmental stresses. In the present study, the genes of hsp17.6 and hsp17.7, cytosolic class I sHSPs, were cloned from a tropical plant, Ageratina adenophorum. Their C-terminal domains were highly conserved with those of sHSPs from other plants, indicating the importance of the C-terminal domains for the structure and activity of sHSPs. The recombinant HSP17.6 and HSP17.7 were applied to determine their chaperone function. In vitro, HSP17.6 and HSP17.7 actively participated in the refolding of the model substrate citrate synthase (CS) and effectively prevented the thermal aggregation of CS at $45^{\circ}C$ and the irreversible inactivation of CS at $38^{\circ}C$ at stoichiometric levels. The prior presence of HSP17.7 was assumed to suppress the thermal aggregation of the model substrate CS. Therefore, this report confirms the chaperone activity of HSP17.6 and HSP17.7 and their potential as a protectant for active proteins.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• 제27권1호
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• pp.1-15
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• 2011

Korea Global Atmosphere Watch Center (KGAWC), which is located in Anmyeondo and, belongs to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA), measures sulfur hexafluoride ($SF_6$) in every hour since 2007. In this study, $SF_6$ observed in 2007 are discussed. A gas chromatograph-electron capture detector (GC-ECD) with pre-cooled device is applied during the observation, and produced data are qualified by means of periodic calibration with $SF_6$ standard gas made by Korea Research Institute of Standard and Science (KRISS). $SF_6$ has been greatly paid attention since Kyoto protocol because of its high global warming potential(GWP) with 22,200 times of $CO_2$ in the period of 100 years. It is a man-made compound and has been usually used for gas insulation since 1970s and for etching process in the information technology-based industry since 1990. Average mixing ratio of $SF_6$ in 2007 was 6.65 pmol/mol at Anmyeondo. According to the GAW report published in 2008, average mixing ratio of $SF_6$ in the atmosphere is continuously growing. At present, the average mixing ratio of $SF_6$ in the atmosphere is known to be approximately 6.25 pmol/mol at global observatory. $SF_6$ value in Anmyeondo shows 0.40 pmol/mol greater than that of the Mauna Loa observatory in 2007.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제23권10호
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• pp.1347-1356
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• 2013

Tricholoma matsutake, an ectomycorrhiza that has mutual relationships with the rootlet of Pinus denisflora, forms a fruiting body that serves as a valuable food in Asia. However, the artificial culture of this fungus has not been successful. Soil fungi, including T. matsutake, coexist with many other microorganisms and plants; therefore, complex microbial communities have an influence on the fruiting body formation of T. matsutake. Here, we report on the structures of fungal communities associated with the fairy ring of T. matsutake through the pyrosequencing method. Soil samples were collected inside the fairy ring zone, in the fairy ring zone, and outside the fairy ring zone. A total of 37,125 sequencing reads were obtained and 728 to 1,962 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were observed in the sampling zones. The fairy ring zone had the lowest OTUs and the lowest fungal diversity of all sampling zones. The number of OTUs and fungal taxa inside and outside the fairy ring zone was, respectively, about 2 times and 1.5 times higher than the fairy ring. Taxonomic analysis showed that each sampling zone has different fungal communities. In particular, out of 209 genera total, 6 genera in the fairy ring zone, such as Hemimycena, were uniquely present and 31 genera, such as Mycena, Boletopsis, and Repetophragma, were specifically absent. The results of metagenomic analysis based on the pyrosequencing indicate a decrease of fungal communities in the fairy ring zone and changes of fungal communities depending on the fairy ring growth of T. matsutake.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제23권11호
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• pp.1598-1609
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• 2013

Organochlorine pesticide residues continue to remain as a major environmental threat worldwide. Lindane is an organochlorine pesticide widely used as an acaricide in medicine and agriculture. In the present study, a new lindane-degrading yeast strain, Pseudozyma VITJzN01, was identified as a copious producer of glycolipid biosurfactant. The glycolipid structure and type were elucidated by FTIR, NMR spectroscopy, and GC-MS analysis. The surface activity and stability of the glycolipid was analyzed. The glycolipids, characterized as mannosylerythritol lipids (MELs), exhibited excellent surface active properties and the surface tension of water was reduced to 29 mN/m. The glycolipid was stable over a wide range of pH, temperature, and salinity, showing a very low CMC of 25 mg/l. Bio-microemulsion of olive oil-in-water (O/W) was prepared using the purified biosurfactant without addition of any synthetic cosurfactants, for lindane solubilization and enhanced degradation assay in liquid and soil slurry. The O/W bio-microemulsions enhanced the solubility of lindane up to 40-folds. Degradation of lindane (700 mg/l) by VITJzN01 in liquid medium amended with bio-microemulsions was found to be enhanced by 36% in 2 days, compared with degradation in 12 days in the absence of bio-microemulsions. Lindane-spiked soil slurry incubated with bio-microemulsions also showed 20-40% enhanced degradation compared with the treatment with glycolipids or yeast alone. This is the first report on lindane degradation by Pseudozyma sp., and application of bio-microemulsions for enhanced lindane degradation. MEL-stabilized bio-microemulsions can serve as a potential tool for enhanced remediation of diverse lindane-contaminated environments.

• Resources Recycling
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• 제24권3호
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• pp.76-80
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• 2015

Mobile phone has become one of the essential items in our daily life. In Korea, it is estimated that more than 20 million cell phones are discarded each year due to advancement in technology, thus creating disposal and environmental pollution. In order to conserve the resources, their proper recycling is essential as it contains both valuable and toxic metals. The economics of the recycling will depend on the amount and value of the metals. Therefore, it is necessary to determine the composition of the metals present in the different cell phones. In the present study, a report is presented on the variation of metal content per year of waste mobile phones. A review has been made for the mobile phones manufactured during the period 2000-2009 and metal content of the printed circuit boards (PCBs) by analyzing their metals. An example of the precious metal palladium and of the heavy metal lead shows the decreasing trend.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• 제28권4호
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• pp.293-303
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• 2018

Monitoring is the act of collecting and analyzing accurate engineering information using various methods and instruments. The purposes of the monitoring are design verification, construction management, quality control, safety management, and diagnose of structure etc.. The diagnose evaluation of the geotechnical structures corresponds to the confirmation of the structural performance. It is aimed to judge the soundness of geotechnical structures considering the degree of damage due to the environmental change and elapsed time. Recently, microseismicity, which is widely known in Korea, can be used for safety management and diagnoses of structure as it detects the micro-damage without disturbance of the structure. This report provides guideline on the procedure for assessing an underground oil storage cavern using microseismic monitoring techniques. Guidelines cover the selection of monitoring systems, sensor array, sensor installation and operation of systems, and interpretation.

• Journal of Convergence for Information Technology
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• 제8권5호
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• pp.219-228
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• 2018

The purpose of this study is to analyze the cases of social contribution activities of cosmetics companies and to suggest directions for related activities to be continued more effectively in the future. The case was analyzed through the report, public information, and interview with the person in charge. The main results derived from previous studies and case studies. First, social contribution activities of cosmetics companies are performed in a variety of ways such as education, business, medical care, health, environmental protection, culture, art, donation etc. Second, corporate social contribution activities and diversity were found to be highly correlated with firm size. Third, the effectiveness of social contribution activities can be enhanced through collaboration with social enterprises and professional organizations. Forth, strategic approach to social contribution activities, systematic public relations, and CEO's sense of responsibility have a major influence on related activities. Based on the results of this study, it has been suggested that CSR activities of cosmetics companies can be made more effective.

• Journal of Species Research
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• 제6권2호
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• pp.91-100
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• 2017

Five bacterial strains, ES10-3-3-1, KKM10-2-2-1, Ant11, JM10-4-1-3, and KMS4-11 assigned to the genus Deinococcus were isolated from soil samples collected from Namyangju-si in Gyeonggi-do, Gangnam-gu and Dongdaemun-gu in Seoul, Korea. In addition, four bacterial strains, KKM10-2-7-2, JM10-2-5, JM10-2-6-2, and KKM10-2-3 assigned to the genus Hymenobacter were isolated from soil samples collected from Gangnam-gu and Dongdaemun-gu in Seoul, in South Korea. The five Deinococcus species were Gram-stain positive, pink-pigmented, and short-rod or coccus shaped. The four Hymenobacter species were Gram-stain negative, red-pigmented, and short-rod shaped. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that strains ES10-3-3-1, KKM10-2-2-1, Ant11, JM10-4-1-3, and KMS4-11 were most closely related to Deinococcus citri $NCCP-154^T$ (with 99.8% similarity), Deinococcus grandis DSM $12784^T$ (99.0%), Deinococcus marmoris DSM $12784^T$ (98.8%), Deinococcus claudionis $PO-04-19-125^T$ (98.7%), and Deinococcus radioresistens $8A^T$ (99.8%), respectively. KKM10-2-7-2, JM10-2-5, JM10-2-6-2, and KKM10-2-3 were most closely related to Hymenobacter algoricola $VUG-A23a^T$ (99.1% similarity), Hymenobacter elongatus $VUG-A112^T$ (99.1% similarity), Hymenobacter gelipurpurascens $Txg1^T$ (99.1% similarity), and Hymenobacter psychrotolerans $Tibet-IIU11^T$ (99.3% similarity), respectively. These nine species have never been reported in Korea; thus, five Deinococcus species are reported in the family Deinococcaceae, order Deinococcales, class Deinococci, phylum Deinococcus-Thermus and four Hymenobacter species are reported in the family Cytophagaceae, order Cytophagales, class Cytophagia, phylum Bacteroidetes.

• Journal of Species Research
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• 제6권2호
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• pp.141-153
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• 2017

During an investigation of the biodiversity of bacterial species in Korea, we discovered many indigenous prokaryotic species. A total of 39 bacterial strains in the class Alphaproteobacteria were isolated from various environmental samples collected from marine organisms, sea water, fresh water, tap water, mud flats, activated sludge, mineral water, tidal flats, soil and decayed plants. From the high 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity (>98.7%) and formation of robust phylogenetic clades with the most closely related species, it was determined that each strain belonged to each independent and predefined bacterial species. There is no official report that any of these 39 Alphaproteobacteria species have been described in Korea. Specifically, 18 species in 11 genera in the order Sphingomonadales, 11 species in 10 genera in the order Rhizobiales, two species in two genera in the order Caulobacterales, six species in six genera in the order Rhodobacterales and two species in two genera in the order Rhodospirillales were found in Korea. Gram reaction, colony and cell morphology, basic biochemical characteristics, isolation source, and strain IDs are described in the species description section.

• Journal of Species Research
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• 제6권2호
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• pp.119-128
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• 2017

Within a comprehensive, widescale investigation of indigenous prokaryotic species in Korea, 29 bacterial strains in the phylum Bacteroidetes were isolated from diverse environmental habitats that included soil, plant roots, natural caves, tidal flats, freshwater from lakes, and seawater. Based on their high 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities (>99.1%) and the formation of robust phylogenetic clades with the closest type species, each strain likely belonged to an independent and predefined bacterial species. There are no publications or official reports of the isolation of these 29 species in Korea. Our study provides strong evidence that seven species in three genera in the order Cytophagales, 15 species in 13 genera in the order Flavobacteriales and seven species in five genera in the order Sphingobacteriales, all within the phylum Bacteriodetes, are new reports of bacterial species in Korea. Gram reaction, colony and cell morphology, basic biochemical characteristics, isolation source, and strain IDs are described in the species description section.