• KSBB Journal
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.307-315
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• 2014

Recently seaweed polysaccharides have been extensively studied for alternative energy application. Because their producing cost is high and efficiency low, their industrial applications have been limited. The main component of cell wall of red algae represented by Gelidiales and Gracilariales is agar. Red-algae agar or galactan, consisting of D-galactose and 3, 6-anhydro-L-galactose, is suitable for bio-product application if hydrolyzed to monomer unit. For the hydrolysis of algae, chemical or enzymatic treatment can be used. A chemical process using a strong acid is simple and efficient, but it generates together with target sugar and toxic compounds. In an enzymatic hydrolysis process, target sugar without toxic compounds generation. The objective of this review is to summary the recent data of saccharification by chemical and enzymatic means from red seaweed for especially focused on automobile industry.

• Molecular & Cellular Toxicology
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• v.4 no.3
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• pp.199-204
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• 2008

The bio-molecules involved in defense mechanisms can be used as efficient biomarkers for physiological changes in organisms caused by both of internal and external stress. Thus, the expression level of genes which encoding such molecules serve as critical 'early warning system' for environmental assessment as well as health diagnosis of biological organisms. In this study, Cytochrome P450, Heat shock protein 90, Ubiquitin and ${\beta}$-actin gene were isolated for the first time from a red alga Gracilaria textorii. The quantitative differential gene expression analyses of three genes, GteCYP1A, GteHsp90 and Gte-UB, were carried out in G. textorii sporophytes collected from two different localities, polluted Sujeong (Masan, Korea) and potentially unpolluted Danggeum (Daemaemuldo Is., Korea). The transcripts of all three tested genes were highly expressed in the Sujeong population. The results suggest: 1) the Sujeong site was more polluted than the Danggeum site; 2) G. textorii could be applicable to marine environment monitoring in coastal regions.

• ALGAE
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.209-217
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• 2008

Two different molecular markers, the plastid rbcL and mitochondrial cox1 genes, were used to define the taxonomic position of the northwest Pacific Ocean species currently named Gracilaria chorda. We analyzed both genes (1,222 bp for rbcL and 1,245 bp for cox1) from 18 specimens collected in Korea, Japan, and China. Phylogenetic reconstruction revealed that this organism should be classified in the genus Gracilariopsis, rather than in the Gracilaria. Thus, Gracilariopsis chorda (Holmes) Ohmi is the legitimate name for Gracilaria chorda Holmes. Within the species, the sequences differed by 8 bp (0.7%) in rbcL and 5 bp (0.4%) in cox1. Six haplotypes of cox1 tended to be geographically organized. Gp. chorda is characterized by coarse, elongate terete axes, short filiform branchlets usually at irregular intervals, an abrupt transition in cell size from medulla to cortex, cystocarps without tubular nutritive cells connecting the gonimoblast to the upper pericarp, and relatively large gonimoblast cells of the cystocarp in the specimens collected from Wando in southern Korea.

• ALGAE
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.141-150
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• 2005

To make a preliminary identification of the gracilarioid plant attached to cultivation ropes of Undaria pinnatifida and establish a method of cultivating this plant, the first taxonomic and cultivation studies on this species in Korea were conducted. This gracilarioid plant was identified from its morphological and anatomical features, as Gracilaria chorda. Growth tests using the 10, 20, and 30 cm cuttings of axes of G. chorda were performed twice, from May 3 to August 21, 2002 and from December 15, 2002 to April 3, 2003 in Ihoijin aquafarm, Hoijin, Jangheung, Jeollanamdo, Korea. In the first growing test, the thallus length of the 10, 20, and 30 cm cuttings increased twelve-fold, ten-fold, and seven-fold; the wet weight increased 81-fold, 60-fold, and 41-fold; the numbers of more than 10 cm-long branches increased 3.8-fold, 5.2-fold, and 6.1-fold, respectively. In the second growth test, the thallus length of the 10, 20, and 30 cm cuttings increased seven-fold, 5.5-fold, and four-fold; the wet weight increased 81-fold, 53-fold and 36-fold; the number of branches increased 3.8-fold, 7.3-fold, and 6.6-fold, respectively. The cultivation of G. chorda by vegetative regeneration using cuttings of thallus axes was successful for the first time in Korea.

• ALGAE
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.269-278
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• 2018

Ocean warming can have significant negative impacts on population genetic diversity, local endemism and geographical distribution of a wide range of marine organisms. Thus, the identification of conservation units with high risk of extinction becomes an imperative task to assess, monitor, and manage marine biodiversity for policy-makers. Here, we surveyed population structure and genetic variation of the red seaweed Gracilaria vermiculophylla along the coast of China using genome-based amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) scanning. Regardless of analysis methods used, AFLP consistently revealed a south to north genetic isolation. Populations at the southern coast of China showed unique genetic variation and much greater allelic richness, heterozygosity, and average genetic diversity than the northern. In particular, we identified a geographical barrier that may hinder genetic exchange between the two lineages. Consequently, the characterized genetic lineage at the southern coast of China likely resulted from the interplay of post-glacial persistence of ancestral diversity, geographical isolation and local adaptation. In particular, the southern populations are indispensable components to explore evolutionary genetics and historical biogeography of G. vermiculophylla in the northwestern Pacific, and the unique diversity also has important conservation value in terms of projected climate warming.