• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
• /
• v.26 no.4
• /
• pp.1-7
• /
• 2021

The removal of PCBs (Polychlorinated biphenyls) in aqueous phase was investigated in the ultraviolet (UV) process, ultrasonics (US) process and ultraviolet/ultrasonic (UV/US) process using PCB No.7 and Aroclor 1260. For PCB No.7 relatively high removal efficiency over 90% was obtained during 20 min in the UV process and UV/US process. On the other hand, lower removal efficiency of 50 - 70% was achieved for it consisted of individual congeners of PCBs containing 3~8 of chlorine atom. It was found that the dechlorination reaction (the photolytic cleavage of C-Cl bond) was considered as a main removal mechanism in the UV process while PCBs were removed by cavitation-induced radical reaction in the US process. No significant dechlorination occurred in the US process. Consequently, it was suggested that the UV process or UV/US process was applicable for the removal of PCBs in aqueous phase in terms of the removal efficiency and operation time. In addition, the application of saturating gas such as Ar and Air could be considered to control redox condition and enhance the severity of acoustic cavitation for the removal of PCBs.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
• /
• v.33 no.2
• /
• pp.70-77
• /
• 2024

In this study, a fluorescent ethanol sensor is developed to determine the ethanol concentration in the liquid phase. The sensor is developed using a complex of resazurin (RA)/resorufin (RO) and a hydrotalcite (HT) catalyst in a sol-gel matrix of methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS) to produce a fluorescent ethanol-sensing membrane (RA/RO^*HT membrane). The operation mechanism of the RA/RO^*HT membrane is based on (i) the oxidation of ethanol to acetaldehyde and (ii) the reduction of RA to RO, through electron flows followed by EtOH ↔ HT ↔ RA/RO ↔ EtOH interactions. These possible redox reactions can lead to an increased fluorescence intensity of the RA/RO^*HT membrane as the ethanol concentration increases. The RA/RO^*HT membrane shows a linear detection range of 1-20 vol.% EtOH with limit of detection (LOD) of 0.178%. Additionally, the RA/RO^*HT membrane has high sensitivity and accuracy for determining the alcohol content in several Korean alcoholic beverages.

• The Korean Journal of Pharmacology
• /
• v.27 no.2
• /
• pp.155-166
• /
• 1991

In order to evaluate a potential role of mitochondria in the mediation of toxicity of paraquat (PQ), submitochondrial particle and microsome of mouse liver were compared by oxygen radical generation and lipid peroxidation. With NADH in submitochondrial particle and NADPH in microsome as electron donors, PQ stimulated production of superoxide anion and $H_2O_2$ in both fractions. Under the same conditions, PQ enhanced the generation of ethylene from methional suggestiong stimulation of OH production by PQ. But these effects by PQ were somewhat lower in submitochondrial particle than in microsome. In addition, lipid peroxidation(measured as MDA production) was stimulated by PQ in both fractions. The stimulation of lipid peroxidation in both fractions seemed to occur by the same mechanism probably through perferryl ion. This was supported by the following findings: i) The lipid peroxidation in both fractions was partially inhibited by SOD and completely inhibited by DETAPAC(an iron chelator) but not by catalase or OH scavenger. ii) Addition of $ADP-Fe^{3+}$ further increased PQ-induced lipid peroxidation but decreased ethylene production from methional suggesting no correlation between OH production and lipid peroxidation. The redox-cycling of PQ in mitochondria appeared to be linked to NADH dehydrogenase, not to CoQ since all of the observed stimulations by PQ in submitochondrial particle were inhibited by p-hydroxymercuribenzoate(a NADH dehydrogenase inhibitor) but not affected by other respiratory chain blockers. The above results demonstrate that redox-cycling properties of PQ leading to oxygen radical generation and lipid peroxidation can also occur in mitochondria in the same manner as in microsome. Therefore, the observed actions of PQ in mitochondria suggest that mitochondria may also contribute to toxicity of this drug in vivo.

• Journal of Life Science
• /
• v.26 no.3
• /
• pp.353-358
• /
• 2016

Thiolase is an enzyme that catalyzes condensation reactions between two acetyl-CoA molecules to produce acetoacetyl-CoA. As thiolase catalyzes is the first reaction in the production of n-butanol, knowledge of the molecular and regulatory mechanism of the enzyme is crucial for synthesizing high-value biofuel. Thiolase from Clostridium butyricum (CbTHL) was expressed, purified, and crystallized. X-ray diffraction data were collected from the crystals, and the 3-dimentional structure of the enzyme was determined at 2.0 Å. The overall structure of thiolase was similar to that of type II biosynthetic thiolases, such as thiolase from C. acetobutylicum (CaTHL). The superposition of this structure with that of CaTHL complexed with CoA revealed the residues that comprise the catalytic and substrate binding sites of CbTHL. The catalytic site of CbTHL contains three conserved residues, Cys88, His349, and Cys379, which may function as a covalent nucleophile, general base, and second nucleophile, respectively. For substrate binding, the way in which CbTHL stabilized the ADP moiety of CoA was unlike that of other thiolases, whereas the stabilization of β-mercaptoethyamine and pantothenic acid moieties of CoA was quite similar to that of other enzymes. The most interesting observation in the CbTHL structure was that the enzyme was regulated through redox-switch modulation, using a reversible disulfide bond.

• Transactions of the Korean hydrogen and new energy society
• /
• v.26 no.2
• /
• pp.179-183
• /
• 2015

In this study, we propose a catalyst structure including enzyme and metal nano rod for glucose sensing. In the catalyst structure, glucose oxidase (GOx) and gold nano rod (GNR) are alternatingly immobilized on the surface of carbon nanotube (CNT), while poly(ethyleneimine) (PEI) is inserted in between the GOx and GNR to fortify their bonding and give them opposite polarization ($[GOx/GNR]_nPEI/CNT$). To investigate the impact of $[GOx/GNR]_nPEI/CNT$ on glucose sensing, some electrochemical measurements are carried out. Initially, their optimal layer is determined by using cyclic voltammogram and as a result of that, it is proved that $[GOx/GNR/PEI]_2/CNT$ is the best layer. Its glucose sensitivity is $13.315{\mu}AmM^{-1}cm^{-2}$. When it comes to the redox reaction mechanism of flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) within $[GOx/GNR/PEI]_2/CNT$, (i) oxygen plays a mediator role in moving electrons and protons generated by glucose oxidation reaction to those for the reduction reaction of FAD and (ii) glucose does not affect the redox reaction of FAD. It is also recognized that the $[GOx/GNR/PEI]_3/CNT$ is limited to the surface reaction and the reaction is quasi-reversible.

• Clean Technology
• /
• v.20 no.3
• /
• pp.212-217
• /
• 2014

In order to regenerate the sulfidated desulfurization sorbent, oxygen is used as the oxidant agent on the regeneration process. The small amount of oxygen un-reacted in regeneration process is flowed into direct sulfur recovery process. However, the reactivity for $SO_2$ reduction can be deteriorated with the un-reacted oxygen by various reasons. In this study, the deactivation effects of un-reacted oxygen contained in the off-gas of regeneration process flowed into direct sulfur recovery process of hot gas desulfurization system were investigated. Sn-Zr based catalysts were used as the catalyst for $SO_2$ reduction. The contents of $SO_2$ and $O_2$ contained in the regenerator off-gas used as the reactants were fixed to 5.0 vol% and 4.0 vol%, respectively. The catalytic activity tests with a Sn-Zr based catalyst were for $SO_2$ reduction performed at $300-450^{\circ}C$ and 1-20 atm. The un-reacted oxygen oxidized the elemental sulfur produced by $SO_2$ catalytic reduction and the conversion of $SO_2$ was reduced due to the production of $SO_2$. However, the temperature for the oxidation of elemental sulfur increased with increasing pressure in the catalytic reactor. Therefore, it was concluded that the decrease of reactivity at high pressure is occurred by catalytic deactivation, which is the re-oxidation of lattice oxygen vacancy in Sn-Zr based catalyst with the un-reacted oxygen on the catalysis by redox mechanism. Meanwhile the un-reacted oxygen oxidized CO supplied as the reducing agent and the temperature in the catalyst packed bed also increased due to the combustion of CO. It was concluded that the rapidly increasing temperature in the packed bed can induce the catalytic deactivation such as the sintering of active components.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
• /
• 2011.02a
• /
• pp.27-27
• /
• 2011

For the design of real applicable molecular devices, current-voltage properties through molecular nanostructures such as metal-molecule-metal junctions (molecular junctions) have been studied extensively. In thiolate monolayers on the gold electrode, the chemical bonding of sulfur to gold and the van der Waals interactions between the alkyl chains of neighboring molecules are important factors in the formation of well-defined monolayers and in the control of the electron transport rate. Charge transport through the molecular junctions depends significantly on the energy levels of molecules relative to the Fermi levels of the contacts and the electronic structure of the molecule. It is important to understand the interfacial electron transport in accordance with the increased film thickness of alkyl chains that are known as an insulating layer, but are required for molecular device fabrication. Thiol-tethered RuII terpyridine complexes were synthesized for a voltage-driven molecular switch and used to understand the switch-on mechanism of the molecular switches of single metal complexes in the solid-state molecular junction in a vacuum. Electrochemical voltammetry and current-voltage (I-V) characteristics are measured to elucidate electron transport processes in the bistable conducting states of single molecular junctions of a molecular switch, Ru(II) terpyridine complexes. (1) On the basis of the Ru-centered electrochemical reaction data, the electron transport rate increases in the mixed self-assembled monolayer (SAM) of Ru(II) terpyridine complexes, indicating strong electronic coupling between the redox center and the substrate, along the molecules. (2) In a low-conducting state before switch-on, I-V characteristics are fitted to a direct tunneling model, and the estimated tunneling decay constant across the Ru(II) terpyridine complex is found to be smaller than that of alkanethiol. (3) The threshold voltages for the switch-on from low- to high-conducting states are identical, corresponding to the electron affinity of the molecules. (4) A high-conducting state after switch-on remains in the reverse voltage sweep, and a linear relationship of the current to the voltage is obtained. These results reveal electron transport paths via the redox centers of the Ru(II) terpyridine complexes, a molecular switch.

• Journal of Life Science
• /
• v.23 no.10
• /
• pp.1183-1191
• /
• 2013

Human apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease (APEX-1) is a multifunctional protein that is capable of repairing abasic sites and single-strand breaks in damaged DNA. In addition, it serves as a redox-modifying factor for a number of transcription factors. Identifying the transcriptional targets of APEX-1 is essential for understanding how it affects various cellular outcomes. Expression array analysis was used to identify glial cell-derived neurotropic factor receptor ${\alpha}1$ ($GFR{\alpha}1$), which is an encoding receptor for the glial cell-derived neurotropic factor (GDNF) family, the expression of which is induced by APEX-1. A target of GDNF/$GFR{\alpha}$ signaling, c-Src (Tyr418) was strongly phosphorylated by GNDF in the APEX-1 expressing cells. Moreover, GDNF initiated cell proliferation, measured by counting the number of cells, in the APEX-1 expressing cells. Importantly, the down-regulation of APEX-1 by siRNA caused a marked reduction in the $GFR{\alpha}1$ expression level, and it reduced the ability of GDNF to phosphorylate c-Src (Tyr418) and stimulate cell proliferation. These results demonstrate an association between APEX-1 and GDNF/$GFR{\alpha}$ signaling and suggest a potential molecular mechanism for the involvement of APEX-1 in cell survival and proliferation.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
• /
• v.47 no.4
• /
• pp.561-571
• /
• 2023

Background: Escalating evidence shows that ginseng possesses an antiaging potential with cognitive enhancing activity. As mountain cultivated ginseng (MCG) is cultivated without agricultural chemicals, MCG has emerged as a popular herb medicine. However, little is known about the MCG-mediated pharmacological mechanism on brain aging. Methods: As we demonstrated that glutathione peroxidase (GPx) is important for enhancing memory function in the animal model of aging, we investigated the role of MCG as a GPx inducer using GPx-1 (a major type of GPx) knockout (KO) mice. We assessed whether MCG modulates redox and cholinergic parameters, and memory function in aged GPx-1 knockout KOmice. Results: Redox burden of aged GPx-1 KO mice was more evident than that of aged wild-type (WT) mice. Alteration of Nrf2 DNA binding activity appeared to be more evident than that of NFκB DNA binding activity in aged GPx-1 KO mice. Alteration in choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) activity was more evident than that in acetylcholine esterase activity. MCG significantly attenuated reductions in Nrf2 system and ChAT level. MCG significantly enhanced the co-localization of Nrf2-immunoreactivity and ChAT-immunoreactivity in the same cell population. Nrf2 inhibitor brusatol significantly counteracted MCG-mediated up-regulation in ChAT level and ChAT inhibition (by k252a) significantly reduced ERK phosphorylation by MCG, suggesting that MCG might require signal cascade of Nrf2/ChAT/ERK to enhance cognition. Conclusion: GPx-1 depletion might be a prerequisite for cognitive impairment in aged animals. MCG-mediated cognition enhancement might be associated with the activations of Nrf2, ChAT, and ERK signaling cascade.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
• /
• v.20 no.1
• /
• pp.1-7
• /
• 2001

We investigated the capability of the phosphate-solubilizing fungus, Penicillium sp. GL-101, to solubilize in vitro some insoluble rock phosphate via possible mechanisms: acidification of the medium, production of chelating metabolites, redox activity, and so on. GL-101 was able to solubilize rock phosphate (mostly calcium phosphate) in a liquid potato dextrose broth(PDB) medium, as determined by spectrophotometric analyses. Acidification was the major mechanism of solubilization since the pH of cultures fell below 4.0 and in cultures containing 1.0%(w/v) loess the pH dropped from 7.0 to 3.2. More than 10 mg/mL concentrations of citric acids were detected by high-performance liquid chromatography(HPLC) in the culture supernatants. Also this fungus showed the phosphatase activity (over 1.3 unit) to contribute partially releasing phosphate from rock phosphate, when supplemented with 1.0% loess in culture broth. The chelating activity of GL-101 in culture supernatants was not present because 2-ketogluconic acid, a chelating agent for the phosphate, was produced only a basal level. Therefore, the solubilization mechanism of rock phosphate by Penicillium sp. GL-101 involves both acidification due to citric acid production and phosphatase activity.