• Journal of Korea Technical Association of The Pulp and Paper Industry
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.34-45
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• 2016

Global warming and climate change have been caused by combustion of fossil fuels. The greenhouse gases contributed to the rise of temperature between $0.6^{\circ}C$ and $0.9^{\circ}C$ over the past century. Presently, fossil fuels account for about 88% of the commercial energy sources used. In developing countries, fossil fuels are a very attractive energy source because they are available and relatively inexpensive. The environmental problems with fossil fuels have been aggravating stress from already existing factors including acid deposition, urban air pollution, and climate change. In order to control greenhouse gas emissions, particularly CO2, fossil fuels must be replaced by eco-friendly fuels such as biomass. The use of renewable energy sources is becoming increasingly necessary. The biomass resources are the most common form of renewable energy. The conversion of biomass into energy can be achieved in a number of ways. The most common form of converted biomass is pellet fuels as biofuels made from compressed organic matter or biomass. Pellets from lignocellulosic biomass has compared to conventional fuels with a relatively low bulk and energy density and a low degree of homogeneity. Thermal pretreatment technology like torrefaction is applied to improve fuel efficiency of lignocellulosic biomass, i.e., less moisture and oxygen in the product, preferrable grinding properties, storage properties, etc.. During torrefacton, lignocelluosic biomass such as palm kernell shell (PKS) and empty fruit bunch (EFB) was roasted under an oxygen-depleted enviroment at temperature between 200 and $300^{\circ}C$. Low degree of thermal treatment led to the removal of moisture and low molecular volatile matters with low O/C and H/C elemental ratios. The mechanical characteristics of torrefied biomass have also been altered to a brittle and partly hydrophobic materials. Unfortunately, it was much harder to form pellets from torrefied PKS and EFB due to thermal degradation of lignin as a natural binder during torrefaction compared to non-torrefied ones. For easy pelletization of biomass with torrefaction, pellets from PKS and EFB were manufactured before torrefaction, and thereafter they were torrefied at different temperature. Even after torrefaction of pellets from PKS and EFB, their appearance was well preserved with better fuel efficiency than non-torrefied ones. The physical properties of the torrefied pellets largely depended on the torrefaction condition such as reaction time and reaction temperature. Temperature over $250^{\circ}C$ during torrefaction gave a significant impact on the fuel properties of the pellets. In particular, torrefied EFB pellets displayed much faster development of the fuel properties than did torrefied PKS pellets. During torrefaction, extensive carbonization with the increase of fixed carbons, the behavior of thermal degradation of torrefied biomass became significantly different according to the increase of torrefaction temperature. In conclusion, pelletization of PKS and EFB before torrefaction made it much easier to proceed with torrefaction of pellets from PKS and EFB, leading to excellent eco-friendly fuels.

• Journal of Aquaculture
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.309-316
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• 2008

Effects of the various dietary additives on growth and tolerance of abalone Haliotis discus hannai to the stresses were determined in the 16-week feeding trial. Seventy juvenile (an initial body weight of 4.2 g) abalone per container were randomly distributed into 21, 50 L plastic rectangular containers each. The six kinds of experimental diets were prepared: control (CON) with no additive, by-product of green tea (BPG), extract of figs (EF), extract of green tea (EG), commercially available product of Hearok (PH), and Haematococcus (HC). In addition, dry sea tangle (ST) was prepared to compare the efficiency of the experimental diets. Fishmeal, soybean meal and shrimp head meal were used as the protein source, and dextrin, sea tangle powder and wheat flour, and soybean oil and fish oil were used as the carbohydrate and lipid sources, respectively in the experimental diets. The experimental diets were fed to abalone once a day at a satiation level with a little leftover. The feeding trial lasted for 16 weeks. At the end of the 16-week feeding trial, abalone was exposed to the different types of stresses (air exposure, and sudden changes of rearing temperature and salinity). Survival of abalone fed the sea tangle was highest. However, weight gain of abalone fed the EF, EG and PH diets was significantly (P<0.05) higher than that of abalone fed the BPG diet or dry sea tangle. Shell length of abalone fed the all experimental diets was significantly (P<0.05) higher than that of abalone fed the dry sea tangle. Accumulated mortality of abalone fed the sea tangle was low when exposed to the different types of stresses. Also, relatively low mortality was achieved in abalone fed the HC and EF diets. In considering these results, it can be concluded that the various sources of additives is effective to improve production of abalone, and Haematococcus and extract of figs can be considered as dietary additives to improve resistance of abalone against the different types of stresses.

• The Korean Journal of Pesticide Science
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• v.4 no.3
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• pp.68-74
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• 2000

Penicillium oxalicum (PENOX) has shown the potential as a biocontrol agent(5CA) for control of a weed, clover(Trifolium repens L.) in grass plots. The bioherbicidal activity may be due to germinative and growth capacities and substrate availability of the agent over a range of environmental factors. The influences of different water activities($0.94{\sim}0.995\;a_w$) and temperatures($18{\sim}30^{\circ}C$) on mycelial growth, conidial germination, sporulation oil 2% MEA(malt extract agar) adjusted to different water activities with glycerol, and carbon source utilization using BIOLOG GN MicroPlate were determined in vitro. Decreases in $a_w$ on MEA caused a reduction in mycelial growth and conidial germination depending on temperature. The mycelial growth of PENOX was greatest at $30^{\circ}C/0.995\;a_w$. At some lowered water activity($0.97\;a_w$), the growth was similar between 25 and $30^{\circ}C$, and considerably decreased at lowered temperature($20^{\circ}C$). The germination rate was also greatest at $30^{\circ}C/0.995\;a_w$. Lag phase times for PENOX at $18^{\circ}C$ on MEA were >6hrs at tile whole $a_w$ level tested, and at 18 and $25^{\circ}C$ they were >18hrs and >12hrs at $0.94\;a_w$, respectively. However, its sporulation was some better at $0.97\;a_w$ than $0.995\;a_w$ or $0.94\;a_w$, and better at $20^{\circ}C$ than $30^{\circ}C$. In contrast, the number of carbon sources(niche size) utilized by PENOX varied with $a_w$ and temperature. Under some water stress condition($0.95\;a_w$), the agent utilized smaller number of carbon sources than $0.995\;a_w$ depending on temperature. The niche size at 0.995 and $0.95\;a_w$ were highest at $25^{\circ}C$, and showed 86 and 65, respectively. At $30^{\circ}C$, the niche size at 0.995 and $0.95\;a_w$ showed 84 and 50, respectively. There was no carbon source utilized by PENOX at $0.90\;a_w$ regardless of temperature. These information of tile fungal ecophysiology will be useful for the effective development of BCA.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.1239-1248
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• 2004

The methylotrophic yeast Hansenula polymorpha has been extensively studied as a model organism for methanol metabolism and peroxisome biogenesis. Recently, this yeast has also attracted attention as a promising host organism for recombinant protein production. Here, we describe the fabrication and evaluation of a DNA chip spotted with 382 open reading frames (ORFs) of H. polymorpha. Each ORF was PCR-amplified using gene-specific primer sets, of which the forward primers had 5'-aminolink. The PCR products were printed in duplicate onto the aldehyde-coated slide glasses to link only the coding strands to the surface of the slide via covalent coupling between amine and aldehyde groups. With the partial genome DNA chip, we compared efficiency of direct and indirect cDNA target labeling methods, and found that the indirect method, using fluorescent-labeled dendrimers, generated a higher hybridization signal-to-noise ratio than the direct method, using cDNA targets labeled by incorporation of fluorescence-labeled nucIeotides during reverse transcription. In addition, to assess the quality of this DNA chip, we analyzed the expression profiles of H. polymorpha cells grown on different carbon sources, such as glucose and methanol, and also those of cells treated with the superoxide­generating drug, menadione. The profiles obtained showed a high-level induction of a set of ORFs involved in methanol metabolism and oxidative stress response in the presence of methanol and menadione, respectively. The results demonstrate the sensitivity and reliability of our arrays to analyze global gene expression changes of H. polymorpha under defined environmental conditions.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.29-41
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• 2005

Objectives : The use of natural products with therapeutic properties is as ancient as human civilisation and, for a long time, mineral, plant and animal products were the main sources of drugs. Catalposide, the major iridoid glycoside isolated from the stem bark of Catalpa ovata G. Don (Bignoniceae) has been shown to possess anti-microbial and anti-tumoral properties. Heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) is a stress response protein and is known to play a protective role against the oxidative injury. In this study, we examined whether catalposide could protect Neuro 2A cells, a kind of neuronal cell lines, from oxidative damage through the induction of HO-1 protein expression and HO activity. We also examined the effects of catalposide on the productions of tumor necrosis $factor-{\alpha}\;(TNF-{\alpha})$ and nitric oxide (NO) on RAW 264.7 macrophages activated with the endotoxin lipopolysaccharide. Methods : HO-1 expression in Neuro 2A cells was measured by Western blotting analysis. NO and $TNF--{\alpha}$ produced by RAW 264.7 macrophage were measured by Griess reagent and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, respectively. Results : The treatment of the cells with catalposide resulted in dose- and time-dependent up-regulations of both HO-1 protein expression and HO activity. Catalposide protected the cells from hydrogen peroxide-induced cell death. The protective effect of catalposide on hydrogen peroxide-induced cell death was abrogated by zinc protoporphyrin IX, a HO inhibitor. Additional experiments revealed the involvement of CO in the cytoprotective effect of catalposide-induced HO-1. In addition, catalposide inhibited the productions of $TNF--{\alpha}$ and NO with significant decreases in mRNA levels of $TNF--{\alpha}$ and inducible NO synthase. Conclusions : Our results indicate that catalposide is a potent inducer of HO-1 and HO-1 induction is responsible for the catalposide-mediated cytoprotection against oxidative damage and that catalposide may have therapeutic potential in the control of inflammatory disorders.

• Journal of The Korean Dental Society of Anesthesiology
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.41-47
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• 2014

Background: Autophagy is a self-eating process that is important for balancing sources of energy at critical times in development and in response stress. Autophagy also plays a protective role in removing clearing damaged intracellular organelles and aggregated proteins as well as eliminating intracellular pathogens. The purpose of the present study was to examine the protective effect of propofol against hypoxic damage using keratinocytes. Methods: Human keratinocytes (HaCaT cells) were obtained from the American Type Culture Collection. Propofol which were made by dissolving them in DMSO were kept frozen at $-4^{\circ}C$ until use. The stock was diluted to their concentration with DMEM when needed. Prior to propofol treatment cells were grown to about 80% confluence and then exposed to propofol at different concentrations (0, 25, 50, 75, $100{\mu}M$) for 2 h pretreatment. Cell viability was measured using a quantitative colorimetric assay with thiazolyl blue tetrazolium bromide (MTT assay), and fluorescence microscopy and western blot analysis were used for evaluation of autophagy processes. Results: The viability of propofol-treated HaCaT cells was increased in a dose-dependent manner. Propofol did not show any significant toxic effect on the HaCaT cells. The autophagy inhibitor, 3-methyladenine, reduced cell viability of hypoxia-injured HaCat cells. Fluorescence microscopy and western blot analysis showed propofol induce autophagy pathway signals. Conclusions: Propofol enhanced viability of hypoxia-injured HaCaT cells and we suggest propofol has cellular protective effects by autophagy signal pathway activation.

• Journal of Korean Philosophical Society
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• v.143
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• pp.215-244
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• 2017

It is said that we live in an age of technology. And indeed, science and technology do play key roles to our life of happiness, but they are equally central in all events that threaten it. Science and technology are the means we often turn to in seeking solutions to our problems, and in turn are often the apparent sources of new problems. Thus it is not surprising that they have two aspects at the same time. CCTV has been presented to us as a technical solution to security problems. With the help of CCTV, we can more effectively prevent, detect, and prosecute crimes. With the help of CCTV, both public and private spaces can be made more secure. But of course, CCTV also has a down side. The down side most prominently anticipated has been loss of privacy and proliferation of surveillance. It is largely this potential problem with CCTV that has been regulated against. It is said that one reason for imposing a limitation on individual privacy is the societal interest in the prevention of crime. Accordingly a balance between the need to prevent crime through the use of CCTV and the duty to respect the privacy interests of individual citizens is in need of redress. In other hand, two theories of socio-political philosophy may have provided useful ways of understanding the role of CCTV in contemporary society. Firstly, neo-Marxist frameworks, for instance, stress the use of CCTV to police existing unequal socioeconomic divisions within society and the dominance of particular forms of order based upon materialist agendas. Secondly, Foucauldian frameworks contend that Foucault's notion of panoptic surveillance underpinning (self) disciplinary society is an appropriate template for understanding CCTV in late-modern society. In order to find a new point of valance between security and privacy in the use of CCTV, the participation of each citizen in the discourse to make the new norm is necessary. And to prevent its political misuse, their surveillance, or check for the potential surveillance-power is required.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 1995.10a
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• pp.15.2-22
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• 1995

Evaluating stiffness of near-surface materials has been one of the critically important tasks in many civil engineering works. It is the main goal of geotechnical characterization. The so-called deflection-response method evaluates the stiffness by measuring stress-strain behavior of the materials caused by static or dynamic load. This method, however, evaluates the overall stiffness and the stiffness variation with depth cannot be obtained. Furthermore, evaluation of a large-area geotechnical site by this method can be time-consuming, expensive, and damaging to many surface points of the site. Wave-propagation method, on the other hand, measures seismic velocities at different depths and stiffness profile (stiffness change with depth) can be obtained from the measured velocity data. The stiffness profile is often expressed by shear-wave (S-wave) velocity change with depth because S-wave velocity is proportional to the shear modulus. that is a direct indicator of stiffiiess. The crosshole and downhole method measures the seismic velocity by placing sources and receivers (geophones) at different depths in a borehole. Requirement of borehole installation makes this method also time-consuming, expensive, and damaging to the sites. Spectral-Analysis-of-Surface-Waves (SASW) method places both source and receivers at the surface, and records horizontally-propagating surface waves. Based upon the theory of surfacewave dispersion, the seismic velocities at different depths are calculated by analyzing the recorded surface-wave data. This method can be nondestructive to the sites. However, because only two receivers are used, the method requires multiple measurements with different field setups and, therefore, the method often becomes time-consuming and labor-intensive. Furthermore. the inclusion of noise wavefields cannot be handled properly, and this may cause the results by this method inaccurate. When multi-channel recording method is employed during the measurement of surface-waves, there are several benefits. First, usually single measurement is enough because multiple number (twelve or more) of receivers are used. Second, noise inclusion can be detected by coherency checking on the multi-channel data and handled properly so that it does not decrease the accuracy of the result. Third, various kinds of multi-channel processing techniques can be applied to f1lter unwanted noise wavefields and also to analyze the surface-wavefields more accurately and efficiently. In this way, the accuracy of the result by the method can be significantly improved. Fourth, the entire system of source, receivers, and recording-processing device can be tied into one unit, and the unit can be pulled by a small vehicle, making the survey speed very fast. In all these senses, multi-channel recording of surface waves is best suited for a routine method for geotechnical characterization in most of civil engineering works.

• Proceedings of the Plant Resources Society of Korea Conference
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• 2020.08a
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• pp.67-67
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• 2020

Though there is an on-going need for the diversity of ornamental plants for in-door environment, their growth and stress adaptability in comparatively low light intensity condition require further studies for implementation. Here investigates the growth and chlorophyll fluorescence parameters of Farfugium japonicum (L.) Kitam, Liriope muscari (Decne.) L.H.Bailey and Acorus gramineus Aiton under several light intensities which were based on common in-door environment. The growth measurement of the plants included the quantity, length, width and SPAD value of the leaves. Calculated values of Fm/Fo, Fv/Fm, Pi_Abs, ETo/RC and DIo/RC were used as the parameters of the chlorophyll fluorescence under 10, 50, 100 and 200 PPFD (μmol·m^-2·s^-1) light intensities. In-door plants group was put in a closed room allowing no other light sources for 10 weeks and the control group was put in glass-greenhouse for the same period. The overall in-door growth of L. muscari was not significantly different in all light intensities compared to the control group and even showed the higher SPAD values. Also, an increasing tendency of Pi_Abs value under 10 to 100 PPFD was observed implying that L.muscari could adapt well to in-door environment. Measurement of A. gramineus growth mostly showed the highest values in the control group especially in the number of the leaves. Nevertheless, chlorophyll fluorescence parameters showed no significant value difference between in-door and the control groups and thus, A. gramineus might have possibility of successful adaptation to in-door environment. F. japonicum showed deficient growth in plant height and leaf length compared to the control but, it seemed to be able to sustain ornamental value under in-door light intensities. Furthermore, Pi_Abs and DIo/RC values were increased under in-door light conditions suggesting potential adaptability of F. japonicum.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.513-524
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• 2010

This study was designed to examine nutrition label use, self-efficacy, snacking and eating behaviors of middle school students, and to investigate if these characteristics were different by nutrition label use. A cross-sectional survey was conducted to 348 middle school students in Kyunggi, Korea. About a third of subjects read nutrition labels when they purchased snacks/packaged foods. Most nutrition label users were interested in reading information on calories, fat and trans-fat. Self-efficacy of eating/selecting snacks or general nutrition behavior was moderate (mean score: 44.4 out of 60), with significantly higher score in nutrition label users compared to nonusers (p < 0.001). Nutrition label users felt more confident in 9 items out of 15 items of self-efficacy, such as "taking fruits instead of cookies/candy for snack" (p < 0.001), "choosing milk instead of soft drink" (p < 0.01), "not having snacks after dinner" and "avoiding processed foods for snacks" (p < 0.05). Subjects had snacks 1.3 times a day, and nutrition label nonusers consumed snacks more frequently than the counterparts (p < 0.01). About 55% of nutrition label users and 64.7% of nonusers mainly purchased snacks for themselves (p < 0.05). Commonly purchased snacks by adolescents were ice cream, cookies/chips, breads and ramen. Major considerations in purchasing snacks were taste (46.9%) and price (34.6%). In selecting snacks, the influence of friends and parents was greater than the other sources. Based on eating frequency of snacks, nutrition label users were more likely to consume healthy snacks, such as fruit juices, vegetables, milk, yogurt, and potato/sweet potato than nonusers (p < 0.05). Eating behaviors measured by 15 items scored 33.6 out of 45. Nutrition label users showed better eating behaviors, such as "eating meals slowly", "eating foods cooked with plant oil", and "eating out less frequently" (p < 0.05). Study results showed that majority of adolescents did not read nutrition labels, selected snacks for themselves and had somewhat unhealthy foods for snacks. This study also showed the differences in self-efficacy, snacking and eating behaviors between nutrition label users and nonusers. In nutrition education, it is necessary to stress the importance and skills for reading nutrition labels. It is also needed to help adolescents to select healthy snacks and have desirable eating behaviors, as well as increasing self-efficacy.