• Proceedings of the Microbiological Society of Korea Conference
• /
• 2008.05a
• /
• pp.163-163
• /
• 2008

Methylophaga aminisulfidivorans $MP^T$, a restricted facultative marine methylotrophic bacterium, was able to utilize methanol as a sole carbon and energy source, and possessed a methanol dehydrogenase (MDH) that is a key enzyme in the process of methanol oxidation. During purification of MDH, three types of MDH (MDH I, II, and III) were obtained in the cell free extracts from $MP^T$ cells grown on methanol. When analyzed by SDS-PAGE and ESI-FT ICR MS, MDH I was confirmed to consist of two subunits and with molecular masses of ~66 and ~10 kDa, respectively, in a form of ${\alpha}_2{\beta}_2$. While MDH II and MDH III contained an additional ~30 kDa protein, designated ${\gamma}$, in a form of ${\alpha}_2{\beta}_2{\gamma}$ and ${\alpha}_2{\beta}_2{\gamma}_2$, respectively. MDH III showed 1.5.2.0 times higher activity than MDH II, while MDH I remained the lowest activity. Based on these observations and experimental data, it seems that the original MDH conformation is ${\alpha}_2{\beta}_2{\gamma}2$ within $MP^T$ growing on methanol, and subunit ${\gamma}$ keeps MDH in an active form, and/or makes MDH easily bind to the substrate, methanol.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
• /
• v.27 no.1
• /
• pp.1-5
• /
• 2018

Two-dimensional (2D) niobate-based nanosheets have attracted attention as high-k dielectric materials. We synthesized strontiumsubstituted calcium niobate ($Ca_{0.8}Sr_{1.2}Nb_3O_{10}$) nanosheets by a two-step cation exchange process from $KCa_{0.8}Sr_{1.2}Nb_3O_{10}$ ceramic. The $K^+$ ions were exchanged with $H^+$ ions, and then H+ ions were exchanged with tetrabutylammonium ($TBA^+$) cations. The $Ca_{0.8}Sr_{1.2}Nb_3O_{10}$ nanosheets were then exfoliated, decreasing the electrostatic interaction between each niobate layer. Furthermore, $Ca_2Nb_3O_{10}$ nanosheets were synthesized in same process for comparison. Each exfoliated nanosheet shows a single-crystal phase and has a lateral size of over 100 nm. The nanosheets were deposited on a $Pt/Ti/SiO_2/Si$ substrate by the electrophoretic deposition (EPD) method at 40 V, followed by ultraviolet irradiation of the films in order to remove the remaining $TBA^+$ ions. The $Ca_{0.8}Sr_{1.2}Nb_3O_{10}$ thin film exhibited twice the dielectric permittivity (~60) and lower dielectric loss than $Ca_2Nb_3O_{10}$ thin films.

• Smart Structures and Systems
• /
• v.2 no.3
• /
• pp.225-235
• /
• 2006

With the discovery in plants of the proteinaceous forisome crystalloid (Knoblauch, et al. 2003), a novel, non-living, ATP-independent biological material became available to the designer of smart materials for advanced actuating and sensing. The in vitro studies of Knoblauch, et al. show that forisomes (2-4 micron wide and 10-40 micron long) can be repeatedly stimulated to contract and expand anisotropically by shifting either the ambient pH or the ambient calcium ion concentration. Because of their unique abilities to develop and reverse strains greater than 20% in time periods less than one second, forisomes have the potential to outperform current smart materials as advanced, biomimetic, multi-functional, smart sensors or actuators. Probing forisome material properties is an immediate need to lay the foundation for synthesizing forisomebased smart materials for health monitoring of structural integrity in civil infrastructure and for aerospace hardware. Microfluidics is a growing, vibrant technology with increasingly diverse applications. Here, we use microfluidics to study the surface interaction between forisome and substrate and the conformational dynamics of forisomes within a confined geometry to lay the foundation for forisome-based smart materials synthesis in controlled and repeatable environment.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.45 no.1
• /
• pp.21-28
• /
• 2013

The flow and heat transfer characteristics of the ex-vessel core melt (corium) were investigated using a commercial CFD code along with the experimental data on the spreading of corium available in the literature (VULCANO VE-U7 test). In the numerical simulation of the unsteady two-phase flow, the volume-of-fluid model was applied for the spreading and interfacial surface formation of corium with the surrounding air. The effects of the key parameters were evaluated for the corium spreading, including the radiation, decay heat, temperature-dependent viscosity and initial temperature of corium. The results showed a reasonable trend of corium progression influenced by the changes in the radiation, decay heat, temperature-dependent viscosity and initial temperature of corium. The modeling of the viscosity appropriate for corium and the radiative heat transfer was critical, since the front progression and temperature profiles were strongly dependent on the models. Further development is required for the code to consider the formation of crust on the surfaces of corium and the interaction with the substrate.

• Journal of the Korean Magnetics Society
• /
• v.14 no.3
• /
• pp.105-108
• /
• 2004

Array of magnetic Ni nanostructures has been fabricated on Si substrate by using nanoporous alumina film as a mask during deposition. The nanostructures are truncated cone-shape and the lateral sizes are comparable to height. While the continuous film shows well-defined in-plane magnetization, the nanostructure shows perpendicular component of magnetization at remanence. The hysterectic behavior of nanostructures is dominated by the demagnetizing field instead of interaction among them.

• Molecules and Cells
• /
• v.20 no.2
• /
• pp.280-287
• /
• 2005

The insulin-mediated Ras/mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase cascade was examined in SK-N-BE(2) and PC12 cells, which can and cannot produce reactive oxygen species (ROS), respectively. Tyrosine phosphorylation of the insulin receptor and insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS-1) was much lower in SK-N-BE(2) cells than in PC12 cells when the cells were treated with insulin. The insulin-mediated interaction of IRS-1 with Grb2 was observed in PC12 but not in SK-N-BE(2) cells. Moreover, the activity of extracellular-signal-related kinase (ERK) was much lower in SK-N-BE(2) than in PC12 cells when the cells were treated with insulin. Application of exogenous $H_2O_2$ caused increased tyrosine phosphorylation and Grb2 binding to IRS-1 in SK-N-BE(2) cells, while exposure to an $H_2O_2$ scavenger (N-acetylcysteine) or to a phophatidylinositol-3 kinase inhibitor (wortmannin), and expression of a dominant negative Rac1, decreased the activation of ERK in insulin-stimulated PC12 cells. These results indicate that the transient increase of ROS is needed to activate ERK in insulin-mediated signaling and that an inability to generate ROS is the reason for the insulin insensitivity of SK-N-BE(2) cells.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
• /
• v.24 no.12
• /
• pp.1799-1804
• /
• 2003

Acetolatate synthase(ALS) catalyzes the first common step in the biosynthesis of valine, leucine, isoleucine in plants and microorganisms. ALS is the target of several classes of herbicides, including the sulfonylureas, the imidazolinones, and the triazolopyrimidines. To elucidate the roles of arginine residues in tobacco ALS, chemical modification and site-directed mutagenesis were performed. Recombinant tobacco ALS was expressed in E. coli and purified to homogeneity. The ALS was inactivated by arginine specific reagents, phenylglyoxal and 2,3-butanedione. The rate of inactivation was a function of the concentration of modifier. The inactivation by butanedione was enhanced by borate, and the inactivation was reversible on removal of excess butanedione and borate. The substrate pyruvate and competitive inhibitors fluoropyruvate and phenylpyruvate protected the enzyme against inactivation by both modifiers. The mutation of well-conserved Arg198 of the ALS by Gln abolished the enzymatic activity as well as the binding affinity for cofactor FAD. However, the mutation of R198K did not affect significantly the binding of FAD to the enzyme. Taken together, the results imply that Arg198 is essential for the catalytic activity of the ALS and involved in the binding of FAD, and that the positive charge of the Arg is crucial for the interaction with negatively charged FAD.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
• /
• v.26 no.11
• /
• pp.821-825
• /
• 2013

Effect of multi-stacked layer (MSL), 0.1 mol (M) and 0.3 mol (M) hafnium oxide ($HfO_2$) alignment layers were fabricated via a solution-process for LCs orientation. The solutions were spin-coated and annealed in a furnace. MSL consists of three sub-layers using 0.1 M solution, mono-layer (ML) is composed of 0.3 M $HfO_2$ solution. Then ion-beam irradiation was treated with 1.8 keV for 2 min. $HfO_2$-based LC cells were investigated through photographs, pre-tilt angle using crystal rotation method, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) measurement, and surface roughness using atomic force microscopy(AFM) for their characteristic research. Good LC orientation characteristics were observed on MSL $HfO_2$ surface. The LC alignment mechanism on MSL $HfO_2$ and ML $HfO_2$ surfaces was attributed to van der Waals (VDW) interaction between the LC molecular and substrate surface.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
• /
• v.18 no.5
• /
• pp.414-422
• /
• 2005

This paper shows the results of atomistic modeling for the Interaction between spherical nano abrasive and substrate In chemical mechanical polishing processes. Atomistic modeling was achieved from 2-dimensional molecular dynamics simulations using the Lennard-jones 12-6 potentials. We proposed and investigated three mechanical models: (1) Constant Force Model; (2) Constant Depth Model, (3) Variable Force Model, and three chemical models, such as (1) Chemically Reactive Surface Model, (2) Chemically Passivating Surface Model, and (3) Chemically Passivating-reactive Surface Model. From the results obtained from classical molecular dynamics simulations for these models, we concluded that atomistic chemical mechanical polishing model based on both Variable Force Model and Chemically Passivating-reactive Surface Model were the most suitable for realistic simulation of chemical mechanical polishing in the atomic scale. The proposed model can be extended to investigate the 3-dimensional chemical mechanical polishing processes in the atomic scale.

• BMB Reports
• /
• v.28 no.6
• /
• pp.471-476
• /
• 1995

Acetolactate synthase (ALS) catalyzes the first common step in the biosynthesis of valine, leucine, and isoleucine. ALS is the target enzyme for several classes of structually diverse herbicides. We have synthesized 4,6-dimethoxypyrimidine derivatives as ALS inhibitors, and their inhibitory activities on barley ALS were determined. $IC_{50}$ values for the derivatives are 0.2~200 ${\mu}m$. K11570, the most potent ALS inhibitor with $IC_{50}$ of 0.2 ${\mu}m$, showed mixed-type inhibition with respect to substrate pyruvate, and the progress curves for ALS inhibition by K11570 indicated that the amount of inhibition increased with time. Inhibition-competition experiments were carried out and indicated that three different classes of inhibitors, K11570, a sulfonylurea Ally, and leucine, bind to ALS in a mutually exclusive manner. Chemical modification of tryptophanyl and tyrosyl residues of ALS decreased the sensitivity of ALS to K11570, while cysteine modification did not affect the sensitivity. These results suggest that tryptophanyl and tyrosynyl residues are probably located at or near the inhibitor binding site.