• Preventive Nutrition and Food Science
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.210-216
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• 2011

Capsaicin is a pungent component of red pepper, which is widely consumed as food adjuncts. The present study was performed to investigate anti-obesity effects of capsaicin in diet-induced obese rats. Male Sprague-Dawley rats (n=14) were fed with a high-fat diet (Control) or high-fat diet containing 0.016% capsaicin (w/w) (Capsaicin) for 8 weeks. The final body weight and the mass of white adipose tissue were significantly lower in capsaicin supplemented group compared to control. Dietary capsaicin ameliorated lipid profiles with decrease in the plasma concentrations of triglycerides and total cholesterol, and decrease in the levels of total lipids and triglycerides in the liver. Activity of glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GPDH), an indicator of triglyceride biosynthesis in white adipose tissue, decreased by 35% in the group supplemented with capsaicin. However, consumption of capsaicin increased the expression of uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2) in white adipose tissue, which is related to energy consumption. Our data suggests that capsaicin may reduce body weight and fat accumulation in high fat diet-induced obese rats. These effects may be mediated, at least partially, by the upregulation of UCP2 gene expression and its ability to inhibit GPDH activity.

• Korean Journal of Plant Taxonomy
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.136-163
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• 2014

This study was carried out to investigate flora of Golji stream watershed in Gangwon province. The vascular plants which were collected in 11 times (from May 2012 to Nov. 2013) were identified as 825 taxa in total, including 124 families, 420 genera, 730 species, 8 subspecies, 78 varieties, 6 forms and 3 hybrids. In the flora of this area, Korean endemic species were 34 taxa, red list of vascular plants according to IUCN valuation basis were 34 taxa and 165 taxa of specially designated floristic regional indicator plants by the Ministry of Environment. Among those species investigated in this survey, 101 taxa were identified as specific species bio-geographically as compared to flora of other terrestrial regions; 37 of calcicolous plants, 64 with distribution in the northern part of the Korean peninsula. 34 aquatic taxa and 69 naturalized plants were recorded in the investigated area.

• Korean Journal of Plant Taxonomy
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.267-273
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• 2010

The distribution of three typical warm-temperate evergreen trees, Quercus acuta Thunb., Neolitsea sericea (Blume) Koidz., and Machilus thunbergii Siebold & Zucc., were surveyed on the Korean Peninsula based on field and specimen investigations and the distribution maps of the three species were prepared. The distribution patterns of the species correspond to the south coast floristic region in Korea, which includes the distributional areas of Jeju-do, Isl. Ulleung, the southern coastal areas, and the areas up to the islands around Incheon in the Yellow Sea. The northernmost limit of the distribution of Quercus acuta is Isl. Nap of Incheon in the west, and a new distribution was found at Isl. Ulleung in the East Sea; additionally, the limit of Neolitsea sericea is the Deojoek archipelago of Incheon. The northernmost limit of Machilus thunbergii is Isl. Daecheong of Incheon, which is the highest latitude among those of the three species. This distribution survey of evergreen broad-leaved trees in Korea can be used as basic data for the delimitation of floristic regions and as a bio-indicator of climatic change.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.304-314
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• 2005

The major concept of Sasang typology is that the disease susceptibility and drug response as well as physiological characteristics are presumed to be different depending on their Sasang types. Although characterizing fundamental basis of their traits are crucial in this research field, only pathological susceptibility and physical appearances were thoroughly studied. We evaluated their physiological characteristics by tapping psychological, physical and genetic traits of each Sasang types. After determining the Sasang type of one hundred three college students based on the Questionnaire for the Sasang Constitution Classification, the psychological, physical and genetic traits of each type were analyzed with the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis and genetic polymorphism test, respectively. Each of the Sasang types showed significantly different profiles (Generalized estimation equation, coef=11.88, z=2.13, p=0.033), and could be distinctively classified based on their MBTI scores (discriminant analysis Wilks Lambda=0.611, df=8, chi-square=36.7, p<0.001). Subjects with the So-Eum type (Introversion and Judging) and the So-Yang type (Extroversion and Perceiving) showed contrasting psychological features, however they had similar anthropometric characteristics. Subjects with the Tae-Eum type showed bigger Body Mass Index ($R^2$=0.22, df=4, 74, F=5.07, p=0.001) and body shape compared to others. Although there were no significant differences in G-protein beta-3 subunit polymorphism, angiotensin-converting enzyme polymorphism and Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase polymprhisms among groups with Sasang types, it was shown that the dopamine system could be one for genetic marker for Sasang typology. These results demonstrated distinctive and essential traits of Sasang typology using reproducible psychometric, anthropometric and genetic evaluations. We also found that the Sasang typology was a bio-psychological typology which could show trait-specific guideline for individualized medicine.

• Journal of Korean Society of Rural Planning
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.75-87
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• 2019

As the impacts of climate change have been emerged all the way through society, the potential risks specifically on agricultural water and facilities are recently getting concerned. Evaluating vulnerability of agriculture to climate change on is a time-tested strategy. While a number of researches on the adaption and mitigation of climate change were performed in various aspects for sustainable agricultural production, the vulnerability of management system for agricultural water and infrastructure has not been investigated yet. This study is aimed to clarify the definition of vulnerability to climate change, find the major indicators able to presume the vulnerability, and finally determine the relative importance of the indicators based on the specialist questionnaire survey and its analyses. The lists of indicators for major parts of agricultural water management such as, water use, flood control, reservoir related issues, and pumping and drainage systems are initialized referring to the related precedent studies. The primary survey was conducted in the form of Delphi to complement the list and methods and the main survey was then conducted using AHP(Analytic Hierarchy Process) technique to quantitatively prioritize the indicators. The results derived in this study would be directly adopted in weighting importance of indicators to investigate the indicator-based vulnerability analysis to climate change in agricultural water and infrastructure management.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.495-510
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• 2022

In this study, fluorescence hyperspectral imaging (FHSI) was used for the rapid, non-destructive detection of fake, manmade eggs from real eggs. To identify fake eggs, protoporphyrin IX (PpIX)-a natural pigment present in real eggshells-was utilized as the main indicator due to its strong fluorescence emission effect. The fluorescence images of real and fake eggs were acquired using a line-scan-based FHSI system, and their fluorescence features were analyzed based on spectroscopic techniques. To improve the detection performance and accuracy, an optimal waveband combination was investigated with analysis of variance (ANOVA), and its fluorescence ratio images (588/645 nm) were created for visualization of the real eggs between two different egg groups. In addition, real and fake eggs were scanned using a one-waveband (645 nm) handheld fluorescence imager that can perform real-time scanning for on-site applications. Then, the results of the two methods were compared with one another. The outcome clearly shows that the newly developed FHSI system and the fluorescence handheld imager were both able to distinguish real eggs from fake eggs. Consequently, FHSI showed a better performance (clearer images) compared to the fluorescence handheld imager, and the outcome provided valuable information about the feasibility of using FHSI imaging with ANOVA for the discrimination of real and fake eggs.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.58-67
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• 2024

The purpose of this study was to find out the fish species that appeared monthly through the fish stock survey of Minyang eelgrass beds in Tongyeong and compare them with the results of previous studies in the same area. This survey confirmed the species compositional characteristics of fish using surf net from March 2021 to February 2022. During the survey period, a total of 24 species, 8,679 individuals, and 3,714.42 g of the total fish were collected. The dominant species were Gymnogobius castaneus, G. heptacanthus, Chaenogobius gulosus, Pholis nebulosa, Rudarius ercodes which accounted for 95.9% of a total number of individuals collected. Similar to previous studies, most of the fish species that appeared were gobiidae, and in this study. Leiognathus nuchalis, which was selected as pollution indicator species, appeared for the first time.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.502-513
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• 2016

In this study, heavy metal distributions in the tissues of feral pigeon (Columba livia) were characterized using samples collected from bio-monitoring sites (Hangang Park and Hampyeong Park) of the NESB (National Environmental Specimen Bank), Korea, in order to evaluate the feasibility of feral pigeons as an indicator for the environmental monitoring. Cadmium (Cd) was analyzed to be accumulated in kidneys at higher concentration than in the other tissues. Such trend can also be found in the reviews on the Cd accumulations of the 34 cases including 17 avian species which showed that 31 cases had the highest Cd concentrations in the kidney among tissues. However, lead (Pb) was found to be richest in the bones in this study. 17 cases out of 30 reviewed cases had the highest Pb concentration in bones, whereas other 10 cases showed the highest concentration in kidneys, and 3 cases in livers. Therefore, kidneys together with bones can be a main target organ to test cadmium exposure to different habitat environments depending on physiological traits of birds. Zinc (Zn) was found to be the highest concentration in the pigeon livers of Hangang Park, but not in the bones. In contrast, the 13 cases of 16 reviewed cases had the highest Zn concentration in bones, and the 3 cases in livers. In addition, the heavy metal distribution patterns in relations to the metal accumulation mechanisms (a competition between Pb and Ca, a function of methallothionein protein, and etc.) were discussed.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.404-417
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• 2017

In this study, we analyzed response patterns of rotifer community to eutrophic state, and estimated the applicability of rotifer community as an environmental indicator for highly eutrophicated reservoirs. In order to evaluate the relationships among spatial and temporal distributions and the water quality of rotifer community, we selected the Jundae Reservoir and Chodae Reservoir in Chungcheongnam-do, Korea, which are geographically adjacent but have different water quality, particularly in their eutrophic states. For the analyses on their correlations, monthly survey of water quality and rotifer community, was conducted from April to November 2013 in both reservoirs. The rotifer community was divided into different compositions of functional groups as well as species. Functional groups were classified according to the structure and shape of trophi which can represent feeding behavior of rotifer genus. To reflect ecological characteristics of species, body size and habitat preferences were also considered. Species-based composition did not show a consistent tendency with water quality parameters related with eutrophication. On the contrary, functional group composition showed relatively clear group-specific patterns, increasing or decreasing according to the parameters. The results suggest the possible application of rotifer functional group composition as an indicatorforthe lentic systems, especially hyper-eutrophicated reservoirs. The present study can suggest the applicability based on the field observations from the limited time scale and sites, and further studies on feeding behavior of the rotifer functional group and its interactions with environmental variables are necessary for the further application.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.298-310
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• 2007

This study compared the correlation between the accumulated copper content in earthworms and the copper concentration rate of soil measured using several methods to extract heavy metals from soil. For the experiment, a microcosm soil test was carried out using copper contaminated soil from the vicinity of copper-roofed buildings and earthworms (Eisenia fetida). Soils from the study area were used to produce 6 treatments; control, 1C (contamination level with the lowest treated copper concentration rate), 2C, 4C, 8C, and 16C (contamination level with the highest treated copper concentration rate). Microcosm soil test using the 6 treatments proved that as the copper content in soil and the experiment time increased, the growth rate of and the accumulated copper concentration rate in earthworms increased as well. The degree of the increase corresponded to the order of the treated copper concentration levels in microcosm soils. Standard method of the ministry of environment and EPA method 3051 were used to obtain the copper concentration in soil and the total copper content in soil, respectively. The correlation coefficient (r) of 0.9875~0.9993 between the copper content extracted by the standard method and the total copper content shows high positive correlation. The correlation coefficient of the copper content in soil extracted by the standard method and the accumulated copper content in earthworms, and the correlation coefficient of the total copper content in soil and the accumulated copper content in earthworms were ranged from 0.9193 to 0.9728 and from 0.9282 to 0.9844, respectively, showing highly significant positive correlation. Due to the high correlation between the copper concentration in soil and the accumulated copper content in earthworms, it is concluded that earthworms are suitable to be used as biological indicator species or for bio-monitoring against copper contamination of soil.