• Analytical Science and Technology
• /
• v.15 no.6
• /
• pp.514-520
• /
• 2002

The electrothermal vaporization (ETV) hollow cathode glow discharge atomic emission spectrometer for analysis of liquid sample has been developed and characterized. This system has improved the sample introduction method of electrothermal vaporization and the hollow cathode glow discharge. The sample introduction method was possible to provide high analyte transport efficiency to the plasma by helix coil made of tungsten material. In addition, small volume samples (<$30{\mu}{\ell}$) could be used. The system has glow discharge cell with special design for improvement of precision. The effect of discharge parameters such as discharge power, gas flow rate has been studied to find optimum condition. The emitted light was effectively carried into detector by fiber optic cable in UV region. The calibration curve of Pb, Cd were obtained with 3 samples.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
• /
• v.24 no.6
• /
• pp.555-561
• /
• 2020

TWIK-related two-pore domain K⁺ channel-2 (TREK-2) has voltage-independent activity and shows additional activation by acidic intracellular pH (pH_i) via neutralizing the E³³² in the cytoplasmic C terminal (Ct). We reported opposite regulations of TREK-2 by phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PIP₂) via the alkaline K³³⁰ and triple Arg residues (R^355-357); inhibition and activation, respectively. The G³³⁴ between them appeared critical because its mutation (G³³⁴A) endowed hTREK-2 with tonic activity, similar to the mutation of the inhibitory K³³⁰ (K³³⁰A). To further elucidate the role of putative bent conformation at G³³⁴, we compared the dual mutation forms, K³³⁰A/G³³⁴A and G³³⁴A/R^355-7A, showing higher and lower basal activity, respectively. The results suggested that the tonic activity of G³³⁴A owes to a dominant influence from R^355-7. Since there are additional triple Arg residues (R^377-9) distal to R^355-7, we also examined the triple mutant (G³³⁴A/R^355-7A/R^377-9A) that showed tonic inhibition same with G³³⁴A/R^355-7A. Despite the state of tonic inhibition, the activation by acidic pH_i was preserved in both G³³⁴A/R^355-7A and G³³⁴A/R^355-7A/R^377-9A, similar to the R^355-7A. Also, the inhibitory effect of ATP could be commonly demonstrated under the activation by acidic pH_i in R^355-7A, G³³⁴A/R^355-7A, and G³³⁴A/R^355-7A/R^377-9A. These results suggest that the putative bent conformation at G³³⁴ is important to set the tug-of-war between K³³⁰ and R^355-7 in the PIP₂-dependent regulation of TREK-2.

• Horticultural Science & Technology
• /
• v.28 no.3
• /
• pp.476-483
• /
• 2010

Total bacterial populations were cultured from the Hydroball cultivation media in the rhizospheres of 9 different plants including $Hedera$ $helix$ L. and $Dracaena$ $deremensis$ cv. Warneckii Compacta, etc. These cultured bacterial populations were studied to test if the bacterial populations in the plant growing pots may play a role on removal of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as benzene and toluene in the air. To meet this objective, first, we tested the possibility of removal of VOCs by the cultured total bacteria alone. The residual rates of benzene by the inoculation of total bacterial populations from the different plant growth media were significantly different, ranging from 0.741-1.000 of $Spathiphyllum$ $wallisii$ 'Regal', $Pachira$ $aquatica$, $Ficus$ $elastica$, $Dieffenbachia$ sp. 'Marrianne' Hort., $Chamaedorea$ $elegans$, compared to the control with residual rate of 0.596 (LSD, $P$=0.05). This trend was also similar with toluene, depending on different plants. Based on these results, we inoculated the bacterial population cultured from $P.$ $aquatica$ into the plant-growing pots of $P.$ $aquatica$, $F.$ $elastica$, and $S.$ $podophyllum$ inside the chamber followed by the VOCs injection. The inoculated bacteria had significant effect on the removal of benzene and toluene, compared to the removal efficacy by the plants without inoculation, indicating that microbes in the rhizosphere could play a significant role on the removal of VOCs along with plants.

• The Korean Journal of Malacology
• /
• v.25 no.3
• /
• pp.223-230
• /
• 2009

Metallothioneins (MTs) play a key role in metallic homeostasis and detoxification in most living organisms. In an attempt to study the biological functions and significance of MT in a snail, we cloned and partially characterized the MT gene from the left-handed snail, Physa acutawhich has been regarded as a potential biomonitering species for fresh water. The complete cDNA sequence of PaMT cDNA was identified from the expressed sequence tag (EST) sequencing project of Physa acuta. The coding region of 180 bp gives 60 amino acid residues including the initiation methionine and termination codon. Clustering and phylogenic analysis of PaMT with other MT amino acid sequences show that it has some identities to Helix pomatia (60%), Arianta arbustorum (58%), Perna viridis (49%), Mytilus edulis (49%), Bathymodiolus azoricus (49%), Bathymodiolus azoricus (48%) and Bathymodiolus sp. FD-2002 (48%). Time dependent induction for PaMT from P. acuta exposed with cadmium (50 ppb) indicated that PaMT was induced at 4-8 hr after exposure. It remains to further develop PaMTas a potential biomarker for water contamination in fresh water.

• Journal of Conservation Science
• /
• v.37 no.5
• /
• pp.557-566
• /
• 2021

We investigated the properties of Korean traditional animal glue which are associated with the use of different parts of cattle hide and extraction conditions. Both average molecular weight(Mw, Mz) and polydispersity (PDI) of the animal glue increased with extraction time, whereas only PDI decreased after 48h. There were no differences in the average molecular weight and PDI for the different cattle hide parts used, although a individual difference was observed with regard to total molecular weight. Differences in extracts over time were compared by investigating the amide regions representing the gelatien component of the animal glue. The triple helix structure of the belly skin deteriorated in a manner proportional to the extraction time, and differences were observed for each cattle hide part. The yellowness increased with the extraction time; however, the viscosity was not proportional to the average change in molecular weight. This study has some limitations because of difficulties in the quality control of cases where small amounts of glue were extracted as small differences might impact the overall results considerably. Further research exploring various extraction conditions is required to ensure the prodiction of traditional animal glue with optimum qualities.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.32 no.9
• /
• pp.1381-1388
• /
• 2019

Objective: The aims of this study were to reveal the magnitude of the differences in protein structures at a cellular level as well as protein utilization and availability among soybean meal (SBM), canola meal (CM), and rapeseed meal (RSM) as feedstocks in China. Methods: Experiments were designed to compare the three different types of feedstocks in terms of: i) protein chemical profiles; ii) protein fractions partitioned according to Cornell Net Carbohydrate and Protein System; iii) protein molecular structures and protein second structures; iv) special protein compounds-amino acid (AA); v) total digestible protein and energy values; vi) in situ rumen protein degradability and intestinal digestibility. The protein second structures were measured using FT/IR molecular spectroscopy technique. A summary chemical approach in National Research Council (NRC) model was applied to analyze truly digestible protein. Results: The results showed significant differences in both protein nutritional profiles and protein structure parameters in terms of ${\alpha}-helix$, ${\beta}-sheet$ spectral intensity and their ratio, and amide I, amide II spectral intensity and their ratio among SBM, CM, and RSM. SBM had higher crude protein (CP) and AA content than CM and RSM. For dry matter (DM), SBM, and CM had a higher DM content compared with RSM (p<0.05), whereas no statistical significance was found between SBM and CM (p = 0.28). Effective degradability of CP and DM did not demonstrate significant differences among the three groups (p>0.05). Intestinal digestibility of rumen undegradable protein measured by three-step in vitro method showed that there was significant difference (p = 0.05) among SBM, CM, and RSM, which SBM was the highest and RSM was the lowest with CM in between. NRC modeling results showed that digestible CP content in SBM was significantly higher than that of CM and RSM (p<0.05). Conclusion: This study suggested that SBM and CM contained similar protein value and availability for dairy cattle, while RSM had the lowest protein quality and utilization.

• BMB Reports
• /
• v.54 no.2
• /
• pp.118-123
• /
• 2021

The bacterial effector protein RavZ from a pathogen can impair autophagy in the host by delipidating the mammalian autophagy-related gene 8 (mATG8)-phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) on autophagic membranes. In RavZ, the membrane-targeting (MT) domain is an essential function. However, the molecular mechanism of this domain in regulating the intracellular localization of RavZ in cells is unclear. In this study, we found that the fusion of the green fluorescent protein (GFP) to the MT domain of RavZ (GFP-MT) resulted in localization primarily to the cytosol and nucleus, whereas the GFP-fused duplicated-MT domain (GFP-2xMT) localized to Rab5- or Rab7-positive endosomes. Similarly, GFP fusion to the catalytic domain (CA) of RavZ (GFP-CA) resulted in localization primarily to the cytosol and nucleus, even in autophagy-induced cells. However, by adding the MT domain to GFP-CA (GFP-CA-MT), the cooperation of MT and CA led to localization on the Rab5-positive endosomal membranes in a wortmannin-sensitive manner under nutrient-rich conditions, and to autophagic membranes in autophagy-induced cells. In autophagic membranes, GFP-CA-MT delipidated overexpressed or endogenous mATG8-PE. Furthermore, GFP-CA△α3-MT, an α3 helix deletion within the CA domain, failed to localize to the endosomal or autophagic membranes and could not delipidate overexpressed mATG8-PE. Thus, the CA or MT domain alone is insufficient for stable membrane localization in cells, but the cooperation of MT and CA leads to localization to the endosomal and autophagic membranes. In autophagic membranes, the CA domain can delipidate mATG8-PE without requiring substrate recognition mediated by LC3-interacting region (LIR) motifs.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
• /
• v.24 no.6
• /
• pp.121-132
• /
• 2021

Green facade has a significant impact on building's energy performance by controlling the absorption of solar radiation and improving outdoor thermal comfort through shading and evapotranspiration. In particular, since high-density building does not enough green space, green facade, and rooftop greening using artificial ground plants are highly utilized. However, the level of cooling effect according to plant traits and irrigation control is different. Therefore, in this study, the cooling effect analyzed for a total of 4 cases by controlling the irrigation condition based on hedera and spurge. Although hedera under sufficient water had the highest cooling effect(-2℃~-4℃), had the lowest cooling effect under non-irrigation(+1.1℃~+4.4℃). In addition, hedera under sufficient water had cooling effect than hedera under non-irrigation(-1℃~-8.1℃) and in the case of spurge, it had cooling effect(-0.3℃~-7.8℃) more than non-irrigation. As a result of measuring the amount of transpiration according to the light intensity (PAR) and carbon dioxide concentration conditions, transpiration of hedera was higher than the spurge (respectively 0.63204mmolm^-2s^-1, 0.674367mmolm^-2s^-1). The difference in the cooling effect of the green facade under irrigation condition was significant. But the potential cooling effect of green facade according to plants species was different. Therefore, in order to maximize and continuously provide the cooling effect of green facade in urban areas, it is necessary to consider the characteristics of plants and the control of water supply through the irrigation system.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
• /
• v.49 no.2
• /
• pp.69-77
• /
• 2022

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) play an important role in innate immunity against pathogenic infections. AMPs exterminate pathogenic bacteria by disrupting cell membranes or inhibiting intracellular molecules. NK-2, first identified in pigs and derived from NK-lysin, has antimicrobial effects against bacteria and parasites. In this study, chimeric peptides (cpNK) of chicken and pig NK-2 and cpNK-derived peptides (cpNK-a1 and cpNK-a2) were synthesized, and their antimicrobial effects against various pathogenic bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp., Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus, and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) were investigated. The structure of chimeric peptides from chicken and pig NK-2, cpNK, include α-helix like NK-2 and peptide net charge was +9 like porcine NK-2. The cpNK peptide showed powerful bactericidal effects against most bacterial species, including MRSA, especially against gram-negative bacteria. Furthermore, cpNK-derived short peptides, cpNK-a1 and a2 also showed bactericidal activity, but the effects were weaker than those of cpNK. Therefore, we conclude that cpNK- and cpNK-derived short peptides have the potential to be used as antibiotic alternatives.

• Journal of Life Science
• /
• v.31 no.7
• /
• pp.671-676
• /
• 2021

A cDNA encoding the protein lethal (2) essential for life [l(2)efl] was cloned from Gryllus bimaculatus and named GBl(2)efl. This protein is composed of 189 amino acids, including an N-glycosylation site and 15 phosphorylation sites. Its predicted molecular mass is 21.19 kDa, with a theoretical isoelectric point of 6.2. The secondary structure of GBl(2)efl was predicted from the identification of random coils (56.08%), alpha helices (22.22%), extended strands (17.99%), and beta turns (3.7%) through sequence analyses. A homology analysis revealed that GBl(2)efl exhibited a high similarity with other species at the amino acid level, ranging from 52% to 69%. While GBl(2)efl mRNA expression was higher in the dorsal longitudinal flight muscle following a three-day starvation and in the Malpighian tubules following a one-day starvation, no changes in expression were detected in other tissues. Furthermore, tunicamycin-induced endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress resulted in an approximately 1.8-fold higher expression in the fat body compared with the wild type.