• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.193-204
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• 2013

Altitudinal patterns of plant species richness and the effects of area, the mid-domain effect, climatic variables, net primary productivity and latitude on observed richness patterns along the ridge of the Baekdudaegan Mountains, South Korea were studied. Data were collected from 1,100 plots along a 200 to 1,900 m altitudinal gradient on the ridge. A total of 802 plant species from 97 families and 342 genera were recorded. Common and rare species accounted for 91% and 9%, respectively, of the total plant species. The altitudinal patterns of species richness for total, common and rare plants showed distinctly hump-shaped patterns, although the absolute altitudes of the richness peaks varied somewhat among plant groups. The mid-domain effect was the most powerful explanatory variable for total and common species richness, whereas climatic variables were better predictors for rare plant richness. No effect of latitude on species richness was observed. Our study suggests that the mid-domain effect is a better predictor for wide-ranging species such as common species, whereas climatic variables are more important factors for range-restricted species such as rare species. The mechanisms underlying these richness patterns may reflect fundamental differences in the biology and ecology of different plant groups.

• Korean Journal of Plant Taxonomy
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• v.46 no.2
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• pp.129-148
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• 2016

Plant species on oceanic islands comprise nearly 25% of described vascular plants on only 5% of the Earth's land surface yet are among the most rare and endangered plants. Conservation of plant biodiversity on islands poses particular challenges because many species occur in a few and/or small populations, and their habitats on islands are often disturbed by the activity of humans or by natural processes such as landslides and volcanoes. In addition to described species, evidence is accumulating that there are likely significant numbers of "cryptic" species in oceanic archipelagos. Plant systematists, in collaboration with others in the botanical disciplines, are critical to the discovery of the subtle diversity in oceanic island floras. Molecular data will play an ever increasing role in revealing variation in island lineages. However, the input from plant systematists and other organismal biologists will continue to be important in calling attention to morphological and ecological variation in natural populations and in the discovery of "new" populations that can inform sampling for molecular analyses. Conversely, organismal biologists can provide basic information necessary for understanding the biology of the molecular variants, including diagnostic morphological characters, reproductive biology, habitat, etc. Such basic information is important when describing new species and arguing for their protection. Hybridization presents one of the most challenging problems in the conservation of insular plant diversity, with the process having the potential to decrease diversity in several ways including the merging of species into hybrid swarms or conversely hybridization may generate stable novel recombinants that merit recognition as new species. These processes are often operative in recent radiations in which intrinsic barriers to gene flow have not evolved. The knowledge and continued monitoring of plant populations in the dynamic landscapes on oceanic islands are critical to the preservation of their plant diversity.

• Proceedings of the Plant Resources Society of Korea Conference
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• 1999.10a
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• pp.90-109
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• 1999

Many plant species are used in Malaysia in folk medicine for the treatment of cancer. This paper presents some of these species with details on other ethnopharmacological uses, the known bioactivities and some chemical constituents of each of the species given. It is normal practice in traditional medicine that one species of plant is used to treat various ailments. Thus the plant species listed are all used to treat cancer but have various other ethnophrmacological uses as well, some with few other uses and rest with many other uses. Information on bioactivities of each species resulting from tests on human and experimental animals are also given. Proven bioactivities give strength to ethnopharmacological claims on the efficacies of plant resources in the treatment of cancer and various other ailments but will but will not necessarily lead to the production of new pharmaceutical drugs. Many of the known chemical constituents of each species are given. This shows the richness and variety of chemicals containes in each of the species listed, The chemicals listed may or may not prove to be important in the pharmaceutical sciences but is an indication of what each species contatin in thrms of plant chemicals, It is a well known fact that many of the pharmaceutical prescriptions in present day use are of plant origin and semi-synthetic or fully synthetic chemicals produced using knowledge gained from studies of phytochemicals. Thus the paper presented will give useful information and also shows the richness of plant species that have high potentials for the development of anti-cancer resources from plants in Malaysia.

• Plant Resources
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.46-58
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• 2000

Many plant species are used in Malaysia in folk medicine for the treatment of cancer. This paper presents some of these species with details on other ethnopharmacological uses, the known bioactivities and some chemical constituents of each of the species given. It is normal practice in traditional medicine that one species of plant is used to treat various ailments. Thus the plant species listed are all used to treat cancer but have various other ethnophrmacological uses as well, some with few other uses and rest with many other uses. Information on bioactivities of each species resulting from tests on human and experimental animals are also given. Proven bioactivities give strength to ethnopharmacological claims on the efficacies of plant resources in the treatment of cancer and various other ailments but will but will not necessarily lead to the production of new pharmaceutical drugs. Many of the known chemical constituents of each species are given. This shows the richness and variety of chemicals containes in each of the species listed. The chemicals listed may or may not prove to be important in the pharmaceutical sciences but is an indication of what each species contatin in thrms of plant chemicals. It is a well known fact that many of the pharmaceutical prescriptions in present day use are of plant origin and semi-synthetic or fully synthetic chemicals produced using knowledge gained from studies of phytochemicals. Thus the paper presented will give useful information and also shows the richness of plant species that have high potentials for the development of anti-cancer resources from plants in Malaysia.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.37 no.5
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• pp.446-454
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• 2021

Plant-parasitic nematodes are not only an important constraint on agricultural crop production, but also cause both direct and indirect damage to turfgrass, which is a ground cover plant. However, studies on plant-parasitic nematodes of turfgrass in Korea are scarce. A survey for plant-parasitic nematodes was carried out on 13 golf courses in Korea. The results yielded 28 species/taxa belonging to 16 genera and 12 families of plant-parasitic nematodes. Among the isolated species, Helicotylenchus microlobus, Mesocriconema nebraskense, Tylenchorhynchus claytoni, Mesocriconema sp., and Meloidogyne graminicola were the most prevalent species in all management zones. Twelve species were new records of plant-parasitic nematodes in Korea. Highest maximum densities were showed by T. claytoni, Paratylenchus nanus, M. nebraskense, M. graminicola, and H. microlobus. Diversity (H'), was significantly higher in fairways compared to tees and greens, though species evenness (J') and dominance (D) showed no statistically significant differences. This information is crucial in nematode problem diagnosis, and the subsequent formulation of management strategies.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.45 no.1
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• pp.24-39
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• 2021

Background: To address the lack of evidence supporting invasion by three invasive plant species (Imperata cylindrica, Lantana camara, and Chromolaena odorata) in tropical ecosystems, we compared the ecophysiological and leaf anatomical traits of these three invasive alien species with those of species native to Sempu Island, Indonesia. Data on four plant traits were obtained from the TRY Plant Trait Database, and leaf anatomical traits were measured using transverse leaf sections. Results: Two ecophysiological traits including specific leaf area (SLA) and seed dry weight showed significant association with plant invasion in the Sempu Island Nature Reserve. Invasive species showed higher SLA and lower seed dry weight than non-invasive species. Moreover, invasive species showed superior leaf anatomical traits including sclerenchymatous tissue thickness, vascular bundle area, chlorophyll content, and bundle sheath area. Principal component analysis (PCA) showed that leaf anatomical traits strongly influenced with cumulative variances (100% in grass and 88.92% in shrubs), where I. cylindrica and C. odorata outperformed non-invasive species in these traits. Conclusions: These data suggest that the traits studied are important for plant invasiveness since ecophysiological traits influence of light capture, plant growth, and reproduction while leaf anatomical traits affect herbivory, photosynthetic assimilate transport, and photosynthetic activity.

• Mycobiology
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.104-109
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• 2022

Fungi of the genus Tuber are ectomycorrhizal fungi that form a symbiotic relationship mainly with oak and hazel trees. Tuber spp. exhibit a highly selective host plant preference; thus, for cultivation purposes it is important to select an appropriate host plant for successful mycorrhization. In addition, as mycorrhizal characteristics differ according to Tuber spp., it is necessary to understand the differences in mycorrhizae according to the fungal species. Tuber huidongense and Tuber himalayense were recently discovered in Korea; therefore, we used spore suspensions from these two species to inoculate two species of oak trees, Quercus acutissima and Quercus dentata, to compare colonization rates and morphologies of the mycorrhizae. The colonization rates demonstrated that the different Tuber spp. favored different host plant species. In addition, unique morphological and anatomical characteristics were observed for T. huidongense and T. himalayense depending on the host species. These findings can lead to new economically important agricultural activities related to truffle cultivation in Korea.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.131-138
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• 2009

Among rumen microbes, bacteria play important roles in the biological degradation of plant fiber due to their large biomass and high activity. To maximize the utilization of fiber components such as cellulose and hemicellulose by ruminant animals, the ecology and functions of rumen bacteria should be understood in detail. Recent genome sequencing analyses of representative fibrolytic bacterial species revealed that the number and variety of enzymes for plant fiber digestion clearly differ between Fibrobacter succinogenes and Ruminococcus flavefaciens. Therefore, the mechanism of plant fiber digestion is also thought to differ between these two species. Ecology of individual fibrolytic bacterial species has been investigated using pure cultures and electron microscopy. Recent advances in molecular biology techniques complement the disadvantages of conventional techniques and allow accurate evaluation of the ecology of specific bacteria in mixed culture, even in situ and in vivo. Molecular monitoring of fibrolytic bacterial species in the rumen indicated the predominance of F. succinogenes. Nutritive interactions between fibrolytic and non-fibrolytic bacteria are important in maintaining and promoting fibrolytic activity, mainly in terms of crossfeeding of metabolites. Recent 16S rDNA-based analyses suggest that presently recognized fibrolytic species such as F. succinogenes and two Ruminococcus species with fibrolytic activity may represent only a small proportion of the total fibrolytic population and that uncultured bacteria may be responsible for fiber digestion in the rumen. Therefore, characterization of these unidentified bacteria is important to fully understand the physiology and ecology of fiber digestion. To achieve this, a combination of conventional and modern techniques could be useful.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.367-371
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• 2011

Multiplex PCR assays were developed for the simultaneous detection of ten important Korean quarantine phytoplasmas. The species-specific primers were designed based on ribosomal protein, putative preprotein translocase Y, immunodominant protein, elongation factor TU, chaperonin protein and the 16S rRNA genes of 'Candidatus (Ca.) Phytoplasma' species. Three main primer sets were prepared from ten designed primer pairs to limit nonspecific amplification as much as possible. The multiplex PCR assay using the three primer sets successfully amplified the correct conserved genes for each 'Ca. Phytoplasma' species. In addition, ten important 'Ca. Phytoplasma' species could be easily determined by recognizing band patterns specific for each phytoplasma species from three primer sets. Moreover, a high sensitivity of multiplex PCR for each primer set was observed for samples containing a low DNA concentration (10 ng/${\mu}l$). This study provides the useful multiplex PCR assay as a convenient method to detect the presence of ten important quarantine phytoplasmas in Korea.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.357-362
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• 2015

Carbohydrate sources are one of important factors associated with macro- and micro nutrients and phytohormones in vitro culture medium for shoot growth. The optimal carbohydrates for eight species of the genus Prunus which are economically important fruit crop was evaluated at the initiation and elongation stages. All carbohydrate seemed utilized for the bud break and leaf growth at the early stage of culture. However, shoot elongation and fresh weight of species tested were superior in the medium containing 90 mM of fructose or glucose rather than sucrose. There was no difference between glucose and fructose. Adventitious shoots from the axillary buds were induced in most species but no significant differences were observed except for two species (P. salicina ‘Shiro’ and P. tomentosa). These result demonstrated that glucose and fructose were suitable carbohydrate sources for diverse Prunus species than sucrose, although the response to the carbohydrates in the medium were slightly different in the species.