• ALGAE
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• 제34권1호
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• pp.57-70
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• 2019

DNA metabarcoding is currently used for large-scale taxonomic identification to understand the community composition in various marine ecosystems. However, before being widely used in this emerging field, this experimental and analytic approach still has several technical challenges to overcome, such as polymerase chain reaction (PCR) bias, and lack of well-established metabarcoding markers, a task which is difficult but not impossible to achieve. In this study, we present an adapted PCR-free small-organelles enriched metagenomics (SoEM) method for marine biodiversity assessment. To avoid PCR bias and random artefacts, we extracted target DNA sequences without PCR amplification from marine environmental samples enriched with small organelles including mitochondria and plastids because their genome sequences provide a valuable source of molecular markers for phylogenetic analysis. To experimentally enrich small organelles, we performed subcellular fractionation using modified differential centrifugation for marine environmental DNA samples. To validate our SoEM method, two marine environmental samples from the coastal waters were tested the taxonomic capturing capacity against that of traditional DNA metabarcoding method. Results showed that, regardless of taxonomic levels, at least 3-fold greater numbers of taxa were identified in our SoEM method, compared to those identified by the conventional multi-locus DNA metabarcoding method. The SoEM method is thus effective and accurate for identifying taxonomic diversity and presents a useful alternative approach for evaluating biodiversity in the marine environment.

• Molecular & Cellular Toxicology
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• 제2권3호
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• pp.170-175
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• 2006

The extensive isolation of genes responsive to stressful conditions from a soft coral Scleronephthya gracillimum was described. Soft coral colonies were exposed to thermal and chemical stressors to induce the expression of stress related genes. Differentially expressed genes by natural or anthropogenic stressors were identified by construction of standard and stress exposed-paired subtractive cDNA library. Thirty-two and thirty-seven kinds of candidate genes were identified from thermal or benzo[a]pyrene stress exposed group, respectively, which are associated with cell cycle, cell signaling, transcription, translation, protein metabolism, and other cellular functions. The expected function of each gene was described. The isolated and identified differentially expressed genes have a great potential to identify environmental stressors in global environmental changes and could act as molecular biomarkers for biological responses against environmental changes. Finally, it may open a new paradigm on soft coral health assessment.

• Animal Systematics, Evolution and Diversity
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• nspc9호
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• pp.18-29
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• 2016

An anisogammarid amphipod, Eogammarus possjeticus (Tzvetkova, 1967), is newly recorded from Jindo Island, Korea, with a detailed description and illustrations. The species belonging to the genus Eogammarus are sharing several plesiomorphic characteristics, so they are similar to each other. However, Eogammarus possjeticus can be discriminated from congeners by the following characters combined: appendages are not fossorial, setations of antennae are weak, and the number and position of robust setae on pleonal epimera, urosomes, and telson are different from its congeners. This is the first record of the genus Eogammarus Birstein, 1933 from Korean waters.

• 한국수산과학회지
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• 제49권5호
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• pp.675-677
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• 2016

We report the first occurrence of a tailless Girella leonina, collected from Jeju Island, Korea, in July 2016. This specimen has 10 scales below the median spinous portion of the dorsal fin, a black posterior margin of the operculum, and no pale vertical band on the body, and is therefore similar to the normal species, except that it has no caudal peduncle or caudal fin. The posterior parts of the dorsal and anal fins are gathered vertically at the posterior end of the body. A radiograph indicates that this abnormal specimen is lacking the vertebrae after vertebra 20.

• 한국수산과학회지
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• 제50권3호
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• pp.311-318
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• 2017

Four species of sea turtles (Chelonia mydas, Caretta caretta, Dermochelys coriacea, and Eretmochelys imbricata) have been recorded in Korean waters. However, nationwide surveys on the distribution and occurrence of each species have rarelybeen conducted in Korean waters. In this study, we comparatively analyzed the trends in occurrence of sea turtles and their morphological characteristics based on 148 reliable observations and stuffed specimen data and suggested Korean names for each species. Chelonia mydas (57 cases, 58.8%) and C. caretta (52 cases, 31.5%) were dominant species, and occupied > 90% of all observations. Most of observations of sea turtles in Korean waters were obtained through stranding (61 cases) and incidental catches (62 cases). A coastal set net was the main fishing gear for incidental catches (82%). Sea turtles were found mainly around Jeju-do and the Korea Strait from June to November. Most C. caretta found were adults, whereas most C. mydas were juveniles. Additionally, we provide detailed morphological characteristics of C. mydas (n=8) and C. caretta (n=4) using stuffed specimens. Finally, based on a literature search, we suggest appropriate Korean names, such as "Pureunbada-geobuk" for C. mydas, "Bulgeunbadageobuk" for C. caretta, "Jangsu-geobuk" for D. coriacea, and "Maeburibada-geobuk" for E. imbricate.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• 제19권1호
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• pp.6.1-6.5
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• 2016

Psenes arafurensis, belonging to the family Nomeidae, is described based on four specimens (184.8-199.0 mm in standard length) collected from Korea. The species is most similar to the congeneric species P. maculatus and P. pellucidus, but differs from them in the number of lateral-line scales. (44-47 in P. arafurensis vs 67-70 in P. maculatus and 120 in P. pellucidus) and the number of vertebrae (31 in P. arafurensis vs 34-38 in P. maculatus and 40-42 in P. pellucidus). The present study is a new record of P. arafurensis with voucher specimens from Korean waters.

• 환경생물
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• 제38권1호
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• pp.61-70
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• 2020

A eukaryotic microalga was isolated from seawater in Janghang Harbor, Korea and its morphological, molecular, and physiological characteristics were investigated. Due to its simple morphology, no distinctive characters were found by morphological observation, such as light microscope or scanning/transmission electron microscopy (S/TEM). However, molecular phylogenetic evidence inferred from the concatenated small subunit (SSU) 18S rRNA and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequence data indicated that the isolate belonged to the newly described Micractinium singularis. Furthermore, it was clustered with Antarctic Micractinium strains and it also showed a psychrotolerant property, surviving at temperatures as low as 5℃. However, its optimal growth temperatures range from 15℃ to 25℃, indicating that this microalga is a mesophile. Additionally, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) analysis showed that the isolate was rich in nutritionally important omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid, and high-performance liquid chromatography analysis (HPLC) revealed that the high-value antioxidant lutein was biosynthesized as an accessory pigment by this microalga, with glucose as the major monosaccharide. Therefore, in this study, a Korean marine M. singularis species was discovered, characterized, and described. It was subsequently added to the national culture collections.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• 제25권11호
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• pp.579-586
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• 2022

Research on the potential biological activity of red alga Symphyocladia spp. has been limited to Symphyocladia latiuscula, which is widely used as a food ingredient in Korea. Here, we examined the biological activity of another species, Symphyocladia linearis, which is found in Korea and was reported as a new species in 2013. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antibacterial properties of a 70% ethanol extract of S. linearis. Antioxidant activity, which was evaluated using radical scavenging assays, revealed half maximal inhibitory concentration values for 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl-hydrate (DPPH) and 2,2'-azino-bis-3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS) of 34.57 and 11.70 ㎍/mL algal extract, respectively. Anti-inflammatory activity of the S. linearis ethanolic extract was evaluated using RAW 264.7 cells by measuring the inhibition of lipopolysaccharide-induced nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E₂ (PGE₂) production. The potential cytotoxicity of NO and PGE₂ was first examined, confirming no toxicity at concentrations ranging from 10-100 ㎍/mL. NO production was inhibited 61.1% and 78.0% at 50 and 100 ㎍/mL S. linearis extract, respectively; and PGE₂ production was inhibited 69.1%, 83.2%, and 94.8% at 25, 50, and 100 ㎍/mL S. linearis extract, respectively. Thus, the S. linearis extract showed very strong efficacy against PGE₂ production. The cellular production of reactive oxygen species, measured using 2',7'-dichlorofluorescin diacetate fluorescence, was inhibited 48.8% by the addition of 100 ㎍/mL S. linearis extract. Antibacterial activity was evaluated using the disc diffusion method and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC). S. linearis was effective only against gram-positive bacteria, exhibiting antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus with a MIC of 256 ㎍/mL extract and against Bacillus cereus with a MIC of 1,024 ㎍/mL extract. Based on these results, we infer that a 70% ethanolic extract of S. linearis possesses strong anti-inflammatory properties, and therefore has the potential to be used in the prevention and treatment of inflammatory and immune diseases.

• ALGAE
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• 제18권3호
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• pp.225-232
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• 2003

Species composition, community structure and biodiversity of marine benthic community were studied in the rocky shore of Dongbaekseom, Busan. A total of 82 species of marine algae including 4 Cyanophyta, 11 Chlorophyta, 20 Phaeophyta and 47 Rhodophyta are listed. The dominant algal species were Ulva pertusa, Chondria crassicaulis, Corallina spp. and Melobesioidean algae. Sargassum thunbergii, Chondracanthus intermedia, Gelidium divaricatum and Ralfsia verrucosa were subdominant in cases of different seasons and vertical layers. Chthamalus challengeri, Littorina brevicula and Mytilus edulis were dominant zoobenthic species upper-middle layer of the intertidal zone. The community structure of this area seemed to be controlled by spatial competition with benthic marine algae. The species diversity indices estimated from different sources were quite different. Indices from coverage were 1.87, 3.98 from frequency, 2.26 from the average of total frequency and coverage and 2.15 from importance value. The similarity indices on the present study showed decreasing trends comparing to the previous benthic algal composition researches.

• Journal of Species Research
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• 제12권2호
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• pp.122-149
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• 2023

Two known species of the family Comesomatidae Filipjev, 1918 were collected from marine sediments of the sublittoral zone in the East Sea, Korea and described and illustrated. Dorylaimopsis variabilis Muthumbi, Soetaert and Vincx, 1997, which was originally described from the Kenyan coast in the Indian Ocean, is recorded from the East Sea, Korea for the first time; there are only slight differences in amphidial fovea turns, body length, body width and relative length of tail. Setosabatieria hilarula (De Man, 1922), Platt, 1985, which was originally described from the North Sea, is recorded from the East Sea, Korea for the first time; there are only slight differences in the number of precloacal supplements, the relative length of tail and the posterior portion of tail. We provide pictorial keys for determination of valid species in the genera Dorylaimopsis Ditlevsen, 1918 and Setosabatieria Platt, 1985. This is the first description of the genus Dorylaimopsis and Setosabatieria from Korean waters.