• Ocean and Polar Research
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• 제41권4호
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• pp.213-232
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• 2019

This study evaluates the accuracy of four satellite-composite (OSTIA, AVHRR, G1SST, FNMONC-S) and three model-reanalysis (HYCOM, JCOPE2, FNMOC-M) daily sea surface temperature (SST) data around the Korean Peninsula (KP) using ocean buoy data from 2011-2016. The results reveal that OSTIA has the lowest root mean square error (RMSE; 0.68℃) and FNMOC-S/M has the highest correction coefficients (r = 0.993) compared with observations, while G1SST, JCOPE2, and AVHRR have relatively larger RMSEs and smaller correlations. The large RMSEs were found in the western coastal regions of the KP where water depth is shallow and tides are strong, such as Chilbaldo and Deokjeokdo, while low RMSEs were found in the East Sea and open oceans where water depth is relatively deep such as Donghae, Ulleungdo, and Marado. We found that the main sources of the large RMSEs, sometimes reaching up to 5℃, in SST data around the KP, can be attributed to rapid SST changes during events of strong tidal mixing, upwelling, and typhoon-induced mixing. The errors in the background SST fields which are used in data assimilations and satellite composites and the missing in-situ observations are also potential sources of large SST errors. These results suggest that both satellite and reanalysis SST data, which are believed to be true observation-based data, sometimes, can have significant inherent errors in specific regions around the KP and thus the use of such SST products should proceed with caution particularly when the aforementioned events occur.

• Molecules and Cells
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• 제38권3호
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• pp.243-250
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• 2015

Patterning of the polar axis during the early leaf developmental stage is established by cell-to-cell communication between the shoot apical meristem (SAM) and the leaf primordia. In a previous study, we showed that the DRL1 gene, which encodes a homolog of the Elongator-associated protein KTI12 of yeast, acts as a positive regulator of adaxial leaf patterning and shoot meristem activity. To determine the evolutionally conserved functions of DRL1, we performed a comparison of the deduced amino acid sequence of DRL1 and its yeast homolog, KTI12, and found that while overall homology was low, well-conserved domains were presented. DRL1 contained two conserved plant-specific domains. Expression of the DRL1 gene in a yeast KTI12-deficient yeast mutant suppressed the growth retardation phenotype, but did not rescue the caffeine sensitivity, indicating that the role of Arabidopsis Elongator-associated protein is partially conserved with yeast KTI12, but may have changed between yeast and plants in response to caffeine during the course of evolution. In addition, elevated expression of DRL1 gene triggered zymocin sensitivity, while overexpression of KTI12 maintained zymocin resistance, indicating that the function of Arabidopsis DRL1 may not overlap with yeast KTI12 with regards to toxin sensitivity. In this study, expression analysis showed that class-I KNOX genes were downregulated in the shoot apex, and that YAB and KAN were upregulated in leaves of the Arabidopsis drl1- 101 mutant. Our results provide insight into the communication network between the SAM and leaf primordia required for the establishment of leaf polarity by mediating histone acetylation or through other mechanisms.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• 제35권8호
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• pp.2494-2504
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• 2014

P38 mitogen activated protein (MAP) kinase is an important anti-inflammatory drug target, which can be activated by responding to various stimuli such as stress and immune response. Based on the conformation of the conserved DFG loop (in or out), binding inhibitors are termed as type-I and II. Type-I inhibitors are ATP competitive, whereas type-II inhibitors bind in DFG-out conformation of allosteric pocket. It remains unclear that how these allosteric inhibitors stabilize the DFG-out conformation and interact. Organosilicon compounds provide unusual opportunity to enhance potency and diversity of drug molecules due to their low toxicity. However, very few examples have been reported to utilize this property. In this regard, we performed docking of an inhibitor (BIRB) and its silicon analog (Si-BIRB) in an allosteric binding pocket of p38. Further, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were performed to study the dynamic behavior of the simulated complexes. The difference in the biological activity and mechanism of action of the simulated inhibitors could be explained based on the molecular mechanics/generalized Born surface area (MM/GBSA) binding free energy per residue decomposition. MM/GBSA showed that biological activities were related with calculated binding free energy of inhibitors. Analyses of the per-residue decomposed energy indicated that van der Waals and non-polar interactions were predominant in the ligand-protein interactions. Further, crucial residues identified for hydrogen bond, salt bridge and hydrophobic interactions were Tyr35, Lys53, Glu71, Leu74, Leu75, Ile84, Met109, Leu167, Asp168 and Phe169. Our results indicate that stronger hydrophobic interaction of Si-BIRB with the binding site residues could be responsible for its greater binding affinity compared with BIRB.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• 제28권3호
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• pp.432-438
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• 2007

Environmentally important phthalic esters have been analyzed by GC-MS in terms of individual phthalic esters or total phthalic esters directly or after derivatization. Derivatization improves the chromatographic characteristics of the highly polar phthalic esters. This study focused on the GC-MS determination of the total phthalic esters and the individual phthalic esters simultaneously. The phthalic esters were hydrolyzed to phthalate and corresponding alcohols in 1 M NaOH solution at 90 oC for 30 min followed by extraction with ethyl acetate after acidifcation. The phthalic acid and alcohols were simultaneously silyl derivatized using bis(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide (BSTFA) to their corresponding silyl ester and ethers in the mixture of 60% acetone and 40% ethyl acetate at room temperature within 30 min. Because of the high reactivity of BSTFA with the phthalic acid and alcohols effective silyl derivatization was possible simultaneously. GC-MS analysis of the silyl derivatives of phthalic acid and alcohols was performed. The total phthalic ester content was estimated from the analytical result of phthalic silyl ester, while the individual phthalic ester was quantified from the analytical results of alcoholic silyl ethers. This technique was applied to spiked tab water and real seawater samples from the Lake Shihwa in Korea. The results were checked against the results from the direct GC-MS analysis of the phthalic esters and reasonable recoveries with high sensitivity were achieved. The recoveries were higher than 75% with low relative standard deviation (below 10%).

• BMB Reports
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• 제34권5호
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• pp.402-407
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• 2001

Based on the currently proposed toxicity model for the different Bacillus thuringiensis Cry $\delta$-endotoxins, their pore-forming activity involves the insertion of the ${\alpha}4-{\alpha}5$ helical hairpin into the membrane of the target midgut epithelial cell. In this study, a number of polar or charged residues in helix 4 within domain I of the 65-kDa dipteranactive Cry11A toxin, Lys-123, Tyr-125, Asn-128, Ser-130, Gln-135, Arg-136, Gln-139 and Glu-141, were initially substituted with alanine by using PCR-based directed mutagenesis. All mutant toxins were expressed as cytoplasmic inclusions in Escherichia coli upon induction with IPTG. Similar to the wild-type protoxin inclusion, the solubility of each mutant inclusion in the carbonate buffer, pH 9.0, was relatively low When E. coli cells, expressing each of the mutant proteins, were tested for toxicity against Aedes aegypti mosquito-larvae, toxicity was completely abolished for the alanine substitution of arginine at position 136. However, mutations at the other positions still retained a high level of larvicidal activity Interestingly, further analysis of this critical arginine residue by specific mutagenesis showed that conversions of arginine-136 to aspartate, glutamine, or even to the most conserved residue lysine, also abolished the wild-type activity The results of this study revealed an important determinant in toxin function for the positively charged side chain of arginine-136 in helix 4 of the Cry11A toxin.

• Ocean and Polar Research
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• 제34권1호
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• pp.53-64
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• 2012

In order to understand the relationship between the formation of hypoxia sediment by eutrophication and changes in benthic foraminiferal assemblage, micropaleontological and geochemical analyses were carried out on one sediment box core (K-1) recovered in the northern Gamak Bay, which is one of the aquacultural areas in the South Sea of Korea. In this analysis, the PON content in the sediment rapidly increased, while the C/N ratio and the C/S ratio decreased since 1977. These results indicate that eutrophication commenced in 1977 in the northern Gamak Bay, and consequently, the hypoxia sediment is 20 cm thick. Ammonia beccarii-Buccella frigida assemblage occurs before the formation of hypoxia sediment. Trochammina hadai-Buccella frigida assemblage appeared in the transitional period toward hypoxia and Trochammina hadai assemblage with a low abundance and diversity is observed in the hypoxia sediment. The agglutinated species T. hadai is regarded as a bio-indicator (opportunistic species) of the organic pollution in northern Gamak Bay.

• Ocean and Polar Research
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• 제34권2호
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• pp.111-123
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• 2012

To understand the phytoplankton community in the eastern part of the Yellow Sea (EYS), in the summer, field survey was conducted at 25 stations in June 2009, and water samples were analyzed using a epifluorescence microscopy, flow cytometry and HPLC method. The EYS could be divided into four areas by a cluster analysis, using phytoplankton group abundances: coastal mixing area, Anma-do area, transition water, and the central Yellow Sea. In the coastal mixing area, water column was well mixed vertically, and phytoplankton was dominated by diatoms, chrysophytes, dinoflagellates and nanoflagellates, showing high abundance ($>10^5\;cells\;l^{-1}$). In Anma-do coastal waters characterized by high dominance of dinoflagellates, high phytoplankton abundance and biomass separated from other coastal mixing area. The southeastern upwelling area was expanded from Jin-do to Heuksan-do, by a tidal mixing and coastal upwelling in the southern area of Manjae-do, and phytoplankton was dominated by benthic diatoms, nanoflagellates and Synechococcus group in this area. Phytoplankton abundance and biomass dominated by pico- and nanophytoplankton were low values in the transition waters and the central Yellow Sea. In the surface of the central Yellow Sea, high dominance of photosynthetic pigments, 19'-hexanoyloxyfucoxanthin and zeaxanthin implies that haptophytes and cyanobacteria could be the dominant group during the summer. These results indicate that the phytoplankton communities in the EYS were significantly affected by the formation of tidal front, thermal stratification, and coastal upwelling showing the differences of physical and chemical characteristics during the summer.

• Ocean and Polar Research
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• 제34권1호
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• pp.1-18
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• 2012

We investigated seasonal changes in the mesozooplankton community structure in November 2006 and February, May, and August 2007 at 12 stations in the semi-enclosed Muan Bay, Korea. Forty taxa were sampled, with an average abundance ranging from 1,459 to 20,078 indiv. $m^{-3}$; the highest abundance was detected in August 2007, and the lowest in February 2007. Acartia omorii, A. hudsonica, A. ohtsukai, Bestiolina coreana, Calanopia sp., Paracalanus parvus s. l., Cirripedia larvae, Decapoda larvae, and Gastropoda larvae were the most abundant taxa detected. The species diversity of the mesozooplankton was high around the inner regions in August 2007 but it was relatively low in November 2006. Non-metric multidimensional scaling (nMDS) revealed significant differences in the structure of mesozooplankton community among the seasons. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA), performed to examine the relationships among dominant taxa, stations, and environmental variables, showed that most species of copepods were positively correlated with temperature, salinity, chlorophyll a, and COD concentration. Our results suggested that the mesozooplankton community structure observed in this study might be affected partly by the seasonal changes in environmental variables, such as the status of the sluice gates (i.e., open or closed) and the in situ production of resting eggs by major copepods.

• 한국생물공학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국생물공학회 2002년도 생물공학의 동향 (X)
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• pp.112-115
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• 2002

본 연구에서는 균주의 배양과 동시에 생산물을 회수할 수 있는 동시추출공정을 건조질량의 $15{\sim}75$ %의 탄화수소를 생산한다고 알려진 B. braunii 배양에 적용하고자 한다. 일반적인 tow-phase 동시 추출공정의 적용시 B. braunii의 경우 생산된 탄화수소가 균주 외벽의 matrix에 강하게 부착되어 있기 때문에, two phase 추출공정 적용시 bubble solumn내에서 단지 폭기에 의한 교반만으로는 충분한 탄화수소의 회수율을 얻을 수가 없었다. 본 연구에서는 배양액과 유기용매층의 접촉기회를 증대시킨 two-stage 동시추출 공정을 개발하여 기존의 two-stage 동시추출 공정보다 2배 이상 높은 57 %의 탄화수소 회수율을 얻을 수가 있었고, 이를 회분배양후 후속분리공정으로 이용할 경우 6시간 추출후 62 %의 회수율을 얻을 수가있었다.

• Ocean and Polar Research
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• 제28권3호
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• pp.305-315
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• 2006

In order to examine the transition of zooplankton community by the Saemangeum sea dyke, the temporal and spatial distribution of zooplankton community with relation to environmental variables was investigated using data collected in 2004 and 2005. Sixty-one zooplankton taxa were identified. Average abundance (except Noctiluca scintiliam) ranged from 236 to 1810 indiv. $m^{-3}$, and was the highest in May 2005 and the lowest in february 2005. Dominant species were Acartia hongi and Paracalanus indicus, and cirripedia nauplii and zoea were dominant groups. After the closure of the 4th sea dyke, brackish species such as Tortanus derjugini and Pseudodiaptomus inopinus are widely distributed while the abundance of N. scintillans decreased in the northern area inside the dyke. In canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) for examining the relationships among zooplankton, stations and environmental variables, the northern area inside the dyke was distinguished from the other areas and was represented by Acartia spp, and brackish copepods.; Also, this area was characterized by high chlorophyll a concentration and COD, and low diversity.