Ethyl formate (EF) fumigation under green house condition is a new concept. Its concentrations inside and surrounding of the glass house (GH) and vinyl house (VH) were evaluated for 4 h (during daytime) and 12 h (during nighttime) after fumigation along with the evaluation of post-fumigation EF concentrations. The cumulative EF concentration × time (Ct) value of the 6 sampling positions in VH were 22.67 and 17.53 g·h/m3, respectively for day and night fumigation, which were 2.62 and 4.53 g·h/m3 respectively for day and night application in GH. The EF level (PPM) outside the VH and GH as well as after 20-min post fumigation were < 50 ppm revealing its safety level as its’ threshold limit value (TLV) is 100 ppm. The new technology using liquid EF fomulation could be a key option in smart-farm technologies in future. (Supported by PJ0133562018, RDA)

The black-veined white, Aporia crataegi (Lepidoptera: Pieridae), which is distributed mainly in Eastern Asia is presumed to be extinct in South Korea, only with some numbers of dried specimens left, whereas the species is found casually in circumferential countries. One of the common conservation practices for such species is to launch introduction program, but prior population genetic analysis between donor and donee populations might be essential for long-term conservation. In this study, we developed 11 microsatellite markers specific to A. crataegi using Illumina paired-end sequencing to investigate the genetic relationships of A. crataegi populations from South Korea and circumferential Asian countries (China, Russia, Mongolia, and Japan). Further, two mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) gene segments (COI and CytB) were sequenced from the samples. The population- and individual-based Principal Coordinates and STRUCTURE analyses collectively suggested that the South Korean population of A. crataegi is most differentiated from the Japanese population, whereas it was closer to Mongolian and Chinese populations. The STRUCTURE analysis based on two concatenated mtDNA gene sequences also supported different genetic composition of Japanese population from the remaining populations including that of South Korea and rather similar genetic composition between the populations of South Korea and Mongolia. These results collectively suggest that northern populations, in particular, Mongolian populations can be considered as the most genetically compatible one as doner population, when reintroduction program is launched.

SWRO-PRO hybrid desalination technology is recently getting more attention especially in large desalination markets such as USA, Middle East, Japan, Singapore, etc. because of its promising potential to recover a considerable amount of osmotic energy from brine (a high-concentration solution of salt, 60,000 – 80,000 mg/L) and also to minimize the impact of the discharged brine into a marine ecosystem. By the research and development of the core technologies of the SWRO-PRO desalination system in a national desalination research project (Global MVP) supported by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport (MOLIT) and Korea Agency for Infrastructure Technology Advancement (KAIA), it is anticipated that around 25% of total energy consumption rate (generally 3 to 4 kWh/m3) of the SWRO desalination can be reduced by recovering the brine’s osmotic energy utilizing wastewater treatment effluent as a PRO feed solution and an isobaric pressure exchanger (PX, ERI) as a PRO energy converter. However, there are still several challenges needed to be overcome in order to ultimately commercialize the novel SWRO-PRO process. They include system optimization and integration, development of efficient PRO membrane and module, development of PRO membrane fouling control technology, development of design and operation technology for the system scaling-up, development of diverse business models, and so on. In this paper, the current status and progress of the pilot study of the newly developed SWRO-PRO hybrid desalination technology is discussed.

Free-standing electrodes of CuO nanorods in carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are developed by synthesizing porous CuO nanorods throughout CNT webs. The electrochemical performance of the free-standing electrodes is evaluated for their use in flexible lithium ion batteries (LIBs). The electrodes comprising CuO@CNT nanocomposites (NCs) were characterized by charge-discharge testing, cyclic voltammetry, and impedance measurement. These structures are capable of accommodating a high number of lithium ions as well as increasing stability; thus, an increase of capacity in long-term cycling and a good rate capability is achieved. We demonstrate a simple process of fabricating free-standing electrodes of CuO@ CNT NCs that can be utilized in flexible LIBs with high performance in terms of capacity and cycling stability.

In this study, to replace the ‘J-slot joint’, a joint device between a disposal canister and an emplacement jig in Deep Borehole Disposal process, a novel joint device was designed and tested. The novel joint device was composed of a wedge on top of a disposal canister and a hook box at the end of a winch system. The designed joint device had merits in that it can recombine an emplaced canister freely without the replacement of the joint component. Moreover, it can be applied to various emplacement jigs such as drill pipes, wire-lines, and coiled tubing. To demonstrate the designed joint device, the joint device (Φ 110 mm, H 148 mm), a twin canister string (Φ 140 mm, H 1,105 mm), and a water tube (Φ 150 mm, H 1,500 mm) as a borehole model were manufactured at 1/3 scale. As deployment muds, Na-type bentonite (MX-80) and Ca-type (GJ II) bentonite muds were prepared at solid contents of 7wt% and 28wt%, respectively. The manufactured joint device showed good performance in pure water and viscous muds, with an operation speed of 10 m·min-1. It was concluded that the newly developed joint device can be used for the emplacement and retrieval of a deep disposal canister, below 3~5 km, in the future.

목적: 본 연구는 망막 영상의 혈관 분할을 위한 새로운 심층 인공 학습 시스템을 구축하는데 목적이 있 다. 기존 CNN (Convolutional Neural Network) 아키텍처를 제시하고, CNN 방식을 토대로 성능을 개선한 DirectNet을 고안하는데 있다. 특히, 기존 CNN에 비해 처리 시간을 크게 단축시키는데 있다. 방법: 제안된 DirectNet 아키텍처는 피라미드 형식의 블록(Block)들로 구성되며 각 블록은 컨볼루션레이 어 (Convolution layer) 묶음을 포함한다. 하나의 블록은 학습 결과를 보존(저장)하는 단위이다. 블록들은 순차적으로 하나씩 증가하며 피라미드 형식으로 쌓이게 되고 이를 통해 초기 학습 결과가 소멸되지 않고 최종 분석에 활용될 수 있도록 하였다. DirectNet은 패치(Patch) 추출과 Pooling 과정 없이 이미지를 학습하여 학습 층을 거듭하여도 원본 이미지와 동일하게 유지되는 것이 특징이다. 또한 다양한 커널사이즈를 활용 하되 Depthwise Separable Convolution(DSC)을 활용하여 색을 구성하는 RGB(Red, Green, Blue)픽셀로 부터 혈관 모양을 인식 및 탐지한다. 결과: DirectNet은 최첨단 패치 기반 CNN 접근 방식 (0.9538 vs 0.9327, 0.7851 vs 0.7346, 0.9782 vs 0.9730, 0.8458 vs 0.7987)과 비교하여 더 높은 정확도, 감도, 특이도 및 정밀도 값을 제공하였다. Direct Net의 학습 시간은 8시간에서 1시간, 테스트에 소요된 시간은 1시간에서 이미지 당 6초로 크게 단축하였다. 결론: 제안 된 심층 학습 아키텍처는 기존의 CNN 방식으로 진행한 학습 시간에 비해 8배, 테스트에서 600배 빠른 속도로 결과를 제공한다. DirectNet은 CNN에 비해 2.11%의 약간 높은 정확도를 보였으며, 다 른 측정 항목에서도 동등하거나 그 이상의 결과를 보여 분석 시간 효율을 크게 높였다.

본 논문은 명대의 역적 당새아가 청대 소설 속에서 돌연 女仙이자, 나라를 구하는 영웅의 형상으로 변신한 데 주목하고, 그녀가 소설 속에서 극적인 변신을 이루게 된 원인을 고찰하였다. 이를 위해 먼저 실존인물 당새아의 행적 및 그녀에 대한 명대인의 평가를 시기별로 살펴보고, 그런 다음 청대소설 『여선외사』 속 당새아의 형상을 분석하였으며, 마지막으로 당새 아형상의 극적 변신의 이유를 소설의 창작 동기 및 평어를 중심으로 분석하였다. 역적 당새아의 소설 속 변신은 청대 초기의 사회적 배경, 즉 왕조 교체로 인해 명대에 발생했던 정난 지변을 재조명할 수 있는 환경이 마련된 것과 밀접한 관련이 있다.

A new green light emitting compound based on tris (N-methylindolo) benzene (NMTI), anthracene and pyrene was synthesized. NMTI-An and NMTI-Py were used as the light emitting layer of the OLED element to investigate the luminescence characteristics. The OLED device containing NMTI - NPB luminescent layer and hole transport layer (HTL) showed superior characteristics compared to NMTI-Py. The device exhibited maximum EL emission at 502 nm and 550 nm, CIE coordinates (0.38, 0.48) and a luminance efficiency of 2.06 cd/A. Also, when NMTI and NMTI-An were used as HTL instead of NPB, the device containing NMTI-An emitter showed 2.67 cd/A and 2.29 cd/A in luminescence efficiency.

The anion exchange membrane fuel cells (AEMFCs) have been known to be promising eco-friendly power sources. To develop AEMFCs, the high ion conductivity, good dimensional, mechanical and alkaline stabilities are required for AEMs. However, the high conductivity generally requires high water uptake, which causes an enhanced swelling and decreased mechanical properties for the AEMs. To overcome this problem, we introduced an ionic conductor having long alkyl diammonium groups to alkyl-substituted poly(p-phenylene oxide) (PPO). Addition of this new additive increased the conductivity, mechanical and alkaline stabilities due to the molecular interaction between alkyl chains in PPO and same group of the additive. Synthesis and properties of the corresponding membranes will be discussed in detail.

Anion exchange membrane fuel cells (AEMFCs) have been considered as a promising energy device. To make highly efficient AEMs, high ion conductivity, mechanical stabilities and alkaline stabilities are required. High ion conductivity generally accompanies poor mechanical properties, and crosslinking has been widely applied to overcome these problems. Our groups introduced novel terminally-crosslinked piperidinium-functionalized poly(arylene ether sulfone)s as a anion exchange membrane. Unlike the typical AEMs, our terminally-crosslinked membranes are expected to have high conductivity, especially at low RH conditions due to enhanced water-holding capacity, while maintaining the high chemophyscial stabilities by crosslinking. The synthesis, and properties of the prepared membranes will be discussed in detail.

In this research, a novel and efficient quinoline thioacetamide functionalized magnetic graphene oxide composite (GO@Fe3O4@QTA) was synthesized and utilized for dispersive magnetic solid phase preconcentration of Cd(II) and Ni(II) ions in urine and various food samples. A number of diverse methods were employed for characterization of the new nanosorbent. The design of experiments approach and response surface methodology were applied to monitor and find the parameters that affect the extraction performance. After sorption and elution steps, the concentrations of target analytes were measured by employing FAAS. The highest extraction performance was achieved under the following experimental conditions: pH, 5.8; sorption time, 6.0 min; GO@Fe3O4@QTA amount, 17 mg; 2.4 mL 1.1 mol L-l HNO3 solution as the eluent and elution time, 13.0 min. The detection limit is 0.02 and 0.2 ng mL-1 for Cd(II), and Ni(II) ions, respectively. The accuracy of the new method was investigated by analyzing two certified reference materials (sea food mix, Seronorm LOT NO 2525 urine powder). The interfering study revealed that there are no interferences from commonly occurring ions on the extractability of target ions. Finally, the new method was satisfactorily employed for rapid extraction and determination of target ions in urine and various food samples.

A prostaglandin (PG), PGE2, mediates both cellular and humoral immune responses of insects. Spodoptera exigua (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) biosynthesizes PGE2 by an unknown enzyme. This study predicted the enzyme, which is a novel membrane-bound prostaglandin E synthase-2 (mPGES-2). The transcriptional expression analysis showed the mPGES-2 is inducible to immune challenge. After RNA interference (RNAi), the hemocyte nodulation and expression of eleven antimicrobial peptides were significantly impaired. The RNAi effect was rescued by addition of PGE2 suggesting that mPGES-2 is crucial for immune responses mediated by PGE2.

The bean bug is one of major hemipteran pests against the soybean, Glycine max in Korea. Gene expression regulation technologies such as RNA interference and gene editing have emerged as a next generation pest control strategy in agriculture. To search genes effective to feeding inhibition with exogenous dsRNA, a total of 26,761 transcripts were obtained from salivary glands of the bean bug and several target gene candidates such as GPCR, OBP, and CSP were profiled in this study. On the other hand, 1st instar nymphs of the bean bug after hatching were highly attracted to water and absorbed about 701.5 ± 137.72 ㎍/individual/day, suggesting that it could be a practical way for RNA interference by feeding exogenous dsRNA dissolved in water. These preliminary results are expected to be helpful to investigate novel pest control strategy of R. pedestris in the future.

This study suggests the novel thermoplastic toughening agent, which can be applied in the monomer forms without increasing the viscosity of the epoxy resin and polymerized during the resin curing. The diazide (p-BAB) and dialkyne (SPB) compounds are synthesized and mixed with the epoxy resin and the carbon fiber reinforced epoxy composites are prepared using vacuum infusion process (VIP). Then, flexural and drop weight tests are performed to evaluate the improvement in the toughness of the prepared composites to investigate the potential of the novel toughening agent. When 10 phr of p-BAB and SPB is added, the flexural properties are improved, maintaining the modulus as well as the toughness is improved. Even with a small amount of polytriazolesulfone polymerized, due to the filtering effect of the solid SPB by the layered carbon fabrics during the VIP, the toughening and strengthening effect were observed from the novel toughening agent, which could be added in monomer forms, p-BAB and SPB. This suggests that the novel toughening agent has a potential to be used for the composites prepared from viscosity sensitive process, such as resin transfer molding and VIP.

쇠검은머리쑥새(Emberiza yessoensis)는 국내 및 중국, 일 본 등에서 월동하는 겨울철새로, 이들의 번식지는 국내를 제외한 러시아, 몽골, 중국, 일본의 일부지역에 분포하는 것으 로 알려져 왔다. 그러나 최근 국내 번식 사례가 최초로 관찰되 어, 이후 이들 개체군을 보전하기 위한 기초연구 필요성이 대두되었다. 쇠검은머리쑥새는 국제자연보전연맹(IUCN)에 서 준위협(NT)종으로 취급되고 있으며, 국내의 경우 멸종위 기야생생물 II급으로 지정되어있다. 이들의 국내 서식지는 현재까지 지속적으로 감소하고 있어, 월동 및 번식개체군 모두 위협받고 있는 것으로 판단된다. 그럼에도 불구하고 개체군 크기, 서식지 면적 등 이들의 정확한 국내 개체군 기초정보는 현재까지 알려지지 않아 이들의 멸종위기 위험정 도를 객관적으로 파악하는데 어려움이 있다. 우리의 연구목 적은 쇠검은머리쑥새의 국내 멸종위기 등급을 판정하는데 도움을 줄 수 있는 유전정보를 제공하는 것이다. 우리는 이를 위해 10개 이상의 microsatellite 분자표지자를 개발하고 있 다. 현재까지 29개의 분자표지자를 디자인 하였으며, 10개의 다형성을 나타내는 microsatellite 유전자좌를 관찰하였다. 이 중 4개 유전자좌의 유전다양성을 경기 안산지역에 서식중 인 32개체의 쇠검은머리쑥새 번식개체군을 대상으로 분석한 결과, 대립유전자수(A)는 2~16개, 관찰이형접합빈도(HO)와 기대이형접합빈도(HE)는 각각 0.06~0.78, 0.12~0.90의 범위 를 나타냈다. 향후 10개 이상의 microsatellite 분자표지자를 개발하여 쇠검은머리쑥새 번식개체군의 유전다양성 및 유전 구조를 파악 할 것이며, 이를 통해 개체군 기초정보가 알려져 있지 않은 국내 쇠검은머리쑥새 번식개체군 보전방안 수립을 위한 객관적인 기준을 제시할 것이다. 이 연구에서 개발한 microsatellite 분자표지자는 국내뿐만 아니라 국외에 서식중 인 쇠검은머리쑥새 개체군 보전 연구에 유용하게 활용될 것이다.

Medical mushroom, Phellinus linteus (PL) called as “Sanghwang” has been studied extensively for its extraordinary capacity of suppressing cancer or enhancing body immunity. The mycelial materials of PL have mainly been used as research samples worldwide because its fruiting body was difficult to artificially produce. Alternatively, P. baumii (variety, “Jangsu”) have stably been cultivated in Korea. However, fruiting body morphology of P. baumii is clearly different to that of PL. Of Phellinus isolates collected in Korea, P. linteus, KACC 93057P having features of fast mycelial growth rate was mycologically characterized. This study is to establish artificial cultivation of P. linteus KACC93057P having high mycelial growth rate and to examine bioactive efficacy of its fruiting body. The grain spawn of P linteus KACC93057P was inoculated on oak and mulberry logs (20 cm). The optimum temperature for the mycelial growth was at 25-30°C and growth was optimal at pH 5-7. The mycelial growth of P. linteus was faster than P. baumii and other P. linteus isolates. The mushroom pinning was observed on the 60 days after the inoculation, and fruiting bodies were formed in more than 90% of the logs after 6 months. The productivity fruiting body on the logs was more than 10 times that of the existing P. linteus (Korean Sanhwang). The fruiting bodies showed typical morphologies of P. linteus. The pore shape in basidiocarp is circular with 5-7 per mm, hyphal system is dimity, and basidiospores are ellipsoid. Bioactive efficacy of the fruiting bodies was analyzed by immunoreactivity and antioxidant activity.

Lentinus tigrinus (L. tigrinus), a white-rot fungus that grows naturally on rotten hardwood during spring and summer in China, is an edible and medicinal mushroom containing a valuable combination of nutrients including high amino acid concentrations and low sugar levels. However, no reports have isolated and characterized FIP genes from L. tigrinus to date. In our study, two novel fungal immunomodulatory proteins (FIPs) from Lentinus tigrinus were identified and named Fip-lti1 and Fip-lti2. The bioactive characteristics of Fip-lti1 and Fip-lti2 were compared to a well-known FIP (LZ-8 from Ganoderma lucidum) to investigate the effect of Fip-lti1 and Fip-lti2 expression on Concanavalin A (ConA)-induced liver injury. Both Fip-lti1 and Fip-lti2 protected livers from ConA-induced necrosis, as evidenced by decreased serum aminotransferase levels (AST, ALT) and relieved liver histology. Levels of proinflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6) and oxidative stress (SOD, MDA) were shown to be reduced by expressing Fip-lti1 and Fip-lti2. In addition, the hepatoprotective effect of Fip-lti1, Fip-lti2, and LZ-8 correlated with ameliorating the imbalance of Th1/Th2 (IFN-γ/IL-4). The observed liver protection of Fip-lti1 and Fip-lti2 was mechanistically explored. Treatments with Fip-lti1 and Fip-lti2 regulated GATA3/T-bet expression, activated the decreased Nrf-2/HO-1 pathway, and countered the upregulated NLRP3/ASC/NF-κBp65 signaling in ConA-stimulated liver injury. In conclusion, we identified two fungal proteins (Fip-lti1 and Fip-lti2) that can protect liver from ConA-induced liver injury.

Selecting an appropriate antigen with optimal immunogenicity and physicochemical properties is a pivotal factor to develop a protein based subunit vaccine. Despite rapid progress in modern molecular cloning and recombinant protein technology, there remains a huge challenge for purifying and using protein antigens rich in hydrophobic domains, such as membrane associated proteins. To overcome current limitations using hydrophobic proteins as vaccine antigens, we adopted in silico analyses which included bioinformatic prediction and sequence-based protein 3D structure modeling, to develop a novel periodontitis subunit vaccine against the outer membrane protein FomA of Fusobacterium nucleatum. To generate an optimal antigen candidate, we predicted hydrophilicity and B cell epitope parameter by querying to web-based databases, and designed a truncated FomA (tFomA) candidate with better solubility and preserved B cell epitopes. The truncated recombinant protein was engineered to expose epitopes on the surface through simulating amino acid sequence-based 3D folding in aqueous environment. The recombinant tFomA was further expressed and purified, and its immunological properties were evaluated. In the mice intranasal vaccination study, tFomA significantly induced antigen-specific IgG and sIgA responses in both systemic and oral-mucosal compartments, respectively. Our results testify that intelligent in silico designing of antigens provide amenable vaccine epitopes from hard-to-manufacture hydrophobic domain rich microbial antigens.