Euzophera batangensis (Lepidotera: Pyralidae) is seriously damaging trunks or branches of persimmon tree (Diospyros sp.). We tested the attractiveness of (Z)-9-tetradecen-1-ol (Z9-14OH) and (Z9,E12)-tetradeca- 9,12-dien-1-ol (Z9,E12-14OH) with single or blended baits at southern parts of Korea in 2014 and 2015. The monoene was not attractive at all at three places during the two years. In 2014, diene was equally or more attractive than the mixture in Jinju and Suncheon, respectively. In 2015 too, the attractiveness of diene and mixture was not different in Jinju and Munsan. Monitoring of the seasonal occurrence of E. batangesis with the sex pheromone components revealed that it occurred three times a year; the first occurrence from early April to mid May, the second from early Jun to mid July, and the third from late August to late September.

Nitrogen (N) fertilizer management is one of the important aspects of economic production of sorghums in sustainable agriculture. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effects of different N application rates and its split N application methods on productivity, growth characteristics, N accumulation, N use efficiency (NUE), and feed value of Sorghum × Sudangrass hybrids. Treatments consisted of five N application rates (0, 150, 200, 250, and 300 kg ha-1) and two split N application methods (40% in basal N, 30% at the growing stage, and 30% after the first harvest vs. 50% in basal N and 50% after the first harvest). Plant height, leaf width, and stem diameter were increased (p≤0.05) with increasing N fertility rates at each harvest. Chlorophyll content (expressed as SPAD values) was the highest at a rate of 300 kg N ha 1 (first harvest, 46.32; second harvest, 33.09). It was the lowest at zero N (first harvest, 21.56; second harvest, 18.5). Total N, N uptake, and NUE were increased with higher N rates. Split N application had little effect on total N, amount of N uptake, or NUE. Total dry matter yields were the highest (21,715 kg ha-1) at a rate of 300 kg N ha-1. It was the lowest (10,054 kg ha-1) at zero N. Our results suggest that more than 300 kg N ha-1 can improve dry matter yield to be above 116% compared to zero N, thus enhancing the agronomic characters of sorghums. However, no significant effect had been found for split N application. Further work is needed to determine the optimal N levels and the effect of split N application rates.

In order to understand evolutionary characteristics of gene rearrangement in Lepidoptera, we collected all available complete mitogenome (mitogenome) sequences registered in GenBank (274 mitogenomes from 44 families in 23 superfamilies as of August 6, 2015). It turned up six rearrangements that differ from the arrangement of ancestral insects, including that of the gelechioid Mesophleps albilinella that we sequenced in this study. The M. albilinella mitogenome has a unique gene arrangement among the Gelechioidea: ARNESF (the underline signifies an inverted gene) at the ND3 and ND5 junction, as opposed to the ARNSEF that is found in ancestral insects. Most of the rearrangements can be explained by the tandem duplication-random loss model, but inversion, which requires recombination, is also found in two cases, including M. albilinella. Excluding the MIQ rearrangement at the A+T-rich region and ND2 junction, which is found in nearly all Ditrysia, most of the remaining rearrangements found in Lepidoptera appear to be independently derived in that they are automorphic at several taxonomic scales. Current mitogenomic data are limited, particularly for congeneric data. Thus, future research focused on congenerics could clarify evolutionary independency at the generic level also.

Both Nilaparvata lugens Stål and Laodelphax striatellus Fallén has been known as the major rice pests which were irregularly migrated into Korea by wind current from China. We re-arranged and compared the resistance profiles to detect the existence convergent adaptation by using the previously published dataset (N. lugens at 2014, 17:711-716 and L. Striatellus at 2016, 19:247-252 in J. Asia Pac. Entomol., respectively). Both species commonly exhibited the high level of resistance to imidacloprids. Especially, the immigrant populations of L. Striatellus exhibited higher resistance level to indigenous populations, suggesting that they would settle down in Korea with insecticide resistance traits being predisposed. To detect the convergent adaptation to insecticide, pearson correlation analysis were employed by comparing mean dosage of LD50 and resistance ratio to nine insecticides. Strikingly, high and similar dosage responses were observed between the two species with high correlation coefficients of 0.928 (df=7, P <0.001) and 0.950 (df=7, P <0.001), respectively, in the comparison of LD50 vs. resistance ratio. This finding indicates that convergent adaption has occurred in both species through consistent selection by insecticides with similar usage patterns.

In every summer, cicadas emerge and become numerically and ecologically dominant in Korean penninsula. Especially, cicada emergence is affected by the environmental factors. In order to evaluate the effect of environmental factors in cicada species, we analyzed the temporal changes in cicada exuviae based on meteorological and non-meteorological factors such as artificial light intensity and habitat characters on urban park area surrounded by residential houses. Combined multivariate analyses with a cluster analysis and a principal component analysis (PCA) were conducted. Samples were classified into 3 different cluster based on differences of meteorological factors such as temperature and humidity. Moreover, Random Forest model (RF) showed a high predictability of daily mean temperature on species peak abundance. These results provide a strong evidence that meteorological factors have significant effects on cicada emergences. Regarding the non-meteorological factors, we found no relationship in cicada emergence.

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are multipotent stem cells, which can be induced to differentiate into several cells. MSCs are also reported to possess immunomodulatory properties through secretion of inflammatory cytokines and generation of regulatory T (Treg) cells. Treg cells play an important role in allergic disorders, including atopic dermatitis. We examined the immunomodulatory effects of canine adipose tissue derived-MSCs (cAD-MSCs) in 3 groups: Group 1, untreated normal dog; Group 2, dogs with Dermatophagoides farinae ointment-induced atopic dermatitis; and Group 3, dogs with atopic dermatitis. Canine peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were collected from each group and co-cultured with cAD-MSCs. After co-culturing, PBMCs were separated and the expression of Treg cells was examined by flow cytometry. According to the results, the populations of Treg cells were increased in 3 ex vivo experimental groups, co-cultured with cAD-MSCs. These results would be important for the application of MSCs in clinical trials.

There is much observational evidence that active star formation is taking place in the Hii regions Sh 2-255 – 257. We present a photometric study of this star forming region (SFR) using imaging data obtained in passbands from the optical to the mid-infrared, in order to study the star formation process. A total of 218 members were identified using various selection criteria based on their observational properties. The SFR is reddened by at least E(B −V ) = 0.8 mag, and the reddening law toward the region is normal (RV = 3.1). From the zero-age main sequence fitting method it is confirmed that the SFR is 2.1 ± 0.3 kpc from the Sun. The median age of the identified members is estimated to be about 1.3 Myr from a comparison of the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram (HRD) with stellar evolutionary models. The initial mass function (IMF) is derived from the HRD and the near-infrared (J, J −H) color-magnitude diagram. The slope of the IMF is about 􀀀 = −1.6 ± 0.1, which is slightly steeper than that of the Salpeter/Kroupa IMF. It implies that low-mass star formation is dominant in the SFR. The sum of the masses of all the identified members provides the lower limit of the cluster mass (169M⊙). We also analyzed the spectral energy distribution (SED) of pre-main sequence stars using the SED fitting tool of Robitaille et al., and confirm that there is a significant discrepancy between stellar mass and age obtained from two different methods based on the SED fitting tool and the HRD.

PURPOSES: The objective of this study is to investigate the properties of recycled asphalt binders with five different rejuvenators, in order to evaluate the applicability of the recycled asphalt binders compared with the original asphalt binder. METHODS: In order to simulate recycled asphalt binders, fresh asphalt binders are aged by various Superpave aging procedures, such as the rolling thin-film oven (RTFO) and the pressure aging vessel (PAV). Then, selected rejuvenators are added to the aged asphalt binders in the amount of 5%, 10%, and 15%. The asphalt binder properties are evaluated by the dynamic shear rheometer (DSR), the rotational viscometer (RV), and the bending beam rheometer (BBR). In this study, AP-5 (penetration grade 60-80, PG 64-16) asphalt binder is used. A total of five types of rejuvenators are employed. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS : When considering aged asphalt without a new asphalt binder, it seems that the percentage of rejuvenator used in Korea is a bit too low, and that it fails to possess the characteristics of the original binder. From the current practice of evaluating the properties of recycled binder based on penetration ratio only, the amount of rejuvenator required is similar for the long-term-aged binder, but is excessive for the longest-term aged binder, causing deterioration of workability and stiffness of the recycled binder.

Hypocreales entomopathogenic Beauveria bassiana and Metarhizium anisopliae are well-known biological control agents worldwide and have high potential in industrialization. However their thermo-susceptibility limits long-term storage under high temperature conditions and high insecticidal activity after application to target pests. Herein we isolated highly virulent isolates, B. bassiana JEF006 and JEF007 and M. anisopliae JEF003 and 004, and produced in three grains, as substrates for solid cultures, followed by thermotolerance assays to compare the potential of the three substrates. The JEF isolates were exposed to dry and wet heat at 50°C and overall conidia were more stable under dry heat condition rather than wet heat. Of the three grains, Italian millet was superior to the other grains in the production of thermotolerant conidia. Additionally Italian millet did not severely aggregated, which enabled air to penetrate into the substrate well compared to the sorghum and millet. JEF isolates were more thermotolerant when they were kept in oil conditions. The conidia of JEF 007 and 003 wild type and AtMT-based generating random mutants were subjected to SDS-PAGE. A significant relationship between conidial thermotoelrance and detected proteins was observed. This work suggests that Italian millet can be used as an effective substrate to produce more thermotolerant conidia, thus maintaining viability for long times under unfavorable environment and biological activity against target pests.

This study was conducted from October 2014 to May 2015 to explore forage production and feed values of Italian ryegrass, Rye and whole crop barley as winter forage crops in the Southern region of Korea. The experimental location was over 10 points for each species and each sampling point area was 1 m² (Width: 1 m × Length: 1 m). Air mean temperature and rainfall in the Southern region of Korea during the experimental period was 6.95 ± 5.75℃ and 70.45 ± 54.68 mm, respectively. Fresh forage yield of Italian ryegrass, the most cultivated forage in the Southern region of Korea, was 44.4 ± 7.0 ton/ha. The percentage of dry matter for whole crop barley was 28.9 ± 7.0%. Crude protein (CP) was higher in Italian ryegrass (10.7 ± 5.3%) while total digestible nutrient (TDN) had the highest value in whole crop barley. Crude protein was not significantly different by location. However, the neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF) and total digestible nutrient value of forage from Jeonbuk province were higher than in forage from Gyeongnam province.