Search

This study analyzed the effect of organic solvent extractives on the classification of wood species via near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR). In our previous research, five species of Korean softwood were classified into three groups (i.e., Cryptomeria japonica (cedar)/Chamaecyparis obtuse (cypress), Pinus densiflora (red pine)/Pinus koraiensis (Korean pine), and Larix kaempferi (Larch)) using an NIR-based principal component analysis method. Similar tendencies of extractive distribution were observed among the three groups in that study. Therefore, in this study, we qualitatively analyzed extractives extracted by an organic solvent and analyzed the NIR spectra in terms of the extractives’ chemical structure and band assignment to determine their effect in more detail. Cedar/cypress showed a similar NIR spectra patterns by removing the extractives at 1695, 1724, and 2291 nm. D-pinitol, which was detected in cedar, contributed to that wavelength. Red pine/Korean pine showed spectra changes at 1616, 1695, 1681, 1705, 1724, 1731, 1765, 1780, and 2300 nm. Diterpenoids and fatty acid, which have a carboxylic group and an aliphatic double bond, contributed to that wavelength. Larch showed a catechin peak in gas chromatography and mass spectroscopy analysis, but it exhibited very small NIR spectra changes. The aromatic bond in larch seemed to have low sensitivity because of the 1st overtone of the O-H bond of the sawdust cellulose. The three groups sorted via NIR spectroscopy in the previous research showed quite different compositions of extractives, in accordance with the NIR band assignment. Thus, organic solvent extractives are expected to affect the classification of wood species using NIR spectroscopy.

This paper examines the classification of five coniferous species, including larch (Larix kaempferi), red pine (Pinus densiflora), Korean pine (Pinus koraiensis), cedar (Cryptomeria japonica), and cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa), using near-infrared (NIR) spectra. Fifty lumber samples were collected for each species. After air-drying the lumber, the NIR spectra (wavelength = 780-2500 nm) were acquired on the wide face of the lumber samples. Soft independent modeling of class analogy (SIMCA) was performed to classify the five species using their NIR spectra. Three types of spectra (raw, standard normal variated, and Savitzky-Golay 2nd derivative) were used to compare the classification reliability of the SIMCA models. The SIMCA model based on Savitzky-Golay 2nd derivatives preprocessing was determined as the best classification model in this study. The accuracy, minimum precision, and minimum recall of the best model (PCA models using Savitzky-Golay 2nd derivative preprocessed spectra) were evaluated as 73.00%, 98.54% (Korean pine), and 67.50% (Korean pine), respectively.

A giant dogwood (Cornus controversa) was bleeding transparent sap that turned into gummy orange slime with a pungent odor on the bark in early April. The tree exudation originated from a branch wound that occurred during the most recent spring pruning. Scanning electron microscopy revealed the intact bark surface was irregularly undulating and covered with at least three types of epicuticular waxes: polygonal rodlets; polygonal tubules; and threads, whereas the dried orange plaques were covered with fungi, possibly the co-occurrence of yeast and filamentous forms. The yeast forms were ovoid, lemon- or club-shaped, and approximately 10 μm in length. Obviously constricted septa and clamp connections were rarely detected on the filamentous forms. No bacterial proliferation was detected on the orange slime. X-ray microanalysis revealed a steep increase in calcium concentration in the orange plaques compared with that in the intact bark. These results suggest that bark-dwelling dimorphic red yeasts may...

This study was to establish the interrelation between chemical compositions and near infrared (NIR) spectra for the classification on distinguishability of domestic gymnosperms. Traditional wet chemistry methods and infrared spectral analyses were performed. In chemical compositions of five softwood species including larch (Larix kaempferi), red pine (Pinus densiflora), Korean pine (Pinus koraiensis), cypress (Chamaecyparis obtu-sa), and cedar (Cryptomeria japonica), their extractives and lignin contents provided the major information for distinction between the wood species. However, depending on the production region and purchasing time of woods, chemical compositions were different even though in same species. Especially, red pine harvested from Naju showed the highest extractive content about 16.3%, whereas that from Donghae showed about 5.0%. These results were expected due to different environmental conditions such as sunshine amount, nutrients and moisture contents, and these phenomena were also observed in other species. As a result of the principal component analysis (PCA) using NIR between five species (total 19 samples), the samples were divided into three groups in the score plot based on principal component (PC) 1 and principal component (PC) 2; group 1) red pine and Korean pine, group 2) larch, and group 3) cypress and cedar. Based on the chemical composition results, it was concluded that extractive content was highly relevant to wood class-ification by NIR analysis.

소나무의 가도관과 유연벽공의 미세구조를 연구하는데 공초점반사현미경법을 이용하여 획득한 3차원 화상을 사용하였다. 가도관 유연벽공의 토러스, 마르고, 벽공연의 미세구조가 명확하게 관찰되었으며, 교분야벽공의 미세구조로 가도관과 방사유세포 사이의 연결구조 및 방사유세포 내의 역학적 지지구조도 관찰할 수 있었다. 가도관 세포벽의 3차원 화상에서는 S1, S2, S3층과 이 층들의 사이에 있는 이행층의 존재도 확인할 수 있었다. 또한 S3층과 S2층의 마이크로 피브릴 배향의 관찰이 가능하였고, 유연벽공 주변의 복잡한 마이크로피브릴 배향 특성도 직접적으로 확인할 수 있었다. 본 연구의 결과 공초점반사현미경법은 소나무 가도관의 세포벽, 유연벽공, 교분야벽공의 미세구조를 연구하는데 유용하게 이용될 수 있는 현미경 기법으로 여겨졌다. 【Confocal reflection microscopy (CRM) was utilized to create 3-dimensional images of bordered pits and cell wall in the tracheid of Korean red pine (Pinus densiflora). Ultrastructures of torus, margo, and pit border were clearly observable in the CRM micrograph. Micrograph of cross-field pit revealed the connecting and supporting structure between tracheid and ray parenchyma cell. The CRM micrographs enabled to investigate detailed structures of tracheid cell wall such as S1, S2, S3 layers, transition layers between these layers, and microfibril (MF) orientation in S3 and S2 layers as well as complicated distribution of MF orientation around bordered pits. Not only concentric MF orientation of border thickening in the pit border was observed, but also changes in MF orientation from the cell wall to the border. From the experimental results, the CRM was thought to be a versatile microtechnique to investigate detailed structures of cell wall and bordered pit in the tracheid and cross-field pit between tracheid and ray parenchyma cell.】

This study demonstrates the utilization of light microscopy and Fast Fourier Transform-Peak Finding (FPF) method for microfibril angle (MFA) measurement from unstained sections of red pine (Pinus densiflora). To obtain an image with optimal contrast and resolution for MFA measurement, effects of numerical aperture (NA) of condenser lens and color filters were investigated. About 60% of NA of the maximum condenser NA produced an image with optimal contrast, but a color filter with short wavelength range (DAPI) created images with improved resolution. Manual angle measurement and the FPF method were applied to the image with optimal contrast for MFA measurement. The experimental results from the FPF method were considered to be more repeatable and less subjective than those from the manual angle measurement.

Background Genotypic drug resistance assay has been the only method available to provide information related to drug resistance in South Korea since 1999. Phenotypic assay is also a useful method to predict a patient's state related to antiretroviral drug resistance. However, commercial systems and methods for phenotyping have not been introduced into South Korea. Objectives To establish and apply modified phenotypic drug susceptibility assay using treatment-experienced patients’ derived HIV-1 in South Korea. Study design The genotypic drug resistance and phenotypic drug susceptibility of two different methods, Stanford HIV Drug Resistance Database (Stanford DB) and modified phenotypic drug susceptibility assay were compared especially focused on the HIV-1 protease (PR) and reverse transcriptase (RT) sequences. Results There was some discordance in comparing drug susceptibility results (a modified drug susceptibility assay) with the predicted genotypic drug resistance (Stanford DB). Phenotypic drug resistance showed the following order for pseudoviruses from treatment-experienced patients infected with HIV/AIDS: Efavirenz (EFV, 21 to 1,319-fold change), Lamivudine (3TC, 31 to >189-fold change), Indinavir sulfate (IDV, 26 to 63-fold change), Amprenavir (APV, 4 to 35-fold change) and Zidovudine (AZT, 20 to 634-fold change). For patient KRC3221, the AZT-related phenotypic drug resistance was the greatest, with 634-fold change compared with the wild type. Conclusions Application of this modified phenotypic drug susceptibility assay is expected to help in predicting drug resistance as a guideline for clinicians to obtain a combined interpretation among genotyping, phenotyping and effective clinical treatments.

Wall sculpturing in the vessel elements of some Juglans species of the United States, four black walnuts (J. major, J. nigra, J. microcarpa (= J. rupestris), and J. californica) and one butternut (J. cinerea), was investigated through light and scanning electron microscopy. This feature showed various forms such as helical and reticulate thickenings, and thickening-like structures formed by coalescent pit apertures and large vessel to ray pits. Light to prominent wall sculpturing occurred regularly in black walnuts but fine and indistinctive wall sculpturing was observed rarely in butternut. Thus, vessel wall sculpturing was of some diagnostic value for separating black walnut from butternut.

Human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) RNA viral load is an important biomarker to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of antiretroviral drugs and to monitor disease progression in HIV-infected individuals. We compared HIV-1 RNA quantitation between two different kits, the NucliSens EasyQ® HIV-1 v1.1 (EasyQ, bioMerieux) and RealTime HIV-1 (RealTime, Abbott), using HIV-1 RNA quality control (QC) materials, cell-cultivated viruses, and the plasma samples of 104 patients with HIV. Correlation between the two kits for HIV RNA-1 quantitation with clinical samples was high (R = 0.91). Based on results obtained with quality control standards, the reproducibility of the RealTime kit was higher than the EasyQ kit: the viral load value and coefficient of variation of each kit was 4.11 ± 0.136 and 3.3% for EasyQ and 3.55 ± 0.042 and 1.2% for RealTime, respectively (P This is the first comparative analysis of the detection limit and reproducibility of two different quantitation kits using clinical plasma samples from Korean HIV-1-infected patients. It will serve a useful reference to determine correction values for each HIV-1 RNA quantitation kits and to choose an appropriate assay kit for each laboratory.

Background In South Korea, about 20 types of antiretroviral drugs are used in the treatment of patients with human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immune deficiency syndrome. Since 2010, raltegravir, etravirine, and darunavir have been spotlighted as new drugs for highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART)-experienced adults with resistant HIV-1 in South Korea. In this study, we investigated potential susceptibility of pseudoviruses derived from treatment-experienced Korean patients to etravirine vs efavirenz and to darunavir vs amprenavir and indinavir using a modified single-round assay. Methods Pseudoviruses derived from nine treatment-experienced patients infected with HIV-1 were investigated by comparison with the wild-type strain pNL4-3. The 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50) values were calculated and drug susceptibility was compared. The intensity of genotypic drug resistance was classified based on the ‘SIR’ interpretation of the Stanford data base. Results Drug susceptibility was generally higher for etravirine and darunavir compared with efavirenz, amprenavir, and indinavir in pseudoviruses derived from treatment-experienced patients. Pseudoviruses derived from patients KRB4025 and KRB8014, who exhibited long-term use of protease inhibitors, showed an outside of tested drug concentration, especially for amprenavir and indinavir. However, they exhibited a lower fold-change in resistance to darunavir. Conclusions Etravirine and darunavir have been used in HAART since 2010 in South Korea. Therefore, these antiretroviral drugs together with other newly introduced antiretroviral drugs are interesting for the optimal treatment of patients with treatment failure. This study may help to find a more effective HAART in the case of HIV-1 infected patients that have difficulty being treated.