Earticle

Forest virology is an underdeveloped field of study, with viruses affecting forest trees barely explored. Recent studies have just begun to investigate the presence of tree viruses using next-generation sequencing (NGS) analysis. In this study, using high-throughput NGS analysis, we identified pinus nigra virus 1 (PNV1) in Korean red pine (Pinus densiflora), which has not been previously reported in Korea. PNV1 is an unclassified DNA virus belonging to the Caulimoviridae family, carrying a double-stranded DNA genome. We found that the virus is distributed nationwide and even found in pollen, suggesting that it has a high potential for transmission via pollen. Together, our findings suggest that this newly identified Pinus virus may have spread widely through pollen and seed transmission.

Once flourished across the Korean Peninsula, Amur leopard (Panthera pardus oritentalis) vanished from South Korea in late 20 century, and only 70 individuals survive in China-Russian border in a brink of extinction. With its ecological and cultural importance, its reintroduction to South Korea has been discussed. However, the reintroduction of large carnivores demands a considerable amount of time, money and human resources with handful successes and thus needs a careful and systematic approach in the planning. In our study, we used the Open Standard for the Practice of Conservation to identify biophysical indicators which help to assess the feasibility of the leopard restoration in South Korea. For the three conservation targets, Amur leopards, leopard prey, and habitat, of the restoration, we selected key ecological attributes for respected targets. Then, we identified one to four indicators for each key ecological attribute and 12 biophysical indicators in total based on the Amur leopard reintroduction program in the Russian Far East. The indicators include the number of breeding females for the population size of the leopards, roe deer density for major prey density, and connectivity for the habitat fragmentation. The viability assessment based on the indicators revealed a good ecological potential of the leopard restoration as well as uncertainties from research gaps. Although not all necessary information is available at this moment, our study provides a good starting point to understand the requirement of Amur leopard restoration in South Korea. Follow-up research is needed to focus on information gaps found during this study.

Deep eutectic solvent (DES) can be considered a next-generation ionic solvent consisting of a mixture of two or more compounds, one of which is a salt. The formation of new liquid compounds at room temperature is due to the formation of hydrogen bonds between the hydrogen bond donor (HBD) and the hydrogen bond acceptor (HBA), generally the halide anions present in the salt. This DES is a fairly new kind of green solvent that can be applied to various fields, and attracts much attention as an alternative to IL. This study examines the choline chloride-based DES treatment as a new pretreatment for the production of cellulose nanofibers. In the Experiments, deep eutectic solvent systems having lactic acid, urea and glycerin as the second component were formed at 100 °C and then applied to decompose wood-derived cellulose fibers. DES-pretreated fibers were nanofibrillated by mechanical treatment using a blender and their properties were analyzed. Cellulose nanofibrils with a width of 4.7 to 5.4 nm were successfully produced from DES pretreatment under all conditions. As a result, choline chloride-based DES has shown high potential as an environmentally friendly solvent in the production of cellulose nanofibrils.

Recent climate change has led to an increase in the frequency of large-scale wildfires, causing extensive damage and generating substantial quantities of wildfire-damaged wood. While there is growing interest in the efficient utilization of this wood, the majority is currently used as fuel for power generation, a process that shortens its lifecycle and accelerates carbon emissions. In response to this issue, alternative high-value applications for wildfire-damaged wood have been suggested, including the cultivation of medicinal mushrooms, the creation of handicrafts, and its use as timber for wooden structures. However, these approaches typically only employ the non-charred portions of the wood, with the charred sections being removed and discarded. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate the fundamental properties of the charred portions of wildfire-damaged wood and provide foundational data for the development of functional materials from these components.

In this study, a novel zwitterion-decorated lignin (ZL) containing amine and sulfonic acid groups was synthesized and ZL/Nafion composite membranes was fabricated to evaluate its effectiveness as a membrane additive. Kraft lignin was modified using amino-silane and 1,3-propanesultone by continuous grafting reaction to provide zwiterionic moieties structures. Chemical structural analyses confirmed the successful introduction of zwitterion moieties structure onto lignin. Especially, the surface charge of ZL was positive in acidic medium, and negative in basic medium, suggesting that ZL exhibited zwitterionic material. The ZL, an additive, was incorporated with the Nafion to enhance excellent ion exchange capacity and hydrophilicity. The proton conductivity of the ZL/Nafion is slightly lower than that of pure Nafion. On the other hand, it was confirmed that the addition of ZL in Nafion was significantly effective for proton conductivity compared to the addition of unmodified lignin. The reason is that the presence of amine groups in ZL can contribute to good dispersion and the presence of sulfonic acid groups preserves and further improves the continuity of the proton pathway inside the Nafion matrix. In addition, ZL may play a role in enhancing thermal stability, hydrophilicity, ion exchange capacity, and proton conductivity. Therefore, ZL is expected to be utilized as a multifunctional additive and has potential in fuel cell applications.

A wildfire is a significant disturbance factor in forest ecosystems. Post-fire insect community structures are primarily determined by indirect effects, such as changes in habitat structure, rather than the direct impact of the fire itself. Our study aimed to investigate the effect of post-fire restoration methods on Coleoptera communities, which are directly affected by both vegetation and soil changes. Our study was conducted from April 2024, on the area affected by the 2019 Goseong wildfire in South Korea. We selected five distinct habitat types for the investigation: control as undamaged forests, naturally recovering areas, pine plantation, shrubland, and grassland. For each habitat type, we established three quadrats and employed two trapping methods: pitfall traps to collect ground dwelling coleopterans and soil emergence traps to collect coleopterans that emergence from ground after overwintering. By analyzing the results from these diverse restoration approaches, we compared coleopteran communities by five habitat types.

Orang Kayo Hitam (OKH) Forest Park is a peat forest area with a conservation function that is rich in biodiversity. Forest resources that are used by the community need to be properly maintained in order to avoid damage, one of which is forest and land fires. When the function of the forest can meet the needs of the community, it can support forest sustainability because automatically the community will increase their sense of belonging to the existence of the forest. This can happen because the community gets benefits from the preservation of functions to support the fulfillment of the daily needs of their families. Based on this, it is necessary to conduct research on ethnobotany which is a study of the diversity of plants around the forest based on the understanding and value of their use by families or communities around the forest. Especially for peat forests, the results of the research will be specific because peat is land that is prone to fires, but on the other hand, it greatly influences the hydrological conditions of the area where the peatlands exist. This research was conducted in September-October 2021, in Tanjung and Seponjen Villages, Jambi Province, Indonesia. The primary data collection method used interviews and ethnobotany questionnaires, secondary data was collected through literature study. Purposive data collection to 66 respondents. Ethnobotanical data analysis used the calculation of Species Use Value (UVs) and Family Use Value (FUV) to determine the use value of plants. The results showed that as many as 66 species from 42 families of medicinal plants were used by the community around the OKH Forest Park, Jambi Province. The highest use values of plant species (UVs) in Tanjung and Seponjen villages respectively were turmeric (Curcuma longa) which were 0.37 and 0.27. The mean value of plant FUV in Tanjung and Seponjen villages was also below 0.50. Based on the results of this research analysis, all UVs and FUV values have a value below 0.5 (low), then Tanjung and Seponjen Villages need conservation efforts that are supported by all parties and through appropriate conservation programs according to conditions in the field.

Regional variations in extreme weather events, such as droughts, is expected to increase and they will have significant impacts on forest ecosystem carbon cycles. In particular, the frequency of spring droughts has been increasing in Korea, and the effects of drought on carbon balance in forests may vary depending on the presence of leaves during spring droughts. In this study, a total of 4 years from 2015 to 2018, net ecosystem production (NEP) of evergreen Korean pine (Pinus koraiensis) and nearby oak dominant deciduous forests were examined using eddy-covariance systems. As a result, the intensity of drought at the study site weakened in the order of 2015, 2017, and 2016, and the drought ended in 2018. In deciduous forests, the annual NEP during the growing season was negatively correlated with the intensity of drought (p-value <0.001, R2 = 0.99) and the recovery index was 1.34 ± 0.13. On the other hand in Korean pine forests, the annual NEP in 2017 was the lowest throughout the study period and the recovery index was 1.16 ± 0.10. This caused by severe drought from the fall of 2016 to the spring of 2017, and during this period, the moisture content of the soil of Korean pine stand was lower than that of deciduous broadleaved forest due to the more evaporation and canopy interception during the winter and early spring. In addition, the recovery of NEP after the drought was slower in Korean pine than deciduous forests due to the legacy effect of extreme moisture stress. Our study could provide useful information for sustainable forest management, especially considering the increase of forest damage caused by climate change including drought.

Paulownia tomentosa is the fastest growth species in south korea and has been used for furniture and musical instruments for very long time due to its low warping excellent abrasion resistance and excellent acoustic properties. However, the basis of such use is qualitative evaluation and experience based guesswork, but there are not many studies that provide specific and quantitative data. Therefore in this study, we evaluated the termite resistance of the paulownia species. In addition, the termites resistance of Populus tomentiglandulosa (dominant species) and Pinus densiflora were evaluated and compared with paulownia. Three species samples were prepared with 1 × 1 × 2cm (L × R × T) size after heat treatment at Control, 160 ° C, 180 ° C, 200 ° C and 220 ° C. 200 worker ants were placed in a bottle containing one piece of wood sample and kept under conditions of 70% relative humidity and 28 ° C for 3 weeks. After 3 weeks, we measured the mortality rate of termites and the weight loss rate of the specimens. As a result, paulownia control sample showed lower weight loss and higher termite mortality than poplar and pine. And heat treatment reduced the resistance of termites.