Pukyong National University

Pukyong National University Research Team Publishes Food-Biomedical Engineering Convergence Study in Top 1% International Journal

― Professor Young-Mok Kim’s Team Develops Eco-Friendly Antimicrobial Platform Based on Marine-Derived Natural Materials, Opening New Possibilities for Food Safety and Biohealth Applications

Professor Young-Mok Kim’s research team in the Division of Food Science and Biotechnology at Pukyong National University has developed an eco-friendly antimicrobial platform technology based on marine-derived biosurfactants. The research was published in Ultrasonics Sonochemistry (2025 Impact Factor: 10.2), a globally renowned international journal ranked in the top 1.2% of the Journal Citation Reports (JCR).

The research team developed a nanoemulsion platform that simultaneously delivers emulsion stability and antimicrobial functionality by utilizing natural biosurfactants produced by microorganisms isolated from the marine environment.

Conventional nanoemulsions have relied on surfactants primarily to stabilize emulsions. In this study, however, the researchers designed the biosurfactant itself to perform both interfacial stabilization and antibacterial functions, successfully creating a next-generation eco-friendly antimicrobial platform that combines high stability with enhanced functionality.

The study was conducted jointly by Dr. Geum-Jae Jeong of the Marine Bionics Convergence Technology Center, the first author of the paper, Professor Young-Mok Kim and Professor Won-Kyo Jung of the Division of Biomedical Engineering at Pukyong National University, along with researchers from the National Marine Biodiversity Institute of Korea and the Korea Food Research Institute. The findings were published in the paper, ‘Novel Biosurfactant-Stabilized Nanoemulsions Integrating Interfacial Stabilization and Antibacterial Activity for Safe Surface Disinfection.’

The study is regarded as significant for demonstrating the potential to expand the applications of marine-derived biomaterials beyond food safety to the fields of biohealth and living environments. In particular, collaborative research with specialized domestic institutions, including the National Marine Biodiversity Institute of Korea and the Korea Food Research Institute, further enhanced the potential for the industrial application and practical commercialization of marine-derived biomaterials.

Professor Young-Mok Kim has been consecutively named to the World’s Top 2% Scientists list, jointly announced by Elsevier and Stanford University, since 2024. He continues to conduct research on the development of antimicrobial and antibiofilm materials using marine-derived biomaterials, as well as their applications in the fields of food safety and biohealth.

Meanwhile, the study was supported by the Priority Research Institute Program and the Basic Research Program of the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF).