• Journal of Life Science
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• v.31 no.10
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• pp.922-928
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• 2021

To profile the microbial compositions of Korean traditional fermented paste made from whole soybeans, Doenjang and Cheonggukjang, and compare their taxonomic differences, we analyzed the V3-V4 region of 16S rRNA of naturally fermented foods by using next generation sequencing. α-Diversity results showed that values indicating bacterial community abundances (OTUs) and richness (ACE, Chao1) were statistically significant (p=0.0001) in Doenjang and Cheonggukjang. Firmicutes was the most common phylum in both groups, representing 97.02% and 99.67% in the Doenjang and Cheonggukjang groups, respectively. Bacillus was the most dominant genus, accounting for 71.70% and 59.87% in both groups. Linear discriminant (LDA) effect size (LEfSe) analysis was performed to reveal the significant ranking of abundant taxa in different fermented foods. A size-effect threshold of 2.0 on the logarithmic LDA score was used for discriminative functional biomarkers. On the species level, Bacillus subtilis, Tetragenococcus halophilus, and Clostridium arbusti were significantly more abundant in Doenjang than in Cheonggukjang, whereas Bacillus thermoamylovorans, Enterococcus faecium, and Lactobacillus sakei were significantly more abundant in Cheonggukjang than in Doenjang. Permutational multivariate analysis of variance (PERMANOVA) showed that the statistical difference in microbial clusters between the two groups was significant at the confidence level of p=0.001. This research could be used as basic research to identify the correlation between the biochemical characteristics of Korean fermented foods and the distribution of microbial communities.

• Genes and Genomics
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• v.40 no.11
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• pp.1249-1258
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• 2018

The Jeju horse is an indigenous Korean horse breed that is currently registered with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. However, there is severe lack of genomic studies on Jeju horse. This study was conducted to investigate genetic characteristics of horses including Jeju horse, Thoroughbred and Jeju crossbred (Jeju${\times}$Thoroughbred) populations. We compared the genomes of three horse populations using the Equine SNP70 Beadchip array. Short-range Linkage disequilibrium was the highest in Thoroughbred, whereas $r^2$ values were lowest in Jeju horse. Expected heterozygosity was the highest in Jeju crossbred (0.351), followed by the Thoroughbred (0.337) and Jeju horse (0.311). The level of inbreeding was slightly higher in Thoroughbred (-0.009) than in Jeju crossbred (-0.035) and Jeju horse (-0.038). $F_{ST}$ value was the highest between Jeju horse and Thoroughbred (0.113), whereas Jeju crossbred and Thoroughbred showed the lowest value (0.031). The genetic relationship was further assessed by principal component analysis, suggesting that Jeju crossbred is more genetically similar to Thoroughbred than Jeju horse population. Additionally, we detected potential selection signatures, for example, in loci located on LCORL/NCAPG and PROP1 genes that are known to influence body. Genome-wide analyses of the three horse populations showed that all the breeds had somewhat a low level of inbreeding within each population. In the population structure analysis, we found that Jeju crossbred was genetically closer to Thoroughbred than Jeju horse. Furthermore, we identified several signatures of selection which might be associated with traits of interest. To our current knowledge, this study is the first genomic research, analyzing genetic relationships of Jeju horse, Thoroughbred and Jeju crossbred.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.26-35
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• 2021

Objective: This study was conducted to assess the level of pregnancy-associated glycoprotein (PAG) in whole and skim milk samples, and its suitability for early pregnancy diagnosis in goats. Methods: A two-step sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) system for estimation of milk PAG was developed and validated, which employed caprine-PAG specific polyclonal antisera. Whole and skim milk samples (n = 210 each) from fifteen multiparous goats were collected on alternate days from d 10 to d 30, and thereafter weekly till d 51 post-mating. PAG levels in milk samples were estimated by ELISA and the pregnancies were confirmed at d40 post-mating by transrectal ultrasonography (TRUS). Results: The level of PAG in whole and skim milk samples of both pregnant and nonpregnant goats remained below the threshold values until d 24 after mating. Thereafter, PAG concentration in whole and skim milk increased steadily in pregnant goats, whereas it continued below the threshold in non-pregnant does. The PAG profiles in whole and skim milk of pregnant goats were almost similar and exhibited strong positive relationship (r = 0.891; p<0.001). Day 26 post-mating was identified as the first time-point for significantly (p<0.05) higher milk PAG concentration in pregnant goats than to non-pregnant goats. When compared to TRUS examination for pregnancy diagnosis, the accuracy and specificity of PAG ELISA using whole and skim milk samples were 94.5% and 95.4%; and 95.3% and 100%, respectively. The high values of area-under-curve (0.904 [whole milk] and 0.922 [skim milk]), demonstrate outstanding discrimination ability of the milk assays. Among the sampling dates chosen, d 37 post-mating was identified as the best suitable time point for collection of milk samples to detect pregnancy in goats. Conclusion: The PAG concentration in whole and skim milk of goats collected between days 26 and 51 post-breeding can be used for the accurate prediction of pregnancy and may be useful for assisting management decisions in goat flocks.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.16 no.5
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• pp.646-657
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• 2022

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: The doubly labeled water (DLW) method is the gold standard for estimating total energy expenditure (TEE) and is also useful for verifying the validities of dietary evaluation tools. In this study, we compared the accuracy of total energy intakes (TEI) estimated by the 24-h diet recall method with TEE obtained using the doubly labeled water method. SUBJECTS/METHODS: This study involved 71 subjects aged 20-49 yrs. Over a 14-day period, three 24-h diet recalls per subject (2 weekdays and 1 weekend day) were used to estimate energy intakes, while TEE was measured using the DLW method. The paired t-test was used to determine the significance of differences between TEI and TEE results, and the accuracy of the 24-h recall method was determined by accuracy predictions percentage, root mean square error, and bias. RESULTS: Average study subject age was 33.4 ± 8.6 yrs. The association between TEI and TEE was positive and significant (r = 0.463, P < 0.001), and the difference between TEI (2,084.3 ± 684.2 kcal/day) and TEE (2,401.7 ± 480.3 kcal/day) was also significant (P < 0.001). In all study subjects, mean TEI was 12.0% (307.5 ± 629.3 kcal/day) less than mean TEE, and 12.2% (349.4 ± 632.5 kcal/day) less in men and 11.8% (266.7 ± 632.5 kcal/day) less in women. Rates of TEI underprediction for all study subjects, men, and women, were 60.5%, 51.4%, and 66.7%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that 24-h diet recall underreports energy intakes. More research is needed to corroborate our findings and evaluate the accuracy of 24-h recall with respect to additional demographics.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.238-248
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• 2022

This study was conducted to evaluate the safety of 208 types of residue pesticides on 150 dried agricultural products in Ulsan. The pesticide residues were detected using GC-MS/MS, LC-MS/MS, GC/ECD, GC/NPD, and LC/PDA. The detection rate was 19.3% (29 of 150 samples), and 28 types of pesticides were detected. Two of the 29 pesticide residues exceeded the maximum residue limit (MRL). Difenoconazole was detected in Ulleungdo aster, and chlorothalonil and chlorpyrifos were detected in chili pepper leaves. In the vegetable group, the frequency of pesticide residues was found to be the highest in dried leafy vegetables, followed by dried fruiting vegetables other than cucurbit vegetables, and then dried stalk and stem vegetables. The pesticide types detected in the commercial dried agricultural products were fungicide (60%), insecticide (23.8%), and acaricide (16.3%). In the validation study, the values of limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantitation (LOQ), coefficient of determination (R²), and recovery rate were in the range of 0.0001-0.0409 mg/kg, 0.0003-0.1241 mg/kg, 0.994-0.999, and 81.58-116.79%, respectively. The ratio of estimated daily intake (EDI)/acceptable daily intake (ADI) was 0.00002-0.31395%.

• Journal of Korea Water Resources Association
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• v.56 no.9
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• pp.529-541
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• 2023

Due to the growing concern over forecasting extreme weather events such as droughts caused by climate change, there has been a rising interest in seasonal meteorological forecasts that offer ensemble predictions for the upcoming seven months. Nonetheless, limited research has been conducted in South Korea, particularly in assessing their effectiveness at the catchment-scale. In this study, we assessed the accuracy of ECMWF's seasonal forecasts (including precipitation, temperature, and evapotranspiration) for the period of 2011 to 2020. We focused on 12 multi-purpose reservoir catchments and compared the forecasts to climatology data. Continuous Ranked Probability Skill Score method is adopted to assess the forecast skill, and the linear scaling method was applied to evaluate its impact. The results showed that while the seasonal meteorological forecasts have similar skill to climatology for one month ahead, the skill decreased significantly as the forecast lead time increased. Compared to the climatology, better results were obtained in the Wet season than the Dry season. In particular, during the Wet seasons of the dry years (2015, 2017), the seasonal meteorological forecasts showed the highest skill for all lead times.

• Korean Journal of Animal Reproduction
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.323-331
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• 1999

The effects of insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) and cumulus cells during in vitro maturation in porcine oocytes were examined. When follicular oocytes were cultured in medium with different concentrations of IGF-I, maturation rates were 60, 61 and 62 and 72% for 0, 15 and l0ng/$m\ell$ IGF-I. In medium with 10ng/$m\ell$ IGF-I, maturation rates were not significantly difference between oocytes with (68%) and without (52%) cumulus cells during the culture. In medium with-out IGF-I, however, the maturation rates in oocytes with cumulus cells (63%) was significantly (P＜0.05) higher than oocytes without cumulus cells (32%). On the other hand, when IGF-I was added for first 24 h period or later 24 h period of culture, maturation rates were higher in oocytes with (61 and 49%) that than without (49 and 45%) cumulus cells. In experiment used medium without fetal calf serum (FCS) and porcine follicular fluid (PFF), the maturation rates in oocytes with cumulus cells for 48 h (48 and 67%) or first 24 h (46 and 63%) period after culture were significantly (P＜0.01) higher than in oocytes without cumulus cells (16 and 18%) in the presence or absence of IGF-I. These results indicated that cumulus cells is essential on maturation in vitro in porcine oocytes, but IGF-I can promote oocytes maturation of oocytes without cumulus cells in medium with FCS and PFF.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.139-151
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• 2023

Sulfonylurea herbicides are widely used in agriculture because they have a long residual period and high selectivity. An analytical method was developed using QuEChERS (Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, and Safe) technique for simultaneous determination of sulfonylurea herbicide residues in agricultural products by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry and for establishment MRL (Maximum Residue Limit) of those herbicides in Korea. Extraction was performed using acetonitrile containing 0.1% formic acid with MgSO₄ (anhydrous magnesium sulfate) and NaCl (sodium chloride) and the extract was cleaned up using MgSO₄ and C₁₈ (octadecyl). The matrix-matched calibration curves were composed of 7 concentration levels from 0.001 to 0.25 mg/kg and their coefficients of determination (R²) exceeded 0.99. The recoveries of three spiking levels (LOQ, 10LOQ, 50LOQ, n=5) were in the range of 71.7-114.9% with relative standard deviations of less than 20.0% for all the five agriculture products. All validation values met criteria of the European Union SANTE/11312/2021 guidelines and Food and Drug Safety Evaluation guidelines. Therefore, the proposed analytical method was accurate, effective, and sensitive for sulfonylurea herbicide residues determination in agricultural commodities.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.38 no.5
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• pp.402-408
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• 2023

Consumer interest in food nutrition continues to grow; however, research on consumer preferences related to nutrition remains limited. In this study, big data analysis was conducted using keyword logs collected from the national information service, the Korean Food Composition Database (K-FCDB), to determine consumer preferences for foods of nutritional interest. The data collection period was set from January 2020 to December 2022, covering a total of 2,243,168 food name keywords searched by K-FCDB users. Food names were processed by merging them into representative food names. The search frequency of food names was analyzed for the entire period and by season using R. In the frequency analysis for the entire period, steamed rice, chicken, and egg were found to be the most frequently consumed foods by Koreans. Seasonal preference analysis revealed that in the spring and summer, foods without broth and cold dishes were consumed frequently, whereas in fall and winter, foods with broth and warm dishes were more popular. Additionally, foods sold by restaurants as seasonal items, such as Naengmyeon and Kongguksu, also exhibited seasonal variations in frequency. These results provide insights into consumer interest patterns in the nutritional information of commonly consumed foods and are expected to serve as fundamental data for formulating seasonal marketing strategies in the restaurant industry, given their indirect relevance to consumer trends.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.324-337
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• 2023

Objective: The objective of this study was to analyze the different brain oxygen metabolism statuses in preeclampsia using magnetic resonance imaging and investigate the factors that affect cerebral oxygen metabolism in preeclampsia. Materials and Methods: Forty-nine women with preeclampsia (mean age 32.4 years; range, 18-44 years), 22 pregnant healthy controls (PHCs) (mean age 30.7 years; range, 23-40 years), and 40 non-pregnant healthy controls (NPHCs) (mean age 32.5 years; range, 20-42 years) were included in this study. Brain oxygen extraction fraction (OEF) values were computed using quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) plus quantitative blood oxygen level-dependent magnitude-based OEF mapping (QSM + quantitative blood oxygen level-dependent imaging or QQ) obtained with a 1.5-T scanner. Voxel-based morphometry (VBM) was used to investigate the differences in OEF values in the brain regions among the groups. Results: Among the three groups, the average OEF values were significantly different in multiple brain areas, including the parahippocampus, multiple gyri of the frontal lobe, calcarine, cuneus, and precuneus (all P-values were less than 0.05, after correcting for multiple comparisons). The average OEF values of the preeclampsia group were higher than those of the PHC and NPHC groups. The bilateral superior frontal gyrus/bilateral medial superior frontal gyrus had the largest size of the aforementioned brain regions, and the OEF values in this area were 24.2 ± 4.6, 21.3 ± 2.4, and 20.6 ± 2.8 in the preeclampsia, PHC, and NPHC groups, respectively. In addition, the OEF values showed no significant differences between NPHC and PHC. Correlation analysis revealed that the OEF values of some brain regions (mainly involving the frontal, occipital, and temporal gyrus) were positively correlated with age, gestational week, body mass index, and mean blood pressure in the preeclampsia group (r = 0.361-0.812). Conclusion: Using whole-brain VBM analysis, we found that patients with preeclampsia had higher OEF values than controls.