• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.399-405
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• 1999

Objective: In the preparation of ICSI, cumulus and corona cells should be removed from the oocytes by using a combination of enzymatic (hyaluronidase) and mechanical (pipetting) methods. But little is known about the effects of different degrees of oocyte denudation and incubation time between denudation and sperm injection on the outcomes of ICSI. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of varying the degrees of oocyte denudation and the lengths of incubation time from denudation to sperm injection on the outcomes of ICSI. Methods: In experiment 1, patients (oocytes) were grouped into group A and B according to the degree of denudation, complete and partial, respectively. In experiment 2, patients (oocytes) were grouped into group I, II and III according to the length of incubation time of denuded oocytes until sperm injection as < 1, $1{\sim}2$ and >2 hours, respectively. Results: There was no significant difference between the degree of oocyte denudation on the survival, fertilization and development rates after ICSI procedure. In case of the incubation time of denuded oocytes until ICSI, survival rates was higher in group III (83.1 %) than in group I (61.5%, p<0.05) or group II (64.3%). However no statistically significant differences were found between incubation time and fertilization or development rates. Conclusions: This study reveals that the outcomes of ICSI are not affected by the degree (complete or partial) of oocyte denudation. However, the denuded oocytes with incubation period of more than 2 hours show better outcomes of ICSI than those with the incubation period of less than 2 hours.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.46 no.6
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• pp.443-448
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• 2001

This study was carried out to obtain the basic informations on the characteristics of gametophytes formation and microspore germination in Astragalus membranaceus Bunge. Pollen mother cells passed through meiosis when the flower bud length reaches around 3.5 mm, thus creating the tetrad when it is 4.0 mm long. Pollen attains full growth when the bud is about 10.0 mm long and the anther is found to dehisce when the length of tate bud reach around 12.0 mm. Embryo sac develops at a similar speed as pollen did and it attains its full growth when the bud is about 10-12 mm long. After being stored at 4$^{\circ}C$ or -4$^{\circ}C$, the pollen maintained its germination ability to almost full extent by the 30th day after store. However, the germination rate at room temperature (23~28$^{\circ}C$) decreased below 3％ by the 3rd day of storage and so did the germination speed.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.81-89
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• 2008

The eco-toxicological effects of endocrine disrupter, 4-nonylphenol (4NP) were observed and detected on the harpacticoid copepod, Tigriopus japonicus s.l. obtained and cultur-ed from our coast. There were no significant differences survival rate, sex ratio, and fecundity on T. japonicus s.l. at as low as $30{\mu}gL^{-1}$ of 4 NP exposure. Whereas, 4NP induced developmental delay, decreasing biomass and body size of nauplius and copepodite. Also, Differentially Expressed Gene (DEG) was conducted to detecting gene expression for potential biomarkers response to 4NP. As a result, full lifecycle research on morphology and gene expression of T. japonicus s.l. suggested potential bioindicators or biomarkers for environmental monitoring and assessments.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.7 no.1_2
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• pp.3-10
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• 1980

Pituitary gonadotropes, as target cells, exhibit cyclic changes in terms of LH and FSH release in synchrony with the estradiol levels. The ultimate release is determined by the relative size of the two pools of gonadotropins, which is regulated by the two controllers: LH-RH and estradiol. LH-RH appears to serve as a primary drive on the gonadotrope, stimulating gonadotropin synthesis, storage, and release. Estradiol amplifies the action of LH-RH and induces the development of a self-priming effect of LH-RH except that it impedes LH-RH mediated gonadotropin release. Negative and positive feedback action of estradiol is revealed to operate by different mechanisms. The pituitary capacity increases severalfold from early to late follicular phase, which is considered to be prerequisite for the development of mid-cycle surge. CNS-hypothalamic dopamine, norepinephrine, and prostaglandins, as well as LH-RH, are involved in the negative and positive feedback effects of estradiol. The possible mechanisms in the triggering of LH-RH release for the initiation of midcycle LH-RH surge are considered.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.154-158
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• 2010

Embryo Transfer (ET) is one of the assisted reproductive technologies and a useful tool for improving herds. The purpose of this study is to produce the calves using frozen embryos which were produced in the top one percent Holstein in Canada by ET. One hundred seventeen recipients were used for surrogate mothers and seventy cows were diagnosed to be pregnant. Fifty seven calves were born successfully and thirteen out of them failed to produce viable calves (abortion: 4, stillbirth: 9). Their gestational length, birth body weight and sex ratio for all the viable calves(n = 57) were $278.1{\pm}3.6$ days (range: from 271 to 286 days), $44.0{\pm}3.0\;kg$ (range: from 37 to 49 kg) and 57.9 vs. 42.1 % (male 33 and female 24), respectively. Microsatellite analysis confirmed that they were derived from frozen embryos. In conclusion, this study demonstrated that viable calves derived from frozen-thawed embryos from Canada were born by ET.

• Development and Reproduction
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.53-57
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• 2001

Sperm capacitation and acrosome reaction (AR) have been known to be Ca$^{2+}$-dependent events. Sperm capacitation accompanies with cholesterol efflux fiom plasma membrane, that eventually stimulates AR. However, whether the AR mediated by cholesterol efflux is Ca$^{2+}$ dependent has not been verified yet. Recently, methyl beta cyclodextrin (MBCD) was found to evoke AR by stimulating the cholesterol efflux fiom sperm membrane. In the present study, we examined the requirement of Ca$^{2+}$ in the MBCD-induced AR. During incubation of sperm in the bicarbonate buffered media MBCD increased AR in a dose-dependent manner regardless of the Ca$^{2+}$ presence. In the presence of low molar concentration of Ca$^{2+}$ (100 ${\mu}$M), MBCD-induced AR was slightly increased compared to Ca$^{2+}$-free condition. In the absence of Ca$^{2+}$ supplement, spontaneous AR was slightly increased during the incubation but inhibited by 100 ${\mu}$M EGTA. MBCD potentiated AR even the presence of EGTA. However, EGTA attenuated MBCD-induced AR, suagesting the functional involvement of intracellular Ca$^{2+}$ in the MBCD-induced AR. Taken together, it was suggested that cholesterol efflux from the sperm plasma membrane was sufficient for induction of AR even in the absence of extracellular Ca$^{2+}$and that a condition permissive for mobilization of intracellular Ca$^{2+}$ is important for MBCD-induced AR.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.28 no.5
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• pp.616-622
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• 2008

Listeria monocytogenes is a foodborne pathogen inducing listeriosis in human. We compared two different culture methods for detection of L. monocytogenes and validated two commercial kits, $VIDAS^{(R)}$ and $REVEAL^{(R)}$ for Listeria. L. monocytogenes was inoculated into various food samples to generate partial positive samples. The inoculated samples were enriched in half-Fraser broth for 48 hr at $30^{\circ}C$. The enriched samples were streaked onto Oxford agar at 24 and 48 hr postincubation followed by biochemical confirmation and concurrently analyzed by using the two commercial kits for comparison. When the enrichment period was extended from 24 to 48 hr, the numbers of positive samples were dramatically increased from 6 to 52 out of 80 samples tested using the culture method. With the commercial kits, the numbers of positive samples were also significantly increased from 10 to 18 and 1 to 18, respectively, when the enrichment period was extended from 48 to 72 hr. There was no statistical difference between the 24 hr culture method and $VIDAS^{(R)}$ or $Reveal^{(R)}$ with 48 hr enrichment. In conclusion, the 24 hr for the culture method was insufficient to detect L. monocytogenes in various foods. The commercial kits could be adequate means for presumptive screening of L. monocytogenes in food.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.54 no.4
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• pp.283-290
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• 2012

Cryopreservation induces sublethal damage to the spermatozoa, which leads to their reduced fertile life. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of taurine, hypotaurine and trehalose as antioxidants on the function of the freezing-thawed sperm in Korean Jeju Black Bull. The semen was cryopreserved with tris egg yolk extendercontaining 7% glycerol and treated with 20mM taurine, hypotaurine and trehalose. Frozen-thawed sperms were evaluated for sperm motility, viability, membrane integrity, acrosome integrity and sperm penetration ability. The results were compared to semen cryopreserved in tris egg yolk extender containing 7% glycerol only as control. Frozen-thawed semen evaluation clearlyindicated that the addition of taurine or hypotaurine significantly improved (p<0.05) the motility and viability compared to control spermatozoa. Moreover, in membrane integrity, swollen sperm ratio was significantly increased (p<0.05) in taurine, hypotaurine or trehalose compared to control. In sperm acrosome integrity, F pattern ratio was increased (p<0.05) in hypotaurine among treatments, and AR pattern was significantly lowered (p<0.05) in taurine, hypotaurine and trehalose. In assessed sperm fertilizing ability, taurine, hypotaurine or trehalose significantly improved (p<0.05) the ratio of pronucleus formation and SFI. Finally, compared with the control, addition of taurine, hypotaurine or trehalose as an antioxidant to the freezing extender showed more positive effects on the frozen-thawed spermatozoa. It is concluded that the addition of taurine, hypotaurine, or trehalose to the freezing extender could reduce cryodamage of the Korean Jeju Black Bull spermatozoa.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.651-659
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• 2017

Although the need for education on sexually-transmitted-infections (STIs) for adolescents has been increasing, a limited number of adolescents receive STI education. Importantly, the exposure of youth to an STI during their adolescence period can seriously affect their genital health. Smartphones are an innovative medium that can be used to change individual behaviors, especially useful when used to educate adolescents. Therefore, we developed a customized smartphone application for Korean adolescents. The application was based on Dick and Carey's instructional system design model. In this paper, we describe the process for development of the smartphone application, and the strategies we applied to attract adolescents to use the smartphone application. Six experts verified the educational content of the application. The application's easygoing words were chosen to help adolescents understand the topic. Strategies such as cartoon clips, secret chat rooms, buttons changing color from blue to grey, questions and answers, and a repeated-learning function were used to attract Korean adolescents to the application. The smartphone application developed in this study could be used in schools, youth centers, and hospital centers to improve STI knowledge, STI prevention, and STI coping skills.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.315-322
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• 1998

The objective of this study was to test the effect of catalase on penetration in vitro by spermatozoa preincubated with xanthine and/or xanthine oxidase. The penetration rates were, significantly (p<0.05) higher in spermatozoa preincubated without (66 and 38%) than with (40 and 15%) catalase for 0 and 30 min. When spermatozoa were preincubated and inseminated in medium with xanthine, the penetration rates were significantly higher (p<0.05) in medium with (68, 70 and 49% for 0, 30 and 60 min) than without (33, 41 and 19% for 0, 30 and 60 min) catalase. However, in oocytes were' inseminated with spermatozoa pre incubated with or without catalase in the presence of xanthine oxidase, no decrease in penetrations rates were observed for up to 60 min of preincubation. In another experiment, the penetration rates were significantly (p<0.00l) higher in medium with (75, 55 and 52%) than without (14, 4 and 8%) catalase when oocytes were inseminated with spermatozoa preincubated for 0, 30 and 60 min in the presence of xanthine plus xanthine oxidase. On the other hand, The rate of polyspermy in oocytes penetrated in medium without catalase in the presence of xanthine or xanthine plus xanthine oxidase decreased with time of spermatozoa preincubation. However, no differences were observed in polyspermy rates in the medium with xanthine oxidase alone despite presence of catalase. These results indicate the advantages of spermatozoa pre incubated with xanthine plus xanthine oxidase in the presence of catalase to increase penetration potential and with suppressed polyspermy in porcine.