• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.77-85
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• 2020

This study analyzes the effects of mixed fermented organic fertilizer on chinese cabbage growth and soil properties in order to investigate the nutritional effects of organic fertilizers, which are developed as an alternative fertilizer for imported castor oil cake. In this study, four treatments were set up: 100% and 200% rate of nitrogen application (320 kg ha-1 for Chinese cabbage) on mixed fermented organic fertilizer A(FA) and mixed fermented organic fertilizer B(FB), respectively, 100% rates of the mixed expeller cake (MEC) fertilizer, and the untreated control. Results revealed that the growth and yield of Chinese cabbage increased as more fermented organic fertilizer was used. However, while there were no significant differences in growth characteristics between treatments of 100% rate of mixed fermented organic fertilizer and 100% rate of MEC, the impacts on yields resulted similar. The nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) of Chinese cabbage was measured a range of 20-31% depending on the response to treatment. The 100% FA showed the same as NUE and nitrogen absorption with 100% rate of MEC. Regarding soil properties after cultivation, there were no significant differences among the effects of fertilizers in pH, EC, soil organic matter, and available phosphate. However, the content of exchangeable cations(K, Ca, Mg) was higher in areas treated with mixed fermented organic fertilizer than in untreated areas. Furthermore, the bacterial population density in the soil was higher in areas treated with mixed fermented organic fertilizer than in untreated areas and increased as more mixed fermented organic fertilizer was used. There were no significant differences in the population density of actinomycetes and fungi when fertilizer was applied to the soil. These results also show that FA, as a alternative organic fertilizer for imported castor oil cake, has similar nutritional effects as that of MEC. Therefore, further research the appropriate amounts of fertilizer is required to achieve economical and eco-friendly nutrient management.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.64 no.2
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• pp.185-192
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• 2021

Psoriasis is a chronic intractable skin disease caused by various inflammatory cytokines such as IL-6, CXCL8, TNF-α, and IFN-γ, as well as IL-17A secreted from Th17 cells and is characterized by hyperkeratosis and chronic inflammation of the epidermis. Brazilin, an active ingredient of Caesalpinia sappan L., is known to exert antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity, and function in skin barrier improvement. In particular, it was shown as a potential material for treating psoriasis in a tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α-stimulated HaCaT keratinocyte model. However, the direct regulation of the C-C motif chemokine ligand (CCL) 20, a psoriasis-inducing factor, by brazilin has not been reported. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the suppression of CCL20 and the regulatory mechanism by brazilin using a psoriasis-like model. First, brazilin downregulated CCL20 and CXCL8 in IL-17A-stimulated HaCaT cells in a concentration-dependent manner by inhibiting signal transducer and transcription (STAT)3 phosphorylation. In addition, brazilin significantly inhibited the expression of psoriasis-related genes CXCL8, CCL20, IL-1, IL-6, and TNF-α in TNF-α/IL-17A/IFN-γ-stimulated HaCaT cells. Moreover, brazilin also had a positive effect on improving the skin barrier in TNF-α/IL-17A/IFN-γ-stimulated HaCaT cells. The above results indicated that brazilin ultimately downregulated CCL20 expression by inhibiting STAT3 phosphorylation, and also suppressed the expression of psoriasis-induced cytokines. If the efficacy of brazilin in improving psoriasis is verified through animal models and clinical trials in the future, it may represent a potentially therapeutic substance for psoriasis patients.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.48 no.4
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• pp.227-238
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• 2021

This study investigates the effect of perch type and height on the growth performance, footpad dermatitis (FPD), blood parameters, behavioral characteristics, and meat quality of broilers. A total of 912 one-day-old male Ross 308 broilers (48.23±0.264 g) were subjected to a three x two factorial design of three types of perch (wood, steel, plastic) and two levels of perch height (10→30 cm change, 10 cm fixed) over a five-week experiment. Growth performance, perch availability, litter quality, FPD incidence, serum biochemical parameters, and meat quality of the broilers were evaluated. There were no significant differences in the body weight, feed conversion ratio, and biochemical parameters (except for aspartate aminotransferase), pH, color, and water holding capacity. The incidence of FPD was significantly higher in the plastic perch group than in the wood and steel perch groups (P<0.05) at five weeks of age. Perch use was high in the order of wood, steel, and plastic groups in the daytime and nighttime at one, three, and five weeks of age (P<0.05). Perch use was higher in the 10 cm fixed group than the 10→30 cm group (P<0.05). The shear force of the breast significantly increased in the order of wood, steel, and plastic groups (P<0.05). In conclusion, the group with a fixed perch height of 10 cm had high perch usage. Additionally, the use of wooden perches was higher than that of other materials, and it lowered the incidence of FPD in broilers.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF PACKAGING SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.175-182
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• 2022

Heavy metals can be intentionally or unintentionally introduced into plastic food utensils, containers, and packaging (PFUCP) as additives or contaminants, which can be ingested with food by humans. Here, seven-heavy metals (lead, cadmium, nickel, chromium, antimony, copper, and manganese) with toxicity concerns were selected, and risk assessment was done by establishing their migration from 137 PFUCP products made of 16 materials distributed in Korea. Migration of heavy metals was examined by applying 4% acetic acid as a food simulant (70℃, 30 minutes) to the PFUCP products. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) was employed for the analysis of migrated heavy metals, and the reliability of quantitative results was confirmed by checking linearity, LOD, LOQ, recovery, precision, and expanded uncertainty. As a result of monitoring, heavy metals were detected at a level of non-detection to 8.76 ± 11.87 ㎍/L and most of the heavy metals investigated were only detected at trace amounts of less than 1 ㎍/L on average. However, antimony migrated from PET products was significantly higher than other groups. Risk assessment revealed that all the heavy metals investigated were safe with a margin of exposure above 311. Collectively, we demonstrated that heavy metals migrated from PFUCP products distributed in Korea appear to be within the safe range.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.189-197
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• 2022

This study was conducted to compare the egg productivity, egg quality, and blood characteristics of laying hens with different laying rates, and the frequency and cumulative duration of the sitting behavior observed before laying was investigated. Twelve 45-week-old Hy-Line Brown laying hens were randomly assigned to two treatment groups with three replicates. Treatment groups were classified as layers laying over 80%(high egg performance layers; HEP) and layers laying below 50%(poor egg performance layers; PEP). The experiment lasted 4 weeks. HEP showed higher hen-house egg production ratio and egg mass and lower feed conversion ratio(FCR) (P<0.05) compared with PEP, although egg weight was higher in PEP (P<0.05). In terms of egg quality, PEP showed differences in eggshell quality (eggshell color, eggshell thickness, and eggshell weight) (P<0.05). Additionally, HEP showed high triglycerides(TG), and PEP showed high alanine transaminase(ALT) level (P<0.05) in serum collected in the morning. In the afternoon, the HEP showed higher lactate dehydrogenase(LDH) levels (P<0.05). No differences in the Ca: P ratio were observed between layers with different laying rates. One hour before egg laying, HEP exhibited sitting behavior 4 times on average, each lasting 25 minutes. In conclusion, egg production and quality differ between HEP and PEP, and HEP showed frequent sitting behavior before egg laying. However, additional research is necessary to explore approaches other than specific behavioral observation to distinguish poor layers in the flock for application in farms.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.139-144
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• 2022

This study was conducted to investigate the effect of three different photoperiods on growth performance, blood properties, and stress indicators in broiler chicks between 1-7 days after hatching. Two hundred and fifty-two 1-day-old male broiler chicks (57.0±0.12 g) were divided into three treatments, with 4 replicates per treatment and 22 birds per replicate subjected to three different photoperiods of 24L, 22L/2D and 18L/6D. A light-emitting diode bulb served as the light source, with an illuminance of 30 lx. As an experimental diet, a commercial feed based on a corn-soybean meal, with 22% CP and 3,150 kcal/kg ME diet, and water were fed ad libitum. Body weight gain, feed conversion ratio, and liver weight ratio showed a statistically significant difference between the 18L/6D and 24L treatments (P<0.05), but with no significant difference between the 22L/2D treatment and either the 24L or 18L/6D treatment. The breast meat ratio was 5.59% in the 18L/6D treatment group, which was lower than that of other treatment groups (P<0.05). The triglyceride levels were highest (P<0.05) in the 18L/6D treatment among treatments, but alanine aminotransferase levels were significantly higher (P<0.05) in the 22L/2D treatment than in the 24L treatment. Levels of cytokines, i.e., Interleukin-6 and Tumor Necrosis Factor-α did not show a significant difference among the treatments, but corticosterone content was significantly higher (P<0.05) in the 24L treatment than in the 18L/6D treatment. In conclusion, 22 hours of lighting is appropriate between 1~7 days after hatching, considering growth performance and the overall health of broiler chicks.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.68 no.1
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• pp.20-26
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• 2023

Fiber content in the storage roots of sweetpotato varies between different varieties. For examples, the high fiber content of certain types has a poor texture when steamed or roasted. This study was conducted to evaluate the optimal sieve mesh size for separating fibers, the chemical composition of fibers and differences in fiber content among different varieties. We found that the separated fiber content (dry weight) of mashed and steamed sweetpotato was higher after washing three times (143.3 mg/100 g) compared with that washed five times (128.4 mg/100 g). The Hogammi variety remained 85.9% of total fiber content at 10 mesh (2,000 ㎛) and 9.6% of total fiber content at 30 mesh (600 ㎛), and Jinyulmi remained 74.9 and 16.7% of total fiber content , respectively. Therefore, a 30 mesh sieve was considered the most suitable for fiber separation. Among the 10 studied cultivars, Jinhongmi showed the lowest amount of fiber (24.8 mg/100 g) and Hogammi had the highest amount (111.4 mg/100 g), which was 4.5 times larger than that of Jinhongmi. Cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin content of separated fibers showed no difference between the viscous-type Hogammi and powdery-type Jinyulmi varieties, with averages of 32.5, 22.3 and 29.6%, respectively. Correlation results using the Image J program showed a significant correlation between the distribution of the stained area and the fiber content (R = 0.74, p < 0.05). Staining distribution differed among varieties, suggesting that a simple fiber content test could be performed using the staining method on raw sweetpotato. These results provide useful information to help inform farmers on the fiber content of different sweetpotato varieties.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.231-245
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• 2023

In the cosmetics industry, it is important to develop new materials for functional cosmetics such as whitening, wrinkles, anti-oxidation, and anti-aging, as well as technology to increase absorption when applied to the skin. Therefore, in this study, we tried to optimize the nanoemulsion formulation by utilizing response surface methodology (RSM), an experimental design method. A nanoemulsion was prepared by a high-pressure emulsification method using Glabridin as an active ingredient, and finally, the optimized skin absorption rate of the nanoemulsion was evaluated. Nanoemulsions were prepared by varying the surfactant content, cholesterol content, oil content, polyol content, high-pressure homogenization pressure, and cycling number of high-pressure homogenization as RSM factors. Among them, surfactant content, oil content, high-pressure homogenization pressure, and cycling number of high-pressure homogenization, which are factors that have the greatest influence on particle size, were used as independent variables, and particle size and skin absorption rate of nanoemulsion were used as response variables. A total of 29 experiments were conducted at random, including 5 repetitions of the center point, and the particle size and skin absorption of the prepared nanoemulsion were measured. Based on the results, the formulation with the minimum particle size and maximum skin absorption was optimized, and the surfactant content of 5.0 wt%, oil content of 2.0 wt%, high-pressure homogenization pressure of 1,000 bar, and the cycling number of high-pressure homogenization of 4 pass were derived as the optimal conditions. As the physical properties of the nanoemulsion prepared under optimal conditions, the particle size was 111.6 ± 0.2 nm, the PDI was 0.247 ± 0.014, and the zeta potential was -56.7 ± 1.2 mV. The skin absorption rate of the nanoemulsion was compared with emulsion as a control. As a result of the nanoemulsion and general emulsion skin absorption test, the cumulative absorption of the nanoemulsion was 79.53 ± 0.23%, and the cumulative absorption of the emulsion as a control was 66.54 ± 1.45% after 24 h, which was 13% higher than the emulsion.

• Resources Recycling
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• v.31 no.6
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• pp.44-51
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• 2022

In the steelmaking process using an electric arc furnace (EAF), light-burnt dolomite, which is a flux containing MgO, is used to protect refractory materials and improve desulfurization ability. Furthermore, a recarburizing agent is added to reduce energy consumption via slag foaming and to induce the deoxidation effect. Herein, a waste MgO-C based refractory material was used to achieve the aforementioned effects economically. The waste MgO-C refractory materials contain a significant amount of MgO and graphite components; however, most of these materials are currently discarded instead of being recycled. The mass recycling of waste MgO-C refractory materials would be achievable if their applicability as a flux for steelmaking is proven. Therefore, experiments were performed using a target composition range similar to the commercial EAF slag composition. A pre-melted base slag was prepared by mixing SiO₂, Al₂O₃, and FeO in an alumina crucible and heating at 1450℃ for 1 h or more. Subsequently, a mixed flux #2 (a mixture of light-burnt dolomite, waste MgO-C based refractory material, and limestone) was added to the prepared pre-melted base slag and a melting reaction test was performed. Injecting the pre-melted base slag with the flux facilitates the formation of the target EAF slag. These results were compared with that of mixed flux #1 (a mixture of light-burnt dolomite and limestone), which is a conventional steelmaking flux, and the possibility of replacement was evaluated. To obtain a reliable evaluation, characterization techniques like X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry were used, and slag foam height, slag basicity, and Fe recovery were calculated.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.325-336
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• 2023

This study used leaves and stems of 'Tongchaeru', one of the sweet potato varieties, to investigate broiler productivity, meat quality, blood properties, growth hormones, and immune factor levels according to drying method and amount added to feed. For this experiment, a total of 720 1-day-old male Ross 308 broilers were used. Treatments were assigned with 3 replicates per treatment and 20 birds were assigned to each replicate. The treatment group was designed into 12 treatments according to the type of natural product (leaves (L), stems (S)), drying type (natural (N), hot air (H), freeze (F)) and amount added (0.1%, 0.3%). The test was conducted for a total of 5 weeks. In this study, there was no significant difference in productivity depending on the type and amount of additives added (P>0.05). The FS 0.3% group showed high pH and WHC levels, and the shear force was lowest at HL 0.1% group (P<0.05). Blood cell and serum biochemical components were similar in all treatments, and growth hormone IGF-1 was highest in FS 0.1% group (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in IFN-γ, but the highest level of IL-6 was seen in the HS 0.1% group (P<0.05). In conclusion, the meat quality and the level of growth hormone and immune factors in the body were different depending on the type and amount of dried leaves and stems of sweet potato 'Tongchaeru', further study is needed to compare the selected additives and amounts added with those without additions.