• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.158-165
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• 2015

Marbling is an important trait regarding the quality of beef. Analysis of beef cattle transcriptome and its expression profile data are essential to extend the genetic information resources and would support further studies on beef cattle. RNA sequencing was performed in beef cattle using the Illumina High-Seq2000 platform. Approximately 251.58 million clean reads were generated from a high marbling (H) group and low marbling (L) group. Approximately 80.12% of the 19,994 bovine genes (protein coding) were detected in all samples, and 749 genes exhibited differential expression between the H and L groups based on fold change (>1.5-fold, p<0.05). Multiple gene ontology terms and biological pathways were found significantly enriched among the differentially expressed genes. The transcriptome data will facilitate future functional studies on marbling formation in beef cattle and may be applied to improve breeding programs for cattle and closely related mammals.

• American Studies
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.57-81
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• 2020

This article examines the repercussions of the US livestock industry Jonathan Safran Foer addresses in Eating Animal. According to Foer, eating(including consuming meat) has never been understood simply as a metabolism for getting energy, but a cultural foundation wherein an individual is able to construct one's subjectivity in relation to others. Eating meat thus entails not only varied layers of memories with family, friend, and society but also the ethical contact with the animal. US factory farms, however, transform this complexity of relation into a monetary system by which animals become a protein machine. This paper investigates the process of violent reductionism through which US factory farms convert livestock into a processed meat packet. In many ways, customers are liable for this sheer violence against animals as they unknowingly or willingly forget the reality of the US meat industry. Consequently, cheap meat writes back to all living things in that factory farms lead to not only animal cruelty but also environmental pollution and sick people. Foer thus encourages his readers to be more conscientious about the meat they consume as it is able to mediate the detrimental structure of capital the US meat industry brings about.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.265-272
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• 2022

Many studies on poultry have been conducted in the poultry industry to improve their important economic traits, such as egg production, meat quality, and carcass yield. Environmental changes affect the poultry's economic traits, including muscle growth. The purpose of this study is to investigate the mechanisms by which simvastatin causes muscle injury in quail muscle cells. Following treatment with various doses of simvastatin, LD50 in the quail myoblast cells was determined using a cell viability test; cell death was caused by apoptosis and/or necrosis. Thereafter, the expression patterns of the atrophy marker genes were examined via quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). The results showed that the transcriptional levels of the muscle atrophy marker genes (Atrogin-1, TRIM63) and the upstream genes in their signaling cascade were increased by simvastatin treatment. This indicated that simvastatin induced myogenic cell death and muscle injury via protein degradation through muscle atrophy signaling. Further studies should focus on identifying the mechanism by which simvastatin induces the protein degradation signaling pathway in quail muscle..

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.39 no.5
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• pp.687-703
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• 2019

A survey we conducted suggests that the ingestion of veterinary drug residues in edible animal parts constitutes a potential health hazard for its consumers, including, specifically, the possibility of developing multidrug resistance, carcinogenicity, and disruption of intestinal normal microflora. The survey results indicated that antibiotics, parasitic drugs, anticoccidial, or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are broadly used, and this use in livestock is associated with the appearance of residues in various animal products such as milk, meat, and eggs. We observed that different cooking procedures, heating temperatures, storage times, fermentation, and pH have the potential to decrease drug residues in animal products. Several studies have reported the use of thermal treatments and sterilization to decrease the quantity of antibiotics such as tetracycline, oxytetracycline, macrolides, and sulfonamides, in animal products. Fermentation treatments also decreased levels of penicillin and pesticides such as dimethoate, malathion, Dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene, and lindane. pH, known to influence decreases in cloxacillin and oxacillin levels, reportedly enhanced the dissolution of antimicrobial drug residues. Pressure cooking also reduced aldrin, dieldrin, and endosulfan in animal products. Therefore, this review provides updated information on the control of drug residues in animal products, which is of significance to veterinarians, livestock producers, and consumer health.

• Journal of Embryo Transfer
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.333-337
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• 2014

To compensate for the critical shortage of human organs for allotransplantation, xenotransplantation studies using genetically modified pigs are being performed in Korea. Two types of pigs that are used are ${\alpha}1,3$-galactosyltransferase gene knockout (GalT KO) pigs and GalT KO+hCD46 (human complement regulatory protein) pigs. The present study measured the gestation time, birth weight, daily growth rate, and heart weight of both kinds of transgenic minipigs. The gestation period for both types of pigs was 117~119 days. There was no difference in the body weight of GalT KO (-/+) and GalT KO (-/-) piglets, but GalT KO+hCD46 ($-^{hCD46+}/+$) pigs were significantly heavier at birth than were GalT KO+hCD46 ($-^{hCD46+}/-^{hCD46+}$) pigs. During the first 10 weeks of life, the daily weight gain of GalT KO+hCD46 ($-^{hCD46+}/-^{CD46+}$) piglets, which are considered the optimal type for xenotransplantation, was 0.19 kg. The weight of hearts from GalT KO piglets up to two months of age was affected more by body weight than by age. Transgenic pigs showed no differences in gestation period or reproductive ability compared with normal pigs. These results comprise basic data that may be used in xenotransplantation studies and transgenic animal production in Korea.

• Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
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• v.31
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• pp.26.1-26.9
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• 2016

Objectives Korea's Act on the Registration and Evaluation of Chemicals (K-REACH) was enacted for the protection of human health and the environment in 2015. Considering that about 2000 new substances are introduced annually across the globe, the extent of animal testing requirement could be overwhelming unless regulators and companies work proactively to institute and enforce global best practices to replace, reduce or refine animal use. In this review, the way to reduce the animal use for K-REACH is discussed. Methods Background of the enforcement of the K-REACH and its details was reviewed along with the papers and regulatory documents regarding the limitation of animal experiments and its alternatives in order to discuss the regulatory adoption of alternative tests. Results Depending on the tonnage of the chemical used, the data required ranges from acute and other short-term studies for a single exposure route to testing via multiple exposure routes and costly, longer-term studies such as a full two-generation reproducibility toxicity. The European Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals regulation provides for mandatory sharing of vertebrate test data to avoid unnecessary duplication of animal use and test costs, and obligation to revise data requirements and test guidelines "as soon as possible" after relevant, validated replacement, reduction or refinement (3R) methods become available. Furthermore, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development actively accepts alternative animal tests and 3R to chemical toxicity tests. Conclusions Alternative tests which are more ethical and efficient than animal experiments should be widely used to assess the toxicity of chemicals for K-REACH registration. The relevant regulatory agencies will have to make efforts to actively adopt and uptake new alternative tests and 3R to K-REACH.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.1-7
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• 2010

Objectives: To introduce to TKM scientific dose conversion methods of human to animal or animal to human for new drug investigations. Methods: We searched guidelines of the FDA and KFDA, and compared them with references for drug-dose conversion from various databases such as PubMed and Google. Then, we analyzed the potential issues and problems related to dose conversion in safety documentation of new herbal drugs based on our experiences during Investigational New Drug (IND) applications of TKM. Results: Dose conversion from human to animal or animal to human must be appropriately translated during new drug development. From time to time, investigators have some difficulty in determining the appropriate dose, because of misunderstandings of dose conversion, especially when they estimate starting dose in clinical or animal studies to investigate efficacy, toxicology and mechanisms. Therefore, education of appropriate dose calculation is crucial for investigators. The animal dose should not be extrapolated to humans by a simple conversion method based only on body weight, because many studies suggest the normalization method is based mainly on body surface area (BSA). In general, the body surface area seems to have good correlation among species with several parameters including oxygen utilization, caloric expenditure, basal metabolism, blood volume and circulating plasma protein. Likewise, a safety factor should be taken into consideration when deciding high dose in animal toxicology study. Conclusion: Herein, we explain the significance of dose conversion based on body surface area and starting dose estimation for clinical trials with safety factor.

• Journal of Korean Society for Quality Management
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• v.49 no.2
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• pp.145-159
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• 2021

Purpose: A statistical similarity evaluation to compare pharmacokinetics(PK) profile data between nonclinical and clinical experiments has become a significant issue on many drug development processes. This study proposes a new similarity index by considering important parameters, such as the area under the curve(AUC) and the time-series profile of various PK data. Methods: In this study, a new profile similarity index(PSI) by using the concept of a process capability index(Cp) is proposed in order to investigate the most similar animal PK profile compared to the target(i.e., Human PK profile). The proposed PSI can be calculated geometric and arithmetic means of all short term similarity indices at all time points on time-series both animal and human PK data. Designed simulation approaches are demonstrated for a verification purpose. Results: Two different simulation studies are conducted by considering three variances(i.e., small, medium, and large variances) as well as three different characteristic types(smaller the better, larger the better, nominal the best). By using the proposed PSI, the most similar animal PK profile compare to the target human PK profile can be obtained in the simulation studies. In addition, a case study represents differentiated results compare to existing simple statistical analysis methods(i.e., root mean squared error and quality loss). Conclusion: The proposed PSI can effectively estimate the level of similarity between animal, human PK profiles. By using these PSI results, we can reduce the number of animal experiments because we only focus on the significant animal representing a high PSI value.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.62 no.1
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• pp.10.1-10.9
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• 2022

Feline panleukopenia virus (FPV) causes fatal leukopenia and severe hemorrhagic diarrhea in cats. Although FPV isolates have been reported worldwide from several animals, the biological and genetic features of South Korean FPVs remain unclear. We characterized molecularly South Korean FPV isolates. Crandell-Rees feline kidney (CRFK) cells were used to isolate FPV from 60 organ homogenates. The isolates were confirmed to be FPVs via analyses of cytopathic effects, immunofluorescence studies, electron microscopy, and polymerase chain reaction. Viral genetic analyses used the full VP2 sequences. Eight isolates propagated in CRFK cells were confirmed to be FPVs. All isolates yielded viral titers ranging from 10^4.5 to 10^6.0 TCID₅₀/mL 5 days after inoculation into CRFK cells and exhibited hemagglutination titers ranging from 2⁷ to 2¹² (using pig erythrocytes). The Korean FPV isolates grew well in cat cells such as CRFK and Fcwf-4 cells. The FPV isolates were most similar to the KS42 strain isolated from a Korean cat in 2008. The FPV isolates will serve as useful antigens in future sero-epidemiological studies and will aid in the development of diagnostic tools.

• Journal of Animal Reproduction and Biotechnology
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.194-200
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• 2024

Background: Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and its receptor, neurotrophic tyrosine receptor kinase-2 (NTRK2), are well known for their roles in the central nervous and animal reproductive systems. Several studies have observed the extensive expression of BDNF and NTRK2 in non-neuronal tissues, especially reproductive organs. However, most of these studies focused on ovarian development and regulation; thus, scientific research on BDNF and NTRK2 in males is required to determine their roles in the male reproductive system. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate BDNF and NTRK2 expression in bovine testes. Methods: Testes were collected from six Hanwoo bulls (6-8 months old). Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis was performed to investigate the mRNA expression of BDNF and NTRK2 in the testes. Western blot analysis was performed to verify the cross-reactivity of BDNF and NTRK2 antibodies with bovine testicular tissues. Immunohistochemistry was conducted to determine BDNF and NTRK2 protein expression in the testes. Results: RT-PCR analysis revealed BDNF and NTRK2 mRNA expression in bovine testes. In Western blotting, BDNF and NTRK2 protein bands were observed at 32 and 45 kDa, respectively. Immunofluorescence demonstrated BDNF expression in the nuclei of spermatogonia and Sertoli cells as well as in the cytoplasm of Leydig cells. NTRK2 was exclusively expressed in Sertoli cells. These results suggest that BDNF plays a potential role in spermatogenesis via BDNF and NTRK2 signaling in bovine testes, a finding supported by previous results in different animal species. Conclusions: The expression patterns of BDNF and NTRK2 indicate their functional importance in the bovine reproductive system.