• Korean Journal of Animal Reproduction
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.22-25
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• 1987

This study was carried out to investigate the effects of imported pellet frozen semen on sperm motility and NAR acrosomes after thawing, and the farrowing rates, litter sizes and preweaning body weights after artificial insemination. A total of 28 sows of Landrace, Large White and Duroc were inseminated at the Chungnam Provincial Animal Breeding Station. The results obtained are summarized as follows: 1. Landrace andLarge White had higher sperm motility than Duroc by about 20% and had higher NAR acrosomes by about 10%. 2. The farrowing rates of Landrace, Large White and Duroc were 63.6, 55.6 adn 50.0%, respectively. The number of pigs born alive per litter were larger in Landrace and Large White as compared with Duroc (p<.01). 3. Duroc had the highest mean pig weight at birth, followed by Landrace and Large White (p<.01). The mean pig weights at 21 days and 56 days had no significant differences between the breeds.

• Journal of Embryo Transfer
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.87-93
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• 2013

The efficiency of artificial insemination (AI) for horses remains unsatisfactory. It is mainly because each process of AI causes a detrimental effect on semen quality. To sustain quality of semen properly, several factors including libido of stallions and sperm damage during sperm processing and preservation should be considered. Stallions with decent libido produce a high ratio of sperm to seminal plasma in their ejaculates, which is the ideal semen composition for maintaining sperm quality. Thus, to maximize the fertility rate upon AI, stallions should be appropriately managed to enhance their libido. Seminal plasma should have a positive effect on horse fertility in the case of natural breeding, whereas the effects of seminal plasma on both sperm viability and quality in the context of AI remain controversial. Centrifugation of semen is performed during semen processing to remove seminal plasma and to isolate fine quality sperm from semen. However, the centrifugation process can also result in sperm loss and damage. To solve this problem, several different centrifugation techniques such as Cushion Fluid along with dual and single Androcoll-E$^{TM}$ were developed to minimize loss of sperm and to damage at the bottom of the pellet. Most recently, a new technique without centrifugation was developed with the purpose of separating sperm from semen. AI techniques have been advanced to deliver sperm to optimal region of female reproductive tract at perfect timing. Recombinant equine luteinizing hormone (reLH) and low dose insemination techniques have been developed to maximize both fertility rate and the efficiency of AI. Horse breeders should consider that the entire AI procedure should be optimized for each stallion due to variation in individual horses for a uniformed AI protocol.

• Animal cells and systems
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.313-317
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• 2004

A study was conducted to determine growth and survival rates of snakehead (Channa striata) larvae. Live foods such as Artemia salina nauplii, Moina micrura and bloodworm and artificial diet were given to larvae from 1-15 days after hatching as the 1st phase and from 15-30 days as the 2nd phase. In the 1st phase, the growth and survival rates of larvae fed with Artemia nauplii were significantly different from larvae fed with Moina (p < 0.05) with values of 28.5 mg, 49% and 26.7 mg, 31%, respectively. Meanwhile, all larvae fed with bloodworm (Chironomus sp.) or artificial diet (49% protein) died within 10 days of experiment. For the 2nd phase, growth of the fry fed with Artemia or Moina differed significantly from that fed with bloodworm or pellet (200.1, 187.7, 109.6 and 8.2 mg, respectively). Specific growth rate (SGR) of larvae fed with Moina was higher than that of larvae fed with Artemia (17.9 and 17.4% day$^{-1}$, respectively) in the 1st phase. In the 2nd phase, SGRs of larvae fed with Artemia (12.7% day$^{-1}$) or Moina (11.5% day$^{-1}$) were significantly higher than those of larvae fed with bloodworm (8.3% day$^{-1}$) or dry diet (6.1% day$^{-1}$). Generally, Artemia and Moina were suitable food for snakehead larvae during the first month of their life, and artificial diet was much less acceptable and resulted in poor growth and survival.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.180-184
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• 2003

The intrauterine inseminator (IUI) was developed to provide the method of depositing dog semen into the uterine body instead of the vagina. The IUI consists of a vaginal endoscope, a balloon sheath, and injection catheter. When the endoscope is inserted into the vagina and the balloon expanded with air, the cervical os becomes visible so a injection catheter can be inserted through the cervix for deposition of the frozen-thawed semen. The efficacy of the IUI device was compared to intra-vaginal artificial insemination using semen that had been collected and frozen from pooled sperm-rich fraction of ejaculates collected from two Jindo dog donors. Aliquots of semen were extended with a Tris-egg yolk diluent, centrifuged, the seminal plasma removed, the pellet resuspended with the same diluent, and cooled to $5^{\circ}C$ over a 2 h period. A Tris-egg yolk-glycerol extender was added at $5^{\circ}C$; after 1 h, semen was loaded into 0.5 ml straws, and straws were frozen in LN vapor for 5 min, and immersed in LN for storage. The final sperm concentration for freezing was approximately $100{\times}10^{6}cells/ml$. The straws were thawed at $70^{\circ}C$ for precisely 6 sec, 1.5 ml Tris-egg yolk buffer at $38^{\circ}C$ added, and the 2 ml of thawed semen was used for a single insemination using the IUI device. Each bitch was inseminated at optimal insemination point, which was estimated by vaginal epithelial cells staining and progesterone concentration analysis. Use of the IUI device resulted in 21 of 26 females giving birth to 89 pups ($4.2{\pm}1.6$ pups per litter), while intra-vaginal AI resulted in 6 of 15 females whelping a total of 17 pups ($2.8{\pm}1.2$ pups per litter). We believe the IUI device is easier to use than previously described devices used for intrauterine insemination. In our experience the expansion of the balloon has a calming effect on the bitch that aids the inseminator. These results indicate that the IUI device was able to provide high fertility with 50 million frozen sperm per insemination and two inseminations.

• Horticultural Science & Technology
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.414-423
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• 2016

Growers in plug seedling production think that root media in which rockwool is a component has given rise to several environmental problems. Therefore, the demand for new materials as a substitute for rockwool has been increased. This study examined the possibility of cultivation of tomato plug seedlings using a newly developed growing medium with phenolic foam. Plug seeds of tomato cultivar 'Madison' were sown in four pellet-type growing media: Grodan rockwool (GRW), UR rockwool (URW), phenolic foam LC (LC) or phenolic foam LC-lite (LC-lite). Then, the seedlings were transplanted to the four cube-type growing media 19 days after sowing. Seeds were germinated in a growth chamber ($25{\pm}2^{\circ}C$, 80% relative humidity, and dark) for 4 days and then the seedlings were grown with a nutrient solution supplied by an overhead irrigation system in a greenhouse. Plant height, number of leaves, leaf area, and fresh or dry weight of tomato seedlings were the greatest for the seedlings transplanted to URW cube media after being grown on LC-lite pellets. Root grade was the greatest for the seedlings transplanted on LC or LC-lite cube media after being grown on LC pellets. Chemical properties of all media tested for tomato growth were maintained within a stable range, while physical properties of URW showed high values in container capacity, air space, and total porosity. These results demonstrated that the phenolic foam media were effective for seedling growth and can substitute for rockwool as a root medium.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.223-227
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• 2014

The present study examined whether light emitted by long-afterglow phosphorescent pigments (LumiNova) would stimulate gonadal development in fish during the nonbreeding season. Pellets containing LumiNova powder (treatment group) were prepared and placed on the calvaria of specimens of the sapphire devil Chrysiptera cyanea, a reef-associated damselfish that requires long days for gonadal recrudescence. A pellet without LumiNova powder was placed on the calvaria of the control fish (control group). Fish were reared at $26^{\circ}C$ under a light-dark cycle (12 h photophase, 12 h scotophase; LD 12:12) for 4 weeks. No difference in the gonadosomatic index (GSI) or ovarian histology was observed among the control, sham-operation, and treatment groups 1 week after the start of the experiment. After 4 weeks, the GSI of the control and sham-operation groups remained at low levels, and ovaries contained immature oocytes at the perinucleolus stage. In contrast, the treatment group exhibited significantly higher values of GSI as well as developed ovaries with fully vitellogenic oocytes. These results demonstrated that long-day conditions were produced by light emitted from the LumiNova pellets, thus stimulating ovarian development in the damselfish. Therefore, long-afterglow phosphorescent pigments can be used as an alternative to standard light sources for purposes of artificial stimulation of gonadal development in fish.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.192-203
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• 2004

The effects of temperatures, starvation, and kind of foods on growth, RNA/DNA ratio and protein contents during metamorphosis and early juvenile stage of olive flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus) were examined. During metamorphosis, warm-acclimated fish showed higher RNA and DNA content than those of the cold-acclimated fish, excepting H stage (28 DAH) at which the ratio was higher at cold temperature. RNA/DNA ratio during metamorphosis showed similar values at two temperatures tested. However, after 42 DAH warm-acclimated juveniles had higher DNA content compared with cold-acclimated fish, resulted in marked decreases in RNA/DNA ratios. Higher RNA content at H stage of cold-acclimated fish was consistent with an increase in protein content. Growth of fish rearing at warm temperature was higher than those of fish at cold temperature during all experiments. In starvation experiment, contents of DNA, RNA and protein significantly decreased. Even though there were no significant differences in total length (TL) and body weight between the live mysid-fed and artificial pellet-fed fish at 35 mm TL, both RNA/DNA and protein/DNA ratios of the former group was significantly higher than those of the latter due primarily to lower DNA content of the live mysid-fed group. The results from this study suggest that temperature, starvation and kind of foods should be considered when RNA/DNA ratio applied to assessing the cultured larval and juvenile fish condition.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.28-33
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• 2012

The effect of puffing conditions on the physical properties and sensory evaluations of a puffed snack (ppeongtuigi) made of purple sweet potato flour was investigated. The snacks consisted of coated artificial rice with purple sweet potato flour with water, tempered to 7%, 9% and 11% moisture. The coated material was puffed at 236, 241, or $246^{\circ}C$ for 4, 5, or 6 s. The $L^*$ value decreased as the heating time increased. The $a^*$ and $b^*$ values, specific volume, and hardness increased with increasing heating temperature and heating time. Puffed snacks produced under conditions of higher moisture (7%), higher heating temperature ($246^{\circ}C$), or longer heating time (5 s) showed high scores for appearance, color, taste, and overall acceptability in sensory evaluations.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.34 no.5
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• pp.844-854
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• 2021

Objective: The potential of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), betaine (BET), and ginger (GIN), as natural antioxidants, in reducing negative effects of heat stress on physiological responses, antioxidant capacity, semen quality and fertility of bucks under heat stress were investigated. Methods: Forty adult Animal Production Research Institute line rabbit bucks were distributed randomly into four experimental treatments of ten rabbits each. The first treatment was fed the commercial pellet diet (CPD) without supplementation and served as a control. The other three treatments were fed CPD supplemented with EVOO (300 mg), BET (1,000 mg), and GIN (200 mg) per kg diet for 3 consecutive months during the summer season. Results: Supplementation of EVOO, BET, or GIN improved (p<0.05) the sexual desire, progressive motility, vitality, intact acrosome and membrane integrity, sperm cell concentration, sperm outputs and fertility. Seminal plasma total proteins, globulin, total antioxidant capacity, glutathione and glutathione S-transferase, and initial fructose increased (p<0.05), while total lipids, aspartate and alanine aminotransferases and malondialdehyde decreased (p<0.05) compared with the control. In comparing the natural antioxidants treatments, GIN evoked the largest improvement. Conclusion: The inclusion of GIN (200 mg/kg diet) appeared to improve the sexual desire, semen quality and oxidative stress of bucks. This may be a beneficial supplement for the management of rabbit bucks used in natural mating or artificial insemination.

• Journal of Animal Reproduction and Biotechnology
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.232-238
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• 2020

This study used adult wistar-based rats to observe the sexual cycle as a morphological characteristic of vaginal epithelial cells by vaginal smearing, and investigated the fetal number through mating with male rats of the same strain. The target animal was a 12 to 13-week-old Wistar-based mature unlighted rat (weight 220 g to 240 g), room temperature 23 ± 2℃, 14 hours artificial lighting (05:00 to 19:00 hours), 10 hours Adapted individuals were used for rearing for at least 2 weeks under the conditions of the darkroom (19:00 to 05:00). The feed was managed for free feeding of pellet feed for animals and water. The vaginal smearing method was used for the experiments by observing the sexual cycle every morning and confirming that the normal sexual cycle of 4 or 5 days was repeated at least 2 cycles or more. As a result, the proestrus was found to have few red blood cells, the cells and nuclei were rather large and round, and many nucleated cells were identified. In the case of the estrus, the cells were large and the nuclei were not stained, and most of the keratinocytes were found. In addition, in the metestrus and diestrus, there were many white blood cells, and it was confirmed that nucleated epithelial cells and keratinocytes were significantly reduced. The pregnancy period was 21 ± 1.8 days, and the number of live births per delivery was 11.9 on average. The number of fetuses on the 8th and 10th days of pregnancy were 15.2 ± 0.4 and 15.4 ± 0.3, respectively. On the contrary, the number of fetuses on the 12th day of pregnancy was 12.9 ± 0.6, which was significantly (p < 0.05) decreased compared to the 10th day of pregnancy, and the number of fetuses was similar until delivery. As a result of investigating the change of body weight according to the birth weight and growth stage after delivery, the birth weight of female and male was 9.2 ± 2.0 g and 9.8 ± 2.5 g, respectively. After that, until the 16th day, the female and the male showed similarly moderate weight gain, and then showed a rapid weight gain until the 21st day of lactation. With reference to the results of this study, it is expected to be used as basic data for determining the mating time of rodents and controlling pregnancy and fetal number.