• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.23-32
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• 2012

Calcium is an essential nutrient for living organisms, with key structural and signaling roles. Its deficiency in plants can result in poor biotic and abiotic stress tolerance as well as reduced crop quality and yield. Calcium deficiency in humans causes various diseases such as osteoporosis and rickets. Biofortification of calcium in various food crops has been suggested as an economic and environmentally advantageous method to enhance human intake of calcium. Recent efforts to increase the levels of calcium in food crops have used calcium/proton antiporters ($CAXs$) and modified one to increase calcium transport into vacuoles through genetic engineering. It has been reported that overall calcium content of transgenic plants has been increased in their edible portions with some adverse effects. In conclusion, biofortification of calcium will add more value in crops as well as will be beneficial for animal and human. Therefore, more fundamental studies on the mechanisms of calcium ion storage and transporting are essential for more effective calcium biofortification.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.56-66
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• 2016

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Despite successes recorded in combating iodine deficiency, more than 2 billion people are still at risk of iodine deficiency disorders. Rural landlocked and mountainous areas of developing countries are the hardest hit, hence the need to explore and advance novel strategies such as biofortification. SUBJECTS/METHODS: We evaluated adoption, purchase, and consumption of iodine biofortified vegetable legumes (IBVL) using the theory of protection motivations (PMT) integrated with an economic valuation technique. A total of 1,200 participants from three land-locked locations in East Africa were recruited via multi-stage cluster sampling, and data were collected using two, slightly distinct, questionnaires incorporating PMT constructs. The survey also elicited preferences for iodine biofortified foods when offered at a premium or discount. Determinants of protection motivations and preferences for iodine biofortified foods were assessed using path analysis modelling and two-limit Tobit regression, respectively. RESULTS: Knowledge of iodine, iodine-health link, salt iodization, and biofortification was very low, albeit lower at the household level. Iodine and biofortification were not recognized as nutrient and novel approaches, respectively. On the other hand, severity, fear, occupation, knowledge, iodine status, household composition, and self-efficacy predicted the intention to consume biofortified foods at the household level; only vulnerability, self-efficacy, and location were the most crucial elements at the school level. In addition, results demonstrated a positive willingness-to-pay a premium or acceptance of a lesser discount for biofortification. Furthermore, preference towards iodine biofortified foods was a function of protection motivations, severity, vulnerability, fear, response efficacy, response cost, knowledge, iodine status, gender, age. and household head. CONCLUSIONS: Results lend support for prevention of iodine deficiency in unprotected populations through biofortification; however 'threat' appraisal and socio-economic predictors are decisive in designing nutrition interventions and stimulating uptake of biofortification. In principle, the contribution is threefold: 1) Successful application of the integrated model to guide policy formulation; 2) Offer guidance to stakeholders to identify and tap niche markets; 3) stimulation of rural economic growth around school feeding programmes.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2002.05a
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• pp.38-43
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• 2002

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2017.10a
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• pp.34-34
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• 2017

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.41 no.4
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• pp.169-179
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• 2014

Intracellular antioxidants include low molecular weight scavengers of oxidizing species, and enzymes which degrade superoxide and hydroperoxides. Such antioxidants systems prevent oxidative damage to cellular component by scavenging free radicals and activated oxygen species. Hydrophobic scavengers are found in cell membrane where they interrupt chain reactions of lipid peroxidation. The three major lipophilic antioxidant classes for human health are carotenoids, vitamin E and coenzyme Q10. The biofortification of staple crops with these lipid soluble antioxidants is an attractive strategy to increase the nutritional quality of human food. Here, we have summarized the biosynthetic pathways of three lipid soluble antioxidants in plants and current status of genetic engineered plants for elevated levels of each lipophilic antioxidant.

• Journal of Mushroom
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.287-291
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• 2020

The nutritional value and yield of mushrooms depend on the substrate on which it is grown. This study sought to biofortify Pleurotus floridanus with calcium supplements and assess its effect on the yield and calcium levels. The experiment was set up in a 2 × 5 factorial and replicated thrice in a completely randomized design. Two calcium supplements, OML and OMW, were added to two growth media. The examination of total dry weight yield showed that calcium supplements OML and OMW in the sawdust medium containing wheatbran in the ratio 1:10 had a mean value of 4.37 g, which was significantly higher (P < 0.05) than that in the control (1.29 g). However, in the sawdust-only medium, there was no significant difference (p > 0.05) in the application of treatments. No significant difference (p > 0.05) was observed between the calcium types in both growth media. The mineral analysis showed that calcium levels were increased in harvested mushrooms with the addition of calcium OML and OMW to the growth media.

• Korean Journal of Organic Agriculture
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.385-397
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• 2012

A pot experiment was carried out to examined the effect of electrolyzed micronutrients (Fe, Mn, Zn, Sr, Se, Sn, Co, Ti, and V) solution treatments with nutrient solution and SCB slurry on the mineral content and growth of tomato in cherry tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum). The treatment of nutrient solution (NS)+micronutrients solution (MS) significantly increased the concentrations of Li, Zn, Sr, Se, Ti as compared with that of NS alone in the cherry tomato fruits, and SCB+MS solution treatment significantly increased Li, Zn, Se, Co, Sr, and Ti contents as compared with SCB treatment. The micronutrient contents of MN+SCB+MS treatment were significantly higher in Li, Zn, Se, Co and in Ti than those of SCB and NS treatment, respectively. The growth and yield of cherry tomato fruits was highest with NS treatment. The yield indices of cherry tomato treated with NS+MS treatment and SCB+NS+MS were 97% and 94% of NS treatment. In conclusion, it seems to be possible to produce micronutrient-fortified cherry tomato by the mixed treatment of electrolyzed micronutrients.

• Journal of Mushroom
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.275-283
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• 2019

Sparassis latifolia is a fungus abundant in β-glucan and amino acids and is highly valued as a medicinal mushroom. Among amino acids, γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) is a free amino acid and has biological effects, such as increase/decrease of hypertension, improvement of cerebral blood flow, and prevention of dementia. In this study, biological elicitors were used to increase bioactive substances as a biofortification method. Sodium alginate extracted from seaweed (Sargassum horneri, Sargassum fulvellum, Sargassum fusiforme) were used as the elicitor. The levels of β-glucan and GABA in the mycelium and fruiting body grown by adding the elicitor to the medium were investigated. Addition of sodium alginate positively affected GABA production and negatively affected the β-glucan production in these fungi. Sodium alginates extracted from S. fulvellum induced the highest increase in GABA in the mycelium and fruiting bodies. Moreover, we investigated the effects of the extracts from mycelium and fruiting bodies on dendrite development in primary cortical neurons. We found that the extract from the fruiting bodies of sodium alginate treated fungi with increased levels of GABA inhibited the dendrite outgrowth of excitatory neurons, but not inhibitory neurons.

• Proceedings of the Plant Resources Society of Korea Conference
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• 2010.10a
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• pp.14-14
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• 2010

Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) is an essential component for collagen biosynthesis and also for the proper functioning of the cardiovascular system in humans. Unlike most of the animals, humans lack the ability to synthesize ascorbic acid on their own due to a mutation in the gene encoding the last enzyme of ascorbate biosynthesis. As a result, vitamin C must be obtained from dietary sources like plants. In this study, we have developed two different kinds of transgenic potato plants (Solanumtuberosum L. cv. Taedong Valley) overexpressing strawberry GalUR and mouse GLoase gene under the control of CaMV 35S promoter with increased ascorbic acid levels. Integration of the these genes in the plant genome was confirmed by PCR and Southern blotting. Ascorbic acid(AsA) levels in transgenic tubers were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography(HPLC). The over-expression of these genes resulted in 2-4 folds increase in AsA intransgenic potato and the levels of AsA were positively correlated with increased geneactivity. The transgenic lines with enhanced vitamin C content showed enhanced tolerance to abiotic stresses induced by methyl viologen(MV), NaCl or mannitol as compared to untransformed control plants. The leaf disc senescence assay showed better tolerance in transgenic lines by retaining higher chlorophyll as compared to the untransformed control plants. Present study demonstrated that the over-expression of these gene enhanced the level of AsA in potato tubers and these transgenics performed better under different abiotic stresses as compared to untransformed control. We have also investigated the mechanism of the abiotic stress tolerance upon enhancing the level of the ascorbate in transgenic potato. The transgenic potato plants overexpressing GalUR gene with enhanced accumulation of ascorbate were investigated to analyze the antioxidants activity of enzymes involved in the ascorbate-glutathione cycle and their tolerance mechanism against different abiotic stresses under invitro conditions. Transformed potato tubers subjected to various abiotic stresses induced by methyl viologen, sodium chloride and zinc chloride showed significant increase in the activities of superoxide dismutase(SOD, EC 1.15.1.1), catalase, enzymes of ascorbate-glutathione cycle enzymes such as ascorbate peroxidase(APX, EC 1.11.1.11), dehydroascorbate reductase(DHAR, EC 1.8.5.1), and glutathione reductase(GR, EC 1.8.1.7) as well as the levels of ascorbate, GSH and proline when compared to the untransformed tubers. The increased enzyme activities correlated with their mRNA transcript accumulation in the stressed transgenic tubers. Pronounced differences in redox status were also observed in stressed transgenic potato tubers that showed more tolerance to abiotic stresses when compared to untransformed tubers. From the present study, it is evident that improved to lerance against abiotic stresses in transgenic tubers is due to the increased activity of enzymes involved in the antioxidant system together with enhanced ascorbate accumulated in transformed tubers when compared to untransformed tubers. At moment we also investigating the role of enhanced reduced glutathione level for the maintenance of the methylglyoxal level as it is evident that methylglyoxal is a potent cytotoxic compound produced under the abiotic stress and the maintenance of the methylglyoxal level is important to survive the plant under stress conditions.