• Journal of Dairy Science and Biotechnology
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.167-170
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• 2015

The dairy industry, as part of the broader agricultural sector, is classified as a basic industry to the Korea economy. Basic industries provide income to a region by producing an output, purchasing production inputs, services and labor. An integrated, multidisciplinary approach for the next generation of dairy products with added health benefits represent the direct economic contribution. The commercialization of "nutritional" functional foods can only be successful if the consumer is confident in the scientific validity of the claims. Modern biotechnologies such as genomics, genetic expression and biomarkers of health performance suggested to whole dairy products, such as fluid milk, butter, cheese, ice cream and frozen dessert products (German, 1999). The following definition makes the point that dairy products can provide a nutritional value beyond the basic nutritional requirements: 1) The dairy industry has the opportunity to improve the health and well-being of its customers and/or to reduce their risk of disease through dairy products with added activities. 2) Functional dairy products are those that can be demonstrated to benefit target functions in the body in a way that improves the state of health and /or reduces the risk of disease. They are food products that are consumed as part of a normal diet rather than pills or supplements. 3) Dairy products based on functionality will need to link the scientific basis of such functionality to the communication of its benefit to the general public. 4) Both the efficacy and the safety of the food components with health benefits will require evidence based on the measurement of scientific biomarkers relevant to their biological responses and health end points. 5) Sound evidence from human studies based on intermediate health end points using accepted biomarkers will provide the basis for promotional messages divided into two categories-enhanced function and reduced risk of disease. 6) Success in solving key scientific and technological challenges will only be achieved by interdisciplinary research programs to exploit the scientific concepts in functional dairy science.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.31 no.7
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• pp.1062-1071
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• 2018

The misuse of anabolic hormones or illegal drugs is a ubiquitous problem in animal husbandry and in food safety. The ban on growth promotants in food producing animals in the European Union is well controlled. However, application regimens that are difficult to detect persist, including newly designed anabolic drugs and complex hormone cocktails. Therefore identification of molecular endogenous biomarkers which are based on the physiological response after the illicit treatment has become a focus of detection methods. The analysis of the 'transcriptome' has been shown to have promise to discover the misuse of anabolic drugs, by indirect detection of their pharmacological action in organs or selected tissues. Various studies have measured gene expression changes after illegal drug or hormone application. So-called transcriptomic biomarkers were quantified at the mRNA and/or microRNA level by reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) technology or by more modern 'omics' and high throughput technologies including RNA-sequencing (RNA-Seq). With the addition of advanced bioinformatical approaches such as hierarchical clustering analysis or dynamic principal components analysis, a valid 'biomarker signature' can be established to discriminate between treated and untreated individuals. It has been shown in numerous animal and cell culture studies, that identification of treated animals is possible via our transcriptional biomarker approach. The high throughput sequencing approach is also capable of discovering new biomarker candidates and, in combination with quantitative RT-qPCR, validation and confirmation of biomarkers has been possible. These results from animal production and food safety studies demonstrate that analysis of the transcriptome has high potential as a new screening method using transcriptional 'biomarker signatures' based on the physiological response triggered by illegal substances.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.127-132
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• 2010

Biomphalaria alexandrina snails play an indispensable role in transmission of schistosomiasis. Infection rates in field populations of snails are routinely determined by cercarial shedding neglecting prepatent snail infections, because of lack of a suitable method for diagnosis. The present study aimed at separation and quantification of oxalic, malic, acetic, pyruvic, and fumaric acids using ion-suppression reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to test the potentiality of these acids to be used as diagnostic and therapeutic biomarkers. The assay was done in both hemolymph and digestive gland-gonad complex (DGG) samples in a total of 300 B. alexandrina snails. All of the studied acids in both the hemolymph and tissue samples except for the fumaric acid in hemolymph appeared to be good diagnostic biomarkers as they provide not only a good discrimination between the infected snails from the control but also between the studied stages of infection from each other. The most sensitive discriminating acid was malic acid in hemolymph samples as it showed the highest F-ratio. Using the Z-score, malic acid was found to be a good potential therapeutic biomarker in the prepatency stage, oxalic acid and acetic acid in the stage of patency, and malic acid and acetic acid at 2 weeks after patency. Quantification of carboxylic acids, using HPLC strategy, was fast, easy, and accurate in prediction of infected and uninfected snails and possibly to detect the stage of infection. It seems also useful for detection of the most suitable acids to be used as drug targets.

• Journal of the Korean Society of School Health
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.207-213
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• 2001

Objectives: We surveyed the prevalence of smoking among the adolescent population and analysed the correlation of the two exposure biomarkers-concentration of blood cadmium and urinary cotinine-to the smoking status. Methods: Subjects were 193 middle and high school students in Chungnam province. Blood cadmium and urinary cotinine were compared by sex and smoking status. Smoking status were classified by either the concentration of urinary cotinine or subjective answering as a smoker in the questionnaire. Results: Smoking prevalence was 24.6%, 36.2% and 6.7% among all subjects, male and female subjects, respectively. Average smoking amount was 17.5 and 1.5 cigarettes per month among the male subjects and female subjects, respectively. Mean concentration of urinary cotinine among the male subjects was $135.57{\mu}g/{\ell}$, and that of female subjects was $116.59{\mu}g/$. Direct smokers showed higher concentration of urinary cotinine than those of indirect smokers, and subjects with higher urinary concentration showed higher prevalence of smoking, too. Mean concentration of blood cadmium was $0.0572{\mu}g/d{\ell}$ among the male subjects, and $0.0693{\mu}g/d{\ell}$ among the female subjects. Among the male subjects, both exposure biomarkers showed significant correlation to the smoking status, but among the female subjects urinary cotinine did not show significant correlation to the smoking status. Conclusion: Concentrations of these two biomarkers suggested that this population had significantly high evironmental tobacco smoking(ETS) and efficient stop-smoking programs to reduce ETS should be directed to this population.

• Journal of Korean Biological Nursing Science
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.119-126
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• 2020

Purpose:Weight gain after kidney transplantation is a critical factor that can lead to poor outcomes with cardiovascular complications. Many studies have been conducted to identify predictive markers of future weight changes at the time of transplant. Recently, circulating exosomes and its contents including miRNAs and proteins have attracted attention as potential biomarkers. In this pilot study, we investigated exosomal proteins and weight change after kidney transplant. Methods: Recipients (n = 10) were classified into two groups; weight gainers (n = 5, 9.7 ± 4.4kg) and weight losers (n = 5, -6.4 ± 1.8kg) based on their weight changes at 12-months posttransplant. Based on the exosomal protein profiles obtained by the LC-MS/MS, differentially expressed proteins were identified between the groups. Results: Concentration and the mean size of exosomes significantly increased at 12-months compared to the baseline (p= .009) in the total group. Eleven exosomal proteins were found at the baseline as differentially expressed between the two groups. In the weight gain group, complement proteins including HV169, C3, C4B, and C4A, were significantly upregulated. Conclusion: Our pilot study suggests that exosomal complementary proteins are associated with weight gain after kidney transplantation. Further studies are needed to clarify the role of these exosomal proteins in the underlying mechanisms of weight changes in kidney transplant recipients.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.223-231
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• 2017

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Soy isoflavones are expected to improve menopausal symptoms and osteoporosis in women. However, their efficacy is still inconclusive, and there was limited data for postmenopausal women in South Korea. We examined the effects of soy isoflavones on climacteric symptoms, bone biomarkers, and quality of life in Korean postmenopausal women. SUBJECTS/METHODS: A randomized, double-blind study design was used. Eighty-seven participants who had undergone natural menopause were randomly administered either 70 mg/day isoflavones (n = 43) or placebo (n = 41) for 12 weeks. We assessed the Kupperman index for climacteric symptoms and the menopause-specific quality of life (MENQOL) questionnaire for quality of the life. Biomarkers of bone metabolism were also measured in serum bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (BALP), osteocalcin (OC), N- and C-terminal cross-linking telopeptides of type Ι collagen (NTx, CTx), and urine-deoxypyridinolin (u-DPD). RESULTS: Scores of the Kupperman index were decreased in both the isoflavones group ($-7.0{\pm}15.8$, P = 0.0074) and placebo group ($-6.3{\pm}14.6$, P = 0.0064) during the intervention, but no significant difference was noted between the groups. Regarding the bone formation markers, the level of serum BALP increased by $6.3{\pm}4.1%$ (P = 0.004) and OC increased by $9.3{\pm}6.2%$ (P < 0.001), meanwhile those of the placebo were not changed. For the bone resorption markers, NTx, CTx, and u-DPD were not significantly different in either group. MENQOL was significant decreased in the isoflavone group ($-0.6{\pm}0.5$) and placebo group ($-0.6{\pm}0.4$), with a significant difference between groups (P = 0.0228). CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that 70 mg isoflavones supplement has beneficial effects on bone formation markers; however, it showed no benefit compared to the placebo on climacteric symptoms or quality of life.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.137-148
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• 2014

The aim of this study was to determine whether the addition of soy isoflavones to dairy ice cream modifies diabetic biomarkers in the type 2 diabetic model mice. Forty male C57BL/6J-ob/ob mice were randomly divided into 4 groups and fed control diet (basal, 7% fat), MS diet (milk ice cream with sugar, 20% fat), MS-SI diet (MS ice cream with 0.01% soy isoflavones, 20% fat), or MF-SI diet (milk ice cream with 0.01% soy isoflavones, 5% fructooligosaccharide, 20% fat) for 12 weeks. Blood response area by glucose tolerance test, plasma levels of glucose, insulin, C-peptide, leptin, and blood $HbA_{1c}$ were not significantly different among all the groups. Concentrations of interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor-${\alpha}$ secreted from splenocytes induced by Concanavalin A were not significantly different among all the groups. In conclusion, soy isoflavones supplemented to ice cream did not alter diabetic biomarkers in diabetic type 2 model mice.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.61 no.1
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• pp.24-29
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• 2018

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of urinary biomarkers, such as neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (uNGAL) and ${\beta}-2$ microglobulin (uB2MG), in early detection of urinary tract infection (UTI) in infants aged <3 months with fever. Methods: A total of 422 infants aged <3 months (male:female=267:155; mean age, 56.4 days), who were admitted for fever, were retrospectively included in this study. We compared uNGAL and uB2MG between the UTI and non-UTI groups at the time of admission. The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and area under the curve (AUC) of uNGAL and uB2MG for use in diagnosing UTI were assessed. Results: Among 422 patients, 102 (24.2%) were diagnosed with UTI. Levels of uNGAL were higher in the UTI group than in the non-UTI group (366.6 ng/mL vs. 26.9 ng/mL, P<0.001). Levels of uB2MG were not different between the 2 groups. Multivariate analysis revealed that uNGAL was an independent predictive factor for UTI (P=0.033). The sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy were 90.2%, 92.5%, and 91.9% for uNGAL, and 48.0%, 43.8%, and 44.8% for uB2MG, respectively. AUC of uNGAL was 0.942 and that of uB2MG was 0.407. Conclusion: Accuracy of uNGAL in the diagnosis of UTI is high in febrile infants aged <3 months. uNGAL can help in the early diagnosis and treatment of UTI in infants.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.23 no.8
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• pp.1167-1175
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• 2013

Paratuberculosis (PTB) or Johne's disease is one of the most serious chronic debilitating diseases of ruminants worldwide that is caused by Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP). MAP is a slow-growing bacterium that has very long latent periods, resulting in difficulties in diagnosing and controlling the disease, especially regarding the diagnosis of fecal shedders of MAP without any clinical signs. Based on this situation, attempts were made to identify biomarkers that show early responses to MAP infection in a macrophage cell line, RAW 264.7. In response to the infection with the bacterium, a lot of genes were turned on and/or off in the cells. Of the altered genes, three different categories were identified based on the time-dependent gene expression patterns. Those genes were considered as possible candidates for biomarkers of MAP infection after confirmation by quantitative RT-PCR analysis. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first attempt at discovering the host transcriptomic biomarkers of PTB, although further investigation will be required to determine whether these biomarker candidates are associated within the natural host.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.16
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• pp.6745-6748
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• 2014

Background: Nowadays, molecular biomarkers have critical roles for cancer diagnosis and prognosis in clinical laboratories. Human papillomaviruses are the main agents for etiology of cervical carcinoma. The present survey was conducted to evaluate the genes methylation in cervical cancer and precancerous lesions involvement with HPV genotypes. Materials and Methods: C13orf18 and C10rf166 (MULl or Mulan) DNA methylation as potential biomarkers and risk factors was investigated in 112 liquid based cytology and Formalin-Fixed Paraffin-Embedded tissue specimens in Iranian females with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and dysplasia. Results: In this survey, HPV18 (61.6%) and HPV16 (42.9%) proved to be the most common HPV genotypes identified by In-House Multiplex Real Time PCR. There were no significant relationship between HPV positivity and the methylated DNA genes mentioned above (p>0.05). Conclusions: Our MethyLight data demonstrated that these genes could not be considered as specific, sensitive and suitable prognostic biomarkers in cervical dysplasia related HPV. It is suggested that further studies with more patients should be done on candidate methylated markers in different countries in order to plan for cervical cancer prevention.