• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.61 no.1
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• pp.41-46
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• 2019

Different methodologies in hair cortisol extraction may alter the final output. Thus finding the standard methodology according to a laboratory facilities is pivotal. This study was carried out to validate the feasibility of two methods of grinding hair for cortisol extraction in Korean native (Hanwoo) cattle. Hair from nine cattle including mature cows, heifers, and calves were assigned to one of the following methods for grinding hair; 1) using bead beater (BB) and 2) using surgical scissors (SS). Hair samples (> 1 g) were harvested from forehead of each individual twice (first and second measurement) to validate the results. To improve the accuracy of the obtained data, each sample was duplicated into two wells during enzyme immunoassay (EIA) analysis. Overall comparison of hair cortisol concentration (HCC) showed that the data within the range (out of the range) of standards provided by the EIA kit were 88.9% (11.1%) and 66.7% (33.3%) for BB compared with SS, respectively. In the first measurement, application of BB was tended to show higher (p = 0.056) amount of HCC compared with SS. In the second measurement application of BB showed higher (p = 0.0028) amount of HCC compared with SS. Among the cattle, calves showed higher HCC using BB compared with SS (p < 0.05). Application of BB in hair grinding methodology for Hanwoo cattle may improve cortisol extraction in comparison to application of SS method, with more consistency. Thus, it would be the preferable method to use.

• Korean Journal of Organic Agriculture
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.469-477
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• 2023

Animal welfare has been gradually gathering more attention from consumers over time, making it increasingly important to assess the level of stress experienced by livestock. Traditionally, stress has been measured by collecting blood to assess cortisol levels, an action that can be considered distressing for the animal. Therefore, we aimed to explore the feasibility of using hair as an alternative medium to blood for stress assessment. We utilized B/F (blood collected at the farm), B/A (blood collected after transport to the auction), and H/A (hair collected at the auction after blood sampling) from calves at the age of 7-9 months transported from the farm to the auction. Hair underwent a washing and extraction process to utilize hair extracts, while blood was centrifuged to analyze using ELISA. The cortisol concentration in the blood was significantly higher in B/A compared to B/F (p<0.05), confirming that the calves experienced stress during transportation. Additionally, H/A was significantly lower than both B/A and B/F (p<0.0001). These results emphasized that cortisol in hair is not suitable for investigating short-term stress in livestock, as it is with blood. While measuring stress indices using hair may not be appropriate for replacing blood, it is considered a highly suitable practice for animal welfare, and further research in this area should be continued.

• BMB Reports
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• v.48 no.4
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• pp.209-216
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• 2015

Stress is now recognized as a universal premorbid factor associated with many risk factors of various chronic diseases. Acute stress may induce an individual's adaptive response to environmental demands. However, chronic, excessive stress causes cumulative negative impacts on health outcomes through "allostatic load". Thus, monitoring the quantified levels of long-term stress mediators would provide a timely opportunity for prevention or earlier intervention of stressrelated chronic illnesses. Although either acute or chronic stress could be quantified through measurement of changes in physiological parameters such as heart rate, blood pressure, and levels of various metabolic hormones, it is still elusive to interpret whether the changes in circulating levels of stress mediators such as cortisol can reflect the acute, chronic, or diurnal variations. Both serum and salivary cortisol levels reveal acute changes at a single point in time, but the overall long-term systemic cortisol exposure is difficult to evaluate due to circadian variations and its protein-binding capacity. Scalp hair has a fairy predictable growth rate of approximately 1 cm/month, and the most 1 cm segment approximates the last month's cortisol production as the mean value. The analysis of cortisol in hair is a highly promising technique for the retrospective assessment of chronic stress. [BMB Reports 2015; 48(4): 209-216]

• Korean Journal of Child Studies
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.1-12
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• 2016

Objective: This study aimed to examine the difference in toddlers' accumulated cortisol levels based on childcare experience in toddlerhood and the relationship between temperament and accumulated cortisol levels. Methods: Hair sample were collected for measure accumulated cortisol level in 87 toddlers. The Early Childhood Behavior Questionnaire (ECBQ) was used to measure temperament. Results: First, toddlers in childcare showed higher accumulated cortisol levels than in-home toddlers. Second, toddlers in childcare, exhibited a significant correlation between accumulated cortisol levels and surgency. Third, the accumulated cortisol levels of in-home toddlers exhibited a significant correlation with negative affect. In this research, there was significant range in the accumulated cortisol level according to childcare use, and the factors related to accumulated cortisol levels were different in each context. Conclusion: The results of this research support the "susceptibility to context of HPA axis" and imply a needed discussion about the effect of childcare experiences in toddlerhood.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.64 no.4
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• pp.782-791
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• 2022

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of multiple cooling systems and different drinking water temperatures (DWT) on the performance of sows and their hair cortisol levels during heat stress. In this study, the effect of four different cooling systems: air conditioner (AC), cooling pad (CP), snout cooling (SC), and mist spray (MS), and two DWT, namely low water temperature (LWT) and high water temperature (HWT) on 48 multiparous sows (Landrace × Yorkshire; 242.84 ± 2.89 kg) was tested. The experiment is based on the use of eight replicas during a 21-days test. Different behaviors were recorded under different cooling treatments in sows. As a result, behaviors such as drinking, standing, and position change were found to be lower in sows under the AC and CP treatments than in those under the SC and MS treatments. Lying behavior increased under the AC and CP systems as compared with that under the SC and MS, systems. The average daily feed intake (ADFI) in sows and weight at weaning in piglets was higher under the AC, CP, and LWT treatments than under the SC, MS and HWT treatments. Sows subjected to SC and MS treatment showed higher hair cortisol levels, rectal temperature, and respiratory rate during lactation than those under AC and CP treatments. Hair cortisol levels, rectal temperature, and respiratory rate were also higher under the HWT than under the LWT treatment. As per the results of this study, the LWT has no significant effect on any of the behavioral factors. Taken together, the use of AC and CP cooling treatment is highly recommended to improve the behavior and to reduce the stress levels in lactating sows.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.48 no.3
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• pp.287-293
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• 2022

Gray hair is a representative sign of aging. Intrinsic aging, stress, and the external environment cause hair graying. Stress is known to be a major factor in the early onset of hair graying. We previously found that Pueraia lobata root extract (PLRE) can prevent hair graying by promoting melanin formation. However, it remains unknown whether PLRE can prevent hair graying induced by conditions of stress. In this study, we confirmed the effect of PLRE on stress-induced hair graying. A reporter cell line was newly constructed to confirm the expression of microphthalamia-associated transcription factor (MITF), the main transcription factor for melanin production. MITF expression and melanin pigmentation were reduced in human hair follicle tissue treated with the stress hormone cortisol or H₂O₂ to induce oxidative stress. PLRE treatment restored MITF expression and increased the amount of melanin pigment in the hair follicle. The expression of Tyrosinase related proteins-2 (TRP-2), a melanin synthesis enzyme in the hair follicle, also increased. In conclusion, PLRE can effectively prevent the inhibition of melanin synthesis by stress hormones and oxidative stress.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.160-168
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• 2021

This study was undertaken to determine the effect of different cooling systems on the performance and hair cortisol of sows under heat stress. During a 21-day experiment, a total of 40 multiparous sows (Landrace×Yorkshire; 242.84±2.89 kg) were allotted to 4 treatments, each with 10 replicates (1 sow per pen). The experimental treatments were CP (Cooling pad), AC (Air conditioner), SC (Snout cooling), and MS (Mist spray). We observed an increase in the average daily feed intake during lactation (p<0.05) in the CP and AC treatment groups. AC treatment had the highest (p<0.05) and SC treatment had the lowest (p<0.05) piglet weight at weaning. During lactation, sows administered SC and MS treatments had higher (p<0.05) hair cortisol accumulation, as compared with the AC and CP treatments. Hair cortisol accumulation in piglets during lactation was highest with MS treatment (p<0.05), and lowest after CP treatment (p<0.05). MS treatment had the highest (p<0.05), and AC treatment had the lowest (p<0.05) respiratory rate and rectal temperature during lactation. In conclusion, our results indicate that a cooling pad and air conditioning cooling system increases the productivity of a sow, as compared to snout cooling and mist spray cooling systems.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.413-421
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• 2014

Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) is involved in the stress response and there is increasing evidence that stress influences skin disease such as hair loss. In cultured human hair follicles, CRF inhibits hair shaft elongation, induces premature regression and promotes the apoptosis of hair matrix keratinocytes. We investigated whether CRF influences the dermal papilla cells (DPC) that play pivotal roles in hair growth and cycling. Human DPCs were treated with CRF, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and cortisol, key stress hormones along the hypothalamic-pituitary -adrenal (HPA) axis for 1-24 h. Interestingly, CRF modulated the expression of cytokines related to hair growth (KGF, Wnt5a, $TGF{\beta}-2$, Nexin) and increased cAMP production in cultured DPCs. CRF receptors were down-regulated by negative feedback systems. Pretreatment of CRF receptor antagonists or protein kinase A (PKA) inhibitor prevented the CRF-induced modulation. Since the CRF induces proopiomelanocortin (POMC) expression through the cAMP/PKA pathway, we analyzed POMC mRNA. CRF stimulated POMC expression in cultured human DPCs, yet we were unable to detect ACTH levels by western blot. These results indicate that CRF operates within DPCs through CRF receptors along the classical CRF signaling pathway and CRF receptor antagonists could serve as potential therapeutic and cosmetic agents for stress-induced hair loss.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.64 no.4
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• pp.621-639
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• 2022

Cortisol and corticosterone, hormones traditionally considered biomarkers of stress, can be measured in fluid biomatrices (e.g., blood, saliva) from live animals to evaluate conditions at sampling time, or in solid biomatrices (e.g., hair, feather) from live or dead animals to obtain information regarding long-term changes. Using these biomarkers to evaluate physiological stress responses in domestic animals may be challenging due to the diverse characteristics of biomatrices for potential measurement. Ideally, a single measurement from the biomatrix should be sufficient for evaluating chronic stress. The availability of appropriate and cost-effective immunoassay methods for detecting the biomarkers should also be considered. This review discusses the strengths and limitations of different biomatrices with regard to ensuring the highest possible reliability for chronic stress evaluation. Overall, solid biomatrices require less frequent sampling than other biomatrices, resulting in greater time- and cost-effectiveness, greater ease of use, and fewer errors. The multiplex immunoassay can be used to analyze interactions and correlations between cortisol and other stress biomarkers in the same biomatrix. In light of the lack of information regarding appropriate biomatrices for measuring chronic stress, this review may help investigators set experimental conditions or design biological research.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.51 no.4
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• pp.315-318
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• 2011

A dog (5.6 kg, 4-year-old, castrated male, Miniature pinscher) with diffuse symmetric alopecia on the chest and excessive scales was referred to Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital of Chungnam National University, Korea. On physical examination, diffuse alopecia on ventral aspect of the neck and caudomedial thighs, and severe scales were presented. Dermatologic tests of lesions revealed bacterial infections. Histopathologically, atrophy of hair bulb was observed in the severely alopecic lesion of caudomedial thighs. ACTH stimulation test was performed to differentiate the endocrine disorder related to generalized alopecia. The pre-ACTH serum testosterone and progesterone concentrations were above normal ranges and the post-ACTH serum testosterone concentration was high. The pre- and post-ACTH serum estradiol and cortisol concentrations were within normal ranges. Canine pattern alopecia was diagnosed based on history, physical examination, hormonal assay and dermatohistopathologic examination. After 3 months of melatonin administration, multifocal alopecia on the trunk was improved and general hair regrowth was identified.