• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.238-246
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• 2020

Background: Dietary fat has been suggested to be the cause of various health issues. Obesity, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, dyslipidemia, and kidney disease are known to be associated with a high-fat diet (HFD). Obesity and associated conditions, such as type 2 diabetes mellitus and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), are currently a worldwide health problem. Few prospective pharmaceutical therapies that directly target NAFLD are available at present. A Traditional Chinese Medicine, ginseng-plus-Bai-Hu-Tang (GBHT), is widely used by diabetic patients to control glucose level or thirst. However, whether it has therapeutic effects on fat-induced hepatic steatosis and metabolic syndrome remains unclear. Methods: This study was conducted to examine the therapeutic effect of GBHT on fat-induced obesity, hepatic steatosis, and insulin resistance in mice. Results: GBHT protected mice against HFD-induced body weight gain, hyperlipidemia, and hyperglycemia compared with mice that were not treated. GBHT inhibited the expansion of adipose tissue and adipocyte hypertrophy. No ectopic fat deposition was found in the livers of HFD mice treated with GBHT. In addition, glucose intolerance and insulin sensitivity in HFD mice was also improved by GBHT. Conclusion: GBHT prevents changes in lipid and carbohydrate metabolism in a HFD mouse model. Our findings provide evidence for the traditional use of GBHT as therapy for the management of metabolic syndrome.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.28 no.5
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• pp.397-404
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• 2020

Adiponectin secretion-promoting compounds have therapeutic potentials in human metabolic diseases. Diallyl biphenyl-type neolignan compounds, magnolol, honokiol, and 4-O-methylhonokiol, from a Magnolia officinalis extract were screened as adiponectin-secretion promoting compounds in the adipogenic differentiation model of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (hBM-MSCs). In a target identification study, magnolol, honokiol, and 4-O-methylhonokiol were elucidated as PPARα and PPARγ dual modulators. Diallyl biphenyl-type neolignans affected the transcription of lipid metabolism-associated genes in a different way compared to those of specific PPAR ligands. The diallyl biphenyl-type neolignan structure provides a novel pharmacophore of PPARα/γ dual modulators, which may have unique therapeutic potentials in diverse metabolic diseases.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.489-507
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• 2019

In order to obtain high bearing capacity and good ductility simultaneously, a structural column with hybrid normal and high strength steel (HNHSS) welded box section has been developed. Residual stress is an important factor that can influence the behaviour of a structural member in steel structures. Accordingly, the magnitudes and distributions of residual stresses in HNHSS welded box sections were investigated experimentally using the sectioning method. In this study, the following four box sections were tested: one normal strength steel (NSS) section, one high strength steel (HSS) section, and two HNHSS sections. Based on the experimental data from previous studies and the test results of this study, the effects of the width-to-thickness ratio of plate, yield strength of plate, and the plate thickness of the residual stresses of welded box sections were investigated in detail. A unified residual stress model for NSS, HSS and HNHSS welded box sections was proposed, and the corresponding simplified prediction equations for the maximum tensile residual stress ratio (${\sigma}_{rt}/f_y$) and average compressive residual stress ratio (${\sigma}_{rc}/f_y$) in the model were quantitatively established. The predicted magnitudes and distributions of residual stresses for four tested sections in this study by using the proposed residual stress model were compared with the experimental results, and the feasibility of this proposed model was shown to be in good agreement.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.34 no.12
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• pp.1921-1929
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• 2021

Objective: The intestinal microbiota enhances nutrient absorption in the host and thus promotes heath. Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep is an important livestock raised in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau; however, little is known about the bacterial microbiota of its intestinal tract. The aim of this study was to detect the microbial characterization in the intestinal tract of the Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep. Methods: The bacterial profiles of the six different intestinal segments (duodenum, jejunum, ileum, cecum, colon and rectum) of Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep were studied using 16S rRNA V3-V4 hypervariable amplicon sequencing. Results: A total of 2,623,323 effective sequences were obtained, and 441 OTUs shared all six intestinal segments. The bacterial diversity was significantly different among the different intestinal segments, and the large intestine exhibited higher bacterial diversity than the small intestine. Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, and Patescibacteria were the dominant phyla in these bacterial communities. Additionally, at the genus level, Prevotella_1, Candidatus_Saccharimonas, and Ruminococcaceae_UCG-005 were the most predominant genus in duodenal segment, jejunal and ileal segments, and cecal, colonic, and rectal segments, respectively. We predicted that the microbial functions and the relative abundance of the genes involved in carbohydrate metabolism were overrepresented in the intestinal segments of Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep. Conclusion: The bacterial communities and functions differed among different intestinal segments. Our study is the first to provide insights into the composition and biological functions of the intestinal microbiota of Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep. Our results also provide useful information for the nutritional regulation and production development in Qinghai semi-fine wool sheep.

• Mycobiology
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• v.47 no.2
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• pp.180-190
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• 2019

In this study, eight-month-old ectomycorrhizae of Tuber borchii with Corylus avellana were synthesized to explore the influence of T. borchii colonization on the soil properties and the microbial communities associated with C. avellana during the early symbiotic stage. The results showed that the bacterial richness and diversity in the ectomycorrhizae were significantly higher than those in the control roots, whereas the fungal diversity was not changed in response to T. borchii colonization. Tuber was the dominant taxon (82.97%) in ectomycorrhizae. Some pathogenic fungi, including Ilyonectria and Podospora, and other competitive mycorrhizal fungi, such as Hymenochaete, had significantly lower abundance in the T. borchii inoculation treatment. It was found that the ectomycorrhizae of C. avellana contained some more abundant bacterial genera (e.g., Rhizobium, Pedomicrobium, Ilumatobacter, Streptomyces, and Geobacillus) and fungal genera (e.g., Trechispora and Humicola) than the control roots. The properties of rhizosphere soils were also changed by T. borchii colonization, like available nitrogen, available phosphorus and exchangeable magnesium, which indicated a feedback effect of mycorrhizal synthesis on soil properties. Overall, this work highlighted the interactions between the symbionts and the microbes present in the host, which shed light on our understanding of the ecological functions of T. borchii and facilitate its commercial cultivation.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.52 no.1
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• pp.35-42
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• 2019

We investigated the protective effects of antioxidant fractions from a 70% ethanolic extract of Hizikia fusiformis in human dermal fibroblasts (HDFs). Powdered H. fusiformis was extracted with 70% ethanol and then partitioned into three fractions according to polarity using n-hexane (HFH), chloroform (HFC), and ethyl acetate (HFEA). Antioxidant activity was observed in HFEA at 0.66 mg/mL based on the half maximal inhibitory concentration ($IC_{50}$) of 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), and at 0.24 mg/mL based on alkyl radical scavenging. The protective effects of the HFEA antioxidant fraction against 2,2-azobis-(2-amidinopropane) dihydrochloride (AAPH)-damaged HDFs and the expression of Type I procollagen in HDFs were examined. HFEA caused the proliferation of HDFs with and without AAPH treatment and protected against AAPH damage to HDFs in a dose-dependent manner ($50-200{\mu}g/mL$). This implies that the antioxidant properties of the fractions depended on their proliferative and protective effects. The HFEA antioxidant fraction had significant effects and caused the dose-dependent expression of Type I procollagen, an important anti-wrinkle protein, in HDFs. In conclusion, antioxidant substances in H. fusiformis were found in the ethyl acetate fraction, and the resulting HFEA may have cosmetic applications.

• Korean Journal of Metals and Materials
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• v.48 no.4
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• pp.369-375
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• 2010

Ti-6Al-4V ELI alloy, which is commonly used as a biomaterial, is associated with a high elastic modulus and poor biocompatibility. This alloy presents a variety of problems on several areas. Therefore, the development of good non-toxic biocompatible biomaterials with a low elastic modulus is necessary. Particularly, hydroxyapatite (HA) is an attractive material for human tissue implantation. This material is widely used as artificial bone due to its good biocompatibility and similar composition to human bone. Many scientists have studied the fabrication of HA as a biomaterial. However, applications of bulk HA compact are hindered by the low strength of HA when it is sintered. Therefore, HA has been coated on Ti or Ti alloy to facilitate good bonding between tissue and the HA surface. However, there are many problems when doing this, such as the low bonding strength between HA and Ti due to the different thermal expansion coefficients and mechanical properties. In this study, a Ti-HA composite with a porous surface was successfully fabricated by pulse current activated sintering (PCAS) and a subsequent leaching process.

• Korean Journal of Metals and Materials
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• v.47 no.8
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• pp.508-515
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• 2009

Ti-6Al-4V biomaterial is widely used as a bone alternative. However, Ti-6Al-4V ELI alloy suffers from numerous problems such as a high elastic modulus and high toxicity. Therefore, non-toxic biomaterials with low elastic moduli need to be developed. Ti-HA(hydroxyapatite) composites were fabricated in the present work by pulsed current activated sintering (PCAS) at $1000^{\circ}C$ under 60 MPa using mixed Ti and HA powders. The effects of HA content on the physical and mechanical properties of the sintered Ti-HA composites have been investigated. X-ray diffraction(XRD) analysis of the Ti-HA composites, including Ti-40 wt%HA in particular, revealed new phases, $Ti_{2}O$, CaO, $CaTiO_3$, and TixPy, formed by chemical reactions between Ti and HA during sintering. The hardness of the Ti-HA composites decreased with an increase in HA content. The corrosion resistance of these composites was observed to be an excellent candidate as a commercial Ti-6Al-4 V ELI alloy. A Ti-5 wt%HA composite fabricated by PCAS is recommended as a new biomaterial, because it offers good corrosion resistance, compressive strength, wear resistance, and biocompatibility, and a low Young's modulus.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2021

To simulate a process model in the field of chemical engineering, it is very important to identify the physical properties of novel materials as well as existing materials. However, it is difficult to measure the physical properties throughout a set of experiments due to the potential risk and cost. To address this, this study aims to develop a property prediction model based on the group contribution method for aromatic chemical compounds including benzene rings. The benzene rings of aromatic materials have a significant impact on their physical properties. To establish the prediction model, 42 important functional groups that determine the physical properties are considered, and the total numbers of functional groups on 147 aromatic chemical compounds are counted to prepare a dataset. Support vector regression is employed to prepare a prediction model to handle sparse and high-dimensional data. To verify the efficacy of this study, the results of this study are compared with those of previous studies. Despite the different datasets in the previous studies, the comparison indicated the enhanced performance in this study. Moreover, there are few reports on predicting the physical properties of aromatic compounds. This study can provide an effective method to estimate the physical properties of unknown chemical compounds and contribute toward reducing the experimental efforts for measuring physical properties.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.140-150
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• 2022

A method of ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography coupled to high resolution mass spectrometry (UPLC-HRMS) was established for characterization of the lipid profile of Skipjack tuna. Over 300 lipid molecular species were identified through cross-acquisition in both positive and negative ion mode. Phospholipids (PLs) were dominant in Skipjack tuna. Lysophosphatidylethanolamine (LPE), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) and phosphatidylcholine (PC) were the main lipid molecular species in PLs, accounting for 89.24% of the total PLs. The ratio of sphingolipids (SLs) and glycerolipids (GLs) were considerable, accounting for 12.30% and 13.60% of the total lipids respectively. Ceramide (Cer) was the main lipid molecular species of SLs, accounting for 64.96% of total SLs, followed by sphingomyelin (SM), accounting for 25.45% of total SLs. Ether diglycerides (ether DG) were the main lipid molecular species of GLs (97.83%). The main fatty acids (FAs) are unsaturated fatty acids (UFAs) in Skipjack tuna. Besides, a new FAs class branched fatty acid esters of hydroxy fatty acids (FAHFA) was detected, together with the FA. The active lipids identified in this study can be used to evaluate the nutritional value of Skipjack tuna.