• 한국발생생물학회지:발생과생식
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• 제24권1호
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• pp.1-17
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• 2020

Phthalates and those metabolites have long history in industry and suspected to have deficient effects in development and reproduction. These are well-known anti-androgenic chemicals and many studies have examined the effects of these compounds on male reproduction as toxins and endocrine disruptors. Uterus is a key organ for proper embryo development, successful reproduction, and health of eutherian mammals including women. To understand the effects of the phthalate, the horizontal approach with a whole group of phthalate is best but the known phthalates are huge and all is not uncovered. Di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) is the most common product of plasticizers in polymer products and studied many groups. Although, there is limited studies on the effects of phthalates on the female, a few studies have proved the endocrine disrupting characters of DEHP or phthalate mixture in female. An acute and high dose of DEHP has adverse effects on uterine histological characters. Recently, it has been revealed that a chronical low-dose exposing of DEHP works as endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDC). DEHP can induce various cellular responses including the expression regulation of steroid hormone receptors, transcription factors, and paracrine factors. Interestingly, the response of uterus to DEHP is not monotonous and the exposed female has various phenotypes in fertility. These suggest that the exposing of DEHP may causes of histological modification in uterus and of disease in female such as endometriosis, hyperplasia, and myoma in addition to developmental and reproductive toxicity.

• 한국초등과학교육학회지:초등과학교육
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• 제29권1호
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• pp.13-21
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• 2010

This study reflects the demand of content elements related to "Human Reproduction" in elementary school science curriculum, and verifies its effects by developing and applying sex education contents available to elementary science class. The developed contents is composed of three sections in reference to the contents guideline for teachers. The contents include anatomical knowledge related to human reproduction and reflect social and cultural context of sex ethics. The first section: "How was I born?", second section: "Amazing changes in my body" and third section: "Healthy body, healthy mind." In the result of analysis of changes in sex knowledge and attitude after applying the contents, it showed statistically significant differences between experimental and comparative class. Thus, the developed contents made positive influence on improvement in elementary students' knowledge and attitude of human reproduction. However, it showed little difference in the effects of sex education contents by the grade and gender. In conclusion, if the sex education contents developed through this study is actively applied, it is expected to provide the elementary students with knowledge of the anatomic difference between male and female, its social and cultural understanding and responsibility for sex ethics. In addition, it is considered to be used as effective education programs and materials in elementary school science curriculum.

• 한국발생생물학회지:발생과생식
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• 제25권3호
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• pp.157-171
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• 2021

To determine whether the reproductive processes of sea bass, Lateolabrax japonicus, proceed normally after transportation from an outdoor net-cage into indoor tanks, we examined changes in the gonadosomatic index (GSI), histological gonadal tissue, and plasma levels of sex hormones (testosterone and estradiol-17ß) during their annual reproductive cycle. We also measured maturation and spawning across two sea water salinity levels (full and low salinity). Fecundity was estimated by the relationship between egg number and body size in female sea bass. Monthly changes in the GSI, histological gonadal tissues, and oocyte size showed both male and female sea bass reach final maturation in January and February, respectively, indicating that the spermiation of males occurs earlier than the spawning of females. The histological results indicated that the sea bass is a multiple spawner, similar to many marine teleosts, exhibiting group-synchronous oocyte development. Female maturation and spawning were enhanced in lower salinity seawater (29.6-31.0 psu) compared to that of normal salinity (34.5-35.1 psu). These results confirm that sea bass reproduction can occur successfully in captivity and imply that fertilized eggs can be collected from February to March. Additionally, our results show that lower salinity enhances oocyte maturation and spawning of female sea bass.

• 한국발생생물학회지:발생과생식
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• 제13권2호
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• pp.79-87
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• 2009

출산과 수유 과정에서의 잘 알려진 기능 때문에, 옥시토신(oxytocin, OT)은 '여성 뇌하수체후엽 호르몬(female nerohypophyseal hormone)'으로 알려져 왔다. 그러나 최신 연구들에 따르면 OT가 중추신경계와 말초조직 수준에서 수컷 생식을 조절하는 국부적인 기능을 가짐이 알려졌다. 일부 실험용 설치류에서, OT는 사회적인 자극들에 반응하여 뇌의 특정 지역으로 분비되는데, 이 뇌 OT와 그 수용체(OTR)를 매개로한 작용들은 수컷의 다양한 행동, 특히 교미 관련 행동의 조절에 깊이 관여한다. 최근에 개발된 OT와 OTR knockout 생쥐 모델들의 사회적, 성적 행도으이 분자 조절 기작들에 대한 중요한 실마리들을 제공하다. OT는 또한 설치류의 정소, 부정소, 전립선에서도 합성되며, 이들 조직에서도 OTR이 발현됨이 보고되어왔다. OT는 말초적으로 testosterone(T)을 dihydrotestosterone(DHT)로 전환시키는 5alpha-reductase의 활성조절을 통해 정소의 스테로이드호르몬 합성과 분비에 관여한다. 안드로겐 전환을 유도하는 OT 작용들이 부정소와 전립선에서도 발견되는데, 이는 OT가 이들 안드로겐 의존적인 생식도관의 기능들, 예를 들어 평활근 수축 유도와 같은 기능을 조절함을 시사한다. 이러한 맥락에서, 수컷의 뇌와 생싯기간 중추신경계와 생식기관에서의 OT의 기능들에 대한 향후 연구들은 복잡한 사회적, 성적 행동에 대한 이해 증진과 심리적 혹은 남성과학적 이상에 대한 치료법 개발에 대한 기반을 제공할 수 있을 것이다.

• Reproductive and Developmental Biology
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• 제33권1호
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• pp.55-61
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• 2009

The epididymis in the male reproductive tract is the site where spermatozoa produced from the testis become mature. The epididymis is divided into 4 different segments, initial segment and caput, corpus, and caudal epididymis, depending upon functional and morphological features. Aquaporins (Aqps) are water channel molecules, which are present in the epididymis and play a major role in removal of epididymal water, resulting in creation of microenvironment for sperm maturation and concentration of sperms. Nandrolone decanoate (ND) is a synthetic anabolic-androgenic steroid, which is used to treat clinical diseases and improve physical ability and appearance. Even though it is well determined that the ND causes the male infertility by affecting the testis, little is known the effect of the ND on the epididymis. The present study was focused to examine the effect of ND at different treatment doses and periods on expression of Aqp1 and Aqp9 genes in the epididymis of pubertal rats. Results showed that mRNA expression of Aqp1 and Aqp9 genes among the parts of the epididymis was differentially regulated by ND treatment doses. In addition, treatment periods of ND caused differential expression of Aqp1 and Aqp9 mRNAs among segments of the epididymis. Therefore, it is believed that male infertility induced by ND could be resulted not only from malfunction of the testis but also from aberrant gene expression of Aqp1 and Aqp9 in the epididymis.

• 한국가축번식학회지
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• 제26권4호
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• pp.361-368
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• 2002

The onset of pronucleus formation and DNA synthesis in porcine oocytes following the injection of porcine or murine sperm was determined in order to obtain insights into species-specific paternal factors that contribute to fertilization. After 44h in vitro maturation, spermatozoa was injected into the cytoplasm of oocytes. After injection, all oocytes were transferred to NCSU23 medium and cultured at 39'E under 5% CO2 in air. Similar frequencies of oocytes with female pronuclei were observed after injection with porcine sperm or with murine sperm. In contrast, male pronuclei formed 8 to 9 h following the injection of porcine sperm, and 6 to 8 h following the injection of murine sperm. After pronucleus formation maternally derived microtubules were assembled and appeared to move both male and female pronuclei to the oocyte center. A few porcine oocytes entered metaphase 22 h after the injection of murine sperm, but normal cell division was not observed. The mean time of onset of S-phase in male pronuclei was 9.7 h following porcine sperm injection and 7.4 h following mouse sperm injection. These results suggested that DNA synthesis was delayed in both pronuclei until the sperm chromatin fully decondensed, and the sperm nuclear decondensing activity and microtubule nucleation abilities of the male centrosome are cell cycle dependent.

• Reproductive and Developmental Biology
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• 제34권2호
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• pp.103-109
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• 2010

Functional regulation of a specific tissue or organ is controlled by a number of ways, including local cell-cell interaction. Of several forms of cell-cell junctional complexes, gap junctions are caught a great attention due to a formation of direct linkage between neighboring cells. Gap junctions are consisted of connexin (Cx) isoforms. In the present study, we evaluated expressional profiling of Cx isoforms in the rat initial segment (IS) of the male reproductive tract at different postnatal ages. The presence and expression of 13 Cx isoform mRNAs were determined by semi-quantitative real-time PCR analyses. A total of 8 Cx isoform mRNAs were detected in the IS of the male rats during postnatal development. The highest level of Cx30.3 mRNA was found at 5 months of age, while abundance of Cx31 mRNA was the highest at 1 year of age. Expression of Cx31.1 gene was relatively consistent during the postnatal development. Fluctuation of Cx32 and 37 gene expression was observed during the postnatal period. Significant elevation of Cx40 mRNA abundance was detected at 25 days of age and older ages. Expression patterns of Cx43 and 45 genes were similar with the highest level at 2 weeks of age, followed by gradual decreases at older ages. These results indicate differential regulation on expression of Cx isoforms in the rat IS during postnatal development. A complicated regulation of gene expression of Cx isoforms in the IS at different postnatal ages is suggested.

• 한국동물생명공학회지
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• 제39권1호
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• pp.12-18
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• 2024

Background: Somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) is a prominent technology that can preserve superior genetic traits of animals and expand the population in a short time. Hematological characters and endocrine profiles are important elements that demonstrate the stability of the physiological state of cloned animals. To date, several studies regarding cloned camels with superior genes have been conducted. However, detailed hemato-physiological assessments to prove that cloned camels are physiologically normal are limited. In this study, We evaluated the hemato-physiological characteristics of cloned male and female dromedary camels (Camelus dromedaries). Methods: Therefore, we analyzed variations in hematological characteristics and endocrine profiles between cloned and non-cloned age-matched male and female dromedary camels (Camelus dromedaries). Two groups each of male and female cloned and non-cloned camels were monitored to investigate the differences in hemato-physiological characteristics. Results: All the animals were evaluated by performing complete blood count (CBC), serum chemistry, and endocrinological tests. We found no significant difference between the cloned and non-cloned camels. Furthermore, the blood chemistry and endocrine profiles in male and female camels before maturity were similar. Conclusions: These results suggest that cloned and non-cloned camels have similar hematological characteristics and endocrine parameters.

• 한국동물번식학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국동물번식학회 2002년도 춘계학술발표대회 발표논문초록집
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• pp.4-4
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• 2002

Male germ cell apoptosis has been extensively explored in rodent. In contrast, very little is known about their susceptibility to apoptosis stimuli of developing germ cell stages at the time when germ cell depletion after busulfan treatment occurs. Furthermore, it is still unanswered how spermatogonial stem cells are resistant to busulfan treatment. Spontaneous apoptosis of germ cells was observed in the testis of adult mice and experimentally induced busulfan treated mice increased this apoptosis to such an extent that there was a decrease in the weight of the testis. (omitted)

• 한국발생생물학회지:발생과생식
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• 제23권2호
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• pp.101-110
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• 2019

Melatonin is a pineal hormone that is synthesized and released at night under the light and dark cycles of a day. Its effects on the reproductive activities have well been established by the administration through various routes in photoperiodic animals. It was also identified in plants and named phytomelatonin. The capacity of the phytomelatonin was investigated in this investigation whether it affects the reproductive function in male golden hamster. As expected, animals housed in long photoperiod (long photoperiod, LP>12.5 hours of lights in a day) had large testes and animals kept in short photoperiod ($$SP{\leq_-}12.5$$ hours of lights in a day) showed remarkably reduced testes. The dietary supplement with melatonin itself induced the complete involution of testes. Pistachios that were reported to contain a large amount of melatonin demonstrated no effects at all in male golden hamsters. These results suggest that dietary supplement containing melatonin-rich foodstuff used in this investigation may not be enough to affect the reproductive endocrine system in male golden hamsters.