• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.52 no.3
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• pp.298-303
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• 2024

This study aimed to examine the potential inhibitory effect of Undaria pinnatfida fermented by Leuconostoc mesenteroides (UFM) on preadipocyte differentiation in the 3T3-L1 cell line. Ethanol extracts from UFM were prepared and tested for cell viability, Oil Red O staining, and quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (RT-qPCR) in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Treatment of preadipocytes with UFM at different concentrations (50, 100, and 200 ㎍/ml) found that it inhibited lipid accumulation by 66.80%, 61.59%, and 55.94%, respectively. Furthermore, RT-qPCR showed that UFM extract reduced the gene expressions of CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein α (C/EBP α), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPAR γ), adipocyte-specific lipid binding protein (aP2), fatty acid synthase (FAS), and ATP citrate lyase (ACL), respectively. These results suggest that UFM can be a beneficial functional ingredient to prevent obesity in the food industry.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Grassland and Forage Science
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.157-164
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• 2024

Sorghum-Sudangrass hybrids (SSH) is a grass cereal hybrid crop with a high yield potential under different climatic conditions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the growth characteristics, dry matter yield and nutrient content of the SSH cultivars such as Dairy Mens Dream, Superdan and Supergreen from 2021 to 2023 in Jeju Island, Korea. Among the three cultivars, Superdan grew significantly taller with a larger stem diameter at both harvest times. In contrast, Dairy Mens Dream had least height and less stem diameter, but the dry matter yield was greater for Dairy Mens Dream than other cultivars. Furthermore, the crude protein content at the first cut was higher than 8.5% compared to the second cut (6.5 - 7.0%). The neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and acid detergent fiber (ADF) content was higher in the second harvest of all cultivars compared to the first harvest of SSH in 2021. The SSH cultivation in 2021 and 2023 had higher ADF and NDF content than in 2022, possibly due to the average precipitation and optimum temperature suitable for SSH production in 2021 and 2023. The selected three SSH cultivars showed significant growth characteristics, dry matter content, and nutritional value. The overall data suggested that all three SSH showed significant productivity and nutritional content in the Jeju region of sub-tropical climatic condition.

• Anatomy and Cell Biology
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• v.55 no.1
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• pp.92-99
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• 2022

The liver is the largest gland of the gastrointestinal tract having both exocrine and endocrine functions. Developmentally it arises as a ventral outgrowth from the gut endoderm during 3rd week of intrauterine life. The foetal liver is very important because of its synthetic and hemopoietic potential. The present work aimed to see the detailed histogenesis and development of the foetal liver by cytological, immunohistochemical and ultrastructural study. The liver tissue of nine aborted foetuses of various gestational age were studied. For cytology: special stains like Masson trichrome, periodic acid Schiff and reticulin were used, immunohistochemical staining was performed with triple antibodies (c-myc, Ki-67 and Ber-H2), and for ultrastructure: aluminium mounted specimens were coated with gold and argon gas and observed under scanning electron microscopy (EM). Cytology and immunohistochemistry showed the development of duct patterns and hemopoietic patterns in all stages of fetogenesis. The ductal plate was marked by the layer of dark brown staining cells at the edge of two portal tracts. The haemopoietic cells with sinusoids and aggregation of hepatocytes were observed in the early weeks of gestation. EM showed tree-like branching of a portal canal depicting hepatic segmentation of foetal liver. The organizational changes in lobular pattern, duct pattern, and microstructure of liver during fetogenesis are very crucial to achieve the adult morphology in feature. Histogenesis of the foetal liver follows a multistep process depending upon the gestational age, any deviation from normalcy may lead to structural and functional abnormality later in life.

• The Korean Journal of Food And Nutrition
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• v.37 no.5
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• pp.282-291
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• 2024

In a previous study, we fractionated crude polysaccharide (AME-CP) with macrophage-stimulating activity from a hot-water extract (AME) of Astragalus membranaceus. AME-CP contained glucose (Glc) as a main component sugar, suggesting that it might be rich in starch-like compounds (SLC). To enhance the immunostimulating activity of AME-CP by pruning SLC rarely known to contribute to activity, hydrolysate (AME-SH) was prepared by digesting with starch-related enzymes, including α-amylase and amyloglucosidase. AME-SH was found to contain substances with molecular weights ranging from 3.9 to 84.4 kDa. These substances were primarily composed of galactose, galacturonic acid, Glc, arabinose, rhamnose, and mannose. AME-SH significantly enhanced the production of macrophage-stimulating factors, including nitric oxide (NO), interleukin (IL)-6, and IL-12, in RAW 264.7 cells compared to AME-CP. Treatment of splenocytes isolated from C3H/HeN mice with AME-SH not only promoted IL-6 secretion, but also induced mitogenic activity. In addition, AME-SH promoted the secretion of hematopoietic growth factors including IL-6 and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) in Peyer's patch (PP) cells and stimulated bone marrow cell proliferation through these PP cells. In conclusion, hydrolysate (AME-SH) digested from AME-CP with starch-related enzymes could be used as a potential immunostimulant.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.836-842
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• 2009

The objectives of this study were to evaluate potential benefits of intercropping of corn with runner bean for a smallsized farming system, based on land equivalent ratio (LER) and silage yield and quality of corn intercropped with runner bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.), in arid conditions of Turkey under an irrigation system. This experiment was established as a split-plot design in a randomized complete block, with three replications and carried out over two (consecutive) years in 2006 and 2007. Seven different mixtures (runner bean, B and silage corn sole crop, C, 10% B+90% C, 20% B+80% C, 30% B+70% C, 40% B+60%C, and 50% B+50%C) of silage corn-runner bean were intercropped. All of the mixtures were grown under irrigation. The corn-runner bean fields were planted in the second week of May and harvested in the first week of September in both years. Green beans were harvested three times each year and green bean yields were recorded each time. After the 3rd harvest of green bean, residues of bean and corn together were randomly harvested from a 1 $m^{2}$ area by hand using a clipper when the bean started to dry and corn was at the dough stage. Green mass yields of each plot were recorded. Silages were prepared from each plot (triplicate) in 1 L mini-silos. After 60 d ensiling, subsamples were taken from this material for determination of dry matter (DM), pH, organic acids, chemical composition, and in vitro DM digestibility of silages. The LER index was also calculated to evaluate intercrop efficiencies with respect to sole crops. Average pH, acetic, propionic and butyric acid concentrations were similar but lactic acid and ammonia-N levels were significantly different (p<0.05) among different mixtures of bean intercropped with corn. Ammonia-N levels linearly increased from 0.90% to 2.218 as the percentage of bean increased in the mixtures up to a 50:50 seeding ratio. While average CP content increased linearly from 6.47 to 12.45%, and average NDF and ADF contents decreased linearly from 56.17 to 44.88 and from 34.92 to 33.51%, respectively, (p<0.05) as the percentage of bean increased in the mixtures up to a 50:50 seeding ratio, but DM and OM contents did not differ among different mixtures of bean intercropped with corn (p>0.05). In vitro OM digestibility values differed significantly among bean-corn mixture silages (p<0.05). Fresh bean, herbage DM, IVOMD, ME yields, and LER index were significantly influenced by percentage of bean in the mixtures (p<0.01). As the percentage of bean increased in the mixtures up to a 50:50 seeding ratio, yields of fresh bean (from 0 to 24,380 kg/ha) and CP (from 1,258.0 to 1,563.0 kg/ha) and LER values (from 1.0 to 1.775) linearly increased, but yields of herbage DM (from 19,670 to 12,550 kg/ha), IVOMD (from 12,790 to 8,020 kg/ha) and ME (46,230 to 29,000 Mcal/ha) yields decreased (p<0.05). In conclusion, all of the bean-corn mixtures provided a good silage and better CP concentrations. Even though forage yields decreased, the LER index linearly increased as the percentage of bean increased in the mixture up to a 50:50 seeding ratio, which indicates a greater utilization of land. Therefore, a 50:50 seeding ratio seemed to be best for optimal utilization of land in this study and to provide greater financial stability for labor-intensive, small farmers.

• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.45 no.5
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• pp.599-612
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• 2017

Human hair (HH) is produced as a waste from beauty parlor and barbershop. HH-based adhesives were formulated with NaOH-hydrolyzed HH, $H_2SO_4$-hydrolyzed chicken blood (CB) and PF as a crosslinking agent. Physicochemical properties and retention rate against hot water of the adhesives were measured to investigate the potential of HH as a raw material of wood adhesives. HH was composed of keratin-type protein of 80% and over. Ash of less than 0.1% was contained in HH. Among the amino acids included in HH, glutamic acid showed the highest content, followed by cysteine, serine, arginine and threonine. Solid content of the adhesives ranged from 33.2% to 41.8% depending on hydrolysis conditions of HH and PF type. Viscosity at $25^{\circ}C$ ranged from 300 to $600mPa{\cdot}s$ resulting in a sprayable adhesive. Retention rate against hot water measured to evaluate the water resistance of adhesives was the highest in the cured resin formulated with 5% NaOH-hydrolyzed HH and 5% $H_2SO_4$-hydrolyzed CB. Meanwhile, the molar ratio of formaldehyde to phenol in PF did not have a significant impact on the retention rate of HH-based adhesives. When the retention rates of HH-based adhesives were compared to those of conventional wood adhesive resins used for the production of wood-based panels extensively, HH-based adhesives formulated with 30 wt% PF showed lower retention rate than commercial urea-formaldehyde resin. However, when PF content was increased to 35 wt%, the retention rate greatly increased and approached to that of commercial melamine-urea-formaldehyde resin. Except for the results mentioned above, the analysis of economic feasibility suggests that HH-based adhesives can be used for the production of wood-based panels if HH is hydrolyzed in proper conditions and then the HH-based adhesives are formulated by the HH hydrolyzates with 35 wt% PF.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.41 no.5
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• pp.391-401
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• 2008

Probiotics have emerged as a potential treatment modality for numerous gastrointestinal disorders, including IBD. However, few probiotics have undergone appropriate preclinical screening in vivo. Kefir is considered a probiotic, benefiting the host through its effects in the intestinal tract. Despite numerous studies examining the action of probiotics on the host organism, few have analyzed the effects on intestinal environment. We assessed the protective effect of kefir for three weeks before inducing colitis with 2% dextran sodium sulfate for five days. The DSS loads were similar in all DSS treatment group. The results of the experiment are as follows. Food intake and FER of experimental groups were not significantly different each other, but water consumption tended to be higher in all DSS treatment groups as compared with the normal control. And visual inspection of feces revealed mild diarrhea in rat given 2% DSS. The anti-inflammatory activity of kefir was determined by myeloperoxidase activity during the DSS treatment, and there was no significant difference in any group. The levels of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) as a colonic lipid peroxidation were significantly lower in the kefir intake groups than in rats treated with 2% DSS alone. The DNA % in tail and tail moment values as a DNA damage level of the blood lymphocytes in kefir intake groups tended to be lower than 2% DSS treatment alone, especially tail lengths were significantly diminished. According to the colonic histopathological assay, there were a severe inflammation of lamina propria and submucosa and mild edema in mucosa and sub mucosa in DSS alone treated group. We found a slight regenerative change in kefir treatment groups. In our experiments, this means that ulcerative colitis related to oxidative injury might be prevented by kefir as a probiotic. Further studies of the potential benefits of kefir as a probiotic in inflammatory condition are encouraged.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.247-265
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• 2008

Objectives: Many types of liver diseases can damage regenerative potential of mature hepatocytes, hepatic progenitor cells or oval cells. In such cases, a stem cell-based therapy can be an alternative therapeutic option. We examined whether human amnion-derived mesenchymal stem cells (HAM) and human umbilical cord-derived stem cells (HUC) could differentiate into hepatocyte-like cells as therapeutic cells for the liver diseases. Methods: HAM and HUC were isolated from the amnion and umbilical cord of the volunteers after a caesarean section with informed consent. In order to differentiate these cells into hepatocyte-like cells, cells were cultivated in hepatogenic medium using culture plates coated with fibronectin. Effects of hepatocyte growth factor, L-ascorbic acid 2-phosphate, insulin premixture fibroblast growth gactor 4, dimethylsulfoxide, oncostatin M and/or dexamethasone were examined on the hepatic differentiation. After differentiation, the cells were analyzed by RT-PCR, immunocytochemistry, immunoblotting, albumin ELISA, urea assay and periodic acid-schiffs staining. Results: Initial fibroblast-like appearance of HAM and HUC changed to a round shape during culture in the hepatogenic medium. However, in all hepatogenic conditions examined, HUC secreted more amounts of albumin or urea into medium than HAM. Expression of some of hepatocyte-specific genes increased and expression of new genes were observed in HUC following cultivation in hepatogenic medium. Results of immunocytochemistry and immunoblotting analyses demonstrated that HUC secreted albumin into the culture medium. PAS staining further demonstrated that HUC could store glycogen inside of the cells. Conclusions: Both HUC and HAM could differentiate into albumin-secreting, hepatocyte-like cells. Under the same hepatogenic conditions examined, HUC more efficiently differentiated into hepatocyte-like cells compared with the HAM. The results suggest that HUC and HAM could be used as sources of stem cells for the cell-based therapeutics such as in liver diseases.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.27 no.6
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• pp.640-645
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• 2017

Clerodendrum trichotomum (CT) leaves and stems have been used in folk medicine for their anti-hypertension, arthritis, rheumatism, and anti-inflammatory properties. This study was performed to evaluate the potential of CT as an anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory agent. CT leaves were extracted using 70% ethanol (EtOH). Then, using this extract, a hexane, chloroform ($CHCl_3$), ethyl acetate (EtOAc), and n-butanol (BuOH) fraction was prepared. The polyphenol contents were higher in the EtOAc fraction ($78.08{\mu}g/mg$) and BuOH fraction ($77.54{\mu}g/mg$) compared to the other fractions. Also, these two fractions exhibited strong 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2'-azino-bis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS) radical scavenging activities. Xanthine oxidase inhibitory activities were higher in the $CHCl_3$ fraction ($IC_{50}=4.43{\mu}g/ml$) and EtOAc fraction ($IC_{50}=5.69{\mu}g/ml$). Moreover, the EtOAc fraction effectively inhibited nitric oxide (NO) production in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells ($IC_{50}=18.87{\mu}g/ml$). Thus, we investigated the effects of the EtOAc fraction on the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells. The treatment of the EtOAc fraction ($100{\mu}g/ml$) effectively decreased the levels of the tumor necrosis factor ${\alpha}$ ($TNF-{\alpha}$) and interleukin-6 (IL-6), and the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2). These results suggest the potential for CT extract and fractions as promising anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory agents.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.349-362
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• 2018

An annual plant, Eclipta prostrata (Linn) is a member of the Asteraceae plant family and inhabited in tropical or subtropical regions of the world. Through many previous researches, E. prostrata has been extensively studied for its hepatoprotective effect, antivenom potential against viper venom, antioxidant, hair-growth, wound-healing efficacy and so on. In this study, for better understanding of the potential of E. prostrata as skin protectant, we conducted the experiments evaluating the antioxidant and antiaging efficacy. To this end, 50% ethanolic extract of E. prostrata and its ethyl acetate fraction were prepared and investigated. For the evaluation of antioxidant capacity of the samples, $FSC_{50}$ and $OSC_{50}$ were estimated. As a result, $OSC_{50}$ of ethyl acetate fraction was 2.7 times superior to $OSC_{50}$ of L-ascorbic acid, a well known antioxidant agent. Futhermore E. prostrata showed notable reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging effect and protective effect against $H_2O_2$ in the celluar level as well. Especially, in the $^1O_2$ induced hemolysis test, $64{\mu}g/mL$ of ethyl acetate fraction showed greater than 6 times increased retardation effect compare to control which means E. prostrata has remarkable antioxidant capacity. To validate the antiaging effect of the samples, we conducted elastase inhibition assay using elastase solution extracted from human skin fibroblasts, Hs68. As a result, $16{\mu}g/mL$ of each sample showed 6.8% and 14.0% of elastase inhibition respectively. Finally, antimicrobial activity of E. prostrata was assessed to validate the possibility as alternative preservative. From the result, ethyl acetate fraction showed oustanding antimicrobial activity as of methyl paraben, a well known chemical preservative. In conclusion, these results suggest that E. prostrata can be used as natural skin protectant or preservative as natural ingredient in food or cosmetics industry.