• BMB Reports
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• v.42 no.9
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• pp.605-610
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• 2009

Plasma high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels are inversely correlated with the risk of cardiovascular disease, and are known to increase with repetitive exercise. In the current study, HDL fractions from athletes' sera were isolated and compared as a function of the type of sport (runners [n = 10], throwers [n = 10], wrestlers [n = 10], and weight lifters [n = 8]), and as an age- and gender-matched reference group (n = 14). Among athletes, HDL from runners had the strongest antioxidant activity. Immunodetection showed that runners and wrestlers had the highest levels of apoA-I and lowest levels of apoA-II in their HDL. Electron microscopy also revealed that HDL2 of runners and wrestlers were the largest in size. In conclusion, although all athlete groups had significantly better serum lipid/lipoprotein profiles than the reference group, runners and wrestlers had the most desirable lipoprotein function and structure, including antioxidant activity, HDL-associated enzyme activities and increased particle size.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.12
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• pp.6391-6395
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• 2012

Background: Ovarian cancer is ranked as the fifth most common cause of cancer death in women. In Malaysia, it is the fourth most common cancer in females. CA125 has been the tumor marker of choice in ovarian cancer but its diagnostic specificity in early stages is only 50%. Hence, there is a critical need to identify an alternative tumor marker that is capable of detecting detect ovarian cancer at an early stage. HE4 is a new tumor marker proposed for the early diagnosis of ovarian cancer and disease recurrence. Currently, none of the normal ranges of HE4 quoted in the literature are based on data for a multiethnic Asian population. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine reference intervals for HE4 in an Asian population presenting in University Malaya Medical Centre, a tertiary reference hospital. Materials and Methods: 300 healthy women were recruited comprising 150 premenopausal and 150 postmenopausal women, aged from 20-76 years. All women were subjected to a pelvic ultrasonograph and were confirmed to be free from ovarian pathology on recruitment. Serum HE4 levels were determined by chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay (CMIA, Abbott Architect). The reference intervals were determined following CLSI guidelines (C28-A2) using a non-parametric method. Results: The upper limits of the $95^{th}$ percentile reference interval (90%CI) for all the women collectively were 64.6 pmol/L, and 58.4 pmol/L for premenopausal) and 69.0 pmol/L for postmenopausal. The concentration of HE4 was noted to increase with age especially in women who were more than 50 years old. We also noted that our proposed reference limit was lower compared to the level given by manufacturer Abbott Architect HE4 kit insert (58.4 vs 70 pmol/L for premenopausal group and 69.0 vs 140 pmol/L in the postmenopausal group). The study also showed a significant difference in HE4 concentrations between ethnic groups (Malays and Indians). The levels of HE4 in Indians appeared higher than in Malays (p<0.05), while no significant differences were noted between the Malays and Chinese ethnic groups. Conclusions: More data are needed to establish a reference interval that will better represent the multiethnic Malaysian population. Probably a larger sampling size of equal representation of the Malay, Chinese, Indians as well as the other native ethnic communities will give us a greater confidence on whether genetics plays a role in reference interval determination.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.26 no.12
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• pp.1665-1671
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• 2013

Real-time quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR) is one of the important methods for investigating the changes in mRNA expression levels in cells and tissues. Selection of the proper reference genes is very important when calibrating the results of real-time quantitative PCR. Studies on the selection of reference genes in goat tissues are limited, despite the economic importance of their meat and dairy products. We used real-time quantitative PCR to detect the expression levels of eight reference gene candidates (18S, TBP, HMBS, YWHAZ, ACTB, HPRT1, GAPDH and EEF1A2) in ten tissues types sourced from Boer goats. The optimal reference gene combination was selected according to the results determined by geNorm, NormFinder and Bestkeeper software packages. The analyses showed that tissue is an important variability factor in genes expression stability. When all tissues were considered, 18S, TBP and HMBS is the optimal reference combination for calibrating quantitative PCR analysis of gene expression from goat tissues. Dividing data set by tissues, ACTB was the most stable in stomach, small intestine and ovary, 18S in heart and spleen, HMBS in uterus and lung, TBP in liver, HPRT1 in kidney and GAPDH in muscle. Overall, this study provided valuable information about the goat reference genes that can be used in order to perform a proper normalisation when relative quantification by qRT-PCR studies is undertaken.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.70-73
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• 2007

This study was conducted to determine the nutritional characteristics of horsemeat and bone meal in comparison with those of beef and pork presented by Dietary Reference Intakes For Koreans. Longissimus muscle and large metacarpal bone samples were collected from 20 fattened Jeju horses. Muscle samples were subjected to proximate analysis, assays for fatty acid profile and minerals, and bone samples to mineral assays. Horsemeal had similar levels of protein (21.1 vs 21.0 or 21.1%) and lower levels of fat (6.0 vs 14.1 or 16.1%) compared with beef or pork, respectively. Horsemeat had much higher levels of palmitoleic (8.2 vs 4.4 or 3.3%) and $\alpha-linolenic$ (1.4 vs 0.1 or 0.6%) acids than beef or pork, respectively. Linoleic acid was much higher in horsemeat (11.1%) and pork (10.1%) than in beef (1.6%). PUFA:SFA and n-6:n-3 ratios in horsemeat were 0.29 and 10.2, respectively. There were no big differences in mineral contents between horsemeat, beef and pork. For daily recommended mineral intakes of male adults (Dietary Reference Intakes For Koreans), phosphorus, sodium, potassium, iron, zinc and copper can be provided up to 24, 2.5, 6.7, 21, 26 and 40%, respectively, by 100 g raw horsemeat, but calcium and manganese levels are negligible. Horse cannon bone had much higher mineral contents especially in calcium (10,193 mg/100 g), phosphorus (5,874 mg/100 g) and copper (0.79 mg/100 g). Thiamin, riboflavin, niacin and retinol contents were 0.20, 0.21, 1.65 mg/100 g and $30{\mu}g/100g$, respectively. But ascorbic acid and beta-carotene were not detected. Our data demonstrated that higher levels of palmitoleic and $\alpha-linolenic$ acid in horsemeat than in beef and pork may be beneficial for human health. Horsemeat and bone meal are a good source of some minerals and vitamins.

• Journal of Veterinary Science
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.32.1-32.11
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• 2022

Background: Classical swine fever (CSF) is a severe infectious disease of pigs that causes significant economic losses to the swine industry. Objectives: This study developed a solid-phase blocking enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (spbELISA) method for the specific detection of antibodies against the CSF virus (CSFV) in porcine serum samples. Methods: A spbELISA method was developed based on the recombinant E2 expressed in Escherichia coli. The specificity of this established spbELISA method was evaluated using reference serum samples positive for antibodies against other common infectious diseases. The stability and sensitivity were evaluated using an accelerated thermostability test. Results: The spbELISA successfully detected the antibody levels in swine vaccinated with the C-strain of CSFV. In addition, the detection ability of spbELISA for CSFV antibodies was compared with that of other commercial ELISA kits and validated using an indirect immunofluorescence assay. The results suggested that the spbELISA provides an alternative, stable, and rapid serological detection method suitable for the large-scale screening of CSFV serum antibodies. Conclusions: The spbELISA has practical applications in assessing the vaccination status of large pig herds.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.45 no.3
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• pp.314-321
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• 2012

To quantitatively assess the effects of turbidity on egg development and larval fish survival, a laboratory fish rearing experiment was applied to different life stages (newly hatched larval stage, juvenile stage and pre-adult stage) of the Zacco platypus, one of the most universal and tolerant species in Korea. According to the stress index of turbidity in water with exposure time, three different treatments, including a reference condition (1~7 NTU) as well as intermediate (20~150 NTU) and high turbidity conditions (400~1,000 NTU) were applied, and egg hatching and larval fish mortality rates were observed. The mortality rates of newly hatched larval fish were significantly different among treatments (ANOVA, $F_{2,3}$=17.79, p<0.05). Average rates of survival to hatching were 20.9% (${\pm}0.1%$) for reference condition, 11% (${\pm}6.9%$) for intermediate level and 3.2% (${\pm}3.7%$) for high level conditions, respectively. A sudden change of mortality at the high level was observed within 5 days of the experiment. About 84% of juvenile fish survived until 20 experimental periods under conditions of reference turbidity, while survival under conditions of intermediate turbidity was over 80% of larval fish until day 13 of the experiment, but dropped to less than 10% after day 14 and 15 of two experiments. Fish mortality appeared from day 6 of the high turbidity experiment, and 50% mortality was achieved at day 9 to 10 of experiment. Full mortality occurred at day 14 of the experiment (RM-ANOVA, $F_{2,38}$, p<0.005). In the pre-adult stage experiment, no mortality was observed during the experiment at reference level treatment (20 days), while only slight mortality rates were observed for both intermediate and high levels until day 5 of the experiment, however, no further fish died in either experiment. It was significantly different compared to reference condition (RM-ANOVA, $F_{2,20}$=8.28, p<0.01), but no difference was observed between intermediate and high level conditions. Consequently, this tolerant species has been determined to be well adapted to high levels of turbidity in its adult stage, but more vulnerable throughout earlier life stages.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.21-29
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• 2001

An experiment was conducted with twenty crossbred male lambs to assess the effect of cotton (Gossypium) seed meal (CSM) on blood constituents and immunity. Lambs were randomly assigned to a reference diet (30% deoiled peanut meal, DPNM) and four test diets containing 40% of either raw, 45 minutes cooked, 1% $Ca(OH)_2$ and iron (1 free gossy-pol, FG : 0.3 Fe) treated CSM (replacing approximately 50%, reference concentrate mixture). These isonitrogenous and isocaloric concentrate mixtures were fed to meet 80% of protein requirements (NRC, 1985) along with ad lib maize hay for 180 days. Blood was collected at 60, 120 and 180 days post feeding. The lambs were sensitized with Brucella abortus S99 antigen after 140 days and were subjected to ELISA and delayed type hypersensitivity. Blood haemoglobin, erythrocyte count, leucocyte count, total protein, total albumin, total globulin, urea, creatinine concentration and aspartate aminotransferase activity in lambs fed on raw or processed CSM were comparable to the values of reference lambs. The higher (p<0.01) blood glucose levels observed in CSM fed lambs at 60 days of feeding was latter reduced to the levels comparable with those on reference diet at 120 and 180 days of feeding. The alanine amino transferase activity was lower in lambs fed raw and cooked CSM containing diets at 120 and 180 days of feeding. A marginal increase in serum iron and alkaline posphatase activity was observed in iron treated group and raw CSM fed lambs, respectively. The humoral immune response and DTH reactivity was lower (p<0.05) in lambs fed raw CSM (consuming 302.83 mg FG/day). Cooking, $Ca(OH)_2$ and iron treatment of raw CSM showed a positive response in alleviating the suppression of immune response owing to the reduced consumption of FG by 40.19, 17.40% and 26.73%, respectively in these diets. The present study thus indicated that consumption of 40% raw CSM (302.83 mg FG/day) though did not affect majority of the haematological and blood biochemical parameters, but markedly suppressed the immune mechanism of lambs.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.1-6
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• 2013

Objectives : In other to determine the optimal extraction conditions, the various Bojungikgi-tang (BJIGT) decoctions prepared by different pressure levels and different extraction times were compared and evaluated in terms of the extract yield and the total soluble solid content. Methods : Decoctions were prepared by the pressure levels of 0 (non-pressurized) and 1 $kgf/cm^2$ (pressurized) for 60, 120 and 180 min. The extract yield and the total soluble solids content of decoctions were measured, and the amounts of the reference compounds in decoctions were investigated by the analysis using high performance liquid chromatography. Results : The extract yield and the total soluble solid content were higher in decoctions extracted by the pressurized method than those from decoction with non-pressurized method. The patterns of yield and contents showed a proportional increase to the extraction time. In analysis of the linear regression for four reference compounds such as liquiritin, nodakenin, hesperidin, and glycyrrhizin, the good linearity with the correlation coefficient more than 0.9999 was observed. The highest contents for four reference compounds were observed at 180 min of both the pressurized method and the non-pressurized method. Conclusions : This study suggests that the pressure in extraction method and the extraction time affect the compositional constituents in BJIGT decoctions. The extraction time of 180 min could be chosen in both pressurized and non-pressurized method as optimal extraction condition.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.46 no.2
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• pp.123-129
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• 2023

Interventional cardiology procedures can involve relatively high radiation doses compared to conventional radiography. During CAG, CAG + PCI and PCI the same area is exposed to radiation for a long period. In this study, radiation exposure data of 421 examinations in Gyeongsang area were collected, and the DRLs and ADs in actual medical practice for three types of interventional cardiology procedures in Korea were established. In CAG 286 case, 75th percentile DRLs and ADs of the total DAP were 55.89 Gy·cm² and 37.47 Gy·cm² , respectively. In CAG + PCI 92 case, those values were 222.84 Gy·cm² and 117.51 Gy·cm² respectively. In PCI 43 case, those values were 198.73 Gy·cm² and 120.13 Gy·cm² respectively. In this study, for the first time, the diagnostic reference level of interventional cardiology procedures in Gyeongsang area were established. Using the diagnostic reference level of interventional cardiology procedures derived from this study, it will help to identify and improve the level of exposure dose in the region and country.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.91-99
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• 2019

Objectives : The aim of this study was to examine the reference value of biomarker serum amyloid p (SAP) to diagnose blood stasis objectively. Methods : Pubmed-Medline, Cochrane library, EMBASE were searched using the key words 'SAP' and 'serum amyloid p' in June 2018. Original articles of human adults that published in English, studies that recruited from the clinical research settings or well defined population based cohorts were only included. Results : A total of 12 studies were selected to extract the reference value of SAP. It was between 8.5 ng/mL (0.0085 mg/L) to 57.5 mg/L. Although the disease varied, most of them showed elevated SAP levels in the disease group (1.1-1.5 times). Conclusions : This study is meaningful in that it summarizes the results of previous researches of SAP, which has the potential to be diagnostic index of blood stasis.