• Journal of Life Science
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• v.26 no.10
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• pp.1130-1136
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• 2016

The purpose of this study was to investigate the anti-proliferative and apoptotic effects of acid extract of Gracilaria verrucosa (AEG) on RC-58T/h/SA#4 primary human prostate cancer cells. AEG significantly decreased the cell viability of prostate cancer cells in a dose-dependent manner. AEG also showed relatively low cytotoxicity on normal cell (RWPE-1). The morphology of prostate cancer cells treated with AEG was distorted to shrunken cell masses. In addition, it was revealed that AEG induced cell death as evidenced by increased formation of apoptotic body and nuclear condensation. Furthermore, AEG clearly modulated the down regulation of Bcl-2 (anti-apoptotic)/Bax (pro-apoptotic) family and activated caspase-3 as an effector caspase in a dose-dependent manner. AEG inhibited cell proliferation induced by environmental hormones as a bisphenol A in a dose-dependent manner. These results indicate that AEG act as anti-proliferative effects as a potential therapeutic agent on primary human prostate cancer cells.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.52 no.3
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• pp.243-249
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• 2019

Purpose: Platycodon grandiflorum (PG) is known to have effective antimicrobial and anticancer activity. The main bioactive components of PG are saponins, and these could contribute to anti-inflammatory activity. However, little is known about the anti-inflammatory effect of PG. In this study, we aim to assess the anti-inflammatory response to Red PG Extract (RPGE) in splenocytes under ex vivo conditions. Methods: The cell viability of isolated splenocytes taken from mice was analyzed by performing a Cell Counting Kit-8 assay. The productions of nitric oxide (NO) and cytokines (specifically interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interleukin-10 (IL-10)) were measured utilizing Griess reagent and ELISA, respectively. Results: We found that co-treatment with RPGE and Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) decreased isolated splenocyte proliferation as compared with that of the LPS-stimulated control. We also observed that RPGE markedly suppressed NO synthesis and IL-6 production that was induced by LPS. There were no significant differences of IL-10 production between co-treatment with RPGE plus LPS and treatment with LPS alone. Conclusion: When taken together, our data has shown that RPGE mitigates LPS-induced inflammation in splenocytes isolated from mice. Further research is surely needed to confirm the anti-inflammation effects of RPGE in an in vivo model.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.283-295
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• 1979

A new Farmland Expansion and Development Promotion Law was enacted in 1975. This law authorizes the Government to undertake development within a declared "reclamation area", wherever the land owners are unable to do so. In order to give additional impetus to conversion of waste hilly land into productive farmland, these hilly land development projects were conducted as large scale scheme which include soil fertility improvements such as the application of lime and phosphate. Farmland Expansion and Development Promotion Corps has attempted to undertake annual farm surveys in order to obtain some information about hilly land agriculture and farming operations within the reclamation project areas since 1976. As survey data accumulates, more and more clear picture of hilly land farming come to appear and enable us to conduct in-depth study. Effects of such upland reclamation include converting of previously unproductive slopeland into cultivable farmland for lucrative and commercial farming or food production. Furthermore, idle or marginal resources such as farm labor, equipment and compost would be fully employed. Socio-economic effects would include increases in land value and attitude change of farmers. On the other hand the preservation of natural environments might be damaged to the some extend by the projects. As shown in Table 7, the average farm size increased from 3,156 pyeong($3.3m^2$) to 5,562 pyeong, a 76.2% increase. The proportion of small farms with less than I ha dropped from 59.8% to 34.4%, but that of the large farms over 2 ha rose from 13.1% to 32.0% (See Table 8). The survey results indicate that as the farming on reclaimed uplands become time-honored, the acreage devoted for food crop production decreases against the economic crop growing acreage (see Table 6). For example, in the case of uplands reclaimed in 1972, the ratio of food crop acreages decreased from 99.7% in 1972 to 62.5% in 1977, whereas that of economic crop acreages increased from 0.3% in 1972 to 37.5% in 1977. The government used to actively encourage the farmers to carry out food crop production in the reclaimed upland targting toward the realization of self-sufficiency in food grains. It is, however, apparent that the farmers did hardly take the government advises as far as their economic interest were concerned. Yield per 10a. of various crops from the reclaimed uplands by year were surveyed as seen in Table 12. On the average, barley production in the reclaimed areas achieved 83.3% of the average unit yield from the existing upland in its 5 th year. Soybean yields showed a modest increase from 64% in the first year to 95%, in the 5 th year. In contrast, economic crops such as red pepper, totacco and radish achieved their maximum target yields in 3 years from starting to cultivate on the reclaimed farms. In order to test the post economic viability, an economic analysis was performed for each of selected subprojects on the basis of the data obtained through survey. The average actual internal economic rate of return on upland reclamation investments was found to be 20.3% which exceeded other types of projects of land and water development such as tidal land reclamation, irrigation or paddy rearrangement. The actual IRRs of subcategories of upland reclamation projects varied from 17.9% to 21.4% depending upon the kinds of cropping system adopted in each reclaimed areas such as food, economic, fruit or forage crops.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2011

Recently the increasing of vinyl and green houses and development of reclaimed land including Saemangeum induced the need for breeding salt-tolerant crops which can survive and grow in high salinity soil. So we try to develop salt-tolerant transgenic chrysanthemum (Dendranthema grandiflorum.) lines by using anti-porter gene TANHX and HVNHX. Through marker selection and plant regeneration step, we could get 284 putative transgenic chrysanthemum lines. On selected putative transgenic plants, 40 candidates were used for genetic analysis and 30 lines could be made up of target size band on PCR, so about 75% of marker selected lines were decided as real transgenic lines. Selected 284 transgenic lines were also used for salt-tolerance test as a range of NaCl 0.2 ~ 1.2% (300 mM). As a result of salt-tolerance test, 15 selected transgenic lines could live and grow on the continuous supply of 0.8% (200 mM) NaCl solution and another 7 lines were could survive under 1.2% (300 mM) NaCl solution. This salt-tolerant transgenic lines under salt stress also lead a cell alternation especially a guard cell. A stressed guard cell be swelled and grow larger in proportion to NaCl concentration. TTC test for cell viability on transgenic chrysanthemum lines pointed out that more strong salt-tolerant lines can be live more than another under same salt stress. The numerical value of strong salt-tolerant 7 transgenic lines were 0.206 ~ 0.331 under 1.2% NaCl stress, and then it's value is more larger than middle salinity lines' 0.114 ~ 0.193 and non-transgenic's 0.046. And the proline contents as indicated stress compound also pointed out that HVNHX introduced salt-tolerant transgenic lines were less stressed than other under same salt stress. The contents of strong salt-tolerant transgenic lines were 2.255 ~ 2.638 mg/kg and it is much higher than that of middle salinity lines' 1.496 ~ 2.125.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.26 no.12
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• pp.1431-1437
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• 2016

Sorghum bicolor L. is one of the important minor cereals in Asia, Africa, and the central United States, and it is considered a rich source of polyphenols, flavonoids, and dietary fiber. However, there is a lack of data on the anti-cancer activity of Sorghum in prostate cancer cells and immune activity in macrophages. This study aims to investigate the potential effects of an ethanol extract of S. bicolor L. (SE) on inducing apoptosis in RC-58T/h/SA#4 cells and immunomodulatory activity in RAW 264.7 cells. SE significantly inhibited the viability of RC-58T/h/SA#4 primary prostate cancer cells in a dose-dependent manner. The morphology of RC-58T/h/SA#4 cells treated with SE was shrunken and involved the formation of an apoptotic body and nuclear condensation. In addition, SE markedly activated caspase-8, -9, and -3; increased the protein levels of Bax, p53, cleaved PARP, and cytosolic cytochrome c; and decreased Bcl-2 protein expression. Furthermore, the inhibition of caspases in RC-58T/h/SA#4 cells with z-VAD-fmk attenuated SE-induced cell growth inhibition. The production of nitric oxide (NO) was also elevated by SE treatment, as revealed by immune response parameters. These results suggest that SE inhibits growth and induces apoptosis in primary human prostate cancer cells in a caspase-dependent manner, and it modulates the immune functions in macrophages. Therefore, Sorghum bicolor L. may be used as a functional food to prevent prostate cancer and enhance immune activity.

• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.23 no.7
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• pp.1033-1041
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• 2016

In this study, we evaluated antioxidant and antiproliferating effects of Setaria italica extract (SIE), Panicum miliaceum extract (PME) and Sorghum bicolor extract (SBE). Antioxidant effects of these extracts were determined by assessing DPPH radical scavenging activity, $ABTS^+$ radical scavenging activity, reducing power and superoxide dismutase (SOD)-like activity. From high concentrations ($1,000{\mu}g/mL$) of each extract at DPPH radical scavenging activities of SIE, PME and SBE were 10.5%, 5.5% and 86.8% respectively, $ABTS^+$ radical activities were 4.92%, 5.9% and 62.3% respectively, reducing powers (OD 700) were 0.15, 0.18 and 1.7 respectively, and SOD-like activities were 17.0%, 15.9% and 38.6% respectively. In addition, SBE significantly decreased the cell viability of androgen-sensitive lymph node metastasis type of prostate cancer (LNCaP) cells in a dose-dependent manner. Morphological study of SBE-treated LNCaP cells revealed distorted and shrunken cell masses. SBE-induced cell death was confirmed by observation of nuclear condensation and increased formation of apoptotic bodies. The antiproliferative effect of SBE seems to be associated with the antioxidant activity of its polyphenol content. The results of this study indicate that SBE can exert antioxidant and antiproliferative effects and may be as a useful food material.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.46 no.2
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• pp.105-115
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• 2019

In this study, viability, growth performance and egg production performance were investigated to determine the productive characteristics of 12 Korean domestic chicken varieties which have been collected and conserved for over 25 years in National Institute of Animal Science, Rural Development Administration, Korea. The 1,134 hens were tested and their production traits including survival rate, body weight, age at first egg laying, hen-day and hen-housed egg production, egg weight, and egg quality were measured. Survival rate was the highest in Korean Rhode-D and Korean Native Chicken (KNC) White and the lowest in Korean Cornish Brown (92.2% and 54.3%, respectively). Body weights from 4 to 50 wks were consistently high in the order of Korean Cornish, Korean Rhode, KNC, Korean Ogye, and Korean Leghorn breeds. There was no significant difference in weight between varieties within a breed. Age at first egg laying was the shortest in Korean Leghorn, while it was the longest in Korean Cornish. The hen-day egg production from $1^{st}$ egg to 57 wks was the highest in Korean Leghorn-K, and the lowest in Korean Cornish Brown. Egg weight was the heaviest in Korean Leghorn-F and the lightest in KNC White. The Haugh unit was the highest in Korean Rhode-C and the lowest in Korean Ogye. Taken together, these results suggest that it is desirable that the Korean Cornish variety is improved as the Korean meat breed because of its excellent growth ability, the Korean Leghorn variety is improved as the Korean layer breed because of its good laying performance, and the Korean Rhode and KNC varieties are improved as strong viable breeds because of their good survival rate.