• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.150-156
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• 2024

This retrospective case series assessed the effectiveness of commercially available oral fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) for treating chronic enteropathies in eight animals, five dogs, and three cats, between 2020 and 2023 at the Seoul National University Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital. Chronic enteropathies, often resistant to conventional therapies, present a significant challenge in veterinary medicine. To assess oral capsule FMT's effectiveness (Doggybiome^® one capsule daily for dogs and Kittybiome^® one capsule daily for cats) as a universal adjunctive therapy for chronic enteropathies across species not responding to traditional treatments. This retrospective case series applied a uniform evaluation of gastrointestinal symptoms and treatment efficacy, utilizing established scoring systems (Canine Inflammatory Bowel Disease Activity Index [CIBDAI] and Canine Chronic Enteropathy Clinical Activity Index [CCECAI] for dogs, Feline Chronic Enteropathy Activity Index [FCEAI] for cats) before and one month after FMT. This approach ensured consistency in hypothesis testing across the study population. Results revealed significant improvements in clinical indices post-FMT, with notable reductions in the CIBDAI, CCECAI, and FCEAI scores (p < 0.05). Additionally, symptoms such as anorexia, lethargy, diarrhea, vomiting, and weight loss showed marked improvement, with normalization of appetite and activity levels observed in most cases. No adverse effects were reported, indicating the safety and tolerability of this treatment. This study highlights the potential of oral capsule FMT as a viable therapeutic option for dogs and cats with chronic enteropathies unresponsive to conventional treatments, providing a new avenue for clinical management. Further research is warranted to expand these findings and explore the microbiome changes associated with FMT in veterinary patients.

• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.15-27
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• 2023

Jeju Sasa borealis (S. borealis) is indigenous to the Halla Mountain area of Jeju Island, Republic of Korea. However, its dominance has retarded the development of other plant species and lowered biodiversity in this region. The aim of this study was to determine whether S. borealis silage (SS) supplementation affects the chemical composition and antioxidant activity in the fresh meat of Korean native goats (Capra hircus coreanae). The experiment was conducted on 12 Korean native goats at the finisher stage. The feeding groups were the Control (total mixed ration, TMR) and the Treatment (80% TMR + 20% SS). The animals were adapted for two weeks and then subjected to a six-month breeding experiment. Meat samples were excised from the neck, loin, rib, front leg, and hind leg of the slaughtered animals. The meat derived from the treatment group contained more taurine and anserine than that derived from the control group. Both groups did not significantly differ in terms of ω-6/ω-3 fatty acid ratio. The loin and front leg of the treatment group contained significantly higher vitamin E levels than those of the control group. DPPH, ABTS, and FRAP analyses disclosed that the loin and front leg had significantly higher antioxidant activity (p<0.05) than the other parts. Moreover, the loin and front leg cuts of the treatment group had higher antioxidant activity than those of the control group. The present study demonstrated that S. borealis supplementation could effectively improve Korean native goat meat quality.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.66
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• pp.311-319
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• 2023

Caveolin-1 (Cav-1) is the main structural component of the caveolae on the plasma membrane, which regulates various cellular processes, including cell growth, differentiation, and endocytosis. Although a recent study demonstrated that Cav-1 might be involved in diabetes-associated inflammation, its exact role in the intestine was unclear. In this study, we examined the intestinal expression of Cav-1 in diabetic conditions. We also investigated its effect on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammation by expressing this protein in human intestinal Caco-2 cells lacking Cav-1. We observed that increased Cav-1 levels and decreased expression of tight junction proteins affected intestinal permeability in high-fat diet-induced diabetic mice. When Caco-2 cells were treated with LPS, Cav-1 enhanced the NF-κB signaling. Moreover, LPS reduced the expression of tight junction proteins while it increased cell-cell permeability and reactive oxygen species generation in Caco-2 cells and this effect was amplified by cav-1 overexpression. LPS treatment promoted phosphorylation of tyrosine-14 (Y14) on Cav-1, and the LPS-induced NF-κB signaling was suppressed in cells expressing non-phosphorylatable Cav-1 (tyrosine-14 to phenylalanine mutant), which reduced intestinal barrier permeability. These results suggest that Cav-1 expression promotes LPS-induced inflammation in Caco-2 cells, and phosphorylation of Y14 on Cav-1 might contribute to the anti-inflammatory response in LPS-induced NF-κB signaling and cell permeability.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.26 no.12
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• pp.752-761
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• 2023

Genetic diversity serves as the basis for selecting and genetically enhancing any culturable species in aquaculture. Here, two different strains of wild (River Ravi and River Kabul) and six captive-bred strains of Labeo rohita from various provinces were se- lected, and genetic diversity among them was evaluated using three different microsatellite markers, i.e., Lr-28, Lr-29, and Lr-37, and one mitochondrial CO1 (Cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1) gene. Different strains of L. rohita were collected, and part of their caudal fin was cut and preserved in ethanol for DNA extraction and determination of genetic diversity among them. Results in- dicated that selected markers were polymorphic with polymorphic information content (PIC) content values above 0.5 with the highest in Lr-28 followed by Lr-29 and then Lr-37. The observed heterozygosity (Ho) of all strains was higher (Avg: 0.731) but less than the expected heterozygosity (He). Moreover, TMs and WRs showed the highest He, while TKs showed the lowest, He. Over- all, inbreeding coefficient (FIS) values observed for all strains with selected markers were positive. The DNA barcoding with the CO1 gene revealed genetic variation among various strains, as demonstrated by the clades in the phylogenetic tree separating the strains into two distinct clusters that then divided into sub-clusters. In conclusion, TMs showed the highest heterozygosity as compared to other strains. Overall results provide the baseline data for the initiation of the genetic improvement program.

• Journal of Animal Reproduction and Biotechnology
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.48-57
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• 2024

Background: Cadmium (Cd) is toxic heavy metal that accumulates in organisms after passing through their respiratory and digestive tracts. Although several studies have reported the toxic effects of Cd exposure on human health, its role in embryonic development during preimplantation stage remains unclear. We investigated the effects of Cd on porcine embryonic development and elucidated the mechanism. Methods: We cultured parthenogenetic embryos in media treated with 0, 20, 40, or 60 µM Cd for 6 days and evaluated the rates of cleavage and blastocyst formation. To investigate the mechanism of Cd toxicity, we examined intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) and glutathione (GSH) levels. Moreover, we examined mitochondrial content, membrane potential, and ROS. Results: Cleavage and blastocyst formation rates began to decrease significantly in the 40 µM Cd group compared with the control. During post-blastulation, development was significantly delayed in the Cd group. Cd exposure significantly decreased cell number and increased apoptosis rate compared with the control. Embryos exposed to Cd had significantly higher ROS and lower GSH levels, as well as lower expression of antioxidant enzymes, compared with the control. Moreover, embryos exposed to Cd exhibited a significant decrease in mitochondrial content, mitochondrial membrane potential, and expression of mitochondrial genes and an increase in mitochondrial ROS compared to the control. Conclusions: We demonstrated that Cd exposure impairs porcine embryonic development by inducing oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction. Our findings provide insights into the toxicity of Cd exposure on mammalian embryonic development and highlight the importance of preventing Cd pollution.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.644-653
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• 2024

Considering the emergence of various infectious diseases, including the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), people's attention has shifted towards immune health. Consequently, immune-enhancing functional foods have been increasingly consumed. Hence, developing new immune-enhancing functional food products is needed. Pinus densiflora pollen can be collected from the male red pine tree, which is commonly found in Korea. P. densiflora pollen extract (PDE), obtained by water extraction, contained polyphenols (216.29 ± 0.22 mg GAE/100 g) and flavonoids (35.14 ± 0.04 mg CE/100 g). PDE significantly increased the production of nitric oxide (NO) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) but, did not exhibit cytotoxicity in RAW 264.7 cells. Western blot results indicated that PDE induced the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase (COX)-2. PDE also significantly increased the mRNA and protein levels of cytokines and the phosphorylation of IKKα/β and p65, as well as the activation and degradation of IκBα. Additionally, western blot analysis of cytosolic and nuclear fractions and immunofluorescence assay confirmed that the translocation of p65 to the nucleus after PDE treatment. These results confirmed that PDE increases the production of cytokines, NO, and ROS by activating NF-κB. Therefore, PDE is a promising nutraceutical candidate for immune-enhancing functional foods.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.24-37
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• 2005

This study was conducted to analyze the molecular epidemiological properties and to select the most efficient and reliable PCR method on 116 of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) isolates from Korean cattle, black goat, pig, dog, chicken, mouse and also human clinical cases from hospital. The distribution patterns of SSG [species specific genes; coagulase (coa), protein A (spa), nuclease (nuc) and aroA (RsaI) gene] were analyzed by PCR method. Among the SSGs, the nuc-gene was found in all strains $(100\%)$ tested and followed by coa-gene $(87.9\%)$, spa-gene $(91.4\%)$ and aroA-gene $(26.7\%)$, in order. The genetic subtyping by RFLP method was performed on the coa [AluI] and aroA-gene [RsaI] PCR products. The mecA-gene PCR and PCR-RFLP techniques were chosen to detect and verify of MRSA strains. Only the human strains $(12.1\%)$ were detected the positive mecA-gene products (533 bp), which were divided into two specific bands [201 & 332 bp] by HhaI enzyme digestion. On coa-gene and spa-gene typing, coa-gene was typed with ten kinds of genotype and coa-3 type were determined as the most predominant genotype, while spa-gene was divided into eleven kinds of genotype and also spa-7 type were selected the most prevalent genotype based on their genetic variations. On the aroA and coa-gene subtyping by PCR-RFLP, aroA-gene products were discriminated with only seven types of genotype, while coa-gene products were further divided into an eleven genotype, respectively. In comparison of SID values of five PCR based typing methods, the coa-PCR-RFLP (SID0.894) was evaluated the most efficient and reliable tools and followed by coa-PCR (SID0.883) and aroA-PCR-RFLP (SID0.462), in order. In conclusion, we could determined that the coa-PCR-RFLP method was the most suitable genetic analysis tool for S. aureus and MRSA strains from domestic animals and humans.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.46 no.5
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• pp.562-571
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• 2017

In this study, we investigated the anti-oxidant activities [electron-donating ability (EDA), 2,2'-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) radical scavenging ability, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) inhibitory activity], anti-wrinkle activities [collagenase inhibitory activity, suppression and/or phosphorylation of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), and mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase activity], and mRNA expression levels using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay in ultraviolet (UV) B ray ($50mJ/cm^2$)-irradiated human keratinocyte HaCaT cells. Josaengheugchal, Sinneungheugchal (SE), Shintoheug rice, Heugjinju rice, and Heugseol (HE) among colored rice varieties were reported to have excellent antioxidant properties. In the EDA and ABTS radical scavenging assays, extracts of the five colored rice varieties had scavenging activities of 72% at concentrations higher $50{\mu}g/mL$. In the collagenase inhibition assay, ethanol extracts of the five colored rice varieties showed high inhibitory effects of about 60% at concentrations higher $25{\mu}g/mL$. In the ROS inhibition assay, ethanol extracts of HE and SE showed very excellent inhibition efficacies at all concentrations. We determined molecular biological mechanisms of MMPs (MMP-1, -3, -8, and -13) and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) with HE, and the results show that HE suppressed expression of MMPs and phosphorylation of MAPK and increased expression of pro-collagen type I in UVB-irradiated cells. It was also confirmed by RT-PCR that HE reduced expression of MMPs mRNA. Therefore, these results suggest that HE has anti-wrinkle and collagen production effects and may be used as a material in the development of functional food and cosmetic industries.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.246-254
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• 2015

From 2013 to 2014, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were analyzed to determine biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) and anthropogenic volatile organic compounds (AVOCs) at eight sites in Mt. Mudeung and one site in downtown, by using a GC/Mass-ATD (automatic thermal desorber). The concentration of terpene noted as biogenic volatile organic compounds at Pungamjeong (PA), in a forest of Chamaecyparis obtusa, was 821 pptv, which was the highest among the eight sites. This value was followed by Wonhyogyegok (WH: 785 pptv), Norritzae (NZ, coniferous forest: 679 pptv), Dongjeokgol (DJ, mixed species forest: 513 pptv), Jangbuljae (JB, Abies koreana: 476 pptv), and Seinbongsamgerri (SS, pine trees: 464 pptv). 11~15 species of terpene was detected in the forest depending on the site. At PA in May, α-pinene showed the highest value, occupied 20% of terpene followed by coumarin, sabinene, phellandrene, myrcene, borneol, eucalyptol, β-pinene, cymene, δ-limonene, γ-terpinene, camphor, camphene, and mentol in the order. The mean concentrations of AVOCs were 0.74~2.52 ppbv in the forests and 3.14 ppbv in the downtown area. From May to July, the AVOCs ratios of the downtown to each forest were 1.9~4.0. Among 10 species of AVOCs, the sum of toluene and benzene was 2.34 ppbv and occupied 75%. In June, the ratios of toluene were 44.1% at DJ site and 53.1% at JW site (downtown). The BVOCs showed a positive correlation with the AVOCs at the forest sites (r = 0.328), which was statistically insignificant (p = 0.184).

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.260-267
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• 2001

The biochemical composition and antioxidative activity of marine microalgae were investigated for the effective utilization of marine resources. Two species of marine microalgae, Nannochloris oculata (N. oculata) of Chlorophyceae and Phaeodactylum tricornutum (P. tricornutum) of Bacillariophyceae, were selected. Because these species showed the high growth rate and easy to continuous culture. The contents of crude protein, lipid, and carbohydrate were $54.91\%,\;11.29\%,\;and\;10.15\%$, for N. oculata and $38.07\%,\;13.19\%,\;and\;7.13\%$, for P. tricornutum, respectively. Glutamic acid was the highest concentration for both species. Galactose (3,712.02 mg/100g), fucose (1,966.03 mg/100g), and glucose (1,814.35 mg/100g) were the major carbohydrates for N. oculatae, and glucose (5,295.45 mg/100g) and mannose (841.34 mg/100g) were for P. tricornutum. K (12,906.86 mg/100g), Mg (1,039.15 mg/100g), Ca (882.57 mg/100g) and Fe (747.20 mg/100g) were the major minerals for N. oculata, and K (11,718.65 mg/100g), Ca (2,003.32 mg/100g), Mg (1,570.84 mg/100g) and Fe (552.58 mg/100g) were for P. tricornutum. In the composition of nucleotides, ADP ($4.77{\mu}mol/g$) was the highest in N. oculata and hypoxanthine (11.74{\mu}mol/g) in P. tricornutum. Large amount of linoleic acid (18: 2, $\omega-6$) was contained in N. oculata. In contrast 16: 1 ($\omega-7$) and 20: 5 ($\omega-3$) were major fatty acid in P. tricornutum. The antioxidative activities of organic solvent extracts of two microalgae were measured by the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay method. The chloroform extract obtained from P. tricornutum was identified to be the most effective in DPPH radical scavenging activity.