• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.51 no.1
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• pp.29-34
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• 2019

In this study, a commercial production stepwise method for restorative rice with high quality and microbial safety was developed. The stepwise treatment method included steaming, refrigerated aging, and low temperature drying. The soaking rice was steamed twice at $90-100^{\circ}C$, and then, the rice was aged at $0-10^{\circ}C$, frozen at $-20^{\circ}C$, and dried at low temperatures with 5 m/s wind speed at $1-20^{\circ}C$ and 85% relative humidity. Applying the three steps improved sensory qualities compared with the conventional hot air drying and made storage at room temperature for 3 months possible. Specifically, the moisture content of the restorative rice was increased to 30%, which was 4.3 times higher than the 7% of the conventional air dried rice, and the rice grain shape was well maintained. The texture and appearance of the three-step rice were significantly improved (p<0.05) in a sensory evaluation.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.633-644
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• 2007

The study results regarding the ingredient differences, sensory characteristics, purchasing type, usage and improvement direction for home-made traditional doenjang and factory produced commercial doenjang are as follows. The L-value indicates that home-made traditional doenjang has a higher value in average than the factory produce done, and the a-value indicates the opposite. Home-made traditional doenjang had higher water content than commercial doenjang ; however the pH values of commercial doenjang and home-made were 5.34 and 5.32 respectively, which was very similar. Factory produced commercial doenjang showed higher protein content than the home-made traditional doenjang. Regarding the correlation between ingredients, there was a significantly negative relationship between the L-value and a-value but a significantly positive relationship between the L-value and b-value. There were no significant relationship with water content, pH and protein content. For the color and taste, which are the sensory characteristics, commercial doenjang showed higher value than the traditional doenjang, but for smell, the values were similar. Regarding grittiness, the factory produced commercial doenjang had bigger particles than the traditional doenjang. Preference was a bit higher in the traditional doenjang. Of the 380 study subjects, most were from 40 to 49 years old (65.5%), and the most family type were nuclear families which was a total of 400 people (69%). Moreover, the most residential type was apartment which was 355people (61.2%), and for the monthly income, more than 2,510,000won was 48.3%. For the educational background, college education was 304 people (52.4%), and high school education was 199 people, 34.3%. In the usage, most of the people eat doenjang more than once a week, and usually their parents make the doenjang. People used both commercial doenjang and home-made traditional doenjang >home-made only >factory produced commercial doenjang only in that order. The reasons for using the home-made traditional doenjang aredelicate taste and flavor>more nutritious> anti-cancer ingredients in that order. The reason they use the factory produced commercial doenjang is because they don't know how to make it at home. The things that needed to be improved in the home-made traditional doenjang are bad smell> entire quality> flavor> color in order, indicating that studies for reducing bad smell are required. The things that needed to be improved in the factory produced commercial doenjang are taste & flavor> entire quality>bad smell> color in that order, indicating that people are more concern about it tasting like home-made than the smell. From the above results, we can see that better functional doenjang should be developed for family health and to increase the consumption of the doenjang, which has good functional psychological activities, also more various types of foods that use doenjang and scientific studies to reduce the home-made doenjang smell should be continuously studied. Moreover, studies on how to make the factory produced commercial doenjang taste more like traditional doenjang should be performed.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.34 no.10
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• pp.730-743
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• 2024

Industrial biotechnology leverages microorganisms such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Escherichia coli for sustainable production of chemicals, fuels, and pharmaceuticals. However, despite their potential, microbial production faces challenges due to environmental stressors, which impede efficiency and economic feasibility. While traditional genetic engineering offers solutions, it often fails to create robust strains for industrial conditions. Adaptive laboratory evolution (ALE) has emerged as a potent strategy to enhance microbial resilience by mimicking natural selection under controlled conditions. ALE has successfully improved tolerance to stressors such as toxic compounds, extreme pH, and high temperatures in various microorganisms. In yeasts, ALE has enhanced acetic acid and furfural tolerance, which is crucial for bioethanol production. Similarly, in E. coli, ALE has increased resistance to acid stress and improved production of succinic acid and L-serine. In lactic acid bacteria, ALE has boosted lactic acid production and strain stability under thermal and freeze-thaw stresses, benefiting both industrial and probiotic applications. Corynebacterium glutamicum has also shown significant improvements in growth rates, stress tolerance, and production capabilities through ALE. These advancements underline ALE's role in optimizing microbial strains for diverse industrial processes, making it a powerful tool in microbial biotechnology. This review highlights the latest applications and methods of ALE, emphasizing its impact on industrial microorganisms and potential for future research in sustainable bioproduction.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.244-250
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• 2014

Background: Panax ginseng has distinct and impressive health benefits, such as improved blood pressure and immune system functioning. Rg3-enriched Korean Red Ginseng (REKRG) isolated from Korean Red Ginseng contains a high percentage of Rg3. Methods: In this study, we examined the effects of REKRG on endothelial cell nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) activation and adhesion molecules in endothelial cells and vascular function in rats. Results: REKRG dose-dependently increased eNOS phosphorylation and nitric oxide (NO) production in endothelial cells. In addition, REKRG markedly inhibited the tumor necrosis factor-${\alpha}$ (TNF-${\alpha}$)-mediated induction of intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1 and cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 expressions in endothelial cells. REKRG improved endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation in the Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rat and spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) compared with controls. Furthermore, REKRG treatment for 6 weeks increased serum NO levels and reduced the mean aortic intima-media thickness compared with controls. Conclusion: Taken together, these results suggest that REKRG increased vascular function and improved immune system functioning. Therefore, REKRG is a very useful food for preventing or improving various cardiovascular diseases.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.22 no.7
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• pp.855-862
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• 2013

Although antioxidant activities of Korean traditional fermented foods were reported by many researchers, study on antioxidant activity of microorganism originated from Korean traditional fermented foods was little. Therefore, we improved condition for antioxidant production by a bacterium isolated from home-made Chungkookjang. We selected a bacterial strain, which showed the highest antioxidative activity, from Chungkookjang and then named GJ. The selected GJ strain was identified as Bacillus methylotrophicus by alignment data of 16S rRNA gene nucleotide sequences. Improved medium compositions for DPPH radical scavenging activity were 0.25% sucrose, 1% peptone, 0.01% $MgSO_4{\cdot}7H_2O$ and initial pH 6.5, respectively. Optimal culture conditions were $30^{\circ}C$, 200 rpm and 4% inoculum volume, respectively. In improved conditions, DPPH radical scavenging activity of GJ reached to 91% in a short time. The strain GJ also possessed ACE inhibition and other antioxidative activities; ACE inhibition activity (49.4%), ABTS radical scavenging activity (99.8%), metal chelating activity (67.9%), SOD-like activity (36.5%) and reducing power ($A_{700}$ = 5.982) were observed, respectively. Therefore, our results suggest that B. methylotrophicus GJ strain may be potential candidate for functional foods, cosmetic products for anti-aging and medicine for diseases caused by oxidative stress.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.38-53
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• 2021

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Abdominal obesity is associated with metabolic disorders, and, in recent years, its prevalence in Korea has continuously increased. The change of lifestyle, particularly diet, is critical for the reduction of abdominal obesity. This study evaluated the effectiveness of an intervention focused on dietary self-efficacy and behaviors on the improvement of abdominal obesity. SUBJECTS/METHODS: Abdominally obese adults with additional cardiovascular risk factors were recruited through 16 medical facilities in South Korea from the year 2013 to 2014. The participants were randomly divided into 2 groups: an intensive intervention group (IG) that received a multi-component intervention to reduce abdominal obesity, by mainly focusing on dietary attitude and dietary behavior change, and a minimal information intervention group (MG) that received a brief explanation of health status and a simple recommendation for a lifestyle change. The interventions were provided for 6 mon, and health examinations were conducted at baseline, 3-, 6-, and 12-mon follow-ups. A path analysis was conducted to identify the process governing the changes in abdominal obesity. RESULTS: The IG showed an improvement in self-efficacy for eating control and diet quality at 6-mon follow-up. Abdominal obesity improved in both groups. Waist circumference was observed to be decreased through the path of "improved self-efficacy for eating control in food availability-eating restriction-improved dietary quality" in IG. Most changes in follow-ups were not significantly different between two groups. CONCLUSIONS: The intensive program targeting the modification of dietary behavior influenced management of abdominal obesity, and the effect occurred through a step-by-step process of change in attitude and behavior. Generally, improvements were also seen in the MG, which supports the necessity of regular health check-ups and brief consultation. The results can be used for further development and implementation of more successful interventions.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.96-105
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• 2023

Probiotic supplements have promising therapeutic effects on chronic diseases. In this study, we demonstrated the anti-obesity effects of two potential probiotics, Bifidobacterium bifidum DS0908 (DS0908) and Bifidobacterium longum DS0950 (DS0950). Treatment with DS0908 and DS0950 postbiotics significantly induced the expression of the brown adipocyte-specific markers UCP1, PPARγ, PGC1α, PRDM16 and beige adipocyte-specific markers CD137, FGF21, P2RX5, and COX2 in C3H10T1/2 mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). In mice with high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity, both potential probiotics and postbiotics noticeably reduced body weight and epididymal fat accumulation without affecting food intake. DS0908 and DS0950 also improved insulin sensitivity and glucose use in mice with HFD-induced obesity. In addition, DS0908 and DS0950 improved the plasma lipid profile, proved by reduced triglyceride, low-density lipoprotein, and cholesterol levels. Furthermore, DS0908 and DS0950 improved mitochondrial respiratory function, confirmed by the high expression of oxidative phosphorylation proteins, during thermogenesis induction in the visceral and epididymal fat in mice with HFD-induced obesity. Notably, the physiological and metabolic changes were more significant after treatment with potential probiotic culture-supernatants than those with the bacterial pellet. Finally, gene knockdown and co-treatment with inhibitor-mediated mechanistic analyses showed that both DS0908 and DS0950 exerted anti-obesity-related effects via the PKA/p38 MAPK signaling activation in C3H10T1/2 MSCs. Our observations suggest that DS0908 and DS0950 could potentially alleviate obesity as dietary supplements.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.52 no.4
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• pp.342-353
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• 2019

Purpose: The Dietary Reference Intakes for Koreans (KDRIs) suggest that the goal for the intake of sodium should be less than 2,000 mg, which is thought to be infeasible to achieve when eating the typical Korean diet. This study aimed to obtain the new intake goals for sodium with improved feasibility to achieve, and also to design optimized food intake patterns for Korean adults by performing linear programming. Methods: The data from a one day 24-hour dietary recall of the 2010 ~ 2014 Korea National Health and Nutrition Survey were used to quantify food items that Korean adults usually consumed. These food items were categorized into seven groups and 24 subgroups. The mean intakes and intake distributions of the food groups and the food subgroups were calculated for eight age (19 ~ 29, 30 ~ 49, 50 ~ 64, and over 65 years old) and gender (male and female) groups. A linear programming model was constructed to minimize the difference between the optimized intakes and the mean intakes of the food subgroups while meeting KDRIs for energy and 13 nutrients, and not exceeding the typical quantities of each of the food subgroups consumed by the respective age and gender groups. As an initial solution of the linear programming, the optimized intake of seasonings, including salt, was calculated as 0 g for all the age and gender groups when the sodium constraint was inserted not to exceed 2,000 mg. Therefore, the sodium constraint was progressively increased by 100 mg until the optimized intake of seasoning was obtained as the values closest to the $25^{th}$ percentile of the intake distribution of seasonings for the respective age and gender groups. Results: The optimized food intake patterns were mathematically obtained by performing linear programming when the sodium constraint values were 3,600 mg, 4,500 mg, 4,200 mg, 3,400 mg, 2,800 mg, 3,100 mg, 3,100 mg, and 2,500 mg for the eight age and gender groups. Conclusion: The optimized food intake patterns for Korean adults were designed by performing linear programming after increasing the sodium constraint values from 2,000 mg to 2500 ~ 4,500 mg according to the age and gender groups. The resulting patterns suggest that current diets should be modified to increase the intake of vegetables for all the groups, milk/dairy products for the female groups, and fruits for the female groups except for the females aged 50 ~ 64 years.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.400-405
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• 2008

The effects of different starter cultures on the fermentative characteristics of cheonggukjang were examined by using three Bacillus strains. The strains included Bacillus subtilis KCTC 1021 as a control, Bacillus sp. Kn-10 (Kn-10) isolated from a commercial cheonggukjang, and Bacillus sp. B-59 (B-59) isolated from rice straw. There were no significant differences in pH or viable cells among the different cheonggukjang samples during fennentation for 72 hr at $40^{\circ}C$. However, the sample prepared with B-59 had higher slime content and protease activity than the controls and Kn-10 samples. DPPH free radical scavenging activity was higher in the B-59 sample and lower in the control and Kn-10 samples when compared to steamed soybeans after fermentation for 72 hr at $40^{\circ}C$. The total amino acid contents the cheonggukjangs were 34869.98 mg% (B-59), 34481.89 mg% (control), and 31791.09 mg% (Kn-10). Glutamic acid and lysine contents were higher in the B-59 sample than in the control. Finally, the cheonggukjang fermented using the B-59 strain had improved sensory qualities such as color, taste, texture, and overall acceptability compared to the control and Kn-10 samples.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.433-446
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• 2015

Objectives: This study was performed to evaluate the consumer education program for reducing sodium intake based on social cognitive theory (SCT) and investigate consumer perceptions of environmental, cognitive and behavioral factors. Methods: Consumers (n=4,439) were recruited nationwide in Korea to participate in a nutrition education program for reducing sodium intake which was targeted on senior housewives (SH), parents (P), and office workers (OW). Questions regarding main factors of SCT were asked both before and after the education program. Results: SH and P recognized external social efforts and information to reduce sodium including nutrition labeling more than OW. The main barriers to practice reducing sodium intake were limited choice of low sodium food and menu, interference with social relationship when dining with others, and limited information, knowledge and skills. SH had lower barriers to practice reducing sodium intake and OW perceived 'preference to soup or stew' and 'preference to Kimchi, salted fish and fermented sauces' as barriers more than other groups at the baseline. Less than 50% of participants knew the relationship between sodium and salt, sodium in nutrition labeling, and recommended sodium intake. In addition, OW had little knowledge for capability to reduce sodium intake and lower self-efficacy to practice compared with SH and P. After education, positive outcome expectations such as lowering blood pressure, prevention of cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis were increased and barriers to practice reducing sodium intake were decreased in all groups (p < 0.05). The knowledge for behavioral capability and self-efficacy to reduce sodium intake were also improved but OW had still lower scores compared with other groups. Conclusions: These results suggested that nutrition education programs could be an effective tool to impact general population by facilitating awareness and increased capability to reduce sodium intake.