• Genes and Genomics
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• v.40 no.12
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• pp.1259-1267
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• 2018

Litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn.) is an important subtropical fruit crop with high commercial value due to its high nutritional values and favorable tastes. However, irregular bearing attributed to unstable flowering is a major ongoing problem for litchi producers. Previous studies indicate that low-temperature is a key factor in litchi floral induction. In order to reveal the genetic and molecular mechanisms underlying the reproductive process in litchi, we had analyzed the transcriptome of buds before and after low-temperature induction using RNA-seq technology. A key flower bud differentiation associated gene, a homologue of FLORICAULA/LEAFY, was identified and named LcLFY (GenBank Accession No. KF008435). The cDNA sequence of LcLFY encodes a putative protein of 388 amino acids. To gain insight into the role of LcLFY, the temporal expression level of this gene was measured by real-time RT-PCR. LcLFY was highly expressed in flower buds and its expression correlated with the floral developmental stage. Heterologous expression of LcLFY in transgenic tobacco plants induced precocious flowering. Meantime, we investigated the sub-cellular localization of LcLFY. The LcLFY-Green fluorescent protein (GFP) fusion protein was found in the nucleus. The results suggest that LcLFY plays a pivotal role as a transcription factor in controlling the transition to flowering and in the development of floral organs in litchi.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.32 no.8_spc
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• pp.1266-1274
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• 2019

This paper presents a review of dairy goat production in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) from 2010- 2017, its current state, constraints and prospects for research and development. Since the introduction of dairy goats in SSA in pre-colonial times, their populations have continued to increase due to declining land size as a result of land fragmentation and increasing demand for goat milk. The current goat population in SSA is 372,716,040 head of which only 15.98% used for milk production. Populations in the Eastern and Western regions of SSA have shown an increasing trend from 2010 to 2017. The Southern Africa goat population is on the decline at an annual rate of about 1.77% whereas Central Africa has had a constant goat population within the same period. Eastern Africa reported the highest increase in the population of goats used for milk production. Milk production was highest in Eastern Africa and lowest in Southern Africa. However, dairy goat productivity remained constant in the Eastern region throughout the review period. Dairy goats are mainly raised under smallholder mixed crop-livestock systems. To enhance the development of the dairy goat, concerted efforts should be made to alleviate the constraints that stifle its growth. These constraints can be categorized into nutrition and feeding, breeding and reproduction, diseases, parasites, climate change, and underdeveloped dairy goat products market. Effective management of dairy goats requires a holistic approach and there is the need to expand the markets by further sensitization on the nutritional and medicinal advantages of dairy goat products. In order to achieve rapid development in the dairy goat sub sector, research and development initiatives should be directed towards alleviating the hurdles in nutrition and feeding, breeding, animal health and resilience as well as dairy goat markets.

• Journal of Genetic Medicine
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.64-69
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• 2021

Primary cilium has a signal transduction function that is essential for brain development, and also determines cell polarity and acts as a mediator for important signaling systems, especially the Sonic Hedgehog (SHH) pathway. TBC1D32 is a ciliary protein, implicated in SHH signaling. Biallelic mutations in the TBC1D32 gene causes a kind of ciliopathy, heterogeneous developmental or degenerative disorders that affect multiple organs, including the brain. Here we report a boy who carried compound heterozygous variants in TBC1D32. The patient showed hypotonia, respiratory difficulty, and multiple anomalies at his birth. He was diagnosed with congenital hypopituitarism and treated with T4, hydrocortisone, and growth hormone. Despite the hormonal replacement, the patient needed long-term respiratory support with tracheostomy and nutritional support with a feeding tube. His developmental milestones were severely retarded. Hydrocephalus and strabismus developed and both required surgery, during the outpatient follow-up. Whole-exome sequencing indicated compound heterozygous variants, c.2200C>T (p.Arg734^*) and c.156-1G>T, in TBC1D32 gene. This is the first Korean case of TBC1D32-related ciliopathy and we reported detailed and sequential clinical features. This case demonstrated the utility of whole-exome sequencing and provided valuable clinical data on ultra-rare disease.

• Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.20-29
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• 2010

Naringin has antioxidant and antihyperlipidemic properties, however, phenolic compounds including naringin are unstable in the presence of light, heat and oxygen. Beta-cyclodextrin ($\beta$-CD) is a cyclic heptamer composed of seven glucose units that enhances the stability and solubility of molecules through the formation of inclusion complexes. This study was conducted out to compare the effects of CD-naringin (CD-N) inclusion complexes with naringin on lipid metabolism in high fat-fed animals. Male C57BL/6 mice were fed either CD-N (0.048%, w/w) or naringin (N, 0.02%, w/w) in a 20% high-fat (HFC, 15% lard, 5% corn oil, w/w) diet for 10 weeks. Orlistat (Xenical, 0.01%, w/w) was used as a positive control (PC). There were no differences in body weight, food intake, liver and heart weights, plasma triglyceride(TG), leptin, adiponectin, resistin, IL-$1{\beta}$ and IL-6 concentrations, and hepatic $\beta$-oxidation, carnitine palmitoyl transferase(CPT), glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) and malic enzyme activities between the HFC and CD-N groups or between the HFC and N groups. However, both CD-naringin and naringin supplementation les to a significant reduction in the epididymal and perirenal white adipose tissue weights, plasma free fatty acid, insulin and blood glucose concentrations, hepatic cholesterol and TG contents and hepatic fatty acid synthase (FAS), phosphatidate phosphohydrolase (PAP) and HMG-CoA reductase activities compared to the HFC group. The plasma HDL-cholesterol concentration was significantly higher in CD-N and N groups than in HF and PC groups. These results indicate that both CD-naringin and naringin supplementation effectively improved plasma and hepatic lipid metabolism without differences between CD-N and naringin groups.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.257-266
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• 2014

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE: Licorice has been shown to possess cancer chemopreventive effects. However, glycyrrhizin, a major component in licorice, was found to interfere with steroid metabolism and cause edema and hypertension. The roasting process of licorice modifies the chemical composition and converts glycyrrhizin to glycyrrhetinic acid. The purpose of this study was to examine the anti-carcinogenic effects of the ethanol extract of roasted licorice (EERL) and to identify the active compound in EERL. MATERIALS/METHODS: Ethanol and aqueous extracts of roasted and un-roasted licorice were prepared. The active fraction was separated from the methylene chloride (MC)-soluble fraction of EERL and the structure of the purified compound was determined by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The anti-carcinogenic effects of licorice extracts and licochalcone A was evaluated using a MTT assay, Western blot, flow cytometry, and two-stage skin carcinogenesis model. RESULTS: EERL was determined to be more potent and efficacious than the ethanol extract of un-roasted licorice in inhibiting the growth of DU145 and MLL prostate cancer cells, as well as HT-29 colon cancer cells. The aqueous extracts of un-roasted and roasted licorice showed minimal effects on cell growth. EERL potently inhibited growth of MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 breast, B16-F10 melanoma, and A375 and A2058 skin cancer cells, whereas EERL slightly stimulated the growth of normal IEC-6 intestinal epithelial cells and CCD118SK fibroblasts. The MC-soluble fraction was more efficacious than EERL in inhibiting DU145 cell growth. Licochalcone A was isolated from the MC fraction and identified as the active compound of EERL. Both EERL and licochalcone A induced apoptosis of DU145 cells. EERL potently inhibited chemically-induced skin papilloma formation in mice. CONCLUSIONS: Non-polar compounds in EERL exert potent anti-carcinogenic effects, and that roasted rather than un-roasted licorice should be favored as a cancer preventive agent, whether being used as an additive to food or medicine preparations.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.33 no.11
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• pp.1725-1731
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• 2020

Objective: An initial RNA-Sequencing study revealed that UDP-galactose-4-epimerase (GALE) was one of the most promising candidates for milk protein concentration in Chinese Holstein cattle. This enzyme catalyzes the interconversion of UDP-galactose and UDP-glucose, an important step in galactose catabolism. To further validate the genetic effect of GALE on milk protein traits, genetic variations were identified, and genotypes-phenotypes associations were performed. Methods: The entire coding region and the 5'-regulatory region (5'-UTR) of GALE were re-sequenced using pooled DNA of 17 unrelated sires. Association studies for five milk production traits were performed using a mixed linear animal model with a population encompassing 1,027 Chinese Holstein cows. Results: A total of three variants in GALE were identified, including two novel variants (g.2114 A>G and g.2037 G>A) in the 5'-UTR and one previously reported variant (g.3836 G>C) in an intron. All three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were associated with milk yield (p<0.0001), fat yield (p = 0.0006 to <0.0001), protein yield (p = 0.0232 to <0.0001) and protein percentage (p<0.0001), while no significant associations were detected between the SNPs and fat percentage. A strong linkage disequilibrium (D' = 0.96 to 1.00) was observed among all three SNPs, and a 5 Kb haplotype block involving three main haplotypes with GAG, AGC, and AGG was formed. The results of haplotype association analyses were consistent with the results of single locus association analysis (p<0.0001). The phenotypic variance ratio above 3.00% was observed for milk protein yield that was explained by SNP-g.3836G >C. Conclusion: Overall, our findings provided new insights into the polymorphic variations in bovine GALE gene and their associations with milk protein concentration. The data indicate their potential uses for marker-assisted breeding or genetic selection schemes.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.107-114
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• 2016

Objectives : Poria cocos Wolf has been widely used in Korean medicine as a medicinal fungus. In this study, we investigated that comparative anti-oxidant effects of ethanol extract from wild Poria cocos (WP) and plastic bag-cultivated Poria cocos (PBP).Methods : Total polyphenol and flavonoid contents in WP and PBP extract were monitored. And DPPH, ABTS, hydroxyl (·OH) free radical scavenging capacity, reducing power and xanthine oxidase inhibition activities of them were determined at 5, 1, 0.5 mg/ml concentrations.Results : Higher total polyphenol contents were found in the PBP extract (52.07±0.6 mg/TAEg) than in the WP extract (28.44±0.26 mg/TAEg). The flavonoid contents in WP and PBP extract were 17.29±0.30 mg/ RUEg, 21.36±0.40 mg/ RUEg, respectively. Also, DPPH, ABTS and ·OH free radical scavenging capacity of PBP extract in treated concentrations (5, 1, 0.5 mg/ml) significantly increased compared to those of WP-treated group. In particular, DPPH, ABTS free radical scavenging capacity and reducing power of PBP extract at 5 mg/ml concentration were similar to positive control (BHA or vit. C). Xanthine oxidase (XO) inhibition rate in both extract increased dose dependently. But it was significantly increased in PBP-treated group, only at 5 mg/ml, compared to those of WP-treated group. Then, their inhibition rate by PBP was similar to positive control (BHA).Conclusions : These results suggest that PBP extract is superior to WP extract in anti-oxidant capacity thus PBP can be applied in variable antioxidative products as a substitute for WP.

• Journal of Genetic Medicine
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.186-189
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• 2007

More than 6,000 rare disorders including genetic diseases have been reported. Of them, 1,500 diseases (1,211 for clinical diagnosis and 289 for research only) are technically possible for genetic testing. In Korea, since 2005, only 63 genetic diseases is permitted for prenatal genetic testing by the "Bioethics and Biosafety Law". The article 25 in the law prescribes 63 genetic diseases without clear indication for its selection and inclusion criteria. In EU, USA, and other foreign countries, however, there is no provision in the statute on prenatal genetic testing; it is not restricted by a law. Recently, a woman (Mrs. L, 38y) who is a carrier for Menkes disease made an appeal to a government for an amendment of the "Bioethics and Biosafety Law" prohibiting the prenatal diagnosis of her pregnancy at risk for Menkes disease. Menkes disease (MNK) is an X-linked recessive disorder characterized by neurodegeneration, connective tissue defects and hair abnormalities, and no effective treatment is available yet. The prevalence rate of MNK is one in about 250,000 live births. Menkes syndrome patients fail to absorb copper from the gastrointestinal tract in quantities adequate for meeting nutritional needs. These needs seem particularly acute during the initial 12 month of life, when the velocity of brain growth and motor neurodevelopment. Most of pts. die around 3yrs. of age. Mrs. L had a boy with Menkes disease who died at 2y.o. in 2001. Subsequent pregnancy in 2003, she was able to have prenatal genetic testing for mutation of the Menkes (ATP7A) gene and delivered a healthy baby boy. Now, She is pregnant again and wants to have prenatal diagnosis. however, this time, she was not allowed to have any more because Menkes disease is not included in 63 genetic diseases permitted by the law for prenatal genetic testing, in spite of the fact that she is a Menkes disease carrier and her pregnancy is at risk to have an affected baby. This case shows the practical problem of the legal restriction for prenatal genetic testing in Korea. In this study, we report a arguable case and discuss the controversial issues in the legal restriction for prenatal genetic testing in Korea.