• Korean Journal of Animal Reproduction
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.19-26
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• 1996

In the present study, we investigated devel-opmental ability and transgene expression of IVM/IVF derived porcine embryos following microinjection with SV40-LacZ. A total of 412 IVM/IVF derived embryos were used to examine developmental ability and transgene expression following DNA microinjection. After centrifugation, pronuclei were visible in 60.3% when examined between 18~21h after IVF. Development and transgene expression were assessed after 9 days in culture. The percentages of injected embryos reaching to the morula and blastocyst were significantly lower (P<0.05) than those of non-injected control embryos. However, the percentages of DNA microinjected embryos and non-injected embryos that developed to the blastocyst or hatched blastocyst stage in dual culture systems (NCSU23 and EMEM) were significantly higher (P<0.05) than those in NCSU23 medium alone. As the resuIt of X-gal staining, the proportion of positive embryos was 40~43% in morula and blastocyst stage embryos, however, mosaicism has been observed in the most putative transgenic morulae and blastocysts. In the PCR analysis, the percentages of embryos integrated gGH gene were 45.0 and 44.4% in morula and blastocyst stage, respectively. These results suggest that improved IVM /IVF system and culture condition increased the embryo viability and ex-pression of a microinjected transgene.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.295-302
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• 1991

From 1988 to 1989, 8 strains of canine parvovirus-2(CPV-2) were isolated from the fecal specimens from the dogs that were clinically diagnosed as canine parvoviral enteritis in the veterinary hospitals located in the regions of Taejeon and Chungbuk province. The biological and physicochemical properties for the isolates were studied. Among 62 fecal samples collected from the dogs with enteric diseases, 24(38.7%) showed the haemagglutinating activity to porcine erythrocyte ranging from 16 to 16,384 of HA titers. In cytopathological studies with CRFK cells, intranuclear inclusion bodies were observed in all of eight specimens with the high HA titer over 1,000, of which three specimens showed cytoplasmic inclusions concurrently with the intranuclear inclusion bodies. It was found that the isolates revealed the highest haemagglutinating activity with porcine erythrocytes and the relatively lower haemagglutination titers with the erythrocytes from cat and rabbit. None of erythrocytes from the other animals reacted with the isolates. By the cross-haemagglutination inhibition test for the isolates with the reference viruses and sera, the isolates were evidently identified as the strains of CPV-2. In physicochemical property test, the isolates were stable in lipid solvent, pH and heat treatment at $56^{\circ}C$ for 30 min, and showed the virus particle size less than 25 nm, containing a DNA genome.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.107-112
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• 2005

A high environmental temperature affects the economic performance of pigs. Heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) has been reported to participate importantly in thermotolerance. This study aims to produce transgenic pigs overexpressing porcine HSP70.2, the highly inducible one of HSP70 members, and to prove the cellular thermotolerance in the primary fibroblasts from the transgenics. A recombinant plasmid in which the sequence that encodes the porcine HSP70.2 gene is fused to green fluorescence protein (GFP) was constructed under the control of cytomegalovirus (CMV) enhancer and promoter. Two transgenic pigs were produced by microinjecting pCMV-HSP70-GFP DNA into the pronucleus of fertilized eggs. Immunoblot assay revealed the varied overexpression level (6.4% and 1.4%) of HSP70-GFP in transgenic pigs. After heating at $45^{\circ}C$ for 3 h, the survival rate (78.1%) of the primary fibroblast cells from the highly expressing transgenic pig exceeded that from the non-transgenic pig (62.9%). This result showed that primary fibroblasts overexpressing HSP70-GFP confer cell thermotolerance. We suggest that transgenic pigs overexpressing HSP70 might improve their thermotolerance in summer and therefore reduce the economic loss in animal production.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.499-509
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• 2008

Foxo1 plays an important role in the integration of hormone-activated signaling pathways with the complex transcriptional cascade that promotes preadipocyte differentiation of clonal cell lines from rodents. We isolated the full-length cDNA of porcine FoxO1 gene using RACE, confirmed by visual Northern blotting. The deduced amino acids indicated 94% and 90% identities with the corresponding human and mice aa. Analysis of the aa sequence, showed that it included a Forkhead domain (aa 167-247), a transmembrane structure domain (aa 90-113), a LXXLL motif (aa 469-473), and 51 Ser, 8 Thr, and 4 Tyr phosphorylation sites, indicating a potential important role for FoxO1 transcriptional activity in vivo. Using the IMpRH panel, we mapped FoxO1 gene to chromosome 11p13. Our data provide basic molecular information useful for the further investigation on the function of FoxO1 gene. Time-course analysis of FoxO1 expressions indicated that levels of mRNA and protein gradually increased from day 0 to 3, and it reached almost maximal level at day 3, then decreased from day 5 to 7 in porcine primary preadipocyte differentiation. After induction by IGF-1, GPDH activity and accumulation of lipid increased, however, expressions of FoxO1 mRNA and protein were inhibited in a dose dependent manner. These results suggest that FoxO1 takes part in porcine preadipocyte differentiation and expressions of FoxO1 were regulated by IGF-1.

• Reproductive and Developmental Biology
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.49-55
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• 2005

We cloned cDNA of the PGH(porcine growth hormone) gene and constructed retrovirus vector designed to express PGH gene under the regulation of CMV (cytomegalovirus) promoter. To maximize the expression, WPRE(woodchuck hepatitis virus posttranscriptional regulatory element) sequence was placed at the downstream of the PGH gene. After infection with recombinant viruses, approximately 1×10/sup 6/ PFF(porcine fetal fibroblast) cells released PGH protein into the media as much as 1,400 ng. In a subsequent experiment, a modifications of the retrovirus vector was made to express the PGH gene in a teracycline-inducible manner. In PFF cells carrying these viral vector sequences, addition of doxycycline to the media resulted in 2∼6 fold increase in PGH synthesis. In the modified retrovirus vectors, the WPRE sequence also played a role in boosting the effect of the tetracycline induction. This result indicates that our tetracycline-inducible expression system might be a promising candidate in alleviating the complicate physiological problems caused by constitutive expression of the exogenous genes in the transgenic animals.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.317-324
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• 2005

A method for sex determination of pigs was examined using polymerase chain reaction(PCR). Sex determining region Y(SRY) gene encoded on Y chromosome plays a key role for primary male development. Zinc finger X-Y(ZFX-ZFY) gene, one of the X-V homology gene group was found on the X and Y chromosomes, respectively, We tested for molecular sexing by amplification patterns of SRY and ZF genes. Genomic DNAs from various resources including porcine hairs and semen collected from domestic pig breeds and native pigs was used for PCR assay of each gene. The amplified products for porcine SRY gene were yielded only in males but not in females. On the other hand, two differential patterns were observed in amplification of ZF gene reflecting the chromosomal dimorphism by a length polymorphism between X and Y chromosomes. Of both, a common band was detected in all individuals tested so that this band might be amplified from ZFX gene as a PCR template, but another is specific for males indicated that from ZFY. The result of PCR assay provides identical information to that from investigation of phenotypic genders of the pigs tested. We suggest that this PCR strategy to determine porcine sexes using comparison of the amplification patterns of the SRY gene specific for Y chromosome and the dimorphic ZF gene between X and Y chromosomes may be a rapid and precise method for discrimination of two sexes and applied to DNA analysis of small samples such as embryonic blastomere, semen, and hairs.

• International Journal of Industrial Entomology and Biomaterials
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.23-27
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• 2012

Porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) is a single-stranded circular DNA virus associated with Postweaning multisystemic wasting syndrome (PMWS), which is considered to be an important infectious swine viral disease. PCV2 capsid protein encoded by ORF2 is a structural protein and expected as the high immunogenicity protein. In this study, we generated recombinant baculovirus containing ORF2 of PCV2 and analyzed the optimal conditions for the production of capsid protein in insect cell. Production and status of recombinant capsid protein in insect cell were confirmed by SDS-PAGE and Western blot analysis using His tag antibody and anti-PCV2 serum. The yield of recombinant capsid protein was high like as shown visible on SDS-PAGE. Optimal multiplicity of infection (MOI) and infection time of recombinant virus were determined as 5 MOI and 4 days, respectively. ORF2 is known to have N-linked glycosylation site, but we couldn't detect the glycosylation of recombinant protein in insect cells.

• Reproductive and Developmental Biology
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.71-76
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• 2009

Salivary lipocalin (SAL1) is a member of the lipocalin protein family that has a property to associate with many lipophilic molecules. The importance of SAL1 during pregnancy in pigs has been suggested by our previous study which has shown that SAL1 is expressed in the uterine endometrium in a cell type- and implantation stage-specific manner and secreted into the uterine lumen. However, function of SAL1 in the uterus during pregnancy in pigs is not known. To understand SAL1 function in the uterus during pregnancy, we generated recombinant porcine SAL1 protein in an insect cell line. Porcine SAL1 cDNA was cloned into a baculovirus expression vector using RT-PCR and total RNA from uterine endometrium on day 12 of pregnancy, and the expression vector was used to generate recombinant Bacmid containing the SAL1 gene. The recombinant Bacmid was then transfected Sf9 cell to produce recombinant baculovirus. By infecting Sf9 cell with recombinant baculovirus, we established a SAL1-expressing insect cell expression system. Immunoblot analysis confirmed SAL1 expression in the infected cells. Recombinant SAL1 produced by the Sf9 cell line will be useful for understanding physiological function of SAL1 during pregnancy in pigs.

• Reproductive and Developmental Biology
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.65-73
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• 2013

The objective of this study was to examine the effects of high concentrations of glucose on porcine parthenotes developing in vitro. Addition of 55 mM glucose to the culture medium of embryos at the four-cell-stage significantly inhibited blastocyst formation, resulting in fewer cells in blastocyst-stage embryos and increased levels of apoptosis and autophagy compared to control. Quantitative reverse transcriptase (RT) PCR analysis revealed that the expression of pro-apoptotic genes (Caspase 3, Bax and Bak) and autophagy genes (Atg6 and Atg8/Lc3) were increased significantly by the addition of 55 mM glucose to the culture medium compared to control. MitoTracker Green fluorescence revealed a decrease in the overall mitochondrial mass compared to control. However, the addition of 55 mM glucose had no effect on mRNA expression of the nuclear DNA-encoded mitochondrial-related genes, cytochrome oxidase (Cox) 5a, Cox5b and Cox6b1. These results suggest that hyperglycemia reduced the mitochondrial content of porcine embryos developing in vitro and that this may hinder embryonic development to the blastocyst stage and embryo quality by increasing apoptosis and autophagy in these embryos.

• Journal of Embryo Transfer
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.71-76
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• 2009

It is not easy for porcine embryos produced by in vitro systems to develop into blastocysts with high quality. To solve this problem, many researchers have developed novel culture methods. However, the formation of blastocysts with high quality is still low. In this study, we aimed to produce piglet following transfer of in vitro produced early embryos ($2{\sim}4$ cell stage embryos) or morula and blastocyst. The $2{\sim}4$ cell stage embryos were transferred to five estrus-synchronized recipients (200 embryos per recipient). One of the five sows farrowed three piglets, which contain two live piglets and one dead piglet, 114 days after embryo transfer. However, two recipients transferred with morula and blastocysts did not farrow. Microsatellite analysis confirmed that the genomic DNA of two live piglets were not genetically identical to that of the recipient. These results indicate that it is possible to obtain piglets by transfer of early embryos produced by in vitro production (IVP) systems.