• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.51 no.3
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• pp.278-285
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• 2019

Tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) is widely known for its beneficial effects on human health. To investigate the beneficial effects of polysaccharides from cherry tomato, cherry tomato polysaccharides (CTP) were prepared, the component sugars were analyzed, and the immunomodulatory activities in RAW 264.7 macrophages were assessed. CTP mainly contained arabinose (Ara) and galactose (Gal), suggesting that CTP might be enriched with an arabinogalactan (AG) moiety. The Ara and Gal present in CTP are likely components of AG-II (35.4%), namely $arabino-{\beta}-(3,6)-galactan$. To investigate the immunomodulatory activity of CTP, cytokine levels and iNOS2, COX-2, and $NF-{\kappa}B$ protein levels were analyzed, and $NF-{\kappa}B$ nuclear translocation and phagocytosis were observed by immunofluorescence. CTP significantly increased the levels of $TNF-{\alpha}$, MCP-1, and IL-6. CTP also increased iNOS2 and COX-2 expression as well as $NF-{\kappa}B$ nuclear translocation in RAW 264.7 cells. CTP significantly stimulated phagocytosis activity. These results showed that CTP stimulates macrophage activity, which can boost the innate immune response. CTP with high AG-II content could be used as a prebiotic to strengthen immunity.

• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.501-509
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• 2021

Extensive studies have shown that breast milk is the best source of nutrition for infants, especially during the first six months, because it fulfills almost all of their nutritional needs. Among the many functional building blocks in breast milk, human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) have been receiving more attention recently. Furthermore, it is the third most common group of compounds in human milk, and studies have demonstrated the health benefits it provides for infants, including improved nutritional status. HMOs were previously known as the 'bifidus factor' due to their 'bifidogenic' or prebiotic effects, which enabled the nourishment of the gastrointestinal microbiota. Healthy gastrointestinal microbiota are intestinal health substrates that increase nutrient absorption and reduce the incidence of diarrhea. In addition, HMOs, directly and indirectly, protect infants against infections and strengthen their immune system, leading to a positive energy balance and promoting normal growth. Non-modifiable factors, such as genetics, and modifiable factors (e.g., maternal health, diet, nutritional status, environment) can influence the HMO profile. This review provides an overview of the current understanding of how HMOs can contribute to the prevention and treatment of nutritional issues during exclusive breastfeeding.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.46 no.1
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• pp.91-103
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• 2022

Background: Red ginseng extract boosts immunity against inflammation and cancer in the human body. However, studies on the effects of red ginseng extract on the gut microbiome remain unexplored. Methods: In 2019, the positive effects and changes in the gut microbiome after administering 1 pack (3 g) of red ginseng extract per day to 53 adults aged 40 to 75 for 24 weeks were investigated. The gut microbial environment changes were qualitatively and quantitatively analyzed using next-generation sequencing and real-time polymerase chain reaction technology. Results: On comparing and analyzing alpha diversity and beta diversity, the microbial pattern showed significant differences (OTUs p = 0.003, chao1 p < 0.001, Bray-Curtis p = 0.001) before and after ingestion of red ginseng extract, indicating that gut microbial richness increased after ingestion. Moreover, after comparing and analyzing the gut microbiome's differences after red ginseng extract intake, significant differences were noted between three strains at the phylum level and among 57 strains at the genus level. Conclusion: This study proposes the potential use of red ginseng extract as a prebiotic after confirming its positive effects, including increasing gut microbiome richness, reducing harm to the gut microbiome, and increasing the number of some strains in the gut microbiome.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2022.10a
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• pp.273-273
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• 2022

The increasing number of Westernized eating patterns based on wheat flour in Korea has led to an increase in the rate of diseases such as obesity and diabetes, which has become a social problem. Wheat consumption is increasing due to changes in eating habits, but domestic wheat has low price competitiveness and has stagnated recently, so it is necessary to secure new resources to differentiate from imported wheat. Resistant starch, a newly created resource in domestic wheat, can act as a prebiotic similar to dietary fiber in the body, inducing microbial changes in the gut and having beneficial effects on metabolic syndrome. Wheat research on resistant starch was carried out based on the breeding of high amylose. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) was used to perform SNP identification and expression analysis related to wheat amylose through phenotype and genotype. 561 wheat core collection gene sources were investigated for amylose content in wheat, and related genes were extracted and analyzed. In the GWAS analysis, the model formulas BLIMK, FarmCPU, GLM, MLM, and MLMM were used to derive results such as QQ plots and Manhattan plots through phenotypic data. Among these models, BLAST was conducted to find the association between the SNPs identified using FarmCPU and genes related to starch, and 15 were found. Using the identified markers, it becomes easier to develop and browse related wheat cultivars according to their amylose content.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.295-304
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• 2023

Synbiotics help to improve gut health by promoting the growth of beneficial bacteria while glyconutrients provide a source of energy for the gut bacteria and may also have immunemodulating effects. The aim of the present study was to assess the effect of this combination on fatty acid and meat quality characteristics of growing pigs. In a five-week experiment, 804 growing three-way crossbred ([Landrace × Yorkshire] × Duroc) pigs with an initial body weight of 31.90 ± 2.6 kg on average were assigned to two treatments: 1) CON (basal diet) and 2) TRT1 (basal diet + 0.3% glycozyme [synbiotics and glyconutrient]), each consisting of 402 pigs. The TRT1 groups showed significantly higher values of palmitoleic acid (C16:1), capric acid (C10:0), myristic acid (C14:0), lauric acid (C12:0), elaidic acid (C18:1, t), pentadecylic acid (C15:0), gondoic acid (C20:1), lignoceric acid (C24:0), and omega-6 : omega-3 in fat than the CON groups. Moreover, in the lean tissues of the pig, the levels of C12:0, C14:0, C17:0, and C20:1 were significantly higher in TRT1 than in CON. However, significant differences were not observed after glycozyme addition in pH, water holding capacity, cooking loss, longissimus muscle area, drip loss, meat color, and sensory evaluation parameters. To conclude, the positive results of the fatty acid composition indicate that glycozyme may be an effective pig feed additive.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.66 no.2
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• pp.237-250
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• 2024

The emission of noxious gases is a significant problem in pig production, as it can lead to poor production, welfare concerns, and environmental pollution. The noxious gases are the gasses emitted from the pig manure that contribute to air pollution. The increased concentration of various harmful gasses can pose health risks to both animals and humans. The major gases produced in the pig farm include methane, hydrogen sulfide, carbon dioxide, ammonia, sulfur dioxide and volatile fatty acids, which are mainly derived from the fermentation of undigested or poorly digested nutrients. Nowadays research has focused on more holistic approaches to obtain a healthy farm environment that helps animal production. The use of probiotics, prebiotics, dietary enzymes, and medicinal plants in animal diets has been explored as a means of reducing harmful gas emissions. This review paper focuses on the harmful gas emissions from pig farm, the mechanisms of gas production, and strategies for reducing these emissions. Additionally, various methods for reducing gas in pigs, including probiotic interventions; prebiotic interventions, dietary enzymes supplementation, and use of medicinal plants and organic acids are discussed. Overall, this paper provides a comprehensive review of the current state of knowledge on reducing noxious gas in pigs and offers valuable insights for pig producers, nutritionists, and researchers working in this area.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.266-280
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• 2012

Agar is a cell wall component of macro red algae that can be hydrolyzed by agarase. Agarases are classified into ${\alpha}$-agarase (E.C. 3.2.1.158) and ${\beta}$-agarase (E.C. 3.2.1.81), in accordance with their cleavage pattern, and can be grouped in the glycoside hydrolase (GH)-16, -58, -86, -96, and -118 family according to the amino acid sequences of the proteins. Many agarases and/or their genes have been detected, isolated, and recombinantly expressed from bacteria, and metagenomes have their origins in sea and terrestrial environments. Products of agarases, agarooligosaccharides and neoagarooligosaccharides, represent wide functions such as antitumor, immune stimulation, antioxidation, prebiotic, hepa-protective, antibacterial, whitening, and moisturizing effects; hence, broad applications would be possible in the food industry, cosmetics, and medical fields. In addition, agarases are also used as a tool enzyme for research. This paper reviews the sources, purifications and detection methods, and application fields of agarases. The role of agarases in agar metabolism and the function of their enzymatic products are also surveyed.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.29 no.12
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• pp.1938-1946
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• 2019

Isomaltooligosaccharides (IMOs) have good prebiotic effects, and long IMOs (LIMOs) with a degree of polymerization (DP) of 7 or above show improved effects. However, they are not yet commercially available, and require costly enzymes and processes for production. The N-terminal region of the thermostable Thermoanaerobacter thermocopriae cycloisomaltooligosaccharide glucanotransferase (TtCITase) shows cyclic isomaltooligosaccharide (CI)-producing activity owing to a catalytic domain of glycoside hydrolase (GH) family 66 and carbohydrate-binding module (CBM) 35. In the present study, we elucidated the activity of the C-terminal region of TtCITase (TtCITase-C; Met740-Phe1,559), including a CBM35-like region and the GH family 15 domain. The domain was successfully cloned, expressed, and purified as a single protein with a molecular mass of 115 kDa. TtCITase-C exhibited optimal activity at 40℃ and pH 5.5, and retained 100% activity at pH 5.5 after 18-h incubation. TtCITase-C synthesized α-1,6 glucosyl products with over seven degrees of polymerization (DP) by an α-1,6 glucosyl transfer reaction from maltopentaose, isomaltopentaose, or commercialized maltodextrins as substrates. These results indicate that TtCITase-C could be used for the production of α-1,6 glucosyl oligosaccharides with over DP7 (LIMOs) in a more cost-effective manner, without requiring cyclodextran.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.510-519
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• 2018

Synbiotics are a combination of probiotics and prebiotics, which lead to synergistic benefits in host welfare. Probiotics have been used as an alternative to antibiotics. Among the probiotics, Pediococcus acidilactici (PA) has shown excellent antimicrobial activity against Salmonella Gallinarum (SG) as a major poultry pathogen and has improved the production performances of animals. Inulin is widely used as a prebiotic for the improvement of animal health and growth. The main aim of this study was to investigate the antimicrobial activity of inulin nanoparticle (IN)-internalized PA encapsulated into alginate/chitosan/alginate (ACA) microcapsules (MCs) for future in vivo application. The prepared phthalyl INs (PINs) were characterized by DLS and FE-SEM. The contents of phthal groups in the PINs were estimated by $^1H-NMR$ measurement as 25.1 mol.-%. The sizes of the PINs measured by DLS were approximately 203 nm. Internalization into PA was confirmed by confocal microscopy and flow cytometry. The antimicrobial activity of PIN-internalized probiotics encapsulated into ACA MCs was measured by coculture antimicrobial assays on SG. PIN-internalized probiotics had a higher antimicrobial ability than that of ACA MCs loaded with PA/inulin or PA. Interestingly, when PINs were treated with PA and encapsulated into ACA MCs, as a natural antimicrobial peptide, pediocin was produced much more in the culture medium compared with other groups with inulin-loaded ACA MCs and PA encapsulated into ACA MCs.

• Journal of Dairy Science and Biotechnology
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.51-58
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• 2013

Emerging studies suggest that vegetables or fruit juices deemed to be potential alternative base medium for lactic acid bacteria fermentation. Until now, limited studies have been carried out to evaluate such applications. Thus, the objective of present study is that lactic acid bacteria were evaluated for their viability at low pH, growth during storage at low temperature, and $CO_2$ formation. Furthermore, the effects of grapefruit extract with respect to cell viability, sensory ability, and organic acid production were evaluated for these strains. The probiotic properties of the strains, including acid tolerance, bile tolerance, and adhesion to human intestinal epithelial cells (HT-29 cells), prebiotic characteristics, and safety features were examined. All strains survived in MRS medium broth adjusted to pH 3.8, at $10^{\circ}C$ for 6 days, and did not produce $CO_2$ to check post fermentation. The medium of grapefruit extract fermentation by Lactobacillus plantarum CJIH 203 resulted in maximal viable counts, compared with other strains, and the extract subsequently tasted sour due to the presence of lactic acid. Lactobacillus plantarum CJIH203 was highly resistant to artificial gastric juice and intestinal juice, while Lactococcus lactis SJ09 strongly adhered to HT-29 cells. Tagatose showed the greatest ability to enhance the growth of L. plantarum SJ21, relative to the other strains. All strains were verified by safety tests such as hemolysis, gelatin hydration, and urea degradation. Therefore, these strains could be promising candidates for use in reducing excessive post-fermentation and functional products.