• Journal of Life Science
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• v.20 no.7
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• pp.1047-1053
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• 2010

This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of dietary Korean red pine bark extract as an antibiotic replacement on cecum microflora, immune functions, blood lipids, carcass characteristics, and growth performance in broiler chickens. There were four treatment groups: a control group, an antibiotic group, and two treatment groups receiving 65 and 80 ppm Korean red pine bark extract. Growth performance, carcass weight, dressing percentage, and breast and thigh muscle weight of the broiler chickens fed 80 ppm of red pine bark extract was higher than the broilers of the control group and the antibiotic group. Abdominal fat was lower in both groups of broiler chickens fed red pine bark extract, but the growth of immune organs such as the thymus, spleen, and bursa of Fabricius was significantly higher in the group that received a diet supplemented with 80 ppm red pine bark extract than in the control group and antibiotic group. Concentrations of triacylglyceride and total cholesterol were significantly lower in both groups that received red pine bark extract when compared to the control group and the antibiotic group. The concentration of serum IgG was significantly higher in the 80 ppm red pine bark extract group than in the control group and the antibiotic group. The numbers of Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus in the cecum digesta were significantly increased, while the numbers of Escherichia coli and Salmonella were significantly reduced in the group that received 80 ppm red pine bark extract when compared to the control group and the antibiotic group. These results suggest that the a diet with 80 ppm Korean red pine bark extract as a replacement for antibiotics improve the cecum microflora, immune functions, blood lipids, carcass characteristics and growth performance of broiler chickens.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.832-838
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• 2004

This study investigated the effects of an antifat diet with $\beta$-cyclodextrin on the reduction of body weight, obesity index, body mass index, body fat mass, body circumferences and plasma lipid levels in obese Korean women. After maintaining an antifat diet for 45 days, there were significant reductions in body weight by 4 kg, obesity index by 5%, body mass index by 1 kg/$m^2$ and body fat mass by 7% as absolute values (p<0.05). When expressed as percentages of the decrease, these reductions remained significant at 4%, 13%, 4% and 20%, respectively (p<0.05). In addition, after maintaining this antifat diet for 45 days, there were also significant reductions in arm, waist, hip and thigh circumferences by 3 cm as absolute values when compared to before intake of antifat diet, and these reductions remained significant at 8%, 3.4%, 3% and 5%, respectively (p<0.05) as percentages of the decrease. Furthermore, this antifat diet significantly reduced triacylglyceride by 103 mg/dL, total cholesterol by 50 mg/dL and LDL-C by 50 mg/dL respectively (p<0.05). Thus, the present results demonstrate that $\beta$-cyclodextrin may have benefit as a novel food resource for diets to prevent obesity and control overweight in adult women.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.36 no.5
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• pp.181-186
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• 2022

Atractylodes macrocephala (AM) and Amomum villosum (AV) are the most common herbs in Korean Medicine to treat digestive diseases. In this study, we investigated the cholesterol lowering effects of mixtures of AM and AV extracts on high cholesterol diet (HCD) induced dyslipidemia mouse model. We classified animals into six different groups; Group 1: Normal diet, Group 2: HCD, Group 3: AV extracts : AM extracts (1:1) (200 mg/kg) + HCD, Group 4: AV extracts : AM extracts (1:2) (200 mg/kg) + HCD, Group 5: AV extracts : AM extracts (1:3) (200 mg/kg) + HCD, Group 6: Simvastatin 40 mg/kg + HCD. After 4 weeks of oral administration of respective drugs, we checked body, liver and epididymal fatweights along with liver and serum triacylglyceride (TG) concentration, total and low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol in serum. Moreover, 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA (HMG-CoA) reductase (HMGCR), LDL receptor (LDLR), and sterol regulatory element-binding protein 2 (SREBP2) were detected by RT PCR or western blot analysis. The overall results showed that mixtures of AM and AV extracts inhibited HCD-induced increases of total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol in serum. Those effects seem to be caused by AM and AV extracts through inhibition of HMGCR expression. And thus blood cholesterol is induced into the liver by increasing LDLR expression, which is regulated by SREBP2 transcrption factor. The cholesterol lowering effects and mechanism of mixtures of AM and AV extracts was similar to the statin. We have identified the potential mixtures of AM and AV extracts as a new treatment for dyslipidemia.