Transgenic rats and mice are useful experimental animal models for medical research including human disease model studies. Somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) technology is successfully applied in most mammalian species including cattle, sheep, pig and mouse. SCNT is also considered to increase the efficacy of transgenic/knockout mouse and rat production. However, in the area of reproductive biotechnology, the rodent model is inadequate because of technical obstacles in manipulating the oocytes including intracytoplasmic sperm injection and SCNT. In particular, success of rat SCNT is very limited so far. In this review, the history of rodent cloning is described.

Evolutionary processes such as recombination and natural selection usually develop over extended periods of time; however, they get accelerated in cases of hybridization. Interspecies hybrids exhibit novel genome which are exposed to natural selection, thus provides a key to unravel the ultimate causes of adaptation and speciation. On the other hand, with rapid upsurge in demand for stronger food security has been confronting us on daily basis. Lately, the scientists have started to gather are now attracted by specific extraordinary traits of different animals by way interspecies hybridization combining the superior genetic material from different animals. Besides, this technology could also explore new life saving vaccines and medicines and also would find beneficial in conserving wild heritage of endangered and critical species. Several researchers have also done commendable work on interspecies hybridization with some degree of success. Nevertheless, lots of obstacles and hurdles still pose for this phenomenal technology to reach to its final destination. This review will point out the hurdles on interspecies hybridization in reference to the natural mating and somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT).

Rabies is one of the most dreadful diseases known to human. Annually, more than 55,000 human deaths occur throughout the world. The main transmitters are dogs. In South Korea, urban rabies is eliminated after massive national vaccine programme but rabies is still present in wildlife around northern part of the country near the border. Occasionally, rabies cases are still reported and there are spill over cases from racoon dogs. No human case was reported since 2005. Therefore, risk of rabies from exporting domestic dogs and cats from South Korea is very low. Hence, foreign rabies can be introduced by importing wild carnivores and unvaccinated dogs and cats under the age of three months since the South Korean legislation does not cover them. Therefore, it is essential to update current import regulation to minimise the risk of rabies.

Minipigs are regarded as one of the most important laboratory animal in that anatomical and physiological properties are similar to human and their reproduction efficiency is relatively higher compared to other large animal species. Particularly, several diseases that cannot be mimicked in rodent models are successfully occurred or induced in pig models therefore it has been interested in a valuable model for human diseases. Pigs are also ‘standard’ species in xenotransplantation research. To maximize experimental outcome using minipigs, establishment and management of proper animal facility, right animal husbandry and control of pathogens are very important. In this review, we summarized several international guidelines related with minipigs published by several companies or governments and discuss optimal conditions for providing informative ideas to the researchers who want to use minipigs in their future studies.

Salmonellosis constitutes an important public health problem in both developing and developed countries, including Korea. The aims of present study were to investigate the serovar and antimicrobial resistance of Salmonella isolated from food animals and animal products in slaughterhouses and farms. A total of 323 Salmonella were isolated from food animals (n=277) and meats (n=46) during 2010. Of the isolates, 21 different serovars were identified. The predominant serovars were S. Rissen (35%) and S. Montevideo (24.3) in healthy pigs, while S. Enteritidis (25.5%) in healthy chicken. S. Typhimurium (88.8%) was predominant in disease pigs, while S. Gallinarum (29.2%) and S. Montevideo (26.9%) were in diseased chickens. Among meat samples, S. Typhimurium (57.1%) was the most common serovar in pork but S. Enteritidis (38.7%) and S. Montevideo(32.3%) were in chikcen meats. Analysis of antimicrobial resistance patterns revealed that 20.7% of the isolates were sensitive to all the 15 drugs tested. The isolates were frequently resistant to nalidixic acid (47.7%), tetracycline (38.4%), streptomycin (33.7%), and ampicillin (32.8%). The resistance to quinolone and 3rd generation cephalosporins was higher in chicken and chicken meat isolates. Of the 323 isolates, 174 (53.9%) were resistant to one or more CLSI subclass, and 117 (36.2%) showed multiple-resistance. Our findings showed that multiple resistant Salmonella organism are widespread in animals and animal products in Korea. To prevent the transmission or exposure for consumers of antimicrobial resistant Salmonella, policies and guidelines aiming at prudential use of critical antimicrobials for humans are needed.

Campylobacterosis is the most common food borne bacterial disease in many countries. Food animals and animal products are considered to be the reservoir of the Campylobacter species. The aim of this study was to investigate the antimicrobial resistance of Campylobacter spp. from food animals and raw meats in slaughterhouses. A total of 90 Campylobacter jejuni (C. jejuni) and 127 Campylobacter coli (C. coli) were isolated, for which antimicrobial susceptibility was examined using broth dilution method. Resistance to macrolide antimicrobials was higher among C. coli isolates than among C. jejuni. Among both C. jejuni and C. coli isolates, the most frequently observed resistance was to nalidixic acid, ciprofloxacin, and tetracycline. No erythromycin resistance was observed among C. jejuni isolates from cattle, pig and beef. However, 28.3% (n=13) and 25% (n=3) of C. coli isolates from pigs and pork showed resistance to erythromycin, respectively. The predominant profile of multiple resistance among C. jejuni and C. coli isolates was ciprofloxacin/tetracycline/nalidixic acid resistance (46.7%) and ciprofloxacin/nalidixic acid resistance (31.5%), respectively. This finding has important implication for food safety and public health.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are a class of "brominated" (bromine containing) man-made chemicals used as flame retardant additives in plastics, foams, and textiles. PBDEs are found in various environmental contaminants in air, soil, sediment, and water, and 209 individual forms (congeners) of PBDE exist. Among these, 2,2',4,4'-tetrabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-47) is the dominant congener found in the environment. Exposure to BDE-47 is now worldwide, and levels of BDE-47 have been detected in the blood of animals, including humans. BDE-47 can adversely affect the developmental system in both humans and animals. BDEs have structural similarities to polychlorinated biphenyls and thyroid hormones. However, recent studies have shown that BDEs may act as hormonal disrupting chemicals with detrimental effects. Therefore, a reliable assessment of BDE-47 toxicological action is required to understand the detrimental impacts of BDE-47 on human health. In this review, we overview recent studies on the distribution and potential toxicological effects of BDE-47 in humans and animals.

Several vertebrate species are able to epimorphically regenerate tissue of appendages or whole appendages such as fingertips, limbs, fins, tails, antlers, and ear tissue via the formation of a blastema of proliferating cells. For structure such as mammalian ear tissue and fingertips and antlers, the origin of the cells for regeneration is uncertain, but in others, such as fish fin regeneration and amphibian limb and tail regeneration, studies revealed that the blastema is formed by the dedifferentiation of mature cells local to the region of injury. Moreover, regeneration requires specification of the identity of new tissues to be made either in lower or higher vertebrates. Whether this process relies only on intrinsic regulative properties of regenerating tissues or whether wound signaling provides input into tissue repatterning is not known. In this review, authors have made efforts to put emphasis on signaling events, importance of polarity during regeneration and put forth how the limitations of regeneration could be overcome in higher vertebrates such as animals and humans.

본 시험은 무궁화과에 속하는 초본 식물인 Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.)를 경상대학교 시험농장 에서 2010년 6월 1일 파종하여 같은 해 11월 18일 수확하여 건조 한 후, 꽃 (HCME-F)과 잎 (HCME-L)에서 추출한 메탄올 추출물을 이용하여, 세포 독성 시험 및 주요 병원균에 대한 항균효과를 규명하였다. 항균효과에 사용된 균주는 가축에서 피부 질환, 유방염 및 소화기질병을 유발하는 그람양성 균인 St. aureus 와 Str. epidermidis, 그람음성균인 S. typhimurium 과 E. coli 균을 공시균주로 사용하였다. 추출물의 안전성을 평가하기 위해 두 추출물 HCME-F과 HCME-L을 0, 25, 50, 100 및 200 ㎍/ml 농도로 첨가한 배지에서 RAW 264.7 세포와 24시간 반응 후 세포 독성을 측정해 본 결과, 세포 독성이 인정되지 않았으며, 항균효과 시험결과 그람양성균인 St. aureus와 Str. epidermidis 균에 대하여 1, 50 및 100 ㎍/ml의 추출물 농도 및 반응시간 경과에 따라 항균 효과가 증가되었으나, 그람음 성균인 S. typhimurium 과 E. coli 에서는 항균효과가 인정되지 않았다. 종합적으로 Kenaf의 꽃과 잎 에서 추출한 메탄올 추출물이 세포에 대한 안전성이 입증되었고, 가축과 사람의 피부 질환 및 유방염의 대표적 그람양성균인 St. aureus와 Str. epidermidis 균에 대한 항균효과를 보여, Kenaf의 꽃과 잎을 이용한 선택적 그람양성균 치료제 및 사료첨가제 개발이 가능할 것으로 판단된다.

One hundred one enterococcal isolates from feces of livestock animals in Korea were screened for the presence of bacteriocins. Sixteen of 41 (39%) E. faecalis and 4 of 56 (7.1%) E. faecium isolates showed antimicrobial activity against at least one indicator strain. Only 4 of 20 the enterococcal isolates showing antimicrobial activity possessed at least one bacteriocin gene. While entA and entB were detected in three isolates as a pair of genotype, entQ, bac31, and AS-48 were not found in the enterococcal isolates. In almost all isolates, a correlation between genotype and phenotype of these determinants was not always observed.