Fescues, which are widely cultivated as grasses and forages around the world, are often naturally infected with the endophyte, Epichloë. This fungus, transmitted through seeds, imparts resistance to drying and herbivorous insects in its host without causing any external damage, thereby contributing to the adaptation of the host to the environment and maintaining a symbiosis. However, some endophytes, such as E. coenophialum synthesize ergovaline or lolitrem B, which accumulate in the plant and impart anti-mammalian properties. For example, when livestock consume excessive amounts of grass containing toxic endophytes, problems associated with neuromuscular abnormalities, such as convulsions, paralysis, high fever, decreased milk production, reproductive disorders, and even death, can occur. Therefore, pre-inoculation with non-toxic endogenous fungi or management with endophyte-free grass is important in preventing damage to livestock and producing high-quality forage. To date, the diagnosis of endophytes has been mainly performed by observation under a microscope following staining, or by performing an immune blot assay using a monoclonal antibody. Recently, the polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based molecular diagnostic method is gaining importance in the fields of agriculture, livestock, and healthcare given the method’s advantages. These include faster results, with greater accuracy and sensitivity than those obtained using conventional diagnostic methods. For the diagnosis of endophytes, the nested PCR method is the only available option developed; however, it is limited by the fact that the level of toxic alkaloid synthesis cannot be estimated. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to develop a triplex real-time PCR diagnostic method that can determine the presence or absence of endophyte infection using DNA extracted from seeds within 1 h, while simultaneously detecting easD and LtmC genes, which are related to toxic alkaloid synthesis. This new method was then also applied to real field samples.

Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is an endotoxin factor present in the cell wall of Gram-negative bacteria and induces various immune responses to infection. Recent studies have reported that LPS induces cellular stress in various cells including oocytes and embryos. Melatonin (N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine) is a regulatory hormone of circadian rhythm and a powerful antioxidant. It has been known that melatonin has an effective function in scavenging oxygen free radicals and has been used as an antioxidant to reduce the cytotoxic effects induced by LPS. However, the effect of melatonin on LPS treated early embryonic development has not yet been confirmed. In this study, we cultured mouse embryos in medium supplemented with LPS or/and melatonin up to the blastocyst stage in vitro and then evaluated the developmental rate. As a result of the LPS-treatment, the rate of blastocyst development was significantly reduced compared to the control group in all the LPS groups. Next, in the melatonin only treated group, there was no statistical difference in embryonic development and no toxic effects were observed. And then we found that the treatment of melatonin improved the rates of compaction and blastocyst development of LPS-treated embryos. In addition, we showed that melatonin treatment decreased ROS levels compared to the LPS only treated group. In conclusion, we demonstrated the protective effect of melatonin on the embryonic developmental rate reduced by LPS. These results suggest a direction to improve reproduction loss that may occur due to LPS exposure and bacterial infection through the using of melatonin during in vitro culture.

Mecoprop-p, a chlorophenoxy herbicide, has been widely used since the 1980s. Due to its high water solubility, it could be detected in the aquatic environment, as it has already been detected in the surface water or groundwater in several countries. The toxicity of other chlorophenoxy herbicides has been reported; however, there are few studies on the toxicity of mecoprop-p, one of the chlorophenoxy herbicides, on aquatic organisms. Here, we investigated the toxic effects of mecoprop-p using zebrafish. After mecoprop-p exposure, we observed that the zebrafish larvae eyes did not form normally, heart edema was generated, and the body length was shortened. The number of cells undergoing apoptosis also increased in the anterior part including head, heart, and yolk sac of the mecoprop-p-treated zebrafish compared to the untreated controls. Moreover, cardiovascular structures, including the heart and aortic arches, were also malformed after exposure to mecoprop-p. Therefore, our results suggest that mecoprop-p could cause abnormal development in zebrafish larvae and there is also a high possibility that mecoprop-p would be toxic to other aquatic organisms.

When we think about an idea of United Nations Tolerance Program UNTP, it is important for us to share memory with world citizens that we had 2314 veterans from 11 countries in the Busan U.N. Forces Cemetery since January of 1951. Recently, we had 13 veterans, who got buried coming from 4 Americans, 3 Hollanders, 2 Frenchmen, 2 Germans, 2 Englishmen, 1 Canadian and 1 headband after they died in their countries. (Joongang daily newspaper June 19, 2022). "I believe that creating a fifth office of the UNTP in Republic of Korea (Seoul, Busan, Kyunggi or Jeju Island), as a twin organization of the UNEP in Nairobi, Kenya, would provide a geopolitical balance to the international organization and a useful base for peace island studies in the conflict laden region of East Asia. Establishing this office in S. Korea(Seoul, Busan, Kyunggi or Jeju Island), with its unique geographical location as a hub for peace talks and environmental negotiations between Russia, North Korea, Japan, China, and Taiwan, would contribute to peace and development in the region." (Yates. 2022).

This study investigated the responses of Eremogone juncea flowering characteristics to exogenous 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP) and gibberellic acid3 (GA) treatments. Overwintered E. juncea plants were sprayed with seven treatments: no hormones; 200, 400, and 800 mg·L-1 BAP; and 200, 400, and 800 mg·L-1 GA. All treatments showed 100% flowering, and the exogenous BAP and GA treatments did not affect the time to flowering, whereas the hormone treatments influenced floral organ development. BAP significantly decreased the floret diameter and inflorescence length with increasing BAP concentration, although the 400 and 800 mg·L-1 BAP treatments showed similar values. BAP also caused abnormal flowers with a large gynoecium and stamens with small anthers and short filaments. However, GA significantly increased the floret diameter and inflorescence length, although 800 mg·L-1 GA treatment did not affect the floret diameter. In the vegetative parameters, the leaf length tended to increase as the GA concentration increased. These results indicate that BAP and GA affect the flowering quality of E. juncea and can enhance the value of cut flowers, such as flower size and inflorescence length, by making the flowers larger overall.