Sprout products, such as broccoli, alfalfa, and cabbage, have positive health effects. Thus far, sprout foods have attracted attention owing to their good bioavailability. In particular, young broccoli sprouts exhibit anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-cancer effects. They contain 100 times more chemoprotective substances than adult broccoli. This study examined the anti-inflammatory effects of freeze-dried young sprout broccoli (FD-YB) in vitro using RAW264.7 macrophage cells. The FDYB powder antioxidant ability test showed that the radical-scavenging activity and superoxide dismutase enzyme activity increased in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, FD-YB was not cytotoxic to RAW264.7 cells, and nitric oxide production decreased after the FD-YB treatment of lipopolysaccharide-stimulated RAW264.7 cells in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, FD-YB significantly decreased the expression of inflammation-related proteins (Cyclooxygenase-2, Inducible nitric oxide synthase, and Prostaglandin E Synthase 2) and cytokines (Tumor necrosis factor- and Interleukin-6). In conclusion, FD-YB can be a potential nutraceutical for preventing and regulating excessive immune responses during inflammation.

Salinity stress is a major threat to plant growth and development, affecting crop yield and quality. This study investigated the effects of different salinity levels on photosynthetic responses and bulb growth of Lilium LA hybrid “‘Serrada’.” Plants were irrigated with 1 L of 0, 200, and 400 mM NaCl solutions every two weeks for 14 weeks in a greenhouse. At the end of the cultivation period, the substrate pH decreased, and electrical conductivity increased with increasing salinity. Regardless of salinity levels, the days to flowering and number of flowers were similar among treatments. In contrast, the flower width, plant height, number of leaves, and leaf area decreased with increasing NaCl concentrations. Although there were no differences in the photosystem II (PSII) operating efficiency and maximum quantum yield of PSII, net CO2 assimilation rates (An) and stomatal conductance (gs) were significantly reduced at 200 and 400 mM NaCl solutions compared to the control. At 400 mM NaCl solution, bulb diameter and weight significantly decreased at the end of the experiment. These results suggest that bulb growth inhibition could be attributed to limiting photosynthetic rate and stem growth. This finding suggests that salinity mitigation is necessary to maintain plant growth and photosynthetic capacity in lily cultivation on salt-affected soils.

Rehmannia glutinosa root and Saururus chinensis plant have been widely used in natural traditional medicines. This study was conducted to investigate the effect of the content of the main components of R. glutinosa root and S. chinensis plant by extraction method. The results of comparative analysis of extraction yield, total flavonoid, and polyphenol content by extraction method indicated that extraction yield had the best performance with hot water extraction for R. glutinosa and ultrasound-assisted extraction for S. chinensis. The total flavonoid and polyphenol content had the best performance with maceration extraction for R. glutinosa and ultrasound-assisted extraction for S. chinensis. ABTS and DPPH activity was excellent with maceration extraction for both R. glutinosa and S. chinensis. The analysis of the main components showed that maceration extraction was most effective for both S. chinensis and R. glutinosa. Specifically, maceration extraction of R. glutinosa yielded 1.5 times more than conventional ultrasound-assisted extraction.

Hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) is a highly contagious disease with no specific treatment. Since it is common in immunocompromised children under the age of 5, there is a need to develop a safe vaccine. Virus-like particles (VLPs) are similar structures to viruses with the lack of genetic material which makes them impossible to replicate and infect, and therefore have a high level of biological safety and are considered to have high value as vaccines. In this study, the insect virus expression system that is widely used for vaccine and drug production due to its high post-translational modification efficiency, was used to produce VLPs for Coxsackievirus type A6 and A10, which are recently reported to be the main causes of HFMD. For this purpose, the selection of promoters that can control the timing and intensity of expression of 3CD protein, which is essential for VLPs assembly but has been reported to be cytotoxic, was conducted to construct an optimal expression form for HFMD-VLP.

Entomopathogenic fungi serve as eco-friendly alternatives to chemical pesticides. In this study, we investigate the interactions between mosquitoes and Metarhizium anisopliae JEF-157, which showed high insecticidal activity against mosquitoes, by RNA-seq analysis. RNA from mosquitoes was extracted at the median lethal time to identify changes in gene expression. The results showed 580 genes were up-regulated, while 336 genes were down-regulated in fungal treated mosquitoes. Up-regulated genes were related to metabolic and cellular processes such as cytochrome P450, DNA replication, and apoptosis. Down-regulated genes were involved in metabolism pathways such as lysosome, starch and sucrose metabolism, and fatty acid biosynthesis. These results are crucial for elucidating the mechanisms of fungal invasion and interaction in insects, providing insights for future pest management strategies.

한국 귀뚜라미 산업은 최근 큰 성장을 보였으며, 수직농장을 이용한 대량생산과 기술발전으로 사육수와 판매 량이 늘어나는 추세다. 그러나 귀뚜라미 사육시스템은 농가 간의 교류 및 밀집 사육으로 인해 곤충병원체에 의한 전염병에 매우 취약한 구조를 가진다. 사육 곤충의 질병을 이해하는 것이 중요함에도 곤충병원성 미생물에 대한 연구가 부족한 실정이다. 본 연구는 국내 쌍별귀뚜라미 농가에서 발견된 볼보바이러스를 식별하였으며, Gryllus bimaculatus volvovirus (GbVVV-KR)의 게놈 특성을 분석하였다. GbVVV-KR의 전체 게놈 서열은 Sanger 시퀀싱 을 통해 얻어졌으며, 게놈 크기가 2,515개 뉴클레오티드인 원형 단일가닥 DNA 바이러스임을 밝혔다. 단일 핵산 염기 다형현상 분석(Single nucleotide polymorphism, SNP)으로 정지코돈 돌연변이로 인한 ORF3 영역이 다른 귀뚜 라미 volvovirus 들에 비해 큰 변화를 확인하였다. 또한, 전국 11개 농장에서 수집한 귀뚜라미를 대상으로 PCR/qPCR을 실시하여 GbVVV-KR의 감염 정도를 확인하였다. 이러한 결과는 GbVVV-KR의 게놈 구조와 유전 적 특성, 계통발생 및 유병률에 대한 귀중한 통찰력을 제공하고 귀뚜라미 바이러스에 대한 이해를 도울 것으로 기대한다.