During the screening program to evaluate the antiallergic activity of herbal medicines, Schizandra chinensis was found to inhibit the mouse PCA reaction induced by IgE-antigen complex. To evaluate the antiallergic effect of the fruit of Schizandra chinensis Baill (Family Magnoliaceae), which attenuate compound 48/80 induced vascular permeability reaction and scratching frequency in mouse. and it also inhibited 43% acute type of contact dermatitis induced by TPA and in oxazolone induced chronic dermatitis model was investigated. Fruit of Schizandra chinensis suppressed 37.6% swelling of oxazolone-induced mouse ear contact dermatitis. These findings suggest that fruit of Schizandra chinensis improve symptom of allergic dermatitis

Carrots (Daucus carota L.) are consumed as an important dietary source of b-carotene (provitamin A), a-carotene and lutein. An HPLC method was applied to determine the content of the carotenoid composition in carrot cultivars from Korea. Analyses were carried out with five carrot cultivars (Socheon-5-chon, Hongsim-5-chon, Myeongju-5-chon, Seonhongbom-5-chon and Betarich) sown at April, 2007 and six cultivars (Yeoreum-5-chon, Hanyeoreum-5-chon, Sinheukjeon-5-chon, Bibariheukjeon, Manina and Betarich) sown at August of the same year. The former and the latter carrots were harvested after 110 and 96 days from seeding, respectively, and the carotenoids were extracted with acetone after freeze-drying. The amount of a-carotenewas similar to that of b-carotene for the carrot cultivars sown at spring, while the content was about a half of b-carotene content for the latter cultivars. In addition, the average content of lutein in the former cultivars was nine times higher than that in the latter cultivars. Among the spring cultivation types, Socheon-5-chon and Myeongju-5-chon showed higher amount of a-carotene and b-carotene, while the higher amount was determined in Yeoreum-5-chon and Sinheukjeon-5-chon among the autumn cultivation types. This difference between spring cultivation types and autumn cultivation types was also shown in commercial two types of carrots purchased from local market.

Buckwheat is one of the traditional crops and has become a renewed target of interest or a popular crop as a healthy foodstuff, because it is a good source of cereal protein which is rich with essential amino acids. However, what is critical to our health is that buckwheat contains proteins which cause a allergy. Buckwheat allergy resulting from ingestion is caused by the storage proteins in the grain with molecular weights ranging from 15, 22, 35, 39 and 50 kDa proteins of the inner fractions to low, and there were clear differences in the protein compositions between the inner and outer buckwheat flour fractions. A major allergenic protein of buckwheat is Fag e 1 with molecular weight 22 kDa (BW22KD). Buckwheat allergy is an immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated hypersensitive response capable of causing anaphylactic shock. Buckwheat seeds were dissected to endosperm and embryo. From each fraction we extracted proteins and analyzed extracts by SDS-PAGE and 2-DE. On electrophoregrams of endosperm proteins, 6 intense bands were detected. The most intense corresponded to molecular weights ranging from 54 to 65 kDa. These proteins have been reported not to be allergenic. We show here that the allergenic buckwheat seed proteins are found only among embryo proteins. No allergenic proteins were found in the buckwheat endosperm. The results presented here lead to the proposal that patients with hypersensitivity to buckwheat flour should use only fine flour from buckwheat endosperm, as this fraction contains no allergenic proteins. At present, specific protein spots will be selected and in-gel digested for MALDI-TOF-TOF/MS analysis.

Seed color is an important trait affecting flour yield and quality in wheat. Seed color also is either tightly linked to or pleiotropically controls seed dormancy in wheat, because most of the red-seeded wheats are tolerant to pre-harvest sprouting in comparison to white-seeded wheats. Recently, metabolomics approaches have recently been used to assess the natural variance in metabolite content between individual plants, an approach with great potential for the improvement of the compositional quality of crops. Basically, in the study here, the simultaneous proteomic and metablomic approaches are being investigated to identify the expressed proteins of genes and specific metabolism responsible for the expression of red and white colors of seed. Red seed “Jinpum” and white seed “Kumkang” cultivars were used in this study to identify the storage proteins use of 2-DE, MALDI-TOF/MS. Here we optimize tissue extraction methods compatible with high-throughput, reproducible nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy based metabolomics. It appears that the proteins expressed were different each other according to two different cultivars from the seeds of hexaploid wheat. Some selected protein spots were identified as follows: B3-hordein, Gamma-hordein-3,bifunctionalalpha amylase/subtilisin Inhibitor. To monitor metabolic profile, wheat grain was ground in liquid nitrogen, ensuring a homogeneous mix of the tissue, solution samples extracted from seed grains of two wheat cultivars were conducted to measurement of metabolite using 1H-1D NMR method. Representative 1H-1D NMR spectra showing the metabolic fingerprints of wheat grain extracted and presented in Fig. The different peaks, observed at 3.4 and 4.3 ppm, were detected and difference in each two cultivars. The metabolic fingerprint of each two wheat cultivars by 1H-1D NMR were analysed using partial least squares (PLS) in mutivariate analysis to confirm metabolic profiling between different cultivars and to screen chemical shift spectrum corresponding to metabolite specifically abundant in each cultivars. Profiling using 1H-1D NMR was applied to measure of abundance of major metabolite. In total metabolites were compared between “Jinpum” and “Kumkang” cultivars. Therefore, NMR based on the metabolic-phenotyping should be mostly applicable to systematic exploration of plant genetic resources as well as to metabolite based on the breeding program involved in crops productivity.

When three cultivars, “Shinsunchalbyeo”, “Nokmi” and “GW-05-01”, which was collected from native glutinous rice, were exposed to increased salinity stress in exogenous solution and duration of salt stress, leaf relative water content (RWC), root water uptake and chlorophyll fluorescence were observed the significant decrease at ≥500mM NaCl concentration for 4 day stress. These decrease in leaf RWC showed 69%, 77% and 67% for Shinsunchalbeyo, Nokmi and GW-05-01, respectively, in water uptake these effects showed 84%, 85% and 91%. The difference in Fv/Fm of plants treated with 500mM NaCl showed 0.62, 0.68 and 0.78 compared with 0.78, 0.81 and 0.75 in control treatment. The effects of NaCl stress in rice seedlings indicate that the leaf RWC and photosynthetic capacity is more sensitive GW-05-01 in comparison with Shinsunchalbyeo and Nokmi, and water uptake in root is more resistant. Average plant height in Shisunchalbyeo, Nokmi and GW-05-01 showed 107, 102 and 111cm, and the 1000 grains weight were 25.5, 20.3 and 21.8, respectively.

A new red leaf lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) cultivar, “Jangsu” which has late bolting and good red expression leaf color was developed from a cross of “Yeolpungcheokchima” (late bolting and high yield) and “Seoulyakchima” (dark red color). The selection and breeding of advanced lines were done by pedigree method during 2000-2004. The advanced lines were evaluated for yield and adaptability in Korea (Gangwon, Kyunggi, Chungbuk, Kyungnam, Jeonnam, Jeonbuk, and Jeju) from 2005 to 2006. The “Jangsu” has gray seed color and elliptic thick leaves. Compared to “Yeolpungcheokchima”, marketable yield of “Jangsu” was lower by 10% (at 469 g per plant), but with particularly improved good expression of red leaf color in high temperature cultivation in the field. The shelf-life of “Jangsu” was three weeks longer than “Yeolpungcheokchima” at 4℃. The amount of bitter sesquiterpene lactones (BSL) and sugar content of “Jangsu” were similar with “Yeolpungcheokchima” at 46 ㎍/g and 4.8 brix, respectively, but taste is better, more crispy, and sweeter than “Yeolpungcheokchima”.