Growth differentiation factor 8 (GDF8) is a member of the transforming growth factor-β that has been identified as a strong physiological regulator. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of GDF8 on porcine oocytes during in vitro maturation (IVM). We investigated a specific gene transcription levels in oocytes and cumulus cells (CC) after IVM, and protein kinase B (PKB) expression and activation levels in matured CCs by western blotting. Each concentration (0, 1, 10, and 100 ng/ml) of GDF8 was treated in maturation medium (TCM199) while process of IVM. Data were analyzed by ANOVA followed by Duncan using SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Science). Data are presented as the mean and differences were considered significant at P < 0.05. After 44 h of IVM, oocytes are mechanically denuded from CCs with 0.1% of hyaluronidase, and then the separated each group of oocytes and CCs were sampled. To assess the effect of GDF8 on specific gene transcription level changes as a dose response during IVM, the realtime PCR was performed. In CCs, all of GDF8 treatment groups showed significantly higher CREB transcription regulator cbp mRNA and the 1- and 10 ng/ml treatment groups observed significantly increased cumulus expansion related genes areg, cox-2, has2, ptx3 and tnfaip6 transcription levels after IVM. In matured oocytes, the maternal factors jmjd3 and zar1, transcriptional regulator foxo1 and sirt1, mitochondrial activity factor sirt3 and acadl, and anti-apoptosis gene bcl-2 mRNA transcription levels were significantly increased in 1- and10 ng/mL of GDF8 treatment groups compared with control. To determine effect of GDF8 treatment during IVM, translation regulator PKB protein expression and phosphorylation levels were analyzed in CCs by western blotting. The 10 ng/ml treatment group showed significantly increased phosphorylated PKB (1.4 times higher than control) protein levels (P < 0.05). In conclusion, treatment 10 ng/ml of GDF8 during IVM activates CREB related transcription and induced cumulus cells expansion via activation of PKB signaling in CCs. The transcriptional landscape changes in CCs result maternal factors accumulation and mitochondrial activation in oocytes during IVM.

Euzophera batangensis (Lepidotera: Pyralidae) is seriously damaging trunks or branches of persimmon tree (Diospyros sp.). We tested the attractiveness of (Z)-9-tetradecen-1-ol (Z9-14OH) and (Z9,E12)-tetradeca- 9,12-dien-1-ol (Z9,E12-14OH) with single or blended baits at southern parts of Korea in 2014 and 2015. The monoene was not attractive at all at three places during the two years. In 2014, diene was equally or more attractive than the mixture in Jinju and Suncheon, respectively. In 2015 too, the attractiveness of diene and mixture was not different in Jinju and Munsan. Monitoring of the seasonal occurrence of E. batangesis with the sex pheromone components revealed that it occurred three times a year; the first occurrence from early April to mid May, the second from early Jun to mid July, and the third from late August to late September.

Ooencyrtus nezarae lshii (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae) is a major egg parasitoid of Riptortus pedestris (F.) (Hemiptera: Alydidae). One of the components of the aggregation pheromone of R. pedestris, (E)-2-hexenyl (Z)-3-hexenoate (E2HZ3H), is known to attract O. nezarae female. Response of O. nezarae females to E2HZ3H and its isomers was studied using electro-antennogram (EAG) and field tests. O. nezarae females showed higher antennal response to E2HZ3H and Z2HE3H isomers than E2HE3H and Z2HZ3H. In field tests, O. nezarae females were attracted to E2HZ3H traps, but not to Z2E3 traps. Interestingly, the blend of E2HZ3H and Z2HE3H showed significant antagonistic activities to the attraction of O. nezarae females in the field. We conclude from this study that Z2HE3H is a potent antagonist to the behavioral response of O. nezarae.

The habitat of the cockroach varies by species. The German cockroach (Blattella germanica) lives in human dwellings, while the Japanese field roach (Blattella nipponica) lives in a mountainous region. Based on phylogenetic analysis of mtCO I, the two species are closely related to each other and B. germanica is divergent from wild species such as B. nipponica. Their habitats and walking speed differ even though the two species have similar morphology. We hypothesized that habitats might influence walking speed via changes to appendage morphology and enzyme-based physiological differences. We found that phenotype such as appendage length and esterase isozyme expression were clearly different between the two species. These differences might be responsible for the observed difference in walking speed.

Globally, there is an increase in demand for organic products which has boosted the organic food industry. There has been a continuous incease in th organic agricultural land due to the aforementioned reaseons which has been in fluencing the use of chemical-free pesticides, fertilizers, and other agricultural inputs for cultivation. Also, the increasing per-capita expenditure income and high purchasing power of consumers in developing countries such as India, Brazil, South Africa, Korea, Japan, and China have forced the manufactures to offer a wide range of organic products to sustain competition. Agricultural biologicals are a group of products which are derived from natural sources such as microorganisms, plant extracts. or other biological matter, which can be used as a substitute for agriculture chemical products. Farmers can depend on these agricultural biologicals along with the biotechnology and variety of agronomic practices, in order to grow healthy and nutritious crops.

The consumption of pre-treated vegetables (including fresh-cut vegetables) has been significantly increased because of their ease of use for cooking. Vegetable cutting machine has been widely utilized for producing fresh-cut vegetables or agricultural products with different sizes; however, its design standard is not specifically established depending on types of agricultural products. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine mechanical properties (compressive and shear force) of targeted agricultural products (radish, carrot, squash, cucumber, shiitake mushroom and sweet potato) for developing multipurpose vegetable cutting machine. According to ASAE standard (s368.3), compressive and shear force of targeted agricultural products were measured by using custom built UTM (universal testing machine). Shape type of samples and speed ranges (5~15 mm/min) of loading rate on bioyield and shear points were varied by targeted agricultural products. The range of averaged bioyield points of targeted agricultural products were between 7.89 and 146.98 N. On the other hands, their averaged shear points were from 22.50 to 53.47 N. Results clearly showed that the bioyield and shear points of targeted agricultural products were thoroughly affected by their components. As accumulating compressive and shear points of agricultural products, it can be technical feasible to establish the design standard and control mechanism of multipurpose vegetable cutting machine.

We developed a type of sausage made of chicken breast and liquid egg whites for consumers interested in weight management. To determine the quality of the product, its chemical characteristics, fatty acid composition, free amino acid contents, and nucleotides contents were evaluated during 4 weeks of storage. Sensory evaluation was conducted by both general consumers and body-builders. The sausage was proposed as a fat-free product as fat content was 0.12% based on the Korean Indication Standard of Animal Origin Food. Protein content was 13.42% and calorie value was 61.50 kcal/100 g of the sausage. In sensory evaluation, the mixture of chicken breast and egg whites stuffed into the same casing had an adverse effect on taste, color, texture and overall acceptance while the product that contained egg white stuffed separately into the outer casing enclosing the chicken breast (double layer) improved these attributes. The developed double-layer sausage can last for at least 4 weeks of storage without quality deterioration of flavor-related compounds, such as fatty acids and nucleotides.

Despite the consumer's interest in sustainable fashion and the sustainable fashion phenomenon in the fashion business being a serious issue for our society, only a limited number of studies focus on investigating the consumer's perceived value of sustainable fashion. Although eco-friendly consumption has been recognized as one of the major concerns of the fashion business, environmentally prudent consumption has not yet transformed into purchasing behavior. However, fashion companies try to offer many seasonal collections due to the fast fashion trends to meet the consumer's needs. Such trends have brought about an enormous amount of apparel waste, negative environmental impacts and serious questions about social issues. In addition, today’s fashion consumers appear to have a narrow point of view on sustainable/green fashion that focuses mainly on organic clothing, and avoids or shows no interest in the wider scope of sustainability encompassing environmental, social and economic concerns (Cervellon, Hjerth, Richard, & Carey, 2010). Increasing the consumption of sustainable fashion necessitates research into how fashion consumers make purchasing decisions. Therefore, the information and value of sustainable fashion need to be diffused by fashion consumers. Hethom and Ulasewicz (2008) stated that the consumer acts as a major stakeholder with the greatest impact on the development of a sustainable industry. Furthermore, it is necessary to examine the consumer's purchase decision-making process for sustainable fashion products in academia. According to previous studies, the awareness of sustainability issues is also growing due to the environmental impacts. However, this awareness has not yet affected apparel purchasing behavior and actual purchasing (Kim & Damhorst, 1998). In order to affect the behavior of fashion consumers and expand sustainable fashion in today's marketplace, it is essential to identify the influencing factors in purchase decision-making process for sustainable fashion products.

The recent developments of artificial intelligence (AI), such as Google AlphaGo and IBM’s Watson, defeating human experts in public game venues, have instigated much surprise and awe among us. We are now genuinely curious about the true growth potential of AI into the future. Some of us are already imagining a darkening future where all human managerial positions can be replaced by machines leaving humans in a marginalized place after the point of singularity where machine intelligence achieves intellectual superiority over us and becomes a truly autonomous being. Likewise, the potential of AI has been overestimated or underestimated; rarely has it been addressed in the open context where marketing academics serve the role of an architect of future marketing AI, to provide valuable insights. We are enlightened about a possibility that the future of and marketing can greatly benefit from advanced forms of artificial intelligence. But how and where can this new technology be integrated in the every-day lives of consumers, to optimize business functions and create much higher levels of collective value for consumers, companies, and machines altogether? In this talk, we will discuss the following three points related to the AI and its potential future in the field of marketing. First, for consumers, we will discuss how marketing AI can help consumers to make better decisions about their eating, health, and consumption to enjoy better life, do more, and be happy. Second, for business, we will discuss the roles of AI and design a collaborative work process that can employ both human ingenuity and machine accuracy. Third, we suggest ethical issues related to marketing AI, delineating its boundaries and suggest governing policies to prevent potential danger spots. The purpose of talk is not to present a definitive answer, but to instigate an open discussion among the marketing academics, about the future of marketing, where AI will be an indispensable partner in the value creation process.

With the rapid development of digital technologies and the Internet, the boundaries between countries are shrinking and markets are becoming global (Oh et al., 2016). Simultaneously, cross-border online shopping is another trend that has spread across the world, and global e-commerce has now become a reality (Johnson et al., 2003; Moore, 2015). However, in prior studies related to eWOM, the national culture has received little attention among the numerous factors that could adjust the effect of eWOM (Christodoulides et al., 2012). In addition, in the real world, although individuals are frequently exposed to combined eWOM messages containing both positive and negative information about the same product, most previous studies on eWOM have focused on the one-sided eWOM valence. There are not many empirical studies on the influence of the two-sided eWOM valence on consumers’ persuasions. Thus, Study I examines the attitude effect of the two-sided eWOM valence from a cross-cultural perspective, particularly on the basis of the differences in thinking styles between the Easterners and Westerners. For this, we use a 2[Valence: positive/negative, negative/positive] x 2[Culture: East (South Korea), West (United States)] factorial design. To classify the culture, the thinking style was measured as a within-group variable. As a result, the interaction effect between valence and culture (nation) was significant. Specifically, in the East (South Korea), no significant difference existed in the changes in brand attitude depending on the two-sided eWOM valence, whereas brand attitude changes from a negative/positive presentation order in the West (United States) were significantly larger than the positive/negative presentation order. Study II demonstrates the mediated moderation effect of perceived cognition congruency in a cross-cultural setting for explaining the underlying mechanism. Drawing on the cognitive fit theory, we present a two-sided eWOM-consumers’ perceived cognition congruency proposition: the two-sided eWOM valence that matches the information processing order consumers habitually have would facilitate the favorable comprehension (reflected by perceived cognition congruency) and assessment (reflected by changes in brand attitude) of the reviews. As a result, the two-sided eWOM valence indirectly affects brand attitude changes by mediating perceived cognition congruency. This valence directly affects the brand attitude changes in the Westerner (United States) group, which has an analytical thinking style. However, the direct and indirect effects of two-sided eWOM valence on brand attitude changes are not significant in the Easterner (South Korea) group, which has a holistic thinking style. This examination might explain why differences in the changes in brand attitude between the Easterners and Westerners were revealed through the twosided eWOM valence, thus providing in-depth insights into consumer responses for the valence. This study expands the diversity of studies conducted on the characteristics of the two-sided eWOM. Furthermore, it is expected to provide a strategic direction and practical implications for two-sided eWOM-driven information management by organizations.

With the advent of technology, telecollaborative projects have emerged that enable learners to interact with native speakers of the target language, helping them to improve both language proficiency and intercultural communicative competence (ICC). One long-lasting project is Cultura, which has been successful because of its pedagogical qualities, such as a task-based approach and collaborative learning (Furstenberg & Levet, 2014). In this study, a Cultura-inspired project was designed to foster interaction between students of Korean as a foreign language (KFL) residing in Australia and students of English as a foreign language (EFL) residing in Korea. ‘Facebook’ was used for asynchronous communication, and ‘Kakao Talk’ and ‘Facebook’ messenger were used for synchronous online chat. In order to suggest a model for designing and practicing future intercultural projects, this study focused on demonstrating the procedures for each task and examining evidence of ICC in the students’ interactions, as represented in speech acts. This study also investigated the students’ experience of the project, using surveys and interviews. The findings suggest that the students showed limited knowledge of their target culture in a word-association task on Facebook, but that their online interactions provided evidence of ICC, for example curiosity, and reflection on their own culture. Most of the students enjoyed the project, especially the online chat. However, the participants mentioned issues, such as the limited number of online interactions and lack of in-class discussions. For future practice, the use of various modes of communication and the desirability of balancing proficiency levels in the target language are discussed.

A powder injection molding process is developed and optimized for piezoelectric PAN-PZT ceramics. Torque rheometer experiments are conducted to determine the optimal solids loading, and the rheological property of the feedstock is evaluated using a capillary rheometer. Appropriate debinding conditions are chosen using a thermal gravity analyzer, and the debound specimens are sintered using sintering conditions determined in a preliminary investigation. Piezoelectric performance measures, including the piezoelectric charge constant and dielectric constant, are measured to verify the developed process. The average values of the measured piezoelectric charge constant and dielectric constant are 455 pC/N and 1904, respectively. Powder injection molded piezoelectric ceramics produced by the optimized process show adequate piezoelectric performance compared to press-sintered piezoelectric ceramics.

Oxalic acid has a nematicidal activity against the root-knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita. High producer of oxalic acid was isolated, and then named as Aspergillus niger F22. Oxalic acid production was investigated under various temperatures from 20 – 33oC and rotational speeds in 5 L jar fermenters. Yield of oxalic acid increased with decreasing temperature. The highest yield was obtained at 23oC, showing the yield of oxalic acid of 8.7 g/L, whereas oxalic acid production was least at 33oC. At 20oC, the yield was lower than that of 23oC. At a rotational speed of 300 rpm, serious oxygen depletion was present from 48 - 72 h, resulting in low productivity of 26.2 mg /L·h. When a rotational speed was set at 600 rpm, dissolved oxygen tension was over 40% and oxalic acid production increased up to approximately 55%. Viscosity during the culture differed with temperatures. Viscosity increased with the increment of temperatures. When A. niger F22 was cultured at 23oC, viscosity was 810 cP, which was favorable for oxalic acid production.