Historically the rise of contagious diseases and epidemics has been mainly caused by lack of food safety knowledge and negligence in personal hygiene. Food poisoning is an example that have been caused by lack of proper knowledge in food safety and personal hygiene. In order to prove this hypothesis, our team distributed a total of 225 survey sheets to middle school students. Survey questions mainly focused on the students' food safety knowledge, personal hygiene and regular dietary habits. We used 12 items to determine the stages of change in teenagers and divided into 3 stages of change: precontemplation stage (poor problem recognition), contemplation and preparation stage (some problem recognition), and action stage. Out of the 225 students surveyed, 105(47.1%) were male and 118 (52.9%) were female; 44.0% were in 7th grade, 33.0% in 8th grade, and 24.0% in 9th grade. In stages of change model, 3.8% were classified in pre-contemplation stage, 31.1% in preparation stage, and 65.1% in action stage. The awareness of the significance of food safety has a strong positive correlation with the stages of change food safety behavior (P<0.001), which suggesting our questionnaires regarding stages of change and food safety behavior were quite credential. Stages of change were also correlated with the consumption of unsanitary foods (P<0.01) and with the frequent hand washing (P<0.05). The stages of change showed a positive correlation with the food safety knowledge level (P<0.05). The four questions (out of 10) with the least percentage of correct answers were questions about the meaning of Norovirus (23.6%), the meaning of expiration date (43.6%), the meaning of food poisoning (36.4%), and proper food-handling (36.0%).

Zinc oxide nanoparticles (nZnO) are used in a various range, including ceramic manufacture, photocatalysis, UV filters, and the food industry. However, little is known about the effects of micro- and nano-particles during mouse embryo organogenesis. To determine whether ZnO affects size-dependent anomalies during embryonic organogenesis, mouse embryos were cultured for two days with 300 ug/ml micro ZnO (mZnO;80±25 μm) and nZnO (< 100 nm) and the developmental changes were then investigated. Quantity of Zn by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry analysis, and expression patterns of various antioxidant enzymes in the embryos were investigated. Embryos exposed to mZnO or nZnO exhibited severe retardation of growth and development. In embryos exposed to mZnO and nZnO, yolk sac diameter, crown-rump length, and head length were significantly diminished. The morphological parameters, including yolk sac circulation, allantois, flexion, heart, hindbrain, midbrain, forebrain, otic system, optic system, branchial bars, maxillary process, mandibular process, olfactory system, caudal neural tube, forelimb, hindlimb, and somites in mZnO and nZnO-treated groups were significantly decreased. Zn absorption of the nZnO-treated group was significantly higher than that of the mZnO-treated group. Significantly decreased levels of CuZn-SOD, Mn-SOD, cGPx, and PHGPx mRNA were observed in the ZnO-treated group. In addition, antioxidant enzyme mRNA expressions of the nZnO group were significantly diminished, less than those of the mZnO treated group. These findings indicate that 300 ug/ml ZnO showed abnormality and nZnO may have a more severe effect than mZnO in developing embryos.

Porcine Circovirus Type2 (PCV2), a single-stranded DNA virus associated with Postweaning multisystemic wasting syndrome(PMWS) of swine, has two major open reading frames, ORF1 and ORF2. The genomic size and molecular weight of ORF2 is respectively 699bp, 28kDa. ORF2 encodes the capsid protein (structural protein) that has type-specific epitopes and is very immunogenic and associated with the induction of neutralizing antibodies, suggesting its potential use in diagnostic assays as well as vaccine development. For efficient production of the capsid proteins, we expressed the PCV2 ORF2 gene with baculovirus in the insect cells. In this study, PCV2 ORF2 was appropriately ligated into the baculovirus transfer vector, pBacPAK9 and pB9-Acpol19-110-EK. Sf21 cells were transfected with a mixture of the purified recombinant transfer vector and bAcGOZA. We generated and purified recombinant viruses containing PCV2 ORF2, and named rAc-B9-PCV2ORF2 and rAc-B9-19-110-EK-PCV2ORF2, respectively. Expression levels of capsid fusion proteins with a partial polyhedrin region of AcNPV more increased than recombinant proteins from non-fusion expressed. Also, expression efficiency increased over time and differed at MOI. As a results, fusion expression of porcine circovirus type2 ORF2 using baculovirus could be utilized as an alternative expression method to produce recombinant antigen against PCV2 infection and is worthy of further investigation.

To find an alternative for synthetic pesticides, methanol extract from plant samples were tested for their insecticidal activity against insect. The extract of Asiasarum sieboldii had strongly insecticidal activity against Plutella xylostella. Roots of A. sieboldii were extracted with methanol, and the concentrated extract was partitioned with n-hexane, ethylacetate, n-buthanol and H2O. The highest activity was shown in the hexane fraction. Activity-guided fractionation led to the isolation of two amides from hexane fration through the repeated silica gel column chromatographic separations. From the interpretation of spectropic data including NMR, MS, IR, the chemical structures of compounds were determined as dodeca-2E,4E,8Z,10Z-tetraenoic acid isobutylamide and dodeca-2E,4E,8Z, 10E-tetraenoic acid isobutylamide. These compounds showed insecticidal activity on P. xylostella by 96.7% at 100ppm. The liquid formulation controlled on cabbage effectively. The extract and compounds from A. sieboldii showed insecticidal activity against Nilaparvata lugens. As a naturally occurring pesticide, A. sieboldii could be useful as a new botanic insecticide.

Reported herein is the use of mycotized millet grains with entomopathogenic fungi applied to soil to control western flower thrips (WFT), Franklinella occidentalis. The majority of mature larvae move from plants to soil for pupation. Mycotized millet grains with Beauveria bassiana ERL1170 and Metarhizium anisopliae ERL1171 were mixed in the upper layer of potting soil containing a blossomed marigold as a banker plant. B. bassiana GHA, a commercial isolate, served as a control. One week post applicaion 3 mated WFT females were added per plant. At 8 wks post infestation WFT mortality in pots with ERL1170 and ERL1171 treatments was 90% and 81% respectively compared to GHA with 15% mortality. Plants in the two ERL treatments had lower levels of damage. The insecticidal activities were positively associated with the fungal soil colonization. No significant release of fungal innoculum from the potting medium was observed. These results suggest that soil applications of entomopathogenic fungi can reduce WFT populations to significantly low levels by targeting pupae. Application timing and the life cycle of WFT are important considerations.

This study was conducted to investigate the occurrence patterns of sporadic and major insect pests in Gyeonggi Province Area. Lantern fly (Lycorma delicatula) damages to reduce the yield and quality of commodities in grape orchard begin to emergence from the early May, and new adults have appeared from the middle July lay eggs till the early November. The hatchability of eggs laid in last year was influenced by the extremely low temperature (especially -20℃ and under) in over-wintering season. Sweet-potato whitefly (Bemisia tabaci) is widely distributed in the southern part of gyeonggi province, and the biotype of most regional populations is Q-type except the partial Goyang area population (B-type). Potato tuber moth (Phthorimaea operculella) had been reported firstly in 2009 expanded and was confirmed in the northern part of gyeonggi province in 2010. Citrus flatid planthopper (Metcalfa pruinosa), becoming an issue in Korea, have been detected apple (Paju), pear (Yongin, paju), grape (Paju) orchards in 2010.

Polyhedrin is the major component of the nuclear viral occlusions produced during replication of the baculovirus Autographa californica multicapsid nuclear polyhedrosis virus (AcMNPV). To enhance the expression level of baculovirus vector system, we constructed several fusion vectors using various fragments of the polyhedrin. The polyhedrin fragments were genetically fused to the enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP) under the control of polyhedrin promoter, and their expressions were analyzed in Sf21 insect cells. Expression of the fusion protein was identified by SDS-PAGE and Western blot analysis using anti-GFP and anti-Polyhedrin. The expression level of eGFP was markedly increased by the fusion of partial polyhedrin. Also, the fluorescence intensity of fusion proteins was higher than that of non-fusion protein. Confocal laser scanning microscopy demonstrated that fusion proteins were localized to the cytosol or nucleus of insect cells. In additional, the glycoprotein E2 (gE2) of classical swine fever virus (CSFV) expressed by the these vectors was dramatically increased and its immunogenicity was proofed using experimental animal guinea pigs that were immunized with the partial polyhedrin containing gE2. This study provides a new option for the higher expression of useful foreign recombinant protein by using the partial polyhedrin in BEVS.

The two-spotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae Koch, is an economically important pest of crops of plant grown in the field or greenhouse worldwide. It has recently become a serious problem because of the continuous use of acaricides resulting in resistance among spider mite population. Thus, there is a need to find alternative control measures to suppress spider mite populations. In this study, we report the screening result of pathogenic fungi for the control of spider mite. Initial screenings were performed using 352 isolates of putative pathogenic fungi from Korea soils. As results, 11 strains of acaropathogenic fungi were isolated from 8 cadavers of spider mite supporting fungal conidiation. These isolated were identified as four isolates of Beauveria bassiana (6, 2R-3-3-1, 2R-4-5, 2R-4-7), two isolates of Metarhizium anisopliae (4-2, 2-2), one isolate of Clonostachys rosea 5-2, one isolate of Lecanicillium attenuatum 4-1, one isolate of Pochonia suchlasporia 2R-3-1, one isolate of Aspergillus flavus 7 and one isolate of Isaria lilacinus 2R-4-6 by microscopic examination and genetic sequencing of the ITS region. Based on the screening results, eleven isolates were tested for their virulence against adult spider mites. All fungal isolates were pathogenic to spider mite but mortality varied with isolates. These acaropathogenic fungi may be useful to develop eco-friendly acaricide to control two-spotted spider mite.

The purpose of this study was to analyze and compare the effect of resistance exercise and balance exercise on proprioception and WOMAC index of patients with degenerative knee osteoarthritis. A total of 40 subjects participated in this study. The subjects were diagnosed with degenerative knee osteoarthritis and all were more than 60 years old. They were divided into three groups. Group Ⅰ(n=8) was trained with resistance exercise, Group Ⅱ(n=6) was trained with balance exercise and GroupⅢ(n=6) was trained with range of motion as a control. The results of this study were as follows. It was significantly indicated that the resistance exercise group and balance exercise group elicited error-reduction on proprioception goal-angle (p<.05). There was a statistically significant difference on proprioception between resistance exercise group and control(range of motion) group. There was a statistically significant reduction on WOMAC index between resistance exercise group and balance exercise group (p<.05) and on the WOMAC index between resistance exercise group and range of motion group(p<.05). In conclusion, resistance exercise and balance exercise are effective on degenerative knee osteoarthritis and resistance exercise is the most effective for improving proprioception and WOMAC index. More research on the intervention according to the degree of degenerative knee osteoarthritis is needed.

The purpose of this study was to determine the difference of the pinch strength according to testing posture(standing and sitting) and elbow flexion degree(0。, 45。, 90。and 135。). Forty normal young adults(male: 20, female: 20, mean age: 22.68±2.91 years) participated in this study. The methods of this study were categorized as follows: 1) One set of measurement was performed on four elbow flexion degrees(0。, 45。, 90。and 135。) in two testing postures(standing and sitting) and all subjects were measured for 3 sets testing procedures in every experimental sessions. 2) Pinch strength in various elbow flexion degree was measured after 2 min rest time, and then each test set was repeatedly performed with 5 min rest time to prevent fatigue of muscles involved in the elbow joint. The result was obtained as follow: 1) In standing posture, there was statistically significant difference at 0。and 45。, 0。and 90。, 0。and 135。, 45。and 90。, 45。and 135。, 90。and 135。. 2) In sitting posture, there was statistically significant difference at 0。and 45。, 0。and 90。, 0。and 135。, 45。and 90。, 45。and 135。, 90。and 135。. 3) Statistically, there was no significant difference between standing and sitting posture in same elbow flexion degree, however pinch strength in standing posture was higher than sitting posture.

Mamestra brassicae nucleopolyhedrovirus-K1 (MabrNPV-K1) was isolated from naturally infected Mamestra brassicae (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) larvae in Korea. Restriction endonuclease fragment analysis using EcoRI, PstI, and BamHI estimated that the total genome size of MabrNPV-K1 is about 150 Kb. The full genome sequences of MabrNPV-K1 were determined, analyzed and compared to those of other baculoviruses. The MabrNPV-K1 genome consisted of 152,471 bp and had an overall G + C contents of 39.90 %. Computer-assisted analysis predicted 159 open reading frames (ORFs) of 150 nucleotides or greater that showed minimal overlap. The gene content and arrangement in MabrNPV-K1 were most similar to those of Mamestra configurata nucleopolyhedrovirus-B (MacoNPV-B), including three polh, p10 and lef-8 gene homologues. The MabrNPV-K1 genome contains four homologous repeat regions (hr1,hr2,hr3,hr4) that account for 3.1% of the genome. The genomic positions of MabrNPV-K1 regions hr1– hr4 are conserved with the genomic positions of MacoNPV-B hr1–hr4. This indicates that the position of MabrNPV–K1 hrs is conserved with regard to both the upstream and downstream genes. Given that hrs share higher similarity within a virus strain than any hrs between species, this evidence further indicates that hrs play a fundamental role in viral life cycle and replication process appears to be tightly linked to functional conservation. The dot plot analysis, percent identity of the gene homologues and a phylogenetic analysis suggested that MabrNPV-K1 is a Group II NPV that is closely related to MacoNPV but with a distinct genomic organization.

Classical swine fever virus (CSFV) envelope glycoprotein E2 is the main target for inducing neutralizing antibodies and protective immunity in swine. Here, we report a novel strategy forthe large-scale production of a CSFV E2 subunit vaccine that demonstrates a high immunogenic capability in the larvae of a baculovirus-infected silkworm, Bombyx mori. We constructed a recombinant B. mori nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV) that expressed recombinant polyhedra together with the N-terminal 179 amino acids of CSFV E2 (CSFV E2ΔC). BmNPV-E2ΔC-infected silkworm larvae expressed an approximately 44-kDa fusion protein that was detected using both anti-polyhedrin and anti-CSFV E2 antibodies. Electron and confocal microscopy both demonstrated that the recombinant polyhedra were morphologically normal and contained CSFV E2ΔC. The CSFV E2ΔC antigen produced in BmNPV-E2ΔC-infected silkworm larvae reached 0.68 mg per ml of hemolymph and 0.53 mg per larva at 6 days post-infection. Mice that were immunized with the granule form of recombinant polyhedra or the soluble form of the fusion protein elicited CSFV E2 antibodies, which indicated that the recombinant polyhedra carrying CSFV E2ΔC were immunogenic. The virus neutralization test showed that the serum from mice that were treated with recombinant polyhedra or the soluble form of the fusion protein contained significant levels of virus neutralization activity. These results demonstrate that the present strategy can be used for the large-scale production of CSFV E2 antigen and that the recombinant polyhedra containing CSFV E2ΔC as a granule antigen can be used as a potential subunit vaccine against CSFV.

Large amounts of genetically modified (GM) grains, including maize, cotton and soybean, have been imported to Korea for food, feed and processing (FFP). To evaluatethe environmental impacts, particularly on non-target insects, of FFP GM grains of unknown source, it is a prerequisite to identify Cry protein types in the test GM grains and to establish proper risk assessment protocols. Imported GM maize grains were randomly obtained and their Cry toxins were analyzed by ELISA using Cry1A, Cry1F, and Cry3A antibodies. Since all tested GM maize grains contained Cry1A, Tenebrio molitor, a non-lepidopteran species, was selected as a non-target insect species. A domestic maize strain was used as a non-GM control, which did not show any differences in major nutritional composition from the GM maize grain. Slightly increased survival rate and head capsule width of T. molitor larvae were observed when reared on GM maize powder, demonstrating no sub-chronic adverse effects of GM maize on T. molitor larvae. Head capsule width of T. molitor neonate increased steadily from hatch to 70-day-old, regardless of being fed Bt or non-Bt maize. ELISA test using Cry1A-antibody revealed that concentration of Cry1A protein slowly increased in the whole body of T. molitor from 0 to 50 post-feeding days when the insects were fed GM maize but rapidly decreased within 5 days when Bt maize-fed larvae were transferred to non-Bt maize, showing that the Cry toxin is not accumulated inside the body of T. molitor once the exposure source is removed. In addition, no Cry protein was detected in the hemolymph of the larvae reared on Bt maize, suggesting little possibility of Cry toxin exposure to higher tropic level. Taken together, the imported GM-maize grains is not likely to cause any side impacts on non-target insect T. molitor.

Although the greater part of Coccinellidae are all pure entomophagous insects (Weber and Lundgren, 2009), many species of phytophagous, mycophagous and polyphagous ladybirds have been reported in worldwide. This study was conducted to investigate the morphological characteristics of mouthparts of mycophagous ladybird, I. koebelei, comparison with aphidophagous species, Propylea japonica (Coccinellidae: Coccidellini), and developmental charicteristics of I. koebelei at different temperature under incubation conditions. Four species of powdery mildews that I. koebelei fed were observed, and their host plants were pear tree, persimmon tree, red pepper and cucumber. The most conspicuous elements of I. koebelei mouthparts is the mandible. The distal incisor region of the mandible of both species is formed by two teeth, giving them a bifid apex. and the terminal teeth spilt near top and the ventral tooth is smaller than the dorsal one. but the ventral tooth of I. koebelei divided into a row of additional teeth was different with P. japonica. Furthermore, while the inner mandibular cutting edge of P. japonica is smooth, that of I. koebelei is covered in minute teeth, forming a comb. These structures are presumed to help I. koebelei rake fungal spores growing on leaf surface. The developmental period and reproduction ability of were significantly different according to temperature conditions when I. koebelei was fed the powdery mildew from cucumber leaves. The optimum temperature for I. koebelei rearing was from 23 to 25℃ that is the similar condition of cucumber powdery mildew occurrence.