Hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) is a dioecious plant, although monoecious plants are bred in some cultivars for fiber or seed production. Recently, hemp has received attention for medicinal use with some cannabinoids, including cannabidiol. Self-fertilization for breeding inbred lines is difficult because of dioeciousness and anemophily in hemp. This experiment was conducted to develop a self-fertilization method by forming female flowers and seeds from male plants of dioecious hemp. To induce the formation of female flowers on male plants, 500 ㎎ L-1 of ethephon was sprayed on plants at soon, seven and fourteen days after primordia formation. The plant ratio of female flowers formation and the number of harvested seeds were increased by ethephon treatment. Female flowers of male plants have 5 stigmas in contrast to the dual stigma of female 1plants. Male plant seeds were lighter and smaller than those from female plants. Although the germination rate was lower than that of normal seeds from female plants, the seeds from male plants germinated to grow seedlings. Thus, we suggest that hemp plants should be treated with ethephon at soon after primordia formation to induce the formation of more female flowers on the male plants.

Alcoholic fatty liver disorder has become a frequent health concern worldwide. To investigate the effects of Brassica oleracea (B. oleracea) sprout extract (BOE), the present study was designed with alcoholic fatty liver in the rat. Initially, the effects of BOE on liver parameters were examined. Male rats were divided into five groups. The normal control group was fed the normal diet, and the BOE group was fed the high fat diet and ethanol with/without BOE for 4 weeks. After 4 weeks feeding period, rats were sacrificed and their livers and blood were used for fatty liver-related biomarkers analyses. As a result, BOE ameliorated fatty liver-related enzymes profiles in liver tissues and also reduced blood alcohol concentration in rat model. We demonstrated that BOE protected the high fat diet and alcohol-induced fatty liver in rat model. Furthermore, BOE increased detoxificative abilities against alcohol.

Isomaltooligosaccharides were prepared from puffed rice flour by a One-step processing method under different conditions, and their physicochemical properties were evaluated. Sample was prepared by allowing puffed rice flour to pass through a 50 mesh standard sieve and segregated into experimental groups (PR15-60, PR20-60, PR15-65, and PR20-65) according to the substrate concentrations (15%, 20% w/v) and reaction temperatures (60 , 65 ). Enzyme reaction of puffed rice flour and water mixture was performed for 0, 1, 6, 24, and 48 h using commercial enzymes (Maltogenic amylase, Promozyme D2 and Transglucosidase; amount: 0.5% (w/v) to obtain the corresponding isomaltooligosaccharides. The reducing sugar content, dextrose equivalent, and total soluble solids of the reactants increased with increasing reaction time. The carbohydrate composition and amount of isomaltooligosaccharides with degree of polymerization (DP) 2 to DP 7 in the rice flour were examined by HPLC with an evaporative light scattering detector. Because of the high carbohydrate composition, the PR20-65 group showed the highest isomaltooligosaccharide content after 6 h of reation (138.47 mg/mL). After 24 h of reaction, the amount of isomaltooligosaccharides (DP2-DP7) and the isomaltooligosaccharides/total carbohydrate ratio in this group were 135.00 mg/mL and 68.04%, respectively.

Sexual dimorphism is the most conspicuous difference between the sexes. This study examines possible sexual dimorphism and the relative growth patterns of morphometric characteristics in the marine medaka, Oryzias dancena for their potential to help differentiate between males and females of this species. The von Bertalanffy growth parameters estimated by a non-linear regression method were L∞=30.2 mm, K=3.22/year, and τ0=-0.05. All 18 characteristics measured showed a difference between males and females from 70 days after hatching. Each of these characteristics were significantly different between sexes (ANCOVA, P<0.05), and the ratio of standard length between sexes showed that males were larger than females for all five morphometric measurements. Fin length measurements were taken for 21 distances of anal fin and 7 distances of dorsal fin between landmarks. There were all differences for all dorsal fin rays between the males and the females and there is significant difference in 70 days after their hatch when the sexual dimorphism is presented. The significant difference (P<0.05) in fin ray for male and female was more greatly seen as they grow. Male marine medaka showed more rapid growth than females, with longer length, dorsal fins and anal fins. Differences in these characteristics will be useful during experiments when it is necessary to differentiate between sexes of marine medaka.

This report describes the sex differentiation of the Korean rose bitterling, Rhodeus uyekii, from hatching to 170 days post-hatch (DPH) in relation to total length (TL), body weight (BW), and integral water temperature (IWT). The growth curve of TL from just hatching to 83 DPH was 5.144e0.045t (R² = 0.961; t, time), and that of BW was 2.398e0.086t (R² = 0.725). Primordial germ cells (PGCs) were observed at 17 DPH (7.9 mm TL, 3.74 mg BW, 374°C IWT), and thereafter began to protrude into the peritoneal cavity. At 21 DPH (9.2±0.14 mm TL, 4.8±0.07 mg BW, 462°C IWT), some PGCs contained condensed chromatin and oocyte were observed in meiotic prophase. In contrast to the ovaries, which grew gradually after sexual differentiation, testes began multiplying at 25 DPH (10.1 mm TL, 5.42 mg BW, 550°C IWT), when testicular differentiation was first identified, and multiplied continuously thereafter. At 33 DPH (11.2 mm TL, 10.5 mg BW, 726°C IWT), the developing testes contained spermatogonia that exhibited mitotic activity. No spermatocyte or sperm cell was observed until 83 DPH (18.9 TL, 48.2 mg BW, 1,826°C IWT). At 170 DPH (32.5 mm TL, 270.1 mg BW, 3,740°C IWT), which was the end point of this study, the mature ovaries showed germinal vesicle breakdown, while the mature testes contained observable spermatocytes and sperm cells. These results allow us to identify the sex differentiation type of the Korean rose bitterling as differentiated gonochoristic.