Helicobacter pylori are known as a causative agent of gastritis, gastric duodenum and peptic ulcer, and gastric cancer, and multiple drug use is associated with various side effects in patients. The discovery of antibacterial substances against H. pylori from Korean resource plants is an important substitute for antibiotics. 52 species of Korean resource plants were collected and extracted with 50% ethanol, and antibacterial activity against H. pylori was measured using the disk diffusion method. The toxicity of plant extracts to human gastric adenocarcinoma(AGS) cells was measured by MTT assay, and the level of IL-8 secreted when gastric epithelial cells were inoculated with H. pylori was measured. As a result of measuring the antibacterial activity of H. pylori, antibacterial activity was confirmed in 38 plant extracts. The plant species with the strongest antibacterial activity were Chrysanthemum indicum, Rheum rhabarbarum, Patrinia scabiosaefolia and Petasites japonicus. C. indicum was not cytotoxic to H. pyroli-infected AGS cells and showed anti-inflammatory effects. This study's results can be used to develop healthy, functional foods and medical materials.
This study focused on the genomic analysis of Anopheles kleini and Anopheles pullus, both vectors of vivax malaria within the Anopheles Hyrcanus group. Using Illumina NovaSeq600 and Oxford Nanopore platforms, we identified 126 and 116 contigs, along with 40,420 and 32,749 genes from An. kleini and An. pullus, respectively. The assembled genome sizes were 282 Mb for An. kleini and 247 Mb for An. pullus, which are within a similar range to the sizes previously estimated by digital PCR (249 Mb and 226 Mb). We are currently also estimating the genome sizes of other Anopheles spp. and manually curating key genes determining vectorial capacity.
Parasites have co-evolved with their host for a long period of time, resulting in unique parasitic systems tailored to each host species. This makes them suitable for research on physiological function control through cross-species molecules like miRNA. The body louse, a vector of bacterial pathogens, is particularly valuable as a model insect due to their frequent feeding on human blood, which results in the continuous ingestion of human-derived miRNA and injection of salivary gland-derived miRNA into the human body. In this study, we conducted miRNA sequencing on body lice with mixed stages and identified 105 miRNAs, including 50 novel miRNAs. Sequence analysis of human miRNAs remaining in body lice and the functional analysis of these miRNAs are in progress.
Six mosquito species in the Anopheles Hyrcanus group are known as vectors responsible for transmitting vivax malaria in South Korea. In this study, seasonal dynamics of Anopheles Hyrcanus group species and knockdown resistance (kdr) mutations in malaria-endemic sites, Paju and Gimpo, were monitored over two years. In August 2023, all six species were observed simultaneously in one of the Paju collecting sites, and kdr mutations were newly identified in all species except Anopheles kleini. Although Anopheles pullus was revealed as a relatively resistant species among five species populations without kdr mutation via bioassays, there were no critical differences in the voltage-sensitive sodium channel sequence. These findings suggest variability in pyrethroid resistance mechanisms among Anopheles Hyrcanus Group species.
Tomatoes in greenhouse are a widely cultivated horticultural crop worldwide, accounting for high production and production value. When greenhouse ventilation is minimized during low temperature periods, CO2 enrichment is often used to increase tomato photosynthetic rate and yield. Plant-induced electrical signal (PIES) can be used as a technology to monitor changes in the biological response of crops due to environmental changes by using the principle of measuring the resistance value, or impedance, within the crop. This study was conducted to investigate the relationship between tomato growth data, vital response, and PIES resulting from CO2 enrichment in greenhouse tomatoes. The growth of tomato treated with CO2 enrichment in the morning was significantly better in all items except stem diameter compared to the control, and PIES values were also higher. The growth of tomato continuously applied with CO2 was better in the treatment groups than control, and there was no significant difference in chlorophyll fluorescence and photosynthesis. However, PIES and SPAD values were higher in the CO2 treatment group than control. CO2 enrichment have a direct relationship with PIES, growth increased, and transpiration increased due to the increased leaf area, resulting in increased water absorption, which appears to be reflected in PIES, which measures vascular impedance. Through this, this study suggests that PIES can be used to monitor crops due to environmental changes, and that PIES is a useful method for non-destructively and continuously monitoring changes of crops.
The effect of the surrounding vegetation on the seed germination and growth of mountain-cultivated ginseng (MCG, Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer) was investigated. Seed germination rate and growth were tested for allelopathy effects on four forest tree species after treatment with fallen leaves and leaf extracts. In the case of soil treatment through fallen leaves and crushed leaves, the germination rate was lower in the Quercus myrsinifolia treatments, and the average germination time was slower when Chamaecyparis obtusa was treated. In the case of Pinus densiflora and Quercus variabilis, which are used in most of the MCG cultivation areas, they did not have a significant effect on seed germination. In the fallen leaves treatments, the stem showed a tendency to lengthen. The hot water extract treatment showed a higher germination percentage than the cold water extract treatment. The extract treatment showed a deficient germination percentage of some MCG seeds. However, in the case of the treatments except for this, the germination percentage was similar to that of the control treatment. However, the Mean Germination Time, germination rate, and germination value were faster and higher than the control treatment. As a result of calculating the allelopathic index (AI) of MCG according to the extract treatment of 4 species, most had a negative effect on germination, and P. densiflora and Q. variabilis extracts showed the most significant effect. The ginsenoside content was higher in the fallen leaves treatment than in the control. The above results will help select and manage MCG plantations.
Although ethylformate and phosphine fumigants are widely used for pest quarantine, studies related to their mechanism of action and metabolic physiological changes in Drosophila models are still unclear. In this study, we investigated how key metabolites altered by fumigants and cold treatment are associated with and affect insect physiology by comparative metabolome analysis. Fumigant treatment significantly altered cytochrome P450 and glutathione metabolites involved in the detoxification mechanism and showed lower expression of PGF2α involved in the immune response compared to the control. Additionally, most of the metabolites functioned in metabolic pathways related to the biosynthesis of amino acids, nucleotides and cofactors.
모기는 감염병을 매개하는 종으로 전염병 확산 억제를 위해서는 개체수의 감시와 정확한 예측이 필요하다. 본 연구에서는 모기 개체수 및 기상 및 현장 자료를 활용해 모기 개체수 머신러닝 모델을 개발하였다. 모기 개체수는 디지털 모기 측정기(Digital Mosquito Monitoring System, DMS)의 2015 년~2022년의 5월~10월의 자료를 활용하였다. 기상 자료는 기온, 강수량, 풍속, 습도를 사용하였으며, 현장 조사 자료는 현장을 명목척도와 서열척도로 나누어 기록하여, 명목 척도의 경우 원핫 인코딩으 로 변환해 수치화하여 사용하였다. 분석에 사용된 머신러닝 모델은 Artificial Neural Network, Random Forest, Gradient Boosting Machine, Support Vector Machine이며 성능지표로 R2, RMSE를 사용하였다. 연구 결과, Gradient Boosting 모델이 R2 0.4, RMSE 22.45로 가장 좋은 성능을 나타냈다. 현장 조사 자료 를 분석에 활용하였을 때 R2는 증가하였고, RMSE는 감소하였다. 본 연구 결과 모기 개체수에 현장 조사 자료가 예측 정확도를 향상시킬 수 있음을 확인하였다.
To improve the quality of jujube (Zizyphus jujuba Miller var. hoonensis), which is a fruit of health functional, the effect of polyphenol preparation treatment on the fruit characteristics of two cultivars (cv. Bokjo and cv. Sangwang) of jujube was investigated. There was no difference in the height and breast diameter of jujubes tested between the polyphenol treatments and non treatment. Jujube trees treated with polyphenol preparation produced significantly more fruit than untreated in both cultivars. In cvultivar of Bokjo, the polyphenol preparation treatment increased the fruit's fresh weight and dry weight more than two times, respectively, compared to the untreated treatment. Polyphenol preparation tr eatments also changed the leaf characteristics of jujube trees. In the polyphenol-treated trees, leaf thickness tended to be thickest at the top and thinnest at the bottom. Polyphenol preparation treated jujube trees showed no difference in chlorophyll content. Moisture content was slightly higher in the untreatment than in the treatments. Visually, the polyphenol preparation treatment had a dark green color. Jujubes treated with polyphenol preparations showed differences in polyphenol content in fruits. The polyphenol content in both peel and flesh of the treatments were much higher than that of the untreatment. Reducing sugar was contained more in the peel than in the flesh and was higher in the untreatment than in the polyphenol preparation treatments. Treatment with polyphenol preparation showed differences in fruit appearance. As described above, it was found that the treatment of polyphenol preparation changed the leaves, fruit shapes and components of jujube trees. In particular, jujubes treated with polyphenol preparations are expected to contribute significantly to eco-friendly and highly functional jujube cultivation, as they appear to produce many fruits and increase the content of polyphenols and sugars.
The slaughter of livestock is inevitably required to obtain meat products from livestock. Since slaughter means pain and death for animals, reducing the pain and distress of animals during slaughter is very important from a perspective of animal welfare based on the principle of respect for life. Generally, two stunning methods, CO2 stunning and electrical stunning, are used for slaughter. When the carotid arteries of the lungs are cut off for bleeding, the bronchial tubes are also severed. To determine the degree of blood inflow into the lungs through the severed bronchial tubes, the prevalence rates of pulmonary diseases and pulmonary congestion in slaughtered pigs were analyzed. In this study, the prevalence of pneumonia was 24.9% in Slaughterhouse A using the gas method, but it was decreased by about 10% to 15.7% and 12.6%, respectively, in Slaughterhouses B and C using the electric method. On the other hand, the prevalence of pulmonary congestion in Slaughterhouses A, B, and C was 4.24%, 14.10% and 16.40%, respectively. In other words, the prevalence of pulmonary congestion was higher by about 10% in the groups of pigs slaughtered by the electric method (Slaughterhouses B and C) than in the group of pigs slaughtered by the gas method (Slaughterhouse A). These results indicate that blood inflow into the pulmonary alveoli led to a diagnosis of pulmonary congestion instead of pneumonia in some pigs with pneumonia. In short, it was found that about 10% of pigs stunned by the electric method were not in a state of complete unconsciousness but in a partially conscious state during slaughter. It is suggested that slaughterhouses should be equipped with gas stunning equipment instead of applying the electric method due to lower costs.
Zanthoxylum schinifolium is an important short-term income species and a useful resource with various physiological activities. In this study, the distribution and characteristics of seed-rich individuals of Z. schinifolium trees were analyzed. Seed-rich individuals were selected from three regions in consideration of seed yield and growth factors. As a result of the leaf shape survey, the length and width of the leaves were shorter in Jeju and longer in Geochang and Hadong compared to the average. There were very large differences in seed production between individuals within the Z. schinifolium group. The amount of seeds was higher in Jeju and Hadong than in Geochang. As a result of analyzing the correlation between the seven morphological characteristics, the overall correlation coefficient was in the range of -0.910 ~ 0.933. Total seed mass (TS) and seed weight (SW) showed a strong positive (+) correlation. As a result of the principal component analysis, it was classified into two categories. The first principal component showed a high correlation in the order of total seed weight and total seed amount, and the second principal component showed a high correlation with seed length and tree height. As a result of comparing seed production for two years, it was found that there was no change in production. As a result of examining seed viability using the TTC method, all of Z. schinifolium seeds showed more than 90% vitality. It is judged that the above results will serve as basic data for the development of a new variety of seed-rich Z. schinifolium trees.
선박의 건조공정 중 강재의 절단과 곡 가공, 용접에 있어 화염의 사용은 필수적이다. 현재 조선소의 강재 절단과 가공 과정에서 는 아세틸렌이 화염 연료로 가장 많이 사용되고 있지만, 폭발 사고의 위험성과 상대적으로 적은 발열량의 한계로 최근에는 프로판 연료의 활용이 증가하고 있다. 하지만 프로판 연료는 상대적으로 가공 속도가 느리고, 가공 시 슬래그의 발생빈도가 높아 품질이 저하된다. 대체 연료로써 프로필렌이 주목받으며 가공 속도와 품질향상에 대한 기대가 증가하고 있다. 프로필렌은 발열량이 우수한 연료로 강재 가공 간 생산성과 가공 품질의 우수성을 갖추고 있다. 이에 본 논문에서는 프로판, 프로필렌 화염을 이용한 철판 가공 시 각 연료의 연소 특성을 분 석 및 비교하였다. 프로필렌 화염을 이용한 철판 가공 시 배출되는 온실가스와 유해가스를 프로판 연료의 배출량과 비교하여 저감효과를 실험적으로 확인하였다. 또한, 가공 연료에 따른 입열량이 선박용 강재의 기계적 강도 변화에 미치는 영향을 알아보기 위해 열 분포실험과 인장시험을 수행하였다. 실험 결과로, 대체 연료인 프로필렌을 사용할 때 프로판 연료에 비해 온도분포가 고르게 나타났다. 기계적 강도 실 험 결과로 인장강도의 저하는 관찰되지 않았으나, 변형률은 감소하는 경향을 보였다. 본 연구의 결과를 바탕으로 향후 실제 조선소의 강재 가공 및 절단과정에 적용하였을 때, 발생하는 문제점에 대한 분석 및 보완연구를 수행할 예정이다.