This study investigated the applicability of a metabolomics approach based on ultra-performance liquid chromatography to quadrupole time-of-flight spectrometry (UPLC-QTOF/MS) combined with multivariate statistical analysis for the discrimination of gamma-irradiated soybeans. Domestically produced, non-irradiated organic soybeans were used as the control, while soybeans irradiated at absorbed doses of 1, 3, and 5 kGy were used as the experimental groups. A total of 51 metabolites were identified through UPLC-QTOF/MS analysis of soybean extracts. Partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) revealed that the metabolic profiles of non-irradiated and irradiated soybeans were significantly separated in both positive and negative ion modes (p<0.05). To identify the metabolites contributing to group discrimination, compounds satisfying both statistical significance (p<0.05) and variable importance in projection (VIP>0.5). Among these, histidine, fumaric acid, malonic acid, uric acid, adenosine, cis-aconitic acid, xanthine, dihydrodaidzein, genistein, kaempferol, and soyasaponin Be showed significant dose-dependent differences. They were therefore proposed as potential biomarkers for discrimination gamma-irradiated soybeans. These results indicate that UPLC-QTOF/MS-based metabolomic profiling combined with multivariate analysis is an effective analytical tool for the identification and authentication of gamma-irradiated soybeans.

Developing reliable models that capture the complexity of maternal– embryonic interactions and implantation is essential for deepening our understanding of early embryonic development as well as the underlying mechanisms of reproductive disorders. Conventional two-dimensional (2D) culture systems, however, fall short in accurately replicating the dynamic and multilayered in vivo microenvironment. In contrast, three-dimensional (3D) organoid technologies have recently emerged as a transformative approach, offering structurally and functionally relevant platforms that better reflect physiological conditions. This review highlights the latest strategies, innovations, and methodological advances in employing 3D organoids to model maternal–embryonic communication and implantation processes. It also outlines their growing potential in research applications and personalized medicine, particularly within the context of assisted reproductive technologies. Furthermore, the review discusses future directions for organoid-based studies from the endometrium, oviduct, ovary, testis, and epididymis have been established, their integration with gametes and embryos marks a new frontier. Cross-species work, especially your pioneering studies on endometrial organoids and lacunoids/cystoids, opens translational opportunities for understanding maternal–embryonic crosstalk, implantation biology, and fertility disorders. The review will discuss current advances, technical challenges, and future directions toward interconnected organoid systems (organoid-on-chip).

This study evaluated the immunogenicity of the Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine in a guinea pig model to refine preclinical assessment methods. 24 guinea pigs were divided into four groups for immunohistochemical, histopathological, and molecular analyses, including qRT-PCR and ELISA. The ELISA results revealed significant elevations in interleukin 2 (IL-2), interferon-gamma (IFN- ), and tuberculosis-specific antibodies in vaccinated guinea pigs, particularly γ notable after 6 weeks. Although lung cytokine levels remained unchanged, spleen gene expression showed significant differences in interleukin-17, interleukin-12, interleukin-1β, and C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 10 after 6 weeks. Immunohistochemistry revealed peak IL-2 expression at 8 weeks and significant IFN-γ and TNF-α expression at 6 weeks. This study confirmed the effectiveness of BCG vaccine in guinea pigs, providing crucial insights for future tuberculosis vaccine development and standardizing immune response indicators.

Human bitter taste-sensing type 2 receptors (hTAS2Rs) are expressed in various human tissues and may be associated with various cell signaling pathways, cell progression, and cell physiology in each tissue. hTAS2Rs can be a potential drug target because it is also expressed in some cancer cells. Xanthorrhizol (XNT) has various biological activities, such as anticancer, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant. XNT produces a bitter taste, but the specific hTAS2R activated is unknown, and the hTAS2R-mediated effect of XNT on cancer cells has not been studied. This study discovered the target receptor of XNT among 25 hTAS2Rs and confirmed the possibility of the hTAS2R-mediated inhibition of cancer cell proliferation. XNT activated only one receptor, hTAS2R38 (EC50=1.606±0.021 g/mL), and its activity was inhibited by probenecid, a hTAS2R38 antagonist. When HepG2 and MCF-7 cells were treated with XNT or phenylthiocarbamide (PTC), a known hTAS2R38 agonist, both chemicals inhibited cancer cell proliferation. XNT targets the human bitter taste receptor TAS2R38 and inhibits the proliferation of HepG2 and MCF-7 cells mediated by TAS2R38. This suggests that TAS2R38 may be a new target for disease treatment and a potential new factor for drug development.

Makgeolli’s fermentation characteristics and antioxidant and antimicrobial activities were investigated to examine the effect of Prunus mume extract addition. Makgeolli, with the addition of various levels (0, 1, 3, and 5%) of Prunus mume extract (PME), was brewed with fermenting agents, Ipguk and Nuruk. The alcohol content of all samples remarkably increased during the initial 3 days and then gradually increased up to over 18% by the end of fermentation (7 days for Nuruk and 15 days for Ipguk). Although the alcohol content was slightly reduced and acidity was increased with the concentration of PME, there was no other negative effect of PME on the fermentation of Makgeolli. The contents of total phenols and flavonoids for Ipguk samples were higher than those for Nuruk samples, and these values significantly increased at over 3% PME addition. As the PME content increased, the antioxidant activity increased for both Nuruk and Ipguk samples. Only Makgeolli with Ipguk had vigorous antimicrobial activity against E. coli and S. aureus at over 3% addition of PME. These results indicate that PME can be an effective natural additive for enhancing Makgeolli’s antioxidant and antimicrobial activities.

This study was performed to develop a Kdiet-index based on the definitions and characteristics of traditional Korean food. The Korean Food Pattern Index (Kdiet-index) for diseases was applied using dietary data from the 2017 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) and the association between Kdiet-index and metabolic disease was confirmed. The study subjects were 1,971 Korean adults aged >40, and the components were classified according to 14 criteria used to establish the Kdiet-index. Main ingredients up to the top 3 were designated using dish names, ingredients, and contents using KNHANES dietary data. Kdiet-index was classified using scores of ≤3 points, 4-7 points, and ≥8 points and total Kdietindex were calculated by summing dietary scores. Correlations between Kdiet-index and obesity, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and diabetes were analyzed. The odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for obesity were 0.531, 0.385~0.732 and for elevated cholesterol (≥240 mg/dL) indices were 0.471, 0.282~0.788, respectively, which showed a significant decreased in the risk for each disease for Kdiet-index of ≥8 points. This study confirms that metabolically related clinical results improved significantly as Kdiet-index increased and that higher Korean food pattern indices are associated with lower risks of metabolic disease

Amniotic membrane stem cells are considered as a good alternative to embryonic stem cells, but their use in clinical studies is still not common. Here, exosomes from canine amniotic membrane mesenchymal stem cells (cAmMSCexo) were used for dog sperm cryopreservation. Upon cryopreserved straws using cryoprotectant containing 0, 0.5, 1, or 2 μg/mL of cAmMSC-exo were thawed, motility and membrane integrity were analyzed. However, results showed no significant differences between the groups. We concluded that cAmMSC-exo with lower than 2 µg/mL have no effects on sperm cryopreservation, and further studies to get higher concentrations of cAmMSC-exo should be conducted for clinical application.

Ganjang and doenjang are known as major fermented soy-based foods in Koreans. Current investigations have proved that fermented soybean foods impart anti-cancer, anti-obesity, and anti-diabetic effects. The aim of this study was to evaluate the anti-cancer activities of commercialized soy food, Ganjang, as a function of aging period. The test groups were classified into four time periods-short (under 5 years, S group), mid (under 10 years, M group), long (under 15 years, L group), and eternal (over 15 years, E group). The anti-cancer effects of Ganjang were determined by cell cytotoxicity assay of three types of cancer cell lines and splenocyte proliferation assay. Besides these assays, we also analyzed NK cell activity for cancer immunotherapy. The results show that the anti-cancer effect increased in the S and M period aging groups for all three cancer cell lines. Interestingly, similar to the anti-cancer result, splenocyte proliferation and NK activity showed the highest effect in the S and M groups. In contrast, Japanese ganjang-treated (JG1, JG2) groups and E group showed significantly reduced splenocyte proliferation. Collectively, these results suggest that the short and middle periods of traditional fermented Ganjang might have potential anti-cancer activities.

Recent research on stem cell conditioned medium (CM) has been revealed that CM could influence on the embryo development when supplemented to in vitro culture medium. However, the optimal basal medium for CM production has not determined although it is the fundamental factor of CM. The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of human derived adipose stem cell CM (hASC-CM) with different basal medium on mice embryo development after parthenogenetic activation (PA). hASC-CM was collected from 2 kinds of serum free basal medium, DMEM and KSFM, respectively on day 5 from the culture of hASC isolated from human fat tissue. Intra-peritoneal injection of PMSG and hCG was conducted into 7-week-old ICR mice for superovulation. The oocytes were recovered from the oviductal ampulla, 18 h after hCG injection, and denuded using 0.1% hyaluronidase. PA of oocytes was conducted with KSOM media including strontium chloride. The parthenotes were in vitro cultured in 3 groups: 100% KSOM (Control), 75% KSOM + 25% DMEM or KSFM without FBS (DMEM or KSFM group) and 75% KSOM + 25% hASC-CM from DMEM or KSFM (DMEM-CM or KSFM-CM group). Cleavage rate was assessed after 2 days post IVC and blastocyst formation rate was evaluated after 6 days post IVC both using stereomicroscope. Total cell number of blastocysts was counted by Hoechst staining. 1way ANOVA from Graphpad prism 5 was used for statistical analysis and the values are presented as means ± standard error of mean. As a result, blastocyst formation rate of DMEM-CM group (16.09±3.32%, P<0.05) was significantly lower than control and DMEM group (34.43±2.89% and 34.49±5.34%, P<0.05) but cleavage rate and total cell number of blastocysts showed no significant difference among groups. In case of KSFM, there was no significant difference in cleavage rate, blastocyst formation rate and total cell number of blastocysts among the control, KSFM group and KSFM-CM group. The sort of basal medium used for the CM collection affected the development of parthenotes during in vitro culture differently. Therefore, further research should be conducted to find out the alternative basal medium of CM able to improve the embryo development. This research was supported by Nature Cell (#550-20170028), Cooperative Research Program of RDA (CCAR, #PJ013954022018), Research Institute for Veterinary Science and the BK21 plus program.

The objective of this study was to investigate taste profiles and the correlation of Doenjang soup solution prepared with three different temperatures (5, 25, 45℃) and using an electronic nose (e-nose), electronic tongue (e-tongue), and descriptive analyses by trained panelists. A total of 17sensory attributes were generated from the descriptive analyses for the Doenjang soup solution. There were significant difference among the samples in the cooked soybean flavor, the cooked soybean odor, the soy sauce odor, the sweet odor, the sweet taste, and the sweet aftertaste attributes. The intensities of these sensory attributes tended to increase as the serving temperature of the Doenjang soup solution increased. There were seven volatile compounds detected by the electronic nose: ethanol, propanal, 2-methylpropanal, ethyl acetate, 3-methylbutanal, and beta-pinene. The intensities of the volatile compounds increased as the temperature of the Doenjang soup solution increased. On the other hand, the intensities of the basic tastes by the e-tongue decreased as the temperature of the Doenjang soup solution increased. In conclusion, the e-nose, e-tongue, and descriptive analysis results showed different correlations depending on the temperature of the Doenjang soup solutions.

Functional foods for health are often consumed among adolescents. To investigate functional food usage, this study surveyed 326 students aged 14-16. 56.3% of the subjects answered that they were interested in health. More than 76% of the subjects thought themselves to be very healthy. Users of functional foods made up 56.7%, and among all types of functional food, probiotic supplements were taken most frequently, followed by nutritional supplements>red ginseng products>enzyme containing products. Most users of functional food got the information on functional food through family (71.3%). 50.3% of users experienced the effectiveness of the functional food when they supplemented. After use, repurchase intent was 58.1%. In order to investigate the relationship between academic stress and functional food usage, groups were classified as stressful (n=124), intermediate (n=122), and low stress (n=84) according to self-perception about stress. There was no significant difference in the intake of functional foods according to academic stress. However, in the intermediate stress group, academic stress index was improved in the users of functional foods. In conclusion, the results of this study can be used to develop functional foods in the future, possibly helping to prepare nutrition education materials, reducing academic stress among adolescents with middle stress.

The objective of this study was to compare physicochemical, microbial, and antioxidant properties of domestic and imported wheat kernels for bread making. Two domestic (JK1, 2) and three imported (ND, DNS, and CWRS) kernels were compared. Domestic kernels had higher moisture contents, and lower ash and protein contents (p<0.05). In grain characteristics, JK1 had 13.62% of damaged kernels, which was the highest among the samples (p<0.05). JK2 was similar to imported kernels in the ratio of sound kernels, foreign materials, and damaged kernels. Kernel size of JK1, 2 was larger than the imported kernels; therefore, kernels area and perimeter were higher by the image analyzer. Domestic kernels hid lower total aerobic counts the imported kernels (p<0.05). Domestic kernels and DNS had no yeast, while NS and CWRS had yeast in kernels. DNS (3.08 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/g) had the highest total polyphenol content (TPC), followed by JK1 (2.81 mg GAE/g). JK2 had the lowest amount of TPC as 2.26 mg GAE/g. Total flavonoid content (TFC) was the highest in DNS as 0.44 mg catechin equivalent (CE)/g and JK2 was the lowest as 0.12 mg CE/g. Domestic wheat kernels had lower protein content and lightness than the imported wheat kernels so that flour from domestic wheat kernels may have lower quality for baking.

배경/목적: 총담도 결석 혹은 종양으로 인한 담도 폐쇄에서 내시경적 접근이 어려운 경우, 경피경간담도배액술과 동시에 유두부 풍선확장술을 진행한 결과를 후향적으로 분석하여 시술의 안정성 및 간편화에 대해 알아보고자 하였다. 방법: 2012년부터 2015년까지 4년간 단일기관에서 종양 및 담도 결석으로 인한 담도 폐쇄를 진단받고 경피적 접근을 통해 시술한 환자 21명을 후향적으로 조사하였다. 결과: 21명 중 16명(76.2%)의 환자에서 경피경간담도배액 술과 동시에 유두부 풍선확장술을 진행하였고, 나머지 5명 (23.8%)은 담도배액술 5-8일 후에 시술을 진행하였다. 21명의 환자 중 19명(90.5%)에서 잔류 결석이나 재협착 없이 한 차례 만의 시술로 성공하였다. 나머지 두 명은 각각 2회, 3회 PBD 시행 후 결석 제거에 성공하였다. 결론: 내시경을 시행하지 못하는 환자들에 대한 경피적 접 근을 통한 시술은 안전하고 효과적이라고 할 수 있으며, 특별 한 금기가 되지 않는 한 경피경간담도배액술과 동시에 시행하 는 유두부 풍선확장술은 환자의 불편 및 시술 횟수를 감소시킬 수 있다.

Anthriscus sylvestris (L.) Hoffm. is a perennial herb found widely distributed in various regions of Korea, Europe, and New Zealand. The root of A. sylvestris have been extensively used in the treatment for antitussive, antipyretic, cough remedy in Oriental medicine, but the physiologically active function of the leaf of A. sylvestris is as yet unknown. In this study, we investigated the anti-cancer activity and the mechanism of cell death of water extracts of leaf of Anthriscus sylvestris (WELAS), on human FaDu hypopharyngeal squamous carcinoma cells. Our data showed that WELAS treatment inhibited cell viability in a concentration- and time-dependent manner. In addition, the treatment of WELAS markedly induced apoptosis in FaDu cells, as determined by the viability assay, DAPI stain and FACS analysis. WELAS also increased the proteolytic cleavage of procaspase-3, -9 and PARP (poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase). In addition, exposure to WELAS decreased the expression of Bcl-2 (an anti-apoptotic factor), but increased the expression of Bax (a pro-apoptotic factor), suggesting that mitochondria-dependent apoptotic pathways are mediated in WELAS-induced apoptosis. Taken together, these results indicate that water extracts of leaf of A. sylvestris inhibits cell growth and induces apoptosis via the mitochondrial-dependent apoptotic pathway in FaDu human hypopharyngeal squamous carcinoma cells. Therefore, we propose that the water extracts of leaf of A. sylvestris is a novel chemotherapeutic drug, having growth inhibitory properties and induction of apoptosis in human oral cancer cells.

Corporate association—which refers to consumers’ beliefs, knowledge, perceptions, and evaluations of a corporation—can affect consumers’ purchasing intentions. Corporate association consists of corporate ability association and corporate social responsibility association. Corporate ability association refers to a company’s product quality, corporate innovation, productivity, consumer orientation, and after service. Corporate social responsibility association, which refers to the social perspective a company has of its responsibility to society, can affect corporate image and consumers’ purchasing intentions. Eco-labeling for protecting and sustaining the environment is one of the important green marketing strategies in the fashion business that can influence corporate association and consumers’ purchasing intentions. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of consumers’ eco-label recognition on their corporate association and intentions to purchase eco-friendly fashion products. Questionnaires were distributed to consumers. The 263 usable questionnaires that were returned were analyzed by descriptive statistics, Cronbach’s alpha, factor analysis, regression analysis, and t-test. The results were as follows: There was a significant effect of eco-label recognition on corporate association (ability association and social responsibility association). Eco-label recognition and corporate association were found to significantly affect consumers’ purchasing intentions. Regarding the eco-friendly fashion product buying experience, there was no significant difference on corporate association and buying intention, but there was significant difference on eco-label recognition.