Inflammation is a protective mechanism against pathogens, but if maintained continuously, it destroys tissue structures. Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans is a gram-negative, facultative anaerobic bacterium often found in severe periodontitis. A. actinomycetemcomitans invades epithelial cells and triggers inflammatory response in the immune cells. In this study, we investigated the effect of water-soluble rosehip extract on A. actinomycetemcomitansinduced inflammatory responses. A human monocytic cell line (THP-1) was differentiated to macrophages by phorbol 12-mystristate 13-acetate treatment. The cytotoxic effect of extract was determined using the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2- yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay. The effects of extract on bacterial growth were examined by measuring the optical densities using a spectrophotometer. THP-1-derived macrophages were infected A. actinomycetemcomitans after extract treatment, and culture supernatants were analyzed for cytokine production using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Protein expression was measured by western blotting. Extract was not toxic to THP-1- derived macrophages. A. actinomycetemcomitans growth was inhibited by 1% extract. The extract suppressed A. actinomycetemcomitans-induced tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin (IL)-1β, and IL-8 production. It also decreased mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAP kinase) and nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) phosphorylation. Moreover, the extract inhibited the expression of inflammasome components, including nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-like receptor pyrin domain-containing protein 3, Absent in Melanoma 2, and apoptosis associated speck-like protein containing a CARD. And cysteine-aspartic proteases-1 and IL-1β expression were decreased by the extract. In summary, extract suppressed A. actinomycetemcomitans growth and decreased inflammatory cytokine production by inhibiting activation of MAP kinase, NF-κB, and inflammasome signaling. Rosehip extract could be effective in the treatment of periodontal inflammation induced by A. actinomycetemcomitans infection.

In this study, we investigated the effect of solid culture medium on the production of cordycepin in Cordyceps militaris. The regression equation was expressed as follows: Y1= 755.3-58.6625X1+4.79432E-14X2-46.6625X3-5.66269E-14X1X2- 0.025X1X3+1.62475E-14X2X3-160.6625X1 2+0.0125X2 2-206.9625X3 2, where, Y represents the value of cordycepin content (μg/g), X1 corresponds to the weight of M. alternatus in solid culture medium (g/bottle), X2 to the water content of the solid culture medium (%), and X3 to the culture period (day). The solid culture medium was optimized using the response surface methodology, and the optimal medium composition was as follows: the weight of M. alternatus in solid culture medium and water content were 16.2% and 100.7% (20.14 mL water/20 g solid culture medium), respectively, with a culture period of 39 days. Under these conditions, the cordycepin content of the fruiting bodies reached 150.0 μg/g (actual value). The supplementation of M. alternatus in solid culture for improved cordycepin content of C. militaris seems to be a promising alternative to wild and solid cultivation.

Roridin E, produced by Podostroma cornu-damae, is a mycotoxin with anticancer activity. To increase the content of roridin E, submerged culture conditions were optimized using response surface methodology. Three factors, namely, medium initial pH, incubation time and agitation speed were optimized using a Box–Behnken design. The optimum submerged culture conditions to increase the content of roridin E included a medium with an initial pH of 4.0, an incubation time of 12.90 days, and an agitation speed of 63.03 rpm. The roridin E content in the submerged culture, under the aforementioned conditions, was 40.26 mg/L. The findings of this study can help lower the current price of roridin E and promote its related research.

본 연구는 국내 자생하는 진달래속(Rhododendron) 종들의 종자 휴면유형 분류 및 발아특성 구명을 목표로 하였다. 진달래속 종들의 배는 형태적휴면(MD)이 없는 완전히 발달된 직선(linear) 형태였으며, 만병초 및 꼬리진달래 종자는 탈리 시점에 이미 휴면이 없는 것으로 밝혀졌다. 반면에 털진달래 종자는 population 수준에서 부분적으로 생리적휴면(PD)을 가지고 있는 것으로 나타났다. 털진달래의 이러한 생리적휴면 (PD)은 외생 지베렐린(GA3) 1,000mg･L-1 처리를 통해 타파될 수 있었다. 그러나 4℃에서의 저온층적처리는 털진달래 종자 휴면 타파에 효과가 없는 것으로 나타났다. 종합적으로 판단 했을 때, 진달래속(Rhododendron) 종들의 적정 발아 환경조 건은 광조건･25/15℃(만병초), 암조건･20/10℃(꼬리진달래), 광 조건･25/15℃(털진달래)로 확인된다. 진달래속(Rhododendron) 에서의 종간 차이(interspecific variation)로 인해 모든 종이 종자 휴면유형 또는 발아특성에서 구별이 되었다. 본 연구는 국내 자생하는 진달래속(Rhododendron) 종들의 생리･생태 특성을 이해하는 데 이용될 수 있을 것이다.

The choice of the culture medium is an important factor for the mass production of mycelia in submerged cultures. The influence of liquid medium on the mycelial dry weight of Paecilomyces tenuipes was investigated in this study. The regression equation is expressed as Y=-1292.94187+17.78612X1+18.92425X2+2.11464X3-0.019375X1X2-0.006276X1X3+0.008177X2X3- 0.070169X1 2-0.292175X2 2-0.008818X3 2, where Y represents the value of the mycelial dry weight (g/L), X1 is the particle size of wood sawdust in liquid medium (mesh), X2 is the concentration of the wood sawdust in liquid medium, and X3 is incubation time (h). The medium was optimized using a response surface methodology, and the optimal medium contained 30 g of wood sawdust (140 mesh), 20 g of glucose, and 10 g/L of peptone. Under these conditions, the mycelial dry weight reached 38.1 g/L (actual value). The culture medium containing wood sawdust is simple and easy to use, highly efficient, and eco-friendly, and its effectiveness in large preparations of P. tenuipes mycelia with low material costs has been demonstrated.

포인세티아(Euphorbia pulcherrima Willd. Ex Klotzch) ‘Flame’ 은 국립원예특작과학원에서 2015년에 육성한 품종이다. ‘Flame’ 은 단일감응기간이 짧은 적색 포엽의 깊은 열편을 가진 ‘Eckalba’ 와 밝은 적색의 포엽을 가진 국내 육성 품종 ‘Candle Light’를 2013년에 교배하여 획득한 실생 계통을 선발 육성하였다. 2014 년부터 2015년까지 생육 및 개화 특성, 균일성에 대하여 1, 2차 특성검정을 실시하였으며, 2015년에 3차 특성검정을 실시하여 최종선발한 후 직무육성품종심의회에 상정하여 ‘Flame’으로 명명하였다. ‘Flame’ 품종의 포엽은 밝은 적색을 띠며 열편이 깊다. 초장과 초폭은 중간이나 적심하지 않아도 많은 분지가 발생하여 풍성한 수형을 이룬다. 단일처리후 약 7.5주가 경과하면 완전히 착색되어 출하가 가능하다. 이 품종은 2018년 1월 24일에 국립 종자원에 품종등록(등록번호 6921호)되었다.

농촌진흥청 국립원예특작과학원에서는 2017년에 절화 수명이 길고 수량이 많은 연한 핑크색의 스프레이 장미 ‘Pink Shine’ 을 육성하였다. 모본은 ‘Fire Flash’로 붉은 복색의 스프레이 장미이며, 부본은 ‘Pink Charm’으로 핑크색이며 흰가루병에 강하다. 이 두 품종을 2012년 인공교배하여 이듬해인 2013년 1월에 파종, 9cm 포트 묘에 정식하여 관능 평가 실시 후 도태시켜 39개체 의 실생을 얻었다. 이후 화형, 화색, 꽃잎 수, 절화수량, 병 저항성 등을 고려하여 2015년까지 5개체를 선발하여 유사 품종인 ‘Missha’를 대조로 하여 2017년까지 3차에 걸친 특성 검정을 실시하였다. 그 결과 가장 우수한 ‘원교 D1-325’를 최종선발하여 ‘Pink Shine’으로 명명 후 2018년 3월 22일 품종보호출원(제 2018-212호)하여 2019년 6월 21일에 품종보호권(제7786호)이 등록되었다. 화색은 연한 핑크색(RHS, R36D)이며 잎의 색은 녹색(RHS, G137A)으로 대조 품종 ‘Missha’와 동일하였다. 꽃잎 수는 67.8개, 화폭 5.4cm, 화고 3.2cm로 ‘Missha’보다 컸으며 평방미터당 연간 절화수량은 131본, 절화수명은 15.3일로 ‘Missha’ 보다 우수하였다.

Influenza A virus (IAV) causes respiratory disease in birds and mammals, including pigs and humans. Infection by IAV in pigs increases not only economic losses in the swine industry but also the emergence of novel IAV variants via gene reassortment, which is important due to the susceptibility of both birds and humans to IAV. This study provides serological data obtained during a study to detect IAV infections in pigs in the Republic of Korea during 2018 and 2019. A total of 1,559 samples were collected from 74 domestic pig farms. Hemagglutination inhibition (HI) assays were performed using the A/Swine/Korea/25-13(H1N1), A/Swine/Korea/E102 (H1N2), and A/Swine/Korea/Cy10/2007 (H3N2) viruses as antigens. The HI assay results showed that 266 of the 1,559 samples were seropositive (17.0%). Among these, H1N1, H1N2, and H3N2 comprised 7.3% (114), 6.0% (93), and 8.8% (137) of the 1,559 samples, respectively. Co-infections of H1N1/H1N2, H1N1/H3N2, H1N2/H3N2 and H1N1/H1N2/H3N2 were observed in 2.1% (31), 1.5% (23), 1.5% (24), and 0.8% (13) of the 1,559 samples, respectively. Interestingly, IAV infections were detected in all nine provinces of the country.

In this study, the effects of heat-moisture treatment (boiling or steaming for 45 min) prior to hot air drying (70 o C for 8 h) on water activity (Aw), moisture (MC), Brix, color, and texture of dried sweet potato slices were investigated to identify the best pretreatment condition for producing dried sweet potato with the best eating quality. Dried sweet potato slices pretreated by boiling (BL) showed significantly lower Aw, MC, and hardness while Brix was significantly higher than with steaming (ST) treatment. There were no significant differences for the color, springiness, cohesiveness, gumminess, and brittleness indexes. At 8 h drying, the Aw, MC, Brix, and hardness of the BL and ST samples were 0.81 and 0.82, 19.71% and 25.53%, 53.80% and 49.40%, and 20.49 kg/cm 2 and 31.98 kg/ cm 2 , respectively. This information will be useful for manufacturers in the production of dried sweet potato slices. These findings provide evidence of the feasibility of heat-moisture treatments in the production of dried sweet potato.

In this study, thirty-eight lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains were isolated from Kimchi (Korean traditional fermented food) and screened for probiotic characterization in a series of in vitro tests, including resistance to low pH, tolerance to bile salts, hydrophobicity, antibiotic resistance and antioxidant activity. Firstly, twenty-two strains displayed survival in acid and bile passage conditions. Secondly, the strains KCCP 11349 and KCCP 11356 were observed to have high cell surface hydrophobicity with 63.9 and 98.8 %, respectively. Functionality of these potential probiotic isolates was supported by their antioxidant activity. Altogether, the strain KCCP 11349 showed characteristics similar to or even better than reference strain Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG. Finally, 16S rRNA gene sequencing was conducted to identify potential probiotic strains and KCCP 11349 was identified as Lactobacillus plantarum subsp. plantarum.

Two different casting speeds of 60 and 80mm/min are adopted to determine the effect of casting speed on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Al-Mg-Si/Al hybrid material prepared by duo-casting. The obtained hybrid material has a uniform and straight macro-interface between the pure Al side and the Al-Mg-Si alloy side at both casting speeds. When the casting speed is increased to 80mm/min, the size of primary α phases in Al-Mg-Si alloy decreases, without change of shape. Although the Al-Mg-Si alloy produced at higher casting speed of 80mm/min shows much higher ultimate tensile strength (UTS) and 0.2 % proof stress and lower elongation, along with higher bending strength compared to the case of the 60mm/min in casting speed, the tensile properties and bending strength of the hybrid material, which are similar to those of pure Al, are the same regardless of the increase of casting speed. Despite the different casting speeds, deformation and fracturing in hybrid materials are observed only on the pure Al side. This indicates that the macro-interface is well-bonded, allowing it to endure tensile and bending deformation in all hybrid materials.

In this study, three kinds of metal chills such as SS400, AC4CH and brass, with different thicknesses of 40 ~ 80 mm, were applied for low pressure casting of Al-Si alloy to control cooling rate. The microstructural characteristics with increasing cooling rate were represented using factors including D1, D2, size of primary α phases and shape factor and size of eutectic Si. The tensile properties were investigated and additionally analyzed based on the microstructural characteristics. As the cooling rate increased, D1, D2, and sizes of primary α phases and eutectic Si apparently decreased and the shape factor of eutectic Si increased to over 0.8. The ultimate tensile strength (UTS) and yield strength (YS) increased with decreasing D1, D2, and size of primary α phases, while elongation increased with decreasing size of eutectic Si and concurrently increasing shape factor of eutectic Si. This indicated that the primary α phases and eutectic Si in Al-Si alloy were refined with increasing cooling rate, resulting in improvement of UTS and YS without sacrificing elongation. After the tensile test, preferential deformation of primary α phases was observed in the Al-Si alloy produced at higher cooling rates of more than 0.1 K/s.

Melon thrips, Thrips palmi Karny (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) is a worldwide polyphagous pest. The management of this pest have mainly relied on chemical agents. However, the overuse is harmful to the environment and results in insects resistance. Therefore, alternative eco-friendly control methods that have different mode of action, such as biological control, are necessary to overcome the current issue. In this study, we isolated entomopathogenic fungi from Korean soil, and characterized them via morphological and molecular techniques and pathogenicity assay against Tenebrio molitor larvae. The isolated fungi were screened for virulence against T. palmi under laboratory conditions and the results were used to establish a thrips-pathogenic fungal library. The highly virulent isolates were selected and further characterized for optimum culture conditions and application as biopesticide in the field.

A species of Beauveria bassiana is widely used for biological pest management in many countries. Many efforts have been given to figure out the clear fungal mode of action to enhance the insecticidal activity. Homologous recombination (knock-out) or hairpin RNA (knock-down) is popularly used in fungal gene function study, but gene cloning and generation of knock-out or -down mutants takes long time or temporarily knock-downed. Here in this work, we used previously generated egfp-expressing B. bassiana strain (Bb-egfp #3) and integrated dsegfp to the Bb-egfp #3 using a protoplast integration method. This work suggests that protoplast integration with dsRNA possibly generate significantly reduced gene expression in B. bassiana and the reduction is quite stable over generations which provide easy of functional study for fungal mode of action.