Cordyceps militaris mycelium extracts containing high amounts of cordycepin were evaluated in vitro for their antiinflammatory and tumor cell growth-inhibitory activities. All extracts dose dependently inhibited the increased production of inflammatory mediators including reactive oxygen species (ROS), nitric oxide (NO), and β-hexosaminidase in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated inflammatory cells. All extracts were evaluated for anti-proliferative activity against normal RBL-2H3 cells and diverse types of cancer cell lines, including HCT, MC5-7, U-87MG, AGS, and A549 cells. The extract showed the strongest growth inhibition (IC50 = 28.13 μg/mL) relative to vehicle-treated control cells against fibrosarcoma (MC5-7). We have demonstrated anti-inflammatory activity of C. militaris via inhibition of NO, ROS production, and β-hexosaminidase release in activated cells. C. militaris mycelium extract was also evaluated mechanistically and found to exert six types of anti-cancer activity, confirming its pharmacological potential. Our study suggests C. militaris use as a potential source of anti-inflammatory and anticancer agents. C. militaris may also be considered a functional food.

Plant-derived compounds have been reported to possess anti-inflammatory abilities contained inhibited β-hexosaminidase, ROS and NO release. Essential oils are natural volatile complex compounds that are characterized by a strong scent and produced by aromatic plants as various plant-derived compounds. The essential oil extracted from Zanthoxylum coreanum Nakai (Z. coreanum) has various functional properties; however, little information is available regarding its anti-allergic inflammatory. A total of 17 compounds were detected in Z. coreanum oil, and the main component was estragole (50.86%). The tested Z. coreanum oil and estragole statistically inhibited the release of β-hexosaminidase induced by antigen stimulation in RBL-2H3 cells. This Z. coreanum oil and estragole may stimulate the secretion of active oxygen (ROS) or nitric oxide (NO) which are considered to involved in anti-inflammatory events. Moreover, it is suggested that Z. coreanum oil and estragole may negatively control the production of SNARE proteins (VAMP7) at the tran-scriptional and translational levels in common. These results demonstrate that Z. coreanum oil and its major component, estragole, possess potent anti-inflammatory abilities that are coupled with antioxidant properties.

Gabion was unfavorable to the reconstruction of the landscape caused by limit plant growth because of commonly filled with stone. Therefore, gabion was need substrate as possible to plant growth for harmonize with the surroundings and prevent of erosion. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of substrates based growing media containing wood meal on physical property (moisture content), chemical properties (organic matter and C/N ratio), plant cover and plant species in gabion. The substrates were composed of soil and soil mixed with growing media (9:1 (v/v) and 4:1 (v/v)). The growing media was prepared by mixing the basic materials, such as peat, perlite, with the specific materials, such as steam treated wood meal (Quercus mongolica) and NH4NO3. Field experiments were carried out on a damaged forest slope, South Korea, from January to November. The results, the moisture content of soil mixed with growing media (4:1, v/v) was maintained high value than others during the thermophilic period and consistently high organic matter which at an advantage for long term plant growth for 11 months. We were confirmed soil mixed with growing media (4:1, v/v) was an advantage to keep C/N ratio for plant growth period. The growing media based substrates has high plant cover percentage and advantage to plant growth for long term. And to conclude, in general the project is a success considering that few repairs or follow up will be necessary. This technique offers a solution to create a better harmony with the surrounding environment.

Yield and fruit size are under the control of many interacting factors and crop failures can be caused by climatic extremes and poor flowering. Nevertheless, this study has shown that mulching, through the creation of improved soil properties and reduced environmental stress, has the potential to substantially increase A. arguta fruit size and yield. The mulched site performed better than the site without mulch in reducing soil temperature, increasing soil moisture and controlling available phosphorus. Moreover, mulching improved both yield and fruit size. In light of this, we hope that the results of our research will provide useful information for the cultivation of A. arguta in South Korea. However, it also seems necessary to conduct research on the use of different types of mulch and on the economic profitability of mulch in the future.

Soil properties are important environmental conditions affecting fruit quality and yield in new cultivars of Actinidia arguta. The yield of three A. arguta cultivars (cv. Autumn Sense, cv. Chungsan, and cv. Greenball) from Wonju city, South Korea was investigated from 2017 to 2019 and the relationships to soil properties are discussed. The yield of cv. Autumn Sense, cv. Chungsan, and cv. Greenball fruits ranged from 6.8 to 24.5, 14.0 to 29.0, and 10.5 to 38.5 kg/vine. cv. Autumn Sense had the highest soil organic matter content and soil C/N ratio over the three-year period. The yield of A. arguta fruits was positively correlated with soil C/N ratio and could be described by a power model (y = axb), suggesting that soil C/N ratio plays an important role in limiting the bioavailability and bioaccumulation of organic matter in A. arguta fruits. In addition, C/N ratio in the soil was influenced by the soil available phosphate. However, the threshold of the C/N ratio for A. arguta fruit differed according to cultivar, and especially the lowest threshold was observed in cv. Chungsan. Therefore, the application of an appropriate C/N ratio depending on the cultivar is required for improved fruit yield. Our results present the soil properties required to increase the yield of the new A. arguta cultivars in South Korea.

The road slopes have various problems such as the risk of landslides and soil erosion, and research on stabilizing road slopes using plant greening has attracted the most attention. The overall objective of this research was to evaluate the effects of woody biomass based growing media on plant germination in a slope area. Moreover, we tried to find out what physicochemical properties of growing media affect plant germination on a slope. For experiment, we tested soil, soil mixed with growing media (1:1, w/w), and growing media by itself. Physical and chemical properties were evaluated after a month from the date of treatment application to the experimental slope site. Plant germination of Lespedeza cyrtobotrya was measured for plant growth evaluation. Physicochemical properties were altered by mixing the soil with growing media. Particularly, moisture content, organic matter and C/N ratio were significantly changed in soils mixed with growing media compared to soil alone. We confirmed that plant germination was high when growing media was mixed with the soil. There was a significant linear relationship between particle density and pH of all media tested and plant germination. In addition, in the same trend, the principal component analysis confirmed that the particle density and pH was positive component for plant germination rate, and the C/N ratio was found to be the negative component for plant germination. In conclusion, the particle density, pH and C/N ratio of the soil mixed with growing media was considered effective for plant germination in the experimental slope site, and this wood-based growing media provides a means to improve the harmony between the slope and the surrounding environment.

Light is an important factor for cordycepin production in Cordyceps militaris. We investigated the effects of different light-emitting diode (LED) conditions including various LED wavelengths and their combinations on cordycepin production in Cordyceps militaris cultivated in submerged culture. The results of our study showed that the combinations of LED wavelengths were more beneficial than single LED sources for cordycepin production. Among the three tested wavelength combinations, the greatest effects for cordycepin production were observed for the red:blue light combination at the wavelength ratio of 5:5 or 3:7. The optimal culture conditions were 19.2278 h/day of illumination time; 9.19497 g/50 mL of glucose content in the media; and 53.112 h of cultivation time. Our model predicted a maximum yield of 2860.01 μg/mL cordycepin. Finally, to verify the calculated maximum, we performed experiments in the culture media representing the obtained optimum combination and the cordycepin yield of 2412.5 μg/mL.

Environmental conditions are important in increasing the fruit sugar content and productivity of the new cultivar Autumn Sense of Actinidia arguta. We analyzed various soil properties at experimental sites in South Korea. A Pearson’s correlation analysis was performed between the soil properties and sugar content or productivity of Autumn Sense. Further, a decision tree was used to determine the optimal soil conditions. The difference in the fruit size, sugar content, and productivity of Autumn Sense across sites was significant, confirming the effects of soil properties. The decision tree analysis showed that a soil C/N ratio of over 11.49 predicted a sugar content of more than 7°Bx at harvest time, and soil electrical capacity below 131.83 μS/cm predicted productivity more than 50 kg/vine at harvest time. Our results present the soil conditions required to increase the sugar content or productivity of Autumn Sense, a new A. arguta cultivar in South Korea.

The Fe-based self-fluxing alloy powders and TiC particles were ball-milled and subsequently compacted and sintered at various temperatures, resulting in the TiC particle-reinforced Fe self-fluxing alloy hybrid composite, and the microstructure and micro-hardness were investigated. The initial Fe-based self-fluxing alloy powders and TiC particles showed the spherical shape with a mean size of approximately 80 and the irregular shape of less than 5 , respectively. After ball-milling at 800 rpm for 5 h, the powder mixture of Fe-based self-fluxing alloy powders and TiC particles formed into the agglomerated powders with the size of approximately 10 that was composed of the nanosized TiC particles and nano-sized alloy particles. The TiC particle-reinforced Fe-based self-fluxing alloy hybrid composite sintered at 1173 K revealed a much denser microstructure and higher micro-hardness than that sintered at 1073 K and 1273 K.