• Animal Bioscience
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.570-583
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• 2023

Objective: Fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) play critical roles in embryo development, and immune responses to infectious diseases. In this study, to investigate the roles of FGFs, we performed genome-wide identification, expression, and functional analyses of FGF family members in chickens. Methods: Chicken FGFs genes were identified and analyzed by using bioinformatics approach. Expression profiles and Hierarchical cluster analysis of the FGFs genes in different chicken tissues were obtained from the genome-wide RNA-seq. Results: A total of 20 FGF genes were identified in the chicken genome, which were classified into seven distinct groups (A-F) in the phylogenetic tree. Gene structure analysis revealed that members of the same clade had the same or similar exon-intron structure. Chromosome mapping suggested that FGF genes were widely dispersed across the chicken genome and were located on chromosomes 1, 4-6, 9-10, 13, 15, 28, and Z. In addition, the interactions among FGF proteins and between FGFs and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) proteins are limited, indicating that the remaining functions of FGF proteins should be further investigated in chickens. Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes pathway analysis showed that FGF gene interacts with MAPK genes and are involved in stimulating signaling pathway and regulating immune responses. Furthermore, this study identified 15 differentially expressed genes (DEG) in 21 different growth stages during early chicken embryo development. RNA-sequencing data identified the DEG of FGFs on 1- and 3-days post infection in two indigenous Ri chicken lines infected with the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus H5N1 (HPAIV). Finally, all the genes examined through quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and RNA-Seq analyses showed similar responses to HPAIV infection in indigenous Ri chicken lines (R² = 0.92-0.95, p<0.01). Conclusion: This study provides significant insights into the potential functions of FGFs in chickens, including the regulation of MAPK signaling pathways and the immune response of chickens to HPAIV infections.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.61 no.1
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• pp.33-41
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• 2023

The discovery of new antimalarial drugs can be developed using asynchronized Plasmodium berghei malaria parasites in vivo in mice. Studies on a particular stage are also required to assess the effectiveness and mode of action of drugs. In this report, we used endoperoxide 6-(1,2,6,7-tetraoxaspiro [7.11] nonadec-4-yl) hexan-1-ol (N-251) as a model antimalarial compound on P. chabaudi parasites. We examined the antimalarial effect of N-251 against ring-stage- and trophozoite-stage-rich P. chabaudi parasites and asynchronized P. berghei parasites using the 4-day suppressive test. The ED₅₀ values were 27, 22, and 22 mg/kg, respectively, and the antimalarial activity of N-251 was verified in both rodent malaria parasites. To assess the stage-specific effect of N-251 in vivo, we evaluated the change of parasitemia and distribution of parasite stages using ring-stage- and trophozoite-stage-rich P. chabaudi parasites with one-day drug administration for one life cycle. We discovered that the parasitemias decreased after 13 and 9 hours post-treatment in the ring-stage- and trophozoite-stage-rich groups, respectively. Additionally, in the ring-stage-rich N-251 treated group, the ring-stage parasites hindered trophozoite parasite development. For the trophozoite-stage-rich N-251 treated group, the distribution of the trophozoite stage was maintained without a change in parasitemia until 9 hours. Because of these findings, it can be concluded that N-251 suppressed the trophozoite stage but not the ring stage. We report for the first time that N-251 specifically suppresses the trophozoite stage using P. chabaudi in mice. The results show that P. chabaudi is a reliable model for the characterization of stage-specific antimalarial effects.

• Journal of Veterinary Science
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.44.1-44.17
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• 2023

Background: Antibiotic resistance is a significant public health concern around the globe. Antimicrobial peptides exhibit broad-spectrum and efficient antibacterial activity with an added advantage of low drug resistance. The higher water content and 3D network structure of the hydrogels are beneficial for maintaining antimicrobial peptide activity and help to prevent degradation. The antimicrobial peptide released from hydrogels also hasten the local wound healing by promoting epithelial tissue regeneration and granulation tissue formation. Objective: This study aimed at developing sodium alginate based hydrogel loaded with a novel antimicrobial peptide Chol-37(F34-R) and to investigate the characteristics in vitro and in vivo as an alternative antibacterial wound dressing to treat infectious wounds. Methods: Hydrogels were developed and optimized by varying the concentrations of crosslinkers and subjected to various characterization tests like cross-sectional morphology, swelling index, percent water contents, water retention ratio, drug release and antibacterial activity in vitro, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa infected wound mice model in vivo. Results: The results indicated that the hydrogel C proved superior in terms of cross-sectional morphology having uniformly sized interconnected pores, a good swelling index, with the capacity to retain a higher quantity of water. Furthermore, the optimized hydrogel has been found to exert a significant antimicrobial activity against bacteria and was also found to prevent bacterial infiltration into the wound site due to forming an impermeable barrier between the wound bed and external environment. The optimized hydrogel was found to significantly hasten skin regeneration in animal models when compared to other treatments in addition to strong inhibitory effect on the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines (interleukin-1β and tumor necrosis factor-α). Conclusions: Our results suggest that sodium alginate -based hydrogels loaded with Chol-37(F34-R) hold the potential to be used as an alternative to conventional antibiotics in treating infectious skin wounds.

• The Korean Journal of Mycology
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.263-274
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• 2022

Lentinula edodes is an important commercial mushroom and there have been several reports of viral infections in L. edodes. Two mycoviruses (LeV-HKB and LeNSRV1) were detected in Sanbaekhyang (NIFoS 2778) and Taehyanggo (NIFoS 4317), the sawdust-cultivated commercial strains. The vertical transmission rates of the viruses were investigated by detecting the viruses in 80 monokaryotic strains derived from basidiospores isolated from the fruiting bodies of each strain. Most of the monokaryotic strains were infected with the virus and the two viruses showed different levels of meiotic stability, with LeV-HKB showing higher meiotic stability than LeNSRV1. Therefore, it seems that the vertical transmission mechanism of mycoviruses is different depending on the virus species. We also examined the mycelial growth rate of the monokaryotic strains and compared the growth rate according to virus infection status. Although there was no statistically significant correlation between viral infection and mycelial growth rate, we found that the average growth rate was reduced by additional virus infection. We expect our data to contribute to a greater understanding of the mechanism of the vertical transmission of mycoviruses, and promoting breeding using virus-free monokaryotic strains.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.433-441
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• 2022

Bacterial phytopathogen Pectobacterium causes soft rot disease in several vegetable crops globally, resulting in heavy agricultural losses at both the pre and postharvest stages. The present work was carried out to screen Kimchi cabbage genetic resources conserved at the National Agrobiodiversity Center, Rural Development Administration, Korea, for resistance against the soft rot pathogen Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum KACC 21701 over a period of three years (from 2020 to 2022). Infection of the phytopathogen was carried out at four-leaf stage and for each accession, twenty-five plants per germplasm were infected with KACC 21701. Kimchi cabbage cultivars Wangmatbaechu, Seoulbaechu, and CR Kiyoshi were used as control. Seven-days post-infection, the Disease Index (DI) values were manually recorded from zero to four, zero matched perfectly heathy plants and four completely dead plants. The 682 accessions of Kimchi cabbage exhibited varying degrees of disease resistance to KACC 21701 and thirty accessions, exhibiting a DI≤2, were considered for replication studies. During the replication studies, four landrace germplasms (IT102883, IT120036, IT120044, and IT120048) and one cultivar(IT187919) were confirmed to be moderately susceptible to KACC 21701. Results of the preliminary screening as well as replication studies were documented for the all the 682 germplasms. Addition of such information to the passport data of stored germplasms might serve as potential bio-resource for future breeders and researchers to develop resistant varieties or study the mechanisms involved in resistance of plants to such phytopathogen.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.550-555
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• 2022

Perilla plant is a special crop that is used as oilseed and food in Korea. Root lesion nematodes have caused great damage to perilla plants, so for effective management of root lesion nematodes, it is necessary to understand their ecology in perilla. In this study, we investigated the effect of temperature in the development of Pratylenchus penetrans (Pp) and Pratylenchus vulnus (Pv) when the nematodes infected the perilla plant. To estimate the effect of temperature, we assessed the reproduction factor (RF); final population/initial population(Pf/Pi) of these two nematode species. We used perilla plants as inoculated hosts and investigated the density of nematodes at 10 weeks after inoculation. As a result, the RF of Pp was highest at 20℃ (0.41 (1st test), 2.2 (2nd test)) followed by 25, 30, and 15℃. The RF of Pv was highest at 30℃(9.84 (1st test), 31.39 (2nd test)), followed by 25, 20, and 15℃. Comparing the RF by temperature between Pp and Pv, Pv was higher than Pp at all temperatures used in the test. This study showed the optimal development temperature of Pp was 20-25℃ and Pv was 30℃, respectively.

• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.119-129
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• 2022

Cervical cytology has been widely used as a screening tool for cervical cancer. However, Human papillomavirus (HPV) detection and subtype testing are suggested to overcome the high false-negative rate associated with cytology. We aimed to investigate the clinical usefulness and infection rate in the HPV polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test performed in hospitals. HPV PCR data from 217 patients were analyzed. Analysis of variance revealed a significant difference in the infection rate among different age groups (P=0.015). The biopsy results showed that epithelial cell abnormalities and high HPV-positivity rate was observed in 1 (100%) subject aged <29 years, in 4 out of 5 (80%) patients in their 30s, and in 3 out of 4 (75%) patients aged ≥70 years. The prevalence of HPV infection was very high (46.1%). The highest prevalence (87.5%) was observed among patients in their <29, followed by those in their 30s (67.7%) and those in their 40s (31.9%).A high rate of epithelial cell abnormalities (≥ cervical intraepithelial neoplasia type 1, mild dysplasia) was observed in HPV-infected women aged<30 years. Therefore, extensive research and prevention activities are needed in this age group. HPV PCR testing is recommended to complement cervical cytology

• Journal of Marine Life Science
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.18-24
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• 2016

Since April 2012, doctor fish in the breeding tank and in the quarantine tank in Hanwha Aquaplanet Yeosu Aquarium have been dying, accompanied by diffuse bleeding around the mouth, in the chin, and at the bottom of the abdomen. In this study, the cause of death would be examined through the bacteriological study of doctor fish and the rearing water quality in the aquarium. The water quality and the bacterial counts of the rearing water in the exhibit tank and in the quarantine tank were analyzed once a week, starting from August to November 2014. Water quality was measured based on the following data: temperature was in the range of 24.5~26.8℃, pH at 6.77~7.94, DO at 6.15~8.61 ppm, ammonia at 0~0.93 ppm, nitrite at 0.009~0.075 ppm, and nitrate at 1.1~40.9 ppm. Studies revealed that the differences in these water quality factors were not related to the death of doctor fish. Bacterial counts in the rearing waters of Garra rufa slightly increased to 10³~10⁴ CFU/ml, just before the death of the doctor fish. Twelve strains of bacteria were isolated from the dead fish and rearing waters. The isolates were identified as Aeromonas veronii, Citrobacter freundii, Pseudorhodoferax aquiterrae, Shewanella putrefaciens, and Vibrio anguillarum on the basis of 16S rRNA gene sequences. The most dominant species was C. freundii, which showed medium sensitivity to florfenicol and norfloxacin, and was resistant to amoxacillin, doxycycline, oxytetracycline, tetracycline, and trimethoprim. Ten isolates were confirmed to be pathogenic to the doctor fish. Doctor fish infected with C. freundii and S. putrefaciens showed high mortality in the experimental groups. These results indicate that the variation in bacterial numbers in the rearing water was related to the death of doctor fish. C. freundii and S. putrefaciens were directly implicated in causing the death of doctor fish in the aquarium.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Service
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• v.46 no.2
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• pp.137-145
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• 2023

From November 2021 to October 2022, 151 pigs were discarded due to the suspected salmonellosis, when assessed by antemortem inspection at slaughterhouses in Gwangju. Among them, 85 cases shown with the rectal stricture were confirmed to be infected with Salmonella spp, when assessed by postmortem inspection and Salmonella-oriented culture in the laboratory, accounting for 56.3% of the carcass discard cases. Salmonella spp. were isolated in 58 cases (68.2%) out of 85 total discard cases. As for serotyping of the Salmonella isolates, 28 cases (48.3%) belonged to serogroup B and 28 cases (48.3%) belonged to serogroup C, those were the most frequent isolates, and 2 cases (3.4%) belonged to serogroup E. The most prevalent serotype was Rissen (39.7%), followed by I4,[5],12:i:-(37.9%), Derby (8.6%), Bareilly (5.2%), Infantis (3.4%), Give (3.4%), and Typhimurium (1.7%). The 58 isolates of salmonellae showed resistance to tetracycline (63.8%), chloramphenicol (56.9%), ampicillin (53.4%), and ampicillin-sulbactam (51.7%). S. Rissen showed resistance to chloramphenicol (82.6%), ampicillin (52.2%), ampicillin-sulbactam (52.2%), and tetracyclin (47.8%). S. I4,[5],12:i:-was resistant to tetracycline (90.9%), ampicillin (81.8%), ampicillin-sulbactam (77.3%), and chloramphenicol (59.1%). Among the isoates, S. Bareilly (3 strains), S. Infantis (2 strains), S. Give (2 strains), S. Rissen (3 strains), and S. I4,[5],12:i:- (1 strain) showed no resistance to the tested antimicrobials. As for the prevalence of the antibiotic resistance pattern, AM-SAM-TE-C was the most common, which was shown in 15.5% of S. Rissen. At second, the resistance pattern was occurred as AM-SAM-TE (12.1%) and AM-SAM-CF-CZ-FOX-CTX-NA-TE-C (12.1%), respectively in the case of S. I4,[5],12:i:-.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2022.10a
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• pp.290-290
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• 2022

Powdery mildew is known to be one of the serious diseases in C. moschata cultivation. Plants infected with powdery mildew cause damage to cultivation areas such as occurrence of deformity fruit and decrease in quantity. also, it has been reported that many farms have difficulties in controlling powdery mildew due to the outbreak under various conditions throughout the year. Therefore, this study intends to perform a phenotype test and a genotype test for C. moschata 60 lines grown in Jenong S&T. Podospareaxanthii, known as a pathogen that causes powder mildew disease in pumpkins in Korea, was collected and used as an inoculation source, phenotype test was performed by examining the infection area rate(%) of powdery mildew disease that occurred in leaves 25 days after inoculation. It was determined that 0% of the infection area rate was in the first stage, 1 to 5% in the second stage, 6 to 15% in the third stage, 16 to 30% in the fourth stage, and 31% or more in the fifth stage, The first and second stages were judged as resistance, the third as moderate resistance, and the fourth and fifth stages as sensitivity. As a result of the phenotype test, it was confirmed that the resistance was 21 points, moderate resistance was 14 points, and sensitivity was 25 points. After searching for the genes related to powdery mildew resistance resistance, pm-0, CmbHLH87, and LOC111453072, 21 points of resistance and 9 points of moderate resistance identified through phenotype tests were identified through gel electrophoresis after polymerase chain reaction(PCR) using 5 primers related to 3 genes. As a result of genotype testing of a total 30 points, the CmbHLH87 and LOC111453072 gene were found to be resistant bands in all points, PMR1 was identified as 20 points for resistance, 4 points for moderate resistance, and 6 points for sensitivity, PMR2 was not identified in the entire band, and PMR5 was identified as 18 point for resistance, 3 points for moderate resistance, and 9 points for sensitivity. As a result, when comparing the phenotype test results and genotype test results, CmbHLH87 and LOC111453072 genes was 100% consistent in resistance and moderate resistance, PMR1 was 95.2% in resistance, 44.4% in moderate resistance, and PMR5 was 90% in resistance and 33.3% in moderate resistance, PMR2 was not consistent in resistance and moderate resistance. Therefore, it is expected that more accurate PMR test will be possible by using molecular markers(PMR1, PMR5) and by developing CmbHLH87 and LOC111453072 gene-related molecular markers.