• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.17 no.7
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• pp.919-923
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• 2004

Ultrasonographic study was undertaken to establish the echogenecity and size of reproductive organs of 18 cycling buffaloes of different parities and compared with the sizes measured by palpation per rectum at estrus (day 0), met estrus (day 2), mid diestrus (day 10) and late diestrus (day 16). The overall mean size of cervix, uterine body, right horn, left horn, right ovary and left ovary measured by palpation per rectum were 2.70$\pm$0.43, 2.36$\pm$0.36, 2.17$\pm$0.37, 2.12$\pm$0.38, 2.63$\pm$0.41 and 2.72$\pm$0.37 cm, respectively. The corresponding ultrasonographic observations were 2.10$\pm$0.40, 1.85$\pm$0.30, 1.73$\pm$0.36, 1.64$\pm$0.37, 2.16$\pm$0.36 and 2.29$\pm$0.38 cm respectively. Variations in the size of genitalia due to stages of estrous cycle were non-significant. The size of genitalia measured by palpation per rectum was significantly higher (p<0.05) than by ultrasonography. However, there was linear positive correlation (r=+0.87) in the measurements by the two techniques. The ultrasonographic characteristics of tubular genitalia revealed different echogenic gray shades around the nonechogenic (black) central area of lumen depending upon the stage of cycle. The ovarian stroma appeared as hyperechoic (white) area with nonechogenic (black) follicle. The corpus luteum (CL) exhibited different echogenic texture viz. grayish black, grayish granular and grayish white at met estrus, mid diestrus and late diestrus, respectively. Therefore, ltrasonography can be effectively employed to record the exact size and echotexture of the buffalo genitalia during different stages of estrous cycle.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.120-126
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• 2020

Objective: This study was conducted to determine the effects of dietary supplementation with Pediococcus acidilactici (P. acidilactici) ZPA017 as a probiotic on reproductive performance, fecal microbial flora and serum indices in sows during late gestation and lactation. Methods: A total of 94 sows (Large White×Yorkshire, average 4.50 parities) were randomly allotted to two dietary treatments: control diet and the diet supplemented with P. acidilactici ZPA017 (2.40×10⁹ colony-forming unit/kg of diets). The study started at d 90 of gestation and conducted until d 28 of lactation. Results: Compared to sows fed the control diet, supplementation of P. acidilactici ZPA017 increased the number of weaning piglets, weaning weight of litter and piglets, survival rate of piglets at weaning (p<0.05), and decreased diarrhea rate of piglets in lactation (p<0.05). Dietary P. acidilactici ZPA017 increased fecal Lactobacillus populations (p = 0.030) and reduced fecal Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus populations (p<0.05) of sows at weaning. Moreover, the supplementation of P. acidilactici ZPA017 increased serum concentrations of immunoglobulin G, immunoglobulin A and total protein (p<0.05), while decreased serum haptoglobin concentration and alanine aminotransferase activity (p<0.05) of sows at weaning. Conclusion: Administration of P. acidilactici ZPA017 in diets during late gestation and lactation had positive effects on the reproductive performance, intestinal microflora balance and immunity of sows.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.55 no.6
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• pp.489-500
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• 2013

Daily milk yields on test days were estimated using morning or afternoon partial milk yields collected by official agencies and the accuracy of the estimates was determined. Test-day data for milk yields consisted of 3,156,734 records of AM/PM partial milking measurements of 255,437 milking Holstein cows from 3,708 farms collected from December 2008 to April 2013. A linear regression model (LRM) was applied to estimate daily milk yields using alternate AM/PM milk yield records within lactation stages, milking intervals, and parities on every daily milk yield. The alternate statistical approach was a non-linear hierarchical model (NHM) in which Brody's growth function was implemented by reflecting an animal's physiological milk production cycle. When compared with LRM, daily milk yields predicted by the NHM were assumed to be functionally related to day in milk (or lactation) stage, milking intervals, and partial milk yields. Since the results were in terms of accuracies based on comparisons of different statistical models, accuracies of estimates of daily milk yields by NHM were close to those determined by the LRM. The average of these accuracies was 0.94 for AM partial milk yields and 0.93 for PM partial milk yields for first calving cows. However, the accuracies of AM/PM milk yield estimations from cows under a calving stage higher than the first parity were 0.96 and 0.95, respectively. Correlations between the estimated daily milk yields and the actual daily milk yields ranged from 0.96~0.98. These accuracies were lower for unbalanced AM/PM milking intervals and the first calving cows. Overall, prediction of daily milk yields by NHM would be more appropriate than by LRM due to its flexibility under different milk yield-related circumstances, which provides an idea of the functional relationship between milking intervals and days in milk with daily milk yields from statistical viewpoints.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.33 no.6
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• pp.351-355
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• 2016

This study was conducted to investigate reasons for culling of Chungcheong dairy herds and to investigate the relationships between cow parity, interval from calving to culling, or season and culling reasons. Lactation data from 826 cows on 9 dairy farms from 2013 to 2015, including reasons for culling, dates of birth, last calving, and culling, were analyzed. The overall culling rate was 29.8% (246/826), with mammary problems (23.2%) being the most prevalent reason for culling, followed by infertility (14.2%) and downer cow syndrome (11.0%). The culling rate varied among farms (18.8-43.1%, p < 0.05), but was greater in parity $4{\leq}(40.7%)$ than parities 1, 2, or 3 (17.9-23.6%), whereas the rate was less frequent during mid lactation (21.1%) than in early (36.2%) or late (42.7%) lactation. Moreover, the culling rate was greater during summer (35.8%) than other seasons (20.3-23.2%). Mammary problems, downer cow syndrome, and metabolic disorders were the more common reasons for culling during early lactation, whereas infertility was predominant during late lactation. Our data show that the culling rate in Chungcheong dairy herds was associated with cow parity, interval from calving to culling, and season, with the main reasons for the removal of cows from dairy herds being mammary problems, infertility, and downer cow syndrome.

• Human Ecology Research
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• v.53 no.1
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• pp.49-66
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• 2015

This study analyzes the effects of women's labour force participation and work-family reconciliation support on life-cycle fertility in Korea. The analysis is based on the longitudinal data from Korean Labour and Income Panel Study (KLIPS), which include the available information on life-cycle fertility and employment history. Employing a dynamic model of fertility, we estimated the life-cycle fertility of all the 15-49 years old women considered in this study by using a duration model. The major results of this study were as follows: First, women's labour force participation had a negative effect on the first birth, second birth, and all births (transition to births starting at different parities). Women's employment tended to lengthen the interval between births. Second, the availability of maternal leave had a positive effect on the first birth and all births for working women. Providing maternal leave to working women decreased the opportunity cost of childbearing and in turn, reduced the interbirth interval of women. However, the availability of parental leave had no significant effect on the births of working women. Third, the financial support for childcare had a positive effect on the first birth and all births. The economic support for childcare led to the reduction in the interbirth interval of women by increasing the probability of births. The use of a childcare center for the first child, which substitutes for the time that women needed to take care of their children, classified as time-intensive consumption goods, did not have any effect on the second birth. Fourth, the part-time employment of women had a positive effect on the second birth. A flexible working time schedule tended to decrease the interval between the first and the second births.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.555-559
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• 2012

Distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) is a by-product from processing corn to produce bio-ethanol, and it contains almost three times higher protein, fat, and fiber than corn. Intake of higher amount of nutrients originated from corn in lactating sows may contribute to changes in milk composition and thus alter the growth of suckling piglets. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate effect of supplementing DDGS in the diet of lactating sows on variation in the body weight of piglets. A total of 50 sows with parities of 3 to 5 were usedand allottedinto one of four treatments which included 0 (CON), 10% (DDGS10), 20% (DDGS20), or 30% (DDGS30) DDGS in the diet. Diets were fed to sows during the whole lactation period. Individual body weights of piglets were measured within 24 h after farrowing and at weaning. No significant differences were observed inthe coefficient of variation (CV) for body weight of piglets within a litter after farrowing and at weaning among the treatments (p>0.05). There was, however, a tendency of decreases in the CV for body weight of piglets within a litter at weaning compared with that after farrowingin the DDGS10 and DDGS20 treatments. At weaning, the percentage of the number of piglets weighing less than 4.5 kg in DDGS20 (4.86%, 7 out of 144; p<0.05) or DDGS30 (5.04%, 6 out of 119; p=0.059) was lower than that in CON (12.41%; 17 out of 137) although this pattern was not observed in DDGS10. In conclusion, addition of DDGS in lactating sow diets improved piglet performance by reducing the number piglets weighing less than 4.5 kg.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.43 no.3
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• pp.394-400
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• 2016

The objective of this study was to estimate the environmental factors affecting milk ${\beta}$-hydroxybutyric acid (BHBA) and acetone (Ac) concentrations in Holstein cattle. A total of 264,221 test-day records collected from the Korea Animal Improvement Association (KAIA) during the period of 2012 to 2014 were used in this study. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to determine the factors significantly affecting ketone body concentrations. Parameters considered in the model were season of test, season of calving, parity, lactation stage, and milk collecting time (AM and PM). According to the ANOVA, the $R^2$ for milk BHBA and Ac were 0.5226 and 0.4961, respectively. 'Season of test' showed a considerable influence on ketone body concentration. Least square (LS) means for milk BHBA concentrations was the lowest ($39.04{\mu}M$) in winter while it increased up to $62.91{\mu}M$ in summer. But Ac concentration did not significantly change along with 'season of test'. The means of milk BHBA and Ac concentrations were high at first lactation stage, low around second lactation stage, and then gradually increased. Cows milked in the morning had lower mean BHBA and Ac concentrations ($48.49{\mu}M$ and $121.69{\mu}M$, respectively) in comparison to those milked in the evening ($53.46{\mu}M$ and $130.42{\mu}M$, respectively). The LS means of BHBA and Ac slightly increased over parities. These results suggest that proper maintenance of milk collection, herd management programs, and evaluation of ketone body levels in milk should be considered for the efficient management of resistance to ketosis.

• Strategy21
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• s.44
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• pp.103-141
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• 2018

As the South China Sea maritime dispute illustrates, when considering the place where maritime claims occur, states do not have many choices to respond to maritime claims in which disputed areas are located far away from the land and are surrounded by the sea. As Mearsheimer (2014) points out, the sea stops power projection. Therefore, in order to adopt coercive as well as peaceful settlement policies to deal with maritime claims, states need to overcome obstacles (the sea) to project power. It means that if states want to conduct a specific foreign policy action, such as negotiating maritime borderlines or arguing sovereignty on islands, they need a tool (naval power) to coerce or to persuade the opponent. However, there are lack of research that studies maritime claims from the perspective of naval power. This research project fills this gap based on naval power. How do relative levels of naval power and (dis) parities of naval power influence the occurrence of MIDs over maritime claims? Naval power is a constitutive element during maritime claims. If disputants over maritime claims have required naval power to project their capability, it means that they have the capability to apply various ways, such as aggressive options including MIDs, to accomplish their goals. So, I argue that when two claimants have enough naval power to project their capabilities, the likelihood of MIDs over maritime claims increases. Given that one or both states have a certain level of naval power, how does relative naval power between two claimants influence the management of maritime claims? Based on the power transition theory, I argue that when the disparities of relative naval power between claimants becomes distinctive, militarized conflicts surrounding maritime territory are less probable. Based on the ICOW project which codes maritime claims from 1900 to 2001, the empirical results of the Poisson models show if both claimants have projectable naval power, the occurrence of MIDs over maritime claims increases. In addition, the result shows that when disputants maintain similar relative naval powers, they are more likely to initiate MIDs over maritime claims. To put it differently, if naval capabilities' gap between two claimants becomes larger, the probability of the occurrence of MIDs decreases.

• Journal of Embryo Transfer
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.75-90
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• 1997

This study was carried out to establish the techniques for producing the calves of genetically superior Korean Native cattle by transfer of frozen-thawed embryos. The effects of some factors related to embryo recovery following superovulation and pregnancy rate following transfer of frozen-thawed embryos were evaluated. Also calving state was investigated. The results obtained were as follows ; The mean number of total and transferrable embryos recovered per superovulated cow was 8.72 and 4.90, respectively, from a total of 72 superovulations using 34 donor cows. There were no significant differences in the number of total or transferrable embryos recovered per superovulated cow between products of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), years, seasons, and collection numbers. The pregnancy rate was found 44.44% following transfer of frozen-thawed embryos of Korean Native cattle to a total of 180 recipient cows including 82 Angus, 27 Charolais, 62 Hereford and 9 Korean Native cows. The pregnancy rate was significantly (P<0.05) higher in the transfer of excellent (42.99) and good embryos (40.17%), compared with fair (5.90%) grade embryos. And the pregnancy rate was significantly (P<0.05) higher in the transfer of embryos of morula stage (43.86%) than blastocyst stage (15.51%). But there were no significant differences in pregnancy rates between natural and induced estrus estrus asynchrony of 1 days, breeds, and parities of recipient cows. The normal calving rate of 80 pregnant cows following transfer of frozen4hawed em-bryos was 87.5% and the other 10 pregnant cows showed abortion during the period from pregnancy diagnosis at 50~60 days to calving. The average gestation length of normally delivered recipients was 288.50 days and the average birth weight of 70 calves born was 24.22 kg. The gestation length was significantly (P<0.05) shorter in the recipients delivering female calves (286.70 days) than males (289.39 days). But there were no significant differences in gestation tength and birth weight of calves born between the recipient breeds.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.63 no.4
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• pp.904-918
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• 2021

This study was conducted to investigate the effect of cooling systems on reproductive performance, body temperature, blood metabolites, and the intestinal microbiome in early gestating sows exposed to high ambient temperature. In total, 39 pregnant sows (Landrace × Yorkshire; 2 parities) were randomly assigned to and maintained in the following three treatment groups (13 sows per group) over days 0 to 35 of pregnancy: (i) air cooling (AC; 26.87 ± 1.23℃), (ii) water-drip cooling (WC; 28.81 ± 0.91℃), and (iii) a lack of cooling with heat stress (HS; 30.72 ± 0.70℃). Backfat thickness was measured before and after HS. Feces were collected on day 0 and 35 d of the trial for microbiome analysis, whereas blood was taken at day 35 of pregnancy and analyzed. Reproductive performance and physiological responses were identified at day 35. Respiration rate along with rectal and skin temperatures were lower (p < 0.05) in the AC group than in the HS and WC groups. Serum blood urea nitrogen values were increased (p < 0.05) in the WC group compared with those measured in the AC and HS groups. Triiodothyronine was found at greater levels (p < 0.05) in the AC than in the HS group. Reproductive performance was not affected by the cooling systems. At the phylum level, fecal pathogenic Spirochaete and Euryarchaeota were found in higher numbers (p < 0.05) in all groups after HS. Similarly, at the genus level, the amount of Treponema was greater (p < 0.05) in all groups after HS. In conclusion, our results suggest that AC or WC can ameliorate or mitigate the adverse effects of HS on the physiological parameters of pregnant sows reared under high temperatures.