• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.48-58
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• 2024

The oldest and most extensively cultivated form of millet, known as pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br. Syn. Pennisetum americanum (L.) Leeke), is raised over 312.00 lakh hectares in Asian and African countries. India is regarded as the significant hotspot for pearl millet diversity. In the Indian state of Haryana, where pearl millet is grown, a new and catastrophic bacterial disease known as stem rot of pearl millet spurred by the bacterium Klebsiella aerogenes (formerly Enterobacter) was first observed during fall 2018. The disease appears in form of small to long streaks on leaves, lesions on stem, and slimy rot appearance of stem. The associated bacterium showed close resemblance to Klebsiella aerogenes that was confirmed by a molecular evaluation based on 16S rDNA and gyrA gene nucleotide sequences. The isolates were also identified to be Klebsiella aerogenes based on biochemical assays, where Klebsiella isolates differed in D-trehalose and succinate alkalisation tests. During fall 2021-2023, the disease has spread all the pearl millet-growing districts of the state, extending up to 70% disease incidence in the affected fields. The disease is causing considering grain as well as fodder losses. The proposed scale, consisting of six levels (0-5), is developed where scores 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 have been categorized as highly resistant, resistant, moderately resistant, moderately susceptible, susceptible, and highly susceptible disease reaction, respectively. The disease cycle, survival of pathogen, and possible losses have also been studied to understand other features of the disease.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.57 no.1
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• pp.105-119
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• 2024

Purpose: The atherogenic index of plasma (AIP) is gaining recognition as a superior predictor of coronary artery disease. This study examined the relationship between the AIP and the intake of various food groups in Korean adults, using the baseline data from the Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study-The Health Examinees (KoGES-HEXA) study. Methods: This study included 133,381 adults (46,288 men, 87,093 women) who completed the nutrition survey and biochemical tests of the KoGES-HEXA study. The AIP was calculated as the log (triglycerides/high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol) and was divided into quintiles according to sex for further analysis. Data on food group intake were obtained using the semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire, and daily food group intake (g/d) was evaluated for each individual. The association between the food group intake and the AIP was examined using the linear regression analysis after adjusting for the confounding variables. Results: In this study population, there was a positive correlation between energy intake and the AIP in men whereas an inverse assocation was shown in women (p < 0.001). In women, a rise in the AIP significantly correlated with an increased percentage of energy intake derived from carbohydrates but decreased percentages of energy from protein and fat (p < 0.001). In men and women, the consumption of grains and kimchi/pickles increased as the AIP rose, while the intake of legumes, nuts, meat and its products, eggs, fish, and milk and dairy products decreased. Among men, individuals in the highest AIP group showed higher intake of wheat products than those in the lowest group of the AIP. In women, the AIP was inversely correlated with potatoes and beverages consumption. Conclusion: This study highlights the importance of a balanced diet, including various protein sources, milk and dairy products, legumes, and nuts, for preventing cardiovascular diseases. Further research into sex-specific dietary patterns is essential for tailoring appropriate dietary recommendations.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.373-381
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• 2024

This study aimed to identify and assess the influence of risk factors on the frequency of thyroid nodules diagnosed through ultrasonography among adults visiting for health screenings. The study analyzed 210 adult men and women who underwent thyroid ultrasound at J Hospital in Busan. The differences in variables were analyzed using Chi-square and independent t-tests, and risk ratios were calculated using binary logistic regression. The results showed significant differences in gender, age, T3, Free T4, Uric acid, T-chol, HDL-C and LDL-C. The risk ratios for risk factors indicated that women had a 2.42 times higher risk compared to men, and the age groups 41-50 and over 61 had risks 2.32 and 2.22 times higher, respectively compared to those under 40. Conversely, and increase in T3 and Free T4 levels was associated with a decreased risk of 0.12 and 0.86 times, respectively, while lipid levels had negligible influence. Based on these findings, it is concluded that regular ultrasonography monitoring, rather than solely relying on biochemical markers, is crucial for the early detection and management of thyroid nodules.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.49-64
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• 1971

The radioactive $^{131}I$-rose bengal serial scintiphotography was performed in 62 patients with the hepatobiliary diseases and in 20 normal subjects. This approach permitted visualization of the hepatic uptake of $^{131}I$-rose bengal from the circulation and its excretion into the biliary trees and the intestines. In some of these patients, gallbladder function was examined, using eggs as a gallbladder constrictor. The time of maximum hepatic uptake was well correlated to the conventional biochemical liver function tests. In addition to $^{131}I$-rose bengal scintiphotography, $^{198}Au$-colloid scintiphotography was also performed to make comparison of these two tests. The results obtained were as follows: 1. In normal subjects, the maximum hepatic uptake of $^{131}I$-rose bengal occurred at $23{\pm}2.9$ minutes, the initial hepatic excretion at $34{\pm}5.1$ minutes, the visualization of the gallbladder at $29{\pm}5.7$ minutes and the intestinal visualization at $54{\pm}25.8$ minutes. The radioactivity in the gallbladder decreased to $10.7{\pm}5.0%$ one hour after the ingestion of eggs. 2. In the patients with cirrhosis of the liver, there was a delayed and decreased hepatic uptake. The maximun hepatic upake occurred at $43{\pm}12.9$ minutes. The differences in the results of uptake between the cirrhotic and the normal group were statistically significant. The initial hepatic excretion occurred at $60{\pm}18.5$ minutes and had tendency of delaying compared with the normal controls. The gallbladder was visualized in 13 of 16 cases (81%) and its visualization occurred at $49{\pm}14.6$ minutes with a tendency to be delayed compared with the normal controls. The intestinal visualization occurred at $63{\pm}15.8$ minutes and its delaying tendency was somewhat more prominent. 3. In patients with hepatitis, the maximum hepatic uptake occurred at $59{\pm}21.4$ minutes and was significantly delayed. The initial hepatic excretion occurred at $82{\pm}34.3$ minutes and the results revealed a delaying tendency. The gallbladder was visualized in 15 of 20 cases (75%) at $57{\pm}18.7$ minutes, which was significantly delayed. The Intestinal visualization was noted in all cases with marked delay. 4. In patients with obstructive jaundice, the maximum hepatic uptake was noted at $83{\pm}14.7$ minutes, showing the most significant delay. The hepatic excretion into biliary trees and intestines was not entirely noted in all cases except the only one case with gallbladder visualization. 5. In patients with cholelithiasis, the maximum hepatic upake and the initial hepatic excretion were slightly delayed with mean times of $39{\pm}11.2\;and\;48{\pm}17.1$ minutes respectively. The visualization of the gallbladder was demonstrated in 10 of 17 cases (59%) and occurred at $52{\pm}25.6$ minutes with a slight delay. The intestinal visualization occurred at $67{\pm}47.7$ minutes and was slightly delayed. $^{131}I$-rose bengal in the gallbladder remained high, $49.3{\pm}21.3%$, which suggested quantitatively decreased power of gallbladder constriction. 6. The time of the maximum hepetic uptake was correlated well to BSP retention and serum alkaline phosphatase ativity. However, the maximum hepatic uptake had no definite correlation with serum albumin, serum globulin, TTT, serum cholesterol, SGPT or SGOT. 7. In the diagnosis of the hepatobiliary diseases with jaundice, $^{131}I$-rose bengel serial scintiphotography has proved to be more useful than $^{198}Au$-colloid scintiphotography. With these results, it could be justified that $^{131}I$-rose bengal scintiphotography is an excellent diagnostic aid for dynamic hepatobiliary function studies in the clinical practice.

• Journal of the korean academy of Pediatric Dentistry
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.129-141
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• 2001

When oral microorganisms were sampled from occlusal surfaces of caries and non-caries teeth, $3.43\times10^5$ CFU and $3.47\times10^3$ CFU of bacteria were counted on MSB agar plates, respectively. All the 20 colonies isolated from a caries surface were Streptococcus mutans but, only two of 20 colonies were identified as Streptococcus mutans by API test. S. mutans SM1 from caries tooth and S. mutans SM2 from non-caries tooth showed the same results except for $\alpha-galactosidase$ activity on sugar fermentation tests and biochemical tests. For the bacterial replication, both SM1 and SM2 were actively multiplicated at pH 5.5. And the viability of SM1 was high at 20% of sucrose, while that of SM2 was high at 5% of sucrose in the media. SM1 actively replicated at 16mM of $CaCl_2$, 160mM of KCl, and 6.4mM of $MgCl_2$, and the replication of SM2 was increased at 16mM of $CaCl_2$, 40mM of KCl, 6.4mM of $MgCl_2$. At 1mM of sodium bicarbonate and sodium phosphate, both bacteria were actively multiplicated. SM1 and SM2 were actively replicated at 1mM and 10mM of Tris, respectively. For potassium phosphate buffer, SM1 grew well proportionally to the concentration up to 100mM, while the growth of SM2 were inhibited by the increase of concentration. The 4.6 kb of gtf gene was amplified with a pair of primer, gtfB-F961 and gtfC-R5574 by polymerase chain reaction from the chromosomal DNA of SM1 and SM2. When 4.6kb bands were eluted from gel and were treated with restriction enzyme, EcoR I produced the same RFLP like 0.8kb and 3.8kb of DNA fragments for S. mutans GS-5, SM1 and SM2. By Hind III, the PCR products weren't digested for S. mutans GS-5 and SM1, but 3 fragments such as 2.4kb, 1.8kb and 400bp were examined for SM2. These results indicated the difference between gtf genes of SM1 and SM2. BamH I treatment showed 4 fragments for SM1 and SM2, while the 3 fragments for S. mutans GS-5. The PCR products were not digested by Kpn I, Sma I, Xho I and Pst I.

• Journal of Dairy Science and Biotechnology
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.117-135
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• 2016

The present study was performed to develop a functional raw food material from hydrolyzed whey protein powder (23%-GNANA) medication containing sialic acid as a marker compound that is naturally occurring at 7% concentration in GMP (glycomacropeptide). GMP is used worldwide in foodstuffs for babies and infants and is obtained from the milk protein as safe food. While the purpose of our detailed evaluation was aimed to assess preliminary NOAEL values for and above 2,000 mg/kg/day, a clinical dose allowance for 23%-GNANA (as per characteristic of a functional health product, a highly refined test substance of 23% (v/v) sialic acid combined in GMP), at the same time we also wanted to assess the safety of GMP hydrolyzate lacking sialic acid but with identical properties as GMP. Animal safety evaluation was conducted using 23%-GNANA as the test substance, produced from hydrolyzed whey protein powder (product name: HELICOBACTROL-23; provided by Medinutrol Inc. [Korea]; composed of 23% sialic acid and GMP protein) after isolating the sialic acid using enzymes approved as food additives, with GMP as a raw material, and subsequently increasing the content of xx up to 23% through 80% (v/v) ethanol soaking and concentrating, in accordance with GLP Guideline. The animal safety evaluation mentioned above was made on the basis of toxicity in SPF Sprague-Dawley female and male rats dosed with 10 mL of the test substance diluted to 0, 1,250, 2,500, and 5,000 mg/kg directly into their stomachs for 90 d. This was determined in terms of the general symptoms and animal viability, weight and amount of feed intake, eye examination, uracrasia tests, hematological and blood biochemical disorder tests, blood coagulation test, abnormal intestine weight, abnormalities during postmortem and histopathological examinations. Statistical significance was set at P<0.05. Based on the toxicity determination, a certain minor effect associated with the test substance was observed in male rats with no major effects of the tested substance, in comparison with the control group dosed with sterilized water. Nevertheless, the NOAEL value, evaluated as per toxicity criteria, was verified as 5,000 mg/kg/day (P<0.05). Similarly, for female rats, a certain minor effect associated with the test substance was observed in 5,000 mg/kg/day dosed group, with no major effect, yet the NOAEL value (as assessed as per toxicity criteria) was determined to be 5,000 mg/kg/day (P<0.05), which was the same as for male rats. Accordingly, the NOAEL values of the test substances for all female and male rats were finally verified as 5,000 mg/kg/day (P<0.05). In conclusion, it was determined that the 23%-GNANA test substance exceeds 2,000 mg/kg/day, the clinical allowance characteristic for functional health food, and was finally evaluated to cause no safety concerns when used as a raw material in functional health food production, which was the ultimate goal of the present study.

• The Korean Journal of Pesticide Science
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.313-319
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• 2006

Two hundred bacterial strains were isolated from the soil around healthy tomato plants in a polyvinyl house, where most of the other plants showed bacterial wilt symptoms. The strains were screened in vitro for their antibacterial activity. Among them, a strain, KPB3 showed strong bactericidal activity against bacterial wilt pathogen, Ralstonia solanacearum. The strain KPB3 was identified using physiological and biochemical tests, and 16S rRNA analyses. Based on these tests, the strain was found to be closer to genus Paenibacillus. To control the bacterial wilt caused by R. solanacearum, greenhouse experiments were conducted to determine the effectiveness of the Paenibacillus strain KPB3. Drench application of this strain ($4{\times}10^8$ CFU $mL^{-1}$) into the pots containing tomato plants, post-inoculated with the pathogen, R. solanacearum could drastically reduce the disease severity, compared to the non-treated plants. To evaluate effectiveness of this strain under field conditions, experiments were carried out in polyvinyl houses infested with R. solanacearum, during spring and autumn of the year 2006. It was observed that, during spring, bacterial wilt was more prevalent compared to the autumn. During spring, 50.9% disease incidences occurred in non-treated controls, while, Paenibacillus strain KPB3 treated plants showed 24.6% disease incidences. Similarly, during autumn, around 17.2% plants were infected with bacterial wilt in non- treated polyvinyl houses, compared to the Paenibacillus strain KPB3 treated plants, which showed 7.0% disease incidences. These results demonstrated that, Paenibacillus strain KPB3 is a potential biological control agent against bacterial wilt caused by R. solanacearum, effective under greenhouse as well as field conditions. This is the first report showing biocontrol of R. solanacearum using a Paenibacillus spp. under field conditions.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.314-320
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• 2021

With the increasing age of motherhood in recent years, attributed to late marriages due to social or environmental factors, the Down's syndrome screening test using biochemical markers has become essential for pregnant women. The process of diagnosing Down's syndrome pregnancy in the high-risk group subjects involves chromosomal analysis, which is performed on samples obtained through invasive procedures such as chorionic biopsy or amniotic fluid. Thus, to reduce unnecessary invasive tests and lower the risk to mother and fetus, it is important to identify a screening test with low risk and high Down's syndrome detection rate. Recently, as the average age of mothers has increased, numerous inspection agencies have classified high-risk mothers as women over the age of 35 years. This study evaluated a total of 36,436 pregnant women aged between 17 to 46 years, and who requested prenatal screening at an inspection agency in Yongin in 2018. Test (13,690 people) Four tests were conducted by applying the time-resolved fluoroimmunoassay method using the direct sandwich and indirect sandwich technology, and the immunoassay method using the sandwich method. We aimed to confirm the difference in positivity rate with increasing age of the subjects. We believe that in future, data obtained from this study will be very useful for the prevention and treatment of Down's syndrome risk at varied inspection institutions, and for prospective mothers.

• The Journal of the Korean Society for Microbiology
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.9-15
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• 1972

The authors identified 45 Shigella cultures among 63 suspectable cultures obtained from the cases showing dysentery or the like symptoms in various parts of the country during the period from February to September, 1971. Of 45 cultures, 36 cultures belonged to Subgroup B, 7 cultures to Subgroup C and 2 cultures to Subgroup D. There was none of cultures belonging to Subgroup A in 1971, although the authors detected one culture of that among 41 identified Shigella in 1967. Of 36 cultures belonging to Subgroup B, 27 cultures were $B_{2a}$ and 3 cultures of each $B_{3c},\;B_{4a}$ and $B_y$ were serotyped, respectively. Of 7 cultures beloning to Subgroup C, one was $C_{11}$ and other six cultures were $C_{15}$ and all S. boydii were isolated in Seoul area. It might be possible to suggest that there was a tendency of decreasing prevalence of S. dysenteriae and of increasing prevalence of S. boydii in Korea, although the number of cultures. tested were very much limited to conclude, if it was compared with the results obtained by the authors in 1967 that the fourty-one identified Shigella were composed of one culture of S. dysenteriae, 36 cultures of S. flexneri, 4 cultures of S. sonnei and none of S. boydii. According to the results obtained from the biochemical tests, the positive ratio of Indol tests in Subgroup B was 31/36, which could be higher than 9/36 observed in 1961, but which was nearly correlated with the result published by Ewing and his colleagues in U.S.A. The positive rates of both sorbitol and raffinose were lower than that observed by Ewing and his colleagues in S. flexneri. Regarding with the sensitivity of Shigella cultures to the antibiotics being widely used in the country, 46.2% were sensitive to chloramphenicol, which was very much higher than that observed by Park, and 85.8% were sensitive to ampicillin, which would be the drug of choice according to the results from the In Vitro tests.

• Journal of Dairy Science and Biotechnology
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.99-116
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• 2016

We herein performed animal safety assessment in accordance with Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) regulations with the aim of developing sialic acid from glycomacropeptide (hereafter referred to as "GMP") as an index ingredient and functional component in functional foods. GMP is a type of whey protein derived from milk and a safe food, with multiple functions, such as antiviral activity. A test substance was produced containing 7% (w/w) sialic acid and mostly-hydrolyzed whey protein (hereafter referred to as "7%-GNANA") by enzymatic treatment of substrate GMP. The maximum intake test dose level was selected based on 5,000 mg/kg/day dose set for male NOEL (no-observed-effect-level) and female NOAEL (no-observed-adverse-effect-level) determined by a dose-range finding (DRF) test (GLP Center of Catholic University of Daegu, Report No. 15-NREO-001) that was previously conducted with the same test substance. To evaluate the toxicity of a repeated oral dose of the test substance in connection with the previous DRF study, 1,250, 2,500, and 5,000 mg/kg of the substance were administered by a probe into the stomachs of 6-week-old SPF Sprague-Dawley male and female rats for 90 d. Each test group consisted of 10 male and 10 female rats. To determine the toxicity index, all parameters, such as observation of common signs; measurements of body weight and food consumption; ophthalmic examination; urinalysis, electrolyte, hematological, and serum biochemical examination; measurement of organ weights during autopsy; and visual and histopathological examinations were conducted according to GLP standards. After evaluating the results based on the test toxicity assessment criteria, it was determined that NOAEL of the test substance, 7%-GNANA, was 5,000 mg/kg/day, for both male and female rats. No animal death was noted in any of the test groups, including the control group, during the study period, and there was no significant difference associated with test substance, as compared with the control group, with respect to general symptoms, body weight changes, food consumption, ophthalmic examination, urinalysis, hematological and serum biochemical examination, and electrolyte and blood coagulation tests during the administration period (P<0.05). As assessed by the effects of the test substance on organ weights, food consumption, autopsy, and histopathological safety, change in kidney weight as an indicator of male NOAEL revealed up to 20% kidney weight increase in the high-dose group (5,000 mg/kg/day) compared with the change in the control group. However, it was concluded that this effect of the test substance was minor. In the case of female rats, reduction of food consumption, increase of kidney weight, and decrease of thymus weight were observed in the high-dose group. The kidney weight increased by 10.2% (left) and 8.9% (right) in the high-dose group, with a slight dose-dependency compared with that of the control group. It was observed that the thymus weight decreased by 25.3% in the high-dose group, but it was a minor test substance-associated effect. During the autopsy, botryoid tumor was detected on the ribs of one subject in the high-dose group, but we concluded that the tumor has been caused by a naturally occurring (non-test) substance. Histopathological examination revealed lesions on the kidney, liver, spleen, and other organs in the low-dose test group. Since these lesions were considered a separate phenomenon, or naturally occurring and associated with aging, it was checked whether any target organ showed clear symptoms caused by the test substance. In conclusion, different concentrations of the test substance were fed to rats and, consequently, it was verified that only a minor effect was associated with the test substance in the high-dose (5,000 mg/kg/day) group of both male and female rats, without any other significant effects associated with the test substance. Therefore, it was concluded that NOAEL of 7%-GNANA (product name: Helicobactrol) with male and female rats as test animals was 5,000 mg/kg/day, and it thus was determined that the substance is safe for the ultimate use as an ingredient of health functional foods.