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Measuring the strength of a three-dimensional (3D) magnetic field vector is challenging as it is not easy to recognize whether its line-of-sight (LOS) and plane-of-sky (POS) components are obtained from the same region. CN ( N = 1–0) emission has been used to get the LOS component of a magnetic field ( B _LOS ) from its Zeeman splitting lines, while dust continuum emission has been used to get the POS component of a magnetic field ( B _POS ). We use the CN ( N = 1–0) data observed with the Taeduk Radio Astronomy Observatory 14 m telescope and the dust continuum data from the Herschel archive toward six high-mass star-forming regions in order to test whether CN line and dust continuum emission can trace a similar region and thus can be used for inferring 3D magnetic field strength. Our comparison between CN and H _2 column densities for all targets indicates that CN line emission tends to be strong toward bright continuum regions. The positions of peak CN column densities are particularly well correlated with those of peak H _2 column densities, at least over the H _2 column density of 8.0 × 10 ^22 cm ^−2 within one or two telescope beam sizes in all targets, implying that CN-line- and dust-continuum-emitting regions are likely spatially coincident. This enabled us to make the reliable measurement of the 3D magnetic field strengths of five targets by taking a vector sum of their B _LOS and B _POS , helping to decide the magnetical criticality of the targets as supercritical or transcritical.

Filaments are believed to play a key role in high-mass star formation. We present a systematic study of the filaments and their hosting clumps in the G35 molecular complex using James Clerk Maxwell Telescope SCUBA-2 850 μ m continuum data. We identified five clouds in the complex and 91 filaments within them, some of which form 10 hub–filament systems (HFSs), each with at least three hub-composing filaments. We also compiled a catalog of 350 dense clumps, 183 of which are associated with the filaments. We investigated the physical properties of the filaments and clumps, such as mass, density, and size, and their relation to star formation. We find that the global mass–length trend of the filaments is consistent with a turbulent origin, while the hub-composing filaments of high line masses ( m _l > 230 M _⊙ pc ^−1 ) in HFSs deviate from this relation, possibly due to feedback from massive star formation. We also find that the most massive and densest clumps ( R > 0.2 pc, M > 35 M _⊙ , Σ > 0.05 g cm ^−2 ) are located in the filaments and in the hubs of HFSs, with the latter bearing a higher probability of the occurrence of high-mass star-forming signatures, highlighting the preferential sites of HFSs for high-mass star formation. We do not find significant variation in the clump mass surface density across different evolutionary environments of the clouds, which may reflect the balance between mass accretion and stellar feedback.

We present a comprehensive analysis of young stellar object (YSO) variability within the M17 Southwest Extension (M17 SWex), using 3.5 yr of monitoring data from the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT) Transient Survey at submillimeter and 9 yr from the NEOWISE mission at mid-infrared (mid-IR). Our study encompasses observations of 147 bright submillimeter peaks identified within our deep JCMT coadded map as well as 156 YSOs in NEOWISE W1 and 179 in W2 that were previously identified in Spitzer surveys. We find three robust submillimeter variables: two are candidate YSOs and one is a likely extragalactic source. At mid-IR wavelengths, our analysis reveals secular and stochastic variability in 47 YSOs, with the highest fraction of secular variability occurring at the earliest evolutionary stage. This is similar to what has previously been observed for low-mass YSO variability within the Gould Belt. However, we observe less overall variability in M17 SWex at both the submillimeter and mid-IR. We suspect that this lower fraction is due to the greater distance to M17 SWex. Our findings showcase the utility of multiwavelength observations to better capture the complex variability phenomena inherent to star formation processes and demonstrate the importance of years-long monitoring of a diverse selection of star-forming environments.

We report 850 μ m continuum polarization observations toward the filamentary high-mass star-forming region NGC 2264, taken as part of the B -fields In STar forming Regions Observations large program on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope. These data reveal a well-structured nonuniform magnetic field in the NGC 2264C and 2264D regions with a prevailing orientation around 30° from north to east. Field strength estimates and a virial analysis of the major clumps indicate that NGC 2264C is globally dominated by gravity, while in 2264D, magnetic, gravitational, and kinetic energies are roughly balanced. We present an analysis scheme that utilizes the locally resolved magnetic field structures, together with the locally measured gravitational vector field and the extracted filamentary network. From this, we infer statistical trends showing that this network consists of two main groups of filaments oriented approximately perpendicular to one another. Additionally, gravity shows one dominating converging direction that is roughly perpendicular to one of the filament orientations, which is suggestive of mass accretion along this direction. Beyond these statistical trends, we identify two types of filaments. The type I filament is perpendicular to the magnetic field with local gravity transitioning from parallel to perpendicular to the magnetic field from the outside to the filament ridge. The type II filament is parallel to the magnetic field and local gravity. We interpret these two types of filaments as originating from the competition between radial collapsing, driven by filament self-gravity, and longitudinal collapsing, driven by the region's global gravity.

Protostellar outflows and jets are almost ubiquitous characteristics during the mass accretion phase and encode the history of stellar accretion, complex organic molecule (COM) formation, and planet formation. Episodic jets are likely connected to episodic accretion through the disk. Despite the importance, studies on episodic accretion and ejection links have not been done yet in a systematic fashion using high-sensitivity and high-resolution observations. To explore episodic accretion mechanisms and the chronologies of episodic events, we investigated 39 fields containing protostars with Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array observations of CO, SiO, and 1.3 mm continuum emission. We detected SiO emission in 19 fields, where 17 sources are driving molecular jets. Jet velocities, mass-loss rates, mass accretion rates, and periods of accretion events appear to have some dependence on the driving forces of the jet (e.g., bolometric luminosity, envelope mass). Next, velocities and mass-loss rates appear to be somewhat correlated with the surrounding envelope mass, suggesting that the presence of high mass around protostars increases the ejection–accretion activity. We determine mean periods of ejection events of 20–175 yr for our sample, which could be associated with perturbation zones of ∼2−25 au extent around the protostars. In addition, mean ejection periods show an apparent anticorrelation with the envelope mass, where high accretion rates may trigger more frequent ejection events. The observed periods of outburst/ejection are much shorter than the freezeout timescale of the simplest COMs like CH _3 OH, suggesting that episodic events could affect the ice–gas balance inside and around the snowline.

This study investigated the immunostimulatory effect of egg yolk-derived phosvitin phosphopeptides (PPPs) prepared by high-temperature and mild-pressure (HTMP) pretreatment and enzyme combinations in RAW 264.7 macrophages. Treating RAW 264.7 macrophages with PPPs, especially those produced by HTMP pretreatment and trypsin + Multifect 14L combination (HTMP-TM), significantly increased nitric oxide (NO) production. The PPPs increased NO production by inducing the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) mRNA in RAW 264.7 cells. The mRNA expression and secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines (tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and interleukin (IL)-6) were also enhanced by PPPs. Furthermore, PPPs activated the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway, and PPPs-induced NO production was suppressed by MAPK inhibitors and anti-Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) antibody in RAW 264.7 cells. In conclusion, the immunostimulatory effects of PPPs on RAW 264.7 cells were due to the activation of TLR2-mediated MAPK signaling pathway.

We present a comprehensive investigation of H i (super)clouds, molecular clouds (MCs), and star formation in the Carina spiral arm of the outer Galaxy. Utilizing HI4PI and CfA CO survey data, we identify H i clouds and MCs based on the ( l , v _LSR ) locations of the Carina arm. We analyzed 26 H i clouds and 48 MCs. Most of the identified H i clouds are superclouds, with masses exceeding 10 ^6 M _⊙ . We find that 15 of these superclouds have associated MC(s) with M _H I ≳ 10 ^6 M _⊙ and ${{\rm{\Sigma }}}_{{\rm{H}}\,{\rm\small{I}}+{{\rm{H}}}_{2}}\gtrsim $ 50 M _⊙ pc ^−2 . Our virial equilibrium analysis suggests that these CO-bright H i clouds are gravitationally bound or marginally bound. We report an anticorrelation between molecular mass fractions and Galactocentric distances, and a correlation with total gas surface densities. Nine CO-bright H i superclouds are associated with H ii regions, indicating ongoing star formation. We confirm the regular spacing of H i superclouds along the spiral arm, which is likely due to some underlying physical process, such as gravitational instabilities. We observe a strong spatial correlation between H ii regions and MCs, with some offsets between MCs and local H i column density peaks. Our study reveals that, in the context of H i superclouds, the star formation rate surface density is independent of H i and total gas surface densities but positively correlates with molecular gas surface density. This finding is consistent with both extragalactic studies of the resolved Kennicutt–Schmidt relation and local giant molecular clouds study of Lada et al. (2013), emphasizing the crucial role of molecular gas in regulating star formation processes.

We present observations of polarized dust emission at 850 μ m from the L43 molecular cloud, which sits in the Ophiuchus cloud complex. The data were taken using SCUBA-2/POL-2 on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope as a part of the BISTRO large program. L43 is a dense ( ${N}_{{{\rm{H}}}_{2}}\sim {10}^{22}$ –10 ^23 cm ^−2 ) complex molecular cloud with a submillimeter-bright starless core and two protostellar sources. There appears to be an evolutionary gradient along the isolated filament that L43 is embedded within, with the most evolved source closest to the Sco OB2 association. One of the protostars drives a CO outflow that has created a cavity to the southeast. We see a magnetic field that appears to be aligned with the cavity walls of the outflow, suggesting interaction with the outflow. We also find a magnetic field strength of up to ∼160 ± 30 μ G in the main starless core and up to ∼90 ± 40 μ G in the more diffuse, extended region. These field strengths give magnetically super- and subcritical values, respectively, and both are found to be roughly trans-Alfvénic. We also present a new method of data reduction for these denser but fainter objects like starless cores.

We report the proper motions of 22 GHz water masers toward W49 N that were observed by the KVN and VERA Array (KaVA) during 2017 February–May. We found 263, 268, and 310 features in three successive epochs; they were distributed in a region of size 4 × 4 arcsec ^2 . The strongest flux density was in the third epoch, and its averaged value was 18,090 Jy at V _LSR +0.47 km s ^−1 . For 102 H _2 O maser features, proper motion was detected across all three epochs. The average proper motions in R.A. and decl. offset were −0.352 and +0.890 mas yr ^−1 , respectively. The morphology of the distribution of the H _2 O maser features was found to be a bipolar outflow structure with an inclination angle of 37° ± 13° to the line of sight, and the features were expanding from a well-defined outflow center. A model of the source combining expansion and rotation yielded a distance to W49 of 11.12 ± 0.96 kpc that is consistent with the results from trigonometric parallax. A redshifted lobe was situated in the northeast direction and a blueshifted lobe in the southwest direction. We also discussed the location of the powerful flaring H _2 O maser feature at V _LSR = + 6 km s ^−1 and its possible mechanisms on the basis of spatial structures for the maser feature in VLBI maps observed with the KaVA, timed just before and during the rebrightening phase.

We study the H ii regions associated with the NGC 6334 molecular cloud observed in the submillimeter and taken as part of the B -fields In STar-forming Region Observations Survey. In particular, we investigate the polarization patterns and magnetic field morphologies associated with these H ii regions. Through polarization pattern and pressure calculation analyses, several of these bubbles indicate that the gas and magnetic field lines have been pushed away from the bubble, toward an almost tangential (to the bubble) magnetic field morphology. In the densest part of NGC 6334, where the magnetic field morphology is similar to an hourglass, the polarization observations do not exhibit observable impact from H ii regions. We detect two nested radial polarization patterns in a bubble to the south of NGC 6334 that correspond to the previously observed bipolar structure in this bubble. Finally, using the results of this study, we present steps (incorporating computer vision; circular Hough transform) that can be used in future studies to identify bubbles that have physically impacted magnetic field lines.

Starless cores represent the initial stage of evolution toward (proto)star formation, and a subset of them, known as prestellar cores, with high density (∼ 10 ^6 cm ^−3 or higher) and being centrally concentrated are expected to be embryos of (proto)stars. Determining the density profile of prestellar cores therefore provides an important opportunity to gauge the initial conditions of star formation. In this work, we perform rigorous modeling to estimate the density profiles of three nearly spherical prestellar cores among a sample of five highly dense cores detected by our recent observations. We employed multiscale observational data of the (sub)millimeter dust continuum emission, including those obtained by SCUBA-2 on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope with a resolution of ∼ 5600 au and by multiple Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array observations with a resolution as high as ∼ 480 au. We are able to consistently reproduce the observed multiscale dust continuum images of the cores with a simple prescribed density profile, which bears an inner region of flat density and an r ^−2 profile toward the outer region. By utilizing the peak density and the size of the inner flat region as a proxy for the dynamical stage of the cores, we find that the three modeled cores are most likely unstable and prone to collapse. The sizes of the inner flat regions, as compact as ∼ 500 au, signify them as being the highly evolved prestellar cores rarely found to date.

We present BISTRO Survey 850 μ m dust emission polarization observations of the L1495A-B10 region of the Taurus molecular cloud, taken at the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT). We observe a roughly triangular network of dense filaments. We detect nine of the dense starless cores embedded within these filaments in polarization, finding that the plane-of-sky orientation of the core-scale magnetic field lies roughly perpendicular to the filaments in almost all cases. We also find that the large-scale magnetic field orientation measured by Planck is not correlated with any of the core or filament structures, except in the case of the lowest-density core. We propose a scenario for early prestellar evolution that is both an extension to, and consistent with, previous models, introducing an additional evolutionary transitional stage between field-dominated and matter-dominated evolution, observed here for the first time. In this scenario, the cloud collapses first to a sheet-like structure. Uniquely, we appear to be seeing this sheet almost face on. The sheet fragments into filaments, which in turn form cores. However, the material must reach a certain critical density before the evolution changes from being field dominated to being matter dominated. We measure the sheet surface density and the magnetic field strength at that transition for the first time and show consistency with an analytical prediction that had previously gone untested for over 50 yr.

The East Asian VLBI Network (EAVN) is an international VLBI facility in East Asia and is operated under mutual collaboration between East Asian countries, as well as part of Southeast Asian and European countries. EAVN currently consists of 16 radio telescopes and three correlators located in China, Japan, and Korea, and is operated mainly at three frequency bands, 6.7, 22, and 43 GHz with the longest baseline length of 5078 km, resulting in the highest angular resolution of 0.28 milliarcseconds at 43 GHz. One of distinct capabilities of EAVN is multi-frequency simultaneous data reception at nine telescopes, which enable us to employ the frequency phase transfer technique to obtain better sensitivity at higher observing frequencies. EAVN started its open-use program in the second half of 2018, providing a total observing time of more than 1100 h in a year. EAVN fills geographical gap in global VLBI array, resulting in enabling us to conduct contiguous high-resolution VLBI observations. EAVN has produced various scientific accomplishments especially in observations toward active galactic nuclei, evolved stars, and star-forming regions. These activities motivate us to initiate launch of the ’Global VLBI Alliance’ to provide an opportunity of VLBI observation with the longest baselines on the earth.

Compared with traditionally cultured ginseng, hydroponic ginseng (HG) contains more remarkable bioactive compounds, which are known to exert diverse functional effects. This study aimed to enhance the multifunctional effects, including the antioxidative, anti-inflammatory, and antimelanogenic effects, exhibited by fermented HG with Bacillus strains, such as Bacillus subtilis KU43, Bacillus subtilis KU201, Bacillus polyfermenticus SCD, and Bacillus polyfermenticus KU3, at 37 °C for 48 h. After fermentation by B. subtilis KU201, the antioxidant activity, determined using ABTS and FRAP assays, increased from 25.30% to 51.34% and from 132.10% to 236.27%, respectively, accompanied by the enhancement of the phenolic compounds and flavonoids. The inflammation induced in RAW 264.7 cells by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was ameliorated with fermented HG, which regulated the nitric oxide (NO), prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), and proinflammatory markers (tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, and interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-6). The treatment with fermented HG inhibited the melanin accumulation in B16F10 cells induced by α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (α-MSH) by controlling the concentrations of melanin synthesis and tyrosinase activity. These results indicate that the HG exhibited stronger antioxidative, anti-inflammatory, and antimelanogenic effects after fermentation. Consequently, HG fermented by Bacillus strains can potentially be used as an ingredient in cosmetological and pharmaceutical applications.

We present the full data release of the ^12 CO (3–2) High-Resolution Survey (COHRS), which has mapped the inner Galactic plane over the range of 9.°5 ≤ l ≤ 62.°3 and ∣ b ∣ ≤ 0.°5. COHRS has been carried out using the Heterodyne Array Receiver Program on the 15 m James Clerk Maxwell Telescope in Hawaii. The released data are smoothed to have a spatial resolution of 16.″6 and a velocity resolution of 0.635 km s ^−1 , achieving a mean rms of ∼0.6 K on ${T}_{{\rm{A}}}^{* }$ . The COHRS data are useful for investigating detailed three-dimensional structures of individual molecular clouds and large-scale structures such as spiral arms in the Galactic plane. Furthermore, data from other available public surveys of different CO isotopologues and transitions with similar angular resolutions to this survey, such as FUGIN, SEDIGISM, and CHIMPS/CHIMPS2, allow studies of the physical properties of molecular clouds and comparison of their states. In this paper, we report further observations on the second release and improved data reduction since the original COHRS release. We discuss the characteristics of the COHRS data and present integrated-emission images and a position–velocity (PV) map of the region covered. The PV map shows a good match with spiral-arm traces from existing CO and H i surveys. We also obtain and compare integrated one-dimensional distributions of ^12 CO (1–0) and (3–2) and those of star-forming populations.

Panax ginseng Meyer is used as a medicinal plant. The aim of this study was to ferment hydroponic ginseng with Lactococcus lactis KC24 and confirm its antioxidant activity and inhibitory effect on nitric oxide (NO) production. Flavonoid and phenol contents in fermented ginseng extracts were measured. Antioxidant activity was measured by DPPH, ABTS, reducing power, FRAP and β-carotene assays. Additionally, inhibitory effects on NO production and toxicity of the fermented extract were determined using RAW 264.7 cells. Phenol and flavonoid contents increased as the fermentation time increased, and the contents were higher in hydroponic ginseng than in soil-cultivated ginseng. The DPPH assay revealed that the antioxidant activity of the 24 h fermented extract significantly increased from 32.57% to 41% (p < 0.05). The increase in antioxidant activity may be affected by an increase in phenol and flavonoid contents. At 1 mg/mL solid content, the 24 h fermented hydroponic ginseng extract inhibited NO production from 9.87 ± 0.06 μM to 1.62 ± 0.26 μM. In conclusion, the increase in antioxidant activity affects the inhibition of NO production, suggesting that fermented hydroponic ginseng may be used in the industries of functional food and pharmaceutical industry as a functional material with anti-inflammatory effects.

The development of convenient and accessible health-functional foods has become an area of increased interest in recent years. Probiotics, ginseng, and yogurts have been recognized as representative nutraceutical products. To improve the functionality of yogurts, co-fermentation was performed during yogurt preparation. Four kinds of yogurt were prepared using a combination of probiotic Lactobacillus brevis B7 and hydroponic ginseng based on plain yogurt. The fundamental characteristics of yogurts, including pH, titratable acidity, microbial counts, color, and physicochemical properties, were determined. To assess functionality, four different antioxidant assays and real-time PCR analysis using RAW 264.7 cells were performed. Finally, sensory evaluation was conducted to evaluate customer preference. Hydroponic ginseng supplementation influenced pH, solid content, lightness, and yellowness. However, probiotic supplementation did not affect most factors except pH. In functionality analysis, the yogurt co-fermented with probiotics and ginseng showed the highest antioxidant activity and gene expression levels of the immune-related factors TNF-α and iNOS in RAW 264.7 cells. Although ginseng supplementation received poor acceptance because of its color and flavor, these attempts were considered beneficial despite the risk. Overall, co-fermentation within a short yogurt preparation time presented the potential for improvement of functionality. These findings suggest a range of feasibility for the development of attractive nutraceutical products.

This study was carried out to develop a functional yogurt with inhibitory effects on angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) and antioxidant activity using various probiotic strains. Yogurts were prepared using a commercial LAB freeze-dried product and probiotics.Yogurt with only commercial LAB product as control group (C) and probiotics supplemented with Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus GG KCTC 12202 BP, as a reference group (T1), Lactiplantibacillus plantarum KU15003 (T2), Lactiplantibacillus plantarum KU15031 (T3), Lactiplantibacillus plantarum NK181 (T4), and Lactobacillus delbrueckii KU200171 (T5). The T5 sample showed high antioxidant activities (86.5 ± 0.3% and 39.3 ± 1.0% in DPPH and ABTS assays, respectively). The T4 sample had the highest ACE inhibitory activity (51.3 ± 10.3%). In the case of sensory evaluation, the T4 and T5 samples did not show a significant difference (p > 0.05) compared to the reference group. These results suggest that L. plantarum NK181 and L. delbrueckii KU200171 can be used in the food industry especially dairy to improve health benefits for hypertensive patients.

Hydroponic ginseng (HG) is cultivated using only nutrients and water under constant environmental conditions and is more beneficial than soil-cultured ginseng (SG). This study aimed to determine the physicochemical properties, antioxidant activity, and sensory properties of HG-supplemented yogurt to develop high-value yogurt. HG (0.1%, 0.5%, and 1.0%) was added to yogurt formulations and fermented with a 0.1% starter. Antioxidant activities were determined using the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH), 2-azinobis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt, reducing power, and ferric reducing antioxidant power assays. Semi-trained panelists performed a quantitative descriptive analysis for sensory evaluation. The number of starter cells increased more rapidly in ginseng extract-fortified yogurt than in the control group, shortening fermentation time. Regarding antioxidant assays, all HG extract-fortified yogurts showed higher antioxidant activity than the control group. In particular, the HG (0.5%) group showed better results than the SG group in the DPPH and reducing power assays, although the difference was not significant. The sensory scores of color, flavor, texture, taste, and overall acceptance of 0.5% HG-supplemented yogurt did not differ significantly from those of non-supplemented yogurt (control). This suggests that HG can be used in high-value dairy products as a supplement with bioactive properties for health in the food industry.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the immune-enhancing effect of red gamju fermented with Levilactobacillus brevis KU15154, isolated from kimchi, as a biofunctional beverage using mice. Thirty-two mice were used, and after a 2-week feeding, the growth, cytokine and immunoglobulin production, and immune-related cell activation (phagocytes and natural killer [NK] cells) of the mice were evaluated. The red gamju- (SR) and fermented red gamju- (FSR) treated groups had 3.5–4.0-fold greater T-cell proliferation ability than the negative control group. IFN-γ production in the FSR group (15.5 ± 1.2 mg/mL) was significantly higher (p < 0.05) than that in the SR group (12.5 ± 1.8 mg/mL). The FSR group (502.6 ± 25.8 μg/mL) also showed higher IgG production levels than the SR group (412.2 ± 44.8 μg/mL). The activity of NK cells treated with FSR was also greater than that of cells treated with SR but it was not significant (p ≤ 0.05). Further, the phagocytic activity of peritoneal macrophages was higher in both SR and FSR groups than in the control group but was not significantly different (p < 0.05) between the SR and FSR groups. In conclusion, L. brevis KU15154 may be applied in the fermentation of bioactive food products, such as beverages or pharmaceutical industries, to potentially improve immunity.

Black gamju is Korean traditional beverage fermented with molds. The aim of this study was to assess the probiotic properties and antioxidant activities of novel Pediococcus pentosaceus SC28 and Levilactobacillus brevis KU15151 to develop black gamju with bioactive properties for health. Tolerance against artificial gastric juice and bile salts, adhesion ability on HT-29 cells of strains, and antibiotics susceptibility were evaluated as probiotics, and various enzyme productions were detected. The 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl assay, 2,2′-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonate, and β-carotene bleaching assay were used for antioxidant activity of samples. The tolerance of both strains to artificial gastric juice and bile salts (Oxgall) was more than 90%. Additionally, both strains did not produce β-glucuronidase and were resistant to gentamicin, kanamycin, streptomycin, and ciprofloxacin. After fermentation of black gamju with each strain, the number of viable lactic acid bacteria increased to 8.25–8.95 log colony forming unit/mL, but the pH value of fermented samples decreased more (to pH 3.33–3.41) than that of control (pH 4.37). L. brevis KU15151 showed higher adhesion activity to HT-29 cells and antioxidant effects than P. pentosaceus SC28 in three antioxidant assays.

In this study, the effects of magnolia (Magnolia (M.) denudata) extract fermentation in increasing the extract’s antioxidative and anticancer activities were investigated. Magnolia was fermented by Pediococcus acidilactici KCCM 11614. The total phenolic content was determined by the Folin-Ciocalteu’s method and the antioxidative effects by 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazy (DPPH) and ferric reducing ability of plasma (FRAP) assay. Anticancer activity against cancer and normal cells was determined using 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT). Total phenolic content during fermentation increased from 38.1 to 47.0 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/g of solid matter. The radical scavenging activity was 91.4% after 72 h fermentation. Fermented magnolia’s antioxidative effect was threefold higher than that of the (non-fermented) control. Fermentation (48 h) increased anticanceric activity against AGS, LoVo, and MCF-7 cancer cells 1.29- to 1.36-fold compared with that of the control, but did not affect MRC-5 (normal) cells, suggesting that fermented magnolia could be used as a natural antioxidative and anticancer agent.

Ginseng leaf/stem extract produced by subcritical water extraction at high temperature (190°C) possess higher cytotoxic activity against human cancer cell lines than ethanol extract. Subcritical water extraction can be a great candidate for extraction of functional substance from ginseng leaves/stems.

The transformation of ginsenoside Rb1 into a specific minor ginsenoside using Aspergillus niger KCCM 11239, as well as the identification of the transformed products and the pathway via thin layer chromatography and high performance liquid chromatography were evaluated to develop a new biologically active material. The conversion of ginsenoside Rb1 generated Rd, Rg3, Rh2, and compound K although the reaction rates were low due to the low concentration. In enzymatic conversion, all of the ginsenoside Rb1 was converted to ginsenoside Rd and ginsenoside Rg3 after 24 h of incubation. The crude enzyme (β-glucosidase) from A. niger KCCM 11239 hydrolyzed the β-(1→6)-glucosidic linkage at the C-20 of ginsenoside Rb1 to generate ginsenoside Rd and ginsenoside Rg3. Our experimental demonstration showing that A. niger KCCM 11239 produces the ginsenoside-hydrolyzing β-glucosidase reflects the feasibility of developing a specific bioconversion process to obtain active minor ginsenosides.

Hydroponic ginseng (HPG) has been known to have various bio-functionalities, including an antioxidant effect. Recently, fermentation by lactic acid bacteria has been studied to enhance bio-functional activities in plants by biologically converting their chemical compounds. HPG roots and shoots were fermented with Leuconostoc mesenteroides KCCM 12010P isolated from kimchi. The total phenolic compounds, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-adipogenic effects of these fermented samples were evaluated in comparison with non-fermented samples (control). During 24 h fermentation of HPG roots and shoots, the viable number of cells increased to 7.50 Log colony forming unit (CFU)/mL. Total phenolic and flavonoid contents of the fermented HPG roots increased by 107.19% and 645.59%, respectively, compared to non-fermented HPG roots. The antioxidant activity of fermented HPG, as assessed by 2,2′-azino-bis-3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS), β-carotene-linoleic, and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assay, was also significantly enhanced. In an anti-inflammatory effect of lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells, the nitric oxide content and the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) decreased when treated with fermented samples. Simultaneously, lipid accumulation in 3T3-L1 adipocyte was reduced when treated with fermented HPG. Fermentation by L. mesenteroides showed improved antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-adipogenic HPG effects. These results show that fermented HPG has potential for applications in the functional food industry.