Kye Man Cho’s research while affiliated with Gyeongsang National University and other places

Light is essential for plant production and has various effects on plant quality. Vertical farms typically use light-emitting diodes (LEDs) as light sources. However, the cost of LEDs varies with wattage and the initial installation costs are generally high. Therefore, to explore more cost-effective LED designs, we aimed to investigate the impact of red LED chips density on light distribution and plant growth under the same total electricity consumption. To this end, we exposed baby leaf soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.; 5 days) and kale (Brassica oleracea var. acephala; 18 days) to LEDs light with different arrangements of red and white chips. Plants were exposed to either 2 W chips with a red: white ratio of 4: 64 (2W4R treatment) or 1 W chips with a red: white ratio of 8: 64 (1W8R treatment) across the entire LED bar. We observed that the distribution of red light in the cultivation room differed depending on the density of the red LED chips. We found that arranging low-power red LED chips at narrow intervals resulted in uniform light distribution across the entire cultivation bed, positively affecting crop growth. Baby leaf soybean and kale exhibited uniform growth under 1W8R and growth was particularly enhanced in kale. This may be because of the dense leaf structure of kale, which promotes photosynthesis under a uniform light environment. The results of this study demonstrate that a favorable light environment can be created by altering the position and distribution of red LED chips, thereby inducing uniform growth in plants.

Isoflavone-enriched soybean leaves (IESLs) were processed for drying, steaming, and fermentation, and bioactive compounds and biological activities were analyzed. During food processing, the content of fatty acids, water-soluble vitamins, total phenolics, total flavonoids, and isoflavone-aglycones increased from dried IESLs (DrIESLs) to fermented IESLs (FeIESLs). Especially, oleic acid (53.4 → 113.1 mg/100 g, 2.1-folds), γ-aminobutyric acid (357.36 → 435.48 mg/100 g, 1.2-folds), niacin (19.0 → 130.6 mg/100 g, 6.9-folds), folic acid (9.7 → 25.5 mg/100 g, 2.6-folds), daidzein (270.02 → 3735.10 μg/100 g, 13.8-folds), and genistein (121.18 → 1386.01 μg/100 g, 11.4-folds) dramatically increased. Correspondingly, the antioxidant and digestive enzyme inhibitory activities increased. Therefore, solid-state lactic acid fermentation (SLAF) was suggested as a suitable technique for mass-processing IESLs. FeIESLs with SLAF have the potential to be utilized as a functional food.

Fermented and aged mountain‐cultivated ginseng sprouts (FAMCGS) exhibit superior antioxidant and anti‐inflammatory properties compared to mountain‐cultivated ginseng sprouts (MCGS). However, the mechanisms behind these properties of FAMCGSE remain unclear. This study explores the anti‐inflammatory effects of FAMCGS extract (FAMCGSE) on LPS‐stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages and the underlying mechanisms. The MTT assay confirmed that FAMCGSE (0 to 0.1%) maintained cell viability without inducing morphological changes. Pretreatment with FAMCGSE significantly mitigated LPS‐induced morphological alterations dose‐dependently. RT‐PCR and Western blot analyses showed that FAMCGSE significantly reduced the mRNA and protein levels of proinflammatory mediators such as TNF‐α, IL‐1β, IL‐6, iNOS, and COX‐2. Additionally, FAMCGSE decreased the production of TNF‐α, IL‐1β, IL‐6, nitric oxide, and PGE2 in LPS‐activated RAW264.7 cells. Mechanistically, FAMCGSE inhibited the phosphorylation of mitogen‐activated protein kinases (MAPKs; ERK, p38, and JNK) and prevented the LPS‐induced nuclear translocation of NF‐κB, with effects comparable to compound K (CK) or dexamethasone. Notably, FAMCGSE was particularly effective in inhibiting ERK and JNK activation, with less impact on p38, suggesting a specific inhibitory action on certain MAPK pathways. These findings highlight FAMCGSE's potential as an inhibitor of MAPK and NF‐κB pathways, indicating that FAMCGSE, including its main component CK, may be a promising therapeutic agent for inflammation‐related conditions.

In this study, the nutrients, phytochemicals (including isoflavone and ginsenoside derivatives), and antioxidant activities of cheonggukjang with different ratios (0%, 2.5%, 5%, and 10%) of mountain-cultivated ginseng (MCG) were compared and analyzed using microorganisms isolated from traditional cheonggukjang. The IDCK 30 and IDCK 40 strains were confirmed as Bacillus licheniformis and Bacillus subtilis, respectively, based on morphological, biological, biochemical, and molecular genetic identification, as well as cell wall fatty acid composition. The contents of amino acids and fatty acids showed no significant difference in relation to the ratio of MCG. After fermentation, isoflavone glycoside (such as daidzin, glycitin, and genistin) contents decreased, while aglycone (daidzein, glycitein, and genistein) contents increased. However, total ginsenoside contents were higher according to the ratio of MCG. After fermentation, ginsenoside Rg2, F2, and protopanaxadiol contents of cheonggukjang decreased. Conversely, ginsenoside Rg3 (2.5%: 56.51 → 89.43 μg/g, 5.0%: 65.56 → 94.71 μg/g, and 10%: 96.05 → 166.90 μg/g) and compound K (2.5%: 28.54 → 69.43 μg/g, 5.0%: 41.63 → 150.72 μg/g, and 10%: 96.23 → 231.33 μg/g) increased. The total phenolic and total flavonoid contents were higher with increasing ratios of MCG and fermentation (fermented cheonggukjang with 10% MCG: 13.60 GAE and 1.87 RE mg/g). Additionally, radical scavenging activities and ferric reducing/antioxidant power were significantly increased in fermented cheonggukjang. This study demonstrates that the quality of cheonggukjang improved, and cheonggukjang with MCG as natural antioxidants may be useful in food and pharmaceutical applications.

In this study, the physicochemical properties, nutritional components, and antioxidant activities of kombucha containing ginseng sprouts (control kombucha, CT; strawberry kombucha, ST ; strawberry kombucha with 2% ginseng sprout, ST+GS) were analyzed for comparison of quality characteristics. The total content of free amino acids in ST+GS (273.38 mg/100 mL) was 3.2-14.5 times higher than in CT (18.9 mg/100 mL) and ST (84.9 mg/100 mL). The total mineral content in ST+GS (63.99 mg/100 mL) was 3.3-4.1 times higher than those of CT and ST (15.45 and 19.28 mg/100 mL). The contents of soluble phenolic and soluble flavonoid were 1.2 mg GAE/mL and 0.14 mg RE/mL in ST+GS. Several ginsenosides were detected only in ST+GS; ginsenoside Rg2 (2.4 mg/100 mL), Rh1 (4.5 mg/100 mL), F2 (9.0 mg/100 mL), Rg3 (4.6 mg/100 mL), and compound K (7.8 mg/100 mL) were detected. The content of phenolic acids was 1.2-1.5 times higher in ST+GS than in CT and ST. The amount of flavonol of ST+GS was not significantly different from CT but was 1.4 times higher than in ST. In terms of antioxidant activities, the values of ST+GS were significantly higher in comparison to other kombucha samples. These results confirmed that incorporating ginseng sprouts amplifies the advantages of kombucha.

In this study, the physicochemical properties, nutritional components, and antioxidant activities of kombucha containing ginseng sprouts (control kombucha, CT; strawberry kombucha, ST ; strawberry kombucha with 2% ginseng sprout, ST+GS) were analyzed for comparison of quality characteristics. The total content of free amino acids in ST+GS (273.38 mg/100 mL) was 3.2-14.5 times higher than in CT (18.9 mg/100 mL) and ST (84.9 mg/100 mL). The total mineral content in ST+GS (63.99 mg/100 mL) was 3.3-4.1 times higher than those of CT and ST (15.45 and 19.28 mg/100 mL). The contents of soluble phenolic and soluble flavonoid were 1.2 mg GAE/mL and 0.14 mg RE/mL in ST+GS. Several ginsenosides were detected only in ST+GS; ginsenoside Rg2 (2.4 mg/100 mL), Rh1 (4.5 mg/100 mL), F2 (9.0 mg/100 mL), Rg3 (4.6 mg/100 mL), and compound K (7.8 mg/100 mL) were detected. The content of phenolic acids was 1.2-1.5 times higher in ST+GS than in CT and ST. The amount of flavonol of ST+GS was not significantly different from CT but was 1.4 times higher than in ST. In terms of antioxidant activities, the values of ST+GS were significantly higher in comparison to other kombucha samples. These results confirmed that incorporating ginseng sprouts amplifies the advantages of kombucha.

This study was the first to document the fluctuations of nutritional constituents, antioxidant capacities, and physicochemical characteristics during the aging processes of red ginseng sprouts (RGS) and black ginseng sprouts (BGS) from dried ginseng sprouts (DGS). Total ginsenoside levels differed with 54.72 (DGS) → 57.15 (RGS) and 6.98 (BGS) mg/g, specifically, ginsenoside F2 and Rd2 in RGS remarkably increased with 1.97 → 5.88 and 2.41 → 5.49 mg/g, respectively. Phenolics increased dramatically as 297.02 → 1770.01 (6.0-fold); 1834.94 (6.2-fold) μg/g in DGS → RGS; BGS with abundance contents of benzoic acid (>15.3-fold), chlorogenic acid (>9.5-fold), and catechin (>4.2-fold), whereas amino acids markedly decreased (3686.81 → 1505.00; 364.64 mg/100 g), with arginine showing a significant decrease. Moreover, beneficial factors (total phenolic content: TPC; total flavonoid content: TFC; maillard reaction products: MRP) displayed increase tendencies (approximately 2.0-fold) with BGS > RGS > DGS, and antioxidant patterns significantly increased with potential capacities as follows: ABTS (48.3: DGS → 65.8: RGS; 70.2 %: BGS) > DPPH (18.5 → 44.6; 59.2 %) > hydroxyl (23.2 → 35.4; 39.9 %) > FRAP (0.6 → 1.8; 1.8 %) at 500 μg/mL. In particular, DNA protection exhibited excellent rates of 100 %, in the order of BGS (25 μg/mL) > RGS (50 μg/mL) > DGS (500 μg/mL). These findings suggest that processed ginseng sprouts can be excellent agents for natural antioxidants.