• The Journal of Korean Obstetrics and Gynecology
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.1-23
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• 2022

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to evaluate anti-breast cancer and anti-inflammatory effects of Chungganhaewool-tang and Shipyeukmiyeugi-eum. Methods: MDA-MB-231 cells were used to measure cytotoxicity, Reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, protein expression amounts of Bcl-2-associated X protein (Bax), B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2), B-cell lymphoma-extra large (Bcl-xl), Cytochrome C Caspase-3, Caspase-7, Caspase-9, Poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP), Nuclear factor erythroid-2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), Heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) and NAD (P) H Quinone Oxidoreductase 1 (NQO1) to evaluate the anti-breast cancer effects of Chungganhaewool-tang (CHT) and Shipyeukmiyeugi-eum (SYE), and THP-1 cells, differentiated into macrophage and induced inflammation with Lipopolysaccharide (LPS), were used to measure production amounts of ROS, Nitric oxide (NO), and protein expression amounts of Inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), Cyclooxygenase (COX-2), Interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), Interleukin-6 (IL-6) and Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) to evaluate the anti-inflammatory effects of CHT and SYE. Results: CHT and SYE reduced MDA-MB-231 cell counts, increased protein expression of Bax and Cytochrome C, and decreased protein expression of Bcl-2, Bcl-xl. The protein expression amounts of Caspase-3, 7, and 9 decreased, but amounts of the active form, cleaved Caspase-3, 7, and 9, increased. In addition, PARP protein expression decreased, the amount of PARP protein in the cleaved form increased, and the amount of protein expressions of Nrf2 and HO-1 decreased, but NQO1 showed no significant difference. In THP-1 cells CHT and SYE reduced ROS and NO, and reduced protein expressions of iNOS, COX-2, IL-1, and TNF-α, but only SYE groups reduced IL-6. Conclusions: This study suggests that CHT and SYE have potential to be used as treatments for breast cancer.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.56 no.2
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• pp.135-145
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• 2018

Due to the critical location and physiological activities of the retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cell, it is constantly subjected to contact with various infectious agents and inflammatory mediators. However, little is known about the signaling events in RPE involved in Toxoplasma gondii infection and development. The aim of the study is to screen the host mRNA transcriptional change of 3 inflammation-related gene categories, PI3K/Akt pathway regulatory components, blood vessel development factors and ROS regulators, to prove that PI3K/Akt or mTOR signaling pathway play an essential role in regulating the selected inflammation-related genes. The selected genes include PH domain and leucine- rich-repeat protein phosphatases (PHLPP), casein kinase2 (CK2), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF), glutamate-cysteine ligase (GCL), glutathione S-transferase (GST), and NAD(P)H: quinone oxidoreductase (NQO1). Using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and quantitative real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), we found that T. gondii up-regulates PHLPP2, $CK2{\beta}$, VEGF, GCL, GST and NQO1 gene expression levels, but down-regulates PHLPP1 and PEDF mRNA transcription levels. PI3K inhibition and mTOR inhibition by specific inhibitors showed that most of these host gene expression patterns were due to activation of PI3K/Akt or mTOR pathways with some exceptional cases. Taken together, our results reveal a new molecular mechanism of these gene expression change dependent on PI3K/Akt or mTOR pathways and highlight more systematical insight of how an intracellular T. gondii can manipulate host genes to avoid host defense.