• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.414-419
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• 2014

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are zinc-dependent endopeptidases that regulate cell-matrix composition and are also involved in processing various bioactive molecules such as cell-surface receptors, chemokines, and cytokines. Our group recently reported that MMP-3, -8, and -9 are upregulated during microglial activation and play a role as proinflammatory mediators (Lee et al., 2010, 2014). In particular, we demonstrated that MMP-8 has tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-${\alpha}$)-converting enzyme (TACE) activity by cleaving the prodomain of TNF-${\alpha}$ and that inhibition of MMP-8 inhibits TACE activity. The present study was undertaken to compare the effect of MMP-8 inhibitor (M8I) with those of inhibitors of other MMPs, such as MMP-3 (NNGH) or MMP-9 (M9I), in their regulation of TNF-${\alpha}$ activity. We found that the MMP inhibitors suppressed TNF-${\alpha}$ secretion from lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated BV2 microglial cells in an order of efficacy: M8I>NNGH>M9I. In addition, MMP inhibitors suppressed the activity of recombinant TACE protein in the same efficacy order as that of TNF-${\alpha}$ inhibition (M8I>NNGH>M9I), proving a direct correlation between TACE activity and TNF-${\alpha}$ secretion. A subsequent pro-TNF-${\alpha}$ cleavage assay revealed that both MMP-3 and MMP-9 cleave a prodomain of TNF-${\alpha}$, suggesting that MMP-3 and MMP-9 also have TACE activity. However, the number and position of cleavage sites varied between MMP-3, -8, and -9. Collectively, the concurrent inhibition of MMP and TACE by NNGH, M8I, or M9I may contribute to their strong anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects.

• Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.334-338
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• 1991

Synthesis of $(D-Phe^7\;-Leu^8)$ bradykinin and bradykinin by solid phase method using a new reaction vessel was carried out. Coupling was performed by dicyclohexylcarbodiimide. After cleavage with dried HBr the peptides were purified by high pressure liquied chromatography. Their purify was assayed by paper and thin layer chromatography, melting point and amino acid analysis. $(D-Phe^7\;-Leu^8)$ bradykinin and bradykinin were incubater in vitro endopeptidase $({\alpha}-chymotrysis)$ and exopeptidase(carboxypeptidase A, leucine aminopeptidase) in order to study the degradation pattern of peptides. $(D-Phe^7\;-Leu^8)$ bradykinin and bradykinin were rapidly degradated by ${\alpha}-chymotrypsin$ and carboxypeptidase A $(D-Phe^7\;-Leu^8)$ bradykinin and bradykinin coution$(D-Phe^7\;-Leu^8)$ bradykinin and bradykinin contain imino peptide bound from proline at N-terminal and therefore they were not attacted by leucine aminopeptidase.

• BMB Reports
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.270-277
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• 2006

Helices 4 and 5 of the Bacillus thuringiensis Cry4Ba $\delta$-endotoxin have been shown to be important determinants for mosquito-larvicidal activity, likely being involved in membrane-pore formation. In this study, the Cry4Ba mutant protein containing an additional engineered tryptic cleavage site was used to produce the $\alpha4$-$\alpha5$ hairpin peptide by an efficient alternative strategy. Upon solubilization of toxin inclusions expressed in Escherichia coli and subsequent digestion with trypsin, the 130-kDa mutant protoxin was processed to protease-resistant fragments of ca. 47, 10 and 7 kDa. The 7-kDa fragment was identified as the $\alpha4$-loop-$\alpha5$ hairpin via N-terminal sequencing and mass spectrometry, and was successfully purified by size-exclusion FPLC and reversed-phase HPLC. Using circular dichroism spectroscopy, the 7-kDa peptide was found to exist predominantly as an $\alpha$-helical structure. Membrane perturbation studies by using fluorimetric calcein-release assays revealed that the 7-kDa helical hairpin is highly active against unilamellar liposomes compared with the 65-kDa activated full-length toxin. These results directly support the role of the $\alpha4$-loop-$\alpha5$ hairpin in membrane perturbation and pore formation of the full-length Cry4Ba toxin.

• Macromolecular Research
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.359-366
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• 2004

The polysaccharide, (1\longrightarrow5)-$\alpha$-D-ribofuranan, was synthesized by a cationic ring-opening polymerization of 1,4-anhydro-2,3-di-O-benzyl-$\alpha$-D-ribopyranose with the aid of boron trifluoride etherate and subsequent debenzylation. This polysaccharide catalyzed the hydrolysis of ethyl p-nitrophenyl phosphate, uridylyl(3'\longrightarrow5')uridine ammonium salt, and 4-tert-butylcatechol cyclic phosphate N-methyl pyridinium. The polymer also catalyzed the cleavage of nucleic acids (DNA and RNA). The hydrolysis of ethyl p-nitrophenyl phosphate in the presence of the polymer was accelerated by 1.5 ${\times}$ 10$^3$ times relative to the uncatalyzed reaction. The catalytic activity was attributable to the vic-cis-diols of the riboses being located inside the active center that is formed by polymer chain folding; these diols form hydrogen bonds with two phosphoryl oxygen atoms of the phosphates so as to activate the phosphorus atoms to be attacked by nucleophile ($H_2O$).

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.163-171
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• 2009

Few $\alpha$-Hydroxy-$\beta$-amino acids were synthesized via various nucleophilic addition of the epoxide and followed by stereoselective nucleophilic substitution reaction and eliminative cleavage of the acetal selectively in diacetal compound. One of the synthesized $\alpha$-Hydroxy-$\beta$-amino acid reacted with L-leucine methylester to give corresponding dipeptide in good yields.

• Mass Spectrometry Letters
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• v.4 no.4
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• pp.79-82
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• 2013

Various types of alkaloids observed in several herbal medicines were analyzed by electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry in positive ion mode. In the present study, MS/MS spectralpatterns were investigated for eight-types of alkaloids (aporpine, protoberberine, tetrahydroprotoberberine, benzylisoquinoline, protopine, phthalide, morpine, and bisbenzylisoquinoline). For aporpine- and protoberberine-type alkaloids, main fragmentations occurred at substituted groups on rigid ring structures, not showing ring fusion. Interesting fragmentations due to iminolization and retro-Diels-Alder (RDA) reaction were observed in MS/MS spectra of protopine- and tetrahydroprotobereberine-type alkaloids. Also, several types of fragmentations such as inductive cleavage and ${\alpha}$-cleavage, or bond cleavage between two ring structures were observed depending on their structural characteristics. These fragmentation patterns are expected to allow instant classification of the specific alkaloid type in various MS/MS spectra of alkaloids.

• Mass Spectrometry Letters
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.5-8
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• 2010

In the present study, collisionally-activated dissociation (CAD) experiments were performed under low energy collision conditions in six peptides containing a disulfide bond. Fragments produced as a result of the cleavage of a disulfide bond were obtained after CAD in four peptides (bactenecin, TGF-$\alpha$, cortistantin, and linearly linked peptide, Scheme 1) with basic amino acid residues. In contrast, the CAD analysis of two peptides with no basic residue (oxytocin and tocinoic acid) rarely produced fragments indicative of cleavage of a disulfide bond. These results are consistent with the mobile proton model suggested by the McLuckey and O'air groups (ref. 22 and 23); nonmobile protons sequestered at basic amino acid residues appear to promote the cleavage of disulfide bonds.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.504-510
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• 2017

Inhibitor of nuclear factor kappa-B kinase beta ($IKK{\beta}$) plays a critical role in cell proliferation and inflammation in various cells by activating $NF-{\kappa}B$ signaling. However, the interrelationship between peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor ${\alpha}$ ($PPAR{\alpha}$) and $IKK{\beta}$ in cell proliferation is not clear. In this study, we investigated the possible role of $PPAR{\alpha}$ in the hepatic cell death in the absence of $IKK{\beta}$ gene using liver-specific Ikkb-null ($Ikkb^{F/F-AlbCre}$) mice. To examine the function of $PPAR{\alpha}$ activation in hepatic cell death, wild-type ($Ikkb^{F/F}$) and $Ikkb^{F/F-AlbCre}$ mice were treated with $PPAR{\alpha}$ agonist Wy-14,643 (0.1% w/w chow diet) for two weeks. As a result of Wy-14,643 treatment, apoptotic markers including caspase-3 cleavage, poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) cleavage and TUNEL-positive staining were significantly decreased in the $Ikkb^{F/F-AlbCre}$ mice. Surprisingly, Wy-14,643 increased the phosphorylation of p65 and STAT3 in both Ikkb and $Ikkb^{F/F-AlbCre}$ mice. Furthermore, BrdU-positive cells were significantly increased in both groups after treatment with Wy-14,643. Our results suggested that $IKK{\beta}-derived$ hepatic apoptosis could be altered by $PPAR{\alpha}$ activation in conjunction with activation of $NF-{\kappa}B$ and STAT3 signaling.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.115-121
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• 2006

Objectives : For the purpose of developing new anti-HIV agents from natural sources, the extracts of Actinidia arguta were tested for their inhibitory effects on essential enzymes as the reverse transcriptase (RT), protease and ${\alpha}-\;glucosidase$. And we predicted inhibition activity of major compounds of Actinidia arguta using Quantitative Structure Activity Relationships (QSAR). Methods : In this assay the activity of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase is measured as the formation of a strand of copy-DNA (cDNA) using RNA as a template. The activity of HIV-1 protease is measured as the cleavage of an oligopeptide by HIV-1 protease. Results : In the anti-HIV-1 RT using Enzyme Linked Oligonucleotide Sorbent Assay (ELOSA) method, water extracts (100ug/ml) of stem and leaf showed strong activity of 93.9% and 91.9%, respectively. In the HIV-1 protease inhibition assay, aqueous stem extract inhibited the activity of the enzyme to cleave an oligopeptide, resembling one of the cleavage sites in the viral polyprotein which can only be processed by HIV-1 protease with 56.8%. In the ${\alpha}-glucosidase$ inhibition assay, aqueous stem extract showed activity of 73.1%. Conclusion : We found out this result, for these samples it is possible that the inhibition of the viral replication in vitro is due to the inhibition at least one of RT and ${\alpha}-glucosidase$. It would be of great interest to identify the compounds which are responsible for this inhibition, since all therapeutically useful agent up to date are RT, PR and ${\alpha}-glucosidase$ inhibitors.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Applied Pharmacology
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• 2002.07a
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• pp.199-199
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• 2002