• Journal of Life Science
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• v.27 no.11
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• pp.1262-1268
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• 2017

Lemon myrtle (Backhousia citriodora), a plant in the Myrtaceae family, is native to the semitropical rain-forests of Queensland and is presumably the most commercialized native spice. In Australian thousands of lemon-myrtle trees are under tillage. This study was carried out to investigate the alcohol metabolism, hepatoprotective effects and antidiabetic, tyrosinase inhibitory activity of hot-water (LMW) and 80% ethanol (LME) extracts from lemon-myrtle leaves. The alpha-glucosidase (${\alpha}$-glucosidase) inhibitory activities of the LMW and LME extracts were 7.66% and 40.29% at 1 mg/ml (p<0.05), respectively. The tyrosinase inhibitory activity of the LME extract was about 38.26 % at 1 mg/ml. The effects the LMW and LME extracts had on alcohol-metabolizing activities were determined by measuring the generation of reduced nicotinamide-adenine dinucleotide (NADH) by acetaldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) and alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH). The ADH activities of the LMW and LME extracts significantly increased in a dose-dependent manner and were about 154.40% and 192.03% at 1 mg/ml, respectively (p<0.05). The ALDH activities of the LMW and LME extracts also significantly increased in a dose-dependent manner and were about 151.14% and 192.34% at 1 mg/ml, respectively (p<0.05). At $100{\mu}g/ml$, the LMW and LME extracts showed significant protective effects against tacrine-induced cytotoxicity in Hep G2 cells. The results suggested that Backhousia citriodora leaf extracts have the potential to be significant sources for natural health products.

• Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.101-108
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• 2014

This study was conducted in order to compare the biological activities of water extracts and sugar immersion extracts of green pepper (Capsicum annuum L.), purslane (Portulaca oleracea L.) and shiitake (Lentinula edodes (Berk.) Pegler) by measuring total polyphenol and flavonoid contents, antioxidant activities and inhibitory effects on ${\alpha}$-amylase and ${\alpha}$-glucosidase. The contents of total polyphenols and flavonoids were higher in water extracts than in sugar immersion extracts. The anti-oxidative activities of water and sugar immersion extracts were measured using the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt (ABTS) radical scavenging activity assay and reducing power assay. All extracts scavenged radicals in a concentration-dependent manner, and water extracts showed stronger radical scavenging activity and reducing power than sugar immersion extract. However, they all exhibited lower activities than ascorbic acid. Compared to the anti-diabetic drug acarbose, which was used as a positive control, the two types of extracts exhibited low ${\alpha}$-glucosidase inhibitory activities, although the activity of sugar immersion extracts were 2-fold higher than that of water extracts. ${\alpha}$-Amylase inhibitory action was not observed for any of the extracts. Finally, by cytotoxicity test, we confirmed that sugar immersion extracts were safer than water extracts. These results indicate that water extracts and sugar immersion extracts of green pepper, purslane and shiitake have different advantages in terms of their antioxidant and anti-diabetic effects, respectively.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.62 no.2
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• pp.173-179
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• 2019

The aim of this study is to investigate the biological activities of Hericium erinaceus. 1,1-Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging activity of H. erinaceus extract was higher than positive control. The inhibitory activities of xanthin oxidase, ${\alpha}$-glucosidase, and hyaluronidase was measured as functional food activity, and inhibitory activities on collagenase, tyrosinase, and astringent effect as beauty food activity in water and ethanol extracts from H. erinaceus. In functional food activity, xanthin oxidase inhibitory activities at $50-200{\mu}g/mL$ phenolic concentration in ethanol extracts from H. erinaceus showed inhibitory activity in dose dependent manner. ${\alpha}$-Glucosidase inhibitory activities at $50{\mu}g/mL$ phenolic concentration showed high activity of higher than 80%. Inhibitory activities on hyaluronidase as anti-inflammation factor showed inhibition effect in dose dependent manner both in water and ethanol extracts. In beauty food activity, Inhibitory activities on collagenase at $200{\mu}g/mL$ phenolic concentration in water and ethanol extracts showed high activity to 65.09 and 58.38% dose dependently. Tyrosinase inhibitory activity in water extract showed 9.4-58.24%. Astringent activity as pore shrink effect in ethanol extracts also showed a very high activity of 18.94-100%. Antimicrobial activity on pathogenic bacteria was highly effective on Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella enteritidis, Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Escherichia coli at 2.5 mg/mL or above. Therefore, the extracts from H. erinaceus can be used as a functional food and beauty food resources and natural antimicrobial agent on pathogenic bacteria in food.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.519-525
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• 2013

The Opuntia extract has been traditionally used to treat diabetes, inflammation, and rheumatoid arthritis in oriental medicine. The purpose of this study is to investigate characteristics of biological activity between Opuntia humifusa and Opuntia ficus-indica which is cultivating in korea using cell-free system or cell-based assay. O. humifusa extract effectively inhibited ${\alpha}$-glucosidase activity or improved the immune function, and its biological activity was more effective than O. ficus-indica extract. The scavenging activity of DPPH radical and the inhibitory effect of tyrosinase similarly showed by O. humifusa and O. ficus-indica extract, however neuroprotective effect only showed a tendency to increase compared with control in PC12 cells. Therefore the results suggest that O. humifusa can be a useful agent for treatment of diabetes and immunodeficiency.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.50
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• pp.200-206
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• 2023

Although softwoods are widely distributed in Korea and used in various industries, studies are limited and comparative research on softwoods has been overlooked. Therefore, in this study, the physiological activity of four species of softwoods found in Korea was quantified. Needles and cones of Pinus densiflora, Chamaecyparis obtusa, Cryptomeria japonica, and Abies koreana were collected, and material was extracted using 70% methanol. We quantified the following physiological traits: total phenol and flavonoid content, antioxidant activity (DPPH, TEAC, FRAP), and inhibitory activity of the enzymes α-glucosidase, elastase, and tyrosinase. Total phenol and flavonoid contents and antioxidant activities were high in Chamaecyparis obtusa and Cryptomeria japonica, and α-glucosidase inhibition activity was highest in the leaves of Chamaecyparis obtusa. Elastase inhibitory activity was high in the leaves and cones of Pinus densiflora and the cones of Abies koreana, and tyrosinase inhibitory activity was highest in the leaves of Pinus densiflora. In Korea, softwoods are planted extensively on roadsides and as windbreaks, and they are highly competitive in supplying raw materials since they are pruned every year. Based on the results of this study, softwoods are considered suitable for use in healthcare products, diabetes products, wrinkles, and whitening cosmetics.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.239-247
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• 2019

The aim of this study was to improve the efficacy and functionality of Viola mandshurica (VM). A water suspension of VM power was fermented for 72 hr with Bacillus methylotrophicus CBMB205 (BM) and Leuconostoc pseudomesenteroides NRIC1777 (LP) isolated from kimchi. The antioxidant activity and reducing power of fermented VM, its total phenolic and flavonoid compounds, as well its inhibitory activity on ${\alpha}$-amylase, ${\alpha}$-glucosidase, and pancreatic lipase were determined and compared to those of non-fermented VM (NVM), a negative control. The total phenolic and flavonoid compounds of VM fermented with BM and LP were higher than those of NVM by 1.4, 1.17, and about 3 times. There was no difference in 2, 2'-diphenyl-1-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity between fermented VM and NVM. However, there was a 2.1- and 1.6-fold increase in 2, 2'-azino-bis-(3-ethylbenzothzoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) radical scavenging activity in VM fermented with BM and LP, respectively. The reducing power of BM was 1.6 times as high as NVM, but no significant difference was found between LP and NVM. Fermented VM's inhibitory activity on ${\alpha}$-amylase, ${\alpha}$-glucosidase, and pancreatic lipase was much higher than that of NVM. Fermenting VM with BM was superior to fermenting it with LP, except flavonoid content. Taken together, VM fermented with BM could be used as a functional food and as an additive to cosmetics.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.45 no.12
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• pp.1732-1739
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• 2016

The general components and cyclitol compounds of ice plant (Mesembryanthemum crystallinum) were analyzed to examine the possibility of using extracts as functional food materials, the antioxidant effects and antidiabetic activities of the extracts by solvent fraction were tested. Among the mineral contents, contents of K and Na were the largest ($1,213.33{\pm}2.52$ and $545.53{\pm}12.01mg/100g$, respectively), followed by S, Ca, P, and Mg in order of precedence. Among cyclitol compounds, content of D-pinitol was the largest ($4.04{\pm}0.08mg/g$) while contents of chiro-inositol and myo-inositol were relatively small ($2.82{\pm}0.01$ and $0.25{\pm}0.01mg/g$, respectively). Among total phenol contents by solvent fraction, contents of chloroform and ethyl acetate fractions were large ($35.80{\pm}1.33$ and $23.70{\pm}0.62mg\;GAE/g$, respectively). Among antioxidant activity levels examined by DPPH, ABTS, FRAP, and lipid/MA assays, the chloroform fraction commonly showed the highest level of activity while the ethyl acetate fraction showed relatively high levels of activity. The antioxidant activity levels were proportional to total phenol contents by solvent fraction. As for antidiabetic effects, all solvent fractions showed at least 50% ${\alpha}-glucosidase$ inhibitory activity levels while the ethyl acetate, butanol, and chloroform fractions showed high levels activity of $90.33{\pm}0.40$, $87.98{\pm}0.16$, and $86.38{\pm}0.51%$, respectively. The ${\alpha}-amylase$ inhibitory actively levels were in the range of $25.63{\pm}1.45{\sim}60.34{\pm}2.67%$, which was lower than the ${\alpha}-glucosidase$ inhibitory activity levels, but the inhibitory activity levels by solvent fraction were similar. Given the above study results, ice plant can be utilized as a natural material with antioxidative and antidiabetic functionality.

• The Korean Journal of Mycology
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.203-212
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• 1985

Of 450 strains isolated from the soil microbes collected in various locations in Korea, a strain had a strong inhibitory activity against bacterial ${\alpha}-amylase$ and was named strain DMC-72 of the genus Streptomyces. The amylase inhibitory metabolite produced by this strain was purified by means of acetone precipitation, adsorption on Amberlite IRC-50 and SP-Sephadex C-25. The inhibitor was found to be a derivative of oligosaccharides by spectral and chemical data. The inhibitor was stable at the pH range of $1{\sim}13$ and at $100^{\circ}C$ for half an hour, also inhibited other amylases such as salivary ${\alpha}-amylase$, pancreatic ${\alpha}-amylase$, fungal ${\alpha}-amylase$ and glucoamylase. However, it showed no inhibitory activity against ${\alpha}-glucosidase$, ${\beta}-glucosidase$, dextranase, and ${\beta}-amylase$. The kinetic studies of the inhibitor showed that its inhibitory effects on starch hydrolysis by ${\alpha}-amylase$ were noncompetitive.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.169-177
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• 2020

For this study, we prepared organic solvent fractions from methanol extracts of Houttuynia cordata and Lespedeza cuneate, and analyzed their chemical components and various biological functions such as anti-oxidation, angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibition, and α-glucosidase inhibitory activities. We found that DPPH radical scavenging activity was highest in the ethyl acetate fractions of Houttuynia cordata (90.8%) and Lespedeza cuneata (91.2%), whereas ABTS radical scavenging activity was highest in the ethyl acetate fractions of Houttuynia cordata (86.1%) and the chloroform fractions of Lespedeza cuneata (95.6%). FRAP activity was highest in the ethyl acetate fraction of Houttuynia cordata (360.1 mg TE/g) and Lespedeza cuneata (239.2 mg TE/g). ACE inhibitory activity was highest in the chloroform fraction of Houttuynia cordata (13.2%) and Lespedeza cuneata (35.2%). And, α-glucosidase inhibitory activity was highest in the ethyl acetate fraction of Houttuynia cordata (56.3%), and the water residue of Lespedeza cuneata (93.6%). Finally, we investigated the DPPH radical scavenging activity of 20 types of pure compounds identified in Houttuynia cordata and Lespedeza cuneate. The results show that quercetin demonstrates the highest DPPH radical scavenging activity. Overall, these results help us to understand the functional chemical components of Houttuynia cordata and Lespedeza cuneate and the biological effects of these components.

• Journal of Mushroom
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.330-340
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• 2014

Coprinellus micaceus, belongs to family Psathyrellaceae of Agaricales, Basidiomycota, has been used for edible purposes in the world. This study was initiated to evaluate the antioxidant, anti-diabetic, anti-cholinesterase, anti-tyrosinase, and nitric oxide inhibitory activities of fruiting bodies from C. micaceus extracted with methanol and hot water. The HPLC analysis of phenolic compounds from the mushroom extracts identified 4 phenolic compounds including procatechuic acid, chlorogenic acid, (-)-epicatechin, and naringin. In 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl(DPPH) free radical scavenging assay, the scavenging activities of methanol and hot water extracts were lower than that of positive control, BHT. The chelating effects of methanol and hot water extracts were significantly higher than that of BHT, the positive control at the all concentrations tested. In the reducing power assay, methanol and hot water extracts exhibited the lower activities compared with positive control at the 0.125-0.2 mg/ml. The methanol and hot water extracts of the mushroom inhibited the ${\alpha}$-glucosidase activity by 62.26% and 67.59%, respectively at the 2.0 mg/ml, while acarbose, the positive control, inhibited the ${\alpha}$-glucosidase activity by 81.81% at the same concentration. In the acetylcholinesterase(AChE) inhibitory activity assay, methanol and hot water extracts of the mushroom inhibited the AChE by 94.64% and 74.19%, respectively at 1.0 mg/ml, whereas the galanthamine, standard drug, inhibited the AChE activity by 97.80% at the same concentration. The tyrosinase inhibitory activities of methanol and hot water extracts were 91.33% and 91.99% at 2.0 mg/ml, while the inhibitory activity of kojic acid, the positive control, was 99.61% at the same concentration. Nitric oxide(NO) production in lipopolysaccahride (LPS) activated RAW 264.7 cells were inhibited by the methanol and hot water extracts in a concentration dependent manner. Therefore, it is concluded that fruiting bodies of C. micaceus contained natural antioxidant, anti-acetylcholinesterase and ${\alpha}$-glucosidase inhibitory, anti-inflammatory, anti-tyrosinase substances which might be used for promoting human health.