• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.183-193
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• 2016

This study attempted to investigate the possibility of the use of Morinda citrifolia (MC) as a cosmetic ingredient from its physiological activities such as antioxidant activity, cytotoxicity and anti-aging effect. MC is a tropical plant that has been used as traditional polynesian foods and medicines for over two thousand years. It has been reported that this shrub can improve antimicrobial, anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory effects and strengthen an immune system. The in vitro antioxidant activity of MC was performed to see the DPPH scavenging activity by measuring total polyphenol content and total flavonoid content. As a result, a lack of any cytotoxicity was confirmed in human dermal fibroblasts (HDF) cell. When MC extract at a concentration of over $50{\sim}100{\mu}g/mL$ was added, MMP-1 expression considerably diminished. In an in vivo test, in addition, cream containing MC extract was prepared and applied to a total of 22 women in their 30 ~ 50s in ages in the morning and in the evening for four weeks. Changes in keratin, melanin index, pore, skin color and wrinkles under the naked eyes were then comparatively measured. Keratin levels slightly increased in the control group but decreased in the experimental group. In addition, wrinkles diminished in the experimental group. This study found that MC extract controls many MMP-1 related mechanisms with great potential for use as a natural ingredient of anti-aging cosmetics.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.71-76
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• 2021

Angelica is a perennial plant used widely for medicinal purposes. Information on the genetic diversity of Angelica populations is important for their conservation and germplasm utilization. Although Angelica is an important medicinal plant genus registered in South Korea, no molecular markers are currently available to distinguish individual species from other similar species in different countries, in particular, China and Japan. In this study, we developed single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers derived from internal transcribed spacer regions of the nuclear ribosomal DNA to identify a distinct domestic species, Angelica gigas Nakai, via a high-resolution melting (HRM) curve analyses. We also performed HRM curve analysis of intentionally mixed genomic DNA samples from five Angelica species. Finally, we investigated A. gigas Nakai and A. sinensis using varying ratios of mixed genomic DNA templates. The SNP markers developed in this study are useful for rapidly identifying A. gigas species from different countries.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.32 no.9
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• pp.712-720
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• 2022

The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy of rat corneal-derived epithelial cells as an in vitro model to evaluate the harmfulness of the cornea caused by particulate matter 2.5 (PM_2.5). To establish an experimental model for the effect of PM_2.5 on corneal epithelial cells, it was confirmed that primary cultured cells isolated from rat eyes were corneal epithelial cells through pan-cytokeratin staining. Our results showed that PM_2.5 treatment reduced cell viability of primary rat corneal epithelial (RCE) cells, which was associated with the induction of apoptosis. PM_2.5 treatment also increased the generation of reactive oxygen species due to mitochondrial dysfunction. In addition, the production of nitric oxide and inflammatory cytokines was increased in PM_2.5-treated RCE cells. Furthermore, through heatmap analysis showing various expression profiling between PM_2.5-exposed and unexposed RCE cells, we proposed five genes, including BLNK, IL-1RA, Itga2b, ABCb1a and Ptgs2, as potential targets for clinical treatment of PM-related ocular diseases. These findings indicate that the primary RCE cell line is a useful in vitro model system for the study of PM_2.5-mediated pathological mechanisms and that PM2.5-induced oxidative and inflammatory responses are key factors in PM2.5-induced ocular surface disorders.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.397-405
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• 2023

Although glutathione (GSH) has been shown to play an important role in the prevention of oxidative damage as an antioxidant, studies on immune regulation by it have not been properly conducted. In this study, we investigated whether luthione^®, a reduced GSH, has an immune enhancing effect in murine macrophage RAW 264.7 cells. The results of flow cytometry and immunofluorescence experiments indicated that luthione increased phagocytic activity, a representative function of macrophages, compared to the control cells. According to the results of the cytokine array, the expression of interleukin (IL)-5, IL-1β, and IL-27 was significantly increased in the luthione-treated cells. Luthione also enhanced the production of tumor necrosis factor-α and IL-1β through increased expression of their proteins, and increased release of the immune mediators such as nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E₂ was associated with increased expression of inducible NO synthase and cyclooxygenase-2. In addition, the expression of cluster of differentiation 86, an M1 macrophage marker, was dramatically enhanced in RAW 264.7 cells treated with luthione. Furthermore, as a result of heat map analysis, we found that cytokine signaling 1/3-mediated signal transducer and activator of transcription/Janus tyrosine kinase signaling pathway was involved in the immunomodulatory effect by luthione. In conclusion, our data suggested that luthione could act as a molecular regulator in M1 macrophage polarization and enhance immune capacity by promoting macrophage phagocytic function.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.94-104
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• 2024

β-Lapachone is a natural quinone compound originally obtained from the bark of the lapacho tree (Tabebuia vellanedae), which has been used in traditional medicine in several South and Central American countries for treating various diseases. Although β-lapachone has been reported to have potent anticancer activity in many types of cancer cells, its effect on the proliferation of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells is still unclear. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the effect of β-lapachone on the proliferation of human HCC Hep3B cells. According to our results, the decrease in cell viability of Hep3B cells caused by β-lapachone was closely related to the induction of apoptosis, which was confirmed through changes in nuclear morphology and flow cytometry. In addition, in Hep3B cells treated with β-lapachone, the expression of Bcl-2, an anti-apoptotic factor, was decreased, while the expression of Bax, an apoptosis inducer, was increased, and the activity of the caspase cascade was also increased. However, in the presence of a pan-caspase inhibitor, β-lapachone-induced apoptosis was weakened, indicating that the induction of apoptosis by β-lapachone was caspase-dependent. Moreover, β-lapachone treatment activated extracellular-regulated kinase (ERK) signaling while inhibiting activation of the phosphoinositide 3 kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway. Furthermore, the effect of the ERK inhibitor on suppressing the induction of apoptosis by β-lapachone was minimal, and the PI3K inhibitor significantly increased β-lapachone-induced apoptosis. The findings from this study will contribute to a better understanding of the anticancer activity of β-lapachone in HCC cells.

• Journal of Convergence for Information Technology
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• v.11 no.12
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• pp.236-243
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• 2021

The aim of this study was to evaluate the anti-oxidant and anti-wrinkle effect of the black carrot(BC) extracted by supercritical dioxide(SC-CO₂). DPPH/ABTS radical scavenging and total polyphenol contents were measured to investigate the anti-oxidant activity of the BC supercritical extract. Collagen production and MMP-1 expression were assessed in normal human dermal fibroblasts(NHDF) for anti-wrinkle activity, The black carrot extract showed the highest total phenolic content(9.037±1.123 mg GAE/g extract) and the best antioxidant properties as shown by DPPH and ABTS assay. The supercritical fluid extracts of black carrot exhibited low toxicity to NHDF cells. In addition, the supercritical fluid extracts showed MMP-1 inhibition and type I pro-collagen synthesis inducing activities in a dose-dependent manner, respectively. Therefore, these results suggest that the black carrot is a potential source of high anti-oxidative, solvent-free and anti-aging material with promising applications in cosmetic, food, and beauty-food industries.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.117-124
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• 2018

In this study, cosmetic materials were developed using a new method of making juice through the fermentation of raw natural materials with microorganisms in order to supplement the advantages and disadvantages of an organic solvent extraction method and a microbial fermentation method. The natural products were selected from two colors (red, green) of paprika known to be rich in various colors and vitamins. The microorganisms used for fermentation were fermented by inoculating paprika with lactic acid bacteria (Lactobacillus plantarum) having sugar-hydrolyzed ability. First, we investigated the changes of physiologically active substances of two kinds of paprika juice and two kinds of fermented paprika juice. Total phenols content and total flavonoids content were higher in the fermented paprika juice than in the paprika juice, and especially in the fermented red paprika juice. Free radical scavenging effect and lipid peroxidation inhibitory effect were also showed an excellent antioxidative effect on paprika fermented juice, among which the effect of red paprika fermentation juice was the highest. The expression of MMP-1 in fermented red paprika juice with high antioxidant activity was inhibited by concentration-dependent expression of MMP-1 mRNA and MMP-1 protein. In the glycation experiments with aging, the anti-glycation effect of fermented paprika juice was highly inhibited by the production of advanced glycation end-products (AGEs), which was closely related to the antioxidant effect. In addition, the activity of senescence-associated ${\beta}$-galactosidase (SA-${\beta}$-gal), an indicator of cell senescence, was measured using human dermal fibroblast (HDF). The results showed that the cell senescence was inhibited when the cells were treated with fermented paprika juice. In conclusion, fermented paprika juice using lactic acid bacteria showed better antioxidative and anti-aging effects than paprika juice. Among them, fermented red paprika juice has the best antioxidant and anti-aging effect and can be applied as natural new material of antioxidant and anti-aging.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.255-261
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• 2012

The skin is continuously exposed to environmental stresses. One of the most important stress factor is UV radiation. UV radiation causes a variety of biological effects on the skin, including inflammation, pigmentation, photoaging and cancer. Therefore in this study, we tried to search for skin-protective antioxidant materials from marine natural products (Porphyra Thalli, Laminariae japonicae thallus, Ostreae Concha, Sargassum Thallus, Undaria thallus, Haliotidis Concha, Agar, Codium thalli, Hizikia fusiforme thalli; HFE, Thalli) which exhibit protective activities against UVB-induced cytotoxicity and oxidative cell death and antiaging effects. As a results, UVB-induced cytotoxicity and cell death were effectively suppressed by treatment of Sargassum Thallus, Agar, Haliotidis Concha, Codium thalli, Thalli ethanol extracts. UVB-induced cell death was mediated by intracellular accumulation or ROS, which was significantly inhibited by treatment with marine natural products extracts. Also, The protective effect of these marine natural products seemed to be mediated by increased expression of type I collagen and Type I procollagen. These results suggest that marine natural products may have anti-aging effects new functional materials against oxidative stress-mediated skin damages.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.117-123
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• 2002

This study was Performed to investigate the effect of kimchi intake on antiaging characteristics in the brain of senescence-accelerated mouse (SAM) in terms of free radical production and anti-oxidative enzymes. Two hundreds twenty SAM (20 mice) were divided into four groups and fed kimchi diet for 12 months. Experimental groups were kimchi free AIN-76 diet (control) group, Korean cabbage kimchi diet (KCK)group, 30% mustard leaf added Korean cabbage kimchi diet (MKCK) group, and mustard leaf kimchi diet (MLK) group. Concentrations of total free radical, OH radical and $H_2O_2$ of control group increased up to 123%, 262% and 174% of initial value (p<0.05) after one year. Increase in free radical production in kimchi groups due to aging was decreased by kimchi feeding. Among kimchi groups. MKCK and MLK groups showed greater inhibiting effect against free radical production than KCK. The concentration of TBARS in the bruin of control group also significantly increased up to 362% of initial value as aged (p<0.05) and production of TBARS in kimchi groups were decreased. When the activities of Cu, Zn-SOD, Mn-SOD, GSH-px and catalase of kimchi groups were compared to those of control at the same experimental period, anti-oxidative enzyme activities of kimchi groups were lower than those of control (p<0.05). But GSH/GSSG in kimchi groups were higher compared to control. In conclusion, decrease in free radical production and increase in anti-oxidative enzyme activities were observed from kimchi groups suggesting that kimchi might have important role on retarding aging. Among kimchi variety tested in this experiment, MKCK and MLK seem to have greater effect on inhibiting free radical production and increasing anti-oxidative enzyme activities than KCK.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.313-322
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• 2013

Ultraviolet irradiation in the cells and skin produces reactive oxygen species (ROS), which induces the synthesis of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) causing skin photoaging. Using the human dermal fibroblast (HDF), we investigated the antioxidative and anti-aging effects of the extracts from Talinum paniculatum. Talinum paniculatum leaf and stem extracts (LSE) showed free radical scavenging effect by 98.45% at 500 ${\mu}g/mL$ and superoxide radical scavenging effect by 97.01% at 500 ${\mu}g/mL$ in the xanthine/xanthine oxidase system. The photoprotective potential of LSE was tested in HDF exposed to ultraviolet irradiation. It was revealed that LSE had an inhibitory effect on MMP-1 expression in UVA-irradiated HDF without any significant cytotoxicity. The treatment of UVA-irradiated HDF with LSE resulted in dose-dependent decreases in the expression levels of MMP-1 mRNA and protein. Also, UVB-induced cytotoxicity and cell death were effectively suppressed by treatment of LSE. Additionally, the senescence-associated ${\beta}$- galactosidase (SA-${\beta}$-gal) activity was decreased in the presence of LSE. These results suggest that Talinum paniculatum leaf and stem extracts (LSE) may have anti-aging effects and can be used as new functional materials against oxidative stress-mediated skin damages.