• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.550-560
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• 2022

Background: The effect of ginsenoside Rh2 (G-Rh2) on mast cell-mediated anaphylaxis remains unclear. Herein, we investigated the effects of G-Rh2 on OVA-induced asthmatic mice and on mast cell-mediated anaphylaxis. Methods: Asthma model was established for evaluating airway changes and ear allergy. RPMCs and RBL-2H3 were used for in vitro experiments. Calcium uptake, histamine release and degranulation were detected. ELISA and Western blot measured cytokine and protein levels, respectively. Results: G-Rh2 inhibited OVA-induced airway remodeling, the production of TNF-α, IL-4, IL-8, IL-1β and the degranulation of mast cells of asthmatic mice. G-Rh2 inhibited the activation of Syk and Lyn in lung tissue of OVA-induced asthmatic mice. G-Rh2 inhibited serum IgE production in OVA induced asthmatic mice. Furthermore, G-Rh2 reduced the ear allergy in IgE-sensitized mice. G-Rh2 decreased the ear thickness. In vitro experiments G-Rh2 significantly reduced calcium uptake and inhibited histamine release and degranulation in RPMCs. In addition, G-Rh2 reduced the production of IL-1β, TNF-α, IL-8, and IL-4 in IgE-sensitized RBL-2H3 cells. Interestingly, G-Rh2 was involved in the FcεRI pathway activation of mast cells and the transduction of the Lyn/Syk signaling pathway. G-Rh2 inhibited PI3K activity in a dose-dependent manner. By blocking the antigen-induced phosphorylation of Lyn, Syk, LAT, PLCγ2, PI3K ERK1/2 and Raf-1 expression, G-Rh2 inhibited the NF-κB, AKT-Nrf2, and p38MAPK-Nrf2 pathways. However, G-Rh2 up-regulated Keap-1 expression. Meanwhile, G-Rh2 reduced the levels of p-AKT, p38MAPK and Nrf2 in RBL-2H3 sensitized IgE cells and inhibited NF-κB signaling pathway activation by activating the AKT-Nrf2 and p38MAPK-Nrf2 pathways. Conclusion: G-Rh2 inhibits mast cell-induced allergic inflammation, which might be mediated by the AKT-Nrf2/NF-kB and p38MAPK-Nrf2/NF-κB signaling pathways.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.39 no.5
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• pp.9-17
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• 2024

Objectives : Edible insects are the widely distributed group of animals and contain high quality proteins, fatty acids and minerals. In particular, insects are a possible interesting source of essential amino acids. Insects as traditional medicines have much potential as pharmaceuticals in modern medicines including treating infections, cancer, dissolving phlegm, relieving spasms, and inflammatory diseases. The aim of this study is to investigate the immunomodulatory effect of several kinds of insects and major amino acids. Methods : In our review we try to show the potential usefulness of insects and amino acids in searching for new therapeutic solutions for immunologic diseases. We summarized the knowledge about properties, usefulness of insect and amino acids in drug design. We hypothesized that insects and amino acids, their major ingredients, regulates airway inflammation and immunologic diseases and can be developed as therapeutic drugs for the treatment of immunologic diseases. Results : Several insects including Bombyx mori, Cryptotympana pustulata, Holotrichia diomphalia, Locusta migratoria, etc. and amino acids such as glutamine, glutamic acid, methionine and glycine may have potential protective effects against asthma and airway neutrophilia. Glutamic acid, cystine, methionine and glycine which contribute to glutathione metabolism, which are important anti-oxidant amino acids that may affect susceptibility to asthma. Conclusions : Our results provide evidence about the potential usefulness of several insects and their amino acids in allergic disorders. These findings suggest that several insects and amino acids have important roles in the way they affect the immune system and allergic responses.

• Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
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• v.4 no.3
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• pp.157-165
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• 2010

The purpose of this study is to investigate allergic diseases related to allergy caused by the exposure to indoor and outdoor sources of air pollution in primary schools. The symptoms questionnaire of allergic diseases based on the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) was completed by the participants. The past and present status of asthma, allergic rhinitis, eczema, and allergic conjunctivitis were investigated by providing a questionnaire to all the participating children. Questionnaires were sent to a total of 61,350 children from 438 primary schools. A total of 40,522 children responded to the questionnaire, which represents a 66.1% return rate. Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), $\underline{A}$ldehydes, and Particulate Matter ($PM_{10}$) were measured and analyzed from October to December of 2006, in 82 primary schools. The final study population comprised 35,168 children with complete data which excluded incomplete questionnaire responded by 5,354 children. Based on the survey, the level of indoor air contamination did not appear to be high, but 27.2% of the schools evaluated had exceeded the $PM_{10}$ level specified by the school health guidelines ($100\;{\mu}g/m^3$). The overall mean concentration of formaldehyde was $22.07\;{\mu}g/m^3$ and 1.0% of schools (1 school) exceeded the $100\;{\mu}g/m^3$. Statistically significant relationships have been observed between indoor air quality and prevalence rate of allergic rhinitis and conjunctivitis of primary schools in Korea.

• The Journal of Pediatrics of Korean Medicine
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.41-52
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• 2013

Objectives In pediatrics of Korean Medicine, it is crucial to evaluate the overall symptoms of children, especially in the children who have serious troubles in their life. In the era when diagnosis in Korean Medicine is quite suitable to evaluate multiple allergic diseases, and when growing numbers are in needs, development of an objective measurement scale for diagnosis of allergic disease in Korean Medicine became essential. Therefore, in the study, pediatric Allergic Disease Quality of Life Questionnaire (PADQLQ) was translated into Korean version with validations on some aspects. Methods In this study, we translated and validated the PADQLQ and established psychometric evidence on its utility in Korean children with similar problems. 71 children, age of 6 ~ 18 with allergic disease has participated. Results The internal consistency reliability of the PADQLQ by Cronbach's ${\alpha}$ was 0.94. In three domains (Practical, Physical, Emotional), the Cronbach's ${\alpha}$ was 0.77, 0.90 and 0.69. The Spearman's rank correlation coefficient between PADQLQ total score and VAS was 0.75 (p<0.001). And, Structural validity was evaluated by the ANOVA test. QoL differences of the four groups in the three domains (practical, physical, emotional) were significant. The item discriminative indices were ranged from 0.1651 to 0.8188. Conclusions Korean version PADQLQ is highly reliable and valid for children with allergic diseases. This is significant to assess the relative seriousness of the allergic diseases and to evaluate the efficacy of different treatments in Korean Medicine.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology and Dermatology
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.95-105
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• 2016

Objectives : Allergic diseases have a various symptoms of hyperresponsiveness and recently hyperresponsive reaction in the chronic phase is reported as the important mechanisms. Cheonggisan(CGS) is used in oriental clinics for curing various skin diseases due to effect of controlling of pruritus. There have been studies on the anti-allergic effect and anti-inflammatory effect of CGS, but there had no study of anti-allergic effects in allergic late inflammation of CGS, so we aimed to find out the effects of CGS in allergic late inflammation in our study.Methods : To investigate the anti-allergy effect and anti-inflammatory effect of CGS, RAW 264.7 macrophage cells and CSG water-extracts were used. Cytotoxic effect of CSG was examined by MTT assay, an oxidative product of NO was measured in the culture medium by the Griess reagent assay. The level of prostaglandin E2(PGE2) was measured by competitive enzyme-linked immunoassay. Cytokine(PGE2, IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α) was measured by Bio-Plex suspension assay system and quantitative multiplexed cytokine/chemokine assay.Results : We investigated that there was no cytotoxic effect of CGS water-extract at any levels of concentration on RAW 264.7 macrophage cells by MTT assay. CGS water-extracts significantly suppressed the levels of the inflammatory mediators such as NO and PGE2, cytokine of IL-1β, TNF-α at the level of 400 ㎍/㎖ CGS concentration. But there was no significant effect on IL-6 production suppression.Conclusions : These results suggest that CSG water-extract has and anti-inflammatory effects in allergic reaction. These properties may contribute to the allergic diseases and inflammatory related disease care.

• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.262-277
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• 2000

In order to find out the sex- and age-related prevalence rate of allergic diseases in the community. as well as the causes of those diseases. questionnaires were given to 2.415 subjects (1.206 males and 1.209 females) from May to June. 1998. As a second stage. skin tests were given to 452 of the original subjects between July and August. 1998. Finally. from March to November 1999. the results of the tests were compared with those of other countries to make a comparative analysis of epidemiological research on allergic diseases. The results of this study were as follows: The frequency of allergic symptoms by sex was 50.1% in males and 56.7% in females. respectively, which displayed significant difference between males and females(p<.01). By age, the frequency of allergic symptoms in males was highest for those under the age of 9 at 60.6%, whereas in females the highest frequency was between the ages of 30 to 39 at 75.1 %. The relationship between economic level of the subjects and their frequency of allergic diseases showed significant difference (P<.05). There was a high degree of correlation between family history and the frequency of allergic diseases(P<.01). In allergic symptoms, the highest prevalence in both males and females occurred with urticaria, itch and skin rash (33.6% with males and 38.0% with females). Rhinitis, nasal blocking and sneezing had the second highest frequency in both sexes (11.8% of males and 14.0% of females). With regard to the causes of allergic symptoms among the people with allergies, the rate in males was 30.1% in food. 25.0% in pollen, and among females the rate was 30.7% in food, 26.6% in pollen. The frequency of food allergies by sex was 25.6% in males and 25.8% in females, with little difference between males and females, and by age, males of the ages between 40 to 49 and females of the ages between 30 and 39 showed the highest frequency, 31.8% and 32.6% respectively. Among 585 people with food allergies, the sympoms occurring with the allergy in males were 81.5% with urticaria, itch and skin rash. 5.9% with diarrhea and stomachache, and 5.2% with rhinitis, nasal blocking and sneezing. Among females with food allergies, the symptoms were 82.6% with urticaria, itch, skin rash, 9.1% with diarrhea and stomachache, and 4.7% with rhinitis, nasal blocking and sneezing. The type of food most often causing allergy in males was mackerel (6.6%) and females peaches (7.4%). In respect to a positive rate in the skin test by sex, of the 379 males taking the skin test, 21.4% were positive for allergies, whereas 14.7% of the 346 females tested were positive. Among food items found to cause positive allergic reactions, hops had the highest frequency in males (58.9%) and whole eggs had the greatest effect on females (36.4%). The estimated prevalence of food allergies in terms of skin tests was 5.0% of 1.206 males and 3.6% of 1.209 females. In the estimated frequency of food allergy by age group, males of the ages between 40 and 49 and females of the ages from 30 to 39 had the highest rate (6.5% with males and 4.5% with females). In a comparative analysis of epidemiological research on allergic diseases by country group, allergic diseases occurred in 18-50% of each population studied, and the occurrence of allergic diseases when categorized according to symptoms displayed the following as such: allergic rhinitis (3.8-52%), allergic asthma (1.6-17%), and atopy dermatitis (0.33-20.4%). The prevalence of food-related allergies was 6.6-64.9% and the foods causing allergies frequently included milk, eggs, eggs, peanuts, fish, etc.

• CELLMED
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.16.1-16.5
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• 2016

Thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) is a novel interleukin (IL)-7-like cytokine and was originally discovered in the supernatant of a murine thymic stromal cell line. TSLP signal initiates via complex of the TSLP receptor and the IL-7 receptor α chain. TSLP expression is closely connected with many diseases such as atopic dermatitis, allergic rhinitis, asthma, inflammatory arthritis, eosinophilic esophagitis, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel diseases, and cancer. In this review, I discussed biological roles of TSLP on mast cell-mediated allergic responses. In addition, this review summarizes the effective drugs in allergic-inflammatory reactions induced by TSLP on mast cells.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.63 no.7
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• pp.278-283
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• 2020

Background: Major questions remain regarding the agestratified trends of allergic diseases and asthma in Korea. Purpose: To identify the estimated recent prevalence and 10-year trends in asthma, allergic rhinitis, and atopic dermatitis among the Korean population from 2008 to 2017. Methods: This nationwide cross-sectional survey (Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey) over 10 years (2008-2017) examined representative samples of the Korean population (n=85,006) including 2,131 infants, 4,352 preschool children, 12,919 school-age children, 44,200 adults, and 21,404 elderly adults. Results: In the 2016 to 2017 population, the estimated prevalence of asthma was 0.9% in infants, 2.3% in preschool children, 4.1% in school-age children, 2.3% in adults, and 4.1% in the elderly. The estimated prevalence of allergic rhinitis was 9.0%, 20.2%, 27.6%, 17.1%, and 6.9%, respectively. The estimated prevalence of atopic dermatitis was 5.9%, 11.3%, 14.6%, 3.9%, and 1.6%, respectively. Ten-year trends revealed a significant decrease in asthma prevalence in infants, preschool children, and the elderly. and in atopic dermatitis prevalence in infants and preschool children (P<0.05 for all trends). Furthermore, 10-year trends demonstrated a significant increase in allergic rhinitis prevalence in school-age children, adults, and the elderly, and in atopic dermatitis prevalence in school-age children and the elderly (P<0.05 for all trends). Conclusion: These results improve our understanding of the age-stratified epidemiology of allergic diseases in Korea and suggest the need for the development of tailored and precise strategies to prevent allergic diseases in different age groups.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.59 no.5
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• pp.218-225
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• 2016

Purpose: The recent increase in the prevalence of allergic diseases is hypothetically attributed to immune dysregulation in turn caused by a reduction in exposure to sunlight. We explored relationships between birth season, sunlight exposure, exercise duration, and an allergic disease. Methods: We performed a questionnaire-based survey on allergic diseases among elementary school students. Birth time was categorized according to the season (summer and winter). Results: The prevalence of atopic dermatitis (AD) "symptoms ever" was higher in the children born in winter than in those born in summer (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.24; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.03-1.49; P=0.024). Birth in winter was associated with an increase in the "symptoms in the past 12 months" prevalence of food allergy (FA) (aOR, 1.56; 95% CI, 1.09-2.24; P=0.015). The lifetime prevalence of allergic diseases except FA was higher in the children whose parents considered their sunlight exposure prior to 24 months of ageas inadequate than those who considered their exposure as adequate ("diagnosis ever" asthma: aOR, 1.4; 95% CI, 1.17-1.67; P<0.001; allergic rhinitis [AR]: aOR, 1.4; 95% CI, 1.17-1.67; P<0.001; AD: aOR, 1.26; 95% CI, 1.06-1.51; P=0.01). Neither recent sunlight exposure nor exercise duration was associated with the prevalence of an allergic disease. Conclusion: Birth in winter may be associated with development of AD and FA. Inadequate sunlight exposure before the age of 24 months might possibly increase the risks of development of asthma, AR, and AD.

• Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Research
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• v.10 no.6
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• pp.575-590
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• 2018

The prevalence of allergic disorders has dramatically increased over the past decade, particularly in developed countries. Apart from gastrointestinal disorders, neoplasia, genital and dermatological diseases etc., dysregulation of gut microbiota (dysbiosis) has also been found to be associated with increased risk of allergies. Probiotics are increasingly being employed to correct dysbiosis and, in turn, to modulate allergic diseases. However, several factors like strain variations and effector metabolites or component of them in a bacterial species can affect the efficacy of those as probiotics. On the other hand, host variations like geographical locations, food habits etc. could also affect the expected results from probiotic usage. Thus, there is a glaring deficiency in our approach to establish probiotics as an irrefutable treatment avenue for suitable disorders. In this review, we explicate on the reported probiotics and their effects on certain allergic diseases like atopic dermatitis, food allergy and asthma to establish their utility. We propose possible measures like elucidation of effector molecules and functional mechanisms of probiotics towards establishing probiotics for therapeutic use. Certain probiotics studies have led to very alarming outcomes which could have been precluded, had effective guidelines been in place. Thus, we also propose ways to secure the safety of probiotics. Overall, our efforts tend to propose necessary discovery and quality assurance guidelines for developing probiotics as potential immunomodulatory 'Pharmabiotics.'