• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.17-23
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• 2000

Eosinophils are important effector cells in host defense against parasites. Excretory-secretory product (ESP) produced by helminthic worms plays important roles in the uptake of nutrients, migration in the host tissue, and in immune modulation. However little is known about the ability of the ESP to directly trigger eosinophil apoptosis. This study investigated whether the ESP of newly excysted metacercariae of Paragonimus westermani could induce apoptosis in human eosinophils. Apoptosis was assayed by staining the cells with FITC-annexin V, and the cells were analyzed by flow cytometry. It was found that the ESP of newly excysted metacercariae of P. westemani induced a direct time- and concentration-dependent increase in the rate of constitutive apoptosis in mature human eosinophils. Eosinophil apoptosis was first apparent 3 hr after treatment with the ESP and continued to increase after 6 hr of incubation with respect to the cells cultured in the absence of the ESP. While only 2.8% of the eosinophils incubated in the medium for 3 hr were apoptotic, 7.6%, 10.9% and 22.6% of the eosinophils treated with 10. 30 and $100{\;}\mu\textrm{g}/ml$ ESP were apoptotic, respectively. This result suggests that the ESP of newly excysted metacercariae of P. westermani directly induce eosinophil apoptosis, which may be important for the survival of the parasites and the reduction of eosinophilic inflammation in vivo.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.62 no.3
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• pp.20.1-20.8
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• 2022

5-Fluorouracil, doxorubicin, and vincristine are chemotherapy agents used to treat various cancers, such as breast cancer and lymphoma for decades, and their effects on cancer have been proven. On the other hand, these anti-cancer drugs cause fatal side effects, including immunosuppression. This study investigated whether sonicated Bordetella bronchiseptica bacterin (B. bronchiseptica) can attenuate the immunosuppression of spleen cells induced by these chemotherapy agents and which subsets of spleen cells were affected. B. bronchiseptica increased the metabolic activity of spleen cells treated with 3 anti-cancer drugs. Cell death analysis using Annexin V/propidium iodide showed that B. bronchiseptica markedly decreased the death of spleen cells. The subsets of spleen cells were analyzed by flow cytometry using a surface marker-specific antibody. B. bronchiseptica increased nitric oxide production in the spleen cells treated with anti-cancer drugs (p < 0.0001). Despite the pharmacological effects of anti-cancer drugs, many patients suffer from the fatal side effects of immunosuppression. This study provides valuable information on how to overcome chemotherapy-induced immunosuppression.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.9-17
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• 2024

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the main global health problems. Chronic exposure to hyperglycemia can lead to cellular dysfunction that may become irreversible over time, a process that is termed glucose toxicity. Our perspective about glucose toxicity as it pertains to the pancreatic β-cell is that the characteristic decreases in insulin secretion are caused by regulated apoptotic gene expression. In this study, we examined whether ferulic acid protects INS-1 pancreatic cells against high glucose-induced apoptosis. High glucose concentration (30 mM) induced glucotoxicity and death of INS-1 pancreatic β cells. However, treatment with 1, 5, 10, or 20 μM ferulic acid increased the cell viability in a concentration-dependent manner. Treatment with ferulic acid dose-dependently decreased the intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, and nitric oxide in INS-1 pancreatic β cells pretreated with high glucose. These effects influence the apoptotic pathway, increasing the expression of the anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 and reducing the levels of pro-apoptotic proteins, including Bax, cytochrome C, and caspase 9. Annexin V/propidium iodide staining indicated that ferulic acid significantly reduced high glucose-induced apoptosis. These results demonstrate that ferulic acid is a potential therapeutic agent to protect INS-1 pancreatic β cells against high glucose-induced apoptosis.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.7
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• pp.3061-3065
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• 2015

Background: Rac3, a member of the Rac family of small guanosine triphosphatases (GTPases), regulates a variety of cell functions, including the organization of the cytoskeleton, cell migration, and invasion. Overexpression of Rac3 has been reported in several human cancers. However, the role of Rac3 in lung cancer (LC) has not been determined in detail. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of silencing of Rac3 expression in human LC cells and the consequences for cell survival. Materials and Methods: Lentivirus small hairpin RNA (shRNA) interference techniques were utilized to knock down the Rac3 gene. Gene and protein expression was quantified by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and Western blotting. LC cell apoptosis was examined by annexin V-APC /propidium iodide staining. Results: Efficient silencing of Rac3 strongly inhibited A549 cell proliferation and colony formation ability, and significantly decreased tumor growth. Moreover, flow cytometry analysis showed that knockdown of Rac3 led to G2/M phase cell cycle arrest as well as an excess accumulation of cells in the G1 and S phase. Conclusions: Thus, functional analysis using shRNAs revealed a critical role for Rac3 in the tumor growth of LC cells. shRNA silencing of Rac3 could provide an effective strategy to treat LC.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.61 no.3
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• pp.22.1-22.7
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• 2021

Fenbendazole (FBZ) is a commonly used anthelmintics in veterinary medicine that has recently been found to have anticancer effects in humans. On the other hand, few studies have examined the anti-inflammatory effects of FBZ, and its mechanism is unknown. In this study, mouse bone marrow cells (BMs) were treated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a representative inflammation-inducing substance, to generate a situation similar to osteomyelitis in vitro. The effect of FBZ on inflammatory BMs was examined by measuring the metabolic activity, surface marker expression, cell nuclear morphology, and mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) of BMs. FBZ decreased the metabolic activity and MMP of LPS-treated BMs. Annexin V-fluorescein isothiocyanate/propidium iodide staining and Hoechst 33342 staining showed that FBZ reduced the number of viable cells and induced the cell death of inflammatory BMs. In addition, FBZ reduced the proportion of granulocytes more than B lymphocytes in LPS-treated BMs. Overall, FBZ induces cell death by destabilizing the MMP of LPS-induced inflammatory BMs. In addition to anthelmintic and anticancer agent, FBZ can play a role as an anti-inflammatory agent.

• The Korean Journal of Food And Nutrition
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• v.35 no.6
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• pp.464-472
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• 2022

The present study was designed to investigate the antiproliferative activity and molecular mechanisms of Bibimbap in HT-29 human colorectal adenocarcinoma cells. Bibimbap extract inhibited the proliferation of HT-29 cells by 50% at a concentration of 10.1±0.17 mg/mL for 48 h. The population of live cells decreased slightly, and the morphology changed with a reduction in cell volume (pyknosis) with Bibimbap. Treatment with 5 mg/mL of Bibimbap resulted in slight cell shrinkage. Furthermore, as the Bibimbap dose increased to 10 mg/mL, these characteristics were more evident, and HT-29 cells exhibited partial detachment by staining with the DNA-binding dye Hoechst 33342. Flow cytometric analysis by Annexin V and PI double staining showed that Bibimbap increased the levels of apoptosis. Analysis of the mechanism of these events showed that Bibimbap-treated cells exhibited a mitochondria-dependent apoptotic pathway through the modulation of caspase-3, caspase-8, caspase-9, and poly-ADP ribose polymerase, as well as Bax and Bcl-2 expression in dose- and time-dependent manners. Consequently, Bibimbap exerts a significant antiproliferative effect on HT-29 human colorectal adenocarcinoma cells.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.133-144
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• 2023

Auranofin is a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved anti-arthritis medication that functions as a thioredoxin reductase inhibitor. Spermidine, a polyamine present in marine algae, can exert various physiological functions. Herein, we examined the synergistic anticancer activity of auranofin and spermidine in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Combined treatment with auranofin and spermidine suppressed cell viability more efficiently than either treatment alone in HCC Hep3B cells. The isobologram plotted by calculating the half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC₅₀) values of each drug indicated that the two drugs exhibited a synergistic effect. Based on the analysis of annexin V and cell cycle distribution, auranofin and spermidine markedly induced apoptosis in Hep3B cells. Moreover, auranofin and spermidine increased mitochondria-mediated apoptosis by promoting mitochondrial membrane potential (Δψm) loss. Auranofin and spermidine significantly increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in Hep3B cells, and the blocking ROS suppressed apoptosis induced by spermidine and auranofin. In addition, auranofin and spermidine reduced the expression of phosphorylated phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase (PI3K) and protein kinase B (Akt), and PI3K inhibitor accelerated auranofin- and spermidine-induced apoptosis. Using ROS scavenger and PI3K inhibitor, we revealed that ROS acts upstream of auranofin- and spermidine-induced apoptosis. Collectively, our study suggests that combination treatment with auranofin and spermidine could afford synergistic anticancer activity via ROS overproduction and reduced PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.43 no.3
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• pp.488-495
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• 2019

Background: Timosaponin AIII (TA3) is a steroidal saponin extracted from Anemarrhena asphodeloides. Here, we investigated the anticancer effects of TA3 in MG63 human osteosarcoma cells. TA3 attenuates migration and invasion of MG63 cells via regulations of two matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), MMP-2 and MMP-9, which are involved with cancer metastasis in various cancer cells. TA3 reduced enzymatic activities and transcriptional expressions of MMP-2 and MMP-9 in MG63 cells. TA3 also inhibited Src, focal adhesion kinase, extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK1/2), c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), p38, ${\beta}-catenin$, and cAMP response element binding signaling, which regulate migration and invasion of cells. TA3 induced apoptosis of MG63 cells via regulations of caspase-3, caspase-7, and poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP). Then, we tested several ginsenosides to be used in combination with TA3 for the synergistic anticancer effects. We found that ginsenosides Rb1 and Rc have synergistic effects on TA3-induced apoptosis in MG63 cells. Methods: We investigated the anticancer effects of TA3 and synergistic effects of various ginseng saponins on TA3-induced apoptosis in MG63 cells. To test antimetastatic effects, we performed wound healing migration assay, Boyden chamber invasion assays, gelatin zymography assay, and Western blot analysis. Annexin V/PI staining apoptosis assay was performed to determine the apoptotic effect of TA3 and ginsenosides. Results: TA3 attenuated migration and invasion of MG63 cells and induced apoptosis of MG63 cells. Ginsenosides Rb1 and Rc showed the synergistic effects on TA3-induced apoptosis in MG63 cells. Conclusions: The results strongly suggest that the combination of TA3 and the two ginsenosides Rb1 and Rc may be a strong candidate for the effective antiosteosarcoma agent.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.72-79
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• 2022

Licochalcone H (LCH) is a phenolic compound synthetically derived from licochalcone C (LCC) that exerts anticancer activity. In this study, we investigated the anticancer activity of LCH in human skin cancer A375 and A431 cells. The 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium (MTS) cell viability assay was used to evaluate the antiproliferative activity of LCH. Cell cycle distribution and the induction of apoptosis were analyzed by flow cytometry. Western blotting assays were performed to detect the levels of proteins involved in cell cycle progression, apoptosis, and the JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway. LCH inhibited the growth of cells in dose- and time-dependent manners. The annexin V/propidium iodide double staining assay revealed that LCH induced apoptosis, and the LCH-induced apoptosis was accompanied by cell cycle arrest in the G1 phase. Western blot analysis showed that the phosphorylation of JAK2 and STAT3 was decreased by treatment with LCH. The inhibition of the JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway by pharmacological inhibitors against JAK2/STAT3 (cryptotanshinone (CTS) and S3I-201) simulated the antiproliferative effect of LCH suggesting that LCH induced apoptosis by modulating JAK2/STAT3 signaling.

• Herbal Formula Science
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.73-83
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• 2009

Objective : In vitro proapoptotic effect of Hangbaek-Tang (HBT) has been documented by one of us. In the present study, we aimed to demonstrate in vivo effect of HBT on tumor growth. Methods : In vitro selective cytotoxicity of HBT was examined by enumeration of viable cell numbers using BC3A mouse leukemic cells and normal spleen cells. In vivo effect of HBT (25 and 50 mg/mouse) on tumor growth was assayed using BC3A cells innoculated subcutaneously in the flank. Annexin-V apoptosis assay and PI staining was performed to determine the effective serum factor in HBT-treated mice. Leukocyte recruitment into peritoneum were analyzed by microscopy with a stained cytosmear of peritoneal lavage fluid. Results : HBT exhibited in vitro selective cytotoxicity to leukemic cells and did not show any toxicity on immune organs. In vivo i.p. administration of HBT induced significant reduction in tumor growth but not complete regression. Sera obtained from HBT-treated mice strongly inhibited BC3A cell growth in vitro and were revealed to markedly enhance apoptosis and accompanying cell death, when compared to those from PBS-treated mice. Abundant extravasation of leukocytes, especially neutrophils, into peritoneum was observed in HBT-treated mice. Conclusions : HBT causes leukemic, BC3A cell death in vivo via apoptosis as well as in vitro, for which functional involvement of leukocytes is suggested.