• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.23-30
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• 2017

Background: Ginsenoside Rg1 is a class of steroid glycoside and triterpene saponin in Panax ginseng. Many studies suggest that Rg1 suppresses adipocyte differentiation in 3T3-L1. However, the detail molecular mechanism of Rg1 on adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 is still not fully understood. Methods: 3T3-L1 preadipocyte was used to evaluate the effect of Rg1 on adipocyte development in the differentiation in a stage-dependent manner in vitro. Oil Red O staining and Nile red staining were conducted to measure intracellular lipid accumulation and superoxide production, respectively. We analyzed the protein expression using Western blot in vitro. The zebrafish model was used to investigate whether Rg1 suppresses the early stage of fat accumulation in vivo. Results: Rg1 decreased lipid accumulation in early-stage differentiation of 3T3-L1 compared with intermediate and later stages of adipocyte differentiation. Rg1 dramatically increased CAAT/enhancer binding protein (C/EBP) homologous protein-10 (CHOP10) and subsequently reduced the $C/EBP{\beta}$ transcriptional activity that prohibited the initiation of adipogenic marker expression as well as triglyceride synthase. Rg1 decreased the expression of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 and glycogen synthase kinase $3{\beta}$, which are also essential for stimulating the expression of $CEBP{\beta}$. Rg1 also reduced reactive oxygen species production because of the downregulated protein level of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate hydrogen (NADPH) oxidase 4 (NOX4). While Rg1 increased the endogenous antioxidant enzymes, it also dramatically decreased the accumulation of lipid and triglyceride in high fat diet-induced obese zebrafish. Conclusion: We demonstrated that Rg1 suppresses early-stage differentiation via the activation of CHOP10 and attenuates fat accumulation in vivo. These results indicate that Rg1 might have the potential to reduce body fat accumulation in the early stage of obesity.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.247-257
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• 2020

Background: Multidrug resistance (MDR) to chemotherapy drugs remains a major challenge in clinical cancer treatment. Here we investigated whether and how ginsenoside Rg5 overcomes the MDR mediated by ABCB1 transporter in vitro and in vivo. Methods: Cytotoxicity and colon formation as well as the intracellular accumulation of ABCB1 substrates were carried out in MDR cancer cells A2780/T and A549/T for evaluating the reversal effects of Rg5. The expressions of ABCB1 and Nrf2/AKT pathway were determined by Western blotting. An A549/T cell xenograft model was established to investigate the MDR reversal activity of Rg5 in vivo. Results: Rg5 significantly reversed ABCB1-mediated MDR by increasing the intracellular accumulation of ABCB1 substrates without altering protein expression of ABCB1. Moreover, Rg5 activated ABCB1 ATPase and reduced verapamil-stimulated ATPase activity, suggesting a high affinity of Rg5 to ABCB1 binding site which was further demonstrated by molecular docking analysis. In addition, co-treatment of Rg5 and docetaxel (TXT) suppressed the expression of Nrf2 and phosphorylation of AKT, indicating that sensitizing effect of Rg5 associated with AKT/Nrf2 pathway. In nude mice bearing A549/T tumor, Rg5 and TXT treatment significantly suppressed the growth of drug-resistant tumors without increase in toxicity when compared to TXT given alone at same dose. Conclusion: Therefore, combination therapy of Rg5 and chemotherapy drugs is a strategy for the adjuvant chemotherapy, which encourages further pharmacokinetic and clinical studies.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.43 no.4
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• pp.336-342
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• 2015

Previously, Euptelea pleiosperma was identified as one of the useful sources containing anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory activities for the first time in our research group. In this study, anti-obesity effect of E. pleiosperma ethanol extract (EPEE) was evaluated by using a pancreatic lipase enzyme inhibition assay and a cell culture model system. EPEE suppressed effectively pancreatic lipase enzyme activity dose dependently. Furthermore, EPEE significantly suppressed adipocyte differentiation, lipid accumulation, triglyceride contents, and triggered lipolysis activity on 3T3-L1 preadipocytes in a dose-dependent manner without cytotoxicity. Anti-adipogenic effect of EPEE was modulated by cytidine-cytidine-adenosine-adenosine-thymidine (CCAAT)/enhancer binding proteins ${\alpha}(C/EBP{\alpha})$, $C/EBP{\beta}$ and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor ${\gamma}(PPAR{\gamma})$ gene and protein expressions. Taken together, these results provide the important new insight that E. pleiosperma possesses anti-obesity activities such as pancreatic lipase inhibition, anti-adipogenic, and lipolysis effects. It might be utilized as promising sources in the fields of nutraceuticals. The identification of active compounds that confer anti-obesity activity of EPEE might be needed.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.155-160
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• 2015

BACKGROUND: Objective of this study was to investigate adsorption characteristics of $NH_4-N$ to biochar produced from rice hull in respective to mitigation of greenhouse gases. METHODS AND RESULTS: $NH_4-N$ concentration was analyzed by UV spectrophotometer. For adsorption experiment of $NH_4-N$ to biochar, input amount of biochar was varied from 0.4 to 10 g/L with 30 mg/L $NH_4-N$ solution. Its adsorption characteristic was investigated with application of Langmuir isotherm. Adsorption amount and removal rates of $NH_4-N$ were decreased at 53.9% and increased at 20.2% with 10 g/L compared to 0.4 g/L, respectively. The sorption of $NH_4-N$ to biochar produced from rice hull was fitted well by a Langmuir model. The largest adsorption amount of $NH_4-N$ ($q_m$) and binding strength constant (b) were calculated as 0.4980 mg/g, and 0.0249 L/mg, respectively. It was observed that dimensionless constant ($R_L$) was 0.58. CONCLUSION: It was indicated that biochar produced from rice hull is favorably absorbed $NH_4-N$, because this value lie within 0< $R_L$ <1.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.199-207
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• 2018

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Fermented Laminaria japonica (FL), a type sea tangle used as a functional food ingredient, has been reported to possess cognitive improving properties that may aid in the treatment of common neurodegenerative disorders, such as dementia. MATERIALS/METHODS: We examined the effects of FL on scopolamine (Sco)- and ethanol (EtOH)-induced hippocampus-dependent memory impairment, using the Passive avoidance (PA) and Morris water maze (MWM) tests. To examine the underlying mechanisms associated with neuroprotective effects, we analyzed acetylcholine (ACh) and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity, brain tissue expression of muscarinic acetylcholine receptor (mAChR), cAMP response element binding protein (CREB) and extracellular signal-regulated kinases 1/2 (ERK1/2), and immunohistochemical analysis, in the hippocampus of mice, compared to current drug therapy intervention. Biochemical blood analysis was carried out to determine the effects of FL on alanine transaminase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), and triglyceride (TG) and total cholesterol (TC) levels. 7 groups (n = 10) consisted of a control (CON), 3 Sco-induced dementia and 3 EtOH-induced dementia groups, with both dementia group types containing an untreated group (Sco and EtOH); a positive control, orally administered donepezil (Dpz) (4mg/kg) (Sco + Dpz and EtOH + Dpz); and an FL (50 mg/kg) treatment group (Sco + FL50 and EtOH + FL50), orally administered over the 4-week experimental period. RESULTS: FL50 significantly reduced EtOH-induced increase in AST and ALT levels. FL50 treatment reduced EtOH-impaired step-through latency time in the PA test, and Sco- and EtOH-induced dementia escape latency times in the MWM test. Moreover, anticholinergic effects of Sco and EtOH on the brain were reversed by FL50, through the attenuation of AChE activity and elevation of ACh concentration. FL50 elevated ERK1/2 protein expression and increased p-CREB (ser133) in hippocampus brain tissue, according to Western blot and immunohistochemistry analysis, respectively. CONCLUSION: Overall, these results suggest that FL may be considered an efficacious intervention for Sco- and EtOH-induced dementia, in terms of reversing cognitive impairment and neuroplastic dysfunction.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.451-455
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• 1998

Bovine pericardial bioprosthesis treated with glutaraldehyde is one of the most popular prosthetic materials, but late calcific degeneration must be solved. According to the alleged hypothesis of this calcification mechanism the free aldehyde groups on the surface of the tissue treated with glutaraldehyde bind to the circulating free calcium and induce mineralization. For mitigating the calcific degeneration, I added MgCl2 into the 0.625% glutaraldehyde solution to compete with calcium for binding to free aldehyde from the glutaraldehyde. I prepared 60 pieces of square shaped bovine pericardia and fixed in the 0.625% glutaraldehyde solution as control group(group 1), and the other 60 pieces in the same glutaraldehyde solution with 4g/L MgCl2 6H2O as the other group(group 2). After fixation for 1 month these were implanted into the bellies of 60 Sprague-Dawley rats subdermally and extracted on 1 month, 2 months, 3 months and 6 months later. With atomic absorption spectophotometry I measured the deposited calcium amount with the following results; 1 month and 2 months after implantation I could not find any differences between two groups, but in the 3rd month calcium was 1.738 mg/g in group 1 and 0.786 mg/g in group 2 and in the 6th month calcium had risen to 3.102 mg/g in group 1 and 1.623 mg/g in group 2, which has statistical significance(p<0.05). This means magnesium shows meaningful calcium mitigation effects on subcutaneously implanted bovine pericardium in the rat models.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.51 no.2
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• pp.139-149
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• 2011

Experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) is an inflammatory disease in the murine central nervous system (CNS) and has long been used as an animal model for human multiple sclerosis. Development of EAE requires coordinated expression of a number of genes that are involved in the activation and effector functions of inflammatory cells. Galectin-3 (Gal-3) is a member of the betagalactoside- binding lectin family and plays an important role in inflammatory responses through its functions on cell activation, cell migration or inhibition of apoptosis. We investigated the functional role of Gal-3 in EAE mice following immunization with myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein $(MOG)_{35-55}$ peptide. During the peak stage of EAE, the localization of Gal-3 in inflammatory cells markedly increased in subarachnoid membranes and perivascular regions of CNS. In contrast, Gal-3 was weakly detected in cerebrum and spinal of the recovery stage of EAE. Consistent with this finding, western blot analysis revealed that Gal-3 expression was significantly increased at the peak stage while it was slightly decreased at the recovery stage in the CNS. In addition, the population of $CD11b^{+}$ macrophage expressing Gal- 3 in spleen of EAE mice was markedly increased compared with control mice. In fact, most of activated macrophages isolated from spleen of EAE mice expressed Gal-3. Taken together, our results demonstrate that the over-expression of Gal-3 in activated macrophages may play a key role in promoting inflammatory cells in the CNS during EAE.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.374-381
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• 2009

Low-fat pork sausages (LFPS) were prepared with 1% transglutaminase (TG) and 0.5% sodium caseinate (SC), and with or without different type of hydrocolloids (0.3%; acorn, AC or mungbean, MB) to evaluate the effects of these ingredients on the physicochemical and textural properties of LFPS with reduced salt. pH, moisture content (%) and lightness of low-fat/salt pork sausages (LFSPS) were affected by the addition of TG combined with SC (TG-SC) and acorn or mungbean powders affected the lightness and yellowness of LFSPS. However, cooking yield of LFSPS decreased, while textural properties were increased with the addition of TG-SC combination, which did not affect expressible moisture contents (%) of LFSPS. Both AC and MB tended to improve the cooking yield and water holding capacity of LFSPS, especially, MB rather than AC. However, these had no effect on the textural properties of LFSPS, except for textural chewiness. These results indicated that AC and MB powders could be used as a water binding agent in TG-SC combination of LFSPS.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.10 no.6
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• pp.504-509
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• 1989

The effect of oxygen-deficiency on the charge distributions and orbital energies for small copper oxide clusters representing the superconducting materials $YBa_2Cu_3O_x (6{\leq}x{\leq}7)$ were investigated by the extended Huckel molecular orbital (EHMO) method with the tight-binding model. Our calculations show +3 oxidation state of Cu(1) in the $CuO_3$ chain and +2 or +1 of Cu(2) in the $CuO_2$ layers for $YBa_2Cu_3O_7$ with the nominal charge of $Cu_3$ = +7 (or +5), while for $YBa_2Cu_3O_6$ +1 oxidation state of Cu(1) and +3 (or +2) of Cu(2) in the $CuO_2$ layers with the nominal charge of $Cu_3$ = +7 (or +5). For $Cu_3O_{12}$ cluster representing $YBa_2Cu_3O_7$ with the nominal charge of $Cu_3$ = +7 the Cu(2) $d_{{x^2}-{y^2}}$ orbitals in the $CuO_2$ layers is a typical Jahn-Teller $d^9$ system with the partial hole and the Cu(1) $d_{{_z2}-{_y2}}$ orbital in the $CuO_3$ chain contains hole occupancy. For $Cu_3O_{10}$ cluster representing $YBa_2Cu_3O_6$ with the nominal charge of Cu = +5 the orbital character of the highest partially occupied MO (HPOMO) and the lowest completely unoccupied MO (LCUMO) of $Cu_3O_{12}$ representing $YBa_2Cu_3O_7$ with the nominal charge of $Cu_3$ = +7 is reversed, and the character of Cu(1) $d{{x^2}-{y^2}}$ orbital of LCUMO of the $Cu_3O_{12} $cluster is vanished. It is suggested that the local crystal field environment of Cu(1) by the oxygens in the Cu(1) chain may play a vital role in conductivity and superconductivity, either alone or through cooperative electronic coupling with the Cu(2) layers in $YBa_2Cu_3O_7.$.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.327-335
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• 2019

As the elderly population is increasing, Alzheimer's disease (AD) has become a global issue and many clinical trials have been conducted to evaluate treatments for AD. As these clinical trials have been conducted and have failed, the development of new theraphies for AD with fewer adverse effects remains a challenge. In this study, we examined the effects of Theracurmin on cognitive decline using 5XFAD mice, an AD mouse model. Theracurmin is more bioavailable form of curcumin, generated with submicron colloidal dispersion. Mice were treated with Theracurmin (100, 300 and 1,000 mg/kg) for 12 weeks and were subjected to the novel object recognition test and the Barnes maze test. Theracurmin-treated mice showed significant amelioration in recognition and spatial memories compared those of the vehicle-treated controls. In addition, the antioxidant activities of Theracurmin were investigated by measuring the superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, malondialdehyde (MDA) and glutathione (GSH) levels. The increased MDA level and decreased SOD and GSH levels in the vehicle-treated 5XFAD mice were significantly reversed by the administration of Theracurmin. Moreover, we observed that Theracurmin administration elevated the expression levels of synaptic components, including synaptophysin and post synaptic density protein 95, and decreased the expression levels of ionized calcium-binding adapter molecule 1 (Iba-1), a marker of activated microglia. These results suggest that Theracurmin ameliorates cognitive function by increasing the expression of synaptic components and by preventing neuronal cell damage from oxidative stress or from the activation of microglia. Thus, Theracurmin would be useful for treating the cognitive dysfunctions observed in AD.