• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.65-74
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• 2005

Fungicidal, insecticidal, and mosquito larvicidal activities of piperidine alkaloids, pipernonaline and piperoctadecalidine, and isobutylamide alkaloids, pellitorine, guineensine, pipercide, and retrofractaminde A, derived from Piperaceae fruits were studied. Pipernonaline and piperoctadecalidine showed potent fungicidal activities against Puccinia recondita with 91 and 80% control values at 500 ppm. Against Phytophthora infestans, pipernonaline showed strong fungicidal activity with 91 and 80% control values at 1,000 and 500 ppm. $LD_{50}$ values of pipernonaline and piperoctadecalidine against Plutella xylostella were 125 and 95.5 ppm, respectively, and that of piperoctadecalidine against Tetranychus urticae was 246 ppm. Against larvae of Aedes aegypti and Culex pipiens pallens, $LD_{50}$ values of pipernonaline were 0.35 and 0.21 ppm, respectively. Highest larvicidal activities of pipercide and retrofractamide A were found against A. aegypti, A. togoi, and C. pipiens pallens. $LD_{50}$ values of pipercide and retrofractamide A were 0.10 and 0.039 ppm against A. aegypti, 0.26 and 0.01 ppm against A. togoi, and 0.004 and 0.028 ppm against C. pipiens pallens, respectively. Based upon these results and earlier findings, bioactive components derived from Piperaceae fruits may be valuable for development of useful lead product of possibly safer fungicidal, insecticidal, and mosquito larvicidal agents.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.1571-1578
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• 2013

Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide. Recently, the demand for more effective and safer therapeutic agents for the chemoprevention of human cancer has increased. As a white rot fungus, Inonotus obliquus is valued as an edible and medicinal resource. Chemical investigations have shown that I. obliquus produces a diverse range of secondary metabolites, including phenolic compounds, melanins, and lanostane-type triterpenoids. Among these are active components for antioxidant, antitumoral, and antiviral activities and for improving human immunity against infection of pathogenic microbes. Importantly, their anticancer activities have become a hot recently, but with relatively little knowledge of their modes of action. Some compounds extracted from I. obliquus arrest cancer cells in the G0/G1 phase and then induce cell apoptosis or differentiation, whereas some examples directly participate in the cell apoptosis pathway. In other cases, polysaccharides from I. obliquus can indirectly be involved in anticancer processes mainly via stimulating the immune system. Furthermore, the antioxidative ability of I. obliquus extracts can prevent generation of cancer cells. In this review, we highlight recent findings regarding mechanisms underlying the anticancer influence of I. obliquus, to provide a comprehensive landscape view of the actions of this mushroom in preventing cancer.

• Journal of Dairy Science and Biotechnology
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.27-36
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• 2020

The prevention of cognitive decline and dementia is an increasingly important global public health priority due to an increase in the percentage of the elderly population. Dementia, a severe cognitive disorder, not only negatively impacts the patients' quality of life but also creates a substantial burden for caregivers. This review introduced recent advances regarding the protective effects of dairy product intake against dementia and cognitive decline. Recent epidemiological studies have suggested that specific components of dairy products including bioactive peptides, colostrinin, proline-rich polypeptides, α-lactalbumin, vitamin B₁₂, calcium, and probiotics might promote healthy brain function during aging. Additionally, oleamide and dehydroergosterol in Camembert cheese have been suggested as agents capable of reducing microglial inflammatory responses and neurotoxicity. The intake of neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory compounds in meals is safe and easy, hence nutritional approaches, including dairy product consumption, serve as a promising intervention for the prevention of neurodegenerative disorders.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.216-220
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• 2005

Periconicin A and B, two new fusicoccane diterpenes originally isolated from the cultures of endophytic fungus Periconia sp. OBW-15, were tested by several biological assays. Periconicin A was consistently more active than periconicin B. In an antifungal activity assay, periconicin A showed potent inhibitory activity against the agents of human mycoses, including Candida albicans, Trichophyton mentagrophytes, and T. rubrum, with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) in the range of 3.12- 6.25 $\mug$ /ml. In a plant growth regulatory activity assay, periconicins inhibited hypocotyl elongation and root growth of Brassica campestris L. and Raphanus sativus L. At concentrations below 1 μg/ml, however, both compounds accelerated root growth by 110- 135%. From these results, it is apparent that a methyl group positioned in a cyclopentane ring may play an important role in plant and fungal growth inhibitory activity.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.160-164
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• 2011

The purpose of this investigation was to extract the bioactive agents from Alpinia officinarum Hance. The methanol with ethylacetate extracts alone and combined were examined for their activities against VRE (vancomycin-resistant enterococci) and pathogenic yeast in vitro. The incidence of infections caused by VRE and other pathogenic microorganisms and the importance of using novel synergistic drug combinations has become important. Previously, we reported the antimicrobial effects of the butanol extract from Lonicera japonica and have evaluated combinations of solvent extracts, with a focus on the MeOH and EtOAc extracts from A. officinarum. In the present study, enhanced inhibitory effects were achieved by employing a combination of the two solvent extracts. The MeOH and EtOAc combination was especially effective against four VRE strains: E. faecalis (K-10-22), E. faecaium (K-11-212), E. faecalis (K-10-57) and E. faecalis (K-10-361) with MIC values of 12.5, 12.5, 6.25 and 25 ${\mu}g/ml$, respectively. Thus, the combination was more effective than other antibiotics such as kanamycin, gentamicin or tetracycline against bacteria including E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Micrococcus luteus. In addition, the combination was effective against yeasts such as Candida albicans, Candida tropicalis and Cryptococcus neoformans.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.97-106
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• 2017

Forest bathing has beneficial effects on human health via showering of forest aerosols as well as physical relaxation. Terpenes that consist of multiple isoprene units are the largest class of organic compounds produced by various plants, and one of the major components of forest aerosols. Traditionally, terpene-containing plant oil has been used to treat various diseases without knowing the exact functions or the mechanisms of action of the individual bioactive compounds. This review categorizes various terpenes easily obtained from forests according to their anti-inflammatory, anti-tumorigenic, or neuroprotective activities. Moreover, potential action mechanisms of the individual terpenes and their effects on such processes, which are described in various in vivo and in vitro systems, are discussed. In conclusion, the studies that show the biological effectiveness of terpenes support the benefits of forest bathing and propose a potential use of terpenes as chemotherapeutic agents for treating various human diseases.

• Macromolecular Research
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• v.13 no.6
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• pp.483-490
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• 2005

A novel, polysaccharide-based, superabsorbent hydrogel was synthesized through crosslinking graft copolymerization of methacrylic acid (MAA) onto kappa-carrageenan ($_{k}C$), using ammonium persulfate (APS) as a free radical initiator in the presence of methylenebisacrylamide (MBA) as a crosslinker. A proposed mechanism for $_{k}C$­g-polymethacrylic acid ($_{k}C$-g-PMAA) formation was suggested and the hydrogel structure was confirmed using FTIR spectroscopy. The effect of grafting variables, including MBA, MAA, and APS concentration, was systematically optimized to achieve a hydrogel with the maximum possible swelling capacity. The swelling kinetics in distilled water and various salt solutions were preliminarily investigated. Absorbency in aqueous salt solutions of lithium chloride, sodium chloride, potassium chloride, calcium chloride, and aluminum chloride indicated that the swelling capacity decreased with increased ionic strength of the swelling medium. This behavior can be attributed to the charge screening effect for monovalent cations, as well as ionic crosslinking for multivalent cations. The swelling of super absorbing hydrogels was measured in solutions with pH ranging from 1 to 13. In addition, the pH reversibility and on-off switching behavior, at pH levels of 3.0 and 8.0, give the synthesized hydrogels great potential as an excellent candidate for the controlled delivery of bioactive agents.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.31 no.11
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• pp.3163-3172
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• 2010

In this work, a novel method to synthesis of an acrylic superabsorbent hydrogel was reported. In the two stage hydrogel synthesis, first copolymerization reaction of acrylonitrile (AN) and acrylamide (AM) monomers using ammonium persulfate (APS) as a free radical initiator was performed. In the second stage, the resulted copolymer was hydrolyzed to produce carboxamide and carboxylate groups followed by in situ crosslinking of the polyacrylonitrile chains. The results from FTIR spectroscopy and the dark red-yellow color change show that the copolymerization, alkaline hydrolysis and crosslinking reactions have been do take place. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) verifies that the synthesized hydrogels have a porous structure. The results of Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analysis showed that the average pore diameter of the synthesized hydrogel was 13.9 nm. The synthetic parameters affecting on swelling capacity of the hydrogel, such as AM/AN weight ratio and hydrolysis time and temperature, were systematically optimized to achieve maximum swelling capacity (330 g/g). The swollen gel strength of the synthesized hydrogels was evaluated via viscoelastic measurements. The results indicated that superabsorbent polymers with high water absorbency were accompanied by low gel strength. The swelling of superabsorbent hydrogels was also measured in various solutions with pH values ranging from 1 to 13. Also, the pH reversibility and on-off switching behavior makes the hydrogel as a good candidate for controlled delivery of bioactive agents. Finally, the swelling of synthesized hydrogels with various particle sizes obey second order kinetics.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.229-238
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• 2011

A series of novel glucose derived benzyl and alkyl 1,2,3-triazoles and their hydrochlorides have been synthesized via Cu(I)-catalyzed 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition. All the new compounds were characterized by MS, IR and NMR spectra. The DEPT, APT, $^1H$-$^1H$ and $^1H-^{13}C$ 2D NMR spectra for some compounds were also recorded. These compounds were evaluated for their in vitro antibacterial activities against Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 29213, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus proteus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, and antifungal activities against Candida albicans and Aspergillus fumigatus. The bioactive data revealed that (3R,4S,5S,6S)-2-(hydroxymethyl)-6-methoxy-4,5-bis((1-octyl-1H-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl)methoxy)-tetrahydro-2H-pyran-3-ol 8a exhibited excellent antifungal activity against A. fumigatus with an MIC value of 0.055 mM compared to Fluconazole. It also showed broad inhibitory efficacy against tested bacterial strains with MIC values ranging from 0.049 mM to 0.39 mM.

• Journal of IKEEE
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.320-330
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• 2017

Porous nanosilica (PNS) has been identified as a potential candidate for controlled drug delivery. However, unmodified PNS-based carriers exhibited an initial release of loaded bioactive agents, which may limit their potential clinical applications. In this study, the surface of PNS was functionalized with adamantylamine (ADA) via disulfide bonds (-S-S-), PNS-S-S-ADA, which was then modified with cyclodextrin (CD)-heparin (Hep) (CD-Hep), PNS-S-S-CDH, for redox triggered rhodamine B (RhB) delivery. The obtained samples were then characterized by proton nuclear magnetic resonance ($^{1}H\;NMR$), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), and transmission electron microscope (TEM). These results showed that PNS-S-S-CDH was successfully formed with spherical shape and average diameter of $45.64{\pm}2.33nm$. In addition, RhB was relatively encapsulated in the PNS-S-S-CDH (RhB@PNS-S-S-CDH) and slowly released up to 3 days. The release of RhB, in particular, was triggered due to the cleavage of -S-S- in the presence of dithiothreitol (DTT). It might be anticipated that the modified PNS can be used as redox-responsive drug delivery system in cancer therapy.