• Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.213-219
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• 1972

In order to utilize sweet potatoes for the material of Takju, brewing experiments with raw sweet potatoes, sweet potato chips powder and its koji were conducted; and various tests were carried out on effect of the treatments of acid, alkali, polyphenol oxidase inhibitor, oxidizing and reducing agents upon the prevention against coloring of sweet potato chips by steaming, and on peeling effect of sweet potatoes by the alkali and heat treatments. The results obtained were as follows. 1) In the case of brewing with raw sweet potatose, each plot showed low acid and ethanol content, and its finished Takju had an undersirable color and odor. The plots which were mashed after peeling showed higher ethanol contents than the plots mashed without peeling. 2) In the case of brewing with sweet potato chips powder, each plot contained considerably more amount of ethanol than the plots brewed with raw sweet potatoes, white it contained less amount of acid. The ethanol contents of the plots using wheat bran koji were $10.5{\sim}11.4$ per cent 4 days after mashing, and were higher than those of the plots using malts powder. Their finished Takju was inferior in quality because of the lack of acid and being darkened gradually in process of time. 3) The kojies which were made of sweet potato chips powder with Neurospora sitophila or Aspergillus oryzae had good appearance, but the Takju mashes brewed with these contained remarkably less amount of ethanol. 4) Effect of the treatments of acid, alkali, polyphenol oxidase inhibitor and organic solvents such as ether and ethanol upon the prevention against coloring of sweet potato chips was not recognized. Alum and burnt alum were effective a little on the decolorization, and among the oxidizing and reducing agents tested, potassium permanganate was most effective. 5) Darkening of sweet potato chips powder in course of heating after mixing with water was not affected by pectin and amino acids, but by tannin. 6) Sweet potatoes were not peeled easily by friction after soaking in the boiling solution of 3 per cent alkali for 6 minutes and peeled in boiling water for 12 minutes. From the viewpoint of the results above mentioned, it seems to be necessary to study further on the isolation of microorganisms which are able to decompose the coloring substances and yeasts which are adequate for the fermentation of sweet potatoes in order to utilize sweet potatoes for Takju brewing, because brewing with raw sweet potatoes, sweet potato chips powder and its koji was unsuccessful, and effect of the various treatments on the decolorization of sweet potatoes was not recognized.

• The Korean Journal of Pharmacology
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.62-77
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• 1985

In tile Iron-catalyzed Haber-Weiss reaction to produce OH., the requirement for $O^{-}_{2}{\cdot}$ is only to reduce $Fe^{+++}$. Possibly, the role of $O^{-}_{2}{\cdot}$ can be replaced by other reducing agents. Ascorbate is one of them in biological system. In the present study, the ability of ascorbate to produce $OH{\cdot}$ in the presence of $Fe^{++}$ and $H_2O_2$ was investigated by observing the degradation of hyaluronic acid and ethylene production from methional. Ascorbate stimulated the degradation of hyaluronic by $Fe^{++}$ and $H_2O_2$. That was confirmed by both viscosity change and gel-permeation chromatographic analysis. The observed degradation was almost completely prevented by catalase and $OH{\cdot}$ scavengers. In support of the above results, ascorbate enhanced the prouction of ethylene from methional in the presence of $Fe^{++}$ and $H_2O_2$. Other reducing agents (cysteine, glutathione, NADH and NADPH) showed similar activities to ascorbate in the degradation of hyaluronic acid and ethylene production. But no stimulatory effects were observed with their oxidized forms such as NAD and NADP. Thus, it appears that reduction of the metal ion was needed for $OH{\cdot}$ production. Among the metal ions tested, $Fe^{++}$ showed most potent catalytic action in the production of $OH{\cdot}$ The results obtained support that ascorbate can substitute $O^{-}_{2}{\cdot}$ in the metal-catalyzed reactions, particularly with $Fe^{++}$ by which $OH{\cdot}$ is produced with $H_2O_2$. The significance of the ascorbate-dependent production of $OH{\cdot}$ was considered with respect to possible role of ascorbate in the damage of inflamed joints.

• Archives of Pharmacal Research
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.605-612
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• 2000

Green tea polyphenols (GTP) have been demonstrated to suppress tumorigenesis in several chemical-induced animal carcinogenesis models, and predicted as promising chemopreventive agents in human. Recent studies of GTP extracts showed the involvement of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) in the regulation of Phase II enzymes gene expression and induction of apoptosis. In the current work we compared the biological actions of five green tea catechins: (1) induction of ARE reporter gene, (2) activation of MAP kinases, (3) cytotoxicity in human hepatoma HepG2-C8 cells, and (4) caspase activation in human cervical squamous carcinoma HeLa cells. For the induction of phase IIgene assay, (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) and (-)-epicatechin-3-gallate (ECG) potently induced antioxidant response element (ARE)-mediated luciferase activity, with induction observed at 25 $\mu\textrm{m}$with EGCG. The induction of ARE reporter gene appears to be structurally related to the 3-gallate group. Comparing the activation of MAPK by the five polyphenols, only EGCG showed potent activation of all three MAPKs (ERK, JNK and p38) in a dose- and time-dependent manner, whereas EGC activated ERK and p38. In the concentration range of 25 $\mu\textrm{m}$ to 1 mM, EGCG and ECG strongly suppressed HepG2-ARE-C8 cell-growth. To elucidate the mechanisms of green tea polyphenol-induced apoptosis, we measured the activation of an important cell death protein, caspase-3 induced by EGCG, and found that caspase-3 was activated in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Interestingly, the activation of caspase-3 was a relatively late event (peaked at 16 h), whereas activation of MAPKs was much earlier (peaked at 2 h). It is possible, that at low concentrations of EGCG, activation of MAPK leads to ARE-mediated gene expression including phase II detoxifying enzymes. Whereas at higher concentrations of EGCG, sustained activation of MAPKs such as JNK leads to apoptosis. These mechanisms are currently under investigation in our laboratory. As the most abundant catechin in GTP extract, we found that EGCG potently induced ARE-mediated gene expression, activated MAP kinase pathway, stimulated caspase-3 activity, and induced apoptosis. These mechanisms together with others, may contribute to the overall chemopreventive function of EGCG itself as well as the GTP.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.171-178
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• 2014

Myogenesis is the formation process of multinucleated myofiber with a contractile capacity from muscle satellite cell (MSCs) during life. This process is tightly controlled by several transcription factors such as Pax3 and Pax7 (paired box protein 3 and 7), MEF2C (myocyte enhancer factor 2) and MRFs (myogenic regulatory factors) etc. On the contrary, myostatin (MSTN) is a transforming growth factor-${\beta}$ superfamily, which functions as a negative regulator of skeletal muscle development and growth. Carnosic acid (CA) is a major phenolic component in rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) and have been reported various biological activities such as anticancer, antioxidant, antimicrobial and therapeutic agents for amnesia, dementia, alzheimer's disease. This study was confirmed to effects of CA on muscle cell line and muscle tissue alteration of zebrafish by intramuscular injection or feeding methods. $10{\mu}M$ CA showed a non-cytotoxic on myoblast and a complete inhibition effect against myostatin activity on luciferase assay. In intramuscular injection experiment, the total protein and triglyceride amount of $10{\mu}M/kg$ of CA injected group increased by 11% and decreased by 13% compared to these of the no injected group. In histology analysis of muscle tissues by hematoxylin/eosin staining, the number of muscle fiber of $10{\mu}M/kg$ of CA injected group decreased by 29% and fiber area increased 40% compared to these of no injected group. In feeding experiment, the total protein and triglyceride amount no significance difference compared to these of the normal feeding group. In histology analysis, the number of muscle fiber of 1% CA fed group decreased by 35% and fiber area increased 56% compared to these of normal fed group. We identified that CA have an effect on hypertrophy of muscle fiber in adult zebrafish and the results of this study are considered as the basic data that can reveal the mechanisms of muscle formation via gene and protein level analysis.

• Food Science and Biotechnology
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.247-250
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• 2008

The $CHCl_3$, EtOAc, and n-BuOH fractions showed a marked inhibition of 5% fatal bovine serum (FBS)-induced cell proliferation. The $IC_{50}$ values of the chloroform fractions from leaf, stem, and root as well as the n-BuOH and EtOAc fraction from root on cell proliferation were $1.2{\pm}0.4$, $17.2{\pm}6.4$, $81.8{\pm}33.2$, $40.8{\pm}8.0$, and $237.1{\pm}85.6\;{\mu}g/mL$, respectively. On the other hand, the EtOAc fractions, and the $CHCl_3$ fraction significantly inhibited collagen-, arachidonic acid-, U46619-, and thrombin-induced platelet aggregations. The $IC_{50}$ values of EtOAc fraction from leaf, and the $CHCl_3$ and EtOAc fraction from stem were $214.1{\pm}12.2$, $134.3{\pm}2.5$, and $42.6{\pm}7.0\;{\mu}g/mL$ with collagen, $312.4{\pm}7.5$, $158.9{\pm}1.7$, and $82.2{\pm}2.7\;{\mu}g/mL$ with arachidonic acid, $31.1{\pm}2.4$, $48.7{\pm}0.3$, and $29.7{\pm}1.1\;{\mu}g/mL$ with U46619, and $36.7{\pm}2.4$, $69.1{\pm}11.3$, and $34.2{\pm}0.1\;{\mu}g/mL$ with thrombin, respectively. Taken together, these data provide new evidence that fractions from Allium victorialis var. platyphyllum (AVP) are able to inhibit vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) proliferation and platelet aggregation, which may be a novel resource for the development of anti-atherothrombotic agents.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.7-14
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• 2016

Radiopharmaceutical agents for positron emission tomography (PET), such as $^{18}F$-FDG and $^{68}Ga$, have been used not only for whole-body PET imaging but also for intraoperative radionuclide-guided surgery due to their quantitative and sensitive imaging characteristics. Current intraoperative probes detect gamma or beta particles, but not both of them. Gamma probes have low sensitivities since a collimator has to be used to reduce backgrounds. Positron probes have a high tumor-to-background ratio, but they have a 1-2 mm depth limitation from the body surface. Most of current intraoperative probes produce only audible sounds proportional to count rates without providing tumor images. This research aims to detect both positrons and annihilation photons from $^{18}F$ using plastic scintillators and a GAGG scintillation crystal attached to silicon photomultiplier (SiPM). The depth-of-interaction (DOI) along the plastic scintillator can be used to obtain the 2-D images of tumors near the body surface. The front and rear part of the intraoperative probe consists of $4{\times}1$ plastic scintillators ($2.9{\times}2.0{\times}12.0mm^3$) for positron detection and a Ce:GAGG scintillation crystal ($12.0{\times}12.0{\times}9.0mm^3$) for annihilation photon detection, respectively. The DOI resolution of $4.4{\pm}1.6mm$ along the plastic scintillator was obtained by using the 3M enhanced specular reflector (ESR) with rectangular holes between the plastic scintillators, which showed the feasibility of a 2-D image pixel size of $2.9{\times}4.4mm^2$ (X-direction ${\times}$ Y-direction).

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.478-483
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• 2014

Objectives: The main objective of this study is to assess the levels of hazardous substances in floor dust in primary schools located in the city of Busan in Korea. Materials and Methods: An on-site investigation of three primary schools was performed between April and May 2013. The hazardous substances measured in this study were 14 heavy metals (Cu, Fe, Pb, Mn, Ni, Zn, Cr, Cd, As, Al, Sn, Co, Mo and Si) and the biological agents were bacteria, fungi and endotoxin). Results: Among the heavy metals, Cd, Co, Pb and Cr were not detected in the floor dust from the three primary schools. The mean levels of other heavy metals were as follows: $20({\pm}10)ng/cm^2$ for As, $30({\pm}20)ng/cm^2$ for Al, $5({\pm}4)ng/cm^2$ for Sn, $20({\pm}20)ng/cm^2$ for Mo, $1,340({\pm}620)ng/cm^2$ for Si, $110({\pm}100)ng/cm^2$ for Cu, $240({\pm}50)ng/cm^2$ for Fe, $30({\pm}30)ng/cm^2$ for Mn, $10({\pm}10)ng/cm^2$ for Ni, and $50({\pm}30)ng/cm^2$ for Zn. It was found that mean concentrations of bacteria, fungi and endotoxin in the floor dust of primary schools were $4.7{\time}10^7({\pm}2.2{\time}10^7)cfu/cm^2$, $6.3{\time}10^6({\pm}6.4{\time}10^6)cfu/cm^2$, and $8,140({\pm}5,801)EU/cm^2$, respectively. The predominant species identified in the floor dust of the primary schools were Pseudomonas spp. for bacteria and Penicillium spp.,Cladosporidium spp.,and Aspergillus spp. for fungi, which would be somewhat similar to the microbial distribution pattern of other general environments. Conclusions: Based on the results obtained from this study, the levels of heavy metals, microbes and endotoxin distributed in the floor dust of primary school were higher than those reported for other general facilities. Thus, preventive measures should be prepared for the health care of children.

• Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.37-59
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• 2010

Objectives : The object of this study was to observe the favorable anti arthritic effects of Euiiin-tang($y{\grave{i}}y{\breve{i}}r{\acute{e}}n-t{\bar{a}}ng$) aqueous extract(EIITe), has been traditionally used in Korean medicine for treating rheumatoid arthritis on collagen induced arthritic(CIA) DBA/1 mice. Methods : In the present study, effects of EIITe on the releases of human tumor necrosis factor(TNF)-${\alpha}$, interleukin(IL)-$1{\beta}$, matrix metalloproteinase(MMP)-13 and production of Nitric oxide(NO) were observed by in vitro. In addition, to observe the effects on the CIA mice, three different dosages of EIITe, 300, 150 and 150 mg/kg were orally administered once a day for 18 days from 24hrs after antigen challenges(type II collagen) on 21 days after immunization using Type II collagen Freund's complete adjuvant. Six groups, each of 8 DBA/1 mice per group were used in the present study as follows. Changes on the body weights, macroscopic arthritis scores, splenic weights, splenic TNF-${\alpha}$ and IL-6 contents, articular cartilage(femur and tibia) collagen and glycosaminoglycans-chondroitin sulphate, sulphate and hyaluronic acid contents, histopathological observations(microscopic arthritis scores, thicknesses of femur and tibia cartilage thicknesses were monitored, compared to that of dexamethasone, a potent anti inflammatory agents, 1 mg/kg treated mice. Results : As results of collagen challenges, marked decreases of body weights and gains, articular cartilage collagen and glycosaminoglycan - chondroitin sulphate, sulphate and hyaluronic acid contents were observed with increases of macroscopic arthritis scores, splenic weights, splenic TNF-${\alpha}$ and IL-6 contents, articular cartilage(in the both femur and tibia) loss and damages. However, these CIA signs were significantly and dosages dependently inhibited by treatment of EIITe 300 and 150 mg/kg as compared with CIA control, respectively. In addition, the releases of TNF-${\alpha}$, IL-$1{\beta}$, NO and MMP-13 were markedly and dose dependently inhibited by treatment of EIITe, invitro. Although CIA were more favorably inhibited by treatment of dexamethasone 1 mg/kg as compared with EIITe 300 mg/kg, marked decreases of body weights were detected in dexamethasone 1 mg/kg treated mice. Conclusions : The results obtained in this study suggest that over 150 mg/kg of EIITe showed favorable anti arthritic effects on the CIA mediated by immunomodulatory and/or anti oxidative effects. However, detail mechanism studies should be conduced in future with the screening of the biological active compounds in this herb. lthough CIA were more favorably inhibited by treatment of dexamethasone 1 mg/kg as compared with EIITe 300 mg/kg, marked decreases of body weights were detected in dexamethasone 1 mg/kg treated mice, in the present study.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.28 no.9
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• pp.1092-1099
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• 2018

This study was orchestrated with the purpose of uncovering new nutraceutical resources possessing biological activities in the plant kingdom. To fulfill our objective, we analyzed several plant extracts and selected five species possessing powerful anti-oxidative activity. The anti-oxidative effect of these five plants, Apios fortunei Maxim., Colubrina arborescens Sarg., Croton caudatus Geiseler, Osmanthus matsumuranus Hayata and Schima noronhae Reinw. ethanol extracts were then evaluated by using in vitro assay, cell model system, and Western blot analysis of target proteins. As the results, all of them possessed the potent scavenging activity against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH), similar with that of ascorbic acid, used as a common positive control. Moreover, they strongly inhibited hydrogen peroxide ($H_2O_2$)-induced reactive oxygen species (ROS), in a dose-dependent manner, in RAW 264.7 murine macrophage cells. Furthermore, they induced the protein expression of an anti-oxidative enzyme, heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1), and its upstream transcription factor, nuclear factor-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2). Taken together, these results indicate that these five plants possess potent anti-oxidative activity and thus appear to be useful sources as potential anti-oxidant agents. Therefore, they might be utilized as promising materials in the field of nutraceuticals.

• Journal of Marine Bioscience and Biotechnology
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.42-51
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• 2019

We compared the antibacterial activities of spermidine and astaxanthin against two gram-positive bacteria such as Streptococcus parauberis and S. iniae to find new antibacterial candidates. We also evaluated the preventive effects of spermidine against oxidative stress-induced cytotoxicity in C2C12 myoblasts. Our results indicated that spermidine has more significant antibacterial activities than astaxanthin against both two fish pathogenic bacteria as well as gram-negative bacteria Escherichia coli used as a control group. Minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum bactericidal concentration of spermidine were 0.25 mM and 1 mM against S. parauberis, 1 mM and 3 mM against S. iniae, and 0.5 mM and 1.5 mM against E. coli, respectively. In addition, the postantibiotic effect lasted from 7 h, 5 h and 6 h for S. parauberis, S. iniae and E. coli, respectively. The results also showed that the decreased C2C12 cell viability by H₂O₂ could be attributed to the induction of DNA damage and apoptosis accompanied by the increased production of reactive oxygen species, which was remarkably protected by spermidine. Additionally, the antioxidant effect of spermidine was associated with the activation of Nrf2 signaling pathway. According to the data, spermidine may be a potential lead compound which can be further optimized to discover novel antibacterial and antioxidant agents.