• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.60 no.1
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• pp.49-54
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• 2017

In the course of screening tyrosinase inhibitory activity, EtOAc-soluble fraction of Coix lachryma-jobi var. mayuen Stapf. (Gramineae) roots showed significant inhibition. Further fractionation of the EtOAc-soluble fraction resulted in six compounds, which were identified as (+)-icariol $A_2$ (1), zhepiresionol (2), 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde (3), trans-${\rho}$-coumaric acid (4), N-(2-hydroxy-4-methoxyphenyl)-2-hydroxyacetamide (5), and coixol (6). The chemical structures of these compounds were identified on the basis of spectroscopic methods (MS, 1D and 2D NMR) and comparison with literature values. Compound 1 was first reported from this plant. Also, this is the first time that the isolation of compound 5 has been reported from nature source. Among the isolated compounds, compounds 4 and 6 showed enzyme inhibitory activity, with $IC_{50}$ values of 6.5 and $62.4{\mu}M$, respectively, in comparison with these of positive control, arbutin.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.54 no.1
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• pp.41-46
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• 2011

A galactose-fermenting yeasts, Saccharomyces cerevisiae No. 9, was selected by screening their abilities to produce carbon dioxide gas when grown on galactose. The selected strain, No. 9 and the reference strains NRRL Y-1528 which was exceptionally resistant to high concentration of substrate, were acclimated on sugars such as glucose, mannose, and galactose, and then their ethanol productivities were investigated during fermentation on these three carbon sources. Ethanol productivity of the strain No. 9 reached to the maximum levels after 18 h of fermentation and the ethanol yield was from 36 to 38% when presented as $[EtOH]_{max}/[Sugar]_{ini}(g/g)$, regardless of the conditions of acclimation. From the results obtained by acclimation and fermentation, it was concluded that the ethanol yields from galactose were not affected by the sugars acclimated. Improvements of the strain S. cerevisiae No. 9 were attempted to increase the fermentation efficiency and/or ethanol yields on high concentration of substrate by the conventional mutation methods employing methanesulfonic acid, ethyl ester (EMS). Mutants, Mut-5 (SJ1-40), -17 (LK4-25) and -24 (LK2-48) fermented galactose at the concentration of 20% in the levels of higher 39.9~51.6% than the mother strain, No. 9, however, their ethanol yields never exceeded those of the reference strain.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.258-265
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• 2001

Objectives : Chronic alcohol consumption has been known to result in various neurocognitive deficits. Many neuropsychological studies revealed that the major disturbances occurred in the executive function, learning and short-term memory, visuospatial performance function, perceptuo-motor skills, and abstraction and problem solving abilities. This study was done to identify which cognitive areas might be mainly affected. Methods : The cognitive disturbance was evaluated using the Korean Version of the Mini Mental State Examination(MMSEK) and the 7 Minute Screen(7MS) in male inpatients with alcohol dependence(N=3 : as well as in age and education level matched healthy male controls(N=30). Four individual tests of the 7MS were consisted of the Benton Temporal Orientation Test, the Enhanced Cued Recall, the Clock Drawing and the Category Fluency. Results : 1) The average scores of four individual test of the 7MS for the alcoholics were $2.77{\pm}4.38$ for the Benton Temporal Orientation Test, $13.90{\pm}2.02$ for the Memory Test(the Cued Recall $6.77{\pm}1.94$, the Uncued Recall $7.10{\pm}2.45$), $5.84{\pm}1.86$ for the Clock Drawing, and $12.58{\pm}3.29$ for the Category Fluency. Except the Benton Temporal Orientation Test, there were statistically significant differences between test scores of alcoholics and those of controls(p<0.01). 2) The alcoholics who had MMSE-K score <24 were 9.68%. The average(${\pm}S.D.$) score of the MMSE-K for the patient group($27.23{\pm}2.62$) was significantly(p<0.001) lower than that of the healthy controls($29.20{\pm}1.24$). There were no statistically significant differences between four individual test scores of the 7MS of alcoholics with the MMSE-K score <24(N=3) and those of alcoholics with the MMSE-K score ${\geq}24$(N=28). 3) Four individual test scores of the 7MS seemed to have statistically significant association with such variables as MMSE-K, duration of alcohol drinking, blood magnesium concentration, liver function and thyroid function. Conclusion : Mild deficits of cognitive areas such as orientation, memory, visuospatial abilities and verbal fluency could be found in alcohol dependence.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.46 no.3
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• pp.255-261
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• 2006

Experimental animals have been used to biological and medical purposes and the animals must be, for these purposes, healthy and clean to microbial infection. However, the animals can be easily exposed to pathogenic microorganism via several routes. Of the routes, environmental conditions are the most important factors to keep the animals healthy and clean, especially air condition. Monitoring of air-condition has been required to keep the animal healthy and clean. However, any guideline is not available for experimental conditions with pigs. Therefore, the sampling times and points were compared in different conditions to establish an optimal protocol for monitoring of air borne bacteria. Tryptic soy agar(TSA), blood agar containing 5% defibrinated sheep blood and Sabraud dextrose agar(SDA) were used as media to capture total bacteria, pathogenic bacteria and fungi, respectively. Two methods, compulsive capture using an air-sampler and capturing fall-down bacteria were used to capture the microorganisms in the air. The points and time of capturing were different at each experiment. Air borne microorganisms were captured at three and five points in the open and closed equipments, respectively. Air was collected using an air-sampler for 1 min and 5 min and the agar plates as open status were left from 30 min to 2hr. At first, we monitored an experimental laboratory which dealt with several pathogenic bacteria and then, a protocol obtained from the investigation was applied to open or close experimental conditions with pigs. Number of bacteria was high from 10:00 to 15:00, especially on 13:30-15:30 but sharply decreased after 17:00. The tendency of the number of bacteria was similar between two methods even though the absolute number was higher with air sampler. Critical difference in the number of cells was observed at 5 min with air sampler and 2 hr with fall-down capturing method. However, 1 min with air sampler and 1 hr with fall-down capturing were the best condition to identify bacterial species collected from the air. Number of bacteria were different depending on the sampling points in closed condition but not in opened condition. Based on our results, a guide-line was suggested for screening air-borne microorganism in the experimental conditions with pigs.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.102-110
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• 1999

Objectives : The alcohol dependence in elderly people has been prevalent because of increase in geriatric population. However, it is difficult to find out alcohol dependence in the aged, because they have less specific clinical features as compared with adult alcoholics. The aims of this study were to screen alcohol dependence among elderly Koreans and to know the clinical characteristics of Korean delerly alcoholics. Methods : The questionnaires translated into Korean such as Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test(MAST-K), the Brief MAST and the MAST-Geriatirc Version (MAST-KG) were used to screen alcohol dependence in the elderly alcoholic inpatients aged over 60(N=43), adult alcoholic inpatients within 20-59 Yrs of age(N=60), which were compared with age matched normal healthy aged(N=18) or adult controls(N=45). The demographic data such as sex, age, education, occupation, socioeconomic status, marital status, numbers of children, dwelling and religion as well as alcohol history such as duration of alcohol drinking, onset age, family history, impulsivity, somatic illness and motivation were also obtained to identify characteristic features of Korean aged alcoholics by structured interviews. Results : 1) The aged alcoholics had the charateristic features of more in males, lower age, low education levels, more in blue-collar workers, lower socioeconomic class, more in single, few babies, more living alone, having no religion without statistical significance. 2) The onset age of alcohol dependence was significantly higher in the aged alcoholics($45.3{\pm}13.6Yrs$) than in the adult alcoholics($27.7{\pm}8.7Yrs$)(p<0.0001). The duration of problematic alcohol drinking was significantly longer in the aged alcoholics($22.0{\pm}15.1Yrs$) than in adult alcoholics($14.2{\pm}8.4Yrs$)(p<0.01). Otherwise, there were no significant difference between aged and adult alcoholics in the family history, imulsivity, somatic illness and motivation. 3) The mean score of the MAST-K was significantly higher in the aged alcoholics($20.6{\pm}5.4$) than in the normal aged($6.7{\pm}4.4$)(p<0.0001), which was significantly lower than in the adult alcoholics($26.2{\pm}8.0$) and in normal adult controls($9.5{\pm}3.2$)(p<0.05). The mean score of the Brief MAST was significantly lower in the aged alcoholics($9.3{\pm}3.5$) than in the adult alcoholics($14.5{\pm}6.6$)(p<0.0001). The mean score of the MAST-KG was significantly higher in the aged alcoholics($10.6{\pm}3.5$) than in the normal aged($4.8{\pm}4.3$)(p<0.0001). The former was significantly lower than in the adult alcoholics($12.9{\pm}4.3$)(p<0.005), and the mean score was $4.5{\pm}2.8$ in normal adult controls. 4) The items which showed statistically significant differences between aged alcoholics and normal aged controls could be found in 10 items of the MAST-K(items 2, 3, 4, 5, 11, 14, 17, 21, 22 and 23), 2 items of the Brief MAST(items 2 and 9), and 7 items of the MAST-KG(items 6, 13, 18, 19, 22, 23 and 24)(p<0.01). Conclusions : The scores of the MAST-K, the Brief MAST and the MAST-KG were significantly lower in the aged alcoholics than those in the adult alcoholics (p<0.05). The statistically significant differences between aged alcoholics and normal aged controls could be found in 10 items of the MAST-K, 2 items of the Brief MAST and 7 items of the MAST-KG. Therefore, a briefer rating scales around 10 items are needed to screen alcohol dependence among Korean elderly people.

• Journal of Dairy Science and Biotechnology
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.203-216
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• 2016

Probiotic microorganisms are thought to provide health benefits when consumed. In 2001, the World Health Organization defined probiotics as "live microorganisms which confer a health benefit on the host, when administered in adequate amounts." Three methods for screening potential probiotics have currently widely available. (1) In vitro assays of potential probiotics are preferred because of their simplicity and low cost. (2) The use of in vivo approaches for exploring various potential probiotics reflects the enormous diversity in biological models with various complex mechanisms. (3) Potential probiotics have been analyzed using several genetic and omics technologies to identify gene expression or protein production patterns under various conditions. However, there is no ideal procedure for selecting potential probiotics than testing cadidate strains on the target population. Hence, in this review, we provide an overview of the different methodologies used to identify new probiotic strains. Furthermore, we describe futre perspectives for the use of in vitro, in vivo and omics in probiotic research.

• 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 Ginseng Research
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.461-474
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• 2020

Background: Ginseng effectively reduces fatigue in both animal models and clinical trials. However, the mechanism of action is not completely understood, and its molecular targets remain largely unknown. Methods: By screening for proteins that interact with the primary components of ginseng (ginsenosides) in an affinity chromatography assay, we have identified muscle-type creatine kinase (CK-MM) as a potential target in skeletal muscle tissues. Results: Biolayer interferometry analysis showed that ginsenoside metabolites, instead of parent ginsenosides, had direct interaction with recombinant human CK-MM. Subsequently, 20(S)-protopanaxadiol (PPD), which is a ginsenoside metabolite and displayed the strongest interaction with CK-MM in the study, was selected as a representative to confirm direct binding and its biological importance. Biolayer interferometry kinetics analysis and isothermal titration calorimetry assay demonstrated that PPD specifically bound to human CK-MM. Moreover, the mutation of key amino acids predicted by molecular docking decreased the affinity between PPD and CK-MM. The direct binding activated CK-MM activity in vitro and in vivo, which increased the levels of tissue phosphocreatine and strengthened the function of the creatine kinase/phosphocreatine system in skeletal muscle, thus buffering cellular ATP, delaying exercise-induced lactate accumulation, and improving exercise performance in mice. Conclusion: Our results suggest a cellular target and an initiating molecular event by which ginseng reduces fatigue. All these findings indicate PPD as a small molecular activator of CK-MM, which can help in further developing better CK-MM activators based on the dammarane-type triterpenoid structure.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Marine Environment & Energy
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.341-348
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• 2016

Micro-algae, one of the biological resources for alternative energy, has been heavily studied. Among various methods to analyze the status of the micro-algae including counting, screening, and flocculation, the flocculation approach has been widely accepted in many critical applications such as red tide removal study or microalgae resource study. To characterize the flocculation status of the micro-alga. A traditional optical modality, i.e., photospectrometry, measuring the optical density of the flocs has been frequently employed. While this traditional optical method needs shorter time than the counting method in flocculation status analysis, it has relatively lower detection accuracy. To address this issue, a novel real-time micro-algae flocculation analysis method based on the lens-free shadow imaging technique (LSIT) is introduced. Both single cell detection and floc detection are simultaneously available with a proposed lens-free shadow image, confirmed by comparing the results with optical microscope images. And three shadow parameters, e.g., number of flocs, effective area of flocs, and maximum size of floc, enabling quantification of the flocculation phenomenon of micro-alga, are firstly demonstrated in this article. The efficacy of each shadow parameter is verified with the real-time flocculation monitoring experiments using custom developed cohesive agents.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.55-60
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• 2008

Colored rices are a hulled grains having red or purple pigments in bran. Especially black rice (Heugjinjubyeo) is considered to be a healthy food in Asia. Black rice is of great interesting because of the possible biological activity with their anthocyanins. Anthocyanins are water-soluble plant pigments and representatives of flavonoids. The anthocyanins in black rice include cyanidin 3-O-glucoside, peonidin 3-O-glucoside, malvidin 3-O-glucoside, pelagonidin 3-O-glucoside and delphinidin 3-O-glucoside. In this study, anthocyanins in a black rice were analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively with HPLC and UV-Vis spectrophotometer. The anthocyanins contained approximately 95% of cyanidin-3-O-glucoside and 5% of peonidin-3-O-glucoside. Antioxidant activities of the anthocyanin extract were investigated by using various in vitro methods. The 100g/ml concentration of the anthocyanin extracted exhibited 88.83% inhibition on the peroxidation of linoleic acid, 55.20% DPPH free radical scavenging activity, 54.96% superoxide anion radical scavenging activity, and 72.67% hydrogen peroxide scavenging activity. And it also showed high ferrous ion reducing capability. These results suggest that the anthocyanin extracted from black rice may be utilized as a possible antioxdiant agent against ROS.