• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.555-561
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• 2023

A 63-year-old female patient was admitted to the hospital with complaints of coldness in the head and right femur, persistent vertigo, dry mouth, vexation, general weakness, anorexia, and hot flashes. After being diagnosed with left-sided ductal carcinoma in 2017 and undergoing partial resection, she was recommended radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and hormone therapy, but she refused and did not receive any treatment. At a checkup in November 2022, the left-sided invasive ductal carcinoma recurred. She underwent partial resection and was scheduled to receive radiotherapy two months later. During hospitalization, the patient received traditional Korean medicine treatment, including Korean herbal medicine (Osuyubujaijung-tang), acupuncture, moxibustion, and cupping. Subjective symptom changes were evaluated daily. At discharge, the patient's symptoms improved, and her condition varied with the presence of Aconitum carmichaelii. This study suggests that "Osuyubujaijung-tang" cared the coldness and vertigo caused by "Han-dam (寒痰)" in patients with Soeumin visceral syncope pattern (少陰人 臟厥症) and that A. carmichaelii played a major role in this outcome.

• Women's Health Nursing
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.179-189
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• 2023

Purpose: This scoping review investigated the content and quality of YouTube videos on women's health. Methods: A literature search of the Cochrane Library, PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, ERIC, and RISS databases was performed using the keywords "('youtube'/exp OR youtube OR 'social media'/exp OR 'social media' OR (('social'/exp OR social) AND ('media'/exp OR media))) AND ('female health care' OR (('female'/exp OR female) AND ('health'/exp OR health) AND ('care'/exp OR care)))" from February 21 to 27, 2023. Peer-reviewed analytic studies in English or Korean that focused on women's health using YouTube were included. Results: The review identified 21 articles that covered various themes related to women's health, such as breast cancer, urinary disease, sexual health, pelvic organ prolapse, the human papillomavirus vaccine, Papanikolaou smears, contraception, women's health information during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, obstetric epidural anesthesia, and placenta accreta. However, the overall quality of the content was low, inaccurate, unreliable, and misleading. Conclusion: This scoping review demonstrated that YouTube videos on women's health covered diverse topics, but the quality of the content needed improvement. More reliable and high-quality videos produced by academic institutes and healthcare professionals specializing in women's health are needed for social media to be usable as a reliable source of women's health information. The high number of views and shares received by the videos underscores the importance of providing accurate and reliable information on women's health.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.48 no.4
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• pp.373-383
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• 2024

Background: Network pharmacology has emerged as a powerful tool to understand the therapeutic effects and mechanisms of natural products. However, there is a lack of comprehensive evaluations of network-based approaches for natural products on identifying therapeutic effects and key mechanisms. Purpose: We systematically explore the capabilities of network-based approaches on natural products, using Panax ginseng as a case study. P. ginseng is a widely used herb with a variety of therapeutic benefits, but its active ingredients and mechanisms of action on chronic diseases are not yet fully understood. Methods: Our study compiled and constructed a network focusing on P. ginseng by collecting and integrating data on ingredients, protein targets, and known indications. We then evaluated the performance of different network-based methods for summarizing known and unknown disease associations. The predicted results were validated in the hepatic stellate cell model. Results: We find that our multiscale interaction-based approach achieved an AUROC of 0.697 and an AUPR of 0.026, which outperforms other network-based approaches. As a case study, we further tested the ability of multiscale interactome-based approaches to identify active ingredients and their plausible mechanisms for breast cancer and liver cirrhosis. We also validated the beneficial effects of unreported and top-predicted ingredients, in cases of liver cirrhosis and gastrointestinal neoplasms. Conclusion: our study provides a promising framework to systematically explore the therapeutic effects and key mechanisms of natural products, and highlights the potential of network-based approaches in natural product research.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.33 no.11
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• pp.1437-1447
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• 2023

A recently bioinformatic analysis of genomic sequences of fungi indicated that fungi are able to produce more secondary metabolites than expected. Despite their potency, many biosynthetic pathways are silent in the absence of specific culture conditions or chemical cues. To access cryptic metabolism, 108 fungal strains isolated from various sites were cultured with or without Streptomyces sp. 13F051 which mainly produces trichostatin analogues, followed by comparison of metabolic profiles using LC-MS. Among the 108 fungal strains, 14 produced secondary metabolites that were not recognized or were scarcely produced in mono-cultivation. Of these two fungal strains, Myrmecridium schulzeri 15F098 and Scleroconidioma sphagnicola 15S058 produced four new compounds (1-4) along with a known compound (5), demonstrating that all four compounds were produced by physical interaction with Streptomyces sp. 13F051. Bioactivity evaluation indicated that compounds 3-5 impede migration of MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.34 no.8
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• pp.1580-1591
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• 2024

Menopause is induced by spontaneous ovarian failure and leads to life quality deterioration with various irritating symptoms. Hormonal treatment can alleviate these symptoms, but long-term treatment is closely associated with breast and uterine cancer, and stroke. Therefore, developing alternative therapies with novel anti-menopausal substances and improved safety is needed. In our study, heat-killed Bifidobacterium breve HDB7040 significantly promoted MCF-7 cell proliferation in a dose-dependent manner under estrogen-free conditions, similar to 17β-estradiol. This strain also triggered ESR2 expression, but not ESR1, in MCF-7 cells. Moreover, administrating HDB7040 to ovariectomized (OVX) Sprague-Dawley (SD) female rats reduced estrogen deficiency-induced weight gain, fat mass, blood triglyceride, and total cholesterol levels. It also recovered collapsed trabecular microstructure by improving trabecular morphometric parameters (bone mineral density, bone volume per tissue volume, trabecular number, and trabecular separation) and decreasing blood alkaline phosphatase levels with no significant changes in uterine size and blood estradiol. HDB7040 also significantly regulated the expression of Tff1, Pgr, and Esr2, but not Esr1 in uteri of OVX rats. Heat-killed B. breve HDB7040 exerts an anti-menopausal effect via the specific regulation of ERβ in vitro and in vivo, suggesting its potential as a novel substance for improving and treating menopausal syndrome.

• The Journal of the Korean bone and joint tumor society
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.7-13
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• 2014

Purpose: As well as patient survival, the restoration of postoperative function such as ambulation is important in limb salvage operations for treatment of malignant bone tumors involving the proximal femur. The authors analyzed clinical outcomes of limb salvage operations using tumor prostheses for metastatic or primary malignant bone tumors in the proximal femur. Materials and Methods: From February 2005 to January 2014, 20 cases (19 patients) with malignant bone tumor involving the proximal femur with pain or complicated pathologic fracture were treated with segmental resection and limb salvage operations with tumor prostheses. Mean age was 63.1 years (range 35-86). Fourteen patients were male and six ones were female. The mean follow-up period was 20 months (1-94 months). There were 15 cases of metastatic bone tumor, 4 cases of osteosarcoma, and 1 case of multiple myeloma. The primary tumors of the metastatic bone tumors included 4 lung cancers, 3 hepatocellular carcinomas, and 3 renal cell carcinomas. Other primary tumors were breast cancer, thyroid cancer, colon cancer, prostate cancer, and malignant spindle cell tumor, each in 1 case. Modular tumor prostheses were used in all cases; (Kotz's$^{(R)}$ Modular Tumor prosthesis (Howmedica, Rutherford, New Jersey) in 3 cases, MUTARS$^{(R)}$ proximal femur system (Implantcast, Munster, Germany) in 17 cases). Perioperative pain was assessed with Visual Analogue Scales (VAS). Postoperative functional outcome was assessed with Musculoskeletal Tumor Society (MSTS) grading system. Results: Out of 20 cases (19 patients), 11 cases (10 patients) survived at the last follow-up. Average postoperative survival of the 9 deceased patients was 10.1 months (1-38 months). VAS score improved from pre-operative average of 8.40 (5-10) to 1.35 (0-3) after operation. Average postoperative MSTS function score was 19.65 (65.50%, 7-28). The associated complications were 2 local recurrences, 3 hematomas, 3 infections, 2 scrotal swellings, and 1 dislocation. There was no case of periprosthetic fracture or loosening. Conclusion: Limb salvage operation with tumor prosthesis is an appropriate treatment for early pain reduction and functional restoration in malignant bone tumors in the proximal femur with pain an/or complicated pathologic fractures.

• Horticultural Science & Technology
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.331-341
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• 2016

We analyzed the functional fragrant components of three species of Cymbidium oriental orchids using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS). For the comparative analysis, C. goeringii 'Minchunran', 'Jugeumhwa', C. forrestii 'Chwigae', 'Songmae', 'Yongja', and C. faberi 'Choemae', 'Namyangmae', 'Hwaja' were investigated. Major fragrant components detected by GC/MS were selected on the basis of more than 3% value according to the analysis of peak area (%). We found that ${\alpha}$-bergamotene, which has a cytotoxic effect on breast cancer, cervical cancer, and glioblastoma, and nerolidol, which induces apoptosis of human hepatoma cells (HepG2), inhibits the growth of Streptococcus mutans and babesiosis, and has antibacterial properties, are common substances produced by C. goeringii L. Nerolidol and ${\beta}$-bisabolene, which is cytotoxic and suppresses the growth of malignant melanoma cells (B16-F10), HepG2, and leukemia cells (HL-60, K562), are major substances in C. forrestii R. Furthermore, ${\alpha}$-pinene, which inhibits the growth of gliobastoma cells (SF-767) and inhibits the anti-inflammatory action of hepatoma cells (BEL-7402); 1,8-cineole, which is a potential therapeutic agent for the treatment of gastric ulcers; and 1,3,7-octatriene, which functions as a pheromone, are the most common substances in C. faveri R. Thus, substances identified as major fragrant components in oriental orchid species have multiple beneficial applications in human health. This research forms the basis for further studies of the roles of major fragrant components in oriental orchids.

• Korean Journal of Medicinal Crop Science
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.195-200
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• 2003

This study was carried out to compare the biological activities of Epjmedium koreanum Nakai grown wild in Korea and China. The antioxidative effect of E. koreanum Nakai-extracts grown wild in Gangwondo was 78%, which was higher than that in China as 71%. The inhibition ratio of growing cancer cells was estimated as 89, 91 and 86% for human liver, lung and breast cancer cell lines, respectively in adding 0.1 g/l of ethanol extracts of E. koreanum grown in Korea. The hepatoprotective effect and Angiotensin Converting Enzyme (ACE) inhibiting effect of Korean one were also observed as 124 and 87%, respectively, which were also higher than those produced in China. There was not much difference between Korean and Chinese one in inhibiting ${\alpha}-glucosidase$ activities in all ranges of supplement. It was proved that most effective extraction solvent was mixed type as water and ethanol (1:1, v/v) to have higher biological activities from both Korean and Chinese ones.

• BMB Reports
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.237-243
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• 2001

Taxol, a natural product extracted from the Taxus brevifolia, is known to have significant anti-tumor activities against many common cancers, including ovarian and breast cancers. Despite the pronounced anti-tumor activity of this compound, its poor solubility in aqueous solutions hampers its clinical applications. We studied the anticancer mechanisms of the water-soluble taxol diethylenetriamine pentaacetate (DTPA) used for radiolabeling, and compared it to that of taxol. In vitro cytotoxicities of taxol and taxol-DTPA conjugate were tested in HT29 human colorectal cancer cells by the MTT method. As the result, the $IC_{50}$ value of the taxol-DTPA conjugate was about three fold higher than that of taxol. When analyzed by an agarose gel electrophoresis, the DNA ladders became evident after the incubation of cells with the taxol-DTPA conjugate for 24 h. We also found morphological changes of the cells undergoing apoptosis with electron microscopy Next, we examined the signal pathway of taxol-DTPA conjugate-induced apoptosis in HT29 cells. The activation of extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase (ERK1/2) occurred at 10, 30, 60 and 120 min after 200 nM taxol-DTPA conjugate treatment. The pretreatment of the MEK inhibitor (PD98059) completely blocked the taxol-DTPA conjugate-induced ERK1/2 activation. The activated ERK1/2 translocated into the nucleus at the same time and phosphorylated its transcriptional factor, c-Jun. These results suggest that the taxol-DTPA conjugate has an apoptotic activity in HT29 cells, and that its proapoptic activity might be related with the signal transduction via ERK1/2 and c-Jun similar to that of taxol.

• Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.51 no.3
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• pp.212-218
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• 2008

This study was performed to determine the antimutagenic and anticancer effects of ethanol extract of buckwheat sprout using Ames test and SRB assay, respectively. An ethyl acetate fraction (200 ${\mu}/plate$) from the ethanol extract of buckwheat sprout showed inhibition rate of 80.6% against the mutagenesis induced by N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) in Salmonella typhimurium TA100 strain. Also the ethyl acetate fraction (200 ${\mu}/plate$) showed higher antimutagenic activity than other fractions against the mutagenesis induced by 4-nitroquinoline-1-oxide (4NQO) in Salmonella typhimurium TA98 and TA100. In addition, the ethyl acetate fraction (200 ${\mu}/plate$) showed high antimutagenic effect of 80.9% and 85.9% against the mutation of TA98 and TA100 strains induced by 3-amino-1,4-dimethyl-5H-pyrido-(4,3-b)indol (Trp-P-1), respectively. The cytotoxic effects of each solvent fraction from the ethanol extract of buckwheat sprout against human cancer cell lines including lung carcinoma (A549), gastric carcinoma (AGS), breast adenocarcinoma (MCF-7), hepatocellular carcinoma (Hep3B), and colon adenocarcinoma (Colo 205) were investigated. The ethyl acetate fraction of buckwheat sprout ethanol extract at the concentration of 1.0 mg/ml showed strong cytotoxic activities of 70.3, 94.8, 79.6, 82.3, and 73.2% against A549, AGS, MCF-7, Hep3B and Colo 205 cancer cell lines, respectively.