• Radiation Oncology Journal
• /
• v.12 no.1
• /
• pp.81-90
• /
• 1994

Purpose : The aim of this study is to analyze the clinical results of thermo-irradiation treatment for surgically unresectable advanced hepatoma with or without hepatic arterial chemo-embolization (HACE), chemotherapy (CT) and interferon (IFN) therapy. Materials and Methods : Between February 1990 and December 1992, 45 Patients with surgically unresectable advanced hepatomas were treated by thermo-irradiation with or without hepatic arterial chemo-embolization and other treatment modalities. Among them, We analyzed retrospectively 25 patients who received more than three times of hyperthermias. Mean age was 50 years (range : 18-71 years) and male to female ratio was 20 : 5. In the study, treatment was administered as follows : 3 patients received radiation therapy(RT) and hyperthermia (HT). 3 received RT+HT+CT. 3 received RT+HT+HACE. 1 received RT+HT+CT+HACE. 2 received RT+HT+CT+IFN. 10 received RT+HT+HACE+IFN. 3 received RT+HT+CT+HACE+IFN. Radiation therapy was done by a 6 MV linear accelerator Patients were treated with daily fractions of 180 cGy to doses of 11Gy-50Gy (median 30Gy). Local hyperthermia was done by HEH-500C(Omron Co. Japan), 30-45 min/session, 2 sessions/wk and the number of HT sessions ranged from 3 to 17 (median 7 times). 15 patients of 25 were followed by abdominal CT scan or abdominal ultra-sonogram. The following factors were analyzed :Age, histologic grade, sex. number of hyperthermia, total RT dose, hepatic arterial chemo-embolization. Results : Of 25 patients. there were observed tumor regression (partial response and minimal response) in 6 (24$ \% $), no response in 8 (32$ \% $), progression in 1 (4$ \% $) and not evaluable ones in 10 (40$ \% $) radiographically. The over all 1-year survival was 25$ \% $, with a mean survival of 33 weeks. The treatment modes of partial and minimal responsive patients (PR+MR)were as follows : Two were treated with RT+HT+HACE, 2 were done with RT+HT+HACE+IFN Remaining 2 were treated with RT+HT+CT+HACE+IFN. The significant factor affecting the survival rate were RT dose (more than 25 Gy), HACE, number of HT (above 6 times), responsiveness after treatment (PR + MR). Age, sex, histologic differentiation, chemotherapy, interferon therapy were not statistically significant factors affecting the survival rate. Conclusion : Although follow-up duration was short, the thermo-irr3diBtion with/without hepatic arterial chemo-embolization was well tolerated and there were no serious complicatons. In future, it is considered the longer follow up and prospective, well controlled trials should be followed to evaluate the efficacies of survival advantage.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
• /
• v.50 no.3
• /
• pp.381-390
• /
• 2008

Two experiments were conducted to investigate effects of molasses addition to silage materials in ensiling Socheongryongtang meal on the nutritive quality of silage, palatability and various ruminal parameters in Korean native goats. In Experiment 1, Socheongryongtang meal silage was produced by the addition of 0, 0.5, or 1.0% molasses and stored for 40 days at room temperature. There were three replicates per treatment. Lactic acid contents of Socheongryongtang meal silage containing molasses(0.5 and 1.0%) were significantly(p<0.05) higher than that of the control(0%). However, the pH and butyric acid contents of Socheongryongtang meal silage containing molasses(0.5 and 1.0%) were lower than those of the control(0%). In addition, molasses(0.5 and 1.0%) increased the number of lactobacillus, but decreased the number of fungi in Socheongryongtang meal silage. In vitro dry matter disappearance tended to increase by molasses addition. In Experiment 2, three 1.5-yr-old Korean native female goats were employed in cross-over design to measure the palatability and various ruminal parameters of Socheongryongtang meal silage. Feed intake of Socheongryongtang meal silage containing molasses(0.5 and 1.0%) for 30 min significantly higher than that of control(0%). Silmilar trend was found when the feed intake was measured for 6 hr. In various ruminal parameters, molasses addition to silage materials increased propionic acid(P) and total volatile fatty acid contents, but decreased pH, acetic acid (A), and butyric acid. The A/P ratio was the lowest in 1.0% molasses treatment group. It is concluded that molasses addition in ensiling Socheongryongtang meal could enhance its nutritional quality and lengthen storage period. Also the palatability of silage was improved by the addition of molasses.

• Journal of Life Science
• /
• v.23 no.3
• /
• pp.389-398
• /
• 2013

Platycodin D is a major constituent of triterpene saponins, which is found in the root of Platycodon grandiflorum, Platycodi Radix, which is widely used in traditional Oriental medicine for the treatment of many chronic inflammatory diseases. Several pharmacological effects of this compound have been reported recently, such as anti-inflammation, immunogenicity, anti-adipogenesis, lowered cholesterol, and anti-cancer activity. However, the mechanism by which this action occurs is poorly understood. In this study, we found that platycodin D greatly increased the potential of the anti-proliferative effect in various cancer cell lines. Our data revealed that platycodin D treatment resulted in a time- and concentration-response growth inhibition of U937 cells by inducing apoptosis, as evidenced by the formation of apoptotic bodies, chromatin condensation, and the accumulation of cells in the sub-G1 phase. Apoptosis induction of U937 cells by platycodin D correlated with an increase in the Bax/Bcl-2 ratio and caused the down-regulation of IAP family members. In addition, platycodin D treatment resulted in proteolytic activation of caspase-3, the concomitant degradation of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerases, and the collapse of the mitochondria membrane potential (${\Delta}{\Psi}_m$). However, the cytotoxic effects induced by platycodin D treatment were significantly inhibited by z-DEVD-fmk, a caspase-3 inhibitor, which demonstrated the important role that caspase-3 played in the observed cytotoxic effect. These findings suggest that platycodin D may be a potential chemotherapeutic agent for use in the control of human leukemia U937 cells. These findings also provided important new insights into possible molecular mechanisms of the anti-cancer activity of platycodin D.