• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• 제14권1호
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• pp.1-10
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• 2006

Drug dependence deals a heavy socioeconomic burden to the society. For adolescents, the damage from drug dependence is greater than adults considering their higher susceptibility to drug effect and increasing chance for violence leading to criminal punishment process. Habitual drug use depends on genetic and environmental factors and the complex interactions between the two. Mammalian model systems have been useful in understanding the neurochemical and cellular impacts of abused drugs on specific regions of the brain, and in identifying the molecular targets of drugs. More elucidation is required whether biological effects of drugs actually cause the habitual dependence at the cellular level. Although there is much insight available on the nature of drug abuse problems, none of the systems designed to help drug dependent individuals is efficient in screening functional ingredients of the drug, and thus resulting in the failure of helping drug dependent individuals recover from drug dependence. Alternative model systems draw the attention of researchers, such as the invertebrate model systems of nematodes (Caenorhabditis elegans) and fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster). These models should provide new insight into the mechanisms leading to the behavior of drug users (even functional studies analyzing molecular mechanism), and screening useful components to help remove drug dependence among drug users. The relatively simple anatomy and gene expression of the invertebrate model systems should enable researchers to coordinate current knowledge on drug abuse. Furthermore, the invertebrate model systems should facilitate advance in experiments on the susceptibility of specific genetic backgrounds and the interaction between genetic factors to drug dependence.

• 생명과학회지
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• 제22권11호
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• pp.1558-1570
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• 2012

방사선 생물학에서 방사선에 대한 반응으로 매개되는 다양한 기작에 대한 분석을 위해 여러 종류의 모델 생물체를 사용해 왔다. 모델 생물체는 생물학적으로 온전한 in vivo 환경을 제공할 수 있기 때문에 방사선에 의해 발생되는 세포 내 현상은 물론 생리적인 현상이나 병리학적인 현상을 규명하는 데 있어서 모델 생물체를 사용하는 것은 효과적인 방법이 될 수 있다. 지금까지 축적된, 모델 생물체를 이용한 방사선 생물학적 연구결과들은 새로운 방사선치료 보조제의 개발, 방사선치료 효율 증진 등에 적용되어 여러 질병에 대한 임상연구의 기초가 되어왔다. 이렇게 유용하게 사용된 여러 모델 생물체에 있어서, 각각의 모델에 대한 개별적인 정보에 대한 연구는 다양한 방면에서 이루어지고 있지만, 통합적인 비교, 분석 및 정리를 한 경우는 부족한 실정이다. 따라서, 본 논문에서는 방사선 생물학에서 지금까지 많이 사용된 모델 생물체 4종(효모, 예쁜꼬마선충, 초파리, 생쥐)에 대해 각 생물체가 갖는 모델로써의 특징과 장단점 그리고 방사선 생물학 연구에 이용된 사례 등을 서술하고자 한다.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• 제10권1호
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• pp.3-10
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• 2016

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Oligonol, mainly found in lychee fruit, is an antioxidant polyphenolic compound which has been shown to have anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. The detailed mechanisms by which oligonol may act as an anti-aging molecule have not been determined. MATERIALS/METHODS: In this study, we evaluated the ability of oligonol to modulate sirtuin (SIRT) expression in human lung epithelial (A549) cells. Oligonol was added to A549 cells and reactive oxygen species production, mitochondrial superoxide formation, and p21 protein levels were measured. Signaling pathways activated upon oligonol treatment were also determined by western blotting. Furthermore, the anti-aging effect of oligonol was evaluated ex vivo in mouse splenocytes and in vivo in Caenorhabditis elegans. RESULTS: Oligonol specifically induced the expression of SIRT1, whose activity is linked to gene expression, metabolic control, and healthy aging. In response to influenza virus infection of A549 cells, oligonol treatment significantly up-regulated SIRT1 expression and down-regulated viral hemagglutinin expression. Oligonol treatment also resulted in the activation of autophagy pathways and the phosphorylation of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK). Furthermore, oligonol-treated spleen lymphocytes from old mice showed increased cell proliferation, and mRNA levels of SIRT1 in the lungs of old mice were significantly lower than those in the lungs of young mice. Additionally, in vivo lethality assay revealed that oligonol extended the lifespan of C. elegans infected with lethal Vibrio cholerae. CONCLUSIONS: These data demonstrated that oligonol may act as an anti-aging molecule by modulating SIRT1/autophagy/AMPK pathways.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• 제27권10호
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• pp.1537-1541
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• 2006

The $^1H$ and $^{13}C$ chemical shifts of eleven flavone derivatives were completely determined by basic 1D and 2D NMR experiments. Nineteen flavone derivatives including the above eleven derivatives were examined for anti-oxidative effects using the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazyl assay and Caenorhabditis elegans. In order to understand the relationships between the structures of flavone derivatives and their anti-oxidative activities, a Comparative Molecular Field Analysis was performed.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제17권3호
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• pp.530-533
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• 2007

It has been well known that the use of Saccharomyces cerevisiae can cause fungemia in critically ill patients and flavone shows an antimicrobial effect on S. cerevisiae. Therefore, we have investigated the activities of thirteen flavone analogues on S. cerevisiae in our studies. Because flavonoids including flavones have antioxidative effects, we try to carry out the activity studies of flavone analogues in vitro and in vivo. In addition, the relationships between the structures of flavone analogues and their biological activities, such as antimicrobial and antioxidative effects, were elucidated using Comparative Molecular Field Analysis calculations. Of the flavone analogues tested here, 3,2'-dihydroxyflavone showed both good antimicrobial and antioxidative activities.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• 제24권1호
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• pp.1-8
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• 2016

Alpha-ketoglutarate (AKG) is a key molecule in the Krebs cycle determining the overall rate of the citric acid cycle of the organism. It is a nitrogen scavenger and a source of glutamate and glutamine that stimulates protein synthesis and inhibits protein degradation in muscles. AKG as a precursor of glutamate and glutamine is a central metabolic fuel for cells of the gastrointestinal tract as well. AKG can decrease protein catabolism and increase protein synthesis to enhance bone tissue formation in the skeletal muscles and can be used in clinical applications. In addition to these health benefits, a recent study has shown that AKG can extend the lifespan of adult Caenorhabditis elegans by inhibiting ATP synthase and TOR. AKG not only extends lifespan, but also delays age-related disease. In this review, we will summarize the advances in AKG research field, in the content of its physiological functions and applications.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• 제19권3호
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• pp.269-274
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• 2015

Chronic inflammation has been proposed as one of the main molecular mechanisms of aging and age-related diseases. Although evidence in humans is limited, short-term calorie restriction (CR) has been shown to have anti-inflammatory effects in aged experimental animals. We reported on the long-term treatment of daumone, a synthetic pheromone secreted by Caenorhabditis elegans in an energy deficient environment, extends the life-span and attenuates liver injury in aged mice. The present study examined whether late onset short-term treatment of daumone exerts anti-inflammatory effects in the livers of aged mice. Daumone was administered orally at doses of 2 or 20 mg/kg/day for 5 weeks to 24-month-old male C57BL/6J mice. Increased liver macrophage infiltration and gene expression of proinflammatory cytokines in aged mice were significantly attenuated by daumone treatment, suggesting that short-term oral administration of daumone may have hepatoprotective effects. Daumone also dose-dependently suppressed tumor necrosis factor-${\alpha}$ (TNF-${\alpha}$ )-induced nuclear factor-${\kappa}B$ (NF-${\kappa}B$) phosphorylation in HepG2 cells. The present data demonstrated that short-term treatment of daumone has anti-inflammatory effects in aged mouse livers possibly through suppression of NF-${\kappa}B$ signaling and suggest that daumone may become a lead compound targeting aging and age-associated diseases.

• BMB Reports
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• 제46권4호
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• pp.219-224
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• 2013

The cell-fate specification of the anchor cell (AC) and a ventral uterine precursor cell (VU) in Caenorhabditis elegans is initiated by a stochastic interaction between LIN-12/Notch receptor and LAG-2/Delta ligand in two neighboring Z1.ppp and Z4.aaa cells. Both cells express lin-12 and lag-2 before specification, and a small difference in LIN-12 activity leads to the exclusive expressions of lin-12 in VU and lag-2 in the AC, through a feedback mechanism of unknown nature. Here we show that the expression pattern of lag-1/CSL, a transcriptional repressor itself that turns into an activator upon binding of the intracellular domain of Notch, overlaps with that of lin-12. Site-directed mutagenesis of LAG-1 binding sites in lag-1 maintains its expression in the AC, and eliminates it in the VU. Thus, AC/VU cell-fate specification appears to involve direct regulation of lag-1 expression by the LAG-1 protein, activating its transcription in VU cells, but repressing it in the AC.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제25권8호
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• pp.1234-1240
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• 2015

Heat shock RNA 1 (HSR1) is described as a "eukaryotic heat-sensing noncoding RNA" that regulates heat shock response in human and other eukaryotic cells. Highly conserved HSR1 sequences have been identified from humans, hamsters, Drosophila, Caenorhabditis elegans, and Arabidopsis. In a previous study, however, it was suggested that HSR1 had originated from a bacterial genome. HSR1 showed no detectible nucleotide sequence similarity to any eukaryotic sequences but harbored a protein coding region that showed amino-acid sequence similarity to bacterial voltage-gated chloride channel proteins. The bacterial origin of HSR1 was not convincible because the nucleotide sequence similarity was marginal. In this study, we have found that a genomic contig sequence of Comamonas testosteroni strain JL14 contained a sequence virtually identical to that of HSR1, decisively confirming the bacterial origin of HSR1. Thus, HSR1 is an exogenous RNA, which can ectopically trigger heat shock response in eukaryotes. Therefore, it is no longer appropriate to cite HSR1 as a "eukaryotic functional noncoding RNA."

• Mycobiology
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• 제49권1호
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• pp.69-77
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• 2021

The application of antagonistic fungi for plant protection has attracted considerable interest because they may potentially replace the use of chemical pesticides. Antipathogenic activities confirmed in volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from microorganisms have potential to serve as biocontrol agents against pre- and post-harvest diseases. In the present study, we investigated Galactomyces fungi isolated from rotten leaves and the rhizosphere of cherry tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum var. cerasiforme). VOCs produced by Galactomyces fungi negatively affected the growth of phytopathogenic fungi and the survival of nematodes. Mycelial growths of all nine examined phytopathogenic fungi were inhibited on agar plate, although the inhibition was more intense in Athelia rolfsii JYC2163 and Cladosporium cladosporioides JYC2144 and relatively moderate in Fusarium sp. JYC2145. VOCs also efficiently suppressed the spore germination and mycelial growth of A. rolfsii JYC2163 on tomatoes. The soil nematode Caenorhabditis elegans exhibited higher mortality in 24 h in the presence of VOCs. These results suggest the broad-spectrum activity of Galactomyces fungi against various plant pathogens and the potential to use VOCs from Galactomyces as biocontrol agents.