• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.185-191
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• 2008

Activation of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), a member of the mitogen-activated protein kinase family, is an important cellular response that modulates the outcome of the cells which are exposed to the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) or the genotoxic stress including DNA damaging agents. Although it is known that JNK is activated in response to genotoxic stress, neither the pathways to transduce signals to activate JNK nor the primary sensors of the cells that trigger the stress response have been identified. Here, we report that the receptor interacting protein (RIP), a key adaptor protein of TNF signaling, was required to activate JNK in the cells treated with certain DNA damaging agents such as adriamycin (Adr) and 1-${\beta}$-D-arabinofuranosylcytosine (Ara-C) that cause slow and sustained activation, but it was not required when treated with N-methyl-N-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) and short wavelength UV, which causes quick and transient activation. Our findings revealed that this sustained JNK activation was not mediated by the TNF (tumor necrosis factor) receptor signaling, but it required a functional ATM (ataxia telangiectasia) activity. In addition, JNK inhibitor SP-600125 significantly blocked the Adr-induced cell death, but it did not affect the cell death induced by MNNG. These findings suggest that the sustained activation of JNK mediated by RIP plays an important role in the DNA damage-induced cell death, and that the duration of JNK activation relays a different stress response to determine the cell fate.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.17 no.8 s.88
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• pp.1063-1067
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• 2007

The Bcl-2 family proteins play critical roles in regulation of apoptosis, and the balanced interaction of pro- and anti-death members is a key factor in determining the cell fate. Noxa, a BH3-only Bcl-2-family member, has been originally identified as a target gene of p53. To understand the mechanism by which human Noxa (hNoxa) regulates the cell death, we screened the hNoxa binding partner using the yeast two hybrid screening and found that anti-death protein Mcl-1 binds to hNoxa. The binding of hNoxa to Mcl-1 was confirmed by immunoprecipitation in human colon cancer cell line HCT 116 cells. Mcl-1 significantly inhibited the hNoxa-induced cell death in HCT 116 cells. During the cell death induced by hNoxa, Mcl-1 protein was degraded. Its degradation was inhibited by z-VAD-fmk, a pancaspase inhibitor, suggesting caspase is responsible for Mcl-1 degradation in response to hNoxa. Together, the results indicate that hNoxa binds to Mcl-1 that is degraded by cas-pases during hNoxa-induced cell death.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.33 no.10
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• pp.3265-3268
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• 2012

Nanoparticles (NPs) are increasingly used in consumer products, which have aroused many concerns and debates regarding their fate in biological systems from a point of their safety/toxicity. Although a number of studies on the biological effects of NPs have been published, these are often complicated by the possible toxicity of conventional NPs, caused by contamination with chemical precursors or additives during their synthesis and/or purification procedures. To explicitly understand the toxicity basis of NPs, it is necessary to directly address a main problem related to their intrinsic/inherent toxicity and/or incompatibility with biological objects. The present study is designed to take advantage of a novel laser-assisted method called laser ablation to generate Ag, Au, Co, and Cu NPs in biocompatible aqueous solution, and to evaluate the toxicity of the resulting ultra-pure NPs. Our results show that the ultra-pure NPs with nascent surfaces possess moderate cytotoxicity to human cells in a cell-dependent manner.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.1-7
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• 2010

Neutrophils play an important role in the human immune system for protection against such microorganisms as a protozoan parasite, Trichomonas vaginalis; however, the precise role of neutrophils in the pathogenesis of trichomoniasis is still unknown. Moreover, it is thought that trichomonal lysates and excretory-secretory products (ESP), as well as live T. vaginalis, could possibly interact with neutrophils in local tissues, including areas of inflammation induced by T. vaginalis in humans. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of T. vaginalis lysate on the fate of neutrophils. We found that T. vaginalis lysate inhibits apoptosis of human neutrophils as revealed by Giemsa stain. Less altered mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) and surface CD16 receptor expression also supported the idea that neutrophil apoptosis is delayed after T. vaginalis lysate stimulation. In contrast, ESP stimulated-neutrophils were similar in apoptotic features of untreated neutrophils. Maintained caspase-3 and myeloid cell leukemia-1 (Mcl-1) in neutrophils co-cultured with trichomonad lysate suggest that an intrinsic mitochondrial pathway of apoptosis was involved in T. vaginalis lysate-induced delayed neutrophil apoptosis; this phenomenon may contribute to local inflammation in trichomoniasis.

• Journal of Photoscience
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.123-128
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• 2000

Phosphorylation of cellular proteins is a key regulatory mehanism for signal transduction pathway in living cells. Phytochrome, a red/far-red light photoreceptor in plants, is known to employ protein phosphorylation for its light signaling, although its detauked mechanism is still ambiguous. This study is intended to identify the phosphoproteins and protein kinases that are regulated by phytochrome, by employing transgenic rice seedlings that overexpress Arabidopsis phytochrome A. Red light stimulated phsophorylation of a 70 kDa protein and far-red light negated the effect. The red light induced phosphotylation of the 70 kDa protein was strongly activated by heparin and inhibited by poly-L-lysine, suggesting that the 70 kDa protein phosphorylating kinase belongs to GSK-3/SHAGGY protein kinase that has functional roles in establishing cell fate and pattern formation in Drosophila. Taken together with the fact that phytochrome controls plant development, these results may suggest that a GSK-3/SHAGGY-related protein kinase in plant(ASK) is likely to be involved in phytochrome signal transduction.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.25-33
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• 1974

The origin and the function of cytolysomes were studied in the mesophyll cells and the root-tip cells of Glycine max Merr. and Zea mays L. fixed by paraformaldehyde-glutaraldehyde-$OsO_4$. The cytolysome-like structures were found of three main types of configurations: multivesicular, myelin like (multilamllar) and multitubular. More complex and mixed ones were also observed. The origin of these structures seems to be initiated by invaginations or in holdings of the plasmalemma into the cell interior, and that by aggregation and convolution of endoplasmic reticulum in the cytoplasm. Invagination of the plasmalemma were found of two main types of configurations: concentric whorls of lamellar and multivesicular. The structures were also observed within vacuoles and cytoplasm. Since the structurers are widely distributed in the cells and are greatly varied in sizes and shapes. These structures originate from the plasmalemma and the cytoplasm subsequently protrudes into the vacuole, and that seem to play an important role on the formation of the autophagic vacuoles. The possible function and fate of these structures are discussed.

• BMB Reports
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• v.48 no.8
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• pp.431-437
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• 2015

Notch signaling plays a pivotal role in cell fate determination, cellular development, cellular self-renewal, tumor progression, and has been linked to developmental disorders and carcinogenesis. Notch1 is activated through interactions with the ligands of neighboring cells, and acts as a transcriptional activator in the nucleus. The Notch1 intracellular domain (Notch1-IC) regulates the expression of target genes related to tumor development and progression. The Notch1 protein undergoes modification after translation by posttranslational modification enzymes. Phosphorylation modification is critical for enzymatic activation, complex formation, degradation, and subcellular localization. According to the nuclear cycle, Notch1-IC is degraded by E3 ligase, FBW7 in the nucleus via phosphorylation-dependent degradation. Here, we summarize the Notch signaling pathway, and resolve to understand the role of phosphorylation in the regulation of Notch signaling as well as to understand its relation to cancer. [BMB Reports 2015; 48(8): 431-437]

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.19-23
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• 1999

Bisphenol-A and related conpounds recently have been reported to be estrogenic since it has been demonstrared in laboratory stuides that they mimic the effects of estrogen. Bisphenol-A refered to as "environmental estrogen" are suspected of causing health effect in living body through disruption of endocdrine system. In this review, the occurrence, environmental fate, and biological effects of bisphenol-A are presented. To provide understanding to the potential for endocrine disruption due to environmental estrogen, the physiology of bisphenol-A mammalian and fish is also reviewed. For empty can, the migrationof bisphenol-A form food conducted epoxy coating was effected by the test conditions and it increased in order to water and 4% acetic acid. Extracts from foods packed in lacquer coated can also showed estrogenic activity. Bisphenol-A was found as a contaminant not only in the liquid food cans, but also in water autoclave in can. The used of coating certain food-packaging material may require closer scrutiny to determine when bisphenol-A contribute to advert exposure of consumers to estrogenic xenobiotics. Human breast cancer MCF cell added bisphenol-A cultivated to study the ability of bisphenol-A to elicit of bisphenol-A estrogenic bioresponse in this system. Bisphenol-A, similar to estradiol, induced PR activation in transiently transfected anterior and posterior pituitary cells.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.34 no.11
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• pp.3312-3316
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• 2013

Single crystals of hexagonal graphenes were successfully grown on Cu foils using the atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method. We investigated the effects of reaction parameters, such as the growth temperature and annealing time, on the size, coverage, and density of graphene domains grown over Cu foil. The mean size of the graphene domains increased significantly with increases in both the growth temperature and annealing time, and similar phenomena were observed in graphene domains grown by low pressure CVD over Cu foil. From the comparison of micro Raman spectroscopy in the graphene films grown with different annealing times, we found that the nucleation and growth of the domains were strongly dependent on the annealing time and growth temperature. Therefore, we confirmed that when reaction time was same, the number of layers and the degree of defects in the synthesized graphene films both decreased as the annealing time increased.

• The Korean Journal of Zoology
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.93-106
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• 1982

Proteins, which may be closely related to differentiation of a cell group into a predestined fate, were investigated using imaginal discs of a wing mutant, vestigial of Drosophila melanogaster. The wing discs of the mutant fail to differentiate into normal wings, even though the third instar larvae form wing discs, which are very similar to those of the normal strain in size and shape. Patterns of proteins of accumulated or synthesized in the discs of the third instar larvae of the normal and mutant strains were analyzed by acrylamide gel electrophoresis. The patterns of accumulated proteins were found to be slightly different between two strains in quantity rather than in quality. The patterns of proteins synthesized at various times of the third instar were found to be very similar to each other, even though there were a few proteins specific to the normal or to the mutant strain.