• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.279-286
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• 2020

A novel compound named 'kanakugiol' was recently isolated from Lindera erythrocarpa and showed free radical-scavenging and antifungal activities. However, the details of the anti-cancer effect of kanakugiol on breast cancer cells remain unclear. We investigated the effect of kanakugiol on the growth of MCF-7 human breast cancer cells. Kanakugiol affected cell cycle progression, and decreased cell viability in MCF-7 cells in a dose-dependent manner. It also enhanced PARP cleavage (50 kDa), whereas DNA laddering was not induced. FACS analysis with annexin V-FITC/PI staining showed necrosis induction in kanakugiol-treated cells. Caspase-9 cleavage was also induced. Expression of death receptors was not altered. However, Bcl-2 expression was suppressed, and mitochondrial membrane potential collapsed, indicating limited apoptosis induction by kanakugiol. Immunofluorescence analysis using α-tubulin staining revealed mitotic exit without cytokinesis (4N cells with two nuclei) due to kanakugiol treatment, suggesting that mitotic catastrophe may have been induced via microtubule destabilization. Furthermore, cell cycle analysis results also indicated mitotic catastrophe after cell cycle arrest in MCF-7 cells due to kanakugiol treatment. These findings suggest that kanakugiol inhibits cell proliferation and promotes cell death by inducing mitotic catastrophe after cell cycle arrest. Thus, kanakugiol shows potential for use as a drug in the treatment of human breast cancer.

• Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.386-396
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• 2005

The effects of spirulina-added salad dressing on lipid profiles and antioxidant biomarkers such as total glutathionine, TBARS value, carbonyl value, GPx, GR, SOD and paraoxonase activity in plasma or liver of mice were evaluated Sixteen male ICR mice weighing 20$\pm$2 g were divided into two groups and fed low fat ($5\%$ fat) diet (low fat control: LFC) and low fat control plus dressing diet (LFD) for eight weeks. Body weight, tissue weights of liver, heart and kidney, and the distribution of body fat deposition were not significantly different between two groups. Also, the profile of TG, TC, LDL and HDL cholesterol were similar between two groups. The DNA damage was determined using the comet assay (single cell gel assay) with alkaline electrophoresis and quantified by measuring tail length (TL). Spirulina salad dressing consumption resulted in significant decrease in lymphocyte DNA damage expressed by TL (LFC: $28.8{\mu}m$, LFD: $20.3{\mu}m$). Additionally, salad dressing consumption for 8 wks decreased the lipid peroxidation assayed by TBARS to $12.6\%$ compared with the control. The levels of antioxidant vitamins such as $\beta$-carotene were significantly higher in plasma of LFD group than those in LFC group based on HPLC method This study shows that spirulina-added salad dressing exerts degenerative disease-protective effects on oxidative DNA damage and lipid peroxidation possibly via a free radical levels.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.36 no.2 s.103
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• pp.108-116
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• 2003

To investigate bacteria with algal Iytic activities against Anabaena cylindrica when water blooming occurs and to study enzyme profiles of alga-Iytic bacteria, various bacterial strains were isolated from surface waters and sediments in eutrophic lakes or reservoirs in Korea. Abacterial strain AK-07 was characterized and identified as Acinetobacter johnsonii based on its16S rDNA base sequence. When AK-07 was co-cultivated with A. cylindrica, bacterial cells propagated to $8\;{\times}\;10^8$ cfu $ml^{-1}$ and Iyses algal cells. However, culture filtrates of AK-07 did not exhibit algal Iytic activities. That suggesting the enzymes on the surfaces of the bacterium might be effective algal Iytic agents to cause Iyses of cells. Acinetobacter johnsonii AK-07 exhibited high degradation activities against A. cylindrica, and formed alginase, caseinase, lipase, fucodian hydrolase, and laminarinase. Moreover, glycosidases for example ${\beta}$-galatosidase, ${\beta}$-glucosidase, ${\beta}$-glucosaminidase, and ${\beta}$-xylosidase, which hydrolyzed ${\beta}$-0-glycosidic bonds, were found in cell-free extracts of A. johnsonii AK-07. Other glycosidase such as ${\alpha}$-galctosidases, ${\alpha}$-N-Ac-galctosidases, ${\alpha}$-mannosidases, and ${\alpha}$- L-fuco-sidases, which cleavage ${\alpha}$-0-glycosidic bondsare not detected. In the results, enzyme systemsof A. johnsonii AK-07 were very complex to do-grade cell walls of cyanobacteria. The polysaccharides or peptidoglycans of A. cylindrica maybe hydrolyzed and metabolized to a range of easily utilizable monosaccharides or other low molecular weight organic substances by strain AK-07 of A. johnsonii.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.83-93
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• 1985

The ability of $^{67}Ga$, administered carrier free as the citrate complex, to localize in human and animal tumors to an extent sufficient to permit visualization of the lesion by scanning is well established. However, neither the mechanism of $^{67}Ga$ uptake by tumors or inflammatory cells nor its relationship to cell type or to the biochemical status of the cell is yet understood. Author investigated the uptake of $^{67}Ga-citrate$ using subcellular tissue fractionation of rat livers treated with $CCl_4$ associated with the $^3H-thymidine$ incorporation rate to detect subcellular localization of $^{67}Ga$ and it's relationship in DNA synthesis. Large amounts of $^{67}Ga$ associated with the soluble portion of tissue homogenate rather than with isolated cell organelles and not related nuclei residue in the regenerating period after hepatocellular injury caused by $CCl_4$. The elevated uptake of $^{67}Ga$ in the livers of $CCl_4$ treated rats was also inhibited when protein synthesis was stopped by cyclohexamide. Thus protein and the soluble portion of issue homogenates seems to play an important role in the elevated uptake of $^{67}Ga$ in liver injury induced by $CCl_4$ treated rats.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.55-65
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• 2010

Background: Nitric oxide (NO) is a reactive free radical gas and a messenger molecule. NO has many physiological functions, but excessive NO production induces neurotoxicity. Objective: The present study investigated whether the aqueous extract of Polygala tenuifolia Willdenow possesses a protective effect on NO-induced apoptosis in human neuroblastoma cell line SK-N-MC. Method: For this study, 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, 4,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) staining, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT)-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) assay, DNA fragmentation assay, reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), Western blot, and caspase-3 enzyme assay were performed. Result: Sodium nitroprusside (SNP) exposure significantly decreased the viability of cells. The cells treated with SNP exhibited several apoptotic features such as increasing of Bax expression, caspase-3 enzyme activity and inhibiting of Bcl-2 expression. On the other hand, the viability of cells pre-treated with the aqueous extract of Polygala tenuifolia Willdenow was increased dose-dependently. The cells pre-treated for 1 h with the aqueous extract of Polygala tenuifolia Willdenow followed by treatment with SNP showed a decreased occurrence of apoptotic features like decreasing Bax expressions, caspase-3 enzyme activity and increasing Bcl-2 expressions. The aqueous extract of Polygala tenuifolia Willdenow reduced apoptotic cell death in neuroblastoma cell line SK-N-MC through the inhibition of Bax-dependent caspase-3 activation and the increasing of Bcl-2 expression. Conclusion: Based on the present results, it is possible that Polygala tenuifolia Willdenow has therapeutic value for the treatment of a variety of NO-induced brain diseases.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.23 no.8
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• pp.1041-1049
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• 2013

The root of Polygala radix has been widely known as an oriental traditional medicinal stuff that improves memory. However, its mechanism of action remains unclear. In this study, the effect of Polygala radix hot water extracts (PRHWE) on cognitive function related to the activity of acetylcholinesterase (AchE) derived from neural cells (PC12) in addition to antioxidant activity was examined both in a cell-free system and live cells. First, in the study on cell viability using an MTT assay, PRHWE did not exhibit any cell toxicity at 0.1% (w/v) or below. It also was observed that PRHWE increased the scavenging activity of DPPH radical, hydrogen peroxide and superoxide, reducing power in a dose-dependent manner. In particular, PRHWE had a protective effect on DNA oxidation induced by hydroxyl radicals. Additionally, it inhibited the production of inducible nitric oxide in neuronal cells. Furthermore, the AchE activity decreased with increasing concentrations. In addition, PRHWE increased the expression level of SOD-1 and NOS-2 in PC12 cells. Moreover, the transcriptional activities of p53 and NF-${\kappa}B$ were reduced in the presence of PRHWE in an experiment using a reporter gene assay. Therefore, these results prove that PRHE has antioxidative and protective effects on neuronal cells, suggesting that it may have great potential as a therapeutic agent for human health.

• Food Science and Biotechnology
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.279-286
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• 2008

The antioxidative activity of various enzymatic extracts from leaves of Perilla frutescens var. japonica was evaluated by measuring 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), hydroxyl, and alkyl radical scavenging activity using an electron spin resonance (ESR) spectrometer. For this study, the leaves were enzymatically hydrolyzed by 8 carbohydrases (Dextrozyme, AMG, Promozyme, Maltogenase, Termamyl, Viscozyme, Celluclast, and BAN) and 9 proteases [Flavourzyme, Neutrase, Protamex, Alcalase, PP-trypsin (trypsin from porcine pancreas), papain, pepsin, $\alpha$-chymotrypsin, and BP-trypsin (trypsin from bovine pancreas)]. The DPPH radical scavenging activities of Promozyme and Alcalase extracts were the highest, and the $IC_{50}$ values were 77.25 and $109.66\;{\mu}g/mL$, respectively. All enzymatic extracts of the leaves scavenged hydroxyl radical, and the $IC_{50}$ values of Celluclast and pepsin extracts which were the highest activity were 243.34 and $241.86\;{\mu}g/mL$, respectively. The BAN and $\alpha$-chymotrypsin extracts showed the highest scavenging activities, and the $IC_{50}$ values were 21.13 and $33.23\;{\mu}g/mL$, respectively. The pepsin extracts from the leaves showed protective effect on $H_2O_2$-induced DNA damage. In addition, the pepsin extracts decreased cell death in PC-12 cells against $H_2O_2$-induced oxidative damage. The findings of the present study suggest that enzymatic extracts of the leaves possess antioxidative activity.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.501-508
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• 2004

A bacterial strain CJ-3 which produced chitinase was isolated from Korean traditional soy sauce. Using 16S rDNA analysis, the strain CJ-3 was identified as Bacillus atrophaeus. The approximate molecular weight of the putative chitinase enzyme was 31.0 kDa and the enzyme activity was remarkably induced by addition of colloidal chitin (0.5, 1.0, 2.0%). The antioxidant activity was increased 53% by the browning reaction products of B. atrophneus CJ-3. Escherichia. coli lipopolysaccharides (LPS)-induced production of nitric oxide(NO) was reduced up to 45% by the browning reaction product in RAW264.7 macrophage. Inhibition of cell viability in the presence of LPS was recovered to normal level by the browning reaction product. These results suggest that browning reaction of B. atrophaeus CJ-3 plays an important role for activation of immune system. B. atrophaeus CJ-3 exhibited optimum temperature and pH of 37$^{\circ}C$ and pH 7.0∼8.0, respectively. The major intracelluar free amino acid was determined to be glutamate.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.544-552
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• 2002

Several microorganisms from rat and human feces and lumen fluid of cows were screened for their ability to decolorize the synthetic dyes. Consequently, a novel dye-degrading strain AB&J was isolated. Taxonomic identification including 165 rDNA sequencing and phylogenetic analysis indicated that the isolate had 99.9% homology in its 165 rDNA base sequence with Clostridium perfringens. After 27 h Incubation with the strain, brilliant blue R, bromophenol blue, crystal violet, malachite green, methyl green, and methyl orange were decolorized by about 69.3%, 97.7%, 96.3%, 97.9%, 75.1%, and 97.2%, respectively. The triphenlmethane dye, bromophenol blue, was decolorized extensively by growing Clostridium perfringens AB&J cells in liquid cultures under anaerobic condition, although their growth was strongly inhibited in the initial stage of incubation. This group of dyes is toxic, depending on the concentration used. The dye was significantly decolorized at a relatively lower concentration of below 50 $\mu g \;ml^{-1}$, however, the growth of the cells was mostly suppressed at a dye concentration of 100 $\mu g \;ml^{-1}$. The decolorization activity in cell-free extracts was much higher in cytoplasm than in periplasm and cytoplasmic membrane. Therefore, the enzyme related uptake of bromophenol blue seemed to be localized in cytoplasm. The optimal pH and temperature of bromophenol blue uptake fur decolorization activities were 7.0 and 4$0^{\circ}C$, respectively.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.28 no.5
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• pp.620-631
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• 2015

A total of 59 lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains were isolated from corn stover silage. According to phenotypic and chemotaxonomic characteristics, 16S ribosomal DNA (rDNA) sequences and recA gene polymerase chain reaction amplification, these LAB isolates were identified as five species: Lactobacillus (L.) plantarum subsp. plantarum, Pediococcus pentosaceus, Enterococcus mundtii, Weissella cibaria and Leuconostoc pseudomesenteroides, respectively. Those strains were also screened for antimicrobial activity using a dual-culture agar plate assay. Based on excluding the effects of organic acids and hydrogen peroxide, two L. plantarum subsp. plantarum strains ZZU 203 and 204, which strongly inhibited Salmonella enterica ATCC $43971^T$, Micrococcus luteus ATCC $4698^T$ and Escherichia coli ATCC $11775^T$ were selected for further research on sensitivity of the antimicrobial substance to heat, pH and protease. Cell-free culture supernatants of the two strains exhibited strong heat stability (60 min at $100^{\circ}C$), but the antimicrobial activity was eliminated after treatment at $121^{\circ}C$ for 15 min. The antimicrobial substance remained active under acidic condition (pH 2.0 to 6.0), but became inactive under neutral and alkaline condition (pH 7.0 to 9.0). In addition, the antimicrobial activities of these two strains decreased remarkably after digestion by protease K. These results preliminarily suggest that the desirable antimicrobial activity of strains ZZU 203 and 204 is the result of the production of a bacteriocin-like substance, and these two strains with antimicrobial activity could be used as silage additives to inhibit proliferation of unwanted microorganism during ensiling and preserve nutrients of silage. The nature of the antimicrobial substances is being investigated in our laboratory.