• 한국발생생물학회지:발생과생식
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• 제20권3호
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• pp.237-245
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• 2016

Direct communication between neighboring cells via gap junction in tissue is important for maintenance and regulation of its physiological functions. Each epididymal region has different composition of cell types. It is well recognized that the epididymis is a steroid hormone-responsive tissue. The present study was designed to determine the effect of estradiol benzoate (EB) or flutamide exposured at the early postnatal age on the expression of connexin (Cx) isoforms in the caudal epididymis. The EB or flutamide was subcutaneously administrated to male Spragure Dawley rat at 7 days of age, and expressional changes of Cx isoforms in the adult corpus epididymis were determined by quantitative real-time PCR. The treatment of low-dose EB resulted in decreases of Cx30.3, Cx31.1, Cx37, and Cx45 expression but caused an increase of Cx32 expression. Exposure to high-dose EB led into expressional increases of Cx31, Cx31.1, Cx32, Cx40, and Cx43, even though a decrease of Cx37 expression was found with a high-dose EB treatment. A low-dose flutamide induced increases of Cx31, Cx31.1, Cx32, and Cx43 expression but a decrease of Cx37 expression. Expression of most Cx genes were significantly increased by a high-dose flutamide, while no expressional change of Cx26 and Cx40 was detected by a high-dose flutamide. These results indicate that expression of Cx isoforms in the caudal epididymis is altered by exposure to steroidal compounds at the prepubertal age. It is suggested that a contact with environmental exogenous materials during the early postnatal period would lead to alteration of epididymal functions at the adult.

• Reproductive and Developmental Biology
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• 제29권1호
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• pp.49-55
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• 2005

본 연구에서는 돼지의 체지방을 감소시키고 성장을 촉진시키는 인자인 PGH를 cloning하여 이 유전자를 외래 유전자의 발현이 유도적으로 조절되는 Tet system에 도입하고자 하였다. 또한 유전자의 발현이 turn on되었을 때 그 발현 정도를 최대화하기 위하여 WPRE 서열을 도입하였다. 구축된 각각의 vector는 retrovirus 생산 세포주에 도입하여 virus를 생산하였으며 이를 여러 종류의 표적세포에 감염시켜서 PGH 유전자의 발현을 확인한 결과, 1×10/sup 6/ 세포에서 350∼2,100 ng의 PGH가 분비되었으며 특히 PFF 세포에서 가장 높은 발현을 나타내었다. Tet system에 도입된 PGH의 발현이 유도적으로 조절되는지를 PFF 세포에서 확인한 결과, 유도 효율이 2∼6배로 나타났으며 WPRE 서열이 rtTA 유전자의 downstream에 위치한 조건에서 가장 높은 유도 효율을 나타내었다. 이러한 PGH 유전자의 유도적인 발현의 조절은 고급육 생산의 형질전환 돼지 연구에 있어서 가장 큰 문제점이 되는 PGH 유전자의 과다한 발현에 의한 생리적인 부작용을 최소화할 수 있는 해결 방안으로 제시될 수 있을 것이다.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제15권3호
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• pp.1327-1331
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• 2014

Background: Electrical impedance tomography (EIT) is a new non-invasive, mobile screening method which does not use ionizing radiation to the human breast; allows conducting quantitative assessment of the images besides the visual interpretation. The aim of this study was to correlate the quantitative assessment and visual interpretation of breast electrical impedance tomographs and associated factors. Materials and Methods: One hundred and fifty mammography patients above 40 years and undergoing EIT were chosen using convenient sampling. Visual interpretation of the images was carried out by a radiologist with minimum of three years experience using the breast imaging - electrical impedance (BI-EIM) classification for detection of abnormalities. A set of thirty blinded EIT images were reinterpreted to determine the intra-rater reliability using kappa. Quantitative assessment was by comparison of the breast average electric conductivity with the norm and correlations with visual interpretation of the images were determined using Chi-square. One-way ANOVA was used to compare the mean electrical conductivity between groups and t-test was used for comparisons with pre-existing Caucasians statistics. Independent t-tests were applied to compare the mean electrical conductivity of women with factors like exogenous hormone use and family history of breast cancer. Results: The mean electrical conductivity of Malaysian women was significantly lower than that of Caucasians (p<0.05). Quantitative assessment of electrical impedance tomography was significantly related with visual interpretation of images of the breast (p<0.05). Conclusions: Quantitative assessment of electrical impedance tomography images was significantly related with visual interpretation.

• 대한수의학회지
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• 제42권4호
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• pp.459-467
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• 2002

The sex steroid hormone progesterone is essential for normal development and maturation of the endometrium in preparation for the embryo implantation and the maintenance of pregnancy. Insulin-like growth factor (IGF) system that is composed of IGF-I, IGF-II, IGF binding proteins (IGFBPs) is also involved in the maintenance of pregnancy. In addition, liver, kidney, and uterus is a target tissue for IGF system. However, the effect of exogenous progesterone on IGF system was not elucidated in female rats. Therefore, we investigated the effect of progesterone on insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) and IGF-binding proteins in serum, liver, kidney, and uterus in female ovariectomized rats. IGFs concentration was measured by radioimmuoassay (RIA) and IGFBPs levels by western ligand blotting(WLB). IGF-I concentration was increased in serum, liver, and uterus, but not in kidney of progesterone-treated ovariectomized rats, compared to control (P<0.05). IGF-II concentration was decreased in liver, but not in serum, kidney, and uterus of progesterone-treated rats, compared to control (P<0.05). IGFBP-3 was increased in serum, but not in liver of progesterone-treated rats, compared to control. IGFBP-2 was decreased in kidney, but not in others tissues of progesterone-treated rats, compared to control. These results suggest that progesterone may exert diverse physiological functions via the tissue-specific regulation of IGFs/IGFBPs system in female rats.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• 제34권4호
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• pp.257-268
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• 2018

Rice blast disease, caused by Magnaporthe oryzae, results in an extensive loss of rice productivity. Previously, we identified a novel M. oryzae secreted protein, termed MSP1 which causes cell death and pathogen-associated molecular pattern (PAMP)-triggered immune (PTI) responses in rice. Here, we report the transcriptome profile of MSP1-induced response in rice, which led to the identification of 21,619 genes, among which 4,386 showed significant changes (P < 0.05 and fold change > 2 or < 1/2) in response to exogenous MSP1 treatment. Functional annotation of differentially regulated genes showed that the suppressed genes were deeply associated with photosynthesis, secondary metabolism, lipid synthesis, and protein synthesis, while the induced genes were involved in lipid degradation, protein degradation, and signaling. Moreover, expression of genes encoding receptor-like kinases, MAPKs, WRKYs, hormone signaling proteins and pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins were also induced by MSP1. Mapping these differentially expressed genes onto various pathways revealed critical information about the MSP1-triggered responses, providing new insights into the molecular mechanism and components of MSP1-triggered PTI responses in rice.

• 한국발생생물학회지:발생과생식
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• 제13권3호
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• pp.133-143
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• 2009

Pivotal roles of steroid hormones in uterine endometrial function are well established from the mouse models carrying the null mutation of their receptors. Literally androgen belongs to male but interestingly it also detected in female. The fluctuations of androgen levels are observed during reproductive cycle and pregnancy, and the functional androgen receptor is expressed in reproductive organs including uterus. Using high throughput methodology, the downstream genes of androgen have been isolated and revealed correlations between other steroid hormones. In androgen-deficient mice, uterine responses to exogenous gonadotropins are impaired and the number of pups per litter is reduced dramatically. As expected androgen has important role in decidual differentiation through AR. It regulates specific gene network during those cellular responses. Recently we examined the effects of steroid hormonal complex containing high level of androgen. Interestingly, on the contrary to the androgen-alone administration, the hormonal complex did not disturb the decidual reaction and the pubs did not show any morphological abnormality. It is suspected that the complexity of communication between other steroid hormone and their receptors are the reasons. In summary, androgen exists in female blood and it suggests the importance of androgen in female reproduction. However, the complex interactions with other hormones are not fully understood compared with estrogen and progesterone. The further studies to evaluate the possible role of androgen are needed and important to provide the in vivo rational for the prevention of associated pregnancy complications and help human's health.

• 한국임상수의학회지
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• 제22권2호
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• pp.130-135
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• 2005

A retrospective study was performed with 9 cases of spontaneous canine hypoadrenocorticism presented to the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital of Seoul National University. The disease occurred mostly in young to middle­aged dogs. Most dogs had chronic nonspecific signs such as episodic anorexia, lethargy and vomiting, but 3 dogs were brought to the hospital with an acute adrenal crisis. Serum biochemical analysis revealed azotemia, abnormal concentration of sodium, potassium, and chloride in almost all the patients. Diagnoses were made based on lack of adrenocortical response to exogenous adrenocorticotropic hormone(ACTH). Most dogs have been responded well with mineralocorticoid and glucocorticoid replacement except for a dog which died during treatment for adrenal crisis. Three dogs treated with fludrocortisone acetate(final median dosage, $31.0{\mu}g/kg/day$) for mineralocorticoid supplementation showed some adverse effects, such as excessive appetite and polyuria/polydipsia. In this study, it was suggested that clinicians should also consider hypoadrenocorticism when they diagnose a patient showing nonspecific gastrointestinal signs with unknown cause or laboratory findings which mimic primary renal diseases.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• 제36권4호
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• pp.449-460
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• 2012

Plants have versatile detoxification systems to encounter the phytotoxicity of the wide range of natural and synthetic compounds present in the environment. Glutathione S-transferase (GST) is an enzyme that detoxifies natural and exogenous toxic compounds by conjugation with glutathione (GSH). Recently, several roles of GST giving stress tolerance in plants have demonstrated, but little is known about the role of ginseng GSTs. Therefore, this work aimed to provide further information on the GST gene present in Panax ginseng genome as well as its expression and function. A GST cDNA (PgGST) was isolated from P. ginseng cDNA library, and it showed the amino acid sequence similarity with theta type of GSTs. PgGST in ginseng plant was induced by exposure to metals, plant hormone, heavy metals, and high light irradiance. To improve the resistance against environmental stresses, full-length cDNA of PgGST was introduced into Nicotiana tabacum. Overexpression of PgGST led to twofold increase in GST-specific activity compared to the non-transgenic plants, and the GST overexpressed plant showed resistance against herbicide phosphinothricin. The results suggested that the PgGST isolated from ginseng might have a role in the protection mechanism against toxic materials such as heavy metals and herbicides.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• 제32권2호
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• pp.99-106
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• 2008

A ligand - whether an endogenous hormone, neurotransmitter, exogenous toxin or synthetic drug - binds to plasma membrane proteins (e.g., ion channels, receptors or other functional proteins) to exert its physiological or pharmacological effects. Ligands can also have functional groups, showing stereospecificity for interaction sites on their counterpart plasma membrane proteins. Previous reports have shown that the ginsenoside Rg$_3$, a bioactive ginsenoside, meets these criteria in that: 1) an aliphatic side chain of $Rg_3$ plays a role as a functional group, 2) Rg$_3$ regulates voltage- and ligand-gated ion channels in a stereospecific manner with respect to carbon-20, and 3) $Rg_3$ regulates subsets of ligand-gated and voltage-gated ion channels through specific interactions with identified amino acid residues inside the channel pore, in the outer pore entryway, or in toxin binding sites. Rg$_3$, therefore, could be a candidate for a novel ginseng-derived glycosidic ligand regulating ion channels and receptors. This review will examine how Rg$_3$ regulates voltage-gated and ligand-gated ion channels through interactions with its target proteins in the plasma membrane. Hopefully, this review will advance understanding of ginseng pharmacology at the cellular and molecular levels.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• 제47권3호
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• pp.469-478
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• 2023

Background: Nitrogen (N) is an essential macronutrient for plant growth and development. To support agricultural production and enhance crop yield, two major N sources, nitrate and ammonium, are applied as fertilizers to the soil. Although many studies have been conducted on N uptake and signal transduction, the molecular genetic mechanisms of N-mediated physiological roles, such as the secondary growth of storage roots, remain largely unknown. Methods: One-year-old P. ginseng seedlings treated with KNO₃ were analyzed for the secondary growth of storage roots. The histological paraffin sections were subjected to bright and polarized light microscopic analysis. Genome-wide RNA-seq and network analysis were carried out to dissect the molecular mechanism of nitrate-mediated promotion of ginseng storage root thickening. Results: Here, we report the positive effects of nitrate on storage root secondary growth in Panax ginseng. Exogenous nitrate supply to ginseng seedlings significantly increased the root secondary growth. Histological analysis indicated that the enhancement of root secondary growth could be attributed to the increase in cambium stem cell activity and the subsequent differentiation of cambium-derived storage parenchymal cells. RNA-seq and gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) revealed that the formation of a transcriptional network comprising auxin, brassinosteroid (BR)-, ethylene-, and jasmonic acid (JA)-related genes mainly contributed to the secondary growth of ginseng storage roots. In addition, increased proliferation of cambium stem cells by a N-rich source inhibited the accumulation of starch granules in storage parenchymal cells. Conclusion: Thus, through the integration of bioinformatic and histological tissue analyses, we demonstrate that nitrate assimilation and signaling pathways are integrated into key biological processes that promote the secondary growth of P. ginseng storage roots.