• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.19 no.5
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• pp.427-434
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• 2015

Significant evidence supports the role of the vestibular system in the regulation of blood pressure during postural movements. In the present study, the role of the vestibulo-spino-adrenal (VSA) axis in the modulation of blood pressure via the vestibulosympathetic reflex was clarified by immunohistochemical and enzyme immunoassay methods in conscious rats with sinoaortic denervation. Expression of c-Fos protein in the intermediolateral cell column of the middle thoracic spinal regions and blood epinephrine levels were investigated, following microinjection of glutamate receptor agonists or antagonists into the medial vestibular nucleus (MVN) and/or sodium nitroprusside (SNP)-induced hypotension. Both microinjection of glutamate receptor agonists (NMDA and AMPA) into the MVN or rostral ventrolateral medullary nucleus (RVLM) and SNP-induced hypotension led to increased number of c-Fos positive neurons in the intermediolateral cell column of the middle thoracic spinal regions and increased blood epinephrine levels. Pretreatment with microinjection of glutamate receptor antagonists (MK-801 and CNQX) into the MVN or RVLM prevented the increased number of c-Fos positive neurons resulting from SNP-induced hypotension, and reversed the increased blood epinephrine levels. These results indicate that the VSA axis may be a key component of the pathway used by the vestibulosympathetic reflex to maintain blood pressure during postural movements.

• Food Engineering Progress
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.92-98
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• 2009

An investigation was carried out to study the effects of extraction, heat treatment, and storage temperature on functional ingredients of onion. Extracts of onion paste and freeze dried onion were prepared by treatments with several solvents including hot water, methanol, and ethanol, and then contents of functional ingredients such as total phenol, flavonoid, quercetin, and thiosulfinate were determined. The highest levels of functional ingredients were observed in samples extracted using water at 100$^{\circ}C$ or ethanol. The skin extract contained 60-fold more quercetin than onion paste extract, whereas no thiosulfinate was detected in onion skin extract. Heat treatment of onion extracts at 60, 80, 105, and 121$^{\circ}C$ did not effect on the levels of all functional ingredients tested. During four-week storage, the levels of total phenol, flavonoid, and quercetin were not significantly changed regardless of storage temperature. However, the total thiosulfinate was rapidly reduced as the storage temperature increased.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.448-456
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• 2014

Studies on the flavour characteristics of meat-based broth, quantification of flavour-related and functional compounds, and factors affecting the availability of such compounds are minimal. The present study was designed to determine the effects of sex on flavor-related and functional compounds in freeze-dried broth (FDB) made from Korean native chickens (KNC). Male and female KNC from a commercial strain (Woorimatdag$^{TM}$) were reared under similar commercial conditions. FDB was separately prepared using male and female birds aged 100 d (six birds of each sex) and analyzed for nucleotide, free amino acid, betaine, carnitine, carnosine, anserine, and creatine contents, and fatty acid composition. The levels of betaine, carnitine and creatine in FDB were not significantly different between the two sexes (p>0.05) in KNC. Carnosine and anserine were not detected in FDB samples. However, FDB from female chickens had significantly higher inosine-5-monophosphate and arachidonic acid contents than did FDB from male chickens. FDB prepared with male KNC contained higher levels of inosine, linoleic acid, glycine, alanine, lysine, and serine (p<0.05). However, glutamic acid, oleic acid, and DHA were present in comparable amounts (p>0.05) in FDB made from male and female KNC. Our findings suggest that the sex of KNC has significant effect on the contents of flavor-related compounds, but not functional compounds.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.1-9
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• 2007

Purpose: Previous studies have suggested that BDNF has a role in plasticity and survival following spinal cord injury and treadmill exercise increases BDNF levels in the normal brain and spinal cord. We attempted to determine whether swimming exercise improve motor function following experimental contusive spinal cord injury and whether motor outcome is associated with BDNF expression. Methods: Thirty six Sprague-Dawley rats (weight, 250 to 300 g) were divided into control (n=18) and experimental swimming group (n=18). Spinal cord injury was produced using NYU-spinal impactor at the eleven thoracic levels in both groups. Swimming exercise started $7^{th}$ day from SCI operation, lasted 5 min per day, 5 days a week for 4 weeks and then exercise times a day were increased in one number to each week. Motor functional recovery was determined by the Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan (BBB) locomotor rating scale, modified inclined board plane test, histological findings, H&E and BDNF expression observed at $1^{th}$, $3^{rd}$, $7^{th}$, $14^{th}$, $21^{st}$ and $28^{th}$day after injury. Results: 1. The BBB scores were higher in experimental group than control group at $14^{th}$, $21^{st}$ day (left hind limb) and at $21^{th}$ day (right hind limb) (p<0.05) after injury. 2. The inclined board plane test were significantly greater in experimental group than control group at $7^{th}$ day (p<0.05), $14^{th}$ and $28^{th}$ day (p<0.01) after injury. 3. The BDNF expression was severe revealed in experimental group than control group at $7^{th}$, $14^{th}$ and $28^{th}$ day after injury. Conclusion: This study suggests that swimming applied from the early phase after spinal cord injury be beneficial effects in motor functional recovery.

• Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.278-284
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• 2016

Anthocyanins, a class of flavonoids, are natural water-soluble pigments, mainly found in vegetables and fruits. Anthocyanins have attractive pharmacological activities, such as anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, and anti-diabetic effects. The purpose of this study was to investigate the inhibitory effects of the anthocyanin-rich fraction (ANF) from purple sweet potato on high fat diet-induced insulin resistance and hepatic steatosis. C57BL/6J mice were assigned to the following groups (n=8 per group): normal fat diet (NF); high fat diet (HF); high fat diet with ANF 50mg/kg (ANF50). Normal fat or high fat diets were fed for a total of 17 weeks, and ANF was orally administrated for 8 weeks (from 10 to 17 weeks, five times/week). In our results, there were no significant differences in body weight, food intake, and tissue weight upon ANF supplementation. The levels of serum triacylglycerol, total-cholesterol, and glucose were also not affected by ANF supplementation. However, ANF supplementation significantly decreased serum insulin and HOMA-IR levels as well as prevented hepatic fat accumulation in high fat-fed mice. These results show that ANF may be beneficial for improving high fat-induced insulin resistance and protecting against development of hepatic steatosis.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.46-60
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• 2023

Slaughterhouse blood is a by-product of animal slaughter that can be a good source of animal protein. This research purposed to examine the functional qualities of the blood plasma from Hanwoo cattle, black goat, and their hydrolysates. Part of the plasma was hydrolyzed with proteolytic enzymes (Bacillus protease, papain, thermolysin, elastase, and α-chymotrypsin) to yield bioactive peptides under optimum conditions. The levels of hydrolysates were evaluated by 15% sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The antioxidant, metal-chelating, and angiotensin I-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory properties of intact blood plasma and selected hydrolysates were investigated. Accordingly, two plasma hydrolysates by protease (pH 6.5/55℃/3 h) and thermolysin (pH 7.5/37℃/3-6 h) were selected for analysis of their functional properties. In the oil model system, only goat blood plasma had lower levels of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances than the control. The diphenyl picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging activity was higher in cattle and goat plasma than in proteolytic hydrolysates. Ironchelating activities increased after proteolytic degradation except for protease-treated cattle blood. Copper-chelating activity was excellent in all test samples except for the original bovine plasma. As for ACE inhibition, only non-hydrolyzed goat plasma and its hydrolysates by thermolysin showed ACE inhibitory activity (9.86±5.03% and 21.77±3.74%). In conclusion, goat plasma without hydrolyzation and its hydrolysates can be a good source of bioactive compounds with functional characteristics, whereas cattle plasma has a relatively low value. Further studies on the molecular structure of these compounds are needed with more suitable enzyme combinations.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.22 no.12
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• pp.2052-2061
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• 2021

Objective: The role of preoperative overt hepatic encephalopathy (OHE) in the neurophysiological mechanism of cognitive improvement after liver transplantation (LT) remains elusive. This study aimed to explore changes in sub-regional thalamic functional connectivity (FC) after LT and their relationship with neuropsychological improvement using resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) data in cirrhotic patients with and without a history of OHE. Materials and Methods: A total of 51 cirrhotic patients, divided into the OHE group (n = 21) and no-OHE group (n = 30), and 30 healthy controls were enrolled in this prospective study. Each patient underwent rs-fMRI before and 1 month after LT. Using 16 bilateral thalamic subregions as seeds, we conducted a seed-to-voxel FC analysis to compare the thalamic FC alterations before and after LT between the OHE and no-OHE groups, as well as differences in FC between the two groups of cirrhotic patients and the control group. Correction for multiple comparisons was conducted using the false discovery rate (p < 0.05). Results: We found abnormally increased FC between the thalamic sub-region and prefrontal cortex, as well as an abnormally decreased FC between the bilateral thalamus in both OHE and no-OHE cirrhotic patients before LT, which returned to normal levels after LT. Compared with the no-OHE group, the OHE group exhibited more extensive abnormalities prior to LT, and the increased FC between the right thalamic subregions and right inferior parietal lobe was markedly reduced to normal levels after LT. Conclusion: The renormalization of FC in the cortico-thalamic loop might be a neuro-substrate for the recovery of cognitive function after LT in cirrhotic patients. In addition, hyperconnectivity between thalamic subregions and the inferior parietal lobe might be an important feature of OHE. Changes in FC in the thalamus might be used as potential biomarkers for recovery of cognitive function after LT in cirrhotic patients.

• Korean Journal of Adult Nursing
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.705-717
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• 2009

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify symptom clusters in patients with breast cancer and to investigate the associations among them with functional status and quality of life (QOL). Methods: A convenient sample of 303 patients was recruited from an oncology-specialized hospital. Results: Two distinct clusters were identified: A gastrointestinal- fatigue cluster and a pain cluster. Each cluster significantly influenced functional status and QOL. Based on these two clusters, we identified subgroups of symptom clusters using K-means cluster analysis. Three relatively distinct patient subgroups were identified in each cluster: mild, moderate, and severe group. Disease-related factors (i.e., stage, metastasis, type of surgery, current chemotherapy, and anti-hormone therapy) were associated with these subgroups of symptom clusters. There were significant differences in functional status and QOL among the three subgroups. The subgroup of patients who reported high levels of symptom clusters reported poorer functional status and QOL. Conclusion: Clinicians can anticipate that breast cancer patients with advanced stage, metastasis, and who receive mastectomy, and chemotherapy will have more intense gastrointestinal-fatigue or pain symptoms. In order to enhance functional status and QOL for patients with breast cancer, collective management for symptoms in a cluster may be beneficial.

• Food Science and Biotechnology
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• v.18 no.6
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• pp.1311-1315
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• 2009

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of sesaminol glucosides (SG) on age-related cognitive deficits in senescence-accelerated mice P8 (SAMP8). Male SAMP8 (9 month-old) were randomly divided into 3 groups and received diets containing 0, 0.25, or 0.5% SG for 12 weeks. Step-through latency of the SAMP8 control group was higher than that of the senescence-accelerated resistant mice (SAMR) group, whereas it was lowered in the SG-supplemented group on the passive-avoidance test. In the Morris water maze, the escape latency of the SAMP8 control group was increased and recovered in the 0.5% SG-supplemented group. The SG supplementation significantly decreased thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) levels in brains of the SAMP8. On the other hand, catalase, superoxide dismutase, and glutathione peroxidase activities in brains of the SG supplemented group decreased compared with the SAMP8 control group. These results suggest that SG could attenuate cognitive deficits caused by aging through its antioxidant capacity.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.1098-1104
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• 2014

New electron deficient acceptor-acceptor-acceptor type of monomer unit composed of weak electron accepting benzimidazole and relatively strong electron accepting benzothiadiazole derivatives namely 4,7-bis(6-bromo-1-(2-ethylhexyl)-1H-benzo[d]imidazol-2-yl)benzo[c][1,2,5]thiadiazole (BBB) was synthesized. The Stille polycondensation of the newly synthesized BBB monomer with electron donating 2,6-bis(trimethyltin)-4,8-bis(2-ethylhexyloxy)benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b']dithiophene (BDT) afforded donor-acceptor-acceptor-acceptor type of polymer namely 2,6-(4,8-bis(2-ethylhexyloxy)benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b']dithiophene)-alt-4,7-bis(1-(2-ethylhexyl)-1H-benzo[d]imidazol-2-yl)benzo[c][1,2,5]thiadiazole (PBDTBBB). The opto-electrical studies revealed that the absorption band of PBDTBBB appeared in the range of 300 nm-525 nm and its highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) and lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) energy levels were positioned at -5.18 eV and -2.84 eV, respectively. The power conversion efficiency (PCE) of the polymer solar cell (PSC) prepared from PBDTBBB:PC71BM (1:2 wt %) blend was 1.90%.