• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
• /
• v.17 no.6
• /
• pp.1519-1523
• /
• 2003

Glehnia littoralis Fr. Schmidt (Umbelliferae) is a short-lived herbaceous species that are mostly distributed throughout East Asia. Although G. littoralis has been regarded as ecologically important one, there is no report on population structure in Korea. Starch gel electrophoresis was used to investigate the allozyme variation and genetic structure of Korean populations of this species. A high level of genetic variation was found in G. littoral is populations. Nine enzymes revealed 18 loci, of which 12 were polymorphic (66.7%). Genetic diversity at the species and population levels were 0.159 and 0.129, respectively. The sexual and asexual reproduction, high fecundity, and colonization process are proposed as possible factors contributing to genetic diversity. An indirect estimate of the number of migrants per generation (Nm = 1.45) indicated that gene flow was not extensive among Korean populations of this species. It is suggested that the ability of vegetation and artificial selection may have played roles in shaping the population structure of this species. we recommend that a desirable conservation population should be included at least 30 plants per population and especially those with high variation.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
• /
• v.56 no.2
• /
• pp.175-181
• /
• 2018

The giant roundworm Ascaris infects pigs and people worldwide and causes serious diseases. The taxonomic relationship between Ascaris suum and Ascaris lumbricoides is still unclear. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the genetic diversity and population genetic structure of 258 Ascaris specimens from humans and pigs from 6 sympatric regions in Ascaris-endemic regions of China using existing simple sequence repeat data. The microsatellite markers showed a high level of allelic richness and genetic diversity in the samples. Each of the populations demonstrated excess homozygosity (Ho0). According to a genetic differentiation index (Fst=0.0593), there was a high-level of gene flow in the Ascaris populations. A hierarchical analysis on molecular variance revealed remarkably high levels of variation within the populations. Moreover, a population structure analysis indicated that Ascaris populations fell into 3 main genetic clusters, interpreted as A. suum, A. lumbricoides, and a hybrid of the species. We speculated that humans can be infected with A. lumbricoides, A. suum, and the hybrid, but pigs were mainly infected with A. suum. This study provided new information on the genetic diversity and population structure of Ascaris from human and pigs in China, which can be used for designing Ascaris control strategies. It can also be beneficial to understand the introgression of host affiliation.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Applied Pharmacology
• /
• 1997.04a
• /
• pp.80-80
• /
• 1997

The object of this study was to develop a gene therapy strategy for ovarian cancer. We have previously shown that AV with a L-plastin (LP) promoter infects breast and ovarian cancer cells and expressed ${\beta}$-galactosidase cDNA in preference to normal fibroblast cells and hematopoietic cells. We now report on the cytotoxicity of Ad.LP.CD, an AV carrying a CD cDNA which converts the pro-drug, 5-Fluorocytosine (5-FC) into the toxic drug 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU). Infection of Ad.LP.CD into either 293 cells or ovarian cancer cells generated the functional CD as measured by HPLC analysis. Using a ratio of AV to OVCAR3 cell of 100 and a 5-FC concentration of 100 ${\mu}$M, we achieve an over 95 % of cell growth inhibition. We are using flow cytometry analysis for ${\beta}$ -galactosidase and ovarian cancer associated folate receptor to screen primary ascites samples for infectivity after infection with an adenoviral vector, i.e., Ad.LP.LacZ. This vector system may be of value in the treatment of microscopic disease of ovarian cancer in the peritoneal cavity.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.15 no.3
• /
• pp.1241-1245
• /
• 2014

Cinobufacin is used clinically to treat patients with many solid malignant tumors. However, the mechanisms underlying action remain to be detailed. Our study focused on miRNAs involved in cinobufacin inhibition of GC cell proliferation. miRNA microarray analysis and real time PCR identified miR-494 as a significant cinobufacin-associated miRNA. In vivo, ectopic expression of miR-494 inhibited the proliferation and induced apoptosis of BGC-823 cells on CCK-8 and flow cytometry analysis. Further study verified BAG-1 (anti-apoptosis gene) to bea target of miR-494 by luciferase reporter assay and Western blotting. In summary, our study demonstrated that cinobufacin may inhibit the proliferation and promote the apoptosis of BGC-823 cells. Cinobufacin-associated miR-494 may indirectly be involved in cell proliferation and apoptosis by targeting BAG-1, pointing to use as a potential molecular target of cinobufacin in gastric cancer therapy.

• International Journal of Industrial Entomology and Biomaterials
• /
• v.10 no.1
• /
• pp.51-59
• /
• 2005

Genetic diversity within and between populations of Antheraea mylitta Drury was studied using thirty individuals from three ecoraces using 12 ISSR and 10 RAPD primers. Rally, Daba and Modal ecoraces were collected from Chattisgarh, Jharkhand and Orissa states of India respectively. The ISSR and RAPD primers generated $94.7\%$ and $95.6\%$ polymorphism among the 30 individuals. The cluster analysis grouped these individuals according to their ecorace. The intra-ecoracial heterozygosity estimated with ISSR markers were $0.123{\pm}0.18,\;0.169{\pm}0.17\;and\;0.214{\pm}0.17$ respectively for Modal, Raily and Daba ecoraces. Like wise, with RAPD markers the intraecoracial heterozygosity was $0.17{\pm}0.22$ in Modal, $0.229{\pm}0.17$ in Raily and $0.23{\pm}0.19$ in Daba ecoraces. However, the significantly low genetic differentiation (GST) (0.182 for ISSR and 0.161 for RAPD) and the high gene flow (Nm) (2.249 for ISSR and 2.60 for RAPD markers) among the ecoraces revealed that the amount of genetic diversity present among the ecoraces is not significant enough to make drastic genetic drifts among these ecoraces in the near future.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
• /
• v.29 no.2
• /
• pp.175-183
• /
• 2006

The discovery of deep-sea hydrothermal vents and their ecosystems is a monumental landmark in the history of Ocean Sciences. Deep-sea hydrothermal vents are scattered along the global mid-ocean ridges and back-arc basins. Under sea volcanic phenomena related to underlying magma activities along mid-ocean ridges generate extreme habitats for highly specialized communities of animals. Multidisciplinary research efforts during past three decades since the first discovery of hydrothermal vents along the Galapagos Rift in 1977 revealed fundamental components of physiology, ecology, and evolution of specialized vent communities of micro and macro fauna. Heterogeneous regional geological settings and tectonic plate history have been considered as important geophysical and evolutionary factors for current patterns of taxonomic composition and distribution of vent faunas among venting sites in the World Ocean basins. It was found that these communities are based on primary production of chemosynthetic bacteria which directly utilize reduced compounds, mostly $H_2S$ and $CH_4$, mixed in vent fluids. Symbioses between these bacteria and their hosts, vent invertebrates, are foundation of the vent ecosystem. Gene flow and population genetic studies in parallel with larval biology began to unveil hidden dispersal barrier under deep sea as well as various dispersal characteristics cross taxa. Comparative molecular phylogenetics of vent animals revealed that vent faunas are closely related to those of cold-water seeps in general. In perspective additional interesting discoveries are anticipated particularly with further refined and expanded studies aided by new instrumental technologies.

• ALGAE
• /
• v.30 no.2
• /
• pp.89-101
• /
• 2015

Ecklonia cava Kjellman is a common kelp found in shallow subtidal in warm-temperate waters in the northwest Pacific Ocean. This species has shown substantial morphological variation along with subsistence in different locations and local environments. We quantified the magnitude of morphological variation of E. cava from six populations along ~700 km of coastline from Jeju Island to Dokdo in Korea. In addition, we examined genetic distance among the populations using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis. Most morphological characteristics investigated were significantly different among locations. Multivariate analyses indicated two phenetically distinct groups (nearshore, sheltered vs. offshore, exposed), indicating wave exposure with turbidity are presumably major factors for the separation. With RAPD data, results of Nei's diversity (H) and AMOVA showed considerable variations in within- and between-populations. Pairwise ${\Phi}_{ST}$ and $N_m$ values indicated moderate gene flow between the six locations. Results of Nei's analysis revealed three genetically distinct groups, not consistent with the morphological groupings, indicating that a time gap may exist between morphological and genetic variations. This study also suggests dispersal distance of this kelp may be longer than what is commonly thought and genetic similarity in the populations was largely reflected by the direction of ocean current rather than just geographical distance.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
• /
• v.44 no.2
• /
• pp.188-195
• /
• 2017

Biotech crops can only be commercialized after they receive safety approvals, which require thorough risk assessments of their release to the environment. Environmental release experiments are indispensable for environmental risk assessments, and each country has been preparing its own regulations for the safety management of experiments on the environmental release of biotech crops in confined fields. In this study, we compared and analyzed the safety management regulations of the environmental release of biotech crops in Korea, USA, Japan, European Union, and China. Each country had safety management regulations for the environmental release of biotech crops, and these regulations were generally not much different from the Korean regulations. However, there was a difference amongst the USA, Japan, and China in regulations for isolation distances to prevent gene diffusion through pollen-flow during environmental release experiments of biotech crops. In order to establish the isolation distance regulation suitable for the Korean environment, relevant data were collected and presented. For setting the isolation distance for environment release of biotech crops, it is suggested to refer to the isolation distance information provided in the Guidance of Seed Management in Korea. The results of this study are expected to help establish the safety management of biotech crops in Korea.

• The Journal of Korean Obstetrics and Gynecology
• /
• v.28 no.2
• /
• pp.15-25
• /
• 2015

Objectives : In this study, we investigated the anti-proliferative and apoptosis inducing effect of water extract of Chelidonium majus (CM) on human breast cancer cell MDA-MB-231. Methods : The MTT assay was used to assess cell proliferation. The expression of apoptosis related gene was assessed by quantitative Real-time PCR. Cell apoptosis detected by flow cytometry using Annexin-V/PI staining. Results : Our data revealed that CM inhibited the cell growth in a dose dependent manner (0, 62.5, 125, 250, 500 μg/ml). CM increased mRNA expression of pro-apoptotic genes Bax, caspase-3, and caspase-9. Annexin-V/PI staining assays revealed that apoptosis-induced cell death increased in a dose-dependent manner in cells. Conclusions : CM induces cell death in MDA-MB-231 human breast cancer cell and shows potentials for use in cancer therapy as apoptosis-inducing agent.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
• /
• v.20 no.2
• /
• pp.358-364
• /
• 2006

To investigate the possible mechanism of Drynariae Rhizoma extracts as a candidate of anti-cancer drug, I examined the effects of Drynariae Rhizoma extracts on the apoptosis of U937 cell line. MTT assay, flow cytometric analysis, SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, Western blot analysis, and RT-PCR were performed. Drynariae Rhizoma extracts treatment reduced the cell viablilty of U937 cells in a dose-dependent manner, which was associated with induction of apoptotic cell death. Drynariae Rhizoma extracts treatment also reduced the levels of Bcl-xL anti-apoptotic protein expression and increased the levels of caspase-3, p53, pro-apoptotic protein, in U937 cells. RT-PCR data revealed that the level of bcl-2, bcl-xL mRNA expressions decreased in a dose-dependent manner. These findings suggest that Drynariae Rhizoma extracts may have induction of apoptotic cell death via regulation of several growth regulatory gene products. The abbreviations used are: FBS, fetal bovine serum; PBS, phosphate buffered saline; PI, propidium iodide; OD, optical density; DiOC6, 3,3-dihexyloxa carbcyanine iodide; MTT, 3 [4-5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl] -2-diphenyltetrazolium bromide.