• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.923-929
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• 2003

The purpose of this study is to examine various Oriental Medical approaches to uterine myoma treatments which have been previously proposed, and find out an appropriate method with the verification of its clinical acceptance. The treatment with GGT(Gami-gwichulikyeong-tang) and JGD (Jagungdan) has been applied to uterine myoma patients visiting Sangdang Oriental medical clinic. After the treatment, 81 cases showing significant results are selected and analyzed in terms of patients' age, social environment, previous history of treatment, condition of uterine myoma, chief complaint, and the comparison between menstrual phases before the treatment and those after it. As for the size change, no-change is dominant. For the change chief complaint take a favorable turn is better after the treatment. Color of menstruation, pathologic blood drainage, hypermenorrhea or menorrhagia. dysmentorrhea show high percentage of improvement. The results above show GGT and JGD are effective treatments for uterine myoma patients. These two are also similar to the typical prescription of Jingga, which is Gwichulpajing-tang. Thus GGT and JGD are effective to the treatment for Jingga and Jingga is one of the most valid Oriental Medical approaches to uterine myoma.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.98-101
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• 2005

Gamgung-tang(GGT) that is included in Gamdu-tang(consists of Glycyrrhizae Radix, black beans) and Gunggui-tang(consists of Angelicae Radix and Cnidii Rhizoma), showed therapeutic effects of autoimmume thyroiditis in the previous reports. GGT was tested for the safety using Rec assay and enzymatic methods. In the Rec assay, Bacillus subtilis H-17$(Rec^+)$ and M-45$(Rec^-)$ strains were used to test DNA damage activity. From the results, there was no DNA damage of GGT. Hepatotoxicity of GGT to female ICR mice was also monitored by the measurements of serum(s)-GOT, s-GPT and LDH activities after oral feeding for 15 days. GGT was not shown any significant changes of s-GOT, s-GPT and LDH activities in mice sera.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.50 no.6
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• pp.377-385
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• 2017

Objectives: Although mercury (Hg) exposure is known to be neurotoxic in humans, its effects on liver function have been less often reported. The aim of this study was to investigate whether total Hg exposure in Korean adults was associated with elevated serum levels of the liver enzymes aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT), and gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT). Methods: We repeatedly examined the levels of total Hg and liver enzymes in the blood of 508 adults during 2010-2011 and 2014-2015. Cross-sectional associations between levels of blood Hg and liver enzymes were analyzed using a generalized linear model, and nonlinear relationships were analyzed using a generalized additive mixed model. Generalized estimating equations were applied to examine longitudinal associations, considering the correlations of individuals measured repeatedly. Results: GGT increased by 11.0% (95% confidence interval [CI], 4.5 to 18.0%) in women and 8.1% (95% CI, -0.5 to 17.4%) in men per doubling of Hg levels, but AST and ALT were not significantly associated with Hg in either men or women. In women who drank more than 2 or 3 times per week, AST, ALT, and GGT levels increased by 10.6% (95% CI, 4.2 to 17.5%), 7.7% (95% CI, 1.1 to 14.7%), and 37.5% (95% CI,15.2 to 64.3%) per doubling of Hg levels, respectively, showing an interaction between blood Hg levels and drinking. Conclusions: Hg exposure was associated with an elevated serum concentration of GGT. Especially in women who were frequent drinkers, AST, ALT, and GGT showed a significant increase, with a significant synergistic effect of Hg and alcohol consumption.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.623-627
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• 2005

Abnormal thyroid cell proliferation has a very important role in hypothyroidism. Thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) stimulates proliferation and maintains differentiated function in thyroid follicular cells. A functioning rat thyroid cell line (FRTL) was used to study the effect of Gamgung-tang (GGT, Glycyrrhizae Radix, black beans, Angelicae Radix and Cnidii Rhizoma) on proliferation and cAMP accumulation of thyrocytes. Proliferation of cell was assessed by DNA synthesis and incorporation of $[^3H]thymidine$ into DNA. The concentration of cAMP was measured simultaneously with growth assessment. Extract of GGT ($0.15{\sim}0.9\;mg/ml$ increased DNA synthesis in a dose-dependent manner. GGT at 0.6 (p<0.05) and 0.9 mg/ml (p<0.01) significantly increased $[^3H]thymidine$ incorporation. A comparable effect was observed with TSH. GGT also enhanced cAMP accumulation. These results indicate that GGT increases the proliferation of thyrocytes and may be considered a promising agent for the treatment of autoimmune thyroid disease.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.43 no.6
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• pp.925-935
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• 1996

Background : In order to elucidate one of the pathogenic mechanisms of ARDS associated with pulmonary surfactant and oxidant injury, acute lung injury was induced by N-nitroso N-methylurethane (NNNMU). In this model, the role of phospholipase $A_2$ ($PLA_2$), surfactant, gamma glutamyl transferase (GGT) and morphology were investigated to delineate one of the pathogenic mechanisms of ARDS by inhibition of $PLA_2$ with high dose of dexamethasone. Method: Acute lung injury was induced in Sprague-Dawley rats by NNNMU which is known to induce acute lung injury in experimental animals. To know the function of the alveolar type II cells, GGT activity in the lung and bronchoalveolar lavage was measured. Surfactant phospholipid was measured also. $PLA_2$ activity was measured to know the role of $PLA_2$ in ARDS. Morphological study was performed to know the effect of $PLA_2$ inhibition on the ultrastructure of the lung by high dose of dexamethasone. Results : Six days after NNNMU treatment (4 mg/kg), conspicuous pulmonary edema was induced and the secretion of pulmonary surfactant was decreased significantly. In the acutely injured rats' lung massive infiltration of leukocytes was observed. At the same time rats given NNNMU had increased $PLA_2$ and GGT activity tremendously. Morphological study revealed bizarre shaped alveolar type II cells and hypertrophied lamellar bodies in the cytoplasm of the alveolar type II cells. But after dexamethasone treatment (20 mg/kg, for six days) in NNNMU-treated rats, these changes were diminished i.e. there were decrease of pulmonary edema and increase of surfactant secretion from alveolar type D cells. Rats given dexamethasone and NNNMU had decreased $PLA_2$ and GGT activity in comparison to NNNMU induced ARDS rats. Conclusion : Inhibition of $PLA_2$ by high dose of dexamethasone decreased pathological findings caused by infiltration of leukocytes and respiratory burst. Based on these experimental results, it is suggested that an activation of $PLA_2$ is the one of the major factors to evoke the acute lung injury in NNNMU-induced ARDS rats.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.51 no.5
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• pp.386-399
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• 2018

Purpose: This study examined whether the supply of healthy Korean diets for 12 weeks is effective in improving the risk factors related to serum GGT and cardiovascular diseases in patients with hypertension and diabetes. Methods: This study selected 41 patients, who were treated with hypertension and diabetes. The Korean diet was composed of cooked-rice, soup, kimchi, and various banchan with one serving called bapsang, which emphasize proportionally high consumption of vegetables and fermented foods, moderate to high consumption of legumes and fish, and low consumption of animal foods. The control group was instead instructed to "eat and exercise as usual" while following the Korean Diabetes Association's dietary guidelines with an intake that can assist in glycemic control, maintain adequate weight, and meet the nutritional requirements. The Korean diet group (21 patients) were served three healthy Korean meals a day for 12 weeks, and the control group (20 patients, who trained in the diet guideline of diabetes) maintained their usual diabetic diet. The serum GGT, blood pressure, heart rate, glycemic control data, cardiovascular risk indicators, and changes in diet measured at the four visits (week 0, 4, 8, and 12) during the course of 12 weeks were compared and evaluated. Results: The serum GGT (p < 0.001), HbA1c (p = 0.004), heart rate (p = 0.007), weight (p = 0.002), Body Mass Index (p = 0.002), body fat mass (p < 0.001), body fat (%) (p < 0.001), and free fatty acid (p = 0.007) in the Korean diet group decreased significantly after the dietary intervention compared to the control group. The amount of intake of rice, whole grains, green vegetables, Kimchi, and soybean fermented food were increased significantly compared to the control group (p < 0.001). The Korean diet group showed significant decreases (p < 0.001) in the intake of animal protein, lipid, and cholesterol derived from animal foods compared to the control group but significant increases (p < 0.001) in the intake of total calories, folic acid, dietary fiber, sodium, potassium, and vitamins A, E, and C. Conclusion: In patients with hypertension and diabetes, it was confirmed that regular eating of a healthy Korean diet helps improve the risk factors for GGT and cardiovascular diseases.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.16 no.5
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• pp.3230-3242
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• 2015

In this study, in an attempt to elucidate the relevance and the association between AUDIT level and health related indices such as obesity-related indices (BMI, waist circumference, body fat percentage), serum liver-enzyme levels (AST, ALT, GGT, total bilirubin) and serum lipid levels (TC, TG, HDL-C, LDL-C), data about including results of health checkup examination and questionnaire from 558 male examinees of 30-79 years old, who received a comprehensive health examination in the health promotion center of a university hospital during the period of January 1 to December 31, 2012, was analysed. As a results, the distribution of AUDIT rating of subjects was Zone I 58.2%, Zone II 25.3%, Zone III 7.0%, and Zone IV 9.5%. And AUDIT levels have significant relevance with age, smoking, body fat, GGT and TG. Especially, for the waist circumference, GGT and TG, the odds ratio indicating abnormality significantly increased in the higher AUDIT groups (Zone II~Zone IV) than a low-grade group (Zone I). This suggests that drinking problem with a high AUDIT level has a significant relevance with an abnormal increase of indices for obesity, serum liver-enzyme levels, serum lipid levels.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.56 no.1
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• pp.32-42
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• 2024

This study compared the results of hemolyzed samples and re-collected samples to investigate a hemolysis influence and an acceptable hemolysis index (HI). Before and after hemolysis, alkaline phosphatase (ALP), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), amylase (Amy), direct bilirubin (D-bil), total bilirubin (T-bil), creatine phosphokinase (CK), gamma glutamyl transferase (GGT), iron, potassium (K), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), magnesium (Mg), phosphorus (Phos), total protein (TP), and uric acid (UA) showed significant results in the paired t-test. LDH, K, iron, AST, CK, GGT, TP, Amy and Phos had a high correlation between the degree of hemolysis and the results of samples. When comparing Roche's cut-off HI with HI^QChigh obtained using quality control (QC) high standard deviation (SD), AST, D-bil, CK, and LDH were similar, but Amy, GGT, K, iron, Phos, and TP were lower than the cut-off HI of Roche, while ALP and ALT were higher. Some analytes which showed no significant results in the paired t-test, were found to have significant results in HI>200. Hence, it is suggested that the hemolyzed sample should be rejected if HI>200. Based on this study that some analytes were affected when HI<100, we recommend to set the standard of hemolysis starting from HI>50.

• Korean Journal of Medicinal Crop Science
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• v.19 no.6
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• pp.446-455
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• 2011

Galgeun-tang (GGT) is a traditional medicinal formula that is widely prescribed to treat cold, asthma, and hives in Korea. Fermented herbal medicines can be made more effective than normal herbal medicines by increasing the absorption and bioavailability of the active compounds. In this study, we fermented Galgeun-tang to produce bioconversion constituents using Lactobacillus plantarum (GGT144), and found that four peaks were decreased, three peaks were increased and two new peaks appeared in the HPLC-DAD chromatogram. After HPLC-DAD-guided fractionation of the newly-appearing compounds (1 and 5) and the increased (6, 7, and 9) compounds, the structure of the compounds was determined using NMR and MS. Using this approach the compounds were identified to be pyrogallol (1), daidzein (5), liquiritigenin (6), cinnamyl alcohol (7), and formononetin (9), respectively. In addition, the decreased compounds were identified to be daidzin (2), liquiritin (3), ononin (4), and cinnam aldehyde (8) using HPLC-DAD analysis with standard compounds. The high performance liquid chromatography method was used to quantify the nine constituents in GGT and GGT144. All calibration curves of the standard compounds displayed excellent linearity with a $R^2$ > 0.9968.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.235-242
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• 1998

Objectives : Alcohol-induced oxidative stress has been known to injure various tissues or organs. This stress is related with free radicals which are produced as the result of long-term alcohol consumption. Malonyldialdehyde(MDA) is produced by the interaction of free radicals and cell membrane lipids, and indicates the degree of lipid peroxidation indirectly. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between red blood cell(RBC) membrane lipid peroxidation by free radicals, and associated hepatic injuries and hematologic changes. Methods : Thirty-three subjects diagnosed as alcohol dependence according to DSM-IV diagnostic criteria were evaluated within 72 hours after discontinuing alcohol drinking. Clinical characteristics were evaluated by CAGE questionnaire and Korean Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test(MAST). RBC membrane MDA level was measured as the marker of RBC membrane lipid peroxidation. Aspartate aminotransferase(AST), alanine aminotransferase(ALT) and gamma-glutamyltransferase(GGT) were used as the biochemical markers of liver damage due to alcohol ingestion. The alcohol-induced hematologic change was assessed by mean corpuscular volume(MCV). Results : The results were as follows. Clinical characteristics were not different between two groups having normal and abnormal levels of AST, ALT, GGT or MCV. The levels of MDA were not correlated with the clinical characteristics and serum levels of AST, ALT and GGT. However, there was a significant correlation between the levels of MDA and the value of MCV(p=0.017). Conclusions : These findings suggest that oxidative stress in alcohol dependence may not be reflected in liver enzyme markers such as AST, ALT and GGT, but may be reflected in MCV.