• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.176-179
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• 2003

A library of unlimited number of novel lectins with diverse specificities has been previously generated by randomly mutating the carbohydrate-recognition domain of Maackia amurensis hemagglutinin (MAH). To establish the experimental environment capable of selecting high affinity mutant lectins in E. coli, phage display system was adapted. Carbohydrate binding capacity of two phagemid vectors, pComb3 and pComb8 displaying wild-type MAH lectin was assessed. Specific bindings of pComb3 and pComb8 phages expressing w.t. MAH to affinity-purified polyclonal anti-MAH antibody and to glycophorin was demonstrated. Both phages also showed strong hemagglutinating activity to intact but not sialidase-treated human erythrocytes, which is consistent to the specificity of native MAH. Taken together, two different phage display vectors successfully allowed the expression of active MAH as a fusion protein on the surface of bacteriophage, which will lead to preparation of unique plant lectins with high affinity toward a variety of carbohydrate chains.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.243-251
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• 1995

Three new lectins, MLA-I, MLA-II and MLA-III, have been isolatedand purified from the hemolymph of Meretrix lusoria and reported previously. Biophysicochemical characteristics were investigated with these three MLA lectins. The MLA lectins agglutinated human erythrocytes non specifically and proved as D-galactose group carbohydrate specific. Molecular weight of ML.A-I. II and III were estimated to be 330, 500 and 310KD, respectively, by gel filtration on Sepharose CL-6B column. On SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, ML.A-I was dissociated into a single subunit of 42KD, MLA-II was into the twelve subunits of 46, 32, 30, 28, 25, 23. 22, 20. 19, 16, 15, and 14KD, and MLA-III was into the two subunits of 72 and 44KD. The pl of MLA-I, II, III were 4.0. 4.9 and 5.0. Amino acid analysis revealed a high contents of acidic and hydroxy amino acids, and a paucity of sulfur containing amino acids. Proline was not contained in MLA-II.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.35 no.5
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• pp.444-455
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• 1991

Two kinds of new lectin fractions (LOA-I, LOA-II) were obtained from loach (Misgurnus spp.) meat by 0.15 M NaCl extraction, salt fractionation, ion exchange and hydroxyapatite column chromatographies. On polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, LOA-I exhibited one major and a few minor bands, but LOA-II exhibited three minor bands. The partially purified loach lectins agglutinated not only erythrocytes of human B and AB type, rabbit, dog, but also murine splenic lymphocytes. Agglutinability was relatively labile at various pH and stable at increasing temperature, but was not affected by tested several metal ions. By the sugar specificity test, D-glucosamine and metyl-$\beta$-galactopyranose inhibited agglutinating activity at a final concentration of 3 mM. The lectins contained relatively high amounts of aspartic acid, valine and leucine, but sulfur containing amino acids, cystein, methionine and isoleucine were not determined. LOA-I, LOA-II lectins were nonmitogenic toward murine lymphocytes.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.50-56
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• 1997

The mode of action of mastoparan B, an antimicrobial cationic tetradecapeptide amide isolated from the hornet Vespa basalis, toward phospholipid bilayers was studied with synthetic mastoparan B and its analogs with individual Ala instead of hydrophobic amino acids (1-Ile, 3-Leu, 6-Leu, 7-Val, 9-Trp, 13-Val, 14-Leu) in mastoparan B. Mastoparan B and its analogs were synthesized by the solid-phase method. Circular dichroism spectra showed that mastoparan B and its analogs adopted an unordered structure in buffer solution. In the presence of neutral and acidic liposomes, most of the peptides took an α-helical structure. The calcein leakage experiment indicated that mastoparan B interacted strongly with neutral and acidic lipid bilayers than its analogs. Mastoparan B also showed a more or less highly antimicrobial activity and hemolytic activity for human erythrocytes than its analogs. These results indicate that the hydrophobic face in the amphipathic α-helix of mastoparan B critically affect biological activity and helical contents.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.18 no.9
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• pp.933-938
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• 1997

The interaction of mastoparan B, a tetradecapeptide toxin found in the hornet Vespa basalis, with phospholipid bilayers was investigated. Synthetic mastoparan B and its analogs, obtained by substituting one hydrophilic amino acid (2-Lys, 4-Lys, 5-Ser, 8-Ser, 11-Lys, or 12-Lys) in mastoparan B with Ala, were studied. Mastoparan B and its analogs were synthesized by the solid-phase method. As shown by circular dichroism spectra, mastoparan B and its analogs adopted an unordered structure in buffer solution. All peptides took an α-helical structure, and the α-helical content of its analogs increased in the presence of neutral and acidic liposomes as compared to that of mastoparan B. In the calcein leakage experiment, we observed that mastoparan B interacted more weakly with lipid bilayers in neutral and acidic media than its analogs. Mastoparan B also showed slightly lower antimicrobial activity and hemolytic activity towards human erythrocytes than its analogs. These results indicate that the greater hydrophobicity of the amphiphilic α-helix of mastoparan B by replacement with alamine residues results in the increased biological activity and helical content.

• Proceedings of the PSK Conference
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• 2002.10a
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• pp.371.2-371.2
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• 2002

Bioassay-directed chromatographic fractionation of a methylene chloride extract of Ailanthus altisshima indicated the presence of 20(S). 24(R), epoxy-25-hydroxydammarane-3-one(compound 1. ocotillone). which was isolated from this plant for the first time. Antimicrobial activity of compound 1 was measured by its degree of growth inhibition against bacterial and fungal cells and by a hemolytic assay with human erythrocytes, respectively. (omitted)

• Proceedings of the PSK Conference
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• 2003.10b
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• pp.248.2-248.2
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• 2003

A lectin has been purified from the bark of the legume Maackia fauriei. This lectin, MFA, was found to agglutinate human ABO erythrocytes at a titer of 256. The results from electrophoretic analyses, gel-filtration chromatography, and enzyme linked lectinsorbent assay indicate that MFA is an acidic glycoprotein, and exists as a tetramer of 30 kDa subunits that are linked by noncovalent bonds. The activity of MFA is critically dependent upon CaC1$_2$. MFA demonstrated high homogeneity with the lectins from M. amurensis, which is the only legume source of lectins that bind to sialoglycoconjugate, in its N-terminal amino acid sequence and amino acid composition, (omitted)

• Preventive Nutrition and Food Science
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.139-145
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• 2008

We located a group of healthy young males (aged $20{\sim}30$) who had been taking a high dose (more than 5 g) of vitamin C daily for more than one year. We observed that this vitamin C group had plasma levels of vitamin C that were more than three times that of the control group. The control group had not taken any additional vitamin C except for that included in their diets. But the vitamin C group showed significantly lower amounts of Cu/ZnSOD, catalase and glutathione-s-transferase and lower activities of glutathione peroxidase and glutathione reductase in erythrocyte lysates than the control group. However, there was no difference in the plasma levels of lipid peroxides between the two groups. These results suggest that vitamin C offsets its own contribution to anti-oxidant activity by repressing the expression of anti-oxidant enzymes and also excludes the possibility that vitamin C acts as a pro-oxidant in vivo.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.15-23
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• 1985

Previous biochemical studies indicate that $(Na^++K^+)-ATPase$ is composed of two subunits, ${\alpha}$ and ${\beta}$, in a form of ${\alpha}_2{\beta}_2$ with a molecular weight of approximately 300,000 daltons. There is also suggestive evidence that the $Na^+$, $K^+$ pump in human erythrocytes occurs in a complex with some glycolytic enzymes. We assessed here in situ assembly size of the $(Na^++K^+)-ATPase$ of human erythrocytes by applying classical target theory to radiation inactivation data of the ouabain-sensitive sodium flux and ATP hydrolysis of intact cells and ghosts. Cells(in the presence of cryoprotective agent) and ghosts were irradiated at $-45^{\circ}C$ to $-50^{\circ}C$ with an increasing dose of a 1.5 MeV electron beam, and after thawing, the pump and/or enzyme activities were assayed. Each activity measured was decreased as a simple exponential function of radiation dose, from which a radiation sensitive volume (target size) was calculated. When intact cells were used, the target size of both $(Na^++K^+)-ATPase$ and $Na^+$, $K^+$ pump was found to be approximately 600,000 daltons. This target size of the ATPase was reduced to approximately 325,000 daltons if the cells were pretreated with strophanthidin. When ghosts were used, the target size of the ATPase was again approximately 325,000 daltons. Our target size measurement suggests that, in intact cells, the $(Na^++K^+)-ATPase/Na^+,K^+$ pump exists either as a dimer of $(\alpha\beta)_2$ which is a functional unit or as a monomer of $(\alpha\beta)_2$ but in tight complex with other enzyme or enzymes. The results also suggest that this dimeric or heterocomplex association is dissociated during ghost preparation and strophanthidin treatment.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.135-142
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• 1983

$PGE_2$ and $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$ are known to act similarly in a number of animal tissues. They both facilitate regression of corpus luteum(Poyser, 1972; Fuch et al, 1974; Coudert et at, 1974) and stimulate contraction of uterine muscle (Laudanski et al, 1977; Porter et al, 1979; Hollingsworth et al, 1980). It is, however, not known whether these two prostaglandins exert similar actions in osmotic fragility of erythrocytes (Rasmussen et al, 1975) and $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$ alters conformation of membrane proteins (Meyers aud Swislocki, 1974). The former effect may not be mediated through changes in c- AMP concentration in the cell, since the adenylate cyclase activity in human erythrocyte is extremely low (Rodan et al, 1976; Sutherland et al, 1962) and the latter effect implies that physical state (or fluidity) of the membrane is altered by $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$. The present study was undertaken to elucidate mechanisms of action of $PGE_2$ and $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$ on the human erythocyte membrane by examining their effects on osmotic fragility and $Ca^{++}$ binding to the membrane fragments. The results are summarized as follows: 1) $PGE_2$ and $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$ increased osmotic fragility at concentrations above $10^{11}\;M$, the effect being similar for both hormones. The concentration of NaCl for 100% hemolysis was $1/16{\sim}1/17\;M$ in the presence of $10^{11}\;M\;PGE_2$ or $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$ and 1/18 M in the absence of the hormone (control). 2) When erythrocytes were suspended in 1/15 M NaCl solution, $44.2{\pm}4.3%$ of cells were hemolyzed. Addition of $10^{12}\;M\;PGE_2$ or $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$ did not increase hemolysis. When the concentration of the hormones was increased to $10^{11}\;M$, however the degree of hemolysis increased markealy to about 80%. No further increase in hemolysis was observed at concentration of the hormones above $10^{11}\;M$. 3) The additional hemolysis due to $10^{11}\;M\;PGE_2$ and $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$ appeared to he identical regardless of absence or presence of $Ca^{++}\;(0.5{\sim}10\;mM)$ in the suspending medium. 4) In the absence of prostaglandin, the binding of $Ca^{++}$ to the erythrocyte membrane increased curvilinearly as the $Ca^{++}$ concentration increased up to 5 mM above which it leveled off. A similar dependence of $Ca^{++}$ binding on the $Ca^{++}$ concentration was observed in the presence of $10^{11}\;M\;PGE_2$ or $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$, however, the amount of $Ca^{++}$ bound at a given $Ca^{++}$ concentration was significantly higher than in the absence of the hormones. 5) As in the hemolysis, $PGE_2$ and $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$ did not affect the $Ca^{++}$ binding at a concentration of $10^{12}\;M$, but increased it by about 100% at concentration above $10^{11}\;M$. These result indicate that both tile osmotic fragility of erythrocyte and the $Ca^{++}$ binding to the erythrocyte membrane are similarly enhanced by $PGE_2$ and $PGF_{2{\alpha}}$, but these two effects are not causally related. It is, therefore, concluded that the prostaglandin-induced hemolysis is not directly associated with alterations of the $Ca^{++}$ content in the membrane.