• 한국발생생물학회지:발생과생식
• /
• 제24권4호
• /
• pp.297-306
• /
• 2020

Repetitive changes in the intracellular calcium concentration ([Ca²⁺]i) triggers egg activation, including cortical granule exocytosis, resumption of second meiosis, block to polyspermy, and initiating embryonic development. [Ca²⁺]i oscillations that continue for several hours, are required for the early events of egg activation and possibly connected to further development to the blastocyst stage. The sources of Ca²⁺ ion elevation during [Ca²⁺]i oscillations are Ca²⁺ release from endoplasmic reticulum through inositol 1,4,5 tri-phosphate receptor and Ca²⁺ ion influx through Ca²⁺ channel on the plasma membrane. Ca²⁺ channels have been characterized into voltage-dependent Ca²⁺ channels (VDCCs), ligand-gated Ca²⁺ channel, and leak-channel. VDCCs expressed on muscle cell or neuron is specified into L, T, N, P, Q, and R type VDCs by their activation threshold or their sensitivity to peptide toxins isolated from cone snails and spiders. The present study was aimed to investigate the localization pattern of N and P/Q type voltage-dependent calcium channels in mouse eggs and the role in fertilization. [Ca²⁺]i oscillation was observed in a Ca²⁺ contained medium with sperm factor or adenophostin A injection but disappeared in Ca²⁺ free medium. Ca²⁺ influx was decreased by Lat A. N-VDCC specific inhibitor, ω-Conotoxin CVIIA induced abnormal [Ca²⁺]i oscillation profiles in SrCl₂ treatment. N or P/Q type VDC were distributed on the plasma membrane in cortical cluster form, not in the cytoplasm. Ca²⁺ influx is essential for [Ca²⁺]i oscillation during mammalian fertilization. This Ca²⁺ influx might be controlled through the N or P/Q type VDCCs. Abnormal VDCCs expression of eggs could be tested in fertilization failure or low fertilization eggs in subfertility women.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
• /
• 제32권5호
• /
• pp.1443-1454
• /
• 2011

Methods to prepare novel second-order nonlinear optical (2O-NLO) materials composed of all-silica zeolite (silicalite-1) and a series of 2O-NLO molecules having high second order hyperpolarizability constants (${\beta}$ values) are reviewed. These methods include the development of novel methods to incorporate a series of hemicyanine (HC) molecules into the channels of silicaite-1 films in uniform orientations. The first method is to incorporate HC molecules tethered with long alkyl chains (octadecyl or longer) into the silicalite-1 channels with the long alkyl chain side first through the hydrophobic-hydrophobic interaction between the long alky chains and the silicalite-1 channels. The second method is to incorporate the HC molecule tethered with a medium length alkyl chain (nonyl) into the silicalite-1 channels with the medium length alkyl chain side first through hydrophobic-hydrophobic interaction between the medium length alky chain in the photoexcited state and the silicalite-1 channels. The third method is to incorporate the HC molecule tethered with propionic acid into the silicalite-1 channels with the propionic acid side last mediated by a tetrabultylammonium cation ion-paired to the propionate unit. A method to prepare a novel third-order nonlinear optical (3O-NLO) material composed of zeolite-Y and PbS or PbSe quantum dots is also reviewed. This Account thus describes a promising new direction to which the search for highly sensitive 2O-NLO and 3O-NLO materials has to be conducted and a new direction to which zeolite research and applications have to be expanded.

• BMB Reports
• /
• 제53권5호
• /
• pp.260-265
• /
• 2020

Scorpion venom comprises a cocktail of toxins that have proven to be useful molecular tools for studying the pharmacological properties of membrane ion channels. HelaTx1, a short peptide neurotoxin isolated recently from the venom of the scorpion Heterometrus laoticus, is a 25 amino acid peptide with two disulfide bonds that shares low sequence homology with other scorpion toxins. HelaTx1 effectively decreases the amplitude of the K⁺ currents of voltage-gated Kv1.1 and Kv1.6 channels expressed in Xenopus oocytes, and was identified as the first toxin member of the κ-KTx5 subfamily, based on a sequence comparison and phylogenetic analysis. In the present study, we report the NMR solution structure of HelaTx1, and the major interaction points for its binding to voltage-gated Kv1.1 channels. The NMR results indicate that HelaTx1 adopts a helix-loop-helix fold linked by two disulfide bonds without any β-sheets, resembling the molecular folding of other cysteine-stabilized helix-loop-helix (Cs α/α) scorpion toxins such as κ-hefutoxin, HeTx, and OmTx, as well as conotoxin pl14a. A series of alanine-scanning analogs revealed a broad surface on the toxin molecule largely comprising positively-charged residues that is crucial for interaction with voltage-gated Kv1.1 channels. Interestingly, the functional dyad, a key molecular determinant for activity against voltage-gated potassium channels in other toxins, is not present in HelaTx1.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
• /
• 제48권3호
• /
• pp.144-152
• /
• 2023

Background: Color texture analysis was applied as a tool for quantitative evaluation of radiation-induced skin injuries. Materials and Methods: We prospectively selected 20 breast cancer patients who underwent whole-breast radiotherapy after breast-conserving surgery. Color images of skin surfaces for irradiated breasts were obtained by using a mobile skin analyzer. The first skin measurement was performed before the first fraction of radiotherapy, and the subsequent measurement was conducted approximately 10 days after the completion of the entire series of radiotherapy sessions. For comparison, color images of the skin surface for the unirradiated breasts were measured similarly. For each color image, six co-occurrence matrices (red-green [RG], red-blue [RB], and green-blue [GB] from color channels, red [R], green [G], blue [B] from gray channels) can be generated. Four textural features (contrast, correlation, energy, and homogeneity) were calculated for each co-occurrence matrix. Finally, several statistical analyses were used to investigate the performance of the color textural parameters to objectively evaluate the radiation-induced skin damage. Results and Discussion: For the R channel from the gray channel, the differences in the values between the irradiated and unirradiated skin were larger than those of the G and B channels. In addition, for the RG and RB channels, where R was considered in the color channel, the differences were larger than those in the GB channel. When comparing the relative values between gray and color channels, the 'contrast' values for the RG and RB channels were approximately two times greater than those for the R channel for irradiated skin. In contrast, there were no noticeable differences for unirradiated skin. Conclusion: The utilization of color texture analysis has shown promising results in evaluating the severity of skin damage caused by radiation. All textural parameters of the RG and RB co-occurrence matrices could be potential indicators of the extent of skin damage caused by radiation.

• Archives of Pharmacal Research
• /
• 제26권1호
• /
• pp.28-33
• /
• 2003

Ginsenosides, major active ingredients of Panax ginseng, are known to regulate excitatory ligand-gated ion channel activity such as nicotinic acetylcholine and NMDA receptor channel activity. However, it is not known whether ginsenosides affect inhibitory ligand-gated ion channel activity. We investigated the effect of ginsenosides on human recombinant $GABA_A$ receptor (${\alpha}_1{\beta}_1{\gamma}_{2s}$) channel activity expressed in Xenopus oocytes using a two-electrode voltage-clamp technique. Among the eight individual ginsenosides examined, namely, $Rb_1$, $Rb_2$, Rc, Rd, Re, Rf, $Rg_1$ and $Rg_2$, we found that Rc most potently enhanced the GABA-induced inward peak current ($I_{GABA}$). Ginsenoside Rc alone induced an inward membrane current in certain batches of oocytes expressing the $GABA_A$ receptor. The effect of ginsenoside Rc on $I_{GABA}$ was both dose-dependent and reversible. The half-stimulatory concentration ($EC_{50}$) of ginsenoside Rc was 53.2$\pm$12.3 $\mu$M. Both bicuculline, a $GABA_A$ receptor antagonist, and picrotoxin, a $GABA_A$ channel blocker, blocked the stimulatory effect of ginsenoside Rc on $I_{GABA}$. Niflumic acid (NFA) and 4,4'-diisothiocyanostilbene-2,2'-disulfonic acid (DIDS), both $CI^{-1}$ channel blockers, attenuated the effect of ginsenoside Rc on I$I_{GABA}$. This study suggests that ginsenosides regulated $GABA_A$ receptor expressed in Xenopus oocytes and implies that this regulation might be one of the pharmacological actions of Panax ginseng.

• 대한전기학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 대한전기학회 2006년도 제37회 하계학술대회 논문집 C
• /
• pp.1297-1298
• /
• 2006

Omega-shaped-gate (OSG) nanowire-based field effect transistors (FETs) have been attracted recently attention due to their highdevice performance expected from theoretical simulations among nanowire-based FETs with other gate geometries. OSG FETs with the channels of ZnO nanowires were successfully fabricated in this study with photolithographic processes. In the OSG FETs fabricated on oxidized Si substrates, the channels of ZnO nanowires with diameters of about 60 nm are coated surroundingly by $Al_{2}O_{3}$ as gate dielectrics with atomic layer deposition. About 80 % of the surfaces of the nanowires coated with $Al_{2}O_{3}$ is covered with gate metal to form OSG FETs. A representative OSG FET fabricated in this study exhibits a mobility of 98.9 $cm^{2}/Vs$, a peak transconductance of 0.4 ${\mu}S$, and an Ion/Ioff ratio of $10^6$ the value of the Ion/Ioff ratio obtained from this OSG FET is the highest among nanowire-based FETs, to our knowledge. Its mobility, peak transconductance, and Ion/Ioff ratio arc remarkably enhanced by 11.5, 32, and $10^6$ times, respectively, compared with a back-gate FET with the same ZnO nanowire channel as utilized in the OSG FET.

• Molecules and Cells
• /
• 제44권10호
• /
• pp.758-769
• /
• 2021

Calcium homeostasis modulator 1 (CALHM1) is a membrane protein with four transmembrane helices that form an octameric ion channel with voltage-dependent activation. There are four conserved cysteine (Cys) residues in the extracellular domain that form two intramolecular disulfide bonds. We investigated the roles of C42-C127 and C44-C161 in human CALHM1 channel biogenesis and the ionic current (I_CALHM1). Replacing Cys with Ser or Ala abolished the membrane trafficking as well as I_CALHM1. Immunoblotting analysis revealed dithiothreitol-sensitive multimeric CALHM1, which was markedly reduced in C44S and C161S, but preserved in C42S and C127S. The mixed expression of C42S and wild-type did not show a dominant-negative effect. While the heteromeric assembly of CALHM1 and CALHM3 formed active ion channels, the co-expression of C42S and CALHM3 did not produce functional channels. Despite the critical structural role of the extracellular cysteine residues, a treatment with the membrane-impermeable reducing agent tris(2-carboxyethyl) phosphine (TCEP, 2 mM) did not affect I_CALHM1 for up to 30 min. Interestingly, incubation with TCEP (2 mM) for 2-6 h reduced both I_CALHM1 and the surface expression of CALHM1 in a time-dependent manner. We propose that the intramolecular disulfide bonds are essential for folding, oligomerization, trafficking and maintenance of CALHM1 in the plasma membrane, but dispensable for the voltage-dependent activation once expressed on the plasma membrane.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
• /
• 제25권1호
• /
• pp.87-94
• /
• 2021

Skin photoaging occurs due to chronic exposure to solar ultraviolet radiation (UV), the main factor contributing to extrinsic skin aging. Clinical signs of photoaging include the formation of deep, coarse skin wrinkles and hyperpigmentation. Although melanogenesis and skin wrinkling occur in different skin cells and have different underlying mechanisms, their initiation involves intracellular calcium signaling via calcium ion channels. The ORAI1 channel initiates melanogenesis in melanocytes, and the TRPV1 channel initiates MMP-1 production in keratinocytes in response to UV stimulation. We aimed to develop a drug that may simultaneously inhibit ORAI1 and TRPV1 activity to help prevent photoaging. We synthesized nootkatol, a chemical derivative of valencene. TRPV1 and ORAI1 activities were measured using the whole-cell patch-clamp technique. Intracellular calcium concentration [Ca2+]i was measured using calcium-sensitive fluorescent dye (Fura-2 AM). UV-induced melanin formation and MMP-1 production were quantified in B16F10 melanoma cells and HaCaT cells, respectively. Our results indicate that nootkatol (90 μM) reduced TRPV1 current by 94% ± 2% at -60 mV and ORAI1 current by 97% ± 1% at -120 mV. Intracellular calcium signaling was significantly inhibited by nootkatol in response to ORAI1 activation in human primary melanocytes (51.6% ± 0.98% at 100 μM). Additionally, UV-induced melanin synthesis was reduced by 76.38% ± 5.90% in B16F10 melanoma cells, and UV-induced MMP-1 production was reduced by 59.33% ± 1.49% in HaCaT cells. In conclusion, nootkatol inhibits both TRPV1 and ORAI1 to prevent photoaging, and targeting ion channels may be a promising strategy for preventing photoaging.

• 한국진공학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 한국진공학회 2014년도 제46회 동계 정기학술대회 초록집
• /
• pp.205.2-205.2
• /
• 2014

The effects of ion beam mixing of a SiC film coated on super alloys (hastelloy X substrates) were studied, aiming at developing highly sustainable materials at above $900^{\circ}C$ in decomposed sulfuric acid gas (SO2/SO3/H2O) channels of a process heat exchanger. The bonding between two dissimilar materials is often problematic, particularly in coating metals with a ceramics protective layer. A strong bonding between SiC and hastelloy X was achieved by mixing the atoms at the interface by an ion-beam: The film was not peeled-off at ${\geq}900^{\circ}C$, confirming excellent adhesion, although the thermal expansion coefficient of hastelloy X is about three times higher than that of SiC. Instead, the SiC film was cracked along the grain boundary of the substrate at above $700^{\circ}C$. At ${\geq}900^{\circ}C$, the film was crystallized forming islands on the substrate so that a considerable part of the substrate surface could be exposed to the corrosive environment. To cover the exposed areas and cracks multiple coating/IBM processes have been developed. An immersion corrosion test in 80% sulfuric acid at $300^{\circ}C$ for 100 h showed that the weight retain rate was gradually increased when increasing the processing time.

• 한국세라믹학회지
• /
• 제56권1호
• /
• pp.65-70
• /
• 2019

Simple fabrication of a powdered Ge-reduced graphene oxide (Ge-rGO) composite via spray pyrolysis and reduction is introduced herein. Successful incorporation of the rGO nanosheets with Ge hindered the aggregation of Ge and conferred enhanced structural stability to the composite by alleviating the mechanical stress associated with drastic volume changes during repeated cycling. The Li-ion storage performance of Ge-rGO was compared with that of powdered Ge metal. The reversible discharge capacity of Ge-rGO at the $200^{th}$ cycle was $748mA\;h\;g^{-1}$ at a current density of $1.0A\;g^{-1}$ and Ge-rGO showed a capacity of $375mA\;h\;g^{-1}$ even at a high current density of $5.0A\;g^{-1}$. The excellent performance of Ge-rGO is attributed to the structural robustness, enhanced electrical conductivity, and formation of open channels between the rGO nanosheets, which facilitated electrolyte penetration for improved Li-ion diffusion.