• Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.33-46
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• 2008

Objectives : Obesity is a metabolic disease resulted from various causes including nutritional disproportion, hormonal imbalance, and hypothalamic nuclei disorder. Samhwang-tang(Sanhuang-tang, SHT) is composed of 5 herbs (Ephedrae Herba, Scutellariae Radix, Typhae pollen, Acori Rhizoma and Ansu Semen) and is frequently used for obese patients. This study investigated anti-obesity effects of SHT on the rats. Methods : Obesity was induced by high fat diet (HFD), monosodium L-glutamate injection (MSG) and ovariectomy (OVX) in the Sprague-Dawley rats. Water extract of SHT was treated for 2 weeks, then changes of body weight gain and epididymal fat cell size were measured. In OVX animals, c-Fos and neuropeptide Y (NPY) expressions in hypothalamic nuclei were observed with immunohistochemistry. Results : SHT treatment demonstrated significant decrease of body weight gain in obesity induced by HFD and OVX, but not in obesity induced by MSG. SHT treatment demonstrated significant decrease of fat cell size in obesity induced by HFD, but not in obesity induced by MSG. On c-Fos and NPY expressions in hypothalamic nuclei, SHT treatment resulted significant decrease of immuno-reactivity of c-Fos and NPY in obesity induced by OVX. Conclusions : These results suggest that SHT has a weight loss effect against obesity induced by nutritional disproportion of diet intake and hormonal imbalance, especially without central nervous system disorder.

• Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.37 no.6
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• pp.427-432
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• 1994

The effectiveness of the resting cells of a photosynthetic bacterium, Rhodocyclus gelatinosus KUP-74, was investigated on the production of extracellular ${\delta}-aminolevulinate$ (ALA). The ALA generating system with 1.05 mg cells per milliliter required 6 hr-incubation to obtain maximal yield of extracellular ALA. Under this condition ALA inducers, i.e., levulinate or L-glutamate showed relatively low effects to increase extracellular ALA production. Instead, the volume of the system and proper cell density appeared to be important factors for effective production of the ALA. The life-span of the resting cells was remarkably extended to maintain stable production of the ALA by immobilization of cells.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.190-195
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• 2007

A new electrochemical sensor to selectively determine epinephrine was developed and its analytical characteristics has been investigated. A glassy carbon electrode was modified with Ni(II)-macrocyclic complex which has electrocatalytic effect. It was further modified with physiologically suitable and negatively charged polyuretane benzyl L-glutamate(PUBLG). The present electrode showed long term stability and it could be applied to the selective determination of epinephrine in urine sample with various coexisting compounds. Under the optimum experimental conditions the linear range was $8.0\;{\times}\;10^{-7}\;-\;2.0\;{\times}\;10^{-4}\;M$ and the limit of detection was $1.0\;{\times}\;10^{-7}\;M$. The recovery of epinephrine in urine sample diluted 5 times with buffer solution was $101.5({\pm}3.2)%$ for 6 measurements.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.49 no.1
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• pp.30-37
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• 2016

Microalgae are functional foods because they contain special anti-aging inhibitors and other functional components, such as ecosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. Many of these functional dietary components are absent in animals and terrestrial plants. Thus, microalgae are widely utilized in human functional foods and in the feed provided to farmed fish and terrestrial livestock. Many marine organisms consume microalgae, often because they are in an appropriate portion of the cell size spectrum, but also because of their nutritional content. The nutritional requirements of marine organisms differ from those of terrestrial animals. After hatching, marine animals need small live forage species that have high omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid contents, including EPA and DHA. Euglena cells have both plant and animal characteristics; they are motile, elliptical in shape, 15-500 μm in diameter, and have a valuable nutritional content. Mixotrophic cell cultivation provided the best growth rates and nutritional content. Diverse carbon (fructose, lactose, glucose, maltose and sucrose) and nitrogen (tryptone, peptone, yeast extract, urea and sodium glutamate) supported the growth of microalgae with high lipid contents. We found that the best carbon and nitrogen sources for the production of high quality Euglena cells were glucose (10 g L^–1) and sodium glutamate (1.0 g L^–1), respectively.

• Journal of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.37 no.11
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• pp.937-942
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• 1993

Enzyme electrodes for amperometric measurement of ammonia was prepared by immobilization of L-glutamate dehydrogenase on an Immobilon-AV Affinity membrane and attachment to a glassy carbon electrode. Reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) was used as the electroactive species. The electrochemical oxidation of NADH was monitored at ＋1.0 volt vs. Ag/AgCl. Response was linear from $4.0\;{\times}\;10^{-5}\;to\;4.0\;{\times}\;10^{-4}$ M. The detection limit was 2.0 ${\times}\;10^{-6}$ M. Response time, the optimum pH and life time of enzyme immobilized membrane were 2 min, pH 7.3∼7.6 (Dulbecco's buffer solution) and about 25 days respectively. When the enzyme electrode was applied to the $NH_4^+$ determination with amperometric method, other physiological materials had no interference.

• Advances in Traditional Medicine
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.103-110
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• 2010

The seed powder of Abrus precatorius L. has traditionally been used as oral contraceptive agent by the women in some rural areas in Bangladesh. The present study aimed to examine the antifertility activity of A. precatorius seed extracts in experimental female rats. Finely ground seeds were extracted with aqueous acetone followed by successive partitioning with n-hexane, ethyl acetate (EtOAc), methanol (MeOH) and water. Water suspended crude seed powder, organic fractions of acetone extract and a standard contraceptive drug ($Nordette^{(R)}28$) were separately administered orally to the female rats for 30 days. n-Hexane, EtOAc and MeOH solubles at the doses of 2, 4 and 6 mg/rat/day, respectively and crude seed powder at 100 mg/rat/day exhibited 100% antifertility activity with lowest levels of serum luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and $17{\beta}$-estradiol. Histological study of ovary and uterus of these rats exhibited reduced number of developing follicles and increased number of atretic follicles in the ovary, and fewer uterine glands with shrunken morphology, reduced endometrial height, poor vascularity and compact stroma in uterus. However, the activities of serum glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase and serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase and the body weight of the rats remained almost unaffected in all the seed extract treated rats compared to control. These results suggest that A. precatorius seed extracts reduced the levels of serum FSH, LH and $17{\beta}$-estradiol probably by affecting hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis. The reduced levels of these hormones might have affected the oestrous cycle, follicular development, and subsequently the establishment of pregnancy in treated rats.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.14-20
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• 2008

In the present study, we examined how the transport of choline is regulated at the blood-brain barrier (BBB) under the central nervous system (CNS) cellular damages by oxidative stress using a conditionally immortalized rat brain capillary endothelial cells (TR-BBB), in vitro the BBB model. It was also tested whether the choline uptake is influenced by membrane potential, extracellular pH, protonophore (FCCP) and amiloride in TR-BBB cells. In result, $[^3H]choline$ uptake was inhibited by FCCP and dependent on extracellular pH. The treatment of TR-BBB cells with 20 ng/mL tumor necrosis $factor-{\alpha}$ $(TNF-{\alpha})$, 10 ng/mL lipopolysaccharide (LPS), 100 ${\mu}M$ diethyl maleate (DEM) and 100 ${\mu}M$ glutamate resulted in 3.0-fold, 2.6-fold, 1.8-fold and 2.0-fold increases of $[^3H]choline$ uptake at the respective peak time, respectively. In contrast, hydrogen peroxide and raffinose did not show any significant effects on choline uptake. In addition, choline efflux was significantly inhibited by $TNF-{\alpha}$, LPS and DEM producing cell damage states. In conclusion, the influx and efflux transport system for choline existed in TR-BBB cell line and this process was affected by several oxidative stress inducing agents.

• The Korean Journal of Food And Nutrition
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.72-79
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• 2004

This study was conducted to investigate the identification of lactic acid bacteria produced ν-aminobutyric acid(GABA) from traditional salt fermented anchovy. There was no appreciable difference in the number of lactic acid bacteria from fermented anchovy. Among the types of lactic acid bacteria, three strains of lactic acid bacteria produced ν-aminobutyric acid from those sample were identified temporary as name of Lactobacillus brevis BH-21, Lactobacillus rhamnosus BH-32 and Lactobacillus plantarum BH-38 by using gram positive identification(GPI) card and API 50 kit, respectively. 3 strains of Lactobacillus sp. were found to produce GAB A in the culture of filtrate. Lactobacillus brevis BH-21 produced GABA, some of which yielded 43.2 mg/mL GABA in the medium of 0.1% glucose, 0.1% yeast extract, 0.05% polypeptone, 0.002% MgSO$_4$$.$4H$_2$O, 0.001% FeSO$_4$$.$7H$_2$O, 0.01% NaCl, 0.1% monosodium glutamate, pH 6.0. This result suggests that Lactobacillus brevis BH-21 has the potential to be developed as a strain of GABA production.

• Advances in Traditional Medicine
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• v.5 no.3
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• pp.201-208
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• 2005

Earlier we have reported the antidiabetic activity of fresh juice of rhizomes of Zingiber officinale (Z. officinale) and its correlation with 5-HT receptor antagonism. Since 6-gingerol the marker compound of Z. officinale is reported to posses 5-HT anatgonistic activity, the present investigation, was undertaken to find out the concentration of 6-gingerol present in methanolic extract of Z. officinale and its different fractions (petroleum ether, toluene and chloroform). We also evaluated these fractions for antidiabetic activity in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced neonatal type 2 diabetic rats. Fasting glucose and insulin levels in non insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) rats were found to be significantly (P < 0.05) higher than control rats and these were significantly decreased by treatment with methanolic extract of Z. officinale and its fractions. The results of oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) showed that methanolic extract and its fractions significantly (P < 0.05) decreased both STZ-induced increase in $AUC_{glucose}$ and $AUC_{insulin}$ values in NIDDM groups. Treatment with petroleum ether fraction produced a greater reduction in elevated glucose and $AUC_{glucose}$ levels as compared to treatment with other fractions. Treatment with methanolic extract of Z. officinale and its fractions also produced significant reduction in the elevated lipid, serum glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase (SGOT) and serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase (SGPT) levels in NIDDM rats. The effect of petroleum ether fraction on elevated lipid, SGOT and SGPT levels was significantly greater as compared to treatment with other fractions. The concentration of 6-gingerol was found to be maximum in petroleum ether fraction (11.430%) and minimum in chloroform fraction (0.973%). The methanolic extract and toluene fraction was found to contain 3.080% and 2.191 %, 6-gingerol respectively. In conclusion, our data suggest that methonolic extract and its fractions possess significant antidiabetic activity in NIDDM rats. The extent of activity appears to be dependent on the concentration of 6-gingerol present in the extract or its fractions.

• Journal of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.947-954
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• 1992

Polyethylene glycol (PEG) grafted poly (γ-benzyl L-glutamate) (PBLG) was synthesized by the substitution reaction of PBLG and PEG having primary amino groups at both ends. PEG-g-PBLG films containing hydroxyl group were also prepared by the substitution reaction of PEG-g-PBLG film and ethanolamine (EA). Adhesion of platelets and activation of plasma proteins on the copolypeptide films were studied. The results showed that platelets are less adhered and activated on the PEG-g-PBLG than on other polypeptides and plasma recalcification time (PRT) on the PEG-g-PBLG was longer than that on other polypeptides. These results were consistent with those of blood clotting time and thrombus formation on the polypeptides. As a results, PEG-g-PBLG surfaces showed better blood compatibility than PBLG or PEG-g-PBLG-EA surfaces.