• Mycobiology
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.215-220
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• 2014

Mushrooms are a recognized component of the human diet, with versatile medicinal properties. Some mushrooms are popular worldwide for their nutritional and therapeutic properties. However, some species are dangerous because they cause toxicity. There are many reports explaining the medicinal and/or toxic effects of these fungal species. Cases of serious human poisoning generally caused by the improper identification of toxic mushroom species are reported every year. Different substances responsible for the fatal signs and symptoms of mushroom toxicity have been identified from various poisonous mushrooms. Toxicity studies of mushroom species have demonstrated that mushroom poisoning can cause adverse effects such as liver failure, bradycardia, chest pain, seizures, gastroenteritis, intestinal fibrosis, renal failure, erythromelalgia, and rhabdomyolysis. Correct categorization and better understanding are essential for the safe and healthy consumption of mushrooms as functional foods as well as for their medicinal use.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Toxicology Conference
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• 2003.10b
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• pp.92-93
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• 2003

Chemoprevention refers to the use of agents to inhibit, reverse, or retard tumorigenesis. Numerous phytochemicals present in edible plants have been reported to interfere with a specific stage of the carcinogenic process. Some antioxidative and anti-inflammatory substances derived from dietary or medicinal plants exert chemopreventive properties by targeting intracellular signaling molecules or events.(omitted)

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.347-362
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• 2016

Marine sponges have been considered as a drug treasure house with respect to great potential regarding their secondary metabolites. Most of the studies have been conducted on sponge's derived compounds to examine its pharmacological properties. Such compounds proved to have antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, antimalarial, antitumor, immunosuppressive, and cardiovascular activity. Although, the mode of action of many compounds by which they interfere with human pathogenesis have not been clear till now, in this review not only the capability of the medicinal substances have been examined in vitro and in vivo against serious pathogenic microbes but, the mode of actions of medicinal compounds were explained with diagrammatic illustrations. This knowledge is one of the basic components to be known especially for transforming medicinal molecules to medicines. Sponges produce a different kind of chemical substances with numerous carbon skeletons, which have been found to be the main component interfering with human pathogenesis at different sites. The fact that different diseases have the capability to fight at different sites inside the body can increase the chances to produce targeted medicines.

• Restorative Dentistry and Endodontics
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.2.1-2.12
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• 2023

Objectives: In this study, natural substances were introduced as primary dental pulp caps for use in pulp therapy, and the antimicrobial and cytotoxic properties of these substances were investigated. Materials and Methods: In this in vitro study, the antimicrobial properties of calcium-enriched mixture (CEM) cement, propolis, and propolis individually combined with the extracts of several medicinal plants were investigated against Enterococcus faecalis, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Staphylococcus aureus. Then, the cytotoxicity of each substance or mixture against pulp stem cells extracted from 30 primary healthy teeth was evaluated at 4 concentrations. Data were gathered via observation, and optical density values were obtained using the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) test and recorded. SPSS software version 23 was used to analyze the data. Data were evaluated using 2-way analysis of variance and the Tukey test. Results: Regarding antimicrobial properties, thyme alone and thyme + propolis had the lowest minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) against the growth of S. aureus, E. coli, and P. aeruginosa bacteria. For E. faecalis, thyme + propolis had the lowest MIC, followed by thyme alone. At 24 and 72 hours, thyme + propolis, CEM cement, and propolis had the greatest bioviability in the primary dental pulp stem cells, and lavender + propolis had the lowest bioviability. Conclusions: Of the studied materials, thyme + propolis showed the best results in the measures of practical performance as a dental pulp cap.

• Korean Journal of Pharmacognosy
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.211-215
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• 1999

This study was aimed to evaluate an agonistic activity to benzodiazepine receptor of several medicinal plants, which have been used as sedatives in oriental medicine. Methanol extracts of medicinal plants which were used in this study inhibited the binding of $[^3H]Ro15-1788$, a selective benzodiazepine receptor antagonist to benzodiazepine receptor of rat cortices. Inhibitory activity of Cyperus rotundus was observed to be the highest among the tested medicinal plants. Methanol extracts of Cyperus rotundus and Zizypus jujuba inhibited a $[^3H]flunitrazepam$, a selective benzodiazepine receptor agonist, binding to benzodiazepine receptor. GABA significantly enhanced the inhibition of $[3H]flunitrazepam$ binding by Cyperus rotundus and Zizypus jujuba, and these positive GABA shifts supported the strong possibility of agonistic activity to benzodiazepine receptor. From these results, it may be concluded that the substance or substances with neurochemical properties characteristic of a benzodiazepine receptor agonist may be important components and contribute to the sedative property of these medicinal plants.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.48
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• pp.41-48
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• 2003

The number of natural products obtained from plants has now reached over 100,000 and new chemical compounds are being discovered ever year. Medicinal and Aromatic plants and their extracts have been used for centuries to relieve pain, aid healing, kill bacteria and insects are important as the antifungal and anti-herbivore agents with further compounds being involved in the symbiotic associations. Although their functions in plants have not been fully established, it is Known that some substances have growth regulatory properties while others are involved in pollination and seed dispersal. The complex nature of these chemicals are usually produced in various types of secretory structures which is an important character of a plant family and also influenced and controlled by genetic and ecological factors. Detailed anatomical description of these structures ave relevant to the market value of the plants, the verification of authenticity of a given species and for the detection of substitution or adulteration. Volatile oils are used for their therapeutic action for flavoring of lemon, in perfumery of rose or as starting materials for the synthesis of other compounds of turpentine. For therapeutic purposes they are administered as inhalations of eucalyptus oil, peppermint oil, as gargles and mouthwashes of thymol and transdermally many essential oils including those of lavender, etc. With these current trend for using volatile components in essential oil will be increasing in the future in Korea and in the world as well.

• Transactions on Electrical and Electronic Materials
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.11-14
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• 2003

The regularities of immobilization of natural medicinal substances - alchidine on gels of poly(vinyl alcohol) - are investigated. It is shown that the polymer components of alchidine interact with nonionic polymer with formation of interpolymer complexes. The influence of the different factors on the properties of complexes is considered and the constants of alchidine distribution in the system gel - water are calculated.

• 보존과학연구
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• s.22
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• pp.5-25
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• 2001

The germicidal and insecticidal properties of volatile components extracted from star anise(Illicium verum Hooker filius) and clove (Eugenia caryophyllata THUNBERG)were evaluated against five microorganisms and three insects for the purpose of developing biocidal active substances from medicinal plants. The volatile components of star anise and clove showed strong antimicrobial effect against Aspergillus niger, Penicillium funiculosum, Mucor hiemalis, Trichoderma viride, and Aureobasidium pullulans. The extracts of each medicine also showed insecticidal effects against Sitophilusoryzae L., Lyctus linearis GOZE, and Reticulitermes spertus kyushuensis Morimoto. Fumigant toxicities to adult insects were determined. In the case of fumiganttoxicity, the extract of star anise showed 100% mortality against R. spertus, S.oryzae, and L. linearis at rates of $2.5\mu\ell$, $50\mu\ell$, $250\mu\ell$/filter paper, respectively but showed no killing effects by clove. The volatile components of star anise and clove were investigated by means of GC/MS. The main constitute, anethole among 20components from star anise and eugenol among 9 components from clove were identified. The mixture of star anise and clove as the volume ratio of 2 : 1 showed higher properties for antimicrobial and insecticidal effect than each volatile component. A. niger was inhibited by the mixture(125ml/$m^3$) for up to 10 days of exposure. Also, from the result of observing state change of organic materials by volatile extracts of star anise and clove, volatile extracts effects have no effect on natural organic materials of organic cultural properties and can be used as biological control agent. As research contents as above, the insecticidal and germicidal agents from star anise and clove and the mixture of them were more efficient and high level to prevent biological damage for conservation of organic cultural properties. So they may be used in new development of biologicalinsecticidal and germicidal agents for conservation of cultural properties.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.53-57
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• 2013

This study was performed to examine the possibility of water extracts for several medicinal plants, such as Amomum tsao-ko, Alpinia oxyphylla, and Citrus unshiu, as an active packaging ingredient for prevention of lipid oxidation. Chicken breast meats were packed with medicinal plant extracts incorporated carrageenan based films and their physico-chemical and microbial properties during storage at $5^{\circ}C$ were investigated. In chicken meat samples packed with A. tsao-ko (TF) or A. oxyphylla (OF) extract incorporated carrageenan based films, pH value, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), and the population of total microbes were significantly lower than those of the negative control (film of no extract was incorporated, CF) after 5 d of storage (p<0.05). Especially, TBARS value of TF ($0.12{\pm}0.01$ mg malonaldehyde/kg meat) was significantly lower than chicken meat samples packed with positive control (ascorbic acid incorporated film, AF, $0.16{\pm}0.01$ mg malonaldehyde/kg meat) at 3 d of storage, and it means TF has enough antioxidative activity to prevent the lipid oxidation of chicken meat. However, there was no consistent effect on VBN values of chicken meats packed with medicinal plant extracts incorporated films during storage. Based on the obtained results, it is considered that A. tsao-ko extract has potential for being used as a natural antioxidant ingredient in active packaging areas.

• The Journal of Dong Guk Oriental Medicine
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• v.11
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• pp.41-51
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• 2008

Dietary supplements are used by more than one-half of the adult US population. By contrast, herbal products in Germany are carefully regulated by the same standards as drugs, and efforts are under way to standardize their regulation in the entire European Union. Most herbal users do not inform their physicians that they are taking these supplements, and most physicians do not inquire. Although some herbal products have clinically proven benefits, it is increasingly apparent that many contain potentially toxic substances, particularly in relation to interactions with drugs. Hence, it is essential that practicing physicians develop a working knowledge of herbals-specifically, about claims for their usage and potential or proven efficacies and toxicities-and that they incorporate such knowledge into the evaluation and management of their patients. By contrast, functional foods-integral components of the diet that are understood to contribute added health benefits-are the subject of intense and widespread research in food and nutritional science. Examples include many polyphenolic substances, carotenoids, soy isoflavones, fish oils, and components of nuts that possess antioxidant and other properties that decrease the risk of vascular diseases and cancer. Practicing physicians are advised to stay abreast of these emerging findings in order to best advise their patients on the value of health-promoting diets in disease prevention.