• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.211-219
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• 2016

Background: Panax ginseng root is used in traditional oriental medicine for human health. Its main active components such as saponins and polysaccharides have been widely evaluated for treating diseases, but secondary active components such as oligosaccharides have been rarely studied. This study aimed to assess the impact of water-soluble ginseng oligosaccharides (WGOS), which were isolated from the warm-water extract of Panax ginseng root, on scopolamine-induced cognitive impairment in mice and its antineuroinflammatory mechanisms. Methods: We investigated the impact of WGOS on scopolamine-induced cognitive impairment in mice by using Morris water maze and novel object recognition task. We also analyzed the impact of WGOS on scopolamine-induced inflammatory response (e.g., the hyperexpression of proinflammatory cytokines IL-$1{\beta}$ and IL-6 and astrocyte activation) by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and glial fibrillary acid protein (GFAP) immunohistochemical staining. Results: WGOS pretreatment protected against scopolamine-induced learning and memory deficits in the Morris water maze and in the novel object recognition task. Furthermore, WGOS pretreatment downregulated scopolamine-induced hyperexpression of proinflammatory cytokines interleukin (IL)-$1{\beta}$ and IL-6 mRNA and astrocyte activation in the hippocampus. These results indicate that WGOS can protect against scopolamine-induced alterations in learning and memory and inflammatory response. Conclusion: Our data suggest that WGOS may be beneficial as a medicine or functional food supplement to treat disorders with cognitive deficits and increased inflammation.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.93-103
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• 2006

Objectives : To Investigate Severity Measurement and the Correlation between Acupoints on the Face and the Upper limb in Bell's Palsy Patients by Using of DITI. Methods : By using of DITI, thermal differences between abnormal and normal site in acupoints on the face and the upper limbs of 21 Bell's palsy patients who visited department of Acupuncture & Moxibustion in National Medical Center from 1st February 2004 to 31th December 2005 were measured around 7days after the onset in standardized Environment. The patients were classified by severity scale. Results : The means of thermal difference of the facial acupoints were significantly distributed at each grade. The thermal difference of GB14 was significantly correlated with thermal difference of TE4, the thermal difference of S4 was significantly correlated with thermal difference of L6 and SI4, the thermal difference of STI18 was significantly correlated with thermal difference of LI11 and the thermal difference of LI20 was significantly correlated with thermal difference of LI11 and LI4. The thermal differences of acupoints in Large intestine meridian were more closely correlated with thermal difference of the facial acupoints than thermal difference of acupoints in the other meridians. Conclusion : Severity of Bell's palsy can be presumed through DITI image. And the theory of meridian was confirmed by DITI in Bell's palsy patients.

• Advances in Traditional Medicine
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.174-181
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• 2009

Pterocarpus marsupium, Clitoria ternatea, and Sanseveiria cylindrica are some of the important and endangered medicinal plant species of India. Despite of medicinal properties, antibacterial potential of the plants have not yet been explored. The present study was designed to optimize the in vitro technique for micropropagation and to screen the extracts from leaves and in vitro raised calli for antibacterial properties. Excised leaf-explants from the parent plants were surface sterilized and cultivated on Murashige & Skoog's (MS) medium containing $N^6$-benzyladenine (BA) in concentrations of 1, 2, 5, and $10{\mu}M$. Optimal growth of calli was noticed at a concentration of $5{\mu}M$, therefore the extracts from calli grown at this concentration were further studied for antibacterial activity. Both alcoholic and aqueous extracts from leaves of respective plants, and their in vitro raised calli were tested for antibacterial activity by agar well diffusion method against a range of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Aqueous extracts showed antibacterial activity against limited number of bacterial species; notably the extracts of C. ternatea which showed antibacterial activity against Streptococcus pyogenes, Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus cereus. Alcoholic extracts of all three plants showed antibacterial activity against a wider range of bacteria. Among the Gram-positive bacteria, extracts from C. ternatea showed strong antibacterial activity against Bacillus spp., whereas the extracts of S. cylindrica showed good antibacterial potential for Staphylococcus aureus, S. epidermidis and S. pyogenes. The extracts from all three plants showed antibacterial activity against Gram-negative bacteria, including, Salmonella spp. and Shigella dysenteriae; organisms causing enteric fever and dysentery. In most of the cases, the extracts from respective calli showed comparable, and in some cases better, result in comparison to the extracts from parent leaves. To the best of our knowledge this is the first preliminary report on antibacterial potential, especially through calli extracts, of these plants; and in vitro cultivation of the explants may be used to obtain phytotherapeutic compounds.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology and Dermatology
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.87-93
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• 2004

Objective: We would like to find out the correlation between acne distribution in the jaw and the emmeniopathy. Methods: The clinical studies were made on 43 cases of acne vulgaris who visited to Department of Dermatology, Dongguk University Gangnam Oriental Medical Hospital during from August, 2002 to July, 2004. We divided the patients into two groups. A group had the emmeniopathy. B group didn't have the emmeniopathy. In the acne grade and the number of acne, we investigated the difference between A and B group statistically. We used the statical methods of student's t-test on the number of acne and wilcoxon rank sum test on acne grade. Results: The mean age was 25.8${\pm}$4.80 in A group and 27.6${\pm}$5.68 in B group. There were painful menstruation, quality of thickness, menstrual cycle disorder, menstrual amount disorder, dark purple color, premenstrual acne in A group with the emmeniopathy. The acne grade was 1.69${\pm}$1.28 in A group, 1.43${\pm}$1.28 in B group. The number of acne was 3.66${\pm}$3.15 in A group, 4.36${\pm}$4.07 in B group. P-value was 0.52 in acne grade and 0.25 in the number of acne. We investigated no difference between A and B group statistically on acne grade and the number of acne. Conclusions: We needed the further study about the factor which affect on acne distribution and emmeniopathy.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.31-39
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• 2017

Objectives : Menopausal symptoms are characteristic symptoms which are occur in women before and after menopause. In Western medicine, hormone therapies are mainly used but patients show reluctance because they exhibit serious side effects. In Oriental medicine, there are also limits to the treatment. So I tried to find a new easily accessible treatment. I performed the experiments to verify the effect of natural dyed apparel with Indigo and Schisandra fruit. Methods : This experiment was performed on 30 women who were experiencing menopausal symptoms. We checked the participant's general condition through questionnaire and physical condition with inbody test and made natural-dyed living suit style dresses. We asked the women to wear the apparel for four weeks. They checked for changes in symptoms weekly with kupperman's index. Results : The main symptoms of participants are sweating, hot flushes, joint pain. After wearing of the apparel, there were decreased hot flushes, sleep improvement, psychological stability etc. According to the kupperman's index, patients with mild symptoms were 13.3% at first week to start the experiment but four weeks later, patients with mild symptoms were increased to 50%. On the other hand, patients with severe symptoms were decreased 33.3% to 6.7%. In the test results, there was a significant decrease in 1, 2 and 3 weeks, there was a decrease in 4 weeks but no significance in the figure Conclusion : Natural dyed apprel with Indigo and Schisandra fruit was effective on treating women who were experiencing menopausal symptoms.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.192-200
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• 2012

Fruits are generally recommended for a balanced meal, as they are good sources of vitamins, minerals, and fiber, which may improve blood glucose control. However, fruits have simple sugars with a wide glycemic index (GI) range. The purpose of this study was to analyze the sugar content and composition and to determine the glycemic indices of the most frequently consumed fruits in Korea, including apple, tangerine, pear, water melon, persimmon, grape, oriental melon, and peach. The sugar content and composition of the fruits were analyzed by high performance anion-exchange chromatography (Dinonex model DX-600). The GI of the fruits was measured in 13 healthy subjects (seven females and six males) after permission was received from the University Hospital institutional review board (KHU-IRB 1114-06). The subjects consumed 50 g of glucose as a reference and carbohydrate portions of eight fruits. Blood samples were collected at 0, 30, 60, 90, and 120 min after consuming the fruits. The GI values for the fruits were calculated by expressing the increase in the area under the blood glucose response curve for each subject. As a result, the total sugar contents of 100 g fruits were: grape (13.9 g), apple (12.3 g), persimmon (11.9 g), oriental melon (11.2 g), watermelon (9.3 g), tangerine (8.9 g), peach (8.6 g), and pear (8.3 g). The GI values of the fruits were as follows: GI value of peach ($56.5{\pm}14.17$), watermelon ($53.5{\pm}18.07$), oriental melon ($51.2{\pm}18.14$), tangerine ($50.4{\pm}15.16$), grape ($48.1{\pm}14.05$), persimmon ($42.9{\pm}18.92$), pear ($35.7{\pm}14.38$), and apple ($33.5{\pm}11.92$). These findings will help individuals choose fruit for controlling blood sugar.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.53-62
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• 2006

Objectives : Because of the recent well-being syndrome, concerns about smoking cessation, as well as dietary improvement and exercise, are being increased. There are various methods for smoking cessation. Among them, recently acupuncture treatment is verified through diverse attempts. This research was conducted to examine the effects of acupuncture treatment especially on juvenile smoking cessation. Methods : From April 04 to Oct 04, this study had investigated 93 middle and high school students. 5 times of acupuncture treatment were given to each participant, and the survey was executed before and after each treatment. The acupuncture was treated to the ear alternately twice a week. The evaluation was taken before the treatment after the 1st treatment, and the 5th treatment with 6 questions of amount of daily smoking, desire to smoke, taste of smoking, subjective symptoms, smoking cessation proportion, Fagerstorm Tolerance Questionaire point. Results : Regarding amount of daily smoking, the significant tendency between before and after the treatment varied, but between the 1st and the 5th treatment, there was no difference. The 1st treatment had caused desire to smoke reduction in 46 students(49.5%), but the 5th treatment didn't have much effects on desire to smoke(43 persons; 46.2%). After treatment, 37.6% had no effect in taste of smoking, while the rest of them showed various reactions. Also, there were no difference of significant tendency between the 1st and 5th treatments. In respect to the amount of smoking, 70% of them achieved smoking cessation, or reduction in smoking, but about 25% of them showed no changes. Various subjective symptoms such as lethargy, decrease of appetite, headache were shown, and especially desire to smoke was shown pervasively. Regarding Fagerstorm Tolerance Questionaire point, the average of significant tendency in point after the treatment had decreased(3.1+-2.4 to 2.1+-2.1, p<0.0001). but for those students who had tried smoking cessation less than 5 times, Fagerstorm Tolerance Questionaire point had decreased significantly, but for the others who had tried smoking cessation more than 5times, there were no difference. Conclusion : In regard to 6 questions of amount of daily smoking, desire to smoke, taste of smoking, subjective symptoms, smoking cessation proportion, Fagerstorm Tolerance Questionaire point, various conclusion is drawn. These results suggest that acupuncture treatment on juvenile may have the tendency of smoking cessation.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.11 no.9
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• pp.3358-3365
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• 2010

This study was carried out to investigate the effect of Sorbus commixta (SC), Geranium thunbergii (GT) and their mixture (SC:GT=1:1, MIX) on inhibition of bone loss and chondral defect. To examine their activities, we measured the alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity in human osteoblast-like MG-63 cells and performed tartrate-resistant acid phosphate (TRAP) staining in osteoclast differentiated from Raw264.7 cells. To investigate the influence on chondrocyte differentiation, we performed alcian-blue staining in chondrocyte differentiated from ATDC5 cells. All of SC, GT and MIX did not increase ALP activity in MG-63 cells. However, SC and mixture (SC:GT=1:1, MIX) significantly inhibited osteoclastic differentiation. And they also induced chondrocyte differentiation. These results suggest that SC and GT may have a potential for the treatment of bone loss and chondral defect by suppression of osteoclast differentiation and stimulation of chondrocyte differentiation. Therefore, clarification of their mechanisms and active components will be needed.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.239-254
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• 2006

The 3rd Japan-Korea Workshop on Acupuncture and EBM was held at Kanazawa on June $16^{th}$. From Korea team, 4 papers were presented. Dr. Hahn introduced a new approach of data analysis on series of n-of-1 trials using the Bayesian statistics. It offered important information for the future n-of-1 trials. Dr. Park clearly demonstrated the significance of various sham devices proposed and stressed the importance of research questions when we choose the control intervention in RCT. Dr. Lee reported the results of survey in Korean Medical Doctors (KMD) for their point selection and techniques to the distal and local points. Dr. Kim presented the results of face to face survey on the KMD with 28 items for acupuncture treatment on the knee OA. Finally, a draft of protocol was introduced by Dr. Kim. The title was "multi-center, a randomized, single blinded, two arms, parallel-group study to compare the effectiveness and safety of 'individualized acupuncture' and 'standardized minimal acupuncture' in Korean and Japanese patients with knee osteoarthritis (Phase IV)". From Japan team, 7 speakers presented their comments and proposals on the protocol. Dr. Takahashi introduced several issues regarding n-of-1 trials and pointed out the importance of obtaining generalizability from n-of-1 trials. Dr. Shichidou pointed the importance of research design, selection of outcome measures and reduction of biases. Dr. Itoh presented the results of point selection for the knee OA based on the literature survey. Dr. Sumiya introduced several differences between KMD and Japanese acupuncturists based on the questionnaire used in KMD survey. Dr. Furuya demonstrated a result of press tack needle and its sham device on shoulder stiffness. Dr. Yamashita introduced the results of literature survey regarding adverse events occurred by acupuncture on knee OA. Dr.Tsukayama stressed the importance of responsibility of Institutional Review Board (IRB) for the conduction of clinical trials. After several issues were discussed, the need of continued meeting for final protocol development was agreed, then the workshop was closed.

• Korean Journal of Acupuncture
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.193-200
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• 2013

Objectives : This study is to examine the effects of moxibustion at Junggeuk(CV3), Singwol(CV8) on women's urinary incontinence and quality of life. The study is a research based on the non-equivalent control group pretest-posttest design. Methods : The subjects of the study were 45 women who were using either of 2 health clinics located in Ulsan. They were sampled in accordance with predetermined standards and then divided into the experimental and control groups, respectively consisting of 22 and 23 members. In treating those women through moxibustion, this researcher applied 2 sheets of 'shingigu' to each of the women on 40 min, per time basis. This experiment was conducted 6 times in total for 2 weeks on every two day basis. Data from all of the measurements were statistically processed and analyzed using SPSS/WIN 12.0. Demographic characteristics of the subjects were examined and indicated in frequency and percentage. The homogeneity test of the two groups was conducted using $x^2$-test, Fisher's exact test, t-test and Mann-Whitney U Test. Hypotheses set for the study were verified through t-test and Mann-Whitney U Test. Results : The experimental group who take moxibustion will be lower in the severeness of urinary incontinence than the control group who do not was supported(p<0.001). 2. The experimental group who take moxibustion will be higher in score for life quality than the control group who do not was supported(U=42.00, p<0.001). Conclusions : These findings suggest that moxibustion can be an effective intervention for women having urinary incontinence because it treats the symptom with no adverse effect and it is non-invasive and easily applicable.