• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.144-151
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• 2012

The molecular mechanisms by which a variety of naturally-occurring dietary compounds exert chemopreventive effects have been a subject of intense scientific investigations. Induction of phase II detoxification and anti-oxidant enzymes through activation of Nrf2/ARE-dependent gene is recognized as one of the major cellular defense mechanisms against oxidative or xenobiotic stresses and currently represents a critical chemopreventive mechanism of action. In the present review, the functional significance of Keap1/Nrf2 protein module in regulating ARE-dependent phase II detoxification and anti-oxidant gene expression is discussed. The biochemical mechanisms underlying the phosphorylation and expression of Keap1/Nrf2 proteins that are controlled by the intracellular signaling kinases and ubiquitin-mediated E3 ligase system as well as control of nucleocytoplasmic translocation of Nrf2 by its innate nuclear export signal (NES) are described.

• Korean Journal of Pharmacognosy
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• v.33 no.4 s.131
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• pp.359-363
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• 2002

Antioxidant properties of the extracts of Acanthopanax senticosus were investigated. The dried roots, stems or leaves were extracted with hot water or ethanol each. The ethanol extracts exhibited higher potency than aqueous extracts in scavenging free radicals and in inhibiting microsomal lipid peroxidation: the aqueous extracts of stems showed higher anti-oxidant effects than the root extracts. Copper-mediated LDL oxidation was also protected by the ethanol exlracts: antioxidant effects of the extracts tested were stronger than ascorbic acid, but not butylated hydroxytoluene. The activity of angiotensin converting enzyme was effectively suppressed by the aqueous extracts of the stems. However, in vivo antioxidant properties of the ethanol extracts of the stems did not seem to be significant, judged from the lipid peroxide values of serum and liver in normal mice. Thus, the ethanol extracts of the stems were shown to be more potent for protecting biological systems against various oxidant stresses in vitro, but not in vivo.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.46 no.1
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• pp.18-25
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• 2017

This study describes the preliminary evaluation of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities of Allium hookeri. A. hookeri was extracted using crude extract and then fractionated sequentially with n-hexane, $CH_2Cl_2$, EtOAc, and n-BuOH. To screen for antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agents effectively, we first examined the inhibitory effect of A. hookeri extracts on production of oxidant stresses (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl, xanthine oxidase, and superoxide). In addition, we examined the inhibitory effects of A. hookeri on production of pro-inflammatory factors (nitric oxide, prostaglandin $E_2$, inducible nitric oxide synthase, and cyclooxygenase-2) in murine macrophage RAW 264.7 cells stimulated with lipopolysaccharide. Of the sequential solvent fractions of A. hookeri, EtOAc fractions showed decreased production of oxidant stresses, and $CH_2Cl_2$ and EtOAc fractions of A. hookeri inhibited production of pro-inflammatory factors. EtOAc fraction inhibited production of pro-inflammatory cytokines (interleukin-6 and -$1{\beta}$). These results suggest that A. hookeri has significant effects on oxidant stresses and pro-inflammatory factors and is a possible antioxidant and anti-inflammatory therapeutic and preventive material.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.8 no.5
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• pp.526-532
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• 2014

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Acanthopanax sessiliflorus is a native Korean plant and used as a traditional medicine or an ingredient in many Korean foods. The free radical theory of aging suggests that cellular oxidative stress caused by free radicals is the main cause of aging. Free radicals can be removed by cellular anti-oxidants. MATERIALS/METHODS: Here, we examined the anti-oxidant activity of Acanthopanax sessiliflorus extract both in vitro and in vivo. Survival of nematode C. elegans under stress conditions was also compared between control and Acanthopanax sessiliflorus extract-treated groups. Then, anti-aging effect of Acanthopanax sessiliflorus extract was monitored in C. elegans. RESULTS: Stem extract significantly reduced oxidative DNA damage in lymphocyte, which was not observed by leaves or root extract. Survival of C. elegans under oxidative-stress conditions was significantly enhanced by Acanthopanax sessiliflorus stem extract. In addition, Acanthopanax sessiliflorus stem increased resistance to other environmental stresses, including heat shock and ultraviolet irradiation. Treatment with Acanthopanax sessiliflorus stem extract significantly extended both mean and maximum lifespan in C. elegans. However, fertility was not affected by Acanthopanax sessiliflorus stem. CONCLUSION: Different parts of Acanthopanax sessiliflorus have different bioactivities and stem extract have strong anti-oxidant activity in both rat lymphocytes and C. elegans, and conferred a longevity phenotype without reduced reproduction in C. elegans, which provides conclusive evidence to support the free radical theory of aging.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.303-311
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• 2018

In this study, a preliminary evaluation of the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity of the Ficus erecta var. sieboldii (Miq.) King (FES) leaf extract has been performed to assess its potential as a natural resource for food and medicinal materials. FES was extracted using 70% EtOH and then fractionated sequentially using n-hexane, $CH_2Cl_2$, EtOAc, and n-BuOH. To screen for antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agents effectively, the inhibitory effect of the FES extracts on the production of oxidant stresses (DPPH, xanthine oxidase, and superoxide) and pro-inflammatory factors (NO, iNOS, COX-2, $PGE_2$, IL-6, and $IL-1{\beta}$) in the murine macrophage cell line RAW 264.7 activated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was examined. Among the sequential solvent fractions of FES, the $CH_2Cl_2$ and EtOAc fractions showed decreased production of oxidant stresses (DPPH, xanthine oxidase and superoxide), and the hexane and $CH_2Cl_2$ fractions of FES inhibited the production of pro-inflammatory factors (NO, iNOS, COX-2, and $PGE_2$). The $CH_2Cl_2$ fraction also inhibited the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines ($TNF-{\alpha}$, IL-6, and $IL-1{\beta}$). These results suggest that FES has a significant effects on the production of oxidant stresses and pro-inflammatory factors and may be used a natural resource for antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agents.

• Mycobiology
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.52-58
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• 2014

A nucleoside diphosphate-linked moiety X (Nudix) hydrolase-like gene, YSA1, has been identified as one of the gromwell plant extract-responsive genes in Cryptococcus neoformans. Ysa1 is known to control intracellular concentrations of ADP-ribose or O-acetyl-ADP-ribose, and has diverse biological functions, including the response to oxidative stress in the ascomycete yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In this study, we characterized the role of YSA1 in the stress response and adaptation of the basidiomycete yeast, C. neoformans. We constructed three independent deletion mutants for YSA1, and analyzed their mutant phenotypes. We found that ysa1 mutants did not show increased sensitivity to reactive oxygen species-producing oxidative damage agents, such as hydrogen peroxide and menadione, but exhibited increased sensitivity to diamide, which is a thiol-specific oxidant. Ysa1 was dispensable for the response to most environmental stresses, such as genotoxic, osmotic, and endoplasmic reticulum stress. In conclusion, modulation of YSA1 may regulate the cellular response and adaptation of C. neoformans to certain oxidative stresses and contribute to the evolution of antifungal drug resistance.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.616-620
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• 2008

Maintaining redox balance is one of the crucial requirements for a cell to endure stress from the outside. Dehydroascorbate reductase (DHAR; EC 1.8.5.1) plays an important role in the ascorbate-glutathione cycle; one of the major ROS scavenging systems in most known biological systems. A cDNA clone of the DHAR gene from Oryza sativa (OsDHAR) was isolated and overexpressed in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3) strain from the pET-28a(+) expression vector. The OsDHAR transformed E. coli cells showed significantly higher DHAR activity and a lower level of ROS than the E. coli cells transformed by an empty pET-28a(+) vector. Also, the DHAR-overexpressing E. coli strain was more tolerant to oxidant- and heavy metal-mediated stress conditions than the control E. coli strain. The results suggest that the overexpressed rice DHAR gene effectively functions in a prokaryotic system and provide protection to various oxidative stresses.

• Mass Spectrometry Letters
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.25-28
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• 2010

The high-throughput identification and accurate quantification of proteins are essential strategies for exploring cellular functions and processes in quantitative proteomics. Stable isotope tagging is a key technique in quantitative proteomic research, accompanied by automated tandem mass spectrometry. For the differential proteome analysis of mouse neuronal cell lines, we used a multiplexed isobaric tagging method, in which a four-plex set of amine-reactive isobaric tags are available for peptide derivatization. Using the four-plex set of isobaric tag for relative and absolute quantitation (iTRAQ) reagents, we analyzed the differential proteome in several stroke time pathways (0, 4, and 8 h) after the mouse neuronal cells have been stressed using a glutamate oxidant. In order to obtain a list of the differentially expressed proteins, we selected those proteins which had apparently changed significantly during the stress test. With 95% of the peptides showing only a small variation in quantity before and after the test, we obtained a list of eight up-regulated and four down-regulated proteins for the stroke time pathways. To validate the iTRAQ approach, we studied the use of oxidant stresses for mouse neuronal cell samples that have shown differential proteome in several stroke time pathways (0, 4, and 8 h). Results suggest that histone H1 might be the key protein in the oxidative injury caused by glutamate-induced cytotoxicity in HT22 cells.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.8-14
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• 2008

Stress activates hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and subsequently increases the systemic levels of glucocorticoids. It also inhibits the release of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) from hypothalamus. Korean ginseng (Panax ginseng CA Meyer) has been proven as an anti-stress agent. However, most of the anti-stress effects of ginseng on stresses such as immobilization, electronic foot shock, and cold swim, which subsequently cause oxidative damage in brain, were obtained by using ginseng extract or ginseng total saponin. Moreover, anti-stress and anti-oxidative effects of ginseng were demonstrated by determination of enzyme or hormone levels but not mRNA as well as transcriptome. Further studies on transcriptome, proteomics, and systems biology as well as signal transduction would be required to elucidate molecular action mechanisms of ginseng on stresses.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.19 no.11
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• pp.1202-1206
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• 1998

We have explored the impact of altering the Ras-cAMP pathway on cell survival upon oxidative exposures. A hyperactivated Ras mutant of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, intrinsically more sensitive to heat shock than the wild type, was investigated with regard to oxidative stress. In this paper we report that the response of iral, ira2-deleted mutant (IR2.53) to an oxidant, such as hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) or menadione is more sensitive than that of the wild type. IR2.53 showed a dramatic decrease in survival rate when challenged with 0.1 mM H2O2 for 30 min. The greater sensitivity of IR2.53 was also noticed with treatment of 0.01 mM menadione. Prior to oxidative stresses by these oxidants, both the wild type and the mutant were preconditioned with a mild heat shock (37 ℃, 30 min), resulting in improved survivals against oxidative stresses. Rescue of IR2.53 from menadione stress by heat pretreatment was more clearly demonstrated than that from H2O2 treatment. On the other hand, no significant difference was observed between the wild type and the IR2.53 mutant in their survival rates upon paraquat treatments. These findings imply that the mechanism by which H2O2 and menadione put forth their oxidative effects may be closely associated with the cAMP-Ras pathway whereas that of paraquat is independent of the Ras pathway. Finally, the level of glutathione (GSH) was measured enzymatically as an indicator of antioxidation and compared with the survival rate. Taken all these together, this study provides an insight into a mechanism of the Ras pathway regulated by several oxidants and suggests that the Ras pathway plays a crucial role in protection of cell damage following oxidative stress.