• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.7 no.5
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• pp.935-939
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• 2006

The environmentally benign inorganic bacterioide was developed by using waste shell as a matrix and its efficacies against various bacteria were examined in this investigation. The inorganic bacteriocide inhibited strongly the growths of various bacteria such as S. aureus and E.coli. The inorganic bacteriocide also showed strong killing effect on the growth of P.acnes which causes the acne on human face. Moreover, this bacteriocide inhibited the activity of lipoxygenase prominently, indicating notable anti-inflammatory activity of the bacteriocide.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.275-281
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• 2019

The pathological condition of excessive melanogenesis causing freckles, melasma, senile lentigo, pigmented acne scars, and cancer has a critical impact on the wellness of individuals. The mechanism of melanogenesis is related to the expression of melanogenic enzymes. Here, we evaluated the inhibitory effect of pine cone (Pinus densiflora) extracts on melanogenesis. P. densiflora, the Korean Red Pine, is the predominant tree species in the cool, temperate forests of northeast Asia, occurring in pure stands across Korea, Japan, and parts of northern China and Russia. P. densiflora leaves, pollen, and bark have been widely used for traditional medicine, or edible purposes. However, pine cones are rarely used as natural raw materials, although they contain many bioactive phytochemicals. The pine cone ethyl acetate fraction (PEF) showed no toxicity to B16F10 cells at a concentration of less than $100{\mu}g/mL$. PEF inhibited the expression of microphthalmiaassociated transcription factor (MITF), tyrosinase and tyrosinase-related factors in B16F10 cells treated with 3-Isobutyl1-methylxanthine (IBMX). These results suggest that pine cones can be used as an effective natural melanogenesis inhibitory agent.

• Horticultural Science & Technology
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.702-709
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• 2014

Luffa cylindrica Roem (sponge gourd) belongs to the Cucurbitaceae family and has been cultivated as an ornamental plant in Korea. Recently, its cultivation area has been increased with an increase in demand for it as an ingredient in cosmetics, herbal medicines, and health supplements. We analyzed inorganic components of sap collected from land race sponge gourds. We also measured antioxidant enzyme activities and antimicrobial activities of the plant, seed, and sap to examine functional properties of sponge gourd. The sap of the sponge gourd contained high levels of K, Ca, P, and Mg, with the most abundant mineral in the sap being K ($470mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$). The amounts of Ca and Mg were 2 and 1.7 times more than those found in cucumber (Cucumis sativus), respectively. Ascorbate peroxidase was more active than catalase and superoxide dismutase in various plant parts of sponge gourd. Antioxidant activities were much lower in stems than in other plant parts such as leaves, roots, flowers, fruits, seeds, and sap. In addition, sap showed a very low level of antimicrobial activity against two food-borne pathogens, Vibrio parahaemdyticus and Propionibacterium acne, and none against the other eight tested food-borne pathogens. Antimicrobial activities against Candida albicans and Malassezia furfur, which causes dermatitis, appeared to be higher in sap than in other parts of sponge gourd plants. Overall, the antimicrobial activity against Malassezia furfur appeared to be higher than against Candida albicans.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.4 no.3
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• pp.142-148
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• 2013

Background: To elucidate the relationship between seven occupational dermatoses (ODs) and 20 types of work in Greece. Methods: This was a prevalence epidemiologic study of certain ODs among 4,000 workers employed in 20 types of enterprise, in 104 companies, in 2006-2012, using data from company medical records, questionnaires, occupational medical, and special examinations. The ${\chi}^2$ test was applied to reveal statistically significant relationships between types of enterprises and occurrence of ODs. Results: A high percentage (39.9%) of employees included in the study population suffered from ODs. The highest prevalence rates were noted among hairdressers (of contact dermatitis: 30%), cooks (of contact dermatitis: 29.5%), bitumen workers (of acne: 23.5%), car industry workers (of mechanical injury: 15%), construction workers (of contact urticaria: 29.5%), industrial cleaning workers (of chemical burns: 13%), and farmers (of malignant tumors: 5.5%).We observed several statistical significant correlations between ODs (acute and chronic contact dermatitis, urticaria, mechanical injury, acne, burns, skin cancer) and certain types of enterprises. There was no statistically significant correlation between gender and prevalence of ODs, except for dermatoses caused by mechanical injuries afflicting mainly men [${\chi}^2(1)=13.40$, p < 0.001] and for chronic contact dermatitis [${\chi}^2(1)=5.53$, p=0.019] afflicting mainly women. Conclusion: Prevalence of ODs is high in Greece, contrary to all official reports by the Greek National Institute of Health. There is a need to introduce a nationwide voluntary surveillance system for reporting ODs and to enhance skin protection measures at work.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.51 no.3
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• pp.294-300
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• 2019

To investigate the inhibition effect on pathogenic microbes and the antimicrobial resistance of probiotics, a total of 140 probiotics were isolated from 35 kinds of Korean commercially available Kimchi. Of those, L. plantarum was identified from 53 strains (37.9%), E. faecium from 27 strains (19.3%), and L. rhamnosus from 7 strains (5.0%) using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Sixty nine strains (49.3%) showed overall antimicrobial activity against pathogenic microbes, namely S. Typhi, S. Enteritidis, E. coli O157:H7, S. flexneri, NAG Vibrio, Listeria monocytogenesis, Y. enterocolitica, S. aureus, S. pyogenes, G. vaginalis, C. albicans, and P. acne. The proportions of L. plantarum, E. faecium, and L. rhamnosus strains to pathogenic microbes were 75.5%, 40.7%, and 28.6%, respectively. In addition, a resistance test with 18 antimicrobial agents using a disk diffusion assay revealed a resistance incidence of 98.6% for nalidixic acid, 83.6% for streptomycin, 75.7% for gentamicin 73.6% for vancomycin, 72.1% for norfloxacin, and 67.9% for ciprofloxacin. In conclusion, L. plantarum, L. sakei, and E. faecium strains with various antimicrobial activities and broad antibiotic resistance are useful for treating diarrhea in long-term inpatients and for the alternative use for treating Candida species female vaginitis.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.64 no.1
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• pp.5-11
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• 2021

The phenolics of Sambucus sieboldiana var. pendula leaves for functional resources were examined on inhibitory activity against biological enzyme and anti-microbial activity. The amount of phenolic compounds were 11.60±0.18 and 12.43±0.07 mg/g by water and 50% ethanol extraction, respectively. The antioxidative activity of phenolic in extracts was higher than solids. The inhibition activities on angiotensin converting enzyme were 92.08 and 78.33% at 200 ㎍/mL phenolic concentration in water and ethanol extracts, respectively. The xanthine oxidase inhibitory activity were 100% at 200 ㎍/mL phenolic in water and ethanol extracts, respectively. These result was higher than 70.37% of allopurinol as positive control at 200 ㎍/mL. The inhibitory activity against hyaluronidase were each 25.35 and 43.38% in water and ethanol extracts. The water extract from S. sieboldiana var. pendula leaves showed antibacterial activity on the Propionebacterium acnes, Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus mutans in water extract and S. mutans in ethanol extract. This result suggests that phenolic from S. sieboldiana var. pendula leaves are suitable as functional foods with anti-hypertension, anti-gout, anti-inflammation and anti-microorganism activities.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.53 no.3
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• pp.162-169
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• 2010

The solvent extracts of Prunus persica Flos were investigated for the activities of anti-oxidant and anti-inflammation to apply as a functional ingredient for cosmetic products. The electron donating ability of both ethanol (PPE) or acetone (PPA) extracts of P. persica Flos was above 90.0% at the concentration of 500ppm. The superoxide dismutase (SOD)-like activity of P. persica Flos extracts (PPE, PPA) were approximately 40.0% at 1,000 ppm. The xanthine oxidase inhibitory effect of P. persica Flos extracts (PPE, PPA) was approximately 30.0% at 1,000 ppm and equivalent to that of ascorbic acid. Hyaluronidase inhibition activity related to the anti-inflammation effect was 35.0% with the treatment of P. persica Flos extracts (PPW, PPE, PPA) at 1,000 ppm, respectively. In the experiment of anti-inflammation effect, P. persica Flos extracts (PPW, PPE, PPA) inhibited the generation of nitric oxide. In the antimicrobial activity test against the human skin-resident microflora such as Staphylococcus epidermidis and Propionibacterium acnes, a clear zone was identified from 4mg/disc in P. persica Flos (PPE) extract.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.492-504
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• 2018

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of seaweed peeling (SP), glycolic acid peeling (GP) and general scrub (GS), which are widely known as cures for acne in both medicine and esthetics on the keratosis pilaris skin and provide basic data for a keratosis pilaris improvement program. For the experiment, subjects were categorized into control (GS) and experimental (GP and SP) groups, and tests were performed on arms and legs with relatively high keratosis pilaris symptoms (5 parts for each group) for 6 weeks. The keratin quantity, sebum content, moisture level and pigmentation were measured before and after (2, 4 and 6 weeks) the experiment and comparatively analyzed. The GP group showed an increase in moisture level (t=-4.064, p<0.01) but a decrease in pigmentation (t=3.536, p<0.01), while a decrease in keratin quantity (t=2.370, p<0.05) and pigmentation (t=4.017, p<0.01) was observed in the SP group and a decrease in keratin quantity (t=2.834, p<0.05) and an increase in moisture level (t=-7.589, p<0.001) was observed in the control group (GS). Additionally, the skin irritation reaction was lowest in the GS group. The SP group had the highest satisfaction with the improvement in response to keratosis pilaris care. When asked if they were willing to get the treatment with the same product, both SP and GP groups were high. In other words, keratosis pilaris care was needed in both experimental and control groups. Overall, the results of this study indicate that SP, GP and GS, which are commonly used in remedying acne, normalize turnover cycle by removing the dead cells from around the pores and improve keratosis pilaris symptoms by increasing moisture in the skin. Therefore, to improve keratosis pilaris skin, it is important to keep removing keratin and using a moisturizer that provides a skin barrier on a regular basis. The results presented herein will be useful as basic data for a keratosis pilaris improvement program.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.358-366
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• 2013

The aim of this study was to evaluate the antimicrobial activities of Glycyrrhiza uralensis and Glycyrrhiza glabra extracts with various countries of origin. Three samples of licorice with various origins (Korea, China, and Uzbekistan) were evaluated for their antimicrobial activities against six skin microflora. The bioassay applied for determining the antimicrobial effects included the disc diffusion assay, minimum inhibitory concentration, and challenge test. The ethyl acetate fractions of G. uralensis and G. glabra extracts showed significant antimicrobial activities against two gram-positive (Bacillus subtilis, Propionibacterium acnes) and two gram-negative (Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa) bacteria. These samples had much more intensive antimicrobial activities than synthetic preservatives on B. subtilis, P. acnes, and P. aeruginosa, especially. Korean licorice showed the highest antimicrobial activity amongst the samples tested. In view of the observed inhibitory features of these G. uralensis and G. glabra extracts, it is suggested that they could be used as natural antiseptics against bacterial contamination in cosmetics and foods, instead of the common synthetic preservatives currently employed.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.714-722
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• 2019

Oxidative DNA damage negatively affects humans and the research is currently ongoing to find ways to reduce oxidative stress. Oxidative stress has been identified as a key factor in triggering various diseases. Thus, its alleviation is important for human health. Broussonetia kazinoki (B. kazinoki) has been used in traditional Korean medicine as a dermatological therapy to treat burns, pruritus, and acne. B. kazinoki is generally segregated into peeled root (PR), root bark (RB), peeled stem (PS), and stem bark (SB). To assess these components for their antioxidant activity and protection against DNA damage, their ethyl acetate fractions were examined by 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2'-Azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt (ABTS) radical scavenging assay. As a result of confirming the expression of factors involved in attenuating DNA damage, the protective effect of SB on oxidative stress suppressed the expression of p-p53 and γ-H2AX. Additionally, the levels of p53 and H2AX mRNA were significantly downregulated. In conclusion, these results indicated that the SB component of B. kazinoki had the potential to be used as an effective natural antioxidant compared to the other parts of the plant.