• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.1-6
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• 2014

Objectives : Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are involved in a wide spectrum of diseases including chronic inflammation and cancer. In this study, we investigated the antioxidant activities and anti-inflammatory effects of the extracts from the herbal teas such as Lonicera japonica Thunberg (L. japonica), Chrysanthemum morifolium Ramat (C. morifolium), Mentha arvensis L. (M. arvensis), and P.rhizoma. Methods : Anti-oxidant activity was evaluated using DPPH radical scavenging assay and $Fe^{2+}$ chelating assay. And DNA cleavage assay was performed to evaluate an anti-oxidative effect. Anti-inflammatory effect was performed using NO generation assay and western blot in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 cell line. Results : L. japonica scavenged DPPH radical by 9.8% at 12.5 ${\mu}g/ml$, 24.8% at 25 ${\mu}g/ml$, 34.3% at 50 ${\mu}g/ml$, 61.1% at 100 ${\mu}g/ml$ and 75.8% at 200 ${\mu}g/ml$, respectively. In addition, C. morifolium and M. arvensis removed DPPH radical by 15.6% and 10.4% at 12.5 ${\mu}g/ml$, 34.8% and 22.8% at 25 ${\mu}g/ml$, 66.9% and 43.3% at 50 ${\mu}g/ml$, 87.4% and 69.1% at 100 ${\mu}g/ml$, and 92.1% and 73.2% at 200 ${\mu}g/ml$, respectively. However, P. rhizoma did not affect on DPPH radical scavenging. The $Fe^{2+}$ chelating activity was highest in L. japonica, but lowest in P. rhizoma among the herbal teas. In addition, the extracts from L. japonica, C. morifolium and M. arvensis inhibited oxidative DNA damage via its anti-oxidant activity. In anti-inflammatory effect, the extracts from C. morifolium inhibited NO production. In addition, it suppressed the $NF-{\kappa}B$ signaling pathway in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells. Conclusions : Together, this study indicates that L. japonica, M. arvensis and C. morifolium possess the protective effect against the oxidative DNA damage. Furthermore, C. morifolium exerts an anti-inflammatory effect.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.45-52
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• 2014

Objectives : The aim of this study was to investigate the effects water extract of fermented new korean medicinal mixture, combinations of Mori Folium, Adenophorae Radix, Phllostachyos Folium and Citri Pericarpium (F-MAPC), on adipocyte differentiation, adipogenesis and glucose uptake using undiffernentiated 3T3-L1 adipocytes and L6 myoblasts. Methods : Each herb and those mixture were respectively fermented and then extracted with water. We carried on MTT assay for check-up on cell toxicity, Oil Red O staining for determination of cell differentiation and intracelluar adipogenesis. Western blot analysis for measurement of pAMPK and pACC, $C/EBP{\alpha}$, $PPAR{\gamma}$ and Glut-4 protein expressions were performed. Results : F-MAPC showed significant inhibitory activity on adipocyte differentiation in 3T3-L1 preadipocytes without affecting cell toxicity as assessed by measuring fat accumulation, and this effect was 2 fold higher in 0.2 mg/ml F-MAPC than that of the same dose of each fermented herbal extract alone. In addition, these effects were associated with modulation of adipogenic transcription factors, such as $C/EBP{\alpha}$, $PPAR{\gamma}$, as well as stimulated phosphorylations of AMPK and ACC. Translocation of Glut-4 was significantly increased by 10.2% in L6 cells treated with 0.2 mg/ml F-MAPC compared with that of control. Conclusions : These results demonstrate that F-MAPC may be an ideal candidate for therapy of obesity and diabetes by disturbing the differentiation into adipocytes, as well as the inducement of intramuscular glucose uptake from blood.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.32 no.12
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• pp.956-961
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• 2022

Plant Chloroplast have several advantages as an expression platform of biopharmaceuticals over conventional expression platforms such as mammalian cells, yeast and bacteria. First, plants do not serve as a host for mammalian infectious virus and have endotoxin like bacteria which can cause anaphylactic shock. In addition, high copy number of chloroplast genome allows for chloroplast transformants to reach the high level of expression of heterologous genes. Moreover, the integration of transgenes into specific region of chloroplast genomes makes chloroplast transformants unaffected by positional effect which can be frequently observed from nuclear transformants, resulting in loss of transgene expressions. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are a kind of innate immunity which is found from bacteria to humans. Unlike conventional antibiotics, very less dosage of AMPs can have catastrophic effect on bacterial survival. Further, the repeated use of AMPs does not trigger the development of bacterial resistance. Moricin, one of the AMPs, was isolated from Bombyx mori, a silkworm moth. The C-terminal of moricin consists largely of basic amino acids, and the N-terminal has an α-helix structure. Moricin was chosen and expressed in a SUMO/SUMOase without leaving any unwanted amino acids which could potentially affect the anti-bacterial activity of the moricin. The transformation vector used in this study has already been created in this lab for the expression in both prokaryotic systems such as E. coli and chloroplast. The expressed moricin was purified using Ni columns and SUMOase, and the antibacterial activity of the purified moricin was confirmed using an agar diffusion assay.

• Journal of Marine Bioscience and Biotechnology
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2022

This study examined the growth, fatty acid (FA) content, and carotenoids of a newly isolated freshwater microalga, Mychonastes sp. 246, in various culture media. The appropriate temperature and light intensity for culturing Mychonastes sp. 246 were determined as 18℃-22℃ and 200-250 µmol/m²/s using a high throughput photobioreactor. The microalgal cells were cultivated in 0.5 L bubble column photobioreactors using BG11, Bold's Basal media, and f/2 media. According to the growth results of the microalgae, BG11, among the tested media, showed the highest biomass concentrations (3.5 ± 0.1 g/L in 10 d). To enhance the biomass growth of the microalgae, the N:P ratio in BG11 was manipulated from 45:1 to 7:1 based on the stoichiometric cell composition. The biomass concentrations of Mychonastes sp. 246 grown on the manipulated BG11 (MBG) increased to 38% (4.6 ± 0.3 g/L in d) compared with the original BG11 (3.3 g/L). The FA content of the microalgae grown on the MBG was lower (8.4%) than that of the original BG11 (10.1%) while the FA compositions did not exhibit any significant differences. Furthermore, three kinds of carotenoids were identified in Mychonastes sp. 246, zeaxanthin, lutein, and β-carotene. These results suggest an effective strategy for increasing biomass concentrations, FA content, and carotenoids of microalgae by performing a simple N:P adjustment in the culture media.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.50 no.3
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• pp.414-421
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• 2022

In this study, we isolated Weizmannia ginsengihumi LGHNH (KCTC 14462BP) from 30-year-old wild Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer and elucidated the characteristics of the isolated bacterium and its industrial potential as an anti-aging material. W. ginsengihumi LGHNH was investigated to produce indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), a plant growth-promoting hormone (1.38 ㎍/ml to 2.22 ㎍/ml). We also confirmed the existence of bioconversion activity via the comparison of the ginsenoside content before and after fermentation. As for the converted minor ginsenoside, Rg2(R), Rg4, Rg6, Rg3(S), Rg3(R), Rk1, Rg5, Rh1(R), Rk3 and Rh4 are known to have high bioavailability and various skin effects. We measured mitochondrial membrane potential and ATP biosynthesis to elucidate W. ginsengihumi LGHNH cultured product (WCP) as an anti-aging material. As a result, the mitochondrial membrane potential in HaCaT cells with UVB decreased to 39.3% compared to the unirradiated group, but was recovered to 57.3% and 58.1% by 0.001% (v/v) and 0.01% (v/v) WCP, respectively. In addition, we measured mitochondrial ATP biosynthesis. It decreased to 94.3% compared to the unirradiated group with UVB, but was recovered to 105.3% and 105.7% by 0.001% (v/v) and 0.01% (v/v) WCP.

• Journal of Korea Entertainment Industry Association
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.253-259
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• 2019

Prostate cancer(PrCa) is a leading cause of cancer-related death in man. Medicinal plants are exploited for many drugs to treat various ailments. The drugs derived from the plants promote health, augmented the resistance of the body against disease. Pueraia lobata(wild) Ohwi(P. Lobata), kudzu, which is a twining perennial woody herb native to China, Korea, Japan, India, and the United States. Plants such as Moringa oleifera, have hypoglycemic properties and other beneficial properties. The objective of the study was to analyze the effects of kadzu and moringa, natural plant products on antioxidant activity and proliferation of the hormone-sensitive prostate cancer LNCaP cells. MTT assay, flow cytometry analysis were employed to investigate the anticancer mechanism and DPPH assay was determined to the antioxidant activity to scavenge free radicals in extract of these. All two extracts showed significantly antioxidant activity at 10 and 50mg/ml of concentration. kadzu and moringa reduced LNCaP cell viability in a dose dependent manner. Specially moringa extract was more potent cytotoxic than kadzu extract. Statistical analyses revealed kadzu and moringa exhibited significantly higher (P < 0.05) cytotoxicity and antioxidant activity in LNCaP. The finding of this study provides a scientific basis for using kadzu and moringa in future development of chemotherapeutic drugs against hormone-sensitive prostate cancer.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.65 no.1
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• pp.57-62
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• 2022

Excessive activation and aggregation of platelets is a major cause of cardiovascular disease. Therefore, inhibition of platelet activation and aggregation is considered an attractive therapeutic target in preventing and treating cardiovascular diseases. In particular, strong platelet activation and aggregation by collagen secreted from the vascular endothelium are characteristic of vascular diseases. Artesunate is a compound extracted from the plant roots of Artemisia or Scopolia species, and has been reported to be effective in anticancer and Alzheimer's disease fields. However, the effect and mechanism of artesunate on collagen-induced platelet activation and aggregation have not been elucidated. In this study, the effect of artesunate on collagen-induced human platelet aggregation was confirmed and the mechanism of action of artesunate was clarified. Artesunate inhibited the phosphorylation of PI3K/Akt and Mitogen-activated protein kinases, which are phosphoproteins that are known to act in the signal transduction process when platelets are activated. In addition, artesunate decreased TXA₂ production and decreased granule secretion in platelets such as ATP and serotonin release. As a result, artesunate strongly inhibited platelet aggregation induced by collagen, a strong aggregation inducer secreted from vascular endothelial cells, with an IC₅₀ of 106.41 µM. These results suggest that artesunate has value as an effective antithrombotic agent for inhibiting the activation and aggregation of human platelets through vascular injury.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.403-412
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• 2016

The tight junction, one of Intercellular junctions, performs a variety of biological functions by bonding adjacent cells, including the barrier function to control the movement of the electrolyte and water. Recent studies have revealed that unusual expression of tight junction-related genes have been shown to be related in cancer development and progression. Recently, there are many reports that control of tight junction proteins expression is closely related to the skin moisture. In this study, we are focusing on the regulating mechanism of tight junction-associated genes by the steviol and its derivatives. Steviol, used as a sweetner, is known to chemical compound isolated from stevia plant. The MTS (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium, inner salt) assay was carried out in HaCaT cells (human keratinocyte cell line) in order to determine the cytotoxicity. As a result, while steviol showing cytotoxicity from $250{\mu}M$, steviol derivatives are not cytotoxic more than $250{\mu}M$ concentration. We have observed a change in the tight junction protein via quantitative real-time PCR. Claudin 8 among tight junction proteins is only significantly reduced up to 30% in the presence of steviol. In addition, cell migration was inhibited by steviol, not by stevioside and rebaudioside. Finally, we could observe that steviol, not stevioside and rebaudioside, is able to increase the skin barrier permeability through the transepithelial electric resistance (TEER) measurements. These results suggest that the steviol and its derivatives are specifically acts on the tight junction related gene expression, but steviol derivatives are more suitable as a cosmetic material.

• Horticultural Science & Technology
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.210-218
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• 2015

Melon leaves showing yellowing symptoms were analyzed using electron microscopy and RT-PCR for major cucurbit-infecting-viruses (CMV, MNSV, CGMMV, SqMV, WMV, KGMMV, PRSV and ZYMV) reported in Korea, but these viruses were not detected. As the result of further analysis by next-generation sequencing (NGS), the virus was identified as Cucurbit aphid-borne yellows virus (CABYV), and then confirmed by RT-PCR using CABYV-specific primers. When photosynthetic capacity was measured based on chlorophyll fluorescence yield (ChlFY), the leaves of the diseased plants showed $4.09{\mu}mol{\cdot}m^{-2}{\cdot}s^{-1}$, which was one-third of the readings observed for unaffected normal plants ($12.36{\mu}mol{\cdot}m^{-2}{\cdot}s^{-1}$). The root functions of plants affected by leaf yellowing symptoms (LYS) was $0.28mg{\cdot}g^{-1}$, about half that measured for the normal unaffected plants ($0.48mg{\cdot}g^{-1}$). Cytological observations revealed that there were no morphological differences in the palisade parenchyma and mesophyll spongy cells of the leaves between the diseased and the normal plants. However, the same leaf cells of the affected plants contained more starch granules compared to those of the normal, unaffected plants. We conclude that the LYS of muskmelon is not merely a physiological disorder but a viral disease caused by CABYV and spread by aphids.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.287-301
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• 2008

In order to develop a new depigmenting agent, extracts were obtained from 60 native plants and their antimelanogenic activities were screened by evaluating the inhibitory effect on tyrosinase which is a major enzyme responsibles for the melanin synthesis. The extracts of Trichosanthes kirilowii fruits, Phyllostachys bambusoides inner films (BIF), Clerodendrum trichotomum leaves, and Acer okamotoanum leaves showed relatively high inhibitory effect on tyrosinase and their $IC_{50}$ values were $50{\sim}100{\mu}g/mL$. The extract of BIF inhibited melanin synthesis of B16F10 melanoma cells by 52%, which was the highest among those of various extracts. Furthermore, the effect of BIF extract is 10% higher than that of arbutin (42%), a popular depigmenting agent in Korea. Ten compounds having antimelanogenic activity were isolated from the BIF extract by solvent extraction and chromatography. These compounds were identified as phenolic derivatives: SM701, SM702, SM703, and BPR211 were hydroquinone derivatives; SM707 a gallic acid derivative; SM704, SM705, SM706, SM708 and SM709 ferulic acid derivatives. The free radical scavenging activities of these compounds were measured and compared to those of hydroquinone and vitamin C. The $SC_{50}$ values scavenging 50% DPPH of SM702 and SM709 were $60{\sim}70{\mu}M$ similar to that of hydroquinone and those of SM701 and SM708 were $30{\sim}40{\mu}M$ slightly lower than that of vitamin C. These results suggest the presence of components having high antioxidant activity in the BIF extract. The SM709, identified as 1,2-O-diferulylglycerol, inhibited the activities of tyrosine hydroxylase and dopa oxidase by 18 and 60%, respectively. The SM709 also inhibited the melanin synthesis of B16F10 melanoma cells by 62% and this was the highest antimelanogenic activity among those obtained from the various purified compounds. Therefore, antimelanogenic activity of the BIF extract was concluded to be due to both inhibition of DOPA oxidase and antioxidant activity.