• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.15 no.15
• /
• pp.6035-6039
• /
• 2014

Background: Substantial evidence from epidemiological studies has suggested that increased levels of calcium may play a protective role against colorectal cancer (CRC). Given the vital role of calcium sensing receptor (CaSR) and parathyroid hormone (PTH) in the maintenance of calcium homeostasis, we explored whether the rs1801725 (A986S) variant located in exon 7 of the CaSR gene and the rs6256 variant located in exon 3 of PTH gene might be associated with CRC risk. Materials and Methods: In this study 860 subjects including 350 cases with CRC and 510 controls were enrolled and genotyped using PCR-RFLP methods. Results: We observed no significant difference in genotype or allele frequencies between the cases with CRC and controls for both CaSR and PTH genes either before or after adjustment for confounding factors including age, BMI, sex, smoking status, and family history of CRC. Furthermore, no evidence for effect modification of any association of rs1801725 and rs6256 variants and CRC by BMI, sex, or tumor site was observed. In addition, there was no significant difference in genotype and allele frequencies between the normal weight (BMI < $25kg/m^2$) cases and overweight/obese (BMI ${\geq}25kg/m^2$) cases for the two SNPs. Conclusions: These data indicated that the CaSR gene A986S variant is not a genetic contributor to CRC risk in the Iranian population. Furthermore, our results suggest for the first time that PTH gene variant does not affect CRC risk. Nonetheless, further studies with larger sample size are needed to validate these findings.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.17 no.12
• /
• pp.1695-1699
• /
• 2004

The antioxidant enzymes, lipid peroxidation and free radicals assessment were made of the effects of selenium, copper and magnesium on bovine endemic fluorosis under high fluoride, low selenium and low copper productive conditions. Thirty-two beef cattle were selected from high fluoride area, and randomly divided into four groups with eight cattle each as follows: (1) high fluoride control group (HFC); (2) supplemented group with 0.25 mg/kg selenium (HFSe); (3) supplemented group with 15 mg/kg copper (HFCu) and (4) supplemented group with 0.25 mg/kg selenium+15 mg/kg copper+1 mg/kg magnesium (HFSeCuMg) per day for 83 days. Moreover, eight beef cattle were selected from non-high fluoride area as normal control group. Blood samples were collected from cattle on 0 d, 30 d and 83 d respectively, to analyze the enzyme activities and concentration of GSH-px, CAT, SOD, MDA and free radicals. The results showed that the contents of free radicals and MDA in HFC group were significantly higher, and the whole blood GSH-px, CAT, erythrocyte SOD activities were lower than the normal control group. Free radicals, metabolic imbalance and antioxidant disorder therefore, play an important role in fluorosis. However, GSH-px, CAT and SOD activities in HFSe group and HFSeCuMg group at 30 d and 83 d were markedly higher than the same groups at the 0 d and the HFC group at the same time. Likewise, there was a corresponding reduction in the contents of free radicals and MDA. These findings indicated that supplementation with selenium, copper and magnesium elevated high fluoride bovine antioxidant enzymes, and decreased MDA and free radicals contents. But, the activities of supplementation selenium group did not increase until day 83. These results demonstrated that fluorosis was associated with lower serum Se and Cu levels than in the control, and it was therefore concluded that fluorosis is associated with decreased serum levels of these minerals. Long-term high fluoride intake under productive condition enhances oxidative stress in the blood, thereby disturbing the antioxidant defense of cattle. Increased oxidative stress could be one of the mediating factors in the pathogenesis of toxic manifestations of fluoride. It is benefical for high fluoride cattle supplemented with proper selenium, copper and magnesium to increase fluoride excretion and obtain the protective impact of the activity of oxidative enzymes, and to decrease lipid peroxidation and free radicals contents.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.15 no.24
• /
• pp.10675-10681
• /
• 2015

Background: The ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM) protein and p53 play key roles in sensing and repairing radiation-induced DNA double strand breaks (DSBs). Accumulating epidemiological evidence indicates that functional genetic variants in ATM and TP53 genes may have an impact on the risk of radiotherapy-induced side effects. Here we performed a meta-analysis to investigate the potential interaction between ATM Asp1853Asn and TP53 polymorphisms and risk of radiotherapy-induced adverse effects quantitatively. Materials and Methods: Relevant articles were retrieved from PubMed, ISI Web of Science and the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) databases. Eligible studies were selected according to specific inclusion and exclusion criteria. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were pooled to estimate the association between ATM Asp1853Asn and TP53 Arg72Pro polymorphisms and risk of radiotherapy adverse effects. All analyses were performed using the Stata software. Results: A total of twenty articles were included in the present analysis. In the overall analysis, no significant associations between ATM Asp1853Asn and TP53 Arg72Pro polymorphisms and the risk of radiotherapy adverse effects were found. We conducted subgroup analysis stratified by type of cancer, region and time of appearance of side effects subsequently. No significant association between ATM Asp1853Asn and risk of radiotherapy adverse effects was found in any subgroup analysis. For TP53 Arg72Pro, variant C allele was associated with decreased radiotherapy adverse effects risk among Asian cancer patients in the stratified analysis by region (OR=0.71, 95%CI: 0.54-0.93, p=0.012). No significant results were found in the subgroup analysis of tumor type and time of appearance of side effects. Conclusions: The TP53 Arg72Pro C allele might be a protective factor of radiotherapy-induced adverse effects among cancer patients from Asia. Further studies that take into consideration treatment-related factors and patient lifestyle including environmental exposures are warranted.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
• /
• v.33 no.3
• /
• pp.29-43
• /
• 2016

Objectives : The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of LR3 and SP6 acupuncture on liver damage of streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice. Methods : Male ICR mice were divided into four groups, consisting of the normal mice group(N), acupuncture-free diabetic mice group(Con), LR3-acupuncture diabetic mice group(LR3) and SP6-acupuncture diabetic mice group(SP6). The following measurements were taken: Body weight, food intake and water intake for 2 weeks; liver weight, and glucose levels in the serum and liver; ALT and AST in the serum; reactive oxygen species(ROS), reduced glutathione(GSH) and oxidized glutathione(GSSG) in the liver; and lastly, receptor for advanced glycation endproducts( RAGE), $N{\varepsilon}-carboxymethyl$ lysine(CML), $N{\varepsilon}-carboxyethyl$ lysine(CEL), phosphorylation of inhibitory kappa B alpha($p-I{\kappa}B{\alpha}$), nuclear factor-kappa B($NF-{\kappa}B$), activator protein-1(AP-1), cyclooxygenase-2(COX-2), inducible nitric oxide synthase(iNOS), tumor necrosis factor-alpha($TNF-{\alpha}$), ${\beta}-actin$, cytochrome c and caspase in the liver. Results : The liver weight and GSH/GSSG ratio were significantly increased in SP6 compared to Con. The glucose levels in the liver were significantly decreased in LR3 compared to Con. The generation of ROS and GSSG were significantly decreased in SP6 compared to Con. The expressions of RAGE, CML, AP-1, $TNF-{\alpha}$, cytochrome c and caspase 3 were significantly decreased in LR3 compared to Con. The expressions of $p-I{\kappa}B{\alpha}$, $NF-{\kappa}B$, AP-1, COX-2, iNOS and caspase 3 were significantly decreased in SP6 compared to Con. Conclusion : It is predicted that LR3 acupuncture is related to reduced glucose levels in the liver and expressions of AGE, and that, SP6 acupuncture is related to reduced oxidative stress-related transcription factors and inflammation-related proteins. Therefore, we suggest that LR3 and SP6 acupuncture have protective effects on the liver of streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice by preventing apoptosis.

• Toxicological Research
• /
• v.33 no.3
• /
• pp.255-263
• /
• 2017

Chemotherapy is associated with male infertility. Cisplatin (cis-diamminedichloro-platinum (II) (CDDP) as a chemotherapy medication used to treat a number of cancers has been reported to most likely induce testicular toxicity. Administration of antioxidants, such as pentoxifylline (PTX) may reduce some Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs) of CDDP. Therefore, this study investigated the potentially protective effects of PTX on CDDP-induced testicular toxicity in adult male rats. For this purpose, 42 male rats were randomly divided into 7 groups. The rats were orally pretreated with PTX at the 3 doses of 75, 150, and 300 mg/kg once a day for 14 successive days. On the $14^{th}$ day of the study, they were intraperitoneally (IP) administered with a single dose of CDDP (7 mg/kg). Finally, the sperm/testis parameters, serum levels of reproductive hormones, including testosterone, Luteinizing Hormone (LH), and Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) as the pivotal endocrine factors controlling testicular functions, and histopathological changes of testis tissue were examined. Pretreatment with the two doses of 75 and 150 mg/kg PTX indicated significant increases in the sperm count and motility induced by CDDP administration. The right and significantly left testis weights were decreased following the treatment with 300 mg/kg of PTX plus CDDP. However, 75 mg/kg of PTX plus CDDP showed the best near-to-normal histopathological features. The results demonstrated that PTX alone enhanced some parameters, such as the sperm count, while reducing other parameters, including sperm fast motility and germ layer thickness. Furthermore, despite testosterone or LH levels, the mean serum FSH level was significantly augmented by the doses of 75 and 150 mg/kg. It was concluded that PTX administration cannot reduce CDDP-induced testicular toxicity even at high doses (e.g., 300 mg/kg), while it seemed to partially intensify CDDP toxicity effects at a dose of 75 mg/kg. Thus, further research is required in this regard.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
• /
• v.37 no.4
• /
• pp.381-389
• /
• 2004

Objective : To compare the efficacy between SKI306X and Diclofenac by using generalized estimating equations (GEE) methodology in the analysis of correlated bivariate binary outcome data in Osteoarthritis (OA) diseases. Methods : A randomized, double-blind, active comparator-controlled, non-inferiority clinical trial was conducted at 5 institutions in Korea with the random assignment of 248 patients aged 35 to 75 years old with OA of the knee and clinical evidence of OA. Patients were enrolled in this study if they had at least moderate pain in the affected knee joint and a score larger than 35mm as assessed by VAS (Visual Analog Scale). The main exposure variable was treatment (SKI 306X vs. Diclofenac) and other covariates were age, sex, BMI, baseline VAS, center, operation history (Yes/No), NSAIDS (Y/N), acupuncture (Y/N), herbal medicine (Y/N), past history of musculoskeletal disease (Y/N), and previous therapy related with OA (Y/N). The main study outcome was the change of VAS pain scores from baseline to the 2nd and 4th weeks after treatment. Pain scores were obtained as baseline, 2nd and 4th weeks after treatment. We applied GEE approach with empirical covariance matrix and independent(or exchangeable) working correlation matrix to evaluate the relation of several risk factors to the change of VAS pain scores with correlated binary bivariate outcomes. Results : While baseline VAS, age, and acupuncture variables had protective effects for reducing the OA pain, its treatment (Joins/Diclofenac) was not statistically significant through GEE methodology (ITT:aOR=1.37, 95% CI=(0.8200, 2.26), PP:aOR=1.47, 95% CI=(0.73, 2.95)). The goodness-of-fit statistic for GEE (6.55, p=0.68) was computed to assess the adequacy of the fitted final model. Conclusions : Both ANCOVA and GEE methods yielded non statistical significance in the evaluation of non-inferiority of the efficacy between SKI306X and Diclofenac. While VAS outcome for each visit was applied in GEE, only VAS outcome for the fourth visit was applied in ANCOVA. So the GEE methodology is more accurate for the analysis of correlated outcomes.

• Fire Science and Engineering
• /
• v.33 no.5
• /
• pp.94-102
• /
• 2019

As the importance of first responses for fire accidents has grown in the safety management of nuclear power plants, a systematic approach to measure firefighters' psychological states and competence is needed. The current study investigated the construct of the risk perception of the firefighters working near nuclear power plant sites, and then developed and validated a new scale to measure firefighters' risk perception regarding nuclear power plant accidents. The scale items were developed on the basis of literature review and interviews with the firefighters working near nuclear power plant sites. In order to validate the new scale, we recruited 180 firefighters from five fire stations in the vicinity of the nuclear power plants in Jeonnam Province, Gyeongbuk Province, and Busan. The results of exploratory factor analyses revealed that the scale consisted of five factors: "manual" reflecting a lack of response guidelines and manuals for fire incidents and radioactive material release; "fear" reflecting a fear of fire incidents in the nuclear power plants and their catastrophic consequences; "resource" reflecting a lack of protective equipment and manpower for responding to fire incidents in the nuclear power plants; "trust" reflecting trust and cooperation with the counterpart institutions for firefighting in the nuclear power plants; and "knowledge" reflecting the knowledge of radioactivity and firefighting in the nuclear power plants. Further analyses provided statistical evidence supporting for the 15-item scale's internal consistency and construct validity. Finally, We discussed the implication and limitations of the current research.

• Herbal Formula Science
• /
• v.7 no.1
• /
• pp.131-141
• /
• 1999

In order to eludidate the mechanism of oxidative stress in cultured spinal motor neurons damaged by oxygen free radicals, cytoxicity was assesed by MTT assay and NR assay after spinal motor neurons from mouse were cultured in media containing various concentrations of xanthine oxidase(XO) and hypoxanthine(HX) for 3 hours. In addition, neuroprotective effects of several herb extracts on oxidant-induced neurotoxicity were examined in these cultures, compared with nerve growth factors such as basic fibroblast growth factor(bFGF). XO/HX decreased cell viability in dose- and time dependent manners on cultured mouse spinal motor neurons, and MTT50 and NR50 values were measured at 20mU/ml XO and 0.1mM HX for 3 hours in these cultures. bFGF significantlt increased cell viability. In neuroprotective of herb extracts, Epimedium Koreanum Nakai(EK) and Alpinia oxphylla Mig(IJI) was very effective in the prevention of the neurotoxicity induced by XO/HX in cultured mouse spinal motor neurons. From the above results, it is suggested that XO/HX shows toxic effect in cultured mouse spinal motor neurons and selective herb extracts such as Epimedium Koreanum Nakai(EK) and Alpinia oxphylla Mig(IJI) were very effective in the increase of cell viability against the neurotoxicity induced by oxygen radicals in these cultures.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
• /
• v.10 no.2
• /
• pp.100-116
• /
• 2002

There are several purpose to introduce microorganism into the Soil. The major purpose is to promote plant growth and inhibit plant pathogens. The model example is to put in nitrogen fixing symbiotic bacteria, Pythium and Rhizobium. In order to achieve the intended goal, the introduced microorganism should survive and colonize with sufficient density. The survival of introduced microorganism depend upon biotic and abiotic factors. Predation and competition are important among biotic factor. Water tension, organic carbon, inorganic nutrients(N, P), pH are important factor among abiootic factor. Soil texture and distribution of soil pore are also important in the survival and colonization of introduced microorganism. Selection by soil ecosystem for inoculant is a crucial factor for colonization. Good example are control of autochtonous microorganism and the introduction of surfactant biodegrading Pseudomonas. Sometimes, carriers such as peat and montmorillonite can be added to help colonization. Carriers can protect introduced microorganism by supplying protective microhabitat. Organic polymer is also used as a carrier to immobilize bacteria or industrial enzymes. Examples of these carrier are calcium alginate, agarose and k-carrageenan. The function of these carrier is to provide microhabitat and help colonization for introduced microorganism.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
• /
• v.40 no.5
• /
• pp.635-641
• /
• 2011

Anti-atherogenic effects in tumor necrosis factor-${\alpha}$ (TNF-${\alpha}$)-stimulated human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) are involved with suppressed oxidative stress, cell adhesion molecules, and pro-inflammatory factors. The aim of this study was to determine whether green tea seed coat ethyl acetate fraction (GTSCE) could modulate cell adhesion molecules and inflammatory mediators in HUVEC stimulated with TNF-${\alpha}$. Nitric oxide (NO) production was significantly increased in TNF-${\alpha}$-stimulated HUVEC compared to TNF-${\alpha}$ only treated cells. The NO that is produced by endothelial nitric oxide synthase dilates blood vessels and has protective effects against platelet and leucocyte adhesion. GTSCE at 25, 50, 75, and $100\;{\mu}g$/mL significantly (p<0.05) reduced TNF-${\alpha}$ production. GTSCE significantly (p<0.05) inhibited soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 level, in a dose-dependent manner. Monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 level was also significantly (p<0.05) inhibited by GTSCE treatment at $75\;{\mu}g$/mL compared to the TNF-${\alpha}$-only treated group. Total antioxidant capacity by GTSCE was significantly (p<0.05) enhanced compared to the TNF-${\alpha}$-only treated group. These results suggest that GTSCE can inhibit the production of cell adhesion molecules and inflammatory mediators and could be used as a candidate bioactive material to prevent the development of atherosclerosis.