• The Korean Journal of Ecology
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.353-358
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• 2002

We examined the effect of 12 main monoterpenes in Pinus plants on growth inhibition of Escherichia coli and Aspergillus nidulans. We tested four concentrations of each compound by comparing the clear zone with controls. (R)-(-)carvone, (S)(+)carvone, (1R)(-)fenchone, (-)menthone, α-pinene, (1S) (-)verbenone and (+)β - pinene had a inhibition effect on E. coli. (R)-(-)carvone, (S)(+)carvone, (+) β-pinene, geranyl-acetate, α-pinene, and (1S)(-)verbenone had inhibitory effects on the growth of A. nidulans. Geranyl-acetate inhibit growth of A. nidulans, however not to E. coli. And (1R)(-)fenchone and (-)menthone inhibit growth of E. coli, but not to A. nidulans. Myrcene, sabinene, bornyl acetate, and limonene had no inhibitory effects on E. coli and A. nidulans, eventhough at the highest concentration. All these results suggested that some selected monoterpenes had antifungal activities depend on the species of microorganism.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.7-13
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• 2016

Objectives : Camellia sinensis (Theaceae) possesses a various beneficial effects such as free radical-scavenging, inactivation of urokinase in cancer cell proliferation, antibacterial, and hypotensive. Dental caries is one of the most common oral infectious disease in a human. Oral microorganisms play a significant role in the etiology of dental caries. An aberration to this ecology due to dietary habits, improper oral hygiene or systemic factors lead to an increase in cariogenic microorganisms. Cariogenic microorganisms like Streptococcus mutans and Streptococcus sobrinus encourage the accumulation and adherence of plaque biofilm by metabolizing sucrose into glucans. The purpose of this study was to investigate the antimicrobial activity of phenolic compounds of Camellia sinensis and R-carvone, monoterpenes, is can be found naturally in numerous essential oils, on Streptococcus mutans and Streptococcus sobrinus .Methods : The antimicrobial activity of these compounds was determined by the broth microdilution method and checkerboard dilution assay to investigate the potential synergistic effects of each five compounds of Camellia sinensis (C. sinensis) and R-carvone.Results : C. sinensis-isolated compounds and R-carvone were determined with MIC of more than 1,000 ㎍/mL. However, the combination test showed significant synergism against S. mutans and S. sobrinus, implicated in the lowered MICs.Conclusions : These results suggest that combinatory application of phenolic five compounds (theophyllin, l-theanine, epicatechin, epicatechin gallate, and caffeine) from C. sinensis and R-carvone has a potential synergistic effect and thus may be useful as a mouthrinse in helping control cariogenic microorganism.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.9 no.6
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• pp.804-810
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• 1999

There is a possibility that carvone, a monoterpene from spearmint (Mentha spicata), could induce the bph degradative pathway and genes in Alcaligenes eutrophus H850, which is a known Gram-negative PCB degrader with a broad substrate specificity that was thoroughly investigated with Arthrobacter sp. BIB, a Gram-positive PCB degrader. The strains BIB and H850 were unable to utilize and grow on the plant terpene [(R)-(-)-carvone] (50ppm) to be recognized as a sole carbon source. Nevertheless, the carvone did induce 2,3-dihydroxybiphenyl 1,2-dioxygenase (encoded by bphC) in the strain B lB, as observed by a resting cell assay that monitors accumulation of a yellow meta ring fission product from 4,4'-dichlorobiphenyl (DCBp). The monoterpene, however, did not appear to induce the meta cleavage pathway in the strain H850. Instead, an assumption was made that the strain might be using an alternative pathway, probably the ortho-cleavage pathway. A reverse transcription (RT)-PCR system, utilizing primers designed from a conserved region of the bphC gene of Arthrobacter sp. M5, was employed to verify the occurrence of the alternative pathway. A successful amplification (182bp) of mRNA transcribed from the N-terminal region of the bphC gene was accomplished in H850 cells induced by carvone (50ppm) as well as in biphenyl-growth cells. It is, therefore, likely that H850 possesses a specific PCB degradation pathway and hence a different substrate specificity compared with B1B. This study will contribute to an elucidation of the dynamic aspects of PCB bioremediation in terms of roles played by PCB degraders and plant terpenes as natural inducer substrates that are ubiquitous and environmentally compatible.

• Horticultural Science & Technology
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.382-387
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• 2011

The chemical composition of essential oils obtained from aerial parts in spearmint, apple mint and chocolate mint, was investigated by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry analyses. (-)-Carvone (33.0%) was quantitatively major compound in spearmint, followed by R-(+)-limonene (11.7%) and ${\beta}$-phellandrene (9.7%); (-)-carvone (37.4%) and germacrene D (11.9%) in apple mint; and (-)-menthol (34.3%), p-menthone (18.4%) and menthofuran (9.8%) in chocolate mint. Hierarchical cluster analysis and principle components analysis showed the clear difference in chemical composition of the three mint oils.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Applied Microbiology Conference
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• 2000.04a
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• pp.100-107
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• 2000

In a recently developed strategy for in-situ treatment of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), bioaugmentation was used in conjunction with a surfactant, sorbitan trioleate, as a carbon source for the degrader bacteria, along with the monoterpene, carvone, and salicylic acid as inducing substrates. Two bacteria were used for soil inoculants, including Arthrobacter sp. st. B1B and Ralstonia eutrophus H850. This methodology achieved 60% degradation of PCBs in Aroclor 1242 after 18 weeks in soils receiving 34 repeated applications of the degrader bacteria. However, an obvious limitation was the requirement for soil mixing after every soil inoculation. In the research reported here, bioaugmentation and biostimulation treatment strategies were modified by using the earthworm, Pheretima hawayana, as a vector for dispersal and mixing of surface-applied PCB-degrading bacteria and soil chemical amendments. Changes in microbial biomass and microbial community structure due to earthworm effects were examined using DNA extraction and PCR-DGGE of 16S rDNA. Results showed that earthworms effectively promoted biodegradation of PCBs in bioaugmented soils to the same extent previously achieved using physical soil mixing, and had a lesser, but significant effect in promoting PCB biodegradation in biostimulated soils treated with carvone and salicylic acid. The effects of earthworms were speculated to involve many interacting factors including increased bacterial transport to lower soil depths, improved soil aeration, and enhanced microbial activity and diversity.

• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.158-172
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• 2017

Nigella sativa (N. sativa, family Ranunculaceae) is a medicinal plant that has been widely used for centuries throughout the world as a natural remedy. A wide range of chemical compounds found in N. sativa expresses its vast therapeutic effects. Thymoquinone (TQ) is the main component (up to 50%) in the essential oil of N. sativa. Also, pinene (up to 15%), p-cymene (40%), thymohydroquinone (THQ), thymol (THY), and dithymoquinone (DTQ) are other pharmacologically active compounds of its oil. Other terpenoid compounds, such as carvacrol, carvone, 4-terpineol, limonenes, and citronellol, are also found in small quantities in its oil. The main pharmacological characteristics of this plant are immune system stimulatory, anti-inflammatory, hypotensive, hepatoprotective, antioxidant, anti-cancer, hypoglycemic, anti-tussive, milk production, uricosuric, choleretic, anti-fertility, and spasmolytic properties. In this regard, we have searched the scientific databases PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar with keywords of N. sativa, anti-cancer, apoptotic effect, antitumor, antioxidant, and malignancy over the period from 2000 to 2017. The effectiveness of N. sativa against cancer in the blood system, kidneys, lungs, prostate, liver, and breast and on many malignant cell lines has been shown in many studies, but the molecular mechanisms behind that anti-cancer role are still not clearly understood. From among the many effects of N. sativa, including its anti-proliferative effect, cell cycle arrest, apoptosis induction, ROS generation, anti-metastasis/anti-angiogenesis effects, Akt pathway control, modulation of multiple molecular targets, including p53, p73, STAT-3, PTEN, and $PPAR-{\gamma}$, and activation of caspases, the main suggestive anti-cancer mechanisms of N. sativa are its free radical scavenger activity and the preservation of various anti-oxidant enzyme activities, such as glutathione peroxidase, catalase, and glutathione-S-transferase. In this review, we highlight the molecular mechanisms of apoptosis and the anti-cancer effects of N. sativa, with a focus on its molecular targets in apoptosis pathways.