• The Korean Journal of Physiology
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.77-90
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• 1990

There have been conflicting reports concerning the effect of Panax ginseng on the contractility of vascular smooth muscle, i.e., Panax ginseng extract has been reported to cause relaxation, contraction or to have no effect on the tension of vascular smooth muscle. A further investigation of $Ca^{++}$ stores which supply $Ca^{++}$ for contraction of vascular smooth muscle is needed to understand the underlying mechanisms of this conflicting effect of ginseng alcohol extract (GAE). The present study was intended to examine the sources of calcium mobilized for contraction of vascular smooth muscle by GAE. Aortic ring preparations were made from the rabbit thoracic aorta and endothelial cells were removed from the ring. The contractility of the aortic ring was measured under various experimental conditions and $Ca^{++}$ flux across the membrane of aortic ring and the sarcoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria were measured with a calcium selective electrode. The result were summarized as follows; 1) At low concentration of extracellular $Ca^{++}$, GAE increased the contractility of vascular smooth muscle in dose-dependent fashion except high concentration $Ca^{++}$ (1 mM). 2) In the presence of ryanodine, GAE still increased contractility of vascular smooth muscle as much as control group, but in the presence of caffeine, GAE increased it significantly. i.e. Their effects seemed to be additive. 3) In the presence of verapamil+lanthanum, and verapamil+lanthanum+ryanodine, the contractility of the vascular smooth muscle was decreased, but a dose dependent increase in vascular tension was still demonstrated by GAE although total tension was low. 4) GAE increased $Ca^{++}$ efflux from vascular smooth muscle cells, but have no effect on $Ca^{++}$ influx. 5) GAE increased $Ca^{++}$ efflux from sarcoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria vesicles. From the above results, it may be concluded that GAE increased the release of $Ca^{++}$ from sarcoplasmic reticulum, mitochondria or other intracellular $Ca^{++}$ stores of vascular smooth muscle, but it does not increase $Ca^{++}$ influx across the plasma membrane.

• Journal of Embryo Transfer
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.105-113
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• 1995

This study was conducted to examine the efficiency of enucleation and blastomere isolation from recipient oocytes and donor embryos, respectively and to determine the effect of oocyte age and electric voltage on the fusion rate and in vitro development of the fused oocytes in rabbit nuclear transplantation. Immature oocytes collected from ovarian follicles were matured in vivo for 12 h in TCM-199 containing FCS and hormones and in vivo matured oocytes were collected 17 to 18 h post-HCG. The fresh and frozen donor embryos of 8- to 16-cell stage were collected from the oviduct of superovulated does. The proportion of successfully enucleated oocytes was greatly lower in in vitro matured oocytes (42.3%) than that (62.7%) in in vivo matured oocytes The level of cytochalasin B for in vivo matured oocytes did not affect the efficiency of enuleation, but 7.5 $\mu$g /mL cytochalasin B for in vitro matured oocytes showed a high enucleation rate significantly. The isolation efficiency of a single blastomere nucleus did not differ between 8- and 16-cell stage embryos. The percentage of single blastomeres isolated from 16-cell stage fresh embryos after 0.5% pronase treatment was greatly higher at 16-min treatment (94.4%) than at 8-min(78. 1%) and the blastomeres(61.5%) isolated from frozen-thawed embryos after 16-min pronase were significantly fewer than those of fresh embryos. The age of recipient oocytes affected nuclear fusion rate. The reconstituted oocytes fused at 24-h age showed slightly higher fusion rate (77.8%) than those (65.0%)fused at 18-h age. The fusion rate of in vitro and in vivo matured oocytes inserted with fresh blastomere did not differ among electric voltages, but the cleavage rate and development to morula-blastocysts of in vitro matured oocytes was more higher under 0.6 kV/cm than under 0.8 to 1.2 kV/cm, while the cleavage rate and development of in vivo matured oocytes was higher under 0.8 to 1.0 kV/cm than under 1.2 kV/cm. The fusion and cleavage rate fol1owing insertion with frozen-thawed blastomere was not different between the in vitro and in vivo matured oocytes and was similar to those from fresh blastomere insertion.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.41-50
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• 2003

General pharmacological properties of DA-8159, a new pyrazolopyrimidinone derivative were examined in laboratory animals to investigate its safety profile. The oral administration of DA-8159 (1, 5 or 30 mg/kg) in mice and rats had no effect on general behaviors and central nervous system of the animals in test systems, such as hexobarbital-induced sleeping time, motor coordination, normal body temperature, writhing syndromes induced by 0.75% acetic acid solution, chemo-shock produced by pentetrazole solution and rotar rod test. Anesthetized cats treated intravenously with DA-8159 (0.1, 0.3, 1, 3 or 10 mg/kg) showed transient and mild decrease in blood pressure. However, heart rate, respiration rate and tidal volume were not changed by intravenous DA-8159. In the isolated organs including ileum, heart (sinus rate of atria and contractility of papillary muscle), trachea of guinea pigs and phrenic nerve of rats, DA-8159 ($10^{-8}$ ∼$10^{-5}$ mg/L) did not elicit any effect or inhibitory action on the chemically or electrically stimulated contraction. DA-8159 did not influence gastric secretion, pH and total acid output in rats and intestinal propulsion in mice. The administration of DA-8159 in rats had no effect on the platelet aggregation induced by ADP in rabbit plasma, urinary volume and electrolyte ion ($Na^{+}$, $K^{+}$, $Cl^{-}$) excretion in rats. Prothrombin time (PT) of the rats showed a mild but significant increase after administration of DA-8159. Activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), however, was not affected by DA-8159. These results indicate that DA-8159 does not exert any of serious pharmacological effects.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.45 no.1 s.141
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• pp.19-26
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• 2007

This study describes the isolation of a Toxocara canis species-specific excretory-secretory(ES) antigen and the development of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay(ELISA) based on this antigen. Analysis of the ES antigens of T. canis, Toxocara vitulorum, Ascaris lumbricoides and Necator americanus larval antigen was performed by SDS-PAGE followed by western blotting. A 57 kDa T. canis-specific antibody fraction(TcES-57) was identified by western blotting and labelling with anti-Toxocara antibodies(from experimental rabbits and human patients) and tracing with anti-human or anti-rabbit peroxidase conjugate. No protein fraction of 57 kDa was detected in ES or larval antigens collected from T. canis, T. vitulorum, A. lumbricoides and N. americanus. Using TcES-57, a specific anti-serum was produced in rabbits and a double sandwich ELISA was developed. This test was validated using known seropositive sera from toxocariasis patients, sera from A. lumbricoides or N. americanus patients, and 50 serum samples from cats. These tests revealed that TcES-57 antigen is specific to T. canis infection and does not cross react with sera of other related infections. Thus, ELISA based on TcES-57 antigen was proven to be an effective tool in the diagnosis of toxocariasis and studies on the role of T. canis in the epidemiology of human toxocariasis.

• Journal of Pharmaceutical Investigation
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.85-89
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• 2003

Piroxicam-arginine complex was prepared to improve the solubility and dissolution rate of poorly water-soluble piroxicam. Its formation was identified by infrared spectrophotometry, differential thermal analysis and dissolution rate. Piroxicam complex dispersible tablets, commercial $Feldene^{\circledR}$ dispersible tablets and piroxicam physical mixture hard capsules were prepared to compare dissolution rate in water. Dissolved amounts (%) after 15 mins of piroxicam complex dispersible tablets, commercial $Feldene^{\circledR}$ dispersible tablets and piroxicam physical mixture hard capsules were 98%, 48% and 10%, respectively. The solubility of complex in water was significantly higher than that of piroxicam itself. In vivo, pharmacokinetic parameters were obtained after oral administrations of piroxicam complex and physical mixture at a does of 2 mg to New Zealand White Rabbit. The $C_{max}$ of piroxicam complex was similar to that of piroxicam. However, there were much difference between the two formulations with regard to $T_{max}$ and AUC. The $T_{max}$ of piroxicam alone was 4 hours, but that of piroxicam complex was 0.8 hours. In addition, the AUC of piroxicam complex was 1.38 times greater than that of piroxicam alone.

• International Journal of Industrial Entomology and Biomaterials
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.165-173
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• 2003

Cytokines represent an essential part of the innate immune response in mammals. Recently, several studies have reported the presence of cytokine-like activities and molecules in the invertebrates such as echinoderms, tunicates, mollusks and insects. In our serial study, we investigated presence of cytokines in the silkworm, Bombyx mori, infected with several immune inducers. Western blotting analysis using rabbit anti-human cytokines showed the presence of IL-6-like molecule in the hemolymph collected at 8 and 24 hrs after infection with peptidoglycan and oligodeoxynucleotide, and the molecular weight of the proteins was ∼45 kDa. We attempted to isolate the molecule by gel permeation HPLC, anion exchange chromatography, ultra centrifugation, and immuno-dot-blot assay, but until now the effort was not much successful yet. It, however, does not appear that the IL-6-like molecule in the silkworm larvae is a mere experimental artifact happened by Western blotting analysis. Instead, further experiment on this subject probably will provide us more fruitful result as detected in other invertebrates including insects.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.289-295
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• 2009

To develop a safer yogurt for immuno-compromised or allergy patients and to extend shelf-life, a plain yogurt was irradiated with doses of 0, 1, 3, 5, and 10 kGy using a gamma ray and the chemical and microbiological quality and allergenicity change were investigated. There was no difference in the content of protein, total solid, and amino acids of the plain yogurt by irradiation treatment and different storage temperatures (4, 20, and $35^{\circ}C$). The lactic acid bacterial counts of irradiated plain yogurt had approximately 3-decimal reduction at 3 kGy, and no viable cell at 10 kGy regardless of storage time and temperature. The binding ability of rabbit antiserum to milk proteins in irradiated plain yogurt showed that 10 kGy of irradiation produced significantly higher binding ability than other treatments. Sensory evaluation indicated that only appearance of the plain yogurt irradiated at 3 kGy or higher had a lower value than the non-irradiated control when stored at $20^{\circ}C$. Results suggest that irradiation of plain yogurt does not significantly affect the chemical and sensory quality of plain yogurt, but can extend the shelf-life, possibly reduce allergenicity, and provide a safer product.

• Archives of Craniofacial Surgery
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.260-267
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• 2021

Background: Elastic ear cartilage is a good source of tissue for support or augmentation in plastic and reconstructive surgery. However, the amount of ear cartilage is limited and excessive use of cartilage can cause deformation of the auricular framework. This animal study investigated the potential of periosteal chondrogenesis in an ear cartilage defect model. Methods: Twelve New Zealand white rabbits were used in the present study. Four ear cartilage defects were created in both ears of each rabbit, between the central artery and marginal veins. The defects were covered with perichondrium (group 1), periosteum taken from the calvarium (group 2), or periosteum taken from the tibia (group 3). No coverage was performed in a control group (group 4). All animals were sacrificed 6 weeks later, and the ratio of neo-cartilage to defect size was measured. Results: Significant chondrogenesis occurred only in group 1 (cartilage regeneration ratio: mean±standard deviation, 0.97±0.60), whereas the cartilage regeneration ratio was substantially lower in group 2 (0.10±0.11), group 3 (0.08±0.09), and group 4 (0.08±0.14) (p= 0.004). Instead of chondrogenesis, osteogenesis was observed in the periosteal graft groups. No statistically significant differences were found in the amount of osteogenesis or chondrogenesis between groups 2 and 3. Group 4 showed fibrous tissue accumulation in the defect area. Conclusion: Periosteal grafts showed weak chondrogenic potential in an ear cartilage defect model of rabbits; instead, they exhibited osteogenesis, irrespective of their embryological origin.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.32 no.7
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• pp.603-612
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• 1999

Background : It has been documented that brief repetitive periods of ischemia and reperfusion (ischemic preconditioning, IP) enhances the recovery of post-ischemic contractile function and reduces infarct size after a longer period of ischemia. Many mechanisms have been proposed to explain this process. Recent studies have suggested that transient increase in the intracellular calcium may have triggered the activation of protein kinase C(PKC); however, there are still many controversies. Accordingly, the author performed the present study to test the hypothesis that preconditioning with high concentration of calcium before sustained subsequent ischemia(calcium preconditioning) mimics IP by PKC activation. Material and Method : The isolated hearts from the New Zealand White rabbits(1.5∼2.0 kg body weight) Method: The isolated hearts from the New Zealand White rabbits(1.5∼2.0 kg body weight) were perfused with Tyrode solution by Langendorff technique. After stabilization of baseline hemodynamics, the hearts were subjected to 45-minute global ischemia followed by a 120-minute reperfusion with IP(IP group, n=13) or without IP(ischemic control, n=10). IP was induced by single episode of 5-minute global ischemia and 10-minute reperfusion. In the Ca2+ preconditioned group, perfusate containing 10(n=10) or 20 mM(n=11) CaCl2 was perfused for 10 minutes after 5-minute ischemia followed by a 45-minute global ischemia and a 120-minute reperfusion. Baseline PKC was measured after 50-minute perfusion without any treatment(n=5). Left ventricular function including developed pressure(LVDP), dP/dt, heart rate, left ventricular end-diastolic pressure(LVEDP) and coronary flow(CF) was measured. Myo car ial cytosolic and membrane PKC activities were measured by 32P-${\gamma}$-ATP incorporation into PKC-specific pepetide. The infarct size was determined using the TTC (tetrazolium salt) staining and planimetry. Data were analyzed using one-way analysis of variance(ANOVA) variance(ANOVA) and Tukey's post-hoc test. Result: IP increased the functional recovery including LVDP, dP/dt and CF(p<0.05) and lowered the ascending range of LVEDP(p<0.05); it also reduced the infarct size from 38% to 20%(p<0.05). In both of the Ca2+ preconditioned group, functional recovery was not significantly different in comparison with the ischemic control, however, the infarct size was reduced to 19∼23%(p<0.05). In comparison with the baseline(7.31 0.31 nmol/g tissue), the activities of the cytosolic PKC tended to decrease in both the IP and Ca2+ preconditioned groups, particularly in the 10 mM Ca2+ preconditioned group(4.19 0.39 nmol/g tissue, p<0.01); the activity of membrane PKC was significantly increased in both IP and 10 mM Ca2+ preconditioned group (p<0.05; 1.84 0.21, 4.00 0.14, and 4.02 0.70 nmol/g tissue in the baseline, IP, and 10 mM Ca2+ preconditioned group, respectively). However, the activity of both PKC fractions were not significantly different between the baseline and the ischemic control. Conclusion: These results indicate that in isolated Langendorff-perfused rabbit heart model, calcium preconditioning with high concentration of calcium does not improve post-ischemic functional recovery. However, it does have an effect of limiting(reducing) the infart size by ischemic preconditioning, and this cardioprotective effect, at least in part, may have resulted from the activation of PKC by calcium which acts as a messenger(or trigger) to activate membrane PKC.

• The Korean Journal of Pharmacology
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.43-54
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• 1982

Bile formation is a complex process comprised of three separate physiologic mechanism operating at two anatomical sites. At present time, it was known that at least two processes are responsible for total canalicular secretion at the bile canaliculus. One of the processes is bile salt-dependent secretion (BSDS) hypothesis that the active transport of bile salts from plasma to bile provided a primary stimulus for bile formation: the osmotic effect of actively transported bile acid was responsible for the movement of water and ions into bile. The other process is bile salt-independent secretion (ESIS), which is unrelated to bile salt secretion at the canaliculus and which may involve the active transport of sodium. The third process for bile formation involves the biliary ductal epithelium. Secretin-stimulated bile characteristically contained bicarbonate in high concentration. Therefor, it was suggested that secretin stimulated water and bicarbonate secretion from the biliary ductules. One the other hand, it was found that a large amounts of cAMP was present in canine bile but no apparent relationship between bile salt secretion and cAMP content in dog bile. However, bile flow studies in human have demonstrated that secretin and glucagon increase bile cAMP secretion as does secretin in baboons. Secretin increases baboon bile duct mucosal cAMP levels in addition to bile CAMP levels suggesting that in that species secretin-stimulated bile flow may be cAMP mediated. It has been postulated that glucagon and theophylline which increase the bile salt-independent secretion in dogs might act through an increased in liver cAMP content. In a few studies, the possible role of cAMP on bile formation has teen tested by administration of an exogenous derivative of cAMP, dibutyryl cAMP. In the rat, DB cAMP did not modify bile flow, but injection of DB cAMP in the dog promoted an increase in the bile salt-independent secretion. Because of these contradictory results, this study was carried out to examine the relationship between cyclic nucleotides and bile flow due to various bile salts as well as secretin or theophylline. Experiments were performed in rabbits with anesthesia produced by the injection of seconal(30 mg/kg). Rabbits had the cystic duct ligated and the proximal end of the divided common duct cannulated with an appropriately sized polyethylene catheter. A similar catheter was placed into the inferior vena cava for administration of drugs. Bile was collected for determination of cyclic nucleotides and total cholate in 15 min. intervals for a few hours. The results are summerized as followings. 1) Administrations of taurocholic acid or chenodeoxycholic acid increased significantly the concentrations of cAMP and cGMP in bile of rabbits. 2) Concentration of cAMP in bile during the continuous infusion of ursodeoxycholic acid, was remarkedly increased in accordance with the increase of bile flow, while on the contrary concentration of cGMP in bile was decreased significantly. 3) Dehydrocholic acid and deoxycholic acid significantly increased bile flow, total cholate output and cyclic nucleotides in bile. 4) Only cAMP concentration in bile was significantly increased from control value by secretin, while theophylline increased cAMP as well as cGMP in rabbit bile. 5) In addition, the administration of secretin to taurocholic acid-stimulated bile flow increased cAMP while theophylline produced the increases of cAMP and cGMP in bile. 6) The administration of insulin to taurocholic acid-stimulated bile flow decreased cAMP concentration, while on the contrary cGMP was remarkedly increased in rabbit bile.