• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.53 no.2
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• pp.165-173
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• 2021

Clematis trichotoma Nakai (CTN) is a broad-leaved vine plant belonging to the family Ranunculus, native to Korea. Young leaves are used as food, and the stem and roots are used as medicinal materials. Antioxidant studies have been reported on the stems of CTN, but no studies have been conducted on the leaves. In this study, a 70% ethanol extract of CTN was prepared and its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities were investigated. For measuring the antioxidant activity, five assays (polyphenol and flavonoid content, reducing power, 2,2-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid), and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging activity) were performed and CTN showed a concentration-dependent effect in all assays. To investigate the anti-inflammatory activity, we used RAW 264.7 cells. The concentrations (from 31.25 to 250 ㎍/mL) of CTN did not show cytotoxicity. CTN (250 ㎍/mL) inhibited dendritic transformation (34.4%) and also inhibited inflammation as seen by reduced levels of NO (77.4%), IL-6 (85.5%) and TNF-α (41.2%) compared to lipopolysaccharide (LPS). CTN (250 ㎍/mL) also suppressed the expression of the following genes: COX-2 (79.8%), iNOS2 (93.9%), IL-6 (87.6%), and TNF-α (77.3%) compared to LPS. These results demonstrated that CTN has excellent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities and can therefore be used as a natural biological resource.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.9-19
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• 2022

Objectives : Angelicae Gigantis Radix (AG) is a plant of the Ranunculus family. AG have been reported to have various pharmacological effects on human health which include uterine growth promotion, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and immune enhancement. However, research on dermatitis disease is insufficient. Therefore, we investigated the effects of AG on tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α)/interferon-γ (IFN-γ) stimulated HaCaT cell. Methods : To investigate the effect of AG on HaCaT cell, HaCaT cells were pre-treated with AG for 1 hour and then stimulated with TNF-α/IFN-γ. After 24 hours, media and cells were harvested to analyze the inflammatory mediators. Concentration of human interleukin-1beta (IL-1β), monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), and TNF-α in the media were assessed by ELISA. mRNA expression of human thymus and activation-regulated chemokine (TARC), IL-6, and IL-8 were analyzed by RT-PCR. Additionally, the mechanisms of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) and nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) signaling pathway were investigated by Western blot. Results : The treatment of AG inhibited gene expression levels of IL-6, IL-8, and TARC and protein expression levels of IL-1β, MCP-1, and GM-CSF. Also, AG significantly reduced extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) phosphorylation and NF-κB translocation in TNF-α/IFN-γ stimulated HaCaT cell. Conclusions : Taken together, these results demonstrate that AG can alleviate inflammatory diseases such as atopic dermatitis by regulating the expression of inflammatory cytokines. Also, it suggest that AG may a promising candidate drug for the treatment of inflammatory disease such as atopic dermatitis.

• Korean Journal of Weed Science
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.265-279
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• 1987

About 140 weed species belonging to 42 families occurring in summer were observed in Ulreung island. The Compositae was the most wildely occurring family covering 27 weed species, followed by 21 species in Graminae, 9 in Polygonaceae, 7 in Leguminosae, and 7 in Labiatae etc. In terms of the lands classified, about 60 species in 26 families were observed in the cultivated and the medical crops grown areas, respectively, and 116 species in 40 families occurred in the non-cultivated land like the vicinity of the cultivated area and 94 species in 34 families in the valley. No. of species and families were much greater in the non-cutivated land than those of the cultivated one. The most dominant weed species in both the cultivated and its vicinity in Ulreung island were Digitaria sanguinalis, followed by Portulaca oleracea, Polygonum hydropiper, Equisetum arvensis, Artemisia princeps, Commetina communis, Setaria viridis in order. Community analysis was done by the method of Toyohara in two cultivated lands such as the general crop land and the medical herb crop grown land, and two non-cultivated areas such as the vicinity of the cultivated land and valley. The cultivated land consisted of the communites of P. hydropiper and Cyperus amuricus, including Bidens tripartita in P. hydropiper community. The medical crop grown land composed of three major communities like P. hydropiper, Amaranthus mangostanus and Sonchus asper in which A. mangostanus and S. media were presented in the ecoton, indicating community being transiting. In the non-cultivated areas like the vicinity of crop land, the communities of Erigeron annuus, P. oleracea, and Oxalis corniculata were dominant, and Dystaenia takeshimana was included in the community of E. annuus and Stellan'a aquatica in P. oleracea community. In the valley, Ranunculus quelpaertensis community was existed in between the communities of Sonchus asper and Plantago asiatica.