• Journal of Life Science
• /
• 제23권1호
• /
• pp.69-78
• /
• 2013

Vitis amurensis Rupreche, a sort of grape, grows naturally in Asian countries. It is known for important biological effects such as antioxidation, anti-inflammation, neuroprotection, and angiogenesis inhibition. Although its root is used as a traditional folk medicine in Korea, the root's biological activities are poorly studied. In the present study, the effects of V. amurensis root methanol extract (VARM) and its solvent fractions on adipocyte differentiation and adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 preadipocytes were investigated. The VARM significantly suppressed adipocyte differentiation, lipid accumulation, and the triglyceride (TG) content of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes in a dose-dependent manner, without cytotoxicity. To identify active molecules, the VARM was fractionated with a series of organic solvents including dichloromethane ($CH_2Cl_2$), ethyl acetate (EtOAc), and n-butanol (n-BuOH). All the fractions also showed inhibition of lipid accumulation in the 3T3-L1 preadipocytes. The $CH_2Cl_2$ fraction showed the most powerful anti-obesity effect through the modulation of cytidine-cytidine-adenosine-adenosinethymidine (CCAAT)/enhancer binding protein ${\alpha}$ ($C/EBP{\alpha}$), $C/EBP{\beta}$, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor ${\gamma}$ ($PPAR{\gamma}$) gene and protein expression. Oleanolic acid was one of the main active compounds involved in the anti-obesity activity of the V. amurensis root. These results provide important new insight into the potential potent anti-adipogenic effect of the V. amurensis root and illustrate that one of the main compounds involved in this effect is oleanolic acid.

• Journal of Life Science
• /
• 제27권2호
• /
• pp.247-266
• /
• 2017

Cordyceps is a traditional Chinese medicinal herb well-known in China, Korea and Japan since B.C. 2,000. The original entomopathogenic fungus, Cordyceps sinensis belonging to the genus Cordyceps could not be found inside Korean peninsula due to the absence of the host insect for the corresponding entomogenous fungus. The development of artificial production methods of Korean type Cordyceps using the silkworm Bombyx mori as in vivo culture medium for the the entomopathogenic fungus Paecilomyces tenuipes is the first, and wonderful occasion in the research history of insect industry of this global world. The aim of this article is to review the historical research background, mass-production methods, and pharmacological effects of the silkworm-dongchunghacho (Paecilomyces tenuipes) which is a newly developed Korean medicinal insect-borne mushroom, and another non-insect-borne medicinal mushroom (Cordyceps militaris and Cordyceps pruinosa). Their biological actions include anti-tumor, immunostimulating, anti-fatigue, anti-stress, anti-oxidant, anti-aging, anti-diabetic, anti-inflammatory, anti-thrombosis, hypolipidaemic and insecticidal effects. The bioactive principles are protein-bound polysaccharides (hexose, hexosamin), cordycepin, D-manitol, acidic polysaccharide etc. Protein-bound polysaccharides and n-butanol fractions were demonstrated to show a significant anti-tumor activities but did not show a cytotoxicities. D-mannitol exhibited a significant prolongation of the life span in tumor bearing mice. Ergosterol did not show an efficient anti-tumor activity, but showed a significant phagocytosis enhancing activity. Anti-tumor activity of silkworm-dongchunghacho might be attributed to immuno-stimulating activities rather than cytotoxic effects [164]. Also this review comprises the breeding of Dongchunghacho varieties, optimization of culture conditions, improvement of learning and memory by Dongchunghacho, application of them as foods and chemical constituents.

• Journal of Life Science
• /
• 제27권2호
• /
• pp.155-163
• /
• 2017

Mori Folium, the leaf of Morus alba, is a traditional medicinal herb that shows various pharmacological activities such as antiinflammatory, antidiabetic, antimelanogenesis, antioxidant, antibacterial, antiallergic, and immunomodulatory activities. However, the mechanisms of their inhibitory effects on adipocyte differentiation and adipogenesis remain poorly understood. In the present study, we investigated the inhibition of adipocyte differentiation and adipogenesis by ethanol extracts of Mori Folium (EEMF) in 3T3-L1 preadipocytes. Treatment with EEMF suppressed the terminal differentiation of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes in a dose-dependent manner, as confirmed by a decrease in the lipid droplet number and lipid content through Oil Red O staining. EEMF significantly reduced the accumulation of cellular triglyceride, which is associated with a significant inhibition of pro-adipogenic transcription factors, including sterol regulatory element-binding protein-1c (SREBP-1c), peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-${\gamma}$ ($PPAR{\gamma}$), and CCAAT/enhancer-binding proteins ${\alpha}$ ($C/EBP{\alpha}$) and ${\beta}$ ($C/EBP{\beta}$). In addition, EEMF potentially downregulated the expression of adipocyte-specific genes, including adipocyte fatty acid binding protein (aP2) and leptin. Furthermore, EEMF treatment effectively increased the phosphorylation of the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and acetyl CoA carboxylase (ACC); however, treatment with a potent inhibitor of AMPK, compound C, significantly restored the EEMF-induced inhibition of pro-adipogenic transcription factors and adipocyte-specific genes. These results together indicate that EEMF has preeminent effects on the inhibition of adipogenesis through the AMPK signaling pathway, and further studies will be needed to identify the active compounds in Mori Folium.

• Journal of Life Science
• /
• 제27권10호
• /
• pp.1207-1214
• /
• 2017

Schisandrae Fructus (SF), the fruit of Schisandra chinensis (Turcz.) Baill., is widely used in traditional medicine for the treatment of a number of chronic diseases. SF extracts have been recently reported to attenuate the inflammatory responses in SW1353 human chondrocyte cells in in vitro and monosodium iodoacetate (MIA)-induced cartilage degradation in in vivo osteoarthritis (OA) models. However, their protective and therapeutic potentials against OA in primary culture chondrocytes and animal models remain unclear. Therefore, we investigated the effects of the ethanol extract of SF on the activity of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), biomarkers for diagnosis of OA, on interleukin $(IL)-1{\beta}-induced$ primary cultured rat cartilage chondrocytes and MIA-induced osteoarthritis in a rat model. Our data indicated that SF treatment significantly reduced the mRNA expression and enzyme activity of MMP-1, -3 and -13 in $IL-1{\beta}-induced$ primary cultured rat cartilage chondrocytes. The chondro-protective effects of SF were then analyzed in a rat OA model using a single intra-articular injection of MIA in the right knee joint. According to our results, the elevated levels of MMP-1 and -3 were markedly ameliorated by SF administration. Collectively, these findings indicate that SF could be a candidate for the treatment of OA.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
• /
• 제27권6호
• /
• pp.1017-1027
• /
• 1995

This study was attempted to investigate physicochemical properties, molecular structural properties of native and acid-treated chestnut starch and chestnut starch gel. The amylose content was 18.9% and X-ray diffraction pattern showed Cb type. Swelling power was increased abruptly in the range of $65^{\circ}C{\sim}75^{\circ}C$ but increased slowly after that and solubility was increased abruptly until $70^{\circ}C$ but increased slowly after that. In amylograms which have different heating temperatures, cooling viscosity at $50^{\circ}C$ was reduced as heating temperature was increased. In molecular structural properties of amylose, ${\lambda}_{max}$ was 640 nm, ${\beta}-amylolysis$ limit was 84.2% and the degree of polymerization was 951 and in those of amylopectin, ${\lambda}_{max}$ was 570 nm, ${\beta}-amylolysis$ limit was 58.2%, the degree of polymerization was 1371 and average chain length was 22.6. In gel chromatography elution profiles of starch and amylose, 4.0% and 11.5% of low molecular weight-molecules($<5{\times}10^5$) were leached out. In gel chromatography elution profiles of soluble starch, the higher heating temperature was, the more high molecular weight-starches were leached out. The elution profiles after debranching amylopectin with pullulanase showed 2.2 of the ratio of peakIII(DP 10-15) to peakII(DP 35-45). Acid hydrolysis extent of 2.2 N HCI-treated starch at $35^{\circ}C$ for 10 days was 96% and hydrolysis rate showed two step pattern which had border line at 4 days. In elution profiles of acid treated chestnut starch, amylopectin peak was disappeared compeletly after 6 hrs and converted short chains of DP 10-15. Amylose content was increased until 6 hrs but decreased after that. Hardness of starch gel made at $75^{\circ}C$ of heating temperature and cohesiveness of starch gel made at $85^{\circ}C$ of heating temperature were the highest. Retrogradation rate of starch gels were relatively high, especially for the starch gel made at $75^{\circ}C$ of heating temperature.

• Journal of Korean Home Economics Education Association
• /
• 제26권2호
• /
• pp.31-49
• /
• 2014

The purpose of this study is to examine how the father involvement suggested in the Home Economics textbook through the development of gender-equal society and provide the basic data for the development of a standard for the father involvement in the viewpoint of gender equality. For this, the father involvement depicted in the main text, photos, and illustrations included in the Home Economics textbooks were examined. A total of 34 Home Economics textbooks written based on the curricula from the 1st Curriculum up to the 2007 Revised Curriculum were analyzed centering on the contents and the quantity of the text, supplementary materials, photos, and illustrations. The following are the results of the analysis. First, the Home Economics textbooks based on the 1st to 3rd Curriculua only described the traditional father involvement, and photos and illustrations did not specifically describe the role of the father. Second, the Home Economics textbooks based on the 4th to 5th Curricula began to show changes such as the image of the father sharing household responsibilities. Third, the Home Economics textbooks based on the 6th Curriculum suggested more active involvement of the father such as sharing the equal responsibility for the upbringing of children and sharing responsibilities for child care and housework. Fourth, the Home Economics textbooks based on the 7th Curricula up to the Revised Curriculum of 2007 emphasized the father's involvement of upbringing children. Especially, a variety of contents including the domestic responsibilities of the father, the correction of the "work-first" attitude, and gender equality related contents were suggested to promote gender-equal society further. Said results show that the contents related with gender equality and the descriptions about the father role in the viewpoint of gender equality are steadily increasing in Home Economics textbooks. However, there were still problems such as the gender-role division regarding the involvement of the father in the family and temporary responses to social demands. Open debates between the experts in the education of Home Economics and experts in family life may be required in order to improve said problems.

• Journal of Korean Home Economics Education Association
• /
• 제25권4호
• /
• pp.63-77
• /
• 2013

The purpose of this study is to develop the home economics-relevant program on Korean traditional culture for adolescents from multicultural families for them for experience it directly, set up ego-identity and improve social adaptability. Further, we checked the effectiveness and efficiency of the developed program. First we developed the program composed of a total of 12 sessions based on experiencing Korean culture. It consists of largely 5 madang(parts) centered on themes such as Eowool madang, Hangeul madang, Play madang, Cooking madang and hostory madang. We ran the developed program for 3 months targeting a total of 18 persons composed of the adolescents from multicultural families and their mothers residing in S city of eastern area of Jeonnam province. We measured the participants' ego-identity, social adaptibility and participation satisfaction to examine the effectiveness of the program. The results of pre-test, post-test and satisfaction which are evaluation instruments used in this program are as follows. First, it appeared that the self-identity of the adolescent of multicultural families inceased by 0.30 from average score of 3.03 before the participation in the program to 3.33 after the participation. Social adaptability increased by 0.30 from average 3.11 before the participation to 3.41 after the participation. Second, in the program participation satisfaction, it appeared that first the middle satisfaction marked average 3.30 which exceeded median value at 3.00, meaning a little high satisfaction, whereas the final satisfaction had an averagescore of 4.03, which means a big satisfaction concerning the program participation. The results indicated that the home economics-relevant program was effective in improving the ego-identity and social adaptability of adolescents from multicultural families and supporting a role of as a member of Korean family.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
• /
• 제43권7호
• /
• pp.980-988
• /
• 2014

Seungmagalgeuntang (SG) is broadly used in traditional Oriental medicine especially in Korea, China, and Japan, for its many pharmacological effects. This study was carried out to investigate the antioxidative, antimicrobial, and anticytotoxic activities of SG and fermented seungmagalgeuntang (FSG). DPPH radical scavenging activities of SG and FSG were 70% and 74%, respectively, which increased slightly by fermentation. Nitrite scavenging activities were strongly altered at pH 1.2, (36.4% in SG and 38.3% in FSG) by addition of $200{\mu}g/g$. Superoxide dismutase-like activities were from 21.5% to 23.3% at a concentration of 0.4 mg/mL, and the highest value were observed in FSG. Total flavonoid contents of SG and FSG were 47.1 and $52.1{\mu}g/L$, respectively which shows an increase upon fermentation. In the antimicrobial activity test, $MIC_{50}$ values of SG and FSG were $800{\mu}g/mL$ for Candida albicans and 3,200 and $1,600{\mu}g/mL$ for Staphylococcus epidermidis and Staphylococcus aureus, respectively. Antibacterial effects were higher in FSG compared to SG. Anticytotoxic cadmium toxicities ranged from 63.5% to 76.1% at $10{\mu}g/mL$ of SG and FSG, and the highest value was observed in FSG. In the sensory evaluation, color, flavor, and overall preference values were higher in FSG.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
• /
• 제37권6호
• /
• pp.784-791
• /
• 2008

A new sake fermented using a mixture of Aspergillus sp., Rhizopus sp. and yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) containing allbanggae was developed in this study. The effects of the allbanggae contents ($0{\sim}50%$) in the sake on the qualitative and sensory properties and flavor components were investigated. The fermentation with allbanggae, especially in sake containing 10% allbanggae, showed the highest level of alcohol ($15.3{\sim}16.4%$), whereas the amount of alcohol decreased with increasing allbanggae contents. Amino acidity in sake containing 10% and 20% allbanggae indicated the highest levels ($0.90{\sim}1.20%$). In addition, it was observed that the sake containing 10% allbanggae showed the smallest level of reducing sugars, which were increased with increasing allbanggae ratio. Furthermore, various organic acids in the sake were detected such as citric, succinic, malic and acetic acids, among which the acetic acid showed the highest amount ($160.3{\pm}8.0{\sim}253.3{\pm}20.3mg/100mL$). The major amino acids detected in the sakes were alanine, proline, histidine, phenylalanine, lysine and glutamic acid. The sake containing 20% allbanggae indicated the highest amino acids amount among the allbanggae ratios. Based on these results, it was concluded that the sake containing 20% allbanggae could be successfully commercialized.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
• /
• 제46권7호
• /
• pp.790-800
• /
• 2017

As men get older, total testosterone levels decline gradually, and concentrations of free and bioavailable testosterone decline sharply with each decade beyond their 30s. Andropause or testosterone deficiency syndrome (TDS) is defined as a decrease in sexual satisfaction or decline in general well-being accompanied by low levels of testosterone in older men. This male climacteric is characterized by nervousness, reduced potency, decreased libido, irritability, fatigue, depression, memory problems, sleep disturbances, and hot flushes. Cirsium japonicum (CJ) is used as a traditional medicine for hemorrhage, blood congestion, and inflammation in Korea. However, there is no report on the efficacy of CJ treatment for TDS. In this study, we observed the mitigating effect of CJ extract (CE) and fermented CJ extract (FCE) on symptoms of TDS. In elderly male rats, total and testosterone levels, hind limbs muscles, forced swimming time, and total and motile sperm counts significantly increased after daily intake of CE and FCE for 6 weeks. In contrast, sex hormone binding globulin, retroperitoneal fat, total serum cholesterol, and triglyceride levels were significantly reduced in CE and FCE groups. However, there was no difference in prostate specific antigen, aspartate aminotransferase, and alanine aminotransferase levels among all groups, which means CE and FCE did not have putative adverse effects. In a cell experiment, we also observed that CE and FCE enhanced expression of genes related to testosterone biosynthesis but reduced genes involved in testosterone conversion. On the whole, these positive effects on TDS were greater in FCE compared to CE. Thus, these results suggest the potential of FCE as a promising natural product for recovering testosterone levels and alleviating TDS.