• 대한통합의학회지
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• 제11권3호
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• pp.59-67
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• 2023

Purpose : Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is recognized as an important cellular response in metastatic proceduresand characterized by loss of cellular polarity as well as gain of mesenchymal features, which enables migration and invasion. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common primary carcinomas in the liver and exhibits a poor prognosis due to frequent extrahepatic metastasis. Taraxacum officinale has been used for a long time in oriental medicine because of its various pharmacological activitiessuch as anti-rheumatic, anti-inflammatory, antioxidative, and anticarcinogenic activities. In this study, the anti-metastatic activity of T. officinale water extract (TOWE) and ethanol extract (TOEE) was investigated through the regulation of EMT in the Huh7 cells. Methods : The effects of TOWE and TOEE on migratory and invasive activities were investigated by wound healing and in vitro invasion assays. Western blot analysis was also applied to analyze protein expression levels associated with EMT and their upstream transcription factors in Huh7 cells. Results : TOWE and TOEE treatment potently inhibited migration and invasion of Huh7 cells compared to the untreated group. Both extracts treatment inhibited protein expression levels of N-cadherin, matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-9, and vimentin while E-cadherin was significantly accelerated. In addition, the activated status of transcription factors, Snail, nuclear factor (NF)-κ B, and zinc finger E-box binding homeobox (ZEB)1 was also inhibited with statistical significance. In comparison to both extracts, TOEE more potently attenuated migration, invasion, and EMT markers as well as their transcription factors in Huh7 cells than TOWE, which means that TOEE might possess more functional phytochemicals than TOWE. Conclusion : Consequently, TOWE and TOEEattenuated metastatic activity of hepatocellular carcinoma through the regulation of EMT markers and their transcription factors in Huh7 cells, which means that T. officinale might be a promising strategy for a chemopreventive agent against HCC metastasis.

• Molecules and Cells
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• 제24권3호
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• pp.307-315
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• 2007

Gene regulation is a fundamental process in biological systems, where transcription factors (TFs) play crucial roles. Inferring transcriptional interactions between TFs and their target genes has utmost importance for understanding the complex regulatory mechanisms in cellular systems. On one hand, with the rapid progress of various high-throughput experiment techniques, more and more biological data become available, which makes it possible to quantitatively study gene regulation in a systematic manner. On the other hand, transcription regulation is a complex biological process mediated by many events such as post-translational modifications, degradation, and competitive binding of multiple TFs. In this review, with a particular emphasis on computational methods, we report the recent advances of the research topics related to transcriptional regulatory networks, including how to infer transcriptional interactions, reveal combinatorial regulation mechanisms, and reconstruct TF activity profiles.

• BMB Reports
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• 제28권4호
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• pp.368-373
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• 1995

The upstream regulatory region (URR) of bovine papillomavirus type 1 (BPV) contains promoters and a conditional transcriptional enhancer that is trans-activated by the viral E2 protein. After deleting the 5' and 3' ends of BPV URR, BamHI linkers were inserted into several positions of BPV URR without causing an addition or a deletion of URR sequences. Most linker scanning mutations did not show any effects on the transcription of P7940 and P89 promoters in BPV URR. However, several mutants showed reduced transcriptional activities. Based on our results we found that the AP-2 and Sp1 binding sites were important for basal level transcription of BPV URR in the absence of the E2 protein and that the CTF/NF-1 site is dispensable for E2 transactivation of BPV URR transcription.

• Archives of Pharmacal Research
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• 제27권8호
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• pp.825-828
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• 2004

Two triterpenoids (1,4) and two triterpenoid glycosides (2,3) were isolated from the root of Acanthopanax koreanum (Araliaceae). Their structures were identified as impressic acid (1), acankoreoside A (2), 3-epi-betulinic acid 28-O-［(${\alpha}-L-rhamnopyranosyl(1{\rightarrow}4)-{\beta}-D-glucopyrano-syl(1{\rightarrow}6)]-{\beta}-D-glucopyranosyl]$ ester (3), and ursolic acid (4) by physicochemical and spectro-scopic methods. Of these compounds, impressic acid (1) exhibited a potent inhibitory activity against NFAT transcription factor ($IC_{50}:{\;}12.65{\;}{\mu\textrm{m}}$).

• 약학회지
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• 제43권1호
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• pp.42-47
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• 1999

Phorbol ester, growth factors activities are mediated by unclear transcription factors, the c-Fos and c-Jun, which can regulate transcriptional activation through specific DNA sites and by forming the transcription factor AP-l, which usually mediates cell proliferation and differentiation signals. We explored effects of Pini Folium extract (API-l) on AP-l activity. Western blot analysis confirmed that API-l decreased levels of c-Fos or c-Jun protein induced by the tumor promoter Phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA; 200 nM). Transient transfection assays with a c-fos promoter reporter construct showed that API-l decreased transcription activity by ore than 50~60%. However, treatment of API-l activity studied further. The main substances were fractionated into dichloromethane layer. Futhermore, API-l extract repressed the [$^3H$]-thymidine uptake in C6 glioma cells, indicating that this extract could be included in a new type of modulator in the mitogenesis.

• Molecules and Cells
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• 제40권10호
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• pp.697-705
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• 2017

The maintenance of inorganic phosphate (Pi) homeostasis is essential for plant growth and yield. Plants have evolved strategies to cope with Pi starvation at the transcriptional, post-transcriptional, and post-translational levels, which maximizes its availability. Many transcription factors, miRNAs, and transporters participate in the Pi starvation signaling pathway where their activities are modulated by sugar and phytohormone signaling. Environmental stresses significantly affect the uptake and utilization of nutrients by plants, but their effects on the Pi starvation response remain unclear. Recently, we reported that Pi starvation signaling is affected by abiotic stresses such as salt, abscisic acid, and drought. In this review, we identified transcription factors, such as MYB, WRKY, and zinc finger transcription factors with functions in Pi starvation and other environmental stress signaling. In silico analysis of the promoter regions of Pi starvation-responsive genes, including phosphate transporters, microRNAs, and phosphate starvation-induced genes, suggest that their expression may be regulated by other environmental stresses, such as hormones, drought, cold, heat, and pathogens as well as by Pi starvation. Thus, we suggest the possibility of cross-talk between Pi starvation signaling and other environmental stress signaling pathways.

• 한국초지조사료학회지
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• 제41권4호
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• pp.242-249
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• 2021

Forage crop management is severely challenged by global warming-induced climate changes representing diverse a/biotic stresses. Thus, screening of valuable genetic resources would be applied to develop stress-tolerant forage crops. We isolated two NAC (NAM, ATAF1, ATAF2, CUC2) transcription factors (ANAC032 and ANAC083) transcriptionally activated by multi-abiotic stresses (salt, drought, and cold stresses) from Arabidopsis by microarray analysis. The NAC family is one of the most prominent transcription factor families in plants and functions in various biological processes. The enhanced expressions of two ANACs by multi-abiotic stresses were validated by quantitative RT-PCR analysis. We also confirmed that both ANACs were localized in the nucleus, suggesting that ANAC032 and ANAC083 act as transcription factors to regulate the expression of downstream target genes. Promoter activities of ANAC032 and ANAC083 through histochemical GUS staining again suggested that various abiotic stresses strongly drive both ANACs expressions. Our data suggest that ANAC032 and ANAC083 would be valuable genetic candidates for breeding multi-abiotic stress-tolerant forage crops via the genetic modification of a single gene.

• 생명과학회지
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• 제27권3호
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• pp.318-324
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• 2017

본 연구는 참깨 70% 에탄올 추출물의 항산화 효과와 미백효과를 검증하여 나타내었다. 참깨 추출물의 전자공여능 측정실험은 $1,000{\mu}g/ml$에서 71.7%의 효과를 나타냈으며, tyrosinase 저해활성 측정은 $1,000{\mu}g/ml$의 농도에서 42%의 효과를 보였다. 참깨 추출물의 세포 생존율을 melanoma cell (B16F10)에서 확인하기 위하여 MTT assay를 진행하였으며, 세포 생존율을 측정한 결과, $1,000{\mu}g/ml$ 농도에서 84.3%의 독성을 보였다. 이하의 세포실험에서는 세포 생존율이 90% 이상되는 농도인 $500{\mu}g/ml$ 이하에서 실험을 진행하였다. 참깨 추출물의 MITF, TRP-1, TRP-2 및 tyrosinase의 단백질 발현 효과를 50, 250, $500{\mu}g/ml$ 농도에서 측정하였으며, 그 결과 MITF, TRP-1, TRP-2 및 tyrosinase의 각각 $500{\mu}g/ml$ 농도에서 68.3%, 39.2%, 89.7%, 22.3%의 단백질 발현 억제 효과를 보였다. 또한, MITF, TRP-1, TRP-2 및 tyrosinase의 mRNA발현을 RT-PCR로 50, 250, $500{\mu}g/ml$ 농도에서 측정하였고, 양성 대조군으로 GAPDH를 사용하였다. 그 결과, 참깨 추출물의 $500{\mu}g/ml$ 농도에서 각각 81.8%, 66.5%, 84.2%, 68.1%의 mRNA 발현이 감소함을 확인할 수 있었다. 이상의 결과로 부터 참깨 추출물의 화장품 소재로서의 가능성을 확인할 수 있었다.

• 생명과학회지
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• 제14권5호
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• pp.732-740
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• 2004

MCM 단백질의 암세포내에서 과발현 되는 원인을 규명하기 위하여 mcm7, 2 promoter영역의 전사인자 결합 부위의 역할을 조사하였다. 암세포에서 promoter 활성은 정상세포보다 8배정도 높은 활성을 나타내 특유 전사인자의 존재를 시사하였다. Promoter영 역 에는 E2F 결합부위 와 Myc/Max/Mad단백질 결합 부위로 알려진 I-box가 존재한다. 이들 각각의 변이체 promoter를 작성하여 암세포와 정상세포에서 luciferase reporter 활성을 측정하는 것으로 각 영역의 역할을 검토하였다. 그 결과 정상세포 내에서는 강한 repressor존재 또는 활성을 negative로 조절 할 수 있는 complex의 존재로 promoter활성이 조절되는 반면 암세포 내에서는 I-box에 결합하여 promoter를 활성화시키는 특유 단백질의 존재가 시사되었다.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제31권7호
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• pp.990-998
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• 2021

Melanin is a natural skin pigment produced by specialized cells called melanocytes via a multistage biochemical pathway known as melanogenesis, involving the oxidation and polymerization of tyrosine. Melanogenesis is initiated upon exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation, causing the skin to darken, which protects skin cells from UVB radiation damage. However, the abnormal accumulation of melanin may lead to the development of certain skin diseases, including skin cancer. In this study, the antioxidant and antimelanogenic activities of the cell-free supernatant (CFS) of twenty strains were evaluated. Based on the results of 60% 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl scavenging activity, 21% 2,2'-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) scavenging capacity, and a 50% ascorbic acid equivalent ferric reducing antioxidant power value, Limosilactobacillus fermentum JNU532 was selected as the strain with the highest antioxidant potential. No cytotoxicity was observed in cells treated with the CFS of L. fermentum JNU532. Tyrosinase activity was reduced by 16.7% in CFS-treated B16F10 cells (but not in the cell-free system), with >23.2% reduction in melanin content upon treatment with the L. fermentum JNU532-derived CFS. The inhibitory effect of the L. fermentum JNU532-derived CFS on B16F10 cell melanogenesis pathways was investigated using quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and western blotting. The inhibitory effects of the L. fermentum JNU532-derived CFS were mediated by inhibiting the transcription of TYR, TRP-1, TRP-2, and MITF and the protein expression of TYR, TRP-1, TRP-2, and MITF. Therefore, L. fermentum JNU532 may be considered a potentially useful, natural depigmentation agent.