• Journal of Korean Medicine for Obesity Research
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.76-86
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• 2024

Objectives: This retrospective study attempted to determine whether the treatment effect improves as the longer the medication for obese patients, also, analyzed whether the long medication increases the burden on liver function. Methods: The subjects were 278 overweight and obese female patients who took the herbal medicine Jibangsayak (JBSY) for more than 15 days. The correlation between the duration of medication and the treatment effect was confirmed, and the correlation with the safety was also analyzed. Results: JBSY significantly reduced all obesity-related measures after treatment. All these valuables before treatment were not factors in determining the duration of medication. As the duration increased, the body mass index (BMI) improvement decreased and lean body and muscle mass increased. As the duration was closer to 60 days, BMI improvement increased, and in more than 90 days group, the BMI and body fat percentage improvement stagnated as the duration longer. Aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase, and gamma-glutamyl transferase decreased after treatment. Additionally, AST decreased as the duration increased. Conclusions: This result suggests that not only the high obesity-related measures at first visit not lengthen the duration of JBSY medication. And liver function levels did not worsen as the duration increased. This result is different from the general perception that the longer the duration of medication, the greater the burden on patient's drug metabolism. However, the fact that other factors that could affect liver function could not be excluded and that kidney function evaluation should have been performed simultaneously are limitations of this study and require more detailed research in the future.

• The Korean Journal of Food & Health Convergence
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• v.8 no.5
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• pp.21-28
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• 2022

Ginseng is described as the "King of all herbs, "Man-root" or "Root of heaven" and regarded as the most powerful herbal remedy, particularly grown in Korea, China, Japan, Vietnam, and North America. It has been in existence for a long time. The most demanded herbal cure, Ginseng, principally the root, has long been employed in traditional Asian medicine. The extent of availability of bioactive combinations and their impact on the body differs between American and Asian ginseng. Asian ginseng, also known as Panax ginseng, has a more calming influence and is more advantageous than American ginseng, such as Panax quinquefolius. The pharmaceutical aspect of development and extraction with diverse morphological properties is examined. Saponins, glycosides, carbohydrates, polyacetylenes, amino acids, vitamins, volatile oil, enzymes are all present in the Phyto-content of Ginseng. Ginsenosides are saponins that are constituents of the triterpenoid dammarane and have anticancer, anti-cardiovascular, anti-microbial, anti-obesity, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. Ginseng, in particular, has the possibility to help with microbial invasion, inflammatory processes, oxidative stress, and diabetes. It developed nanoparticles and nanocomposite film technologies as novel drug delivery platforms for cancer, inflammation, and neurological illnesses. Furthermore, it offers a range of applications that will be vital for future growth.

• Journal of the Korean Dietetic Association
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.215-226
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• 2015

The prevalence of obesity is increasing worldwide and has become a serious epidemic health problem. We developed the 'Change 10 Habits' educational program based on obesity treatment and dietary guidelines and examined its effects on customized nutrition education in mildly obese adults. The study was approved by the Institutional Review Board. Study subjects were excluded if they had several major diseases, if had consumed an anti-obesity drug, or if they practiced an obesity-related program within 30 days. The subjects (n=87, $25{\leq}BMI$ <30) were each exposed to the customized nutrition education program with four lessons according to the stage of the transtheoretical model (TTM). The stage-matched program was administered for 12 weeks and was run by a clinical dietitian. Overall, subjects who were in the precontemplation/contemplation stage at baseline made progress in the preparation and action/maintenance stage after 12 weeks (P<0.05). For 'Alcohol is consumed, up to 2 drinks per day', the proportion of subjects who belonged in the action/maintenance stage increased from 34.5% to 49.4% at 12 weeks. In addition, scores of all items significantly increased after the program (P<0.05). 'Chew more than 10 times and eat slowly' score significantly increased from $3.9{\pm}2.4$ to $5.8{\pm}2.3$ (P<0.05). In conclusion, behavioral stage-matched nutrition education using the 'Change 10 Habits' program was effective in improving eating behaviors and enhancing healthy lifestyles in mildly obese adults.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.123-132
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• 2013

Obesity is consistently increasing in prevalence and can trigger insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. Many lines of evidence have shown that macrophages play a major role in inflammation associated with obesity. This study was conducted to determine metformin, a widely prescribed drug for type 2 diabetes, would regulate inflammation through down-regulation of scavenger receptors in macrophages from obesity-induced type 2 diabetes. RAW 264.7 cells and peritoneal macrophages were stimulated with LPS to induce inflammation, and C57BL/6N mice were fed a high-fat diet to generate obesity-induced type 2 diabetes mice. Metformin reduced the production of NO, $PGE_2$ and pro-inflammatory cytokines ($IL-1{\beta}$, IL-6 and $TNF-{\alpha}$) through down-regulation of $NF-{\kappa}B$ translocation in macrophages in a dose-dependent manner. On the other hand, the protein expressions of anti-inflammatory cytokines, IL-4 and IL-10, were enhanced or maintained by metformin. Also, metformin suppressed secretion of $TNF-{\alpha}$ and reduced the protein and mRNA expression of $TNF-{\alpha}$ in obese mice as well as in macrophages. The expression of scavenger receptors, CD36 and SR-A, were attenuated by metformin in macrophages and obese mice. These results suggest that metformin may attenuate inflammatory responses by suppressing the production of $TNF-{\alpha}$ and the expressions of scavenger receptors.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.172-185
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• 2009

To help understanding about hazard chemicals occurring newly in food, it has been reviewed characteristics, mechanism, food standards and analytical trend of the hazard chemicals occurring avoidably in food manufacturing process. The new hazard chemicals in food are classified by 4 regarding mechanism such as heat, fermentation, additives and unknowns. The new hazard chemicals by heat process are acrylamide, furan, HCAs and PAHs. By the fermentation, ethylcarbamate and biogenic amines are occurred. According to food additives, 3-MCPD, benzene and nitrosamines can be produced. And the last group is the illegal compounds including anti-impotence drug analogues and anti-obesity drug analogues. To analyze the new hazard chemicals in food, GC or LC with UVD, FLD or MSD are used mainly after sample pretreatment by LLE, SPE or headspace method.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.2 no.4
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• pp.200-203
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• 2008

Obesity has become a worldwide health problem. Orlistat, an inhibitor of pancreatic lipase, is currently approved as an anti-obesity drug. However, gastrointestinal side effects caused by Orlistat may limit its use. In this study the inhibitory activities of dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) against pancreatic lipase in vitro and in vivo were measured to determine its possible use as a natural anti-obesity agent. The inhibitory activities of the 95% ethanol extract of T. officinale and Orlistat were measured using 4-methylumbelliferyl oleate (4-MU oleate) as a substrate at concentrations of 250, 125, 100, 25, 12.5 and $4\;{\mu}g/ml$. To determine pancreatic lipase inhibitory activity in vivo, mice (n=16) were orally administered with com oil emulsion (5 ml/kg) alone or with the 95% ethanol extract of T. officinale (400 mg/kg) following an overnight fast. Plasma triglyceride levels were measured at 0, 90, 180, and 240 min after treatment and incremental areas under the response curves (AUC) were calculated. The 95% ethanol extract of T. officinale and Orlistat, inhibited, porcine pancreatic lipase activity by 86.3% and 95.7% at a concentration of $250\;{\mu}g/ml$, respectively. T. officinale extract showed dose-dependent inhibition with the $IC_{50}$ of $78.2\;{\mu}g/ml$. A single oral dose of the extract significantly inhibited increases in plasma triglyceride levels at 90 and 180 min and reduced AVC of plasma triglyceride response curve (p<0.05). The results indicate that T. officinale exhibits inhibitory activities against pancreatic lipase in vitro and in vivo. Further studies to elucidate anti-obesity effects of chronic consumption of T. officinale and to identify the active components responsible for inhibitory activity against pancreatic lipase are necessary.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.239-244
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• 2010

Protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B), a negative regulator of insulin signaling, has served as a potential drug target for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. The MeOH extracts of twenty-nine medicinal plants, traditionally used in Vietnam as anti-diabetes agents, were investigated for PTP1B inhibitory activity in vitro. The results indicated that, most materials showed moderate to strong inhibitory activity with $IC_{50}$ values ranging from $3.4\;{\mu}g/mL$ to $35.1\;{\mu}g/mL$; meanwhile, eleven extracts (37.9%) could demonstrate PTP1B activity with $IC_{50}$ values less than $15.5\;{\mu}g/mL$; sixteen extracts (55.2%) could demonstrate PTP1B activity with $IC_{50}$ values ranging from $15.5\;{\mu}g/mL$ to $35.1\;{\mu}g/mL$. The study may provide a proof, at least in a part, for the ethno-medical use in diabetes disease of these plants.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.45 no.1
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• pp.55-74
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• 2024

Objectives: This study reviewed the status of adverse event (AE) reporting in VigiAccess using anti-obesity agents as examples and explored the possibility of its use and future challenges. Methods: AE reports related to some representative drugs among herbal medicines (HMs), complex HM prescriptions, ingredients of supplements, and over-the-counter and prescription medicines were investigated using VigiAccess on February 1, 2024. Results: AE reports on prescription drugs were overwhelmingly higher than those on HMs or supplements. Although most reports were submitted from North America, reports on Ephedra sinica and green tea extract (GTE) were more from Asia and Europe, respectively. The female population reported more, and the difference in the sex ratio was the smallest for Ephedra spp. The age group was concentrated on young adults, but many older patients reported GLP-1 receptor agonist-related AEs. Symptoms related to the gastrointestinal and nervous systems were most commonly reported, but mental and cardiac disorders were common in Ephedra-type HMs. Hepatobiliary disorders are also commonly found in GTE-related reports. Conclusions: VigiAccess was useful for easily checking the global status of AE reporting for prescription drugs. However, several limitations were observed in using VigiAccess for HMs because of the few reports. Thus, it is necessary to increase the number of reports by education and to promote AE reporting among HM prescribers and users. The full range of HMs should be included in the pharmacovigilance system, and the coding and classification of HMs should be revised.

• BMB Reports
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• v.47 no.11
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• pp.599-608
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• 2014

As the prevalence of obesity has increased explosively over the last several decades, associated metabolic disorders, including type 2 diabetes, dyslipidemia, hypertension, and cardiovascular diseases, have been also increased. Thus, new strategies for preventing and treating them are needed. The nuclear peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) are involved fundamentally in regulating energy homeostasis; thus, they have been considered attractive drug targets for addressing metabolic disorders. Among the PPARs, $PPAR{\gamma}$ is a master regulator of gene expression for metabolism, inflammation, and other pathways in many cell types, especially adipocytes. It is a physiological receptor of the potent anti-diabetic drugs of the thiazolidinediones (TZDs) class, including rosiglitazone (Avandia). However, TZDs have undesirable and severe side effects, such as weight gain, fluid retention, and cardiovascular dysfunction. Recently, many reports have suggested that $PPAR{\gamma}$ could be modulated by post-translational modifications (PTMs), and modulation of PTM has been considered as novel approaches for treating metabolic disorders with fewer side effects than the TZDs. In this review, we discuss how PTM of $PPAR{\gamma}$ may be regulated and issues to be considered in making novel anti-diabetic drugs that can modulate the PTM of $PPAR{\gamma}$.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.138-143
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• 2017

To investigate the efficacy of extract of Ginkgo Biloba seeds in high fat diet (HFD) in mice, the Ginkgo Biloba seeds extract (GSE) was orally administered to mice with a HFD at 300 mg/kg/day for 4 weeks. Our results show that GSE significantly inhibited fat accumulation. Moreover, GSE markedly reduced the final body weight with a decrease in epididymal adipose tissue mass and adipocyte size compared with the untreated HFD-induced group. Additionally, GSE ameliorated serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. The results show that Ginkgo Biloba seeds possesses hypocholesterolemic effect through down regulating lipid metabolism. Further studies are required in this area to strengthen the anti-obesity effects of GSE with active component, and it can be used a pro-drug instead of whole extract.