• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.43-54
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• 2011

Gene structure of copper/zinc-superoxide dismutase (Cu/Zn-SOD; sod1) was characterized in Hemibarbus mylodon (Teleostei; Cypriniformes), an endangered freshwater fish species in Korean peninsula. Full-length cDNA of H. mylodon SOD1 consisted of a 796-bp open reading frame sequence encoding 154 amino acids, and the deduced polypeptide sequence shared high sequence homology with other orthologs, particularly with regard to metal-coordinating ligands. Genomic structure of the H. mylodon sod1 gene (hmsod1; 1,911 bp from the ATG start codon to the stop codon) was typical quinquepartite (i.e., five exons interrupted by four introns); the lengths of the exons were similar among species belonging to various taxonomic positions. The molecular phylogeny inferred from sod1 genes in the teleost lineage was in accordance with the conventional taxonomic assumptions. 5'-flanking upstream region of hmsod1, obtained using the genome walking method, contained typical TATA and CAAT boxes. It also showed various transcription factor binding motifs that may be potentially involved in stress/immune response (e.g., sites for activating proteins or nuclear factor kappa B) or metabolism of xenobiotic compounds (e.g., xenobiotic response element; XRE). The hmsod1 transcripts were ubiquitously detected among tissues, with the liver and spleen showing the highest and lowest expression, respectively. An experimental challenge with Edwardsiella tarda revealed significant upregulation of the hmsod1 in kidney (4.3-fold) and spleen (3.1-fold), based on a real-time RT-PCR assay. Information on the molecular characteristics of this key antioxidant enzyme gene could be a useful basis for a biomarker-based assay to understand cellular stresses in this endangered fish species.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.132-137
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• 2014

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: In this study, the apoptogenic activity and mechanisms of cell death induced by hexane extract of aged black garlic (HEABG) were investigated in human leukemic U937 cells. MATERIALS/METHODS: Cytotoxicity was evaluated by MTT (3-(4, 5-dimethyl-thiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-diphenyl tetrazoliumbromide) assay. Apoptosis was detected using 4,6-diamidino-2-phenyllindile (DAPI) staining, agarose gel electrophoresis and flow cytometry. The protein levels were determined by Western blot analysis. Caspase activity was measured using a colorimetric assay. RESULTS: Exposure to HEABG was found to result in a concentration- and time-dependent growth inhibition by induction of apoptosis, which was associated with an up-regulation of death receptor 4 and Fas legend, and an increase in the ratio of Bax/Bcl-2 protein expression. Apoptosis-inducing concentrations of HEABG induced the activation of caspase-9, an initiator caspase of the mitochodrial mediated intrinsic pathway, and caspase-3, accompanied by proteolytic degradation of poly(ADP-ribose)-polymerase. HEABG also induced apoptosis via a death receptor mediated extrinsic pathway by caspase-8 activation, resulting in the truncation of Bid, and suggesting the existence of cross-talk between the extrinsic and intrinsic pathways. However, pre-treatment of U937 cells with the caspase-3 inhibitor, z-DEVD-fmk, significantly blocked the HEABG-induced apoptosis of these cells, and increased the survival rate of HEABG-treated cells, confirming that HEABG-induced apoptosis is mediated through activation of caspase cascade. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the overall results, we suggest that HEABG reduces leukemic cell growth by inducing caspase-dependent apoptosis through both intrinsic and extrinsic pathways, implying its potential therapeutic value in the treatment of leukemia.

• Korean Journal of Medicinal Crop Science
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.10-15
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• 2017

Background: We investigated the antioxidative and tyrosinase inhibitory activities of 70% ethanol extract, and its fractions, of the root of Rumex japonicus HOUTT. Methods and Results: The total phenolic compound contents of the 70% ethanol extract and ethyl acetate fraction were 168.99 mg/g and 651.78 mg/g, respectively. The antioxidant activity was compared through the DPPH radical and nitric oxide (NO) scavenging assays. The ethyl acetate fraction showed the highest DPPH radical and NO scavenging abilities, which confirmed the antioxidant activity. Specifically, the ethyl acetate fraction showed a higher DPPH radical scavenging ability than ascorbic acid. These results were related to the total phenolic compound content of the ethyl acetate fraction. Moreover, in the tyrosinase inhibition assay, the ethyl acetate fraction exhibited stronger inhibitory activity than arbutin, which was used as the positive control. The cell viability of L929 cells was analyzed by MTT assay after treatment with 70% ethanol extract and all fractions; no changes in viability were observed, which demonstrated the nontoxic nature of the extract and fractions. Conclusions: These results suggested that the extract from the root of R. japonicus and its ethyl acetate fraction could be a novel resource for the development of a cosmetic with antioxidant and tyrosinase inhibitory activity.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.297-304
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• 2015

The flower buds of Sophora japonica L (SF), as a well-known traditional Chinese medicinal herb, have been used to treat bleeding-related disorders such as hematochezia, hemorrhoidal bleeding, dysfunctional uterine bleeding, and diarrhea. However, no specific anti-cancer effect and its molecular mechanism of SF have been described. Thus, we performed in vitro study to investigate if treatment of SF affects activating transcription factor 3 (ATF3) expression and ATF3-mediated apoptosis in human colorectal cancer cells. The effects of SF on cell viability and apoptosis were measured by MTT assay and Western blot analysis against cleaved poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP). ATF3 activation induced by SF was evaluated using Western blot analysis, RT-PCR and ATF3 promoter assay. SF treatment caused decrease of cell viability and increase of apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner in HCT116 and SW480 cells. Exposure of SF activated the levels of ATF3 protein and mRNA via transcriptional regulation in HCT116 and SW480 cells. Inhibition of extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERK) 1/2 by PD98059 and p38 by SB203580 attenuated SF-induced ATF3 expression and transcriptional activation. Ectopic ATF3 overexpression accelerated SF-induced cleavage of PARP. These findings suggest that SF-mediated apoptosis may be the result of ATF3 expression through ERK1/2 and p38-mediated transcriptional activation.

• Korean Journal of Pharmacognosy
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• v.46 no.2
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• pp.105-108
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• 2015

To establish the anti-diabetic(α-glucosidase inhibitory) activity of D. lotus leaf extract, isolate and identify the constituents responsible for the activity. The methanolic extract of leaves was partitioned between water, n-butanol and ethyl acetate. Bio-assay guided fractionation, based on inhibition of ;${\alpha}$-glucosidase, allowed isolation and identification of the active components. Liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry(LC/MS), ¹ H-NMR and ¹³ C-NMR spectra analyses demonstrated that the active compound was myricetin-3-O-;${\alpha}$-L-rhamnoside(1). Compound 1 demonstrated a strong inhibition on the α-glucosidase, in vitro and ;${\alpha}$-glucosidase inhibitory value was calculated as 98.08%, when that of a reference drug, acarbose was estimated as 83.03%. The present study indicates compound 1 could be considered as an ;${\alpha}$-glucosidase inhibitor and developed as an important antidiabetes agent for type II diabetes therapy.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
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• v.34 no.5
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• pp.645-650
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• 2019

Skin plays important roles in protecting the internal organs from the chemical-biological risk factors and ultraviolet light. Exposure to the chemical and biological stimuli has a detrimental effect on skin's structure and physiological regulation. Therefore, much attention has been paid to natural products that show biological activities such as anti-oxidation, anti-aging and anti-bacterial activities. In this study, we investigated the skin-related biological activities of Oenothera lamarckiana aerial part extract. The extract contained 229.35 mg TAE (tannic acid equivalents)/g total polyphenolic compounds and the extract showed relative high antioxidant activity ($SC_{50}$ value: $8.52{\mu}g/mL$). The $IC_{50}$ value against tyrosinase and elastase were 307.94 and $181.51{\mu}g/mL$, respectively. This suggested that O. lamarckiana can be applied to whiten skin and slow the aging of skin. O. lamarckiana extract showed a growth inhibitory effect on Staphylococcu epidermidis (minimum inhibitory concentration: $250{\mu}g/mL$). Interestingly, O. lamarckiana extract showed no inhibitory effect on Pseudomonas aeruginosa on the paper disc assay. Yet the extract inhibited the growth of Pseudomonas aeruginosa on the broth dilution assay in a dose-dependent manners. Taken together, O. lamarckiana could have good potential for development as an additive in the cosmetic industry.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.135-143
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• 2016

In this study, we investigated the stability of the liposome formulation containing the phytochemicals-peptide derivatives. Among liposomes prepared using lecithins or surfactant under various conditions, the most stable niosome was obtained by using sodium palmitoyl sarcosinate and macadamia intergrifolia seed oil. The stability of peptide-containing niosome (N9) was confirmed by the TEM images. The N9 was stable at 0 and 45 degrees by Turbiscan, and its particle size was 95.7 nm. The N9 showed zeta potential value of -78.19 mV, and peptide-inclusion rate of 65.2% by BCA assay.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.130-142
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• 2021

This study examined the antioxidative and lipid accumulation inhibitory effects of 14 plants from Mongolia and Myanmar on 3T3-L1 and HepG2 cells. The total phenolic and flavonoid contents (TPC and TFC) of 14 plant extracts were measured, and the antioxidative activities were analyzed using DPPH, ABTS, FRAP, and ORAC. After measuring the pancreatic lipase levels and performing the thiobarbituric acid assay, the degree of lipid accumulation was determined by lipid (Oil Red O) staining and triglyceride assay in 3T3-L1 and HepG2 cells. M. paniculate (259.43 mgGAE/g) and C. benghalensis (130.78 mgNAE/g) had the highest TPC and TFC, respectively, among the 14 plants. R. acicularis Lindl. had the highest antioxidant activity in DPPH. The ABTS, FRAP, and ORAC results showed that the antioxidant activity of 11 species was higher than that of the positive control. The pancreatic lipase inhibitory effect of C. angustifolium Scop. was reduced to 23.65% at 0.1 mg/mL, and the level of lipid peroxidation of C. abrorescens Lam. was 0.63 nmol/mg. Five selected plants inhibited the lipid accumulation and triglyceride content, respectively, in 3T3-L1 and HepG2 cells. These results provide scientific evidence for developing functional foods using 14 plants from Mongolia and Myanmar, which have antioxidant activities and lipid accumulation reduction effects.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.37-41
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• 2009

Measurement of hemoglobin A1c is used as an objective indicator of long-term blood glucose control in diabetic patients. We evaluated recently introduced Norudia$^{(R)}$ HbA1c (Daiichi Pure Chemical Co. Ltd, Tokyo, Japan) test reagent using enzyme method for HbA1c assay. Linearity, precision and correlation with VARIANT$^{TM}$ II Turbo HbA1c analyzer (BIO-RAD, Hercules, CA, USA) were evaluated. The reference range was determined from 201 healthy subjects. The Norudia$^{(R)}$ HbA1c test reagent was founded to be linear in a range of 5.6% to 14.0% ($r^2=0.9885$). The within-run and between-day precision were 0.954% and 1.03% for low level (HbA1c 5.24%), 0.67% and 1.28% for high level (HbA1c 9.01%), respectively. Comparison study between Norudia$^{(R)}$ HbA1c test reagent and VARIANT$^{TM}$ II Turbo showed good correlation with a slope of 1.0489. an intercept at -0.9717, and coefficient of correlation was 0.9907. The reference range of HbA1c obtained from this reagent was 4.07-5.50%. The Norudia$^{(R)}$ HbA1c test reagent showed good linearity, precision and correlation with HbA1c analyzer with HPLC method. In addition, the exclusive analyzer is not required for assay and then this kit may be useful for HbA1c assay in clinical laboratory.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.28-39
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• 2007

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the regenerative capacity of reconstruction in the atrophied posterior maxilla by comparing bone graft procedures and alveolar distraction osteogenesis (ADO) techniques. We performed the autogenous iliac bone graft (AGB group, 5 specimens in 3 patients), and the combination (Mixed group, 3 specimens in 3 patients) of the autogenous and deproteinized bovine bone ($Bio-Oss^{(R)}$, Geistlich Co., Switzerland) as the ratio of 2:1 in the sinus floor elevation procedures. ADO procedures using $TRACK^{(R)}$ (KLS Martin Co., Germany) were also performed to augment vertical alveolar height in atrophied posterior maxilla (ADO group, 5 specimens in 4 patients). Newly generated bone tissues were obtained with the 2.0mm diameter trephine bur (3i Co., USA) during implant fixture installation after 5-7 months. Routine histolomorphological observation, immunodot blot assay for quantitative evaluation, and immunohistochemical staining with antibodies to MMP-1, -9, -10, TIMP-1, -2, and BMP-2, -4 were all carried out. Lamellar bone formation was well shown in all specimens and new bone formations of ADO group increased than those of other procedures. In immunohistochemical staining, the strong expression of BMP-2 was shown in all specimens, and immunodot blot assay showed that bone formation is accompanied by the good induction of factors associated with angiogenesis and appeared more increased amount of osteogenic and angiogenic factors in ADO group. ADO is the most effective technique for new bone formation compared to sinus floor elevation with autogenous or mixed bone graft in the atrophied posterior maxilla. In the quantitative immunodot blot assay, the regenerated bone after ADO showed more increased products of VEGF, BMP-2, PCNA and MMP-1 than those after the other procedures, and these findings were able to be confirmed by immunohistochemical stainings.