• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• 제43권4호
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• pp.666-675
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• 2019

Background: Korean Red Ginseng (KRG) has been widely used as an herbal medicine to normalize and strengthen body functions. Although many researchers have focused on the biological effects of KRG, more studies on the action mechanism of red ginseng are still needed. Previously, we investigated the proteomic changes of the rat spleen while searching for molecular signatures and the action mechanism of KRG. The proteomic analysis revealed that differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) were involved in the increased immune response and phagocytosis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the biological activities of KRG, especially the immune-enhancing response of KRG. Methods: Rats were divided into 4 groups: 0 (control group), 500, 1000, and 2000 mg/kg administration of KRG powder for 6 weeks, respectively. Isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation was performed with Q-Exactive LC-MS/MS to compare associated proteins between the groups. The putative DEPs were identified by a current UniProt rat protein database search and by the Gene Ontology annotations. Results: The DEPs appear to increase the innate and acquired immunity as well as immune cell movement. These results suggest that KRG can stimulate immune responses. This analysis refined our targets of interest to include the potential functions of KRG. Furthermore, we validated the potential molecular targets of the functions, representatively LCN2, CRAMP, and HLA-DQB1, by Western blotting. Conclusion: These results may provide molecular signature candidates to elucidate the mechanisms of the immune response by KRG. Here, we demonstrate a strategy of tissue proteomics for the discovery of the molecular function of KRG.

• 한국응용과학기술학회지
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• 제29권1호
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• pp.122-128
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• 2012

L-arpartic acid의 산란혼탁매질에서 형광, 산란과 응집의 영향은 파장과 산란된 형광세기로 나타내는데, laser induced fluorescence(LIF) 분광학에 의한 분자특성으로 나타난다. 산란매질에서 광학적 효과는 광학적 파라미터들(${\mu}_s$, ${\mu}_a$, ${\mu}_t$)에 의해 표현되고 응집은 고-액상 분리공정에서 중요하게 활용되고 있다. 따라서 입자가 서로 접근될 때 콜로이드 입자들의 상호작용을 LIF와 응집효과로 분석하였다. 레이저 광원에서 검출기까지 농도의 함수에 의해 농도가 묽어짐에 따라 산란세기가 기하급수적으로 감소함을 알 수 있다. 이는 유지화학, 생의학 생성물, 레이저 의학, 의공학 분야적용에 LIF와 입자이동 현상은 아주 적합한 모델 연구에 큰 도움이 될 것이다.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제29권7호
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• pp.1165-1176
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• 2019

Botulinum neurotoxins (BoNTs), produced by Clostridium botulinum, are the most toxic substances known. However, the number of currently approved medical countermeasures for these toxins is very limited. Therefore, studies on therapeutic antitoxins are essential to prepare for toxin-related emergencies. Currently, more than 10,000 Halla horses, a crossbreed between the native Jeju and Thoroughbred horses, are being raised in Jeju Island of Korea. They can be used for equine antitoxin experiments and production of hyperimmune serum against BoNT/A1. Instead of the inactivated BoNT/A1 toxoid, Halla horse was immunized with the receptor-binding domain present in the C-terminus of heavy chain of BoNT/A1 (BoNT/A1-HCR) expressed in Escherichia coli. The anti-BoNT/A1-HCR antibody titer increased rapidly by week 4, and this level was maintained for several weeks after boosting immunization. Notably, $20{\mu}l$ of the week-24 BoNT/A1-HCR(-immunized) equine serum showed an in vitro neutralizing activity of over 8 international units (IU) of a reference equine antitoxin. Furthermore, $20{\mu}l$ of equine serum and $100{\mu}g$ of purified equine $F(ab^{\prime})_2$ showed 100% neutralization of 10,000 $LD_{50}$ in vivo. The results of this study shall contribute towards optimizing antitoxin production for BoNT/A1, which is essential for emergency preparedness and response.