• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• 제20권1호
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• pp.15-23
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• 2016

Acetaminophen (APAP) overdose is one of the most common causes of acute liver failure. The study aimed to investigate the protective effect of carnosic acid (CA) on APAP-induced acute hepatotoxicity and its underlying mechanism in mice. To induce hepatotoxicity, APAP solution (400 mg/kg) was administered into mice by intraperitoneal injection. Histological analysis revealed that CA treatment significantly ameliorated APAP-induced hepatic necrosis. The levels of both alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST) in serum were reduced by CA treatment. Moreover, CA treatment significantly inhibited APAP-induced hepatocytes necrosis and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) releasing. Western blot analysis showed that CA abrogated APAP-induced cleaved caspase-3, Bax and phosphorylated JNK protein expression. Further results showed that CA treatment markedly inhibited APAP-induced pro-inflammatory cytokines TNF-${\alpha}$, IL-$1{\beta}$, IL-6 and MCP-1 mRNA expression and the levels of phosphorylated $I{\kappa}B{\alpha}$ and p65 protein in the liver. In addition, CA treatment reduced APAP- induced hepatic malondialdehyde (MDA) contents and reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation. Conversely, hepatic glutathione (GSH) level was increased by administration of CA in APAP-treated mice. Mechanistically, CA facilitated Nrf2 translocation into nuclear through blocking the interaction between Nrf2 and Keap1, which, in turn, upregulated anti-oxidant genes mRNA expression. Taken together, our results indicate that CA facilitates Nrf2 nuclear translocation, causing induction of Nrf2-dependent genes, which contributes to protection from acetaminophen hepatotoxicity.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• 제22권4호
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• pp.447-456
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• 2018

Angiotensin-(1-9) [Ang-(1-9)], generated from Ang I by Ang II converting enzyme 2, has been reported to have protective effects on cardiac and vascular remodeling. However, there is no report about the effect of Ang-(1-9) on pulmonary hypertension. The aim of the present study is to investigate whether Ang-(1-9) improves pulmonary vascular remodeling in monocrotaline (MCT)-induced pulmonary hypertensive rats. Sprague-Dawley rats received Ang-(1-9) ($576{\mu}g/kg/day$) or saline via osmotic mini-pumps for 3 weeks. Three days after implantation of osmotic mini-pumps, 50 mg/kg MCT or vehicle were subcutaneously injected. MCT caused increases in right ventricular weight and systolic pressure, which were reduced by co-administration of Ang-(1-9). Ang-(1-9) also attenuated endothelial damage and medial hypertrophy of pulmonary arterioles as well as pulmonary fibrosis induced by MCT. The protective effects of Ang-(1-9) against pulmonary hypertension were inhibited by Ang type 2 receptor ($AT_2R$) blocker, but not by Mas receptor blocker. Additionally, the levels of LDH and inflammatory cytokines, such as $TNF-{\alpha}$, MCP-1, $IL-1{\beta}$, and IL-6, in plasma were lower in Ang-(1-9) co-treated MCT group than in vehicle-treated MCT group. Changes in expressions of apoptosis-related proteins such as Bax, Bcl2, Caspase-3 and -9 in the lung tissue of MCT rats were attenuated by the treatment with Ang-(1-9). These results indicate that Ang-(1-9) improves MCT-induced pulmonary hypertension by decreasing apoptosis and inflammatory reaction via $AT_2R$.

• 동의생리병리학회지
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• 제22권3호
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• pp.548-555
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• 2008

Rubiae radix belonging to the family Rubiaceae have been used in traditional medicine to blood stasis and hemostasis. In this study, we reported that methanol extract of Rubiae radix (RRME) induced apoptotic cell death through MAPKs activation in human promylocytic leukemia (HL-60) cells. The cytotoxic activity of activity of RRME in HL-60 cells was increased in a dose-dependent manner. RRME was cytotoxic to HL-60 cells, with IC50 of $8{\mu}g/mL$. Treatment of RRME to HL-60 cells showed apoptotic bodies, and the fragmentation of DNA, suggesting that these cells underwent apoptosis. Caspase-3 activity and PARP cleavage were time-dependently increased the expression of Bcl-2 and Bax. And ratio of Bax/Bcl-2 protein expression. Activation of p38 and JNK were increased 6 hr after RRME treatment in HL-60 cells, but activation of ERK was reduced 24 hr after treatment. Taken together, these results suggest that RRME induces apoptotic cell death through activation of p38 and JNK in HL-60 cells.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• 제25권6호
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• pp.609-617
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• 2017

Pancreatic cancer is one of the most lethal and aggressive cancers in the world. However, no effective treatment is currently available for pancreatic cancer. The objective of this study was to determine the anti-pancreatic cancer effect of ${\alpha}$-mangostin (${\alpha}M$) and ${\gamma}$-mangostin (${\gamma}M$) extracted from the pericarp of Garcinia mangostana L.. Both ${\alpha}$M and ${\gamma}M$ reduced the viability of pancreatic cancer cells MIA PaCa-2 and PANC-1 in a dose-dependent manner. These compounds induced apoptosis by increasing c-PARP and c-Caspase 3 levels. They also induced autophagy by increasing levels of microtubule-associated protein 1A/1B light chain 3B (LC3II) in both cell lines while decreasing sequestosome 1 (p62) in MIA PaCa-2. Both ${\alpha}$M and ${\gamma}M$ induced autophagy through increasing phosphorylation levels of AMP-activated protein kinase (p-AMPK) and p38-mitogen activated protein kinase (p-p38) while decreasing phosphorylation level of mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (p-mTOR). Of various microRNAs (miRNA), miR-18a was found to be a putative regulatory miRNA for autophagy induced by ${\alpha}$M or ${\gamma}M$. In combination with gemcitabine, a compound frequently used in pancreatic cancer treatment, ${\alpha}$M and ${\gamma}M$ showed synergistic anti-cancer effects in MIA PaCa-2. Collectively, these results suggest that ${\alpha}$M and ${\gamma}M$ can induce apoptosis and autophagy in pancreatic cancer cells and that their anti-cancer effect is likely to be associated with miR-18a. In conclusion, ${\alpha}$M and ${\gamma}M$ might be used as a potential new therapy for pancreatic cancer.

• 생약학회지
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• 제40권1호
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• pp.6-12
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• 2009

Thirty five methanol extracts from 19 natural local plants, which have been used as traditional anti-cancer medicine, were prepared. They were analyzed the cytotoxic effects on primary fibroblast cells and carcinoma cells. The root extract of Solanum nigrum were highly toxic in both cell lines with $IC_{50}$ values of less than $0.01{\mu}g/{\mu}l$, and 26 of 35 extracts were toxic in all cells with $IC_{50}$ values of $0.1{\sim}2{\mu}g/{\mu}l$. Three extracts including the fruit extracts of Solanum nigrum and Morus alba had no cytotoxic activity in both cell lines. Five of 35 extracts were highly toxic in cancer cells than in primary cells. Because primary cells were more resistant on these extracts, the five extracts were selected for anti-cancer agent candidates. Apoptosis or programmed cell death has an essential role in chemotherapy-induced tumor cell killing. Recently, inducers of apoptosis have been used in cancer therapy. When two of 5 cancer cell-specific cytotoxic extracts (Ulmus parvifolia and Zelkova serrata) were treated in concentration of $0.02{\sim}0.1{\mu}g/{\mu}l$, apoptosis were increased at 3-5 times in cancer cell lines. Finally, the apoptotic effects of these extracts were confirmed by cleavages of both poly-(ADP-ribose)-polymerase and caspase-3 as apoptotic markers. In this report, we suggested that two of 35 medicinal herb extracts can be useful anti-cancer drug candidates inducing apoptosis in several carcinoma cell lines.

• 한국진공학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국진공학회 2011년도 제40회 동계학술대회 초록집
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• pp.265-267
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• 2011

저온 대기압 플라즈마는 21세기에 들어 생의학 분야에 이용될 수 있는 새로운 도구로서 많은 관심을 받고 있다. 대기압 플라즈마는 고가의 진공 장비를 필요로 하지 않고 저전력 구동이 가능하기 때문에 저비용 구동이 가능하고 방전 장치와 전력공급 장치의 소형화에 매우 유리하다. 특히 저온 대기압 플라즈마는 고온의 전자와 저온의 이온 입자가 공존하는 열적 불평형(thermal non-equilibrium) 상태에 있기 때문에 플라즈마의 저온 특성은 유지하면서도 (${\sim}30^{\circ}C$) 물리/화학적 반응성은 매우 높아 그 응용 분야가 매우 넓다. 플라즈마의 다양한 생의학 분야 응용 가운데 세포의 사멸 유발 또는 생장 촉진, 살균/멸균, 지혈, 상처 치유 등에 저온 대기압 플라즈마가 매우 뛰어난 효능을 보인다는 것이 국내외의 다양한 연구를 통해 밝혀지고 있다 [1]. 20 kHz 정현파로 구동되는 플라즈마 장치를 이용한 암 세포 제거 실험에서 플라즈마 처리 효과를 증대시키기 위해 항체-금나노입자 중합체를 암 세포에 주입시켰다 (그림 1(a)). 그 결과 세포의 사멸율은 74%로서 플라즈마 또는 플라즈마-금나노입자만을 처리한 경우에 비하여 사멸율이 매우 높게 나타났다 (그림 1(b)). 이를 통해 암세포 선택성을 가진 항체-금나노입자 중합체와 플라즈마 처리 기술을 융합한 암 세포의 선택적 사멸 유발 기술의 개발 가능성이 열렸다. 또한 플라즈마 처리를 통해 일어나는 세포의 자멸사 기작이 Cytochrome C의 방출 이후 이어지는 Caspase-3의 활성화 경로와 관계가 있음이 밝혀졌다 (그림 1(c)). 치아 미백은 최근 부상하고 있는 저온 대기압 플라즈마의 새로운 응용 분야이다 [5-6]. 대기압에서 동작하는 헬륨 플라즈마 제트를 미백제(과산화수소)와 함께 발치된 치아에 적용하였을 때 (그림 2(a)) 미백제만을 사용하였을 경우에 비해 치아의 색상 변화가 2배 이상 크게 나타나는 것을 확인하였다 (그림 2(b)). 이처럼 최근 그 범위가 크게 넓어지고 있는 저온 대기압 플라즈마의 생의학 응용 기술의 최적화를 위해서는, 다양한 생의학 응용 분야에 따라 요구되는 플라즈마의 특성 및 응용별 기저 기 작에 대한 이해와 연구가 필요하다.

• Food Science and Biotechnology
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• 제18권1호
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• pp.103-107
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• 2009

Three traditional Chinese medicines, Agrimonia pilosa Ledeb, Grifola umbellata (pers.) Pilat, and Gambogia, are combined to form a compound extract, AGC. In this study, the in vitro and in vivo inhibitory effects of AGC on human gastric carcinoma MGC-803 cells were demonstrated, and the molecular mechanisms underlying these effects are investigated. Our results indicate that AGC inhibited MGC-803 cell growth in a dose-dependent manner as measured by a 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, with an $IC_{50}$ of about $6.045{\pm}0.69{\mu}g/mL$. In vivo, AGC inhibited growth of human gastric carcinoma in xenograft tumors in nude mice, and the inhibitory rate reached 55.2% at 300 mg/kg. The pro-apoptotic activity of AGC was attributed to its ability to decrease the expression of Bcl-2 and Pro-caspase3 and increase the expression of Bax. These results demonstrate that AGC can effectively induce programmed cell death and may be a promising anti-tumor drug in human gastric carcinoma.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• 제37권2호
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• pp.56-62
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• 2012

To determine the biological effects of low-dose-rate radiation ($^{137}Cs$, 2.95 mGy/h) on EL4 lymphoma cells during 24 h, we investigated the expression of genes related to apoptosis, cell cycle arrest, DNA repair, iron transport, and ribonucleotide reductase. EL4 cells were continuously exposed to low-dose-rate radiation (total dose: 70.8 mGy) for 24 h. We analyzed cell proliferation and apoptosis by trypan blue exclusion and flow cytometry, gene expression by real-time PCR, and protein levels with the apoptosis ELISA kit. Apoptosis increased in the Low-dose-rate irradiated cells, but cell number did not differ between non- (Non-IR) and Low-dose-rate irradiated (LDR-IR) cells. In concordance with apoptotic rate, the transcriptional activity of ATM, p53, p21, and Parp was upregulated in the LDR-IR cells. Similarly, Phospho-p53 (Ser15), cleaved caspase 3 (Asp175), and cleaved Parp (Asp214) expression was upregulated in the LDR-IR cells. No difference was observed in the mRNA expression of DNA repair-related genes (Msh2, Msh3, Wrn, Lig4, Neil3, ERCC8, and ERCC6) between Non-IR and LDR-IR cells. Interestingly, the mRNA of Trfc was upregulated in the LDR-IR cells. Therefore, we suggest that short-term Low-dose-rate radiation activates apoptosis in EL4 lymphoma cells.

• 대한한방부인과학회지
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• 제19권2호
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• pp.199-213
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• 2006

Purpose : This study was aimed to investigate the inhibitory effect of Sparganii Rhizoma on the proliferation of human uterine leiomyoma cells and the expression of gene related the mechanism of cell apoptosis. Methods : This study was evaluated the number of death cells treated with indicated concentration of Sparganii Rhizoma and investigated cell death rate by MTS assay. Furthermore, fluorescence-activated cell sorter analysis and DNA fragmentation assay were used to dissect between necrosis and apoptosis. and then we observed the differential gene expression by western blot analysis. Results :1) The inhibitory effect on the growth of uterine leiomyoma cell treated with Sparganii Rhizoma was increased in a dose dependent manner. 2) As the result of FACS analysis, subG1 phase incrase was observed 23.49% inuterine leiomyoma cell treated with Sparganii Rhizoma at $500\;{\mu}g/ml$ compared to control.. 3) The gene expression of p53, p21 related cell apoptosis was increased according to increasing concentration but p27 was none exchanged. 4) The expression of cyclin A, D and E was decreased in a concentration proportional and then the dephosphorylation of pRb was increased. 5) The character of apoptosis, DNA fragmentation was significantly observed according to increasing concentration. 6) The expression of pro-caspase3 were decreased dependent on treatment concentration and activated PARP took place. Conclusion : The inhibitory effect of Sparganii Rhizoma on the proliferation of human uterine leiomyoma cells was observed with apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. These data suggest that Sparganii Rhizoma might be candidate of medical therapy for uterine leiomyoma.

• Archives of Pharmacal Research
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• 제29권11호
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• pp.1032-1041
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• 2006

Extracellular adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) affects the function of many tissues and cells. To confirm the biological activity of ATP on human myeloid leukemic cells, F-36P and HL-60, cells were treated with a variety of concentrations of ATP. The stimulation with extracellular ATP induced the arrest of cell proliferation and cell death. from the analysis of Annexin-V staining and caspase activity by flow cytometry. The Annexin-V positive cells in both cell lines were dramatically increased following ATP stimulation. The expression of P2 purinergic receptor genes was confirmed, such as P2X1, P2X4, P2X5, P2X7 and P2Y1, P2Y2, P2Y4, P2Y5, P2Y6, P2Y11 in both leukemic cell lines. Interestingly, ATP induced intracellular calcium flux in HL-60 cells but not in F-36P cells, as determined by Fluo-3 AM staining. Cell cycle analysis revealed that ATP treatment arrested both F-36P and HL-60 cells at G1/G0. Taken together, these data showed that extracellular ATP via P2 receptor genes was involved in the cell proliferation and survival in human myeloid leukemic cells, HL-60 and F-36P cells by the induction of apoptosis and control of cell cycle. Our data suggest that treatment with extracellular nucleotides may be a novel and powerful therapeutic avenue for myeloid leukemic disease.