• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.295-301
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• 1983

Among the many protein modifications methylation is being investigated actively with regard to bacterial chemotaxis, gene regulation, muscle contraction, cytochrome c methylation, and the synthesis of the acyl transporter, carnitine. In this study the activities of protein methylase I, II, and III in pancreatic tissues of rat, mouse, and guinea pig were examined. Furthermore, the effect of cholinergic agents on the activity of protein methylases in pancreatic fragment of guinea pig was also examined in order to test the relationship between protein methylation and pancreatic secretion. The results are as follows. 1) The activities of protein methylases were generally high in pancreatic tissues of guinea pig and mouse but low in the tissue of rat. 2) The cholinergic stimulants, acetylcholine and carbachol at a concentration of $10^{-5}M$ decreased the activities of protein methylase I, II, and III compared with unstimulated control. 3) The inhibitory effect of the cholinergic stimulant on the activities of protein methylases was not blocked by atropine at a concentration of $10^{-5}M$.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.50-56
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• 2003

This research was done to make the effective prescription and cope with various senile dementia. So Sprague-Dawley rats were injected with ibotenate to make a damage on learning and memory functions. At first acquisition test and retention rest were done in the Morris water maze. And to evaluate the effects of the sample drug(TBM) on choline acetyltranferase and acetylcholine esterase, immunoreactive measurement and enzymatic activity measuring were carried out. The ibotenic acid were injected to hippocampus CA1 and CA3 area. The results were as following. TBM improved the learning ability in the acquisition test and memory function in the retention test significantly. And TBM increased the level of ChAT which is synthesizing acetylcholine in CA3 area, and at the same time it increased the level of AChE which is resolving acetylcholine. These results show that T8M improved the cholinergic catabolism and anabolism, and the increment of metabolic activity of cholinergic system. In other words, it contributes to the recovery of damaged learning and memory function by ibotenic acid. So it can be concluded that TBM will be helpful to cholinergic brain damage induced by primary or senile reduction of acetylcholine secretive activity.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.27-32
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• 2008

Background: Experimental evidence indicates that ginseng modulate the nociceptive transmission. Authors examined the role of adrenergic and cholinergic receptors on the antinociceptive action of Korean red ginseng against the formalin-induced pain at the spinal level. Methods: Catheters were inserted into the intrathecal space of male Sprague-DawIey rats. Fifty ${\mu}l$ of 5% formalin solution was injected to the hindpaw for induction of pain and formalin-induced pain (flinching response) was observed. The role of spinal adrenergic and cholinergic receptors on the effect of Korean red ginseng was assessed by antagonists (Prazosin, yohimbine, atropine and mecamylamine). Results: Intrathecal Korean red ginseng produced a dose-dependent suppression of the flinching response in the rat formalin test. All of prazosin, yohimbine, atropine and mecamylamine antagonized the antinociception of Korean red ginseng. Conclusions: Spinal Korean red ginseng is effective against acute pain and facilitated pain state evoked by formalin injection. All of alpha 1, alpha 2, muscarinic and nicotinic receptors may play an important role in the antinociceptive action of Korean red ginseng at the spinal level.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.21 no.8
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• pp.874-883
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• 2011

Many studies have shown that the steamed root of Rehmannia glutinosa (SRG), which is widely used in the treatment of various neurodegenerative diseases in the context of Korean traditional medicine, is effective for improving cognitive and memory impairments. The purpose of this study was to examine whether SRG extracts improved memory defects caused by administering scopolamine (SCO) into the brains of rats. The effects of SRG on the acetylcholinergic system and proinflammatory cytokines in the hippocampus were also investigated. Male rats were administered daily doses of SRG (50, 100, and 200 mg/kg, i.p.) for 14 days, 1 h before scopolamine injection (2 mg/kg, i.p.). After inducing cognitive impairment via scopolamine administration, we conducted a passive avoidance test (PAT) and the Morris water maze (MWM) test as behavioral assessments. Changes in cholinergic system reactivity were also examined by measuring the immunoreactive neurons of choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) and the reactivity of acetylcholinesterase (AchE) in the hippocampus. Daily administration of SRG improved memory impairment according to the PAT, and reduced the escape latency for finding the platform in the MWM. The administration of SRG consistently significantly alleviated memory-associated decreases in cholinergic immunoreactivity and decreased interleukin-$1{\beta}$ (IL-$1{\beta}$) and tumor necrosis factor-${\alpha}$ (TNF-${\alpha}$) mRNA expression in the hippocampus. The results demonstrated that SRG had a significant neuroprotective effect against the neuronal impairment and memory dysfunction caused by scopolamine in rats. These results suggest that SRG may be useful for improving cognitive functioning by stimulating cholinergic enzyme activities and alleviating inflammatory responses.

• The Korean Journal of Pharmacology
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.69-77
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• 1982

$Na^+,\;K^+-ATPase$ is a component of plasma membrane in almost all animal cell, and maintains ionic distribution and membrane potential of normal cell. In the mechanism of adrenergic transmission, it is relatively well known that drug-receptor combination leads to stimulate adenylate cyclase and so on. In the cholinergic transmisison, the mechanism is not well known but is simply interpreted as the change of membrane permeability results from acetylcholine receptor interaction. To study the relationship between cholinergic transmission and membrane $Na^+,\;K^+-ATPase$, the effect of carbachol on $Na^+,\;K^+-ATPase$ activity in rabbit erythrocyte membrane is studied. The results are summarized as follows. 1) Total ATPase, $Mg^{+2}-ATPase$ and $Na^+,\;K^+-ATPase$ of rabbit erythrocyte membrane show maximum activities at 1mM of tris-ATP. 2) Total ATPase activity tends to increase when treated with carbachol $(10-^{-9}M-10^{-3}M)$. 3) The $Mg^{+2}-ATPase$ activity also tends to increase when treated with carbachol $(10-^{-9}M-10^{-3}M)$. 4) The $Na^+,\;K^+-ATPase$ activity is inhibited when treated with carbachol $(10-^{-9}M-10^{-7}M)$. It is suggested that the inhibition of $Na^+,\;K^+-ATPase$ by cholinergic drugs may be considered as one part of mechanism of cholinergic transmission.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.201-208
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• 2001

The present study was conducted to examine the effects of cholinergic stimulation and membrane depolarization on secretion of epinephrine (EP) and norepinephrine (NE) in the perfused model of the rat adrenal gland and to investigate the effect of bromocriptine on secretion of EP and NE evoked by these secreta-gogues. Acetylcholine (ACh, 5.32 mM), high $K^{+}$(56mM), 1.1-dimethyl-4-phenyl piperazinium iodide (DMPP, 100 $\mu$M for 2 min), (3-(m-cholro-phenyl-carbamoyl-oxy)-2butynyl trimethyl ammonium chloride (McN-A-343, 100 $\mu$M for 2 min), cyclopiazonic acid (10 $\mu$M for 4 min) and methyl-1,4-dihydro-2,6-dimethyl-3-nitro-4-(2-trifluoromethylphenyl) -pyridine-5-carboxylate (Bay-K-8644, 10 $\mu$M for 4 min) evoked a 1.3~5.3-fold greater secretion of EP than NE in the perfused rat adrenal gland. The perfusion of bromocriptine (1-10 $\mu$M) into an adrenal vein for 20 min produced relatively dose-dependent inhibition in secretion of EP and NE evoked by ACh, high $K^{+}$, DMPP, and McN-A-343. Moreover, under the presence of bromocriptine (1~10 $\mu$M), releasing responses of EP and NE evoked by cyclopiazonic acid and Bay-K-8644 were also greatly reduced. Taken together, these results suggest that cholinergic stimulation and membrane depolarization enhance more release of EP than NE in the perfumed rat adrenal medulla, and that bromocriptine inhibits the release of EP and NE evoked by stimulation of cholinergic receptors as well as by membrane depolarization. It seems that this inhibitory effect of bromocriptine is associated with inhibition of calcium channels through activation of dopaminergic D2-receptors located in the rat adrenomedullary chromaffin cells.lls.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.403-410
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• 2009

This study investigated the effects of treadmill exercise on memory ability, cell proliferation, BDNF, and TrkB in the hippocampus and forebrain cholinergic cells in adolescent rats. Male Sprague-Dawley rats (4 weeks old) were randomly assigned to the following two groups: the sedentary group (n=10) and the exercise group (n=10). Rats in the exercise group were forced to run on a treadmill for 30 min, five times per week for 4 weeks. The latency of the step-through avoidance task was used in order to evaluate memory ability. Hippocampal brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and tropomyosin-related kinase B (TrkB) expression were assessed by Western blotting. Hippocampal cell proliferation and forebrain cholinergic cells were assessed by immunohistochemistry. The present study showed that treadmill running during the adolescent period significantly improved memory capability, increased hippocampal cell proliferation, up-regulated hippocampal BDNF and TrkB expression, and enhanced the number of forebrain cholinergic cells. These results suggest that regular exercise during the adolescent period may enhance memory function.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.125-138
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• 2002

Learning and memory are essential requirements for every living organism in order to cope with environmental demands, and cholinergic systems are known to be involved in learning and memory. Scutellaria baicalensis (SB) and Gastrodia elata (GE) as a traditional Oriental medicine have been clinically used to treat or prevent memory deficits, including Alzheimer's disease. In the present study, we investigated the effects of SB and GE on learning and memory in the Morris water maze task and the central cholinergic system of the rats with excitotoxic medial septum lesions. In the water maze test, the animals were trained to find a platform at a fixed position over 6 days and then received a 60-s probe trial in which the platform was removed from the pool on the 7th day. Ibotenic lesion of the medial septum (MS) impaired their performance in the maze test (latency of acquisition test on the 3rd day, $27.6{\pm}$4.4 sec vs. $61.7{\pm}17.7$ sec; retention test, $7.9{\pm}1.3%$ vs. $5.7{\pm}1.0%$: sharn vs. ibotenic lesioned groups, respectively) and reduced choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) - immunoreactivity in the MS and the hippocarnpus, which is a marker for degeneration of the central cholinergic system (number of cells, $21.1{\pm}1.1$ vs. $13.2{\pm}1.3$: sham vs. ibotenic lesioned group). Daily administrations of SB (100mg/kg, p.o.) and GE (100mg/kg, p.o.) for 21 consecutive days produced significant reversals of ibotenic acid-induced deficit in learning and memory. These treatments also reduced the loss of cholinergic immunoreactivity in the MS and the hippocarnpus induced by ibotenic acid. These results demonstrated that SB and GE ameliorated learning and memory deficits through effects on the central nervous system, partly through effect on the acetylcholine system. Our studies suggest an evidence of SB and GE as treatment for Alzheimer's disease.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.27-35
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• 1991

Generally, it has been known that cholecystokinin (CCK) release into the plasma is under cholinergic control, but secretin release is not. Thus in anesthetized dogs we studied the effect of atropine $(50\;{\mu}g/kg\;followed\;by\;50\;{\mu}g/kg/hr)$ on pancreatic secretion and plasma concentrations of bioactive CCK and immunoreactive secretin in response to intraduodenal perfusion of sodium oleate (1, 3 and 9 mmol/hr). The volume, protein output and bicarbonate output of the secretion were increased by sodium cleats and this oleate-induced secretion was decreased significantly by atropine administration. However the increased plasma CCK and secretin levels by sodium oleate were not changed by atropine. These results indicate that atropine suppressed sodium oleate-induced pancreatic secretion through inhibiting cholinergic mechanism directly rather than decreasing the release of pancreatic secretory hormones. In another set of experiments, bilateral cervical vagi were stimulated electrically to observe the changes of pancreatic secretion and the above two plasma hormone levels in the presence or absence of atropine. In the vagally stimulated dogs, the volume, protein output and bicarbonate output of the pancreatic secretion were increased significantly. Both plasma secretin and CCK were concomitantly released significantly by vagal stimulation. Atropine significantly depressed the pancreatic secretory response as well as the release of these two pancreatic secretory hormones. Therefore, we conclude that in the presence of atropine the depressed pancreatic response to vagal stimulation is at least, in part, due to decreased release of endogenous CCK and secretin. In the vagally stimulated animals, however, the involvement of direct cholinergic influence on pancreatic exocrine gland remains to be answered.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.338-348
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• 2000

The present study was attempted to determine the effect of 5'-(N'-ethylcarboxamido) adenosine (NECA), which is an potent $A_2$-adenosine receptor agonist, on catecholamine (CA) secretion evoked by cholinergic stimulation, membrane depolarization and calcium mobilization from the isolated perfused rat adrenal gland. NECA (20 nM) perfused into the adrenal vein for 60 min produced a time-related inhibition in CA secretion evoked by ACh (5.32x10$^{-3}$ M), high $K^{+}$(5.6x10$^{-2}$ M), DMPP (10$^{-4}$ M for 2 min), McN-A-343 (10$^{-4}$ M for 2 min), cyclopiazonic acid (10$^{-5}$ M for 4 min) and Bay-K-8644 (10$^{-5}$ M for 4 min). Also, in the presence of $\beta$,${\gamma}$-methylene adenosine-5'-triphosphate (MATP), which is also known to be a selective $P_{2x}$-purinergic receptor agonist, showed a similar inhibition elf CA release evoked by ACh, high potassium, DMPP, McN-A-343, Bay-K-8644 and cyclopiazonic acid. However, in adrenal glands preloaded with 20$\mu$M NECA for 20 min under the presence of 20$\mu$M 3-isobutyl-1-methyl-xanthine (IBMX), an adenosine receptors antagonist, CA secretory responses evoked by ACh, high potassium, DMPP, McN-A-343, Bay-K-8644 and cyclopiazonic acid were much recovered in comparison to the case of NECA-treatment only. Taken together, these results indicate that NECA causes the marked inhibition of CA secretion evoked by stimulation of cholinergic (both nicotinic and muscarinic) receptors as well as by membrane depolarization. This inhibitory effect may be mediated by inhibiting influx of extracellular calcium and release in intracellular calcium in the rat adrenomedullary chromaffin cells through the adenosine receptor stimulation. Therefore, it is suggested that the inhibitory mechanism of adenosine receptor stimulation may play a modulatory role in regulating CA secretion.n.n.