• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.193-201
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• 2023

Hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) is a type of active oxygen species (ROS) that causes oxidative stress in cells and affects cell growth, proliferation, senescence, and death. The purpose of this study is to find active peptides that attenuate cytotoxicity of H₂O₂. A positional scanning synthetic tetrapeptide combinatorial library was screened to predict the sequence of potentially active peptides. As a result of comparing the effect of peptide pools on H₂O₂-induced death of human keratinocytes (HaCaT cells), various active peptide sequences were predicted. Especially, peptides containing cysteine (C) residue were predicted to be active. In follow-up experiments, the cytotoxicity and activity of cysteine-containing peptides of different lengths, such as C-NH₂, CC-NH₂, CCC-NH₂, and CCCC-NH₂ were examined. C-NH₂ and CC-NH₂ showed no significant cytotoxicity up to 1.0 mM, but CCC-NH₂, and CCCC-NH₂ showed relatively strong cytotoxicity. C-NH₂ and CC-NH₂ alleviated H₂O₂-induced cytotoxicity. CC-NH₂ was more cytoprotective compared to C-NH₂, C, N-acetyl cysteine (NAC), and glutathione (GSH). When intracellular ROS was measured by flow cytometry, H₂O₂ increased ROS production, and CC-NH₂ suppressed ROS production more effectively than C-NH₂, and it was as effective as C, NAC, and GSH. This study suggests that CC-NH₂ of the cysteine-containing peptides of different lengths has an antioxidant property that safely and effectively alleviates H₂O₂-induced cytotoxicity and ROS production.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.17 no.11
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• pp.1036-1039
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• 1996

Synthetic lipoidal peptides based on viral protein sequences have been prepared. These peptides contain an N-palmitoyl group at the N-terminal residue, which is a modified cysteine, containing a S-[2,3-bis(acyloxy)-(2-R,S)-propyl] moiety. When this residue (Pam3Cys) is at the N-terminus of a synthetic peptide, it acts as potent immunoadjuvant to enhance both IgM and IgG antibody responses to the attached peptide. Conventional analytical procedures (e.g., Edman degradation and amino acid analysis) are either not applicable due to the N-terminal modification, or do not provide confirmation of the intact structure. Chromatographic analysis is also hindered by the tendency of these lipoidal Pam3Cys peptides to form large aggregates, and in some cases to be permanently adsorbed on reversed phase columns. We have applied several mass spectrometric techniques, including fast atom bombardment (FAB), electrospray ionization (ESI) and matrix assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) to characterize the intact structures of a number of different Pam3Cys synthetic peptides. The MALDI-MS has been found to be the most sensitive for the analysis of the structure of Pam3Cys peptides.

• Journal of Dairy Science and Biotechnology
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.107-114
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• 2005

The trend towards ageing populations has been observed over many years in Europe and the US but has accelerated significantly in developed countries in Asia including Japan and South Korea. In the latter country the elderly population (65+) has increased 5-fold between 1960 and 2000 and this group will comprise 40% of the population by 2050. This creates a new socio-economic group with specific demands and considerable spending power. As ageing occurs a range of changes occur in the body that can be moderated by adjustments in nutrition. A significant body of evidence points to changes in the balance of glutathione synthesis and utilisation as people age. Glutathione is tile most important natural anti-oxidant of the body and the amounts present can become limited by available cysteine in the diet. A cysteine-enriched peptide product, Cysteine Peption$^{TM}$ has been developed by DMV International for dietary supplement and food applications. A qualitative consumer trial has indicated benefits including improved sleep and more energy. Animal and clinical trial will be described that provide indications on bioavailability and possible mechanisms of action of Cysteine Peption$^{TM}$ with particular focus on the ageing population.

• Reproductive and Developmental Biology
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.39-47
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• 2012

Ovarian cancer is the most lethal gynecological malignancy, and specific biomarkers are important needed to improve diagnosis, prognosis, and to forecast and monitor treatment efficiency. There are a lot of pathological factors, including reactive oxygen species (ROS), involved in the process of cancer initiation and progression. The oxidative modification of proteins by ROS is implicated in the etiology or progression of disorders and diseases. In this study, a labeling experiment with the thiol-modifying reagent biotinylated iodoacetamide (BIAM) revealed that a variety of proteins were differentially oxidized between normal and tumor tissues of ovarian cancer patients. To identify cysteine oxidation-sensitive proteins in ovarian cancer patients, we performed comparative analysis by nano-UPLC-$MS^E$ shotgun proteomics. We found oxidation-sensitive 22 proteins from 41 peptides containing cysteine oxidation. Using Ingenuity program, these proteins identified were established with canonical network related to cytoskeletal network, cellular organization and maintenance, and metabolism. Among oxidation-sensitive proteins, the modification pattern of Collagen alpha-1(VI) chain (COL6A1) was firstly confirmed between normal and tumor tissues of patients by 2-DE western blotting. This result suggested that COL6A1 might have cysteine oxidative modification in tumor tissue of ovarian cancer patients.

• Journal of Radiopharmaceuticals and Molecular Probes
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.153-159
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• 2021

This article provides an efficient ¹⁸F-labeling protocol based on a rapid condensation reaction between 2-cyanobenzothiazole (CBT) and N-terminal cysteine-containing biomolecules. The ¹⁸F-labeled CBT (¹⁸F-1) was prepared by radiofluorination of the tosylated precursor 4 with 18-crown-6/K+/[¹⁸F]F- complex. Using the purified ¹⁸F-1, ¹⁸F-labeled peptide (¹⁸F-7) and protein (¹⁸F-8) could be synthesized efficiently under mild conditions. This strategy would provide a convenient approach for rapid and site-specific ¹⁸F-labeling of various peptides and proteins for in vivo imaging and biomedical applications.

• 한국유가공학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2005.06a
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• pp.13-35
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• 2005

The trend towards ageing populations has been observed over many years in Europe and the US but has accelerated significantly in developed countries in Asia including Japan and South Korea. In the latter country the elderly population (65+) has increased 5-fold between 1960 and 2000 and this group will comprise 40% of the population by 2050. This creates a new socio-economic group with specific demands and considerable spending power. As ageing occurs a range of changes occur in the body that can be moderated by adjustments in nutrition. A significant body of evidence points to changes in the balance of glutathione synthesis and utilisation as people age. Glutathione is the most important natural anti-oxidant of the body and the amounts present can become limited by available cysteine in the diet. A cysteine-enriched peptide product, Cysteine Peption$^{TM}$ has been developed by DMV International for dietary supplement and food applications. A qualitative consumer trial has indicated benefits including improved sleep and more energy. Animal and clinical trials will be described that provide indications on bioavailability and possible mechanisms of action of Cysteine Peption$^{TM}$ with particular focus on the ageing population.

• BMB Reports
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.201-205
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• 2001

Thionins are a family of low molecular weight cysteine-rich antimicrobial peptides. We isolated a cDNA encoding thionin gene from a flower bud cDNA library of Chinese cabbage (CFT). The gene contains 611 by nucleotides with 60 bp, and 150 by untranslated regions at its N- and C-terminal, respectively. The deduced amino acid sequence encoded 133 amino acids containing precursor polypeptide. The protein reveals that the precursor has a tripartite structure: a putative signal sequence at the N-terminus, followed by a mature thionin peptide, and a C-terminal acidic domain, which facilitates transport of the mature thionin through membrane. Genomic Southern blot analysis suggests that the CFT gene may be present as a single or two copy gene in the Chinese cabbage genome. Northern blot analysis shows that the gene is specifically expressed in flowers, but not in leaves, stems, or roots. When we analyzed the antifungal activity of the recombinant CFT protein, which was expressed in E. coli using the truncated cDNA region corresponding to the mature protein part, it was not active on fungal growth inhibition.

• The Korean Journal of Food And Nutrition
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.572-580
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• 2023

Hypertension is characterized by excessive renin-angiotensin system activity, leading to blood vessel constriction. Several synthetic compounds have been developed to inhibit renin and angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE). These drugs often have adverse side effects, driving the exploration of plant protein-derived peptides as alternative or supplementary treatments. This study assessed the phenolic compound and amino acid content and the antioxidant and antihypertensive activity of 5 South Korean staple crops. Sorghum had the highest phenolic compound content and exhibited the highest antioxidant activity. Millet grains, particularly finger millet (38.86%), showed higher antihypertensive activity than red beans (14.42%) and sorghum (17.16%). Finger millet was found to contain a large proportion of branched-chain, aromatic, and sulfur-containing amino acids, which are associated with ACE inhibition. In particular, cysteine content was positively correlated with ACE inhibition in the crops tested (r=0.696, p<0.01). This study confirmed that the amino acid composition was more correlated with the antihypertensive activity of grains than the phenolic compound content. Finger millet mainly contained amino acids, which have higher ACE inhibitory activity, resulting in the strongest antihypertensive activity. These findings underscore the antihypertensive potential of select crops as plant-based food ingredients, offering insight into their biological functions.