• Toxicological Research
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.183-190
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• 2002

The mechanism by which catechin-mediated cytotoxicity against tumor cells remains to be elusive. To elucidate the mechanical mights of anti-tumor effects, (-)epigallocatechin-gallate (EGCG) of catechin was applied to human prostate cancer DU 145 cells. Cell viability was measured by crystal violet staining. Cell lysates were wed to measure the catalytic activity of caspases by using fluorogenic peptide: Ac-DEVD-AMC for caspase-3 protease, Z-IETD-AFC for caspase-8 protease, Ac-LEHD-AFC for caspase-9 protease as substrates. The equal amounts of protein from cell lysate was separated on SDS-PAGE and analyzed by western blotting with anti-Fas antibody, anti-FasL antibody, anti-BCL2 antibody and anti-Bax antibody. (-)EGCG induced the death of DUl45 cells, which was revealed as apoptosis shown by DNA fragmentation. (-)EGCG induced the activation of caspase family cysteine proteases including caspase-3, -8 and -9 proteases in DU145 cells. Also, (-)EGCG increased the expression of Fas and Fas ligand (FasL) protein in DU145 colls. The expression level of BCL2 was decreased in (-)EGCG treated DU145 cells, whereas Bax protein was increased in a time-dependent manner. We suggest that (-)EGCG-induced apoptosis of DU145 cells is mediated by signaling pathway involving caspase family cysteine protease, mitochondrial BCL2-family protein and Fas/FasL.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.616-622
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• 2016

Baicalein (5,6,7-trihydroxy-2-phenyl-chromen-4-one) is a flavone, a type of flavonoid, originally isolated from the roots of Scutellaria baicalensis. This study evaluated the protective effects of baicalein against oxidative damage-mediated apoptosis induced by ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation in a human keratinocyte cell line (HaCaT). Baicalein absorbed light within the wavelength range of UVB. In addition, baicalein decreased the level of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) in response to UVB radiation. Baicalein protected cells against UVB radiation-induced DNA breaks, 8-isoprostane generation and protein modification in HaCaT cells. Furthermore, baicalein suppressed the apoptotic cell death by UVB radiation. These findings suggest that baicalein protected HaCaT cells against UVB radiation-induced cell damage and apoptosis by absorbing UVB radiation and scavenging ROS.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.51 no.5
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• pp.599-602
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• 2013

A male patient with neurocysticercosis was identified in Montai Village, Xay District, Oudomxay Province, Lao PDR in February 2004. He had a history of diagnosis for neurocysticercosis by a CT scan in Thailand after an onset of epileptic seizure in 1993. A pig in the same district was found to contain Taenia solium metacestodes (=cysticerci); the slaughtered pig body contained more than 2,000 cysticerci. In addition to morphological identification, molecular identification was also performed on the cysticerci by DNA sequencing analysis of the mitochondrial cox1 gene; they were confirmed as T. solium metacestodes. The patient is regarded as an indigenous case of neurocysticercosis infected in an endemic focus of T. solium taeniasis/cysticercosis in Oudomxay Province, Lao PDR.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.957-963
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• 2016

Cellular senescence, a barrier to tumorigenesis, controls aberrant proliferation of cells. We here aimed to investigate cellular senescence in immortalized cholangiocyte and cholangiocarcinoma cell lines using five different inducing agents: 5-aza-2'deoxycytidine, bromodeoxyuridine, interferons ($IFN{\beta}$ and $IFN{\gamma}$), and hydrogen peroxide. We analyzed senescence characteristics, colony formation ability, expression of genes involved in cell cycling and interferon signaling pathways, and protein levels. Treatment with all five agents decreased cell proliferation and induced cellular senescence in immortalized cholangiocyte and cholangiocarcinoma cell lines with different degrees of growth-inhibitory effects depending on cell type and origin. Bromodeoxyuridine gave the strongest stimulus to inhibit growth and induce senescence in most cell lines tested. Expression of p21 and interferon related genes was upregulated in most conditions. The fact that bromodeoxyuridine had the strongest effects on growth inhibition and senescence induction implies that senescence in cholangiocarcinoma cells is likely controlled by DNA damage response pathways relating to the p53/p21 signaling. In addition, interferon signaling pathways may partly regulate this mechanism in cholangiocarcinoma cells.

• Archives of Pharmacal Research
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.305-309
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• 1998

Human cytochrome P450 1A2 is one of the major cytochrome P450s in human liver. It is known to be capable of activating a number of carcinogens such as arylamines and heterocyclic amines. In order to develop the new bacterial mutagenicity test system with human P450, a full length of human P450 1A2 cDNA inserted into pCW bacterial expression vector was introduced to Escherichia coli WP2 uvrA strain which is a well-known E. coli strain for bacterial reverse mutagenicity assay. Expressed human P450 1A2 showed typical P450 hemoprotein spectra. Maximum expression was achieved at 48 hrs after incubating at $30^{\circ}C$ in terrific broth containing ampicillin, IPTG and other supplements. High level expression of P450 1A2 in E. coli WP2 uvrA membranes was determined in SDS-PAGE. The well-known mutagens 2-aminoanthracene and MElQ increased the revertant colonies of E. coli WP2 uvrA expressing human P450 1A2 without an exogenous rat hepatic post-mitochondrial supernatant (S9 fraction) in a dose-dependent manner. The results show that the functional expression of human P450 in bacterial mutagenicity tester strain will provide a useful tool for studying the mechanism of the mutagenesis and carcinogenesis of new drugs and environmental chemicals.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2017.06a
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• pp.152-152
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• 2017

Plants exposed to environmental stress for long durations often can adapt to stress conditions with improved tolerance. Moreover this acquired tolerance to stress can be retained even after reverting to destressed growth conditions, which is known to stress memory. In these adaptation and stress memory processes, epigenetic regulation, such as DNA methylation and histone modifications play a key role. Here, we showed that regenerated rice plants from embryogenic callus exposed to gradually increasing NaCl concentrations (up to 120 mM NaCl) acquired salt tolerance and their enhanced tolerance are inherited to subsequent generations. The rice plants (R0) regenerated from rice callus under saline conditions were transplanted into normal paddy field and R1 seeds were harvested. These R1 seeds displayed higher germination rate on MS medium containing 100mM NaCl than wild-type. The callus derived from R1 seeds showed better growth than control callus on high salinity medium. And the salt-adapted R1 plants exhibited higher chlorophyll contents and also higher $K^+/Na^+$ ratio than wild-type rice under saline conditions. The results indicated that rice plants successfully adapted to saline growth conditions during regeneration on high salt medium and moreover this acquired tolerance to salt stress was inherited subsequent generation.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2017.06a
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• pp.11-11
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• 2017

The most drought resistant among the five most important cereal crops, and a key dual-use (grain and biomass) crop in regions containing some of the world's most degraded soils, sorghum has inherent climate resilience that is likely to become more important under environmental conditions that are projected by many climate change models. The importance of sorghum might be further elevated by the development of productive genotypes that increase the extent and duration of soil cover beyond those of conventional annual crops, mitigating or even reversing losses of ecological capital through multiple crops from single plantings. Rich genetic and genomic resources have been developed to link Sorghum phenotypic diversity to its molecular basis, and in particular the genus has become a model for dissecting the molecular control of perenniality. Nature has made Sorghum perennial at least twice, and crosses between wild perennials and cultivated sorghums show the feasibility of developing genotypes with varying degrees of investment in perenniality while still providing harvestable food, feed, sugar and/or cellulose. Genetic analysis of progeny from these crosses is revealing the hereditary basis of traits related to ratooning and perenniality and providing diagnostic DNA markers. One perennial Sorghum species has adapted to continents and latitudes far beyond the reach of its progenitors, surviving stresses year after year that are only periodically experienced by conventional (annual) sorghum, and may also harbor novel alleles that may mitigate production challenges in conventional annual sorghums.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Toxicology Conference
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• 2003.05a
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• pp.59-59
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• 2003

Aflatoxins are produced by Aspergillus flavus, parasiticus and their related fungi that grow in improperly stored foods such as com, rice, peanuts and other cereals. In addition to its high mutagenicity and cytotoxicity, aflatoxin B$_1$ (AFB$_1$) is a potent hepatocarcinogen in experimental animals and an important factor for the human liver cancer. In spite of a high attention to the hepatocarcinogenicity of aflatoxins, the relative toxicity, for the risk assessment, of other types (AFB$_2$, AFG$_1$ and AFG$_2$) of the toxin was not fully studies.(omitted)

• Toxicological Research
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.31-37
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• 2006

It was previously found that melittin inhibited $NF-{\kappa}B$ activity by reacting with signal molecules of $NF-{\kappa}B$ which is critical contributor in cancer cell growth by induction of apoptotic cell death. We here investigated whether melittin inhibits cell growth of human prostate cancer cells through induction of apoptotic cell death, and the possible signal pathways. Melittin ($0{\sim}1\;{\mu}g/ml$) inhibited prostate cancer cell growth in a dose dependent manner. Conversely related to the growth inhibitory effect, melittin increased the induction of apoptotic cell death in a dose dependent manner. Melittin also inhibited DNA binding activity of $NF-{\kappa}B$, an anti-apoptotic transcriptional factor. Consistent with the induction of apoptotic cell death and inhibition of $NF-{\kappa}B$, melittin increased the expression of pro-apoptotic proteins caspase-3, and Bax but down-regulated anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2. These findings suggest that melittin could inhibit prostate cancer cell growth, and this effect may be related with the induction of apoptotic cell death via inactivation of $NF-{\kappa}B$.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.49-53
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• 2004

The genetic basis of hypertension is complex, and has been considered to be associated with the dopamine D2 receptor gene (DD2R). Because association studies using the candidate gene approach may provide important clues regarding the pathogenesis of hypertension and establish basis for further study, we performed the association study on the relationship between genetic polymorphisms in the DD2R gene and hypertension in Koreans. Eighty nine patients with hypertension and 86 age-matched subjects with normal blood pressure were enrolled. Genomic DNA was extracted from peripheral blood leukocytes. PCR-RFLP analysis was performed to detect the three polymorphic Taq I sites in the DD2R gene. There were no significant differences in genotype, allele and haplotype distributions of any polymorphisms in the DD2R gene between two groups, respectively (P>0.05), although significant linkage disequilibriums among these polymorphic sites were detected by pair-wise analysis (P<0.05). Therefore, our negative result suggest that the three Taq I RFLPs in the DD2R gene were not significantly associated with hypertension in Koreans.