• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.27 no.7
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• pp.1233-1241
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• 2017

The ginsenoside Rh2 has strong anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, and anti-diabetic effects. However, the application of ginsenoside Rh2 is restricted because of the small amounts found in Korean white and red ginsengs. To enhance the production of ginsenoside Rh2-MIX (comprising 20(S)-Rh2, 20(R)-Rh2, Rk2, and Rh3 as a 10-g unit) with high specificity, yield, and purity, a new combination of enzymatic conversion using the commercial enzyme Viscozyme L followed by acid treatment was developed. Viscozyme L treatment at pH 5.0 and $50^{\circ}C$ was used initially to transform the major ginsenosides Rb1, Rb2, Rc, and Rd into ginsenoside F2, followed by acid-heat treatment using citric acid 2% (w/v) at pH 2.0 and $121^{\circ}C$ for 15 min. Scale-up production in a 10-L jar fermenter, using 60 g of the protopanaxadiol-type ginsenoside mixture from ginseng roots, produced 24 g of ginsenoside Rh2-MIX. Using 2 g of Rh2-MIX, 131 mg of 20(S)-Rh2, 58 mg of 20(R)-Rh2, 47 mg of Rk2, and 26 mg of Rh3 were obtained at over 98% chromatographic purity. Then, the anti-cancer effect of the four purified ginsenosides was investigated on B16F10, MDA-MB-231, and HuH-7 cell lines. As a result, these four rare ginsenosides markedly inhibited the growth of the cancer cell lines. These results suggested that rare ginsenoside Rh2-MIX could be exploited to prepare an anti-cancer supplement in the functional food and pharmaceutical industries.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.48 no.4
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• pp.278-288
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• 2021

The development of bioenergy through biomass has gained importance due to the increasing rates of fossil fuel depletion. Biomass is important to increase the productivity of bioethanol, and production of biomass with high biomass productivity, low lignin content, and high cellulose content is also important in this regard. Inorganic salts are important in the cultivation of biomass crops for the production of biomass with desirable characteristics. In this study, the roles of various inorganic salts in biomass and bioethanol production were investigated using an in vitro tobacco culture system. The inorganic salts evaluated in this study showed dramatic effects on tobacco plant growth. For example, H₂PO₄ substantially improved plant growth and the root/shoot (R/S) ratio. The chemical compositions of tobacco plants grown in media after removal of various inorganic salts also showed significant differences; for example, lignin content was high after Mg²⁺ removal treatment and low after K⁺ treatment and H₂PO₄ removal treatment. On the other hand, NO₃^- and H₂PO₄ treatments yielded the highest cellulose content, while enzymatic hydrolysis yielded the highest glucose concentration ratio 24 h after NH₄⁺ removal treatment. The ethanol productivity after H₂PO₄ removal treatment was 3.95% (w/v) 24 h after fermentation and 3.75% (w/v) after 36 h. These results can be used as the basis for producing high-quality biomass for future bioethanol production.

• Food Engineering Progress
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.85-91
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• 2009

High hydrostatic pressure and enzymatic hydrolysis (HPEH) was applied to anchovy in order to produce a natural seasoning ingredient. Total soluble solid, amino nitrogen, total nitrogen and the degree of hydrolysis of anchovy hydrolysates were investigated depending on the process parameters such as temperature, pressure, enzyme concentration and enzyme type. The optimal condition for anchovy hydrolysis was confirmed as temperature 50$^{\circ}C$, reaction time 24 hrs, pressure 50 MPa and enzyme concentration 0.6% in HPEH treatment. HPEH treatment showed more effective in overall properties of anchovy hydrolysis than those of control. All anchovy hydrolysates produced by HPEH treatment were increased more 1.5-2.6 times of total free amino acid than that of control. From these results, the HPEH treatment appears to be an effective and economic process to produce a natural seasoning ingredients.

• Journal of Periodontal and Implant Science
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.207-213
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• 2014

Purpose: The study was aimed at investigating changes in periodontal parameters and superoxide dismutase activity triggered by root surface debridement with and without micronutrient supplementation in postmenopausal women. Methods: Forty-three postmenopausal chronic periodontitis patients were divided into two groups: group 1 (n=22) were provided periodontal treatment in the form of scaling and root planing (SRP) and group 2 (n=21) patients received SRP along with systemic administration of micronutrient antioxidants. Patients in both groups were subjected to root surface debridement. Group 2 patients also received adjunctive micronutrient antioxidant supplementation. Serum and salivary superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity along with periodontal parameters were recorded at baseline and 3 months after therapy. Results: Salivary and serum SOD values significantly (P<0.05) improved with periodontal treatment. Improvement in systemic enzymatic antioxidant status along with reduction in gingival inflammation and bleeding on probing (%) sites was significantly greater in group 2 as compared to group 1. Conclusions: Adjunctive micronutrient supplements reduce periodontal inflammation and improve the status of systemic enzymatic antioxidants in postmenopausal women.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.77-83
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• 2009

Retinoic acids (RAs) modulate growth, differentiation, and apoptosis in normal, pre-malignant & malignant cells. In the present study, the effects of RA isomers (all-trans RA, 13-cis RA, and 9-cis RA) on the cell signal transduction of human breast cancer cells have been studied. The relationship between RAs and an enzymatic antioxidant system was also determined. Estrogen-receptor (ER) positive MCF-7 and ER-negative MDA-MB-231 human breast cancer cells were treated with different doses of each RA isomers, all-trans RA, 13-cis RA, or 9-cis RA. Treatment of RA isomers inhibited cell viability and induced apoptosis of MCF-7 cells as a result of increased caspase activity in cytoplasm and cytochrome C released from mitochondria. All-trans RA was the most effective RA isomer in both cell growth inhibition and induction of apoptosis in MCF-7 cells. However, no significant effect of RA isomers was observed on the cell growth or apoptosis in ER-negative MDA-MB-231 cells. In addition, activities of antioxidant enzymes such as catalase and glutathione peroxidase were decreased effectively after treatment of RA in MCF-7 cells, whereas SOD activity was rarely affected. Thus, the present data suggest that all-trans RA is the most potential inducer of apoptosis and modulator of antioxidant enzymes among RA isomers in MCF-7 human breast cancer cells.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.29 no.11
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• pp.1760-1768
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• 2019

The use of lignocellulosic biomass such as rice straw can help subsidize the cost of producing value-added chemicals. However, inhibitory compounds, such as phenolics, produced during the pre-treatment of biomass, hamper the saccharification process. Laccase and electrochemical stimuli are both well known to reduce phenolic compounds. Therefore, in this study, we implemented a bioelectrochemical detoxification system (BEDS), a consolidated electrochemical and enzymatic process involving laccase, to enhance the detoxification of phenolics, and thus achieve a higher saccharification efficiency. Saccharification of pretreated rice straw using BEDS at 1.5 V showed 90% phenolic reduction (Ph_r), thereby resulting in a maximum saccharification yield of 85%. In addition, the specific power consumption when using BEDS (2.2 W/Kg Ph_r) was noted to be 24% lower than by the electrochemical process alone (2.89 W/kg Ph_r). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to implement BEDS for reduction of phenolic compounds in pretreated biomass.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.550-555
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• 2008

An efficient production method of spirulina extract was developed by enzymatic treatment using proteolytic enzymes. The suitable dosage of Tunicase, a cell lytic enzyme, was used to be 2.0% (w/w). To maximize solid recovery and spirulina extraction (SE) index, which indicates nucleic acid-related substances content, the dosage of Alcalase, commercially available pretense, was found to be 1.0% (w/w). By simultaneous treatments using optimal dosages of Tunicase and Alcalase, the highest SE index and solid recovery were obtained. The SE index and solid recovery of simultaneous treatments were notably enhanced by 100% ($11.4%\;{\rightarrow}\;22.8%$) and 56% ($45.2%\;{\rightarrow}\;70.7%$), respectively, than those of the non-treated extracts.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.321-326
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• 2010

Enzymatic treatment conditions for red ginseng residue (RGR) were investigated to apply RGR as a microbial medium. Polysaccharide hydrolyase and protease were screened to obtain high solid and carbohydrate yields, and a good degree of carbohydrate hydrolysis. The optimal dosage and reaction time for Viscozyme, the chosen polysaccharide hydrolyase, were found to be 1.0% (w/w) and 3 h, respectively. Of the tested proteases, Flavourzyme, whose optimal dosage was 0.5% (w/w), was selected. Co-treatment with the optimal dosages of Flavourzyme and Viscozyme increased solid yield, carbohydrate yield, and degree of carbohydrate hydrolysis by 76%, 65%, and 1,865%, respectively, over levels in non-treated RGR. The culture characteristics of Leuconostoc mesenteroides strain KACC 91459P grown in enzymatically hydrolyzed red ginseng residue (ERGR) and RGR suspensions were compared. After cultivation for 6 h, the viable cell counts of both cell suspensions rapidly increased to $1.3{\times}10^9$ colony-forming units (CFU)/g. Moreover, while the viable cell population drastically decreased to $2.4{\times}10^6\;CFU/g$ for cells grown in RGR medium, it was maintained in cells fermented in ERGR medium for 24 h.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.5 no.3
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• pp.271-278
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• 2001

Oxidative stress and methylglyoxal (MG), a reactive dicarbonyl metabolites produced by enzymatic and non-enzymatic reaction of normal metabolism, induced aldose reductase (AR) expression in rat aortic smooth muscle cells (SMC). AR expression was induced in a time-dependent manner and reached at a maximum of 4.5-fold in 12 h of MG treatment. This effect of MG was completely abolished by cyclohemide and actinomycin D treatment suggesting AR was synthesized by de novo pathway. Pretreatment of the SMC with N-acetyl-L-cysteine significantly down-regulated the MG-induced AR mRNA. Furthermore, DL-Buthionine-(S,R)-sulfoximine, a reagent which depletes intracellular glutathione levels, increased the levels of MG-induced AR mRNA. These results indicated that MG induces AR mRNA by increasing the intracellular peroxide levels. Aminoguanidine, a scanvenger of dicarbonyl, significantly down-regulated the MG-induced AR mRNA. In addition, the inhibition of AR activities with statil, an AR inhibitor, enhanced the cytotoxic effect of MG on SMC under normal glucose, suggesting a protective role of AR against MG-induced cell damages. These results imply that the induction of AR by MG may contribute to an important cellular detoxification of reactive aldehyde compounds generated under oxidative stress in extrahepatic tissues.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.423-434
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• 2019

HSP90 is a molecular chaperone that increases the stability of client proteins. Cancer cells show higher HSP90 expression than normal cells because many client proteins play an important role in the growth and survival of cancer cells. HSP90 inhibitors mainly bind to the ATP binding site of HSP90 and inhibit HSP90 activity, and these inhibitors can be distinguished as ansamycin and non-ansamycin depending on the structure. In addition, the histone deacetylase inhibitors inhibit the activity of HSP90 through acetylation of HSP90. These HSP90 inhibitors have undergone or are undergoing clinical trials for the treatment of cancer. On the other hand, recent studies have reported that various reagents induce cleavage of HSP90, resulting in reduced HSP90 client proteins and growth suppression in cancer cells. Cleavage of HSP90 can be divided into enzymatic cleavage and non-enzymatic cleavage. Therefore, reagents inducing cleavage of HSP90 can be classified as another class of HSP90 inhibitors. We discuss that the cleavage of HSP90 can be another mechanism in the cancer treatment by HSP90 inhibition.