• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.52 no.1
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• pp.15-20
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• 2009

Poplar contains various flavonoids including naringenin, kaempferol, myricetin, apigenin, luteolin, rhamnetin, and quercetin. These flavonoids are synthesized from naringenin with various enzymes. However, none of genes from poplar involved in flavonoid biosynthesis have been biochemically characterized. We cloned PFNS I-1 from Populus deltoids by RT-PCR method. The open reading frame of PFNS I-1 consisted of 1,017-bp and it showed high similarity with other FNS genes. The purified recombinant PFNS I-1, expressed in Escherichia coli, catalyzed the reaction from flavanone (naringenin) to flavone (apigenin). The reaction of PFNS I-1 was enhanced by cofactors such as oxoglutarate, $Fe^{2+}$, ascorbate and catalase. Thus, it is concluded that PFNS N-1 encodes a flavone synthase I.

• BMB Reports
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.68-71
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• 2008

Flavones are synthesized from flavanones through the action of flavone synthases (FNSs). There are two FNSs, FNS I and II. FNS I is a soluble dioxygenase present in members of the Apiaceae family and FNS II is a membrane bound cytochrome P450 enzyme that has been identified in numerous plant species. In this study, we cloned OsFNS I-1 from rice by RTPCR, expressed it in E. coli, and purified the recombinant protein. By NMR analysis, we found that OsFNS I-1 converted the flavanone (2S)-naringenin into the flavone, apigenin. Moreover, we found that the cofactors oxoglutarate, $FeSO_4$, ascorbate and catalase are required for this reaction. OsFNS I-1 encodes a flavone synthase I. This is the first type I FNS I found outside of the Apiaceae family.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.630-637
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• 2016

The chemical components and biological activity of Camellia mistletoe, Korthalsella japonica (Loranthaceae) are relatively unknown compared to other mistletoe species. Therefore, we investigated the phytochemical properties and biological activity of this parasitic plant to provide essential preliminary scientific evidence to support and encourage its further pharmaceutical research and development. The major plant components were chromatographically isolated using high-performance liquid chromatography and their structures were elucidated using tandem mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance anlysis. Furthermore, the anti-inflammatory activity of the 70% ethanol extract of K. japonica (KJ) and its isolated components was evaluated using a nitric oxide (NO) assay and western blot analysis for inducible NO synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase (COX)-2. Three flavone di-C-glycosides, lucenin-2, vicenin-2, and stellarin-2 were identified as major components of KJ, for the first time. KJ significantly inhibited NO production and reduced iNOS and COX-2 expression in lipopolysaccharide-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells at $100{\mu}g/mL$ while similar activity were observed with isolated flavone C-glycosides. In conclusion, KJ has a simple secondary metabolite profiles including flavone di-C-glycosides as major components and has a strong potential for further research and development as a source of therapeutic anti-inflammatory agents.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.20 no.9
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• pp.1295-1299
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• 2010

Recently, recombinant Streptomyces venezuelae has been established as a heterologous host for microbial production of flavanones and stilbenes, a class of plant-specific polyketides. In the present work, we expanded the applicability of the S. venezuelae system to the production of more diverse plant polyketides including flavones and flavonols. A plasmid with the synthetic codon-optimized flavone synthase I gene from Petroselium crispum was introduced to S. venezuelae DHS2001 bearing a deletion of the native pikromycin polyketide synthase gene, and the resulting strain generated flavones from exogenously fed flavanones. In addition, a recombinant S. venezuelae mutant expressing a codon-optimized flavanone $3{\beta}$-hydroxylase gene from Citrus siensis and a flavonol synthase gene from Citrus unshius also successfully produced flavonols.

• Archives of Pharmacal Research
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• v.27 no.9
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• pp.937-943
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• 2004

Recent investigations have shown that certain flavonoids, especially flavone derivatives, inhibit nitric oxide (NO) production by inducible NO synthase (iNOS) in macrophages, which contrib-ute their anti-inflammatory action. For the purpose of finding the optimized chemical structures of flavonoids that inhibit NO production, various A- and B-ring substituted flavones were syn-thesized and evaluated for their inhibitory activity using lipopolysaccharide-treated RAW 264.7 cells. It was found that the optimal chemical structures were A-ring 5,7-dihydroxyflavones hav-ing the B-ring 2＇,3＇-dihydroxy or 3＇,4＇-dihydroxy or 3＇,4＇-hydroxy/methoxy (methoxy/hydroxy) groups. These structurally optimized compounds were revealed to be down-regulators of iNOS induction, but not direct iNOS inhibitors. Of these derivatives that were evaluated, 2＇,3＇,5,7-tet-rahydroxyflavone and 3＇,4＇,5,7-tetrahydroxyflavone (Iuteolin) showed the strongest inhibition. The $IC_{50}$/ values for these compounds were 19.7 and 17.1 11M, respectively. Therefore, these compounds may have a potential as new anti-inflammatory agents.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Applied Pharmacology
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• 1998.11a
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• pp.196-196
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• 1998

Nitric oxide is involved in various physiological processes. Among isoforms of nitric oxide synthase, iNOS is partly responsible for inflammation and septic shock. During our continual search for anti-inflammatory flavonoids, we have found that flavonoids, especially flavones, possessed the inihibitory activity of NO production by iNOS from LPS-activated RAW 264.7 cell. In this study, flavonoids from Scutellaria radix were investigated for their inhibitory activity of nitric oxide production. It was found that wogonin, among tested flavonoids including baicalein, oroxylin A, skullcapflavone II, showed the strongest inhibition of nitric oxide production (IC$\sub$50/ = 17 uM). And this inhibition was, at least partly, due to down-regulation of iNOS enzyme induction, not due to direct inhibition of iNOS enzyme activity.

• Proceedings of the PSK Conference
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• 2003.04a
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• pp.286.1-286.1
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• 2003

Chrysin, a natural flavone compound contained in plants. has anti-inflammatory activity. Its anti-inflammatory effect has been previously explained in part by the suppression of promoter activities of inducible pro-inflammatory enzymes (cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and inducible nitrogen synthase (iNOS)). Nitrate production triggered by the activation of lipopolysaccharides (LPS) was most highly suppressed by the treatment of chrysin, follwed by 5-hydroxy-7-methoxyflavone (Ch-2), 5,7-diacetylflavone (Ch-4) in cultured Raw 264.7 cells. (omitted)

• Proceedings of the Plant Resources Society of Korea Conference
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• 2018.04a
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• pp.13-13
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• 2018

The anti-inflammatory (INF) compounds (1-15) were isolated from Agrimonia pilosa Ledeb. (APL) by activity-guided isolation technique. The isolated compounds (1-15) were identified as quercetin-7-O-rhanmoside (1), apigenin-7-O-glycoside (2), kaempferol-7-O-glycoside (3), apigenin-7-O-[6"-(butyl)-glycoside] (4), querceitn (5), kaempferol (6), apigenin (7), apigenin-7-O-[6"-(pentyl)-glycoside] (8), agrimonolide (9), agrimonolide-6-O-glucoside (10), desmethylagrimonolide (11), desmethylagrimonolide-6-O-glucoside (12), luteolin (13), vitexin (14) and isovitexin (15). Flavonoids, compound 2, 3, 11, and 14-15 have been found in APL for the first time. Furthermore, two novel flavone derivatives, compound 4 and 8, have been isolated inceptively in plant. In the no cytotoxicity concentration ranges of $0-20{\mu}M$, nitric oxide (NO) production level of 1-15 was estimated in LPS-treated Raw 264.7 macrophage cells. The flavone aglycones, 7 (apigenin, $IC_{50}=3.69{\pm}0.34{\mu}M$), 13 (luteolin, $IC_{50}=4.62{\pm}0.43{\mu}M$), 6 (kaempferol, $IC_{50}=14.43{\pm}0.23{\mu}M$) and 5 (quercetin, $IC_{50}=19.50{\pm}1.71{\mu}M$), exhibited excellent NO inhibitory (NOI) activity in dose-dependent manner. In the structure activity relationship (SAR) study of apigenin-derivatives (APD), apigenin; Api, apigenin-7-O-glucoside; Api-G, apignenin-7-O-[6"-(butyl)-glycoside]; Api-BG and apignenin-7-O-[6"-(pentyl)-glycoside]; Api-P, from APL on INF activity was investigated. The INF mediators level such as NO, INF-cytokines, NF-KB proteins, iNOS and COX-2 were sharply increased in Raw 264.7 cells by LPS. When pretreatment with APD in INF induced macrophages, NOI activity of Api was most effective than other APD with $IC_{50}$ values of $3.69{\pm}0.77{\mu}M$. And the NOI activity was declined in the following order: Api-BG ($IC_{50}=8.91{\pm}1.18{\mu}M$), Api-PG ($IC_{50}=13.52{\pm}0.85{\mu}M$) and API-G ($IC_{50}=17.30{\pm}0.66{\mu}M$). The NOI activity of two novel compounds, Api-PG and Api-BG were lower than their aglycone; Api, but more effective than Api-G (NOI: Api-PG and Api-BG). And their suppression ability on INF cytokines such as $TNF-{\alpha}$, $IL-1{\beta}$ and IL-6 mRNA showed the similar tendency. Therefore, the anti-INF mechanism study of Api-PG and Api-BG on nuclear factor-kappa B ($NF-{\kappa}B$) pathway, representative INF mechanism, was investigated and Api was used as positive control. Api-BF was more effectively prevent the than phosphorylation of $pI{\kappa}B$ kinase (p-IKK) and p65 than Api-PG in Raw 264.7 cells. In contrast, Api-PG and Api-BG were not reduced the phosphorylation of inhibitor of kappa B alpha ($I{\kappa}B{\alpha}$). Moreover, pretreatment with Api-PG and Api-BG, dose-dependently inhibited LPS-induced expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) mRNAs and proteins in macrophage cells, and their expression were correlated with their NOI activity. Therefore, APL can be utilized to health promote agent associated with their AIN metabolites.