• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.36 no.5
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• pp.93-99
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• 2021

Objective : Caryophylli Flos has been used in Korean medicine to relieve vomiting and pains caused by chills that make fluid circulation difficult. This study was designed to investigate the protective effect of ethanol extract of Caryophylli Flos (CF) in hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂)-induced apoptotic cell death in human keratinocyte HaCaT cells. Methods : CF was prepared by extracting 200 g of Caryophylli Flos in 2 L of ethanol for 48 h. Cell viability was measured by MTT assay, and the protein expression was monitored by Western blot analysis. Apoptosis was determined by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) assay. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) was measured using fluorescent dye, and reduced glutathione (GSH) was determined with a colorimetric commercial kit. Results : CF protected HaCaT cells from cell death caused by oxidative stress after H₂O₂ treatment. H₂O₂ amplified generation of ROS and induced depletion of GSH, whereas these changes in ROS and GSH were inhibited by GF treatment. In addition, H₂O₂ resulted in apoptosis as assessed by TUNEL assay and the expression of apoptosis regulator proteins. However, cells treated with CF showed a decrease in TUNEL-positive cells and restored the reduced expression of procaspase-9, -3 and PARP. Conclusion : This study showed cytoprotective effects of CF by anti-apoptotic activity while exerting antioxidative activity in H₂O₂-treated HaCaT cells. These results suggest that CF could be beneficial in skin damage caused by oxidative stress.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.41-49
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• 2021

Objective : Citrus unshiu peel (Citri Unshius Pericarpium) has been prescribed to suppress coughing and phlegm in Korean medicine. In this study, the effect of ethanol extract of Citrus unshiu peel (CEE) on apoptosis was investigated using cadmium chloride (CdCl2) treated HepG2 cells. Methods : CEE was prepared by extracting 300 g of Citri Unshius Pericarpium in 3 L of ethanol for 72 h. Apoptosis was determined by the TUNEL assay. The mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) was monitored using the membrane-permeable fluorescent dye Rh123. The expression level of each protein was monitored by Western blot analysis. Results : CEE protected HepG2 cells from apoptosis as determined by the TUNEL assay. A decrease in MMP was observed in cells exposed to cadmium, indicating that mitochondria are involved in the induction of apoptosis. However, CEE recovered the reduction in MMP caused by cadmium. In addition, decreased expression of B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2), procaspase, and poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) by cadmium was increased by CEE. The anti-apoptotic effect of CEE was found to be associated with inhibition of JNK and p38 phosphorylation when examining the expression of phosphorylated MAPK by Western blot. Conclusion : This study showed that CEE exerted anti-apoptotic effects in cadmium-induced HepG2 cells by inhibiting the reduction of MMP and changes in the expression level of apoptotic proteins. These results suggest the potential for CEE to be used for heavy metal-induced liver damage.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.21-30
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• 2023

Objective : Gardeniae Fructus (GF) has bitter and cold nature. Thus, it has been traditionally prescribed in processed form roasted with ginger juice for patients with a weak stomach. This study investigated the effects of processed GF in tert-butyl hydroperoxide (tBHP)-treated gastric epithelial cells. Methods : Processed GF was made by applying 40% ginger juice or 10% ethanol for 24 h and then roasting at 150℃ for 5 minutes. Apoptosis was determined by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) assay. Mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) was monitored by flow cytometry using the membrane permeable fluorescent dye Rh123. Protein expression was measured by Western blot analysis. Results : Cell viability was reduced by tBHP and restored by ethanol extract of GF (GFE). In the TUNEL assay, it was found that cell death by tBHP was due to apoptosis, and GFE had an anti-apoptotic effect. Processed GF roasted with ginger juice showed the best anti-apoptotic effect. Processed GF also inhibited MMP loss and restored tBHP-induced changes in expression levels of apoptosis-related proteins. Increased ROS production and GSH depletion after tBHP treatment were significantly reduced by processed GF. In addition, tBHP-induced activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) was inhibited by processed GF. Conclusion : These results demonstrate that the processed GF is able to protect gastric epithelial cells from oxidative stress-induced cell death with antiapoptotic and antioxidant activity. In addition, it shows that the processing of GF, which have been traditionally used for gastrointestinal protection, partially have scientific validity.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.255-264
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• 2012

The structures of the intact synaptosomal plasma membrane vesicles (SPMVs) isolated from bovine cerebral cortexs, and the outer and the inner monolayer separately, were evaluated with 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) and 1,3-di(1-pyrenyl)propane (Py-3-Py) as fluorescent reporters and trinitrophenyl groups as quenching agents. The methanol increased bulk rotational and lateral mobilities of SPMVs lipid bilayers. The methanol increased the rotational and lateral mobilities of the outer monolayers more than of the inner monolayers. n-(9-Anthroyloxy)stearic acid (n-AS) were used to evaluate the effect of the methanol on the rotational mobility at the 16, 12, 9, 6, and 2 position of aliphatic chains present in phospholipids of the SPMVs outer monolayers. The methanol decreased the anisotropy of the 16-(9-anthroyloxy)palmitic acid (16-AP), 12-(9-anthroyloxy)stearic acid (12-AS), 9-(9-anthroyloxy)stearic acid (9-AS), and 6-(9-anthroyloxy)stearic acid (6-AS) in the SPMVs outer monolayer but it increased the anisotropy of 2-(9-anthroyloxy)stearic acid (2-AS) in the monolayers. The magnitude of the increased rotational mobility by the methanol was in the order at the position of 16, 12, 9, and 6 of aliphatic chains in phospholipids of the outer monolayers. Furthermore, the methanol increased annular lipid fluidity and also caused membrane proteins to cluster. The important finding is that was far greater increase by methanol in annular lipid fluidity than increase in lateral and rotational mobilities by the methanol. Methanol alters the stereo or dynamics of the proteins in the lipid bilayers by combining with lipids, especially with the annular lipids. In conclusion, the present data suggest that methanol, in additions to its direct interaction with proteins, concurrently interacts with membrane lipids, fluidizing the membrane, and thus inducing conformational changes of proteins known to be intimately associated with membranes lipids.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.173-178
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• 2022

A lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA) method using carbon nanodot@silica as a signaling material was developed for analyzing the concentration of retinol-binding protein 4 (RBP4), one of the lung cancer biomarkers. Instead of antibodies mainly used as bioreceptors in nitrocellulose membranes in LFIA for protein detection, aptamers that are more economical, easy to store for a long time, and have strong affinities toward specific target proteins were used. A 5' terminal of biotin-modified aptamer specific to RBP4 was first reacted with neutravidin followed by spraying the mixture on the membrane in order to immobilize the aptamer in a porous membrane by the strong binding affinity between biotin and neutravidin. Carbon nanodot@silica nanoparticles with blue fluorescent signal covalently conjugated to the RBP4 antibody, and RBP4 were injected in a lateral flow manner on to the surface bound aptamer to form a sandwich complex. Surfactant concentrations, ionic strength, and additional blocking reagents were added to the running buffer solution to optimize the fluorescent signal off from the sandwich complex which was correlated to the concentration of RBP4. A 10 mM Tris (pH 7.4) running buffer containing 150 mM NaCl and 0.05% Tween-20 with 0.6 M ethanolamine as a blocking agent showed the optimum assay condition for carbon nanodot@silica-based LFIA. The results indicate that an aptamer, more economical and easier to store for a long time can be used as an alternative immobilizing probe for antibody in a LFIA device which can be used as a point-of-care diagnosis kit for lung cancer diseases.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.162-169
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• 2018

Many cytoplasmic proteins are targeted to the cytoplasmic membrane of the trans-Golgi network (TGN) via an N-terminal short helix. We previously showed that the 20 N-terminal amino acids of Aplysia phosphodiesterase 4 (ApPDE4) long form are sufficient for its targeting to the plasma membrane and the TGN. The N-terminus of the ApPDE4 long form binds to PI4P and sulfatide in vitro. Therefore, in order to decipher the roles of sulfatide in Golgi complex targeting, we examined the cellular localization of sulfatide-binding peptides. In this study, we found that enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) fused to the C-terminus of modified sulfatide- and heparin-binding peptides (mHSBP-EGFP) was localized to the TGN. On the other hand, its mutant, in which tryptophan was replaced with an alanine, leading to the impairment of heparin and sulfatide binding, was localized to cytosol. We also found that the TGN targeting of mHSBP-EGFP is impaired by the treatment of antimycin A, phenylarsine oxide (PAO), and adenosine but not a high concentration of wortmannin. These results suggest that PAO and adenosine-sensitive kinases, including phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase II, may play key roles in the recruitment of mHSBP-EGFP.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.286-290
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• 2009

The stability of three different kinds of pUC-derived plasmids, pDsRed, pZsYellow, and pGFPuv, was investigated in Pectobacterium strains to utilize those plasmids as tracers. All three plasmids pDsRed, pZsYellow and pGFPuv showed their specific colors in Pectobacterium strains. Especially, the plasmid pDsRed conferred bright pink colonies on the Pectobacterium strains. When the bacteria lost the plasmid pDsRed, the colonies turned white, suggesting that the plasmid could be a good marker system for Pectobacterium strains on different environmental conditions. The effect of the antibiotic pressure on the stability of the plasmid was different depending on the host bacteria. P. carotovorum subsp. betavasculorum was more sensitive to the antibiotic pressure than P. carotovorum subsp. carotovorum Pcc21. However, temperature change significantly affected plasmid stability on both Pectobacterium strains. Almost all strains lost the plasmids with the shift in temperature from $28^{\circ}C$ to $37^{\circ}C$. Presence of the plasmids did not affect bacterial pathogenicity on their own host plants. Among three plasmids, pZsYellow was not useful as a marker because the yellow fluorescent proteins from pZs Yellow were interfered with the yellow natural fluorescence of the plant tissues induced by the defense system. Since the red color of DsRed can be seen with naked eyes, plasmid pDsRed was applicable as a marker. However, the color change was slow so that additional manipulation to increase the expression speed was necessary. Plasmid pGFPuv could serve as a perfect marker without any problem, tracing the reproduction and spread of the plant pathogens perfectly.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.363-370
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• 2016

Cardiovascular disease is the most common cause of death in diabetic patients. Hyperglycemia is the primary characteristic of diabetes and is associated with many complications. The role of hyperglycemia in the dysfunction of human cardiac progenitor cells that can regenerate damaged cardiac tissue has been investigated, but the exact mechanism underlying this association is not clear. Thus, we examined whether hyperglycemia could regulate mitochondrial dynamics and lead to cardiac progenitor cell dysfunction, and whether blocking glucose uptake could rescue this dysfunction. High glucose in cardiac progenitor cells results in reduced cell viability and decreased expression of cell cycle-related molecules, including CDK2 and cyclin E. A tube formation assay revealed that hyperglycemia led to a significant decrease in the tube-forming ability of cardiac progenitor cells. Fluorescent labeling of cardiac progenitor cell mitochondria revealed that hyperglycemia alters mitochondrial dynamics and increases expression of fission-related proteins, including Fis1 and Drp1. Moreover, we showed that specific blockage of GLUT1 improved cell viability, tube formation, and regulation of mitochondrial dynamics in cardiac progenitor cells. To our knowledge, this study is the first to demonstrate that high glucose leads to cardiac progenitor cell dysfunction through an increase in mitochondrial fission, and that a GLUT1 blocker can rescue cardiac progenitor cell dysfunction and downregulation of mitochondrial fission. Combined therapy with cardiac progenitor cells and a GLUT1 blocker may provide a novel strategy for cardiac progenitor cell therapy in cardiovascular disease patients with diabetes.

• Journal of Microbiology
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.25-31
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• 2004

Sf9 cells have obvious advantages for the conventional production technology of vaccine. They are useful tools for high concentration and large-scale cultures. Sf9 cells were grown to maximal concentration, 8${\times}$l0$\^$6/ cells/$m\ell$ in a 500$m\ell$ spinner flask, with a doubling time at the exponentially growing phase of 24.5 hours, using serum-free media. To explore the ability of Sf9 cells to be infected by the Japanese encephalitis (JE) virus Beijing-l strain, Sf9 cells were infected with the virus. By 4-5 days post-infection, 10-15 % of the Sf9 cells showed cytopathic effect (CPE), from granularity to the formation of syncytia and multinucleated giant cells continuously observed over a period of 35 days. Positive fluorescent reactions were detected in 30-40% of cells infected with the JE virus Beijing-l strain, and the uninfected Sf9 cells were completely negative. Virus particles, propagated in Sf9 and Vero cells, were concentrated by sedimentation on 40% trehalose cushions by ultracentrifugation, and showed identical patterns of viral morphogenesis. Complete virus particles, 40 to 50 nm in diameter, were observed, and JE virus envelope (E) proteins, at 53 kDa, were found in the western blot analysis to the anti-JE virus E protein monoclonal antibody and reacted as a magenta band in the same position to the glycoprotein staining. To evaluate whether the infectious virus was produced in Sf9 cells inoculated with the JE virus Beijing-l stain, Sf9 cells were inoculated with the virus, and sample harvested every 5 days. The titers of the JE virus Beijing-l strain rose from 1.0${\times}$l0$\^$5/ to 1.5${\times}$l0$\^$6/ pfu/$m\ell$. The infected Sf9 cells could be subcultured in serum-free medium, with no change in the plaque sizes formed by the JE virus Beijing-l strain in the plaque assay. It is suggested that the ability of the JE virus Beijing-l strain to infect Sf9 cells in serum-free media will provide a useful insect cell system, where the JE virus replication, cytopathogenicity and vaccine immunogen can be studied.

• Journal of Periodontal and Implant Science
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.205-221
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• 2004

Periodontal ligament(PDL) cells have been known as playing an important roles in periodontal regeneration and gingival fibroblasts are also important to periodontal regeneration by forming connective tissue attachment. There were rare studies about the gene expression patterns of PDL cells and gingival fibroblasts, therefore in this study, we tried cDNA microarray-based gene expression monitoring to explain the functional differences of PDL cells and gingival fibroblasts in vivo and to confirm the characteristics of PDL cells. Total RNA were extracted from PDL cells and gingival fibroblasts of same person and same passages, and mRNA were isolated from the total RNA using Oligotex mRNA midi kit(Qiagen) and then fluorescent cDNA probe were prepared. And microarray hybridization were performed. The gene expression patterns of PDL cells and gingival fibroblasts were quite different. About 400 genes were expressed more highly in the PDL cells than gingival fibroblasts and about 300 genes were more highly expressed in the gingival fibroblasts than PDL cells. Compared growth factor- and growth factor receptor-related gene expression patterns of PDL cells with gingival fibroblasts, IGF-2, IGF-2 associated protein, nerve growth factor, placental bone morphogenic protein, neuron-specific growth- associated protein, FGF receptor, EGF receptor-related gene and PDGF receptor were more highly expressed in the PDL cells than gingival fibroblasts. The results of collagen gene expression patterns showed that collagen type I, type III, type VI and type VII were more highly expressed in the PDL cells than gingival fibroblasts, and in the gingival fibroblasts collagen type V, XII were more highly expressed than PDL cells. The results of osteoblast-related gene expression patterns showed that osteoblast specific cysteine-rich protein were more highly expressed in the PDL cells than gingival fibroblasts. The results of cytoskeletal proteins gene expression patterns showed that a-smooth muscle actin, actin binding protein, smooth muscle myosin heavy chain homolog and myosin light chain were more highly expressed in the PDL cells than gingival fibrobalsts, and ${\beta}-actin$, actin-capping protein(${\beta}$ subunit), actin- related protein Arp3(ARP) and myosin class I(myh-1c) were more highly expressed in the gingival fibroblasts than PDL cells. Osteoprotegerin/osteoclastogenesis inhibitory factor(OPG/OCIF) was more highly expressed in the PDL cells than gingival fibroblasts. According to the results of this study, PDL cells and gingival fibroblasts were quite different gene expression patterns though they are the fibroblast which have similar shape. Therefore PDL cells & gingival fibroblasts are heterogeneous populations which represent distinct characteristics. If more studies about genes that were differently expressed in each PDL cells & gingival fibroblasts would be performed in the future, it would be expected that the characteristics of PDL cells would be more clear.