• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• 제43권3호
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• pp.421-430
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• 2019

Background: The ginsenoside Rg3, one of active components of red ginseng, has chemopreventive and anticancer potential. Cancer stem cells retain self-renewal properties which account for cancer recurrence and resistance to anticancer therapy. In our present study, we investigated whether the standardized Korean Red Ginseng extract (RGE) and Rg3 could modulate the manifestation of breast cancer stem cell-like features through regulation of self-renewal activity. Methods: The effects of RGE and Rg3 on the proportion of $CD44^{high}/CD24^{low}$ cells, as representative characteristics of stem-like breast cancer cells, were determined by flow cytometry. The mammosphere formation assay was performed to assess self-renewal capacities of breast cancer cells. Aldehyde dehydrogenase activity of MCF-7 mammospheres was measured by the ALDEFLUOR assay. The expression levels of Sox-2, Bmi-1, and P-Akt and the nuclear localization of hypoxia inducible $factor-1{\alpha}$ in MCF-7 mammospheres were verified by immunoblot analysis. Results: Both RGE and Rg3 decreased the viability of breast cancer cells and significantly reduced the populations of $CD44^{high}/CD24^{low}$ in MDA-MB-231 cells. RGE and Rg3 treatment attenuated the expression of Sox-2 and Bmi-1 by inhibiting the nuclear localization of hypoxia inducible $factor-1{\alpha}$ in MCF-7 mammospheres. Suppression of the manifestation of breast cancer stem cell-like properties by Rg3 was mediated through the blockade of Akt-mediated self-renewal signaling. Conclusion: This study suggests that Rg3 has a therapeutic potential targeting breast cancer stem cells.

• 치위생과학회지
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• 제23권3호
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• pp.216-224
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• 2023

Background: Smilax glabra has various pharmacological activities and is widely used as a herbal medicine. Although the incidence of oral cancer is low, the recurrence rate is high, and the 5-year survival rate is poor. It is necessary to search for anticancer drugs that increase the effect of cancer chemotherapy on heterogeneous oral tissues and reduce the side effects on normal cells. This study aimed to investigate the effects and mechanism of ethanol extract of Smilax glabra (EESG) as an anticancer drug for oral cancer. Methods: Smilax glabra root components extracted with 70% ethanol were used to analyze their effects on cancer cells. A 3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-Diphenyltetrazolium Bromide assay was performed for cytotoxicity analysis. Flow cytometry was performed to determine the cell cycle phase distribution. To observe apoptotic cells, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling and γH2AX were detected by fluorescence microscope. The protein levels of cleaved PARP and caspase were analyzed using western blotting. The activation of procaspase-3 was confirmed by measuring caspase-3 activity. Results: EESG was no cytotoxic to normal gingival fibroblast but was high in YD10B oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) cells. EESG treatment increased the subdiploid DNA content of YD10B cells by assessing DNA content distribution. Chromatin condensation and DNA strand breaks increased in YD10B cells treated with EESG. EESG-treated YD10B cells had high Annexin V and low propidium iodide levels, confirming that early apoptosis was induced. In addition, increased levels of γH2AX foci, a marker of DNA damage, were observed in the nuclei of EESG-treated YD10B cells. The EESG-treated YD10B cells also exhibited decreased procaspase-3 and procaspase-9 levels, increased PARP cleavage and caspase-3 activity. Conclusion: These results indicate that EESG inhibited cancer cell proliferation by inducing apoptosis in YD10B OSCC cells.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제16권10호
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• pp.4369-4376
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• 2015

Background: To investigate in-vitro antagonistic effect of low-dose liquiritigenin on gemcitabine-induced capillary leak syndrome (CLS) in pancreatic adenocarcinoma via inhibiting reactive oxygen species (ROS)-mediated signalling pathways. Materials and Methods: Human pancreatic adenocarcinoma Panc-1 cells and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were pre-treated using low-dose liquiritigenin for 24 h, then added into gemcitabine and incubated for 48 h. Cell viability, apoptosis rate and ROS levels of Panc-1 cells and HUVECs were respectively detected through methylthiazolyldiphenyl-tetrazoliumbromide (MTT) and flow cytometry. For HUVECs, transendothelial electrical resistance (TEER) and transcellular and paracellular leak were measured using transwell assays, then poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase 1 (PARP-1) and metal matrix proteinase-9 (MMP9) activity were assayed via kits, mRNA expressions of p53 and Rac-1 were determined through quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR); The expressions of intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1), vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) and PARP-1 were measured via western blotting. Results: Low-dose liquiritigenin exerted no effect on gemcitabine-induced changes of cell viability, apoptosis rate and ROS levels in Panc-1 cells, but for HUVECs, liquiritigenin ($3{\mu}M$) could remarkably elevate gemcitabine-induced decrease of cell viability, transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER), pro-MMP9 level and expression of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 (p<0.01). Meanwhile, it could also significantly decrease gemcitabine-induced increase of transcellular and paracellular leak, ROS level, PARP-1 activity, Act-MMP9 level, mRNA expressions of p53 and Rac-1, expression of PARP-1 and apoptosis rate (p<0.01). Conclusions: Low-dose liquiritigenin exerts an antagonistic effect on gemcitabine-induced leak across HUVECs via inhibiting ROS-mediated signalling pathways, but without affecting gemcitabine-induced Panc-1 cell apoptosis. Therefore, low-dose liquiritigenin might be beneficial to prevent the occurrence of gemcitabine-induced CLS in pancreatic adenocarcinoma.

• 환경생물
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• 제24권1호
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• pp.67-80
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• 2006

환경특성이 초미소 식물플랑크톤의 분포에 미치는 영향을 파악하기 위해 서태평양의 열대와 아열대 수역(TSWP)과 동해에서 2002년 9월 조사를 하였고, 동중국해 대륙붕수역 (C-ECS)은 2003년 8월에 조사를 수행하였다. 초미소 식물플랑크톤은 flow cytometry 방법을 이용 Synechoroccus, Prorhlorococcus 그리고 picoeukaryotes의 3개체군으로 구분 계수하였다. 물리화학적 환경이 상이한 3곳의 조사수역 별로 초미소 식물플랑크콘들의 수직분포, 100m 수심까지 적분된 풍도를 비교하였다. 분석결과 synechococcus와 Prochlorococcus의 적분된 개체수는 3곳의 조사수역에서 서로 상반되는 결과를 보였다. Synechococcus는 TSWP에서 정점평균 $84.5X10^{10}\;cells\;m^{-2}$의 풍도를, C-ECS에서 $305.6X10^{10}\;cells\;m^{-2}$를 동해에선 $124.5X10^{10}\;cells\;m^{-2}$의 풍도를 보여 영영염이 풍부한 지역에서 풍도가 증가하는 경향을 보였다. 이에 반해 Prochlorococcus는 빈 영양 환경의 TSWP에서 $504.5X10^{10}\;cells\;m^{-2}$의 가장 높은 풍도를 보였으며, 영양염 환경이 양호한 C-ECS에서 낮은 풍도를 보이는 독특한 분포양상을 나타냈다. Picoeukaryotes는 Synechococcus와 유사한 지역적 변화를 보였으나 풍도는 약 1/10정도를 나타냈다. Synechococcus와 picoeukaryotes는 모든 정점에서 출현한 반면 Prochlorococcus는 일반적으로 C-ECS와 동해의 저염 환경에서 출현하지 많았다. Synechococcus와 Prochlorococcus의 수층별 평균 풍도의 수직분포는 표면 혼합층에서 유사한 수준을 보이다 이심에서 급격한 감소를 나타냈다. 그러나 TSWP에선 풍도의 급격한 감소가 나타나지 많고 100 m 수심까지 높은 풍도를 나타냈다. Picoeukaryotes는 C-ECS에서 100 m까지 유사한 수준의 풍도를 보였으며, 동해의 $20\sim30\;m$ 수심에선 최대 풍도층이 나타났다.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• 제9권2호
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• pp.129-136
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• 2015

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: A variety of immunomodulators can improve the efficacy of low-dose chemotherapeutics. Active hexose correlated compound (AHCC), a mushroom mycelia extract, has been shown to be a strong immunomodulator. Whether AHCC could enhance the antitumor effect of low-dose 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) via regulation of host immunity is unknown. MATERIALS/METHODS: In the current study Hepatoma 22 (H22) tumor-bearing mice were treated with PBS, 5-FU ($10mg{\cdot}kg^{-1}{\cdot}d^{-1}$, i.p), or AHCC ($360mg{\cdot}kg^{-1}{\cdot}d^{-1}$, i.g) plus 5-FU, respectively, for 5 d. $CD^{3+}$, $CD^{4+}$, $CD^{8+}$, and NK in peripheral blood were detected by flow cytometry. ALT, AST, BUN, and Cr levels were measured by biochemical assay. IL-2 and $TNF{\alpha}$ in serum were measured using the RIA kit and apoptosis of tumor was detected by TUNEL staining. Bax, Bcl-2, and TS protein levels were measured by immunohistochemical staining and mRNA level was evaluated by RT-PCR. RESULTS: Diet consumption and body weight showed that AHCC had no apparent toxicity. AHCC could reverse liver injury and myelosuppression induced by 5-FU (P < 0.05). Compared to mice treated with 5-FU, mice treated with AHCC plus 5-FU had higher thymus index, percentages of $CD^{3+}$, $CD^{4+}$, and NK cells (P < 0.01), and ratio of $CD^{4+}$/$CD^{8+}$ (P < 0.01) in peripheral blood. Radioimmunoassay showed that mice treated with AHCC plus 5-FU had the highest serum levels of IL-2 and $TNF{\alpha}$ compared with the vehicle group and 5-FU group. More importantly, the combination of AHCC and 5-FU produced a more potent antitumor effect (P < 0.05) and caused more severe apoptosis in tumor tissue (P < 0.05) compared with the 5-FU group. In addition, the combination of AHCC and 5-FU further up-regulated the expression of Bcl-2 associated X protein (Bax) (P < 0.01), while it down-regulated the expression of B cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) (P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: These results support the claim that AHCC might be beneficial for cancer patients receiving chemotherapy.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
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• 제2권4호
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• pp.217-222
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• 2002

Background: Scid.adh is a recently developed murine thymic lymphoma cell line, which has been used as in vitro model for the study of double negative stage III thymocytes. In this study, we compared the expression profile of a number of genes and proteins, which are tightly related to T cell development and apoptosis, in thymic lymphoma cell lines, R1.1, EL-4, and Scid.adh for the developmental staging. Methods: We examined the expression of development marker genes and proteins in three lymphoma cell lines by flow cytometry and RT-PCR. In addition, the expression of apoptosis-related molecules including bcl-2, bax and Fas was also investigated. Results: As previously reported, Scid.adh cell line expressed CD8 and CD25 but not TCR ${\alpha}$ chain, while R1.1 cells expressed TCR ${\alpha}$ chain and both CD4 and CD8 transcripts. These suggest that R1.1 might be in double positive stage, and low level of CD44 expression and the absence of CD25 support this suggestion. In contrast, EL-4 cells showed high level of TCR ${\alpha}$ chain transcript, and low-level of CD4 expression, suggesting that EL-4 is in more mature stage than R1.1. Further, this suggestion was supported by the lack of mT-20 in EL-4 cells, which is expressed in the immature thymocytes, and Scid.adh and R1.1 cell lines, but not in the terminally differentiated thymocytes and peripheral T cells. Among the apoptosis-related gene, transcripts of bcl-2 gene were detected in both R1.1 and EL-4 but not in Scid.adh cells, while bax was expressed in all cell lines. Fas expression was the highest in EL-4 cells and low in Scid.adh cell line. Conclusion: R1.1 cell may represent double positive stage, and EL-4 is more differentiated cell line. In addition, Scid.adh and EL-4 cell lines are suspected to be useful for the study of function of bcl-2 family and Fas during the thymocyte development, respectively.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제16권17호
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• pp.7917-7922
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• 2015

DNA ploidy is an important prognostic parameter in paediatric B-ALL, but the significance of the S-phase fraction is unclear. In present study, DNA ploidy was assessed in 40 pediatric B-ALL cases by flow cytometry. The DI (DNA index) and percentage of cells in S-phase were calculated using Modfit software. Aneuploidy was noted in 26/40 (65%) cases. A DI of 1.10-1.6 (hyperdiploidy B) was noted in 20/40 (50%) and 6/40 (15%) had a DI>1.60 (triploid and tetraploid range). Some 14/40 (35%) cases had a diploid DI between 0.90-1.05. None of the cases had a DI <0.90 (hypodiploid) or in the 1.06-1.09 (hyperdiploid A) range. The mean S-phase fraction was 2.6%, with 24/40 (60%) having low and 16/40 (40%) high S-phase fractions. No correlation was noted with standard ALL risk and treatment response factors with DI values or S-phase data, except for a positive correlation of low S-phase with high NCI risk category (p=0.032). Overall frequency of hyperdiploidy in our cohort of B-ALL patients was very high (65%). No correlation between hyperdiploidy B and low TLC or common B-phenotype was observed in our study as 42% cases with DI 1.10-1.6 had TLC> $50{\times}10^9$ and 57.1% CD 10 negativity. The study also highlighted that S-phase fraction analysis does not add any prognostic information and is not a useful parameter for assessment in ALL cases. However, larger studies with long term outcome analysis are needed to derive definitive conclusions.

• 생명과학회지
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• 제26권1호
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• pp.59-67
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• 2016

도라지는 다양한 종류의 triterpenoid계통의 saponin을 함유한 다년생 식물이다. 도라지는 한국에서 오랫동안 식품으로 사용되어 왔으며 그 추출물에 관한 생리활성연구도 많이 보고되었으나, 발효 도라지추출물에 관한 혈관기능 연구는 미미한 실정이다. 본 연구자들은 먼저 도라지 추출물을 발효시킨 후, 발효도라지추출물을 제조하였으며, 제조된 발효도라지추출물이 혈관내피세포에 어떤 효과를 미치는 지 관찰하였다. BAEC에 발효도라지추출물을 농도 별로 처리하였을 때, 고농도(100 μg/ml)에서는 혈관내피세포의 탈착이 일어났으며, 저농도(0.1 μg/ml)에서는 세포탈착은 일어나지 않았으나 세포성장과 세포이동이 촉발됨을 관찰하였다. 고농도에서 일어난 세포탈착은 세포사 즉, 세포사멸, 세포괴사, 오토파지 등과는 관련이 없었다. 또한 고농도의 도라지 추출물은 혈관내피세포에서 유래한 작은 vesicle을 형성하였는데, 이 vesicle은 세포사멸과 관련이 없기 때문에 내피세포에서 유래된 EMP로 추측된다. 흥미롭게도 고농도의 세포탈착 현상은 EMP로 추측되는 vesicle에 의하여 일어난 현상이었다. 저농도의 도라지 추출물이 유발한 세포이동과 세포성장은 혈관내피세포의 중요한 신호전달물질중의 하나인 Akt의 활성화를 통해 일어남을 확인하였다. 결론적으로 도라지 추출물은 혈관내피세포의 성장을 촉진함으로써 혈관의 안정성을 유지하고 세포성장과 이동을 촉발함으로써 상처치유에 효과를 나타낼 수 있음을 본 연구를 통하여 확인하였다.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제15권9호
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• pp.3901-3906
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• 2014

Aim: The purpose of this study was to investigate anti-tumor effects and safety of DH332, a new ${\beta}$-carboline alkaloids derivatives in vitro and in vivo. Materials and Methods: The effects of DH332 on human (RAMOS RA.1) and mouse (J558) B lymphoma cell lines were detected using a CCK-8 kit (Cell Counting Kit-8), and apoptosis was detected by flow cytometry with PI/annexinV staining. Western blotting was used to detected caspase-3 and caspase-8. Neurotoxic and anti-tumor effects were evaluated in animal experiments. Results: DH332 exerts a lower neurotoxicity compared with harmine. It also possesses strong antitumor effects against two B cell lymphoma cell lines with low $IC_{50s}$. Moreover, DH332 could inhibit the proliferation and induce the apoptosis of RAMOS RA.1 and J558 cell lines in a dose-dependent manner. Our results suggest that DH332 triggers apoptosis by mainly activating the caspase signaling pathway. In vivo studies of tumor-bearing BALB/c mice showed that DH332 significantly inhibited growth of J558 xenograft tumors. Conclusions: DH332 exerts effective antitumor activity in vitro and in vivo, and has the potential to be a promising drug candidate for lymphoma therapy.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제13권9호
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• pp.4531-4536
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• 2012

Objective: To study synergistic effects of nedaplatin and cisplatin on three human carcinoma cell lines (esophageal carcinoma cell line Eca-109, ovarian carcinoma Skov-3 and cervical carcinoma Hela). Methods: Inhibition effects were evaluated by MTT assay and cell apoptosis was detected by flow cytometry. In addition, changes of Ki-67, Bax and Bcl-2 at mRNA and protein levels were quantified by RT-PCR and Western blotting. Results: Growth inhibition in each cell lines was dose-dependent after exposure to nedaplatin or cisplatin alone. The interaction of the two drugs was synergistic at higher concentrations according to the median-effect principle. The inhibition rates with nedaplatin, cisplatin and combined treatment were $41.9{\pm}4.1%$, $47.4{\pm}2.9%$, $52.5{\pm}0.9%$(Eca-109), $39.0{\pm}1.26%$, $45.0{\pm}1.45%$, $56.2{\pm}1.44%$ (Skov-3) and $44.8{\pm}2.11%$, $46.9{\pm}0.99%$, $56.6{\pm}1.83%$ (Hela) respectively, with increase in apoptosis. Compared with the nedaplatin or cisplatin alone treatment group, the combinative treatment group's Ki-67 and bcl-2 mRNA (protein) expression was decreased while that of Bax mRNA (protein) was increased. Conclusion: Compared to the effects of nedaplatin or cisplatin alone at high concentrations, combination of nedaplatin and cisplatin at low concentrations proved to be much more effective for inhibition of proliferation and the induction of apoptosis in the Eca-109, Skov-3 and Hela cell lines.