• Toxicological Research
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• v.13 no.1_2
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• pp.131-138
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• 1997

Group of 40 male and 40 female Sprague-Dawley rats were given daily intravenous injections of different dosage of Erythropoietin (EPO), 80 IU/ kg/day (low dosage group), 400 IU/ kg/day (middle dosage group), or 2000 IU /kg/day (high dosage group)for 4 weeks by tail vein according to Established Regulation of Korean National Institute of Safety Research (1994. 4. 14). Appearance, behavior, mortality, and food consumption of rats of treated groups were not affected during the experimental periods. No significant EPO (erythropoietin)-related changes were found in urinalysts, eye examination, hematology, serum chemistry, and organ weight. No histopathological lesions were observed in both control and treatment groups. Our results strongly suggest that no toxic changes were found in rat treated intravenously with EPO (erythropoietin)for 4 weeks.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.58 no.4
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• pp.223-228
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• 2014

The present study was undertaken to investigate the influence of sulforaphane on vascular smooth muscle contractility and to determine the mechanism involved. We hypothesized that sulforaphane, the primary ingredient of broccoli of cruciferous vegetables, plays a role in vascular relaxation through inhibition of Rho-kinase in rat aortae. Intact of denuded arterial rings from male Sprague-Dawley rats were used and isometric tensions were recorded using a computerized data acquisition system. Interestingly, sulforaphane significantly inhibited fluoride, phorbol ester or thromboxane $A_2$ mimetic-induced contraction in denuded muscles suggesting that additional pathways different from endothelial nitric oxide synthesis such as inhibition of Rho-kinase or MEK might be involved in the vasorelaxation. Furthermore, sulforaphane inhibited thromboxane $A_2$-induced increases in pERK1/2 levels suggesting the mechanism including inhibition of thromboxane $A_2$-induced increases in ERK1/2 phosphorylation. This study provides evidence that sulforaphane induces vascular relaxation through inhibition of Rho-kinase or MEK in rat aortae.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.57 no.5
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• pp.376-381
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• 2013

The present study was undertaken to investigate the influence of curcumin on vascular smooth muscle contractility and to determine the mechanism involved. We hypothesized that curcumin, the primary ingredient of Curcuma longa, plays a role in vascular relaxation through inhibition of Rho-kinase in rat aortae. Denuded arterial rings from male Sprague-Dawley rats were used and isometric tensions were recorded using a computerized data acquisition system. Interestingly, curcumin inhibited fluoride-induced contraction but didn't inhibit phorbol ester-induced contraction suggesting that additional pathways different from endothelial nitric oxide synthesis might be involved in the vasorelaxation. Furthermore, curcumin significantly inhibited fluoride-induced increases in pMYPT1 levels. On the other hand, it didn't significantly inhibit phorbol ester-induced increases in pERK1/2 levels suggesting the mechanism involving inhibition of fluoride-induced MYPT1 phosphorylation. This study provides evidence that curcumin induces vascular relaxation through inhibition of Rho-kinase in rat aortae.

• Development and Reproduction
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.125-132
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• 1997

To investigate the cadmium (Cd) toxicity on the testis, male rats were treated with 1, 2, 4 and 8 mg/kg of Cd by IP. According to histochemical studies, Cd-treated testis tissue showed death of spermatozoa, death of Sertoli cells, death of all the spermatogenic cells, and finally disappearance of basal lamina of seminiferous tubules with increasing doses, and showed decreased ground substances and Leydig cells, increased inflammatory cells and fibroblasts, and fibroblasts, and finally disappearance of ground substances and all the cells except fibroblasts within interstitial tissues with increasing doses. According to biochemical studies, two kinds of proteins, 25 and 45 kDa, were dramatically disappeared from the total protein of rat testis treated with Cd comparing to normal testis. The result of electrophoresis of total protein suggests that actin (45 kDa), presumed on its mmolecular weight and amount, in the testis-cells is the primary target of Cd poisoning. Although its exact mechanism is not clear, the disappearance of two proteins when testis is exposed to Cd should give some clues to understnad the mechanism of necrosis of testis tissue crumbling by heavy metal pollutant such as Cd.

• Journal of Korean Physical Therapy Science
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.193-198
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• 2003

Acupuncture has been used as a clinical treatment in Oriental medicine for various diseases. In the present study was carried out to investigate the effects of acupuncture and electrical stimulation on the change neuronal nitric oxide synthase(nNOS) immunoreactive cells in the periaqueductal gray(PAG) area of the male SD rats. Enhanced expression of nNOS was detected in the dorsolateral-PAG(DL-PAG) area of rat with stress by fixed body, and acupuncture and needle electrode electrical stimulation groups at Hapgok like acupoint decreased the stress-induced enhancement in the expression of nNOS. The present results demonstrate that acupuncture and needle electrode electrical stimulation is effective in the modulation of expression of nNOS in the DL-PAG area under stress conditions.

• Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.103-107
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• 1980

This study was conducted to compare the effect of dietary sucrose and starch on the lipid metabolism of Rat fed by low protein diet for 3 and 6 weeks periods. Forty male weanling Spargue-Dawley rats weighing 52.7 grams each, after being adopted for 2 days with standard diet, were blocked into 8 groups and fed experimental diet as designed. Experimental diet were composed of two different levels of proteins, 6% designed as low protein diet and 15% designed as standard protein diet. In each group, the content of serum lipid, serum cholesterol and liver lipid were measured. The results of this experiment were summerized as follows. 1. liver lipid content was tended to be high in the sucrose group of low protein fed animal. 2. the content of total serum lipid was tended to be high in the sucrose group, and this tendency was showed statistical significance in the animals fed by low and standard protein after 6 weeks of experimental period. 3. The difference in the total serum cholesterol content between the sucrose and starch group was not significant

• Toxicological Research
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.1-12
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• 1991

The phenotyping of cytochrome P-450 in hepatic mivrosomes induced by phenytoin in the rats was carried out by using several monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) against specific P-450 isozymes. Phenytoin (180 mg/kg) was administered intrapritoneally for three consecutive days to the male Sprague-Dawley rats(100-120g). Solid phase radio-immunoassay showed higher binding affinity of MAb PB 2-66-3 and PCN 2-13-1 to the microsomes from phenytoin treated rats than those to from untreated rats, which was comparable to the level in phenobarbital induced rat hepatic microsomes.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.27-31
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• 2000

The aim of this study was to investigate a potential effect of treatment of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) with Pini Folium or Leonuri Herba extracts. Male SHR were treated with extracts for 2 or 4 weeks starting at 13 weeks of age. We found that oral treatment with the methanol extract from Pini Folium or Leonuri Herba (1g/Kg/day) significantly decreased mean blood pressure to 85.4% and 78.6% respectively in compare with untreated control SHR. Treatment with the extract from Pini Folium for 4 weeks during hypertension development phase (starting 9 weeks of age) resulted in a partial prevention of hypertension development. There were no significant differences for body weight between untreated and Pini Folium treated SHR.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.56 no.3
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• pp.158-163
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• 2012

Lidocaine has been studied for many chronic pain conditions, including postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) and recently it has also been increasingly used in transdermal drug delivery systems. In this study, pharmacokinetics of a lidocaine patch was studied in four hairless male rats. The plasma concentration was determined by a validated LC/MS/MS method after applying a $3{\times}2cm^2$ (30mg) patch for 12 hours. From the plasma lidocaine concentration vs time curves, $AUC_{0-20h}$, Cmax, and Tmax of lidocaine patch were $2,926.32{\pm}335.28ng{\cdot}h/ml$, $256.86{\pm}29.63ng/ml$, and $6.00{\pm}2.31h$, respectively.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.337-344
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• 1998

The objective of the present study was to investigate the effect of senescence on the binding properties of muscarinic receptors in the neostriatum of young (3 months), middle-aged (18 months) and aged (33 months) male Fischer 344 x Brown Norway hybrid rats by employing direct binding of selective radiolabeled antagonists. Using the selective M, muscarinic receptor antagonist, $[^3H]$AF-DX384, as the ligand, no significant difference in the maximal receptor density (Bmax) was observed in the neostriatum among any age-groups. In contrast, with the selective M, receptor antagonist, $[^3H]$4-DAMP, a significant increase in the number of muscarinic receptors was observed in neostriatal membrane fractions prepared from the aged animals relative to that observed in the young rats. For each ligand there was no age-related change in its affinity (Kd) for the muscarinic receptors. These results indicate that the observed age-related changes in the muscarinic receptor density may not be necessarily decremuntal and depend upon the muscarinic receptor subtype examined.