• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2016

Obesity is a pro-inflammatory state that contributes to the development of metabolic disorders such as hyperlipidemia, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, non-alcoholic fatty liver, and cardiovascular disease. In this study, we evaluated the inhibition of adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 cells and in high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obese mice by Peucedanum japonicum Thunberg L. water extract (PJT). Lipid accumulation measurement indicates that PJT markedly inhibited adipogenesis in a dose-dependent manner. RT-PCR results demonstrated that the mRNA expression of adipogenic transcription factors such as peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPARγ) and CCAAT/enhancer binding protein-α (C/EBPα) in 3T3-L1 cells were significantly down-regulated by PJT treatment. Oral administration of PJT (100, 300, and 500 ㎎/㎏, b.w/daily for 4 weeks) was conducted in high-fat diet induced obese mice and C57BL/6 mice. The PJT-administered group of HFD-induced mice had a lower body weight gain, along with decreased serum levels of glucose, triglycerides, and total cholesterol compared with the control mice, however, the HDL-cholesterol/total cholesterol ratio was increased. Furthermore, the elevated mRNA expression levels of adipogenesis related genes in the white adipose tissue of obese mice were significantly suppressed by PJT. These results indicate that PJT exhibits anti-obesity effects in obese mice by decreasing in serum lipid levels and lipogenesis related gene.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.496-504
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• 1997

This study was carried out to estimate toxic effects of phenol on survival and metabolism of the abalone juvenile, Haliotis discus hannai. The experiment was conducted by renewal bioassay procedure with different salinities at $20^{\circ}C$. The $LC_{50}$ of the juvenile exposed to phenol in the range of 0.5 and $100mg/\ell\;was\;34.3\~6.5mg/\ell\;at\;2.4\%_{\circ}\;and\;52.2\~9.3m/\ell\;at\;32\%_{\circ}$ salinity with exposure time from 24 hours to 96 hours. $LT_{50}$ was remarkablely reduced with increase of phenol conentration and decrease of salinity. Lethal toxicity or phenol was higher at low salinity than at high salinity. Therefore, salinity is likely to be one of factor to increase phenol toxicity. The oxygen consumption of the juvenile was reduced with increase of phenol concentration and with decrease of salinity. In spite of phenol toxicity, the oxygen consumption of the juvenile exposed to phenol of low concentration was high and similar as compared with that of control group. Survival rates of the abalone kept in phenol-free sea water after exposure to phenol concentration of 5, 10 and $20mg/\ell$ for 96 hours were reduced with decrease of salinity. Durations required to recover the normal metabolic rate of the juvenile, which was exposed to phenol concentration of 5, 10 and $20mg/\ell$ for 96 hours, were made longer with increasing phenol concentration. In the case of the juvenile exposed to sublethal concentration of phenol for 15 days, it were elongated as compared with that of the abalone exposed to phenol concentration caused acute toxicity. The result of this experiment indicated that relatively low concentration of phenol can impact on the abalone juvenile in marine ecosystem.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.40 no.9
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• pp.1208-1214
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• 2011

Caffeine, a psychoactive stimulant, has been implicated in the modulation of learning and memory functions due to its action as a non-selective adenosine receptors antagonist. On the contrary, some side effects of caffeine have been reported, such as an increased energy loss and metabolic rate, decrease DNA synthesis in the spleen, and increased oxidative damage to exerted on LDL particles. Therefore, the aim of this study was to develop a safe stimulant from natural plants mixture (Aralia elata, Acori graminei Rhizoma, Chrysanthemum, Dandleion, Guarana, Shepherd's purse) that can be used as a substitute for caffeine. Thirty SD rats were divided into three groups; control group, caffeine group (15.0 mg/kg, i.p.), and natural plants mixture group (NP, 1 mL/kg, p.o.). The effect of NP extract on stimulant activity was evaluated with open-field test (OFT) and plus maze test for measurement of behavioral profiles. Plasma lipid profiles, lipid peroxidation in LDL (conjugated dienes), total antioxidant capacity (TRAP) and DNA damage in white blood, liver, and brain cells were measured. In the OFT, immobility time was increased significantly by acute (once) and chronic (3 weeks) supplementation of NP and showed a similar effect to caffeine treatment. Three weeks of caffeine treatment caused plasma lipid peroxidation and DNA damage in liver cells, whereas there were no changes in the NP group. NP group showed a higher plasma HDL cholesterol concentration compared to the caffeine group. The results indicate that the natural plants mixture had a stimulant effect without inducing oxidative stress.

• Journal of Gastric Cancer
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.6-10
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• 2006

Purpose: The most common metabolic defect appearing following a gastrectomy is anemia. Two types have been identified: One is related to a deficiency in iron and the other is related to an impairment in vitamin B12 metabolism. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the incidence and treatment of vitamin B12 deficiency after a total gastrectomy. Materials and Methods: Serum vitamin B12 concentrations were measured in 128 patients who had undergone a total gastrectomy. The group with a serum concentration under 200 pg/ml was supplemented at one-month intervals with Actinamide and five-six months later, serum concentrations of the vitamin B12 were rechecked. Results: The group with vitamin B12 under 200 pg/ml was 61 (47.6%) of the 128 patients who had undergone a total gastrectomy. In this group, the cumulative incidences of vitamin B12 deficiency were 7.0, 23.4, 33.6, 39.1, 41.4, and 47.7% at 6 months, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 or more years, respectively. The treated group with vitamin B12 under 200 pg/ml had 36 (28.17%) of the 128 patients. The 16 of those cases with vitamin B12 levels of $100{\sim}150\;pg/ml$ were supplemented 5.21 times and the vitamine B12 was elevated to above 650 pg/ml. The other 20 cases with an average of vitamin B12 levels of $150{\sim}200pg/ml$ were supplemented an average of 4.75 times, and the vitamin B12 was elevated to above 780 pg/ml. Conclusion: It is necessary to supplement vitamin B12 even 1 year later after a total gastrectomy. The group with vitamin B12 under 200 pg/ml was supplemented $5{\sim}6$ times at one-month intervals with Actinamide $1,000\;{\mu}g$ IM injections and reached normal levels. (J Korean Gastric Cancer Assoc 2006;1:6-10)

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.525-530
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• 2011

Pine needles have long been used as a traditional health-promoting medicinal food in Korea. This study was carried out to investigate the effects of pine needle extracts on the antioxidant activity, and proliferation of osteoclastic RAW 264.7 cells. Pine needle extracts were examined using hot water, ethanol, hexane, hot water-ethanol, and hot water-hexane. The effects of the pine needle extracts were examined by comparing the results with that of a commercial agents, proanthocyanidin. Analysis of each extract indicated that hot water-ethanol and ethanol extracts contained the highest total polyphenol concentrations. The hot water-ethanol and ethanol extracts also showed relatively the highest SOD-like activity. The proliferation of osteoclastic RAW 264.7 cells treated with pine needle extracts was decreased by lower than 70%. In addition, the hot water and ethanol extracts of pine needle significantly reduced the number of tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase-positive ($TRAP^+$) multinucleated cells from osteoclatic RAW 264.7 cells. These results indicate that pine needle extracts had an anabolic effect on bone through the promotion of osteoclast differentiation, suggesting that they could be used for the treatment of common metabolic bone diseases.

• Korea Journal of Hospital Management
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.1-17
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• 2017

Purposes: Diabetes is a metabolic disorder that requires continuous care in order to prevent complications, as it can impose a critical burden on families and society due to various complications, including terminal renal failure, non-traumatic lower extremity amputation, and adult blindness. The usual sources of care are "specified private clinics, public health centers, or other facilities to visit when ill or when health-related advice is needed". These usual sources of care offer preventative services, have a high overall satisfaction rate in terms of public health care, and decrease the inpatient rates and medical costs of medical aid recipients. This study analyzed the current status of diabetic patients over 20 years of age based on their possession of a usual source of care, and the effects of this possession on the frequency of their medical service usage and its costs. Methodology: Based on data from the 7th Korea Health Panel, a Tobit analysis was used to analyze the different factors that can affect the frequency of medical service usage and its costs for diabetic patients with and without a usual source of care. Findings: The medical costs of diabetic patients with a usual source of care decreased in terms of inpatient, and the outpatient visits and inpatient costs of the group with a usual source of care in the form of a mainly-visiting doctor decreased more than those of the group with a mainly-visiting medical institution only. Practical Implications: Having a usual source of care can increase the treatment continuity, leading to reduced inpatient, and having a mainly-visiting doctor as the usual source of care further increases the treatment continuity. Based on these results, a new policy is needed to increase and strengthen diabetic patients? possession of a usual source of care.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.21 no.12
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• pp.1752-1760
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• 2011

In this study, the effect of the Opuntiahumifusa extracts on proliferation, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, collagen synthesis and ROS level of a cell was investigated using an osteoblast. Opuntiahumifusawas separated intoOpuntiahumifusapeel (OH-P), seed (OH-Se) and stem (OH-St).These were subjected to extraction by using hot water and ethanol. The proliferation of the MC3T3-E1 osteoblastic cells that were treated with OH-Se water extract were increased by approximately 120%. Regarding the effects of OH-Se on ALP activity, the $50{\mu}g/ml$ ethanol extract group showed the highest activity. The synthesis of collagen increased significantly in response to treatment with OH-Se water extract. The ROS scavenging effects of Opuntiahumifusawere investigated for involvement of oxidativedamage, cell culture and staining. Also, when OH-Se water extract $100{\mu}g/ml$ was added, the ROS level decreased by 54%. These results indicate that Opuntiahumifusa extracts have an anabolic effect on bone through the promotion of osteoblastic differentiation, suggesting that it could be used for the treatment of common metabolic bone diseases.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.20 no.5
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• pp.710-716
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• 2010

This study was conducted to investigate the effect of Makgeolli (MG) and Makgeolli GiGemi (MGG) on blood flow, serum lipid improvement in vivo, and inhibition of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) in vitro. The activities of serum AST and ALT were increased by ovariectomy. Serum AST levels were decreased to $77.71{\pm}13.97$ and $74.57{\pm}14.90\;unit/ml$ in the OVX-MG50 and OVX-MGG50 groups compared to the OVX-control group ($91.14{\pm}12.02\;unit/ml$). Serum ALT levels were decreased to $34.00{\pm}8.41$ and $30.43{\pm}3.60\;unit/ml$ in OVX-MG50 and OVX-MGG50 groups compared to the OVX-control group ($37.14{\pm}5.40\;unit/ml$). Serum total cholesterol and triglyceride contents decreased in the sham group compared with OVX-control group by ovariectomy. Six weeks feeding of MG and MGG resulted in a decrease to $116.14{\pm}36.02$ and $109.14{\pm}11.55\;mg/dl$ compared to the OVX-control group ($120.43{\pm}8.36\;mg/dl$) in serum total cholesterol, and triglyceride levels were decreased to $52.43{\pm}12.41$ and $47.29{\pm}12.08\;mg/dl$ in the OVX-MG50 and OVX-MGG50 groups compared to the OVX-control group ($58.57{\pm}5.47\;mg/dl$). The level of HDL-cholesterol in the OVX-control group was significantly reduced to $51.29{\pm}20.49\;mg/dl$ compared to the sham group ($72.29{\pm}10.29\;mg/dl$), but it was increased to $70.71{\pm}19.53$ and $62.00{\pm}20.20\;mg/dl$ with MG and MGG supplementation. Furthermore, the effect of the MG group was higher than the MGG group. Microscopic observation showed that whole blood passed smoothly through the micro channels in the MG and MGG supplemented groups. The platelet aggregation ability of the groups treated with MG and MGG was less than that of the OVX-control group. In vitro assay, the angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) activity was significantly inhibited by MG and MGG (82.6% and 68.9% inhibition at 0.4 g/ml). These results suggest that the beneficial effects of MG and MGG may be used to improve on the lipid metabolic syndrome of menopausal women. In addition, MG and MGG might improve blood homeostasis mediated activities via antiplatelets and MG and MGG may be used as antihypertensive functional foods and nutraceuticals.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.24 no.9
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• pp.1030-1038
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• 2014

Platelet products are used to treat hemorrhagic or platelet dysfunction diseases. Plateletpheresis involves collecting the platelet components of blood using an apheresis blood-collection system. Various indicators are available for evaluating the qualities of the apheresis platelets. The productivity of platelet collection is evaluated through both the collection efficiency and collection rates. Platelet storage quality can be evaluated in vitro using several indicators, including visual appearance, metabolic activities, volume, platelet count, white blood cell count, microparticles, and various platelet activation markers. Platelet activation markers have been used as indicators of storage quality in various studies. Post-transfusion platelet quality can be evaluated based on the corrected count increment and the percentage of platelet recovery. Although various studies have investigated the aspects of plateletpheresis, no article has systemically presented assessments of the platelet products obtained from different plateletpheresis devices. The present study provides a review of plateletpheresis, including the specifics of the process, the types of devices employed, the platelet quality, the overall efficacy, and the evaluation indicator qualities. Furthermore, the differences in functionality among the different apheresis devices are discussed. Although adverse reactions to the citrate anti-coagulant have been reported, apheresis processing may provide a safer option for donors who are at a high risk for presyncopal or syncopal reactions related to whole blood collection.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.231-238
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• 2015

The present study aimed to investigate the effects of lycopene on hepatic metabolic- and immune-related gene expression in laying hens. A total of 48 25-week-old White Leghorn hens were randomly allocated into four groups consisting of four replicates of three birds: control (basal diet), T1 (basal diet + 10 mg/kg of tomato powder-containing lycopene), T2 (basal diet + 10 mg/kg of micelles of tomato powder-containing lycopene), and T3 (basal diet + 10 mg/kg of purified lycopene). Chickens were fed ad libitum for 5 weeks, and then total RNA was extracted from the livers for quantitative RT-PCR analysis. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor ${\gamma}$ (PPAR${\gamma}$) expression was decreased in the liver of chickens after lycopene supplementation (P<0.05). Micellar lycopene supplementation decreased the expression of PPAR${\gamma}$ target genes including fatty acid binding protein 4 (FABP4) and fatty acids synthase (FASN) in the T2 group (P<0.05). Sterol regulatory element-binding protein 2 (SREBP2) and C/EBP-${\alpha}$ were also downregulated in hens fed with micellar lycopene (P<0.05). Glucose transporter 8 (GLUT-8) was upregulated in the T2 and T3 groups (P<0.05). However, the expression of carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1 (CPT-1) was not changed by lycopene supplementation. Pro-inflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor ${\alpha}$ (TNF-${\alpha}$) and interleukin 6 (IL-6) were downregulated by lycopene supplementation (P<0.05). These data suggest that the type of lycopene supplementation is critical and that micelles of tomato powder-containing lycopene may play an important role in the modulation of lipid metabolism and immunity in chickens.