• Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.813-821
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• 2015

Asthma is an increasing global health problem, and novel strategies to prevent or ameliorate the condition are needed. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the anti-inflammatory and anti-asthma effects of Adenophora triphylla var. japonica extracts. We investigated the molecular mechanism underlying the effects of 80% ethanol extracts (AE) of A. triphylla on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells. AE treatment inhibited pro-inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-${\alpha}$ and IL-6 as well as nitric oxide (NO) production in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells. In particular, NO and pro-inflammatory cytokine production was suppressed more effectively by aerial parts (AE-A) than roots (AE-R) of A. triphylla. Quantitative RT-PCR assay showed that AE reduced mRNA levels of iNOS and COX-2. We also evaluated the anti-asthmatic effects of AE-A in an ovalbumin (OVA)-induced BALB/c mouse model. AE-A supplementation significantly reduced the amounts of airway eosinophils, IL-4 and IL-13 levels in BALF, and IgE levels in serum as compared with untreated, OVA-induced mice. These results suggest that AE-A can be considered as a therapeutic agent to potentially relieve asthma.

• Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.806-812
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• 2015

Prostatic inflammation plays a crucial role on benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) pathogenesis and progression. In this study, BPH was induced by testosterone propinate in castrated rats for 8 weeks. Hot water extract from Curcuma longa L. (CL) was administered orally for 4 weeks along with positive controls, saw Palmetto and finasteride. CL supplementation induced histological changes, reduced expression of TNF-${\alpha}$, IL-6, IL-$1{\beta}$, COX-2, and phospo-p65 in prostate tissue compared with the BPH group. These findings suggest that suppression of pro-inflammatory cytokines could be attributed, at least partly, to the anti-inflammatory action of C. longa, and this action may be helpful to understand the inhibitory effect of Curcuma longa L. in BPH.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.815-822
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• 2012

Piceatannol (trans-3,4,3',5'-tetrahydroxystilbene), a natural stilbene, is an analogue of resveratrol. Although recent experimental data have revealed the health benefit potency of piceatannol, the molecular mechanisms underlying the anti-cancer activity have not yet been studied in detail. In the present study, the further possible mechanisms by which piceatannol exerts its pro-apoptotic action in cultured human lung cancer A549 cells were investigated. Exposure of A549 cells to piceatannol resulted in growth inhibition and induction of apoptosis. Apoptosis induction of A549 cells by piceatannol showed correlation with proteolytic activation of caspase-3, -8, and -9, and concomitant degradation of activated caspase-3 target proteins such as poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase, phospholipase C-${\gamma}1$, ${\beta}$-catenin, and Inhibitor caspase-activated DNase. The increase in apoptosis by piceatannol treatment was also associated with an increase of pro-apoptotic Bax expression and decrease of anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL expression, and caused down-regulation of the inhibitor of apoptosis protein family members and up-regulation of Fas and Fas legend. In addition, piceatannol treatment markedly inhibited the expression of mRNA and proteins of inducible nitric oxide (NO) synthase, and the levels of NO production were progressively down-regulated by piceatannol treatment in a dose-dependent fashion. The results indicate that piceatannol may have therapeutic potential against human gastric cancer cells.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.23-29
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• 2018

Abdominal obesity is considered as one of the most risky factors governing the development of metabolic diseases. Here we identify that human chitinase 3-like 1 (CHI3L1, also called YKL-40 in human) single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), rs883125, is associated with abdominal obesity in Korean women. Korean women subjects with the rs883125 G/G or C/G genotype present higher waist-hip ratio than subjects with C/C genotype suggesting that human subjects who G nucleotide substitution at the rs883125 tended to more accumulate intra-abdominal fat at the abdominal cavity. In addition, Chi3l1 gene expression is increased in adipose tissue from obese mice and pro-inflammatory cytokine enhances Chi3l1 expression in adipocytes, indicating that Chi3l1 is greatly related with obesity and obesity-induced pro-inflammatory responses. Taken together, the minor allele of rs883125 is associated with a higher prevalence of abdominal obesity in Korean women. These findings suggest that genotype of rs883125 can be a biomarker of incident abdominal obesity and abdominal obesity-related metabolic diseases.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.45 no.3
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• pp.491-498
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• 2003

The purpose of this study is to observe purification and properties of osteopontin(OPN) from bovine milk. The purification of osteopontin from bovine milk was performed by using ion-exchange and hydrophobic chromatography. SDS-PAGE analysis revealed that the protein migrated at Mw. 60,000. NH2-terminal sequence analysis of the first seven amio acids revealed the protein to be identical to that previously reported for bovine OPN. 35-wk-old chickens, including 3 Single Comb White Leghorn (SCWL), were used to produce egg yolk antibody(IgY) against OPNas a antigen. However, the anti-OPN antibody activities determined by ELISA. Immunological assy of OPN in milk was performed using radial immunodiffusion test based on the standard curve of pure OPN. The radial precipitation lines of four different milk samples indicated that the concentrations of OPN in the milk samples were within the range of 31.7 to 39.7${\mu}g$/ml. On inhibition with OPN on precipitation of calcium phosphate, OPN was slightly higher than casein phosphopeptide(CPP) and poly-glutamic acid.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.21-28
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• 2013

Microglia play a role in maintaining and resolving brain tissue homeostasis. In pathological conditions, microglia release pro-inflammatory cytokines and cytotoxic factors, which aggravate the progression of neurodegenerative diseases. Autophagy pathway might be involved in the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and cytotoxic factors in microglia, though details of the mechanism remain largely unknown. In the present study, we examined the role of the autophagy pathway in activated BV2 microglia cells. In BV2 cells, rapamycin treatment activated the formation of anti-LC3-labeled autophagosomes, whereas the ATG5 depletion using siRNA-ATG5 prevented the formation of LC3-labeled autophagosomes, indicating that BV2 cells exhibit an active classical autophagy system. When treated with LPS, BV2 cells expressed an increase of anti-LC3-labeled dots. The levels of LC3-labeled dots were not suppressed, instead tended to be enhanced, by the inhibition of the autophagy pathway with siRNA-ATG5 or wortmannin, suggesting that LPS-induced LC3-labeled dots in nature were distinct from the typical autophagosomes. The levels of LPS-induced expression of iNOS and IL6 were suppressed by treatment with rapamycin, and conversely, their expressions were enhanced by siRNA-ATG5 treatment. Moreover, the activation of the autophagy pathway using rapamycin inhibited cell death of LPS-stimulated microglia. These results suggest that although microglia possess a typical autophagy pathway, the glial cells express a non-typical autophagy pathway in response to LPS, and the activation of the autophagy pathway suppresses the expression of iNOS and IL6, and the cell death of LPS-stimulated microglia.

• The Korean Journal of Zoology
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.97-108
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• 1993

The biochemical characteristics of immunorecative atrial natriuretic peptide (irAUPP and the changes in the levels of irANP in the heart were investigated during the metamorphosis of frog tadpoles. Immunohistochemical localization of pro-ANP in cardiocfes and the presence of irAW in the peritoneal fluid of metamorphosing tadpoles were also examined. The major form of irANP in the cardiocvtes of tadpoles (Rana omurensisp was high molecular weight on gel filtration chromatographv and reverse-phase HPLC. The levels of irANP in the atrium of tadpoles were five to seven times higher than those in the ventricle. In metamorphosing tadpoles the levels of irANP in the atrium increased at stage XX, the climax of metamorphosis, and decreased at stage XXV (P < 0.051, the completion of metamorphosis. When the levels of irANP was expressed as a function of body weight of tadpoles, a continuous increase in the levels of irANP was observed from pre- to postmetamorphosis (P < 0.051. The levels of irAUP in the ventricle were found to be higher in the adult frogs than in tadpoles (R. omurensisl (P < 0.01). Pro-ANP (31-67) immunoreactivity was detected in the ventricle as well as in the atrium of tadpoles fR. nigromaculotal. The peritoneal fluid was also found to contain low molecular weight of irAUP and the levmils of irANP were 55.4 $\pm$ 9.1 pg/ml. Changes of the level of irANP at different stases of the life cycle suggest that ANP may play a role in the regulation of body fluid homeostasis of frog tadpoles during the metamorphosis.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.17 no.6 s.86
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• pp.847-858
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• 2007

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is an important intracellular organelle for folding and maturation of newly synthesized transmembrane and secretory proteins. The ER provides stringent quality control systems to ensure that only correctly folded proteins exit the ER and unfolded or misfolded proteins are retained and ultimately degraded. The ER has evolved stress response both signaling pathways the unfolded protein response (UPR) to cope with the accmulation of unfolded or misfolded proteins and ER overload response (EOR). Accumulating evidence suggests that, in addition to responsibility for protein processing, ER is also an important signaling compartment and a sensor of cellular stress. In this respect, production of bio-functional recombinant-proteins requires efficient functioning of the ER secretory pathway in host cells. This review briefly summarizes our understanding of the ER signaling developed in the recent years to help of the secretion capacities of recombinant cells.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.25 no.9
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• pp.961-969
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• 2015

Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), the main catechin in green tea, has been shown to have some beneficial effects against various human diseases, including diabetes, neurodegenerative disorders, cancer, cardiovascular disease and obesity. To investigate the mechanism of the suppressive effects of EGCG on inflammatory response in macrophages, alterations on the levels of nitric oxide (NO) regulatory factors and inflammatory cytokines were measured in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-activated RAW264.7 cells. No significant toxicity was detected in RAW264.7 cells treated with 100–400 μM EGCG. Moreover, the optimal concentration of LPS was determined to be 1 μg/ml based on the results of cell viability assay, NO assay and IL-6 enzyme-linked immunsorbent assay (ELISA). Furthermore, NO levels decreased significantly by 68.2% in the 400 μM EGCG/LPS treated group, while the level of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) expression decreased by 12-17% in the 200 and 400 μM EGCG/LPS treated group. A significant decrease in transcription of pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF- α and IL-1β) and anti-inflammatory cytokine (IL-10) was also detected in the EGCG/LPS treated group. However, IL-6 transcript and protein was maintained at a constant level when in the LPS treated group relative to the EGCG/LPS treated group. Overall, these results suggest that the differential regulation of inflammatory cytokines is an important factor influencing the suppressive effects of EGCG against LPS-activated inflammatory response in RAW264.7 cells.

• Journal of Photoscience
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.436-438
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• 2002

Since solar radiation contains wavelength essential for photosynthesis accompanying with near-UV light, UV-B effects on biological parameters and acclimation mechanisms are influenced by photosynthetically active radiation (PAR). Therefore, to elucidate near-UV shielding mechanism in higher plants, we cultivated cauliflower under usual solar radiation and increased UV-B from fluorescent lamps, two- or three-fold excess over continuously estimated UV-B dose in PAR during daytime, using computer regulated systems. Increased UV-B radiation had little effect on growth expressed as fresh weigh and leaf area. Water soluble low molecular weight compounds showing absorption in near UV region were enhanced according to the irradiated UV-B dose. One of compounds in cauliflower leaves was identified as chlorogenic acid. This was found to have no near-UV photosenSitizerable activity and is known to have an ability to scavenge a wide species of active oxygen. Another pro-oxidant compound that generates superoxide anion radical under near-UV irradiation was not induced by increased UV-B during cultivation, and identified as lumazine, a degradation product from folic acid.