• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.13-20
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• 2018

Estragole is a naturally occurring phenylpropanoid obtained from essential oils found in a broad diversity of plants. Although the phenylpropanoids show many biological activities, clear regulation of the inflammatory signaling pathways has not yet been determined. Here, we scrutinized the anti-inflammatory effect of estragole. The anti-inflammatory effect of estragole was determined through the inhibitory mechanisms of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase (COX-2), nuclear factor kappa B ($NF-{\kappa}B$), and mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) pathways and the activation of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf-2)/heme oxygenase (HO)-1 pathways in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells. Estragole significantly inhibited NO production, iNOS and COX-2 expression as well as LPS-induced $NF-{\kappa}B$ and MAPK activation. Furthermore, estragole suppressed LPS-induced intracellular ROS production but up-regulated the stress response gene HO-1 via the activation of transcription factor Nrf-2. These findings demonstrate that estragole inhibits the LPS-induced expression of inflammatory mediators via the down-regulation of iNOS, COX-2, $NF-{\kappa}B$, and MAPK pathways, as well as the up-regulation of the Nrf-2/HO-1 pathway, indicating that this phenylpropanoid has potential therapeutic and preventive applications in various inflammatory diseases.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.38 no.5
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• pp.416-425
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• 2015

NF-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), a basic leucine zipper transcription factor, has recently received a great deal of attention as an important molecule that enhances antioxidative defenses and induces resistance to chemotherapy or radiotherapy. In this study, we investigated the apoptosis-inducing and Nrf2- upregulating effects of quercetin on malignant mesothelioma (MM) MSTO-211H and H2452 cells. Quercetin treatment inhibited cell growth and led to upregulation of Nrf2 at both the mRNA and protein levels without altering the ubiquitination and extending the half-life of the Nrf2 protein. Following treatment with quercetin, analyses of the nuclear level of Nrf2, Nrf2 antioxidant response element-binding assay, Nrf2 promoter-luc assay, and RT-PCR toward the Nrf2-regulated gene, heme oxygenase-1, demonstrated that the induced Nrf2 is transcriptionally active. Knockdown of Nrf2 expression with siRNA enhanced cytotoxicity due to the induction of apoptosis, as evidenced by an increase in the level of proapoptotic Bax, a decrease in the level of antiapoptotic Bcl-2 with enhanced cleavage of caspase-3 and PARP proteins, the appearance of a sub-$G_0/G_1$ peak in the flow cytometric assay, and increased percentage of apoptotic propensities in the annexin V binding assay. Effective reversal of apoptosis was observed following pretreatment with the pan-caspase inhibitor Z-VAD. Moreover, Nrf2 knockdown exhibited increased sensitivity to the anticancer drug, cisplatin, presumably by potentiating the oxidative stress induced by cisplatin. Collectively, our data demonstrate the importance of Nrf2 in cytoprotection, survival, and drug resistance with implications for the potential significance of targeting Nrf2 as a promising strategy for overcoming resistance to chemotherapeutics in MM.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.300-310
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• 2016

Pathogen infection in plants induces complex responses ranging from gene expression to metabolic processes in infected plants. In spite of many studies on biotic stress-related changes in host plants, little is known about the metabolic and phenotypic responses of the host plants to Pseudomonas cichorii infection based on image-based analysis. To investigate alterations in tomato plants according to disease severity, we inoculated plants with different cell densities of P. cichorii using dipping and syringe infiltration methods. High-dose inocula (${\geq}10^6cfu/ml$) induced evident necrotic lesions within one day that corresponded to bacterial growth in the infected tissues. Among the chlorophyll fluorescence parameters analyzed, changes in quantum yield of PSII (${\Phi}PSII$) and non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) preceded the appearance of visible symptoms, but maximum quantum efficiency of PSII ($F_v/F_m$) was altered well after symptom development. Visible/near infrared and chlorophyll fluorescence hyperspectral images detected changes before symptom appearance at low-density inoculation. The results of this study indicate that the P. cichorii infection severity can be detected by chlorophyll fluorescence assay and hyperspectral images prior to the onset of visible symptoms, indicating the feasibility of early detection of diseases. However, to detect disease development by hyperspectral imaging, more detailed protocols and analyses are necessary. Taken together, change in chlorophyll fluorescence is a good parameter for early detection of P. cichorii infection in tomato plants. In addition, image-based visualization of infection severity before visual damage appearance will contribute to effective management of plant diseases.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.243-249
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• 2008

Corticotropin releasing factor (CRF) mediates various responses to stress through CRF receptors 1 and 2. CRF receptor 2 has two forms, $2{\alpha}$ and $2{\beta}$ each of which appears to have distinct roles. Here we used dopaminergic neuron-derived MN9D cells to investigate the function of CRF receptor 2 in dopamine neurons. We found that n-butyrate, a histone deacetylase inhibitor, induced MN9D cell differentiation and increased gene expression of all CRF receptors. CRF receptor $2{\beta}$ was minimally expressed in MN9D cells; however, its expression dramatically increased during differentiation. CRF receptor $2{\beta}$ expression levels appeared to correlate with neurite outgrowth, suggesting CRF receptor $2{\beta}$ involvement in neuronal differentiation. To validate this statement, we made a CRF receptor $2{\beta}$-overexpressing $MN9D/CRFR2{\beta}$ stable cell line. This cell line showed robust neurite outgrowth and GAP43 overexpression, together with MEK and ERK activation, suggesting MN9D cell neuronal differentiation. From these results, we conclude that CRF receptor $2{\beta}$ plays an important role in MN9D cell differentiation by activating the MEK/ERK signaling pathway.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.112-116
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• 2015

Nitric Oxide (NO) has been known to play important physiological and pathological roles. In this study, Sodium nitroprusside (SNP), NO donor, induced the apoptosis of HaCaT cell, human spontaneous immortal keratinocyte, which was investigated through DAPI staining and cleavage of PARP and caspase-3 protein. However, the expression level of Bip and CHOP, involved in ER stress, was not significantly changed as compared to the control cell group. Recent studies have showed that SIRT1, $NAD^+$-dependent deacetylase, is the key protein that controls cell survival and death. SNP treatment suppressed the SIRT1 gene expression, which indicated that apoptosis induced by SNP could be implicated in SIRT1 down-regulation.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.48 no.3
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• pp.346-353
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• 2015

Glucocorticoids (GCs) are steroid hormones regulated through responses to stress to maintain diverse metabolic and homeostatic functions. GCs act on the glucocorticoid receptor (GR), a member of the nuclear receptor family. This study identified and characterized the GR gene from the big-belly seahorse Hippocampus abdominalis designating it HaGR. The open reading frame of the HaGR cDNA was 2,346 bp in length, encoding a 782-amino-acid polypeptide with a theoretical isoelectric point of 6.26 and predicted molecular mass of 86.8 kDa. Nuclear receptors share a common structural organization, comprising an N-terminal transactivation domain, DNA-binding domain, and C-terminal ligand-binding domain. The tissue-specific mRNA expression profile of HaGR was analyzed in healthy seahorses using a qPCR technique. HaGR mRNA was expressed ubiquitously in all of the tissues examined, with the highest expression levels in kidney, intestine, stomach, and gill tissues. The mRNA expression in response to immune challenge with lipopolysaccharide (LPS), polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (poly I:C), Edwardsiella tarda, and Streptococcus iniae revealed that it is inducible in response to pathogen infection. These results suggest that HaGR is involved in the immune response of the big-belly seahorse.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.238-248
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• 2014

The metalloid arsenic (Z = 33) is considered to be a significant potential threat to human health due to its ubiquity and toxicity, even in rural regions. In this study a rural region contaminated with arsenic, located at longitude $85^{\circ}$ 32'E and latitude $25^{\circ}$ 11'N, was initially examined. Arsenic tolerant bacteria from the rhizosphere of Amaranthas viridis were found and identified as Bacillus licheniformis through 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The potential for the uptake and removal of arsenic at 3, 6 and 9 mM [As(V)], and 2, 4 and 6 mM [As(III)], and for the reduction of the above concentrations of As(V) to As(III) by the Bacillus licheniformis were then assessed. The minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC) for As(V) and As(III) was determined to be 10 and 7 mM, respectively. At 3 mM 100% As(V) was uptaken by the bacteria with the liberation of 42% As(III) into the medium, whereas at 6 mM As(V), 76% AS(V) was removed from the media and 56% was reduced to As(III). At 2 mM As(III), the bacteria consumed 100%, whereas at 6 mM, the As(III) consumption was only 40%. The role of pH was significant for the speciation, availability and toxicity of the arsenic, which was measured as the variation in growth, uptake and content of cell protein. Both As(V) and As(III) were most toxic at around a neutral pH, whereas both acidic and basic pH favored growth, but at variable levels. Contrary to many reports, the total cell protein content in the bacteria was enhanced by both As(V) and As(III) stress.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.17-22
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• 2010

Sesquiterpenes are found naturally in plants and insects as defensive agents or pheromones. They are produced in the cytosolic acetate/mevalonate pathway for isoprenoid biosynthesis. The inducible sesquiterpene synthases (STS), which are responsible for the transformation of the precursor farnesyl diphosphate, appear to generate very few olefinic products that are converted to biologically active metabolites. In this study, we isolated the STS gene from Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer, designated PgSTS, and investigated the correlation between its expression and various abiotic stresses using real-time PCR. PgSTS cDNA was observed to be 1,883 nucleotides long with an open reading frame of 1,707 bp, encoding a protein of 568 amino acids. The molecular mass of the mature protein was determined to be 65.5 kDa, with a predicted isoelectric point of 5.98. A GenBank BlastX search revealed the deduced amino acid sequence of PgSTS to be homologous to STS from other plants, with the highest similarity to an STS from Lycopersicon hirsutum (55% identity, 51% similarity). Real-time PCR analysis showed that different abiotic stresses triggered significant induction of PgSTS expression at different time points.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.22 no.7
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• pp.855-862
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• 2013

Although antioxidant activities of Korean traditional fermented foods were reported by many researchers, study on antioxidant activity of microorganism originated from Korean traditional fermented foods was little. Therefore, we improved condition for antioxidant production by a bacterium isolated from home-made Chungkookjang. We selected a bacterial strain, which showed the highest antioxidative activity, from Chungkookjang and then named GJ. The selected GJ strain was identified as Bacillus methylotrophicus by alignment data of 16S rRNA gene nucleotide sequences. Improved medium compositions for DPPH radical scavenging activity were 0.25% sucrose, 1% peptone, 0.01% $MgSO_4{\cdot}7H_2O$ and initial pH 6.5, respectively. Optimal culture conditions were $30^{\circ}C$, 200 rpm and 4% inoculum volume, respectively. In improved conditions, DPPH radical scavenging activity of GJ reached to 91% in a short time. The strain GJ also possessed ACE inhibition and other antioxidative activities; ACE inhibition activity (49.4%), ABTS radical scavenging activity (99.8%), metal chelating activity (67.9%), SOD-like activity (36.5%) and reducing power ($A_{700}$ = 5.982) were observed, respectively. Therefore, our results suggest that B. methylotrophicus GJ strain may be potential candidate for functional foods, cosmetic products for anti-aging and medicine for diseases caused by oxidative stress.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.31 no.10
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• pp.2873-2876
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• 2010

Excess free iron generates oxidative stress that may contribute to the pathogenesis of various causes of neurodegenerative diseases. Previous studies have shown that one of the primary causes of increased brain iron may be the release of excess iron from intracellular iron storage molecules. In this study, we attempted to characterize the oxidative damage of DNA induced by the reaction of ferritin with $H_2O_2$. When DNA was incubated with ferritin and $H_2O_2$, DNA strand breakage increased in a time-dependent manner. Hydroxyl radical scavengers strongly inhibited the ferritin/$H_2O_2$ system-induced DNA cleavage. We investigated the generation of hydroxyl radical in the reaction of ferritin with $H_2O_2$ using a chromogen, 2,2'-azinobis-(2-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonate) (ABTS), which reacted with ${\cdot}OH$ to form $ABTS^{+\cdot}$. The initial rate of $ABTS^{+\cdot}$ formation increased as a function of incubation time. These results suggest that DNA strand breakage is mediated in the reaction of ferritin with $H_2O_2$ via the generation of hydroxyl radicals. The iron-specific chelator, deferoxamine, also inhibited DNA cleavage. Spectrophotometric study using a color reagent showed that the release of iron from $H_2O_2$-treated ferritin increased in a time-dependent manner. Ferritin enhanced mutation of the lacZ' gene in the presence of $H_2O_2$ when measured as a loss of $\alpha$-complementation. These results indicate that ferritin/$H_2O_2$ system-mediated DNA cleavage and mutation may be attributable to hydroxyl radical generation via a Fenton-like reaction of free iron ions released from oxidatively damaged ferritin.