• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.116-133
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• 2001

Antifibrotic drugs could be delayed or inhibited massive collagen deposition in liver tissue or inhibited collagen synthesis. we investigated antifibrotic effects by several herbs(Schisnadra chinensis, Ganoderma japonicum, Sedum sarmentosum, Alisma canaliculatum, Plantago asiatica) extract with observations of collagen accumulation in liver tissue and collagen synthesis in sera. Rats were used for experimental animal that were devided 3 groups(sham control, BDL/S, BDL/S-ER). Rats were operated for inducing liver fibrosis(cirrhosis) by bile duct obstruction. Several herbs were prepared by water extraction and were applicated p. o. $3ml/day$ during 4 weeks. After observation period, rats were sacrificed and liver tissue and sera were collected. In result, the mortality of rats was 35% in BDL/S group and 20% in BDL/S-ER The color of bile juice in BDL/S-ER was bright yellow and murky yellow in BDL/S group. The significantly lower weight of liver($16.21g{\pm}5.3,\;20.58{\pm}2.4$) and spleen($1.96g{\pm}0.96,\;3.93{\pm}0.21$) were shown in BDL/S-ER than that of BDL/S(p<0.05) group. The value of collagen in liver tissue(25.7%) in BDL/S-ER was observed significantly lower than that of BDL/S group (Tab. 2). AST. ALT, ALP, t-bilirubin, BUN levels were low in BDL/S-ER as compared with those of BDL/S group, but the significance was not proven. The trichrome stained liver tissue in BDL/S-ER group was observed mild bile duct proliferation and fibrosis compared with BDL/S group. In conclusion, natural products inhibited new collagen synthesis and delayed massive collagen deposition in liver tissue, so that they have noticeable antifibrotic effects in experimental liver fibrosis(cirrhosis).

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.386-389
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• 2015

Sibutramine is an anorectic that has been banned since 2010 due to cardiovascular safety issues. However, counterfeit drugs or slimming products that include sibutramine are still available in the market. It has been reported that illegal sibutramine-contained pharmaceutical products induce cardiovascular crisis. However, the mechanism underlying sibutramine-induced cardiovascular adverse effect has not been fully evaluated yet. In this study, we performed cardiovascular safety pharmacology studies of sibutramine systemically using by hERG channel inhibition, action potential duration, and telemetry assays. Sibutramine inhibited hERG channel current of HEK293 cells with an $IC_{50}$ of $3.92{\mu}M$ in patch clamp assay and increased the heart rate and blood pressure ($76{\Delta}bpm$ in heart rate and $51{\Delta}mmHg$ in blood pressure) in beagle dogs at a dose of 30 mg/kg (per oral), while it shortened action potential duration (at $10{\mu}M$ and $30{\mu}M$, resulted in 15% and 29% decreases in $APD_{50}$, and 9% and 17% decreases in $APD_{90}$, respectively) in the Purkinje fibers of rabbits and had no effects on the QTc interval in beagle dogs. These results suggest that sibutramine has a considerable adverse effect on the cardiovascular system and may contribute to accurate drug safety regulation.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.350-356
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• 1983

Ginseng is one of the most important plant drugs which has been used as a medicine in Asia. Main effective components of ginseng have been recently believed to be saponins which have been isolated and identified from Panax ginseng C. A. Meyer. Decrease in total saponin content of white ginseng by storage years was remarkable in contrast with red ginseng. In storage for three years, decrease in red and white ginsengs were 12% and 27% for total saponin content, and 16.8% and 42.2% for major saponin content, respectively. The PT/PD ratios of red and white ginseng saponins were ranged 0.646 to 0.694% and 0.414 to 0.428%, respectively. According to the result of PT/PD ratios, red ginseng was greater than 50% in compare with white ginseng. The change of PT/PD ratio would greatly influence on the biochemical and pharmacological effects of ginseng.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.31 no.11
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• pp.1037-1045
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• 2021

The prevalence of obesity is increasing worldwide, and since obesity is associated with dietary factors and sedentary lifestyles, it is a disease that is readily developing in the modern population. Because obesity is accompanied by serious complications such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease, prevention and treatment are important. Currently, drugs such as liraglutide and phentermine are used to treat obesity by suppressing appetite and inducing gastrointestinal motility delay. However, various side effects may occur, including thyroid cancer, cardiovascular problems, and central nervous system disorders. Therefore, to explore an obesity treatment method with relatively few side effects, a method known as "fat browning" was introduced to change white adipose tissue into brown adipose tissue to increase energy consumption. Ongoing studies are attempting to find effective natural substances to safely induce browning. Many natural substances have been identified. The induction of browning by treatment with natural substances generally involves three mechanisms: positive control of browning-inducing factors, inhibition of differentiation into white adipose tissue, and the activation of mechanisms related to browning. In this study, we describe plant extracts with known browning-inducing effects, such as strawberry, black raspberry, cinnamomum cassia, and Ecklonia stolonifera extracts. We also summarize the underlying mechanisms of action identified thus far, including the signaling pathway mediated by these extracts to induce browning. Furthermore, the effects of brown adipose tissue generated through browning on heart disease as an endocrine organ disruptor are discussed.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.33 no.9
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• pp.703-712
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• 2023

Angiogenesis, the formation of blood vessels from pre-existing vessels, is a multistep process regulated by modulators of angiogenesis. It is essential for various physiological processes, such as embryonic development, chronic inflammation, and wound repair. Dysregulation of angiogenesis causes many diseases, such as cancer, autoimmune diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, cardiovascular disease, and delayed wound healing. However, the number of effective anti-angiogenic drugs is limited. Recent research has focused on identifying potential drug candidates from natural sources. For example, marine natural products have been shown to have anti-cancer, anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, and wound-healing effects. Thus, this study aimed to describe the angiogenesis inhibitory effect of Hizikia fusiforms (brown algae) extract. The hexane extract of H. fusiformis has shown inhibitory effects on in vitro angiogenesis assays, such as cell migration, invasion, and tube formation in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). The hexane extract of H. fusiformis (HFH) inhibited in vivo angiogenesis in a mouse Matrigel gel plug assay. In addition, the protein expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)/extracellular signal kinase, and AKT serine/threonine kinase 1 decreased following treatment with H. fusiformis extracts. Our results demonstrated that the hexane extract of H. fusiformis (HFH) inhibits angiogenesis in vitro and in vivo.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.561-571
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• 2023

Background: Escalating evidence shows that ginseng possesses an antiaging potential with cognitive enhancing activity. As mountain cultivated ginseng (MCG) is cultivated without agricultural chemicals, MCG has emerged as a popular herb medicine. However, little is known about the MCG-mediated pharmacological mechanism on brain aging. Methods: As we demonstrated that glutathione peroxidase (GPx) is important for enhancing memory function in the animal model of aging, we investigated the role of MCG as a GPx inducer using GPx-1 (a major type of GPx) knockout (KO) mice. We assessed whether MCG modulates redox and cholinergic parameters, and memory function in aged GPx-1 knockout KOmice. Results: Redox burden of aged GPx-1 KO mice was more evident than that of aged wild-type (WT) mice. Alteration of Nrf2 DNA binding activity appeared to be more evident than that of NFκB DNA binding activity in aged GPx-1 KO mice. Alteration in choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) activity was more evident than that in acetylcholine esterase activity. MCG significantly attenuated reductions in Nrf2 system and ChAT level. MCG significantly enhanced the co-localization of Nrf2-immunoreactivity and ChAT-immunoreactivity in the same cell population. Nrf2 inhibitor brusatol significantly counteracted MCG-mediated up-regulation in ChAT level and ChAT inhibition (by k252a) significantly reduced ERK phosphorylation by MCG, suggesting that MCG might require signal cascade of Nrf2/ChAT/ERK to enhance cognition. Conclusion: GPx-1 depletion might be a prerequisite for cognitive impairment in aged animals. MCG-mediated cognition enhancement might be associated with the activations of Nrf2, ChAT, and ERK signaling cascade.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Clinical Toxicology
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.136-143
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• 2016

Purpose: In patients with altered mentality caused by drugs or unknown causes, ammonia is checked to facilitate differential diagnosis or diagnose hepatic coma. This helps early prevention and treatment of brain damage due to hyperammonemia. This study was conducted to evaluate clinical characteristics of intoxicated adult patients with hyperammonemia. Methods: We evaluated 95 patients with hyperammonemia among intoxicated patients above the age of 15 who visited our ED from January 2013 to December 2015. We analyzed the demographic characteristics and type of poisoning substance, reason for ingestion, toxicological characteristics such as elapsed time from ingestion to hospital visit, lab, clinical progression and complications. Data were evaluated using the student's t test or Mann-Whitney U test for continuous variables, and Chi-square test and Fisher's exact test for frequency analysis of categorical variables. Results: When compared to healthy individuals, patients with hyperammonemia showed statistical significance on their SOFA score (p=0.016) and poison severity score (p<0.001). Additionally, patients with hyperammonemia showed significantly different initial serum AST level (p=0.012) and maximum serum AST level during the hospital stay (p=0.026) when compared to healthy individuals. Moreover, individuals with sustained hyperammonemia compared to transient hyperammonemia showed clinically significant SOFA scores (p<0.001), poison severity scores (p=0.007), mortality rates in the ICU (p=0.021), as well as different duration of hospital stay (p=0.037), serum creatinine level (p=0.002), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (p=0.025), and serum myoglobin (p=0.015). Conclusion: Most poisoning-induced hyperammonemia cases were transient and recovered without special treatment. Therefore, hyperammonemia is almost non-specific among poisoning patients.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.563-568
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• 2015

Liquiritin and its aglycone, liquiritigenin are flavonoid found in licorice that show anti-oxidant and anti-aging properties. In this study, ethosomes loaded with hydrophobic liquiritigenin or liquiritin were prepared as a transdermal delivery system. The particle size, entrapment efficiency, and skin permeability of ethosomes were evaluated. Ethosome containing liquiritigenin was stable up to 2 mM and ethosome containing liquiritin was stable up to 0.75 mM concentration. The particle size of ethosomes containing 0.75 mM liquiritigenin and liquiritin was 143.85 and 158.90 nm, respectively and the entrapment efficiency was 47.51 and 54.61%, respectively. The entrapment efficiency was improved with increasing concentrations of drugs. Ethosomes loaded with liquiritigenin or liquiritin were superior in skin permeation ability compared to that of 20% ethanol solution and conventional liposomes. These results suggest that ethosomes containing 0.50 mM liquiritigenin or liquiritin are effective for the skin permeation and may be used as an antiaging and antioxidant ingredient in cosmetic formulation.

• Journal of fish pathology
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.221-227
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• 2007

In this study, one hundred strains of bacterial flora were isolated from the intestine of cultured and wild black rockfish Sebastes inermis collected in Yeosu and examined for drug resistance to 9 antibiotics. From cultrued fish, the isolated bacteria were Photobacterium group (26 strains) and Acinetobacter group (18 strains) of Gram-negative, and unidentified marine sediment bacterium (6 strains) of Gram-positive. From wild fish, Photobacterium group (18 strains), Acinetobacter group (12 strains) and Shewanella group (5 strains) of Gram-negative and Bacillus group (8 strains), Staphylococcus group (4 strains), and unidentified marine sediment bacterium (3 strains) of Gram-positive. Intestine flora of wild black rockfish was more diverse than that of one cultured. The drugs tested were tetracyclines (oxytetracycline), aminoglycosides (gentamicin), macrorides (erythromycin) and quinolones (flumequine, oxolinic acid, norfloxacin, ofloxacin, enrofloxacin and ciprofloxacin). Sensitivity to all seven antibiotics except oxytetracycline and oxolinic acid was higher in bacteria from wild fish than from cultured ones, although wild isolates were more resistant than control strain Escherichia coli ATCC9637. This suggests that use of antibiotics in the fish farm might have some resistance in intestinal flora of wild fish.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.90-99
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• 2011

Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service (HIRA) claims database has a high potential to detect signals of new drug interactions. The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of information component (IC) and relative risk (RR) as a tool for signal detection, and to analyze the possible drug interactions caused by clopidogrel using HIRA claims database. This study was performed in elderly patients over 65 years of age who administered clopidogrel from January 2005 to June 2006 in South Korea. Serious Adverse Events (SAEs) as drug interactions of clopidogrel were defined as any ambulatory hospitalization for ischemic diseases within comcomitant medication period of clopidogrel. Information Component (IC) and Relative Risk (RR) were calculated to compare the proportion of drug-SAE pairs in order to select drug specific SAEs. IC and RR signals of clopidogrel drug interaction were screened when IC's 95% confidence interval was greater than 0 and RR's 95% confidence interval was greater than 1 respectively. All detected signals were compared to references such as $Micromedex^{(R)}$ and 2010 Drug Interaction $Facts^{TM}$. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predicted value and negative predicted value were used to evaluate usefulness of this method. Among 13,252,930 cases of elderly patients who co-administered clopidogrel and other drugs, 47,485 cases were detected as SAE. Of these, one-hundred nine cases were detected by the IC-based data-mining approach and ninety one cases were detected by the RR-based data-mining approach. Total One-hundred sixty three unrecognized signals were detected by IC or RR. Twelve signals from IC-based data-mining (57.1%) were corresponded with drug interactions from references and eight signals from RR-based data-mining (38.1%) were corresponded with drug interactions from references. These signals include proton pump inhibitors, calcium channel blockers and HMG CoA reductase Inhibitors, which were known to affect CYP450 metabolism. Further studies using HIRA claims database are necessary to develop appropriate data-mining measure.