• Molecules and Cells
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.17-29
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• 2005

Therapeutic antibodies represent one of the fastest growing areas of the pharmaceutical industry. There are currently 19 monoclonal antibodies in the market that have been approved by the FDA and over 150 in clinical developments. Driven by innovation and technological developments, therapeutic antibodies are the second largest biopharmaceutical product category after vaccines. Antibodies have been engineered by a variety of methods to suit a particular therapeutic use. This review describes the structural and functional characteristics of antibody and the antibody engineering for the generation and optimization of therapeutic antibodies.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.25 no.7
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• pp.953-962
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• 2015

Escherichia coli is the most preferred microorganism to express heterologous proteins for therapeutic use, as around 30% of the approved therapeutic proteins are currently being produced using it as a host. Owing to its rapid growth, high yield of the product, costeffectiveness, and easy scale-up process, E. coli is an expression host of choice in the biotechnology industry for large-scale production of proteins, particularly non-glycosylated proteins, for therapeutic use. The availability of various E. coli expression vectors and strains, relatively easy protein folding mechanisms, and bioprocess technologies, makes it very attractive for industrial applications. However, the codon usage in E. coli and the absence of post-translational modifications, such as glycosylation, phosphorylation, and proteolytic processing, limit its use for the production of slightly complex recombinant biopharmaceuticals. Several new technological advancements in the E. coli expression system to meet the biotechnology industry requirements have been made, such as novel engineered strains, genetically modifying E. coli to possess capability to glycosylate heterologous proteins and express complex proteins, including full-length glycosylated antibodies. This review summarizes the recent advancements that may further expand the use of the E. coli expression system to produce more complex and also glycosylated proteins for therapeutic use in the future.

• Clinical and Experimental Vaccine Research
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.21-27
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• 2024

Chronic infectious diseases refer to diseases that require a long period of time from onset to cure or death, the use of therapeutic vaccines has recently emerged to eradicate diseases. Currently, clinical research is underway to develop therapeutic vaccines for chronic infectious diseases based on various vaccine formulations, and the recent success of the messenger RNA vaccine platform and efforts to apply it to therapeutic vaccines are having a positive impact on conquering chronic infectious diseases. However, since research on the development of therapeutic vaccines is still relatively lacking compared to prophylactic vaccines, there is a need to focus more on the development of therapeutic vaccines to overcome threats to human health caused by chronic infectious diseases. In order to accelerate the development of therapeutic vaccines for chronic infectious diseases in the future, it is necessary to establish a clear concept of therapeutic vaccines suitable for the characteristics of each chronic infectious disease, as well as standardize vaccine effectiveness evaluation methods, secure standards/reference materials, and simplify the vaccine approval procedure.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.46 no.1
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• pp.33-40
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• 2023

RNAs are versatile molecules that are primarily involved in gene regulation and can thus be widely used to advance the fields of therapeutics and diagnostics. In particular, circular RNAs which are highly stable, have emerged as strong candidates for use on next-generation therapeutic platforms. Endogenous circular RNAs control gene regulatory networks by interacting with other biomolecules or through translation into polypeptides. Circular RNAs exhibit cell-type specific expression patterns, which can be altered in tissues and body fluids depending on pathophysiological conditions. Circular RNAs that are aberrantly expressed in diseases can function as biomarkers or therapeutic targets. Moreover, exogenous circular RNAs synthesized in vitro can be introduced into cells as therapeutic molecules to modulate gene expression networks in vivo. Depending on the purpose, synthetic circular RNA sequences can either be identical to endogenous circular RNA sequences or artificially designed. In this review, we introduce the life cycle and known functions of intracellular circular RNAs. The current stage of endogenous circular RNAs as biomarkers and therapeutic targets is also described. Finally, approaches and considerations that are important for applying the available knowledge on endogenous circular RNAs to design exogenous circular RNAs for therapeutic purposes are presented.

• The Journal of Korean Society for Radiation Therapy
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.176-184
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• 1995

It is very useful benefits to use the megavoltage photon beams in deep site tumor radiotherapy for skin sparing effects. But, In some cases of head and mock tumors, it is often necessary to use spoiler for rapid buildup on skin region. A spoiler with tissue equivalent material to be moved between the patients and the collimator can increase or control the skin dose and buildup region due to position and thickness of the spoiler was measured. Then, the effect of spoiler on skin dose and build up region in protruded tumor of head and neck was evaluated quantitatively. The measurements were abtained with PTW 2334 chamber (Markus type) on a polystylene phantom for 6MV x-ray from an accelerator.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.45 no.5
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• pp.284-290
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• 2022

Exosome, a type of nanoparticles also known as small extracellular vesicles are gaining attention as novel therapeutics for various diseases because of their ability to deliver genetic or bioactive molecules to recipient cells. Although many pharmaceutical companies are gradually developing exosome therapeutics, numerous hurdles remain regarding manufacture of clinical-grade exosomes for therapeutic use. In this mini-review, we will discuss the manufacturing challenges of therapeutic exosomes, including cell line development, upstream cell culture, and downstream purification process. In addition, developing proper formulations for exosome storage and, establishing good manufacturing practice facility for producing therapeutic exosomes remains as challenges for developing clinical-grade exosomes. However, owing to the lack of consensus regarding the guidelines for manufacturing therapeutic exosomes, close communication between regulators and companies is required for the successful development of exosome therapeutics. This review shares the challenges and perspectives regarding the manufacture and quality control of clinical grade exosomes.

• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.114-120
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• 2022

Objectives: Antivenom serums have been used extensively for over a century and are the only effective treatment option for snake bites and other dangerous animal envenomations. In therapeutic serum centers, a wide range of antivenoms is made from animal serum, mainly equine and sheep, that are immunized with single or multiple venoms. This work aimed to use caprylic acid (CA) to purify therapeutic snake antivenom. Methods: Plasma was obtained from equine immunized with a mixture of venoms. Immunized plasma was obtained by precipitation of different concentrations (2-5%) of CA. This methodology was compared to that based on ammonium sulfate (AS) precipitation. Sediment plasma proteins were purified by ion-exchange chromatography. Protein assay, SDSPAGE, and agar gel diffusion were performed. Results: The total protein precipitation with AS was higher than precipitation with CA, but the best results were obtained when CA was added to the plasma until a final CA concentration of 5% was reached. Chromatography and electrophoresis indicated a stronger band for the 5% CA, and the gel diffusion assay showed antigen-antibody interaction in the purified serum. Conclusion: The use of CA compared to the routine method for purifying hyperimmune serums is a practical and cost-effective method for preparing and producing therapeutic serums. It constitutes a potentially valuable technology for alleviating the critical shortage of antivenom in Iran.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.30 no.7
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• pp.529-536
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• 2021

The forest landscape has been considered to be one of the most beneficial factors, in regard to facilitating the therapeutic effects of the forest environment. The aim of this study was to review the preceding literary works on the correlation between forest landscape and its therapeutic effects and to ponder on key factors of forest landscape that promotes therapeutic results on people's psychological and physiological responses. Literature found in domestic research databases was analyzed and examined in accordance with the 'Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses(PRISMA)' process. Six papers out of 1,890 were selected as key literature to support the connection. The quality of forest landscape was found to be an integral environmental factor in determining the healing effects of forests. In particular, several factors, including forest types, aquatic elements within the forest landscape, forest-use density and aesthetic elements of forest landscape were found to be crucial for enhancing the therapeutic effects on people's wellbeing. Despite the limited sample groups in the analyzed literature, the results offered a significant insight in supporting the healing effects of forests. Further studies on this subject are required to provide more scientific data for verifying the quality of the therapeutic effects of forests.

• Child Health Nursing Research
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.67-74
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• 2024

Purpose: This study aimed to identify the general characteristics and health behaviors of students with non-therapeutic substance use. Methods: This secondary data analysis used data from the 17th Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey (2021). Analyses of the 54,848 adolescents used descriptive statisics, the Rao-Scott χ² test, and logistic regression. Results: The risk factors for substance use among students were anxiety, loneliness, living separately from family, suicidal ideation, e-cigarette use, and high stress. Conclusion: The findings help identify the risk factors for non-therapeutic drug use among adolescents. Since South Korea does not have a drug prevention program for its adolescent population, an educational plan based on these findings could help prevent adolescent substance abuse.

• Health Policy and Management
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.333-342
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• 2016

Background: The use of therapeutic materials based on new health technology has increased in recent years in the field of medicine, raising concerns for medical practitioners regarding increased spending on the new therapeutic materials amid the rapid population ageing and increase of chronic diseases in Korea. While therapeutic materials have significant importance in the health care system, they have not been given appropriate attention in the academic world of Korea. The purpose of this study is to identify factors that affect the growth of expenditure on therapeutic materials and to derive implications for an effective management considering the diversity of therapeutic materials. Methods: Using the claims data of the National Health Insurance Services, specific utilization patterns of groups of therapeutic materials in the middle classification level of Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service from 2007 to 2014 were analyzed. Four categories (J5083: drug eluting coronary stent, D0302: nonmetallic anchor, K6014: gauze, K6023: gauze) that exhibit unique patterns with respect to price and volume were selected. Then, decomposition analysis was performed to identify the largest contributor to the spending growth by dividing the products into existing, new, and abandoned products for the period between 2010 and 2013. Results: The effect of new products had larger impact on spending growth than the effect of core items in drug eluting coronary stent (J5083) and nonmetallic anchor (D0302). In addition, existing products in general included items priced relatively lower when compared with another item manufactured by the same company. In the gauze category, however, existing products had the largest impact on expenditure and the effect of volume was greater than that in other categories. Conclusion: This study provides evidence that appropriate management measures classified by the characteristics of therapeutic materials are required for therapeutic materials pricing and reassessment in Korea.