• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.427-438
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• 2022

Pyroptosis, a form of cell death associated with inflammation, is known to be involved in diabetic nephropathy (DN), and discoid domain receptor 1 (DDR1), an inflammatory regulatory protein, is reported to be associated with diabetes. However, the mechanism underlying DDR1 regulation and pyroptosis in DN remains unknown. We aimed to investigate the effect of DDR1 on renal tubular epithelial cell pyroptosis and the mechanism underlying DN. In this study, we used high glucose (HG)-treated HK-2 cells and rats with a single intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin as DN models. Subsequently, the expression of pyroptosis-related proteins (cleaved caspase-1, GSDMD-N, Interleukin-1β [IL-1β], and interleukin-18 [IL-18]), DDR1, phosphorylated NF-κB (p-NF-κB), and NLR family pyrin domain-containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasomes were determined through Western blotting. IL-1β and IL-18 levels were determined using ELISA. The rate of pyroptosis was assessed by propidium iodide (PI) staining. The results revealed upregulated expression of pyroptosisrelated proteins and increased concentration of IL-1β and IL-18, accompanied by DDR1, p-NF-κB, and NLRP3 upregulation in DN rat kidney tissues and HG-treated HK-2 cells. Moreover, DDR1 knockdown in the background of HG treatment resulted in inhibited expression of pyroptosis-related proteins and attenuation of IL-1β and IL-18 production and PI-positive cell frequency via the NF-κB/NLRP3 pathway in HK-2 cells. However, NLRP3 overexpression reversed the effect of DDR1 knockdown on pyroptosis. In conclusion, we demonstrated that DDR1 may be associated with pyroptosis, and DDR1 knockdown inhibited HG-induced renal tubular epithelial cell pyroptosis. The NF-κB/NLRP3 pathway is probably involved in the underlying mechanism of these findings.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.340-347
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• 2022

Advanced or metastatic breast cancer affects multiple organs and is a leading cause of cancer-related death. Cancer metastasis is associated with epithelial-mesenchymal metastasis (EMT). However, the specific signals that induce and regulate EMT in carcinoma cells remain unclear. PRR16/Largen is a cell size regulator that is independent of mTOR and Hippo signalling pathways. However, little is known about the role PRR16 plays in the EMT process. We found that the expression of PRR16 was increased in mesenchymal breast cancer cell lines. PRR16 overexpression induced EMT in MCF7 breast cancer cells and enhances migration and invasion. To determine how PRR16 induces EMT, the binding proteins for PRR16 were screened, revealing that PRR16 binds to Abl interactor 2 (ABI2). We then investigated whether ABI2 is involved in EMT. Gene silencing of ABI2 induces EMT, leading to enhanced migration and invasion. ABI2 is a gene that codes for a protein that interacts with ABL proto-oncogene 1 (ABL1) kinase. Therefore, we investigated whether the change in ABI2 expression affected the activation of ABL1 kinase. The knockdown of ABI2 and PRR16 overexpression increased the phosphorylation of Y412 in ABL1 kinase. Our results suggest that PRR16 may be involved in EMT by binding to ABI2 and interfering with its inhibition of ABL1 kinase. This indicates that ABL1 kinase inhibitors may be potential therapeutic agents for the treatment of PRR16-related breast cancer.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.86 no.2
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• pp.82-93
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• 2023

Tuberculosis (TB) is a significant public health concern. Globally, TB is among the top 10 and the leading cause of death due to a single infectious agent. Providing standard anti-TB therapy for at least 6 months is recommended as one of the crucial strategies to control the TB epidemic. However, the long duration of TB treatment raised the issue of non-adherence. Non-adherence to TB therapy could negatively affect clinical and public health outcomes. Thus, directly observed therapy (DOT) has been introduced as a standard strategy to improve anti-TB medication adherence. Nonetheless, the DOT approach has been criticized due to inconvenience, stigma, reduced economic productivity, and reduced quality of life, which ultimately could complicate adherence issues. Apart from that, its effectiveness in improving anti-TB adherence is debatable. Therefore, digital technology could be an essential tool to enhance the implementation of DOT. Incorporating the health belief model (HBM) into digital technology can further increase its effectiveness in changing behavior and improving medication adherence. This article aimed to review the latest evidence regarding TB medication non-adherence, its associated factors, DOT's efficacy and its alternatives, and the use of digital technology and HBM in improving medication adherence. This paper used the narrative review methodology to analyze related articles to address the study objectives. Conventional DOT has several disadvantages in TB management. Integrating HBM in digital technology development is potentially effective in improving medication adherence. Digital technology provides an opportunity to improve medication adherence to overcome various issues related to DOT implementation.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.41 no.12
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• pp.1663-1670
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• 2012

The inhibitory effects of rose hip (Rosa canina L.) water extracts from two different manufactures on osteoarthritis was comparatively investigated in primary cultures of rat cartilage cells. To identify the effects of rose hip extracts against $H_2O_2$ (300 ${\mu}M$, 2 hr) treatment, cell survival was measured by the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Cell survival increased by rose hip extracts in the range of 100 to 600 ${\mu}g/mL$ of $H_2O_2$ treatment. To determine the anti-inflammatory effects of rose hip extracts, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-${\alpha}$), nitric oxide (NO), and Cox-2 expression were measured after lipopolysaccharide (LPS) activation. TNF-${\alpha}$ level with rose hip extract treatment was decreased by 27.4% and 31.9% at 600 ${\mu}g/mL$ of $H_2O_2$ treatment. Nitric oxide was inhibited by rose hip extract at 100~600 ${\mu}g/mL$ of $H_2O_2$ treatment in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, Cox-2 protein expression was dose-dependently decreased while Cox-1 had no change in expression level. The severity of osteoarthritis is controlled by a balance between anabolic and catobolic factors in an articulation, therefore the expression of these factors plays a critical role in preventing osteoarthritis. In measuring anabolic factors, the genetic expression of collagen type I increased with rose hip treatment, while the genetic expression of collagen II did not change. In addition, the genetic expression of aggrecan (proteoglycan core protein) was significantly increased. while the genetic expression of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) 3, 7 and 13, known catabolic factors, was significantly inhibited by treatment with rose hip extract. The expression of MMP13 was especially highly influenced. In conclusion, rose hip water extracts show inhibitory effects on cell death by $H_2O_2$ mediated oxidative stress, which is related to inhibitory effects on inflammation due to TNF-${\alpha}$, NO, and Cox-2. The ability of rose hip extracts to ameliorate inflammation in primary cultures of cartilage cells seems to associate with an increased genetic expression of specific anabolic factors, collagen type I and aggrecan, and a decreased expression of catabolic factors, MMPs (3, 7, and 13). However, there were no significant differences between rose hip extracts from the two manufacturers.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.33 no.9
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• pp.713-723
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• 2023

Lung cancer is a type of cancer that has the highest mortality rate. It is mainly classified into small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) and non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Chemotherapy is used to treat lung cancer, but long-term treatment causes side effects and drug resistances. Curcumin is a bright yellow polyphenol extracted from the root of turmeric. It has biological activities, such as anti-oxidant, anti-cancer, and anti-inflammatory effects. In this study, we observed differential cell death in human lung cancer cells. Based on the results, curcumin at 10, 30, and 50 μM exhibited a dose-dependent inhibition on the cell survival of several lung cancer cells, with minor differential phenotypes. In addition, apoptosis, autophagy, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) regeneration were observed through flow cytometry. Curcumin dose-dependently increased these phenotypes in A549 (NSCLC) and DMS53 (SCLC), which were restored by corresponding inhibitors. Western blotting was performed to measure the level of expression of apoptosis- and autophagy-related proteins. The results indicate that Bax, PARP, pro-caspase-3, and Bcl-2 were dose-dependently regulated by curcumin, with seemingly higher Bax/Bcl-2 ratios in DMS53. In addition, autophagic proteins, p-AKT, p62, and LC3B, were dose-dependently regulated by curcumin. ROS inhibition by diphenyleneiodonium reduced the induction of apoptosis and autophagy generated by curcumin. Taken together, it is suggested that curcumin induces apoptosis and autophagy via ROS generation, leading to cell death, with minor differences between human lung cancer cells.

• Reproductive and Developmental Biology
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.33-45
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• 2011

Heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) is ATPase-directed molecular chaperon and affects survival of cancer cell. Inhibitory effect of Hsp90 by inducing cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in the cancer cell was reported. However, its role during oocyte maturation and early embryo development is very insufficient. In this study, we traced the effects of Hsp90 inhibitor, 17-allylamino-17-demethoxygeldanamycin (17-AAG), on meiotic maturation and early embryonic development in pigs. We also investigated several indicators of developmental potential, including structural integrity, gene expression (Hsp90-, cell cycle-, and apoptosis-related genes), and apoptosis, which are affected by 17-AAG. Then, we examined the roles of Hsp90 inhibitor on viability of primary cells in pigs. Porcine oocytes were cultured in the NCSU-23 medium with or without 17-AAG for 44 h. The proportion of GV arrested oocytes was significantly different between the 17-AAG treated and untreated group (78.2 vs 34.8%, p<0.05). After completion of meiotic maturation, the proportion of MII oocytes was lower in the 17-AAG treated group than in the control group (27.9 vs 71.0%, p<0.05). After IVF, the percentage of penetrated oocytes was significantly lower in the 17-AAG treated group (25.2%), resulting in lower normal pronucleus formation (2PN of 14.6%). Therefore, the inhibition of meiotic progression by Hsp90 inhibitor played a critical role in fertilization status. Porcine embryo were cultured in the PZM-3 medium with or without 17-AAG for 6 days. In result, significant differences in developmental potential were detected between the embryos that were cultured with or without 17-AAG. Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL) showed that the number of containing fragmented DNA at the blastocyst stage increased in the 17-AAG treated group compared with control (7.5 vs 4.4, respectively). Blastocysts that developed in the 17-AAG treated group had low structural integrity and high apoptotic nuclei than those of the untreated control, resulting in decrease the embryonic qualities of preimplantation porcine blastocysts. The mRNA expressions of cell cycle-related genes were down-regulated in the 17-AAG treated group compared with control. Also, the expression of the pro-apoptotic gene Bax increased in 17-AAG treated group, whereas expression of the anti-apoptotic gene Bel-XL decreased. However, the expression of ER stress-related genes did not changed by 17-AAG. Cultured pESF cells were treated with or without 17-AAG and used for MIT assay. The results showed that viability of pESF cells were decreased by treatment of 17-AAG ($2{\mu}M$) for 24 hr. These results indicated that 17-AAG decreased cell proliferation and increased cell death. Expression patterns Hsp90 complex genes (Hsp70 and p23), cell cycle-related genes (cdc2 and cdc25c) and apoptosis-related genes (Bax and Bcl-XL) were significantly changed by using RT-PCR analysis. The spliced form of pXbp-1 product (pXbp-1s) was detected in the tunicamycin (TM) treated cells, but it is not detected in 17-AAG treated cells. In conclusion, Hsp90 appears to play a direct role in porcine early embryo developmental competence including structural integrity of blastocysts. Also, these results indicate that Hsp90 is closely associated with cell cycle- and apoptosis-related genes expression in developing porcine embryos.

• Childhood Kidney Diseases
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.92-101
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• 2000

Purpose : We analyzed the demogaphic data md clinical course of Korean children with chronic renal failure (CRF) observed between 1990 and 1999. Patients and Methods : Questionnaires were mailed to all children's hospitals ail through the country. We asked for primary renal disease age and serum creatinine levels at first presentation with CRF and end-stage renal disease (ESRD), and modes of renal replacement therapy (RRT). Results : 401 children (254 boys, 147 girls) with CRF, defined as a permanent increase of serum creatinine above 1.2 mg/dl for at least 3 months or until death, were identified. This represents an incidence of 3.68 per million child population per year. Of these patients, 22$\%$ on younger than 5 years, 28$\%$ 5 to 10 years and 50$\%$ 10 to 15 year. Eight five $\%$ of the patients could be classified with a primary renal disease. The most frequent cause is glomerulonephritis (36$\%$), followed by chronic pyelonephritis (21$\%$), renal hrpo/dylplasia (9$\%$), and hereditary nephropathies (7$\%$). Reflux nephropathy (16$\%$) was the most common single cause of CRF. ESRD was reached in 70$\%$ of all patient. 99.3$\%$ of these started RRT. Hemodialysis (HD, 42$\%$), peritoneal dialysis (PD, 35$\%$) and transplantation (TP, 23$\%$) were performed as the initial mode of RRT. A total of 161 TPs were performed (159 first grafts, 2 second grafts). A total of 32 patients died. The main causes of death were dialysis related complication in HD patients and infections in PD patients. Survival rate on any form of RRT was 88.7$\%$ during the mean follow-up period of 37 months. Conclusion Major efforts should be directed toward earlier diagnosis and treatment of reflux nephropathy to prevent occurrence of Of. Dialysis and TP have now become well accepted forms of treatment in Korean children with ESRD.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.40 no.6 s.275
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• pp.420-427
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• 2007

Background: Postpneumonectomy empyema (PPE) due to bronchopleural fistula (BPF) can be a surgical challenge for surgeons. We analyzed the follow-up outcomes after performing omentopexy and thoracoplasty for the treatment of PPE with BPF after pneumonectomy. Material and Mehod: Between December 1991 and January 2006, 9 patients underwent BPF closure using an omental pedicled flap for the treatment of PPE with BPF after pneumonectomy. There were 7 males and 2 females (mean age: $45.9{\pm}9$ years). The patients were followed up for a mean of 58 months (median: 28 months, range: $6{\sim}169$). When we performed omentopexy, the surgical procedures for empyema were thoracoplasy for 8 patients and the Clagett procedure for 1 patient. Thoracoplasty was performed for the latter patient due to recurrence of empyema, Result: For the 8 patients who were treated by omentopexy and thoracoplasty, there was 1 operation-related death due to sepsis. During follow up, 1 patient, who was treated by omentopexy and a Clagett procedure, died of acute hepatitis 40 months postoperatively. The early mortality was 11.1% (8/9). Of the 8 patients, including the 1 late death patient, successful closure of the BPF were achieved in all patients (8/9) and the empyema was cured in 7 patients (7/8). Conclusion: The BPF closure using an omental pedicled flap was an effective method for treating PPE with BPF due to 75-destroyed lung, and thoracoplasty with simultaneous omentopexy was effective and safe for removing dead space if the patient was young and in a good general condition.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.18 no.8
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• pp.1023-1030
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• 2008

NtMEK2, which is the tobacco MAPK kinase that is upstream of SIPK and WIPK, was identified using the dexamethasone (DEX)-inducible gain-of-function transgenic system. Expression of $NtNEK2^{DD}$, a constitutively active mutant of NtNEK2, leads to HR-like cell death, which indicates that the NtMEK2-SIPK/WIPK cascade controls defense responses in tobacco. However, little is known about the downstream target substrates or defense-related genes that are regulated by the NtMEK2-SIPK/ WIPK cascade. In this study, ACP-based differential display RT-PCR was used to isolate the downstream effectors mediated by the NtMEK2-SIPK/WIPK cascade in $NtNEK2^{DD}$ transgenic plants. The results identified 6 novel differentially expressed genes (DEGs). These included pathogen induced protein 2-4 (pI2-4), monoterpene synthase 2 (MTS2), seven in absentia protein (SINA), cell death marker protein 1 (CDM1), hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein (HRGP) and unknown genes (DEG45). The induction of these genes was confirmed by RT-PCR of samples obtained from $NtNEK2^{DD}$ plants. Additionally, when compared with other isolated DEGs, the pI2-4, CDM1 and HRGP genes were significantly up-regulated in response to treatment with salicylic acid and tobacco mosaic virus. Taken together, these results suggest that three novel DEGs were regulated by the NtMEK2-SIPK/WIPK cascade involved in disease resistance in tobacco.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.23 no.8
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• pp.989-997
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• 2013

In this study, based on the antioxidative effects in organic solvent fractions obtained from the main methanolic extract of L. japonica, the protective cellular effects and gene expression patterns of ethyl acetate fractions on $H_2O_2$-induced Raw 264.7 cell death ($IC_{50}$) were analyzed. The antioxidant activity of the fractions measured using DPPH free radical scavenging activity increased in a dose-dependent manner, and the $ED_{50}$ exhibited the highest $39.56{\mu}g/ml$ in the ethyl acetate fraction. In addition, the ethyl acetate fractions' cell viability on $H_2O_2$-induced Raw 264.7 cell damage increased in a concentration-dependent manner, showed a visible cell survival rate of 82.49% at a concentration of $100{\mu}g/ml$. The gene expression patterns related to the ethyl acetate fractions' cytoprotective effect in $H_2O_2$-induced Raw 264.7 cell damage presented similar patterns to those of BHA. In comparative analysis for antioxidant activity-related genes affected by ethyl acetate fractions and BHA in $H_2O_2$-induced Raw 264.7 cells, both ethyl acetate fractions and BHA showed very similar gene expression patterns, but the gene expression level of the heme oxygenase 1 (Hmox1) gene making antioxidant enzymes in cells was four times higher in ethyl acetate fractions than BHA. In inflammation-related genes in $H_2O_2$induced Raw 264.7 cells, the T-box transcription factor (Tbx21) gene was expressed about two times more frequently in the ethyl acetate fraction treatment group, while it was expressed half as frequently in the BHA treatment group.