Curcumin (diferuloylmethane) is a major naturally-occurring polyphenol of Curcuma species, which is commonly used as a yellow coloring and flavoring agent in foods. Curcumin has shown anti-carcinogenic activity in animal models. Curcumin possesses anti-inflammatory activity and is a potent inhibitor of reactive oxygen-generating enzymes such as lipoxygenase/cyclooxygenase, xanthine dehydrogenase/oxidase and inducible nitric oxide synthase; and an effective inducer of heme oxygenase-1. Curcumin is also a potent inhibitor of protein kinase C(PKC), EGF(Epidermal growth factor)-receptor tyrosine kinase and LĸB kinase. Subsequently, curcumin inhibits the activation of NF(nucleor factor)KB and the expressions of oncogenes including c-jun, c-fos, c-myc, NIK, MAPKs, ERK, ELK, PI3K, Akt, CDKs and iNOS. It is proposed that curcumin may suppress tumor promotion through blocking signal transduction path-ways in the target cells. The oxidant tumor promoter TPA activates PKC by reacting with zinc thiolates present within the regulatory domain, while the oxidized form of cancer chemopreventive agent such as curcumin can inactivate PKC by oxidizing the vicinal thiols present within the catalytic domain. Recent studies indicated that proteasome-mediated degradation of cell proteins playa pivotal role in the regulation of several basic cellular processes including differentiation, proliferation, cell cycling, and apoptosis. It has been demonstrated that curcumin-induced apoptosis is mediated through the impairment of ubiquitin-proteasome pathway. Curcumin was first biotransformed to dihydrocurcumin and tetrahydrocurcumin and that these compounds subsequently were converted to monoglucuronide conjugates. These results suggest that curcumin-glucuronide, dihydrocurcumin-glucuronide, tetrahydrocurcumin-glucuronide and tetrahydrocurcumin are the major metabolites of curcumin in mice, rats and humans.

The rats with protein-calorie malnutrition (PCM, 5％ casein diet for a period of 4-week) were reported to exhibit 60 and 80％ suppression in the hepatic microsomal cytochrome P450 (CYP) 1 A2 and CYP2C11 levels, respectively, and 40-50％ decreases in CYP2E1 and CYP3A 1/2 levels compared to control (23％ casein diet for a period of 4-week) based on Western blot analysis. In addition, Northern blot analysis showed that CYP1 A2, CYP2E1, CYP2C11, and CYP3A1/2 mRNAs decreased in the state of PCM as well. Hence, pharmacokinetic changes of the drugs in rats with PCM [especially the area under the plasma concentration-time curve from time zero to time infinity (AUC) changes of metabolite(s)] reported from literatures were tried to explain in terms of CYP isozyme changes in the rats. Otherwise, the time-averaged nonrenal clearance ($CL_{NR}$) of parent drug was compared. Pharmacokinetic changes of the drugs in other types of malnutritional state, such as kwashiorkor and marasmus, in both human and animal models were also compared. The drugs reviewed are as follows： diuretics, antibiotics, anticancer agents, antiepileptics, antiarrythmics, analgesics, xanthines, antimalarials, and miscellaneous.

Several analogues of the general formulae 2-methoxy-9-substituted acridine and 6-chloro-2-methoxy-9-substituted acridine were synthesized and evaluated in vitro at 6.25 $\mu\textrm{g}$/mL against M. tuberculosis $H_{37}Rv$. Compounds 15 and 17 showed potential antitubercular activity with 100％ inhibition to the virulent mycobacterium.

Two Spectrophotometric procedures are presented for the determination of two commonly used H2-receptor antagonists, nizatidine (I) and ranitidine hydrochloride (II). The methods are based mainly on charge transfer complexation reaction of these drugs with either ${\rho}-chloranilic$ acid (${\rho}-CA$) or 2, 3 dichloro-5, 6-dicyanoquinone (DDQ). The produced colored products are quantified spectrophotometrically at 515 and 467 nm in chloranilic acid and 000 methods, respectively. The molar ratios for the reaction products and the optimum assay conditions were studied. The methods determine the cited drugs in concentration ranges of 20-200 and $20-160\;\mu\textrm{g}/mL$ for nizatidine and ranges of 20-240 and $20-140\;\mu\textrm{g}/mL$ for ranitidine with chloranilic acid and DDQ methods, respectively. A more detailed investigation of the complexes formed was made with respect to their composition, association constant, molar absorptivity and free energy change. The proposed procedures were successfully utilized in the determination of the drugs in pharmaceutical preparations. The standard addition method was applied by adding nizatidine and ranitidine to the previously analyzed tablets or capsules. The recovery of each drug was calculated by comparing the concentration obtained from the spiked mixtures with those of the pure drug. The results of analysis of commercial tablets and the recovery study (standard addition method) of the cited drugs suggested that there is no interference from any excipients, which are present in tablets or capsules. Statistical comparison of the results was performed with regard to accuracy and precision using student's t-test and F-ratio at 95％ confidence level. There is no significant difference between the reported and proposed methods with regard to accuracy and precision.

A new cycloartane glycoside was isolated from the dried whole herbs of Camptosorus sibiricus Rupr By means of chemical (hydrolysis) and spectroscopic methods (IR, 1D, and 2D NMR, ESI-MS), the structure was established as $3{\beta}$, $7{\beta}$, $24{\beta}$, 25, 30-pentahydroxycycloartane-3-O-${\beta}$-D-glucopyranoside-24-O-${\beta}$-D-glucopyranoside (1).

Bioassay-guided fractionation has led to the isolation of triterpenoid saponins such as Acutoside A (3-O-[O-${\beta}$-D-glucopyrano$yl-(1${\to}$2)-O-${\beta}$-D-glucopyranosyl] oleanolic acid) from the whole plants of Viola hondoensis. Among them, Saponin 1 exhibited potent inhibitory activity against matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-1, and prevented the UV-induced changes in the MMP-1 expression. In addition, compound was isolated from this plant for the first time.

5,8-Epidioxycholest-6-en-3-ol (1), cholesterol (2), glycerol 1-palmitate (3) and glycerol 1,3-dioleate-2-stearate (4) were isolated from the methanol extract of the sea urchin Diadema setosum, which was collected from the Halong sea, Vietnam. Chemical structures were established based on extensive 1D, 2D-NMR, FAB-MS, EI-MS spectroscopic data and GC-MS analysis. The NMR spectral data of compound 1 were reassigned by using HMQC and HMBC. Compound 1 was found to have strong cytotoxic effect against various cancer cell lines, such as KB ($IC_{50}$, 2.0 $\mu\textrm{g}$/mL), FL($IC_{50}$, 3.93 $\mu\textrm{g}$/mL), and Hep-2 ($IC_{50}$, 2.4 $\mu\textrm{g}$/mL) by in vitro assay.

Three lignans isolated from the roots of A. koreanum (Araliaceae), namely eleutheroside E(1), tortoside A(2), and hemiariensin(4), were evaluated for their ability to inhibit NFAT transcription factor. Of these compounds, compound 4, possessing a diarylbutane skeleton, exhibited potent inhibitory activity against NFAT transcription factor (($IC_{50}$ ： 36.3${\pm}2.5{\mu}\textrm{M}$). However, the activities of 1 (($IC_{50}$：＞500 11M) and 2 (($IC_{50}$： 136.1 ${\pm}9.4\mu\textrm{M}$), which possess bisaryldioxabicy-clooctane skeletons, were lower. As the lignan derivatives of the same skeletons, hinokinin (5) and (-)-yatein (6) with diarylbutane skeletons and(＋)-syringaresinol (3) with a bisaryldioxabicy-clooctane skeleton were also studied for their inhibitory effects on NFAT transcription factor.

This paper for the first time reports the isolation of 5 compounds from Phellinus linteus. A sphingolipid (1) and two tyrosinase inhibitory compounds (2, 3) along with two carboxylic acids (4, 5), were isolated from the fruiting body of Phellinus linteus (Berk ＆ Curt) Aoshima. The structure of compound 1 was identified as 1-O-$\beta$-D-glucopyranosyl-(2S, 3R, 4E, 8E)-2-[(2R)-2-hydroxyhexadecanoylamino]-9-methyl-4,8-octadecadiene-1,3-diol, known as cerebroside B, based on spectroscopic methods such as 1D and 2D NMR as well as by acid hydrolysis. Compounds 2-5 were identified as protocatechualdehyde (2), 5-hydroxymethyl-2-furaldehyde (HMF) (3), succinic acid (4), and fumaric acid (5) based on the spectroscopic evidence. Compounds 2 and 3 inhibited the oxidation of L-tyrosine catalyzed by mushroom tyrosinase with an $IC_{50}$ of 0.40 and 90.8 $\mu\textrm{g}$/mL, respectively. The inhibitory kinetics, which were analyzed by the Lineweaver-Burk plots, were found to be competitive and noncompetitive inhibitors with a $K_{j}$ of 1.1 $\mu\textrm{m}$ and 1.4 mM, respectively.

Flavonoids have been demonstrated to exhibit a wide range of biological activities including anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective actions. Although a significant amount of flavonoids has been identified to be present as glycosides in medicinal plants, determinations of the biological activities of flavonoids were mainly carried out with aglycones of flavonoids. Therefore, the exact role of the glycosidation of flavonoid aglycones needs to be established. In an attempt to understand the possible role of glycosidation on the modulation of the biological activities of flavonoids, diverse glycosides of kaempferol, quercetin, and aromadendrin were examined in terms of their anti-inflammatory activity determined with the suppression of lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced nitric oxide (NO) production in BV2 microglial cells. The results indicated that glycosidation of aglycones attenuated the suppressive activity of aglycones on LPS-induced NO production. Although attenuated, some of glycosides, depending on the position and degree of glycosidation, maintained the inhibitory capability of LPS-induced NO production. These findings suggest that glycosidation of flavonoid aglycones should be considered as an important modulator of the biological activities of flavonoids.

The protective adaptive response to electrophiles and reactive oxygen species is mediated by the induction of phase II detoxifying genes including glutathione S-transferases (GSTs). NF-E2-related factor-2 (Nrf2) phosphorylation by protein kinase C (PKC) is a critical event for its nuclear translocation in response to oxidative stress. Previously, we have shown that peroxynitrite plays a role in activation of Nrf2 and Nrf2 binding to the antioxidant response element (ARE) via the pathway of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3-kinase) and that nitric oxide synthase in hepatocytes is required for GSTA2 induction. In view of the importance of PKC and Pl3-kinase in Nrf2-mediated GST induction, we investigated the role of these kinases in peroxynitrite formation for GSTA2 induction by oxidative stress and determined the relationship between PKC and PI3-kinase. Although PKC activation by phorbol 12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA) did not increase the extents of constitutive and inducible GSTA2 expression, either PKC depletion by PMA or PKC inhibition by staurosporine significantly inhibited GSTA2 induction by tert-butylhydroquinone (t-SHa) a prooxidant chemical. Therefore, the basal PKC activity is req- uisite for GSTA2 induction. 3-Morpholinosydnonimine (SIN-1), which decomposes and yields peroxynitrite, induced GSTA2, which was not inhibited by PKC depletion, but slightly enhanced by PKC activation, suggesting that PKC promotes peroxynitrite formation for Nrf2-mediated GSTA2 induction. Treatment of cells with S-nitroso-N-acetyl-penicillamine (SNAP), an exogenous NO donor, in combination with t-BHQ may produce peroxynitrite. GSTA2 induction by SNAP ＋ t-BHQ was not decreased by PKC depletion, but rather enhanced by PKC activation, showing that the activity of PKC might be required for peroxynitrite formation. LY294002 a P13-kinase inhibitor blocked GSTA2 induction by t-BHQ, which was reversed by PMA-induced PKC activation. These results provide evidence that PKC may playa role in formation of peroxynitrite that activates Nrf2 for GSTA2 induction and that PKC may serve an activator for GSTA2 induction downstream of PI3-kinase.

To investigate the feasibility of developing a new quercetin transdermal system, a preformulation study was carried out. Therefore, the effects of vehicles and pressure-sensitive adhesives (PSA) on the in vitro permeation of quercetin across dorsal hairless mouse skin were studied. Among vehicles used, propylene glycol monocaprylate (PGMC) and propylene glycol mono-laurate were found to have relatively high permeation flux from solution formulation (i.e., the permeation fluxes were 17.25$\pm$1.96 and 9.60$\pm$3.87 $\mu\textrm{g}$/$\textrm{cm}^2$/h, respectively). The release rate from PSA formulations followed a matrix-controlled diffusion model and was mainly affected by the amount of PSA and drug loaded. The overall permeation fluxes from PSA formulations were less than 0.30 $\mu\textrm{g}$/$\textrm{cm}^2$/h, which were significantly lower compared to those obtained from solution formulations. The lower permeation fluxes may be due to the decrease of solubility and diffusivity of quercetin in the PSA layer, considering the fact that the highest flux of 0.26 $\mu\textrm{g}$/$\textrm{cm}^2$/h was obtained with the addition of 0.2％ butylated hydroxyanisole in PGMC-diethyl-ene glycol monoethyl ether co-solvents (80-85 ： 15-20, v/v). Taken together, these observations indicate that improvement in the solubility and diffusivity of quercetin is necessary to realize fully the clinically applicable transdermal delivery system for the drug.

Hepatic ischemia and reperfusion (l/R) predisposes the liver to secondary stresses such as endotoxemia, possibly via dysregulation of the hepatic microcirculation secondary to an imbalanced regulation of the vascular stress genes. In this study, the effect of hepatic I/R on the hepatic vasoregulatory gene expression in response to endotoxin was determined. Rats were subjected to 90 min of hepatic ischemia and 6 h of reperfusion. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 1 mg/kg) was injected intraperitoneally after reperfusion. Plasma and liver samples were obtained 6 h after reperfusion for serum aminotransferase assays and RT-PCR analysis of the mRNA for the genes of interest： endothelin-1 (ET-1), its receptors $ET_A$ and $ET_B$, endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), cyciooxygenase-2 (COX-2), and tumor necrosis factor-a (TNF-${\alpha}$). The activities of serum aminotransferases were significantly increased in the I/R group. This increase was markedly potentiated by LPS treatment. The ET-1 mRNA was increased by LPS alone, and this increase was significantly greater in both the I/R alone and I/R ＋ LPS groups compared to the sham. There were no significant differences in ETA receptor mRNA levels among any of the experimental groups. $ET_B$ mRNA was increased by both LPS alone and I/R alone, with no significant difference between the I/R alone and I/R ＋ LPS groups. The eN OS and HO-1 transcripts were increased by I/R alone and further increased by I/R ＋ LPS. The iNOS mRNA levels were increased by I/R alone, but increased significantly more by both LPS alone and I/R ＋ LPS compared to I/R alone. The TNF-${\alpha}$ mRNA levels showed no change with I/R alone, but were increased by both LPS alone and I/R ＋ LPS. The COX-2 expression was increased significantly by I/R alone and significantly more by I/R ＋ LPS. Taken collectively, significantly greater induction of the vasodilator genes over the constriction forces was observed with I/R ＋ LPS. These results may partly explain the increased susceptibility of ischemic livers to injury as a result of endotoxemia.

Interferons are cytokines that confer resistance to viral infection and inhibit cellular proliferation. The interferon alpha gene from human blood samples was amplified, cloned and expressed in E. coli (BL21). Leukocyte chromosomal DNA was used as a source of template DNA. Using specific primers, the gene for HulFN$\{alpha}$-2b was amplified and inserted into the E. coli vector, pET21b, by ligation of the HindIII and BamHI linkers of the vector and insert. The insert was further analyzed by PCR, DNA restriction mapping and sequencing, and expressed in a suitable E. coli strain. The production of this important cellular protein in the laboratory has significant applications in production of the recombinant pharmaceutical proteins.

The effect of 1,8-cineole on cytochrome P450 (CYP) expression was investigated in male Sprague Dawley rats and female BALB/c mice. When rats were treated orally with 200, 400 and 800 mg/kg of 1,8-cineole for 3 consecutive days, the liver microsomal activities of benzy-loxyresorufin- and pentoxyresorufin-D-dealkylases and erythromycin N-demethylase were dose-dependently induced. The Western immunoblotting analyses clearly indicated the induction of CYP 2B1/2 and CYP 3A1/2 proteins by 1,8-cineole. At the doses employed, 1,8-cineole did not cause toxicity, including hepatotoxicity. Subsequently, 1,8-cineole was applied to study the role of metabolic activation in thioacetamide-induced hepatotoxicity and/or immunotoxicity in animal models. To investigate a possible role of metabolic activation by CYP enzymes in thioacetamide-induced hepatotoxicity, rats were pre-treated with 800 mg/kg of 1,8-cineole for 3 days, followed by a single intraperitoneal treatment with 50 and 100 mg/kg of thioacetamide in saline. 24 h later, thioacetamide-induced hepatotoxicity was significantly potentiated by the pretreatment with 1,8-cineole. When female BALB/c mice were pretreated with 800 mg/kg of 1,8-cineole for 3 days, followed by a single intraperitoneal treatment with 100 mg/kg of thioace-tamide, the antibody response to sheep red blood cells was significantly potentiated. In addition, the liver microsomal activities of CYP 2B enzymes were significantly induced by 1,8-cineole as in rats. Taken together, our results indicated that 1,8-cineole might be a useful CYP modulator in investigating the possible role of metabolic activation in chemical-induced hepato-toxicity and immunotoxicity.

Ginseng is a shade-loving perennial herb that is cultivated mainly in Korea, Japan, and China. The ginseng root has been used as a tonic remedy, and its antidiabetic activity has been demonstrated as early as 1920s. Although wild ginseng was anecdotally thought to be superior to cultivated ginseng as far as pharmacological properties were concerned, there have been no prior reports on the antidiabetic effect of wild ginseng. In this study, we investigated the preventative anti-diabetic and anti-obese effects of wild ginseng ethanol extract (WGEE). In the preventive experiment, WGEE co-administered with a high fat diet significantly inhibited body weight gain, fasting blood glucose, triglyceride, and free fatty acid levels in a dose dependent manner. WGEE-treated mice at doses of 250 and 500 mg/kg improved the insulin resistance index by 55％ and 61％ compared to the high fat diet (HFD) control, respectively. Diameters of white and brown adipocytes were also decreased by 62％ and 46％ in the WG500-treated group compared to those in HFD fed control mice. Taken together, WGEE has potential as a preventive agent for type 2 diabetes mellitus (and possibly obesity) and deserves clinical trial in the near future.

LPD vectors are non-viral vehicles for gene delivery comprised of polycation-condensed plasmid DNA and liposomes. Here, we described a novel anionic LPD formulation containing protamine-DNA complexes and pH sensitive liposomes composed of DOPE and cholesteryl hemisuccinate (Chems). Central composite design (CCD) was employed to optimize stable LPD formulation with small particle size. A three factor, five-level CCD design was used for the optimization procedure, with the weight ratio of protamine/DNA ($X_1$), the weight ratio of Chems/DNA ($X_2$) and the molar ratio of Chems/DOPE in the anionic liposomes ($X_3$) as the independent variables. LPD size ($Y_1$) and LPD protection efficiency against nuclease ($Y_2$) were response variables. Zeta potential determination was utilized to define the experimental design region. Based on experimental design, responses for the 15 formulations were obtained. Mathematical equations and response surface plots were used to relate the dependent and independent variables. The mathematical model predicted optimized $X_1-X_3$ levels that achieve the desired particle size and the protection efficiency against nuclease. According to these levels, an optimized LPD formulation was prepared, resulting in a particle size of 185.3 nm and protection efficiency of 80.22％.

Metformin is a biguanide antihyperglycemic agent often used for the treatment of non-insulin dependent diabetics (NIDDM). In this study, the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of metformin were investigated in Korean healthy volunteers during a fasting state for over 10 h. In order to evaluate the amount of glucose-lowering effect of metformin, the plasma concentrations of glucose were measured for a period of 10 h followed by the administration of metformin (oral 500 mg) or placebo. In addition, the concentration of metformin in blood samples was determined by HPLC assay for the drug. All volunteers were consumed with 12 g of white sugar 10 minutes after drug intake to maintain initial plasma glucose concentration. The time courses of the plasma concentration of metformin and the glucose-lowering effect were analyzed by nonlinear regression analysis. The estimated $C_{max}$, $T_{max}$, $CL_{t}$/F (apparent clearance), V/F(apparent volume of distribution), and half-life of metformin were 1.42$\{pm}$0.07 $\mu\textrm{g}$/mL, 2.59$\{pm}$0.18h, 66.12$\{pm}$4.6 L/h, 26.63 L, and 1.54 h respectively. Since a significant counterclock-wise hysteresis was found for the metformin concentration in the plasma-effect relationship, indirect response model was used to evaluate pharmacodynamic parameters for metformin. The mean concentration at half-maximum inhibition $IC_{50}$, $k_{in}$, $k_{out}$ were 2.26 $\mu\textrm{g}$/mL, 83.26 $H^{-1}$, and 0.68 $H^{-1}$, respectively. Therefore, the pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic model may be useful in the description for the relationship between plasma concentration of metformin and its glucose-lowering effect.