• The Korean Journal of Mycology
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.29-33
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• 2010

KGD1 gene was cloned by functional complementation of defects in $\beta$-1,3-glucan synthase activity of the previously isolated Saccharomyces cerevisiae mutant LP0353, which displays a number of cell wall defects at restrictive temperature. We performed the gene disruption experiment to characterize the function of KGD1 gene, which encodes $\beta$-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase, in cell wall biosynthesis. The disruption of KGD1 showed the decreased growth rate, the increase of chitin synthases activity, alterations in cell wall composition, and increase of susceptibility to cell wall inhibitors such as Calcofluor white and Nikkomycin Z. These results suggested that KGD1 might be involved in cell wall biogenesis, especially the biosynthesis of $\beta$-1,6-glucan and chitin in S. cerevisaie.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.41 no.2
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• pp.135-141
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• 2015

Cell senescence can be identified by cellular changes that occur as a result of intrinsic aging and/or diseases. In case of skin cells, aging and cell senescence caused by external factors results in cessation of cell proliferation and cellular malfunction, which, in turn, accelerates skin aging. In this study, inhibition of cell senescence and enhancement of cell function were studied using cordycepin to evaluate the potential for skin anti-aging agent. By comparing with the number of senescence associated with ${\beta}$-galactosidase (SA-${\beta}$-gal) positive cells in young and replicative aged human fibroblasts, it was found that replicative aged cells showed higher expression of ${\beta}$-galactosidase. Treatment of cordycepin - known as an anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory agent - reduced ${\beta}$-galactosidase expression in senescent cells and enhanced cell survival in serum-free culture condition. Cordycepin also showed superb inhibition of ROS, which is another indicator of cell senescence. The results of this study proved the anti-aging effect of cordycepin on human fibroblasts and also proposed a possibility of its use as an anti-aging cosmetic ingredient.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.2087-2093
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• 2012

Previous evidence showed ${\beta}1$, 3-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase 8 (${\beta}3GnT8$), which can extend polylactosamine on N-glycans, to be highly expressed in some cancer cell lines and tissues, indicating roles in tumorigenesis. However, so far, the function of ${\beta}3GnT8$ in laryngeal carcinoma has not been characterized. To test any contribution, Hep-2 cells were stably transfected with sense or interference vectors to establish cell lines that overexpressed or were deficient in ${\beta}3GnT8$. Here we showed that cell proliferation was increased in ${\beta}3GnT8$ overexpressed cells but decreased in ${\beta}3GnT8$ knockdown cells using MTT. Furthermore, we demonstrated that change in ${\beta}3GnT8$ expression had significant effects on tumor growth in nude mice.We further provided data suggesting that overexpression of ${\beta}3GnT8$ enhanced the expression of matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) at both the mRNA and protein levels, associated with shedding of tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinase TIMP-2. In addition, it caused increased production of transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-${\beta}1$), whereas ${\beta}3GnT8$ gene knockdown caused the reverse effect. The results may indicate a novel mechanism by which effects of ${\beta}3GnT8$ in regulating cellular proliferation are mediated, at least in partvia targeting MMPs/TIMPs and TGF-${\beta}1$ in laryngeal carcinoma Hep-2 cells. The finding may lay a foundation for further investigations into the ${\beta}3GnT8$ as a potential target for therapy of laryngeal carcinoma.

• Journal of Interdisciplinary Genomics
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.37-41
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• 2024

Neonatal diabetes mellitus, or congenital diabetes mellitus, is a rare genetic disorder caused by abnormal β cell function and other causes. The symptoms of hyperglycemia that occur in neonatal diabetes. The symptoms of hyperglycemia that occur in neonatal diabetes may be transient or persistent. The most frequent genetic cause of neonatal diabetes characterized by abnormal β cell function is abnormalities at the 6q24 locus. Another possible cause is mutations in the ABCC8 or KCNJ11 genes, which code for potassium channels in pancreatic β cells. This underscores the importance of rapid genetic diagnosis following neonatal diabetes diagnosis and highlights the critical timing of sulfonylurea use.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.28 no.9
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• pp.1016-1021
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• 2018

Clostridium difficile toxin A causes pseudomembranous colitis. The pathogenesis of toxin A-induced colonic inflammation includes toxin A-dependent epithelial cell apoptosis, resulting in the loss of barrier function provided by epithelial cells against luminal pathogens. Toxin A-dependent epithelial cell apoptosis has been linked to toxin A-induced production of reaction oxygen species and subsequent p38MAPK activation; $p21^{CIP1/WAF1}$ upregulation-dependent cell cycle arrest; cytoskeletal disaggregation; and/or the induction of Fas ligand on epithelial cells. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying toxin A-induced apoptosis remain poorly understood. This study tested whether toxin A could block the Wnt signaling pathway, which is involved in gut epithelial cell proliferation, differentiation and antiapoptotic progression. Toxin A treatment of nontransformed human colonocytes (NCM460) rapidly reduced ${\beta}$-catenin protein, an essential component of the Wnt signaling pathway. Exposure of mouse ileum to toxin A also significantly reduced ${\beta}$-catenin protein levels. MG132 inhibition of proteasome-dependent protein degradation resulted in the recovery of toxin A-mediated reduction of ${\beta}$-catenin, indicating that toxin A may activate intracellular processes, such as $GSK3{\beta}$, to promote degradation of ${\beta}$-catenin. Immunoblot analysis showed that toxin A increased active phosphorylation of $GSK3{\beta}$. Because the Wnt signaling pathway is essential for gut epithelial cell proliferation and anti-apoptotic processes, our results suggest that toxin A-mediated inhibition of the Wnt signaling pathway may be required for maximal toxin A-induced apoptosis of gut epithelial cells.

• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• v.8 no.6
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• pp.322-330
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• 2003

The unicellular green alga Haematococcus pluvialis has recently attracted great inter-est due to its large amounts of ketocarotenoid astaxanthin, 3,3'-dihydroxy-${\beta}$,${\beta}$-carotene-4,4'-dione, widely used commercially as a source of pigment for aquaculture. In the life cycle of H. pluvialis, astaxanthin biosynthesis is associated with a remarkable morphological change from green motile vegetative cells into red immotile cyst cells as the resting stage. In recent years we have studied this morphological process from two aspects: defining conditions governing astaxanthin biosynthesis and questioning the possible function of astaxanthin in protecting algal cells against environmental stress. Astaxanthin accumulation in cysts was induced by a variety of environmental conditions of oxidative stress caused by reactive oxygen species, intense light, drought, high salinity, and high temperature. In the adaptation to stress, abscisic acid induced by reactive oxygen species, would function as a hormone in algal morphogenesis from veget ative to cyst cells. Furthermore, measurements of both in vitro and in vivo antioxidative activities of astaxanthin clearly demonstrated that tolerance to excessive reactive oxygen species is greater in astaxanthin-rich cysts than in astaxanthin-poor cysts or astaxanthin-less vegetative cells. Therefore, reactive oxygen species are involved in the regulation of both algal morph O-genesis and carotenogenesis, and the accumulated astaxanthin in cysts can function as a protective agent against oxidative stress damage. In this study, the physiological roles of astaxanthin in stress response and cell protection are reviewed.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.50 no.3
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• pp.304-312
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• 2018

Regulatory T cells (Treg), known as immune-suppressors, may help modulate the immune response. In this study, we investigated the effect of Treg-derived $TGF-{\beta}1$ on pancreatic islet cell function in vitro and in vivo. One hundred eighty IEQ (islet equivalents) of pancreatic islets, the marginal amount to regulate blood glucose level after syngeneic islet transplantation in mouse type 1 diabetes (T1D) model, were co-cultured with $4{\times}10^6$ Treg cells for 48 hours. The changes in $TGF-{\beta}1$, interleukin-6 (IL-6), and insulin secretion levels were measured and analyzed among the Treg-only group, the islet-only group, and the Treg/islet co-cultured group. In the Treg/islet co-cultured group, IL-6 and insulin secretion levels were increased (P<0.0005, P<0.005) and islet viability was improved (P<0.005) compared with the islet-only group. Furthermore, after transplantation, the co-cultured islets regulated blood glucose levels efficiently in the T1D mouse model. These data suggest that Treg could improve islet functions and viability via the $TGF-{\beta}1$ secretion pathway (P<0.05~0.005), thus the use of Treg in islet transplantation should be explored further.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.52 no.2
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• pp.111-116
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• 2008

Diethylstilbestrol (DESB) is a synthetic estrogen not only that routinely prescribed, but also that known to be a teratogen. In this study, we found a novel pharmacological feature that DESB is able to positively modulate CD29 $({\beta}1-integrin)$ function. Thus, DESB up-regulated homotypic cell-cell adhesion of monocytic U937 cells mediated by CD29. However, DESB did not increase the surface level of CD29 and its binding activity to ligand (fibronectin), according to flow cytometric analysis and cell-fibronectin adhesion assay. Instead, the DESB-mediated up-regulation of cell-cell adhesion was blocked by several signaling enzyme inhibitors. Treatment of U0126 [an extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) inhibitor], SB20358 (a p38 inhibitor) or Rp-8-pCPT-cGMP (a protein kinase G inhibitor) clearly inhibited DESB-mediated up-regulation of cell-cell adhesion induced by CD29. However, estrogen receptor antagonist ICI 182,780 failed to abrogate DESB effect. Therefore, our data suggest that DESB may up-regulate CD29-mediated cell-cell adhesion via modulating intracellular signaling enzymes such as ERK, PKG, and p38, independent of estrogen receptor function.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.18.1-18.10
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• 2016

In this study, to clarify the function of $PoPLC-{\beta}1$, in response to stress challenge, we examined the $PoPLC-{\beta}1$ expression pattern in response to external stress (pathogen-associated molecular pathogen challenge and environmental challenge including temperature and salinity). $PoPLC-{\beta}1$ expression analysis of tissue from olive flounder showed that the messenger RNA (mRNA) was predominantly expressed in the brain, heart, eye, liver, spleen, and stomach. We also tested the mRNA expression of the $PoPLC-{\beta}1$ in the spleen and kidney of olive flounder by RT-PCR and real-time PCR following stimulation with lipopolysaccharide (LPS), concanavalin A (ConA), or polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (PolyI:C) and compared with the inflammatory cytokines IL-1b and IL-6 in the stimulated flounder tissues. Each of the spleen and kidney and mRNA transcripts of $PoPLC-{\beta}1$ were increased 30- and 10-fold than normal tissue at 1-6 h post injection (HPI) with PolyI:C when the expression of $PoPLC-{\beta}1$ transcript was similar to LPS and ConA. We also tested the expression of $PoPLC-{\beta}1$ in response to temperature and salinity stress. The expression of $PoPLC-{\beta}1$ also was affected by temperature and salinity stress. Our results provide clear evidence that the olive flounder $PLC-{\beta}1$ signal pathways may play a critical role in immune function at the cellular level and in inflammation reactions. In addition, $PLC-{\beta}1$ appears to act as an oxidative-stress suppressor to prevent cell damage in fish.

• Animal cells and systems
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.79-85
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• 2005

Oxidized abasic residues arise as a major class of DNA damage by a variety of agents involving free radical attack and oxidation of deoxyribose sugar components. 2-deoxyribonolactone (dL) is a C1'-oxidized abasic lesion implicated in DNA strand scission, mutagenesis, and covalent DNA-protein cross-link (DPC). We show here that mammalian cell-free extract give rise to stable DPC formation that is specifically mediated by dL residue. When a duplex DNA containing dL at the site-specific position was incubated with cell-free extracts of Po ${\beta}-proficient$ and -deficient mouse embryonic fibroblast cells, the formation of major dL-mediated DPC was dependent on the presence of DNA polymerase (Pol) ${\beta}$. Formation of dL-specific DPC was also observed with histones and FEN1 nuclease, although the reactivity in forming dL-mediated DPC was significantly higher with Pol ${\beta}$ than with histones or FEN1. DNA repair assay with a defined DPC revealed that the dL lesion once cross-linked with Pol ${\beta}$ was resistant to nucleotide excision repair activity of cell-free extract. Analysis of nucleotide excision repair utilizing a model DNA substrate containing a (6-4) photoproduct suggested that excision process for DPC was inhibited because of DNA single-strand incision at 5' of the lesion. Consequently DPC mediated by dL lesion may not be readily repaired by DNA excision repair pathway but instead function as unusual DNA damage causing a prolonged DNA strand break and trapping of the major base excision repair enzyme.