• The Korean Journal of Zoology
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.73-84
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• 1984

In order to investigate the effect of neurotransmitter on myoblast differentiation in vitro, the effects of dopamine and epinephrine on myoblast fusion and on the intracellular cAMP level in cultured myoblasts were examined. Dopamine $(3\\times10^{-5}M)$ and epinephrine $(3\\times10^{-5}M)$, when added at 34 hr after cell plating, markedly inhibited myoblast fusion, and dopamine was more potent than epinephrine. Both dopamine and epinephrine had no effect on intracellular cAMP level. At the same time, exogeneous dbcAMP, $PGE_1$, and aspirin were used to examine whether cAMP is involved in myoblast differentiation. dbcAMP $(1\\times10^{-4}M)$ inhibited myoblast fusion, whereas $PGE_1 (3\\times10^{-6}M)$ had no inhibitory effect, rather enhancing myoblast fusion. Aspirin, an inhibitor of PG synthetase, was shown to inhibit myoblast fusion. Possible mechanism by which dopamine or epinephrine at a specific concentration used inhibits myoblast fusion is discussed.

• Development and Reproduction
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.13-20
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• 2007

In all female mammals, reproductive system is one of the first biological systems to show age-related decline. Female mammals in reproductive aging, though the phenomena is somewhat species-specific, start to show declining fertility and changes of numerous physiological functions. This review will present a current information on the aging of the female reproductive hormonal axis and introduce three useful rodent models for studying this field. Middle age($8{\sim}12$ months old) in female rats and mice is comparable to the stage prior to the entry of menopause in human. In this period pulsatile and surge GnRH secretion from hypothalamus gradually attenuated, then reduced pulsatile and surge LH secretion is followed consequently. This age-related defects in GnRH-LH neuroendocrine axis seem to be highly correlated with the defects in brain signals which modulate the activities of GnRH neuron. Many researchers support the idea which the age-related hypothalamic defects are the main cause of reproductive aging, but some ovarian factors such as inhibin response also could contribute to the induction of reproductive senescence. Some rodent models are quite valuable in studying the reproductive aging. The follitropin receptor knockout(FORKO) mice, both of null and haploinsufficient state, could produce depletion of oocyte/follicle with age. Dioxin/aryl hydrocarbon receptor(AhR) knockout mice also show severe ovarian defects and poor reproductive success early in their life compared to the age-matched normal mice. Further studies on the reproductive aging will be a great help to evaluate the benefits and risks of hormone replacement therapy(HRT) and to improve the safety of HRT.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.116-129
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• 2018

Living creatures possess long-conserved mechanisms to maintain homeostasis in response to various stresses. However, chronic and continuous exposure to stress can result in the excessive production of stress hormones, including catecholamines, which have harmful effects on health. Studies on the relationship between the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and cancer have been conducted based on the traditional hypothesis that stress can promote cancer progression. Many preclinical and epidemiological studies have suggested that the regulation of ${\beta}$-adrenergic signaling, which mediates SNS activity, can suppress the progression of solid tumors. SNS activation has highly pleiotropic effects on tumor biology, as it stimulates oncogenes, survival pathways, the epithelial - mesenchymal transition, and invasion. Moreover, it inhibits DNA repair and programmed cell death and regulates the tumor microenvironment, including immune cells, endothelial cells, the extracellular matrix, mesenchymal cells, and adipocytes. Although targeted therapies on the molecular basis of tumor proliferation are currently receiving increased attention, they have clinical limitations, such as the compensatory activation of other signaling pathways, emergence of drug resistance, and various side effects, which raise the need for pleiotropic cancer regulation. This review summarizes the effects of the SNS on the development and progression of cancer and discusses the clinical perspectives of ${\beta}$-blockade as a novel therapeutic strategy for this disease.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.52 no.3
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• pp.263-273
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• 2020

In this study, in order to confirm the ameliorative effects of onion (Allium cepa L.) flesh and peel on amyloidbeta (Aβ)-induced cognitive dysfunction, we evaluated their in vitro neuroprotection and in vivo cognitive functions. As the result of in vitro neuroprotection, the protective effect of the ethyl acetate fraction of onion flesh (EOF) on Aβ-induced cytotoxicity was similar to that of the ethyl acetate fraction of onion peel (EOP). In the behavioral tests, the EOF and EOP effectively improved the Aβ-induced learning and memory impairments. For this reason, it could be concluded that the EOF and EOP improved the antioxidant activities (superoxide dismutase, oxidized glutathione/total glutathione, and malondialdehyde) in brain tissue. In addition, the EOF and EOP effectively activated mitochondrial functions by protecting the mitochondrial membrane potential, ATP, mitochondria-mediated protein (BAX and cytochrome c), and caspase 3/7 activities. The EOF and EOP also improved the cholinergic system (acetylcholinesterase and acetylcholine). Therefore, we suggest that onion could be used for management of Aβ-induced cognitive dysfunction.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.1-7
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• 2009

Experimental induction of polycystic ovary (PCO) resembling some aspects of human PCO syndrome was produced using the long-acting compound estradiol valerate (EV). Our previous study on the role of Korean red ginseng total saponins (GTS) in a steroid-induced PCO rat model demonstrated that electro-acupuncture modulates nerve growth factor (NGF) concentration in the ovaries. In fact, the involvement of a neurogenic component in the pathology of PCO-related ovarian dysfunction is preceded by an increase in sympathetic outflow to the ovaries. In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that therapeutic GTS administration modulates sympathetic nerve activity in rats with PCO. This was done by analyzing NGF protein and NGF mRNA expression involved in the pathophysiological process underlying steroid-induced PCO. EV injection resulted in significantly higher ovarian NGF mRNA expression in PCO rats compared to control rats, and PCO ovaries were counteracted by GTS administration with significantly lower expression of NGF mRNA compared to EV treated ovaries. However, NGF protein was unaffected in both EV and GTS treated ovaries compared to control rats. These results indicate that EV modulates the neurotrophic state of the ovaries, which may be a component of the pathological process by which EV induces cyst formation and anovulation in rodents.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.370-377
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• 2001

Flounder brain cytosol contains protein inhibitors that markedly inhibit the activity of partially purified brain membrane phospholipase D (PLD) which is dependent on phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate ($PIP_2$) but insensitive to ADP-ribosylation factor (ARF), The PLD inhibitors have been enriched through several chromatographic steps and characterized with respect to size and mechanism of inhibition. Sequential chromatography of the brain cytosol yielded six inhibitor fractions, Two (IIA and IIB) of six inhibitor fractions showed the $PIP_2$-phosphatase activities. IIA was identified as synaptojanin, a nerve terminal protein that has known to be a member of the inositolpolyphosphate 5-phosphatase family, by immunoblot analysis. IIB showed an apparent molecular mass of 158 kDa by Superose 12 gel filtration chromatography and was immunologically distinct from synaptojanin. IIB hydrolyzed $PIP_2$, yielding only phosphatidylinositol phosphate (PIP) as product, suggesting that IIB hydrolyzes only one phosphate from either the 4- or 5-position of PI (4,5)$P_2$. These studies demonstrate that the existence of multiple $PIP_2$-phosphatases have been implicated in the negative regulation of $PIP_2$-dependent PLD activity within flounder brain.

• Korean journal of applied entomology
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• v.55 no.3
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• pp.257-266
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• 2016

Subtropical insect pests expand their habitats by migration to temperate zones along with global climate change. A subtropical insect pest, Maruca vitrata, is infesting leguminous crops including azuka beans in Korea and gives significant economic damages. Its great genetic variation raised an issue of the origin of a Korean M. vitrata population. To understand the genetic character of the Korean population, its cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (cox 1) gene was sequenced and phylogenetically analyzed with other regional populations. The world populations of M. vitrata were grouped into three clusters: Asia-African, American, and Oceanian. The Korean population was classified into Asia-African cluster. To characterize the insecticide susceptibility of the Korean population, seven different insecticides (4 neutoxic insecticides, 1 insect growth regulator, 2 biopesticides) were assessed. Young larvae of M. vitrata were relatively susceptible to all tested insecticides. However, old larvae were much less susceptible than young larvae. No test insecticides effectively (> 50%) killed the old larvae of M. vitrata within 7 days.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.59-66
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• 2016

It has been generally accepted that obesity and overweight are associated with metabolic diseases and cancer incidence. In fact, obesity increased risks of cancers i.e. breast, liver, pancreatic and prostate. Celastrol is a pentacyclic triterpenoid isolated from Thunder god vine, was used as a Chinese traditional medicine for treatment of inflammatory disorders such as arthritis, lupus erythematosus and Alzheimer's disease. Also, celastrol has various biological properties of chemo-preventive, neuro-protective, and anti-oxidant effects. Recent studies demonstrated that celastrol has anti-proliferation effects in different type of obesity-related cancers and suppresses tumor progression and metastasis. Anticancer effects of celastrol include regulation of $NF-{\kappa}B$, heat shock protein, JNK, VEGF, CXCR4, Akt/mTOR, MMP-9 and so on. For these reasons, celastrol has shown to be a promising anti-tumor agent. In this review, we will address the anticancer activities and multiple mechanisms of celastrol in obesity-related cancers.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.28 no.10
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• pp.1140-1146
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• 2018

Dual-specificity phosphatases (DUSPs) play a role in cell growth and differentiation by modulating mitogen-activated protein kinases. DUSPs are considered targets for drugs against cancers, diabetes, immune diseases, and neuronal diseases. Part of the DUSP family, DUSP19 modulates c-Jun N-terminal kinase activity and is involved in osteoarthritis pathogenesis. Here, we report screening of cavity-creating mutants and the crystal structure of a cavity-creating L75A mutant of DUSP19 which has significantly enhanced enzyme activity in comparison to the wild-type protein. The crystal structure reveals a well-formed cavity due to the absent Leu75 side chain and a rotation of the active site-bound sulfate ion. Despite the cavity creation, residues surrounding the cavity did not rearrange significantly. Instead, a tightened hydrophobic interaction by a remote tryptophan residue was observed, indicating that the protein folding of the L75A mutant is stabilized by global folding energy minimization, not by local rearrangements in the cavity region. Conformation of the rotated active site sulfate ion resembles that of the phosphor-tyrosine substrate, indicating that cavity creation induces an optimal active site conformation. The activity enhancement by an internal cavity and its structural information provide insight on allosteric modulation of DUSP19 activity and development of therapeutics.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.27 no.12
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• pp.1500-1506
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• 2017

Plants are reservoirs of naturally occurring chemical compounds and of structurally diverse bioactive molecules. The aim of this investigation was to screen for the presence of phytochemicals responsible for the lipolysis activity in mulberry (Morus alba) leaves, which are important in traditional Asian medicinal plants. Powdered mulberry leaves were extracted with hexane, ethyl acetate, and methanol. Daucosterol was isolated from the EtOAc extract of mulberry leaves, and its structure was elucidated by NMR spectral analyses. The NMR assignments for the compound were determined using $^1H$, $^{13}C$, DEPT, COSY, HSQC, and HMBC NMR spectral data. Daucosterol showed a concentration-dependent lipolysis activity that may impart medicinal properties that can be exploited by medical practitioners for the treatment of various diseases. However, further studies should be conducted to elucidate additional mechanisms of daucosterol.