• Archives of Pharmacal Research
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• v.29 no.9
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• pp.741-745
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• 2006

In our efforts to discover novel phytoestrogens to treat menopausal symptoms, eleven furanocoumarins were isolated from Angelica dahurica and tested for their estrogenic activity on the Ishikawa cell line. Among the compounds tested, 9-hydroxy-4-methoxypsoralen and alloisoimperatorin showed strong abilities to induce alkaline phosphatase (AP) with $EC_{50}$ values of 1.1 and $0.8\;{\mu}g/mL$, respectively, whereas the other nine furanocoumarins were weakly or only slightly active.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.6 no.5
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• pp.275-279
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• 2002

Nerve growth factor (NGF) is an important autocrine growth factor and also a survival factor for keratinocytes. NGF may act in the hyperproliferative condition, psoriasis. Clinically, the combination of psoralen and UVA (PUVA) has been used in the treatment of a wide variety of cutaneous disorders, such as psoriasis and vitiligo. However, the precise therapeutic mechanism of PUVA on the dermatologic diseases remains unclear. The purpose of this study was to examine whether the expression of NGF in cultured keratinocytes is influenced by PUVA. Thus, normal human keratinocytes were isolated from neonatal foreskin, and the third to fifth-passaged cells were used in this study. The cells were exposed to various doses of UVA (30, 60, 120 $mJ/cm^2)$ after adding 8-methoxypsoralen (8-MOP) to examine the expression of NGF mRNA. The RNA and protein of the cells were extracted at various time points (1, 8, 24 hours) after UVA irradiation to examine the expression of NGF mRNA and production of NGF protein. In keratinocytes, there were no differences in the expression of NGF mRNA between the different doses of UVA irradiation, however, the expression of NGF mRNA in UVA and PUVA groups tended to increase as the time increased. The expression of NGF mRNA was the highest in PUVA group, followed by UVA group and the lowest in 8-MOP group. The expressions of NGF protein at 1 and 8 hours after UVA irradiation were lower in the PUVA group than in the other groups. This study showed that the expression level of NGF protein in keratinocytes was relatively lower in the PUVA groups than in the other groups, suggesting that the therapeutic mechanism of PUVA in psoriasis is related to the decrease of NGF protein.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Toxicology Conference
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• 2001.05a
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• pp.109-109
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• 2001

In order to evaluate the neutral red uptake assay as an alternative method for phototoxicity test, we compared the potential of phototoxicity in vitro in cultured human fibroblasts and 3T3 fibroblast cells derived from Balb/c mice. Both fibroblasts were exposed to various known phototoxic chemicals (promethazine, neutral red, chlorpromazine, chlortetracycline, amiodarone, bithionol, 8-methoxypsoralen) and non-phototoxic chemical (ammonium laureth sulfate) and irradiated with 5 J/cm$^2$ of UVA.(omitted)

• Toxicological Research
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.227-232
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• 2002

In order to find out the appropriate in vitro method for high correlation with in vivo, we com-pared the sensitivities of phototoxicity (PT) in vitro method between in human keratinocytes, HaCaT cells and in 3T3 fibroblast cells derived from Balb/c mice. Both cells were exposed to six known phototoxic chemicals : promethazine, neutral red, chlortetracycline, amiodarone, bithionol, 8-methoxypsoralen, or non-phototoxic chemical, ALS (ammonium laureth sulfate) and then irradiated with 5 J/$cm^2$ of UVA. Cell viability ($IC_{50}$ ) was measured by neutral red uptake (NRU) assay. The ratio of $IC_{50}$ value of chemicals in the presence and absence of UVA was determined by the cut-off value. The phototoxic potential of test chemicals in NRU assay was determined by measuring the photoirriation factor (PIF) with a cut-off value of 5. In both 3T3 and HaCaT cells, all known phototoxic chemicals were positive (over 5 of PIF value), except that bithionol was found to be non-phototoxic to HaCaT cells, and ALS, non-phototoxic chemical was negative. These results suggest that Balb/c 3T3 cell was more sensitive than HaCaT cell to predict phototoxicity potential.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.598-602
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• 2002

Damage to cells exposed to radiation is primarily attributed to direct effects on the structure of cellular DNA. Radiation-induced damage of pBluescript SK plasmid DNA and Escherichia coli $DH5\alpha$ were examined in the presence of various branched oligosaccharides, polysaccharides, and/or 8-MOP (8-methoxypsoralen). Branched oligosaccharides efficiently protected DNA and cells exposed to ultrasoft X-ray and UV irradiation. In the presence of 0.2% (w/v) branched oligosaccharides and polysaccharides, DNA can be protected from damage due to W and ultrasoft X-ray by a factor of 1.3-2.1 fo1d and 3.2-8.3 fold, respectively. The protective effect of cells exposed to UV or ultrasoft X-ray was also observed by branched oligosaccharides. The combination of MOP, a photoreagent, with carbohydrates increased the protective effects for DNA and cells, compared with that of a single use of MOP or carbohydrate alone.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.99-105
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• 2005

Photo-mutagenic compounds have been known to alter skin cancer rates by acting as initiators or by affecting subsequent steps in carcinogenesis. The objectives of this study are to investigate the utility of photo-chromosomal aberration (photo-CA) assay for detecting photo-clastogens, and to evaluate its ability to predict rodent photocarcinogenicity. Photo-CA assay was performed with five test substances that demonstrated positive results in photo-carcinogenicity tests: 8-Methoxypsoralen (photoactive substance that forms DNA adducts in the presence of ultraviolet A irradiation), chlorpromazine (an aliphatic phenothiazine an alpha-adrenergic blocking agent), lomefloxacin (an antibiotic in a class of drugs called fluoroquinolones), anthracene (a tricyclic aromatic hydrocarbon a basic substance for production of anthraquinone, dyes, pigments, insecticides, wood preservatives and coating materials) and Retinoic acid (a retinoid compound closely related to vitamin A). For the best discrimination between the test substance-mediated genotoxicity and the undesirable genotoxicity caused by direct DNA absorption, a UV dose-response of the cells in the absence of the test substances was firstly analyzed. All 5 test substances showed a positive outcome in photo-CA assay, indicating that the photo-CA test is very sensitive to the photo-genotoxic effect of UV irradiation. With this limited data-set, an investigation into the predictive value of this photo-CA test for determining the photo-carcinogenicity showed that photo-CA assay has the high ability of a test to predict carcinogenicity. Therefore, the photo-CA test using mammalian cells seems to be a sensitive method to evaluate the photo-carcinogenic potential of new compounds.

• Environmental Mutagens and Carcinogens
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.6-12
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• 2005

Many compounds might become activated after absorption of UV light energy. In some cases, the resulting molecule may undergo further biological reaction of toxicological relevance related especially to the photo-carcinogenicity resulting from photo-genotoxicity. However, no regulatory requirements have been issued with the exception of guideline issued by the Scientific Committee of Cosmetology, Commission of the European Communities (SCC/EEC) on the testing of sunscreens for their photo-genotoxicity. Thus, the objectives of this study are to investigate the utility of photo-Ames assay for detecting photo-mutagens, and to evaluate its ability to predict rodent photo-carcinogenicity. Photo-Ames assay was performed on five test substances that demonstrated positive results in photo-carcinogenicity tests: 8-methoxypsoralen (photoactive substance that forms DNA adducts in the presence of ultraviolet A irradiation), chlorpromazine (an aliphatic phenothiazine an a-adr-energic blocking agent), lomefloxacin (an antibiotic in a class of drugs called fluoroquinolones), anthracene (a tricyclic aromatic hydrocarbon a basic substance for production of anthraquinone, dyes, pigments, insecticides, wood preservatives and coating materials) and retinoic acid (a retinoid compound closely related to vitamin A). Out of 5 test substances, 3 showed a positive outcome in photo-Ames assay. With this limited data set, an investigation into the predictive value of this photo-Ames test for determining the photo-carcinogenicity showed that photo-Ames assay has relatively low sensitivity (the ability of a test to predict carcinogenicity). Thus, to determine the use of in vitro genotoxicity tests for prediction of carcinogenicity,' several standard photo-genotoxicity assays should be compared for their suitability in detecting photo-genotoxic compounds.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.211-216
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• 2011

Herbal medicines are widely used in many countries for the treatment of many diseases. Although the use of herb extracts as alternative medicine is growing, their toxicological properties have not been thoroughly investigated. In this study, we have investigated the effects of water and ethanol extracts of 18 herbs on the hepatic lipid metabolism and steatogenic hepatotoxicity. Ethanol extracts of Cirsium japonicum, Carthamus tinctorius, Rehmanniae glutinosa (preparata), Polygala tenuifolia, Foeniculum vulgare, Polygonum multiflorum, and Acorus gramineus and water extracts of Polygonum multiflorum and Rehmanniae glutinosa induced lipid accumulation in Sk-hep1 human hepatoma cells as determined by Nile red staining. These extracts increased the luciferase activity of sterol regulatory element (SRE) and decreased that of peroxisome proliferator response element (PPRE), indicating the possibilities of enhanced fatty acid synthesis and decreased fatty acid oxidation. To identify the components responsible for the fat accumulation, we tested 50 chemicals isolated from the nine herbs. Apigenin, luteolin, pectolinarin and lupeol from Cirsium japonicum, 8-methoxypsoralen and umbelliferone from Foeniculum vulgare and pomonic acid and jiocerebroside from Rehmanniae glutinosa significantly increased the accumulation of lipid droplets. These results suggest that ethanol extracts of Cirsium japonicum, Carthamus tinctorius, Rehmanniae glutinosa (preparata), Polygala tenuifolia, Foeniculum vulgare, Polygonum multiflorum, and Acorus gramineus and water extracts of Polygonum multiflorum and Rehmanniae glutinosa can cause fatty liver disease by decreasing ${\beta}$-oxidation of fatty acid and increasing lipogenesis.