• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.1-6
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• 2012

Background: Curcumin has been reported to have anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antiviral, antifungal, antitumor, and antinociceptive activity when administered systemically. We investigated the analgesic efficacy of intrathecal curcumin in a rat model of inflammatory pain. Methods: Male Sprague Dawley rats were prepared for intrathecal catheterization. Pain was evoked by injection of formalin solution (5%, $50{\mu}l$) into the hind paw. Curcumin doses of 62.5, 125, 250, and $500{\mu}g$were delivered through an intrathecal catheter to examine the flinching responses. The $ED_{50}$ values (half-maximal effective dose) with 95% confidence intervals of curcumin for both phases of the formalin test were calculated from the dose-response lines fitted by least-squares linear regression on a log scale. Results: In rats with intrathecal administration of curcumin, the flinching responses were significantly decreased in both phases. The slope of the regression line was significantly different from zero only in phase 2, and the $ED_{50}$ value (95% confidence interval) of curcumin was $511.4{\mu}g$ (23.5-1126.5). There was no apparent abnormal behavior following the administration of curcumin. Conclusions: Intrathecal administration of curcumin decreased inflammatory pain in rats, and further investigation to elucidate the precise mechanism of spinal action of curcumin is warranted.

• Mass Spectrometry Letters
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.200-205
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• 2021

Polynemoraline C, a pyridocoumarin alkaloid, exhibits anticholinergic, anti-inflammatory, antitumor, and antimicrobial activities. A sensitive analytical method of polynemoraline C in mouse plasma was developed and validated using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Polynemoraline C and ¹³C-caffeine (internal standard) in mouse plasma were extracted using a liquid-liquid extraction method coupled with ethyl acetate. This extraction method resulted in high and reproducible extraction recovery in the range of 73.49%-77.31% with no interfering peaks around the peak retention time of polynemoraline C and ¹³C-caffeine. The standard calibration curves for polynemoraline C were linear over the range of 0.5-200 ng/mL with r² > 0.985. The accuracy, precision, and the stability of the data were within acceptable limits on the FDA guideline. After intravenous and oral administration of polynemoraline C at doses of 5 and 30 mg/kg, respectively, the present method was successfully applied to the pharmacokinetic study of polynemoraline C. Polynemoraline C in mouse plasma showed a multi-exponential elimination pattern with a high volume of distribution values. This compound's absolute oral bioavailability was found to be 17.0%. Polynemoraline C's newly developed LC-MS/MS method can be used for further studies on the efficacy, toxicity, and biopharmaceutics of polynemoraline C, as well as its pharmacokinetic studies.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.27-31
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• 2021

Shea butter (Vitellaria paradoxa) is a fat extracted from shea tree nuts and contains relatively high levels of non-glycerides. Triterpenes, the main non-glyceride component, exhibit a variety of biological activities such as antitumor, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory. Shea butter extract (SBE) has been used to treat various skin problems such as burns, eczema, and rash in human medicine, but little is known about the activity of SBE on canine skin. This study evaluated the cytotoxicity and anti-inflammatory effect of SBE in canine keratinocytes. Cytotoxicity of lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 5-50 ng/mL) and SBE (50-200 ㎍/mL) was evaluated using the CCK-8 assay. Non-cytotoxic concentrations of LPS and SBE were administered to canine cell cultures to evaluate anti-inflammatory effects. To evaluate the anti-inflammatory activity of SBE, the levels of IL-1β, IL-8, IL-12, and TNF-α were measured using ELISA kits. The concentration of each cytokine was quantified in control, LPS-treated, LPS + SBE-treated groups. Increased levels of IL-1β, IL-8, and IL-12 were found in LPS-treated groups relative to control groups. LPS + SBE-treated groups showed a lower level of IL-1β, IL-8, and IL-12 than LPS-treated groups. These results suggest that SBE may have application as a topical agent for canine inflammatory skin diseases. However, further in vivo study is needed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of SBE in dogs.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.21-26
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• 2021

Background: Pharmacogenomics is the study of how genetic mutations in patients affect their response to drugs. Pharmacogenomic studies aim to maximize drug effects and minimize adverse drug events. The Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicine Agency published guidelines for pharmacogenetics in 2005 and 2006, respectively; the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety followed suit in 2015. Methods: This study analyzed pharmacogenomic information in the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety's integrated drug information system to evaluate whether domestic pharmaceutical products reflect the current research on pharmacogenomic differences. Results: In June 2020, the Korean pharmacogenomic database contained genomic data on 90 compounds. Of these, 45 compounds were classified as "Antineoplastic and immunomodulating agents." The other 45 non-antineoplastic agents were in the following categories: Anti-infectives, Mental & behavior disorder, Hormone & metabolism related diseases, Cardiovascular system, Skin & subcutaneous tissue disease, Genito-urinary system and sex hormones, Blood and blood forming organs, Nervous system, Alimentary tract and metabolism, Musculo-skeletal system, and Other conditions including the respiratory system. In addition, 30 additives unrelated to the main ingredient were associated with genetic precautions. Conclusion: This study showed that antineoplastic and immunomodulating agents accounted for half the drugs associated with pharmacogenetic information. For antitumor and immunomodulatory drugs, genomic tests were recommended depending on the indication; this was in contrast to genomic testing recommendations for non-antineoplastic medications. Genomic tests were rarely requested or recommended for non-antineoplastic medications because the relationships between genotype and efficacy among those drugs were relatively weak.

• BMB Reports
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• v.55 no.11
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• pp.547-552
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• 2022

Sorafenib, originally identified as an inhibitor of multiple oncogenic kinases, induces ferroptosis in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells. Several pathways that mitigate sorafenib-induced ferroptosis confer drug resistance; thus strategies that enhance ferroptosis increase sorafenib efficacy. Orphan nuclear receptor estrogen-related receptor γ (ERRγ) is upregulated in human HCC tissues and plays a role in cancer cell proliferation. The aim of this study was to determine whether inhibition of ERRγ with DN200434, an orally available inverse agonist, can overcome resistance to sorafenib through induction of ferroptosis. Sorafenib-resistant HCC cells were less sensitive to sorafenibinduced ferroptosis and showed significantly higher ERRγ levels than sorafenib-sensitive HCC cells. DN200434 induced lipid peroxidation and ferroptosis in sorafenib-resistant HCC cells. Mechanistically, DN200434 increased mitochondrial ROS generation by reducing glutathione/glutathione disulfide levels, which subsequently reduced mTOR activity and GPX4 levels. DN200434 induced amplification of the antitumor effects of sorafenib was confirmed in a tumor xenograft model. The present results indicate that DN200434 may be a novel therapeutic strategy to re-sensitize HCC cells to sorafenib.

• BMB Reports
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• v.55 no.10
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• pp.506-511
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• 2022

Advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is among the most challenging cancers to overcome, and there is a need for better therapeutic strategies. Among the different cancer drugs that have been used in clinics, sorafenib is considered the standard first-line drug for advanced HCC. Here, to identify a chemical compound displaying a synergistic effect with sorafenib in HCC, we screened a focused chemical library and found that MG149, a histone acetyltransferase inhibitor targeting the MYST family, exhibited the most synergistic anticancer effect with sorafenib on HCC cells. The combination of sorafenib and MG149 exerted a synergistic anti-proliferation effect on HCC cells by inducing apoptotic cell death. We revealed that cotreatment with sorafenib and MG149 aggravated endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress to promote the death of HCC cells rather than adaptive cell survival. In addition, combined treatment with sorafenib and MG149 significantly increased the intracellular levels of unfolded proteins and reactive oxygen species, which upregulated ER stress. Collectively, these results suggest that MG149 has the potential to improve the efficacy of sorafenib in advanced HCC via the upregulation of cytotoxic ER stress.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.200-209
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• 2023

Patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) amplification or sensitive mutations initially respond to the tyrosine kinase inhibitor gefitinib, however, the treatment becomes less effective over time by resistance mechanism including mesenchymal-epithelial transition (MET) overexpression. A therapeutic strategy targeting MET and EGFR may be a means to overcoming resistance to gefitinib. In the present study, we found that picropodophyllotoxin (PPT), derived from the roots of Podophyllum hexandrum, inhibited both EGFR and MET in NSCLC cells. The antitumor efficacy of PPT in gefitinib-resistant NSCLC cells (HCC827GR), was confirmed by suppression of cell proliferation and anchorage-independent colony growth. In the targeting of EGFR and MET, PPT bound with EGFR and MET, ex vivo, and blocked both kinases activity. The binding sites between PPT and EGFR or MET in the computational docking model were predicted at Gly772/Met769 and Arg1086/Tyr1230 of each ATP-binding pocket, respectively. PPT treatment of HCC827GR cells increased the number of annexin V-positive and subG1 cells. PPT also caused G2/M cell-cycle arrest together with related protein regulation. The inhibition of EGFR and MET by PPT treatment led to decreases in the phosphorylation of the downstream-proteins, AKT and ERK. In addition, PPT induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and GRP78, CHOP, DR5, and DR4 expression, mitochondrial dysfunction, and regulated involving signal-proteins. Taken together, PPT alleviated gefitinib-resistant NSCLC cell growth and induced apoptosis by reducing EGFR and MET activity. Therefore, our results suggest that PPT can be a promising therapeutic agent for gefitinib-resistant NSCLC.

• BMB Reports
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• v.57 no.2
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• pp.71-78
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• 2024

Melanoma is one of the most aggressive skin tumors, and conventional treatment modalities are not effective in treating advanced melanoma. Although immunotherapy is an effective treatment for melanoma, it has disadvantages, such as a poor response rate and serious systemic immune-related toxic side effects. The main solution to this problem is the use of biological materials such as hydrogels to reduce these side effects and amplify the immune killing effect against tumor cells. Hydrogels have great advantages as local slow-release drug carriers, including the ability to deliver antitumor drugs directly to the tumor site, enhance the local drug concentration in tumor tissue, reduce systemic drug distribution and exhibit good degradability. Despite these advantages, there has been limited research on the application of hydrogels in melanoma treatment. Therefore, this article provides a comprehensive review of the potential application of hydrogels in melanoma immunotherapy. Hydrogels can serve as carriers for sustained drug delivery, enabling the targeted and localized delivery of drugs with minimal systemic side effects. This approach has the potential to improve the efficacy of immunotherapy for melanoma. Thus, the use of hydrogels as drug delivery vehicles for melanoma immunotherapy has great potential and warrants further exploration.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.2355-2359
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• 2015

Background: Combination chemotherapy of 5 fluorouracil (5-FU) and leucovorin (LV) with oxaliplatin, mainly FOLFOX regimens, has shown considerable antitumor activity and a tolerable toxicity profile in gastric cancer. The goal of this study was to retrospectively compare the efficacy and toxicity of modified FOLFOX-6 (mFOLFOX6) regimen in advanced gastric cancer (AGC) patients with good and poor performance status (PS). Materials and Methods: AGC patients receiving the mFOLFOX6 regimen including oxaliplatin $85mg/m^2$, bolus of 5-FU $400mg/m^2$ and LV $400mg/m^2$ on the first day, followed by $2400mg/m^2$ of 5- FU as a continious infusion over 46 hour for first-line treatment were eligible for the study. Results: A total 58 patients with a median age of 59.5 (32-81) were included. The median follow up of the study was 9.2 months. Thirty patients (51.7%) with an ECOG PS 0-1 were assigned to the good PS arm, while 28 patients (48.3%) with ECOG PS 2 were in the poor PS arm. Overall response rates were 36.6 and 28.8%, respectively (p=0.91). Median PFS was 6.7 and 6.3 months in good PS and poor PS arms (p=0.50) and median OS was 9.6 and 10.4 months (p=0.55). As compared with good PS arm, poor PS arm was associated with more grade 3-4 neutropenia and anemia. Dose reduction and dose delays were also significantly higher. Conclusions: In this study, mFOLFOX6 was similarly effective in both arms. Although hematologic toxicity was significantly higher in patients with poor PS, it remained manageable. Our results suggest that this regimen may be an effective treatment option for AGC patients with poor PS.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.15
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• pp.6359-6364
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• 2015

Background: Preclinical studies have shown that the combination of an aromatase inhibitor (AI) and capecitabine in estrogen receptor (ER)- positive cell lines enhance antitumor efficacy. This retrospective analysis of a group of patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) evaluated the efficacy and safety of combined AI with capecitabine. Materials and Methods: Patients with hormone receptor-positive metastatic breast cancer treated between 1st January 2005 and 31st December 2010 with a combination of capecitabine and AI were evaluated and outcomes were compared with those of women treated with capecitabine in conventional dose or AI as a monotherapy. Results: Of 72 patients evaluated, 31 received the combination treatment, 22 AI and 19 capecitabine. The combination was used in 20 patients as first-line and 11 as second-line treatment. Mean age was 46.2 years with a range of 28-72 years. At the time of progression, 97% had a performance status of <2 and 55% had visceral disease. No significant difference was observed between the three groups according to clinical and pathological features. Mean follow up was 38 months with a range of 16-66 months. The median PFS of first-line treatment was significantly better for the combination (PFS 21 months vs 8.0 months for capecitabine and 15.0 months for AI). For second-line treatment, the PFS was longer in the combination compared with capecitabine and Al groups (18 months vs. 5.0 months vs. 11.0 months, respectively). Median 2 year and 5 year survival did not show any significant differences among combination and monotherapy groups. The most common adverse events for the combination group were grade 1 and 2 hand-for syndrome (69%), grade 1 fatigue (64%) and grade 1 diarrhoea (29%). Three grade 3 hand-foot syndrome events were reported. Conclusions: Combination treatment with capecitabine and AI used as a first line or second line treatment was safe with much lowered toxicity. Prospective randomized clinical trials should evaluate the use of combination therapy in advanced breast cancer to confirm these findings.