• Korean Journal of Oriental Medicine
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.143-157
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• 2010

Objectives : The objective of this study was to access the effect of Artemisiae capillaris herba Extracts on the organogenetic reproductive toxicity of New Zealand White rabbits when administered by oral gavage. Methods : Gestational New Zealand White rabbits were dosed from 6 days of gestation to 18 days of gestation. It was conducted in accordance with the recommendations of the KFDA Guideline for Detection of Toxicity to Reproduction for Medicinal Products. In addition, serum AST, ALT, LDH and ALP levels were detected with their necropsy and histopathological observation Results: No significant changes of body weights, gains and food consumption were demonstrated in all dosed groups compared to those of vehicle control group except for 2,000mg/kg-dosing group, which showed significantly increase of body weight compared to that of vehicle control group. Normal gross findings were demonstrated in all tested groups. No significant changes of number of corpora lutea, implantation, implantation rate, number of fetal death, loss rate of post-implantation, number of live youngs at C-section, survival rate of post-implantation, number of male live youngs at C-section, number of female live youngs, sex ratio of live young, external anomalies of live youngs and body weight of live youngs were demonstrated in all dosed groups compared to those of vehicle control group. Although some visceral variations such as thymic reminant in the neck, dilation of renal pelvis, dilated ureter and malpositioned left common carotid artery, no significant changes were demonstrated in all dosed groups compared to that of vehicle control group. Some malformations and variation were demonstrated with retardations. However, no significant changes were demonstrated in all dosed groups compared to that of vehicle control group. In addition, similar ossification numbers were detected in sternebrae, metacarpals, metatarsals, phalanges, cervical vertebrae, and sacral and caudal vertebrae. No Artemisiae capillaris herba Extracts treatment-related changes of serum AST, ALT, LDH and ALP levels were demonstrated in all dosed levels in this study. Conclusions : We could conclude that oral administration of Artemisiae capillaris herba Extracts hasn't an influence on the organogenetic reproductive toxicity.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.141-154
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• 2003

Objectives : This study was undertaken to define the effect of Diospyros kaki L. Radix or Diospyros kaki L. Folium on phenylephrine-induced arterial contraction and the mechanism of Diospyros kaki L. Radix or Diospyros kaki L. Foliuminduced relaxation. Methods : In order to investigate the effect of Diospyros kaki L. Radix or Diospyros kaki L. Folium on contracted rabbit carotid arterial strips, transverse strips with intact or damaged endothelium were used for the experiment using organ bath. Diospyros kaki L. Radix or Diospyros kaki L. Folium extract was infused into contracted arterial strips induced by phenylephrine. To analyze the mechanism of Diospyros kaki L. Radix or Diospyros kaki L. Folium-induced relaxation, Diospyros kaki L. Radix or Diospyros kaki L. Folium extract was infused into contracted arterial strips induced by phenylephrine after treatment with indomethacin, $N{\omega}-nitro-L-arginine$, methylene blue or tetraethylammonium chloride, and $Ca^{2+}$ was infused into contracted arterial strips induced by phenylephrine after treatment of Diospyros kaki L. Radix or Diospyros kaki L. Folium in a $Ca^{2+}$-free solution. Results : Diospyros kaki L. Radix or Diospyros kaki L. Folium showed relaxation effect on arterial strip with endothelium contracted by phenylephrine, but in the strips without endothelium, Diospyros kaki L. Radix or Diospyros kaki L. Folium-induced relaxation was significantly inhibited. The endothelium-dependent relaxation induced by Diospyros kaki L. Radix or Diospyros kaki L. Folium was decreased by pretreatment with $N{\omega}-nitro-L-arginine$ or methylene blue but it was not observed in the strips pretreated with indomethacin or tetraethylammonium chloride. When $Ca^{2+}$ was applied to the strips which were contracted by phenylephrine in a $Ca^{2+}$-free solution, arterial contraction was increased. However, pretreatment with Diospyros kaki L. Radix or Diospyros kaki L. Folium inhibited contractile response to $Ca^{2+}$. Conclusions : Diospyros kaki L. Radix or Diospyros kaki L. Folium may suppress influx of extra- cellular $Ca^{2+}$ through the formation of nitric oxide in the vascular endothelial cells.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.98-105
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• 2009

Objective: Increased aortic and carotid arterial augmentation index (AI) is associated with the risk of cardiovascular disease. The most widely used approach for determining central arterial AI is by calculating the aortic pressure waveform from radial arterial waveforms using a transfer function. But how the change of waveform by applied pressure and the pattern of the change rely on subject's characteristics has not been recognized. In this study, we use a new method for measuring radial waveform and observe the change of waveform and the deviation of radial AI in the same position by applied pressure. Method: Forty-six non-patient volunteers (31 men and 15 women, age range 21-58 years) were enrolled for this study. Informed consent in a form approved by the institutional review board was obtained in all subjects. Blood pressure was measured on the left upper arm using an oscillometric method, radial pressure waves were recorded with the use of an improved automated tonometry device. DMP-3000(DAEYOMEDI Co., Ltd. Ansan, Korea) has robotics mechanism to scan and trace automatically. For each subject, we performed the procedure 5 times for each applied pressure level. We could thus obtain 5 different radial pulse waveforms for the same person's same position at different applied pressures. All these processes were repeated twice for test reproducibility. Result: Aortic AI, peripheral AI and radial AI were higher in women than in men (P<0.01), radial AI strongly correlated with aortic AI, and radial AI was consistently approximately 39% higher than aortic AI. Relationship between representative radial AI of DMP-3000 and peripheral AI of SphygmoCor had strongly correlation. And there were three patterns in change of pulse waveform. Conclusion: In this study, it is revealed the new device was sufficient to measure how radial AI and radial waveform from the same person at the same time change under applied pressure and it had inverse-proportion to applied pressure.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.93-96
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• 2005

Neurofibromatosis type I is an autosomal dominant disorder with varied manifestations in bone, soft tissue, the nervous system and skin. This is characterized by cafe-au-lait spots, neurofibromas, Lisch nodules, optic glioma, bony displasia, and intertriginous freckling. One of the more serious aspect of the disease relates to the arterial involvement. Vascular changes in neurofibromatosis may occur in any arterial tree from the proximal aorta to the small arteries but these changes are most common in the renal arteries, aorta, celiac arteries and mesenteric arteries. Of the many complications observed in neurofibromatosis type I, cerebrovascular lesions may be the least appreciated. About 40 cases of neurofibromatosis type I associated with occlusive cerebrovascular disorders have been reported in the literature, but MRI and angiographic findings typical of moyamoya disease are rarely described. We experienced a case of moyamoya disease associated with neurofibromatosis type I in a 3-year-old girl who of complained gait disturbance and paraparesis and showed findings typical of moyamoya disease on MRI and carotid angiogram.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.47-52
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• 1986

A noninvasive procedure for diagnosis and quantitation of right-to-left intracardiac shunts will enhance the management of patients with cyanotic congenital heart disease. This study describes an application of radionuclide (RN) angiocardiography for quantitation of right-to-left shunt amount. Gamma variate model was fitted to radionuclide data recorded over the carotid artery. Data analysis was performed retrospectively in 35 patients who underwent cardiac catheterization within a week from the day of RN angiocardiography. Thirty one of the patient had right-to-left shunts and 4 of them had left-to-right shunts. Both the radionuclide and Fick measurements correlated well (r=0.93, 0.93, 0.89, p<0.01 in each measurements). Therefore, RN angiocardiography data may be used for accurate calculation of right-to-left shunts in cyanotic congenital heart disease patients.

• Childhood Kidney Diseases
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.114-119
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• 2002

Takayasu's arteritis(TA) is a chronic idiopathic vasculitis mainly involving the aorta and its main branches, such as brachiocephalic, carotid, subclavian, vertebral and renal arteries, as well as coronary and pulmonary arteries The clinical features usually reflect limb or organ ischemia resulting from gradual stenosis of involved arteries. We experienced a case of idiopathic Takayasu's arteritis with negative tuberculin test involving multiple main branch arteries at active stage without pulse. We treated this patient with combined therapy of steroid and azathioprine, with remission of disease activity. (J Korean Soc Pediatr Nephrol 2002 ;6 : 114-9)

• Korean Journal of Pharmacognosy
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.400-407
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• 2009

The purpose of this study is to investigate hypotensive effect of BDR-29, new herbal preparation of Cassiae Semen, Prunellae Spica, Uncariae Ramulus et Uncus, and Tribuli Semen, in stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR-SP). SHR-SP were treated with BDR-29 at a dose of 100, 200 mg/kg/day orally for 13 weeks. In the BDR-29 treat group, mean blood pressure and systolic blood pressure were significantly reduced (p<0.05). In phenylephrine-precontracted arota and carotid artery, BDR-29 induced endothelium-dependent vascular relaxation. Hematological findings and biochemical examination revealed no evidence of specific toxicity related to BDR-29. In addition, BDR-29 was markedly attenuated intima-media thickness of thoracic aorta with progression of atherosclerosis. SHR-SP were treated with BDR-29 were significantly increased eNOS expression in arota. These results indicated that BDR-29 improves blood pressure as well as initial atherosclerotic lesion.

• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.674-684
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• 2009

Objectives : In conditions of brain infarction, irreversible axon damage occurs in the central nerve system (CNS), because gliosis becomes a physical and a mechanical barrier to axonal regeneration. Reactive gliosis induced by ischemic injury such as middle cerebral artery occlusion is involved with up-regulation of GFAP and CD81. This study was undertaken to examine the effect of the Gongjin-dan (GJD) on CD81 and GFAP expression and its pathway in the rat brain following middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). Methods : In order to study ischemic injuries on the brain, infarction was induced by MCAO using insertion of a single nylon thread, through the internal carotid artery, into a middle cerebral artery. Cresyl violet staining, cerebral infarction size measurement, immunohistochemistry and microscopic examination were used to detect the expression of CD81 and GFAP and the effect on the infarct size and pyramidal cell death in the brain of the rat with cerebral infarction induced by MCAO. Also, c-Fos and ERK expression were measured to investigate the signaling pathway after GJD administration in MCAO rats. Results : Measuring the size of cerebral infarction induced by MCAO in the rat after injection of GJD showed the size had decreased. GJD administration showed pyramidal cell death protection in the hippocampus in the MCAO rat. GJD administration decreased GF AP expression in the MCAO rat. GJD administration decreased CD81 expression in the MCAO rat. GJD administration induced up-regulation of c-FOS expression compared with MCAO. GJD administration induced down-regulation of ERK expression compared with MCAO. Conclusion : We observed that GJD could suppress the reactive gliosis, which disturbs the axonal regeneration in the brain of a rat with cerebral infarction after MCAO by controlling the expression of CD81 and GFAP. The effect may be modulated by the regulation of c-Fos and ERK. These results suggest that GJD can be a candidate to regenerate CNS injury.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.538-543
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• 2004

Objective : This study investigated a neuroprotective effect of Puerariae Radix on cerebral ischemia. Method : The global cerebral ischemia was induced by bilateral common carotid arteries occlusion under hypotension (40mmHg) in Sprague-Dawley rats. After the treatment of Puerariae Radix extract, changes of c-Fos and c-Jun expressions, immediate early genes expressed by cerebral ischemia, in the hippocampus were observed immunohistochemically. Result: The results obtained are as follows; The significant increases of c-Fos and c-Jun expressions were observed in the hippocampus of the ischemic damaged rat brains. Then Puerariae Radix treatment demonstrated significant decreases of c-Fos and c-Jun expressions in CA1 region and dentate gyrus as compared with control group. On the upregulated c-Fos expression induced by cerebral ischemia, Puerariae Radix treatment demonstrated significant decreases of c-Fos expressions in CA1 region (P<0.01) and dentate gyrus (P<0.05) as compared to the control group, but there were not a significant changes in CA2 and CA3 regions of the hippocampus. On the upregulated c-Jun expression induced by cerebral ischemia, Puerariae Radix treatment demonstrated significant decrease of c-Jun expression in CA1 region (P<0.05) as compared to the control group, but there were not a significant changes in CA2, CA3, and dentate gyrus of the hippocampus. Conclusion : These results suggested that Puerariae Radix reveals the neuroprotective effect through the reduction of immediate early genes, c-Fos and c-Jun, induced by cerebral ischemia.

• Journal of Oriental Neuropsychiatry
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.123-130
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• 2013

Objectives : During several thousand years, Peucedanum Japonicum Thunberg has been considered as a vegetable side dish in Korea. There is folk knowledge that Peucedanum Japonicum Thunberg prevents vascular disease such as stroke. To identify the effects Peucedanum Japonicum Thunberg, we made up its extract and named it as KH020. Then, we employed common carotid artery ligation (CCAl) surgery for vascular dementia model (VDM), and two types doses of per os (per oral: p.o) treatment. Methods : To confirm prevention and recovery effects for vascular dementia, we treated two doses (100, 400 mg/kg) KH020 in male C57BL/6 mouse during 7 days. After treatment, animals were CCAl operated, and given time to recover. Then, animal were tested in a Y-maze and passive avoidance test. Results : Y-maze results demonstrated that cognition and memory performance were decreased in the VDM group, compared to the sham group. KH020 treatment abolished these effects significantly. The results from the passive avoidance test showed the same phenomenon, but it was not statically significant. Conclusions : Therefore, KH020 prevents the onset of vascular dementia. In future studies, we will evaluate KH020 in regard to alzheimer dementia.