• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.215-224
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• 2009

Objectives : Atopic dermatitis is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by typically distributed eczematous skin lesion with pruritus, lichenification and dry skin. In this study, we performed to assess the therapeutic effects of co-treatment of Chenilyeomgamibang (CGB) and Chenggihaedok-san (CHS, C&C) on the TNCB(trinitrochlorobenzene)-induced atopic dermatitis in NC/Nga mice, characterized by the onset of atopic dermatitis along with an increase the number of inflammatory cells and dysregulation of Th2 cytokines. Methods : Defined amount of CGB was sprayed on mice skin and CHS was simultaneously orally administrated to TNCB treated NC/Nga mice for 5 weeks. The immune cell types were caracterized by flow cytometry using each specific antibody. The amount of Th2 cytokines in serum and splenocytes culture supernatant were measured by ELISA. Results : Administration of C&C significantly reduced clinical dermatitis severity including pruritus, edema, eczematous and erythema. Histological findings indicated that the thickening of epidermis/dermis and dermal infiltration of inflammatory cells were dramatically reduced. Flow cytometry analysis showed that infiltrated immune cell numbers of CCR3+, B220+/IgE+, Gr-1+/CD11b+, and CD117+ were significantly reduced in C&C-treated dorsal skin lesion. Furthermore, T cell composition rate in PBMC was also dramatically decreased by the treatment. C&C greatly down-regulated production of Th2 cytokines including IL-4, IL-5, IL-13 in the serum. The down- regulatory effects of C&C on these Th2 cytokines production were also detected in CD3/ CD28 activated splenocytes. Conclusions : These results indicated that C&C is a plausible therapeutic agent for treatment of atopic dermatitis through regulating the Th2 skewed immune system.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.34 no.8
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• pp.576-587
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• 2024

In this study, diverse bacterial strains were isolated from fermented foods to screen those with antibacterial activity. Among them, one strain, identified as Bacillus vallismortis MCBL 1012 through 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis, was selected for its bacteriocin production. The culture supernatant of B. vallismortis MCBL 1012 showed antibacterial activity, mainly against Gram-positive bacteria. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that bacteriocin treatment led to cellular content leakages in Listeria monocytogenes KCCM 40307, Enterococcus faecium KCCM 12118, and Streptococcus mutans KCTC 3065. PCR analysis confirmed B. vallismortis MCBL 1012 harbored subtilosin A gene (sbo A). Antibacterial activity was decreased by proteolytic enzymes like proteinase K, subtilisin A, and α-chymotrypsin. The bacteriocin demonstrated stability at 40℃ and 60℃ for 120 min, and up to 80℃ for 60 min, with rapid activity loss at 100℃. It retained full antibacterial activity within a pH range of 4.0 to 8.0 and was not affected by up to 100% organic solvents like ethanol, methanol, acetonitrile, and tetrahydrofuran. Nevertheless, activity decreased with more than 40% isopropanol and 80% acetone. Most tested inorganic salts and detergents had no effect on antibacterial activity except, CuSO₄ and NiSO₄ at specified concentrations. The bacteriocin exerted its antibacterial effect through bactericidal action against L. monocytogenes KCCM 40307. The bacteriocin was purified by ammonium sulfate precipitation, DEAE anion exchange chromatography, and RP-HPLC. The purification resulted in a final yield of 0.03% and a 283.7-fold increase in specific activity. MALDI-TOF MS analysis determined the exact molecular weight of purified bacteriocin to be 3,326.1 Da.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.223-235
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• 2000

Background: Liquid ventilation is associated with decreased inflammatory response in an injured lung. This study was performed to investigate if whether perfluorocarbon(PFC) can decrease chemokine expression in airway epithelial cells. Methods: A549 cells were used for airway epithelial cells and perfluorodecalin for PFC. To expose cells to PFC, lower chamber of Transwell$^{(R)}$plate was used. This study was performed in two parts. In the first part, we examined whether PFC could decrease chemokine expression in airway epithelial cells through inhibition of other inflammatory cells. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells(PBMC's) were isolated and stimulated with lipopolysaccharide(LPS, 10 ${\mu}g/mL$) for 24 hours with or without exposure to PFC. Then A549 cells were stimulated with conditioned media(CM) containing the culture supernatants of PBMC. After 24 hours, the expressions of interleukin-8(IL-8) and RANTES were measured. In the second part of the study, we studied whether PFC could directly suppress chemokine expression in airway epithelial cells. A549 cells were stimulated for 24 hours with interleukin-l$\beta$ and/or tumor necrosis factor-$\alpha$ with or without exposure to PFC, and then the chemokine expression was measured. Northern analysis was used to measure the mRNA expression, and ELISA was used for immunoreactive protein measurements in culture supernatant. Results: 1. IL-8 and RANTES mRNA expression and immunoreactive protein production were increased significantly by CM from LPS-stimulated PBMC in A459 cells compared to with CM from unstimulated PBCM (p<0.05), but exposure of PFC had no significant effect on either mRNA expression or immunoreactive protein expression. 2. IL-8 and RANTES mRNA expression and immunoreactive protein production were increased significantly by IL-1$\beta$ and TNF-$\alpha$ in A549 cells(p<0.05), but exposure of PFC had no significant effect on neither either mRNA expression nor immunoreactive protein production. Conclusion : Decreased chemokine expression of airway epithelial cells may not be involved in decreased inflammatory response observed in liquid ventilation. Further studies on possible mechanisms of decreased inflammatory response are warranted.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.107-113
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• 1994

Among the currently recognized pathogenic vibrios, V. vulnificus and V. cholerae non O1 are the most serious bacteria from the point of view of sea food hygiene in Korea. In this paper, the authors compared the hemolytic activities of the crude hemolysin produced by V. vulnificus and V. cholerae non O1 isolated from shellfish collected in Chungmoo, Korea. The authors also attempted to improve the purification method of V. vulnificus hemolysin(VVH) and tried to make antiserum with the purified hemolysin. VVH was produced in abundance in heart infusion broth containing $2\%$ NaCl in a shaking cultivation process(140rpm) at $37^{\circ}C$ for 15 hours. While hemolysin production patterns of V. cholerae non O1 were quite different by the strain during the culture times compared with the V. vulnificus. Hemolytic activity of the VVH on sheep erythrocytes was stronger than those of rabbit, but hemolytic activities of the hemolysin produced by V. cholerae non O1 on rabbit erythrocytes were as much as twice as strong as on those of sheep and horse. VVH was purified by two steps of hydrophobic column chromatography on Phenyl-Sepharose HP with Fast Protein Liquid Chromatography(FPLC). Purification fold and yield of VVH was much improved by changing the elution buffer's pH from 6.0 to 9.8 and adding $1\%$ CHAPS(a zwitter ionic detergent) and $50\%$ ethylene glycol to the 10mM glycine buffer during the repeated hydrophobic column chromatography. Homogeneity of the purified hemolysin was shown by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. According to the five times repeated purification results, the specific activity was increased 27500 times and the yield was improved by $23.4\%$ on average. About $250{\mu}g$ of purified hemolysin was harvested from the 2400ml of culture supernatant of V. vulnificus. Molecular weight of VVH was estimated to be 50KDa by the SDS-PAGE and the neutralization scores of the obtained antiserum acting against VVH were $2000{\sim}8500$.

• The Korean Journal of Mycology
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• v.26 no.2 s.85
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• pp.246-255
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• 1998

Ganoderan (GAN), an immunomodulating ${\beta}-glucan$ of G. lucidum, induces potent antitumor immunity in tumor-bearing mice. This study was set up to elucidate the ability of macrophage activation of GANs. GAN-treated Raw 264.7 macrophages showed enhanced production of nitric oxide (NO). The ability of GANs to produce NO was based on differences in chemical composition of GANs obtained from the mycelium on various carbon sources and mycelial fractionation. The highest NO production was observed in CW-AS-WS polysaccharide which was extracted from the mycelial wall. GAN-treated Raw 264.7 cells gave a 2-to 5-fold (24 hr) formation of NO levels compared with those treated with medium only. Partial removal of the protein in the extracellular GAN by TCA treatment did appreciably reduce its capacity to secrete NO. The mixture effect of GAN and LPS increased the nitric oxide secretion from RAW 264.7. The cell proliferation of GAN-treated Raw 264.7 cell tines inhibited as compared with its control. Of the culture supernatant of macrophage activated by GAN, the percentage of cytotoxicity against mouse leukemia L1210 cells was slightly dependent on the amount of NO in the culture supernatants of the activated-macrophages. These results indicate that the ${\beta}-glucan-related$ polysaccharides of the higher fungus activate macrophage and release nitric oxide. It also suggests that murine macrophages possess certain receptors for ${\beta}-anomeric$ glucans and play a critical role of ${\beta}-glucan-related$ tumor killing mechanism.

• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.51 no.8
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• pp.879-885
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• 2008

Purpose : The human lung fibroblast may act as an immunomodulatory cell by providing pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, which are important in airway remodeling. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) induces mucosal edema and angiogenesis. Thymus and activation regulated chemokine (TARC) induces selective migration of T helper 2 cells. We investigated whether human lung fibroblasts produced VEGF and TARC, and the effects were augmented with the co-culture of fibroblasts and human bronchial smooth muscle cells (HBSMC), and whether dexamethasone can inhibit the proliferation and the release of VEGF in lung fibroblasts. Methods : Human lung fibroblasts were cultured with and without HBSMC, growth-arrested in serum-deprived medium, and pretreated with dexamethasone for 16 hours. After 24-hour stimulation with platelet derived growth factor-BB (PDGF-BB) and/or transforming growth factor-${\beta}$ (TGF-${\beta}$), culture supernatant was harvested for assays of VEGF and TARC. Cell proliferation was assayed using BrdU cell proliferation ELISA kit. Results : 1) The release of VEGF was significantly increased after stimulation with TGF-${\beta}$, and its release was augmented when co-stimulated with PDGF and TGF-${\beta}$. 2) VEGF release induced by PDGF or TGF-${\beta}$ was inhibited by dexamethasone. 3) There was no synergistic effect on the release of VEGF when human lung fibroblasts were co-cultured with HBSMC. 4) Dexamethasone did not suppress human lung fibroblasts proliferations. 5) Neither TGF-${\beta}$ nor PDGF induced TARC release from lung fibroblasts. Conclusion : Human lung fibroblasts may modulate airway remodeling by release of VEGF, but they have no synergistic effects when co-cultured with HBSMC. Dexamethasone suppresses VEGF release, not proliferation of lung fibroblast.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.303-310
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• 2008

Bovine blood, cell, tissue, and organ are used as raw materials for manufacturing biologics such as biopharmaceuticals, tissue-engineered products, and cell therapy. Manufacturing processes for the biologics have the risk of viral contamination. Therefore viral validation is essential in ensuring the safety of the products. Bovine parainfluenza virus type 3 (BPIV3) is one of the common bovine pathogens and has widely been known as a contaminant of biologics. In order to establish the validation system for the BPIV3 safety of biologics, a real-time RT-PCR method was developed for quantitative detection of BPIV3 contamination in raw materials, manufacturing processes, and final products. Specific primers for amplification of BPIV3 RNA was selected, and BPIV3 RNA was quantified by use of SYBR Green I. The sensitivity of the assay was calculated to be 2.8 $TCID_{50}/mL$. The real-time RT-PCR method was validated to be reproducible and very specific to BPIV3. The established real-time RT-PCR assay was successfully applied to the validation of Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cell artificially infected with BPIV3. BPIV3 RNA could be quantified in CHO cell as well as culture supernatant. Also the real-time RT-PCR assay could detect 7.8 $TCID_{50}/mL$ of BPIV3 artificially contaminated in bovine collagen. The overall results indicated that this rapid, specific, sensitive, and robust assay can be reliably used for quantitative detection of BPIV3 contamination during the manufacture of biologics.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.59 no.2
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• pp.186-192
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• 2005

Background : Diagnosis of tuberculous pleurisy is sometimes difficult using conventional diagnostic methods. We have investigated the utility of pleural fluid cell $IFN-{\gamma}$ production assay in the diagnosis of tuberculous pleurisy. Methods : We prospectively performed pleural fluid cell $IFN-{\gamma}$ production assay in 39 patients with tuberculous pleural effusions (TPE) and in 26 patients with nontuberculous pleural effusions (NTPE) (13 malignant pleural effusions and 13 parapneumonic effusions). Pleural fluid cells were cultured in DMEM media and stimulated with purified protein derivatives (PPD), and phytohemagglutinin (PHA) for 24 hr. The amount of $IFN-{\gamma}$ released in the culture supernatant was quantitated by $IFN-{\gamma}$ ELISA assay. We have also measured adenosine deaminase (ADA) activities and $IFN-{\gamma}$ concentrations in the pleural fluid. Results : 1) The pleural fluid levels of ADA activity and $IFN-{\gamma}$ concentrations were significantly higher in TPE than NTPE (p<0.01). 2) $IFN-{\gamma}$ production in TPE cells stimulated by PPD ($755,266{\pm}886,636pg/ml$) was significantly higher than NTPE cells ($3,509{\pm}6,980pg/ml$) (p<0.01). By considering the fact that $IFN-{\gamma}$ concentrations over 10,000 pg/ml is a criteria for the diagnosis of TBE, sensitivity and specificity of the test were 97.4 and 92.3%, respectively. 3) The ratios of $IFN-{\gamma}$ production by the stimulation with PPD and PHA (PPD/PHA) were significantly higher in TPE cells ($59{\pm}85$) than NTPE cells ($5{\pm}18$)(p<0.01). Considering the criteria for the diagnosis of TBE as PPD/PHA ratio over 5, sensitivity and specificity of the test were 76.9 and 92.3%, respectively. Conclusion : Pleural fluid cell $IFN-{\gamma}$ production assay may be useful for the diagnosis of tuberculous pleurisy.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.31-35
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• 2010

This study was designed to evaluate anti-diabetes effect of Helianthus tuberosus extract (HT) in HIT-T15 cells. There were 5 experimental groups according to treatment NC (0 ${\muL/mL$), HT2 (1.1 ${\muL/mL$), HT3 (1.5 ${\muL/mL$), IN2 (1.8 ${\muL/mL$), IN3 (2.5 ${\muL/mL$). Inulin (IN) was used as a positive control for the Helianthus tuberosus extract groups. Cell viability was significantly increased in the HT3 (1.5 ${\muL/mL$), IN2 (1.8 ${\muL/mL$), IN3 (2.5 ${\muL/mL$) groups, compared with the NC group. There was no significant difference in cytotoxicity among all groups. Cell survival by MTT assay with alloxan was significantly increased in the HT2 (1.1 ${\muL/mL$), HT3 (1.5 ${\muL/mL$) groups, compared with the NC group. Insulin secretion and NAD+/NADH ratio were significantly increased in the HT3 group, compared with the NC group. We found that Helianthus tuberosus extract increased cell viability, had a protective effect on $\beta$-cells, and increased insulin secretion level and $NAD^+$/NADH ratio in HIT-T15 cells. These results suggest that Helianthus tuberosus extract improves the diabetes-related factors.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.48 no.6
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• pp.907-920
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• 2006

This study was conducted to investigate the inhibitory activity of Lactobacillus spp., Bacillus ssp., and calf fecal isolates against pathogenic Salmonella typhimurium, E. coli, Listeria monocytogenes, and Staphylococcus aureus. Among thirteen strains of Lactobacillus ssp. tested, Lactobacillus helveticus CU631 showed the highest inhibition against three pathogens, whereas Bacillus spp. showed a weak inhibitory activity. Four calf fecal isolates were identified as Lactobacillus pentosus CU13, CU05, Pediococcus pentosaceus CUR02, and Lactobacillus lactis ssp. lactis CUM14. The whole cell and cell wall components of L. rhamnosus CU02 and L. pentosus CU13 were active in the inhibition of L. monocytogenes. The medium components and levels, which affect on the inhibitory activity, were revealed as Tween 80 1.0%, peptone 3.0%, yeast extract 3.0%, glucose 3.0%, beef extract 3.0%, and NaCl 1.0～3.0%, respectively. Inhibitory activity of the supernatant culture medium was not affected by catalase and proteinase K treatment but affected by heat treatment at 80℃ and netralization, which implies that the inhibitory activity is due to the production of organic acids during the growth. L. pentosus CU13 and L. rhamnosus CU02 exhibited broad inhibition spectrum against 16 out of 21 strains including some pathogens. Oral administration of L. rhamnosus CU02 to the mice infected with E. coli O157:H7 was proven to be effective to recover their body weight during the experimental period.