• Journal of Life Science
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.329-335
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• 2014

Sophora flavescens, Glycyrrhiza uralensis and Dictamnus dasycarpus have been widely used in folk medicine for several inflammatory disorders in Korea and China. In this study, we compared the anti-inflammatory effects of the ethanol extracts of S. flavescens (EESF), G. uralensis (EEGU) and D. dasycarpus (EEDS), and their mixtures (medicinal herber mixtures, MHMIXs) on production of inflammatory mediators and cytokines in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW 264.7 murine macrophages. Our data indicated that treatment with EESF, EEGU and EEDD significantly inhibited the excessive production of pro-inflammatory mediators such as nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin $E_2$ ($PGE_2$) in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells. The ethanol extracts and MHMIXs also attenuated the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, including interleukin-$1{\beta}$ ($IL-1{\beta}$) and tumor necrosis $factor-{\alpha}$ ($TNF-{\alpha}$) by suppressing their protein expression, respectively. Interestingly, MHMIX-1, which basic ingredients are EESF, EEGU and EEDS in the proportion 3:1:1, more safely and effectively inhibits the LPS-induced inflammatory status in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages compared to ethanol extracts of each medicinal herb and other MHMIXs without causing any cytotoxic effects. Our study provides scientific evidence to support that a berbal mixture, MHMIX-1 may be useful in the treatment of inflammatory diseases by inhibiting inflammatory regulator responses in activated macrophages.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.426-431
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• 2013

With the objective of developing a functional food source, we established optimal processing conditions for the larvae of Allomyrina dichotoma, which have been used in traditional medicine to treat hepatic disorders in Korea. Without suitable processing, the larvae are difficult to consume as a food because of their disgusting taste and smell; moreover, in this form they might be a potential microbial hazard. In this study, we investigated the effect of feeding material, sterilization, and powdering after freeze-drying on the food quality of the larvae of A. dichotoma and on cytotoxicity against Raw 264.7 cells. Three to five days feeding with the sawdust from discarded oak-trees is sufficient for the breeding process. The sawdust was sterilized by vapor for five minutes. Sterilization of the larvae at a high temperature ($115^{\circ}C$ for 5 min, 0.9 $kgf/cm^2$) is necessary to eliminate pathogenic bacteria and fungi. The results of the cytotoxicity assay showed no toxicity in the prepared extract from larvae of A. dichotoma. In addition, to prepare the larvae for human consumption, various feeds were used and the smell, color, and taste were evaluated. Our results suggested that larvae of A. dichotoma could be developed as food source when a suitable processing method is established.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.26 no.10
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• pp.1169-1181
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• 2016

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of the regular Upright Body Type Excercise on posture, muscle strength of leg, lung capacity and depression of people with mental illness. The subjects of this study were recruited from B mental health center (5 years and more mental illness patients, n=19) located in P city. For the exercise group, They were carried out the Upright Body Type Excercise Program during 8 weeks (60 min/time, 3 times/week). They were randomly divided into two groups. Exercise group (n=10) and Control group (n=9). And also, they were agreed with consent forms before the experiments. Research results were as follows. Through the upper body type exercise, there was significantly difference in PEF and FEV1/FVC in the trained group. And also, there was much improved in depression level in the trained group. The change of melancholy feeling before and after the program was not statistically significant. However, because of limitations of sampling size due to the peculiarities of the program participants, in consideration of the limit of statistical validation exists clearly, intended to better understand the subjective experience of attendees, qualitative analyzing(qualitative research) was carried out in parallel. It was conducted a deep interview only person accepted among program participants, thematic analysis, subject analysis tasks to be subdivided by classifying by considering the semantic units of what participants expressed, was thus carried out. It found that the degree of melancholy feeling of mental disorders who participated in the Upright Body Typed Exercise Program was reduced. The course of the experience of change in depression appered the three subjects and six sub-themes such as "the start of the change", "interest of the program", "recognition of the need of the body’s health", "physical health promotion", "recovery of physical function", "negative change of habits (attitude)", "reduction of sense of depression", "confidence that it is possible to", "hope for the future". Therefore, upper body type exercise is much helpful in lung capacity and mental health of people with mental illness. So, this type of exercise mostly needed in the people with mental illness group than the other group for the quality of life.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.30 no.11
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• pp.983-989
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• 2020

The balance between bone-resorbing osteoclasts and bone-forming osteoblasts is key to bone health. An imbalance between osteoclasts and osteoblasts leads to various bone-related disorders, such as osteoporosis, osteomalacia, and osteopetrosis. However, the bone-resorption inhibitor drugs that are currently used may cause side effects. Natural substances have recently received much attention as therapeutic drugs for the treatment of bone health. This study was designed to determine the effect of Tenebrio molitor larvae ethanol extract (TME) on receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand (RANKL)-induced osteoclast differentiation. To measure the effect of TME on osteoclast differentiation, RAW264.7 cells were treated with RANKL with or without TME for 5 days. The tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) activity was significantly inhibited by treatment of TME without cytotoxicity up to 2 mg/ml. In addition, TME effectively suppressed expression of osteoclast differentiation-related marker genes and proteins such as TRAP, NFATc1, and c-Src. TME also significantly inhibited the p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway without affecting ERK and JNK signaling in RANKL-induced RAW264.7 cells. Consequently, we conclude that TME suppresses osteoclast differentiation by inhibiting RANKL-induced osteoclastogenic genes expression through the p38 MAPK signaling pathways. These results suggest that TME and its bioactive components are potential therapeutics for bone-related diseases such as osteoporosis.

• Journal of Genetic Medicine
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.71-75
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• 2011

A male infant was diagnosed with obstetric brachial plexus injury, congenital muscular torticollis and cleft palate 17 days after birth. His mother presented with gestational diabetes and premature rupture of membranes. Although it is possible that these three disorders arose independently, it is very likely that all three have the same etiologic cause, and we propose that a possible mechanism for this concurrence is related to maternal gestational diabetes. Maternal hyperglycemia mostly affects fetal structures deriving from the neural crest, including the palatine bone, and may have caused the cleft palate observed in this case. Gestational diabetes is also associated with increased frequency of large for gestational age infants and, by extension, with increased risk of birth injuries such as obstetric brachial plexus injury or congenital muscular torticollis associated with large for gestational age infants. Since the children of mothers with gestational diabetes are at increased risk for congenital defects such as cleft palate as well as being large for gestational age, precautions indicated for each respective disorder must be taken during prenatal testing and during birth. However, further studies of more cases are required to evaluate whether the concurrence of obstetric brachial plexus injury, congenital muscular torticollis and cleft palate in this case are complications specifically associated with gestational diabetes or just a simple coincidence.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2016

Obesity is a pro-inflammatory state that contributes to the development of metabolic disorders such as hyperlipidemia, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, non-alcoholic fatty liver, and cardiovascular disease. In this study, we evaluated the inhibition of adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 cells and in high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obese mice by Peucedanum japonicum Thunberg L. water extract (PJT). Lipid accumulation measurement indicates that PJT markedly inhibited adipogenesis in a dose-dependent manner. RT-PCR results demonstrated that the mRNA expression of adipogenic transcription factors such as peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ (PPARγ) and CCAAT/enhancer binding protein-α (C/EBPα) in 3T3-L1 cells were significantly down-regulated by PJT treatment. Oral administration of PJT (100, 300, and 500 ㎎/㎏, b.w/daily for 4 weeks) was conducted in high-fat diet induced obese mice and C57BL/6 mice. The PJT-administered group of HFD-induced mice had a lower body weight gain, along with decreased serum levels of glucose, triglycerides, and total cholesterol compared with the control mice, however, the HDL-cholesterol/total cholesterol ratio was increased. Furthermore, the elevated mRNA expression levels of adipogenesis related genes in the white adipose tissue of obese mice were significantly suppressed by PJT. These results indicate that PJT exhibits anti-obesity effects in obese mice by decreasing in serum lipid levels and lipogenesis related gene.

• Korean Journal of Psychosomatic Medicine
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.95-102
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• 2008

Objectives : Diabetes patients suffer from severe stress in maintaining the diet therapy and exercise therapy as well as the disease itself, and this stress has bad effects on controlling the glucose level and causes high prevalence rate of depressive and anxiety disorders. These symptoms again have deleterious effects on blood glucose control. A lot of researches about the relationship between glycemic control and symptoms of depression and anxiety and about the positive effects of the treatments of depression and anxiety disorder on glycemic control in diabetic patients are being performed. In Korea, the research regarding the relationship between glycemic control and depression and anxiety symptoms are seldom performed. In this study, we tried to find out the correlation between the glycemic control and depressive symptom and anxiety symptom. Methods : The study included 65 patients(male 34, female 31) with Diabetes in outpatient clinic of the Department of Endocrinology in Dankook University Hospital. We used the HbA1c levels to check glycemic control through blood sample analysis and used Beck Depression Inventory(BDI) and Beck Anxiety Inventory(BAI). Results : Among the 65 Diabetes patients, 21(32.30%) had mild depressive symptoms, and 6(9.23%) had moderate or severe depressive symptoms. The relation of HbA1c and BDI was not statistically significant, but was significant between HBA1c and BAI, (R=0.567, P<0.001). In the linear regression analysis, BAI had an effect on HbA1c($\beta=0.533$, T=5.012, P=0.00), but BDI, diabetes complications, diabetic morbid period and BMI had no effect on HbA1C. The relationship between HbA1c and BDI was not statistically significant, but the relationship between HbA1c and BAI was statistically significant(R=0.254, P<0.001). Conclusions : In this study, the rates of diabetic patients with depressive symptoms were higher, but those with anxiety symptoms were not higher than the general population. We could not find out significant relationship between depressive symptom and glycemic control, but found the significant relationship between the anxiety symptom and glycemic control in diabetic patients.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.44 no.7
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• pp.1007-1015
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• 2015

This study investigated the correlation between smartphone addiction and eating behaviors of 288 elementary school students (fifth and sixth grades) in the Ansan area. Addiction and normal groups consisted of 29 (10.1%) and 259 students (89.9%). Average usage time of the smartphone addiction group was higher than that of the normal group (P<0.001). Percentages of using a smartphone when eating meals as well as skipping meals due to using a smartphone were also higher in the addiction group than the normal group (P<0.01). Degree of reduction of physical activity and sleep disorders due to using a smartphone were higher in the addiction group than the normal group (P<0.001). However, nutritional knowledge related to protein and dietary life scored lower in the addiction group than the normal group (P<0.05). Correlation between smartphone usage time and eating behaviors was as follows: smartphone usage time on weekdays increased with elevated usage time on weekends in the addiction group (+0.742) (P<0.001) and the normal group (+0.762) (P<0.001). Frequency of snack intake in the addiction group increased with elevated usage time on weekdays (+0.460) (P<0.05). Sleeping time of the normal group decreased with elevated usage time on weekdays (-0.150) (P<0.05), and good eating behaviors decreased with elevated usage time the on weekend (-0.143) (P<0.05). Consequently, smartphone addiction in elementary school students showed negative eating behaviors. Therefore, effective nutritional education programs and national support policy are required to solve problems of unhealthy eating behaviors from smartphone usage in elementary school students.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.199-210
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• 2011

This study was conducted to develop functional sources of herbal cosmetics for treatment of skin aging and inflammatory disorders using volatile flavor extracts of four different herbal medicinal prescriptions including Cnidium officinale Makino (COM), Angelica gigas Nakai (AGN), Mentha arvense L. (MAL), Artemisiae argyi Folium (AAF), Paeonia lactiflora Pall (PLP), Rehmanniae Radix Preparata (RRP), Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi (SBG), Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer (PGM), Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch (GUF). The volatile flavor extracts of four different herbal medicinal prescriptions (HH-1: COM, AGN, PLP, RRP, HH-2: COM, AGN, PLP, RRP, SBG, PGM, GUF, HH-3: COM, AGN, MAL, AAF, HH-4: COM, AGN, MAL, AAF, SBG, PGM, GUF) were extracted using SDE and their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects were measured by using DPPH radical and SLO, respectively. As a result, HH-2 showed moderate DPPH radical scavenging activity (68.24 %) and the strongest SLO inhibitory activity (83.96 %) at 100 ${\mu}g$/mL. Moreover, HH-2 of four different prescriptions significantly inhibited NO production on LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells in a dose-dependent manner without considerable cell cytotoxicity at range of 2.0 ~ 50 ${\mu}g$/mL. Additionally, HH-2 also effectively suppressed the production of $PGE_2$ and IL-6, which are responsible for promoting the inflammatory process. Major volatile components of HH-2 were identified as eugenol, paeonol, butyl phthalide, ${\beta}$-eudesmol and butylidene dihydrophthalide by GC-MS analysis. Thus, these results suggest that HH-2 may be useful as a potential source of anti-inflammatory agents in herbal medicinal cosmetics.

• The Journal of Korean society of community based occupational therapy
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2013

Objective : This study investigates the impact of the musculoskeletal disorder prevention exercise program designed on the basis of agricultural work posture on the balance ability, Oswestry Disability level, and Psychosocial stress of participants from one rural village in Chungnam area. Method : The exercise program was provided to 21 farmers with musculoskeletal symptoms living in one village in Chungnam area. Such program was performed once a week, 90 minutes per session, for a total of twelve weeks from July 10 to October 11, 2008, and was constructed in a way to increase flexibility and muscular strength, taking agricultural work posture into account. The balance ability, Oswestry Disability Index, and Psychosocial Well-being Index scores were analyzed based on the data of 13 of the farmers who participated in the program for more than eight times and in all of the pre- and post-assessments. Result : Thirteen participants were all women who were 70.55(${\pm}6.78$) years old on average. Most of them were engaged in general dry-filed farming. The parts where they mainly felt the pain were low back(69.2%) and knees(61.5%), and 46.2% responded 'not healthy' to the question on the overall health status. The static balance ability when standing on the right foot significantly increased from the average 9.27(${\pm}5.53$) seconds before intervention to 14.22(${\pm}5.47$) seconds after intervention(p<.05). The Oswestry Disability Index showed a significant change, decreasing from the average 19.84(${\pm}6.89$) seconds to 14.38(${\pm}7.58$) seconds(p<.05). However, there was no change in the Psychosocial Well-being Index. Conclusion : This exercise program that has been conducted for the female farmers who are mainly engaged in the dry-filed farming has contributed to the improvement of their static ability and reduction of their Oswestry Disability Index scores. It is expected that the studies on the effects of the differentiated exercise programs depending on work characteristics will make progress in the future.