• IMMUNE NETWORK
• /
• v.1 no.2
• /
• pp.126-134
• /
• 2001

Background : Paeonia japonica Miyabe is a medicinal plant which has been widely used as a component of blood-building decoctions (Chinese medicinal concept : Bu-Xie). The immunopharmacological characteristics of the extract of Paeonia japonica (PJ) were investigated. Methods : The effects of fractions of PJ extract on lymphocyte proliferation were measured by $H^3$-thymidine incorporation assay. The proliferated lymphocyte subsets were analyzed in flow cytometry. The subset cell populations of spleen cells were separated by magnetic cell separation system, and their proliferation by the extract were investigated. The effect of the extract on antibody production was determined in mice challenged with sheep red blood cells (SRBC) using hemolytic plaque forming cell assay. Results : Spleen cells were proliferated by water extract of PJ. Polysaccharide fraction (PJ-P) of the extract was most active in the proliferation. It was found in flow cytometry that the lymphocyte subset proliferated by PJ-P was B cell population. Among the separated subset cell populations, T cell-depleted cell population and macrophage-depleted cell population were most proliferated by PJ-P. However, positively selected populations of B cells and T cells were not proliferated by PJ-P. These results indicate that B cell proliferation by PJ-P may require the assistance of macrophages or T cells. These results suggest that firstly PJ-P may stimulate macrophages or T cells, and then B cells are activated. The number of antibody-secreting cells was increased by administration of PJ-P in mice immunized with SRBC as a T-dependent antigen. Conclusion : These results suggest that macrophages and accessory cells are directly activated by PJ-P and then helper T cells and B cells are indirectly activated. As the results, immune responses might be coordinately improved. In conclusion, PJ-P, a polysaccharide of P. japonica, may be a characteristic immunostimulator, which is analogous to polysaccharides such as lentinan, PSK and ginsan.

• Reproductive and Developmental Biology
• /
• v.31 no.1
• /
• pp.1-6
• /
• 2007

The nonobese diabetic / severe combined immune deficiency (NOD/SCID) has been used for determination of proliferation and differentiation of hematopoietic stem cells as xenotransplantation animal model. In this study, we transplanted porcine hematopoietic cells from bone marrow into NOD/SCID mice via intravenous injection to confirm the activity of differentiation and proliferation for porcine hematopoietic cells in vivo. Interestingly, we observed the result of high efficiency with pig T lymphocytes in hematopoietic organs, liver, spleen lymph node, and bone marrow in NOD/SCID mice. The porcine $CD3^{+}$ T cells were detected with $5.4{\pm}1.9%$ in bone marrow, $15.4{\pm}7.3%$ in spleen, $21.3{\pm}1.4%$ in liver, and $33.5{\pm}32.8%$ in lymph node of NOD/SCID mice at 6 weeks after trans-plantation Furthermore, immunohistochemical analysis showed the high engraftment of porcine T lymphocytes in spleen of NOD/SCID mice. Our data suggest that NOD/SCID mice are excellent animal model to determinate the generation md function of pig T lymphocytes.

• Health Policy and Management
• /
• v.7 no.1
• /
• pp.55-72
• /
• 1997

The purpose of this study is to analyze the consumers' demand pattern and the feature of the market for nursing homes, the number of which is tending upwards. The survey data were obtained from the interview of 500 elderly people living in Seoul and Kyung-Ki provincial area. All respondents were 60 years of age and above. The main findings were summarized as follows: 1. The respondents who are less aged, highly educated comparatively, and living with spouse show positive response for the use of nursing homes. The aged living independently and the aged living with unmarried children show higher demand for this facility. Also, the respondents who prefer independent living away from their childrenn, urban areas as their residence and flat-type housing show more interest for the facility. The respondents who are self- supportive, who has no financial supporter, no caretaker, and no domestic helper demonstrate strong inclination to the use of the facility. The respondents who are interested in this kind of facility, acknowledge the necessity of it show strong intention of moving into it. 2. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to understand factors related to the intention of moving into the nursing homes. The group who wish to live separated from their children in the future give 1.78 times more favorable response than the opposite. The group who have an interest in the facility for elderly has 2.02 times higher intention of moving than the opposite. The group who have an intention of using the facility for elderly it is 7.34 times more likely to move into it. 3. The respondents who are the potential consumers for nursing homes can be subdivided. Within the positive group, it could be divided into the group of living independently with the preference of flat-type housing, the group living independently with the preference of separate housing, and the group wishing to live with their children. Within the negative group, the factor of the division is their concern to the facility. Following this study, it can be said that old age people, who have been regarded as one homogeneous group so far, should be recognized as one characteristic individual. This study also shows that the demand aspect yet in its initial stage shold be researched in anticipation of rapid increase. The understanding of diciding factors, the segmentation of potential market will help work out proper strategy, which will contribute to providers' benefit.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
• /
• v.31 no.1
• /
• pp.106-117
• /
• 2010

The purpose of this study was to explore students' argumentation in perspectives of epistemology and psychology and to find out how teacher can promote students' abilities of developing argumentation. The 60 hours of lessons from the interaction between one science teacher (Mr. Physics, who had 35 years of teaching experience) and his 26 students were observed, transcribed, and analyzed using two different analyzing tools; one is from the perspective of epistemology and the other from the perspective of psychology, which can portray how argumentation is constructed. Mr. Physics created the environment where students could promote the quality of scientific argumentation through explicit teaching strategy, Claim-Evidence Approach. The low level of argumentation was portrayed through examples from students' prior knowledge or experience in the form of an Appeal to the instance operation and the Elaboration reasoning skill. Students' own claims were developed through application of knowledge in a different context in the form of an Induction operation and Generativity reasoning skill. Higher level of argumentation was portrayed through Consistency operation with other knowledge or experience and Explanation reasoning skills based on students' ideas with more active teacher's inputs. The teacher in this study played a role as a helper for students to enact identities as competent "sense makers," as an elaborator rather than evaluator to extend students' ideas, and as a mentor to foster and monitor the students' development of ideas of a higher quality. It is critical for teachers to understand the nature of argumentation, which in turn is connected to their explicit teaching strategy with the aim of providing opportunities where students can understand the science enterprise.

• Journal of Families and Better Life
• /
• v.19 no.4
• /
• pp.49-68
• /
• 2001

The purpose of this study was 1) to review communal housing in the UK, 2) to consider the policy implications for elderly communal housing in Korea. The research methods used were 1) literature review about communal housing and related policy in the UK 2) field survey in the UK 3) interpretative suggestion for the proper policy implication to develope communal housing for the elderly in Korea. Sheltered housing in the UK had been developed as communal housing for the elderly with special needs since the 1970s. The type of sheltered housing were category 1 and category 2. Very sheltered housing with more facilities and meal services was added in 1980s. Sheltered housing was evaluated as the most humanistic solution for older people in the UK in 1980s. Because of the policy of moving institutional care to community care, sheltered housing became less in demand because of more options for older people including being able to stay in their own home. So new completion of sheltered housing by registered social landlords reduced saliently. Sheltered housing already totalled over half million units in which 5% of all elderly over 65 still lived and a small quantity of private sector for sale schemes emerged in the 1990s. The reason why the residents moved to sheltered housing was for sociable, secure, and manageable living arrangements. In general the residents were satisfied with these characteristics but dissatisfied with the service charge and quality of meals, especially in category 2.5 schemes. The degree of utilisation of communal spaces and facilities depended on the wardens ability and enthusiasm. Evaluation of sheltered housing indicated several problems such as wardens duty as a \"good neighbour\" ; difficult-to-let problems with poor location or individual units of bedsittiing type with shared bathroom ; and the under use of communal spaces and facilities. Some ideas to solve these problems were suggested by researchers through expanding wardens duty as a professional, opening the scheme to the public, improving interior standards, and accepting non-elderly applicants who need support. Some researchers insisted continuing development of sheltered housing, but higher standards must be considered for the minority who want to live in communal living arrangement. Recently, enhanced sheltered housing with greater involvement of relatives and with tied up policy in registration and funding suggested as an alternative for residential care. In conclusion, the rights of choice for older people should be policy support for special needs housing. Elderly communal housing, especially a model similar to sheltered housing category 2 with at least 1 meal a day might be recommended for a Korean Model. For special needs housing development either for rent or for sale, participation of the public sector and long term and low interest financial support for the private sector must be developed in Korea. Providing a system for scheme managers to train and retrain must be encouraged. The professional ability of the scheme manager to plan and to deliver services might be the most important factor for the success of elderly communal housing projects in Korea. In addition the expansion of a public health care service, the development of leisure programs in Senior Citizens Centre, home helper both for the elderly in communal housing and the elderly in mainstream housing of the community as well. Providing of elderly communal housing through the modified general Construction Act rather than the present Elderly Welfare Act might be more helpful to encourage the access of general people in Korea. in Korea.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
• /
• v.45 no.4
• /
• pp.613-618
• /
• 2016

1,2,3,4,6-Penta-O-galloyl-${\beta}$-D-glucose (PGG) is a gallotannin isolated from various plants such as Galla Rhois. In a previous study, it was reported that PGG has anti-allergic effects by inhibiting interleukin (IL)-4 signaling in B cells. However, the effect of PGG on basophilic cells remains unclear. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the inhibitory effect of PGG on mitogen and calcium ionophore-induced allergic responses. PGG had no effect on proliferation and cytotoxicity of RBL-2H3 cells. PGG significantly suppressed cell degranulation (histamine and ${\beta}-hexosaminidase$) as well as inflammatory cytokine production such as IL-4 and tumor necrosis factor-${\alpha}$. The underlying mechanism of PGG on these anti-allergic actions was correlated with inhibition on translocation of nuclear factor-${\kappa}B$ from the cytosol to nucleus. These data suggest that PGG is a potentially effective functional compound for prevention of allergic diseases.

• Molecules and Cells
• /
• v.41 no.4
• /
• pp.282-289
• /
• 2018

Interleukin-17A (IL-17A) is a pro-inflammatory cytokine mainly derived from T helper 17 cells and is known to be involved in the pathogenesis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Cigarette smoke (CS) has been considered as a primary risk factor of COPD. However, the interaction between CS and IL-17A and the underlying molecular mechanisms have not been clarified. In the current study, we investigated the effects of cigarette smoke extract (CSE) on IL-17A-induced IL-8 production in human bronchial epithelial cells, and sought to identify the underlying molecular mechanisms. IL-8 production was significantly enhanced following treatment with both IL-17A and CSE, while treatment with either IL-17A or CSE alone caused only a slight increase in IL-8 production. CSE increased the transcription of IL-17RA/RC and surface membrane expression of IL-17R, which was suppressed by an inhibitor of the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt pathway (LY294002). CSE caused inactivation of glycogen synthase $kinase-3{\beta}$ ($GSK-3{\beta}$) via the PI3K/Akt pathway. Blockade of $GSK-3{\beta}$ inactivation by overexpression of constitutively active $GSK-3{\beta}$ (S9A) completely suppressed the CSE-induced up-regulation of IL-17R expression and the CSE-induced enhancement of IL-8 secretion. In conclusion, inactivation of $GSK-3{\beta}$ via the PI3K/Akt pathway mediates CSE-induced up-regulation of IL-17R, which contributes to the enhancement of IL-17A-induced IL-8 production.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
• /
• v.47 no.4
• /
• pp.161-167
• /
• 2015

These commensal intestinal bacteria can enhance the immune system and aid in nutrient absorption but can also act as opportunistic pathogens. Among these intestinal bacteria, the anaerobic Bacteroides fragilis are divided into enterotoxigenic B. fragilis (ETBF) which secrete the B. fragilis toxin (BFT) and non-enterotoxigenic B. fragilis (NTBF) which do not secrete BFT. ETBF can cause diarrhea and colitis in both humans and livestock but can also be found in asymptomatic individuals. ETBF is predominantly found in patients with inflammatory diarrheal diseases and traveller's diarrhea. Several clinical studies have also reported an increased prevalence of ETBF in human patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), colitis and colorectal cancer. In small animal models (C57BL/6 wild-type mice, germ-free mice, multiple intestinal neoplasia (Min) mice, rabbits and Mongolian gerbils), ETBF have been found to initiate and/or aggravate IBD, colitis and colorectal cancer. BFT induces E-cadherin cleavage in intestinal epithelial cells resulting in loss of epithelial cell integrity. Subsequent activation of the ${\beta}$-catenin pathway leads to increased cellular proliferation. In addition, ETBF causes acute and chronic colitis in wild-type mice as well as enhances tumorigenesis in Min mice via activation of the Stat3/Th17 pathway. Currently, ETBF can be detected using a BFT toxin bioassay and by PCR. Advances in molecular biological techniques such as real-time PCR have allowed both researchers as well as clinicians to rapidly detect ETBF in clinical samples. The emergence of more sensitive techniques will likely advance molecular insight into the role of ETBF in colitis and cancer.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
• /
• v.22 no.4
• /
• pp.754-761
• /
• 2008

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of Baekhasuoyijung-Tang(BHSYJT)on mouse T cell cytokines. The proliferation of mouse CD4 T cells under the influence of BHSYJT extract was measured. When mouse CD4 T cell were stimulated with anti-CD3 and anti-CD28 in various concentrations of BHSYJT extract, it increased proliferation of CD4 cells by 28% in $10{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ concentration and by 32% in $100{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ concentration. Treatment of CD4+ T cells stimulated by anti-CD3e and anti-CD28 with BHSYJT resulted in reduction of $IFN-{\gamma}$,but IL-4 levels is not changed. Oral administration of BHSYJT resulted in increase of both CD4+ and CD8+ T cell population in Balb/c mice by 11%. Oral administration of BHSYJT resulted in reduction of serum $IFN-{\gamma}$ level by 27% but, IL-4 level is not changed. CD4+ T cells under Th1/Th2 polarizing conditions for 3 days with BHSYJT resulted in decrease of $IFN-{\gamma}$ level in TH1 cells. Experimental results of this study show that BHSYJT helps to reduce secretion of $IFN-{\gamma}$ by mouse T helper cell in vitro and it had the same effect in vivo. Thus, it can be concluded that use of BHSYJT is an effective treatment for correcting immune imbalance in immune disorders and autoimmune diseases by reducing secretion of cytokine by Th1 cells.

• Journal of The Korea Institute of Healthcare Architecture
• /
• v.20 no.4
• /
• pp.67-80
• /
• 2014

Purpose : Long-term Care Insurance sets up facility standard and installation standard of aged care facilities and decides the presence of minimum number of rooms and its size in care facilities by using systematic instruments. Therefore, most aged care facilities had renovation in expansion and reconstruction following the revised regulations and even facility space structure and space composition are continuously improving. The study is to determine the purpose and trend by comparing before and after space composition of facilities which followed the implementation of Long-term Care Insurance and also to suggest hierarchical space composition suitable for aged care facilities through derived problems and to provide basic materials to plan the most appropriate facility for the aged. Methods : J-graph based on Space Syntax Theory will be schematized through in-site facility survey and before and after facility floor plan. Space composition trend will be analyzed by comparing indexes through S3 program. Results : As a result of 5 cases analysis, the following results were found; the average of whole space depth is increasing due to the Extension, the number of volunteers is decreasing and rooms for geriatric care helpers are being created due to the geriatric care helper introduction duty. Also, there are solariums being created to improve the health of the aged and dispensaries are being placed on every floor with the increase of documentary work for geriatric care helpers. With the policy implementation, care facility space composition and structure are changing with facility standard and it was analyzed that facilities were mostly put under the control of limited number of people in care room and total ground area per person. It was also found that there is increase in care space integration through before and after comparison of whole integration value. This is considered as the important result not only in facility standard satisfaction, but also in care support of geriatric care helpers and the aged, its main users. Implication : In order for elderly care facilities to have quality improvement and to develop as suitable facilities for characteristics of the aged, independent environmental facility standard preparation of elderly care facilities is needed through mutual cooperation of construction fields with regulation and policy related researches.