• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.10
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• pp.5131-5136
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• 2012

Cancer is one of the major health problems worldwide and its current treatments have a number of undesired adverse side effects. Natural compounds may reduce these. Currently, a few plant products are being used to treat cancer. In this study, goniothalamin, a natural occurring styryl-lactone extracted from Goniothalamus macrophyllus, was investigated for cytotoxic properties against cervical cancer (HeLa), breast carcinoma (MCF-7) and colon cancer (HT29) cells as well as normal mouse fibroblast (3T3) using MTT assay. Fluorescence microscopy showed that GTN is able to induce apoptosis in HeLa cells in a time dependent manner. Flow cytometry further revealed HeLa cells treated with GTN to be arrested in the S phase. Phosphatidyl serine properties present during apoptosis enable early detection of the apoptosis in the cells. Using annexin V/PI double staining it could be shown that GTN induces early apoptosis on HeLa cells after 24, 48 and 72 h. It could be concluded that goniothalamin showing a promising cytotoxicity effect against several cancer cell lines including cervical cancer cells (HeLa) with apoptosis as the mode of cell death induced on HeLa cells by Goniothalamin was.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.5
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• pp.3109-3116
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• 2013

The majority of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients have a poor prognosis with current therapies, and new approaches are urgently needed. We have developed a novel therapeutic cancer vaccine platform based on tumor cell derived autophagosomes (DRibbles) for cancer immunotherapy. We here evaluated the effectiveness of DRibbles-pulsed dendritic cell (DC) immunization to induce anti-tumor immunity in BALB/c mouse HCC and humanized HCC mouse models generated by transplantation of human HCC cells (HepG2) into BALB/c-nu mice. DRibbles were enriched from H22 or BNL cells, BALB/c-derived HCC cell lines, by inducing autophagy and blocking protein degradation. DRibbles-pulsed DC immunization induced a specific T cell response against HCC and resulted in significant inhibition of tumor growth compared to mice treated with DCs alone. Antitumor efficacy of the DCs-DRibbles vaccine was also demonstrated in a humanized HCC mouse model. The results indicated that HCC/DRibbles-pulsed DCs immunotherapy might be useful for suppressing the growth of residual tumors after primary therapy of human HCC.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.17 no.7
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• pp.3131-3138
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• 2016

Several studies have addressed the possible role of hepatitis C virus genotype-4 (HCV GT4) in apoptosis. However, this still not fully understood. In the current study a re-constructed clone of E1/E2 polyprotein region of the HCV GT4 was transfected into the Huh7 cell line and a human apoptotic PCR array of 84 genes was used to investigate its possible significance for apoptosis. Out of the 84 genes, only 35 showed significant differential expression, 12 genes being up-regulated and 23 down-regulated. The highest-up regulated genes were APAF1 (apoptotic peptidase-activating factor 1), BID (BH3 interacting domain death agonist) and BCL 10 (B-cell CLL/lymphoma protein 10) with fold regulation of 33.2, 30.1 and 18.9, respectively. The most down-regulated were FAS (TNF receptor super family), TNFRSF10B (tumor necrosis factor receptor super-family member 10b) and FADD (FAS-associated death domain) with fold regulation of -30.2, -27.7 and -14.9, respectively. These results suggest that the E1/E2 proteins may be involved in HCV-induced pathogenesis by modulating apoptosis through the induction of the intrinsic apoptosis pathway and disruption of the BCL2 gene family.

• Herbal Formula Science
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.71-80
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• 2020

Obejectives : The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of Yijin-tang on pacemaker potentials of small intestinal interstitial Cells of Cajal (ICC). Methods : To dissociate the ICC, we used enzymatic digestions from the small intestine in mice. The electrophysiological whole-cell patch-clamp configuration was used to record pacemaker potentials in the cultured ICC and the in vivo effects of Yijin-tang on GI motility were investigated by calculating percent intestinal transit rates (ITR). Results : 1. The ICC generated pacemaker potentials in the murine small intestine. Yijin-tang produced membrane depolarization with concentration-dependent manners in the current clamp mode. 2. Pretreatment with a Ca²⁺ free solution and thapsigargin, a Ca²⁺-ATPase inhibitor in the endoplasmic reticulum, stopped the pacemaker potentials. In the case of Ca²⁺-free solutions and thapsigargin, Yijin-tang did not induce membrane potential depolarizations. 3. U73122, a phospholipase C (PLC) inhibitors, blocked the Yijin-tang-induced membrane potential depolarizations. However, U73343, an inactive PLC inhibitors, did not block. 4. In the presence of protein kinase C (PKC) inhibitors, staurosporine or Rottlerin, Yijin-tang depolarized the pacemaker potentials. However, in the presence of Go6976, Yijin-tang did not depolarize the pacemaker potentials. 5. In mice, intestinal transit rate (ITR) values were significantly and dose-dependently increased by the intragastric administration of Yijin-tang. Conclusions : These results suggest that Yijin-tang can modulate the pacemaker activity of ICC through an internal/external Ca²⁺ and PLC/PKC-dependent pathway in ICC. In addition, Yijin-tang is a good candidate for the development of a prokinetic agent.

• Atmosphere
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.229-241
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• 2011

The continuous urbanizations by a rapid economic growth and a steady increase in population are expected to have a possible impact on meteorology in the downwind region. Long-term (1972~2007) trends of precipitation have been examined in the mid-Korean peninsula for the westerly condition only, along with the sensitivity simulations for a golden day (11 February 2009). During the long-term period, both precipitation amount (PA) and frequency (PF) in the downwind region (Chuncheon, Wonju, Hongcheon) of urban area significantly increased for the westerly and light precipitation ($PA{\leq}1mm\;d^{-1}$) cases, whereas PA and PF in the mountainous region (Daegwallyeong) decreased. The enhancement ratio of PA and PF for the downwind region vs. urban region remarkably increased, which implies a possible urbanization effect on downwind precipitation. In addition, the WRF simulation applied for one golden day demonstrates enhanced updraft and its associated convergence in the downwind area (about 60 km), leading to an increase in the cloud mixing ratio. The sensitivity experiments with the change in surface roughness demonstrates a slight increase in cloud water mixing ratio but a negligible effect on precipitation in the upwind region, whereas those with the change in heat source represents the distinctive convergence and its associated updraft in the downwind region but a decrease in liquid water, which may be attributable to the evaporation of cloud droplet by atmospheric heating induced by an increase in an anthropogenic heat. In spite of limitations in the observation-based analysis and one-day simulation, the current result could provide an evidence of the effect of urbanization on the light precipitation in the downwind region.

• Journal of Advanced Navigation Technology
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.543-548
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• 2011

In this paper, H-polarized electromagnetic scattering problems by a resistive strip grating over a grounded dielectric plane according to the strip width and grating period, the relative permittivity and thickness of a dielectric layer, and incident angles of a TE (transverse electric) plane wave are analyzed by applying the FGMM (Fourier-Galerkin Moment Method). The tapered resistivity of resistive strips in this paper varies from finite resistivity at one edge to zero resistivity at the other edge, then the induced surface current density on the resistive strip is expanded in a series of Jacobi polynomials of the order ${\alpha}=1$, ${\beta}=0$ as a kind of orthogonal polynomials. The numerical results of the normalized reflected power show in good agreement with those of existing papers.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.391-397
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• 2014

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE: Myocardial cell death due to occlusion of the coronary arteries leads to myocardial infarction, a subset of coronary heart disease (CHD). Dietary fiber is known to be associated with a reduced risk of CHD, the underlying mechanisms of which were suggested to delay the onset of occlusion by ameliorating risk factors. In this study, we tested a hypothesis that a beneficial role of dietary fiber could arise from protection of myocardial cells against ischemic injury, manifested after occlusion of the arteries. MATERIALS/METHODS: Three days after rats were fed apple pectin (AP) (with 10, 40, 100, and 400 mg/kg/day), myocardial ischemic injury was induced by 30 min-ligation of the left anterior descending coronary artery, followed by 3 hr-reperfusion. The area at risk and infarct area were evaluated using Evans blue dye and 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) staining, respectively. DNA nicks reflecting the extent of myocardial apoptosis were assessed by TUNEL assay. Levels of cleaved caspase-3, Bcl-2, and Bax were assessed by immunohistochemistry. RESULTS: Supplementation of AP (with 100 and 400 mg/kg/day) resulted in significantly attenuated infarct size (IS) (ratio of infarct area to area at risk) by 21.9 and 22.4%, respectively, in the AP-treated group, compared with that in the control group. This attenuation in IS showed correlation with improvement in biomarkers involved in the apoptotic cascades: reduction of apoptotic cells, inhibition of conversion of procaspase-3 to caspase-3, and increase of Bcl-2/Bax ratio, a determinant of cell fate. CONCLUSIONS: The findings indicate that supplementation of AP results in amelioration of myocardial infarction by inhibition of apoptosis. Thus, the current study suggests that intake of dietary fiber reduces the risk of CHD, not only by blocking steps leading to occlusion, but also by protecting against ischemic injury caused by occlusion of the arteries.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.625-630
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• 2013

Background: Hardcore smoking is represented by a subset of daily smokers with high nicotine dependence, inability to quit and unwillingness to quit. Estimating the related burden could help us in identifying a high risk population prone to tobacco induced diseases and improve cessation planning for them. This study assessed the prevalence and associated factors of hardcore smoking in three South-East Asian countries and discussed its implication for smoking cessation intervention in this region. Materials and Methods: Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) data of India, Bangladesh and Thailand were analyzed to quantify the hardcore smoking prevalence in the region. On the basis of review, an operational definition of hardcore smoking was adopted that includes (1) current daily smoker, (2) no quit attempt in the past 12 months of survey or last quit attempt of less than 24 hours duration, (3) no intention to quit in next 12 months or not interested in quitting, (4) time to first smoke within 30 minutes of waking up, and (5) knowledge of smoking hazards. Logistic regression analysis was carried out using hardcore smoking status as response variable and gender, type of residence, occupation, education, wealth index and age-group as possible predictors. Results: There were 31.3 million hardcore smokers in the three Asian countries. The adult prevalence of hardcore smoking in these countries ranges between 3.1% in India to 6% in Thailand. These hardcore smokers constitute 18.3-29.7% of daily smokers. The logistic regression model indicated that age, gender, occupation and wealth index are the major predictors of hardcore smoking with varied influence across countries. Conclusions: Presence of a higher number of hardcore smoking populations in Asia is a major public health challenge for tobacco control and cancer prevention. There is need of intensive cessation interventions with due consideration of contextual predictors.

• Journal of Periodontal and Implant Science
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.845-866
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• 1997

Several experimental studies showed that the application of small amounts of electric current to bone stimulated osteogenesis at the site of the cathode and suggests that the application of electrical currents to periodontal defects could promote bone and cementum formation. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of direct microcurrent to the periodontal regeneration of class III furcation defects in dogs. Class III furcation defects were surgically created on the third and the fourth premolars bilaterally in the mandibles of nine mongrel dogs. Experimental periodontitis were induced by placing small cotton pellets into the created defects for 3 weeks. The experimental sites were divided into three groups according to the treatment modalities: Group I-surgical debridement only; Group II-allogenic demineralized freeze dried bone grafting; Group III-allogenic demineralized freeze dried bone grafting and electrical stimulation. For fluorescence microscopic evaluation, calcein, oxytetracycline HCI and alizarin red were injected 2, 4 and 8 weeksfS days prior to sacrifice) after surgery. The animals were sacrificed in the 1st, 2nd, 4th and 8th week after periodontal surgery and the decalcified and undecalcified specimens were prepared for histological and histometrical examination. After the first and the second weeks, gingival recession was more severe in group I than groups II and III. After the fourth and the eighth weeks, there was no difference in the width of junctional epithelium and connective tissue attachment among the three groups, but the width of connective tissue attachment increased in group II at the eighth week, compared to the fourth week. The amount of bone repair in new attachment was significantly greater in group III, compared to groups I and II. New attachment formation was significantly greater in group III, compared to groups I and group II. These results suggest that electrical stimulation using microcurrent generator could be a useful tool for periodontal regenerative therapy in class III furcation defect.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.245-253
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• 2011

Objectives In the current study, we quantitatively estimated changes in appetite and eating behavior of bipolar disorder patients during the pharmacotherapy. We also investigated their contribution to the weight gain and their association with specific food-craving characteristics of the patients. Methods Subjects included forty-one bipolar disorder patients and fifty-six controls. Currently sustained natures of food craving were assessed using the General-Food Craving Questionnaire-Trait (G-FCQ-T) and changes in appetite and eating behavior were measured using the Drug-Related Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DR-EBQ). Results Compared to the control group, the patients' group showed significantly higher body mass index (t=2.028, p=0.045). The patients' group had significantly higher 'Preoccupation with food' factor score of G-FCQ-T (p=0.016) than that of the control group. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis showed that only 'preoccupation with food' factor independently predicted psychotropic medication-induced appetite change. Conclusions Appetite change while receiving psychotropic medication seems to be related to the weight-gain and associated with craving natures of 'preoccupation with food' in bipolar disorder. Appetite and/or eating behavioral changes measured by G-FCQ-T and DR-EBQ could be regarded as an important mediating factor in future studies exploring biological mechanisms of weight gain related with pharmacotherapy for bipolar disorder.