• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.31-36
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• 2007

To elucidate a potential molecular link between diabetes and atherosclerosis, we investigated the role of Janus tyrosine kinase(JAK) for NAD(P)H oxidase-derived superoxide generation in the enhanced proliferative capacity of vascular smooth muscle cells(VSMC) of Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty(OLETF) rat, an animal model of type 2 diabetes. An enhanced proliferative response to 10% fetal bovine serum(FBS) and superoxide generation with an increased NAD(P)H oxidase activity were observed in diabetic(OLETF) VSMC. Both the enhanced proliferation and superoxide generation in diabetic VSMC were significantly attenuated by AG490, JAK2 inhibitor, and PP2, Src kinase inhibitor. Tyrosine phosphorylation of proteins in diabetic VSMC, especially JAK2, was increased compared to control VSMC. Furthermore, the enhanced NAD(P)H oxidase activity in diabetic VSMC was significantly attenuated by AG490 in a dose-dependent manner. Together, these results indicate that the signal pathway which leads to diabetes-associated activation of Src kinase/JAK is critically involved in the diabetic VSMC proliferation through NAD(P)H oxidase activation and superoxide generation.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.35 no.11
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• pp.3377-3380
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• 2014

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.35 no.8
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• pp.2581-2584
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• 2014

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.131-138
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• 2009

The binding of interleukin-6 (IL-6) cytokine family ligands to the gp130 receptor complex activates the Janus kinase (JAK)/ signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) signal transduction pathway, where STA T3 plays an important role in cell survival and tumorigenesis. Constitutive activation of STAT3 has been frequently observed in many cancer tissues, and thus, blocking of the gp130 signaling pathway, at the JAK level, might be a useful therapeutic approach for the suppression of STAT3 activity, as anticancer therapy. AG490 is a tyrphostin tyrosine kinase inhibitor that has been extensively used for inhibiting JAK2 in vitro and in vivo. In this study, we demonstrate a novel mechanism associated with AG490 that inhibits the JAK/STAT3 pathway. AG490 induced downregulation of gp130, a common receptor for the IL-6 cytokine family compounds, but not JAK2 or STAT3, within three hours of exposure. The downregulation of gp130 was not caused by enhanced degradation of gp130 or by inhibition of mRNA transcription. It most likely occurred by translation inhibition of gp130 in association with phosphorylation of the eukaryotic initiation factor-2 a. The inhibition of protein synthesis of gp130 by AG490 led to immediate loss of mature gp130 in cell membranes, due to its short half-life, thereby resulting in reduction in the STAT3 response to IL-6. Taken together, these results suggest that AG490 blocks the STAT3 activation pathway via a novel pathway.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.361-369
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• 2020

Tofacitinib, a Janus kinase inhibitor, was developed for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Recently, it has been associated with an increased change in arthritis development in patients with diabetes. Herein, we evaluated the pharmacokinetics of tofacitinib after intravenous (10 mg/kg) and oral (20 mg/kg) administration to rats with streptozotocin-induced diabetes mellitus and control rats. Following intravenous administration of tofacitinib to rats with streptozotocin-induced diabetes mellitus, area under the plasma concentration-time curve from time zero to infinity of tofacitinib was significantly smaller (33.6%) than that of control rats. This might be due to the faster hepatic intrinsic clearance (112%) caused by an increase in the hepatic cytochrome P450 (CYP) 3A1(23) and the faster hepatic blood flow rate in rats with streptozotocin-induced diabetes mellitus than in control rats. Following oral administration, area under the plasma concentration-time curve from time zero to infinity of tofacitinib was also significantly smaller (55.5%) in rats with streptozotocin-induced diabetes mellitus than that in control rats. This might be due to decreased absorption caused by the higher expression of P-glycoprotein and the faster intestinal metabolism caused by the higher expression of intestinal CYP3A1(23), which resulted in the decreased bioavailability of tofacitinib (33.0%) in rats with streptozotocin-induced diabetes mellitus. In summary, our findings indicate that diabetes mellitus affects the absorption and metabolism of tofacitinib, causing faster metabolism and decreased intestinal absorption in rats with streptozotocin-induced diabetes mellitus.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.134-141
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• 2021

c-Jun N-terminal kinases (JNKs) have a Janus face, regulating both cell apoptosis and survival. The present study focused on understanding the function of JNK in tumor development and the chemoresistance underlying JNK-mediated cancer cell survival. We identified an inhibitor of JNK1, an important regulator of cancer cell survival. Kinase assay data showed that JNK1-dependent c-Jun phosphorylation was inhibited by indirubin derivatives. In particular, indirubin-3-monoxime (I3M) directly inhibited the phosphorylation of c-Jun in vitro, with a half inhibition dose (IC₅₀) of 10 nM. I3M had a significant inhibitory effect on JNK1 activity. Furthermore, we carried out assays to determine the viability, migration, and proliferation of breast cancer cells. Our results demonstrated that cell growth, scratched wound healing, and colony forming abilities were inhibited by the JNK inhibitor SP600125 and I3M. The combination of SP600125 and I3M significantly decreased cancer cell proliferation, compared with either SP600125 or I3M alone. Our studies may provide further support for JNK1-targeting cancer therapy using the indirubin derivative I3M in breast cancer.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.436-442
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• 2008

Osteoclasts are multinucleated cells with the unique ability to resorb bone. Elevated activity of these cells under pathologic conditions leads to the progression of bone erosion that occurs in osteoporosis, periodontal disease, and rheumatoid arthritis. Thus, the regulation of osteoclast apoptosis is important for bone homeostasis. In this study, we examined the effects of the Janus tyrosine kinase 2 specific inhibitor AG490 on osteoclast apoptosis. We found that AG490 greatly inhibited osteoclast apoptosis. AG490 stimulated the phosphorylation of Akt and ERK. Adenovirus-mediated expression of dominant negative (DN)-Akt and DN-Ras in osteoclasts inhibited the survival of osteoclasts despite the presence of AG490. Cytochrome c release during osteoclast apoptosis was inhibited by AG490 treatment, but this effect was inhibited in the presence of LY294002 or U0126. AG490 suppressed the pro-apoptotic proteins Bad and Bim, which was inhibited in osteoclasts infected with DN-Akt and DN-Ras adenovirus. In addition, constitutively active MEK and myristoylated-Akt adenovirus suppressed the cleavage of pro-caspase-9 and -3 and inhibited osteoclast apoptosis induced by etoposide. Taken together, our results suggest that AG490 inhibited cytochrome c release into the cytosol at least partly by inhibiting the pro-apoptotic proteins Bad and Bim, which in turn suppressed caspase-9 and -3 activation, thereby inhibiting osteoclast apoptosis.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.11-18
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• 2020

The present study was aimed to explore the neuroprotective role of imatinib in global ischemia-reperfusion-induced cerebral injury along with possible mechanisms. Global ischemia was induced in mice by bilateral carotid artery occlusion for 20 min, which was followed by reperfusion for 24 h by restoring the blood flow to the brain. The extent of cerebral injury was assessed after 24 h of global ischemia by measuring the locomotor activity (actophotometer test), motor coordination (inclined beam walking test), neurological severity score, learning and memory (object recognition test) and cerebral infarction (triphenyl tetrazolium chloride stain). Ischemia-reperfusion injury produced significant cerebral infarction, impaired the behavioral parameters and decreased the expression of connexin 43 and phosphorylated signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (p-STAT3) in the brain. A single dose administration of imatinib (20 and 40 mg/kg) attenuated ischemia-reperfusion-induced behavioral deficits and the extent of cerebral infarction along with the restoration of connexin 43 and p-STAT3 levels. However, administration of AG490, a selective Janus-activated kinase 2 (JAK2)/STAT3 inhibitor, abolished the neuroprotective actions of imatinib and decreased the expression of connexin 43 and p-STAT3. It is concluded that imatinib has the potential of attenuating global ischemia-reperfusion-induced cerebral injury, which may be possibly attributed to activation of JAK2/STAT3 signaling pathway along with the increase in the expression of connexin 43.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.572-580
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• 2016

3-Deoxysappanchalcone (3-DSC) has been reported to possess anti-allergic, antiviral, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities. In the present study, we investigated the effects of 3-DSC on the proliferation of human hair follicle dermal papilla cells (HDPCs) and mouse hair growth in vivo. A real-time cell analyzer system, luciferase assay, Western blot and real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were employed to measure the biochemical changes occurring in HDPCs in response to 3-DSC treatment. The effect of 3-DSC on hair growth in C57BL/6 mice was also examined. 3-DSC promoted the proliferation of HDPCs, similar to Tofacitinib, an inhibitor of janus-activated kinase (JAK). 3-DSC promoted phosphorylation of ${\beta}$-catenin and transcriptional activation of the T-cell factor. In addition, 3-DSC potentiated interleukin-6 (IL-6)-induced phosphorylation and subsequent transactivation of signal transducer and activator of transcription-3 (STAT3), thereby increasing the expression of cyclin-dependent kinase-4 (Cdk4), fibroblast growth factor (FGF) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). On the contrary, 3-DSC attenuated STAT6 mRNA expression and IL4-induced STAT6 phosphorylation in HDPCs. Finally, we observed that topical application of 3-DSC promoted the anagen phase of hair growth in C57BL/6 mice. 3-DSC stimulates hair growth possibly by inducing proliferation of follicular dermal papilla cells via modulation of $WNT/{\beta}$-catenin and STAT signaling.

• Journal of dental hygiene science
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.81-86
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• 2017

Bacterial infection and smoking are an important risk factors involved in the development and progression of periodontitis. However, the signaling mechanism underlying the host immune response is not fully understood in periodontal lesions. In this study, we determined the expression of janus kinase (JAK)/signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) on Porphyromonas gingivalis lipopolysaccharide (LPS)- and nicotine-induced cytotoxicity and the production of inflammatory mediators, using osteoblasts. The cells were cultured with 5 mM nicotine in the presence of $1{\mu}g/ml$ LPS. Cell viability was determined using MTT assay. The role of JAK on inflammatory mediator expression and production, and the regulatory mechanisms involved were assessed via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, and Western blot analysis. LPS- and nicotine synergistically induced the production of cyclooxgenase-2 (COX-2) and prostaglandin $E_2$ ($PGE_2$) and increased the protein expression of JAK/STAT. Treatment with an JAK inhibitor blocked the production of COX-2 and $PGE_2$ as well as the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as tumor necrosis factor-${\alpha}$, interleukin-$1{\beta}$ ($IL-1{\beta}$), and IL-6 in LPS- and nicotine-stimulated osteoblasts. These results suggest that JAK/STAT is closely related to the LPS- and nicotine-induced inflammatory effects and is likely to regulate the immune response in periodontal disease associated with dental plaque and smoking.