• BMB Reports
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.109-114
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• 2015

The COX-2/$PGE_2$ pathway has been implicated in the occurrence and progression of cancer. The underlying mechanisms facilitating the production of COX-2 and its mediator, $PGE_2$, in cancer survival remain unknown. Herein, we investigated $PGE_2$-induced COX-2 expression and signaling in HL-60 cells following menadione treatment. Treatment with $PGE_2$ activated anti-apoptotic proteins such as Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL while reducing pro-apoptotic proteins, thereby enhancing cell survival. $PGE_2$ not only induced COX-2 expression, but also prevented casapse-3, PARP, and lamin B cleavage. Silencing and inhibition of COX-2 with siRNA transfection or treatment with indomethacin led to a pronounced reduction of the extracellular levels of $PGE_2$, and restored the menadione- induced cell death. In addition, pretreatment of cells with the MEK inhibitor PD98059 and the PKA inhibitor H89 abrogated the $PGE_2$-induced expression of COX-2, suggesting involvement of the MAPK and PKA pathways. These results demonstrate that $PGE_2$ signaling acts in an autocrine manner, and specific inhibition of $PGE_2$ will provide a novel approach for the treatment of leukemia.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.81-85
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• 2008

Isorhamnetin isolated from Oenanthe javanica significantly inhibited proliferation and collagen production in HSC-T6 cells in concentration- and time-dependent manners. Pretreatment of HSC-T6 cells with isorhamnetin significantly inhibited serum-induced ERK phosphorylation, in a similar manner as PD98059, a known MEK inhibitor. These results suggested that isorhamnetin reduced collagen production in HSC-T6 cells, in part, via inhibition of ERK signaling pathway.

• Journal of environmental and Sanitary engineering
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.44-51
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• 2000

The reactivity of a range of volatile organic compounds with differing functional groups observed over 0.5% $Pt/{\gamma}-Al_2O_3$ catalyst. In general, the reactivity pattern observed was alcohols > aromatics > ketones > cycloalkane > alkanes. The deep conversion was increased as reaction temperature was increased. A correlation was found between the reactivity of the individual and the strength of the weakest C-Hbond in structure. The conversion of volatile organic compounds increases in order methanol > benzene > cyclohexane > MEK > n-hexane. That is the effect of differences in total dissociation energy. An apparent zeroth-order kinetics with respect to inlet concentration have been observed. A simple multicomponent model based on two-stage redox model made reasonably good predictions of conversion over the range of parameters studied. thus, the catalytic process was suggested as the new VOCs control technology.

• Proceedings of the PSK Conference
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• 2003.10b
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• pp.165.3-166
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• 2003

The c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) plays essential roles in apoptosis and cell survival. Because apoptosis is promoted by blocking the MEK kinase1-mediated activation of JNK1, we tested whether JNK1 plays dual roles in apoptosis. We show here that JNK1 activity is differentially up-regulated in a two-tiered fashion by specific mechanisms during taxol- or ginsenoside Rh2-induced apoptosis. The early phase of JNK1 activation, but not apoptosis is prevented by expressing the dominant negative SEK1 mutant. (omitted)

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.307-309
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• 2012

(S)-(+)-3(3,4-dihydroxy-phenyl)-acrylic acid 2,2-dimethyl-8-oxo3,4-dihydro-2H,8H-pyrano[3,2-g]Chromen-3-yl-ester (Compound 6, C6) is synthesized from (S)-(+)-decursin and attenuates the pathophysiologic progression of asthma in a ovalbumin-induced asthmatic mouse model. In the present study, we examined the effect of C6 on spontaneous apoptosis of eosinophils and neutrophils of normal and asthmatic subjects. C6 increased the apoptosis of asthmatic eosinophils in a dose-dependent manner, but it inhibited neutrophil apoptosis. C6 has no effect on apoptosis of normal eosinophils and neutrophils. LY294002, an inhibitor of PI3K, rottlerin, an inhibitor of $PKC{\delta}$, Ro-31-8425, an inhibitor of classical PKC inhibitor, PD98059, an inhibitor of MEK, and BAY 11-7085, an inhibitor of NF-${\kappa}B$, blocked the inhibitory effect on apoptosis of asthmatic neutrophils due to C6. These results indicate that C6 may be valuable as a therapeutic agent for the treatment of asthma.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.363-367
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• 2005

The effects of organic solvent on the charge transport behavior of poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythioph one)/p-toluene-sulfonate(PEDOT-OTs) are investigated. The use of different organic solvents during the oxidative chemical polymerization of 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT) with Iron(III) -tosylate can greatly vary the DC conductivity of PEDOT-OTs along with molecular structure and doping concentration. For example, PEDOT-OTs prepared from methanol shows the conductivity of 19.5 S/cm, which is an increase by a factor of $10^8$ compared to PEDOT-OTa prepared from acetone. From the X-ray diffraction (XRD) experiments, it was found that PEDOT-OTs with ketone is amorphous state, while PEDOT-OTs with alcoholic solvent shows the better defined crystalline structure in which the charge transport along and between the PEDOT chains are promoted. Chemical analysis employing X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) revealed that the doping concentration of PEDOT-OTs with alcoholic solvent is much higher than that of PEDOT-OTs with ketones. It is proposed that the interactions between the organic solvent and doping anion can cause the variation in doping concentration and, therefore, result in the PEDOT-OTs of different conductivities and chain structures.

• Clean Technology
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.160-167
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• 2021

This study investigated the environmental effects of improving the general-type activated carbon adsorption tower used at the Sihwa/Banwol Industrial Complex with use of a cartridge-type activated carbon adsorption tower for the application of an activated carbon co-regenerated system. Four general-type activated carbon adsorption towers and two cartridge-type activated carbon adsorption towers were selected to analyze the properties of activated carbon and to compare the efficiency of reducing environmental pollutants. The results showed that the activated carbon used in the cartridge-type activated carbon adsorption towers was high quality activated carbon with an iodine adsorption force of more than 800 mg/g and that a good adsorption performance was maintained within the replacement cycle. From an analysis of the environmental pollutant reduction efficiency, it was confirmed that the cartridge-type activated carbon adsorption tower functioned properly as a prevention facility for handling emissions pollutants with a treatment efficiency of total hydrocarbons (THC), toluene, and methylethylketone (MEK) components of 71%, 77%, and 80%, respectively. The general activated carbon adsorption tower, which was confirmed to use low-performance activated carbon, had a very low treatment efficiency and did not function properly as a prevention facility for dealing with emission pollutants. It is believed that it is possible to reduce pollutants during operations by changing from the general-type activated carbon adsorption tower to a cartridge-type activated carbon adsorption tower.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Dyers and Finishers Conference
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• 2012.03a
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• pp.50-50
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• 2012

투습방수필름으로 많이 사용되고 있는 폴리우레탄(PU)에 광촉매 기능성을 가지고 있는 나노-$TiO_2$(Degussa P25)를 1~10wt% 복합시킨 후, 은(Ag)이온 수용액에서 자외선 조사에 의한 광증착시키는 과정을 거쳐 은이 도핑된 PU/$TiO_2$/Ag 하이브리드 멤브레인 필름을 제조하였다. (주)비에스지에서 제공받은 PU/DMF/MEK 용액에 $TiO_2$를 초음파로 균일하게 분산배합한 후, 필름캐스팅하여 만든 필름을 AgNO3 수용액에 침지시키고 254nm의 자외선을 30~120초 동안 조사하는 광증착법으로 은을 환원시켜 도핑시켰다. 은 도핑된 하이브리드 필름을 Shaking flask method에서 폐렴간균, 황색포도상구균에 대한 항균성을 측정하고, Clear zone method에서 대장균에 대한 항균성을 측정한 결과, $TiO_2$ 함량이 3wt% 이상이고 UV조사시간이 60초 이상인 경우 99.9% 이상의 항균성을 나타내는 것을 확인하였다.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.100-105
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• 2014

Apigenin, a natural flavonoid found in a variety of vegetables and fruits, has been shown to possess many biological functions. The present study was undertaken to investigate the influence of apigenin on vascular smooth muscle contractility and to determine the mechanism involved. Denuded aortic rings from male rats were used and isometric contractions were recorded and combined with molecular experiments. Apigenin significantly relaxed fluoride-, thromboxane $A_2$ mimetic- or phorbol ester-induced vascular contraction, which suggests that apigenin could be an anti-hypertensive that reduces agonist-induced vascular contraction regardless of endothelial nitric oxide synthesis. Furthermore, apigenin significantly inhibited fluoride-induced increases in pMYPT1 levels and phorbol ester-induced increases in pERK1/2 levels, which suggests the mechanism involving the inhibition of Rho-kinase and MEK activity and the subsequent phosphorylation of MYPT1 and ERK1/2. This study provides evidence regarding the mechanism underlying the relaxation effect of apigenin on agonist-induced vascular contraction regardless of endothelial function.

• BMB Reports
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• v.34 no.6
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• pp.517-525
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• 2001

Six renaturable protein kinases that utilize the myelin basic protein (MBP) as a substrate were activated during prolonged exposure of cardiac myocytes to okadaic acid (OA). We characterized the substrate preference and activation of these kinases, with particular emphasis on 3 novel kinases-MBPK-55, MBPK-62 and MBPK-87. The transcription factors c-Jun, Elk, ATF2, and c-Fos that are used to assess mitogen-activated protein kinase activation were all poor substrates for these three kinases. MAPKAPK2 was also not phosphorylated. In contrast, Histone IIIS was phosphorylated by MBPK-55 and MBPK-62. These protein kinases were activated in cultured cardiac fibroblasts, H9c2 cardiac myoblasts, and Cos cells. High concentrations (0.5 to $1\;{\mu}M$) of OA were essential for the activation of the protein kinases in all of the cell types examined, whereas calyculin A [an inhibitor of protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) and PP2A], cyclosporin A (a PP2B inhibitor), and an inactive OA analog all failed to activate these kinases. The high dose of okadaic acid that is required for kinase activation was also required for phosphatase inhibition, as assessed by immunoblotting whole cell lysates with anti-phosphothreonine antibodies. A variety of chemical inhibitors, including PD98059 (MEK-specific), genistein (tyrosine kinase-specific) and Bisindolylmaleimide I (protein kinase C-specific), failed to inhibit the OA activation of these kinases. Thus, MBPK-55 and MBPK-62 are also Histone IIIS kinases that are widely expressed and specifically activated upon exposure to high OA concentrations.