• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.50-60
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• 2002

Objectives: Sunghyangjunggisan (SHJS) is a commonly prescribed drug with a wide neuropharmacological spectrum. The water extracts of SHJS were found to be protective against neurotoxicity elicited by deprivation of serum and glucose. Methods: The morphological examination and Hoechst staining of nucleus also clearly showed that the extracts attenuated the cell shrinkage, membrane blebbing, representing typical neuronal apoptotic phenomena and nucleosome-sized fragmentation under the microscope in PC 12 rat pheochromocytoma cells. Results: Activation of protein kinase A (PKA) with dibutyl-cAMP and forskolin also protected during glucose deprivation, although it was not additive with the effect provided by phorbol ester. Interestingly, treatment with the protein kinase A inhibitor, KT5720, was not neuroprotective in the presence of SHJS. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays were used to characterize the neuroprotective binding of nuclear proteins to consensus sequences for AP-l, nuclear factor kappa B ($NF-{\kappa}B$) after glucose deprivation. When PC 12 cells are induced to undergo apoptosis by serum deprivation, AP-l and $NF-{\kappa}B$ DNA binding activity transiently increases to a slight degree. This stimulation is blocked by the water extracts of SHJS. The site of action of the drugs appeared to involve specific inhibition of AP-1 and nuclear factor kB binding activity. Conclusions: Taken together, these results suggested the possibility that the extracts of SHJS might provide a neurotrophic-like activity in PC 12 cells.

• ETRI Journal
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2001

The performance of a long wavelength-band erbium-doped fiber amplifier (L-band EDFA) using 1530nm-band pumping has been studied. A 1530nm-band pump source is built using a tunable light source and two C-band EDFAs in cascaded configuration, which is able to deliver a maximum output power of 23dBm. Gain coefficient and noise figure (NF) of the L-band EDFA are measured for pump wavelengths between 1530nm and 1560nm. The gain coefficient with a 1545nm pump is more than twice as large as with a 1480nm pump. It indicates that the L-band EDFA consumes low power. The noise figure of 1530nm pump is 6.36dB at worst, which is 0.75dB higher than that of 1480nm pumped EDFA. The optimum pump wavelength range to obtain high gain and low NF in the 1530nm band appears to be between 1530nm and 1540nm. Gain spectra as a function of a pump wavelength have bandwidth of more than 10nm so that a broadband pump source can be used as 1530nm-band pump. The L-band EDFA is also tested for WDM signals. Flat Gain bandwidth is 32nm from 1571.5 to 1603.5nm within 1dB excursion at input signal of -10dBm/ch. These results demonstrate that 1530nm-band pump can be used as a new efficient pump source for L-band EDFAs.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.67 no.2
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• pp.95-104
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• 2009

Background: The pathophysiologic mechanisms of early acute lung injury (ALI) differ according to the type of primary insult. It is important to differentiate between direct and indirect pathophysiologic pathways, and this may influence the approach to treatment strategies. NF-$\kappa$B decoy oligodeoxynucleotide (ODN) is a useful tool for the blockade of the expression of NF-$\kappa$B-dependent proinflammatory mediators and has been reported to be effective in indirect ALI. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of NF-$\kappa$B decoy ODN in the lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced direct ALI model. Methods: Five-week-old specific pathogen-free male BALB/c mice were used for the experiment. In the preliminary studies, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-$\alpha$, interleukine (IL)-6 and NF-$\kappa$B activity peaked at 6 hours after LPS administration. Myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity and ALI score were highest at 36 and 48 hours, respectively. Therefore, it was decided to measure each parameter at the time of its highest level. The study mice were randomly divided into three experimental groups: (1) control group which was administered 50 ${\mu}L$ of saline and treated with intratracheal administration of 200 ${\mu}L$ DW containing only hemagglutinating virus of Japan (HVJ) vector (n=24); (2) LPS group in which LPS-induced ALI mice were treated with intratracheal administration of 200 ${\mu}L$ DW containing only HVJ vector (n=24); (3) LPS+ODN group in which LPS-induced ALI mice were treated with intratracheal administration of 200 ${\mu}L$ DW containing 160 ${\mu}g$ of NF-$\kappa$B decoy ODN and HVJ vector (n=24). Each group was subdivided into four experimental subgroups: (1) tissue subgroup for histopathological examination for ALI at 48 hours (n=6); (2) 6-hour bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) subgroup for measurement of TNF-$\alpha$ and IL-6 in BAL fluid (BALF) (n=6); (3) 36-hour BAL subgroup for MPO activity assays in BALF (n=6); and (4) tissue homogenate subgroup for measurement of NF-$\kappa$B activity in lung tissue homogenates at 6 hours (n=6). Results: NF-$\kappa$B decoy ODN treatment significantly decreased NF-$\kappa$B activity in lung tissues. However, it failed to improve the parameters of LPS-induced direct ALI, including the concentrations of tumor necrosis factor-$\alpha$ and interleukin-6 in BALF, myeloperoxidase activity in BALF and histopathologic changes measured by the ALI score. Conclusion: NF-$\kappa$B decoy ODN, which has been proven to be effective in indirect models, had no effect in the direct ALI model.

• Food Science and Biotechnology
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.106-113
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• 2008

The antioxidant and anti-inflammatory protective effects of $\beta$-glucan from barley on RAW 264.7 murine macrophage cells induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) were examined. The RAW 264.7 murine macrophages were preincubated with various concentrations ($0-200\;{\mu}g/mL$) of $\beta$-glucan and stimulated with LPS to induce oxidative stress and inflammation. The $\beta$-glucan treatments were found to reduce thiobarbituric acid-reactive substance (TBARS) accumulation, and enhance glutathione levels and the activities of antioxidative enzymes, including superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase, glutathione reductase, and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-px) in the LPS-stimulated macrophages as compared to the LPS-only treated cells. Nitric oxide (NO) production was significantly suppressed in a dose-dependent manner (p<0.05) with an $IC_{50}$ of $104\;{\mu}g/mL$. Further treatment with $\beta$-glucan at $200\;{\mu}g/mL$ suppressed NO production to 2% of the LPS-control, and suppressed the levels of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) protein and mRNA in a dose-dependent manner. The specific DNA binding activity of nuclear factor ${\kappa}B\;(NF{\kappa}B)$ was significantly suppressed by $\beta$-glucan treatment with an $IC_{50}$ of $220\;{\mu}g/mL$ in a dose-dependent manner. Finally, barley $\beta$-glucan ameliorates NO production and iNOS expression through the down-regulation of $NF{\kappa}B$ activity, which may be mediated by attenuated oxidative stress in RAW 264.7 macrophages.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.352-359
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• 2014

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: In this study, we determined the anti-inflammatory activities and the underlying molecular mechanisms of the methanol extract from Erigeron Canadensis L. (ECM) in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophage cells. MATERIALS/METHODS: The potential anti-inflammatory properties of ECM were investigated by using RAW264.7 macrophages. We used western blot assays and real time quantitative polymerase chain reaction to detect protein and mRNA expression, respectively. Luciferase assays were performed to determine the transactivity of transcription factors. RESULTS: ECM significantly inhibited inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS)-derived NO and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) derived PGE2 production in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophages. These inhibitory effects of ECM were accompanied by decreases in LPS-induced nuclear translocations and transactivities of $NF{\kappa}B$. Moreover, phosphorylation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPKs) including extracellular signal-related kinase (ERK1/2), p38, and c-jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) was significantly suppressed by ECM in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophages. Further studies demonstrated that ECM by itself induced heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) protein expression at the protein levels in dose-dependent manner. However, zinc protoporphyrin (ZnPP), a selective HO-1 inhibitor, abolished the ECM-induced suppression of NO production. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggested that ECM-induced HO-1 expression was partly responsible for the resulting anti-inflammatory effects. These findings suggest that ECM exerts anti-inflammatory actions and help to elucidate the mechanisms underlying the potential therapeutic values of Erigeron Canadensis L.

• Membrane Journal
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• v.28 no.5
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• pp.361-367
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• 2018

In this study, the nanofiltration (NF) composite membranes for the low pressure use were prepared using polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) hollow fiber membrane as a supporter. Poly styrene sulfonic acid (PSSA) and polyethyleneimine (PEI) were coated onto the PVDF membrane by both layer-by-layer and salting-out methods. To characterize the prepared NF membranes in terms of the flux and salt rejection, 100 mg/L feed solutions of NaCl, $MgCl_2$, and $CaSO_4$ were used at the flow rate of 1 L/min and the operating pressure of 2 bar at room temperature. The NF membranes coated with 20,000 ppm PSSA (ionic strength 1.0) solution for 3 minutes and then 30,000 ppm (ionic strength 0.1) solution for 1 minute were observed the best performance. The permeability and salt rejection were 38.5 LMH, 57.1% for NaCl, 37.9 LMH and 90.2% for $MgCl_2$ and 32.4 LMH and 54.6% for $CaSO_4$, respectively.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.140-146
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• 2008

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) stimulates the expression of intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM-l) on the surface of monocytic THP-1 cells. Stimulation of ICAM-l did not require HCMV gene expression since UV-inactivated HCMV (UV-HCMV) was able to induce ICAM-l expression. ICAM-l expression was also stimulated in uninfected THP-l cells which were fed with culture supernatant of HCMV-infected THP-l cells. Co-culture experiment using trans-well insert supported that HCMV-infected THP-l cells secreted some cytokine(s) stimulating ICAM-l expression. The stimulation of ICAM-l by HCMV-infected cell culture supernatant appears to involve $NF-{\kappa}B$ pathway. Culture supernatant from THP-l cells infected with UV-HCMV, whose gene expression was abrogated, failed to stimulate ICAM-l expression on naive THP-l cells. Thus, HCMV gene expression seems to be required in secretion of cytokine(s) stimulating ICAM-l expression.

• Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.72-79
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• 2008

This study investigated the changes in textural characteristics that occurred by adding maltose syrup, dextrin, and sucrose to whole egg gels, by assessing coagulation after cooling. It also examined the optimal NaCl and sucrose concentrations for whole egg gels sensory evaluations, and then studied how the addition of sucrose effected gel formation and textural characteristics under optimal NaCl concentration. The additions of maltose syrup, dextrin, and sucrose, presented some color changes. The greater the addition of maltose syrup or dextrin, the lower the L, a, and b values of the whole egg gel and whole egg liquid, and ultimately the color turned dark bluish green. With increasing additions of sucrose, maltose syrup, and dextrin, the viscosity of the whole egg liquid increased slightly. In terms of the mechanical texture characteristic of the gel, the texture was most elastic with the 0.8% addition of sucrose, and hardness decreased by increasing the ratio of added sucrose. Increasing amounts of maltose syrup resulted in less hardness and SF. And for dextrin, the SF increased up to 2.5 and then decreased, and hardness decreased with increasing amounts of dextrin. Based on sensory evaluations, the 0.8% addition of NaCl was significantly preferred(p<0.05), in terms of salty taste. The overall preference scores indicated that the whole egg gel made with 0.3% sucrose and the optimal NaCl concentration(0.8%) was most preferred, and each sample was significant(p<0.05). Under the optimal 0.8% NaCl concentration increasing the sucrose concentration resulted in a darker egg gel color, in terms the L value. SF, NF, and hardness, which are mechanical texture parameters, were when 0.8% sucrose and the optimal NaCl concentration of 0.8% were added to whole egg liquid, in preparing the whole egg gel.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.397-409
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• 2014

Algal problem in drinking water treatment is being gradually increased by causing deterioration of water supplies therefore, especially taste and odor compounds such as geosmin and 2-MIB occur mainly aesthetic problem by its unpleasant effects resulting in the subsequent onset of complaints from drinking water consumer. Recently, geosmin and 2-MIB are detected frequently at abnormally high concentration level. However, conventional water treatment without advanced water treatment processes such as adsorption and oxidation process, cannot remove these two compounds efficiently. Moreover, it is known that the advanced treatment processes i.e. adsorption and oxidation have also several limits to the removal of geosmin and 2-MIB. Therefore, the purpose of this study was not only to evaluate full scale nanofiltration membrane system with $300m^3/day$ of permeate capacity and 90% of recovery on the removal of geosmin and 2-MIB in spiked natural raw water sources at high feed concentration with a range of approximately 500 to 2,500 ng/L, but also to observe rejection property of the compounds within multi stage NF membrane system. Rejection rate of geosmin and 2-MIB by NF membrane process was 96% that is 4% of passage regardless of the feed water concentration which indicates NF membrane system with an operational values suggested in this research can be employed in drinking water treatment plant to control geosmin and 2-MIB of high concentration. But, according to results of regression analysis in this study it is recommended that feed water concentration of geosmin and 2-MIB would not exceed 220 and 300 ng/L respectively which is not to be perceived in drinking tap water. Also it suggests that the removal rate might be depended on an operating conditions such as feed water characteristics and membrane flux. When each stage of NF membrane system was evaluated relatively higher removal rate was observed at the conditions that is lower flux, higher DOC and TDS, i.e., $2^{nd}$ stage NF membrane systems, possibly due to an interaction mechanisms between compounds and cake layer on the membrane surfaces.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.51 no.4
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• pp.274-281
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• 2006

In Korea, rice cultivars have been changing to 'quality' rice rather than high yielding cultivars. However, more than 10% of paddy field has been changed to greenhouse in winter season for cropping of water-melon, oriental-melon, straw berry and et cetra. This experiment has been made to identify the usefulness of critical N and Si fertilization(SF) level to obtain high grain quality rice with reduced insect pest damage by N and SF combination. Before the experiment, watermelon-rice cropping system was maintained for three seasons by farmer from 1998 to 2001. The experiment of N and Si (silicate) fertilization levels was evaluated with Hwayoung-byeo (Oryza sativa L., medium-maturing variety) in 2002 and 2003 in Uiryeong, Korea. Nitrogen fertilization (NF) levels were three and five in 2002 and 2003, respectively, and three SF levels were compared for getting the valuable N/SF level in both years. TOYO-value was positively affected by Si application in N100% plot but it was negatively related with NF level. Normal grain percentage was positively related with TOYO-value and it was highest in 0N plot and Si plots in N100%. Other appearance qualities like powdered, damaged, and cracked grain, were decreased with increasing N fertilization level. SF improved appearance quality in N100% plots but no effects in other treatments. Leaf sheath related diseases were significantly decreased by SF but it was negatively related with NF. In conclusion, SF could be improve grain quality at the same yield levels of conventional fertilization and it also could be reduce the diseases damages of rice plant in all N treatments. NF treatment reduced grain quality and improved grain yield at N50% level, however NF above N50% could not get any kind of benefits. So, compared with conventional fertilizer, reduced NF level is recommended for high grain quality with reduced insect pest damage.