• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.18 no.5
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• pp.1362-1373
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• 2004

In studying the specific effects of some drugs, animals under experiments get some stress through laboratory environments, drug injection, and adaptation period. These stimuli do harms on liver function. Nowadays studies on liver intoxication and its protection are under research, but the function of dissolution is rarely under studies. It is widely accepted that Soshiho-tang has function of clearing away low spirits, and that it enables liver bloods to move stronger, and to have calm mind. So I injured rats liver by injectioning CCI₄. And the rats took in Soshiho-tang solution. I made a comparison between the functions before and after rat's liver damage. There are many representative serums used to note an index on liver damage. I used total protein, albumin, ALP, GOT, GPT activity, P450, SOD, Catalase, GST, GR, and GPx. I got the following results. When Soshiho-tang was injected after CCI4 intoxication, total protein and albumin decreased. When Soshiho-tang was injected, ALP decreased, compared with control group. When Soshiho-tang was injected after CCI₄ intoxication, AST and ALT decreased. When Soshiho-tang was injected before CCI₄ intoxication, P450 was restrained. When Soshiho-tang was injected, LPO was all restrained. When Soshiho-tang was injected, SOD, Catalase, GST, GR, and, GPx increased. These results show that blood test reveals that it is good to inject Soshiho-tang after CCI₄ intoxication, but that it is good to inject Soshiho-tang before CCI₄ intoxication in case of P450, LPO, SOD, Catalase, GST, GR, and GPx. It is estimated that the medication period and time of liver damage by CCI₄ have counter results, and that it needs more modified study.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.21 no.5
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• pp.1291-1296
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• 2007

The expressions of c-Fos and nitric oxide synthase (NOS) represent neuronal activity and play' a crucial role in the shaping of the development of brain. During the late pregnancy, stresses may influence neuronal activity of prenatal rats. In the present study, the effects of prenatal noise and music on the expressions of c-Fos and NOS in the hippocampus of rat pups were investigated. Exposure to the noise during pregnancy decreased c-Fos and NOS expressions in the hippocampus of rat pups, whereas exposure to music during pregnancy increased c-Fos and NOS expressions in the hippocampus of rat pups. The present results show that prenatal music stimulation may increase neuronal activity of rat offspring, whereas exposure to noise during pregnancy may reduce the neuronal activity of offspring. The present study suggests that prenatal stimuli including noise and music could affect the fetal brain development.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.175-181
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• 2000

Background: Pain is often measured using psychophysical scaling techniques. However, all of these methods found their limits, since they were based on the subjective sensations reported by the subjects. It is, therefore, desirable to validate psychophysical pain measures by simultaneously measuring some physiological correlate of nociception. We studied an objective method for measuring pain in human volunteer using R(III) nociceptive flexion reflex. Methods: Four different intensity of electrical stimuli between perception and 1.4 times the R(III) nociceptive flexion threshold were delivered to the sole of the feet in 8 normal volunteers. We measured the flexion reflex activity in the skin over the ipsilateral tibialis anterior muscle and subjects rated each stimulus on a visual analog scale (VAS) Results: Both R(III) nociceptive flexion reflex activity and VAS ratings showed a linear relationship with stimulus intensity and with each other in all volunteers. Conclusions: R(III) nociceptive flexion reflex elicited through electrical stimulation may used as an objective pain measurement, previsionary based on our study paradigm.

• Journal of Korean Physical Therapy Science
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.121-127
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• 2002

The goal of this article is to estimate the change in plasma catecholamine when ST-36 (Leg Three Li) and HT-7 (Spirit Gate) among the meridian points were stimulated for the group of the young and the old, using SSP therapy, thereby clarifying its effects on the responses of catecholamine that generates various physiological effects on the body, in particular, the effects on catecholamine, in the senile body, thereby providing its availability for physical therapy for the old, which is now the major concern of the society. As for research subjects, a total of 10 healthy male and female adults in their twenties were selected as the group of the young, and 10 old male and female, aged over 60, as the group of the old. The findings are as follows: When SSP stimuli were applied to ST-36 and HT-7, as for the change in the content of plasma catecholamine for the group of the young, norepinephrine significantly increased from $309.40{\pm}23.81pg/ml$ before stimulation to $374.90{\pm}35.31pg/ml$ 20 minutes later and to $406.70{\pm}42.43pg/ml$ 40 minutes later (P < 0.05); epinephrine significantly increased from $100.70{\pm}28.55pg/ml$ before stimulation to $95.70{\pm}24.16pg/ml$ 20 minutes later and to $128.80{\pm}25.02pg/ml$ 40 minutes later (P < 0.05); and dopamine showed no significant differences as its content was $245.20{\pm}40.01pg/ml$ before stimulation, $233.50{\pm}59.56pg/ml$ 20 minutes later and $250.90{\pm}56.13pg/ml$ 40 minutes later.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.7 no.6
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• pp.341-348
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• 2003

Mechanical stimuli to the cardiac myocytes initiate many biochemical and physiological events. Stretch-activated cation channels have been suggested to mediate these events. In this study, cell-attached and inside-out excised-patch clamp methods were used to identify stretch-activated cation channels in adult rat atrial myocytes. Channel openings were increased in cell-attached configuration when negative pressure was applied to the pipette, and also in inside-out excised patches by negative pressure. The channel was not permeable to $Cl^-$, $Na^+$ and $Cs^+$, but selectively permeable to $K^+$, and the degree of activation was dependent on the magnitude of negative pressure (full activation at ${\sim} -50 mmHg). In symmetrical 140 mM KCl, the slope conductance was $51.2{\pm}3$ pS between the potentials of -80 and 0 mV and $55{\pm}6$ pS between 0 and +80 mV (n=5). Glibenclamide ($100{mu}M$) or ATP (2 mM) failed to block the channel openings, indicating that it is not ATP-sensitive $K^+$ channel. Arachidonic acid ($30{mu}M$), which has been shown to activate a $K^+$ channel cooperatively with membrane stretch, did not affect the channel activity. $GdCl_3$ ($100{mu}M$) also did not alter the activity. These results demonstrate that the mechanical stretch in rat atrial myocytes activates a novel $K^+$-selective cation channel, which is not associated with other $K^+$ channels such as ATP-sensitive and arachidonic acid-activated $K^+$ channel.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.129-138
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• 1989

In an attempt to characterize the ventral root afferent fibers, arterial blood pressure responses to stimulation of the ventral root (VR) were observed in anesthetized cats. Effects of the morphine administered either intravenously or direct spinally and of the spinal lesions on the pressor responses were compared. Followings are the results obtained. 1) Stimulation of the VR with C-strength, high frequency stimuli evoked a marked pressor response. No depressor response, which had been reported during peripheral nerve stimulation, was observed during VR stimulation with low frequency. 2) Acute cervical spinalization abolished the pressor response, indicating the involvement of supraspinal mechanism. 3) The ascending spinal pathways of the pressor response were located in the dorsolateral funiculus bilaterally. 4) Intravenously administered morphine exaggerated the pressor response to VR stimulation, while direct spinally administered morphine suppressed it. From the above results it was concluded that the ventral root afferent fibers have more similar properties to muscular C-afferent fibers than to cutaneous C-fibers.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.427-435
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• 2012

The aim of this study is to investigate facial temperature changes induced by facial expression and emotional state in order to recognize a persons emotion using facial thermal images. Background: Facial thermal images have two advantages compared to visual images. Firstly, facial temperature measured by thermal camera does not depend on skin color, darkness, and lighting condition. Secondly, facial thermal images are changed not only by facial expression but also emotional state. To our knowledge, there is no study to concurrently investigate these two sources of facial temperature changes. Method: 231 students participated in the experiment. Four kinds of stimuli inducing anger, fear, boredom, and neutral were presented to participants and the facial temperatures were measured by an infrared camera. Each stimulus consisted of baseline and emotion period. Baseline period lasted during 1min and emotion period 1~3min. In the data analysis, the temperature differences between the baseline and emotion state were analyzed. Eyes, mouth, and glabella were selected for facial expression features, and forehead, nose, cheeks were selected for emotional state features. Results: The temperatures of eyes, mouth, glanella, forehead, and nose area were significantly decreased during the emotional experience and the changes were significantly different by the kind of emotion. The result of linear discriminant analysis for emotion recognition showed that the correct classification percentage in four emotions was 62.7% when using both facial expression features and emotional state features. The accuracy was slightly but significantly decreased at 56.7% when using only facial expression features, and the accuracy was 40.2% when using only emotional state features. Conclusion: Facial expression features are essential in emotion recognition, but emotion state features are also important to classify the emotion. Application: The results of this study can be applied to human-computer interaction system in the work places or the automobiles.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.61-67
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• 1991

In order to determine possible relationships between the renin-angiotensin system and nephron heterogeneity, we compared the response of renin release and the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) activity from different areas of the rat kidney. We used the renal cortical slices from the capsular surface to the juxtamedullary junction. Slices from outer one-third of the cortex were designated as outer cortical slices (OC), middle one-third as midcortical slices (MC), and inner one-third as inner cortical slices (IC). The renal renin content markedly decreased from OC and MC to IC. The basal lenin release was higher in OC than in MC or IC. On the contrary the percent change of renin release in response to L-isoproterenol was significantly higher in MC than in OC or IC. By TMB-8, the renin release in MC by $231{\pm}21%$ was higher than OC by $171{\pm}19%$ or IC by $$162{\pm}19. Angiotensin II suppressed renin release in OC and MC by $68{\pm}2,\;71{\pm}4%$ respectively, but only $40{\pm}7%$ in IC. The ACE activity was higher in IC than in OC, MC, medulla and papilla. The present data indicate that renin content and basal lenin release gradulally decreased from outer (OC) to inner (IC) cortex. The renin release in response to beta-adrenergic agonist, L-isoproterenol and intracellular calcium antagonist, TMB-8 were higher in MC than in OC and IC, but angiotensin II suppressed renin release less in IC than in OC and MC. It is suggested that juxtaglomerular cells of outer, mid-and inner cortices show a difference in renin release response to the stimuli.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.59-66
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• 1969

Experiments on thermoregulatory responses to cold immersion stimulus were carried out in September, 1968 (summer studies) and February, 1969 (winter studies). Eight each of ama and control subject were selected at random from a same community in Yong-Do Island, Pusan. The results obtained are summarized as follows: 1) The rate of fall in muscle temperature of forearm during a 30 min-immersion in $6^{\circ}C$ water bath was significantly slower in the ama in winter and was about the same in the two groups in summer. However, the magnitude of change in the skin temperature and the heat fluxes observed during immersion period was not significantly different either between groups or between seasons. 2) Both finger blood flow and skin temperature during one hr-immersion in $6^{\circ}C$ water bath decreased significantly in the ama as compared to the control. The magnitude of cold-induced vasodilatation during immersion period was significantly greater in the control in winter. However, the time of onset and blood flow at onset showed no significant relation between groups. 3) The magnitude of reactive hyperemia after a 5 min-arterial occlusion in both air and $15^{\circ}C$ water bath was significantly lower in the ana than in the control. In control subjects, post-occluded blood flow in water was significantly greater than in air, while in the ama it decreased to 1/2 of control values. The time required for the return of blood flow to resting values in the air was faster in the ama than in the control but was the same in water in the two groups. 4) The results suggest that vasoconstrictor tone increased in the ama in winter, indicating the development of vascular adaptation as a part of cold acclimatization.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.287-298
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• 2020

Ca²⁺ signaling of endothelial cells plays a critical role in controlling blood flow and pressure in small arteries and arterioles. As the impairment of endothelial function is closely associated with cardiovascular diseases (e.g., atherosclerosis, stroke, and hypertension), endothelial Ca²⁺ signaling mechanisms have received substantial attention. Increases in endothelial intracellular Ca²⁺ concentrations promote the synthesis and release of endothelial-derived hyperpolarizing factors (EDHFs, e.g., nitric oxide, prostacyclin, or K⁺ efflux) or directly result in endothelial-dependent hyperpolarization (EDH). These physiological alterations modulate vascular contractility and cause marked vasodilation in resistance arteries. Transient receptor potential (TRP) channels are nonselective cation channels that are present in the endothelium, vascular smooth muscle cells, or perivascular/sensory nerves. TRP channels are activated by diverse stimuli and are considered key biological apparatuses for the Ca²⁺ influx-dependent regulation of vasomotor reactivity in resistance arteries. Ca²⁺-permeable TRP channels, which are primarily found at spatially restricted microdomains in endothelial cells (e.g., myoendothelial projections), have a large unitary or binary conductance and contribute to EDHFs or EDH-induced vasodilation in concert with the activation of intermediate/small conductance Ca²⁺-sensitive K⁺ channels. It is likely that endothelial TRP channel dysfunction is related to the dysregulation of endothelial Ca²⁺ signaling and in turn gives rise to vascular-related diseases such as hypertension. Thus, investigations on the role of Ca²⁺ dynamics via TRP channels in endothelial cells are required to further comprehend how vascular tone or perfusion pressure are regulated in normal and pathophysiological conditions.