• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.113-118
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• 2016

Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9), is a protein mainly secreted by a liver. The PCSK9 plays an important role in low density lipoprotein (LDL) metabolism acting as a repressor of LDL receptor through transportation of the LDLR to the lysosome for degradation. Thus, the PCSK9 inhibitor suppresses PCSK9-regulated degradation of the LDL receptor as a LDL-lowering medicine. However, little is known about the role of PCSK9 in the reproductive system. Therefore, in the present study, we investigated Pcsk9 expression in male reproductive tracts including penises, prostates and testes using rats in response to their diets between a normal diet and a high-fat diet with cholesterol. Based on our previous study, the high-fat diet elevates concentration of total cholesterol and LDL in serum whereas it reduces the concentration of plasma high density lipoprotein (HDL). In addition, it dramatically affects to morphological changes of the male reproductive organs. Consistent with these results, the expression of Pcsk9 was substantially decreased in the penile tissues (P < 0.001) from rats fed a high fat diet as compared to a normal diet. Moreover, it slightly reduced in the prostate and testes (P < 0.05) of rats in response to a high fat diet. Localization of Pcsk9 was predominantly detected in urethral epithelium of penises, cylinder-shaped cells of prostate glands, and spermatogonia, spermatocytes and spermatid of testes of rats. Collectively, results of current study provide invaluable insights into the Pcsk9 gene with respect to its tissue- and cell-specific expression by a high fat diet with cholesterol.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.215-222
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• 2015

The radish (Raphanus sativus L.) is an important Brassicaceae root vegetable crop worldwide. Several studies have been conducted concerning radish breeding. There are major challenges to prevent premature bolting in spring plantings. Here, we performed the characterization of two inbred radish lines which vary in bolting time. "Late bolting radish" (NH-JS1) and "early bolting radish" (NH-JS2) were generated by a conventional breeding approach. The two inbred lines showed different bolting phenotypes depending on vernalization time at $4^{\circ}C$. NH-JS1, the late bolting radish, was less sensitive to cold treatment and the less sensitivity was inversely proportional to the duration of the vernalization. We also measured gene expression levels of the major bolting time related genes in the NH-JS1 and NH-JS2 lines. RsFLC1 plays a central role in the timing of flowering initiation. It is a strong repressor and it's transcript is highly expressed in NH-JS1 compared to NH-JS2 under no treatment and vernalization conditions. RsFRI, a positive regulator of RsFLC, is also highly expressed in NH-JS1 compared to NH-JS2 regardless of vernalization. In contrast, RsSOC1, suppressed by FLC as a floral integrator gene, showed the most difference, a 5-fold increase, between NH-JS1 and NH-JS2 under vernalization conditions. From these results, we conclude that NH-JS1 showed a late flowering phenotype after cold treatment due to the expression differences of flowering time regulator genes rather than difference sensitivity to cold. These results may be useful to understand the control mechanisms of flowering time and may help identify molecular markers for selecting late bolting trait in radish.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.166-179
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• 2000

Background: The main reason for the failure of anti-cancer chemotherapy is the build up of resistance by cancer cells to apoptosis. The activation of NF-${\kappa}B$ in many cancer cell lines is reported to be underlying mechanism behind the build up of resistance of cancer cells to apoptosis. However, this relationship varied depending on the cells used in the experiments. In this study, the role of NF-${\kappa}B$ activation in the TNF-$\alpha$-induced apoptosis in lung cancer cell line was evaluated. Methods: NCI-H157 cells were used in all experiments. Cells were exposed to a high dose of TNF-$\alpha$(20 ng/ml) for 24 or 48 hours with or without blocking NF-${\kappa}B$ activation. TNF-$\alpha$-induced activation of NF-${\kappa}B$ was inhibited either by overexpression of $I{\kappa}B{\alpha}$-super repressor($I{\kappa}B{\alpha}$-SR) or by pre-treatment with proteasome inhibitor. Cell viability and apoptosis were evaluated with MTT assay and Western blot analysis for PARP fragment, respectively. Results: Cell viability of NCI-H157 cells was not affected by TNF-$\alpha$ treatment alone; however, combined treatment with TNF-$\alpha$ and cycloheximide reduced cell viability significantly, indicating that resistance to TNF-$\alpha$ is mediated by the new proteins synthesized after TNF-$\alpha$ stimulation. To evaluate the role of NF-${\kappa}B$ in the transcription of anti-apoptotic proteins. delete NF-${\kappa}B$ activation was inhibited before TNF-$\alpha$ stimulation. as described above. $AD5I{\kappa}B{\alpha}$-SR-transduction inhibited TNF-$\alpha$-induced nuclear translocation of p65. TNF-$\alpha$-induced cell death and apoptosis increased after inhibition of TNF-$\alpha$-induced activation of NF-${\kappa}$ by methods. Conclusion: These results suggest that TNF-$\alpha$-induced activation of NF-${\kappa}B$ may be closely related to the acquisition of the resistance to TNF-$\alpha$-induced apoptosis in lung cancer cells. Therefore. blocking of NF-${\kappa}B$ pathway can be a useful therapeutic modality in the treatment of lung cancer.