• BMB Reports
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• v.46 no.5
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• pp.237-243
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• 2013

Heart failure is one of the leading causes of sudden death in developed countries. While current therapies are mostly aimed at mitigating associated symptoms, novel therapies targeting the subcellular mechanisms underlying heart failure are emerging. Failing hearts are characterized by reduced contractile properties caused by impaired $Ca^{2+}$ cycling between the sarcoplasm and sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR). Sarcoplasmic/endoplasmic reticulum $Ca^{2+}$ ATPase 2a (SERCA2a) mediates $Ca^{2+}$ reuptake into the SR in cardiomyocytes. Of note, the expression level and/or activity of SERCA2a, translating to the quantity of SR $Ca^{2+}$ uptake, are significantly reduced in failing hearts. Normalization of the SERCA2a expression level by gene delivery has been shown to restore hampered cardiac functions and ameliorate associated symptoms in pre-clinical as well as clinical studies. SERCA2a activity can be regulated at multiple levels of a signaling cascade comprised of phospholamban, protein phosphatase 1, inhibitor-1, and $PKC{\alpha}$. SERCA2 activity is also regulated by post-translational modifications including SUMOylation and acetylation. In this review, we will highlight the molecular mechanisms underlying the regulation of SERCA2a activity and the potential therapeutic modalities for the treatment of heart failure.

• Environmental Mutagens and Carcinogens
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.1-6
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• 2006

To enhance our understanding of toxicity mediated through the pathway by which TCDD stimulates gene expression, we have investigated genes whose expressions are changed after treatment with TCDD and/or MNNG in human Chang liver cell. First, we treated with MNNG and TCDD for two weeks to transform human Chang liver cell. We obtained cell looks like to be transformed and compared the differential gene expression by using cDNA chip (Macrogen) which carrys genes related with signal transduction pathways, oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes, etc. We found that TCDD up- or down-regulated 203 and 111 genes including oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes in human Chang liver cell two fold or more, respectively. Second, we compared the differential gene expression after treatment with TCDD only by using cDNA chip (Superarray) which carrys genes related with cell cycle regulations, and found that TCDD up regulated genes related with cell proliferation as well as cell growth inhibition in human Chang liver cell two fold or more, respectively. These results suggest that toxicity induced by TCDD may reflect sustained alterations in the expression of many genes and that the changes reflect both direct and indirect effects of TCDD.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.212-218
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• 2005

A full-length 1.1 kb cDNA, designated Oryza sativa Dehydrin 1 (OsDhn1), was isolated from the seed coat of rice. The deduced protein is hydrophilic and has three K-type and one S-type motifs (SK3-type), indicating that OsDhn1 belongs to the acidic dehydrin family, which includes wheat WCOR410 and Arabidopsis COR47. Expression of OsDhn1 was strongly induced by low temperature as well as by drought. Induction of OsDhn1 by cold stress was clearcut in the roots of seedlings and the epidermis of palea and lemma. OsDhn1 was also up-regulated in UBI::CBF1/DREB1b transgenic plants indicating that it is regulated by the CBF/DREB stress signaling pathway.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.177-184
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• 2011

Potassium cyanate (KOCN) is an inorganic compound and induces the carbamylation of proteins with cytotoxic effects on human cells. Although there is a potential cytotoxic molecule, the role of KOCN on the apoptosis of cancer cell is not well understood. The present study investigated the effects of KOCN on the human colorectal cancer cell line, HCT 116 cells. To understand the anti-cancer effect of KOCN on HCT 116 cells, we examined alteration of apoptosis, the intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ concentration, the intracellular signaling pathway and generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in these cells treated with KOCN. The apoptosis of HCT 116 cells was induced by KOCN in a dose-dependent manner at 24 hours and 48 hours, respectively. The apoptosis was processed via the cleavage of poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) and activation of caspase 3 in HCT 116 cells. KOCN induced the elevation of intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ concentration and changed the expressions of Bcl-2 family proteins. The pro-apoptotic Bax was continuously up-regulated, and the anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 was down-regulated by KOCN. KOCN also induced the hyperpolarization of mitochondria and the generation of ROS in HCT 116 cells. Taken together, these results indicate that KOCN induces the apoptosis of HCT 116 cells by disruption of $Ca^{2+}$ homeostasis and via mitochondrial pathway. This study provides the compound that may be used as a potent agent for the treatment of colorectal cancer.

• Genomics & Informatics
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.8-14
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• 2005

Although much is known about the molecular biology of platelets, the megakaryocytes' (MKs) molecular biology was not understood so well because of their rareness. By the cloning and characterization of thrombopoietin (TPO), which is the principal regulator of the growth and development of the MKs, researches on the MKs have been growing rapidly. To understand megakaryocytopoiesis, we investigated the gene expression profile of the MKs using oligonucleotide microarray where 10,108 unique genes were spotted. Comparing the fluorescence intensities of which ratio is $\ge$ ${\mid}2{\mid}$, 372 genes were up-regulated and 541 genes were down-regulated in MKs. For confirmatory expression, RNase protection assay (RPA) establishing abundant apoptotic gene expression was carried out. In MKs, many of the known genes, including several platelet related genes, GATA binding protein were highly expressed. Particularly, TGF beta, clusterin (complement lysis inhibitor), and thymosin beta 4 (actin-sequestering molecules) were expressed highly in MKs. As MKs specific expressed genes may regulate normal and pathologic platelet (and/or MK) functions, the transcript profiling using microarray was useful on molecular understanding of MKs,

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Applied Pharmacology
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• 2001.11a
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• pp.114-114
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• 2001

Since hypoxia-inducible factor-lalpha (HIF-lalpha) and the arylhydrocarbon receptor (AhR) shared the AhR nuclear translocator (Arnt) for hypoxia- and AhR-mediated signaling, respectively, it was possible to establish the hypothesis that hypoxia could regulate Cyplal expression. In order to understand the mechanism of Cyplal gene expression, we demonstrated here that hypoxic agents such as cobalt chloride, desferrioxarnine, and picolinic acid reduced the TCDD induced Cyplal promoter activity based on the determination of luciferase activity in Hepa I cells transfected with pmCypla1-Luc. Also cobalt chloride inhibited the TCDD stimulated Cyplal mRNA level as well as EROD activities in both Hepa I and MCF-7 cells. Hypoxic agents such as cobalt chloride, picolinic acid, and desferrioxamine showed inhibition of luciferase activity that was induced by lnM TCDD treatment with dose dependent manner. Concomitant treatment of 150${\mu}$M ferrous sulfate with 1∼100${\mu}$M desferrioxarnine or 1∼100${\mu}$M picolinic acid recovered from the hypoxic agents-inhibited luciferase activity that was stimulated by TCDD. Reciprocally, the hypoxic agents down regulated TCDD induced Cyplal mRNA level and CYP1A1 enzyme activity in Hepa I cells.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.259-264
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• 2004

The present study describes the ameliorating effect of $Ca^{++}\;on\;Cd^{++}$ toxicity on the germination, early growth of mungbean seedlings, nitrogen assimilation enzyme. s-nitrate reductase (NR), nitrite reductase (NIR), anti-oxidant enzymes (POD, CAT and SOD) and on the accumulation of hydrogen peroxide and sulphydryls. $Cd^{++}$ inhibited seed germination and root and shoot length of seedlings. While NR activity was down- regulated, the activities of NIR, POD and SOD were up- regulated with $Cd^{++}$ treatment. $Cd^{++}$ treatment also increased the accumulation of sulphydryls and peroxides, which is reflective of increased thiol rich proteins and oxidative stress. $Ca^{++}$ reversed the toxic effects of $Cd^{++}$ on germination and on early growth of seedlings as well as on the enzyme activities, which were in turn differentially inhibited with a combined treatment with calcium specific chelator EGTA. The results indicate that the external application of $Ca^{++}$ may increase the tolerance capacity of plants to environmental pollutants by both up and down regulating metabolic activities. Abbreviations: $Cd^{++}= cadmium,\;Ca^{++} = calcium$, NR= nitrate reductase, NIR=nitrite reductase, POD = peroxidse, SOD= superoxide dismutase, CAT= catalase, EGTA= ethylene glycol-bis( $\beta-aminoethyl ether$)-N,N,N,N-tetraacetic acid.

• Molecular & Cellular Toxicology
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• v.2 no.4
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• pp.251-256
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• 2006

The exploration of genes which expressions are changed by exposure to ecotoxicants or pollutants can provide the important information about the reaction mechanisms in the body as well as adaptation to exterior stimulus or environmental changes. Also they can be developed as biomarkers for the detection of environmental pollution. Differential display polymerase chain reaction (DD-PCR) technique has been usefully used to hunt the clones which expressions are up-regulated or down-regulated by exterior changes and this study aimed to search for those clones in diesel oil-exposed rockfish (Sebastes schlegeli) using DD-PCR. The RNA isolated from liver of 20 ppb diesel oil-exposed rockfish was used for screening of the differentially displayed genes and total 44 differentially expressed genes (DEG) are detected then their nucleotide sequences were analyzed. The present data provided the general information about the effect of diesel oil contamination on marine organism and further more the primary step in development of new biomarkers for marine environmental pollution or ecotoxicological stresses.

• Molecular & Cellular Toxicology
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.119-126
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• 2007

1, 1-dichloroethylene (DCE) is well known hepatotoxicant as a model acute hepatotoxicity and selectively injure the bile canalicular membrane of centrilobular hepatocytes. In this study, we investigated hepatic gene expression and histopathological changes in response to DCE treatment. DCE was administered once daily at 20 mg/kg up to 14 days via intraperitoneal injection. Five mice were used in each test group and were sacrificed at 1, 7, and 14 days. Serum biochemical and histopathological analysis were performed for evaluation of hepatotoxicity level. Direct bilirubin and total bilirubin activities were slightly elevated in treated group at 7 days. DCE treatment for 7 days resulted in centrilobular hepatocyte hypertrophy and hepatocyte vacuolation, and mild hepatocyte vacuolation and high hepatocyte basophilia were observed in 14 days treated group. One hundred twenty three up-regulated genes and 445 down-regulated genes with over 2-fold changes between treated and control group at each time point were used for pathway analysis. These data may contribute in understanding the molecular mechanism DCE-induced hepatotoxicity.

• KSII Transactions on Internet and Information Systems (TIIS)
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• v.10 no.11
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• pp.5271-5289
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• 2016

On large-scale data analysis platforms deployed on cloud infrastructures over the Internet, the instability of the data transfer time and the dynamics of the processing rate require a more sophisticated data distribution scheme which maximizes parallel efficiency by achieving the balanced load among participated computing elements and by eliminating the idle time of each computing element. In particular, under the constraints that have the real-time and limited data buffer (in-memory storage) are given, it needs more controllable mechanism to prevent both the overflow and the underflow of the finite buffer. In this paper, we propose an auto regulated data provisioning model based on receiver-driven data pull model. On this model, we provide a synchronized data replenishment mechanism that implicitly avoids the data buffer overflow as well as explicitly regulates the data buffer underflow by adequately adjusting the buffer resilience. To estimate the optimal size of buffer resilience, we exploits an adaptive buffer resilience control scheme that minimizes both data buffer space and idle time of the processing elements based on directly measured sample path analysis. The simulation results show that the proposed scheme provides allowable approximation compared to the numerical results. Also, it is suitably efficient to apply for such a dynamic environment that cannot postulate the stochastic characteristic for the data transfer time, the data processing rate, or even an environment where the fluctuation of the both is presented.