• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.25-36
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• 2014

Objectives: The objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between coronary artery calcification and risk factors of cardiovascular disease with multidetector computed tomography. Methods: Data were collected from 5,899 males between 30 and 59 years old by interview, survey, physical examination, blood test, and multidetector computed tomography in the university hospital from January 2010 to December 2011. We confirmed the coronary artery calcium scores of subjects by multidetector computed tomography and identified risk factors of cardiovascular disorders. We investigated the relationship between coronary artery calcification and risk factors of cardiovascular disorders. Results: Mean calcium score of the coronary arteries in 5,899 participants was 8.20, and 773 participants (13.1%) exhibited coronary artery calcification. The presence of coronary artery calcification was correlated to risk factors of cardiovascular disease (age, blood pressure, triglyceride, HDL cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, glucose, Apolipoprotein A-1, Apolipoprotein B, body mass index, waist circumference) and risk assessment tools of cardiovascular disorders. Significant predicted factors of coronary artery calcification had different patterns in each age group (30-39, 40-49, 50-59 years old). Conclusions: We confirmed the relationship between coronary artery calcification and either typical risk factors of cardiovascular disease or risk assessment tools of cardiovascular disease. In addition, we also observed that the pattern of these factors varied according to age. Therefore, age-related variation needs to be considered in management strategies to prevent cardiovascular disease.

• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.5-25
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• 2004

Objectives : To observe changes in the serum proteins before and after intravenous injection of wild ginseng herbal acupuncture. Methods : Blood was collected before and after the administration of wild ginseng herbal acupuncture and only the serum was centrifuged. Then differences in the spots on the scanned image after running 2-Dimensionl electrophoresis were located and conducted mass analysis and protein identification. Results : Following results were obtained from the comparative analysis of serum proteins before and after the administration of wild ginseng herbal acupuncture. 1. 28 spots were identified before and after the administration. 2. In confirming manifestation degree, spots with more than two-times increase were 204, 803, 1505, 2205, 3105, 7104, 9001 spots, with more than one-time increase were 1101, 1302, 2013, 3009, 3010, 4002, 4009, 6706, 7103, 8006, 8101, and spots with decrease were 205, 801, 3205, 5202, 6105. 3. After conducting protein identification, proteins 205, 804, 1302, 4009, 6105, 6106 are unidentified yet, and 1101 is unnamed protein. Protein 204 is identified as complement receptor CR2-C3d, 801 as YAP1 protein, 803 as antitrypsin polymer, 1505 as PRO0684, 2013 and 3010 as proapolipoprotein, 2205 as USP48, 2403 as vitamin D binding protein, 3009 as complement component 4A preprotein, 3105 as immunoglobulin lambda chain, 3205 as transthyretin, 4002 as Ras-related protein Ral-A, 4204 as beta actin, 5202 and 7104 as apolipoprotein L1, 6704 as alpha 2 macroglobulin precursor, 7103 as complement component 3 precursor, 8006 as testis-specific protein Y, 8101 as Transferrin, 9001 as(Alpha-Oxy, Beta-(C112g)deoxy) T-State Human Hemoglobin, and 9003 as human hemoglobin. 4. Immune protein CR2-C3d, which acts against microbes and pathogenic organisms, and Antitrypsin(803), which is secreted with inflammatory response in the lungs, were increased by more than 200% after the administration of herbal acupuncture. 5. Immunoglobulin lambda chain(3105), Alpha-Oxy, Beta-(C112g)deoxy T-State Human Hemoglobin(9001), and human hemoglobin(9003) were increased by more than two-times after the administration of herbal acupuncture. 6. Proapolipoprotein(2013, 3010) and apolipoprotein(7104), key components of the HDL-cholesterol which plays an important role in preventing arteriosclerosis, were increased after the administration of herbal acupuncture. 7. Vitamin D binding protein(DBP, 2403), protecting the lung at the time of inflammatory response, was increased after the administration of herbal acupuncture. 8. Transthyretin(TTR, 3205), which is the main protein causing familial aimyloid polyneuropathy(FAP), was decreased after the administration of herbal acupuncture. 9. Ras-related protein Ral-A(4002) that controls phospholipid metabolism, cytoskeletal formation, and membrane traffic, was increased after the administration of herbal acupuncture. 10. Testis-specific protein Y(8006), which takes part in determination of the gender, was increased by more than two-times after the administration of herbal acupuncture. 11. Transferrin(8101), T-State Human Hemoblobin(9001), and Human Hemoblobin(9003) which balances the iron level in the body, were increased after the administration of herbal acupuncture. Conousion : Above results support the notion that intravenous injection of cultivated wild ginseng herbal acupuncture induce changes in serum proteins and this research can be a pioneer work in finding biomarkers.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.14 no.11
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• pp.1592-1597
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• 2001

Sixteen pigs from 2 distinct genetic lines (LGAH and VFIL) obtained after eight generations of divergent selection for high (H) and low (L) lean tissue growth rate with ad-libitum feeding (LGA) and voluntary feed intake (VF1), respectively, were used in this study. The objectives of this investigation were to establish appropriate working conditions for the postheparin plasma lipoprotein lipase (LPL) assay and to study relationships between fat deposition and plasma lipids, very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) lipids, VLDL-subfractions and postheparin plasma LPL activity in growing pigs. Four preliminary experiments were performed to determine the appropriate working conditions for the postheparin plasma LPL assays. Postheparin plasma preincubated with SDS (20-50 mM) at $26^{\circ}C$ for 45 minutes inhibited hepatic lipase activity. A total of $2{\mu}l$ VLDL/assay produced maximum stimulation of LPL activity. Postheparin plasma protein and increasing incubation time contributed an optimum response. LGAH pigs had a significantly higher proportion subtraction 2 than VFIL pigs. No differences were observed in postheparin plasma LPL activity and backfat thickness for two lines of pigs. There were positive correlations between backfat thickness and proportion of subtractions 2 and postheparin plasma LPL activity but the results were not statistically significant. Backfat thickness was not statistically correlated with proportion of subtraction 2 and postheparin plasma LPL activity in a multiple regression analysis. It is believed that the apolipoprotein E, which is present in higher quantities in VLDL-subfraction 2 plays an important role for clearing VLDL triacylglycerol into adipose tissue. LPL activity of pigs can be measured by using postheparin plasma technique. If the relationships of backfat thickness and VLDL-subfraction 2 and postheparin plasma LPL activity can be established, it suggests that these parameters could be used as indicators in selection programmes. Further experiments need to be conducted by using larger sample size and different breed of pigs with greater differences in backfat thicknesses to confirm these trends.

• Journal of the Optical Society of Korea
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• v.18 no.5
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• pp.551-557
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• 2014

In this study, we demonstrated multimodal nonlinear optical (NLO) microscopy integrated simultaneously with two-photon excitation fluorescence (TPEF), second-harmonic generation (SHG), and coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) in order to obtain targeted cellular and label-free images in an immunofluorescence assay of the atherosclerotic aorta from apolipoprotein E-deficient mice. The multimodal NLO microscope used two laser systems: picosecond (ps) and femtosecond (fs) pulsed lasers. A pair of ps-pulsed lights served for CARS (817 nm and 1064 nm) and SHG (817 nm) images; light from the fs-pulsed laser with the center wavelength of 720 nm was incident into the sample to obtain autofluorescence and targeted molecular TPEF images for high efficiency of fluorescence intensity without cross-talk. For multicolor-targeted TPEF imaging, we stained smooth-muscle cells and macrophages with fluorescent dyes (Alexa Fluor 350 and Alexa Fluor 594) for an immunofluorescence assay. Each depth-sectioned image consisted of $512{\times}512$ pixels with a field of view of $250{\times}250{\mu}m^2$, a lateral resolution of $0.4{\mu}m$, and an axial resolution of $1.3{\mu}m$. We obtained composite multicolor images with conventional label-free NLO images and targeted TPEF images in atherosclerotic-plaque samples. Multicolor 3-D imaging of atherosclerotic-plaque structural and functional composition will be helpful for understanding the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.437-450
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• 2024

Objective: Vanin-1 (VNN1) is a pantetheinase that catalyses the hydrolysis of pantetheine to produce pantothenic acid and cysteamine. Our previous studies have shown that the VNN1 is specifically expressed in chicken liver which negatively regulated by microRNA-122. However, the functions of the VNN1 in lipid metabolism in chicken liver haven't been elucidated. Methods: First, we detected the VNN1 mRNA expression in 4-week chickens which were fasted 24 hours. Next, knocked out VNN1 via CRISPR/Cas9 system in the chicken Leghorn Male Hepatoma cell line. Detected the lipid deposition via oil red staining and analysis the content of triglycerides (TG), low-density lipoprotein-C (LDL-C), and high-density lipoprotein-C (HDL-C) after VNN1 knockout in Leghorn Male Hepatoma cell line. Then we captured various differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between VNN1-modified LMH cells and original LMH cells by RNA-seq. Results: Firstly, fasting-induced expression of VNN1. Meanwhile, we successfully used the CRISPR/Cas9 system to achieve targeted mutations of the VNN1 in the chicken LMH cell line. Moreover, the expression level of VNN1 mRNA in LMH-KO-VNN1 cells decreased compared with that in the wild-type LMH cells (p<0.0001). Compared with control, lipid deposition was decreased after knockout VNN1 via oil red staining, meanwhile, the contents of TG and LDL-C were significantly reduced, and the content of HDL-C was increased in LMH-KO-VNN1 cells. Transcriptome sequencing showed that there were 1,335 DEGs between LMH-KO-VNN1 cells and original LMH cells. Of these DEGs, 431 were upregulated, and 904 were downregulated. Gene ontology analyses of all DEGs showed that the lipid metabolism-related pathways, such as fatty acid biosynthesis and long-chain fatty acid biosynthesis, were enriched. KEGG pathway analyses showed that "lipid metabolism pathway", "energy metabolism", and "carbohydrate metabolism" were enriched. A total of 76 DEGs were involved in these pathways, of which 29 genes were upregulated (such as cytochrome P450 family 7 subfamily A member 1, ELOVL fatty acid elongase 2, and apolipoprotein A4) and 47 genes were downregulated (such as phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase 1) by VNN1 knockout in the LMH cells. Conclusion: These results suggest that VNN1 plays an important role in coordinating lipid metabolism in the chicken liver.

• Ocean Science Journal
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.129-134
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• 2007

Increasing industrial development in the Masan Bay area of Korea over the past decades increased the risk for the survival of marine organisms in the bay area by the deterioration of the water quality. Since living organisms have the ability to adapt contamination-associated stimuli by the alteration of gene expression, changes in proteins can be used as an important criterion for assessing the levels of environmental conditions. In this study, therefore, alterations of the expression of proteins in the muscle of Limanda yokohamae from Dukdong and Dotsum in the bay area were surveyed and characterized as compared with Haegumgang, which served as a control site. The results demonstrated that the twenty spots detected from Dukdong and Dotsum were similar to each other. Fifteen proteins were found to be predicted or undefined proteins, while five proteins were identified as heavy polypeptide 11 of myosin, apolipoprotein A-I, fibroblast growth factor 17b precursor, G protein-coupled receptor kinase 1 b and bonnie and clyde. These data suggest that local fish in the bay area have dysfunction in muscle physiology including contraction, lipid metabolism, proliferation and differentiation and nervous system.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.51 no.2
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• pp.182-187
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• 2019

Women who undergo natural menopause transition have increased numbers of risk factors relating to metabolic syndrome due to estrogen deficiency. This study was conducted to investigate the effect of Superhongmi bran extract on metabolic syndrome improvement in menopausal women. Thirty women, who participated in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, were assigned to placebo-control (n=15) or Superhongmi bran extract (n=15) groups and were asked to consume two tablets (350 mg per extract per tablet) per day. After 12 weeks, weight, body mass index (BMI), plasma triglyceride (TG) levels, and total cholesterol (TC) levels were significantly decreased, whereas HDL-cholesterol (HDL-C), apolipoprotein A1 (ApoA1), adiponectin, superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1), and GSH (glutathione) concentrations were significantly increased in the Superhongmi bran extract group. Moreover, $17{\beta}-estradiol$, and progesterone levels in the Superhongmi group were significantly higher than those in the placebo-control group. These results suggest that Superhongmi bran extract alleviates metabolic symptom in menopausal women.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.178-186
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• 2020

Background: Cognitive impairment is a public health burden. Our objective was to investigate associations between work hours and cognitive function. Methods: Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) participants (n = 2,497; 50.7% men; age range 44-84 years) reported hours per week worked in all jobs in Exams 1 (2000-2002), 2 (2002-2004), 3 (2004-2005), and 5 (2010-2011). Cognitive function was assessed (Exam 5) using the Cognitive Abilities Screening Instrument (version 2), a measure of global cognitive functioning; the Digit Symbol Coding, a measure of processing speed; and the Digit Span test, a measure of attention and working memory. We used a prospective approach and linear regression to assess associations for every 10 hours of work. Results: Among all participants, associations of hours worked with cognitive function of any type were not statistically significant. In occupation-stratified analyses (interaction p = 0.051), longer work hours were associated with poorer global cognitive function among Sales/Office and blue-collar workers, after adjustment for age, sex, physical activity, body mass index, race/ethnicity, educational level, annual income, history of heart attack, diabetes, apolipoprotein E-epsilon 4 allele (ApoE4) status, birth-place, number of years in the United States, language spoken at MESA Exam 1, and work hours at Exam 5 (β = -0.55, 95% CI = -0.99, -0.09) and (β = -0.80, -1.51, -0.09), respectively. In occupation-stratified analyses (interaction p = 0.040), we also observed an inverse association with processing speed among blue-collar workers (adjusted β = -0.80, -1.52, -0.07). Sex, race/ethnicity, and ApoE4 did not significantly modify associations between work hours and cognitive function. Conclusion: Weak inverse associations were observed between work hours and cognitive function among Sales/Office and blue-collar workers.

• Journal of the Korea Society of Computer and Information
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• v.25 no.10
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• pp.115-123
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• 2020

In this paper, we propose to evaluate the potential anti-inflammatory properties of root bark extract of Cudrania (C.) tricuspidata on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammation in macrophages of apolipoprotein E (ApoE) knockout (ApoE^-/-) mice, murine model of atherosclerosis. Atherosclerosis is a chronic vascular inflammatory disease. C. tricuspidata is a small tree of the Moraceae family and its extract has anti-inflammatory activities. However, its role in the progress of atherosclerosis is not yet clear. To determine anti-inflammatory effects of C. tricuspidata in atherogenesis, we applied LPS in peritoneal macrophages of ApoE^-/- mice and measured cell viability by CCK-8 and expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines by qRT-PCR following treatment with root bark extract of C. tricuspidata. Research data was expressed as differences between the cells treated with LPS and root bark extract and the cells treated with LPS alone (control) by a two-tailed non-parametric Mann-Whitney U-test using GraphPad Instat program. No cytotoxic effect was observed when the cells were treated with the extract at concentrations ≤ 100 ㎍/mL. The expression of inflammatory cytokines, including MCP-1, IL-1β, IFN-γ, TNF-α, and IL-6 were inhibited by the extract. These results indicated that the extract has an anti-inflammatory effect and therefore a possible role in the treatment of atherosclerosis.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.18 no.5
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• pp.617-632
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• 2024

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Atherosclerosis particularly due to high circulating level of low-density lipoprotein is a major cause of cardiovascular diseases. Ellagic acid is a natural polyphenolic compound rich in pomegranates and berries. Our previous study showed that ellagic acid improved functionality of reverse cholesterol transport in murine model of atherosclerosis. The aim of this study is to investigate whether ellagic acid inhibited inflammation-associated atherosclerotic plaque formation in cholesterol-fed apolipoprotein E (apoE)-knockout (KO) mice. MATERIALS/METHODS: Wild type mice and apoE-KO mice were fed a cholesterol-rich Paigen diet for 10 weeks to induce severe atherosclerosis. Concurrently, 10 mg/kg ellagic acid was orally administered to the apoE-KO mice. Plaque lesion formation and lipid deposition were examined by staining with hematoxylin and eosin, Sudan IV and oil red O. RESULTS: The plasma leukocyte profile of cholesterol-fed mice was not altered by apoE deficiency. Oral administration of ellagic acid attenuated plaque lesion formation and lipid deposition in the aorta tree of apoE-KO mice. Ellagic acid substantially reduced plasma levels of soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule and interferon-γ in Paigen diet-fed apoE-KO mice. When 10 mg/kg ellagic acid was administered to cholesterol-fed apoE-KO mice, the levels of CD68 and MCP-1 were strongly reduced in aorta vessels. The protein expression level of nitric oxide synthase-2 (NOS2) in the aorta was highly enhanced by supplementation of ellagic acid to apoE-KO mice, but the expression level of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) in the aorta was reduced. Furthermore, ellagic acid diminished the increased aorta expression of the inflammatory adhesion molecules in cholesterol-fed apoE-KO mice. The treatment of ellagic acid inhibited the scavenger receptor-B1 expression in the aorta of apoE-KO mice, while the cholesterol efflux-related transporters were not significantly changed. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that ellagic acid may be an atheroprotective compound by attenuating apoE deficiency-induced vascular inflammation and reducing atherosclerotic plaque lesion formation.