• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.53 no.4
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• pp.206-216
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• 2009

3-Hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase inhibitors (Statins) are potent inhibitors of cholesterol biosynthesis. Cholesterol-lowering therapy using statins significantly reduces the risk of coronary heart disease. Various discovery of statins as bone anabolic agents has spurred a great deal of interest among both basic and clinical bone researchers. In-vitro and some animal studies suggest that statins increase the bone mass by enhancing bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2)-mediated osteoblast expression. Clinical and animal test results of statins focusing on the prevention and treatment of bone fractures was collected. Three independent literature searches were performed by using from January 1, 2002 to September 2008 for clinical and animal test results. Search term included statins, HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors, pleiotropic effects, fracture, osteoporosis and clinical and animal test. No consensus has been reached whether clinical use of statins has beneficial effects on bone health, partly due to lower statin concentrations because of first-pass metabolism by the liver. Experimental use of statins as stimulators of bone formation suggests that they may have widespread applicability in the field of orthopaedics. With their combined effects on osteoblasts and osteoclasts, statins have the potential to enhance resorption of synthetic materials and improve bone ingrowth. In conclusion, The use of statins in the prevention and treatment of bone fractures requires further study. But observational studies suggest that statins for decreasing bone fractures including osteoporosis have to be considered local direct administration like transdermal or subcutaneous type over oral adminstration.

• The Korea Journal of Herbology
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.1-6
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• 2014

Objectives : Many of currently used anti-cancer drugs were developed to target cell death mechanisms and had serious side effects by causing damage to normal cells. Hangambujeongsan or Kangai Fuzheng Powder was a mixture based on the traditional Chinese medicine. It had been used in the local Chinese hospitals to treat cancer patients for decades and had shown a certain level of beneficial effects without major toxic effects. But its mechanism of action had not been elucidated yet. Thus this study aimed to investigate the effects of Kangai Fuzheng Powder in an in vitro experiment. Methods : Cancer lines or RAW264.7 mouse macrophage cells were treated with Kangai Fuzheng Powder. Cell viability was measured by MTT assay, and morphological observation was also performed. Gene expression of cytokines in macrophages was determined by real-time polymerase chain reaction. Phagocytic function assay was also performed in macrophage cells. Results : Kangai Fuzheng Powder had no direct detrimental effect on cancer cells. When macrophages were co-cultured with cancer cells, Kangai Fuzheng Powder had toxic effect on cancer cells. After exposing macrophages to Kangai Fuzheng Powder, macrophages transformed into activated form and the mRNA level of tumor necrosis factor-alpha, interleukin-1beta, interleukin-6, interleukin-10 and monocyte chemotactic protein-1 was significantly enhanced. Phagocytic activity of macrophages was dramatically potentiated. Conclusions : We demonstrated that anti-cancer effect of Kangai Fuzheng Powder was related to activation of macrophages including enhanced cytokine production and phagocytic function.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Physical Medicine
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• v.5 no.3
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• pp.301-312
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• 2010

Purpose : The purpose of this study was to determine Exercisely the effects of applying an Integrated Exercise Program (IEP) with the adapted use of Thera-Band exercise sets to Korean seniors on their improvement in their physical strength (PS), daily living ability (ADL and IDAL). Methods : The Exercise group consisted of 30 Korean seniors of 65 years of age or older, while the control group had another 30 Korean seniors with comparable aging. The Exercise group received the IEP for 50 to 60 minutes per session, three sessions per week, for a duration of consecutive 12 weeks. Results : This confirms the beneficial effects of the IEP on their MA and PS, and their improvement in PS (p<.05), in turn, can improve their IADL (p<.05). The results of this study indicate the potentialities for IEP to help Korean seniors of 65 years or older to improve their PS, ADL and IADL. Conclusion : The IEP is within the physical and financial capabilities of Korean seniors, can be designed and modified and adjusted according to their individual physiological conditions. Sustained, regular exercises under IEP are expected to help resolve physiological issues of aging of Korean seniors.

• The Korean Journal of Food And Nutrition
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.640-646
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• 2018

Cassia obtusifolia L. is commonly used as medicinal foods to treat gastrointestinal disease in many countries. This study evaluated the anti-constipation effects of ethanolic extract of Cassia obtusifolia L. in rats with loperamide-induced constipation. Diffferent concentrations of ethanolic extract of Cassia obtusifolia L. (0, 10, 250, and 500 mg/kg) was administered to rat orally once daily for 3 weeks following loperamide treatment. Six-week-old Sprague-Dawley rats (N=25) were randomly divided into five groups: normal control and experimental groups and injected loperamide intraperitoneally to induce constipation in the latter four experimental groups. Following the induction of loperamide-induced constipation, a marked decrease was observed in the fecal weight and water content discharged for over 1 week and intestinal transit time while an increase was observed in the number of fecal pellets remaining in the colonic lumen as compared with the normal control group. These conditions were significantly alleviated following the administration of the two doses (250 and 500 mg/kg) of ethanolic extract of Cassia obtusifolia L. when compared to the loperamide-treated (constipation control) group. More specifically, the number of fecal pellets in the colon was 3, 5, 4, 2.8, and 1.2 in the five groups, respectively and the corresponding GIT ratio was 70.77, 56.59, 58.67, 66.81, and 72.10%, respectively. The fecal water content, transit distance, and GIT ratio in the high-dose treatment group were significantly higher than that in the medium-dose treatment group, but a significant decrease in the number of fecal pellets in the colon. In conclusion, the Cassia obtusifolia L. extract is suggested to have beneficial effects as a therapeutic and preventive strategy to alleviate constipation and to relieve the symptoms of constipation such as pain, flatulence, distention, bloating, and unpleasant taste.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.38 no.5
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• pp.344-351
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• 2005

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of isoflavones on lipid concentrations and hepatic LDL receptor mRNA level in growing female rats. Twenty four rats (body weight $75\pm5g$) were randomly assigned to one of two groups, consuming control diet or isoflavones supplemented diet (57mg isoflavones/100g diet). All rats has been fed on experimental diet and deionized water ad libitum for 9 weeks. The concentration of triglyceride and total cholesterol were measured in serum and liver. Serum HDL cholesterol was measured. Hepatic LDL receptor mRNA level was tested by RT-PCR. Supplementation of isoflavones did not affect weight gain, mean food intake and food efficiency ratio. Serum total cholesterol and non-HDL cholesterol of isoflavones supplemented rats were significantly lower than those of control rats (p<0.05). But hepatic cholseterol was not influenced by supplementation of isoflavones. Hepatic LDL receptor mRNA level not significantly different between control group and isoflavones supplemented group. Therefore, isoflavones may be beneficial on serum cholesterol and non-HDL cholesterol lowering in growing female rats.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.56 no.6
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• pp.495-503
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• 2023

Objectives: While older adults using community care services are known to be vulnerable for depression, community care utilization (CCU) may help to improve the mental health of these elderly. To date, however, it is much less clear how CCU affects depressive symptoms in the elderly population. This study focuses on the trajectory of depressive symptoms across years of CCU among older adults in Korea. Methods: Using the 2006-2019 Korean Welfare Panel Survey, this study is focused on elderly born in 1940 or earlier and selected 3281 persons for baseline interviews in 2006. This consisted of 35 800 person-year observations during a period of 14 years. Panel data analysis were employed to construct years of CCU. Results: After controlling for covariates, linear term of years using community care was negatively associated with depressive symptoms, but a quadratic term was positively significant. The trajectory of depressive symptoms across the years of CCU follows a U-shaped curve. Older adults in the first year of using community care reported the highest level of depressive symptoms. However, a significant and steady decrease in depressive symptoms was observed during the following 9 years of CCU, which then gradually increased. The level of depressive symptoms at the 14th year of using community care remains significantly lower than the level at the outset of its utilization. Conclusions: This finding implies that CCU could be beneficial for improving mental health among older adults.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.145-153
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• 2020

Depression is a kind of mood disorder characterized by decline in motivation, interest, attention, mental activity, and appetite. Although depression is caused by a variety of causes, including genetic, endocrine and environmental stress, mild depression has been reported to improve with diet. Therefore, various type of food sources including functional and nutritional supplement are required to treat the depressive patients. Cheese contains bioactive peptides that have beneficial effects on host health. In particular, Jersey milk has been reported to contain higher solids than does Holstein milk. This study investigated the effects of Gouda cheese from Jersey and Holstein milk on chronic, unpredictable, mildly stressed (CUMS) mice. Here, spontaneous alterations in cheese-fed stressed mice were noted to be effectively recovered with statistical significance regardless cow species. Interestingly, for the analysis of fecal microbiota, Bacteroidetes were noted to increase with a reduction in Firmicutes at the phylum level with Jersey cheese. Taken together, we suggest that cheese intake provided a beneficial effect on stressed mice in recovering recognition ability. In particular, changes in internal microbiota were observed, suggesting that the bioactive ingredients in cheese act as improvement agents with respect to mood and brain function.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.78-82
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• 2013

It has been reported that Scolopendra morsitans L.(SML) has beneficial effects on human health and diverse diseases. The purpose of this study was to investigate the anti-inflammatory effects of ether extract from Scolopendra morsitans L. on lipopolysaccharide(LPS)-induced inflammatory response. Thus, we examined the inhibitory effect of SML ether fraction on LPS-induced increase of inflammatory mediators(NO, iNOS, COX-2, and $I{\kappa}B{\alpha}$) and pro-inflammatory cytokines(TNF-${\alpha}$) in RAW 264.7 cells. In the present study, SML ether extract itself decreased cell viability in a dose dependent manner(> 100 ${\mu}g/ml$). In addition, LPS increased NO production, iNOS expression and phosphorylation of $I{\kappa}-B{\alpha}$, which were blocked by the treatment of SML ether fraction in a dose dependent manner. Furthermore, the treatment of LPS increased TNF-${\alpha}$ production. However, the pretreatment of SML ether fraction prevented the LPS-induced TNF-${\alpha}$ production in dose dependant manner. Taken together, our results suggest that SML may be a beneficial drug against inflammatory diseases such as sepsis.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.263-270
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• 1998

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of Lycii fructus on the serum lipid in rats fed high fat diet. We compared the effects of L. fructus and L.fructus water extract both adminstered with high fat diets on rats that had previously been on high fat or standard diets. Two separate experiments were conducted for 6 weeks. respectively. In experiment I, 4 groups of rats were fed experimental diets consisting of either \circled1 6 weeks of a standard diet(control), \circled2 6 weeks of a high-fat diet(HHC), \circled3 3 weeks of a high-fat diet followed by 3 weeks of a high-fat diet containing L. fructus(HHL) or \circled4 6 weeks of a high-fat diet with L. fructus extract in place of water for the last 3 weeks (HHT). In the second set of experiments, a high-fat diet (SHC), high-fat diet containing L.fructus(SHL) or high-fat diet with L. fructus extract in place of water (SHT) were fed for 3 weeks after 3 weeks of standard diet feeding. Rats fed L. fructus diet consumed more diets than high-fat diets. THe results of experiment I showed significant decreases(p<0.05) in serum triglyceride(TB) and low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) levels with L. fructus feedings, but did not show andy changes in total cholesterol (TC) level. High density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) level was increased significantly(p<0.05) with L. fructus feedings. Therefore, the ration of LDL-C to HDL-C(LDL-C/HDL-C) which is used as an atherosclerosis index was significantly (p<0.05) low, while the HDL-c/TC ration was significantly(p<0.05) high with L.fructus intake. However, no significant were found in serum cholesterols and TG levels in experimentII. The results of these experiments indicate that , regardless of the feeding from, L. fructus can be beneficial in lowering serum TG and LDL-C levels for habitual high-fat diet intakers. L.fructus also seems to be effective in elevating serum HDL-C level, theregy having beneficial effects on atherosclerosis by influencing the serum lipoprotein profile.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.981-989
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• 2019

Coffee is a popular beverage worldwide, and the scale of consumption is growing rapidly. Many studies have shown that increased coffee consumption has various effects on human health, including beneficial effects on liver diseases, clinical type 2 diabetes, and Parkinson's disease. However, the influences of coffee or caffeine (a component of coffee) on the gut microbiota have not been examined in detail. Here, we tested whether caffeine could alter the antimicrobial activity of L. casei against E. coli. Interestingly, we found that treatment with 0.3 mg/mL caffeine increased the antimicrobial activity of L. casei against E. coli. This activity was not associated with the release of lactic acid but did appear to be related to a heat-labile factor present in the L. casei culture supernatant. Our analyses suggest that the putative antimicrobial factor found in the culture supernatant of L. casei treated with caffeine may be bacteriocin. Taken together, our results suggest that caffeine, which is an ingredient of coffee, increases the antimicrobial activity of L. casei against E. coli through the enhanced production of bacteriocin. These findings also suggest that coffee consumption affects the ability of beneficial bacteria to decrease pathogenic bacteria and/or prevent the progression of bacterial infection-associated diseases in the gut.