• Journal of Life Science
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• v.24 no.11
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• pp.1157-1167
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• 2014

In order to compare the anti-inflammatory effects of five selected cereal grains-proso millet, hwanggeumchal sorghum, foxtail millet, barnyard millet, and adlay-the inhibitory activities of 80% ethanol (EtOH) extracts obtained from the individual grains on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced nitric oxide (NO) generation were investigated in RAW264.7 cells. The EtOH extract of barnyard millet (Echinochloa crus-galli var. frumentacea) grains exhibited more potent anti-inflammatory activity than that of the other grains. When the EtOH extract of barnyard millet grains was sequentially fractionated with n-hexane, methylene chloride (MC), ethyl acetate (EtOAc), and n-butanol, the majority of the anti-inflammatory activity was detected in the MC fraction, followed by the EtOAc fraction. Pretreatment with the MC fraction caused downregulation of the expression levels of iNOS- and COX-2-specific transcripts and proteins, as well as proinflammatory cytokine gene transcripts (IL-$1{\beta}$, IL-6, and TNF-${\alpha}$) in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 cells. Additionally, the MC fraction could suppress not only the LPS-induced nuclear translocation of cytosolic NF-kB, but also the LPS-induced activation of MAPKs, such as ERK, JNK, and p38MAPK. Further analysis of the MC fraction by HPLC identified kaempferol, biochanin A, and formononetin as the major phenolic components. Both kaempferol and biochanin A, but not formononetin, could exert anti-inflammatory effect at the same concentrations as those of the MC fraction. Consequently, these results indicate that kaempferol and biochanin A are among the most effective anti-inflammatory phenolic components in barnyard millet grains. This finding suggests that barnyard millet grains and the MC extract enriched in kaempferol and biochanin A could be beneficial functional food sources that have an anti-inflammatory effect.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.87-92
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• 2000

This study was designed to investigate the effects og $10{\%},\;20{\%}\;and\;40{\%}$-addition of functional brown algae (FBA)-noodles on oxygen radicals and their scavenger enzymes in liver of Sprague-Dawley(SD) male rats. Hydroxyl radicals$({\cdot}OH)$ formations were significantly inhibited$(20{\~}35{\%}\;and\;12{\~}20{\%})$ in liver mitochondria and microsomes of rats administered $0{\%},\;20{\%}\;and\;40{\%}$ FBA-noodles compared with that of control group. Significant differences in $H_2O_2$ formations of liver microsome in these FBA-noodles fed groups could not be obtained, but superoxide-radical $(O_2^({\cdot}-))$ formations of liver cytosol resulted in a significant decrease about $10{\%}\;in\;20{\%}\;and\;40{\%}$ FBA-noodles compared with control group. Mn-SOD activities in liver mitochondria were significanlty increased $(10{\~}15{\%})$ in the groups fed $10{\%},\;20{\%}\;and\;40{\%}$ FBA-noodles, while a group administered $40{\%}$ FBA-noodle only resulted In a significant increases $(about 12{\%})$ in Mn-SOD activity of liver microsomes compared with control group. Cu, Zn-SOD activities in liver cytosol were significantly increased $(10{\~}20{\%})\;in\;10{\%},\;20{\%}\;and\;40{\%}$ FEA-noodles compared with control group. Administration of $10{\%},\;20{\%}\;and\;40{\%}$ FBA-noodles resulted in a marked increases$(20{\~}40{\%})$ in liver cytosolic glutathione peroxidase (GSHPx) compared with control group. Significant differences in lipid peroxide (LPO) levels of mitochondria and microsomes in $10{\%}$ FBA-noodle could not be obtained, while LPO levels of $20{\%} and 40{\%}$ FBA-noodles were significantly inhibited about $10{\%}$ in mitochondria and microsomes compared with control group. These results suggest that these FBA-noodles may play a desirable role in attenuating an oxygen radical formations and increasing a scavenger enzymes activity by some brown algae (Undaria pinnatifida) components.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.169-175
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• 2011

Calcium ($Ca^{2+}$) signals have been implicated in regulating plant development and responses to the environmental stresses including a programmed cell death pathway. In animals and plants, cytosolic $Ca^{2+}$ signals have been involved in the activation of programmed cell death (PCD). Recently, we reported that disruption of Arabidopsis vacuolar $\b{A}$utoinhibited $\underline{C}a^{2+}$-$\b{A}$TPases (ACAs), ACA4 and ACA11, resulted in the activation of a salicylic acid-dependent programmed cell death pathway. Although extensive studies have revealed various components of a PCD in plants, executors to directly induce PCD are well unknown. Here, we provide that the vacuolar processing enzymes (VPEs) are involved in a PCD induced by the double knockout mutant of vacuolar $Ca^{2+}$-ATPases in Arabidopsis. The gene expression of VPE was rapidly up-regulated and the enzyme activity of VPE was increased in the double mutant plants. We also generated aca4/aca11/avpe, aca4/aca11/${\gamma}$vpe and aca4/aca11/avpe/${\gamma}$vpe mutant plants. Although cell death phenotype of the double mutant plants was not completely disappeared in the triple and quadruple mutant plants, the triple and quadruple mutant plants showed to significantly delay cell death phenotype of the double mutant plants. These results suggest that the VPE is involved in the HR-like cell death in the double mutant of vacuolar $Ca^{2+}$-ATPases in Arabidopsis.