• BMB Reports
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.116-126
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• 2002

Nitric oxide (NO), synthesized from L-arginine by NO synthases, is a small, lipophilic, diffusible, highly reactive molecule with dichotomous regulatory roles in many biological events under physiological and pathological conditions. NO can promote apoptosis (pro-apoptosis) in some cells, whereas it inhibits apoptosis (anti-apoptosis) in other cells. This complexity is a consequence of the rate of NO production and the interaction with biological molecules such as metal ion, thiol, protein tyrosine, and reactive oxygen species. Long-lasting overproduction of NO acts as a pro-apoptotic modulator, activating caspase family proteases through the release of mitochondrial cytochrome c into cytosol, up-regulation of the p53 expression, and alterations in the expression of apoptosis-associated proteins, including the Bcl-2 family. However, low or physiological concentrations of NO prevent cells from apoptosis that is induced by the trophic factor withdrawal, Fas, $TNF{\alpha}$/ActD, and LPS. The anti-apoptotic mechanism is understood on the basis of gene transcription of protective proteins. These include: heat shock protein, hemeoxygenase, or cyclooxygenase-2 and direct inhibition of the apoptotic executive effectors caspase family protease by S-nitrosylation of the cysteine thiol group in their catalytic site in a cell specific way. Our current understanding of the mechanisms by which NO exerts both pro- and anti-apototic action is discussed in this review article.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.266-269
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• 2013

Hox genes encode transcription factors important for anterior-posterior body patterning at early stages of embryonic development. However, the precise mechanisms by which signal pathways are stimulated to regulate Hox gene expression are not clear. In the previous study, protein kinase B alpha (Akt1) has been identified as a putative upstream regulator of Hox genes, and Akt1 has shown to regulate Gcn5, a prototypical histone acetyltransferase (HAT), in a negative way in mouse embryonic fibroblast (MEF) cells. Since the activity of HAT such as the CBP/p300, and PCAF (a Gcn5 homolog), was down-regulated by Akt through a phosphorylation at the Akt consensus substrate motif (RXRXXS/T), the amino acid sequence of Gcn5 protein was analyzed. Mouse Gcn5 contains an Akt consensus substrate motif as RQRSQS sequence while human Gcn5 does not have it. In order to see whether Akt1 directly binds to Gcn5, immunoprecipitation with anti-Akt1 antibody was carried out in wild-type (WT) mouse embryonic fibroblast (MEF) cells, and then western blot analysis was performed with anti-Akt1 and anti-Gcn5 antibodies. Gcn5 protein was detected in the Akt1 immunoprecipitated samples of MEFs. This result demonstrates that Akt1 directly binds to Gcn5, which might have contributed the down regulation of the 5' Hoxc gene expressions in wild type MEF cells.

• BMB Reports
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• v.47 no.11
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• pp.631-636
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• 2014

Aurora-A is a centrosome-localized serine/threonine kinase that is overexpressed in multiple human cancers. We previously reported an intramolecular inhibitory regulation of Aurora-A between its N-terminal regulatory domain (Nt, amino acids [aa] 1-128) and the C-terminal catalytic domain (Cd, aa 129-403). Here, we demonstrate that although both Aurora-A mutants (AurA-K250G and AurA-D294G/Y295G) lacked interactions between the Nt and Cd, they also failed to interact with Ajuba, an essential activator of Aurora-A, leading to loss of kinase activity. Additionally, overexpression of either of the mutants resulted in centrosome amplification and mitotic spindle formation defects. Both mutants were also able to cause G2/M arrest and apoptosis. These results indicate that both K250 and D294/Y295 are critical for direct interaction between Aurora-A and Ajuba and the function of the Aurora-A complex in cell cycle progression.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.40 no.12
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• pp.916-924
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• 2017

MicroRNAs are widely involved in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases through regulating gene expression via translational inhibition or degradation of their target mRNAs. Recent studies have indicated a critical role of microRNA-206 in myocardial ischaemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury. However, the function of miR-206 in myocardial I/R injury is currently unclear. The present study was aimed to identify the specific role of miR-206 in myocardial I/R injury and explore the underlying molecular mechanism. Our results revealed that the expression level of miR-206 was significantly decreased both in rat I/R group and H9c2 cells subjected to hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R) compared with the corresponding control. Overexpression of miR-206 observably decreased infarct size and inhibited the cardiomyocyte apoptosis induced by I/R injury. Furthermore, bioinformatics analysis, luciferase activity and western blot assay proved that $Gadd45{\beta}$ (growth arrest DNA damage-inducible gene $45{\beta}$) was a direct target gene of miR-206. In addition, the expression of pro-apoptotic-related genes, such as p53, Bax and cleaved caspase3, was decreased in association with the down-regulation of $Gadd45{\beta}$. In summary, this study demonstrates that miR-206 could protect against myocardial I/R injury by targeting $Gadd45{\beta}$.

• BMB Reports
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• v.51 no.2
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• pp.98-103
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• 2018

Recurrence is a serious problem in patients with bladder cancer. The hypothesis for recurrence was that the proliferation of drug-resistant cells was reported, and this study focused on drug resistance due to drug efflux. Previous studies have identified FOXM1 as the key gene for recurrence. We found that FOXM1 inhibition decreased drug efflux activity and increased sensitivity to Doxorubicin. Therefore, we examined whether the expression of ABC transporter gene related to drug efflux is regulated by FOXM1. As a result, ABCG2, one of the genes involved in drug efflux, has been identified as a new target for FOXM1. We also demonstrated direct transcriptional regulation of ABCG2 by FOXM1 using ChIP assay. Consequently, in the presence of the drug, FOXM1 is proposed to directly activate ABCG2 to increase the drug efflux activation and drug resistance, thereby involving chemoresistance of bladder cancer cells. Therefore, we suggest that FOXM1 and ABCG2 may be useful targets and important parameters in the treatment of bladder cancer.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.294-300
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• 2009

Nowadays, as the era of aging is developing remarkably fast, conventional disease treatments such as surgery or emergency therapy are now being substituted to 'health promotion' and 'health prevention through whole-life management. Recently, many oriental medicine colleges are teaching subjects related to Yangsaeng and Gigong. However, detail investigation about the exact education situation and correlation between among subjects has not been performed yet. Thus, in this research, I collected data about each oriental medicine college's Yangsaeng/Gigong-related subjects' prevalence and management situation through the analysis of 'National Education Report about Korea's Oriental Medicine Colleges' and direct investigation, First, I analyzed oriental medicine colleges' education object. Among 11 basic medicine subjects, there were 2 subjects related to Yangsaeng and Gigong. And among 13 clinical medicine subjects, there were 7 subjects related to Yangsaeng and Gigong. In these subjects, the word 'Yangsaeng' was used for 14 times. The word 'Gigong' was used for 5 times and the words 'natural medicine' and 'alternative medicine' were used for 4 times. Total class hours related to Yangsaeng and Gigong were 19.6 hours (practice classes were 4.6 hours). Each class of subjects had 'study objects'. Study objects were categorized into A (Essential) and B (Recommendation) Items. There were44 A items and 23 B items. Among 11 oriental medicine colleges all over Korea, 10 classes related to Yangsaeng and Gigong existed in 9colleges. 7 classes were included in pre-OM course and 3 classes were included in major-OM course. 6 classes were taught only for one semester and 4 classes were taught for 2 semesters. 6 classes were single unit and 4 classes were 2-units sunjects. 3 classes were held 3 hours a week. 6 classes were held 2 hours a week and one class was held an hour per week. In conclusion, each oriental medicine college should focus on the education and research about Yangsaeng and Gigong. To achieve this object, systemic regulation and specialized human resources should also be made.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.711-719
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• 2000

The characteristics of the exocrine pancreatic secretions in pigs and its hormonal regulation as influenced by dietary lipids are reviewed. There is clear evidence that the secretion of lipolytic enzymes is positively correlated with the amount of fat consumed by the pig. For example, there was an increase in the specific lipase activity by 83% after the dietary fat content was increased from 5% to 25%. Moreover, it was shown that also the quality of fat has an influence on exocrine pancreatic secretions. Peroxidized canola oil stimulated total lipase secretion much more than non-peroxidized oil. The influence of fatty acid composition on exocrine pancreatic secretions is discussed equivocally. Some authors showed that saturated fats stimulated the exocrine pancreatic secretions more than unsaturated. Others showed that the chain length of fatty acids had a strong influence on pancreatic secretions as well. Due to the different surgical methods used for sampling of pancreatic juice and wide variety of fats and oils used in these studies, direct comparisons between studies are extremely difficult to make. Plasma levels of hormones such as cholecystokinin (CCK), neurotensin (NT) and peptide YY (PYY) are influenced by the nutrient composition of the diet. With increasing amounts of fat present in the small intestine, the release of these hormones was stimulated. There is evidence that CCK release is dependent on the chain length of the fatty acids. Medium chain triglycerides stimulated the CCK release more than long chain triglycerides. Neurotensin was released more by unsaturated than by saturated fatty acids; similar results were observed for the PYY release. However, results are contradictory and further investigations are warranted that focus on the underlying mechanisms involved in the regulatory response of the exocrine pancreas to lipids of different origin.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.151-157
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• 2015

Fatness qualities in pigs measured by the amount of fat deposition and composition of fatty acids (FAs) in pork have considerable effect on current breeding goals. The stearoyl-CoA desaturase (SCD) gene plays a crucial role in the conversion of saturated FAs into monounsaturated FAs (MUFAs), and hence, is among the candidate genes responsible for pig fatness traits. Here, we identified a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP, $c.^*2041T$ >C) in the 3' untranslated region by direct sequencing focused on coding and regulatory regions of porcine SCD. According to the association analysis using a hundred of Berkshire pigs, the SNP was significantly associated with FA composition (MUFAs and polyunsaturated FAs [PUFAs]), polyunsaturated to saturated (P:S) FA ratio, n-6:n-3 FA ratio, and extent of fat deposition such as intramuscular fat and marbling (p<0.05). In addition, the SNP showed a significant effect on the SCD mRNA expression levels (p = 0.041). Based on our results, we suggest that the SCD $c.^*2041T$ >C SNP plays a role in the gene regulation and affects the fatness qualities in Berkshire pigs.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2017.06a
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• pp.163-163
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• 2017

A deletion analysis of the Oryza sativa dihydroflavonol reductase (DFR) promoter defined a 25 bp region (-386 to -362) sufficient to confer pericarp-specific expression of ${\beta}$ -glucuronidase(GUS) reporter gene in transgenic rice. Site-specific mutagenesis of these conserved sequences and subsequent expression analysis in calli which transiently expressed the mutated promoter::GUS gene showed that both bHLH (-386 to -381) and Myb (-368 to -362) binding sites in the DEL3 (-440 to 70) promoter were necessary for complete expression of the GUS gene including the tissue-specific expression of DFR::GUS gene. The GUS gene was expressed well in the mutated Myb (-368 to -362) binding site, but not as strong as in normal condition, implying that the Myb is also necessary to express GUS gene fully. Also, we found the non-epistatic relation between Rc and DFR. There were no changes of expression patterns GUS under the Rc and rc genotypes. Thus, DFR expression might be independent of the presence of functional Rc gene and suggested that Rc and Rd (DFR) share the same pathway controlling the regulation of flavonoid synthesis but not a direct positive transcriptional regulator of DFR gene.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.414-419
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• 2014

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are zinc-dependent endopeptidases that regulate cell-matrix composition and are also involved in processing various bioactive molecules such as cell-surface receptors, chemokines, and cytokines. Our group recently reported that MMP-3, -8, and -9 are upregulated during microglial activation and play a role as proinflammatory mediators (Lee et al., 2010, 2014). In particular, we demonstrated that MMP-8 has tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-${\alpha}$)-converting enzyme (TACE) activity by cleaving the prodomain of TNF-${\alpha}$ and that inhibition of MMP-8 inhibits TACE activity. The present study was undertaken to compare the effect of MMP-8 inhibitor (M8I) with those of inhibitors of other MMPs, such as MMP-3 (NNGH) or MMP-9 (M9I), in their regulation of TNF-${\alpha}$ activity. We found that the MMP inhibitors suppressed TNF-${\alpha}$ secretion from lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated BV2 microglial cells in an order of efficacy: M8I>NNGH>M9I. In addition, MMP inhibitors suppressed the activity of recombinant TACE protein in the same efficacy order as that of TNF-${\alpha}$ inhibition (M8I>NNGH>M9I), proving a direct correlation between TACE activity and TNF-${\alpha}$ secretion. A subsequent pro-TNF-${\alpha}$ cleavage assay revealed that both MMP-3 and MMP-9 cleave a prodomain of TNF-${\alpha}$, suggesting that MMP-3 and MMP-9 also have TACE activity. However, the number and position of cleavage sites varied between MMP-3, -8, and -9. Collectively, the concurrent inhibition of MMP and TACE by NNGH, M8I, or M9I may contribute to their strong anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects.