• Molecular & Cellular Toxicology
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.93-98
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• 2009

Stephania delavayi Diels. has been used as an immune activator or an anti-inflammatory drug in China. We examined the immune modulation effect and 7-days repeated-dose toxicity to validate its biological safety and efficiency. Mice were repeatedly administrated with 50 mg/kg S. delavayi Diels. daily by I.P for 7 days. S. delavayi Diels. induced B cell activation but had no effect on other immune cells such as T cell, natural killer (NK) cell, and macrophage ($M{\varphi}$). S. delavayi Diels.-treated group exhibited no statistical significance from the control group in physical conditions; body weight, complete blood count (CBC), serum biochemical indexes etc. There was no difference between the control group and S. delavayi Diels.-treated group in gross findings such as histopathological alteration. In conclusion, S. delavayi Diels. is safe above the dose of immune modulation.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Clinical Toxicology
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.1-6
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• 2010

Methylene blue is a very effective reducer of drug-induced methemoglobinemia. It has dose-dependent oxidation or reduction properties. In most cases, a dose of 1 to 2 mg/kg IV given over 5 minutes and immediately followed by a 15- to 30-mL fluid flush to minimize the local pain is both effective and relatively safe. The onset of action is quite rapid, and the effects are usually seen within 30 minutes. The dose may be repeated after 30 to 60 minutes and then every 2 to 4 hours as needed. The total dose should not exceed 7 mg/kg as a single dose or 15 mg/kg within 24 hours. Repeated treatment may be needed for treating compounds that have prolonged elimination or those compounds that undergo enterohepatic recirculation (e.g., dapsone). Methylene blue can cause dose-related toxicity. At high doses, methylene blue can also induce an acute hemolytic anemia and rebound methemoglobinemia. The reasons for treatment failure with methylene blue include ineffective GI decontamination, the existence of other forms of hemoglobin (e.g., sulfhemoglobin), a low or high dose of methylene blue and the toxicokinetics of some agents, such as aniline, benzocaine or dapsone.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.59-67
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• 1996

A new composite antibiotic, SM-101(sulbactam·metampicillin), was at dose levels of 0, 375, 750 and 1500 mg/kg/day administered intravenously to pregnant Sprague-Dawley rats during the organogenetic period. Two-third of dams per group were subjected to caesarean section on day 20 of pregnancy and the remaining 10 dams per group were allowed to deliver. Effects of test substance on dams, embryonal development of F1 fetuses, as well as growth, behaviour and mating performance of F1 offspring were examined. In dams, two deaths occurred at 375 and 1500 mg/kg, respectively. The decrease in the weight of adrenal glands of the 1500 mg/kg group was observed. The prolongation of pregnancy period was found at 1500 mg/kg. F1 fetuses showed no changes related to the treatment of SM-101. In F1 offspring, the increase in spleen weight was seen at all doses treated. No treatment-related abnormalities were observed in each treated group in terms of development, behaviour and reproductive performance. In F2 fetuses, no drug-induced abnormalities occurred at all doses. The results show that the no-effect dose levels (NOELS) for dams and Fl offspring are under 375 mg/kg/day and NOELs for F1/F2 fetuses are over 1500 mg/kg/day.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Applied Pharmacology
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• 2006.04a
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• pp.123-135
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• 2006

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia in the aging population and is clinically characterized by a progressive loss of cognitive abilities. Pathologically, it is defined by the appearance of senile plaques - extracellular insoluble, congophilic protein aggregates composed of amyloid $\beta$ (A$\beta$) and neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) - inyracellular lesions consisting of paired helical filaments from hyperphosphorylated cytoskeletal tau protein as described by Alois Alzheimer a century ago. These hallmarks still serve as the major criteria for a definite diagnosis of the disease. Consequently, one of the key strategy for drug development in this disease area focuses on reducing the concentration of cerebral A$\beta$ plaque by using substances that inhibit A$\beta$ fibril formation. We focused on developing inhibitors by synthesizing several kinds of aromatic molecules. The synthetic compounds were initially screened to evaluate the effective compound by tioflavin T fluorescence assay. The selected effective compounds were tested cytotoxicity and protective effect from A$\beta$-induced neuronal toxicity by cell based MTT assay with HT22 hippocampal neurons. The BBB permeability on effectors was also tested in in vitro co-culture model(HUVEC/C6 cell line). The behavior test wea carried out in mutant APP/PS1 transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer's disease. And inhibition of A$\beta$ fibril formation by the effective compound was monitored with transmitted electron microscopic images.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.4 no.4
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• pp.339-348
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• 1996

A new composite antibiotic, SM-101 (sulbactam·metampicillin), was at dose levels of 0, 250, 500 and 1000 mg/kg/day administered intravenously to pregnant and subsequently delivered Sprague-Dawley rats from day 17 of gestation to day 21 of lactation. Effects of test agent on dams and growth, behaviour and mating performance of Fl offspring were examined. In dams, one death occurred at 1000 mg/kg. The increase in kidney weight of the 250, 500 and 1000 mg/kg group was found. In F1 offspring, both delayed incisors eruption and decreased body weight were observed in females of the 1000 mg/kg group. The increase in the weights of liver and kidney was found in males of the 1000 mg/kg group. No treatment-related abnormalities were observed in each treated group in terms of behaviour and reproductive performance. In F1/F2 fetuses, no drug-induced abnormalities occurred at all doses tested. The results show that the no effect dose level (NOEL) of SM-101 is under 250 mg/kg/day for dams and 500 mg/kg/day for F1 offspring, and over 1000 mg/kg/day for F1/F2 fetuses.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.95-104
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• 2012

Objectives: There are some controversies over the safety of herbal medication in relation to liver function. This report, therefore, aimed to analyze the safety issue of herbal medications by scrutinizing the liver function tests (LFT) results of 82 psoriasis patients on herbal medications for 3 months at an oriental medical clinic. Methods: We tested psoriasis patients' liver function periodically with Reflotron Plus of Roche during the herbal medication. Then we statistically analyzed the LFT results to see if there was any negative change. Results: Statistical analysis on the LFT results of 82 psoriasis patients showed no meaningful change caused by herbal medication over 3 months. Conclusions: From this result we conclude that herbal medication for 3 months does no harm to patients' liver function.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.54 no.5
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• pp.377-386
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• 2010

Single-dimensional (1-D) and two-dimensional (2-D) LC methods were utilized to separate peptides from various sources followed by MS/MS analysis. Two-dimensional ultra-high performance liquid chromatography is a useful tool for proteome analysis, providing a greater peak capacity than 1-D LC. The most popular 2-D LC approach used today for proteomic research combines strong cation exchange and reversed-phase LC. We have evaluated an alternative mode for 2-D LC of peptides using 2-D RP-RP nano UPLC Q-TOF Mass Spectrometry, employing reversed-phase columns in both separation dimensions. As control experiments, we identified 129 proteins in 1-D LC and 322 proteins in 2-D LC from E. coli extract peptides. Furthermore, we applied this method to rat primary hepatocyte and a total of 170 proteins were identified from 1-D LC, and 527 proteins were identified from all 2-D LC system. The in-depth protein profiling established by this 2-D LC MS/MS from rat primary hepatocyte could be a very useful reference for future applications in regards to drug induced liver toxicity.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.21
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• pp.9355-9360
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• 2014

Background: Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) remains as one of the most difficult malignancies to control because of its high propensity for local invasion and cervical lymph node dissemination. In this study, we evaluate the efficacy of our novel pH and temperature sensitive doxorubicin-methotrexate-loaded nanoparticles (DOX-MTX NP) in affecting HER2 expression profile in OSCC model in rat. Results: DOX-MTX- nanoparticle complexes caused significant decrease in mRNA level of HER2 compared to untreated cancers (p<0.05) and this finding was more pronounced with the IV mode (p<0.000). Surprisingly, HER2 mRNA was not affected in DOX treated as compared to the control group (p>0.05). On the other hand, in the DOX-MTX NP treated group, fewer tumors characterized with advanced stage and decreased HER2 paralleled improved clinical outcome (P<0.05). Moreover, the effectiveness of the oral route in the group treated with nanodrug accounted for the enhanced bioavailability of nanoparticulated DOX-MTX compared to free DOX. Furthermore, there was no significant difference in mRNA level of HER2 (p>0.05). Conclusions: Influence of HER2 gene expression is a new feature and mechanism of action observed only in dual action DOX-MTX-NPs treated groups. Down-regulation of HER2 mRNA as a promising marker and prognosticator of OSCC adds to the cytotoxic benefits of DOX in its new formulation. Both oral and IV application of this nanodrug could be used, with no preferences in term of their safety or toxicity. As HER2 is expressed abundantly by a wide spectrum of tumors, i DOX-MTX NPs may be useful for a wide-spectrum of lesions. However, molecular mechanisms underlying HER2 down regulation induced by DOX-MTX NPs remain to be addressed.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.601-610
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• 2024

Tofacitinib, a Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, is metabolized through hepatic cytochrome P450 (CYP), specifically CYP3A1/2 and CYP2C11. Prolonged administration of rheumatoid arthritis medications is generally associated with an increased risk of renal toxicity. Loganin (LGN), an iridoid glycoside, has hepatorenal regenerative properties. This study investigates the potential of LGN to mitigate acute kidney injury (AKI) and its effects on the pharmacokinetics of tofacitinib in rats with cisplatin-induced AKI. Both intravenous and oral administration of tofacitinib to AKI rats significantly increased the area under the plasma concentration-time curve from time 0 to infinity (AUC) compared with control (CON) rats, an increase attributed to the decelerated non-renal clearance (CL_NR) and renal clearance (CL_R) of tofacitinib. Administration of LGN to AKI rats, however, protected kidneys from severe impairment, restoring the pharmacokinetic parameters (AUC, CL_NR, and CL_R) of tofacitinib to those observed in untreated CON rats, with partial recovery of kidney function, as evidenced by an increase in creatinine clearance. Possible interactions between drugs and natural components should be considered, especially when co-administering both a drug and a natural extract containing LGN or iridoid glycosides to patients with kidney injury.

• Korean Journal of Medicinal Crop Science
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.322-327
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• 2017

Background: Cynaroside is a flavone, a flavonoid-like compound, known by different names (luteoloside and cinaroside). It is commonly found in Lonicera japonica Thunb., Chrysanthemum moriflium, and Angelica keiskei. The process of cell death has been classified as necrosis and apoptosis. Necrosis refers to unregulated cell death induced by a chemotherapeutic agent. Doxorubicin is an anthracycline anti-cancer drug used to treat acute leukemia, cancer, and lymphoma. However, it induces nephrotoxicity including tubular damage. Therefore, we investigated the protective effect of cynaroside against doxorubicin-induced necrosis in HK-2 cells. Methods and Results: To confirm the beneficial effect of cynaroside on doxorubicin-induced necrosis, HK-2 cells, a human proximal tubule epithelial cell line were treated with $10{\mu}M$ doxorubicin and $80{\mu}M$ cynaroside. Doxorubicin treatment resulted in increased DNA fragmentation, caspase-3 activity and mitochondria hyperactivation during cell necrosis. However, pretreatment with $80{\mu}M$ cynaroside attenuated DNA fragmentation, caspase-3 activity and mitochondria hyperactivation induced by $10{\mu}M$ doxorubicin in HK-2 cells. Conclusions: These results indicated that pretreatment with cynaroside ameliorated doxorubicin-induced necrosis in HK-2 cells. Therefore, cynaroside be used as a therapeutic agent for improving doxorubicin-induced nephrotoxicity. However, further studies are required to evaluated the toxicity of cynaroside treatment in animals and to determine its protective effect against doxorubicin-induced nephrotoxicity in an animal model.