• Journal of Embryo Transfer
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.265-270
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• 2011

Procymidone is a fungicide with anti-androgenic properties widely used to protect fruits from fungal infection, which induces an excessive reactive oxygen species production in male reproductive organs. In this study, to clarify whether procymidone affect the cellular antioxidant system of prostate at onset of puberty, gene expression patterns of the representative antioxidant enzymes such as cytoplasmic glutathione peroxidase (GPx1), phospholipid hydroperoxide GPx (PHGPx), selenoprotein P (SePP), cytoplasmic copper/zinc superoxide dismutase (SOD1), and manganese SOD (SOD2) were investigated in the rat ventral prostates exposed to procymidone using real-time RT-PCR analyses. Seven-week-old Sprague-Dawley rats castrated at 6 weeks old were treated with procymidone (25, 50, or 100 mg/kg per day) orally for 7 consecutive days after testosterone propionate (0.4 mg/kg per day) administration by subcutaneous injection. As compared to normal control animals, GPx1 mRNA expression in prostates significantly increased by the administration with TP and/or procymidone. However, PHGPx and SOD1 mRNA levels significanatly decreased by over 25 mg/kg of procymidone treatment and SePP and SOD2 mRNA levels was significanatly reduced by over 50 mg/kg of procymidone treatment. These findings indicate that procymidone may affect the antioxidant system of prostatic cells in up-regulation mode of GPx1, but in down-regulation modes of PHGPx, SePP, SOD1, and SOD2, suggesting that procymidone may affect differently the cellular antioxidant system of prostate according to the exposure doses.

• Herbal Formula Science
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.175-202
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• 2004

Nitric oxide(NO) play an important role in normal and pathophysiological cells including as a messenger molecule, neurotransmitter, microbiocidal agent, or dilator of blood vessels and artheriosclerosis, hypertension, myocardial infarction, respectively. To investigate that Ondamtang in the potential contribution of the levels of nitric oxide generated by endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) and the mechanisms of protection against L-NAME, human ECV304 cells, which normally do not express eNOS, were expressed by L-NAME. L-NAME stimulated rat or cells were found to be resistant to injury and delayed death following the Ondam-tang. Inhibition of nitric oxide synthesis abolished the protective effect against L-NAME, thrombin and collagen exposure. Interestingly, such effects have bee observed during stimulation with agents such as KCl on L-NAME mediate rats, were damaged by the NOS inhibitor NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME). Cardiovascular diseases is one of the blood vessels and renin-angiotensin system dynfunction. So we studied on herbal medicine that have a relation of vessels endothelium necrosis. In Oriental Medicine, Ondam-tang has been used for disease in relation to cardiovascular system. We studied on the protection and inhibitory effects of cardiovascular diseases in L-NAME induced rat or ECV304 cell lines through the Cell morphological pattern, Tunel assay, LDH activity, heart rate, blood pressure and immunohistochemistric analysis by Ondam-tang. As the result of this study, In group, the anti-apoptosis and necrosis in the cardiovascular system have a potential capacity for prevented, protected and treating the diseases of cardiovascular system, against the necrosis of rat and ECV304 cells with eNOS and calpain expression by L-NAME is promoted.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.48 no.4
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• pp.541-554
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• 2006

Present review is to introduce an omasal sampling technique in rumen proteolysis and to consider some information on the omasal sampling technique with particular emphasis on methodological aspects. Use of the omasal sampling technique provides a new opportunity for accurate estimation of rumen metabolism with overcoming limitations of previous in vivo, in vitro and/or in situ methods. The potential advantages of the present technique compared with post-ruminal sampling techniques include following points; 1) only rumen cannulated animals are required, 2) less endogenous nitrogen (N) is contaminated in omasal digesta and 3) omasal digesta are devoid of exposure to acid peptide hydrolysis occurring in the abomasum. Estimates of soluble non-ammonia N (SNAN) in omasal digesta indicate that the assumptions underlying the in situ method that rapidly degradable N fraction can be degraded at an infinite rate and only insoluble dietary N escapes the rumen may be not valid. Quatitatively higher peptide concentration rather than free amino acid and soluble protein in escapable SNAN suggests that hydrolysis of peptide to amino acid may be the rate-limiting step in rumen proteolysis.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.79-89
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• 2007

This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the present status of several environmental problems caused by emerging toxic substances such as persistent organic pollutants (POPs), endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), and arsenic in various environmental media in Vietnam. Monitoring data reported during the 1990s demonstrated elevated contamination of DDTs in most of these compartments in Vietnam. Studies in frame of the Asia-Pacific Mussel Watch Program revealed that fish, mussels and resident birds from Vietnam contained higher concentrations of DDTs as compared to other countries in region, suggesting the role of Vietnamese environment as a significant emission source of DDT in the Southeast Asian region. The estimated dietary intakes of PCBs and DDTs for Vietnamese were relatively high among Asian developing countries, suggesting potential risk for humans posed by thesechemicals. Widespread contamination of some endocrine active compounds such as alkylphenols and phthalates was observed at various sites along the coasts of northern and middle Vietnam. The presence of significant source of bisphenol-A along Red River estuary was revealed with the concentrations comparable to those reported for developed nations. A case study on seasonal variation of alkylphenols and phthalates in surface water of river delta and estuary of north and middle Vietnam indicated the differences in distribution of these compounds between dry and rainy seasons. Higher concentrations of alkylphenols and phthalates were found in dry season in estuary; while the contrasting pattern was observed in the river delta, showing elevated residues in rainy season. This result suggests the different behavior of alkylphenols and phthalates in river delta and coastal environment. From ecotoxicological perspectives, concentrations of bis-phenol A and di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalates [DEHP] in surface water from some locations in Vietnam exceeded the guideline values for Ecotoxicological Effects and the Environmental Risk Limit, respectively, suggesting potential for toxic implications on aquatic wildlife. Widespread and elevated arsenic contamination was discovered inour recent surveys in groundwater in a large area of suburban areas of Hanoi city, the capital of Vietnam. The most recent investigation in 4 villages showed about more than 50 % of groundwater samples contained As concentrations exceeding 50 g/L (the WHO and Vietnamese standard). In particular, in Son Dong villages, 58 % of samples analyzed contained As concentrations higher than 200 g/L. Good correlations were found in As concentrations in water and hair and urine of peoples in corresponding families, suggesting the chronic exposure to As by people living in As-contaminated ground water areas. In Son Dong village, As levels in hair (mean: 1.7 mg/kg dry wt) and urine (g/g creatinine) exceeding the reference values recommended by WHO, suggesting potential for human risk posed by long term accumulation of As in human body. Future studies should be focused on the time trends of POPs and EDCs in biota in Vietnam in order to predict future trend of contamination and to reveal new clues for understanding possible toxic impacts on aquatic organisms. The issues of arsenic contamination in groundwater and their chronic toxic implications on human health should be systematically investigated in the future.

• Journal of the Korean Association of Geographic Information Studies
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.71-84
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• 2017

Radon, which enters the interior environment from soil, rocks, and groundwater, is a radioactive gas that poses a serious risk to humans. Indoor radon concentrations are measured to investigate the risk of radon gas exposure and reliable radon concentration mapping is then performed for further analysis. In this study, we compared the predictive performance of various univariate kriging algorithms, including ordinary kriging and three nonlinear transform-based kriging algorithms (log-normal, multi-Gaussian, and indicator kriging), for mapping radon concentrations with an asymmetric distribution. To compare and analyze the predictive performance, we carried out jackknife-based validation and analyzed the errors according to the differences in the data intervals and sampling densities. From a case study in South Korea, the overall nonlinear transform-based kriging algorithms showed better predictive performance than ordinary kriging. Among the nonlinear transform-based kriging algorithms, log-normal kriging had the best performance, followed by multi-Gaussian kriging. Ordinary kriging was the best for predicting high values within the spatial pattern. The results from this study are expected to be useful in the selection of kriging algorithms for the spatial prediction of data with an asymmetric distribution.

• Journal of the korean academy of Pediatric Dentistry
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.11-17
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to investigate early histological changes and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) expression in the dental pulp of the rat after Er:YAG laser preparation. Occlusal cavities were prepared in the upper first molars using either Er:YAG laser and conventional bur. At 48 hours after cavity preparation, the teeth were processed for hematoxylin-eosin stain and CGRP immunohistochemistry. The results were as follows : 1. The cavity floor by Er:YAG laser preparation was more irregular shape compared with those by bur preparation and there are some cracks in the directions of dentinal tubules. 2. There were more inflammatory cell infiltration and disruption of odontoblast in the dental pulp by Er:YAG laser preparation in comparison with the dental pulp by bur preparation. 3. CGRP expression in the pulp tissue by both Er:YAG laser and bur preparations were increased and higher than in the normal pulp. The expression pattern of CGRP was more strong in the pulp by Er:YAG laser preparation. These results indicate that Er:YAG laser is useful in the operative dentistry such as caries removal and cavity preparation if properly applied.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.18 no.11
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• pp.1543-1550
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• 2008

We studied the effects of smoking, which is one of indoor-environmental pollutants and related to various cancers, on glycoconjugates of rat sebaceous glands with the lectin histochemistry. To investigate the effects of smoking on glycoconjugates, male Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to tabacco smoke for 10 minutes per day in an inhalation chamber for 1, 2, 3, and 5 days with active and passive exposure. For the structure of sebaceous glands we used PAS reaction, and for the glycoconjugates binding pattern 9 biotinylated lectins (DBA, SBA, PNA, BSL-1, WGA, RCA-1, UEA-1, Con A, and LCA) were used. Some remarkable changes, such as the decrease in the size of sebaceous glandular acini, the destruction of upper portion of sebaceous glands, vacuolation of central portion of sebocytes, and the immature sebaceous glandular acini were seen in the smoke-exposed rats. In the control rats, basal cells were stained with BSL-1, PNA and WGA, but the stronger reaction was founded in BSL-1 binding. Also, sebocytes were stained with PNA, WGA, Con A, BSL-1 and SBA, but stronger reactions were founded in PNA and Con A stainings. Specific changes in the lectin binding patterns were also observed in the smoke-exposed rats. In the basal cells of exposed rats, PNA binding increased, BSL-1 decreased but returned to control level, and WGA disappeared. Plus, immature glandular acini, which were not found in the control rats, were stained PNA, Con A and BSL-1, but the stronger reaction were founded in PNA and Con A binding. In conclusion, it was assumed that the tabacco smoke seriously effected on the structure and glycoconjugates metabolism of sebaceous glands.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.41 no.6
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• pp.834-839
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• 2012

The physicochemical and sensory characteristics of Yakju fermented with different ratios of Taraxacum platycarpum (dandelion) root powder (0, 5, 10, and 15%) were investigated. The pH of Yakju decreased and the total acidity and sugar content increased according to the addition of dandelion root powder. Dandelion root powder (15%) showed significantly higher reducing sugar content on the 3rd day of fermentation compared with other groups, including the control. Also, further exposure of fermentation time showed a declining pattern of reducing sugar content. Including control, the alcohol content increased in all Yakju samples fermented with dandelion root powder as fermentation progressed. The Yakju fermented with 5% dandelion root powder showed the highest sensory scores for color, aroma, taste, swallowing, and overall acceptability as $6.38{\pm}1.27$, $5.58{\pm}1.02$, $5.79{\pm}0.98$, $6.08{\pm}1.21$, and $5.96{\pm}0.91$, respectively. In the present study for the production of Yakju, 5% dandelion root powder was the most appropriate amount to be added for the production of Yakju. The result obtained here may provide fundamental data for the traditional Yakju industry, which is interested in using a variety of natural resources.

• ALGAE
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.13-20
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• 2003

Two isolated Antarctic marine diatoms, Chaetoceros neogracile VanLandingham and Stellarima microtrias (Ehrenberg) Hasle and Sims were examined to show changes of growth and uptake rate of nitrate due to UV-B irradiance. Chlorophyll (chl) a concentration was regarded as the growth index of diatom. The diatoms were treated with UV-B radiation and cultured for 4 days under cool-white fluorescent light without UV-B radiation. Two levels of UV-B exposures were applies: 1 and 6 W $m^{-2}$. Durations of UV-B treatment were 20, 40 and 60 minutes under 6 W $m^{-2}$ and 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 hrs under 1 W $m^{-2}$. The control groups were cultured at the same time without UV-B radiation. The growth rates of two diatoms decreased under 1 and 6 W $m^{-2}$ UV-B irradiances than that of control group. After 4 days, chl a concentrations of C. neogracile were increased more than 4 times from 133 μgo$l^{-1}$ to 632 μgo$l^{-1}$ in control group. However, the concentration of experimental groups under 1 W $m^{-2}$ UV-B were only increased from 139 μgo$l^{-1}$ to 421 μgo$l^{-1}$ during one hour and the chl a concentrations were decreased from 144 μgo$l^{-1}$ to 108 μgo$l^{-1}$ during five hour. Growth of diatom dramatically more decreased under 6 W $m^{-2}$ UV-B than 1 W $m^{-2}$ UV-B. The chl a concentration of experimental groups under 6 W $m^{-2}$ UV-B for one hour was only increased from 111 μgo$l^{-1}$ to 122 μgo$l^{-1}$. In the case of S. microtrias showed also similar pattern to C. neogracile by UV-B radiation. The uptake rates of nitrate by the two strains were decreased abruptly under 6 W $m^{-2}$ UV-B irradiances. When two strains were treated under 1 and 6 W $m^{-2}$ UV-B during one hour, the strains were only continued growth and uptake of nitrate under 1 W $m^{-2}$ UV-B. This experimental evidence shows that exposure to UV-B radiation especially to high irradiance of UV-B decreases diatom survival and causes lower decrease of nutrient concentrations by microalgae in Antarctic water. Furthermore, evidence suggests that microalgal communities confined to near-surface waters in Antarctica will be harmed by increased UV-B radiation, thereby altering the dynamics of Antarctic marine ecosystems.

• Journal of Mushroom
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.213-217
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• 2018

This study was carried out to identify medicinal mushrooms with protective effects against oxidative stress in PC12 neuronal cell line, followed by evaluation of their antioxidant property. Extracts of medicinal mushrooms, including Ganoderma lucidum extract (GLE), antler-shaped Ganoderma lingzhi extract (AGLE), Hericium erinaceus extract (HEE), and Sanghuangporus baumii extract (SBE), were screened for cytotoxicity using MTT assay. None of the extracts up to $10{\mu}g/ml$ concentration affected cell viability. These extracts were further checked for their protective effect against oxidative stress-induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. Exposure to $50{\mu}M$ $H_2O_2$ induced ROS generation in PC12 cells, which was inhibited only by treatment with AGLE. In addition, inhibition of $H_2O_2-induced$ ROS generation by AGLE was found to be in a dose-dependent manner (2.5, 5, and $10{\mu}g/ml$). Microscopic examination of DCF fluorescence for detection of ROS showed a similar pattern. Further, antioxidant activity of AGLE was determined by ABTS radical cation assay, and its $IC_{50}$ was found to be $46.90{\pm}0.31{\mu}g/ml$. Taken together, these results suggest that AGLE may help to alleviate oxidative stress in PC12 neuronal cells.