• Korean journal of food and cookery science
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.185-192
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• 2013

The present study was conducted to evaluate the effects of Agarum cribrosum on weight change and defecation states in rats with constipation induced by loperamide. Food intake and body weight both decreased in the 5% Agarum cribrosum and loperamide-treated group (SD5) and 10% Agarum cribrosum and loperamide-treated group (SD10), whereas fecal water contents increased by 1.6 and 2.1-fold in the SD5 and SD10 groups, respectively. The concentrations of total-cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol and triglyceride in the sera of the SD5 and SD10 groups were lower than those in the control (C) group. However, the biochemical parameters, GOT (glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase), GPT (glutamic pyruvic transaminase), and glucose levels, were not affected by the level of Agarum cribrosum. In addition, the concentrations of total-cholesterol and triglyceride in the livers of the SD5 and SD10 groups were also lower than those in the control group. The results of the present study demonstrated that Agarum cribrosum might ameliorate constipation symptoms, and lower lipid concentrations in the blood and liver.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.265-272
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• 2003

The effect of liquid cultures of Cordyceps militaris (LCM) on weight gain, food intakes, food efficiency ratios, serum and hepatic lipids, fecal lipids excretion, serum protein and enzyme activities, were investigated in adult female rats (30 weeks old). Sprague-Dawley rats were assigned to one normal and four hyperlipidemic diet groups, Hyperlipidemic diet groups (20% fat, 1% cholesterol) were divided into high fat diet (LCM free water), 10%, 20% or 30% LCM diet groups (10%, 20% or 30% LCM in water) according to the levels of LCM supplementation. After 35 days of experimental diet consumption, the body weight gains, hepatic weights, and food efficiency ratios of the rats fed hyperlipidemic diets were significantly increased compared with those of the rats fed normal diet. The concentrations of serum and hepatic triglycerides, hepatic total lipid, and atherogenic index of the rats fed 20% or 30% LCM diets were significantly lower than those of the rats fed the high fat diet. The concentration of serum HDL-cholesterol of the rats fed all LCM diets was significantly higher than those of the rats fed the high fat diet. The fecal excretion of triglyceride in the rats fed 20% or 30% LCM diets was significantly higher than those of the rats fed high fat diet. The concentrations of serum and hepatic total cholesterol, serum LDL-cholesterol, and HDL-cholesterol/total cholesterol ratio, fecal excretion of cholesterol, and the activities of serum glutamic pyruvic transaminase and alkaline phosphatase of the rats fed all LCM diets were similar to those of the rats fed high fat diet. No differences were noted in the weights of kidney and femur, the serum concentration of glucose, total protein and albumin, and the activities of glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase and ${\gamma}$ -glutamyltranspeptidase, among the rats on all the experimental diets. These results showed that the 20% or 30% LCM diets feeding decreased the serum and hepatic triglycerides, and the atherogenic index, and increased the serum HDL-cholesterol of the adult female rats.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.20 no.12
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• pp.1750-1757
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• 2010

This study was designed to evaluate the anti-diabetic effects of Buan mulberries by using an insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus animal model. Several studies have shown that mulberries have metabolism-improving, antioxidant, and lipid-lowering properties in rats with streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes. In this study, Sprague-Dawley male rats were randomly assigned to 1 normal control group and 5 STZ-induced diabetes groups: rats that had STZ-induced diabetes and did not receive any agents (diabetic group; negative control), rats that had STZ-induced diabetes and received insulin (insulin group; positive control), rats that had STZ-induced diabetes and received 0.5% mulberry extract (0.5% mulberry group), rats that had STZ-induced diabetes and received 1.0% mulberry extract (1.0% mulberry group), and rats that had STZ-induced diabetes and received 2.0% mulberry extract (2.0% mulberry group). Mulberry extracts were administered to the diabetic animals for 4 weeks. The rats that received mulberry extracts showed lower body weights and insulin levels, as well as higher kidney weights, blood glucose levels, urine quantities, and water intake in comparison with the normal controls. Further, the insulin concentrations in the mulberry-fed animals were higher than those in the diabetic group, and the kidney weights, blood glucose levels, urine quantities, and water intake in the mulberry-fed animals were lower than the corresponding values in the diabetic controls. These results suggest that mulberry may be an effective functional food to prevent diabetes-related complications.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.71-90
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• 1996

There is considerable current interest in the effect of regular vigorous exercise and in particular endurance-running as a possible measure in improving myocardial function. Some data indicate that the aging heart may actually suffer from vigorous endurance exercise. On the contrary appropriate exercise in aged animals improves myocardial function and aerobic energy metabolism. So far there is relatively little data to indicate that endurance exercise is in fact beneficial in improving myocardial function or damaging to heart of aged animals. The present investigation aimed to study the possible effect of a long range treadmill training program on the heart in aging rats. Male rats aged 3, 10, and 20 months were divided at random into a control (sedentary) and an exercise group. The training group was exercised for 5 days a week on an automated treadmill for 20minutes at 18m/min over a period of 5 months. The exercise regimen of our experiments did not cause any significant changes in the tissues and ultrastructural as com-pared with sedentary age-matched control. Tissues and ultrastructures of myocardial cells in trained group aged 8 months are intact and well organized as well as sedentary control group. Age associated tissue and ultrastructural changes of trained group aged 15 months included : an increase in transformed mitochondria, vacuoles, lysosomes, lipid droplets and early lipofuscin. But the trained heart did not show significant difference in tissue and ultrastructural properties from those of sedentary controls. Endurance-trained group aged 25 months showed significant qualitative tissue and ultrastructural difference as compared with age-matched controls. In addition to those found in 25 months control group, focal necrosis, myofibril fraying, hypercontraction band, seperation of intercalated discs, degenerating nucleus and infiltration of collagenous fiber into myocyte were noted in trained 25 months group. The stereological examination of the mi-crographs disclosed no significant difference in the myoflbril, mitochondrion, sarcotubule and in-terstitium volume density and surface density of mitochondrial cristae and numerical density of mitochondria between trained and control group aged 8 and 15 months. In the trained 25 months group, significant increase in volume density of interstitium, lipofucsin granule were shown as compared to untrained age-matched control. On the other hand, significant decrease in mitochondrion volume density was shown. The myofibril volume density did not differ between trained and control group although trained group showed slight increase. From the data obtained a reduced mitochondria/myofibrils ratio was found in trained rat heart aged 25 months and there was no difference between trained and control rat aged 15 months. But a slight but not significant increase was found in the trained group aged 8 months as compared with same age control group. Such increase in the ratio in young animals is considered to be of great importance to cardiac pumping and adaptability. Whereas such adaptations don't seem to occur in aged heart muscle. This study proposed that repeated endurance exercise do not cause any significant qualitative and quantitative ultrastructural change of heart muscle in young(3months) and adult (10months) suggesting that the heart is able to adapt to the exercise. On the contrary, the repeated endurance exercise stress may actually induce degenerative changes in the aged heart muscle(20months).

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.211-218
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• 2006

This experiment was conducted to study the effects of the natural deep sea water, which contained approximately 2.3% salt, and various minerals of K, Mg, Ca, Na, Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu etc, on the immune response and antioxidant activity in rats. 24 Sprague Dawley rats were randomly allotted to a control group and 3 treatment groups. Control rats were supplied with filtered tap water, and each treatment group rats were supplied with 0.5% deep sea water, 1% deep sea water and Jijangsoo, respectively, which is upper clear water separated from sediment by the clay. Feed and water were provided ad libitum throughout the experiment that lasted for 4 weeks. The results showed that 1% deep sea water group showed the highest values in weight gain, feed intake, and feed efficiency than those of other groups. The levels of water intake of 1%- and 0.5%-deep sea water, and Jijangsoo group were 49.1%, 22.8%, and 40.5% higher than that of control group, respectively. The Jijangsoo group rats showed that perirenal and epididymal adipose tissue weights were decreased by 32% and 25%(p<0.05), respectively, when compared to control group rats. There were no remarkable differences of serum glucose concentration among all experimental groups. However, insulin concentration of experimental groups were remarkably increased in order of Jijangsoo (4.54), 1% deep sea water (3.70), 0.5% deep sea water (3.25)(p<0.05). B cell and T cell stimulation were increased about 44.7% and 207%, respectively, by 0.5% deep sea water in comparison with control (p<0.05). TBARS values of 0.5 % deep sea water group were significantly lower than that of control(p<0.05). Catalase and SOD activities of 0.5 % deep sea water group were 200% and 47% higher than that of control, respectively. From the results, it can be concluded that the supply of natural deep sea water can slightly improve the physiological activity which modulates immune response and antioxidant activity in rats.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.30 no.12
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• pp.1092-1100
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• 2020

The six-transmembrane epithelial antigen of prostate 4 (Steap4) is a metalloreductase that plays a role in intracellular iron and cupper homeostasis, inflammatory response, and glucose and lipid metabolism. Previously, Steap4 has been reported to stimulate adipocyte differentiation; however, the underlying mechanisms of this action remain unexplored. In the present study, we investigated the molecular mechanisms involved in Steap4-induced adipocyte differentiation using 3T3-L1 cells, immortalized brown adipocyte (iBA) cells, and mouse embryonic fibroblast C3H10T1/2 cells. The knockdown of Steap4 using adenovirus-containing shRNA attenuated mitotic clonal expansion (MCE), as evidenced by the impaired proliferation of 3T3-L1 cells, iBA cells, and C3H10T1/2 cells within 48 hr after adding the differentiation medium. Steap4 knockdown downregulated G1/S phase transition-related cell cycle regulators (including cyclin A and cyclin D) and upregulated cell cycle inhibitors (including p21 and p27). Furthermore, Steap4 knockdown inhibited the phosphorylation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase, extracellular signal-regulated kinase, and Akt. Moreover, Steap4 knockdown repressed the expression of early adipogenic activators, such as CCAAT-enhancer-binding protein β (C/EBPβ) and Kruppel-like factor family factor 4 (KLF4). On the other hand, Steap4 knockdown stimulated the expression of adipogenic inhibitors, including KLF2, KLF3, and GATA2. The overexpression of Steap4 using an adenovirus removed the repressive histone marks H3K9me2 and H3K9me3 on the promoter of C/EBPβ. These results indicate that Stepa4 stimulates adipocyte differentiation through the induction of MCE and the modulation of early adipogenic transcription factors, including C/EBPβ, during the early phase of adipocyte differentiation.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.28 no.5
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• pp.600-607
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• 2015

In vitro and in vivo experiments using Achyranthis radix and Drynariae rhizoma extracts were conducted. Antioxidant properties were analyzed and the effects on bone, glucose and lipid metabolism were investigated. Drynariae rhizoma (64.67%) obtained higher DPPH radical scavenging activity compared to Achyranthis radix (19.03%). Similar results were obtained in the reducing power. No differences were observed on the ABTS radical scavenging ability and SOD. In contrast, Achyranthis radix (77.60%) has higher chelating ability compared to Drynariae rhizoma (46.21%). In vivo experiments revealed higher plasma TBARS in OVX-DR than in OVX-AR. Opposite result was seen in erythrocyte TBARS. Hepatic, nephritic and erythrocyte enzymes were considered for the antioxidant enzyme activities. GSH-Px and PON of hepatic enzymes were higher in OVX-AR. While the CAT and GR were higher in OVX-DR. SOD, GSH-Px, GR and PON of nephritic enzymes of OVX-DR were higher compared to OVX-AR. Almost similar values were obtained in CAT using both extracts. The OVX treated rats obtained higher CAT and GR in the erythrocyte enzymes compared to SHAM. The SOD of erythrocyte enzymes in OVX-DR was higher compared to OVX-AR. On the other hand, the GSH-Px was higher in OVX-AR.