• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.27 no.6
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• pp.802-808
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• 2013

Here we tried to uncover the potential anti-lipogenic effect and the underlying mechanism of Phaseolus angularis seed in a cellular model of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) induced in HepG2 cells. Ethanol extract of Phaseolus angularis seed (JSD) was prepared. HepG2 cells were incubated in palmitate containing media to induce intracellular lipid accumulation, and co-treated with JSD for 16 hrs before examine intracellular lipid content. In control group, the cells were not co-treated with JSD. We measured the effects of JSD on liver X receptor ${\alpha}$ ($LXR{\alpha}$) and sterol regulatory element-binding transcription factor-1c (SREBP-1c) expression, transcription level of lipogenic genes, including acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC), fatty acid synthase (FAS), stearoyl-CoA desaturase-1 (SCD-1), and AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activation in HepG2 cells. JSD markedly reduced palmitate-induced intracellular lipid accumulation in HepG2 cells. JSD suppressed $LXR{\alpha}$/SREBP-1c expression, and SREBP-1c mediated induction of ACC, FAS, and SCD-1. Furthermore, JSD activated AMPK, which plays a major role in the control of hepatic lipid metabolism. Taken together, it is suggested that JSD has a potential to alleviate hepatic steatosis, at least in part, by suppressing $LXR{\alpha}$/SREBP-1c mediated induction of lipogenic genes. In addtion, the anti-lipogenic potential may be associated with activation of AMPK. Therefore, the Phaseolus angularis seed could be applied as a potential therapeutics for NAFLD with additional clinical studies.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.43 no.5
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• pp.705-711
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• 2014

In order to develop a skin-whitening agent, melanin contents and intracellular tyrosinase activity were determined by western blotting. Ethyl acetate fractions of 80% ethanol extracts from lily (Lilium Oriental Hybrid 'Siberia') bulbs (R-EA) inhibited melanin synthesis in a dose-dependent manner in ${\alpha}$-melanocyte stimulating hormone (${\alpha}$-MSH)-treated B16/F10 murine melanoma cells. Intracellular tyrosinase activity and melanin contents were suppressed by 45% and 74%, respectively, in response to treatment with $100{\mu}g/mL$ of R-EA. Examination of protein expression associated with ${\alpha}$-MSH-induced melanogenesis showed that tyrosinase related protein (TRP)-1 was inhibited more strongly than tyrosinase, and these results were correlated with stronger inhibition of melanin synthesis than intracellular tyrosinase activity. Taken together, R-EA containing p-coumaric acid and resveratrol could be used as a hypopigmentation agent through suppression of sustained extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) activation via melanogenic induction.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.43 no.2
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• pp.200-206
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• 2014

We investigated the in vitro and in vivo anti-obesity effects of extracts from young Akebia quinata D. leaves, including hot water (AQH) and 80% ethanol (AQE) extracts. The inhibitory effects of AQH and AQE on lipid accumulation in 3T3-L1 cells were examined by Oil Red O staining. Compared to control, lipid accumulation was significantly reduced by 18.3% with the treatment upon AQE at a concentration of $5{\mu}g/mL$. The levels of intracellular triglycerides and free glycerol were also reduced by 52.8% and 9.1% at the same concentration of AQE. The in vivo anti-obesity effect of AQE was evaluated in terms of body and white adipose tissue weights in ICR mice. Experimental groups were divided into the following five groups: normal diet (ND), high fat diet (HFD), high fat diet with 60 mg/kg/day of Orlistat (HFD-RF), high fat diet with 200 mg/kg/day of AQE (HFD-AL), and high fat diet with 600 mg/kg/day of AQE (HFD-AH). Feeding of HFD for eight weeks resulted in significant increases in body weight as well as weight gain compared to the ND group. HFD-AH group showed reduced body weight, weight gain, epididymal white adipose tissue weight, and perirenal white adipose weight as compared to the HFD group. These results indicate that AQE supplementation might have beneficial effects on anti-obesity by inhibiting lipid accumulation.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.27 no.6
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• pp.759-763
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• 2013

This experiment was performed to investigate whether 50% ethanol extracts of the combined-preparation of Longanae Arilus, Chrysanthemi Flos, Zizyphi Fructus and Ginseng Radix alba (CPE) has hypnotic effects and/or enhances pentobarbital-induced sleeping time. Locomotor activity was evaluated using a ambulometer of tilting-type. The sedative-hypnotic effects were evaluated by measuring the sleeping onset time and sleeping time in pentobarbital-treated mice 30 min. after oral administration of CPE and muscimol. The intracellular $Cl^-$ concentration of cerebellar granule cells was estimated using $Cl^-$ sensitive fluorescence probe N-(ethoxycarbonylmethyl)-6-methoxyquinolinium (MQAE). CPE (150 mg/kg) decreased the locomotor activity, but CPE itself did not induce sleep. However, CPE reduced sleeping onset and prolonged sleeping time induced by pentobarbital (42 mg/kg). In addition, CPE (2 ${\mu}g/ml$) and pentobarbital (2.5 ${\mu}M$) itself did not affect on the chloride influx in primary cultured cerebellar granule cells, but the combination of CPE and pentobarbital (2.5 ${\mu}M$) increased the chloride influx onto the cells. In conclusion, it is suggested that CPE might augment pentobarbital-induced sleep through the increase of chloride influx.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.652-658
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• 1995

We attempted simultaneous expression of genes coding for endoglucanase and $\beta $-glucosidase from Pseudomonas sp. by using a synthetic two-cistron svstem in Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Two-cistron system, 5'--tac promoter-endoglucanase gene--$\beta $-glucosidase gene-- 3', 5'-tac promoter--$\beta $-glucosidase gene--endoglucanase gene--3' and 5'-tac promoter--endoglucanase gene--SD sequence--$\beta $-glucosidase gene--3, were constructed, and expressed in E. coli and S. cerevisiae. The E. coli and S. cerevisiae contained two-cistron system produced simultaneously endoglucanase and $\beta $-glucosidase. The recombinant genes contained the bacterial signal peptide sequence produced low level of endoglucanase and $\beta $-glucosidase in S. cerevisiae transformants: Approximately above 44% of two enzymes was localized in the intracellular fraction. The production of endoglucanase and $\beta $-glucosidase in veast was not repressed in the presence of glucose or cellobiose. The veast strain contained recombinant DNA with two genes hydrolyzed carboxvmethyl cellulose, and these endoglucanase and $\beta $-glucosidase degraded CMC synergistically to glucose, cellobiose and oligosaccharide. This result suggests the possibility of the direct bioconversion of cellulose to ethanol by the recombinant yeast.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.610-617
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• 2016

Candidiasis has posed a serious health risk to immunocompromised patients owing to the increase in resistant yeasts, and Candida albicans is the prominent pathogen of fungal infections. Therefore, there is a critical need for the discovery and characterization of novel antifungals to treat infections caused by C. albicans. In the present study, we report on the antifungal activity of the ethanol extract from Salvia miltiorrhiza against C. albicans and the possible mode of action against C. albicans. The increase in the membrane permeability was evidenced by changes in diphenylhexatriene binding and release of both 260-nm-absorbing intracellular materials and protein. In addition, inhibition of cell wall synthesis was demonstrated by the enhanced minimal inhibitory concentration in the presence of sorbitol and reduced (1,3)-β-D-glucan synthase activity. The above evidence supports the notion that S. miltiorrhiza has antifungal activity against C. albicans by the synergistic activity of targeting the cell membrane and cell wall. These findings indicate that S. miltiorrhiza displays effective activity against C. albicans in vitro and merits further investigation to treat C. albicans-associated infections.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.81-87
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• 2013

Quercetin-3-O-${\beta}$-D-glucuronopyranoside (QGC) is a flavonoid glucoside extracted from Rumex Aquaticus Herba. In the present study, anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory effects of QGC were tested in vitro. Epithelial cells obtained from cat esophagus were cultured. When the cells were exposed to acid for 2 h, cell viability was decreased to 36%. Pretreatment with 50 ${\mu}M$ QGC for 2 h prevented the reduction in cell viability. QGC also inhibited the productions of intracellular ROS by inflammatory inducers such as acid, lipopolysaccharide, indomethacin and ethanol. QGC significantly increased the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase, and also induced the expression of SOD2, while it restored the decrease of catalase expression in cells exposed to acid. QGC inhibited NF-${\kappa}B$ translocation, cyclooxygenase-2 expression and $PGE_2$ secretion in cells exposed to acid, which plays an important role in the pathogenesis of esophagitis. The data suggest that QGC may well be one of the promising substances to attenuate oxidative epithelial cell injury and inflammatory signaling in esophagus inflammation.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.29 no.6
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• pp.432-436
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• 2014

We investigated antioxidative activity of the ethanol extracts of leaves of Cornus walteri Wanger (CWE) by treated enzyme in human dermal fibroblast (HDFs) irradiated by UVB. We examined the in vitro chemical and cellular antioxidant activities of CWE in HDFs. We employed scavenging assay for the 1,1-diphenyl-2,5-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radicals and cellular antioxidative activity of CWE, and we was investigated in $H_2O_2$-treated or UVB-irradiated HDFs. The CWE effectively scavenged DPPH radicals ($IC_{50}$ $7.03{\pm}0.4{\mu}g/mL$) when compared to the scavenging activities of L-ascorbic acid ($IC_{50}$ $4.69{\pm}0.3{\mu}g/mL$). CWE reduced UVB-induced cellular damage in HS68 cells by MTT assay and inhibited intracellular ROS generation in dose-dependent manner. In addition, CWE also attenuated the elevated levels of 8-isoprostane resulting from UVB-mediated oxidative stress. Collectively, these results suggest that CWE could be a new potential candidate as antioxidant against UVB-induced oxidative stress in HDFs.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.26-31
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• 2012

Actinidia arguta (Actinidiaceae) has been reported to have several pharmacological effects such as anti-inflammatory, anti-allergic, and anti-oxidant activities. The present study investigated the protective activity of an ethanol extract from the leaf and stem of A. arguta against glutamate-induced neurotoxicity using cultured rat cortical neurons. Exposure of cultured cortical neurons to $500{\mu}M$ glutamate for 12 h triggered neuronal cell death. A. arguta inhibited glutamate-induced neuronal death and apoptosis, which were measured by a 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyl-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and Hoechst 33342 staining, respectively. The increase of pro-apoptotic proteins, Bax and c-caspase-3, in glutamate-treated neurons was significantly inhibited by treatment with A. arguta. A. arguta also inhibited $500{\mu}M$ glutamate-induced elevation of intracellular calcium concentration ($[Ca^{2+}]_i$) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, which were measured by fluorescent dyes, Fluo-4 AM and $H_2DCF$-DA, respectively. These results suggest that A. arguta may prevent glutamate-induced apoptotic neuronal death by inhibiting $[Ca^{2+}]_i$ elevation and ROS generation and, therefore, may have a therapeutic role for the prevention of neurodegeneration in cerebral ischemic diseases.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.33-39
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• 2016

Alzheimer's disease(AD), one of the most common forms of dementia, is characterized pathologically by the presence of intracellular neurofibrillary tangles and deposition of β-amyloid(Aβ) peptides of 40-42 residues. Aβ has been believed to be neurotoxic and now is also considered to have a role on the mechanism of memory dysfunction. Only a few acetylcholinesterase(AChE) inhibitors have been developed for treatment of AD, although the numbers of patients are rapidly increasing within aging society. Here, we show that ethanol extract of Rosae Rugosae Flos(RR) or its butanol fraction reduce the enzyme activity of AChE and BACE1(β-site APP cleaving enzyme 1). Furthermore, We found that RR inhibits Aβ aggregation and removes Aβ aggregates by Transmission electron microscopy(TEM). In addition, RR reduces the free radical of 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl(DPPH). We suggest that Rosae Rugosae Flos may be useful as a herbal medicine to treat AD.