• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
• /
• v.23 no.3
• /
• pp.165-172
• /
• 2020

Objectives: In the past few years, herbal medicines have gained popularity over synthetic drugs because of their natural source and minimal side effects which has led to a tremendous growth of phytopharmaceuticals usage. With the development of nanotechnology, it provides alternative approaches to overcome several limitations using nano-formulations. In spite of considerable quantity of antianemic preparations with different iron forms available, currently additives are used and represented in modern pharmaceutical market. Iron deficiency anemia is a major global public health problem which particularly affects pregnant women, children and elderly persons. The situation is complicated because of disadvantages and drug side effects from existing antianemic medicines. There is a great demand for the development of new antianemic preparations. Green synthesis of iron oxide nanoparticles, possess high potential in this field. Methods: Our study focuses on developing green synthesis of iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) of 10-50 nm with spherical shape where different dosages were used -1 mg/kg, 10 mg/kg and 100 mg/kg for exposure in Wistar albino female rats for 28 days. The toxicity was assessed using various parameters such as measurements of the rat body and organ mass, hematology, biochemical evaluation and histopathological examinations. Results: No significant differences were observed in body and organ weights. Hematological indices also indicated no significant differences whereas biochemical factors showed increase in levels of direct bilirubin and globulin of medium as well as high dose and SGPT levels were increased only in high dose. The major organs (heart, kidney and liver) showed histopathological alterations in 10 and 100 mg/kg whereas brain showed only in 100 mg/kg. Conclusion: The toxicity of IONPs was found to be more significant when the concentration was increased; however, low doses can be used for further investigation as an antianemic preparation.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
• /
• v.24 no.6
• /
• pp.453-462
• /
• 2020

Chronic joint pain due to loss of cartilage function, degradation of subchondral bone, and related conditions are common plights of an arthritis patient. Antioxidant compounds could solve the problems in arthritic condition. The objective of this study was to evaluate the anti-arthritic activity of D-carvone against complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA)-induced arthritis in rats. D-carvone was orally administered for 25 days at the doses of 30 and 60 mg/kg against CFA-induced arthritic rats. Changes in body weight, paw swelling, organ index, hematological parameters, oxidative stress markers, inflammatory cytokines, and histopathology were recorded. Oral treatment of D-carvone significantly improved the body weight, reduced the paw swelling, edema formation, and organ index in arthritic rats. The levels of white blood cells were reduced, red blood cells and hemoglobin levels were improved in D-carvone treated arthritic rats. Lipid peroxidation levels were lowered whereas enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants were significantly elevated by D-carvone administration against arthritic rats. D-carvone significantly modulated inflammatory cytokine levels and improved the ankle joint pathology against CFA-induced arthritic inflammation. In conclusion, D-carvone proved significant anti-arthritic activity against CFA-induced arthritis in rats.

• Analytical Science and Technology
• /
• v.34 no.5
• /
• pp.193-201
• /
• 2021

We have demonstrated a sensitive analytical method of measuring oleracone D in mouse plasma using a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Oleracone D and oleracone F (internal standard) in mouse plasma samples were processed using a liquid-liquid extraction method with methyl tertbutyl ether, resulting in high and reproducible extraction recovery (80.19-82.49 %). No interfering peaks around the peak elution time of oleracone D and oleracone F were observed. The standard calibration curves for oleracone D ranged from 0.5 to 100 ng/mL and were linear with r² of 0.992. The inter- and intra-day accuracy and precision and the stability fell within the acceptance criteria. The pharmacokinetics of oleracone D following intravenous and oral administration of oleracone D at doses of 5 mg/kg and 30 mg/kg, respectively, were investigated. When oleracone D was intravenously injected, it had first-order elimination kinetics with high clearance and volume of distribution values. The absolute oral bioavailability of this compound was calculated as 0.95 %, with multi-exponential kinetics. The low aqueous solubility and a high oral dose of oleracone D may explain the different elimination kinetics of oleracone D between intravenous and oral administration. Collectively, this newly developed sensitive LC-MS/MS method of oleracone D could be successfully utilized for investigating the pharmacokinetic properties of this compound and could be used in future studies for the lead optimization and biopharmaceutic investigation of oleracone D.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
• /
• v.44 no.3
• /
• pp.195-203
• /
• 2021

Although intra oral dental x-ray is a lower dose than other radiological examinations, pediatric patients are known to have a higher risk of radiation damage than adults. For this reason, pediatric dental x-ray requires management of dose evaluation and imaging conditions during the examination. In this study, the dose calculation program ALARA-Dental(child/adult) was used to evaluate the organ dose and effective dose exposed to each examination site during intra oral imaging of children during dental radiographic examination, and dose analysis according to the imaging conditions was performed. As a result, the highest organ dose distribution was shown at 0.044 ~ 0.097 mGy in all are as of the mucous membrane of oral cavity except for the maxillary incisors and canines. Also, in the case of the thyroid gland, the maxillary canine and maxillary premolar examination showed 0.027 and 0.020 mGy, respectively, and the dose distribution was 15.4% to 70.0% higher than that of the mandibular examination. As for the effective dose calculated during intra oral imaging, the maxillary anterior and canine examinations showed the highest effective doses of 0.005 and 0.004 mSv, respectively, and the maxillary area examination showed a higher dose distribution on average than the mandible.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
• /
• v.46 no.5
• /
• pp.409-415
• /
• 2023

Although pediatric X-ray examinations are continuously increasing, there are not many studies on the radiation exposure to children and X-ray examination assistants according to X-ray Exposure conditions. Accordingly, we measured the radiation exposure dose of pediatric and X-ray examination assistants according to the standard guidelines and clinical average X-ray Exposure conditions when X-ray examination 10-year-old children. The effective dose and organ dose to pediatric were measured using an Dose area production meter and Monte Carlo-based PCXMC program, and the exposure dose of X-ray examination assistants was measured using an ion-chamber. When performing abdominal supine AP projection, the effective dose to children was up to 2.38 times higher under clinical average X-ray Exposure conditions than the standard guidelines. In addition, during abdominal supine AP projection, the radiation exposure dose to the X-ray examination assistants was highest on the hands at 0.0148 ~ 0.0709 mSv, and exposure dose could be reduced by up to 35% when wearing protective gloves. In conclusion, because the X-ray Exposure conditions used in clinical are unnecessarily high, unnecessary medical radiation exposure could be reduced if appropriate X-ray Exposure conditions and the radiation field area were minimized and the assistant wore shielding gloves.

• Animal Bioscience
• /
• v.37 no.7
• /
• pp.1263-1276
• /
• 2024

Objective: Pine needles are rich in many nutrients and exhibit antibacterial and antioxidant biological activities; however, the effects of different production methods of pine needle additives on the growth performance and intestinal flora of broiler chickens are not known. Methods: Normal diets were supplemented with pine needle fermentation juice (PNF), pine needle soaking juice (PNS), or pine needle powder (PNP), and the associated effects on growth performance, relative organ weights, intestinal development, intestinal histological morphology, intestinal flora, meat quality, and serum indicators in broiler chickens were observed. Results: The results showed that PNF, PNS, and PNP all significantly improved feed utilization and promoted the growth and development of broilers. All three additives also significantly improved the structure of the intestinal flora, specifically increasing the diversity of bacteria; increasing the abundance of beneficial bacteria, such as Faecalibacterium, Rikenella, and Blautia; and decreasing the abundance of harmful bacteria, such as Staphylococcus. The antioxidant properties of pine needles were also found to intensify lipid metabolic reactions in the blood, thus leading to lower triglycerides and total cholesterol. Meanwhile, high doses of PNF reduced jejunum and ileum weights and also increased meat yellowness. Lastly, none of PNF, PNS, or PNP had an effect on relative organ weights or intestinal histological morphology. Conclusion: The addition of pine needles to the diet of broiler chickens can effectively promote their growth performance as well as improve their intestinal flora and serum status without side effects; in particular, the dose of 0.2% of either PNF and PNS is expected to have the capacity to replace growth-promoting antibiotics as diet additives.

• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
• /
• v.17 no.2
• /
• pp.57-66
• /
• 2014

Objectives: This study was performed to analyze single dose toxicity and the lethal dose of Scolopendrid Pharmacopuncture in rats. Methods: All experiments were conducted at the Korea Testing & Research Institute (KTR), an institution authorized to perform non-clinical studies, under the regulations of Good Laboratory Practice (GLP). Sprague-Dawley rats were chosen for the pilot study. Doses of Scolopendrid pharmacopuncture, 0.1, 0.5, and 1.0 mL, were administered to the experimental group, and 1.0 mL doses of normal saline solution were administered to the control group. This study was conducted under the approval of the Institutional Animal Ethic Committee. Results: No deaths or abnormalities occurred in any of the groups. No significant changes in the weight, hematological parameters or clinical chemistry were noted between the control group and the experimental group. To check for abnormalities in organs and tissues, we used microscopy to examine representative histological sections of each specified organ; the results showed no significant differences in any of the organs or tissues. Conclusion: The above findings suggest Scolopendrid Pharmacopuncture is a relatively safe to use for treatment. Further studies on the subject should be conducted to yield more concrete evidence.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
• /
• v.22 no.1
• /
• pp.47-58
• /
• 1997

The conversion coefficients of effective dose per unit air kerma and equivalent dose per unit fluence were calculated by MCNP4A code for antero-posterior(AP) and postero- anterior(PA) incidence of broad, unidirectional beams of photons into anthropomorphic MIRD phantom. Calculations have been performed for 20 monoenergetic photons of energy ranging from 0.03 to 10 MeV. The conversion coefficients showed a good agreement with the corresponding values given in the draft publication of joint task group of ICRP and ICRU within 10%. The deviations may arise from the differences of geometry in the MIRD phantom and the ADAM/EVE phantoms, and the differences in the codes and cross-section data used. Inclusion of a specific oesophagus model results in effective dose slightly different(5% at most) from the effective doses obtained by adopting the equivalent doses for the thymus or pancreas. Deletion of the ULI from the remainder organ appeared not to be significant for the cases of photon dosimetry covered in this study.

• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
• /
• v.16 no.2
• /
• pp.28-32
• /
• 2013

Objective: This study was performed to analyze the single-dose toxicity of D-amino acid oxidase (DAAO) extracts. Methods: All experiments were conducted at the Korea Testing & Research Institute (KTR), an institution authorized to perform non-clinical studies, under the regulations of Good Laboratory Practice (GLP). Sprague-Dawley rats were chosen for the pilot study. Doses of DAAO extracts, 0.1 to 0.3 cc, were administered to the experimental group, and the same doses of normal saline solution were administered to the control group. This study was conducted under the approval of the Institutional Animal Ethics Committee. Results: In all 4 groups, no deaths occurred, and the $LD_{50}$ of DAAO extracts administered by IV was over 0.3 ml/kg. No significant changes in the weight between the control group and the experimental group were observed. To check for abnormalities in organs and tissues, we used microscopy to examine representative histological sections of each specified organ, the results showed no significant differences in any organs or tissues. Conclusion: The above findings suggest that treatment with D-amino acid oxidase extracts is relatively safe. Further studies on this subject should be conducted to yield more concrete evidence.

• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
• /
• v.19 no.2
• /
• pp.114-121
• /
• 2016

Objectives: Lung cancer remains a deadly disease with unsatisfactory overall survival. Cisplatin, a standard platinum (Pt)-based chemotherapeutic agent, has the potential to inhibit the growth of lung cancer. Its use, however, is occasionally limited by severe organ toxicity. However, until now, no systematic study has been conducted to verify its efficacy with proper experimental support in vivo. Therefore, we examined whether biosynthesized Pt nanoparticles (NPs) inhibited human lung cancer in vitro and in vivo to validate their use in alternative and complementary medicine. Methods: We evaluated the in vitro and the in vivo anticancer efficiencies of biosynthesized Pt NPs in a subcutaneous xenograft model with A549 cells. Severe combined immune deficient mice (SCID) were divided into four groups: group 1 being the vehicle control group and groups 2, 3 and 4 being the experimental groups. Once the tumor volume had reached $70-75mm^3$, the progression profile of the tumor growth kinetics and the body weights of the mice were measured every week for 6 weeks after oral administration of Pt NPs. Doses of Pt NPs of 500, 1,000 and 2,000 mg/kg of body weight were administered to the experimental groups and a dose of honey was administered to the vehicle control group. The efficacy was quantified by using the delay in tumor growth following the administration of Pt NPs of A549 human-lung-cancer xenografts growing in SCID mice. Results: The in vitro cytotoxicity evaluation indicated that Pt NPs, in a dose-dependent manner, inhibited the growth of A549 cells, and the in vivo evaluation showed that Pt NPs at the mid and high doses effectively inhibited and delayed the growth of lung cancer in SCID mice. Conclusion: These findings confirm the antitumor properties of biosynthesized Pt NPs and suggest that they may be a cost-effective alternative for the treatment of patients with lung cancer.