• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.52-59
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• 2012

In our continuous efforts to procure the active materials from natural products in the protective effects of oxidative stress or UV damage to skin cells we found the Prunus persica flesh extract (PPFE) is considerable to meet the demand to protect the skin damage. PPFE attenuated cell damage induced by hypoxanthine-xanthine oxidase in cultured human keratinocytes, indicating that PPFE has the potential of the scavenging effect of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in human skin cell. Moreover, PPFE significantly suppressed UVA-induced ROS production determined by the oxidation of 2,7-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate (DCFH) using FACS analysis. Additional study revealed that UVA irradiation of HaCaT human keratinocytes increased the gelatinolytic activities of matrix metalloproteinase-2, and -9 (MMP-2, -9) and mRNA expression of MMP-9 analyzing by a real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and these events were significantly suppressed by the treatment with PPFE. These results suggest that PPFE might be applicable as natural ingredients for skin antiaging agents via UV-induced ROS scavenging activity and suppression of MMP expression in the skin cells.

• 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.

• JSTS:Journal of Semiconductor Technology and Science
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.387-394
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• 2013

As the feature size of integrated circuits continues to decrease, the challenge of achieving an oxidation-free exposed layer after photoresist (PR) stripping is becoming a critical issue for semiconductor device fabrication. In this article, the hydrogen plasma characteristics in direct plasma and the PR stripping rate in remote plasma were studied using a $120{\Phi}$ cylindrical inductively coupled plasma source. E mode, H mode and E-H mode transitions were observed, which were defined by matching the $V_{rms}$ and total impedance. In addition, the dependence of the E-H mode transition on pressure was examined and the corresponding plasma instability regions were identified. The plasma density and electron temperature increased gradually under the same process conditions. In contrast, the PR stripping rate decreased with increasing proportion of $H_2$ gas in mixed $H_2/N_2$ plasma. The decrease in concentration of reactive radicals for the removal of PR with increasing $H_2$ gas flow rate suggests that NH radicals have a dominant effect as the main volatile product.

• Progress in Superconductivity and Cryogenics
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.4-7
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• 2002

Samples of $Nb/Al-AlO_x/Nb$ tunnel junction with the size of $50 ${\mu}{\textrm}{m}$ {\times} 50 ${\mu}{\textrm}{m}$$ were fabricated by using self-aligning and reactive ion etching technique In the high quality samples, the $V_m$ value (the product of the critical current and subgap resistance measured at 2 mV) was 34 mV at the critical current density of $J_c: 500 A/cm^2 and the V_g$ value (the gap voltage) was 2.8 mV. For the higher $J_c$ sample, voltage fluctuation at the gap voltage was observed. The $V_m and J_c$ values for this sample were 8 mV and 900 A/cm$^2$, respectively. Also, the relationship between critical current density $J_c$ and specific normal conductance $G_s$ of the junctions with $J_c$ in the range of 28 A/cm$^2$~940 A/cm$^2$was investigated.

• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.97-117
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• 2000

TOEM strategy is widely used in Japan and Korea because of the diverse advantages such as cost sharing, technology transfer, equipment lease and base technology acquisition between parent company and OEM supplier. There are, however, some disadvantages that (1)OEM suppliers are likely to be reactive to environmental changes and (2) may have difficulty in building competitive position and long-term growth. When the parent company relocates its plant to foreign countries to achieve lower labor cost or to enhance value added this change will affect directly the OEM supplier's outcome. The parent company's divestiture from existing businesses will also affect the OEM supplier. For the OEM supplier to survive in face of these strategic changes it must enter the new countries with the parent company. Alternatively, the OEM supplier must actively diversify its technologies based on its core capabilities of existing product and process technologies and seek new business arenas. The strategy of aligning its businesses with the parent company's new business strategy allows the OEM supplier to share the new market while it requires the OEM supplier to develop core capabilities. In Korea many small and medium sized OEM suppliers are dependent on a few large companies. For the industry structure in Korea where industry concentration is extremely high OEM suppliers should move away from the past strategy, where they are dependent on the parent company's low profitability businesses. They should actively enter new businesses for which parent companies enter to achieve long-term growth.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.1-6
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• 2002

Plants have developed a sophisticated battery of defence responses to protect themselves against attempted pathogen ingress. Manipulation of these defence mechanisms may provide significant opportunities for crop improvement. While plant resistance genes have had a long service history in plant breeding, they possess significant limitations. Recent advances are now providing significant insights into strategies designed to increase the field durability of this class of genes. Hypersensitive cell death is a common feature underlying the deployment of plant defence responses against biographic pathogens. In contrast, necrotrophic pathogens actively kill plant cells. Recently, transgenic plants have been developed that either promote or suppress cell death, providing resistance against either biotrophic or necrotrophic pathogens respectively. Methyl-jasmonate is a key signalling molecule in the establishment of resistance against some fungal pathogens. Increasing the concentration of this molecule in plant cells has been shown to increase resistance against Botrytis cineria, without significantly imparting plant growth or development. Due to the multifarious infection strategies employed by plant pathogens, how-ever, it is unlikely a single commercial product will prove a panacea for global disease control. Future stategies will more likely entail an integrated disease management approach.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.32-36
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• 2009

Glutamate causes neurotoxicity through formation of reactive oxygen species and activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways. MAPK phosphatase-1 (MKP-1) is one of the phosphatases responsible for dephosphorylation/deactivation of three MAPK families: the extracellular signal-regulated kinase-1/2 (ERK-1/2), the c-Jun N-terminal kinase-1/2 (JNK-1/2), and the p38 MAPK. In this report, the potential involvement of MKP-1 in neuroprotective effects of curcumin, the active ingredient of turmeric (Curcuma longa), was examined using HT22 cells. Glutamate caused cell death and activation of ERK-1/2 but not p38 MAPK or JNK-1/2. Blockage of ERK-1/2 by its inhibitor protected HT22 cells against glutamate-induced toxicity. Curcumin attenuated glutamate-induced cell death and ERK-1/2 activation. Interestingly, curcumin induced MKP-1 activation. In HT22 cells transiently transfected with small interfering RNA against MKP-1, curcumin failed to inhibit glutamate-induced ERK-1/2 activation and to protect HT22 cells from glutamate-induced toxicity. These results suggest that curcumin can attenuate glutamate-induced neurotoxicity by activating MKP-1 which acts as the negative regulator of ERK-1/2. This novel pathway may contribute to and explain at least one of the neuroprotective actions of curcumin.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.59-65
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• 2018

An isoform of NADPH oxidase (NOX), NOX2 is a superoxide-generating enzyme involved in diverse pathophysiological events. Although its potential as a therapeutic target has been validated, there is no clinically available inhibitor. Herein, NOX2-inhibitory activity was screened with the constituents isolated from Schisandra chinensis, which has been reported to have antioxidant and reactive oxygen species (ROS)-scavenging effects. Among the partitions prepared from crude methanolic extract, a chloroform-soluble partition showed the highest NOX2-inhibitory activity in PLB-985 cell-based NOX2 assay. A total of twenty nine compounds (1 - 29) were identified from the chloroform fraction, including two first isolated compounds; dimethyl-malate (25) and 2-(2-hydroxyacetyl) furan (27) from this plants. Of these constituents, two compounds (gomisin T, and pregomisin) exhibited an NOX2-inhibitory effect with the $IC_{50}$ of $9.4{\pm}3.6$, and $62.9{\pm}11.3{\mu}M$, respectively. They are confirmed not to be nonspecific superoxide scavengers in a counter assay using a xanthine-xanthine oxidase system. These findings suggest the potential application of gomisin T (6) and other constituents of S. chinensis to inhibit NOX2.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.175-192
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• 2006

Screening for the cytotoxicity from plant origin is the first stage for anti-cancer drug development. A variety of terpenoids with exomethylene, epoxide, allyl, $\alpha,\beta-unsaturated$ carbonyl, acetylenes, and $\alpha-methylene-\gamma-lactone$ induces apoptosis and/or differentiation as well as cytotoxicity through the ROS signal transduction pathways. These are found among monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, triterpenes, flavonoids, coumarins, diarylheptanoids, and even organosulfuric compounds. The most essential characteristics of natural cytotoxic substances is to possess the strong electrophilicity that is susceptible to nucleophilic biomolecules in the cell. Thiol-reductants and superoxide dismutase can block or delay apoptosis. Thus, ROS and the resulting cellular redox-potential changes can be parts of the signal transduction pathway during apoptosis. Disturbance of the balance of oxireduction by the pigment of natural quinones also caused the induction of the differentiation and apoptosis. Saponins with the cytotoxicity are restricted to their monodesmosides, rather than to bisdesmosides. Those saponins exhibited calcium ion-mediated apoptosis in addition to cytotoxicity whereas they showed also differentiation without extracellular calcium ion. The properties on cytotoxicity, apoptosis, and differentiation were assumed to depend on resultant oxidative stress to the cells. In this review, we describe a spectrum of cytotoxic compounds with various action mechanisms.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.80-82
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• 2003

Since reactive oxygen radicals play an important role in carcinogenesis and other human diseases including neurodegenerative states, antioxidants present in natural products have received considerable attention for alleviation of these disease states. Therefore, in order io identify antioxidants in plant extracts, fifty-seven methanolic extracts derided from indigenous Korean plants were primarily assessed for potential to scavenge stable 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radicals. As a result, nine plant extracts were found to exhibit the DPPH free radical scavenging activity in the criteria of $IC_{50}<40\;{\mu}g/ml$. In particular, the extracts of Melioma oldhami $(IC_{50}=0.1\;{\mu}g/ml)$, Myrica rubra $(IC_{50}=16.2\;{\mu}g/ml)$, Sympolocos paniculata $(IC_{50}=23.0\;{\mu}g/ml)$, Carpinus laxiflora $(IC_{50}=25.1\;{\mu}g/ml)$, and Cleyera japonica $(IC_{50}=26.2\;{\mu}g/ml)$ showed a potent radical scavenging activity. Further study for the identification of active compounds from these lead extracts might be warranted.