• The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.259-266
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• 2000

Objectives : The effects of aqueous extracts of Cortex ulmi pumilae (a traditional medicine for cancer treatment in oriental medicine) on the induction of apoptotic cell death were investigated in human liver origm hepatoma cell lines, HepG2. Methods : The death of HepG2 cells was markedly induced by the addition of extracts of Cortex ulmi pumilae in a dose-dependent manner. The apoptotic characteristic ladder pattern of DNA strand break was not observed in cell death of HepG2. In addition, it was not shown nucleus chromatin condensation and fragmentation under hoechst staining. However, by the using annexin V staining assay, externalizations of phosphatidylserine in HepG2 cell which were treated with Cortex ulmi pumilae extracts were detected in the early time (at 9 hr after extract treatment). Furthermore, LDH release was not detected in this early stage. Therefore, Cortex ulmi pumilae extracts-induced cell death of HepG2 cells is mediated by apoptotic death signal processes. Result : The activity of caspase 3-like proteases remained in a basal level in HepG2 cells which treated with the extract of Cordyceps sinensis. However, it was markedly increased in HepG2 cells which treated with two extracts of Cortex ulmi pumilae (C.U.P.-C, C.U.P.-K) which were differently extracted (respectively, 2.3 and 3.3 fold). On a while, the phosphotransferase activities of JNK1 was markedly induced in HepG2 cells which were treated with two extracts of Cortex ulmi pumilae. On the contrary, the activation of transcriptional activator, activating protein1(AP-1) and NF-kB were severely decreased by these two extracts of Cortex ulmi pumilae (C.U.P.-C, C.U.P.-K). In addition, antioxidants (GSH and NAC) and intracellular $Ca2^+$ level regulator (Bapta/AM and Thapsigargin) did not affect Cortex ulmi pumilae extracts-induced apoptotic death of HepG2 cells. Conclusions : In conclusion, our results suggest that two extracts of Cortex ulmi pumilae (C.U.P.-C, C.U.P.-K) induces the apoptotic death of human liver origin hepatoma HepG2 cells via activation of caspase 3-like proteases as well as JNK1, and inhibition of transcriptional activators, AP-1 and $NK-{\kappa}B$.

• Korean Journal of Pharmacognosy
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• v.41 no.4
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• pp.282-288
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• 2010

We evaluated the anti-diabetic effects of Triticum aestivum sprout water extract (TA) in diabetes mellitus type 2. For the experiments, the diabetic animal model db/db mice were divided to 3 groups: diabetic control (db/db) and two experimental groups orally treated with 25 and 100 mg/kg single dose of TA (TA-25 and TA-100, respectively). The lean mice were used as the non-diabetic normal control. All mice have free access to water and AIN-93 diet. TA was administrated to diabetic mice for 5 weeks and the diabetic clinical markers, including blood glucose level, body weight, food intake and insulin level, were measured at a time. After administration for 5 weeks, the blood glucose level was decreased 1.10 and 1.98 folds in TA-25 and TA-100 groups, respectively, compared with db/db group. The body weight and diet consumption were significantly reduced by TA treatment in dose-dependent manner. The treatments of TA-100 also significantly decreased remarkedly liver weight and slightly serum insulin levels when compared with them of the diabetic control group. However the immunohistochemical staining for insulin clearly showed high expression of insulin in the pancreatic islet cells derived from all db/db mice, even if TA was administrated. Moreover, TA-100 treatment significantly improved impaired glucose tolerance in diabetic db/db mice. The results suggest that TA has anti-hyperglycemic effect attenuating blood glucose in the animal model of type 2 diabetes and might be useful as a functional diet for human diabetic diseases.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.392-397
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• 1993

The present work was undertaken to investigate the protective mechanism of Oenanthe iavanicu n-butanol extract on the carbon tetrachloride-induced hepatotoxicity in mice. It was observed that a striking enhancement of serum alanine aminotransferase and hepatic lipid peroxide content after carbon tetrachloride administration were markedly decreased by the presentment of Oenanthe javanica extract for 5 days. It was also observed that the hepatic aniline hydroxylase, catalase, glutathione S-transferase activity and glutathione content were not changed by the injection of Oenanthe javanica extract for 5 days. Whereas, hepatic xanthine oxidase activity was inhibited by the treatment of Oenanthe javanica extract for 5 days. After treatment with Oenanthe javanica extract, xanthine oxidase activity was decreased with dose and time-dependent manner as compared to control group. However, hepatic xanthine oxidase activity was not affected by the addition of Oenanthe javanica extract in vitro. These results suggest that the inhibition of hepatic xanthine oxidase activity by the injection of Oenanthe javanica extract is believed to be a possible protective mechanism for the carbon tetrachloride-indured hepatotoxicity in mice.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.46 no.3
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• pp.92-102
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• 2018

The purpose of this study is to investigate if subjective well-being could be improved by visiting urban forests near residential areas. Because visiting an urban forest is not an intense positive experience, this research is focused on frequency of affective experience rather than intensity. The independent variables are number of visits and length of stay. The dependent variables are positive affect, negative affect, and life satisfaction. A polling agency was employed to select 600 respondents by quota sampling, and data was collected by online survey. The results of ANOVA showed that there was no interaction between the number of visits and length of stay. Regardless of the number of visits, the subjective well-being of visitors of urban forests was enhanced: (a) positive affect of respondents who had visited in the past 2 weeks was increased while negative affect was decreased, and (b) life satisfaction for those who had visited at least 1 time per month was enhanced among usual visitors. The stay of length, however, had little effect on the increase or decrease of these three variables. The results of this study support the existing theory that one could reset their genetically determined happiness set point to a higher level by participating in intentional activities such as visiting urban forests that offer ways to achieve long-lasting changes in well-being. This means that it would be a valuable government investment to construct and maintain urban forests for improving citizens' welfare. A few comments were suggested regarding data collection and inclusion of influencing variables to make future subjective well-being studies more reliable.

• Asian Oncology Nursing
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.204-216
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• 2001

The purpose of this study was to test the effects of foot reflexology on pain and mood in patients who have just had a mastectomy. The research design was a nonequivalent control group, non-synchronized design. The participants for this study were 28 patients with breast cancer on first or second day after mastectomy surgery. The first 12 patients were assigned to the control group and the second 16 to the experimental group. The study was conducted from October 28, 2001 to December 22, 2001 on a surgical unit of Y Medical Center in Seoul, Korea. Pain intensity, blood pressure, pulse rate and mood were measured as dependent variables. The instrument used for pain intensity and mood was a 10 cm visual analogue scale. Cronbach alpha for this study was .70. For the experimental group pre and post tests were done immediately before and 15 minutes after completion of foot reflexology. Foot reflexology was performed once for 20 minutes. After the pretest, patients in the control group were instructed to have a quiet time for a 35 minute period and then the post-test was done. The number of participants was small so the data were analyzed by Mann-Whitney U test, and Wilcoxon signed ranks test. The results of this study are as follow : 1. In the experimental group there were significant decreases between the pre and post tests for pain intensity (z=-3.47, p<.001), diastolic blood pressure (z=-2.67, p<.01) and pulse rate (z=-3.44, p<.001) but there was no difference between the two groups on the post test. 2. The systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure and pulse rate were also not significantly different between the experimental group and the control group on the post test. 3. The mood score was significantly improved after foot reflexology(z=-3.52, p=.000) and the difference between the two groups was also significant (u=49.0, p=.03). In conclusion, there was a statistically significant difference in mood between the two groups, but no difference for pain intensity, blood pressure, or pulse rate. However, there were significant differences between the pretest and post-test for pain intensity, diastolic blood pressure and pulse rate in the experimental group. On the basis of the above findings, this study suggests that foot reflexology can be an effective method of relieving pain and improving mood in clinical practice in women who have had mastectomy surgery.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.199-204
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• 2006

Objectives: Mercury is a hazardous organ-specific environmental contaminant. It exists in a wide variety of physical and chemical states, each of which has unique characteristics for the target organ specificity. Exposure to mercury vapor and to organic mercury compounds specifically affects the CNS, while the kidney is the target organ for inorganic Hg compounds. Methods: In this study, mercury chloride $(HgCl_2)$ was studied in a renal derived cell system, i.e., the tubular epithelial Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) cell line, which has specific sensitivity to the toxic effect of mercury. MDCK cells were cultured for 6-24 hr in vitro in various concentrations (0.1-100 M) of $HgCl_2$, and the markers of apoptosis or cell death were assayed, including DNA fragmentation, caspase-3 activity andwestern blotting of cytochrome c. The influence of the metal on cell proliferation and viability were evaluated by the conventional MTT test. Results: The cell viability was decreased in a time and concentration dependent fashion: decreases were noted at 6, 12 and 24 hr after $HgCl_2$, exposure. The increases of DNA fragmentation were also observed in the concentrations from 0.1 to 10 M of $HgCl_2$ at 6 hr after exposure. However, we could not observe DNA fragmentation in the concentrations more than 25 M because the cells rapidly proceeded to necrotic cell death. The activation of caspase-3 was also observed at 6 hr exposure in the $HgCl_2$ concentrations from 0.1 to 10 M. The release of cytochrome c from the mitochondria into the cytosol, which is an initiator of the activation of the caspase cascade, was also observed in the $HgCl_2-treated$ MDCK cells. Conclusions: These results suggest that the activation of caspase-3 was involved in $HgCl_2-induced$ apoptosis. The release of cytochrome c from the mitochondria into the cytosol was also observed in the $HgCl_2-treated$ MDCK cells. These findings indicate that in MDCK cells, $HgCl_2$ is a potent inducer of apoptosis via cytochrome c release from the mitochondria.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.65 no.2
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• pp.124-129
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• 2020

Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.) is an annual crop belonging to Poaceae, and is the fifth-largest crop after maize, wheat, rice, and barley. This study was conducted to establish an efficient seed sterilization method to manage fungal or bacterial infections of germinating sorghum seeds. Two varieties of sorghum seeds (BTx623 and SAP317) were treated with benomyl-thiram and thiophanate-methyl triflumizole which are known to be effective disinfectants for sorghum seeds. For SAP317, the highest germination rate was accomplished with 24-hour treatment of both chemicals at a 200× dilution rate. For BTx623, the highest germination rate was observed after 24-hour treatment at a 200×/400× dilution rate for benomyl-thiram and control/200× for thiophanate-methyl triflumizole. Consequently, the optimal treatment for the seed disinfection in sorghum seeds may be at the dilution rate of 200× or 400× for 24 hours.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.1217-1226
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• 2004

A psychrotrophic bacterial strain, Pseudomonas fluorescens BM07, synthesized unsaturated fatty acids (UFA) from fructose in response to lowering of growth temperature, and incorporated them into both polyhydroxyalkanoic acid (PHA) and membrane lipid. The blocking of PHA synthesis by adding 5 mM 2-bromooctanoic acid to the growth medium, containing 70 mM fructose, was found to be a useful means to profile the composition of membrane lipid by gas chromatography. As the growth temperature changed from 35 to $50^{\circ}C$, the total content of two UFA, 3-hydroxy-cis-5­dodecenoic acid ($C_{12:1}$) and 3-hydroxy-cis-7-tetradecenoic acid ($C_{14:1}$), in PHA increased from 31 to 44 $mol\%$. The growth at lower temperatures also led to an increase in the level of two major UFA, palmitoleic acid (C16:1 cis9) and cis-vaccenic acid (C18:1 cis11), in membrane lipid. A fraction of these membrane-lipid UFA was converted to their corresponding cyclopropane fatty acids (CFA). The CFA conversion was a function of culture time, exhibiting biphasic increase before and after entering the stationary phase. However, pH changes in growth media had no effect on the CFA conversion, which is contrary to the case of E. coli reported. The cells grown at $30^{\circ}C$ responded to a cold shock (lowering the medium temperature down to $10^{\circ}C$) by increasing the level of C16:1 cis9 and C 18: I cis II up to that of $10^{\circ}C$-grown control cells and concomitantly decreasing the relative level of cis-9,10­methylenehexadecanoic acid (the CFA converted from C16:1 cis9) from 14 to 8 $mol\%$, whereas the 10-grown cells exhibited little change in the lipid composition when exposed to a warmer environment of $30^{\circ}C$ for 12 h. Based on this one- way response, we suggest that this psychrotrophic strain responds more efficiently and sensitively to a cold shock than to a hot shock. It is also suggested that BM07 strain is a good producer of two unsaturated 3-hydroxyacids, $C_{12:1}\;and\;C_{141:1}$.

• The Korean Journal of Pharmacology
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.103-114
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• 1992

Selective quenching of 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) by trinitrophenyl groups was utilized to examine the transbilayer fluidity domains of the model membranes of total lipids (SPMVTL) and phospholipids (SPMVPL) extracted from synaptosomal plasma membrane vesicles. At $37^{\circ}C$, all anisotropy (r), limiting anisotropy $(r_{\infty})$, and order parameter (S) values of DPH in the SPMVTL were larger than those in SPMVPL. The anisotropy, limiting anisotropy, and order parameter of DPH in the inner monolayer were 0.025, 0.033, and 0.070, respectively, greater than calculated for the outer monolayer of SPMVTL. In SPMVPL, the anisotropy, limiting anisotropy, and order parameter of DPH in the inner monolayer were 0.014, 0.018, and 0.047, respectively, greater than calculated for the outer monolayer. Selective quenching of DPH by trinitrophenyl groups was also utilized to examine the effects of barbiturates on the transbilayer fluidity domains of SPMVTL and SPMVPL. Barbiturates did not affect the anisotropy of DPH in the transbilayer domains of SPMVTL. In contrast, barbiturates increased the fluorescence anisotropy, limiting anisotropy, and order parameter of DPH in the SPMVPL in a dose-dependent manner. Barbiturates showed a greater ordering effect on the outer monolayer as compared to the inner monolayer of SPMVPL. Hence, it has been demonstrated for the first time that the Sheetz-Singer hypothesis (1974) may be valid for phospholipid model membranes.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Illuminating and Electrical Installation Engineers
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• v.23 no.8
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• pp.86-92
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• 2009

In order to minimize ac mutual coupling, the auxiliary electrode are located at a right angle in measuring ground impedance. In case that the measurement space is limited, the alternative method is employed. At that time, it is necessary to investigate the measurement errors due to ac mutual coupling and earth mutual resistance in measuring the ground impedances. 'This paper presents the measurement accuracy according to the location of the current and potential auxiliary electrodes in measuring ground impedance of vertically or horizontally buried ground electrode. The measurement errors due to ac mutual coupling were evaluated Consequently, the effect of ac mutual coupling on the measurement accuracy for horizontally buried ground electrode is greater than that for vertically buried ground electrode. Measurement errors due to ac mutual coupling is the largest when the current and potential auxiliary electrodes are located in parallel. The 61.8[%] rule is inappropriate in measuring ground measurement. Theoretically, in case that the angle between the current and potential auxiliary electrodes is 90$[^{\circ}]$, there is no ac mutual coupling. If it is not possible to route the current and potential auxiliary electrodes at a right angle with limitation of measurement space, the location of these electrodes with an obtuse angle is preferred to that with an acute angle in reducing the measurement errors due to ac mutual coupling.