• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.103-108
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• 2005

To study the direct effect of somatostatin (SS) on calcium channel current ($I_{Ba}$) in guinea-pig gastric myocytes, $I_{Ba}$ was recorded by using whole-cell patch clamp technique in single smooth muscle cells. Nicardipine ($1{\mu}M$), a L-type $Ca^{2+}$ channel blocker, inhibited $I_{Ba}$ by $98{\pm}1.9$% (n=5), however $I_{Ba}$ was decreased in a reversible manner by application of SS. The peak $I_{Ba}$ at 0 mV were decreased to $95{\pm}1.5$, $92{\pm}1.9$, $82{\pm}4.0$, $66{\pm}5.8$, $10{\pm}2.9$% at $10^{-10}$, $10^{-9}$, $10^{-8}$, $10^{-7}$, $10^{-5}$ M of SS, respectively (n=3∼6; $mean{\pm}SEM$). The steady-state activation and inactivation curves of $I_{Ba}$ as a function of membrane potentials were well fitted by a Boltzmann equation. Voltage of half-activation ($V_{0.5}$) was $-12{\pm}0.5$ mV in control and $-11{\pm}1.9$ mV in SS treated groups (respectively, n=5). The same values of half-inactivation were $-35{\pm}1.4$ mV and $-35{\pm}1.9$ mV (respectively, n=5). There was no significant difference in activation and inactivation kinetics of $I_{Ba}$ by SS. Inhibitory effect of SS on $I_{Ba}$ was significantly reduced by either dialysis of intracellular solution with $GDP_{\beta}S$, a non-hydrolysable G protein inhibitor, or pretreatment with pertussis toxin (PTX). SS also decreased contraction of guinea-pig gastric antral smooth muscle. In conclusion, SS decreases voltage-dependent L-type calcium channel current ($VDCC_L$) via PTXsensitive signaling pathways in guinea-pig antral circular myocytes.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.496-507
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• 2018

Immunization has been performed for centuries and is generally accepted as a sustainable method of controlling bacteria, viruses, and mediated and infectious diseases. Despite many studies having been performed on animal subjects to demonstrate the importance of toxin immunity, the use of toxoid vaccines in humans and animals has been limited for a long time. Recently, the development of the toxoid antigen delivery system has been facilitated using novel nano-medicinal technology. The micro/nano-carrier has been used to improve vaccination coverage as well as reduce vaccine costs. A micro/nano-carrier is a micro/nano-sized material that delivers immune cargo, including recombinant or peptide toxoid antigens. These toxoid antigens are either encapsulated in the interior or displayed on the surface of micro/nano-carriers as a way to protect them from the cellular machinery. In particular, the combination of toxoid antigens and micro/nano-carriers can induce phagocytosis through the specific interactions between GCs and macrophages; thus, the toxoid antigens can be delivered easily into the macrophages. This paper reviews recent achievements of micro/nano-carriers in the field of vaccine delivery systems such as microbial ghost cells (GCs, Bacterial ghost cells and Yeast ghost cells), gene-manipulated outer membrane vesicles (OMVs) and biocompatible, polymer-based nanoparticles (NPs, NP-Carrier and NP-Cage). Finally, this review shows various aspects in terms of the hosts' immune responses.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Clinical Toxicology
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.22-26
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• 2005

The majority of acute toxic poisoning occur via oral route. The most important emergency treatment of acute poisoning are gastric lavage. Gastric lavage should be considered a patient has ingested a potentially life-threatening amount of a poison and the procedure can be undertaken within 60 mins of ingestion. But, gastric lavage does not consist properly in the cases of emergency situation or an inexperienced doctors treat. The purpose of this study was to determine whether gastric lavage is performed properly. Eighty patients were enrolled in the study in 12-month period from January to December 2002. A retrospective chart review was performed on patients identified as drug overdose who admitted to ER. To assess whether there was a subgroup of patients who may have been candidates for the initiation of gastric lavage in the ER, the patients divided in two groups by time interval from toxin ingestion to ER arrival. The group 1 that admit within 60 minutes after drug ingestion was 38 cases ($47.5\%$), and the group 2 patient who admitted after 60 minutes was 42 cases ($52.5\%$). The average age was $44\pm19$ years in group 1, and $48\pm24$ years in group 2. There were no differences in sexual distribution of two groups. The mean time interval was $49\pm20$ minutes in the group $1,258\pm190$ minutes in the group 2. Only thirty ($37.5\%$) of the patients had an overdose for which the treatment of gastric lavage was potentially feasible according to guideline. The correctly performed gastric lavage was 18 ($47.4\%$) in group 1, 12 ($28.6\%$) in group 2. We must enforce education about the gastric lavage, and do so that may treat according to guideline.

• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.37-43
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• 2017

Purpose: Pertussis can be prevented with a vaccine. Despite this, there have been an increasing number of cases worldwide, and also in Korea. This study aimed to investigate the epidemiology and clinical characteristics of the recent outbreak in the Changwon area. Methods: Patients who visited Changwon Fatima Hospital from July 2015 to March 2016 with respiratory symptoms, including spasmodic cough, cough induced vomiting, inspiratory 'intake' sound (whooping), and a night-time cough for >1 week were included in this study. Respiratory specimens were collected from patients and a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and detected anti-pertussis immunoglobulin G enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit test were performed. Patients with underlying diseases, or those who had received a DTaP or Tdap vaccination in recent 1 year were excluded. Results: Pertussis was diagnosed in 37 of 50 patients, two patients were positive according to the PCR, and 37 patients were positive according to serologic tests. The age distribution of the patients was 1 month to 15 years. After administering antibiotics, all patients recovered without complications. Conclusions: A pertussis outbreak occurred in Changwon in 2015 and 2016. This data can provide the basis for further study on the epidemiology of pertussis in Korea.

• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.20 no.5
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• pp.699-704
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• 2013

Buckwheat Soksungjang (BS) is a bealmijang manufactured with buckwheat and soybeans. We manufactured BS using Bacillus subtilis HJ18-4 (HJ18-4), which has high enzyme activities and antibacterial effects. HJ18-4 was inoculated in a different process during the BS manufacturing, which was the meju-making time (Treat 1), and the salt water time was added (Treat 2). The physiochemical and microbial characteristics of the BS were analyzed. As a result, the total aerobic counts (7~8 log CFU/mL) in the BS increased after 15 days of fermentation. Especially, Treat 1 showed higher total aerobic counts and amino-type nitrogen (65.38~202.52 mg%) than Treat 2. During the BS fermentation, the reduction of the sugar contents and the enzyme (protease and amylase) activities decreased. In the relative quantitative expression level of PlcR, Treat 1 did not show toxin gene expressions at the end of the fermentation on Day 23. Treat 1 showed suitable B. cereus physiochemical quality characteristics and inhibition effects. When the modified-form type of fermented soybean paste was manufactured with a single starter, it could not reproduce the natural fermentation quality. These results suggest that the addition of a starter (HJ18-4) in the Meju manufacturing process could enhance the quality characteristics of the manufactured BS via natural fermentation and by suppressing B. cereus.

• 한국균학회소식:학술대회논문집
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• 2014.10a
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• pp.13-13
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• 2014

Species belonging to the genus Fusarium are widely distributed and cause diseases in many plants. Isolation of fungal strains from air or cereals is necessary for disease forecasting, disease diagnosis, and population genetics [1]. Previously we showed that Fusarium species are resistant to toxoflavin produced by the bacterial rice pathogen Burkholderia glumae while other fungal genera are sensitive to the toxin, resulting in the development of a selective medium for Fusarium species using toxoflavin [2]. In this study, we have tried to elucidate the resistant mechanism of F. graminearum against toxoflavin and interaction between the two pathogens in nature. To test whether B. glumae affects the development of F. graminearum, the wild-type F. graminearum strains were incubated with either the bacterial strain or supernatant of the bacterial culture. Both conditions increased the conidial production five times more than when the fungus was incubated alone. While co-incubation resulted in dramatic increase of conidial production, conidia germination delayed by either the bacterial strain or supernatant. These results suggest that certain factors produced by B. glumae induce conidial production and delay conidial germination in F. graminearum. To identify genes related to toxoflavin resistance in F. graminearum, we screened the transcriptional factor mutant library previously generated in F. graminearum [3] and identified one mutant that is sensitive to toxoflavin. We analyzed transcriptomes of the wild-type strain and the mutant strain under either absence or presence of toxoflavin through RNAseq. Expression level of total genes of 13,820 was measured by reads per kilobase per million mapped reads (RPKM). Under the criteria with more than two-fold changes, 1,440 genes were upregulated and 1,267 genes were down-regulated in wild-type strain than mutant strain in response to toxoflavin treatment. A comparison of gene expression profiling between the wild type and mutant through gene ontology analysis showed that genes related to metabolic process and oxidation-reduction process were highly enriched in the mutant strain. The data analyses will focus on elucidating the resistance mechanism of F. graminearum against toxoflavin and the interaction between the two pathogens in rice. Further evolutionary history will be traced through figuring out the gene function in populations and in other filamentous fungi.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.42-51
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• 2006

We investigated the mechanism of contraction induced by S1P in esophageal smooth muscle cells. Western blot analysis demonstrated that $S1P_1$, $S1P_2$, $S1P_3$, and $S1P_5$ receptors existed in the cat esophagus. Only penetration of EDG-5 ($S1P_2$) antibody into permeabilized cells inhibited S1P-induced contraction. Pertussis toxin (PTX) also inhibited contraction, suggesting that it was mediated by $S1P_2$ receptors coupled to a PTXsensitive $G_i$ protein. Specific antibodies to $G_{i2}$, $G_q$ and $G_{\beta}$ inhibited contraction, implying that the S1P-induced contraction depends on PTX-insensitive $G_q$ and $G_{\beta}$ dimers as well as the PTX-sensitive $G_{i2}$. Contraction was not affected by the phospholipase $A_2$ inhibitor DEDA, or the PLD inhibitor ${\rho}$-chloromercuribenzoate, but it was abolished by the PLC inhibitor U73122. Incubation of permeabilized cells with $PLC{\beta}3$ antibody also inhibited contraction. Contraction involved the activation of a PKC pathway since it was affected by GF109203X and chelerythrine. Since $PKC{\varepsilon}$ antibody inhibited contraction, $PKC{\varepsilon}$ may be required. Preincubation of the muscle cells with the MEK inhibitor PD98059 blocked S1P-induced contraction, but the p38 MAP kinase inhibitor SB202190 did not. In addition, co-treatment of cells with GF 109203X and PD98059 did not have a synergistic effect, suggesting that these two kinases are involved in the same signaling pathway. Our data suggest that S1P-induced contraction in esophageal smooth muscle cells is mediated by $S1P_2$ receptors coupled to PTX-sensitive $G_{i2}$ proteins, and PTX-insensitive $G_q$ and $G_{\beta}$ proteins, and that the resulting activation of the $PLC{\beta}3$ and $PKC{\varepsilon}$ pathway leads to activation of a p44/p42 MAPK pathway.

• Proceedings of the Ginseng society Conference
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• 2002.10a
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• pp.66-83
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• 2002

Recently, we have provided evidence that ginsenosides, the active components of Panax ginseng, utilize pertussis toxin (PTX)-insensitive $G{\alpha}_{q/11}-phospholipase\;C-{\beta}3(PLC-{\beta}3)$ signal transduction pathway for the enhancement of $Ca^{2+}-activated\;Cl^{-}$ current in the Xenopus oocyte (British J. Pharmacol. 132, 641-647, 2001; JBC 276, 48797-48802, 2001). Other investigators have shown that stimulation of receptors linked to $G{\alpha}-PLC$ pathway inhibits the activity of G proteincoupled inwardly rectifying $K^+$ (GIRK) channel. In the present study, we sought to determine whether ginsenosides influenced the activity of GIRK 1 and GIRK 4 (GIRK 1/4) channels expressed in the Xenopus oocyte, and if so, the underlying signal transduction mechanism. In oocyte injected with GIRK 1/4 channel cRNAs, bath-applied ginsenosides inhibited high potassium (HK) solution-elicited GIRK current $(EC_{50}:4.9{\pm}4.3\;{\mu}g/ml).$ Pretreatment of the oocyte with PTX reduced the HK solution-elicited GIRK current by $49\%,$ but it did not alter the inhibitory ginsenoside effect on GIRK current. Prior intraoocyte injection of cRNA(s) coding $G{\alpha}_q,\;G{\alpha}_{11}\;or\;G{\alpha}_q/G{\alpha}_{11},\;but\;not\;G{\alpha}_{i2}\;or\;G{\alpha}_{oA}$ attenuated the inhibitory ginsenoside effect. Injection of cRNAs coding $G{\beta}_{1{\gamma}2}$ also attenuated the ginsenoside effect. Similarly, injection of the cRNAs coding regulators of G protein signaling 1, 2 and 4 (RGS1, RGS2 and RGS4), which interact with $G{\alpha}_i\;and/or\;G{\alpha}_{q/11}$ and stimulates the hydrolysis of GTP to GDP in active GTP-bound $G{\alpha}$ subunit, resulted in a significant reduction of ginsenoside effect on GIRK current. Preincubation of GIRK channel-expressing oocyte in PLC inhibitor (U73122) or protein kinase C (PKC) inhibitor (staurosporine or chelerythrine) blocked the inhibitory ginsenoside effect on GIRK current. On the other hand, intraoocyte injection of BAPTA, a free $Ca^{2+}$ chelator, had no significant effect on the ginsenoside action. Taken together, these results suggest that ginsenosides inhibit the activity of GIRK 1/4 channel expressed in the Xenopus oocyte through a PTX-insensitive and $G{\alpha}_{q/11}$-,PLC-and PKC-mediated signal transduction pathway.

• Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Scientists of Korea
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.447-453
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• 2018

Acetyl hexapeptide 8 (AH8) is a synthetic peptide for anti-wrinkle cosmetics ingredient. It was developed as a mimetic of botox, patternd after N -terminal end of the protein synatosomal-associated protein 25 (SNAP25), a substrate of botulinum toxin. While AH8 has good efficacy and safety profiles, the permeation through the skin is poor. Therefore, we tried to enhance the transdermal delivery of AH8 by using of hyaluonic acid (HA), a linear polysaccharide of N-acetyl glucosamine and glucuronic acid. To investigate the effect of HA on AH8 penetration, we analyzed paraffin sections of $Micropig^{(R)}$ skin. Fluorescence labeled AH8 was applied to micropig skin with or without HA. The absorption of AH8 was limited to the stratum corneum (SC) without HA. On the other hand, AH8 penetrated to the dermis with HA. Especially, low molecular weight HA (5 kDa) was most efficient compared to 500 kDa HA and 2000 kDa HA. Experiments using fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy revealed that lower molecular weight HA had a tendency to increase the fluidity of the SC lipids more, which means enhancing the skin penetration. Therefore, HA could be expected to enhance the anti-wrinkle effect of AH8.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.30 no.12
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• pp.1128-1139
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• 2020

Over recent years, it has become evident that food and agricultural products are easily contaminated by fungi of Aspergillus, Fusarium, and Penicillium due to rapid climate change, which is not only a global food quality concern but also a serious health concern. Owing to consumers' interest in health, resistance to preservatives such as propionic acid and sorbic acid (which have been used in the past) is increasing, so it is necessary to develop a substitute from natural materials. In this review, the role of lactic acid bacteria as a biological method for controlling the growth and toxin production of fungi was examined. According to recent studies, lactic acid bacteria effectively inhibit the growth of fungi through various metabolites such as organic acids with low molecular weight, reuterin, proteinaceous compounds, hydroxy fatty acids, and phenol compounds. Lactic acid bacteria effectively reduced mycotoxin production by fungi via adsorption of mycotoxin with lactic acid bacteria cell surface components, degradation of fungal mycotoxin, and inhibition of mycotoxin production. Lactic acid bacteria could be regarded as a potential anti-fungal and anti-mycotoxigenic material in the prevention of fungal contamination of food and agricultural products because lactic acid bacteria produce various kinds of potent metabolic compounds with anti-fungal activities.