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Aims The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of prasugrel dose de-escalation therapy in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM)–acute coronary syndrome (ACS) who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Methods and results This was a post-hoc analysis of the HOST-REDUCE-POLYTECH-ACS (Harmonizing Optimal Strategy for Treatment of Coronary Artery Diseases—Comparison of Reduction of Prasugrel Dose or Polymer Technology in ACS Patients) randomized trial. The efficacy and safety of prasugrel dose de-escalation therapy (prasugrel 5 mg daily) were compared with conventional therapy (prasugrel 10 mg daily) in patients with DM. The primary endpoint was net adverse clinical events (NACE), defined as a composite of all-cause death, non-fatal myocardial infarction (MI), stent thrombosis (ST), clinically driven revascularization, stroke, and Bleeding Academic Research Consortium (BARC) class ≥2 bleeding events. The secondary ischaemic outcome was major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events, defined as the composite of cardiac death, non-fatal MI, ST, or ischaemic stroke. Of 2338 patients randomized, 990 had DM. The primary endpoint of NACE occurred in 38 patients (7.6%) receiving prasugrel dose de-escalation and in 53 patients (11.3%) receiving conventional therapy among patients with DM [hazard ratio (HR) 0.66; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.43–0.99; P = 0.049]. Prasugrel dose de-escalation as compared with conventional therapy did not increase the risk of ischaemic events (HR 1.03; 95% CI 0.56–1.88; P = 0.927) but decreased BARC class ≥2 bleeding in patients with DM (HR 0.44; 95% CI 0.23–0.84; P = 0.012). Conclusion Prasugrel dose de-escalation compared with conventional therapy may reduce the risk of net clinical outcomes, mostly driven by a reduction in bleeding without an increase in ischaemic events in patients with DM. Trial Registration: HOST-REDUCE-POLYTECH-ACS, NCT02193971, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02193971

Background: The introduction of a fixed-dose combination (FDC) is expected to improve treatment compliance. Methods: There were 181 subjects who were randomized to three groups: ezetimibe–rosuvastatin 10/20 mg + telmisartan 80 mg, ezetimibe–rosuvastatin 10/20 mg, and telmisartan 80 mg. The primary outcomes were change in mean sitting systolic blood pressure (MSSBP) and percentage change in low-density-lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) compared to baseline at week 8. Results: The least-square mean (SE) in MSSBP changes between the ezetimibe–rosuvastatin 10/20 mg + telmisartan 80 mg group and the ezetimibe–rosuvastatin 10/20 mg group were −25.81 (2.34) mmHg and −7.66 (2.45) mmHg. There was a significant difference between the two groups (−18.15 (2.83) mmHg, 95% CI −23.75 to −12.56, p < 0.0001). Changes in least-square mean (SE) in LDL-C between the ezetimibe–rosuvastatin 10/20 mg + telmisartan 80 mg group and the telmisartan 80 mg group were −63.82 (2.87)% and −2.48 (3.12)%. A significant difference was observed between the two groups (−61.34 (3.33)%, 95% CI −67.91 to −54.78, p < 0.0001). No serious adverse events were observed. Conclusions: Ezetimibe–rosuvastatin plus telmisartan treatment is effective and safe when compared to either ezetimibe–rosuvastatin or telmisartan.

Sasa quelpaertensis Nakai extract (SQE) has long been used as a traditional medicine and health drink. The present study aims to examine the properties and antioxidant activity of the phytochemicals isolated from S. quelpaertensis. Therefore, the SQE was fractionated with n-hexane, chloroform (CHCl3), ethyl acetate (EtOAc), and n-butanol (BuOH). Phytochemicals present in the solvent fraction were also isolated using a high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) system. In addition, their DPPH radical scavenging ability and NO production inhibitory effect were compared. The results showed that phytochemicals p-hydroxybenzaldehyde (1), salicylic acid (2), syringaldehyde (3), methyl cis-p-hydroxycinnamate (4), methyl trans-p-hydroxycinnamate (5), p-coumaric acid (6), 2,3-dihydrozypropyl 9Z,12Z-octadecadienoate (7), (+)-(6S,7aS)-epilolide (8), (-)-(6 R,7aS)-loliolide (9), naringenin (10), 3-O-p-coumaroyl-1-(4-hydroxy-3,5-dimethoxyphenyl)-1-O-β-glucopyranosylpropanol (11), tricin (12), and tricin 7-O-b-D-glucopyranoside (13) were isolated from CHCl3, EtOAc, and BuOH fractions and then identified using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometry. This is an initial study on compounds 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, and 9 obtained from S. quelpaertensis. Compounds 11 (IC50 120.3 μM) and 7 (IC50 43.62 μM) showed significant DPPH radical scavenging activity and anti-inflammatory activity, respectively. We believe these results may provide the basic data for developing effective antioxidants using the SQE.

Current transformer saturation has a negative effect on the operation of IEDs, resulting in their malfunction. Here, we present a technique to compensate for saturated waveforms using Bayesian Deep Neural Network (BDNN) comprising Deep Neural Network (DNN) and Bayesian optimization (BO). DNN, that utilizes stacked denoising autoencoder (SDAE) and Backpropagation (BP), is employed to optimize deep learning structure. Unlike the conventional neural network, which is a shallow network or random-initialize weights, the SDAE calculates optimal weights for each hidden layer and BP uses them to fine-tune which yields results with high performance for CT saturation compensation. To improve the empirical search of training hyperparameters, Bayesian optimization is adopted to decide training-related vectors such as batch size, learning rate, and number of neurons. Finally, the performance of the proposed approach was evaluated on an overhead transmission line which is imported from PSCAD/EMTDC with the different scenarios of fault inception angle, remnant flux, and voltage system. Therefore, numerical cases of saturation were comprehensively evaluated to demonstrate the performance of the proposed algorithm. A comparative analysis was shown to demonstrate that the proposed BDNN is superior to artificial neural network (ANN), and least square error (LES) technique.

We investigated the effect of ultrasonic treatment on Malas (Homalium foetidum) gas permeability and sound absorption coefficient using the transfer function method. Results showed a longitudinal average Darcy permeability constant of 2.02 (standard deviation SD 0.72) for untreated wood and 6.15 (SD 3.07) for ultrasound-treated wood, a permeability increase of 3.04 times. We also determined the average sound absorption coefficients in the range of 50 to 6.4 kHz and NRC (noise reduction coefficient: average value of sound absorption coefficient value at 250, 500, 1000, and 2000 Hz) of untreated Malas. Those values were 0.23 (SD 0.02) and 0.13 (SD 0.01), respectively, while those of ultrasonic-treated Malas were 0.28 (SD 0.02) and 0.14 (SD 0.02), a 19.74% increase in average sound absorption coefficient.

In this study, we developed an X-ray detector module (XDM) that includes two readout electronic units and a 64-channel data acquisition system for X-ray imaging systems. The readout electronic unit comprises eight X-ray sensor arrays (two CdWO4 scintillators and four Si-PIN photodiodes per detector array), 32 charge integrators, 32 sample-and-holds (S/H), 4 shift registers, and a buffer. The data acquisition system comprises line drivers and receivers, a multiplexer, an analog-to-digital converter, and a 32-kB static random-access memory. All the control signals for module operation are implemented in a field-programmable gate array. The module operates with a single 24 V DC supply and transfers each channel’s data to the host computer through an Ethernet port. We fabricated a 64-channel electronic module and evaluated its performance in terms of the relative offset and linearity. By connecting 14 XDMs, air-cargo container images were successfully acquired through X-ray irradiation at an energy of 6-MeV.

The scission rates of polystyrene and fluorinated polystyrene irradiated in an irradiation facility with Co-60 γ-rays were determined using molecular dynamics simulation and gel permeation chromatography (GPC) molecular weight distributions. The prediction was based on the assumption that γ-ray energy is transferred to the initial velocity of the primary knock-on atom. We employed a molecular dynamics simulation procedure to compute the changes in bond length between the connections for selected values of the absorbed dose and compared the calculated values with measurements made on the irradiated samples. The samples were exposed to four different absorbed doses of 25, 50, 75, and 100 kGy. The scission process and scission ratio were simulated with LAMMPS with ReaxFF potential for each bond, and we compared the simulation results with the experimental data especially measuring average molecular weight to evaluate the effect of fluorination on radiation enhancement.

In this study, biodegradable poly(L-lactide-co-ε-caprolactone) (PLCL) and poly(L-co-d,l lactide) (PLDLA) were evaluated using Geant4 (G4EmStandardPhysics_option4) for damage simulation, in order to predict the safety of these biodegradable polymers against gamma ray sterilization. In the PLCL damage model, both chain scission and crosslinking reactions appear to occur at a radiation dose in the range 0–200 kGy, but the chain cleavage reaction is expected to be relatively dominant at high irradiation doses above 500 kGy. On the other hand, the PLDLA damage model predicted that the chain cleavage reaction would prevail at the total irradiation dose (25–500 kGy). To verify the simulation results, the physicochemical changes in the irradiated PLCL and PLDLA films were characterized by GPC (gel permeation chromatography), ATR-FTIR (attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared), and DSC (difference scanning calorimetry) analyses. The Geant4 simulation curve for the radiation-induced damage to the molecular weight was consistent with the experimentally obtained results. These results imply that the pre-simulation study can be useful for predicting the optimal irradiation dose and ensuring material safety, particularly for implanted biodegradable materials in radiation processing.

Background This study evaluated the circadian efficacy of a telmisartan 40 mg/S-amlodipine 2.5 mg fixed-dose combination (Telmisartan40/S-Amlodipine2.5) compared to telmisartan 80 mg (Telmisartan80) in patients with essential hypertension who did not respond to 2–4 weeks’ treatment with telmisartan 40 mg. Methods Eligible patients with essential hypertension (clinic mean sitting systolic blood pressure [MSSBP] ≥140 mmHg, or ≥ 130 mmHg in those with diabetes mellitus or chronic kidney disease) were randomly assigned to Telmisartan40/S-Amlodipine2.5 or Telmisartan80 for 8 weeks. All patients underwent ambulatory BP monitoring (ABPM) at baseline and 8 weeks later. Primary endpoints were changes in mean 24-h SBP and DBP on 24-h ABPM from baseline after 8 weeks. Secondary endpoints were changes in daytime, nighttime, and morning SBP and DBP, and clinic MSSBP and MSDBP. Results A total of 316 Korean patients were enrolled, 217 patients were randomized to treatment, and 192 patients completed the study. Compared to Telmisartan80, Telmisartan40/S-Amlodipine2.5 showed significantly better reductions in 24-h mean SBP and DBP after 8 weeks. Telmisartan40/S-Amlodipine2.5 also significantly reduced secondary endpoints compared to Telmisartan80. Among 15 adverse events (7 [Telmisartan40/S-Amlodipine2.5] and 8 [Telmisartan80]), there were five adverse drug reactions; 14 events were mild, and none were identified with significant between-group differences. Conclusions Telmisartan40/S-Amlodipine2.5 was tolerable and more effective than Telmisartan80 in lowering 24-h mean ambulatory BP in patients with essential hypertension not responding adequately to Telmisartan40. Our findings support the fact that the combination of S-amlodipine with telmisartan is more appropriate than increasing the dose of telmisartan monotherapy. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02231788. Registered 4 September 2014.

In the present study, the layout structure of an n-MOSFET, which is vulnerable to radiation, was designed in a different way to enhance its tolerance to radiation. Radiation damage assessment was conducted using modeling and simulation (M&amp, S) techniques before actual semiconductor process fabrication and radiation tests to verify its tolerance properties. Based on the M&amp, S techniques, the role of each layer was determined to improve the radiation tolerance of semiconductors, and the layout design of an n-MOSFET with enhanced radiation tolerance was optimized. The optimized radiation-tolerant n-MOSFET design was implemented in the 0.18-um CMOS bulk process, and radiation exposure tests were conducted on the device. A cumulative radiation dose up to 2 Mrad(Si) was applied to verify its radiation-tolerant performance. Developing new devices using M&amp, S techniques for radiation damage assessment allows reliable estimates of their electrical and radiation-tolerant properties to be obtained in advance of the actual manufacturing process, thereby minimizing development costs and time.

Background Activated platelets release serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5HT) causing vasoconstriction and aggregation of platelets in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). It can lead to undergo percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). We investigated the serial changes of serotonin level in patients with ACS and chronic stable angina (CSA) treated with PCI. Methods From July 2009 to April 2010, 123 consecutive patients who have undergone PCI for either ACS (n=63) or CSA (n=60) were enrolled. After the loading dose of aspirin 300mg and clopidogrel 600mg before PCI, maintenance once daily dose of 100mg and 75mg have been given from the day after PCI in all patients. Serum serotonin level (SERO) were serially measured at baseline, pre-, post-PCI, 90 min, 6 hours, 12 hours, 24 hours and 48 hours to compare between ACS and CSA groups. All demographic, biochemical variables, and clinical events were also collected for comparison in each group. Results SERO at post-PCI (55.2±120.0 vs 20.1±24.0, p=0.03) and peak level (94.0±170.9 vs 38.8±72.3, p=0.02) were significantly higher in ACS group. SERO after 90 min (34.4±66.1 vs 28.7±38.2, p=0.8), 6 hours (23.9±38.3 vs 10.1±10.0, p=0.34), 24 hours (55.8±108.5 vs 37.2±88.2, p=0.39) and 48 hours (43.5±122.9 vs 25.2±65.5, p=0.53) tended to be higher in ACS group than CSA group without statistical significance. SERO rebounded at 24 hours post-PCI and dropped at 48 hours. Conclusions SERO was more elevated in patients with ACS than those with CSA undergoing PCI, suggesting the need for more potent and sustained platelet inhibition particularly in ACS patients. SERO might be considered as a substitute marker of platelet activation. Triple antiplatelet therapy including selective serotonin receptor antagonist on top of aspirin and clopidogrel could be as an option for ACS patients undergoing PCI Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding source: Other. Main funding source(s): Hallym University Research Fund 2017 (HURF-2017-84)

Purpose: We hypothesized that the thickness map from macular ganglion cell analysis (GCA) acquired from spectral-domain optical coherence tomography can be used to differentiate retinal vein occlusion (RVO) from glaucoma. Methods: In this retrospective case control study, 37 patients with resolved RVO and 74 patients with primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) were enrolled. Two independent examiners diagnosed patients with RVO or POAG based on the topographic pattern in the GCA thickness map. Inter-observer agreement for a decision between RVO and POAG was assessed using kappa statistics. Diagnostic specificity and accuracy were calculated. Results: Inter-observer agreement was good, with a kappa value of 0.765 (95% confidence interval, 0.634&ndash, 0.896, p &lt, 0.001). The diagnostic specificity of RVO from POAG using the GCA thickness map was 93.2% and diagnosis accuracy was 80.4%. Conclusions: An irregular GCA thickness map represents a simple and convenient differential diagnostic clue to distinguish RVO from POAG.

Purpose: To evaluate changes in macular thickness in patients continuing prostaglandin analog (PGA) treatment during the perioperative period involving bromfenac treatment. Methods: Patients with glaucoma who were using a topical PGA were randomly assigned to two groups in this randomized controlled trial: PGA continuing study group and PGA discontinued glaucoma control group. Patients without ocular diseases other than cataract were enrolled into the non-glaucomatous group. After the cataract surgery, the patients used bromfenac twice per day for 4 weeks. Optical coherence tomography was performed in all patients preoperatively and at 1 month postoperatively. Changes in macular thickness were compared among the three groups. Results: There were 32 eyes in the study group, 33 eyes in the glaucoma control group, and 58 eyes in the non-glaucomatous group. We found statistically significant postoperative changes in central macular thickness in all groups (4.30 &plusmn, 8.01 &mu, m in the PGA continuing group, 9.20 &plusmn, 13.88 &mu, m in the PGA discontinued group, and 7.06 &plusmn, 7.02 &mu, m in the non-glaucomatous group, all p &lt, 0.008), but no significant difference among the three groups (p = 0.161). Cystoid macular edema occurred in only one patient in the non-glaucomatous group (p = 0.568). Conclusions: Continuous use of PGAs during the perioperative period was not significantly associated with increased macular thickness after uncomplicated cataract surgery. In the absence of other risk factors (e.g., capsular rupture, uveitis, or diabetic retinopathy), discontinuing PGAs for the prevention of macular edema after cataract surgery with postoperative bromfenac treatment is unnecessary in patients with glaucoma.

Purpose: We compared the clinical factors, including anterior chamber tube parameters, in patients with and without corneal endothelial cell damage after Ahmed glaucoma valve (AGV) implantation. Methods: In this retrospective and comparative case series, patients who underwent AGV implantation were enrolled consecutively. Serial specular microscopy was performed before and after AGV implantation. Patients were divided into two groups depending on whether there was a significant decrease in corneal endothelial cell density (ECD), which was determined by each patient&rsquo, s rate of ECD change (%/year), calculated using linear regression analyses. Tube parameters such as the tube-cornea distance (TCD) and tube-cornea angle (TCA) were measured with anterior segment optical coherence tomography. Clinical factors related to the rate of ECD change were evaluated with regression analyses and compared between the two groups. The tipping point at which tube parameters became significantly associated with the rate of ECD change was identified with broken stick regression analyses. Results: There were 30 eyes (32.3%) with ECD damage (group 1) and 63 eyes (67.7%) without damage (group 2). The mean rate of ECD change (%/year) was &minus, 18.82 &plusmn, 22.97 and 2.14 &plusmn, 2.93 in groups 1 and 2, respectively (p &lt, 0.001). The TCA was the only clinical factor associated with the rate of ECD change (regression coefficient, &beta, = 1.254, p &lt, 0.001). The tipping point in the TCA was 26.70&deg, (95% confidence interval, CI: 23.75&ndash, 29.64&deg, ). The mean TCD (mm) was 0.98 &plusmn, 0.38 and 1.26 &plusmn, 0.39 (p = 0.002), and the mean TCA (degrees) was 28.67 &plusmn, 7.79 and 36.35 &plusmn, 5.35 (p &lt, 0.001) in groups 1 and 2, respectively. Conclusions: A wider TCA was protectively associated with the rate of ECD change, and the TCA was significantly narrower in patients with ECD damage. When inserting a tube into the anterior chamber, surgeons should therefore try to secure a wide TCA of about 30&deg, In patients with a narrow TCA after AGV implantation, increased attention should be directed toward whether ECD decreases continuously.

Objective In this study, we evaluated the anti-inflammatory effect of Shiranuhi flower in RAW 264.7 cells. Methods The effects of the extracts and solvent fractions on cell viability and LPS-induced inflammatory responses were investigated in RAW 264.7 cells. Results The results showed that the ethyl acetate fraction (HEF) significantly decreased NO production in RAW 264.7 cells; however, cell viability was not affected. In addition, ELISA assay revealed that HEF significantly inhibited the productions of PGE2, TNF-α, and IL-6. As well, using Western blot analysis, it was observed that HEF significantly reduced the expression levels of iNOS and COX-2 in a dose dependent manner. Furthermore, we detected a reduced phosphorylation of mitogen-activated protein kinases such as p38, JNK, and ERK1/2. This indicates that HEF regulates LPS-induced inflammatory responses, at least in part, via suppressing the MAPK signaling pathway. Correlation analysis also showed that anti-inflammatory activities were highly correlated to antioxidant activities in this study. Characterization of the Shiranuhi flowers for flavonoid contents using HPLC showed varied quantity of narirutin and hesperidin. Conclusion Overall, the results demonstrate that HEF may be a potential anti-inflammatory agent. In addition, our findings contribute to understanding the molecular mechanism underlying the anti-inflammatory effect of Shiranuhi flower.

To identify the natural and novel cosmeceutical ingredients which have whitening function, we examined the effects of tyrosinase activity and melanin production on halophyte Limonium tetragonum (Thunb.) A. A. Bullock extracts. As a result, the extracts showed whitening effect with no cytotoxicity. Melanin contents of B16F10 melanoma cells were decreased in a dose-dependent manner at 50, 100, 200 μg/mL treatment of the extracts. In tyrosinase activity inhibition test, L. tetragonum (Thunb.) A. A. Bullock extracts showed decreased tyrosinase activity as the concentration of α-MSH was increased. Furthermore, it was observed that the tyrosinase and MITF expression was significantly downregulated by adding L. tetragonum (Thunb.) A. A. Bullock extracts in α-MSH, a melanogenesis inducing material, treated B16F10 melanoma cells. These results indicate that L. tetragonum (Thunb.) A. A. Bullock extract might be an effective whitening agent by inhibit melanin formation.

Ishige sinicola (I. sinicola) is an edible brown alga native to South Korea. In the present study, we screened the anti-inflammatory activity of monoolein isolated from I. sinicola. Monoolein pretreatment in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated primary murine bone marrow-derived dendritic cells (BMDCs) showed strong dose-dependent inhibition of interleukin (IL)-12 p40, IL-6, and TNF-α cytokine production with IC50 values of 1.69±0.02, 6.87±0.37, and 5.19±0.56 μM, respectively. Pretreatment of monoolein attenuated the activation of MAPK and NF-κB pathways in the LPS-stimulated BMDCs by inhibiting the phosphorylation of p38, ERK1/2, JNK1/2, and IκBα. Furthermore, monoolein inhibited the production of NO and iNOS in RAW264.7 cells. Overall, our findings indicate that monoolein has a significant anti-inflammatory activity, and further studies regarding the potential of monoolein for medicinal use is warranted.

소사나무(Carpinus turczaninowii, C. turczaninowii) 잎 추출물의 멜라닌 생성 억제활성을 B16F10 melanoma 세포를 이용하여 측정하였다. 그 결과, 에탄올 추출물(100 μ g/mL)에서 72.2%의 생성 억제 효과를 확인하였으며, 동일 농도에서 MTT 세포독성은 거의 나타나지 않았다. 분획물(헥산, 에틸아세테이트, 부탄올 및 물)을 제조한 후 실험을 진행한 결과, 에틸아세테이트 분획에서 가장 우수한 활성이 관찰되었다. 에틸아세테이트 분획에서 활성성분을 규명하기 위하여 크로마토그라피를 진행하였으며, 4개의 화합물을 분리 동정하였다; ethyl gallate (1), quercetin rhamnose (2), kaempferol rhamnose (3), quercetin galloylrhamnose (4). 화합물의 구조규명은 핵자기공명분광기 등을 이용하여 이루어졌으며, 4개의 화합물 모두 소사나무 잎에서는 처음 분리된 물질이다. 분리된 화합물을 대상으로 멜라닌 생성 억제활성 실험을 진행한 결과, 화합물 4에서 세포독성 없이 농도의존적인 억제활성을 확인하였다. 또한, 화합물 4는 세포 내에서 티로시나제 발현양을 감소시키고 있음을 ELISA를 통하여 확인하였다. 이상의 결과를 바탕으로, 소사나무 잎 추출물이 화장품에서 미백제로 활용될 가능성이 있다고 판단된다.

Toxicity of particulate matter (PM) towards the epidermis has been well established in many epidemiological studies. It is manifested in cancer, aging, and skin damage. In this study, we aimed to show the mechanism underlying the protective effects of eckol, a phlorotannin isolated from brown seaweed, on human HaCaT keratinocytes against PM2.5-induced cell damage. First, to elucidate the underlying mechanism of toxicity of PM2.5, we checked the reactive oxygen species (ROS) level, which contributed significantly to cell damage. Experimental data indicate that excessive ROS caused damage to lipids, proteins, and DNA and induced mitochondrial dysfunction. Furthermore, eckol (30 &mu, M) decreased ROS generation, ensuring the stability of molecules, and maintaining a steady mitochondrial state. The western blot analysis showed that PM2.5 promoted apoptosis-related protein levels and activated MAPK signaling pathway, whereas eckol protected cells from apoptosis by inhibiting MAPK signaling pathway. This was further reinforced by detailed investigations using MAPK inhibitors. Thus, our results demonstrated that inhibition of PM2.5-induced cell apoptosis by eckol was through MAPK signaling pathway. In conclusion, eckol could protect skin HaCaT cells from PM2.5-induced apoptosis via inhibiting ROS generation.

Context: Seaweeds are rich in bioactive compounds in the form of vitamins, phycobilins, polyphenols, carotenoids, phycocyanins and polysaccharides; many of these are known to have advantageous applications in human health. 3-Hydroxy-4,7-megastigmadien-9-one (comp) was isolated from Ulva pertusa (U. pertusa) Kjellman (Ulvaceae), which is a familiar edible green seaweed. Objective: This study evaluates the anti-inflammatory activity of comp in CpG DNA-stimulated bone marrow-derived dendritic cells (BMDCs). Materials and methods: For evaluating the effect of comp on cytokines production, BMDCs were treated with doses of comp (0, 0.5, 1, 2, 5, 10, 25 and 50 μM) for 1 h before stimulation with CpG DNA (1 μM). Cytokine production was measured by ELISA. Western blotting was conducted for evaluating effect of comp (50 μM) on MAPKs and NF-κB pathways. Luciferase reporter gene assay was conducted for effect of comp (0, 5, 10 and 25 μM) on transcriptional activity of AP-1 and NF-κB. Results: Comp exhibited strong inhibition of interleukin (IL)-12 p40, IL-6 and TNF-α cytokine production with IC50 values of 6.02 ± 0.35, 27.14 ± 0.73, and 7.56 ± 0.21 μM, respectively. It blocked MAPKs and NF-κB pathways by inhibiting the phosphorylation of ERK1/2, JNK1/2, p38 and IκBα. In addition, it strongly inhibited the transcriptional activity of AP-1 and NF-κB with IC50 values of 8.74 ± 0.31 and 12.08 ± 0.24 μM, respectively. Discussion and conclusion: Taken together, these data suggest that comp has a significant anti-inflammatory property and warrants further studies concerning the potential of comp for medicinal use.

Recently, most countries in the world have pursued a denuclearization. So it has been of interest to increase to Nuclear weapon in such as North Korea`s continued nuclear test. Pulsed gamma rays produced in the nuclear explosion and the space environment can give the big damage to the electronic device in a very short period of time. To confirm the extent of damage of these electronic devices, pulsed gamma irradiation facility that can occur in nuclear weapon or space environment are required. In this paper, we implemented the pulsed gamma-ray detection module and analyzed output of the irradiation test. We have experimented using an electron beam accelerator research facilities in Pohang Accelerator similar conditions to equip and Nuclear weapon. As a result, we confirmed that the pulsed gamma rays emitted by the gamma radiation and electron beam conversion device. The results of this paper will contribute to improve the reliability and accuracy of studies for utilizing pulsed gamma rays.

본 연구에서는 세토카 가지 정유의 주요 성분을 분석하고 이들의 항균, 항염 및 세포독성 실험을 진행하였다. 세토카는 제주도에서 널리 재배되고 있는 감귤류의 품종이다. 세토카 나무의 가지는 간벌 작업으로 인해 대부분 폐기되고 있고, 이러한 폐자원의 활용은 최근 많은 관심을 받고 있다. 정유 성분은 세토카 가지의 ...

The present study investigated the photoprotective properties of the ethyl acetate fraction of Sargassum muticum (SME) against ultraviolet B (UVB)‑induced skin damage and photoaging in a mouse model. HR‑1 strain hairless male mice were divided into three groups: An untreated control group, a UVB‑irradiated vehicle group and a UVB‑irradiated SME group. The UVB‑irradiated mice in the SME group were orally administered with SME (100 mg/kg body weight in 0.1 ml water per day) and then exposed to radiation at a dose of 60‑120 mJ/cm2. Wrinkle formation and skin damage were evaluated by analysis of skin replicas, epidermal thickness and collagen fiber integrity in the dermal connective tissue. The mechanism underlying the action of SME was also investigated in the human HaCaT keratinocyte cell line following exposure of the cells to UVB at a dose of 30 mJ/cm2. The protein expression levels and activity of matrix metalloproteinase‑1 (MMP‑1), and the binding of activator protein‑1 (AP‑1) to the MMP‑1 promoter were assessed in the HaCaT cells using western blot analysis, an MMP‑1 fluorescent assay and a chromatin immune‑precipitation assay, respectively. The results showed that the mean length and depth of the wrinkles in the UVB‑exposed hairless mice were significantly improved by oral administration of SME, which also prevented the increase in epidermal thickness triggered by UVB irradiation. Furthermore, a marked increase in collagen bundle formation was observed in the UVB‑treated mice with SME administration. SME pretreatment also significantly inhibited the UVB‑induced upregulation in the expression and activity of MMP‑1 in the cultured HaCaT keratinocytes, and the UVB‑enhanced association of AP‑1 with the MMP‑1 promoter. These results suggested that SME may be useful as an anti-photoaging resource for the skin.