Pueraria montana var. lobata is a bioactive substance with various beneficial health effects and has long been extensively used as a traditional medication for the treatment of fever, acute dysentery, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases in Northeast Asian countries. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the cytoprotective activity of Pueraria montana var. lobata ethanol extract (PLE) for ultraviolet B (UVB)-induced oxidative stress in human dermal fibroblasts (HDF). It was hypothesized that PLE treatment (25-100 µg/ml) would reduce intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels as well as increase collagen production in UVB-irradiated HDF. The results confirmed this theory, with collagen production increasing in the PLE treatment group in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, regulators of cellular ROS accumulation, including HO-1 and NOQ-1, were activated by Nrf2, which was mediated by PLE. Hence, intracellular levels of ROS were also reduced in the PLE treatment group in a dose-dependent manner. In conclusion, PLE increases collagen production and maintains hyaluronic acid (HA) levels in human dermal fibroblasts exposed to UVB-irradiation, thereby inhibiting photoaging.

Organoid that is organ‐like cell aggregates has both the advantages of 'in vitro' and three‐dimensional advantages of animal experiment. It is very useful for modeling disease, drug development research, and testing customized medicine. R‐spondin 1 stimulates Wnt / β‐catenin signaling to induce proliferation of organoids. Thus, high concentrations of R‐spondin 1 are essential for organoid culture. However, production of R‐spondin 1 is limited and, due to the high cost of R‐spondin 1, there are financial difficulties in the practical application of organoids. We have found an alternative to the R‐spondin 1 protein from natural compounds. We also evaluated how this natural component affects prostate organoid. We confirmed that prostate organoids were established from selected natural products. Cultures were divided into Group A with R‐spondin 1, Group B with natural products and Group C with R‐spondin 1 and natural products. In order to confirm whether organoids actually have prostate tissue characteristics, we confirmed expression of basal specific markers and, lumen specific markers including prostate specific antigen (PSA). Cyrokeratin 8 and PSA were used as luminal specific markers, and p63 and cytokeratin 5 were used as basal specific markers. This study showed that R‐spondin 1, Lgr5 antagonist, could be replaced by natural compound in organoid culture. We also could observe that natural‐derived components helped R‐spondin 1 to promote growth of prostate organoid and inhibit apoptosis. This research is expected to contribute to the research of organoids that will be developed in the future.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are highly reactive which cause damage to various cellular functions such as proliferation, differentiation, and survival. Nuclear factor erythroid 2‐related factor‐2 (Nrf2) promotes expression of antioxidant enzyme such as heme oxygenase 1 (HO‐1) and NAD(P)H:Quinone Oxidoreductase 1 (NQO‐1). Neohesperidin is a compound originated from peel of citrus fruits and its hydrogenated form, neohesperidin dihydrochalcone (NHDC) has antioxidant activity. Human adipose‐derived stem cells (hADSC) are multipotent adult stem cells responsible for the regeneration of fat, bone and cartilage. Thus, we observed the antioxidant effects of NHDC derivatives on hADSC through Nrf2 activation. Upregulation of ROS inhibits osteogenic differentiation of hADSCs, in part through inhibition of signaling pathway, which is essential for bone development and maintenance. ROS levels regulate inhibition of proliferation and modulate initiation of the hypertrophic changes in chondrocytes. Cellular viability and compounds' proper concentrations were set by MTS assay. The effects of these compounds on suppressing oxidative stress and hADSCs differentiation into osteocytes and chondrocytes was investigated using Alizarin Red staining, Alcian Blue staining, reverse‐transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR), and Western blotting. The results demonstrate that NHDC derivatives play an efficacious role in inducing osteogenic and chondrogenic differentiation of hADSCs through reducing cellular oxidative stress.Support or Funding InformationThis research was supported by Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea(NRF) funded by the Ministry of Education 2018R1D1A1B07049077This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2019 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.