Orostachys japonicus (O. japonicus) was extracted with ethanol (EtOH) and sequentially separated with organic solvents, including n‐hexane (Hex), dichloromethane (DCM), ethyl acetate (EtOAc), n‐butanol (BuOH), and water (H2O). All the fractions were confirmed for anti‐inflammatory activity in an inflammatory condition. The DCM fraction showed the highest anti‐inflammatory ability. Here, we examined the effect of DCM fraction and investigated the intracellular signaling pathways in LPS‐stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophage cells. The DCM fraction significantly inhibited the mRNA levels of pro‐inflammatory mediators and cytokines including iNOS, COX‐2, IL‐1β, IL‐2, IL‐6, and IP‐10 in LPS‐stimulated cells. Also, the treatment of DCM fraction excellently reduced the expression of the proteins of AP‐1 (phospho‐c‐Jun and phospho‐c‐Fos) and phospho‐IRF3 as transcription factors. As a result, it suppressed LPS‐induced inflammatory mediator and cytokines via inhibition of transcription factors. In conclusion, our data demonstrated that DCM fraction has a strong anti‐inflammatory activity that improves the inflammatory state.

is an annual herbaceous plant of Chenopodiaceae. It grows in groups on the coast or mud flat of Korea is known to be rich in minerals. S. herbacea has potent anti-cancer, antioxidant, anti-obesity, bowel function improvement. However, pharmacological mechanisms of S. herbacea extract (SHE) remain poorly understood. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential acute toxicity of SHE in ICR mice administered a single oral dose of 0, 500, 1,000, and 2,000 mg/kg by gavage. After administration of the extract, signs of toxicity were observed every day for 14 days. No mortality, abnormal clinical signs, body weight, organ weight or pathological changes were observed compared to a control group, and there were no differences in the body weights of the control and treatment groups. Biological serum activities and histological tests were not significantly changed in the treatment group compared to the control group. Especially, treatment of SHE was significantly decreased of total cholesterol and triglyceride levels. These results indicated that a single oral administration of SHE does not exerts any toxic effects at a dose of 2,000 mg/kg and that the LD 50 of SHE is greater than 2,000 mg/kg. Accordingly, SHE appears to have potential in various functional agents of foods, without toxicity.

A yellow-colored pigment is found in turmeric, or Curcuma longa L. (Zingiberaceae), a perennial herb distributed mainly throughout tropical and subtropical regions. C. longa has potent antiviral, antimutagenic, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, and antioxidant properties. However, pharmacological mechanisms of ethanol extract derived from C. longa remain poorly understood. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential acute toxicity of C. longa (Curcuma longa L.) extract in BALB/c mice administered a single oral dose of 0, 20, 200, and 2,000 mg/kg by gavage. After the administration of the agent, signs of toxicity were observed every hour for the first 6 hr and every day for 14 days. No mortality, abnormal clinical signs, or pathological changes were observed compared to a control group, and there were no differences in the body weights of the control and treatment groups. Biological serum activities were not significantly changed in the treatment group compared to the control group. These results indicate that a single oral administration of C. longa extract does not exert any toxic effects at a dose of 2,000 mg/kg body weight and that the LD50 of C. longa extract is greater than 2,000 mg/kg body weight. Accordingly, C. longa appears to have potential in various functional agents or foods, without toxicity.

Lactic acid-producing bacteria such as Lactobacillus spp. function to ferment carbohydrates and produce ATP. Such Lactobacillus spp. are used for the production of commercial yogurts. Lactobacillus spp. are beneficial to the intestinal tract, and Lactobacillus acidophilus-containing yogurts have received considerable attention because of their preventive effects against early-stage cancer of the large intestine. In this study, lactic acid-producing bacteria were cultured from three different groups: commercial solid yogurt (for eating), commercial liquid yogurt (for drinking), and Lactobacillus acidophilus-containing yogurt. We first determined the optimum culture conditions for Lactobacillus spp. and then analyzed turbidity and pH in order to compare the growth abilities and lactic acid-production capacities among the groups. Finally, high-performance liquid chromatography was used to measure the lactic acid content in the culture supernatants, and the antibacterial activities against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli were compared among the three groups. The optimum culture conditions for Lactobacillus spp. were MRS medium at 25 o C, for 24 h. The highest turbidity was found in L. acidophilus-containing yogurt, followed by liquid yogurt and solid yogurt. Similarly, the highest lactic acid production ability was found in L. acidophilus-containing yogurt, followed by liquid yogurt and solid yogurt. Culture supernatants from the three groups did not show any antibacterial activity towards S. aureus; however, supernatants derived from L. acidophilus-containing yogurt resulted in a 1.8 mm inhibitory zone against E. coli in a paper disk diffusion test. These results revealed the high level of lactic acid-production capacity and antibacterial activity in L. acidophilus-containing yogurt.

In order to study the effect of the receptor protein (SeaR), which is isolated from Saccharopolyspora erythraea, we introduced the SeaR gene to Streptomyces virginiae as host strains. An effective transformation procedure for S. virginiae was established based on transconjugation by Escherichia coli ET12567/pUZ8002 with a φC31-derived integration vector, pSET152, which contained int, oriT, attP, and ermEp * (erythromycin promotor). Therefore, the pEV615 was introduced into S. virginiae by conjugation and integrated at the attB locus in the chromosome of the recipients by the φC31 integrase (int) function. Transformants of S. virginiae containing the SeaR gene were confirmed by PCR and transcriptional expression of the SeaR gene in the transformants was analyzed by RT-PCR, respectively. And, we examined the production time of virginiamycins in the culture media of both the transformants and the wild type. The production time of virginiamycins in the wild type and transformants was the same. When 100 ng/㎖ of synthetic VB-C6 was added to the state of 6 or 8 hour cultivation of wild type and transformants, respectively, the virginiamycins production was induced, meaning that the virginiamycins production in the wild type was detected 2 h early than transformants. From these results, SeaR expression was also affected to virginiamycins production in transformants derived from S. virginiae. In this study, we showed that the SeaR protein worked as a repressor in transformants. et al., 1990;Onaka et al., 1995;Butler et al., 2003;Bibb, 2005). 현재까지 밝 혀진 γ-butyrolactone autoregulator들은 균체외로 미량(ng/ml) 이 분비되어 극히 저농도에서 작용하여 이차대사 혹은 형태