Ellagic acid plays a protective role against UV-B-induced oxidative stress by up-regulating antioxidant components in human dermal fibroblasts

Ellagic acid (EA), an antioxidant polyphenolic constituent of plant origin, has been reported to possess diverse pharmacological properties, including anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor and immunomodulatory activities. This work aimed to clarify the skin anti-photoaging properties of EA in human dermal fibroblasts. The skin anti-photoaging activity was evaluated by analyzing the reactive oxygen species (ROS), matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2), total glutathione (GSH) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity levels as well as cell viability in dermal fibroblasts under UV-B irradiation. When fibroblasts were exposed to EA prior to UV-B irradiation, EA suppressed UV-B-induced ROS and proMMP-2 elevation. However, EA restored total GSH and SOD activity levels diminished in fibroblasts under UV-B irradiation. EA had an up-regulating activity on the UV-B-reduced Nrf2 levels in fibroblasts. EA, at the concentrations used, was unable to interfere with cell viabilities in both non-irradiated and irradiated fibroblasts. In human dermal fibroblasts, EA plays a defensive role against UV-B-induced oxidative stress possibly through an Nrf2-dependent pathway, indicating that this compound has potential skin antiphotoaging properties.

The Longevity Properties of 1,2,3,4,6-Penta-O-Galloyl-beta-D-Glucose from Curcuma longa in Caenorhabditis elegans

Here in this study, we isolated 1,2,3,4,6-penta-O-galloyl-beta-D-glucose (PGG) from Curcuma longa L. and elucidated the lifespanextending effect of PGG using Caenorhabditis elegans model system. In the present study, PGG demonstrated potent lifespan extension of worms under normal culture condition. Then, we determined the protective effects of PGG on the stress conditions such as thermal and oxidative stress. In the case of heat stress, PGG-treated worms exhibited enhanced survival rate, compared to control worms. In addition, PGG-fed worms lived longer than control worms under oxidative stress induced by paraquat. To verify the possible mechanism of PGG-mediated increased lifespan and stress resistance of worms, we investigated whether PGG might alter superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities and intracellular ROS levels. Our results showed that PGG was able to elevate SOD activities of worms and reduce intracellular ROS accumulation in a dose-dependent manner.

Anti-Inflammatory, Antioxidant, Anti-Angiogenic and Skin Whitening Activities of Phryma leptostachya var. asiatica Hara Extract

This work aimed to assess some pharmacological activities of P. leptostachya var. asiatica Hara. The dried roots of P. leptostachya var. asiatica Hara were extracted with 70% ethanol to generate the powdered extract, named PLE. Anti-angiogenic activity was detected using chick chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) assay. In vitro anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated via analyzing nitric oxide (NO) content, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophage cells. Antioxidant activity was determined by 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay and reactive oxygen species (ROS) level in the stimulated macrophage cells. Matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) and -2 (MMP-2) activities in the culture media were detected using zymography. PLE exhibits an anti-angiogenic activity in the CAM assay, and displays an inhibitory action on the generation of NO in the LPS-stimulated macrophage cells. In the stimulated macrophage cells, it is able to diminish the enhanced ROS level. It can potently scavenge the stable DPPH free radical. It suppresses the induction of iNOS and COX-2 and the enhanced MMP-9 activity in the stimulated macrophage cells. Both monooxygenase and oxidase activities of tyrosinase were strongly inhibited by PLE. Taken together, the dried roots of P. leptostachya var. asiatica Hara possess anti-angiogenic, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and skin whitening activities, which might partly provide its therapeutic efficacy in traditional medicine.

Predictors of Suicidal Ideation in People with Epilepsy Living in Korea

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The risk of suicide or suicide attempts is reported higher in people with epilepsy (PWE) than in the general population. Although epileptic, psychiatric, and psychosocial factors are known risk factors for suicide or suicide attempt, no studies have evaluated the predictors of the severity of suicidal ideation-which is a warning sign for suicide attempts-in PWE. Therefore, we measured the severity of suicidal ideation and its risk factors. METHODS: Consecutive PWE who were medicated with antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) and attended epilepsy clinic were included in the study. The subjects completed self-reported questionnaires, which included the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R), and Scale for Suicide Ideation-Beck (SSI-Beck). We compared the patients' demographic and clinical variables, and BDI, BAI, and SCL-90-R scores with their SSI-Beck score, and used our findings to determine the predictors for suicidal ideation. RESULTS: In total, 257 PWE were enrolled in the study. SSI-Beck scores correlated strongly with several seizure-related variables, duration of education, IQ, BDI and BAI scores, and nine domains of the SCL-90-R questionnaire. However, the strongest predictor for suicidal ideation was BDI score (beta=0.41, p<0.001), followed by several SCL-90-R domains, such as obsessive-compulsive (beta=-0.39, p<0.001), depression (beta=0.38, p<0.001), hostility (beta=0.22, p=0.002), paranoid ideation (beta=0.17, p=0.01), and IQ (beta=-0.10, p=0.017). These variables explained 59% of the variance in the SSI-Beck score. The seizure-related variables that influenced the BDI score were seizure frequency, duration of education, MRI abnormality, and number of AEDs. However, these variables explained only 18% of the variance in the BDI score. CONCLUSIONS: Major risk factors for suicidal ideation in PWE were depressive and psychiatric symptoms rather than seizure-related variables. Therefore, clinicians should focus on screening for depression and other psychiatric problems and treat them appropriately in order to reduce suicidal behavior in PWE. Since seizure-related variables also exhibited a minor role in determining depressive symptoms, stronger seizure-related risk factors for depression should be sought, such as seizure severity or psychosocial factors, to minimize suicidal behavior.

Up-regulation of defense enzymes is responsible for low reactive oxygen species in malignant prostate cancer cells

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are involved in a diversity of important phenomena in the process of tumor development. To investigate the alterations of oxidative stress and their related systems in tumor progression, a variety of components in the antioxidative stress defense system were examined in prostate cancer cell lines, PC3 and LNCaP. Cell surface molecules involved in metastasis were expressed highly in PC3 cells compared with LNCaP cells, and strong invasion ability was shown in PC3 cells only. ROS level in LNCaP cells was twice higher than that in PC3 cells, although nitric oxide (NO) level was similar between the two cell lines. The content of GSH increased up to about 2-fold in PC3 compared with LNCaP. Activities of glutathione reductase, thioredoxin reductase, and glutathione S-transferase except catalase are significantly higher in PC3 cells than in LNCaP cells. Furthermore, oxidative stress-inducing agents caused down-regulation of GSH and glutathione S-transferase much more significantly in LNCaP cells than in PC3 cells. These results imply that malignant tumor cells may maintain low ROS content by preserving relatively high anti-oxidative capacity, even in the presence of stressful agents.

A Case of ReVersible Posterior Leukoencephalopathy Syndrome (RPLS) in a Patients with Chronic Renal Failure / 대한신장학회잡지

The reVersible posterior leukoencephalopathy syndrome (RPLS) describes a syndrome of headaches, confusion, seizures, and visual disturbances associated with transient, predominantly posterior cerebral lesions revealed by neuroimaging. RPLS has been associated clinically with hypertension, immunosuppression, and known triggers include acute renal failure, eclampsia, cyclosporine, and lupus. We report a 45-year-old male with chronic renal failure showed RPLS following hemodialysis and review literatures.

Differential Thioredoxin Reductase Activity from Human Normal Hepatic and Hepatoma Cell Lines

Thioredoxin reductase (TrxR), a component of the thioredoxin system, including thioredoxin (Trx) and NADPH, catalyzes the transfer of electrons from NADPH to Trx, acts as a reductant of disulfide-containing proteins and participates in the defense system against oxidative stresses. In this study, the regulation pattern of TrxR in the presence of various stressful reagents was compared between Chang (human normal hepatic cell) and HepG2 (human hepatoma cell) cell lines. Aluminum chloride (0.5 mM) and zinc chloride (0.5 mM) enhanced the TrxR activity in the Chang cell line to a higher degree than in the HepG2 cell line, but cupric chloride (0.2 mM) and cadmium chloride (0.1 mM) enhanced the TrxR activity in the HepG2 cell line to a greater degree. The TrxR activities in both Chang and HepG2 cell lines were similarly induced by treatment with sodium selenite (0.02 mM) and menadione (0.5 and 1.0 mM). Lipopolysaccharide (2microgram/m1) increased the TrxR activity upto 4.02- and 2.2-fold in the Chang and HepG2 cell lines, respectively, in time-dependent manners. Hydrogen peroxide (5 mM) markedly enhanced the TrxR activity in the HepG2 cell line, but not in the Chang cell line. NO-generating sodium nitroprusside (3.0 and 6.0 mM) induced TrxR activities in both human liver cell lines. The TrxR activity was also induced in human liver cells under limited growth conditions by serum deprivation. These results imply that the TrxR activities in normal hepatic and hepatoma cell lines are subject to different regulatory responses to various stresses.