Serum selenium level in healthy Koreans.

Of trace elements in the serum of living organisms, selenium (Se) is an essential mineral and plays the role of an antioxidant as selenoproteins protecting the organism against oxidative damage induced by hydrogen peroxide, other lipid hydroperoxides, and their derivatives. The aim of this study was to determine the mean serum Se levels in healthy Korean volunteers (50 males and 50 females) by using an inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry method. The samples were collected at the Health Promotion Centre of Kangnam St.

Synthesis of pyrazole substituted methyl pheophorbide-a derivatives and their preliminary in vitro cell viabilities.

The unique ability of chlorophyll derivatives to accumulate in tumorous tissues and to cause a photodynamic effect under laser radiation has been successively used in photodynamic therapy. In this connection, enormous research on modifications of the peripheral substituents in chlorophyll has shown that the presence and position of the substituents in the chlorin derivatives make a remarkable difference in biological activity. As a result, we directed our attention to synthesize methyl pheophorbide-a derivatives, chlorophyll-a derivatives, possessing heterocyclic aromatic substituents or pyrazole moieties on the peripheral positions and to examine preliminary in vitro effects of these new derivatives on A549 cancer cells for PDT.