Inhibitory Effects of Hydrolysable Tannins on Lipid Accumulation in 3T3-L1 Cells.

Obesity is currently the most common cause of metabolic diseases including type 2 diabetes and hyperlipidemia. Obesity results from excess lipid accumulation in adipose tissue. Several studies have investigated the inhibitory effects of natural plant-derived products on adipocyte differentiation and lipid accumulation.

Adiponectin regulates the circadian rhythm of glucose and lipid metabolism.

Adiponectin is a cytokine secreted from adipocytes and regulates metabolism. Although serum adiponectin levels show diurnal variations, it is not clear if the effects of adiponectin are time-dependent. Therefore, this study conducted locomotor activity analyses and various metabolic studies using the adiponectin knockout (APN (-/-)) and the APN (+/+) mice to understand whether adiponectin regulates the circadian rhythm of glucose and lipid metabolism.

Synthesis and Evaluation of Gallotannin Derivatives as Antioxidants and α-Glucosidase Inhibitors.

Gallotannins are phenolic natural products containing galloyl moieties connected to polyhydric alcohol cores, e.g., D-glucose.

Hypercalcemia caused by comorbid parathyroid adenoma and pulmonary tuberculosis.

Hypercalcemia is usually secondary to one etiology, although two coexisting etiologies can rarely cause hypercalcemia. Here, we report a 47-year-old woman with hypercalcemia caused by comorbid parathyroid adenoma and pulmonary tuberculosis. Primary hyperparathyroidism is the most common cause of hypercalcemia.

Severe chronic kidney disease environment reduced calcium-sensing receptor expression in parathyroid glands of adenine-induced rats even without high phosphorus diet.

Background: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) disrupts mineral homeostasis and its main underlying cause is secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT). We previously reported that calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) mRNA and protein expression in parathyroid glands (PTGs) significantly decreased in a CKD rat model induced by a 5/6 nephrectomy that were fed a high phosphorus diet. However, there was a significant difference in the severity of CKD between high phosphorus and adequate phosphorus diet groups.

Inhibitory Effects of Indirubin-3'-oxime Derivatives on Lipid Accumulation in 3T3-L1 Cells.

Obesity elevates the risk of cardiovascular disease and has been strongly associated with increases in the incidence of many metabolic diseases. Therefore, prevention of obesity leads to the prevention of metabolic diseases. In light of this, substances that exert anti-obesity effects are crucial for the prevention of obesity.

Synthesis and Comparative Structure-Activity Study of Carbohydrate-Based Phenolic Compounds as α-Glucosidase Inhibitors and Antioxidants.

Twenty-one natural and unnatural phenolic compounds containing a carbohydrate moiety were synthesized and their structure-activity relationship (SAR) was evaluated for α-glucosidase inhibition and antioxidative activity. Varying the position of the galloyl unit on the 1,5-anhydro-d-glucitol (1,5-AG) core resulted in changes in the α-glucosidase inhibitory activity and notably, particularly strong activity was demonstrated when the galloyl unit was present at the C-2 position. Furthermore, increasing the number of the galloyl units significantly affected the α-glucosidase inhibition, and 2,3,4,6-tetra-galloyl-1,5-AG () and 2,3,4,6-tetra-galloyl-d-glucopyranose () exhibited excellent activities, which were more than 13-fold higher than the α-glucosidase inhibitory activity of acertannin ().

Asymmetric N-H Insertion Reaction with Chiral Aminoalcohol as Catalytic Core of Cinchona Alkaloids.

In order to develop an efficient organocatalyst for the enantioselective N-H insertion reaction via carbene/carbenoid, the catalytic core of the cinchona alkaloids was investigated. According to our working hypothesis of an eight-membered ring transition state in the N-H insertion reaction, two pairs of enantiomers related to 2-amino-1-phenylethanol were investigated for their chiral inducing potential. Since both (1R,2S)-isomers gave the N-phenyl-1-phenylglycine derivative enriched in the R-form, while their enantiomers gave the S-form, the 2-amino-1-phenylethanol structure is concluded to be the catalytic core of the cinchona alkaloid in the enantioselective N-H insertion reaction via rhodium(II) carbenoid.

Gcm2 regulates the maintenance of parathyroid cells in adult mice.

Glial cells missing homolog 2 (GCM2), a zinc finger-type transcription factor, is essential for the development of parathyroid glands. It is considered to be a master regulator because the glands do not form when Gcm2 is deficient. Remarkably, Gcm2 expression is maintained throughout the fetal stage and after birth.

Deletion of Prevents Diet-Induced Ectopic Fat Accumulation by Controlling Oxidative Capacity in the Skeletal Muscle.

Brain and muscle arnt-like protein 1 (BMAL1), is a transcription factor known to regulate circadian rhythm. BMAL1 was originally characterized by its high expression in the skeletal muscle. Since the skeletal muscle is the dominant organ system in energy metabolism, the possible functions of BMAL1 in the skeletal muscle include the control of metabolism.

[Fragility Fractures in Hemodialysis Patients. Abnormal bone material characteristics of dialysis patients.].

The relationship between renal dysfunction and bone fragility is well known. Bone fragility, which is associated with an increased risk of bone fracture, affects quality of life and prognosis in patients with chronic kidney disease(CKD). The bone of patients with CKD is more fragile than the risk estimated by measurement of bone mineral density.

Antitumor Effect of Burchellin Derivatives Against Neuroblastoma.

Background: Neuroblastoma is one of the most commonly encountered malignant solid tumors in the pediatric age group. We examined the antitumor effects of five burchellin derivatives against human neuroblastoma cell lines.

Materials And Methods: We evaluated cytotoxicity by the MTT assay for four human neuroblastoma and two normal cell lines.

Triterpenoid glycosides from Ladenbergia hexandra Klotzsch.

From the bark of Ladenbergia hexandra Klotzsch, ten triterpenoid glycosides were isolated along with five known compounds, and their structures were determined based on extensive NMR and mass spectroscopic, GC and HPLC analyses. Some triterpenoid glycosides contained 6-deoxy-D-allose or D-allose as a sugar moiety. The absolute stereochemical assignment of the sugars was determined by comparison with synthetic samples, as well as by GC and HPLC analysis.

Hypermethylation of the CaSR and VDR genes in the parathyroid glands in chronic kidney disease rats with high-phosphate diet.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) disrupts mineral homeostasis and its representative pathosis is defined as secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT). SHPT occurs during the early course of progressive renal insufficiency, and is associated with mortality and cardiovascular events. SHPT results in reduction of calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) and vitamin D receptor (VDR) in the parathyroid glands during CKD.

Neuroprotective effect of S-allyl-l-cysteine derivatives against endoplasmic reticulum stress-induced cytotoxicity is independent of calpain inhibition.

S-allyl-l-cysteine (SAC) is known to have neuroprotective properties. We synthesized various SAC derivatives and tested their effects on endoplasmic reticulum stress-induced neurotoxicity in cultured hippocampal neurons (HPNs). Among the compounds tested, S-propyl-l-cysteine (SPC) exhibited the strongest neuroprotective activity in HPNs, followed by S-ethyl-l-cysteine (SEC) and S-methyl-l-cysteine (SMC).

Sesquiterpene lactones derived from Saussurea lappa induce apoptosis and inhibit invasion and migration in neuroblastoma cells.

Neuroblastoma is among the most fatal of solid tumors in the pediatric age group, even when treated aggressively. Therefore, a new effective therapeutic drug(s) for neuroblastoma is urgently needed. To clarify the anticancer effects of the sesquiterpene lactones dehydrocostus lactone and costunolide, derived from Saussurea lappa, we examined the cytotoxic and migration/invasion-inhibitory effects of these compounds against neuroblastoma cell lines.

Indirubin 3'-(O-oxiran-2-ylmethyl)oxime: a novel anticancer agent.

Indirubin is a potent inhibitor of cell cycle-related protein kinases by binding to the ATP-binding site and thus is a promising compound for development as an antitumor drug. We prepared indirubin 3'-(O-oxiran-2-ylmethyl)oxime (Epox/Ind), in which the ATP-binding site orientated part was attached by non-specific alkylating group. The IC50 value of Epox/Ind at 1.

A new molecular approach to help conclude drowning as a cause of death: simultaneous detection of eight bacterioplankton species using real-time PCR assays with TaqMan probes.

We developed a novel tool for concluding drowning as a cause of death. We designed nine primer pairs to detect representative freshwater or marine bacterioplankton (aquatic bacteria) and then used real-time PCR with TaqMan probes to rapidly and specifically detect them. We previously cultured the genus Aeromonas, which is a representative freshwater bacterial species, in blood samples from 94% of victims who drowned in freshwater and the genera Vibrio and/or Photobacterium that are representative marine bacteria in 88% of victims who drowned in seawater.

Detection of diverse aquatic microbes in blood and organs of drowning victims: first metagenomic approach using high-throughput 454-pyrosequencing.

Current 454-pyrosequencing technology enables massive parallel sequencing. We used this technology to investigate the diversity of aquatic microbes in 14 specimens (blood and organs) of two drowning victims and in two water samples taken from the discovery sites. The 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes of microbes, which are often used to identify species (or genera), have nine highly variable regions (V1-V9), each of which is surrounded by conserved regions.

Terpenoids and phenethyl glucosides from Hyssopus cuspidatus (Labiatae).

Monoterpenoids (3 and 4), sesquiterpenoid (2), diterpenoid (1) and four phenethyl glucosides (5-8), together with fourteen known compounds, were isolated from the whole herb of Hyssopus cuspidatus. Their structures were determined by spectroscopic means. The abietane-type diterpenoids (1, 9, 10), rosmarinic acid (15) and salvigenin (17) inhibited leukotriene (LT) C(4) secretion from primary alveolar cells of Wistar rats.

Detection of marine and freshwater bacterioplankton in immersed victims: Post-mortem bacterial invasion does not readily occur.

We previously applied our method of detecting marine or freshwater bacterioplankton (bacteria) in the blood of immersed victims as a marker of drowning. However, we did not confirm the absence of post-mortem bacterial invasion during immersion. Here we examined the nature of bacterioplankton in blood samples from 21 immersed and 4 non-immersed cadavers.

Ferrearin C induces apoptosis via heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) induction in neuroblastoma.

We investigated the cytotoxicity of six neolignans (1-6), which are similar in structure to furanocyclohexenone with an angular allyl group, in human neuroblastoma cell lines (IMR-32, LA-N-1, NB-39, SK-N-SH) and normal cells [human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) and human dermal fibroblasts (HDF)] using a 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Two neolignans, ferrearin C (1) and 2, showed significant cytotoxicity in neuroblastoma cells. Typical morphologic features of apoptosis were observed for the ferrearin-type neolignans using Hoechst 33342, and apoptotic cytoplasmic membrane inversion was also induced by ferrearin-type neolignans in IMR-32.

In vitro study of possible microbial indicators for drowning: Salinity and types of bacterioplankton proliferating in blood.

Numbers and types of bacterioplankton proliferating in blood samples mixed with water of various salinity levels were examined to determine the characteristics of species associated with salinity. Water samples (total n=88) were collected from the midstream of two rivers (freshwater; n=10; salinity <0.05%), from around their estuaries (areas of freshwater, n=20, salinity <0.