Publications by authors named "Young Jin Son"

Article Synopsis
  • Primary sensory axons struggle to regenerate after dorsal root injuries in the spinal cord, leading to lasting sensory loss due to barriers at the dorsal root entry zone (DREZ).
  • Previous research indicated that activating B-RAF (specifically kaBRAF) can boost the regenerative potential of injured sensory neurons in adult mice.
  • This study found that while kaBRAF encourages some axon growth into the spinal cord, significant recovery requires combining it with the deletion of the PTEN gene, which dramatically enhances regeneration and axon penetration at the DREZ.
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Article Synopsis
  • * Research emphasizes efficient synthetic methods for producing MP2, which allows for better understanding and enhancement of its properties, leading to the identification of effective lead compounds AJ-037 and AJ-206 for treating Mycobacterium avium complex infections.
  • * Two other candidates, AJ-024 and AJ-147, exhibit strong efficacy against Clostridioides difficile and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, respectively, with AJ-147 also showing potential anti-inflammatory benefits, positioning
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TFEB and TFE3 (TFEB/3), key regulators of lysosomal biogenesis and autophagy, play diverse roles depending on cell type. This study highlights a hitherto unrecognized role of TFEB/3 crucial for peripheral nerve repair. Specifically, they promote the generation of progenitor-like repair Schwann cells after axonal injury.

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A woman in South Korea who underwent a colonoscopy for occasional gastrointestinal discomfort had 4 adult flukes of Echinostoma cinetorchis showing 37 collar spines around the oral sucker recovered from the terminal ileum through the ascending colon. Partial gene sequencing showed high identity with E. cinetorchis.

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Previously we showed that the hippo pathway transcriptional effectors, YAP and TAZ, are essential for (SCs) to develop, maintain and regenerate myelin . Although TEAD1 has been implicated as a partner transcription factor, the mechanisms by which it mediates YAP/TAZ regulation of SC myelination are unclear. Here, using conditional and inducible knockout mice, we show that TEAD1 is crucial for SCs to develop and regenerate myelin.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study reveals that YAP and TAZ are vital for the development, maintenance, and regeneration of myelin in Schwann cells (SCs), with TEAD1 playing an important role in this process.
  • TEAD1 regulates SC proliferation and the expression of myelin proteins by influencing other key factors, highlighting its dual role in promoting myelination.
  • The research demonstrates that TEAD1's function varies at different developmental stages and is essential for non-myelinating SCs to properly envelop nociceptive axons, marking it as a key player in nerve regeneration and myelination.
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The cultivar "Nulichal," a type of naked waxy barley ( L.), was developed by the National Institute of Crop Science, Rural Development Administration, Korea, in 2010. In this study, we investigated the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties of the "Nulichal" ethanol extract (NRE) using various assays.

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Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Ulmus macrocarpa Hance (UmH) bark has been traditionally utilized for medicinal purposes. The bark extract of this plant has diverse health benefits, and its potential role in enhancing bone health is of distinct interest, particularly when considering the substantial health and economic implications of bone-related pathologies, such as osteoporosis. Despite the compelling theoretical implications of UmH bark in fortifying bone health, no definitive evidence at the in vivo level is currently available, thus highlighting the innovative and as-yet-unexplored potential of this field of study.

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Thiopeptides exhibit potent antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive pathogens by inhibiting bacterial protein synthesis. Micrococcins are among the structurally simpler thiopeptides, but they have not been exploited in detail. This research involved a computational simulation of micrococcin P2 (MP2) docking in parallel with the structure-activity relationship (SAR) studied.

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Primary somatosensory axons stop regenerating as they re-enter the spinal cord, resulting in incurable sensory loss. What arrests them has remained unclear. We previously showed that axons stop by forming synaptic contacts with unknown non-neuronal cells.

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Unsatisfactory outcomes following long-term multidrug treatment in patients with complex (MAC) pulmonary disease have urged us to develop novel antibiotics. Thiopeptides, a class of peptide antibiotics derived from natural products, have potential as drug candidates that target bacterial ribosomes, but drug development has been hampered due to their extremely poor solubility. Here, we evaluated three new compounds (AJ-037, AJ-039, and AJ-206) derived from the thiopeptide micrococcin P2 with enhanced aqueous solubility; the derivatives were generated based on structure-activity relationship analysis.

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Ulmus macrocarpa Hance bark (UmHb) has been used as a traditional herbal medicine in East Asia for bone concern diseases for a long time. To find a suitable solvent, we, in this study, compared the efficacy of UmHb water extract and ethanol extract which can inhibit osteoclast differentiation. Compared with two ethanol extracts (70% and 100% respectively), hydrothermal extracts of UmHb more effectively inhibited receptor activators of nuclear factor κB ligand-induced osteoclast differentiation in murine bone marrow-derived macrophages.

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Article Synopsis
  • Prions are misfolded proteins that cause prion diseases by forming amyloids, which disrupt brain function and convert normal proteins into their harmful forms.
  • Recent research identified acylthiosemicarbazides as effective inhibitors of prion aggregation, achieving nearly complete inhibition in lab tests.
  • These compounds not only reduce the formation of new prions but also disassemble existing aggregates, showing promise as potential treatments for prion infections.
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Micrococcin P1 and P2 are thiopeptides with a wide range of biological functions including antibacterial and antimalarial activities. We previously demonstrated optimized enzymatic sequences for the exclusive and scalable biosynthesis of micrococcin P2. Thiocillin IV is predicted to be the congener of -methylated micrococcin P2, but the exact structure has not been elucidated.

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Facilitating axon regeneration in the injured central nervous system remains a challenging task. RAF-MAP2K signaling plays a key role in axon elongation during nervous system development. Here, we show that conditional expression of a constitutively kinase-activated BRAF in mature corticospinal neurons elicited the expression of a set of transcription factors previously implicated in the regeneration of zebrafish retinal ganglion cell axons and promoted regeneration and sprouting of corticospinal tract (CST) axons after spinal cord injury in mice.

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(1) Background: Osteoporosis is a disease in which bones are weakened and fractured easily because of various factors. It is mainly observed in elderly and postmenopausal women, and it continues to carry high economic costs in aging societies. Normal bone maintains a healthy state through a balanced process of osteoclast suppression and osteoblast activation; (2) Methods: In this study, osteoclast inhibition was induced by inhibiting osteoclast differentiation using ginseng protopanaxadiol-enriched rice (PPD-rice) seed extract.

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Cold plasma treatment has been studied to enhance the germination, growth, and bioactive phytochemical production in crops. Here, we aimed to investigate the effects of cold plasma treatment on the growth, bioactive metabolite production, and protein expression related to the physiological and osteogenic activities of oat sprouts. Oat seeds were soaked for 12 h, and then exposed to plasma for 6 min/day for 3 days after sowing.

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infection is a global public health threat. Extensive assays using clinical isolates have identified micrococcin P2 (MP2, ) as a particularly effective anti- agent. MP2 possesses a mode of action that differs from other antibiotics and pharmacokinetic properties that render it especially promising.

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The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) lists as an urgent bacterial threat. Yet, only two drugs, vancomycin and fidaxomicin, are approved by the FDA for the treatment of infections as of this writing, while the global pipeline of new drugs is sparse at best. Thus, there is a clear and urgent need for new antibiotics against that organism.

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Primary sensory axons in adult mammals fail to regenerate after spinal cord injury (SCI), in part due to insufficient intrinsic growth potential. Robustly boosting their growth potential continues to be a challenge. Previously, we showed that constitutive activation of B-RAF (rapidly accelerated fibrosarcoma kinase) markedly promotes axon regeneration after dorsal root and optic nerve injuries.

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Saechalssal barley is Korea's representative naked waxy barley. This study investigated the anti-diabetic effect of the extract derived from saechalssal and its mechanism. The prethanol extract of saechalssal (SPE) showed greater α-glucosidase inhibitory activity in vitro and a more significant lowering of the postprandial blood glucose levels in normal mice compared to its water extract (SWE).

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The aim of this study was to isolate and identify chemical components with osteoclast differentiation inhibitory activity from Hance bark. Spectroscopic analyses, including nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and electronic circular dichroism (ECD), resulted in the unequivocal elucidation of active compounds such as (2)-naringenin-6--β-d-glucopyranoside (), (2)-naringenin-6--β-d-glucopyranoside (), (2,3)-catechin-7--β-d-xylopyranoside (), (2,3)-catechin-7--β-d-apiofuranoside (), (2,3)-taxifolin-6--β-d-glucopyranoside (), and (2,3)-taxifolin-6--β-d-glucopyranoside (). Mechanistically, the compounds may exhibit osteoclast differentiation inhibitory activity via the downregulation of NFATc1, a master regulator involved in osteoclast formation.

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We report the first total synthesis of micrococcin P2 (MP2, 1) by a diversity-oriented route that incorporates a number of refinements relative to earlier syntheses. Biological data regarding the activity of 1 against a range of human pathogens are also provided. Furthermore, we disclose a chemical property of MP2 that greatly facilitates medicinal chemistry work in the micrococcin area and describe a method to obtain MP2 by fermentation in .

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Osteoporosis is a chronic disease that has become a serious public health problem due to the associated reduction in quality of life and its increasing financial burden. It is known that inhibiting osteoclast differentiation and promoting osteoblast formation prevents osteoporosis. As there is no drug with this dual activity without clinical side effects, new alternatives are needed.

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A major barrier to intraspinal regeneration after dorsal root (DR) injury is the DR entry zone (DREZ), the CNS/PNS interface. DR axons stop regenerating at the DREZ, even if regenerative capacity is increased by a nerve conditioning lesion. This potent blockade has long been attributed to myelin-associated inhibitors and (CSPGs), but incomplete lesions and conflicting reports have prevented conclusive agreement.

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