Negative association between metabolic syndrome and bone mineral density in Koreans, especially in men.

Cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis are thought to share common risk factors, and metabolic syndrome (MS) is composed of major risk factors for cardiovascular disease. This study was performed to investigate the relationships between specific MS components and bone mineral density (BMD). BMD was measured at the femoral neck of Korean men aged 40 years or more (n = 1,780) and postmenopausal women (n = 1,108) using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry.

Antiplasmodial and cytotoxic activity of phloroglucinol derivatives from Hypericum erectum Thunb.

The chloroform extracts of whole plants of Hypericum erectum were investigated for antiplasmodial activity against chloroquine-sensitive strains of Plasmodium falciparum. Five phloroglucinol derivatives, otogirin (1), otogirone (2), erectquione A (3), erectquione B (4), and erectquione C (5) were isolated from the whole plants of H. erectum.

Poria cocos water extract (PCW) protects PC12 neuronal cells from beta-amyloid-induced cell death through antioxidant and antiapoptotic functions.

Beta-amyloid (Abeta)-induced neurotoxicity is considered to be mediated through the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). In this study, the protective effects of Poria cocos water extract (PCW) against Abeta1-42-induced cell death were investigated using rat pheochromocytoma (PC12) cells. Exposure of PC12 cells to the Abeta1-42 (20 microM) for 48h resulted in neuronal cell death, whereas pretreatment with PCW at the concentration range of 5-125 microg/ml reduced Abeta1-42-induced cell death.

Identification of potential and selective collagenase, gelatinase inhibitors from Crataegus pinnatifida.

Four oligomeric procyanidins were isolated from the MeOH extracts of the leaves of Crataegus pinnatifida (Rosaceae). Investigation of collagenase and gelatinase inhibitory natural components afforded four oligomeric procyanidins. Of these, 2 and 3 exhibited collagenase inhibitory activity (IC(50)) at a concentration of less than 1 microM, and 3 showed gelatinases A and B inhibitory activity (IC(50)) at 0.

Inhibition of beta-amyloid(1-40) Peptide Aggregation and Neurotoxicity by Citrate.

The accumulation of beta-amyloid (Abeta) aggregates is a characteristic of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Furthermore, these aggregates have neurotoxic effects on cells, and thus, molecules that inhibit Abeta aggregate formation could be valuable therapeutics for AD. It is well known that aggregation of Abeta depends on its hydrophobicity, and thus, in order to increase the hydrophilicity of Abeta, we considered using citrate, an anionic surfactant with three carboxylic acid groups.

Toxic encephalopathy after taking dried seeds of Datura stramonium in two elderly subjects.

An altered mentality, or delirium, is a common medical condition of the elderly in emergency medicine or neurology clinics. Among causes of this, toxic etiology due to an anticholinergic agent is not rare. The authors present two elderly women who were brought to an emergency room because of anticholinergic syndrome.

Antioxidant effects of equol on bovine aortic endothelial cells.

This study is to examine the effects of equol on the H(2)O(2)-induced death of bovine aortic endothelial cells (bAECs) and the mechanism of its protective effects. MTT[3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl-tetrazolium bromide] assay showed that in the control group, cell survival rate decreased significantly, each in proportion to the duration of the H(2)O(2) stimulation (P<0.05), but, in the equol-pretreated group, such decrease was not statistically significant.

The convenient synthesis and evaluation of the anticancer activities of new resveratrol derivatives.

In the present study we report the simple synthesis and antitumour activity of novel stilbene derivatives 13-22. The key synthetic strategies involved Wadsworth-Horner-Emmons condensation and coupling reactions in high yields. All compounds showed significant growth inhibition on human tumour cell lines, with the most potent compound (19) exhibiting an IC(50) of 5.

Recovery of reversed basilar artery flow as seen by transcranial sonography and MRA source images for vertebral dissection.

The dissection of the intracranial vertebral artery (VAD) is a common cause of young age brain stem stroke. VAD can be detected by conventional angiography, but there is yet no agreement on the most effective tool to use for the detection of VAD. Here, we report a patient with VAD, who was diagnosed with an intimal flap within the left vertebral artery by the magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) source images.

Neuroprotective activity of triterpenoid saponins from Platycodi radix against glutamate-induced toxicity in primary cultured rat cortical cells.

During our investigation of the neuroprotective activity of Platycodi radix we found that an aqueous extract of this folk medicine exhibited significant protection against glutamate-induced toxicity in primary cultured rat cortical cells. In order to clarify the neuroprotective mechanism(s) of this observed effect, activity-guided isolation was performed to seek and identify active fractions and components. By such fractionation, four known triterpene saponin compounds--platycodins A, C and D and deapioplatycodin D--were isolated from the n-butanol fraction.

Pomiferin, histone deacetylase inhibitor isolated from the fruits of Maclura pomifera.

The major constituents from the fruits of Maclura pomifera are the prenylated isoflavones, osajin (1) and pomiferin (2). Their structures were elucidated using NMR spectroscopic techniques and mass spectrometric analysis. Compound 2 showed potential inhibitory activity in histone deacetylase (HDAC) enzyme assay.

Association of KIT gene polymorphisms with bone mineral density in postmenopausal Korean women.

Bone mineral density (BMD) is a major factor for determining bone strength and osteoporotic fracture risk, and is determined by environmental and multiple genetic factors. KIT, which encodes a transmembrane receptor with tyrosine kinase activity, plays an important role in the differentiation of osteoclasts. We examined the associations between KIT gene polymorphisms and BMD in postmenopausal Korean women.

Chaotic indices and canonical ensemble of heart rate patterns in small-for-gestational age fetuses.

Aims: We studied how linear and nonlinear heart rate dynamics differ between normal fetuses (n=135) and uncomplicated small-for-gestational age (SGA) fetuses (n=65), aged 32-40 weeks' gestation.

Methods: We analyzed each fetal heart rate time series for 20 min. We quantified the complexity (nonlinear dynamics) of each fetal heart rate (FHR) time series by approximate entropy (ApEn) and correlation dimension (CD).

Antiplasmodial activity of novel stilbene derivatives isolated from Parthenocissus tricuspidata from South Korea.

New stilbene glycoside, piceid-(1-->6)-beta-D -glucopyranoside (compound 2, Fig. 1), was isolated from the MeOH extract of the leaves of Parthenocissus tricuspidata (Vitaceae) together with four known compounds, piceid (compound 1, Fig. 1), resveratrol (compound 3, Fig.

Reversible cigarette smoke extract-induced DNA damage in human lung fibroblasts.

Cigarette smoke contains thousands of chemicals, many of which may contribute to cytotoxicity and carcinogenesis. Using assays detecting DNA strand breaks (terminal transferase dUTP nick end labeling [TUNEL]) and DNA content (flow cytometry), we evaluated the genotoxic effect of cigarette smoke extract (CSE) on human fetal lung fibroblasts (HFL-1) cultured in three-dimensional collagen gels as well as in monolayer culture. When HFL-1 cells were exposed to CSE, DNA strand breaks were detected in most, as determined by TUNEL.