Dong Heui Kim

The melamine excretion effect of the electrolyzed reduced water in melamine-fed mice.

Our hypothesis is that the intake of functional water, electrolyzed reduced water (ERW) can excrete melamine in body was evoked by melamine-tainted feed (MTF). To address this issue, we investigated the effect of ERW in MTF-mice model by way of body weight gain, incidence of urinary crystals and bladder stone, biochemical and haematological examination, histopathologic finding of kidney and urinary bladder, and the evaluation of bladder stone. We found that the rate of body weight gain was significantly more increased in MTF+ERW group than MTF+PW group. Accordingly, the number of immunocytes such as leukocyte, neutrophil and monocyte as well as the mean weight of spleen was significantly increased in MTF+ERW group. The incidence of urinary crystals was significantly higher in MTF+ERW group, whereas the incidence of urinary bladder stones was lower in MTF+ERW group (52.4%) than in MTF+PW group (38.1%). Also, urinary crystals were more precipitated in MTF+ERW group than MTF+PW group, and urinary bladder stone consists of 100% melamine. Collectively, our data clearly show that ERW intake is helpful to excrete of melamine in MTF mice model and this is the first report on the melamine excretion and clinically implying the safer fluid remedy for melamine-intoxicated hosts.

The balneotherapy effect of hydrogen reduced water on UVB-mediated skin injury in hairless mice

Exposure to UVB radiation induced skin damage that results to increase risk of skin cancer. Despite the clinical importance of skin-induced damage, antioxidants imposed limited therapeutic success. Hydrogen molecule (H2) has been known as a safe antioxidant in the prevention and therapeutic approach towards several diseases. Drinking hydrogen reduced water (HRW), inhalation of hydrogen gas, and injecting H2-dissolved saline are widely accepted to incorporate H2 in the body. However, there is no document about the beneficial effect of hydrogen water bath. Here, we investigated the effect of hydrogen bathing on the UVB-induced skin damage in hairless mice. For this, mice of the bathing group are allowed to freely swim on HRW, and let the HRW penetrate for 60 mins. Scoring of skin injury, reactive oxygen species (ROS) enzyme activity quantification, cytokine analysis, and ultrastructural change of corneocytes were measured after exposure to UVB radiation of 360–540 mJ/cm2. In summary, the bathing with HRW significantly reduced the levels of skin damage, as well as increased activity of glutathione peroxidase. Further, the effect of HRW on cytokine network in the skin after UVB exposure revealed that HRW significantly decreased the level of inflammatory cytokines such as IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α and IFN-γ. Finally, scanning electron microscopy data revealed low number of defected corneocytes and ultrastructural changes, suggesting that HRW bathing would protect UV-induced cell damage.

Immunotoxicity of silicon dioxide nanoparticles with different sizes and electrostatic charge.

Silicon dioxide (SiO2) nanoparticles (NPs) have been widely used in the biomedical field, such as in drug delivery and gene therapy. However, little is known about the biological effects and potential hazards of SiO2. Herein, the colloidal SiO2 NPs with two different sizes (20 nm and 100 nm) and different charges (L-arginine modified: SiO2EN20[R], SiO2EN100[R]; and negative: SiO2EN20[−], SiO2EN100[−] were orally administered (750 mg/kg/day) in female C57BL/6 mice for 14 days. Assessments of immunotoxicity include hematology profiling, reactive oxygen species generation and their antioxidant effect, stimulation assays for B- and T-lymphocytes, the activity of natural killer (NK) cells, and cytokine profiling. In vitro toxicity was also investigated in the RAW 264.7 cell line. When the cellularity of mouse spleen was evaluated, there was an overall decrease in the proliferation of B- and T-cells for all the groups fed with SiO2 NPs. Specifically, the SiO2EN20(−) NPs showed the most pronounced reduction. In addition, the nitric oxide production and NK cell activity in SiO2 NP-fed mice were significantly suppressed. Moreover, there was a decrease in the serum concentration of inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-12 (p70), IL-6, tumor necrosis factor-α, and interferon-γ. To elucidate the cytotoxicity mechanism of SiO2 in vivo, an in vitro study using the RAW 264.7 cell line was performed. Both the size and charge of SiO2 using murine macrophage RAW 264.7 cells decreased cell viability dose-dependently. Collectively, our data indicate that different sized and charged SiO2 NPs would cause differential immunotoxicity. Interestingly, the small-sized and negatively charged SiO2 NPs showed the most potent in vivo immunotoxicity by way of suppressing the proliferation of lymphocytes, depressing the killing activity of NK cells, and decreasing proinflammatory cytokine production, thus leading to immunosuppression.

Hepatoprotection of different water extracts from Acer tegmentosum M. on CCl 4-induced acute hepatotoxicity in mice: Comparative efficacies between the extracts of boughs, twigs, and leaves

While Acer tegmentosum M. (AT) has been widely used as a popular folk remedy to prevent or treat liver diseases in Korea, the scientific evidences for the usage of AT against liver disease are poorly documented. To address this issue, we compared hepatoprotection of hot water extract (WEAT) from three parts of AT, boughs (E1), twigs (E2), and leaves (E3), on CCl4-induced acute hepatic injury in mice by way of morphometric and biochemical examination: liver function test, antioxidant enzymes activity of liver, histopathological and ultrastructural examination of liver, and antioxidant capacity (DPPH assay) of WEAT. We found that only oral intake group of WEAT-boughs showed significant differences in aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT) levels and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activities as compared to CCl4 control group, whereas the glutathione levels were significantly low in all WEAT-pretreated groups. Consistently, histopathological and ultrastructural findings displayed hepatoprotection in the order of WEAT-boughs >WEAT-twigs>WEAT-leaves. Collectively, these results indicate that of three WEAT, WEAT-bough extract has the highest hepatoprotection against CCl4-induced acute hepatic injury in mice via the possible regulation of antioxidant enzyme activities in liver.

Spermatogenesis of Siamese Fighting Fish, Betta splendens, Osphronemidae, Teleostei

Taxonomically, Betta splendens, which is generally known as Siamese fighting fish belongs to the Osphronemidae. The common name ‘fighting fish’ came from their specific behaviors. When two males encounter each other in the same living place, typical pattern of aggressive behavior is occurred (Figler, 1972; Lobb & McCain, 1976). The labyrinth organ, which is situated on either side of the head in the gill cavity directly above the gills, allows Betta splendens to have ability to breathe atmospheric air (Bailey & Sandford, 1998). Generally, spermatogenesis of teleost varies depending on species and inhabited environments. The spermatogenesis of fish has been studied in some species, Liza aurata (Brusle, 1981), Salmo gairdnen (Billard, 1984), Acanthopagrus schlegeli (Gwo & Gwo, 1993), Boleophthalmus pectinirostris (Chung, 2008), Atlantic cod, Gadus morhua L. (Rebours & Ottesen, 2013) and Epinephelus bruneus (Kim et al., 2013). There are various studies about Betta splendens in relation to their aggressive behavioral responses (Thompson & Strum, 1965), intrasexual communications (Doutrelant et al., 2001), sex reversal (Pandian & Sheela, 1995), and development (Mabee & Trendler, 1996). Also, there is a study focusing on changes of testis followed by aging under light microscope (LM) (Woodhead, 1974). But there are few studies and limited information about spermatogenesis in ultrastructural approach of Betta splendens. Moreover, to increase understandings about hormonal effects regarding to their patterns of behaviors (Kirankumar & Pandian, 2002), it is necessary to investigate spermatogenesis of Betta splendens. Especially, in contrast to sperms of genus salmo and genus Oncorhynchus (Alfert, 1956) which spawn demersal eggs, settled under the water, sperms of Betta splendens spawn pelagic eggs which float on the water. The differences between each sperm spawning demersal and pelagic eggs, respectively, are expected regarding to spermatogenesis and Spermatogenesis of Siamese Fighting Fish, Betta splendens, Osphronemidae, Teleostei