Hye-Ryung Park

320-Gb/s WDM transmission with 50-GHz channel spacing over 564 km of short-period dispersion-managed fiber (perfect cable)

We propose a short-period dispersion-managed fiber that consisted of conventional single-mode fiber (17 ps/km/nm) and negative dispersion fiber (-15 ps/km/nm). Thus, the average dispersion of the proposed fiber was only 1 ps/km/nm. The lengths of the positive and negative fiber sections were only 4.5 km so that they can be accommodated within a single 9-km-long cable. We evaluated the performance of this fiber using a 320-Gb/s (32/spl times/10 Gb/s) WDM system with 50-GHz channel spacing. After 563-km transmission, the average Q-factor was measured to be better than 18 dB without any dispersion compensation.

Anti-metastatic effect of polysaccharide isolated from Colocasia esculenta is exerted through immunostimulation

In the present study, an edible corm of the plant Colocasia esculenta, commonly known as Taro was extracted with cold water (4˚C). Finally, 10.44 g (1.04%) of the crude polysaccharide (Taro-0) was obtained from Taro. The purified active compound (Taro-4-I) was isolated using DEAE-Sepharose FF and Sephadex G-100. The anti-complementary activity of Taro-4-I (57.3±4.5%) was similar to that of polysaccharide K (used as the positive control). The molecular weight of Taro-4-I was 200 kDa and it was a polysaccharide composed of 64.4% neutral sugars and 35.6% uronic acid. Taro-4-I activated the complement system through the classical and alternative pathways. The treatment of peritoneal macrophages with Taro-4-I significantly increased the production of interleukin (IL)-6 and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) in a dose-dependent manner. However, IL-12 production showed maximal activity at 56 µg/ml and subsequently decreased. Splenocytes obtained from mice which were administered Taro-4-I intravenously showed a higher toxicity to Yac-1 cells compared to those obtained from untreated mice in a effector‑to‑target (E/T) ratio-dependent manner. The group treated with 50 µg/ml Taro-4-I showed a significantly increased toxicity to Yac-1 cells compared to the group treated with 500 µg/ml Taro-4-I. The administration of Taro-4-I significantly inhibited the lung metastasis of B16BL6 melanoma cells. However, the group treated with 50 µg/mouse Taro-4-I had a significantly lower number of tumors compared to the group injected with 500 µg/mouse Taro-4-I.

Immuno-stimulating Activities of Polysaccharides Isolated from Commercial Soy Sauce and Traditional Korean Soy Sauce

The varying characteristics between traditional and commercial soy sauce may be initiated by raw materials and fermentation techniques for the production of and . We examined properties regarding polysaccharides isolated from commercial soy sauce made by the process (CSP-0) and Korean traditional soy sauce made by the process (KTSP-0) as well as their immuno-stimulating activities. KTSP-0 had rhamnogalacturonan II (RG-II) including 1.1% of unusual monosaccharides 3-deoxy-D--2-octulosonic acid (KDO). Anti-complementary activities of CSP-0 and KTSP- 0 were increased dose-dependently but KTSP-0 (64.7%) was higher than CSP-0 (56%) at . C3 activation products were identified by crossed immuno-electrophoresis. CSP-0 caused complementary activations only classical pathway while KTSP-0 caused complementary activations both alternative and classical pathways. KTSP-0 significantly increased the secretion of interleukin (IL)-6 at and IL-12 at on macrophages. The results suggest that the immuno-stimulating activity of KTSP-0 is greater than that of CSP-0 from anti-complementary activity.

Oral administration of palatinose vs sucrose improves hyperglycemia in normal C57BL/6J mice

Palatinose is a sucrose analog with a slower digestion rate than that of sucrose. For this reason, palatinose shows better effects on hepatic lipogenesis and cholesterol homeostasis compared with sucrose. We hypothesized that supplementation with palatinose instead of sucrose improves postprandial hyperglycemia and hyperinsulinemia in mice. Herein, we compared the digestion rates in vitro and observed physiological changes in vivo between sucrose- and palatinose-containing diets given to mice. Palatinose was hydrolyzed only by enzymes of the small intestine and was digested more slowly compared with sucrose in vitro. In mice, a diet containing palatinose resulted in significantly lower body weight gain and food efficiency rate values than those given a diet with sucrose. In this study, changes in serum biochemistry; hepatic fatty acid synthesis; cholesterol homeostasis; glucogenic, proinflammatory cytokines; and oxidative stress-related genes and proteins in the palatinose- and sucrose-fed mice were measured. Compared with the mice fed the sucrose diet, the palatinose diet resulted in lower serum glucose, insulin, and total cholesterol levels, as well as lower expression of several lipogenesis-related genes and proteins. Histological analysis of hepatic cells of palatinose-fed mice showed normal morphology. In conclusion, palatinose intake results in lower hepatic lipogenesis and better cholesterol homeostasis than the effects from sucrose.