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Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a common gastrointestinal disorder worldwide, is characterized by chronic abdominal pain, bloating, and disordered defecation. IBS is associated with several factors, including visceral hypersensitivity, gut motility, and gut–brain interaction disorders. Because currently available pharmacological treatments cannot adequately improve symptoms and may cause adverse effects, the use of herbal therapies for managing IBS is increasing. Lysimachia vulgaris var. davurica (LV) is a medicinal plant used in traditional medicine to treat diarrhea. However, information on whether LV can effectively improve diarrhea-predominant IBS (IBS-D) remains limited. In this study, using an experimental mouse model of IBS-D, we elucidated the effects of the LV extract. The methanol extract of LV decreased fecal pellet output in the restraint stress- or 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT)-induced IBS mouse model and inhibited 5-HT-mediated [Ca2+]i increase in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, we developed and validated a high-performance liquid chromatography method using two marker compounds, namely, chlorogenic acid and rutin, for quality control analysis. Our study results suggest the feasibility of the methanol extract of LV for developing therapeutic agents to treat IBS-D by acting as a 5-HT3 receptor antagonist.

Purpose: The purpose was to compare aqueous inflammatory and angiogenic cytokine levels in diabetic macular edema (DME). Materials and Methods: Aqueous samples were obtained from 50 eyes with DME and 12 normal eyes (control group). DME was classified according to the morphologic pattern based on optical coherence tomography: Diffuse retinal thickening (DRT; n = 19), cystoid macular edema (CME; n = 17), or serous retinal detachment (SRD; n = 14). Aqueous samples were collected just before intravitreal injection and at the beginning of cataract surgery in the control group. Interleukin (IL)-6, IL-8, interferon-induced protein (IP)-10, monocyte chemotactic protein (MCP)-1, platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-AA, and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) levels were measured by multiplex bead assay. Results: The IL-6, IL-8, IP-10, and PDGF-AA levels differed significantly among the three groups of DME (P = 0.014, P = 0.038, P = 0.021, and P = 0.041, respectively). However, there were no differences between groups in aqueous concentration levels of MCP-1 and VEGF (P = 0.205 and P = 0.062, respectively). IL-6 (P = 0.026) and IL-8 (P = 0.023) correlated positively with central foveal thickness (CFT) in the CME group. None of the cytokine levels correlated significantly with CFT in any of the DRT and SRD groups. Conclusions: Aqueous concentrations of cytokines varied according to the morphologic pattern of DME, which might explain the variable response to treatments such as intravitreal bevacizumab or triamcinolone injection.

The present study utilizes polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analysis using partial plastid rbcL and mitochondrial trnC–trnP gene sequences to distinguish the six representative Pyropia species produced via mariculture in Korea. The rbcL, trnC, and trnP sequences of 15 Pyropia species from the NCBI database were aligned to determine specific restriction enzyme sites of the six Pyropia species. To confirm the presence of restriction sites of eight enzymes, PCR amplicons were digested as follows: a 556 bp fragment within the rbcL region of chloroplast DNA was confirmed in P. yezoensis using BglI, whereas Tth111I, AvaII, BsrI, and BsaAI enzymes produced fragments of 664, 271, 600, and 510 bp, respectively, from the rps11–trnG region of mitochondrial DNA in P. seriata, P. dentata, P. suborbiculata, and P. haitanensis. In the case of P. pseudolinearis, HindIII, SacII, and SphI enzymes each had two cleavage sites, at positions 174 and 825, 788 and 211, and 397 and 602 bp, respectively. All six species were successfully distinguished using these eight restriction enzymes. Therefore, we propose that PCR-RFLP analysis is an efficient tool for the potential use of distinguishing between the six Pyropia species cultivated via mariculture in Korea.

The tuber of Cynanchum wilfordii (Baekshuoh Radix in Korean) is an important medicinal herb in Korea and China; however, it is difficult to differentiate C. wilfordii from a related medicinal herb, C. auriculatum (Baishouwu Radix in Chinese). We sought to develop a molecular method that could be used to distinguish between the tubers of C. wilfordii and C. auriculatum. We aligned the chloroplast genome sequences (available in the NCBI database) of the two species and identified three species-specific insertion and deletion (InDel) sites in the trnQ-psbK, rps2-rpoC2, and psaJ-rpl33 intergenic spacer (IGS) regions. To confirm the presence of these three InDels and validate their use as markers, we designed three primer pairs to amplify the trnQ-psbK, rps2-rpoC2, and psaJ-rpl33 IGS regions. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of the trnQ-psbK IGS region yielded a 249 bp fragment for C. wilfordii, and 419 bp fragment for C. auriculatum, whereas the rps2-rpoC2 IGS primers produced a 629 bp fragment from C. wilfordii and a 282 bp fragment from C. auriculatum. In the psaJ-rpl33 IGS region, allele fragments of 342 and 360 bp in length were amplified from C. wilfordii, whereas 249 and 250 bp fragment were amplified from C. auriculatum. We propose these three InDel markers as a valuable, simple, and efficient tool for identifying these medicinal herbs and will thus reduce adulteration of these herbal materials in commercial markets.

We previously established that polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analysis using partial plastid rbcL and mitochondrial trnC–trnP gene sequences can be used to distinguish the six representative Pyropia species produced via mariculture in Korea. In this study, we develop progressive InDel markers by comparing seven complete Pyropia chloroplast genomes obtained from The National Center of Biotechnology Informnation (NCBI) GenBank. Comparative analyses of nucleotide diversity among the genomes revealed seven hypervariable sites (cemA, rps13, trnM-argB, petD-petB, trnR-trnQ, ccs1-orf24, and ycf12-ftrB) among 637 sliding windows with nucleotide diversity > 0.025 (Pi). These sites included two genes and five gene-intergenic regions, three of which (cemA, trnM-argB, trnR-trnQ) showed complete amplification for all six test species. Finally, trnM-argB, an InDel-variable locus with high discriminatory power, was selected as a DNA barcode candidate. These results suggest that the obtained trnM-argB region can be used for the effective exploration of the variation present in six Korean Pyropia and for further evolutionary, phylogenetic, barcoding and genetic engineering studies of Pyropia species.

Background Quercus acuta Thunb. (Fagaceae) or Japanese evergreen oak is cultivated as an ornamental plant in South Korea, China, Japan, and Taiwan and used in traditional medicine. The acorn or fruit of Quercus acuta Thunb. (QAF) is the main ingredient of acorn jelly, a traditional food in Korea. Its leaf was recently shown to have potent xanthine oxidase inhibitory and anti-hyperuricemic activities; however, there have been no studies on the biological activity of QAF extracts. Solar ultraviolet light triggers photoaging of the skin, which increases the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and expression of matrix metalloproteinase (MMPs), and destroys collagen fibers, consequently inducing wrinkle formation. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of water extracts of QAF against UVB-induced skin photoaging and to elucidate the underlying molecular mechanisms in human keratinocytes (HaCaT). Methods In this study, we used HPLC to identify the major active components of QAF water extracts. Anti-photoaging effects of QAF extracts were evaluated by analyzing ROS procollagen type I in UVB-irradiated HaCaT keratinocytes. Antiradical activity was determined using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl and 2,20-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) assays. The expression of MMP-1 was tested by western blotting and ELISA kits. QAF effects on phosphorylation of the MAPK (p38, JNK, and ERK) pathway and transcription factor AP-1, which enhances the expression of MMPs, were analyzed by western blots. Results We identified two major active components in QAF water extracts, gallotannic acid and ellagic acid. The QAF aqueous extracts recovered UVB-induced cell toxicity and reduced oxidative stress by inhibiting intracellular ROS generation in HaCaT cells. QAF rescued UVB-induced collagen degradation by suppressing MMP-1 expression. The anti-photoaging activities of QAF were associated with the inhibition of UVB-induced phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) and activator protein 1 (AP-1). Our findings indicated that QAF prevents UVB-induced skin damage due to collagen degradation and MMP-1 activation via inactivation of the ERK/AP-1 signaling pathway. Overall, this study strongly suggests that QAF exerts anti-skin-aging effects and is a potential natural biomaterial that inhibits UVB-induced photoaging. Conclusion These results show that QAF water extract effectively prevents skin photoaging by enhancing collagen deposition and inhibiting MMP-1 via the ERK/AP-1 signaling pathway.

Neoporphyra dentata (Kjellman) L.-E. Yang & J. Brodie, 2020 is an economically valuable species in seaweed aquaculture in the southwest coastal regions of Korea. Here, we report the complete mitogenome information of N. dentata using Illumina Miseq platform permitted assembly of a circular mitochondrial genome of 26,807 bp from N. dentata consisting of 29.9% GC contents, 9 protein coding genes (PCGs), 2 ribosomal RNA genes (12S rRNA and 16S rRNA), 23 transfer RNA (tRNA) genes, and a non-coding region. The overall nucleotide composition was A: 38%, T: 32%, C: 14.7%, and G: 15.2%. The mitochondrial genome of N. dentata contributes to revealing the phylogenetic relationships among species of the Bangiaceae family.

Members of the Vaccinium genus (Ericaceae family) have excellent medicinal and nutritional properties. In this study, we sequenced the complete chloroplast (cp) genomes of three species, Vaccinium bracteatum Thunb., V. vitis-idaea L., and V. uliginosum L., to investigate their phylogenetic relationships within the Ericaceae. The chloroplast genomes of these species are 174,404 bp, 173,967 bp, and 173,356 bp, respectively. These genomes have a typical quadripartite structure, with an LSC region (106,565 bp, 106,013 bp, and 105,856 bp) and an SSC region (2979 bp, 3518 bp, and 3146 bp) separated by a pair of IRs (32,430 bp, 32,218 bp, and 32,177 bp, respectively). These cp genomes are composed of 139 genes, including 93 protein-coding genes, 38 tRNA genes, and 8 rRNA genes. Maximum likelihood phylogenetic analysis indicated that V. bracteatum is most closely related to V. oldhamii. Our findings should facilitate further evolutionary and genetic studies.

The complete chloroplast (cp) genome of Stauntonia hexaphylla, a monotypic genus native to Korea, was determined. The whole cp genome is 158,390 bp in size, containing a large single-copy (LSC) region of 87,115 bp and a small single-copy region (SSC) of 18,928 bp, separated by a pair of inverted repeats (IRs) of 26,174 bp. The cp genome encodes 117 genes, including 79 protein-coding, 38 tRNA-coding, and 8 rRNA-coding genes. The overall GC content is 37.8%. A phylogenetic analysis demonstrated a close relationship between S. hexaphylla and S. obovatifoliola subsp. urophylla. The cp genome will provide new insight into the evolution of Lardizabalaceae.

Zanthoxylum schinifolium and Zanthoxylum piperitum are the sources of the well-known traditional Korean herbal medicines “sancho” (prickly ash) and “chopi” (Korean pepper), respectively. Sancho and chopi are often indiscriminately mixed due to the similar appearance of the herbal materials when used as spices and herbal medicines. Moreover, commercial sancho and chopi products often contain adulterants, which is insufficient to ensure food efficacy and safety. In this study, we developed hypervariable insertion/deletion (InDel) markers to distinguish between sancho and chopi products by comparing the complete chloroplast genome sequences of four Zanthoxylum species deposited in the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) GenBank. Comparative analyses of the nucleotide diversity (Pi) of these Zanthoxylum genomes revealed four hypervariable divergent sites (trnH-psbA, psbZ-trnG, trnfM-rps14, and trnF-ndhK) with Pi > 0.025 among 520 windows. Of these four regions, including two genic and two intergenic regions, only psbZ-trnG yielded accurate PCR amplification results between commercial sancho and chopi products from the Korean herbal medicine market. We therefore selected psbZ-trnG, an InDel-variable locus with high discriminatory powers, as a candidate DNA barcode locus. This InDel marker could be used as a valuable, simple, and efficient tool for identifying these medicinal herbs, thereby increasing the safety of these spices and herbal materials in the food market.