• Journal of Biosystems Engineering
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.129-137
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• 2013

Purpose: Modeling has been used for elucidating the mechanism of complex biosystems. In spite of importance and uniqueness of adolescent calcium (Ca) metabolism characterized by a threshold Ca intake, its regulatory mechanism has not been covered and even not proposed. Hence, this study aims at model-based proposing potential mechanisms regulating adolescent Ca metabolism. Methods: Two different hypothetic mechanisms were proposed. The main mechanism is conceived based on Ca-protein binding which induces renal Ca filtration, while additional mechanism assumed that active renal Ca re-absorption regulated Ca metabolism in adolescents. Mathematical models were developed to represent the proposed mechanism and simulated them whether they could produce adolescent Ca profiles in serum and urine. Results: Simulation showed that both mechanisms resulted in the unique behavior of Ca metabolism in adolescents. Based on the simulation insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) is suggested as a potential regulator because it is related to both growth, a remarkable characteristic of adolescence, and Ca metabolism including absorption and bone accretion. Then, descriptive modeling is employed to conceptualize the hypothesized mechanisms governing adolescent Ca metabolism. Conclusions: This study demonstrated that modeling is a powerful tool for elucidating an unknown mechanism by simulating potential regulatory mechanisms in adolescent Ca metabolism. It is expected that various analytic applications would be plausible in the study of biosystems, particularly with combination of experimental and modeling approaches.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.31 no.6
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• pp.1039-1048
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• 1998

It has been reported that boron may be beneficial for optimal calcium metabolism and, thus, optimal bone metabolism. Therefore, we designed a study to determine the effect of boron supplementation on Ca and bone metabolism in rats. The rats of 80-l40g body weight were given a control(0ug), 5$\mu\textrm{g}$, 10$\mu\textrm{g}$, 20$\mu\textrm{g}$, 40$\mu\textrm{g}$, or 80$\mu\textrm{g}$ boron supplement per Is diet for 4-weeks. The results are summarized as follows. There were no differences in total food intake and weight gain among the experimental groups. fecal Ca excretion, urinary Ca excretion, apparent Ca absorption, Ca retention, serum alkaline phosphatase activity, and urinary hydroxyproline were not affected by boron supplementation. There was no difference in serum creatinine. Whereas, urinary creatinine excretion was increased with increasing boron supplementation, and conse-quently creatinine clearance was increased with boron supplementation. No differences were found in length, weight, density, Ca content of femur and scapular. The findings suggest that boron supplementation was not effective in Ca and bone metabolism in growing rats fed normal Ca diet. (Korean J Nutrition 31(6) : 1039-1048, 1998)

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.30 no.7
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• pp.813-824
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• 1997

This study was designed to investigate the effect of dietary calcium and phosphate levels on calcium and bone metabolism in rats. The rats were divided into six groups and each of the groups was fed diets with different Ca/P ratios. The experimental periods were 5 weeks . There was no significant different difference in dietary intake, body weight gain, and organ weight among the groups with different calcium and phosphate intake levels. Fecal calcium excretion was not significantly different among the groups, but urinary calcium excretion was increased by the increase in Ca/P ratio. Fecal phosphate excretion was not different but urinary phosphate excretion was increased by the increase in dietary phosphate intake. There was no significant difference in serum alkaline phophatase activity and urinary hydroxyproline levels were not significantly different among the groups. The low calcium-high phosphate(0.25Ca-1.2% P) group showed the lowest total calcium content in femur and scapula. This may be due to it having the lowest Ca/P ratio among groups. The low calcium-high phosphate(0.2%Ca-1.2%P) group showed that mandible is almost lost and osteolyzed Harversian canal was expanded in femur. Results suggest that phosphate intake affects calcium and bone metabolism more with inadequate calcium nutrition that with adequate calcium intake. Thus , for normal bone growth and metabolism , adequate calcium intake and/or high Ca/P ratio are important.

• Animal cells and systems
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.269-273
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• 2012

Controlling metabolism throughout life is a necessity for living creatures, and perturbation of energy balance elicits disorders such as type-2 diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease. $Ca^{2+}$ plays a key role in regulating energy generation. $Ca^{2+}$ homeostasis of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) lumen is maintained through the action of $Ca^{2+}$ channels and the $Ca^{2+}$ ATPase pump. Once released from the ER, $Ca^{2+}$ is taken up by mitochondria where it facilitates energy metabolism. Mitochondrial $Ca^{2+}$ serves as a key metabolic regulator and determinant of cell fate, necrosis, and/or apoptosis. Here, we focus on $Ca^{2+}$ transport from the ER to mitochondria, and $Ca^{2+}$-dependent regulation of mitochondrial energy metabolism.

• The Korean Journal of Ecology
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.47-63
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• 1998

In order to compare species-specific calcium metabolism, we collected 127 species belonging to 40 different families grown on various habitats including saline, limestone, wetland during the 1996 vegetation period, and analyzed their inorganic ion contents. Plants investigated were divided into 5 groups according to their physiological properties: 1) Chenopodiaceae, Aizoaceae, Caryophyllaceae, Portulacaceae and Phytolaccaceae of Centrospermales and Polygonaceae (Polygonales had a little water-soluble $Ca^{2+}$ but contained high contents of insoluble $Ca^{2+}$ particularly as Ca-oxalate (Chenopodiaceae type), 2) Some plant species such as Rosaceae produced oxalate in amounts insufficient to precipitate all incoming $Ca^{2+}$ and thus contained a surplus of dissolved $Ca^{2+}$ (Rosaceae type), 3) The contents of water-soluble $Ca^{2+}$ in plant species of Crassulaceae. Plantaginaceae, Asclepiadaceae, and Zygophyllaceae were equal to or greater than those of K ($K/Ca{\leq}1$; Crassulaceae type), and 4) K/Ca ratios of Compositae were significantly fluctuated depending on species and soil $Ca^{2+}$ level of their habitats (Compositae type). 5) Certain monocots (Gramineae, Cyperaceae, Juncaceae), in contrast to the dicotyledonous plant families mentioned above, showed a very distinct type of calcium metabolism, that is, the K/Ca ratios of 8~10 were maintained indifferently in the species and their habitat types (Graminae type). These results plants within the same taxon have similar physiological aspects as weel as morphological attributes. To understand calcium metabolism of certain plant species, therefore, it is desirable to approach on the basis of physiological concept (calciotroph or calciophobe) rather than the ecological one (calcicole or calcifuge).

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.605-613
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• 1997

This study was to investigate interaction between dietary protein and Ca levels in Ca metabolism and renal function in osteporosis rats. Five week-old female rats were fed a low Ca diet for 4 weeks after ovariectomy operation to establish rat models of osteoporosis. The ovariectomized osteoporosis rats were divided into six groups and were fed experimental diets which contained two levels of protein, normal (20%) and high(40%) , and three levels of Ca, low (0.06%), normal (0.47%) and high(0.94%) for 4 weeks , respectively. The ovaricetmized rat model of osteoporosis showed a remarkable decrease in serum Ca concentration, fresh weight and breaking force of femur, Ca and P contents of femur, and apparent absorption and retention of Ca. The supplementations of Ca and P contents of femur, and apparent absorption and retention of Ca. The supplementations of Ca at the dietary levels of normal and high levels significantly enhanced Ca bioavailability shown in the above experimental rat models of osteoporosis, regardless of dietary protein levels ; whereas the rats which were fed the low Ca diet demonstrated rather a decrease in its bioavailability. Irrespectively of the dietary Ca levels, the rats which were fed high protein diet exhibited an increase in kidney weight, urinary Ca, volume and hydroxyproline, and glomerular filtration ratio(GFR). The results show that dietary protein and calcium levels affect the renal function and Ca metabolism independently, while the interaction between protein and calcium have not been shown.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.480-487
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• 1997

The present study was designed to examine how Ca intake contributes to the increase of peak bone mass with growing female rats. Weaned rats were fed experimental diets consisting in five levels of Ca; very low(0.1%), low(0.2%), moderate(0.5%), high(1.0%) and very high(1.5%) for 4, 8 and 12 weeks. Bone growth, metabolism and Ca metabolism were determined. As for the rats fed for 4 weeks, the bone weight, length and breaking force and bone metabolism were not significantly affected by dietary Ca levels, whereas the current intakes of Ca were observed to have significantly affected the rats fed for 8 or 12 weeks with regard to the bone weight, length and breaking force and bone metabolism. The bone ash and Ca contents of the rats were affected by dietary Ca levels for the total period of feeding. It is suggested that dietary Ca itself affected the mineralization process either during the growth or later, although the resulting bone mass is not a linear function of dietary Ca content.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.121-125
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• 2013

Hesperetin (3',5,7-trihydroxy 4'-methoxyflavanone) and its glycoside hesperidin (hesperetin 7-rhamnoglucoside) in oranges have been reported to possess pharmacological effects related to anti-obesity. However, hesperetin and hesperidin have not been studied on suppressive effects on appetite. This study examined that hesperetin and hesperidin can stimulate the release of cholecystokinin (CCK), one of appetite-regulating hormones, from the enteroendocrine STC-1 cells, and then examined the mechanisms involved in the CCK release. Hesperetin significantly and dose-dependently stimulated CCK secretion with an $EC_{50}$ of 0.050 mM and increased the intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ concentrations ($[Ca^{2+}]_i$) compared to the untreated control. The stimulatory effect by hesperetin was mediated via the entry of extracellular $Ca^{2+}$ and the activation of TRP channels including TRPA1. These results suggest that hesperetin can be a candidate biomolecule for the suppression of appetite and eventually for the therapeutics of obesity.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.515-521
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• 2013

In this study, we examined the effects of organic types of calcium derived from oyster shell (OS-Ca) and nano-calcium (Nano-Ca) on the bio-availability and physiological responses associated with bone health in ovariectomised rats. Increased body weight, which is one of the physiological effects of ovary removal, was significantly recovered by Nano-Ca treatment (p<0.05). The reduced calcium level in the liver in ovariectomised rat was increased significantly with OS-Ca and Nano-Ca treatment (p<0.05), suggesting improved calcium bio-availability. Alkaline phosphatase (ALP), osteocalcin, and deoxypyridinoline (DPD) were analysed as biochemical markers of bone metabolism and health in the presence or absence of OSCa and Nano-Ca. ALP, osteocalcin, and DPD levels increased following ovary removal and tended to decrease after treatment with Nano-Ca, indicating that Nano-Ca induces favourable bone metabolism. This result was reflected in the recovery of bone mineral density (BMD) and bone mineral content (BMC) of the femur after Nano-Ca treatment following ovary removal. Taken together, our data show that the tested calcium treatments, especially using Nano-Ca, enhanced the bioavailability or absorption of calcium and positively affected bone metabolism in ovariectomised rats.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.309-320
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• 1995

The purpose of this research was to investigate the effect of calcium levels(50, 100 and 200% of requirement) on metabolism of Ca, Na and K in Young and adult female rats for 3 weeks. There was no significant difference in feed intake, body weight gain and feed efficiency ratio among the groups of different Ca intake level. Serum Na level of high-Ca group was significantly lower than that of low-Ca or normal-Ca group in Young rats. There was no significant difference in liver Ca and K contents among the groups of different Ca intake levels. But, Na content in liver was decreased by the increase of dietary Ca intake. Ca content in kidney of high-Ca group in young rats and normal-Ca group in adult rats were significantly higher than those of other groups. Na content in kidney of low-Ca group was lower than those of normal-Ca and high-Ca groups. Urinary excretions of Na and K and fecal excretion of Ca were increased by the increase of dietary Ca intake. But, fecal excretions of Na and K were not affected by dietary Ca intake. According to this study, it was found that the high Ca consumption promotes excretions of fecal Ca and urinary Na and K in rats. The study verifies the need for more study on the interrelationship among Ca, Na and K metabolism and bood pressure.