Yeun-Hwa Gu

By Yeun-Hwa Gu

Various intractable diseases have been cured by the development of many new medicines. However, cancer is still a major cause of death. We focused on β-glucan which heat treated Enterococcus faecalis in human intestine, and investigated antioxidant activity, antitumor activity, immune response, etc. In this study, we studied the immunostimulatory effect of β-glucan and its application as a radioprotective agent. As a result, β-D-glucan is known to possess antioxidant activity. Its action is thought to be due to radical scavenger reaction. In our study, β-glucan increased the amount of killer cells and suppressor T cells. Therefore, administration of β-glucan is thought to have an anticancer action. In the future, we hypothesize that β-glucan could be used as an immunopotentiating agent which is effective for the prevention of cancer. From now on, further research will be necessary on the search for cancer cell receptors and to conduct fundamental research on the synergistic effects of radiation therapy. β-glucan showed strong antitumor activity against two kinds of solid carcinoma. Taken altogether, this strongly suggests that β-glucan enhances innate functions of macrophages and NK cells, and as a result, secondarily enhances the immune reaction and suppresses tumor growth.

Part of the book: Lymphocytes

By Yeun-Hwa Gu

In this study, β-glucan was orally administered and irradiated with whole body 2 Gy. It was then confirmed that the mortality of mice and tumor growth of mice with tumors were significantly reduced. Since the number of leukocytes and lymphocytes increased with a single dose of β-glucan, the crystal was encountered where the radioprotective effect of β-glucan was probably increased by the hematopoietic action of irradiated mice. In previous studies, β-(1–3)-D-glucan extract has a radioprotective effect and an antitumor effect, and regarding the mechanism of action, the immune activity and antioxidant were elucidated. In this study, we investigated the antitumor effects of β-glucan on radiation, protection of immune disorders, and antioxidant effects. After intraperitoneal inoculation of about 2 x 106 sarcoma 180, ICR mice were administered 200 mg/kg β-glucan every other day every two weeks. We irradiated 2 Gy radiation 3 times and counted the number of white blood cells and lymphocytes. In addition, body weight and tumor size were measured 2 weeks after cancer cells were seeded. Antioxidant activity was measured using the AAPH (2,2-azobis (2-amidinopropane) dihydrochloride) method. There was a clear decrease in tumor size in the radiation and glucan groups compared to the group receiving only cancer cells that increased tumor size over time. Almost all mice inoculated with only cancer cells died two weeks after radiation, but two-thirds of radiation and the glucan group were alive. Regardless of radiation exposure, the number of leukocytes and lymphocytes increased when β-glucan was administered. Antioxidant activity has been demonstrated in both groups of glucans. These results may indicate that administration of β-glucan increases immune activity, prevents side effects during cancer radiotherapy, and provides a supplemental tool for the treatment of cancer.

Part of the book: Translational Research in Cancer