자궁 내 감염 관련 유전자 및 산화 스트레스 관련 유전자와 조기분만의 연관성

유시연 ( Si Yeon You ),김정명 ( Jung Myung Kim ),이경아 ( Kyung A Lee ),박미혜 ( Mi Hye Park ),김영주 ( Young Ju Kim ),전선희 ( Sun Hee Chun ) 대한산부인과학회 2010 Obstetrics & Gynecology Science Vol.53 No.7

목적: 조기 분만과 자궁 내 감염 관련 유전자 (IFN-γ, interleukin [IL]-10) 및 산화 스트레스 관련 유전자 (CYP1A1)와의 연관성을 알아보고자 한다. 연구 방법: 2007년 1월부터 2008년 12월까지 이대 목동병원 산부인과에서 산전 검사 및 분만을 시행한 산모 중 37주 이전에 분만한 조산군 164명과 37주 이후에 분만한 대조군 305명을 대상으로 하였으며, 임신 주수 24주 미만, 태아의 선천성 기형, 다태아 분만, 사산의 경우를 제외하였다. 참여자는 입원 시 키, 몸무게 측정 및 혈액 채취를 시행하였고 임신 주수는 최종 월경일 또는 초음파 측정을 통해 계산 되었다. 산모의 혈액에서 IFN-γ, IL-10, CYP1A1 유전자형을 PCR과 SNaPShot method를 사용하여 검사하였으며 카이제곱 검정과 다중 로지스틱 회귀분석을 사용하여 통계분석 하였다. 결과: 조기 분만군과 만삭 분만군 사이에 임신 주수, 태아 체중에 통계적으로 유의한 차이가 있었다(P<0.0001). IFN-γ, IL-10, CYP1A1 유전자형의 빈도와 조기 분만 사이에는 유의한 상관성이 없었다(P>0.05). 결론: 본 연구에서 IFN-γ (874A/T) 및 IL-10 (1082A/G), IL-10 (819C/T), IL-10 (592A/C)와 CYP1A1 (T6235C), CYP1A1 (Ile462val [A/G]) 유전자형의 빈도는 조산과 관련이 없었다. Objective: To investigate the association between preterm birth and cytokine genes (IFN-γ, interleukin (IL)-10) in intrauterine infection and enzyme gene (CYP1A1) in oxidative stress response. Methods: This study involved a case-control study conducted at Ewha Womans University Hospital in Seoul, Korea. Subjects with preterm deliveries (<37 weeks of gestation) and normal controls with term deliveries (≥37 weeks of gestation) were selected from gravidas who had undergone prenatal examinations in the hospital and were followed until infant delivery. The weight, height, and blood samples of each participants were obtained according to standard protocols. We included subjects who gave birth to a singleton infant and had a gestational age between 24 and 42 weeks. Mutiple births, stillbirths, and congenital anomalies were excluded. Finally, 164 gravidas with preterm births and 305 normal controls with term deliveries were enrolled in the present study. Results: Preterm delivery group and term delivery group had significant difference in gestational age and neonatal body weight (P<0.0001). There were no statistically significant association between preterm birth and IFN-γ, IL-10, CYP1A1 genes (P>0.05). Conclusion: In this study, IFN-γ (874A/T), IL-10 (1082A/G), IL-10 (819C/T), IL-10 (592A/C) and CYP1A1 (T6235C), CYP1A1 (Ile462val [A/G]) genes had no significant association with preterm birth.

Clostridium difficile에 의한 설사의 예후인자

김준형,김희정,구남수,김영근,최준용,신소연,박윤선,김연아,김명수,정수진,최희경,송영구,이경원,김준명 대한감염학회 2007 감염과 화학요법 Vol.39 No.2

배경 : Clostridium difficile에 의한 설사(Clostridium difficile associated diarrhea; CDAD)는 임상 경과가 다양하다. 최근에 유럽과 북미에서 C. difficile 감염의 발생률이 증가하고 고전적 치료에 잘 반응하지 않으며 이환률이 증가하였고, 이러한 원인이 새로운 균주의 탄생에 기인한다고 보고되었다. CDAD의 예후에 영향을 미치는 세균성 요인과 숙주 요인을 확인하기 위해 본 연구를 진행하였다. 재료 및 방법 : 2002년 8월부터 2003년 12월까지 CDAD가 진단된 20세 이상인 환자들을 대상으로 후향적 Cohort 연구를 하였다. 세균성 요인을 확인하기 위해 cdt A, cdtB, tcd A, tcd A rep 그리고 tcd B 유전자(binary toxin)를 확인하였다. 설사가 치료 시작 후 11일 이상 지속되거나, 2달 이내에 재발하거나, 수술 혹은 다른 시술이 필요한 경우, 사망한 경우 예후가 좋지 않은 것으로 정의하였다. 결과 : 총 115예에서 toxin을 생성하는 C. difficile가 동정되었으며, Toxin A와 toxin B 모두 양성인 균이 91예, toxin B만 양성인 균이 24예였다. Toxin A 생성 여부가 예후에 영향을 미치지 않았지만, 제산제를 사용한 환자에서 그렇지 않은 환자에 비해 toxin B만 양성인 균이 많이 동정되었다(P<0.05). 예후가 좋지 않은 경우는 39예(33.9%)였고 76예(66.1%)에서 예후는 양호하였다. 단변량 분석에서 70세 이상의 고령, 남성, 증상 발현 후 사용한 항생제의 개수 사용, 증상 발현 후 carbapenem, aminoglycoside, glycopeptide 사용, 당뇨 및 뇌졸중 병력이 있는 경우, 그리고 높은 Charlson index가 불량한 예후 인자로 확인되었다. 그러나 독립적인 예후 인자를 조사했을 때에는70세 이상의 고령(odds ratio=3.378, P=0.009), 증상 발현후 carbapenem 사용(odds ratio 7.210, P<0.001)이 예후에 중요한 영향을 미치는 요소로 확인되었다. 결론 : 70세 이상의 고령과 증상 발현 후 carbapenem 사용이 CDAD 독립적인 불량한 예후인자이다. Background : Clostridium difficile associated diarrhea (CDAD) has a wide range of clinical manifestations. The prognostic factors of CDAD are not fully understood. Materialsand Methods : A retrospective cohort study of 115 patients with CDAD from Aug. 2002 to Dec. 2003 was conducted to evaluate prognostic factors of CDAD. Bacteriologic factors were determined by detecting the binary toxin gene, tcd A, tcd A rep and tcd B gene. Poor prognosis was defined as diarrhea more than 10 days even with classic treatment, recurrence, death, and moribund discharge. Results : Approximately 79% of isolated strains were toxin A+/B+ strains and 21% were toxin A-/B+ strains. There was no difference in prognosis between toxin A+ and toxin A- strains. 39 (33.9%) cases showed poor prognosis and 76 (66.1%) cases showed good prognosis. Univariate analyses revealed that the poor prognostic factors were old age over 70 years old, male, the number of antibiotics used after onset of symptom, the administration of carbapenems, aminoglycosides, glycopeptides after onset of symptom, history of DM and stroke, and high Charlson comorbidity index. Multiple logistic regression analysis identified old age over 70 years old (odds ratio=3.378, P=0.009) and the administration of carbapenems after onset of symptom (odds ratio 7.210, P<0.001) as the independent poor prognostic factors. Conclusion : Old age over 70 and the administration of carbapenems after onset of symptom were the poor prognostic factors for CDAD caused by none-binary toxin producing strains.

Control of Morphology and Subsequent Toxicity of AβAmyloid Fibrils through the Dequalinium-induced Seed Modification

Kim, Jin-A,Myung, Eun-Kyung,Lee, In-Hwan,Paik, Seung-R. Korean Chemical Society 2007 Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society Vol.28 No.12

Amyloid fibril formation of amyloid β/A4 protein (Aβ) is critical to understand the pathological mechanism of Alzheimer's disease and develop controlling strategy toward the neurodegenerative disease. For this purpose, dequalinium (DQ) has been employed as a specific modifier for Aβ aggregation and its subsequent cytotoxicity. In the presence of DQ, the final thioflavin-T binding fluorescence of Aβ aggregates decreased significantly. It was the altered morphology of Aβ aggregates in a form of the bundles of the fibrils, distinctive from normal single-stranded amyloid fibrils, and the resulting reduced β-sheet content that were responsible for the decreased fluorescence. The morphological transition of Aβ aggregates assessed with atomic force microscope indicated that the bundle structure observed with DQ appeared to be resulted from the initial multimeric seed structure rather than lateral association of preformed single-stranded fibrils. Investigation of the seeding effect of the DQ-induced Aβ aggregates clearly demonstrated that the seed structure has determined the final morphology of Aβ aggregates as well as the aggregative kinetics by shortening the lag phase. In addition, the cytotoxicity was also varied depending on the final morphology of the aggregates. Taken together, DQ has been considered to be a useful chemical probe to control the cytotoxicity of the amyloid fibrils by influencing the seed structures which turned out to be central to develop therapeutic strategy by inducing the amyloid fibrils in different shapes with varied toxicities.

흉부 방사선 치료후 완전방실차단증과 양측 관동맥구 협착증을 보인 1예

고경환,김정경,이수금,윤재형,조성제,이상훈,홍석근,현민수,황흥곤,김명아,박성훈 대한내과학회 1997 대한내과학회지 Vol.53 No.3S

We have experienced a case of radiation-induced coronary biostial stenosis presented with recurrent syncopal attack, which was confirmed by coronary angiography and pathologic findings. A 60 year-old woman was admitted with the symptoms of recurrent syncopal attack. She had a history of radiation therapy of the chest for lung neoplasm 15 years ago. Initial electrocardiogram showed transient high-degree A-V block followed by third-degree atrioventricular block which was associated with syncope. Echocardiography revealed mild aortic regurgitation without left ventricular dysfunction. The coronary angiogram revealed biostial stenosis of coronary arteries. Initial cardiac symptom subsided after temporary pacemaker implantation. She had a coronary bypass graft surgery on both coronary arteries using saphenous vein. Biopsy findings showed mild fibrosis with intimal thickening of coronary artery.

제조업 근로자의 작업환경인지도와 스트레스와의 관련성 연구

오영아,이명선,이경용 大韓産業醫學會 2002 대한직업환경의학회지 Vol.14 No.3

목적 : 한국산업안전공단의 '1999년 근로자건강실태조사'를 분석의 기초자료로 하였으며, 연구대상인 전국의 근로자 6,764명을 대상으로, 신체적 스트레스, 정신적 스트레스와 일반적 특성, 작업조건과의 관련성을 분석하였다. 방법 : 표본으로 추출된 근로자들에게 구조화된 설문지를 통하여 1:1 면접조사를 시행하였으며, 자료는 SPSS 10.0을 이용하여 통계 처리하였다. 결과 : 1. 일반적 특성에 따른 스트레스 수준은 여성이 남성보다 높은 수준을 보여주었으며(p<0.001), 연령이 낮을수록(p<0.001), 규모는 클수록 그 수준이 높았다(p<0.01). 2. 근로조건에 따른 스트레스 수준은 작업시간이 많을수록(p<0.001), 휴식시간이 없을 때(p<0.05) 그 수준이 증가하였고, 작업공간이 좁고 작업밀도가 강할 때 스트레스가 높았다(p<0.001). 물리적 작업 환경에서는 습도와 작업장안전에서 문제가 있다고 느낄 때 스트레스가 높았으며(p<0.01), 소음이 문제가 있고(p<0.01), 분진 및 환기와 휴식공간과 식당, 채광조명에 문제가 있을 때 스트레스 수준이 높았다(p<0.05), 사회적 작업환경에서는 직무요구도와 직무통제성이 높고, 사회적지지가 낮을 때 스트레스 수준이 증가하였고, 이는 통계학적으로 유의하였다(p<0.001). 3. 다단계 중회귀분석을 통한 신체적 스트레스에 영향을 미치는 요인을 분석한 결과 작업장 안전이 5.1%로 가장 높은 설명력을 보여주었고, 다음으로 직무요구도, 연령, 작업밀도, 습도, 성별, 작업시간, 규모, 공식적인 휴식시간 유무의 순으로 선정되었는데 이들 요인에 의한 전체 설명력은 12 %였다. 또한 정신적 스트레스에 영향을 밀치는 요인을 분석한 결과 직무 요구도가 4.8 %로 가장 높은 설명력을 보여주었고 다음으로 습도, 연령, 성별, 직무 통제성, 작업장 안전, 사회적지지, 작업공간, 규모, 채광조건, 공식적인 휴식시간 유무, 작업시간의 순으로 선정되었는데 이들 요인에 의한 전체 설명력은 13.3 %였다. 결론 : 근로자의 작업환경이 스트레스와 관련성이 높은 것을 알 수 있다. 근무조건, 물리적 작업환경, 사회적 작업환경을 꾸준히 관리하고 개선할 때, 근로자의 스트레스가 감소할 것이고, 작업능률을 극대화 할 수 있을 것이다. Objectives : In this study we performed an analysis of the stress associated with the working conditions of 6,764 workers based on 'A survey of healthu condition of workers on 1999' by the Korean Occupational Safety & health Agency. The Purpose of this study was to provide basic data for health education and management for industrial workers' health promotion. Methods : Collected data were analyzed using the t-test. ANOVA and mutiple regression analysis, using the SPSS 10.0 program. Results : When the degrees of stress were analyzed according to demographic characteristics, females were found to have higher levels of stress than males (p<0.001). Furthermore, as age was lowered and as the work apsce became larger, the degrees of a stress were also found to be higher (p<0.001 and p<0.01, respectively). When the degrees of stress were analyzed according to working conditions, longer working hours (p<0.001) and reduced break times (p<0.05), gave rise to higher degrees of stress. Also, as the workspace was reduced in size and as the work intensity was augmented, the degrees of a stress were made higher (p<0.01). In terms of physical working conditions, humidity and a lack of sense of security resulted in higher degrees of stress (p<0.01). When the wokers sense that their environment is noisy or dusty has poor lighting or ventilation or that the rest room and cafeteria facilities are inade-quate, the degrees of stress are found to be higher. As regards the social environment, when the workers sensed that the degree of job demand or job control was higher or that the degree of social support was lower, the degrees of stress were increased (p<0.001). Among those factors which influenced physical stress in the stepwise multiple regression analysis, the primary factor was found to be the safety of the working place (5.1 %). Other factors which influenced physical stress were degree of job demand, age, work intensity, humidity, sexual discrimination, length of working hours, size of work space and the existence or not of a regular break time in this order. Total R^2 due to these factors was 12%. Among those factors which influenced mental stress in the stepwise multiple regression analysis, the primary factor was the degree of job demand (4.8 %). Others factors which infuenced mental stress were humidity, age, sexual deicrimination, the degree of a job control, safety of the working place, degree of social support, a working site, size of the work space, quality of lighting, the existence or not of a regular break time and length of working hours in this order. Total R^2 due to these factors was 13.1 %. Conclusions : The above results shows that working conditions are strongly related to stress. Furthermore, when both physical and social working conditions are contimuously managed and improved, workers may not only reduce their levels of stress but also maximize their working efficiency.

Fungal Diversity and Enzyme Activity Associated with the Macroalgae, Agarum clathratum

( Seobihn Lee ),( Myung Soo Park ),( Hanbyul Lee ),( Jae-jin Kim ),( John A. Eimes ),( Young Woon Lim ) 한국균학회 2019 Mycobiology Vol.47 No.1

Agarum clathratum, a brown macroalgae species, has recently become a serious environmental problem on the coasts of Korea. In an effort to solve this problem, fungal diversity associated with decaying A. clathratum was investigated and related b-glucosidase and endoglucanase activities were described. A total of 233 fungal strains were isolated from A. clathratum at 15 sites and identified 89 species based on morphology and a multigene analysis using the internal transcribed spacer region (ITS) and protein-coding genes including actin (act), b-tubulin (benA), calmodulin (CaM), and translation elongation factor (tef1). Acremonium, Corollospora, and Penicillium were the dominant genera, and Acremonium fuci and Corollospora gracilis were the dominant species. Fifty-one species exhibited cellulase activity, with A. fuci, Alfaria terrestris, Hypoxylon perforatum, P. madriti, and Pleosporales sp. Five showing the highest enzyme activities. Further enzyme quantification confirmed that these species had higher cellulase activity than P. crysogenum, a fungal species described in previous studies. This study lays the groundwork for bioremediation using fungi to remove decaying seaweed from populated areas and provides important background for potential industrial applications of environmentally friendly processes.

Small molecule and peptide-mediated inhibition of Epstein-Barr virus nuclear antigen 1 dimerization

Kim, Sun Young,Song, Kyung-A,Kieff, Elliott,Kang, Myung-Soo Elsevier 2012 Biochemical and biophysical research communication Vol.424 No.2

<P>Latent Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection is associated with human B cell lymphomas and certain carcinomas. EBV episome persistence, replication, and gene expression are dependent on EBV-encoded nuclear antigen 1 (EBNA1)'s DNA binding domain (DBD)/dimerization domain (DD)-mediated sequence-specific DNA binding activity. Homodimerization of EBNA1 is essential for EBNA1 DNA binding and transactivation. In this study, we characterized a novel small molecule EBNA1 inhibitor EiK1, screened from the previous high throughput screening (HTS). The EiK1 compound specifically inhibited the EBNA1-dependent, OriP-enhanced transcription, but not EBNA1-independent transcription. A Surface Plasmon Resonance Biacore assay revealed that EiK1 associates with EBNA1 amino acid 459-607 DBD/DD. Consistent with the SPR data, in vitro gel shift assays showed that EiK1 suppressed the activity of EBNA1 binding to the cognate familial repeats (FR) sequence, but not control RBP-Jκ binding to the Jκ site. Subsequently, a cross-linker-mediated in vitro multimerization assay and EBNA1 homodimerization-dependent yeast two-hybrid assay showed that EiK1 significantly inhibited EBNA1 dimerization. In an attempt to identify more highly specific peptide inhibitors, small peptides encompassing the EBNA1 DBD/DD were screened for inhibition of EBNA1 DBD-mediated DNA binding function. The small peptide P85, covering EBNA1 a.a. 560-574, significantly blocked EBNA1 DNA binding activity in vitro, prevented dimerization in vitro and in vivo, associated with EBNA1 in vitro, and repressed EBNA1-dependent transcription in vivo. Collectively, this study describes two novel inhibitors of EBNA1 dimerization. This study demonstrates that EBNA1 homodimerization can be effectively targeted by a small molecule or peptide.</P>

Ion specific effects in bundling and depolymerization of taxol-stabilized microtubules

Needleman, Daniel J.,Ojeda-Lopez, Miguel A.,Raviv, Uri,Miller, Herbert P.,Li, Youli,Song, Chaeyeon,Feinstein, Stuart C.,Wilson, Leslie,Choi, Myung Chul,Safinya, Cyrus R. The Royal Society of Chemistry 2013 Faraday discussions Vol.166 No.-

<P>Microtubules (MTs) are nanometer scale hollow cylindrical biological polyelectrolytes. They are assembled from α/β-tubulin dimers, which stack to form protofilaments (PFs) with lateral interactions between PFs resulting in the curved MT. In cells, MTs and their assemblies are critical components in a range of functions from providing tracks for the transport of cargo to forming the spindle structure during mitosis. Previous studies have shown that while cations with valence equal to or larger than 3+ tend to assemble tight 3D bundles of taxol-stabilized MTs, certain divalent cations induce relatively loose 2D bundles of different symmetry (D. J. Needleman <I>et al.</I>, <I>Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A.</I>, 2004, <B>101</B>, 16099). Similarly, divalent cations form 2D bundles of DNA adsorbed on cationic membranes (I. Koltover <I>et al.</I>, <I>Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A.</I>, 2000, <B>97</B>, 14046). The bundling behavior for these biological polyelectrolyte systems is qualitatively in agreement with current theory. Here, we present results which show that, unlike the case for DNA adsorbed on cationic membranes, bundling of taxol-stabilized MTs occurs only for certain divalent cations above a critical ion concentration (<I>e.g.</I> Ca<SUP>2+</SUP>, Sr<SUP>2+</SUP>, Ba<SUP>2+</SUP>). Instead, many divalent cations pre-empt the bundling transition and depolymerize taxol-stabilized MTs at a lower counterion concentration. Although previous cryogenic TEM has shown that, in the absence of taxol, Ca<SUP>2+</SUP> depolymerizes MTs assembling in buffers containing GTP (guanosine triphosphate), our finding is surprising given the known stabilizing effects of taxol on GDP (guanosine diphosphate)-MTs. The ion concentration required for MT depolymerization decreases with increasing atomic number for the divalents Mg<SUP>2+</SUP>, Mn<SUP>2+</SUP>, Co<SUP>2+</SUP>, and Zn<SUP>2+</SUP>. GdCl<SUB>3</SUB> (3+) is found to be extremely efficient at MT depolymerization requiring ion concentrations of about 1 mM, while oligolysine (2+), is observed not to depolymerize MTs at concentrations as high as 144 mM. The surprising MT depolymerization results are discussed in the context of divalents either disrupting lateral interactions between PFs (which are strengthened for taxol containing β-tubulin), or interfering with taxol's ability to induce flexibility at the interface between two tubulin dimers in the same PF (which has been recently suggested as a mechanism by which taxol stabilizes MTs post-hydrolysis with the induced flexibility counteracting the kink between GDP-tubulin dimers in a PF).</P>

Comparison of Proteome Components of Helicobacter pylori Before and After Mouse Passage

Lee, Kyoung-Ja,Kim, Bok-Ran,Cho, Young-A,Song, Yun-Gyu,Song, Jae-Young,Lee, Kon-Ho,Kang, Hyung-Lyun,Baik, Seung-Chul,Cho, Myung-Je,Rhee, Kwang-Ho,Seo, Ji-Hyun,Youn, Hee-Shang,Lee, Woo-Kon 대한미생물학회 2011 Journal of Bacteriology and Virology Vol.41 No.4

The mouse model is alleged to be a useful tool for understanding of pathophysiological roles of Helicobacter pylori in the development of gastric disorders. However, it has been observed that H. pylori strains significantly differed in their fitness in mice and even mouse strains differed in their susceptibilities to a H. pylori strain. Bacterial components of H. pylori which could affect on its fitness in mice have to be elucidated for the establishment of the mouse model for H. pylori infections. In the comparison of colonization ability between two H. pylori Korean isolates, 51 (isolated from a patient with duodenal ulcer) and 52 (isolated from a patient with gastric cancer), 52 could colonize better than 51 on the gastric mucosa of mouse. Proteome components of H. pylori 52, as a good colonizer and H. pylori 51, as a poor one were quantitatively compared each other. Five bacterial proteins including catalase, urease subunit alpha/beta, enolase and ferritin, were up-regulated in 52. In addition, the respective proteome components of the two strains were also compared with their mouse-passaged homologous strains. Seven and five proteins, which included catalase, flagellin A/B in common, were up-regulated in mouse-adapted 51 and 52, respectively. Among the fourteen identified proteins, urease subunit alpha/beta, flagellin A/B, catalase, ferritin, superoxide dismutase and neutrophil-activation protein have been previously known to be necessary to gastric colonization of H. pylori in animal models. The other up-regulated proteins including enolase, elongation factor Tu and fructose-bisphosphate aldolase have been reported to be associated with acid tolerance of H. pylori. These data provide confirmatory evidence for the importance of those proteins in the development of H. pylori-associated gastric disorders.

Guanylate cyclase activator YC-1 potentiates apoptotic effect of licochalcone A on human epithelial ovarian carcinoma cells via activation of death receptor and mitochondrial pathways

Lee, C.S.,Kwak, S.W.,Kim, Y.J.,Lee, S.A.,Park, E.S.,Myung, S.C.,Kim, W.,Lee, M.S.,Lee, J.J. North-Holland ; Elsevier Science Ltd 2012 european journal of pharmacology Vol.683 No.1

Natural phenol licorice compounds have been shown to induce apoptosis in cancer cells. 3-(5'-Hydroxymethyl-2'-furyl)-1-benzyl indazole (YC-1) may enhance the sensitivity of cancer cells to anticancer drugs. However, the combined effect of licochalcone A and YC-1 on cell death in ovarian cancer cells has not been studied. We assessed the combined effect of licochalcone A and YC-1 on apoptosis in human epithelial ovarian carcinoma cell lines in relation to the cell death process. In the OVCAR-3 and SK-OV-3 cell lines, licochalocone A induced a decrease in Bid, Bcl-2, Bcl-xL and survivin protein levels; an increase in Bax levels; loss of the mitochondrial transmembrane potential; cytochrome c release; activation of caspases (-8, -9 and -3); cleavage of PARP-1; and an increase in the tumor suppressor p53 levels. YC-1 enhanced licochalcone A-induced apoptosis-related protein activation, nuclear damage and cell death. These results suggest that YC-1 may potentiate the apoptotic effect of licochalcone A on ovarian carcinoma cell lines by increasing the activation of the caspase-8- and Bid-dependent pathway and the mitochondria-mediated apoptotic pathway, leading to caspase activation. The combination of licochalcone A and YC-1 may confer a benefit in the treatment of human epithelial ovarian adenocarcinoma.