title: Activating effect of momordin, extract of bitter melon (Momordica Charantia L.), on the promoter of human PPARdelta.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Bitter melon (Momordica charantia L.) is a common vegetable grown in Okinawa that has also been used recently in medicine for the treatment of diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia. Among Bitter melon extracts compounds, we focused on an extract known as momordin in the present study, to examine its effect on peroxisome-proliferator activated-receptor (PPAR) delta (also called PPARdelta in rodents) expression and promoter activity of the human PPARdelta gene.
  
  
  METHODS
  A human PPARdelta promoter-reporter plasmid was made as a template from a BAC CLONE (RPCI-11C) containing a -3076 bp (BglI site) +74 bp (EcoRI site) sequence. Luciferase assay of PPARdelta promoter activity was performed using HepG2 cells.
  
  
  RESULTS
  10 and 25 nM Momordin significantly increased the expression of PPARdelta mRNA 1.5-fold (relative to the control). Moreover, 10 and 25 nM Momordin significantly increased PPARdelta promoter activity in a dose-dependent manner, reaching more than 1.5-fold relative to the control.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our present data obtained through successful cloning of the PPARdelta promoter demonstrate that PPARdelta production and activation are upregulated through PPARdelta promoter activity following momordin treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Diabetes and Endocrinology, Saitama Medical University, Japan.
authors.forename: Masatoshi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sasa
authors.forename: Ikuo
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Inoue
authors.forename: Yuichi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shinoda
authors.forename: Seiichiro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.forename: Makoto
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Seo
authors.forename: Tsugikazu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Komoda
authors.forename: Takuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Awata
authors.forename: Shigehiro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Katayama
mesh_terms: D002460:Cell Line; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004353:Drug Evaluation, Preclinical; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D056945:Hep G2 Cells; D006801:Humans; D029777:Momordica charantia / Q000378:metabolism*; D047494:PPAR delta / Q000235:genetics*; D008517:Phytotherapy / Q000379:methods; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000494:pharmacology*; D010957:Plasmids / Q000378:metabolism; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D015854:Up-Regulation
chemical_list: D047494:PPAR delta; D010936:Plant Extracts; C548297:momordin