• Journal of Life Science
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• v.31 no.10
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• pp.944-953
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• 2021

Lignin is a complex phenylpropanoid polymer abundant in the cell walls of vascular plants. It is mainly presented in conducting and supporting tissues, assisting in water transport and mechanical strength. Lignification is also utilized as a defense mechanism against pathogen infection or wounding to protect plant tissues. The monolignol precursors of lignin are synthesized by cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase (CAD). CAD catalyzes cinnamaldehydes to cinnamyl alcohols, such as p-coumaryl, coniferyl, and sinapyl alcohols. CAD exists as a multigenic family in angiosperms, and CAD isoforms with different functions have been identified in different plant species. Multiple isoforms of CAD genes are differentially expressed during development and upon environmental cues. CAD enzymes having different functions have been found so far, showing that one of its isoforms may be involved in developmental lignification, whereas others may affect the composition of defensive lignins and other wall-bound phenolics. Substrate specificity appears differently depending on the CAD isoform, which contributes to revealing the biochemical properties of CAD proteins that regulate lignin synthesis. In this review, details regarding the expression and regulation of the CAD family in lignin biosynthesis are discussed. The isoforms of the CAD multigenic family have complex genetic regulation, and the signaling pathway and stress responses of plant development are closely linked. The synthesis of monolignol by CAD genes is likely to be regulated by development and environmental cues as well.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.485-501
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• 2020

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to examine the biochemical characteristics and dietary intake of adolescents aged 12 to 18 years according to the frequency of milk consumption. Methods: Data from the 2010~2011 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey was used for the study. The study examined adolescents' (12~18 years) demographic characteristics (house income level, residence region, skipping or not-skipping of breakfast/lunch/dinner, eating-out frequency), anthropometric characteristics (height, weight, weight status), biochemical characteristics (fasting plasma glucose, blood urea nitrogen, creatine, triglycerides, cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, hemoglobin, hematocrit) and nutrient intakes through quantitative and qualitative evaluation using the Korean Dietary Reference Intakes (KDRI), index of nutrition quality (INQ), nutrition adequacy ratio (NAR) of 3 groups (< 1/week, 1~6/week, ≥ 1/day) according to the frequency of milk consumption. Results: There were significant differences in gender and income levels among the 3 groups. There were no differences in height, weight, and weight status among groups. There were differences in biochemical characteristics and nutrient intake. In boys, there were differences in the mean of BUN and HDL-cholesterol, in quantitative intakes of riboflavin, calcium, phosphorus, potassium by KDRI levels, in qualitative intakes of riboflavin, calcium, phosphorus by INQ and riboflavin, calcium, phosphorus by NAR among 3 groups. In girls, there were differences in the mean of blood urea nitrogen, creatine, HDL-cholesterol, in quantitative intakes of protein, riboflavin, calcium, phosphorus by KDRI levels, in qualitative intakes of riboflavin, calcium, phosphorus by INQ and riboflavin, calcium, phosphorus by NAR among the 3 groups. Conclusions: In Korean adolescents, boys had a higher frequency of milk consumption than girls, and higher the income level, higher the frequency of milk consumption. Consumption of milk appeared to have a positive association with triglycerides, HDL-cholesterol, and indices related to muscle mass. Regular consumption of milk is an important factor in enhancing the intake of riboflavin, calcium, and phosphorus, which adolescents lack. The results of the study indicate a need to prepare an environment and education program to increase milk consumption in adolescents at home and school.

• Journal of fish pathology
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.39-46
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• 2021

Tetracycline (TC) is one of the antibiotics used for treatment of bacterial infection in Korea. Inadequate usage and abuse cause the resistance to antibiotics, like Tetracycline, Erythromycin, and Fluoroquinolone. It can also affect severe economic loss in aquaculture field in Korea. We isolated 101 bacterial samples from diseased fish at aquaculture sites in Gyeonggi-do during 2015~2018. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) method has been used to determine distribution and to identify bacterial isolates resistant to antibiotics including Oxytetracycline (OTC), Ampicillin (AMP), Clindamycin (CLI), Enrofloxacin (ENRO), Gentamycin (GEN). TC resistant isolates were confirmed antibiotic resistant genes by conventional PCR. Bacterial isolates were identified as Aeromonas spp. (43.5%), Pseudomonas spp. (4.0%) and Vibrio spp. (5.0%). It was confirmed that multi-resistant isolates (77.2%) were predominant over single-resistant one (22.8%). TC resistant genes like tet(A), tet(D), tet(E), tet(G), tet(M), and tet(S) were detected and tet(A) was the most prevalent. Aeromonas spp. is a dominant strain in bacterial infections in fishes of aquaculture sites, and further investigation on various antibiotic resistance genes will be needed for clear understanding of aquaculture sites in Gyeonggi-do.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.31 no.7
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• pp.654-661
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• 2021

In this study, in order to isolate excellent whitening agents from fungal cultural broth, various fungi were collected from wild areas in South Korea and then screened for tyrosinase inhibition activity, as tyrosinase is a precursor for the biosynthesis of melanin in regulating skin color. A fungus strain that inhibits tyrosinase activity has been identified and confirmed as Trichoderma viridescens (later renamed T. viridescens SW-1) via ITS sequencing. In T. viridescens SW-1, tyrosinase inhibitory activity was strongest on day three of culture. A 5% culture broth showed a tyrosinase inhibitory activity greater than 90% and exhibited high thermostability on day three. At 10% culture broth, the accumulations of intra- and extracellular melanin were inhibited above 27.1% and 7.5%, respectively. In summary, the physical and functional properties of the tyrosinase inhibitory substances of T. viridescens SW-1 included high levels of inhibition of melanin synthesis and antioxidative activity as well as thermostability. Therefore, we suggest that the whitening substance identified from the cultural broth of T. viridescens SW-1 has potential for application as a functional cosmetic ingredient.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.467-481
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• 2021

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to examine the biochemical characteristics, intake of energy, and nutrients by household income levels of Korean adolescents aged 12 to 18 years. Methods: Data from the 6th (2013 ~ 2015) Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHNES) were used for the study. A total of 1,839 (966 boys, 873 girls) subjects were included, and they were divided into four income groups according to their household income level. We examined general characteristics (gender, region of residence, skipping or not-skipping breakfast, lunch, dinner, frequency of eating-out), anthropometric characteristics (height, weight, weight status), biochemical characteristics (fasting plasma glucose, blood urea nitrogen, creatinine, triglycerides, cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, hemoglobin, and hematocrit), the quantitative intake of energy and nutrients using the Korean Dietary Reference Intakes (KDRI), and the qualitative intake evaluated by the nutrition adequacy ratio (NAR) and mean nutrition adequacy ratio (MAR) of the four groups. Results: There were significant differences by income group within the region of residence and the rate of skipping breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The low-income group had a higher rate of skipping breakfast, lunch, and dinner. According to the income group, there was a difference in the height of boys, and there was no difference in the weight and obesity of boys and girls. In the biochemical characteristics, only the hematocrit of girls showed differences by income group. The quantitative intake of energy and nutrients compared with KDRI differed by income group. There were differences in energy, carbohydrates, proteins, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, and phosphorus levels in boys and protein, vitamin A, niacin, and sodium levels in girls. The qualitative intake of energy and nutrients examined using NAR and MAR also differed according to the income group. The NAR showed differences in calcium in boys and vitamin C and calcium in girls. The MAR revealed differences in both boys and girls by income group. Conclusions: Among adolescents in the low-income group, the rate of skipping meals was high, and the quantitative and qualitative intake of energy and some nutrients was low. It is suggested that the nutritional intake can be improved by lowering the rate of skipping breakfast, lunch, dinner. We suggest that even just providing breakfast in schools can be considered highly effective in improving the rate of avoidance of skipping meals and improving nutrient intake. Also, we suggest that it is necessary to improve the food environment, food availability, and food accessibility through national and social support for low-household income adolescents.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.440-444
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• 2023

In August 2021, water-soaking symptoms of bacterial spot disease were observed on castor bean in a field in Gangseo District, Busan. Bacteria isolated from the lesion when cultured on tryptic soy agar appeared to be nonmucoid and pale green. To confirm whether the isolates were the causative agent of the spot disease, they were inoculated onto healthy castor bean plants. The same symptoms were observed on the inoculated tissue, and the bacteria were reisolated from the lesion. Furthermore, the isolates were consistent with the biochemical and physiological features of Pseudomonas capsici. Sequencing analysis using 16S rRNA and housekeeping genes (gyrB, rpoD) showed that the isolates shared a high sequence similarity with P. capsici. These results confirmed that the strains belonged to P. capsici. To our knowledge, this is the first report of bacterial spot disease caused by P. capsici on castor bean in Korea.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.25 no.2 s.38
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• pp.127-140
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• 1992

This study was done to identify the association between serum copper and zinc levels and the cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC), and to evaluate its diagnostic value on liver diseases. Sixty-three healthy persons, 60 patients with cirrhosis and 33 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma were rendomly selected and investigated for their general characteristics from October 1990 to August 1991. For analysis of the biochemical markers in liver function test and the serum copper and zinc levels, their fasting venous blood were sampled at 9:00 to 11:00 in the morning and centrifuged to separate the serum within one hour. All the samples were immediately analysed for biochemical markers and stored at $-20^{\circ}C$ in polypropylene tubes further copper and zinc analysis. Mean of serum coppper levels was $91.97{\pm}4.76{\mu}g/dl$ in control, $106.21{\pm}2.73{\mu}g/dl$ in cirrhosis and $127.05{\pm}0.77{\mu}g/dl$ in HCC. The value of HCC was statistically significantly higher than that of the control and cirrhosis(p<0.05). Serum zinc levels were $110.82{\pm}7.24{\mu}g/dl$ in control, $68.10{\pm}5.43{\mu}g/dl$ in cirrhosis and $63.78{\pm}2.20{\mu}g/dl$ in HCC. The values of cirrhosis and HCC were statistically significantly lower than that of control(p<0.05). The Cu/Zn ratio was statiatically significantly different among three groups(p<0.05). Test total protein, albumin, ALP and total bilirubin of biochemical markers of liver function were statistically significantly different among three groups(p<0.05). Differences between cirrhosis and HCC for ALT and AST, and between the control and HCC for direct bilirubin were not statistically significant. Biochemical markers statistically significantly correlated with serum copper and zinc levels and Cu/Zn ratio(p<0.05), were variable in three groups. In multiple logistic regression, odds ratio of serum copper level and Cu/Zn ratio had no statistical significance on the cirrhosis and the HCC, but that of serum sinc was statistically significant as 0.951 and 0.952(p<0.05). Serum copper and zinc levels and Cu/Zn ratio were not statistically significantly different between the cirrhosis and HCC. H\Albumin, ALP, zinc, total bilirubin and age among all variables were selected as main variables for three-group discriminant analysis. Percentage of 'grouped' cases correctly classified by these five variables was 98.4 for control, 73.4 for cirrhosis, 75.7 for HCC and 84.0 for all subjects. This study suggests that zinc level is considered to play a role as diagnostic marker on the hepatic disorders and be more useful than serum copper level and Cu/Zn ratio in diagnosis of the liver diseases.

• The Korean Journal of Mycology
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.225-230
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• 2014

Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, a plant pathogenic fungus, can cause serious yield and quality losses in the winter lettuce field. For biological control of S. sclerotiorum, soil-born microorganisms that inhibit the mycelia growth of S. sclerotiorum and Fusarium oxysporum were isolated from diseased soil. Among the isolates, bacterial isolate, GG95, which was identified as Bacillus subtilis according to the morphological, physiological characteristics and by 16S rRNA similarity, showed the highest level of inhibitory activity. The growth conditions for B. subtilis GG95 were optimized in TSB media (pH 7) by culturing at $28^{\circ}C$ for 24 hrs. Maltose or fructose and peptone were selected as the best carbon and nitrogen sources, respectively. Greenhouse experiment was performed to test effectiveness of B. subtilis GG95 in the control sclerotinia rot. Drench application ($1{\times}10^8cfu/mL$, 3 times) of the bacterial culture broth to lettuce showed an effectiveness value of 88%, suggesting that B. subtilis GG95 would be a promising biocontrol agent for control of sclerotinia rot.

• The Korean Journal of Mycology
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.258-265
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• 2012

Bacterial strains isolated from diseased red pepper fruits showed inhibitory effect on mycelial growth and spore germination of Colletotrichum gloeosporioides. The bacterium was identified as Paenibacillus sp. based on its physiological, biochemical characteristics and MicroLog analysis and named Paenibacillus sp. IUB225-08. The bacterium showed the highest level of antifungal activity C. gloeosporioides when cultured at $25^{\circ}C$ for 60 hrs in LB broth with initial pH of 7.0. The butanol fraction from culture extract of Paenibacillus sp. IUB225-08 effectively inhibited the mycelial growth and spore germination of C. gloeosporioides than any other agricultural chemicals tested. Pepper fruits and seeds treated with spores of C. gloeosporioides showed symptoms, while those treated with the culture extract and C. gloeosporioides together did not show any symptoms. Therefore, the culture extract of Paenibacillus sp. IUB225-08 have a potential for biocontrol agent of red pepper anthracnose.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.582-588
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• 2004

Eighty one bacterial strains of parathion degrading bacteria were isolated from soil samples that were contaminated with pesticide in Daejeon area. Among them, one bacterial strain was finally selected in media containing parathion as the sole source of carbon and energy, and this strain was identified as Pseudomonas rhodesiae H5 through physiological and biochemical tests, and analysis of its 16S rRNA sequence. Pseudomonas rhodesiae H5 was able to utilize various carbohydrates but did not utilize sorbose as sole carbon source. Pseudomonas rhodesiae H5 was resistance to ampicillin, spectinomycin, and mitomycin C but sensitive to kanamycin and chloramphenicol. And this strain showed high resistance up to several milligrams of heavy metals such as $BaCl_2$, LiCl, and $MnSO_4$. Optimal growth condition for temperature and pH of P. rhodesiae H5 was 3$0^{\circ}C$, and pH 7.0, respectively. It can be presumed that P. rhodesiae H5 hydrolyzed an organophosphate bond of parathion, forming p-nitrophenol, and then metabolized via ortho-ring cleavage mechanism.