• Genomics & Informatics
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.44.1-44.9
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• 2021

Autism is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder, the prevalence of which has increased drastically in India in recent years. Neuroligin is a type I transmembrane protein that plays a crucial role in synaptogenesis. Alterations in synaptic genes are most commonly implicated in autism and other cognitive disorders. The present study investigated the neuroligin 3 gene in the Indian autistic population by sequencing and in silico pathogenicity prediction of molecular changes. In total, 108 clinically described individuals with autism were included from the North Karnataka region of India, along with 150 age-, sex-, and ethnicity-matched healthy controls. Genomic DNA was extracted from peripheral blood, and exonic regions were sequenced. The functional and structural effects of variants of the neuroligin 3 protein were predicted. One coding sequence variant (a missense variant) and four non-coding variants (two 5'-untranslated region [UTR] variants and two 3'-UTR variants) were recorded. The novel missense variant was found in 25% of the autistic population. The C/C genotype of c.551T>C was significantly more common in autistic children than in controls (p = 0.001), and a significantly increased risk of autism (24.7-fold) was associated with this genotype (p = 0.001). The missense variant showed pathogenic effects and high evolutionary conservation over the functions of the neuroligin 3 protein. In the present study, we reported a novel missense variant, V184A, which causes abnormal neuroligin 3 and was found with high frequency in the Indian autistic population. Therefore, neuroligin is a candidate gene for future molecular investigations and functional analysis in the Indian autistic population.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.285-290
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• 2011

Fusarium graminearum virus 2 (FgV2) infects Fusarium graminearum strain 98-8-60 and has at least five segments of double-stranded RNAs (dsRNAs), denoted as dsRNA-1 to dsRNA-5. In this study, the genome of FgV2 was sequenced and its phylogenetic relationship with other mycoviruses was analyzed. The lengths of FgV2 dsRNAs 1-5 ranged from 2414 to 3580 base pairs (bp). The 5' and 3' untranslated regions (UTRs) are highly conserved, and each dsRNA segment had 78-105 and 84-306 bp of 5' and 3' UTRs, respectively. Each dsRNA segment contained a single open reading frame (ORF). Computer analysis of dsRNA-1 revealed a putative open reading frame (ORF) that shows high sequence identity with an RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) containing eight conserved motifs. dsRNAs 2-5 also each contain one putative ORF coding for products of unknown function. The sequences of FgV2 dsRNA-2 and dsRNA-3 have significant sequence identity with Magnaporthe oryzae chrysovirus 1 (MoCV1) dsRNA-3 and -4, respectively. When compared to other dsRNA mycoviruses in a phylogenetic analysis of the putative RdRp protein, FgV2 was found to form a distinct virus clade with Aspergillus mycovirus 1816 and MoCV1 in the family Chrysoviridae.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Plant Pathology Conference
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• 1995.06b
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• pp.55-75
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• 1995

Induction of HMG-Co A reductase (HMGR) is essential for the biosynthesis of sesquiterpenoid phytoalexins and steroid derivatives in Solanaceous plants following wounding and pathogen infection. To better understand this complex step in stress-responsive isoprenoid synthesis, three classes of cDNAs for HMGR (hmg1, hmg2, and hmg3) were isolated from a potato tuber library. The potato cDNAs had extensive homology in open reading frames but had low homology in the 3'-untranslated regions. RNA gel blot analysis using gene-specific probes revealed that hmg1 is induced by wounding but wound induction is strongly suppressed by arachidonic acid or by inoculation with Phytophthora infestants. In contrast, hmg2 and hmg3 are slightly induced by wounding and strongly enhanced by arachidonic acid or inoculation. The induction and suppression of HMGR genes parallel the suppression of steroid and stimulation of sesquiterpenoid accumulations observed in earlier investigations. Treatment of the tuber disks with a low concentration of methyl-jasmonate doubled the wound induced accumulation of hmg1 transcripts and steroid-glycoalkaloid accumulation, but did not affect the abundance of transcripts for hmg2 or hmg3 nor induce phytoalexins. High concentration of methyl-jasmonate suppressed hmg1 mRNA and steroid-glycoalkaloid accumulation, induced hmg3 mRNA, and did not elicit phytoalexins. Lipoxygenase inhibitors suppressed the accumulation of of hmg1 transcripts and steroid-glycoalkaloids, which were restored by exogeneous methyl-jasmonate. Methyl-jasmonate applied together with arachidonic acid enhanced the elicitor induced accumulation of sesquiterpenes and sustained steroid-glycoalkaloid levels with transcript levels for the various HMGR mRNAs equal to or greater than wound-only treatment. These results domonstrate that the consequences of wound- and pathogen-responses of plants are different at the levels of gene expression and associated secondary metabolism.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.9
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• pp.5017-5021
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• 2013

Objective: MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a small class of non-coding, single-stranded RNAs with a critical role in genesis and maintenance of renal cancer mainly through binding to 3'-untranslated regions (3'UTR) of target mRNAs, which causes a block of translation and/or mRNA degradation. The aim of the present study was to investigate the potential effects of miR-122 in human renal cell carcinomas. Methods: The expression level of miR-122 was quantified by qRT-PCR. MTT, colony formation, invasion and migration assays were used to explore the potential functions of miR-122 in human renal cell carcinoma cells. Results: Cellular growth, invasion and migration in two A498 and 786-O cells were significantly increased after miR-122 transfection. Further experiments demonstrated that overexpression of miR-122 resulted in the increase of phospho-Akt (Ser473) and phospho-mTOR (Ser2448), then activation of mTOR targets, p70S6K and 4E-BP1. Conclusions: The up-regulation of miR-122 may play an important role in the progress of renal cancer through activating PI3K/Akt signal pathway and could be a potential molecular target for anti-cancer therapeutics.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.304-315
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• 2007

Fusarium graminearum causes a serious scab disease of small grains in Korea. The nucleotide sequence of the genomic RNA of a double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) virus, Fusarium graminearum virus-DK21 (FgV-DK21), from F. graminearum strain DK21, which is associated with hypovirulence in F. graminearum, was determined and compared to the genome sequences of other mycoviruses, including Cryponectria hypoviruses. The FgV-DK21 dsRNA consists of 6,624 nucleotides, excluding the 3'-terminal poly(A) tail. The viral genome has 53- and 46-nucleotide 5' and 3' untranslated regions (UTRs), respectively, and five putative open reading frames. A phylogenetic analysis of the deduced amino acid sequence of ORF1, which encodes a putative RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, and those of other mycoviruses revealed that this organism forms a distinct virus clade with other hypoviruses, and is more distantly related to other mycoviruses (3.8 to 24.0% identity). However, pairwise sequence comparisons of the nucleotide and deduced amino acid sequences of ORFs 2 through 5 revealed no close relationships to other protein sequences currently available in GenBank. Analyses of RNA accumulation by Northern blot and primer extension indicated that these putative gene products are expressed from at least two different subgenomic RNAs (sgRNAs), in contrast to the cases in other hypoviruses. This study suggests the existence of a new, as yet unassigned, genus of mycoviruses that exhibits a potex-like genome organization and sgRNA accumulation.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.212-218
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• 2012

Glycosyltransferases are enzymes (EC 2.4) that catalyze the transfer of monosaccharide moieties from activated nucleotide sugar to a glycosyl acceptor molecule which can be a carbohydrate, glycoside, oligosaccharide, or a polysaccharide. In this study, a UDP-glucosyltransferase cDNA was isolated from Brassica rapa using a rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE) and subsequently named BrUGT. It has a full-length cDNA of 1,236 bp with 119 bp 5'-untranslated region (UTR), a complete ORF of 834 bp encoding a polypeptide of 277 amino acids (31.19 kDa) and a 3'-UTR of 283 bp. BLASTX analysis hits a catalytic domain of Glycos_transf_1 super family (cl12012) that belongs to the Glycosyltransferases group 1 with tetratricopeptide (TPR) regions located between 165 to 350 bp. Expression analysis showed high mRNA transcripts in pistil, followed by petal, seed and calyx of flower. Moreover, expression analysis of BrUGT in Chinese cabbage seedlings under stresses of cold, salt, PEG, $H_2O_2$, drought and ABA showed elevated mRNA transcript. Furthermore, when BrUGT gene was transformed into rice using pUbi-1 promoter, overexpression was evident among the $T_1$ plants. This study provides insights into the function of BrUGT in plants.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.154-159
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• 2017

Objective: This study was designed to characterize the DNA polymorphisms of the melanocortin-1 receptor (MC1R) gene in indigenous Saudi Arabian sheep breeds exhibiting different color coats, along with individuals of the Sawaknee breed, an exotic sheep imported from Sudan. Methods: The complete coding region of MC1R gene including parts of 3' and 5' untranslated regions was amplified and sequenced from three the indigenous Saudi sheep; Najdi (generally black, n = 41), Naeimi (generally white with brown faces, n = 36) and Herri (generally white, n = 18), in addition to 13 Sawaknee sheep. Results: Five single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were detected in the MC1R gene: two led to nonsynonymous mutations (c.218 T>A, p.73 Met>Lys and c.361 G>A, p.121 Asp>Asn) and three led to synonymous mutations (c.429 C>T, p.143 Tyr>Tyr; c.600 T>G, p.200 Leu>Leu, and c.735 C>T, p.245 Ile>Ile). Based on these five SNPs, eight haplotypes representing MC1R $E^d$ and $E^+$ alleles were identified among the studied sheep breeds. The most common haplotype (H3) of the dominant $E^d$ allele was associated with either black or brown coat color in Najdi and Sawaknee sheep, respectively. Two other haplotypes (H6 and H7) of $E^d$ allele, with only the nonsynonymous mutation A218T, were detected for the first time in Saudi indigenous sheep. Conclusion: In addition to investigating the MC1R allelic variation in Saudi indigenous sheep populations, the present study supports the assumption that the two independent nonsynonymous Met73Lys and Asp121Asn mutations in MC1R gene are associated with black or red coat colors in sheep breeds.

• Journal of fish pathology
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.59-64
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• 2001

A complementary DNA encoding metallothionein(MT), a heavy metal-responsive protein was cloned from a cartilaginous shark species. Scyliorhinus torazame. An expressed sequence tag(EST)from the shark liver, which showed high similarity with a MT gene, was isolated and its full-length sequence(390bp)was determined. The putative shark MT cDNA sequence contained an open reading frame consisting 68 amino acids and 182bp of 3-untranslated region including the poly (A+) signal. The deduced amino acid sequence was 41-54% identical to those of other animals including mammals and fish species. Tiger shark MT cDNA showed high conservation in the Cys regions. however, peculiarly contained not only additional five amino acids just prior to the conserved beta-domain but also a Ser residue at C terminal, which has not been seen in other MT sequences.

• BMB Reports
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• v.48 no.11
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• pp.595-596
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• 2015

Skeletal muscle exhibits a loss of muscle mass and function with age. Decreased regenerative potential of muscle stem/progenitor cells is a major underlying cause of sarcopenia. We analyzed microRNAs (miRNA) that are differentially expressed in young and old myoblasts, to identify novel intrinsic factors that play a degenerative role in aged skeletal muscle. miR-431, one of decreasing miRNAs in old myoblasts, improved the myogenic differentiation when overexpressed in old myoblast, but suppressed their myogenic capability in knockdowned young myoblasts. We found that miR-431 directly binds to 3` untranslated regions (UTR) of Smad4 mRNA, and decreases its expression. Given that SMAD4 is one of the downstream effectors of TGF-β, a well-known degenerative signaling pathway in myogenesis, the decreased miR-431 in old myoblast causes SMAD4 elevation, thus resulting in defective myogenesis. Exogenous expression of miR-431 greatly improved the muscle regeneration in the cardiotoxin-injured hindlimb muscle of old mice by reducing SMAD4 levels. Since the miR-431 seed sequence is conserved in human SMAD4 3'UTR, miR-431 regulates the myogenic capacity of human skeletal myoblasts in the same manner. Our results suggest that age-associated miR-431 is required for the maintenance of the myogenic capability in myoblasts, thus underscoring its potential as a therapeutic target to slow down muscle aging.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.155-160
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• 2006

A strain of Pepper mottle virus (PepMov) was isolated from chili pepper plants in Korea. In host range study, this virus, designated PepMoV-SNU1, shared most characteristics with PepMoV isolates reported previously. Thermal inactivation point ($45^{\circ}C\;to\;75^{\circ}C$) and dilution end point ($10^{-1}\;to\;10^{-4}$) of PepMoV-SNU1 showed differences depending on the propagation hosts. Cylindrical and pinwheel-shaped inclusions were always observed in pepper leaf tissues infected with the virus alone. Unexpectedly, a special structure of pinwheel shaped inclusion surrounded with unknown small spots was also observed in the leaf section when co-infected with a strain of pepper mild mottle virus. The partial sequence of coat protein gene and 3' untranslated region of PepMoV-SNU1 showed 98% identity with those of other PepMoV isolates. A primer pair derived from 3' end of the coat protein gene and poly A tail regions were designed. Optimal detection condition of PepMoV-SNU1 by RT-PCR was tested to determine appropriate annealing temperature and additional volumes of oligo-dT (18-mer), dNTP, and Taq polymerase. Under the optimized condition, an expected 500 Up PCR-product was detected in pepper leaves infected with PepMoV-SNU1 but not in healthy plants.