• Journal of Crop Science and Biotechnology
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.92-97
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• 2007

Antibiotics used for suppressing Agrobacterium in plant transformation procedure might have negligible effects on plant tissues and regeneration. The effects of antibiotics on growth suppression of Agrobacterium and plant regeneration were investigated for enhancing Agrobacterium-mediated transformation using wheat mature embryos. Antibiotics tested, except carbenicillin, were able to suppress that embryos were coated with a layer of Agrobacterium cells in callus induction medium. Agrobacterium growth was suppressed minimally at 50 mg/l of timentin, while cefotaxime and clavamox were completely suppressed at relative high concentration of 250 mg/l. In the treatment of carbenicillin, initiation of growth suppression of Agrobacterium occurred at 750 mg/l of concentration because Agrobacterium KYRT1 contains the carbenicillin resistant gene. In Agrobacterium inoculation, effects of antibiotics were significantly different on the rate of callus induction and shoot formation. Almost embryos were induced calli at 50 mg/l of timentin whereas callus induction rate was achieved above 90% at 100 mg/l and 250 mg/l of cefotaxime and clavamox, respectively. Shoot formation rate was higher in the treatment of timentin than that of cefotaxime and clavamox at 500 mg/l of concentration, respectively. Timentin can be used as a good antibiotics in Agrobacterium-mediated wheat transformation.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.54 no.3
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• pp.307-313
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• 2009

Mature dry seeds of Korean cultivars, Daepungkong, Muhankong, Myeongjunamulkong, Somyeongkong, Sowonkong, Jinpumkong, and Pungsannamulkong were used. The influence of antibiotics on elimination of Agrobacterium growth and shoot regeneration was estimated with cotyledonary node. Cefotaxime and timentin at the concentration of 250 and 500 mg/l suppressed Agrobacterium, especially cefotaxime was an efficient antibiotic to suppress Agrobacterium in all cultivars. While carbenicillin and timentin at the concentration of 50 and 100 mg/l were not sufficient to control the development of Agrobacterium, respectively. Cefotaxime and timentin represented high shoot formation rates compared with carbenicillin. Carbenicillin at low concentrations did not effectively suppress Agrobacterium and also had no effect on shoot development. Cefotaxime at the concentration of 250 mg/l showed maximum frequency of shoot regeneration in cvs. Somyeongkong and Sowonkong. Furthermore, on medium containing cefotaxime, shoot was more quickly formed than the other antibiotics. The use of cefotaxime was very useful for elimination of Agrobacterium growth with cotyledonary node of Korean soybean cultivars.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.19 no.6
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• pp.809-817
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• 2009

The phenotypes associated with a gene function are often the best clue to its role in the plant. Transgenic plants ectopically expressing or suppressing a gene can provide useful information related to the gene function. In this study, we constructed three vectors - pFGL571, pFGL846 and pFGL847 - for the Agrobacterium-mediated ectopic expression of plant genes using pPZP211 and modified CaMV 35S, UBQ3 or UBQ10 promoters. The three vectors have several merits such as small size, high copy in bacteria, enough restriction enzyme sites in multi cloning sites and nucleotide sequence information. Analysis of transgenic plants containing GUS or sGFP reporter genes under the control of modified CaMV 35S, UBQ3 or UBQI0 promoter revealed that all of the three promoters showed high activities during most developmental stages after germination and in floral organs. Furthermore, we generated a RNAi module vector, pFGL727, to suppress plant gene expressions and confirmed that pFGL727 is useful for the suppression of a gene expression using rice transgenic plants. Taken together, our new vectors would be very useful for the ectopic expression or the suppression of plant genes.

• BMB Reports
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• v.41 no.10
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• pp.739-744
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• 2008

Turnip yellow mosaic virus (TYMV) is a positive strand RNA virus that infects mainly Cruciferae plants. In this study, the TYMV genome was modified by inserting an extra subgenomic RNA promoter and a multiple cloning site. This modified TYMV was introduced into Nicotiana benthamiana using a Agrobacterium-mediated T-DNA transfer system (agroinfiltration). When a gene encoding $\beta$-glucuronidase or green fluorescent protein was expressed using this modified TYMV as a vector, replication of the recombinant viruses, especially the virus containing $\beta$-glucuronidase gene, was severely inhibited. The suppression of replication was reduced by co-expression of viral silencing suppressor genes, such as tombusviral p19, closteroviral p21 or potyviral HC-Pro. As expected, two subgenomic RNAs were produced from the recombinant TYMV, where the larger one contained the foreign gene. An RNase protection assay revealed that the recombinant subgenomic RNA was encapsidated as efficiently as the genuine subgenomic RNA.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.331-339
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• 2009

Capsaicin is a very important secondary metabolite that is unique to Capsicum. Capsaicin biosynthesis is regulated developmentally and environmentally in the placenta of hot pepper. To investigate regulation of capsaicin biosynthesis, the promoter (1,537 bp) of pepper capsaicin synthase (CS) was fused to GUS and introduced into Arabidopsis thaliana (Col-0) via Agrobacterium tumefaciens to produce CSPRO::GUS transgenic plants. The CS was specifically expressed in the placenta tissue of immature green fruit. However, the transgenic Arabidopsis showed ectopic GUS expressions in the leaves, flowers and roots, but not in the stems. The CSPRO activity was relatively high under light conditions and was induced by both heat shock and wounding, as CS transcripts were increased by wounding. Exogenous capsaicin caused strong suppression of the CSPRO activity in transgenic Arabidopsis, as demonstrated by suppression of CS expression in the placenta after capsaicin treatment. Furthermore, the differential expression levels of Kas, Pal and pAmt, which are associated with the capsaicinoid biosynthetic pathway, were also suppressed in the placenta by capsaicin treatment. These results support that capsaicin, a feedback inhibitor, plays a pivotal role in regulating gene expression which is involved in the biosynthesis of capsaicinoids.

• Mycobiology
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• v.43 no.3
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• pp.311-318
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• 2015

Culture filtrates of six different edible mushroom species were screened for antimicrobial activity against tomato wilt bacteria Ralstonia solanacearum B3. Hericium erinaceus, Lentinula edodes (Sanjo 701), Grifola frondosa, and Hypsizygus marmoreus showed antibacterial activity against the bacteria. Water, n-butanol, and ethyl acetate extracts of spent mushroom substrate (SMS) of H. erinaceus exhibited high antibacterial activity against different phytopathogenic bacteria: Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum, Agrobacterium tumefaciens, R. solanacearum, Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae, X. campestris pv. campestris, X. axonopodis pv. vesicatoria, X. axonopodis pv. citiri, and X. axonopodis pv. glycine. Quantitative real-time PCR revealed that water extracts of SMS (WESMS) of H. erinaceus induced expressions of plant defense genes encoding ${\beta}$-1,3-glucanase (GluA) and pathogenesis-related protein-1a (PR-1a), associated with systemic acquired resistance. Furthermore, WESMS also suppressed tomato wilt disease caused by R. solanacearum by 85% in seedlings and promoted growth (height, leaf number, and fresh weight of the root and shoot) of tomato plants. These findings suggest the WESMS of H. erinaceus has the potential to suppress bacterial wilt disease of tomato through multiple effects including antibacterial activity, plant growth promotion, and defense gene induction.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Grassland and Forage Science
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2006

To develop a new variety of orchardgrass with improved digestibility, caffeic acid O-methyltransferase (Dgcomt), which is a methylation enzyme involved in the early stages of lignin biosynthesis, was isolated and characterized. Dgcomt was expressed not only in leaves but also in stems and roots. The expression levels of transcripts were high in stems and roots which are the most lignified tissues, and only moderate levels of transcripts were expressed in leaves. To develop transgenic orchardgrass plants by down-regulating the Dgcomt gene, an RNAi suppression vector with partial Dgcomt DNA fragment was constructed and transferred into the genome of orchardgrass via Agrobacterium-mediated gene transfer method. PCR and Southern blot analyses with genomic DNAs from putative transgenic plants revealed that the T-DNA region containing RNAi construct was successfully integrated into the genome of orchardgrass. Northern blot analysis revealed that the majority of the down-regulated transgenic lines showed significant reduction in Dgcomt gene expression. These RNAi transgenic orchardgrass will be useful for molecular breeding of new variety with improved digestibility by down-regulating lignin biosynthetic enzyme.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Plant Pathology Conference
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• 2003.10a
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• pp.76.1-76
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• 2003

The coat protein (CP) of Turnip crinkle virus (TCV) is organized into 3 distinct domains, R domain (RNA-binding) connected by an arm, 5 domain and P domain. We have previously shown that the CP of TCV strongly suppresses RNA silencing, and have mapped N-terminal R domain of which is also the elicitor of resistance response in the Arabidopsis ecotype Di-17 carrying the HRT resistance gene. In order to map the region in the TCV CP that is responsible for silencing suppression, a series of CP mutants were constructed, transformed into Agrobacterium, coinfiltrated either with HC-Pro (the helper component proteinase of tobacco etch potyvirus) known as a suppressor of PTGS or GFP constructs into leaves of Nicotiana benthmiana expressing GFP transgenically. In the presence of HC-Pro, all CP mutants were well protected, accumulating mutant CP mRNAs and their proteins even 5 days post-infiltration (DPI). In the presence of GFP, some mutant constructs which showed the accumulation of CP mutants and GFP mRNAs at early stage but eventually degraded at 5 DPI. Only a mutant which carrying 4 amino acid deletion of R domain was tolerable to maintain suppressing activity, suggesting that the suppressing activity is not directly related with the eliciting activity. A transient assay also revealed that the mutants synthesized their proteins, suggesting that a full length of CP sequences and its intact structure are required to stabilize CP, which suppresses the RNA silencing.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.567-573
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• 2010

To ascertain the effect of over-expressed maize calreticulin in tomato plant on tobamovirus movement in addition to validating potentiality of the gene (ZmCRT) as a means for the virus-resistance resource, four ZmCRT-expressing homozygous lines were generated from the T0 plants as using an Agrobacterium-mediated transformation, nucleic acid analyses, and a conventional breeding method. Of them, a line was subjected to the bioassay for tolerances to tobacco mosaic virus-U1 (TMV-U1) and tomato mosaic virus (ToMV) followed by RT-PCR and a chlorophyll fluorescence quenching analyses. Both transgenic plants transcribing ZmCRT and wild-type plants showed no symptom by 20 days after viruses inoculation, however the photosystem II quantum yield parameter measured from the upper leaves of ToMV-inoculated plants revealed that ZmCRT transgenic plants have higher photosynthetic ability than wild-type ones at that time, which indirectly implies that over-expressed ZmCRT product acts as a barrier to the cell-to-cell and/or systemic movement of ToMV. Moreover, ZmCRT transgenic plants showed remarkably longer shoot length than wild-type ones in 40 days after TMV-U1 or ToMV inoculation each, which might be resulted from higher photosynthetic ability during the phase not yet showing any external symptoms. Collectively, over-expressed ZmCRT protein in tomato plants is able to interrupt the systemic movement of infected TMV-U1 and ToMV even though not perfect.

• 한국균학회소식:학술대회논문집
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• 2014.10a
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• pp.9-9
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• 2014

Null mutants generated by targeted gene replacement are frequently used to reveal function of the genes in fungi. However, targeted gene deletions may be difficult to obtain or it may not be applicable, such as in the case of redundant or lethal genes. Constitutive expression system could be an alternative to avoid these difficulties and to provide new platform in fungal functional genomics research. Here we developed a novel platform for functional analysis genes in Magnaporthe oryzae by constitutive expression under a strong promoter. Employing a binary vector (pGOF1), carrying $EF1{\beta}$ promoter, we generated a total of 4,432 transformants by Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation. We have analyzed a subset of 54 transformants that have the vector inserted in the promoter region of individual genes, at distances ranging from 44 to 1,479 bp. These transformants showed increased transcript levels of the genes that are found immediately adjacent to the vector, compared to those of wild type. Ten transformants showed higher levels of expression relative to the wild type not only in mycelial stage but also during infection-related development. Two transformants that T-DNA was inserted in the promotor regions of putative lethal genes, MoRPT4 and MoDBP5, showed decreased conidiation and pathogenicity, respectively. We also characterized two transformants that T-DNA was inserted in functionally redundant genes encoding alpha-glucosidase and alpha-mannosidase. These transformants also showed decreased mycelial growth and pathogenicity, implying successful application of this platform in functional analysis of the genes. Our data also demonstrated that comparative phenotypic analysis under over-expression and suppression of gene expression could prove a highly efficient system for functional analysis of the genes. Our over-expressed transformants library would be a valuable resource for functional characterization of the redundant or lethal genes in M. oryzae and this system may be applicable in other fungi.