• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.502-510
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• 2017

This study investigated bacterial growth-inhibitory effect of 69 therapeutic herbal plants extracts on 9 bacterial strains using a disc diffusion assay. Especially, the antimicrobial activity of Psoraleae semen, which showed different activity on pathogenic Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, was evaluated by MIC (minimal inhibition concentration) and biofilm formation assay. The effect of Psoraleae semen extract on bacterial cell membranes was examined by measurement of protein leakage (optical density at 280 nm) and scanning electron microscope (SEM). No clear zone was formed on discs containing Gram-negative bacteria, but Gram-positive bacteria exhibited clear zones. The MICs of Psoraleae semen extract were $8{\mu}g/mL$ for Streptococcus mutans, and $16{\mu}g/mL$ for Enterococci and Staphylococcus aureus. In addition, biofilm formation was inhibited at concentration $8-16{\mu}g/mL$. Protein leakage values and SEM images revealed that cell membranes of Gram-positive bacteria were impaired following exposure to the extract. Further, the extract inhibited the growth of Listeria monocytogenes in sausages. These results indicate that Psoraleae semen extract could be utilized as a natural antimicrobial agent against Gram-positive bacteria.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.12 no.5
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• pp.863-870
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• 2017

With the increasing interest in using bacterial biofilms in geo-engineering practices, such as soil improvement, sealing leakage in earth structures, and hydraulic barrier installation, understanding of the contribution of bacterial biofilm formation to mechanical and hydraulic behavior of soils is important. While mechanical properties of soft gel-like biofilms need to be identified for appropriate modeling and prediction of behaviors of biofilm-associated soils, elastic properties of biofilms remain poorly understood. Therefore, this study investigated the microscale Young's modulus of biofilms produced by Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 in a liquid phase. The indentation test was performed on a biofilm sample using the atomic force microscopy (AFM) with a spherical indentor, and the force-indentation responses were obtained during approach and retraction traces. Young's modulus of biofilms was estimated to be ~33-38 kPa from these force-indentation curves and Hertzian contact theory. It appears that the AFM indentation result captures the microscale local characteristics of biofilms and its stiffness is relatively large compared to the other methods, including rheometer and hydrodynamic shear tests, which reflect the average macro-scale behaviors. While modeling of mechanical behaviors of biofilm-associated soils requires the properties of each component, the obtained results provide information on the mechanical properties of biofilms that can be considered as cementing, gluing, or filling materials in soils.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.358-376
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• 2024

Inoculation of Chinese cabbage leaves with high titer (10⁷ cfu/ml) of the non-adapted bacteria Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria (Xcv) strain Bv5-4a.1 triggered rapid leaf tissue collapses and hypersensitive cell death (HCD) at 24 h. Electrolyte leakage and lipid peroxidation markedly increased in the Xcv-inoculated leaves. Defence-related gene expressions (BrPR1, BrPR4, BrChi1, BrGST1 and BrAPX1) were preferentially activated in the Xcv-inoculated leaves. The Xcv-triggered HCD was attenuated by continuous light but accelerated by a dark environment, and the prolonged high relative humidity also alleviated the HCD. Constant dark and increased relative humidity provided favorable conditions for the Xcv bacterial growth in the leaves. Pretreated fluridone (biosynthetic inhibitor of endogenous abscisic acid [ABA]) increased the HCD in the Xcv-inoculated leaves, but exogenous ABA attenuated the HCD. The pretreated ABA also reduced the Xcv bacterial growth in the leaves. These results highlight that the onset of HCD in Chinese cabbage leaves initiated by non-adapted pathogen Xcv Bv5-4a.1 and in planta bacterial growth was differently modulated by internal and external conditional changes.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.880-888
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• 2006

Pleurocidin, an $\alpha$-helical cationic antimicrobial peptide, was isolated from skin mucosa of winter flounder (Pleuronectes americamus). It had strong antimicrobial activities against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, but had very weak hemolytic activity. The Gly$^{13,17}\rightarrow$Ala analog (pleurocidin-AA) showed similar antibacterial activities, but had dramatically increased hemolytic activity. The bacterial cell selectivity of pleurocidin was confirmed through the membrane-disrupting and membrane-binding affinities using dye leakage, tryptophan fluorescence blue shift, and tryptophan quenching experiments. However, the non-cell-selective antimicrobial peptide, pleurocidin-AA, interacts strongly with both negatively charged and zwitterionic phospholipid membranes, the latter of which are the major constituents of the outer leaflet of erythrocytes. Circular dihroism spectra showed that pleurocidin-AA has much higher contents of $\alpha$-helical conformation than pleurocidin. The tertiary structure determined by NMR spectroscopy showed that pleurocidin has a flexible. structure between the long helix from $Gly^3$ to $Gly^{17}$ and the short helix from $Gly^{17}$ to $Leu^{25}$. Cell-selective antimicrobial peptide pleurocidin interacts strongly with negatively charged phospholipid membranes, which mimic bacterial membranes. Structural flexibility between the two helices may play a key role in bacterial cell selectivity of pleurocidin.

• Restorative Dentistry and Endodontics
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.397-404
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of MTAD, EDTA and sodium hypochlorite(NaOCl) as final irrigants on coronal leakage resistance to Enterococcus faecalis. Forty extracted human maxillary molars were used in this experiment. The teeth were randomly divided into positive control group (Group 1; n = 5), negative control group (Group 2; n = 5) and three experimental groups (n = 30). In Group 3 (n = 10), the root canals were irrigated with sodium hypochlorite. In Group 4 (n = 10) and 5 (n = 10), the root canals were irrigated with sodium hypochlorite and rinsed with EDTA and MTAD, respectively. The teeth in each group were cleaned and shaped to #40 profile with .04 taper, and obturated with gutta-percha and AH-26 root canal sealer. The coronal portion of each tooth was placed in contact with inoculum of Enterococcus faecalis in Brain Heart Infusion (BHI) culture media. Each root tip was placed in a vial containing sterile culture media. The vials were placed in anaerobic chamber and observed everyday for turbidity for 180 days. Statistical analysis was performed using Fisher's Exact Test. After 180 days, Group 3, 4, and 5 showed 7, 4 and 5 leaking samples respectively. The differences in leakage resistance were not statistically significant among Group 3, 4 and 5.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.29 no.11
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• pp.1707-1716
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• 2019

The development of new antimicrobial agents is essential for the effective treatment of diseases such as sepsis. We previously developed a new short peptide, Pap12-6, using the 12 N-terminal residues of papiliocin, which showed potent and effective antimicrobial activity against multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria. Here, we investigated the antimicrobial mechanism of Pap12-6 and a newly designed peptide, Pap12-7, in which the 12^th Trp residue of Pap12-6 was replaced with Val to develop a potent peptide with high bacterial selectivity and a different antibacterial mechanism. Both peptides showed high antimicrobial activity against Gram-negative bacteria, including multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria. In addition, the two peptides showed similar anti-inflammatory activity against lipopolysaccharide-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells, but Pap12-7 showed very low toxicities against sheep red blood cells and mammalian cells compared to that showed by Pap12-6. A calcein dye leakage assay, membrane depolarization, and confocal microscopy observations revealed that the two peptides with one single amino acid change have different mechanisms of antibacterial action: Pap12-6 directly targets the bacterial cell membrane, whereas Pap12-7 appears to penetrate the bacterial cell membrane and exert its activities in the cell. The therapeutic efficacy of Pap12-7 was further examined in a mouse model of sepsis, which increased the survival rate of septic mice. For the first time, we showed that both peptides showed anti-septic activity by reducing the infiltration of neutrophils and the production of inflammatory factors. Overall, these results indicate Pap12-7 as a novel non-toxic peptide with potent antibacterial and anti-septic activities via penetrating the cell membrane.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.485-496
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• 2019

Sealing of leakage in waterfront or water-retaining structures is one of the major issues in geotechnical engineering practices. With demands for biological methods as sustainable ground improvement techniques, bioclogging, defined as the reduction in hydraulic conductivity of soils caused by microbial activities, has been considered as an alternative to the chemical grout techniques for its economic advantages and eco-friendliness of microbial by-products. This study investigated the feasibility of bioaugmentation and biostimulation methods to induce fermentation-based bioclogging effect in coarse sands. In the bioaugmentation experiments, effects of various parameters and conditions, including grain size, pH, and biogenic gas generation, on hydraulic conductivity reduction were examined through a series of column experiments while Leuconostoc mesenteroides, which produce an insoluble biopolymer called dextran, was used as the model bacteria. The column test results demonstrate that the accumulation of bacterial biopolymer can readily reduce the hydraulic conductivity by three-to-four orders of magnitudes or by 99.9-99.99% in well-controlled environments. In the biostimulation experiments, two inoculums of indigenous soil bacteria sampled from waterfront embankments were prepared and their bioclogging efficiency was examined. With one inoculum containing species capable of fermentation and biopolymer production, the hydraulic conductivity reduction by two orders of magnitude was achieved, however, no clogging was found with the other inoculum. This implies that presence of indigenous species capable of biopolymer production and their population, if any, play a key role in causing bioclogging, because of competition with other indigenous bacteria. The presented results provide fundamental insights into the bacterial biopolymer formation mechanism, its effect on soil permeability, and potential of engineering bacterial clogging in subsurface.

• Restorative Dentistry and Endodontics
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.1-13
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• 2015

Advancements in bio-ceramic technology has revolutionised endodontic material science by enhancing the treatment outcome for patients. This class of dental materials conciliates excellent biocompatibility with high osseoconductivity that render them ideal for endodontic care. Few recently introduced bio-ceramic materials have shown considerable clinical success over their early generations in terms of good handling characteristics. Calcium enriched mixture (CEM) cement, Endosequence sealer, and root repair materials, Biodentine and BioAggregate are the new classes of bio-ceramic materials. The aim of this literature review is to present investigations regarding properties and applications of CEM cement in endodontics. A review of the existing literature was performed by using electronic and hand searching methods for CEM cement from January 2006 to December 2013. CEM cement has a different chemical composition from that of mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) but has similar clinical applications. It combines the biocompatibility of MTA with more efficient characteristics, such as significantly shorter setting time, good handling characteristics, no staining of tooth and effective seal against bacterial leakage.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.19 no.12
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• pp.1590-1595
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• 2009

Alternative methods for controlling bacterial endospore contamination are desired in a range of industries and applications. Attention has recently turned to natural products, such as essential oils, which have sporicidal activity. In this study, a selection of essential oils was investigated to identify those with activity against Bacillus subtilis spores. Spores were exposed to 13 essential oils, and surviving spores were enumerated. Cardamom, tea tree, and juniper leaf oils were the most effective, reducing the number of viable spores by 3 logs at concentrations above 1%. Sporicidal activity was enhanced at high temperatures ($60^{\circ}C$) or longer exposure times (up to 1 week). Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis identified the components of the active essential oils. However, none of the major oil components exhibited equivalent activity to the whole oils. The fact that oil components, either alone or in combination, did not show the same level of sporicidal activity as the complete oils suggested that minor components may be involved, or that these act synergistically with major components. Scanning electron microscopy was used to examine spores after exposure to essential oils and suggested that leakage of spore contents was the likely mode of sporicidal action. Our data have shown that essential oils exert sporicidal activity and may be useful in applications where bacterial spore reduction is desired.

• Pediatric Infection and Vaccine
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.283-288
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• 1998

Recurrent meningitis in children is not only a potentially life threatening condition, but often involves the child in the trauma though repeated hospital admissions and multiple invasive investigations to find the underlying causes. Symptoms and signs of CSF rhinorrhea or otorrhea are infrequent in these patients and difficult to diagnose in young children. All young children treated for meningitis should then be administered an evoked potential audiometry as a post-treatment test. If sensorineural hearing loss is identified, the clinician should be alerted to the possibility of CSF leakage as the cause of the meningitis. Radiologic studies should be performed to rule out preexisting congenital, or acquired, abnormalities requiring surgical exploration. Two young children with recurrent meningitis due to a right cochlear aplasia and a cribriform plate defect caused by trauma are presented to illustrate the problems of diagnosis and management. A review of literatures will also be presented briefly.