• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.662-671
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• 2015

To enrich the genetic resource of microbial xylanases with high activity and stability under alkaline conditions, a xylanase gene (xynSL4) was cloned from Planococcus sp. SL4, an alkaline xylanase-producing strain isolated from the sediment of soda lake Dabusu. Deduced XynSL4 consists of a putative signal peptide of 29 residues and a catalytic domain (30-380 residues) of glycosyl hydrolase family 10, and shares the highest identity of 77% with a hypothetical protein from Planomicrobium glaciei CHR43. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that deduced XynSL4 is closely related with thermophilic and alkaline xylanases from Geobacillus and Bacillus species. The gene xynSL4 was expressed heterologously in Escherichia coli and the recombinant enzyme showed some superior properties. Purified recombinant XynSL4 (rXynSL4) was highly active and stable over the neutral and alkaline pH range from 6 to 11, with maximum activity at pH 7 and more than 60% activity at pH 11. It had an apparent temperature optimum of 70℃ and retained stable at this temperature in the presence of substrate. rXynSL4 was highly halotolerant, retaining more than 55% activity with 0.25-3.0 M NaCl and was stable at the concentration of NaCl up to 4M. The enzyme activity was significantly enhanced by β-mercaptoethanol and Ca²⁺ but strongly inhibited by heavy-metal ions and SDS. This thermophilic and alkaline- and salt-tolerant enzyme has great potential for basic research and industrial applications.

• Transactions of the Korean hydrogen and new energy society
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.507-515
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• 2015

HI decomposition reaction requires a catalyst for the efficient production of hydrogen as a key reaction for hydrogen production in sulfur-iodine thermochemical water-splitting (SI) cycle. As a catalyst used in the reaction, the performance of platinum catalyst is excellent. While, the platinum catalyst is not economical. Therefore, studies of a nickel catalyst that could replace platinum have been carried out. In this study, the characteristics of the catalytic HI decomposition on the amount of loaded nickel (Ni = 0.1, 0.5, 1, 3, 5, 10 wt%) were investigated. As the supported Ni amount increased up to 3 wt%, HI decomposition was found to increase in linear proportion. However, the conversion of $Ni/Al_2O_3$ catalyst loaded above 3 wt% was not linear. It was thought that the different HI decomposition characteristics was caused in the size and metal dispersion of Ni particles of catalyst. The physical property of catalyst before and after HI decomposition reaction was characterized by BET, chemisorption, XRD and SEM analysis.

• Transactions of the Korean hydrogen and new energy society
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.227-233
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• 2014

Simulated waste-derived synthesis gas has been tested for hydrogen production through water-gas shift (WGS) reaction over supported Cu catalysts prepared by co-precipitation method. $CeO_2$, $ZrO_2$, MgO, and $Al_2O_3$ were employed as supports for WGS reaction in this study. $Cu-CeO_2$ catalyst exhibited excellent catalytic activity as well as 100% $CO_2$ selectivity for WGS in severe conditions ($GHSV=40,206h^{-1}$ and CO concentration = 38.0%). In addition, $Cu-CeO_2$ catalyst showed stable CO conversion for 20h without detectable catalyst deactivation. The high activity and stability of $Cu-CeO_2$ catalyst are correlated to its easier reducibility, high oxygen mobility/storage capacity of $CeO_2$.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.37-43
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• 2007

A gene encoding inulin fructotransferase (di-D-fructofuranose 1,2': 2,3' dianhydride [DFA III]-producing IFTase, EC 4.2.2.18) from Bacillus sp. snu-7 was cloned. This gene was composed of a single, 1,353-bp open reading frame encoding a protein composed of a 40-amino acid signal peptide and a 410-amino acid mature protein. The deduced amino acid sequence was 98% identical to Arthrobacter globiformis C11-1 IFTase (DFA III-producing). The enzyme was successfully expressed in E. coli as a functionally active, His-tagged protein, and it was purified in a single step using immobilized metal affinity chromatography. The purified enzyme showed much higher specific activity (1,276 units/mg protein) than other DFA III-producing IFTases. The recombinant and native enzymes were optimally active in very similar pH and temperature conditions. With a 103-min half-life at $60^{\circ}C$, the recombinant enzyme was as stable as the native enzyme. Acidic residues and cysteines potentially involved in the catalytic mechanism are proposed based on an alignment with other IFTases and a DFA IIIase.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.197-208
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• 2014

A novel protease gene from Bacillus gibsonii, aprBG, was cloned, expressed in B. subtilis, and characterized. High-level expression of aprBG was achieved in the recombinant strain when a junction was present between the promoter and the target gene. The purified recombinant enzyme exhibited similar N-terminal sequences and catalytic properties to the native enzyme, including high affinity and hydrolytic efficiency toward various substrates and a superior performance when exposed to various metal ions, surfactants, oxidants, and commercial detergents. AprBG was remarkably stable in 50% organic solvents and retained 100% activity and stability in 0-4 M NaCl, which is better than the characteristics of previously reported proteases. AprBG was most closely related to the high-alkaline proteases of the subtilisin family with a 57-68% identity. The secretion and maturation mechanism of AprBG was dependent on the enzyme activity, as analyzed by site-directed mutagenesis. Thus, when taken together, the results revealed that the halo-solvent-tolerant protease AprBG displays significant activity and stability under various extreme conditions, indicating its potential for use in many biotechnology applications.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.216-225
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• 2020

An esterase gene, estA1, was cloned from Alteromonas sp. 39-G1 isolated from the Beaufort Sea. The gene is composed of 1,140 nucleotides and codes for a 41,190 Da protein containing 379 amino acids. As a result of a BLAST search, the protein sequence of esterase EstA1 was found to be identical to Alteromonas sp. esterase (GenBank: PHS53692). As far as we know, no research on this enzyme has yet been conducted. Phylogenetic analysis showed that esterase EstA1 was a member of the bacterial lipolytic enzyme family IV (hormone sensitive lipases). Two deletion mutants (Δ20 and Δ54) of the esterase EstA1 were produced in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3) cells with part of the N-terminal of the protein removed and His-tag attached to the C-terminal. These enzymes exhibited the highest activity toward p-nitrophenyl (pNP) acetate (C₂) and had little or no activity towards pNP-esters with acyl chains longer than C₆. Their optimum temperature and pH of the catalytic activity were 45℃ and pH 8.0, respectively. As the NaCl concentration increased, their enzyme activities continued to increase and the highest enzyme activities were measured in 5 M NaCl. These enzymes were found to be stable for up to 8 h in the concentration of 3-5 M NaCl. Moreover, they have been found to be stable for various metal ions, detergents and organic solvents. These salt-tolerant and chemical-resistant properties suggest that the enzyme esterase EstA1 is both academically and industrially useful.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.18 no.8
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• pp.1445-1452
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• 2008

An open reading frame (ORF) encoding a putative epoxide hydrolase (EHase) was identified by analyzing the genome sequence of Sphingophyxis alaskensis. The EHase gene (seh) was cloned and expressed in E. coli. To facilitate purification, the gene was fused in-frame to 6$\times$ histidine at the C-terminus. The recombinant EHase (rSEH) was highly soluble and could be purified to apparent homogeneity by one step of metal affinity chromatography. The purified SEH displayed hydrolyzing activities toward various epoxides such as styrene oxide, glycidyl phenyl ether, epoxyhexane, epoxybutane, epichlorohydrin, and epifluorohydrin. The optimum activity toward styrene oxide was observed at pH 6.5 and $35^{\circ}C$. The purified SEH showed a cold-adapted property, displaying more than 40% of activity at low temperature of $10^{\circ}C$ compared with the optimum activity. Despite the catalytic efficiency, the purified SEH did not hydrolyze various epoxides enantioselectively. $K_m$ and $k_{cat}$ of SEH toward (R)-styrene oxide were calculated as 4$\pm$0.3 mM and 7.42$s^{-1}$ respectively, whereas $K_m$ and $k_{cat}$ of SEH toward (S)-styrene oxide were 5.25$\pm$0.3 mM and 10.08$s^{-1}$ respectively.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.257-264
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• 2009

A $\beta$-agarase gene, agaB34, was functionally cloned from the genomic DNA of a marine bacterium, Agarivorans albus YKW-34. The open reading frame of agaB34 consisted of 1,362 bp encoding 453 amino acids. The deduced amino acid sequence, consisting of a typical N-terminal signal peptide followed by a catalytic domain of glycoside hydrolase family 16 (GH-16) and a carbohydrate-binding module (CBM), showed 37-86% identity to those of agarases belonging to family GH-16. The recombinant enzyme (rAgaB34) with a molecular mass of 49 kDa was produced extracellularly using Escherichia coli $DH5{\alpha}$ as a host. The purified rAgaB34 was a $\beta$-agarase yielding neoagarotetraose (NA4) as the main product. It acted on neoagarohexaose to produce NA4 and neoagarobiose, but it could not further degrade NA4. The maximal activity of rAgaB34 was observed at $30^{\circ}C$ and pH 7.0. It was stable over pH 5.0-9.0 and at temperatures up to $50^{\circ}C$. Its specific activity and $k_{cat}/K_m$ value for agarose were 242 U/mg and $1.7{\times}10^6/sM$, respectively. The activity of rAgaB34 was not affected by metal ions commonly existing in seawater. It was resistant to chelating reagents (EDTA, EGTA), reducing reagents (DTT, $\beta$-mercaptoethanol), and denaturing reagents (SDS and urea). The E. coli cell harboring the pUC18-derived agarase expression vector was able to efficiently excrete agarase into the culture medium. Hence, this expression system might be used to express secretory proteins.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.119-123
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• 2014

Pt has been widely used as catalyst for fuel cell and exhausted gas clean systems due to its high catalytic activity. Recently, there have been researches on fabricating composite materials of Pt as a method of reducing the amount of Pt due to its high price. One of the approaches for saving Pt used as catalyst is a core shell structure consisting of Pt layer on the core of the non-noble metal. In this study, the synthesis of Pt shell was conducted on the surface of $TiO_2$ particle, a non-noble material, by applying ultraviolet (UV) irradiation. Anatase $TiO_2$ particles with the average size of 20~30 nm were immersed in the ethanol dissolved with Pt precursor of $H_2PtCl_6{\cdot}6H_2O$ and exposed to UV irradiation with the wavelength of 365 nm. It was confirmed that Pt nano-particles were formed on the surface of $TiO_2$ particles by photochemical reduction of Pt ion from the solution. The morphology of the synthesized Pt@$TiO_2$ nano-composite was examined by TEM (Transmission Electron Microscopy).

• Journal of the Korean Applied Science and Technology
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.151-156
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• 2018

As industry and medicine developed, many people became interested in the quality of life. As the concern for health became higher, vegetarian or vegetable oils became more popular than meat. With the development of processes primarily using nickel catalysts today, the shelf life of vegetable oils has increased and mobility has become more convenient. Currently nickel catalysts for the curing of oil are dominated by foreign companies in the world market. On the other hand, the mass production technology of domestic nickel catalyst is backward, and the entire amount is imported from foreign countries. Therefore, there is a need for active research and development of a catalyst that can be commercialized in korea. In this study, nickel as a main active catalyst was used as a base for hydrogen curing reaction, and the effect of rare earth on catalytic activity was investigated. A certain amount of rare earths could induce the dispersion of nickel to increase efficiency and use as co-catalyst.