• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.36-39
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• 2015

In June 2012 and 2013, a destructive stem rot symptoms of Ligularia fischeri occurred sporadically in Hoengseong-gun and Pyeongchang-gun Gangwon-do, Korea. The typical symptom included water-soaking on the main stem, rotting, wilting and blighting, which eventually leads to death of the plant. White mycelial mats were spread over lesions and brown sclerotia were formed on stems and near soil surface. The sclerotia were white to brown, spherical or irregular, 1-3 mm in size on potato dextrose agar (PDA), The optimum temperature range of hyphal growth was $25-30^{\circ}C$ and the hyphal diameter was $4-10{\mu}m$. The typical clamp connections were observed in the hyphae of the fungus grown on PDA. The resulting sequence of 695 bp was deposited in GenBank. A BLAST search revealed that sequences of the this isolates showed >99% identity with those of Sclerotium rolfsii. On the basis of the morphological characteristics and phylogenetic analyses of molecular markers ITS rDNA, the fungi were identified as S. rolfsii. A pathogenicity test was carried out to fulfill Koch's postulates. To our knowledge, this is the first report of S. rolfsii on Ligularia fischeri in Korea.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.29 no.12
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• pp.1947-1956
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• 2019

The gut microbiome influences the health and well-being of dogs. However, little is known about the impact of breed on the fecal microbiome composition in dogs. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the differences in the fecal microbiome in three breeds of dog fed and housed under the same conditions, namely eight Maltese (8.0 ± 0.1 years), eight Miniature Schnauzer (8.0 ± 0.0 years), and nine Poodle dogs (8.0 ± 0.0 years). Fresh fecal samples were collected from the dogs and used to extract metagenomic DNA. The composition of the fecal microbiome was evaluated by 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing on the MiSeq platform. A total of 840,501 sequences were obtained from the 25 fecal samples and classified as Firmicutes (32.3-97.3% of the total sequences), Bacteroidetes (0.1-62.6%), Actinobacteria (0.2-14.7%), Fusobacteria (0.0-5.7%), and Proteobacteria (0.0-5.1%). The relative abundance of Firmicutes was significantly lower in the Maltese dog breed than that in the other two breeds, while that of Fusobacteria was significantly higher in the Maltese than in the Miniature Schnauzer breed. At the genus level, the relative abundance of Streptococcus, Fusobacterium, Turicibacter, Succinivibrio, and Anaerobiospirillum differed significantly among the three dog breeds. These genera had no correlation with age, diet, sex, body weight, vaccination history, or parasite protection history. Within a breed, some of these genera had a correlation with at least one blood chemistry value. This study indicates that the composition of the fecal microbiome in dogs is affected by breed.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.495-499
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• 2014

Estrogens are considered the major breast cancer risk factor, and the carcinogenic potential of estrogens might be attributed to DNA modification caused by derivatives formed during metabolism. $17{\beta}$-estradiol ($E_2$), the main steroidal estrogen present in women, is metabolized via two major pathways: formation of 2-hydroxyestradiol (2-OH $E_2$) and 4-hydroxyestradiol ($4-OH\;E_2$) through the action of cytochrome P450 (CYP) 1A1 and 1B1, respectively. Previous reports suggested that $2-OH\;E_2$ has putative protective effects, while $4-OH\;E_2$ is genotoxic and has potent carcinogenic activity. Thus, the ratio of $2-OH\;E_2/4-OH\;E_2$ is a critical determinant of the toxicity of $E_2$ in mammary cells. In the present study, we investigated the effects of berberine on the expression profile of the estrogen metabolizing enzymes CYP1A1 and CYP1B1 in breast cancer MCF-7 cells. Berberine treatment produced significant induction of both forms at the level of mRNA expression, but with increased doses produced 16~ to 52~fold greater induction of CYP1A1 mRNA over CYP1B1 mRNA. Furthermore, berberine dramatically increased CYP1A1 protein levels but did not influence CYP1B1 protein levels in MCF-7 cells. In conclusion, we present the first report to show that berberine may provide protection against breast cancer by altering the ratio of CYP1A1/CYP1B1, could redirect $E_2$ metabolism in a more protective pathway in breast cancer MCF-7 cells.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.343-348
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• 2009

Magnaporthe oryzae, a major cause of rice blast, is one of the most destructive plant fungal pathogens. Secretion of reactive oxygen species (ROS) during the infection phase of plant pathogenic fungus plays a key role in the defense mechanism of a plant. ROS causes oxidative damage and functional modification to the proteins in a pathogenic fungus. Methionine, especially, is a major target of ROS, which oxidizes it to methionine sulfoxide. To survive from the attack of ROS, plant pathogenic fungus has antioxidative systems - one example would be methionine sulfoxide reductase B (MSRB), which reverses the oxidative alteration of methionine to methionine sulfoxide. In the present study, identification and molecular characterization of the MSRB gene in M. oryzae KJ201 were investigated. The MSRB gene was amplified by PCR from the M. oryzae KJ201 genomic DNA. The copy number of MSRB in the genome of M. oryzae KJ201 was identified by Southern blot analysis, which revealed that the gene exists as a single copy. To study the molecular function of an MSRB gene, the expression level of the MSRB gene was assayed with hydrogen peroxide treatment by Northern blot analysis and RT-PCR. The expression of the MSRB gene was increased by treatment of hydrogen peroxide, without significant correlation to hydrogen peroxide concentrations. These results indicate that the MSRB gene in M. oryzae KJ201 could contribute to protection against plant defense compounds such as ROS and offer a novel strategy for the control of rice blast.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.27 no.6
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• pp.708-725
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• 2017

Ionizing radiation is enough energy to interact with matter to remove orbital electrons, neutrons, and protons in the atom. Ionizing radiation like this leads to oxidizing metabolism that alter molecular structure through direct and indirect interactions of radiation with the deoxyribonucleic acid in the nucleus and cytoplasmic organelles or via products of cytoplasm radiolysis. These ionization can result in tissue damage and disruption of cellular function at the molecular level. Consequently, ionizing radiation-induced modifications of ion channels and transporters have been reported. When the harmful effects exceed those of homeostatic biochemical processes, induced biological changes persist and may be propagated to progeny cells. Also, Reactive oxygen species formed on the effect of ionizing radiation can get across into neighboring cells through the cell junctions that are responsible for intercellular chemical communication, and may there bring about changes characteristic to radiation damage. Depending on radiation dose, dose-rate and quality, these protective mechanisms may or may not be sufficient to cope with the stress. This paper briefly reviewed reports on ionization radiation effects on cellular level that support the concept of radiation biology. A better understanding of the biological effects of ionizing radiation will lead to better use of and better protection from radiation.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.209-215
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• 2005

Lactoferrin is an iron-binding glycoprotein with many biological roles, including the protection against microbial and virus infection, stimulation of the immune system. We developed the transgenic Siberian ginseng (Acanthopanax senticosus) cell cultures producing the human lactoferrin (hLf) protein following Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation. A construct containing a targeting signal peptide from tobacco endoplasmic reticulum fused to hLf cDNA under the control of an oxidative stress-inducible SWPA2 promoter was engineered. Transgenic Siberian ginseng cultured cells to produce a recombinant hLf protein were successfully generated and confirmed by PCR and Southern blot analysis. ELISA and western blot analysis showed that full length-hLf protein was synthesized in the transgenic cells. The production of hLf increased proportionally to cell growth and reached a maximal (up to 3% of total soluble proteins) at the stationary phase. These results suggest that the transgenic Siberian ginseng cultured cells in this study will be biotechnologically useful for the commercial production of medicinal plant cell cultures to produce hLf protein.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.267-273
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• 1993

We screened promoters inducible by superoxide radical from Escherichia coli. For this. we constructed random promoter library from E. coli MG 1655 using a promoter-probing plasmid. pJAC4. Six hundred and sixty clones in this library were classified based on their promoter strength by ampicillin gradient plate assay. Three hundred and eighty three clones with relatively weak to medium promoter strength were selected and then screened for their inducibility by superoxide radical on ampicillin gradient plate containing paraquat. Three clones (clones 5. 15 and 34) were detected to be induced by paraquat treatment and the level of induction were between 1.4 and 4 folds. Comparison of nucleotide sequences of the cloned promoter fragment with registered sequences in GENBANK and EMBL databases suggests that the cloned DNA fragments have not been yet characterized in E. coli. Transcription start sites in these clones were determined by rrimer extension and S I nuclease protection analysis. S 1 analysis of clones 5 and IS indicated that the mRNA levels were increased by paraquat treatment. Especially. clone 5 \vas found to have two transcription start sites. the upstream start site of which was selectively used by paraquat treatment. Searching for promoter clements. we found that only the downstream promoter of clone 5 has -10 and - 35 promoter elements recognized by RNA polymerase ($E\sigma^{70}$) and the others have no conserved promoter elements. This suggests that these superoxideinducible promoters may require transcription initiation protein(s) other than $E\sigma^{70}$.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.529-533
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• 2011

Metallothioneins (MT) are a group of low-molecular weight, cysteine-rich, intracellular proteins that are encoded by a family of genes containing at least 10 functional isoforms in human. The expression and induction of these proteins is associated with protection against DNA damage, oxidative stress, and apoptosis. Many studies have shown increased expression of MT in various human tumors, whereas MT is down-regulated in certain tumors such as hepatocellular carcinoma and liver adenocarcinoma. Hence, the expression of MT is not universal to all human tumors but may depend on the differentiation status and proliferative index of tumors, along with other tissue factors and gene mutations. Using Northern blot analysis, we found that laminin induced expression of MT-1 in HSG and PC12 cells, which can be differentiated by laminin, but had no effect on MB-231, MDA-435, and PC-3 cells, which cannot be differentiated by laminin. In addition, we analyzed the expression level of the MT-1 gene in five prostate cancer cell lines possessing different metastatic potential. The expression of MT-1 in normal and less malignant cells (RWPE-1 and WPE1-NA22) was high and up-regulated by laminin, whereas the expression of MT-1 in WPE1-NB14, WPE1-NB11, and WPE1-NB26 cells (malignant) was extremely low and not elevated by laminin. These results suggest that the MT-1 gene is involved in laminin-mediated differentiation and affects the metastatic potential of tumor cells.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.39-45
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• 2016

Pink Rot on melon and White Stain Symptom on grape are caused by Trichothecium roseum, one of the most important diseases of grape and melon. These diseases have been occurred in national-wide in Korea and causes irreversible damage on the grape and the melon at harvest season. This research presents the evaluation of the capacity of Bacillus subtillis HK2 to protect both melon and grape against T. reseum and establishes its role as a biocontrol agent. In this study, we isolated a Bacillus strain HK2 from rhizosphere soil, identified it as Bacillus subtillis by 16S rRNA analysis and demonstrated its antifungal activity against T. roseum. Under I-plate assay it was observed that the effect of hyphal growth inhibition was not due to production of volatile compounds. The optimum culture condition of HK2 was found at 30℃ and initial pH of 7.0. Application of HK2 culture suspension reduced 90.2% of white stain symptom on grape as compared to control, resulting in greater protection to grape against T. roseum infestation. Butanol extract of HK2 culture purified using flash column chromatography. The antifungal material was a polar substance as it showed antifungal activity in polar elute. Therefore, our results indicated a clear potential of B. subtilis HK2 to be used for biocontrol of Pink rot in melon and white stain symptom on grape caused by T. roseum.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.26 no.11
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• pp.1881-1890
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• 2016

Manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) is a vital enzyme that protects cells from free radicals through eliminating superoxide radicals ($O^{2-}$). Hirudin, a kind of small active peptide molecule, is one of the strongest anticoagulants that can effectively cure thrombus diseases. In this study, we fused Hirudin to the C terminus of human MnSOD with the GGGGS linker to generate a novel dual-feature fusion protein, denoted as hMnSOD-Hirudin. The hMnSOD-Hirudin gene fragment was cloned into the pET15b (SmaI, CIAP) vector, forming a recombinant pET15b-hMnSOD-Hirudin plasmid, and then was transferred into Escherichia coli strain Rosetta-gami for expression. SDS-PAGE was used to detect the fusion protein, which was expected to be about 30 kDa upon IPTG induction. Furthermore, the hMnSOD-Hirudin protein was heavily detected as a soluble form in the supernatant. The purification rate observed after Ni NTA affinity chromatography was above 95%. The hMnSOD-Hirudin protein yield reached 67.25 mg per liter of bacterial culture. The identity of the purified protein was confirmed by western blotting. The hMnSOD-Hirudin protein activity assay evinced that the antioxidation activity of the hMnSOD-Hirudin protein obtained was $2,444.0{\pm}96.0U/mg$, and the anticoagulant activity of the hMnSOD-Hirudin protein was $599.0{\pm}35.0ATU/mg$. In addition, in vitro bioactivity assay showed that the hMnSOD-Hirudin protein had no or little cytotoxicity in H9c2, HK-2, and H9 (human $CD_4{^+}$, T cell) cell lines. Transwell migration assay and invasion assay showed that the hMnSOD-Hirudin protein could suppress human lung cancer 95-D cell metastasis and invasion in vitro.