• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Bioinformatics Conference
• /
• 2000.11a
• /
• pp.13-16
• /
• 2000

Microorganisms have been widely employed for the production of useful bioproducts including primary metabolites such as ethanol, succinic acid, acetone and butanol, secondary metabolites represented by antibiotics, proteins, polysaccharides, lipids and many others. Since these products can be obtained in small quantities under natural condition, mutation and selection processes have been employed for the improvement of strains. Recently, metabolic engineering strategies have been employed for more efficient production of these bioproducts. Metabolic engineering can be defined as purposeful modification of cellular metabolic pathways by introducing new pathways, deleting or modifying the existing pathways for the enhanced production of a desired product or modified/new product, degradation of xenobiotics, and utilization of inexpensive raw materials. Metabolic flux analysis and metabolic control analysis along with recombinant DNA techniques are three important components in designing optimized metabolic pathways, This powerful technology is being further improved by the genomics, proteomics, metabolomics and bioinformatics. Complete genome sequences are providing us with the possibility of addressing complex biological questions including metabolic control, regulation and flux. In silico analysis of microbial metabolic pathways is possible from the completed genome sequences. Transcriptome analysis by employing ONA chip allows us to examine the global pattern of gene expression at mRNA level. Two dimensional gel electrophoresis of cellular proteins can be used to examine the global proteome content, which provides us with the information on gene expression at protein level. Bioinformatics can help us to understand the results obtained with these new techniques, and further provides us with a wide range of information contained in the genome sequences. The strategies taken in our lab for the production of pharmaceutical proteins, polyhydroxyalkanoate (a family of completely biodegradable polymer), succinic acid and me chemicals by employing metabolic engineering powered by genomics, proteomics, metabolomics and bioinformatics will be presented.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
• /
• v.28 no.4
• /
• pp.364-372
• /
• 2012

Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae causing bacterial leaf blight disease in rice produces and secretes Hpa1 protein that belongs to harpin protein family. Previously it was reported that Hpa1 induced defense responses when it was produced in tobacco. In this study, we expressed hpa1 gene in rice and Arabidopsis to examine the effects of Hpa1 expression on disease resistance to both fungal and bacterial pathogens. Expression of hpa1 gene in rice enhanced disease resistance to both X. oryzae pv. oryzae and Magnaporthe grisea. Interestingly, individual transgenic rice plants could be divided into four groups, depending on responses to both pathogens. hpa1 expression in Arabidopsis also enhanced disease resistance to both Botrytis cineria and Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris. To examine genes that are up-regulated in the transgenic rice plants after inoculation with X. oryzae pv. oryzae, known defense-related genes were assessed, and also microarray analysis with the Rice 5 K DNA chip was performed. Interestingly, expression of OsACS1 gene, which was found as the gene that showed the highest induction, was induced earlier and stronger than that in the wild type plant. These results indicate that hpa1 expression in the diverse plant species, including monocot and dicot, can enhance disease resistance to both fungal and bacterial plant pathogens.

• Molecular & Cellular Toxicology
• /
• v.3 no.2
• /
• pp.137-144
• /
• 2007

The mechanism of cytotoxicity of doxifluridine, a prodrug fluorouracil (5-FU), has been ascribed to the misincorporation of fluoropyrimidine into RNA and DNA and to the inhibition of the nucleotide synthetic enzyme thymidylate synthase. Increased understanding of the mechanism of 5-FU has led to the development of strategies that increases its anticancer activity or predicts its sensitivity to patients. Using GeneChip?? Rhesus Macaque Genome arrays, we analyzed gene expression profiles of doxifluridine after two weeks repeated administration in cynomolgus monkey. Kegg pathway analysis suggested that cytoskeletal rearrangement and cell adhesion remodeling were commonly occurred in colon, jejunum, and liver. However, expression of genes encoding extracellular matrix was distinguished colon from others. In colon, COL6A2, COL18A1, ELN, and LAMA5 were over-expressed. In contrast, genes included in same category were down-regulated in jejunum and liver. Interestingly, MMP7 and TIMP1, the key enzymes responsible for ECM regulation, were overexpressed in colon. Several studies were reported that both gene reduced cell sensitivity to chemotherapy-induced apoptosis. Therefore, we suggest they have potential as target for modulation of 5-FU action. In addition, the expression of genes which have been previously known to involve in 5-FU pathway, were examined in three organs. Particularly, there were more remarkable changes in colon than in others. In colon, ECGF1, DYPD, TYMS, DHFR, FPGS, DUT, BCL2, BAX, and BAK1 except CAD were expressed in the direction that was good response to doxifluridine. These results may provide that colon is a prominent target of doxifluridine and transcriptional profiling is useful to find new targets affecting the response to the drug.

• Korean Journal of Head & Neck Oncology
• /
• v.25 no.1
• /
• pp.28-32
• /
• 2009

Background : The most frequently reported risk factors for head and neck suamous cell carcinoma are smoking and alcohol. But in a recent overview, human papilloma virus(HPV) infection was revealed the important carcinogenic factor in oropharyngeal cancer. We aimed to clarify whether HPV directly effects on the oncogenesis and biologic behavior of hean and neck squamous cell carcinoma by comparison with infection prevalence, and physical status of virus. Material and Method : We used HPV genotyping DNA chip(Biocore, Korea, Seoul) arrayed by multiple oligonucleotide probes of L1 sequence of 26 types of HPV and HPV genotypes are identified by fluorescence scanner. The copy numbers of HPV E2 and E6 open reading frames(ORF) were assessed using a TaqMan-based 5'-exonuclease quantitative real-time PCR assay. The ratio of E2 to E6 copy numbers was calculated to determine the physical status of HPV-16 viral gene. Results : We observed a significant difference in HPV prevalence between tonsillar cancer group and control group(73.1% vs. 11.6%), and most of the HPVs were type 16(87.2%) and integrated(94.1%) state. In terms of oral tongue cancer, we demonstrate that 30.5% has integrated HPV-16 in cancer tissue. But Glottic cancer only 1% is related to HPV-16 integration. Conclusion : This study revealed significant relationship of HPV prevalence with oropharyngeal and oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma. Most of HPV were 16 type and integrated or mixed, HPV-16 integration could be directly related to the carcinogenesis.

• Genomics & Informatics
• /
• v.10 no.3
• /
• pp.145-152
• /
• 2012

Chromatin structure and dynamics that are influenced by epigenetic marks, such as histone modification and DNA methylation, play a crucial role in modulating gene transcription. To understand the relationship between histone modifications and regulatory elements in breast cancer cells, we compared our chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing (ChIP-Seq) histone modification patterns for histone H3K4me1, H3K4me3, H3K9/16ac, and H3K27me3 in MCF-7 cells with publicly available formaldehyde-assisted isolation of regulatory elements (FAIRE)-chip signals in human chromosomes 8, 11, and 12, identified by a method called FAIRE. Active regulatory elements defined by FAIRE were highly associated with active histone modifications, like H3K4me3 and H3K9/16ac, especially near transcription start sites. The H3K9/16ac-enriched genes that overlapped with FAIRE signals (FAIRE-H3K9/14ac) were moderately correlated with gene expression levels. We also identified functional sequence motifs at H3K4me1-enriched FAIRE sites upstream of putative promoters, suggesting that regulatory elements could be associated with H3K4me1 to be regarded as distal regulatory elements. Our results might provide an insight into epigenetic regulatory mechanisms explaining the association of histone modifications with open chromatin structure in breast cancer cells.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Bioinformatics Conference
• /
• 2006.02a
• /
• pp.91-96
• /
• 2006

현대의학의 발전으로 많은 질병들의 치료율이 개선되고 있으나, 암은 여전히 낮은 치료율과 약제 내성 및 부작용으로 많은 환자들이 의학적 고통 뿐 아니라 정신적, 경제적 문제점들을 호소하고있다. 이와같은 문제점은 동일한 병리학적 특성을 가지는 종양이라도 사람마다 그 생물학적 특성이 다르며, 동일한 환자안에서도 종양의 시기에 따라 다양한 특성의 세포들이 공존하며 다양한 문제를 발생하는 tumor heterogeneity에서 기인하게된다. 다행히 최근의 분자생물학의 발전과 인간유전체연구들의 활성화로 이와같은 다양한 암의 특성과 환자들의 특성을 이해하는 연구 방법들의 개발로 환자의 특성에 맞는 항암제를 효율적으로 투여하는 맞춤치료를 향한 노력을 지속하고 있다. 이와같은 맞춤치료의 일환으로 약제의 환자에서의 반응과 부작용을 예측하고자 최신의 high-throughput 기법을 도입한 것이 Pharmacogenomics이다. 즉, 지금까지의 항암치료는 암의 종류에 따라 임상연구 결과에 근거한 항암제를 선택하고 있다. 그러나 앞서 설명한 것처럼 암의 특성과 환자 반응의 다양화로 실제 항암효과는 기대에 미치지 못하여 많은 수의 환자들이 치료에 내성을 보일 뿐 아니라 치명적인 부작용으로 새로운 문제에 대면하게 되었다. 따라서 각 항암제011 최대의 효과를 보이며 최소의 부작용을 나타내는 최선의 치료책을 선정하는 것이 중요한 과제이다. 이를 위해서 암환자의 치료 단계에서 정확한 진단 및 병기 설정, 생물학적 특성 이해 뿐 아니라, 치료 반응을 예측할 수 있는 생물학적 표지자를 찾고자 하는 노력의 결과로 현재 임상에 사용되는 몇 가지 종양표지자를 포함하여 다양한 유전자 칩들이 연구단계에 있다. 특히 다양한 생물학적 현상이 많은 유전자들의 변화에 의한다는 근거하여 약제의 효과와 부작용을 예측할 수 있는 표지자 발굴도 DNA chip 등의 high-throughput technology를 사용하여 그 특이도와 민감도가 향상된 표지자 발굴이 시도되고 있다. 아직은 시작단계이고 많은 검증이 필요하나 여러 가지 가능성의 증거들로 멀지않은 시기에 맞춤치료가 가능하리라 기대하며, 암 연구에 있어서 pharmacogenomics의 현황을 소개하고자 한다.

• Biomedical Science Letters
• /
• v.22 no.3
• /
• pp.98-106
• /
• 2016

Investigation of human papillomavirus (HPV) in archival formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) material is important for understanding cervical carcinogenesis. The objective of the present study was to identify the high risk HPVs (HR-HPVs) using HPV E6/E7 mRNA testing from archival tissues in cervical cancer and the relation to HR-HPVs genotypes in paired cervical exfoliated cells. HPV E6/E7 mRNA testing and DNA chip testing were performed in 79 paired cervical FFPE tissues and exfoliated cells from women with histologically confirmed squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma. Overall agreement in HR-HPVs detection from FFPE samples and cytology samples were 98.5% in HPV 16, 100% in HPV 18, HPV 31, HPV 33, HPV 58, HPV 66, and HPV 68. Type-specific agreement between FFPE samples and cytology samples was 89.1% in HPV positive, 93.5% in HPV 16 and more than 70% in the other HR-HPVs. In conclusion, HR-HPVs were reliably detected in paired FFPE and cytology samples with some variation in type-specific detection.

• Mycobiology
• /
• v.38 no.2
• /
• pp.144-148
• /
• 2010

$\beta$-Glucans have been known to exhibit antitumor activities by potentiating host immunity by an unknown mechanism. The C-type lectin dectin-1, a $\beta$-glucan receptor, is found on the macrophage and can recognize various $\beta$-glucans. Previously, we demonstrated the presence of $\beta$-glucan receptor, dectin-1, on the Raw 264.7 cells as well as on murine mucosal organs, such as the thymus, the lung, and the spleen. In order to investigate immunopotentiation of innate immunity by $\beta$-glucan, we stimulated a murine macrophage Raw 264.7 cell line with $\beta$-glucans from Pleurotus ostreatus, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Laminaria digitata. Then, we analyzed cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-$\alpha$ and interleukin (IL)-6 by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). In addition we analyzed gene expression patterns in $\beta$-glucan-treated Raw 264.7 cells by applying total mRNA to cDNA microarray to investigate the expression of 7,000 known genes. When stimulated with $\beta$-glucans, the macrophage cells increased TNF-$\alpha$ expression. When co-stimulation of the cells with $\beta$-glucan and lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a synergy effect was observed by increased TNF-$\alpha$ expression. In IL-6 expression, any of the $\beta$-glucans tested could not induce IL-6 expression by itself. However, when co-stimulation occurred with $\beta$-glucan and LPS, the cells showed strong synergistic effects by increased IL-6 expression. Chip analysis showed that $\beta$-glucan of P. ostreatus increased gene expressions of immunomodulating gene families such as kinases, lectin associated genes and TNF-related genes in the macrophage cell line. Induction of TNF receptor expression by FACS analysis was synergized only when co-stimulated with $\beta$-glucan and LPS, not with $\beta$-glucan alone. From these data, $\beta$-glucan increased expressions of immunomodulating genes and showed synergistic effect with LPS.

• Proceedings of the KIEE Conference
• /
• 2006.07c
• /
• pp.1645-1646
• /
• 2006

Micro ElectroMechanical Systems (MEMS) 기술을 이용한 초미세 유체 제어 시스템 (마이크로 펌프, 마이크로 밸브, 마이크로 채널, 마이크로 믹서 등)은 화학, 생명분야의 DNA 분석, 항원-항체 분석, 질병의 진단 등에 사용되는 lab-on-a-chip, micro total analysis system ($\mu$-TAS) 등에서 화학 및 바이오 유체를 제어하는 분석 시스템의 일부분으로서 사용되며 필수적으로 요구된다. 본 논문에서는 이러한 microchip을 구현하기 위해 초미세 유체 제어 소자인 마이크로 펌프와 밸브를 같은 기관 위에 polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)와 indium tin oxide (ITO)-Glass를 사용하여 동일한 구조로 집적 하였다. 마이크로 펌프의 pumping rate은 인가 직류 펄스 전력의 주파수와 duty 비를 변화시켜 최적화하였다. 직류 펄스 전력 500 mW를 인가하였을 때 주파수 2 Hz, duty 비 7 %에서 약 $1.05{\mu}l/min$의 최대 유량이 측정되었다. 마이크로 밸브는 ITO 히터에 전력을 인가함으로서 유량의 on/off 제어가 잘 됨을 확인할 수 있었고 유체를 closing하기 위해 필요한 전력은 약 300 mW이다.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
• /
• v.10 no.5
• /
• pp.263-271
• /
• 2006

Since astrocytes were shown to play a central role in maintaining neuronal viability both under normal conditions and during stress such as ischemia, studies of the astrocytic response to stress are essential to understand many types of brain pathology. The micro array system permitted screening of large numbers of genes in biological or pathological processes. Therefore, the gene expression patterns in the in vitro model of astrocytes following exposure to oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD) were evaluated by using the micro array analysis. Primary astrocytic cultures were prepared from postnatal Swiss Webster mice. The cells were exposed to OGD for 4 hrs at $37^{\circ}C$ prior to cell harvesting. From the cultured cells, we isolated mRNA, synthesized cDNA, converted to biotinylated cRNA and then reacted with GeneChips. The data were normalized and analyzed using dChip and GenMAPP tools. After 4 hrs exposure to OGD, 4 genes were increased more than 2 folds and 51 genes were decreased more than 2 folds compared with the control condition. The data suggest that the OGD has general suppressive effect on the gene expression with the exception of some genes which are related with ischemic cell death directly or indirectly. These genes are mainly involved in apoptotic and protein translation pathways and gap junction component. These results suggest that microarray analysis of gene expression may be useful for screening novel molecular mediators of astrocyte response to ischemic injury and making profound understanding of the cellular mechanisms as a whole. Such a screening technique should provide insights into the molecular basis of brain disorders and help to identify potential targets for therapy.